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“Enough. I do not care about your name.” I abruptly cut off the Matriarch of the Ghostface Clan before sneering at her. “That would be a waste of my already limited brain capacity.”

“Brain capacity?” Paliseth curiously recited this unknown term, clearly intrigued but confused by my last sentence.

In contrast, the Ghostface Matriarch was in no mood for such minor details at all. The blood drained out from her face faster than I could say the word ‘enough’. The moment she heard that I wasn’t even interested in her name, she knew she was done for.

However, that didn’t stop her from trying one last time. “Your holiness, your servant knows that she has sinned greatly. That is why your servant humbly offers up this artifact as penitence in hopes of gaining your forgiveness.” Having said that, she got down to her knees, pulled out a silvery white ring and reverently offered it up to me with both hands, as if it wasn’t just a ring that was resting in her pale hands right now, but the most precious treasure in the world.

A ring? As if that’s enough to satisfy my anger… but then… a ring of a Matriarch couldn’t just be any old ring right?

“Your holiness, this ring is a Dimensional Storage Ring. It can store up to ten cubic meters of items and freeze their time at the same time. It can’t, however, store live goods.” Having said that, she looked up to find that I was shocked by her offering, and the blood immediately returned to her face. She promptly seized on this opportunity to push her ring further. “Your servant has already filled it with treasures, may your holiness find them to your liking.”

I reached out and put it daintily on my right hand -it was a snug fit. “Mhm, your offering has been well-received.” I nodded at her as I said it. “Seeing as you’re sincere about repenting, I’ll forgive your daughter’s transgressions against me.”

“Your holiness is most kind.” She replied happily before quickly getting up to her feet. However, that bit of happiness wasn’t going to last long.

“Did I say you could get up?”

Her heart immediately sank into an abyss of terror and confusion. “Your holiness? How else may your servant serve you?”

“I can ignore the slight against me. But there’s still the matter of how your daughter bullied my servant. I want justice for the suffering my servant has suffered at the hands of your daughter.”

“…” She became even more confused at that point. “My apologies, your holiness, but how has my daughter bullied your servant?”

“In that previous battle with the Minotaurs, she made my precious little bunny cry.”

“Cry?” The Ghostface Matriarch naturally had no way of knowing how badly affected Jezsere was at the time, but just by looking at the crying expression she had just now, the Ghostface Matriarch knew that this was a serious matter. “Your servant will prepare another offering right away…”

“There’s no need for that. Didn’t I say not too long ago that Jezsere belongs to me, and that whoever bullies her will face my wrath?” At that point, I flashed her a sinister, toothy smile. “Do you think I will take back my words?”

“I… mercy… your holiness… your servant is willing to offer up the entire wealth of the Ghostface Clan as penitence. All your humble servant asks is your forgiveness… my daughter… your holiness may have her as well… all your servant asks for is your forgiveness…”

“The entire wealth of the Ghostface Clan?” I waved my finger in front of her. “That’s where you are wrong. You mean the entirety of my wealth kept at the Ghostface Clan. Get the picture?”

“Yes… your servant understands… it all belongs to your holiness…everything…”

“So. Are you sure it’s a good idea to offer up my possessions as penitence?”

“I… I…. “

Hmph, I told you I’m a master orator!

At this point, the Ghostface Matriarch was at a complete loss for words. If she had her way, she would have admonished me for that blatant show of shamelessness, but she clearly couldn’t.

I looked her right in her eyes and sneered coldly one last time. “The Dark Elves have thirteen great clans. If you count in the lesser clans, there should be over a hundred clans in total. That sounds a little excessive to me… you know what… I don’t think we need the Ghostface Clan anymore…”

“You!”

Now that I had made it known that I was going to make an example of her, the Ghostface Matriarch finally started to fight back. However, the moment she leapt to her feet, the other twelve Matriarchs had already begun channeling their mana. A moment later, spider silk formed of mana simultaneously fired out of their palms and bound her…

“You can’t treat me like this… your holiness… mercy…”

The Ghostface Matriarch half-yelled, half-pleaded for mercy as three of the Matriarchs led her away. In the meantime, the remaining Matriarchs exchanged a quick glance with each other before Paliseth led the group by asking, “Your holiness, should we clean up the rest of her clan?”

