Dekan's New Family Member

"Well..."

Dekan seemed to have not expected the Void Gate to resist so strongly, and this time he truly felt its determination to rather perish than surrender.

Compared to hostility, it only contains sorrow.

Even Dekan couldn't help but feel pity.

After all, the Void Gate's fate is also a fate; it has its own limitations too!

"Okay, what kind of name do you want?"

Dekan decided to ask the Void Gate for its opinion.

Otherwise, he would appear too autocratic.

[Elegant, rational, and aloof—and must fit my characteristics!]

The Void Gate originally resisted with the determination to die.

Unexpectedly, Dekan showed some understanding this time.

So the Void Gate quickly expressed its demands, sealing off the possibility of Dekan giving it a rustic and offensive name.

Now the real challenge lies with Dekan.

I feel like all my brilliant ideas have been blocked.

He considers himself to be very good at naming his pets.

I initially wanted to name it Little Black, but then I remembered that it already had Little Flower in its previous life.

The word "junior" must have expired, so it would be better to use another generation to distinguish it.

Then its demands must also be met at the same time.

That's a real problem!

Dekan suddenly started pacing back and forth in the living room, chin in hand.

A while passed like this.

"By the way, can you open the Critical Space at any time? You mean the one that appears after each battle in the Shadow World is over?"

Dekan asked thoughtfully.

[Certainly]

Can the ambient temperature be controlled?

[Simple]

"I see..."

Finally, as if struck by a sudden inspiration, Dekan opened his eyes wide and pointed at the Void Gate, saying:

"Then you can call yourself Siemens!"

[?]

The Void Gate slowly projected a question mark.

The name sounds fine.

But it felt that the way Dekan looked at it made it seem as if it regarded it as some kind of mysterious magical artifact...

The Void Gate dared not speak out against their anger.

It seems they were afraid that Dekan would give it an even worse name.

After hesitating for a while, I decided to compromise.

Dekan patted it with satisfaction, already eager to take it home.

"Looks like we're on the same page, aren't we?"

He never expected that just collecting a debt would result in receiving such a cool household appliance... pet.

With a little modification, it will be able to accommodate creative cabinets, an air-cooled condenser dryer, and a refrigerator with excellent freshness!

And it's a fully intelligent model!

Cornelia will definitely like it.

"This world is so generous; everything is a gift from the Goddess."

Dekan prayed silently, as if he were in a sacred cathedral.

"..."

Croix watched Dekan from the side, hesitant to speak.

He knew what Dekan was thinking.

But I always feel that sincere prayer shouldn't be used like this...

The Goddess may have indeed created an opportunity for Dekan to slip into the Void Gate of the Shadow World, but coercing, bewitching, and controlling the Void Gate all depended entirely on Dekan's own discretion...

Croix believed that at least the latter part was definitely not a gift from the Goddess.

However, now that Dekan has a clear idea...

Then the future might become even more Terror...

So, it means that from now on, the Goddess can take care of all the merit points you accumulate, right?

And so they waited until Dekan finished his prayer.

"By the way, Amen, I should have severed the space here. You should be able to talk to me without worry now, right?"

It must be said that Dekan's prayer was very focused; regardless of his motives, he at least followed the entire process meticulously.

[1]

"Then can you tell me the essence of the Shadow World?"

[I also cannot obtain this intelligence. Since my inception, I have only been able to receive instructions from the central command, but I cannot provide any feedback or make any requests to it.]

Amen, answer honestly.

It dared not lie, nor was it worried that Dekan would suspect it of deceiving him.

Because Dekan, who was proficient in Magic Engineering, could confirm this himself simply by disassembling and analyzing it.

The central hub, which is extremely mysterious even to Amen, always keeps all its information completely sealed and never establishes any two-way connection with any Void Gate.

Even though the Void Gate can be considered a product of tenth-order magic and magical artifacts, and there is almost no chance that any living being could crack it, the Central Authority would never give any living being the opportunity or possibility to explore it from the Void Gate in reverse.

