Victory is not an abstract concept; it is the equation that sits at the heart of strategy. Yet it takes many forms.
I barely noticed any of the work that Saiyo and Manakel were doing as they moved about, treating the last of the minor wounded
here in the hallway outside the cafeteria. No, my eyes were firmly on the fifteen bodies of the Legio members who had been lost during the battle on the far side of the room, near where the lunch counter was. Their pale faces look back up at me silently in death, and I walk past the fifteen again, memorizing
their faces for my mental wall. As I walked, the fifteen's spirits reassured me that I wasn't responsible for this, yet I didn't believe them. I was looking at the last of the dead, a man with blonde hair, when I caught something out of the corner of my eye. It was Abe who was sitting at a table nearby, rightfully still shell-shocked from losing and then having his arm regrow. The Frenchman was looking at it and, incidentally, at the same time, at the dead, before he suddenly started being smoothed by a worried Lavinia, who mistook his silence for something else. The woman began speaking rapidly in French to Abe, and I turned away from them to see Paula finishing up her conversation with the kill team alphas at another table in the middle of the cafeteria before I made my way to her.
The Spaniard saw me out of the corner of her
eye, and when I was close enough, she sighed, exhausted.
"We are down three robots from across all teams, with two more in bad states. For the kill teams, we have twenty who are injured.
Six of them need bionics."
I gave a half nod, as now that the wrath was
gone, my solemn self returned.
"I have spares that I will pass out to them before I go home and have Hetvia build more robots for the old ones' spirits and repair the damaged ones. How many prisoners did we take?"
Paula sighed.
"Two more OSF besides the one you took and three Nilrem, who are all now locked up tight in the cells. However, we should move operations from here in case they come back, since one of Kill Team Cerberus near the outer gym doors saw at least five OSF retreating through it as the battle came to a
close."
She was right; we did need to move now,
especially when the total number of dead foes was finally counted. The Brigade had brought three hundred hellhounds, a hundred seventy-five levies, and two hundred mages to this fight, and their next attack would be far larger and far more organized. I looked at the dead again before nodding.
"When we are done cleaning up bodies, clear out the armory and anything else we have, and move them to Olympus Mons. I'll take
care of the machines here and talk with Jeanne later tonight to have her rangers look for a new main base for us tomorrow."
Paula gave a salute before her eyes fell on part of the cafeteria she had been staring at every so often, and I knew what it
was. It was where the Three Factions' leaders and their guards were gathered around a table near the back of the room under a silence bubble, with the original
Treaty of Kuoh on the table between them. The devil guards, other than the two
standing beside the cage with the still unconscious Galius, were clustered around
their comrades with bionics, looking at them in amazement, as were the fallen and exorcists with their comrades who had them.
That wasn't going to be fun to see if my
gambits had failed or not. Still, by the looks on everyone's faces, they were not openly hostile, though Faibium, every so often, would turn his head to me and narrow his eyes before they would return to the conversation. Paula sighed, then asked in a small voice.
"Is it true? What they were saying over the
vox. That the Biblical God is dead and that the Machine God is him reborn?"
There was both hope and dread in her voice, but I didn't need to hide this truth anymore.
"Yes, the Biblical God is dead. He was killed
at Nicaea by Kokabiel; however, the Machine God isn't him reborn fully, rather, there is only a single shard of the other in him. And because of that, the Archangel and the other Great Seraphs consider the Machine God to be the other's successor."
That confirmation both relieved and saddened Paula before she put her hand on her chainsword and squeezed the hilt.
"They were right. The excommunications really were invalid—every single one of them. The churches lied to us all and acted
like he ordained every single one of them. Why?"
Her face was devastated, and beyond hurt as her normal fire seemed to leave her, yet before she could sink further into that, I
shook my head.
"They had to lie. For if enough people found
out about his death and stopped believing, then his system, which gives out gear and miracles, would fail. Yet that's not the real reason the system has survived for as long as it has. The reason it has is because of you and the other exorcists in their attempts to protect the system; they, perhaps, don't or
can't understand that it's not the masses who are believing less and less, doing the heavy lifting. It's the exorcists who are. You all provide the bulk of the system's power by the pure, strong faith you have, and they, in their ignorance, were weakening it further by their actions. A full battery to a half one if you will."
Paula's eyes glaze over for a moment, trying to understand that.
"Full to a half battery..... All this time it
was us…"
The light in her eyes returned, hardened like
never before.
"Then we in the Legio will lift harder than
ever before. We will give the Lord Reborn all the faith he needs for its operation and more. Let it come directly from us to you, then to him, for you have never spat on our sacrifices nor given false words of comfort to the dying men and women of faith as they did to us countless times. You bring light to the world while they have stopped doing that."
There was righteous rage in Paula's eyes here, yet a far bigger problem outshone that as a whisper hit my ear. According to the Machine God, while the system was indeed more robust now that he could access it fully, much of it was in unbelievably bad disrepair. Many of its inner workings were only one or two steps away from complete failure, with the miracle section in particular being severely damaged by something. The repairs would take an extreme amount of time and faith to bring back online, and now that I know this, I informed Paula.
"Then, if you all wish for a proper place of
worship for him, there is one in the underworld in my personal city. It is run
by a group called the Church of the Cog, which is made up of devils who believe
in him. I have blessed it, and it should channel your faith properly to him."
The Spaniard gave me a curious look and was about to ask something when a gentle cough drew my attention, and I turned to see
Mirana wearing a massive smile of relief and intrigue. Clearly, she had been listening to us for a bit.
"The Three Factions leaders would like to speak with you, Heir Astaroth."
