Chapter 149: Enemy

I stood quietly, a cold chill running down my spine. Hearing her casually mention erasing entire planets put the terrifying scale of the world’s top-tier entities back into perspective.

[Well, yeah!] Paige’s voice chimed inside my mind, taking on an informative edge. [Top-tier entities like Lucifer, Gilgamesh, or the Chief Gods command massive swathes of the Astral Realm’s core laws. Destroying a physical world for them is as easy as turning off a light switch, Seth.]

’Yeah, still it’s scary to think about that.’

[Meh, no worries, Boss. I can do better.]

BEEP-BEEP!

A sharp, cheerful notification chime echoed from Lucifer’s crimson kimono pocket.

She pulled out her black smartphone, checking the screen. A massive, radiant grin instantly broke across her face.

"AH! My favorite anime episode is about to air live in ten minutes!" Lucifer declared happily, tossing the rest of her pizza into a spatial pocket as she stood up on her floating couch. "I’m outta here!"

SWOOSH.

In a fraction of a millisecond, she vanished from the velvet couch, reappearing directly in front of me on the marble platform.

Before I could even step back, Lucifer wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me into a fierce, surprisingly warm hug. She leaned in, pressing a soft, sweet kiss onto my left cheek.

"I look forward to meeting you again when you’re actually stronger, Seth~" Lucifer giggled in my ear.

She backed off, shooting me a playful wink before turning toward the edge of the elevated platform.

"Oh, wait! Almost forgot!" Lucifer paused, slapping her forehead. She snapped her fingers.

THUD! THUD! THUD

A heavy spatial rift opened above the platform, dumping a pile of twelve unconscious men in black tactical combat gear straight onto the marble floor. They tumbled into a heap, bound by dark mana chains.

Lucifer casually walked over, giving the top guy a dismissive kick with her wooden sandal. "Found these stealth pilots hiding near the lower rim while I was coming up. You guys can have ’em."

Without waiting another second, the Devil Queen walked straight to the edge of the floating continent, spread her arms wide, and let herself fall backward into the empty sky with a bright, cheerful laugh, vanishing into the ocean clouds below.

The moment she disappeared, a long, heavy exhale rippled across the platform.

Chancellor Viviana visibly relaxed, her shoulders dropping as the immense, suffocating pressure of standing next to a supreme Devil Queen finally melted away from her body.

"Man..." I muttered, wiping my cheek with the back of my hand. "...she really loves showing off."

[Fufufu~] Paige teased playfully in my head. [Admit it, Host! You thoroughly enjoyed getting kissed on the cheek by the ruler of Hell.]

’Focus, Paige,’ I replied mentally, brushing past her teasing as my gaze settled onto the unconscious men lying on the marble floor.

My eyes narrowed into a cold, sharp line. These were the ambushers who had just tried to blast our jet out of the sky.

Val stepped up to my side, her violet eyes scanning the bound enemy. "It is entirely possible these individuals belong to the same faction that planted the mana bomb beneath the stadium during Yerin’s concert. My security team has been attempting to trace their origin."

"There’s no need to wait for a long investigation," I said calmly.

I walked forward, stepping up to Chancellor Viviana, and offered her a crisp, polite salute similar to the one Yoona had given earlier. "Chancellor Viviana. Since these men targeted my party directly, do I have permission to inspect them first?"

Viviana looked at me, letting out a quiet sigh. The stern Chancellor offered a simple, approving nod. "They ambushed you on my watch, Seth Fernando. It is your right to inspect them. I am curious to see what you discover."

"Thank you," I said with a nod.

I walked over to the pile of unconscious men, dropping down onto one knee beside their leader. I placed my right palm firmly against the man’s forehead, pretending to execute a complex, high-level spiritual diagnostic technique.

It was all a front, of course.

’Paige,’ I called out in my mind, unleashing my Origin authority into his soul. ’Scan his memory pathways and spiritual matrix. Who hired these guys, and who gave them the internal clearance code to bypass Avalon’s outer array?’

[Initiating full conceptual trace!] Paige responded instantly.

A high-speed, holographic stream of data flashed across my vision as Paige bypassed the mercenary’s soul defenses, digging straight into his core memories.

[Scan complete!] Paige reported a second later, her tone turning surprisingly serious. [These men belong to an elite, high-tier mercenary syndicate known as the Tartarus Vanguard. But here’s the catch, Seth... they didn’t accept a normal contract!]

I narrowed my eyes. ’What do you mean?’

[They didn’t even know who they were working for!] Paige explained. [Their minds were completely hijacked via high-tier divine soul control! A powerful god injected a puppet thread directly into their subconscious, forcing them to infiltrate the stadium and ambush your jet without them ever realizing they were being controlled.]

’A god...?’ My brow furrowed. ’Which god?’

[Tracing the soul thread back to its divine origin...] Paige paused for a split second before gasping in surprise. [...It’s Hades! The Greek God of the Underworld!]

I froze, my hand still resting on the mercenary’s forehead.

’Hades?!’ I asked, bewildered. ’Why the hell is the Greek God of Death targeting me?! I’ve never even met the guy!?’

[Do you want me to search deeper through the threads of Fate and Causality to find his motive, Host?] Paige offered eagerly. [It will take a bit of system processing, but I can dig up his exact reasons.]

I stayed on one knee for a moment, thinking it over.

Then a low, confident smirk spread across my face. ’No... don’t bother digging through Fate, Paige.’

[Huh? Why not?]

’Where’s the fun in knowing everything beforehand?’ I chuckled internally, standing up from the marble floor and wiping my hands. ’Having a major Greek God as a secret enemy makes life a lot more interesting. It gives me a good target to test my strength against once I get stronger.’