This... is the God of the Bible?
She's actually joking at a time like this?
Although this was their first meeting, Elise had already left a rather strange impression on everyone present.
This Lord of ours... is kind of amusing, isn't she?
But after thinking about it carefully, Sirzechs could understand. If this had been another faction, they might indeed have needed one or two hostages.
But did the God of the Bible need hostages?
If she found you displeasing, she could simply erase you on the spot!
And you could not even question whether she possessed the strength to do so!
The devils and fallen angels are probably going to have a very difficult time in the future, aren't they? Sirzechs could already imagine what his own future would look like.
The banquet soon came to an end. Aside from Heaven, the devils and fallen angels also held some discussions of their own, particularly regarding Azazel's last-minute defection...
Although Sirzechs very much wanted to settle accounts with Azazel, now that they were both preparing to submit to the God of the Bible, he could no longer act recklessly.
If they displeased God, another natural disaster would surely descend upon them.
Azazel, however, was also quite adept at reading the situation.
He understood perfectly well that the fallen angels' strength could not compare with either Heaven or the Underworld.
Sirzechs might not be causing trouble for him now, but there was no guarantee that would remain true in the future.
Who could guarantee that the God of the Bible would remain in this world forever?
If something happened again like before and she was somehow replaced by someone else, then when the time came, everyone who held a grudge against Azazel would undoubtedly settle both old and new scores with him at once.
To prevent such a tragedy, Azazel had no choice but to offer up some treasures in exchange for the devils' friendship.
"In that case, there is no time to waste. Since all the leaders have arrived, please follow us upstairs!"
Michael took on the role of making the announcement, conveying Elise's orders to everyone present.
However, the meeting about to take place concerned matters of tremendous importance. As Michael had just said, only faction leaders were qualified to enter!
Azazel had always held the position of Governor General of the fallen angels, so he was the only one from their side who could go upstairs.
As for the devils, the Satan faction and the noble faction had originally been bitterly opposed to one another. But after Metatron eliminated most of the nobles, the noble faction now existed in name only.
As a result, the Four Great Satans had finally gained complete authority over the Underworld, becoming true Satans in every sense of the word.
Thus, the only devils attending this meeting were the Underworld's Four Great Satans.
...
"All right, everyone. Let us begin!"
Although it was called a meeting, everyone present understood perfectly well that they had merely come to receive instructions. They possessed no authority to speak whatsoever.
"I'm sure all of you already understand. Unifying the three biblical factions is only the first step of my plan. After that comes bringing the entire world under my control."
Since the devils and fallen angels had already come here, they were clearly prepared to surrender, or at the very least inclined toward surrender. The only matters left to resolve concerned their respective interests.
But once Elise spoke, who would dare disobey?
Elise had previously mentioned unification to Azazel, and the devils had clearly learned about it from him as well.
"If we cannot even accomplish the first step, then there will be no way to proceed with anything that follows."
"Now, please tell me your choice."
Elise did not release even the slightest trace of power. She merely wore a bright and gentle smile.
If one ignored the abnormal charm and pressure emanating from her, anyone would have taken her for an ordinary, kind older girl from next door.
Unfortunately, knowing who she truly was, no one dared act presumptuously! They did not even dare waste words, offering Elise only brief replies.
"The fallen angels are willing to submit."
"The devils are also willing to submit."
Once those words were spoken, there would be no turning back.
Both Azazel and Sirzechs knew perfectly well what this meant, yet they still chose to do it.
Or rather, this was the only choice available to them.
"Very good. From this day forward, the fallen angels and devils will both be incorporated under Heaven's authority. As long as you don't cause trouble, I'm actually quite tolerant. Metatron, Michael!"
"My Lord!"
Michael and Metatron, who had been standing behind Elise all this time, stepped forward and dropped to one knee on either side of Elise's chair.
"From now on, the administration of the three factions will be entrusted to Michael, Sirzechs, and Azazel. If anything comes up, the three of you may discuss it together, then submit the matter to Metatron for the final decision."
"If you cannot resolve something, or if you encounter any serious trouble, you may ask Metatron to handle it. If even she cannot deal with it, then come to me!"
They were, after all, leaders of their respective factions. Elise still needed to select one representative from each faction, but the final authority absolutely had to remain in the hands of someone she trusted!
Thus, choosing one representative from each of the three factions and placing Metatron above them was the best arrangement Elise could make at present.
