Chapter 20: Roots of All Evil
The plasma screen sat in the corner like an unwelcome mirror. Danhauser Belial tried not to look, but with the image reflected off the mess on the screen seemed so much worse than the real thing. Even if Grigori took the corpse of Augusta out of the wasteland that he had fought alongside Vali Lucifer, the media would not hesitate to fill their pockets with money.
Even more when the Utsusemi or Hexennacht couldn't threaten them anymore.
Collective sighs echoed around the main room when the advertisements flashed over the eyes of the Peerage.
"Can you turn the TV off?" Danhauser desperately said. "Please?"
"Yeah, sure," Tobio Ikuse shut the television off. He laid the control aside and clasped both hands in contempt.
…
"We couldn't save them," the brunet whispered behind his hands. "Even if Hanezu was captured and Augusta killed, that girl found a way to escape with the two Evil Fiends."
"So that means we lost?" Bova Tannin growled. "Pathetic."
"Not really," answered Danhauser. "Just as Tobio said, we're interrogating Hanezu and killed Augusta, we defeated the heads of their respective Factions."
"Still," Valerie Tepes chimed in. "Their purpose is to complete the Four Fiend Project and overthrow the Five Principal Clans, not kill a group of brats playing hero, silencing us was a side-quest."
"Indeed," Siegfried dryly agreed while glaring the floor. "They have two of the four Evil Fiends and they know where the rest are. They're making good progress."
"Don't forget about the traitors in the Grigori and Grauzauberer," added Valerie, toying with her light-blonde pigtails. "There's a possibility that we're the main problem."
"Everyone, don't look a gift horse in the mouth," chided Danhauser. "Sure, we couldn't save two of the Evil Fiends, the Utsusemi and the parents which were one of our main missions, but yesterday we won a fight against the headmistress of Hexennacht and leader of the Utsusemi Agency. We weaken them to the point that they can't shut the media's mouth anymore."
"Yeah!" Tobio nodded eagerly. "Boss is right! Patience is the key here!"
"I think you mean adaptability, Mr. Ikuse," said Valerie wryly.
Tobio just rolled his pale, grey eyes.
"Step by step, we're crushing them," muttered Bova with a troubled look. "We're getting low on enemies! Damn it!"
"Is that supposed to be bad?" Siegfried commented.
"Of course it is!" Bova snapped. "How are we going to get stronger if we don't have enemies lined up? I need my dose!"
"By training…?" Danhauser carefully said.
"Bah!" The Dragon waved off Danhauser's response. "That's only a warmup before a fight. Life doesn't get easier, you just get stronger!"
Tobio scratched his cheek. "So, what doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger?" He opined. "That's your view?"
Bova flexed an arm out. "Damn right! For each fight we won, all of us will become stronger without even noticing—we'll become unstoppable and slowly achieve our dreams!" He boomed a laugh. "Heh-heh-heh! I look forward to that day!"
The Dragon glared at the Romanian and Japanese. "You two. What're your dreams?"
The Dhampir curved her eyebrow. "My dream?"
Bova pointed at himself. "I'll become just as powerful as a Heavenly Dragon." Then at Danhauser. "He'll become the next Champion of the Rating Games and a Super Devil." Finally, at Siegfried. "The Exorcist will be the Strongest Swordsman."
"Former Exorcist," corrected Siegfried.
"A dream…" pondered Tobio, everyone could practically hear the gears wheeling. "… Back then, I wanted a normal life with Sae… but I guess that's now impossible to obtain given the Sacred Gear I had since I was a baby…"
Jin whined softly.
"…" Danhauser ignored the bitter laugh. "You're wrong." He said loud enough to catch his attention. "Even if you want to ignore it so badly. Hanezu wasn't wrong. The blood of Himejima runs in your veins. The fact that your grandmother was Ageha of the Himejima Clan is enough to be involved in the supernatural. You were so lucky to have Canis Lykaon, given the circumstances we're facing right now."
Jin gave a grateful bark!
"… Yeah, you're right." He said, breaking into a slight smile. He glanced down at the dog. "Sorry, little guy, never meant to throw all the fault at you. I'm just an idiot."
Jin barked contently!
"Either way, a dream…" drawled Slash Dog, his smile softening. "… When I was a kid, my granny always described me a place that made my heart thrum with excitement… she longed to visit that place before passing away. Unfortunately, she never succeeded." He paused. "Mount Huaguo. She always called it Kakazan or Mountain of Flowers and Fruit, where the most beautiful flowers and most delicious fruits bloom."
"So that's what you want, huh?" Bova grunted.
"What my granny and I want," he scratched his neck, chuckling. "But I doubt it exists…"
"It does," said Danhauser, shocking the brunet. "I never saw it myself, but we're in a world where Hell and Heaven are a thing. The Supernatural World, remember? You'll just have to give your best like everyone on the Peerage."
"… then I'll find it," Tobio clenched his fist. "Not only for myself but for granny as well. Of course, my main objective right now is to save the Utsusemi."
"Don't worry, we will," Danhauser promised before facing the silent half-breed. "What about you, Valerie?"
The girl in question just lazily shrugged. "Find someone," she replied, adding. "Before anyone asks 'who', mind your business."
Just as someone was about to speak their mind a knock came from the door, alerting the group of a new presence.
Their tensed shoulders slumped when a familiar, mature voice erased their worries. "It's us. Can we come in, please?"
"It's Lavinia," Danhauser said aloud and stood up. "I'll go welcome our guests."
As Danhauser Belial walked through the halls of Sae Toujou's previous house, he could practically feel the strong aura of pride flowing behind the door, obviously coming from Vali Lucifer.
"Azazel must be here, too," Danhauser carefully spied from the peephole just to be sure. Satisfied, he pulled the door open, coming face to face with three visitors. "Good morning, you three."
Lavinia Reni gave her sweet—yet weak—smile followed by a hat tip.
Meanwhile, Vali stuck with a short nod.
"Yo," the one who answered was the Governor-General of Grigori, Azazel. He'd made a peace sign and flashed his well-known grin. "Looking good after what happened yesterday, brat."
Danhauser grimaced at his words, intuitively passing a hand through his stomach, flashbacks repeating over in his mind. "Yeah…"
Azazel noted this and quickly changed the subject. "Can we go inside?" He asked, grin not fading a bit. "Or are we going to talk about secret stuff in the middle of the street, eh?"
Danhauser shrugged off his trance and barely moved aside for the Fallen Angel to inspect the place. "So, what's up kid? How's your group?"
"We're alright," Danhauser closed the door, taking off with Azazel's group following suit. "A little exhausted after the fight, but we're holding up."
"Couldn't sleep?"
"We did, but only for few hours."
Azazel stopped and chuckled. "Oh yeah, I know the struggle." He said, tiredly stretching his arms. "Since yestarday we were hunting down the traitors. It was a pain to locate them, but we succeeded."
Danhauser's eyes opened wide. "Wait, you finished them off?"
The old crow winked and playfully ruffled Danhauser's hair. "Duh! Just a few though, I'll explain it in a sec!"
It was silence after that, Danhauser wouldn't be surprised that Azazel was just picturing Canis Lykaon and Sephiroth Graal to the point where anything surrounding him was nonexistent. The advantages of having the strongest Fallen Angel around is his knowledge over Sacred Gears,
Maybe he'll give hints of using any Sacred Gear or different ways of mastering it.
"Here we are," Danhauser leisurely gestured at the main room, his Peerage looking over their shoulders from their seats."My Peerage."
"Yo, brats!" Again, Azazel gave his peace sigh and casually slumping on a chair. "Damn! There is nothing better than taking a seat after a paperwork. Well, maybe porn tops it."
"Great, he stole my seat," Danhauser grunted and stood with Vali and Lavinia.
"Uh..." Tobio clashed stares with Bova and Siegfried. "What?"
