“You scared the life out of me.” Just as Tang Mian was in the middle of his complaint, he furrowed his brow and looked at the hand Karl was gripping his wrist with.

The hunter’s hand was absurdly large, its palm covered in rough calluses; when he gripped Tang Mian’s wrist tightly, it felt like hot, rough embers.

“Ouch—let go.”

Only then did Karl let go, as if snapping out of a trance.

He saw red marks immediately appear on Tang Mian’s dazzlingly pale wrist—the marks he had left.

He hadn’t used much force at all—how could this have happened? Could a noble man’s skin really be this delicate?

“I’m sorry! Are you okay?!” Karl apologized, flustered. His face flushed crimson as he stammered, “I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry.”

“You were standing behind me with a knife without saying a word just now—was that on purpose or an accident?” His green eyes widened unevenly as Tang Mian glared at the young hunter with obvious displeasure—or, more precisely, the health bar above Karl’s head.

【Health: 100/100】

Tang Mian: 【Why is this a health bar?】

System: 【Everyone has a health bar floating above their head—what else did you think it was?】 

Tang Mian, without hesitation: 【I thought it was his favorability rating toward me.】 

System: 【…….. 】

“I did that on purpose—no, wait…” Karl was a full two heads taller than Tang Mian, but Tang Mian, standing in a crouched posture, exuded an astonishing presence—in fact, the tall Karl kept his head down, not even daring to meet Tang Mian’s gaze. 

“Several villagers have gone missing in the forest recently, and I came to investigate. Just now, you were in the mist, and I couldn’t see you clearly, so I pointed my knife at you. I’m very sorry—” Karl’s expression suddenly grew serious.

Rustle. Rustle. Rustle.

In the silent forest where only he and Tang Mian were walking side by side, the sound of a third person’s footsteps appeared out of nowhere.

The footsteps were halting and uneven. So close it seemed as if they were right behind them!

Karl and Tang Mian turned to look around almost simultaneously.

“The fog here is too thick—I can’t see a thing!” Karl pulled a palm-sized hexagonal mithril medallion from his chest; the crystal at its center glowed white. “Monsters are all around us. We must get out of here as quickly as possible before the holy protection decree wears off!”

Is the fog thick?

Tang Mian looked at the mist all around them. The grayish-white mist was like a thin veil; although it obstructed Tang Mian’s vision somewhat, it wasn’t yet to the point where he couldn’t see anything at all.

“Shouldn’t we start running? Though my running speed might slow you down.”

In that instant, Karl wanted to say countless words of encouragement about never giving up or abandoning each other, but before he could speak, he heard Tang Mian say, “Why don’t you just carry me while we run? I shouldn’t be too heavy, right?” 

Karl: “…Wh-what?”

His clear green eyes turned toward him. “Or would it be easier to carry me on your back?”

Karl blushed and nodded vigorously. He took off his cloak and wrapped it around Tang Mian. Just as he reached out to embrace him—

【Attention】【Attention】【Attention】

【SSR card: Demon King Enters Dungeon】 

Almost the very instant the system issued the alert, the fog shrouding the entire forest began to tremble violently. The thick mist, like a sluggish tide, retreated inch by inch.

But as the fog receded, another presence began to draw near—

The chill that had constantly swirled around Tang Mian vanished completely at that moment; his exposed skin seemed to keenly sense the restless heat in the air.

Tang Mian sniffed the air; a pungent smell of sulfur completely overpowered the forest’s natural damp chill. 

His beautiful green eyes widened as Tang Mian saw a small orange-red speck glow deep within the vast, gray-white fog. It was like the rising sun.

The next moment, the flames shot straight into the sky, tearing through the entire fog.

In the space warped by the heat wave, a towering silhouette emerged.

Flames rose from his skin, outlining his slender form, along with a pair of dragon wings so immense they seemed capable of obscuring the sky.

Amid the raging inferno, SSR·Demon King opened his eyes. His blood-red pupils seemed to dance with the flames of jealousy, crisscrossed with crimson cracks. He opened his mouth, and a deep, terrifying voice—as if echoing from the abyss—boomed: “Get out.”

Tang Mian nodded: 【 So cool—he just looks like he’s got a lot of pent-up rage】

Karl instantly dropped to his knees. An invisible aura of intimidation left him gasping for breath; every cell in his body was frantically screaming for him to run. This was an experience unlike anything he’d ever encountered in his entire career as a hunter, no matter how ferocious the monsters had been.

He struggled to spread his hands; the crystal embedded in the center of the holy protection decree had already turned into a pile of powder.

“Run—run…” Karl wanted to shout, but the air around him seemed to have been scorched thin by invisible flames. He cleared his throat and said, but the sound that emerged was so faint that even he could barely hear it.

【You and the Demon King Teammate Relationship】

【Team Chat Enabled】

【Tang Mian: Wow, what a cool entrance! I’ve already recorded it.】

As soon as Tang Mian sent this message, the towering, raging inferno—which had been spreading throughout the mist forest and could be described as overwhelming—died down in an instant. 

White smoke from the extinguished flames billowed, obscuring the Demon King’s face.

It was undoubtedly an extremely handsome face, every feature sharply defined and aggressive—a high nose, deep-set eyes, and thin, tightly pursed lips. He stared at the team chat, slowly turned his head, and let out a slightly displeased “tsk.” 

