Diodora Astaroth could not wait for what was about to come. Today was a party hosted by Gremory and Phenex clans, which meant all the devils in the Kuoh would be gone, leaving the helpless nun to be captured, brainwashed and added to his collection. There, he would use her, abuse her, make her into his own personal cum dump, just as he did before, as evidenced by the peerage behind him.
All of them were former holy maidens, dressed in outfits of their former roles. Brainwashed, obedient, all dressed in the same blue outfit in white accents. They were nothing more but broken shells, toys to be used by him. After all, there was not a better thing than seeing them with expressions of pain, sadness and despair, something he would teach Asia soon, if it all went according to plan.
"Split up everyone and bring me Asia," He ordered, while his puppets split up to look for the nun.
It should be easy enough, find sacred gear user, which was easy to detect, kidnap her and then have some fun with her later on. Overall, it shouldn't have taken more than an hour at most, the devil floating in the sky far above Kuoh. However, as the time passed, it's peerage returned empty handed, making the man scowl as he glared at his peerage.
"Where is Asia?" He hissed.
"We couldn't find her, Lord Astaroth," His queen, a woman with gray hair and green eyes.
"What do you mean you couldn't find her? She is a human for fuck's sake!" He yelled with a scowl.
"Perhaps she left on a trip or somewhere else?" One of his rooks suggested.
"Where…? Where could she have gone?!" He demanded, looking really annoyed.
"We don't know, Lord Astaroth," They replied.
"That girl… where could she have gone to?" Diodora hissed. "Well, at least I am not at that worthless party of Gremory and Phenex, would be an utter waste of time..."
The Knight made itself comfortable on a chair, sitting between Koneko and Asia, as the servants brought food to a massive wooden table. Food of variety the Knight did not recognize was brought, along with beverages, including alcohol, juices and such. Chicken, beef, soups, just to name a few. It could see a soup in front of it, but it wasn't really hungry on account of being a vessel.
As it considered what to do, two adult females, including Lady Phenex and Lady Gremory stood on a pedestal of some kind, before the former one began speaking, "Welcome everyone to this humble party hosted by Phenex and Gremory clans alike, we hope you find it enjoyable."
"We have already seen quite a spectacular performance by some of our guests and we have been informed of a friendly spar, which will take place in a couple of hours, until then, please enjoy yourself," Venelana said.
"I wonder who is fighting with who?" Asia asked as she put a finger on her lip.
"We will see soon enough, Asia, until then let us enjoy ourselves," Sona replied, before turning towards other devils around. "Is there anything you would like to do after the meal, everyone?"
"Saji, would you like to dance with me?" Ruruko asked, while the boy nodded.
"Sure, although I can't dance the same way Knight," He replied.
"That's fine with me, what about you, Tomoe?" She asked.
"I am going to spend some time with Reya and Tsubasa here," She replied, while the two other girls nodded.
"Ara ara, I think I would like to dance with you, Knight, that last dance was quite fascinating," Akeno said with a smile.
"… I refuse," It said, while Akeno blinked.
"Oh my, is that because we don't know each other that well?" She asked, while the Knight nodded.
"… It is," The Knight replied.
"Perhaps I can provide some sort of entertainment myself, Akeno?" Kiba asked, while Akeno giggled.
"Thank you, Kiba, you're such a gentleman," Akeno replied.
"I can dance as well!" Issei said, but everyone bar Rias ignored him, who only sighed in response.
"May I ask for a dance as well, Yuuto?" Tsubaki asked, while the boy nodded with a smile.
"Of course, Tsubaki," He replied and turned towards Rias. "What about you, President?"
"I have got an idea. Sona, would like to go and take a look around, see if there is anything interesting?" Rias suggested.
"I don't mind that," Sona replied and turned to Momo. "Momo, is there anything you would like to do yourself?"
"I think I will figure something out, President," She replied and turned towards Tomoe. "Tomoe, can I join you as well?"