Azazel brought both arms behind his neck and relaxed. "Yesterday was a blast! I almost thought we were about to lose, but you kids proved me otherwise! Good work!"
"… Right," Tobio warily eyed him, carefully turning to his Master. "Who's that?"
"Grigori's leader, Azazel," Siegfried sighed. "The Orthodox Church was right, the Governor-General sure is a laid-back one."
"Oh shit!" Tobio bolted from his seat. "I-I'm so—!"
He stopped when a laugh erupted from Azazel's throat. "Gee, hold back your horses, Inugami of the Black Blade!" He said. "Seriously, you really need to loosen up, would ya? I'm not gonna to beat you up or something."
"I-I see…" Tobio mumbled and took his seat.
"Knowing who you are, introductions are not necessary, correct?" Valerie spoke.
Azazel smirked. "Not at all, Grail Maiden of the Tepes Clan."
Lavinia blinked, twice. "Wait, she's a Dhampir and a Longinus User?" Her narrowed eyes jumped over Danhauser. "Why didn't any of you didn't tell me?"
"… Uh." Danhauser broke stares from her wounded gaze. "She's an important case."
"How so?"
"It's a negotiation between the House of Lucifuge and the Tepes Faction," Azazel easily responded. "But his uncle, Malacoda Malebranche, sent the girl to the Belial Territory just to be safe from the City of Dis and everything else if I have to guess."
"How much Intel does he know?" Danhauser kept his mouth zipped.
"Everything else?" Lavinia repeated.
"From the world per se," Azazel replied, rocking on his seat. "Unlike most of the Longinus-Tier that are capable of slaying Gods and even destroying the world. Sephiroth Graal has the power to resuscitate creatures that are capable of threatening the world and other Factions, no matter how long they were dead."
"She could make an army," Tobio warily eyed her.
Valerie noticed this and leered. "What's wrong, Mr. Ikuse? You wouldn't believe I would do such thing, do you?"
Slash Dog snorted.
"But," Azazel continued. "Her Sacred Gear differs from the rest, hers is a subspecies."
"A Longinus subspecies…" Siegfried's eyes became dishes. "I never thought I would ever hear the words Longinus and subspecies in a sentence."
"The fact that vampires of the Tepes Faction are immune to sunlight just proves my theory." He rubbed his goatee. "Because as far as I know, the Sephiroth Graal wasn't capable of removing weaknesses of other creatures, it just controls the principle of life... " He turned to Danhauser with a wink. "You could even be immune to light-based attacks!"
"I see," Lavinia muttered, tipping her hat. "Just by the fact that this Holy Grail can bring miracles is enough to catch everyone's attention. Unpleasant attention."
"So, what's up?" Azazel rubbed his hands enthusiastically, grinning goofily. "Can I take a look at the Holy Grail?"
Valerie glared. "No."
"Yikes!" Azazel winced. "Did I touched a nerve?"
Danhauser took a step forward. "You need to understand that during her time in the Tepes Castle, they were always using her because of her Sacred Gear." He said. "The only way she'll ever use the Holy Grail is for healing."
"Well said, Mr. Belial." Valerie approved.
"Well, true that Sephiroth Graal has a lot of side-effects, talking with the dead from the other world being one of them..." Azazel frowned. "... but that only happens when you contact with the pinnacle of life or if she tries to revive long-dead creatures... maybe it also happens throughout modifying someone's body?"
"The Tepes were actually doing that," explained Danhauser. "From what I've heard, her older brother, Marius Tepes—"
Valerie's fist clenched slightly.
"—was contacting the principle of life for quite the time now."
"How long?" Inquired the Governor-General. "How long was she being experimented?"
"Months," Valerie said.
"Hmm," The Fallen Angel hummed in thought, rubbing his chin, studying the hybrid. "Oi, Grail Maiden. Answer the next questions... what do you think about love?"
"A wasteful feeling." Valerie shrugged off the question, but her anger showed slightly. "Why the sudden interrogation?"
"What matters more in life then?"
"Adaptability," was her response. "Again. Why the—!"
"How old are you, again?"
The Romanian's eyebrow twitched in frustration. "Sixteen."
Azazel stared right at her eyes. "... Could it be that...?"
"Azazel," Vali spoke. "We should just get to the point of why we're here."
The Fallen Angel groaned. "Come on! There are two Longinus in front of me and I can't take the chance to see them up-close?!" The man whined. "That's unfair!"
Everyone stared deadpanly.
Azazel huffed. "Gee, this generation is boring." He said before smiling slightly. "Yet interesting at the same time." He clapped twice. "Alright then! Back to business! You brats know about the betrayal that happened in the Grigori yesterday?"
"... Yes," Danhauser trailed off, his eyes jumping from Valerie to Azazel constantly.
She noted this and glared. "What are you looking at, Mr. Belial?"
Danhauser never replied back, slowly turning back to Azazel. "Who are the traitors?"
"A Fallen Angel that has great influence over the Hexennacht, control over the Utsusemi Agency and his former, small group of Sacred Gears users, calling themselves Team Abyss." He responded, his smile now flat. "He's Cadre-Class, his name is Satanael."
"Satanael…" repeated Danhauser, as far as he remembered, he wasn't mentioned in the Slash/Dog novel, mostly because it lasted one volume since the small sells in Japan. Maybe he's supposed to appear in Volume two?
"But in a way… he could be the main antagonist of Slash Dog in general," Danhauser pursed his lips. "Azazel said Satanael has authority over Augusta and Hanezu Himejima... damn."
"Team Abyss?" parroted Bova.
"Pushing aside the cringy and edgy name made by Satanael…" the Governor chuckled humorlessly. "They were heroic Sacred Gears users that were part of the school Nephilim under the protection of Grigori, the one who was in charge on the academy was, funnily, Satanael."
"That would explain why they were following him," Danhauser surmised. "Nephilim is a school for Sacred Gear users?"
"Bingo." Azazel nodded. "That's where we take those who have a Sacred Gears, so they have a better grasp of it."
While he was curious about Nephilim, he focused on the matter at hand. "You said something about finishing them off."
Azazel snapped his fingers in realization. "Oh! That's right! Team Abyss are eradicated by us, Grigori. Only Satanael is alive, though."
Everyone sighed in relief, except Bova and Vali who clicked their tongues.
"That's actually great to hear." Danhauser said with a smile. "I own you one."
"Bah!" Azazel waved off his gratitude. "Chill out brat, it's all good..." He folded his arms and looked down, muttering. "... Unless you have pictures of Gabriel's wonderful breasts..."
"What?"
The Governor coughed behind a fist. "Eh? Nothing, nothing. Just thinking about world hunger."
"Wow, so noble." the heir deadpanned.
Lavinia floated closer to Danhauser, whispering. "By Gabriel he meant...?"
"Yes."
"Oh."
"EITHER WAY!" Azazel caught everyone's attention with a clap. "Satanael's betrayal is unknown. That's what we're trying to figure out after we knew where he escaped."
"Where did he escape to?" Siegfried quickly asked.
The former Angel stared for a long time, it was unnerving. "Have any of you heard about the Dimensional Gap?"
Danhauser fought back a gasp. He just nodded, albeit quickly. "I heard about it in school. Maou Beelzebub and his subordinates used a small section of the Dimensional Gap for the Rating Games."
"Not only that. Dimensional Gap is also a location that lies between different worlds—it can be used as means of traveling to another world, like Yggdrasil, the world of the Norse Gods." Continued the Fallen Angel.
"So what you're saying is that Satanael, Utsusemi, and stray magicians are hiding in another dimension?" Tobio said in amazement, getting a nod from Azazel. "What? How?"