I turned fully to the Russian Princess and asked for a moment, then quickly pulled out six bionic for Paula. When she had them, Paula went off towards the hallway with Manakel and Saiyo before I turned and began following Mirana over to the table. As the two of us came towards the table, we passed through the silence bubble, allowing Azazel's voice to be heard.
"—will start to pull back half of the DMZ's garrison on our side as well to match you. Shemhazi will start that process tomorrow
morning."
That made me blink in surprise as I drew close to the devil contingent before what was said registered, as hope grew. Sirzches
nodded in agreement along with Ajuka, Serafall, and Faibium, before the redheaded man looked at the treaty, then at Michael. The Archangel wore a broad smile, still happy despite a small bruise on his face, while behind him, Dieter and the other exorcists gathered around Griselda and Yuri, speaking in hushed whispers. Sirzches eyed Dieter with caution before he looked directly at the man.
"And you will tell the Churches and other faiths to withdraw their kill on sight orders for us?"
Michael looked at Sirzches, then nodded.
"I will personally inform each of the Church
heads of this Treaty and Father's Orders. It will, however, take time to reach the Imams and Rabbis, given their decentralized nature. If the Abrahamic faiths do kill a devil, we will automatically take the position that they are members of the OSF or bad strays that have no connections with the underworld proper."
That sent made Sirzches relax slightly, though not much, as he gave the Archangel another look that seemed to search for a lie
along with the other Satans. They didn't find one before Sirzches sighed and glanced at Azazel.
"We will do the same if an exorcist starts a
rampage against us for the churches. And if a fallen like Kokabiel does the same."
Azazel took that pledge before saying
nonchalantly.
"Same. Can we just sign this damn thing already? We all clearly want this, so why drag it out any longer?"
Peneume slapped her face, yet showed she also agreed with that, as did Shemhazi and Bariqiel. Michael smiled fondly at Azazel,
and as Serafall looked hopefully at who Sirzches was, Ajuka elbowed him, making
the man sigh. The man looked at the others, then at Faibium, before the sea-green
eyes met mine. Faibium followed that look, and the bald man glared for a moment
before Serafall nudged him, and the man gave Sirzches a nod. That move made Sirzches reach for the quill next to the treaty and pick it up.
The action made one of the remaining devil guards move to the front of the table, where he pulled something out of his pocket. It was a quill and an ink pot. The exorcists, fallen and other devil guards, all stopped talking and watched with me as Sirzches looked at the treaty, then slowly and deliberately signed his name at the bottom of the scroll.
That moment was followed by a second of silence before Sirzches handed the quill to Ajuka, who signed next, followed by
Serafall and Faibium. Then the quill was passed to Azazel, who lazily signed, followed by Shemhazi, before the other man handed it to Michael while gazing at the twelve silver wings. Michael took the quill, signed his name, then set it down, his smile growing even wider as he eyed the signatures. I felt a moment of pure triumph at this victory, and I saw, out of the corner of my eye, Mirana get a wide smile.
However, that moment was slightly soured by the renewed glare Faibium gave me and the look Serafall had as she went full business mode. That made Sirzches and Ajuka do the same before Sirzches eyed me warily.
"Serafall told me you and your people
recognized the magician attackers with the OSF. Explain."
The fallen and Michael turned their eyes on me, and I sighed and prepared my story.
"The magicians are from a new guild called
Nilrem. They, the OSF, and a group called the Hero Faction, which is made up of sacred gear users and reincarnated heroes, are part of a group called the Chaos Brigade."
The information sent a ripple of unease through everyone, especially Faibium, who received a two-second glance from Sirzches. The bald man was frowning deeply.
"And how did you learn of this Brigade?"
My eyes met Faibium.
"By way of my queen. She was approached by a member of the Brigade earlier this year when she was still a stray. She declined their offer because she just wanted revenge against her former king's family, not what they wanted. From what little she revealed to me about them, I quietly began looking into the group, and what we have found so far has been extremely disturbing."
Faibium took the answer before looking at the other Satans.
"I will have Mata move from her current
assignment to investigating them. And you will share everything that you have
dug up."
The way he said it told me that the last part
was nonnegotiable, and I nodded, not wanting to anger him any more than necessary.
"I'll have my spymaster share everything we
have gathered so far on them. Especially regarding a huge OSF base that is in Normandy run by the old Asmodeus."
That information made the room still as angry faces appeared on the exorcists' and devil guards' faces while Faibium glared at me. Sirzches got a deep frown.
"We will talk later on that."
There was no uncertainty in his voice, and I
knew that talk wouldn't be fun. Azazel, who had been scratching his goatee, hummed his face and eyes, trying to remember something said aloud.
"Pene, didn't you tell me we had a huge number of dropouts from Nephilim Academy last week?"
Peneume slapped her hand over her face hard as everyone turned towards the woman, who put her hands on her hips and glared at Azazel.
"I said that at the beginning of the year, Dad.
We saw over a hundred and sixty students leave the school days after Georg said he was resigning to pursue something else, and at least ten to fifteen of our new students every month since."
Azazel looked bashful there as my eyebrows rose before the man recovered and mumbled that he had been busy in his labs. That got another frustrated face slap from Peneume before she muttered something
under her breath and continued.
"If Georg has joined this Hero Faction, then
they have one Longinus in Dimension Lost with them."
That last part made the Satans worried, though Michael didn't seem fazed. The Archangel merely grew even more determined, and I sighed.
"Make that one possible, and one confirmed Longinus. One of the Legio's people, who is a gear user, was also approached by the Hero Faction earlier this year. The recruiter had the first one and was, according to them, extremely charismatic, and that made them almost sign up."
That news made the leaders grow even more
uneasy there before Michael offered.
"When I return to Heaven, I will inform Metatron to start coordinating his spy network with the Legio, yours, Lord Lucifer, and Grigori's, so we can see if there are things we missed."
