Chapter 110 - Taking a Reading Break

The following morning…

"Uhhh… what am I seeing here?" Neptune questioned in confusion, almost an exact opposite of how she was yesterday now that she thought about it. It was early in the morning, and she would normally have had to stay in bed till ear lunch time (save for the days when she wanted to train early) but right now the sight before her had washed all those thoughts from her mind. There wasn't much hope for her thoughts to make a sudden dramatic return like those hero films where the hero makes a dramatic return after being previously thought dead.

Why was she like this?

Well…

"The characters in this show are absolutely idiotic, yet I'm snickering anyways."

"Heh, glad you liked it. It's something I look at when I have the time and urge to laugh. Its basically about a highschool boy with superpowers living a normal life. Well, trying to, with the antenna on his head and how his powers work its easier said than done."

"Disastrous life indeed…"

There, sitting on the couch together, were IF and Nico. The brunette had one leg over the other while she leaned sideways towards the male, who wasn't hindering the close contact. She did this though not to seduce him, but to show him one of her phones which was showing one of the anime that she had on it. The two looked quite engrossed in their conversation if what she was seeing was anything to believe. They literally talked so casually to each other like it was a river flowing gently down a hill. A far cry as to what Nico was like in the past, to be sure. She had to stop herself from bristling when she saw how close the two were, their shoulders nearly touching while they looked down on IF's phone.

"What are you doing just standing there, Nep, Nep?" Compa asked as she walked up to her from behind. She had a towel in her hands, which she used to clean tem after doing some morning dishes. They'd already ate breakfast, and like usual it was well-cooked by their Nurse-In-Training (with the usual bathroom break for Nico) But when she noticed that Neptune was looking a bit weird, she wanted to figure out what the problem was.

Turning over to her friend, Neptune gave her a beaming smile, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Nothing much Compa-poo. Just keeping an eye for future problems, is all." She replied, before turning back to the two talking teens. She radiated a jealous aura not long afterwards, especially when she watched how close the two looked. No matter how hard she tried, something about this just kept bugging her, and she didn't know what it was. Whatever it was it definitely didn't sit well with her, and that aggravated the girl more than she cared to admit.

Looking over to where the preteen was watching, Compa saw what she did, and a pout formed on her lips with jealousy shining briefly in her eyes. "Mou-! Ni-Ni's getting real cosy with Iffy…" she mused with jealousy, joining Neptune in her state. She knew her friend, IF, she knew she wasn't a woman who shied away from contact with her friends. She was someone who always sported a cool, calm and collected demeanour, sort of making her a 'tomboy' if her grandfather's words were any accurate. She had no problem with getting close to someone if she wanted to from what she had seen, but… if that person was her Ni-Ni…

The conversation from yesterday rang through her mind, as well as the dread that filled her system.

She already had so many rivals already! She didn't want to compete with Iffy on top of that!

While she tried her best to wrestle those thoughts away from dominion within her mind, Compa looked to the clock and saw the time. Her eyes widened as a result while a hand covered her mouth. "Eek! The time! Nep-Nep, I have to get ready! I have training in 30 minutes!" she exclaimed, flustered while waving her arms and running about in a panic. She looked like one of those cartoon characters blurring about the screen in a mad rush to get something done on an extremely short deadline, and who could blame her? Her teachers always told her to be on time for their training, and they would be EXTREMELY brutal in the training if she WAS late (already experienced that once, she did NOT want that to happen again. She still felt the phantom pains from their little 'punishment').

Neptune only sweat dropped at the frantic Compa before glancing at the duo on the couch. A frown put itself onto her lips before she began thinking of what to do… she had to get some development on her lily rank with Nicky, otherwise other girls might steal her spot! Not happening, she was the main character in this franchise after all! While Compa quickly gathered what she needed, put on her boots before running out the door, Neptune made her way over to the two.


In all honestly, this should have been expected of the male, but IF had still been thrown for a loop the following morning.

The moment that he kissed her and all… it was like, all her rational thoughts just flew out of the window, everything. A switch had literally flipped inside her mind, turning her from her normally composed self into a lust-induced maniac. Like a wave washing over the beach, her thoughts had quickly got replaced by her own desires. Like a flame suddenly igniting within her gut, dominating her mind, body and soul. What followed was what primarily she wanted to do with him, to do to him in ways that would make any man putty in a woman's hands.

Caught up in the heat of the moment, IF had allowed her desires to have Nico all to herself at least for the duration of that time, to override her reasoning, allowing them to dominate her mind while projecting those desires into the kiss.