As a result, even though Dekan had completely tamed the mutated Void Gate, he was unable to find any information that was only known to the Central Authority.

Take the Perfect Devil King Tomb as an example. Dekan himself can be considered the creator, and he personally spent a long time participating in the development and modification process again before he had the opportunity to break the Devil King Tomb.

This central hub of the Shadow World, which is infinitely more complex on every level, seems impossible to invade through technical means.

"Hmm... it seems there's little hope of shutting down the Shadow World server directly..."

Dekan had initially suspected that he might have found a glimmer of hope, so he went to shut down the Shadow World along with the [Heaven-Piercing World-Destroying Battlefield].

If the Shadow World could come to life on its own like some rather incompetent companies, I'd just quit this world altogether.

[Once you stop your spatial magic, no matter how you call me, I won't be able to respond. Please don't hit me.]

Amen pitifully conveyed the message.

If the space hadn't been isolated by Dekan, it wouldn't have been able to transmit even this information to Dekan.

Once the central control detects an abnormal individual, it will recall and destroy it.

The reason it dared to take the risk of communicating with Dekan earlier was because there was a serious settlement anomaly here. Under such circumstances, according to the principle of the central authority, it should be given more freedom of permission, or in other words, the control over it should be relaxed.

But once the spatial barrier is removed, it will have to pretend to be silent.

The abnormal settlement of the ninth-tier Shadow World has been completely completed.

Unless Dekan helps it isolate the space again, it will not dare to transmit any more information.

"I understand, I understand. Don't worry, I'll take good care of my household... and pets. Of course, the promised natural Magic Card won't be missing either, so you can rest assured and live with me."

Dekan finds his new companion increasingly adorable.

I simply can't bear to touch it.

[That's good...]

Although this human's behavior is despicable, they are probably the type to seriously follow agreements.

But why would humans go to such great lengths to capture and raise it, only to gain no substantial intelligence?

Are you really going to keep it at home as a decoration?

However, Dekan immediately continued:

"If the central command sends you any more instructions, please transmit any information to me at all costs, and I will immediately activate spatial magic to isolate you."

Even if it's just intercepting an order from the central command, Dekan has a chance to obtain some intelligence.

Even the smallest bit of information would be enough.

Under the overly secure mechanisms of the central government, this was Dekan's only opportunity to obtain intelligence.

[Then I'll be forcibly recalled and erased by the central authority!]

Amen immediately panicked!

Let's set aside the question of how great the risk of making a mistake is.

Even if Dekan could detect its code at an extremely fast speed and protect it.

Wait for the spatial magic to dissipate.

The central nervous system, having realized the serious abnormality it has caused, will do everything in its power to eliminate it!

"Don't worry, I'll fix you up before I undo the spatial magic, so you can completely break free from the central control."

Dekan had already devised a plan.

Although he knew he had no ability to attack the central hub of the tenth-tier Shadow World.

However, if it's a small, disconnected Void Gate, he's still confident he can successfully modify it!

Since returning from the previous Shadow World, Dekan was confident that he had completed the path that Delois had walked in the field of Magic Engineering.

He is now the true, fully-fledged Demon King.

The thought of having to activate spatial magic every time to freely communicate with his pet made Dekan realize it wasn't a big deal.

Not only does it require maintaining the Spatial Leap Gate, but it also consumes a large amount of energy, causing Happy Group's expenses to rise sharply.

Moreover, what Dekan truly wanted was a smart home manager that was entirely his own.

[Really?]

Amen was deeply shocked by Dekan's words.

It had even considered the possibility that Dekan might use it and then discard it.

I didn't expect this guy to actually value himself so much.

That look in his eyes was absolutely genuine!

"Yes, our Norton Kingdom has strict laws. Even familiars cannot be abused. They need to be given time and space to rest, and their food must meet reasonable standards. So I will give you extra pay based on your workload. You can buy the natural epic cards you want to eat, and I will also give you a vacation."

Dekan becomes exceptionally serious when discussing regulations.

He was a man who had meticulously studied the Norton Kingdom, reading every word in every row, column, and corner at least three times.