Faibium took that pledge and looked at Shemhazi, who gave a slight nod as Azazel was busy thinking.
"We will do the same. We will also pass along
information about Georg and the students who left Nephilim Academy in case they did join this Hero Faction."
The display between the Three Factions made me want to smile, and I wasn't the only one, as Mirana actually smiled as she put
her hand in Castiel's. We weren't the only ones feeling that as Serafall cracked a grin while Ajuka smirked, which made Bariqiel glare for a moment before Sirzches looked at both Azazel and Michael.
"I would like to do additional talks with you both to iron out a few minor details. Heir Astaroth, may we use your city in the underworld for these talks?"
I give Sirzches a nod.
"Of course, my manor or the almost completed city hall is open for your use. I have plenty of spare rooms in my manor if you wish to stay the night there."
That broke Azazel from his contemplation and made Peneume straighten up while Faibium scowled. However, Sirzches looked out the window at the fading sunlight before sighing.
"We will take the offer. Lord Asmodeus, take three of my guards and start interrogation of our prisoner."
Faibium glared for a moment before he gestured to the devils with bionic to follow him. The three hesitated for a moment
before they fell in with the man as they moved towards the door with Galius's
cage following them. Michael turned to Dieter and Azazel, one of his guards, and
I sighed at this silent victory. That lightness only lasted a few moments before Peneume glared at me, and her orange eyes held a quiet promise to impale me soon if she didn't see Mittelt soon. I took the glare before I said to Sirzches while turning around.
"I'll get the way down ready for you all."
Sirzches said nothing, but as I walked away, I
felt my future brother-in-law's eyes on me the whole time before he turned back to Ajuka and the others.
It took less than a minute to get the
teleporter ready for everything before I went to help with the evacuation. That process was already underway as Lavinia held open three magic portals for Paula and her people. The crowd was being slowed by ultra-heavy things, so I used weightless spells to help them and reconfigure the teleporter network. As we did this, Lavinia was explaining the magical theory to Abe about portals and a
few other spells while the guy kept glancing at his arm. This process continued for almost half an hour, but soon everything but two crates was moved to Olympus Mons. The two crates left were the magical artifacts, and I personally removed the tracking spells, determined not to make the same mistake again. The two crates had just disappeared through Lavinia's portal when the magician gestured to Abe to follow, but he shook his head.
"I need to talk to Jean about my gear and about helping us find a new base. Thank you, Reni
Lavinia gave Abe a worried look, but could see he wouldn't budge here, so she gave him a deep hug that got an oof from him
before she disappeared through the portal. The moment she was gone, Abe turned to me, but before he could say anything, I put a hand on his shoulder.
"You're not a freak, Abe. And it's vastly better that you found out about it this way than the worst-case way."
Abe stiffened before he looked at his arm again.
"What is this? Worst-case way?"
I sighed as this wasn't going to be fun.
"The worst-case scenario would have happened if you had somehow been injured enough for it to be fatal, and you came back moments later. Trust me, it fucking sucks and hurts in a way that isn't easy to explain. And yes, being what you and I are, which is called a perpetual can do that. The how is an extremely rare and ultra-recessive gene that humans have."
Abe looked dumbfounded at that before what I said kicked in for him.
"Come back….. You… you have…."
I nod.
"Yes. I have died and returned. There is no
easy way to say this, but we perpetuals are immortal."
Abe froze completely there as his eyes went far away, looking down the hall. There was silence for a few moments before Abe
returned, and his eyes looked from the hall to my eyes as he whispered.
"I….. I will never see my mom again. I will
never…"
My hand squeezes his shoulder.
"You can pass as while we are immortal there is something that I have that can help you pass on permanently. It's how I have
this."
I tap the scar on my right cheek as some of the light returned to Abe's eyes.
"But I am sure she, along with me and the other perpetual I know of, would rather you stay here."
That made Abe lose some of that light as the
hurt of his mother returned. Seeing that I poked the Machine God to check something and got an answer back almost instantly. In just a moment, I brought the anvil, shocking Abe for a few moments before I swung and made a servo skull. The skull's eyes quickly blinked on before the skull floated to Abe and got out in a female voice.
"A. Please don't do it yet. Live for yourself, my silly little miracle."
Abe looked at the skull for a few moments
before tears began to flow.
"Mama.. It's… It's."
The skull floated over to Abe's shoulder and
landed on it before leaning against his head. Abe did the same, closing his eyes, before I heard the sound of multiple sets of footsteps coming this way as I asked.
"Do you want to be with her alone?"
The Frenchman's eyes opened slightly while
still leaning against the skull before he gave a silent nod. I quickly told Abe to go through the portal and to choose a room at the manor before the Frenchman walked through and disappeared. That was not a moment too soon as the owners of the footsteps came around the corner. Then the Three Factions contingent appeared, with Sirzches having a far-off look, while Ajuka spoke with Azazel and Serafall Michael. Behind them were Peneume, Shemhazi, Mirana, Castiel, and the guards. Griselda was next to Xenovia with the other female Catholic with the Orthodox and Protestants clustered around Dieter and the exorcists with prosthetics whispering extensively.
The group stopped, and I quickly gave a rundown of the teleporter, getting shocked faces from all but the Satans and Xenovia. Azazel was ready with a thousand questions, but a glare from Peneume made him hold back before we started the process of getting everyone to the underworld.
