Chapter 32: Aurora’s Request

“Demon King! Please wait!”

At the sound of the shout, Gabriela and the others stopped in their tracks.

Qiaolin turned around and saw the young girl named Aurora, followed by a blonde Vampire youth.

Gabriela adjusted the expression on her face.

“Is there something you need, Aurora?”

“I wanted to ask if there are any powerful Healing Mages in the Demon King’s Castle. Preferably at the Three-Crown level or higher. Recently, the magic beasts in the Celtic Forest have been rioting, causing many casualties in Lin City. Currently, I am the only Four-Crown Healing Mage there. I was hoping the Demon King’s Castle could dispatch a Healing Mage to assist with the treatment. As for the reward, we can discuss it in person.”

“Is it urgent?” the Demon King asked indifferently.

“There aren’t many fatal injuries, but I want them to recover faster. It’s more of a personal request of mine. Of course, I will cover all the compensation myself.”

“Gabriela listened carefully to Aurora’s request.”

Regarding Healing Mages, the Demon King’s Castle had many such figures, so sending a few wouldn’t be an issue.

“Are they all external injuries?”

Qiaolin asked at this moment.

“Eh? Oh… most are external injuries, with a few cases of bone fractures. There are also two or three people suspected of being poisoned. My skills are lacking, so it’s difficult for me to handle for now.”

Aurora showed a troubled expression.

Standing behind her, Lockes scrutinized the black-haired young man.

The man’s appearance was ordinary, the type that would be impossible to pick out in a crowd.

Lockes had never seen this person before, especially someone who could walk so closely with both the Demon King and the Empress.

‘Is he a member of the Demon Race? He looks exactly like a human. Furthermore, I can’t sense any magic power from him at all. He can’t possibly be an ordinary person, can he?’

“Is that so? I am also a Healing Mage. If you don’t mind, I can help,” Qiaolin said.

“Huh?”

As soon as he said this, both Gabriela and Demigra couldn’t help but let out a cry of surprise.

Seeing these two high-ranking members of the Demon Race lose their composure for a moment, Lockes also widened his eyes.

‘Who exactly is this black-haired man?’

“Ahem… Since Mr. Qiaolin has said so, let the Demon King decide everything,” Demigra said, clearing her throat.

‘Hey! Are you trying to stand out? Didn’t we agree to keep you as a secret weapon!’

Demigra glanced at Qiaolin, communicating through Telepathy.

‘I am a Healing Mage to begin with. Is there a problem?’

‘Even so…’

‘It’s fine, Demigra. Qiaolin must have his own plans.’

Gabriela joined the mental channel.

“Aurora, do you have any objections? This Mr. Qiaolin is the best Healing Mage under my command. I believe he can help you solve the problem.”

“I see… Thank you, Mr. Qiaolin, for being willing to help!”

Aurora happily bowed to the three of them and then pulled a badge out of her pocket.

“This is a Lin City Main Hall Pass Badge. With this, you can move freely through the city.”

“Thank you.”

Qiaolin took the badge, signaling that he had accepted Aurora’s request.

“Shall we go and discuss the details now?”

“No need. I will go find you tomorrow. Just pick a location.”

“Then I wouldn’t want to trouble you…”

After a brief discussion, Qiaolin agreed to meet at the East Gate of the Demon King’s Castle tomorrow morning.

Once the agreement was made, Aurora left, satisfied.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t act lightly?”

Demigra asked.

“I couldn’t help it. Who told that girl to look so pitiful?”

“Hmph!”

Upon hearing this, Gabriela’s shoulders suddenly trembled.

“You’re not joking, are you, Qiaolin…?”

“Of course I’m joking, you idiot.”

Qiaolin tapped Gabriela’s head, causing Demigra to gnash her teeth beside them.

“Don’t pat Lina’s head!”

In the distance, atop a towering roof, a black silhouette watched the three of them bickering from afar.

The girl’s deep gaze fell upon Qiaolin, and a playful smile curled at the corner of her lips.

