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“In teams of five you say…” Lilith waved her useless fist with frustration and continued indignantly, “Who the hell decided on this stupid rule? You’re telling me that all my efforts were for nothing? They should consider the feelings of those who can only be a lone wolf due to certain circumstances.”

“Who cares about that?” Diana shrugged, then threw a glance at Lilith. “There’s a rumor that the famous guardian of the Holy Dragon Empire was the one who decided on that rule.”

“The Guardian?” Lilith froze for a moment then said, “You mean Taylor the Aurora Dragon?”

“Uh-huh, the one and only. It was rumored he once remarked during a match that watching an individual fight was not as entertaining as a group fight. In an effort to please the guardian, the imperial family made changes to the format, from one-on-one to the current arrangement of five-on-five. The Guardian eventually lost interest in what he referred to as children’s banters and stopped watching altogether, yet the rule remained intact.”

Lilith’s cheek twitched as she realized she had once again been screwed over by her own clan and not only that, it was by someone she had never even seen before.

Come to think of it, he was the only one who dared not to attend her banquet last time.

“Heh. An individual fight isn’t entertaining to watch, huh?”

Lilith swore that she would make sure he experienced the true essence of an individual fight next time. It would not be a battle between two evenly matched opponents, but rather a battle where a weaker person would put their life on the line against a stronger opponent. They would fight until their very last breath. Surely, such an individual fight would be incredibly thrilling.

As for who the stronger opponent was… Wasn’t it obvious enough?

“But then again, that means I will have to start all over again with the preparation.” Looking at her feet, Lilith stroked her chin and absentmindedly paced around.

If she were the only one participating in this so-called game according to her original plan, it would not be a major issue. Even if she encountered great danger, she would still have a way out. However, if other people were forced to participate as well, it would be a completely different story—they were not as resilient as her.

Considering Nine’s terrifying strength, the mastermind behind the game was not weak either. If ordinary individuals like Lesiah were to get caught up in this dangerous situation, they could really die.

“I can’t afford to act recklessly. I must be well prepared.” Lilith glanced at the unconscious Elder White and frowned. “We can no longer find any information about curses, what other intel can we use?”

Intel… It has to be someone related to the mastermind… Someone like Nine, the guy with a sheet of paper stuck on his face. He seemed to know something about the mastermind… Hm, wait a minute. Am I forgetting something?

“Oopsie, look how forgetful I am.” Lilith slapped her forehead. “How could I forget that?”

Lilith wiped her storage ring, and Cornelia, who was peacefully sleeping, materialized in her arms.

Skarst, standing behind Lilith, was suddenly blinded by a powerful burst of light, as if he were staring directly into the blazing midday sun. He rubbed his eyes and looked again, the child in Lilith’s arms appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary little girl.

“Weird, were my eyes playing a trick on me?” Skarst mused, then shook his head and dismissed his thought. It was as if an unknown force was subtly influencing his thoughts, discouraging him from delving too deeply into the peculiarities of the situation.

Diana stared at the scene before her in disbelief. “You actually stuffed Cornelia into your storage ring? Don’t you realize that you can’t store living things in your storage ring?”

Lilith pouted and said nonchalantly, “What’s the problem with that? It’s not like Cornelia will suffocate to death.”

A god suffocated to death? The thought itself made her want to chuckle.

“But Cornelia is technically your daughter…” Diana gave her a judgemental look, as if she were looking at a criminal who had been mistreating her own child.

“You said ‘technically’… I’m still young… I’m not even supposed to have a daughter, neither ethically nor morally.”

Lilith grabbed Cornelia’s legs, shaking her while she was hanging upside down. “Wakey, wakey, rise and shine!” she exclaimed with a mischievous grin.

“Eeyah?”

Despite Lilith’s persistent shaking, the white floral dress Cornelia had on seemed to defy gravity. It clung to her thighs tightly, just like Lilith’s dress. Because of this, Lilith was not worried about Cornelia’s panties being exposed either.

“Where’s that ugly doll? Hurry up and take it out.”

“Doll?” Cornelia murmured innocently, sucking her finger as she stared at Lilith in confusion.

“I’m talking about that ugly rag doll you were holding. The one that could run and jump around.”

“Eeyah!” Cornelia immediately understood Lilith and stuck her tiny hand into the empty void in front of her.

The space rippled like water and she began stirring her hand around as if she were playing in a pool.

“Strange.” Skarst frowned once again, amazed by how an ordinary child could open up a space in the void at will. However, before he could delve further into his thoughts, a strange power abruptly diverted his attention.

He gazed upward and admired the moon shining brightly in the night sky.

Cornelia rummaged through the space for a while and eventually found what Lilith was seeking.

Cornelia pulled Lacey out by his legs, holding him up like Lilith was holding her up. Writhing his soft body, he coughed and yelled, “You have a lot of guts to leave me in such a dark room! I’ll have you know that the person who’s got my back is…”

When his eyes met with Cornelia’s sparkly big eyes, he instantly froze and lost his voice.

He knew that Cornelia was not someone to be messed with.

Lilith brought her face closer to Lacey and turned him around, forcing him to look at herself. With a smirk, she said, “Who’s that? Can you tell me more?”

“W-Who…? What who? You mean this stupid little… I mean… this cute little angel behind me. Who else could it possibly be?” Lacey nervously turned back to the other side.

“By the way, it’s such a lovely day outside. Why don’t you two go out and enjoy the sunshine? Don’t worry, I assure you I won’t escape. My body is made of fabric and cotton, mold grows easily on it if I don’t sunbathe regularly.”
“But it’s night now.”
“I-Is… that so? Haha… Well, a moonbathe isn’t bad either…”
“There’s no moon tonight.”
“Umm… I guess air dry is fine too?”

“Of course… not.” Her smile fading as she turned Lacey around to face her once again. Her tone turned cold as she spoke, “Are you absolutely certain that you want to continue making jokes at the risk of your own life?”

“Ha…ha… Come on, don’t be mad. We’re all civilized individuals, let’s not always talk about life and death.”
“I’m sorry, if you continue playing dumb, death is all I’m going to talk about with you.”

Lilith reached out and cupped Lacey’s face, her expression gradually turning more sinister as she rubbed his cheeks. “Do you believe you have a way to escape death or from my grasp?”

“O-Of course not… I am completely at your mercy right now… How can I…”
“So, you do have a way.”
“N-No…”
“Let me guess… You have friends nearby? Or are you confident that I won’t be able to hurt you in your current state?”

The hostility in Lilith’s eyes was already overflowing, but a slight smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

“Forget it, there’s no point in dwelling on it. It seems I’ll just have to ask Cornelia to show you some love~”