Neo waited in the shadows of Beatrix’s room until her attention locked fully on the knives. She threw them one after another at the wooden target across the chamber, each blade sinking deep with a sharp thud. Her focus never wavered. That was the opening he needed.
He slipped under her bed first, pressing flat against the cold floorboards. From there he watched her desk. When the next knife left her hand, Neo rolled out, stayed low, and crossed the short distance in two quiet strides. He dropped behind the desk and stayed still until her rhythm of throws continued without pause.
One by one he checked the papers stacked on the surface. Most were maps and supply lists. Near the bottom he found the diary. He opened it carefully and scanned the pages until the right entry appeared. Zod went without protection at night. Around this hour he usually received two maids in his chambers.
Neo closed the diary, slid it back into place, and slipped away the same way he had come. Once clear of the room he ran hard for Zod’s chambers. Moaning reached him through the thick door before he even arrived.
He activated Lord of the End mode. The Sword of TBATE appeared in his grip. Neo slammed the door open.
Zod sat on the edge of the wide bed, two naked maids kneeling around him. The noble demon’s head snapped up at the noise.
Neo crossed the room in a blur, seized Zod by the throat, and launched them both through the open window. They dropped into the bushes below. Neo kept his grip tight and pinned the larger demon against the ground.
"I know it’s me," Neo said, voice low and steady. "Don’t look so surprised. Answer my questions and I let you live."
Zod stared for a moment, then forced out the words. "Did a rival noble plant you here?"
Neo shook his head once. His fingers tightened. "No. Why do demons—especially the noble ones—keep attacking the forest on the human continent?"
Zod’s eyes widened. "So you’re one of those forest people. One of the ones who keep ruining the princess’s plan to take it."
Neo squeezed harder. "Say everything. Talk clear. No riddles."
Zod coughed. "It was the princess’s plan. She found it in an old royal book. The forest is a portal to a stronger demon realm."
"What’s wrong with the one you already have?" Neo asked. "Isn’t it good enough?"
Zod shook his head as much as the grip allowed. "It isn’t about our world. It’s the balance of karma. This world is going to be destroyed soon by karma—all three realms. The prophecy says the gate sits in that forest. It leads to a stronger demon realm. Think of it like paradise, but for demons."
"Then why don’t the angels attack the same way you do?"
Zod let out a rough laugh. "Not because they’re good-natured. They made a pact with the first three heroes. Protect the human realm. Don’t attack it. Even now I hear they’re searching for loopholes in that pact."
Neo’s throat tightened. The forest he had lived in was being hunted by three different factions, each strong enough to crush almost anyone. The thought should have weighed heavier. It didn’t. He still had the system.
He shifted his grip, seized Zod’s head, and ended it cleanly. For a second he stayed still, then stored the corpse. It might prove useful later.
The factory still needed dealing with. Neo turned and ran.
He reached the factory at full speed. The manager was already gone. Neo grinned, pulled out the same type of boxes he had used against the Kraken, and threw five of them inside. The building erupted in a chain of explosions that lit the night.
A quest completion notice appeared. Rewards waited in his inventory. Neo sighed. Back to the same grind, it seemed.
He turned toward Zod’s castle and kept running. A figure stepped into his path and blocked the road.
The demon stood in full red armor covered in spikes. A massive red plate shielded the chest. Strength of eighteen stars. His name was Vol.
Vol’s helmet, crossed with strings of black and red, tilted toward Neo. "You were the one who killed my master."
He did not wait for an answer. Vol launched forward, sword raised high, and swung with enough force to cut a man in half.
Neo tried to dodge sideways. An invisible massive hand clamped around him and held him in place. He forced the shield of TBATE energy up just in time. The sword crashed against it. The shield held. The blow stopped without breaking through.
Neo strained against the invisible grip. After several hard seconds he tore free and sprinted away. Fighting this one head-on right now would get him killed. He needed a plan.
While he ran he glanced back. Vol chased close behind. Neo activated slippery ground under the demon’s feet. Vol lost balance and went down hard. Neo kept moving, then threw the unbreakable rope. It snared Vol’s leg and dragged him down again.
Neo stopped long enough to draw the EN sword and hurl it. The blade struck true and forced Vol to a halt.
He did not waste the opening. Neo formed ten sealed boxes the same way he had before, only this time he packed each one with as much mana as he could force inside. Each box carried a hundred times the power of the ones that had killed the Kraken. He nested them—box inside box inside box—until only one massive container remained. He named it the Box of Death in his mind, then used mana to shrink it down. A hard grin crossed his face.
Neo stopped running. A thin film of TBATE energy coated him like a second skin. He charged straight at the knight.
Vol grinned behind the helmet and swung again. Neo used the moment. He pulled the Box of Death free and threw it toward the demon inside the helmet. Eagle eye and sensing location guided the throw. The box slipped through the narrow gap with perfect precision.
The helmet exploded. Vol dropped to his knees, dead.
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