I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

Rion crouched down, clutching her head in anguish, trying to recall the scenes flashing before her eyes, her aura gradually crumbling.

As she began to collapse, the Demon King's castle began to shake violently—the floor beneath her feet started to crack, and large chunks of building debris began to fall...

The Demon King's castle is gradually being pushed to the brink of destruction.

Your empire is crumbling.

"Rion...give up."

"..."

“Demon King, as someone who once had nothing... Alice also believes that you, like Alice... are not without anything.”

"You can't stop, or life won't change."

The 'Black Demon King' remained aloof and did not reply, but kept his gaze fixed on Alice.

And Alice... at this moment, she did not choose to 'attack', but instead came to the side of the fallen 'Black Demon King' with almost no defense, half-crouched down and hugged her.

"Alice understands... Even if everything is pitch black, as long as she holds someone's hand and they are connected by a bond, the world... will not end."

"This is the moment Alice truly transformed into a [Hero], and the truth she understood."

"If you want to be understood... try starting with 'understanding'... As the Demon King, if you can do that... you should be able to do it better than Alice, right?"

"..."

Feeling this 'unfamiliar warmth', Rion fell into complete silence.

The speed at which the Demon King's castle was 'collapsed' was still spreading—soon, the bricks and stones above Amamiya's group also began to sway precariously, and flames broke out in the hangar for some unknown reason.

The crackling sound of flames spreading gradually filled my ears, along with the joyful cheers of prisoners as they broke free of their cages.

Rion seemed to have finally come to her senses. She looked up at Amamiya, her eyes filled with an unreadable hope.

"You're a 'trickster' from a foreign land... Can I trust you?"

Amamiya smiled calmly and nodded: "It is precisely because I am a con artist who has 'reclaimed the future' more than once that I am worthy of your trust."

"I……"

‘Rumble—’

The bricks beneath her feet began to crumble, and Rion finally revealed an expression of relief that was hard to tell whether it was a cry or a laugh.

"...Never mind, I've reached the end of my rope...betrayed by everyone."

"There's no point in thinking about this anymore... However, I will return to the real world and try to think about it seriously..."

"...That should be fine, right?"

Rion seemed to sigh deeply, and finally, she put down the 'scepter' that symbolized her identity as the Demon King and tossed it to Amamiya.

"I will relinquish my power as the 'Demon King' and start everything anew..."

"Trying to trust others... heh, that's certainly an interesting option."

After a long sigh of 'relief', the figure of the 'Black Demon King' transformed into a soft ray of light, which eventually dissipated into countless scattered points of light, disappearing from the sight of the four members of the game club.

And our voices rang out (we shouted in victory)

"Took the mask off to feel free."

"Hmm... Luckily, we 'turned' the Demon King's three generals beforehand, causing the Demon King to be deserted by his followers..."

Looking up at the scattered specks of light, she breathlessly retracted her [Developer Shield] and sighed softly.

—As Momoi said.

If it weren't for the 'turning'... they would probably be facing an even more dangerous battle now, one that requires them to be constantly vigilant.

Unfortunately... the Demon King seems to be an 'unpopular' Demon King, lacking the unique charm of a villainous Demon King that makes people willing to give their lives to protect him.

At this most crucial moment, she was abandoned by everyone...

This situation is also the most crucial blow to her personally.

"That's... the [treasure] from the story..."

With shining eyes, Little Green moved closer to Amamiya, carefully examining the scepter in Amamiya's hand that shone with a strange light, seemingly irresistible and 'love to hold'.

It is said that the treasure will undergo significant changes after being brought back to the real world...

What kind of item would this 'Demon King's Scepter' become in the real world?

"This place is gradually crumbling..."

Amamiya didn't immediately show the 'treasure' to his teammates in the game club. Instead, he put it away and glanced up at the gradually crumbling hall—

'I never imagined that after Yuka, Noah, and Koyuki were [turned], they would cause such great harm to Rion...'

After expressing his feelings, Amamiya held the scepter in one hand and touched his forehead with the other, then removed the mask from his face.

"Let's go... everyone."

"Psona—Metatron!"

The archangel, radiating divine light, descended from the sky once more, landing behind Amamiya.

His silent flapping of wings shattered the large pieces that were about to fall on the heads of the group.

Then, with a wave of his hand, a miracle occurred, causing the four little ones in the game club to temporarily grow a pair of translucent, holy angel wings behind their shoulder blades.

As always, Amamiya jumped onto the archangel's shoulder and then issued the command.

"Leave here, Metatron."

The archangel, enveloped in holy light, dispelled the rolling black clouds of the Demon King's city and flew towards the sky, which had been pierced by the holy light, revealing a patch of azure blue.

With the archangels leading the way, the little angels with fluttering wings followed closely behind, stepping onto the holy staircase constructed by the archangels, and together they soared towards the clouds.

We vanished into the debris of your palace, which turned to dust.

"Now we know that life will change!"

"...The vanity of the Demon King's castle has collapsed."

What is Rion's "secret treasure" in Chapter Thirty-Three?

The Federal Student Union's office building in the suburbs of DU.

"Speaking of which... have we... truly succeeded in... 'stealing hearts'?!"

Sitting blankly on the sofa used for receiving guests in the office, Momoi finally managed to calm her wildly beating heart and the novel experience of escaping from the collapsed Demon King's castle after a long while.

