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Chapter 30: A Wild Duel

I promised Uncle Al I would have kept away from trouble.

I had been aware of what kind of mess would come if I made a ruckus during this event but… this time, I couldn't help but feel a bit pushed into that corner by something I couldn't have avoided. The wounded pride of some jerk that was trying to force a marriage contract to Via. When 'Morgan' approached, I could tell that the guy was trouble, and as he spoke with us, I felt much of my worries confirmed, especially when he demanded that I left 'Octavia alone as she is of better standing compared to me'.

I could recognize a pompous prick from a mile but… I really didn't want to start a fight. Not just for that promise, but for many other reasons: Via was uneasy, and would definitely not want this to escalate any further; then there was Lucifer and Lilith, Charlie told me her parents were there too and… then I realized that he was there too. I noticed Furfur, but I decided to not approach him there. Too exposed, too dangerous.

So, instead of picking a fight that would be more troublesome for me to even win, I tried to stop this all with reason and diplomacy. The result? The guy tried to grab Via's arm and pull her away from me, even though Via had said no, I stopped him with a punch on his beak, and he now wanted a duel. And I couldn't pull out from that demand since he was of 'higher-class' than me and trying to keep away would warrant my direct execution. I was quite sure that Lucifer wasn't behind that kind of rules, not with how intrigued and slightly clueless the devil looked as he noticed what was going on, but I definitely planned to track down the source of this kind of problem and spare a few 'encouraging' words to fix things up before this ever happened again. Because, as far as I was concerned, I was making sure I made this 'duel' a proper reason to never duel anyone. Ever.

Magically-wise, I was screwed. The guy's powers were nothing to scoff at, but I could tell that I had two advantages in the form of Morgan's primary flaws: he was cocky, and he didn't seem to have a grasp of my current abilities, possibly expecting me to be an easy enemy to deal with. And yet, I had my own limitations imposed by the circumstances as I couldn't use my scythe in this environment. Not when Lucifer was there. I wanted to play it safe, sorta, and tried to pick up as many openings I could out of his stiff posture. Morgan had very few weak spots visible in his stance, but he was quite stressed on his left leg. A wound? Maybe some form of injury that I could exploit? Could have been a trick, so I decided to keep cautious while using that interesting element to my advantage.

Via was upset by this whole mess, but I reasoned that after I was done with this 'molester', we would be able to enjoy the party like before. She was still annoyed by this development, but was willing to let me go and deal with this mess. At this point, it was well beyond our control. And it became even more apparent when Stolas looked forced into this mess as he had to concede a space where the duel would ensue. The guests were moved to the 'old' battle ground where in the past numerous duels were known to happen.

No one, not even Stolas or even Stella, would ever allow this kind of affair to unfold in their ballroom of all places and… this much space gave me a few ideas on what to do with my current 'weakness' and use it against my opponent. Once we were brought within the limits of the inner arena, I listened to Stolas as he went through the 'customary explanation' on how duels worked. I just picked up a simple sentence as there weren't any major rules to keep an eye out for: one wins either by the opponent's submission, incapacitation or death.

Everything was pretty much fair game, so dirty tricks weren't forbidden, just frowned upon. With that notion cemented, I couldn't help but smile behind my mask as I could tell this was going to be as ugly for me as it was going to be for Morgan. If not worse for him if I really started to get really murderous during that fight. Before the match started, there was a small rule about shaking hands to 'confirm the willingness of the fighters to this event'. The Goetic demon spared me a disdainful look but complied with the request. His clawed hand, albeit rough at first sight, felt… soft to the touch. Unlike Stolas' own pam and very similar to Via's hands in a way. Quite odd.

"I'm going to put you back in your place, filth."

I cracked a wider smile. "I'm going to break your legs."

He tensed up, worry flashing briefly at that unexpected threat, yet he managed to regain his composure shortly after. We took a few steps away from each other, stopping right at the positions highlighted by white spots on the ground and we waited for the judge of this fight, which was Stolas due to the location, to start the 'dance'. The noble looked left and right, first gauging Morgan and then me. In terms of fairness, I was going to have some trouble, but I reasoned that I could still win in terms of careful planning about this. I already had a few tricks prepared for the occasion and I had no intentions of losing this battle. I felt my unease lessening as I allowed some energy to form around my digits, two courses of action were formed relating the possible first steps taken by Morgan.

