The Game Difficulty
Is Insane
Only late in the evening did Glen return to Baron Pebien’s mansion.
He had things to discuss with Baron Pebien as well, but for today, he decided to rest first.
“Haaah…….”
A huge bath and warm steam.
Borrowing one of Baron Pebien’s luxuries—a private bath—Glen relaxed as he reviewed the day’s events and organized the results.
Experience gained from hunting monsters, and two decent items.
But if he had to name the greatest achievement this time—
‘It’s definitely getting Romina.’
It felt a bit rude to talk about a person like this, but Romina had many useful aspects.
First and foremost, the biggest advantage—
‘I finally got rid of those damn magic-sealing shackles.’
Glen covered his mouth in emotion as he looked at his wrists, still marked by the cuffs.
He hadn’t said anything until now, but they had been truly uncomfortable.
With only one cuff on, the other side dangled awkwardly and distracted him in every fight, and when the inside itched, he couldn’t even take it off to scratch.
But no matter what, the most uncomfortable part had been the looks people gave him—as if he were a lunatic.
Now, there would be no more being treated like a madman because of the cuffs, no more annoyance during combat, and no more itchy wrists he couldn’t scratch.
‘Why? Because Romina is here.’
Any excess demonic energy he didn’t need? He could just give it all to Romina.
That way, until his demonic energy recovered, Glen wouldn’t have to worry about others sensing it.
At the same time, Romina would receive the demonic energy she needed to survive stably.
‘This is what you call a perfect win-win.’
There were many other benefits to gaining Romina as well.
In the long run, it meant he had pulled the strongest of the three future Demon King candidates—who would appear in the late scenario—to his side.
‘And one who’ll grow strong enough to rival the current Demon King with nine Rings of Destruction, at that.’
Turning a character who was supposed to appear as an enemy in the scenario into an ally.
Was there a better situation than this?
‘You weaken the enemy while strengthening your own side.’
Of course, the most important thing was still Glen himself becoming stronger than anyone else.
But as he had said before, Gray Eden was a game where you could do far more when you formed a party of two or more.
Dungeons you couldn’t even enter alone.
Boss monsters that only took damage when two or more people attacked their weaknesses simultaneously.
Gray Eden had quite a lot of content that could only be enjoyed through party play with NPCs.
‘It was meant to prevent the protagonist from monopolizing all the growth.’
Right now, because of Glen’s weak body, he couldn’t focus on that aspect too much, but he also couldn’t ignore it completely.
Someday, he would have to clear events that couldn’t be completed alone, together with companions he had gathered.
In that sense, obtaining Romina at this point could only be called fortunate in many ways.
‘She’s the type who grows well on her own as long as I keep supplying her with demonic energy.’
Glen stood up and stepped out of the large bath.
The only lingering concern was that Romina—whom he knew to be arrogant and cunning—had decided to follow him far too easily.
‘Who would’ve thought she’d swear loyalty that obediently?’
—I swear, by this name, to serve Glen Wordsworth as my master, devoting my body and soul in absolute loyalty.
Still, that wasn’t much of a worry.
Since Romina had sworn on her name, she wouldn’t stab him in the back.
Even if she wasn’t on Tasha’s level, she would at least follow his instructions well.
After drying his body with a cloth, Glen put on a robe and returned to his room.
Back in his room, Glen frowned at the uninvited guest before him.
“Welcome back, Young Master?”
“What do you want?”
“What do you mean? I’m Romina, your exclusive maid from today onward.”
Romina smiled slyly.
What kind of exclusive maid casually tossed off her shoes and lounged on her master’s bed?
“Our household maids don’t behave as rudely as you.”
“Oh my, really? From what I’ve heard, maids of human noble families often do these seductive things to gain their master’s favor.”
‘She really said “seductive” herself.’
Clicking his tongue, Glen sat down on a chair.
The bed he might have sat on had already been shamelessly occupied by Romina.
“If you get on the bad side of the family’s daughters doing that, you’ll get kicked out. Anyway, why are you here? Didn’t I tell you to wait in your room unless there was something important?”
“Come on, as long as I don’t get caught, it’s fine. You only dressed me like this so you could conveniently use me when needed, right?”
Romina flicked her sleeve with a raised eyebrow.
She wasn’t wrong.
Keeping Romina close as an exclusive maid was the most natural way to deal with his regenerating demonic energy.
“Is it really strange for an exclusive maid to come and go from her master’s room?”
“It’s not strange, but unless there’s a reason, I’d prefer you only come when I need you.”
“Hm… so to you, I’m no different from a tool that just sucks out your excess demonic energy?”
Romina narrowed her eyes and scanned Glen.
“Saying it like that makes me sound heartless.”
“You’re not wrong.”
“You never let a single remark slide. So, what’s the real reason you came?”
Romina suddenly sat up.
She slowly approached Glen, then bent down to meet his gaze.
“Because I thought we could talk. I don’t know anything about the master I swore to serve.”
Their faces were close enough to feel each other’s breath.
A sharp light flickered in her amber eyes.
“You… what exactly are you?”
“Didn’t I explain enough on the way?”
Glen replied calmly.
After receiving her oath, he had told Romina only the minimum information needed to give her orders.
But Romina shook her head.
“All your answers were vague. You say you’re a human with demonic energy because you suddenly got it one day. When I ask how you know about me, you say you know because you know.”
From her perspective, it was only natural to feel frustrated.
What Glen had told her was just operational information, not answers to her curiosity.
Romina continued.
“I swore loyalty to you on my name across those bars. I owed you my life, so that was natural. But I don’t even know what kind of person my master is, and I don’t want to become a passive chess piece that just does what it’s told.”
Glen slightly raised the corner of his mouth.
“So what, are you staging a protest?”
