The Return Of The Exiled Villain

The moment he finished speaking, a familiar female voice suddenly echoed inside his head.

[Why are you acting so dumb?]

Gray’s smile froze.

He stood there for a moment before slowly turning his head to the side, as if he had suddenly remembered something important.

’Jasmine.’

[Oh, yeah! It’s me! Jasmine!]

Her voice carried a clear hint of annoyance.

[You have been asking questions about everything since you entered this place.]

[You asked the guards about Demon Cash, you pretended not to understand the exchange system, you told them you came from an isolated tribe, and now you are asking how much money you need to stay at an inn.]

Gray’s expression remained calm.

’And?’

[And you are acting like an idiot.]

Gray’s eyebrow twitched.

’That is a little harsh.’

[It is true.]

’You are inside my body, and you still have the courage to insult me.’

[Someone has to do it.]

Gray sighed internally.

Jasmine continued before he had the chance to answer.

[You already know how the Underworld works.]

[You know about Demon Cash, the major demon kingdoms, the noble families, the military factions, the different demon species, the Nether Portals...]

[Yet you are walking around asking people questions like a country bumpkin who left his village for the first time.]

Gray smiled slightly.

’Exactly.’

[...What?]

’That is the point.’

Gray continued walking through the crowded street.

His eyes moved across the shops and passing demons, but his attention was focused on the conversation inside his mind.

’Think about it.’

’If I suddenly arrive in a completely unfamiliar city and know everything about its currency, politics, geography, factions, and customs, what do you think people will assume?’

Jasmine became quiet.

Gray continued.

’They will wonder where I came from.’

’They will wonder who taught me all of this.’

’And if I give the wrong answer, someone stronger than me will eventually become interested.’

[So you are pretending to be stupid.]

’Not stupid.’

Gray smiled.

’Unfamiliar.’

[There is barely a difference.]

’There is a huge difference.’

Gray’s smile widened.

’If I act like I know everything, people will become suspicious.’

’If I ask simple questions, make a few mistakes, and behave like someone who has never traveled outside his tribe, people will explain things to me without thinking too much about it.’

’People love explaining things to outsiders.’

[...That is surprisingly clever.]

’Thank you.’

[It was not a compliment.]

’I’ll take it anyway.’

Gray continued toward the market district.

He had already obtained his first five hundred Demon Cash, but there was no reason to stay around the exchange house.

He needed a place to sleep.

More importantly, he needed somewhere he could sit down and listen.

The city was filled with information.

He only needed to find the right place.

And there was no better place for rumors than an inn.

Gray followed the main road for several minutes until he spotted a three-story building with a large crimson sign hanging above the entrance.

[The Red Horn Inn]

’Good enough.’

He pushed open the door.

CREAK.

The smell hit him immediately.

The scent of roasted meat, spices, alcohol... and strangely enticing herbs.

The sound of loud conversations filled the room.

Dozens of demons were sitting around wooden tables, eating and drinking while talking about everything from monster hunting to clan disputes.

Gray’s eyes slowly narrowed.

’Perfect.’

He walked toward the counter.

A large demon with dark brown skin stood behind it.

The demon had two thick horns on his forehead and an apron tied around his waist.

”Room?”

”Yes.”

”How long?”

”One night first.”

The innkeeper looked him up and down.

”Five Demon Cash.”

Gray reached into his spatial ring and placed five coins on the counter.

Clink.

The innkeeper took them.

”Food?”

”Yes.”

”What do you want?”

Gray looked at the menu hanging behind the counter.

Most of the names meant nothing to him.

He pointed toward one of them randomly.

”That.”

The innkeeper glanced at the menu.

”Blood Boar?”

”Yes.”

”Roasted?”

”Sure.”

”Spicy?”

Gray thought about it.

”Not too spicy.”

The innkeeper laughed.

”First time eating demon food?”

Gray paused.

’Again?’

He smiled.

”Something like that.”

”Hah.”

The innkeeper shook his head.

”You’ll get used to it.”

Gray found an empty table near the corner and sat down.

A few minutes later, a large plate of roasted Demon Boar was placed in front of him.

Steam rose from the meat.

Dark-red juices covered the surface, while several strange herbs had been sprinkled across it.

Gray picked up a piece with his fork.

He took a bite, and his eyes widened slightly.

’...This is good.’

The meat was tough at first, but after chewing it a few times, the flavor spread through his mouth.

Smoky.

Salty.

Spicy.

There was also a strange sweetness underneath it.

