Kapitel 466: Chapter 424 Part 1
Azazel POV
"Where's Michael?" I frowned, tapping my foot very impatiently.
"He said he'll be here, and he's not known for lying." Sirzechs responded. "And it's not like we set a particularly specific time."
"True…"
"And why are you in a rush? You're the one who wanted all of us to show up together. A united front you said."
"You said you liked my idea."
"I'm not saying I am against it."
Not all of us were freaks of nature. Gods are actually scary to two thirds of the Abrahamic Faction.
Well, he knew why I wanted us all together when we headed over. Even if things were still super tense, it made it look like we were united.
Heaven needed that. The Grigori needed that. And as much as they wouldn't admit it, even the Devils needed the breathing room.
Despite the freak standing next to me, him and Ajuka weren't enough to dissuade the other Factions if they honestly decided to accept the casualties to destroy the Devils.
Sure, they had two beat sticks that could match the top end of any Faction reasonably well, but they were lacking a large number of heavy hitters above High-Class. On the opposite side, Heaven had a lot of Angels at the peak of High-class and above, but they lacked a true powerhouse now that Father was gone. Not only that, they couldn't replenish their numbers just yet.
I wasn't part of the whole 'Angel Evil Pieces' project they were working on, but from what I understand, it's slow going.
Lastly, we were sort of in the middle. Shit, I was the strongest in the Grigori, and we didn't have nearly the number of decently powerful members like Heaven. But we had our own strengths that would let us stand toe to toe with them if things got nasty.
"By the way, who did you bring with you? I haven't seen anyone else." Lucifer asked.
"I just brought Vali." I shrugged. "We're still dealing with a lot of shit after what Kokabiel did, so I didn't wanna bother my subordinates for something like this. And it's not like they could do much here. And as for Odin's suggestion about this whole thing….Vali was pretty much the only choice."
Well, that or Slash Dog team but….they're dealing with their own shit at the moment and this wasn't a huge priority.
Another huge flaw of the Grigori, we don't have many kids to replace the old when they're gone. It's unfortunate, but that's just how it was. Most of our numbers came from other Angels that fell and random people we recruited over the years.
We didn't exactly have the best reputation, so most kids didn't want to get involved with us, and finding a kid with talent without someone behind him was frickin impossible these days. Most of the kids we find with Sacred Gears don't want anything to do with fighting which…was fine, I'm not going to complain about being able to research Sacred Gears, but we're floundering at that point and it showed.
Which is why I wasn't really against Michael doing the whole Angel Conversion thing. Well, I guess I am against it just on principle cause it seemed to not be what Dad envisioned. Which was funny considering that I basically jumped off the highest cloud while flipping Dad the bird, but some things just don't go away even with time.
But on the bright side, this meant more potential recruits for us in the long run. I don't think Michael realized how many new Angels were going to fall. Humans don't have the same mindset as Angels, it's going to take a bit for them to work out the kinks and I know for sure he's going to go straight for the big shots to boost their power.
I'm just glad I'm not the one who has to deal with that mess. But even if I'm no longer in the best graces of my brothers and sisters, I couldn't help but feel a little bad about what's to come.
"What about you guys? We didn't really have a chance to coordinate too well. Odin basically hopped over and dropped this whole thing in our laps and we jumped on the opportunity." I asked, continue our small chit chat.
Kind of weird that the Devils were hosting, considering they're not exactly on everyone's Christmas list here…but the logic was hard to argue with. The Grigori didn't really have anywhere to call our 'headquarters' except, well….down here with them but much less….everything in comparison.
Heaven was Dad's turf, which was the same reason they didn't want to gather anywhere else. No one could agree on which Faction to hold it, or rather, which place would have the least 'home field advantage'.
Seemed an easy agreement on their end to just 'let the Devils host it' since they looked down on them enough and Hell wasn't technically any Divine Being's turf.
Well, I'm not complaining. Saved us the hassle of dealing with the pretentious Godly Domains and dancing around their weird rules.
"We just let everyone go." Lucy shrugged nonchalantly.
"How arrogant."
He just smirked. "Benefits of dealing with all the big heads butting. But it's good for them. I'm glad they haven't had to fight in any wars, but the world isn't always safe. It's nice for them to have something to work towards."
"Right, and you're not directing that comment towards your sister, right?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." He hummed.
