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

"Once we leave the secret realm, we will no longer be able to discuss these matters."

Before leaving the Demon King's castle, Gray gave the hero's party one last piece of advice.

Philippa gave a soft "hmm," her beautiful eyes almost overflowing with affection.

"I'll remember everything. Don't worry, it concerns our future, so I'll be extremely careful."

Gray nodded slightly: "I believe you. After all, knowing you were no match for them, you still fought desperately and almost gave your life. That dazzling attitude is something I can't forget, even if I wanted to."

Philippa blushed slightly, knowing that Gray was referring to how she had desperately tried to "rebel against the Demon King" back when she didn't know Gray's identity.

"Don't bring this up again..."

“Yes, have a safe trip.” Gray waved to Philippa. “We’ll be leaving soon too. See you in Olmec.”

Upon hearing this, Philippa was still somewhat reluctant to part, but considering that this farewell was not like the past when "we didn't know when we would meet again and could only meet by chance," and that they had decided to return to the Kingdom of Olmec, she wasn't so sad anymore.

"See you in Olmec, don't be too late for us."

Gray replied, "That's hard to say. Even if you have Phoenix, the space mage, on your side, your travel speed might not be as fast as ours. I might have to wait for you in Bifeng Territory."

“That’s impossible…” Philippa wanted to answer that way, but recalling the terrifying strength Gray had displayed and the unfathomable servants under his command, she couldn’t bring herself to make a conclusion.

After all, this Demon King always manages to do things that defy common sense.

Just then, a voice filled with obvious dissatisfaction and sourness broke in:

"Hey! Are you done talking yet? It'll be dark soon if you keep dawdling!" Sophia stood a few steps away, arms crossed, her beautiful eyebrows furrowed, her eyes sweeping between Gray and Philippa like knives. "Can't you wait until you get to the capital to say your secrets? Why do you have to be all lovey-dovey here!"

She simply couldn't stand it anymore. Her own beautiful little cabbage (Philippa) was so close to this dangerous demon king (who was also her love rival, and it seemed that the Holy Maiden didn't even qualify as a love rival...), and they looked so affectionate and reluctant to part. It made her furious!

Philippa blushed even more after being interrupted by her friend. She glanced at Gray somewhat shyly and whispered, "Well... I'm leaving."

Gray nodded slightly to her, his gaze gentle.

Philippa then turned and hurried toward her waiting companions. Sofia immediately stepped forward, practically pushing and pulling her along, muttering under her breath, "Honestly, what's so interesting? Let's go..."

Seeing this, Taric shook his head helplessly and said to Phoenix beside him, "Your Majesty Phoenix, let's prepare to set off as well."

Phoenix nodded slightly, taking one last look at Gray, who stood still with his black robes fluttering gently in the breeze. A complex and unfathomable look flashed in his eyes. Then he turned around, began to gather magic power, and prepared to cast a group teleportation spell to take the team away from this mysterious secret realm.

Under Sophia's "escort," Philippa couldn't help but glance back again. She saw Gray still standing at the massive entrance to the Demon King's castle, his figure appearing somewhat lonely in the dim light, yet exuding a calm and all-encompassing control. As if sensing her gaze, he raised his hand and waved gently once more.

Philippa felt a warmth in her heart, waved vigorously, took a deep breath, turned around, and her gaze became firm.

"let's go."

A light shone forth, enveloping the four members of the hero's party. The next moment, their figures vanished from the entrance to the Silent Royal Court, leaving only the empty plaza and the still-standing Demon King.

Gray stared at the spot where they had disappeared for a long time before slowly lowering his hand and muttering to himself:

"Well... we should get going."

He turned and stepped into the deep Demon King's castle, preparing to summon his shadow servants and embark on the next chapter of his journey.

In the final discussion, Gray and Philippa and the others reached a key consensus: after leaving the secret realm, they must split up and head to the agreed meeting point—the Azure Peak Territory of the Olmec Kingdom.

The reason lies in the fact that the secret realm left behind by the "Sage" and the vast, desolate desert surrounding it, due to their unique rules and barren, isolated environment, form a natural barrier that can effectively interfere with or even block the perception of the Goddess of Holy Light and her "silence" mechanism targeting specific truths. This is precisely the basis for their ability to speak freely and reveal the truth about the gods within the secret realm.

However, once they leave the desert region, no one can be certain where they will once again fall into the effective listening range of the Goddess of Light.

If the goddess were to discover that the Demon King and the Hero were not fighting to the death as she had planned, but instead were traveling together and getting along well, it would surely alert her and prompt her thunderous intervention.

This would undoubtedly alert the enemy, putting the entire "god-killing" plan at risk of annihilation in its very first stage.

Therefore, the safest strategy was to break up the group into smaller parts. The hero team, relying on Master Phoenix's spatial magic and their legitimate status, returned to the human kingdom normally.

Meanwhile, Gray and his ten Shadow Servants used the Shadow Court's secret channels and Gamma's Gran Merchant Guild as cover to quietly infiltrate Olmec.

They agreed to meet again at the headquarters of the Grand Chamber of Commerce in Bifengling, a place far from the center of power and where business dealings were frequent and easy to conceal.

Several days later, thanks to Master Phoenix's masterful group teleportation and long-distance travel, the brave team finally arrived at the agreed meeting point—the headquarters of the Grand Merchant Guild in "Azure Peak Town," a bustling commercial town on the border of the Olmec Kingdom.

Standing before the imposing yet understated headquarters of the Merchant Guild, Philippa felt a slight unease, unsure whether Gray and his companions had arrived safely and successfully evaded the Holy Light Church's surveillance. However, when they identified themselves and were respectfully led inside by a smiling but exceptionally astute steward, passing through several corridors and arriving at a secluded inner courtyard clearly not open to outsiders, all their doubts vanished.

Inside the courtyard, people were already waiting.

Gray had already changed out of his signature black demon robes and was now dressed in a well-tailored, dark-colored nobleman's casual attire. He appeared tall and composed, exuding an air of restraint. If one did not know his true identity, he would have looked like a young nobleman of distinguished birth, relaxing in his own villa. He was sitting at a stone table, leisurely sipping red tea.

Behind or beside him, several of the Ten Shadow Attendants, who had also changed out of their black robes and were dressed in ordinary clothes, were either sitting or standing...