Dragon and Hell
"Zariel? The forces of Hell have gotten involved so early. It seems the butterfly effect I caused is quite significant."
In the rock palace atop Dragon Blood Mountain, Keosius held the parchment contracts handed over by the players, exhaling a breath of Sulfur Scent air.
In his previous Keosius had heard of the name of Zariel, a fallen seraph, a general of the eternal Blood War, and the devil duke who ruled the first level of the Nine Hells.
Hundreds of years ago, she dragged a city into Hell. Although the city was eventually liberated, the horrific experience had far-reaching consequences, leaving Tiefling in exile to this day.
Lang Pu knelt beside Keosius, projecting Magic Image collected by the players with his staff. For some reason, the image of Charlotte seducing Earl Donald also appeared among them.
Some players might consider this to be "important information".
The Ogre continued, "Master, according to the intelligence we have gathered, the demons have been active on the Prime Material Plane since the death of Aragon I. Now their presence is felt throughout Fei An Suo, especially in the Thrace Kingdom."
Despite the Thrace Kingdom's deliberate attempts to conceal their activities, they left behind far too many traces. The merchant guild belonging to the Klaubo Wu Military Industrial Group and the hundreds of thousands of Starfallers within the Thrace Kingdom and under the Empire's control all discovered countless clues.
We have ample reason to suspect that Hell has sided with the Thrace Kingdom, becoming a new protector for these humans.
Keosius grinned, revealing a smile of great interest, with surging flames emerging from the corners of his mouth.
"Heh, it's quite a strange thing that someone who was once high and mighty and called himself a descendant of gods would actually collude with the devil, the epitome of cunning, filth and evil, and even take them as his backer."
This is not surprising, though; humans are such a fickle species, and only such humans can be completely used by an empire.
Lang Pu lowered his head and respectfully echoed, "Your Excellency is wise."
The Ogre hesitated for a moment, then raised his staff again. Images appeared before Keosius: cunning demons disguised as humans.
"Furthermore, Master, we have also discovered traces of some demons within the Empire. We are paying close attention to this, but have not yet taken action. We would like to ask for your opinion first."
Your Majesty, should we adopt a hostile policy similar to our previous approach to the Abyss, and launch a large-scale propaganda campaign to portray Hell as the Empire's irreconcilable enemy?
At the same time, we will use the Empire's internal forces to wipe out these devils completely. Lang Pu's tone revealed a ruthless edge.
What appears evil and terrifying to mortals, like a nightmare, is nothing more than a parasite infiltrating the empire in the eyes of this Ogre prime minister.
After a moment's Keosius shook his head and said softly, "No need. Compared to the madmen in the Abyss, these demons are still somewhat useful. Perhaps we can cooperate with them."
If the Abyssal Devil are like mad robbers, only capable of plundering and destroying everything, then the devils are more like..."The Red Dragon suddenly chuckled, his tone turning somewhat strange: "The greedy factory owners and entrepreneurs within the empire."
"They are like vicious dogs; as long as you hold onto the red-hot iron chains, you can still use them to bite your prey."
Lang Pu's expression still held some doubt. "But, Master, this might disrupt the order of the Empire, and those demons are secretly supporting the Thrace Kingdom, which will be detrimental to our Southern Expedition."
Keosius said calmly, "Who said we were going to cooperate with them within the Empire? Lang Pu, summon Mezhuolash and the Lich Aurest."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Lang Pu asked no more questions, but responded in a deep voice, then raised his scepter and obediently carried out Keosius's orders.
Embers of the Burned Emperor was always so autocratic, often issuing orders as if he could foresee the future, yet he never made a wrong decision—just as he was invincible on the battlefield.
Soon, with Keosius's permission, a portal opened, and amidst the smells of sulfur and Gunsmoke, Mezhuolash, the leader of the Tiefling tribe, walked steadily out.
"Good day, Your Majesty."
