"Any other questions, Luminas?"
"If not…"
Damien gestured toward Veldora. "You can begin."
What she was beginning needed no explanation!
"Um…"
Damien had been so generous that even Luminas felt a little embarrassed.
That embarrassment extended to her revenge on Veldora as well.
With Damien right there, she couldn't bring herself to go too far.
So after using her new Lord of Lust to inflict the most exquisite torment possible, Luminas decided to let the matter drop. She still found the Storm Dragon annoying, but she no longer brought up their old grudge.
One important note:
Normally, with Veldora's god-tier magicules, Luminas's control over life and death shouldn't have been able to affect him from a distance.
But because of their shared history, Veldora very cooperatively didn't resist.
This allowed Luminas to torment him without needing to embrace him like in the original story—she simply glared, and the Storm Dragon writhed in agony.
Yes, an instant-death glare that could kill with a look.
On Veldora, it only amounted to a sting.
That alone showed just how ridiculously overpowered a True Dragon was.
"For Lord Damien's sake, I'll consider our grudge settled!"
Luminas didn't want to put Damien in an awkward position, so she took a step back.
"Good, good, good!"
Veldora immediately seized the olive branch. "It was all my fault for being young and reckless. I swear I'll turn over a new leaf and never do it again!"
He also promised generous compensation for the vampire race.
Only then was the matter finally put to rest.
"Lord Damien," Luminas asked, "how should we handle the situation with the Holy Empire of Lubelius?"
The Monster Kingdom's official debut had already been scheduled.
Once Damien returned from the Godslayer world, the entire Central Continent would fall under the Monster Kingdom's shadow.
After that would come plans like capturing the Scorching Dragon from the Eastern Empire and declaring war on the Ten Great Demon Lords.
"What do you think?"
"It's a bit tricky."
Luminas explained that the Holy Empire was the strongest human power on the continent.
The only comparable force was the Rosso family in the Kingdom of Ingracia—the domain of the human Hero Granbell.
"This operation was led by Hinata. It involved three thousand Holy Knights, including six Saints and one hundred eleven Templar Knights."
Such a massive force had been completely wiped out inside the Great Jura Forest.
If word of that got out, Damien's plan to keep the Monster Kingdom hidden would be impossible.
After all, defeating Hinata's army meant the Monster Kingdom already possessed the strength to rival the entire Western Nations.
Given Damien's personality, he also refused to have Luminas lie about it.
He simply disliked trouble—he wasn't interested in playing weak.
If it came down to it, revealing the Monster Kingdom early was no big deal to him either.
"The best solution is to make them disappear completely."
"Disappear?"
Damien mulled over the word. "You mean we simply don't let the Holy Knight Order return, creating the impression that they were annihilated along with the fifty-thousand-strong Falmuth army?"
"Exactly."
Luminas continued, "If the knight order never comes back, I won't have to do anything."
"According to the Holy Empire's usual procedures, we would naturally contact the other nations and convene a human alliance meeting."
And human meetings… well, they were never quick.
Especially a gathering of kings called over an unknown anomaly in the forest with zero concrete evidence.
They could easily drag it out for months without reaching any conclusion.
"How long will it take for your next phase, Lord Damien?"
"Fastest one month, slowest half a year."
"That's more than enough time."
Luminas smiled. "As long as nothing happens on the Jura Forest side, the Western Nations will spend ages just arguing over the failed expedition."
And if she dragged her feet from the inside, it would take even longer.
"Mm. We'll do it your way."
At that point, something occurred to Damien. His gaze shifted back and forth between Luminas and Hinata. "By the way, I assume you weren't just bringing this up for that reason?"
"Oh my, nothing gets past you, Lord Damien."
Luminas gave a small nod, speaking sincerely. "I simply feel that a talented young woman like Hinata deserves to become one of your strengths, just like me."
"What happened earlier was because Hinata was deceived by a traitor and made the wrong choice."
"So please, give her a chance to atone and prove herself."
Luminas now knew the full story behind Hinata starting the war, and her hatred for that dog Yuuki Sakaguchi burned hotter than ever.
As for Hinata herself…
Hinata had become a Hero and joined the Holy Empire largely because of Luminas's attitude toward humans.
Luminas believed vampires and humans could coexist peacefully.
She gave humans a good life.
Humans offered regular blood donations, providing vampires with the happiest sustenance.
It was a form of symbiosis, in a way.
"I've already settled my score with her."
Damien glanced meaningfully at Hinata, causing the young woman's face to flush crimson.
Every time she remembered what had happened inside the black box, Hinata wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear—it was just too embarrassing!
"However…"
Damien's tone shifted. "Whether she's willing to follow me is still up to Hinata herself."
"Hinata?"
Luminas had been about to say that of course Hinata would agree.
But remembering Hinata's personality, she ultimately stayed silent.
"Tell me, Hinata."
Damien asked, "Are you willing to join the Monster Kingdom and become the blade in my hand?"
Hinata's talent was undeniable!
As one of the very few top-tier human fighters in the original story, Hinata possessed the potential to reach the absolute peak.
In the future, even if she didn't attain a God-tier Ultimate Skill, she would still be among the strongest below that level.
Damien had no reason to let such talent slip away.
But…
As always, Damien preferred willing companions.
He had forced Luminas to stay because she was a demon who already believed in survival of the fittest.
Since Damien had helped her evolve and granted her wish for revenge against Veldora, Luminas would naturally be loyal to the end.
Hinata, however, was human.
And Damien understood the highs and lows of humanity better than anyone.
Power, authority, status… none of those things meant anything to Hinata.
If Damien couldn't give her a reason worth fighting and protecting, Hinata would rather die than compromise—let alone aid evil.