Claudia looked around at the surrounding darkness. Beneath the mask, her expression was extremely serious.
'What… just happened?'
Who pulled her into this strange space without making a sound?
'Could it be… that crow?'
Claudia's gaze fixed once more on the jet-black crow.
But its behavior sent a chill down her spine.
Because it was quietly staring at her with its one remaining eye.
"A… one-eyed crow?"
An inexplicable sense of familiarity rose in Claudia's heart.
As if she had realized something, she suddenly froze.
Hadn't there always been a jet-black, one-eyed crow standing on Viktor's shoulder?
Anyone who knew Viktor even a little was well aware of this.
That crow always seemed to be by Viktor's side, and had even become his symbolic trademark.
But she had just seen Viktor in the palace earlier.
At that time, it seemed that this crow was not by Viktor's side.
At first, Claudia hadn't paid much attention to it. After all, she had only thought of the crow as a pet.
But now, her expression gradually grew heavy.
"A crow that can speak… so it really was you who made Viktor stronger."
Vega placed a wing against its chest like a gentleman and gave Claudia a slight bow.
"Although I would very much like you to think that way, I'm sorry, my lady, but you may have misunderstood something."
"He is my most proud partner. Even without me, he would still be that shining black star that rises as always."
Claudia struggled to stand up again, but her limbs felt weak.
Even such a simple movement nearly exhausted all of her remaining strength.
The recovery effect of the potion was ultimately far too poor.
For someone like Claudia, who had nearly reached the peak of humanity, that pale red potion could barely help her move her body a little.
And now she was facing a mysterious crow that could speak, without knowing whether it was friend or foe.
Its appearance gave Claudia an extremely strong sense of danger.
As Claudia remained on guard, the crow flapped its wings once.
A black feather slowly drifted down, landing in front of her.
Then, within the darkness, that nearly invisible black feather began to transform.
A red light flashed, and soon, a glass bottle filled with red potion was quietly placed on the ground.
The potion's color was incredibly vivid, so thick it was almost tinged with black.
Like fresh blood.
Claudia stared at the red potion at her feet, her mind blank.
'A recovery potion? But this color…'
"Drink it."
The crow's commanding voice suddenly rang out.
Claudia slowly raised her eyes toward the sound.
Within that single eye of the crow, there seemed to be a playful mockery that controlled everything.
"You have no other choice."
As the words fell, it felt as if her heart had been violently squeezed.
A sudden, oppressive tightness surged up in Claudia's chest, leaving her unable to resist.
She could only bend down, pick up the potion from the ground, and open the bottle.
She removed her mask, brought it to her lips, tilted her head back, and gulped it down.
The bright red liquid flowed down her cheeks and traced a line along her slender neck.
Very soon, something miraculous happened.
A green glow gradually emerged from Claudia's body, and she felt strength returning to her entire being.
The physical burden caused by using the blood secret technique earlier completely vanished.
She felt an unprecedented sense of pleasure and comfort.
As if even the hidden injuries she had once accumulated had been completely erased.
'What in the world is this…'
'A miracle?'
"Now, let's make a deal."
That sharp, sinister voice sounded once more from the crow's beak.
"I'm very interested in you demon hunters, so defeat it."
Before Claudia could recover from her shock, a towering demon appeared in the depths of the darkness.
Its red body emerged from the shadows, the crystalline red armor on its form once again shattered.
Countless metal fragments swirled endlessly around the demon.
The high-speed spinning shards brushed past Claudia's cheek. With just the lightest touch, they sliced her skin open, blood flowing out.
Claudia slowly lifted her head.
The crimson eye on half of her face seemed to have expanded, flashing with deep red light.
Her body entered a state of excitement, rising and falling as her breathing grew heavy.
Like a gigantic beast awakening, thunderous sounds burst from within Claudia's body again and again.
One of the seven strongest demon hunters.
How dazzling would she be when facing a primordial demon?
Vega was very interested.
Its voice continued, "If you win, I'll let you and your subordinates leave the Empire safely."
"But if you lose…"
A presence seemed to pour out from the crow's body, climbing into the sky and completely devouring the darkness.
Within the endless blackness, rolling dark clouds gathered, gray-black layers churning.
A massive single eye broke through the clouds, its vertical pupil snapping open as if it controlled everything, gazing down at the earth.
"Your entire life..."
"Will become my servant, to be driven by me at will."
———
Outside the royal capital, an endless, flat grassland swayed gently in the soft breeze.
Moonlight spread like a gauze curtain across the plains, while countless stars hung in the sky, flickering endlessly.
