"Hey, can’t sleep?" I asked Lumena, walking over and sitting down beside her.

"No...now that we’re so close to getting out of the Labyrinth, it’s really starting to sink in that I’m finally free again. For the last few years, I’ve just been going through the motions, not really putting any thought into anything. And now that I’m finally free to make my own choices again, well...I have a lot to think about," She responded, staring up at the ceiling.

"Any idea on what you want to do after we get out?" I inquired, taking out a couple of cans of beer and handing her one.

"Oh, thanks. And to answer your question, I really don’t know. Maybe I’ll stick with you guys, at least for a bit, so long as you’re okay with that, of course. It’s not like there’s a place that’d openly welcome me, what with me being a Heretic and all. So, yeah, sticking with you and Izzy seems like the best option, at least until I figure things out more," She replied, taking a sip of the drink and letting out a quiet sigh.

"Well, I have no objections to that. And it can be pretty tiring, knowing that most people would reject you if they find out you’ve got both Attributes, forcing you to either live in hiding or to live while hiding one Attribute," I sighed wistfully.

"Yeah, I can imagine the anxiety and paranoia you’d feel...even if you become close to someone or whatever, they might turn on you the instant they find out that you’re a Heretic."

"Actually, I have had that happen to me before...I once teamed up with some Adventurers, they seemed like good people and I enjoyed working with them. But then we encountered a powerful Monster and they got badly injured, so I revealed my Light Attribute and healed them. They then tried to kill me," I recalled with a grimace.

"Seriously? You saved their lives and their first instinct was to turn on you? I don’t understand it, the prejudice towards us so-called Heretics...growing up, I was the same, it was just common sense as far as I was concerned, I was taught that Heretics were inherently evil people who deserved to die. I really thought Heretics were bad people, I never questioned it even once...and then I turned out to be one. That was quite the eye opener, let me tell you," She said with a slight laugh.

"I mean, you were just a kid when you held those beliefs, right? Beliefs that were taught to you by your parents, I’m guessing...kids will always think that their parents are always right, it’s not till they’re older than people actually start to think for themselves, though even that’s pretty rare. Well, there are people who don’t blindly follow those prejudices, I’ve been lucky enough to meet a number of such people. Unfortunately, they’re few and far in between."

"Yeah...if only there was a place where these prejudices didn’t exist. That’d be great...somewhere where any and all people are accepted and treated equally, you know? But sadly, such a place doesn’t exist."

It really is strange...this is a world that’d be considered fantasy in my previous world, and meanwhile, a place free of prejudice and discrimination is fantasy in this world. Hm...

"You know, what? If there isn’t such a place, maybe we should just make one ourselves," I suggested, as the thought popped into my head.

"Huh? Like, where? Here in the Dead Zone? It’s not exactly the most desirable place to live in, you know...," She pointed out skeptically.

"No, I don’t mean the Dead Zone. I’ve gained a lot of power now, with two Demonic Grade Contracts in me...and Izzy’s got some serious power herself. And, you know, the nation of Hematite is currently in the middle of a brutal civil war...I don’t think it’d be too difficult for us to take over that nation for ourselves," I remarked, my heart starting to pound slightly as, the more I thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

Yeah...this could work. This could work really fucking well. Take advantage of their internal conflict and claim the nation for ourselves, it’ll be a good opportunity to repay the kindness shown to us by the residents of the Haven as well, I can offer them a place to live on the surface, instead of having to hide out underground for the rest of their lives.

"You...you’re being serious, aren’t you?" Responded Lumena with a surprised look on her face.

"Oh, yeah. I’m damn fucking serious, alright," I replied with a slight smirk.

"Oh, wow...not gonna lie, that was kinda hot."

"Huh? Oh, uh...thanks," I responded, a little taken aback.

"If you can really pull that off, then...yeah, you can definitely count me in. After all these years of being a slave, I’ve got some serious pent up rage...I could use an outlet to let off some steam," She grinned, a gleam in her eyes.

"Well, I’ll be glad to have you on board, then. I’m not one to fight a losing battle, and considering all the facts, I’m fairly confident that this is a fight I can win. Maybe not alone, but then, I’m not alone..."

"You do have Contracts with a Demon and the Slime King, that’s certainly nothing to scoff at. And Izzy absolutely destroyed the later with zero difficulty, I bet you two alone could be capable of taking over a nation. But what about afterwards? Won’t another nation try to attack in the aftermath of the battle?" 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"Probably, but that’s fine. Because if we manage to take over Hematite, we’ll get a powerful new addition to our side," I replied with a smirk.

’Hm? Wait, you don’t mean...,’ Trailed off Azazel in realization.

"Huh? How so?" Responded Lumena curiously.

"Each of the Dark Continent nations have a Demon sealed away in them...and with Izzy and Azazel on our side, it’s quite likely that the other Demons will ally themselves with us if and when we free them. Okay, then...I know exactly what I’ll be doing once we get out of this Labyrinth..."

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