I merely shook my head and smiled in response. “Clean them up? There’s no need for such pointless slaughter.”

“What does your holiness wish instead?” She asked while stifling the need to roll her eyes at the one who started this mess in the first place.

“My wishes, huh.” I paused for a couple of seconds before clapping my hands together. “The current family leading the Ghostface Clan must all die, as for the rest… well… They are my godmother’s faithful servants, so I’ll let them off the hook this time. Speaking of the Ghostface Clan, their treasury is now mine. I want all the pure-blooded Dark Elves moved out of that clan as well. The rest can stay.”

“Understood…” The moment that last bit of instructions came out, the remaining Matriarchs immediately broke into a grin. By saying that I wanted all the Pure-blooded Dark Elves out of that clan, I was implying that they could divvy up the defeated Dark Elves. Even though the treasury was now mine, gaining some population for their clan was an unexpected bit of surprise for them.

Just like that, the curtains drew to close on the Ghostface Clan.

“Alright, let’s move on to other matters.” I turned towards Paliseth. “I need you to fetch Aishael for me, and go visit Jezsere at the same time. I had her prepare some stuff beforehand so you can grab them off her.

“Understood.” Paliseth nodded then promptly left the great hall. Now that she was gone, the great hall immediately fell into silence. To be honest, the remaining Matriarchs were all perfectly capable hosts, but none of them even dared make a sound in my presence. At this point, their mental image of me was of a capricious lord who could wipe out their clan on a whim.

Just the fact alone that I had the Ghostface Clan punished, not because they offended me, but because they offended my servant was more than proof enough of that. Too bad, they couldn’t do anything about it either.

Not long after, Paliseth came in with an ornate looking giftbox and Aishael in tow.

Just from a glance, I could tell that Aishael had tidied up immediately after returning to her quarters. Her silvery hair had been bound up into a simple but tidy ponytail that complemented her straightlaced personality and elegant dress. Honestly, I liked this girl. She had a unique charm about her beauty. Now… if she could just fix that resting b1tch face of hers, she would be even more perfect.

Her aggressive demeanour and fearless attitude was nothing but a front for the stress and trauma she was trying to hide. That much I knew. Had she truly been as strong as she would like to portray herself as being, she would have been more confident in herself. Just like how a tiger was at times an adorable giant kitty, and at times a monstrous killing machine that could tear apart anyone who dared to ruffle its fur. The strong did not have to show off that they were strong.

“Come, come.” I gave no explanation as to why I summoned her, instead flashing her a gentle smile as I stood up and beckoned for here. “Over here.”

“…” She cautiously eyed me but came up to me in the end.

“Have a seat.” I gently pressed down on her shoulders to make her sit on the throne ordinarily reserved for Paliseth. Then, under her confused eyes, I undid her ponytail.

“Your holiness…” My strange actions left her at a loss for words as she stared into my eyes. She wanted to say something but chose not to in the end.

“That ponytail of yours doesn’t suit you. Here. Let me fix it for you.” I reached out for the gift box that had already been opened up by a keen-eyed Paliseth. I took out the pink hairbands within and bound up her hair into a more adorable twin ponytails hairstyle.

Lest one forgot, I was the one who used to tie up Nicole’s hair; twin ponytails were one of my forte.

However, while Aishael’s hair might have resembled Nicole, her personality was a far cry from the cheerful, smiling girl from my childhood. That perpetually radiant smile on her lips were the reason for my existence. I truly missed her… but I had no way of leaving right now. I had to first create a safe space for Aishael and her Half-elves -that was I had decided.

“I’ll now make an announcement. The capital city of the Ghostface Clan will officially be known as Halfmoon City. All Half-elves are to migrate to Halfmoon City. As for its leader…” I gently ruffled Aishael’s hair at that point, then under her slightly disapproving stare, declared, “Will be this child here.”

Shameless Self-promotion

Announcement: I’ve re-opened my Patreon in case anyone wants to sponsor more chapters. Every end of the month, those chapters in early access will be released for free for all to read. If you sponsored a chapter, you will gain permanent early access to these chapters. Essentially, everyone gets more chapters to read, but those who donated get to read earlier. More chapters will then be translated at the start of the month. Explanation on the Patreon itself.

