Chapter 4
I can't think up of a title
I intended to go straight out of the underworld through a magic circle that was prepared beforehand, but I saw an associate of mine while I was sneaking in through the back door. It was Seekvaira Agares, the next head of the Agares family.
She was the person I know the best within this generation if you were to exclude Sona as she is my twin sister. It was mainly because she was a smart one amongst the children of this generation. She seems to have a rival of sorts with me, as she is beyond determined to surpass me in whatever way possible. She also have quite the interest on mechas. As a former otaku, I can't help but to be delighted I could meet another like me. I guess those were the main reason we clicked off so well.
"As expected. I can't see you on the party so I wondered where you were. Did you visit her grave again?"
She glared at me, but neither her expression nor those commanding tone fit her childish form at all, and instead it became a funny sight to see. How lovely.
"It's been a while."
"Yes. About one month, if I remember it correctly. Though it seems that you have not changed at all."
I assume she was trying to frown, but I could clearly see the smile hiding behind it. Kids are truly honest beings aren't they.
I studied the girl before me for a moment. She has a greenish grey hair and light red irises, and was wearing a blue dress that I, with my lacking vocabulary in fashion, could only describe as elegant. She seems to have an interesting sense of fashion for one so young. She always wore all kinds of beautiful dress whenever I see her around.
"Ahaha, blue really looks good on you. It's my favorite color."
"Don't suddenly say things like that!"
She seems to be weak against commendation, so I like to compliment her a lot. It's a bit like teasing, but even better.
"Sorry, sorry. By the way we're you waiting for me? I hope I didn't cause you any troubles."
"Hmmp! It's nothing like that. I was merely wondering where you were and deduced this place as the answer. I was just confirming my deductive reasoning."
She truly doesn't speaks like an eight years old at all. Her attitude, on the other hand is still up for debate.
What a fiery woman.
"If you say so. Would you like to go back now that you have proven your genius?"
I walked towards the door, before stopping as I felt a tug on my right sleeve.
"You are a host, therefore responsible to entertain your guests." She looked to the sides, to the ground and then to the sky, eyes staring at everything except me. "I want you to escort me back. Back to the ball."
I could see her cheeks gaining a slight blush. I guess it must have been nerve wracking for her to wander alone within other's property, in the evening even. I'm actually amazed she managed to navigate through the mansion considering its large size.
She went through all that troubles, just because she was worried about me.
I gave my palm towards her.
"It would be my pleasure, milady."
She put her hand above my own, as I gently wrapped mine as to not surprise her away. I felt her smooth and soft skin, akin to one of a baby, still uncontaminated from friction of any kind.
We took our time walking back towards the ball. After we reached our destination our hands detached, and I waved her goodbye as I had no intention to join said party.
I was by no mean joking about my statement of my social soul. I put both my hands inside my pocket, starting to walk away from the happy mood of celebration.
Huh. Now that I think about it since when has my sword disappear? I can't remember losing it anywhere.
Hurriedly I tried to track my way back, seeking for my missing sword.
"Wait!"
Yet before I took a step I turned around at Seekvaira's call. My sight was greeted by Seekvaira's angular face, her eyes taking the form of the infamous puppy dog eyes, tears threatening to go out at any moment. I have next to no clue as to why she was showering me with such overwhelming emotion.
"D-d-d-dance…"
She barely managed to stutter one word to an audible level, before muttering out words in a voice I can't hear. Looking behind her I could see adults dancing in pairs. I'd like to ask why there was a dance in a birthday party, but I suppose it was fitting, as pure blood devils were a bunch of extravaganza, doubly so for Sera.
Oh, now I see what she's trying to do.
I wouldn't call myself a social person by any means, but even I know the appropriate action to take at this situation.
"Would you let me be your partner for this dance?"
She made a nod. I could see her trembling in nervousness. I suppose she is surprisingly timid sometimes. Now the responsibility to take the lead is mine.
I gave her a small smile, before acting proactively as I sought to grab her hand. My other hand went to her waist, hers on my shoulder. The two of us danced in a practical and methodical manner, taking steps in rhythm. One step forward, then backward, and the to the side.
We danced along with many adults surrounding us. In fact I am quite sure we were the only pair dancing amongst the children's. I suppose it's not mandatory for the children.
Ah well, since we danced then there was no reason to not make the most of it.
...Wait, since when had Sonya made herself scarce?
"So, what was it that you wanted to tell me?"
Before me was Lord Sitri, the master I had given my allegiance to. As his bishop and also a maid of his house, I am the personal caretaker in charge of young master Farith.
