Life.9: Embodiment of Destruction, Sirzechs Lucifer

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Shalba's eyes roamed each corner in hopes to find a small gap for the perfect escapade. They could destroy the dome with a powerful blast of demonic energy, everyone had the right amount to accomplish it, but Sirzechs would prevent it with just a simple stare.

They were trapped. They got outsmarted. No matter what they did, they couldn't contact their headquarters because of some unfigured interference within their communications, given how Katerea was desperately trying to make a magic circle was a nod to his statement.

He wouldn't be surprised if outside the dome everything was just another, boring day that his soldiers always whined about in the barracks, not an inch of skepticism, and a lack of initiative impeded them to send a scout at their coordinates to check if everything was in order.

A pathetic mentality that possibility became their downfall against Sun Wukong.

His eyes slowly drifted over his feet, the thick black mud made itself known by lazily surrounding its feet. It was not cold enough to freeze, yet clung to their feet sapping what little heat they had. Pitch black resin soaked into their socks as if they were in a rainstorm, he couldn't pull his footwear out of the resin, it kept them locked in their place.

A better look and he spotted the faint, greyish aura fused on the pitch resin. Worthlessness.

This time he finally decided to exchange glares with the small group of brats, more specifically the gray-haired that had worn the skin of his friend like the coat of a skinned animal. He never deemed Creuserey death, after being accompanied by the Strongest Evil Dragon, he expected him to keep his hair untouched after retreating from the Vatican.

But the tables have turned.

"You're alive," Shalba finally decided to strike a conversation, "and rather than scurrying in the shadows, you opted to hunt me down, entangling Rizevim and Sun Wukong's relative in your troublesome affairs. You adore making other people clean up your mistakes, don't you?"

The gray-haired didn't offer a reply, merely staring daggers as well.

"If you've survived then it's pretty much self-explanatory what happened to Creuserey," Danhauser's silence didn't discourage him from voicing his thoughts out, "on another note, it's good you made it out in one piece, Mastema. I couldn't imagine the Great King without his lapdog licking his shoes clean every morning."

That's when malice slithered up in his spine and danced in spiteful shivers over the back of his neck. He spoke, "You never fail to impress me, Shalba. Even when you're in a tight spot where you shouldn't talk, you always find a way to spit on other people. I suggest you leave Danhauser alone. You have something else to worry about."

Swallowing the lump stuck in his throat, he slowly faced the newcomer, "S-Sirzechs," the tremor in his voice was clear, but he never backpaddled. Not like he had many options to hide, anyway.

"Shalba," Sirzechs called out back, albeit crudely, "you and your organization had caused any trouble in the past to the Underworld… but this time, you'd cross a terrible threshold. We expected the first warning was a clear message to show how dangerous the path you were heading to was."

Shalba's puzzlement sky-rocketed to a new height and took advantage of the moment to find the meaning behind his words.

That's when his head was dawned in realization, "Diodora," his furious gaze made a halt over a certain the gray-haired Devil once more, balled fists shaking uncontrollably, "… of course. That explains how Diodora was easily caught red-handed… then could it be that Ars Goetia is aware of the girl too…?"

"What were you trying to accomplish by invading the Vatican?" Sirzechs demanded, "as much as I try to get inside your head, I can't see what profit you saw on this scheme."

Somehow, Katerea found the courage to bark back, "To remind the whole world the respect our houses deserved! The Original Satans were the first ones to place the first brick on the walls of Goetia, it's because of them and Lilith, that the 72 Pillars were born. Your people threw us to the side and obscure our existence, the new government tried to censure us…"

"This is our return," Shalba continued, "the True Satans are back to reclaim the throne that you fakers stole."

"Do not mix up respect with fear. Ars Goetia, the Extra Demons, City of Dis… they all now want your lineage extinct." Shalba spotted Sirzechs casting the White Dragon a brief look of pity before turning back at him, cold as stone. "Shalba Beelzebub. Katerea Leviathan. You have disgraced the Satan Bloodline. You have brought shame to us as people."

Shalba tensed the moment Sirzechs brought his arm up. Rather than raising their weapons, his soldiers took a hopeless step back with the goal to dodge the Crimson Satan's attack.

"You think your acts won't come up without its share of consequences, Sirzechs?!" Shalba held on that dim hope he still had, "You will only summon upon Ars Goetia an unstoppable force!"

While Sirzechs didn't show any signs to lower his arm, he didn't obliterate them yet either. The clock was ticking in his favor. He swallowed and sank his hand to his pocket. Fishing out with trembling fingers the vial that contained the gift of the Khaos Brigade's leader. He showed it to him.

Sirzechs' blue orbs lingered over the bottled snake for a time before calmly trailing back to Shalba's unsteady eyes, "You can get all the snakes you want," there was an evident lack of fear in his voice, "it changes nothing."

Shalba managed to chuckle behind his dry throat, "This… this is not just a mere snake, Sirzechs! This snake belongs to a Dragon God, the Ouroboros Dragon itself," he boasted, "leader of Khaos Brigade, a terrorist organization that unites multiple factions located throughout Heaven and Hell as well as the Dimensional Gap. That's the whole world!"

Sirzechs remained silent.

"Do you even get how insignificant your existence is compared to the Ouroboros? To dare lay a finger on us?! Can you guess how powerful the Ouroboros truly is!?"

"… I'm well aware," Sirzechs finally said, "Danhauser. Leave. You did more than enough."

Shalba could only gaze as Danhauser's brain stuttered for a moment and his eyes took in more light than he expected, every part of him goes on pause while his senses caught up. After a shake of his head, the brat took a step back and nodded.

Their eyes met for the briefest second, he felt his arm tried to reach out to him, but quickly lowered it.

But it was far too late. The warmth of the magic circle teleported him away along with the descendant of Lucifer and Sun Wukong.

It was them against Sirzechs now. The Crimson Devil was all by himself.

When the enemy was alone and surrounded by big numbers, it usually meant the advantage was in their favor. A higher chance to be victorious.

But it didn't matter here. As much as it disgusted Shalba, he had to admit it that Sirzechs was anything but a Devil. The power gap was on a different level, not even with Ouroboro's snakes could he stand on equal ground.

"D-do you have any idea what killing us means?!" Shalba tried to slap some sense to the Super Devil's skull. "You… no, Ars Goetia is declaring war to the Khaos Brigade!"

"…"

"W-we are the biggest Faction formed within the Khaos Brigade!" the Beelzebub descendant persisted, "You think Ophis won't react if you annihilated one of the largest factions serving Khaos Brigade? Don't think you can oppose the Ouroboros and make it out alive!"

"You are not the largest faction, Shalba. Not anymore," Shalba felt his stomach twist, "the Victorious Fighting Buddha had constantly harassed you for the past weeks, leaving you grasping nothing but thin straws."

Shalba felt the cold beads of sweat falling from his temple.

"If it's true that the Ouroboros had a special spot for your faction in its heart, don't you think it would immediately stop Sun Wukong? Food for thoughts, Shalba."

Shalba clenched his teeth, trembling like a leaf. He glanced to his left to see Katerea in a worse state, speechless.

"What is Rizevim up to?" Sirzechs shifted the conversation on a different matter, "I'm aware that you were keeping in touch with him."

