Chapter 335: The War Yet to Come

Mae-hwa had finally arrived.

The Royal Meeting Hall fell silent the moment she stepped through the enormous doors. She entered with her usual graceful composure, holding her folding fan over the lower half of her face while the Elite Demon who had escorted her followed several steps behind. Despite arriving late, there wasn’t even the slightest trace of urgency in the way she walked.

"I apologize for being late."

No one answered her.

Mae-hwa’s pink eyes slowly moved across the table. Every demon present was staring at her, their expressions unusually serious, as if they had been waiting long enough to judge her the moment she appeared. She endured their gazes for several seconds before releasing a tired sigh behind her fan.

"I know I’m beautiful, but please don’t stare at me this much."

Ragnar Graves finally broke the silence. His enormous body leaned back against the chair as he looked at her with obvious irritation, completely unimpressed by her entrance.

"You stupid old hag. Stop being delusional. Why are you so late?"

Mae-hwa’s fan immediately stopped moving.

"...Old hag?"

Her pink eyes narrowed dangerously as she slowly turned toward Ragnar. The fan in her hand trembled slightly, and whatever playful expression she had worn upon entering disappeared.

"You stupid moron. Don’t you know how to speak to a woman?"

"What?" Ragnar scoffed, crossing his massive arms over his chest. "You actually have the guts to talk back after making all of us wait?"

Mae-hwa snapped her fan shut.

"You blockhead. Do you really have such a strong urge to die by my hand today?"

"Oh?" Ragnar’s irritation immediately turned into a grin. He placed one enormous hand against the table and pushed himself to his feet, his eight-foot frame towering above everyone seated around him. "So you want to fight me? Fine. Let’s do it right now."

A heavy demonic aura began radiating from his body, causing the luxurious table to tremble beneath the pressure. Mae-hwa didn’t retreat. Her own aura rose in response, spreading from her side of the hall as she stared at him without the slightest hesitation.

"Why not, pig head?"

"You bitch." Ragnar’s grin twisted as his aura grew heavier. "Looks like you really want to die."

"That’s my line."

While the guards stationed around the hall immediately became tense, the other Upper Blood Demons reacted very differently. The Salesman Demon and Jester Demon merely sighed, looking more inconvenienced than concerned by the possibility of their companions tearing apart the Royal Meeting Hall.

The Salesman Demon leaned slightly toward Jester.

"So, who are you betting on?"

Jester glanced between the two before answering without much thought.

"Ragnar. What about you?"

The Salesman Demon’s smile widened.

"I’m on her team."

Before either side could make the first move, the Elite Demon who had escorted Mae-hwa finally stepped forward. He positioned himself carefully between their lines of sight, knowing full well that physically standing between two Upper Blood Demons would be a terrible idea.

"Lord Ragnar, please calm down. This is the Royal Meeting Hall, and His Majesty will be here very soon."

Ragnar continued glaring at Mae-hwa for several seconds before finally withdrawing some of his aura. He clicked his tongue and slowly lowered himself back toward his seat, though the hostility in his expression remained.

"Tch. Lucky bitch."

Mae-hwa casually reopened her fan.

"That’s my line."

Ragnar’s fist tightened against the table, his knuckles cracking beneath the pressure.

"I swear I’ll kill you someday."

Mae-hwa’s fan stopped halfway across her face. Her pink eyes narrowed slightly before a cruel, almost amused smile appeared behind it.

"Oh? Your father once told me the same thing."

Ragnar’s expression immediately changed.

Mae-hwa tilted her head.

"But he ended up dead in my lap."

The atmosphere inside the Royal Meeting Hall exploded.

"You crossed the line."

Ragnar’s enormous demonic aura burst outward with enough force to shake the chairs and send vibrations through the golden table. He rose again, every muscle in his body tightening as murderous intent filled his eyes. Mae-hwa’s expression hardened in response, her own aura surging around her as she prepared to meet him without backing down.

Before either could attack, a quiet voice came from the first seat.

"Enough."

Akuryu Zanki hadn’t even stood.

The moment the Upper Blood Demon Number One spoke, a calm but immensely concentrated wave of demonic aura spread throughout the hall. It wasn’t wild like Ragnar’s or provocative like Mae-hwa’s. The pressure was controlled, passing across the table and forcing both of their surging auras down before the confrontation could go any further.

Zanki’s many eyes settled on them.

"Don’t make a mess of this place. Our lord will be here at any moment."

Ragnar’s hand trembled violently as he fought down his anger. He continued staring at Mae-hwa as if he wanted nothing more than to leap across the table, but after several seconds, he finally returned to his seat.

Mae-hwa remained tense as well. Her fingers tightened around her fan before she reluctantly withdrew her aura and sat down without another word.

The hall finally became quiet again.