Lavinia took a step forward. "With the assistance of the Wizards of Oz." She took a deep breath. "If the information we have available is trustworthy then the Ozites, utilizing authentic barrier magic, constructed an original territory in the Dimensional Gap which straddles the boundaries between the worlds. They called it Land of Oz."
Everyone became quiet, except Bova who snorted at her explanation. Only Vali accepted everything without being perturbed.
"That would explain why Augusta had greater endurance than most humans in this world," muttered Siegfried to himself. "Maybe humans from other worlds have greater physical traits after all..."
"Alright, hold on a second," Danhauser shook his head with a bitter laugh. "Are you telling me that a bunch of humans built a dimension?"
"… I know it sounds foolish." Lavinia said quietly. "But we have proofs to back it up."
"Hoh? Then please, indulge us." Valerie demanded. "I don't find any possibility whatsoever for a Magician to ever create a dimension, let alone one of the greatest Magicians in history, Merlin Ambrosius. Unless a High-Class Sacred Gear was involved in this mess."
Lavinia just stared back at Valerie.
"… There's a Sacred Gear involved, isn't there?" The Romanian deadpanned.
"That's one of our first theories," Azazel admitted. "Remember the mess that transpired in Grauzauberer?"
"Where the ace of Grauzauberer betrayed Mephisto," Siegfried's blunt response made the Faustus wince. "Yes, we do remember."
"Well, his name is Georg Faust,"Azazel said, freezing Danhauser. "Descendant of Johann Georg Faust himself, the man who made a pact with Mephisto Pheles."
"And the user of a top-tier Longinus, Dimension Lost," added Lavinia.
"Apparently our group is destinated to meet the twelve Longinus one way or another," Valerie said, annoyed. "Marvelous, really."
"Half of them most likely are going to be our enemies in the future," muttered Danhauser.
Little do they know, it was just a future prediction.
"Heh!" Bova grinned in approval. "Well, those are good news then! More skulls to bash into the ground!"
"How many Longinus have we heard or seen so far?" asked Tobio, curious. "Just asking."
"Uh, six?" Bova hesitantly raised six, scowling. "No, wait! Seven!"
"You were correct, Bova," said Danhauser, amused. "Six in total so far."
"Half of them already, not bad," whistled Azazel. "Back on track, Dimension Lost can create a powerful mist that protects those inside the mist from harm. It can also teleport anything fast."
"So Dimension Lost is the Ultimate Barrier and Space Type Sacred Gear?" Tobio muttered.
"Pretty much," the Fallen Angel scratched inside his ear. "Its Balance Breaker is called Dimension Create… do I need to explain more?"
Danhauser waved him off. "No need to. It does make sense… but to keep up Balance Breaker for too long? There has to be a limit."
"Indeed," Lavinia agreed. "The first theory may be full of holes if you take time to analyze it profoundly. The second one is… stable per say, but still passable."
"Alright then, shoot," said Danhauser.
"The dimension has been there for a long time now, but still protected by unique barrier magic," she snapped her fingers and conjuring a book, lending it to Danhauser who carefully took it.
The Heir frowned when he analyzed the title and the picture. "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz," he read aloud, looking up at the girl. "This is…"
The blonde magician firmly tipped her hat. "Appearing within this picture book is the proof behind the reality of this world that they created. The author became aware of this world by chance, and it is certainly the territory they had created in the Dimensional Gap."
"This is confusing." Valerie folded her pale, slender arms. "What about the traitor of Grauzauberer, Mr. Faust?"
"Georg has nothing to do with this theory… just-just bad luck hitting us."
"Chances that the true leader of Wizards of Oz is behind this mess," Azazel continued. "The name's obvious—it has been under our noses for a long time."
"Indeed it has," Lavinia sighed. "The group of mages is called Wizards of Oz, they're known as Ozites, their dimension is known as Land of Oz. The leader could be the Great Mage Oz himself."
After breaking from his surprise, Tobio's upper lips twitched. "You have to be damn arrogant to name practically anything after your ass."
Jin barked in agreement!
Tannin's son grunted in denial. "I don't get it, what's the problem?"
"Mr. Ikuse is just irked by the pridefulness of the Wizards of Oz's Headmaster," replied Valerie.
"What's wrong with being prideful?" Bova growled. "It's a blessing!"
"I totally agree." Vali, for the first time, spoke from his spot.
"Prideful people tend to be a little ignorant about what others need," explained Siegfried. "They tend to be in their bubble of extreme awesomeness and superiority. Plus it's the most dangerous sin."
Bova huffed and stomped the floor just like a bull. "So what? It's a sin you should be proud of, dammit!"
"There's a difference between being full of pride and being prideful," Danhauser joined the conversation. "One means you know your worth. The other means you wave it in others' faces as often as you can."
"See?! Even Boss Hauser agreed!" Bova barked a victorious laugh. "I was right this whole time and you weren't, idiots!"
"Spectacular. Now he's full of himself," Valerie dryly said, glancing at Danhauser. "Hope you're satisfied, Mr. Belial."
Danhauser winked at her before turning back to the blonde mage. "Wasn't Augusta the Head of Wizards of Oz before it became known as Hexennacht?" He asked, frowning. "Or she was just taking the role of headmistress to keep hidden the true leader's identity?"
"Probably taking the role of a Mater temporarily," Lavinia replied hesitantly, not trusting her words. "Long ago back when the Magic Association wasn't turned into stray magicians and I was younger, Wizards of Oz had four aces, mostly known as the Four Cardinal Witches by other schools. Augusta was known as the Witch of East and had control over the Wizards of Oz when the other Cardinal Witches disappeared."
"Disappear back to their homeland, I bet." Danhauser presumed which Lavinia nodded in agreement. "If so, then to keep an eye out on Land of Oz, don't see any other reason."
"It could be," agreed the Faustus. "That's what we believe either way. While the three witches left our world to return to theirs, Augusta stayed either for orders of Oz himself or any other reason."
"You seem to know a lot about them," Siegfried said.
Lavinia just tipped her hat, obscuring her face.
"To make it easier to understand," drawled Azazel. "Hexennacht is just a small group led by Augusta that works under Wizards of Oz." He explained briefly. "Now, back on track, the dimension already existed long ago, with the remaining Cardinal Witches and Great Mage Oz watching over their world. Those are our beliefs."
Danhauser hummed and rubbed his chin, glaring at the window as he kept thinking. He finally snapped his fingers. "Is there a chance that she may have done the same thing as Satanael did with Grigori? Betray Oz and leave her hometown with a few followers and start anew here, thus making an alliance with Satanael?"
Tobio frowned. "Then how would you explain Utsusemi and Satanael living in the Land of Oz?"
"No offense to Grigori, but I doubt they followed them to another dimension—this is them just shooting in the dark and hope their shot stayed true." Danhauser pointed out. "Maybe members of Hexennacht, through the usage of magical protection, are sheltered on the Dimensional Gap. Don't mistake me, maybe Oz exists, but unlikely he's part of the problem, Augusta just left Land of Oz with apprentices. That's my opinion."
"… It could be." Azazel massaged his temple, flashing a tired smirk. "Either way, the mysteries of the Wizard of Oz take it with a grain of salt. The only thing confirmed is Satanael's betrayal with stray Magicians and Utsusemi Agency joining them…"
"If Oz was involved in this mess what are we going to do?" Bova questioned, grinning excitedly. "Invade them?"
Vali looked up at that.
The Fallen Angel's eyebrows stretched wildly. "Like hell we'll do that!" He snapped. "They are more than us and chances of us getting our asses kicked are quite high. Vali needed to be on his Balance Breaker and needed your King's help to defeat an exhausted Augusta!"
Bova grunted, disappointed.
"The best course of action is staying alert whenever they attack us," Lavinia suggested. "We'll strike back in case any acts of terrorism come from them."