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If you liked my work translating Devil’s Evolution Catalog, feel free to check out Song of Adolescence. Also, every comment is appreciated even though I might not reply. I do read them.

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Strictly speaking, the battle had ended well for us, barring the thousand or so casualties on our side.

Of the two thousand Blood Drake Riders, at least three hundred died today. The Half-Elven army ended up losing six hundred soldiers and many more were injured. It was a hard-won battle. As for the Murlocs, Mary the Mermaid had the foresight to leave right from the very beginning. The two Murloc brothers had taken advantage of the chaos to slip away as well…

(TL: Apparently, the author has settled on Mary, so it’s Mary from now on. Maybe Lily exists as well…)

Those brothers are morons, I swear! Don’t they know that I was just about to show off my awesomeness?! Morons.

We ended up capturing five hundred Minotaurs, including that giant Minotaur as well. Other than the initial wave of Harpies who were shot down, the rest basically hung at the back of battle and did not involve themselves too much in the battle. Because of that, their losses were relatively small.

It was a glorious victory, but the losses on our side were just a tad much for my liking… however that was just me nitpicking. The inner gamer in me wanted a clean victory with no losses at all.

Either way, the hard part was over and our journey back with the captives proceeded without a hitch. By the time we arrived at the city, two days had passed. Paliseth had gathered up countless Dark Elves to celebrate our victorious return, lining the streets with cheering onlookers, every one more fanatical than the other.

Faced with such a grand welcome, even Zurnalin was stunned. In fact, Lersina, our captive, was stunned as well.

Ever since she learnt of my identity, this Dark Elven Assassin appeared to be a little out of it. If I were a normal male, I would have probably rushed to comfort her, given how beautiful she was. Unfortunately, my pee pee was still on vacation so it did not matter even if she was as beautiful as Zurnalin.

However, the shock she showed was only the beginning. The moment she saw her own mother beside Paliseth, her eyes went wide. In actuality, it wasn’t just her mother who was present today; the other Matriarchs were here as well. In other words, the Matriarchs of all the great clans were here, every one of them the very definition of a posh, upper class lady. Their immaculate figures radiated an almost holy aura that was completely at odds with their blackened hearts…

“How… how are all the Matriarchs here…” Even the usually stoic Zurnalin couldn’t help exclaim as she rode up to me. “How did they reach the city before us?”

Naturally, I knew why they were all here, but I still wanted to confirm something. “You are sure all thirteen of them are here today?”

“Definitely, I’ve seen them all in the past.” She leaned in at that point. “The last time the thirteen Matriarchs gathered together was forty years ago. A Demigod tier Black Dragon had invaded the Underdepths at that time. Apparently, it had suffered at the hands of our clan when it was a whelp so it was out for blood. In the end, it took the combined efforts of all thirteen Matriarchs to chase it away…”

“A Demigod tier Black Dragon?” That part certainly piqued my interest. “So where is it now?”

“We do not know.” Zurnalin shrugged her shoulders before casually continuing. “Either way, only matters that involved the survival of our entire race could force the Matriarchs to gather together.”

“And here I thought I wasn’t liked at all…” Clearly, I was now an existence that held as much importance as the survival of their entire race.

“Do not speak ill of yourself like that, your holiness. Our loyalty to your holiness is unwavering.”

I merely smiled wryly at her words. Seeing as the other Matriarchs were about to reach us, I signalled to Zurnalin that the time for idle chatter was over.

Hugging onto Jezsere while still riding Mo Ning, we cantered forward while dragging along the captive Lersina. As we did that, Zurnalin kept a close eye on the Assassin, ready to strike at a moment’s notice should she even move a muscle.

When our poor captive first saw her mother up close, a glimmer of hope flashed past her eyes, as if her savior had just appeared before her. Unfortunately for her, this savior did not even spare her a look. And even if she did, I had no intention of letting Lersina go without making an example first.

“Our respects to his holiness. May tales of his glorious victory today be sung well into the ages!” Paliseth led the other Matriarchs in prostrating before me.

The moment they did so, the rest of the Dark Elves got down on their knees as well, nearly shaking the earth itself with their coordinated moves. “Our respects to his holiness. May tales of his glorious victory today be sung well into the ages!”

