Aoto headed back as fast as he could, but it still took him half an hour to get back. By the time he arrived, it was already about to be evening, although the sun hadn't set yet.
"You really are looking for a beating these days!" Scarlett said, her voice slightly bored as she leaned against a wall.
"Why the fuss? I was visiting the mana cave that you have. It's your fault that you never told me about it. My curiosity took over me!" Aoto replied nonchalantly, trying to sound casual.
"Ohh, you visited it? I was trying to give you all a little surprise!" Scarlett said, a small smile playing on her lips. "How was it?" she questioned, her eyes showing genuine interest.
"Fascinating, of course. But a little too overwhelming for me. But let's talk about it later. We should go for now," Aoto added, feeling a bit rushed.
"Yes, you are right!" Scarlett nodded, her expression turning serious again.
"I have to make sure Avion doesn't know anything about the changes in me. To be honest, even I don't know all of the changes," she thought to herself, a knot of worry forming in her stomach. "Fuck whatever. Just act tough. That's all!" she thought, trying to push her anxiety away.
Scarlett turned and started walking down the long hallways, her steps echoing on the stone floor. Aoto quietly followed her from behind, his footsteps much lighter than hers.
"How long do we have to go, by the way?" Aoto asked, breaking the silence.
"There's no need to ask. We can just teleport!" Scarlett said, touching him on the shoulder.
And the next moment, a flicker of lightning echoed, and they disappeared into thin air. The next second, they were in the middle of a forest, a few hours' distance away from DreadHaven.
Scarlett looked around and saw the same small cliff and, by its side, the imposing castle with a dark demonic aura. But instead of any worry or fear, she actually felt nostalgic, remembering how she trained there for around four months.
"So creepy. Is the first demon king some kind of king of ghosts?" Aoto said, looking at the castle. His expression was the same as how an average person would react to looking at the castle for the first time—a mix of fear and awe.
"It's quite opposite. What you should worry about is Miss Lilith!" Scarlett said and started walking towards the castle, her steps confident.
Aoto followed her, being on guard just in case anything happened, his eyes scanning their surroundings.
"Old man... Old man!" Scarlett shouted, walking inside the castle without any worry.
"Wow, so big yet there's only two people who live here?" Aoto said, looking up, taking in the whole scenery. The castle was huge and empty, which made it feel even more eerie.
"Let's go to the second floor!" Scarlett said.
The castle only had two floors, but both had very big height and width with multiple rooms. They went up to the second floor and even walked out onto a balcony. There was even a large round window, big enough that two peaple could even sit down on it side by side and look at the clouds.
"The castle is still here, but I guess they aren't here!" Scarlett sighed, a feeling of disappointment washing over her.
"Bad luck. Let's just go back!" Aoto replied with a deep sigh, lowering his shoulders, feeling unmotivated.
But the moment he turned back, there was a person in front of his face, looking dead in his eyes without blinking.
"Ahhhhhhh!" Aoto shouted out of instinct and jumped back, his heart pounding in his chest.
"Ohh, Miss Lilith, thank God you are here!" Scarlett said, looking at Lilith standing there in her maid outfit and her doll-like, emotionless face.
"Lilith?", Aoto repeated, Looking at silver and red eyes and smooth white skin of lilith and specially that emotionless face.
"Lilith?" Aoto repeated, looking at her silver and red eyes, her smooth white skin, and especially that emotionless face. "Is she a vampire?" Aoto asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"Absolutely not!" Lilith replied without any emotions, her voice flat and empty.
"Where were you? We were looking for you all over the castle!" Scarlett said casually, as if it was no big deal.
"I know. We were in the basement!" Lilith replied, her face still not showing any feeling.
"Ohh yes, I forgot there was a basement!" Scarlett slapped her forehead, feeling a little silly for forgetting.
"Let's go, Master Avion is waiting!" Lilith said, turning back and walking down the stairs.
"Wow, living alone with a beautiful maid. This demon king sure is lucky!" Aoto thought to himself, a small, smirk on his face as he followed Lilith quietly.
They descended into the basement area. The walls were lined with multiple very realistic photos of beautiful women of almost every species, like they were taken from a very good camera.
Each photo was erotic and seductive, enough to put nasty thoughts in anyone's mind. Aoto raised his eyebrows looking at each of them.
"So you finally started liking men?" a voice came from the front.
Lilith stopped, and Aoto and Scarlett looked towards the sound. Avion was sitting on a chair behind a desk, having a small meal on the desk.
"No way!" Scarlett replied, making an expression like she had just eaten something bitter.
"Huh? I thought after what Feyre did, you would have started liking men!" Avion replied, a teasing glint in his eyes.
"Never—Wait a minute. How do you know about this? Don't tell me you are stalking me, you pervert!" Scarlett said, clenching her fist, her anger rising.
"Of course not. Lilith would surely have beaten me up if I did so!" Avion replied, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender.
"That's true!" Scarlett thought, releasing her fist, a small bit of relief washing over her.
At that moment, Aoto pointed at Avion, holding back his laughter. "So this half-dead old man is actually the first demon king?" he said, his voice echoing in the silent area.
"Although what you said is true, it is still an insult to my master!" Lilith said in her emotionless voice. But because of her tone, the line felt too threatening, sending a shiver down Aoto's spine.
"I'm sorry!" Aoto immediately apologized, his laughter gone, replaced by a bit of fear.
