Chapter 8: The Qualification to Negotiate?

"Encountered the Sorrowful Mermaid Queen in the Alien Prison—high attack, high HP, stronger than a monster! No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't defeat her!"

【？】

"Disciple is incompetent, I beg my Ancestor to aid me!"

【？】

"Immortal, save me! Just lift a finger! Why are you just standing there watching, Immortal!"

【？】

The god seemed equally surprised by Herbert's reaction, sending three question marks in succession, and after a long hesitation, finally spoke.

【... Speak human language.】

Please be normal. I'm scared.

I finally met someone I can talk to, and this is what I get?

Herbert sneered, but ultimately chose not to keep teasing.

Though continuing to tease would've been really fun.

"Oh, so today I met a legendary sea monster. She tried to control my mind—but guess what?"

"Hey! Not only was I immune to her song, she was actually friendly toward me and wanted to give me a loving hug! Isn't that amazing?"

"So, do you have any insight into this?"

【You noticed?】

The text became more ornate, faintly conveying the writer's underlying delight.

"Of course—it was this obvious. I'm not Bai Chi; it's hard not to notice."

【Hmph, looks like you finally understand my greatness.】

"Understood. Very understood."

Herbert clenched his teeth, veins bulging on his temples, face set in grim determination.

So damn dark.

Making a cow-headed woman and a goblin woman charge me together while preening and flirting...

No human could possibly imagine such a dream!

So twisted.

Though Miss Xie Shen did leave a shred of mercy, she ultimately didn't go through with it—Herbert didn't truly break.

Even so, irreversible damage had already been done to his spirit.

My mind is dirty!

Layer upon layer of folds in his brain were packed with memory fragments comparable to Old Ones' corruption.

Herbert shook his head, took a deep breath, and redirected his focus elsewhere.

【Good, you understand. Hehehehe...】

【With my protection, a mere legendary sea monster means nothing~】

At the peak of her pride, Miss Xie Shen drew a smug little doodle on the paper.

【But the fact that charm magic failed has little to do with me~ Think—what other blessings do you have?】

Other blessings... oh!

Herbert thought it over and realized—it was the Pure Blessing he'd always despised.

Pure of heart, immune to all enchantment.

Herbert had assumed this ability merely granted him higher resistance to charm—but he hadn't expected it to grant outright immunity.

Immunity to charm!

That explained why the monastery's high-ups dared let him manage the prison alone.

With the Pure Oath blessing, as long as Herbert didn't break his vow, no one could enchant him, no prison monster could manipulate him.

So, like a salaryman who drinks three cups of black coffee and still brings emergency heart pills to work for an all-nighter—is the real tool just someone who comes pre-equipped with immunity?

【Correct. Though I disdain Her, as long as this Sacred Mark blessing remains, all charm magic will fail against you.】

"But wait—last night, weren't you the one who enchanted me?"

I nearly followed you out of my room!

【You compare them to me? How little do you think of me?】

"Oh..."

Hmph.

You're Miss Xie Shen, you're awesome.

Herbert's lip twitched; he barely held back the retort—If you're so awesome, why can you only come online after midnight?

Is it because you don't want to?

Or does your mom not let you use your phone, so you sneak it at night?

The two continued bantering for a while, until Herbert finally changed the subject, writing seriously: "Look, stop wasting time on this nonsense. Shouldn't we talk about real business?"

【Oh? What do you want to talk about?】

"Your goal, what you need me to do, and what you can offer in return."

【Are you threatening me?】

"Not yet. At this stage, it's just negotiation. If I truly threaten you, it'll be after we fail to reach an agreement."

When discussing real business, Herbert's laziness vanished. His expression grew calm, utterly indifferent to bargaining with what kind of entity he faced.

Even though Miss Xie Shen belonged to the domain of evil, no one could ignore that she was a deity towering above mortals.

The world's natives might genuinely revere such beings, believing them unstoppable.

But in the mind of Herbert, who had reincarnated into this life, there was no such ideological stamp; his attitude toward Them was one of fear without reverence.

【You're quite confident~ You're really so certain I'll do things exactly as you want?】

Herbert's left hand trembled, and a drop of ink fell from the tip of his pen, rapidly spreading across the paper, and alarmingly, it gathered of its own accord into a passage of eerie text.

【Do you really think you have the qualifications to negotiate terms?】

You don't really think that a mere mortal like you has the qualifications to negotiate with a god, do you?

Miss Xie Shen made no attempt to hide her contempt, rebuking the mortal's arrogance.

And the mortal... cared not a whit about it.

"Pfft!"

He even let out a snort of derision.

"Of course."

Herbert's expression barely changed, and he no longer played the spirit-writing game of exchanging letters. He simply spoke calmly: "Because the one who needs something from someone isn't me — it's you."

He leaned his body back, tilted the front two legs of his stool up, and rocked it idly back and forth.

"Don't rush to rebut me. Let me help you sort this out."

"The one who came uninvited was you. The one who's been dragging me along to play this boring game is you. The one who's sealed and trapped... is also you."

The room was quiet, with only his own murmuring echoing back.

"Besides, this past day has let me confirm one thing — you're far weaker than I imagined."

"Do you really think I spent the daytime doing nothing, just cowering in some corner trembling?"

"Here's a little hint for you. Take a guess — why did I ask you about the sea demon right from the start?"

The youth curled his lip disdainfully, just as Miss Xie Shen had earlier looked down on the mortal — snorting at the stupidity and arrogance of a god.

"You really thought I was just bored out of my mind?"

Buzz—

A faint humming reached his ears, as if some being's wrath had interfered with reality.

But Herbert paid it no heed at all, continuing to mutter to himself.

"Your reaction gave me the answer — you aren't an omniscient, omnipotent being."

"You don't know about my encounter with the sea demon, don't know what happened at the time, and don't know what I said to her either... In other words, you actually have no way of knowing what's going on in my mind."

"Even if you really are an evil god, you're not as terrifying, as impossible to oppose, as I first imagined."

"Am I right? Dear Miss Xie Shen."

Click.

"Now..."

The rocking chair legs came down, and the youth crossed his right leg over, asking leisurely:

"Do I have the qualifications to negotiate terms with you now?"

(End of this chapter)