Happy new years everyone! Hope you had a wonderful day full of cheer when you came into the new year.
Sorry for the delay in getting out another chapter, but life can sometimes be a bitch and I didn't feel like writing anything.
I'm not really proud of what this chapter became, but next chapter we should see more of cannon and more of the DnD universe unfold in the DxD universe.
Still hope you enjoy this chapter tho! :D
Sirzechs Lucifer, formerly Gremory, The Maou Lucifer of the devil faction, found himself in a spot of trouble.
"Are you telling me that Tiamat, of all people, is trying to get in contact with me to find a single person?" Sirzechs asked his wife, queen, and mother of his only child, Grayfia Lucifuge.
"Yes, and from what I could pick up, she was scared or at the very least worried." She answered, her voice as cold as the Ice she commanded. Sirzechs was used to the tone when his wife considered herself to be 'on duty'. She even dressed the part of his maid to show she was supposed to be serving him when she was 'on duty.
"Scared you say?" That could be a problem. Tiamat contacting him matched up with the unknown pulse of magic that got picked up, even in the underworld. This wasn't good. Tiamat was one of the strongest creatures alive. She was an evil dragon king. For her to be searching for someone after the giant disturbance, either means someone came with it or someone caused it.
"Well, we better be on the lookout for this person she is searching for. Any form of description?" Sirzechs asked.
"Yes, she sent it along with her message. It's a man with slicked-back white hair and glowing amber eyes." Grayfia explained. "Tiamat notes you will know him by the aura he radiates. It is like looking at death itself or like the most unassuming person in the world. If none of that helps with identifying him, he is most likely in the company of his wife who Tiamat described as 'The most beautiful woman you will lay your eyes on'."
To say Sirzechs was intrigued by would be an understatement. But something seemed off to him. Not just the fact that Tiamat, of all people, would send this out to him.
"Has she sent this request to anyone else?" Sirzechs asked his own wife.
Something seemed to click in Grayfia's mind. "Yes, I'm sorry. She mentioned she would contact all the other factions she normally had contact with. So, we can assume she is going to contact the fallen as well." Grayfia explained, "I don't know if she will try to contact the angels. But with her panic, I think she will try."
'That's something to be worried about' Was the thought running through Sirzechs head. All three factions looking for one person? That could only end in disaster if more than one faction finds him at the same time.
But why did the description sound so familiar?
Sirzechs held up his hand to stop Grayfia from continuing her reports and used his other hand to open a drawer and pulled out a folder he got sent earlier today.
It was a report from his Serafall that she sent about an incident that happened in Kuoh, where his sweet sister was. He quickly skimmed the report. And then it hit him. The person Grayfia described had the same description as the man that showed up in Kuoh under orders from Azazel. The man described what he was doing as a favor for Azazel.
Hmm, this could be tricky.
"It seems like I need to pay my dear little sister a visit," Sirzechs announced.
Grayfia simply raised an eyebrow at Sirzechs as he leaned back in his chair to start his plotting.
"Selene",
Selene froze. She was in the middle of making dinner for both her and her husband. When said husband stepped into the kitchen and said her name. She knew the tone. It was one that promised either pain or a lecture.
"Yes, husband dearest?" Selene said while turning towards Manarath, putting on all the charm she could. She even let her natural magic try to put Manarath under her charms. She knew it was futile. He simply shrugged off any form of mind magic like it was nothing. It was what attracted her to him when they first met.
"We already talked about you needing to control yourself when we encounter devil's," Manarath said, his voice as flat as it could be. "Yet I find you almost terrorizing that poor boy."
Selene winced, she knew he was right. He always was.
"If you can't control yourself around the devils, I can't have you around when I hold meetings," Manarath said, his voice taking on an apologetic tone. "You know how much I hate not having you with me."
Selene's shoulders slumped. She started walking towards Manarath, her arms opening up towards him. She placed her hands on the sides of his face, kissing his right cheek before hugging him.
"I'm sorry honey, I'll do better, I promise," she whispered. "It's just been so long since I have been in the presence of a devil, I'm out of practice with suppressing that instinct."
