Venelana POV
It was slightly, perhaps a bit surreal. Walking out into the family room and seeing three of the current Satans sitting on my couch along with my Ancestor and my daughter as they were watching TV and eating snacks.
Specifically, they were watching the news coverage of the war going on between the Youkai and the Fae.
"Mom, why do you have a suitcase?" Rias looked up from her seat, and they all joined me.
"I –"
"That's a lot of Pheonix Tears." Ajuka chimed in, and then everyone looked at him.
"How would you even know she had Pheonix Tears inside?" Serafall questioned.
"What? You know that Pheonix Tears need to be kept properly or they lose their potency over time. Who do you think streamlined the spatial storage mechanism for the Phenex family?" He huffed.
"Nerd." Serafall snorted.
"I am not a Nerd."
"Mom, what're you doing with a bunch of Pheonix tears?" Sirzechs asked.
"Obviously she's going to drop them off for her lover." Our ancestor smiled. "Venelana has always been a dutiful partner."
I honestly couldn't even get a word in with all of them here. "I had some stored away, and I bought the ones available on the market to help out. I can't do much otherwise, but I figured they would appreciate a more potent healing method for emergencies, even if it's only a few hundred."
"Only a few hundred." Serafall snorted again. "I hope Lucy Jr. appreciates you doing this for him. A few hundred is a lot, even for us. He better at least spend a few hours on his knees between your legs, Mama Gremory."
"Oh, don't worry; from what Venelana told me, he appreciates her plenty." Ancestor said coyly.
Rias let out a squawk mixed with a pitiful cry.
"Dammit Serafall, don't start!" Sirzechs also whined, covering his face. "You promised you wouldn't make lewd comments about my mom."
"Technically, I was making lewd comments about your son." She corrected. "Your mom just happened to be screwing him." She grinned mischievously.
"What's wrong with you!?"
"I'm sexually repressed, and your mom hits all my buttons!"
They started fighting... or what accounted for it in this circumstance. They both tumbled to the ground, and Ajuka merely put his feet up on them, much to their chagrin.
Though it did make me smile nostalgically. It feels like just yesterday that they were simply kids playing around like this, running around the house, going into all sorts of trouble.
It made me come to a realization.
I want another one.
But I can wait.
"Where's Falbium?" I asked; their mischief wasn't even complete with their fourth.
Serafall huffed, getting back up on the couch. "He finally got back to the capital. Since he's missed so many of their important meetings and such, we decided to throw all our work on his lap and take a few days off."
Ah, that sounds exactly like what they would do even without being Satans. And it certainly explains why they were much more social and relaxed.
Ancestor Runeas seemed to be having fun watching them as well.
"And we're back here live as the first battle during the war is about to unfold. As you can see, there's some sort of castle – a stronghold in the distance surrounded with tall walls, and from the information we received, there are quite a few powerful magical protections around it." The reported on the TV spoke up again, and everyone hushed themselves, eyes glued to it.
The camera panned over to see some strange contraptions that I didn't recognize by sight, but I recalled mention of them by Yasaka.
"It looks like they're about the start, these strange machines – oh wow, I can feel the magic around them from here." Even as she reported, you could see them activate, and even the camera began shaking around them. "We –"
They fired off, all sound was cut off, and the camera, thankfully, wasn't some mundane equipment, so it was able to capture the footage.
A very powerful blast of magic erupted, shooting at the castle, and the defensive barriers around it became visible for the briefest of moments, a fraction of a second because that's how long they lasted before being destroyed.
We all stared at it silently, perhaps with a bit of awe. Was it something unreachable by the people in this room? Absolutely not. Was it a genuine surprise to see some kind of...siege weapon, operable by the lowest threshold, capable of something like this? Most certainly yes.
"Wow, things changed a lot since I've been asleep. I wish we had things like that back in my day; maybe we'd have a lot more Devils around." Runeas commented, eating snacks without much reaction.
"That's rather…..new, Ancestor." Sirzechs forced out.
"You mean we don't have anything like that?" Runeas frowned. "What do we have then? I haven't kept up with military stuff; I never really cared about it."
"We have Sirzechs as a big beat stick to swing around at people." Serafall replied.
"Ah, that would also work." Runeas nodded in understanding.
Sirzechs let out a sigh. "It was never cost-efficient to do something like... We already have enough Devils capable of magic; gather a handful together, and they can release large-scale spells."
"Hmm, but that doesn't utilize the magic from a group of devils. There's no preparation time, the scale of which would also require at least a dozen competent Mid-Class Devils with a good understanding of magic. You would also need someone to lead them in casting, so one High-Class as well. And it can be easily interrupted by outside interference. And the training to accomplish this would take years of them working together in harmony if you wanted it to be efficient. And lastly, they would be taken out of the fight after one, maybe two, uses of a large-scale magic." She listed off absentmindedly, everyone looking at her, blinking in surprise.
It was easy to forget who she was when she was nearly falling off the couch in a sloven position, munching on some snacks with crumbs on her face and her skirt barely covering her because it was bunched up from the position she was laying.
"What do you think, nerd?" Serafall looked at Ajuka.
"Don't call me that." He said it expressionlessly, staring at the screen without blinking. "The power source is the key." He reached for the remote, rewinding the images on the TV. "It's a rather elegant design, if a bit simplistic. It's like the magical equivalent of a catapult. It seems like everything about it was designed from the ground up to be used by people who don't have the qualities of a magician. However, I can't comment further on it because I don't recognize that crystal-like body that is placed inside the main glass compartment. If I had to hazard a guess, it looked like some sort of solidified magical Power….while that's a naturally occurring phenomenon, it's highly irregular and rather rare, and I've never heard of it in such quantities and sizes. I would love to meet the person who made the whole device, as I can see the care they put into it even when it's meant to be used by non-magical people."
"You said these Youkai were a small faction?" Runeas looked at Serafall.
I looked at Serafall and she coughed awkwardly. "Well, they are... technically. I mean, a year ago, they weren't even worth mentioning."
"What's the measurement of a big faction these days?" Runeas looked at her.
"Uh…well, that's hard to say."
"Is it not enough that they have someone capable of killing gods?"
"Well…"
"Actually, they have more than one." I pointed out.
"Ah, my mistake." Runeas nodded. "Multiple individuals. And many more who are strong enough to make their names known... Oh, and you can't forget that we lost the Dragon King that used to live in our borders."
"Gugk." Serafall nearly choked.
They all somewhat winced at that.
No one would ever say it out loud, but they all considered Tiamat as 'theirs' despite the fact that she never really left the familiar forest except for the few rare occasions, such as when she was the referee of some rating games not long ago.
"Lots of people have been questioning that online." Ajuka replied with the same expressionless tone. "We never really made it clear what our relationship with Tiamat was for our own benefit. Now, it seems that's biting us in the rear as we're being called out for 'losing her'."
"Aren't they allied with the Norse faction now too?" Rias pointed out.
"Good point, my cute little descendant~" Runeas cooed while Serafall just became more crestfallen. "It's such a shame that they hate us so much; I would have loved to go on a trip and visit my descendant." She glanced at Sirzechs, who refused to meet her gaze.
"Miss Gremory.." Ajuka glanced at me, his eyes strange. It took me a moment to notice that his pupils had become spell circles. "You can store that in your bracelet; there shouldn't be a problem." He said it offhandedly.
I was worried that the spells that kept the Pheonix Tears would be affected by storing them inside. I suppose I was overthinking things, but it was always best to act with caution when it cost you nothing.
"Thank you, Ajuka." He was always a sweet boy; despite being foolish in his own right like the other kids, he was rather perceptive. I wasn't surprised he noticed my bracelet either, as it was magical in origin and he was a master of nearly all things magic. "For you, sweetheart." I took out a dust crystal I had on me and dropped it into his lap.
"!?" Ajuka's eyes widened. "Miss Gremory, where did you get this?"
"Oh, I got a few from Wilhelm." I smiled wistfully. Oddly, I was feeling a bit... lonely. Look at me, an old woman, and I'm missing my young lover only after about a week. "I wanted to see if it would effect some of my plants if I put them in my garden."
Ajuka's mouth opened, but he abruptly closed it, calming down. "Thank you, Miss Gremory."
"Have fun, kids; I'm heading out." I said my goodbyes.
"Where're you going, Momma Gremory?" Serafall asked, and I could tell it wasn't a question from Satan Leviathan, but someone who was close to a daughter for me.
"I'm going to have lunch with a few other of my sisters." I smiled happily.
Both Goddess Izanami and Salem were on the outside of this conflict as well, so it was important to make sure they're doing fine and didn't feel lonely without Wilhelm around. Maybe it was just all the years I spent running Zeo's harem, but doing things like this had become second nature for me.
I barely opened the door to go outside when I almost ran into someone.
"Lord Bael?" I blinked, seeing the Bael Ancestor at our door looking a little annoyed, presumedly not at me.
"Ah, Venelana. How wonderful to run into you. How have you been, my dear granddaughter?" He smiled more than just a polite reciprocation.
I found myself smiling back because he didn't call me 'Lady Gremory' which meant his visit was a social one and we didn't need to stick to decorum. "I'm well, grandfather. I was just about to head out, but let me welcome you inside."
It's simply easier for everyone to call him Grandfather instead of how many 'greats' before it.
"We have a guest." I announced, walking back inside, everyone turning to see me.