The Owl Demon seemed quite incensed and… underestimated me. Instead of trying to win against me with his superior magic power, he decided to form a pure white broadsword in his hands and rush towards me. Now, that move was the first and maybe biggest mistake he could make about this entire situation. He came towards me, and he was actually much slower than I was. So, I had the time to fake tensing up my legs to move out of his way, press my fingers down on the ground and allow a dull seal to form under my feet. Then, as he was about to finally hit, I rolled on the side and allowed him to land right in the middle of that trap. He didn't seem to realize how bad that was until he saw the proximity around him light up and then explode.

It wasn't a full-force blast, not when I wanted to keep the deadliness to a modest level. I expected that to be either a devastating attack that easily cut down the fight to a closer victory, or even a victory altogether. I was so confident that it would have worked due to the simplicity of that counterattack and… I was stunned when the smoke dissipated and showed a mostly-fine Morgan. A very angry Morgan at that. The owl demon snarled, his beak gnawing and his eyes narrowing in a furious display. I saw that some blood was pooling by the ground, coming from a few gashes opened by his legs due to the blast and… then I realized what happened.

He created a barrier, aimed specifically at his upper body. Since the explosion first activated on the ground, a full-body barrier would have collapsed due to the proximity part of it would share with the detonation's source. And so, by making sure that the barrier protected away from the explosion's origin and around vital bits of his body, he prevented the worst out of that scenario. He couldn't fully avoid damage, preferring to keep it to a minimum. It wasn't what I wanted, but it was still damage, and the kind of damage that was definitely going to help in the long-run as those wounds weren't healing up from the looks of it.

"I will make you pay for this!"

Sure thing, but first you would have to catch me!

As if Murphy had heard my inner taunt and decided to even things up, I tried to get moving but my legs felt heavier and more numb. Confusion and panic instantly appeared in my mind as I tried to reason what was going on and… I felt dread forming behind my chest when I noticed that a few sections of my lower limbs and part of my right elbow had turned into stone. Just a layer, not entirely from the way it felt within my body, but the effects were already reversing on the spot.

Morgan had tried to use the very thing that Stolas' family had on a biological level: turning people to stone with their magic gaze. The effects of this power was tied to two factors, the quality of the user's magic gaze and the target's magical endurance. Being a magic practitioner, I had some strong resilience to the skill, but not enough to prevent it from getting part of my body in the process.

And so, I couldn't move out of the way when Morgan rushed to strike at me once again. Luckily for me, I had something to halt the blade as I had my knives up and ready to block the sword before it could land. The issue then turned into a matter of 'how long can I maintain the stalemate'. I couldn't move at the moment, not without hurting myself and perhaps damaging my muscles in the process, and the two knives I was using to stop the demon's attack, albeit strong enough to tank his sword's weight and durability, were breaking at a worrying pace.

I had not prepared for a sword-fight, especially when I relied so heavily on guns. Also, I would have used the scythe hadn't I been limited by the situation and… yeah, it was pretty bad. Just before I was finally able to get out from that risky spot, the knives gave off and the blade had the chance to finally slam onto my left side, cutting part of my yellow jacket in the process. Gritting my teeth at the dangerous development, I pulled away just in time before it had the chance to dig deeper and reach my skin.

"Fight me, you coward!" Morgan shrieked again, his voice cracking and adding something strange to it. Very familiar but… unimportant at the moment.

Not when I returned the favor by kicking his side. It wasn't enough to damage his ribs, but it definitely forced air out of his lungs at the loud gasp he gave after the attack landed. He backed away slightly, a pained and furious look plastered on his face as more magic started to be pumped out of his body. Things were heating up and… it was only the beginning. As the Goetic demon realized that I was experienced in magic, his focus shifted into a more indirect effort by relying on magic more. Two circular seals formed by his sides and projected two chains meant to stop me once more. He was really putting an effort in curbing my mobility and had an easier beating me but… once again, this was a mistake.

