Chapter 1
Deal with the Devil

Jack liked to believe he was not easily scared. His wild goose chase after the Old Satan Faction was a testament to that. However, staring at the Fake Beelzebub made him feel mixed emotions. On one hand there was his desire to see just how much he'd last against the Super Devil, but on the other there was the anxiety due to his awareness. He was nothing in comparison to him.

Right here stood the rival of the Apex of Devil Strength.

Thankfully, Ajuka clearly didn't bring malicious intent with him, but given the Devil King outfit still on him, he wasn't here to share cookies and tea either. Latia arrived at the same conclusion, so she remained silent.

Seeing the two focus on him, Ajuka finally broke the ice. "You live up to your expectations, Magic Hunter."

"Ah, does that mean I have one of the Satans as a potential client?" Jack saw the chance to lower the tension and took it.

"If what Mephisto has to say is truthful, we all would have enough jobs available to please a mercenary of your caliber." Ajuka said bluntly, yet Latia was more surprised at the name being brought up.

"As in, Mephisto Pheles?" Latia blurted out, getting a nod from her uncle.

"Ha… Old man spilled the beans about me?" Jack asked, slightly miffed at the thought.

"No, it was only due to constant demands he eventually gave in and told me the bare minimum. Seeing you in person, I agree with his choice." Ajuka clarified.

Jack huffed, before catching a glance at the blonde, who was even more confused. That's a problem for another time, cause right now, he had bigger fish to fry. "I doubt you came here just to give me praises on my CV, Beelzebub."

"Indeed. Also, no need for extra formalities in private, Ajuka is good enough." the Devil King waved his hand and a green magic circle appeared on the coffee table, which revealed a holographic map of Berlin with multiple big red dots all across. "It took a bit, but we found multiple explosives in key places that were set up so they'd trigger in a chain, razing almost the entire city in a matter of seconds. I think you already know the perpetrators."

"That's… That's insane." Latia gasped at the thought.

"Crazy bastards." Jack spat out with hate.

"However, instead of an explosion rivaling nuclear bombs, everyone only had to deal with an earthquake. I say that's a good trade" Ajuka stated, closing the magic circle as he did so. Latia's confusion rose at that, only to finally realize what actually happened after enough mental gymnastics and linking the bits of information she was given.

"Since the entire circuit was made to act in a chain reaction, you used Delete Field in conjunction with your roar to disrupt the magic flow in a wide area, therefore interrupting the chain and stopping it prematurely?" Latia took a calculated guess as she stared at the Dragon with that same curious stare.

"You're smart, anyone told you that?" he complimented and chuckled but shook his head. "As much as I want to take credit for that, I didn't know what they had in store, so I only wanted to quick-fire it to make the collateral damage smaller. It was due to the fact that I was hit by some kind of Dragon Slayer effect that the result was that strong, since it activated my fight or flight instinct." Jack explained, but didn't complain. It was a lucky moment.

"You can actually use Sacred Gears like that?" the blonde asked, her eyes sparkling again.

"It depends on its functions and your own creativity." Jack shrugged. Vritra's main thing was his cunning and tactical mind. It's why none of the other Dragon Kings ever took him lightly despite being the weakest in raw strength.

"That was my next point, they were expecting you" Ajuka spoke up again, earning their attention. "Asides the Dragon Slayer effects of the explosives, everything was sprinkled with some powder made to counteract someone's sense of smell. Those two bits could be done by practically anyone, but it's the next point that makes me think a descendant of Asmodeus was the mastermind behind this all. That's why I am here in the first place. I placed multiple magic wards across key points in Devil Territory in the Human World and the Underworld. One of those wards in Berlin picked up the activation of one of Asmodeus' Clan Traits, Spatial Tear" he continued, frowning at that. "It actually bypassed at first, but the second activation was picked up."

And that bomb made the two go silent. Even if one was for the sake of not letting his anger leak more than shock, something that was easily noticed.

Spatial Tear was how the Old Satan Faction managed to stay out of sight for so long despite their rather bold actions, something that gave Ajuka problems to this day in terms of tracking, mostly due to the absence of good test subjects. But bit by bit, he was making progress, and the key was now here.

"At first they teleported the explosives in, then the soldiers aiming to take advantage of the chaos to sweep through." Jack sighed. "This was way too close to going all to shit."

"Thankfully, you two acted and stopped it from escalating. While not your initial intention, you helped us and you have my thanks for that." the former Astaroth thanked.

"I… Didn't do much. I was mostly extra there." as much as it pained to say, Latia couldn't deny the truth. She only watched from the sidelines.

"Hey, for what's worth. You saved me the trouble by being my witness to confirm I wasn't with those terrorists." Jack tuned in as he shrugged.

"And also confirmed that there's another descendant of Furfur alive." Ajuka added, making the host of Vritra click his tongue.

"Couldn't get out before that gets brought up, could I?" Jack asked in a self-mocking tone.

"No." was Ajuka's flat response.

"You won't reveal it to the Underworld, will you?" the Furfur descendant continued asking.

