The Nether King was powerful.
At the very least… powerful enough that even Kasha and Morgana were currently unable to read or analyze him.
But that did not mean Kasha agreed with his ideology of rule.
Angels only wage war against demons—
they do not conquer civilizations.
Instead, they bring hope to weaker civilizations,
drive away evil,
and light a path forward.
Even so, Kasha would never directly interfere with a civilization's governance.
Those who received the angels' help would inevitably begin to worship them—
finding meaning in life under the framework of order and justice,
living peacefully and happily.
In a sense…
The Angel Civilization was the god of lower civilizations.
The Nether King turned his gaze toward Kasha.
In that instant, the atmosphere inside the tavern tightened.
Tu Shan Yaya—who lived purely for chaos—hugged the black cat with one arm, clenched her fist with the other, and had "fight, fight, fight!" written all over her face.
Rayleigh, on the other hand, looked disappointed.
What he wanted to see was women pulling hair and ripping clothes,
not ideological debate.
Bad review.
Just as the tavern sank into silence—
The Nether King let out a soft chuckle.
"The word meaning you speak of…
is itself meaningless."
"You and I exist in different worlds."
"You have never experienced what I have.
How can you speak of meaning?"
Morgana's eyes lit up instantly.
She could tell—
this man might actually argue Kasha into a corner.
Yet strangely…
She wasn't happy.
When the image of Kasha being rendered speechless appeared in her mind,
a flicker of anger surfaced instead.
The feeling was contradictory, unsettling,
and it caused her normally playful eyes to dim slightly.
Kasha frowned faintly, her voice still calm and lazy:
"Worlds differ, but the pain of invasion is universal."
"You're right—I cannot experience what you have."
"But conquest after conquest, domination after domination—
that is unquestionably evil."
"In my world, weaker civilizations live beautifully under a just order."
The Nether King laughed.
The sound echoed through the tavern.
He came from a universe ruled by cruelty and hypocrisy.
To him, evil had no boundaries,
nor could it be clearly defined.
At the very least, from his perspective—
The Wolf Clan's goal was simple.
Survive.
If you don't invade others,
others will invade you.
"What are you laughing at?" Kasha asked, brows knitting.
"At how naïve your thinking is," the Nether King replied calmly.
"If I halt my conquests, then the cycle resumes—
the strong overpowering the weak and ruling them."
"If that's the case,
aren't you simply permitting the rise of another ruler?"
"And the order you speak of—
is it not also established by the strong?"
"When I reached the summit, I found only loneliness.
No one spoke to me."
"The endless winter at the peak made me shiver."
"So tell me—
what is it that I seek at such heights?"
A certain man wearing black-rimmed glasses clenched his hand.
He barely resisted drawing Kyōka Suigetsu.
Why is this guy so good at posturing?!
My hand itches—seriously want to stab him.
...
Kasha's brow furrowed more deeply.
Step by step, her thoughts were being pulled into the logical maze the Nether King had laid out.
She knew it.
This was sophistry.
Her justice was not his absolute domination.
Leaning back in her chair, she said slowly:
"Freedom belongs to all beings."
"They do not belong to you,
nor do they wish to be ruled by you."
"As for your wolves and sheep analogy—
it's nothing more than an excuse for invasion."
"No matter how beautiful the justification,
it cannot erase the essence of aggression."
The Nether King didn't argue.
Instead, he smiled.
"I don't deny the invasion."
"Because once, my Wolf Clan suffered the same fate."
"So when I rule the Seven Parallel Universes—
I will judge conflicts from an objective standpoint."
Kasha tried to respond—
But the debate continued all the way into the afternoon.
No winner.
Or rather—
Both were winners.
Because the endpoint of their argument was the same:
Peace.
Only the paths differed.
Seeing that no fight would break out, the other patrons stopped listening.
In summary—
The Nether King came from tragedy.
Born into cruelty.
Nearly exterminated.
So after being soaked by the rain himself—
he wanted to splash others too.
An extremist realist.
That was all.
At that moment, the system's mechanical voice sounded in Ron's mind:
[Ding! Customer: Nether King has completed his confession.]
[Customer: Nether King — Available abilities: Philosophical Doctrine, Nebula Body.]
[Please select one ability.]
[Ding! Confession-linked individual: Snow Emperor will visit the tavern in the near future.]
[Ding! Confession-linked individual: Kaido's related party Yamato will also arrive soon!]
"Philosophical doctrine? What kind of nonsense is that…"
Ron muttered before saying aloud:
"Select the Nether King's Nebula Body—to be fused at night."
As for the others—
Ron selected:
Kaido's Fish-Fish Fruit, Mythical Type: Azure Dragon
Holy Lord's 'Electric Eyes'
Kasha's Divine Domain
Still…
One question lingered.
Could a Nebula Body tear apart a Fourth-Generation God Body?
That thing could unleash energy equivalent to six to eight black holes.
...
Night fell.
The guests gradually departed.
Only Kasha and the Nether King remained.
Their debate finally came to an end.
"Though I don't agree with your ideology," the Nether King said calmly after finishing his drink,
"I gained much from this discussion."
"I'll return tomorrow. I hope we can continue."
Kasha nodded.
"Alright."
As they turned to leave, Ron's lazy voice drifted from behind the bar:
"You two haven't paid yet."
The Nether King froze.
Sealed for a hundred thousand years.
No money.
No valuables.
Nothing but the armor on his body.
Kasha smiled sweetly, turned back, and walked gracefully to the bar.
She gently flicked Ron's lips.
Then, she produced a Flaming Sword and handed it to him.
"This should cover a few days' worth of drinks, right?"
Then why'd you take advantage of me?!
And if you were going to—why not go all the way?!
Ron silently complained before smiling:
"Deal. You're welcome back anytime."
Kasha nodded and left.
Before disappearing into the night, she smiled at the Nether King:
"Your sophistry is impressive."
"Why don't you try arguing with Ron—
see if you can get your tab waived."
The Nether King's face darkened beneath his mask.
What now?
He couldn't just kiss Ron like she did, could he?!
In the end, he promised to bring an Ability Lock tomorrow as payment.
Only then did Ron let him go.
The tavern closed for the day.
After washing up, Ron returned to his room and began fusing—
Nebula Body and Divine Domain, simultaneously.
In an instant—
A terrifying surge of power flooded his body.
The overflowing energy raged within the room.
Had barriers not been prepared in advance,
the entire courtyard would have been erased.
Soon, both abilities finished fusing.
Before Ron could test them—
The door creaked open slightly.
Then came a soft, sticky, drawn-out voice:
"Ron~
I'm here to talk about life with you~"
Ron knew—
This time, it wouldn't just be an "oh."
It would be a full-blown "ahhh."
...
The next morning.
Despite the exhaustion of the night before, Ron rose early and opened the tavern.
Breakfast.
Newspaper.
Just like always.
Suddenly—
The door swung open.
Rayleigh strode in loudly:
"Kid! Bring booze!
Tiger-whip wine!"
Ron froze.
Then it hit him—
All Villain-type guests had already appeared.
Rayleigh was now the first guest afterward.
Meaning the system would analyze his trait
and summon guests accordingly.
Don't tell me… kidney deficiency trait?
The system chimed:
[Ding! Guest detected. Beginning analysis.]
[Analysis complete. This guest's trait is "Teacher."]
[The next four summoned guests will also possess the "Teacher" trait.]
[Note: Random daily guests are not included.]
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