Chapter 126 Skirmish 3
The uninvited guest had a snake-like tongue. Ophelia knew he was very cunning, and she did not forget that it was a gift, but at the same time, it was a display of strength.
It was true that the House of Abigail was on the verge of collapse. Besides, Jungceros's daughter was so weak that she could not be compared with Foras or Jungceros.
But even so, she was the owner of her own dungeon. She was the owner of a dungeon heavily fortified.
Even though Ophelia was watching Jungceros's daughter sharply, she did not know her death until the uninvited guest appeared.
The house heads in the eastern region showed that they could infiltrate the southern region anytime and kill the head of any house stealthily.
Instead of an ambiguous diplomatic language, Ophelia spoke directly, "So, you want me to be an anvil in return for your being a hammer, right?"
"Great! That's correct. If you guys in the southern area stop Embrio, we in the eastern region will attack the northern region without losing the momentum."
The uninvited guest also replied straightforwardly.
Ophelia gently rubbed the smooth surface of the bar with her fingertips.
It was virtually his unilateral notification as follows:
Now that the western region is being attacked, we won't attack the northern region.
For we want Embrio to completely destroy the western region.
But at the same time, we don't want Embrio to occupy the southern region because Embrio will become too strong in that case.
We will plant hope in the House of Mammon, so they won't surrender, for we want the House of Mammon to fully confront Embrio that destroyed both the northern and the western regions.
Ophelia thought to herself, 'In other words, you guys in the eastern region want to subdue Embrio and the House of Mammon, fully exhausted after occupying the northern region and devastating the western region.'
She clearly read his intention, but she found it meaningless to argue with him here.
Regardless of what the future holds for them, the eastern region was an ally of the House of Mammon, given the current situation.
"We've left the dungeon of the House of Abigail as it was. I hope it will be of any help to the House of Mammon."
"Thank you for your hospitality."
"You're welcome. You are the one who got rid of Agares, who were running wild everywhere. Our master is really grateful to the House of Mammon."
They were done talking finally.
Ophelia bowed him out with a smile, while the uninvited guest left the tavern leisurely like he did when he entered.
Counting the number in her heart, Ophelia closed the lid of the box, thinking time passed a lot since he left.
Looking out the window, she saw the sun setting. But she couldn't hesitate. It seemed like she had to run all night today.
***
It was at dawn when Yong-ho met Ophelia.
Since he fell asleep late at night, he was very tired, but he couldn't avoid Ophelia, who ran here all night.
As soon as Ophelia was done briefing, he closed his eyes and asked what came to mind first.
"How did you deal with the body of Jungceros's daughter?"
"I came here after ordering her burial after a simple funeral."
"Well done."
He was serious. He didn't have any grudge against Jungceros's daughter, who he had never seen. In some respects, she was a pitiful woman.
The next question he asked Ophelia was how she would respond to the unilateral notification by the uninvited guest from the eastern region. It was no exaggeration to say that her response was already decided.
"Let's take over the House of Abigail first. It is impossible for us to fortify at this point. How about using it as a dummy?"
The heart of the dungeon of the House of Abigail was highly likely to be good food for Lucia. However, Lucia didn't necessarily need it. It would have been desperate food for the House of Mammon in the past, but it was only one of its options now.
Ophelia said, "I think it's better to use it like a dummy, too. If you pretend to reinforce it a little, it will be difficult for outsiders to guess the dungeon's defense condition."
Rikum, a counselor to Yong-ho like Ophelia, was now staying in the House of Randolt. Since Yong-ho and Ophelia agreed, there was no reason for Rikum to oppose.
Yong-ho told Ophelia to rest then wrote a simple command.
It was a letter ordering the crazy Oros in the Free City to occupy the House of Abigail.
A few hours later, Ophelia, who woke up at almost lunchtime, embarrassed Yong-ho a lot.
***
"Right to claim your wish? Sounds like a really good idea. Fortunately, you have become strong thanks to the little master. I myself feel motivated to hear that."
Ophelia already heard from Lucia about what was going on, but she was still curious about what happened for the past several days when she was away.
So, as soon as Ophelia woke up, she grabbed Yong-ho's escort girl Catalina and inquired about what had happened.
Just like a good and innocent girl, Catalina told her about even what she didn't have to.
It was only natural that she was completely debriefed by Ophelia, formerly a veteran intelligence peddler.
