Chapter 23: Exchange of Information

After the food settled in her stomach, even though a night had passed, the feeling of fullness finally made Xing Yue feel alive again.

Xing Yue smacked her lips. She had to admit that the chefs in the Demon King Castle were truly unmatched in skill. She wondered where they had trained, to be able to make even human food so delicious.

Since Phyllis hadn't returned today, it meant the entire day was completely hers to control.

After washing up, Xing Yue left her room, leading the two goat-headed demons to the cafeteria first, then taking two portions of food to visit the Holy Maiden in the dungeon as part of her daily routine.

After signing that contract with Phyllis yesterday, the Holy Maiden's situation remained unchanged—she was still locked in the pitch-dark dungeon.

Xing Yue was torn over whether to follow Phyllis's instructions and directly interrogate her for information.

She was quite worried that once all the information the Holy Maiden knew was extracted, she would lose all value and end up being casually disposed of by Phyllis.

Even if the Holy Maiden's status was not low and she could be used as a hostage or something, what if Phyllis didn't care at all?

Previously, Xing Yue had sounded out Phyllis, who seemed to have little interest in launching a counterattack against the human kingdoms, and there seemed to be something restraining her.

So the Holy Maiden's identity was almost useless here.

What determined her life or death might only be the value of her information... oh, and perhaps Phyllis's playful desire for amusement.

However, with the two goat-headed demons following her, Xing Yue wasn't sure if they would report her movements to Phyllis. If she still got nothing out of the Holy Maiden today, Phyllis might "lower the difficulty" for her again, which would end up harming the other party.

So Xing Yue planned to casually ask a few questions while the Holy Maiden ate, just enough to get some information she could use to report back.

Inside the cell, after the guillotine had been removed, Wei Anna, though still shackled, was no longer suspended in one place and had some room to move around.

When Xing Yue entered, Wei Anna was leaning against the corner of the cell. She only reacted after hearing the noise.

The black cloth blindfold still covering her face—she didn't know if it was kept on as a deliberate decoration or if it was some kind of seal that she couldn't remove herself.

As Xing Yue approached, Wei Anna smelled that familiar scent again and immediately perked up. “Emily! Are you okay? The Demon King didn't do anything to you yesterday, did she?”

She asked anxiously and worriedly, making as if to reach out and try to touch Xing Yue's face.

Xing Yue stopped in her tracks and said softly, “I am not Emily.”

That one sentence froze the hand groping around in midair, and it finally fell limply.

“So it's the Princess of the Demon Race...”

Wei Anna's voice immediately became distant.

Xing Yue didn't mind. She came over, crouched in front of her, and took out the food she had brought. “Mm, I've brought you something to eat.”

“The Emily you mentioned must be that pink-haired girl, right? Yesterday... Phyllis entrusted her to my care.”

Wei Anna jerked her head up, staring intently in Xing Yue's direction, then visibly breathed a sigh of relief. “Yes, she is Emily.”

“If she is with Your Highness, then I can rest assured...”

Xing Yue was a little curious upon hearing this. “But I am the Demon King's daughter. Aren't you worried that she has just gone to another hell?”

Wei Anna shook her head. “I can sense that you are different from them.”

“The monsters guarding me never care whether I live or die.”

“But when you face me, you hesitate, you grieve, you empathize with my plight.”

“At least for me, in this hell, Your Highness is the only one who still has compassion.”

'The Holy Maiden thinks that highly of me?'

Xing Yue was a bit surprised, but also a little pleased.

Of course, Xing Yue didn't forget why she came.

She brought a macaron to the other's lips. “Today's prison meal is also sweets. Open wide~ ah~”

Seeing the other obediently eat it, Xing Yue handed over some juice and continued, “Since you seem very concerned about that girl, how about we exchange information?”

“...Exchange information?”

“That's right. You tell me the last time you listened to the oracle of the Light God in the church. In exchange, I can tell you the girl's current situation.”

“Your Highness, actually there's no need for such trouble. If you directly ask me, I will tell you anyway.”

“Tch... You there, you don't think I'm interrogating you, do you?”

Wei Anna was about to say no, but got her mouth stuffed with another macaron.

Xing Yue gave a light snort and continued on her own, “To be honest, that girl's condition isn't good. She was only brought back from the previous Demon King by Phyllis yesterday.”

“Even though I'm not a doctor, I can see she barely has half a life left, just barely hanging on.”

“Her mana is empty. Even though I replenished her mana yesterday, she still looks pale today, as if all her vitality has been drained away. I imagine she hasn't eaten in a long time, just like you.”

“So after I finish bringing you food, I need to go back and see if I can feed her something too.”

Hearing Xing Yue's description, Wei Anna's already meager appetite vanished. She could almost imagine Emily's miserable state.

Emily's silent behavior yesterday—she had more or less guessed that something was off about her condition, probably having suffered as much torment as herself.

Thankfully, she was still alive, and now she had been handed over to this merciful princess's care. Wei Anna could accept that arrangement.

But what truly made Wei Anna's face turn extremely ugly was a phrase that seemed to slip out carelessly from Xing Yue's mouth—“the previous Demon King.”

As the Holy Maiden of the church, she had been well-read since childhood and had seen in historical records all the Demon Kings throughout the ages, including the one before Phyllis.

Funuola, a bloody tyrant, a thorough demon.

She once led countless demons out of the Dark Domain, directly annihilating a kingdom. The humans who originally lived there were kept like livestock by her, to be slaughtered and consumed at will by the demons under her command.

Later, the human Hero appeared, leading his party, valiantly raising his sword against the monsters. Then together with the various kingdoms, they sounded the horn of counterattack, and only then did they join forces to defeat this Demon King, blasting her body into a bloody mist.

Logically, she should have died long ago!

But from what this princess said, not only was she not dead, she was alive and well?

“No way...”

Phyllis, the rising star Demon King, was already so powerful as to make one despair. If there was also a former cruel Demon King alive in the Dark Domain...

Then they had absolutely no hope of victory!