Fami's casual question almost short-circuited everyone's brains.
"Huh? You want to save humanity?"
You are a devil. What kind of humanity are you trying to save?
Cael's mouth twitched in disbelief. "How about you take a look at the ruins around us before you keep talking?"
The brief distortion of gravity earlier had already triggered numerous disasters. The arrival of the Falling Devil had struck the world with the force of a natural catastrophe.
Japan, which had been at the center of it all, had turned into a complete disaster zone.
In only a few hours, conservative estimates placed the death toll in Japan in the tens of thousands. Hundreds of thousands were missing, and the number of injured was countless.
Cael did not feel much about such a massive tragedy.
First, this was another world.
Second, the people dying were neither his countrymen nor his family.
And third, he had not caused any of it.
What truly bothered him was how absurd Fami sounded. She had clearly been the instigator of the disaster, yet she still had the nerve to talk about saving humanity.
If this had been his old world, with crimes like hers, getting executed ten times over would not have been enough.
Fami tilted her head and calmly looked across the ruined city.
"Compared to the terror that is about to occur, this is only a negligible sacrifice. If I do nothing, far more people will die than those who died today."
Asa's heart skipped a beat. "Sister, you mean..."
Fami glanced at Asa.
"The Nostradamus Great Prophecy will come true. Next July, the worst terror will descend upon the earth."
"The worst terror?" Cael frowned deeply.
Reze lowered her head and fell into thought.
As a former high ranking Soviet agent and secret weapon of the KGB, she had heard whispers about the event Fami mentioned. In fact, the Soviet Union had already been making preparations for it.
Her mission involving Cael had also been connected to those preparations.
"Are you talking about the Era of Devils?" Reze asked cautiously.
Fami looked at her and nodded without surprise.
"You are correct. According to the prophecy, in July next year, the King of Terror will awaken from its slumber and descend upon the world. Once it arrives, the era of humanity will end. The world will enter the Era of Devils."
Reze inhaled slowly.
"What exactly is the King of Terror?"
"It is my eldest sister, the Death Devil."
Fami answered without hesitation.
"Death..." Cael muttered quietly.
The atmosphere instantly became heavy.
Fami's words felt like a dark cloud pressing down on everyone present.
Makima had once explained something to him. A devil's strength was usually proportional to the fear associated with its name.
And the word death was one of humanity's deepest fears.
Its roots were ancient and universal.
A devil representing death would undoubtedly possess terror far beyond the Falling Devil.
"So your plan to take Asa's power is meant to fight the Death Devil?" Cael asked after thinking for a moment, assuming Fami might actually be telling the truth.
"Yes."
Fami limped toward the charred remains left behind after the Falling Devil had been destroyed.
Cael and the others followed carefully, watching every movement she made.
No matter what she said, Fami was still extremely dangerous.
She crouched down and began rummaging through the ashes.
Soon, she pulled out a wooden carving about half a foot long.
At first glance, the carving's silhouette looked almost identical to the shape of the Falling Devil.
"This is the Falling Devil."
Before anyone could question her, Fami explained on her own.
"I used a special method to turn the Falling Devil into my pawn. Unfortunately, she is not very obedient. I can summon her like ordering food from a menu, but I cannot rely on her to fight our eldest sister."
Fami looked at Asa Mitaka and Cael with a serious expression.
"Third sister, and brother-in-law, we have already fought, and everything is clear now. For the sake of protecting the human world, we should cooperate. If we combine your powers with mine, we might have a chance to kill our eldest sister and stop the Era of Devils from arriving."
"Wait, give me a second..." Asa held her head.
Her brain felt like it was about to explode.
She had just started getting her life back on track, and now someone was telling her the world would end next July.
Cael, however, remained skeptical.
Makima had warned him that the Hunger Devil was extremely skilled at manipulating people. He needed to be careful about anything she said.
Cael stared straight into Fami's ringed eyes.
"But you are still a devil. Wouldn't the Era of Devils be good for you?"
He tried looking at the situation from her perspective.
Fami was a devil. Why would she care about humanity?
Devils like Pochita, who had no hostility toward humans, were extremely rare. Most devils simply saw humans as food.
And now, after causing the deaths of so many people, she was claiming she wanted to protect humanity?
On what basis?
Fami did not seem surprised by his question. Instead, her expression grew slightly more serious.
"Because devils cannot cook."
Everyone fell silent.
Fami continued calmly.
"If the Era of Devils truly begins, then dishes like Peking duck, mapo tofu, soup dumplings, hot pot, spring rolls, fried rice noodles, and pizza will all disappear."
"That would be the worst possible outcome."
Fami loved mixing lies with truth for her own amusement.
But this statement came straight from her heart.
The three of them were speechless.
So this is how a devil thinks...
Even without hearing their thoughts aloud, Fami could easily guess what they were thinking.
She asked another question.
"Third sister, brother-in-law, the two of you will probably get married one day. You might even have children. Surely you would not want them to grow up in the Era of Devils, right?"
Under Fami's subtle guidance, Asa clearly became shaken.
The topic had shifted completely. Instead of worrying about being eaten by a devil, Asa was now thinking about the future of the entire world.
Cael shook away the messy thoughts forming in his head.
"Hunger Devil."
"Since you are Asa's sister, I will spare your life today."
"We can consider cooperating."
"But if you ever try to harm Asa again, I will personally drag you down to Hell."
After warning her, Cael turned to look at Asa and Reze, his expression softening slightly.
"Let's go home. We are going to be busy for a while."
"Okay," Asa replied obediently.
Reze sighed quietly.
"I have a feeling the landline at the funeral home is already ringing nonstop."
They had barely taken a few steps when Fami suddenly called out.
"Cael, wait a moment."
Cael turned back with a displeased look. "What now?"
He had no intention of wasting more time with this strange devil who had already given him enough headaches.
Fami spoke calmly.
"Can I come to your house to eat fried dumplings?"
"Huh?"
Cael stared at her in disbelief.
"You want fried dumplings that badly?"
"Yes." Fami tilted her head innocently. "Didn't you invite me earlier?"
Cael opened his mouth.
"I..."
For a moment, he had no words.
Then he let out a cold laugh and pointed at himself, Asa, and Reze.
"You want fried dumplings?"
"Sure."
"Then show some sincerity first."
"Get down and lick the shoes of all three of us clean with your tongue. Not just the tops. The soles too. Lick them until there is not a single speck of dust left."
Fami frowned slightly in confusion.
Seeing her reaction, Cael was certain she would refuse.
After all, anyone would understand that he was deliberately humiliating her.
And since Fami was a devil, insulting her did not bother him in the slightest.
But in the very next moment, Fami suddenly knelt down.
She grabbed Cael's shoe, her pink tongue about to touch it.
"Ah!"
Cael jumped back in shock.
"What the hell?!"
He quickly stepped away and pulled out a thick wad of cash, throwing it at her head.
"Holy crap, you're insane! If you want food so badly, go buy it yourself!"
Not wanting to deal with this lunatic any longer, Cael grabbed Asa and Reze and quickly walked away.
What terrible luck.
Fami silently picked up the money from the ground and watched the three of them leave.
The strange hunger within her had been greatly satisfied.
This was fun.
A faint blush appeared on Fami's face.
"This feeling..."
"It's so joyful..."
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