Lucifer took a deep breath.
He was angry.
Since his resurrection, he had never been this furious.
Previously, the one who had enraged him was the Demon King, Lucart. But now, it was the Demon King’s daughter, Shekina. Was this the difference, or perhaps the similarity?
Lucifer exhaled and opened his eyes wide.
“What do you think you know?”
He asked, directing his gaze at Shekina.
“Speak. Only then can I decide what to do with you.”
It was a reasonable question.
Asking for his mercy without any conditions gave him no reason to comply.
However,
“What, are you an idiot?”
Shekina frowned and glared at Lucifer.
“Are you telling me to reveal all my cards just because you said so? What’s wrong with your head? You fool!”
“………”
Lucifer clenched his fists, looking as if he was about to grab Shekina by the collar at any moment.
Between them stood Dehan, who seriously contemplated whether he should just run away.
Watching this nerve-wracking exchange was too much for his heart to handle. Dehan looked up at the distant mountains.
But Shekina remained calm, even confident. She had a reason for her confidence.
Was it because Sera was searching the underground and might find something?
No, that wasn’t it.
[SYSTEM]
Damn it, you XX piece of XXX! I’m going to XXX and XXX you!
It was because the system was continuously blaring in her ears.
[SYSTEM]
Oh, really? Are you daring to try to suppress me right now? That one’s really asking to die! Let me go! Don’t stop me! I’ll kill that bastard and then die myself! Aaaagh!
Hmmm.
The system is not in it’s right mind. Seriously.
If Sekina ever met the system in person, she genuinely wanted to observe it. How crazy must it be to react like this?
But because of this chaotic system, Shekina could remain reassured.
She managed to disperse the subtle pressure Lucifer was emitting, and
[SYSTEM]
Do you know how much effort I put into raising her! She won’t be defeated by someone like you! She won’t die! Absolutely not!
Because the system itself was personally stepping in to protect her.
She thought, ‘What effort did you mean?’ but since it said they’d keep her alive, she might as well behave.
Shekina grinned and looked around. The temple was so bright it almost hurt her eyes, and she could sense a strange aura nearby. It was likely Lucifer’s subordinates.
“Is this your base?”
Shekina tilted her head slightly.
“Then let me tell you something.”
She then smiled brightly.
“This place will no longer exist.”
“What…?”
As surprise flashed across Lucifer’s face, Shekina snapped her fingers lightly.
Boom!
The summoning circle she had laid down since entering the temple activated. It was a mid-level monster summoning circle. With five of them in place, chaos would surely ensue.
Shekina, who hadn’t used a summoning circle in a long time, laughed heartily and spread her arms wide.
“A temple overrun by monsters! This is awesome!”
“You… you…!”
Lucifer, sensing the presence of monsters, quickly stood up and lunged at Shekina.
But,
“Goodbye! I’m leaving!”
Shekina grabbed Dehan by the collar and teleported to Sera’s side.
Lucifer could only stare blankly at the empty space where Shekina had been.
Was this her plan all along? Did she trap him from the beginning with this in mind?
This… this damn brat!
“Virtus! Where are you! Get rid of those monsters immediately!”
He was going to kill her. No matter what, he was going to kill her.
“Argh!”
Lucifer screamed in rage as he watched the temple collapse around him.
***
“Ah, I feel so refreshed. It’s like I’ve just gotten rid of ninety years’ worth of indigestion.”
Burp.
Shekina muttered to herself as she stroked her chest. For someone who had just destroyed a temple by summoning monsters, she was surprisingly nonchalant.
Dehan stared blankly at Shekina.
He knew she was a demon.
He also knew that she was impulsive, often acting without thinking.
But…
‘I didn’t expect this.’
To think she would recklessly destroy the temple like that.
How does she plan to deal with the aftermath? Dehan’s eyes wavered with uncertainty.
“Uh, lady Shekina?”
He cautiously spoke up.
“What are you planning to do now?”
“What?”
Shekina, who had been laughing heartily, tilted her head and looked at Dehan. Then she noticed the worry etched on his face.
“Oh, you’re concerned.”
“…Yes. The Central Temple won’t just stand by once the commotion settles down.”
“Yeah, probably.”
But Shekina remained unfazed. She crossed her arms and frowned slightly.
“But what are they going to do about it?”
“Pardon?”
“A gigantic monster appeared in the very center of the Central Temple, in the heart of the Vatican. The temple was damaged, and some priests were even killed. If they couldn’t properly prevent it, the damage could have extended to ordinary humans as well.”
“……….”
“So, what do you think people will say?”
“Well, um…”
“What will people say about a monster suddenly appearing in the heart of the Vatican?”
“Oh…!”
It was as if a realization had struck Dehan.
The Vatican, which was supposed to be pure and untainted.
And yet, a monster, the very thing they should have been rejecting, had appeared right in its center.
This was unprecedented.
“People will start to doubt the Vatican.”
They would surely cast suspicion and point fingers at the Vatican, questioning why a monster suddenly appeared, whether the Vatican was hiding its existence, or what else they might be concealing.
“Exactly. And…”
However, Shekina’s thoughts didn’t stop there. She was thinking even further ahead.
“If we’re lucky, they might even start suspecting the Pope. It’s clear that the priests aren’t in their right minds. Don’t you think?”
Dehan nodded slowly, as if in agreement.
The Pope… was completely different from what he had expected. The same went for the priests.
Maybe people had already been harboring suspicions about the Pope.
This thought eased Dehan’s mind a little. He exhaled a sigh of relief.
“Of course, that doesn’t mean they’ll just let us go.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve thought of that too.”
Shekina chuckled, her eyes gleaming. What exactly had she planned? Just as Dehan was tilting his head in curiosity,
“Meow.”
A cat’s cry was heard.
It was Sera, the cat Shekina always carried around.
“Why is a cat here…?”
Before Dehan could even satisfy his curiosity, Shekina sprang forward. She grabbed the bundle that Sera had dragged in.
‘Is everything in here?’
– Yes. Everything from weapons to dark magic.
‘Wow, Sera, you’ve earned your keep.’
– Shut up, annoying master.
Sera grumbled and cursed, but Shekina didn’t care at all. Why? Because she had not only managed to humiliate Lucifer but had also gained the weapons and dark magic within the dungeon!
“He won’t dare to mess with us now.”
With this, the scales of victory were balanced.
“Muahahaha! Hahaha! I can’t believe we managed to pull this off! Mwahahaha!”
Though it wasn’t enough to repay all the grievances of the past 90 years, Shekina still couldn’t help but laugh in joy.
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
I didn’t expect you to use such a brute-force method!
The system, too, was caught off guard.
[SYSTEM]
But I’m feeling great too! Hahaha! This is exciting!
Shekina and the system both laughed gleefully, reveling in the moment.
But Dehan did not.
He glanced around, somewhat worried, before slowly opening his mouth.
“Um… Lady Shekina.”
“Yes?”
Dehan approached Shekina and slightly squinted one eye.
“Aren’t we underground?”
“Yes. So?”
“There’s a bunch of monsters causing havoc up there, right?”
“Right?”
“Then…”
He swallowed nervously before asking,
“Isn’t it dangerous here too?”
Oh.
Right.
I hadn’t thought of that.
“I forgot.”
Rumble!
The underground ceiling began to shake.
