SHK CH 655 (Patreon)

Sol could have sent a projection to Pandora and dealt with realistically more important matters with his true body. Still, he thought doing such a thing would be nothing but a form of disrespect toward a woman he already slighted.

As he walked into the entrance of the tower, unnoticed by all, his feet slowed down as multiple murmurs reached his ears. Sol knew that there was no one physically close to him at the moment.

Those murmurs did not come from anyone he knew. They were indistinguishable voices that had been slowly increasing in volume. When this started, Sol thought that this was a mental attack from Hypnos or that he was simply becoming insane.

The reality, though, was much stranger than fiction. 

Prayers.

For some reason, he had started to become able to hear prayers, and he was confused about why at first.

Undoubtedly, to become a King, one had to build a legend and Sol was certainly well respected in his Kingdom now. But there was no way anyone would pray to him — He wasn’t even a demigod yet.

But, listening to Milia’s report and after having a deeper understanding of her new hounds division. Sol understands the situation better. 

It seemed like Nefertiti went above and beyond anything he could have ever imagined and was now building a religion in his name, using his title of Dragon Emperor as a cover.

Since the elves already more or less worshiped dragons and this situation was tacitly accepted by the goddesses, people who believed him would not be persecuted.

Still. Impressive.

Nefertiti was worthy of her name, and now Sol found himself with a Cult.

She had come in a clutch many times and was proving how invaluable she truly was. 

She was so efficient that Sol was starting to wonder if he should leave her with the Elves so she would enroll more of them. After all, it would be harder to preach to a human.

My name is also reacting very well. I can feel my divinity growing. 

A small smirk formed on his face. The boost he was receiving was minimal, extremely so. But it was still a boost and the more faith he gathered, the more powerful he would become.

“I see that you are in a good mood.” A feminine voice stopped his musing, causing him to look down.

He was currently in the lower garden. The flowers here were obviously not as beautiful or well arranged as the hanging garden. But there was a certain charm to such a situation. It was cozy and made him want to simply lie down on the ground and relax.

Clearly he wasn’t the only one who found this place relaxing. After all, Pandora was currently sitting on a nap with some white bread, meat, jam, and some beverage around her. 

“I am always in a good mood.” Sol joked as he took a few steps forward and asked, “Can I sit? This impromptu picnic looks pretty good, and I happen to be hungry.”

Pandora gave him a dubious glance but simply shrugged, “Everything here belongs to you. I can’t stop you.” 

Sol did not mind the prickly way she spoke and took a seat, “So, what have you been up to? I am surprised you came to the lower garden.”

“Nothing. The Hanging garden was taken over by Freya and Persephone for the wedding preparation. So they waved me away. Since the time is too nice to simply stay in my room, I decided to breathe some fresh air.”

She answered him politely, but this politeness was the greatest proof of the distance between the two of them.

He shook his head, “The last time I truly enjoyed an outdoor picnic was quite some time ago. I am constantly going from office to office, filling them with so much paper they are overflowing.”

Pandora snorted, “Hah. You should be happy you have the paperwork. As the Demon Queen, I was forced to listen to the grievances of the different demons. As you can imagine, this became a pain very fast.

“Having to explain to an old Zombie why he cannot drink the blood and eat the flesh of mortals. Stopping a clan of vampires and werewolves who had been at war for nearly 100 years. Help keep the status quo, and eliminate people who can negatively affect the situation.”

She rattled so many words and then took one of the wine bottles before downing it in one go. It was clear that she was very upset and had many grievances in her heart. 

Thankfully, if you could say it like this, it was clear that Sol was not at the top of those grievances.

“Seems like you had quite the tiring situation.” Pandora smiled a little more gently. Her brows stopped furrowing and her voice was now back to a normal level.

“I am sorry. It’s just that…The situation in my kingdom isn’t easy. Even more so since that bitch took power. There is not much I can do and I have been relegated to a mere figurehead.”

She sighed and ate the meat. Pandora, the Queen of Succubus and Queen of Envilya. In essence, this was one of the most enviable positions. A Blessed born with a powerful race. 

What more could she ask? 

Well, the answer was far more complicated than one could explain. In the end, Pandora was simply born in the wrong era. The current Supreme Daughter was simply too powerful and because of this power, most of the authority Pandora should have wielded was stripped away from her.

“I came to Lutburg to seek help, but instead I got devoured by a big bad wolf, or should I say big bad Dragon?” She gave a side eye to Sol, but all he did was maintain his smile, in fact, he even snickered.

“For me, what happened was an agreeable conversation where we reached a common accord.” He gesticulated a little exaggeratedly, his movement even as he spoke seemed to bring more impact.

In the end, the two of them snickered for a short time but soon, Pandora simply found herself drinking.

“Thinking about it. I am about to become a stepfather, right? It will be quite interesting.” He spoke and laughed as Pandora started choking on what she was drinking.

Sol had just brought up a topic she had been avoiding. Now though, there was no more escape possible from reality.

“Well…I think they will take it well?”  Though Pandora said such words, Sol understood that his future stepdaughters would most likely not take it well once they learned the news.