Without the slightest surprise, the atmosphere at the scene froze instantly due to a single sentence from Azazel.
Everyone frowned in unison, and the looks they directed at Azazel could hardly be described as friendly.
Yet, Azazel acted as if he hadn't noticed, continuing in his own headstrong manner.
"Back when Kokabiel was suppressed, I already expressed our side's stance, didn't I? That incident was entirely an independent action taken by Kokabiel behind the backs of the other executives and myself, the Governor-General. Not a single one of us was aware of it, nor would we be foolish enough to proactively trigger a war in such a fashion."
"Aside from anything else, tell me—what benefit would there be for us in doing that?"
"Steal a few Holy Swords, kill the sisters of two Satans, provoke you to fury, and then have you all march over to attack us?"
"If I had that kind of free time, why wouldn't I stealthily send an army into the territories of the Angels and Devils to launch a surprise attack? I could seize some territory first and eliminate a few key figures so that even if war broke out, it would be in our favor."
"As for Holy Swords or the sisters of Satans—even if those were lost, it wouldn't be more than an itch to the Angel and Devil factions, right?"
Azazel's reasoning, while making a portion of the group led by Rias and Sona feel awkward, was undeniably logical.
If they truly wanted to start a war, why go through the trouble of stealing Holy Swords and killing the sisters of Satans? It would be far better to launch a sneak attack while the two major factions were off-guard to seize the initiative and secure results.
"After learning that Kokabiel had done something so stupid, I immediately sent Vali—the current White Dragon Emperor—over. The purpose was to stop Kokabiel's unauthorized actions and prevent the fallout from expanding."
Azazel shrugged as he spoke.
"Who knew that just as our White Dragon Emperor arrived on the scene, Kokabiel had already been dealt with? We had no choice but to abandon Kokabiel and let him be handled by the Devils."
This was also the Fallen Angel side expressing their sincerity.
Since a key figure on our side caused a major disaster and was captured by you, you may dispose of him however you wish. We won't interfere. Is that enough sincerity for you?
Kokabiel was, after all, an executive of the Fallen Angels. Even if he committed a grave error, generally speaking, he shouldn't be handled by an enemy power. Instead, he should be rescued first and then dealt with internally; that was how major powers operated.
Otherwise, allowing a key figure to be disposed of at will by a rival camp would only cause the Fallen Angels to lose face entirely.
Under these circumstances, the Fallen Angels' decision to ignore Kokabiel's fate proved they truly did not wish to escalate the conflict.
Sirzechs and Michael exchanged a glance before both turned to look at Azazel.
"In that case, may we assume that the Fallen Angel faction currently has no intention of engaging in serious conflict with us or triggering war once more?"
Michael's serious inquiry was met with Azazel's jovial laughter.
"Of course. Including myself, the current Fallen Angels aren't very interested in war. Especially me—I have absolutely zero interest in it."
"We're actually a bunch of idiots on this side. Compared to war or fighting, we're far more interested in Sacred Gears or women."
"Especially me. Having fought for so many years in the past, I got tired of war a long time ago. I'm quite satisfied with the current world."
As he spoke, Azazel's gaze swept across Sirzechs, Serafall, and Michael, speaking with quite a bit of emotion.
"In the past, we had no choice but to fight even if we didn't want to. God's outward will was to purge all evil and sin from this world. In God's eyes, Devils and we fallen angels were the villains poisoning this world."
"The old Satans were also a bunch of ambitious men who weren't content to live in the Underworld forever, much less be limited to ruling the world of night. They constantly thought about overthrowing God's rule to occupy Heaven and the Human World to become the overlords of the world."
"Thus, inevitable conflict arose, leading to the Great War between the three factions. It lasted for thousands of years, causing devastating losses for all three sides, forcing everyone to rely on humans just to continue their existence."
"Now, things are better. God is no longer here, and the old Satans are all dead. The sources of war are gone. The people leading Heaven and the Devil world are mild-tempered figures like you who dislike war. I suddenly feel much more relaxed, finally able to concentrate on the research I enjoy."
