Apathia- the magenta dragonic demon who's lime green hair draped in such a way to cover almost all of her face as she lay on the table half asleep, opened her one visible eye while keeping the other shut tightly as she heard this word.

"The.... antiheroes?"

It was just the slightest notion.

She clearly had no intention of moving any more than the few muscles which it took to open that eye just a bit wider, but even this amount of effort put forth by this young looking female was enough to make the man who had stated the name hold his breath.

"Indeed. The antiheroes."

This very name was enough to make the arguments of mere moments before seem not only pointless, but completely foolish.

The middle aged man who's body was made from molten rock fixed his own hat, laying his cane down to rest on the table as he looked at the flag.

A light smirk came across his face.

"It seems the time has come then. Indeed, I never imagined that it would happen within my own lifetime."

Looking up, the man adjusted the kingly robe made from quartz which he adorned with a smile.

"While it is true that the antiheroes are a threat to our rule, it would benefit us to look at this in a different light. If we defeat these antiheroes, then there will be much profit to be made for ourselves."

The purple demon who's hair seemed to swirl about his head closed his eyes with a nod.

"As stated before, the only reason why I have called this council is out of obligation due to our contract. This is a matter which I could have taken care of on my own, however I have allowed everyone here to know of this so that we may take measures to crush them completely."

The demon pointed his index finger towards the chandelier which hung above them, and with a beckoning motion one of the candles levitated out of the chandelier, floating down and turning itself upside down while remaining lit.

The candle landed in the center of the table where the flame caught right on the center of the heart which the demonic hand grasped.

The flames spread outwards, and the flag burned to a crisp in an instant.

The beautiful pale woman who wore a plaid baker boys hat and dress used her own flared sleeve to cover her mouth, coughing from the smoke.

"Did you have to burn that right here in front of us?", she asked. "My complexion may worsen."

Huberos and Lustia seemed to stare at one another in a faceoff, neither backing down for a moment until the tension was broken by a demon whose spiked red hair flipped about when he spoke.

"Hey Hube, do we even know whether these antiheroes are real? Couldn't they just be a bunch of frauds who used that name and started taking over some cities? I've heard some stories about some of those humanoids getting pretty strong out there. Couldn't a couple of em have just teamed up and slapped on the title?"

With a spiteful glare, Huberos glanced over with one eye while keeping his other staring off with the pale woman who seemed to be brushing off her own lap while continuing to stare back at him.

"It is possible. And do not use that term to refer to myself."

"Whatever you say, Hube. So? What are we gonna do? Should I use my skill to make them lose their minds?", the orange demon asked while peeking once more at his watch.

This demon was Vex- the Host of Wrath.

Lustia quit staring Huberos down, turning her attention to Vex.

"Are you sure it will be alright to do something like that?", she asked in a mature and appealing voice. "After all.... we don't know anything about them yet. Will you be alright, Vex? What if they're stronger than you expect? Won't making them go insane just worsen the situation?"

"Even if this fool goes and dies it won't be a problem I can't take care of.", Huberos replied in his place while fiddling with the blood stain on his white suit, trying desperately to erase it.

"You're really testing me today, Hube. Give it a rest, will ya? I gotto leave for my date in 10 so let's hurry this up. Should I do it or not?"

With a sigh, Huberos nodded.

"You will do what you can to sabotage their efforts, but you are not to attack them directly... yet. In the meantime, I have invited you all here to offer a proposal."

The demon looked around with piercing eyes, glaring at each and every person in the room.

"We will continue our alliance, yet we will amend it as a result of the appearance of this opposition. From this point on, the agreement to keep to our own domains will be nullified. We will join hands as one nation and begin our expansion into the other cities of the monster realm. And I will lead this nation. There will be no objections."

Looking around to silence the others, there was one in particular who stood up.

It was the woman who's outfit, body and hair were literally made of flames.

