The moment she saw the silver-haired girl wearing the pure white mask—

Yumo's entire body trembled.

An indescribable feeling of discomfort surged into her heart, causing her to clutch her chest and bite down hard on her lip.

Ever since merging with the Hall of Ten Thousand Demons, this was the first time Yumo had experienced such a sensation.

A strange feeling that made her very soul tremble.

The girl before her was only Fifth-Tier.

Yet somehow, she was giving Yumo an absurd sense of pressure.

As a result, an extremely peculiar thought emerged in Yumo's mind.

There seemed to be something inside that girl...

Something capable of threatening her.

That was the only explanation for this strange feeling.

According to the Trial Mission's description, the one destined to destroy the Hall of Ten Thousand Demons in the end was the heroine.

The key was the "Holy Attribute Power" residing within her body.

That power was the natural enemy of Abyss Demons.

The bane of Shadow of Silence Power.

A force capable of posing an enormous threat to Abyss Demons—

And to Yumo's true body.

Something capable of making her feel danger despite only being Fifth-Tier?

What else could it be besides that Holy Attribute Power?

Furthermore, this girl's affinity with Holy Energy was unprecedented.

Far greater than any follower of the Asumos Church Yumo had ever seen.

'The heroine...'

Yumo quickly reached that conclusion.

She didn't even need to strip the girl's clothes off and check whether there was a golden rune on her back.

Of course, stripping this girl's clothes now was practically impossible anyway.

After all, she was currently just a "frail and powerless" slave girl~

How could she possibly defeat a Fifth-Tier heroine?

The heroine.

The heroine!

Hehehe~

I've finally found her, hehehe~

The moment she realized the girl's identity, Yumo couldn't help letting out a few rather creepy laughs inside her head.

Suppressing the discomfort she felt, the corner of her lips curled upward ever so slightly.

Miss Yumo was extremely happy.

She had finally met the heroine she had dreamed about for so long!

And after witnessing the heroine's terrifying strength, she became even more excited.

A mere mid-stage Fifth-Tier.

Yet she had instantly killed five Abyss Demons of the same rank!

That achievement was simply unbelievable!

Someone capable of defeating an Abyss Demon one-on-one at the same level was already one in ten thousand.

But the heroine had defeated five at once?!

How badass was that?!

At this rate, she could probably even defeat a Sixth-Tier Abyss Demon despite being a whole realm lower!

As expected of the Child of Destiny.

Her strength truly didn't disappoint.

If things continued developing like this...

Maybe one day...

She really could kill me~

Just thinking about it made Yumo feel delighted.

Come to think of it...

'So her name is Mengxi? That's such a beautiful name~'

And—

She was so gentle too.

Watching the silver-haired girl softly pat Garona's head while comforting her teammate, Yumo felt increasingly satisfied.

For hundreds of years, three things had defined her expectations for the heroine.

Beauty.

Strength.

Kindness.

Strength and kindness?

Perfect.

As for beauty...

Her figure was absolutely incredible.

Unlike Yumo's own flat chest, the heroine was clearly blessed in that department.

Not too big.

Not too small.

Just right.

Hehehe~

Though...

As for her face...

After secretly glancing at the pure white mask covering the silver-haired girl's features several times, Yumo pouted slightly in disappointment.

'Seriously! Why are you wearing a mask?!'

Yumo was rather unhappy.

Not being able to admire the heroine's appearance left her disappointed.

However—

When she looked into those clear, brilliant pale violet eyes—

Eyes that sparkled like stars—

Yumo's heart suddenly began beating faster.

They were the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen.

More dazzling than diamonds.

More captivating than anything else in existence.

Unlike Yumo's own crimson eyes, which carried a faintly sinister charm—

The heroine's eyes were not only beautiful.

They radiated an untouchable holiness.

Yumo found herself staring in fascination.

Only after several moments did she finally regain her senses.

'I actually met the heroine!'

'This trip was so damn worth it!!!'

Still...

Since she had finally met her, shouldn't she try getting closer?

Maybe build a good relationship?

Of course, it wasn't because she wanted the heroine's body.

Definitely not.

She merely wanted to learn more about the heroine.

Her personality.

Her hobbies.

Her habits.

Her combat style.

All of it could serve as valuable reference material when designing future trials for her.

Thinking this, Yumo slowly stood up in her pink-haired slave-girl form.

She intended to use the opportunity to express her gratitude and make contact with the beautiful silver-haired girl.

The heroine looked so gentle.