For once, Azazel did not say these words with a flippant attitude. Instead, they were full of sentiment and heartfelt pleasure, making it clear to anyone listening that these were his true feelings.
Sirzechs, Serafall, Michael, and the others fell into silence. Rias, Sona, and their peers were also surprised that Azazel would say such things. Only Leon and Vali appeared different.
Leon had known for a long time what kind of person Azazel was, so he wasn't surprised by his speech at all.
Vali's eyes flickered as he looked at the genuinely sentimental Azazel, his thoughts unknown.
"In short, I can tell you with full responsibility that the Fallen Angels have no desire to start a war," Azazel said solemnly. "We should each be very clear on this—given our current situation, if war breaks out again, all three factions will surely perish together. Even if a victor emerges, they would be so devastated that they couldn't sustain their race, ultimately leading to ruin."
At this, Sirzechs and Michael nodded simultaneously, agreeing with Azazel's statement.
"Indeed, war can no longer be allowed to occur."
"If war breaks out again, we will all be destroyed this time."
The expressions of both Sirzechs and Michael were very grave.
Among the onlookers, some understood the current state of the three factions, while others only had a partial understanding. However, from the serious expressions of the leaders, they grasped the severity of the situation.
That was to say, war for the three factions was essentially an act of self-destruction; once it erupted, there would absolutely be no good end.
"This meeting was actually intended to confirm the future intentions of the three factions and ensure everyone shares the same consensus and thoughts," Serafall, as the head of diplomacy, finally couldn't hold back anymore. She leaned forward and said, "Since everyone shares the same consensus, why not take this opportunity to conclude a peace treaty?"
As soon as these words were spoken, regardless of how the high-ranking figures felt, the onlookers were shocked first.
A peace treaty.
In other words, a peace agreement—the conclusion of a pact for non-aggression and even mutual cooperation for coexistence.
"The three factions have all reached a point where they cannot survive without the help of humans. If we don't seek change now, then even if we don't go extinct, it will be difficult to continue developing in the future."
Sirzechs had clearly coordinated with Serafall beforehand. Immediately after she proposed the treaty, he spoke up.
"Our Devil side feels that continuing like this is absolutely unacceptable."
Therefore, they needed a peace treaty.
Therefore, they needed cooperation.
Only by setting aside past grievances and moving forward hand-in-hand could the three factions have a future.
This was the viewpoint of the current government of the Devil world led by Sirzechs.
"Hahaha!" Azazel suddenly clapped and laughed, pointing at Sirzechs and Serafall with an amused expression. "I never would have expected it—the Devils, seen by humans as symbols of evil, would actually take the initiative to propose a peace treaty in this setting. It's practically turning the world's perception upside down!"
The idea of Devils praying for peace and coexistence truly sounded like a joke.
"As expected, the Devils have become different than before," Michael sighed with a complex expression, appearing somewhat relieved. "In the wars of the past, the old Satans were always the pro-war faction. Whenever war broke out, the Devils were often the most frenzied and reckless on the battlefield."
"Even during the period when the Two Heavenly Dragons were wreaking havoc on the battlefield, the Devils were the last ones to reluctantly choose to act alongside the other two sides to deal with them."
"The current Devils are wonderful. With people like you who crave peace acting as Satans, we can indeed feel much more at ease."
Both Michael and Azazel had lived since extremely ancient times.
By contrast, Sirzechs and Serafall were the new generation born within the last few hundred years.
To Michael and Azazel, both Sirzechs and Serafall were the youngest of juniors—little kids who had only just grown up.
Precisely because of this, when they came together to advocate for reform and peace, Michael and Azazel were deeply moved.
They had seen the Devils at their most frenzied and their most evil; that was why the evil image of Devils was left in the history books.
Blood, ruin, sin, madness—these were all synonyms for Devils, an image that had persisted since ancient times.
