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FICTION
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Chapter 61: Winner Winner Phenex Lunch!
Kunou huffed irked as I finished fixing her dress, my eyes sporting a tired and annoyed tone as I wasn't certainly planning to visit this place of the Underworld.
The Phenex Villa was slightly smaller compared to the Gremory mansion, but the whole structure made up with its overall modernity compared to the more antiquate house. Its outer appearance was less refined and less gothic, something that was replaced with an Art Nouveau floral pattern with just a few adjustments that reminded much of modern constructs.
A butler and a maid were there to accompany us and I dreaded the fact I had to accept the invitation for lunch.
It had been unexpected and unplanned, something that I was glad to protest to Azazel but… I had to partake now that stronger attempts for an alliance were being made.
It was a bullshit excuse, one I was more than happy to add to my protestation but the Governor-General hardly cared. It was just 'petty' behavior without much of a proof about it… even though it was Raiser Phenex that was accessory to Diodora for a certain point onward.
It were just two things that got me actually interested in at least putting a formal and well-composed facade as I ventured inside the building. The first being that Baraqiel was going to be there to serve as a helpful companion during the lunch, the second was that the invitation was actually signed 'Ruval Phenex'.
It was kind of odd for the Heir of one of the 72 Pillars to be the one doing the invitations, but I guess an explanation was going to be given by the time we reached the dining room.
The hallways were another proof that the entire building was a far cry from the classic aristocratic style as instead of portraits, there were pictures of family moments. Normal family moments.
There was a photo with the three brothers, much younger than now, holding some fishing equipment as their smiling father held what looked to be a 'massive' carp.
Another one framed both Ruval and the middle son of Lord Phenex smiling eagerly while holding a large trophy with some words engraved into it.
'Hell Siblings Competition, 2001'
'This seems to be quite the… common family.'
It seems so.
Right now we are seeing achievements and… is that baby Ravel?
I almost D'aww'd at that particularly cute picture, almost failing to notice the soft but also adorable snort leaving Kunou's lips.
Someone's jelly~.
Aww…
I patted her shoulder, causing her annoyed golden eyes to turn at me.
"You know, maybe I should ask your mother to see some of your pictures-" I tried to salvage the situation… only to see her snap to look around, a hint of some embarrassment visible from my perspective.
"T-That will not be necessary." The girl replied curtly, trying to avoid getting pulled in that kind of discussion.
"I bet you are 'super-cute' in those~- uh?" Just as I tried to press on, her hand shot to grasp mine to give it a squeeze, causing me to stop.
"Not… now." She ended the discussion, forgetting to get a promise about… not getting me to see them.
We are SO going to ask for even just a glimpse of those.
Super-chibi Ku-chan!
We finally arrived in front of two closed doors and both servants moved to carefully open them, revealing the dining room to the two of us.
I blinked once, then twice and… thrice.
I could see the entire Phenex family already sitting by the particularly long table, Baraqiel was here too, I could also see Sairaorg sitting beside Ruval, staring at me with interest, and I think there was also the 'unnamed Phenex' with his… Fallen Angel wife?
It's kind of surprising but… I guess it has to do with the fact there is a 'Grigori diplomat' and they didn't need to fully expose some family issue like this.
But as I finished to properly take notice of everyone present in the room, I ended up also seeing how… everyone's clothes was hardly formal. Hell, Lord Phenex was wearing a half-sleeved shirt and jeans while his wife was wearing a blouse and trousers.
Even Baraqiel was wearing informal stuff and… the only one wearing aristocratic-like clothes was Ruval.
My eyes returned briefly to Baraqiel as I finally noted the strange smug smile in his face and-
He didn't-
He has to. HE was the one that told you to wear formal because it was proper thing.
Revenge will be swift and delivered by Akeno, that's for sure.
And even though I managed to find relief in the fact I was going to get some vindication via indirect means, I started to notice while we were approaching the table, Kunou was dropping deadly glares to the Fallen Angel, causing the man to look away because of the glares' intensity.
The kitsune did realize that the reason why she had to wear the dress she had been vocally detested until now was because of… Akeno's affection for her Niichan.