"Ditto on that, the last thing this world needs is an alien invasion." Azazel stood and stretched. "Moving on! We barely won the battle, but not the war. Even if we took care of Hanezu and Augusta the real deal is still hidden scratching his ass and doing evil stuff!"
"The Utsusemi Agency is still rolling," Tobio reminded them keenly. "And they're still hunting down the remaining Evil Fiends."
Lavinia averted her gaze and tipped her hat.
The black angel walked closer and brushed Tobio's head, smiling bitterly. "We know and we're doing our best to stop them. Since Hanezu was captured alive, we'll see if we can make him spit the truth about the two Fiends' location and save them before Satanael kidnaps them."
Azazel pulled his hand back. "For now, leave the rest to Grigori. We will be strictly monitoring any moves coming from the Agency, Hexennacht, and Satanael to the point that they would feel it would be better to just die. We're also going to hack into the media to stop them from spreading this worldwide by altering their memories and make something up before they find the truth. "
"Understood," Danhauser walked at him and extended a hand. "Thank you for your help, Governor-General."
Azazel blinked at the gesture before breaking into a hearty laugh, brushing Danhauser's gray hair. "See you later, brats!" He turned to Tobio. "Baraqiel says hi."
Leaving such parting words, Azazel left the room.
Slash Dog blinked. "Who?"
Vali pushed himself off the wall and followed. He, looked behind his shoulder. "I never had the chance to fight everyone here, let's do so another day."
He finally left, closing the door.
…
"So that happened," Danhauser mused, glaring whilst combing his ruined hair.
Siegfried hummed. "It was never addressed, but I guess the Five Principal Clans are safe, for now."
"Yes, the Clans are free from harm," Lavinia announced with a powerless smile. "We've sent a mesage to build an alliance with them for quite the time now but knowing their attitude… it may have been immediately declined."
"I don't intend to be rude but," Danhauser trailed off, pointing where Azazel and Vali left. "Are you not accompanying them?"
She softly shook her head. "I have to report back to Pops." She responded firmly, quickly adding. "And I wanted to talk with all of you, especially you."
Danhauser curved an eyebrow.
Lavinia took carefully her hat, hugging it like a favorite toy. "You know, I've been meaning to thank you. From the moment I heard Pops talking about you and your team, I was honestly caught off-guard. I was only expecting to receive assistance from Grigori but hearing that someone from the House of Belial and their Peerage too was… unexpected."
Danhauser looked away. "It wasn't all me, you know? My Peerage helped me on this too."
"And Grauzauberer is grateful for that," she said, tenderly passing a thumb over her hat. "You don't need to stick your neck out for Grauzauberer and Grigori here, but you have."
"I promised Tobio that I would help him," Danhauser pointed out. "Plus we're really not trying to make a stand—we just...keep ending up in these situations."
Lavinia beamed. "I know that. That's what makes it matter." She bowed her head. "Pops had planned to come and thank each one of you. Unfortunately, he couldn't come, but keep in mind that you have Grauzauberer's eternal gratitude."
"Why couldn't your Pater come?" Inquired Siegfried. "Is he in a meeting with other higher magicians?"
That's when her expression completely fell off. "… He's not in a great mood. The case of Georg and the fact that he believes that he almost got us killed because of the latter's betrayal crushed his fragile heart."
"Why would he do that?" Tobio whispered, scowling. "Why would Georg betray your headmaster?"
Lavinia once again adjusted her hat around her head. "He wanted to become the new headmaster, but Pops always told him he wasn't ready." Her face wrinkled angrily. "Long ago he'd invited me to follow him, at first I thought he would leave Grauzauberer and make his own school…"
"But lo and behold," Valerie snorted. "He just wanted to become a Stray Magician or a Terrorist."
"Or both," agreed Lavinia, pushing a few strands of golden hair aside. "He's deeply sorry for this. I hope all of you can forgive him."
"I hope he has alcohol," Danhauser merely nodded in understanding. "He's strong, he'll get better."
Lavinia just lamely smiled.
Slash Dog suddenly clapped, catching everyone's attention. The brunet sheepishly grinned. "I know it's not the best moment to say this but…"
"You want to play in the Arcade, right?" Siegfried shook his head. "Seriously. Is this going to become a routine from now on? For each victory on the battlefield, slack off somewhere else?"
"Stop acting tough, Sieg," Tobio shot back. "Admit it, you wanna go too, it's written all over your damn face! I still remember how you enjoyed playing your weird gore games."
The silver-haired scoffed, yet his orbs betrayed his actions. "Well, I did have the quite pleasure playing there. However! Master can only decide whether we go or not."
"Sure, we can go," Danhauser shrugged. "But we should go back to the manor first. I left my wallet there."
"Let's move quickly then!" Tobio hurried them. "The place closes in four hours today!"
"So what?" Valerie quirked an eyebrow. "We have plenty of time. Don't be impatient."
"Well, I promised Sae to win a toy that caught her interest and the only way to get one is through tickets. A lot of tickets."
Danhauser cheekily smiled. "What a thoughtful boyfriend you are."
Tobio glowered. "I'm not her boyfriend, fucks sake!"
"Hmhm. If you are going to lie, at least try to lie convincingly," Valerie smirked sardonically, much to Tobio's nerves. "Those blushing cheeks of yours tell a different tale, Mr. Ikuse."
Danhauser chuckled.
Tobio groaned. "Hey, you two do me a favor, yeah? Kindly go crawl into a bush somewhere and hopefully die? That would be superb, thanks."
"Ehehehehe…" She giggled behind her fingers. "Hm. Heh... How can you be so cold? You are similar to a piece of rock candy."
"You three are really going to tease each other out?" Siegfried pinched his nose. "Again?"
Before Tobio could retort, Danhauser spoke. "We're wasting time, let's be quick before they close the place."
Bova frowned. "I hope I can play this time." He growled. "It was boring as hell be inside a bag while you guys were having fun!"
"I'll make sure you can play, too," Danhauser then faced the perplexed Faustus. "Want to come, Lavinia?"
"H-huh?" The blonde mage broke from her trance. "Thank you, but I don't wish to become a burden…"
"Nah, don't worry," Tobio waved off her excuses. "You're welcome to come, the more the merrier. Plus don't worry about paying—boss will do it."
The Faustus timidly gazed at the gray-haired Devil. "I need to go back and see if—!"
"Mephisto is alright? Most likely the fossil would prefer to be alone in times like this." Danhauser interrupted. "Besides, he would gladly let you have some fun rather than taking care of him."
She bit her lip. "…Are you sure?"
Danhauser spun around. "We'll be going to my brother's manor first to get my wallet and tell my mom I'll be with my Peerage." He explained, beckoning everyone to follow. "While we're at it, I can show you the Belial Territory, if you want, of course."
Lavinia stared for a while before grinning at him. "Alright then, I'm under your care."
Enjoyments most come to an end, faster than he originally imagined. It was just a blink of his eyes for Danhauser Belial to find himself away from the Arcade to the manor with a pillar of books at his side. Almost falling asleep if it wasn't for the coffee that he had pumping his system.
It was boring. Making exception when it's about the Great War and many important figures of the past, trying to memorize the rules of Arts Goetia wasn't Danhauser's forte. Just like Senjutsu, his eyes would just close in the middle of his studies.
"Now, Young Master, let's see if you were paying close attention. What can you tell me about your role as an Heir?" A french, blue-haired man questioned with a shallow smile.
Danhauser tenderly laid down the book and massaged his aching temple. "The Heir has an important role in the family, being the third important devil in the Clan, right behind the Lady and Lord Belial."
He spared a glance at Gilles de Rais, to see if was enough.
The Queen just kept smiling with eyes closed. It was creepy, especially knowing the background of Bluebeard.
Danhauser sighed. "The role of an Heir depended on when, who, the situation, the position in the order of succession, the territory you'll receive, etc, etc..."
"Like what?"