As soon as we landed in the manor, Xenovia led Griselda to the front door, opening it to show the purple sky. The other exorcists gathered around them, staring in shock, save for Mirana, who stood with Castiel near Sirzches, Ajuka, Serafall, Azazel, and Michael. Finally, Yuri let out a gasp, and that gasp brought Maéva out of the kitchen. She froze for a moment before I brought her up to speed, and my head maid immediately shifted to professional mode, leading people to the other teleporter for the spare bedrooms and a common room for the leaders. Azazel had wanted to stay and pester me with questions, but Ajuka had said something about the science debates, and that pulled Azazel along with the group. Soon, I was alone with just a death-glaring Peneume, and I sighed.
"Mittelt is in her lab in the basement. Right
this way."
I turned and made my way to the basement stairs with Peneume glaring all the while. When we reached the door to Mittelt's lab,
I knocked three times, and after a few moments, the door opened to show a
peeved Mittelt whose size shocked Peneume.
"What the fuck do you want?! I was just about to start…"
The rest of that ended as Mittelt caught sight
of Peneume staring at her. Mittelt's blue eyes went wide as the two stared at each other for a moment before Peneume shoved me aside hard. I stopped myself from hitting the wall and saw Peneume pick up Mittelt, hugging her close to her chest for a moment as she whispered apologies and begged for forgiveness. Mittelt only remained frozen for a moment before she returned the hug and murmured that there was nothing to forgive. I carefully and silently stepped back and let the two have this before going back up the stairs towards the teleporter to go home. The last thing I heard from the two getting a small sweat drop from me was Peneume demanding to know if Mittelt was involved with me. The profanity-filled shout that followed the question soothed my pride as I owed my mood kindred something good.
The moment I stepped off the teleporter for the manor's topside, I was struck by how silent it was. This silence continued as I climbed the stairs from the basement to the kitchen, where Kiryuu was at the island. My bishop was reading several magic books that were floating in the air while sketching and munching. I continued past her and towards the stairs to the second floor, feeling exhaustion set in. Halfway up the stairs, the triumph of today returned as I had done it. The Great War was officially over, and from its ruins of chaos, a new possible order was born. The Brigade might have honestly helped us today, and that fact made me ultra-amused.
Yet that moment, however, was soured slightly by the face of that magician. He had been highly competent and seemed to have
extensive prior combat experience, especially in command. That alone made him a high-priority target and significantly raised Nilrem's threat level. I would have Conner interrogate the magicians we had first so that we could retaliate against them. But that was for tomorrow, as I reached the top of the stairs and got ready to turn left, only for a voice to cut in.
"Boss, is it true? Is he really?"
I turned to see Jeanne, who, it seemed, had
been waiting for me. Her blue eyes were desperate to know, and I sighed.
"It's true. The Biblical God is dead, and the
Machine God has a shard of them in him. The Archangel and the other Great Seraphs regard him as Big G's successor."
Jeanne's face was completely blank for a moment before amazement, and then a broad smile crossed her face.
"The Self-Proclaiming Protestant was right.
That's a first."
That got a tired chuckle from me, and Jeanne grinned wider before I turned serious.
"Then you also know that the Brigade attacked the base. We need a new one, and I want you and Abe to scout one out tomorrow. How is the dragon girl?"
Jeanne's smile went away there.
"I did and will get on that with him early. I saw him in the front room earlier, talking to a skull when I was getting water for Isa. She is doing fine and is just tired from the surgery. Your cousin and Asia have been fussing over her."
I could see that and sighed again.
"Fun. Now, if you will excuse me, Lord Grump is tired and ready to sleep."
That got a laugh from Jeanne.
"You do that, Lord Grump. Don't go seeing
Heaven's Gates yet, as I want to see them too."
The blonde turned on her heels and went back to the door before she opened it and entered the room, leaving me alone in the
hall. I sighed and turned, heading towards my bedroom, not noticing the door open again slightly with multiple pairs of eyes watching me.
As I drew closer to said room, I heard the faintest sounds of talking coming from
under the door. Finally, I reached for the knob and opened it to see a surprising sight.
On the bed, all the queens save Xenovia and Shirone were clustered around the top half of the bed, with my cat princess at the bottom of the bed, glaring hard at Barkspawn, who was plopped in the middle of Ingvild's lap, panting happily with a big doggy grin. Something that was matched on Ingvild's face as her mechanical bird was practically bouncing up and down.
The Leviathan was being hugged by Rias, Murayama, Raynare, Kuroka, and, to my surprise, Ravel. There was no hint of the hatred I would have expected on her face here, and the reason for this was soon made
clear: Ingvild was now a reincarnated mutation bishop.
I only had a few seconds to register that
change before Barkspawn smelt me and then turned her head my way. Her puppy
grin grew even wider, and then with a loud yip, Barkspawn leapt from Ingvild's arms towards me. That made me move quickly and catch the Cerberus, who began licking me profusely, making the queens ahh at that save for Shirone, who hissed. Rias sprang from the bed and pulled Ingvild up with her before shouting in knucklehead glee.
"Gregor-kun, Ing asked to be my bishop! I said yes! I can't wait to introduce her to my folks tomorrow!"
Rias looked like she was about to do a happy
jig, and that made a slight smile cross my face, despite how tired I was, though my eyes remained on Ingvild. The Leviathan watched her king for a moment before her orange eyes met my red ones, as I saw there was no doubt in this, and I drew close before putting my free arm around Rias.
"Congratulations, Ria. I'm happy for you and
Ingvild."
Rias preened under that, and Ingvild blushed at the sight before she grew determined and the orange met red again.
"The process fixed the last of my shakes, and I can now run like I once did. I will be joining Rias and the others on the run
they will be doing tomorrow afternoon."
The smile on Ingvild's face as she said that
was almost like Rias's in being like a supernova, and she looked at me, then
the bird, before I shook my head.
"I will probably join you all as I will be free
for a few days now that something big wrapped up today."