"We understand."
Elise did not include herself in the hierarchy because the entire biblical pantheon belonged to her. If she said one thing, no one dared say another.
Her word was absolute!
She was merely delegating administrative authority so that the people beneath her would not create an endless stream of troublesome problems.
"Then I hereby announce that from this day forward, the angels, fallen angels, and devils shall collectively be known as the Biblical Faction!"
"With this, the plan can finally move on to its next stage!"
Elise rose from her chair, and everyone else immediately followed suit.
"Now that the merger has been successfully completed, let us announce our arrival to the world. Once you return, I ask that all of you immediately organize your forces. We are advancing toward our next target!"
The next target?
We're going to war again this quickly?
The fallen angels were fine. They had suffered virtually no losses recently. The devils, on the other hand, had lost quite a few of their high-level combatants!
Realizing this, the devils visibly showed some difficulty, but under the pressure exerted by the God of the Bible, none of them dared voice their concerns.
Elise, however, merely smiled mysteriously.
"I understand all of your concerns, but there is absolutely no need to worry..."
"Because I've invited another friend here as well."
Est, bring her in.
Elise sent Est a message through their contract, and the little girl quickly responded.
Not long afterward, a knock sounded from outside the door. Gabriel, who stood beside it, sought Elise's permission before opening it.
Only then could everyone present clearly see who was standing outside.
Two little girls, one black-haired and one white-haired...
Yet no one's gaze settled on the white-haired girl. Instead, they stared blankly at the expressionless black-haired girl.
"Impossible. Why is she here?"
"She disappeared without a trace for so long. To think she was actually in Heaven..."
"Has the God of the Bible already surpassed her? Otherwise, there's no way she would obey someone else's instructions!"
Yes. The black-haired little girl everyone was staring at was none other than the Infinite Dragon God, Ophis, who had recently made an agreement with Elise!
There was no one who did not know how powerful Ophis was!
She was one of the strongest beings in the world today!
The God of the Bible alone was already capable of suppressing ninety-nine percent of the factions in the world. If the Infinite Dragon God Ophis was added to her side as well...
Who in this world could possibly stand against them?
Perhaps even Great Red would find it difficult to resist them.
At this point, everyone could not help sighing in amazement.
It seemed the future of this world truly would fall into the hands of the God of the Bible.
Just as the leaders of the three factions were sighing in amazement, a faint tremor spread throughout the entire building.
Who could possibly be this suicidal?
The God of the Bible and the Infinite Dragon God are both here!
Almost instantly, the same thought appeared in everyone's mind.
Moreover, this was the meeting location Michael had personally selected. One entire wall had been replaced with glass, allowing everyone inside the room to see the situation outside with perfect clarity.
"The sky has darkened. It should be some kind of barrier that has pulled this entire building into a separate space. That's quite an extravagant move!"
"Indeed. Anyone capable of something like this must belong to a fairly powerful organization. If we investigate carefully, we should definitely be able to identify them."
Everyone quickly discovered what had happened and began explaining the situation at the scene.
They all knew that the God of the Bible could undoubtedly see through it herself. However, they had only just submitted to her, and now an attack had conveniently occurred. Was this not the perfect opportunity to demonstrate their value?
Yet when everyone turned toward Elise, they discovered that she was not angry at all. In fact... she seemed to have expected this?
"Just as I thought. Those guys really did come!"
Elise's completely confident demeanor immediately reassured everyone.
"Your Holiness, could it be that you already knew someone would attack us today?"
Azazel and Sirzechs exchanged a glance before turning toward Elise together.
"That's right. After all, those people are quite troublesome. Isn't that right, Ophis?"
However, Elise suddenly tossed the question to Ophis, leaving everyone somewhat confused.
The sharper Azazel, however, had already realized that this matter was probably connected to Ophis.
Elise therefore simply explained the intelligence she possessed regarding the Khaos Brigade.
"To think an organization like that actually exists..."
"The descendants of the original Satans still exist? Are they trying to reclaim the positions of Satan?"
After receiving this information, the entire room fell silent. Forget the fallen angels and devils, even Michael and the others had never heard of such a thing.
"Your Holiness, if I remember correctly, you just said that the leader of the Khaos Brigade is Lady Ophis... correct?"
Azazel first looked at Elise, then turned toward Ophis.
