Chapter 598: Chapter 598: Negotiation with Bael

Chapter 598: Negotiation with Bael

A playful expression appeared on Bael’s handsome face. "An ally? Tsk, ever since I lost the position of Lord of Avernus, I haven’t heard such an invitation for a long time."

"Lord Bael, to be honest, your reputation across the multiverse is quite terrible. You’re cunning, ruthless, and you betrayed your former mistress without hesitation, seizing everything from her."

Bael bowed again, his expression showing no fluctuation, his face still maintaining a polite smile.

"Your Majesty Cassius, for a pure devil, those are merely compliments."

"I’m sure you understand that to the living beings of the Prime Material Plane, those are hardly good words. But I don’t mind."

Cassius stretched his wings and stepped off the throne, pacing around the vast palace, yet his eyes never left the archdevil.

"In the Empire’s diplomatic policy, we have neither permanent allies nor permanent enemies, only constant and perpetual interests. The Ember Empire does not care about an ally’s past, their faction, or their stance. Whether we cooperate or not is determined solely by whether it can bring us enough benefits."

Cassius paused deliberately, spreading his massive wings fully, casting a tremendous shadow.

Only then did he continue, "Whether it’s the Chromatic Dragons or the Metallic Dragons, Mount Celestia or Hell, as long as there are shared interests and common enemies, the Empire is willing to cooperate."

"Your Majesty Cassius, if you lived in Hell, I imagine you would have made an excellent ruler."

Bael raised his head, meeting the pale golden slit pupils of the Red Dragon, his lips curling slightly, revealing a hint of a cold aura.

He spoke slowly, "It seems... we do indeed have a common enemy."

"You guessed right."

Cassius merely nodded slightly, signaling to the Ogre Mage beside him.

Langpu immediately understood, pulling out a sheepskin scroll from his dimensional pouch and presenting it before Bael.

Cassius added, "Since we have a common enemy, it’s only natural to exchange information about them. The deeper the understanding, the better."

Bael only glanced at it, and a trace of barely noticeable hatred flashed in his pitch-black pupils. He chuckled disdainfully.

"Heh, as expected of that crazy woman’s work. What a crude and sloppy contract. She doesn’t even seem like a noble, elegant devil—more like a brainless demon."

Entangled for thousands of years, Bael and Zariel deeply hated each other. Bael had even once literally "devoured her flesh," savoring the taste of his enemy.

Cassius didn’t care about their past grudges. To him, the more Bael hated Zariel, the better.

The Red Dragon snorted, spewing out a puff of sulfuric white smoke. "This was stolen from a noble of Thrace. And who knows how many of these contracts are still circulating within the Thrace Kingdom."

"But compared to what the Empire knows, I’m sure you, living in Avernus and entangled with Zariel for millennia, must know far more."

"Of course, Your Majesty Cassius, for a worthy ally, I have always been willing to lend my full support."

Bael extended his hand, and clusters of flames erupted from it, forming an image in midair that radiated the aura of the Inferno. The display of spellcraft was so exquisite that even Langpu’s eyes widened.

A rocky wasteland filled with rivers of blood appeared before them. The night sky was pitch black, with the occasional blazing comet crashing down, leaving smoking craters. Scattered across the barren battlefield were weapons and skeletons.

Bael said, "As you may know, Avernus is the first layer of Hell, the battleground of the Blood War, and the closest layer of the Nine Hells to the Prime Material Plane."

The devil snapped his fingers, and the scene within the flames abruptly changed. A towering basalt fortress emerged in the image, decorated with partially scorched corpses.

In the sky above stood an angel cloaked in fire, draped in tattered, blood-stained robes. Her eyes blazed with a violent white light, as if capable of destroying everything.

Cassius stared at that terrifying figure, murmuring, "So that is Zariel."

Bael spoke in a deep voice, "Yes, that woman is Zariel, the current ruler of Avernus, a lunatic obsessed with the Blood War, and... my nominal superior."

