Chapter 131: Chapter 131: Dodgeroll the nuclear blast
There was an explosion.
Or rather, there was an implosion that drew everything within its radius into a glowing red circle.
The Trap had been set, and now it had been activated.
The implosion was felt throughout the Underworld, despite it's relatively small 'blast radius' as it destabilized the entire Underworld's energies for few moments, during which entire forests were set ablaze, mountains crumbled to deserts and great palaces shook and topped over, slaying hundreds of devils outright and wounding thousands in seconds.
.
.
"Hm." Momonga dusted the front of his Sirzechs-like suit after a sizable chunk of masonry had fallen down in front of him from the force of the sudden earthquake, covering the 'courtyard' of Phenix castle-estate with dust.
Most of the gathered people looked around, spooked and ready to fight- And Momonga waved his hands for Michael, Azazel and Serafall to calm down as his 'cadre of raid bosses' looked like they were about to fly off and attack… Something. '[Detect Life] doesn't show anything… And it's not like earthquakes aren't regular phenomena. Hm. Now then, Azazel had an idea about Beelzebub's whereabouts, and based off his report and the scouting from my crow-summon the Underworld's 'official' army should be in that island-thing where I got my 'King' status activated and thus could form my Peerage… Come to think of it, why hasn't Beelzebub revoked my Peerage's existence yet? He can do something like that, right? Remove the 'Kingship' and all. After all, that was done for Rias… It might be problematic if he's reserving that until I engage in battle and it causes some sort of backlash…'
He glanced around just in case some unknown enemy had managed to bypass his detection-methods, and finally figured that he should take care of the immediate tactical problem that he had realized before going forward with what he had planned- That being, taking care of Beelzebub's stronghold before the news of the 'new peace meeting' spread to Beelzebub and the 'reigning' Maous and their army took actions to shake the resolve of those devil houses who had aligned themselves with Momonga.
"Before we go… Rias? When you lost your 'Kingship' due to our marriage, what happened to you? Physically, I mean. Did you feel weak, or…" Momonga turned to talk to Rias who was standing ready with the rest of Momonga's Peerage, sans Kuroka and Koneko as they were busy dealing with Koneko's 'issue'. Behind the Peerage was Xenovia and Irina who were leading a mixed group of self-titled 'Paladins of True God's Order'- Devils and Gray Angels wearing heavy violet and gold armor, and behind them were Momonga's 'angelic' summons, sans the one Dominion Authority which he had sent to Human World to keep an eye on things and help with the rebuilding effort in Kuoh. 'I'm a bit worried that someone will draw parallels to the 'Supreme Being' over me using the same colors as my avatar, as I preferred violet and gold… Ah well. I can probably just turn the table and accuse the 'Supreme Being' of appropriating 'my' colors if someone in the public sphere gets suspicious.'
"No, I didn't feel anything, and nothing changed in my abilities…" Rias blinked in confusion at the sudden question. "What's up?"
"I was wondering why Beelzebub hasn't revoked my Kingship…"
"Ah, that's because my loss of Kingship was written into the marriage contract, so it was contractually bound… You can't just un-King someone out of the blue, such a function doesn't exist- Otherwise no-one would use the Peerage system." Rias tilted her head a bit. "Were you worried he'd use that as some sort of trump card?"
"I was worried that I'd lose you." Momonga moved in for a quick save after Rias's counter-query.
Rias smiled a bit and crossed his arms. "Dummy. We'd grow weaker if the Pieces were ejected, yes, but-"
There was a crackling sound followed by a feeling of ejection, and Momonga blinked as he felt the 'raiding party' disband- Or rather, lost the feeling he had gotten when he had first gained his 'Kingship' by touching a huge King piece in a remote island-like garden. 'Huh.'
Rias looked down in shock as a 'Queen' Piece fell from her chest, and was caught between her breasts. "Um…"
"Umu, it seems that Beelzebub has found a way to remotely 'disable' the Pieces and disband the Peerage." Momonga nodded. "That is worrisome, as it reduces the devil's combat power."
"It seems that the effect has reached quite far, Father." Michael came into the conversation as the Angels seemed to be supporting the devils, most of whom were looking at their lost Pieces in shock. "I'm getting reports from my Angels that they are observing devils losing their-"
"Everyone's Peerages got disbanded!" Serafall finished Michael's words and caused the Arch-Angel to blush a bit as Serafall had climbed up Michael's back in a flash and sat down on his shoulders, piggyback-style. "Mine too! Erg, I'm pretty sure Behemoth-kun is going to go bonkers without a Piece… Oho! I forgot to introduce you two… He's this great big ruddy beast-thing and-"
"I see. Is that only on 'our' side or have our enemy-houses lost their Peerages as well?" Momonga waved Serafall's explanation of her Peerage to the side as the woman had started to whistle to the side in a guilty manner while poking her forefingers together.
"F-Father, this pose…" Michael was shaking in embarrassment and his face was bright red as Serafall continued to sit on his shoulders and was casually kicking her legs like a child enjoying a piggyback-ride.
"Just endure it- Serafall?" Momonga hand waved Michael's embarrassment and tried to get Serafall to focus.
"Eheheh- Anyway, I felt the 'Kingship drop' so to speak… And I'm getting a lot of messages that all of the Peerages on our side have lost theirs as well." Serafall glanced at a pile of holographic glyphs that had appeared from thin air and started to hover by her side.
'Hm… I had intended to order the devils to follow Serafall and Xenovia, while Angels and Fallen, er, Grays would follow Michael and Gabriel, and while Azazel served as specialist… That way I could throw the Grays to Beelzebub's meat grinder and weed out those that would be a potential threat to me when the fact gets out that I'm not the 'god' they think I am.' Momonga considered his combat-plans and realized that the sudden change in combat-scape benefitted him quite a bit. 'Now I have a good excuse to hold 'weaker' devils back while the Grays go out to die…'
"Ehh?!" Serafall exclaimed as another, bigger sigil popped up before her. "Heyyaa! Second thoughts, Gragg Forneus-kun?"
