Chapter 28: Forgotten by God


Zekram Bael cleared his throat and laughed out a nostalgic chuckle, "I was expecting a malicious ambiance all over the room. From what happened long ago, from the many losses each Faction have suffered — we should be holding knives at each other's throats," He met Michael's eyes with a faint smirk, "Wouldn't you concur, Archangel?"

"But Great King, I can't feel any hostility coming from you," Michael noted, not wavering under the purple orbs of the elder, "It's all gone."

"Neither can I sense yours, Archangel."

"Forgive and you will be forgiven," Gabriel quoted with a gentle smile, "That's how it is. We should put our grudges aside for the greater good of our people — focus on our main priorities."

"Such as protecting our race from extinction. That's what matters now," Michael added with curled lips, "Suffice to say, it's good to see you once again after so many eons."

Gabriel exploded with delight by clapping enthusiastically, "Oh, this is going to be amazing! I bet great things are going to happen throughout this meeting!"

The Elder of Bael had expected a different reaction — an aloof atmosphere and glares fired from left to right. The Great War left an unforgettable scar on each Faction, mostly the Angel Faction after losing their Creator and former Leader — God of the Bible.

Even then, they were mere soldiers back then, obeying the commands of their respective leaders to protect their own nation, people and culture. Zekram couldn't loathe Michael for obeying orders.

Because history itself had recorded him as one of the first creations of Lucifer and Lilith alongside Rofocale Lucifuge, society had painted them as the most loyal warriors of Lucifer back in his prime. The right and left hand of the Morning Star — Lucifer.

They weren't.

Zekram never favored the goal of the Original Satans searching for global domination by destroying this world and building another one that followed their ideology of a new 'World of Devils' to the letter.

It was stupid.

It was boring.

It never made sense, nor was he interested.

But misbehaving would most likely cost Zekram a thousand whippings, humiliation, and his whole Clan being stripped from their high rank.

"Likewise," The first Bael nodded in acknowledgment before coughing sharply behind his fist. Time is money and it would be unwise to spend it poorly, "Let's stop beating around the bush, you must have a stressful schedule thanks to your status in Heaven."

Michael blew a weak sigh, lying comfortably on his throne to ready himself. He waved his hand in a swift motion, "Let's make haste then."

In the background, the Rating Game competitors were basked in awkwardness. Unlike those situated on the table — they were visibly unsettled. A meeting between devils was something they would tolerate no matter if they were from Extra Demons or the City of Dis.

But a gathering organized by the Four Great Seraphs—whose presence nearly suffocated them with holy energy — was not a trial they would tread too well.

Nonetheless, they'd accepted — albeit reluctantly — the responsibility. It would give them a bad image if they were to refuse the orders of authority figures such as the Old Devils.

"… We know how strained the relationship between Devils and Angels are," Zekram started and the room fell into absolute silence, "To the point that we had to settle rules to make sure no one of our races had breaching someone else's territory in mind. A perfect example is how most of Europe — especially the Vatican — is Angel territory. If a Devil neared, the Angels would have permission to exterminate them for disobeying."

"Well, that's a cruel approach…" Roygun Belphegor whispered loud enough for the second and seventh rankers to listened, "Wouldn't it be better to imprison them and wait for the Underworld to pay a fine for breaking the law?"

Bedeze Abaddon bestowed her a flat glance before focusing back to the meeting — adjusting his tie, "Unless Angels share the same coin as the Underworld, then very unlikely."

"My point still stands," Roygun persisted, a hand over her slim waist, "The Three Factions are lacking numbers and while we discovered a solution thanks to Satan Beelzebub's research, the Angels and Fallen Angels are still falling behind."

"Welcome to the Supernatural World," Rudiger Rosenkreutz said.

"However, there's a Town that makes an exception," Zekram continued, either oblivious or uninterested in their gossip, "A town that neither belongs to the Angels nor the Devils — it's neutral and goes by the name of Kuoh Town."

Rudiger's green orbs lit up without his consent. Unpleasant memories flooded him from the depth of his mind.

He gritted his teeth and harshly shook them off.

"… What is it, Rudiger?" Bedeze caught sight of his internal fight. Even if his blue eyes appeared disinterested, there was a glint of slight interest in them, "Sound vaguely familiar to you?"

Rudiger ignored him, his full attention solely on the leaders.

"The rules are simple," The first Bael placed both hands atop the rounded table, "We mind our business and so do you. I think the roles are crystal clear."

The Angels remained quiet.

"Unfortunately — regardless of how basic the rules are written — they can be overlooked purposely by some people," Zekram sighed nonchalantly. He slouched in his seat, "As if no consequences were to occur…"

Unlike the relaxed devil, Michael's posture became strained — the perfect definition of concern. "…What happened in Kuoh, Great King?"

The First Generation Bael never answered. He signaled Naberius to pick up where he left off, "A week ago, I was informed by my information network that there had been trouble between Cleria Belial and the exorcists within Kuoh Town."

"Who's Cleria?" Bedeze asked quietly.

Roygun shrugged, "Your guess is as good as mine."

Rudiger — on the other hand — had left to his own world thanks to Naberius' justification. He was never informed by this, nor had he shared to anyone about Cleria Belial's whereabouts. The Rosicrucian wasn't taken aback that Naberius had his own information network, those amongst the Top Ten even had a spare of their own — even himself — except Diehauser Belial and Tannin for vague reasons.

But he was straying for the million-dollar question. He was the Vanguard of the elder, why hadn't Naberius notified him about his attention on The Emperor's cousin?

More importantly, why was Naberius spying on Cleria?

"From what I've gathered, Cleria Belial and an exorcist going by the name of Masaomi seemed to have an… engaging relationship," Naberius paused to capture any distinct movements. Unsatisfied, he dropped the bomb, "They're dating."

Roygun felt the sting and winced. "…That's not good."

Michael's eyes were wide as dishes at this point, his troubled gaze traveling from Naberius to Bael repeatedly and desperately, "There… there has to be a mistake here…"

Gabriel just stared, mouth slightly open.

"I'm a man who enjoys romance," Zekram inspected his nails, ignoring Michael and Gabriel's expressions. He glanced at the Archangel, "But there are limits. A romantic relationship between a Devil and an Exorcist is something prohibited that cannot be found by either the Underworld or any Church. We must dispose of the roots before it's too late."

Gabriel felt her heart miss a beat, "…What do you mean by 'dispose of', Great King?" She knew, but she prayed she was wrong.

"I demand the execution of Cleria Belial and Yaegaki Masaomi."

Damn it.

"W-what?!" Rudiger's outburst startled the whole room.

Zekram looked behind with a curved eyebrow, "…Well, that was certainly an unexpected twist of events," He laughed — clearly unbothered — and granted Rudiger the word, "Is something wrong, seventh-ranked? I'm all ears."

"Of-of course there's something wrong!" The reincarnated devil took a bold step forward, disregarding the — curious, miffed, and worried — looks of everyone, "I can't tolerate how biased this is! How come the cousin of Diehauser Belial — and the exorcist — are being sentenced to death without any proof?!"

"What the hell are you doing Rudiger…?" Elder Naberius growled behind clenched teeth, his balled fists had turned white from the pressure, "…Stop it!"