Dressed in the formal attire of an imperial nobleman, Mezhuolash knelt before Keosius, the ducal medal on his chest gleaming.
Immediately afterwards, a dark green fog exuding an aura of death appeared out of nowhere, and the lich Aurest also appeared on the Dragon Blood Mountain. When he saw the even larger body of Keosius, he stood there stunned for a moment.
A 50-meter-long dragon.
This would be a huge shock to any spellcaster with sufficient knowledge, Aurest was no exception.
Filled with reverence for power, Aurest stepped forward shakily, bowed deeply, and spoke in a low, hoarse voice.
"Master, your loyal servant has come at your command to offer you the sincerest greetings."
The lich, once feared by all, now exudes a sense of dejection, likely due to the relentless onslaught of players.
After all, on the forums, this lich has become a popular spot for players, with many risking their lives to get close to him.
Keosius nodded slightly, then looked at Tiefling and said with a smile, "Mezhuolash, your relatives have appeared in the Prime Material Plane. What are your thoughts?"
Mezhuolash frowned and quickly replied, "Your Majesty, the Tiefling have no ulterior motives. We are forever loyal only to the Embers of the Burned Empire, which brings security and stable order."
As for those devils? Forgive my bluntness, Your Majesty, but they have left us with centuries of blood debt and indelible sins. At your command, we will not hesitate to consider them our enemies."
Mezhuolash's voice was powerful and resolute, revealing an undisguised murderous intent.
All he cared about were his own people and the future development of the empire. He even harbored hatred for the devils who had caused him to be displaced and his family to be destroyed.
"Very good."
Keosius nodded, ceasing his jokes, and calmly ordered, "Mobilize your Imperial Guard and bring all the demons within the Empire under control."
Mezhuolash was somewhat surprised. "Your Majesty, shouldn't we kill them?"
The lich Aurest beside him let out a low sneer, the soul fire in his eyes trembling slightly. "Your Grace, as a descendant of the devil, you are ignorant of the basics of Hell?"
Outside of Hell, demons are never killed, only stripped of all their possessions—usually their souls, though for these miserly creatures this might be worse than death.
Mezhuolash simply bowed to the Red Dragon: "Your Majesty, I will use the power you have bestowed upon me to control these demons one by one."
"Very well, I look forward to seeing your results, Mezhuolash. Since they come from the Baator, imprison your relatives, these uninvited guests, in the Bator City."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Keosius turned his head and looked at Aurest with his pale golden vertical pupils.
Although the lich looked quite tired, the soul fire within him had grown considerably stronger, recovering to about 60-70% of its original strength.
Aurest often secretly rejoiced at the restoration of his strength.
However, the lich was unaware that ninety percent of the strange energy he gained from converting the undead ended up in the Red Dragon's pocket. Furthermore, Keosius was considering increasing the share to 95% to better control the lich and extract more experience.
The Red Dragon narrowed its eyes and said to the lich, "Aurest, I knew it all along, you know a lot about the Nine Hells."
Aurest was overjoyed, his will-o'-the-wisps burning even brighter. "Master," he said, "When I was still a mortal mage, I searched everywhere for ways to achieve immortality, and I even have some understanding of the devil's pacts in Hell, but..."
The lich paused, a clear sense of disgust emanating from the flickering flames. "Those demons are utter bastards, shameless liars. Their contracts are full of traps. Three hundred years ago, I was deceived by a great demon and almost sacrificed my soul."
Keosius had no interest in hearing about the Aurest's past; he simply took out the scroll and placed it before the lich. "Aurest, look at this contract."
Aurest carefully examined the contract, his expression suddenly changing as he muttered to himself, "Zariel? That madwoman is actually spying on the master of the Prime Material Plane again. He is the Demon Duke of Avernus, the first of the Nine Hells. He is a seraphim who fell from heaven ten thousand years ago. He is extremely powerful and a war maniac."