"Aha, aha!" Serafall listened to the odd croaking sound that came from the sigil for a while and turned towards Momonga. "House Forneus got cold feet and apparently they are protesting that 'removing Peerages is way too much, man!' and want to switch sides and join us. Seems that the 'de-kinging' happened to 'hostile' houses as well- So I'm guessing this has something to do with the whole 'Peerage system' rather than being something directed."
'Huh, so the hostile houses have lost Peerages as well.' Momonga thought about what he had learned.
House Forneus, apparently a seaborne and pirate-like house of devils, had decided to stick their lot with Beelzebub during the 'Peace Meeting' Azazel had arranged and which Momonga had led.
Serafall had pointed out that while House Forneus would feel more at home with 'True God's 'teaching's, they would not be so easily convinced to co-exist with Angels of any kind due to their old hatred. 'I'm guessing that House Forneus is getting second thoughts after losing their Peerages' combat boost… Or it's possible that the 'old blood Houses' have a huge class divide between 'natural devils' and 'new devils', and are now facing internal strife as that the 'Peerages' are no longer a thing and the 'new devils' have much more autonomy- The human-born ones are probably not keen on fighting to death for their slave-masters, and it's probable they're trying to fight their way to freedom.'
"Send contingents of devils supported by a few Gray Angels to support those devils who wish to desert their doomed houses." Momonga told Serafall who tilted her head. "I've placed my ultimatum during the Meeting. The Houses who have aligned against us will fall, and be lost to memory. Those who wish to desert their masters can find their salvation within my ranks as 'Followers', as I said during the Meeting. The ex-Kings who have decided to throw their lot with the Maous will die- Now is too late to have second thoughts."
"Uhm… Yeah!" Serafall faltered a bit but stabilized herself. "Eh… Tough luck, Gragg-kun. Your pledge is a no-go."
A long wail of croaking pleas and apologies came from the sigil, followed by a string of curses after the pleas failed to find purchase within Momonga or Serafall.
The sigil flickered out and Michael bowed slightly, causing Serafall to slide off the man's shoulders. "Father… I am glad to see that you have not entirely forsaken your sense of justice in your desire for peace."
"Hoo? That sounds like you are looking forward to killing Devils, Michael-kun?" Azazel commented from the side.
"No, but one cannot turn cheeks forever. It is only just that those who have denied Father suffer for their actions." Michael noted, causing Azazel to til his head and Momonga to pause a bit.
"Er, Michael-kun, that's… Unusual, hearing from you." Azazel came closer and put his hand on Michael's forehead as if to measure heat, much to the latter's confusion. "Where's the 'all lives are precious' rhetoric?"
"I've studied Father's Newer Testament." Michael produced a hefty book that had the 'True God's symbol on its cover, showing it to Azazel. Gabriel glanced at the tome, blushed hard, and looked away while tapping her forefingers together in an awkward manner. "This is a time of change, and I recognize that the rules have changed. We have changed. And thus, a new way of thinking is necessary."
Momonga stared at the book in Michael's hands for a while. 'U-umu, I never wrote something like that, right?'
The not-really-'god' got a creeping feeling… And Momonga drew his eyes slowly towards Xenovia who looked more than a bit proud while positively beaming with delight from seeing the book that was in Michael's hands.
Momonga drew his eyes a bit lower and saw that Xenovia had a copy of the book, except strapped to her hip like a weapon. 'Umu. I outlined some ways that Xenovia should incorporate into the church since the situation was out of my hands… D-don't tell me she thought that those guidelines were 'law' or 'testament' or something like that?'
He wanted to grab Xenovia and lead her to the side, and clarify the situation- But much like resolving the potential issue with Seekvaira's malfunctioning mind-control, Momonga wasn't in the position where he could take care of it instantly as he didn't want to compromise his 'status' as 'god' by denying his 'devout follower' nor shame Xenovia for her earnest, if misguided, efforts. 'Haa… I should have been more proactive… Then again, I was under the mistaken idea that the whole thing would just blow over if I tried to stay under the radar. Reap what you sow, Momonga…'
"I feel as if I'm starting to rub off on you. But if you want to talk to yourself, can I help?" Ddraig noted. "So in respect of our new relationship as 'voice in your head' and 'therapy subject', do remember that you're about to lead a battlegroup into Beelzebub's fortress. This might not be the right time to think about irrelevant things."
'...I despair at the fact that I need you to tell me that.' Momonga sighed internally, again.
"You're welcome."
"Anyway. Our armies are gathered, the devils have chosen their sides." Momonga moved on, this time addressing the group of people he had gathered. "Prepare yourselves. We march… To the final battle. We shall move in waves through Gates I shall make- Stand by for my signal, and prepare to fight. For what we hold dear, for our right to exist, and for our future. If the Maou faction wins, all of those will be lost- So stand firm, and stand with me!"
Xenovia's cultists looked resolute, while the Cherubim Gatekeepers behind them were serene and were carrying picnic baskets. Apparently 'One' had been busy taking care of the Hyoudou couple and thus hadn't been instantly available once the order to mobilize had come, and she had been picked as the dedicated heavyrefreshments-carrier for the slight.
Momonga tried not to think about what would happen if an attack landed on the huge leaning tower of food that 'One' had strapped to her back. Or whether or not the food was made by the angels themselves- Which in retrospect would have made the luggage useful as biological weapons.
