"So a Lord told you about the existence of the treasure and requested it from you, and you complied by giving it?" The King asked calmly.

"As you can see, by the end they have all perished. Why would the arrogant Lords that think only of themselves do such a thing?"

Victoria gulped audibly.

"That is precisely why. Perhaps they had seen the errors of their ways and wished to repent for their actions."

King Arthur rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his gaze sweeping over the area. "And since everything has been burned to the ground, there is no evidence left to suggest otherwise…"

The King chuckled.

"You have done fine work." Arthur said, nodding at Victoria with approval. "You may rest."

She bowed shakily before her legs collapsed on the spot.

'I lied to my grandfather… to a King.' She thought, her breathing becoming even harder.

Slowly the King turned to Michael again, whose expression had remained indifferent.

After a second of consideration, Arthur flicked his finger.

Thub! Thub! Thub!

Instantly a beating heart appeared in his grasp, causing Michael to arch an eyebrow.

"...What is this?" He asked, intrigued.

"Heart of an Overlord." The King said casually. "By ending its life, the spiritual energy of the Overlord will leak into the air… Ideal for both solo and team cultivation."

"..."

Michael stared at the man's extended hand in a daze.

"Are you… entrusting me with this? Why?" He asked, bewildered. His guard rose even more due to the unexpected gift.

"Is it really that rare for a superior to show you any respect that when one finally does, you become defensive?" The King chuckled.

"This isn't an attempt to recruit you into our faction or anything like that. I know you already lead one of your own. Think of the heart as a gift… And the beginning of our cooperation. The Golden Vanguard didn't rise to the top on its own, you know. We invest in any promising factions."

Michael didn't detect any malice in the King's words, yet somehow this made him even more suspicious.

"Still, why us? We haven't really done anything unique to deserve such treatment."

The King laughed loudly. It was the first time someone had been so unenthusiastic about receiving a gift from him.

"Oh, you have. First, you've improved far faster than expected, even managing to evade my senses. According to the latest intel, you're still an Expert, and Victoria is a Late Master. Yet somehow, you've reached the Master realm, while Victoria is now a Peak Master, on the verge of enlightenment. That alone is plentiful."

After a second the King crept ever so closer as he whispered.

"Not to mention, anyone with enough influence to make my own granddaughter lie to my face has the potential to go very far. Who knows? With time, your faction might become our most reliable ally."

Michael wasn't surprised that the King had seen past Victoria's deception. She, unlike him, wasn't a master of manipulation. What puzzled him was the lack of hostility he had expected from the King.

Still, refusing now would be offensive, and Michael wasn't about to risk anything more than necessary.

"Thank you for your hospitality." Michael extended his hand, getting hold of the Overlord's beating heart.

Swosh!

The moment their hands touched, a wave of nausea surged in Michael's head. A memory from his past life flashed before him. King Arthur, reduced to a bloody mess, screaming at him.

"Leave me be and save yourself!" The man bellowed, barely clinging to life. As blood seeped from his eye sockets.

A moment later, Michael suppressed the memory, burying it deep in his consciousness.

Unable to pick up the darkness that arose in Michael's gaze, the King recoiled, putting a hand over his head.

"This might sound weird, but… Have we met each other? For a moment an unexpected emotion caught me off guard."

Quickly recovered from the unpleasant memory, Michael shook his head.

"Perhaps we have… In another life."

"I see…" The King didn't press the matter.

As he got ready to depart, Michael asked.

"That emotion you felt, what was it? Rage, hatred, contempt?"

Arthur found it odd that Michael only mentioned negative emotions. In the end, he decided to satisfy his curiosity and responded.

"...Sadness."

With that, the King disappeared, judging that his presence wasn't needed.

"..."

Michael remained frozen, his gaze locked onto the Overlord's heart as it rhythmically beat in his grasp. The treasure would be perfect for their journey back to Earth. Yet he found himself thinking about the King's last words.

"Sadness?"

Even though the chances were slim, there was still a possibility that the King might remember a fragment of the past, given the nature of his realm. What Michael found hard to believe, though, was that anyone from the original timeline could feel anything other than hatred toward him.

"He must have been confused." Michael figured, storing the heart in his soul with the help of the system.

[Overlord's heart gained]

With every problem dealt with, he approached Victoria, who had buried her face in her hands, coming to terms with reality.

"Thank you for your help." Michael said emotionlessly, still having trouble adjusting after being burned mercilessly by the Sacred flames.

Sheepishly she raised her gaze.

"Never mind that. We can leave it for later. Right now, you need an urgent rest. Your eyes look clouded."

He shook his head. "Not right now. With the battle over and millions of humans fallen, there is bound to be a lot of spiritual energy on the battlefield. We have to make use of that until it's too late."

Victoria frowned, her gaze lowering.

"You say that, but do you even realize you are completely naked?"

Indeed, the flames had ravaged his body so much that his clothes were burned away. Yet, even knowing that, Michael couldn't bring himself to care about something so insignificant at the moment.

"Richard is the same height as me. He will lend me clothes or two." He said calmly as he headed toward the battlefield.

"Come on, we're heading back to Earth soon, and I don't want to delay it much longer."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.