Negotiations with Bael

A playful expression appeared on Bael's handsome face. "An ally? Tsk, it's been a long time since I've received such an invitation since I lost my position Lord of Avernus."

"Bael Bayer, to be honest, your reputation is rather poor throughout the multiverse. You are cunning, cruel, and betrayed your former mistress without hesitation, taking everything from her."

Bael bowed again, his expression unchanged, still wearing a polite smile.

"Your Majesty Keosius, for a pure devil, these are merely compliments."

"I'm sure you know that this isn't a compliment to the beings of our Prime Material Plane, but I don't care."

Keosius spread his wings and rose from the throne, pacing through the vast palace, but his eyes remained fixed on the great devil.

"In the Empire's foreign policy, we have no permanent allies or permanent enemies, only constant and permanent interests. The Embers of the Burned Empire does not care about the past, camps, or even positions of its allies; whether or not to cooperate depends solely on whether it can bring us sufficient benefits."

Keosius paused deliberately, then spread his broad wings wide, casting a huge shadow.

He then continued, "Whether it's Five-Colored Dragon or Metallic Dragon, Mount Paradise or Hell, as long as there are common interests and common enemies, the Empire is willing to cooperate with them."

"Your Majesty Keosius, if you lived in Hell, you would probably be a wise lord."

Bael raised his head and met the Red Dragon's pale golden vertical pupils. The corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, revealing a cold aura.

He slowly began to speak, saying, "It seems we have a common enemy."

"You guessed right."

Keosius simply nodded slightly and winked at the Ogre Mage beside him.

Lang Pu immediately understood, took the parchment scroll out of his Dimensional Bag, and presented it to Bael.

Keosius added, "Since we have a common enemy, it is natural to exchange intelligence and gain a deeper understanding of the enemy."

Bael glanced at him, and a barely perceptible hint of hatred flashed in his dark pupils. He gave a contemptuous laugh.

"Ha, as expected of that madwoman's handiwork. What a crude and sloppy contract. She doesn't seem like a noble and elegant devil at all; she's more like a brainless demon."

For thousands of years, Bael and Zariel have been entangled in a deep feud, with Bael even going so far as to "eat his flesh raw," savoring the taste of his enemy.

Keosius didn't care about their past grievances; to him, the more Bael hated Zariel, the better.

The Red Dragon snorted, exhaling Sulfur Scent white smoke. "This was stolen by my men from a Thrace nobleman, and who knows how many more such contracts exist within the Thrace Kingdom."

However, compared to this little bit of information from the Empire, you, who have been in Avernus and entangled with Zariel for thousands of years, should know more about the situation.

"Of course, Your Majesty Keosius, I always do my utmost to help worthy allies."

Bael stretched out his hand, and clusters of flames shot out from it, forming an image in mid-air that exuded an aura of purgatory. The exquisite spellcasting technique made Lang Pu's eyes widen.

A rocky wasteland filled with rivers of blood appeared before them. The night was pitch black, and occasionally a fiery comet would fall, leaving a smoking impact crater. The empty battlefield was littered with weapons and skeletons.

Bael said, "As you know, Avernus is the first layer of Hell, a battlefield of Blood War, and the place among the Nine Hells that is closest to the Prime Material Plane."

The devil snapped his fingers, and the scene in the flames suddenly changed, revealing a towering basalt castle decorated with partially charred corpses.

Above them was an angel enveloped in flames, dressed in tattered robes stained with blood, her eyes burning with a violent white light that seemed capable of destroying everything.

Keosius stared at the terrifying figure and muttered to himself, "This is Zariel."

Bael said in a deep voice, "Yes, this woman is Zariel, the current Lord of Avernus, a madwoman obsessed with Blood War, and also my nominal superior."

Bael was ousted from his post due to his poor performance in the Blood War, which disappointed Asmodeus, and was forced to become Zariel's advisor, so the term "superior" is not problematic.