Momonga's Peerage, or what had been his Peerage mere moments ago, looked quite ready if more than a little nervous after the 'Peerage' was disbanded remotely. Rossweisse looked a bit disappointed that her 'wings' were still devilish bat-like wings, while Akeno, Yubelluna and Xuelan were unusually serious. Gasper meanwhile was struggling visibly in order to not freak out over the sudden 'de-Peeraging', and was squatting down while holding his head in panic. Asia was patting Gasper's head to calm him, and it didn't look like it was helping him at all.
Ravel was looking at the gathered strike force and was chuckling to the back of her hand, while holding a black umbrella to block the sun from heating up her gothic-style clothes… Which seemed a bit odd for Momonga as he had presumed the Phenix-family of devils to be immune to inconvenience by heat. 'Er, unless she's upping her 'chuuni' in preparation for combat… Worrisome…'
Kuroka and Koneko were confined in the manor to keep their 'problem' in control, as Momonga had inspected the two's condition and noted that both were utterly combat-ineffective in their current state… That being, lewd out of their mind after a unfortunate series of events involving Serafall's little tomfoolery with tantric energy liquid and Koneko's state of heat. 'Well, I don't think Senjutsu would have helped much… Cattiness isn't exactly combat-effective. Ah well.'
Yuuto was standing a bit to the side, and Momonga noted that he was holding hands with Sona's black-haired Queen while both were looking more than a bit nervous. 'Hm, Sona's Peerage seems to be in relatively high spirits… Saji-kun doesn't seem to be here though? Well, Sona knows what she's doing. I hope.'
Sona noticed that Momonga was looking at her and her Peerage, and curtsied slightly while nodding, likely indicating that she was ready. Momonga nodded back at her and her expression lightened a bit. 'Hm… That being said, Sona's Peerage is not all that strong, so I should probably just use it to defend 'lighter' parts of my Peerage, namely Asia…'
The rest of the devils and angels stood ready, and Momonga turned to face the 'elite cadre' of his forces again- Namely, the Arch-Angels and Maou.
"As I've detailed before- Michael, Gabriel, you two take the point. Serafall will follow with the strong Peerages. Azazel, scout around and see what you can find-" Momonga gave them their orders, but was interrupted by Azazel.
"One moment- I'm getting a message from Vali. I told him about our plans and stuff, and sent him to scout ahead. Don't worry, I obeyed operational security and all that, in case he gets caught or something. He's looking over Beelzebub's fortress…" Azazel lifted his hand while he had put the pinky finger of his other hand into his ear, almost as if he was listening to it. "Apparently something big, black and hard slapped itself on Beelzebub's fortress and something… Detonated, I think. The situation's a bit unclear but it seems that Beelz-kun got hit by something? Did you send a preliminary bombardment?"
"I… Don't think so, no?" Momonga blinked and turned to give Yubelluna a glance, who shook her head in confusion.
"I don't think I could do something like that…" Yubelluna sounded quite unsure while Xuelan stretched a bit on the spot next to her, clearly nervous and feeling pre-battle shakes.
"Anyway, if Beelzebub is getting hit by something, we can probably capitalize on it by taking the opportunity- However, there's a chance that this is a trap, so I'll arrive in the second wave." Momonga nodded his head while making a quick plan (that would coincidentally involve the least amount of danger to himself). "That way if this is a trap we can counter-attack instantly and crush the trap before it has time to inflict substantial amounts of damage- Michael-kun. Gabriel-chan. Are you ready?"
"Yes, Father." Michael nodded serenely while Gabriel curtsied slightly and materialized her wings, and Momonga locked in the 'landing area' through checking where the crow he had made with [Lead of Yatagarasu] was.
"Excellent. In that case- [Gate]- Go!" Momonga did his best to ignore a slimy feeling he got from seeing Michael's trusting look, which conflicted quite hard with Momonga's intention for the orders.
It seemed that Michael noticed the expression and put his hand on Momonga's shoulder.
"I know what you intend with this order, even if you do not speak it outright." Michael told Momonga, causing him to jump internally in sudden fright and panic. "Do not worry, Father. I shall show what I have learned, and how strong and independent I have grown over these years. Your son will not fail this trial."
"Y-yes, of course. Go forth, Michael. I trust you!" Momonga put as much worry into his words as possible, which wasn't all that hard as he had been quite worried- although only over that Michael had possibly seen through him for a moment.
Michael nodded, turned towards the swirling portal, and entered it with Gabriel in tow.
'...I feel slimy… But in my defense, if Michael-kun finds out I'm not the god he expects, he'll turn on me…' The portal closed and Momonga sent a message for the crow to scout another spot for him. 'Hm… Vali… I think that was the white-haired guy… Ah. Right. Albion and all that. Haa… I should probably be a bit careful when I next meet him, but also not overreact… I made some insane theories when I thought that the tentacle thing which invaded my palace was Peroroncino… I'm pretty sure I was wrong on all accounts there, but that doesn't change the fact Vali managed to reduce my health and mana to one fourth with just two spells…'
"Please don't make me eat more of Albion…" Ddraig whined while he lifted a wing that had few white feathers growing out of it, and pointed at a few white scales on his arm. "Not only does he taste awful, I don't look good as a pink dragon…"
'Ah, right. White and red. Hm- I'll see what I can do.' Momonga closed the mental conference as the crow stopped moving in the far distance. "Alright, our stop- Look alive, people!"
"March! March forth, to a war, to a battle, and to our new future! Know that I stand by your side! Take heart and fight with resolve and trust, for our fallen shall be restored, whereas our enemies will be lost to time! Charge!" Another [Gate] opened with a wave of hand, Momonga took [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown] from his inventory, and motioned forward with it as if it was a scepter of rulership- As opposed to what it was to him now: Symbolic ornament of past and weapon of power. 'To a new future…'
"Horaa!" A war-cry came from the ranks of devils, Gray Angels and a few Youkai who had gathered to the staging grounds, and the battle-group surged forth into the [Gate] with Azazel, Momonga, and Serafall in front.