His brain tingled like a hand that'd been sat on for too long. He contained the smirk that tried to play at the corner of his lips as he met the eyes of the redhead. A second chance.

Katerea breathed out, slightly recovering from her shock. "… Y-yes, we were on a temporal truce with the Son of the Morningstar."

"… Why? Something is not quite right there. Rizevim wasn't interested in succeeding his father's rulership," Sirzechs explained, mostly to himself, "he had a different agenda in mind… an ambition that only sowed harm. Why work with the Old Maou who seeks to restore the Underworld and its citizen by enforcing it with their ideals…?"

"T-That's right! They're plotting off a long-term goal that will affect the map of all factions permanently!" Shalba confirmed Sirzechs' suspicions, "after we both accomplished our personal objectives, we were meant to go on separate ways. He came in contact with us because we had the technology to."

"Who are 'they' that you speak of? Apart of the Fallen Angel Satanael, is someone else allied with Rizevim?" that's when Sirzechs' intimidating expression dropped a bit, surprising them, "… is Euclid involved?"

"… I'm willing to cooperate and answer," Shalba began, it was now or never, "In… in exchange for something else. I believe we both know what."

Shalba knew he chose the wrong words once the Super Devil glared, "You've lost any privilege to negotiate."

Ouch. His words had more strength than a swift slap to the face, "Make the right decision, Sirzechs!" Shalba gritted his teeth, his grip almost breaking Ouroboros' gift, "I-I know what Rizevim is plotting! Do not let that good-for-nothing Lucifer get away with this!"

"…"

The time of judgment had begun, and only Shalba could stare directly at the stoic Devil deciding his fate.

"… I wanted to offer you a chance to repent," Sirzechs said aloud, his imperious pity roving to everyone, like they were old dogs prepared to be euthanized, "to all of you."

Shalba's grasp over the vial weakened, "S-Sirzechs, wait…!"

"To put this incessant war to an end,"

"R-remember who the true threat is! Killing me only will make everything more complicated than it is!"

"To come to an agreement that would benefit the Remaining Pillars and the Original Satans..."

"Damn it! DAMN IT ALL! F-Fine! It's Nebiros! It's Nebiros who's been cooperating with Rizevim in the shadows!"

"… to unite the Underworld once and for all."

The air distorted and the ground moved, a noise came from below, like a growl. Parts of the dome fell down in chunks, shattering like plane glass.

Shalba immediately turned to the culprit and the air of his lungs dissipated. The already immense demonic power of Sirzechs somehow increased. The color of their surroundings painted to an endless crimson. Destruction.

"But many innocent souls died, and with them, my last hope for you."

Shalba and all members of the Old Faction were hurled away by the shockwave, rolling like empty barrels falling from a cliff. The moment he came to a stop, he ignored the signs of wounds across his body just to directly lookup.

Towering over him, stood his Angel of Death.

The dome was destroyed by the shockwaves. They were free. They could escape.

And that was the first reaction of Shalba's squadron, they were flying away in fear, leaving their leaders behind, but didn't get too far. All of them vaporized by stray beams of destruction dancing everywhere. Leaving behind not even a single speck of dust or blood.

The red alarm of their headquarters was not loud to match the howling wind.

The horrified and painful cry of Katerea was drowned by annihilation.

He weakly tried to pick himself up, only to fall on his knees. His body paralyzed in fear, unable to make a futile escape. He just stared. His mind blank.

The eldritch form it presented to him was pure energy: a flickering humanoid of power and demonic energy, standing two times his height. His glowing, blue eyes blazing a ghostly trail. Shalba was ready to stab out his own eyes. The sight was traumatizing, he could sense the thing's hostility — not just the usual anger that he always had after listening to bad news, or Sun Wukong's divine wrath. This was something different, something vaster, more dominant, and deeper than any abyss. It was a cloud of hate, something so ancient, so vile, that it could almost kill without any other action or being to support it.

Sirzechs Lucifer was long gone, replaced by this thing. This thing wanted to destroy him. It wanted to hurt him. It wanted to eradicate him. And nothing he said, nothing he did, would, ever, ever change that.

It had no pity. It had no fear. It did not weep. It only destroyed.

The world around him was consumed.

It raised its arm and took aim. A sphere of crimson slowly bloomed, somehow distorting.

This was it. Everything he'd struggled for battered by none other than Lucifer.

Could it be? His plans for complete and total world domination foiled yet again?

No! It mustn't be…!

He couldn't have been defeated by some fake Satan!

Yet, the very same monster who'd killed the child of Beelzebub, stood right in front of him.

He created the Old Satan Faction to start what his ancestors couldn't finish, to pick up their ashes with his hands. They were absolutely perfect! THEY WERE PERFECTION! The perfect rulers of a perfect new underworld! Their blood was all the proof he needed!

His goal was tarnished. His plans disturbed. In order to rule the underworld utterly, in order to manipulate the hearts of people who know nothing, they had to eradicate giants like Sirzechs and Ajuka.

How many times they'd stood in his way?!

Miserable. Fucking. Bastards.

"Lucifer…! I won't forgive you! I WON'T FORGIVE YOU ANY OF THIS! NONE OF YOU!" Shalba released his last roar. It only fell in deaf ears, "ALL OF YOU BASTARDS WHO'D DISREGARDED THE BEELZEBUB BLOODLINE…! LET MY BLOOD TAINT YOUR DREAMS! LET THE FUTURE OF ARS GOETIA FALL IN CHAOS! AND WHEN YOU FALL IN THE PITS OF COCYTUS… REMEMBER THE RAGE OF—!"

"Perish."

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Azazel felt an immense wave of demonic power tickling his spine, followed by the laboratory quivering and finishing with a big blackout.

"…. That happened," he noted amidst the dark. He could hear the desperate typing on the keyboard coming from his temporal assistant, "Your fingers are sweating there, Penemue. Relax. We got a few generators in the basement ready to get pumped out. They should react any second now."

Right on cue, the lights flickered before turning back to normal. The many computers and machines slowly following as well. As if nothing happened.

But he knew better, there must be something that would make his shoulders slump.

Azazel just hummed approvingly, "They never fail to deliver," he then turned over the purple-haired, "are you alright? Or you're getting cold feet?"

"I-I'm fine, Governor-General," she placed a hand over her chest, steadying her breath, "… just a bit startled."

He nodded in understanding, "Just take it easy," he told her, "any casualties, Penemue? Anything that can be rescued?"

"About that, Governor-General…" she clicked her tongue, gazing at her reflection on the pitch-black monitor, "even if we got light back, everything seems dead so far. If luck is smiling to us, maybe half of our technology survived the wave of demonic power. If only we had some countermeasures… but it came out of nowhere."

Azazel released a sigh. As he expected, some things weren't going to survive the aftermath. He would be surprised some of it made it out alive, though. Sheer dumb luck, like Penemue theorized, "That's alright. As long as it didn't toast Grigori's system, then everything is good."

"It may take a while to see what changed and whatnot," Penemue observed, gesturing over the small platform her he was standing, "Who knows if the teleporter had autosaved the data before the shutdown. We have to take a look over the coordinates and make sure it's not overwritten or suffering any bugs."