Surely she'd treat a pitiful little slave girl kindly, right?

However—

Reality seemed somewhat different from what Miss Yumo had imagined.

The instant Yumo stood up, Mengxi noticed the pink-haired girl behind Garona.

But rather than treating her gently as Yumo expected—

A terrifying killing intent suddenly burst forth from the silver-haired girl's eyes.

The next second—

Before Yumo could even react—

Mengxi seized her by the throat and slammed her into the snow.

"What are you?"

Her voice contained no gentleness whatsoever.

Only incomparable coldness.

And overwhelming vigilance.

??!!

Eh?!

W-What's going on?!

This was completely outside Yumo's expectations.

Looking at the delicate hand gripping her throat...

Then at those pale violet eyes fixed upon her with icy intensity...

Miss Yumo was stunned.

She genuinely couldn't understand what had happened.

Why was the heroine suddenly attacking her?

She hadn't done anything!

Had her identity been exposed?

N-No way?!

That didn't make sense!

The heroine was strong, but at this stage she shouldn't be capable of seeing through Yumo's disguise!

She had disguised herself perfectly!

Yumo was completely bewildered.

At that moment, influenced by her natural compassion, Garona hurriedly got to her feet and grabbed Mengxi's arm.

"C-Captain! What are you doing?! Why are you suddenly treating a child like this?!"

Her voice was equally filled with confusion.

She couldn't understand why the usually gentle girl had suddenly attacked a slave girl.

Hearing her companion's question, Mengxi glanced back briefly before speaking calmly.

"A slave girl facing Abyss Demons with absolutely no fear is suspicious enough. During the battle, she wasn't affected by the shockwaves at all. That's not how a fragile girl should react. Is she some creature disguised as a human?"

"Probably not? Some of the captured mercenaries said she was the slave who escaped earlier. Her aura is human too... M-Maybe she was just scared stupid?"

Garona looked somewhat uncertain herself.

Hearing this, [N O V E L I G H T] Mengxi's brows furrowed.

"Even so. Those Abyss Demons were clearly chasing her before. How could a frail slave girl outrun them? And after encountering your group, the Abyss Demons stopped attacking her and started attacking all of you instead."

"Th-Then, Mengxi, what are you saying?"

"Even if she's not a creature disguised as a human, she may already be infected by Shadow of Silence Power. If that's the case..."

As she spoke, Mengxi tightened her grip on the silver sword in her hand.

A chilling killing intent surged from her eyes.

Seeing that—

Yumo felt a cold shiver run down her spine.

The heroine being smart instead of some naive airhead was honestly quite satisfying.

But...

If the heroine actually slashed her with that sword—

Wouldn't she be completely exposed?!

How was she supposed to continue observing the heroine after that?!

She had finally met her!

She couldn't go back empty-handed!

Yumo screamed internally.

As a result, Miss Yumo immediately began acting.

A confused expression slowly appeared on her face, as if she had only just realized what was happening.

Then, after "noticing" the silver-haired girl before her, the emotions in her sapphire-blue eyes gradually shifted.

Confusion.

Shock.

Then fear.

At this moment, Yumo perfectly portrayed a timid slave girl.

"D-Don't... don't kill me... I-I haven't been infected... wuuuuu..."

Naturally, all Yumo could do now was continue her performance.

Maybe squeeze out a few tears.

Convince them she was just an innocent and pitiful girl.

Escaping from Abyss Demons had simply been a coincidence.

A coincidence, you understand?!

Yumo's pitiful appearance caused Garona to show obvious sympathy.

"Mengxi, don't do this. You'll scare her. She doesn't look infected..."

However—

The watery eyes and crystal-clear tears sliding down Yumo's cheeks failed to stir any sympathy within Mengxi.

The silver-haired girl's eyes remained filled with vigilance and suspicion.

In Mengxi's view, the pink-haired girl before her was highly likely to have been infected by Shadow of Silence Power.

That risk had to be eliminated.

Otherwise, the entire team could be endangered.

"Whether she's infected or not, we'll know after a proper physical examination."

"A physical examination?"

Garona froze.

"If someone has been infected by Shadow of Silence Power, there will be wounds somewhere on their body."

Mengxi's beautiful pale violet eyes narrowed slightly.

Meanwhile—

A terrible premonition suddenly struck Yumo.

The corner of her eye twitched uncontrollably.

??

Wait a damn second?!!

A physical examination?!

HEY!!

What are you planning to do?!

I'm the final boss, you know?!

Hey!

I'm warning you, don't do anything weird!!!