"Sure, the more the merrier," Tomoe replied with a smile, while the other girl nodded.
"… What about you, Koneko, Asia?" The Knight asked, as the group decided to split itself up.
"Well… I don't know what to do here, to be honest, I don't know many people here," Asia replied. "So… I guess, I could stay here with you?"
"I would like to do that too," Koneko added, the two looking at each other.
"Greetings once again, everyone," Ravel greeted as she walked up with Riser to them.
"Greetings," Riser added. "I hope you're enjoying yourself."
"We are, Riser and Miss Ravel, the meals are top notch," Sona replied.
"We are glad to hear that," Ravel said with a smile, her eyes stopping for a moment on the Knight.
"Everyone…," Rias began with a grin. "You're quite famous, aren't you?"
"What do you mean, Rias?" Sona asked.
"Take a look, everyone, the dance is on the Devilnet," Rias exclaimed and 9took out her phone.
Momo, Koneko, Ravel and Sona snapped to it, while Asia blinked not sure what it meant. The rest soon followed as two videos called, "Grimm Dance'' and "Nightmare Dance" were being played on the phone. There, the Knight could see itself dancing with each of its partners, fascinated by the moves it made. It didn't know it could dance, but it looked more like a fight than a dance, definitely not something it could in a day, without practice. However, this paled to reactions of the five girls it danced with.
Sona's eyes spread wide open, blushing heavily, her fists clenched. Momo looked just as horrified, a similar amount of blush on her face, as she whipped out her own phone to find who was the dumbass that posted the dance without their permission. Koneko's fists were clenched as she looked around to figure out who recorded them, a healthy blush on her face. Ravel was just as horrified, her brother scowling as he noticed that someone dared to post a video of his sister dancing with Knight without her permission. He whipped out his own phone, as he tried to figure out who was responsible for it. As for Ravel herself, she was blushing, but she was taking it surprisingly well. The one who seemed to be in awe was Asia, as she looked happily as seeing her own dance, not understanding what it meant for her.
"… So, that's how I danced…," The Knight muttered, as he watched the full video.
"Well, Sona, I believe you might gain a few more followers, same as everyone else in the video," Rias teased.
"Don't be ridiculous, Rias," She protested. "The video is focused on Knight, isn't it?"
"Maybe, but I doubt it will go unnoticed," She replied with a happy smile.
"Hang on… If I were to dance as well as Knight, I could get famous, girls would swoon over me and then I would get a harem!" Issei exclaimed, with his fists clenched, the girls looking as disgusted as before.
"Pervert," Koneko muttered.
"That's so fun, where can I watch this video myself?" Asia asked, her eyes shining as she watched the dances.
"It's on the Devilnet, Miss Asia," Ravel said, while Asia blinked.
"Devilnet…? What is that?" She asked, while Ravel blinked in response.
"Do you not know what the Devilnet is, Miss Argento?" Ravel asked, while Asia nodded her head.
"I will handle it, Miss Ravel," Sona suggested and tapped Asia on the shoulder. "Asia, would you like me to explain the concept of the Devilnet to you?"
"If you could," Asia asked, while Sona nodded and began explaining the concept of the internet.
"I really want to punch whoever posted that video," Momo said.
"Same here," Koneko muttered.
"I would not be unhappy with the result," Ravel added.
"I am going to find that bastard who did that," Riser growled.
"… Does it really matter?" The Knight asked, while others glanced towards it. "It's just a video."
"It's not just a video, everyone in the Underworld will see it," Momo explained.
"… So?" It asked, not sure what it meant.
"Well, outside of many more devils knowing about Asia, it's going to make you famous as well, the only upside is that you aren't a devil," She explained.
"… Marriage proposals?" It guessed, while Sona nodded. "Bothersome."
"It is, in any event, let's not cry over spilled milk, everyone," Sona suggested.