Azazel brought his hands to his hips, "Then we better get this baby checked as fast as possible," he gave a gentle pat to one of his many inventions, "the sooner I get to Yggdrasill the better. Who the hell knows what Loki and his daughter are up to now."

He had a professional image to keep with the other realms, you see. He didn't want to give a bad impression by getting late to his meeting with the Allfather.

"Governor-General. I have so many questions."

Ah, yes. She finally gathered enough courage to address the elephant of the room, Azazel wondered when she was going to play the detective and drown him with thousands of questions.

Understandable, the female Fallen Angel was on the edge, her posture was all the proof he needed. Her brain was still trying to process what just happened. He couldn't blame her, this must be her first time tasting so much demonic power in her lifetime. For Azazel, it was the second time. He still had chills of that memory.

And yet, no matter what he did, there's no way he could wipe it away off his mind. It worked as a reminder to never irritate the crimson-haired.

"Ask away."

"I believe you already figured what I'm about to ask."

"Those were our neighbors arguing," Azazel replied, "You can guess which side won the debate."

But why? Why Sirzechs would go so far to use his True Form on Shalba?

Azazel always painted the crimson-haired brat as the 'make love no war' person. He adored throwing second chances like a bouquet of flowers to his enemies just to amend any drama they had in the past by negotiating anything would please both parties.

Unfortunately, nowadays, people had a large ego to listen even what the other had to offer, even if it was on their favor.

Regardless, to use his finishing move against an insignificant fly brought so many raised eyebrows. He could just whack it away and be done with it. To kill someone with his True Form… that was always his plan Z.

Did Shalba manage to irk Sirzechs? What occurred in the Vatican brought the crimson-haired an unpleasant memory?

Unless…

"Is this your message, Ars Goetia? That you're not pulling any punches?" Azazel shook his head. No point of thinking long and hard about this, Sirzechs had his reasons. He was just thankful that his anger wasn't directed toward Grigori, "I know there's a lot of things in your head spinning right now, Penemue. But we gotta keep going. We got a lot of work to do before all the generators run out on us. Knowing Baraqiel and Shemhazai, they're already taking care about this issue, though."

He'd made a mental note to send the bill to Sirzechs' office later on. All these grilled-out computers weren't going to get paid itself by themselves now were they?

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Everyone stopped what they were doing. The table and chairs were jumping over the floor like they had a mind of its own, anything atop the table fell off, dancing along with the table. Satanael instinctively placed his hand atop his sheathed demonic-holy sword, Arondight. While deep inside he knew that a sharp sword wasn't enough to defeat a monster with that amount of power, it made him feel somewhat safe knowing he was at least armed to strike back.

"W-what was that?!" He heard the vampire of the room, Marius Tepes, whimpering as he frantically darted his gaze everywhere, "a-an earthquake?! Here, of all places?!"

Marius jumped once a hand rested upon his shoulder. Gulping he faced the owner, "E-Euclid…"

"This isn't a natural earthquake," Euclid noted, eyes narrowed. He focused hard, tasting the oddly familiar essence that invoked the quake, "this… this is caused by demonic power."

Marius was ready to speak up, but a harsh grip in his shoulder made him swallow his reply.

Satanael couldn't tell what made Marius tremble in fear, the earthquake, Euclid's presence, or when the chuckle of Rizevim came from his right, "And swimming with the fishes he goes…"

"Pardon me?" Euclid cast a worried glance at his master, "My liege, I'm not following. What do you mean…?"

The quiet cackles coming from the Super Devil couldn't be heard from the temblor, "… all it takes is touch the wrong nerve to make the kindest person turn into a Devil," Rizevim's shoulders began to tremble, "… What else Shalba was expecting?! That they will sit this one down?! A miracle?! Of course not! Throw a stone to the hive and expect the whole swarm chase you down! It's not fucking rocket science! What a dumbass! He's worse than Bidleid!"

I took perhaps minutes, but Euclid finally comprehended the rant words of his master. Euclid had a terrifying smile, his eye twitched, "My liege," he said cautiously, "You couldn't mean that this… lowly Gremory is the one behind this…? Right?"

"What are you talking about? Of course, it's him! Sirzechs is the Embodiment of Destruction after all!" Rizevim faced them with a grin that brought a shark to shame. He stretched out his arms in a welcoming manner, like a high priest greeting their disciples, "Buckle up, everyone! All of this is just the tip of the iceberg! We barely reached half of it! Look forward to more~!"

"… Huh I wasn't expecting that, he got the Crimson Satan flex on Shalba." Satanael knew the moment that he set the "Creuserey-in-disguise" free, the Old Satan Faction was already counting their numbers. The surprise was how he was going to pull that off.

In all honestly, he was impressed by the results.

As Rizevim finally erupted with endless laughter, Euclid's smile quivered, eyes becoming distant as he looked everywhere. He toyed with the tip of his single braid, stuttering curses that involved a certain crimson-haired Super Devil.

Somehow, the silver-haired recovered as he sharply turned to face him, Satanael had to cock his head to dodge the sharp finger, "Four years, Satanael! Four years and there hasn't been a response from the Wizards of Oz!"

"The fuck you want me to do," he barked back, "pull a rocket out of my ass and fly to their world?! I've called way too many times the past years, you know? Mofo doesn't know how to pick the damn phone anymore!"

Euclid's lip twitched in disgust, "Language," he warned, not amused by his vocabulary, "Keep your excuses for someone that cares. Your relationship with them is entirely your problem, Satanael. You better hurry up, the clock is running."

Satanael glared daggers at Euclid as the latter stormed out of the room, unwilling to continue this conversation.

"H-he's angry," Marius murmured, "he's pissed."

Satanael grunted but said nothing.

"… There's no going back now. The night is near its end," Rizevim gazed into space, unfazed by the endless tremble, "… and when the time comes, I'll forget the dream, and awake under the morning sun for the first time in my life…. how thrilling~!"

The walls cried out and the lights flickered rapidly before going out altogether.

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The temple was deserted. Not a single glimpse of light illuminated its minimalistic halls.

The pillars that saved the shrine from crumbling had Greek symbols inscribed all over it. Paintings of heroes that told a thousand of tales on its ancient walls.

Three tall statues made out of gold could be seen by the entrance, it didn't blend by the thematic of the architecture. Each figure held their respective weapon: a lightning bolt, a trident, and a staff.

What stood out was located at the end of the room; a huge throne adorned by precious stones.

A skeleton sat atop it, releasing a menacing aura. Surpassing the height of humans, and standing below giants, its garments matched to the Pope of the Vatican. Its large staff leaning on the throne.

The entire shrine shook. Pieces of stone and dust fell from upstairs to the floor as the ground beneath trembled, some of it landed on its headgear.

Like the flick of a switch, its empty eye sockets now ignited with a blue hue.

As it slowly looked up, the bones of its body cracked by each movement.

Its fingers, which were scarce of flesh, dug deeper on the arms of its rich seat.

It then spat out, "… annoying pests."

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Back in his human form, Sirzechs contemplated the crater in the center of the aftermath. It looked as if a nuke had blown up decades ago. A depression hundreds of feet deep and thousands of feet wide. A wasteland.

He calmly looked up, the bastion that once proudly held the banner of the Old Satan Faction gone from this world. It died with its owner.

This was it. The Old Satan Faction was gone for good. He extinguished the bloodline of the Satan Housecarls.