The spell in question seemed to revolve in two passages, a summon to get the chains to form and an order to rush in a specific direction. The spell was simple and thus easy to 'dismantle' if one knew how to work through the crannies of this kind of magic. I also needed an extra boost to do this, so I quickly shifted into my 'special mode' for the occasion. And as I was done over the approaching strings of reinforced metal and landed back down between the chains, I realized that it was doable the very moment I had both stretched iron trails grasped with my hands. From dark blue those started to turn a darker gold-like color, the 'corruption' spreading back to the seals and altering not only their color, but also their purpose.

Morgan reacted instantly, realizing what I was trying to do as a full body barrier formed and tanked the dual explosion that soon ensued. He looked positively pissed, but this distraction proved to be fatal. Without a spell keeping the chains mid-air, the only thing left for me to do with these two objects was to return those to the sender. It was immediate, the chains' ends by where Morgan stood suddenly slammed on his sides, breaking into the already-weakened barrier and slamming on his sides. This time the damage was effective enough to force the opponent on his knees, recoiling from the shocking attack.

"Y-You..." Morgan muttered, his eyes widened in pure agony and then… glowing a ferocious and murderous red. "YOU!"

I felt my entire body tense up in shock as I felt the pure magical pressure exerted by Morgan increasing as soon as he let out that fierce and feminine screech. At first I didn't notice, but then I realized that his voice had outright changed into something else.

"I will personally destroy you!"

There was no doubt about it, this guy… this guy was a girl. And no, it wasn't some sort of misheard situation. Not when she snarled louder, her upper clothes slightly unfastened by the explosions and the chains-based attack that were now revealing that, underneath his- no her military-like shirt, she had a few bandages with magical seals wrapped around her bosom and compressing it.

"You- You are a woman!?"

Surprise flashed within that storm of hatred she was subjecting me to. "You! YOU- I will kill you!"

I was confused by this development, but far from worried by it because I wasn't planning to hold back, not when this woman was actually trying to kill me. I dodged her fists, and then was forced to push her away the moment she materialized two other swords and started to put more pressure onto me. I was doing as much as I could to avoid getting skewered, but her furious assault was getting her somewhere with it, numerous parts of my jacket, shirt and pants now suffering numerous cuts even though I was hitting her with strong punches and kicks. Her body was just taking it all and still managing to give me hell back. Definitely adrenaline and anger giving her that kind of boost.

Either that, or her magic was effectively reinforcing her body to an absurd level. Both cases were tremendously bad for me, but I was holding and- And then I wasn't. Soon Morgan got a quick shot at me by slamming her clawed foot at my chest, pushing me away and giving her the chance to blast me with an explosive spell, forcing me to block and reinforce my arm and… be caught unaware as she was instantly rushing forward, using this opening to end the fight. My eyes shut to blink, dread skyrocketing at the terrifying development.

And then opened back up when I realized that I was no longer in that mini-arena and… back in my mindscape. Same scene as last time, I was sitting on a chair right in front of a certain smiling demon, a table between us and… a second flipped card. It was the Judgment card and, like the Fool beside it, was reversed. My mind instantly thought about the meaning behind the card and… I frowned.

"I'm limited but I need to… adapt?"

"Oh yes, you are finally catching on these affairs, aren't you, boss?" The demon exclaimed eagerly. "But yes, you're correct and this battle is the peak of that need. Here you are, limited by Lucifer's presence in keeping away from damages that would break your mask or just reveal your human nature. So… you need to overcome this threat with what you have."

...

"Why am I-"

"Here? Again? Alan, this 'guy' isn't exactly an easy match for you. We're talking of someone that is well above your current level and… you have matured enough for the next step. Of course, there is a catch, just like the previous one."

"And… what kind of catch is this?"

"I would say it's more appearance-wise and… I guess I can say it will draw some attention, in a good way. And for many good reasons," The demon argued, his grin widening by the minutes. "Still, it's not like you have much of a choice here. You're one step away from getting slaughtered and-"

"Your name."

…

"Beg your pardon, my lovely boss?" The being asked after a brief pause.

"What is your name?" I repeated, my eyes narrowing at the shadowed figure. "I understand the whole mysterious atmosphere you're building to make a 'cool entry', but at this point this is plain stupid."

…

"Do you think so? That covering myself for your sake is stupid?"

I wasn't sure if this was a threat or not, but I pressed forward. "Yes."

