If you like my writing and what I do, please buy my book Commencement by Joseph Lankford(available on Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, wherever). Because I would rather sell a finished product of my own work than open a pat reon for donations on a fanfic. Just makes me feel better about myself.
Parties and Punishments.
(Secret Room: 5 minutes after the firework went off)
Iruma was enjoying his rest, certain that the school and all the students were safe. Using Royal Authority is a severe drain on mana, even with his sister sharing the burden. Even Yodh(10) ranked Demons would be hard pressed to stay standing if they cast it alone, hence why it was reserved to the twins as such a unique type of magic. However, with Kirio's plan ruined, he could rest happily while the teachers took over. Just enjoy his nap on a comfortable pillow with gentle hands brushing over his face. All of which... he shouldn't be feeling. He slowly cracked his eyes open to see Ameri smiling down at him, his head resting in her lap.
"I loved the firework show, my Iruma." She said, making the prince smile in turn, but then she immediately pouted and started pulling on his cheeks. "But I would've liked them better if we watched them together!"
"Sorry~." Iruma managed to say. "But everything went way off the plan we made." She made an angry groan but released him. "Where's Umi and the rest? What did I miss?" Ameri went back to stroking his head, making him close his eyes to further enjoy his fiancee's touch.
"Kirio was arrested, having confessed to everything. He wanted me to let you know he's sorry for ruining our date plans." They both knew that was a lie. "Irumi was taken to another room by Asmodeus and Sabro, Alice refuses to leave her side so Sabro's standing guard for them while Opera's just outside our door. Order's been restored and now all the students are eager for the teachers to announce who was behind that 'surprise show' they got to see. Clara's trying to break in to see either of you but can't get past Sabro or Opera, and I heard lord Derkila is interrogating Kirio with Baal assisting him."
"I see... so why are you giving me a lap pillow?" The prince suddenly asked.
"Well... I remember seeing it so often in First Love Memories, but we never gave it a try for ourselves." She answered, blushing a bit. "Is... is it nice?" Iruma hummed in thought.
"Can you lay my head across your lap instead?" He asked. Ameri thought for a moment before gently lifting his head and then shifted her position to suit his request. Once she did, Iruma shuffled his head until his ear was pressing against her stomach.
"W-what are you doing?!" She asked, rather embarrassed by her betrothed actions.
"Just imagining." He answered, humming in delight as he closed his eyes. "I think our first child would be a girl. She'd have my color, your hairstyle, and be just as bubbly as you were as a kid." Ameri got over the embarrassment and closed her eyes to imagine the picture her future husband was painting.
"She'd definitely have your appetite though," She said, joining in with a giggle, "and would probably end up being a daddy's girl like I was."
"Then let's hope I don't end up as possessive." They stayed like that for another minute or so before Derkila decided to step in.
(Same Time: Irumi side)
"MY IRUMI~!" Alice cried out, tears pouring down his face at the revelations of what happened with their firework show. Only those in the strict know of the Royal Family were permitted that knowledge. Learning what happened the attendants made a beeline for their masters and even Alice Asmodeus, the most stubborn about keeping class and serving with utmost dignity, threw all of it away when he heard his beloved fiance was in danger. No matter how minor it was.
"There there Azzy." Irumi said, gently rubbing her betrothed's hand with what motion she could. "No one was hurt and I heard that everyone enjoyed the show. I call this a win."
"Still, Kirio-senpai betrayed you. Betrayed all of us. How can you be so calm in spite of that?" He asked, forgetting who he was talking to. He was reminded as he looked into his beloved smile.
"Because I have faith in him." She answered simply, trying but struggling to raise her hand up to caress his face. Something Alice did for her. "I know that all of you are truly loyal to me and my family. That's why I can still love him as one of my people." Asmodeus felt tears welling up in his eyes once more. His mistress was a beacon of hope for all the Netherworld, and he constantly swore to serve and protect her because of it.
'Every day, you shine ever brighter and make me wonder how I was ever worthy of your love.' He thought, admiring the princess and her light. 'But, I'll be thrice damned over before I let that wretched slimeball Leiji take you!' He mentally roared, even thinking he heard the source of that ire outside the door.
(Behind the door)
"Absolutely not." Sabnock boldly declared, sitting before a solid steel wall with two sets of bars on opposite sides and closing the way off. Only barrier magic would serve a better defense. "I don't care if is you two, no one is seeing Irumi unless it's the king himself." He said in defiance to the two behind the barred walls. One was dressed in a mix between military and ceremonial robes with antler like finned horns jutting from the sides of his head with a veil covering his half open eyes that were caught in a stern expression of discipline. His skin was fair and he bore a more fish like tail than other demons. This was Leiji Leviathan, the grandson of Lady Levy. The other was like the polar opposite with a constant smile and wide eyed look, a dark complexion, and wearing an opened Hawaiian shirt with black shorts and dyed tail of red and black; Belial Berry Razberry, grandson of Beliard.
