After Liora left the City of Embers, she didn't choose to wander in the wasteland.
She lifted her head, and after observing the crimson sun for some time, she adjusted her route, heading toward a certain direction.
As she walked forward, she met a devastated land, clearly bearing traces of battle.
Following these traces—which happened to lead directly to her destination—Liora cut straight through the wilderness.
It was unclear how much time had passed, but before long, she finally arrived.
Surprisingly, her destination was neither a city nor a populous area, but an empty, barren mountain made entirely of Hellstone.
Her arrival here was not an accident.
This was the site that she and Alpha had agreed to meet in, after everything in the City of Embers was over.
However, as Liora stood before the mountain, she found no trace of Alpha. Instead, the sound of battle reached her ears, piquing her interest.
With no hesitation, she merged with the shadows and followed those sounds.
Moments later, she arrived at the battlefield and saw the two warring parties.
One was a team of little imp Devils that looked cartoonishly evil, while the other one was Alpha, together with an unexpected person—Scurry.
Many little imps' corpses lay on the ground, as Scurry stood in front of Alpha, fighting fiercely against them.
Behind him, Alpha stood with an indifferent expression.
Even as Scurry turned bloody and covered in wounds, she didn't show any change in her expression.
She calmly waved her hand, activating some of the Arrays that Liora had given her and providing him with assistance.
Liora was surprised.
She couldn't understand how Alpha and Scurry had gotten together, nor why the two were besieged by enemies.
However, she quickly shook her head.
She could always investigate the reason later. For now, the most important thing was to get rid of the enemies.
Deciding this, Liora didn't show up but instead remained hidden.
Shadows spun around her like a spider's web, stopping in front of her before weaving into countless tiny needles.
The needles floated in the air, and as Liora waved her hand, they shot towards the little imps.
Their speed was shockingly fast, and coupled with the element of sneak attack, the needles struck the imp Devils, embedding into their bodies and turning them into hedgehogs.
Taking this opportunity, Scurry rushed forward and, after fending off another wave of attacks, eliminated the remaining imps.
Seeing that the enemies that had troubled him were finally dealt with, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Liora.
"Crimson, you're finally here.", he exclaimed.
Hearing his words, Liora didn't reply. She deactivated Dusk Armament and walked closer, stopping only a few feet away from Alpha.
"Lord.", Alpha bowed respectfully, but her tone remained emotionless.
In response, Liora nodded her head and, with an inquiring look, asked the questions troubling her.
"What happened? Why are these Devils chasing you?"
"Lord, shortly after I left the City of Embers, I discovered that I was being followed. I originally used the Arrays you gave me to protect myself, but the enemies' numbers were overwhelming."
"If it were not for this person, who claimed to be your friend, my life would be gone.", Alpha explained.
Despite talking about her death, her voice didn't fluctuate, as if she were speaking about someone else.
Ignoring this strange scene, Liora turned to Scurry, and although she didn't speak, her cold expression made her meaning clear.
Embarrassed, Scurry rubbed the back of his furry head with his paw and let out an awkward chuckle.
"Haha... I swear it was a coincidence. I just happened to meet them fighting and recognized this person as your servant.", he tried to explain.
But his trembling voice and panicked expression made whatever he said seem untrustworthy.
Noticing Liora's eyes growing colder and her demonic aura surging, Scurry hurriedly spoke again.
"Actually, the reason I saved your servant is because I wanted to find you. I knew that you would come to meet her eventually.", he said, and after a brief hesitation, continued:
"I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I've been in the Crucible for many years, having gone through countless battles. By now, I've come to accept that I'll never be able to leave this damn place on my own."
Saying this, Scurry gritted his teeth and quickly dropped to one knee.
"I wish to follow you. My only request is that you take me out of the Crucible if you ever get the chance to leave."
Having finished speaking, Scurry lowered his head and waited anxiously for Liora's response.
However, his words were met with dead silence.
Time slowly passed, and seconds felt like hours to him, as sweat trickled down his face.
Just as he was starting to feel worried about his life, a hand landed on his shoulder and lightly patted it.
"Come on. Get up.", Liora's voice reached his ears.
Although she gave no reply, the lack of a direct refusal made her response clear.
Joy appeared on Scurry's face as his eyes lit up like tiny light bulbs.
Liora noticed his reaction, but she chose to ignore it. After wiping the hand she had used to touch him—satisfying her cleanliness obsession—she thought of his earlier words.
Scurry's request seemed nonsensical, but in fact, it made perfect sense. Smuggling people out of the Crucible was nearly impossible, but, as with everything, there were some loopholes.
And Liora understood what he was talking about.
Devils who met one of the two conditions set by the Demon World could take a certain kind of being with them when leaving the Crucible.
These beings included puppets, slaves, clones, and other similar creatures.
For example, if Liora were to leave the Crucible, Alpha could also accompany her, as she had complete control over her life.
Clearly, Scurry wished to use this loophole—or rather, the privilege granted by the Demon World—to leave this place.
"Of course, he probably has other plans too.", Liora thought, not fooled by Scurry's seemingly unreliable appearance.
But even so, she didn't refuse his offer. She felt that having a guy like him under her command could prove beneficial even if it might backfire.
"Lord, everything is ready."
Just as Liora was lost in thought, Alpha's voice reached her ears, interrupting her thought process.
When she turned her head, she saw that the corpses on the ground had vanished, while a door-shaped gap had formed in the wall of the Hellstone mountain.
Beside that opening, Alpha stood, staring back at her and gesturing for her to enter.