Episode 426.

Envy didn’t answer right away, her face crumpling like old bark. She rolled her eyes for a long moment, then parted her trembling lips.

“Zee, you ask for the power of jealousy, for your vessel?”

“Yes.”

Raon’s anger rose again, mimicking Rath’s tone and expression. It wasn’t just his face, but his aura as well, but he’d gotten used to it by now.

“An oath requires proof, just as a contract requires a contract. I will accept your oath by surrendering your power to the vessel of my king.”

I nodded, anger lacing my voice to create weight.

“Ugh….”

Envy let out a low groan, not sure if it was from bruised pride or unwillingness to give the power.

“I noticed it the first time I saw you, but your bowl is uncharacteristically devoid of jealousy, and giving you power would mean nothing.”

She looked him up and down again, then shook her head.

-Mah, yes!

Rath wiped the drool from his mouth and opened his eyes. His pupils dilated puddle-puddle, as if he wasn’t already sober.

-I don’t know about anything else, but you’re not a stupid jealous person, and your ugly jealousy won’t mean anything to me, so stop it now!

He waved his hand desperately, as if he thought he could stop it somehow.

”No, there is.”

Even in <Laziness>, abilities are born.

In both his previous life and his current life, he hadn’t known the word laziness, but thanks to Sloth, he had gained the power of <Laziness> and the ability to become stronger just by sleeping.

I had never been jealous of anyone in my life, but if I received the power of <Jealousy> from Envy, it was likely that my abilities would blossom in a way that suited me.

“It’s all thanks to that cotton candy.

Getting <Rage> from Ras, and staying with him, had probably made me more adaptable to the demon’s powers. I tilted my head slightly in gratitude.

-Don’t give me that ominous greeting, just say no!

“I’m not even greeting you.

Rath scolded, but I ignored him and turned to look at Envy in front of me.

“It matters not whether you have jealousy or not, for, as I said at the outset, the purpose of taking its power is to leave evidence of your submission.”

Raon’s lips curled into a long smile. He lifted his chin and sneered openly.

-Ah, no! He’s already fucked up, and with three demonic powers, he’ll be unstoppable!

Rath’s hands trembled in the air.

-You must not give it to him! Envy, wake up! You’re a demon! Have some pride!

He screamed for her to stop, to run away, but Envy only quirked an eyebrow, unable to move.

“I can’t help it if you don’t want to.”

Raon clicked his tongue briefly as he watched Envy struggle, his eyes calming, his anger and laziness rising again.

Hwaaaaaaah!

The coldness of anger from his right hand formed a white-silver brilliance, and the air currents of sloth from his left hand made Sloth shudder as if awakened.

‘Whoa, whoa, whoa….’

His entire body felt like it was being gnawed by ants as he utilized the power of the two demons while suffering serious internal injuries.

‘But I mustn’t stop.

I chewed on the tip of my tongue to ease the pain. ‘I can’t come this far and go home with nothing. I have to take whatever power that asshole has.

“Sloth. It’s time to wake up. Defy your king, pull out the fangs of the filthy snake that disturbed your sleep, and tear out its throat.”

“Hmph!”

I twisted my lips, mimicking Rath’s tone, and Envy stepped back, her shoulders shaking with fear.

“Oh, okay, I’ll give it to you, I’ll give it to you, so open your eyes!”

Envy bit her lip and nodded. Her green eyes had lost their deep shine, and were stained with irritation, jealousy, and embarrassment.

“I’m supposed to put it in that bowl, right?”

“Yes. It would be no fun to play games, for the Bone King will reveal himself, and Sloth will rise.”

Raon threatened the Lord of Jealousy in a calm tone without the slightest tremor.

He tensed to the point of turning his insides to powder, but the ring of fire held him in check.

“You’re not stupid enough to play tricks here, are you?”

Envy bared his white teeth and crinkled his brow.

-Not stupid enough to play dirty!

Rath flew at Envy and smacked him in the head.

-You stupid, filthy snake, how can you be so unhelpful, just run away!

He bit Envy’s head and punched him in the stomach, but of course nothing happened.

“Consider yourself honored. It’s the first time I’ve ever let my jealousy get out of control.”

Envy gritted her teeth and raised her hand.

An intense blue light pulsed in her grasp. Even though it wasn’t colored with life as it had been before, it pierced her lungs.

Hwaaaaah!

The dark green energy slithered through the air like a snake and bit her wrist.

Along with the stabbing pain, jealousy surged through my mana circuitry.

At the slightest hint of strangeness, he would have stopped it, but Envy’s jealousy traveled to the end of his mana circuit, toward the bottom of his soul, like Rath’s anger.

Digging!

After staining the deeply sunken end of the soul a deep green color, Envy’s Jealousy decided it had given it enough power and resolutely cut off the flow and withdrew.

Seeing that it had the same senses as Sloth, it was unlikely to try any dirty tricks.

[A portion of <Jealousy>’s ability permeates your soul and body].

[The ability will be triggered after the adaptation period is over].