Ingvild looked beyond relieved and overjoyed at this before she looked at the others for a moment before facing me again.
"I look forward to it. And I have finally found
how I will repay you for all the kindness you have given me."
I got ready to say again she owed me nothing when Rias squeezed my arm in warning, before Ingvild said, determined.
"I will be paying you back by having my family name help your reputation and Rias as I join your harem."
Her declaration made me blink owlishly, getting amused giggles from everyone, including Shirone, before she returned to glaring at Barkspawn when the Cerberus yipped. Ingvild's blush was bright red, and then she added in a smaller voice.
"That way I can be with my kind, noble hero
whom I have grown to love and who I wish to spend the rest of my life with."
The confession went through my shock as I
finally recovered before Rias squeezed my arm again.
"We all agreed to it already. Even Hana, once
she heard the story. She thinks it's romantic."
That shocked me before I glanced at Ravel, who shrugged.
"Ingvild and I settled our issue today. I support her in this."
Her agreement was on everyone else's faces, and they all were waiting on bated breath for my answer. Ingvild's orange eyes were fixed solely on mine, and I saw that she truly did love me. She wanted this beyond all hope, and my face softened as I saw a future with her.
"I accept, though, again I don't need it. Just
get ready for my bad snoring and grumpy nature."
Ingvild's face lit up, and her eyes, for a moment, looked like tears were ready to form before Rias, Kuroka, and Raynare let out loud whoops of joy while Ravel and Shirone rolled their eyes and Barkspawn yipped up a storm. Then Ingvild came close to me and wrapped her arms around my free arm before leaning on my shoulder and saying in a whisper.
"I will accept all of you, my hero, who has
accepted all of me. Grump included. Mama would have loved you, too."
I take her arm and hug her before Kuroka grins widely.
"We might need a new bed soon if you keep
seducing poor innocent maidens, Greg nya~."
I held in a groan at that while everyone else
giggled before I turned to Raynare.
"Did our new knight wake up today?"
Raynare turned her head to look at the wall and then shook her head, no, making her black curls bounce.
"She didn't. She just slept all day. She was mumbling in her sleep when I last checked on her, and it sounded…. German?"
German? That new fact made Raynare look worried, and I was concerned, but before I could press further, Ravel grew serious.
"Speaking of big things, how was the
conference? Did it succeed?"
Everyone, save Ingvild, who looked confused, leaned in, and I sighed, remembering everything.
"It did. The Great War is officially over."
The room was silent for a moment before
everyone started prodding me for the story, which I began telling them. By the end of it, people wore shocked expressions in the case of Rias, Ingvild, and Ravel, while Shirone and Raynare wore ultra-happy smiles as two more joined the faith. Murayama and Kuroka, however, are more concerned with the growing exhaustion in my face as my knight and queen come close. Kuroka wrapped her tails around my waist and began purring with the sound, making me drowsier, while Murayama picked up Barkspawn. The Cerberus whined, but Murayama hushed Bark, petting her awake head.
"Your boy is tired and needs his beauty sleep. Now let's get you and him to bed."
Barkspawn's whine was drifting away for me as my head fell back against the pillows, and the last thing I saw and heard before the blackness took me was Ingvild's purple hair splaying across my face as she leaned in and cuddled up to my chest, singing a soft lulling song.
The tiredness of a day of hard work sank into
my bones as I walked to the small attached rooms to the laboratories for the others who were slowly being brought onto the project by our patron. I didn't like most of them. That wasn't true. I hated most of them as they were the same shit noble brats who thought they were better than I was. They would, as they rotated through the section of the project my mentor and I were assigned to, immediately try to upstage me, discredit my work, and smooth their way into my place. This had continued for months now.
The first time was amusing. The second through the fifth were annoying. Now, every time it happened, I wanted to take my specialized tools and stab them in the eyes. And what was worse, some of them, a very, very small group, were not completely incompetent and were being reassigned to our team. My mentor put up with them quite well, but their whining about impossibilities in our work was grating. I slammed the door to my quarters and shut it just as hard before I sat at a large metal desk and started my off-the-clock work again. Something I had started doing after I heard the last two temp team members mention they needed to find ways to replace me. Their sure faces, they could do it, made my work continue long into the night, only stopping when sheer exhaustion took over, and my head hit the desk with a thump.
That thump was my head making contact with the headboard, and it jolted me awake, making me blink my eyes rapidly, fighting
the drowsiness I still had. The morning sun was shining through the bedroom windows,
and the cause of the thump was soon made clear as sitting at the foot of the bed, dressed in flattering t-shirts and jeans, were an excited Rias and Ingvild. Rias was describing something to the other about a lake, and the two were the only ones awake while the others lay spread across the bed. Kuroka and Shirone were doing a sister cuddle, tails intertwined, and Ravel was sleeping face down in her pillow on my right. At the same time, Murayama and Raynare
were attached to my legs, snoozing away, and there was no sign of Xenovia, which meant she was likely in the underworld still.
I gently moved my right leg to try to get
Raynare off, and the move clued Rias and Ingvild in that I was awake. The two turned to me, and Rias got her supernova smile on her face, making me confused for a moment before I remembered what she had planned for today. Thus did I start really moving Raynare and Murayama off me.
Ten minutes later, after I was dressed and had left a note for the sleepers on where I was, Rias, Ingvild, and I were walking
down the hallway towards the stairs. Rias was on my right arm, excitedly telling me and Ingvild, who was on my left arm, about what Gremory Castle was like and all the wonders that were there. The descriptions she was giving us of the place were slowly waking me up as we started down the stairs. Just as we
were about to hit the bottom of the stairs, I got ready to tease Rias about Mr Humpy. Then there was a loud, resounding crack as the front door was slammed open so hard that the door flew off its hinges. The door landed with a resounding thud at Rias, Ingvild's, and my feet just as an incredibly
distressed and weeping Issari, followed by a distraught Irina, ran into the front hall, with Issari waving a scroll in her gauntlet, screaming.
