CHAPTER 581: CHAPTER 583: I’M SORRY, BUT I’LL STILL TAKE THE MONEY

"Well, that explains a lot."

Damon glanced down at what lay beneath them. No, this explained too much. He had a feeling it might be like this, but since he had no personal experience with dungeons, he thought he was just being paranoid.

His voice came out in a low whisper that made his skin crawl.

Down in the boss room, there wasn’t a single boss monster. No... there was one, but it was surrounded by hundreds, maybe even thousands, of crystal spiders. They crawled across the walls, littered the floor, and hung from the ceiling in suspended webs.

Damon and Abellona crouched on a large crystal formation on the cavern ceiling.

The spiders had not noticed them yet—thankfully, their immense size made it difficult for them to climb this high.

The smallest spiders were easily ten feet tall. The moderately grown ones reached twenty. And the largest of them all—the queen spider—was a massive sixty feet. Her swollen body pulsed as she birthed eggs, hatching them at a terrifying pace.

If that were the only issue, it would have been bad enough. But Damon’s skin prickled when he realized the queen’s rank.

A Rank Four monster.

Damon almost smiled. He knew Ashcroft wasn’t far. The demon lord would follow their trail to this very room.

The moment Ashcroft stepped inside, he would be facing thousands of these monsters.

Damon covered his mouth, forcing himself not to laugh.

"Hehehe, no, I can’t laugh yet... I gotta hold it in."

Though truthfully, Damon wouldn’t be surprised if the weakened Ashcroft still slaughtered them all. No—Ashcroft would kill them all. There was no doubt about that.

He had only a handful of demons left, and while he could use Mind Dominate on these creatures, it would be far easier for him to destroy them outright. Even weakened, Ashcroft was still a monster in human form....or rather goblin form.

"And when he’s done... he’ll face me."

All Damon had to do now was wait—and hope the spiders didn’t find them first.

Taking no chances, he drew out the Dealer’s Hand and knelt by the edge of the crystal platform. He carefully carved a rune into the surface.

Silence.

This one would mute any sound they made. Then, he layered another rune beside it.

Conceal.

Once the runes were complete, he walked around to each one, feeding mana into the carvings until they glowed faintly and dimmed again. Their hiding place blurred slightly, less noticeable even under the spiders’ watchful eyes.

By the time he finished, Abellona was sitting with her knees pulled up, holding her head with a grimace.

Damon returned to her side and pulled a bottle of water from his shadow. She accepted it slowly, her face flushed.

After drinking, she tapped the ground beside her, gesturing for him to sit.

Damon hesitated, then sat down. He never would have expected to be here like this—beside the third princess of Valtheron.

"Life really takes a man places."

Abellona forced a small smile.

"Not just men. Women too. I never imagined I’d be tied to a stranger like this..."

Damon chuckled lightly.

"You’re the one who did the tying. I was just passing by."

She let out a sharp gasp of air, half a laugh, half a sigh.

"You broke into my tent and saw me naked. How exactly does one just pass by someone else’s tent?"

Damon bit his lips.

"I was there for personal reasons. Don’t mind me. And I was sort of the victim. Seeing someone nude can be a scarring event."

"How will you ever recover," she sneered.

Damon pressed a hand to his chest.

"I might have to explain it all to the mental health quartermaster. Every detail of this event. Including how you looked."

She reached out and pinched his arm, then smiled.

"Ahh, I see. That would be terrible for my reputation. But at least I could take you down with me..."

She leaned her head against her knees, her red eyes watching him as though trying to memorize his face. Slowly, she reached into her spatial ring and pulled out a small, ornate key.

Damon frowned.

"You had the key to the chains this whole time... didn’t you?"

Abellona’s lips curved into a knowing smile.

"I did. But the condition for unlocking it has only just been met."

Damon narrowed his eyes.

"You aren’t in a safe location yet."

She nodded, her ruby gaze softening.

"I’m not. But... I’ve come to trust you. The condition for unlocking it was trust."

With a soft click, the shackles binding them fell away.

Abellona looked at him.

"Now you can let me die."

Damon closed his eyes, his voice low.

"I’m sorry."

She tilted her head.

"For what?"

He didn’t answer.

Abellona smiled faintly.

"Is it for sneaking into my camp and seeing me naked?"

He shook his head.

"Then is it for kissing me over and over again?"

He shook his head again.

She thought for a moment, smiling softly.

"Ohh... then it’s for financially exploiting me for five billion zeni."

Damon shook his head once more, embarrassed. Not about the money—he was still going to take that—but embarrassed nonetheless.

"No. I’ll take the money. But no."

She sighed. So he was going to take her money. Then what was he sorry for?

"You’re not a retard..."

Damon almost blushed as he said it. Apologizing wasn’t his style, and the words made him feel like dying inside.

Abellona’s eyes widened before she giggled softly.

"That was... ridiculous. I forgot about that. Besides, I already got even. But since you apologized, I should too."

Her gaze softened.

"I’m sorry, Damian."

Damon clenched his fist, then rested a hand on her shoulder.

"I’ve always hated nobles. I lumped you in with them. It’s a bad habit of mine."

Abellona felt her body heat up. Her breathing grew heavy, the rose curse blooming wider across her skin. Her heart pounded wildly—not just from the curse, but from his words.

"I promise you’ll make it out of this alive. I’ll kill Ashcroft... even if I have to die trying."

His words shook her deeply, moving something in her beyond the curse’s influence. Her willpower, already stretched thin, finally reached its limit.

Her body trembled, pupils dilated, lips quivering.

With a soft breath, she whispered.

"I’m sorry for this...you made me lose control..."

Before Damon could react, she pushed him down, ripping off her blue dress and all its straps with a single motion.

Suddenly, he found himself pinned beneath a naked woman, her flushed face inches from his, her lips trembling, her eyes filled with a burning, seductive light.