"Please, I bet you're letting all of them be there just so your Sister has a reason to show up."
"Hey, Rias could easily match those Geniuses of other factions."
"Dude, no offense, but your sister isn't anywhere close to being strong enough." I shook my head. "Not saying this to be mean, but I think we've been friendly enough. I wouldn't suggest forcing it."
"Rias has a lot of talent." He frowned.
"Talent isn't the same as strength." I pointed out. "She didn't stand a chance against Kokabiel." I reminded me as well. "You know I originally sent Vali to deal with him in my stead, right? Like, I trusted him to, if not at least defeat Kokabiel, to be able to force him to retreat."
It's not like there aren't any Devils up there, I knew of a few off the top of my head, but damn his little sister definitely wasn't one of them.
Nothing good was going to come about trying to push his sister into any 'team' that gets created.
Right, Red didn't like that. He didn't have anything to argue with me with, but he obviously was annoyed I pointed out the obvious.
"Just let things take their course." I finally said. "It's already good that your brats can see some of the stronger kids their age."
"Where is Vali?"
"Eh, I let him wander off. Just told him to be there soon." Not like he'll get into much trouble. Besides, I told him that his rival was invited. Fat chance he'll show up, but Vali didn't know that, so he won't go off and get into trouble. "Anyways, how about –"
I quickly dodged out of the way as a Phone soared through the air, narrowly missing me and smacking Ol' Red in the face.
"Serafall…" Red groaned, covering his nose where it just hit him. "Was that really necessary?"
"Fuck you, Sirzechs." She huffed.
"Ouch, who pissed in your cheerios?" I winced.
"His bastard son." Serafall stomped.
…..well fuck.
"I thought he wasn't going to show up?" I questioned.
I mean, that's good news. If Red's kid joined up, it'd help things significantly. How old was he and he was already strong enough to sit at the Adult's table. Shit, he treated Vali with kid's gloves and there was nothing he could do in response.
I just didn't think he'd go for it. I think we all expected a blunt reply from the Busty Fox that they weren't going to involve themselves.
"Well look at that, so did we!" She threw her hands up.
"Sheesh, why are you so upset about it? Shouldn't it be a good thing?"
"I'd be ecstatic if he didn't nearly start a fight with Indra in the middle of the ballroom!"
Oof, yeah, that'll do it.
"And he had the nerve to insult my Sona! That bastard, I'll scratch his eyes out!"
….okay part of me thinks she's more pissed about that.
"Well, you're not running there in a panic, so all good?" I asked.
"It was dealt with." She grumbled. "But we should probably get going otherwise who knows what's going to happen. I don't trust Baldie and Idiot to hold down the fort for too long."
Yeah….Falbium and Ajuka weren't the best at keeping things peaceful with a bunch of Gods.
"Wait, Sona's there too?" I blinked, realizing what she said a moment ago.
"Of course, my Sona-tan is participating!" Sona squeed.
Father damn it.
I had to resist the urge to sigh. I knew that they were just shoving all the kiddies over there but jeez, don't make it so obvious with the nepotism.
Well, at least if this thing takes off, it's not going to be hijacked by the Devils just to show off or anything like that. All those Gods won't let it happen.
They can spout nonsense about their kids being 'High-Class' all they want, but everyone knew they just grant those 'titles' to anyone of their 'Noble Families' that come of age. Everyone else in the world actually used those as a measuring stick of strength.
At the end of the Day, their siblings are pretty solid in the 'Mid-Class'.
I'm obviously not going to say that out loud though, I preferred living.
"Wait…did they also bring their peerages?" I suddenly had the realization.
"Of course." Red instantly replied.
….I think he missed the whole point of this.
Maybe we shouldn't have jumped the gun so quickly. It's just…..everyone was feeling anxious and wanted to get the ball rolling on how to deal with the Khaos Brigade.
I thought about having one of my people infiltrate them. Maybe even have Vali 'Betray' me or something stupid like that, but I squashed that thought in the end. I didn't like the thought of any of my close confidants in such a dangerous spot.
Not to mention, it would be pretty suspicious at this point and they'd probably be kept at arm's length by whoever ran the Khaos Brigade.
"What's the attendance looking like so far, Serafall?" I tapped my foot, still patiently waiting for Michael to get his holy rear down here.
She picked up her phone off the ground from where she threw it. "Not bad. Indra came, that's a surprise. Or maybe it's not."