"I agree with Miss Sitri," Ravel added, her composure regained. "Regardless, all that is left is the duel between Sairaorg Bael and Knight here, which will probably gather as much attention."
"What…?" Rias asked, not able to believe her ears, all looking at Ravel. "Knight is fighting Sairaorg? What is the meaning of this, Miss Ravel?"
"Mister Bael requested a friendly spar between him and Knight here, that's all there is to it," Ravel replied. "Was I not supposed to say that?"
"Knight, why did you decide to accept the challenge?" Sona asked, her eyes narrowed.
"… I wanted to fight somebody strong," It replied, while Sona sighed, feeling a headache coming up.
"Knight, how do you keep getting yourself into trouble like that?" She asked.
"… I don't know," It replied with a shrug. "Is it bad?"
"Yes, think about it, the fight will be recorded, it will be released to the Devilnet, when that happens…," Sona began, while Knight blinked as it realized what it meant.
"… A lot of marriage proposals? More than before?" It asked, while Sona nodded. "Bothersome."
"Is it possible to prevent recording of the video?" Momo asked.
"It won't matter much, I am afraid," Ravel replied. "With the number of devils on the party, it will travel by word of mouth one way or another."
"But, Knight is not a devil, isn't he?" Asia pointed out.
"The devils don't know that," Ravel replied. "At least, for now. Once it becomes public, it should help."
"… Why not make it public now?" The Knight suggested, while others turned towards it.
"What do you mean by that, Knight?" Ravel asked.
"… Can I make an announcement in the middle of the hall?" It asked.
"That's… hmm… I believe I can make it work, please wait here," Ravel said, excused herself and left along with Riser.
"Knight, are you doing this now to save yourself trouble?" Sona asked.
"… It should make it easier, shouldn't it?" It replied, while Sona sighed.
"Can't you turn it down?" Koneko asked.
"… I don't want to, I would like to fight," It replied, while Koneko looked straight in it's eyes.
"Be careful," She pleaded, while the Knight nodded.
"… I will, worst case scenario, I will die," It replied with a shrug, others looking at it like it lost it's head.
"Don't even joke like that, Knight!" Momo chided.
"… I wasn't, just pointing out the obvious," It replied, while Sona, Momo, Koneko and Asia just frowned in response.
"Regardless, Knight, just don't do anything reckless, could you?" Sona asked.
"… Understood, President," It replied.
"Ara, ara, Knight, you're quite feisty aren't you? Challenging one of the most promising devils in the Underworld," Akeno pointed out.
"… Perhaps," It replied.
Really, why did anyone care that it died? Nobody cared when it died back in the Hallownest, no matter how many times it did. Hornet killed it, False Knight killed it, random enemies killed it, Grimm killed it, Mantis Lords killed it, Traitor Lord killed it and many many more. It died so many times, it lost count after the first one hundred times. It could always come back, couldn't it? Although… now that it thought about it, it hadn't died for the past sixteen years, that was a new record. It hoped it could still come back from the dead. Something to figure out later.
"Regardless, we still have got plenty of time left before that happens," Sona said.
In the meantime, Ravel came back with Riser. "I have got good news, everyone. Knight, before the duel, an announcement shall be made and everyone will know that you're not a devil."
"… I see, thank you, Miss Ravel," It while, while the girl nodded courtly with a smile.
"You're welcome, Knight," She said in response.
"Well, Saji, shall we dance?" Ruruko asked.
"Let's," The boy said and slowly but surely, the group split up, leaving only Knight, Koneko, Riser, Ravel and Asia.
"Miss Toujou, Miss Argento, may I show you around?" Riser asked with a bow.
"Umm… I…," Asia began, while the Knight looked at Riser.
"… Why don't we walk together?" It suggested.
"That seems like a fair assessment, shall we do so?" Ravel asked.
"Let's," Koneko agreed and the group slowly began walking together.