The Heir rolled his tongue."Well, it depends on the ranking of the Housecarl. For the highest-ranking clan amongst the 72 Pillars... it could be a glamorous and boisterous delight, or filled with political intrigue or even exceptionally sheltered and restrictive."
For Danhauser it was the 'filled with political intrigue' role.
Danhauser opened a different book. "For those lowest-ranking Devil families—among the poor aristocracy. The heirs are involved a lot of physical activity, or fraught with danger, or a staggering amount of stress and hard work. The only thing that the highest and lowest Heirs of their respective Clans have in common is that both of them have to make contracts with humans to benefit the Underworld and along the way, increase their Clan's power and standing in the Underworld."
"Good job," Gilles applauded. "Now... on the next subject..."
In general, few Heirs had an exceptional military of martial training and spent a great deal of their youth learning to manipulate demonic power, control their House Trait, Hand-to-Hand Combat, etc. They also typically learned military strategy since they were expected to be exceptionally great leaders for their Peerage and great Rating Games players and who knows? Become the new Champion.
Unfortunately, if Gilles de Rais speaks the truth, that was eons ago. Rarely the young generation would be seen training to obtain power. He told Danhauser that this is mostly the parent's fault, they had a mindset that strong genes are the only way to obtain strength, that marriages and intercourse will breed powerful offsprings.
Which in a way, it is true, Sirzechs Lucifer and Grayfia Lucifuge are a perfect example when Millicas Gremory became part of the family tree, a strong Devil by DxD canon starts. But they're an exception, after all, both of them are known as the strongest Devil and Strongest Queen across the Underworld.
Unfortunately, there are cases when a Devil doesn't inherit the glamour that his parents were looking for. For example, Sairaorg Bael. While the House of Bael saw his existence as 'defected' his mother, Misla Bael, has a kind, caring and different view of her son, which cost her greatly.
While Gilles points the accusing finger to the parents, Danhauser just goes after the ancient generation. After all, most likely they're the ones who toyed with the minds of many Devils with their single-minded ideals.
"The Elders!" Gilles feigned excitement. "Tell me anything you know about them."
Danhauser fought back a groan as he closed yet another book, pushing it aside and staring expectantly at Gilles. "They're important figures across the Underworld, the ones that fought during the Great War."
It was honestly that. School always made sure you knew about the crops they gave to their descendants, it was like studying in a Catholic school where there was a class that involved solely about Him and His miracles.
"What else can you tell me?"
The Heir narrowed his eyes. He had an idea about the Elders, but they were just assumptions, Gilles has a better grasp of the subject. "I'm all ears."
Gilles gave his trademark, crooked smile. "Well, well, Young Master. Unlike other fields of references, we have been learning about, this subject is a… touchy is the indicated word."
Danhauser suspiciously curved an eyebrow. "… How so?"
The blue-haired Frenchman chuckled dryly. "Normally, whenever you talk about the Elders, you are obligated to give breathtaking praises about their appearances and achievements… speaking about their glaring flaws is a fool's gambit, heh."
"So I'll only going to hear amazing compliments?" Danhauser said, obviously knowing the answer to his question. This was Gilles de Rais, after all.
Gilles snorted indignantly. "I will only share the truth with you. After all, you'll be slowly closing gaps with them as you grow."
Danhauser rolled his neck and nodded. "Alright then, I'm ready."
Gilles studied him for a while before spinning around and facing the wall. "… The Elders are the very first and finest Devils to ever be created by the flesh of Lilith and the assistance of Lucifer himself." He began. "Not necessarily all Elders are from Ars Goetia, there are some in Extra Demons Faction, a perfect example is Rofocale Lucifuge, who left the Extra Demons with his Clan to govern the City of Dis, your father, Lord Matanbuchus, works for him."
"What about Mephisto?" Danhauser asked, bitting his cheek. "He's also another Elder from Extra Demons, right?"
"Oui, oui. Lord Pheles is also considered an Elder, but he was not made by the flesh of Lilith, a similar case goes to your uncle, Malacoda, and the Malebranche Clan, it is a mystery how they were born." He explained. "The most famous Elder we have in the Ars Goetia is the Great King Zekram Bael, a man whose tongue is sharper than Caliburn itself."
"Let's get to the scary part," said Danhauser, now interested in this. "How… how dangerous are they?"
He finally faced Danhauser. "Young Master. These people are the ones who gave each Clan a role on Ars Goetia. They're the ones who created the Four Great Satan in Ars Goetia as their puppets. Their political authority is above even that of the Senators and Lord Bael, as they can distribute news of a Maous resignation—something that can shake the 72 Pillars balance—and then easily tell their people it was falsified, all of which even the Senators or Lord Bael could not disobey."
Danhauser jaw almost touched the table. He shook his head. "It's… it's going to sound stupid, but why? Why give them so much power?"
"Because since they fought in the Great War, they are venerated as gods for fighting beside the Original Maous," Gilles replied. "It also comes from Zekram's influence, when the Four Original Satans died, he basically became the de facto leader of the Devils. Until the Elders decided to choose the actual Maous as figures to do their job."
"Damn," Danhauser massaged his tired eyes. "You told me how strong they are in politics, but in terms of demonic power?"
"Good question," said Gilles, scratching his blue beard. "… Lucifer was infamously known because of his perfectionistic quirk. So, whenever a Devil didn't blow his expectations, he threw it away and continued until his Ubermensch came to life. I would say Ultimate-Class at least." He heaved a breath. "But I doubt they are powerful anymore. As time passed, they stopped honing their powers and slowly began to weaken, preferring to stay in their beds full of gold, stones, and women."
Why lift a finger either way? When there's practically the Four Great Satans handling the rest. Even if they were objections to their system from citizens and those who have eyes open, they would be trashed immediately. Is an 'obey or die' world.
"Is… is that all?" Danhauser hesitantly asked.
The former Marshal of France shook his head. "Non. We are barely getting started with this." He frowned as he tapped the table. "Usually, they simply rely on people's fear of them, but their greatest weapon is that when they get attacked in any way they can summon a Maou to obliterate their attackers."
"But they're just four Maous," Danhauser's eyes widened. "And I doubt there's in total Four Elders in Ars Goetia. Too much for them, don't you think?"
"Which is why we are going to talk how they influence the Rating Games," Gilles began. "To be specific, those who are in the Top Ten."
"They're fucking everywhere," Danhauser almost facepalmed. "Just a wild guess. The Elders can summon those who are in the Top Ten to protect them if they're threatened?"
"Something along those lines," Gilles coughed behind a fist. "Not all those who are on the Top Ten have to defend the Elders—those are your brother, your uncle, Tannin and Ruval Phenex."
"… I can get why Ruval and my brother are off the hook," speculated Danhauser. "They're part of Ars Goetia Faction, but Tannin and my uncle?"
"Your uncle was spared because your mother married your father," Gilles scowled. "Tannin is unknown to me, what I have heard is a negotiation between Lord Pheles and Great King Zekram."
"Only those who are not part of the Clans of Ars Goetia are obligated to bodyguard the elders," Danhauser noted which the Queen nodded. "But why...?"
"All thanks to the Old Satan Faction," Gilles glanced cautiously at the window. "That faction is mostly full of Devils coming from the Extra Demon Faction which is why citizens of Ars Goetia categorized Devils outside their walls as terrorists."
He turned back to Danhauser. "Devils from the Extra Demons who involve themselves with the current Devil Government will have to break all ties with their households and vow loyalty to the 72 Pillars and the Elder they are assigned to protect."
Danhauser pursed his lips. Even so, most Devils are well known to speak about promises while crossing their fingers behind their backs, normally they don't care about oaths and making blood pacts, only power and fame. Not implying those on the Top Ten are treacherous, but still few of them are corrupted, a notorious example is the abuse of the banned King Piece.
