Instead, he very calmly and openly announced his name.
As soon as he spoke the name of the Evil God, the air around them was instantly filled with a suffocating silence.
The soldiers all recalled the terrifying rumors they had previously heard about various Evil Gods, and their faces turned deathly pale.
Faced with this almost tangible terror, the weapons in their hands became difficult to hold because of their overwhelming nervousness. They no longer seemed like tools to protect themselves, but rather ominous objects that could bring disaster upon them at any moment.
"There's no need to be so afraid," Seeing their terrified expressions, Ash waved his hand lightly, trying to ease the tense atmosphere.
"I'm not some kind of demon, and I have no intention of carrying out an unnecessary massacre. However... your prince is truly detestable. So, go tell your king what happened here. I'll make sure he doesn't hold what happened against you. But if the way he handles this guy doesn't satisfy me, then... King, you'll understand what the consequences will be, won't you?"
He wore a smile, and his voice was calm and steady, carrying a reassuring strength.
Yet the meaning of his words made them wonder whether their own language system worked differently from his.
After all, who normally spoke to a king like that? But... the Kingdom of Shirone was only a small country, not even as large as Eris's family's territory.
With the Evil God's power, he could probably level the entire country with ease. Offending him would be no different from seeking the destruction of their country.
As for the prince beneath Ash's foot, who had already lost control of himself in terror, he couldn't even manage to utter a threat. Tears, snot, and urine had already spread everywhere, yet he had no time to care about the humiliation. His voice distorted, he hurriedly begged for mercy, desperately trying to find a way to survive.
"I-I was wrong! W-Wait! Evil God... no, Lord Evil God! Please wait! As long as you spare my life, I'll prepare whatever amount of money and whatever women you want...! girls, you say? Their women! Their daughters, their granddaughters! I'll give them all to you!"
"Not interested."
As he spoke, Ash raised his leg and kicked the prince in his round belly. Pax's entire body flew backward, sliding along the ground like a curling stone for more than ten meters before crashing heavily into a wall beside the street. He immediately spat out a mouthful of blood with a loud "Ugh!"
The kick to his abdomen had clearly caused serious internal injuries. For a while, the prince could only lie on the ground and groan repeatedly.
The surrounding soldiers witnessed the scene but were too terrified to make a sound.
Kinji gritted her teeth and summoned up the courage to speak.
"Lord Evil God, we'll report this to the king right away. Please... please wait here for a moment."
With that, she hurried away with several soldiers, without even taking their own prince with them.
"Is this really okay? You did that to another country's prince the moment you arrived... If word gets out, your reputation..."
Although Roxy was kindhearted, she wasn't rigid about rules, and she had no desire to plead on behalf of a prince who abused his power and did whatever he pleased. Still, she was somewhat worried that his reputation would suffer even further.
Eris, whose personality was naturally rough, crossed her arms and glanced sideways at the prince, who was still screaming.
"What's the big deal? He's the one who's in the wrong!"
There was no need to say much. From the little information they'd gathered earlier, it was easy enough to judge what kind of person the prince was. Naturally, she couldn't feel any sympathy for this perverted bully.
Ash himself was also somewhat troubled, because he didn't particularly like having people cling to him and refuse to leave him alone. Although other people would certainly be able to offer him some interesting things.
But... girls were only fun to play with for a while. Keeping them around for too long wasn't appropriate, and if they didn't have beast ears or tails, there were also fewer places for him to pet.
Therefore, he had no intention of staying long. He planned to buy what he needed, meet the king, and leave immediately afterward.
———
After waiting only a short while, the king appeared before them on a tall, fine horse, leading a massive escort and a group of princes.
"This is...", The king had only just dismounted when his eyes fell on his half-dead, utterly miserable son lying on the ground. The corner of his eye twitched slightly, but in the next instant, he pretended he hadn't seen anything and spoke calmly.
"Lord Evil God, please forgive us for failing to welcome you properly. We apologize for not receiving you in person."
"You understand, don't you? What should be done with this guy?"
"There's something you don't know. This fellow isn't actually my son at all. He's merely the illegitimate child the Third Queen Consort had with another man. I only tolerated him because the other party is the Sixth Princess of the Kingdom of Kikka! But since this beast has offended you, I naturally can no longer endure this for the sake of the country!"
The king spoke with righteous indignation, going on and on. His words were full of grievance and helplessness. Then, he raised his voice and declared righteously, "On the way here, I already had him sent to the execution platform! And as for this beast... Guards!"
At his call, the royal guards immediately advanced in orderly formation.
The king quietly observed Ash before issuing his order in a cold, decisive voice.
"Quarter this bastard for bringing disgrace upon the royal family!"
"Understood!"
The guards answered in unison and immediately stepped forward to seize the prince, who was still writhing in pain on the ground.
Upon hearing this cruel, merciless order, Prince Pax was so terrified that he nearly lost his soul. He desperately tried to get up from the ground, but the severe injury to his abdomen made the pain unbearable.
Every struggle brought stabbing pain, leaving him able to do little more than writhe his fat, bloated body across the ground like a maggot as he begged for mercy with all his strength.
"Father! Father! You can't do this! I'm your son! I really am your son! I know I was wrong! I won't dare do it again! Please spare me this once!"
His voice became shrill and piercing from fear and pain. Tears, snot, and blood spat from his mouth mixed together, smearing his already ugly face until the sight was almost too horrible to look at.
However, the king turned a deaf ear to him. His gaze was so cold that it was as though he were looking at a complete stranger. His only concern was protecting his own throne.
He knew very well that if he failed to show sufficient sincerity in front of this powerful "Evil God," his kingdom would face annihilation... just as the Water God had reportedly been slaughtered with ease. It was virtually certain that this man possessed the strength of one of the Seven Great Powers of the World. He could easily change the balance of power across the entire world, and a small country like his was in no position to offend him.
Moreover, even if the Evil God himself didn't care, failing to handle this matter properly could allow another country to use it as an opportunity to curry favor with him. After all, he was the only one among the Seven Great Powers who was genuinely believed to still be alive. The others had been missing for so many years that nobody knew whether they were still alive. In a sense, it wouldn't be wrong to call him the strongest person alive.
Ash simply stood to one side, coldly watching the farce unfold. His expression was as calm as still water, without the slightest emotional fluctuation.
He had seen scenes of people begging for mercy countless times before and was completely used to them. Nor was he in the least surprised by the king's ruthless and decisive handling of the situation.
He even knew perfectly well that the king's claims of being wronged were nothing but lies made up on the spot.
He had casually branded his own queen consort as unfaithful, probably because of some dispute with the neighboring kingdom. He was likely trying to completely distance himself from the incident while also hoping to redirect the trouble toward another country.
But Ash had no interest in this and no intention of getting involved in these complicated national disputes. He casually waved his hand and said offhandedly, "I trust you'll handle this properly. Remember to rescue the families of those soldiers... I have other things to do, so I'll be leaving first. Perhaps I'll visit your palace sometime when I have the chance."
With that, he turned and walked away on his own, without the slightest hesitation or reluctance to leave.
He even ignored the king's eager requests and desperate attempts to persuade him to stay. He casually grabbed the two girls beside him, then vanished around the street corner in a flash, leaving behind only astonishment and silence.
Although Ash's behavior was extremely impolite and showed absolutely no regard for the king, as though the king were merely a low-ranking subordinate under his command, all the soldiers present seemed to have reached an unspoken agreement. They pretended they had seen nothing and heard nothing, and silently carried out the king's orders.
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