Chapter 3

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Chapter 3: Which Holy Maiden Is a Useless Fool?

In the pitch-black night, the empty corridor felt especially quiet as the Demon King withdrew his hand from the wall.

"There are no traces left behind."

Lin Lin sighed. She didn’t have much hope anyway. Since that dark creature dared to offend her in Demon King Castle, it surely had a way to escape safely.

"Are you very scared?" The Demon King turned around to face Lin Lin, "Can you sleep with me?"

The Demon King himself was not familiar with the feeling of fear, but he learned from the wise Dragon race that humans are very fragile beings and need to be treated with care.

The Dragon race was just mentioned in passing, yet the Demon King found it very interesting and took it seriously. He had never paid close attention to a life before.

Thinking of this, the demon with violet eyes carefully looked at the much smaller human, as if examining a delicate flower bud.

The fragile human, already categorized as a protected being, was completely unaware.

Lin Lin yawned, "No, sleeping too close to my boss will give me nightmares."

Knowing she could not fight against any creature in this castle, Lin Lin felt a sense of relaxation, as if she had given up. Be tense when it’s time to be tense, and let go when it’s time to let go.

The Demon King’s eyes curved with a smile, "How was your dinner tonight?"

Clearly not good, as Lin Lin recalled the pain of swallowing dry millet and pouted.

The Demon King reached out to her, and Lin Lin opened her palm. The young man’s long fingers gently tapped her hand, and in Lin Lin’s palm lay five shiny gold coins.

It was Lin Lin’s first time touching the currency of this world, and she couldn’t help but gently rub the uneven patterns on the coins. They had beautiful flower designs.

Noticing Lin Lin’s small movement, the Demon King lifted the corner of his mouth.

"This is an early paycheck. Tomorrow, go find something you like to eat," the Demon King said, "You should be happier before you work."

[You should be a little bit happier.]

You are the Demon King! How can you say something so angelic?

Lin Lin looked up, feeling a bit cautious, "You’re not going to give me some terrible extra work, are you?"

The boss’s kindness is like a candy-coated bomb, and Lin Lin, a seasoned worker, felt half her sleepiness vanish out of fear.

The Demon King was silent for two seconds.

The Demon King said, "You don’t have to work tomorrow, so I will give you a day off."

Lin Lin sighed with relief and patted her chest, "Of course, that’s fine."

The boss’s tone felt just right; she felt at ease, and the money was secure.

A wild boar cannot eat small grains.

–

In the spacious bedroom, sunlight seeped through the curtains, shining on the pure black bed.

This was the brightest bedroom in the entire Demon King Castle, given to the fragile humans who needed protection.

There was a regular knock on the door three times. A pale arm stretched out from the covers; Lin Lin tried twice before she successfully pulled her head off the pillow.

After quickly washing her face, Lin Lin sleepily opened the door and saw a young man standing outside.

Lin Lin remembered what the Demon King said yesterday, that someone would take her out to find food that humans could eat.

Dark Elf Felix.

Lin Lin had once naively asked, "How will I know him?"

The Demon King’s answer was very simple, "Black."

Lin Lin had also guessed that it might be an elf with black hair.

Now that she truly saw this Dark Elf, Lin Lin realized that the Demon King’s words "black" were indeed very fitting.

The tall Dark Elf stood coldly at the door, arms crossed, with dark skin. Though he had the handsome face and graceful figure of an elf, no one would mistake him for anything but a dark creature.

The young man wore a cloak that covered most of his face, letting a few strands of silky silver hair peek out from under the hood.

Unlike the very tall Demon King and Dragon race, the Dark Elf was closer in build to tall humans, and Lin Lin looked up at him. From Lin Lin’s view, she could see the Dark Elf’s ice-like silver eyes and long eyelashes of the same color.

Felix allowed Lin Lin to look at him. He was very familiar with this kind of gaze.

Unlike the "Demon King baby" who grew up obediently in a castle, Dark Elf Felix was born in the turbulent and dangerous Spider Forest.

