Chapter 843

If the world could be compared to a human body, then humanity would be its cells and bacteria.

When their numbers multiplied beyond what the world could sustain, the world would become sick.

And if those cells deteriorated into cancer, the world would be on the verge of death.

Of course, the world wouldn’t simply surrender to its illness.

It had its own immune system.

Its name was Apocalypse.

War and famine would come first. Plague would follow. And finally, inevitably, came death.

Afterward, the population would fall dramatically, the world’s cycles would return to equilibrium, and everything would eventually stabilize.

But anyone who had ever been sick knew that relying solely on the immune system to defeat an illness was a long and painful process. One mistake could mean death. Even if the patient survived, severe aftereffects could remain.

In humanity’s case, one of those aftereffects was hatred.

That was why serious illnesses were best treated with medicine as quickly as possible.

And Gabriel intended to become that medicine.

There would be no terrifying war.

No devastating famine.

None of it would happen.

Before the world’s immune system had a chance to activate, she would eliminate the excess bacteria herself.

And she would use targeted treatment.

Only the harmful bacteria and cancer cells would be destroyed.

There was, however, one side effect that apparently couldn’t be avoided.

Hatred.

But humanity wouldn’t need to hate one another.

They only needed to hate her.

She would carry all the world’s hatred alone.

She would bear all the world’s sins alone.

"You’ll carry all their hatred," Mephisto said slowly, finally understanding Gabriel’s entire plan. "That means everyone who survives will have a common enemy. They’ll have someone to hate together, which should make them more united."

He looked up at her.

"Is this what you call your love for the world and humanity?"

"Exactly."

Gabriel nodded.

"I was too indulgent toward this world in the past. But that wasn’t true love."

She smiled.

"True love is grabbing a child by the hand and smacking some sense into them when they’re determined to do something stupid."

Mephisto’s expression twitched.

"Because sooner or later, they’ll reach the limits of what this world can sustain. Once that happens, the world’s immune system will activate."

"And when it does, countless white blood cells, red blood cells, and even all those adorable little platelets will be dragged into the disaster."

"So rather than allow that to happen, I’d rather eliminate the harmful bacteria and potential cancer cells myself."

Mephisto stared at her.

This is supposed to be benevolent?

The greater good?

Uncompromising love?

What kind of twisted logic is this?

She’s basically saying she’s doing humanity a favor by becoming the world’s executioner.

He slammed a hand against the table.

"I’m begging you, Your Holiness—be reasonable!"

"Physical punishment isn’t exactly fashionable anymore. If you keep this up, someone’s going to take away your custody!"

"Hmph."

Gabriel smiled without the slightest concern.

"As long as the child survives and grows healthy, I don’t care if I’m stripped of custody."

Mephisto stared at her.

He was beginning to realize that there was absolutely no point arguing with her.

"So... you’re really going to bring calamity upon the world?"

He sighed.

"What kind?"

"I haven’t decided yet."

Gabriel shook her head.

"This plan is still in its early stages. I’ll decide once I’ve worked out the details."

"Then..."

Mephisto hesitated.

"What happens if your proverbial cane hits too hard and you accidentally kill the child?"

"You make it sound as though I’m going to act recklessly."

Gabriel smiled pleasantly.

"It is a plan. I’ll carefully calculate the appropriate level of force."

Her smile widened.

"Anyone who dies from a calamity of that magnitude would be a thoroughly incompetent person. If they die, then perhaps it’s for the best."

"The ones who survive will be the people worth preserving."

"They’ll be the people worthy of this world."

"They’ll be the people worthy of my love."

Mephisto stared at her for several seconds.

There was no reasoning with this woman.

He rubbed his forehead, then looked at her solemnly.

"You’re really going to do this?"

"Yes."

"You mean it?"

"Absolutely."

Mephisto closed his eyes.

"Then..."

He let out a long, disappointed sigh.

"I never thought we’d end up here."

"But if you’re determined to go through with this, then I have no choice."

He straightened.

"I, Mephisto, hereby declare war on you in the name of Hell, for the sake of protecting human life on Earth!"

Gabriel raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?"

A hint of amusement appeared in her eyes.

"You’re declaring war on me?"

She leaned forward.

"Are you actually my equal?"

She wasn’t wrong.

This was Earth.

The power demons could bring to bear in the mortal world was limited. Gabriel herself was considerably weaker than she had once been, but even so, Mephisto wasn’t currently her equal.

"I said I’m declaring war on you on behalf of Hell."

Mephisto stood and slipped both hands into his pockets.

His expression became almost arrogant.

"That means I’m not fighting alone."