"Gregor-kun help!!!"
Issari was in such a panic that she charged in without looking, tripped over the door, and went face-first to the floor with a loud crack, sending the scroll flying into the air. My hand automatically moved and caught the scroll before I sighed at my best friend and started moving to help her with Rias and Ingvild. When Issari was back on her feet, she resumed weeping waterfall tears even though Irina had let her best friend face plant her head in her favorite thing, and I quickly opened the scroll, now worried. Only to pale on reading what the first sentence was.
In the underworld, Zeric walked down the
streets of Ryza, looking at the massive buildings being raised or already built.
The gigantic buildings were so unlike the small huts he was used to, with lights and running water on demand, compared to candles lit by fire spells and buckets filled with water, for his two hundred years of life. Seeing all of this for the first time had left him awe-struck, and that grew further when he learned from several new members of the congregation to the Church last night that this was standard in almost all human homes topside. That left Zeric to wonder what other things humans had, if all this was standard, and the fact that this knowledge came from strays barely registered with him, for he, like Enelia and the other purebloods at their gathering, had come to accept reincarnated fully after hearing the tales they shared of being abused by the nobility, along with the bruises and scars. Those tales and scars had made the former candle maker's apprentice ashamed of his past, as did the other purebloods at the gathering, yet Enelia insisted to them that they didn't need to feel that. They, as living beings, could always improve themselves to be better in all ways, like the Omnissiah, who didn't judge them despite his status, especially given his sin was wrath. He fed it productively, and that was something Enelia had started doing with her sin and had urged the others in their old gathering, and now the quickly growing congregation to do too. Zeric desperately wanted to be like the Omnissiah and erase his shame, so he had started feeding his sin by greedily wishing to bring that same reassurance Enelia gave him to others. Something that had felt a hundred times better than his old way of feeding it and made facing the strays here easier.
There were now a dozen strays here in the city, all followers of the Church of the Cog, and their presence had led Enelia to
assign him the duty of holding a special prayer time for them in the morning. So,
as Zeric turned onto the street the church was on, he got ready to greet the strays,
only to freeze at what he saw: before the church doors, a massive crowd of people flowed out into the street. Many of the crowd were in the same armor as the Omnissiah's levy, while others were in the long black robes you'd see in…. Exorcists?
That part stumped Zeric, as all commoner
purebloods knew what exorcists were and dressed like, but they should be going
berserk in the streets, killing devils without hesitation. Not…. Looking at the church with deep longing, or in the case of a blue-haired woman with a single stripe of green hair and a blonde-haired man with green eyes, talking to a stray devil like they were old friends, while a younger woman who must have been the older female exorcist's kid looked at the church. The other eleven strays were nervously watching from further up the street, and Zeric cautiously approached the crowd, moving towards the doors where the stray and the strangers stood.
As he drew closer to them, Zeric blinked as he realized that nearly everyone in the crowd was a regular human, except for the
younger blue-haired woman, who was a reincarnated rook, a man in pure black
clothes next to a gorgeous woman who felt like the church, and the blonde man who had a sacred gear of some type. His stillness caught the eye of the stray a woman from some place up top called Italy named Renata who was a one-piece pawn. The woman brightened as she waved at him.
"Good morning, Zeric."
Zeric got ready to greet Renata in turn, only
to freeze upon getting closer and feeling the gear energy properly coming from the male exorcist, making him gulp. The man had the decency to smile bashfully while Renata laughed a twinkling laugh along with the blue-haired woman and a woman in armor nearby. That action calmed Zeric down slightly despite feeling a Longinus next to him before he got out.
"Morning, Ren. Who are these… People with you?"
Renata smiled slightly before she looked directly at Zeric.
"Old colleagues from my past. I vouch for them, and they wish to see the church."
Zeric looked at the trio and then at the crowd
before a woman in armor, close to Renata, smiled slightly.
"Those of us in the armor are fellow Mechanists from the topside. We were told of this place by the Omnissiah, and we will make sure the exorcists here behave. Please open the church up for us."
That news made the pureblood blink before he suddenly remembered what Enelia had told him about the fact that they may get
strange visitors soon. The young man quickly turned around and opened the church door, gazing in amazement as the crowd poured past him before taking a seat or kneeling to begin praying. Renata gestured to her fellow strays to come in, and
slowly, but steadily, they too entered the church, though they stayed in a group close to the door. Zeric watched the crowd, bewildered, as he had never dreamed he would live to see this, especially as his gaze returned to the group of exorcists in the middle of the aisle, most of whose faces looked up at the cog and skull on the pulpit with longing. Others watched the other humans along with the strays, not able to understand something. This surreal sight for Zeric was only broken when the blue-haired woman with the green stripe, her kid, and the blonde-haired man approached him. The woman looked at the pulpit again before she asked, in a low, desperate voice.
"Why do Mechanists believe that the flesh is
weak? For is the human body not already perfect?"
Zeric looked at the two exorcists and rook with caution but seeing the two exorcists faces needing reassurance which was something appearing more and more often on the faces of purebloods here kicked his sin into high gear. Zeric began explaining the creed to them as more and more exorcists crowded around him with those same desperate faces. They, too, started asking questions rapidly, and that made Zeric miss the sound of three pairs of armored boots dashing up the street past the church quickly.
Across the underworld that morning, heralds
sent by the Satans made their way to every single castle, small town, and village in the underworld. In the main squares of those villages and towns, devils gathered, as it was strange for the Satans to send people out like this. When the crowds were finally gathered, the heralds who were from the Satans' levies each pulled out a crystal before clearing their throats. Then, with a loud voice, they declared for all to hear that the Great War was finally and truly over.