Wow… she REALLY underestimated how hard this would be for her. To hold herself back, she meant.

Afterwards, when he left right after in that panic-riddled state (something that concerned her greatly when she thought about it) she had followed his trail to see if he was okay. While she did have desires for him, feelings were there too, and she worried that something would happen to the guy.

When she had gotten up this morning intending to plan some intense training that would improve her mutations, she had encountered Nico who was already up and about. Not surprising since the guy didn't need to sleep as long as the rest of them somehow (though she did sometimes wonder about his health. His mental health especially). Though, it would have been a lie to say that she had no concerns over him for what happened the previous night.

Since after all, Nico wasn't someone who would do something like that of his own accord. He didn't even see himself as someone who would do such a thing, rather as someone who had no chance with a woman or anyone for that matter. Thus, doing something like that last night might have done something much worse than simply shocking him. Part of her dreaded to think on what had happened to him afterwards, as when she tried to knock on his bedroom door, he wouldn't answer. He'd locked it too, so she couldn't get inside.

Part of her wanted to use her powers to unlock the door, but… there had been SOMETHING that stopped her. She didn't know what it was though, but one thing had been made clear in her mind at that moment: that if she were to break in there, something HORRIFIC would happen to her, which was why she stayed away in the end.

But, in the end…

This… this wasn't what she had expected even though she probably should have.

Turned out, that his joy had clouded his judgement and that kiss was his moment of foolishness. Well, she assumed something like that because when they first met the following morning, Nico had taken one look at her and had hugged her like nothing happened (seriously, this guy wasn't kidding when he said he liked hugs). It honestly blew her mind, as she didn't expect this type of reaction. Anyone would think this would be a good thing, that Nico was alright, and things could progress like normal, but not IF. Nope, not her.

She knew him, she knew what he does and why he does it. She knew how he viewed himself, she knew how fucked up his life and how bad his mind was. Thus, something like this only set off alarm bells in her mind, alarm bells that rang so fiercely that she just HAD to look into it right at that moment. Which was why she had asked him in just a few words about what happened between them last night.

What did he say?

His answer had sent her into extreme shock and disbelief:

"Huh? What do you mean? We went on that bike ride, hugged, and parted ways, right? Man, that bike ride was a total rush, 10 out of 10, would definitely do so again…"

Anything else he said IF had blocked out due to how much shock had coursed through her at this revelation, this revelation that apparently Nico didn't remember the events of last night the way that she did. This felt like some sort of joke to her, and yet it wasn't at the same time. This had happened, right? This really happened to her just now? Did he seriously say that to make her doubt what happened? No, that wasn't it, she had realized. It wasn't that he was trolling her or playing her for a fool either, especially with that curious and confused look he had on his face when she had asked him. A look similar to a toddler asking their parents about something they regarded as new. It filled her mind with confusion and doubt, as if what she remembered may have been the false truth of everything, until she saw faint traces of her lip balm (that she had applied to her lips a few times in recent days to help her body keep her lips moistened) on his lips, traces that he didn't seem aware of.

That was why she thought about it some more while playing the question off like it was no big deal, something that Nico went along with all too easily, she had noticed. Just looking into his eyes made her see it though, it was so small and brief that even she, with her eyes the way they were thanks to the events at Lastation, would have missed it. Relief. Relief and joy. It briefly sparked in his eyes before being utterly crushed by everything else as if to say, 'shut up, you're the outcast here!'

IF recognized these symptoms, she recognized tem from a few of her fellow Agents out in the field whenever they see or go something horrific, horrific to the point where they can't cope with life afterwards. We aren't talking about just PTSD, but actual suicidal tendencies here. Those kinds of people usually have their own psychiatrists to help them through these times, to help them cope with what they had seen, but if she knew Nico like she thought she did, IF doubted that he had the same kind of help.

Hell, with the discrimination against the Spec Ops Program, she wouldn't be surprised.

But still, the bottom line was what had happened between them last night had REALLY massed with Nico's head, as in, messed it up HORRIFICALLY to the point where he in a moment of pure madness, rewrote his entire memory of the event to where the 'disaster' hadn't occurred, like it had been blotched out of his memory by some blackened painting like when some people draw or paint over images that they don't want others to see.

