"King..."
Watching Kaiser walk toward her, Mariya Yuri's delicate body trembled even more.
"Lift your head."
Kaiser stood very close to Mariya Yuri, looking down at her from above, and said this.
Mariya Yuri dared not disobey Kaiser and slowly lifted her head.
Looking at her flawless, delicate, and lovely face, Kaiser clicked his tongue in wonder.
"That really is a beautiful face." Kaiser gazed into Mariya Yuri's eyes and said, "Your Spirit Vision is indeed very strong. Even after I became a Campione, you were able to see me through Spirit Vision. If not for the fact that I'm somewhat different from other Campione, I might not have been able to stop you from continuing to look."
Spirit Vision was also a special ability on the mystical side.
The resistance to Magical Power that Kaiser had carefully crafted specifically to guard against various mystical abilities should have bounced Mariya Yuri's Spirit Vision away the moment it fell on him. Yet Mariya Yuri had managed to gaze at him for several seconds before it was deflected. This clearly showed that her Spirit Vision was extraordinarily powerful—far beyond what ordinary Spirit Vision users could achieve.
"Let me test you a little." Kaiser became quite interested in Mariya Yuri's eyes and said, "Can you tell what Authority I obtained from Odin?"
The moment these words were spoken, even Sayanomiya Kaoru and Touma Amakasu at the side perked up and focused intently.
"Th-this..."
Mariya Yuri hesitated a little.
After what had just happened, she naturally didn't dare use Spirit Vision to look at Kaiser again.
Seeing this, Kaiser said leisurely:
"If you can pass my test, then I won't hold your peeking against you."
Upon hearing this, Mariya Yuri finally gathered her courage and looked toward Kaiser.
Staring at Kaiser for quite a while, Mariya Yuri's eyes suddenly narrowed.
"I saw lightning, and I saw a falling star."
"There was a tree supporting several worlds, and a clear spring flowing."
"Dwarves... gnomes... blacksmiths... underground..."
One word after another, pieces of information were drawn out by Mariya Yuri.
And upon hearing the information Mariya Yuri had extracted, even before she could answer Kaiser's question, Sayanomiya Kaoru and Touma Amakasu involuntarily called out that name.
"Gungnir, the Eternal Spear!"
Those on earth call it "lightning," and some call it a "falling star."
The spear's shaft was made from the branch of the World Tree, and the runes etched into the tip were gained by Odin in exchange for sacrificing one of his eyes at the Spring of Wisdom.
It was forged by dwarf blacksmiths—gnomes from underground.
With all this information laid out, if someone still couldn't guess what Kaiser had obtained, then they had no business being part of the mystical side.
"Correct." Kaiser looked at Mariya Yuri with some surprise and praised, "I didn't expect you to actually see it. It seems your Spirit Vision is even stronger than I thought."
"I don't deserve the praise." Mariya Yuri quickly bowed her head and said nervously, "Then I..."
"Alright then." Seeing that he had teased her enough, Kaiser waved his hand and said, "I won't pursue your peeking any further. Just remember, don't let it happen again, okay?"
"Yes!" Mariya Yuri immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Sayanomiya Kaoru and Touma Amakasu subtly exchanged a glance.
Upon learning that the Authority Kaiser had seized was that infallible, ever-victorious spear, the two's level of regard for him rose by several levels.
That was a divine weapon that guaranteed victory once thrown—it could not be compared to ordinary Authorities.
To possess such an Authority, such a divine weapon—even if the man before them was a newly-born Campione—he could not be underestimated.
At the very least, it would be extremely difficult for other gods or Campione to block that spear.
Thinking of this, the two became even more respectful in their attitudes toward Kaiser.
"King," Sayanomiya Kaoru carefully chose her words and asked Kaiser, "Do you plan to continue staying in this country next?"
This was a matter that needed to be clarified first.
"What?" Kaiser glanced at Sayanomiya Kaoru and said, "You want to drive me out?"
"How could I dare?" Sayanomiya Kaoru shook her head and said, "I merely wanted to inform you that if you wish to remain in this country, we will arrange the best accommodations and provide you with the finest living conditions. Please accept our humble offering, King."
How could Kaiser not tell that Sayanomiya Kaoru was testing his attitude, trying to find out how to deal with him moving forward?
"Forget it." Kaiser shook his head and said, "I don't plan to stay here long-term, nor do I intend to take this place as my territory. You don't need to give me special treatment."
Campione are called kings, and not without reason.
Due to the overwhelming difference in power, Campione are not only feared but also objects of great attraction.
There are countless factions eager to pledge loyalty to a Campione, and even more individuals wishing to serve them.
