Shepherd Tantra

Chapter 754 It's Better to Say It's a Gift

but……

Aleister stroked the uneasy little crow and narrowed his eyes slightly, thinking secretly.

If Anna Kingsford was the mastermind behind Alphonse's murder, he would be killed by the Night Devil's power... Doesn't this also mean that Ms. Kingsford has some kind of relationship with the Night Devil?

"I am so sorry, my dear boss..."

At this moment, overlapping voices suddenly sounded, as if four or five people with similar voices were saying the same sentence in slightly different rhythms.

That was the sound coming from the mirror that was destroyed in the explosion. Although the ceiling and floor had become hollow, the mirror that Aiwass and Night Demon were blocking behind was only blown into pieces by the shock wave.

Now, in these tattered fragments, the images of multiple mirror demons are reflected at the same time.

Because each remaining mirror fragment was too small to contain its existence. In order to report safety as soon as possible, the Mirror Demon directly split itself into several parts and made a sound like several recordings put together.

"That was an attack from the Night Demon. It was too fierce for a poor little devil like me..."

"——Okay, stop talking."

Before the Mirror Demon could say anything irreversible, Aleister quickly spoke up to stop it.

However, the Mirror Demon did not feel the slightest bit disgusted by this.

Instead, he began his second wave of flattery very smoothly: "As expected of you, you really understand the nature of us demons too well. This way, I can rest assured - at least you won't be in danger because of listening to the slander of other demons."

...Professional, so professional.

After being interrupted by Aleister, he immediately stated that if he did something wrong, it was the instinct of my race, not my individual problem; secondly, he expressed his determination to stand firmly with Aleister no matter what; then he secretly said "other demons are not as good as me"... This sentence can be seen as a kind concern for Aleister's safety, or it can be seen as a subtle poke at the Night Devil - after all, she is also one of the "other demons".

Aleister hissed, a little unsteady.

——Damn you, Lord Dawn, what have you taught your demon to be like!

How could the devil be tainted with the filth of the human world... Tsk, why does this sound so weird...

...but it doesn’t seem too weird.

The phantoms of the dream world were ultimately made from the souls of the material world. According to the custom of the Fallen Angel, he would generally only brand individuals with the ability to transcend the path with the mark of great sin - these souls would not enter the river of the dream world through the normal route, but would be directly transformed into demons.

This behavior is equivalent to intercepting supplies on the roadside, stopping the supply truck that was originally heading to the destination and taking the supplies for oneself.

Many demons are actually humans who were transformed during the Helasar Empire. In other words, they are actually "ancients" from five hundred years ago or even a thousand years ago.

——How could the ancient people be as bad as the modern people!
As human civilization progresses, the desire to transcend becomes stronger, and the path of depravity spreads. Those who were chosen by the Fallen Angels five or six hundred years ago may be considered good kids in His eyes now...

It seemed that because of Aleister's other identity as the "Eternal Pope", the mirror demon who had signed a new temporary labor contract with Aleister suddenly became enthusiastic. Originally, it was thinking about running away for a vacation, but now it seems that it is not in a hurry.

Seeing that Aleister didn't respond, the Mirror Demon changed the subject very smoothly without feeling awkward at all: "Who do you think is the murderer behind this incident?"

Seeing that the Mirror Demon had said something serious for once—or rather, something that would not make the little crow feel wronged if he answered its question—Aleister also became serious and quickly changed the subject: "If you ask me, it was Ms. Kingsford who did it."

"But this is 'The Kiss of Betrayal'."

The Mirror Demon said the name of this move without hesitation: "From what I know, Ms. Kingsford is a witch. Although she also possesses the power of the Path of Love, this should not be done by her."

"That's not necessarily true." Aleister said meaningfully: "After all, it's the path of love... I'm not surprised at what they do."

After all, that is the power of the source river of "creation".

Although both the Path of Beasts and the Path of Love have deviated somewhat, this does not shake the fact that the Path of Love is the most viable path now.

Compared to the Mirror Demon, Vignes understood Aleister's subtext: "Master, is there anything else Ms. Kingsford wants to do?"

"Let me ask you," Aleister did not answer, but asked back, "If this was done by Kingsford, then what do you think this is?"

"I think this is an attempt to silence Alphonse von Pilotti."

The Mirror Demon answered without hesitation, and it was obvious that he had been thinking about this answer for a long time: "Because his ritual was taught to him by Ms. Kingsford. It can even be said that this ritual itself is closely related to Ms. Kingsford's interests. In order to destroy the evidence, Ms. Kingsford rushed to silence Mr. Pilotti as soon as she learned the intelligence...

"——But I think this is just a wrong answer. It is a vulgar inference based on my preconceived ideas and wrong information. I think the boss must have some different opinions on this. I am eager to hear your wise thoughts."

It then changed the subject and gave a completely opposite statement very smoothly.

Like Kogoro Mouri who had just been pricked by Conan, he denied his own quite reasonable inference.

"It's very simple. Because no matter if it was the Night Demon or Anna who did it, the other party came from the Path of Love - and cursing is also a skill that the Path of Love is proficient in.

"The question is - is it normal for someone on the path of love to be so? Or, does she really care about the so-called 'truth' and 'silencing'?"

Although Aleister's words sounded a bit argumentative, when you think about it carefully, you will find that she is right.

——Since Aleister was able to bypass many interferences and go straight to Alphonse, who was definitely not capable of performing this ritual, it means that he had obtained enough evidence. Since Aleister already knew that Anna was the mastermind behind Alphonse, then Anna committed such an undisguised murder and silenced the witnesses...

...Isn't it a bit like taking off pants to fart?
"Rather than silencing someone, it's better to say that this has only solidified the impression that she is the mastermind behind this. But if it's a frame-up, it's meaningless - unless you told me that this matter is related to Ms. Kingsford, then this matter is false."

"—Absolutely not, Boss!"

The Mirror Demon shouted without hesitation: "I will never do such lies and deceptions!"

"I believe you."

Aleister answered without hesitation: "So there is only one other possible answer.

"The opponent - let's call her 'the opponent' - her actions were carried out with the protection of the Night Demon.

"You see, although the explosion was loud, it did not cause much actual damage. After the steaming black smoke dissipated, the broken wall could still barely maintain its outline; and the explosion that shook the ground did not even completely shatter the mirror that I was blocking...

"And I was completely absorbed by the Night Demon's explosion, not even a hair was messed up. If you say this is an assassination attempt on me, isn't that a bit too much of an insult to me? After all, I am still able to kill Count Dawn's men quietly."

"So, you think..."

The Mirror Demon spoke, and said gently and slowly: "Perhaps this is just a test?"

"I prefer to call it a 'gift'."

Aleister squinted his eyes, and his scarlet pupils lit up like lights in the gray smoke: "It's like a firework that goes off when a friend comes in, or a salute when distinguished guests come to the house."

(End of this chapter)