…

He smiled and… the room started to illuminate, a candle forming by the side of the table. I gave him a look and finally realized that what I was looking at had my same face for the most part, with his smile plated gold, his eyes hidden behind 'dollar-shaped' glasses and his hair being auburn, a shade redder compared to my own. The last element I spotted was… the pair of twitchy animal ears protruding from the top of his head. Fox ears.

"Oh my, oh my. You're kind of correct. Never gave you a name and always played by the dark," He smugly agreed before reaching out for a handshake. "I believe I can go by the name of… Reynard."

I frowned, surprisingly enough holding well the fact I was looking at someone bearing a similar appearance like me. And it wasn't Alastor-like. It was like a complete copy with a few additions to the overall appearance I had.

"That's awfully normal for a demon."

"I'm part of you, boss. If it's lame, then you should look at the mirror to see the origin of that."

That was a fair shot, but still got me to scoff at the response as I reached out to shake his hand. "Sure but… what happens now?"

I felt his hand tightly grasping mine, his smile turning demonic.

"Now you have some fun, boss."

I was confused about what that meant, but I felt my body burning briefly as I was shifted back in the very scene I had left for the mindscape. My vision felt 'heightened' to an extent as I was no longer watching it from my gas mask. In fact, I wasn't wearing it anymore as I could tell my face was exposed and… a pair of new foxy ears stood on top of my head. I would have stopped a moment to question what had just happened, but my attention was stolen once more by the issue at hand. Morgan was moments away from capturing her victory, her swords gleaming in preparation-

Flip a coin.

I reached into the right low pocket of my jacket, fishing out a simple coin and… complying to the 'idea' by flipping it. Head. I wasn't caring if it was going to land in the right place or not, I was more focused on understanding how that was meant to help. Soon, I noticed part of my new energy shifting into the circular piece of gold as it did 'something' to it. The coin landed on Head, and I saw something shift around Morgan and I.

Her rush abruptly ended as the girl tripped on something and then… she slammed onto me with her chest. For some unexplained reason that I would learn to curse for eternity, the trajectory damned me for quite the awkward circumstances. My lips were now pressing onto her… beak. I wasn't sure if this counted as a kiss but… she definitely did something about it that made me shove her away.

I felt her tongue reach out and try to get through my lips. I wasn't sure if she was trying to get a quick kiss or something, but I wasn't planning to do something as stupid and damning as comply with that. I stood up and moved away as soon as she was out of my way. Morgan stared at me in shock and… hurt?

"How about no!?"

"Y-You- you dared to-"

"No, you tripped and then you tried to do something out of that," I rebuked angrily. "Don't try to pin any blame on me."

"Y-You definitely used a spell to force me to..."

"I don't need that kind of situation. And I believe this battle is over."

The owlette narrowed her eyes at me, trying to stand up and… noticing that she couldn't.

"W-What?"

"You over-stressed your body. While you might have some magic, using it now would just strain yourself even more. No adrenaline, no energy, only pain."

…

She didn't seem that happy about it, but her second attempt to stand up resulted like the first one, and soon Stolas was approaching the two of us.

"Morgan is incapacitated and unable to continue this fight. Alan is the winner of this duel."

I slowly nodded, some people rushing to help Morgan while I walked beside Stolas back to the stands.

"I suppose this wasn't planned. This… disguise."

I slowly nodded. "Tapped in more of my potential. Does it… work?"

"Your appearance is one of a low-level demon at first glance. Same for your current magic output," The Goetic Prince assured. "I believe you stunned a few people."

"I bet I did."

Stolas seemed to notice that I wasn't doing alright. Even though I wasn't feeling any drain as I was still appearing like a Demon, the toll I took in that fight took effect on my current self. I needed to sit and… rest for a moment.

"But for now, I believe you would want to enjoy a moment away from all that action. Via was worried."

"I'm sorry-"

"It was for the best. I don't blame you for not backing down from that fight and… reveal some issues I will have to solve about the family. For now, enjoy your break from trouble."

That I could accept without any reservation. I was soon walking up to where Octavia had been sitting, the owlette instantly speaking up about what had just happened, feeling at fault for it.

"I-I'm so sorry for what happened. I should have told him off when he was-" I hugged her tightly, stopping her apology on the spot.

"It's alright, I'm just a bit sore than the others and, well, Morgan is a she."