Manarath said nothing. He just held his wife.
"I have a meeting with the two girls that are ruling this quaint town," Manarath said. "I want you to sit this one out, and the rest until you feel you can handle being in the presence of devils again."
Selene could hear the sadness in her husband's voice, but she understood she needed to get a handle of that instinct.
"I understand."
Manarath let her go and smiled down at her, the smile that sent her heart fluttering.
"I'm glad you understand. The chamber is unlocked for your use."
Selene froze up. "The chamber? Really?"
Manarath's smile turned into a smirk. "Of course, can't have you taking ages to get used to going back on the instinct, can we? Use it while I'm at the meeting. Hopefully, you will be able to control yourself when I'm finished."
Selene slapped him on the shoulder. Her husband was being snarky again. But he was right. She needed to get that instinct to simply murder devils under control again, so using a chamber that housed devils from their universe she could either slaughter them to her heart's content until she was desensitized or simply learn to control herself.
Selene's thoughts were interrupted by her lovely husband freezing next to her. His eyes glazing over in the telltale sign he was watching through the eyes of his familiar.
When his eyes returned to their brilliant amber color, Selene raised a questioning eyebrow at him, waiting for him to explain.
A deep sigh escaped Manarath. "Looks like we have a couple of guests. I'll take care of them since one of them looks to be related to the redhead I'm having a meeting with." A soft glow appeared around him. Manarath's attire changed to his to that of a formal outfit. Black dress pants, a white dress shirt, and a black vest. Both vests and pants had intricate golden patterns, and if you looked close enough, you could see that the golden pattern comprised runes.
Manarath started walking towards the front door when Selene heard a knock.
Why did they have to set up shop here? So many devils and a war looming on the horizon? Her dear husband really sucked at picking vacation spots.
Sirzechs arrived at the house this new person was supposed to be living at alongside his wife. He had been in contact with his sister about this meeting she was supposed to have with him and decided he would like to meet him before the meeting was being held.
"Hmm, this is new" was the only note Sirzechs spoke aloud. There was too much actually happening on this small plot of land that he could put into words. From what he could sense, this new magician had complete control of reality, meaning he already knew they arrived. Sirzechs didn't even sense this control before he stepped over the boundary.
"You know, appearing on the doorstep of someone without calling ahead is considered impolite." Suddenly Sirzechs found themselves in front of an open door with said magician standing in the opening, dressed to impress is seemed.
"Well, sadly, I have no way of contacting you, so I actually couldn't call ahead," Sirzechs said, his voice relaxed and friendly.
Manarath barked a laugh and smiled at them both. "Yes, I know, come in. Dinner should be done any second now. Join us for a bite before I meet with your sister later." Manarath stepped back and made room for both Sirzechs and Grayfia to step into their humble abode.
"Thank you. We didn't have time to eat before coming here." Sirzechs accepted the offer
Grayfia glared at her husband, who simply smiled back at her. That simple interaction exchanged more words than normal. The husband and wife duo had learned to communicate with simple glances. They needed to during meetings with the other devil clans and just meetings.
The atmosphere around the dinner table was still, not hostile, not relaxed, just still. Like two Apex predators staring each other down, knowing that if they came to blows, nothing in the town would survive.
The person to break the silence was Manarath. "Before we begin this discussion, I would like to activate something so none of us has a chance of attacking each other." The last words were directed at his wife. They just had this discussion, so she simply nodded and took in a deep breath.
Still keeping his normal relaxed smile on his face, but the tenseness in his shoulders was clearly visible, as he also looked at Selene. "If you feel like that is necessary, but how can I be sure it's directed at us all?"
Interest filled Manarath's eyes. "Ah, so you can feel the fact I have complete control of reality? How wonderful to meet someone who actually can feel it! But let me activate the device and you can see for yourself."
With a flick of his wrist, a device appeared in his hand. It looked like a small crystal covered in runes. The crystal was sitting on a stand. "This little gem here will cast a modified version of the spell 'Sanctuary'," Manarath said, his voice taking the tone of an educator. "Said spell normally makes it so you have to overcome the will of the person casting it before you can attack them, but this modified version targets everyone as if the crystal itself is casting it and makes it so that if you decide to attack anyone, even yourself, you have to overcome everyone's combined will. Plus, it anchors reality so no one can control it in the radius."