"Not the general public, I won't. It would cause too much of a commotion than what it's worth. However, the other Satans are a different topic altogether. Due to the scale of this attempted attack, it will be brought to attention, and while I'll help cover your tracks, you won't be unknown to us." Beelzebub assured him, which was all he could really do right now.

"That's better than nothing." Jack sighed again.

Most of his knowledge about the current Devils Society came second-hand, but he was aware of the basics at least. One of which was how his existence could be akin to a loud alarm at best and a hurricane at worst.

And that was before taking into account the Dragon inside of him.

'(You making me sound like a parasite)'

"How aware are you of your father's life in the Underworld during his days?" Ajuka moved the topic, still as calm as before, trying to cross check some theories.

"He was the ace of the Furfur Clan in their time as a King Pillar House. He was presumed dead in the aftermath of the Devil Civil War, which started the downfall of the Furfur Clan until it hit damn near rock bottom." Jack summarized his knowledge, earning a nod.

"Anything else? Events or Friends?"

"No."

"How old are you?"

"18"

"What's your relationship with the Grigori?"

"Acquaintances. Bumped into Fallen a couple of times but nothing serious, few actually broke into fights."

"Hmm…"

Ajuka rubbed his chin as he stared at Jack with a calculating look. Jack on the other hand looked towards Latia, who was awkwardly standing on the side thanks to not wanting to interrupt the talk and raised an eyebrow at the attention shift.

"Do all you Astaroths do this?" he asked bluntly, making Latia even more confused, before pointing towards Ajuka who clearly didn't care about anyone else in the room as numbers ran through his mind.

The question made the girl giggle. "Uncle specifically. There's rumours that the reason he's still single is because any woman that actually dated him would suddenly get ignored." and the answer made the boy laugh.

"Gossiping about someone when they're in the same room as you, I thought you were raised better than this young lady." Ajuka chided as he went back to normal, but there wasn't any actual anger in his voice.

The Fake Beelzebub coughed into his hand before turning towards Jack with a serious expression.

"I won't ask why you're hunting the Old Satans, even if I have my theories, nor will I force you to the Underworld. Instead, I have a proposal." Ajuka stated as he focused solely on the Furfur, who perked up at that and motioned for him to continue. "You're currently a freelancer who takes up jobs both to clean up messes left by the Devils or Stray Magicians but also pick up on any trail of the Old Satans. However, that's not exactly efficient or effective due to your nature."

"Get to the point." Jack urged as he crossed his arms.

"Work with me." Ajuka offered.

Jack practically heard glass shattering in his head at that, and Vritra wasn't at fault this time. Given Latia's expression, she wasn't expecting this either.

"The Old Satans hate me, my guts, anything and anyone related to me." Ajuka took the silence as a reason to explain himself. "This combined with my own tracking of their movement gives you a lot higher chances to actually find any whiff of them."

"This…" Jack was unsure how to respond.

"I'm not asking you to be stuck with me 24/7 nor join my Peerage. However, I am asking to run errands for me if necessary. In the meantime, I will provide any relevant information I may come across regarding the Old Satans." Beelzebub clarified. "Whether it's revealed you're a Furfur or not is entirely dependent on your choices and course of action."

"And what about the coverup?" Jack asked doubtful. Politicians were very prone to sticking their nose into other people's business. Especially so if they were Devils.

"We'll use this incident. You were a Sacred Gear user captured by the Old Satan Faction and brought here to rampage through, but rebelled and stopped them with help from Latia Astaroth. Afterwards, you became her servant and are standing by her side as her Queen Piece." Ajuka provided the lie, but Latia gasped when she heard it, making one of Ajuka's eyebrows rise. "Something wrong?"

"No! It's just… Uh- Why me?" Latia eventually managed to ask.

"Phew, ok, it was due to her insecurities, not because of me." Jack said sarcastically as he wiped his forehead, making Latia's cheeks light up.

Before she could fire back and prove it was indeed because of him, Ajuka interrupted. "That would explain why he is both a Devil and a Dragon without any problems. As for why you specifically, you're practically my assistant in my lab whenever you're available. Additionally, you're not a heiress so you're not as preoccupied with politics, so having you both paired together is the perfect setup."

Latia was silent, before turning towards Jack, who was staring at her without much worry.

"I'm in this if you're down. But don't expect much of that chivalry stuff from me though." Jack made it clear from the start.

"You're way too casual about this." she remarked slightly concerned, earning a grin as he leaned back on the couch, putting his feet on the table one over the other and hands behind his head.

"Going through things like dealing with terrorists tends to get people together fast. So, are we game, King?" the last word made her back tingle.

To this day, she was one of the only Devils that have Evil Pieces yet no actual Members, a fact that earned her a lot of bad rumours, but she didn't pay them any mind.

Some said she was just picky. Some said she was too afraid to actually make anyone a Servant because of comparisons to Diodora or Ajuka. Some said she outright detested the Evil Piece's existence.