Zekram was just surprised to see all of them, looking between them and the TV. "I am surprised; did you not acquire this footage before it was publicly released?" He furrowed his brow.
The kids seemed to snap out of their surprise. "We already planned on taking the day off; there wasn't much difference in watching earlier this morning or now." Sirzechs offered.
It would be strange if they didn't have it, I suppose. Anyone who is anyone already had the footage way before it was properly released on the Devil TV.
Zekram just grunted in response, and the mood turned awkward.
"I am more than willing to leave the political intrigue at the door." He finally spoke.
"Oh, thank Big G, I was not in the right mind to play this game today." Serafall accepted it rather easily, and the others just nodded in agreement.
It was far from the first time we've gotten together with keeping those things out.
"Runeas." Zekram Bael looked at the primary reason for his visit.
Runeas sat up in her seat, looking at him blankly, not speaking.
"Why did you not come to see me? You've been up for days now."
"I'm sorry, Lord Bael. I wasn't aware I was supposed to answer to you, Lord Bael. I'll do better next time, Lord Bael. Please accept my apology, Lord Bael."
Zekram twitched slightly. "Stop that!"
"I apologize again, Lord Bael. I'm just a lazy devil, Lord Bael. I'm afraid I can't measure up to your expectations, Lord Bael. I'm just a pitiful Duke, Lord Bael. I can't possibly measure up to a king such as yourself, Lord Bael."
"You're doing that on purpose; cease your childishness, Runeas!" Zekram clenched his jaw in annoyance.
There was no one in existence that could get under the skin of Lord Bael. That would be true if Runeas didn't exist.
The kids were just looking back and forth between them, wondering if they were probably hallucinating.
"What can this lowly Duke do for you, Lord Bael?" She smirked slightly as she did it again.
Only she can make the title of Lord Bael sound like an insult to him.
Zekram's eye twitched violently. "Is it so wrong for me to visit my family?" He said with a rare huff.
Runeas did smile slightly. "Your family? All I see are Gremorys and a few others."
Zekram rolled his eyes. "Who cares what last name they wear? They are Baels."
"Uh huh." Runeas just answered blankly.
"They are Baels!"
"Weird, their names are Gremory? Rias dear, what's your family name again?"
"Bwah?"
"Don't bring her into this!" Zekram grumbled. "And they carry my bloodline! They wield the power of destruction!"
"You mean my family wields the power of destruction?" The new Gremory Trait."
"Don't you dare!"
"Say I'm wrong." Her smile grew wide.
"I am the progenitor!"
"Let's do a roll call. You have Venelana, a rather talented young woman, even if she doesn't train as much as she should." Runeas shot me a look. "But she's a lot better than when I was up last time."
She noticed then, interesting.
"You have Rias here, also hailed as a talent. You have Sirzechs; need I say anything about him? And you even have Millicas, his child, who is also a genius. Now here's a question: What name do they have?"
Zekram's eye was twitching violently at this point.
Runeas's smile never disappeared; if anything, you could see the maliciousness in it. "Wilhelm."
"That one is utter bullshit, and you know it!" He threw his finger out, accusing her.
"Son of Sirzechs, lover of Venelana, that sounds like a Gremory to me."
"You are an infuriating sloven woman child!"
"Thank you, Lord Bael."
Zekram just let out a low growl, clearly annoyed beyond limits. "Enough, you know why I'm here."
"Alright, fine." Runeas let out a small sigh. "Enough playing around I suppose; come on, let's have that talk that needs to happen."
Everyone just looked at them as they left the room.
"What the fuck did I just watch?" Serafall blurted out after they disappeared.
"That always happens when they're in the same room. It's not just well known because Runeas sleeps all the time." I happily informed them.
Surprisingly though, they're very much allies and would immediately come to the other's aid if the situation was dire.
Oh well, I should head out; the show is over, it seems.
"That little son of a bastard is trying to do what!?" Runeas' voice blew out of the room they were in, the shattering of glass apparent as every window in the whole house broke, the release of a wisp of her power seeping out with her words.
I should probably head out before I get caught up in something and get delayed further.
Thankfully, they all seemed more concerned about the two old devils than me, giving me a good chance to make my escape.
@***@
Odin POV
"Ah, it's Lady Jinn!"
"Jinn!"
"Jinn!"
"Show them Asgard's might, Lady Jinn!"
"She's not fighting you idiot!"
It was nice.
Despite Asgard not being fully rebuilt as of yet, nor the Norse Realms returning to full peace and tranquility, there was a bit of a reprieve.
The times were changing.
Freya and I set up a large magical projection so everyone could watch what was going on with the other side of the world.
Officially, we were allies of the Youkai, and that was a recognized fact by every God of Asgard and the Norse Realms.
Unofficially, we would tear apart anyone that tried to meddle with them with a fervor that would make even Surtr take pause.
Unfortunately, we couldn't really help out with their current problem. Oh, we never shied away from a war, and in another situation, we would have stood shoulder to shoulder with the Eastern comrades of ours regardless of who the enemy was.
But they needed to settle matters mostly by themselves. They were the ones given a black eye, and to not appear weak, they had to return the favor and throw some punches of their own without someone holding their hand.
However, that would all cease to be if our newest goddess suffered a single strand of her hair being harmed.
The Brat, well, everyone respected him. If he called for aid, every god would answer his call without a second thought and willingly throw their lives away for his cause. He could have been King, and everyone would have accepted it.
For Jinn though….Jinn…many here would willingly cut off their own arms if it meant they could beat the person who harmed her over the head with them.
It didn't take much being around her to get her measure, and while many of the gods here were idiots, rarely were they foolish as well.
They all knew who Jinn was now—the kind and gentle goddess who didn't like fighting and was happy to live peacefully without any conflict.
Yet she stood up when no one else could and fended off the destroyer himself.
Fear not the man who relishes in blood; be wary of the man who fights to protect.
The sister? The daughter? It was hard to put a title to the feeling. We only knew that she was to be protected, and woe be to anyone who dares hurt her.
Though that little lass had her own means, so I wasn't too worried. Not to mention the brat and his lovers were there, and they felt similarly, so it was unlikely for her to come to harm.
I just enjoyed a drink, watching the festivities as the war started in earnest.
"All-Father."
"Elf." I greeted back as our other new God cam and sat next to me.
He grunted, finding himself a drink too. "Thank to you and the brat, I've found myself drinking more than usual. I thought you were all drunkards, but apparently it's something woven into the divinity here."
"Hah, don't act like you weren't a drinker before you got old. Stop being a whiney old man and accept your new youth with dignity." I snorted.
"Bah, I drank proper wine, not this…..slosh."
"If you want something a little prissier, I think we can find some milk for you." I offered.
"Hmph, it'd be better than this crap." He didn't bat an eye at my insult.
"What's with that look on your face?" I noticed he was acting a little odd. "Even if you don't' like joining in the fun, you at least used to just sit at the side without looking all mopey and ruining the atmosphere."
The Elf God tapped the table with a frown. "You've been doing something."
I raised an eyebrow, taking a drink. "I do a lot of things."
"You've been recruiting quite heavily. You've lowered the standards a bit for Valkyries to grab new souls. You've even taken to inviting people outside the normal methods. I heard you visit a few smaller Magician Circles in the Human World and recruit a good number of Magicians."
"Maybe I have; maybe I haven't."
The Old Elf tapped his finger more. "You're preparing for another war."
I put my cup down, a little annoyed that the elf was always so perceptive. "And if I was, what would you have to say about that?"
"How bad is it?"
"Very bad." I didn't hide my own feelings. "Ragnarök might have been a mercy."
The Old Elf, despite being somewhat youthful again as a God, let out a tired sigh reminiscent of his true age and mentality. "Is the kid involved?"
"Smack in the middle of it." I nodded.
"Why does it seem like he's always in the middle of things that happen recently?"
I let out a chuckle. "You know how it is, Elf. Heroes are always at the center of conflict."
"I'll go stir up a conflict with the Trolls; see if I can't get them to start causing problems." The Old Elf grunted. "Should cover up what you've been doing in case anyone has been paying close attention. Maybe get the remains of the Jotun to do something too."
"That's probably for the best." I nodded.
Maybe I was a tad too overt. But with hostility reignited, even on a small scale, it's very plausible deniability as a reason to recruit large amounts. I've also been using our rebuilding and recruiting to recoup our losses as a reason to seek out Sacred Gears and search for those blasted Holy Relics along with Bone Daddy down below.
No one's going to look twice at the Norse trying to get some powerful tools under our belt after the losses we suffered. And maybe the elf was being a bit too careful, but it wouldn't hurt to take precautions.
"Something else is bothering you; just spit it out."
The Old Elf grumbled again. "You know our origins, right?"
"So this is going to be one of those talks." I sighed, wishing I had something stronger to drink. I should steal one of the Brat's jars of whine from before. "Alright, hit me."
The Old Elf scowled. "It's taboo, even among the Dark Elves. But it's undeniable that our origins lay in that realm." He pointed at the magical screen that showed the war between the Youkai and the Fair folk going on.
"You don't need to tell me; I was around when your lot happened upon the formation of the Nine Realms and migrated." Though I was much less of a 'person' at that point in time. It took awhile for the concept of an 'Ego' to form under everything.
"I mentioned it offhand to the kid, but he probably didn't pay it any mind when I called them our distant cousins." He continued to tap the table impatiently. "We're not the same anymore; we no longer have any ties to that place; we're Elves of Alfheim down to our cores."
