Salavira summoned a dagger, hiding it in his sleeve, and moved through the bustling crowd with cat-like, almost silent steps, inching closer to the demon.
Asmodeus, knowing full well that the other was there to take his life, still sat comfortably on the sofa, as if offering himself up for slaughter—of course, if you ignored the glaringly hostile and aggressive look in his eyes.
But what he was thinking about wasn’t how to defend himself, nor how to escape. Instead, he was still pondering over the words of the human youth, and a thought inexplicably popped into his mind:
It seemed he hadn’t had the chance to dance with Salavira yet.
And now… it seemed he wanted more than just that dance.
Oh right, the suit he had specially changed into was also ruined by this guy.
Tsk.
Amidst his chaotic thoughts, Salavira had already reached him. With just a raise of his hand, ropes formed from shadows shot out from under the sofa, binding him tightly:
“Asmodeus, I thought you would have escaped by now, yet you dare to stay right under my nose…” His dagger pointed at the demon, lifting his chin, “Aren’t you afraid of death?”
“Afraid… of course, I’m afraid.”
Asmodeus stared unblinkingly at the person in front of him, then said something seemingly unrelated:
“But I’ve realized, what I need now is a strong enough whip.”
“What?”
Asmodeus chuckled, “Salavira, you want that holy relic that’s about to be auctioned, right? Coincidentally, I want it too.”
Salavira raised an eyebrow, almost instinctively understanding something: “Do you know what that relic is?”
“No.” Asmodeus shrugged, “I don’t know. But what I do know is that this thing is very unusual, and the current rumors about it are likely true.”
This wasn’t just a bluff. As a manifestation of the Lord of Hell, he could clearly sense that somewhere in this castle lay a powerful presence, and that presence was likely the rumored holy relic.
Initially, Asmodeus was merely curious about it, but now he had a reason to obtain it at all costs.
Salavira was taken aback: “Even so, it should belong to the God of Light, Iliga. What use does a demon from hell have for it?”
“Iliga?” Asmodeus sneered, “Whether that relic truly belongs to your God of Light is still uncertain.”
Before Salavira could ponder the hidden meaning in those words, a thunderous cheer erupted from the crowd—
The auction had reached its climax.
The legendary holy relic was finally about to be unveiled.
The previously rowdy nobles quieted down, some half-dressed, some barely clothed, surrounding the central stage, their faces filled with fervor for the relic.
Soon, under the eager anticipation of the crowd, the legendary holy relic finally appeared in their sight!
But to everyone’s surprise, the “Angel Relic” that was said to fulfill any wish was contained in a small, unremarkable box no bigger than a palm?
A gray-haired youth wearing a mask took the box from a servant and slowly opened it in front of the wide-eyed, breath-holding crowd—
A dull gray bead was presented before everyone’s eyes.
“Is this the legendary relic??” A voice full of doubt arose from the crowd, followed by a chorus of dissatisfaction, as almost everyone felt they had been tricked by the lord of Solent.
But the masked youth remained unflustered, calmly scraping a layer of powder from the bead, murmuring something under his breath, then pricking his finger to let a drop of blood fall onto it—
A miracle happened!!
That tiny, almost invisible speck of powder instantly transformed into a mountain of gold twice the height of the youth!!
The crowd erupted!
Even Salavira, who was quietly observing from the outskirts, couldn’t help but be astonished, for he could see that no illusion had been cast on the mountain of gold.
It was a genuine mountain of gold.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please remain calm. Since our lord has made a promise to everyone, he naturally wouldn’t deceive you.”
The youth held the relic high, the gray bead glinting with a strange, fragmented light under the lamps, looking extremely eerie.
“Our esteemed lord of Solent is willing to vouch with his honor that this is a genuine Angel Relic, and whatever wish you make upon it will come true!!”
The crowd was in an uproar, with almost no one doubting the authenticity of the relic anymore.
“Now, the auction begins. Starting bid—three billion gold coins!”
As soon as the masked youth finished speaking, the nobles went wild, bidding with a speed that was unimaginable—
“Five billion gold coins!”
“Ten billion gold coins!!”
“Twenty-three billion gold coins!!!”
“……”
It wasn’t until the price reached thirty billion gold coins that the bidding began to slow down.
Thirty billion… not copper coins, not silver coins…
But gold coins.
Salavira couldn’t help but click his tongue. This price was more than enough to buy ten city-states, and if converted to the current market price of bread, it could feed all the slum dwellers in Vancia.
Yet this money was being squandered so recklessly in this castle.
He suddenly understood even more why his mentor Margaret had been so determined to rebel against the church back then.
“Salavira?”
