Chapter 486: ’I Am Grateful for what you did’
For a brief moment, Amon forgot to breathe.
The woman standing near the entrance was unbelievably beautiful.
Long rose-pink hair flowed freely behind her. Her slightly tanned caramel skin seemed almost radiant beneath the manor’s lights.
Two magnificent crimson horns curved upward from her head. Her pink eyes possessed vertical slits that instantly revealed her demonic heritage.
She stood far taller than most people, nearly towering over everyone present. Even among demons, her presence felt overwhelming.
She wore elegant black armor decorated with small red patterns.
It made her appear both regal and terrifying.
She was a queen, a warrior, a ruler.
All at once, the atmosphere around her felt strangely heavy. Not because she was releasing pressure. But because her existence itself carried weight. This was someone who ruled millions. Someone whose single decision could change the fate of nations.
Amon stared for a few seconds.
Then one thought appeared in his mind.
’Wow...’
That was honestly all he could think. Not because she was the Demon Queen. Not because she was powerful. But because she was simply that pretty. A different kind of.
He remembered the day when he met Queen Celestia. She was undeniably beautiful. But Nyxariel was different.
She was not the type of beauty that everyone would immediately call beautiful. She was tall, nearly one hundred and ninety-five centimeters tall. Her figure was athletic. Her presence radiated a strong and dangerous aura.
Yes.
Dangerous.
’Damn! She’s such a tall and scary beauty!’
Her appearance could make anyone kneel before her.
Amon thought. ’Is she what people call villainess beauty? Or dominant?’
Meanwhile, Nyxariel’s gaze slowly swept across the gathered students.
Her eyes moved from one face to another. Most students immediately became nervous whenever her gaze passed over them. Some even straightened their posture further.
Then her eyes paused. They paused on Seraphina. The granddaughter of Alistair Luminous.
A faint smile appeared on her lips. Before anyone could notice it, her gaze moved again. Then she noticed another familiar name from the report.
Eliana Sylvaris.
The Elven Princess. The smile on her face deepened slightly.
The students had no idea what she was thinking.
But Professor Jolene certainly noticed.
The Demon Empress finally spoke.
"I hope your first day in my kingdom has been enjoyable."
Her voice remained calm.
Yet every student could hear it clearly.
Several immediately nodded.
Others answered respectfully.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Nyxariel looked pleased.
"Good."
Her pink eyes moved across the hall once more.
"Then I hope the rest of your stay will be equally enjoyable."
As she said those words, her gaze casually swept across the students again.
And this time, for a brief second, her eyes landed on a certain black-haired young man standing beside Seraphina.
Amon Vale.
For a second, she frowned before her expression returned to normal.
With a respectful expression, Jolene bowed slightly.
"It’s an honor to meet you, Your Majesty."
Adelia and Asher stood beside her. With a respectful smile, Adelia added, "We didn’t expect you here at all. It’s really too much for us. You really didn’t need to come here yourself to check on us."
It was natural. After all, it was unusual for the queen herself to come and meet a group of students. They were not informed that they need to meet demon queen.
Nyxariel laughed softly.
"Haha."
Then, with an amused smile, she said,
"You are all from the prestigious academy that belongs to Isabel. How can I not come here personally? Well, anyways, it will soon be dinner time. My servants have prepared food for everyone. There’s a huge hall where more than a hundred people can eat without any problem."
She turned to look at the servants.
"Go prepare everything."
All of them bowed and immediately went to work.
The Demon Queen then looked toward the students.
"You youngsters can go and explore this manor if you want, or simply rest. Come and eat after a while."
All the students bowed respectfully before leaving.
Meanwhile, Nyxariel remained behind to talk with the professors.
Amon looked at the tall demoness for a few more seconds with envy before turning around to walk away with his friends.
---
It was getting darker.
Mana lantern and bulbs were switched on throughout the outside space of manor.
A young man with midnight-colored hair stood at a corner of the manor outside, leaning against the wall.
Most of the students were exploring the gardens. Arnold watched everything with a calm gaze. While his thoughts were somewhere else.
Suddenly, a familiar voice called out to him. A voice that he hope to not hear. No yet.
"Hey Arnold! I was trying to find you!"
The voice immediately made him tense. It belonged to the one person Arnold had been avoiding ever since the academy started. But he knew he couldn’t avoid him forever.
His blue eyes turned toward the black-haired young man walking in his direction. It was none other than Amon. The ever happy smiling man.
A wide smile rested on his face.
"Hey Arnold! How are you, man? I really didn’t get a chance to talk with you. Every time I thought I would call you after class ended, you would already be gone. But finally, I got to meet you."
Amon stopped beside him.
He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the wall.
With a cheerful grin, he continued,
"How are you doing, bro? And congrats! You’re rank two in the whole second year."
Arnold’s lips twitched as he watched Amon talk to him so casually.
As if they were normal friends. If only he knew the truth that it was not a mistake that he was thrown inside that unknown portal. But it was deliberately done by him.
Amon noticed Arnold’s reaction and frowned slightly.
"What happened? You’re not talking?"
His words only made Arnold feel more tense.
He remained silent for several seconds.
Then, with guilt visible on his face, he finally spoke.
"Sorry..."
Amon blinked in confusion.
Now he frowned even more.
"Why are you sorry? What did you do?"
Arnold lowered his gaze.
Then he quietly answered,
"Because of me... that day you were thrown into the portal. And went to an unknown place for so many months."
Guilt was clearly written across his face.
No matter how much Arnold wanted to become stronger, or how far he was willing to go for power, he was still a young man learning about the world.
It was only natural for him to feel guilty for using Amon.
But he could never tell him the full truth the boy. It was not something that he could tell just to anyone.
Amon listened quietly before nodding.
"Alright. I forgive you."
Arnold froze. "Huh? What?"
Amon shrugged casually.
"I said I forgive you. Even though I went through one hell of a lot of trouble over those months... I’m also happy that I went through all of that."
Arnold looked at him with complete confusion.
He couldn’t understand what Amon was talking about.
After all, for Amon, those seven months had been painful.
But they were also something he was grateful for that Arnold didn’t know about.
He had met new people. He had become stronger. And most importantly...He had met Scarlett.
There was no way he regretted meeting her. If he were given another chance to return to that moment in his life, Amon would still choose to go through that portal. That time on his own.
With a puzzled expression, Arnold asked,
"What do you mean?"
For Arnold it was to weird and not understandable. He was the reason why Amon was vanish inside the portal, that place was supposed to be dangerous.
His system had told this to him. Yet Amon was standing here in front of him happily. He was same as before. No change, if there was anything the it was his strength and height.
If it were Arnold who had been gone to another place for months, even by someone’s mistake. He had been super angry and furious at that person. Yet Amon was totally opposite to it.
Amon smiled.
"Well, have you heard this saying? Everything happens for a reason."
He looked toward the sky where night was slowly coming.
"Just like that, I met someone in that unknown place... and I’m really happy that I met her. So in a way, I should thank you. You’re one of the biggest reasons I met her."
His smile widened further.
"And I also became stronger."
Amon uncrossed his arms and stood straight.
Then he grinned.
"Well, don’t be sad. It’s time for dinner, so let’s go. Also, I’m very strong now. I might take your rank soon. So be cautious."
After saying that, Amon turned around and walked away.
The young man had arrived like a storm.
And left like a hurricane.
Leaving behind the young master standing there in complete shock.
Arnold stared at Amon’s departing figure with a bewildered expression.
He still couldn’t understand what Amon truly meant.
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