The appearance of Demon King City was very much in line with Alice's imagination.
The city walls blacked by the Demon King's Power were tall and majestic, giving the city the appearance of a fortress. The irradiated mana leaking from the city dyed the surrounding area into a darkish brown, and not a single blade of grass could be seen in the affected area. Simply put, the city gave off the feeling of "Do Not Approach."
"Demon King City is just ahead. How about it? Do you still want to go there?"
Typically, the drivers hailed using the ride-sharing application would leave once they dropped off their clients at the destination. This was especially true when the destination in question was a dangerous place like Demon King City. However, Heris remained in place as she watched Alice standing at the edge of the radiation zone. Then, revealing a playful smile, Heris said, "It still isn't too late to turn back now. I can send you back for free so long as you let me hug you once."
They had set off on their journey to Demon King City in the early morning, and it was evening now. Meanwhile, Heris had not rested her mouth even for a moment throughout this entire journey. Moreover, most of the things that came out of her mouth were words of harassment. Hence, Alice had already become accustomed to the demoness's harassment, and she could ignore light harassment such as the teasing words Heris just said.
After ignoring Heris, Alice took out the magic stones the demoness gave her. These magic stones were colored translucent cubes. Each of these cubes had engravings on two sides, with one side showing a QR code and the other side listing product information such as the date of manufacture and the expiration date...
The method of use was simple. So long as one crushed the magic stones, the mana contained within them would automatically create a protective film that covered the user and protected the user from radiation. Of course, the film's defensive properties were limited, protecting the user from radiation only to a certain extent.
However, Alice didn't mind this limitation. So long as she entered the city and got out of Heris's sight, she could take out a pair of panties immediately. The mana in this world influenced each other. Once the amount of mana Alice radiated increased to a certain extent, the effects the irradiated mana would have on her would disappear. In fact, there should be many powerhouses among the demons who could also ignore the radiation in Demon King City. Only, none of them could destroy the black crystal in the middle of the city.
"Alright, then. It seems I won't get to chat with you anymore today," Heris said, sighing when she saw that Alice had already squeezed and shattered an anti-radiation magic stone. Then, she waved her phone at Alice and smiled, saying, "Make sure to call me once you come out~"
"I'll think about it."
Previously, inside the car, Alice could not withstand Heris's incessant coaxing and pestering, so she ended up exchanging phone numbers with the demoness. However, Alice didn't think it would be a huge problem since Heris wouldn't be able to contact her anymore once she returned to the human realm. In comparison, she could contact Heris whenever she wanted by virtue of her right hand.
As a side note, Alice had shattered the anti-radiation magic stone with her left hand. If she held the magic stone in her right hand, the item would become a Garbage-quality "Useless Stone" that didn't provide any additional effects. Hence, only by shattering the magic stone with her left hand could she activate the protective film.
An iron fence had been erected around Demon King City's radiation zone. However, due to the city's unique nature, nobody was stationed to guard it, so the iron fence was nothing but a decoration. Holding the unconscious Milu Rabbit by the ears, Alice relied on the Strength +2 bonus to hop over the fence. Then, she entered the radiation zone under Heris's gaze.
Sure enough, after crossing the fence, Alice immediately felt a sense of discomfort spreading through her body. Although the magic stone had allowed her to avoid experiencing the full effects of the irradiated mana, the irradiated mana still affected her body to a certain extent. Moreover, Alice could sense that the protective film covering her body was growing weaker by the second. After only a minute had gone by, the protective film was already showing signs of faltering.
Isn't this magic stone a little too weak? No wonder why my right hand deemed it as a useless stone even though it has mana.
Alice couldn't help but be dumbfounded by this situation. She had previously wondered why the magic stones were rated as Garbage even though they carried mana within them. Now, though, she realized that it was probably because the amount of mana they held couldn't even compete with the mana the Milu Rabbit held.
Afterward, Alice turned around and looked behind her. When she saw she had already walked out of Heris's sight, she took out the remaining magic stones in her pocket and crushed them against the Milu Rabbit's body.
Immediately, several layers of protective film enveloped the Milu Rabbit. The magic stones were originally designed with the body of demons in mind. When used on a small animal like the Milu Rabbit, the protective films created were thicker and stronger than usual. Not to mention, Alice had used all eight of her remaining magic stones on the Milu Rabbit. This way, the Milu Rabbit shouldn't have to worry about the irradiated mana affecting it for at least an hour.
As for Alice herself, she inserted her hand into the small pouch hanging around her waist and took out a pair of black panties. Immediately afterward, dark mist oozed out of Alice's right hand and enveloped her entire right arm. Then, boundless mana gradually emerged from Alice's body and stopped the irradiated mana from approaching Alice.
[Weapon: Soft Black Lace Underwear]
[Quality: Artifact]
[Effect: Strength +3000, Constitution +3000, Speed +3000, Mind +7000, Control +7000, Mana +7000]
[Additional Effect:
Mana Cancellation (Passive Skill. You will not be affected by offensive magic);
Absolute Defense (Passive Skill. You will not be hurt by physical attacks);
Destruction Grip (Active Skill. Upon use, releases a hand of darkness that can crumble the target's soul.)]
Just like Alice had expected, the massive boost to her mana pool had allowed her to become immune to the irradiated mana's effects. The only problem Alice faced now was the black mist that kept on oozing out of her right hand. At this rate, the black mist would envelop the entire Demon King City within the hour.
Although Alice wished to leave the mark of a Demon King here, she didn't wish for others to find out that she was pretending to be the Demon King too quickly. Hence, she promptly started running for the castle situated in the middle of the city.
Alice's plan was to shatter the black crystal and leave a trace to tell the demons that the Demon King had once appeared here. Although the area around Demon King City was currently a no-man's land, it was still land with an owner. The businessmen who bought this place would occasionally return to check the radiation levels from time to time. If these businessmen find out that someone had broken the black crystal, they would definitely spread the news of the Demon King's birth, letting everyone in the demon realm know about it.
Once that happened, the demons would shift their attention into locating the Demon King, and Alice would be able to live a much safer life in the human realm as the Hero.
With such thoughts in mind, Alice finally arrived at the entrance of Demon King City's castle. Even though the gigantic doors at the entrance looked very heavy, Alice easily pushed them apart with her bare hands. Then, she was immediately greeted by the sight of a gigantic black crystal situated in the middle of the main hall.
...and Heris standing in front of the crystal.