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Roughly ten minutes later, the battlegroup linked up with Michael and Gabriel, who were standing on the edge of a huge crater at the edge of a forest.
The crater stretched out far into the sea in the distance, and looked more like a neat bowl rather than a blast crater.
"What in tarnation…?" Momonga paused to stare at a huge, tens of miles-wide crater on the shore that was quickly filling up with water- Or rather, pouring water into a shimmering kaleidoscopic void that mostly filled the crater, like if it was a half-full bowl. 'I thought the central Piece of the Peerage System or something was here? Wasn't there supposed to be a fortress? And that huge King Piece?'
"It seems that some sort of devilry has happened here." Michael concluded his quick report- Which was mostly 'We arrived, and the situation was as you see it now.'
"Perhaps Beelzebub attempted to make some sort of bomb, but was caught off-guard by a third-party attacker and it exploded on him? Him making bombs or some sort of deadly devices and trying to kill us that way does fit his m.o from what I know, have heard and seen." Azazel noted while holding his finger against his ear. "Vali? Come here. Give us a report on what you've seen."
The white-haired man appeared over the distant treeline and flew a bit before coming to land beside Azazel.
"...Long time no see. God." Vali nodded slightly at Momonga who nodded slightly back, hiding his nervousness under a mask of fake confidence. "Azazel- Like I said, I saw someone assault the fortress alone. I'm not entirely sure who it was- A woman with girlish facial features, clad in a dress that had peculiar power radiating from it. However, the moment she was attacked by Beelzebub's defenders she started to wield powers from shadow and night. It's possible she's not from Three Factions- I can't recall that there was a devil with powers like hers in the Khaos Brigade when I infiltrated it, and it doesn't match with anything the Angels or Fallen had."
"I suppose that she was from this 'Supreme Being's' group then. You said that they and the Khaos Brigade were apparently just allied and not actually part of one another?" Azazel noted to Vali while rubbing his stubble thoughtfully. "Good job with the Khaos Brigade stunt by the way. I knew you had it in you. Ah, I didn't mention it, daddy, but Vali-kun has been spying on the 'Supreme Being' through infiltrating Ophis's group, Khaos Brigade. However, now that…"
"It's alright. Ophis is… well, not exactly our ally, but neutral to us for now. I've talked to her and fulfilled her wish, so I think it's unlikely she'll be hostile to us." Momonga handwaved Azazel's words… Before he paused as he realized the implication of himself allying with Ophis like 'the Supreme Being' had. "Ahem, well done, Vali. Please inform me later about what you learned of the Supreme Being, thank you. In private."
"Right… But on the matter of that odd darkness-clad woman, I can't recall anyone like that from the time I was spying on the Brigade." Vali noted while giving Momonga a wide berth. Momonga noted that Vali was instinctively hiding his arm from him, the same that Momonga had cut off during their fight, and realized that Vali might have been as nervous, or at least wary, towards him as he was towards the white-haired man. "I could see that skeletal thing being capable of doing something like that, but the only woman who would vaguely meet the description of this assailant most likely can't… And I'd recognize Katarina Leviathan anyway. Of course there's a chance that this assailant is someone who I didn't meet, but… I feel that the implosion came from the center of the camp, so it's likely that it was a defensive measure from the devils."
"Hm. So you say that Beelzebub did this? A murder-suicide of sorts? Or possibly a trap that was set off too early?" Momonga handwaved towards the crater, using the motion to cover his sudden nervousness. 'Vali was in contact with the Overlord General?! Crap, crap, crap, if he blabbered something and Vali puts the two together… I need to silence him quickly, I don't think he's in a same state of mind as Serafall, Lady Phenix and so forth, so there's a high chance that-'
"It's likely, yes." Vali concurred. "But it doesn't make much sense outside senseless carnage. I could expect it from that undead, but…"
"Father? I believe that the rest of our army is approaching." Michael's words broke Momonga's panicked thoughts and Vali's explanation, much to Momonga's relief. "The auxiliaries from the allied houses are arriving as well to secure and hold the area. What should we do now? There's not much we can do here…"
"Tell them to, umu, hm-" Momonga blinked as he realized that something quite bright was coming towards them at quite high speed. "Incoming!"
There was a meaty 'thunk' sound as Momonga cast [Anti-Life Barrier] while Michael cast his own wall of light, Azazel threw some sort of sparkly powder to the air that formed a shield, and Serafall lifted her 'magical girl' staff up high and caused the sea to rise up as a frozen barrier.
The 'thunk' sound came from the streak of light hitting the combined barriers, crushing against it while causing a huge shower of sparks.
A sickly-looking old man of some kind, complete with a toga and laurel around his head, coughed blood while he slid down the barriers like a bird that had struck a window.
Momonga stared a bit as the odd man slid all the way down to the edge of the barrier and fell to the shimmering void that filled the crater-basin.
"Er… I'm pretty sure that was Helios. You know, Greek Mythology and all." Azazel coughed after a while, which was spent in a somewhat stupefied silence. "So…"
"It was quite foolish to strike against us on Three Faction's home turf. Specifically after what happened to the sun- Ah. I see. I see that was why you didn't return the Sun to how it was right away, Father. I see the mistake in my hastiness- Helios would have been a mighty foe had the Sun still remained in the Human World." Michael nodded to Momonga while putting his hands to his sleeves. "Nonetheless, this rumored woman of 'engulfing darkness and night' makes me uneasy. I can't help but to think that there was some sort of plan here that was derailed."
"That, or the Supreme Being has a plan and has used Beelzebub to execute it. It would fit his m.o based on what I have heard from Vali. The appearance of the servant matches too." Azazel nodded his head to the side to indicate the white-haired man who was scratching his head while leaning over the crater-basin's edge and staring at the spot where the 'sun-god' had sank. "But what exactly would it try to accomplish? A huge crater isn't that hard to do… But a constant connection to the Interdimensional Gap… Hey, hold on a moment, didn't something like that happen in the human world too?"