Now that he had submitted to the God of the Bible, it was only natural for him to address Elise as Your Holiness. Ophis, however, was slightly more troublesome.
Normally, Azazel would never have addressed Ophis so respectfully. After all, Ophis had no interest in anything. But now...
Azazel's gaze darted rapidly between the two of them, as though trying to determine their relationship.
Their relationship can't be simple, can it? To avoid displeasing Elise, Azazel therefore used an honorific for Ophis as well.
"Since Lady Ophis is already here, does that mean...?"
"Exactly as you suspect, Azazel."
"Those people deceived Ophis with various excuses and obtained a great deal of power from her. It may have been insignificant to Ophis herself, but to other factions, that amount of power is an enormous problem."
Elise also turned her gaze toward the window. Numerous magic circles had already appeared across the darkened sky, seemingly transporting people from other locations.
"Fortunately, Ophis now understands what they were planning. That's why she formed a contract with me and abandoned the Khaos Brigade."
By the time Elise reached this point, she had already risen from her seat and walked over to Ophis.
Elise pulled the petite black-haired girl into her arms and gently pinched her cheeks.
The sight left the members of the three factions dumbfounded. Is that really their relationship? Why does it look more like a master playing with her pet? And what exactly is this contract the God of the Bible mentioned?
No! This is way too much information at once!
Even so, everyone still managed to identify the key point. Ophis apparently listened to Elise now. Otherwise, there was no way she would allow herself to be kneaded and pinched like this!
At that moment, everyone's assessment of the God of the Bible's strength rose another level.
"Should we deal with those people outside?"
Azazel raised a hand and pointed toward the magic circles outside. Quite a few people wearing pitch-black robes had already emerged from them and were gathering their magical power in preparation for an attack.
Before Azazel had even finished speaking, however, the Four Great Satans beside him dropped to one knee before Elise almost simultaneously.
"Your Holiness, God of the Bible!"
"What is it?"
Elise held a fairly favorable opinion of these Satans. Otherwise, she would never have accepted them as subordinates and would simply have eliminated them like those devil nobles.
"Please allow us to deal with these enemies."
"If they truly are descendants of the original Satans, then they must be hiding many secrets unknown to us! If we can uncover them, it will undoubtedly be of great help in the future!"
Elise did not immediately answer the devils. She merely stood there holding Ophis, waiting quietly.
Until...
Boom!
A violent explosion erupted overhead. The Khaos Brigade's attack had arrived!
A massive hole was blasted through the meeting room where Elise and the others stood, exposing everything inside to those outside.
"Sirzechs!"
"Submitting to Heaven is a disgrace to all devils!"
"Do you still possess even a shred of a devil's pride?"
A man who appeared to be a descendant of one of the original Satans flapped his devil wings, intending to descend into the room.
Before he could get close, however, a golden flash streaked past, and his head separated cleanly from his neck.
"To dare show disrespect toward my Lord... The punishment is death!"
Holding the devil's severed head in one hand, Metatron slowly descended from the sky. Everyone watching could not help twitching at the corners of their mouths.
We were planning to extract some information from that guy, but you went and killed him immediately?
That poor bastard didn't even get to introduce himself before he was sent straight to the afterlife...
Only then did Elise finally speak, responding to what Sirzechs had said earlier.
"Sirzechs, you understand, don't you?"
"They are descendants of the original Satans. They are completely different from you devils of the new generation."
"I appreciate all of you, which is why I eliminated only the villains among the devils and did not kill the good ones."
"Your friends and families were never placed in mortal danger."
Elise's originally gentle tone abruptly changed, becoming utterly cold.
"But those people are different!"
"If they were allowed to become Satans, fallen angels, devils, and humans alike would all suffer!"
"You understand that, don't you?"
"..."
Faced with Elise's forcefulness, Sirzechs fell silent.
He had never met the descendants of the original Satans before, so he had intended to plead for them in front of the God of the Bible and see whether these devils could be spared.
After all, attacking the God of the Bible would unquestionably incur Heaven's wrath! Even if the angels annihilated them outright, he would consider it perfectly understandable!
Therefore, for the sake of protecting the devils of the Underworld and his own family, Sirzechs had no choice.
Elise, meanwhile, set Ophis down from her arms and, beneath everyone's gaze, slowly floated up from the floor.
"So..."
"I'll deal with these people personally!"