Or so he believed. From what he'd heard from Danhauser's report, the White Dragon Emperor was a member of the Lucifer Clan and somehow hired by Grigori. At first, he didn't buy it. A boy with the lineage of Lucifer and Lilith combined with a Longinus? It sounded impossible to be true.

But Azazel confirmed it and all his doubt became inexistent.

He felt relieved that someone of Lucifer's family tree was still alive, even better if he was on the good side and didn't share the mindset of the Original Maous, or worse, his grandfather.

It terrified Sirzechs to carry on his shoulders the responsibility of wiping out the members of the Maou.

Hopefully, somewhere in this small world, there were still a few more descendants of the Satans in hiding, willing to cooperate by repopulating their lineage and revive their Housecarls to show society how misunderstood they were.

In times like this, they needed all the support they could get. Thanks to the activity of the Old Maou, the animosity that all Factions had over them was extended to any member of the Satan Housecarl as well. Sirzechs doubted their grudges would decrease despite that the organization was gone.

This 'Vali Lucifer' had luck by its side after being adopted under the wings of the Governor-General.

"… Nebiros," the last time he'd heard about the Housecarl that served the Clan Lucifer were on two occasions, when the case of the two Nekoshou, identified as Shirone and Kuroka, were in the middle of a crime, that somehow, connected Nebiros on the plot as well.

The second was when they brought Elder Naberius behind the bars, the old man never stopped spitting accusations of Nebuchad Nezzar Nebiros.

Sirzechs ignored him, believing that Elder Naberius was desperately trying to win his key to freedom through empty lies.

Oh, boy. How mistaken he was.

The more he pondered about it, the more he wished the ground swallowed him whole. If he learned anything in those prestigious schools that his parents had paid monthly, Nebiros had control over the house of Naberius, just as how the House of Lucifuge had direct power over Bael and Agares back in the old days.

He never imagined that after many years, and after the conclusion of the Civil War, the first Naberius would still show allegiance toward Nebiros, only to be rewarded by a knife on the back.

To make things worse, he was working on a secret project that was being supported in the shadows by the child of Lucifer.

The first Super Devil that made it out alive of the Civil War.

Which brought the next question: How many times had Rizevim tiptoed his way out of a situation?

In his defense, Rizevim never lifted a single finger throughout the conflict, merely pushing the other children of the Maou under the bus. There wasn't any evidence to punish Rizevim with a death sentence.

Rizevim dodged the guillotine, and the new government voted to not put a bounty over his head, even if he was the child of Lucifer and Lilith. Bloodline wasn't a crime. And they had important matters to attend, the effects of wars desired changes such as economy, politics, and society itself. They needed to recover.

He shuddered at the memory. His freshman days as a Satan were rough, he never imagined he would see so many towers of papers on his new office. His fellow Satans shared the same sentiments, Ajuka almost renounced his ranking as Beelzebub on the first day, it took the three of them to convince him to still hold his title.

The government agreed to change history a bit and made the bold call that all the children of the Maou died in the crossfire to avoid any polemic. No exceptions.

Did that make Sirzechs relieved?

No, not at all.

Zekram and he knew how lost Rizevim was… mentally speaking. He could pull something out of his sleeve that could affect the whole world as Shalba had implied.

He was a rabid dog that needed to urgently be put down for the safety of everyone.

He was The Most Dangerous Devil in Existence.

And now, after so many years, he finally decided to step out and spread chaos, but Sirzechs was ready to counterattack. All his peerage members were precisely chosen for the purpose to fend off the silver-haired, none of them could be affected by his trademark ability.

Why it took Rizevim so long to finally make a move? He didn't know and preferred it to be that way, 'ignorance is a bliss' as they say. Lucifer only knows what orbited through Rizevim's twisted mind.

He spared the whole place a careful glance, noticing that he was all alone, not even surrounded by ashes. He couldn't feel Danhauser's presence anymore, this was the perfect chance.

Satisfied, he brought a finger to his ear and a magic circle popped off, "Grayfia," he contacted the only person capable of this mission, "I need a favor."

[Anything, my liege.]

Withdrawing his gaze from the destruction he'd occasioned, he continued, "I need you to urgently travel to City of Dis and collect anything odd about the House of Nebiros."

A pregnant silence soon followed, [Are they involved as well?]

"It seems so," Sirzechs massaged his temple, "We should've respected Elder Naberius' accusations, he was being honest this whole time. I may send Souji to interrogate him and see if he gathers anything else."

[Should we apprise the Great Houses as well?]

Sirzechs paused, analyzing her suggestion, "Don't," he made his decision, "this is between us."

He didn't need the Great Houses distracted on matters outside their walls. As leaders of Ars Goetia, they should prioritize on what direction the Remaining Pillars should go. Plus, if news of Rizevim's status reached the ears of the citizen, it would cause havoc on the streets.

For Ars Goetia, Rizevim Livan Lucifer died hand-to-hand with the other Maou children. The government did a great job erasing any doubts about his name from society, and he will make sure it stays that way.

[As you command,] he caught the drawl coming from his queen, making his eyebrow quirk a bit, [My liege? Is there a chance I can work together with someone?]

Sirzechs pursed his lips. Understandable, it'd been ages since she stepped on the City of Dis, many things had changed since then, and the people from that place weren't revered by any altruist approach of helping outsiders. 'Time is money' as their motto says. Last time he decided to check up on the status of that city, the place was pseudo-warfare The Housecarls that personally worked for Lucifer were trying to take ultimate control of their master's belongings: the city. Grayfia's Clan was on the lead, and the other Houses were doing their best to end the Lucifuge Clan's winning streak.

On the other hand, he didn't want anybody else involved. He wanted her to carry out this operation without no one else knowing about it. Chances were that Grayfia had none of the peerage members in mind.

"Only if this person is reliable and trustworthy," Sirzechs gave her the greenlights, "anything else?"

[No, my liege.]

"We'll keep in touch. Anything that you see out of the ordinary, don't hesitate to report it to me," a sudden flashback suddenly struck him in the head. He pursed his lips, "And Grayfia?"

[Yes?]

"Euclid… I have a feeling that he's back."

[… I see,] was the flat reply of his wife, [no matter what meddling I may face, the mission will be completed, my liege.]

"Take care." Ending the communications, Sirzechs spared one last look at his surroundings before teleporting himself in crimson light.

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.

Before he knew, Danhauser and Vali's Team were back to the human world. The rational part of his brain encouraged him to walk straight to Kuoh Town and hit the bed, but he chose to ignore it, opting to make a stop in Tobio's restaurant, where everyone was located and waiting.

Different degrees of relief painted their faces the moment they spotted them. Danhauser remembered everyone cheering at the news. Tobio closed the bar sooner and all the drinks and the served food was on the house for the night.

He didn't recall too much about the conversations. A variety of topics to pick up on one. Le Fay fawning over Lavinia. Arthur and Siegfried's comparing weapons. Bova and Bikou almost starting a brawl. Kuroka and Jin/Lycaon hissing and growling one another. Among other things.

He just went to the second floor in search of the small office, taking in mind Tobio's small guide at the back of his skull. The brunet assured him, he wasn't going to get disturbed, not even by a certain Dhampir.

He didn't mind her company, but he needed to be alone. Just for this night. Valerie understood.

