The maid squad is too strong, what use is there for me, the Demon King?

After answering the question, the "sage's" projection became illusory.

Gray knew that the "sage" projection he was seeing wouldn't last much longer, after all, the projection was just a video recording from a thousand years ago that had survived to this day.

Just as the projection of the "Sage" was about to completely dissipate, turning into a few last scattered purple rays—

hum!

Before Gray's eyes, space distorted once more, and another illusory square with purple-black arcs of electricity leaping along its edges rapidly popped out, even more rapidly than the previous one, as if its remaining will had sensed the next inevitable question rising in Gray's heart and forcibly condensed.

The demonic script within the box carries a cold, sharp quality:

Even with this Demon King's Sword, which might not be able to kill the Goddess of Holy Light, one cannot slay her without reaching the Celestial Realm. Is there a way to reach the Celestial Realm?

Gray glanced at the options and clicked again without hesitation.

The light particles, which were about to be completely annihilated, suddenly paused. The extremely blurry outline of the "Sage" seemed to solidify slightly because of this question. He slowly and with great difficulty shook his head, and a deeper sense of helplessness and emptiness seemed to pass across the illusory face.

"no……"

His voice was almost inaudible, as if it came from an extremely distant place.

"The path to heaven... has long been severed... ten thousand years ago..."

"This method...you must...find it yourself..."

Gray felt no unease at the answer. Just as he had thought, how could the remnant of the former king, trapped underground for millennia and never even seeing the true face of the Goddess of Light, possibly know the path to the realm of the gods? This final question and answer merely confirmed a known predicament.

Just as Gray thought the "sage" had said all he needed to say and had fully fulfilled his duty, the projection completely dissipated, but the next moment...

hum!

Another purplish-black option box, like a final echo unwilling to fade into complete silence, suddenly appeared before his eyes, almost touching his nose. The text on it was direct and sharp, voicing the ultimate question hidden deep within his heart: the question of fate and choice.

Why was it me, and not any other Demon Lord, who accepted this mission? Why was I the only one guided to this place by the Demon Lord's legacy map?

Gray did have doubts about this, but he had to complain before clicking on the option.

This "sage," if you want to disappear, then disappear. But if you still have something to say, then don't disappear and come back. Say it properly before you disappear!

He had just begun to feel sorrow over the dissipation of the "sage's" projection...

A waste of feelings.

However, the "wise man" had done so much for the possibilities of future generations, and had a bit of a personality, so how could he possibly complain?

Let's return our focus to the options.

Gray's gaze sharpened slightly. Yes, across millennia and forty-three generations of demon kings, why was it that he, at this particular moment, received that guidance, stepped into this forgotten royal court, and accepted this near-desperate mission?

He pointed to the question with his finger.

The console's light seemed to dim for a moment, gathering its last energy. The completely vanished projection of the "Sage" could not be reproduced, but his voice seemed to seep from the console itself, from every brick and stone of the hall, carrying a program-like coldness, yet containing the initial decision of the setter:

"...Conditions...have been met..."

The sound was intermittent, like a broken phonograph.

"My criteria are not based on bloodline... nor on power..."

"The key to unlocking this... lies within the 'Demon King Sword' itself..."

"When the fortune it carries... accumulates over millennia... finally reaches... saturation... leaving no room for further containment..."

"The thread of inheritance... will then appear in the world..."

"You... are not my choice..."

"It is the final vessel that this karmic cause and effect accumulated over ten thousand years... to its peak... and found itself..."

"You... are... the only one in ten thousand years..."

The sound completely dissipated, and nothing more happened. The control panel lights returned to normal, awaiting Gray's instructions.

Gray stood silently.

It turned out to be the case.

It wasn't that he was particularly special, nor that the former king had foreseen him ten thousand years ago. Rather, it was that this sword, this creation that had gathered the fortune of ten thousand years, had finally been "filled" over the long course of time. It could no longer accumulate, nor could it wait silently any longer; it had to find an outlet, a vessel that could bear all its power and unleash its final strike.

And he himself, just as the sword was fully drawn, sat in the position of the Demon King.

It was a coincidence, but also an inevitability. It was fate, but even more so, a responsibility.

He is the endpoint to which all this long-standing resentment and hope points...

It has nothing to do with one's own strength or one's identity as a transmigrator.

But this raises further questions.

According to the "sage's" words, he had no idea that he was a transmigrator. In fact, the "sage" didn't even know which generation of demon king he would be in when he received the demon king's sword, which was now saturated with energy.

Who orchestrated my journey from Earth to this place? Was it just a chance encounter?

Perhaps, the one in heaven knows the answer...

Gray's face darkened.

Some of them are terrifying upon closer examination.

Did all of this really... escape the notice of that being in heaven?

This isn't a question Gray should be thinking about; more accurately, it's a question Gray is unwilling to think about.

If all of this is within His plan...

---

The projection of the "Sage" completed its final mission, and that last vestige of obsession vanished completely. But before it was completely annihilated, the last glimmer of guidance it left behind, like a candle flickering in the wind, drifted weakly toward one side of the hall's wall.

Gray followed the direction of the light and saw that the once smooth wall had, the moment the light touched it, quietly revealed a set of more complex and intricate dark purple runes that had not been visible before. These runes formed a small platform-like structure with a palm-shaped groove at the center.

Without needing to say more, Gray understood. He stepped forward and placed his right hand into the groove.

Om-!

The moment his palm perfectly aligned with the groove, a stream of icy energy surged into his arm, resonating with the demonic bloodline within him. Countless fragments of information flooded his mind—not detailed control instructions, but a basic level of authorization and a clear concept of a "switch."

He "sensed" the heart of this silent royal court, and the powerful barrier that enveloped the massive building, isolating everything inside and out.

At this moment, he became the new master of this ancient, desolate city.

With a slight thought, Gray used the ancient access connection to issue a simple command to the barrier—disarm.