Chapter 828: Dragon Over There, Dragon Here, Dragon Everywhere!
4 hours later.
Sorrowful sounds of a goddess resounded through the halls.
"Ugh... Why...? Why is this happening to me? Ugh..."
"Stop complaining already, you are being annoying."
"B-But! My freedom!"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Did you really think you would forever be a leech to the Demon King?"
"Yes?"
"...." Veins popped on Lily's head.
"I-I mean, I am loved by everyone, right? I thought he would take care of me!"
Lily had just realized that her mother had been completely spoiled by the population of hell.
"The Demon King is impartial. Lilith or not, you have no privileges."
That's a lie, precisely because Lilith is who she is, Victor made many exceptions.
There were several political reasons behind it, but the main one was that she's Lilith, the Progenitor of demons, the goddess of demons. Seeing this woman 'working' for the current Demon King gives him a lot of credibility.
He will be seen by the masses as a ruler even Lilith accepted.
Did Victor need this? Of course not, his prestige and achievements are unparalleled.
But! It's always good to quell the flames of rebellion. The Demon King rules over demons, and demons by nature are beings that seek conflict, seek to gain more; they are beings of desires.
Victor working alongside Lilith's existence is crucial for the Demon King's long rule. This was a problem that couldn't be solved with force; intelligence and cunning were necessary.
The demons have to understand that going against Victor is simply foolish.
Of course, Lily wouldn't tell Lilith all of this; it's part of the internal politics of the government, and only a few know about these plans.
'Well, with His Majesty's recent evolution, I don't think there's a demon foolish enough to challenge him.' Lily thought.
"Ugh..."
Veins popped on Lily's head. "Stop complaining already. It's past time for you to move that fat ass and work. Rejoice, Lilith. You've taken on one of the most important positions in hell. You should be happy."
"But...! I don't want to work! I've spent thousands of years ruling already!"
Lily really wondered where her mother, who used to be arrogant, powerful, and cunning, had gone. It seems her brain completely melted after enjoying the 'normal life' that Victor had carefully planned for her.
"What are you talking about?"
"Eh...?"
"You won't rule anything. You'll just manage the souls that enter hell, a job you'll do in conjunction with Persephone and Aline."
"....."
"Plus, you'll be paid."
"... Eh? I'll be paid!?"
"Didn't you hear what I was saying?"
"I mean..." Lilith just smiled and scratched her head a bit.
"Haaah..." Lily let out a long sigh. 'Please, Your Majesty, grant me patience to deal with this woman... Because I'm really one step away from slapping her.'
"Listen, I'll say it again. You'll be working in one of the most important positions in hell, and, of course, the reward will be substantial."
"How many Knulls are we talking about?" Lilith asked curiously.
Lily raised her hands.
"Seven thousand?" Lilith asked.
"Seven digits."
"Holy..."
"Monthly."
Lilith swallowed hard.
"Of course, that's not all; extra benefits are promised if you do a good job."
"I predict that if you work properly, you'll pay off your debt in less than two years."
'That is if you don't spend your money on the new projects that Aline, Ruby, and Metis will launch in the future.' Lily thought to herself; she was really enjoying seeing Lilith falling into the simplest trap of the capitalist world.
Excessive, unnecessary consumption.
As a woman who had always been in leadership, she never really needed to buy anything; everything she wanted would be given to her.
But that was no longer her reality; she had to be like everyone else now and buy the things she needed for herself. And that's where the trap lies – even though Lilith knows the 'trap,' she will still fall into it.
The reason is simple... Only controlled beings can avoid falling into the trap of capitalism... And Lilith definitely isn't one of them.
'Fufufu, if it were a few years ago, she wouldn't have this problem; after all, she was full of treasures.' Due to the war with Diablo, Lilith literally lost everything: her treasure, her castle, her subordinates.
"Not to mention, you'll be working directly alongside the Demon King..." A cunning smile appeared on Lily's face; the daughter approached the mother and held her shoulder.
"You want it, don't you?"
"Want what...?" Lilith asked.
"Don't lie to yourself... I've seen it in your eyes..." She approached Lilith's ear.