Momonga sweated a bit 'Yes? What exactly is the Supreme Being trying to do?'
"Father created the rift, I believe? That was not the enemy's intention? It happened when daddy- erm, Father repelled those Dark- erm, things?" Gabriel came to Momonga's rescue and he mentally thumbed her up… Until he realized that by mentioning 'him creating the rift', she also drew the connection to him and the 'Supreme Being'.
"Er, I wasn't planning on causing that. I thought to part the land and the sea to hinder the avalanche of Dark Y- you know, the things." Momonga deployed a quick lie, and luckily it seemed to find purchase in Gabriel.
"Ah, you're correct, Father. The enemy must have taken advantage of the mighty blow to rip a hole in the fabric of reality, using the destabilization of the weave of reality as a chance to alter it." Michael noted. "Still, this is most curious. It hints that the 'Supreme Being's intention is to create portals to the Interdimensional Gap… However, I can't see a reason as to why that would be."
Serafall suddenly paled, glanced at Momonga with wide eyes, and nodded multiple times. "Y-yes, erm, no- there's no way, hehe… ehehe…"
"Do you have an idea, Serafall-san?" Azazel caught Serafall's change in behavior and gave her a flat stare.
"W-wellsies, it's nothing major but… eehh… D-dunno, you know…" Serafall looked around in panic and sent Momonga a glance. Momonga hesitated before deciding to nod back- He couldn't shake his head without raising suspicions from Azazel and Michael, not to mention the rest of the people who were staring at the empty crater in shock, awe and worry.
Serafall gulped before continuing "H-hehe, You know, the stuff that's in the gape- er, Gap… It's not super-fun to get in your face… It's like a highway to not-good-places… You know, there's stuff behind it, yah? I mean, Mo-kun can fight them off, I've seen it, but what if the Supreme Being decides to, you know, bring a bunch of stuff over? You know, here?"
"That… Is a worrying thought." Michael nodded. "You're suggesting that the 'Supreme Being' is one of… Them?"
Serafall blinked, thought for a moment, paled as something seemed to click in her head, and finally nodded hesitantly.
Momonga sighed, causing Serafall to jump a bit. "It's alright. No matter what happens, I'll protect you from the 'Supreme Being'."
Serafall shook on the spot a bit before breathing out in relief. Michael bowed towards Momonga and Gabriel nodded while having her hand on her chest in relief.
"I'll hold you to that, daddy." Azazel sent Momonga a thumbs-up, although the words caused Gabriel to blush more than a bit. "Anyway. We should probably set surveillance in case something happens, and send some people to help the rest of the Underworld- Whatever happened here seemed to have sent quite few ripple effects all over the place. No reason for letting a good tragedy go to waste."
"Hm?" Michael blinked in confusion.
"The defected Houses probably feel grateful when we help them in their hour of need, no? And those Houses who stuck with Beelz-kun are probably in the process of stabbing each other in order to break free of their old families and join the right side- Or rather, the only side left alive." Azazel lectured to Michael. And then gave Serafall a stare as she had been taking notes into a pink notebook. "Wait, aren't you a Maou? This makes sense to you without needing me to teach it, right?"
"Er, I figured we'd just kill all who opposed us…" Serafall pat her forefingers together guilty. "And then give the survivors cake or something… I'm actually not sure how the whole 'internal politics' thing works, that sort of stuff was Sirzechs-kun's speciality… I was just doing the foreign matters part. And it's a bit different, you know?"
"...Right." Azazel seemed to come to a conclusion on Serafall's mental state and covered his face with his hand for a moment. "Alright. I'm guessing I'll need to leverage the 'Governor' part of my title for a while… Are you alright with that, pops?"
"Certainly… Just say that it's done in my name, if devils challenge you based on your race. This will also be a good exercise in building trust between the two races, with Gray Angels coming to the aid of Devils and all. Now then- I have important things that keep me busy, so I appreciate you taking care of things on your end. It really helps with my work-burden. I hope that Serafall-chan, Michael-kun and Gabriel-chan are willing to help Azazel-kun? Call it a… Exercise in cooperation." Momonga gave Azazel a thumbs-up and promptly tossed the cleanup-job to him by pretending that he had something more important to do. 'I have no clue what that whole unification process needs, but since Azazel does it makes sense that he'll take care of it…'
"Ah, right. Now that Helios is dead, you can focus on restoring the sun." Azazel patted his palm with his fist in remembrance, causing Momonga to sigh internally. "Right. I'll not get in your way then. Let's hope that you're not too late- Er, actually, we should probably work on making food and stuff to help the survivors of the Human World, because that black hole is going to cause a lot of problems… Which would really help your popularity numbers as well, when you swoop in as the savior on the final hour, so to say. Damn, you really thought this through."
"Yes, er, don't worry. Everything is within my calculations. Umu." Momonga sweated internally while he nodded, and then remembered that he needed to somehow restore the sun. 'Hoo… That's going to be a doozy… I hope [Wish upon a Star] works as I hope…'
The gathered people nodded to one another.
"I'll return to Phenix manor. I need to do some experimentation relating to the sun-restoration. Let's meet there by the end of the day- Don't hesitate to call for backup if you need it." Momonga handwaved Azazel, Serafall, Michael and Gabriel who bowed in turn.
"Wait, that's that?" Rias blinked as Momonga returned to his Peerage, and Sona walked up to the group with her Peerage in tow. "What happened here?"
"Something must have blown up. I'm guessing Beelzebub blew himself up, and the central King Piece with him- I remember that it was here somewhere, so that must have caused the de-Kinging." Sona theorized from the side. "Would that theory be correct, my beloved?"
