Videl sat on top of a mountain on one of the islands away from the West Neva continent. His expression was cold and had a hint of annoyance in it when he realized that he had lost his power that had been deeply rooted into Rasmus’ body and Rullein’s core. He was so close to controlling two powerful beings, but now he had lost both of them before he could see the seed he had planted to bloom.
"You failed..." Belial’s voice was quiet.
"Failed you say?" Videl scoffed as he grabbed a piece of rock. "Failing one objective isn’t a problem. As long as they’re unaware of my intention, nothing will change," he smirked and coated the rock with hellfire before he threw it hard enough to reach the sea.
When the burning rock made contact with the water, it exploded and created a powerful and destructive explosion. The water reached the sky and created rain on the island, wetting the demons that crawled in the dark.
"I didn’t expect there was a power that could purify my power and the origin of evil. Did you?" Videl glanced over his shoulder at Belial, unaffected by the rain since his body was so corrupted that nothing pure could touch him.
"No. It’s not right..." Belial replied.
Videl knew that it was both a good thing and a bad thing when there was a power that could overpower his. The good thing was it had a chance to fight against Satan and even the angels. The bad thing was it had a possibility to overpower those beings and even himself.
"I miscalculated, I didn’t expect that Aris had those things on her that could help Rasmus. I didn’t just fail, but I made them stronger," Videl stood up and swirled his finger toward the sky, burning the clouds until they disappeared and evaporated the rain.
Videl turned around and realized that Belial had disappeared. He then noticed Yur’s presence from the distance and he knew that his ti of leisure was over.
"What brings you here? They need my help?" Videl asked with his arms crossed, watching Yur floating in front of him.
"Yes, they need your help..." Yur answered and looked down at the swarm of demons hiding in the darkness. "Can you go back now and help them?" Yur looked at Videl.
Videl smirked as he snapped his fingers, opening a portal in the sky. All the demons that were lurking in the darkness imdiately looked up at the portal. They all flew toward the portal and disappeared into the night. Once all of them entered the portal, Videl closed the portal and clapped his hands once, taking Yur’s attention to him.
"Well then, shall we go now?" Videl smiled.
Yur nodded and flew with Videl following Yur from behind.
At the sa ti, Erlina and the others had arrived at Ceras Kingdom. The capital city was dreadful and there were traces of blood everywhere. The people looked all gloomy and anxious, avoiding even a droplet of water when they saw it around them.
Before they entered the capital city, they saw piles of dead bodies being burned in the pit. Sorcerers were on the scenes, preventing the bodies from coming back to life. The whole continent was doing the sa thing after they found out what happened if soone made contact with water.
"This doesn’t look good..." Carrion muttered, looking out the window of the carriage he was in. "I wonder how many bodies they have burned and how many people that survived here," he added.
"I hope they’re still alive," Erlina said with a cold expression as she looked outside the window. "What about you, Serena? What are you going to do now that we have arrived?" She turned to look at Serena, who was sitting beside her.
"I will et the king, and I might need your help to introduce to the royal family. You want to spread your influence, I’ll also spread my influence here and help you to get your revenge," Serena answered, but her gaze was empty and distant.
Serena had been thinking about the sche that Videl had done behind everyone’s back. She was in a dilemma about which side she wanted to share that information with. Satan could be helpful and Satan would accept her since Satan didn’t care about her past. On the other hand, the cultists, the Zevrathi, and especially the angels, they wouldn’t want to have her around.
"(But to side with Satan would only give her the opportunity to grow stronger, giving her a chance to beco an unstoppable force)" Serena thought to herself, her eyes closed and arms folded.
"Well, your presence here will be crucial and Daryus can act like your trusted aid. A doctor and a Saint, I think it’s a good pair in this kind of situation," Erlina nodded as she looked at Daryus being squeezed in the middle by Aider and Carrion.
"Do you want to blend in with the crowd now, Aider?" Erlina raised her brows.
