Chapter 173
Chapter 173
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: Greeting
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The reason Magan had separately sent invitations to the already deceased Deus Verdi and Northsweden was a form of warning and amusement.
It was a warning to return the left hand of his possession, the former Saintess Stella, while pretending not to know about Deus Verdi's death.
It was a grotesque joke that only demons would find amusing.
"Am I seeing this right?"
Leaning on the balcony, Magan took in the sight of Deus stepping down from the carriage.
The street was so far away that an ordinary person wouldn't be able to see, but Magan asked as if it were the most natural thing.
The secretary beside him, with her emerald hair, kept her lips tightly shut and said nothing.
She wasn't ordinary either, so she could see Deus's figure, but she couldn't explain why someone she thought was dead was alive.
Her role was to assist Magan to the best of her ability and provide the delicacies and answers he desired, but this time she had no choice but to stay silent.
"Hah, do Necromancers get two lives or something?"
"......"
"Huh? Say something. I don't know much since I'm not human. Do you all get an extra life after accumulating some karma? One coin?"
"No, sir."
"Right? It's not like that?"
Magan burst into a hearty laugh that made his double chin jiggle. The damage from Remegaton exploding in his stomach hadn't fully healed yet.
The moment he saw Deus, a pang in his abdomen reminded him that no amount of eating would naturally heal this pain.
"Yes, Deus Verdi."
Lick.
Magan's tongue slid over his thick lips. It had been since he first saw Saintess Stella that he felt this way.
Something he wanted to devour but couldn't.
A man standing on the Republic's soil—his own dinner table—yet beyond his reach.
He barely suppressed the impulse to leap over the balcony railing and charge at Deus.
"He will ultimately be served up as a meal before you, Lord Magan."
"Yes, indeed. We'll need to make some adjustments to the existing plan."
Calming himself with the secretary's words, Magan took deep breaths but didn't tear his gaze away from Deus.
"It still feels like that man's right hand is lingering in my gut."
He had no choice but to admit it had been a true delicacy. Sweet beyond measure, enough to delight his tongue—a human perfected through countless deeds, grudges, and trials.
"Ahh."
Magan's low voice carried genuine regret.
"Truly appetizing."
* * *
The moment Deus slammed the warp marker onto the ground, a massive pillar of light descended from the sky.
Pindenai and Aria, having seen it before, looked bored, but the Republic's soldiers and the rest of the group gaped upward.
The golden pillar soon took the form of people, with a golden-haired girl at the forefront.
Elenoa Luden Griffin.
A larger group than the one that had come to rescue Pindenai before. Magic Judge Tairn All Bellocus was there, along with not just judges but a large contingent of knights.
Even so, it would be too dangerous for King Orpheus to come personally, and a king marching lightly wouldn't look good to the kingdom's subjects.
A king must always appear solemn and weighty. He couldn't just dash off at the Republic's invitation amid their current war of nerves.
To show minimal respect, Princess Elenoa had come instead, and this was something she had actively desired.
"Princess."
Deus slowly knelt before her. He moved to kiss her hand, but Elenoa smiled graciously and said it was fine.
"I've heard everything."
Unlike Kim Shin-woo, she had no desire to receive such a gesture from the current Deus.
"You've worked hard. Please continue to do so."
"Yes, understood."
Just as Darius had previously put on an Oscar-worthy performance against the priests.
Deus seemed to have some talent as an actor, but to those who had been with Kim Shin-woo, it felt somehow lacking.
"May I see your hand for a moment?"
From the warped group emerged a woman in white priestly robes.
Saintess Lucia.
Having confirmed that an Archdemon named Magan ruled the Republic, she had come personally to check him.
Lucia's expression darkened as she examined Deus's now-empty right hand.
"Ah, Yustia."
Letting out a sigh toward the goddess she served, Lucia took a moment for prayer on Deus's behalf.
As she slowly opened her eyes after the prayer, Deus swallowed hard and expressed his gratitude.
"This way, please, noble blood of Griffin."
A man had come to greet Elenoa.
He was as deferential as possible, but his gestures and speech betrayed his high rank.
At Elenoa's subtle glance, Deus took his position to her left, as Deia had instructed.