"Most likely. However, there's reports that a servant of the Supreme Being assaulted the stronghold, prompting Beelzebub to either unleash some sort of trap or lose control over whatever he was doing." Momonga commented neutrally. "There's no confirmation about the validity of the 'servant', however. It might have been someone from a third party."
"I see…" Sona caught onto Momonga's hint and nodded. "That is worrying. But hopefully under control?"
"Of course." Momonga knew that he couldn't show weakness by telling the truth, so he chose a convenient lie. 'Sona knows I am 'the supreme being', or rather, the one behind that… But if I show weakness by letting her know I don't know something, she might start doubting her allegiances…'
"I see… that is reassuring." Sona curtsied slightly.
"Alright… Um, so… About dad…" Rias eyed the blast-hole. "Did the group of Angels you sent to the ruins of the House of Pillars find dad's ashes?"
"No. So it's likely Beelzebub has stolen them." Momonga sighed as he realized another drama was about to happen. "Which means…"
"...They were likely there." Rias spoke quietly while she looked at the massive crater. "...You can't resurrect someone without ashes?"
"There's no guarantee it'll work. There's a significant chance they wouldn't come back as they were." Momonga realized he hadn't tried to resurrect someone without a body. 'Hm… I should probably try to see what happens.' "The end result is quite gruesome. I'll try when we get back, if you wish me to- This is not a good place for experimenting."
"I… see… Sniff…" Rias's eyes had become full of tears in a moment. "I… h-hic…"
"There, there…" Momonga reached to hug Rias for a moment while she cried, and cast [Gate] to let the rest of the gathered Gray Angels and Devils to start filing back to Phenix Estate, as the paladins behind Xenovia and Irina were shuffling a bit awkwardly now that the expected 'final battle' didn't happen. 'It's strange that Beelzebub was so hesitant to attack… Not to mention, whatever happened with Sirzechs-kun's assault… But I suppose I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.'
"Well then… Xenovia-san. Please assemble a rotation of guards and sentries around this place, just in case Beelzebub re-emerges or something unexpected happens. Rest of you- Let's head back." Momonga sighed while waving his hand towards a [Gate] that he had cast during the speech. "Stay on guard though- While the situation has changed drastically now, there's no saying that this isn't a trap within a trap. Or something like that."
The gathered soldiers and Peerages, or what Momonga considered 'chaff' nodded in unison and moved back to the swirling portal while Momonga thought about the situation with his and Sona's Peerages, waiting their turn to exit last to reinforce the the image of a 'heroic ruler'. 'Sheesh… Beelzebub must have some ridiculously crafty plan, first that backstab towards Sirzechs, now this feint-trap-thing… Or he realized that I was the 'supreme being', but instead of realizing that I'm not at all amazing he bought into the hype that my summons like to spout, and thought that procrastinating was some incredible plan on my part and made a counter-plan around that hypothetical plan…'
Momonga's head hurt as he considered the layers of plan he was supposed to have, and finally figured that he should stick to his current plan- A plan around which no-one could plan.
Namely, having no plan and making stuff up on the spot.
And so, he walked back into the [Gate].
.
.
Asmodeus groaned while leaning hard against a stone wall.
Beelzebub was holding his head while lying on his back, feeling as if someone had used his temple as an anvil. "Ghaa… Did we get it? Did we trap it?"
"What's this 'it' then?" A female voice came from somewhere and both Beelzebub and Asmodeus rolled to their feet in an instant while bringing glowing devil-circles up in the air in preparation for battle… Only to blink in confusion as they saw the female who had spoken.
"You are… One of Olympeans?" Beelzebub blinked, causing the woman's expression to go from mild confusion and amusement to rage in an instant.
"Do you have a death wish, fool?! I am not one of those upstart children, I am a primordial- Nyx!" The woman growled, although the enraged voice and harsh expression clashed spectacularly with the cute, almost childish features of her face to make it look as if she was pouting.
"I see! I understand, it seems that I was mistaken in the heat of the moment. Please forgive me." Beelzebub instantly changed his stance to appeasement, well aware that something must have gone incredibly wrong if Nyx had arrived with them to wherever they had landed. Or that she was present in the first place. "What about Hastur? Did you see it? What happened?"
"That name… Wha..?" Nyx scrunched her face in confusion and tied her hands around her waist as if she was feeling cold. "Don't speak of them. Seriously, devils, what's your malfunction… Wait a moment, what exactly happened? I was assaulting this 'True God's outpost or something, and-"
"Wait, we got a report that-" Beelzebub froze still for a moment… Before whacking his head against the stone wall in rage and frustration. "I was played. In my moment of foolish hope, I betrayed my caution to reach for a straw dangled in front of my face. Of course… O' Primordial of Night and Darkness, of course you'd be led here, and spurned to attack us so that we struck at one another and allowed our true enemy to merely come and scoop his victory. I should have seen this coming… He did the exact same thing back in the Human World. I counted too much on his arrogance."
"What are you yammering about? I don't really care if you go insane, but do tell me where we are before that." Nyx crossed her arms and tapped the floor with her feet in annoyance. "I agreed to go take a look at this 'True God'-thing by Zeus-kun's request, by which I mean see if he's worth anything or worth to play around with, I have nothing to do with your devil-politics or whatever."
"You- Hrgh…" Beelzebub wanted to growl in despair but forced the emotion down with herculean effort. 'If that's true, then it's possible that Olympus has already fallen to Hastur… Or that he and Zeus were aligned all along, since that would explain why Nyx was sent here. Or Zeus thought a primordial of night and shadow would be able to 'negotiate' with 'the true god' who resided in the Underworld. Or rather, negotiate with Hastur. In other words, Zeus is desperate since he sent an envoy to our shared enemy behind my back, and is seeking to ally with the victor rather than sticking with us… How ironic that a Olympean thinks like a devil. Or maybe I am just projecting my own way of thinking on his actions… However, if Nyx has come into contact with Hastur, then…'
A poke to Beelzebub's forehead broke him off his bitter and frustrated thoughts.
