The Demon Monarch System

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Inside Suprenis…

A split opened up at the base of Suprenis's Tower, allowing a cluster of demons inside the area. Since the tower's staff placed a fee on this unique link usage, there was no need to be charged a second time. After all, both sides received an equal share of the material fee attached to the portal's usage. 

"Dammit, why are you two with me?!" Valac grumbled. As soon as he stepped forth through the portal, Valac was irritated by the presence of Typhir and Sapphyr. To him, they felt like parents watching over a naughty child, although he promised to be good.

The fact that Apollo didn't trust his words hurt Valac's feelings. But, he expressed in the only way he knew how―by throwing a tantrum. Sadly for him, neither Typhir nor Sapphyr was affected by his childish display.

Typhir simply glanced at him for a moment before scoffing, "Maybe if you show you're trustworthy, the Lord wouldn't feel as if you require a babysitter."

"Exactly. Actions speak louder than words. And by your actions, your words are fabrications," Sapphyr agreed. With both of them hounding him, Valac was unable to retort. He could only stare with widened eyes filled with indignation as he shifted his gaze between the two rapidly.

"T-this is unfair! I won't have this! You two are ganging up on, and I'll tell the Lord about it! Hah, I bet he'll show some sympathy after I tell him how torturous you two are!" Valac scowled.

However, both Typhir and Sapphyr looked at each other with amused smirks.

"Are we thinking of the same Lord? The one that pummeled you into the ground and almost claimed your life? Sure, let's report how torturous our behavior is," Typhir chuckled.

Valac sputtered in response after recalling the events of that day. Gradually, his face started to pale. If he were honest, the pain he felt that day remained in his top three most painful experiences.

"Dammit! I don't have to take this abuse! We came here for a reason, so let's get to it!" Valac snarled while storming off. Since they were at the heart of Suprenis, the journey was essentially nonexistent. Granted, there were quite a few tasks on their schedule.

While trailing Amduscias remained at the top of their list, other essential tasks remained on their list. Besides, they weren't in a rush to find Amduscias because the system's ability to transmit the location of the hidden pieces continuously was transferred to them for the time being since Apollo gave them this mission.

As a result, there was no hurry to track down this individual's movements.

The two shrugged in response to Valac's. They allowed him to spearhead their actions since this was, in fact, his operation. They were only here as additional support in the event of an emergency. 

So, while Valac walked ahead, Sapphyr suddenly tapped Typhir's shoulder.

"Hm?" Typhir muttered.

"I'll be the one to be second in command," Sapphyr stated. Though her tone was light, there was resolve within her words. Even if she wasn't chosen to be the Lord's empress, she wished to be held in high regards, such as the Grand Commander of the household's illustrious army.

After sensing the flame in her eyes, Typhir didn't turn her down. Instead, he revealed a genuine smile. "I look forward to the competition. However, you should remember that there are two sides to every coin."

"Two sides...to every coin?" Sapphyr muttered with a puzzled expression. She didn't understand what he meant, but it was clear that Typhir didn't intend to reveal the meaning behind his words based on his appearance.

"Enough of that. Do you suppose we should visit this stronghold before moving on to the other matters?" Typhir asked. While it wouldn't be his or Valac's first visit to this particular stronghold, it was Sapphyr's first visit.

However, Typhir recalled Apollo's warning. There was a chance that there was an obscenely strong demon on the premises. Therefore, Apollo advised them to tread with caution. 

Fortunately, Apollo could sense imminent danger to his followers no matter how far the distance that separated them. So if this trio were to face terror beyond their capabilities, Apollo would undoubtedly remove them from the citation.

While it was unknown if Apollo could summon himself to his follower's location, he could easily perform an immediate summons. Compared to before, when the system was only Level 3, Apollo's summoning speed was tens of times faster. 

In most cases, the current delay in summoning was nonexistent.

Thus, Typhir wasn't wary of perishing. Besides, he was interested in how much more powerful Tirasha became. According to Xonnomor, she would have undoubtedly evolved by the time they arrived.

Even if Valac wasn't her match anymore, Typhir was curious to try his hand. After all, the increases from his bloodline were no laughing matter. At the very least, Typhir felt he was much stronger than Valac in that state. However, it had yet to be confirmed.

After all, Valac still possessed his second transformation, which was a unique ability granted to the original members of the household. That rivaled the abilities of a Perfected Bloodline awakened to a high degree.

Suddenly, Valac stopped at turned around. "Oi! Why are you two so far behind?! Are you ashamed to be seen with me? Or…" Valac's expression became mischievous. "Could you two be bonding and thinking of naughty things~? Ooooh! I'm telling-!!

Valac's eyes widened as soon as he witnessed a sharp arc of extremely dark energy hurtling towards him. Out of instinct, he unfurled his wings and flapped them, narrowly dodging the attack.

"Crazy woman! Are you trying to kill me?!" Valac shrieked while holding his chest. Unsurprisingly, the issuer of the attack was Sapphyr, who was clearly incensed by Valac's earlier words.

"Choose your words carefully. May I remind you that the Lord permitted us to punish you?" Sapphyr said in a frigid tone, causing Valac's frightened frown to deepen. The more he looked at her, the more he understood that this individual was not one to be trifled with.

'Tch… so crazy! That attack was dangerous!' Valac thought to himself while shaking his head. Though Apollo did indeed give them the okay, Valac didn't expect to experience so much danger from a single attack.

Perhaps their strengthening was more extensive than he gave them credit for.

"Fine… fine! Just no more laughing psychopathic attacks! I'd like to live to see tomorrow's beauty, thank you very much. I believe I have a lot to live for," Valac said while continuously nodding his head in a pompous manner.

However, both of them paid him no mind. On the contrary, Typhir walked past Valac with a stern expression, "We're going to visit Tirasha's stronghold first."

"W-what? Wait... what?! Why there first? Didn't you hear the Lord? There's a chance her father is still there! I just said that I have a lot to live for," Valac shouted.

As a result, many nearby demons turned towards him with disdainful expressions. Though the atmosphere of the Nihilistic Rings was usually hectic, the nearby demons felt he was causing a needless raucous since it seemed to be one led by fear.

In the Ring of the Dauntless, they found this trait unacceptable and detestable.

However, as shameless as Valac was, he didn't acknowledge their disdain the slightest. Instead, his expression seemed as if he wanted to egg them on. Sadly, Typhir's deadpan gaze extinguished all thoughts of causing mayhem.

"Okay, okay! You win! We'll go to that damned place. But if we get thrashed, that's on you, and I take ZERO ownership in the matter," Valac exclaimed while throwing his hands up. 

Afterward, he changed the direction of his steps and did a complete one-eighty. His initial plan was to locate the Nautilus if possible and gather in-depth information on any characters of interest. 

Amduscias and the other pieces weren't the only individuals inside Suprenis that were of interest to Valac. While highly tricky to locate, Valac was elated by the idea of locating so of his earlier accomplices. Unfortunately, without the Nautilus's extensive information-gathering array, it was impossible to identify them. 

'Such a drama queen. Shut up and grow some backbone," Typhir grunted. In the next moment, he disappeared into a vanishing shadow as he utilized his Baleful Steps that drew inspiration from his Tenebrous Sword practice.

As a result, a shadow of Fuhrer's famed movement peered through his actions, which caught Valac off-guard. 'Err… there's no way that he's advancing this fast, is there?'