Chapter 937: Creature and Pantheon.
Demonic creatures, gods, vampires, and werewolves roamed here from one side to the other. Despite being different species that conflicted before in the past, such a thing did not exist here. Everyone respected each other, whether out of fear or out of respect for the Emperor.
God Emperor... Yes, that was what people were calling Victor. Despite it not being an official title and being more of something passed by word of mouth, the title kind of caught on with the population. The reason for this is simple: Victor had already conquered enough land to be called Emperor.
From the moment he had two different pantheons under his rule, this title began to be disseminated among the masses quite naturally. However, Nero suspected that her father's wives had some involvement in it.
Just like her father, his women were very competent at what they did, and they could be considered monstrous geniuses in some fields.
While Nero was thoughtful, Ophis looked at the architecture of the place with a curious expression. The scorching desert sun bathed the ancient pyramids in its golden light, making them appear like stone giants rising from grains of sand. But it wasn't just the pyramids that glittered in gold, as the city was dotted with touches of gleaming wealth.
Upon entering the city through the monumental gates, visitors were welcomed by statues of the gods in solid gold. At least Ophis thought that the statue was of the ancient gods who ruled this place. Now, from what it looked like the statue showed the figure of her father, it was as if the citizens wanted their father's features frozen in honor of his eternal majesty.
'Hmm, my father is more handsome in person.' That was Ophis's honest opinion when looking at that statue, even though it looked incredible and had the craftsmanship of the gods... It was still inferior to the real thing.
Returning to the walk, the narrow cobblestone streets were lined with buildings adorned with golden details, which glittered as the sun moved across the sky.
The city's markets were a festive spectacle of diversity; EVERYTHING was here, from demonic to divine artifacts and pieces of art from human history. There were even sculptures carved with precision that again reflected the image of Victor, covered in shining jewels of various colors. Some jewelry stores displayed entire showcases of solid gold pieces, each a work of art in itself. Vendors, with warm smiles, engaged customers in lively negotiations, offering gold items as if it were something normal.
Even though they were selling so much 'luxury' in a 'simple' market, no kind of robbery or vandalization was happening. After all, every seller here was not someone simple; they were strong gods, demons, vampires, and werewolves, but the biggest reason why nothing was happening was the strong security at the place.
With Ophis's senses, she could see several opposing forces acting as police, but different from the human police, who were mostly incompetent. Here, they did their work with ferocity, devotion, and fanaticism. The Emperor's law was absolute, and if they don't obey... Well, hell is just one dimension away.
Arriving in the center of the city, the majestic temple of Ra shone. A temple that was completely taken over by Aphrodite, so instead of being a temple of Ra, it should be called a temple of Aphrodite. Ophis could see several priestesses in that place, each wearing bits of clothing bordering on, but not completely, vulgar.
Shifting her attention from that place to herself, Ophis looked at her hand with a strange look. She was currently in a scorching sun, but even so, she was not feeling the effects of her weakness, all thanks to her father's enchantment. He protected her from everything. And when she said 'everything', she meant exactly that; the enchantment protected her from 'EVERYTHING' that was hostile to her body and immediately warned him if someone attacked her.
'Mm, Daddy is the best.' Ophis nodded in satisfaction. She could feel how 'oppressive' her father's love for her was, and she clearly didn't dislike it.
"...Ugh, I don't like this attention," Nero grumbled.
Ophis looked at her sister with a confused expression and then looked around. Only now did she see that she was being watched by everyone.
The reason for this attention? It was obvious that they were the Emperor's daughters.
As a way to avoid possible problems, the identities of the people related to Victor were released in a list. However, the names placed on the list only refer to what ordinary people already knew or deduced, and not his relationships with Amaterasu and Velnorah.
Some of the wives also remained anonymous, like Mizuki and the Maids. Some women like Naty, Carmila, and Persephone also did not appear on the list.
All of this was an attempt to control information. It was Victor's group that had control of everything and not the other groups, and these were small steps of a plan that would come to fruition in the future. After all, anyone who was related to Victor would receive a lot of attention.
Because Nero and Ophis had already appeared publicly several times, their names were put on the list, and because of this, Victor placed so much emphasis on his daughters' defenses.
Although such an attitude was clearly coming from his own paranoia, after all, the girls were not weak, and with the artifacts he gave them, they became even more deadly.
"You should have gotten used to it, Nero." Ophis spoke. She remembered the same thing happened when they went to Nightingale.
"I know, but it's still annoying."
"Suffering from success, huh," Ophis commented.
Nero's eyes trembled a little at Ophis' observation. With each passing day, Ophis grew up and became someone a little sarcastic. She was a silent girl who spoke when necessary, but she could be a little playful for those she was close to.
Clearly, Violet and Ruby's influences were going to the girl; Nero just hoped she wouldn't gain the ability to speak vulgar words from Violet and Agnes.