"Now wait just a minute. I don't mind forming a single nation, but why do you get to be called the leader? I'm a named monster king as well. You should already know what if you have more than me.... I'll become jealous."

As the woman spoke, her eyes were literally on fire with envy.

"I get the same rights as you do. You can't tell me that you get more than I do."

Her flaming zigzagged ponytail seemed to flutter all the more, burning up even the black chair behind her which began to melt- despite being made from marble.

"I am more qualified to lead, and as such I will. You have no right to object, Envidia. Surely you are just jealous of my own ability and qualification. Fit for the head of the house of envy."

The woman frowned as these comments were made, but sat down in submission.

"Hah! We'll see about that. You talk big but you'll probably mess up somewhere. I'll be waiting for that time."

"As will I.", the man of molten rock stated while rubbing his hands together with a glint of greed in his eyes.

"You don't get anything, Avarco. I'll take over the position when he fails. You should already understand this."

"You certainly cannot stand someone having something more than yourself, Envidia. You must learn that being number 1 is not everything."

"Hah!?! As if. You only know how to count your coins, old man!"

"And many they are, because I have spent so much effort to make them. And do not speak as if I am an old man. My face is still young, is it not?"

The indigo demon then coughed loudly to retake the attention of the table.

"Ahem. As I said. There will be no objections to this. I am the best fit here as a leader. Envidia, you had bettered not even consider activating your ability or I will activate my own in response."

"Hmph. As if yours could defeat mine."

As Envidia said this, Apathia, the demon dragon, seemed to roll her head on the table so that her hair flopped to cover the other side of her face, revealing her closed eye and covering her opened one.

Her closed eye then opened and her frown was clear for all to see.

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

"Could you be a bit quieter? I'm trying to rest here."

The words were few, and there was a rudeness behind them, however the indigo demon immediately shut his own mouth.

"Of course. That subject has ended. Now, as for the next topic-"

"Where the hell is this food!?!? Is it ever gonna come, or am I gonna be waiting all day for it!?!?!"

The navy blue demon was now hanging with his head leaned behind the back of his chair, drooling while staring at the entrance to the room.

"Are they ever gonna come!!??"

"I have already stated this, Gormand. They are on the wa-"

"Ahhhhhh!!!!!"

As the demonic dragon seemed to have a fit, his stomach growled loudly as if he truly had been starving to death.

"Be quiet. I'm. Trying. To. Sleep."

The demonic dragon who represented the house of gluttony continued staring at the doorway as his stomach growled, drool dripping to the floor.

There was clear irritation in they eyes of the indigo devil who sat at the head of the meeting, yet it was what happened at this moment which silenced the mouths of each and every person in the room.

Ever so slowly, the magenta dragonic demon lifted up her hand and flicked the forehead of the drooling man.

The motion was filled with laziness, as if it took her all the effort in the world to simply lift up her arm and let out the flick, however as soon as her finger came into contact with Gormand's forehead, an explosion occurred.

The man was sent flying into the wall, however the wall did not stop him.

Breaking through layer after layer of wall, the man crashed through the entire castle before finally coming to a stop thirty rooms away.

"His stomach is always too loud....", the dragonic girl stated as she sluggishly dragged her own face across the table, turning the opposite direction with her cheek squished onto the table. "And when he complains it makes my ears rattle. Ughhhhhhh..."

The others could not help but smirk at this scene.

Every single person with the indigo demon aside were holding in their silent laughter, however they did not laugh out loud.

Huberos, however, was clearly aggravated with veins popping up across his head.

The blood rushing to his head increased to the point that the pierce marks which his own teeth had made in his lower lip began dripping blood once more, once more causing the purple liquid to drop from his mouth, staining his white suit.

"And just who is going to repair my walls?", Huberos asked while tapping one finger on the marble table.

Looking up, the dragonic girl who seemed to be half asleep raised her own head.

Her green hair parted, revealing her half open eyes.