"You want him inside you; you want him for yourself; you desire him...~" She stepped back from Lilith and smiled smugly:
"Am I wrong?"
Lilith narrowed her eyes, she looked at her daughter, and just huffed; she thought she would fall for this trick? She's the literal queen of succubi; this seduction game, she had been playing it even before she was born!
"Of course, I desire him. The demoness who doesn't desire him is a fool, but unlike those women, I'm not in a hurry."
"Oh?"
"I have eternity for myself. Why should I rush into his arms? I can do it today or in 200 years; it doesn't matter."
"All I want now is to enjoy this new freedom."
"... Hmm, I really didn't think you were that foolish."
"... What?"
"Tell me, Mother."
Lilith narrowed her eyes a bit; she knew very well that her daughter only called her 'mother' when she wanted to make a point.
"The last time you saw Victor, how was he?"
Question marks appeared in her head for a few seconds until Lilith opened her eyes in realization when she understood what she was mentioning.
"He was a Vampire Progenitor."
"And not long after that, he became a being capable of challenging an entire pantheon alone."
"....."
"Do you understand now? Unlike those old gods who are stagnant and can't raise their strength levels, such a thing doesn't seem to exist for the Demon King."
"700 years ago, he invaded HELL ALONE and conquered it."
Of course, he had the help of the current generals, but... Their involvement was minimal; in the conquest war, Victor did most of the work.
He defeated the four horsemen of the apocalypse; he destroyed cities ruled by demon pillars; he forced everyone to submit. This war was practically a dominance show that demonstrated how powerful the current Demon King is.
And the strength he showed back then doesn't even compare to what it is now.
"And today, he did something similar with the Greek pantheon. An entire PAN-THEON of gods."
"....."
"Could you do something like that? Could your father?"
"...." Lilith fell silent. Conquering their hell at that time, she probably could have done it with Lucifer's support, but she couldn't do the same with the pantheon of gods.
Of course, Lily is being unfair with her words; in both cases, something was happening that divided the strengths of these places.
In the war of hell, the main elites of hell were in the human world.
In the Greek pantheon, the gods were divided into three factions.
This simple fact made this conquest much 'easier,' but... It was still a conquest, after all, very few beings could fight and press three primordial gods while being a mortal.
Similarly, very few beings could fight against the four horsemen of death and subdue them.
"While we speak, he's already planning his next steps with his most important allies. While we speak, his most qualified wives are turning into dragons."
"A DAMN DRAGON."
"And it's not just any shameful reptile out there. They will be TRUE dragons."
"..."
"Even after I've said all this, do you still want to wait 200 years?"
Lily's disdainful expression was quite infuriating for Lilith.
What she was pointing out was obvious.
If Victor is this powerful now, how will he be in 200 years? What kind of influence will he have? Who will he be? He's an extremely hard individual to predict, but one thing is correct.
He will be even stronger.
That's a fact that Lily will never doubt.
"Fine." She answered brusquely. "I agree that I was being a bit foolish."
"A little?" Lily displayed a smile.
"... Very foolish." Lilith replied as she stomped her foot on the ground in frustration. She was a bit surprised that the floor didn't break, but she didn't think much of it and just spoke.
"But what should we do?"
"We?" Lily laughed. "There is no 'we' here, my dear mother."
"I already know what I'm going to do; I've been working towards that goal for a while, and I'm already accepted in his inner circle. Do you know what that means?"
"Let me explain to you."
"To ensure there are no problems in the governance of hell, all positions of power in hell are occupied by the Demon King's inner circle. In other words, all the women who are his lovers."
"Which means that I, Helena, Vepar, Vine, and Aline are all his lovers."
"Depending on how things go from here, even Persephone herself won't be spared, although I've noticed clearly that it's something she desires a lot." Lily scoffed.
"...." Lilith just realized that while she was starting the game, her daughter had already conquered and platinumed the whole game. She was way behind!
"You, my dear mother, are far behind; even Persephone is ahead of you."
"... Huh? How's that possible?"
"You really don't understand?" Lily asked incredulously.
"Explain!" Lilith ordered.
"Fine, I'll explain as if I were explaining to a child."