"You worried about him?"
"Is it odd?" He countered.
"The kid is strong."
"Strength isn't everything. I just don't like that some of ours is in that place without us being there."
"Oh, 'One of ours', huh?" I smirked.
The Old Elf let out a huff of annoyance. "How bad would it be if I went over there with them?"
Huh, he was serious.
Well, I couldn't fault them; from what I recall, the origins of the Elves of Alfheim were that they were a banished tribe of Elves from the Fae lands in a time before time and stumbled upon Alfheim as it formed, becoming the realm's inhabitants in more than just name.
They're not Fae, despite being Elves.
Their nature completely changed.
It seemed to be something weighing on him a lot due to his origins.'
Was it the blood of his that couldn't accept that place and hated it, which was causing him to act up?
"I'll send a message over. While they shouldn't immediately reject you, at the same time, it's hard to insert yourself into what they're doing. You're going to need to wait for an excuse to get properly involved."
"Thank you, All-Father." He responded with a rare politeness.
"Anything for a friend." I returned it with a smile.
@***@
Non-Canon Omake: The Little Spider
"Student, you collar is not straight." Scáthach grabbed Wilhelm, gently, and adjusted it with a small smile on her face. "There, you look presentable for your first day of schooling."
It felt odd for him to be doted on in this regarded by her, but he couldn't deny that he enjoyed it.
Things calmed down a lot over the past two years. Less and less had Wilhelm been running off on an adventure that required his dedicated attention. Less and less were there foes that required him to put his life on the line to defeat.
The Grand Order had been completed.
Alduin had been slain.
And Trihexa had been defeated.
Among other threats to the various worlds he travelled, things had become peaceful. Obviously, there would always be conflicts, and he was far from rusty at this point in time due an idiot here or there that wanted to destroy the hard gained peace. But at the end of the day, his life had become more relaxing and normalized.
And most importantly, he was happy.
His family had grown in size over the years, though children was still something he and his lovers were working on, but there wasn't any great rush there. Perhaps in a couple more years, they may start taking increasingly assertive measures to facilitate pregnancy. But once more, they were content to simply live their lives as they were.
Amidst this peace, Wilhelm had been discovering more of himself. Taking time to smell the proverbial roses without a looming threat allowed him to evaluate himself in a different light.
There were things he felt like he was missing, regrets he didn't realize he had. When you don't have to worry about a Demon God destroying all of human history, it's amazing what you can understand about yourself.
One such regret he found was that he wished he finished schooling.
It was funny, in a way, for him. How quickly and happily he abandoned school in favor of adventure and freedom.
But part of growing up was looking back and acknowledging that many of your decisions when you were younger came not from mature and levelheaded places.
Sure, he didn't regret leaving that school. But he regrets that he abandoned school altogether.
Maybe he was an odd one, but he didn't dislike school even as a kid.
Wilhelm liked to learn new things, to discover and explore.
At his core, he was a researcher.
So, he broached the idea of returning to 'school' to his lovers and they had been exceedingly supportive.
However, and surprisingly, Scáthach had been the most supportive. When it was merely an idea, she was the one who pushed him to do it, to not let him abandon the idea nor procrastinate.
Even with all his girls around him now, about to see him off to college, it was Scáthach who looked at him with the most pride.
Wilhelm was happy.
It wasn't just his own desire, his mom always told him how she wanted him to go to college. She even tried her best to save money when they have very little, even if that didn't turn out well.
Wilhelm also wanted to do this to honor the memory of his mother.
And he wanted to do it properly.
That is to say, at this moment in time, he was no different than how he was before that stray Exorcist stabbed him through the heart with a holy sword and awakened his past memories.
To nearly everyone who wasn't trying to peer deep inside of him, he looked like an average human.
Well, there were a few things that were impossible to hide away. He was far more healthy and had a bit more strength and such than a normal human his size and shape should possess, but that wasn't worth mentioning.
He had sealed away all his powers and abilities and mythical items.
"Take care of this for me." Wilhelm slid his storage ring off his finger and placed it into the hand of Scáthach.
He would never allow anyone but someone he loves take care of that and all his treasures. It was his Devilish nature, he was far too greedy to allow others to touch his treasures without a good reason. The only thing that outweighed that was his love for his friends and family.
Though, even with everything sealed, he felt a twinge of anxiousness as it was the first time that ring left his finger in years.
That wasn't to say he was without protection. However, there was just nothing he could facilitate on his end.
He wanted to be truly 'human' for awhile to experience it properly.
Obviously, he made sure everything was set up beforehand.
He chose a world that he hadn't experienced yet. He didn't want any 'distractions', no people looking for him there even by accident. No world where he was already a known variable.
Eventually, with the help of his Grandfather, they found a world-line not too dissimilar from his home. Supernatural existed in modern day, Gods walked the Earth, but there was a strict divine between normal and abnormal. Some sort of Magical Mist that covered the world and hid the supernatural behind a guise.
If a human saw something they weren't supposed to, the Mist automatically made an illusion to cover it up, or obscured it in their subconscious.
Wilhelm had no intentional to get involved in anything there, so it proved to be the best choice out of all the world-lines they looked at.
He was no longer the Red Dragon Emperor, the Godslayer, the Magician, etc.
Simply, he was Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg, College student who happened to take a few years longer than most kids there to enroll.
The goodbyes were difficult as they always were.
Not that he would be spending a ridiculous amount of time away. Atleast from the perspective of his girls, each semester would only be a couple weeks and he would even come back and visit quite often. But from his own subjective time, he would be going without seeing them for long periods.
With the last portal he created still open and no longer having access to his magic for the next few years, he walked through to begin a new, albeit temporary, life.
@***@
Wilhelm stepped out of the house he bought beforehand, one of the many preparations he made before diving off the proverbial cliff.
Maybe someone might think him foolish for willingly discarding all his substantial power and accumulated wealth, even temporarily.
However, this was important to him.
It helped keep him ground, and it was a milestone in his life.
He took a deep, still getting used to being basically 'human' again.
His reaction speed was sluggish, his senses were dimmed, and he honestly felt….weak.
It was a strange, but good weak.
He took another deep breath, forcing himself to smile because he had one realization after leaving.
"I forgot to get my wallet before handing over my ring."
At the very least, he was thankful he set up mundane bank accounts and what-not to facilitate his mundane life. Not to mention, he had a bit of cash and other emergency necessities on hand in the house already until he sorted that out.
He most certainly wasn't playing the part of a poor college student, merely a human college student. He had a substantial amount of money available to him by ordinary views.
Thankfully, the house he purchased was within walking distance of the campus, somewhat.
Harvard was big.
Big enough that he needed some method of transportation to reach one side from the other.
He momentarily contemplated buying a bicycle. The thought was novel to him who used to fly around like it was nothing.
He never had a bike when he was a kid, they were too expensive. And now….well, perhaps it was time to explore other long forgotten dreams and desires of his.
It was the start of the year, so the roads were packed with both students and other people. There were even some stalls set up, people looking to hawk whatever random crap they thought they could convince some naive kids to buy.
Wilhelm basically ignored it until he found something that piqued his interest.
He was quick to hand over an absurd Ten dollars for a pack of playing cards.
He knew it was overpriced by a large margin, but he didn't even care to argue. He couldn't help but smile with glee as he opened it up and flicked the cards between his fingers.
It had been many years since he played around with the street magic he picked up on a whim early on in his 'career' as a runaway Magus.
It actually helped him with utilizing his Talismans when he was still starting out. Finger dexterity was an important facet in many things…..not all of them combat.
He absentmindedly shuffled the pack of cards in his hands as he walked across the Harvard Campus.
Classes hadn't started yet, everyone was still moving in, thus he had free time. The first place he decided to visit was of course the famous Harvard Library!
There shouldn't be very many people there this time yet, so he figured it would be enough for him to explore without gaining too much attention.
He heard an old story that there's a hidden secret room filled with a bunch of lost books that no one can find and it's not on any maps or official schematics.
Wilhelm honestly didn't know if there was truth to that story or not, but he wanted to find out.
Ascending the steps, he couldn't help but admire the architecture either, he put a hand on it, inspecting it thoroughly. It was an elegant mix between some old Greek influence and a more modern interpretation. Of course modern is relative when the building is about a century old.
"It's impressive, isn't it?"
Wilhelm turned to look at who was talking to him, a woman, and rather beautiful at that, perhaps around his age, with brown hair and interestingly gray eyes.
"The library itself or are you referring to the Greek inspired columns?" He asked.
"Well, I think any library is impressive inherently. But I do admire the way they stuck to a more traditional design. It doesn't merely pay homage to the ancients, but it's also a very convincing replication of early techniques." She spoke.
"Ah, fake Greek designs. At a distance they look magnificent, but you only have to get into a few feet of it to see that it's all appearance and no substance. You can easily tell the difference in the handiwork. Of course the time period makes it easy to differentiate. Even the attempts at replication deserve praise considering they lacked the same scale of industrialization that trivializes the process and likewise removes the human element in sculpting and design. It's the imperfections that give it character even if it's not completely adhering to its ancient counterparts."
The Girl's eyes flashed in surprise, but a strange happiness in them. "You seem to be quite knowledgeable."
"As much as one can be for simply visiting various historic sites still standing."
