Torture the hero, why has the Demon King's castle collapsed again?

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The voice of “darkness” then spread: “I really don’t understand why you told that hero to activate the spell in the first place.”

“That’s not the incantation to activate it.” Lacto adjusted his glasses, his eyes darkening.

“What I told him was the ‘self-destruct spell.’ My original intention was to guide him to open it and destroy the notebook. That way, he would become the public enemy of the Kingdom of Kur and all human magicians, and be sentenced to death! But he didn’t take the bait. But that’s fine. Being tortured by demons is more suitable for his fate.”

"Within the kingdom, I am now the only one who knows this incantation..."

"Darkness" nodded in satisfaction and shrank back into Lak's body.

Lark carefully put the notebook into a drawer in his desk and left the room.

Next up is afternoon tea time...

The room fell into a dark silence.

After a while, the whispers of a demon echoed in the void.

The sound shifted from ethereal to tangible, permeating the void and generating a strange attraction.

The drawer slid open slowly, and the Round Tower Notes were enveloped by a strange power. A phantom of a soul materialized, which was none other than the Book Demon Swell.

Swell activated his senses and confirmed that the notebook was indeed the unique magic book of the Round Tower.

Soon, his voice became cautious: "There is actually a double layer of magic enveloping it... The first layer is inherent to the notebook itself, and the second layer must have been given by Lak, so no one can damage this notebook from the outside."

"Unfortunately, it seems I can only learn about the function of the round tower through the notes."

As a demon strategist, Swell was a flexible planner. He quickly recited the incantation and tried to break the seal on the notebook first.

"deep·dark·fantasy..."

After the complex incantation was recited, the Round Pagoda Notebook vibrated, and the pages flipped open with a rustling sound.

Swell was filled with joy as he looked at the latest page when, in the next moment, scorching flames surged forth.

In Swell's astonished state of mind, the notebook spontaneously combusted page by page, the edges of the pages turning charcoal and shrinking until they finally turned into a wisp of white smoke—as if it had never existed at all.

Swell stood frozen in place.

"This notebook... was it meant to be a one-time use item?"

For a moment, he began to doubt people's environmental awareness.

But then, two names flashed through my mind: Mino and Lak.

First, ruling out Mino's involvement, the incantation is genuine and effective, but the notebook is now self-destructing. It's unlikely that the hero would pay such a high price as destroying the notebook just to prevent them from peeking.

So there's only one suspect in this bizarre scene: Chief Lark!

Did they anticipate that they might extract information from the hero and attempt to destroy the Round Tower Notes?!

This makes the authenticity of the notebook questionable.

Swell immediately realized: "No wonder, Lak, who is full of holy magic, was just on the round tower. How could he not have noticed my arrival? That's impossible."

"This is a profound provocation that conveys the message of 'mutual destruction'!"

“Ang Lac’s will is clear: if the hero is gone, then he is the kingdom’s last line of defense.”

"To defeat humanity, we must step over its corpses!!!"

Chapter 13 The Murderer Was Myself

The aroma of Earl Grey tea lingers at the tip of the nose.

The warm, mellow liquid rolled down my throat, leaving a lingering sweet aftertaste. Paired with freshly baked toast, the sweetness melted into my body little by little.

Ang Lac's face relaxed slightly.

Having racked his brains for years to get rid of Mino, his nerves had never relaxed, and this was the first time he had ever enjoyed afternoon tea so much.

Predictably, both the saintess and the prince are distraught over Mino's capture... I heard that Prince Ota even broke down in tears a few days ago.

In this situation, as long as he completes the magic circle in the notebook and works with the round tower to control the next hero, the future of the kingdom will be in his hands.

Lak could no longer suppress the smile on his face.

Enjoy your afternoon tea with a smile.

Smiling, I strolled back to the room at the top of the round tower.

Smiling, he sat back down at his desk, opened a drawer, and reached inside.

Smiling, I touched a patch of air.

The smile disappeared.

Lark raised an eyebrow, trying to keep his voice calm: "Hmm, not here. Maybe... it's just my memory playing tricks on me."