Although Campione are Demon Lords and inherently dangerous, if one could join their side and fly their banner, then by borrowing the power and influence of a Campione, both individuals and factions would gain immense benefits.
As the saying goes, high risk, high reward. If one dares to take the gamble and manages to win a Campione's favor, then approaching them proactively is actually a tremendous opportunity.
Given this, all Campione currently in existence have subordinates and factions under their command—and even their own territories.
Kaiser, as a newly crowned king, currently had neither subordinates nor a domain.
But he had no intention of deliberately seeking those out, so in response to Sayanomiya Kaoru's probe, he gave a straightforward answer.
"If you want to be of service to me, then tell me where there are gods."
Kaiser thought of this and looked at Sayanomiya Kaoru.
"What I'm most interested in now... is finding a god to fight."
These words left Sayanomiya Kaoru and the others looking at one another in dismay.
Looking for a god to fight, huh...
Why did that sound so dangerous?
Thinking back to the massive tsunami yesterday, the crowd couldn't help feeling worried.
Especially Mariya Yuri—her heart was full of bitterness.
Why are all Campione like this—so fond of actively seeking out gods?
Thinking of that summoning ritual for the Heretic God four years ago, Mariya Yuri really wanted to use Spirit Vision to see whether Kaiser would end up causing another tragic event like that.
"This isn't coercion, you know?" Seeing everyone's shifting expressions, Kaiser smiled faintly and said, "If you're willing to give me information on gods, that's great. If not, I won't force it."
Kaiser truly had no intention of using his power to force the History Compilation Committee to obey or hand over information on gods.
After all, it wasn't like he had no other means—there was no need to be tyrannical.
If he were the tyrannical type, then he wouldn't have so many Shinigami admiring him in the Soul Society.
Of course, for Sayanomiya Kaoru and the others, who still needed to cautiously probe how to deal with this Demon Lord, even if Kaiser said he wouldn't force them, they didn't dare be ungrateful.
Otherwise, offending a god-slaying Demon Lord would spell disaster for the entire nation.
"I understand." Sayanomiya Kaoru made her decision, nodded to Kaiser, and said, "I will prepare the relevant information and deliver it to you."
"Oh?" Kaiser raised an eyebrow and smiled. "You really dare to deliver it?"
"Of course." Sayanomiya Kaoru seemed to have gleaned a bit of Kaiser's personality from his behavior. Knowing he didn't expect blind reverence from others, she replied with a composed smile, "Being able to earn a favor from a great god-slaying king—that's an immense fortune for people like us."
Sayanomiya Kaoru, born into a family of strategists, was someone highly skilled at weighing benefits.
She hadn't personally witnessed how dangerous Campione could be, so she couldn't offer a definitive judgment. But if she could earn a Campione's favor and leverage his power and influence, she could easily think of a hundred different benefits.
Offering just a bit of information in exchange for a Campione's favor—no matter how you looked at it, that was a good deal.
So long as the king before her wasn't some old relic who took others' service for granted.
Sayanomiya Kaoru had some confidence in her ability to judge people. Even though she hadn't known Kaiser for long, she could tell he wasn't that kind of person.
Besides, even if he was, what could they do? They had no way to defy a king.
Rather than hesitating and worrying about this and that, only to end up offending him, it was better to just act decisively and meet his needs.
Besides, the intelligence was in her hands—how much to give was still up to her, wasn't it?
So long as she withheld information that might endanger the nation, then she wouldn't have to worry about him causing chaos here.
That was what Sayanomiya Kaoru thought—and it was indeed very clever.
"In that case, I'll stay around here a bit longer."
Kaiser wasn't thinking as deeply as Sayanomiya Kaoru. If he could get information, great. If not, it didn't matter. So after receiving her promise, he turned around.
Looking at Mariya Yuri, who was still kneeling, Kaiser couldn't help but laugh.
"Yesterday, I was still working here as a temp, and today the Hime-Miko of Shichio Shrine is kneeling before me like this. The world really is unpredictable."
Leaving those words behind, Kaiser walked out of the shrine and departed from the area.
"Whew..."
The tension in Mariya Yuri's heart finally dissipated, and the pallor on her face regained some color.
Touma Amakasu also relaxed his body and whispered to Sayanomiya Kaoru:
"Should we still send someone to monitor him?"
Sayanomiya Kaoru curled her lips.
"If you're not afraid of dying, you can go make the arrangements yourself. If anything happens, I'll disavow you immediately."
Saying that, Sayanomiya Kaoru seemed to remember something and patted Touma Amakasu's shoulder.
"Once the intelligence is organized, you'll be the one to deliver it to the king."
Upon hearing this, Touma Amakasu's heart sank completely.
Is it still too late to resign now?