"We do have sufficient evidence to illustrate my point," The Great King countered seamlessly, "Otherwise, I wouldn't establish this gathering in the first place."

The words were like a sharp slap across Rudiger's face. His shoulders had slumped in defeat as he mumbled out a fragile, "What…?"

Zekram faced elder Naberius, "Would you kindly?"

The gaping mouth of Rudiger was visible for everyone, but no one pointed that out. Rudiger's frail eyes tracked Naberius' movements — who had fired a nasty glare at him — as the latter magically pulled out a phone and slid it to the other end of the table.

As the Archangel carefully picked up the device and watched the video alongside Gabriel, Bedeze nudged Rudiger's side — or, rather, elbowed him hard, "What has gotten inside your head?!" He hissed out venomously, "You want to get in trouble? Because that's how you get in trouble!"

"Don't tell me you two are not against this?!" Upsetting Sorcerer snapped beneath his breath, "This is Diehauser's family we're talking about!"

"There's nothing we can do, Rudiger," Roygun wore an apological look, "We don't have any influence in Ars Goetia's politics — only in the Rating Games."

"Welcome to the Supernatural World, Rudiger," Bedeze sneered.

The Rosicrucian rubbed his chin in suspicion, "…There's something rotten in the state of Denmark."

"Besides, I thought you disliked the Belial Clan?" Bedeze quickly added, surprising Roygun.

Rudiger's eyes became half-lidded, "I never said that," He deflected the accusation without a thought, "Whom I have a dislike for is the heir of the Belial Clan — that I admit."

Bedeze hummed in understanding, "So, on the same page. Glad to hear."

"Alright, I'll bite. What's with the sudden hate?" While fumbling lazily with her pink hair, she continued. "…What am I missing?"

Bedeze's nose wrinkled, "I just despise how everyone saw him as the next Rating Game Champion and the only one capable of defeating the Emperor because he had the courage to bark at us. It takes more than making speeches in public to prove your worthiness."

"You have to start from somewhere, Bedeze," She fought back the urge to yawn loudly, "That was his first step. The boy chose the perfect moment to leave a mark on the Underworld."

"Actions speaks louder than words," The blond devil retorted, "Talk is cheap. Until I see him defeat at least Ruval and Tannin, then I'll swallow my words."

"You should swallow your pride along the way," Roygun muttered.

"What was that?!"

"Whoops~! I said that aloud, didn't I~?"

Bedeze growled at her direction. His face steamed up when he pictured the challenging smirk covered by her palm, followed by her eyelashes fluttering.

Rudiger exhaled bitterly, "My tale differs to that of Bedeze… suffice to say I'm at fault too from what I'd done back then."

"It pains me to resort to this method," Zekram said aloud, catching the Rating Game competitors off-guard. "…My goal is to save the Devils from extinction, but if I have to sacrifice a single Devil to save the life of millions then so be it."

Before Rudiger could even come up with something, the gasp of Gabriel stopped further arguments.

The alluring green eyes of the Seraph were locked on the screen, a delicate hand covering her mouth as a memory slipped by, "…Could this be why Jeanne has been worried this whole time…?"

"… The Holy Saint?" Zekram's expression became temporally became disoriented, but his eyebrows quickly sunk skeptically, "…Why is a saint meandering aimlessly on the streets of Kuoh Town?"

Michael opened his mouth to answer but quickly shut it. After a second of consideration, he took advantage of the silence and met Gabriel's vivid eyes.

They nodded mutually.

Zekram saw the visual interaction. "…It would be preferable if you two could share your concerns with us," he impatiently tapped one of his fingers on the table.

Michael finally addressed the Devils, "Great King. Let's contact the Governor-General of Grigori and cast our differences aside," He proposed confidently, "Let's make a peace treaty."

Naberius snorted.

Zekram's shoulders trembled as he restrained a snicker, "A peace treaty?" The elder of Bael repeated with a mix of disbelief and amusement, "A peace treaty? Michael, please! After millions of years, you finally decided to establish a truce with Devils and Fallen Angels who had been antagonized by the Church since ancient times? It's too late for that."

"It's never too late, Great King," Gabriel pressed on, "If it's a fact that a Devil and an Exorcist are dating, then what's stopping us to prove to everyone that we can coexist in harmony!"

"Just think about it, Zekram," Michael added his two cents, "Because of this, we could finally build a bridge between Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels. Just like Gabriel stated seconds ago, what's stopping us?"

The First Bael wasn't enthusiastic by the idea, not at all, "Our people."

The Archangel and Seraph exchanged frowns, waiting for Zekram to elaborate his answer.

"… Since ancient times your religion has shown humanity how to differentiate what's good and bad through the famous Bible," Zekram chuckled darkly, "Your people depicted Devils and Fallen Angels as evildoers. Why would they accept with arms wide open evil incarnate? The Church severely dislikes outsiders and heresy — remember that."

They weren't wrong — their hatred was justified. Devils are creatures that would never care about other races unless it's to recruit them within their nobility or even construct the ideal harem. Zekram wasn't unaware of how Devils had gotten a bad reputation to all mythologies and humanity through their selfish actions.

A bad name that had increased thanks to Ajuka Beelzebub and his most innovatory creation — the Evil Pieces. Stray Devils were across the world, aberrations always preying over the innocent and invading other Factions — Angels, Fallen Angels, and Youkai — to appease their endless appetite.

Thus, pushing the blame over to the Devils. Once again.

Many Pantheons even mockingly crowned Ajuka as the ruler of the Stray Devils.

Which — all jokes aside — Ajuka could be interpreted as such.

"I never wrote the Bible, Zekram," The Archangel replied through clenched teeth, "You of all people should know this."

"You had the power to prevent it. Why didn't you, Michael?"

"Angels cannot interfere in human affairs unless Father said otherwise!" Michael countered, "Before their fall from grace, the Grigori could without Father's permission."

Besides the Grigori, the only one that God of the Bible allowed contact with humanity was Gabriel — his personal messenger — but the blonde Seraph still needed the stamp of approval of her Creator if she was leaving for her own errands.

"Why are you calling God of the Bible Father when you don't share His genes?" Zekram ignored the painful groans of the devil side — including his.

"The same reason why you call Lilith and Lucifer mother and father respectively."

"They are not my parents!" The black-haired slammed both hands on the table, "They are just my creators, same thing between you and Him!"

The atmosphere became colder as the Archangel and the Elder swapped intense glares.

Green and Purple clashing lividly for victory, neither backing down.

The guards from each side never raised their weapons or invoked spells, but their eyes honed, and postures stiffened — ready to dive in action.

"…Apologies," Zekram pulled himself together by harrumphing, "back on topic. That's one of the biggest issues why a peace treaty between us would never crop up. Your people would never accept this—neither mine. If the relationship between Cleria and Masaomi was exposed or when we announce this…'alliance' you desire to make, an overthrow would most likely happen in all the Churches and in Ars Goetia. Your followers would no longer pray to Him. You know how much they could damage Heaven if they stopped praying."

Michael gritted his teeth but plucked no arguments from his mouth.

