This damn woman!!!
Clayman wanted to skin Frey alive in his heart, but on the surface, he could only continue smiling and playing along.
The two bargained for a while, and in the end, Clayman gained nothing from her.
"You actually succeeded?"
Laplace couldn't understand why Frey would agree to cooperate with Clayman.
But it was precisely because Frey spoke with such confidence, demanding the territories of two Demon Lords so aggressively, that it dispelled his doubts.
After all, Frey's demands were so outrageous.
If you said she was joking,
It didn't seem like it at all.
Moreover, once Frey annexed Milim's and Carrion's territories, it was inevitable she would be questioned by the Demon Lord Council.
To handle the pressure from the other Demon Lords, Frey couldn't stand alone.
"She cannot face the wrath of the Demon Lords alone."
"Only by having me awaken as a True Demon Lord and stand beside her at the Council can we contend with the others!"
In Clayman's plan.
He would awaken as a Demon Lord, control Milim, make her obey him, and have her endorse him at the Demon Lord Banquet.
With Frey added in, the combined power of three True Demon Lords would become the strongest faction within the Demon Lord Alliance.
With such a flawless vision, there was no reason Frey wouldn't be tempted.
"You see, Laplace."
Clayman said, "This is the growth I've achieved since I left all of you."
"That woman Frey is much smarter than you all!"
"So..."
"Stop looking at me with your old eyes!"
Having reached an agreement with Frey, Clayman's irritation from his previous defeat in the Great Jura Forest vanished.
Once his plan succeeded.
Three True Demon Lords working together, those mere Oni from that savage forest would be nothing!
Thinking this, Clayman ignored Laplace, picked up the red wine bottle on the table, and took a big gulp.
"Pfft!"
At the same time, in the Harpy Queendom,
Frey, who had just ended the communication, couldn't help bursting into laughter. "Sorry, I couldn't help it. It's just too funny."
"What happened?"
"Nothing, it's just... pffthahaha..."
Frey sat upright in her chair, facing the projections of Artoria and Snow Empress.
After their battle, the three of them had grown closer and now often contacted each other privately.
Not long ago, the two had received an invitation from Frey and were speaking telepathically with her.
During their conversation, Frey suddenly received a call from Clayman.
The two women were naturally curious about what had made the usually calm and cold Sky Queen laugh like that.
"Clayman."
Frey finally finished laughing and said, "That guy wants to cooperate with me to take down the Beast Kingdom of Eurazania and the City of the Forgotten Dragon."
Then, Frey told them about Clayman's plan to use a pendant to trick Milim and control her.
"Huh?"
Artoria was a little confused.
She actually wanted to ask, who even is this Clayman, to be this bold?
Control Milim?
Is he serious?
"Oh, Artoria doesn't know about this."
"Let me explain."
Snow Empress said, "Clayman. 400,000 magicules. Demon Lord."
No wonder Frey laughed.
Even the always serious Snow Empress almost cracked up because of this guy.
"That's it?"
Artoria, who was still waiting for more explanation, looked puzzled. "That's all?"
"Yes, that's all."
Clayman, a mere Demon Lord with 400,000 magicules.
Nothing more needed to be said. That alone explained everything.
"Ah, this..."
Artoria could now understand what Snow Empress was getting at.
"This is how foolish people think."
Frey calmly judged Clayman's suicidal plan. "You'll never understand what's going through their heads."
"Wait."
Artoria asked, "I still don't get how he thinks he can control Milim?"
"If I remember correctly, Milim is the daughter of the Star King Dragon right?"
"Yes."
Frey replied, "That child possesses power comparable to, or even surpassing, a True Dragon."
Even just equaling a True Dragon, Milim's magicules would need to exceed 80 million.
And Clayman wanted to control Milim?
With what?
A High-tier Ultimate Skill?
"Seven Virtues? Or one of the Seven Deadly Sins?"
"He doesn't actually think he can suppress a True Dragon with just a Mid-tier Ultimate Skill, does he?"
Artoria even wondered if Clayman was secretly a very strong individual but was disguised as a weakling.
On the surface, he looked like a Demon Lord, but in reality, possessed some overwhelming Ultimate Skill?
Clearly, Artoria was overthinking it.
"He only has a Unique Skill."
Clayman didn't even have a Low-tier Ultimate Skill, let alone a Mid-tier one.
"Heh..."
It had to be said, Artoria really gained some perspective.
Someone, with just a Unique Skill, wanted to control a monster at the level of a True Dragon.
And this monster also possessed a Seven Deadly Sins-level Ultimate Skill, a Genesis Artifact, and infinite magicules.
"Is he here to be a joke?"
Artoria's mouth twitched slightly, feeling her intelligence had been insulted.
What kind of Demon Lord was Clayman supposed to be?
Was he mentally sound?
"Frey, what are you planning to do by agreeing to ally with him?"
Snow Empress looked at Frey, who was calmly watching the situation unfold, and asked curiously.
As newcomers, they still didn't understand the landscape of the Cardinal World, so they needed to learn from Frey.
"Simply put, I plan to go fishing."
"Fishing?"
Snow Empress paused to think and then said, "That fish... aside from Clayman, it should also have a 'soul', right?"
"Exactly."
Frey said, "Even though we've only just met, you should already understand what kind of personality Master has."
"Artoria, you really dislike the kind of behavior where people strengthen themselves by plundering others, right?"
The three of them had distinct personalities. Using a D&D alignment chart, Artoria was Lawful Good, Snow Empress was Neutral Evil, and Frey was Lawful Evil.
Artoria hoped Rin would become a wise king, a noble ruler inside and out.
Snow Empress would do whatever Rin asked of her without question.
Frey preferred taking the initiative. She didn't mind destroying cities or countries if it helped Rin.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)