"Well, he did get attacked as well." I mused. "Nice to see him get a black eye for once, you know, other than Red's Bastard doing it literally."
"Damn straight!" Serafall cheered.
We did a high-five while Red just scowled at the mention of his Bastard Son.
Nobody liked Indra.
Even if Red got into a mood as soon as his Bastard was mentioned, it was obvious he was on the screw Indra train as well.
Shit, I think there was even a look of pride when I mentioned it briefly.
But yeah, it wasn't a secret that Indra got attacked in his home from the Khaos Brigade. Word on the street was that he was the reason their existence was revealed, albeit not directly by the big guy but that didn't matter to them any.
Combined with how pissed some people are at Indra for his little stunt with his whole 'invasion' of Japan, yeah….he had to play nice.
"Who else?"
"We got a rep from the Heavenly Court." Serafall held up a finger. "Got the Monkey too, which should keep Indra placated mostly. Odin's here too…obviously. He actually stepped up once Indra started acting up." She held three fingers up, adding a fourth. "Lugh should be coming with some people….and there's a good chance we might get a rep from Olympus."
"Olympus?" I raised an eyebrow. "Zeus seriously went for something like this?"
"Hey, don't look at me. Odin was the one who swung this with most groups, I'm taking a back seat here." Serafall shrugged. "I'm just as surprised, honestly. Everyone knows how paranoid and reclusive Zeus is. He gets all pissy if his faction interacts with other Pantheons."
"Think it has something to do with Hades?" I thought out loud. The Greek God of the Underworld did appear recently to the benefit of Red's Bastard….
"Who knows what he thinks." Serafall sighed. "I just hope we can deal with this without it exploding in our faces."
"Yeah….it might not be a smart idea to gather all those strong Egos into one room…" I acknowledged.
But, we may not have much of a choice.
If we just wait and bury our heads into the sand, who's to say we wouldn't be picked off one by one? The Khaos Brigade, according to the list we received, has quite a few Gods within their ranks….more than we're honestly capable of dealing with.
"Oh finally." Serafall threw her hands up because a Teleportation Circle activated next to us, one obviously tinted with Holy Power.
Pretty easy to guess who it belonged to.
They appeared in a flash of light, making Serafall and Red wince. Not that they were affected all that much, but it's hard to avoid that sort of intrinsic reaction to Holy Power.
Michael appeared with Gabriel at his side. I may have questioned his choice of bringing Gabriel here among all these aggressive personalities, but Father Murder was also standing protectively at her side.
The massive Priest would deter most anyone from attempting anything.
As much as I would love Gabriel to fall….I also kinda didn't want to see it. Despite everything she was my sister and I know it would seriously mess with her to lose her white wings.
I normally would spend quite a bit of time admiring Gabriel, I was this time focused on who she brought with her.
I only recognized one of them.
"Michael, Gabriel." I greeted.
My brother smiled politely. "Azazel, how are you doing?"
"Hanging in there, it's been chaotic recently." I said honestly.
"Yes, we've been experiencing something similar." He nodded in understanding. "Lucifer, Leviathan. Thank you for hosting us." He also was pointedly polite as he greeted his 'supposed' greatest enemies.
"No problem!" Serafall cheerfully ignored the tension. "So, which kids did you bring?"
I too was curious to see which 'talents' they scraped up from the Church.
"Hello, I'm Dulio Gesualdo!" A rather gentle looking young man casually introduced himself.
Yes you are…
"The wielder of Zenith Tempest, I should have guessed you'd bring the strongest Exorcist with you here today." I nodded.
The second Strongest Longinus right behind Dad's Spear. One I'd never been able to get my hands on to research…
I wanted it….
Not only that, he's considered the Strongest Exorcist too. Granted, everyone's probably ignoring Father rippling Muscles here, but that kind of title still holds weight.
He might be stronger than Vali. Father knew that Vali has talked about wanting to fight him since forever.
And now they're going to be in the same room….
I'm sort of regretting bringing Vali now.
"This is Mirana Shatrova!" Gabriel introduced the shy girl basically clinging to her side. Almost as voluptuous as Gabriel with similarly blonde hair, but honestly, the sheer amount of Holy Power she was radiating kind of took my attention the most.
Easy to see why she's here…Shit, I think she has more Holy Power than most of my subordinates.
