https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-772-Sybeline-Finds-a-Little-Grey-Cat/12585315/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-774-Sybillian-Returns-to-Where-It-All-Began/12585317/
Chapter 773: Merogass Has Spoiled the Great Demon Clan
Chapter 773: Merogass Has Spoiled the Great Demon Clan
The next day.
As the first rays of sunlight from Nicaris shone through the layers of clouds, illuminating the Regent's Hall to the east of the Demon King's Palace, Merogass was already hard at work, poring over the mountains of paperwork that lay before her.
Seated upon a throne adorned with obsidian and crimson rubies, her slender fingers clasped a sleek, jet-black quill crafted from the feathers of a demonic eagle. With swift, precise strokes, she signed and approved each document.
Her countenance was icy and stern, her brows furrowed in a regal manner, as if she were a queen scrutinizing her domain.
Just then, a mysterious figure clad in a black cloak, their face hidden in the shadows of the hood, silently appeared at the far end of the grand hall.
"Your Excellency, Blasphemy."
The spy's slender figure moved with the agility of a prowling panther, their footsteps as light as a shadow.
Yet, Merogass sensed their presence immediately.
She lifted her head, her gaze fixing upon the newcomer.
Recognizing her most trusted subordinate, her delicate eyebrows furrowed, and she slowly raised her hand, beckoning them forward with a subtle gesture.
The spy took two steps forward, kneeling on one knee and bowing their head in respect.
"Your Excellency, I bring news."
The spy spoke in a hushed tone, meant for Merogass's ears alone.
"Speak."
Merogass tapped her finger lightly on the table, her expression unreadable.
"The princess has escaped, and by morning, she had vanished without a trace."
The spy lowered their head further, their voice filled with urgency and tension.
"What?"
The usually composed Merogass fixed the spy with an intense stare, taken aback by the news.
"While disguised as a maid and inspecting the princess's bedroom, I discovered that she had left behind an illusion. The real princess has disappeared without a trace."
Beads of cold sweat formed on the spy's forehead, and they continued their report, striving to maintain their composure.
"I immediately led a search of every corner of the bedroom, but even the little gray cat is nowhere to be found. The princess must have fled..."
Hearing this, Merogass's pale hand tightened around the quill, her knuckles turning white from the force.
"Princess, it seems your wings have grown stronger. Have I been too lenient with you, or do you not hold your aunt in any regard at all?"
A dark expression clouded her face, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
In the past, the princess had attempted to escape several times under the watch of a Ninth-Ranked Kaliyla, and now, with her improved strength, it would take a Ninth-Ranked Demon to capture her.
The spy dared not lift their head, feeling the cold sweat trickle down their back, soaking through their clothes.
Merogass was unpredictable and merciless, and they could not guess her mood at this moment.
"Did any of the Great Demons of Nicaris leave with the princess?"
Merogass, the Blasphemy, inquired further.
"No."
The spy replied succinctly and confidently.
After the princess's disappearance, they had immediately investigated for any accomplices, but their findings indicated that the Great Demons of the Demon King's City were all oblivious to the situation, showing no signs of involvement. Some even seemed unusually calm, as if they didn't care about the princess at all.
"Oh?"
Merogass's eyebrows arched in mild surprise.
She had assumed that the princess's bold escape attempt was aided by one of the Great Demons.
Little did she expect that the princess would choose to flee alone, unaided by any of them.
"Very well, Your Highness."
Merogass let out a cold laugh, her long fingers tapping restlessly on the table, the sound echoing ominously.
"I shall deal with your negligence at a later time, but for now, your priority is to find the princess and bring her back safely before any of the other Great Demons discover her absence."
She narrowed her eyes, her tone ominous, "Also, seal off the entrance to the ancestral land of the Inferno City and intensify the search in Pascual."
Merogass's gaze seemed to see right through to the most likely hiding place of Shubelian.
"As you command, Your Excellency, Merogass!"
The spy replied, feeling a sense of relief wash over them.
They knew full well that if the news of the princess's escape spread to the other Great Demons, it would spark a scandal that could shake the very foundation of the royal power, undermining Merogass's authority and influence among the demon clan.
Should the princess fail to return, it might even fall upon Merogass herself to pursue and capture her.
"Oh, and one more thing, Your Excellency," the spy added hastily. "Our intelligence agent in the Holy Spirit Land of Saint Pasrant has sent a report. The Pope has agreed to attend the fourth anniversary of the revival of the Seville mainland peace at the Oberron headquarters of the Iron Fort in a month's time."
