A Sudden Encounter

“Look, look! That beautiful blue hair... Isn't that Lady Vivian!?”

“Lady Vivian must have just finished her schoolwork and come out to relax, right? Still, seeing Her Highness in her uniform is truly a sight to behold!”

“But who is that guy next to Her Highness? He's actually handsomer than me!?”

On the street, the eyes of passersby turned toward the two walking in the center of the crowd.

Greg and Vivian walked side by side. Although they weren't holding hands, they were extremely close, with only a fist's width of space between their shoulders.

To onlookers, this was already an incredibly intimate distance—the kind only kept by those with an extraordinary relationship.

Most people recognized Vivian at first glance.

After all, she was the eldest daughter of the royal family, the First Princess of the kingdom, making her beauty and fame second to none throughout the land.

But the same couldn't be said for Greg beside her.

Although Greg Sass was the Duke's son, he had rarely participated in social events back when he was still a noble. Moreover, all past rumors about him had been negative. On top of that, the news of him defeating the Undead Knight alone had mostly circulated within the academy and had not yet spread widely to the general public.

As a result, most commoners and even low-to-mid-ranking nobles failed to connect the notoriously wicked former Duke's son with the exceptionally handsome young man standing before them.

Thus, Greg became the mysterious handsome guy standing next to Her Highness Vivian, enduring a baptism of stares from all directions.

He could feel those gazes landing on him with almost physical weight—some searching, some scrutinizing, some disdainful, and others looking as if they wanted to pierce right through him.

...

Greg stole a glance at the blue-haired girl beside him, his mind racing.

First of all, he had clearly told her before that he had no other intentions toward her, and she had acknowledged it.

Furthermore, Vivian was absolutely not the type to turn around and pursue him. Their social statuses were now worlds apart, and as a princess, her pride would never allow her to do such a thing.

So, it definitely wasn't for that reason.

Second, she should have already reconciled with Lilith by now, so her desire for power was surely no longer as urgent as before.

Her previous willingness to conquer the dungeon with him was largely because she desperately needed to increase her strength to cope with the pressure from her younger sister and the expectations of her family.

Now that this conflict had been resolved, this probably wasn't about the dungeon either.

But if that was the case, why on earth was she doing this?

Greg speculated.

This achievement certainly deserved a formal thank-you, but... it would be even better if she could just give him cash instead.

Just as Greg was lost in thought—

A loud explosion, accompanied by a violent burst of fire, echoed from not far away.

A three-story building along the street was suddenly engulfed in crimson flames, burning fiercely.

The fire spewed from the windows and door cracks like a living thing, instantly swallowing the building's outer walls.

The surrounding crowd immediately fell into chaos.

People scrambled to flee from the fire, knocking over stalls and scattering goods all over the ground, which were then trampled into pieces by the panicked crowd.

“Here it is again, this damn bad luck!”

Greg had some recollection of this scene. This was an encounter event that had only an extremely small probability of being triggered in the original game.

A few human mage believers of the Demon King Cult were deliberately causing destruction to make others fear and revere the Demon King.

They had specifically chosen to strike in a crowded commercial district with the sole purpose of inciting panic, making ordinary people feel the Demon King's prestige and submit in fear.

Although he had only seen this event discussed in the player community and had never actually encountered it in his eighty-one playthroughs,

he hadn't expected to suddenly run into it this time.

Although the event had nothing to do with him and he could technically stay out of it, since he had stumbled upon it, he couldn't just stand by and watch.

As long as it didn't threaten his own life, he was willing to lend a hand.

Greg quickly scanned the scene, assessing the fire and the locations of any trapped people.

“Vivian, leave here as soon as possible and head somewhere safer.”

With that, he rushed toward the burning building without hesitation.

Vivian watched Greg's retreating figure. A flicker of emotion crossed her ice-blue eyes, and she immediately followed him.

“Why did you follow me? Didn't I tell you to leave first?”

Greg asked as Vivian caught up to him.

He wasn't sure if this event was triggered by his own bad luck or because Vivian was beside him.

But if it was the latter, Vivian might be in some danger here.

After all, it wasn't dark yet, and they weren't in a dungeon. Greg couldn't use the Divine Protection granted by Nightmare or the talents provided by the system.

Moreover, in a public street like this, he couldn't openly use dark-attribute magic. He could only fight using the skills he had acquired, which wasn't particularly safe.

For Vivian's safety, Greg had wanted her to leave first.

But Vivian said firmly, “I can help you.”

She then raised her hand, and ice-blue mana condensed in her palm, turning into a freezing chill that swept toward the surrounding flames, instantly clearing a safety passage.

Seeing this, Greg said no more. Instead, he worked together with Vivian, and they quickly rescued several trapped residents from the building.

Just as the last injured person escaped the building and Greg and Vivian breathed a sigh of relief—

“Not only did you dare to get in our way, but I don't feel even a shred of reverence for the Demon King from you.”

A gloomy voice drifted down from the rooftop across the street.

Greg and Vivian looked up at the same time.

Three figures wearing dark hooded robes were standing on the roof of the opposite building, though it was unclear when they had arrived.

Their hoods were pulled down low, obscuring their faces. Only the faint outlines of their jaws and the cold curves of their lips were visible in the shadows.

All three held magic conduits in their hands, and fluctuations of mana surged around them, indicating they were clearly prepared for battle.

“Since you cannot offer your fear to the Demon King...”

The leader slowly raised his magic conduit, aiming it at Greg and Vivian.

“...then die!”