With that message, Envy’s jealousy wrapped around her wrist, transforming into the form of a young snake biting its tail, and a strange bracelet with a light green flower blooming from its back.

“To your liking. I see you still have a taste for stinky garbage, unlike your temper.”

Envy frowned at the ice and black flower bracelets on his wrist.

“…….”

Raon swallowed back tears as he looked at the three flower bracelets around his wrist.

“Flower bracelets again!”

I wanted to tell him to make it into something other than a flower bracelet, but the moment I said that’s what he likes, I’d sow the seeds of doubt. I had no choice but to hold back.

“Anyway, with this much energy, I don’t think I need to ask for more.

If I got too much energy at once, I would lose control, so I figured this amount would be enough.

“Whoa….”

Envy let out a short sigh and lowered his hand.

“That should be enough, right?”

“A little less than enough.”

Raon shook his head deliberately, even though he had received a good dose of jealousy.

“No more than that, and you know that demonic power doesn’t come that easily!”

“Are you arguing with the Bone King?”

“No, that’s not it….”

A demon, even if it’s a demon king. Envy shook his head as he succumbed to the shattered balance of power.

-Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Rath shrieked, clawing at his own cotton candy.

-Jealousy belongs to that little shit, but the stats that reward it only come from the Bone King!

He pounded the ground in anger at the system.

-Is this the pleasure without responsibility that’s so famous these days!

“Pleasure without responsibility is what’s famous these days!

Raon pushed past the howling Rath and looked at Envy.

“I suppose that’s good enough for an oath.”

“Then I suppose we can go now, since you’ve done everything you said you would.”

Envy turned on her heel as if she wanted to leave immediately.

“No. The vessel says it wants something from you.”

Raon pursed his lips, his anger unabated.

-What do you think you’re doing!

Rath’s lip twitched uneasily.

“If you’re in the tiger’s den, you should be skinned.

He held up a hand to Envy, his eyes calming.

“It is said that the Vessel of the Bone King desires your skill in dealing with jealousy.”

“Oh?”

Envy’s eyes widened as if she didn’t know what that meant.

“Qi, Qiye, are you asking me to teach you how to use jealousy?”

“Yes.”

Raon nodded proudly.

“You want to be of service to King Bone, and you want to know how to use jealousy. That’s good suhay.”

Unlike Sloth, Envy has no guarantee of ever seeing her again. If she didn’t learn to deal with jealousy now, she wouldn’t be able to use half of her power.

“There is no need for difficulty; this one can handle it until the main king descends into the bowl.”

-And that’s enough!

Rath crawled over and grabbed his ankle.

-Will you stop selling the King’s name? It’s ruined my life….

“Māseng.

-Masung is ruined!

He snorted, feeling that the name of the Wrathful Lord had reached rock bottom.

“Whoa.”

Envy let out a deep sigh as he looked at the gray sky.

“What a day to be pissed off.”

“You should be glad you got fucked, not angry.”

Raon laughed coldly, correcting her.

“If you try to trick me with your flimsy tricks, I’ll have your head.”

“I know. I know enough to know that I can’t fool you with this!”

Envy nodded, muttering something about having no choice, as if he knew there was no turning back.

“I’m only going to tell you this once, so listen.”

A language I’d never heard before flowed from her mouth. A bizarre pronunciation. A language that seemed impossible to follow.

-Stupid!

Rath jerked his head up from the ground.

-That is the language of the demons, and even if you could hear it, you would be unable to do anything with it!

He sneered, as if he would never be able to interpret it.

“Yes, it is. I’ve never heard it before, but….’

Raon narrowed his eyes and nodded.

“I understand.

Maybe it was because he was with Rath, but he could understand everything Envy said in the demonic language.

-Eh? Ji, really?

“Yep. It’s not difficult. We’re talking about breathing jealousy into the flesh.

-Ah….

‘You give me stats, you invoke demons, and now you’re making me pick up languages naturally, you’re the best.’

Raon grinned at Rath, whose mouth dropped open.

“Is this the first time in a long time that you’ve been so generous, Ras?

-What the hell, now I have a headache!

Rath rubbed his temples, wanting to pass out again.

“That’s it.”

Envy explained the trick in demonic language, then lowered his eyes.

“You won’t ask me to repeat it, will you?”

“Of course not.”

Raon snorted and shook his head.

“Because I understand how it works.”

“…You understood it right away?”

“The jealousy trick you taught me is a bluff, a way to gain more momentum than you deserve, which is understandable, since jealousy is an emotion born out of an obsession with hierarchy. Be yourself.”

He scoffed, seeing through the ring of fire to Envy’s ability in a flash.

“Still, not bad.

If I apply the techniques Envy taught me now, I’ll surely be able to reach other paths, which is a great gain.

-Billamy….

Rath chewed his lip.

-Why does this madman have talent and luck, what the heck is the heavens doing!

He prayed to the demigods and the heavens at the same time.

“I don’t give a shit.”

Envy frowned in annoyance.