"Well travelled then? That's still impressive." She nodded, sounding oddly pleased. "Your accent, I can't quite place it, where do you come from?"
"Japan, actually. I'm half Japanese from my mother's side. Otherwise, I could be considering German as well." He politely swept his arm infront of himself. "Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg, at your service."
She raised an eyebrow with a smile. "Sophia Pollis."
"Pollis?" Wilhelm hummed. "Greek?"
"A bit on the nose?" She chuckled. "My family has Greek ancestry dating back very long."
Wilhelm understood, he was used to old families using certain naming conventions even when they branched off over the centuries.
"Not many incoming students come to the library this quickly." She changed subjects easily.
"I suppose my wide-eyed tourist-like behavior was a give away." He made a little fun of himself. "It's their loss, I suppose. The library was one of my first stops as I recently moved into the area for school. I wanted to explore a bit, maybe see if I can find the fabled hidden room in the library."
"That's just a myth." The corners of her lips twitched as she brushed her hair behind her ear. "But it's admirable to visit the library so soon. You wouldn't believe how many people here don't make full use of such a wonderful resource. What's your major? By your insight before, it has to be something to do with architectural design, right? Or is that simply a passing hobby?"
"My major? I'm sorry to say you wouldn't be able to guess it."
She quirked an eyebrow. "That sounds like a challenge."
"Oh? Very well then, be my guest." I gestured for her to give it a go.
Wilhelm was happy, it seemed like he already made a new friend here!
She tapped her chin. "I'll rule out Architecture based on what you said, the insinuation was obvious. Hmm, visiting the old world with an adept understanding….guessing you're a history major feels too easy."
"Is that an answer? I'll give you three guesses."
"What do I get if I guess it right?" She seemed amused.
"How about, I'll show you my world famous magic trick?" He took out the deck of cards from his pocket, flicking one of the cards out of the middle and catching it with his other hand.
"World famous?" She snorted. "That's a bold claim."
"Alas, the world simply doesn't know it yet." Wilhelm sighed exaggeratedly.
"Okay, let's use History as my first guess." She waved her hand flippantly.
"That's a good guess, and I genuinely considered that, but I'm afraid you're wrong. I'll even give you a handicap, if it's my minor, I'll call it your win."
Sophia felt a little twinge inside if her, she was competitive by nature, even in small unseeming contests, she didn't like to lose.
"Arrogance is often man's downfall."
"Arrogance is also the reason that humans can achieve sublimation."
"An interesting thing to say. Do you believe humanity has achieved this sublimation?"
"It's a process. Can you say that a thousand years ago man would ever dream that humans could step onto the moon, the domain believed to belong solely to their gods?" He countered.
"A valid point." She conceded, though she would normally have something to say about that specific example. "You have an interesting viewpoint. Very well, I'll choose literature."
"That's a rather broad guess, isn't it? Literature encompasses a very wide spectrum. It's like saying science when it both holds engineering and social sciences."
"Do you want to give up?" Her eyes nearly twinkled in amusement.
Wilhelm held his hands up. "Fine, fine. I'll let you have this one, but be a little more specific in your next guess."
"Not literature either?" She picked up that she was wrong even if he didn't outright say it. "You're not giving me much to go on. Why not give me a hint?" She said, playfully.
"A hint?" Wilhelm hummed. "I'll let you ask me a couple questions."
Sophia originally didn't intend to be wasting this time here, she approached the library for her own goal. However, seeing the strange man staring so intently at the column of the building, her curiosity was piqued.
One thing led to another, and her attention had been thoroughly grabbed by him.
It was….rare for someone to grab her attention so thoroughly with such little effort. He had a strange….charm about him.
"Why did you enroll in Harvard?" She finally asked after a moment. "You said you're Japanese. This is far from home for you."
"That's a good question. You see, Harvard had a resource I could make use of that I couldn't anywhere else."
Sophia was intrigued. "What resource?"
"Nepotism."
It took her many years of life experience to not immediately choke at that answer. "Nepotism?" She deadpanned.
"The lifeblood of the world." Wilhelm nodded sagely.
"I don't think I've ever heard it be called that…." Which was a feat in her long life. "You enrolled in one of the most prestigious institutes in the world for….nepotism?"
She was now questioning any further interest.
"You asked a question, I answered. If you want a more thorough explanation, use another question."
Curiosity got the better of her.
"Fine. Why nepotism." To her, he seemed quick witted and intelligent enough to succeed in other places.
"I dropped out of highschool." He smiled, making her go wide-eyed. "I was in a bad place when I was younger. In a sort of…rebellious phase, I forwent school and decided to travel. It took me awhile to find myself and one of my regrets was that didn't finish a proper education, so here I am."
Sophia mulled that over and found his decision to be somewhat admirable. It was praiseworthy for someone, in her eyes, to pursue higher education. But hearing what he said, she could accept that perhaps it was even more so for someone who so quickly abandoned education in the first place to return.
"How does Nepotism play here?"
Wilhelm coughed awkwardly. "My transcripts were not exactly…. exemplary."
Sophia blinked in realization what he meant by that.
"….I had a family member graduate some time ago." He added.
Nepotism indeed.
It was, however, part of the backstory that Wilhelm fabricated to not draw attention to himself. It was true, in some regard. Zelretch had actually gone to Harvard for a few years for some personal matter. Here, however, before he sealed everything away, he made sure his identity wouldn't raise any flags.
Thus, somewhere in the archives, he had a grandfather alumni.
It took some….hypnosis and a lot of money to secure his enrollment considering everything.
"One might say it's wise to make use of any resources available for you to get ahead in life."
"I would thank whoever says that, but I'm not under any delusion as to how I'm here. Though, I'm fairly confident that I will excel regardless. The important point is what one does with the opportunities they're given."
Sophia could accept that logic and approved of it.
"Art." She finally said after awhile. "That would cover a great many things you've said. It includes many branches such as criticism, and conservation."
Wilhelm opened his mouth dramatically. "Nope."
Sophia pursed her lips with a little huff. "Fine, tell me."
"My major is in Theatre." Wilhelm chuckled. Well, technically, it wasn't specifically Theatre. Is Theater Dance & media, but the point still stood.
"That is….surprising."
"I said you would never guess." Wilhelm shrugged. "My minor is astrophysics though."
Sophia blinked in surprise again. "That's even stranger."
She didn't know what to make of him in all honesty. Who majors in theatre then minors in astrophysics!
Not to mention she didn't peg him as a theatre person. He didn't seem to be the ….type.
Her brother cemented the 'type' in her mind that made it hard to differentiate others from it.
Wilhelm let out a dramatic sigh again. "It seems you're forever doomed to never witness my magnificent magical performance."
"I take back what I said, you're very much a theatre boy." She snorted. "It all adds up now, you have that unearned confidence that they all seem to possess."
"I'll have you know it's very much earned."
"Oh yes, I'm sure.
"You know what? I'll prove it. How about I recite some poetry." He grinned.
She rolled her eyes. "Please, woo me with your mastery of words."
Wilhelm cleared his throat.
"Roses of red, violets of blue."
"You're never going to see my card trick."
"Let the envy consume you."
"That's the worst poem I've ever heard." She said dryly. "My brother could learn a thing or two from how bad that was."
"You have my permission to be swooned."
"Oh, I have your permission?" She snorted again. "How arrogant, are you about to fly to the moon now? I would hate for the moon to fall from the sky because it can't handle the weight of your ego."
"What's that sound?" Wilhelm held a hand up to his ear.
"What sound?" She furrowed her brow in confusion.
"It's the distinct sound of a sore loser."
Sophia's lips twitched uncontrollably. "Did you get beat up a lot in school? Is that why you dropped out? I have a feeling that a lot of people wanted to hit you."
Wilhelm considered that, the latter half. A lot of people have said many things over the course of his life.
"Alright, I'll show you my magic trick." He finally relented.
"Who wants to see your dumb magic trick?!" She was ready to stomp her foot, but she caught herself.
It was strange, she had never met someone outside of her family that could poke her buttons so easily.
"….so you don't want to see it?"
She let out a sigh. "Fine, show me your magic trick."
She would admit, not out loud, but he did expertly handle the cards with a strange precision as he shuffled them.
"Alright, pick a card." He held it out for her.
She rolled her eyes and grabbed one in the middle, looking at it.
A King of Hearts.
"Alright, put it back in and don't tell me."
She had seen this a million times, she didn't even have to look to know what he was doing.
He reshuffled and tapped the top. "This is your card!" He pulled it up.
"No." She looked at the 7 of diamonds.
"Woops, my mistake." He then pulled from the bottom. "This is your card."
She shook her head at the 5 of hearts.
"This one?"
"no."
"This one?"
"No."
"This one!"
"Are you sure you're world famous?" She found the turnabout rather enjoyable as she looked at him struggling. Truthfully, it didn't ruin her perception of him in her eyes. It was rare that she found someone she genuinely enjoyed conversing with in this kind of way
"This one for sure."
"Do you want me to take pity on you?" She asked, looking at him and the several cards he tossed on the ground previously.
"Alright, fine. I give up." He surrendered.
"A wise man knows when to fold them." She said, pun intended.
She didn't care what the others said, she most certainly had a sense of humor. She looked at his defeated expression and did take a little bit of pity on him regardless. "Give me your contact information, we can study together sometime."
He perked up immediately. "Got a pen?"
