— — — — — —
"Grayfia, I need your body."
Hearing that, Grayfia replied calmly, "Understood."
As soon as she said it, she reached up and began unfastening the buttons on her outfit, as if she were about to take off her top.
Ryo didn't stop her. He simply sat there, watching as she loosened her clothes, quietly admiring her beautiful body.
Only when most of the buttons were undone did Grayfia finally pause. She let out a soft sigh.
"Her Majesty was right. You really are the aggressive type."
"Not playing along anymore?" Ryo looked at her with a faint, teasing smile. "Go on. I'm waiting."
Trying to play the "pretend misunderstanding" game with him? Grayfia was still a bit too inexperienced for that.
"According to Her Majesty's orders, in special circumstances, I will also serve as a vessel for divine descent."
Grayfia calmly refastened her buttons and explained, "The Devil Progenitor would never allow her vessel to be left in someone else's hands. And as the only person she permits to touch her… you will become my 'master.'"
'So she even took my possessiveness into account?' Ryo's expression turned a little strange.
He was well aware of his own tendencies, and it seemed Algol understood them too. That was why she had arranged for Grayfia to be "given" to him.
On one hand, it allowed Grayfia to act as Algol's vessel, avoiding detection from the Little Garden's central system. On the other, it satisfied Ryo's desire for exclusivity.
That was also why Algol preferred choosing beautiful female devils as her attendants.
Grayfia herself understood this clearly.
Back then, there had been others who qualified as candidates. The current Leviathan, Serafall Leviathan, had also been one of the backups.
But Serafall's personality was far too lively and unpredictable. She didn't meet Algol's standards, so she was never chosen.
"She really went all out," Ryo said with a hint of admiration. Setting everything else aside, Algol genuinely treated her own people well.
Sure, she had a sharp tongue and a bit of a narcissistic streak, always ready to roast someone, but in Ryo's eyes, her temperament was actually more to his liking than both Queen Halloween and Shiroyasha.
That wasn't to say those two were lacking.
Shiroyasha was the kind of person you could treat like a close brother or best friend.
The Queen was impossible to read, her thoughts always hidden behind layers.
Algol, on the other hand, was someone who would stand firmly on your side and think things through for you.
'Put like that… she almost felt like a supportive wife...' Ryo couldn't help but mutter inwardly before continuing, "You understand the ritual for divine descent, right?"
Since they couldn't let the Little Garden's central system detect Algol's presence, using divine descent to possess Grayfia for communication was the most convenient option.
With a few extra tricks, they could even alter the observation records into something vague, like "Ryo communicated with an unknown entity."
If Ryo was willing to expend the spirit rank of someone like Maxwell or Loki, the record could even become something like "On a certain day, Maxwell or Loki communicated with an unknown entity."
That kind of record would only lead investigators to suspect a high-ranking member of Ouroboros, or leave them completely in the dark.
After all, the Norse gods had long since been crushed for siding with an anti-utopia Demon King. The survivors were either dead or missing. Even Queen Halloween only preserved their legacy, not their people.
So blaming Loki would turn the whole thing into an unsolvable mess. The gods of Little Garden would just assume some remnant faction of Norse mythology was making a move, or that an unknown powerhouse was backing a "restoration."
And with that, Ryo could shake off most of the suspicion and continue operating in the shadows.
Not all of it, though. Some two-digit figures already knew of his existence, so he couldn't avoid scrutiny entirely.
Still, if he denied everything, even they wouldn't be able to pin anything on him.
After all, "Ryo Yagami" was currently leading the Arcadia Alliance in a divine war against the Greek gods.
(And don't forget that the Dimensional Forum can hide his name after observation—it just requires more points.)
"...Yes!"
"The ritual has already been prepared," Grayfia said as she pulled at her collar, revealing her right shoulder and collarbone.
On her smooth, jade-like skin, a golden stalk of wheat was imprinted, vivid against the pale backdrop.
At first glance, it might seem strange for the devil progenitor to be symbolized by wheat.
But it made perfect sense.
Algol's earlier identity had been Ishtar, the Mesopotamian goddess of Venus. And even further back, she had entered that pantheon as an earth goddess.
Grain, therefore, was one of her oldest symbols, and one of her earliest authorities.
That was why the medium for divine descent on Grayfia's body took the form of wheat.
Seeing that everything had already been prepared, Ryo couldn't help but comment, "She really thought this through."
Algol, who was notorious for acting impulsively, had actually made thorough preparations this time. It seemed Athena's past schemes had left quite an impression on her.
With everything ready, Ryo didn't hesitate. "Let's begin."
Grayfia nodded. She clasped her hands in front of her and knelt, bowing as she began to chant an ancient hymn.
As the clear, melodious chant filled the air, the surrounding environment began to dim.
The sunlight streaming through the doorway faded. Strange, fragmented whispers echoed from all directions, as if responding to the hymn… or blaspheming something unseen.
The contradiction between the bright chant and the darkening world felt unnatural, yet Ryo was used to it.
Algol's essence was tied to the Demon Star, a Celestial Star Spirit.
Due to that star's orbital nature, its brightness seemed to constantly fluctuate when observed from Earth.
Because of this flickering nature, ancient observers labelled such stars as "demon stars." In Arabic tradition, it was also called ghūl (غول), a term meaning a terrifying ghoul.
...
As the hymn continued, Grayfia's eyes gradually lost focus.
Her presence shifted, becoming distant and ethereal. Even her features seemed slightly blurred, imbued with a strangely mesmerizing beauty.
Ophis, who had been spacing out, suddenly sharpened her gaze, staring at Grayfia in shock.
A powerful enemy.
An unprecedented threat.
More terrifying than Great Red. More dangerous than the Creator God.
Her pure-blood dragon instincts screamed at her.
If she hadn't already heard that this person was connected to Ryo, she might have fled without hesitation, escaping this unsettling presence.
At that moment, focus returned to Grayfia's empty eyes.
She casually summoned a handheld bronze mirror from her storage space and inspected her reflection.
"Not bad. You can actually handle one-millionth of my beauty."
The voice was young, almost girlish, yet laced with a subtle allure.
The kind of voice that could make people react without thinking.
Ryo immediately recognized it.
"Your praise is undeserved, Your Majesty," Grayfia's original voice responded from the same body.
"Grayfia," or rather Algol within her, gave a small nod. She adjusted her hair neatly, then looked at Ryo.
"Yo. Long time no see."
Her tone was light and cheerful.
"Yeah. Long time no see." Ryo smiled.
For him, it had only been about seven days.
For Algol, though, it had likely been centuries.
So calling it a long time wasn't an exaggeration at all.
.
.
.