Nobody knows how to be a villain better than me.

At this moment, Martha, the Iron Fist Saintess, leaning against the corridor with her arms crossed, turned a blind eye to this high-profile leak, her face showing schadenfreude and a strange sense of pleasure in her heart.

While chaos reigned at the Kuonji residence, the Tono residence was also quite lively.

In the living room, the tea stove was warm, and steam rose gently from the water.

After drinking a cup of hot tea, Asakami Hafune, dressed in a kimono and sitting opposite her at the table, showed the bottom of the bowl with both hands according to the etiquette of the tea ceremony. Then, with gratitude in her eyes, she spoke respectfully.

“Brother Makihisa, thanks to your help, the Asagami family’s business was not ruined in my hands.”

"Brother Yuzhou, you're too kind. My time is limited, and the future of the Tono family will likely require your continued support."

"If there's anything I can do to help, I will do my utmost!"

Asagami Yushu's expression turned serious, and he readily agreed, respectfully handing the signed mutual assistance contract on the table to his partner.

This is not an ordinary human contract, but a runic clause with mysterious binding force.

This is the sincerity the Asagami family needs to demonstrate in order to obtain financial support.

After all, the fact that Tono Makihisa and the others, who were also participants in that ceremony, had their lifespans drastically shortened could not be hidden from those who were interested.

Therefore, for the sake of future generations, we need to prepare contingency plans in advance for many things.

Nowadays, befriending the Asagami family, whose fortunes have declined, and making some investment in their relationships is one of the paths that Tono Makihisa is paving for his son.

Seeing that the matter he was worried about was proceeding smoothly, Tono Makihisa forced a smile onto his usually stern face and extended his hand in a friendly manner.

“In the future, our families should visit each other more often.”

"That's right, my daughter Fujino is gentle and delicate. I hope you will take good care of her in the future."

"Haha, Akiba has a strong personality and does whatever she wants. She'll need Fujino's help in the end. The two families should help each other out."

The two exchanged a smile, shook hands, and reached a tacit understanding.

Their divine grace was as vast as the sea, and their divine might as deep as a prison; they had already witnessed the power of a true god.

For businessmen, there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

Now that they realize that the great one is someone they cannot fight against, then submission and cooperation are the wisest choices.

Moreover, they also have the "tickets" to board this ship—Fujino and Akiha.

To be precise, they should be called "divine children"!

To inherit God's grace through blood, and to walk with God in the future, sharing in His glory.

Even if they only receive the slightest bit of favor, their family will be able to prosper for generations.

Furthermore, they learned from the priest of the Holy Church that the deity temporarily residing in Misaki City seemed to have intricate connections with the Dark Council and wielded immense power.

The fact that the Kuonji family, which is much larger and has ties to the witch faction, can be commanded with a wave of the hand is the simplest proof of this.

If they can use this as a springboard to cooperate with the Dark Council, then the family's influence will be incomparable.

With such enormous profits, requiring only a small investment, it's practically a sure-fire way for businessmen to make money.

Of course, this price is indeed hard to give up for parents.

Knowing that his cunning and strategy were inferior to those of his partner, Asagami Yushu lowered his stance and humbly sought advice.

"Brother Makihisa, when shall we send Akiha and Fujino to receive instruction?"

"The sooner the better, let's do it tonight."

Tono Makihisa took a sip of tea, pondered for a moment, and then gave a reminder.

"However, since that person has chosen the Kuonji family and Miss Ritsuka as the managers, it would be more appropriate for us to entrust them to their care for the time being. It would be better to be too deliberate."

"indeed!"

Asagami Yushu nodded in agreement. Even now, when he recalls that imposing figure in the Great Void, he still feels lingering fear.

As the saying goes:

The name of God must not be spoken directly;

The face of a god should not be looked upon directly;

The might of the gods cannot be faced directly!

Approaching someone without knowing their likes and dislikes is extremely dangerous.

To avoid any mishaps during tonight's visit, the two heads of the family began to carefully consider their wording and the procedures.

After a few cups of tea, Asagami Yuzuru checked the time, glanced at the empty courtyard, and couldn't help but frown slightly.

