The blonde knight-princess and the Flügel girl stood facing each other. As their eyes met, it was as if lightning crackled between them.
When it came to the title of "most favored pet," neither was willing to back down an inch.
However...
"Erica, you're trembling," Liliana pointed out kindly.
"H-Hush! Mind your own business! I'm not scared!" Erica retorted stubbornly.
From the group chat, she knew that Su Mo's power was on a completely different level now, having reached the galaxy-destroying sixth tier. What she hadn't expected was that Jibril's strength had also skyrocketed.
Jibril had already been a fourth-tier being, a cut above the average Godslayer or Heretic God. But after following Su Mo to the Star Rail world, she had become a top-tier combatant even among the fifth tier.
It was only Erica's own iron will that kept her from admitting defeat.
That, and the fact that the Flügel girl knew how to hold back against allies and wasn't projecting any true killing intent.
Otherwise, Erica wasn't sure she could have withstood Jibril's aura.
"I never said you were scared!" Liliana muttered under her breath, glancing at the Flügel girl with a hint of surprise.
In her experience, Erica had never been one to admit defeat, even showing a lack of reverence for Godslayers. She never would have guessed that the angelic girl before her could intimidate Erica to this extent.
Erica hadn't been this timid even when facing the Heretic God, Athena!
After her brief surprise, Liliana's gaze shifted to the man who was now her master. This was the first time she had ever laid eyes on the one her magical cabal had sworn allegiance to.
"Liliana Kranjcar of the Bronze Black Cross, I greet you, my Lord!"
"Sayanomiya Kaoru, Hime-Miko of the Official History Compilation Committee, I greet you, Your Majesty Su Mo!"
"..."
Upon realizing Su Mo's identity, all the members of the surrounding magical organizations dropped to their knees in unison.
On any other day, they might not have been so subservient. But now, with their homeland shattered and their trump card, Susanoo, having bailed on them, their only hope against the apocalyptic disasters was a Godslayer. They had no choice but to kneel.
Su Mo paid the unfamiliar mob characters no mind. After glancing at Liliana and permitting his new subordinate to rise, he turned to Erica to inquire about the situation.
"So, what's going on? Why did the Last King suddenly awaken?" Su Mo asked curiously, looking toward the distant battlefield.
The Last King himself was supposed to be completely apathetic. Without some external stimulus, it should have been very difficult for him to awaken.
Beside him, Jibril blinked.
"I seem to recall someone mentioning that Guinevere could awaken the Last King, correct?"
As soon as she spoke, before Erica could answer, a petite, blonde girl who looked no older than twelve or thirteen materialized from the earth. She puffed out her cheeks resentfully and spoke in a rush.
"This has nothing to do with Guinevere! I am the Master's subordinate now. I can't betray him even if I wanted to, so how could I possibly do something like that?"
According to the flow of mythology, Guinevere was still the conquered Earth Mother Goddess, still the Handmaiden of Steel, but the one who had conquered her was Su Mo.
Because of this contract, not only was she physically incapable of betrayal, but her very mind was gradually aligning with that of Su Mo's retainers. It was impossible for her to betray him by intentionally summoning the Last King.
More importantly, based on her understanding of Su Mo, she knew that even if the Last King were to awaken, he would be no match for him.
No matter how you looked at it, this wasn't something she would do.
"Hmm, you're telling the truth. It seems it really has nothing to do with you," Jibril confirmed from the tone of Guinevere's voice.
Ignoring the pouting Guinevere, she looked curiously at Erica.
"So, what really happened?"
"It was those other Godslayers!" Erica finally found an opening to speak.
"After word got out that you shattered half the moon last time, my Lord, the Black Prince Alec formed a 'Godslayer Alliance' with the Martial King Luo Hao and Pluto to resist your summons!"
"According to reports from the King of Swords and Marquis Voban, Black Prince Alec got a lot of intel from them. He realized your power was unbeatable and decided to take a different approach."
"As it happens, he had pursued Guinevere before and had heard about the Last King, so he launched an investigation with the other two."
"It seems they planned to drive out the wolf to devour the tiger—they wanted the Last King and you to destroy each other, my Lord."
As one of the rare, more cautious Godslayers, Black Prince Alec had managed to unite the remaining ones through his own efforts.
Of course, what had truly won over Luo Hao wasn't his strategy, but the sheer power that Su Mo, the Devil King of the Shattered Moon, had displayed.
No matter how arrogant Luo Hao was, she wasn't so conceited as to believe her martial arts could stand against him.
"Even so, it should have been difficult for them to find the Last King," Su Mo pointed out the key issue.
The Last King's location was on a synchronous satellite, a place not even Godslayers could easily find.
"That's normally true, but during their alliance, they ran into the most unpredictable Godslayer of them all: Madame Aisha!" Erica's expression became complicated.