Gray took another bite.

’Surprisingly good.’

He continued eating, but just then, he felt a weak wave of Demonic Energy enter his body through the meat.

Gray paused.

His eyes narrowed.

’So this is why demons eat monster meat.’

The Demonic Energy was crude, but it was still energy.

For ordinary demons, eating creatures filled with Demonic Energy was probably one of the simplest ways to replenish their strength.

Gray’s body absorbed the energy without trouble.

His Nullification talent quietly filtered the foreign energy before it could cause any disturbance.

’Interesting.’

He took another bite.

’The food itself is almost like a low-level cultivation resource.’

Gray continued eating while listening to the conversations around him.

Most of them were meaningless, as they were talking about monster hunting, women, clan arguments, or territory disputes.

Nothing useful.

Until one particular conversation reached his ears.

”Did you hear?”

A large demon sitting at the table behind Gray suddenly spoke.

”Hear what?”

”The Thirty-Second Demon is dead.”

Clink.

Gray’s fork stopped against his plate.

His eyes slowly narrowed.

The other demon lowered his voice.

”You mean one of the Seventy-Two Great Demons?”

”Who else?”

”You’re lying.”

”I’m not.”

The demon leaned closer.

”It happened recently.”

Another demon at the table frowned.

”How?”

”Nobody knows.”

”Nobody?”

”They just found the body near the eastern territories.”

Gray stopped chewing.

The conversation continued behind him.

”The Thirty-Second Demon was killed so suddenly that nobody even knows who did it.”

”Impossible.”

”I said the same thing.”

”One of the Seventy-Two Great Demons was killed?”

”Yes.”

The demon lowered his voice.

”And apparently, the higher-ups are furious.”

Gray slowly placed his fork down.

His expression had completely changed.

’Thirty-Second Demon.’

His mind began moving across his memories.

And just then... the timeline of this event occurred to his mind.

’So it is this period.’

Jasmine noticed the sudden change.

[Gray?]

He did not answer immediately.

His eyes remained fixed on the table.

’The Thirty-Second Great Demon, Asmodeus.’

’Killed shortly before the Divine Dragon Sect officially began working with the Underworld.’

’The same incident happened shortly after the Upper Plane discovered a stable path into the Underworld.’

’And after that...’

Gray’s fingers slowly tightened around his fork.

’The entire balance between the Upper Plane and the Underworld began to collapse.’

The Upper Plane had spent years searching for a way to reach the Underworld without relying on unstable Nether Portals.

Eventually, they succeeded.

The first people to enter were scouts, followed by cultivators, sect representatives, and eventually entire factions, all of them claiming they had come to study the Underworld, investigate its resources, understand the demons, and establish trade, but those excuses lasted only for a short time because the Upper Plane had not entered the Underworld out of curiosity.

They had entered because they wanted power, resources, bloodlines, ancient inheritances, and anything else valuable enough to strengthen their factions.

The Divine Dragon Sect was no different.

On the surface, they were one of the most respected sects in the Upper Plane, preaching justice, righteousness, and the protection of humanity, yet behind closed doors, they had already begun looking for demon factions willing to cooperate with them.

They did not see the demons as simple enemies.

They saw them as potential allies, sources of information, weapons, bloodline resources, and most importantly, a path toward gaining greater control over the Underworld.

And the death of Asmodeus was one of the events that pushed everything forward.

Gray slowly chewed another piece of Demon Boar as the memories continued to surface in his mind.

’So this is where I am.’

’The Upper Plane has already found a way into the Underworld, Asmodeus has been killed, and the Divine Dragon Sect is about to officially begin its cooperation with the demons.’

His fingers lightly tapped against the table.

’The timing is perfect.’

Gray knew what came next.

The Upper Plane would slowly increase its presence in the Underworld, more factions would begin sending people through the newly discovered passage, and the demons would start forming their own alliances in response.

Some would choose to cooperate with the humans, some would try to use the humans for their own purposes, while others would refuse to deal with the Upper Plane entirely.

And eventually, everything would spiral into a massive conflict.

Gray’s lips slowly curved upward.

’Power, resources, bloodlines, inheritances, information... Everything I need is going to become much easier to obtain once the chaos begins.’

Jasmine’s voice suddenly sounded inside his mind.

[You sound happy.]

’I am.’

[Why?]

Gray looked around the noisy inn, watching demons eat, drink, argue, and laugh as if nothing important had happened.

Then his crimson eyes narrowed slightly.

’...I know exactly where to go now.’