Baraqiel's penance has just tripled in mere moments.
"I bid you a good day, Hoitsu-san and Kunou-san." The head of the Phenex Clan greeted in a semi-formal manner, smiling and appearing fairly relaxed. "I hope the 'walk' to arrive to this humble abode was uneventful and at least normal."
I nodded, giving a polite smile back. "It was peaceful. I wish to extend to Lord Phenex and Lady Phenex a formal thank you for the kind invitation-"
"Even though it was my son that wrote the papers?" The man jokingly asked before sighing. "I admit that after what happened last month, I've relegated a little more work to Ruval. I certainly don't need another… fiasco."
Raiser was staring at the table, he was pale and… flinching at the mere mentioning of what he was implicated into just a few weeks ago. Ravel stared at him for a moment, before fixing her blue eyes back on… Kunou?
The fellow blonde chibi stared back, her irritation was painted in her face and I wonder how much of that the youngest Phenex could understand was directed to the very dress the kitsune was wearing-
Slam
I blinked as the aforementioned girl stood up from her chair and slammed her palm on the table, giving a serious look while glancing at her parents. "Mother, father. I wish to lend some of my clothes to Kunou-san."
...What?
The two adults looked surprised too but the woman recovered quickly, giving a warm smile. "Sure thing, little Rae."
I turned to see if the confusion was shared by Kunou but… the girl was smiling happily and nodding at the fellow chibi, slowly taking her leave with Ravel via the hallway we just came from. I stared silently as the two retreated, trying and failing to understand if there was a connection between this… with what happened with Koneko and… Ophis.
There is some strange pattern-
But nothing truly conclusive. Seriously, why this happens with the chibis?!
"I suppose you are trying to understand my little sister's sudden interest in Lady Kunou's dress, Sir Hoitsu." Ruval finally spoke up, drawing my attention to him. "Ravel is rather… perceptive of thoughts presented by young girls her age."
So this wasn't a thing that happened only with Kunou.
"Oh no, I know about this since… Ku-chan is rather keen to do something similar, Ruval-san." I replied, slowly taking a seat as I gauged the surprise in the Phenex heir's face.
"Truly? Then I suppose you have a strong bond with Lady Kunou. By the way you address her so informally, I can only assume that you are both close to each other." The young man mused loudly and I nodded.
"Ku-chan and I are siblings in all but blood." I answered truthfully, feeling the refreshing sensation of speaking with someone so soft-spoken as him. "We've been living together for a while now and we are that close."
He nodded with a smile, pleased with my reply. "I see." He muttered happily. "Then I can only be glad that you both found each other as I think there is a genuine connection between the two of you. I hope only the best for you both." He concluded with another nod.
"It is quite good to have a strong connection with those you care about." Sairaorg butted in with a small smile. "To cultivate the bonds, to see the bountiful results in the happiness and the joy of those around you."
And I knowing how much the Bael cared for the friends and family around him, I knew his words mattered much more than they sounded. "Thank you for your kind words, Ruval-san and Sairaorg-san-"
"Nothing of that, Hoitsu." The hot-blooded brawler interrupted with a bigger smile. "Call me Sairaorg just as I dropped the formalities with you."
A complete difference from Ruval's noble-like attitude.
He is more of a kind giant, very amicable but quite headstrong on tiny pleasantries.
"I understand, Sairaorg." I replied back, getting this time a grin for him.
"Good and… I wanted to ask about that special technique of yours." He blurted with a curious glint from his eyes. "The one with the red aura."
I blinked, realizing what he was alluding to, and nodding in understanding. "You are referring to the 'Kaioken'." I replied calmly. "It's… quite similar to Touki."
I glanced around, noticing that everyone at the table was glancing with interest at this particular topic but, since Baraqiel was giving no hints of keeping quiet, I decided to go ahead with the explanation that was going to happen very soon now.
"I have thought so but… I think there is still a major difference. Can you… explain what is it?" The Bael pressed on.