Seeing that, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of feelings in my heart. Tens of thousands of Dark Elves were kneeling before me right now, celebrating my deeds. At the very least, I had never experienced such a grand scene before in my entire life.

Still snug within my embrace, Jezsere was immediately startled by the deafening salutation. Her first instinct was to back away but I thankfully caught her just in time before she fell off Mo Ning.

“Master… Jezsere… Jezsere…” She bashfully stammered.

“It’s alright, be still. You have the right to be here.” I hugged her tighter then whispered in her ears.

She was clearly overwhelmed by the sight of so many Dark Elves bowing before her. But to me, this was merely a trifling issue.

“Dearest, look at how many of them are bowing before you right now!” Mo Ning practically yelled at me as she turned around to face me, her fiery red hair dancing in the air as if they were even more excited about this celebration than me. “I think I’ve fallen in love with you all over again, dearest!”

“Ahem… well, it’s nothing. You’ll get used to it… you’ll get used to it.” Seeing her fangirl over me like I was some kind of superstar, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride well over me. However, I had to restrain myself from showing this… one must be humble and not brag about their deeds, mhm.

As a well-brought up university student of the star-spangled red banner, it would be unbecoming of me to act so arrogantly. I am a person of virtues, after all! But, of course, sometimes you had to throw your weight around in order to get things done, like now…

I tightened my embrace around her, and before the eyes of every Dark Elf present, gave her a gentle kiss on her silvery hair. Paying no attention how she bashfully squirmed about because of that, I then amplified my voice with mana. “This girl in my arms right now, her name is Jezsere, and she belongs to me. Whoever bullies her in the future should be prepared to face my wrath. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, your holiness!”

The gathered Dark Elves replied in unison, the Matriarchs included. Regardless of what they thought of this matter, Jezsere was now under my care.

“Let’s go, the warriors need a break and the captives need to be processed. Oh right, I want an area set aside for the Harpies to rest. Without my orders, they won’t harm anyone.” Having said that, we rode off into the city, never paying Lersina any attention at all as we did that.

As we proceeded onwards into the city, every Dark Elf that we met would immediately prostrate themselves before me and wish me well as before. It was an intoxicating feeling, to be honest… like I owned this entire world…

It took roughly an hour before we reached the great hall of the Shadowhunter Clan. Behind us were the thirteen Matriarchs with Paliseth at the head. As I sat down on the throne in the center, all thirteen of them arrayed themselves before me in a straight line.

Jezsere and Mo Ning had already been sent off. The guards were also dismissed, leaving only the fourteen of us left in the hall.

To be honest, it still surprised me that the other Matriarchs were able to get here so quickly. But the moment I remembered that the Dark Elves were a race famous for their Assassins, it wasn’t as surprising anymore. It shouldn’t be an issue for the spies of the individual clans to get hold of such news. And it wasn’t a big deal to set up a teleportation array for a small party.

A Devil that made the Dryders betray their clan and so happened to be known as his holiness? It didn’t take a genius to piece the two together and figure out my identity from there. Not unless they wanted to have a taste of my godmother’s wrath!

Seeing them so quiet, I knew that they were waiting for my judgement, and I wasn’t planning to disappoint them on that front.

“I’m sure all of you know who I am.”

The moment I said that, one of the Matriarchs immediately knelt down and pleaded for mercy“I beg for your forgiveness, your holiness…” Her forehead resoundingly thudded against the crimson rug as she continued, “My foolish daughter has committed the gravest of sins in a moment of foolishness, but our clan is innocent… I beg of you, your holiness…”

“So you are the Matriarch of the Ghostface Clan?” I unceremoniously cut her off while looking down at her from my lofty throne.

“That’s right, your holiness, I am the Matriarch of the Ghostface Clan. I am…”

Shameless Self-promotion

Announcement: I’ve re-opened my Patreon in case anyone wants to sponsor more chapters. Every end of the month, those chapters in early access will be released for free for all to read. If you sponsored a chapter, you will gain permanent early access to these chapters. Essentially, everyone gets more chapters to read, but those who donated get to read earlier. More chapters will then be translated at the start of the month. Explanation on the Patreon itself.

LINK HERE

If you liked my work translating Devil’s Evolution Catalog, feel free to check out Song of Adolescence. Also, every comment is appreciated even though I might not reply. I do read them.