Her cheeks still bore tear tracks not yet dry, eyes swollen beyond recognition—a pitiful sight of utter exhaustion.

"Morning."

Lenna spotted her from afar, approached, and sneered, "Don’t kittens greet their masters?"

"M-m-master… good morning."

Her voice rasped like a rusty hinge.

Angela was truly spent. After a sleepless night, she’d forced herself up at dawn despite the sharp pain between her legs to prepare for the rescue.

It was like a corporate drone stumbling home after an all-nighter, only to get an 8 a.m. meeting alert. Ruthless capital always squeezed every drop from her.

*Why isn’t Lenna tired at all?!*

Of course not.

Lenna’s stamina outclassed peers her age—her skill, her strength, her reputation…

"Let’s start and finish quickly. I’m going home."

Impatience thickened Angela’s tone as she shot back, "Or does my master want to rip my stockings off again in broad daylight? Never thought the Falmore heiress enjoyed such… *unconventional* games. Quite an education."

"No. The offering is sufficient."

Lenna cut her off.

She raised her ringed finger. Under sunlight, it blazed with dazzling indigo radiance.

The Narcissus King, sated on essence, had shed its dull shell, now gleaming with divine uniqueness.

"You fulfilled your worth perfectly. I owe you thanks. Now, I’ll fulfill your wish."

Lenna took keys from Lingling and unlocked the storage room.

Stale air hung in the pitch-black space. Aside from a black human-shaped sack slumped on the floor, no furniture cluttered the room—impossible to see details.

"Lingling tidied it all night!" the Fox Maiden chirped, tail wagging furiously as she bounced forward to claim credit.

"..."

*Magic could’ve done this in seconds,* Lenna thought. But seeing Lingling’s eager, praise-hungry face, she couldn’t crush the child’s spirit.

*She’s just a kid…*

Lenna repeated this like a mantra. Turning to Angela lingering outside, she called, "Not coming in? The forbidden-power-wielding magician begins her performance. You shouldn’t miss the show."

After a pause, Angela cautiously stepped into the darkness.

The doorframe shuddered as she entered, showering her with wood chips and dust.

Rubbing her stinging eyes, she glimpsed a flash of golden pupils—

"What the hell was that?!"

"Angela-jie."

A hand warmer than human skin pressed against Angela’s sensitive waist.

Lingling had found her in the dark, giggling. "Got you!"

"...Childish." Angela jerked away, ignoring the Fox Maiden’s playful jab.

*Just a kid. Beneath me.*

Angela had crafted a pure-idol persona. Yesterday, a gray-haired devil shattered it—stealing what mattered most. She had no patience for games, let alone smiles.

*Devil’s followers deserve death too.*

"Hmph!"

"Eh?"

Lingling blinked, confused. They’d exchanged contacts warmly last night. Why this coldness today?

One fumed. One puzzled.

A white light flared—Lenna cast Illumination.

"What’s this?" Lenna shot Angela a sidelong glare. "Changed your mind about saving him, pure little flower?"

"I’m not a ‘pure little flower’…" Angela muttered.

"Hm? What should I call you then? Kitten?"

Lenna beckoned Lingling, who hesitated before standing beside her, head bowed.

"Our deal isn’t done, my dear kitten. Once the sun fully rises, even a ninth-tier legendary Necromancer can’t help him."

*So know your place. Don’t bully mine.*

Lenna’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. Half her exquisite face sank into the lamp’s shadow, brows arched—chilling yet mesmerizing.

"S-sorry…"

Cowed, Angela apologized to Lingling: "I was wrong to ignore you. We’re still friends…"

"It’s fine! Lingling shouldn’t have scared you—that was rude!" The Fox Maiden rushed over, clutching Angela’s hand and offering her fluffy tail. "Holding the tail tip seals friendship forever! Foxfolk rules!"

"Hehe, my tail’s super comfy. Even Miss Lenna loves it!"

"I…"

Angela stole a glance at Lenna.

*Touch it and I’m dead.* Her hand froze.

The snowy tail tip swayed.

"Won’t you try, Angela-jie?"

*Damn it. Death or glory!*

Angela steeled herself.

Grab—

Stroke—

"Ah… so soft… I feel like I’m floating…"

"Right? I nap on it every afternoon!"

"I wish I had a tail like this." Angela’s envy was plain.

"Lingling’ll lend hers! If Angela-jie plays with me!" The Fox Maiden beamed, showing off her prized possession.

"Mm."

Lingling’s sincerity erased Angela’s nightmare. She embraced the girl, mentally separating her from the devil’s camp.

*So Lenna forced us both into servitude the same way?*

Angela glanced at Lingling—innocent, petite, so young… yet already the devil’s plaything. *Poor thing.*

*But what about me?*

A bitter smile tugged her lips. She prayed this hell would end soon.

*Someday I’ll turn the tables…*

*That devil will get what’s coming to her…*

She clung to this silent mantra.

"Ready to begin?"

"At your service."

The moment Lenna spoke, her aura transformed utterly.

If the previous second held a trace of humanity, now she was a devil crawling from hell’s abyss—a cold, emotionless spellcasting machine.

Near-solid black mist seeped from her right eye socket, coiling toward the ceiling.

Her entire right arm vanished. In its place oozed liquid darkness—dripping, corrupting, twisting life and death itself.

"You—"

Angela clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes wide as eggs.

"You’ve reached sixth tier?!"