This development suggested a potential thawing of relations between the Holy Spirit Land of Saint Pasrant and the Honing Empire.
And that would not bode well for the Demon Realm.
If the multi-racial, coexisting Holy Spirit Land of Saint Pasrant were to establish ties with the human-dominated Honing Empire, it would undoubtedly hinder the development of the northern Demon Realm.
In Merogass's strategy, the most favorable situation for the development of the Demon Realm was for the Holy Spirit Land of Saint Pasrant and the Honing Empire to be mutually hostile.
"It would be great if I could meet with the Pope..."
Merogass, the Blasphemy, muttered to herself.
Damn that Kaliera, after the war, she had the nerve to cut ties with the Holy Spirit Land, causing the Demon Realm to lose all connection with them. Now, it was difficult for the demons to curry favor or incite the Holy Spirit Land, and the Pope had also avoided any contact with demon messengers to avoid suspicion.
If only she could have an audience with the Pope and remind him of the old ties between the Demon Realm and the Holy Spirit Land during the war, perhaps she could stir up his hatred and make him recall the grudges of the past. Under the influence of her demonic voice, there was a chance the Pope might change his stance.
While she didn't expect the Pope of the Holy Spirit Land to go insane in his old age and restart a war against the Honing Empire, at the very least, she couldn't let the enmity between Saint Pasrant and Honing ease any further.
"Should we have our spy in the Holy Spirit Land of Saint Pasrant try to extend an invitation to the Pope?"
The spy asked Merogass, the Blasphemy.
Even though the Pope had become cold and distant after the war, he would still value their old ties, and it was unlikely that he would personally harm a messenger from the Demon Realm.
"We can give it a try. The worst that can happen is that we lose a line of communication."
Merogass replied nonchalantly.
The Pope had become emotionless after the war, treating everything with indifference and approaching issues with the absolute calm of a god, rather than a human.
Even with the princess in the Demon Realm, the Pope had never considered reaching out, let alone meeting with the demons during this sensitive time.
The Pope had given up on the princess.
Merogass was just waiting for the Pope to pass away so that she could fully possess the princess without any worries.
"Understood, Your Excellency."
The spy responded respectfully.
Merogass waved her hand dismissively, as if shooing away a fly.
The spy quickly retreated like a wisp of smoke, disappearing into the darkness at the far end of the grand hall.
Once again, the vast hall returned to its lonely silence.
Only the scratching of the pen on paper echoed through the chamber.
Merogass expressionlessly reviewed the documents, treating the previous interruption as a minor blip.
However, the force with which she held her pen and the tension in her jawline betrayed the turmoil within.
The princess's reckless escape was a blatant challenge to her authority and capabilities.
"Princess..."
She whispered the name with her enchanting demonic voice, like a lover's murmur, yet filled with endless danger and malice.
Merogass paused, a cruel smile tugging at her lavender lips, distorting into a twisted arc over time.
"While it's fine to let you out for some fresh air occasionally, you are still Her Highness, and you can't always act on your whims like this. When I bring you back, I'll have to teach you a good lesson..."
Merogass, the Blasphemy, caressed her flushed cheeks with both hands, her eyes gazing out the window, filled with amorous intent.
Just imagining the look of fear and despair on the princess's face when she was captured was enough to stir something deep within Merogass.
...
In another part of the Demon King's City, Nicaris.
A magnificent mansion stood quietly amidst a courtyard filled with blooming wisteria vines.
This was the residence of one of the prestigious noble families in the Demon Realm.
In the parlor of the mansion, elegant wooden furniture complemented the hand-woven woolen carpet laid upon the floor, crafted from the magical fur of the Tenebris Wolf.
"There's no need to worry, Almis. Shubelian has the scroll you gave her, and with the information and route planning we provided, she'll be safe on her journey."
Prahnai sat upright on the sofa, dressed in a tailored black vest over a pristine white shirt, with a silver-gray bow tie that shimmered softly.
His hands were clasped, and his demeanor was calm and collected, resembling a classical gentleman.
In fact, according to reason, the scroll that Almis had hastily made overnight wasn't even necessary, as Shubelian's innate stealth magic had already reached a moderate level of proficiency. Even an eighth-rank demon would struggle to detect her presence.
"Indeed, every time we played hide-and-seek in the underground chambers of the Duke's mansion, I could never catch her."