"You need us to be your villains, Michael," Zekram kept running that silver tongue of his, "For the sake of Heaven."

Gabriel rose from her seat, a frown drawn over her angelic face, "Great King, be honest with me. If there was a way to achieve it, would you embrace peace?"

"… I can't get in that head of yours, Seraph Gabriel. Why are you striving for something that we already have?" Zekram inquired with a laugh. He shook his head, grinning a little, "It doesn't make sense. The world is passing through the greatest period of peace in its history, Seraph Gabriel. There has never been as much peace in the world as it exists today. Are you not satisfied with what we have? Do you want more? Beware. We don't want you to fall from grace because of greediness."

"Please, stop laughing — I'm not fooling around. This is meant to be taken seriously," Gabriel's scowl deepened, "Absolute peace, don't you wish to attain it?"

"…It is impossible to acquire an 'absolute peace' in the world because the conflict is inherited in the social system created by us which gives value to performance, merit, and excellence," Zekram carefully stood up, arms behind his back, "you can't have a society where everyone is the wealthiest, most powerful, most brilliant and most famous in the world."

"If there is differentiation, people would try to reach the top and that is bound to create some conflict in the society," Michael muttered grimly. He looked down at his palms.

However, being conflicted was good for the people and society since that was the secret ingredient that kept them alive and kicking. A noncompetitive world may become peaceful, but that peace would be the peace of the graveyard. It is not a good idea to live like a dead man before you die. The thought alone left a sour taste in Zekram's mouth.

"Correct. In truth — in this world — there is no good or evil. There's just 'what I want' and 'how I'll get it'," Zekram slowly advanced to Michael, "If that wasn't a satisfying answer, then contemplate humanity's system. Today — on a global scale — humans divided themselves based on nationality, religions, culture, skin color, languages, caste and so on..."

Realistically speaking, what would one hope to change if they are unable or unwilling to change themselves? Rather than changing the world, they should focus on changing themselves.

Besides, Michael should attend to his Faction's internal problems. Last time Zekram had heard news of the Church, there was an enmity between Protestants and Catholics.

"…You shouldn't be afraid of the future and taking risks, Great King," Gabriel chided him as a mother would to her son, "Living inside a bubble won't do you any good. You should get rid of your comfort zone."

Zekram ignored her and stood beside the Archangel, lifting the phone from the table. After surreptitiously stealing a quick peek at the time, he pocketed the device and stretched his hand — ready for a handshake. "We wasted enough time already. Can I entrust you the future of our respective Factions?"

Michael shook his hand and earned a collective of gasps.

"Michael!" A wide-eyed Gabriel said breathlessly, "Jeanne won't stand up for this!"

The Archangel, with a sorrowful face, retrieved his hand, "I'll… I'll take care of this."

"H-how…?"

Silence was her answer.


Danhauser Belial woke up faster than a cat in ice-water. His blurred sight drank each furniture in his room. It was quite dark. The fact that there was no light coming from the window and his night vision was working was a nod to his previous speculations.

"It's still nighttime," The gray-haired yawned while rubbing his heavy, grey eyes, "…Why the hell did I wake up so suddenly?"

A booming laugh came downstairs and right through the walls as loud as any TV show. It was Bova Tannin, "Heh! Be careful what you say, Siegtard. Mess with a dragon and you'll get the horns!"

"You should be the one treading lightly," That voice belonged to Siegfried, "I have a weapon capable of making dragons hide their tails between their legs."

Danhauser groaned out, "Not these two clowns again," He placed his head under the pillow and waited for the storm to abate, trying to fall asleep once again.

"Don't give me that crap! I'm the youngest son of a Dragon King. Your cute toy doesn't scare me."

"I'm the descendant of a legendary hero that defeated the Dragon King Fafnir himself!"

"On your knees, Siegtard! Father has built more reputation than your ancestor!"

"Hahaha! It seems you're unaware that more accurate reviews have been going around in the current time! In recent years, my ancestor has been portrayed in more movies, comics, performances then your father have!"

Danhauser frowned at the sudden pause and stood up with an upset grunt. But he quickly winced when a sharp slap reached his ears, "Ah, my bad," Bova growled and Danhauser pictured the dragon baring his fangs, "There was a shitty bug there!"

That didn't stop him to leave his room and reach the stairs.

It was a tensed — yet peaceful — silence until the knight returned the gesture. Hard, "My apologies," Siegfried sneered, "There was a shitty lizard there!"

Bova released a war cry and lunged.

"Are you two going at it again?!" A voice with a Romanian accent snapped — it was close, "Stop! You're both too old for this! Grow up already!"

He stopped when everyone was lined up on the staircase. Someone with a keen eye would notice the bags underneath their eyes.

"Seriously, this is the third time we spot you two dissing one another," Danhauser rubbed one of his eyes, anyone could taste the irritation slipping from his mouth, "Now why?"

"Siegtard here got offended by my comments," The Dragon huffed, "He wanted to know if he could defeat a Dragon King."

Cleria Belial chuckled tiredly, trying to lighten the mood, "… Well, that would be interesting to see."

"No, it wouldn't," Bova never backed down from Siegfried's glare, "He wouldn't stand a chance. The only thing he could defeat is a glass of warm milk — and that's stretching it."

A vein almost popped on Siegfried's forehead, "You'll make a nice bag once I'm done with you."

Bova just laughed excitedly, "Ha! See, now we're having fun. Bring it."

"… What is wrong with you two?" Valerie wondered in disbelief, hands on her waist, "Unbelievable. You two are once again butting heads! What is the idea of starting a rampage and waking us up?"

"Do you idiots ever learn…?" Ikuse Tobio mumbled under his breath, eliciting a nod from his childhood friend — Toujou Sae.

Bova snarled at his direction, "Mind your business, midget."

"… Midget?" the brunet repeated venomously. His eye pulled one of the faintest twitches, "The hell are you calling midget, you overgrown dickhead?"

"Who else is the vertically challenged of the Peerage?" Bova sneered back.

"True," Siegfried agreed, relaxing a little.

"Um," Sae trailed off, shuffling awkwardly after noticing the new atmosphere, "Let's not fight please…"

"Ehehehe…" Valerie eyed the brunet with a sardonic grin hidden behind her hand, all signs of anger dismissed by teasing, "One point sixty-seven, isn't it?"

Tobio made a horrifying sound.

"Hm," Siegfried said.

"Damn you're so tiny," Danhauser noted, looking at his mutated knight up and down, " I don't know why it took me so long to notice, but man — you're the smallest in the Peerage."

"Ehehehe…!"

Tobio made an even more horrifying sound.

"Aha!" Siegfried said.

Danhauser encouragingly patted Tobio's shoulder, "…Chin up, at least you're tall enough to play with a yo-yo."

"Shut up!" Tobio shoved his hand away with a small blush, "S-seriously, all of you shut your mouths, a-assholes!"

Jin howled in agreement. Its appearance changed after being affected by its Balance Breaker. From an adorable puppy to that of a large hound. Its fur stayed the same pitch-black and dark gray on the tips and paws. What changed was the fierce look and its height.

From what he had seen of Canis Lykaon. He couldn't help but place the Longinus at the top of his favorite list.

