"----"
Silence.
A deathly silence.
At that moment, both Shien and the Demon King herself fell into an overwhelmingly stifling silence.
The Demon King was silently waiting for Shien to make his move.
Meanwhile, Shien could clearly sense an overwhelming will to die in the Demon King's words and the atmosphere around her.
That will was incredibly intense, so intense that it allowed no room for doubt.
Shien was certain that if he did not act, she would not hesitate to force his hand, making him fight and drive the Holy Sword into her chest, through her heart.
Just like what the First Generation Hero—his mother—had gone through.
Having realized this, Shien said nothing, allowing the oppressive silence to continue spreading.
It was not until the Demon King gently raised her head, seeming ready to do something, that Shien finally spoke.
"I want to ask you three questions."
Shien suddenly said this.
The Demon King halted what she had been about to do, then nodded after a while.
"Ask. As long as it is something I can answer, I will answer."
That was as much of a response as she could give.
Shien did not hesitate for long before asking his first question.
"Throughout history, aside from Mitra, several Heroes who reached the Transcendent Class challenged you, and they all died, right?" Shien asked abruptly. "Given your condition, you should not have wanted to kill them. You would even have been willing to stand there without resisting at all. So why did it end up like that?"
This was a question that had been raised before.
Now, Shien asked it because he wanted a definite answer.
The Demon King fell silent for a long time before speaking in a faint voice.
"I truly did not want to kill them. I