Chapter 1141 Just What In The Nine Hells ls That Brat Up To?
"They finally started moving," Joash said as he shifted his gaze to the two round mirrors in front of him. "The Demons are now going to war."
Byron and the Pope of the Holy Order nodded their heads in understanding.
"We will wait for you to report their movements to us," Byron replied. "Are you confident that you will be able to hold them back for two months?"
Joash shook his head. "Originally, I thought the same. But now, I think the most I can do is delay their advance for a month. Their numbers, the quality of their army, as well as their siege weaponry has far exceeded my expectations. I'm afraid my fortress will fall in less than a month, but I will try to hold it for as long as possible. How are things on your end?"
"We need one more month to complete the battle array," the Pope replied. "Two more Pseudo-Gods will descend from the Heavens in a month. By then, Ahriman's and our High-End fighters will be evenly matched. The Demons may number in the millions, but our forces combined number in the tens of millions. Unless Ahriman has nothing cooked up under his sleeve, I don't see any possibility for their invasion to succeed."
Joash snorted as he gazed at the Pope who was in control of the strongest organization in the world.
"Ahriman is a Primordial God," Joash stated. "He may be sealed, but he is not stupid. I'm sure that he is also aware of the disparity of numbers. I don't believe that he had nothing up his sleeve."
The Pope smiled because she agreed with Joash's conclusion. Byron, on the other hand, was still frowning.
"Are you sure that it is a wise idea to leave the Prince of Darkness alone?" Byron asked. "There is still the possibility of him being the Dungeon Conqueror, right?"
The Pope sighed before giving her answer. "We have no choice. We signed an agreement with him. Until Felix is dealt with, the Holy Order of Light and the Prince of Darkness will not fight against each other. Also, him being the Dungeon Conqueror is merely a hunch. Right now, the disappearances of Dungeons have stopped completely.
"This coincides with the movements of the Demons, so the other possibility of the Dungeon Conqueror being Ahriman's pawn is also valid. We are afraid of getting pincered from the back, and the front, so we decided to position the majority of the alliance's forces in the center of the continent. That way, we will be able to act as soon as any signs of internal trouble arise."
Joash didn't join the discussion because he didn't plan to share the information he had about William. Because Vesta was currently in the Thousand Beast Domain, he was quite aware of what was happening on William's end.
For him, William was a dark horse, and must be treated carefully. The Black Dragon had a nagging feeling that it would be better to betray the Holy Order of Light, than betray William, who had now stepped into the rank of Demigods.
'I don't know why his conquest for Dungeons had stopped,' Joash thought. 'He hasn't been inside the Thousand Beast Domain for quite some time now. Did something happen to him?'
The Black Dragon lightly tapped the armrest of his throne, as he listened to Byron's and the Pope's exchange.
Although legions of Demons were currently headed in his direction, he didn't feel any fear towards them. He knew that his Fortress' role was to only delay the inevitable war between the Demons, Humans, Elves, as well as the other races of the world.
Joash believed that the victor of this battle would be those who had the greatest conviction. As someone who was also planning revenge, the Black Dragon was leaning more on William, despite the fact that the Half-Elf was currently at a disadvantage.
'Just what are you doing right now, boy?' Joash thought as his conference with Byron and the Pope ended. 'I hope that you will give me a wonderful surprise the next time we meet on the battlefield.'
—-
Hestia Academy…
"Did you see his reaction?" the Pope asked Byron through the round mirror. "He knows something, but he's not sharing it with us."
Byron nodded his head in agreement. "Unfortunately, we can't force him to tell us anything. Right now, we are relying on him to hold the Demons back."
The Pope's lips curled up into a sneer as she gazed at the Headmaster of Hestia Academy who was trying to sugarcoat Joash's lack of interest in sharing the information about William.
Seeing the Pope's reaction, Byron sighed as he held up both hands.
"There have been no signs of the boy anywhere," Byron stated. "The last time someone saw him was when the two Virtues were released. Since then, no one has been able to pinpoint his current location. Even the alliance's and the underworld's information network couldn't sniff out his whereabouts. He seemed to have disappeared into thin air, just like the rumored Dungeon Conqueror who has been conquering dungeons left and right."
The Pope chuckled after hearing Byron's voice that had a trace of anxiety in it.
"So what if he is the Dungeon Conqueror?" People asked in a challenging tone. "Back then, his father might have been able to move in the world unhindered, but that was only because he controlled ten Demigods.
"A month from now, the Order of Light will have four Pseudo-Gods serving our noble cause. Even if the number of Demigods he possessed became twenty or thirty, they are still no match against the existences that surpassed their rank."
Byron sighed as he looked at the Pope with a fed up gaze.
"That boy should not be underestimated," Byron replied. "You keep on forgetting that he is also part of a Prophecy. Do you honestly believe that dealing with him will be so simple?"
The Pope gave Byron a teasing smile that made the latter feel uncomfortable.
"It is not that I am underestimating that boy, William," the Pope stated. "It is just that we are already preparing a ceremony that will ensure that he will be properly dealt with at a later time."
Byron frowned. "A ceremony? What kind of ceremony?"
"I will keep it a secret for now. The surprise will lose its effect when it is out of the bag."
"Fine."
Byron couldn't help but wonder where the Pope's confidence was coming from. It seemed that after the two Virtues were defeated, the Pope decided to take matters in her own hand in order to deal with William.
'I don't know if I should pity him or not,' Byron mused as he thought of the boy who had caught his interest early on. 'The Holy Order of Light is a bunch of crazy people. Getting entangled with them would only lead to endless trouble. I'm just glad that I'm not their enemy.'
Byron ended his conversation with the Pope as he contacted his agents who were scattered all over the continent.
He had a nagging feeling that William was doing something big. However, he just couldn't put his finger in it.
"If he is really the Dungeon Conqueror, he must never stop conquering Dungeons in order to raise his army," Byron muttered as he stared at the map of the Central Continent on his table. "But no reports of Dungeons being raided have appeared during the past few weeks. Just what in the Nine Hells is that brat up to?"