Shadow Manipulation.

A scythe.

Lycanthropy.

It looked edgy.

And a loyal dog that could sprout blades from any part of its body — usually its temple — and carry them with its jaw.

What's not there to love?

The only noticeable flaw was the madness of Lycaon flowing within the Sacred Gear.

But that could be easily taken care of. If Hyoudou Issei and Vali Lucifer handled Juggernaut Drive, why couldn't Slash Dog follow a similar route?

Cleria laughed tenderly, pulling Danhauser out of his inner thoughts, "You have a lively Peerage, Danny!"

The Heir of Belial released a brisk chuckle in return, "They're a pain most of the time, but it can't be helped," He whistled, drawing the attention to himself, "Since everyone's here, why don't we eat breakfast?"

"Please," Sae agreed and rubbed her stomach, "All of a sudden my stomach started begging for a snack…"

"Mwahaha! Little did you know I'm a master chef!" Cleria adopted a cocky smirk, "You speak with Cleria Belial Remsey!"

"So, that's his name on this world?" Danhauser's eyebrow went up as he smiled, "…Really?"

"Of course! Don't you believe in your beautiful cousin's unmatchable techniques?"

"Huh-huh. Impress me, then. What's on the menu?"

Cleria fumbled with her medium length hair for a moment before averting her gaze somewhere else. Her cheeks shaded in red but still stuck her tongue out playfully.

Slash Dog rubbed the bridge of his nose with a sigh, "I can handle the cooking," He offered flatly, "I'll just need someone cutting the vegetables and all that jazz."

"I can help you!" Sae raised an arm up with a nostalgic smile, "Just like old times."

Tobio returned the smile — albeit lamely — before nodding to the rest, "In the meantime, you guys think you can set the table?"

Danhauser looked over his shoulder, "You heard the chef. Let's do our part."

They only nodded mutually.


"Why are you not coming with us, Papa?" The chestnut-haired girl asked with puffed cheeks.

On his knees, Shidou Touji chuckled at her expression, brushing her beautiful hair, "Papa has work to do. But I'll quickly come back and we'll play together like always."

Shidou Irina looked down at her shoes for a while before peeking up with her pinky stretched out, "Pinky promise?"

Touji smiled and wrapped his pinky around hers, "Pinky promise," He pulled her into a hug, "Listen to your mother and don't make a lot of noise during the flight, alright?"

"Okay…" Satisfied with her answer, he pecked her forehead and stood up, meeting the eyes of his wife.

Mrs. Shidou chuckled bitterly, "Are we going to do a pinky promise too?"

"I'll come back," He said softly, "I'll come back alive, I swear."

Mrs. Shidou reached for his hand — squeezing it, "… Just drop this. Y-You, don't have to do this…"

"I-I can't disobey orders from my higher-ups, I'm so sorry."

Touji watched his wife and daughter camouflaging within the crowd. He stared longingly at his lonely hand, "What's the mission, David?"

He spun and walked away, followed by the fellow exorcist.

"Search and Destroy," David Serro replied, lending Touji a folder, "Orders arranged by your Eminence Cristaldi. Once completed, we are supposed to travel to the Vatican and give our report to the Cardinal Deacon. The location is in Kuoh Town."

After bumping and apologizing to a tourist, Touji waited a brief second for the transparent doors to slid open and left the airport. Three black cars with golden crosses parked nearby were waiting for them.

He took the folder from David's grasp, "Our target is the High-Class Devil, Cleria Belial?"

It was an odd mission categorized as confidential and of utmost importance by Ewald Cristaldi — just proving the value of the task. But killing a high-class devil on neutral territory that hadn't done anything threatening didn't make sense on his head — yet. Whenever they had the authorization to execute a Devil affiliated with the Ars Goetia was when they were storming innocent lives or trespassing on territory possessed by the Angel Faction.

As much as he disliked Devils in general, he had to admit that Cleria wasn't as evil as he had interpreted her to be given her race and the way Yaegaki commented about her. She seemed to be a woman whom his wife would get along with just fine.

A part of him was against this, but he knew they couldn't disobey the words of Eminence Cristaldi. The consequences were huge. The Church would banish him and leave a bad reputation to his daughter who in the future was going to experiment with her first days as a novice Exorcist.

Still, he couldn't neglect how vague the explanation was and — from his perspective — full of holes.

But neither had read the folder that David gave to him — where most of the summary is.

"…And Masaomi."

Touji froze, "What?"

David lacked the courage to answer, preferring to stand quietly under the silver moon. He pursed his lips and awkwardly gestured at the folder in Touji's grip, "You should read it."

Pulling out of his shock, Touji rapidly got inside the car — followed by David — and ignored the vehicle's engine turning over. He opened the folder and began reading, eyes glued on the pages. "…How did they know?"

Weeks back after the aftermath of the Fallen Angel Satanael, Touji had a reunion with his colleagues. That day where Yaegaki Masaomi had dropped the bomb by confessing his feelings of Cleria to them.

He was horrified. He knew if rumors of Masaomi's affection over the gray-haired Devil slipped out, it would force the Church Headquarters to take matters in their own hands.

No one liked when the Church made their move.

No one.

Hence he never wrote that part on his report. For the sake of protecting one of his teammates and not conjuring the wrath of the higher-ups. Even refusing to pray to repent from his sins—scared that the Angels could find out about this throughout his atonement.

Unfortunately, they were caught red-handed.

And now, they're paying the consequences.

"There's a mistake here…" Touji croaked as the car drove them away from the airport, chased by the two cars sharing the same design. He pointed on a specific part, "Masaomi and Cleria aren't dating."

While he was desperately finding excuses to save the neck of his ally, it was true. There was a difference between an ongoing relationship and a one-sided love. Masaomi received the latter's treatment after being exposed by Cleria's cousin — Danhauser Belial.

If it wasn't for the Heir of Belial intervening further development between those two, their relationship would evolve into something else.

A forbidden romance similar to Romeo and Juliet. Powerful enough to shake Heaven and the Underworld in a bad way.

"Perhaps they were," David replied, not even glancing at the sheets, "… From my understanding, they're trying to hide all the evidence by silencing them."

Touji wore a doubtful expression, "We're also familiar with the connection of those two. Someone from our inner circle could spread the word easily."

"For that exact reason, they're ordering us to end Masaomi," David faced Touji with a stern look, "This is also a warning for us if we opened our mouths."

Touji felt a chill ran down his spine.

"Blah! Who gives two shits about him?!" They looked up at the seat meant for the co-pilot. It was Freed Sellzen cleaning one of his guns and carrying a suitcase atop his thighs, "The fuck boy tried jumping on the panties of a shitty devil! Fine by me if we have to waste magazines on his corpse!"

The only answer he'd received were the glares from everyone.

"You know what they say!" Freed took aim and feigned firing his gun multiple times at the windshield, "You mess with the Pope, you get the no scope! Pew! Pew! Pew!"

"Be silent and give me the suitcase," David snapped.

Freed rolled his eyes and nonchalantly tossed the suitcase to his teacher, "Whatever."

The Galatine user caught it and lended it to Touji, "A gift from the Vatican. They thought you would need it."

