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

Morning light streamed through the towering stained-glass windows of the Church of Holy Light, casting dappled patterns of light on the ancient stone floor. The air was filled with the lingering scent of incense and parchment scrolls, but for the trio about to embark on their journey, this smell was already familiar.

"Philippa, Philippa~"

A soft, languid voice whispered in the heroine's ear, tickling her nerves like a feather. Philippa Dawn, the chestnut-haired princess-heroine, was intently examining the sword at her waist.

The scabbard was simple and unadorned, but the soft glow it emitted hinted at its extraordinary spirituality. Hearing this, she sighed helplessly and didn't turn around.

"Sophia, we're about to leave. Let's do some preparations and stop bothering me."

Behind her, Saint Sophia rested her chin on Philippa's shoulder, her moon-white hair almost intertwined with Philippa's chestnut hair.

She wore the magnificent robes typical of saints, but her clear blue eyes showed no trace of piety towards the gods; instead, they were filled with pure, undisguised affection for the person before her.

"I'm giving you a very serious send-off, our great Princess Hero." Sophia's lips curled into a sly smile, and a small ball of warm light secretly gathered at her fingertips, gently touching Philippa's cheek. "Look, this is a blessing from the 'Saintess,' protecting your beautiful face from being scratched by those ugly monsters."

Philippa blushed at her actions. Normally, this would be a wonderful scene of best friends cuddling, but she already knew that the contemporary Holy Light Church's Saintess Sophia was in her late twilight years and made no attempt to hide it, taking every opportunity to take advantage of her.

Incidentally, her cheeks were flushed, not from shyness, but from genuine annoyance.

Having already received Gray's wedding invitation, which felt like a dagger to the heart, Philippa didn't have time to argue with Sophia anymore. She had to improve herself as soon as possible and complete her mission to defeat the Demon King.

"Alright, alright, keep your blessing to yourself. Tarik, we're ready."

From the corner, a man of imposing stature, as large as a mountain, gave a muffled response. Taric, the Light-attribute Great Axe Warrior, his very presence was like a mobile fortress. He was carefully polishing his massive battle axe, the blade gleaming with a sharp yet holy light.

He glanced at Sofia and Philippa, then shook his head helplessly.

He was incredibly unlucky to be adventuring with those two...

Being able to join the Hero Squad is incredibly lucky, but encountering such an outrageous Demon King is the worst luck imaginable, with the last of those bad lucks falling on Sophia.

Excellent matching mechanism.

Female heroes are relatively rare in human history; the vast majority of heroes are male. This may be why the Holy Light Church equips hero teams with holy maidens rather than holy sons.

I don't know who said it, but anyway, it's said that it's best not to have an entire team of the same sex.

Normally, a hero's party consists of two men and one woman; a party of two women and one man only appears when there is a female hero.

Their hero is the current princess of the Olmec royal family, who is matched with Sophia, a lesbian and misogynist, a situation unprecedented in the history of the Holy Light Church.

Even though they had been adventuring together for some time, Taric would still occasionally suffer verbal attacks from Sofia.

"Alright, ladies, the portal is ready. Target: deep within the Whispering Forest, the habitat of the tier-eight monsters 'Shadowblade Leopard' and 'Rock-Armored Giant Lizard.' The plan remains the same: lure out both at once, kill one as quickly as possible, creating a two-on-one situation. Is that clear?"

“Got it~” Sophia replied, drawing out her words.

“Understood.” Philippa nodded seriously.

However, just as the light from the portal began to swirl and was about to engulf the three of them, Philippa's movements faltered slightly.

A strange chill rose from my spine without warning, quickly spreading throughout my body. It wasn't an intuition about mortal danger, nor a perception of malice towards an enemy. It was more like... a mysterious premonition, as if the threads of fate had been plucked at that moment, bringing a discordant tremor.

This feeling was familiar to her. Since becoming a hero, she had occasionally experienced similar moments, like some kind of vague warning, or a hazy glimpse into the future. But this time, the feeling was clearer and stronger than ever before.

"What's wrong?" Sophia was the first to notice her unusual behavior, loosened her arms around her, and asked with concern.

Tarik also stopped what he was doing and turned his sharp gaze to Philippa.

Philippa frowned, trying to catch the fleeting feeling, but it was like a reflection in water, becoming more and more blurred the longer she stared. "Nothing," she finally shook her head, "It's just... a strange feeling. Not danger, and I can't quite put my finger on it, it's just... a feeling that something unexpected might happen today."

"Something unexpected?" Sophia raised an eyebrow. "Besides the fact that we're going to challenge two eighth-tier monsters today, which is unexpected enough in itself, what else could it be?"

“I can’t quite put my finger on it,” Philippa said uncertainly. “It’s just a premonition, stronger than usual.”

The light emanating from the portal to the secret realm grew brighter and brighter; time was of the essence. The three quickly exchanged a glance.

Taric said in a deep voice, "Since we can't be sure, let's remain vigilant. Once we enter the secret realm, we'll be more cautious than originally planned. Sophia, expand the range of your detection magic. Philippa, you and I will lead the way, be ready to react at any time."

“Okay.” Philippa nodded.

"Understood~" Sophia also put away her joking thoughts, and the light at her fingertips became more solid. "I will keep my eyes wide open and watch the road more for our lovely hero."

The light completely enveloped the three of them, and they felt weightless. After a moment, the sensation beneath their feet changed from cold stone slabs to soft, moist humus.

The air in the Whispering Forest carried a hint of coolness and the fragrance of earth. Tall trees blocked out most of the sky, leaving only dappled sunlight. It was so quiet here that it seemed isolated from the world, with only the rustling of the wind through the treetops, like some ancient whisper.

Philippa took a deep breath. The mysterious premonition hadn't disappeared; instead, it had become more concrete in this unfamiliar environment, as if hinting at something. She gripped the hilt of her sword tightly, silently admonishing herself.

Today, we must be on high alert.