"And by what rules say that a mere Gimmel(3) should order a Vav(6)?" Leiji demanded. "As far as I'm aware, no laws state that Sabro." He always claims to adhere to rules and their importance to society, but he only ever means HIS rules. Meaning that he only ever did things according to his desires and often forced others to go along with it. He thought it was only right to claim Irumi as his as the more promising of the young Demons... and neither twin took much of a shine to him after that, even putting him in the hospital after a rough game of Execution Cannonball. "I'm here to see to our princess's health. And why are you here Razberry? Didn't you say you were planning on visiting the prince?"
"I saw Opera guarding the door and bolted." The demon shamelessly admitted. He was a mischief maker, doing whatever he wanted for fun or to get a rise out of people. Once he challenged Iruma to a card game and jokingly wanted to bet on Ameri's hand. When they shook hands to start the game on a less serious bet of candy, the prince crushed every bone in Razberry's hand, and then was declared the winner because Razberry couldn't hold anything. As he was being treated, Opera themself threatened to 'remove' him if he ever made Iruma that angry again. Razberry was terrified of Opera ever since.
"Doesn't matter because no one but lord Derkila will be seeing the princess." Sabro growled, biting on to two of his plates and manifesting a tower shield and mace. "She needs her rest."
"And I appreciate your work Sabro." They heard Derikila say as he appeared. "But now I need my darling children."
(Back in the Secret Room)
"Now then, my beloved son and daughter, anything you'd like to confess to?" The Demon King asked, releasing a powerful and threatening aura to his kneeling children. In the room were Henri, Ameri, Amaryllis, Alice, Sabro, Kalego, Balam, Levy, Beliard, and Opera "Like something you've had Sully do, or not telling papa about it?" Now both were sweating buckets as they realized that he knew what Iruma had their surrogate grandfather do. "Before you get the wrong idea, I'm not mad that you did it." This surprised the kids.
"EH?" They eloquently asked.
"Demon live by their selfish desires. The only thing that would've upset me is if what you did was truly detrimental to the Netherworld, but I don't see how illegally importing human manga could really damage things. I've been thinking of having some adapted for other demons to enjoy, but that's a whole process of finding someone trustworthy, translating it, it's a lot of work is the point. What I AM mad about, is that you kept it from me." The kids shrunk again and looked down.
"Sorry papa." They moaned out.
"Papa forgives you, but you'll still be punished. The details will come after the Battler Party concludes." The king stated before glancing to Kalego, giving the man permission to speak his piece.
"As for the school side of the matter, the Magical Apparatus Battler is hereby disqualified from winning any of the set prizes this year. However, depending on the number of votes I'm sure you'll receive, we'll probably create a special prize to reward your group. Maybe a single member raising their rank."
"Sabro." Iruma immediately said, surprising the group.
"The ones that need to rise in the ranking the most is him and Clara, but..." Irumi answered, leaving the rest of her reasoning open. Clara was pretty self explanatory in all fairness. Girl's got potential, just not really utilizing it yet.
"Very well then." Derkila said as he stood up. "Now, LET'S ENJOY THE BATTLER PARTY!" He shouted, causing everyone to cheer.
(Timeskip)
The cover story was that the fireworks were a planned surprise by the Magical Apparatus Battler and the teachers to kick off this years Battler Party with a display that would get everyone pumped for the party itself. The next morning was the party proper as families and friends all came in attendance. Derkila was in his usual disguise, matching his children.
Clara was taken in by her family after doing an impromptu song and dance number that Poro herself conducted after appearing out of nowhere. Amaryllis stuck with Alice and the twins, immediately latching and doting on Irumi. Sabro had to go look for his brother after his sister showed up and admitted they lost each other. Bachiko showed up as well, getting into an argument with Poro about who was the superior mother to twins. Leiji and Razberry got into a contest with Iruma to see who would win the most prizes at each game stall, only for Opera to tell them to stop because parents were complaining. The only other interesting matter was meeting Jazz's older brother, who tried to pickpocket Irumi and came out with all of his fingers dislocated and his own wallet swiped before it was given to Jazz, along with his own newly returned wallet. Jazz swore to never attempt robbing the twin again after that.
When night fell, the group got their show ready with Leiji and Razberry helping out because they thought it'd be fun. They lit up the sky with vibrant lights and booms as the fireworks exploded into shape, Razberry's seeming like an ordered chaotic set while Leiji's were elaborate patterns that actually seemed like sculptures of light. Poro was so inspired by the display that he popped out a set of instruments and began playing a symphony that synced perfectly with the fireworks. Even Derkila and Purson Soi joined in, though the former was still disguised while the latter was unseen.