"Well," I commenced with a calm tone. "The Kaioken is based about boosting the production of energy via the muscles, increasing the input but-"
"Causing major strain upon the body." The young man interjected with an intrigued tone. "The stronger is this technique applied, the bigger the strain will be to guarantee a further major boost of energy." He blinked by the end of his final words and then nodded. "That is quite a taxing technique compared to Touki-"
"But also a very good one if used with moderation." I added quietly, appreciating Sairaorg's capacity to understand the fine details of the Kaioken. "Since I've been having some slight issues in achieving a proper Senjutsu form, Touki has been quite the impossible technique to even try to attain right now."
"And so you preferred the Kaioken." The brawler added once more, his smile still here. "A good way to overcome the obstacle."
That is coming from someone that had trouble with his family because of 'having a large obstacle' that almost got him disowned. I should really be minding how to word some of the topics before I get him angry.
"If I may interrupt," Ruval joined in, looking rather annoyed at the direction the discussion was going. "I've heard about what happened in Tokyo, how you were there to stop the invasion by taking the leader out first." The Phenex mentioned, making me sigh for a moment.
"It was more like Rizevim wanted to fight me." I admitted calmly, drawing the interest of everyone once more. "The man rushed for a battle and I obliged."
"Still, it had to have been quite quite difficult as you were fighting someone stronger than you at the time and… the city was being attacked all at once." The blond pressed on, making me feel a little uneasy.
It's been a while since I've thought about what happened back then and even thinking about the pure pressure I was dealing at the time, the major risk I took…
I still remember being a little afraid of losing everything at that point.
"It was tough." I replied curtly. "But I pulled through and survived."
He nodded and seemed ready to give another question about it much to my chagrin but…
"We are back!" Ravel announced and soon the entire room's attention was on the two young girls.
Kunou was wearing her… usual kimono?
Where did she get that?
Maybe Ravel has… a kimono like that too?
...I mean, the Phenex are rich but-
Quiet, I want to understand what 'sorcery' is this.
They both walked back to the table, looking fairly happy and… mischievous. I frowned, trying to understand what was going on. I wasn't alone as Ruval and Raiser looked confused too, glancing at the eye-closed Ravel.
The kitsune had her eyes closed too and I felt an odd suspicion that this was a prank of sort. Why would Kunou return to wear her usual clothes when…
Why wasn't the girl showing her fox ears? She would at least show those because it was difficult to keep up with the- Oh.
I looked back at the Phenex heir and the middle brother, only to see the realization flashing on their faces too. I nodded at the oldest and he nodded back, silently planning some 'resolution' about this plan in the making.
Oh my~!
"So, Ku-chan, do you think that Lith-chan should stop headpatting you? I think she shouldn't do this just to tease you." I lied, getting a confused posture from 'Kunou' and a tense one from 'Ravel'.
The oldest Phenex sibling smiled a little at the idea I had for getting both to give up the little trick.
"By the way, little Rae, do you think that you should be less mean to your younger brother? He is just a year younger than you." Ruval lied back, the phenomenon happening in an opposite pattern.
At this point, Lord Phenex, his wife and Raiser seemed to have realized what was going on, while Sairaorg and Baraqiel quietly enjoyed the chaotic scene unfolding before them.
"L-Lith-chan could be less mean, yes!" 'Kunou' jumped the gun much to her accomplice's dismay and-
"I-I could be a little kinder to him!" 'Ravel' replied confidently, unaware of the shock present in 'Kunou's face.
There were a few moments of silence and then… I decided to burst their faulty plan before things escalated even more.
As much as I wanted to get more fun out of this, I didn't need to over-tease these two cute dummies.
"You two should return to your rightful seat." I stated calmly but loud enough to get both girls' attention. "Still, a really clever plan if it wasn't for some minor flaws."
There was more silence, then Ravel broke from the 'act'. 'Kunou' opened her eyes, blue orbs giving an annoyed glint back at her brother, while 'Ravel's face sported a small pout directed at me.
"H-How did you realize?" The youngest Phenex asked. "I-I thought closing our eyes would have been enough-"
"For just a while." I interrupted mirthfully. "But there are some tell-tale signs that you have completely forgotten about."
The girl frowned. "Such as?"
"Well," I started with a hum. "I think the more important is… that one is a Devil while the other is a Yokai."
