Anime, Girlfriend Shokuhou Misaki.

Page 353

If it weren't for the situation, Athena would be eager to ask Haramura Makoto right now what kind of illusion he had that made him think she had a happy expression on her face at the time.

That was clearly an expression of gritted teeth, as if she wanted to kill him, okay?

"Shall we continue trading?"

"can."

"It is indeed not easy for you to find something about me that you would value."

Since things had already come to this, Athena didn't hold back her sarcasm and went straight for Makoto Haramura.

"Of course, goddess, you are still very valuable."

"Please never underestimate yourself."

Makoto Haramura seemed oblivious to the sarcasm and continued talking.

"Crack——!"

The tiles beneath Athena's feet were instantly crushed into dust.

What do you want to trade?

"There's no need to rush into what we're trading; we can discuss it when we meet next time."

"Don't worry, it's definitely not something that will make things too difficult for you."

"is it?"

"My intuition tells me that you are thinking about things you shouldn't be thinking about."

The goddess of wisdom uttered an annoyed complaint.

If possible, she would rather never hear Haramura Makoto's words, but unfortunately, she can't give them up right now.

So even though she was already furious, she still listened and gave it a try.

"That works too. Let's wait until we meet again."

"I think that day shouldn't be too far away."

Athena responded with a cold tone.

"Oh? From what you're saying, Goddess, it seems you're almost ready?"

The rustling sound rose again from the bushes, from the corners, from all directions.

The black snakes surged toward Athena like a sudden tide, and in the very center of the swarm, arched by dozens of snakes, was a red cross.

Seeing Athena's red cross suddenly lifted my spirits.

"I've already got the most important thing in my hands."

Chapter 295 All by Fate

It was still the headquarters of the Bronze Black Cross, and the scene was exactly the same as before.

Makoto Haramura sat in the chair, while the people below looked completely bewildered.

Without him.

They really couldn't believe what they were hearing.

The demon king on earth is having a friendly conversation with the disobedient god.

What kind of international joke is this?

Shouldn't these two entities, upon meeting, fight to the death?

“I’m not quite the same as other god-slayers.”

With one hand supporting his left cheek, Makoto Haramura yawned and began to speak slowly.

The three people listened intently, afraid of missing even the slightest detail.

"Given the current circumstances, I still don't really want to see what happened in Milan just now."

"So now I can tell you very clearly that in the next few days, the disobedient god will descend upon Naples."

"And I will hunt it down."

"When we take action, I will try my best to control the scale, but how exactly we do it is up to you."

Makoto Haramura was playing with a bracelet, running his fingertips over the rough texture of the jade pendant.

Naturally, a bitter smile appeared on old Granicar's face.

But the next second, old Granicar nodded heavily.

"Understood, King."

"Next, I will use the full power of the Bronze Black Cross to evacuate as many people as possible from Naples."

How could it not be bitter?

Milan has already caused them heavy losses, and Napoli is also an important source of their economy.

Yes, this time it's slightly better than last time.

At least the people could be evacuated in advance, but the damaged buildings would need to be rebuilt with real money later.

"Ah."

"Please arrange a trip to Rome for me."

"It's my first time in this city, so I should definitely take a look around."

Makoto Haramura stood up abruptly, stretched, and his joints cracked.

"Yes, King."

"Next, Liliana will bring you the most perfect trip to Rome."

"However, before that, there is another matter we would like to explain to you."

Diana remained kneeling, burying her head deeply in her firm chest, and uttered a sound for the first time.

"Well, tell me."

Makoto Haramura took a step forward and stopped beside Diana, speaking in a detached voice.

In some respects, he is what makes a qualified leader.

Those in positions of power can possess compassion and can be benevolent.

However, you must never be too friendly with your subordinates.

To prevent subordinates from losing themselves, you must instill constant fear and dread in them.

Otherwise, humans are very strange creatures; the more tolerant you are of them, the more they will take advantage of you.

"You may not know this."

"Before you came to this land, there was already a king ruling this land."

"Although this Wang is not usually very interested in this kind of thing."

"But if he finds out that the one who seized his territory was a member of his own race, that king will probably be very happy to have this excuse to directly challenge you to a battle."

It's clear that Diana was very nervous when she said those words.

This can be roughly discerned from her evasive gaze and slightly trembling body.

"So, what are you trying to say to me?"

Makoto Haramura's cold tone made Diana sway even more.

"Do you think I'm intimidated by his challenge, or are you trying to express something else?"

"No, it's not."

With a series of sharp thuds, Diana crashed to the ground, blood flowing down her broken scalp.

"We simply wanted to inform the King about this matter."

"It has absolutely no other meaning."

The room fell into a deathly silence; the only sound was the crisp clatter of men's and women's heels on the marble floor.

A long while later, the sound rang out again.

"The idea of reporting ahead of time is not bad. As a reward, if you can get that so-called Sword King to lead Naples to war with me, then it doesn't matter."

"But, that's all."

As Makoto Haramura's voice ended, the sound of heels stomping on the ground rang out again.

"Liliana, keep up."

Edelweiss paused for a moment, then turned and beckoned to Liliana.

"Ah, yes."

Still lost in the king's unpredictable moods, Liliana quickly snapped out of it and hurriedly followed after him.

The room, which was meant for five people, was once again reduced to the size of a room with only two people.

But only after the sound of footsteps ceased to be heard did Diana lift her blood-covered head from the ground.

"Thank you for your hard work, Diana."

As if by magic, old Granichal produced a handkerchief from his hand and handed it to Diana, saying softly.

"It's not about how hard it is; someone has to take on this responsibility."

"It's fine for me too."

Wiping away the blood still flowing from her forehead, Diana activated her healing magic, rubbed her slightly reddened knees, and stood up.

"But judging from the results, it seems pretty good, right?"

The healing magic was very effective; the forehead that was bleeding just now is now completely healed.

"That's indeed a very good result."

"Judging from this, although this king is not a particularly generous person, he is a king who can listen to advice."

"This is already very good."

Yes, Diana couldn't possibly be such a reckless person as to ask such a question without even knowing Makoto Haramura's personality.

Has she really had enough of life? No way.

She asked that question purely to test Haramura Makoto's attitude.

Is it simply treating them as expendable resources, as pigs and dogs, as a source of effort, or is it treating them as human beings, allowing them to retain their own interests when possible?

Now, judging from the results, this victory is permitted.

Of course, she said that at great risk.

She had already considered that she might be beheaded because of those words.

However, just as she said, such tests were bound to begin sooner or later, and sooner or later someone would have to sacrifice.

Even for her, the strongest magician of the Bronze Black Cross, it wouldn't be impossible.

"Yes."

"We've given it our all for the next few days, but we still can't get in touch with the Sword King?"

Old Granichal nodded heavily, then asked Diana.

"Unable to contact them, let's try to find Andrei."

"No matter what, we must guide the Sword King to Naples within the time limit."

"Leave this matter to me."

……