This revelation, at this point, SERIOUSLY concerned IF about his mental health. A kiss normally isn't something that would incite such a reaction, it was meant to be something happy between two people. Not something that one would rearrange their memories over. That just begged the question: Just how bad was he really? To have rewrote his memories just because he kissed a girl? Nico wasn't someone who tried anything wit girls, that fact was already apparent, but to do something so major at such actions felt WAY over the top to her. She SERIOUSLY worried for the guy now.

In current times, as she and Nico talked more about animes that IF had seen, the teen interjecting with his own every now and then, the brunette's eyes flashed with concern and determination.

This was it for her, she'd had enough.

She would get her answers… and she knew only ONE person who could share them with her.


After a while, Nico chose to head out on a walk, saying that he had some training to do. Which was why the red-haired male found himself walking through the streets of Leanbox with his hands resting in his Trench Coat's pockets (something he does a lot cause he liked the feeling. It was quite calming) while his mind, however, was a whirlwind of thoughts right now.

'Hmm, its suspicious. I'm talking about Yvoire, I mean. You would think he would have tried something by now. He obviously doesn't want me anywhere near Leanbox, or even breathing for that matter. I would have thought he would try something after a while, but it doesn't seem like he's made much of a move yet. Though, the way he called IF out of their party (according to what Neptune told me once) felt suspicious, yet nothing happened. I'm starting to think he's going for something big, like something to do with the Gala. Though if he does he will have to be stealthy and discreet, since that place will be like a beehive of snobby Nobles who'll no hesitate to take him down for their own desires of power. What do you think, Biko?'

Inside his head, Biko gave a resigned sigh, though Nico either didn't hear it or chose to disregard it like he did that memory of him kissing IF. Biko had seen the whole process himself, well, that wasn't the first time since he saw it in that memory his child self, had sent him, the way that his mind handles something that it registered as 'forbidden'. Seeing it once in that memory was bad enough, but to see it in person felt like a whole new level of horrors. He may not feel much emotion most times, but this was something that rattled him down to his very core. He had thought he'd seen him at his lowest during those years when he was apart from Compa, he had thought he'd seen it all when it came to ow unstable Nico's mind was…

Oh, how wrong he had been.

What he had seen just then… it was nightmare fuel, and considering that there were memories tat even Biko couldn't access himself, made him worry. Just how often did THAT kind of thing happen to him? Biko didn't know the answer, and part of him didn't want to know. Even now, as he listened to Nico's thought processes, the Demon Persona sensed that this was just the final stages of the rewriting process, ta distraction to calm down the unstable mind back to a level of competency that could be expected from a Spec Ops Agent. It would be a process that would last the whole day if something didn't happen to speed up the process.

When he had been asked that question though, Biko already had an answer. It was something he had thought over many times by now as well, you know.

'It is indeed confusing, however perhaps the answer may be because he is being distracted by these other problems cropping up throughout Leanbox. The Hellgates, the Demons, the Abnormals, the men in red, Maghda and her coven along with the Northmen under her rule. These problems are all coming out of the woodworks, and as the head of the military, Yvoire will have a good ideas as to how vicious they will be, much more vicious than the Spec Ops Community gaining power, I would say. Also, like you said, if he does want to try something it would most likely be when you two are close, like at the Gala. You two aren't going to be anywhere near each other until then, so that would be the optimum time. Even so, it is clear he has it out for you, and by that, I mean you specifically, though that is probably due to being what you are. If he found out about our DPU powers on top of that… Though, if I were Yvoire, I would try to slip something into somewhere discreet where nobody would register it so that it could be sent to you.'

Mentally, Nico nodded in agreement. 'My thoughts exactly, Biko…'

As he took a step, Nico felt the urge to read come over him, the images of those Tomes he had gotten from Rinjiin coming to mind. The fact that he still had a fair few to go through rung through his brain like a bell in a church tower, filling him with a mix of anticipation and dread. After all, part of him wanted to know more about his kind, the DPUs. So far, he only knew a small fraction about them and that information was scarce at best. He wanted to know a whole hell more about his kind than just titbits, like what they were exactly, where they came from, what were they like during their era? Most importantly, why had hey vanished from Gamindustri's history the way they did.

'Think we could do some reading, Biko?' he asked his Demon Persona, who responded soon after.

'Might as well. While I prefer it if we read somewhere private, it wouldn't matter where we read since the enchantments make it so only those who are connected to the demonic aspects can read them. Since we're the only ones with that connection around here, there is little chance of any information leaks.'