The Jester Demon and Salesman Demon exchanged glances before both sighed, their earlier amusement fading now that the fight had been stopped before it could become interesting.

"Never mind," Jester muttered.

The Salesman Demon leaned comfortably against his chair again and looked around the table.

"Since we’re already here, why don’t we share our reports until His Majesty arrives?"

No one objected.

One after another, the Upper Blood Demons brought out the reports from the territories under their control, and the meeting finally began while they waited for the Demon King.

"So, who will report first?" Akuryu Zanki asked, his many eyes slowly moving across the demons seated around the table.

The Salesman Demon raised one hand almost immediately, still wearing the same pleasant smile he always carried.

"Well, to be honest, I’d like to go first."

No one interrupted him. Zanki gave a slight nod and rested one hand near the katana at his side.

"Very well. Tell us what information you’ve brought."

The Salesman Demon’s smile faded slightly as the subject turned serious.

"As all of you know, I was assigned to investigate that strange power."

Several of the Upper Blood Demons glanced at one another. They knew exactly what he was referring to. It was the same unknown power that had interfered with his previous investigation, something unusual enough that even beings of their rank had been unable to immediately identify its origin.

"Yes," Zanki replied. "Tell us what you discovered."

The Salesman Demon leaned forward slightly, placing his hands on the table.

"It’s true. That power belongs to an extremely powerful being."

Silence stretched across the hall.

Ragnar’s eyes widened slightly as his mind immediately began working through the possibilities, but before he could interrupt, one of Zanki’s many eyes narrowed toward him. Ragnar noticed the warning and reluctantly remained silent.

Zanki returned his attention to the Salesman Demon.

"I see. So you successfully infiltrated their base?"

"Yes, I did." The Salesman Demon nodded. "Even though that strange power caused me to lose consciousness, I still managed to infiltrate their base through Raven."

His expression became more serious.

"And I learned something important."

Everyone around the table listened.

"They are far more powerful than they appear."

"What?"

The reaction came from more than one demon this time. Until now, the Agency had largely been viewed as another human organization, dangerous enough to warrant attention, certainly, but still fundamentally a human military force.

The Salesman Demon shook his head.

"No. You’re making a mistake if you think they’re just another human organization."."

He paused briefly before continuing.

"They have an enormous underground base of their own. They possess specialized powers, healers, advanced facilities, and a large organized army. More importantly, they’ve conducted extensive studies on our bodies."

The expressions around the table gradually changed.

"This isn’t like the smaller organizations operating throughout Europe, Russia, or other regions," the Salesman Demon continued. "Those groups rely heavily on government funding, limited personnel, and conventional human resources. The Agency in Libeus is different. It’s established, well-maintained, heavily armed, and far more independent than it appears from the outside."

Mae-hwa lowered her fan slightly, listening more carefully now. Even Ragnar had stopped looking bored.

The Salesman Demon continued in a quieter voice.

"And the person leading them is a monster."

"Monster?" one of the Upper Blood Demons repeated.

Zanki remained silent, allowing him to finish.

"Yes. Their Chief." The Salesman Demon’s eyes narrowed. "She’s nothing like an ordinary human. And even more concerning than her... there are far more powerful monsters standing behind her."

That finally drew everyone’s full attention.

The Salesman Demon leaned back in his chair.

"She was the one who killed my clone. Once that happened, I was forced to end my investigation."

Zanki remained silent for several moments, processing everything he had heard. If the information was accurate, then the difference between the Agency in Libeus and the organizations operating elsewhere was much greater than they had previously estimated.

"I see." Zanki finally spoke. "So that’s one reason Libeus required considerably more forces than the other regions."

His fingers rested against the table.

"But it still doesn’t explain why an invasion of this scale was necessary."

The Salesman Demon said nothing. That answer belonged to someone above his rank.

Zanki looked at him once more before giving a small nod.

"Good work. You brought information worth hearing."

The Salesman Demon’s familiar smile returned.

"My pleasure."

Zanki turned his attention toward the remaining Upper Blood Demons.

"Anyone else have information worth reporting?"

No one answered.

For several seconds, the Royal Meeting Hall remained silent. Zanki waited, his many eyes moving from one demon to another, but when it became clear that none of them had anything directly related to the Salesman Demon’s report, he moved on.

"Very well. Then we’ll proceed with the other reports." Zanki rested one hand on the table. "His Majesty ordered all of us to return to the palace with our forces. I want to know how many subordinates each of you brought."

His gaze shifted toward the second seat.

"Xue Longulei."

Longulei rose from his chair.

"Yes, Zanki. I brought approximately four hundred demon warriors trained in martial arts, along with six hundred spear demons and their fighting panda riders."

Several demons around the table glanced toward him at the mention of the numbers, but Zanki merely gave an approving nod.