While they all held some bit of truth, the actual reason was not her. It was the to-be Servant. It was not a matter of their strength, but their willingness to put up with this discriminatory society.

Very rarely was a Reincarnated Devil respected and she couldn't bring herself to force someone into this life. Even if he wouldn't actually become part of her Peerage, the Underworld wouldn't know this. And without his status of a Pillar House Member as protection, he would be subjected-

A whistle broke Latia out of her thoughts.

"If you're worried about the bad rep those stuck up brats will give you, don't worry, I'll burn them for you. I'm the expendable one here." Jack joked to reassure the girl, who only stared at him.

Jack didn't say anything else as he watched the blonde continue to stare, seemingly lost once again, before her gaze narrowed with nothing less than determination and conviction.

"It seems like we'll be stuck together for the time being, Furfur. I will do my best as a King, fake Servant or not."

"Just Jack is fine. Besides, we're not supposed to use the F-word. And no, its not fuck."

A giggle was his reward for the joke.

"Then call me Latia from here on."

A rare smile appeared on Ajuka's face as he looked at the two teenagers, before his gaze stayed on Jack for a bit longer

'He is just like you. A dumbass with a good heart.' He sighed before sitting up, drawing all attention back to himself. "Glad we agreed. I'll go and prepare the documents for your cover. Stay in the Human World until then." Beelzebub informed as he created a magic circle back towards the Underworld and left the two alone.

An awkward silence downed on the two. Well, more so on Latia as Jack just continued sitting there, eyes open but unfocused, as if sleeping.

'(So what's the plan this time?)' It was actually just Vritra using this chance to talk to his host.

'Make you famous.' Jack stated. If he couldn't use his Crimson Lightning then Vritra was gonna be his trademark.

'(Ha! Let's show them why we are to be feared!)' the Dragon King clearly approved of the idea.

'The question is how are we gonna play. Technique or just force our way through?' the host

"How about we ask each other questions one by one?" Latia's words made him end the conversation with the voice inside his head preemptively. "You know, to get to know each other better."

"Yeah, that works." Jack nodded as he straightened his posture on the couch as he looked at the blonde. "You got any hobbies?"

"Asides helping my uncle in his lab, I like reading books." she answered simply. "You?"

"Flying." the Dragon responded without pause.

"Flying?"

"Yeah. That's your 2nd question by the way."

"Wait-"

"The wind against me, the clouds beneath me. No limit in sight. I like it. I want to say it's because of my Dragon half, but I know it's not. It was there before it. Even before I could walk, I was able to fly... Mom always used to say I was born to soar through the skies." Jack explained, a nostalgic smile on his face at the end.

Latia was ready to change the subject, but he was faster.

"No worries on your mind. No weight on your shoulder. Just the feeling of freely traversing the sky. Have you ever flown like that?" he asked as he gave a glance towards the windows.

"No, I can't say I have."

"Do you want to try?"

Latia was taken back by the casual invitation accompanied by the grin on his face.

"Maybe another time."

"Pity. Any siblings?"

"No, I have a cousin however. His name is Diodora."

"Who and why would they name their son "deodorant"?"

Latia had to stop herself from bursting into laughter, but failed as some giggles still escaped through.

"Don't let them hear you say that. For your own sake and mine." the blonde suggested as she eventually calmed down.

"Not even 10 minutes on the job and I almost got my partner into trouble. That's a new record." Jack chuckled, but this actually brought up an old topic that Latia wanted to tackle.

"Uncle said you were a mercenary. Is that true?" she asked, making the Dragon shrug.

"Yes and no. Heard that bit about "Magic Hunter", yeah?" he received a nod "Well I'm kind of a glorified a Magician killer, the black noodle living inside me being a help to that-"

"Black noodle?" Latia interrupted, confusion across her face.

"-we get there when we get there! Ahem. So yeah, Magician killer. I was tracking down a group of strays, but I bumped into Mephisto's cronies who were aiming for the same people. We decided to work together and by the end of the whole thing I became Mephisto's speed dial solution to any problem that his members couldn't or didn't want to handle." the Furfur summarized how he got to meet and more or less befriended the Chairman of Grauzauberer.

"That's… Wow." out of all the possibilities, she didn't expect this. "And that black noodle?"

"(That'd be me blondie)"

Latia screamed at the new voice that came out of nowhere, Jack covering his ears so they didn't bleed. Enhanced hearing was not helpful in this situation.

"Satan almighty woman, are you part Banshee?" Jack screamed out himself as he let go of his ears.

"What was that!?" Latia demanded as she peaked her head out from behind the couch, her makeshift hiding spot.

"(HAHAHAHAHAHA- That was hilarious!)" Vritra, the cause of this entire mess, was having the time of his life. Or afterlife? It didn't matter, it was fun.

"Wha…" Latia mumbled, finally noticing where the voice was coming from. On the back of Jack's right hand, four glowing eye-like red dots were present.

"Latia, meet Vritra. Vritra, meet the nice lady who's our accomplice in this mess." the host introduced the victim to the offender.

