So, sure you noticed the odd Walter (semi-)ship listed at the start. This is the chapter it first pops up, so you may be asking... Why? I wanted something to at least sorta reference his role w IV!Lucifer and the only thing I could find was when he was. Blushing Hikaru's comment for a while in the background of a scene... So we're going with that.

Anyway! Pls enjoy this chapter?

When Kazuya and Tadano had walked off to go restock their supplies, the others had split up to go see what others were up to. Aleph finally found a group of theirs and couldn't help but pause when he saw them. What an interesting group…

Yuji, Zayin, Zelenin, and Jonathan were all standing around, discussing something… He couldn't help but be curious as to what it was. It was hard not to be interested in what an angel such as Zelenin was saying, though. At least in Aleph's opinion.

"Excuse me, I hope you all don't mind me joining in on this conversation…" Aleph stepped up to the group with a smile. "It seems interesting, so I couldn't help myself."

"That's fine by me, Aleph!" Zayin gave him a wide smile. "These people here are fairly like minded to us, so I'm sure they don't mind, either!"

"I don't mind at all!" Yuji smiled at Aleph.

"There's something so interesting about a human turned angel, and I'm sure Miss Zelenin is willing to share why with you as well as us." Jonathan added with a sure nod as he looked to Zelenin.

"Of course, I welcome all children of God to listen to my words." Zelenin put her hands on her chest. "Knowing why I chose to become an angel of our lord is sure to be a valuable lesson for all of you."

"Then please, by all means, go on." Aleph smiled, tipping his head towards her.

"Well, you see… There are a group, Jack's Squad, who are threatening the life of the crew I am a part of, the Red Sprite," Zelenin drew in on herself with a sigh. "Jimenez believed we should just kill them, likely thanks to his more… Demonic form. I wanted to find another way, and so I went to the angel Mastema."

"I see… This Jack's Squad sounds dangerous…" Yuji frowned, hand on his chin. "But there was an angel you could see? To ask for advice on what to do about them, or…?"

"He told me a hymn would be useful in subduing them without violence… But humans had changed so much he and the other angels with him would have no effect…" She paused, giving them all a proud smile. "Mastema was the one who blessed me with a rebirth as an angel. Once we're on our way home, I will use my hymn to subdue Jack's Squad. There will be no need for violence when I am done."

"How wonderful… Sometimes one would think violence is the only way…" Jonathan paused. "But the fact you found another course of action… How wonderful!"

"It would be an honor to become a direct servant of God like you have…" Zayin seemed totally enamored by the idea.

Yuji, while interested, seemed less enamored than Zayin did. "It must mean you really believe in Him, if you were able to become an angel."

"I honestly have Mastema to thank for it all." Zelenin's proud smile became more soft. "He was understanding of my pain after being, well, traumatized at the hands of demons. And now that he's given me a chance to make more change for humans, I can't help but feel indebted to him."

"I see…" Aleph wasn't quite sure how he felt. He had full faith in the lord, of course, but… He wasn't sure he would ever be able to become something along the lines of an angel. He had his own role to play as the human messiah, though, so perhaps that was why he felt that way…

Perhaps it would be best for him to not focus on himself, and instead on the fact he was happy for Zelenin and for the enlightenment she had found. "I hope dealings with Jack's Squad go well for you and your comrades from here."

"Thank you."

Naoki had seen the group of allies Aleph had found and wasted no time going the other way. Zelenin was always a headache to deal with… Literally, actually. An angel like her had a voice that dug into his skull. And seeing as it seemed she was the center of the conversation… Yeah, he had no interest in being there.

So instead he went for a group comprised of Takeshi, Louis, Jimenez, and Walter. Not one hundred percent better, seeing as Louis reminded him of that little boy and that old man, but oh well. He'd take any three of those over someone who literally caused headaches any day.

"What're you all talking about over here?" He approached, pushing in between Louis and Jimenez, an eyebrow raised.

"I was just wondering how these two are so casual about their more… Demonic ways of living. And why Louis seems to unperturbed by it." Walter looked Naoki over. "If you don't mind, maybe I'll ask you too."

Naoki shrugged. "Go for it, I guess."

"Then, any change you feel were for the better when this happened to you all?" Walter looked between the three demons with a raised brow.

"It was a huge power gain!" Takeshi wasted no time starting, excitement clear. "No one could stop all over me after I got this power…"

"Power is one, yeah." Naoki nodded. "More power and being able to talk to demons are probably the biggest perks I can think of… Makes navigating the Vortex World easier."

"I think we can all agree on power, yeah…" Jimenez nodded. "But honestly, I don't care that much about the changes. All I care about is the fact Bugaboo didn't die."

"Bugaboo…?" Walter rose an eyebrow.

"My demon buddy that I fused with. That Jack bastard was already trying to fuse us and it was killing poor Bugaboo…" Jimenez grimaced. "I couldn't let that happen, I had Tadano fuse us on the demon fusion app."

"So you had to do it in an app?" Takeshi tilted his head to the side. "That's odd… I was able to fuse right in the real world. Kazuya gave me one of his demons and it was easy after that."

"You guys both really just fused with a demon?" Naoki frowned. "...I got a bug shoved in my eye."

"Ouch…"

"Sounds rough…"

Louis finally spoke up. "How interesting… Hm…"

Walter sighed. "You know, this is all really interesting. A shame that Akira fellow refused to give his two cents when I asked him about it…"

"Too bad, maybe you can just hassle him into talking later." Jimenez snickered. "Might do him some good if you do."

Walter thought for a moment. "I suppose that is a good point… But for now, I suppose I have some questions for Louis…"

Louis smiled at him. "Go ahead."

"I… Uh…" Walter swallowed. "How is it you're so not put off by it all…? Even friends of some of these fellows seem to have some issue with it…"

"I suppose there's just nothing that's too odd to me, at this point!" Louis tapped his chin. "I've seen a lot of things in my life, and I'm older than I look, after all."

"T-that so…?"

Naoki frowned. "Why are you acting so weird? Your face is red…"

"No it's not!" Walter shook his head. You're imagining things, and…"

"Uh-huh." Naoki gave him an unimpressed look. "Sure."