Bael continued, "Nearly a hundred years ago, Zariel began sending people to infiltrate the Thrace region, but at that time it was still part of Fadlan and was designated as the base of the Angel Divine Descendant Legion."

As you probably know, Zariel is a fallen Seraph servant who is interested in proud, powerful Angel Divine Descendant who share similar bloodlines with her, and even successfully lured one of Angel Divine Descendant into Hell.

However, at that time, the Holy Fadlan Empire was at its peak. The old emperor did not hesitate to declare war on Zariel and led the Divine Race into Avernus, forcing Zariel to hand over the soul of the fallen one, causing her to lose face.

At this point, a hint of pleasure crept onto Bael's face. Although he hadn't participated, Zariel's defeat always made him happy.

Keosius exclaimed in surprise, "There's such a history? That old emperor of Fadlan was really something."

Bael nodded, but said with some disdain, "However, he is just an arrogant mortal who dares to try to replace the gods. It's utterly laughable."

As far as I know, after the Great Collapse of the Holy Fadlan, the Feanso Continent was thrown into chaos, and Zariel, ambitious as ever, sought to seize more benefits in the Material Plane the turmoil.

The devil's lips curled into a sinister smile, "However, if I were still in power, I'd probably have to get involved too. I must say, the Material Plane is incredibly tempting right now; war has brought us countless corrupted souls."

"But you were ousted." Keosius interrupted him mercilessly, adding coldly, "Otherwise, you would probably have become an enemy of the Empire."

Bael chuckled and said, "Of course, Your Majesty Keosius, as you said, there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests."

Keosius asked bluntly, "What is her ultimate goal in cooperating with the Thrace Kingdom? The souls of those Angel Divine Descendant?"

Bael shook his head. "No, no, no, the Angel Divine Descendant have already fallen to the point of being corrupt, far from being pure souls, and Zariel's plans have become even more insane."

The demon gazed up at the Red Dragon, a mysterious expression on its face. "Her current target is Thrace. She wants to drag the entire Thrace Kingdom into Hell, turning it into her own ' Soul Land '."

"What a huge appetite! He's a madman."

Hearing this, even Keosius was somewhat shocked. The Thrace Kingdom was a large country with a territory comparable to Anzeta and a population of tens of millions, and Zariel actually wanted to drag the entire country into Hell! Bael said, "After falling into Hell, many souls are marked and sentenced to belong to specific devils, to be harvested by them. This is the Soul Land."

If Zariel becomes the ruler of the Thrace Kingdom, she will have a vast and ever-growing army, and her power will grow to an unimaginable level.

Hatred and loathing resurfaced in Bael's dark eyes, and his handsome face became even more ferocious, almost revealing the true form of a devil.

"Therefore, I must not let her succeed, otherwise I will never be able to turn things around."

Keosius's pale golden vertical pupils gleamed as he spoke, "Very well, then we have reached an agreement."

The Feanso Continent will only become the territory of the Embers of the Burned Empire. Thrace and Kassand will both be indispensable parts of the empire, and any force that tries to stop this process will be ruthlessly crushed.

Red Dragon's tone was firm and powerful, his words revealing undisguised confidence. In his plan, ruling Fei An Suo was only the beginning of his imperial ambitions.

Bael also said, "To be honest, I have been paying attention to you and your empire for a long time. I predicted that the Embers of the Burned Empire had the idea of invading southward, and I believed that you were capable of defeating Zariel."

Even if you don't summon me, I will proactively contact you and become your loyal ally.

Suddenly, Keosius asked with a half-smile, "Bael Byr, if I defeat Zariel and you regain the throne of Lord of Avernus, will you still support my unification of Fei An Suo?"

Bael spread his hands somewhat innocently and replied, "Your Majesty Keosius, I would also like to give a definite answer, but even if I did, would someone as wise as you really believe me?"

As you said, there are no permanent allies. At least for now, I still support you. A common enemy and shared interests are the best guarantee for cooperation, aren't they?