"Wait wait wait! But I thought from all the monsters sealed in Sacred Gears, Vritra's soul was split… across… four…" the blonde was ready to start a long rant as to why this shouldn't be possible, before her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "You have all four of Vritra's Sacred Gears..."

Jack neither agreed nor denied, instead, he rose to his feet and spread his arms to the side. From his shoulder blades, four thin light blue tentacle-like appendages came out. In his palms, black purple flames sparked to life. By his feet, shadows were forming and rising upwards with the appearances of snakes. His normal red eyes became slit like a reptile's while their color changed to purple and the sclera became pitch black. Latia felt how the air in the room became more oppressive and her magic was feeling subdued.

"Amazing." Latia muttered as she got to her feet and stepped closer, slowly reaching out with her hand towards one of the darkness snakes.

On contact, Latia's hand only passed through the snake as it would through air. But to her surprise, the snake coiled around her hand, which she clearly felt.

'(She touched your snake)' Vritra commented with a laugh.

"Only person in history to actually do this." Jack added as he deactivated the Gears while ignoring the 10 year old humour, much to Latia's disappointment.

"But how? One should be only born with one Sacred Gear at most as far as I'm aware." Latia pressed on, curious about this new revelation. "Were you born with all four!?"

"Oh I wish! Would have made my life a lot easier. I had to manually track the other 3 down. Thankfully, the Gears react in the presence of another one." Jack complained.

"And what after?"

"Well, Vritra started waking up and recollected his memories. After which I started training extra with his supervision to learn how to use all four of them together flexibly." Jack shrugged as he recounted the literal hell that was supernatural multitasking. Moving himself, his tentacles, the shadows and the flames all at the same time. And that was the easiest part.

There was the bit where he transformed his Human side into a Dragon's with the Dragon King's help, but that was not as important at the moment.

"What about the Sacred Gears themselves? Did they change in any shape?" Latia's inner scientist woke up once more at this gold mine.

"Kinda?" Jack responded, unsure himself. "No real changes aside from how they became less taxing as a whole. I did however manage to change 2 of them manually to a degree."

"Those being?"

"Absorption Line and Delete Field" the Dragon host raised two fingers. "I learned to make the tentacles come out of other parts of my body while the latter I turned into a personal On and Off thing to hide myself."

On cue, Jack's demonic and draconic aura disappeared, making him appear like nothing more than a normal human.

"Doesn't work on heightened senses however. Learned that the hard way." Jack shivered slightly, making the blonde even more curious.

"Bad memories?"

"Yeah, Yokai bite. A lot. And hard."

The two shared a laugh at the Furfur's misfortune.

"So, Crimson Lightning and those four fun toys mixed with melee combat are my thing." Jack listed off his arsenal, getting back on topic. "Your turn."

"Ah. Well, outside of my two Clan Traits, I haven't really made much progress with… Anything really." Latia admitted slightly embarrassed. Not like she had that much mastery with those two powers either.

"It's a start. I know one is that Astaroth nerd thing. The other?"

"Akashic Analysis." Latia corrected him with a slight glare. "The other is Agares' Temporal Control."

Jack whistled. "Damn woman, ain't you a bomb in the making?"

"Excuse me?" the blonde responded, offended. She didn't know if that was actually a compliment or not, earning an eye roll.

"You can not only precisely analyze the situation, opponent and whatever ability they throw at you but also affect damn time. That sounds like the start of a recipe for Chaos in my book." the Dragon explained his point.

"It's not absolute though. Neither of those are, they're proportional to my strength." Latia countered.

"So? Just get stronger." Jack said simply.

"Easy for you to say. I saw how you were grinning and acting while dealing with those Old Satan Faction members, you were enjoying yourself. You love getting in fights, but that kind of thing is not for me." she retorted while crossing her arms.

"Yeah, guilty as charged. It helps me cope with my own insecurities and the Dragon blood doesn't help." the black haired Devil snorted, not even bothering to deny the accusation. "But you know, if we do stick together, I ain't letting you slack behind."

"Huh?" Latia suddenly lost all momentum in the conversation.

"I suck at anything involving team fighting while you suck at fighting in general. We're a 2 person team from now on, and if we do this, we're doing it right. You're a smart cookie so you understand what I mean." Jack bluntly stated.

"You want to… train me?" the blonde put 2 and 2 together.

"I don't want to train you. I want to train with you, big difference." the Dragon shook his head.

Latia was silent as the two stared at each other. That would be the smart move, learning to work together and get to progress-

"Don't worry, I promise it will help you thin out."

And someone had to ruin the serious mood with a joke.

"I'm not fat!" the female shouted out, offended, again.

"Debatable! All those calories are just going somewhere else- Ow." Jack didn't properly finish as he was smacked on the head by a folded fan.

"Shut up!" Latia glared at the Devil while holding the fan she just summoned in a threatening manner, but it wasn't that intimidating due to the fact her face was bright red.

