Chapter 895: Chapter 896: Calm Days Wither The door opened, and a violet-haired young woman entered. When she saw the two of them, she frowned. "You guys sent me out there just so you could touch yourselves..." Lilith’s face reddened slightly as she stood up from Damon’s lap. "We w-we... were just talking..." "Yeah, sure you were..." "Ahem." Damon cleared his throat. "So, Renata. Anything to report?" She sighed, rubbing her temple. Whether it was a headache or mild jealousy was unclear. "Well, I managed to send out the invitations as you requested, and we are currently recruiting members for the secondary organization. We also need to hide our financial trails, but I have that covered for now. Production of shadow drones has increased, but it is still slower than when you were in the nightmare." Renata continued her report while Damon listened quietly. He eventually sighed. Apart from the main organization, Lazarak, Damon had been using Amon, his shadow clone, to create another organization in the shadows. However, organizations required resources, and resources left trails. That was why Renata was indispensable. She had the expertise to manage everything behind the scenes and was effectively running Lazarak itself. The main organization acted as the sponsor of their terrorist organization, or as Lilith preferred to call it, their freedom fighting organization. Their primary goal was to destroy the Temple. It was a long-term project, but it allowed them to act without direct scrutiny. At the same time, they were also donors to the Temple. No one would suspect Lazarak of opposing the goddess if they appeared to support her. Lilith handled the political landscape, dealing with nobles and leverage. Renata handled administration and control. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦 As for Damon, he handled the military might of the organization. "Hm. That is troublesome," he muttered. Renata crossed her arms and sat on his desk. "The demon wars have begun, but so far there have been no attacks. The higher-ups are still discussing plans moving forward. For now, the world is simply preparing for war." Damon nodded. His grandfather had mentioned that the goddess races were considering launching an offensive before the demon lords could act. "Yes. What about the Ashcroft fragments? Any news?" Renata pulled out a document from her folder. "The Temple is being cautious. They are gathering whatever fragments they can find in Soltheon and sealing them away. Most of them are likely in the Holy Empire." She then took out another paper. "The demon continent supposedly stole many of the fragments during the last demon war, when the great dragon Ashergon destroyed a city in the Holy Empire. After reaching the demon continent, several sealed fragments broke free and scattered. Only a few made it to the Snake Temple." Damon crossed his arms. Ashcroft had been slain by the goddess in Soltheon, so it made sense that many fragments originated there. The Temple had spent centuries tracking, sealing, and destroying them with the Empire’s help. Most were sealed in the Holy Empire, but many had been stolen. "Which means the most powerful fragments are on the demon continent. The ones the Temple has now are likely fewer and weaker." Renata nodded. "This information was not easy to obtain. The Temple does not want anyone knowing the demons possess the fragments, so it has been kept quiet since the last war. So, how do you intend to reward me for this information?" She leaned in, her face inches from his. Damon did not want to look at her. Having a beautiful, seductive woman this close was terrible for his mental health, and Lilith’s murderous glare was not helping. "Thank you very much, Renata," he said flatly. Renata smiled, brushing her nose lightly against his before whispering, "Now that is boring." Damon dissolved into shadow and reappeared on the sofa. "Anyway, this means I need to go to the demon continent and obtain Ashcroft fragments. That should help complete my domination attributes and possibly allow me to rank up. But right now, I am more focused on learning how to build a domain." Renata pushed off the desk and sat across from him. "With this war, the demon continent will be even more dangerous than usual." Damon shook his head. "I am not so sure. For all we know, everything we think we know about the demon realm could just be propaganda. They make it sound like the entire continent is a death zone." Renata nodded. "Alright. I will make preparations so your clone can go. You are also set to travel to the Holy Empire to receive your reward for defeating Amon. In other words, yourself, in the war games." Damon smiled smugly. "So those bastards finally decided to give me the title of hero after all that nonsense." Lilith smiled, tucking her hair behind her ear. "How does it feel to have your childhood dream fulfilled? You are finally a hero, officially." Damon rubbed his chin. "Hm. What does it feel like? Let me think. It feels like I scammed the whole world. Still, Damon Grey, the legendary hero, has a nice ring to it." Renata laughed. "To think they are making a demon a hero. And not just any demon, but the inheritor of the Demon Lord of Domination. The world really has gone mad." Damon could not deny it. The world truly had gone mad. At this point, he was only partially demonized. The process had slowed thanks to the divine spark he had obtained from Lazarak. What it actually did, however, remained a mystery. Appraisal did not work on it, and no library he knew of mentioned anything similar. He frowned and looked at Renata. "And Ittorath. Any news?" Renata’s expression turned serious. She shook her head. "No. Tracking a transcendent entity is far more difficult than expected. For now, it seems he is lying low." Lilith bit her lip. "If I am not mistaken, he plans to release his main body in Lysithara." Damon nodded. "Easier said than done. The people of Lysithara who were corrupted will never allow that. They still hate those nightmares to this day." Renata scoffed. "So you are saying he will try another way." "Yes," Damon said quietly. "Of that, I am certain."