"Beelzebub. Samael. All the other Lords of Hell."

"All of them will stand against you."

"They’ll form an alliance to oppose your plan."

He spread his arms.

"Any Lord of Hell who doesn’t want to see humanity wiped out on a massive scale will unite to defend the lives of this world."

Mephisto paused.

He seemed to consider something.

Then his face brightened.

"And therefore, I hereby announce the formation of the Alliance for the Preservation of Human Life!"

Gabriel’s eyebrow twitched.

"That name sounds suspiciously like you’re going to get sued for trademark infringement."

"Fine."

Mephisto waved a hand.

"Then we’ll call ourselves the Hell Blue Helmets."

"It’s only a name."

He was already mentally planning which of his old acquaintances he would contact first.

An alliance.

Mutual interests.

Collective opposition to a common enemy.

He could work with that.

"Very well."

Gabriel stood.

"I accept your challenge."

She raised one hand.

"I hope your efforts produce an outcome capable of entertaining me."

A portal opened behind her.

She stepped through without another word.

The portal vanished.

Mephisto immediately abandoned every trace of his dignity.

He grabbed the bottle of liquor on the table and drank directly from it until the entire bottle was empty.

Then he pulled out his phone and made a call.

"The former Sorcerer Supreme has gone completely insane!"

He practically shouted into the phone.

"When you resurrected her, did one of those two lovers of yours kick her in the head with a hoof?!"

Evenson knew about the situation soon afterward.

Surprisingly, he wasn’t particularly worried.

He couldn’t imagine himself being classified as one of the incompetent people Gabriel wanted to eliminate.

Neither was Clea.

And the Eredar Twins certainly weren’t.

As far as Evenson was concerned, everyone he genuinely cared about was capable, valuable, and useful.

So as long as Gabriel’s cleansing plan was targeted rather than indiscriminate, he didn’t have much reason to worry.

As for everyone else?

If they had nothing to do with him, then they could remain that way.

Evenson had barely hung up the phone when Gabriel appeared.

She looked at him.

"You know?"

"Just found out."

Evenson nodded.

He didn’t bother denying it.

Gabriel smiled.

"Do you regret bringing me back to life?"

"Not really."

Evenson shook his head.

"Eliminating incompetence to preserve the world’s vitality and maintain its balance is the kind of argument that could remain valid for ten thousand years."

He paused.

"But if it’s going to remain valid for ten thousand years..."

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

"Could you wait until then before putting the plan into action?"

Gabriel looked at him.

"You want me to postpone it?"

"Exactly."

Evenson met her eyes.

"You’re thinking the same thing, aren’t you? You weren’t planning to execute this immediately."

"Of course not."

Gabriel didn’t argue.

She sat down nearby.

"Planning something on this scale requires coordination. Every stage has to be calculated with extreme precision."

"That takes time."

"Then while we’re waiting, why not see what happens?"

Evenson shrugged.

"Maybe something else will change."

Gabriel studied him.

"I’m listening."

For all the certainty Gabriel had displayed earlier, and despite genuinely being prepared to carry out her plan, this was ultimately her last resort.

She didn’t want to use it unless the situation became truly desperate.

Otherwise, she could simply have begun eliminating people in secret.

She wouldn’t have needed to tell Mephisto—a demon she knew would inevitably oppose her.

Her uncompromising attitude had another purpose.

Pressure.

She wanted to force the demons to confront the problem and see whether they could come up with another solution.

If they couldn’t...

Then she would proceed.

"A few days from now, our company is holding its first board meeting."

Evenson smiled.

"We’ll be announcing a few things there. You might find them interesting."

"All right."

Gabriel nodded without hesitation.

"I’ll attend."

"That would be an honor."

Evenson happily clapped his hands.

Then his expression suddenly became awkward.

"Although... you do know that only major shareholders are normally allowed to attend board meetings."

Gabriel narrowed her eyes.

Was that an invitation?

No.

That was practically a billboard.

Five days later.

It was a major day for Gospel Corporation.

The company was completing its financing round and officially going public.

To commemorate the occasion, the Eredar Twins had hired professional cleaners to thoroughly clean the luxurious conference room on the top floor.

The people attending the meeting were hardly insignificant.

Representatives from the Rockefeller, Morgan, and DuPont families had arrived, along with their respective entourages.

This was something Evenson and Malik had arranged beforehand.

Malik had agreed to contact several major financial dynasties and convince them to support the company.

His reputation had certainly helped.

But the families hadn’t come simply because they respected the old man.

Gospel Corporation had already released several extremely promising patented products.

