— — — — — —
The moment Grayfia saw the figure seated upon the jade throne, her gaze changed.
It turned into pure fascination.
She stared at the purple-haired woman with a kind of reverence that bordered on madness. Every inch of her flawless skin, her closed eyes, the faint curve of her lips… nothing else in the world seemed to matter anymore.
Time felt like it stretched on forever.
Until, at last, a sliver of clarity returned to Grayfia's eyes.
Slash!
Blood splattered.
Without hesitation, Grayfia snapped her own arm, twisted until the bone jutted free, and drove it cleanly through her palm.
Blood spilled to the floor, pooling in slow, spreading blooms of red.
Clap. Clap.
Applause echoed through the hall.
From the throne above, Algol—eyes still closed—lightly clapped her hands.
"Using pain to break free from my charm? Not bad."
Grayfia frowned, enduring the pain. She deliberately suppressed her demonic regeneration, letting the wound remain open so the agony wouldn't fade.
"Who are you?"
"The most beautiful being in Little Garden."
Algol lifted her chin slightly, her tone brimming with pride.
Grayfia froze for a moment, then frowned again.
She had no idea what "Little Garden" referred to, but the statement itself? She accepted it without hesitation.
Among devils, power was beauty. But in modern times, those who possessed both overwhelming strength and beauty were rare. Aside from herself, only Serafall Sitri from the opposing faction came close.
And yet, Grayfia knew very well.
For this purple-haired woman, it was no longer just about beauty. It had become something abnormal, something supernatural.
"You've got good taste."
Algol sounded noticeably more pleased. "Your eyes may be lacking, but managing to recover under even one-billionth of my beauty? That's decent."
One-billionth…
Grayfia's lips twitched.
Yes, this woman's beauty was catastrophic.
But her narcissism? Just as destructive.
"Who are you? And what do you want?"
Grayfia's voice turned cold as she glanced at the devils behind her, now reduced to drooling, vacant-eyed husks.
"What did you do to them?"
Algol shrugged lazily, still not opening her eyes.
"Just a simple test."
"By the way, you cleared it in 31 minutes and 25 seconds."
"The record holder did it in 1 second. Ryo Yagami."
Ryo Yagami?
Grayfia frowned slightly.
"As for my purpose," Algol continued casually, "I'm selecting candidates. You lesser devils are just materials for that."
"Lesser devils?" Grayfia looked genuinely puzzled.
In the Underworld, that term usually referred to young, weak, immature devils.
But everyone in the Satan Faction was a fully grown devil. Some were even High-Class Devils, and a few stood at the same Ultimate-Class Devils as her.
"…Are you joking?"
"Joking?" Algol let out a soft laugh, tinged with mockery. "From my perspective, you don't even qualify as lesser devils."
Grayfia fell silent for a moment.
Then she asked again, "…Who are you?"
Calling all of them "lesser devils"… was this being also a devil? But she had never seen anything like her. Could she be some ancient entity from the earliest eras?
"You should already know."
Algol rolled her eyes. "I'm your ancestor."
Grayfia's expression shifted, but she didn't immediately refute it.
"Now kneel. Full prostration."
What kind of ridiculous—
The thought didn't even finish.
In the next instant, Grayfia realized something horrifying.
Her body… wasn't listening to her.
Her forehead slammed against the ground. Her hands spread out submissively, palms exposed. Her gaze fixed on the floor. A perfect dogeza.
Her expression turned blank with disbelief.
"Why is my body—"
"Pledge your loyalty."
The command fell from above.
And against her will, her voice responded, "Grayfia Lucifuge swears to obey all your commands, O great original devil… Lady Lilith."
Lilith.
The original devil.
The Beginning Mother of all Devils. The source of every demonic bloodline.
She… was Lilith?!
In that instant, understanding dawned on Grayfia.
And with it, acceptance.
The Lucifuge family had always served the House of Lucifer. And for devils, Lilith was the origin itself—the wife of Lucifer, their first ancestor.
This wasn't betrayal. This was a return.
"Stand."
"Yes, Lady Lilith."
Grayfia rose to her feet, her expression calm, devoid of resistance.
Algol, for her part, wasn't surprised at all.
This was simply how things worked.
Devils were her servants. That fact was etched into the laws of every world, a near-absolute truth she had established.
"Tell me about the current state of the Underworld. And throw these failed ones out."
"Yes."
Grayfia bowed her head in acknowledgment.
Then she heard Algol mutter to herself. "Honestly, the best one took over thirty minutes. Are the devils here really this pathetic? I should've asked Ryo for some blood. If I had his, I could definitely create the most perfect pureblood devil."
Ryo again?
Grayfia couldn't help but wonder.
Who exactly was this person, to be mentioned so often by Lady Lilith?
And… Lady Lilith actually believed that offspring with him would be the most perfect?
…Wait.
Could it be—
Lucifer's full name was Ryo Yagami Lucifer?
…You really do learn something new every day.
.
.
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