Chapter 294 Foul Play (2)

Shanifa has told me about the way the Temple sees her as an individual. The Temple sees her as this mysterious individual who knows everything and controls everyone behind the scene. She has also told me that the Temple had spent a lot of effort to figure out her identity but failed. If it wasn't for the fact that she decided to reveal herself, it would never know where she was.

That means she proposed the idea of establishing an alliance with the rest of the human Kingdoms. It ends up being useless, though, since she immediately "turned herself in" after she implanted the Eye of Causality. It told her that the plan she envisioned would never be realized because of my existence.

You may wonder why the Temple became the leader of the alliance if Shanifa (Cresundia) was the one who proposed it. The reason is Solas, the King himself.

Even though their Kingdoms weren't allied before, the Kings already know each other well. Just like how the Temple smelled the fishiness, Shanifa was afraid that the Kings would be able to tell something was wrong with Solas. The current situation doesn't force Solas to stand out. No one will notice his change as long as he doesn't do much.

With being said, Shanifa still holds most of the authority to make a decision—in a way that she can influence it. The Temple listens to her words well because they still can't tell who she is until now. It doesn't know her weakness, so they have nothing to threaten her with. It also doesn't know the limit of her ability yet. Therefore, cooperating with her is the wisest decision.

Shanifa knows how to remain incognito, but she is not that great at doing it. The reason why the Temple still doesn't know who she is yet is its incompetent investigators.

I won't say this case is easy to crack either, though. Shanifa's summoning remained unknown until now. It's hard to investigate something that doesn't exist, so I still have to commend them for their effort. They are also not doing it badly because they could still smell something fishy about the way Solas is behaving.

Thud.

Getting out of my mind, I put Millonia on her bed. Her Skill: [Bottomless Abyss] takes a toll on her stamina and health in general. She is extremely tired, so she won't even wake up if I slap her. Since she is currently lying on her stomach, I flip her so she lies on her back. She looks so peaceful when she sleeps, representing nothing of her usual self.

Taking out a note, I tear one of the pages. I write 'I won, bitch' on it before sticking it to her forehead. With a smirk, I leave her bedroom. Upon being outside, I meet Celia who was about to knock on the door as I opened it. I quirk an eyebrow, and she quickly explains herself.

"I thought Millonia would like to be healed."

"A good rest will do the job. She is fine." I wave my hand nonchalantly. "Who told you to come here by the way? I am pretty sure you weren't on the field as I beat her ass."

"I saw you in the hallway carrying Millonia."

"I see…"

Nodding to Celia as my way to say farewell, I walk away. She remains standing where she is for a few seconds before deciding to walk—she follows. I ignore her for a minute before stopping in my tracks and turning around. My action makes her widen her eyes in panic. I instantly figure that she has something to say.

"Just tell me. I will hear it," I shoot.

"T-That is…I—there is…let me think about it," she stammers.

I cross my hands and wait for her until she is ready. To ready herself, she inhales deeply and exhales heavily five times.

Clearing her throat, she says, "Are you going to make me your slave?"

"Do I overwork you?" I ask, remembering how much she has to work in the infirmary.

"No, no, no. I am not complaining about my job. I am asking you if you will make me your slave by the end of the day. I mean…are you not afraid that I will use my influence to turn the people against you?"

"I am not. You are smart enough to know that will only result in unnecessary deaths."

Celia opens her mouth to retort, only to close it back. She frowns and then scratches her head with a complicated look. She wants to say something but doesn't know how to say it. It is a fairly heavy topic, it seems. I have never seen her have difficulty expressing herself.

"How will you treat me from now on?"

"Like my right hand?"

"Don't you find these alluring?" she asks as she cups her chest.

I immediately put my hand on her forehead and look at her solemnly. "Did that stupid Succubus Maxine cast something unholy on you?"

"It is extremely off-putting hearing you say 'unholy,' but no. She didn't cast anything on me. Even if she did, it wouldn't do anything to me. I have enough Holy Power to dispel whatever she can cast on me."

"So…what is up with the question?"

"You know…" Celia hesitates. "I heard Demons are more sexually active than any other Races. Since you are already surrounded by women, I wonder if—"

"No," I cut her. "You misunderstand the nature of our relationship. We are close to each other, but not more than a sibling's definition of close. I already have Valeria, so I don't need slaves for 'that' purpose."

"Oh…"

Hoping Celia to be relieved, I blink my eyes when she looks disappointed. I once again put my hand on her forehead. This time, I am checking if she has a cold. Her temperature is normal, so I open her mouth to smell her breath. I can't smell alcohol, so she is not drunk. I take a step back and look at her carefully.

"Can't I be a bad girl because of my status?" she asks with unamused eyes, surprising me.

"I see. Millonia has rubbed off on you," I conclude.

"Oh, come on. I don't know how to say this…" she scratches her head in frustration. "You know what? I will just say it. I—"

"Hush…"

I put my finger on Celia's lips, stopping her from saying the corny words. "Say that again after you find me at my lowest point. You won't be able to differentiate between admiration, lust, and love until that happens."

Celia just looks at me silently. Her silent gaze makes me wonder if I got ahead of myself and misunderstood her. It turns out, I didn't. She nods her head soon after and takes my finger off her lips. She then motions for me to lend her my ears with her finger. I am genuinely shocked when she uses that as a chance to kiss me on the lips.

Before I can say something, she runs off with a happy giggle.

"Well, at least, she is trying hard to make me fall for her instead of using her father's death to force me to accept her feelings." I shrug.

I wonder what makes these girls fall for me. Is my charm too strong that they can't tell they are bewitched? Since I am a Demon, this is not me being narcissistic. Demons do have the passive ability to attract the opposite gender with their look. Supported by our aphrodisiac pheromone, we can make anyone crazy for us with a single glance.

I am pretty sure I always keep my pheromone in check, so this is quite bewildering. I don't want these girls to misidentify lust with love, so it needs to stop.

Alas, I don't have time to deal with such a trivial matter. For the time being, I will let them figure it out themselves and focus on a more important matter.

"Commander Basil!" Maxine shouts in panic from behind.

I turn around at the same time she stops before me. "What is the matter?"

"A squad of Paladins is spotted on the perimeter of the mine."

The news brings a frown to my face. "Did Shanifa betray us?"

"Here." Maxine gives me her Sound Crystal. "Shanifa is on the call."

Taking it, I immediately say, "Prove me that you are still on our side."

"Enslave me!" comes the vigorous reply.

"All right. There is no need to be that excited about it." Clearing my throat, I continue, "Anyway, tell me what happened."

"The Temple moves on its own. I believe it suspects that one of us is a betrayer."

"So, they do learn from their mistakes."

"Should I order my men to go—"

"No. Don't let them die in this skirmish. I will take care of this matter."

I end the call before Shanifa can say anything and give the Sound Crystal back to Maxine. I tell her to take care of Antares while I am gone—like she always does—and then walk past her. It is not long until a blur appears before me and stops me in my tracks. It is Millonia who looks as healthy as a horse.

"You are supposed to be—"

"I am in."

"Hop on, bitch. No, I don't mean it literally—get down!"

Turning a deaf ear to my instruction, Millonia remains latched to my back. I grunt in annoyance before eventually letting her do whatever she likes. Running to the nearby window, I jump off the office. I call Genelos with a whistle and he catches me in mid-air. Nine hours passed and we arrive at the mine.