Touji stared at the suitcase — the kind that came from an uptown elegant store designed with expensive materials. It had a Bible's verse in italics and the letters were bathed in gold.

He could feel holiness and warmness radiating within it, whispering his name.

Curiosity getting better of him, he carefully unlocked it and peeked what was inside.

"Hauteclere," Touji gasped in awe, carefully passing his digits over the hilt.

"What are your orders, Touji?" David ignored his student's maniac tittering, "Eminence Cristaldi chose you to lead this mission. We should take advantage that it's still quite dark and — most likely — everyone's asleep," He paused, hesitant, "Do you prefer to go after Masaomi first to make it as fast as possible?"

Touji felt the need to move almost without end. If his limbs were moving the anxiety was gone, or at least he could tame it by keeping his eyes fixed on the holy sword — Hauteclere.

The conflict was that Masaomi was by no means in need to get forty winks. He was keeping a watchful eye over Saint Jeanne just for safe measure. An idea implemented by David, after knowing small bits of their mission it was likely that the blonde would be against it.

Knowing her personality, she won't abide by the execution of Masaomi. A gesture that Touji deep inside appreciated.

Neither would she permit the death of Cleria.

But the Holy Saint was fast asleep. If she was awake, Masaomi would inform him with a simple call. So they had time to finish the mission as quickly as possible.

He met the driver's eyes from the rearview mirror, "Go straight to Cleria's house," Touji ordered to the driver, "Just like David had said, everyone's getting some shut eye. Let's not miss the opportunity."

"Understood."

He ignored the look that David was firing him. He closed the suitcase and pushed it aside, pulling out his cell phone, "I'll take care of Masaomi," Touji grumbled, searching endlessly throughout his contacts.

Just imagining her expression and killing his youngest colleague brought a burden to his heart.

But orders are orders.


"Where are they, Masaomi?" Jeanne asked while circling the main room for the fifth time. Her eyes sharply steered on the figure blocking the exit. "They're already late."

It took a few days for Jeanne, David Serro, and Freed Sellzen to return to Shidou Touji's house once things had settled down — even if for a tiny bit. She still had a grudge for Touji's actions.

Days later, they had left while she was asleep.

Before they could take their leave, their voices had wakened her up quick enough to spy on their almost finished conversation from upstairs. Obviously missing important hints.

Curiously enough, Touji Shidou's family had also been present in the meeting.

Now, she wouldn't mind if Touji was spending time alone with his family. With all this commotion, he needed something to distract himself from the issues involving Kuoh Town.

While she would disagree going outside in the dark morning, every human being has their own likes and dislikes. Plus, Touji was skilled enough to defend his family if the situation called it.

But why would he need his colleagues if he wanted to be alone with his family?

And why were his wife and daughter carrying luggage?

No one had cautioned her of this turn of events, not even leaving a note on the door of her room before departing. She had ventured downstairs in search of answers after they took their leave. To her surprise, a shocked Yaegaki Masaomi quickly stood between the exit and herself.

That alone raised more suspicious questions.

"I… I wish to know, too," Masaomi answered with doubt, "Touji told me it was important for you to stay here. For your safety, Saint Jeanne."

Her brows furrowed, "Safety?" She wore a puzzled look, "Safe from what?"

Masaomi dubiously shrugged.

"We're both left out it seems," She rubbed her temple to cool her nerves, "That's it! I'm going to go after him and make him spit some answers!"

"You can't leave!" Masaomi blocked the exit, "Orders from Touji!"

"He's not telling us something, Masaomi!" Jeanne was not far from yanking her hair out. "Don't you want to find out?"

"L-let just keep waiting until they come back," Masaomi advised nervously, "L-listen, I have an idea. Let's take a deep breath. Sit on the sofa and when he comes back, we're going to bombard him with too many questions until we make him — what the hell are you doing?!" He watched in horror as the saint aimed at a nearby window with her forged weapon, "Wait! Stop!"

It was too late. His widened eyes followed the sword flying like throwing knives, the sound of shattering glass made him looked away with a cringe.

Slowly, he turned his head around and gasped at the results. The smashed glass that was once a window laid on the living room floor like a thousand tiny daggers, the light from the sun violently shining off them.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He shouted at the blonde who stomped her way over the shards, "Are you mad?!"

"Grrr!" Jeanne growled while hopping over the demolished window, "If you wanna sit your ass down here then fine — be my guest! Imma find Touji and show him a new meaning of 'Bible-thumping'!"

Sometimes, he pondered how she was sanctified.

"If you wanted to leave so badly you could have used the backyard door!" Masaomi snapped out, "But shatter a window?! That's an act of straight up vandalism, Saint Jeanne!"

"Shove it and quit being a busta!"

He never had the chance to retaliate back when his pocket vibrated. He fished out his phone and answered, "Ah, Touji! I was—!" He was cut off by his boss' sharp tone.

She only heard babbling from her spot, but given Masaomi's eyes widening in panic, the message wasn't as pleasant as they had thought it would be, "…W-what!? Touji, please w-wait!"

"What happened?" Jeanne demanded after the conversation ended, slowly climbing back inside.

"…"

"Masaomi. Tell me what — !"

"Banished," The black-haired repeated Touji's words, eyes glued on his phone's screen, "They banished me from the Church," He chuckled humorlessly before dropped on the couch., "He ordered me to abandon Kuoh Town as well. It was because of my feelings for Cleria…?"

Blown away by his words, she never responded. She carefully grabbed his phone and tried to contact Touji — failing miserably. "Damn it," She cursed, lending the phone back to its owner, "He's not answering."

"Something's definitely fishy," Jeanne clicked her tongue and massaged her scalp in deep concentration, "What the heck are you scheming, Touji?"

"Why'd he ordered me to keep an eye on you anyway?" Masaomi laughed faintly, "You're strong enough to handle yourself. Even Touji praised your skills. It just doesn't make sense."

"Not like there were Stray Devils in Kuoh Town, to begin with," Jeanne agreed — eyes shut.

"Only that Devil that has the hair color just like Cleria is dangerous," Masaomi continued, biting his lip, "And maybe Cleria…No, she wouldn't."

Her eyes shot open in realization, "Unless…" She gasped and pulled Masaomi from his seat, "Quick! We have to move before it's too late!"

"Wait!" he retrieved his limb back, massaging his crushed wrist, "W-what's happening?!"

"T-Touji! He's after them!" She flailed her arm, "They're after Cleria and Dan!"

Words left him. He stared into her bright eyes trembling with anxiousness. He regained consciousness. "…Cleria? How do you…?"

"Because they don't want me to intervene!" She once again grabbed his wrist and went after the exit, twisting the knob, "We have to get going!"

"B-but…"

She stopped to squeeze Masaomi's wrist softly, "I need your help, Masaomi," She begged, her eyes desperate, "Only you and I can put some sense inside his head. No one has to die."

With closed eyes, he inhaled and exhaled, listening to his heart slowly flowing back to normal. He opened his eyes and nodded with determination, "Lead the way, Saint Jeanne."

They immediately ran down the sidewalk.

"We cannot go back," The saint's speed never faltered when her pleading gaze searched into the sky, "Lord grant that Touji was wrong."