He hesitated slightly before standing up and walking briskly to the bookshelf against the wall, taking down the books one by one from its overflowing shelves… Half an hour later, the scattered books on the floor had piled up into a small mountain. Looking at the empty bookshelf, Lark smiled again:

"Speaking of which, I also have a habit of carrying things with me at all times."

Without further hesitation, he removed his magnificent robes and inner garments one by one until he was left with only a thin, chilly long robe. Only then did he remember... a mage doesn't have pockets.

Lak patted his head, then shook his head with a wry smile:

"Even if we take a step back and assume that I just misread it, what if I did?"

He walked back to his desk and confidently opened the drawer!

In the empty drawer, a small, inconspicuous pile of ashes sat in the center...

It's gone...it's gone...

Lark took two steps back, clutching his heart abruptly, the familiar symptoms of a heart attack contorting his face.

"Where's my notebook? Where's my huge notebook?" Lark muttered to himself, somewhat incredulous.

"Darkness" flew out from within, looked at the ashes in the drawer, and remained silent for a while: "I sensed... traces of self-destruction."

Lak felt a sudden, sharp pain in his heart, as if he were being forced to confront some terrible reality.

The self-destruct spell should only be known to him and Mino, so could it be that the "dead" Mino is still attacking him?!

Lak - terrified.jpg!!

“That’s impossible,” Darkness said in a deep voice. “You are filled with dark magic. If there is any pure holy power nearby, it would definitely not escape your senses!”

"Oh, I see." After a long while, Lark nodded, as if he understood something.

If you eliminate all the impossibilities, then whatever remains, however hard to believe, is still the truth.

"So, it turns out I did all of this."

"what?"

“Since only Mino and I know the self-destruct spell, and only I am inside the round tower, then the one who destroyed the notebook… is naturally me.”

"Yes, that's right, only this makes sense..."

Lak smiled and tilted his head back, seemingly accepting everything.

Then, everything went black, and he collapsed to the floor with a thud.

……

"Your Highness, something terrible has happened! Chief Lak of the Round Tower has collapsed!"

In the garden, Kalia sat on the lawn, her white dress blooming like a flower, weaving an exquisite floral crown.

She was preparing for the hero's memorial ceremony a few days later, while trying to release some of her emotions so that she wouldn't look too haggard in front of the nation on the day of the ceremony...

"What? Even Chief Lak... What happened?"

Kalia was slightly surprised.

The head maid shook her head:

"It is said that Chief Lak has been experiencing mental turmoil. He has been engrossed in studying magic lately and has already overworked himself... It is likely related to the Mino Warrior as well."

Mino's position is irreplaceable; as humanity's strongest warrior, he is always fighting on the front lines.

The sudden loss of such a powerful hero as Mino must have caused Chief Lak great concern for the future of the kingdom.

"Sigh." Kalia sighed.

Unexpectedly, even in Mino's absence, the impact on Ota and Chief Lac was so profound.

"If Brother Mino knew, he would probably be very touched..."

……

Demon City.

Fim pushed the jingling little cart into the cell, the large bow tied at the back of her maid outfit swaying almost imperceptibly.

"Mino, I'll change the blankets."

Fim, dressed in a black and white maid outfit, performed a classic courtly bow. Her legs, beneath the voluminous skirt, were encased in white silk stockings tied with ribbons, and her slightly bluish skin was veiled in a hazy, translucent white.

A flash of light appeared in the room, and the holy sword Altottai descended, slashing towards Fim, only to be caught by slender, pale fingers.

"Mino, are you practicing your sword?"

Gently pushing the blade aside, Fim tilted his head and looked past Altottai at Mino.

With their powers sealed, the hero and the holy sword could not possibly injure the Ninth Demon, Fim.

“That’s right.” Mino said calmly.

"Once we leave the Demon King's castle, we will be enemies. At that time, I will fight with all my might, whether it is you or the Demon King!"

Fim shook his head, as if stating a fact:

"'The Demon King's power' is very strong."

"Mino, we can't beat them."

She went to Mino's bedside, picked up the large quilt and threw it into the trolley, then replaced it with a clean, new, soft pillowcase and blanket.

As he reached the door, a flicker of hesitation crossed Fim's lifeless face. After a moment's thought, he turned back to Mino and said:

"The strategist said that the operation was unsuccessful."

Mino did not lower the sword in his hand.