"Brother Makihisa, why has it taken so long? The other two families still haven't arrived. Are they unwilling to travel with us?"

Upon hearing this, Tono Makihisa turned around, gazed into the distance, and his brows furrowed.

As two figures, one tall and one short, entered the gate of the Tono family's residence and gradually came into view, the man's brows relaxed, and he smiled as he picked up the tea stove to add charcoal.

"Look, here it is."

At this moment, the old man, who was pulling a small suitcase and looking like he was sending his granddaughter to school, paused before entering the door, squatted down, smoothed out the wrinkles in his granddaughter's clothes, and couldn't help but speak again.

“Shiki, you should have been the most promising seed in the Ryougi family of this generation to reach the source. It is your grandfather who has dragged you down. If you are unwilling, you can bring it up at any time…”

“Grandfather, I understand what you mean. Now that the contract has been signed, I will obey.”

However, before the old man could finish speaking, Xiao Liangyi interrupted her grandfather's ramblings and calmly accepted the fate she had chosen.

Hearing that his granddaughter was so sensible, the old man gently stroked the little head, his face full of satisfaction.

"Shi, you've grown up..."

The little girl nodded slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. However, a small knife, hidden in her wide kimono, was gripped tightly in her hands within her sleeves. A subtle, cold glint appeared in her drooping, dark eyes.

Gods?

If you think you can control my fate, even if you're a god, I'll kill you!

Seeing the grandfather and grandson finish their whispered conversation and walk towards the inner courtyard, Asagami Yushu breathed a sigh of relief, picked up her teacup, and spoke with pleasure.

"It seems that the Liangyi family has come to a decision, and now we are just waiting for the Wujing family's decision."

"Don't worry, the old witches of the Wujing family would love to do just that, using two insignificant forbidden children to gain the favor of the gods."

Tono Makihisa blew on the foam in the bowl and pondered with certainty.

However, as the man put down his teacup and looked up at the blazing sun that had risen high in the sky, he couldn't help but frown slightly.

"But, it shouldn't have taken this long..."

Meanwhile, in an old, traditional Japanese house, the shamans of the Wujing clan, like frightened quails, lay prostrate on the ground, looking fearfully at the graceful figure that was walking slowly and gracefully into the hall.

"Tsk tsk, it's only been a short time since I've been back, how come the shrine maiden profession is getting worse and worse? It's one thing to be unable to compare with those bald monks with rent and real estate at Koyaji Temple, but even those respectable charlatans at the Onmyōryō can outdo you. Honestly, you're such a disappointment."

Amidst the sharp criticism, a pink-haired, golden-eyed beauty wearing a white canvas hat and an office lady's white business suit, exuding an air of nonchalance despite her elite attire, gracefully delivered her critique.

The kneeling priestesses, upon hearing such a rebuke, dared not utter a word in rebuttal. Instead, they lowered their heads even further. Their already frail bodies trembled as the pink-haired woman in the office lady attire approached, as if they had encountered their natural enemy.

Seeing that these witches were as docile as rabbits and dared not kick or resist, the pink-haired beauty suddenly lost interest.

Then, the woman's eyes darted around, and she led out from the corridor a pair of red-and-white shrine maiden outfits, who seemed not to be afraid of her at all, and announced with a smile.

"Fine, considering how miserable you've become, I won't make things difficult for you. But as an appearance fee, I really like these two little guys, so I'll take them with me for now."

"Wait! You can't do this! This is the divine child of that...that esteemed person! We're just looking after him for a while..."

The old, blind witch Yan shuddered, hurriedly and shakily got up, pleading with tears streaming down her face.

It was agreed that tonight, the two forbidden sons of the Wujing clan would be sent to the Jiuyuan Temple to listen to the teachings of the heavens in exchange for the favor of the gods.

Unexpectedly, a malevolent spirit, curious about the unusual movement of the earth's veins, came to investigate early in the morning.

Several witches who attempted to use the witch's spiritual and perceptive abilities to glean insights into her origins were instantly killed by her mere glance, vomiting blood and fainting on the spot.

The few words they gleaned made the witches extremely uneasy, and they were terrified of the pink-haired office lady in front of them.