Throughout the journey, his heart was beating fast, burning blood diverting to his muscles and away from his gut. His hand automatically reached out for the knob and twisted, stepping inside.

By the way, was Tobio playing good songs downstairs? Or it was just Lavinia's melodic voice?

It didn't matter, it was perfect.

He finished the walk into the chair in seconds. He sat back and let the warmness soak right into his bones, ignoring the decorations of the room.

"We did it." He said, not letting go of this intoxicating feeling.

"We did it!" He chuckled this time. For the first time in forever his body and mind relaxed. In that moment there were no expectations upon him, no deadlines and no schedules to meet. He was in, he'd made it, he was a winner.

"We fucking did it…!" leaning back on his seat and interlocking his fingers, he broke into a wide grin and giggled. He looked stupid, but honestly? He couldn't give a damn, "… Noice."

"Aha! So that's why you sneaked your way up here? Just to party-up alone?" He regarded the newcomer with bated breath. He knew who it was the moment he heard her interject the word 'nya' at the end of her sentence. The big question was, what she's doing here?

She smirked a little after catching his expression, "What? You can run, but you can't hide, nyaa~!"

Danhauser regained his posture with a shake of his head, "W-what are you doing here? I told Tobio that I didn't want any visits."

"I should be asking you the same thing! What are YOU doing here? The fun is downstairs in case you got lost! Or it's something else? You're hiding something, aren't ya? Oh! Oh! Nya! Maybe… you were about to rub one out~?"

He rolled his eyes, "I just needed to clear my thoughts for a bit," it may sound like an excuse, but it wasn't. The last standoff between the Old Satan Faction lasted either minutes or hours, but for Danhauser it felt like an eternity. All it took was a displeased Super Devil to wrap it up.

"Oh yeah, I've been there. A pill too hard to swallow, am I right?"

"Yeah," Danhauser's muscles slowly relaxed, the taste of satisfaction still inside his mouth,"… I still can't believe they took the hook."

"Tell me about it!" Kuroka tilted her head in deep thought, "Sounds way too good to be real, right? Picture this. Imagine you'll wake up and realize that all of this was just a dream and that you were lying in a hospital bed without your legs this whole time, nya~!"

Danhauser gave her a tired glare, "that's oddly specific," he dryly noted, slowly picking himself up, "You haven't answered my question yet. Why are you here? I hope you're not here to ruin the mood with your wit."

"Aw, Danny! You got it all wrong! I'm not here to make you grumpy, dummy!" she then lifted up the two shots of alcohol that she'd apparently been carrying this whole time, "on the contrary! I'm here to keep you company~!"

Danhauser raised a brow, "Really?" he eyed her skeptically, "why?"

"You can't party all by yourself! It takes two to mango, nya!"

"To tango," he deadpanned, "It's 'to tango'."

She just shrugged dismissively, "As I said, just wanna give you a shoulder to lean to," her cheerful twin tails suddenly sunk down, "besides, anywhere else that doesn't stench like brainless ape and bag of fleas? Sign me up."

"Bag of fleas?" he repeated and snorted once he caught up, "You mean Jin?"

He waited a few seconds, hoping she might continue without the need to nudge her along. She finally reacted with a slight smile that graced her lips, but not her eyes, "I hate dogs."

"Storytime?"

She gave a little pout, "Nyaaa. You're a bully," she whined, a mix of humor and annoyance on her face, "making me recall traumatic moments… you just wanna see me sob on your shoulder sooo badly, don'tcha?"

"Worth a try," he replied lightly, "… so, I suppose you won't be leaving."

"Nope~! You're stuck with me whether you like it or not!"

"Then I guess I would enjoy a little bit of your time."

"Doesn't everyone?" She said with a wink, her tone seductive. She finally offered him one of the two drinks, "Don't be shy, take it! A man wouldn't leave a woman drinking alone, would he?"

He carefully accepted and peeked inside, making her giggle, "Don't worry, I didn't spit inside it," her mischievous words made him question her honesty, "so, drink up to your heart's content, nya~!"

He never took his eyes off the two, glass-like cubes floating on his glass. His reflection stolen by the amber liquid. It had been years since he last touched alcohol. He wasn't an alcoholic, but he wasn't someone to refuse a free drink, either.

She held up her drink, "A toast to us!" she cheered, "and to your future harem, may they learn how to share! Cheers~!"

She clinked their glasses before gulping all the content, he quickly followed her footsteps. The keen burned on his tongue and throat; a burn that'd made him recoil back when it was his first time. Yet now it was a feeling he longed for only this night.

"Nyaaaah~!" with a refreshing sigh, she slammed down the empty glass on the table, "That hit a spot…" she wiggled her eyebrows at his direction, ". Maybe I shoulda brought you up a glass of milk instead, nya! You're looking a bit knocked already, Danny!"

Danhauser scoffed at her banter, "Knock me out? A sip of this cheap stuff barely holds a candle to my brother's beatings."

"Oooh~! Think you can handle more than a single glass, tough guy?"

"Bring the whole bottle and I'll show you."

With a Cheshire grin, she playfully saluted him, "Yessir!"

He gave a smile but stayed quiet. His mind wandering somewhere else. This was the woman who wanted to find a mate to save her race from extinction. Vali and Issei were the ones she had her eyes upon, for hosting one of the two Heavenly Dragons respectively.

She desired strong kittens.

… was this Issei still capable to accomplish her selfish goals?

Shalba, the only man who'd managed to kill Issei with an arrow covered with Samael's blood, was gone.

It was a big event. Not only because of the sad factor but because it played a vital role of Issei breaking the charts of balance and logic by becoming one of the strongest existence with a new body created by Great Red's flesh and Ophis' powers. He was a combination of True, God, and Heavenly Dragon, and yet, he wasn't.

With Shalba out of the picture what would happen to him now?

At the end of the day, killing Shalba was like swinging a double-edged sword.

And yet, despite accidentally nerfing the main character of the Light Novel to the ground, Danhauser wasn't affected in the slightest.

He only felt that warm feeling beating in his chest whenever he recalled the downfall of the Old Satan Faction.

The way Shalba had briefly gazed at him, pleadingly. He was powerless... Even Shalba's subconsciousness was aware of the dug he caved himself in, but he didn't have the courage to admit it.

To have the approval of strong Housecarls. To participate in a situation that required to surpass his own strength. To be in control, and everyone does what he'd planned. To survive and conquer. Domination.

He didn't know why, but it was oddly gratifying. Far different than the previous events he had currently and years ago.

Being in danger felt… really nice.

A shame that this feeling may wither the tomorrow in the morning, nothing lasts forever after all.

Danhauser was aware that they'd lost a good fighter wearing plot armor, but the enemy lost way too much in return.

While he was ranked as Super Devil, Rizevim wasn't a powerhouse to protect Qlippoth from the storm he'd conjured. Crom Cruach wasn't enough. Their Stray Magicians and Utsusemi were insignificant against an Ultimate-Class.

They didn't have the Holy Grail. Their Evil Dragon Army was out of their reach. And Danhauser highly doubted Qlippoth could awaken Trihexa with a slap to the face.

Was the defeat of the Old Satan Faction a victory? Fuck no.

It was a good outcome, but far from it to be labeled as a victory.