That was met at first with disbelief by the devil population, but the heralds activated
the crystals, which played out the recorded image of the signing. The commoners
were dumbfounded at this sight, but there before their eyes were the Satans, alongside fallen angels, and the Archangel Michael, whom they recognized. Silence reigned in the squares before, suddenly and without warning, ultra-loud, resounding cheers and ecstatic, happy tears swept through the commoners as their long-wanted dream became reality. Cheers that grew even louder as they spotted someone off to the side of the group.
As there was Gregor Astaroth dressed in his armor, looking like he had fought another
battle. A battle like the one that sparked their hopes for peace. That sight confirmed once and for all to them that this was because of him. Tens of thousands of unspoken prayers had finally been answered,and in that moment, he truly became beloved by devil commoners. Soon, kegs of alcohol were dragged out, and hundreds of toasts were made to the one now considered their champion.
In Astaroth territory and increasingly in those
bordering the Astaroths, commoners had long heard rumors of a great city, the likes of which hadn't been seen since Lucifaad being made, and how it was ruled by this heir. Supposedly, in this city, there were jobs, opportunities for education for those commoners who could understand that idea, and most repeated of all, the beyond silly rumors of running water and lights not from candles that were available to all, not just the nobles. Families who heard those things, like the first pebble, debated before they took a chance, like the first ones. Thus, beginning a migration, the likes of which had never been seen before by devils as commoners, packed up their things in their home villages to head to this city for a brighter future.
The heralds sent to the pillars had presented each of their heads with a full copy of the treaty for their viewing. The NKF Pillars touted this news of the end of the Great War as the next crowning jewel of the New Kings' reign, and many pillar heads from the faction began planning parties to celebrate this monumental occasion. The GKF reacted in many ways and was split. Many of the faction's less conservative members, upon reading the treaty, were secretly overjoyed, and two pillars considered switching camps. In contrast, the hardcore members, led by Lord Bael, seethed over this political defeat. Yet for one person in the underworld, they weren't celebrating or seething.
The Great King was wearing a face of contemplation as he sat in a chair on a veranda overlooking Bael territory. He silently reached for his glass on a side table before finishing the remaining Astaroth wine in it. When he was done with it and collecting his thoughts, he set the glass down.
"This was truly said there and confirmed?"
The person behind the chair shifted nervously. That person was an officer from Sirzches's personal levy who had been maneuvered into attending the conference. This devil was one of Zekram's most well-hidden spies and had long passed information to him about the inner workings of the Satans. The man looked nervously at the Great King before he nodded again.
"Yes, Milord. The Great Enemy is dead, confirmed by the Archangel. And….."
The man hesitated, and Zekram turned to look the devil fully in the eye.
"And?"
Those violet eyes weren't full of the rage that
the levy expected, but pure curiosity, and that propelled him forward.
"And that they follow a new Father. A Father
who has chosen the Astaroth Heir as its champion. This deity… it said it didn't hate us as the Great Enemy did. It wore the same face as the Astaroth and said they are the same in every way. It doesn't hurt to say his name. I think…"
The devil would have continued, but Zekram gave a dismissive wave, cutting him off, which the devil knew not to question. He quickly turned on his heels and left the veranda and the Great King alone. Zekram waved a hand, making a spell circle that made a bottle of wine from 1425 rise in the air and then pour itself into his glass before he reached for it again while he fed his sin hard. Pride overwhelmed his system at the long-wanted end goal of the Original Satans and the 72 Pillars during the Great War, finally coming true. His and all other devils' purpose of destroying the Great Enemy was fulfilled, and all the lives lost in the Great War had not been for naught. Victory was theirs, and Zekram reveled in that powerful feeling of pride as he took another drink of wine. He could now accept the peace in full and threw away dozens of half-baked plots to disrupt it, and would make his son do the same for his schemes. Then ten minutes later, Zekram came down from the high as he considered the two other significant parts of the tale.
Those parts being the OSF and his fellow shadow puppet master. Zekram had long discounted the OSF as a real threat, as they were dormant except for minor raids on the underworld for certain magical supplies.
Yet if they were confident enough to launch such a massive attack on the conference,
then they must have something big planned and ready. They needed to be destroyed once and for all, and he would start mobilizing his loyalists to do this.
Thinking of the hybrid, Zekram considered the main question he had now. Why would a deity attach itself to a devil-adjacent person?
The few public hybrids there were in the underworld usually embraced their
devil half fully and shunned the other part. His rival had so far appeared to be embracing his father's view of humans as useful tools but lower beings, and he often fed his sin, which only those who accepted their heritage fully did without exception. So, what made this one different? That question lingered before he remembered the claim.
"Machine God."
That utterance didn't bring the crippling
headache that uttering the Great Enemy's name would have. It was instead like
saying any other word, rather than the minor-second feeling of a pricked finger. That revelation made Zekram stop his scheming and be truly astonished for the first time in his life, as this was something he once thought impossible. Zekram sat in silence and contemplation before he remembered what was said to him at the train station.
"Flesh is Weak. That is what makes me."
The words echoed in his mind, making the man smile. Zekram, unlike his son, wasn't a
fanatical believer in the Morningstar's cult. He respected the Morningstar's power and appreciated his creator for their existence, but he despised weakness, and unlike nearly all of the then newly created devils, he had seen very quickly that the Morningstar had plenty of them. He also wasn't blind to the unspoken fact that many young purebloods who followed the Morningstar devoutly eventually fell in with the OSF. If this deity were truly like its champion, and that creed made them both, then it might be something he could accept, existing as to despise weakness of all kinds was always good. It was then that Zekram had an idea that quickly took shape into the beginnings of a plan. This plan would test the Astaroth and his deity, and, if they failed, would forever keep the hybrid neutered in the politics of the underworld, as no one of their kind could outrun a fundamental truth of all devils. Divine champion or not.