After escaping from his family, Felix became a dangerous assassin who moved along the edges of various groups. Dark Elves are naturally skilled at these dirty tricks, which makes humans both afraid and in awe of him.

They worried that they might anger the strange-tempered Dark Elf with a single word, while hoping that their enemies would foolishly provoke such a troublesome monster.

So, when the stealthy Dark Elf did not hide himself particularly well, he could always feel the secret glances around him.

Felix knew that Lin Lin’s curious gaze had swept over his chin and the pointed ears adorned with mithril earrings.

He felt a bit annoyed. Because the one looking at him was a human woman.

The Dark Elves are a race that respects women, and Felix was taught in his youth that even if a woman harmed others, it was a blessing, until he personally killed his own clan leader.

In Felix’s wandering life, he discovered that humans are different from Dark Elves.

Women among humans are often seen as weaker beings. According to the beliefs that hold Dark Elves as the strong, women among humans are the ones with a lower status.

Now, due to the Demon King’s command, he must be looked at and ordered by weak human women, as if he has returned to the days of being insulted and tortured by female Dark Elves in his youth.

Felix felt a subtle, offended, and unpleasant sensation.

Everything about the Dark Elves is very restrained, but the human women who troubled him remain completely unaware of it.

Lin Lin felt a bit embarrassed about waking up late, "Can you wait for me a few minutes? I need to change my clothes."

The elf under the cloak nodded gently.

Lin Lin closed the door again and hurried to the wardrobe.

The thick and spacious wardrobe opened to reveal a jumble of dresses inside.

The dresses inside are all in line with the taste of Your Majesty the Demon King, with various extravagant and complicated gowns taking up a lot of space. Lin Lin struggled to pull out a simpler and fresher white long dress from within.

When Lin Lin pushed the door open again, the people outside still stood in the same position.

Lin Lin wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but she felt the Dark Elf’s gaze sweep over her exposed arms.

In contrast to the Dark Elf who was covered tightly, Lin Lin wore a short-sleeved dress that showed her soft, pale arms that lacked exercise.

Lin Lin felt that standing next to Felix made her look even paler. The Dark Elf was truly a rare item that made one look fairer.

Lin Lin said, "Let’s go."

Felix nodded and followed behind Lin Lin. This was a habit from his youth of not walking in front of women and also a trait of a killer hiding in the shadows.

This behavior made Lin Lin curious, "Aren’t you supposed to lead the way?"

Felix paused, slowly taking a step forward, standing alongside her. This was his limit.

Lin Lin wondered what his caution was based on and started to make small talk.

"Did you have any conflicts with humans before?" Lin Lin tried to show kindness.

The Dark Elf shook his head, "I have no conflicts with humans, I have only killed some people."

Oh.

Oh.

Lin Lin felt enlightened.

Well, thanks for his honesty. She really did not want to talk anymore.

Since arriving in this world, Lin Lin had never truly left the castle, and standing in the sunlight again made her feel like she had been reborn.

It would have been better if there wasn’t a killer standing next to her.

Lin Lin stretched in the sunlight, then saw a familiar face at the door.

Aunt Ellie, who raises the Abyssal Wild Boar, waved enthusiastically at Lin Lin. She is one of the few chubby members of the demon race, and her purple skin makes her look like a plump, delicate purple sweet potato. Thinking of this, Lin Lin felt even friendlier towards Aunt Ellie.

In the Demon King Castle, the people are kind and simple. Many members of the demon race here are friendly and have no sense of boundaries.

This aunt had once sincerely shared delicious grilled Abyssal Wild Boar ribs with Lin Lin, which made her get food poisoning once again.

It can be said that the troubles Lin Lin has faced these past few days are greatly due to the Demon King and Aunt Ellie.

"Lin!" Like the Demon King, this demon race member could not pronounce Lin Lin’s name correctly, so Ellie just called her by her last name, "Are you going out?"

Lin Lin nodded her head.

Aunt Ellie cheerfully stepped closer to Lin Lin, and then she saw the dark elf who had unknowingly followed Lin Lin.

