The Supreme Overlord (Multicross)

"Cough, cough... cough, cough..."

Aya Tokoyogi lay on her back on the cold marble floor.

The delicate skin on her beautiful back made contact with the stone floor, sending a chilling sensation through her bones and into her very core.

The witch's fair body was covered in wounds—bloodstains, bruises—making her appear gravely injured.

However, these injuries were more severe in appearance than in reality. In truth, the wounds were not even superficial; it was primarily because Aya Tokoyogi's skin was so tender that it appeared this way.

"Gah..."

Aya Tokoyogi propped herself up, clutching her throat as she dry heaved, coughing a few more times, looking utterly exhausted and frail.

Supporting herself on her elbows, the Witch of the Notaria surveyed her surroundings, but all she saw in the vicinity, aside from the cold palace and marble, was the absence of the devil's presence.

She let out a self-deprecating laugh, murmuring softly, "...I still expected the devil to show some gentlemanly behavior, like a naive little girl. How foolish."

After resting her body for a moment, Aya Tokoyogi could feel the surging, restless magic power roaring within her. Her expression was complex.

"That devil is certainly no ordinary demon. This near-limitless magic power, even a primogenitor would pale in comparison."

Aya Tokoyogi's face grew grim, unable to determine whether her choice had been right or wrong.

The devil who called himself Zarathustra was nothing like the devils she had known.

Even with all her knowledge, she could find no records in history or legends relating to this devil.

This made Aya Tokoyogi wonder whether the devil truly originated from this world, or perhaps he came from an even more mysterious place.

And if he wasn't a product of this world, what were his true motives? What consequences would her decision to collaborate with him bring?

After pondering for a long time, Aya Tokoyogi still couldn't come to a conclusion.

The only consolation was that the devil had not deceived her; he had indeed taken away her soul and the contract, making the devil she had signed a pact with now Zarathustra.

Given this nearly inexhaustible magic power, the Witch of the Notaria was certain that her strength had greatly increased.

Although she was merely a human-turned-witch, not a primogenitor, and lacked the familiars to ensure destructive power and magic output, Aya Tokoyogi no longer worried about insufficient magic in her spells.

In fact, as long as she had enough time to prepare, Aya Tokoyogi wouldn't need a specific timing to harness the power of the stars; she could complete the Black Bible on her own.

Now, the only things limiting Aya Tokoyogi were her frail body and her mental state as a witch.

After all, she was still constrained by her physical endurance and couldn't remain awake indefinitely.

"Being entangled with this devil, Natsuki, deep down, you must also feel anxious and fearful."

Aya Tokoyogi's magnificent fiery eyes turned toward Natsuki Minamiya, who was sleeping on the throne not far away.

That devil truly lived up to his nature, always seeking to trample on human dignity.

The reason he chose this place was to shatter her inner moral bottom line and shackles, something Aya Tokoyogi was well aware of.

Fortunately, as a witch, while her moral sense was not as twisted as a devil's, it was not the same as ordinary people's.

Aside from feeling a little awkward and embarrassed at first, once she fully succumbed, Aya Tokoyogi no longer cared.

Her snow-white feet, clad in thin tabi socks, were likely the cleanest part of her entire body, as they had not been removed.

The Witch of the Notaria slowly and methodically donned her twelve-layered kimono. The garment was inherently complicated, normally requiring two attendants to help put it on.

Even Aya Tokoyogi, to wear this heavy, several tens-of-kilograms kimono on her own, needed to rely on magic.

But in the next instant, Aya Tokoyogi's expression changed dramatically. Her calm movements became swift. After hastily putting on her twelve-layered kimono, she quickly left the place.

Just moments after Aya Tokoyogi departed from the castle, Natsuki Minamiya, who had been peacefully sleeping on the throne, opened her clear, blue eyes.

"What's going on? Why do I feel like someone has entered here?"

Natsuki Minamiya muttered in her unclear, childish voice, a look of confusion on her face as she opened her eyes.

Inmates confined within the Prison Barrier had limited space for movement. Apart from their own cells, they only had the chance to go outside during designated times.

Even during those moments, the inmates couldn't leave their cells. Within this Prison Barrier, it was absolutely impossible for anyone to come to the palace where the warden resided.

Natsuki Minamiya quickly sensed her surroundings but did not detect any sign of a living being inside the palace. She promptly closed her eyes again.

The Prison Barrier existed within her dream. As long as she remained awake, the barrier would manifest in the outside world, losing its function as a prison.

In those few seconds of wakefulness, Natsuki Minamiya noticed the entire barrier trembling, so she hurriedly shut her eyes and drifted back to sleep.

As Natsuki Minamiya once again fell into slumber, the Prison Barrier settled down.

A moment ago, Natsuki had only briefly sensed for signs of life and hadn't thoroughly searched the hall where she was.

This prevented her from noticing the faint traces left on the floor of the hall, and she remained unaware that someone had recently been there.

Primarily, Natsuki Minamiya couldn't believe that any inmate could leave their cell and appear before her. If it truly were an inmate, they would have already attacked her. Why would they simply do nothing?

No matter how much Natsuki Minamiya thought about it, she wouldn't have guessed that the one who appeared before her was not an ordinary prisoner but the devil with whom she had made a pact, as well as a former ally.

...

In the darkness, Saigou once again temporarily returned to the world that nurtured him.

He sat on a towering throne, idly toying with Aya Tokoyogi's soul in his hand.

The contract the witch had once made with a devil had been shattered by him, replacing the name on it with his own.

"As I suspected, objects without a life force can accompany me into this darkness, even a contract," Saigou mused, his finger resting thoughtfully on his chin.

He had conducted experiments before, confirming that he could bring inanimate objects into this place. This was why Saigou dared to promise Aya Tokoyogi that he could alter the contract between her and the devil.

In the world where Natsuki Minamiya resided, devils were not a species or physical beings; they were mechanisms or rules, fundamentally lifeless.

Saigou didn't actually know how to change the contract between the witch and the devil.

However, by using Aya Tokoyogi's body as a medium, he managed to locate her soul and the mechanism of the contract.

Then, Saigou simply brought the contract into this darkness.

In this realm, Saigou's divine persona was that of the Mother of the Evil Gods, a true 2-Digit being with Full Authority Domain, capable of making stars fall from the sky—altering a contract was as simple as eating or drinking.

"It's a pity; if only I could bring living beings here as well," Saigou sighed with a hint of regret.

If he could truly do that, whenever he encountered a formidable enemy, he could drag them into his world and crush them with the power of the Mother of the Evil Gods.

Unless the enemy was also a 2-Digit being with Full Authority Domain, Saigou would be invincible here.

"The reason Natsuki Minamiya was able to come here is because I previously used this darkness to create an invitation that granted her access."

"...But now, even at my fullest strength, I can only make a few of those invitations, and their distribution is random. I have no idea which worlds those invitations ended up in."

"Never mind, I shouldn't always be looking for shortcuts. It's better to advance steadily, one step at a time."

"...The main task now is to extract the nourishment of the world to fuel my growth, while the side quests are the Fourth Primogenitor and the Cleansing!'"

Saigou, as if playing a game, issued these tasks to himself.

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