This Isn't an E*otic Game?-Chapter 100: Now the Only Answer Is Descent—The Only Answer Is Descent

Calling the current atmosphere "devastating" didn’t even begin to describe it.

Belphegor, Satan, and Leviathan gazed blankly down at the human world, their faces devoid of emotion.

The first to react was Satan.

[Why?]

Amayel had never once called for Asmodeus’s help.

He had never learned how to wield her, had likely never even held a proper conversation with her.

He’d even been tampered with by the Evil Gods—he was probably actively trying to purge Asmodeus from his soul.

And yet—why?

Why had Amayel been able to command Asmodeus?

That one act had completely destroyed all of the Demon Lords' carefully laid plans.

Now Asmodeus would move to protect Kanya as well.

The moment they tried to forcibly seize her again, she would undoubtedly descend once more.

[Lucifer. Couldn’t you stop it?]

At Belphegor’s words, Lucifer, sitting quietly a short distance away, turned his gaze toward her.

[I didn’t have enough wings available to act.]

[How?! Amayel fears Asmodeus! He’s trying to erase her! How could he possibly give her an order?! He doesn’t even know how to use her!]

Lucifer didn’t answer.

A cracking sound echoed from his clenched fist.

The pride of the Lord of Arrogance had been wounded.

He had pulled with all his strength on the chains—but Asmodeus ignored his commands and acted anyway.

[It wasn’t intentional. If he could act with intent, he would’ve summoned Asmodeus and started by asking questions. The Saint likely has no idea what’s really going on right now.]

[Asmodeus has decided to protect Belia. If this keeps up, we’ll end up filling the empty seat in the Pantheon!]

Belphegor shouted.

She knew all too well the value of her “belonging.”

Belia possessed a tenacious divinity.

Even after decades of torture, she had never broken.

Back during the °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Celestial War—

Among all the divine beings of the Pantheon who had fallen to the mortal realm, if Belia were to return to the Pantheon, she would become a nightmarish problem for Pandemonium.

Any other god might be tolerable.

But not Belia.

Lucifer leaned forward slightly, processing Belphegor’s words.

[No. It might actually be better this way.] freёnovelkiss.com

[What do you mean?]

[Asmodeus can no longer devour Belia. If she does, that girl—Kanya—won’t survive. Their souls are far too intertwined. The moment Belia is destroyed, that girl will break too.]

[Even so, our chances of victory are fifty-fifty. Even with all three of us, defeating Asmodeus isn’t likely.]

Lucifer shrugged at Leviathan’s concern.

[Then what if the three of you descended into the human world with physical vessels?]

[You want us to descend?!]

Leviathan’s face twisted in disbelief.

[Did you forget what happened to Mammon when he tried that?]

[You’re not Mammon. There are three of you. In the human world, Asmodeus is heavily restricted. She can’t unleash enough power to damage her host—she only has one channel to pour her divinity through. But you? You’re different.]

The Demon Lords were beings who, if necessary, could sacrifice dozens of their finest followers to craft a physical body.

Asmodeus might be stronger in raw divine force, but in the human realm, she could never unleash her full potential.

[Two of you restrain Asmodeus inside the Saint’s body. The third infiltrates his soul and initiates the corruption. It’ll be simple.]

It was a sound strategy.

In fact, it was a strategy they could have used before Asmodeus decided to protect Belia.

Whether or not she devoured Belia, the moment Asmodeus manifested in the human world, she would never be able to use her full strength.

Still, there was a reason the Demon Lords had avoided descending until now.

[Sure, sounds nice. But it also means we become easier to devour than anyone else.]

[Unlike the spiritual realm, where we can hide, a physical body exposes us directly. That’s why Mammon was eaten. Do you not understand that?]

In the spirit world, they could escape.

They could hide. If things turned bad, there were ways to neutralize the situation.

But in the human realm, it was different.

Once they were inside a narrow physical vessel, there was nowhere to run.

They’d have to forcibly extract their divinity and return to the spirit realm—and during that process, they would be completely defenseless.

The risk of annihilation from descent was far too great.

And yet—

[Then what other method do we have to corrupt the Saint?]

Lucifer’s one question silenced the three Demon Lords.

Separate Kanya from him and then go after the Saint?

Now that Asmodeus had decided to protect Kanya too, that was no longer viable.

A fight in the spiritual realm still left their chances at fifty-fifty.

Even Lucifer’s commands through Asmodeus’s left wing had limits.

No command could ever override one designed to prevent the destruction of her core.

The only being who could override that would be one who could control all of Asmodeus’s wings.

Conclusion:

Other than direct descent, there was no way to corrupt the Saint.

[If all three of us descend, the Pantheon’s followers won’t just sit still. Some of them are already starting to catch on!]

[If anything goes wrong while we’re manifested, our own followers will instantly lose their power!]

[Our followers could be wiped out in one sweep! The risks are too high!]

Despite their protests, Lucifer glared at them with rage.

[For three hundred years I’ve held the heavens at bay—alone! Three hundred years! If Belia ascends safely and the Saint continues to play hero for the Pantheon, the balance will collapse! And you know what happens when the balance breaks! Now’s the time to take that risk!]

