— — — — — —
After leaving Ryo, the Demon King of Confusion didn't do anything flashy. He just quietly used his Gift to travel, moving swiftly through the streets of the Capital—until he reached a luxurious villa district.
He kept silent as he took a few cautious detours, making sure no one was tailing him, before walking straight into one of the private homes.
Once inside the villa's grand hall, the Demon King sat cross-legged on the floor. From his Gift card, he pulled out a golden card that shimmered with power.
This wasn't any ordinary Gift—it was a high-grade 'Appraisal'-type ability, crafted by the upper echelons of Ouroboros. It represented just a fragment of their so-called 'omniscient' capabilities.
It was extremely rare.
And the only reason the Demon King had it at all was because Maxwell himself had given it to him the day before—to rope him in.
Not that he felt any gratitude toward Maxwell for that. Their relationship was strictly transactional.
Clutching the appraisal card, he whispered: "Analyze every foreign power currently attached to me."
The golden card gleamed darkly, glowing with an inky black light. A wave of energy swept over his body, and rows of glowing text appeared on its surface.
He skipped past the familiar entries—his own Gifts, abilities he'd seen a hundred times—and scanned for anything new.
Then he saw it.
[A stealth-based attack technique, derived from the "Universal Energy of the Cosmos." Suspected to be capable of atomic-level disintegration. Danger level: extremely high.]
"...Tch! Even the 'omniscient' system can't fully analyze it? Cosmic Energy?!"
He sucked in a sharp breath—so sharp, it nearly emptied the entire living room of air.
After a long silence, the Demon King muttered, almost in awe: "As expected of one of the creators of Little Garden... The King of Gods, Indra. Even after converting to Buddhism and becoming Deva Indra... he still kept this kind of hidden card."
Cosmos—just what tier was that, exactly?
Even among three-digit gods, he'd never heard anyone use that kind of terminology.
Which meant it had to be from the realm of the two-digits—that terrifying league of seventeen full-authority domain sovereigns.
If Indra really had access to two-digit-tier powers... then it made sense why he'd remained a central figure in the Buddhist faction's military—one of the great generals of the Celestial Army—even after all these eras.
Old monsters never die—they just get sneakier.
The Demon King instantly dropped any thought of reporting this back to Ouroboros leadership.
If Ryo was really an avatar of Indra, a being with two-digit Gifts... yeah, that was way above his pay grade.
Let the bosses deal with that mess.
With that in mind, he took out a conch shell from his Gift card—and blew into it.
A low, echoing sound rang through the air.
From the conch, round shimmering bubbles began to rise. They expanded quickly, each swelling to the size of a soccer ball.
Then, within one of those floating orbs, a figure began to materialize: a man with chestnut-brown hair styled meticulously, dressed in a slick black tailcoat, the very image of a high-class host.
The demon lord Maxwell had arrived.
"Demon King of Confusion," he greeted coolly, "you contacting me like this—did you uncover something?"
"Ryo Yagami is alone," the Demon King said bluntly.
"Oh? That the new Arcadia leader?"
Maxwell raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
"Brave of him, trying to use himself as bait. Kid's still wet behind the ears, huh?"
His first instinct? A trap.
Of course it was a trap.
No way the Arcadia remnants didn't know they were being watched. And yet they'd gone ahead and held a territory-claiming event anyway?
It screamed setup.
That's why he and the Demon King of Confusion had acted separately. They both suspected a trap, but they were confident enough in their abilities—and escape plans—to investigate solo.
They'd chosen this time specifically—when the city was at its rowdiest, and security was at its weakest—to poke around and gather intel on No Name.
And while they were bold, they weren't reckless.
Maxwell had been tracking Ryo's movements the whole time. He'd just deliberately avoided direct contact, preferring to gather information from the sidelines.
Now, though? It looked like Ryo had caught on. That someone was watching. And instead of retreating... he decided to bait the trap himself.
Laughable.
So what if Ryo was a priority target? That didn't mean they had to change course just because he made a move.
As long as [No Name] kept showing its face, information would eventually leak out. There was no rush. Slow and steady was safer.
Who the hell would stick their neck out just to piss off one of the East Area's territory rulers?
Ouroboros's entire strategy was about disrupting the lower levels quietly—not charging in like idiots.
The Demon King could practically read Maxwell's thoughts at this point.
Honestly, Ouroboros had always been good at this game. The way they stayed hidden, even managed to cripple Arcadia without anyone figuring out who was behind it? Impressive.
Even Canaria, one of the sharpest minds in Little Garden, had no idea which big-name faction had struck.
You didn't survive in a place crawling with gods and demons without serious skills.
So... could he use it? That name Ryo mentioned?
Feeling it out, the Demon King tried, lowering his voice: "I think... I may have been exposed."
"Oh?" Maxwell's brow twitched slightly.
He had a rough idea of who the Demon King of Confusion was. He had invited him, after all.
The guy was no slouch in the five-digit stand. But more importantly—he had a very specific Gift.
Reality Manipulation.
Demon King of Confusion can make the effects described by the words become reality. However, the words have to be Chinese 4-character idioms and doesn't work against children.
So how the hell had Ryo spotted him?
Had a child seen him and reported it? No, if that were the case, the Demon King wouldn't look so... shaken.
As Maxwell mulled it over, the Demon King suddenly added:
"When I got close to him, Ryo suddenly said the word 'Willa'... to an empty space nearby. Thought it was odd."
Maxwell's entire demeanor snapped.
The calm, collected front vanished in an instant—replaced by wide-eyed rage. He shouted without a shred of dignity:
"Willa?! DAMMIT! DAMMIT!! Those No Name bastards—they're still in contact with her?!"
"Unbelievable!! If that bastard Koumei Kasukabe hadn't interfered back in the spring, I'd be with Willa right now! We'd be together! But noooo, he had to show up and screw everything up—and now some nobody like Ryo Yagami dares to approach her?!"
"He's actually meeting her?! He dares?!"
The Demon King was stunned.
He stared at Maxwell, who was practically foaming at the mouth with jealousy, his face twisted into something truly ugly.
And for some reason... he actually felt kinda sorry for the guy.
I mean... if Ryo really is Indra's avatar…
With that thought in mind, the Demon King hesitated, then added slyly: "I also heard some rumors that Ryo's got a thing for... married women."
Maxwell went rigid.
Ryo liked married women + Willa was his woman = Ryo liked Willa.
Willa was secretly meeting with Ryo = Willa was cheating on him with Ryo = Ryo was sleeping with his woman.
The equations wrote themselves in his head—spiraling into an abyss of madness.
And then—BOOM. The communication bubble exploded.
The Demon King blinked in shock, realizing Maxwell had just crushed the conch from the other end.
Right before the connection cut, he swore he caught a glimpse of a face twisted in pure, unhinged fury.
"All that from just a name? That worked too well," the Demon King muttered.
Then, recalling Maxwell's outburst, his expression turned a little... odd.
"Holy hell... wait a second... No way. No freaking way. Don't tell me... Maxwell's the heartbroken loser, and Ryo's the homewrecker next door?!"
"So many details I can't miss. Hehe~"
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