Chapter 424: She Won

“Stop!”

“Don’t come in!”

A mournful wail echoed from deep within the Bronze Fortress.

The Devil Lady had locked herself in the deepest chamber of the Bronze Fortress, trying to escape the terrifying Holy Knight.

But the ruthless warden had no intention of giving her that chance—he wouldn’t let her off with a mere fart.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Herbert did not choose to forcibly open the door using his permission rights; instead, he pounded on the door and shouted: “Open up! Open up! I know you’re in there—don’t hide and stay silent!”

“You inside! You’re surrounded! Stop resisting!”

“Surrender at once!”

Not only that, he mimicked Master Ye’s wooden dummy drills and unleashed a rapid sequence of Wing Chun strikes against the bronze door.

Boom-boom-boom-boom—

“You can’t do this!”

“This contract has a loophole! You tricked me!!!”

“This contract is invalid—”

Herbert listened to Kreti’s wailing and slightly curled his lips.

“Hmph.”

Tricked you?

Isn’t that just nonsense?

Who doesn’t trick?

Don’t you ever trick others?

You can’t suddenly care about fairness in contracts only when you’re the one being tricked.

“Enough talk. I don’t want to say more—open the door right now!”

No more nonsense!

Open the door!

F! B! I!

Herbert increased the pace of his pounding, the knocks blending into a continuous roar as he chanted: “Open open open open open open!”

Meanwhile, Kreti pressed against the door and shouted back just as fiercely: “No No No—”

To be fair, this scene was truly bizarre.

The manipulative Devil wailed inside her room, while the human outside clung to the contract, insisting his actions were legitimate.

It felt like some long-dead world empire screaming about isolationism, desperately clinging to its last glimmers of glory.

On the other side, the once-oppressed, peace-loving farming people now smashed open the enemy’s turtle shell with warships and cannons.

Open the door!

Free trade!

The heavens have turned upside down—

After holding out for a while, Herbert was the first to stop his meaningless actions.

“Tsk.”

He shook his hand, wiped nonexistent sweat from his forehead, curled his lips, and muttered: “So uncooperative. Not even a little bit playful.”

He wasn’t tired of playing.

He was bored of playing.

It was time to try a new method.

He could absolutely force his way into the room using his control over the sealing array and the Jielvsuo , then give Kreti “forced assistance”—an education in love.

But that would be so dull!

Herbert preferred gentler, more roundabout ways to leave a lasting impression on the demon girls, rather than relying on brute power.

Yes, this was his method of courting demon girls!

……This isn’t just childish playfulness!

Now that Kreti refused to play along, he had no choice but to resort to harsher measures.

“You really intend to hold out like this forever?”

But before acting, the kind-hearted Herbert issued one final warning to the captive inside:

“If you keep being this stubborn, I’ll really start forcing you.”

Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Perhaps Kreti truly believed her resistance had worked—she sighed in relief, abandoned her earlier panic, and declared firmly:

“Yes!”

“Give up! I will never come out!”

The Devil Lady will never be a slave!

The Devil Lady will never bow!

For the glory of the Devil!

For the dignity of the Devil!

Kreti’s confidence wasn’t baseless.

The Devil Lady had a trump card—so she believed.

Kreti had layered countless seals onto this door; it was no longer merely part of the Third Jielvsuo , but her personal barrier.

This wasn’t a temporary setup—it was prepared long ago to resist Flora.

But every time Kreti hid here, Flora caught her before she could use it.

This time, the door unexpectedly proved its power—truly resisting Herbert.

Even if Herbert forcibly activated his permission rights, she could still hold out for a while longer.

To further increase her chances, Kreti added:

“Herbert! This is between us! Even if you drag others into this, I won’t submit!”

Upon hearing her “stubborn resistance,” Herbert didn’t grow angry—he smiled with delight.

She had spoken these words, seemingly defiant but actually weak, to prevent him from bringing in other prisoners.

Who was she most afraid of?

There were many~

“Herbert, can you give me a little more time? Let me think… think… think… again!”

Kreti wasn’t a fool—after all this, she finally realized Herbert didn’t truly intend to force her into submission.

This whole thing felt more like two people playfully wrestling.

So much had happened at once; Kreti’s mind was truly confused.

She never imagined Valentina’s “bloodline purification” meant doing *this*!

Logically, a Devil from the evil faction shouldn’t resist such a thing much at all.

Corruption was the Devil’s very trade.

Corrupting others while sinking deeper into corruption oneself.

But at this moment, Kreti felt lost.

If it weren’t Herbert, she might not have reacted so strongly.

At most, she’d just kill the fool who suggested this absurd idea—no wasted words.

But the one who suggested it was Herbert—and that made her heart go awry.

Their relationship was uniquely strange.

Among all the demon girls, Kreti and Herbert’s relationship was the slowest-progressing—they hadn’t even reached true friendship.

Others had already been fully conquered, even sharing the same bed.

Or they were beyond friends, yet not quite lovers.

Only she remained stuck in that awkward space: more than strangers, less than friends.

But in truth, Herbert and her relationship wasn’t bad—they’d collaborated often.

Though she never said it aloud, Kreti held deep curiosity toward this mysterious Holy Knight.

Especially curious about how he had subdued Flora and turned her into his servant.

She wanted to learn.

Even if she couldn’t master it fully, learning even one or two percent would let her control that hateful demon.

Under this peculiar relationship, Kreti’s feelings toward Herbert were uniquely complex.

Especially after Herbert proposed this unusual form of “help”—her heart was thoroughly thrown into chaos.

The once-calm lake had been struck by a massive bomb.

Boom!!!

It shattered her composure and forced her to think.

Kreti wasn’t sure if she truly desired power so desperately.

