System's POV

Chapter 1381: Beneath The Gaze Of Death [Part 2]

Sahard was confident about surviving the impact of his emergency landing since he was a Majin Prince.

He was more worried about his Master, who famously had several restrictions placed on his body.

Only after Thirteen assured him that everything would be fine did his worry ease a bit.

When they were only a few hundred meters from the ground, Sahard did his best to glide as smoothly as possible and land somewhere that didn’t have anything that could cause harm to his passenger.

"Brace for impact, Master!" Sahard shouted when they were only a hundred meters from the ground.

Thirteen didn’t hesitate to jump from the Thunderbird’s back and summon the black banner to call out one of his demons.

A Black Falcon emerged from the fabric and grabbed onto the teenage boy’s shoulders, holding him steady in the air.

A dust cloud emerged from the point of impact where Sahard crashed on the ground.

"Are you alright, Sahard?" Thirteen asked as the falcon helped him land safely on the ground.

"Yes, Master," Sahard replied before turning into his demihuman form. "I’m fine."

The Majin Prince had a few bruises here and there. But aside from that, he didn’t receive any serious injury from his crash.

"Tiona, please guide us to Apollyon," Thirteen said softly.

Tiona nodded before slithering down from his body.

Death Valley was the birthplace of the Domini Mortis. Although it had been a long time since Tiona had come here, she had no trouble locating the Fallen Angel of Death, whose general direction she could sense, and traversing the valley to get to him.

Tiona had also informed her Master that they were still five miles away from Apollyon’s location, which made the teenage boy sigh in his heart.

It seemed that the Death God wished for him to walk a little, instead of using flight to reach his destination with ease.

Having experienced that abnormal phenomenon of losing control of his body, Sahard didn’t dare to take his true form once more.

Instead, he walked right beside his Master, paying close attention to their surroundings.

Thirteen voiced no complaint, viewing walking five miles a small price to pay to safely meet the Fiend, whom he believed was expecting his visit.

As a System, he knew that Apollyon could see through the eyes of the Domini Mortis.

Although he chose self-exile in Death Valley, that didn’t mean he wasn’t aware of what was happening in the world.

Through his connection with Tiona, the Fallen Angel already had a general understanding of the current affairs of the outside world, especially the movements of the Celestial Army.

But what surprised him was Thirteen’s success in recruiting Forneus to become his ally.

However, his shock didn’t end there.

The fact that Thirteen knew "the Eldest" made him see the young man differently.

And when the teenage boy admitted to Camazotz that he didn’t know who the Eldest was, the Fallen Angel couldn’t help but chuckle. He found Thirteen both gutsy and smart for pulling off such a bluff to convince Forneus to spare their lives.

"What an interesting creature."

That was what he had said back then.

Since Tiona had been with Thirteen for a long time, Apollyon already knew that the teenage boy wasn’t an ordinary human.

Still, he wouldn’t allow him to meet him using a shortcut, so he decided to make him walk a bit to teach him some humility.

An hour and a half later, the Domini Mortis, the Majin Prince, and the teenage boy arrived at their destination.

Sitting on an obsidian throne was none other than the Angel of Death, Apollyon.

The Fiend was resting the side of his face on the palm of his right hand, and yet, his gaze had locked on to Thirteen’s body.

"Greetings, Mr. Fallen Angel," Thirteen said in a calm manner. "Lovely weather we’re having today, right?"

The corner of Sahard’s lips twitched as he gazed up in the sky.

Dark clouds hovered above their heads.

Lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled from time to time, very far from what could be called a "lovely weather."

"Well then, why have you come here, Zion Leventis... or should I call you Thirteen instead?" Apollyon asked, his tone filled with amusement.

"Just call me Zion," Thirteen replied. "Only my close friends call me Thirteen."

"Very well." Apollyon nodded. "Now tell me the reason why you have come to see me. However, know this—I am not like Forneus who can be tricked so easily."

Thirteen didn’t reply right away. Instead, he watched as Tiona bowed her head in reverence toward the being who had allowed their kind to be born.

A few minutes later, he finally looked at the Fiend’s face and told him his reason for coming.

"I came here to ask a question, if you will permit it, Your Excellency," Thirteen said.

"Ask." Apollyon made a gesture for the teenage boy to ask his question.

"Did any of the Fiends or Celestials, come here to ask you to join their side?" Thirteen inquired.

Apollyon nodded. "Zaphiel came to invite me to join his revolution. He wanted to change the world for the better... is what he says."

The Fallen Angel narrowed his gaze as if remembering that memory annoyed him a bit.

"After that, our youngest, Dantanian came to find me, asking if I agreed to Zaphiel’s request. I said no to both of them."

Thirteen had already expected this kind of answer from the Angel of Death. He wasn’t someone who liked to join groups to do something.

He was a lone wolf and preferred to keep things that way.

’If I ask him to join our cause, he will definitely refuse,’ Thirteen thought. ’His help will be necessary if we want to defeat Zaphiel and his allies. However, one wrong word, and he would ignore us completely.’

The teenage boy had tried to think of ways on how to convince the Fallen Angel to help their cause.

But no matter how much he tried to think, he couldn’t find a good reason or argument that would convince Apollyon to move.

Since that was the case, he decided to choose a different path.

"Your Excellency, I’m sure you already know the reason why I am here," Thirteen said. "So, please answer my question. What will I need to do or what would it take for you to lend us your assistance?"

"Hoh?" Apollyon arched an eyebrow because he had already expected Zion to ask for his help.

What he didn’t expect though was that the teenage boy would use this method to seek his assistance.

A few minutes of silence passed before the Fiend spoke once more.

"Give me Tiona," Apollyon declared. "If you give her to me, I will help you in stopping Zaphiel and his army."

"No," Thirteen’s reply was immediate, which made Sahard look at his Master in disbelief.

In his eyes, using Tiona as a sacrifice to stop the Celestial was a good exchange.

However, what the Majin Prince didn’t know was that Tiona wasn’t an ordinary Domini Mortis.

She was someone precious to Zion, and he would not exchange her for anything, even if it meant facing Zaphiel and his army on his own.

"Tiona, let’s go," Thirteen said as he picked up the black snake from the ground and pulled her close to his chest.

Tiona snuggled close to her Master, feeling happy about how instantly he had chosen her over the Fiend’s help.

"You think you can come and go here as you please?" Apollyon sneered.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Thirteen replied before snapping his finger.

A portal appeared behind his back, and he didn’t hesitate to jump backward before Apollyon could even stop him.

Actually, the Fallen Angel tried to stop him, but a more powerful pressure descended upon his body, preventing him from moving from where he sat.

Sahard understood that the negotiations had broken down, so he hastily jumped into the portal as well.

This exchange only happened in the span of a few seconds, and before Apollyon could regain control of his body, the portal had already closed, leaving the Fallen Angel in a bad mood.

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A/N: Please read the Author’s Notes.