{Present,Devil's Meeting Assembly of Lucifaad}
"Might I remind you, Lord—" Valerie frowned, pausing to look at me.
"Lord Faiser Valefar-Barbatos," I introduced myself, making her continue.
"Lord Valefar-Barbatos," she repeated, her frown never leaving me. "You represent the devil faction. If you support the Carmilla faction and fight against us—the Tepes faction—you'll be declaring that the devils themselves are opposing us."
The lords, ladies, and everyone present began whispering among themselves. Across the hall, I caught Elmenhilde—the Carmilla representative—staring at me with her face frozen in shock.
Ingvild's hand rested on my thigh, nervous but steady, doing her best to comfort me under the countless stares from the devils around us.
"Faiser," Falbium said, frowning, "this isn't something you can decide on your own. This involves the devil society as a whole."
"You are a lord now," Zekram added, clearly annoyed. "Young and new, yes, but still a lord. And as a lord, you carry responsibilities you are already failing at."
Serafall stayed quiet, waiting for me to speak. From the look in her eyes, even she expected me to say something outrageous.
"We may ignore the comment, Lord Valefar-Barbatos," Valerie offered, almost condescendingly. "We can act like this never happened."
I appreciated the gesture, but it rubbed me the wrong way.
How is she so confident? The Tepes faction might be strong, but against the monsters of the devil faction, they'd be crushed in less than a single night.
"Faiser," Ajuka and Sirzechs said together, "let's forget what you said."
Lord Phenex was visibly panicking. A war would hurt him more than anyone else. Lord Bael stayed silent, simply waiting to see what I'd do. Noticing this, Lord Agares followed his lead.
Leaning back, I crossed my arms and stared straight at the taller vampire.
"I apologize, Valerie Tepes," I said, which made her smirk. "But tell me—what exactly is the treaty between devils and vampires? I wasn't present when that pact was made."
There it was—the fatal flaw she, and everyone else in the room, had overlooked.
"Well," her eyes narrowed, "I do recall the Satans mentioning that a new lord had been appointed. Though I was under the impression one had to be well-versed in history to take such a title. I suppose the standards are… different for devils than for vampires."
I barely held back a chuckle. Cocky. She reminded me of prosecutors I'd faced before—always cocky, never humble.
"But very well," she continued, glancing at the Satans, then at Zekram before addressing me. "A little over two hundred years ago, devils and vampires, after countless wars fought both against and alongside each other, realized they would benefit more as allies than enemies. To prevent the pointless sacrifice of innocents and to push forward the growth of both races, a treaty was signed. Neither side would fight the other. And one of its core clauses clearly states: devils are not to side with any vampire faction in their civil wars—and the same applies to vampires regarding devil disputes.
"Since the Old Satan Faction was declared a separate entity by the devils, their part in this war isn't considered a violation of the treaty."
I noticed Elmenhilde clenching her fists at the side.
"Which is why," Valerie continued, "the Carmilla faction trying to pull you into fighting against us would also have been a violation." She paused, glancing at the shorter vampire. "Though I suppose they assumed that if one faction was destroyed, no one would be left to raise the issue."
A simple but well-crafted treaty. It basically forbade devils from getting involved. Especially against the Tepes faction, since they were wealthier and heavily invested in the pillars… under layers of terms and conditions, of course.
But the thing about ironclad contracts? They're never really ironclad. There are always loopholes and variables no one accounts for. Especially things considered impossible. Like the dead coming back to life.
"And can you tell me, who signed this treaty?" I asked.
She smirked. "The heads of the Tepes and Carmilla factions, along with all the noble houses under them. As for the devils…" She looked confident. "The Satans, the heads of every pillar, the leaders of the extra demon families, and the elders."
I was a devil.
But I was also a lawyer.
"And what about houses that didn't sign back then, because there wasn't a lord available?"
Her grin practically screamed 'You idiot.'
"In that case, the Satans and elders signed on their behalf. That was the case with Glasya-Labolas. Since their lord was outside the Underworld, he couldn't sign it himself. So yes, even if you or your predecessor were absent back then, the Satans would've signed on your behalf."
That was exactly the problem. And the Satans and elders—Zekram, Mephisto, and the rest—caught it instantly.
I didn't even turn my body, just my head. "Is that right, Satans?" I asked, barely hiding my smile. "You signed on behalf of my pillars—the fallen pillars?"
That's when the Lords froze—finally realizing the hole in the treaty.
The vampires looked confused. The devils didn't need any more explanation.
"That…" Ajuka's eyes went wide—rare for someone who never showed much expression. "We didn't."
And just like that, the Tepes faction's trump card crumbled.
"Pardon?" Valerie asked, stunned. "What do—"
"He…" Zekram's expression shifted from annoyance to amusement. Maybe even pride. "Hah!" He chuckled. "I really am getting old."
"What's happening?" Elmenhilde finally blurted, frustration and embarrassment leaking through her voice.