If Flora were truly her mortal enemy, wouldn’t doing this be acceptable?

Driven by true hatred, the Devil Lady would pay any price to gain strength.

But the problem is, her relationship with Flora is very unique.

Over these centuries of “harmonious” coexistence, they weren’t friends, but they were long familiar with each other.

The most familiar stranger.

Annoyance? Yes.

But hatred? There really isn’t much.

Is all of this really worth it?

Moreover, Crete had a strange intuition.

If she bowed down right now, many things would become very strange—she would never again hold her head high in Herbert’s presence.

Though she wasn’t holding it very high now, at least they were on somewhat equal footing.

After calming down a little, Crete used her ability to whisper softly into Herbert’s ear: “Herbert, give me a little more time.”

Hearing Crete’s tone begin to soften, Herbert’s lips curled slightly outside the door.

“...Heh.”

He knew he had already won half this round.

This confrontation was his victory.

Not only had he forced Crete to sign an unequal treaty that would make even the Great Qing weep, but he had also successfully triggered intense emotional turmoil in her.

At this point, having achieved a Jieduanxing victory, Herbert could easily call off the battle and stop while ahead.

But Herbert chose a different approach.

He nodded and said softly: “If you say so, then I understand your thoughts.”

The Devil Young Lady sighed in relief and said: “That’s good. Then leave for now—I’ll think some more...”

Before she could finish, Herbert continued: “Your proposal is good—but I refuse.”

One of the things Herbert loved most was saying NO to those who thought they were so clever!

Don’t stop! Keep going!

Herbert rejected Crete’s ceasefire agreement and declared he would continue his offensive!

These spoils alone aren’t enough—not nearly enough.

What he wanted—was a HUGE, UNPRECEDENTED, TOTAL VICTORY!

Most importantly, he hadn’t had enough fun yet!

“Herbert!”

Feeling betrayed, the Devil Young Lady bit her lip in fury: “What do you want from me?”

I’ve already bowed down—why won’t you give me some face?

Herbert replied—Face?

You want me to give you face—why don’t you first give me face and open the door?

The two remained locked in stalemate for a while longer, then Herbert paused again and nodded: “Fine, fine, fine—better keep holding out!”

“Hmph!”

A smug little hum came from inside the door, making Herbert’s smile grow even brighter.

Good.

Won’t open the door, huh?

Fine.

“Wait here—I’ll go get something good.”

Herbert grinned strangely, then opened a portal and turned away.

Click.

As the portal closed and Crete sensed Herbert’s presence vanish, she finally exhaled in relief.

“Thank goodness—he’s finally gone...”

With her tense nerves relaxing, Crete gave a weary smile and muttered: “This guy is really something—such a terrible personality!”

He could’ve just used brute force to force her to submit, but he insisted she surrender willingly.

“He has such a strange stubbornness in such a strange place—he’s really odd... Huh?”

As she mused, her expression suddenly changed.

Huh!!?

Crete froze—she felt a terrifying aura outside the door.

That was... Dragon’s Might?

Yes—it was the Dragon’s Might of a Giant Dragon!!!

And it was EPIPIC-level!!!?

Huh?

He brought Valentina here!!?

Calling in backup?

“That’s cheating!”

Realizing what was happening, Crete screamed: “Even if you use her power to break the door, I won’t acknowledge you!”

You’re playing dirty!

You can’t handle it!

“I won’t use anyone else’s power to conquer you.”

Herbert’s muffled chuckle came from outside: “Who said I’m relying on Valentina’s power?”

“I just borrowed a tool from her.”

A tool?

As Crete puzzled over this, she heard a faint snoring sound—Valentina was still asleep???

What was he planning?

But this question didn’t trouble Crete long—she soon found the answer.

Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!

With several sharp cracks, the once-unbreakable door rapidly split open, soon forming a large hole.

So easily!!?

Just as Crete was sinking into despair, Herbert didn’t press further—he stuck his head through the hole and grinned at her strangely.

Holy Knight’s here!

“Herbert, you... what are you doing?”

But Herbert didn’t answer. He pulled his head back and murmured: “Crete, do you know?”

“When breaking through a door is harder than breaking through a wall, your wall... is your real door.”

Huh?

As Crete pondered the meaning of those words, a thunderous crash came from the side of the door.

Boom!

A head smashed through the bronze wall and “burrowed” out.

Crete: ???

Valentina: “Huh... huh... slurp!”

The Devil Young Lady stared at the sleeping Giant Dragon’s face and completely lost it.

Herbert—he...

He’s using the sleeping Valentina as a battering ram!!?

Is he even human?

Monster!!!

In this absurd, unbelievable scene, Crete couldn’t even get angry anymore.

She was utterly defeated—she surrendered.

“I give up—but can you tell me one thing: what exactly are you trying to do!?”

Why are you so obsessed? Why go to such extremes?

“What am I doing?”

“I’m simply faithfully fulfilling the contract.”

Herbert smiled faintly, raising an eyebrow: “According to the contract, you’re supposed to let me help you, aren’t you?”

Forced assistance!

I’m here to help you~

“...So, what exactly are you going to do?”

“Since it’s the first time, I’ll start with a kiss.”

“Alright, I... Huh?”

Crete: ?

A kiss?

The Devil Young Lady blinked, then hurriedly asked: “Wait—you mean just one kiss?”

“Yeah? What’s the problem?”

Herbert glanced at her sidelong: “And what do you mean, ‘just a kiss’? Do you want more?”

“I… uh, no! I don’t!”

Herbert stared at Kreti’s flushed face, paused, then said seriously:

“Kreti, you’re lewd.”

Kreti: ???

(End of Chapter)