They didn't hold the slightest bit of anger within them, but the corners of her own mouth were just ever so slightly dipped.

As if frowning was too much effort, she kept a face which was almost straight.

"Anyone but me. If you think I'm going to do anything, then I'll kill you before you can force me to make a move."

Taking a deep breath in, the demon reached inside his pocket again and dabbed his lips with great force.

"I never implied that you had to fix them. I'll have that fool fix them."

The head of the dragon girl dropped like an anvil onto the table as the demon stated this.

"Fine", she said in a muffled tone as her own lips seemed to be blocked by the table she lay on.

At that moment a sound was heard from the rubble, and emerging from it was the blue dragon demon who seemed to be holding his own stomach.

"Is the food.... here.... yet?"

His own forehead had a red lump on it, but aside from that he was perfectly healthy.

Sitting back at the table, his own stomach rumbling continued.

"Ugh....."

The people looked to one another, and at that moment a knock was heard on the door.

"Excuse me, my Lord. We have arrived with the meal. May we enter?"

"Of course, Ferdinand. Enter.", Huberos stated in a commanding voice.

Immediately the doors burst open and a dozen carts were rushed into the room by a number of butlers and maids.

Plates of all sorts of expensive delicacies were placed in front of each member in moments, and just as quickly as the servants arrived they rushed out, leaving the seven with their meals.

Before anyone could even say anything else, a munching sound was heard from the dragonic man who seemed to be stuffing his face with not only his own food, but food from the plates of others.

Grabbing one thing after another, he seemed to have absolutely no concern for that which was the property of another.

He ate his entire dish, along with the dish of Apathia, who sat next to him. He moved onto the dish of Lustia, and then reached to grab a piece of chicken off the plate of Envidia.

However, his hand was met with a fiery smack.

"This is mine. You won't take anything from me."

"Stingy. I'm hungry you know. Does a woman like you need that food?"

"What's mine is mine. You don't deserve to have as much as you had. It's unfair.", she responded.

The man seemed to grunt in disappointment, however the indigo demon once more cleared his throat.

"A-hem. Can we continue already?"

"Here Gormand. You can have mine. I got a date in 5 anyways, so if I show up full she'll go nuts on me.", Vex whispered while sliding his plate over to the dragonic man, who gobbled it up in one fell swoop.

"Oi! Why didn't you give that to me, Vex? Even things out a bit!!", Envidia shouted.

Clapping his hands together in apology, the orange devil merely laughed it off.

"Haha! Sorry Envidia! Next time!"

"If you always say next time then it will never happen.", the woman of flames pouted.

"AHEM!!! Can we continue!?"

"Sorry Hubie! Hurry up and finish so I can get to my woman."

"Never call me that. Ever. I would rather be called Hube than that abomination of a term."

"Alright Hube. Get on with it!"

"Sigh....."

The indigo demon was putting his hand to his forehead as if he had a headache.

Looking up, he began to speak.

"At any rate.... Gormand, you will pay for my wall repairs. No objections. I have provided you with this food, so consider it payment."

"Eh? That's a ripoff, Huberos. That was only like a few seconds worth of food."

"Why exactly do you count food in units of time? You would usually measure it in terms of volume or calories, but time? Time? For a pig like you, even an entire banquet is worth only a few seconds, so why would you rank it in time? Would that even serve as a proper unit? Wouldn't everything just be a few seconds of food? You will pay for the wall repairs. This is final."

The demon dabbed his own mouth again with a new handkerchief, as the first one had now been covered in blood.

"Now, back to the matter at hand.... if the people who have appeared truly are the antiheroes, then the appointed time has come."

The demon's eyes thinned and he seemed to look into the distance.

"Our time to take over everything, including fate itself."

With a light smirk, the demon began to cut his stake with elegant and refined manners, stabbing his own fangs into it before chewing and swallowing.