Even with Lucifer’s furious declaration, the three Demon Lords hesitated.

Descending into the human realm was already a gamble with too many dangers.

Once their divinity entered a physical body, there was no guarantee they wouldn’t end up just like Belia.

Lucifer wanted to bash their skulls in.

But already, two of the seven Thrones were empty.

They couldn’t afford to lose another.

[I’ll oversee the operation. If things go south, I’ll stake my name and personally pull you out. Trust me—descend. If we can’t bring the Saint to our side, Pandemonium has no future. What will you do—just sit quietly and watch as Belia ascends? Let the balance tip, little by little, until the Pantheon wins outright?]

Even the three Demon Lords couldn’t help but nod in reluctant agreement after hearing Lucifer speak with such intensity.

[It’ll take time to prepare the physical vessels.]

[At least three days, Lucifer.]

Lucifer nodded at their words.

[I’ll restrain Asmodeus in the meantime—keep her from using time-stop or body modification. I’ll make sure they don’t reach Talhaim’s Rock Mountain within three days. After that, it’s up to you.]

He had just declared that he would singlehandedly block the entire Pantheon and control Asmodeus.

Only Lucifer could attempt such a thing.

The three Demon Lords nodded again.

There was no turning back now.

****

“So you’re saying you didn’t pay his wages?”

“No, it’s not that I didn’t pay him... It’s just that, around here, that’s how it’s usually done, you know?”

“You have committed an illegal act under labor law. Please pay this man the fair compensation he is owed. We will calculate the exact amount and notify you shortly.”

“What?! That can’t be legal!!”

The labor inspectors weren’t strong.

They had given up violence and force long ago.

Partly as a measure to avoid falling into the same corruption the Saint warned of in old labor unions, but more importantly—because they didn’t need guns, blades, or bombs.

“Factory owner. Are you admitting to wage theft?”

A holy knight from the White Church stepped forward.

“Are you deliberately spreading suffering to increase the number of demon cultists? Don’t forget that, under the Codex Prolilium, we may declare you a heretic.”

“N-no! No, I’m not a heretic! I swear! Just because I shorted him a little—this is going too far!”

“Have you already forgotten what happened in the Scrap Yard? Mammon’s cult was crawling all over the place. Demons feed on resentment. If your greed leads to human ruin, that blood’s on your hands. Pay the legal minimum wage.”

Pressed by the White Church, the factory owner lowered his head in silence.

“...I will pay the wages pending the investigation results.”

“Good.”

The inspector and the knight left the factory.

On the drive back to their lodging, the mood in the car was surprisingly light.

“You must be tired, following me around all day. It’s late. Want to grab a beer?”

“Don’t flatter yourself, labor activist. I’m only here to watch for signs of your moral decay, as the Saint warned. I don’t drink on duty.”

“This assignment’s already over. It’s just a beer—no need to be so uptight. You’ll be stuck seeing my face a lot more anyway.”

The inspector’s easygoing tone made the knight chuckle.

“As long as you continue to show compassion for the weak, I’ll have no reason to turn against you. I suppose... one drink won’t hurt.”

“My treat. Though I can’t promise we’ll find anything decent in this backwater.”

The labor inspector grinned as he gripped the wheel.

The holy knight smiled faintly in return.

But the warm mood froze instantly—

—when a man suddenly darted out in front of the car.

“Are you crazy? Jumping in front of a—!”

The inspector rolled down the window, furious—but the man ran up, panting and shouting.

“Demon cultists, sir! Demon cultists!!”

The words made the inspector’s expression change in an instant.

He motioned to the backseat.

“Get in. You know where they are?”

“Yes, sir!”

The three of them sped off.

This was a remote village, mostly flat grassland with a lot of livestock farms.

The man, who introduced himself as a generational shepherd, spoke quickly between gasps.

“I was out grazing the goats and sheep like always, but my dog wouldn’t herd them. Never happened before. So I went to where he was and—you won’t believe it! There was blood. Blood everywhere. And weapons scattered all over the ground. My dog had smelled the blood and stayed back, barking his head off.”

“Weapons?”

“Guns, swords... even armor, and what looked like staffs those mages use. No bodies, just weapons. But they all had these strange symbols etched on them. I took a good look and—yeah. They were demon cult symbols.”

“Are you certain?”

“Sir, like most folks here, I’m a believer in the gods of the Pantheon. We’ve been taught to recognize demon marks since we were kids. You were the closest officials around, so I came straight here. There! Over there!!”

At the man’s words, the inspector slammed on the brakes.

The White Church knight leapt out and sprinted toward the gear littering the field.

He sniffed the air and examined the weapons carefully, then ran back to the car.

“Can you contact the Labor Bureau’s direct line?”

“The direct line? Are they really demon cultists?!”

“Not just any cultists. These are high-ranking members of a demon sect! We need to move now—this is serious!”

The inspector urgently pulled a magical communications device from his coat.

The report was transmitted to the Labor Bureau immediately.

And it took less than ten minutes for the Pantheon, the Magic Tower, and the Imperial Family to receive the intel.