Chapter 53: Slow Growth
My own training required its own attention, despite how busy my days were becoming. After meeting with Gabriel and basically being recognised as a separate entity from the rest of the Devils by Heaven, I decided to take some time to get to work on soothing my edges.
Thanks to Inexhaustible, I had basically cheated my way to standing at the very top of the world in terms of power. My reserves were far below the likes of Sirzechs and Ajuka, but if I put my all into an attack even they would have to be careful of it. Considering the fact that I could do that constantly, one after another, I was quite the force to be reckoned with.
But it's not enough.
Could I beat one of them? Maybe. Possibly. It's not impossible. But could I defeat them together? Fighting alongside Falbium and Serafall? More importantly, could I protect my Peerage from them as we fought?
I didn't think so.
Until I could, I needed to work towards that goal. That is why I was now in the training fields by myself, wishing to familiarise myself more with the most potent weapon in my arsenal. To that end, I was focusing heavily on the divine sword in my hands. The Darkmoon Greatsword, gifted to me by Ranni.
Whenever the weapon was in my hands, I could feel her attention on me. She was different from the rest of the women within my orbit, a rather obvious observation. But it bore considering, she was an extremely powerful divinity. Her presence could exist in multiple places at once, without any loss of focus. It was becoming almost familiar, the way her attention was locked onto me whenever I was near her.
It was exactly the same whenever I held the Sword. My Consort appeared to gladly take any opportunity she could get to watch over me. It was not out of desperation or pining, but rather I got the feeling that she did so out of possessiveness. I was her Consort, not anyone else's. She admired me whenever I was in her sight, like a prized treasure.
It would have been denigrating, but I was cognizant of my own conduct, how I viewed my own conquests. I was fine with her feeling ownership over me, after all I planned to own her as well. Still, thinking about how the blade made me feel brought me no closer to actually using the thing.
Thankfully, the blade itself seemed to want me to use it, guiding my swings and correcting my swings as I made them. The issue I was running into was that the sword was too big for the manuals on fencing I found in my library. It was not the weight that was the problem, but rather simply the reach and the width of the blade.
"Seeing you flail around like that is painful." A voice interrupted one of my experimental stances.
"Should you wish to assist in any way, I would welcome it." I snarked back, glancing over at the kindling maiden that was watching me embarrass myself.
"I was merely remarking on the difference between how you used to fight and how you are now. It is rather stark." She continued to jeer unhelpfully.
I paused, before lowering my sword arm with a sigh, "That me was a different person. We had different experiences, different strengths. It's no wonder that we have different ways of fighting."
"Indeed, should you have been the same level of Runic Empowerment, the current you would likely have won." At my surprised glance, she shrugged, "The magic of this world is both faster and more malleable. For solely martial fighters, it would be incredibly difficult to deal with."
"That makes sense. Wide area spells in quick sequence are very good for spacing control." I mused, focusing my Demonic Power through the blade and attempting to release a blast of light from it.
The arc flew properly, but via my Geass I could see that the edge of the magical projectile was slightly off. Even with the passive correction of the Greatsword, my muscles were not used to the movements, meaning that they were full of minute errors.
"Enough." Melina spoke, walking towards me, "I am still your Maiden. Leaving you in such a state would reflect poorly upon me."
"Oh? Will you teach me how to use the sword?" I asked, interested.
"Hardly. I do not need to." She stopped near me, before gently adjusting my grip on the Greatsword, moving both my hands to hold a firm grip upon the handle, "Besides, there is no one better to teach you than yourself."
"What do you mean-" My question was cut off by her placing a finger over my lips.
"Peace. Disregard unnecessary thoughts. Focus upon your weapon, what it represents, what it has experienced within its lifespan." I was surprised at her forwardness, but did as she bid, lowering my eyes to the cross guard of my weapon.
Doing as she instructed, I started to focus on the Greatsword. I felt my mind be guided to a strange place, a sort of semi-dream state. I could feel the sword reaching out to me, a sort of memory that was and was not mine simultaneously. My body moved according to the dream-like half-memory, slipping into a familiar guard that I had never used before.
"Well done." Melina spoke, "Now you may use that to learn the weapon. Although you have forgotten, the Ash remembers."
She turned, moving to leave, but was stopped as I dispelled the Darkmoon Sword and grabbed her wrist.
"Thank you Melina. You did not have to help me, but you did anyway. I appreciate it." I made sure to be sincere.
She had been standoffish and closed off for a long time, any breaks of that habit should be praised and rewarded.
She turned towards me, her face unreadable, "Think nothing of it."
Conflict played across her face, before she spoke again, "I was thinking about what you said to me, as well as some... others. About finding a goal, a reason for existing."
"Have you found something you want to do?" I inquired, interested in what hse had decided on.
"Not exactly. But fighting with the Gremory and instructing her... It reminded me about something I enjoyed. Although the memories are tainted, the time I used to teach my siblings was pleasant." Her voice was conflicted.