But if they don't step forward now, the two crucial divine children will be abducted, and the priestesses, however timid they may be, have no choice but to bite the bullet and stop them.

"If you take these two children away, how are we supposed to explain this to that official?"

"Explain? What is there to explain?"

The pink-haired beauty remained unmoved by the pleas and cries of a group of witches, and instead offered advice with a smile.

"Don't say I'm bullying you. Here's a business card. If you want the person, let him come find you himself."

Immediately, the pink-haired beauty casually tossed out a card that still smelled of fresh ink, with a striking black letter printed in the center.

NFF service?

The witches stared at the small cards in their hands—lacking a phone number, name, and address—and felt like crying.

Even so, the priestesses, who had been cornered at their doorsteps, dared not make any rash moves.

"Alert lifted, back to base! Back to base! Time to go home for dinner!"

At this moment, he pulled the two divine sons along, swaggered out of the courtyard, and casually snapped his fingers.

Immediately, tall figures wearing black bird-beak masks, unmarked military caps, and black uniforms, each carrying a short gun in one hand and a sharp axe in the other, strode out of the hall in two groups. They then orderly jumped onto the black trucks blocking the entrance, started the engines, and drove away.

"The Divine Child has been kidnapped, and the Tohno family is waiting for us to hand her over tonight. We definitely can't keep this a secret any longer. What should we do?"

The blind witch sat slumped on the ground, muttering in a daze.

Faced with this sudden turn of events, the priestesses looked at each other in bewilderment, unsure of what to do.

The oppressive atmosphere remained silent for a long time. Then, a quick-witted young priestess seemed to have thought of something and cautiously offered a reminder.

“I remember there was a little girl of similar age in the family who was also miraculously healed. Perhaps we could…”

In an instant, the blind priestess perked up, decided to go all out, gritted her teeth, and made a ragged decision.

"That's right. Let's prepare for both possibilities. If all else fails, we can make amends. Having one is always better than having none."

Then, after a moment's hesitation, the head priestess quietly summoned the quick-witted young priestess and whispered something in her ear.

"By the way, go to the church and ask Priest Mario what other hobbies that person has..."

Realizing she had been entrusted with an important task, the young priestess nodded solemnly and hurried to the church members' lodgings to find out what was going on.

Meanwhile, the cardinal, who had woken up early in the morning, paced back and forth in front of the mirror, pausing from time to time to look down at his trousers, which were now shorter than expected. His youthful face was filled with excitement.

He's grown taller! He really has grown taller!

Mario stood to one side of the wall, measuring his height again and again with a ruler, and happily leaving marks on the wall.

Of course, when the cardinal does these things, he is not mentally regressing to the level of an eight or nine-year-old.

Because he grew taller, which meant that... the curse of reverse aging on him had stopped!

This was an overwhelming joy for the cardinal who was eager to regain his youth and compete for the throne.

And the only one who could achieve such a miracle is probably that person!

Thank the Lord for forgiving all sins and for bestowing grace upon us…

After finally calming his excitement, Mario devoutly made the sign of the cross, offering his heartfelt praise to the deity.

His centuries-long predicament has finally been resolved. As long as he continues to conceal his identity and waits to revert to the name Laurentius, he can openly and legitimately challenge for the throne of the Viscount.

This trip to Misaki City was definitely the right decision!

Immersed in this joy, the cardinal began to dream about the future, his thoughts wandering freely.

Speaking of which, he started to grow taller right after we sent Liz Byfe over there.

Does this mean that He was very satisfied with this offering?

If I can continue to satisfy Him, then will the eternity I seek also be granted as a result...?

Upon realizing this, the cardinal's eyes lit up, and he was so excited that he could not contain himself. His trembling hands involuntarily made the sign of the cross repeatedly on his chest, and he muttered incantations.

Lord, praise be to you!

Whether you prefer lolis, young girls, mature women, or knight princesses, I will do my best to provide you with sustenance!

"Ah!"

Meanwhile, in a small town in Italy, a pigeon deity sitting in a restaurant, ordering food in broken Italian, suddenly felt a chill and sneezed violently.

"Guest, are you alright?"

A male waiter with local-style tattoos on his arm handed me a box of tissues and kindly asked what was wrong.