CH 164

“But we can’t scatter the lives of our warriors elsewhere, can we? We need to monitor the situation a little more.”

“Are you monitoring the situation? It doesn’t seem like it. You look like you’re just killing time.”

“Then why don’t you look into the situation over there? What kind of power the goddess grants, how powerful it is, and whether or not it can be a blow to us.”

“…”

“If you decide it’s okay to ignore it and go ahead, I will follow your advice.”

The longer the demons lived, the stronger they became. And the stronger the power, the longer the lifespan.

It was an endless cycle in which the strength increased as the lifespan increased, and the lifespan increased as the strength increased.

It was different from human beings who lived only a fixed lifespan and then died.

That’s why the demons in charge didn’t change. She was fed up seeing the same faces for hundreds or thousands of years.

Due to their long lifespan, everything had become dull, and they focused on protecting what they had built up. Ragibach sincerely thought that the structure of human beings that changed with time would be better.

It would be nice if they were killed in this war. She longed for it.

To make that possible, she had to accept his offer. It wasn’t a disadvantage for her anyway.

“…Okay.”

Of course, there was also opposition from the other side.

“Wait! Then it will be decided by her subjective judgment! I’m against it!”

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“I’m also against it. It’s dangerous from anyone’s perspective, but who knows if they’ll decide on their own that it’s safe?”

“Ah, of course, those concerns are valid.”

Ajai continued.

“Then how about attaching the condition that the minimum amount of evidence is required?”

“Minimum evidence?”

However, wasn’t the ‘minimum evidence’ also subjective?

In any case, it was a good condition for this side.

“Okay, then let’s do it.”

“We’re against it!”

“It doesn’t sound like a bad decision, so why are you so opposed to it?”

After that, the castle went back and forth for a while, but the conclusion did not change. It was because Azai gave the instigators power.

As the atmosphere in the conference room faded to a semi-forced tone, he said, clapping.

“So, does everyone agree? Instead, no one should be tampered with until it is concluded that there are no risks or that it is acceptable. Do you understand what I mean? There is no need to give up your life.”

“Okay.”

“Oh, and one more thing.”

“One more? What is it?”

“If it is understood that the intervention of the goddess can cause fatal damage to us…”

He purposely paused for a moment.

“Let’s not discuss the invasion again. You could endanger your entire race.”

Keira: “Ah, so…”

Keira recalled the contents of a book she had just read–the record that there was no strange battle for a while before the barrier was created and the demons withdrew.

‘He knew beforehand that the goddess might be intervening, so he sabotaged their plan.’

The puzzle seemed to fit piece by piece.

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Keira: “Then, did you know that a barrier was created as a result of the investigation and left?”

Blocking movement to and from the base would not be a pain at all. He must have recognized the danger and quickly withdrew. Keira thought so.

However…

“It’s not?”

The woman who had been sitting quietly until then answered. She was a woman with fins instead of ears.

Keira: “No?”

“In the end, they didn’t know how the goddess would intervene.”

“?”

The meeting ended and they started to leave one by one.

Those who looked bored were the first to get up.

The next group to go was the main instigators, including Ragibach.

Having obtained favorable conditions for their side, they no longer had any reason to dwell in the conference room.

Ragibach was the fifth to leave the conference room, but before she could, a voice stopped her in her steps.

“Hey, why don’t you just face reality and live your life?”

She frowned and looked back. The voice sounded familiar.

It was Yurr.

Ragibach: “What are you talking about?”

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Yurr: “That’s right. If you want to go to war, you have to offer reasonable benefits. It is our instinct to fight endlessly, so let’s conquer the human world! Who would agree with you then? Ah, except for those who think like you.”

When he finished speaking, Ragibach’s face became as cold as a field of ice.

Ragibach: “What?”

She looked as if she had been stabbed in the back by someone she trusted.

Ragibach: “…You think the same as them?”

Yurr: “If I had agreed with you, I would have helped out at the meeting. I’d just have a look… Ugh!”

Slam–!

A fist hit Yurr’s careless and chattering face. 

It was a blow that peeled off the skin of his face and exposed his muscles. Of course, he soon recovered.

‘Look at this?’

Anyway, she didn’t like him.

But to punch him in the face so openly?

But just as Yurr was about to draw his weapon and those who remained in the conference room started leaving…

“What are you doing?”

“If you want to fight, go out and fight. Just don’t destroy the building.”

“Right. Go out and do it. Go out.”

The demons around them said that, but Yurr had no desire to fight. He sighed as he stretched his arms. 

Yurr: “Alright, alright.”

Ragibach: “Look who’s talking.”

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Ragibach had a lot of work to do for the time being, but she had no intention of losing strength by fighting with her fellow demon.

She went back to her camp and discussed things with her subordinates.

The relationship between the goddess and the world was like that between a fetus and a pregnant woman. 

Just as a pregnant woman could sing a song to her fetus but could not hug and kiss her directly, there was a limit to her influence on this world.

If the goddess were to defend her own creations, how would she help them? 

Ragibach stayed up all night with her minions to think. She even planted spies inside the city walls. She even professed that she would give a big reward to anyone who could bring a hint.

And after ten days, she finally found her answer.

Ragibach: “The power of the spirit?”

Apparently, a special bloodline was chosen to receive the power to control spirits…

‘The spirits and demons are definitely at odds.’

But, nevertheless, some things weren’t clear. No matter how excellent an individual’s forces were, the impact on the world should be negligible.

Besides, why wouldn’t the goddess bless many people and choose only one bloodline instead?

‘…Is that the only thing you can do?’

She knew the intervention was limited, but she didn’t know to what extent. But her worries soon washed away.

‘You know what? At this stage, it’s been proven that it’s not very dangerous.’

She passed on what she had discovered to Ajai, and the information was soon delivered to all the Great Demons.

Those who doubted them lost in the face of objective evidence.

Ajai also supported her argument.

Ajai: “Then that proves it’s not dangerous.”

As soon as the words fell, the expressions of those fools crumpled up in disappointment.

Ragibach took the lead, rearranged the lines, devised an advanced route, and devised a strategy.

And just before the invasion resumed, the barrier of the spirits began to form.

This time, it was her turn to frown.

“Isn’t that dangerous?”

“It cannot end with just giving the blessing of the spirit to an individual.”

“Isn’t there nothing more dangerous than being isolated from the enemy camp? I think we need to withdraw quickly before the barrier is complete.”

They sounded sarcastic, but she never spared them a glance.

All she was looking at was Azai, who was smiling softly.

Ragibach: “You… You b*stard!”

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He knew it from the start. This was what the goddess was aiming for.

Knowing that she had no choice but to withdraw anyway, Ajai created a situation in which he had no choice but to give in so that Ragibach wouldn’t be able to talk about it later.

The fact that Ragibach was entrusted with the investigation and that she couldn’t pinpoint the core part due to insufficient research was all part of the scheme.

‘Of course!’

The demon she’d been at odds with couldn’t have given her a chance.

She gritted her teeth.

But the tide was already against them. It was something she had agreed to from the start.

Ajai: “Then prepare to retreat.”

Ragibach: “Ajai!”

Then his expression hardened terribly.

Ajai: “I know what you want, but if everyone agrees on something, then we have to follow it. Besides, what would have happened if I had only believed in your words and felt relieved? What if you didn’t notice the barrier being created? Shouldn’t we all have suffered the consequences?”

“…”

Those who take responsibility for their failures had nothing to say.

Ragibach was certain he had calculated everything up to this point. 

Ragibach: “This is what you had planned from the start.”

Ajai: “I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you want to fight more, convince those who agree with you to stay.”

He left behind those words and turned around.