"So like, are they natural or- Ow. Yeah, they bounce- Ow. Ok! No more boobs talk- Ow."

This partnership was going to be a headache and no amount of etiquette and social talk lessons could prepare Latia for this.

Following that back and forth banter, in which Jack continuously added fuel to the fire until Latia eventually gave up, the servants of the Mansion were updated on the situation and Jack. The fake version, obviously.

Since Ajuka didn't come back or send any message, the duo remained in the Human World with the excuse they were supervising until further notice from the Astaroth Clan.

Which led to this moment.

"I will say it again sir Jack, this is not your duty. You should be resting at this hour."

"I will say it again, it's just some eggs and coffee. Also cut it with the "sir" thing!"

Jack argued with the servants first thing in the morning because he was adamant about making his own breakfast. Nothing against them, just a personal thing.

The maid wanted to continue arguing, but dropped it as there was nothing she could do anymore. Dragons were stubborn by nature and he was already done anyways.

"I don't wish to hear Lady Latia worry over the fact that her Queen is not eating enough." the maid said sternly and took her spot in the kitchen, starting to prepare the breakfast.

"Don't worry, I've gone days with less than this." Jack said nonchalantly as he sat down at the table, starting to peel one of the eggs he boiled moments ago.

He noticed how the maid slowed down briefly as she sent a sympathetic glance his way, before going back to work.

'(She probably thought that you were barely fed during your time "as a prisoner for the Old Satan Faction". Imagine if she found out it was just you being neglectful)' Vritra laughed at the potential misunderstanding.

'Not my fault.' he waved the accusation away as he threw the peeled egg into his mouth and started eating it whole, peeling the next one as he did so.

'(Yeah whatever. You know, why not enjoy the comfort for once? I mean, you got people around thinking you're now their boss' right hand)' the Dragon brought up a topic of discussion while his host ate away, the normal morning procedure for them.

'I don't see why you'd care about that now, you didn't before.' Jack wondered as he started eating the second egg before grabbing the coffee cup.

'(Because you were constantly on the move searching like a madman, but now you're stuck with that blondie)' Vritra's tone was the same snarky one, but the seriousness in it was obvious.

'It's not permanent. Better not get used to it.' the host responded while sipping his coffee.

'(That's what you said last time. Gonna say it next time too? You will most likely head to the Underworld, your father's birthplace. You really are not even slightly curious about your Clan's current condition?)' Vritra scoffed.

'You can just read my mind.' the host snarked as he started sipping his coffee.

'(Well I want to hear you say it. As much as you hate it, it's your father's legacy)' the Dragon argued.

'Yeah, a broken one and I doubt anyone would actually support a half-breed.' Jack countered.

'(If so, what after once this cover blows?)'

'Clean up the Satan descendants.'

'(And after that?)'

'Put their heads on a pike for display on my new front lawn.'

'(And if your heritage gets revealed to the Underworld?)'

'Fuck'em.'

'(You're tunnel visioning again)' Vritra rolled his eyes... somehow. This definitely wasn't the first time this topic came up.

'We'll find something. We always do.' Jack shrugged the worry off.

'(Somehow, we do. Thoughts on blondie?)'

'She has potential. She can definitely pack a big punch if she actually puts her mind to it and will be annoying to actually get rid of. Definitely a big threat if she was a little more violent.' Jack listed. He noticed that the pacifists tended to have the most potential to become monsters.

'(I meant as a person you maniac)' Vritra clarified. Sometimes he wondered if he really was the Evil Dragon between the two of them.

'Easy to get along with, not socially awkward but easily embarrassed if I hit the right spot and willing to put up with my shit. Whether that's because she actually stomachs me or because of Ajuka, no idea.' the host listed off the other set of traits he picked up from yesterday.

'(No funny thoughts, why am I not surprised?)' the Dragon asked anyways despite knowing the answer will most likely-

'I use her for cover. She uses me to increase her Clan's and her personal prestige. Once this is done we shake hands and go our own ways.'

-be that. The same "it's just business" excuse. It got very old, very fast.

'(Forget I asked. I'll go take a nap.)'

'This early in the morning?' Jack was genuinely surprised at the declaration. Vritra rarely "slept" through the day, and when it did happen it was mostly because Jack pushed his Sacred Gears too hard.

He didn't get any response as he felt the mental link get severed. It was only then that he realized there was another person at the table eating breakfast.

"Good morning." Latia greeted as soon as she noticed that Jack stopped spacing out. She wore a light green nightgown with blue accents, her long hair loose and draped over her shoulders with not even a strand out of place.

"Morning princess." the Dragon greeted back as he started gathering all the eggshells on the table.

"Not a fan of royalties?" Latia asked as she eyed the clear difference in their meal. Some boiled eggs to an entire plate filled with food.

"Got an earful because of it, yeah." Jack admitted as he got up from his seat and went towards the small trash can in the corner.

"Uncle sent us an update. He finished the preparations and we are to head to the Underworld as soon as possible to meet him." the blonde spoke.

