Chapter 572

"Luce," Erice stared into Luce's eyes, "How did you know about Lilith? Lilith only arrived yesterday... You couldn't have come last night, could you? You must have come this afternoon when I wasn't here, right?"

"Hehehe."

Faced with Erice's questioning, Luce simply stuck out her pink little tongue and playfully licked her lips, her adorable appearance making it impossible to be angry with her.

She didn't answer directly, but simply handed a freshly made ice cream to another customer.

After all, I am my father's left hand, Erice, you are the soul, so you're like my older sister.

Luce thought to herself silently, but her face still held that innocent smile.

Erice sighed helplessly as she looked at Luce's feigned nonchalance.

This topic is probably going nowhere.

However, Erice isn't the type of person who likes to pry into things.

If you don't want to talk about it, then forget it.

"Okay." Erice picked up the ice cream bucket next to her and said to Luce, "I'm just killing time anyway, I'll help you sell them."

"Huh? Really? That's great! Thank you, Erice!"

Under the scorching midday sun in Akihabara, Luce and Erice began selling their uniquely shaped Cross ice cream together.

While attending to customers, Erice couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering her all night, albeit in a different way.

"Um, Luce, I have a question for you. If, and I mean if, an elder in your family suddenly tells you, 'Actually, I'm like you,' instead of you being like her, how should you interpret that?"

Erice had initially thought that Luce would be just as confused as she was, but to her surprise, Luce had the Answer almost immediately.

"Um..."

Luce thought about it seriously for a moment, his blue eyes sparkling with Wisdom, as if he had remembered something.

Right, that should be it, right? Ilya and Kuro, Miyu and Dragon Flower, they seem to fit Erice's description quite well.

"If that's the question, I think Luce is implying that the two of them share the same thought, right?"

"The same idea?"

Erice frowned.

The same thought? Chitose and myself? What could that be?

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant. She thought of Chitose's unwavering face, his solitary yet authoritative teachings, and standing shoulder to shoulder with Lucius...

Ultimately, all thoughts converged on Novia, the object of his Twilight romance.

Chitose likes Novia.

But what I like is that Demon King who always makes me angry, yet is incredibly reliable in crucial moments.

Novia... the Demon King...

Erice's heart skipped a beat.

Could it be...? No, impossible. How could those two guys be the same person? One is a womanizer and frivolous, the other, though despicable, is...

Erice's thoughts were in complete disarray.

I cannot understand it, nor can I accept it.

I even think that Luce's words were just casual remarks.

Erice told herself this, forcibly suppressing this terrifying thought.

Although it was frustrating, the ice cream on the stall was quickly sold out.

"That's fantastic!" Luce exclaimed excitedly, holding up the empty ice cream bucket with a satisfied smile. "It's all sold out!"

"... Hmm." Seeing Luce's happy expression, Eri felt a little better, and the corners Erice her mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.

As the sun sets, its golden rays bathe the entire Akihabara.

The sea breeze has become much gentler.

"It's getting late," Erice glanced at the sky, "I should head back."

"Okay, sure." Luce waved, a bright smile on her face. "Thank you so much for today, Erice."

"Fine."

After saying that, Erice turned and left.

After walking more than ten steps, Luce called out from behind again.

"Erice!"

Erice turned around and looked at Luce with some confusion.

Amidst the magnificent sunset, the blue-haired girl, having removed her rain hat, stood still, waving vigorously at Erice in the afterglow of the setting sun. A radiant smile graced her face, and her clear, energetic voice seemed to drift on the sea breeze.

"Goodbye, sister!"

Elder sister?

Erice was slightly taken aback.

Why was Luce suddenly calling her that? Erice didn't quite understand, but she didn't think too much about it, just assuming it was Luce's way of addressing people.

Therefore, Erice nodded to Luce, waved, and then turned and left again.

The setting sun cast her shadow very, very long.

As she walked back to the Kuonji residence, Erice's emotions remained unsettled for a long time.

For some reason, Erice suddenly became concerned about Luce calling her "older sister." It was like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples that stirred up a strong, unprecedented sense of responsibility within her.

She wants to protect Luce.

Protect that girl who is as pure and beautiful as sunshine.

We absolutely cannot let her suffer at the hands of that scumbag!

This thought grew stronger and stronger in Erice's mind.

576: 'Queen of Heaven' Draco (6k)

Satan, the Paradise Lost, returned to the Pandemonium with a cold expression.

Outside the temple gates, on that scorched earth baked by the Eternal Hellfire, countless "Satan" wriggled like maggots, emitting incomprehensible roars and howls. The air was filled with sulfur, despair, and solidified malice.

"Oh dear, isn't this our Speaker, the one most skilled at grand pronouncements?" A Satan dressed in a black Suit, with silver hair and red eyes, leaned against the Main Hall Brass door, teasingly remarking, "What's wrong? What kind of filthy air has made you like this? Want to tell me?"

