The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Even in casual clothes, her noble air is undeniable, making her stand out from the crowd.

　And on the other side.

　Claire Kate is aligned with Artemis, the "Goddess of the Hunt." Artemis has invited a great many guests, and even the venue for her gathering appears to be larger than those of other gods.

　In that grand venue, all the guests were divided into two groups.

　That is, elves and non-elf races.

　Artemis invited many elves, including Lucia Artemis, the moon elf princess who would be chosen as the "Chosen One." However, the central figure among these elves was neither Lucia Artemis nor Nono Artemis, the reincarnation of a goddess's handmaiden, but rather the "Elf Queen," Vera Artemis!

　The presence of the "Elf Queen" turned the "Goddess of the Hunt" venue into almost the elven stronghold.

　This situation only changed slightly with the arrival of Professor Sylph, the vice principal of St. Marian College.

　Professor Sylph naturally became the central figure for another group of guests, and the academy professors and students invited by Artemis also gathered around her.

　When Claire arrived, she naturally sat down at the table where Professor Sylph was, without any sense of incongruity.

　Professor Sylph visibly relaxed upon seeing her, revealing a gentle smile.

　"It seems that Dark delivered the letter in time."

　She said that. Claire smiled and replied with a couple of words, then looked around.

　In the Duke's mansion, there were also many maids invited by Artemis.

　This even includes the head maids of the "Leo" and "Sagittarius" houses.

　Upon seeing her arrival, the maids felt reassured and quickly gathered around to gather information.

　Claire, looking embarrassed, stood up from Professor Sylph's table and moved to the table where the maids were.

　Additionally, at the venue of Poseidon, the "God of the Sea".

　As soon as Angry and Aquinita arrived, they gathered several maids from the Sea God's gathering place, making a table for them.

　Poseidon, the "God of the Sea," is on the home turf of the sea creatures, and his "Chosen One" is almost certainly confirmed to be Carola Marcioli.

　Angry and Aquinita's goal was to spend the tea party discreetly with the maids and leave unscathed. They knew their place; even if Poseidon wanted to choose investors, they wouldn't be chosen. They were just there to join in the fun... or at best, just to join in the fun.

　Happy New Year! Wishing everyone a prosperous Year of the Snake, with the golden snake dancing wildly to bring good fortune! May you be as healthy as a nimble snake, as wealthy as a coiled silver snake, as successful as a soaring dragon, and as harmonious and prosperous as your family! — Wang Song

Chapter 1672 Darkdemon and the Twelve Symphonies of the Gods

　(13k)

　"You seem very interested in this painting, 'Sunflowers of God'?"

　The sudden question from beside him startled Dak from his thoughts. He almost instinctively became more alert, but as soon as he turned his head, that alertness naturally faded away, and he couldn't even feel any trace of being affected by external things.

　Before him stood a very familiar young woman. In the Apollo camp, where everyone was an "artist," there were very few invitees of her age, but she did exist.

　After all, the world will never lack "geniuses".

　Dac's gaze swept across the girl's face before returning to the painting in front of him—"The Sunflowers of God".

　He hadn't paid any attention to the painting before. But he couldn't very well tell the other person that he was just pretending to look at it.

　Therefore, he subconsciously began to observe carefully.

　This painting, "Sunflowers of God," is unsigned, and judging from the paint, it wasn't painted recently. Therefore, the fact that it's displayed here suggests it must be a truly outstanding masterpiece.

　He was well aware that he did not possess a particularly high level of "art appreciation." In particular, he had absolutely no appreciation for non-realist paintings.

　However, this painting, "Sunflowers of God," falls somewhere between realism and non-realism.

　Although it breaks away from the traditional painting's imitation of reality with its bold use of color and heavy brushstrokes, it still retains realistic details, giving people a very intuitive feeling of "beauty".

　What's puzzling is that although the painting is titled "God's Sunflowers," there are only sunflowers on the paper and no "God." At first glance, it's just a somewhat strange sunflower field.

　“I’m somewhat interested,” Dark said.

　"Hmm." The girl gave a soft "hmm," then suddenly asked, "What do you think of this painting, 'God's Sunflowers'?"

　Dak shook his head and said, "With my level of artistic skill, I am not qualified to evaluate paintings of this caliber."

　He has no interest in voluntarily exposing his weaknesses.

　The girl glanced at him and said, "Are you afraid of revealing your skill level?"

