Three Pillars

This is a very open space.

If one word could describe this place, it would be "temple".

Rows and rows of white cylinders were neatly arranged all around.

On both sides is an endless void.

Above is an endless starry sky.

Therefore, there are no walls or ceilings here, only beams and pillars and a floor as black as crystal.

In the very center of this circular space surrounded by white pillars, there is an altar made of pure white stone.

On the altar, a young girl knelt with her eyes closed as if in prayer. She did not exude even the slightest aura, yet the surroundings were filled with an extraordinary sense of holiness and solemnity.

She was a petite girl wearing a loose-fitting cloak and a large hat.

The girl had shoulder-length light blue hair and was dressed in a sacred white outfit, like a priestess. However, the hat on her head looked like a doctoral cap, yet it didn't seem out of place at all on her.

The figure of the girl praying on the altar was undoubtedly very holy.

Unfortunately, the face of this pure and innocent girl seemed somewhat devoid of emotion. Her delicate and slender face had an inorganic quality, like a meticulously sculpted statue, adding to her coldness.

The girl remained kneeling on the altar, her eyes tightly closed and her face expressionless, praying.

This scene seemed to have remained unchanged for hundreds or even thousands of years, filling the surrounding area with a solemn silence.

The silence was broken in the next second.

At a certain moment, within the temple-like space, a series of extremely abrupt footsteps began to sound.

The girl did not open her eyes.

It wasn't that I didn't hear footsteps, it's just that I wasn't interested in who was coming.

The visitor seemed to be aware of this as well.

"Sigh, my lovely Hecate is still the same as before, only so cold to me."

Accompanying this statement was a middle-aged man in a suit, tall and imposing, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, giving off the air of a mob boss.

It was none other than Shudenan.

Shudenan, unusually, took off his sunglasses and looked at the girl kneeling on the altar with a look of longing and affection he had never seen before.

Immediately, Shudenan said this.

"I rarely come back, aren't you going to give me a warm welcome?"

However, the girl whom Shudenan called Hecate remained kneeling there, praying expressionlessly, as if Shudenan didn't exist at all, her indifference heartbreaking.

So, Shudenan shrugged, as if rejected by his lovely daughter, and sighed as he said this.

"Could it be that she's angry because I haven't been back for too long?"

The voice that answered Shudenan's question was not that of a girl named Hecate, but another voice.

"You're overthinking it, General. You should know that Hecate has always been like this, right?"

This is a very mature female voice with a touch of allure.

Upon hearing this sound, Shudenan turned his head and looked in another direction.

There, a tall figure walked slowly towards them, her footsteps as crisp as high heels on the ground.

She was a tall, mature woman dressed in a jet-black gown, adorned with large chain-like ornaments, and with long, red hair that reached her waist and fell naturally down her back.

The woman exudes a seductive charm, yet this charm carries an atmosphere of evil and eeriness.

Because this woman was wearing an extremely unsightly eye patch over her right eye, and she also had an eye on her forehead.

Upon seeing this woman, Shudenan raised an eyebrow and spoke in a completely different, casual manner than when he was dealing with Hecate.

"Oh, you're here too, old lady."

The other person suddenly stopped walking.

Then, the other party said with a half-smile, "I say, General, haven't I asked you to change that form of address more than once?"

Upon hearing this, Shudenan raised his hand somewhat affectedly and said in a surrender-like manner, "Yes, our great strategist, Belphegor."

"Let's not use those outdated titles anymore," Belphegor corrected. "Now, everyone in our ' Bal Masqué ' calls me Chief of Staff, General."

"Is that so?" Shudenan grinned, glanced at Belphegor, then at Hecate, and said this.

"No matter what, it's rare that Three Pillars are here, so don't bother with this little thing."

Yes.

The three people here are the Three Pillars of the Imperial Court, whose status is second only to the Alliance Leader in the "Bal Masqué".

The general in charge of leading troops was "The Shaper" — Shudenan.

Her position is that of Chief of Staff, responsible for management, and she is known as the "The Arbiter of Inverse Logic" — Belphegor.

And Hecate, whose position is the Pinnacle Seat Great Miko and who is responsible for receiving the Imperial Mandate of the Alliance Leader.

These three Crimson King are now at the pinnacle of the "Bal Masqué Bal Masqué," having ruled the "Bal Masqué" for thousands of years since its Alliance Leader disappeared.

Of course, it's only in name.

"You have the nerve to say that, General."

Belphegor laughed dismissively, "You've been wandering around doing nothing all this time, and Hecate is such a withdrawn person, all she does is pray. I've been the one keeping the ' Bal Masqué ' running all these years. I really hope you can understand me and lighten my burden a bit."

"Anyway, you're enjoying it, aren't you?" Shudenan said as if he hadn't heard him. "Besides, I brought back extremely important intelligence this time, so let me make amends."

After saying that, Shudenan directly revealed the contents of the intelligence.

"I've found the Reiji Maigo."

The atmosphere completely changed when those words came from Shudenan's mouth.

"Hehe..." Belphegor sweetly, her laughter unable to hide her joy as she murmured to herself.

"Finally found it."

On that altar, the girl who had been praying also opened her eyes.

Those were a pair of pale, transparent eyes, like crystal.

Immediately, the girl named Hecate spoke slowly in a completely flat voice.

"The Reiji Maigo must be retrieved."

In one sentence, he expressed the sentiments of everyone present.

Immediately afterwards, Hecate turned around, looked at Shudenan, and asked him this question directly.

Where is the Reiji Maigo?

Shudenan answered without hesitation.

"Misaki City."