I was full of nervousness when I heard I was assigned to take care of two six month old babies. They were coddled by Lady Sitri's sister for those first six month, but from then on it was my responsibility to raise them properly into fitting heir worthy of the Sitri clan's name. Miss Sona grew up splendidly. She held boundless curiosity towards everything and absorbed knowledge like a sponge.
Farith, on the other hand, was a weird one even as a baby. He barely ever cries, and when he does it's because he needs sustenance or a change of diapers, but even that stopped once I started giving those to them on a maintained schedule.
By three years old he had started reading books about our native language, and by four reading books on devil magic, and even used DeviNet to learn them more thoroughly. He started using Sitri's clan magic, even if only to vibrate waters inside a cup of glass. I reported it to lord Sitri and recommended getting him a proper teacher but he disagreed with the reason that Farith is still too young.
He seems to have a penchant with me, always sticking to me through thick and thin. When he was two years old he asked about his mother, and I could only keep silent without vocalizing even a word. After that he seems to have realized his mother's passing, as he started referring his mother in past tense. He sometimes still ask how she was like though, and I would tell him all that I knew about lady Sitri, bit by bit.
He always tremble seemingly without any reason whenever around either of his sisters or lord Sitri, and only stop doing so when I came back or they leave his side. It took me some time to figure out the reasoning behind it. Guilt. The guilt of apparently causing the maternal death of lady Sitri, which I must say was not his fault in any way. That was a tragedy where no one was at fault.
We all tried comforting him, but all of us could see he was not convinced to see it like so. But the strangest thing is the fact that he seems to forget his guilt whenever I'm around, and stick close to me akin to a child following his mother. Therefore I was ordered to be young master Farith's personal maid, and let someone else take care of miss Sona.
He continued to train his magic without skipping it even a single day. A shocking discipline in his otherwise free schedule. By six he was able to use the clan's water magic to an adequate level, and I knew it was time for him to gain his peerage. It's considered an open secret that the younger one is when they have the ritual, the higher the chances of gaining mutated pieces within their peerage. It was proven to be the correct choice when young master Farith drew four mutated pawns.
After that he was formally trained by three different teacher for the next two years. Miss Serafall has asked for Okita Souji of Sizerch Lucifer's peerage to train him. It was apparently an easy negotiation as both Sizerch and Okita were rather interested about the Leviathan's prodigal younger brother.
[Simply put he's a prodigy. As long as he continue to train he would become a wonderful swordsman. There's nothing left that I need to teach him. ]
[Ahaha~~! He's a monster. He could even figure out how to use ice magic with just a simple tip.]
Those were respectively the words of Okita Souji and Serafall Leviathan. They had nothing but praises for the boy.
As for his training with me… His result was below average. He has a mountain of habits impolite for official events, and along with that was his strange accent he gained from who knows where.
And then there was the event at the graveyard.
"This is what happened…"
Like so I told him the event that played out at the graveyard. Meeting his aunt, talking to his mother's grave, and the incident where both of his rooks were embedded into his sword.
"That's… A strange occurrence."
Yes it was. In the past there were research whether evil pieces could be put into non living beings or not, and the answer was a resounding no.
"And also… "
I gained lord Sitri's attention yet I hesitated to continue. It was merely a small thought, yet I can't help but to let it out.
"I sensed something strange with young master Farith. It was as if he has somehow changed after the occurence. Please look at this."
I willed my familiar to let us see through its vision. I had sent it to follow young master while I was away to report my concern to Lord Sitri, and this magic let one see through the familiar's sight, a support based magic most bishops learned sooner or later.
It shows young master Farith being hugged by miss Serafall, while miss Sona was on the edge of the magic vision eating a cake.
Farith was in close proximity to both of his sisters without Sonya around.
And he did not tremble at all.
"I don't know why but… It feels as If he had lost something important, something integral to his existence. "
After the ball ended I said my goodbye to Seekvaira. I intended to go to the human world as the party was going on while father and Sera was busy entertaining the guests, but as you can see there was a little disruption known as Seekvaira. Originally I planned leave early as to keep it quiet without sappy goodbyes, but with the current circumstances I guess it's out of my control.
"Kyaa~~! Fari-tan danced with a girl!"
Oh god. The current Serafall is more hyperactive than she would have been if you were to give the usual her a box of candy.
And she's suffocating me again. I wonder why she likes smothering her little brother so much.
Now the problem is the fact that I simply can't get out of her grapple... Once I actually tried biting her nipples because yes, I was that desperate in my need for air. As a result she cried out about her little Fari-tan starting to have dirty thoughts and shook me like a clogged vending machine.
Never again.
I'm not even exaggerating. I get suffocated whenever she hugs me to her chest. There were times where I fell unconscious because of it. Her grip is just that strong, and I don't intend to asphyxiate anytime soon.
