The Innkeeper

There was one other matter that Lex did not understand - a very crucial matter at that. He could, to a degree, understand the Devils and Angels not helping each other. They were striving for some secret Nephilim plan for which they could not take each other's help. But why didn't the other races within the Humanoid Alliance help each other?

In fact, they almost seemed especially racist towards each other - at least as far as Lex had experienced. For example, the Devils especially liked to use humans to nurture their demons. The elves and dwarfs hated each other with a passion. The Celestials seemed to have an extreme superiority complex. Meanwhile, the humans were down on their luck and the fairies literally had their entire race cursed to be slaves or servants.

How could they be called an alliance if they literally did not help each other? Also, how could the human race be betrayed yet the other races not be? Why didn't the Celestials, who seemed to be the leaders of the alliance, coordinate between the races more?

Then again, it was just an alliance, and that did not mean they had to experience weal and woe together. There could be all kinds of alliances, so as long as they ensured basic survival of each other, it was good enough.

Another thing he wondered about was the strength of the Angel race, as well as the Humanoid Alliance. The Seraphim Resort seemed incredibly powerful to Lex in the beginning, being able to host Dao Lords from across the realm without fear.

Yet now the Angels alone were supposedly more powerful than the Seraphim. If Lex included the various other races within the alliance, how many Dao Lords would that be? Could it be in the hundreds? Or maybe even thousands?

Lex found it difficult to wrap his head around such an immense power. How was the Midnight Inn supposed to be a universal hotel with so many Dao Lord's out there? Any casual one having a slightly poor day might destroy his entire realm. There was only so much posturing could do to keep enemies at bay.

"How is it that, as a representative of the Midnight Inn, you're so ignorant about basic history?" Shireen asked, maintaining the same neutral tone and expression she had the entire time.

"Well, besides my very young age, it's also because the Midnight Inn does not concern itself with external things. As long as one does not break the rules of the Inn, the Inn won't care about anyone or their backgrounds."

"That seems like a foolish strategy. Will the Inn be able to protect us from persecution if we escape to the Inn from here in the first place?" she asked bluntly. "Being unconcerned about others is a great way to remain under prepared to face an upcoming threat."

"Whether it is foolish or clever, that is for the Innkeeper to decide. Many things that seem overwhelming or impossible to us can be resolved with the wave of a single hand for those with power."
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In truth, it wasn't the Innkeeper making these decisions, it was his system. As the best Inn in the universe, the Inn was very resistant towards discriminating between guests and did not give him much leeway in terms of rejecting guests - even if they came with a whole load of trouble.

The dozen Valkyries seemed dissatisfied with such an answer, or at least Shireen did. Seeing as how they were being so blunt with him, Lex saw no reason he should back off either.

"You seem oddly picky for someone claiming to have no options and a time limit on your safety. What? Were you hoping that the Midnight Inn would fight the Seraphim resort on your behalf?"

Shireen shook her head, though her expression didn't soften at all.

"There are no good options left for my sisters and I. An option that suddenly appears and sounds too good to be true… I don't believe it is real. The choice, then, that I have to make is death by action or death by inaction. Neither is too appealing a choice."

Lex shook his head, disappointment clear on his face.

"You are too cynical. For now, everything is speculation on your part, and there are too many ways in which the future could change, yet you have already decided that for you the future only holds death. If you continue like this, you will fulfil your own prophecy of death, even if it doesn't need to be like that."

"The only thing certain in life is death," Shireen said, getting ready to leave. "The only thing in your control, hopefully, is how you die."

"Oh man, you need some serious therapy," Lex said, disagreeing with her. "What's the big deal if you die? What's so great about it if you don't? You should live a life actually worth living, enjoying yourself, and seeking fulfillment in your actions. Of course, given your situation, it's not exactly fitting to just kick up your feet and relax. No doubt, life as a prisoner isn't exactly how you'd prefer to spend your time. But you also won't find any allies to help you out if you treat everyone coldly."

Lex tossed golden keys towards the angels.

"It won't work now, but when the Inn is open, you can use the keys to get there. If the Seraphim find a way to block the keys, then the Inn will also find a way to unblock them. As for what you decide to do, or choose to believe, that's entirely up to you. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go explore this place a little."

It was ironic that Lex was convincing them to trust the Inn more when he was actually really concerned about them bringing trouble his way by coming. But what could he do? He'd learnt long ago that ignoring the system's mandate of constantly promoting the Inn got him very troublesome quests.

Before he left, however, Lex took a quick glance at their Karma.