707 Archduke Mendis

There was supposed to be a grand ceremony welcoming the arrival of new princes and princesses.",

However, since the demon king was locked on the planetoid with Julius, it was put off for now.",

So, Varian and the fifty new princes and princesses met up with the archduke who just returned from the planetoids.",

His office happened to be in the capital. So, the four professors led their group to meet him.",

"He just returned after a big battle. Even though he won't kill, be careful with what you say. If he's pissed off, even Demon King can't control him." Ron said those words to Varian's group before they stepped into the office.",

The other professors also must have warned their batch since everyone entered the office with a stiff expression.",

And saw him, the abyssal seated behind a desk.",

He was a large guy with a broad chest. The most striking feature about him was his sharp teeth which reminded Varian of a saber-tooth tiger.",

And he's pretty old. Apparently, he's the oldest in the Demon abyss.",

"Hm, so you're the new princes, hm. Seeing the fresh blood makes me happy." Mendis, the strongest Archduke, studied them with a smile.",

Since his office room was rather small, they were all seated closely and gave off the impression of prisoners.",

They might as well be since every abyssal's body was stiff like a taut rope.",

Mendis…",

"But reaching stage is nothing." Mendis' smile disappeared and he said in an indifferent voice.",

The abyssal princes, the great geniuses, flinched and lowered their heads at his words.",

To humans, he's a vengeful and bloodthirsty bastard.",

To abyssals, he's a man with such high standards that even top geniuses cried to not face him.",

"The level 7s you faced are run-of-the-mill trashes that can be found in every human city. What you did was clean up a bit more trash than others. Speaking honestly, you just proved that you're better than trash, don't you agree?"",

"Y-Yes, Sir!"",

The fifty abyssals nodded their head with exaggerated enthusiasm.",

Except for one…",

Varian.",

"Hm?" Mendis wasn't someone who missed such an obvious detail.",

His gaze shifted onto Varian and he spat again, in a much colder voice this time. "Don't you agree?"",

Shake. Shake.",

Varian simply shook his head.",

'Oh fuck!' Ron, who was standing behind the fifty abyssals, along with the three professors felt his heart stop beating.",

"Oh? We have a snowflake here, eh." Mendis' lips curled up as his sharp teeth showed like a predator preparing to hunt.",

The temperature of the room dropped and the newly promoted princes felt like the air was piercing their skin like needles.",

"S-Sir! His record i—" Ron's words were cut off.",

"I'm asking him," Mendis said in a tone that wouldn't take no for an answer.",

"Y-Yes." Prince Ron clenched his fists at his sides and lowered his head.",

"So, tell me snowflake, what's the sense of your confidence?" Mendis leaned forward from his chair and rested his hands on the desk.",

Even though it was a small moment, it was as if a mountain moved. A tremendous pressure fell on the abyssals and particularly, Varian.",

'Fuck! This guy is as strong as master.' Varian felt like his chest would cave in from the pressure.",

But he didn't shrink from the challenge.",

He dealt with an overly strict general already. ",

His own master.",

So, he knew that while these people might be very strict and unforgiving, they were also the best source of protection if you proved your potential and will.",

Moving his hand that felt heavier than an iron mountain under the pressure, Varian tapped the bracelet causing a hologram to pop up in front of Mendis.",

Since Mendis just returned from the battlefield, he shouldn't have gone through their battle loot.",

So…",

"This…." Mendis' gaze rested on the hologram for a moment before his eyes widened and he turned to Ron with a solemn expression. "Is this real?"",

"Y-Yes, I personally verified."",

"Haaa~" Mendis exhaled deeply as he slumped back into his chair. His shoulders drooped and he gazed at the ceiling for a few seconds as if digesting the situation.",

Then, he stood up from his seat and walked to the group step by step.",

Tap! Tap! Tap!",

With each step he took, the pressure on the princes grew.  Most princes shrunk in their seats. Except for a few mentally strong ones, the rest lowered their head.",

Mendis stopped in front of Varian and looked down at him with a stern expression.",

Varian was looking at him without any fear.",

'Shit.' Ron gritted his teeth and stepped forward.",

"You."",

Mendis grabbed Varian by the shoulders and stood him up in one swift motion.",

Ron stretched his arm towards Varian as Mendis raised his hands.",

Clap!",

"Where have you been hiding all these days, you little bastard!" The sternness on Mendis' face melted into a smile and he slapped Varian's shoulders with enthusiasm.",

"?"",

Ron was dumbfounded by the sudden change of attitude.",

"!"",

The princes rubbed their eyes to see if they were seeing things.",

Hell General Mendis was smiling?",

What the fuck?",

Did this old fellow finally go senile?",

No, no. This must be some sort of test. Yep, they were being tested by a level 9 psychic.",

Must be so.",

"Look at you, so thin! You should eat more!" Mendis poked the bulging muscles on Varian's arms and said like it was a pity.",

'1000 pounds is still thin?' Varian wanted to ask, but after noticing that Mendis was at least 50% bulkier than him, he shut his mouth.",

Prince Var was hulky for a human, but only above average for abyssals.",

'But why is he talking about th—eh?'",

Mendis wrapped his arms around Varian's shoulders. "Let's get you fed first. Griffin meat? Nah, that bird isn't very tasty. Golden Deer? Very tasty, but not nutritious…."",

He rambled to himself.",

'This old guy is treating me like his grandson…what the fuck.' Varian sighed inwardly.",

"Ah!" Mendis' eyes suddenly lit up and he laughed. "Flood dragon! It's both tasty and nutritious. Let's go!"",

Even though Varian gave no answer, he dragged the new prince to the door.",

"S-Sir!" One of the professors called out as Mendis held the door knob.",

"Hm, what is it?" Mendis tilted his head to the side and asked.",

"The meeting with princes'…"",

"Can't you see I'm busy? They're not children. Send them to hunting teams." Waving his hands like he was swatting away flies, Mendis opened the door and disappeared with Varian.",

"…"",

"…"",

The professors looked at each other and sighed. Then, clapping their hands, they called out to their group. "You'll start out in the lowest hunting group. The assignment is—"",

"Hold up! This isn't an illusion?" One prince interrupted with a disbelieving expression.",

"Illusion? What are you talking about?" Ron tilted his head.",

"Sir Mendis smiling…behaving nicely with that guy, there's no way it's possible. So, this is an illusion. So, before I get assigned to the hunting groups, I want to know if the information in illusion is accurat—"",

"Woah, calm down there." Ron held his hand and motioned the overimaginative prince to shut up.",

But the problem was that every other prince and princess was also giving him the same questioning gaze.",

Sighing deeply, he said the bitter truth. "None of it was an illusion."",

"WHAT?!"",