"Your energies are different from each other, Little Rae." Ruval added happily. "So it was fairly easy to understand what kind of play was happening by the table."
"There was also the small-planned capacity to keep the act going after a while." Lady Phenex finished with a lovely smirk. "I don't think you would have managed to keep your eyes closed without getting these three to suspect something was off about you two."
Her husband nodded in agreement. "Indeed. I think your big brothers would have noticed their real sisters."
"Mou, then you got out the tricky questions." Kunou whined softly. "Seriously, Lith is too short and she is the one wanting headpats from me."
"A-And I'm the youngest." Ravel continued with a nod. "Y-You could have at least given us a little time to have some fun."
"Sorry, Ravel."
"I ask for you forgiveness, Lady Kunou."
It was at that point that the female Fallen Angel let out a soft giggle. "If I didn't know the relationships those two had with the cuties, I would say they were whipped."
Both Ruval and I looked embarrassed for a moment and the soft giggle was followed by the ones coming from the girls' lips.
You kind of are whipped to your Imoutos-
Ophis-
Touché!
Moments later, the two girls returned to the proper seats while keeping their current outfit and…
It's quite weird to see Kunou cosplay as Ravel and… Ravel cosplay as Kunou.
I wonder if Kunou even knows what a cosplayer is-
Considering that we were in Tokyo for a while, I can only assume she heard about it from someone around.
I hummed quietly as moments later the room was stormed by servants that dropped various plates of food on the table. There was… a lot, but it was all food Kunou and I knew about and thus I had little problem about it.
With this discussion settled for the time being, I focused on the food provided for me to eat and decided to let myself at ease for a while.
The lunch began and someone fidgeted nervously, hoping that what he had planned to do today would actually come in fruition without any issue.
I managed to recover, the pain had slowly subsided after a full day and my body had finally got hold over the over-production of Dragonic Energy.
My senses were far stronger than those were mere hours ago and my capacity to 'feel' around my general whereabouts was finally caught by Tobio himself.
I was brought in a different room, I could feel numerous seals all connected to the bandages, reinforcing what was already there and further limiting my chances of properly fight if a clash occurred.
While I was certain that SLASH DOG wasn't going to turn all at once against me, I was fairly convinced that punching my way out of this problem wasn't the best solution for this curious situation.
There was silence for a long, the only noises being the surgical table and the breathing of Jin as I was led to this special room.
A few minutes of quiet ensued, I was left deprived also of my capacity to feel the things around me. It was frustrating at first, but after the brutality I had endured until yesterday when I woke up?
Things were far too kind here than back then and thus I let them have all the precautions they wanted before entering in contact with me.
I felt a magical hand forming just above my mouth and I felt it moving the bandages near my lips away. I could now breath freer than before and I continued to wait for more steps.
"What is your name?" A feminine voice demanded.
Lavinia Reni, the Demise Girl and the current owner of the Absolute Demise. The Longinus is considered a perfect counter to Incinerate Anthem for its intense Ice-type magic.
If she wanted, the woman could easily freeze me up and kill me if I showed any malicious intent.
Thus I merely complied.
"H-Hoitsu- Hoitsu Sakaki-bara." My throat was still recovering from resting so much and I chided myself for not expecting some dryness.
More silence, I blinked through the bandages and then… a sigh.
"You are not him." Lavinia pointed out calmly. "I can give you another chance-"
"I'm Hoitsu Sakakibara, codename Hekishoku and member of Grigori." I interrupted with a polite and blank tone.
It was a dangerous step that could easily backfire as in many occasions my counterpart would reveal his identity quite early-
"And why are you so convinced of being 'Hoitsu Sakakibara'?" Tobio spoke out, causing me to express minor surprise through my lower facial features.
"Because I know that there is another one in this dimension. The original one." I added cautiously, hoping to not get sealed back just for suggesting this.
"Your energy is similar to his." Suzaku commented with some interest. "But you have something… a little more similar to Dragons."
I pressed my lips in a thin line, thinking about a proper response and… decided to drop off the formalities.
"That's because I am not from this dimension, Himejima-sama."