"Yes, that would be lovely," Aider smiled with his eyes closed, wearing the face of a young adult in simple attire, making him look like a re steward.
The carriage stopped and then Aider walked out of the carriage, looking at his surroundings before he blended in with the atmosphere. He listened to the carriage leaving and he began to gather information from the people about the family that Erlina planned to erase from history.
Because of the letter that Queen Anastasia wrote to King Sullivan the 3rd, Erlina and others arrived at the royal palace. They were welcod with warmth, especially knowing a Saint had co to cleanse the whole nation.
"His Majesty and Her Majesty are eager to welco you, please follow ," the palatine said with his head lowered in front of Erlina and the others.
"Please lead us the way," Serena smiled softly.
Erlina chose to let Serena handle the group since Carrion and her were going to expand their influence with the nobles first. Fortunately, nobody recognized Erlina’s face since she ran away when she was still young. She planned to buy the mines, the crops, and the lands since West Neva had just survived a dangerous situation, leaving a lot of lands to have no owners.
"Ah! Saint Serena, it’s an honor to have you here..." King Sullivan rose from his throne when he saw Serena enter the room. "We have been waiting," the king had a long beard and darkened eyes from the lack of sleep with the thinning hair under the crown.
Erlina looked at the king and the queen, both of them desperate to rebuild their nation. It was a good sign for her, and so she decided to play the quiet one, to offer none but at the sa ti give them the idea of an opportunity to use her wealth and power.
"I would love to have a conversation, but I believe the city needs right now," Serena said in a soft voice.
Sullivan’s eyes lit up when Serena hinted that she would cleanse the corruption. There was no other good news but that, and it was enough to tell how desperate he was when the West Neva never accepted religions, especially a Saint.
"Thank you, Saint Serena. We will be waiting here and we will prepare food for everyone," Sullivan replied as he nodded with understanding.
"Then, we will excuse ourselves..." Serena put her hand on Daryus’ shoulder. "You two should accompany his Majesty and her Majesty. I believe there are interesting things to talk about, right? Minister of South Neva Union?" She turned her head to look at Erlina.
Erlina was recruited by Thalior himself and given a position as a Minister that overseen three nations in South Neva. That offer was given to her before they left Centriva, and she didn’t think twice about accepting that offer. She wasn’t officially a minister yet since she hadn’t signed any docunts that prove her position as the Minister of South Neva Union.
Sullivan’s eyes brightened even more, realizing that he might have struck gold. West Neva and South Neva had ford an alliance since the demon invaded Neva. With that being said, he believed with Erlina on his side, he could not only rebuild the Ceras Kingdom but also make his nation stronger than others.
"Yes, I believe we could have a conversation while we wait for your return, Saint Serena," Sullivan nodded and then signaled to the knight to prepare the parlor room for the guests.
Serena and Daryus left the throne room, going to the city square so Serena could cleanse the whole city. On the other hand, Erlina and Carrion followed Sullivan and his wife to the parlor room.
It hadn’t been a second since Erlina and Carrion took a seat, and Sullivan had already made his move.
"If I had known that a Minister from South Neva Union would co here, I would have prepared sothing more appropriate," Sullivan said with a huge smile on his face.
Erlina didn’t react to the pleasantries, trying to act cold and dismissive. She knew her worth, and she would make the king dig his own grave until the whole nation would be under her rule.
"There’s no need for that, Your Majesty. We ca here because Queen Anastasia wished us to help your nation," Erlina gave a hint, luring Sullivan to take the bait.
"I see, we are very grateful. We are indeed in need of help, Minister. As you can see, my nation is on the brink of collapse. We might need funds and resources to rebuild the kingdom," Sullivan said and looked at the window at the gloomy sky.
"Funds?" Erlina raised her brows slowly. "Do you an loans?" She asked as she pulled her folding fan, moving it toward her lips before she unfolded it, covering the lower half of her face. "If it loans, I might be able to help," she pointed out, her eyes narrowing as if she was smiling with her eyes.
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