Bael had been demoted after disappointing Asmodeus in the Blood War and was forced to serve as Zariel’s advisor, so the term "superior" was not misplaced.

Bael continued, "About a hundred years ago, Zariel began sending people into the Thrace region. But back then, it was still part of the Holy Fadlan Empire and was designated as a garrison for the Angelic Scions."

"As you may know, Zariel is a fallen Seraphim, and she is particularly fascinated by the Angelic Scions—those proud, powerful beings who share a similar bloodline with her. She even successfully lured one of them into Hell."

"However, at that time, the Holy Fadlan Empire was still in its prime. The old Emperor did not hesitate to declare war on Zariel, leading the Angelic Scions to invade Avernus, forcing Zariel to hand over the soul of that fallen one, humiliating her deeply."

At this point, Bael couldn’t help but reveal a hint of pleasure. Although he hadn’t participated, Zariel’s defeat always brought him joy.

Cassius expressed his amazement, "I didn’t know that part of history. That old Emperor of Fadlan must have been truly formidable."

Bael nodded but spoke with some disdain, "But... he was still an arrogant mortal who thought he could replace the gods. Truly laughable."

"From what I know, after the great collapse of the Holy Fadlan Empire, the continent of Feanso fell into chaos, and Zariel, with her ambition, sought to exploit the opportunity to gain more influence in the Material Plane."

The devil’s lips curled into a sinister smile. "But if I were still in power, I probably would have meddled as well. I must admit, the Material Plane is quite tempting nowadays. War brings us countless corrupted souls."

"But you were dethroned," Cassius interrupted mercilessly, adding coldly, "Otherwise, you might have been an enemy of the Empire as well."

Bael chuckled awkwardly. "Of course, Your Majesty Cassius, as you said, there are no permanent friends—only permanent interests."

Cassius asked bluntly, "By collaborating with the Thrace Kingdom, what is her ultimate goal? The souls of those Angelic Scions?"

Bael shook his head. "No, no, no. The Angelic Scions are nearly all corrupted now, far from being considered pure souls. Zariel’s plans have become even more insane."

The devil looked up at the Red Dragon, his expression enigmatic. "Her target now\... is Thrace. She wants to drag the entire Thrace Kingdom into Hell and turn it into her own ’Land of Souls.’"

"Such an appetite... What a lunatic."

Hearing this, even Cassius was somewhat shocked. The Kingdom of Thrace was a vast nation comparable to Anzeta, with a population of tens of millions. And Zariel intended to drag the entire nation into Hell!

Bael continued, "Once it falls into Hell, countless souls would be marked, assigned to specific devils for collection. This is what we call a devil’s ’Land of Souls.’"

"And if Zariel becomes the ruler of Thrace, she would have an endless supply of soldiers, and her power would grow to unimaginable levels."

A look of hatred and loathing flashed in Bael’s pitch-black eyes. His handsome face twisted, almost revealing his demonic form.

"Therefore... I cannot allow her to succeed. If she does, I will never have a chance to rise again."

Cassius’s pale golden slit eyes glimmered brightly. He spoke, "Very well, then we are in agreement."

"The continent of Feanso will become the Ember Empire’s territory. Whether it’s Thrace or Kassander, they will become indispensable parts of the Empire. Any force that tries to stop this process will be ruthlessly crushed."

The Red Dragon’s voice was powerful and forceful, filled with unrestrained confidence. Dominating Feanso was merely the beginning of the Empire’s grand plan.

Bael also said, "To be honest, I have long paid attention to you and your empire. I predicted that the Ember Empire had intentions of moving south for invasion and believed that you are someone capable of defeating Zariel."

"Even if you hadn’t summoned me, I would have taken the initiative to contact you and become your loyal ally."

Suddenly, Cassius asked with a half-smile, "Lord Bael, if Zariel is defeated by me and you reclaim the position of Lord of Avernus, would you still support me in unifying Feanso?"

Bael spread his hands somewhat innocently and replied, "Your Majesty Cassius, I would very much like to say yes. But even if I said so, as wise as you are, would you really believe my words?"