His thoughts exactly, the teen responded before he cut the connection and looked about. Soon, he found a small wooden long chair for multiple people to sit on, which prompted him to walk over and press his behind down on it. Once he felt comfortable in his seating position, Nico decided to open up the Void Storage and, through mental command, pulled out one of the Tomes that he'd gained from Rinjiin. After going through these books, Nico definitely felt more than a little appreciation towards the writers of these things, the way they painted pictures of the scenes, the environments, the character interactions was nothing short of magical, a type of magic he didn't mind as much.

Hmph, must be a cold day in hell if that has happened.


"WHY IS THERE ICE EVERYWHERE?!"

"OH GODS, MY DICK IS FROZEN!"

"MY BOOBIES ARE FROZEN TOGETHER, OMG!"

"OMG IS RIGHT!"

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"


… Why did he just get the feeling that a lot of people were suffering from the cold right now?

Shaking his head to get rid of those thoughts, Nico opened the tome (a crimson tome with black outlines and a symbol that looked like flames formed into 6 bird wings on its centre) before beginning to read.

DPU – Origins

The Origins of the DPUs stems from the eternal conflict between the two forces of light and good, as well as the forces of evil and darkness.

In the beginning, these two forces existed since before the creation of the Universe, always existing but doing nothing. They were never even aware of each other, their total opposites, until the dawn of creation itself. It was the first ever, as well as the greatest 'wake up call' that the universe had ever seen. It would be considered the greatest one of them all, as well. Past, present and future.

It was inevitable that these two forces, polar opposites of each other, would meet in an unfriendly way. Their first clash would be recorded as the greatest, creating the dawn of time itself. Once their first clash rippled through the fabric of existence, planets were either destroyed or created, sometimes even both at the same time. It was an endless cycle, reaching the point where the constant destruction and creation became a cycle of nature itself. Forcefully inserting itself into the natural order. It is the first ever sign of conflict, a situation none of existence had ever seen as of yet, and it would only continue to escalate throughout the millennia.

They have had constant clashes since this time, the creation of the universe, resulting in an endless cycle of carnage and chaos. These clashes constantly reshaped the Universe to their liking, resulting in countless forms of life and death spread throughout. It spawned the cosmos, the stars, the suns, every system in the entire universe spawned from this chaos. For millennia, that was all the universe had truly known. At the beginning, these powers fought against each other, but soon it became a part of life itself to the point where their clashes had been accepted as the norm for the universe, which had no short a time to get used to them.

For the entirety of this endless conflict, their clashes would leave remnants, remnants of their powers that would simply disintegrate over time, be it centuries or a millennia. This was not a problem for these two primordial powers, for they were ageless, they had no concept of this. They never had, and never would for the rest of eternity. Neither f these powers had the consciousness to care either.

However, from the ashes of one of their clashes, the darkness essence devoured that of the light essence, becoming stronger and overcoming it in a seemingly impossible twist of things, an anomaly in the chaotic system the universe worked under. The cycle of creation and destruction temporarily got disrupted when the powers of darkness gained a victory that had never been seen before. Chaos, distortion, illusion, carnage, death, every aspect of darkness combined together with the light essence as fuel, creating something that should NEVER have come to be. Yet it did.

From that essence, 4 beings emerged in chaotic glory, four beings of darkness whom had powers so unique, so deadly and devastating that in time, they would be able to rival that of the primordial forces if given the opportunity. These beings were born from the chaos of the darkness and Light's unintentional conflict, a conflict they did not stop for they just simply 'existed' and whatever their energies did was unstoppable anyways. Nevertheless, these beings were born from carnage, and carnage became their way of life, their essence, the blood that flowed through them, the air they breathed.

These were the four original DPUs, Sparda, Mundus, Carnage, and Diadact.

"Holy… shit…"

Those were the only words he could use to describe the feelings coursing through him at this very moment.

Like literally, he had no words.

This… this was…

'Hmmmm… this information does indeed explain a lot about matters I have been curious about.'

Nico mentally nodded in agreement with his other demonic self, he had been made aware of these matters a long time ago as well, during their many talks. Biko had always been curious about their origins, about why they were the way they were. If he were honest, Nico found himself curious about it too. The DPUs, just hearing that name sent irrevocable chills down his spine, chills that could only come from learning of some ancient mystery that would shake the foundations of everything conceived in reality.