"Underworld to Bub-kun." Asmodeus noted dryly, and then turned towards Nyx. "I'm going to assume the trap failed. But where are we? Lady Nyx, could I be as arrogant to ask if you are interested in joining forces with us until we figure out where we are and get out- It was our intention to trap a Outer Being by the name of Hastur, who had taken the guises of both 'True God' and 'Supreme Being', into a pocket of Interdimensional Gap with Beelzebub's trap. But it seems that our trap has failed, or backfired."
"You- Wait…" Nyx seemed to pale a bit. "Hold on, you bunch of idiots somehow managed to summon one of those?!"
"You were not briefed about this by Zeus?" Beelzebub asked to buy time, causing Nyx to groan something alongside the lines of 'stepping on something and breaking nuts'. Beelzebub decided that he didn't want to learn more, so he moved on. "I see. I suppose he thought such knowledge was not needed- Or that you wouldn't agree to it if you knew."
"...I'm going to castrate that old man and stuff his bits into his mouth through the rear entrance when I get out of here." Nyx looked completely serene and borderline happy as she spoke, causing the words to clash spectacularly with her expression, even if her eyes were closed and her arms were crossed. Nonetheless it caused Beelzebub to feel cold shivers even though the threat was not aimed at him.
"Ahem, but before you go do that, we should consider seeking- Quiet." Asmodeus coughed to his fist, spoke a bit, and then lifted his arm and swung it sideways while pressing himself against the dark stone wall of the mausoleum-like hallway.
Beelzebub lifted his arms in preparation to use [Power of Imagination] and Nyx narrowed her eyes while standing still… And Beelzebub heard it.
Creaking, dusty sounds that were like dry bones rubbing against each other, occasionally broken by clings and swashes of metal plate hitting metal, and chainmail moving around.
A few seconds later a shambling horde of skeletons appeared in the end of the hallway, marching in eerie non-unison- Rather than marching in perfect unison or in disorganized shamble, the skeleton's shambling was perfectly synchronized as if they were going through pre-programmed shambling motions.
Moreover Beelzebub heard something breathing weakly nearby… And glanced at the nearby wall to see that there was a beaten and malnourished-looking young man lying against the wall, and he had left a sizable dent in the wall from the impact of their dynamic entry. 'I see… So the trap also drew some of the defenders in who failed to evacuate in time.'
"..." Asmodeus glanced at Beelzebub who had paled utterly white, yet had a faint blush on his neck as he stared at the approaching horde, as he had already forgotten about the young man. "Undead."
"So… Even though Nyx's misdirected assault caused me to trigger the trap early… The system might have worked. Just- Not in a way that I envisioned." Beelzebub spoke quietly while his head ran hot with calculations, theories and strategies. "We may not have trapped Hastur to the Interdimensional Gap… But rather, we drew ourselves to Carcossa."
"Hm?" Asmodeus stared at the approaching skeletons in calm peace. "Perhaps this is the Greek Underworld or something like that? How can you be sure? No-one's seen that place, I think…"
"No. Can you feel it? The eerie feeling of wrong-ness? I touched Lord Phenix, or rather, his puppeted body when it was dead and broken yet animated, back in the dragon mountains…" Beelzebub couldn't hide a feeling of jubilation from his voice. "Can you not feel the wrongness that those undead echo? That this whole place reeks of?"
"...Hm." Asmodeus narrowed his eyes at the undead. "I cannot. Your sense of magic and auras were always better than mine, so I'll take your word for it. But that means we are trapped in the enemy territory."
"Nay… We are trapped in the enemy's treasury. His gallery of toys." Beelzebub's smile stretched from ear to ear. "In other words… We do not need to trap him in the Interdimensional Gap… Only, we need to draw him back into his realm, lest he loses what he has amassed."
"Hm… " Asmodeus narrowed his eyes until they looked like slits. "In that case… Haaa… I suppose I'll have to forget about having a nap for the next ten thousand years."
"What are you two mumbling about?" Nyx tapped her feet to the stone floor while having her arms bunched up, causing the floor to crack a bit. The fact the two Maous had turned to whisper to one another and left her out of it seemed to have annoyed her quite a bit.
"Lady Nyx, it would be best if- um…" Beelzebub paused as Nyx walked past both of the Maous, and lifted her hand to a bored flick towards the horde of skeletons that were clad in somewhat high-quality armors and bearing clearly magical weapons.
The horde of skeletons evaporated into dark mist as the shadows of the corridor extended and sliced them apart as if the skeletal creatures were smoke apparitions.
"Let's go. Or are you devils too scawwed of some skeletons?" Nyx seemed to be in a foul mood as she walked towards the remains of the skeletons… Before she paused.
She looked at the corridor for a while before scoffing, walked to the unconscious devil man that had come with Beelzebub and Asmodeus, and grabbed the man by the front of his shirt.
Beelzebub narrowed his eyes at the devil, as he was fairly sure he had not seen him before. Not to mention that the devil had only one arm, making him somewhat easy to remember… However, Beelzebub ran out of time to think as Nyx tossed the devil at the remains of the undead creatures.
The devil hit the stone floor like a sack of potatoes… And a trapdoor opened below him.
The man fell into the darkness below.
Nyx looked at the trap-hole for a while before she walked forwards, dodging the trap hole. "...To think something like this could trap me… I'd be amused, were this not so personally insulting."
Beelzebub stared at Nyx a bit as she continued to walk off, the sound of her footsteps echoing loudly in the mausoleum-like hallway.
Beelzebub and Asmodeus looked at each other for a brief moment, before nodding and setting off to follow Nyx… If not only because she'd be a useful buffer against Hastur's collection of horrors.