"As you said, there are no eternal allies—at least at this stage, I still support you. A common enemy and mutual interests are the best guarantees for cooperation, are they not?"

Cassius laughed heartily, his voice cheerful as he said, "Hahaha, Lord Bael, you are absolutely right. Who would ever trust a devil’s integrity?"

"Now, let’s discuss the details of our cooperation and how we will sign a specific contract."

Upon hearing the word "contract," Bael’s eyes lit up. Nothing excited a devil more than that, but soon, Cassius shattered his fantasy mercilessly.

Cassius spoke calmly, "Langpu, bring out the contract we prepared in advance."

"Yes, Master."

The Ogre Mage bowed his head in response, then took out several pre-prepared folders from his dimensional pouch. The stack of papers was hundreds of pages thick, filled with dense writing.

"The Alliance Treaty Between the Empire and the Bael Faction"

This was a contract drafted by hundreds of law players from the Empire’s legal department. They spent days and nights working overtime to perfect it. The annotations alone spanned tens of thousands of words, effectively closing off every possible loophole that a devil could exploit.

Langpu expressionlessly presented the contract. "Lord Bael, this is the contract the Empire has prepared for you. Please review it carefully to avoid any errors."

Bael’s expression stiffened instantly, his mouth twitching slightly. A lengthy and nearly incomprehensible contract was a trick devils typically used on mortals. Now, it had come back to haunt him.

He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Your Majesty Cassius, this is..."

Cassius replied indifferently, "Just a means to ensure cooperation and promote fairness, Lord Bael. Forgive my bluntness, but I simply cannot trust a devil—especially one infamous for betrayal—to uphold a contract."

Under Cassius’s expansive wings and towering form, the reasoning seemed incredibly persuasive.

Bael wanted to argue, "But this isn’t fair. You must understand, even in Hell..."

"Lord Bael." Cassius interrupted him calmly, "You must understand, our cooperation is not an equal one. This means the Ember Empire’s leadership is inevitable. In the eyes of the Empire, you are not irreplaceable. Even without your cooperation, Zariel has countless enemies in Hell. Many want to disrupt her plans. We can find another archdevil willing to cooperate at any time. But you are different, Lord Bael. Cooperating with us is your only chance to overthrow Zariel and reclaim the position of Lord of Avernus."

"The Empire chose you not for any complex reason—just because you know Zariel better and are less of a threat than those other Hell lords."

Cassius’s voice was calm, merely stating facts.

"You..."

Instantly, Bael gritted his teeth. A faint spark of rage flared in his deep-set eyes, but soon, he realized that Cassius was not wrong. For him, this was the best opportunity for a comeback.

What he needed to do now was to quickly regain the position of Hell’s lord. Aside from that, so-called dignity and face were nothing but jokes.

Besides—devils were masters of manipulating contracts. They understood the essence of contracts far better than mortals and could easily twist the terms to extract the maximum benefit.

Even if the other party drafted the contract, Bael had confidence that he could become the true controller of its terms. That was the confidence of a true archdevil.

Thinking of this, Bael gave Cassius a long, deep look, then bowed gracefully, smiling as he said, "Apologies, Your Majesty Cassius. I lost my composure for a moment. I will certainly ’thoroughly’ review the contract you have carefully prepared, and strive to make our cooperation even better."

The former Devil Lord waved his hand, and the hundreds of pages of documents immediately floated gracefully into the air, neatly arranged. Bael merely touched them lightly, and the contents of the million-word contract instantly flooded into his mind.

"The Bael Faction acknowledges and respects the leadership of the Ember Empire in establishing a new order on the continent of Feanso."

"If conflict arises with Zariel’s forces, the Empire and the Bael Faction shall assist each other with all political, economic, and military means."

"Devils under the Bael Faction may sign contracts with citizens of the Empire, granting the contractors the power of Hell."

As Bael carefully reviewed the hundreds of pages of the contract, he found it surprisingly "fair," without many outrageous or domineering clauses.

Moreover, he even discovered some loopholes in the contract—