Asura tore off a large mouthful of the bone-in meat resting on the platter atop the massive table, chewing with savage relish.
This meat was prepared from a young demon race couple who had loved each other, forced to butcher one another to the death. To Asura, the evil fierce god, despair was an essential spice. The flesh of a woman carrying evil blood in particular offered supreme flavor. Under normal circumstances, this should have been a first-rate feast. And yet—
"Disgusting!"
It tasted revolting to an infuriating degree.
Boiling with rage, he kicked the table aside and hurled the bone-in meat straight at the waiting head chef. The spinning projectile struck the chef squarely in the head, obliterating his skull into a spray of pulverized gore.
"The nerve of a mere puppet, ruining my mood...!"
The root of his fury was obvious. It traced back to that demon couple he had murdered earlier. The wife whose husband had been killed showed neither fear nor sycophancy. Instead, she had merely directed pure, unadulterated hatred at Asura, declaring: "You monsters! Our King will surely crush you!"
Aldebaran was merely that foolish King of the demon race who had served as the vessel for Asura and the others to manifest in this realm. To Asura, he was nothing more than a convenient toy—possessing no greater value than that.
That King was going to crush Asura and his cohort? The notion was so utterly laughable that he had even taken the trouble of explaining the reality of the situation to the woman, but in the end, she refused to believe him and took her own life.
"Damn it, this pisses me off!"
The mere roar of his erupting fury blew the waiting butlers to pieces, shredding their bodies into scattered chunks of flesh.
Shoulders heaving as he fought to suppress his rage, he spoke.
"Still no report from Forneus?"
Asura narrowed his right eye at the intelligence operative kneeling before him, pale as a corpse.
"Sir! There is still nothing!"
To the operative who answered without hesitation, Asura barked at the top of his lungs:
"Then tell him to bring over some good finds at once! I need something to cleanse my palate!"
"About that..."
The operative suddenly faltered, choking on his words.
"You stand before General Asura! Answer at once!"
Lieutenant General Ose, standing beside Asura, barked a command that brooked no argument.
"A vast expanse of black mist has appeared, enveloping the target city, and all communications with Lieutenant General Forneus have ceased completely ever since."
Murmurs rippled through the hall. Naturally so. That meant, for all intents and purposes, that Forneus had been completely outmaneuvered.
"You saying the Heavenly Army has shown up? Anra, what do you think?"
Asura turned to Evil Army General Anra, who was crunching on snack-like food beside him, acting as if none of this were any of his concern.
"Do you really think there's anyone else in this world capable of severing communication with an Evil Army Lieutenant General, even temporarily?"
"They've got some nerve."
That was fine by him. He was in the mood to go on a rampage anyway. Whoever it was from the Heavenly Army, he would grind them into a bloody pulp of minced meat.
He doubted they could put up a proper fight against him, but since they had managed to toy with Forneus, it might at least provide a bit of entertainment.
As Asura rose from his chair, manifesting a greatsword with a pitch-black blade in his right hand, Anra intervened.
"Hey now, we're Generals. In fact, you're the commander-in-chief of this Evil Army Garrison. What good does it do for you to march out to fight in person? Use your pawns first."
Anra admonished him in a tone thick with exasperation.
"I know that without you telling me!"
The fact that it was an entirely sound point made it all the more grating. It was true—Asura was the top authority of this garrison. If he charged out on pure impulse, he would be walking straight into their hands.
Since the opponent was the Heavenly Army, this was a game. Victory had to be absolute. If the Evil Army suffered even a localized defeat, that Great One would, nine times out of ten, be thrown into a terrifying rage.
That Great One showed no mercy whatsoever to those who blundered. Asura would undoubtedly meet the most gruesome end imaginable. That was the last thing he wanted. Now was the time to keep a cool head.
"Ose, I'm giving you an army of fifty thousand! March out immediately, rendezvous with Forneus, and slaughter the scum who dared look down on us! Ah, and one more thing—drag their boss before me alive!
I'll show them hell on earth!"
Ose snapped to attention and brought his right hand to his brow in a crisp salute.
"Orders received and acknowledged. I shall depart at once to purge the Heavenly Army."
Bellowing his reply, he whipped his cloak around and strode purposefully out of the palace.