Chapter 480: The Upper Realm (VI)

Neither answered.

Instead, Scarlett and Elira exchanged a brief glance.

Something had changed in their expressions.

Scarlett’s hand moved toward her waist, while Elira’s fingers curled around the hilt of her sword.

SHING!

Two blades emerged from their scabbards.

Gray raised an eyebrow.

"...Hmm?"

Scarlett stood slightly ahead of Elira, her ruby eyes fixed on him with the tip of her sword pointed toward the ground, clutching the handle tightly.

Elira had taken a position several steps away, keeping enough distance to react if Gray suddenly moved.

For a few seconds, neither spoke.

Then Scarlett finally broke the silence.

"...Gray."

"Yes, Princess?"

"You’re not really an Incubus, are you?"

Gray remained silent.

Elira looked at him, then at the bodies scattered across the clearing.

"Scarlett and I have been discussing something for quite some time. At first, we thought there were reasonable explanations for your strange behavior, but after everything we’ve witnessed today..."

She paused.

"Something doesn’t add up."

Scarlett tightened her grip on her sword.

"No demon needs mana, Gray. Every demon cultivates Demonic Energy. Our bodies, cores, and cultivation systems are built around it. Even when we use foreign treasures, our bodies must first transform their energy into something compatible with our cultivation."

Her gaze sharpened.

"Yet you absorbed the Pure Heartseed."

Gray said nothing.

"That treasure was made from the purest Mana. Demons cannot cultivate with such an object in its original state, and even the strongest demons would need special methods to convert its energy before absorbing it. But you consumed the entire thing and advanced to the Emperor Realm without suffering any backlash."

Elira continued where Scarlett had stopped.

"And there’s more. During the auction, you bought treasures with several Mana crystals. At the time, I thought you were collecting them for some unusual reason, but now I understand why you were so interested in them."

She took a small step forward.

"You don’t need Demonic Energy, do you? You need Mana."

Scarlett nodded.

"Your cultivation breakthroughs, your techniques, and even your recovery. We’ve never sensed you properly circulating Demonic Energy. Whenever you fight, the energy you release feels different from anything a demon should possess."

Elira looked toward Gray’s face.

"And there’s your appearance. Your horns, your wings, your entire demonic aura... We’ve both noticed inconsistencies in them. Sometimes your aura feels almost too perfect, as though something is deliberately maintaining it."

Scarlett’s expression became colder.

"Even your reaction to the emergency artifact was strange. You didn’t break it, overpower its formation, or interfere with its mana circulation. You simply made the entire thing stop functioning."

She paused.

"So I’ll ask again."

Her sword rose slightly.

"What exactly are you, Gray?"

The clearing fell silent.

Gray remained where he stood.

He looked at Scarlett, then at Elira.

Neither princess seemed interested in accepting another vague explanation about an innate talent.

They were suspicious, and judging by their swords, they had finally decided to confront him directly.

Gray lowered his gaze toward his rapier.

For several seconds, he studied the silver blade before gently raising its tip and pressing it against the palm of his left hand.

Tick.

The sharp tip touched his skin.

No wound appeared.

He applied slightly more pressure.

Nothing.

The blade simply rested against his palm without leaving even the smallest mark.

Scarlett’s eyes widened.

Elira’s expression changed as well.

They knew the quality of his weapon, and yet Gray was pressing its tip against his own hand without drawing blood.

The two princesses exchanged another glance.

Their suspicion had just become something considerably more uncomfortable.

Gray lowered his hand.

’...Should I just kill both of them?’

[And lose all the progress you’ve made with the two of them?]

Jasmine raised an imaginary eyebrow inside his mind.

Gray’s expression remained unchanged.

’But I don’t want to reveal my identity yet. I planned to tell them after we returned to the Underworld. That way, it would be more... romantic, of sorts. I’d be the one revealing a secret of mine, you know? Something personal.’

[Welp. Your plan got ruined by their curiosity. Deal with it.]

Gray remained silent for a moment.

’You’re awfully unhelpful today.’

[And you’re awfully troublesome every day.]

He ignored her.

There was no escaping the situation now.

The two princesses had already connected too many clues, and attempting to mislead them again would only make matters worse.

Killing them was an option, of course, but he wasn’t particularly interested in throwing away the relationship he had spent weeks building.

Besides, he had promised them a favor.

It would be rather inconvenient to kill them before fulfilling his promises.

"Haah..." Gray let out an audible sigh.

Scarlett immediately tightened her grip.

"What are you sighing about?"

"Nothing. I was hoping to enjoy a peaceful expedition."

"Then answer our questions."

"You’re quite persistent, Princess."

"Gray."

He looked at her for a moment before finally reaching for his collar.

With two fingers, he gently adjusted the fabric around his neck, loosening it slightly and allowing his robe to fall more naturally over his shoulders.

Then he released a small amount of Mana.

The air around him stirred.

At first, it was nothing more than a gentle breeze, brushing against his hair and clothes.

But the wind quickly gathered strength, spiraling around his body until a small cyclone formed beneath his feet.

FWOOOOOSH!

The surrounding grass bent outward.

Dust and fallen leaves rose into the air, circling Gray in a rapidly expanding vortex.

Scarlett immediately raised her sword.

Elira stepped backward, gathering Mana around her body.

Neither princess knew what he was doing.

Then the cyclone suddenly contracted.

The wind stopped, and the scattered leaves fell to the ground.

Rustle...

Silence returned to the clearing.

The first thing Scarlett noticed was his face.

Or rather, the absence of the features she had grown accustomed to seeing.

His two black horns were gone.

The slightly pointed ears had returned to their normal human shape, and the large black wings that had rested against his back had vanished completely.