She held one out for him to take and he grabbed a random card to write it for her and she casually accepted it.
He already waved her goodbye and started to walk off.
She glanced down at the card to memorize the information written on it then was about to toss it away before she did a double take.
King of Hearts.
"Arrogant bastard." She huffed, with a small smile playing at her lips.
@***@
The years passed by quickly.
Wilhelm was enjoying his time in school even as the end was approaching. These years had done him a lot of good for him. He hadn't needed to draw his sword against an enemy in so long that he was starting to feel a little antsy.
He didn't know if that was a good or bad thing.
He promised himself that he would make sure to wipe off the dust afterwards, but for the present, he simply enjoyed living a mundane life.
There were already plans in his head.
First and foremost, he was going to visit his mother's grave and leave her a copy of his diploma.
That was going to be the very first thing he does after graduating.
He just needed to graduate….well, that wouldn't actually be difficult for him. He was graduating near the top of his class. He couldn't claim to be the best in a structured academic setting, sometimes he simply dislikes doing busy work and forgoes it. His flippant nature is a part of him just as everything else is, if he's not forced to do something with minimal downside, he will sometimes not do it.
But, he made sure that he was passing everything with flying marks.
He was at one of the happiest points in his life.
He even managed to make several friends over the course of his school years! Some more acquaintances, but they were friends regardless.
He got to experience somewhat of a normal school life. His previous experiences, well, they made certain things about college life less exciting.
Still, he would join with friends, go out and meet people, do random and perhaps unwise things under the influence of cheap beer.
Speaking of friends, someone knocked on his door, he could barely see a reflection of his friend Sophia, but he was confused why she was here this late.
He was about to head to bed as it were.
He opened the door without hesitation, he had gotten lose to her these past few years, she's been in his house plenty of times at this point.
"Sophia what's – " He looked at the sleeping baby in her arms. "That's a baby."
"How astute as always, Wilhelm." She deadpanned, walking inside. "It's your child."
"….no it's not." He immediately denied with a blink.
"It's your child." She reiterated again.
He opened his mouth to deny it again, but clamped up with confusion because the child had the same red colored hair that he did. "Sophia, I havn't had sex with anyone since coming to Harvard." Well, anyone in this world. "Do I need to tell you how babies are made?"
She smiled patiently, not reacting to his verbal jab like normal.
It was a back and forth between them usually, one of them trying to get a rise out of the other.
"I'm going to miss your wit Wilhelm. Even if it was infuriating a lot of the time."
"Sophia, explain clearly." His expression hardened.
"This is the only expression of love I can give. This is the child between us, Wilhelm. I admired your intelligence for a long time now, you're a good person even if you can be rather arrogant at times. I know you'll raise her well, her name is Annabelle."
"Sophia –"
"My name is not Sophia." She spoke and the world shifted unnaturally. Even her looks slightly altered, and a wave of power crashed over the house. "I am Athena, Goddess of Wisdom. I created this child by combining our essences. She is a Demi-God, your child and mine." Her whole demeanor changed more commanding.
No physical proof needed to be given, it was as if the idea she wasn't a Goddess was rejected from any thoughts.
Wilhelm felt something inside of him as well.
A flurry of emotions he hadn't experienced in a long time.
Rage was at the forefront.
There were only two things that stopped him from destroying the apparent Goddess infront of him.
One, that his powers were sealed at the moment.
Secondly, ignoring everything else, he looked at the child the Goddess forced into his arms, and all the anger and desire to rampage dissipated.
He was still utterly furious, but it was all reined in to a controllable degree because he immediately fell in love with the little girl sleeping soundly in his arms.
To Athena's viewpoint, he was dumbstruck, understandably so.
She didn't treat his silence and surprise with any aggression. If anything, she found him keeping a level head proper and admired him for it.
She didn't just give her children to anyone.
There were some, some she misjudged that she had to threaten a few months later as they tried to abandon her children in some far off corner.
But in this case, she didn't feel like she would need to.
"There is a camp for others like her. You will receive a messenger when she gets older, make sure she goes to the camp. And don't tell her about her heritage. The more she knows about her heritage, the more danger she'll be in. Monsters hunt Demi-Gods by a specific scent they give off. I know this may be a bit overwhelming to you, but I can't stay for long. Certain ancient laws don't allow me as a Goddess to interfere with mortal affairs. Myths and legends are real, tread carefully and keep our daughter safe."
Wilhelm didn't even have the chance to utter a word before she disappeared from that spot.
Nor did he find the will to rage at her still.
He felt lost, unsure of what to do. There was a part of him that felt taken advantage of and it made a knot in his stomach.
Regardless of how it happened, without his consent….he had a daughter.
Another Daughter.
A baby.
He was holding his infant daughter.
A few tears began to swell up in his eyes because this was something he wanted to share with the women he loved, and it was stolen.
He wasn't thinking straight, his mind clouded. He made perhaps the best decision he could in that moment, and he went for one of the emergency backups in the house that upon activating, it pull him back to his home world.
He abandoned his schooling and mundane life without hesitation.
He collapsed onto the couch of his true home.
Immediately, everyone in the vicinity knew about. It only took moments before everyone nearby poured into the room, the sounds of a crying infant reached their ears.
"Wilhelm!?" Yasaka was the first to look at him in confusion.
"Student, who's child is that." She was the first to notice the similarities.
"It's mine." Wilhelm said softly, rocking her in his arms. "She's my daughter."
@***@
It took awhile for Wilhelm to fully explain.
The others recognized how uncharacteristic his attitude was.
"Kunou, come meet your little sister." Wilhelm said quietly as his other daughter finally entered the room at Yasaka's side.
Despite the strange situation, there was also an atmosphere of warmness as Kunou looked at her younger sister.
The not-so-young fox smiled. "Hey there, I'm Kunou. I'm going to be your older sister." She stretched out a finger, letting the young girl who was wide awake now grab onto it.
Wilhelm found himself smiling.
She was so old now, his little Kunou was almost an adult.
"Dad, what's her name?" She didn't ask about how she came to be, Yasaka already told her.
No one wanted to mention it seeing Wilhelm's expression. The anger wasn't just with him either, they all were utterly furious and had their own ideas about finding that supposed Goddess.
Meridia was present as well as Izanami, both of them had to be talked down from personally going to beat some sense into the supposed Goddess of Wisdom.
"Student." Scáthach said softly, holding the young girl in her arms. "Come, there is something you should see."
Wilhelm, not sure what she was talking about, stood up to inspect his newest daughter.
Scáthach moved the beanie-like hat the infant was wearing to keep her head warm and then rubbed two particular spots on her forehead. "Feel here.
Wilhelm silently did so and his eyes widened with tears forming again, this time, they were accompanied by a different emotion than before. "She's going to have little horns."
They didn't show just yet, but he could feel them beneath the surface.
She inherited his Devil blood.
That raised a great many questions that he didn't care to find answers to just yet. The turbulent emotions were still running wild.
"She's adorable." Jinn cooed, playing with her while Scáthach still held the baby.
"We should give her a new name." Venelana looked on. "A Devil name?"
"She has master's hair color." Raikou equally was enthralled by the infant.
It just made Wilhelm more angry, he wanted one of his girls to experience this first with him.
"Wilhelm." Artoria out a hand on his shoulder.
She recognized that his anger was flaring up.
"We should have her baptized." Jeanne eventually blurted out.
Everyone paused, looking at her before the room erupted in laughter, easily easing a lot of the tension in the room.
Artoria Alter had been silent, not offering words of encouragement, but she was sitting at his side, tightly grabbing his hand.
She knew part of what he was feeling, as did regular Artoria.
Both of them went through the experience of giving life to a child against their will and knowledge. Despite the fact that both of them accepted Mordred as their 'son' albeit in different regards, it was an experience they didn't like to recall.
"Shall we hunt down this Goddess? We can write your daughter's new name in her blood." Salem drawled.
Despite the bloodthirsty manner in which she said that, Wilhelm found himself smiling a little again seeing how many people here agreed with her thoughts.
"Arachne." Kunou blurted out. "Let's call her Arachne."
Wilhelm blinked snorting with barely held back laughter at the thought.
After a moment, he let out a sigh. "I never wanted one of my children to be without a parent. I wanted one of you to share this with me." He trembled slightly.
"Student." Scáthach said again, seemingly monopolizing the infant for herself. "The mother of this child cannot be changed." She spoke smiling softly as she looked down at the child. "I will be her mom, I will adopt her."
No one made an effort to refute her, nor did anyone believe the need to.
Mostly, they were surprised with how quickly she came to this decision.
Once more, Wilhelm felt tears swelling up in his eyes as the woman he loved said he would be the mother to his daughter. "Give her a name." He managed to get out.
"I like the suggestion." Scáthach smiled. "It was in jest, but I believe it feels appropriate. Arachne, my little spider. It is common for 'middle names' these days? I also have a name I have wanted to give a daughter if I ever had one. In my own myths in various worlds, many Scáthach's have birthed children and used the same name. Now, I wish to do so as well."
It didn't take long for the Immortal Witch to come to these decisions. She had long said she gave her everything to Wilhelm, she would have accepted the child regardless of if it came from within their group or not. But to know that she was without a proper mother…..and casting her eyes upon the spitting image of her student, Scáthach as well fell in love with the child immediately.
"She will be Arachne Uathach Schweinorg."
