Although the fruit was called the 1000-year Orange, it was not much different from oranges in general. It tasted sour and sweet. Isaac picked as many oranges as he could, from one tree to another.
Suddenly, he felt someone's presence. A very familiar presence.
A demon was coming closer.
Isaac clucked his tongue. "Damn it."
His plan to get the Spiritual Beast egg could fail.
"Why would a demon come here? Perhaps..."
The place where Isaac was currently picking oranges was practically a safe area. The inhabitants of this forest area were herbivorous monsters. Most of them were not the fighting type. So, it was unlikely that demons would search this place.
Unless, if the demon was looking for something other than monster eggs. There were only two demons who knew the secrets behind this forest.
Him and Gavin.
Isaac wrung his hands.
"I didn't expect you to arrive so early..." he muttered.
He pretended to still be unaware of the demon's presence. Secretly, his hand reached into his inventory.
Isaac quickly turned his body around. He aimed the gun at the bushes.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The sound of a gunshot echoed. The herbivorous monsters quickly ran away. Not long after Isaac pulled the trigger, a woman's scream was heard.
Instantly his eyes opened wide.
"Who is it!" he shouted.
A red-haired woman came out of the bushes. Her body was covered in leaves. On her beautiful face were scratches, blood seeping out. She wore a sullen expression.
Isaac, meanwhile, was stunned by the woman's appearance.
"Lady Alyna? What are you doing? Why are you hiding in the bushes."
Alyna rubbed her injured cheek. "That should have been what I said. Why did you shoot at the bushes for no reason?"
Isaac raised an eyebrow. "Of course, I shot. You were sneaking around in the bushes, like an predator."
He quickly approached her and gave her a bottle of potion. The woman took it roughly and downed it. In an instant, the wound on her cheek disappeared.
Isaac sighed at her behavior. But in a way, he was relieved. Alyna hadn't attacked him back, so he assumed that their relation wasn't broken.
This fueled his curiosity a little.
"You came here alone, where are your men?"
"Don't act like the two of us are familiar. I still don't consider you an ally," Lady Alyna replied, annoyance in her tone.
"Oh."
Isaac nodded. He began to keep his distance from Lady Alyna. After all, that woman was the Duchess. He had to remain cautious even if Alyna thought the incident just now was no big deal.
The white-haired demon made a smiling face. "Sorry, I shot you."
Alyna snorted. "You are late." Her eyes were glued on the orange trees. She looked curious.
She walked past Isaac. The woman picked an orange and peeled it, then ate a segment of the fruit. Her eyes opened wide.
"Wow... it tastes really good. But I still don't understand, why did you collect so many of them? If you like it, you can just take one fruit and plant the seeds in the dungeon."
The question asked by the female demon made Isaac hiss.
He was not planning on sharing information about the existence of the Spiritual Beast egg. It would take more than a lie to trick a duchess.
Isaac had to give a reasonable explanation.
However, the woman before him seemed to have a curious look on her face. A simple lie wouldn't suffice, while an elaborate one would make her even more curious. If his lies were exposed, it was likely that she would no longer trust him. He desperately needed the duke's power to win the game.
Worst case, Duchess Alyna would kill him.
"Hey, answer me! I was asking."
The duchess seemed impatient for an answer. Isaac sighed.
"If you want to know, help me collect oranges."
Isaac walked over to the duchess and picked oranges from the tree next to her. Alyna squinted, a look of annoyance on her face.
"Hey, what's so hard about telling me."
Isaac was still picking fruit. "Didn't you say it yourself. We're not allies yet. So I have no obligation to answer your question."
Of course, Alyna was upset to hear that. This was the first time she had been ignored by someone else. Especially a baron.
The demonesse began to utter demeaning words. She told Isaac several times to be aware of his position. However, Isaac seemed unperturbed and continued picking fruit. In the end, she was the one who got annoyed.
Alyna sighed.
She ended up picking oranges. Curiosity overcame her ego.
"Alright, I'll help you. But watch out if you lie to me. I will not hesitate to kill."
Despite her words, Alyna did not sound serious.
They both picked the oranges that were there.
After an hour, there were no more oranges left on the tree.
"Finally, it's done."
Alyna rubbed her forehead even though there were no beads of sweat at all. She saw Isaac walk away without saying anything. The duchess immediately chased after him.
"Hey! You said you wanted to tell me!"
"You'll find out later," Isaac replied, looking away.
The two ventured into the forest together.
Throughout the exploration, Alyna kept talking like a radio. Her mouth couldn't stop chattering. Various questions came out of her.
"How did you find me during the auction??"
"Why don't you just join my crew? I'll obviously be fair."
"By the way, what skills does he have?
Isaac continued to listen to the woman's ramblings. He only answered a few questions that needed to be answered. In his mind, he never expected that Duchess Alyna who was known to be strict and honorable would be so chatty.
Despite her obnoxious attitude, Alyna was a demon who could be cooperative.
Several times they encountered monsters. Isaac asked her not to attack, and she did not. When asked to hide, she did. Alyna followed Isaac's every word, so the journey went smoothly.
A lot of demons he had encountered in his previous life were stubborn. They could not be cooperated with and often made their own decisions. They didn't want to be ordered, except by the dukes. This was what made Isaac sometimes had to be careful and extra patient when dealing with a demon lord.
And as it turned out, his worries were wrong. He met a duchess who was very cooperative.
This made Isaac breathe a little easier.
Their journey came to a halt at a lake surrounded by large cypress trees. The surface of the lake was calm and the water looked clear as glass. By the time they arrived, the sun was setting, so the lake reflected the orange sky.
Alyna crouched by the lake. The duchess was seen chugging lake water with both hands.
"The water is very fresh, Lord Isaac. You should try it." She drank the lake water again.
"No, thank you. The lake water may contain bacterial monsters. You'll get a stomachache if you drink it carelessly," Isaac replied.
He was building a campfire. Next to it was a simple tent in the shape of a triangular prism.
Alyna quickly spit out the water in her mouth. She turned to Isaac with an annoyed look on her face. "Why didn't you tell me from the beginning!?"
Isaac casually replied, "You didn't ask."
"Lord Isaac!" Alyna raised her voice. "You should have taken more initiative. Do I have to tell you such a simple thing?"
Isaac was still glued to the campfire. He threw a branch at the flames. "We are outside our territory. Being careful is the most basic of survival. You should know basic things like this. You're a duke, anyway."
Alyna sighed. She looked at Isaac, her face as if saying 'seriously'. Finally, she decided to keep quiet.
The duchess walked over to Isaac and sat next to him. The radiant heat of the campfire warmed her body that was enveloped in the cold forest air.
She watched Isaac. The baron ignored her, throwing a branch into the fire.
"You said there was something in this lake. Why don't we find out now."
Alyna asked. That demonesse looked bored.
Isaac finally turned to the red-haired woman.
"It's already night. There are some high-level nocturnal monsters roaming around. Besides, I don't want to attract the attention of other demons."
Alyna chuckled. "I am here. I'll beat up anyone who dares to disturb me. I'm not afraid."
"I don't want any interference. Or you'll never know what I'm looking for."
The duchess pursed her lips. A look of annoyance was evident on her face. She clicked her tongue, then she entered the tent.
Laying down, she said, "I'm tired of hearing you talk. I want to sleep. Alone."
Isaac shook his head. He warmed his body by the campfire.
While the two demons were resting, amidst surface of the lake, a pair of eyes were watching them.
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