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

Sunlight streamed through the glass window, falling on the dessert the two were sharing, and also illuminating Philippa's blushing, radiant profile.

At this moment, all the demon kings, heroes, and destinies seemed to fade away, leaving only the sweet aroma filling the dessert shop and two hearts quietly drawing closer as they clumsily explored each other.

In the distance, Sofia watched Philippa's bubbly, blissful expression and stomped her feet in frustration, inwardly wailing, "Ugh! That blockhead! He's definitely doing it on purpose! Absolutely! Philippa, wake up!"

Meanwhile, the pink-haired succubus wore a pleased expression, thinking, "This child is teachable," keeping her accomplishments hidden.

Even after enjoying the exquisite and delicious desserts, a sweet aroma seemed to linger in the air.

Philippa wiped her mouth contentedly, and when she saw Gray waving for the cashier to pay, she immediately remembered something and quickly said, "Wait, Gray, let me pay this time!"

Gray paused slightly as he was about to take out the purse (or rather, the symbolic card), and looked at her with some confusion.

Philippa met his gaze, her expression serious, carrying a hint of princess-like pride and independence: "Date expenses should be shared between the two of us. If you always have to pay, it feels... it feels like I'm your kept mistress, not an equal relationship!" Her cheeks flushed slightly, but her tone was firm, "Don't worry, I've taken on many adventurer quests during my training trips, and I've saved up quite a bit of commission. I won't be stingy with date expenses!"

Seeing her earnest expression that said, "I'm rich and super independent," Gray was taken aback for a moment, then couldn't help but chuckle. He shook his head, his tone tinged with a helpless smile: "Philippa, you've misunderstood."

Instead of taking out his money pouch, he took out a card from his pocket. It was made of a special material, with a deep purple-gold luster and tiny magic crystals inlaid on the edges. The emblem of the Grand Merchant Guild was in the center of the card. Its exquisiteness and luxury far exceeded that of ordinary nobles' credentials.

“This is a ‘Supreme Purple Gold Card’ that Gamma gave me.” Gray twirled the card between his fingers, his tone as casual as if he were commenting on the weather. “It’s free to consume at any property under the Grand Chamber of Commerce. So, strictly speaking, what we just ate doesn’t require us to ‘pay’.”

Philippa: "..."

Looking at the amethyst card that seemed to say "I am the privileged dog," and then recalling her earlier solemn declaration of splitting the bill and demonstrating economic independence, she suddenly felt like she had punched a cotton ball. Her cheeks turned even redder; this time, she was embarrassed.

“…Okay,” she said dejectedly, withdrawing her hand from the purse and muttering under her breath, “The Gran Merchant Guild…it really is yours.” At this moment, her sense of reality regarding the identities of “Grey is the Demon King” and “Grey is the mastermind behind the Gran Merchant Guild” became clearer than ever before.

Seeing her somewhat frustrated yet amused expression, Gray's smile deepened. He put away the card, stood up, and very naturally extended his hand to her again: "Since there's a bargain, why not take advantage of it? So, Your Highness, shall we continue?"

Philippa chuckled at his remark, her slight embarrassment instantly vanishing. She placed her hand in his palm, used it for support to stand up, her bright smile returning, and nodded vigorously: "Yes! Continue!"

Yes, it does seem a bit silly to agonize over who pays when dating this "demon king" who owns an entire business empire. It's better to just enjoy this rare, sweet time that he's "sponsoring" the whole thing.

Shortly after Gray flashed that purple-gold card that shone with the aura of "evil capitalist" and led Philippa out of "Darling Time"...

In the shadows of the street corner, Kappa put away her exaggerated "silent megaphone," her pink tail wagging excitedly as she spoke with a hint of pride and admiration: "Oh my, as expected of Lord Shadow, you charm girls effortlessly! Your 'indirect kiss' and 'reverse feeding' combo is executed with such fluidity, seemingly unintentional yet precisely hitting the heart of every girl! Of course, it's mainly because of the excellent methods I taught you!"

As she was praising herself, she keenly noticed that apart from Alpha still keeping her eyes fixed on the departing Gray and his companion, and Sophia still gritting her teeth and drawing circles beside her, the attention of most of the other Ten Shadow Waitstaffy seemed to have been drawn to that "Sweet Time" restaurant that exuded an enticing sweet fragrance.

Aita's cat ears stood up straight, her nose twitched slightly, and her blood-red eyes were fixed on the remaining "Swan Lake" cake in the shop window. Although Beta maintained her elegant posture, her gaze occasionally drifted into the shop. Delta licked her lips. Even vampires who were not suitable for eating such food were tempted by its exquisite appearance.

Even the usually expressionless Xita glanced at the red velvet cake a few more times, while Gamma was already calculating in her mind the profitability and expansion potential of a dessert shop of this caliber in Bifeng Territory.

Ipsilon had put away her notebook at some point and suggested in a calm tone, "The desserts at this shop smell wonderful and look exquisite. Should we buy some to try while they're gone? It'll be a good opportunity to rest."

"Agreed." / "Seconded." / "Go quickly!" Almost unanimously, the waiters expressed their support.

Although Sofia was still immersed in the grief and indignation of "her own cabbage being eaten by a pig and she was happy about it", her ears still twitched subconsciously when she heard about the dessert purchase plan.

She forced herself not to look in the direction Gray and Philippa had left, and through gritted teeth, almost squeezed out a voice, she said to Ipsilon, "Me too, please..."

But Sofia's original thought was actually...

Hey, Tin Can, when we go in later, give me three of each of that 'Swan Lake' drink and the Strawberry Red Velvet! No, five! I'm turning my grief into food! I'll put the bill on that bastard Gray's head! He's got plenty of money anyway! The Gran Trading Company is his! That despicable rich man! That Demon King!

In the end, he still didn't dare to say it directly.

Ipsilon nodded slightly and calmly replied, "Okay, I've got it." Then she turned to Tarik and Phoenix, "Mr. Tarik, Mr. Phoenix, would you like to take some?"

Tarik and Phoenix exchanged a glance, both seeing a deep sense of helplessness on each other's faces. They had been semi-forced by Kappa to come and "observe and learn" (?), and weren't particularly interested in sweets themselves, but given the current situation...

Phoenix stroked his beard and sighed, "Well, since we're already here..."

Warrior Taric scratched his head, looking like he was wondering "Why am I here?", and chimed in, "Ah, yeah, since we're already here... let's just have something not so sweet."

"Understood." Ipsilon nodded, turned and walked towards the dessert shop to begin his purchasing task.