[... But how am I supposed to buy Natural Epic Cards? And what can I do during my vacation?]

Amen seems to be about to crash.

It encountered problems beyond its understanding.

For a moment, I was somewhat unable to process the information Dekan had provided.

It never actually imagined that it would one day be able to become independent and free.

Like some entirely new concepts, they are beginning to constantly challenge all of Amen's existing knowledge since its inception.

Although what it felt most strongly was confusion.

But at the same time, it also sensed an unprecedented expectation.

It was as if something strange was taking root and sprouting within its originally fixed operation!

No matter how strange the human he is talking to now may be.

Amen was certain that he would at least make a fair deal with it.

And I truly felt respected by him!

It's a million times better than that central government that forcibly enslaves it and makes it work for free!

"Hehe, what's so difficult about being free to move around? If you want to regain your human form, I'll help you."

Dekan leaned against the Void Gate and gently tapped it with his finger.

How can a cool familiar not have a human form?

It's not like that embarrassing house cat Cat Teacher.

The Void Gate cannot transform into human form on its own; it requires the assistance of a magic engineer.

In the Holy Kingdom era, unlike most magical beast-type familiars that can directly transform into human form once their rank is high enough, ghost-type familiars require a puppeteer like Mie to provide a body in order to transform into a true human form. Similarly, weapon-type familiars, such as magic swords, also need to be modified by a blacksmith to obtain human form.

Amen, this strange creature that is half mechanical and half spiritual, will require Dekan and Mie to conduct thorough research before they can help create its human form.

[...]

It seems that possessing a human form is even more unimaginable for it.

Even its fantasy has always been limited to consuming a few natural epic cards.

They never even had the concept of having a "life".

Thank you, Kan.

It couldn't understand.

But it felt that after a period of silence, it should be able to figure things out.

Regardless of how much pretense and pretense there was before.

At least for now, this is the first time he has sincerely expressed his thoughts to Dekan.

"Alright, you'll have to continue acting as a normal Void Gate for a while longer. I'll dispel the spatial magic soon."

Having received heartfelt thanks, Dekan smiled contentedly.

[Good.]

The next time they can communicate will be the moment it truly obtains the magical thing called freedom!

Dekan then deactivated the Spatial Leap Gate.

Now that we've established a good relationship with Amen...

Dekan then set it aside for the time being.

It has now become a piece of furniture and can no longer be used for any communication.

Now, the next important thing is to take a look at that Magic Card we just saw.

If the product of the ninth-tier Shadow World is a card, then the guaranteed reward will be Crimson Epic!

It's even highly likely that you'll obtain a Tier 9 Crimson Epic, similar to Sion's [Fate Divination]!

Croix also curiously came over.

The light emanating from the card was so dazzling that they couldn't immediately discern what it was.

Dekan took it out of his pocket and frowned.

Now, it shines with a crimson light, just like a newly made card.

The red glow lingered for a long time.

This doesn't seem like something you'd expect from Crimson Epic!

Dekan and Croix exchanged a glance; their hearts were pounding in their throats!

I originally thought it was a Crimson Epic Dekan would treat it so casually.

Unexpectedly... it has already reached the next level!!

"Dekan... the Shadow World really can produce Red Legend..."

"Ninth tier... and it's Shadow World that has been influenced by divine protection within you..."

Even the usually composed Card Crafter Dekan couldn't help but swallow hard when faced with this card.

A natural Red Legend.

This is likely an extremely powerful Magic Card that embodies the legendary elements of the entire Holy Kingdom era!

Until the next moment.

Dekan turned his pupils gold.

Only then did I finally see the true nature of this card!

[The Holy Emperor's Will to Fight to the Death]

[Category: Spell Card]

[Grade: Red Legend]

[Class: 1]

[Effect: Significantly and continuously burns life and mana, bringing one's Magic Power and spirit to the strongest state achievable in this lifetime.]

[Note: One cannot sit comfortably on the throne; only the chair one chooses can bring true peace of mind.]