"No one's looking after this cute little girl. How pitiful."
Looking at 'Sloth' sleeping soundly in her arms—ignoring the non-human organs—this was a girl as cute as an Angel. It reminded Artoria of her own bratty child, Mordred, and her two daughters who had just been born not long ago. She hadn't even given those two children nice names before her consciousness traveled here. Now, she seemed to be involved in a war between two mortal enemies. Holding the little girl who was neglected due to the tension of the war, Artoria's compassion suddenly overflowed. She felt a bit sorry for such a cute child.
"Mili's power is the most unique. Only when she is asleep can the people of Hell remain unaffected. If she wakes up, she would definitely be a huge trouble for Hell. It's not that her personality is bad, but that she cannot fully control her power. Because a Nightmare is too powerful and cannot even control herself, she will bring trouble to her surroundings. This child doesn't want that, so she puts herself into a deep sleep."
Looking at the Sloth Lord Mili with some pity, Likmiel seemed to be sighing for a genius. Such a talent is both a blessing and a different kind of price. At the cost of sleeping every moment, she gained power she couldn't even control. This price was a bit too heavy. It was also because of this that the child's thinking was very pure, and even her body remained in a toddler form. This was the first time such a thing had happened in Hell. But they, the Great Sins, couldn't solve this problem, so they let her sleep. When something happened, they would also help protect this genius of Hell.
"You want me to help you, don't you?"
Gently placing the Little guy on the bed, Artoria poked the little one's cheek and asked without looking back. Rather than a question, it was more that Artoria was very certain. Why Likmiel had been by her side until now instead of gathering soldiers—her purpose was nothing more than two things. First, to watch Artoria and tell her not to hurt the Sloth Lord Mili. Second, to recruit Artoria into her ranks to become her combat power. Compared to the first option, the second was clearly more credible. After all, no matter how bored Likmiel was, she wouldn't waste time chatting with her at this critical juncture.
"If possible."
Likmiel said this as if she were joking. She didn't issue a direct invitation. If Artoria refused, she would look very bad. Losing face wouldn't be good for her as a Lord, especially since their current relationship was very messy. So, she was very cautious in everything she did, for fear of making things irreparable. Everything needed to be asked tentatively first before making an invitation and stating her stance; the other party would understand on their own.
"Can you afford my employment fee?"
With no intention of refusing, Artoria stood up and looked straight into Likmiel's eyes. What she wanted was not ordinary! Don't think a few small things could dismiss her. Seeing Odin's pained expression as he looked at his empty treasury in the new space, one could see that Artoria wasn't the type to be satisfied with just a little. Her asking price was not cheap. Artoria looked at Likmiel with an inquiring gaze, which was asking her if she could afford the price.
"You can have whatever you want. Say it and let me hear."
That Artoria didn't refuse already made Likmiel feel very surprised. Looking at Artoria's eyes, Likmiel's stubbornness flared up, and she told Artoria to name her conditions. This time it was a struggle against Heaven. Even if she had to pay some price, it would be a good thing to win over a lethal weapon like Artoria to her side. Not only for self-defense, but if she could gain a large amount of military merit when counterattacking Heaven, she could get a huge share of the benefits from Heaven.
"Tell me your True Name."
Just as Likmiel was telling Artoria to boldly make her demands, Artoria's words almost made her eyes pop out. She looked at Artoria in disbelief. Hadn't she explained it clearly enough back then? Obtaining a demon's True Name was equivalent to signing a Master-servant contract, being able to control the demon's actions at any time, and even being able to summon the demon back to one's side. This little girl's ambition was not small! She actually wanted to control me. For a moment, Likmiel was a bit at a loss. Indeed, just as Artoria said, she couldn't afford this price. She didn't object to a contract with Artoria, but she had the ambition to become the Lord of Hell. It was simply impossible for her to follow in Artoria's footsteps. Therefore, she couldn't afford this price.
"Sorry, can we change to another one?"
Putting away her previously heroic posture, Xiemier spoke to Artoria in a pleasing manner. As a demon, lying and manipulating the other party's emotions to bring the greatest benefit to oneself is what makes a proper, good demon. She now wanted to bargain with Artoria, even willing to lose face. Artoria looked at Xiemier expressionlessly; she had anticipated this. Xiemier didn't dare to gamble with her at all. This was a massive gamble; if Xiemier really handed over her name, Artoria might have actually helped. But unfortunately, her original intention remained: she didn't want to join the battle between races, which was why she made such an extravagant demand. She knew Xiemier couldn't afford the gamble. Artoria was simply making Xiemier give up on such an idea.
"Fine! I understand. Just stay here and protect Mili! You won't be asked to participate in this battle."
Seeing Artoria's unyielding appearance, Xiemier knew there was no chance of making her change her mind. Such a person was simply too smart and wouldn't be swayed by emotions. It was truly terrifying—so terrifying that Xiemier felt she wasn't making a deal with a human, but doing business with a very veteran demon. If Artoria knew what Xiemier was thinking, she would likely burst into laughter. The more composed one appears, the more the other party feels you are not to be trifled with. Artoria set her bottom line before doing anything and never broke it, thus preventing any situation where she could be led by the nose.
"I will protect this child with all my heart, so rest assured. Go and organize your forces! I hope you all can achieve a good result for Hell this time."
Artoria's words made Xiemier feel emotional yet also very surprised. Since when did humans actually look forward to Hell defeating Heaven? Shouldn't you all fear the existence of Hell and want to go to Heaven? It was Xiemier's first time meeting such an 'eccentric' human. She felt that Artoria wasn't a normal person at all. How could someone have such a wicked personality and do whatever they pleased? This person before her had completely refreshed her worldview.
"Protect yourself well. Even if you are human, those Bird-men from Heaven don't care about things in Hell. They will directly 'purify' you—which means burning you to death—and then take your soul to see God, letting God judge your sins."
Xiemier, who was about to turn and leave, suddenly remembered something. She turned back to hug Artoria and left a fragrant lip print on Artoria's face. After whispering the Bird-men's habits into Artoria's ear, Xiemier left to organize her warriors. This was going to be a tough battle, so she had to pick many elite soldiers and strong generals. There were also battle suits resistant to Holy Light magic that needed to be crafted urgently by collecting raw materials. The Great Sins all needed to collect these things themselves; no one would help each other. If one was wiped out in battle, it could only be considered bad luck. After the battle, new Great Sins could be elected.
"Next is the time to prepare for the great war. Let me see just how intense the battle between Hell and Heaven really is."
After Xiemier left, Artoria summoned her Spirit Gear, covering her entire body in heavy armor, and raised the Infinity Gauntlet. The stone representing Reality had already begun to flicker, as if it were about to be conquered by Artoria. It was just a tiny bit away. Artoria didn't know the exact reason why the Infinity Stones were submitting. At first, she thought she needed to fight, but unexpectedly, it just submitted mysteriously on its own. Artoria still couldn't grasp the logic behind the Infinity Stones' submission and felt that this matter was not simple. But since a war between the realms of demons and Angels was likely to break out, Artoria decided to wait and see! Although time was short, it was still quite sufficient!
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