There have to be other ways for those on the Extra Demons to make a living on Ars Goetia, after all, Sairaorg Bael's future Queen shares kindred with the third-ranked in Rating Games. But possibly a process that may take years to be approved by the government. The faster method was getting under the wings of an elder but demands perfection.
"So they only have to care for a single Elder. Unlike the Satans who have to protect all of them…" Danhauser muttered, massaging his sore temple. "This… this is fucked up, sorry for the word."
"Do not worry," he giggled emptily. "Perfect examples are Bedeze Abaddon, Roygun Belphegor, and that buffoon, Rudiger Rosenkreutz. While in here they are known as heroes, the Extra Demons see them as 'Elders lapdogs.'"
"Rudiger, a name I haven't heard for a long time now," Danhauser winced when the memories struck him. He shook his head. "Bedeze and Roygun… two Devils who have the King Piece… could it be that the Elder they're meant to protect gave them one? Just for the Elder to become famous for recruiting 'strong' Devils?"
Maybe they're behind the corruption of the Rating Games, something that Diehauser Belial isn't aware of.
"In conclusion," Gilles said loud enough for Danhauser to pull back into the conversation. "If you, by any means, caught sight of an elder on the Capital Lilith or any other place. Run. Not even your brother, mother or I can do anything to stop those bastards. Understood?"
"A brief summary would be that Zekram isn't a member of the Bael Clan. He is the Bael Clan." Danhauser scowled but answered. "Yeah, crystal."
Suddenly, the butler broke into a smile. "Marvelous. We are done here." He announced, signaling Danhauser to stand up. "Before I forget, your brother told me to warn you a few things, next week you'll be visiting the Phenexes and you'll be participating in your first Rating Game, your contender is, amusingly, someone from the Phenex Clan."
Danhauser missed a beat. "... Oh."
"This is a tradition," stated Gilles. "Whenever someone finished school, they give the students time to recruit Peerage members before putting them on a Rating Game match, just to see how strong are they."
The gray-haired slowly nodded. "I...I suppose there's going to be an audience."
"Oui, oui! Of course!" Gilles replied. "This is the next generation that'll soon become adults, Young Master. Those that are amongst the Top Ten are going to watch from a VIP room."
"Fuck me," Danhauser gulped his curse as his heart thrumming increased. "That means Uncle and Diehauser are going to be there, too... what if I lose in front of them... NO! I can't lose! I won't lose! I WILL win this Rating Game, all of them!"
...
He carefully stared down at his tensed hands. "But then why am I acting like this? I have fought against the Utsusemi and Hexennacht multiple times, where I could've died in the hands of the enemy... but when Gilles mentioned the Rating Games I felt different... I'm-I'm not scared, aren't I?"
Of course not.
"Is something troubling you, Young Master?" Gilles hastily moved at his side, a hand on his shoulder.
"Huh?" The Heir broke from his trance, quickly forcing a weak grin. "Of course I'm alright, why wouldn't I?"
Diehauser's Queen face turned concerned. "... You fell in complete silence all of sudden."
"Ah," Danhauser pursed his lips, averting his gaze. "I... I'm just tired... maybe-maybe I should sleep already. Don't you think?"
...
"If... you wish so." Gilles gave an unusual smile, walking away. "Then it's time for you to get some sleep, Young Master, a beautiful morning awaits you, heh."
Danhauser watched Gilles retreating with a distant look.
After seeing he was alone. He released a shaky sigh. "Yeah, right," he muttered dryly, pulling himself off the chair. "A beautiful morning awaits me…"
"So, here I am again," Danhauser Belial tried to find a comfortable position on the floor. He looked up at the owner of the bed. "Those spirits in the Holy Grail sure can get annoying now and again, yeah?"
The light, blonde-haired girl peeked from her pillow—those dark red eyes could shine even in an abyss. "Indeed they are, normally they demand freedom, but doing so, they'll cause double the trouble."
"Hmm," Danhauser looked away from her gaze. "Hey, Valerie?"
"What is it?"
"How lonely was your life in the dungeon?"
Valerie Tepes tilted her head. "Whenever I lacked companionship or attempted to push aside boredom, I just played with the centipedes living in my dungeon and watched the spiders catch their prey, they were there if I urgently needed to socialize with someone."
"What a fascinating way to kill off boredom," he paid a compliment. "I always wanted centipedes and spiders running across my body."
"Great minds think alike it seems," She satirically smiled. "It's a breath fresh of air to see that you're so broad-minded about other people's hobbies, Mr. Belial."
"I aim to please."
"Ehehehe…" She giggled. "Do not believe I've been locked on a dungeon my whole childhood. There were infrequent occasions when father would take me out to see… a foreign world. It was a scary sight."
"Well, that's a surprise," Danhauser said after a brief silence. "For a second I thought you'd spent your whole life locked in a dungeon."
"Father was generous," she said, adding. "Only when things went smoothly across the Tepes Faction. I, of course, had to ruin it."
"Do I smell story time?"
She paused to inspect her nails. "...When I was allowed to wander around the castle, I'd made sure to behave in front of nobles, even if they were disgusted by me and wished for my impalement. I was ordered to keep some distance from them. As time twirled, I caught sight of these beautiful, young damsels from afar." She recalled. "My eyes lingered to a gorgeous garment..."
"You took it?" Danhauser theorized.
"Without hesitation," she confirmed. "Making sure no one had detected me yet, I stole it and ran away with the dress between my tiny arms. I had the biggest, delighted grin on my face as I tried to wear it. It was too big for me, but it made me happy. Because of my mixed blood, I never received gifts, even if it was my birthday." Her eyes traveled over the plush toy, whispering. "... But I got one now, apparently."
"We're reaching the part where everything goes bad?" Danhauser massaged his temple. "After all, you were not really welcomed in the castle, even less by the Tepes Faction in general."
"Unfortunately," Valerie sighed. "After being notified of a missing dress and identifying the wrongdoer, father had the reddest face that even crimson color paled in comparison. I was in my youth and had not yet matured enough to understand the outrageous behavior I'd committed—I had disgraced him in front of other vampires for the sake of a pretty piece of fiber." She looked away. "To discipline me, father yanked the dress from my grasp and shred it apart in front of me... I was saddened that time."
"I know how vampires and devils are in general, but he shouldn't have done that," Danhauser laid deeper on the wall. "You were just an innocent, curious child."
"And a brainless one," added the Romanian. "I'm thankful for father crumbling my useless fantasies. A hint for you, Mr. Belial, happiness, and love are short-lived and have no vital meaning in life. Adaptability has a meaning. Without father's strict teachings, I would probably be impaled to dead."
Danhauser narrowed his eyes. "That point of view changed you a lot, huh?"
Valerie proudly smirked. "Absolutely." She said.
The Heir stared at her dark, red orbs. "Let me know something. Don't you find yourself looking back, wondering what might that beautiful little girl become with the elegant, long dress?" Danhauser asked.
"Werewolf food, obviously." Valerie easily responded, sinking her head into the pillow. "Such thoughts have no function amongst the face of reality. They're just a burden, that's it."
A pregnant silence settled between them after the Dhampir concluded her thoughts and past. It was honestly a surprise for Danhauser, given how she's defensive whenever they asked her questions.
Danhauser scratched his neck while steadily stealing side glances at the girl on the bed, her eyes locked on the ceiling, definitely in her inner world or thinking about the sins and virtues of the past.
That's when a thought jabbed his mind. "By the way, Valerie?"
"Yes?"
"Thanks, again."
She blinked and stayed quiet, leering. "… Why for this time?"
Danhauser passed his digits over his covered stomach. "If it wasn't for you, I would be sleeping with the fishes." He chuckled sourly. "Now there are two favors I owe you. You have something in your mind, by the way? If so, let's hear it."
