Chapter 83: 83. Sirzechs's Visit and the Tepes Faction.
Omniscient POV
After getting an earful from Serafall, Sirzechs had come to meet the Sabnock heir today. What he didn't foresee was the strong barrier surrounding Kouske's house.
Previously, the barrier was only tough enough to require a Satan Class to get serious to break it. But now, no one in the Satan class could ever hope to destroy it.
Even Sirzechs himself would have to put in a bit of effort to break this. Seeing something like this unexpectedly, he was quite surprised.
His Queen, Grayfia, who accompanied him, was as shocked as he was.
As both of them were busy examining the barrier, the door opened suddenly, revealing a blonde maid who looked too young to be working according to the laws of the human world.
However, in a devil society, where laws and values differ, it isn't surprising to see pre-teen girls working as maids. They often receive training from an early age.
Sometimes they even become bed warmers for young heirs, as devils mature quickly and become sexually proactive rather soon. Sirzechs thought it might also be something like that.
"Greetings, Satan Lucifer and Lady Lucifuge. Are you here to meet Kouske-sama?" asked the girl while bowing politely.
"Umm... Hello. Is he home?" asked Sirzechs, scratching his cheek with one of his fingers and laughing awkwardly. Grayfia also returned the greeting.
"Please come in. He is waiting for you," said the girl, leading them toward the meeting room.
After a short walk, they reached the room and saw Kouske already there. After asking them to take a seat, Kouske addressed them.
"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit from the great Lucifer-sama?" said Kouske sarcastically, his expression blank, making everyone feel awkward.
Grayfia had a look of disappointment in her eyes as she sighed.
"Kouske-kun, are you still mad about that incident?" asked Sirzechs.
"Should I be glad that I almost got mind-fucked?!" retorted Kouske, laughing bitterly.
"Please mind your language, Kouske-sama!" says Grayfia, glaring at Kouske.
Kouske glares back, but Sirzechs intervenes, "Grayfia, please stay quiet before things become even more complicated." Grayfia backs down, apologizing.
"I really am sorry, Kouske-kun. I didn't mean to do anything serious. You should know about my position," says Sirzechs.
After staring at him for a while, Kouske sighs and asks, "So, why are you really here? To finish what you started?"
"I already said sorry. But Kouske-kun, please tell me, what are your intentions with the devil faction?" asks Sirzechs.
Though he had previously been passive out of guilt, Sirzechs now seemed serious, and Kouske knew he wanted a definite answer.
"I can assure you that I do not have any intention of harming the devil faction. You can rest assured of that," Kouske replies seriously.
Sirzechs looks into his eyes for a bit and then replies, "I guess I can work with that. What do you want to do to rebuild your clan in the Underworld? Do you have any plans? You would need constant resources to rebuild and reclaim all those territories. How do you plan to solve that?" asks Sirzechs with a smile upon hearing his answer.
"Well, I can't just rely on my father's wealth. So, I do have some plans to make money in the Underworld, like business and such," replies Kouske.
"Then I can help you with that," says Sirzechs.
Seeing Kouske's surprised face, Sirzechs laughs. "Ha ha ha. Don't look at me like that. You know what Gremorys are famous for?" asks Sirzechs.
"Garments and hotels? And also camels, I think," replies Kouske unsurely.
"Yes. I can introduce you to some of our contacts. I believe they can help you get started," says Sirzechs.
"And why the generosity?" asks Kouske.
"Truth be told, it's nothing much. Just accept it as a token of my goodwill," says Sirzechs.
"Well, I guess I am not opposed to meeting them. It helps me out," replies Kouske.
"Great. I will contact them. By the way, the tea is great," replies Sirzechs, a bit surprised by the flavorful taste after a sip.
They were already served tea and snacks by Sakuya while they were chatting. Grayfia was also asked to take a seat but she politely declined and stayed standing behind her master.
"Yeah, Sakuya's cooking is always great, even though it's just tea here," replies Kouske while looking at Sakuya.
It was only then that both of them noticed that the two maids were almost boring holes into each other with their stares.
Sirzechs had the same reaction upon seeing Sakuya's face for the first time. He had already seen her alongside Akatsuki in some videos but didn't expect to see her here of all places.
The bigger surprise was the power he felt from her. She was hiding it very well, but his sharp instincts, honed over centuries and through the Great War, told him that this girl was dangerous.
A super devil class human! It was far too unbelievable for him to digest all these at once. And if he didn't know about her beforehand, he would have definitely mistaken her as Grayfia's relative.
He didn't sense any other auras from her, so she must be human. Sirzechs could see that both maids were trying to figure each other out.
All the while, Sirzechs and Kouske had been chatting, these two maids were staring at each other.
"Ahem..."
"Cough..." both Sirzechs and Kouske tried to get their attention.
The two maids finally broke their intense staring contest, snapping back to their professional demeanors.
"Well, it seems our maids have found something interesting about each other," Kouske remarked dryly.
"Indeed," Sirzechs agreed, slightly amused. "Sakuya-san, this is Grayfia, my Queen."
"It's an honor," Sakuya said, bowing slightly. Grayfia returned the gesture with a similar gesture.
"Now, back to business," Sirzechs said, turning his attention back to Kouske. "I'll set up a meeting with some of our business contacts for you. Would you be available next week?"
Kouske considered for a moment. "Yes, I'm free next week. We can arrange something then."
"Perfect. I'll make the necessary arrangements," Sirzechs replied. "And, Kouske-kun, I truly hope this is the start of a better relationship between us."
