Chapter 171: Minor Complications…?

I watched Evelina run laps around the yard, her form improving with every circuit. She really was a genius; in just a short time, she had completely changed the way she moved.

I don’t think it’ll even take another hour for her to reach perfection.

Even I’m flabbergasted. Was it because she was using me as a reference, or was she just that good at understanding her own body?

Well, that’s one thing.

But there’s something else that’s been creeping me out ever since I arrived here.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching me.

Something…

CLASP!

I snapped my gaze downward and saw a demonic jaw open beneath me, a rotten hand reaching out to grab my leg.

“What?”

[Black Sun]

I focused my power into the tips of my shoes and pressed down on the portal, unleashing a powerful torrent that forced it shut.

“S-Something wrong?”

Evelina asked as she passed me on her thirteenth lap.

“It’s nothing. You’re doing great.” I smiled at her, and as soon as she went by, I glanced down again.

That was clearly… well… demonic.

Was it because I still had faint traces of chaos energy from using it so often? I no longer had the amulet or the eye. There was nothing protecting me from demonic attacks now.

This was… a side effect I hadn’t considered.

“After you’re done with thirty laps, heal yourself with [Dark Recovery]. I need to check on something!”

“H-Huh?” Evelina slowed, gaze snapping to where I was already turning away. “You’re… leaving?” She swallowed, then forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “…Fine. Sure. I’ll do it. Just don’t disappear on me.”

Evelina agreed quickly, though I could tell she found it strange—her lips pressing together like she wanted to question me but chose not to, especially with me walking off on my own. With the tracker on me now, she didn’t push; if I was going somewhere out of her sight, she’d rather not fight me on it… yet.

So my suddenly asking to leave was out of character, but it wasn’t enough to make her suspicious.

I quickly went somewhere secluded, where Evelina’s command still held, and no one could watch me.

“Beelzebub.”

[What do you want this time, mortal?]

He answered quickly—for a being of that much power to respond immediately meant he still had an interest in me, even now that I no longer had his eye.

But more importantly, what was that interest, exactly?

For now, I was guessing he knew about demons trying to interfere in my life.

I couldn’t exactly get another [Amulet of Exorcism]; there was only one in the novel. And even if there were more, I couldn’t just take one when I didn’t even know where they were.

“Demons—any way you can stop them?”

I could hear Beelzebub laugh mockingly at my question.

[Really? Do you call on me for every problem you have now? And here I thought you were competent enough not to rely on a being like me.]

“Don’t pretend you’re not interested in my soul.” I smile sarcastically. “What would happen if another demon managed to grab me before you do? I’m not as strong as I used to be, after all.”

[You…]

I can feel Beelzebub growing irritated. In all his years, he had never even considered a mortal threatening him over something so obvious.

Out of all the champions he’d ever taken an interest in, he’d never met anyone so suicidal that they’d ask him for a favour this casually.

Well… he definitely had met some like that. The problem was that they were more predictable.

With me? He wasn’t even sure if I wouldn’t let myself be taken by another demon on purpose, just to spite him.

[You’re insane. Fine, I’ll do something about it, but don’t expect the problem to be solved.]

Oh, how I love receiving nepotism from a demon prince. Life’s just easy like that.

Although judging by how he handled our previous deal…

I’ll definitely need to be more careful around him.

And I have to train my black flames to at least match my profaned attunement—or, better yet, regain it entirely.

Sooner or later, I’d need to separate ties with him and get independent.

Probably through a deal with a spirit or a fairy instead of demons. Once that’s done, I’ll do the same for Evelina—though, considering her succubus’s current power and how interested it is in her, there’s no need for that anytime soon.

“Did you miss me?” I called out as I stepped into the yard.

Evelina’s head snapped up, eyes locking onto me like she was counting every second I’d been gone. Only when she confirmed I was in one piece did she let herself sag to the ground.

And I was greeted by an incredible sight.

Evelina sank to the ground, her white, damp tunic clinging to her, the thin fabric tracing the soft lines of her body. Her black pants were just as unforgiving, the wet cloth hugging her hips and thighs, outlining her shape in a way that was impossible to ignore.

—Clear Mind—

The spell didn’t work.

Right… no more light magic.

“I take it everything went well?”

“Yeah, much better than I expected.”

Evelina hugged her legs to her chest, chin resting on her knees—not so much bored as restless, her eyes never really leaving me.

“So… what next?” she asked, like what mattered wasn’t the training itself but how long I was going to keep my distance.

Her footwork was already decent, and while I’d like to train her the way I did Vivianne, it was way too inefficient. I still needed to get stronger myself.

Maybe…

“We fight.”

“Fight?” Evelina laughed. “Already? I thought I was going to do more basic stuff before getting into that.”

“I changed my mind. Besides, you’ve never really had the chance to fight me before, have you?”

“Think you can take me on?” she asked, voice dipping into something warm and amused, like the idea of me struggling under her was a private little fantasy she’d been nursing for a while.

“Probably.”

Evelina snickered and stood up, tying her hair into a ponytail, using dark magic as the tie.

“I’m starting to miss your submissive side.” Evelina walked to the far right edge of the yard. “I think I’ll use this fight to see it again.”

I took my position at the far left, already coating myself in black flames, relying on the vague memory I had from when I was unconscious during my fight with the Shadow Society Monarch.

I still had no idea what the nature of these black flames was.

But if I wanted to know more about them, combat was the way to figure it out.

“Please do. It’s been a while since you looked at me like I was pitiful.”

I said it in a sweet tone, clearly relishing the idea. But that didn’t mean I was going to go easy on her. That was merely a bonus.

“So, what are the rules?”

“No limitations, but… you’re not allowed to just assault me from long range.”

“I can do that. I’ve been itching for a chance to fight you for a while now~.” She licked her lips. She definitely meant it—probably ever since we were still raiding the emperor’s tomb.

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