To him, victory was the moment that Khaos Brigade was disbanded for good.

It was a long-winded goal, but no one said it would be like shooting fish in a barrel.

"Geez, at least ogle my breasts, makes me feel less rejected," Danhauser blinked away his thoughts to face the annoyed Nekoshou, "Am I really that boring?"

"My bad… just picturing what and when the next wave is going to strike."

"Ugh. Stop obsessing about the future, it's such a turn-off," the Youkai berated him, "don't reflect about the past either! If you wanna feel like being at the top of the world then you gotta let go and live the moment. Follow my footsteps and you're gonna save yourself from a lot of headaches, nya."

Now that's an idea he could get behind, at least for this night, Maou knows when opportunities like this would drop from the sky, "you know what? You're right. How about we put that into practice downstairs?"

"Whoa! Not so fast, Danny!" Kuroka pressed a playful finger to his chest before shoving him back to his spot, "don't take this in the wrong way, but I didn't come here to rope you back with rest. I needed to talk with you. Privately."

Despite how creepy he may appear like, he held her golden eyes. She was smiling, but it was way different than the ones she usually wore, "… I see." He said before dropping on his seat and indicating at the chair opposite.

Kuroka accepted the offer, but rather than taking the chair, she sat at the table with a leg atop the other, blocking the sight under her kimono, "I never imagined I would meet a Devil that understands the flow of life," he must have made a face since the black-haired giggle, "Sage Arts. You know how to use it, nya."

"Oh, yeah," Danhauser felt a bit of his tension slip away slightly, "I've been practicing Senjutsu for years. Saw its benefits and decided to make it part of my arsenal."

"In terms of magic, devils are not adventurous. They rather stick to their demonic powers than exploring for something new, that's why your case caught my attention," placing her hands on the desk, she leaned backward, resting all her weight on her arms, "who taught you the ropes?"

He couldn't help but instinctively steal a quick peek to her accentuated bosom before answering, "All by myself."

"Hey, that makes two of us! Always a pleasure to meet a fellow Senjutsu-user, nya!" she gave a little cheer, "Isn't that great? Another thing we have in common~!"

Danhauser blinked owlishly at that. His mouth moved by its own, curiosity getting the best of him, "What else we share?"

"Aside that we're both eye candies?" She casually studied her nails, "well, you know, we both are pretty good with Senjutsu and… demonic power."

"…"

"Cat got your tongue?" she teased, but didn't stop there, "You couldn't fool your mother on the foolingest day of your life, if you had an electrified fooling machine. You knew I was a Reincarnated Devil on day one, no way you missed it when you have Senjutsu."

"…"

"You know what kind of person I am. What kind of reputation follows me, there's no point denying it here, Danny…" she leaned forward, bopping his nose. "But you? I only know that you're Heir of Belial and brother of the Rating Game Champion, you're a mystery to me. A part of me wanted to point fingers and put you on the same class as the others that wanted a piece of me, but… I decided to hold my breath and wait before jumping into conclusions. The results? Well… you love taking your sweet time, don't you?"

"Wrap it up already. Where are you going with this?" He never pictured Kuroka as the patient-type, he always drew her as the direct type as shown with her first interaction with Issei in the Light Novels. She literally licked his cheek and suggested breeding.

"You're the most threatening pure Devil I've met to date, you have allegiance with the Great King," Kuroka pointed out, "the ultimate authority in the Remaining Pillars."

"Wrong," Danhauser took delight of her almost losing her balance, "The House of Bael now shares rulership with other Great Houses. They only have great authority over their own Faction."

Her open mouth could be the perfect trap for a swarm of flies, "T-That doesn't change anything," she quickly recovered, perhaps realizing how dumb her face briefly looked there, "You still work for them. And yet, you haven't done anything to make the hairs of my neck jump. It's been like weeks already and you haven't done anything. Are you waiting for me to lower my guard so you can strike?"

"No."

"Then what are you waiting for? An invitation? The biggest criminal in the Underworld is right in front of you!" Danhauser watched as Kuroka brought her hands up, forearms pressed together, "Wouldn't it be smart to handcuff me and bring me to justice? Unless you're scared that this kitty got some sharp nails that could claw on your handsome face, nyaa~!"

"… You never struck me as someone with a martyr-complex," His eyes narrowed, a frown marring his visage, "for real, though. Why are you acting like this?"

"I'm not riding the bandwagon like my teammates," her seductive voice went off the road, drifting by annoyance, "unlike them, I had the honors to bump into many Devils, especially those of Ars Goetia. All of you are the same. 'Pure-Blooded' over the 'Reincarnated' ones. Equality my ass."

Danhauser said nothing, but the weight of her words set on him.

"You're not an exception," Kuroka said, her eyes searching for any openings, "the way each one of you acts became so obvious as well. So cold and manipulative. Always clinging in your alter-egos to!"

"I won't turn you to the government," he cut her off, "there, I said it. You can stop now."

For a second, Danhauser thought he had to catch Kuroka before she fell atop of him, "W-what?!" she half-yelled, "b-but you personally serve the House of Bael!"

"So what? Just because I work for the Great King doesn't mean I worship him."

Kuroka blinked, perhaps a bit faster than a hummingbird flapping its wings, "I-I've killed so many Devils… there's no way you'll!"

"Any of these Devils had gray hair?" he again interrupted her, startling her. "Yes or no?"

Danhauser stared at her expectantly. She steeled herself and shook her head.

"A member of the Malebranche Clan?"

She shook her head again.

"Phenex?"

Same answer.

"Any of them were called Sairaorg?"

They both knew the answer to that. He hummed, shifting in his seat, "Alright, then we're good."

Her mouth was slightly open but was incapable of speaking. She got a grip over her bemused state, "… Are you… are you even listening to yourself?"

"You were of great help back there," Danhauser ignored her comment, "If it wasn't from your skills, Bikou, Vali and I would be sleeping with the fishes. Plus, the times I've spent them with you weren't so bad. You didn't even try to do something threatening behind my back either. You're nice."

He weighed his options on whether or not to be blunt and uncover the reason behind her criminal status. From the way she displayed her paranoia, it would only call out for more drama rather than solve it. She didn't seem like the type of person to willingly share her past. Not even Shirone was aware of her sister's true intentions.

Making a decision, Danhauser decided to keep it as a secret until the right time presented itself.

"… You're so full of shit," she managed to hiss out, "so full of shit! I'm not buying your cheap talk!"

They were not getting anywhere with this, and he was getting tired to keep this conversation rolling. With a stiff jerk of his head, Danhauser gestured over the exit, "don't let the door hit you on the way out, Kuroka."

"Whatever. I was about to leave anyway," Kuroka hopped off the table, dusting her kimono, "sooner or later, you'll have to drop your façade, Danhauser."

As the woman made her retreat, Danhauser quickly spoke up, "if we talk in the future, don't bring this topic again," he said to the retreating Youkai, "I'd rather avoid headaches in the future."

She never replied, but he swore to listen to her scoffing indignantly as she twisted the knob open.

The moment the door shut and the coast was clear, Danhauser released a long sigh he had saved throughout the confrontation. Oh boy, what a ride. The first day he'd met her and he knew turmoil was on the horizon.

