Chiba City, Central District. Eligos estate. Basement.
As red light bloomed from the magic circle, the five of them officially returned to their own territory.
"We're finally back," Utaha said first, stretching as she spoke with a sigh of relief. "Being home really does make you feel at ease."
"Yeah," Asuna agreed, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "We were only gone for two days, but it feels like so much longer."
"That's probably because of everything that happened," Yukino said quietly. "No matter how you look at it, we brushed past death. It'd be strange if we felt nothing."
Her words left everyone silent.
Thinking back on the past two days, everything felt oddly unreal.
They'd been nothing more than ordinary high school girls. Yet now they'd experienced battles where life and death were on the line. The more they thought about it, the more unbelievable it felt.
Still, they'd already had plenty of time to process it. Their mindsets had subtly shifted, and none of them were trapped in those thoughts anymore.
"I don't think anyone's hungry," Mahiru said with a gentle smile. "Rias-senpai already treated us really well. I'll go prepare some tea so everyone can relax."
"I'll help," Asuna said right away. "Tomoe gave me some tea leaves her family grew. This is a good chance to try them."
"Speaking of which, Koneko also gave me a lot of snacks," Utaha said, pulling out a package. "They'll make perfect tea snacks."
"Then I'll head to the study," Yukino said calmly. "Akeno-senpai and Shinra-senpai recommended several books to me. The study has copies, so I want to see what makes them so highly praised."
One by one, they decided what to do next.
"Go on, then," Leo said. He hadn't interrupted, and seeing them quickly return to their usual rhythm, he smiled. "We'll take tonight off from training. Do whatever you want and get yourselves settled. After tonight, though, I won't let you slack off."
"We know."
The girls nodded and left the basement.
Leo left as well, only to run into someone waiting for him halfway down the hall.
Miyamoto Musashi approached from the other side, a sword at her waist, fully armed. She looked at Leo and smiled brightly.
"You're back."
"Yeah, we're back, Musashi-san," Leo said, raising a hand in greeting.
"I've already heard what happened," Musashi said, giving him a once-over and nodding in satisfaction when she saw he was unharmed. "I didn't expect you to run into an Old Maou Faction attack on this trip. Life really is unpredictable."
As a servant of a Maou, Musashi was clearly well-informed. She already knew what Leo and the others had faced.
"Did you know people from the Old Maou Faction too?" Leo asked, noticing the nostalgia in her tone.
"Of course," Musashi replied without hesitation. "When I first met Serafall-sama, she wasn't a Maou yet."
In other words, back then Serafall had still been the Sitri House's young lady, fighting on the front lines as a leading figure of the reformist side against the Old Maou Faction.
"When I was about to reincarnate as a devil, the civil war was at its peak," Musashi continued. "I witnessed several of those battles myself. I know just how stubborn and insane those Old Maou Faction lunatics were."
She sounded a little wistful.
"The Trix House you ran into was wiped out by the Sitri House under Serafall-sama and the Glasya-Labolas House under Falbium-sama. That was before I'd even reincarnated as a devil."
The Falbium she mentioned was the current Maou Asmodeus—Falbium Asmodeus—just like Serafall Leviathan, a future Maou-Class existence.
In other words, the Trix House had been annihilated by the current Maou Leviathan and the current Maou Asmodeus leading their respective houses. That alone showed just how despised that family had been.
"In my eyes, no one in the Trix House was normal," Musashi said, clearly harboring no goodwill toward them. "Every last one of them was crazy—obsessive, volatile, quick to anger. Even the true ruler of the Underworld at the time, the son of the original Maou Beelzebub they swore loyalty to, could only use them as executioners. They weren't suited for any other role."
She shook her head.
"You were lucky to come back in one piece after running into people like that."
Hearing this, Leo thought of Lafei Trix and his actions.
Indeed. Hot-tempered, obsessive, and downright unhinged. Leo had thought that was just Lafei's personal disposition. He hadn't expected the entire Trix House to be like that. No wonder they'd been exterminated.
"Could it be… that this mental state comes from their demonic power nature?" Leo wondered.
Just like how devil families passed down traits and characteristics through generations, the Trix House's inherited demonic power traits—or even their trait itself—might have been inherently flawed, turning every generation into the same kind of obsessive madmen. It wasn't unheard of in devil history.
"Let's not talk about them anymore," Musashi said, changing the subject. "I've received instructions from Serafall-sama. From now on, I'll be stationed here. I'll guide Asuna's sword training and also be responsible for protecting all of you."
"Besides me, the Underworld should send another expert over in two or three days, just in case."
"Sirzechs-sama already came to the human world, didn't he? He told you about this, right?"
Leo nodded. "Yeah. I know."
"Good," Musashi said cheerfully. "Until the Underworld's arrangements are finalized, I'll be fully in charge of the Eligos servants' security. If you have any plans outside of school, let me know so I can prepare."
"Oh, and Serafall-sama also told me to train you hard," she added. "Right now, the entire devil world—and even the angel and fallen angel sides—are watching you. Some are looking forward to your growth. Others are waiting to see you stumble."
"As long as it's something I can do, just say the word."
With that, Miyamoto Musashi left.
Leo watched her go, deep in thought.
It was clear now. Their emergence had drawn far more attention than he'd expected.
Not just the devils—heaven and the fallen angels had reacted as well. Otherwise, Sirzechs and the others wouldn't have rushed to make these arrangements.
Even if no one said it outright, Leo could tell from their attitudes that the various factions had already started moving.
"It's a shame we were exposed too early," Leo murmured.
If it hadn't been for the Old Maou Faction's attack, the Eligos servants' special nature could've stayed hidden longer, giving them more time to grow.
"If I'd had half a year… no, even just three months, I'm confident I could've raised Yukino and the others to a whole new level."
Even now, Yukino—the first to join—had only been reincarnated as a devil for two or three months. Asuna even less. Utaha and Mahiru had been devils for under a month. The strength they already showed was proof of their exceptional talent.
With another half year, Leo believed Yukino and Mahiru—both Longinus wielders—would become forces capable of standing on their own, unafraid even of facing someone like Lafei Trix head-on. Asuna and Utaha would grow to a level where they wouldn't lose to anyone among the Gremory or Sitri servants, including Akeno and Tsubaki—those two Queen piece holders.
If they could successfully master Balance Breaker, Leo would fear even less. By then, he'd have the confidence to confront anyone who dared set their sights on them.
When that time came, Leo had no intention of hiding anymore. At the latest, when the Eligos servants truly stepped onto the stage, he would make everyone understand just how strong he and his servants really were.
But plans never survived contact with reality. Before that could happen, their potential had already been exposed, drawing the watchful eyes of countless factions.
"This won't do," Leo muttered.
He returned to his room and sat at his desk, one hand supporting his chin as the other tapped lightly against the tabletop.
"Even if the Maou have arranged things and given us a degree of protection, real safety is never something others give you. It's something you seize for yourself."
"True strength is the only way to shut down all malicious intent."
"Maybe… it's time I thought of a way to accelerate Yukino and the others' growth."
Lost in thought, Leo stayed there for a long time.
Outside the door, Mahiru arrived carrying freshly brewed tea. When she saw the scene inside, she fell silent, then quietly stepped back without disturbing him.
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You can read up to chapter 164 on patreon.com/NiaXD.