The Lord Demon King is Unfathomable!

Chapter 1204 - 358: Hector Pursues the Prince in the Snow (Part 5)

"Sir, aren't you heading south? Won't you pass by the Holy City?"

Luo Yan shook his head with a smile, offering a perfect excuse for their parting: "No, actually, I'm not going that far. I admired your talent and just wanted to give you a ride away from that place of trouble... As for me, the person picking me up will be here soon."

A dozen griffins were speeding in his direction. Although the Academic State and Rhode Kingdom were both part of the Empire, there was still a nominal border between them.

It was clear they were really in a hurry.

At this point, Luo Yan's tone shifted, and he retrieved a small yet weighty pouch from beside him, handing it to Marco.

"Additionally, here are thirty silver coins, consider them a reward for keeping me company and relieving my boredom for so long."

"No, no, no! Sir, I absolutely cannot accept this!" Marco waved his hands frantically, as if burnt, "It is my honor to converse with a gentleman like you! How could I possibly take your money?"

To him, Mr. Colin was a kindred spirit, his patron, their conversation was a collision of souls, a pure artistic exchange, incapable of being tainted by money.

He had hated money his entire life!

Nevertheless, Luo Yan insisted on placing the pouch filled with thirty silver coins into his hand.

The pouch contained all the rewards he had received from Finic after vanquishing "Green Teeth" Hecajelin.

Using the compensation of one "poor soul" to support the dream of another "poor soul" was a fair transaction.

"Take it," Luo Yan's tone was unyielding yet carried a gentle encouragement, "a true poet should not be hindered by travel expenses on their artistic journey. Consider it me sponsoring your dream."

The carriage slowly stopped in front of the next inn.

Marco tightly clutched the pouch of heavy silver coins and the meaningful letter, solemnly bowing deeply to Luo Yan as he got off.

"Sir, rest assured! From today onward, I will hone my art during my travels, and with my own skills, I will earn the rest of the travel expenses! I will not let you down!"

"Go."

Luo Yan nodded with a smile, watching the hopeful young "poet" disappear down the road to the Holy City, then turned back to the carriage.

The carriage resumed its journey.

Watching Marco disappear at the inn's entrance, Sarah, who had remained silent, finally couldn't help but speak.

"Your Highness," her voice carried a hint of confusion, "why didn't you kill him? After all, he caused your examination failure."

To her straightforward understanding, an offense to the Demon King should naturally be repaid with death; that was why she had found this fellow.

Luo Yan chuckled, flipping through the unfinished scroll, casually asking back, "Sarah, do you think I need that scroll?"

He never considered murder, only pondered whether to hand over that young man to the Academic State.

Sarah froze for a moment, gently shook her head.

Clearly, scores were meaningless to a Demon King; a king doesn't need anyone's grading.

"Keep reading, we'll return to the Holy City anyway. I actually think that young man might become a pawn that brings me surprises."

He was a human from Hell, and had no obligation to help the Empire prune excess branches on its tree.

On the contrary, he wanted this promising soul to drift to where it belonged, shining, rooting, and sprouting there.

That was what the Demon King should do.

The carriage continued along the mountain road for a while, when suddenly several griffin cries echoed from the sky.

Soon after, several griffins descended from the clouds, their wings stirring up strong winds, landing steadily on the mountain road ahead.

Seated on the griffin's back was Assistant Giselle.

He immediately recognized this opulent carriage, so out of place with its surroundings—one that apprentices had previously seen in the camp!

Jumping down from the griffin, Giselle almost scrambled up, ignoring the muddy snow, kneeling directly in front of Luo Yan's carriage, and with a voice filled with extreme fear, he confessed.

"Roxey Colin, sir... I'm Giselle, the assistant of the Academic State! I'm sorry, truly sorry! Due to severe oversight in our work, your scroll... accidentally... didn't enter the correct procedure! Your noble name was supposed to be on the monument!"

He confessed, pleaded for forgiveness, pressing his forehead against the cold ground, not daring to lift a bit.

The curtains were gently lifted as Luo Yan stepped down from the carriage.

He went forward and personally helped the terrified assistant up from the snow, with his usual warm smile.

"Please rise, Assistant. His voice flowed like a clear spring in the mountains, soothing Giselle's fear, "It seems some disagreeable misunderstanding has occurred between us. Could you tell me what happened?"

He knew full well.

Giselle hesitated, looking at this distinguished gentleman for a moment, unsure where to begin, uncertain whether he should reveal the academy's scandal.

The academy had overnight traced the true number of the swapped scroll and, through registration information, identified the real owner of the "perfect answer sheet"—only no one expected the test-taker to be Prince Colin, from Holy City!

There are many princes in the Empire, but it's rumored that this Highness isn't an ordinary prince, maintaining good relations with many prominent families, and supposedly holds a vast domain in a distant world.