【Tang Mian: Thank you so much for saving me! Are you going to take out the Mist Monster now?!】

【Demon King: Tsk.】

【Demon King: I could have wiped it out right away, but you’re too weak. I was afraid I’d burn you to death, so I held back a bit—and that thing took the opportunity to escape.】

The one thing that annoyed the Demon King the most about this dungeon was that this mist monster was particularly good at playing hide-and-seek.

【Demon King: No problem. I’ll burn down the entire forest in a moment, and then it won’t have anywhere to hide.】

【Tang Mian: I see! But this forest is so beautiful—it’s perfect for photos. It would be such a shame to burn it down. Couldn’t you defeat the Mist Monsters without destroying the forest?】

“Are you telling me how to do my job?”

The demon’s tail swished irritably. The Demon King lifted his head and gazed into the distance through the white mist. He saw the beauty shrouded in dark red, his already fair skin made to look as white as snow.

A wide hood concealed most of his face, revealing only his slender jawline and delicate lips. Against the backdrop of his cloak, his soft lips resembled fresh, rosy fruit just ripening on a branch.

At that moment, Tang Mian lifted the brim of his hood slightly and gave the Demon King a gentle smile with his green eyes.

The red mark on Tang Mian’s wrist—left by Karl’s grip—was painfully conspicuous, yet even more dazzling was the radiant smile on his beautiful face. He seemed completely oblivious to the pain and had forgotten just how terrified he’d been moments ago; the moment he saw him, he broke into a silly grin as if he’d found a powerful ally.

…How could his smile be a hundred times sweeter than the one in the photo? 

【Demon King: Alright, then.】

Tang Mian said happily:【That’s great! Please go catch the Mist Monster! Don’t let it hurt any more people. Don’t worry about me—I’ll take care of myself!】

【Demon King：…Who’s going to worry about you?】

Wait a minute. When did he promise Tang Mian he’d go save anyone? What business is it of his if these villagers die?

After finishing his conversation with the Demon King, Tang Mian bent down and looked at Karl: “Are you okay?”

Karl’s health bar was almost empty, but when Tang Mian looked closely: 【Health: 11/100】 

Tang Mian suddenly realized something and looked up at his own full health bar:

【Health: 10/10】 

Tang Mian：“?”

Karl coughed twice. “Don’t worry about me. Run!”

His green eyes widened like those of a little animal about to be abandoned. “You’re the one who needs to take care of me. Didn’t you say you’d protect me?”

“Right. I’ll protect you. I’ll get you out of here.”

Karl found strength from somewhere and struggled to his feet; seeing this, Tang Mian reached out to help him up.

【Demon King: Damn it.】

Tang Mian：“?”

What’s wrong? Oh, right! I almost forgot!

【Tang Mian: (Image) This is the photo I just took!】

Although the Demon King’s aura of intimidation wasn’t directed at Tang Mian—he’d even gone out of his way to avoid him—Tang Mian, with his fragile 10 HP, still felt immense pressure. Nevertheless, even in such harsh conditions, he remained resilient and managed to snap a photo for his boss—

Against a backdrop of grayish-white mist, molten-gold flames streamed down the Demon King’s body, the extreme color contrast outlining an incredibly striking silhouette.

Aside from the near-perfect capture of color and light, this photo also perfectly captures the dynamic moment— the instant his wings are fully spread.

Against the backdrop of the forest, the massive dragon wings resemble the contours of mountain ranges. Even though the Demon King’s face is obscured, one can sense the overwhelming, sky-obscuring dominance radiating from this figure alone.

【Tang Mian: I’m looking forward to our upcoming collaboration—I hope I can capture even more of your handsome and charming moments! I’m sure you’ll look your best when you save the village ^-^】

Demon King：“……!!!”

Damn it! What does this mean?! Why did you make me look so handsome in this photo? Do you like me? 

If you like me, why are you flirting with that Karl?! Damn it! Why aren’t you flirting with me?!

The Demon King’s tail had already curled up in excitement, but at the thought of that annoying Karl, it instantly drooped in annoyance, and he slammed it on the ground twice. 

The Demon King irritably turned on an all-in-one card.

Demon King: “Bro, I’ve got a question for you. If someone takes a really handsome photo of you and compliments you on how charming you are, but at the same time he’s arm-in-arm with someone else and exchanging flirty glances, what does that even mean?”

Battle Angel: “ Fish Farming ”

Demon King：“?”

Demon King: “This is a forest—there are no lakes around here. He can’t keep fish.” 

Battle Angel: “………. ”

Battle Angel: “Wait—we agreed not to hang out with that N card guy. How come you’re letting him toy with you again? With your IQ, he’s playing you like a dog.” 

Demon King: “Holy shit, bro, what’s that supposed to mean? Who are you looking down on? How could I possibly let that N card treat me like a dog?!” 

No. Wait a minute. How does this bird guy know he’s talking about that N card? 

Never mind.

The Demon King, desperate to save face, said, “I just wanted to see how big he’d photoshopped himself to be, so I ran to the dungeon with this N card guy. If he’d photoshopped himself to be huge, I was going to let him die right there—that would’ve been his punishment.”

Demon King: “But here’s the thing! You might not believe me, bro, but he wasn’t faking it at all—he’s a hundred times more handsome in person than in his photos!” 

Demon King: “Bro, you really misjudged him this time!”

Demon King: “That N card guy even took pictures of me in the dungeon. I think he did a pretty decent job—he barely managed to capture one ten-thousandth of handsomeness.”

Battle Angel: “Check it out.”

Demon King: “【Picture】.”

Battle Angel：“……”

Battle Angel: “I said, take a good look at him.”