Even the faint demonic aura surrounding his body had disappeared, replaced by an unfamiliar energy that felt clean, refined, and strangely different from the mana flowing through the Upper Plane.

But those changes were nothing compared to his appearance.

Scarlett forgot to breathe.

His hair, previously styled around the small horns of his Incubus disguise, now fell naturally around his forehead, framing a face so perfectly proportioned that her mind struggled to process the difference.

His skin was pale and flawless, without the slightest imperfection.

His jawline was refined and masculine, his nose straight, and his lips carried a natural shape that seemed almost unfairly well balanced with the rest of his features.

His eyebrows were dark and neatly shaped, while his long eyelashes framed a pair of crimson-black eyes unlike the narrow, demonic pupils she had seen before.

Those eyes were still unmistakably his.

Yet without the artificial features of his Incubus disguise, their appearance had changed entirely.

They possessed a depth and clarity which made them seem as though they were looking directly through the person standing before him.

His dark hair moved gently in the remaining breeze, revealing more of his forehead and emphasizing the sharpness of his features.

There was no need for horns, wings, or any other demonic characteristic to make him stand out.

His face alone was enough.

Even the way he stood seemed different.

His posture was relaxed, his shoulders naturally straight, and his movements carried an effortless elegance which made him appear as though he belonged among the highest circles of the Upper World.

He wasn’t merely handsome.

He was the most beautiful man either princess had ever seen, and neither of them had been prepared for it.

Scarlett’s sword lowered by a few centimeters.

Her lips parted, but no words came out.

Elira was equally speechless.

She had grown up surrounded by noble demons, royal heirs, and handsome young prodigies from some of the most prestigious families in the Underworld.

Beautiful men were hardly rare in her social circle, yet... none of them had ever made her forget what she was about to say simply by standing in front of her.

For several seconds, she could only stare.

’...Who?’

The question appeared in both princesses’ minds, and then their eyes returned to Gray.

His expression remained as relaxed as ever.

He brushed a few strands of hair away from his forehead before looking at them.

"Well?"

Neither answered.

"Is something wrong?" Gray tilted his head.

Scarlett blinked... twice... then, after taking a breath, she finally managed to speak.

"...Your horns."

"Disappeared."

"Your wings?"

"Also gone."

"Your ears..."

"Back to normal."

Elira finally found her voice.

"Y-Your entire appearance changed!"

"Yes. That tends to happen when someone stops using a disguise." Gray smiled.

Scarlett stared at him.

"A disguise?"

"Mhm."

He casually slipped his rapier back into its sheath.

"I wasn’t born an Incubus, Princess."

Elira’s eyes widened.

"Then... you’re human?"

Gray looked at her.

For a moment, he considered giving them another vague answer, but he decided against it.

"Yes. I’m human."

The two princesses froze.

A human.

The words carried far more weight in the Underworld than they did in the Upper Plane.

Humans and demons were natural enemies, separated by different worlds, different cultivation systems, and centuries of bloodshed.

Even the idea of a human entering the Demon Academy was absurd, let alone living under the protection of a royal demon family.

And yet...

The man standing before them had spent weeks living among demons, eating their food, cultivating inside their residences, and casually accepting resources from two royal princesses.

He had even been living with Scarlett.

Elira slowly turned toward her rival.

Scarlett turned toward Elira.

Neither knew what to say.

Then Gray gave them another smile.

"Well, now you know."

His tone was so casual that Elira almost wondered whether she had misunderstood him.

Scarlett, however, was beginning to recover.

She lowered her sword slightly, although she did not put it away.

"...Gray."

"Yes?"

"You’ve been living in my residence..."

"Correct."

"You’ve been eating our food..."

"Quite regularly... I must say that is even more delicious than the food from the human world."

"You’ve accepted resources from my family..."

"A generous amount, yes."

"And you’ve been calling me Princess for the past several weeks while pretending to be an Incubus."

Gray considered it.

"Now that you put everything together, it does sound rather suspicious."

Scarlett stared at him, and her cheeks puffed out slightly.

"...You bastard."

"Pfftt..." Gray laughed.

’...Alright. Perfect... they don’t outright hate me because I’m human. Those weeks were definitely worth it...«

Elira, meanwhile, had finally regained enough composure to examine him again.

A strange look appeared in her pale violet eyes.

"So... you’re telling us the most handsome man we’ve ever met has been pretending to be an Incubus this entire time?"

"Is that what troubles you most?" Gray smiled charmingly, tilting his head.

Elira’s cheeks gained a faint shade of color.

"That’s not what I meant!"

’...Whoa, I keep forgetting how deadly my face is.’

[Tsk...]

Scarlett immediately turned toward her.

"Elira."

"What?"

"Don’t."

"I haven’t done anything!"

"Your expression says otherwise."

Gray watched their familiar argument begin to unfold, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.

’Well... so much for my carefully planned reveal back in the Underworld.’

[At least you finally told them.]

’Yes, yes. There’s no need to sound so pleased.’

He looked at the two princesses again.

"Anyway, shall we discuss the more important matter now? There’s still an underground structure waiting for us."

Scarlett slowly turned back toward him.

Her eyes narrowed.

"You’re not getting away with this so easily, Gray."

He smiled innocently.

"I wouldn’t dream of running away, Princess."

"Good. Because you’re going to explain everything... from the beginning!"

Elira nodded immediately.

"Everything. And I have considerably more questions now."

Gray looked between them and sighed.

’...I should have killed the curiosity before it became a problem.’

[You mean the princesses?]

’No, their curiosity.’

[Of course.]

Jasmine sighed.