Hopefully, this was their last interaction. He preferred keeping distances. Everything about her screamed trouble. If the government of Ars Goetia was to discover her whereabouts… it wouldn't end well for both of them.

"I need to write a report to the Great King," he recalled and clicked his tongue, "… and get presentable for a meeting with Heaven."

Yay.

.


.

"And that's the report of Satan Lucifer and Danhauser Belial," concluded Zekram Bael, nodding at his guest, "I hope the results are of your liking."

"… It's hard to believe," Zekram heard the gentle response of the leader of Heaven, Michael, "to think that after many years of spreading fear and stealing lives in the Underworld, and later on the human world, the Old Satan Faction suddenly ran into a brick wall…"

They were in a private room, small to fit around 6 people on it. The paintings, the emblem of Bael, and the color of imperial purple flourished life in the area.

They weren't alone, though. The Heads of Agares and Bael were present as well, but camouflage in the background, letting the two elders exchange words.

"They had it coming," the Great King stated, no sympathy in his words, "it was a matter of time before they were face to face with their comeuppance."

"I agree. It just caught me off-guard," Michael swirled the dregs in his cocktail glass. "Truly, Sirzechs… isn't something you can refer to as ordinary, isn't it? Can someone like him be considered as a Devil?"

"Certainly not," the Great King replied, even if the green-eyed Angel knew the answer. "Ah yes, it almost slipped my mind. Danhauser had a preposition that may tug a smile on your face. He offered himself to Heaven despite defeating the Old Satan Faction. When are you available?"

Michael tilted his head a little, "Interesting offer, but that won't be necessary. You gave Daniel two options: solve this or turn himself to Heaven. He chose the former. He won."

"Archangel Michael. You know why he placed that tempting offer, correct?"

The Angel nodded, "I'm aware, but to the victor belongs the spoils. It's best if he enjoys this day with his loved ones… a breather from politics and such, in times like this, a vacation is the last thing he will get later on," he coughed a little "I acknowledge his drive to fight for the peace treaty… but it's far complicated than it seems. The cold message toward the Vatican stirred everything, bringing the country to its former glory won't ease the scar either. A Devil and a Fallen Angel had led the attack of all things… Why. Satanael, why?"

Zekram contemplated in silence, occasionally twirling his glass.

"Thinking deeper about this, it's the best of us if Daniel didn't approach Heaven. Father knows how the Angels would react knowing that a Devil is walking around Heaven."

This time Zekram had to chuckle at the big picture. Michael's words did carry a lot of truth behind them, but he was interested in the gray-haired's perspective.

To not play around the bush, Danhauser didn't describe them with sweet words, nor he talked ill about them, not when he's around anyway. But he always made those eyes when Heaven became the main topic of a conversation.

"That would be the best choice," Zekram agreed, "to put it nicely… Danhauser isn't fond of your people."

"Back at you, Great King."

"I'm aware, Archangel," the first Bael grunted, "it makes me wonder if the other two Burning Seraphim are…?"

"Uriel and Raphael are part of the Four Great Seraphs for a reason, Great King. They don't let their emotions and views control their judgment," a memory of a certain blonde fogged his mind for a split second and Michael had to guffaw.

Zekram brought an eyebrow up, "What is it now? Did I miss a punchline?"

"Never mind me," the blond gave an apologetic smile, "I recalled something out of context."

Zekram hummed and dropped it. Enjoying the lull atmosphere.

"Heaven has you in a bad way, old friend," the raven-haired broke the silence, "tired, ancient, and half-dead."

"And still, I carry on."

"A futile act, why do you persist?"

"Because I must."

"Nonsense. What's stopping you from accepting the Governor-General's offer? The color of your wings?"

"Then I would only follow Satanael's steps," the Archangel stood his ground, "I won't repeat his grave mistakes, I won't turn my back to Heaven and rebel… as long as I'm here, there will be no requiem. Not yet."

"You can sit in His throne, but that doesn't make you the Biblical God."

The three Devils winced.

"I overstayed my welcome," Michael finally left his chair, nodding firmly to Zekram, "I thank you for your hospitality."

Before Zekram could intervene, the Archduke leaned close to his ear, whispering. Once Lord Agares returned to his seat, Zekram stood up as well, "A pity, but understandable. We both have important matters to oversee. This was a good catch up compared to our previous talks, Michael."

"Indeed, I'm glad a positive outcome came from this," the blond offered a handshake, "while I personally want to express my gratitude, Heaven and the Vatican needs me more than before. Please, tell Daniel that we are grateful for his accomplished tasks."

"I'll make sure he gets the message," he accepted the handshake without hesitation, "I bid you a safe journey."

Just as the Archangel disappeared from the room through magic, Lord Agares and Bael shifted closer.

"Daniel?"

"An affectionate nickname for Danhauser, I presume," Zekram dusted off his attire, "but let us not stray from the news you're about to share with us, Lord Agares. Tell us, is it true that the Great Prince had the Astaroth Clan as its target?"

Lord Bael blinked, "What? When did that happen?"

"… I suppose I should explain everything from scratch," Lord Agares harrumphed, "Prior to Astaroth's demotion and the imprisonment of Diodora, the Great Prince apparently had good ties with the Astaroth Clan, but now…" he took a pause, adjusting his glasses. "They had a wedding arrangement that both agreed to annul for different motives, Lord Astaroth explanation was that they lacked a proper heir. They now have an heiress."

"Who?" Lord Bael asked, intrigued.

"Beelzebub's niece."

Zekram took his seat once more, "A case similar to the Gremory and Phenex Housecarls…"

"But without the Rating Game," Lord Bael grunted, "how convenient. The Grand Marquis and Great Prince were on the lookout of Houses connected to the Archduke Faction."

"The wedding between Phenex and Gremory was discussed and approved long before the 'Diehauser Belial Scandal'. They are off the hook," Lord Agares furrowed his brow, "the one between Vassago and Astaroth, on the other hand, raises a lot of questions…"

"You said both Houses were in favor of cancellation, isn't it? Then Lord Vassago stepped away because of Astaroth's demotion to Lesser Duke," Zekram leaned further on his seat, "How about you, Lord Bael? Any comment on these revelations?"

"Is the Grand Marquis really threatening?" Lord Bael scoffed, pouring himself a glass of his favorite poison, "I've participated in his show after putting Diodora behind the bars, and from the gatherings, I had with him along with the other Great Families, he acts like an imbecile."

Aside from Lord Agares, Lord Bael never considered the other Great Lords to his level. They rose to power only because of the King Piece Scandal, not because of how pure their blood was. Certainly, they didn't deserve the affix "Great" beside their Housecarl's rank.

He almost laughed tears when Naud offered him a seat on his stupid talk show. A waste of time that cheap show was, he didn't understand what Ars Goetia saw entertaining about it. Was it the fake laughs? Or the fake applauds?

Seriously, that fool preferred getting positive ratings of his series than leading his people.

As expected of a fake Great Household, biting off more than they could chew.

Unfortunately, Zekram suggested to play along by accepting Naud's request to avoid any drama that could backfire them. While he understood why his ancestor urged him to accept the interview, it made him wonder what Naud had to make the First Bael thoughtful.

