Chapter 280
Neo’s eyes widened as the system window flickered into existence before him. The text burned clear and cold.
**Location: Second World – Find Kingdom.**
**Failure: Your death. The death of everyone you love. The death of the entire forest.**
**Reward: Ability to summon tomes. Inject your skills into them and gift those skills to your harem.**
He gulped. This was the first time the system had ever named a clear target. Find Kingdom. The name alone made his stomach tighten. He remembered the looks on the faces of the people there—the way their hands had gone to their weapons the last time he stood among them. Going back openly would be suicide. He needed another path. He needed to know if the targets even still lived inside those walls.
A second notification pulsed.
**Are you ready to be transported to Find Kingdom?**
Neo nodded once.
The world tore sideways. Wind roared past his ears. Then solid ground slammed under his boots. He staggered, catching himself on one knee in the middle of a dirt road that cut through thick forest. The air smelled of pine and damp earth. Birds called somewhere high above.
He rose slowly. In the distance a carriage rolled toward him, wheels creaking, two heavy horses pulling. When it drew level he stepped into the road and raised a hand.
The driver reined in. The man was broad-shouldered, gray-bearded, eyes sharp under a wide hat. He looked Neo up and down, taking in the strange cut of his clothes.
"Son," the driver said, voice rough from road dust, "you’re standing at the border of the demon sealing. Unless you ride with the Kingdom Unison army, I wouldn’t linger. Me? I only haul food and gear for the soldiers."
Neo nodded. "Appreciate the warning."
The carriage rolled on. Neo opened his system map. Two red dots glowed inside the marked zone of Find Kingdom. One sat near the outer walls. The other burned deeper, inside the sealing itself.
He grit his teeth, crouched, and launched skyward. Wind tore at his clothes as he climbed. High above the treeline he activated Torch Man. Fire erupted along his arms and shoulders, bright and controlled, lighting the forest below like a moving beacon. From that height he could see the distant walls of Find Kingdom and the shimmering barrier that sealed the demons. One red dot pulsed near the city. The second sat dead center inside the sealed ground.
Neo angled toward the barrier and dove.
The moment he crossed the array the air changed. It grew heavier, thicker, tasting of iron and old blood. The center of the formation held a massive door bound in thick golden chains. The chains glowed faintly, humming with holy power that kept the portal locked.
He hovered, studying the seals, when a soft laugh drifted from the shadows beneath the trees.
"More sinister, isn’t it?"
A woman stepped into the open. Her long purple dress clung to every curve—massive breasts straining the tight fabric, a heavy ass that swayed with each step, wide hips that rolled like a promise. Purple heels clicked softly on the stone path. Long dark hair framed a face that was beautiful and knowing at the same time. She stopped a few paces from him, smiling.
"You’re not from here, are you?"
Neo met her gaze. "Neither are you. So tell me why you came."
She laughed again, low and warm. "My name is Lus. Witch of Lust. I’m waiting for a demon who still owes me the second half of my payment for a little help I gave him."
Neo studied her. She didn’t look like the kind of woman who fell for soft words or pretty faces. He only needed her skill. Copy it, leave. Nothing more.
Lus noticed the way his eyes moved. A slow smile curved her lips. "I don’t mind being looked at like that, young man. But you should step away from the door."
Neo turned.
The golden chains rattled. One by one they snapped free, links spinning through the air. The door groaned open. A massive red-skinned demon stepped out. Muscle corded every inch of his frame. Four short horns ran in a line across his forehead. His eyes burned yellow.
The demon fixed on Lus. "You’re the witch who sold me that possession spell. You want the rest of your coin."
Lus nodded, calm.
The demon threw his head back and laughed. Then he charged, fist raised. "How about I give you nothing and drag you back as my slave instead?"
Lus’s eyes widened for half a second. "You idiot. The Demon Princesses back me."
The demon’s laugh grew louder. "Haven’t you heard? The princesses have been exiled. There’s no one left to protect you."
Lus’s heart slammed against her ribs. She shot into the air, purple dress fluttering. Not good. She needed time. Her gaze flicked to Neo. Meeting the boy had been useful for a moment. Now she needed to live.
"Sorry, boy," she whispered, already calculating her escape.
Neo watched her. The offer left his mouth before he fully thought it through. "How about you let me have you for one night, Lus? I save you."
Her eyes widened. A handsome man was better than the Demon Realm. She nodded once.
Neo didn’t waste the second. Lord of the End mode flooded his body. Natural Embrace energy coated him in seamless armor that clung like a second skin. He pulled the spear from his inventory, charged it with Stardust until the tip burned white, and launched forward.
The spear punched into the demon’s chest. Blood sprayed. The demon roared, staggered, then grinned. The blood that had spilled lifted into the air, spinning around him in thickening ropes. The ropes cracked like whips and slammed into Neo.
Pain exploded across his arms and legs. Deep cuts opened. He tried to pull back, but the blood ropes shot out again, wrapping his wrists and ankles. They yanked him off the ground, stretching his limbs wide. The ropes dug into his flesh, sucking, thickening with every heartbeat. The longer they held him the harder they became to break.
Neo’s mind raced. He could feel his own blood being pulled outward through the connection. An idea hit.
He forced Holy Pyro mana into his bloodstream and sent it racing along the blood ropes toward the demon.
The demon’s roar shook the sealed forest.