　Dak fell silent.

　If you can't speak properly, can't you just shut up?

　Although the word "artist" has always given the impression of being eccentric, unsociable, and lacking in social skills, most famous artists in reality are virtuous and talented—at least on the surface.

　Nowadays, there are fewer and fewer "artists" with negative emotional intelligence who only care about themselves when they speak and act.

　You always have to put on a good show.

　Otherwise, artists, being powerless, would truly be beaten to death in this world.

　However, those who are invited by Apollo to attend the tea party probably don't have to worry about being beaten to death.

　Dak sighed slightly and casually remarked, "This painting, 'Sunflowers of God,' breaks away from traditional perspective and realistic techniques, reconstructing reality with subjective emotion. Through distorted lines and highly saturated colors, it highlights greater emotional tension, creating an increasingly strong visual impact. Furthermore, yellow is the color of the sun, symbolizing warmth, vitality, and faith. The sunflowers chasing the sun represent the artist's pursuit of ideals and spiritual elevation. Although there is no 'God' in this painting, 'Sunflowers of God,' it is 'God' everywhere; it is a reflection of the artist's pursuit of the 'God of Art.'"

　At this point, Dak suddenly couldn't hold back anymore.

　Isn't this just a sycophantic painting of Apollo, who is both the "sun god" and the "god of art"?

　So who is the artist of this painting?

　He turned his head abruptly, only to find that the girl was gone, replaced by Ollie's faint smile.

　Olivia, the head maid of the Aries Palace, was also an invitee from Apollo's camp.

　She was dressed as a maid and looked more like a staff member at the tea party than an invited guest.

　However, there were no staff members in this "Twelve Movements" sky garden. So, Ollie, dressed as a maid, seemed a bit out of place.

　It looks like a cosplayer who has suddenly appeared at a formal occasion.

　You should know that this is an occasion where even "artists" dare not act out of line, and everyone dresses more formally than the last.

　Dark smiled noncommittally and walked with Ollie to the other side of the venue.

　The two walked slowly forward, whispering to each other and exchanging information.

　"

　Ollie entered at five o'clock and it's now seven o'clock, meaning she has been in this sky garden for a full two hours.

　The courtyard itself does not restrict the movement of the invitees, and there are no maids, angels or other staff. The people responsible for entertaining the guests are tea sets, furniture, signs and other items that have been given temporary life.

　The twelve celestial beings who were the hosts of the tea party were not present.

　It seems that the organizers merely provided a friendly space for the invitees to exchange ideas, while they secretly observed from the shadows.

　Although their movements were unrestricted, the invitees still consciously stayed in their respective camps and did not wander around during the Gods' Tea Party.

　Ollie did not do that either.

　There are no rules, yet rules are everywhere.

　The invitees appeared poised and confident on the surface, but most of them were rather reserved inside, after all, this was the home ground of the Twelve Gods.

　As the tea party began at 7:00, the atmosphere in the courtyard gradually became tense, and some people couldn't help but look towards the central stage from time to time.

　But the host still did not show up.

　Like Ollie, Dak slowly walked to the other side of Apollo's hall, which was right next to the hall of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty.

　Aphrodite and Apollo, these two adjacent halls, undoubtedly possess the most dazzling colors of the twelve halls.

　Those invited by Aphrodite were all handsome men and beautiful women. Vigo, the head maid of the Virgo Palace, and Janice, the head maid of the Pisces Palace, along with several other maids, sat around a table by the flower wall next to them, enjoying flower tea.

　Dak walked to the flower wall and greeted them.

　Then, his gaze unconsciously began to wander through the crowd. "Young Master, who are you looking for?"

　Janice walked over, conjured a bouquet of flowers through the flower wall, and blew on it, releasing a handful of petals that filled the air with fragrance.

　Dark was already immune to such flirtatious tactics. He asked softly, "How's the situation over there?"

　“How boring.” Janice smiled, her eyes narrowed, her elegance undiminished. Unlike the artistic Apollo camp, Aphrodite's camp reeked only of hormones.

　Janice, though a master of diplomacy, disliked meaningless diplomacy. Aphrodite, who judged people solely by their appearance, also gave off a superficial and unpleasant impression.

　However, Aphrodite, who only judges by appearance, treats everyone equally in every other aspect.

　Regardless of status or power, nothing works on her. Only exquisite appearance, elegant manners, and perfect social skills are qualities that can win her favor.