This seemed so… large, incomparable even, and yet… it made so much sense. The reason why he thought this existed in his mind as many forms. One of them was the exact nature of his Demonic Power. Its wild, chaotic nature that felt sometimes like the incarnation of chaos itself, this information gave him light as to why it was this way and credited its believability. Seriously, he had used this power more than enough times to see that It was meant to be used for fighting and destroying, rather than saving. For example, when he had stopped Tekken's face from being melted into ashes by that Hellfire blast, what his Power had done instead of helping her was destroying and absorbing the Hellfire flames. There was no healing there, only destruction.

Yet, despite the dark, evil, and destructive origins of this power, there are aspects of creation in this power due to several things he had noted, like how he could restore his body using his Demonic Power instead of his other side. This had to have come from the remains of that light essence that was devoured when the DPUs were first brought into being, Nico theorized, there was no way otherwise that this power could be even capable of creating life. Not to mention, it felt much easier to use this power to destroy something rather than create, creating life seriously hurt like when he first created Urthemiel. Regarding how he can restore his body, apparently this energy was what made up his DPU form, it was simply a mass of Demonic Power given a corporeal form, mimicking it down to the blood cells that flowed through him. In human form, that energy seemingly knew his body better than he knew himself, if it was able to be used to repair damage the way it did.

No, it wasn't REPAIRING damage, it was merely recreating the destroyed cells and banishing the old, broken ones…

The realm of the deities, here.

Then…

"?!"

Nico's eyes sharpened as another thought hit him like being hit in the face by a truck ramming into him at full force. Now that he thought about it, this also explained the 'might makes right' ideology of the Demons. If he compared to the demons of the human race today, then the DPUs would have been their rulers, and considering how they were brought into being it wouldn't be unexpected to have them influence the Demons to think that only the strong survive. It went with the 'nature and nurture' theory that children become the way that they are due to how they are brought up, as well as genetics. Nature and Nurture.

These Demons came from beings whose entire nature revolved around conflict… as well as had conflict as a cruel parent but an effective teacher, those lessons it taught the DPUs being carved deep into their souls.

Those Demons never really stood a chance, did they?

'No, they indeed did not, Nico. Not to mention this information about Sparda is intriguing…'

Now, wasn't that true?

Like this Demon Persona had just said right now, there was the information about Sparda… the DPU that apparently, he was the Champion of.

Now THAT was a whole new can of worms just waiting to be opened. The most he had known about this person was that he was the DPU who left behind the DPU Core in Gamindustri after he and the first Goddess Odyssey Heart removed the Demons and other DPUs from Gamindustri. There was indications that he was a strong warrior and the leader of the DPU race, but aside from that there had been little else he could find about the guy. Not like he had tried either, since Nico hadn't any leads to follow up on Sparda or his legacies.

If he had those leads however, THEN it would be a whole different story altogether, Nico knew FOR A FACT that his mother would have allowed him to go on extended leave if they could find out more about the powers of the Demonic, especially since he had already been involved with them thanks to his Devil Arms. If they got more information on the Devil Arms, information about how they worked, what they were, how they came to be etc, then it would be a win-win situation for not only them, but any other human in Gamindustri who would have contacted a Devil Arm.

Mental note: find a way to get some time alone with her to get this stuff explained to her.

In addition to the knowledge of Sparda's origins, Nico didn't expect to find that he wasn't the only DPU born from the chaos and carnage of the Universe, but one out of four. Four DPUs being born from war… This reminded him partly of their world currently being run by four CPUs, an ironic twist of fate if he said so himself. Though, he doubted the Goddesses had that kind of origins though, probably something a little tamer than the origins of the DPUs. They weren't Demonic Power-based beings like the DPUs, that's for sure.

Still, this was DEFINITELY good information, information that answered a LOT of his questions about the DPU Era and why it was the way it was.

'Shall we continue reading? There should be more interesting bits of information in these Tomes. Perhaps we can find out more about the DPUs, like their culture or how strong they were compared to the CPUs of today.'

'Hmmm… Maybe I'll do that, its not like I have anything planned today. My Quest quota isn't that big today, so I can complete em any time I like. Not only that, but our training's bee progressing faster than I had anticipated thanks to the time dilation from the Inner World.' Nico replied, getting a pleased hum from his Demon Persona before he went and pulled out another book…

CRACKLE, SMASH!

When he reflexively reached out and caught a flying newspaper that was blown his way by the wind.