It had secured multiple military contracts.

Rose, an increasingly influential political star, had a close relationship with the company.

And the company’s connections extended all the way to the President and Vice President.

Investing in Gospel Corporation was therefore attractive on its own merits.

Evenson had no intention of treating potential investors carelessly.

He dressed impeccably.

His suit was perfectly arranged, his hair neatly combed, and not a single detail of his appearance was out of place.

He was just about to enter the conference room when he stopped.

He covered his face.

Then immediately turned around and walked back.

"Why is she here...?"

Evenson felt a headache coming on.

Among the people attending the meeting was someone he had absolutely not expected to see.

Pepper Potts.

The head of Stark Industries.

Technically, Stark Industries was a major financial powerhouse.

After Tony Stark announced that he was abandoning the weapons industry, the company’s stock had initially plunged.

Then, almost overnight, Stark Industries became the undisputed leader in next-generation clean energy.

The Stark family might not have the centuries of history behind them that the old financial dynasties possessed, but when it came to money and actual power, they were more than capable of sitting at the same table.

In America, once you had enough money, most other barriers became considerably easier to overcome.

"She appears to have come with the Morgan girl."

Olesses glanced through the conference room door.

Elizabeth Morgan was the representative sent by the Morgan family.

Years ago, the Morgan family had finally produced a legitimate daughter.

The patriarch had supposedly issued a command to the entire family:

Spoil her.

Spoil her as much as humanly possible.

That daughter, however, wasn’t Elizabeth.

She was Elizabeth’s older sister.

Elizabeth still belonged to the Morgan family and possessed a portion of its inheritance rights, but she was never expected to inherit control of the family.

That made her a secondary figure within the dynasty.

In truth, every representative attending today’s meeting occupied a similar position.

There was a somewhat awkward reason for that.

The old financial dynasties considered Gospel Corporation extremely promising. They were interested in investing.

But it wasn’t important enough to justify sending the head of the family—or the official heir—to something as ordinary as a corporate board meeting.

Sending a secondary family member made far more sense.

If the investment succeeded, the family could claim its younger generation had demonstrated exceptional judgment.

If it failed?

That was simply the personal mistake of a relatively unimportant family member.

The family itself had nothing to do with it.

Elizabeth might have been a secondary figure, but she was also young and ambitious.

She knew that her personal fortune would never be enough to secure a meaningful position within the Morgan family through conventional means.

So she had always placed enormous importance on relationships.

Long before Tony Stark became Iron Man, she had accompanied her family to cultivate relationships within Stark Industries.

The truly powerful figures—Tony Stark and Obadiah Stane, for example—were naturally left to the future heir to cultivate.

Elizabeth had instead befriended Pepper, who at the time was still Tony’s secretary.

The two had developed a remarkably close friendship.

It had turned out to be an extremely successful investment.

Obadiah was dead.

Tony Stark had largely withdrawn from the company’s day-to-day affairs.

And control of Stark Industries had ultimately fallen into Pepper’s hands.

As a result, whenever the Morgan family conducted business with Stark Industries, Pepper’s assistance became extremely valuable.

Elizabeth’s position within her family rose accordingly.

And so did the importance she placed on her friendship with Pepper.

Which was why every time Tony tried flirting with Elizabeth, he was met with the same response.

A slap.

My heart belongs to Pepper.

Get lost.

This time, Elizabeth had taken an interest in Gospel Corporation’s prospects.

So she’d invited her best friend along almost as casually as asking someone out for afternoon tea.

If the company looked promising, they could invest together.

If it made money, everyone won.

If it lost money...

That was Elizabeth’s problem.

The problem was that Pepper’s presence made things extremely inconvenient for Evenson.

He could disguise himself.

That wasn’t difficult.

But he already knew Pepper fairly well, and she knew him well enough that even a disguise might not survive close scrutiny.

He was still trying to figure out what to do when another group entered the conference room.

They were all dressed in formal suits.

But each wore a distinctive badge on their chest.

Evenson studied the insignia.

Three separate groups.

So these were the people Gabriel had brought.

She hadn’t merely invested in the company herself.

She had also used the connections she’d accumulated over the centuries to introduce several highly respected figures to Gospel Corporation.

Sure enough, the moment these people entered, the representatives of the major financial families visibly changed expression.

Several even stood to greet them.

Evenson took a closer look at the insignia.

Then he understood who they were.

The Blood Tongue of Britain.

The Toulouse Occult Society.

And the Valdemar family of Spain.

For the first time that morning, Evenson’s expression became genuinely serious.

This board meeting was going to be considerably more interesting than he’d expected.