Sirzechs' Castle.
Near the corridor window, Sirzechs stood with a grim expression, gazing out at the square before the castle, where an opaque black cube enveloped the cross-world channel. He asked solemnly:
"What's the current situation?"
With measured footsteps, Ajuka approached Sirzechs' side, his navy-blue cloak draped over his shoulders, his face expressionless as he replied calmly:
"The cross-world channel is damaged. Over 1,800 demon troops dispatched to the Second World have lost contact. This will be the report Falbium submits to the Council later."
Hearing this, Sirzechs fell silent for a moment before suddenly letting out a derisive chuckle:
"Lost contact with 1,800 troops... lost contact..."
"Heh. When that bizarre hand appeared, the entire subspace where the demon army was stationed got torn apart... And they're calling this 'lost contact'?"
"No bodies found means lost contact. Of course, this is also a requirement of the Demon Council. After all, neither you nor I, nor they, anticipated... the situation would be this disastrous."
Ajuka spoke impassively up to this point, then turned to look at Sirzechs. Seeing the other's conflicted and troubled expression, he immediately warned:
"Sirzechs, you seem... unsettled."
Hearing this, Sirzechs fell silent for a moment before exhaling heavily:
"Apologies. It's just that the situation appears far more severe than I anticipated."
"You mentioned earlier this was the official report submitted to the council."
"What's the actual situation?"
"Dire."
Ajuka sighed lightly, raising a hand to massage his temples:
"Though we've sealed the cross-world channel using my specially developed coordinate-lock technology, preventing the owner of that hand from directly invading the Underworld, the critical issue is that our world's coordinates have already been exposed to them."
"Considering how merely a gesture from them simultaneously suppressed you, me and Falbium, their strength likely ranks within the top three."
"Top three?!"
Sirzechs visibly startled, turning to stare at Ajuka with wide eyes:
"You're certain about this?"
The so-called top three referred to the world's top three.
In their world, some meddlesome deity had compiled a ranking of the ten strongest beings.
Within this list, the top ten marked a threshold, while the top five represented individual tiers of power.
At the absolute pinnacle stood the Infinite Dragon God, Ophis, wielding limitless power that never diminished.
As the world's strongest being, this Dragon God possessed overwhelming might - even the former Christian God, in his prime, couldn't claim a sure victory against her.
Beneath the Infinite Dragon God came the top three ranked beings, all from the same pantheon:
Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma!
These three great deities from Hindu mythology stood nearly equal, with Shiva perhaps marginally stronger in combat, but overall comparable to the others - hence their shared top three classification.
Below the top three came the world's top five tier, followed by the top eight, then the top ten.
Both Sirzechs and Ajuka had realistically assessed their own strengths.
Thus, they understood that at best, they ranked within the top eight.
Precisely because he knew his own capabilities and had confronted that moss-covered hand, Sirzechs expressed doubt:
"The owner of that hand possessed formidable energy density, but if I fully activate my Destruction Form, it shouldn't be unbeatable, no?"
Destruction Form!
Sirzechs' ultimate trump card - transforming all his parameters into something akin to destruction itself, granting absolute enhancement to destructive power.
This very ability was why he, Sirzechs Lucifer, ruled the Underworld as Satan rather than the previous Lucifer's son, Lilin Lucifer.
To put it bluntly, Sirzechs was a warlord who seized power by force, though now legitimately installed as Satan.
It was precisely because of this ace that Sirzechs, while grave about the unknown powerful entity, hadn't descended into panic.
However, Ajuka held a different view.
"What if I told you their main offensive was directed at the Second World?"
"?!"
Sirzechs' eyebrows shot up before knitting together:
"So we were merely... collateral damage?"
"...According to recently recovered intelligence, that appears to be the case."
Ajuka paused thoughtfully before sighing quietly: "Moreover, according to my intel, a powerful individual in the Second World severed that hand."
"What?"
Sirzechs' eyes widened instantly as he stared at Ajuka in disbelief, pressing further:
"Are you certain?"
Having personally faced that Apostle from True Hell, Sirzechs knew exactly how formidable the opponent was. Severing the arm of such a powerhouse wasn't something an ordinary Satan could accomplish.
Multiple top-ten ranked fighters? Or perhaps even top five... or top three?
"There may be factors here I can't verify, but based on current intelligence, the owner of that bizarre arm, which annihilated over half our demon army, did indeed leave a severed hand in the Second World, having been blocked from entering."
"So, from the current situation, it appears the owner of that hand won't have spare capacity to invade our world anytime soon."
"Hah, I suppose that's the silver lining in this misfortune."
Hearing Ajuka's words, Sirzechs fell silent for a moment before finally exhaling deeply:
"You've sealed the cross-world channel... then what about Serafall? Isn't she supposed to go to the Second World? Why not have her investigate this matter? After all, what we know now is far too limited to make accurate judgments."
Hearing this, Ajuka immediately grasped Sirzechs' implication - while gathering intelligence was genuine, there were likely deeper intentions:
"Too impatient to obtain Class power already?"
Sirzechs responded with a bitter laugh:
"Indeed. After all, our enemy is only temporarily incapacitated by circumstance."
How long until recovery? Could they invade within days? How long can Ajuka's barriers hold? These were all unknowns.
The only certainty was Sirzechs urgently needing the Second World's Class knowledge to grow stronger - strong enough to surpass all invading foes.
"This isn't an expression befitting you..."
Seeing Sirzechs' wry smile, Ajuka shook his head. Witnessing this usually powerful, perpetually confident comrade wear such an expression left him with a complex mix of emotions.
Yet what troubled him more was another matter entirely.
Thinking of that reckless individual, Ajuka sighed and said in a peculiar tone:
"Actually, before coming here, I'd already verified Serafall's whereabouts."
"Hmm?" Sirzechs' eyebrow twitched as a sense of foreboding rose within him.
At that moment, Ajuka murmured:
"According to my reports, Serafall infiltrated the first military deployment and has already advanced to the Second World."
"Given her temperament, she'd never obediently wait in the dimensional staging area for full mobilisation, so..."
Initially assuming the enemy had killed Serafall, Sirzechs' mouth twitched as utter exasperation spread across his face:
"So she's already in the Second World then..."
Seeing Ajuka's nod, Sirzechs forced out words through gritted teeth:
"That madwoman's always been insane since the beginning. To dare infiltrate the first wave - is there truly nothing she fears?"
Having said this, Sirzechs exhaled in relief before emotions surged anew: "Still, I have to admit she handled this beautifully. At least she didn't end up missing too."
Having said that, Sirzechs turned to Ajuka and asked:
"Is the cross-world channel still operational?"
"The large one in the castle can't be used anymore. We'll have to rely on the smaller one at my research base. Though smaller, it should suffice to retrieve Serafall. We just need to be wary of that hand's owner - he might be lurking beyond our world, watching us."
"Is that so?"
Sirzechs nodded in understanding, then chuckled lightly:
"Well then, it seems we can only wait for Serafall's good news."
Ajuka shot him a glance: "Or disastrous news akin to a rampage."
"Still better than no news at all," Sirzechs countered with a smile.
Ajuka lowered his gaze with a sigh:
"Let's hope so."
In the tacit silence between the two Satans, the surroundings fell into complete stillness.