.
.
Roughly two hours, and countless skeletons, zombies, deathly apparitions, trap-doors, punji-traps, collapsing hallways and maze-like corridors later Beelzebub, Asmodeus and Nyx found themselves in a hall-like room that was in front of a massive door.
Beelzebub narrowed his eyes a bit at the symbols of the door, and noted that they had clearly vampiric, if somehow mundane, markings. It was more akin to someone pretending to know what vampire society was like and trying to emulate what they saw without truly understanding it, rather than someone actually knowing what they were doing when designing the gate. "Hm… This feels quite odd."
"How come?" Nyx seemed to have cheered up quite bit after the short if eventful journey through the maze of undead- Beelzebub assumed that getting to fight a bit and dodge or avoid a series of traps that got progressively harder had cheered the bored and annoyed Primordial quite a bit. "Sheesh, if this was a bit more challenging I'd enjoy spelunking in this place. Speaking of which, you still haven't told me where we are?"
"It is my firm belief that we are in Hastur's homeland- Carcosa." Beelzebub sighed as Nyx's cheerful attitude froze and was slowly replaced by terror. "However, since Hastur is in our realm, there is no-one here to guard his treasury of horrors and amusements. If we make a big enough ruckus He'll have to come and figure out what's happening- We can use that chance to get out the way he came in, and trap him in his realm."
"...And do you know how to do that?" Nyx narrowed her eyes at Beelzebub.
"I'm certain I'll be able to, once Hastur arrives." Beelzebub nodded while putting as much self-confidence in his words- Confidence that he didn't truly have. 'This will be our tomb. Our last stand… But if we take Hastur with us, lock him here with us, we'll save the Underworld… That is a fate that I'm alright with. Nyx, however, would likely not be so eager, and would likely seek to negotiate with Hastur… And we need her strength.'
"...Hm. We should probably keep moving though. He'll be more pressed to respond to the threat we pose the harder we hit and swifter we move." Asmodeus reminded the two while he stood in front of the double-doors, and the Maou responsible for Underworld's military affairs stretched himself in his battle-armor. "Are you two rested enough yet?"
"Hoo? It's rare to hear that from you, Fabium-kun." Beelzebub joked a bit at the normally-sleepy Maou. "You've returned to your war-mindset then?"
"I'll happily sleep for a decade after this… But right now, we need to focus." Asmodeus's eyes lacked the normal blur of sleepiness and tiredness, cluing to Beelzebub that Asmodeus had finally managed to shake the tiredness that had stricken the Maou ever since the civil war.
"Right. Let's go- Shall we, Lady Nyx?" Beelzebub turned to offer his hand at Nyx who smirked a bit, pinched the back of Beelzebub's hand and caused him to wince, and she strutted off to kick the double-doors open.
The trio entered a large, almost arena-like room with a single coffin in its center.
The coffin opened with a dramatic crack and almost ethereal wind blew across the mausoleum-like arena… And a petite gothic-dressed girl stood up from the coffin.
'I see… Now it makes sense why young lady Phenix was dressed in gothic clothing. I suppose collecting girls and stuffing them here is part of Hastur's obsession.' Beelzebub made the connection while adjusting his glasses.
The trio looked at the gothic-dressed girl who made a grand show and dance of standing up from the coffin, somehow appearing vampiric yet making numerous etiquette mistakes that screamed wannabe-vampire to Beelzebub. Yet at the same time, the girl was unmistakably a vampire, based on her looks, glowing red eyes and sharp fangs 'It's like she's a vampire who has only read about what vampires are supposed to be like… Which means she was likely taken from one of the vampire clans before she had time to learn about the clan's ways and substituted knowledge of her origin with whatever literature humans have written about vampires…'
"Greetings, intruders. I am Shalltear Bloodfallen, and I shall be your executioner." The girl curtsied cutely to them, roughly fifty feet in front of the trio, and she straightened herself up almost instantly. "Now then… I have a meeting later today, so let's be quick. Who is your leader?"
"Pfft." Nyx seemed amused by the vampire's words, and she had seemingly come to the same conclusion as Beelzebub regarding the vampire's heritage. "You sure talk tough for a wannabe-vampire. Didn't your master teach you about proper etiquette when talking to Primordials? Then again, looking at these tasteless sigils and markings, it would make sense that you'd grow twisted and boorish like your sire."
"You- YOU DARE?!" Shalltear's slightly amused and borderline bored expression made way for a mask of rage in an instant, which seemed to boil over and cause her to lurch to a hunchback pose while holding herself, almost as if she was trying her hardest to stop something foul from coming out of her.
'A angry vampire is a predictable vampire…' Beelzebub nodded mentally to Nyx as she had almost immediately located the vampire's soft spot and driven her to a rage.
The two Maous lifted their hands in preparation for a barrage while Nyx walked forwards with no care in the world… And the vampire straightened her back just in time for a red-coloured extravagant armor to form around her body and a pair of feathery wings to extend from her back, while a long pipette-like lance formed from light into her hand.
Curiously, Beelzebub analyzed the radiant energy from the weapon and found out that it was holy energy, of all things. Which made everything clear to him.
'So she's an amalgamation of an Angel and a Vampire- Or rather, an Angel turned Vampire? Hastur's collection of curios is truly varied…' Beelzebub would have felt a bit envious of Hastur's collection if the situation was any less serious. But as it was, they had only one option: To destroy the amalgamation.
The Angelic Vampire charged, and Nyx smirked as she counter-charged to meet the vampire midway while Beelzebub and Asmodeus supported the Primordial.
The entire Third Floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick shook from the force of the clash.
.
Far below the battle that raged in a well-prepared arena, a collection of peculiar individuals looked down at a slowly stirring one-armed man.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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