God please save this poor lamb from the hands of the devil. Who loves dressing like a magical girl and suffocating her brother to death. With her plump chest.
...Again, I really hope I wasn't the first one to have thought of those sentences in this universe.
…
As I contemplated whether it was worth it to sexually harass your sister to stop her from hugging you to death, I felt the hands that were locking around my head loosening up.
My eyesight opened to see Sera staring at me with teary eyes, mouth slightly agape.
"You… you're fine! You're fine, yourefineyourefineyourefineyourefine!"
The I felt her hugging me again. This time her hands were trembling, and I feel like I could slip out if I were to just move back even the tiniest bit. Yet there was a feeling within me, something, that just cried out to hug her back.
And so I did.
I swung the blade in my hand. Then another once. Then another. And again.
I had long since lost count of how many times I repeated this tedious action. To be exact, I never bothered counting anymore. I did when I started out but it gets old after a while.
That was the first lesson Okita gave me. I was to swing the sword until both of my hands were swollen. He said only after that would he continue to teach me.
Therefore I swung my sword again and again, non-stop till both of my hands were finally swollen. Then I asked him for his next instruction. He merely said a few sentence.
"Good, now both of your hands are swollen. It will take a week for them to heal naturally. I am incapable of teaching you swordsmanship with the state you are in. Go and swing the sword again until your swelling subside. Do this once every week."
I had to do this every Monday for as long as I was taught by him. Okita won't teach me anything else before he confirmed I did his order properly.
That accursed bastard.
Still, as spartan as it was it shown its effect. I can cut a small tree cleanly with a slash. Just like my my magic I used trees to train my swordsmanship. I just fixates on using trees as they're convenient, but at this point I'm sure I have crushed more than a thousand trees. Heh, I'm Farith Siri, the tree breaking badass.
...God, that sound stupid.
Then there was that as well. Devils will be punished when they say or even think of god. They also have anything they hear translated to the devil's native tongue, yet I have no such ability. It is as if I'm not a devil.
I was a human in my past life. Therefore I'm a human soul reincarnated with the body of a devil. My current theory is that I am a hybrid of some sorts between a human and a devil. That would explain my lack of basic devil ability.
It has been half a year since my eight birthday. I planned to travel and reach the human realm after the ball, but father and Sera decided to delay it. During those six months they tried to get closer to me, and by the end of it I would like to think our relationship was like one of a normal family.
Initially I had decided to go to the human realm to laze around and fall back to my slacking habits as an otaku. My family decided to give me free reign as I was far ahead of the learning curve. But at this point my trainings had long since embedded into my body so I ended up being unable to stay put and trained anyway.
"This is boring. What am I supposed to do without any fights around?"
"Just be patient for a bit."
Then there was the elephant in the room. Nozarashi, a weapon from the Bleach universe. She has been talking to me every now and then during the six months.
I thought up of an excuse already, but my family didn't seem to have any intentions to ask about it at all. I can see them curious of it, yet did not seek for an answer as to give me space. I really lucked out having them as my family.
As I was training my swordsmanship I felt something vibrating in my left pocket. Hearing it my body stopped walking back and forth and grabbed the culprit. It was my phone, with a message notification popping out.
"Huh, there's a stray devil nearby?"
That was one of the function of this phone. It pick up traces of supernatural beings around the territory, which in this case is Kuoh city, as I went to Kuoh straight after leaving the Underworld. This is where cannons took place anyway, so might as well as to go here early and get myself comfortable.
"Hey, are we going to fight that thing or are you just going to sit there and mull about life? "
Though I would not have put it that way, it is my responsibility as the owner of this territory to defend it from harmful outsiders. I suppose it is time to go.
Truthfully, I still wonder how I changed from a lazy school kid into this hardworking young pure blood devil. I know everyone mature and change whether they want it or not, but even then.
...Forget it. There's no need to be so philosophical.
"Good, I would've gone alone if you didn't."
Excuse me miss but you seems to have forgotten of the fact that you are a weapon, a creation of human civilization meant to be wielded by a human. It's not like you could grow a pair of legs and run off wherever you want. Also how did you read my thought.
"Well I could do you one better than that."
Suddenly a woman materialized out of thin air, grabbing the now released nozarashi in her hand. She had an abyssal black hair, and eyes of the same color. Her skin was the healthy color of peach. Her clothing were comprised of a white shirt, black leggings and a jacket tied around her waist.
"The hell?"
"Yo, Farith."
What.
How did she manifest himself out of nowhere?
I got the answer myself by the next second. My mana was being drained. It was an infinitesimal and almost immaculate amount, but a drain nonetheless. Nozarashi was draining my mana to acquire an physical body. Or rather, it was the rook pieces. I felt my two rook pieces draining my mana to create a body for Kenpachi.