"And this is Xenovia Quarta." Michael gestured to the blue-haired girl. "She's the current wielder of Durandal."
"Finally passed on the torch, Big guy?" I raised an eyebrow towards Father Violence.
He just smiled good naturedly.
But someone able to wield Durandal naturally wasn't someone to ignore.
That Sword was extremely powerful, on the same level as Caliburn and Excalibur.
She didn't say anything, besides the hint of pride at Michael's words, there was sort of a permanent scowl on her face. Something told me she didn't like being here.
And I vaguely recall a scary Nun with the same last name….
"Well, if that's everything, we should get going. A bunch of others have already set up and are getting antsy." Serafall clapped her hands.
Yeah, better get in and out as soon as possible. This was a pretty volatile situation all around.
"I can Teleport us." Red offered.
"Thank you, that would be appreciated." Michael smiled with a nod.
Red held his hand up and the Teleportation circle appeared below us. Within a breath, we appeared at the entrance to the venue.
"Let's go~" Serafall happily cheered, only to stop once she realized we were rooted in place.
I think she said something, but I was utterly distracted, the same as Michael and Gabriel. I'm pretty sure we all had the same confused look on our faces.
"…Michael, do you feel that too?" I whispered.
He nodded absentmindedly.
"It feels like….Father." Gabriel whispered.
"What's wrong?" Serafall asked in concern.
"Why….is Father's presence shining so brightly inside, Serafall?" I hesitantly asked, a bit…concerned about what we may find inside.
"I…don't know what you're talking about." She tilted her head.
"Would you please explain to me what's going on?" Red asked.
"If I didn't know any better, I would almost mistake it for one of the Archangels sitting inside…but it feels more like Father's blessing than an Angel. Which is strange, considering, you know." I didn't say the last bit out loud. I didn't know if the kids around us were in the know about Dad being Dead, and I didn't want Michael being mad at me.
But Father damn, why did it feel like he slapped his Blessing on someone so blatantly that we could feel it this far away? Something that should be impossible. Sure, Michael could use the System to sort of 'bless' people and all that, but that was basically smacking them with Concentrated Holy Power not….Father's Presence.
And it's obvious my siblings felt the same way I did. There's no way they would be oblivious to such a significant Holy Presence.
Before we could even discuss it, Gabriel basically shot forward, going for the door.
"Sister – " Michael tried to stop her but realized the futility in it. Instead, we all hurriedly followed behind her.
The insides were exactly what I would expect, extravagance thrown around without a care. Tons of Devils up and about, because why not.
But the presence seemed to drown out all else.
And it wasn't hard to lock onto the source.
Gabriel and Michael seemingly didn't care that they made a scene. Frankly, I wasn't caring much myself at the moment.
But all our eyes landed on the source.
I almost wanted to groan once I saw Red's Bastard, but it wasn't him this time. Or rather, not him in particular.
There was a woman by his side, a blue dress, long blonde hair done up in a braid, and gentle blue eyes.
Yet….she just radiated a Holy Presence.
It was like….staring at a living Saint. Someone blessed by Father directly.
Just looking at her was enough to tell how much of a pure soul she was. You don't have that kind of presence and have hidden depths. What you saw was exactly what you got, in a good way.
Gentle, protective, welcoming.
It's been a very long time since I felt that not from one of my Siblings.
Maybe since it was coming from a Human that it was magnified?
Gabriel and Michael wasted no time, they were already marching right towards her without a single care in the world.
I clicked my tongue, following along.
"Well, hello to you too." Red's Bastard curtly spoke as they came over with the grace of a stampeding Rhino.
The girl in question looked…nervous and she was basically clinging to Red-Junior.
I almost wanted to laugh at the idea of someone so Holy being with literally Satan's kid, but honestly, I was much too preoccupied with her entire existence.
Being this close to her, it became even more obvious.
She was directly touched by Father.
I had so many questions right now, but I found myself having trouble even speaking due to the confusion. Frankly, even Gabriel and Michael looked similar to me, we sort of just stared at the Young Girl not knowing what to make of her.
Who was she, why wasn't she with Heaven or the Church? Why was this the first time we've met her? She should have been found immediately.
Someone somewhere fucked up hard.
This awkward moment was enough for the others to catch up. Serafall came running up in a huff. However, instead of the young woman, she focused on Lucifer Jr.
Red Senior was smartly keeping his distance….