The appearance of a single figure shattered the original tranquility of this place.
Blue streaks descended from the sky, gathering together on the ground.
The newcomer's jet-black trench coat fluttered continuously in the air.
Viktor stood quietly in place, as if waiting for something.
Above him, Vega flapped its wings and descended.
It landed steadily on Viktor's shoulder.
With that sharp, grating crow voice, it spoke beside Viktor's ear.
"I really didn't expect the Empire's empress to be a high-ranking member of the demon hunters."
"Viktor, did you already know about this?"
Viktor strolled leisurely across the calm grassland as he replied, "The demon hunter bloodline needs to be passed on. Only after the previous demon hunter dies will it transfer to the next."
"The one who passed it on to Claudia was her father, the head of the Stock family."
Behind all this lay very, very deep reasons.
Only after speaking with the old emperor did Viktor fully piece everything together.
With his hands in his pockets, he looked up at the stars.
"Her father was accused by Empress Claudia and personally sent to the execution platform by her."
The Stock family was wiped out, leaving only Claudia, who inherited her demon-hunter father's bloodline, to leave the Empire in sorrow.
Viktor narrowed his eyes.
"But in any case, things are far more complicated than what I've said."
"Alright, but honestly, I don't really care about that."
Vega chuckled softly, then said, "But just as you planned, Viktor, I really do need these strong, sturdy demon hunters."
That's right, setting a trap.
Viktor was never worried that Kefra would suspect that there was a demon hidden in his home.
On the contrary, the actions of these demon hunters gave Viktor an even better reason to keep them.
If Liya wasn't stupid, then those demon hunters who had invaded the house were probably already signing themselves away, preparing to work for the Clivenna family for the rest of their lives.
———
Liya stood in the living room that now looked like ruins, without the slightest hint of regret on her face.
She was even calmly calculating the family's losses.
Around her, a group of demon hunters were bound by vines, standing nearby with their heads lowered.
Cocotte floated back and forth on clouds above them, watching with a supervisor's air.
Liya quickly finished calculating, then held up the bill and smiled at the demon hunters.
"The damage to the house itself is a small matter, but those gold-silk wood furnishings, antiques, collectibles, and paintings are all ruined. Their value…"
She deliberately dragged out her words, teasing their nerves.
"You need to compensate twenty million Geo."
"That's already after rounding down."
When the demon hunters heard the number, their bodies trembled violently.
A few of them immediately protested, "Those damages weren't caused by us..."
"But if it weren't for you, our home wouldn't have been destroyed. Oh right, and another thing."
Liya narrowed her eyes, folding her arms, her tone extremely dangerous.
"If you hadn't reminded me, I almost forgot."
"Sneaking into my house and knocking out my demi-human guards, leaving my defenses empty, that was also your doing, right?"
"Let's add another one million as compensation for them. No problem, right?"
Her voice was like a demon's whisper, constantly echoing in the demon hunters' ears.
No, she was even more terrifying than a demon.
At least compared to Liya, they would rather fight an actual demon.
"But… we don't have that much money…"
"That's simple."
As if she had expected this, Liya suddenly laughed and pulled out the prepared contracts in one motion.
One by one, she handed them out to the demon hunters.
They took the contracts and looked at the terms, completely stunned.
"There are twenty of you. Each of you works for my family for ten years, and you'll pay it all off."
"Oh right, during that time, none of you get any free time. Did you hear me clearly?"
The demon hunters began to tremble all over and shouted, "You... you devil! This is illegal detention!"
"Illegal detention? When you illegally crossed the border, did you ever think about the consequences?"
Liya's expression remained that same smiling look as she casually looked over the shouting demon hunters.
They grew even more frightened.
Because they were basically not citizens of the Empire to begin with.
The Empire was so powerful that it needed no other forces at all, not even any fanatical religions.
As a result, the demon hunter organization could hardly gain a foothold within the Empire.
And the Empire's laws were extremely strict. Illegal entry alone, if caught, being directly expelled was already considered lenient.
Not to mention that they had illegally entered and then caused trouble at the home of an imperial count.
If the Empire caught them, being imprisoned until death would not be surprising at all.
So they could only be forced to give in.
At that moment, a piece of wood on the ceiling began to wobble.
Creak~
A huge shaking plank fell from above, landing squarely on a perfectly intact, valuable vase in the corner of the living room.
Crash!
The vase shattered instantly from the heavy impact.
Shards from the bottle even struck the demon hunters' faces.
The demon hunters, "..."
Hearing the sound, Liya didn't even turn her head. She simply kept smiling and said lightly, "Add one more year."