"That fast?" Jack dropped the eggshells into the trash as he raised an eyebrow.

"He's the creator of the Evil Pieces, so it's easy to make false files and modify the system slightly." Latia explained as she sat up from the table as well. She noticed Jack's smirk, which confused her.

She looked down and saw her empty plate. It took a second to understand what was so amusing as her face lit up and gaze swapped back towards her Fake Queen, who's smirk only grew wider. "Don't you dare."

"Heh."

Latia fake coughed into her hand. "I have to prepare some things and we'll be leaving immediately after that."

"Need my help?" the Dragon offered as he picked his cup and finished his coffee.

"You can't do much sadly. Just pack your stuff…" she trailed off as she looked at Jack, who was wearing the same outfit as yesterday. "You… Don't have anything to pack."

"100 points. Fits my like, I can repair it and it doesn't draw too much attention." he shrugged, causing the girl to sweatdrop.

After Latia was done fixing the paperwork on her end the two Devils set out for the Underworld, which contrary to what Jack believed, was legally done by magical trains, at least for the first time. However, this was clearly not Latia's first time in the Underworld and Jack was not a big person for legality, combined with having one of the Satans call for them, a magic circle to teleport to the Astaroth Clan's territory was the answer.

Despite being just a Branch Family Member, Latia's word still carried a lot of weight due to the simple fact she was a Pure Blooded Devil and the abysmal birth rates. Truthful to that, Latia quickly got hold of one of the Astaroth Clan's personal trains, which could fly by the way, and set out for the Underworld's Capital, Lilith.

During the train ride, Jack kept idly looking out through the window.

He was… Unsure.

The Underworld didn't look like anything the Bible made it out to be, but it wasn't that interesting either, for him at least. If he didn't know any better he'd guess this was just the Human World. The mass of land which rivaled a big island brimmed with demonic energy down below, a telltale sign of multiple Devils inhabiting the area, most definitely Low-Class servants given their strength.

The black haired Devil swapped from looking down at the Astaroth Territory to the sky, a longing glint in his eyes.

"Flying and Teleportation are forbidden in the Underworld unless you have approval from the territory owner or have reached the rank of an Ultimate-Class Devil." Latia said, noticing his gaze.

"And what's the point of having those powers if you can't even use them?" Jack wanted to groan as soon as he heard that.

"After the Civil War, rules like this were reinforced to stop Devils from being all over the place." the blonde explained, her mood dropping slightly. "A lot of Clans and territories were razed to the ground by both sides teleporting some of their strongest fighters into enemy lines to act as walking nukes."

"And the flying?"

"When all the Devils fly towards the Capital of the Underworld, a new king was born or war is upon us." Latia quoted.

"Talk about parades."

Latia nodded at that while Jack continued to stare out the window. The train ride went on smoothly with the blonde dropping some trivia facts here and there when she could, like how Devils came to the Astaroth territory to take their Promotion Exams. Sadly, that only solidified the fact she was a nerd in Jack's mind.

Eventually, Lilith came into view. It looked like a normal Victorian-style city from above, minus its massive proportions, but the giant castle in the middle of it stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Welcome to the Capital of the Underworld." Latia said with pride as the train started lowering itself from the sky and entered a train station. "We'll go on foot from here."

With that note the two got off and headed into the city. Seeing the Victorian city up close finally gave the vibe that this place actually meant business, and during their walk Jack noticed the mixed gazes they received. Some were curious, some surprised, some indifferent and just watching out so they didn't bump into each other, but most of those had one thing in common, they were focused on Latia, who despite this walked straight with no hesitation in her steps.

'Well would you look at that. Color me surprised.' Jack thought as he watched his partner deal with attention way better than he expected.

'(While you were training, she was busy learning how to deal with high society)' Vritra spoke up again all of the sudden.

'Well look who's damn back!'

'(Just checking to see your progress. Not that good, but I believe in you)' the Dragon said before cutting the mental link again.

"Mother-" Jack stopped himself when he realized he almost cursed out loud, only to see Latia shooting him a look of question. "-of Satan, this place is cool."

"Oh. Yeah, Lilith is the center of everything. From trading to learning and even just tourism." Latia provided extra information.

"And where exactly are we going?" the Dragon asked.

"Right here." was the blonde's response as she stopped in front of a giant building that dwarfed the other ones in the area, and unlike them, it had hints of modern architecture instead of pure Victorian era. A sign that read "Ajuka Rating Game Headquarters" was present above the entrance.

"I still don't get what's up with Devils and naming things after themselves though." Jack voiced out as he whistled at the building.

"It's supposed to be a display of authority. From what uncle told me, the government demanded his name be added so he just stuck it in front of the original." Latia explained as they entered the building.

Once they entered, the receptionist was ready to robotically repeat the same welcoming line, but when he saw it was Latia, he smiled slightly. "Good afternoon Lady Latia." he then noticed Jack following close behind. "And this is?"

Latia was ready to respond with "My friend". But was that accurate? They barely knew each other, despite being definitely more familiar and open than just mere acquaintances.

