— — — — — —
Ryo very much wanted to say, 'You don't need to help me. I'm already one of the higher-ups.'
But he wasn't stupid enough to say that to Indra.
Instead, he put on an expression of surprise that wasn't entirely unexpected.
On the other side, Indra was also carefully observing "Loki," studying Ryo's reaction before breaking into a satisfied smile.
He was extremely pleased with what he saw.
His confidence in the success of this undercover operation rose considerably.
If it were some other god, like those idiots among Greece's Primordial Five, they would have immediately said something like, "A trickster god like Loki could never earn anyone's trust."
But Indra disagreed.
Loki's personality and reputation naturally made others wary of him. But precisely because people were wary of him, he could often uncover things that ordinary, trusted individuals never would.
It was reverse psychology, in a sense.
Any information the Three Factions deliberately kept from Loki was almost guaranteed to be important.
That alone made him a useful filter.
Of course, Indra wasn't about to tell Ryo that he was basically a glorified sorting machine. Instead, he had to emphasize how much he valued "Loki." If you wanted a horse to run fast, you had to feed it premium fodder.
With that thought, Indra smiled. "Loki, judging by your reaction, it seems you've already figured out what I want you to do."
"A filtering tool?" Ryo guessed.
Indra froze.
The smile on his face immediately turned awkward.
"As expected of Loki. You figured out one of my objectives that quickly."
"One of your objectives?" Ryo repeated the words without sounding particularly suspicious. After all, everyone deserved a little dignity.
"I want control over several Dragon species. Heavenly Dragon-class." He got straight to the point.
Indra nearly choked. His expression twitched slightly before he forced out a response. "Loki, you should understand that controlling Heavenly Dragons is extremely dangerous if your strength isn't sufficient."
"Three." Ryo ignored him and named his price.
"Loki, you know how difficult it is to obtain Heavenly Dragon-class dragons. Even for me..." Indra continued trying to persuade him.
"Then I'll go ask Shiva."
Ryo completely disregarded the lecture.
"One. Only one." Indra gritted his teeth.
His eyes sharpened. "One Heavenly Dragon, plus all the data from the dragon resurrection experiments. That's my final offer."
"Deal." Only then did Ryo smile. "But I get to choose which dragon."
Indra blinked. "Who?"
Ryo's expression suddenly became serious.
"Angra Mainyu's Evil Dragon."
Then he corrected himself with a faint smile. "Azi Dahaka."
...
The conversation ended in what Ryo considered a perfectly friendly atmosphere.
After the connection was cut, Akeno, who had already returned, smiled slightly and asked, "Should I call you Loki or Ryo?"
"Cut it out." Ryo rolled his eyes.
There was no way Akeno hadn't seen through the situation.
"This Indra guy really loves making things complicated. He wants me to oppose an alliance with the Three Factions while simultaneously negotiating the most favorable peace terms for myself. A traitor is a traitor. Dressing it up in fancy words doesn't change anything."
"But you're not actually Loki," Akeno pointed out.
Ryo grinned. "Exactly. Loki can run around betraying the Norse gods all he wants. What does that have to do with me, Ryo Yagami?"
"Nothing at all," Suzaku agreed.
"Absolutely nothing," Akeno nodded along.
"Maybe I should think about how to convince Odin to sell out the Norse gods at a discount..."
Ryo rubbed his chin, amusement gradually appearing in his eyes.
...
..
Meanwhile, somewhere over Europe...
Inside a private jet, an elderly man with silver hair, blue eyes, and a monocle over his left eye sat on a luxurious sofa.
The smile on his face practically screamed untrustworthy old man.
At the moment, however, he was simply staring blankly at the swaying skirt of a passing flight attendant.
"Odin-sama, the Three Factions have formally accepted negotiations. The meeting location will be Kyoto, Japan."
A heroic-looking woman with long silver-gray hair and blue eyes approached him in a business suit, carrying a stack of documents.
She received no response.
Confused, she followed Odin's gaze.
Then she saw the flight attendant's long, exposed legs.
Her face immediately darkened.
"Enjoying the view?"
"Very much," Odin answered without even thinking. "Far better than a certain Valkyrie who dresses like a nun and hides herself in loose trousers all day. Now that's what a woman should look like."