Sinlora, dressed in a deep purple dress, sat gracefully on the long sofa to Prahnai's right, her elegant figure and beautiful features exuding an air of dignity as she closed her eyes and sipped her tea.
Originally, they were all supposed to accompany Shubelian on her journey.
But then Prahnai had proposed a plan to stay behind.
And so, the four of them remained.
"Actually, it's fine. If any of us Great Demons chose to help the princess, Merogass would view the princess as a high-level fugitive or a dangerous rebel force. Even if Merogass didn't want to make a big deal out of it, she would have no choice but to take drastic action.
Antanas remained seated next to Sinlora, her lively and tidy hair dyed a striking wine red, wearing a tight leather hunting outfit paired with knee-high boots.
Whether or not the Blasphemy eradicated the princess was one thing, but when it came to aiding the princess, the Blasphemy would spare no effort in wiping them out.
Antanas was certain of this.
But for now, the princess was merely a fugitive sixth-rank demon.
The Blasphemy only needed to see that all the officials were willing to support her, and the princess would pose no threat.
Since the princess could still open the ancestral land, the search warrant had become one to "find and protect" her, rather than "kill on sight."
"The more comfortable we are, the more at ease the Blasphemy will be," Antanas said lazily, lounging on the sofa and swirling the amber liquid in her glass, which refracted the light in a dazzling display.
"I'm still worried about Shubelian..." The Ice Snow Witch sat on the right-hand sofa, her skin as lustrous as jade and her silver hair shimmering in the sunlight.
Her eyes were a pale ice blue, exuding an ethereal and pure aura, as if she were an ice snow sprite descended from above.
At that moment, she watched as the few Great Demons chatted and laughed, sipping their tea.
This tea party-like relaxation made her unsure of what to say.
Were they really here to challenge the eighth-rank Shadow World? The Ice Snow Witch never expected that Prahnai would suddenly ask them to go against common sense and adopt this "hedonistic" strategy.
"Being in the enemy's camp allows us to better observe their movements. By staying here and restraining the other Great Demons, we ensure a more stable situation," Prahnai explained to the Ice Snow Witch.
The Blasphemy also had her doubts—which demons truly believed in her, and which were insincere?
As the newly appointed Regent King, the Blasphemy must now discern the loyalties of the demons in the Demon King's City, witnessing the devotion of the other Great Demons.
"Prahnai, you truly are an external brain," Antanas praised.
A major battle that could not be avoided had, through Prahnai's command, turned into a vacation.
These few, who were supposed to be the most loyal to the princess, had now sided with the Blasphemy.
The indecisive demons saw that everyone supported the Blasphemy and had no choice but to follow suit.
Seeing this unanimous support, the Blasphemy concluded that the Demon Realm was now hers for the taking.
"Leave the matter of pleasing the Blasphemy to me. I can tell when she's in a good mood, what to say to make her happy, the current distribution of power in the Demon King's City, and provide her with sincere advisory services," Prahnai said. Though he was not omnipotent, within certain limitations, his clairvoyance was akin to an all-seeing eye.
"Are you serious, brother?" Sinlora asked.
They felt that Prahnai was going crazy.
This guy's self-preservation and eagerness seemed genuine, not an act.
Sinlora knew Prahnai's attitude of following the trend too well. The Blasphemy would surely value such a wise Great Demon and put him to use. After all, most demons couldn't act as sincerely surrendered as Prahnai.
"Initially, it was Rocky McKasy who did this," Prahnai said matter-of-factly.
"..."
Sinlora, Antanas, and the Ice Snow Witch fell silent.
Even though they had belonged to the Protoss Empire and the Aisetelan Kingdom respectively, they were well aware of what had transpired in the Congressional House.
Back then, Bishop Askelsen had overly relied on polls, leading to a severe misjudgment of the situation in the end.
In Askelsen's view, it had seemed like a sure victory with overwhelming odds.
Rocky McKasy had also fervently supported Askelsen in the Protoss Empire, expressing his support both publicly and privately. His words reached Askelsen, who thought McKasy was his die-hard fan.
However, at the most critical moment, McKasy had given Askelsen a huge surprise, leaving him completely bewildered.
"You guys..."
The Ice Snow Witch was the most affected by this, feeling that the three Great Demons had completely changed in their attitude and behavior after that incident.
Prahnai had learned to play a role, Antanas had learned to muddle through, and Sinlora had become a playful young girl.
The Ice Snow Witch wondered what Talia would think if she saw their transformation.
(End of Chapter)
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