"How fascinating. Sadly, I'm not as magically inclined as my friend Ajuka Beelzebub, but such a device to make sure political meetings can't be botched by one or both sides aggression towards each other." Sirzechs said, interest clear in his tone.
"Would you like to activate it yourself so you can verify its function?" Manarath asked, extending a metaphorical olive branch and the device itself.
Sirzechs smiled at Manarath, understanding what he was trying to do and appreciating the gesture. Taking the device and inspecting it with his own magic. Not getting anything that would classify as attacking. Sirzechs took the olive branch and set the device on the table and channeled enough magic into it to activate.
Panic was the first emotion Grayfia showed on her face when the soft golden glow that normally would indicate divine spells started emanating from the device.
Panic gave way to wonder as she felt the spell set over all of them. Nothing hurt, just the knowledge of safety while she was inside the radius of the spell.
"Well, this is new. It seems like a divine spell, but we aren't suffering under immense agony." Sirzechs noted.
"Well, that's because it's not meant to. Azazel explained you are weak to the holy element. It wouldn't do that I attack the guest I invited into my home out of the blue. I have an image to maintain." Manarath smiled the smile that said, 'I just got away with a prank'.
Beside him, Selene only let out a tired sigh. She should have seen this coming from a mile away.
"But anyway, now that security has been assured, ask away any question you want. I might even answer some of them."
Sirzechs and Manarath shared a laugh as the discussion began. They talked like old friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time.
As the two man-children talked, Selene and Grayfia made eye contact, having found a kindred spirit in the fact they married powerful men with the humor of children.
Rias and Sona, accompanied by their respective queens, arrived at the edge of Manarath's small pocket domain. Having come for the meeting, Rias promised this newly arrived magician. Sona was annoyed that this happened so suddenly, but she appreciated the fact Rias didn't just go over her head and allow this magician to stay here.
"What can we expect from this magician?" Sona asked, for the third time since she was informed of this situation.
Rias sighed. "He's of no small skill. He was able to escape our sense and seemed to be able to be anywhere he wanted to be. From what Issei said, his wife isn't a big fan of ours." She said. "But Manarath himself seems to want at least to cooperate with us on some level, even if he has been working with the fallen before."
"Does he seem powerful?" Sona asked. Her normal stern tone was still in place despite the nervousness she was feeling.
"Issei said Ddraig came out to talk to him. He didn't understand what was being said since they spoke in a language he couldn't understand, even with our ability to understand all spoken languages." Rias said. Her annoyance at the information shone through. "But he said Ddraig sounded angry at the start but started sounding nervous as the conversation went on."
Sona didn't react to this information. She didn't believe that Issei could understand the emotions of a dragon, especially one as powerful as Ddraig. But she filed away the information that Issei couldn't understand them speaking.
That meant Manarath had a way around certain abilities that were racial, or they spoke in a magical language you would need to study to understand.
Before the conversation could continue, a teleportation circle appeared in front of the group, one Rias was familiar with.
As the light from the teleportation circle died down. The figure was revealed to be Grayfia.
The silence was deafening.
The awkward silence was broken by Grayfia. "Lord Lucifer and Mr. Frostbringer are waiting for you inside. Follow me." She said and turned around to walk into the house.
Rias and Sona shared a look before following Grayfia
Walking into the house was a surreal experience. The feeling of heavy magic and enchantments washed over them, as they suddenly arrived at a single room that didn't fit in the house's layout. With a single open door at the end of the room where laughter could be heard.
Rias recognized one laugh as her older brother. It had been a long time since she heard her brother laugh like this.
Walking through the door, they arrived in a dining room with a beautiful wooden table that looked to be hand-carved. Sitting at the table was Manarath. The man Rias and Sona were supposed to have a meeting with Manarath's wife Selene, and Rias' brother. Manarath and Sirzechs were laughing out loud at something Manarath described.
