Chapter 541 (2) - The Academys Weapon Replicator |
“Yes. And that’s how Beelzebub and Baal were born.”
Baal tore away his ‘demonic side’, and the separated part gained consciousness and survived on its own.
This was Baal.
The remaining half, after the soul separation, somehow managed to recover its body, and although its power had diminished, it retained its place among the Seven Deadly Sins of the demon realm.
This was Beelzebub.
“The soul separation was successful, but he didn’t become a God. His rank plummeted because of the separation.”
“Was that part of Odin’s plan too?”
“Who knows? I don’t know about that.”
No one could have predicted whether Baal’s soul separation would succeed or fail.
“Anyway, after that, Baal left the Seven Deadly Sins. It was more like he was abandoned by the original Baal. Since the Seven Deadly Sins considered Beelzebub to be the main body and Baal to be something that had split off, he had no allies. So he left the Seven Deadly Sins and settled somewhere in the demon realm.”
“That’s when he started to climb the ranks of the 72 Pillars of Demons.”
“That’s right. He took some of the forces that followed him when he was Baal. Actually, even though Baal fell from the Seven Deadly Sins, his existence is quite stable. In a way, he was reborn.”
Since Baal was the embodiment of the ‘demonic side’ that the original Baal had torn away, he was quite stable as a devil.
In the demon realm, being devilish was advantageous in many ways.
“But Beelzebub, who considers himself the main body, can’t recover so easily. He lost a part of his soul, the part that became Baal.”
Beelzebub was the incomplete form of Baal, forever missing the piece that was Baal. He endlessly sought something to fill the void.
But of course, that was impossible to achieve with anything other than Baal himself. An unfillable void, an eternal hunger.
The Devil of Gluttony. Beelzebub.
“...But that’s amazing. To remain among the Seven Deadly Sins even after losing half of himself. Just how strong was he originally?”
Frondier was astonished by Baal’s power.
It was already incredibly difficult to defeat Belphegor, but Baal was far stronger than him, and even after his soul was split, he remained a Deadly Sin.
Belphegor made a strange expression at that.
“Well, you’re not wrong. But that’s not what I wanted to say.”
“What do you mean?”
“Actually, Beelzebub was on the verge of being kicked out of the Seven Deadly Sins.”
No matter how strong Baal was, Beelzebub was different. His power, cut in half, was not enough to be considered a Deadly Sin.
“I stopped them.”
“You stopped them?”
“Yes. The Seven Deadly Sins, no matter how dignified they act, are still devils at their core. They’re blinded by the logic of power.”
Belphegor sighed. Now that he was no longer a Deadly Sin, he was shamelessly criticizing them.
“If they had kicked Beelzebub out, there was no one to replace him.”
“...What about Astaroth?”
“Ah, my successor?”
Belphegor reacted as if he had just remembered such a person existed. His eyes were bored.
“He wasn’t ready.”
“...Is that so?”
“Odin was obsessed with killing devils. So we needed to show the outside world that Beelzebub was fine, regardless of his actual condition. If the Seven Deadly Sins wavered, the demon realm would be finished. Especially if it involved Baal.”
His persuasion worked, and Beelzebub remained a Deadly Sin.
But that’s when Satan’s gaze towards Belphegor changed.
Belphegor made two more words appear. ‘Satan’ and ‘Lucifer’, side by side.
“Right now, these two are the strongest among the Seven Deadly Sins.”
“Aren’t they all about the same level?”
“Not really. These two are different, second only to Baal. They’re so well-known among humans that they even receive a bit of faith.”
Satan and Lucifer.
The other Deadly Sins were famous enough, but the fame of these two was overwhelming.
Devils gained power simply by being known to humans.
“Satan is smart, but he’s honest with his emotions. And his preferences too. What he likes is simple. The strongest one. That’s why he liked Baal, and now he likes Lucifer. Lucifer is similar to Satan in that regard, so they became friends instantly.”
“The two strongest of the Seven Deadly Sins joined forces?”
Belphegor nodded at Frondier’s question.
Frondier tilted his head slightly at that.
Wasn’t the power balance of the Seven Deadly Sins already crumbling?
“Actually, if things had continued like that, Satan would have become king soon enough. But there was a minor problem. At least, it was a very minor problem for me.”
“What was it?”
“After the Baal incident, Lucifer started to think highly of me.”
Belphegor was always an observer.
But that wasn’t how others saw him.
Stopping Satan during the monster war, preventing Beelzebub’s expulsion. These two events drastically changed how others perceived him.
Before that, he was just a lazy devil who didn’t do anything despite being a Deadly Sin.
“Lucifer looks down on those he doesn’t understand. It’s only natural. He believes he’s the strongest. So if there’s even a slight difference, that difference is seen as a weakness. That’s how he thinks.”
“...That’s incredibly arrogant.”
“That’s why I used to be the one Lucifer hated the most.”
Belphegor sighed again.
“But for some reason, he suddenly changed his attitude towards me. Saying that I was the one he acknowledged the most, and all that. Right in front of Satan, no less. ‘Of course, I should be the King of Devils, but I’ll yield to you if you want it, Belphegor.’ That’s what he said.”
Frondier listened quietly and then thought about it.
He watched from afar, only intervening at the most crucial moments to resolve major problems. And that’s how his reputation began to change.
But all he wanted was to remain an observer.
…Wait a minute. This is just like…