"So, Miss Argento, Miss Toujou, what do you think of the party thus far?" Riser asked, as he tried to be a good host.
"I am having fun, the music is great, it's better than at the Church," Asia admitted with a smile, while Riser nodded, with a tiny smile of his own.
"I am glad to hear that, Miss Argento. What about you, Miss Toujou?" He asked.
"It's fun," She settled on, while Riser nodded.
"May I ask you a couple of questions, Knight?" Ravel asked.
"… Go ahead, Miss Ravel," It replied.
"Very well. May I ask what kind of abilities do vessels possess? We have already told you about our clan after all," She pointed out.
The Knight looked at Asia, then at Koneko. "… May I?"
"Just a bit," Koneko replied.
"Umm… I think so as well," Asia added, while the Knight turned towards the girl, who titled her head to the side.
"… I can… use a bit of magic-like abilities and I am proficient with a sword," It replied.
"I see, forgive my curiosity, I hope I didn't cause you any discomfort," Ravel said with a bow.
"… It's fine," It settled upon. "Are there any more questions?"
"I have got one," Riser said. "What do you do for a living, Knight?"
"… Nothing really, my parents support me, give me money monthly," It replied with a shrug.
"So, you're not from a wealthy family, are you, Knight?" Ravel asked, while the Knight nodded.
"… Not poor, but not filthy rich either, above average," It replied.
"I suppose that's to be expected, if you're not a member of a clan such as Gremory," Ravel said. "May I make a request?"
"… Go ahead, Miss Ravel," It replied.
"Could we introduce you to our mother? She wanted to meet you in person," Ravel explained.
"… I don't mind," It replied, while Ravel nodded and turned towards two other girls. "Do you mind if my brother keeps you company during that time, Miss Toujou, Miss Argento?"
"Umm… I am fine waiting a bit," Asia said.
"Same here, but don't take too long," Koneko muttered.
"In that case, allow me to show you around," Riser said and began leading them around the mansion, the two girls glancing at Knight as it left.
"Let us go," Ravel said and led them to her parents. "Mother, Father, allow me to introduce Artur Knight to you."
"So, you're the famous Knight," Lady Phenex said with a courtly bow and her hand extended, waiting to be kissed. "I am Lady Phenex, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The Knight looked at her hand, the back at the woman, then turned towards Ravel. "… Am I supposed to shake the hand or kiss it?"
"Kiss it," She giggled, while the Knight nodded, as it looked helplessly at the hand. "Have you ever kissed a woman on her hand, Knight?"
"… I have never done so, I would rather not mess it up," It replied honestly, while Lady Phenex giggled, before retracting her hand.
"In that case, a courtly bow would be Knight, Mister Knight," Lady Phenex said, while Knight nodded, before bowing to the best of its ability.
"I am Lord Phenex, pleased to make your acquaintance," Lord Phenex said and extended his hand towards the Knight.
"… Arthur Knight," It replied and returned the handshake.
"So, Mister Knight, did Ravel treat you well as one of the hosts?" Lady Phenex asked, while the Knight nodded.
"… I think so, didn't try to kill me, treated me well, talked to me," It replied with a shrug.
"That's… rather specific," Lord Phenex said. "I am guessing that you don't have the best experience with the supernatural?"
"… More or less, a stray devil tried to kill me at the age of six, I managed to survive," It replied.
"In that case, allow us to apologize on the account of our kind, first impressions are very important," Lady Phenex said.
"… You needn't have apologized, Lady Phenex," The Knight said. "Miss Gremory, Miss Sitry and Miss Ravel here have proven many times that not all the devils are like this."
"We are glad to hear that, if you were a devil, I wouldn't be against you marrying Ravel," Lord Phenex joked, Ravel flushed red, while Lady Phenex giggled.
"… I'm not a devil, unfortunately," It replied, while Ravel sighed.
"Regardless, we would like to congratulate on your dance, it was very vivid, a fiery dance, reminiscent of that of a Phoenix," Lady Phenex said.