"Let's see how it goes," Kouske said, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.
Well, if he hadn't made a fortune by selling those holy weapons, things would have been very different right now. So, Kouske decided to let go of any of his previous grudges. He is benefitting after all.
Sirzechs stood up, signaling the end of the meeting. "Thank you for your time, Kouske-kun. And thank you, Sakuya-san, for the excellent tea."
"You're welcome," Sakuya replied with a polite smile.
As Sirzechs and Grayfia made their way to the door, Sirzechs paused and turned back to Kouske. "One last thing. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to reach out."
Kouske nodded, appreciating the gesture. "I'll keep that in mind."
With that, Sirzechs and Grayfia left via teleportation, leaving Kouske and Sakuya to their thoughts.
*
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Kouske's POV
It's been two months since Sirzechs's visit, and I've been busy managing my newly opened businesses across various parts of the Underworld. Serafall has also lent a helping hand.
I've successfully reclaimed all the lands lost to the monsters from the pits and even expanded our territory. While reconstruction will have to wait, these endeavors have provided excellent training for the members of Akatsuki.
But the cleaning of the central parts of the Underworld, where the most dangerous monsters emerge, will have to wait for a while until the others become stronger.
The alchemy unit of Akatsuki has been thriving, with top monster materials sent to them while the rest are slowly sold in the Underworld and on our website.
Despite noticing many spies lurking around, I've chosen to ignore them for now, until they take any foolish actions.
The 29 children from the church have regained their ability to use holy magic after their souls were healed—sucks for the church.
I'm training them and have granted them falna. If they excel, I might also reward them with useful sacred gear.
Akatsuki now boasts 700 members, and we're still actively seeking all types of supernatural individuals.
We've also extracted numerous sacred gears from unworthy owners. I've recruited around 46 devils with Ultimate Class physical prowess, all willingly entering the taming contracts.
Working for nobles was the dream job for most commoner devils in the Underworld, so most didn't hesitate to seize the opportunity to prosper.
Those who refused were sent back and had their memories wiped clean about the taming contracts.
During my visit to the Beleth Clan, I had the chance to meet the Beleth ancestor and their people, as well as some of the members of the Botis Clan who were also present there.
There were some interesting characters, especially Dutch Beleth, the Beleth ancestor who served the first Sabnock as his loyal assistant blacksmith.
He's currently the most skilled blacksmith in the underworld but has distanced himself from politics and other underworld matters after witnessing how the other clans treated the remainder of the Sabnocks after the Great War.
One thing I've come to realize after our brief encounter is that he's a Sabnock fanatic, keen for me to perfect my bloodline ability. Since then, he's been teaching me blacksmithing. I can already see the difference between being self-taught and learning from a professional.
The Beleth Clan, known as the swords of the Sabnock clan, specializes in various martial arts.
They boast a unique Clan ability, Abyssal Slash, an ability to cut through things, which I find incredibly useful and potentially powerful at higher levels.
Unfortunately, they still haven't been able to bring out the true power of this powerful ability.
Bertrand, skilled in swordsmanship, has been chosen to remain by my side as my sword by the Beleth Clan. I also accepted, and now she resides in my Sabnock Clan Mansion.
I've been pretty busy lately, juggling numerous tasks. With the reclamation and reconstruction of the territory in the Underworld, I find myself visiting often. Fortunately, the girls have been a tremendous help.
The Botis Clan, on the other hand, possesses a bloodline ability called Mind Link, which revolves around the mind and emotions. So far, I've only met the heiress and her younger sister. Additionally, the youngest daughter of the Botis Clan Head resides in that mansion of mine, serving as a maid now.
Currently, I find myself in Romania, within the territory of the Tepes Vampire Faction. The air in Romania carries the unmistakable scent of pungent blood, which is quite uncomfortable.
Hastening my speed, I make my way to the City of Darkness, where the vampires reside. The entire city is enveloped in a massive barrier, preventing sunlight from penetrating and leaving it perpetually shrouded in darkness.
The Tepes Faction, a male-dominated vampire group, is embroiled in a civil war with the Carmilla Vampire Faction, a female-dominated counterpart.
Both factions equally mistreat and disdain the opposite gender, but the Tepes Faction can be considered the greater evil between the two.
Pure vampires are vulnerable to sunlight, holy magic, and holy swords, among other things. While the stronger ones may possess some resistance to these weaknesses, lower-class vampires burn and disintegrate into ashes upon direct exposure to sunlight.
To safeguard themselves, they remain protected behind the barrier, shielding them from the sunlight. Additionally, they have powers of immortality and darkness manipulation.
As I easily pass through the barrier via teleportation, I'm immediately confronted with the grim reality of the place.
Despite its outward appearance of a bustling city, it's steeped in malevolence. The air is thick with the cries of kidnapped humans, their numbers seemingly vast. Kept barely alive, they're imprisoned in a large cage, a diverse array of individuals from all walks of life, from children to office workers, pleading for help.
Observing from a distance, I follow a huge caged cart from behind, full of numerous humans. Then I spread my insect familiars throughout the city to investigate.
I recall the vampires' need for a large number of humans to feed the numerous dhampirs housed in a specific fortress, as per the original story.
Given the scale of the operation, it's highly likely that this cart may lead me there. Quietly trailing it, I anticipate that my actions will definitely disrupt the vampires' food supply, throwing them into chaos once I leave this place.
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