"My partner" was also out of the question. It was too easily misinterpreted.

So with that, "associate" was probably the safest bet-

"I'm her Queen." Jack said bluntly, causing Latia to shiver for a brief moment. She was still not used to that.

Thankfully, it was missed by the receptionist as he widened his eyes at the revelation, before looking at the Astaroth, as if asking for a confirmation, at which she nodded.

"I… Congratulations. Glad to see you finally got out of that shell of yours." the receptionist nodded with a smile on his face.

Latia didn't say anything else and quickly went ahead, Jack raising an eyebrow but didn't question it as he followed.

Just like the receptionist, any staff they met greeted Latia before going on with their work, not forgetting to throw a curious glance his way.

It was only then that Jack realized why Ajuka called them here instead of just doing a call or a private meeting. He wanted his existence to be recognized as Latia's Queen to save the trouble later down the line. Rumours tend to spread like wildfire.

Then again, this was the man who manipulated the Laws of the World. Clearly not the most amazing thing he did in his life.

Eventually, the two reached the door leading to Ajuka's personal laboratory, which Latia pushed open without hesitation. Many devices lined the walls along with tables placed all around, each holding different things. Inside, they saw Ajuka, who looked their way and nodded at their presence, but he wasn't alone.

Inside the room were two more people. One of them was a handsome blond man with blue eyes in his thirties who was wearing a black nobleman attire. The other was a beautiful young woman with cherry pink hair and emerald green eyes wearing a high cut formal black dress, additionally, two curved horns were protruding from the sides of her head.

The man grumbled and turned towards the door with a glare, ready to lash out at the idiot who dared to interrupt his talk with the Satan, only for the words to die in his throat as he recognized Latia. As if a switch was pressed, he smiled towards the girl.

"Ah, young Latia, what a pleasure to meet you here." the man greeted, causing the pink haired woman to giggle, earning a stink eye.

"Sir Bedeze. Lady Roygun." Latia greeted the two Devils professionally.

"Oh please, no need to be so formal when it's just us." the woman, Roygun, giggled. Clearly however, Bedeze wasn't of the same opinion, but didn't voice it, mostly due to Ajuka still being there despite his silence.

Bedeze then moved his stare towards Jack, looking him up and down with a focused glare but caught the slight fidgets done by the Astaroth. "Is this your newest piece?"

"...Yes." Latia forced out the response.

"Hmph. Not bad." Bedeze "complimented" Latia before focusing back on Jack, who didn't look the slightest bit intimidated by the blond man. "Listen well, you should remember what I'm going to say. You have had the honor of being brought into our beautiful society by the Astaroth Clan, and by extension, to participate in the Rating Games. They are a noble's thing which only the upper class have any reason to even try and participate, so you, a Low-Class Reincarnated Devil should-"

"Oh for fuck's sake, do you have a mute button?"

Silence dropped on everyone in the room. Ajuka didn't seem surprised in the slightest, calmly watching. Latia's eyes were wide as her mouth hung open. As much as she hated that speech, that was way too blunt. Roygun just covered her mouth with her hand to hide the fact it curled into an amused smile.

As for Bedeze?

He had the same reaction as Latia, except his mouth closed shut while eyes burned with rage instantly after.

"What was that brat?" the man asked as demonic power started leaking from him.

Latia raised her hand and stepped forward, ready to interfere, only for Roygun to grab her by the shoulder and gently pull her back, shaking her head while smiling.

"Don't ruin the show now." was all the horned Devil said before focusing back on the two males.

The blonde looked towards her uncle, who was still as relaxed, but just like Roygun, was also interested in how the argument will turn out.

"Are you turning deaf already, old man? I asked you if you can shut up." the Dragon responded without fear as demonic energy leaked out from him too, halting Bedeze's one to a stop as the pressure in the room grew.

"Mind your tongue, boy. You're standing before a Champion of the Rating Games." Bedeze warned as his aura kept increasing, the floor beneath him starting to crack.

"Right… the titles of Champion handed out to the Top 3 in the Rating Games…" Jack trailed off as he looked to the side, his demonic aura receding ever so slowly.

Bedeze grinned. He got this unaware youngster exactly where he wanted. Pressing the attack, his aura increased one final time.

"Glad you finally realized your place-"

"So if I beat you, I'll be called a Champion too?"

"What…?" Bedeze's thoughts were killed off by that sudden question.

"I asked-" Jack turned his head to face the blond man, who was taken back by the vertical slits that became his pupils while draconic energy burst out and mixed with his demonic aura, matching Bedeze's own instantly and pushing it back. "If I beat you, will I become a Champion?"

The cracks in the floor continued appearing and spreading, as if a spider web.

"There is a very thin line between bravery and stupidity, Dragon, and you are currently threading on the wrong side of it." Bedeze spat out.

"Oh I'm so scared. You know, I can run my mouth just as much as you, except when I do it, people actually regret it." Jack shot back.