'Although in front of Father, she behaved like a harmless little angel.' Nero noted, Ophis clearly enjoyed being pampered and adored by her father.
'Although I'm like that too.' She blushed slightly when she remembered her 'spoiled' attitude.
As the two walked through the city and ignored the beings around them who were glancing at them with a look of curiosity, they stopped in front of a huge establishment.
"...Slaves?" Nero turned and looked curiously at the place.
"Do you want a slave, Nero?"
"Hell no, I was just curious, nothing more."
"Mmm." Ophis just nodded as she looked at the establishment and then turned and started walking.
Seeing her sister walking away, Nero followed her. Ophis suddenly stopped walking and looked at the roof; then, with a small push of her legs, she jumped towards the roof.
Nero was confused by her sister's sudden gesture, but she followed her anyway. Stopping on top of the roof, the two girls look down.
"...So many gods, incredible."
"Father is the strongest. Why are you so surprised?"
"I mean... I know he is the strongest, but personally seeing the result of his achievements and hearing about the result is completely different."
As they were only teenagers, they were not allowed to see Victor's more domineering and bloody war record. Because of this, Nero was surprised to see so many 'strong' gods being treated as slaves.
A surprise that didn't occur with Ophis. After all, in her mind, her father was the strongest, and no one, not even her other father, could defeat him. Therefore, it was natural that he conquered everything and was above everyone.
As the two observed the place curiously, the slaves below felt the presence of the two girls. It's not like they tried to hide either.
"... Who are they?" Luan asked when she saw the two little girls from afar.
The god that Luan became an acquaintance of looked towards the girls and spoke: "The daughters of the Dragon God."
The god's eyes shone slightly when he saw how beautiful they were, especially the youngest one with black hair, but these thoughts quickly ceased in his head. He valued his life more than momentary pleasure.
"Ignore them, but if they come here, treat them respectfully. Provoking any of them unnecessarily is just a free pass straight to the cruelest hell." He advised.
Luan just nodded while thinking about the past. 'That skinny guy now has two beautiful daughters… Things have really changed.' He sighed.
The feeling that Luan had now was the same feeling as when someone learned about the achievement of their high school acquaintance and realized that this acquaintance had become someone far beyond their reach.
Suddenly, a sonic boom was heard, and in the sky, a woman with long white hair, sky-blue eyes, silver dragon wings, and a silver horn appeared.
This woman immediately caught everyone's attention due to the pressure she was emitting and her characteristics; everyone immediately knew that she was related to the Dragon God.
'... She's...Leona.' Luan immediately knew her. Although she was different and much more defined than in the past, she was clearly the girl who had always been Victor's friend. 'To think that she would grow up to be this beautiful…'
"Geh, Leona," Ophis muttered.
"What do you mean by 'Geh', Ophis?" Leona's smile narrowed: "You and your sister are being naughty. How can you go out without protection?"
"...We didn't leave without protection... Look." Nero brought out the revolver that she got from her father.
"Don't try to be a smartass with me, Nero. You know very well what I'm talking about." Leona's eyes glowed slightly, making Ophis and Nero flinch a little.
Leona floated towards Ophis and Nero; getting close to them, she picked up the two girls like two kittens.
She sighed when she saw the two girls' defeated faces. "If Ophis and Nero are already like this, our future daughters will be even worse... It's all Darling's fault for spoiling them a lot." She growled at the end.
It was a tacit agreement between the wives that they would maintain discipline between their daughters because if it was up to Victor, he would let them do what they wanted. He was a doting Father, after all.
Although this trip was not dangerous for the girls because they were in their own territory, their mistake was to leave without the protection of one of the wives. Normally, the one who would accompany them would be Metis, but the woman herself was busy now.
"... Ugh, I wanted to know more about the place..." Ophis commented in a defeated manner. She knew that now she would have to go back to the mansion, and it would take her longer to leave again. After all, they could only leave with someone protecting them, but they were all incredibly busy due to the workload of running this place.
Leona, seeing this, sighed again, this time with pity in her heart. "...Fine, I will accompany you, but you have to stay in my sight."
"Really?" Ophis asked excitedly.
"Yes." She nodded. "I have some matters to attend to, so you will accompany me."
"Mmm." Ophis nodded while Nero just nodded along with her.
Leona, Ophis, and Nero disappeared and then emerged from a giant portal created by Natalia.
"Leona, you're back," Natalia said.
"Mm, I brought them both." She spoke as she placed the two girls on the ground.
"Behave, okay? New residents will appear. Among them are the gods, too, and you know how they are." Natalia spoke to the two girls. "I don't want to have to make them disappear from existence."
"About that, there's no need to worry. Amaterasu is Darling's wife, so she knows how to deal with it." Leona said.
"Well, it doesn't hurt to let you know." Natalia shrugged.