Paradise Lost: Satan's footsteps never falter.

They didn't even glance at that arrogant Satan.

This is not typical of Paradise Lost, Satan's style.

Normally, he might stop, put on his signature smile, and chat with the other person for a few words, subtly responding to their teasing with a few harmless remarks, demonstrating composure and poise.

But not now.

Satan of Paradise Lost is in a terrible mood right now.

It's absolutely terrible.

Therefore, he simply walked forward in silence, in that instant when Satan brushed past him—

An invisible yet tangible, terrifying pressure descended like a collapsing mountain.

The frivolous smile on the silver-haired Satan's face froze instantly. He was struck as if by an invisible hammer, flying backward and tracing a pathetic arc in the air.

In an instant, cries of agony filled the air. The already chaotic Satan horde was thrown into even greater turmoil by the sudden impact.

"Enough with the nonsense." The voice of Satan from Paradise Lost was icy. "Mind your own Hell."

Without pausing for a moment, Satan of Paradise Lost disappeared into the unfathomable, magnificent Door of the Pandemonium.

The interior of the Pandemonium was deathly silent, a stark contrast to its exterior. Towering, dazzling pillars seemed to pierce the sky, supporting the endless, shadow-shrouded dome.

In the end, Paradise Lost, Satan, returned to his own space.

It was a room so empty it was almost devoid of life.

There were no luxurious decorations, no pleasing embellishments, not even a single superfluous piece of furniture, only a simple yet imposing Throne made of Obsidian, standing alone in the center.

As soon as Satan of Paradise Lost sat down on his Throne, before he could fully calm his emotions of frustration and Wrath, a figure silently emerged from the shadows in the corner of the room.

"Azazel?"

In the voice of Paradise Lost Satan, a crack appeared in the deliberately maintained coldness, and an extremely slight relaxation occurred, which even he himself did not notice.

"It's me."

Wearing the goat's helmet, a symbol of atonement and exile, and clad in heavy silver armor that gleamed with a cold, hard luster in the dim light of the hall, Azazel emerged from the shadows.

What are you doing here?

"Lucifero kept staring at you during the meeting," Azazel said calmly, as always.

"Him?" Paradise Lost Satan frowned slightly, then chuckled, his tone filled with undisguised contempt. "What else could his frozen mind hold besides Judas, Brutus, and Cassius?"

"I went to ask him after the meeting."

Azazel seemed unfazed by the sarcasm in his close friend's tone and continued speaking in his calm manner.

He paused, seemingly choosing his words carefully, or perhaps recalling the scene at the time.

He said,

"You have a 'delicious' scent about you that really interests him."

In an instant.

It only took a moment.

In Paradise Lost, Satan felt as if the air around him had frozen in that instant.

Tasty?

Gluttony!

The image of Erice and Novia, dressed as Erise, flashed through his mind in an instant.

Lucifero, the king of Hell in Dante's Divine Comedy, is located at the center of the Ninth Circle, imprisoned by eternal frost. His three enormous, ceaselessly chewing mouths are the eternal punishment for three of the greatest traitors in Western human history.

Judas, who betrayed Jesus, as well as Brutus and Cassius.

His appetite does not stem from physical hunger, but from a conceptual and eternal punishment and curse upon the sin of "betrayal".

In Thomas Aquinas' theological system, one of the Root of the sin of "Gluttony" is "turning away from the teachings of God."

This in itself is the most thorough betrayal of the Divinity covenant.

Therefore,

It's perfectly normal that Lucifero, who eternally punishes "betrayal," could smell the scent of "betrayal" emanating from himself, who had just come into contact with the concept of "Gluttony."

That's the logic.

But being targeted isn't a good thing either.

"Ha," Paradise Lost Satan forcibly suppressed the turmoil in his heart, forcing a smile full of contempt and self-mockery onto his face, "Perhaps those three pathetic souls, after eating for thousands of years, have long since lost their taste and want a change of pace."

"Perhaps."

Azazel nodded, his goat helmet concealing all his expression, and seemed to have fully accepted this seemingly reasonable explanation, without pressing further.

He took a few steps forward, came to the side of the Throne, and stood shoulder to shoulder with Satan of Paradise Lost, both looking at the huge floor-to-ceiling window that had no window frame and directly connected to the outside world.

Outside the window, the eternally burning Hell licks at the dark sky with its crimson flames.

In the dim light, one could almost see a silver-haired Satan struggling to rise from the horde of demons, gesturing Wrath towards the room while muttering curses.

"Speaking of which,"

Azazel's emotionless voice rang out again without warning.

It was as if he was just looking at the view outside the window and casually mentioned it.

Have you experienced 'Gluttony'?

Once again, Paradise Lost, Satan, was at a loss for words.