Agrat was ready to throw a water serpent at the walls of the commander's office in this old Soviet base in Tajikistan that had been
Galius's, as her investigation was getting nowhere, and Katerea was demanding
updates by the minute. Her idiot cousin had, for whatever reason, left nothing here on where he had dragged his forces off to, and several mirror calls to the other Leviathan bases in Central Asia had not brought her further information. Agrat was just about to form her water serpent to throw against a wall in the office when Alleria almost slammed the door off its hinges, so great was her haste.
"A portal just opened in the base's courtyard."
That made Agrat regain control of herself
before she quickly moved with Alleria down the stairs that way. When the two reached the courtyard where tanks once had been parked, they found four devils helping a fifth through the portal. The devil in question was missing a leg and was unconscious, but Agrat recognized the man as Galius's second in command, a minor noble from House Naberius. Agrat stormed over to the group and snarled out.
"Where is Galius and the force from here?!"
Most of the levies froze and grew deathly pale, seeing Agrat, and couldn't seem to get anything out, only for one of the levies
to snap out bitterly.
"They are likely all dead."
Agrat swerved her head to the levy.
"Explain."
The man was glaring at the Naberius in
bitterness.
"Lord Galius ordered all of us, plus the dogs,
to get ready for a fight. We did and went to a filthy school where we got slaughtered. We were the only ones to get away."
Agrat was now beyond pissed and just barely held back the urge to trap the unconscious Naberius in a whirlpool and ground out.
"Fight who?"
That question lingered for a moment before the levy, who, it seems, was the spokesperson, grunted bitterly.
"The filthy half-breed Astaroth, that's who.
Lord Galius thought they would be easy pickings and promised to split the bounty with us. He has a fucking army of vermin humans, and they were with the false Satans, the Governor-General, and the Archangel for some fucking reason."
Agrat's anger melted away, hearing that, as
that was an inconceivable notion. Yet that now piercing question was set aside for the more difficult problem. The Astaroth was already not very willing to join the Brigade, but this could put him firmly against them. Janilla was now in ultra trouble, but Agrat had no idea where she was. Katerea would have killed the failures before her for that, but Agrat was not her sister, and instead she reigned in her rage, wishing eternal pain on Galius for fucking this up so badly, and looked at the levy.
"You will tell the full story to me."
In a dark cell somewhere in the underworld,
Galius Leviathan blinked his eyes open and wished he had a pain relief potion as he moved his hand to his head. Only to find he couldn't. That made the man suddenly remember what had happened, and he got ready to try to break free of his bindings, but before he could do anything, the cell door opened, and a man with short hair entered the room.
The man looked at Galius, and the Leviathan
grew pissed as before him was a reincarnated bishop. Galius got ready to shout at the man and call him filthy vermin, only for the man to then smile. That smile promised Galius a bad time and stopped the rant in its tracks.
John Edgar Hoover loved his job and his king. Hoover advanced on the OSF filth as the interrogation began.
The sun's morning light was shining through the stained-glass windows, casting an orange-red glow on the three occupants of this room. One was sitting in a chair, almost entirely in shadow, with only a sliver of long white hair barely visible as they stared at the two people before them. Their eyes looked at the two as the male finished his report.
"This kid's people are extremely well-disciplined and equipped, Boss. They will tear apart our people like a croc does a kangaroo if we try hitting them again for it. We either need more pawns or another idea for them."
The figure took that news as they began to think before they absentmindedly asked.
"And you can't see anything of this young man, Killian?"
The woman almost flinched at the male voice, hearing the disappointment in it.
"I can't. It's…. Like, he is just not there and…
I promise, sir, I will try and…."
The man cut her off as his eyes refocused.
"You do not have to push yourself, as this
isn't your failure nor one of your powers. It is hard for those gifted like you to see the actions of one deeply touched by the divine. Don't focus on him."
That made Killian blink, along with Aj, who
paled slightly as the man continued.
"Don't focus on him. Instead, focus on someone around him. Someone who is close but not too close, such as an acquaintance. Your visions will return to you then. Look into them."
Killian continued to blink for a moment more
before the zeal she had always had, especially around him, showed itself fully.
"I will."
With that said, she bowed and left the room. As soon as she was gone, the man continued.
"You will try again for it, Aj."
The magician, still pale, sputtered out.
"Boss, they ripped apart our pawns! If he is
touched by a god, then—"
The man cut in again in a low voice.
"You will try again and again and again, until
you have it. That object is essential to my plans, and if it is not retrieved, there will be dire consequences. You will also try to get one of his laser guns, as I want to test a theory."
Aj shrank in slightly, hearing that, but got
ready to make one weaker attempt to protest, only for the man to say.
"Unless…. You want to end up like Seraphina?"
The moment he heard that name, Aj's pale face grew even whiter. Yet despite that, he looked ready to argue further, only for the man to move forward as his cold brown eyes reflected now in the sunlight. If looks could kill, then Aj would have been crushed under a hydra and roasted alive by a dragon after this one. The man gulped and gave a slight nod.
"Yes, sir."
That pleased the man as he waved the other out. Aj quickly turned tail and fled as he realized he was in serious shit and vowed
to do whatever it took to get that object and gun. The moment the door closed, the man leaned back into the shadows and wrapped his hands together, allowing his silver ring with a ruby to gleam in the morning light. Then they clenched tightly. This kid was going to be trouble for him and his flock.