"… It wasn't anything special," The Knight denied, it was just some dance, one that it couldn't replicate without diving into it's memories.
"I beg to differ, Mister Knight," Lord Phenex said. "In any event, we are looking forward towards your duel with Sairaorg Bael, we will be watching closely."
"… I will try not to disappoint," It said back and bowed.
What the Knight didn't see was the fact that Sirzechs and Zekram were watching it from far away. Sirzechs turned to Zekram and asked, "Is everything ready?"
"Yes, as soon as the Knight finds himself in the middle of the arena, the trap will activate and kill him. We will leave before that," Zekram explained.
"Good, it's time to say goodnight, to our knight," Sirzechs said, the plan set in motion.
The rest of the party passed in a blink of an eye, small talk was made, until it was time to fight. The arena was massive, big red walls with many seats, all of which were occupied by the devils of all kinds. Sona and Rias' peerages were located in one spot, while Phenex and Gremory occupied another spot. In front of him stood Sairaorg, ready for a fight.
"Devils of the Underworld, we are about to witness a fight between famous Sairaorg Bael, a devil and Arthur Knight, a vessel," Lady Phenex's voice echoed around the arena. "This is spar, a duel, not a fight to death. Combatants, are you ready for it?"
"I am, Lady Phenex," Sairaorg confirmed.
"… Same here," The Knight added, as it changed into it's vessel form, gaining gasps from the crowds around it.
"Understood, on my mark, ready, begin!" Lady Phenex commanded.
Sairaorg didn't wait, as he launched himself into the air, as he aimed towards the spot where the Knight was standing. However, the Knight was ready, as it dashed away, just in the nick of time, a massive crater forming where it used to stand just moments ago. However, that wasn't the end, as Sairaorg began running towards it. Fist raced towards the Knight, who jumped in the air, before delivering a hit with the flat side of it's blade to Sairaorg's head.
However, the attack didn't seem to do anything, outside of tickling the devil, who simply smiled in response. "You need to hit harder than to hurt me, Knight."
"… I will do so next time," It replied.
"I hope so!" Sairaorg said and launched himself once more.
The Knight was forced to dodge, dash and avoid, as the man proved to be a very skilled martial artist. In fact, as it tried to get a hit in, the devil blocked the attack, before grabbing it's sword between his arm and body. The Knight tried to pull it out, but it was too late, as Sairaorg's fist smashed it right in the shell, sending it backward, as it's sword was thrown to the ground, it's shell cracked.
"Nice moves, but I fought enough sword users to be able to keep up with them," The man complemented the Knight.
"… I see," The Knight replied as it glanced to it's sword, which turned into a puddle, before disappearing. It then summoned it back, as it looked at Sairaorg.
"I hope I didn't hurt you too much, Knight," Sairaorg asked, as he prepared himself for another attack. "You don't mind if I attack you now?"
"… Try it," The Knight said, as it gripped it's sword, while charging up a nail art.
Sairaorg blinked, before he launched himself towards the Knight, but this time it was ready, as it unleashed cyclone slash, just before the devil could reach it. However, the devil was not slouch to that and jumped away as soon as he got hit, a small cut on his arm. He grinned, before he looked at the Knight, his fighting spirit ignited.
"Not bad, not bad at all, my turn," He said, grasped the earth and tore out a massive chunk from it, before tossing towards the Knight.
The Knight dashed away from the attack, as it began running forward, charging another nail art in the process. Just as it got ready to unleash it, Sairaorg stomped on the ground, creating a shockwave, which impacted the Knight and breaking it's focus, the nail art canceled. He followed it up, by charging forward, his fist headed towards the Knight.
As soon as the fist smashed it in the shell, the Knight could only think one thing, it really needed to get more serious, as it was launched away, it's shell cracking a bit more. The Knight would have frowned, if it could in it's form. However, this proved to be fun, it was hurt and Sairaorg was a damn good fighter, something it could respect.