But now, the Devils were beginning to change through the efforts of a group of young people.
This couldn't help but cause Azazel and Michael, who had seen the most wicked side of the Devils, to feel thousands of emotions in their hearts.
However—
"The war between the three factions has been going on for a long time, and the accumulated hatred is higher than the heavens and deeper than the earth. If we suddenly announce that we're setting aside the past to walk hand-in-hand, there should be many people who won't be able to accept it, right?"
When Azazel said this, it didn't sound like he was being cautious or offering a warning. Instead, it was like he was confirming the resolve of Sirzechs and the others, his tone full of provocation.
Michael also nodded, agreeing with Azazel's words.
The hatred and hostility between Heaven and the Devil world could not be ignored. The Church had even been training Exorcists specifically to deal with Devils.
To the people of the Church, Devils were hazards that must be annihilated and purged. Once they were asked to set aside their past beliefs to cooperate with Devils instead, it would surely cause an unprecedented shock to their faith, wouldn't it?
In fact, as former members of the Church, Asia and Xenovia currently wore expressions of shock and bewilderment. Their state of being shaken almost rivaled the time they learned the truth about God's death.
The same was true for the others. Especially for pure-blooded Devils like Rias, Sona, and Ravel, who were born and raised in the Underworld; the shifts in their expressions could only be described as spectacular.
One must remember that the overlords of the Underworld were the Devils and Fallen Angels. Both sides occupied half the territory and had long coveted each other's lands, frequently causing trouble for one another.
To suddenly say they were going to call a truce and cooperate was quite shocking.
Again, only Leon and Vali remained indifferent to this outcome.
Both were people who had known this development would occur; one held an attitude of letting nature take its course, while the other secretly watched with cold detachment.
Then, the group heard the response from Sirzechs and Serafall.
"If hatred continues to be passed down, it will only become a fatal cancer that harms everyone."
Sirzechs spoke solemnly.
"The ancient Devils have also grown tired of war, and the pro-war Devils no longer have a voice. The new generation growing up in the current environment hasn't been as hostile toward Angels and Fallen Angels as the Devils of the past. Therefore, now is the time to be enterprising and boldly seek reform!"
Serafall clenched her small fists, looking playful yet full of drive.
"As expected, the current Satans are truly interesting," Azazel laughed again, then turned to Michael. "What do you think, Archangel?"
"Our mission is to guide humanity and to look after and lead God's people toward a bright future," Michael smiled gently. "Having lost God, we have long since experienced the confusion and panic of not knowing how to proceed. After all, there will no longer be a God to lead us forward."
"We can only forge our own future and carve the path that leads to it."
"Peace is exactly what we have dreamed of."
If one were to speak of being unable to bear the losses brought by war, the Angel side was definitely in the most serious position.
The Devil side had basically solved the problem of racial continuation after the Evil Pieces were developed, so they didn't have to worry about a lack of population.
Although the Fallen Angels were the fewest in number among the three factions, as long as there were still Angels in this world, it was inevitable that some Angels would accidentally develop personal desires and eventually fall.
Only the Angels, following God's death, no longer had a way to increase their population.
After all, Angels could not increase their numbers through reproduction. They were all beings created by God. After the Creator died, the number of Angels would no longer increase; losing even one was a very serious loss.
Therefore, the Angels were currently the faction that relied most heavily on human strength. Even dealing with Devils and Fallen Angels had to be done by the Church composed of humans, while the Angels only took responsibility for giving them blessings and bestowing the Power of Light upon them to let them fight.
Consequently, the Angels were currently the faction least willing to see war occur.
As for what happened to the Church, that was another matter.
In any case, Michael was absolutely in favor of concluding a peace treaty.
"Then it's decided!"
Azazel made the final call.
"The three factions shall call a truce here and conclude a peace treaty!"
Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels would no longer be enemies from this point forward.
The war between the three factions that had lasted for thousands of years might only now be considered truly over—
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