Saintess Lucia stood to her right, with Magic Judge Tairn directly behind, exuding the might of Griffin.
"Straighten your shoulders."
Deia, who had fallen back, whispered a reminder, and Deus naturally squared his shoulders while surveying the surroundings.
The Republic soldiers' welcome was grander than anything Deus had witnessed in his life.
"Don't look around too much."
"......"
Was sightseeing off-limits too?
In any case, Deus ignored the blaring march, the erupting cheers from citizens, and the crisp salutes from the soldiers, fixing his gaze only on the hard tile path ahead.
At the end of the long procession.
Massive feet and thick thighs came into view. An overwhelming presence even from afar.
Perhaps because of the straight path, the pressure he emanated struck Deus's body without hindrance.
It was far from hostility.
Magic Judge Tairn All Bellocus, who had faced countless instances of battle intent and killing aura, best understood this.
He knew the emotion emanating from the distant Archdemon Magan was different from aggression.
But while Tairn could sense the difference, he couldn't identify it—Elenoa revealed its nature.
"Hunger."
A primal, universal desire. One of the three great appetites that everyone possessed naturally, which that man now felt toward Deus.
Realizing Deus had become mere prey, Elenoa grimaced and stepped forward to the left.
She naturally placed herself in front of Deus, intercepting the greedy gaze directed at him.
"Hoo, eep."
Deus, who had been unable to breathe under the Archdemon's pressure alone, finally caught his breath thanks to Elenoa.
He still had to maintain his expression, making it an exhausting ordeal.
"Well, well, for the princess to grace us personally—truly touching."
Magan extended his hand with a friendly smile. To some, it might seem warm and kindly.
He had transformed into the image of a plump, amiable neighbor.
Meeting his eyes, Elenoa responded with a smile.
"Thank you for arranging this meeting for the peace of our two nations."
"Haha, I'm simply overjoyed to take the lead for the greater good of the continent!"
Polite platitudes were exchanged before Magan greeted the saintess next.
"Sun of the continent, Saintess. Thanks to you, the land shines so brightly."
"......You flatter me."
Lucia had never imagined conversing with an Archdemon like this and couldn't hide her unease.
He concealed his aura so perfectly that he didn't seem demonic at all.
Had she not been warned beforehand, she wouldn't have suspected him.
Lucia already felt she fell short compared to the previous Saintess.
And next.
Magan approached Necromancer Deus.
Perhaps due to his massive bulk, Deus felt as if he might be crushed at any moment.
"It's been a while, Necromancer."
Magan subtly offered his right hand. Then he smacked his forehead and chuckled.
"Oh right! No hand!"
"......"
"My lack of consideration. Here, the left hand then."
Magan extended his left hand, his eyes gleaming coldly.
The Deus Verdi he had seen was dead. Are you truly the Deus I know, or a fake?
Magan was testing him now.
Deia, sensing this, broke into a cold sweat down her back as she tensely watched Deus's next move.
If he smiled and shook hands casually here, Magan would conclude Deus was an imposter.
In this brief but menacing psychological standoff, Deus's choice was.
Thud.
He slipped his hand into his pocket.
A clear declaration of refusal to shake. It might seem rude to onlookers.
But since Magan had first mocked him with the right hand, it wasn't an odd response.
"Hmm......"
Magan licked his lips, barely suppressing his hunger.
'Is it real? He came back alive in that state?'
Magan's ambiguous expression masked his inner turmoil as he turned away without a word. Deus slowly withdrew his hand from his pocket, barely breathing.
"Good job."
Deia whispered cautiously, and Deus turned his head slightly.
His face was a wreck, on the verge of tears.
"I-I just didn't want to shake hands because I was scared."
"Yeah, yeah. You backed away from the pig and caught it."
From Deus's perspective, he had simply fled the terror of being devoured the moment their hands touched.
His stiffened facial muscles from tension had maintained his expression perfectly, fooling the Archdemon.
Of course, the suspicion wasn't entirely gone yet.
"Sigh, we've got a long way to go."
Knowing the banquet had only just begun, Deia kept her guard up, glaring at Magan's back.
But conversely.
In that instant when all eyes were on Deus.
Deia didn't realize Magan's gaze had shifted past him to her.