I have to say, facing the terrifyingly oppressive 'Black Demon King' and defeating him... (although I didn't exert much effort myself) was truly an unforgettable experience!

After her heartbeat calmed down temporarily, Momoi immediately went to Amamiya's side, eager to see what the 'Black Demon King's' secret treasure would be—

The Demon King's Scepter, which is already incredibly magnificent in another world, must be a very... glorious and extremely useful 'special item' in the real world!

However... Momoi is destined to be greatly disappointed.

She forcefully pushed aside the yuzu and moved closer to Amamiya, where she saw the true form of the otherworldly item in Amamiya's hand that corresponded to the 'scepter'.

That was... a small card that looked 'ordinary', somewhat like a student ID.

Momoi frowned slightly and observed it carefully for a while... Then she was sure that this seemed to be a small card symbolizing the 'Student Council President of Millennium Technology Academy'.

It's not even a typical card with access permissions...

More like, it's an old, outdated card that's already been replaced?

"Is this... the student council president's access card?"

The little green fox, equally curious about the 'true appearance of the treasure,' asked suspiciously.

The small card, with the school logo of the Millennium Science Academy printed on the back and student portraits and brief identification information printed on the front, was all too familiar to them.

It's just a standard 'student ID' card—it has a certain amount of money storage capacity and is considered an essential item somewhere between an electronic magnetic card and a 'special identity document.' Holding this allows you to use most of the public facilities in Millennium Technology Academy that require authentication for free.

Of course, the 'authority and qualifications' of people such as student council presidents or club leaders may be slightly higher.

But that's about it.

"Mmm..."

Subconsciously, Midori sucked her finger, then suddenly realized that it was a little inappropriate. She paused for a moment, carefully observed Amamiya's reaction, and then casually withdrew her action.

Then, she raised her hand and asked, "Sensei... is the 'true form' of this treasure... the so-called 'source that triggers twisted desires'?"

She really wanted to ask: But why is it a student ID?

But upon closer reflection... Little Green suddenly seemed to understand.

The source of 'distorted desires,' that is, 'what makes a person make a change'...

The 'Black Demon King' must have seen something, or perhaps he became the student council president of Millennium Technology Academy... or something similar.

For this reason, she decided to embark on a path she knew was fraught with darkness...

So, it seems quite normal that the 'starting point of desire' is a symbol of the student council president's credentials...?

“This is the secret treasure of the ‘Black Demon King’.” Amamiya nodded earnestly and said, “It can also be considered the ‘starting point’ of Rion’s desires…”

Upon closer inspection, this blurry and old student ID appears to have been taken shortly after Rion entered Millennium Technology Academy—around the time she was probably still a 'first-year student'.

In her student ID photo, she looks like the current Caiyu sisters, with a kind of youthful innocence.

Or to put it another way... does it look 'young'?

For Rion now, this old student ID is clearly no longer useful...

Besides, this is a 'treasure' stolen from another world, and its actual counterpart (if any) in the real world is completely different—

Especially items with authentication effects, which are usually only usable in the other world if they are obtained from another world.

Just like the 'parchment emblem' that Amamiya previously obtained through the shadow of Himari, which can transform into a USB flash drive in the real world, it is actually impossible to read in the real world.

The reason why the Caesars Group's secret treasure - the 'Black Market Caesars Group Supreme Authority Card' - can be used is because it is not a "certificate of authentication" but something similar to a 'tiger tally'.

In other words...

Compared to the Caesar Group's special high-level access card that could "send out the entire black market," Rion's expired student ID...

Aside from being used for collection, it seems to have no other purpose.

As for selling it, it's worthless.

...Of course, if it's sold to the person in question, that's a different story.

Amamiya had a strange feeling that if she sold it to Rion, Rion would definitely buy it back no matter the cost.

At the same time, he vaguely realized that... this might be an opportunity to get closer to Rion and deepen their bond.

"The Demon King's secret treasure isn't one of those fancy-looking, highly practical treasures..."

Having gained Amamiya's approval, Momoi suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness, like 'punching cotton.' She pouted and said sullenly, "I thought we would get something super useful or super valuable..."

Her voice lowered further: "It turned out to be a student ID that looked obviously expired..."

Amamiya smiled and said nothing more.

In reality... in the world outside of Giwatos, the vast majority of the treasures of the temple masters are special items whose value is greater than their practical use.

In other words, the treasures of Kamoshida's Palace (gold medal) and Kinjo's Palace (special combination lock box) can be sold for some money...

Most of the other treasures belonging to the hall masters are 'worthless', but they are items that have absolute collectible value or other special significance to the hall masters.

"This is……"

Alice winked at Amamiya, her tone carrying a mix of reluctance to leave the journey and the happiness of a fulfilling one: "...'The gains from the journey are the most precious treasures for heroes'... It must be so."

The sense of happiness and satisfaction in her heart... and the sense of accomplishment of nurturing a 'tiny seed' into a towering tree—along with all the gains along the way, are indeed more precious treasures than any 'priced commodity' for the AI ​​girl who is 'learning about the world'.

...more precisely.

The "friends" surrounding her now are the ones who truly cannot be measured by any value...

The most precious things.

"But then again..."

Although she had already completed the 'Demon King's Castle Conquest', Momoi still had some doubts.

"Why did the 'Dark Lord' show such obvious hesitation in that final stage...?"