NOVPUBJust as Lord Astrophel of the Demon World was laughing,
Lanci gave him a hard elbow to the back.
Lord Astrophel didn’t even have time to be surprised at how fast this human moved; he only felt a heart-wrenching, soul-splitting pain. His entire body seemed cursed, immobilized. Then, seizing the opportunity, Nigel smacked him hard on the jaw with the hilt of his knife, instantly causing him to see stars.
At last, the swaying form of Astrophel had no chance to dodge and was hit repeatedly on the head with the back of Nigel’s knife, until his entire head was bashed into the ground, finally rendering Astrophel temporarily unconscious.
"..."
Christina and the Cat Boss, watching from a distance, couldn’t help but twitch.
That was incredibly underhanded.
This guy obviously meant to assist Nigel.
Yet he pretended as if he hadn’t lied; it was Lord Astrophel of the Demon World who had misunderstood him.
It was hard to imagine whether, once Astrophel woke up, he would forbid this brown-haired, green-eyed human from ever entering District 7 again.
"Phew, you’ve been a huge help."
With Astrophel no longer causing trouble on the battlefield, Nigel instantly subdued the Cursed Victim with the help of the butler.
Treating him the same way he had Astrophel, Nigel knocked the Cursed Victim unconscious with several blows from the back of his knife, then pulled another Magic Device chain from the inner pocket of his military uniform and bound him.
"So you’re a blunt weapon fighter?"
Lanci asked, surprised.
"This knife isn’t sharpened; it’s just heavy,"
Nigel replied as he sheathed the black blade, retrieving the red-haired girl protected by the Magic Device chain from afar.
He didn’t understand why he was responding to the words of this stranger.
Although the motives of the other party were unknown, he had been of assistance ever since he appeared, so Nigel had no reason to give him any trouble.
"Nigel, it’s me."
Lanci whispered in a different tone.
"...?"
Nigel instantly realized something, grabbing Lanci’s arm.
With his other hand gripping the chain tightly, he took both the subdued Demon Race creature and the half-dead red-haired girl to the top of a tall building.
"Lanci Welfort?"
Nigel asked, unsure as he stared at the brown-haired, green-eyed young man before him.
"Yes."
Lanci nodded, then walked to the edge of the high-rise building, watching Christina’s position on Illusion Avenue in the distance below.
Even with the Cat Boss there, he was still quite worried that an ill-intentioned enemy might approach her in the blink of an eye.
Meanwhile, Talia, using Lanci’s body, stretched her hand towards the Cursed Berserker who had collapsed on the ground.
"...Submit to me."
She murmured silently at the corner of her mouth.
The next second, the grotesque and distorted appearance of the Demon Race creature on the ground began to soften, transforming into a robust Demon man.
"Thanks."
Although it was the second time Nigel witnessed the process of this forbidden Curse being lifted, he still found it unbelievable.
And aside from Miss Tata, it turned out that Lanci could also cast a curse-breaking spell.
However, Nigel didn’t ask any further questions.
"I’m going back to report to The Senate, can you take care of this human?"
Nigel handed over another Magic Device chain to Lanci; he needed to urgently return the healed high-ranking Cursed Victim to The Senate and didn’t have time to send this human to the hospital for treatment.
"Of course, no problem."
Lanci took the chain, and when he saw that figure, he was slightly surprised.
If it weren’t for the bloodstain on her clothes turning them red, Lanci wouldn’t have noticed that her hair was naturally red.
Upon closer observation of her clothing and face, he immediately remembered the opponent he had seen in the Sacred Silvervine Coliseum the night before, that violent red-haired youth.
"Do you know her?"
Nigel asked, noticing the look in Lanci’s eyes.
"I’ve met her once, don’t worry, I’ll take good care of her,"
Lanci assured.
"Then I’m off."
Nigel bid farewell.
"Alright, don’t go alone."
Lanci cautioned.
He signaled with his hands to Nigel to keep each other in sight as they returned.
"Understood."
Nigel nodded, understanding Lanci’s intent.
Although the route back to District 6 was short, they aimed to keep each other in their sights as much as possible, lest they be stolen away by enemies in the process.
They immediately descended from the high-rise to Illusion Avenue to locate Christina, who was waiting for them, and began their journey back to the Floral City Pariel.
...
Meanwhile,
on the other deep, shadow-laden side of Poson’s Demon World, light barely sufficient to illuminate the decrepit buildings and dense shadows along the roadside.
Streetlights were sporadically placed, but most were extinguished, leaving only a few emitting a dim, flickering light.
When the wind blew, window shutters rustled gently, producing a wailing sound.
After an unknown period,
a figure emerged from a dark corner.
Under the dim streetlight, his form was indistinct, his face concealed beneath the deep brim of a hat, revealing only a cold chin and the corners of his mouth.
Shadows stretched and twisted beneath his feet, as if alive, writhing with his every move.
These shadows, under the flickering light, danced as if they were tendrils reaching towards him, or like black liquid spreading across the ground.
"Rocky McCarthy..."
"Who exactly are you..."
The voice floated from the corner of his mouth.
The first time he thought of taking action was to kidnap the young lady.
However, a gaze was immediately cast toward her from high above.
And so, he stopped from making an appearance.
The second opportunity was for him to see Nigel done for in Poson’s Demon World.
But it turned out this man didn’t completely part ways with Nigel.