"You!" Serafall, despite the awkward atmosphere, once more decided to ignore it. "I have a bone to pick with you!" She said, pointing right at Lucifer JR.
"That's nice." Lucifer Jr seemingly ignored her indignation, making her get even more huffy.
"Well, al teast you're here." She harumphed. "Everyone thought you were going to reject it."
"Oh, I am." He said bluntly.
"…what?" She blinked.
"I'm not joining…..whatever it is you all decide on."
"….then why are you here?"
"It's called manners." Lucifer Jr snorted. "I am here to politely decline your invitation."
"…..right because you're the most courteous person ever…"
"If you have any complaints about my conduct, you're free to go find my parents and scold them for how I was raised." He casually took a sip of his drink.
Oof.
It's actually kind of funny when I'm not on the receiving end.
Serafall was twitching a little.
"But there was actually one more reason I was here."
"Hmm?"
"My Daughter's birthday is coming up, she's apparently a fan of Magical Girl Levi-tan." He sounded….defeated when he said that.
Suddenly, Serafall had the smuggest look on her face. "Well well, look who's coming to me with a request. Maybe I might be too busy to do anything, hmm? Maybe if someone were to stick around and help with some things, I might have some time?"
"Well, I guess I'll tell my daughter that her idol didn't 'have time' for her."
Serafall's lips thinned and she frowned. "Hmph, you're not going to trick me! Everyone knows I love my fans anyways. You're just going to be lying to your daughter!"
"Well, I think little white lies are part of parenting. Humans telling their children about Santa, things like that. For example, I let my daughter have fun watching some woman play around as a Magical Girl and lie by omission by not explaining to her what a Mid-life Crisis is." He countered.
….ouch.
Don't think you're going to come back from that one, Serafall.
"Y-y-y-y-you!" She turned red.
I quickly put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down.
Despite this little exchange, Michael or Gabriel didn't even react. No, they were instead staring at the girl by his side who was also sort of hiding behind Jr.
"Oh, Father swole!" Lucifer Jr perked up seeing the Violence of Heaven walk over as if he wasn't a hulking monster of muscle with a smile on his face.
"Hello, Young Man." He was genuinely warm in his greeting.
"I think your Angels are broken." He pointed at the two of them staring blankly at the woman.
Vasco Strada looked at the two Archangels, then at who they were staring at. "Hello Miss."
"H-hello." She replied back, a little awkwardly.
"I'm Father Vasco Strade, may I have the pleasure of your name?"
"I'm…..Jeanne D'Arc."
…..ah.
I wondered if there's a word for it, when your confusion is resolved, but that in of itself makes you further confused with more questions?
Credit where it was due, Father Strada barely missed a beat. "I thought you looked familiar. I had the pleasure of meeting the Spirit Inheritor of the Saintess previously. I wonder, are you perhaps related to her?"
Huh, that would make sense. Was the Spirit of the Saintess inherited by sisters or something as opposed to a singular person?
Wait….that still doesn't make sense, a Spirit Inheritor doesn't inherit…this.
Maybe if Adam's soul popped up, it might still have Father's touch…but even that was a big maybe. This was like….it felt like Father was literally watching over her right now.
"Well…um, not really?" The now named Jeanne D'Arc looked a bit confused and uncertain.
"What, so you just named yourself after the Saintess?" The Blue-haired Exorcist scoffed from behind father Strada. "Just what I'd expect from someone hanging around Devils. Trampling all over the names of our Saints."
Vasco Strade shot her a look and she shrunk back slightly. Not a hostile one, mind you. But a chiding look that any kid could understand coming from a figure of authority.
"Wow, the Church throwing stones from their Glass House, what a surprise." Lucifer Jr rolled his eyes. "Remind me again how the story of the Saintess of Orleans went? Which organization was it that killed her?"
"Hmph, she was canonized after her death, so it doesn't matter." Xenovia Quarta crossed her arms. "Just burn all the fake saints, saves us Exorcist the trouble of hunting them down ourselves."
Almost as soon as she said that, some sort of pressure descended down on all of us.
I nearly stumbled because I wasn't prepared for it, but it wasn't focused on me, that much I knew. No, it was directed at the girl who ran her mouth when she obviously should have read the room.
The source of it, obviously it was coming from Jr over there.
The Blue-haired Exorcist buckled under the pressure, falling to her knees.