At the end of the party, the prizes were awarded to the respective Battlers for their displays. Ameri was the one awarding the prizes, in a stunning red and black version of her usual outfit, with a bit of extra sway to her hips when she walked by her fiance to get on stage. Third place went to the Succubus Battler, Second was the New Magic Battler, and the Broadcast Battler was given first because of their work in keeping the panic contained during Kirio's attack. She then announced a new prize designed by the teachers; the Tricky Award, given out to whichever Battler does the most surprising thing during the Party Eve where one member was risen one rank. A way to still reward the Magical Apparatus Battler for their display, which would have won had they not been disqualified. Sabro rose from Gimmel(3) to Dalet(4) as a result. After everything was said and done, calming down from the high of the party, the royal entourage reported to throne room of Babel Tower.
"Now, for your punishments." The twins were kneeling before their father in their true form, Amaryllis, Alice, Henri, Ameri, Sabro, and the Three Greats off to the side. Sully was crying gallons as Levy and Beliard caught him up with pictures of the Battler Party. "To punish Sullivan, both of you are moving out of his manor for the foreseeable future." Sullivan started crying harder. "As for the two of you, Irumi will be moving into the Asmodeus house with Opera still serving her. Iruma, you will be moving into Ameri's dorm room," the engaged pair looked up in shock before blushing madly, "you are to keep it secret and she's cooking." The blush switched to a look of utter dread, for both of them. "She's cooking ALL of your meals."
"U-Understood... f-father." The prince said, trying and failing to hide how scared he was.
"Also, the Magical Apparatus Battler will also be temporarily shut down." Hearing this shocked all of the students. "You may meet every requirement to operate your Battler, but after that matter with Kirio I want you to explore other Battlers and broaden your horizons. Ameri!" The girl stood at attention upon hearing her name. "Distribute Alice, Clara, and Sabro as you see fit among the other Battlers, but my children are to join the Student Council. I want them to prove they have what it takes to protect and preserve."
"Yes sir!" She exclaimed, temporarily forgetting her nervousness at her future cohabitation.
"That's all. Dismissed!" He ordered, the group slowly filing out of the throne room. Once they were gone, he slumped on his throne and released a heavy sigh. "Yep. That was a passing grade alright."
(Flashback: Kirio's "Interrogation")
"So... explain your plan." Derkila ordered the two Demons kneeling before him, Kirio Ami and Baal. They moved to another isolated space in Babyls, a place where they could speak without prying eyes and ears. The only other décor was Gabuko, still plugged in and ready for use. "When I ordered you to test my children in their ability to protect, how was this the end result? Almost destroying my Alma Mater."
"Yes my lord." Kirio said as he rose to his feet. "It was pretty on the fly so I'll admit that some of the details weren't completely planned out." He walked over to the machine. "The original idea was to use some of the other creations I've made to cause some havoc, deeply enhanced by Gabuko, while trapped in a labyrinth of my barriers. Nothing too dangerous, at least I thought so, but then Iruma came up with those fireworks."
"Once we heard about them, we decided the idea of a bomb threat would be a far more suitable test." Baal added, rising to his feet as well. "Coming up with the modifications in time was an utter pain though." He joined Kirio and generated a ball of electrical power, placing it at the charging point of Gabuko, causing it to grow in power and intensity. "Would've done a number on the building, but," he held out his hand and dispelled the magic just as a barrel shot up from where the ball was, almost punching into the ceiling, "we figured it would've been contained."
"Sadly, I underestimated the after effects of the initial explosion." Kirio moaned, sounding genuinely apologetic. "I was so worried seeing them fall like that. I really didn't want to destroy the school. Though... I did enjoy seeing their faces when they saw my betrayal."
"Still, being able to stop both explosions from harming the school and still entertaining the students? You can't deny that it was one incredible feat!" Baal said, laughing in delight. "First test: handling a sudden crisis. Pass!" The other two nodded along.
"Well, then. What's the next test?" Derkila asked, earning a smirk from the thunder demon.
"Well, first is to send Kirio to Walter Park, and I've got six good subordinates who're really eager to cause some mayhem."
"Oh right. The Six Fingers." Derkila guessed. "You did mention you've been playing the evil mastermind to gather various rebels. Very well. Proceed. Just remember." The king said, heading for the door before unleashing his aura. "Any harm actually befalls my children or my citizens, and I'll flay you both alive." He growled as both Demons bowed to their king, smiling in anticipation for the next chaotic test.
If you like my writing and what I do, please buy my book Commencement by Joseph Lankford(available on Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, wherever). Because I would rather sell a finished product of my own work than open a pat reon for donations on a fanfic. Just makes me feel better about myself.