@***@
A/N
An Omake I had been casually working on for most of the week, mostly on my phone. It was a random idea I had, then someone in my discord posted a small snippet of it on QQ and it gave me the motivation to write it out properly. I'll most likely be doing follow up parts to it. I don't know how many parts in the series it'll have, but enough to constitute a numbering in the title.
A/N
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty under the same name if you can't use the above.
Also over here, I got the next part of Arachne Omake, the next chapter of Cultivation Cyclops, and the next Looking Glass Omake.
For some strange reason the Viking didn't believe me. He looked at me strangely for a moment, then let out a laugh and patted me on the shoulder.
"Thank ya lad, been awhile since I've had someone get a laugh out of me like that." Unnulf replied.
I just smiled wryly because I really couldn't prove it to him, and maybe I even shouldn't. For me, Gods weren't some unreachable vestiges that I could only look up. Nor were they the subject of my worship and admiration like many people.
To most 'mortals' Gods were something spoke about, but not really as a fact that you could point to.
They wouldn't ever know if Odin just dropped in and stood next to them.
Maybe I could have proven myself with an ample display of might, however…..we didn't actually want to destroy all the ships. All the damage we've done so far, well, it could be repaired without too much hassle.
Regardless, the tide turned with our arrival rather quickly.
"Hey Old Man, how long have you been fighting these Fae?" I ducked under a blade, casually countering with a flick of my wrist and piercing ones neck.
The Viking head butted one rather brutally, then bashed his head in with the hilt of his blade. "We don't really keep track of time these days, lad." He replied good naturedly, despite being soaked in blood. "But we got enough experience. These ones aren't their best, seems like they sent out a group for their own training."
Ah, that makes sense. They seemed a bit less experienced than they probably should be.
"I see." I frowned, catching his meaning. "They're treating you like a whetstone then?"
"Aye, that's about right. Using us to sharpen their blades, that's a good way to put it." Though his face darkened. "Though they had a few of their stronger ones hiding."
There was still enough fighting going on that it was going to take awhile to finish up even as the remainder of the ships came to assist and it became a much more chaotic fight.
And despite helping, Unnulf still kept a weary guard up against me.
I couldn't fault him, how long had he been in the Fae Realm? It was only the smart thing to be cautious against anything and everything they come across.
"Give me a moment, I'll end things."
Unnulf merely lifted an eyebrow from below his helmet, very clearly skeptical.
My Reiatsu spread out, but I held back on using it to press down, which was more tiring and difficult than I imagined.
I could almost verify that they were all in fact human, despite the oddities in their existence here, and their different seeming origins.
But I didn't focus on that, I felt every Fae in the vicinity when I focused. I can admit that my ability to sense people through my Spiritual Power was not up to par compared to the likes of Yoruichi and the Shinigami due to them basically living in these conditions, but when focusing for several moments, I could manage somewhat.
Pinpointing their exact signatures, their location, their auras were remembered by me as I ran some mental calculations.
And I took a deep breath.
"Zun Haal Viik!"
The words bellowed out, overcoming all other noise, even shaking the boats, causing the waves we rested upon to kick up in response.
However, nearly every Fae in the vicinity had their weapons flying from their hands with such force that the vast majority landed into the ocean below.
Easily one of my favorite Dragon Shouts.
It was just so…. versatile.
However, I noticed a trickle of blood down my nose, which I quickly wiped away. A smidgen of a headache was coming on from doing that just as well.
Hmm, I never modified a Shout to that degree before, marking so many targets all at once with such precision.
"Well…..that'll do it I suppose." Unnulf muttered, sheathing his weapons.
Not every Fae lost their weapon, some I didn't notice, or my use of the Dragon Words didn't reach a high enough realm to precisely hit every single target. But out of the thousands present, 99% were now without their weapons and they were quickly overrun by the humans who attacked without hesitation. Especially with the Iron Weapons I gave out, it was a slaughter at this point.
My own ship along with the Youkai cut a swathy swath through their end, slowly making their way towards where I was.
Gradually, this spot became the center of the ensuing conclusion of the fight. I was thankful that even the other people here didn't seem intent on sinking the enemies' ships. Well, there were a couple that erupted in flames, and suffered enough damage that they collapsed into themselves and slowly sank, but there were still about a dozen whole and healthy ships remaining.
My ships approached, anchoring right next to the Fae ship I was standing on.
It seemed like Unnulf was acting as an unofficial liaison as he stayed within reach of me as the ships from the human side approached, getting close enough that everyone could see each other.
Nurarihyon silently stepped to meet me? along with a good handful of the Youkai while most remained on the ship.
On the opposite end of the current ship we were standing on, many more humans joined at Unnulf's side wearing all different sorts of clothes and armor.
They were understandably weary, but doubly so because it became rather obvious to them that our group wasn't human.
Ancient Greeks, Europeans of various assortments, Japanese, Scandinavian. It was a whole small United Nations right here from different time periods.
Though the awkward silence made things difficult.
I gave them a once over and I revised my earlier assessment of them. They were far stronger than they realistically should be for 'normal' humans.
That was to say, yes Humans in earlier years were innately stronger, not just in my home, but in my birth world. But just existing did not bring about this degree of strength. The average seemed to be about Mid-class in scope, but I noticed several High-Class among them.
Both sides were sizing each other up.
"At the risk of dragging this awkward atmosphere out, how about introductions?" I offered.
No one immediately stepped forward, so Unnulf spoke up. "At the least, they helped."
They looked between themselves, a silent agreement it seemed.
"Aye, Unnulf speaks the truth." Another viking, he seemed to like their 'leader', spoke up in Unnulf's defense.
"It's not the first time they tried to gain our trust through despicable means. Let the Lord sort them out." A Knight wearing a cross on his armor harrumphed with a few nods of agreement.
"English?" I spoke up, looking at him. "I was in London a few weeks ago." I smiled good naturedly, trying to ease the clear tension.
The Knight blinked in surprise. "…..you know of my homeland?" He muttered.
I also realized something, I perfectly understood them and it wasn't because of my Devil Heritage. The way they spoke, they were all magically speaking fluently in a way that was understood.
I looked at the others. "Forgive me for guessing, but…" I pointed to another. "Italian? And Spanish? You….French?" Of course, there weren't simply a handful of each nationality, and it took everything inside of me not to poke at the Frenchman.
That seemed to genuinely surprise them.
Ever so slightly, the weariness alleviated.
"To my friends in the back." I looked at the handful of Samurai and few dozen soldiers wearing older style Japanese arms and armor. "I hail from Japan in the modern day, but I'm not quite sure what time period you come from. Perhaps you recognize Nippon, Nihon, Yamato?"
A flash of realization dawned on the Japanese people's faces.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg." I politely bowed. "I understand your weariness, but we mean you no harm. These are my companions." I gestured to Nurarihyon.
"Surprised to see a group of humans in this place." He grunted. "Especially some from our homeland." His eyes flashed across the Japanese lot. "I'm Nurarihyon, I rule over half the Youkai of Japan." He gestured to the group.
Realization dawned on the Japanese.
"Youkai?" The Samurai at the front, the one wearing, well the most prestigious looking armor, he pushed forward. "You claim to be Youkai?"
"Brother Goro, what are these 'Youkai'?" One of the Greek's asked, look at the Samurai.
A surprising bit of camaraderie between them considering the social and cultural differences.
"I don't mind answering, we don't have anything to hide." I volunteered as their gazes turned to me. "Some cultural differences, but you can vaguely consider Youkai to be a term for all 'Demons' 'Monsters' and 'Ghosts' that come from Japan."
The aforementioned 'Goro' nodded as his fellows looked to him, not adding anything. Maybe he also felt it wasn't worth going into further details.
"Well, they ain't the fuckers from this place." Unnulf grunted. "If yer some kind of monsters or spirits, how'd you come to this place?"
Well, he took it in stride. I suppose it was easier when it was 'monsters' from another part of the world you knew nothing about.
"We were attacked, so in response, we launched an invasion of our own." Nurarihyon said bluntly. "We didn't expect the need for a….naval presence, so we're rounding up some ships in anticipation of our people marching this far. We already established a foothold and they should be slowly pushing out from there."
A few eyes widened, perhaps in disbelief. I'm pretty sure these were mostly mundane humans before whatever happened to them to end up here.
"We received a little bit of help as well." I added, looking back at the knights of varying nationalities. "The Church helped us establish a foothold."
"The Church still stands?" One of them asked, only to receive a smack upside the head from his fellow knight.
"Of course it stands, the Lord's might can't be questioned by these heretical monsters!" He harrumphed.
"Perhaps introductions?" I offered again, steering it back towards coming to a peaceful conclusion.
Once more, they looked between themselves before starting. "I suppose we have you to thank for the help. And these weapons…" One of the Knights held up one of the Iron weapons I deposited. "You have questions, I assume, but we do as well. If the Church had assisted you, as you claim, then regardless of your origins, you bring the work of the Lord. Sir Aiken Harforde." The English Knight seemed to be the leader of the ones bearing the cross. "I command the Lord's Wrath – the Vessel over yonder and the group you see before you." He pointed back. "All of the Lord's children are welcome under my banner."
Probably a bad idea to mention my heritage in front of them for the moment.
The Samurai took off his helmet, revealing a weathered face, but one that seemed about middle aged. He performed an older and proper Japanese greeting. "Yoshimura Goro, third son of the Yoshimura clan. It is not what I expected, but seeing comrades from my home, it brings this old man happiness."