"I'm terribly sorry for lacking feminine charm."
Rossweisse gripped the documents so hard that fingerprints were practically stamped into the paper.
If not for her pride as a Valkyrie, she would have already shoved a lance through Odin's mouth and out the other end.
Hearing her voice, Odin paused.
He glanced at her. Then immediately looked away again.
"Ahem."
Straightening his expression, he adopted the dignity of a king, "So, the Three Factions have finally agreed to negotiations?"
"The location is Kyoto." Rossweisse took a deep breath before continuing. "Given the current state of affairs, Kyoto is essentially the headquarters of the Three Factions. With the yokai, the exorcists, and the Three Factions all gathered there, it's arguably the most powerful stronghold in the world. If anything goes wrong, you'll almost certainly die there."
Then she curled her lips into a mocking smile, "Actually, your death might even be a blessing for the women of the Norse realm."
"A blessing?" Odin scoffed. "It'd be a tragedy. Without me, would there even be this many demigods in the Norse world?"
He muttered the words before narrowing his eyes. "But hosting the meeting in Japan... Are they trying to test my sincerity?"
"So, are you going?"
Rossweisse glanced at her wristwatch. "Fifteen minutes until departure. You still have time to decide whether you'd like to refuse."
Odin sighed. "This isn't a problem that goes away just because I stay home."
Within Europe, only three major mythological powers remained: the Celtic pantheon, the Norse pantheon, and the three factions.
But everyone with eyes could see the truth.
The Three Factions, now united under Ryo's rule, had become the dominant power in Europe. If they wished, they could easily consume the Celtic and Norse pantheons alike.
The Celtic pantheon wasn't much of a concern. Among the remaining powers, the Norse gods were by far the strongest. Both Thor and Fenrir, two beings ranked among the Top Ten Strongest, hailed from Norse mythology.
At first glance, the Norse side even appeared stronger than the three factions in terms of top combat power.
Unfortunately, the other side possessed trump cards.
"Infinite Dragon God Ophis..."
Odin's head already hurt when he thought of Ophis.
Then he remembered the rumors about Ryo Yagami, the man who had supposedly defeated Ophis.
That was enough to make his stomach ache.
"Why does the Three Factions always produce so many monsters among the younger generation? First there was Rizevim. Then Grayfia, Sirzechs, and Ajuka, all of whom had the potential to enter the world's top ten, if they weren't already there. And now they've produced an even greater monster who unified the entire faction."
He shook his head. "As for us Norse gods, no one after Thor has truly matured yet."
Then he glanced at Rossweisse, "Though you're at least somewhat promising."
"How generous," Rossweisse replied expressionlessly and smacked away his wandering hand with her documents.
To her despair, the hand hadn't been reaching for her.
It had been reaching toward another passing flight attendant.
Somehow that hurt even more.
As a woman whose years of being single were equal to her age, Rossweisse carried deep resentment in her heart.
"Regardless, we have to go to Kyoto." Odin rubbed his reddened hand. "At the very least, we need to show sincerity and deny them any excuse to blame us later."
Then he added, "Speaking of which, have the people monitoring Loki reported anything yet?"
"No." Rossweisse shook her head.
Odin's expression darkened.
"What's that idiot up to this time..."
After a long sigh, he said, "Forget it. Continue treating him as a potential threat, same as always. Let's head to Kyoto."
...
..
After arriving in Kyoto and checking into their hotel, Rossweisse brought Odin an unexpected report while he was having dinner.
"What?" Odin nearly dropped his meal. "The Norse peace envoy is already in contact with Ryo Yagami?"
His appetite vanished instantly.
He stared blankly at Rossweisse. "Since when did we send a peace envoy?"
"Who is this peace envoy? And most importantly... if he is the envoy, then who am I?"
"It's Loki." Rossweisse's expression became extremely complicated. "He introduced himself as the Norse peace envoy and has already been granted an audience with Mr. Ryo Yagami."
She paused. "Apparently, he also presented a letter of authorization from you."
"...What?"
"A letter bearing your personal signature," Rossweisse added.
Odin: "..."
At that moment, every curse he'd ever learned surged through his mind, each one desperately fighting to be the first out of his mouth.
.
.
.