"What do we do now?"
From the city wall, Dehya watched Raiden Ei wipe out the soldiers in an instant, and her heart sank halfway.
Even if all of them attacked together, they probably wouldn't stand a chance.
Yukong understood the situation better.
No matter how many NPCs there were, they only existed to show how powerful the enemy was. If they truly wanted to fight the Demon King's army head-on, they had to rely on the Hero.
"We leave through another gate. No matter what happens, we must ensure Miss Ayaka escapes."
"Yes, yes, let's go first."
Barbara raised both hands in agreement.
In the current situation, even if they fought together they would still lose. It was better to preserve their strength.
"Alright, let's go."
Ayaka was also annoyed.
Lady Guuji clearly didn't care about her teammates at all—she had sold her out at the critical moment.
Fine, then she wouldn't play along anymore.
She was the Hero. She could travel anywhere in the world.
Yae Miko could stay here and wait for the city to fall.
As for Thoma inside the city… she could only apologize.
Without hesitation, she led her companions toward another city gate.
Luckily, the earlier explosions had wiped out many monsters. Otherwise they would have been completely surrounded.
"Oh right—if you don't want the city gate destroyed, close it quickly!"
Before leaving, Yukong shouted a reminder to the soldiers below.
The soldiers suddenly realized the situation.
The battle was clearly going badly.
Closing the gate was the safest option.
As for Yae Miko…
They could only apologize to her.
Outside the city.
While retreating step by step and trying to reason with Raiden Ei, Yae Miko suddenly saw the city gate slam shut.
She froze.
Wait a minute.
I'm still outside!
You're locking the gate already?!
Then what about me?!
"Heh. You're not escaping now, Miko."
Raiden Ei narrowed her eyes.
Today she was absolutely going to teach that fox a lesson.
Did she really think those little tricks of hers would work?
It was time to remind her—
The elder will always be the elder.
"Uh… Ei… you can't treat me like this."
"Oh? How exactly am I treating you?"
"You… you…"
"I surrender! I'll join your side!"
"Trust me, if the two of us work together, we'll definitely defeat all the Heroes!"
"You're an NPC class. You can't surrender."
One sentence blocked all of Yae Miko's escape routes.
Only now did she realize—
Her class truly couldn't join the Demon King's faction.
"Then… then… could you at least not eliminate me right now?"
So far, no one had been eliminated.
If she got eliminated first, she would have to accept the punishment.
"Don't worry. I won't eliminate you yet."
These NPC roles were still useful, so Raiden Ei had no intention of eliminating Yae Miko right now.
"Oh, really? Then go ahead."
In truth, Yae Miko was only afraid of the punishment.
If she simply lost the game, that was fine.
Raiden Ei grabbed Yae Miko by the collar and tossed her toward Kujou Sara.
"Watch her. Once I capture this city, we'll return."
"Yes, General."
Sara nodded solemnly, glancing at Yae Miko.
Just a mere NPC.
Trying to oppose the General had been foolish.
On the other side of the continent—
A small figure pulled a sword out of a monster's body and proudly lifted her chin.
"Well? What do you think?"
The two people beside her immediately praised her.
"Amazing! Hero Paimon is incredible! You can already solo slimes!"
"Of course! A slime is no match for Hero Paimon!"
Paimon nodded with satisfaction.
"You two are pretty good."
"As long as you follow this Hero, no Demon King will stand a chance."
Paimon was extremely proud.
No matter how strong everyone else was, they still had to listen to her.
She waved her hand.
"Black Swan, Ningguang, let's head to the next city."
"Once we recruit two more teammates, we can attack that Bloody Castle."
"Alright."
The two exchanged a glance and nodded.
Feeling proud, are you?
Just wait.
You'll soon see something big.
Originally, they had planned to attack villages and eliminate isolated players.
But they unexpectedly encountered the Hero—
And the Hero happened to be Paimon, someone completely lacking self-awareness.
Thus, a plan formed in Ningguang's mind.
Join Paimon.
Then go fishing.
And how would they fish?
Let Paimon recruit players.
Then lead them all straight to Silver Wolf's castle.
They were certain—
If they eliminated all of the Hero's companions first, the Hero alone would pose no threat.
Arriving at a castle city, Paimon led the group straight into the tavern.
"Wow, so many people!"
There were many players here, most gathered inside the tavern.
The moment the three of them entered, everyone's eyes lit up.
After all, only Heroes could freely travel the world.
A gray-haired girl immediately stood up and hurried over.
"Which one of you is the Hero? Recruit me! I'm really strong!"
Her eyes scanned Ningguang and Black Swan eagerly.
She clearly wanted to join.
"Hey! I'm the Hero!"
Paimon puffed up angrily.
"Paimon?"
The girl's excitement instantly faded.
Other players who had been preparing to introduce themselves quietly turned away.
Maybe they should wait for another Hero.
Seeing everyone suddenly lose interest in Paimon, Ningguang stepped forward at once.
"Everyone, this is our Hero, Lady Paimon."
"She is already level 37."
"We still have two open party slots. Anyone interested?"
"Level 37?!"
"That strong?!"
The crowd immediately became interested again.
That tiny floating creature was surprisingly powerful.
"Me!"
The gray-haired girl quickly raised her hand again.
"I'm a level 15 warrior! Definitely your best teammate!"
"Level 15?"
Standing proudly on the table, Paimon glanced at her sideways with clear disdain.
"Rejected. Next."
"Hey! You little floating thing! How dare you look down on me!"
The girl exploded with anger.
Normally she was the one rejecting others.
Now she was the one being rejected?
But Paimon pointed at Ningguang and Black Swan.
"They're level 40 mage and priest!"
"So you're not qualified!"
Although Paimon often acted silly, she had her own logic.
When forming a team, you had to recruit high-level members.
With strong teammates, things would be much easier.
Just like before—
With Ningguang and Black Swan around, she barely needed to fight.
She could simply collect experience points.
As long as she became stronger, even the Demon King wouldn't be a match for her.
Hadn't she just defeated a slime with one strike earlier?
"…Level 40?"
Everyone was stunned.
How had these two leveled up so quickly?
Keqing stepped forward and nudged Ningguang with her elbow.
"How did you level up so fast?"
"Grinding monsters."
Ningguang's gaze drifted away.
How else could she explain it?
She had started with level 80 from the beginning.
Of course these people couldn't compare.
"Then help me persuade Paimon to recruit me," Keqing whispered.
"I'm a level 21 Red Mage. I can use sword techniques and support magic."
"…Maybe you should wait for the next Hero."
Ningguang truly didn't want Keqing in the party.
She was planning to lead these recruits straight to their deaths.
Why was Keqing so eager to join?
"Fine. I'll wait."
Rejected so bluntly, Keqing returned to the crowd with a dark expression.
Just because you're higher level doesn't make you that impressive.
Following Paimon might end in disaster anyway.
From now on—
She and Ningguang were definitely not friends anymore.
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