"Do you wish to be a teacher? Or a combat instructor? If that is something you wanted to pursue, I would be glad to support you with that." I offered.
"No." Was the empathic response, but then she once again became unsure, "I am still undecided. What do I want? It is not a simple thing to answer. However, the fact remains that occasionally offering guidance when needed is something that I... That I enjoy."
"That's great." I smiled gently at her, "It's a start. You've been treated as a tool most of your life, Melina, not a person. It makes sense that you would take some time to figure yourself out. If you ever need help or want to try something, don't hesitate to ask. I would gladly help."
She remained impassive, her body not betraying any of her reaction to my words. Her actions, however, spoke for her all too clearly. She gently removed her wrist from my grasp, looking away from my eyes.
"Thank you, Damocles. I will hold you to that." She muttered softly.
"Any time, Melina."
Valerie started as a knock sounded out in her room. It was time for dinner, so she had been expecting Naomi to arrive soon with her dinner, but what surprised her was the male voice that sounded out from beyond the closed door.
"Valerie? I brought your food. May I come in?" Damocles, the voice of the Devil that saved her, spoke through the wood.
"Y-yes! Uhm... I..." Her voice trailed off as he opened the door and walked into the room, balancing a tray as he closed the door behind him.
"Sorry, I know Naomi usually fetches you for supper, but I wanted to speak with you." He spoke, gently placing the tray down on her table.
"It's no matter, my Lord. Thank you for your generosity." She spoke softly, keeping her eyes locked to the floor.
Naomi had been incredibly kind to her, so much so that she might now be Valerie's closest friend (besides Gasper!), but this was different. Naomi was a servant, whereas Damocles was the Lord of the Household, she needed to show him the proper respect or she would be punished. She had learned that lesson well from her father.
"I see." He spoke, disappointment apparent in his tone.
She hardly had time to panic about it however, before he walked up to her and reached out with a hand. She flinched, expecting the strike but was surprised when he instead gently raised her face up with a soft grip upon her chin.
With no alternative, she was forced to look up to him and meet his blue eyed gaze, staring at her seriously.
"Valerie." He spoke, his voice causing her to tense further, "You are safe here. I did not save you to merely abuse you further. You are a valued member of my household, perhaps a future family member. Carry yourself with pride. You are worthy enough for me to go through all that trouble, just for you, after all."
That sounded nice. To be fair, he had not really given her any reason to distrust him, but then again she didn't know whether to just take his words at face value either. More than that though, there was another problem with his order.
'Carry herself with pride?'
She had no idea how to do that.
"I..." She swallowed, worried about displeasing him despite his reassurances, "I don't know how."
"That's fine." He accepted easily, surprising her with a warm smile, "There is plenty of time to learn. Take it at your own pace, there is no rush."
He released her chin, making her blink as she had forgotten that he was even touching her there, before he clapped his hands and turned to the tray he had placed down.
"Now then." His voice was jovial and welcoming, "I asked Naomi what you enjoyed, she recommended pasta. So I made us some lasagna. Let me know if you would prefer something else for dinner. We usually rotate between everyone's preferences fairly frequently."
She was confused at his words. He had cooked dinner? Surely he had just ordered his cooks to prepare it for him and she just misheard. Rather than asking him to clarify, she walked forwards, pausing slightly when he pulled out a chair for her before sitting where he had indicated he wanted her too.
"Sorry to change your schedule so suddenly, but we really don't get time to talk." He remarked, settling into his own chair.
"It's fine, My Lord." She answered in a small voice, gingerly taking her plate off the tray and moving it onto the table, carefully slicing off a piece of the layered dish and bringing it to her mouth.
Her eyes lit up, astounded at the flavour that assaulted her. There was no doubt that this was her favourite part of her stay here, the food was consistently excellent. She had been eating amazingly ever since she came here. That coupled with the gentle treatment, the lavish surroundings and the complete lack of hearing or seeing the spirits that had tormented her for much of her life left her feeling... odd.
She had been kidnapped, right? Some strange man had come in, slaughtered her family and carried her off afterwards. That was supposed to be bad. In the books she had been allowed to read, the princess was supposed to be pining for home, desperately wishing for rescue and escaping her captor.
She kind of... didn't want to, though?
Did that mean she was broken somehow? She didn't know enough to say for sure.
"I wanted to ask, do you need anything to be comfortable?' The question took her by surprise, looking up and blinking in shock at the Devil as he clarified, "You have been holed up in this room all the time. Do you need something to make you comfortable to go out? Naomi told me if you enjoy reading, you can use the Library if you want to."
"I can?" She questioned, confused.
"Of course?" The answer sounded like a question, "Naomi told me that she told you that."
"I thought she was joking." Seeing the look he gave her at that reply, she ducked her head into her chest, blushing.
"You can feel free to move as you want throughout the Manor, Valerie. I would ask that you don't leave the grounds, for your own safety, but I don't want to keep you prisoner here." He spoke softly, causing her to blurt out a question she had been wondering.
