manynovel Page 189
Page 189
Only when the fallen angel cadre is completely dealt with and his head is presented as a trophy will her engagement with the Phoenix family be truly severed from its root.
but……
That's a story for later.
Right now, all she wants is to catch her breath.
Rias raised her head, her complicated gaze falling on the boy who had remained calm throughout.
Zhou Ye happened to look over as well.
Their eyes met in the air.
Communication without words, or even facial expressions.
But they both understood what the other meant.
Zhou Ye said: Look, it's solved.
Rias replied: Okay, thank you.
This unspoken understanding caused the almost frozen air in the room to begin to move slightly.
Zhou Ye naturally withdrew his gaze, leaving the remaining stage to the true master of this place—the Demon King Sazex.
Sazex's gentle smile remained unchanged, but all the demon nobles in the viewing room could feel an invisible pressure emanating from him.
That was the aura of Lucifer, the Demon King.
“Very good, head of the Phoenix family.”
Sazex's voice wasn't loud, but it resonated clearly in everyone's ears.
“I’m glad you made the right decision. It not only saved you, but also preserved the Phoenix family’s last shred of dignity.”
He walked to the table, picked up the Rubik's Cube that imprisoned Leval, tossed it in his hand, and then casually tossed it to Zhou Ye.
"Zhou Yejun, can you release Leval now? After all, the game is over."
"of course."
Zhou Ye took the Rubik's Cube and casually snapped his fingers.
【Snapped! 】
The exquisite spatial cube instantly disintegrated into countless points of light, and Leval Phoenix, frozen in mid-air, fell straight onto the expensive carpet like a puppet with its strings cut.
The flames on his body had been extinguished, and his magic power had been completely exhausted due to the previous self-destructive outburst. He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, his eyes filled with emptiness and confusion.
In the end, he still didn't understand how he lost.
"Take him down."
Sazex waved to Sijelas, his tone calm but firm.
"Reflect on this carefully. What the Phoenix family needs is glory, not arrogance."
Hitches' lips moved, and the words of humiliation rolled in his throat, but in the end he said nothing.
He bowed deeply to Sazex, then went to his son, helped him up, and prepared to leave the place that had caused him so much humiliation.
Just as he turned around, a white-haired Phoenix elder behind him, speaking in a very low but venomous voice, squeezed out a sentence through clenched teeth in Zhou Ye's direction.
"A human of unknown origin... Don't get too cocky."
The voice was very soft, but everyone present was sharp-eared and sharp-eyed.
Zhou Ye raised an eyebrow, about to say something.
"Ok?"
Sazex simply hummed softly and glanced over.
The nobleman froze instantly, cold sweat pouring down his face. He then realized whose guest he had just been threatening.
He immediately lowered his head, like a quail, not daring to say another word.
Hitches glared at the talkative idiot, then dragged his distraught son and, along with the other Phoenix family members, slunk out of the viewing room.
With their departure, the oppressive atmosphere in the room dissipated considerably.
"I'm sorry to have made you laugh, Mr. Zhou Ye."
Sazex smiled apologetically, as if he hadn't been the one exuding the aura of a demon king just moments before.
"Some old guys can't let go of their so-called dignity."
"Understandable."
Zhou Ye shrugged indifferently, "After all, being used as a stepping stone to rub against someone's face, no one would be in a good mood."
These words were blunt and hurtful.
Rias listened from the side and her lips twitched. Couldn't this guy be a little more tactful?
Why does he have to be so infuriating?
"Hahaha!"
Sazex burst into laughter, looking at Zhou Ye with admiration.
"You rascal, you're never willing to suffer even the slightest loss."
He walked over to Rias and gently patted his sister's shoulder.
"Rias, thanks to your friend this time."
"I...I understand." Rias's cheeks flushed slightly, unsure how to respond.
“Well then,” Sazex turned around and formally invited Zhou Ye, “Mr. Zhou Ye, if you don’t mind, would you like to come over for a chat? I think we have a lot to talk about.”
He pointed to a more ornate door deep inside the room.
"About the future of the underworld, about my sister, and about... you."
Zhou Ye looked at the deep meaning in the eyes of the red-haired demon king, and then glanced at Rias, who had a "you decide what to do" expression on her face.
He spread his hands.
"Let's talk then."
“To be honest, Lord Lucifer.”
Zhou Ye's voice rang out in the luxurious and private reception room. He sat down naturally on the sofa opposite Sazex, his posture so relaxed that he didn't seem to be facing a demon king.
"As for the future of the underworld, it's not appropriate for me, a human, to say anything, since I'm an outsider."
He picked up the black tea that the maid had just served, gently swirled it, and looked at the dark red liquid inside.
"As for your sister Rias, she is a beautiful woman."
This statement was made frankly, yet carried a subtle sense of distance.
He neither admitted to having any feelings for Rias that went beyond friendship, nor denied a man's most primal appreciation for a beautiful woman.
This is a vague rhetoric that can be used to both attack and defend, and it is also a silent statement.
Rias, sitting to the side, felt her cheeks, which had just calmed down, begin to burn again upon hearing this.
"Hehehe..."
Sazex let out a low laugh as he leaned back on the sofa, his long red hair flowing like flames.
"Zhou Yejun, you are such a frank person."
There was not a trace of displeasure in his eyes, but rather amusement.
"In order to make up for the demon population that was drastically lost in the last great war, our generation of demon nobles, regardless of gender, are placed on high hopes by our elders."
He shrugged self-deprecatingly.
"To put it bluntly, they're all like energetic huskies, being urged to reproduce and continue their bloodline. So, I completely understand your thinking; it's not uncommon."
The demon king used a very common, even somewhat crude, metaphor to defuse the probing in Zhou Ye's words, while also regaining control of the conversation.
He leaned forward slightly, his emerald green eyes, identical to Rias's, locked onto Zhou Ye with a sharp, all-knowing gaze.
"So, Zhou Yejun, aren't you going to tell us about yourself?"
"I?"
Zhou Ye put down his teacup with a soft sound.
He gave a perfectly timed, somewhat innocent smile.
"I am just an ordinary person with a little bit of power."
"In Lucifer..."
Before he could finish speaking, Sazex interrupted him with a laugh.
"You don't need to be so polite in front of me."
The Demon King's smile grew increasingly sinister. He glanced at his sister, who was practically burying her head in his chest, and deliberately raised his voice.
"Just call me brother-in-law."
"Isn't that how people in the great Eastern country all refer to themselves?"
"--puff!"
Before Zhou Ye could react, Rias, who was standing next to him, exploded.
She suddenly raised her head, her pretty face as red as a boiled shrimp, burning from her cheeks all the way to the base of her neck.
"elder brother!"
She let out a scream filled with sobs and shame, almost jumping off the sofa.
"What nonsense are you talking about!"
Uncle?
What brother-in-law?!
How could he say such shameless things in front of Zhou Ye!