Asmodeus watched the council members arguing in silence. It was the same as always.
The demon master had no control over Azrael. Everyone knew that, yet they didn't do anything about it.
They believed him to be the most suited to rule only because he was a fallen angel. Asmodeus thought that to be stupid.
Samael had messed up. He was simply paying for his mistakes. A fallen angel didn't deserve to rule Hell. A domain that is borne out of hatred and pure evil.
Asmodeus had always had a hard time believing Samael's rivalry to be an act of evil. If only he were the ruler of Hell, he'd show them all what it was truly like to be evil.
His wife's bloody face flashed in front of his eyes. Her features were entirely messed up, it was hard to even identify her.
It had been a necessary action. Sôl had been getting too out of control. If he had waited any longer, she would've taken his place any moment.
Thankfully, Sôl didn't have a soul. Unlike the rest of the council members, who had all been given a soul by Samael as part of the new rules of Hell.
Frankly, he didn't understand the point of a soul. It was a strength and a weakness, at the same time.
Nobody knew exactly why Samael had come up with the rule. He had covered it up as a way for demons to have life after death. But anyone who knew Samael knows that he doesn't really care what happens to the other demons as long as his demands are fulfilled.
Asmodeus had gone crazy for weeks trying to figure out what was Samael's plan behind this sudden change.
But to no avail. He had been so angry afterwards that he had almost marched into Samael's office and demanded an answer.
Thankfully, he had come to his senses because that would've been a disaster. The demons already suspected Asmodeus behind the shadows- despite it being Azrael's speciality.
That was another question Asmodeus would like an answer to. There were so many strange things happening in Hell lately and they had all started since that Náli's birth.
Every demon remembered the day Hell had suffered a majestic earthquake when Azrael had given birth to Náli. Everyone was shocked and confused. Volcanoes had erupted and there had been a blinding flash of white in the sky.
It had been a premonition to what was to come. Demons had even contemplated killing Náli as a precaution.
The strangest thing was that the demon master had been strangely against it. When all the demons had gathered outside his chambers, screaming and shouting at him to kill Náli. All he had done was tell them to shut up and forget about it.
Everyone had been shocked. It was strange that the almighty Samael had been against killing. Normally, he wouldn't have even bothered setting up a council to discuss if such a prohibition actually meant anything.
Samael was a paranoid freak. He got rid of anything and everything that he deemed to be even slightly suspicious.
There had been rumours that something had been going on between Azrael and Samael for some time. People even believed Náli to be Samael's child.
It was up for speculation but was cleared up as soon as Samael made an official statement. The entire thing was a coverup and Asmodeus knew that as soon as it was announced.
Samael blamed it on the council. He said that he had debated it with the council and they all believed it to be the right strategy to not kill demons for no reason.
No one had questioned it- except one demon. Everyone knew better than to challenge Samael. If they didn't, they knew it after seeing him burn the demon who had questioned him alive.
The demon screamed the entire time but no one helped him. They couldn't even if they wanted to. It was later found out that he was one of the younger demons.
Ever since then, no one brought up the premonition ever again. It was talked about in hushed whispers and behind closed doors, but never in public.
Samael had made it a taboo. As a result, Náli never found out about it. The council had decided to keep it a secret from her, in hopes of preventing the premonition or delaying it.
But Náli's powers have only increased as she grew. Demons feared her not only because of her fearsome reputation.
Asmodeus had contemplated telling her about this countless times. To say Náli would be angry was an understatement. But even Asmodeus feared the full might of her powers.
He had seen Samael's fire demolish entire villages within seconds. If Náli's power was anything like his, Hell would be destroyed within seconds.
Asmodeus couldn't have that. While he did want to get rid of Samael, he couldn't be a ruler if Hell ceased to exist.
The other council members were looking at him in annoyance when he tuned in to the meeting once again.
'What?' He spits out coldly, raising his chin in arrogance.
Asmodeus was already a much better ruler than Samael. He couldn't understand why they would even choose to follow his commands except for his powers.
But Hell needed to change. His ice powers were so much better than the fire.