Mr. Leme continued to explain to Cassandra: "One day, God looked at the orderly world and decided to create a new, unique creature. So, He created the progenitor of humanity — Adam — in His own image, and placed him in the Garden of Eden to live freely. God then brought Adam to the Divine Hall, crowned him as 'Messiah', and summoned all angels, demanding them to bow and honor him. Holding deep faith for God, Michael and other angels obediently complied. However, Lucifer hesitated. Angels were already devoid of freedom; they must not lose dignity and pride as well. After some heartfelt persuasion by Michael, Lucifer politely declined: 'I have served God for thousands of years. In terms of merit, I surpass Adam; as a Six-winged Blazing Angel, I rank just below God, thus in status, I surpass Adam; I am the fire within the fire; thus by origin, I surpass Adam; I wield unparalleled power; thus in strength, I surpass Adam... Why should I bow to him?'"
"God decreed several times, yet Lucifer repeatedly rejected His orders, eventually leading to a rebellion—at least that's how God perceived it."
"Archangel Michael led the Angel Legion against Lucifer's followers. They could not withstand God's might; defeat was their only outcome."
"Afterwards, God created Hell, casting Lucifer and his followers down from the skies into Hell... From the Nine Heavens to the deepest layer of Hell, Lucifer fell for nine mornings and evenings, becoming Demon King Satan, and his followers became demons."
"Heh." Cassandra drew a disdainful smile, "Given this perspective, I vote for Mr. Satan — after all, this story does indeed seem like Satan has a point."
"You know well what it's like to confront your dad." Vivi spread her hands and said: "'Even if Dad is wrong, he is still your dad'—but I think Mr. Satan's pressure is far greater than ours, after all... God is always correct."
"Just imagining it makes me feel suffocated." Pabi said with some shortness of breath, burying her head in Harry's chest for deep breaths.
Then, Vivi pinched the skin of fate on the back of her neck and pulled her up.
This donkey...
"Am I right, dear lady?" Mr. Leme turned his head to ask Lady Death.
Lady Death answered slowly: "The front and back are correct; God did not force Lucifer to bow to Adam, merely asking them to care for the newborn humans. But Lucifer did not want angels to become caretakers of humans, hence he rebelled against God, and the rest is pretty much as you said."
"But the reasons behind it are quite complex; I'm not a god who likes prying into others' family affairs, so..."
"We won't ask then." Harry hurriedly said.
He certainly did not want to anger Lady Death, and furthermore, he had no interest in learning precisely how Lucifer betrayed God.
"So, are you saying Voldemort is summoning Satan?" Dumbledore confirmed once more.
"Indeed, at this very moment." Lady Death glanced at her wrist, "The task Lucifer assigned him is to open the Gate of Hell, reconnect Hell with the Human World, and after that, he will cooperate with Fallen Angel Azazel to break the seal and release him."
Upon hearing Lady Death's words, Harry frowned and asked: "Why is Lucifer so fixated on opening the Gate of Hell?"
"Because of souls, child." Lady Death extended a finger: "Whether Heaven or Hell, they need souls to provide them with energy, and souls can also offer additional strength to angels and demons, so to speak... do you understand now?"
"If Voldemort is allowed to complete Lucifer's evil plan, I'm afraid our world will become a wasteland..." Dumbledore shivered.
He felt somewhat weary; his initial goal was to rid the world of Voldemort, but now the objective had shifted to stopping Voldemort from opening the Gate of Hell.
Or perhaps, one day in the future, the goal would become defeating Lucifer.
Me?
Fight Lucifer?
Really, damn.
Even a Legendary Wizard like Dumbledore dared not imagine facing Lucifer in a real-life showdown.
"I know what you're worried about, but even once Lucifer is freed from the seal, he is not what you need to worry about." Lady Death explained, "Once Lucifer breaks the seal, he will face the endless pursuit of Michael, and angels generally refer to this fateful battle as the 'Apocalypse'."
"Then..."
Pabi was puzzled, her bewildered little eyes turned to Lady Death.
"Since Michael will duel with Lucifer, what else should we be worried about?"
"What you need to be reminded of, child," Lady Death sighed, "generally speaking, the Apocalypse, in your... Oh, Muggles' terms, is referred to as the end of the world."
Upon Lady Death's words, everyone couldn't help but feel a chill of terror.
Which meant, they finally understood.
"Although I am Death, I do not wish to see the Apocalypse happen." Lady Death spoke softly, "All things have their laws, even the so-called God cannot interfere, so I need you to stop Azazel and Tom Riddle. If they truly release Lucifer, then Earth will plunge into an apocalypse."
"That means..." Vivi heard the undertone in Lady Death's words, "Even God cannot meddle with natural laws? But doesn't the Bible say that the world and humanity were created by God?"
"Oh, child." Lady Death shook her head: "Not all humans are created by God, like you... And the world was not created by God either, I say this... can you understand?"
"I understand, ma'am." Vivi nodded.
Dumbledore sat on a chair, thought for a moment, then raised his head and said: "So now our priority is to find Voldemort and stop him from continuing to open the Gate of Hell, right?"
"No, Dumbledore." Newt spoke up: "Lady Death just mentioned that the Gate of Hell has already been opened by Voldemort, he should be currently with some A... A..."
Seeing his nephew forget the name, Pabi thoughtfully reminded him: "Azazel."
"Yes." Newt smiled at Pabi: "Azazel, Voldemort is working with him to find a way to break Lucifer's seal."
"That's not the urgent issue; in fact, even Lucifer himself does not know how to break the seal." Lady Death informed: "Your immediate concern should be quickly reviving this poor little girl, as death... If this goes on, she won't last much longer."
Poor little girl?
Oh, she must be referring to Pabi.
Harry reached out to gently rub Pabi's head, before he could speak, Cassandra stated: "If needed, I will provide her with some enemy's blood."
She emphasized the word 'enemy' with weight, and while saying it, she kept casting a meaningful gaze at Pabi.
Pabi instinctively shrank back, feeling Cassandra's gaze was somewhat significant.
"What about the servant's meat?" Harry asked again.
Mr. Leme put a hand on Newt's shoulder and lifted his head to Harry: "We could treat Newt, my nephew, as a servant in this regard. Moreover, they share a blood relationship, so it should be feasible."
"You're an Alchemist, you shouldn't use the word 'should'." Vivi quietly reminded him.
"Oh." Mr. Leme nodded and corrected himself: "Let's say approximately."
(Seeking monthly votes)