The moment Ellie saw Felix, a look of disgust appeared on her face. She frowned and said, "Why did the king let that untrustworthy wolf go out with you? He might sell you to humans!"

Sometimes, there are conflicts among the creatures of the dark races.

Just like in human villages where they say, "If you cry, the devil will take you away," the demon race also has scary legends to frighten children. But for the demon race, it’s about selling to humans.

Um, is it possible that I am human? Lin Lin felt very mixed emotions.

Lin Lin turned around and saw the Dark Elf’s silver-white eyes. Truly a treacherous wolf. How annoying, it was a bit funny, but she couldn’t laugh because the person was a killer.

Lin Lin tried to keep her expression serious, "The king’s decisions must have their reasons."

Auntie Ellie clicked her tongue, "What reason? The king never uses his brain. For two hundred years, he still has a brand-new, unopened mind."

How annoying, this was also quite funny, but the person she insulted was the Demon King. It felt wrong to laugh out loud. Lin Lin struggled to cover her mouth.

This action made Ellie nervous, "What’s wrong? Are you going to throw up again? What did you eat this time?"

Lin Lin shook her head.

Auntie Ellie sighed in relief, "You are too weak. I don’t understand why the king made a contract with you. Your soul seems worthless."

So sad!

Now the person being insulted was herself, and Lin Lin really didn’t find it funny anymore.

Lin Lin decisively said goodbye to Auntie Ellie to avoid hearing more hurtful words.

"Where are we going?" Lin Lin suddenly remembered the most important question and asked the quiet young man.

The Dark Elf raised his silver eyelashes, seemingly surprised by Lin Lin’s slowness, "The human village."

–

San Marco City, the heart of the strongest human empire, also has the largest church in the world. It is said that the God of Light once visited this city to protect it from being swallowed by darkness.

A city blessed by the God of Light, bright and clean, filled with the sweet fragrance of flowers. The streets were bustling with people, warm sunlight sprinkled on the ground, and everyone wore joyful smiles that came from the heart.

If an experienced traveler came here, they would find that there were very few different races.

Humans almost occupied ninety percent of the city. Even though there were no rare races like elves or dragons, common races like half-orcs, giants, and even dwarves were also missing. It was almost unbelievable in such a huge city.

The existence of this city seemed to prove that the God of Light once favored humans.

Today, on the tidy streets, cavalry guarded in front of the sanctuary.

The armored paladins stood in neat rows. Although they never questioned their superiors’ orders, they were puzzled by the act of closing off the sanctuary.

The sanctuary had never had a record of being closed to the public for three consecutive days.

This was enough to make some people feel uneasy.

Inside the hall, an elderly man with gray hair but a straight posture was kneeling silently in prayer before the statue.

The statue had no carved face but slightly lowered its head, compassionately "looking" at the beings it protected. Between the statue and the place of prayer flowed a faint blue shimmering light, which was the flowing "holy water."

Sunlight fell but did not shine on the old man, and once again, the high priest failed to hear the voice of the deity.

The door was gently pushed open, and the young priest stood before the great Bishop, his face pale.

The young man kept quiet, but the cold sweat on his forehead betrayed him.

"Failed again?" The old man slowly opened his eyes and stood up with the priest’s help.

A hint of shame appeared on the priest’s pale face, but he nervously voiced his thoughts, "Are there really souls from another world? We have been summoning for two weeks with no results; maybe the prophecy is wrong. There may not be a Holy Maiden at all."

The old man remained silent, so the priest added, "Who could shake the future of the God of Light? How could an ant possibly move an elephant?"

The great Bishop shook his head gently, his aged throat letting out a soft sigh, as if he was denying a younger person and reluctantly accepting reality, "Perhaps this is our fate."

The young priest pursed his lips, "I don’t quite believe that. The prophecy emphasized that we must prepare all kinds of splendid food for the Holy Maiden to win her favor. What kind of Holy Maiden is picky about food?"

Far in the countryside, Lin Lin, who was stealing sweet potatoes from a farmer’s house, sneezed and wrapped a corner of the Dark Elf’s cloak around herself.