Lost in amazement at the madness of these nobles, Salavira suddenly felt his dagger being nudged. Turning back, he saw Asmodeus smiling teasingly at him:
“I know, even though you want that relic too, but…” The amusement in Asmodeus’s eyes deepened, “You don’t have the money, do you?”
“……!!” Salavira’s mouth twitched, having his sore spot hit, and he very much wanted to stab this guy’s throat with his dagger right now.
But Asmodeus seemed oblivious to the threat in his eyes: “No money, but you want it, what to do? Our noble and holy Holy Son… wouldn’t be thinking of stealing it, would he?”
“……None of your business!”
“Not related?” The demon raised an eyebrow with a smile, and a slender black tendril quickly extended from behind him, holding a silver number plate—
“No worries, it will be soon.”
With that, he turned to look at the masked youth on the stage in the distance, casually announcing a terrifying number that shocked everyone present—
“Three hundred billion gold coins.”
Like ice falling into boiling water, the previously noisy crowd fell deathly silent, with almost everyone turning back in disbelief to look at the two confronting figures, one sitting and one standing.
They had, of course, seen the gleaming dagger, but what was even more unbelievable was the number that came from the mouth of the black-haired man.
Three hundred billion gold coins…
This was an astronomical figure that even many of the nobles present couldn’t fathom, and even the wealthiest Count Karen of Vancia couldn’t easily produce such a vast fortune.
Yet this unfamiliar black-haired youth had so effortlessly spoken this number.
Countless envious, angry, or admiring gazes focused on Asmodeus, but he was completely unfazed, instead asking:
“Anyone else want to bid?”
The crowd remained silent.
Asmodeus smiled as expected: “If not, then this relic is mine. In that case, Lord of Solent, shouldn’t you provide me with some necessary security measures to prevent some ill-intentioned individuals from using force to compete with me?”
“For example—” he said, pointedly turning his gaze back to Salavira, his tone suddenly turning sinister, “this… slave who betrayed his master!”
The crowd was in an uproar.
The armored guards in the castle reacted immediately, holding long spears and surrounding Salavira.
However, the trapped Salavira remained unfazed, even amused by the old demon in front of him:
“Asmodeus, do you think these lackeys can stop me?”
Asmodeus was noncommittal: “What? Don’t you like humans? Why not play with them a bit?”
Suddenly, the black magic power on him surged, and the pitch-black mist quickly spread throughout the castle, breaking the ropes that bound him!!
The blood marks seeped out, but he didn’t care at all, disappearing from his original spot in a flash, and reappearing on the auction stage, snatching the gray bead from the masked youth’s hand!
The surrounding nobles had never seen such a scene. Even if they didn’t know who the man in the black suit on stage was, they knew he was not someone they could easily provoke, and they screamed, trying to flee the castle.
But beyond the chaotic crowd, Asmodeus’s gaze remained fixed on Salavira, waiting for a good show.
In his expectation, this holy Holy Son was almost indulgent towards humans, and no matter what, he wouldn’t easily harm the “innocent” guards around him.
But reality exceeded his expectations.
Salavira merely glanced contemptuously at the surrounding armored guards, saying to the leader:
“Step aside, or you’ll all die.”
But these guards clearly didn’t think the seemingly frail guy in front of them could defeat so many of them with just a dagger, so instead of retreating, they laughed dismissively, raising their spears to stab at Salavira!
The change happened in an instant—
“Ahhhhh!!!”
A scream suddenly erupted from the guard’s throat, followed by two halves of a body being sliced in half flying across the golden floor! Blood spurted out, staining the wall carvings a glaring red…
And no one present, except Asmodeus, could see Salavira’s movements clearly.
“Anyone else want to stop me?”
Salavira’s indifferent voice rang out, his eyes filled with chilling coldness, as if the guard’s tragic death was not enough to move him.
Seeing this, the others’ legs began to tremble, and naturally, no one else dared to stop him, all stepping aside to make way for this god of death.
Salavira walked slowly towards the stage.
He was covered in bright red blood, and compared to Asmodeus, he looked more like a demon crawling out of hell.
And the demon in the exquisite suit stood on the stage, looking at him in surprise, or rather, delight.
Yes, how could he forget, whether a thousand years ago or now, Salavira had always been a cold-hearted person.
He was like this to him, and to humans as well.
Otherwise, why would this person have recklessly released him, a demon, just to extract the magic power he needed?
Asmodeus thought calmly, perhaps to Salavira, everything was just a chip to be weighed on a scale.
At this moment, he watched as the blood-soaked, murderous man gradually approached him, murmuring in his heart:
So, Salavira, since your indifference is impartial, why did you abandon me a thousand years ago and choose those lowly humans…