"What's happening," I answered, noticing Ingvild's curious gaze, "is that neither I, nor my father, nor the previous lords of my house—and definitely not the Satans or elders—ever signed the treaty on the behalf of my pillars. Which means it doesn't include me. The treaty was never about all of devil society, only the pillars who actually signed it."
"That's impossible!" Valerie protested, almost shouting. "Signings were always made on behalf of absent lords. Leaving your house off the list would make a mockery of the treaty!"
"It wouldn't," Falbium cut in, rubbing his temples and hiding an amused look. "The treaty covered lords, Satans, elders, and absent pillars. Not dead ones."
Seeing their confusion, Serafall stepped in to explain.
"The pillars of Valefar and Barbatos were considered fallen during the civil war. At the time the treaty was signed, they didn't exist, so no one could sign on their behalf."
Valerie tried to argue, "New pillars would fall under the pillars in charge of them—"
"Not in this case," Mephisto cut in, having been silent until now. "The houses of Barbatos and Valefar trace back to the original Satans, Lucifer and Lilith. They aren't branches of any other pillar, so they were never under another house."
Her eyes shot to Sirzechs. He understood and clarified. "While we hold almost the same authority as the previous Satans, we are not them." He smoothed the doubt away. "We may be responsible for a lot of devil politics, but we cannot directly control the pillars. That authority died with the fall of the original Satans. Without the first Satan, Lucifer, neither Barbatos nor Valefar can be said to be under anyone."
You should always read the fine print — the terms, the conditions, and a bit of history — before signing anything.
"On the surface it looks like a treaty between devils and vampires," I said, baring my teeth, "but a careful read shows it's between the noble, powerful houses on both sides and those serving under them. I was not part of that. So I am not bound by the treaty, and devil society cannot be held responsible for anything I do from here on."
Valerie's frustration was almost cute. Meanwhile, Elmenhilde looked hopeful.
"As Lord of the Pillars of Valefar and Barbatos, I—Faiser Valefar-Barbatos—declare that I will stand with the Carmilla faction." I stood at last.
"Why?" Valerie snapped. "Why the Carmilla faction?"
There was only one reason, a single, personal one.
"Because a certain devil supports you," I said. "And I wouldn't hesitate to march an army just to kill him with my own hands." My fists clenched without thinking. "All this… is for a chance to kill Rizevim Livan Lucifer."
Even if I couldn't beat him outright, I'd make sure the loss was so miserable he couldn't recover from it.
* * *
{Same time, Inner Castle of the Tepes Faction}
—Marius Tepes—
Marius was a good-looking vampire—prettier than most girls, smooth-spoken, and able to get his point across. He had a doll-like face, a silky voice, and eyes most women would kill for. Unlike most, he knew how to use those looks to his advantage.
He won the support of many noble ladies and pulled financial backing from rich devils. With that same silver tongue, he even secured promises from male vampires—promises to return favors once he became king.
Most thought it unlikely; he was fifth in line. But anyone who followed politics knew Marius might be the only one who could outshine the old kings.
"Are we certain the devils won't play tricks, Lord Rizevim?" he asked.
He stood near the doorway, leaning against the frame, watching his father talk to the devil many believed could actually challenge Sirzechs Lucifer and not lose.
Rizevim Livan Lucifer—Marius knew the man was shrewd enough to tear the Tepes faction apart from the inside.
"They wouldn't be foolish enough for that, King Tepes," the devil said, calmly sipping tea while the king shifted uneasily. "They wouldn't risk destroying what they've built with you."
Marius doubted it. He wasn't as confident as his father about Rizevim's plan.
But did that matter? Of course not.
'You won't be king for long,' he thought, staring at his father's back. Rizevim caught the look and smirked. Marius nodded.
What they didn't know was that Rizevim hadn't come for some random artifact. Marius wasn't even sure why a piece of flesh was being called an artifact—what the devil really wanted was his sister's Sacred Gear. He'd approached Marius because the prince was known for researching Sacred Gears and finding ways to extract them.
Rizevim shared Marius's interest in Gears. Marius promised to reveal everything he'd learned about Sacred Gears in exchange for Rizevim's help making him king. So the devil agreed to back the prince and the Tepes faction against Carmilla.
"And even if a few devil pillars find loopholes and join the Carmilla side," Rizevim said confidently, eyes on the chessboard laid out on the table, "they'll never match the Tepes. Your daughter's Longinus is enough to strengthen the Tepes army and crush Carmilla."
A pawn moved by Rizevim took the queen on King Tepes's side.
The king lunged and captured the pawn.
"If we run into trouble," Rizevim continued, looking up at Marius, "I have one more hidden thing—a trump card."
He slid his queen forward and boxed in King Tepes's piece, leaving it nowhere to go.
Checkmate.
And all King Tepes could do was stare.
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{A/N: Got a pat reon named RedLamp01 with 30+ chapters for this story (60+ total).
Till Chapter 78 available on Pat reon for this story and till Chapter 34 available for DxD: Black Dragon Emperor.}