***

The next day, Demigra arrived in person, prepared to lead the way for Qiaolin.

“I didn’t expect you to be the one to take me there. Where is Gabriela?” the man asked with a smile.

“She was busy all night and is resting now. You didn’t even go to help…”

Demigra said crossly.

She glanced sideways at Qiaolin’s face.

He seemed to have faint dark circles under his eyes, clearly having not slept well.

“You look exhausted too. Is it because you’re not used to the environment? Did you not sleep well?”

“I just had some nightmares…”

Qiaolin laughed bitterly.

“The affairs of the Demon King’s Castle always remind me of the past. Even though hundreds of years have passed, those memories are still vivid.”

Demigra opened her mouth, also thinking of something.

In that final battle—the slaughter that belonged only to the Demon King and the Hero—when the Demon King vanished into thin air, the price paid was the Saintess whom the Hero cherished most.

That night, the man’s mournful roar echoed through the entire Demon King’s Castle.

Looking at Qiaolin’s calm eyes, Demigra ultimately chose not to bring up the Saintess.

Although Gabriela was usually very close to him and Demigra herself disliked the guy, she, as the noble Crimson Empress, could not bring herself to pointlessly open someone’s old wounds.

The two stepped through a pre-set teleportation node.

On the other side of the spatial rift was the East Gate of the Demon King’s Castle.

Qiaolin immediately spotted the red-haired girl.

When Aurora’s gaze shifted over, he waved at her.

“You’ve arrived quite early, Mr. Qiaolin!”

“Oh… and Lady Demigra, good day!”

Aurora and Lockes bowed respectfully to the Crimson Empress upon seeing her.

“Since everyone is here, I’ll leave the rest to you. ‘Yawn’—” Demigra let out a yawn, the fatigue she couldn’t hide finally showing in her eyes.

It seemed she had stayed up all night with Gabriela.

“I need to get back and catch some sleep. Work hard, Mr. Qiaolin.”

With that, Demigra teleported away.

‘I really can’t do anything with that girl…’

Qiaolin thought to himself.

“Mr. Qiaolin, please come this way.”

Aurora had brought a carriage.

After the three of them boarded, they headed east.

Inside the carriage, Qiaolin was quietly watching the scenery pass by the window when Aurora’s voice suddenly came from across from him.

“May I ask what attribute of healing spells you specialize in, Mr. Qiaolin? Or what rank you have reached?”

As soon as the question was asked, Qiaolin’s eyes shifted toward her.

“Sorry, sorry! I’m not questioning your strength. You are a Healing Mage personally recommended by the Demon King, so your abilities are naturally beyond doubt. But regardless, we still need to discuss the reward seriously.”

Seeing Aurora’s sincere, cautious, and slightly timid appearance, Qiaolin realized she truly saw him as some extraordinary figure.

After all, Gabriela had bragged about him being the “best” Healing Mage under her command… wasn’t that just making trouble for him?

If he needed to prove something, Qiaolin couldn’t actually produce anything substantial.

The certificates he carried were for the most basic levels in certain fields, similar to that Preparatory Mage Badge from the Nolan Empire.

Moreover, this was within the territory of the Demon Race, so they wouldn’t necessarily recognize those certifications anyway.

“Let’s keep that a secret for now. You just want to gauge the range of the reward, right? Let’s put that aside and save the people first.”

Qiaolin’s tone was quite flat, as if he didn’t care about the compensation.

Aurora could understand if it was just because of a peculiar personality.

However, if the Demon King found out that the person she recommended received a reward that didn’t match his status, it might reflect poorly on her.

‘Just assume he is at the Five-Crown level like me,’ Lockes said to Aurora through Telepathy.

‘If he were at the King Rank, the Demon King wouldn’t be willing to let him go.’

‘That makes sense. We’ll have to go with that for now.’

Mages who specialized in healing were already very rare, and those who reached a high level of cultivation were as rare as phoenix feathers.

Whether it was Aurora or Lockes, they had never heard of a King Rank Healing Mage.