Octavia's eyes widened, her beak opened but she waited for me to be sitting beside her before speaking up. "W-What?"

"Morgan was-"

"Sh-She was trying to marry me? Even though she is… you know."

"I think it could be more complicated than that. From what I got from your mother, some branches of your family want to replace your father and… that's the cleanest way to do it."

Her shock turned into dread. "And they would do that to me?"

"Sounds like that," I replied quietly, blinking as I stared right at the girl and pulled her for another hug. "But I'm there. And I can see Loona and Molly protecting you when needed, Via."

She nuzzled onto my cheek with hers. "I… I know that."

Just as we were enjoying that much deserved rest from trouble, I noticed a few people approaching. First thing first was someone that suddenly hugged me from behind.

"Alan, you're still wounded and- Via, want to help us patching him up?" Charlie's worried and yet energetic disposition stunned me, while her request to the owlette was met with a nod. Vaggie huffed at the concerned display of her girlfriend, but was holding what looked to be a first aid kit. I was a bit confused by this development, but not outright annoyed by it. The injuries were barely healing with how low my magic was, but I had a good reason to feel a bit worried about this idea as soon as another voice spoke up.

"I suppose he can be healed while we share a… little talk."

I tensed up and turned to see, standing a bit behind Charlie was a certain individual that I was trying to avoid at all costs. His skin was pure white, he had blond hair, thick black eyebrows, black lips and a mouth full of sharp teeth. His eyes were yellow, with black slit pupils resembling those of a snake. The man wore a white high collar suit, a black bowtie, and a red undershirt. Atop his head rested a white top hat. He carries an apple-topped black cane that matches his hat. Lucifer Magne smiled widely and with interest, the King of Hell eyeing me in pure amusement as he noticed my dread… only for his delight to be dulled as someone suddenly squeezed at his arms. Lilith huffed, having spotted her husband giving me quite the vicious glance.

"Dear, I believe we have an agreement about this."

Lucifer groaned, seemingly unwilling to fight this over with his wife. "I suppose we have."

His gaze shifted back to me.

"Now, about that talk, Mr. Alan."

I wasn't sure what kind of things he wanted to talk about but… I sure felt like I was going to be regretting it. Just not the deadly way from the way Lilith looked now even more amused than before…

AN

Here's roughly 4k words of fighting, new developments, some kinkery at hand, and a general surprise in the form of Lucifer finally spotting the 'troublesome human'. Next time is going to be fine… but also not.

P.S. Also, a few details about this story after seeing Episode 7 Part 1 of Helluva Boss:

1) You can travel between Rings either the beggar way via car, or the rich way through the main elevator system;

2) Many have said that Fizzarolli is Blitzo's brother, I think he is actually his first childhood friend, turned boyfriend and then turned into foe;

3) The creators retconned Lilla's relationship with Blitzo, she is now Blitzo and Barbie Wire's mother;

Also, I don't know if I will put Episode 7 in this story because so many things have changed and some of the elements have diverged heavily from Canon. Will Fizzarolli and Asmodeus make an appearance? Definitely, but not through the same way Episode 7 Part 1 unfolded. I have some plans to still address Blitzo's issues, his relationship with Stolas and… a different place for Millie and Moxxie's anniversary.

REVIEW Q&A!

Timesliger:
1) After the Party;
2) He didn't, but now he does. No, he is sad for something else;
3) Yes;
4) Sadly, it wasn't used because… Well, Lucy is there;
5) Can't tell right now, only that Lara will get to Hell via Alastor.

SAK-96: Ugly but also weirdly kinky. Not in the harem tho.

Coldblue2015:
1) It was an attempt to leave Hell. More will be explained through Nestor's story;
2) 'He' tried to get touchy with Via;
3) Soon, maybe next chapter;
4) Yes;
5) Not… truly. It's a bit more complicated than that.

Guest (Chapter 37): I don't know;

Demon viewer:
1) Chapter up above answers that;
2) Maybe-ish;
3) No;
4) No;
5) I can't answer that just yet.

Demons:
1) Maybe-ish;
2) Dunno;
3) Up above in the chapter;
4) No.

Demon Fan:
1) Yes;
2) Yes;
3) Yes, Imps for example;
4) Considering the connection with Dante's representation of the After-life, there could be a Purgatory Realm;
5) They stop existing.