Among what she confided to Ophelia was the reason why the power of the dungeon spirits grew rapidly, the Godly Energy of the King of Greed that Scathach mentioned, the evolution of Aamon, the magic spear of the red lotus, and the existence of Baphomet, the worst spirit located on the second floor of the Labyrinth of Greed.
Each of them was interesting to Ophelia, but what caught Ophelia's attention personally was the right to ask for a wish that Kaiwan granted to Catalina and Yong-ho.
Watching Ophelia talking to Eligos in the training field cheerfully like a lively girl, Yong-ho shook his head. He didn't look at Catalina who was checking his mood with her ears and tail drooping as if she now realized she leaked a secret. Instead, he watched Eligos, who was greatly embarrassed.
Eligos was mounting a sophisticated attack on the pretext of sparring. But the training field was also a place where they exchanged physical affection naturally. Besides, Ophelia mentioned she would grant his wish on the excuses of inspiring his motivation.
Since Eligos could not outtalk Ophelia, he was desperately asking Yong-ho to intervene, but it was useless. Yong-ho ignored him by cruelly turning his head.
'I'm sorry, Eligos. Their sparring sounds like fun.'
Although Yong-ho felt terrible whenever he was mocked by Aamon, he enjoyed being an onlooker at this moment. He was also curious about what kind of wish Ophelia would say to Eligos.
'Well, like Ophelia said, this is going to motivate him a lot.'
Yong-ho didn't need to be flustered just because the eastern and western regions were in turmoil. Since the House of Mammon was taking care of what was necessary in an orderly manner, it would be better for Yong-ho to relax with small events like this.
Perhaps having heard the rumor, the dungeon spirits of the House of Mammon began to arrive at the training field to watch the fight between Eligos and Ophelia.
As it was the break time after lunch, not only Goblin Rangers, but also Orcs, and even Burgrim and Treant came out. Yuria and Baduk sat next to Catalina.
Given the situation at the moment, Eligos had no other choice but to fight.
There was a fight a man could not avoid in his life, and this was the one for Eligos.
Eligos revealed all three horns and displayed all his might. The dungeon spirits of the House of Mammon were greatly agitated by the butler's power that they had never seen before.
Eligos was much stronger than expected!
Ophelia smiled cheerfully at Eligos' muscles that had swollen like a beast.
She also spared no strength. She showed all her might by revealing a fourth horn.
The dungeon spirits were shocked and got agitated again after seeing that.
Orcs, the born fighters, clenched their fists and swallowed, watching the fight.
Burgrim kept his eyes narrow to watch the two on the training field.
"Let me start."
"Hope I'm in your good hands, brother!"
Shortly after exchanging greetings, the two Red Demons kicked off the ground at the same time. They rushed at each other with terrifying speed.
It was truly breathless sparring. A head-to-head battle in which neither chickened out was going on.
Yong-ho was freshly shocked. Eligos' growth was beyond imagination. Yong-ho took him to small battles a few times, so he knew he became strong, but little did he realize that this old butler became so strong since then.
'He is almost as strong as Ophelia when she entered the House of Mammon.'
No, it was different this time. He was stronger than Ophelia.
Ophelia gave Eligos the right path. Eligos's beast-like offensive rooted in his Herculean power, producing tremendous offensive power. As far as his hurtling toward his opponent was concerned, Eligos might be the strongest among the dungeon spirits of the House of Mammon. Ophelia blocked Eligos's attack effectively. Considering that she was his teacher, her skills were remarkable.
Everyone in the House of Mammon, including Yong-ho, was absorbed into their sparring. However, their sparring did not last long.
About two minutes or so passed when Eligos punched her hard. Since his punch was on the target, she couldn't block or avoid it, so she bounced back because of the impact.
The Orcs shouted at that moment, but Eligos, who punched her in the face, was very embarrassed.
He was even worried that Ophelia was wounded by the punch.
In fact, he threw the punch aimlessly, but as it turned out, Ophelia, not anyone else, was hit directly by the punch.
"Oops, you beat me. You've gotten a lot stronger, Brother Ellie."
Ophelia, who fell somewhat seductively, spoke cheerfully.
Eligos was embarrassed again. The Orcs, shouting in joy, now realized that something was wrong.
But she did not care what they thought. She gently raised his upper body and said, whispering with a fox-like expression, "Now, what kind of wish would you, Brother Ellie, ask of me? I hope it's not something trifling."
Ophelia tilted her head slightly. Everybody in the training field kept silent, watching them.