"You've met Unnulf, one of my finest warriors. They all call me Chief, name's Tollak." The leader of the Viking gave a big grin, caring less about our 'origins.
One of the Greek's at the front also took off his helmet, his age appeared about the same as everyone else. Something I noticed, they all looked about middle age despite coming from obviously different eras.
"I'm Kallon, commander of the ships and warriors here." He gestured to the other Greeks. "I thank you for your assistance, and I don't care much about anything else if you're not enemies."
Straight and to the point.
"Forgive me for being blunt, but how did you all come to be here?" I was honestly confused at their presence.
"A freak storm…"
"We got lost."
"A strange creature dragged us off our ship…."
"A mist suddenly surrounded us."
"A damned witch!"
"Woke up here randomly."
Many different answers, pretty much all by happenstance and none intentionally.
"You all are aware that you come from far different eras, right?" I didn't feel the need to tip toe around the issue.
"We're not daft, boy." Tollak snorted. "We each speak of places and people we've never heard of before. Odin's beard, these ones won't shut up about their God that I've never heard in my life." He jerked his thumb at the Knights.
"Hmph, heretics." One snorted in response, but it definitely lacked the usual heat that one would say that with.
"Bah." The Viking dismissed it.
"You claim to come here willingly, what year is it on the Lord's Calendar?" Sir Harforde asked.
The Gregorian Calendar, coined due to it being invented by Pope Greogry XIII.
And it seemed like a question they all wanted an answer to, leaning in.
"By the Calendar you're familiar with, it should be about 2007." I wasn't entirely sure their years matched up with ours, but it's thereabouts anyways.
My words were met with silence.
"Ah, it's been that long eh?" Unnulf looked wistful.
"You know your time period based on that?" I asked.
"Aye, we figured out enough to get an estimate." He nodded, crestfallen.
Really, the only ones that were sort of…oblivious were the Japanese. Which made sense, they adopted the Gregorian Calendar around the start of the 1900s.
"Would you perhaps know….what period of time that correlates to for us?" The Samurai asked rather respectfully, almost uncaring about our status.
I was growing confused about a great more things as time went on.
"Tell me what happened before you appeared here." Nurarihyon closed his eyes, letting out a breath. "Should be able to figure it out."
"The Emperor declared the change of the capital from Nara to Heian-Kyo" The Samurai spoke after giving it a thought.
"Ah, seems you disappeared right at the start of the Heian period." Nurarihyon nodded in understanding. "Using the Western Calendar, that's around the start of the 800's."
"….1200 years?" The Samurai muttered, taking up a look not dissimilar from the others.
"Young man…." Sir Harforde looked at me. "What's the outside world like?"
"I won't lie, you wouldn't recognize it. A person has the ability to travel anywhere in the world in about a day now. Everything has become interconnected, you can see people from Japan – " I gestured to the Samurai. " –Over in London and no one bats an eye. Japan is doing well, its people don't want for much, and it's considered a world power. The Church is the most popular religious institution in the world, and all your countries still exist." I looked at the knights."
It was a cold realization that even if they left this hell, the world they knew no longer existed. It would be like me waking up one day and suddenly, humanity was now extended towards the stars.
What was I even supposed to say at this point?
"No use crying over it." Kallon, the Greek commander grunted. "Knew for a while that my home wasn't the same anymore. You all are too old to be moping around like a bunch of youngsters."
That brought up a rather interesting and predominant question.
"….how are you people still alive?" I knew it was rather blunt of me to ask, but it seemed like something that needed answering. "And How long have you been here?"
"How long we've been here? Hard to say." Tollak answered. "You see, Goro over there, his lot came in after us, despite the one's who won't shut up about their God coming in first." He gestured to the Knights. "As for how old we are….?" He rubbed his beard. "I think I passed my Three-Hundredth year awhile back, but most of us stopped counting."
….what?
How?
Life extension, it wasn't….well, it wasn't hard for humans once they reached a certain level. Yasaka even gave Arthur his punishment knowing that the kid would live far beyond a normal human lifespan.
But we're talking about hundreds of people here all presumably in their centuries.
"This is all assuming that they speak the truth." Sir Harforde pointed out. "I trust in the Lord's will, but we have been led astray before."
Skepticism was something needed here for them, it was understandable.
"There's an easy way to check, let's just take them to see mother." Kallon spoke with a shrug.
"Aye, that'll solve the issue of spies." Tollak agreed.
"Fine." Sir Harforde seemed a bit more reluctant. "Outsiders, we invite you back to our home."
"Out of curiosity….how many are there of you back 'home'?" Because obviously this couldn't be everyone.
"A few thousand, give or take." Unnulf answered as if it were a simple thing.
Once more, I'm taken aback.
A few thousand humans were displaced and living here?
Strangely, they didn't ask us more questions, about the outside or ourselves or even the whole 'invasion' thing, I suppose they're waiting to 'verify' with whatever means they had.
I looked at Nurarihyon who gave me a look that basically read 'Do what you want'.
Alright, I understood his standpoint.
Frankly, I don't think he cared overly much about the humans in general, at the end of the day he was selfish and only really cared about his own people. A sentiment that most shared in the world.
However, there was something going on and I wanted to get to the bottom of it.
"Lead the way." I agreed.
Because I was genuinely confused at their existence.
@***@
Non-Canon Omake: Through the Looking Glass Part 9
A/N: Just a quick word, I tried something different for this part of the omake. The general consensus was that it was enjoyable, but it didn't quite hit the same way as the other parts, so going forward, I'll make sure to do them normally.
@***@
Takao Shimoda POV
Well, this was a pretty fucked situation.
"Fear not, friend of Riser. Riser shall defend you from harm." The Phenex member boasted proudly.
"Will you?" A large blast of holy power sent him hurling into a wall.
Riser hit the wall of the school, falling to the ground wincing in pain, but he got up, looking good as new. "Hah, as if a mere 10-winged Angel, the anti-thesis of Devil Kind could match Riser."
"Oh, I like you, you got spirit." Kokabiel, the Fallen Angel and one of the Grigori leaders smiled, looking down at not just him but all of us. "Better than these other ones." He swept he arm, as Rias's was on the ground, along with Sona.
"Riser is stronger than them." He said proudly.
"I beat you…." Issei forced out, pushing up on his feet.
"Yeah, Issei beat you!" Rias pushed to her feet too. "Why are you even here?"
"No, Riser lost to the Satan because he cheated." Riser raised a hand. "And Riser is here to protect his best friend."
"Why do you keep calling me that!?" I told him that it wasn't me!
My bastard other self!
"Riser will never forget the debt he owes."
Dammit!
"I thought you stopped referring to yourself in the third person." Sona huffed, breathing heavily, I quickly moved to her to help her up.
I….I couldn't do anything else, I was too weak.
"Riser did it before out of arrogance and a misguided sense of superiority."
"And what changed." She deadpanned.
"Riser realized that he must be shameless. Satan Lucifer shamelessly cheated. The Red Dragon Emperor shamelessly boasts about his fetishes and gets stronger because of them. Thus Riser must become more shameless." He said with confidence.
"…..what the hell happened to you, Riser?" Rias looked at him in utter bewilderment despite the fact that we had a host of Fallen Angels hovering overhead, intent on killing us all.
"Riser got therapy." He nodded to himself.
Dammit Wilhelm!
He even enrolled in our school! He keeps following me around and treats me like his best friend.
Though I would really like for him to be here right now.
Didn't he warn us about this exact situation? Why wasn't it handled already!
"He's not wrong. Devils are beings of desire, if you focus that desire you can go really far." The Ten winged Angel added rather helpfully.
"Oi, Riser doesn't want advice from someone who looks like a vampire movie reject." Riser said pointedly.
There was a beat of silence before a light spear pierced him, impaling him to the side of the building.
"Riser!?" I found myself blurting out in concern.
"Don't worry, friend of Riser, this is nothing compared to the power of a Phenex!" He spoke before throwing up a mouthful of blood. "Oh, that doesn't look good…."
"You realize that Holy Power is something that overcomes your regeneration, right?" Kokabiel looked at him.
"Riser rejects your reality!"
"The reality that you're bleeding to death, poisoned by my holy power….?"
Riser threw up another mouthful of blood. "Riser is just getting warmed up. Heh."
"…..what is wrong with you devils?" Kokabiel finally lost that amused grin.
"Now Issei!" Rias screamed.
"Dragon Shot!" He roared.
And Kokabiel dodged it rather easily. "…..did you really scream it out beforehand?"
I looked at Sona who just face palmed.
"Riser kick!" I looked up and Riser was somehow above Kokabiel, flying at him, and somehow managed to kick him. Granted, it didn't do much, didn't even knock him to the ground, sort of just…knocked him back a bit before the Fallen Angel grabbed him and threw him back at the ground, creating a new hole.
"….riser kick?" Kokabiel repeated.
"Riser couldn't think of a good name." He admitted, stumbling out of the hole on the ground. "Riser really wishes he brought his peerage with him."
"That goes double for me…" Rias smiled awkwardly.
"I'd like to add myself to that group." Sona grit her teeth, standing up by her own strength, Magic Circles appearing on her hands.
"Riser questions when Satan Lucifer is going to cheat Kokabiel of his victory and save us."
"Will you let that go!?" Rias huffed.
"Never!"
