Myths Reawakened

Pride felt conflicted. To kill or not to kill. That is the question.

He couldn’t kill Wayne, but if he didn’t kill Wayne... What if he was exposed?

Pride greatly regretted his negligence. He had been so furious with Mikhael that he allowed Wayne to sneak into the First Abyss and claim a VIP seat. Now, he had been made. There was no changing that.

Wayne looked at Pride in shock. He would like to know who the successor that the Heavenly Father had chosen was. Based on Mikhael’s actions, he had thought that Hesione was the chosen successor, and Mikhael and Lahr’s covering up of the real prophecy was what had led to the chaos in Heaven. Now, though...

What Mikhael had said before his departure from the world deserved consideration. Who was the Anointed One? Hesione or Pr—no, the real Mikhael?

Hesione was more likely the answer. The divine throne had reacted to her, which was undeniable proof. Perhaps Pride was more suited for taking over the family business, but... Pride wasn’t human. His reincarnated human body had been destroyed.

That led to another question: did the destruction of his human body disqualify him?

Wayne had a lot of questions. He looked down and found only the skeleton of the sacred dragon.

Lahr was dead. Mikhael was everywhere and nowhere. The only two Seraphim who knew the true prophecy had died. What was worse, Lahr was the only Seraph who could translate the prophecy.

“Why didn’t you stay a little longer? At least say another sentence before peacing out!” Wayne lamented. Now everyone thought he was the Anointed One. Even if he said he wasn’t, he couldn’t even find one single witness.

Heavenly Father’s children were all wrong in the head!

Wayne shook his head and sighed. Noticing Pride’s blank gaze, he scratched his head and said, “So you are Mikhael. The strongest angel has always been in Hell, leading the evil Seven Deadly Sins to fight Heaven, even losing the fight. You’ve had it hard.”

That hit Pride like a stab to the chest. His face twisted for a moment before he barely tamped down his ire. “It’s none of your business, deceitful bastard. Go back to Heaven.”

“So, I can leave?” Wayne asked.

“You-you can...” Pride nodded reluctantly, his expression complicated. “Don’t tell anyone. I need to be here and lead the Seven Deadly Sins to intimidate Heaven and make sure that the Seven Sacred Virtues have a reason to exist. Only with the Seven Deadly Sins and Hell around would people understand the goodness of the Seven Sacred Virtues and be grateful to Father’s gifts.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes.”

“Think carefully, Mikhael. At the moment, Elohim, our dad, isn’t home, and I’m in charge. Even if you lead the Seven Deadly Sins to keep Heaven on its toes, people will no longer feel grateful to the Heavenly Father, but me...” Wayne raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to put in all that effort when all the benefits will go to me?”

╰⋛⋋‸⋌⋚╯

Pride wasn’t so sure!

He stared at Wayne with complicated feelings, feeling even more envious when he heard Father’s real name for the first time. A voice in his head kept urging him to kill Wayne now, and then he would still be the most favored child. In fact, he could even put on Wayne’s face and go to Heaven as the Anointed One.

After a moment, he unclenched his fists and said weakly, “I’m sure, so get out of here. I don’t want to see you again.”

Something is seriously wrong with you! Wayne’s eyebrows jumped up. The test told him that Pride had another reason for staying in Hell. Making Heaven great again was only one reason; Pride had a more important mission.

Why exactly did the Heavenly Father have Pride stay in Hell?

Wayne didn’t immediately leave. “Has the Heavenly Father told you a prophecy—about the doomsday judgment?”

“Doomsday judgment...” Pride mused. “I’m not sure. I just know that there is a special day I’m waiting for. Only until then could I—”

He trailed off, once again urging Wayne to get out of here with a glare. Otherwise, he would be forever kept in Hell, subjected to the unending abuse of succubi.

Wayne wasn’t fazed at all. He enjoyed seeing Pride seethe while being unable to do anything. “I am the Anointed One, the leader of Heaven after the Heavenly Father. You, on the other hand, are the general manager of Heaven’s subsidiary in Hell. I am entitled to order you, am I not?”

“Ha.” Pride scoffed, striding up to grab Wayne by the collar. “Deceitful bastard, who do you think you are? I’ve only tolerated you for Father, yet you think you can order me?! If you point fingers at me again, you’ll only have yourself to blame when I kill you.”

“You’d better not speak in such absolutes, Mikhael,” Wayne said. “I’m the Anointed One, who can bring you to Heaven!”

“Hahaha, what if I speak in absolutes? Listen to me. This is Hell, and Heaven is Heaven. We’re equal!” Pride tipped his head up and laughed boomingly. “Even if I, Pride, stay in Hell for a lifetime until my death, never part from the Seven Deadly Sins, I will not yearn for a Heaven with you in there, much less address you as the Anointed One!”

“Is that so...” Wayne sighed at the First Abyss named Heaven. “I was thinking that Heaven needed its Viceroy. The fake Mikhael is dead, so the real Mikhael should take over, even if it’s just a replica.”

(一`´一)

“But now it seems that you’re a prideful great demon lord with integrity and ambition. Having sworn loyalty to the Heavenly Father, you refuse to leave Hell, not even through a replica. I’ve underestimated you. I shouldn’t judge you in the framework of base desires.”

(一`´≖)

“I have no choice but to pick the lesser evil among the three imbeciles, Auriel, Gerar, and Vilkul. One of them will become the next Viceroy. Although they’re astoundingly stupid and incredibly weak, their unintelligent eyes shine with ignorance and recklessness. That’s a form of loyalty, too!”

(≖`‸´≖)

“On second thought, Auriel isn’t too bad. Putting aside all his shortcomings, he only had good traits—whoa, I can’t think of any!”