Danhauser Belial let out a strangled scream and clenched on his burning arm. The agony persisted enough for him to drop the spoon.

A pair of pale hands rested atop his arm and the ache slowly shrunk by her healing techniques.

"W-what happened?!" Danhauser perked up when his cousin asked with an alarmed tone, just to be met with multiple eyes fixated on him.

"One of my magic seals activated," He gave a grateful nod at his pawn, "Hence the sudden spams."

Before ending his alliance with Jeanne he had planted multiple magic circles on the routes that were nearby to Cleria's house. Their purpose was to spot either Satanael or Walburga and alerted him.

Which they didn't, as expected.

"T-they can only be triggered when holy power is nearby and..." Danhauser hesitated to finish his sentence, "They're coming."

Silence.

"This is it," Valerie Tepes breathed out, breaking the silence and worsening the situation.

"The fight that decides our fate," Bova Tannin slowly grew half of his original size, "Alright! Let's make it count!"

Ikuse Tobio finally shrugged off his trance. He stood up from his chair and grabbed Toujou Sae's hand, "Breakfast's over. You gotta go!"

"W-what about you?" Sae asked while getting pulled by the brunet.

Tobio forced a smile, "I-I need to stay," He thumbed at his king, "I want to leave so badly, but it wouldn't be fair after the stuff I've pulled on him and the team weeks ago. Plus, they're helping us out with the Utsusemi crap. It's time to show my gratitude, I guess."

Sae was awestruck, "Like hell, you will! I will not leave you here!"

"Not the right time, Sae!"

"Master!" Siegfried called out, ignoring their dispute, "What's the plan?!"

There was a time that his thoughts became tormentors. Today, it wasn't an exception. But then he realized that if he never "replied," if he let them float by like a call unanswered, then it would put everyone in the same level of anxiousness as he's passing through. Or worse.

"Master?!"

He had a plan in mind. But he was afraid of voicing it aloud. Totally inhumane in the eyes of others and even himself.

Three simple steps.

Return to the Underworld with his Peerage.

Sacrifice Cleria Belial.

Act as if nothing happened.

Fortunately or unfortunately. It was easier said than done. There was someone stopping him from going to that direction.

That, someone, was Cleria herself.

Danhauser slowly turned to his cousin, the world suddenly tuning deaf in his ears. His throat dried out when he drank the state she was currently in.

Cleria was sweating in fear — frozen like a statue. She knew the exorcists were coming after her neck.

After meeting the eyes of Danhauser, she controlled her breath and forced a grin, "Welp!" She feigned a laugh, "I-I think it's better if you guys go back to the Underworld…! I'll take it from here…"

On the verge of tears.

Her fate set in stone.

His feet were in agreement to Cleria's statement. Of course, they wanted to run away, of course, they do.

"… No, I won't," Danhauser gulped, slowly standing up, "I'll distract Touji."

Yet instead, Danhauser chose to ignore them.

"Y-You're going after them with your Peerage?" Cleria questioned, tensed.

A part of her was frightened. Then again, Danhauser and his Peerage fought against a Cadre and survived to tell the story. But she couldn't help but worry over him, mostly when she's part of the issue. Even if he'd turned sixteen a month ago, he was still too young to stick his nose in this kind of stuff.

Her heart missed a beat after Danhauser shook his head, "I'm going alone."

The stare of terror that Cleria fired at him made him uncomfortable, but he never shied away from it, "N-no y-you can't…!"

"What?!" Bova growled, "Like hell! I won't let you have all the fun for yourself!"

"That's what worries you?!" Tobio snapped.

"Yes."

Valerie glared pointedly at Danhauser, "Absolutely not!" She firmly declined, "It's dangerous. They have a holy sword user on their ranks and that saint, it's impossible that you're capable of rendering Galatine worthless."

Danhauser glanced down at his hand, stretching his fingers. She thought he couldn't, yet she forgot the card under his sleeve, "I'll use True Form.".

Even if he had the power to defy logic for the briefest second, the pawn never conceded. "… You won't go alone," Valerie persisted, "It's not the time to play the hero, Danhauser!"

Danhauser felt his eyebrow twitch, "Touji's coming after Cleria and unfortunately, they're driving here at an amazing speed — fast," He explained, "However, their target is my cousin, not us. He can't touch us unless he wants to trigger a war. But we can't touch them either."

"… Is Ars Goetia behind this?" Cleria whispered, "How…? I can understand the Chuch, but how did they find out?"

"Satanael," A vein popped from Tobio's temple, "It has to be him — I can smell his ass all over this!"

"It could be or it couldn't be," Siegfried half-agreed half-disagreed, "Though, they would kill him without giving him a chance to speak."

"We're straying from the subject," Danhauser faced his anxious cousin, "I'm just going to distract them while you contact someone from our Clan."

Cleria never replied.

Bova scowled at his King, "But why do we have to stay here, anyway?"

"In case if they go after another route, you guys are going to remain here to defend Cleria and Sae," Chances of the exorcists taking a different route weren't high. But in times of life and death, Danhauser couldn't just risk it, "I trust all of you to protect them."

Jin howled, nodding fiercely.

"F-fine, go," The guilt sat not on Cleria's chest but inside her brain. What she had done she could not undo. How much she wished that Danhauser would just teleport away to the Underworld, but he was as stubborn as the will of kings.

The Dhampir realized how no one opposed anymore, "For real?" Danhauser wasn't the typical high-class devil, not at all. He had impressed her multiple occasions. But she still couldn't relate to his actions. She wouldn't protect her family. Never, "Are we seriously going to stay behind while you expose yourself to danger?"

"He faced a black lion, a powerful stray magician and all of you survived against a Cadre," Cleria knew there was more to come. She was stupid of not seeing it right now. Danhauser and his Peerage are now chained in this dark side of the world, "… I bet there were more fights before and more are about to come after this. But the point is that Danny can handle a bunch of exorcists. I trust his talent."

Regardless of the situation, Danhauser couldn't help but stop to wink in her direction, "Thanks, cousin."

Cleria winked back and kept making contact to her House — Belial Clan. She hurriedly gestured with her free hand to the exit, "Go before I change my mind."

Danhauser rushed at the door and gripped the doorknob. He spared a side-glance behind his shoulder, focused on his peerage, "I'll make it quick."

If Valerie couldn't change Danhauser's mind then she could persuade the dawn not to come. Speaking with him was so pointless right now, "You better."

He slammed the door shut.


Danhauser Belial continued flying in the night sky. His temple damped in cold sweat and his breath rapid and shallowed while his eyes probed the streets below him. He tensed every time he saw a car cruising down the streets.

His heart rate relaxed after being proven wrong. Soaring under the clouds gave him a huge advantage of camouflage and a better grasp of his surroundings, especially when he had enhanced and night vision.

He had plenty of time to think as he hovered above the town in search of Shidou Touji. Even if his brain was pounding for lack of oxygen thanks to the elevated height Danhauser chose to glide around. With all-time to spare, his mind went to pilot mode and leisurely questioned how much he'd changed.