"Do you know what Feyre did to me? Or what the holy knights are planning?" Scarlett asked, getting straight to the point.
Aoto felt very confused by the situation, since he never met Feyre, and neither did Scarlett tell him anything about her.
"Have a seat first. I'm not going anywhere!" Avion said, gesturing at Lilith.
Lilith nodded and immediately brought two chairs for Scarlett and Aoto to sit on. After that, he finally spoke.
"Feyre has a unique skill, Persona Reversal. It can change the persona of any person. But you have very great resistance. Although it worked, it seems that it didn't have a full effect on you. That's why your personality from the outside doesn't seem any different!" he explained, his voice calm and wise.
"But right now, your personality is like a thin, tough outer shell. What's inside is your soft, careless, simping, and idiotic side, and it'll come out from time to time!" Avion explained as easily as he could, his eyes looking straight into Scarlett's.
Aoto also got a general idea of what was actually going on, his eyes widening in understanding.
Scarlett gulped down, her throat feeling dry, and asked, "Is there any way out of it?"
"Either you wait till she dies, or kill her yourself!" he answered, his voice flat and serious.
"Wait till she dies? She's a vampire. Living a thousand years is no problem for her!" Scarlett shouted, standing up and banging her palm on the desk, her frustration boiling over.
"You are losing your temper!" Avion added calmly, not even flinching from the loud bang.
Scarlett didn't say anything and quietly sat down, her anger slowly fading away.
"I think waiting would be the wise choice. You are not just any ordinary person, you know. She should be having an intense backlash right now. It won't be long till she die of backlash!" Avion said, his voice reassuring.
"So I have to live like this until she dies of backlash? Or somehow kill her?" Scarlett sighed in disappointment, her shoulders slumping. For some reason, she felt like laying down and being sad.
But then she shook her head, pushing the feeling away, and asked, "What about the holy knights? What are they planning?"
"I do have a general idea. Maybe they are trying to find a way to gain agelessness!" Avion said, leaning back in his chair. "Humans have short lifespans after all. Living one hundred years is close to impossible. Of course, they desire something like this!" he added, a thoughtful look on his face.
"But what does that have anything to do with me? They wanna get immortal, then be one. Why should I care?" Scarlett added in frustration, her voice sharp.
"That's what I don't know. From outside, it feels like with agelessness, they also want to conquer all the kingdoms and, if possible, get rid of all the demon kings as well!" Avion said solemnly, his voice dropping to a serious tone.
But then he exhaled deeply and put his chin on his palm while his hand rested on his knee on the desk. "But for some reason, there's more to it. That Vladimir guy seems in a rush, like he has a ticking bomb over him. Maybe you'll find it," he said, his eyes looking distant.
"So you are not gonna help?" Scarlett asked.
"Why should I? I already said that I'm retired. The DreadHaven is yours now. Train your people, be strong and alert, and nothing will ever happen to you!" Avion answered, his voice firm and final.
Scarlett's lips twitched, but for some reason, she couldn't say anything back to him. In a way, what he said was also true. After all, DreadHaven was Scarlett's territory and home. The people there were her people, so it was naturally her responsibility to protect them.
"Okay, Aoto, I'm done. Now it's your turn!" Scarlett said, turning to Aoto. The main reason why they came here was Aoto, after all.
Aoto rolled his eyes. "Well, half of my questions are already been answered!" His mission was to find and sneak around the castle and, if possible, peek inside and confirm if this was really the home of the first demon king or not. And now he saw the whole castle from inside, so his basic requirements for the mission were already done.
"But still, I would like to ask some basic questions!" Aoto said, his voice determined.
"What can you give in return?" Avion asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"Huh? What?" Aoto said in surprise, not expecting this.
"Payment. I need payment for wasting my time on you!" he said, his voice turning bored and full of ego.
"Why? You didn't ask for payment from Scarlett!" Aoto protested immediately, feeling a bit annoyed.
"Because she's very beautiful," Avion answered without any hesitation, a small smirk on his face.
Aoto's lips twitched in irritation. "This guy... for some reason, his reason feels quite valid!" he thought to himself.
Aoto took a deep breath and said, "Knowledge and wisdom. I'll give you knowledge in return that will surely satisfy you!"
"Pftt... You? A brat who didn't even hit twenty will give knowledge to me?" Avion couldn't help but chuckle, his laughter echoing in the quiet basement.
Even Scarlett felt puzzled, looking between Aoto and Avion, wondering what Aoto was planning.
But for some reason, Aoto looked very serious, his eyes not wavering.
"Okay. Ask what you wanna ask?" Avion said, his curiosity now piqued.
"So, do you have any ill intentions towards humans?" Aoto asked his first question, his voice steady.
"No!" Avion replied flatly, his answer quick and firm.
"Will you change your mind later?" Aoto asked, pressing for more.
"Not really. Unless the humans attack me first. Even then, I'll only kill the ones who attacked me. Killing all humans is a waste of time!" Avion replied, his voice practical and cold.
"Okay, lastly, can I fabricate your appearance to other humans?" Aoto said, his question a bit strange.
"Why?" Avion asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.
Aoto laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "Well... If I will say that the mighty and ancient first demon king is a half-dead old man, they'll surely think I'm crazy!" he explained, his face turning a little red.
After a short pause, Avion nodded. "You can!"
"Now, what kind of knowledge or wisdom can you provide me for those three questions?" Avion said, his eyes now fixed on Aoto, waiting for his answer.