The Demon Monarch System

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Because Xorgrah had yet to reply, Xonnomor grew tense. He even wondered about his father's following thoughts. 'I can never get a read on this man. Just what is he thinking to do? Surely he wouldn't venture into a ruin? Until now, there has been no reason for him to do so.'

Until now, even the hardest ruin only required a peak Archdemon to subjugate it. Even if some odd opponents appeared, such as reanimated corpses or trapped demons, it only took numbers to overwhelm them as the lead member made the decisive finishing move.

However, they didn't understand that the ruin Apollo was inside would require more than a simple peak Archdemon to overcome. Just the first opponent was on par with a peak Archdemon.

If not for Apollo's entourage possessing an advantage when it came to the upgrade provided by the system, then only Fuhrer, Geneva, or Apollo would be able to defeat that opponent.

What's more, the Iraym that Typhir defeated would require a Noblesse at the very least because it required Typhir's third-degree Perfected Bloodline and an incomplete armament to overpower that foe, which equated to an initial Noblesse.

But, even until now, it was unknown if Xorgrah possessed a weapon on par with Saehtyn's. After all, there was no indication of any weapon on his body. Either he kept it hidden from sight, or he didn't use weapons in combat. 

If the latter were true, then unless his stigmata was powerful and at least at Typhir's grade, then defeating the Iraym would have been difficult, even for him.

Finally, Xorgrah said something that allowed Xonnomor to release a relieved sigh that he subconsciously held.

"How quickly can your people get in touch with the Nautilus?" Xorgrah questioned. 

He evidently didn't intend to venture inside the ruin himself if he was seeking out the Nautilus. Instead, he would be hiring a helping hand to assist in the issue that his negligent son created. 

"We are in contact with them at all times. I can simply send a message back to the tower and have them request the Nautilus's presence. What do you need?" Saehtyn asked while lazily resting upon his right fist.

Shockingly, helping Xonnomor forge was even more boring than being idle in his throne room. Not to mention, the matter regarding Irzanach and his followers still weighed heavily on his mind, contributing to his rather negative mood. Anything cumbersome became even more trivial in his eyes.

"Hired arms. Specifically, 4 Archdemons, 10 Greater Demons, and 50 Lesser Demons to excavate the ruins. I'd prefer if the Archdemons were above the primary stage and at least possess a Tier 5 Demonic Artifact to assist them in combat."

When it came to Demonic Artifacts, the tier typically represented the amount of energy it could handle before either overloading or shattering. Since they weren't armaments, they came with finite limits that were often very restricting.

In this case, a Tier 5 Demonic Artifact could resist up to an initial Archdemon's power. Furthermore, Tier 6 was the summit of the Demonic Artifact ranking, and it was able to handle up to a peak Archdemon's strength.

Additionally, it could augment their traits by quite a significant amount since the materials used to create were just below the old standard. Beyond that tier was the realm of the armaments.

"So many hired arms? Although I don't doubt your pockets, requesting over 60 demons to act at your whim will be costly," Saehtyn commented with a tinge of interest in his eyes.

The fact that Xorgrah required so many demons compelled Saehtyn to check out the situation regarding that ruins, similar to how Apollo's past presence impelled Saehtyn to abandon his post for a brief moment. 

Once he was tempted, it was difficult for Saehtyn to resist acting upon his impulses. Although he was a Lord, the effect of the Sins was more impactful on him than on any other demon.

After all, each of the Lords were forced to deal with frequent afflictions caused by Estran's great Sin affinity. While it wasn't enough to shatter the zenith placed upon most demons, it was the third-highest Astraval had ever seen, aside from Apollo and himself.

However, unlike them, Estran didn't possess a bloodline that increased the Sin's desire for his vessel, yet he was able to cultivate an affinity that defied most other demon's limits.

"I'm aware of the cost. But, this is a price I'm willing to pay. The contents of the ruins are far more valuable than mere Fragments of Sin. They're only material to strengthen ourselves, but the materials in that ruin can enrich our race's chances," Xorgrah answered with a moment's hesitation.

"Well said," Saehtyn nodded. Shockingly, he quelled the desire to take a peek. Xorgrah's response doused his unsightly desires and brought him back to his composed self. Plus, hearing someone from the Council mention the safety of the entire race put Saehtyn in good spirits.

'If only the others held your point of view. We'd be much better off and possibly even thriving,' Saehtyn thought. A part of him even suspected that they'd be on the verge of finding one of the two missing Rings.

Although one was hidden for a good reason, the demons lost the other due to their blatant neglect. After all, it was a Ring created for the "outcasts"; since they weren't fortunate enough to wield the demon's most significant power, those without a Sin were simply forgotten.

"Since you deal with them all the time, what do you estimate the price will be?" Xorgrah inquired.

As a result, Saehtyn fell silent as he rummaged through his memory. First, he recalled all the varying prices of the demons; then, he estimated how long Xorgrah would need to employ them. Once he possessed an adequate grasp of the situation, he came up with a final estimation.

"Truth be told, I wouldn't expect anything under 16,000 Fragments of Sin. Most of the cost comes from employing Archdemon. While they're nowhere as expensive as requesting a Noblesse, they're still steeply-priced," Saehtyn remarked.

While it only cost 50 fragments to rent a peak Lesser Demons's services, a Greater Demon was much more pricy, marked at 200 fragments. However, it still paled in comparison to an Archdemon. Their starting price was 1,500 fragments! But, that was only the price for an initial stage one.

The price continued to double for each progressive increase in their stage; hence, Saehtyn estimated the ultimate cost to be over 16,000 fragments. But, little did he know that the items within the ruins outweighed this value by at least ten times that amount!

Xorgrah nodded after a short moment. "Very well. That's within reason. Send on the request. Once you get in contact with them, have them meet outside the stronghold's gates so I can brief them. While the Nautilus is a trusted entity, I would prefer for the information not to be leaked to the public."

"Easily arranged," Saehtyn said as his amber eyes glowed with a crimson light. The tower in the distance emitted a light hum as he distributed the message to all of his followers.

Instantly, they all worked towards delivering the message to the Nautilus. 

In the meantime, Xonnomor worked on recuperating before picking up the hammer once again. Once Saehtyn saw this action, he glanced towards the forge, then at the unused molds.

"When will you be venturing to the other Rings?" Saehtyn asked as a small cluster of Purgatory Blood gathered at his fingertip. Since Xonnomor was preparing himself, it meant it was time for him to resume work as well.

"Not until the first batch is ready for distribution. I want to navigate the Rings without any interruptions. And, I can only do so by delivering enough items to appease the voracity of the Council."

"Ah, I should have expected as much. Well, it won't be long now. Xonnomor's been at it for a few weeks, and the numbers are quite promising. You should be able to deliver the batch within a few weeks," Saehtyn said in a praising tone as he patted Xonnomor's back.

Part of Saehtyn's reason for mentioning the progress was to ease the tension that followed Xonnomor's irritating revelation. Fortunately, it seemed to have worked as the stressed expression Xorgrah presented dissipated significantly.

On the other hand, Xonnomor smiled as he thought of an entirely different matter. 'I have it handled, my lord. The worst situation has been avoided.. Hopefully, this buys you enough time for you to execute all of your plans.'

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