"It's not Naud who worries me, but the control the Gamigin Clan has over the media," Zekram's sharp eyes could cut more efficiently than metal, "Four hostile newspapers are more to be feared than a thousand bayonets, Lord Bael. I shall not let them say anything against the Great King's interest."

Between Ruval and Diehauser, the former had more support from the viewers. Amongst the Top Ten, Diehauser had to be the one with the most accusations of carrying a King Piece in his pocket. The fact that the gray-haired kept winning his matches with zero defeats only made the opposition reinforce their twisted views.

Meanwhile, Ruval had his back protected by the Gamigin Clan. They made sure that the Strongest Heir had all the support he needed to paint the perfect portrayal of his image as well as the Grand Marquis Faction. They were trying to win the hearts of the audience.

Be it on printed words of a newspaper or from the exaggerated words of an obnoxious host of any talk show financially supported by the Gamigin Clan. Somehow, they made sure to sneak out in the script speeches of appraisal to the eldest son of Lord and Lady Phenex.

It didn't mean Ruval was spared by their insults. Like all famous people, he still had a small amount harassing him through different methods for various reasons.

"The other Great Families are clandestinely maneuvering behind the scenes to stripe us from our ranks," Zekram stated, kneading his temple, "all of them, especially the Grand Marquis, is opposing us. They are trying to increase their influence and political power by using the Strongest Heir and secretly implementing marriage contracts with noble families within our factions."

The three of them were drowned in silence, savoring their respective drinks.

"We need the Youth Gathering back," Lord Bael finally voiced what everyone had in their minds, "that's our only key."

"And now you finally realize why I offered Danhauser an invitation to participate." Zekram sighed loudly, "with your son and Danhauser representing the Great King Faction, we could've slowly restored our reputations."

Lord Bael snorted but wisely kept his mouth shut.

Lord Agares frowned, "Would it work?" he asked, "like the Emperor, they're accused of 'using' the King Piece. People are even spreading rumors that the games are rigged."

"They can't tarnish the Rating Games no matter what. It's a sport that was born after the Anti-Satan Faction won the Civil War," the Great King gave him a history lesson, "we take pride on an elite game that possibly the whole Supernatural World is invested with. Deep inside, we love the Rating Games. It's part of our culture."

"Not my wife," Lord Bael grunted, "the thought of watching lower-class Devils blowing their brains out is repulsive to her."

Zekram kneaded his eyes, "It doesn't matter anymore. The other Great Houses will refuse to reopen the ceremony, especially when their only representatives were the heir and heiress of Glasya-Labolas and Sitri respectively. Their strength differs by a wide margin."

"Such a perfect time they voted to cancel it as well…" Lord Agares mumbled, "they took advantage of the Vatican Invasion."

That's when an idea basked Lord Bael's head, "Unless…" a moment he opened his mouth and the stares were already digging into his skull, giving him the permission to proceed. While being the center of attention felt good, he knew it wouldn't be wise to build suspense when the Great King was present. He shared his thoughts, "we make a new Youth Gathering."

Lord Agares and Zekram briefly locked eyes for a second before turning back to Sairaorg's father, "… I think it's better if you further elaborate, Lord Bael."

"The Old Satan Faction, Ars Goetia's greatest enemy for ages, was wiped out by Sirzechs Lucifer," the smirk growing in his face couldn't become any wider, "a vermin less from pestering us and a victory for the 72 Pillars. Shouldn't we commemorate this day each year? Wouldn't that require some sort of celebration for today and future generations…?"

"B-but, the other Great Houses!"

"I'm not inaugurating this event for those inferior Houses," Lord Bael spat out, finishing his drink in one go, "… this is for Ars Goetia itself. Our people."

Lord Bael studied their expected expressions. Satisfied, Lord Bael grabbed the opened bottle of liquor to pour himself a second, well-deserved drink.

But before he could continue, his ancestor took the bottle from his grip and, to his surprise, did him the honors.

Once done, Zekram gently clicked his unfinished glass with his and looked him dead in the eye. He smiled, "Happy Anti-Satan Faction Day."

The descendant laughed, returning the gesture and said back, "Happy Anti-Satan Faction Day, Great King."

.


.

Guest: Don't worry, our homie Jeanne will have her time to shine.

Guest: You nailed it. That's why I don't want to add Kuroka in the harem. All fanfics that I had read long ago treated her the same without bringing up something interesting about her, and I always ranted about that.

Then again, back then Kuroka lacked background aside of the protect her sister by killing her former master and the "Nekomata Massacre" which was an OC event.

Overall, I feel that I would fall on the same pit if I made her a love interest, making it unoriginal, which would look hypocritical from me, who always is whining about her treatment. Plus, the harem is complete. She still plays an an important role in the fic, though.

Guest: Nah, Danhauser never met Penemue, he was being sarcastic. Oh, and Ingvild, Malacoda and Ravel will appear soon as well, don't worry. I'm looking forward to writing these three the most. I feel the return to the Underworld is going to be the most exciting of this fic. I just hope I can transmit that hype into my writing. About other members of the Malebranche, for now, Calcabrina and Malacoda are the centers of attention, others will be mentioned, but will not receive a lot of attention.

JW: From now on, the peerage will get more attention, I'm sorry for not involving them a lot. I can promise you that I have so many things ready for each one of them, including those who aren't recruited yet. And nope! Shigune isn't the Bighorn Sheep.

Guest: As far as I know, the ExE was foreshadowed once during the Loki fight, where Issei gets a vision of the Chichigami… but still, I just can't grasp why to make a new universe. I know Ishibumi needed OP villains because of how fast the main cast grew in terms of strength, but I feel that Hindu Pantheon could fulfill that role. Of all pantheons, they're the closest thing to DBZ in terms of strength. I remembered he gave us a small hint that the last villain was connected to Shiva or something like that, but seeing where DxD is heading, I feel he changed his mind.

Killburn27: I'm sorry. In a few chapters, I'll give you and everyone the action-packed chapters that you guys were looking forward to. We're almost there.

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May 8, 2017, was the day I wrote this fic, and like the previous year, I'm late again on its birthday.

Happy late anniversary.

Yaay!

Sorry for taking so long, the school was harder for me since it was online because of the pandemic. A new experience, and complicated to concentrate when the bed is right behind you. Ugh.

Also, I've made some modifications to some of the Sacred Gears, the biggest examples are Incinerate Anthem and Absolute Demise. I found them a bit boring and decided to "upgrade" them. I love the results.

Man, I'm excited to write about Ingvild, dunno why tbh.

Also, I'll be making a poll about a subject that I wanted to address since people were asking me to do it for a long time.

Ya wanna see the "Dan the Man Fanbase"? Not like the Oppai Dragon that is a show and became worldwide. Just a small one made by a small number of people. I know who will be the members of the club, all of them are canon characters.

All I can promise is that it's going to be super cringe. You're gonna love it.

When I'm gonna put the poll? When I understand how to do it. This is my first time making a poll, I hope it's not difficult.

I don't have anything else to say here. The next chapter will be more relaxing compared to this one. For those who are desperate for some action, don't worry, we're getting close to it.

Also, Shalba is dead, so is Katerea and Creuserey. They won't come back, nor Shalba will appear out of nowhere and pull an arrow with Samael's poison out of his ass.

Remember, wash your hands.

Cheers!

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Life.10: Happy Anti-Satan Faction Day!