The 3rd Ranked Champion's rage only grew at that as he watched the Dragon grin. He was ready to continue, but stopped as he gave a side glance towards Ajuka, who still hasn't said anything but was actively paying attention.

Bedeze looked towards Jack and scoffed, stopping the release of his power. He then turned towards Latia, disappointed. "You should be careful. Others won't be as merciful as I am."

"Hey, dirtbag. I said all those things, not her. What? Afraid of actually getting your hands dirty and would rather play the politician? No wonder your breath smells like wine and shit." Jack continued poking at the blond man, who was almost ready to lash at him.

Almost.

"A servant's actions are their King's actions. And you, lizard, are putting yours in a bad light. I'd watch my manners and learn my place if I were you." Bedeze spat the advice out as he fixed his suit. "Good day Beelzebub"

And with that note, he left the laboratory.

"Impressive." Roygun said as she watched Jack. "Not many would have the guts to talk like that to Bedeze, especially the first time meeting him."

"Not many actually have a spine in this world." Jack waved the compliment off, making the woman giggle. "I just didn't like him."

"He's right though, you know? Can't act like that unless you want your cute little master here to suffer." Roygun teased as she poked Latia's side, who tried to move away from the woman but failed as her shoulder was grabbed again.

"And who's gonna talk about this to the public?" Jack laughed.

Roygun grinned.

"I like him already. You have made a very good catch, Latia." Roygun let go of the girl, who was blushing, as she stepped closer to the Dragon. "I only wonder if you actually have what it takes to go through with what you say…"

"Wanna try and see?"

"Ufufu. Ah, young men, so full of energy." the horned Devil giggled before walking past him and towards the door, where she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "I'm looking forward to how you and Latia will perform in the Rating Games."

With that note, she left, making the number of occupants drop to three.

"So how is that for power? Too much or too little?" Jack asked suddenly as he turned towards Ajuka.

"A little excessive, but we can excuse it with you being half Dragon and your background." the Beelzebub answered as he flicked his wrist, a magic circle forming and flashed as all the damage done to the laboratory was fixed.

"Why were they here? I thought it was supposed to be just us." Latia asked, not understanding this sudden turn of events.

"One of Bedeze's Rooks Mutated today and he demanded a talk with me when he found out I'll be here. Roygun tagged along because she's Roygun." Ajuka explained flatly as he opened a drawer and started searching through it.

As they saw Ajuka digging through, Latia looked at Jack and addressed the problem.

"Did you really have to argue with Bedeze like that though?" she questioned as she took a seat down near one of the tables

"He pissed me off." the Dragon shrugged.

"And Roygun?"

"She's funny."

Latia sighed. She really couldn't say anything about that, Roygun had this weird charismatic effect about her.

What she could say was how she hated it when she was the target of her teasing. No debate.

Ajuka finished searching the drawer and threw a folder towards Jack, who caught it and read the cover. Immediately, he understood what it was.

The name "Jack Schwarz" was written in bold words in the middle.

"Really? "Schwarz"?" the Dragon asked as the former Astaroth raised an eyebrow

"You don't like it?"

"I mean, it fits. But really? Nothing else?"

"If it works, no point searching for anything else."

"Tsk." Jack clicked his tongue and opened the folder, reading his own entry. Nothing was out of the norm.

"I talked with Mephisto and covered most of your tracks while acting as the Magic Hunter. If it does get figured out it was you, we'll still use the same excuse that you were captured and forced into servitude-" Ajuka started.

"Before I was rescued and now, fully ready to repay that kindness, I am serving the Astaroth Clan and punching anyone that looks funny at Latia." Jack finished before sighing.

He closed the folder and looked at its cover.

This was it. The point of no return.

Everything until now was still somewhat salvageable if he decided to abort, but not after this.

And all of this was done for one, singular and simple reason.

'I will find you Old Satans. And when I do, there will be hell to pay.'

Hello there random reader on the internet and welcome back to this dumpster fire.

Surprise motivation is surprising, so here's the 1st (technically 2nd) Chapter of Broken Legacy, which probably brought more questions than it answered.

I'll say it right now. The Villains in DxD mostly SUCK. In all caps, yes. They have awesome potential, but it boils down to Annoying Group of Idiots A, B and C while just escalating the level. Rarely does it actually feel threatening.

So yeah, Villains are actually gonna be a problem. I refuse to believe the extremist idiots that were the Old Satan Faction in Canon could have went that long without getting dunked on before the series picked up due to how much of a mess they were. Yeah yeah, Khaos Brigade and all that. Still not enough of an answer.

When it comes to Chapter Length, it will fluctuate. Sometimes you'll see 6k, others 8k, maybe even 10k+, which will mostly depend both on my mood but also what's supposed to happen in said Chapter, for example in this one, the transition to working as a Fake Servant after a deal with Ajuka, which I could have made a lot shorter if I tried rushing it, but not my cup of tea. What I will say however is that you will never see a Chapter below 5k words, so that's the minimum.

Next time, actual life in hell.

Thanks for your time, and hopefully, until next time.