Family heirloom, then turned into a demon girl

Chapter 73 Mission: 12-4 The Ultimate Puzzle
Mephistopheles hid in the void, his eyes closely following Nero as he transformed into a demon and left the warship, with a rare absence of a smile on his face.

It frowned, not losing its composure as it had just shown in front of Nero. It just murmured to itself, "It's really strange. Why can't I satisfy her?"

The tempting demon thought, "Is it that she doesn't have what she wants? No, her disappointment when I took away the wish wasn't fake. These things are indeed what she longed for.

"So she's hiding her true desires? Does she want something far more than this?"

Obviously, it was impossible to draw a conclusion based on just this little information. So Mephistopheles stopped thinking and came up with an incredible guess:
"Or, is she really..."

The devil did not continue speaking, but just watched Nero's departing figure and silently hid in the void.

At the top of the pyramid, the battle between several heroes and Pavone has reached a fever pitch.

As time passed, the binding force of the Sphinx's treasure continued to increase, and Pavone was suppressed by the evil dragon's flames, becoming increasingly weak at this moment when the sun had not yet risen.

After transforming into an evil dragon, Kriemhildr's flames were no longer simply the flames of fate, but became part of the dragon's own power, finally able to harm the ferocious young beast. Pavoni, constantly burned by the flames, finally felt the threat of her life. She could not see a future in which she could successfully transform into a beast.

Thus, there was only one action left to choose, and the young animal's dormant mind finally awakened at this moment.

"people……"

Pavone opened her mouth and uttered a hoarse, dry voice: "Sphinx. The answer to your riddle is human.

"Morning is the infancy of human beings, so they crawl on all fours."

In an instant, the invisible chains formed by language collapsed one after another. Pavone shook off her emerald green feathers, breaking away from her beast-like state on all fours and gaining some of the elegance that a "Arrogant Demon King" should have.

"Noon is the prime of life, so people stand on two feet and walk."

It said slowly, "Night is the age of man. Because he uses a cane, he walks on three legs."

With a crisp shattering sound, the Sphinx's treasure was broken. The backlash of the oath made her cheeks turn pale, and she lost the power to fly and fell to the ground.

"Are you finally awake?"

The girl, a divine beast, had a very unpleasant expression on her face, but she still managed to speak: "Master... From now on, I'll leave it to you!"

Even though Pavone was still blind and deaf, she recognized the Sphinx simply by feeling trapped by her Noble Phantasm and guessed what kind of riddle it would pose. The Sphinx didn't express any doubt, as if it knew it would recognize her.

Ritsuka, who hadn't joined the battle, focusing on using magic to resist the demonic energy, was not yet deaf, so she was a little confused. After hearing the Sphinx's voice, she looked at him and saw his eyes full of determination.

Pavoni had already emerged from its unconscious state, its transformation into a full-fledged beast interrupted. However, it still carried the divine power of the Sun God. If it were fully activated, now that the Sphinx had lost its power, it would be absolutely capable of slaying Kriemhildr in her evil dragon form and turning the tide of battle.

So the Sphinx had one last thing to do.

The Sphinx smiled like a lion and uttered its final riddle from between its razor-sharp teeth: "The god Apollo has prophesied that a certain king will give birth to a child who will kill him." If the child in the prophecy is Apollo, he will be killed by Zeus. Apollo is a wise god and would not do anything that would bring about his own death.

"So, is the prophesied child Apollo? Come, answer! If not, abandon your divine power—Riddle of the Sphinx!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the Sphinx spat out a large mouthful of blood. After forcibly using her Noble Phantasm to create a vicious riddle that would bind her opponent regardless of their response, her breath quickly withered.

It was at this moment that Ritsuka finally learned that the sun god whose power had been stolen was Apollo, the Greek god of light, prophecy, and music. This deity wasn't actually a true sun god; his power over the sun was merely an extension of his role as a god of light. However, through countless poems and plays, the true sun god Helios became part of Apollo's image, becoming a mere subsumer of his image.

Therefore, Apollo is indeed the sun god, a god who possesses the concept of "sun".

The Sphinx, in the name of Apollo, cruelly deprived Pavone of her power. Apparently, Pavone was the "child born of the king" in the riddle. Apollo predicted that she would kill her father.

If it were Apollo, "killing his own father" would mean killing Zeus, the king of gods. Making this prophecy would be an act that would kill him. Apollo would not do something that would kill himself, so Pavoni could not be Apollo.

The essence of this puzzle is to force Pavoni to admit that he is not Apollo. Once he admits that he is not Apollo, Pavoni will naturally be unable to continue to exercise his divine power.

On top of that, the Sphinx completely blocked the possibility of Pavone not answering, so that even if she didn't answer, or answered the question incorrectly, she would lose her divine power.

As a result, the Sphinx fell to the brink of disintegration.

Not far from the dissipating Sphinx, Ritsuka pondered the method of sealing Apollo's power with this riddle, and suddenly understood Pavone's true identity - or rather, her identity as a Heroic Spirit before becoming a demon.

Apollo predicted she would kill her father, and she also had a close relationship with the mythical Sphinx. There is only one such heroic spirit in Greek mythology.

Oedipus.

Ritsuka looked at the Sphinx, seeking confirmation with his gaze. Although the Sphinx could not see Ritsuka wearing the invisible helmet, he guessed that the Sphinx could deduce Pavone's true identity from his riddle.

Then she faced the sky and left her last words.

This last words is left to his companions, his nemesis, his enemy, the only opponent in his life who can solve his mystery.

"Please, put an end to Oedipus's revenge and let him be free."

Of the people present, only Ritsuka heard these words. But another voice came from the air, answering the Sphinx, which had completely disappeared and returned to the Throne of Heroes, "I promise you."

That was Nero, the arrogant demon also wearing peacock feathers, who flew to the top of the pyramid in an instant.

After overcoming numerous obstacles, she finally arrived at the final battlefield.

(End of this chapter)