"… You're a good fighter, I need to get a bit more serious," The Knight admitted and began running forward.
"Hah! Bring it, Knight!" He exclaimed, as two began getting closer in the middle of the arena, the Knight charging another nail art.
Then Sairaorg launched his fist towards it, while the Knight activated Shadow Dash, easily phasing through the devil, a look of pure shock on his face. However, just as it tried to get a hit in, a sphere made of red light surrounded it, the attack not able to pierce, Sairaorg left on the other side. The Knight blinked as it looked at the barrier, before it looked at the devil.
"… A barrier? Well done," It commended as it looked.
"Hang on, I didn't make it," Sairaorg said, while the Knight turned to it.
"… You didn't it?" It asked, many magic circles appearing beneath it. "… Oh, that's a problem."
"It's a trap!" Sairaorg yelled as he smashed the barrier with his fist, which didn't budge in the slightest.
The Knight tried to do the same with his sword, but the barrier was similar to that of the dreamers, meaning it couldn't be broken by conventional means. However, before it could do anything about it, the circles activated. Waves of magic began wreaking havoc in the sphere, the Knight feeling as it's body was being torn apart, it's shell breaking from the massive amount of energy.
It could feel as it's shell was only at half of its former strength. At this rate it would die, not new, but not pleasant either. However, it decided to try something as it gathered the power of the soul in it's hand and smashed the floor of the sphere. For a moment, it seemed to do something, only for the magic to return immediately, as it broke off more of its shell. It tried to shadow dash through it, but it wasn't able to do that either. It tried with the Dream Nail, which didn't work either.
From outside the sphere, the Knight could see as devils of all kinds came down and were launching magic towards the sphere, doing everything to break it from the outside. It could see the devils screaming, Riser and Ravel raining hellfire upon it, Rias using her power of the destruction, Koneko smashing her fists into the sphere… but, why? Why did they try to save it?
However, as it pondered upon that, more of its shell broke off, as it felt the void about to leak. It's posture was lowered, the Void leaking out from its body, as it looked at the devils in front of it. It could see all of it's acquaintances with desperate expressions on their faces, the Knight not able to understand their peril. And with that, the final part of its shell broke apart.
In that moment, it's body began violently tearing itself apart, the Void flying in every direction, it's shell broke into two pieces, before becoming swiftly destroyed by raging magic. Motes of the Void sank into the ground or disappeared in the air, waves of the Void unleashed inside the sphere. And just like that, the Knight was gone, the magic raging for a moment more, before it disappeared, leaving not a single trace of its existence.
Koneko could feel her knees collapsing, as she stared at the spot where she last saw the Knight, tears slowly forming falling out her eyes. "No, please don't."
Asia ran up to Koneko, tears forming in her eyes, the girl not able to speak a word. Sona landed in front of the sphere, her fists clenched, looking just as devastated as Asia and others. The silence reigned upon the arena, as Ravel, Riser and other devils landed in the arena. Sairaorg clenched his fists as he stared at the spot, where his opponent died for nothing.
"I'll be damned… he really died," Issei muttered, before he pumped his fist silently into the air. "More girls for me!"
"Why…? Who?" Sairaorg asked, his fists not able to bring back people from the dead. "Lady Phenex, Lady Gremory, what is the meaning of this?!"
"Mister Bael, we are not responsible for this event," Lady Phenex said.
"We are just as shocked as you are," Venelana Gremory added.
"Everyone, please calm down, we shall begin the investigation immediately," Lord Phenex said. "Please, return to your seats."
The devils looked at each other, before they slowly began making their way back to their seats. Rias wrapped her arms around Koneko, while Momo did the same for Asia, the girls crying into the shoulders of their peers, even though they all seemed to be on the verge of losing it. Only one question yet remained, who was responsible for it?
The End…?