“It’s done. You have your oath, and you may go.”

Raon waved his hand like he was swatting a fly.

“I knew you cared about your servants, but that bowl is special.”

“Special? No.”

He wagged a finger at her.

“All of my servants are equally valuable. None of them are considered trash like you.”

“Phew! I can’t do anything with my mouth.”

Envy snorted and turned away.

“I’ll leave you to it. I’ll keep my word, but I’ll never forget this place.”

Maybe it was because he thought he had lived, but Envy’s eyes were as arrogant and fierce as ever.

“In a way, that’s great.

To see him succumb to power, and then grab his ass like that as soon as he was alive, I can only laugh. The Demon Kings of the Demon Realm were all insane.

“Then….”

“Wait.”

Envy stepped back and was about to leave with Muston when Raon waved a hand.

“Put that down and go.”

“What? This is my slave!”

“It was King Bourne’s vessel that your slave was after. It’s not a big deal, but I can’t let it go. Let it go.”

If Muston follows Envy, there’s no telling what kind of threat he’ll be later, so even if I kill him, I have to kill him here.

“Fucking….”

Envy bit his lip and lowered his hand. Muston, who had been floating in the air, fell to the ground.

Its eyes were open, but it made no sound or movement, unconscious.

“We’ve lost today. Like, really badly!”

She snapped her fingers. The void split diagonally, opening up into a green dimension with a wild wind.

“Bastards!”

Envy gave Raon a middle finger and disappeared with the dark green dimension.

“….”

Raon rolled his eyes slowly, his anger unabated, and looked at Rath.

“Gone?

-Gone. Gone, you son of a bitch!

Rath lunged at him and clenched his fists.

-Is there mayonnaise in your skull instead of brains, and how many lies have you told me?

“I don’t know.

My head was spinning, and I couldn’t think straight.

“Haa….”

Raon sighed and sank to the floor.

“I’ll pass out if you take any more power from me.

With his body broken, he had polarized his fire rings, manipulated his demonic energy, and rolled his head, and he felt like he could collapse at any moment.

‘You barely survived.’

He had indeed survived by a hair’s breadth. This was Sloth’s nest, and it was a good thing Envy had come to visit.

“Heh….”

Raon turned and looked at Sloth, who was still sleeping, snoring, clutching the Goblin King’s gemstone.

“They don’t call you the Lord of Sloth for nothing.”

Sloth still hadn’t gotten up, as if to prove that he hadn’t been given the name Lord of Sloth for nothing.

“I wonder what he’s thinking.”

-The king wants to open your skull, not mine, how can you think such shallow thoughts!

“I was in a hurry.

Raon smirked.

‘Thanks to you, of course.

It was only because he’d listened to Rath’s words, and because he’d met Muston beforehand, that this had worked.

Anything less and this place would have been a battleground for the three demons.

‘I’m glad you’re alive, anyway.

Raon sighed and stood up. His legs wobbled, but he pushed through and walked over to the fallen Muston.

“Why does he keep doing this?

He’s not dead, he’s not badly hurt, and I don’t know why he’s passed out with his eyes open.

-Because the contract is not complete.

“Contract?

-Envy, the fool, came to Sloth without completing the contract, and the master’s contract was not terminated.

Rath shook his head in pity.

“Then what do we do with him?

-He’s stuck there, stiff as a board. Whoever comes will not be able to fix him!

He twisted the corners of his mouth, thinking it was the last thing he needed.

“Hmm….”

Raon looked at Muston and nodded.

“That might be better.

He might as well get the hell out of here if he was going to bring down the Lord of Jealousy.

“Though I’m afraid it’s a shame for Rectar.

Raon grabbed Muston’s wrist, intending to take him to a corner to deal with him, but his hand was stuck like glue.

‘Why is this….’

Muston panicked and tried to pull his hand away, but the dark green jealousy that had clung to his soul earlier surged as if it had been waiting.

Paaaaah!

As soon as that aura touched Muston’s wrist, a message flashed before his eyes.

[The servant’s contract has been completed].

[Do you wish to absorb <Jealousy> from the servant?]

Raon’s jaw dropped as he looked at the message.

“A master-servant contract?”

Master-servant meant master and servant, which meant that Muston was now a servant.

He was so surprised that he forgot to speak, and the words spilled out of his mouth.

“And it absorbs jealousy?

The fact that it could absorb Muston’s jealousy seemed to indicate that it could take the emotion of his jealousy and make it its own.

-The Bone King just….

Rath laughed out loud at the message.

-Damn it!

He roared, punching himself in the crown of the head with a rounded fist.

-I’d rather die than see this for the rest of my life!

Rath froths at the mouth and slams his head repeatedly.

“Mmm….”

Raon looked at Rath and frowned. He was already feeling unwell, and the noise next to him was making him dizzy.

“Stop it, we’ll have pineapple pizza when we get back.

-…….

Lars’s fists clenched at the words.

-How many? Can I get a cookie?

‘…….’

That really works….