Chapter 170: Devils and Demons

The war between devils and demons was an ancient one, and it had almost never ceased. Even though they both belonged to the alignment of evil, the two sides were as incompatible as fire and water.

So, it was hardly strange for a devil to be paying attention to the Abyss’s dealings in the material world.

"The waters of Delusional Land aren’t exactly deep, but you couldn’t call them shallow, either." Seeing Ron’s immense reluctance to come any closer, the devil wasn’t surprised. She casually lay down on Ron’s bed and stretched her sultry body across it. "As far as I know, quite a few entities have already placed their bets here. Once the time is right, this place will belong entirely to the final winner."

"Saran Lane was an arrogant fool. He refused to align with anyone, wanting to control everything himself, so of course he was the first one out of the game."

The devil tilted her head, looking at Ron by the door as flames danced faintly in her crimson-orange pupils. "So what about you? What are you thinking? Will you go it alone, or... will you come into my embrace?"

Ron frowned slightly. This devil felt so weak and vulnerable, as if she possessed no power whatsoever. It seemed that even he, with his very limited skills in close combat, could have his way with her.

’But... what am I thinking?!’

Ron swallowed hard, the light from a Protective Magic spell flickering around him. "It’s a generous offer, and hard to refuse, but unfortunately, I already have a client."

"Who?" The devil froze for a second, then her eyes narrowed. It seemed that if Ron gave the slightest wrong answer, she would devour him whole.

"I did quite a bit of research before coming here. If you have a patron I don’t know about, then it could only be—"

"Victor. It’s Victor Fromm."

The devil was taken aback. "...Who?!"

’She’d never even heard that name! Who in the hells was that?’

’A mortal legend? A forgotten deity? Something from the Fairy Wilderness? In all the Nine Floors of Hell and the Endless Abyss, she’d never heard of such a figure!’

"The mayor of Fromm Town." Ron cast another layer of protection on himself. In this devil’s presence, his spells couldn’t even last for their intended duration. "My companions and I were commissioned by him to establish a new settlement in Delusional Land. We’re to take in refugees from the north to alleviate the pressure on his town."

The tense atmosphere in the room instantly dissipated. Ron thought he saw her shoot him a glare before her body went slack once more.

"And here I thought—heh." The devil’s lips curled into a smile. "You really are a mischievous one, little guy."

"But surely you’re not foolish enough to think a small-town mayor is enough to protect you? Saran Lane was an idiot, but he did have some real ability."

"He dismantled every little trick and plot sent his way, and in the end, he even managed to squeeze his way to the card table."

"If the Hailan Empire had managed to hold on for another few hundred years, he might have actually gotten a piece of the pie."

"You want to be... my patron?" Ron asked. "But from what I can see, Delusional Land seems to be masterless right now. Where are the representatives from the other factions?"

"Dead, of course." The devil toyed with her fingernails. "You couldn’t figure that out?"

"Everyone tries to help their own agent establish a foothold in this land, while everyone else is responsible for tearing it down. If they aren’t strong enough... bang."

"Queen Teresa I was capable and had a good eye. She chose to rely on me, and so she founded a kingdom in Delusional Land that flourished for several hundred years on the back of its mining industry. It’s just a shame her successor was a clueless idiot."

Ron guessed the devil was talking about the ancient kingdom.

"She decided the kingdom’s destiny shouldn’t be in the hands of a devil. But if she announced that, it would have shaken the kingdom to its foundations, and her own royal family would have been purged. So, she chose to seek help from the demons!"

The devil let out an exasperated, cold laugh. "Tell me, is that not completely insane? As if those utterly stupid demons could be more trustworthy than devils?!"

"All I wanted was exclusive rights to the souls of the royal family and their subjects, plus some minerals. But the demons? They planned to use this place as a beachhead to rip open a gate between the planes and invade this world from Delusional Land!"

"I’m sure the demons didn’t phrase it that way to the queen," Ron said, the corner of his mouth twitching.

"Of course. Who ever reveals their true intentions?" the devil said with a cunning smile. "Luckily, her brain hadn’t been completely eaten by Babu Demons yet. She realized the problem at the last minute, but by then, it was already too late."

"Her subjects, who had already been turned and corrupted by the demons, framed her, ambushed her, and overthrew her. They sealed her away in various corners of Delusional Land, supposedly to ’prevent a devil invasion.’ If I hadn’t managed to narrowly best Ocas in a clash around that time, they really would have succeeded."

Ocas? Ron’s heart skipped a beat. He’d heard that name before, down in the mines.

The Undying Demon Monarch, the Bloody Lord... he was also the former patron of Dorison, the very first Ghoul. The Ghouls had served him up until he stood by and did nothing while the Gnoll Lord Yenogu pillaged Dorison. That infamous demon would occasionally infuse a Ghoul with potent Abyssal Energy, creating a Demon Ghost, a creature far more cunning than its ordinary kin.

’And a Demon Lord of that stature... what did this devil just say? That she narrowly bested him?’

’Doesn’t that mean...?’

"What, you don’t look like you believe me?" the devil asked with a dangerous smile. She waved her hand, and an oddly shaped, flame-wreathed Longsword materialized from thin air, hovering before Ron.

The sword looked as if it were forged from the spine of some creature. It was double-edged and completely wreathed in crimson fire. Ron noticed, however, that in one notched section, the flames burned an unusual dark teal.

"Ah, so you noticed," the devil said, still lying on Ron’s bed as she casually manipulated the Longsword. "That’s a souvenir from my fight with that bastard, Glazter. I wounded him with this sword, but I never imagined that when his blood struck the ground, it would spawn a horde of Babu Demons. I should have won, but I was forced to make a temporary retreat, and his blood tainted this sword."

"Demons are just despicable, aren’t they?"

The devil dismissed the Magic Sword. She sat up, her forked tail twitching behind her from time to time. "So, have you made up your mind? It goes without saying that if you want to develop Delusional Land any further, you’ll have no choice but to deal with demons."