"Good."

Longulei returned to his seat as Zanki moved on.

"Jester."

The Jester Demon gave a small bow from his chair before answering.

"Yes, Lord. I brought one hundred of my children beasts and another two hundred demons from my army."

"Good. That will be enough."

Zanki continued around the table, calling Ragnar next, followed by Mae-hwa and finally the Salesman Demon. Each gave their own numbers, and although their forces differed in size and composition, all of them had obeyed the Demon King’s command. A considerable portion of the armies they had spent years building throughout the human world had now been gathered inside the Demonic Kingdom.

By the time the final report ended, the numbers represented a substantial military force.

Zanki looked over the reports once more before closing the document in front of him.

"That concludes the current reports. Our forces have been gathered, and the preparations are almost complete."

His expression became noticeably more serious.

"Everything must now be prepared for the upcoming war."

Several heads immediately turned toward him.

"War?" the Jester Demon repeated.

Mae-hwa lowered her fan slightly, confusion appearing in her pink eyes.

"What war?"

Ragnar looked toward her, and an irritated grin immediately appeared on his face.

"This bitch is completely clueless."

Mae-hwa’s head snapped toward him.

"What did you just say, pig head?"

"What?" Ragnar challenged, turning toward her. "Did I say something wrong?"

Mae-hwa’s fingers tightened around her fan, but before their argument could begin again, a sharp sound echoed through the hall.

Tap.

Zanki had struck one finger against the table.

"Enough. Both of you."

The two immediately looked toward him.

For the first time, Zanki’s hand had moved directly onto the hilt of his katana.

"Do you really want me to draw my sword?"

Ragnar stared at him for a moment before clicking his tongue and leaning back into his chair.

"Tch."

Mae-hwa also restrained herself, though the irritated look in her pink eyes remained as she turned her attention back toward Zanki. The tension between the two didn’t disappear, but neither seemed willing to test whether Zanki’s threat to draw his katana had been serious.

Zanki waited until both were quiet before looking toward Mae-hwa.

"Mae-hwa."

"Yes?"

"You asked what war I was talking about." Zanki glanced down at the reports spread across the table. "Look at the numbers gathered here. Look at the scale of our recent movements and the orders His Majesty has issued. I believe the Demon King has been preparing us for war."

The Jester Demon smiled at those words, clearly more entertained by the possibility than concerned.

"A war against humanity?" He tilted his head slightly. "Wouldn’t it be more appropriate to call that conquering Earth?"

Ragnar’s mood immediately improved. He turned toward the Jester Demon with an approving grin and slapped one large hand against the armrest of his chair.

"Now that is what I like about you, clown."

The Jester Demon placed one hand against his chest and gave Ragnar an exaggerated bow from his seat.

"My pleasure, Lord Ragnar."

Unlike the others, Zanki didn’t look amused.

"No."

That single answer made several of them turn toward him.

Zanki’s many eyes narrowed as he looked over the military reports again.

"I don’t believe we’re preparing to conquer anything."

Ragnar’s grin faded.

"Then what the hell are you talking about?"

Zanki raised his gaze.

"I think we’re preparing to defend."

Silence settled across the table.

Even Mae-hwa lowered her fan slightly.

"Defend?" Ragnar repeated, visibly confused. "That doesn’t make any sense. Defend against what? What makes you think that?"

"It’s only a hunch," Zanki replied.

Yet it was a hunch he couldn’t dismiss.

If the Demon King intended to invade the human world on a larger scale, Zanki would have expected very different preparations. Armored divisions would have been organized for deployment. Soldiers would have been separated into formations, commanders assigned to invasion routes, and forces positioned for expansion beyond the Demonic Kingdom.

Instead, His Majesty had ordered them back.

Powerful demons who had spent years spreading across the human world were being recalled toward the Demonic Kingdom. Their armies were gathering around their own territory rather than preparing to march outward, and the kingdom’s presence was being concealed more carefully than ever.

Even the Demon King himself had gone to extraordinary lengths to remain invisible to the outside world.

It didn’t resemble an army preparing to conquer.

It resembled a kingdom preparing to survive something coming toward it.

Zanki’s fingers slowly tightened against the table.

But what are we defending against?

Before anyone could question him further, the enormous doors of the Royal Meeting Hall suddenly opened.

Every conversation stopped.

The Elite Demons stationed at the entrance immediately moved into position. One stepped forward, lowered his head deeply, and announced in a powerful voice that carried throughout the entire golden hall.

"Rise before His Majesty!"

Every Upper Blood Demon turned toward the entrance.

The guard lowered himself to one knee.

"His Majesty, the Demon King, has entered the Royal Meeting Hall!"

The atmosphere changed instantly.

To Be Continued...