It all started by drowning after slipping out from his friend's yacht without a lifejacket. He never had the chance to yell for help nor wave his arms. He just dipped beneath the waves with salt water in his lungs and everything became black for a second. Then, he awakened in a new universe, inside a coffin while wearing gallant clothes and a new body. Without bidding goodbye to his real mother.

After that, it all started with turmoil and horror and — since then — things went downhill pretty fast. It was one thing after another. From learning, training and building friendships to surviving, fighting and making new enemies. Not even a year had passed before the shit hit the fan.

It was thanks to this upgraded body that he had narrowly dodged bullets so many times. That and his immense physical and magical training that had earned him the epithet of 'training maniac', which he was certain he owned to his new family. He was in a debt to them—without the training schedule that his Clan had made for him, he would be dead in his first fight.

However, the benefit of a greater body came with a huge price — his innermost self. Being able to execute Worthlessness, Pitch Resin and somewhat his True Form were considered logically impossible in the world he'd lived in. Those abilities made him uncertain he was still the young adult that was studying in college and had died drowned because he never learned how to swim.

And here he was, not even a year later and he was impeding the Underworld and Heaven to take the life of a two-dimensional anime character that was supposed to be his cousin.

Seriously, what had he become?

Danhauser's shoulders jolted when the horn of a car stopped him from daydreaming. He glanced around, confused that a black vehicle was inches away from him and houses protected by fences were nearby.

Minutes ago he was flying.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he never noticed when he'd touched land.

His eyes fixated on the car again when the driver started smashing the horn repeatedly. Slowly frowning as he'd spotted the two cars behind the first one, all of them with the same design and the golden crosses.

He found his target.

"I know you're there, Touji," Danhauser tapped his shoe on the floor, impeding them from moving forward, "Let's chat for a bit."

The driver just pressed the horn in a hurry.

Danhauser in response placed a hand on the car's hood, mentally smirking as the vehicle suddenly shut off, "Now we can talk. Get out."

It was in that moment of absolute stillness that God tipped the balance to Danhauser. The wind died, the leaves ceased to rustle, even the chirps of birds were absent. In those frozen seconds, he could see doors swiftly opening right between his eyes, figures wearing priest clothes leaving their rides, such as David Serro and Freed Sellzen.

"What are you doing here?" One of them being Touji.

Yaegaki Masaomi and Jeanne weren't present — he noted.

"So he went after him first? What about Jeanne?" Danhauser mouth formed a rigid grimace. He stood tall from his spot and glared one another in the dark morning, "You know why I'm here."

Touji's colleagues step up — weapons raised — but he stopped them with a raised palm. "Save yourselves the hurt." He confronted Danhauser, "Remember why we're here — let me handle this."

"You don't have to do this," Danhauser talked loud and clear. He cleaned the cold sweat glistened on his furrowed brow.

"I have to. Orders from the higher-ups," There was hostility in Touji's response, lacking warmness as he addressed the gray-haired devil.

Adrenaline coursed through Danhauser's system as a fight or flight instinct. In this case, it was buying some time for Diehauser Belial to appeared on the picture or convince Touji's group to walk away — very unlikely.

"This has nothing to do with you. Don't make things worse," Touji brought back Danhauser to the conversation through persuasion.

Danhauser grunted, "Don't you think that mission of yours is unfair? That this whole drama is full of holes? At least they should listen to what Cleria or Masaomi has to say first."

"Flawed or not, my job is to obey the higher-ups — not judge them," Touji stated, "Or what do you want me to do? Disobey orders and get expelled?"

"Just because the Vatican could excommunicate you doesn't mean you are prohibited to pray," Danhauser pointed out, "An illegal Exorcist can have as much faith as a legal one — probably even more."

"I'm from the Protestant Church," Touji corrected him, "Perhaps you're right. But it would put my daughter — whose dream is to become like her papa — in a bad spot if I were to rebel against the Church," His gaze hardened while he opened the door of his car, ready to get inside, "Don't think I'm unaware of how you're stalling. Talk's over. Now move."

"Or get shot~!" Freed sang.

Danhauser folded his arms, "No."

Touji's veins popped up, "Fine. Have it your way."

Danhauser lifted an arm, ready to summon magic circles around them — but stopped. He felt two presences by nearby with his Senjutsu. He glanced to the side just in time to spot two familiar figures nearing with inhuman speed.

"Jeanne?" his eyes were wide as dishes. The girl who he had ended a truce with was here. She stood in front of Danhauser with arms wide open and a cold gaze that didn't suit her face.

"Masaomi?" Touji's expression wasn't different from Danhauser. He shook his surprise and spat out, "What are you doing here you idiot?! I told you to leave!"

Masaomi flinched, "Touji. Y-you have to listen to Saint Jeanne, please."

"Just leave already!"

"… That means that Masaomi wasn't going to get killed in the first place? Is it Touji's doing or…" Danhauser felt his throat sewing up. He clenched his fists and glared to the skies — Heaven. "Or maybe someone else. Then it means that Masaomi is forgiven but Cleria isn't? What the hell, Michael? Zekram?"

He wished he was wrong.

"Who ordered you to do this?" Jeanne demanded.

"I don't answer to you, Saint Jeanne. Not anymore," Touji moved away from the car, "You have been avoiding your role as a saint for too long. You were supposed to inspire children by guiding them on the good path — not go around the world to shake hands with other Factions!"

Freed groaned. "Can we get to the fun part?" He whined, twirling his gun, "Like, shoot stuff?"

"Silence," David hushed him.

"… It was Ewald, wasn't it?" Of the three Cardinals, Ewald always clashed with Jeanne's ideals of forming connections with the 'heretic' creatures, "Let me talk to him."

Touji was about to decline, but a hand over his shoulder made him swallow his words, "Let's just do it," It was David, "If you refuse, we would be wasting our time convincing them to move out of the way. Maybe Eminence Cristaldi could tell us what to do next."

"… Fine," Touji pulled out his phone, "Keep an eye over them, David."

"Of course."

Jeanne brought a hand to her chest, sighing with relief. She turned and smiled, "I almost didn't make it! Don't worry, I'll make sure everything goes back to normal."

Danhauser still had immense shock written all over his face, massaging his eyes as he awkwardly chuckled, "Yeah, thanks for the hand..."

Her smile became sad, "After this… I'll leave Kuoh Town," Ewald and Touji weren't wrong — she'd been avoiding her role as a saint, "The orphaned children within the church facilities need of my assistance more than ever."

"It would be for the best," Masaomi agreed, eyes trained over the exorcists, "… Pretty sure Touji will too. I'll also take my leave, I still don't know where to go, though."

"Chin up, Masaomi! I'll fight with tooth and nail to make sure you're once again affiliated to us!"

The black-haired man smiled in appreciation.

Danhauser pursed his lips, scratching his cheek, "Hey, Jeanne. I'm sorry for what happened back then," He apologized, averting his gaze, "I still don't regret breaking our truce.… but I admit I could have said it with less… you know."

"Less dickish?"

Danhauser laughed softly, "Yeah. Less dickish."

"Your Eminence Cristaldi," the hum of Touji paused their conversation, "Saint Jeanne and a Devil are blocking our path. We cannot move further. Saint Jeanne also wishes a word with you. Please advise."