"…" Her eyes were still on the ceiling. She took a decent time to think before shaking her head. "I'm afraid not."
"… I think there's something that I could help you with."
"I doubt it," she insisted.
"You want to find someone, that 'someone' is obviously your friend, isn't it?" Danhauser said and her eyebrow twitched. "The one who was also in a dungeon with you, remember?"
She snorted in disbelief, knowing well where this is going. "What? You're going to find him?"
"Yes," his answer was blunt, but he didn't care.
She, however, wasn't dancing at his words, she sat straight on the bed and glared. "How can I trust you won't do any harm to him?"
"I won't," Danhauser shot back.
"Is that supposed to be an assuring answer?" Valerie scoffed crankily.
"As the heir of the Belial Clan, I promised you I won't cause any harm to him," Danhauser vowed. "Besides, we've been cooperating together for a good time now. You still don't trust me?"
Valerie's mouth opened and closed, letting her eyes roam the room before gazing back at him. She'd have to speak, she knew she would, but at least this way her mind had a few moments longer to prepare an answer.
Finally, she left her inner thoughts. "What makes you think with your help we'll find him?"
"We've already found six Longinus Users," Danhauser countered. "This world is small—the chances of locating him are higher than you think."
…
Valerie folded her arms, looking away from his intense gray eyes, just to end up facing the plush toy beside her pillow.
"If you think I'll turn him into my servant, then don't worry." She listened to Danhauser's, soothing voice. "I won't lay a finger on him."
After two or three minutes, she rolled her eyes and contained a groan, casting an annoyed glance at the Devil. "Gasper." She quietly grunted, dropping to her bed and turning away from him. "Gasper Vladi. Now leave me alone."
She could feel Danhauser's assuring and teasing smile. "See? Was that really difficult?"
"…"
Fun fact, as it turns out, you can't drink away the silence.
Slowly, he started to wake up.
Opening his red eyes to a dark room. He tried to move, but chains rattled and he stopped at once. He realized that he was lying face-down on his bare stomach, breathing in the rancid residue that coated the floor—it smelled like death. A steady dripping noise was coming from his left.
He was imprisoned. And he had no idea how long it would be before he was released.
Underneath that was the sound of distant footsteps and an inhuman snarl. The footfalls became steadily louder—he scrambled to stand, straining against the blackness to see what or who was coming. Even if he knew, he wanted to see a face, not the stained floor.
Even if that man was the culprit of all his suffering.
A sudden weight speeded over his back, enough to spark a sharp pain across his spine. He contained his screams as the shoe sunk deeper into his flesh.
"Good morning." The figure greeted fervently, shifting his feet over the prisoner's back, much to the latter's dismay. "I hope you had a pleasant rest?"
The chained slave lost the strength of speech, fist clenched as he fought the urge to wail out his agony.
"Hmm…?" the man hummed, but it was more amusement than curiosity. "Are you perhaps dead? Should I just dispose of your body?" He took a pause. "What do you think?"
He thought the question was aimed at him, but another savage voice proved him wrong. "Food shouldn't be wasted-wasted!" The creature gurgled. "Just leave and I'll handle the rest! GUHEHEHE!"
"… I-I'm…"
"Hoh?" The collective one feigned surprise. "We were proven wrong. He's still alive, what a blessing, really."
The abomination whined like a pig, disappointed.
"…Please," the prisoner croaked, throat dry. "No more... please."
He felt the shoe leave his back, but a strong grip wrapped itself around his fragile neck. The man was wearing latex gloves. "… This is your fault, you understand, don't you?"
"…"
"You had a simple job, make sure the girl was in safe hands and continue the research." He continued, slowly tightening his grip. "We'd suggested you extract her Sacred Gear, but you did not. I admired that response—it showed how confident you were in protecting the Holy Grail."
"…"
"Yet, you failed miserably." His tone lost all signs of calmness. "You don't understand how embarrassed I felt when I had to give the news to my Master, just because of your imbecility. I couldn't even look at him in the eye as I gave the report."
…
…
…
"I—!"
The prisoner felt coldness envelop him, but no darkness came. His torturer broke the cuffs and then wrapped his strong hands around his throat and squeezed. He raised him off the ground. The slave kicked and squirmed, but it was no use.
Just as his vision went blurry, he caught sight of the red eyes staring straight at him, his single, silvery braid almost sniffing the floor. The thing beside his strangler was worse—it had the shape of a snake, a white eye meanwhile the other one was purple, eerily drooling fluids leaving from its huge, sharpened jaw.
It was a disgusting sight.
Suddenly, all eyes went over the silver-haired's pocket, a phone chimed in, alerting him to a received call. He harshly dropped the slave to the ground gasping for air as he pulled out his latex gloves.
"Hello?" Euclid answered the phone, a plastic smile drawn on his face.
[… You have guts to call me.] The speaker was on for everyone to hear. [Especially when I'm in the midst of my job.]
"Ah! Lord Nebiros!" The man gasped in surprise, obviously pretending to be. "I was getting anxious! For a second I thought you were murdered in the City of Dis since I never received a single call or message from you over the past few months!"
[You know I can't answer when I'm in Dis, Regent-Lord Lucifuge would trace the call.] He countered. [Right now I'm outside of the city, safe from that bastard's ears. Give me a reason why I shouldn't just tell him you're still alive and get the bounty, Euclid?]
"Now, now..." Euclid Lucifuge's smile remained tranquil, unfazed by the empty threats. "You don't like me. You have no reason to like me. But you don't have to like me to get the results you want, Lord Nebiros."
A tensed silence established over the dark room. Only the hisses of pain coming from the prisoner bounced in the walls.
[… I'm listening.]
"I know you have agents spying the Lucifuge District," Euclid remarked. "Spying each move of that bastard."
A laugh erupted from the phone. [My, my. So what if I do? Are you going to make an anonymous call to Rofocale Lucifuge?]
"Not at all," the last thing Euclid ever wanted is to speak with a treacherous dog. "I need information of the past few months."
[What for?] Lord Nebiros demanded. [What will you give me in exchange?]
Euclid chuckled. "Avaricious as always, Lord Nebiros." He teased, pulling a potion from his pants. He lazily tossed it at the prisoner who instinctively caught it.
The slave shook it before looking up at the silver-haired Devil suspiciously. "W-what is this?"
"Phoenix Tears," he simply responded. "It'll heal all your wounds. Drink it, Marius."
Marius Tepes immediately drank it all, ignoring the horrible taste and focusing the potion doing its effects. Even if it was rat poison, he would gladly chew it, given the circumstances he's facing.
"What!?" The beast growled out at Euclid. "Meal's going to-to live?! Why?!"
"We need him," Euclid replied, if there was an annoyance in his voice, he certainly hid it well behind the polite smile. "Don't worry—we still have a few Stray Devils for you to feast, Nidhoggr."
The Evil Dragon just snarled, unsatisfied, glancing hungrily at the Vampire. "You're lucky."
Marius gulped.
Euclid returned to the phone. "What I can offer you in exchange is an alliance, Lord Nebiros."
Another laugh came from the phone. [An alliance?! Don't make me laugh, you dumb brat! Working with you is a fool's gambit!]
"Even if our Master is the one leading this organization?"
…
[Prove it.]
Euclid sighed and sent an apologetic smile at Nidhoggr and Marius. "Gentlemen," he briefly said before walking past them, sliding the door open.
The Vampire hissed when light reached his eyes, almost leaving him blind, months secluded and chained away from the exterior has weakened his irises.
Thankfully, Sephiroth Graal gave him immunity over sunlight.
Euclid stepped outside of the room, standing in the clean corridor, he raised the phone. "Your Majesty, can you please speak?"
Nebiros was about to call him out, but someone was faster. "HOLY SHIT, EUCLID!" A new voice enthusiastically shouted from another room. "HAVE YOU SEEN A CERBERUS' DICK?! THEY HAVE THREE! THAT'S. FUCKED. UP! UHYAHYAHYA~!"
