Great harvest

"I came from the Kingdom of Aelfhim. It's a long story, but to put it simply, I was framed by that bastard princess. She was jealous of my treasure and wanted it by all means," Leonel said, raising his hand to show Sheon the demonic ring.

Sheon's eyes widened. "What a powerful presence... No wonder the princess fell into jealousy. I can sense an incredibly strong aura from it! It must be a high-grade artifact!"

Leonel smirked. "It's actually a sacred treasure that bonds with its owner. A growth-type artifact. Right now, it's merely a 7th-grade artifact, but at its peak, it can reach the 11th grade."

"Merely a 7th-grade artifact, you say?!" Sheon exclaimed, even more surprised. She herself possessed a 7th-grade artifact—the Moon-Slicing Blade—but she would never call it merely anything. She knew how much effort it had taken to obtain it. However, since his ring was a rare growth-type artifact, it was only natural for him to speak of it so casually.

What shocked her even more was that Leonel hadn't hidden its nature from her. That meant he trusted her. Perhaps she should return the favor.

[Sheon has developed trust in you. +4 Evolution Points.]

Leonel smirked. So I get Evolution Points for gaining trust? Not bad. That brings my total to five. He imagined the difference it would make once Charion succeeded with his evolution.

"You said you're from the Kingdom of Aelfhim, right?" Sheon continued. "I've heard rumors that the princess made a deal with a demon during some war. Ever since then, her power has been increasing at an alarming rate! I even heard she's already at the 7th order at such a young age."

Leonel almost coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Seventh order already?!

"I thought I was the one with the cheat skill! How the hell is she always one step ahead of me?! Last I checked, she was stuck at the 5th order for a while, and now she just breaks through like it's nothing? Is she also a Heaven-Favored? Does she have a system too?!"

A thousand thoughts raced through his mind. His greatest enemy was growing stronger while he had been lazing around, getting his ass beaten by a fifteen-year-old and a spirit.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Sheon asked, noticing his sudden silence after his coughing fit.

Leonel forced a smile. "I'm fine. It's just that she's after my head, and her growing stronger is a massive pain in the ass."

Sheon stood up. "I'm heading out to do some quests. When I come back, I'll make sure to buy you a healing potion so you can recover faster!" She winked and waved before leaving the room.

Leonel watched her go and smirked. "What a poor damsel... You're nothing but a pawn in my game—wait, porn?!" He slapped his forehead. "Damn it! I finally get to say something cool, and that's what I think of?! Well... whatever. In this life, I plan to enjoy myself. She is a beauty, after all. I wouldn't mind making her fall for me even more."

"Hey, Charion!" Leonel called out.

A black, shadowy figure emerged from thin air. "You called?"

"Of course I called. Why else would you appear?" Leonel rolled his eyes. "I want you to check on the situation in Aelfhim and find out what level the princess really is!"

Charion tilted his head. "What do you mean by level?"

"Her power. What else?" Leonel scoffed. "You know, you're pretty fun for a demon!" Without another word, he tossed the cat-like creature out the window.

"Now that that's done, it's time to continue my demon devouring." He grinned mischievously. He didn't want Charion to know that he had been grinding on lower demons to increase his strength—it might cause trust issues between them.

"Now then, let's begin!"

Leonel began summoning low-level demons and devouring them instantly, gaining at least 5% stat increase per absorption. After consuming about twenty more demons, something unexpected happened.

For the first time, he summoned a demon with royal blood essence, and the system gave him a choice.

[You have summoned a demon from the First Hell with royal blood essence. Do you want to convert it into Mana Stats (+50%) or Evolution Points (+30)?]

Leonel's eyes gleamed. "Show me my stats!"

---

[Status]

Name: Leonel

Title: Hero / T*********R

Class: Hero

Str: 6th Order (30%)

Spd: 6th Order (50%)

Int: 6th Order (10%)

Phy: 6th Order (70%)

Mana: 6th Order (50%)

Evo Points: 5

Talents: Quick Learning, Quick Adaptation, Hero's Will, Swordsmanship, Magic Affinity

Equipment:

11th Grade Demonic Ring (Currently: 7th Grade)

Skills: Demonic Summon (1/3), Demonic Absorption, Anti-Demonic Magic, Partial Transformation

---

"If I put it into Mana, I'd break through to the 7th order... A great opportunity," Leonel muttered. "But if I suddenly jump a whole rank, it'd be suspicious as hell. I can't lie my way out of that one."

He clicked his tongue. "Damn, what a pain in the ass... but 30 Evolution Points is a fair trade."

With a sigh, he chose to convert it into Evolution Points instead.

"After this evolution, Charion better be on par with that damn spirit!"