Lilith's eyes lit up at this comment, and for a few seconds, a fluctuation appeared in her hand.
Lily sweat a little internally when she saw that her dear mother was about to summon Genesis, a God-Slayer weapon, just because of this small provocation.
'She still has a short fuse... Good to know.' Lily chuckled.
"Do you think Persephone and Aline receive only money and minor benefits to do the Ruler's job?"
"... They don't?"
"Of course not, they get something more."
"Trust and a more active role in his plans. In Aline's case, who's been with Victor longer, her privilege is even greater than Persephone's. Since she wants to, she can spend the government's savings however she wants, after all, she alone propelled the technology of hell forward by several eras."
Lilith opened her eyes widely.
Frankly, Aline could be called the fifth phantom general of hell; after all, she did the work of one. Her position is just as a 'commander' to hide the fact that she is the Ruler.
Aline had a lot of power in her hands; she was the most capable of it. She was indeed a genius in her field.
And Victor highly valued capable people like her, so he made sure to keep her close.
"Of course, this kind of privilege also applies to the generals."
As long as it was for the benefit of the government, as long as the Demon King was notified and approved, the generals had complete freedom to do whatever they wanted.
Was Victor concerned about possible betrayal? Of course not. The reason is that he had 'completely' conquered his generals, be it through their strength, character, or beauty.
They already belonged to him body and soul, and just like his wives, they would do everything for his benefit and for the benefit of hell.
"Meanwhile, you'll only receive a salary and extra benefits. Will you take on an important role? Yes, but if you don't do a good job, you can easily be replaced."
The main reason Lilith was chosen was that Victor could control her, because it was an emergency, and because she suited the role as the queen of demons. If not for that, he would have chosen someone else.
But it was an obvious fact for all the generals that if someone more suitable and 'loyal' to the King appeared, she would be chosen for the role.
As for giving this role to his wives? Victor didn't want that, for the simple reason that he wanted to keep them away from soul-related work.
Judging souls changes a person, after all, you'll see the entire life of the soul to make a more accurate judgment, and he knows very well how detrimental it is if they're not prepared for it. Not to mention, they wouldn't be able to be impartial about the matter.
Therefore, leaving this work to people like Aline, Persephone, and Lilith is more appropriate; even if they see the memories of a soul, they will remain indifferent and neutral. A requirement for this job.
Lilith gritted her teeth; her wings fluttered in irritation, and her tail swayed. She didn't like the way her daughter talked at all. It's as if she were an object that could be discarded. This feeling reminded her a lot of when she was trapped with Diablo.
"Fufufu, this is unexpected from you, Lily. To think you would help your mother." Hearing the sudden voice, the two women looked in the direction of the voice and widened their eyes in shock.
"Morgana..." She narrowed her eyes when she saw the red eyes of the woman who now looked more like a reptile. This wasn't the only visible change; the woman's wings and horns had completely changed and taken on a scale-like dragon hue.
"You've transformed completely already?"
"Mm!" Morgana smiled widely, a smile that showed all her teeth.
"Because I didn't feel anything?"
"Please, do you think Darling wouldn't prevent the power from leaking? After all, he cares about his wives' beauty sleep." Morgana huffed.
"... As expected of him, even in these little details, he cares for them." Lily's eyes shone with appreciation, the kind of 'glow' that Victor liked the most.
Lilith just rolled her eyes when she saw her daughter's loving expression. 'She's completely crazy about him, isn't she?'
"Mm!" Morgana nodded.
Lilith controlled the urge to scoff when she saw the similar expression on both women and just asked.
"So, what then? What attribute did you awaken? What kind of dragon are you?"
"My domain is radiation and dreams; it completely fused my old attributes and made them stronger."
"... A dream dragon..." Lilith blinked several times when she heard those words. She never thought she would hear the words "dragon" and "dream" in the same sentence; after all, this domain was territory for spiritual beings like succubi!
"And radiation, don't forget that."
"...."
"I wonder how these attributes are awakened." Lily spoke.
"I don't know~. Darling said that the awakening of the dragon attribute depends on the individual's personality and potential."
