Vega and Drak were still in the room. While Vega seemed to be working, Drak was eating some snacks while sitting lazily.
Seeing Lucifer and the others enter, Drak sat straight and started pressing keys in his laptop, showing that he was working hard.
" Vega, did you finish collecting the information that I asked for?" Lucifer asked, taking a nearby chair and sitting on it.
"About the Divine Empire and the Warlock Council? I've collected tons of information. And some of it is really intriguing," Vega let out as he placed a stack of paper before Lucifer.
"This contains everything I found. But in short, the Divine Empire has already achieved what we're trying to do just now. It's a place ruled by Variants. To be specific, it's a place ruled by just one girl," he further said as he placed an image of a girl on the table.
"Queen Milena Sephene."
"This girl?" Lucifer asked, surprised. He could see that it seemed like a girl who wasn't even in her twenties. "Isn't she too young to rule?"
Cough!
Hearing Lucifer's questions, almost everyone coughed at the same time, amused that Lucifer was asking the question. Wasn't he himself barely eighteen? Could he really ask this question?
"How old are you again?" Vega ultimately asked, smiling wryly.
"Alright. Forget about the age. Tell me more about her," Lucifer said, rolling his eyes. He had realized how stupid that question might have sounded, especially coming from him.
"She is said to be the sole ruler of the Divine Empire. I managed to find out a little about her powers as well. After knowing them, it's not shocking to see how she could rule such a massive place," Vega continued, getting back on track.
"What are her powers?" Lucifer inquired.
"The power of using the Dead. Apparently she can revive the Variants and Humans that have died, turning them into her slaves," Vega explained.
Hearing this power, almost everyone took a cold breath of air. This power seemed creepy and powerful at the same time. She could effectively give people a fate worse than death.
" Do the Variants who come back to life have their old abilities and strength?" Lucifer inquired, wondering how bad this ability could be for him.
" There's no information about that. But just to be safe, let's assume that's the case. There's one more interesting thing actually," Vega further said.
"What?"
"It seems like the Divine Empire, and the Warlock Council are having some kind of conflict."
" The Warlock Council sent a Warlock to the Divine Empire, but that person was killed in that place," Vega answered, placing another photo on the table which showed a young man.
"When did that happen?" Lucifer inquired.
"Last week."
"Is the Warlock Council going to attack the Divine Empire? Their Envoy was killed, after all."
"It doesn't seem that way. I don't think the Warlock Council is going to attack. It has been over a week, and they have done nothing so far," Vega replied, shaking his head. "I doubt they'll do anything now. And it's not hard to understand why."
"They're scared, aren't they?" Lucifer asked, taking a guess. "Milena's ability neutralizes the number advantage. The bigger your army, the more you'll help her by giving her soldiers. There's no end to it."
"That's true. I think no one can conquer that place ever. No amount of army will ever be enough," Vega agreed.
"What if we don't take an army there?" Lucifer asked, seemingly thinking of something.
"What do you mean?" Vega asked, confused. " How can someone win there without having any support?"
"Simple. We need a person who can neutralize her ability. And who can that person be?" Lucifer asked, smiling.
"Varant? But he's dead too. And even if he was alive and managed to block the powers of Milena, her minions would have killed him. And in the end, he would end up becoming her slave. There's no chance," Vega let out, shaking his head.
"I think he's talking about himself," Kellian chimed in. "His ability neutralizes hers."
"What? How?" Drak asked, jumping into the conversation.
As everyone looked at him, he lowered his head, realizing he shouldn't have jumped in when big people were talking. "I apologize."
"Does he have another power that can help him neutralize her abilities?" Vega also asked, wondering if Lucifer had another power he didn't know about.
" I mean, it's not that hard to guess. What did you say about her ability? She can bring dead bodies back to life and turn them to her slaves? But Lucifer can't actually die," Kellian explained.
"So her ability can never work on him. Moreover turning dead bodies alive? What if they're already ashes? I doubt she can in that case, can she?" he further said.
"His ability perfectly counters her. If he goes alone, he can certainly create big trouble for her."
"Yeah. I don't think it's impossible for someone to conquer that place. You just need one person to do it," Lucifer affirmed. "That's all."
"Anyway, thanks for all the research. I'll read these when I get time," he continued as he picked up the stack of paper.
"Ah, that reminds me. How long before we get a response from the government about our request? What's the time of the appointment?" He asked suddenly as if remembering something.
"We already got a response. We can get there tomorrow. We'll be allowed entry," Vega replied, smiling.
"But there's one thing. It's a permit for three people only. Varant can only take Riali and Rowen with him. Any other Warlock would have to go through verification."
"In any case, we're already wanted. So I doubt we can get in. Only Caen can go in, disguised as Varant with the permit," he added, pointing out the problem.
"I expected this one. Don't worry; I think we can get around that. Prepare for departure. We'll leave in a few hours." Lucifer stood up and started leaving. "I, Kellian, and Caen will go in. The others will wait outside for our commands."
…
"Yaliza, can you take Veracity and interrogate the prisoners to make sure they're not looking to betray us later?" Walking in the hallway, Lucifer commanded Yaliza.
"Only free the ones that pass the test. I think it would be better if we take them as well, just for show."
Nodding, Yaliza left, taking Veracity with him.
"Tomorrow is finally going to be the day, isn't it? The day it's all over. Dream of Uncle Raia will come true. I can't wait for it."
Amongst the entire group, the one who seemed the most excited was Alicia as she thought about the future. They wouldn't need to hide, concerned for their safety.
They could do whatever they want. Moreover, she could also roam outside and see the cities which she always wanted.
"Yeah, soon we can go back to our old lives," Cassius agreed, feeling happy that the two of them could finally be free as well.
Lucifer could be free of his revenge and return to a normal life. On the other hand, he also wouldn't have to do all this killing. He was already feeling tired after what they did so far.
While everyone was thinking about this as the end, Lucifer was different. He was thinking of it as just the start.
It wasn't the achievement he was looking for. It was just the first step in the staircase that led to his goals. It wasn't the end. It was just the beginning of his crazy story.
...
It was nine in the night. Darkness had almost covered all the surroundings except for the APF base which was still lit.
Around ninety Uprising Members were standing on the terrace where all the Helicopters were waiting for them, ready to leave.