CHAPTER 430: WAS HE NOT AS STUPID AS HE THOUGHT?

"Someone who will give you power." They said, their eyes glowing red. "You want it, right? Let me offer it to you and you’ll do one little thing for me. Do we have a deal?"

Usually, when a person offers power like that, it is usually very sketchy, and one needs to be cautious. But for a man like that who had nothing going for him, no pride to his name either, he would go to any means to get power and shut the mouths of those who dared to look down on him.

"Sure." He said, grinning at his chance. "So long you give me power, I’ll even be your dog."

The red-eyed stranger who approached him grinned and exclaimed,

"Excellent. You’ll do a fine job for a hunting dog. And your first target is the hero you despise so much."

The man did not understand at first but then his eyes widened as he realized the stranger was referring to Alice.

"You catch on quick. What is your name?"

"Stein." He proudly said.

"No, Stein, I will give you power and let you go on a rampage but your first task is to kill the hero that is sitting in that restaurant."

"What? She was there the whole time?"

"Yes, now hurry so you don’t miss her. And while you’re at it." He grinned. "Get rid of the others who looked down on you."

The offer sounded so sweet that Stein had to grin and take the red glowing liquid with open arms.

He did not question how he would be able to kill someone like Alice, who had shown so much power on TV. What he believed was that Alice must’ve taken something like this to get so strong.

Since he had this now, he would definitely be the one on the headline and make Alice old news.

The thought of it made him feel so elevated but then he wondered, why did this man appear now and give him something like this? Something so precious.

He began to feel suspicious.

"Why me of all people?" He asked and the stranger with red eyes frowned in the dark.

Was he not as stupid as he thought?

Or was it something else?

Ah, he seemed to understand what it was.

A pathetic existence like him only looked for praises without hard work and always expected to wake up to a better day when they had such shitty personalities.

And the way to please such a pathetic person was to give him a sense of purpose.

"It’s because you’re a chosen one." The stranger said with a sly tongue, and Stein’s eyes widened.

"I... I’m a chosen one."

"Yes, that’s right. Why else would I suddenly appear to you?" He asked. "Now, go, chosen one."

And just as he thought, Stein drowned in the sense of purpose that had been put to his name.

The stranger watched him take the demon blood and snickered.

’What a fool. He has no hope.’

The demons were lurking around Alice more than before, but not in obvious forms that would allow her to notice them.

After all, she was actively seeking them, especially at the gates.

Because of that, most of their plans fell through and the gates they had prepared to get rid of her were getting wiped out like a field of grass being mowed by her.

As such, they needed a way to distract her while they destroyed the places around the world with the new monsters they had been preparing.

This time, it was the golems, one of their secret weapons for world destruction. So, they were left with the land of the dead.

That one... Was being reserved for a special occasion.

"I look forward to seeing the great hero in despair." He laughed and disappeared into the shadows.

Alice stretched her arms as she emptied the plates.

"Wow, that was an amazing meal. I think I’ll tip the chef." She said, and Leo wiped her mouth with his handkerchief.

"Can we go now?" He asked.

His eyes had been on the news. Other awakeneds had appeared on site but they weren’t getting much work done.

The only way they had to get rid of the golems was if they had someone with amazing brute strength on their side.

And so far, their attack power wasn’t strong enough to break through the golem’s thick and sturdy body.

But aside from that, there was another way to get rid of the golems. People weren’t using their brains, that’s why.

What happens when a rock that has been exposed to flames for a long time meets water? Thermal shock.

If they could simply burn the golems and then cool them with water, the golems would naturally shatter.

But they weren’t using this method because they hadn’t thought of it yet.

So far, the mages were fighting with fireballs and meteor showers to restrict the golems from doing anything, but how long can they last?

The mages would lose mana soon and would need to take mana potions.

Instead of going through all that, they could just rain down fire spells on the golems and then water spells.

It seems he would have to tell them about this once they got there.

"Alright, I’m done." Alice said. "Let’s get going and..." She paused as she sensed strong demonic energy coming closer.

"Something smells awful." The customers only sensed this as a foul smell but Alice knew it belonged to a demon.

Was a demon really coming this way? Why?

Were they there for her? How did they even know she was there?

"Leo,"

"I know." Alice said, her eyes fixed on the door.

She wouldn’t attack straight away because the threat might not be a demon but a person who consumed demon blood. But this density and this murderous intent... It was as if the person had gone towards the stage of becoming a zombie.

There was no way something like that could walk through the streets with so many people watching without causing an uproar.

The veins would definitely show.

So, was it a demon after all?

There was only one way to answer that question.

She got up and glanced at the people in the restaurant. She didn’t want to drag these innocent people into this fight.

"I guess I’ll go to them before they can come to me." She said and rushed out, charging at them.

No matter who it was, it was a fact that they were coming here, seeking blood. So they were a danger she had to quell.

As soon as Alice tackled the person, she realized it was the man who had headed out after being humiliated.

But he was fine a moment ago, and no trace of demon blood, so what happened?

Stein saw Alice’s face and cackled.

"So they were right. You were here the whole time."

"They?"

Alice felt she had figured it out a bit. After he left, he met a demon who promised him power. He was already pathetic to begin with but this was downright stupid.

"What’s going on?"

"I think someone’s fighting."

The people around wanted to gather but Leo kept them in check, putting up a barrier.

*Alice, we can’t do this here.* Leo said to her and she nodded.

Since no one else had noticed her identity, it would be best to leave before anyone pointed it out or this madman, who was out to get her, yelled her name.

So, she sealed his lips and then flew away with him.

"Wait, it was an awakened. Is this alright? I thought they weren’t meant to use their powers in the middle of town unless it was something that had to do with monsters."

The people kept speculating but no one could come to an answer. And just in case it was something like a kidnapping, they informed the awakened agency about it.

Leo listened to what the rest of the people had to say and was planning to do before taking the next step.

He also tried to keep an eye out for the demon that had interfered.

But since they wouldn’t expose themselves that easily, he could only give up and follow after Alice.