"I see."
Su Mo nodded immediately.
No further questions were needed. The moment the name "Madame Aisha" was mentioned, no bizarre turn of events was too strange to believe.
With her absurd, reality-bending luck, stumbling upon the Last King was practically a mundane occurrence.
"And then? They formed an alliance with the Last King?" Jibril asked curiously.
"As if!" Erica shook her head.
"The Last King had no intention of forming an alliance. He killed Black Prince Alec on the spot with his Salvation Blade and was about to go after the Martial King and Pluto. If Madame Aisha hadn't used her Authority to throw the situation into chaos, he would have claimed at least one more Godslayer."
Due to the [Covenant of Allegiance], the Last King's power was tied to the number of Godslayers. Even though Su Mo wasn't on Earth at the time, there were still six Devil Kings in the world, which was enough to amplify the Last King's strength to an unprecedented degree.
To the Last King, Alec's proposal was the height of absurdity.
Teaming up with him, the Last King, to fight another Godslayer? He would never agree to something that so thoroughly violated his warrior's honor.
Although Alec had made multiple preparations in advance, he had ultimately underestimated the Last King's power and paid for it with his life.
Alec's plan was dead in the water before it even began.
"To be done in by the very seal he helped break... truly befitting the Son of a Fool," Su Mo commented dryly, then asked, "So what happened next? Logically, the Last King's enemies should be the other Godslayers. How did he end up fighting Athena?"
Although the Last King was the Hero of Steel closest to the [Sword of Origin], he still belonged to the camp of the gods and held sufficient respect for Athena. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he wouldn't have attacked her willingly.
Not to mention, Athena was supposed to be in the Divine Realm.
"After Black Prince Alec was slain, the Martial King Luo Hao was deeply humiliated. In a fit of rage, she was beaten half to death by the Last King and was ultimately saved by Pluto and Madame Aisha. They came to our headquarters to ask for aid," Erica continued.
If Luo Hao had been conscious, her immense pride would never have allowed it.
Unfortunately, Madame Aisha and Pluto were not the types to stand on ceremony. Su Mo merely wanted their submission, while the Last King wanted their lives. Even a fool would know which side to choose.
"I was about to contact you, Master, but Lady Athena noticed the situation here and offered to help."
"Lady Athena said that this planet is your property, my Lord, and she would never allow anyone to defile it, especially not that detestable, taboo steel. She said that as long as she was here, there was no need to disturb you."
"And so, it evolved into the situation we see now."
After her brief summary, Erica lowered her voice and added a snide comment.
"Although, if you ask me, I think that goddess's real goal is simply to get some praise from our Lord!"
Hearing this last assessment, Jibril found herself in rare agreement with Erica.
"Exactly! Trying to win the Master's favor like that... how shameless!"
"..."
Overhearing their hushed whispers, Liliana's expression went completely rigid.
Are they serious?!
The goddess Athena, who could effortlessly sweep across the face of the Earth and whose power far exceeded that of an ordinary Heretic God, was fighting such a terrifying enemy... and her reason was just to get praise from a man?
How is that even possible?!
She's an Earth Mother Goddess, not some love-struck teenager!
Has Erica lost her mind? How could she say something so absurd?
Before she could collect her bewildered thoughts and stop herself from blurting out a retort, a sharp sound of something slicing through the air came from the distant battlefield.
Liliana barely had time to tense up before a divine, beautiful, and slender figure appeared before them.
The girl wore a laurel crown, her features were of divine beauty, and her owl-like eyes shone brightly with what seemed to be great excitement.
"Lady Athena!"
Liliana immediately dropped to one knee in reverence. She had seen the goddess from a distance a few times over the past few days and had even briefly interacted with the cool-headed deity alongside Erica.
She just never expected the goddess to abandon her battle and come here.
Could it be she overheard Erica bad-mouthing her and came to deliver punishment?
Before Liliana could start worrying and pleading for her friend, she watched in astonishment as the supremely holy and beautiful goddess Athena transformed right before her eyes.
After shrinking her sixteen-year-old maiden form down to the appearance of a twelve-year-old, silver-haired loli, the young goddess excitedly threw herself into Su Mo's arms. She looked up at him and called out in a voice filled with adoration.
"Master!"
"!"
At that single word, and seeing the silver-haired goddess's genuinely affectionate and submissive posture, everyone present—Liliana included—froze in shock.
They had assumed the Devil King of the Shattered Moon and the goddess Athena were allies at best. They never imagined their relationship was one of master and servant.
Which meant... the Devil King of the Shattered Moon was keeping a goddess powerful enough to rival the Last King as a pet?
The staggering reality and the chaotic implications turned everyone's thoughts into a jumbled mess.
In the end, they simply gave up on trying to understand. Only a single thought remained in their minds:
This whole circle is a mess.