"Apology accepted by the way!" Jeanne beamed at Danhauser, resuming their chit-chat, "I'm also sorry for screwing up here in Kuoh."

He patted her shoulder with a smile, "Apology accepted."

"Now if you excuse me..." she cracked her fingers with a confident smirk, "Imma get in a looong fight with Ewald on the phone!"

"Y-your Eminence! It's Saint Jeanne we just can't—!" Touji's expression brimming with horror made Danhauser eyed him suspiciously, "Listen! B-but…! I-I… I understand."

Touji quietly hung the call. He quietly nodded at David's holster.

The fellow exorcist returned the gesture, albeit joylessly.

"Hey! I told you I wanted to talk with…" Jeanne stopped after Masaomi placed a hand on her shoulder. She tilted her head, "What's wrong?"

"…"

"Masaomi?"

"Fire."

A gunshot cracked into the air.

Followed by another.

And another.

And another.

And many more.

But none reached their targets. A large barrier made of multiple grey seals impeded the passage.

"Fucking hell! That was a close one!" Danhauser cursed while keeping his defensive spells active. With all the demonic power he had in his system, he'd gathered all of it on his free arm.

He nodded at Masaomi and Jeanne, "Hope you two don't mind floating around!"

David and Touji quickly unsheathed their swords and charged.

"Just warn us before—!" Masaomi yelped when his feet left the ground, followed by Jeanne, Danhauser and Touji's group. He desperately tried to stay composed — almost colliding with someone. His eyes widened further when the cars were also affected, "What the fu—!"

A worthless explosion consumed everyone.


Finally, everyone landed on the floor.

"Not this shit again…!" Freed Sellzen groaned out, face first on the floor. He tried to reach for his guns, but a limb of resin stole his equipment and tossed them away.

Freed felt veins popping out and looked up, eyes burning with hatred, "You fucking piece of — oh shit."

He stopped his tongue from further insults. His eyes grew wide when twenty magic circles surrounded them — ready to pulverize them.

Behind Danhauser, weapons were scattered.

To their surprise, a worthless Galatine and a worthless Hauteclere were also in the pile.

"It's over Touji," Danhauser breathlessly said, wincing whenever his damaged arm pulsed, "We both knew this would end up in my favor."

"…" Touji blankly watched the Belial logo printed on the back of his palm as it slowly withered.

"W-what…?" Jeanne was on her knees, looking at the scene before her with vacant eyes, "Why… shoot me?"

"…" The Devil ignored her, his sight parked on the group of weaponless exorcists. Some were sitting on the ground hopelessly while others were carefully hoisting up — hands up in surrender.

A hopeless laugh caught his attention. He searched for the source, spotting Touji still on the ground with his head cocked back, "From the beginning, this was a futile mission, right?" He asked, even if he knew full well the answer to his question. He met the grey orbs of Danhauser, "So, what's your next move — Devil of the House of Belial?"

"Easy. Wait for someone from my family to teleport here," Danhauser responded, keeping his magic circles steady with his remaining arm, "I'm not a murderer. Killing any of you would probably trigger a war."

Seconds of hesitation slipped away, enough for Touji to hung his head low. Danhauser noticed his mouth opening, ready to speak — but quickly zipped it.

"You-you did it…" He heard Masaomi breathing out. He answered in behalf of Touji. "This battle, you won it. Kuoh is all yours now."

For an odd reason, Danhauser never found his words reassuring. They lacked warmness. They were empty. He didn't feel the relief soothing his heart.

Danhauser tiredly dropped down, waiting for a member of his Household to appear.

After minutes of agonizing silence, Danhauser found in the sky the sun slowly rising. He parted his gaze away after being stung by its rays.

Now he understood why Japan was nicknamed as the Land of the Rising Sun.

He laughed to himself, "So convenient. What a fucking cliché,"


The guard kicked off his shoes and glared at the monitors. Twenty screens of black and white more boring than watching the paint dry. Twelve hours a day, five days a week, for three years and four months, the grass had swayed and the cat had come and gone from the same trashcan. His belly had grown over his shiny buckle and his brain found new ways to stay alive. Though his eyes stayed on the screens, he was shut down almost like sleeping — a wide-awake coma until the end of his shift. The only change that ever happened was the emptying of food containers.

Today was an exception.

One of the monitors caught a mysterious figure landing with their ten feathery wings still exposed to the world. The silhouette slowly hoisted himself up and dusted his attire from all of the dirt he caught during his travel. He lifted his head and eye contact with the camera — the watchman.

The guard never had the honor to slam his fist over the panic button, allured away from the red button by a knock that came on his door, followed by an explosion of purple flames that devoured the whole room.

Moments later, the smoke dispersed through magic and a girl with short hair adorned by multiple ribbons floated inside.

Her eyes warily trailed around the place and hummed in acceptance. She conjured a magic circle close to her ear, "Done."

[Good!] The voice from the other end answered back, [Hey, the monitors are still working, right?]

"Some of them," The girl replied, moving closer to them and looking at his boss blowing a kiss at the camera. She slid her hand over the screen, pushing some ashes away, "What's next on the list?"

Walburga jolted when she felt a pair of hands playfully massaging her shoulders, "Now we make the second child of the Grilled Chicken Faction cooperate with us! Or sew up his ass until he can no longer lay eggs~!"

"Or eat-eat him! Guhehehe!"

Walburga — somehow — escaped from his grip and turned around with a glare — accidentally ending the call, "You two already found him?"

The son of the Morning Star — Rizevim Livan Lucifer — clapped twice, "Duh! He's all tied up and ready to spill the beans! The only problem we had were the worthless cannon fodders sticking their noses where they're not wanted," He shrugged. "Meh. Niðhöggr munched all those faceless non-heroes just like Papa ate Mummy out."

Walburga's face wrinkled with disgust.

"Guhehe!" Niðhöggr stained the floor below him with drool.

Rizevim once again clapped twice, "Okey dokey~! Let's prepare everything for the main show~!"

"Wait a moment," Walburga called out "Why attack the Phenex State? I expected you to aim for the Bael Territory or even the Capital of Ars Goetia — Lilith. Heck, we're not even close to the main castle of Phenex!"

"Ah! Ah! Ah!" Rizevim wiggled his finger, "Not telling! You'll have to wait like everyone else!"

Walburga clicked her tongue and followed. She wished to make the Super Devil spit more information. Then again, Satanael had warned her of not pushing the subject too much. Rizevim was missing too many screws and the spare he still had attached to his head were loose already.

A wrong move and Incinerate Anthem would be in search of another user. It was better if she zipped her mouth shut and watched what the Transcendent Devil had in mind.

"Catch!" She barely caught the gas mask, "Things are 'bout to get naughty!"

Walburga immediately wore it.

"Niðhöggr! Make this place into a gas chamber!"

The Evil Dragon grinned and blew his trademark ability to the air.


Because how long the chapter was, I had to cut it off. So, Chapter 30 will be the chapter where canon beings. Apologies.

Also: Happy late Halloween, Dia de Muertos, Holidays, Christmas, etc.


Final Chapter: The End and the Beggining