Strongest Mage with the Lust system

Under Kriss and the two demons' gazes, the female demon's head suddenly exploded. While Kriss' pupils constricted in shock and the blackness slowly receded from his eyes, the two remaining demons' expressions stiffened.

For a moment, they didn't know how to react to this sudden change, but then they hurriedly assumed their battle postures, sweeping their divine senses around to find out the person who killed their companion while secretly activating their movement techniques to escape.

Seeing how the demoness—who was stronger than them—died without being able to resist in the slightest, they knew their end wouldn't be much better if they chose to stay and fight.

"W-Who–"

Bang! Bang!

One of them had just opened his mouth when their heads also exploded and their dead bodies slowly fell to the ground.

'Fuck!' Kriss wasn't happy to see this and instead became more wary and felt hopeless. He could try to get rid of them using his trump card, but he wasn't sure he could do anything to this invisible person.

'I shouldn't have deactivated it.' He gritted his teeth in frustration. Then he sighed in resignation and glanced at the cave behind him. 'I'm sorry, Miss Pauline. It seems I–'

Right then, he froze, chills running down his spine because someone was behind him, and their hand was on his shoulder.

He had hoped this person to be a human even though the chances of it being were very slim since there were very few humans left in this conquered territory and most of them were weaker than a Three mage, but sensing the demonic energy behind him, the tiny flame of hope was crushed.

Taking a breath, he tightened his grip on the daggers and was about to slash the hand 'holding' his shoulder when he heard a familiar voice.

"It's me. No need to be so tense."

Swoosh!

As soon as he heard the voice, he inadvertently relaxed. Noticing this, Kriss' pupils constricted. Forcing his body to move, his right hand swung backwards toward the hand on his shoulder. He knew he wouldn't be able to slash it off, nor did he aim to.

He just wanted the 'demon' to 'release' his shoulder, and as he expected, right as his dagger was about to slash through the hand, the 'demon' took it back.

Shua!

Immediately, he jumped forward before turning around, his expression dark as he glared at the dem…

'Huh?!' His eyes narrowed because this 'demon' in black had similar body proportions to Max's. He shook his head, not wanting to get his hopes up.

"What are you planning, you demon–"

Max sighed upon seeing Kriss still believed him to be a demon.

"It's good that you don't easily believe things you see, but it's really me." He pulled the hood of his cloak back while deactivating the disguise technique to reveal his face.

"You… Why can you use demonic energy?" Kriss asked after a moment of surprise, slowly relaxing his guard.

Max shook his head before turning around and glancing at the cave. "Is Pauline alright?" He asked.

Kriss' expression fell before his eyes shone, "No, she is not. We got ambushed two days before, and she had to use a sacrificial technique. She has been unconscious since then. Come, take a look and see if you can help her."

Saying this, he stored his daggers and entered the cave. Max, after glancing in the distance, followed after him.

…

In the distance, Havon and his family stared at the place where Kriss and Max disappeared in a daze.

A few moments later, Havon said, "We didn't see anything, nor did we encounter anyone today."

Saying this, he turned around to walk away, inwardly sweating.

His wives and sons understood why he said this, but…

"Father, can we just walk away after witnessing that? I mean, will he really allow us?" One of his sons nervously asked, glancing back.

"He will." One of Havon's wives said, glancing at Havon with a look of admiration on her face, "Because he has signed the Blood Oath Contract, he can't harm us in any way. Of course, he can force us to stay until he leaves, but… He clearly doesn't fear the fact that we might inform others about him."

"You are wrong." Havon spoke, prompting them to look at him: "It's not that he doesn't fear it; it's that he knows I won't allow you all to spread the news."

"What do you mean, Father?" His son asked with a frown.

Sure, he feared Max after seeing how easily he killed those three demons, but once they left, he would be no threat to them, and they could earn some merits by delivering the news about him to their superiors. But his father was saying he wouldn't let them do it? This didn't make sense to him.

"Because he allowed us to leave with our lives." Havon took a deep breath. "So we can't be ungrateful."

"What do you mean by that? He clearly doesn't dare to harm us due to the Blood Oath Contract." His other son snorted in dissatisfaction.

Havon gave him a sidelong glance. "The contract only ensures that we don't harm each other while we are in this mountain range. I don't need to spell it out for you what this means, do I?"

His son shivered and shook his head, "No." Inwardly, however, he grumbled that his father should have put down better terms and conditions in the Blood Oath Contract.

…

In the cave, Kriss nervously fidgeted as he waited for Max to check Pauline's condition. Once he was done, he quickly asked, "How is she? Can you help her?"

Max's brows were furrowed, and he seemed to be in deep thought. Therefore, he didn't answer him, prompting Kriss to ask again.

"She seems to have used up quite a bit of her blood essence. This is why she hasn't woken up yet." Max finally said, his tone a little uncertain.

Kriss felt his heart clench when he heard this. Although not much, his family had some information on the Blood Essence. That was why, he knew, to a mage, his Blood Essence was as important as his magic foundation. Once harmed, both were extremely difficult to recover.

"It's all my fault." He muttered, a guilty look appearing on his face, "If I hadn't hesitated and had gone all out, this wouldn't have happened."

Max raised his brows when he heard his murmuring, a hint of surprise flickering in his eyes.

"Don't worry. I can—"

Not wanting to make him feel any more guilty, he was about to tell him that he could most likely help her, but right then, he felt a strange sense of unease. It was as if something bad was about to happen.