　Although Aphrodite was not present, Scher's preferences were fully reflected in the arrangement of the venue.

　It was obvious to the naked eye that many of the invitees were doing their utmost to showcase this quality, perhaps all hoping to gain Aphrodite's favor.

　The three virgin goddesses among the twelve Poirot gods are Hestia, the goddess of the hearth; Athena, the goddess of wisdom; and Artemis, the goddess of the hunt.

　Aphrodite is not among them.

　Although the scent of hormones was impossible to hide, those people remained outwardly polite.

　Handsome men and beautiful women with a strong desire to show off all squeezed into the middle of the crowd. Those who were tired of it or didn't care about it sat at the peripheral tables, which had a different kind of elegance.

　Pandora Doragon sat in the other corner.

　She chose the other side mainly because Apollo's venue was also quite noisy.

　However, Pandora wasn't alone. That social butterfly from the fourth year kept bothering her for some reason, and Pandora couldn't be too harsh on her. She could only reluctantly fulfill her duties as an upperclassman, taking care of her junior.

　As her gaze wandered, Pandora suddenly noticed a figure on the other side of the flower wall. A smile crept across her face, and she picked up her wine glass filled with red tea and walked towards it.

　0

　"He finally arrived."

　Diana sat next to Eudora, looking around curiously. She had been sitting there for over an hour, her curiosity building up inside her.

　But her rational mind told her that she shouldn't wander around at this time; staying near the professors was the safest option.

　Sitting at the same table with her were several students, including Vithogd. Artemis was indiscriminate in her recruitment this time, pulling people of all qualities into her camp.

　Because there were so many people and such a diverse crowd in the venue, even the "hero" Vitgot, who had just "defeated the Demon King," did not attract much attention.

　On the other side of the "circle," the hall of "God King" Zeus was filled with "kings" other than the Elf Queen and the Sea King.

　King Austin ultimately could not escape Zeus's invitation.

　"Lionheart" Hartleith, "King of the Dwarves" Felmodwolf, "King of the Goblins" Gary Goblins, and other "kings" of large tribes were all invited by "God-King" Zeus to his tea party. The atmosphere was so lively and enthusiastic, it resembled a state banquet, transforming the tea party into a grand event, making it stand out starkly from the other venues around it.

　However, Zeus, the "king of the gods" who was "spying" from who-knows-where, must have been enjoying the view.

　The adjacent venue, belonging to "Queen of the Gods" Hera, was much quieter.

　Those invited by "Queen" Hera were all women of noble status, the most representative of whom was Princess Elizabeth.

　In addition, there were also some female rulers from small tribes who were looked down upon by Zeus, the "King of Gods," such as Bellamya, the "High Priestess of the Moon Elf," the daughter of the "Goblin King," and the queen of a certain secret fox tribe. They all received invitations from Hera, the "Queen of the Gods."

　Hera's faction wasn't large, and her criteria for selecting targets were somewhat unique. Besides requiring them to be above a certain social status, their moral character, as women, also had to meet certain standards.

　In short, he seems to value "character" very much. This basic requirement alone is enough to filter out a large number of people.

　Another rather unusual criterion for selecting candidates was Demeter, the "goddess of agriculture."

　Demeter once ventured inside the College of St. Marian. But she only played with "Shami" for a short while before leaving.

　If you look at Chi's tea party lineup now, you'll find that only a small portion of the guests she invited are humans.

　Among them was Ms. Badiprant, the former director of the Royal Botanic Gardens who had worked at the Duke's residence.

　This woman, who is over sixty years old, is now mingling with a group of "vegetative state" patients, exchanging knowledge and experience with several other plant research experts.

　That's right.

　Demeter invited a large number of "vegetative state" patients.

　These "vegetative people" can't even be called "subhumans," and there are also a few little elves mixed in, such as "flower fairies."

　In this day and age, beings with basic intelligence, such as "tree people," "flower fairies," and "vine monsters," are extremely rare, mostly found only in the elven territories. It's a mystery where Demeter found this group of strange "vegetable people," which... inevitably arouses a desire to study them.

　However, with the revival of "Agricultural Goddess" Feng Chuang Xiao Py, it's just a matter of a thought.

　If he regains enough divine power, it wouldn't be surprising if he created a kingdom of vegetative people on the spot.

　Moreover, Demeter's current behavior clearly indicates a tendency to do just that.