"In Scathach's case, it's obvious; despite controlling ice, her personality is like fire."
"In my case... It's hard to tell, but I probably just inherited what I had before, or I have another power that I'm not aware of." Morgana touched her chin while she thought.
"That's because your personality is as toxic as a succubus, Morgana."
Morgana growled and looked towards the voice; then she saw a woman with long golden hair, white horns with golden tones, and wings of the same color as the horns.
"My personality isn't toxic, Jeanne!"
"Uh-huh, and I'm still a saint." Jeanne scoffed.
'Another one... This place is the downfall of the pantheons.' Having so many dragons so close to each other was absolutely maddening for Lilith.
Before the conversation could continue, a distortion appeared, and another dragon appeared.
"Zaladrac, you showed up." Morgana spoke in surprise.
"Two more..." Zaladrac growled, then she looked towards a spot and disappeared again.
"... Hmm, what was that?" Morgana asked.
"She's feeling competitive; after all, unlike us, she's a dragon that grew up as a dragon, her instincts are strong." Jeanne explained.
"Oh... Looks like she's going on the offensive, huh."
"Indeed." Jeanne nodded.
A moment of silence fell over the area until Lily asked:
"So, what then? What's your attribute?"
"I am the Holy Light and wind."
"... Holy Light?" Morgana raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, I was surprised too." Jeanne made a gesture with her hand, and soon the 'divine light' appeared in her hand, and she began to control it.
"It seems I stole the power of the Heavenly Father and added it to my affinity; this light is completely sacred and lethal to demons and creatures of the night."
The proof of these words was Lilith and Lily themselves, who were far away from Jeanne and looking at her with an almost hostile gaze.
"I'm sorry." Jeanne gave an apologetic smile as she stopped controlling the light.
"... Just keep it away from us." Lily said.
"Mm." Jeanne nodded.
Despite being a dragon now, this was just her physical body; she wasn't really a dragon soul like the others. After all, her soul is 'larger' than that of a dragon.
Although when she changed into this form, she realized that it became much easier to control her primordial energy. She could even see more parts of souls now, something she couldn't do before.
'Dragons are more aligned with creation than I thought...' For a moment, she thought of Victor, who was the Progenitor of this race, and thought that he must really have a unique view of the world now.
'Hmm, Light, wind, and nature, huh... It seems my guardian abilities are returning to their peak. This is a surprise; I thought I would have to physically 'die' to regain my old power.' Jeanne began to evaluate herself more and realized that slowly, her spirit was merging with the current vessel, something that had never happened before.
'... Now, this is a surprise...' She opened her eyes widely. 'If this continues, this will truly be my true body and not just a shell... Interesting, I wonder if this is the effect of my brother's blessing or something original from Victor?'
She also noticed something; even though she had the divine light as her attribute, she didn't have weaknesses in the darkness like beings usually did.
'Hmm... Why aren't the primordial beings coming here and shouting that Victor is breaking the balance or something?' She looked around confused. 'I am clearly a being on the positive side of the balance, but I don't have the weakness of someone on the positive side.'
She had many questions, but she didn't care about them now. She was just happy that even slowly, she was returning to her old self.
'This way, I can help Darling better.'
Even though she was as strong as she was, she couldn't exert all her power, or her body would literally explode.
"I'll find Victor; I need to tell him some things."
"Hmm? Okay, take care, and try not to destroy anything."
"I'm not you, Morgana."
"Bleh." Morgana just stuck her tongue out at her.
Jeanne rolled her eyes at that childish gesture.
As Jeanne left, Morgana looked at Lilith and said, "Lilith, we need to talk about the contract I made with you."
"... Okay, bring Elizabeth too."
"You know about her?" Morgana narrowed her eyes.
A simple gesture that made Lilith go into full guard, the wild pressure of a dragon was truly unnerving.
"I've always known, Morgana."
"... So... Why..."
"Because it was senseless... My reign was ending, and I knew it. I just didn't want to admit it. Bringing Elizabeth to that place would've only killed her or had an even worse fate."
"... Call her; she needs to know about her origins." Lilith spoke.
"Yes, I will."
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