"Why did you take me then?" She asked in a rush, "You haven't hurt me, you've been so nice, you haven't forced me to do anything with the spirits... What do you want?"
Her sudden bravery left her just as quickly as it came, causing her to deflate back in on herself and start to raise her arms defensively, "Wait please, I'm sorry-"
"To save you." Was the response that caused her to still, "There are people out there who want your Sacred Gear. I don't know if you were informed, but you have Sephiroth Graal, the Longinus. There are many who would go to any lengths to possess that, to squeeze every last drop out of it they could."
She shuddered at those words. The few times she had used her power... It hurt so much. Being forced to use it over and over again like he was describing? She felt sick just imagining it.
She was surprised by the sudden feeling of warmth. She stiffened as she realised that he had left the chair and hugged her before she realised it, firmly yet slowly drawing her into a tight embrace.
"Shh, it's okay, Valerie. I won't let them have you." He spoke softly, causing her body to relax against her better instincts.
"Why? Do you want the Graal too?" she spoke bitterly, cursing herself for her own weakness even as she took comfort from the hug.
"No." He spoke, shaking his head, she could feel it rubbing the top of hers, "I don't need it. I will get strong enough to protect you and the rest from everything without it."
She believed him, for some reason. It caused a warmth to bloom in her chest. She had no idea what the feeling was, the sensation completely foreign to her. The strangeness caused tears to start to leak from her eyes, slowly at first, but then more and more quickly. Soon she was sobbing into his shoulder, still having no idea why she was feeling the way she was.
It didn't feel bad though. In fact, the last time she had felt anything like this was...
"Gaspie..."
She didn't realise she had whispered the last word before he replied to it, "I am working on organising a meeting. It's difficult to get him to leave the Gremory Manor, but as soon as it's possible I will let you know immediately."
He sounded slightly embarrassed about that. As if it was a personal failing that he couldn't instantly fulfil her most closely held dream.
She laughed in between her sobs, before a realisation hit her.
Ah, that's what this feeling was.
She was happy.
"Thou art stunning, Consort mine." The Dark Moon spoke, eyes drawing themselves up and down my body.
I was pleased that even in this new body, my tastes still looked good. White button up shirt, dress slacks with suspenders, a tailored waistcoat and a blue tie tying it all together.
Some fashion was simply timeless.
"You are a gorgeous sight yourself." I responded, taking in the visage that was presented to my sight.
The two pairs of arms meant that some dresses had to be tailored slightly differently, but her current style did not suffer from that problem. A tasteful, tight number, with a criss-crossing back ribbon. Rather than the usual style, this one had longer spans of the ribbon, exposing a titillating expanse of blue skin. This accentuated the sensuality of the front of the dress, which had slightly transparent lace providing a window to the Goddess' cleavage.
Her choice of jewellery was a statement, carefully chosen. A rather short necklace, with a gemmed pendant. Emblazoned within the stones, displayed proudly, was the Sagan Crest. A more emphatic statement of allegiance from a Goddess I could hardly imagine, the only thing that could make it better was that it was a complete surprise.
She had decided to wear the piece on her own.
"Thank you for agreeing to this. I know you would have preferred something more private." I said, smoothly arriving at my date's side, extending an arm for her to encircle with two of her own.
"Think naught of it, Consort. The Gremory Ancestor was correct. Thy need to become a more public figure and allowing the masses to glimpse me should put their minds at ease."She analytically laid out, before her usually flat voice took on a teasing edge, "Besides, I am finding mine self most pleased to partake in the opportunity to widely state mine claim. Thou art mine and I wish for that to be known."
"Funny, I was just thinking something similar." I replied with a smile, "the entire underworld could be powered by the heat of the jealousy I will receive once they see you."
"Thy tongue is truly silvered, Damocles. Perhaps that is how you gathered so many concubines to thyself?" She wondered, causing me to shift slightly.
"It wasn't that, I assure you." I somewhat awkwardly replied.
"Consort, do not dwell on it, I jest. I have come to terms with thy new situation. Thou can bed them as you wish and acquire lovers as thy wish. However." She coiled her arms tighter around mine, punctuating her next words, "I am the one to be thy wife. Thy one and only Lady, just as thou art mine one and only Lord. Tis non-negotiable."
I mulled it over briefly for several heartbeats. The reason came to me rather quickly. In the Lands Between, a vast amount of stock was put upon titles and positions. By claiming the spot as my Wife and Lady, Ranni felt she would be safely at the very top of the rest, the sole victor of any competitions simply by the virtue of her position. To be fair, she wouldn't exactly be wrong.
There could only be one Lady Sagan, after all.
"Of course, Ranni. I would not wish it any other way. Speaking of, I should really start the design for the ring." I squeezed her arm back.
"I hath looked into the customs of this world when it comes to courtship, so you are aware, Mine Knight." Ranni spoke, "Therefore, I understand the sentiment."
Tilting her head up, staring into my eyes, she finished, "Keep that style of speech up, and this date shall go very well indeed."
I could only hope.