Reincarnated With The Strongest System

William sat on the couch as he eyed the people that had waited for his return.

Princess Aila, Shannon, Celeste, Chloee, Claire, Vesta, Kira, Athrun, and Zeph. 

All of them wanted to know what William's next plans of actions were, especially Zeph, who was currently feeling anxious about what to do with the approaching calamity that was going to sweep the Demon Realm from the North.

"I plan to return to the Central Continent and visit the Tower of Babylon," William said with indifference. "Ahriman is greatly weakened currently and it will take some time for him to gather enough living sacrifices for him to build his Shadow Army. Naturally, he will use mostly demons for this undertaking… preferably those who will oppose the wishes of his heir."

William gave Zeph a side-long glance before shifting his attention to Celeste.

"First and foremost, I will tell you straight, I'm not interested in you," William stated. "The one I love is your sister, so you can rest assured that I will not ask you to do anything against your will. I will not humiliate, nor degrade you. You can return to Hestia Academy where you can be safe… at least, for the time being."

Celeste returned William's gaze with a calm expression on her face. However, deep inside she was feeling relieved, and disappointed at the same time. Relieved because she would not be forced to do anything against her will, and disappointed because… she felt as if she was being tossed aside like a useless tool that had no value whatsoever.

William then glanced at Kira and Athrun, making the two of them subconsciously flinch because of his cold gaze. 

"No Demon Clans will be safe from Ahriman. You are either with him, or against him," William explained. "Those against him will be turned into Shadow Demons that will fight for him, regardless of whether they want to or not. If you side with him, your clan will be safe. However, know that once we meet on the battlefield, I will not show any mercy."

"But, we don't want to participate in this mess," Kira replied. "I'm sure that this is what everyone in our Clan feels."

Zeph, who was standing not far from Kira, was very tempted to ask William if he had forgotten that he was the Patriarch of the Sand Clan. Kira was only his grandson, so William should be discussing this matter with him. But, out of fear, he kept his mouth shut and just listened on the side.

"Then flee." William shrugged. "Take your Clan with you and go to the Southern Fortress. Perhaps, Joash will give you passage to flee to the Central Continent."

Vesta who was just listening on the side could hear the trace of sarcasm in William's voice. Even so, she chose not to say anything because the current William was not the same red-headed teenager that she had traveled with not too long ago.

She was afraid that if she said something that might anger him, he might punish her without caring that her father was one of the Demigods of the Demon Realm.

"C-Can't we just go to your Thousand Beast Domain and wait things out?" Kira inquired. 

The corner of the Half-Elf's lip raised slightly after hearing Kira's question.

"Wait things out?" William shook his head. "You only have three options here. Side with Felix, side with me, or flee."

"If we flee, where should we go?" Kira asked in desperation. He didn't want to side with Felix, but siding with William would just put the lives of their clan members in danger. Since that was the case, he wanted to know what place was going to be safest for their clan to go to.

William snorted as he shifted his gaze to Zeph who had his arms crossed over his chest and had his brows knit together.

"What do you plan to do?" William asked.

Zeph, who finally realized that the black-haired teenager was addressing him immediately sprang into action.

"Your Excellency, as you said earlier, we only have three choices," Zeph replied. "The Sand Clan will never side with the Heir of Darkness, so our only choice is to side with you or flee. As the patriarch of the Sand Clan, I've decided to side with you instead of running away."

William raised an eyebrow as he looked at the Old Fox of the Sand Clan.

"The reason?" William asked.

"It's because I believe that you will triumph over the Heir of Darkness. Of this I am sure," Zeph answered in a confident tone. "If possible, we would like to join the other Clans that have sworn allegiance to you. We are willing to enter your Domain and fight for you when the moment of truth has arrived."

"What about your true Lord, Lorcan? Now that my wife, Sidonie, is dead, the charm on the two other patriarchs who rule the Fortaare Desert will have lost its power and they might side with the Demon Lord. What is he planning to do?"

"I have already talked with Lord Lorcan, and he said that he also plans to join your side, Your Excellency."

William then closed his eyes as if pondering his next course of action. A minute later, he gave Zeph an order.

"Tell your clan as well as Lorcan that I am only giving you three days to prepare for a migration," William ordered. "Exactly three days from now, I'll be leaving the Demon Realm and going back to the Central Continent."

"Yes, Your Excellency," Zeph bowed down and left the room. A migration was not an easy thing to do, and three days was barely enough time for his people to prepare themselves physically and mentally for relocate to a new home.

"Do any of you still have questions?" William asked. 

Shannon immediately raised her hand and looked at William with anticipation.

William briefly nodded in her direction to acknowledge her presence.

"Lord William, do you plan to ask for the help of Hestia Academy when the time comes to fight against Felix?" Shannon asked. "If yes, I can help you negotiate with them."

Celeste's ears perked up after hearing Shannon's question. Due to the loss of her twin sister, and William's current state, she had completely forgotten that Hestia Academy was also planning to fight against the Heir of Darkness. 

"Will, I think we should return to the academy and have a conversation with the Headmaster," Celeste said. "I'm sure that he will be more than happy to work with you to fight against the forces of Darkness."

William's gaze landed on the beautiful Elf where it was met with Celeste's steady gaze.

"I think you are forgetting something, Professor," William stated. "I am one of the forces of Darkness. Since Hestia Academy is going to fight against it, why should I ally with them?"

"N-No. That's not what I meant. I mean, we will fight against Ahriman and Felix together!" Celeste tried to correct her earlier words, but all it did was make William shrug.

"I have no intention of working with the academy," William replied. "I do not trust Byron enough for that."

Celeste tried to make a final appeal in order to make the black-haired teenager reconsider his decision.

"How about me?" Celeste asked. "Don't you trust me?"

"I trust you," William replied.

His reply shocked Celeste because she thought that William would say that she can't be trusted.

"Then why?"

"Because I don't trust Byron."

William's tone was firm, and even if Celeste wanted to tell him that the Headmaster of the academy could be trusted, she understood that the Half-Elf would not change his stance no matter what.

"What makes you sure that he can't be trusted?" Celeste asked. After her initial surprise, curiosity took over her, and she was serious about finding the answer to her question.

"Instinct," William answered. "You're too naive, Professor. Do you think just because someone fights against evil makes them good?"

"Celeste. Call me Celeste."

"Understood, Professor."

Although William had already declared it earlier, it really seemed that he was hell-bent on distancing himself from her. 

A complicated feeling flashed through her heart as William stood up from the couch and walked towards the door.

However, just before he left the room, he said a few words of parting, which made a certain Princess stiffen after hearing his words.

"Aila, I will meet with you tomorrow night. Wait for me in your room."

Those were the last words that William said before he closed the door behind him, making everyone in the room look at the angelic Princess, whose face had already turned beet red.