(눈˘‸˘눈)

“But there’s only Auriel. He’s a Śār and the only suitable candidate. If he’s trash, he’s trash. It makes him a perfect counterpart to Hell. I do want Hell to stand some chance next time.”

(는˘‸˘는)

“What a shame. The Viceroy of Heaven will be second to only one leader. Everywhere they go, they’ll shine and be on the receiving end of countless angels’ admiration, yet the title is going to someone as foolish as Auriel because there is no other candidate.”

(는益는)

“Enough!” Pride interrupted Wayne’s rambling, panting heavily. “Auriel will not do. Anyone but him could become the Viceroy. Appointing him will be a desecration to Heaven, so if you even have the most basic conscience of an Anointed One, you won’t choose him.”

“Mikhael, Heaven is Heaven, and Hell is Hell,” Wayne huffed. “We’re equal, so you should just focus on Hell. You have no right to point fingers at Heaven and its personnel adjustments.”

“I’m not pointing fingers, but making a suggestion!” Pride declared.

“Then my answer is no.”

“Bastard, you’re doing this to spite me!” Pride lifted Wayne by the collar. “Don’t force my hand. You have to accept my advice. Auriel is too useless to be the Viceroy of Heaven.”

“Then who would be a better candidate?” Wayne tilted his head and smiled.

Pride flushed red. He had a perfect candidate in mind, but he had spoken with such certainty that he would be embarrassing himself by changing his answer. He couldn’t tolerate losing face in front of others, much less in front of Wayne. He would not utter the name of the perfect candidate.

After more heavy breathing, Pride said coldly, “Don’t think I don’t know that you’ve long chosen your viceroy. It’ll be Hesione. She’s been warming your bed for so long. You have to do right by her.”

“Yes, but there needs to be a viceroy on the right side of the throne.”

“What do you mean?”

“There is a left and right to the throne. In my plan, there will be two viceroys in Heaven in the future. Hesione isn’t competent enough, and because of me, she won’t have enough time to spend on work. Someone has to share the workload. As for me...”

Wayne shrugged. “If you know me, you should know that I have no interest in power. Even if I acquire something I want, I’ll hand it to someone else to manage.”

Pride swallowed. That much was true. According to the memories Forest had sent him, after Londan family’s successful rebellion, Wayne had never participated in national affairs save for embezzling money for his womanizing ways. He was a vermin who vehemently rejected responsibilities.

Father, is it really right to entrust Heaven to someone like that?

If you insist on choosing him, Father, shouldn’t you assign a right hand and left hand to him?

Pride’s heart raced, but he stubbornly said, “Wayne, aside from Auriel, Gerar, Vilkul, and Milia, the Sacred Virtues, who do you think will make a good Viceroy of Heaven?”

Wayne smiled. “Oh, aren’t you going to call me a deceitful bastard again?”

Pride’s lips twitched. Letting go of Wayne’s collar, he politely smoothed out Wayne’s collar and tamped down his disgust as he said humbly, “You jest, Anointed One. If anyone dares to offend you, I’ll be the first to kill them.”

“Really? Why don’t I believe you?”

“You should.” Pride straightened his back. “Look at Mikhael and Lahr. Because they’re disloyal to you, I take them out without asking questions.”

“True.”

“Right? That is loyalty.”

“...” x2

The two of them stared at each other. After a while, Wayne patted Pride on the shoulder and said, “Mick, you’re a good, capable dude I appreciate very much. I have a feeling that you’ll make a good Viceroy of Heaven.”

Pride nodded while cursing Wayne out for addressing him so dismissively. Who did he think he was? The Heavenly Father? If he wasn’t worried that the vermin would destroy Heaven, thus wasting Father’s legacy, he wouldn’t have tolerated the humiliation.

For Father, he had to endure!

“Say something, Mick!”

“Great Anointed One, you have the final say. I’ll gladly start from the bottom.” Pride lowered his prideful head.

“That’s more like it. I like the sound of ‘Anointed One’. You’re speaking like the Viceroy of Heaven now. Keep it up.” Wayne affected the tone of a superior and didn’t continue tormenting Pride. “Pack up. Whether you’re sending your replica to Heaven with me or leaving a replica in Hell, it’s your decision.”

Of course I’ll leave a replica in Hell!

Pride was about to blurt out when he remembered the Heavenly Father’s order. “Anointed One, I believe it’s enough to leave a replica in Hell, but you are the Anointed One, and your order takes precedence. I will do as you say.”

He stared at Wayne with fiery eyes, blatantly demonstrating his urge to enter Heaven. He looked impatient and anxious.

Wayne didn’t expose him. “Leave a replica in Hell. You are Mikhael, so it won’t be difficult for you to play his role. From today onwards, you’ll reclaim your true name. You...”

“You will be Mikhael, Viceroy of Heaven, He Who Is Like God, the strongest angel, and the right hand of the divine throne!”

Pride sucked in a breath, feeling all warm and fuzzy. What did he say? Wayne was a reliable Anointed One with a silver tongue. Mikhael would be the first to support Father’s choice of an Anointed One.

“What are you waiting for? Don’t you want to go to Heaven?”

“That’s not it. Would you repeat that?” Pride asked eagerly. Once wasn’t enough. He wanted to hear it another time.

“...”

Holy, are you a pervert?!

Wayne huffed, conjuring a halo behind his back and putting on a holy expression. “Mikhael, Viceroy of Heaven, He Who Is Like God, the strongest angel, and the right hand of the divine throne, what are you waiting for? Heaven cannot do without you.”

“Hah!!”

Pride held his chest. Though he was still in Heaven, he had already reached Heaven.