Upon hearing Lancelot's words, Tijana was briefly stunned, a flicker of joy passing through her eyes, but she didn't let the Human Knight see it—he had already walked away with their empty cups.
"So… the rumors are true then, the Mother of Demons really has been imprisoned, and Androlina has completely fallen under the control of Aira," Tijana casually changed the topic when Lancelot returned. "Although Cang Ye seldom partakes in the Lords' struggles for power, she is after all an Abyssal Lord. It's incredible that she was captured in her own domain..."
"Kalalin once ntioned a theory to ," Lancelot smoothly continued, "It seems that Cang Ye's failure resulted from a series of accidents, but there's an easily overlooked factor: the attitude of the Abyssal Will. Kalalin believes that Cang Ye's collaboration with Bartez was intolerable to the Abyssal Will, and even though there seems to be no sign of the Abyssal Will's involvent, the absence of signs is itself a sign, reflecting its stance on the matter."
"That's possible, but please relay my advice to him: he should cease his studies on the Abyssal Will for his own good," Tijana sipped from her refilled cup. "What interests more is what ga the Demons are playing… You said you caught that Domineering Demon nad Ulgog? Where is it?"
"Right here."
Lancelot reached into his Dinsional Bag at his waist and withdrew a deep purple crystal amulet, which he handed to Tijana. The Succubus Lord's expression turned solemn. She didn't reach out to take the amulet directly but used Magic Power to suspend it in midair before leaning in to closely inspect the rune patterns on the crystal's surface.
"Compared to the Demon imprisoned within, this amulet is far more valuable," Tijana declared. "The Runes on it are flawless; the prisoner inside has no chance of escape. I would guess this is the handiwork of a crone, those ugly old witches are well-known for their greed. The original owner of this amulet likely paid a hefty price for it, maybe an arm or an eyeball… Would you hand it over to ?"
"What?" Lancelot was surprised, "This amulet?"
"Of course not, you've seen today that I can capture the souls of my enemies without such objects," Tijana shook her head. "I'm talking about the Demon locked inside. I could likely extract so interesting information from him… Don't worry; I won't just take it from you for nothing."
"Oh, that, you can have it," Lancelot shrugged, "It's useless to . There have been many tis when I felt it tempting to converse with it, offering power, wealth, authority…"
"And you were actually able to resist such temptations?" Tijana looked at him sowhat incredulously.
"Of course." Lancelot shrugged again, "Compared to other temptations I've resisted, this one's nothing at all."
"…Hehehe~" Tijana produced a fan in her hand and covered her face, leaving only her crescent-moon-like, amused eyes visible as she watched the Human Knight.
"I was just joking. I'm particularly bad at resisting temptations," Lancelot said earnestly, "I fear if I keep it with too long, one day I won't be able to control myself. If it's of use to you, you should take it."
"Then I'll gladly accept it," Tijana replied, storing the crystal amulet away. "It requires a lot of preparation to transfer the prisoners inside. I'll give it back to you once I'm done."
"Okay," Lancelot nodded. "If you find out that Bayer is behind all this again, what will you do?"
"Whether it's Bayer or not doesn't really matter. Twin Bridges Town must enhance its strength quickly," Tijana explained, staring into her wine glass. "But that's not an easy task..."
"Why?" Lancelot asked curiously. "For a Demon Lord like you, can't you just use so magic power to promote a large number of Pri Demons and Coward Devils? You shouldn't be short of troops."
"It's not that simple," Tijana replied with a wry smile at her drinking companion. "I've heard that when you Human Kingdoms wage war, the nobles summon their peasants, distribute shortswords and spears to them. Do you think soldiers like that are really effective?"
"Better than none," Lancelot said as he picked up a berry, carefully peeled it, and then placed it into his now empty wine glass. "And don't underestimate the spear. If the peasants receive so training for even just two or three weeks, they could beco sowhat combat-effective..."
"But once their numbers exceed a certain amount, the demons start killing each other. A sufficient number of High Rank Demons is necessary to suppress their self-destructive urges," Tijana leaned back in her chair, looking up at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling of the living room. "I didn't think I'd discuss this with you tonight, but getting your perspective might not be so bad. I currently have three Serpent Demon Generals under my command. Besides Sonam, who has lost interest in command, the other two generals each lead a legion, but that's already a bit much. I can't add any more generals..."
"Worried they might rebel?" Lancelot asked with a hint of bitterness in his voice, realizing that Albert had probably considered the sa issue. "Those generals have been following you for a long ti, haven't they...?"
"Yes, and that's why I don't want them to have any chance of misjudging the situation," Tijana glanced at the Human Knight. "It's in a demon's nature to only remain loyal when the chance of successful betrayal is close to zero. You mortals might not act on a possible betrayal due to morals, oaths, or laws, but fundantally, there isn't much difference. Don't forget, nearly all Tanari were transford from the souls of mortals; we are simply your worst version."
"In my opinion, you're far better than many human lords," Lancelot said as he pushed his wine glass towards Tijana, filled with the peeled berries. "At least those Dwarven Artisans aren't slaves, though it seems like they have quite a workload..."
"I haven't whipped any Dwarf to work. I pay them gold, lots of gold, and they've never complained about that," Tijana's fingers extended into long, sharp claws, picking up a berry from Lancelot's glass, she brought it close to her face to examine it curiously. "Aren't these berries ant to be eaten? Why do you tornt your food? I always thought that 'good people' like you hate using torture..."
Reviews
All reviews (0)