Once more silence, fear rising in my chest as my breathing picked up the pace as I waited for a… verdict.
"Explain, 'Sakakibara'-san." Tobio pressed, his tone holding back some anger. An emotion I had predicted, but that also made moving around quite… difficult.
"I used the souls of two dying Dragon Gods to bring myself out of my dimension and in this one." I began to explain. "The energy that remained seeped in my body and altered its biology-"
"Dimensions?" Lavinia mused out-loud. "You mean that you jumped from yours to this one? Why?"
Choices, choices. If I blurted everything, not even the highest deity would save me from a quick death right now.
"My… former dimension was dying. I tried to break a loop imposed by-"
"Lucifer." Tobio interrupted, causing me to tense up at the fact he knew about the loops.
"H-How-" I tried to ask but was beaten by someone else.
"Azazel released some confidential information about it after the recent encounter between our Hoitsu and Rizevim." Suzaku replied calmly, yet I could feel some relief in her voice. "So that means that-"
"How did you gain two dying souls powerful enough to get the dimension-hopping spell to work." Lavinia demanded strongly. "I know for sure that not even Dragon Gods can provide that much energy-"
"Trihexa."
The word was a taboo and I was granted some more time to think about the matter.
This dimension's Hoitsu and Rizevim were allied? It was a curious development but… a welcomed one. Maybe this Rizevim wasn't going to mess shit up like in the last one.
"You said two-" Lavinia wanted to push for more, but Suzaku jumped in with a gasp.
"T-Then that foul presence back then… the one that Hoitsu needed help to vanquish-"
...What?
Did she just- no, it couldn't be.
"What are you talking about, Suzaku-chan?" Tobio asked confused and the woman spoke once more.
"When we first met Hoitsu-kun, he was suffering from some foul manipulation. It was incredibly difficult at first as the presence was much stronger than any of the seals I had prepared and… he beat it back within his mindscape."
He- This was a boon!
Lucifer theorized that Trihexa was made by a growing consciousness within his own, something that eluded early analysis and that formed through the presence of negativity within the soul-
But then that meant that this dimension's Hoitsu didn't have a Trihexa within himself, rendering Lucifer's plan half-useless already.
It was now the proper moment to just… take him down when he returned. Trying to avoid its resurrection wouldn't be convenient. Lucifer has to die!
"We've pretty much confirmed that you are a 'Hoitsu', but I wish to ask you something, Hoitsu-san." The leader of the group stated much to my initial confusion and soon… I felt dread.
"How many people did you have to kill to gain these two souls?"
*You feel your sins crawling on your back.
I sighed heavily, feeling all those lives weighting my entire soul down and… I let out a genuine answer about it.
"Too many. Far too many."
…
"You know that I can't let you out of sight after you just admitted this." The bartender said with an odd tone.
I tried to nod but… I forgot how tight the bandages were. So I sighed. "Yes."
"But I know that imprisoning you would make their sacrifice worth." He continued to say. "Thus I think we can come up with a compromise."
The magical hand returned, pulling away the bandages covering my eyes and giving me back some more perception over the situation. The first thing I noticed was the mask being hovered above my face.
It was just like the one I had back when I was Hekishoku… except it was a dark-shade of red rather than the bright emerald.
"What do you think of this..." Tobio asked softly. "Tasatsu-san?"
AN
More about our nutty Hoitsu in SLASH/DOG: Tasatsu no Gaiden!
Tasatsu (他殺): Murder, homicide, killing, assassination, annihilation.
Alas about the upper bits of the chapter: The Lunch is far from over and yes, there will be more fluff about it!
P.S. I really want to see Hazbin Hotel Episode 2 rn.
Future milestone 1: 950 Followers and Favorites.
P a treon . com (slash) socialistbukharin
REVIEW Q&A!
Scrumblenut: I think the cold would have had an easier time getting me but… yeah, I don't mind a little bit of blunt honesty. It genuinely makes for the funniest things to hear.
MasterBlade47: BT!Hoitsu is with SLASH DOG right now. The Amnesiac is actually someone that was being 'protected' by Azrael and now is free. Prepare to see some divine epicness.