"Let's hurry up. Those stray devils or whatever won't stand idle and wait for us."
Fine, whatever. Just let me message Sonya to inform her first. She'll scold me if I don't do these kinds of thing prope-
"Sonya… How long have you been there?"
"Merely a minute before this woman appeared, young master."
I facepalmed. Great, now how am I supposed to explain this to her. The room went silent as the three of us glanced at one another. The atmosphere, or rather the tension here is so sharp I could almost feel it cutting through me.
In the end it was Sonya who broke it.
"I have a lot of question to ask, but eliminating the stray takes priority. Young master, let's go to the stray."
I guess that would be the appropriate action to take right now.
"...Sure. Let's go, Nozarashi."
The three of us went to an seemingly abandoned building.
"Is that the enemy?" Asked Kenpachi
Before us was a man with hideous scars all over his body. His eyes were utterly white, devoid of any pupil. He had a scorpion tail, and claws instead of hands.
Huh, so this is how a stray devil looks like. I've seen some pictures and videos through DevilNet but this is the first time that I see them with my own two eyes.
I guess it's a good thing they looks inhumane. I am supposed to kill them so I would have felt guilty if they're similar to normal human.
"Around you the owner of this territory?" He snorted. "You looks like you're eight."
"Eight and a half, mind you. And yeah, I'm the owner of this place."
Technically it was owned by the Sitri family, but meh, technicality. Now that I think about it, the Gremory should own some shares of this land too. After all they were going to let Rias live here. Maybe they'll buy it later? Whatever.
"So that thing is the enemy?"
"Yeah, do you wan-
[Do you want to try your hand on it] was what I tried to say, but the moment I said my affirmation she had since launched herself towards the enemy, her blade in hand. Said enemy was seemingly ready for the attack as he thrusted his scorpion tail at Nozarashi.
Sword and tail clashed, causing both fighter to take a few steps back. Looking at the exchange it might seems like they were evenly matched-
*Crack*
But I knew Nozarashi won the first bout. The hard carapace of the scorpion tail the stray had was crushed.
"You!"
That seemed to have made the the stray angry, as he suddenly rushed towards Nozarashi with a primal roar. This time he charged with his two claws. In response said zanpakuto spirit merely stood still and swung her blade.
In the next instant the stray's head was decapitated from his body. He was dead just like that.
As expected, women are scary. And this female rendition of Kenpachi Zaraki is even scarier.
Like so my first hunt for strays ended.
"This is boring."
Then fucking stop dammit! Why the hell are you swinging your blade at me!
I evaded her strike once more. There was no way I could block or parry her attack so evading was my only option. I tried blocking once and now my blade is chopped in half as a result.
"Eh, there's no one else to fight around here."
As I said how the hell are you reading my mind! Also if you don't have shits to do then just laze around. There's no need to go and pick a fight with your king!
"That sounds boring as all hell so no."
"Stop reading my mind!"
"...Why? It's actually pretty interesting to read all your thoughts. It's an entertainment in and of itself. Keep struggling why don't you. Also that decoy magic you're trying to use isn't going to be useful. I can read your thoughts remember?"
"What kind of fucking sin did I do in my last life to deserve this shit!"
"A lot? Come on, we both know you were a lazy ass jerk in your last life. For example, do you still remember what did you did to your classmate John while you were in fifth grade?"
"I don't even fucking know any John! I'm an Asian that's never left said continent in my entire life, why the hell would I have a classmate named John!"
"...Maybe he was an international exchange student?"
"At fifth grade of elementary school? What the heck is John, an anime protagonist!?"
"Hey, there was lots of intricate and troublesome process okay? Don't talk bad about John like that. He's a poor sap."
"I don't fucking get you, woman!"
By the way, the both of us are in my underground chamber. Yeah, my house in Kuoh has an underground chamber. I requested for a training room, yet the made an underground chamber instead. Devils were truly extravagant beings no matter how you put it.
"What are you monologuing to yourself for? It's actually kinda creepy."
Shut up, woman. Just leave me and all my quirks to myself.
"Master Farith, it is time for your appointment."
Oh, hello Sonya, since when has you been there? Could it be that you just kept quiet while I was facing my doom in the form of a rabid woman?
Oh wait, my appointment. My meeting with Ajuka. Shit. I forgot about that. Because pops, Sera and Sonya were questioning how Nozarashi came to be, they made and appointment with Ajuka, the creator of the Evil Pieces himself.
Shit, he's going to know I was a human in the past.
I'm a free man!
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PS: I thought about answering reviews but I was too much of a nervous wreck to be able to do so. Can't even reply to others through the internet, now what does that says about my social capability...