"Hm? Wow guess it's a windy day today, that's weird…" Nico muttered under his breath, his left eyebrow arching as he set about reorganizing the Newspaper, so it looked presentable. The teen mumbled incoherently under his breath while he skimmed the various articles. Not many gained his attention for more than a few seconds, they were just articles about events he had already seen like the Abnormal attacks, the Demons, the Men In Red etc. There were a rare few that were about the Nobles, trying to make them look 'heroic' by showing these fake images of them leading their forces into battle.

Nobles did do that kind of thing, bribing the media to make them look better than they really were.

Another reason why he hated those assholes.

As he reorganized the paper, one particular Article caught his attention, the contents nearly making him do a spit take:

Planeptune and Lastation – possible alliance?

A new dawn is approaching Gamindustri, citizens, for one of the 10 impossibilities in the world has been proceeding behind the scenes: The possibility of an alliance between nations.

According to interviews, this is an alliance talk between Lastation and Planeptune, two nations who have since the dawn of their founding been intense rivals. Lastation's CPU Black Heart has decided to negotiate with Planeptune's officials for a possible truce between their respective lands, inspired by the repeated generosity Planeptune has shown her people by offering assistance to them when they needed it.

One official who shall remain anonymous, has stated that this is due to the mass increase of Abnormal attacks on Lastation Boarders, which have been weakened considerably by both their external attackers and the internal release of a deadly zombie invasion by unknown means. These events have stretched their military thin, to the point where even the Spec Ops Branch is having mild to intermediate difficulties holding them off. Combined with the efforts of the regular monsters, Lastation has found it necessary to consider truce talks with its other Nations, starting with Planeptune. In the end, they envision all four Nations working together to repel the Abnormals from their lands, and getting to the bottom of where they have come from.

The Peace talks between Lastation and Planeptune have been proceeding smoothly according to brief interviews with the officials involved. However, it is said that because of the absence of Lady Purple Heart, these talks have not been progressing as much as they should have been, one of the many consequences that the Console War has brought upon Gamindustri.

Further details remain classified, but we of the Daily Prophet shall keep all of Gamindustri informed!

That was all the Article wrote about this development, it was a small article that looked to be overshadowed by some of the larger ones about the Abnormals and the Nobles. There wasn't much information, but then again that was probably due to lack of information so that they (the daily prophet which was a newspaper agency across all four Nations) just had to summarize it. Nevertheless, this small article had one HELL of an impact on Nico, his form frozen in shock and surprise while his eyes glued themselves to this article and did what they could to process this information.

He just couldn't believe what he had just read.

'This… This is…!'

'My… this is indeed quite the development…'

Even Biko had the clear notion of being surprised evident in his voice, and if a being like him got affected by emotion enough to feel it, then one must KNOW things are going to go down.

The lack of information bothered him about this, but Nico could still form theories and guesses as to what was going on from this information. The Newspaper article did say that troubles are escalating, to the point where talks between the nations have been considered and are beginning to be implemented. So, he could see why these talks were being started, but still…

Who would have thought that Noire would have had it in her?

From what he knew of her, Nico had pegged Noire as someone who was very prideful, refusing to accept help from anyone. She would rather fix her own Nation's problems with her own two hands. That kind of mentality was perfect for a warrior, as warriors don't have much to worry about aside from what they will have to do in their next battle. However, that was not the way a Leader had to think, if a situation arose where just that mentality wasn't enough, asking for help HAD to be something that would be considered. It wasn't 'bad' per say to ask for help, but there were those who would see it as a source of weakness. But still, they have to ask for help sometimes, especially when a Leader's people were on the line. Their actions reflected the Nation as a whole, after all. Leaders bore a burden that very few could understand, after all.

He had thought Noire to be someone who would never even THINK of asking Planeptune's help, of all Nations… but apparently, he was wrong.

Maybe what happened in her Nation had changed her as a person, if only at least partially.

Still, the implications of these talks baffled the male, they baffled him more than he would be able to admit. He had always considered the notion of peace, of the Nations working together to be something out of a fantasy, never to become reality. The furthest people would be willing to go in this direction would be towards asking Spec Ops Agents to deal with Abnormal-related threats. This had been his ideology since the beginning, even if it had been mildly challenged back at Skies End where a Spec Ops and a bunch of Abnormals lived together in co-existence. But back then it was more of a necessity to survive, as there wasn't a Nation protecting Rinjiin from them.

But this…? This felt like a MUCH bigger blow against what he believed in for so long.