"And… and, you should have seen his face when he realized the contract we signed was nothing but a piece of paper. We were in the middle of his coronation when he called in the first part of the contract and when I just started laughing." Manarath said with small laughs. "He tried to make me kill all his detractors with the contract. Yelling 'I AM YOU KING' and all that nonsense."
Sirzechs calmed down. "Let me guess! Let me guess! Fear started setting in and he tried to have you killed?" he asked.
"He tried to have me killed!" Manarath said, humor clear in his voice. "But as soon as his detractors realized what happened and who I was, they killed him themselves. Oh, the sweet irony"
Sirzechs took a deep breath to calm himself down. "I would like to hear more about this at a later time, but it seems like my sweet sister and little Sona have arrived for their meeting with you," Sirzechs said, turning to look at the newly arrived group.
"So it would seem," Manarath responded, giving them all a charming smile. Too charming in Rias' opinion, something was off about it.
"I'm glad you could join us. Would you like something to eat? There is still some food left." Manarath asked.
"No thank you, I would like to get this meeting started as soon as possible," Sona said, her tone still as monotone as it normally was.
Manarath's smile became more relaxed. "Ah, I see. Well, Sirzechs and I have been hammering out the details of everything. We more or less just need you two to sign off on it."
Rias and Sona both frowned. They've already talked about everything? Without them? They knew Sirzechs was the Maou Lucifer, but this seems like overstepping. He wasn't even in charge of foreign affairs. That was Sona's sister, the Maou Leviathan.
"What have you arrived at?" It was Sona that asked. Knocking Rias out of her stupor.
Manarath smiled. He liked this one. "For my continued stay, I'll be here as a consultant on anything magical. My place will function as basically a neutral zone for meeting between factions. I will, of course, notify you of anyone that is visiting. And you can hire me for any form of magical help. I can create magical items for your use, or simply help set up security if you need."
Sona frowned. "The consultant part is appreciated since we don't have a contracted magician. But the neutral zone seems a little out of the blue." Not that she would say no to it, since it seemed they were setting up talks between the factions.
Manarath smirked. "I can see you've already done yourself some thoughts on why the neutral zone part is there. But yes, it's to have a safe space for talk between factions. If you haven't felt it already, I have complete control over reality on this property."
And without another word, they all found themselves in a sitting room with several chairs and a small table in the middle with tea already prepared.
Everyone except Manarath, Selene, Grayfia, and Sirzechs tensed at the feeling of reality rippling and changing around them.
"Tea if anyone wants it," Manarath said, his tone not changing at the fact he just changed reality around all of them. "Just hold out your hands and will a cup to your hands, it will fill itself."
Selene sighed, leaning back in her chair. If there was a time, she was thankful these chairs were made to relax people with magic. It was now. With so many devils around, suddenly, she needed something to calm her nerves. Sadly, her relaxation was interrupted by the voice of her husband.
"Honey, you can go. I can see you are uncomfortable," Manarath said, understanding and sympathy coloring his words.
Selene gave her husband a grateful smile before she got up and left the room.
Said smile turned bloodthirsty. She had a room with unlimited devils to slaughter.
The tension in the room had disappeared, with Selene leaving. The devils all relaxed their stances, not realizing they had tensed up, to begin with.
"Ah, so you have the same instincts, just not to the same degree. That's good to know," Manarath said out loud, more to himself than to his guest.
"What do you mean?" Sirzechs asked, more curious than anything.
Manarath realized he had said that out loud. "Ah, I just mean the instinct to hate each other, or at least be wary of each other," Manarath explained. "Selene is a demon. Back home, demons and devils are in a constant war, called the blood war by everyone else. So, through evolution, devils and demons have developed a deep hatred for each other. Selene has mostly transcended this hate, but as you could no doubt feel, it is still there."
"Can she be trusted to not attack anyone, then?" Sona asked, more worried for her fellow devils than anything, even though she didn't show it with her normally stern look.
"Oh, that's why I sent her away. She is currently in a room that has respawning devils from our universe. She is most likely slaughtering them until her instinct dulls to the point it doesn't matter, or she can control herself." Manarath explained. Not noting all the horrified faces that were looking at him.
