Arslan had tried very hard to hold himself back from attacking. He didn’t care that his big brother’s strength was equal to an Immortal in the late stages. What mattered to him was beating Erdem down and feeling very satisfied after. However, they weren’t alone. With an outsider among them, he waited.

Erdem understood and gazed at the Eternal. She made him remember his meeting with his wife when he watched this Eternal receive something from a strong being even with the risks involved.

Arslan too had been there when they met; however, he didn’t support their relationship. He considered their relationship too complex due to her race in the Empire. He had a point, but shouldn’t he have supported their relationship? After all, he did support him with Derin. Arslan then focused on the young man beside his brother. He looked like his brother, thus to him too, however, he had black wings, horns, and a tail. He had the bloodline of Devils, long-time enemies in the continent. Although the Luvi Empire ruled the continent, their ancestors allowed them to continue fighting but only among Mortals. They didn’t know why, but this tradition had persisted for hundreds of thousands of years. Arslan's nephew jumped and flapped his wings, dropping down just before him and bowing. "I greet you, Uncle. I am Eren."

This was a very awkward situation for Arslan. He let out a sigh internally and commanded, "Rise," while assessing his cultivation. He was strong, stronger than his son. He considered if this kid could have beaten his son if they were at the same age, as his bloodline was very miraculous, and this was reflected in Kaplan’s strength. However, he wasn't sure. Comparison between different age groups in the Mortal Realm was always hard and unnecessary. This could also be said to be true for the entire cultivation stages.

"Why do you want a Devil to join in the competition of the Empire?" Arslan was curious. Didn't his brother know he would reject?

"Because my wife and her legion will join the Luvi Empire." The moment Erdem answered, the sky shook as more than 10 spaceships went by towards the back of their current position.

"Does Father know?"

"You are the Emperor, so I'm telling you," said Erdem. He made sense, except for how they got the permission to carry spaceships above the Empire. "Don't avoid the question." Arslan moved, arriving in front of Erdem and looked down.

"I informed the Elders, and thanks to my son who is both human and devil, they decided to have my wife's legion to be granted access here. Come." Erdem moved, ignoring the pressure that was building on his shoulders. Arslan was always hard to deal with. Just a discussion was enough to press down on him. However, Erdem wasn't cultivating Paths. As a being who used outside forces to cultivate, it resulted in having the upper hand in fights not involving the physical body, even without taking advantage of his cultivation realm. They followed and saw spaceships had landed and Devils stayed at attention. "Hundred 9th level Mortal, five hundred 8th level Mortal, and a thousand 7th level will be under your lead if you agree. As I said, you are the Emperor, and the Elders will not interfere if you choose not to want them. However, this is something not only about our family. This is about the whole continent, brother."

The Devils in front of them were not like Eren. Although Eren had wings, horns, and a tail like them, he was mostly human in appearance. However, these devils had dark skin with different color accents, with different eye shapes. Each of them had markings that emitted power on their bodies. Some had tattoos, and some had runes. What they had in common was that none could be understood.

Arslan gazed at them. He remembered some of them. When he was young, some of them tried to kill him. When they couldn't, they tried to enslave him.

"I remember they had double the amount of cultivators back then," said Arslan, questioning Erdem with a smirk.

Erdem, not angry, smirked too. "I still remember how we butchered them."

Arslan looked at his big brother, ignoring the look they received from the legion, and questioned, "Are you sure? If there are any issues with them, I don't know what will become of you. Is it worth it?"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Would it be worth it if it was for Derin's happiness? It's not different. Time moves, and we progress. We don't need to consider the old grudges. In the end, it all depends on you.”

In the Abyss of the Empire, Barut gazed at the same white light that Arslan and his family passed through, as a woman with black hair and skin, with horns, wings, and a tail. She had purple eyes and possessed an exotic beauty, and he understood how Erdem might have fallen for her, if only to some degree.

As the light opened a path for her, she started moving towards his room. Despite hearing screams coming from the darkness, she ignored them and maintained her composure.

Barut transformed into his original form and waited, creating a sitting area for himself. The room had a defense mechanism, and only if he allowed it would someone arrive within its bounds. Finally, she entered the area where he could teleport her into the room and gazed directly at him upon her arrival. Barut didn't make any moves; he simply waited. If she considered herself his daughter, she would bow. If not...

"I greet you, Father," she said after taking a breath and bowed towards him.

Barut didn't know if he should trust her. He knew her previous self, and her current attitude was very foreign to him. She was a menace, using people and murdered them when they weren’t useful. However, he also knew that their race was like that, and they cared a lot about the opinion of their chosen that they would spend the rest of their lives with.

But he needed to try to see where this would lead, at least for his son's sake... and maybe for the entire Empire's. Because, if she joins, this will also open a path to annexing Devils. They are precious, as the Devils in this continent were special because they had mutated, gaining the racial name of Dark Devils. If not, he wouldn’t be sitting here where their screams are constant, constantly refining them. However, to at least show some respect, he stopped the refinement and the screams stopped.

He created a place for her to join him and said, "Sit, Rowena."

Rowena sat and waited, gathering her thoughts. She felt uncomfortable wearing conservative clothes. Dark Devils viewed clothes as accessories and not a necessity. As the Devils within the area of influence of the Luvi Empire, they were not regarded very kindly, and the Empire would use this as a way to provoke them even more. However, towards the Devils outside the Empire, they never showed any criticism. This showed that the Empire was not racist or not haters towards difference of cultures, but would use everything to humiliate their enemies.

Although she didn't mind her old revealing accessories, and Erdem wouldn't voice it out either, she knew that it troubled him inside. So, after they had married, she made some changes.

Dark Devils were an obsession-based race. They would never taint their name by doing anything that would result in an argument for their current or future family. How could they, when they knew they would be obsessed, and if they had made mistakes in the past, they would suffer from their anguish? Knowing this, they especially cared for their image. This was more known among Dark Devils, so there wouldn't be any jealousy when they met a possible partner. They didn’t know if they would only live for a short amount or eternity. Living with these emotions through the span of it, however, was tested and learned to be a massive mistake. Thus, even she, a Princess of the Dark Devils, would not risk engaging with lovers, as that might cause males with conservative natures to avoid her, or betraying those towards whom they were friendly, as this would make her seem untrustworthy in a relationship.

However, it was different for the Luvi Empire, as they didn’t know the inner workings of their people for a long time. Only recently did they care about their culture, right after their Prince decided to pursue one, did they find out about it.

Erdem too learned about it later on. Even when they were in battle, he couldn’t look at Rowena with the same eyes. He also couldn’t understand why they lived nearly naked. Was it just for finding potential mates that can evaluate their bodies? It was very strange, but in the end, it worked out for them.

The Royal Family of the Luvi Empire, although not discriminatory, wouldn’t just go for any person to marry.

This was one of the reasons why she could enter this place from the beginning. She could have arrived with any clothing she wanted, and he wouldn’t have anything to say. However, seeing how uncomfortable she was with her current clothing, he knew that she had made a lot of effort. And, as a father, he had to have an open mind. He couldn't just dismiss her when she came, knowing that this might have been all for nothing. After all, he only joined their wedding and when she was pregnant. He would only come to meet his grandson once a year, and that was it.

So here he was, asking the question, “Why are you here?”

Rowena took a breath. “As you know, Erdem asked the elders for their permission, and I don’t think Arslan will refuse his brother. Long story short, I am here to be granted a name, worthy of Luvi Empire’s royalty.”