Euclid brought down the phone and walked back inside. "Content?"
[… He's alive.] Lord Nebiros dozens of emotions coursing through his veins. [He's… HE'S ALIVE! THE TRUE KING OF THE UNDERWORLD IS ALIVE!]
Euclid chuckled, satisfied. "I suppose Master can count on you?"
[Of course, he can!] He confirmed after calming down. [You wanted information of the Lucifuge District? I can even give you confidential Intel of Ars Goetia!]
"Excellent," Euclid felt relief wash over him. "I'm afraid this type of conversations needs to be addressed face-to-face. However, all I need is to know is one thing."
[What?]
"The negotiation between the Tepes Faction and Lucifuge District," He strongly said. "Is the Holy Grail in the hands of Regent-Lord Lucifuge?"
[…So the Sephiroth Graal has been revealed?] Euclid could literally picture Nebiros' widened eyes. [And it was in the hands of the Male Vampire Faction this whole time? Interesting…]
"Please, concentrate."
[No it isn't.] Lord Nebiros immediately answered. [From what I've heard from my spies, Malacoda Malebranche made an appearance in the Lucifuge District with a foreign girl resembling a doll, light-blonde hair and red eyes.]
"I-It's her!" Marius ran and grabbed Euclid's arm, screaming tantrums on the phone. "The Holy Grail! It's her! My sister has it! WHERE IS SHE?!"
"Don't touch me you filthy swine!" Euclid snapped, slapping the Vampire away. "Maybe Vampire is on the menu, after all!"
Nidhoggr managed a shark-like grin. "Yes-yes!"
"N-no!" Marius shot back, stuttering.
Euclid glowered. "Then don't you dare to dirty my clothes with those filthy hands! You miserable piece of shit!" He took a soothing breath and blew it away, feeling the fury in his chest waiting to take over.
After a while, he regained his composure whilst forcing a smile. "So, the Spear of Malebolge left to Ars Goetia? What for?"
[… 72 Pillars.] Lord Nebiros slowly replied. [Malacoda left Dis with the girl and returned without her.]
"Interesting..." The silver-haired Devil scowled and played with his long-braid. "… Does Malacoda also have contacts over there?"
[His sister, Calcabrina Belial, lives there.] A weary sigh left his throat. [The chances of the Holy Grail being kept hidden in the Belial Territory are high.]
"The House of Belial…" Euclid bit his cheek. Bad news indeed. "… I'll message you our location and we'll continue our conversation."
[We'll be in contact.] He ended the call.
Euclid red eyes glued to the screen of his phone before looking up at the sound of anxious steps. "Ah, Marius, I can see the Phoenix Tears worked wonderfully with you. You look magnificent!"
The Vampire gritted his teeth. There was no way he could escape from this hell, if he did, they'll just throw him back to his cell or use him as Nidhoggr's next chewing toy. He didn't even have the courage to commit suicide.
And these people are not the type of giving a peaceful death. Mostly when Euclid needs Marius' help when it's about Sacred Gears.
In fact, the chances of constantly getting tortured physically and mentally just to turn him into a loyal machine is sky-scraping.
"Well then," he came back to the real world, thanks to Euclid and his 'warm' smile. "Shall we commence, Marius?"
The blond vampire stuck with a shaky nod. "Y-yes."
"Then let's get back to work," the silver-haired sensed Marius' uneasiness, but he wasn't a man who rubbed comfort to people's back, a wasteful gesture.
Grayfia's young brother spun around and walked away, followed by the Vampire and Evil Dragon.
"What are we going to do-do?" Nidhoggr's head tilted, almost invading Euclid's personal space.
"Because of Marius foolishness, we're back to the square one," the cold response made Marius wince. "… Lord Nebiros thinks that Sephiroth Graal is in the Clan Belial… the House that birthed the actual Champion of the Rating Games."
"Are we going to retrieve her?" Marius felt a chill ran up on his spine when Euclid's powerful gaze hovered him.
"And show ourselves to the world?" The Devil bitterly chuckled. "We've been in the dark for too long, we're still trying to remain unnoticed by the world, if they know about Master's status, the Underworld would shake, but… we will take her right where she belongs, without showing our identities."
"Recruiting people wouldn't be a bad idea, just like you did with that guy," Marius timidly muttered. "J-just saying, though."
"You're not wrong, Marius," Euclid said with an uneasy frown.
"What-what about those Stray Magicians?" Nidhoggr belched.
"The Wizards of Oz?" Euclid said, getting a snort from the Evil Dragon. "I've sent someone from Nilrem to find their hiding spot. It shouldn't take so much."
"So you're already five steps ahead," the vampire muttered.
Euclid ignored him, sighing deeply. "I never thought this day would come, but it's time for Qlippoth to take harsher methods."
Thus begins, in the midst of conflict spread across the world between the Grigori who watches the Sacred Gears possessors, the Five Principal Clans and the Ouryuu who obey the Four Divine Beasts, the Exorcist of Kuoh Town, the Cadre-Class Fallen Angel Satanael who has great influence over the Utsusemi the Wizards of Oz, and Hexennacht.
And finally, the representation of impure spiritual forces, Qlippoth, led by the son of the Lightbringer and Adam's ex-wife. An organization whose been scheming in the dark before the Utsusemi was even born. Lady Luck wasn't in their favor this time—their main ingredient has been captured and sent somewhere else, backfiring their whole plans.
For now.
For too many years, Qlippoth was on the back foot. Fleeing from threats, rather than stomping them. The government was bigger than them. Stronger than them. They were mice, scurrying in the shadows, hoping the giants would not see them.
Not anymore.
Qlippoth is no longer fleeing. They are the giants now.
And there's nothing that can stop them.
Guest Reviews:
reader: Last days of school, final exams, had to keep company for my granny because she had a surgery, and so on. All in all, life kicking me in the face, sorry. About the Peerage, there's going to be girls on his peerage, you'll just have to wait, but don't worry, waifus are going to appear. Take care.
King Gilgamesh: Holy shit. You're salty asf. The chances of you reading this are low, since I bet you left. But I don't care, I'll answer your review nonetheless to answer other people who agrees with you.
To keep it brief, there's nothing wrong making OP characters. what's wrong is that you think that Danhauser is going to defeat ALONE a HEADMISTRESS who has been training since she was a damn brat in terms of magic. Dan has been training only months, Augusta years.
If he was fighting Vali or Sairaorg. the chances of winning are higher. Because he knows them from watching the LN, their fighting style and abilities. Augusta was a different case, she only made a brief cameo and showed little of her magic skills, but enough to defeat Lavinia and force Vali use Balance Breaker in Slash/Dog.
The fact that he could fight evenly, albeit for a while, and force Augusta to use her strongest spell to put Dan down, speaks how much progress Danhauser has made thus far. That alone should prove you how strong Danhauser is going to be when DxD! Canon starts.
"He knows about sairog then why doesn't he train like him cover all bases."
Right. Sairaorg Bael, who has a friend R-I-V-A-L-R-Y relationship with Danhauser is going to tell him his secrets on how to get strong so he can defeat him next time they fight. That's dumb. You can't even compare those two, Sairaorg is training his body, Touki and his Longinus. Danhauser is training his demonic powers, his two Clan Traits, his body, how to use a spear, and later on he'll train how to use Senjutsu, Touki and True Form. This is without counting their important roles as Heirs of their Clan.
I mean, if you're going to give criticism, at least do it wisely. Dissapointed really.
Guest: Good job knowing who was the cunt. Ravel is unlikely to be a Queen, you'll find out later on. Plus, I think I know who's going to be the Queen, but I appreciate your suggestion. Take care.
Next Chapter: The Road to Emperor