"What do you mean she is slaughtering devils!?" that was Rias' that yelled out.
"Oh, don't worry, this is a mutually beneficial relationship I have with the king of devils Asmodeus back from our universe. He sends devils that either need to train or be punished and I now have a training room from time dilation and where, if they die, they spawn back in their own hell." Manarath explained. "The devils that need to be punished get punished, those that need training get training. No one really dies, but they still feel death. It's great for training, let me tell you."
"Is there any chance of them getting out?" Sirzechs asked, more worried about devils he knew nothing about coming into their world than anything. They weren't his subjects, so he cared little for them. And from what Manarath had told them of the devils from his universe, they acted like the old devils used to, bargaining for souls.
"No, I made sure of that, and if some of them somehow got out, I will hunt them down myself," Manarath said.
A silence descended on the group after Manarath made the promise.
"Wow, we went way off track. We were talking about my stay here." Manarath said with a laugh, having realized he went off on a tangent explaining his training room.
"Do we have a deal?" Manarath asked, suddenly standing in front of them, his hand in the middle of them, waiting to be shaken.
Rias and Sona shared a look, trying to come to a conclusion. They knew having a powerful magician would be helpful.
"Alright, we agree to your terms," Sona said, taking his hand and shaking it. She felt the magic in the air shift. As did Sirzechs, who suddenly tensed.
Rias didn't feel it before she too shook his hand after Sona let go of his hand felt the magic shift.
"What. Did. You. Do?" Sirzechs asked. His voice turned as cold as ice.
"The magic of my domain just recognized the deal and set itself more firmly, plus Sona, Rias, and their peerage members are now recognized as welcome guests and will therefore be free to come and go," Manarath explained. "Plus, they will now be able to call for my familiar to send me a message if they need me. Just channel magic into the mark around your wrist and he will appear."
Rias and Sona looked at their wrist, seeing an intricate band around the wrist on the hand they shook his hand with.
"It's nothing permanent, don't worry, and it's invisible to anyone who isn't told about it," Manarath said. Noticing Sirzechs' stance, relax just a bit. Manarath would like to think he had started a good relationship with Sirzechs and deserved a little more trust. But then again, this is the first time they have met.
"There are more gifts that will unlock as you gain a better understanding of the band, or if I feel you have earned it, later on. Think of it as a gift to honor a beautiful friendship in the future."
Rias smiled while Sona simply nodded in thanks while looking at the band.
The conversation turned to more relaxed topics, and when something interesting was mentioned from his home universe, stories started flying out. Having got used to recounting his adventuring days to his fellow adventures children.
Manarath would go so far as to say that he enjoyed his time telling the young devils of his exploits with a more heroic twist.
Sirzechs and Grayfia escorted Rias, Sona, and their respective queens to their homes before they teleported back to their own home in the underworld.
The silence between them was broken by Grayfia.
"What troubles you?" She asked.
Sirzechs hummed, "I don't like how he marked them out of the blue," He said, suspicion clear in his tone. "If it wasn't because I could tell that there wasn't anything harmful in the marks, I would most likely have started a fight."
Grayfia's eyes widened. "Wouldn't that be overkill? For you to fight him, he is just a human."
Sirzechs let out a small laugh. "I wouldn't say he was purely human. Sure, he felt human, but he somehow felt like more. Like what we could feel was only a small fraction of the power he could call upon." Sirzechs stopped to collect his thoughts.
"Then there is what he said to me after you left to collect Sona and my sister." He added on.
Grayfia simply raised an eyebrow.
"It felt like it was out of the blue, but now that I think about it, it was most likely a hint of something."
Flashback
As soon as the light of the teleportation circle disappeared, Manarath turned to look at Sirzechs, a serious look replacing the more welcoming look that was there a moment ago.
"You know Sirzechs, I feel sorry for you." He said.
Sirzechs did a double-take. Where did this come from?
"For your need to put on a humane disguise so your subjects don't fear you and can relate to you." Manarath continued. "I have much the same problem. When you deal with simple mortals, you need to be perceivable in their eyes. And being a monster makes that impossible."