Even more concerning, was that there would be many who would not take too kindly to this information. There was no doubt in his mind that this Newspaper had made it not the hands of nearly every powerful individual across the four nations. Avenir, the Nobles, the CPUs, hell even the villainous folk would have found out about this in their own ways. They would likely do all they could to either sabotage or promote these peace talks, the former he could see Maghda, Yvoire (well, to be fair he was more of a grey area as he could potentially see how this could benefit Leanbox if they played their cards right) and the Nobles like Count Mott doing the former. As for the latter, he guessed that it would be Noire, his mom, Stefan, and the few good Nobles who actually deserved their positions (he could count THOSE on one hand, however).

With these thoughts in mind, Nico stood up after putting the Newspaper into his Void Storage, dusted off his Trench Coat, before pocketing his leather Gloved hands into it and walking off.

These thoughts continued to plague him, however.


"Sir, what do you make of this?"

"Hm?"

In his Manor, Count Mott sat at his desk dealing with some documents. His Desk had various piles of the infernal stuff, nearly making him cringe. Being an official like him was not easy, and he was not even a full on Duke yet. He still had some way to go before he got to that position, but whenever he dealt with this kind of paperwork he sometimes rethought about his career choices. Though he didn't let them get in the way of his goals, however. Even now, his hands ached from signing or dismissing documents to do with how he oversaw the territory for the Duke he was commissioned under. He didn't know the man;s name himself, he didn't care to know it. All he cared about was that he would someday take over as that Duke's successor... whether he was willing to or not.

While he had been planning that day, his butler Brian had entered his office (with the Count's permission of course) and had brought him a newspaper. The old nobleman looked at the Paper impassively for a moment, slowly reaching for it, grasping it and taking it for himself as he began looking at the Article that the Butler had indicated with his right hand's index finger. Any other person who wasted his time with trivial matters like the media would have been executed on the spot for treason, while women were treated to some of his 'punishments' in the bedroom. However, Brian was an acception to this solely due to how long he had been serving the Count.

As he read the article, eyes trailing across one line after the other, they slowly switched from impassiveness to pure shock and surprise. This development maybe small with little information, but the implications of this were not lost on the count. He found himself so shocked that he could scarcely believe what he had been reading, and if this were any other Newspaper then he would deem it utter rubbish and toss it away. However, the Daily Prophet was an Agency that was actually competent at their jobs in the Count's eyes.

Looking back to the Butler, Count Mott;s eyes narrowed into a stern gaze as he uttered his next few words barely above a whisper. "Is this true, Butler...?"

"Indeed it is, sir." Brian answered while bowing, leaning forward with his hand on his heart in a rather classy manner. As expected of a prime and proper butler to a wealthy family. The man's weary eyes sparked with interest, interest that seemed rarely there for a man his age while the wrinkles over his face could hardly disguise the intrigue coursing through him. "I have ran it past our associates in the Basilicom, the Guild, and in the Newspaper Agency, and it all points to the same conclusion that what you read is really happening."

At this, Count Mott grew quiet, standing up from his chair and walking so that he looked at the space behind his desk with his hands on his back. His eyes sharpened their gaze to that of a predator as what he had learned processed itself through his mind. Even for a diabolical Noble like him, this information was NOT to be treated lightly, and it was a certainty that others were made aware of this as well.

An alliance between Planeptune and Lastation... two bitter rivals since their founding... such a thing sounded utterly preposterous in his mind, and it probably would be the same for anybody be it a high ranking official or the lowliest peasant who knew of the history between those two Nations specifically, of how much they battled with each other. Way more than either Nation had battled Lowee and Leanbox, that's for certain. Planeptune had always remained ahead of Lastation in terms of technology and economy, with Lastation hot on its heels. It was like when two athletes of high caliber won a race, only for one of them to lose when the other is shown to have just been a little bit further than them. Their rivalry was just that fierce.

Almost like the rivalry between Lowee and Leanbox, in a way.

So, the fact that there were talks for an alliance between the two... Count Mott's sharp eyes glistened as thoughts and ideas swirled throughout his brain. Schemes to find out what exactly could have caused this and how it could benefit his rise to power circulated through his mind, allowing a small smirk full of sadism and desire to form on his lips. This could end up playing right into his hand, if he managed to do what he wanted at the Gala, then he would get way more than what he intended for. And with the way his secret project was developing, things would likely get even more interesting in the future.

