Pranay remained silent, making no move to converse with the Poet of Great Love.
To his eyes, this new king was mercurial and unpredictable. No one could tell whether the king's leniency toward his sister just now was merely granting him face for the moment or a veiled threat.
He had to form an accurate analysis and judgment right now.
If he refused to follow the new king, his chances of coming out of today alive were slim.
Yet even if the new king spared him out of concern over the risks posed by the Protos Empire's control of the prison, she would not spare his sister.
"Mr. Pranay, if you aren't keen on talking much, I won't force you. I only hope you can share your concerns and troubles with me. Perhaps I have a way to help resolve them."
The Poet of Great Love did not rush Pranay, merely kneeling a short distance away and speaking in an unhurried cadence.
He believed Pranay did not lack a longing for freedom; within Pranay's eyes lay a desire strikingly similar to Sinora's.
As a sage of the Demon Realm, Pranay's gaze right now was weighing whether he was a rational counterpart capable of reason and communication.
This was a two-way selection process, so communicating with Pranay could naturally take its time.
Seeing this, Antanas retrieved a small flask of liquor and two glass tumblers from her coat pocket, set them down before the Poet of Great Love and Pranay, and poured half a glass for each.
Sinora started to speak but held her tongue. She hadn't even noticed when Antanas had nicked supplies from Herrom Prison; Antanas really seemed to despise this place.
Antanas's practiced demeanor left both the Poet of Great Love and Pranay momentarily dazed.
Yet the Poet of Great Love said nothing more, merely offering Antanas a word of thanks.
She was simply cut out to be a bartender or a waitress.
Soon, as Antanas retreated to the back once more like an attendant, Pranay, having kept silent for a long while, turned his gaze back onto the new king.
"New King, what is your view of the current Protos Empire?"
Pranay watched those emerald eyes brimming with reason and asked politely, maintaining his distance.
Rarely had he seen a demon so rational, but precisely because of this, the new king was steeped in unknown danger. No one could know if the new king might purge him in the very next second.
With that thought, Pranay had no choice but to lift the snowfield liquor and take a gentle sip to steady his nerves.
If his deduction was correct, for the new king to successfully infiltrate Herrom Prison, she must have already achieved some infiltration within the Protos Empire and viewed it as the fertile ground where their plan for demon restoration could take root and sprout.
"There is much that needs changing, and I am working hard toward that end."
The Poet of Great Love rested a hand on his chin in thought before answering with conviction.
He didn't mind having this leisurely chat with Pranay.
"In other words, you still hold hope for it, don't you?"
Pranay's pace of speech slowed.
"Of course. I am full of hope for the Protos Empire. I will not abandon this country for any reason."
The Poet of Great Love's voice was crisp and clear, carrying the weight of a solemn promise.
"..."
Hearing this, Pranay lifted his glass, took a sip, observed, and fell into contemplation.
He could only accept this worst-case scenario.
If the new king had indeed chosen the Protos Empire, she had most likely brought fire upon herself and was already embroiled in this catastrophe.
It might even be very difficult to persuade the new king to abandon it today.
After a long while.
"The Protos Empire... where does its hope lie? I see not a single shred of hope in this country, nor can I find even one partner worthy of our cooperation."
Pranay's eyes were tinged with deep helplessness as he looked toward the black-haired, green-eyed woman and asked:
"If you intend to take me, Sinora, and Antanas to swallow up the Protos Empire in the future, you will certainly need suitable partners to nibble away at this nation step by step. And yet..."
Pranay's voice trailed off.
Judging by the new king's aggressive style, the next step would likely be approaching prominent figures currently in high power within the empire, striking deals with them, or directly bewitching them.
Yet Pranay did not know whom the new king would seek out, or with whom she already had an agreement.
"What do you think of Great Sage Isis Melorn? I believe that within the Protos Empire, we cannot do without the support of the one who maintains its order."
The Poet of Great Love picked up the glass, though without raising it to his lips, and inquired.
"Heh, that dull and sluggish old elf? Ever since Emperor Franklin passed away, she has merely been guarding the Protos Empire out of a sense of duty to her promise. She won't react until the very brink of crisis, but by then it will already be far too late."
Pranay shook his head.
It was as though he wished nothing more than for Isis to die.
"..."
Watching Pranay's expression, the Poet of Great Love sensed there was clearly some personal grudge at play. All three great demons in this prison had bad blood with Imperial Great Sage Isis to some degree.
"Then what about Duke Morotian Berenhard?" the Poet of Great Love asked again.
As it happened, after today's talks with Warden Bakas concluded, he was scheduled to meet with Duke Morotian Berenhard, the wielder of the [Original Slate - Undead].
"He keeps himself far too detached. Compared to the Protos Empire, Duke Berenhard cares far more for his own interests. Even if we cooperated with him, he would only treat it like bargaining with a tiger for its skin, constantly scheming to exterminate us completely once our usefulness ends."
Pranay's eyes showed resistance.
He knew well this most terrifying human paragon in the Protos Empire in recent years, who had achieved an unimaginably formidable realm in just a few short decades.
Even Pranay could not see through Duke Berenhard's true stance.
"And what of the Resurrection Church's Cardinals? Bishop of Domination Sigrid, Bishop of Extinction Askesan, and Bishop of Mourning Yamileth—all three possess the might to contend with the first two."
The Poet of Great Love held the glass, focusing solely on Pranay's reaction.
In Pranay's view, perhaps a third-party faction outside the Protos Empire would be more worthy of the demons' trust?
As it happened, he was already cooperating with the Bishop of Domination. In fact, their companies had almost merged by now, gearing up to restructure into a new conglomerate.
"Their ambitions are too grand. It is difficult to say whether they would backstab us first, or we would backstab them first."
Pranay stared at the reflection on the liquor's surface in the new king's glass. He knew all too well what kind of humans the Resurrection Church's Cardinals were.
The power of the present Resurrection Church upon the surface was far more terrifying than when the Demon Realm still existed.
Cooperating with the Cardinals might simply be a choice that accelerated the destruction of both themselves and the Protos Empire.
"..."
The Poet of Great Love began sipping the liquor.
He found Pranay's assessments quite reasonable. Even confined to prison, Pranay could still analyze the state of affairs on the surface of the Protos Empire over the past century. This was precisely why the Protos Empire had locked Pranay in the subterranean depths under the strictest constraints.
"Then what about Luoqi McCarthy?"
Amid the silence between the king and Pranay, Antanas suddenly piped up.
She wasn't sure if Pranay had heard this name or seen things concerning Luoqi McCarthy on the surface of Herrom through his eyes.
Though she did not know who Luoqi McCarthy actually was,
earlier on the B5 floor, when passing through the prison corridor office area, the name she had heard the guards discuss most was this one. He seemed to be a figure held in high expectation by the Protos Empire, even possessing numerous ties and business cooperations with Herrom Prison.
The black-haired, green-eyed Poet of Great Love cast a complicated look back at Antanas, who promptly shrank her neck and clapped a hand over her mouth.
"..."
Yet this time, Pranay fell into a rare moment of silence.
"A mortal frame, powerless to turn the tide," Pranay finally replied.
"?"
This astonished Antanas and Sinora. They had never expected Pranay of Truth to hold the highest opinion among all those imperial figures of this human named Luoqi McCarthy.
The subtext was even that, if Luoqi McCarthy possessed power rivaling those aforementioned figures, perhaps the empire might still have a glimmer of hope.
Unfortunately, this figure lacked far too much time; it was already too late to save the empire.
Chapter 445