Sirzechs never got to respond because right as Manarath finished talking, Grayfia entered with Rias and Sona.
"So you think he is a higher being of sorts?" Grayfia asked, more nervous than she would like to admit.
"Perhaps, or perhaps not. There is a spark of something in him, something that isn't quite human but can be hidden behind his human appearance." Sirzechs said.
"He seems genuine that he just wants a place here. And the fact he is a powerful enough magician to be able to control reality like it was a normal element speaks well for him being a good neutral party that can make sure nothing happens in political meetings between factions." He added as an afterthought.
"If nothing else, he can help little Rias if something comes up. She and Sona can't handle on their own." Sirzechs finished, making a mental note that he needed some spies to monitor Manarath and his wife while they were in Kuoh. "I also now know that Manarath is the one Tiamat was looking for. Would you send her a message tomorrow dear?"
Grayfia didn't know what to say, so she just nodded. She would send Tiamat a message.
Manarath was still sitting in the same chair he had in the sitting room during the meeting. Smiling at the events that had transpired during the meeting itself.
These two young girls were going to be the center of some of the most interesting things.
Left to his scheming, Manarath didn't notice his wife walking into the room, covered in blood and gore. Her hair was disheveled, but other than that, she still looked as perfect as ever.
"Honey? A little help here?" Selene said, knocking Manarath out of his scheming and gesturing to herself.
She knew that, sadly, a shower wouldn't be enough. Devil blood was so difficult to wash out.
"Oh, you're already done?" Manarath asked, making a slight gesture towards her. With the gesture, Selene could feel a surge of magic wash over her that removed all the blood and gore.
Selene let out a content sigh. "Yes, it was wonderful. Until it got boring, that is."
Manarath let out a small laugh at that. Only his wife would find killing things boring after a while. "That just means it worked dear."
Selene smiled. "Yes, it did, dear. Now, why is it I can feel a contract binding you to two others here in town? Did you make a deal without?" Selene's tone turned teasing at the end. She loved making deals. They always turned out fun.
"Yes, the two lovely ladies made a deal with me," Manarath said "For out allowed stay here, and more or less ownership of this plot of land, I will be there as a magical advisor or if they have need of a favor, they think I can give."
Selene frowned. That wasn't the normal deal he made. They were normally more in his favor, if not just only in his favor.
"I looked at the threads to see what would happen to them in the future," Manarath said, his tone calm, knowing how his wife would be reacting.
Selene's eyes widened. "Are you crazy! That Raven bitch could have come here!" Selene ranted, anger and fear clear in her voice. Dealing with gods was always a pain! "How could you be so reckless? You're normally more careful!"
Manarath just sat there, taking the anger of his wife head-on. He knew she was only angry because she was scared.
Selene had finished ranting and simply looked at him, anger mixed with fear clear as day in her stance and features.
"The Raven Queen doesn't have control over the threads here. And the gods of this universe aren't powerful enough to punish me in any way without killing themselves." Manarath explained calmly, trying to convey that while he understood her anger and fear. She shouldn't worry. There were in a new universe, different universe, different gods.
Understanding dawned on Selene. "Alright, I get it," Selene said, more annoyed that she didn't realize it right away. Of course, that raven bitch couldn't reach them here.
"Now what did you see?" Selene asked, more annoyed now.
Manarath let out a small laugh, much to his wife's chagrin.
"They will be the center of events that will change the world for the supernatural here. So I offered my services in the case I am needed." Manarath said. "I won't intervene on their behalf, my adventuring days are behind me." He finished with a small laugh.
"They better be. I don't want another world-ending adventure on my hand." Selene said with a laugh as well.
Even though Manarath said he wouldn't intervene. Selene knew her husband. He would intervene when something tried to make moves that affected more than themselves.
Manarath might be a hard ass and an asshole most of the time. But when someone tried to subvert others without due course, he would be there to stop them.
So, with a smile on her face, Selene grabbed her husband's hand and dragged him towards their bedroom. They would need their sleep for the days to come.
And there you have it! The end of this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it and I will see you next time! :D