"Those legends are nothing more than nonsense. For how many years have we refrained from advancing into the monster realm because of such legends? Our entire lives. We prevented one another from advancing because it might trigger such an event of fate, however now the tables have turned. We know of their advances, and we can easily topple those silly ramblings of false prophets."

The man brought his own knife down to cut another chunk of steak, however instead of hitting the stake he began to cut through the plate.

In the moment which he wasn't looking, his meat had been stolen, and a gulping noise could be heard from across the table where a certain navy blue dragonic figure was patting his stomach with satisfaction.

Closing his eyes as a vein of irritation seemed to burst in his head, the indigo demon calmed himself before opening his eyes again with an ambitious grin.

"We will take over the monster realm, and we will lead armies to defeat the antiheroes. It is then that our true conquest will begin."

"I'm out."

Immediately, the ghostly woman stood up with a seductive smile.

Her flared dress fluttered as she walked, and her boots tapped the ground as she exited the room.

With a quick peek back, she waved while clicking her long nails onto the door that she held.

Her head now poked halfway into the room, she stuck out her tongue.

"I don't personally care about a nation or world domination. I will stay in my own tower with my beloved servants, thank you very much. Ah, but you boys will always be allowed to come over to play if you want. Stop by any time."

Shutting the door just like that, yet another vein burst in the head of the indigo demon.

"Very well. Then she will be considered an outside force. Gormand. I demand your cooperation. You as well, Envidia. We are the monster kings, so it is our responsibility to work together for this purpose."

"Only if I get as much as you do.", Envidia stated, unwilling to compromise.

"Only if I can have seconds.", Gormand demanded.

"Truly unsatisfiable, aren't we? Fine then. I will accept both of your demands. Vex. Begin your own investigations tomorrow. Don't mess up. You tend to fool around too often and are exposed as a result. It will be a pain to clean up your mess."

"Don't say that Hube."

Kicking back and showing off his bright green sneakers which traced circles in the air, the orange demon with spiked red hair did a back flip out of his own seat, landing behind it.

"Now then, time's up. Cya."

Rushing out of the room while glancing at his watch, the orange demon didn't so much as look back as he gleefully exited.

"I am sure there is much profit to be had with such an endeavor. I will stand by your side, Huberos.", Avarco stated while grabbing his cane, and getting up to leave as well.

Following his lead, the gluttonous dragon demon stood up and grabbed hold of the half asleep girl next to him.

She hung from his arms like a sack of grain, too lazy to even so much as move.

"The food was good but there was too little of it. I'll be expecting another round soon enough, Huberos.", Gormand stated as the three walked out the door.

Now the only two who remained were the indigo demon who's white suit was now painted with bloodstains, and the woman of flames who's burning hair formed a zigzagged ponytail.

"I won't let you have any more than me.", she repeated.

"Then, why don't we make a little game?", Huberos stated while folding up his bloodied handkerchief.

"Hm? What type of game?"

"Whatever territory you take over you can consider to be yours. If you end up with more than myself, then there is nothing to be envious of, no? As a matter of fact, why don't we try and see who can obtain a stronger army to fight as their warrior slaves?"

The girl's eyes lit up at hearing the challenge.

"Alright. Let's do it."

"Of course, I am better than you in every way, so I will end up with a superior army. But can you be jealous of someone who has beaten you in a fair battle? Ah, and forget not. All is fair in love and war. There will be no rules to our competition."

The girl smiled in return.

"Alright. When do we begin?"

The demon closed his eyes, putting one hand to his own lips, touching his over extended fangs.

"Tomorrow morning. It's a free for all for the entire world. Whoever ends up with more is the victor."

The girl nodded and stood up as well, taking her leave.

"Ah, I got dibs on my sister's city. If you try and attack it yourself I'll kill you with fire. I won't let anyone have more than me.", she said.

Huberos merely chuckled, grinning to himself.

"And I'll humble anyone why tries to look down on me."