Salavira had no idea how Charles managed to survive the church’s judgment, nor did he understand why someone with such a background could still be trusted by the church, becoming their lackey in the shadows.
And from Karl’s mouth, Salavira learned an even more surprising secret—
The actual lord of Solent now is this Viscount Charles.
“Your Highness, that’s all I know…” Karl trembled as he tried to absolve himself of any blame, “What happened two years ago really has nothing to do with me, go find Charles! That guy knows everything!”
But Salavira’s gaze remained cold, even filled with murderous intent: “Nothing to do with you?”
He repeated the words slowly, then laughed mockingly, before suddenly pressing his foot down on the back of Karl’s neck, stomping hard once more!
“Wasn’t it you who killed my mentor back then? Karl, did you naively think that being locked up in the temple made me forget who my enemies are?!”
“I… Ah!!”
Just as Karl was about to speak, the force on the back of his neck increased sharply, the sound of bones breaking clearly reaching his ears, immediately causing him to panic and struggle desperately.
But his pathetic struggle was useless, the pressure from Salavira’s foot grew heavier, soon making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
“How does it feel to struggle for breath?”
“Your Highness… please, spare me…”
“When my mentor was strangled by you back then, it felt the same.”
As he said this, Salavira’s face showed no anger, returning to his usual indifferent expression.
Yet his deep blue eyes looked out the window at the sky, the night was a dark blue, countless stars forming a galaxy across it, at the end, a bright moon.
In Vancia, there’s a legend that the wide galaxy in the sky is the embodiment of the River Styx, each star representing a kind soul, who will flow with the river into the moon, which is heaven.
Salavira stared out the window, thinking that tonight’s moon seemed particularly bright.
The unyielding force on his leg lasted for an unknown amount of time, and when Salavira finally lifted his leg, the Karl Count beneath him had become a corpse with bulging eyes and a protruding tongue, looking like he died in great pain.
He disdainfully kicked the corpse aside, starting to plan his next move.
Charles…
The little information Karl Count revealed was at least somewhat useful.
As for how to find Charles, Salavira didn’t need to think too hard, ever since he arrived in this city, he kept hearing one keyword—
Auction Ball.
Three days later, in the central castle of Solent City, the reclusive lord of Solent would host a grand auction ball, and at the end of the ball, a special item would be auctioned—
The Holy Relic of an Angel.
Some say this relic can grant immortality, others believe it can bestow endless wealth, some think it’s a divine blessing, a ticket to heaven, and some even say the one who obtains it can be elevated to a new angel.
Despite the varied opinions and no definitive conclusion, this relic still attracted a multitude of people, making the already filthy Solent City even more chaotic.
Among them were the very people Salavira had just been thinking about—
Followers of demons.
While Salavira was interrogating Karl Count, in the room next door, a summoning ritual was quietly taking place.
“O God of Darkness and Curses, Lord of Hell and Desire…”
“We are your faithful followers.”
“Here, we offer the death of a follower of light as a sacrifice—”
“Awaiting your arrival!!”
The dim room was suddenly illuminated by complex and eerie runes of a magic circle, along with the pentagram tattoos on the black-robed people, all glowing with a ghostly blue light. The slave’s corpse placed in the center of the circle was being devoured bit by bit by an unseen presence, soon filling the room with a thick, sweet, and bloody mist.
These people were not performing a summoning ritual for the first time, but in the past, demons were tightly sealed by the Holy Son, and such a summoning circle couldn’t awaken a demon in the slightest.
But now, they thought, since the demon had already awakened, the success of the summoning depended on only one factor—
The mood of the Lord of Hell.
The black-robed followers all bowed their heads, praying in their hearts that their master was in a good mood today and would grace them with his presence, even if just for a moment.
But the dim light of the magic circle flickered a few times and gradually dimmed. The followers’ hopes and luck were instantly dashed.
“Indeed, our Lord…” A black-robed follower shook his head.
But just as he was halfway through his dejected words, the magic circle seemed to sense something, suddenly bursting with light, instantly shattering everything around it!
Immediately after, deep darkness spread throughout the room, accompanied by the sound of footsteps, Asmodeus slowly emerged from hell, stepping onto this unfamiliar land.
He seemed a bit confused, but upon seeing the black-robed people kneeling around him, his confusion turned into extreme displeasure.
Of course, he was displeased because in hell, he had clearly sensed Salavira’s presence, desperately resisting the power of the seal to forcefully awaken a wisp of consciousness, using all his strength to escape through the last unhealed crack in the seal with this avatar.
But now, the first thing he saw wasn’t Salavira, but these lowly and disgusting humans!
The black-robed followers were still immersed in the joy of the demon responding to their summoning, thinking that with such assistance, the relic at the auction three days later would surely be theirs, completely unaware of the anger building in Asmodeus’s eyes.
“Lord! You finally responded to us! We…” A follower excitedly said, but upon looking up, saw the fierce look in Asmodeus’s eyes, and immediately swallowed the rest of his words.
A bad premonition suddenly rose in his heart.
“Where is he?”
Asmodeus coldly dropped this question, leaving everyone dumbfounded.
He? Who is he?
The black-robed followers looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion and growing fear.
“Ha.” In the room so quiet you could hear a pin drop, Asmodeus suddenly let out a cold laugh, devoid of any warmth.
Then, in the blink of an eye—
The clawing darkness surged towards the black-robed followers, instantly tearing them to pieces! Flesh and bones were swallowed bit by bit into the deep shadows…
The room fell silent into darkness once more.
Perhaps it was the absence of the human scent, or maybe it was the aftermath of the slaughter, but Asmodeus’s mood improved slightly, and in a moment, he once again caught Salavira’s presence.
Very close, extremely close, it seemed to be…
Asmodeus turned towards the presence, seeing a thick wall, but he suddenly smiled, a hint of amusement on his face.
He walked to the base of the wall, reaching out to touch the carved relief on it, then pressed his forehead against it. It seemed as if he was deeply cherishing something—
Unexpectedly, they met again so soon.
My dear Salavira.
………………
At this moment, in the room on the other side of the wall, Salavira had just dealt with Karl’s corpse, rummaging through the surrounding cabinets for paper and pen, writing something at the bedside.
Indeed, he had been imprisoned in the dark temple for two years, but that didn’t mean he had no contact with the outside world.
He actually had a “friend”—
That’s what the person called it, but in Salavira’s view, “ally” was a more accurate term to describe their relationship.
Although Salavira had never seen this person’s face, nor did he know where in the world this person was hiding now, he couldn’t have regained his freedom without this person’s secret help.
Humans value reciprocity, so ever since he successfully left hell, he had been pondering what kind of grand gift to prepare for this ally.
Until now, he finally discovered a perfect gift.
After writing the letter, Salavira held it between two fingers, a blue flame suddenly igniting out of thin air, following the trace of their token, delivering the letter to the other party.
Having completed all this, Salavira exhaled a breath of relief, but just as he relaxed halfway, he suddenly sensed a familiar presence, tensing up!
…Was it Asmodeus?!
Why, in Solent City so far from hell, would he sense that person’s presence? Salavira couldn’t believe it, closing his eyes to carefully perceive his surroundings, but the presence he felt just now seemed like an illusion, existing only for a moment before completely disappearing.
An illusion… perhaps?
Salavira withdrew his perception with lingering fear, cautiously surveying his surroundings for a long time, ultimately attributing that fleeting presence to the demonic power within him.
But if he knew what price he would pay for this hasty judgment in the future, he would surely regret it.