Chapter 277 The Battlefield Negotiation

Issei-kun and Rizevim both simultaneously extended their right hands toward Diehauser. “Now then, your place is over here. Take this hand, Diehauser Belial!!” They were perfectly in sync.

What am I even watching right now?

“Hey, Kiba. What are we looking at here?” Issei-kun asked in total confusion.

“Probably a recruitment battle.”

Kuroka laughed. “Nyahahaha, I get what Issei’s trying to do. If the Emperor joins us, great. If not, he can still stall through conversation so the support teams can do their job.”

Diehauser fell silent for a moment. Then he slowly raised his right hand toward us. A condensed magic sphere formed at his palm. BOOM.

Wait, don’t tell me, he’s given up?

“Excellent. That is the proper decision, Lord Belial. We are Devils. Even if you have concerns, such things will be crushed under the power of Trihexa and the Evil Dragons. First, let us eliminate this nuisance together!” Rizevim declared triumphantly.

But in that exact moment, Diehauser snapped his wrist and fired the magic bullet diagonally backward. Right at Rizevim.

“Gah!! Cough!! What the hell are you doing, Emperor?!” Rizevim barely blocked it, but a thin line of blood ran down his forehead. His expression twisted in rage.

“I apologize, Prince Rizevim. I cannot afford to lose my family, my subordinates, and my people any further.”

“Then just hide them or something!”

“No. At this point, there is no turning back. We have already been checkmated the moment Agreas was invaded and the mass-produced Evil Dragons were wiped out. I have no intention of worrying about my dignity anymore. I shall simply side with the winning horse.”

Yeah. Honestly, calling yourself a “winning horse” here is a stretch.

A sudden white flash descended from the sky. BOOM!! The barrier around the building shattered as a figure landed on the rooftop.

“What exactly is going on here?” It was Vali Lucifer, the White Dragon Emperor.

“Vali, yeah, long story short,” Issei said, “Diehauser joined us after Ikki’s persuasion or something like that. Basically Rizevim’s lack of charisma did him in.”

Vali sighed in disbelief. “I see. Arthur and the others are securing the perimeter so he cannot escape. But I did not expect this level of forces already gathered here. I wanted a one-on-one fight with him, but this complicates things.”

Yeah, with thousands of Evil Dragons roaming around, most people wouldn’t even make it here. As it stood, only Dulio and a handful of others were still holding off Niðhöggr in the distance, storms and flames still flashing far away.

And so, with overwhelming support forces assembled, the final battle against Rizevim was about to begin.

Honestly, this feels almost unfair. Still, I tightened my grip on my sword.

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[Ikki POV]

After splitting from Issei and the others, I headed straight toward the core of Agreas. Ajuka had already provided the internal layout, so navigation wasn’t an issue. The traps along the way were expected, but I used to work in Heaven’s engineering division. Disarming them was routine.

Eventually, I reached a point where no further branching paths remained. And there, waiting for me, was a small black figure. Lilith. The other half of Ophis. Visually, the difference was simple: Ophis kept her hair straight, while Lilith tied hers into a ponytail. Twins in essence, which made this even more annoying.

Behind her stood a massive door, the power core of Agreas.

Yeah. No way I can brute-force this.

“Hey, Lilith. Mind letting me through that door?”

She tilted her head adorably. “Here, pass?”

“Yeah. Can I go through?”

“Cannot. Rizevim said Lilith must protect here.”

Figured. Even in this situation, they prioritized her defense. Which meant whatever was behind that door mattered.

Then I remembered something Issei had handed out before the operation. A “counter-Lilith item,” supposedly created using his family’s secret alchemy, supervised by Ophis. At the time I thought it was suspicious as hell. A hidden alchemy lineage? I checked his background thoroughly after the Kokabiel incident, there was nothing about that. But I guess he deliberately keeps some things hidden. Fair enough. I can respect that.

I pulled out the item from subspace storage. A sleek black box, sealed with senjutsu. It opened easily with a small flow of aura. Lilith watched curiously.

I opened it. Inside, a glossy black object. Smooth, curved, almost futuristic in shape. A wooden stick pierced through it. Colorful gems were embedded across its surface like a star-filled sky. And the smell, sweet, rich, with a faint fruity tang. My mouth started watering instantly.

“THAT’S JUST A CHOCOLATE BANANA!!” What the hell is wrong with this kid?! “Family alchemy” my ass, that’s just cooking!!

I almost threw the entire box away. But, STARE. I froze. Lilith was staring at it. No, laser-focused. Her mouth was already watering.

“Oh come on.” Right. Of course. Ophis likes bananas. Lilith had reacted to bananas before. And chocolate had previously caught her attention during earlier encounters. So Issei basically engineered a perfect bait combination for her.

“You want it?” I slowly lifted it. Her hands twitched unconsciously.

Perfect.

“Here’s the deal. I give this to you, if you let me pass. Refuse, and you get nothing. Simple, right?”

Lilith stared. Still staring. Then, she nodded slightly.

Yeah. This was absolutely bribery. But I’ll take it.

BOOM. Negotiations with the strongest dragon god began, using a chocolate banana.