"Sorry kids, but he has no idea what's going on right now. Don't worry, we have a few more minutes that we can play around before I got to cut this babysitting short." Kokabiel chuckled. "I'll tell you what, put up a good fight, and I won't make it hurt when I put these Excalibur swords through your hearts for your family to find."
"Do any of you have a good plan?" Sona whispered.
"Hit him as hard as possible?" Issei offered.
"….a better plan?"
"...Hit him as hard as possible with my Power of Destruction?" Rias hesitantly added.
"I really don't even question the fact that he's your pawn, Rias." Sona said dryly. "Dare I ask, Riser, do you possibly have a plan? You seemingly have more combat experience than us."
"Riser has an idea."
"…..I hesitate to ask for details."
"Rias can challenge him to a Rating Game, therefore her Brother will inevitably interfere and cheat so she wins." He spoke.
"Will you stop holding a grudge against me! I thought you were happy we weren't getting married!?"
"Riser is ecstatic he doesn't have to be married to you. But Riser is also pissed he was cheated after winning his prize."
"Satans….I think I liked you more when you were trying to marry me." Rias's mouth hung open.
"Fine, Riser has a plan." He spoke up with a serious look. "Kokabiel, Angel of the Stars. Dare you accept a duel!?"
Everyone stared at him like he was an idiot.
"Sure." Kokabiel shrugged. "What's the rules?"
How the hell did that work!?
"One versus one, no interference, winner is decided when the other can't fight anymore." Riser paused. "Against the Red Dragon Emperor." He stepped back, gesturing to Issei.
"Deal." Kokabiel accepted.
"….dick." Issei barely got the words out before Kokabiel was on the ground, his hand grabbing Issei's face and throwing him through a wall.
"Tally ho." Kokabiel casually jumped through the hole in the wall, and we heard the sounds of Issei getting his proverbial and very literal shit kicked in.
I recognized the sounds enough from when he got beat up every day for peeing on the girls in the school.
"This was your plan?" Sona looked at him.
"Yes, now Riser can die happy." He smiled.
"You are just…..the worst kind of person." Rias replied.
"No, if Riser was the worst kind of person, he would do this." Riser took a deep breath. "Red Dragon Emperor, if you don't defeat Kokabiel, he's going to pierce Rias's breasts with his spears of light, destroying them."
"…..what was that supposed to do?" Rias looked at him.
"Wait for it." Riser held up a finger, then suddenly, the building Issei was in exploded.
"Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker!" He roared, blasting Kokabiel away with the power of his Sacred Gear.
It was always phenomenal to see it in person, and I couldn't help but be jealous that he had something like that while I was sitting here…..worthless in a fight.
Rias visibly relax and I found myself feeling like death wasn't certain now.
"….I still fail to see – "
That was until Issei was slammed into the ground again with a maniacally grinning 10 winged fallen angel repeatedly punching him in the face.
"Riser realized Kokabiel was holding back. Kokabiel wouldn't hold back if Red Dragon Emperor used his Balance Breaker, meaning he gets a more thorough beating." Riser explained.
"…..I really am not fond of you." Rias said emotionlessly.
And he promptly treated Issei like a rag doll and threw him around until he got bored, only dragging him back to us and tossing him at our feet, unconscious.
"That was a nice little workout, he makes a wonderful punching bag." Kokabiel rotated his arm as if it were just him warming up. "Who's next?"
"Rias." Riser volunteered her.
"Dick." Rias looked at him, barely time to even say that as she got blasted by a burst of Holy Power.
"Next." Kokabiel looked amused again.
Riser's fiery wings burst out from his back. "Worry not, Takao. Riser will protect you and your lame girlfriend."
"I am not lame!" Sona huffed, focusing on Rias who stumbled back towards us looking a bit beaten up.
He charged at Kokabiel again, actually looking like he was able to put up a fight.
Or maybe that was just because Riser could take a beater better than anyone else and keep going.
Definitely the latter.
It didn't take long for him to hit the ground again, and for several light spear to pin him there, making him unable to move.
"Well, that was certainly fun. A nice little workout to go with it. But we should end it, however, I admit I'm enjoying myself too much to simply make it so unsatisfying. How about we turn it into a little game?"
"Riser is good at checkers." The Phenex raised his hand despite bleeding from all over and still impaled by light spear.
Sona did her best to remove them, but it was hard enough to even be near them for a Devil. Her magic was able to destroy them with a bit of effort, and I moved to help Riser stand up on his feet.
Kokabiel held his hands up, a big ball of Holy Power formed. "Alright, I'll keep making it bigger and bigger, let's see how long you can last." He threw it down on us.
Sona cast a big Water spell, Rias threw her Destruction at it, and Riser's flames burst out, all colliding with the big ball of Holy Power.
Barely, just barely, they were able to destroy it, but all of them looked far too exhausted.
"Good job! Round two!" A bigger ball of Holy Power appeared above.
Useless, I was so useless!
"Takao, make a run for it. We can stall long enough, maybe you can escape while they're paying attention to us." Sona whispered.
"No way, I – "
"I agree." Riser interjected. "Go my friend, we shall block them. Don't worry, a Phenex can't die."
"…go Takao, it's fine." Rias smiled bitterly. "Tell Sirzechs to pull off his wings for me." She added with a wink, as if to force herself to not react badly.
Why couldn't I be stronger?
My other self, he was strong! Dad was strong, they're all strong, but I'm weak, useless!
They said run, but it was already not an option, that big ball of Holy Power was falling down and I closed my eyes, waiting for the inevitable.
"Do you want power?"
What?
"Do you want power?" The same voice, it was as if time slowed and I heard a strange feminine voice in my head.
"I want to be able to stand next to them, I want enough power to protect them!" I shouted in my mind.
"Are you sure? There's a price to be paid for everything."
"Yes, whatever the price is, I accept it!" As a Devil, I felt like I was making a Devil with The Devil.
But…what choice did I have? What was worse here than just dying? Then having the people I care about die? Having my mom have to find out what happened afterwards?
No, I would give up my soul if it meant I would have enough power.
"Very well, then it's time…..to became a hero of love and justice."
"Yes, I – Wait what?"
"Magical Girl Transformation Sequence, go!"
I saw a bright light and my clothes disappeared and oh god, was I seriously going through a transformation sequence?
What the fuck was happening!?
I felt something on my chest, Is that a bra?!
"Sorry, only done this with girls before, but eh, it's fine."
It's not fine!
A very tight and revealing shirt swept around me. Followed by… I felt something ride up between my legs and I very much did not like it!"
"Is that a thong!?" I squawked.
"Listen, I said I've only done this for girls before, just let it happen."
"I regret, I regret!"
A very short skirt appeared around me, to the point where it barely came down past my butt. "Why is my skirt so short!"
"What a weird question, obviously so people can get a glimpse up your skirt while you're fighting, duh"
"That's not a valid reason!"
"Get ready, you need to say the magical words to finish the transformation. Otherwise, you won't have the power to defeat this villain."
Fine!
The weird lights around me disappeared, it was as if we returned to the world but I felt powerful.
I grit my teeth and accepted it.
The words I needed to speak fresh in my mind as I felt a strange wand between my fingers, I flew up and held it pointing towards the big ball of holy power coming down.
"Bringing love and justice to the world, Magical Girl Kaleido Ruby!" It felt like something solidified and all that power was bubbling up inside of me. I wasted no time and swung my new wand, and a massive burst of power shot out, piercing through.
"Oh what the fuck – " Kokabiel's last words as the beam of power shot through him, and lit up the night sky, continuing out towards space.
And then, I just floated there.
"….Takao...why are you wearing a magical girl outfit." Sona asked.
"…..I don't know." I fully admitted.
"Riser is confused. Riser can see up his friend's skirt. Riser is wondering why his friend is wearing a thong." Riser spoke, making me realize that everyone could see up my skirt. "Riser is having some very unwise thoughts."
As if I didn't have enough problems, the other Fallen Angels seemingly had a moment to realize that their leader was dead. A good….few hundred of them…..yeah, that's not good.
Though, and rather suddenly, they all completely froze. Like icicles falling from the sky, they hit the ground and shattered. Winter appeared instantly, the temperature dropping to nearly freezing without warning.
I looked down and Serafall was there, her eyes murderous, like a true demon with ice and cold air literally wafting out of her mouth.
"Serafall!?" Sona blurted out.
"Ah? Sona?" Whatever was happening to Serafall, she seemed to snap out of her weird state. "What's this? Where am I? What's going on?"
"Did you come here to rescue us!?"
"Uh…..?" Serafall looked around. "I just….felt a Disturbance. Like someone was stealing something of mine and I acted without thinking." Her head turned unnaturally around as she looked up at me. "Takao~ I think you got some explaining to do~"
I gulped.
"Oh wow, good luck that one looks crazy." My…wand just spoke.
I really am not in any presence of mind to deal with this.
As if the world was wanting to slap me one more time, there was a slight….twisting and burst of magic as a note fell through the air and I casually reached out for it.
"Dear Takao, I was watching and it looked like you were having a rough time. So, I thought I'd lend a hand on your journey. No need to thank me, just take care of Ruby.
Xoxo
-Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg
P.S. I took lots of pictures and sent them to mom.
Am I allowed to hate myself?
Because I really hate myself right now.
@***@
A/N
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / Astoryforone
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I have the next two parts of the Arachne Omake up over here.
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