Keosius continued, "This was found by the Empire's spies from the south. According to our estimates, Hell is very likely to become the backer of the Thrace Kingdom and disrupt the Empire's conquest plans."
The Red Dragon looked down at the lich and said softly, "Aurest, tell me your thoughts."
Aurest opened his skeletal mouth, revealing a horrifying smile—though it seemed that only a lich with almost no flesh and blood could display such a smile. "Master, you must know that although it is a lawful force, Hell is by no means monolithic."
The lich stretched out his withered, thin arm and tapped it lightly with his bone fingers, and an image of a demon army slaughtering each other in Hell appeared before him.
Listening to the demons' unified war cries, Aurest continued, "Demons are born with unparalleled ambition. Intrigue, trickery, and fighting are their instincts. The lords of Hell are engaged in an eternal struggle for supreme dominance."
And in Hell, countless demons hate Zariel, a madwoman obsessed with Blood War and reckless fighting.
Keosius nodded thoughtfully. "You mean—we can find an ally inside Hell to keep Zariel occupied?"
The lich lowered his head, bowed slightly, and said in an extremely obsequious tone, "Master, your wisdom is truly admirable."
"Recommend a suitable candidate for me, and I will negotiate with him personally."
Upon hearing Keosius's words, the lich seemed to remember something and was momentarily speechless, wanting to say something but unable to bring himself to say it.
The first "suitable ally" that came to his mind was the great demon who had almost enslaved his soul.
Keosius stared at him, his eyes filled with confusion.
"What's wrong?"
Aurest quickly replied, "Of course, no problem, my esteemed master, please look here—"
The lich raised the scepter of bones in his hand, and the necromantic mist churned in the air, once again creating lifelike Magic Image.
Keosius cast his gaze in that direction and saw a colossal demon appear in the Magic Image: the demon was covered in crimson scales, and a pair of ferocious bat-like wings stretched out from its back. Green venom dripped continuously from its mouth, falling to the ground and stirring up puffs of smoke.
What is most striking is his waist, which is adorned with a belt containing 12 angel heads that are constantly screaming.
Without a doubt, these heads were severed by the flaming greatsword held tightly in a claw-like hand, and the crimson face was grinning wildly.
This is practically the most quintessential image of a "great devil" in the minds of ordinary people.
Aurest introduced, "This is Bael, the former Lord of Avernus, a cruel warlord who betrayed Zariel hundreds of years ago and took the opportunity to rise to the rank of Demon Lord."
Unfortunately, his performance on the Blood War was far inferior to that madman Zariel, and he was demoted by the Lord of the Nine Hells, allowing Zariel to rise to power again.
To keep Bael busy and out of her sight, Zariel ordered him to forge weapons, armor, and terrifying killing machines.
The lich shrugged indifferently. "But that's not important. What's more important is that he now hates Zariel almost to the point of madness. And that's our opportunity."
Keosius gazed at the image of the great devil and remarked with interest, "Bael sounds pretty good."
Aurest, recalling his own past experiences, whispered a reminder: "Although I have always known of your wisdom, master, these demons are extremely cunning; you must be careful."
"Heh, in the face of absolute power, all schemes and tricks are useless. He's just a down-on-his-luck Hell Lord. Even if we do sign a contract, the power to control this cooperation will be in my hands."
Keosius spoke with confidence, and he was now very clear about his own assessment—if the gods did not intervene, few beings in this Material Plane could stop him.
His only problem is that his experience and methods are somewhat lacking, and he is not yet able to compete with those old guys who have lived for thousands of years.
While associating with the devil carries certain risks, it can also compensate for one's weaknesses to some extent.
The Red Dragon slowly rose, raised its head, gazed into the distance, and then spread its broad wings. "Since Thrace has turned to Hell for help, then we will use the power of the devil to Contend Against the devil."
It would also be a good opportunity to cooperate with the rulers of Hell.
Upon seeing Keosius stand up, the three servants exclaimed in unison, "Your Majesty (Master) is wise!"