Keosius laughed twice and said in a hearty manner, "Hahaha, Bael Bayer, you are right. Who would believe in the integrity of a devil? Next, let's discuss the details of the cooperation and how to sign a specific contract."

Upon hearing the word "contract," Bael's eyes lit up; nothing could excite the devil more. But soon, Keosius ruthlessly shattered his illusions.

Keosius said calmly, "Lang Pu, bring up the contract we prepared in advance."

"Yes, Master."

The Ogre Archmage bowed his head in response, then took out several folders he had prepared beforehand from his Dimensional Bag. The folders contained hundreds of pages, all covered with densely written text.

The Alliance Treaty between the Empire and the Devilish Bael Force

This contract was compiled by hundreds of legal professionals in the Imperial Legal Department over several days, working overtime and staying up late. The annotations alone are tens of thousands of words long, and it has almost completely plugged all the loopholes that could be misinterpreted by the devil.

Lang Pu presented the contract with a blank expression. "Your Excellency Bael, this is the contract prepared for you by the Empire. Please review it carefully to avoid any errors or omissions."

Bael's expression froze, his lips twitched slightly, and he delivered a long and incomprehensible contract. This was a trick that devils usually used on mortals, but now it was backfiring on him.

He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty Keosius, what is this?"

Keosius said calmly, "It's just a means to guarantee cooperation and promote fairness, Bael Bayer. Forgive my bluntness, but I simply cannot trust a contract made by a devil—a devil notorious for betrayal at that."

The reason seemed particularly convincing when Keosius was surrounded by his broad wings and enormous body.

Bael tried to argue, "But that's not fair. You know, even in Hell..."

"Bael Bayer," Keosius interrupted the devil's words, speaking calmly, "You must understand that our cooperation is not equal, which means that the dominance of the Embers of the Burned Empire is inevitable."

You are not irreplaceable in the eyes of the Empire. Even without our cooperation, Zariel has countless enemies in Hell who also want to sabotage Zariel plans. We can find a powerful demon willing to cooperate at any time. But you are different, Bael Byr. Cooperating with us is your only chance to overthrow Zariel and regain control of Avernus.

The Empire chose you for no complicated reason other than that you understand Zariel better and pose less of a threat than those Hell Lord.

Keosius's words were not very dramatic; he simply stated the facts calmly.

"You"

Immediately, Bael gritted his teeth, a faint anger burning in his deep eyes, but he quickly realized that the other party was right. For him now, this was the best chance to turn things around.

All he needs to do right now is to reclaim his position Hell Lord as soon as possible. Anything else, such as dignity and face, is just a joke.

Moreover, devils are the masters of manipulating contracts. They understand the essence of contracts far better than mortals and can easily distort the terms to gain the greatest benefit.

Even if it's a contract made by the other party, Bael is confident that he can become the true controller of this contract; this is the confidence of a great devil.

Thinking of this, Bael gave Keosius a deep look, then bent down and said with a smile, "I apologize, Your Majesty Keosius, I was a little out of line."

I will certainly review your carefully prepared contract 'carefully' and work tirelessly to achieve a better collaboration for us.

With a wave of his hand, the former demon lord sent hundreds of pages fluttering up and arranging them neatly in mid-air. Bael merely touched them, and the contents of the contract, numbering in the millions, appeared in his mind.

"The Bael forces acknowledge and respect the leadership of the Embers of the Burned Empire in establishing a new order on the Feanso Continent."

"In the event of a conflict with the Zariel forces, the Empire and the Bael forces should provide mutual assistance through all political, economic, and military means."

"The demons under the control of the Bael faction can make pacts with Imperial Citizen, granting the contracted party the power of Hell."

After carefully reviewing the hundreds of pages of the contract, Bael found it to be quite "fair," with few unreasonable or domineering clauses that offered room for maneuver.

Moreover, he even discovered some loopholes in the contract—