Odds were that Leanbox would definitely try to sink their claws into the talks, try to squeeze themselves in which will likely prompt Lowee to do the same... if its CPU wasn't an ill tempered little brat who had no right leading a Nation in the first place. It made Mott snort in disgust thinking about Lowee's CPU, how utterly childish and revolting she looked to him. There wasn't many women Mott wouldn't like to take to his bed, but CPU White Heart was on that short list. If he did capture her, eh would probably sell her off to one of his connections as a way of showing good faith or something. Even people in Leanbox wouldn't mind taking someone as temperamental, childish and elementary school-like as her.

The best way fr something like that to happen would be... the Gala.

Mott furrowed his brow as he deduced the implications of the Gala in his mind, of just how much more important this Gala had become with this information. Odds were that there would be Nobles spewing nonsense on and on about this possible Alliance like mindless chickens, not doing anything about it themselves. That was what Mott despised about most Nobles, very few of them have any drive, of any ambition to go somewhere far in their short, meaningless, pathetic lives. Once he had what he wanted though... That would be changing, Oh, yes, that would DEFINITELY change.

Still, he could use this to his advantage, by proposing that they too join the alliance with the way that the Abnormals, Men in Red and those Demons were running amok, the use of other Nation resources would be a must to keep Leanbox afloat, maybe even take back some of her territories from her invaders. Though, Mott focused on one fact that was more important than all of this, and that was that he'd be closer to Leanbox's CPU, if only for a time, The Gala was a tremendously important event, one of the few where the CPU actually HAD to attend so that they may discuss where to take the Nation from that point on. If he got the CPU alone then 'did his business' with her till she was putty in his hands like all his women, then he would rule Leanbox through the CPU, enacting his ideals through her. This was the way politicians waged war on one another, people, manipulating others for their own benefit.

Such people will be gathered in abundance at the Gala...

Which was why he had to be ready.


This was UNBELIEVABLE! INCONCEIVABLE!

A SERIOUS OUTRAGE!

AN UNMITIGATED DISASTER!

In his quarters, Yvoire did all he could to keep himself from acting in a manor inappropriate for someone of his stature while he clutched the recent Newspapers that were published by the Daily Prophet. His hands clutched the papers so hard that if he applied any more strength then he would have tore the papers apart with the raw, primal FURY coursing through him at this moment. His eyes shone with fiery flames of anger and frustration, his forehead sweating profusely while his teeth gnashed together so much that they could potentially crack under the pressure at any moment. It was a good thing he was within the privacy of his quarters, otherwise the elderly Priest would be risking showing a rather unsightly sight to any unlucky passerby.

The man had just read the news about the Alliance between Lastation and Planeptune was an unholy, unthinkable event that he could NEVER have seen coming. The moment that he had read the article it had taken all he had not to faint on the spot with how hot the rage inside made his head feel. He wasn't as young as he used to be after all.

But more than that he was WORRIED.

Worried sick.

To the point where he almost threw up from the anxiety in his gut.

Worried like hell for the fate of his Nation, or rather, the Nation he called home.

This posed a significant threat to the Safety of Leanbox, Yvoire knew this for a FACT. Those two nations right now had the biggest technological advancements of the Four. They had the biggest technology advancements, but not only that but they had the better soldiers, the numerous highly trained Guild and heretical Spec Ops Agents, more resources like ores and crystals for mining purposes (which they could only match in quantity of Silver Steel, but thanks to the Abnormals they couldn't mine as much as they used to). Not only that, but compared to those two Leanbox and Lowee definitely weren't as equipped to deal with the combined assaults of the normal monsters and the Abnormals.

To hear that they were negotiating for a truce that could lead to a potential alliance... it was unthinkable, no not just unthinkable, but a deep problem for the rest of Gamindustri. Those two Nations have been at each other's throats for years, during the past conflicts those two raided each other much more than the other two Nations. It was a surprise that they hadn't merged together with the amount of resources, equipment and know-how stolen from each other. It honestly reminded him of two children fighting over the last cookie from the cookie jaw. But now, now that these two Nations who were close to equals were about to potentially become allies, putting aside grudges for the sake of self-preservation... Leanbox and Lowee had a right to worry.

But, the man thought as he struggled to contain his rage, putting the paper down so that he could walk to the window his room provided for him, and look out the window to the rest of MICROSOFT, a solemn frown on his lips. At least there were some details he could use to his advantage from this. There would be those within the four Nations that, for whatever reason, would oppose such an alliance. Old grudges, fanatics, warmongers, the like. Al of them would be united under the goal of stopping this alliance from taking place.

Perhaps he could use this to his advantage...

Right after he takes out Nico from the equation.