"Including the Gods not far away, and everyone present. Do you think there is anyone capable of stopping me from killing you at this moment?" Lucifer Junior said rather ominously.
I thought Father Strada was going to step in, but actually, it was the other Priest – Exorcist that came along.
The owner of Zenith Tempest put his hand on Xenovia's shoulder, and a visible wind swept up around them. The pressure that enveloped her seemed to diminish a bit with his help.
"Will…." The woman tugged on Jr's shirt. "Don't fight."
Jr seemed to grumble and dismiss whatever it was he was going. "Fine."
"Xenovia, we're going to have a long talk about your actions after." Gabriel seemed to break from her stupor as she wagged her finger at the young Exorcist.
Honestly, it came off more cute than stern.
Xenovia's legs trembled as she stood back up, a flush of anger appeared on her face, but she backed down at Gabriel's 'scolding'.
If Sister didn't say anything, I'd be surprised if she didn't leap back at him regardless of the fact that he downed her with just a look.
…..I wouldn't be surprised if Durandal had a new owner in a few years.
"Right, anyway!" I clapped my hands. "Introductions for the beautiful young woman?" I smiled putting on the ol' Azazel Charm. "You've probably heard of me, the great Scapegoat of Heaven, second to Fall, Leader of the Grigori, Azazel!" I introduced myself splendidly.
"…..um, Hello." She awkwardly said in return.
…not what I was hoping for. But I can work with this. "But that's not very important. What is important is that I have an offer for you –"
"You're barking up the wrong tree, she doesn't have a driver's license."
"What's a Driver's License?" Jeanne looked at me.
"Legal document saying that you're verified to know how to drive a car." He explained.
"Why do I need that?" She tilted her head.
"For some reason, I feel like he's about to try and sell us some used cars."
…ouch.
"pfft!" Serafall barely held back a laugh.
I'm not that bad! …..am I?
"It's nice to meet you, I'm Archangel Michael."
"And I'm Archangel Gabriel."
My siblings just ignored me and introduced themselves.
"Eee." The woman practically vibrated in place. Definitely a believer then, that's a pretty normal reaction when meeting the big wigs for the first time. I admit, I kind of miss seeing that from their side. "I-I'm Jeanne D'Arc!" She quickly said again, looking rather flustered as she did.
Both of them took it in stride, this wasn't their first rodeo.
"If you don't mind, we had a question for you."
"A-anything!"
Michael and Gabriel shared a look. "Why….do you have Father's blessing?" He finally asked. No pussyfooting around, just straight to the heart of the matter.
"Blessing?" Jeanne tilted her head.
"That's right, we noticed it as soon as we got close." Michael smiled again. "Being the Spirit Inheritor of the Saintess of Orleans shouldn't have such a prevalent blessing….which is why we're a bit surprised."
Was he thinking she's some type of inheritor? I mean, it's the most obvious answer…but she didn't even know what that was, but that also wasn't an immediate denial either….
"A-and a new Spirit Inheritor shouldn't have come about so soon! Actually, the last tone, um…" Gabriel glanced at Lucifer JR.
"Ah…" The young lady looked a little bashful. "I think there is a misunderstanding. I'm not this…..Spirit Inheritor nor someone who was….named after her."
"What…"
"I am Jeanne D'Arc."
@***@
Wilhelm POV
Welp, there it was.
This was already going back and forth too much that I was about to step in, but she finally said it.
Just silence now filled our little area.
I admit, it was a little bit funny watching those two Archangels stumble over themselves. Also interesting to know that Jeanne was apparently 'blessed' by Big G. Obvious in hindsight, but when pointed out, it made sense why they're getting worked up. Considering that there shouldn't be any of his blessings still around considering he's, well, dead.
"Wait, wait wait!" The Fallen Angel threw his hands up. "You're saying, and please correct me if I'm misunderstanding, that you're literally Jeanne D'Arc, the Saintess, the woman who fought in the 100 year war for France."
"Uh huh." Jeanne nodded.
"That's impossible." Azazel immediately rejected her assertion.
Jeanne held her hands out and summoned her banner.
Azazel stared at it for a long moment. "I retract my previous statement."
Was it because of the pure holy feeling that her banner gave off that he immediately believed her, or was the banner itself recognizable to him?
I'm not quite sure any of them were expecting this answer because there was no…formulated response to her statement.
Jeanne, just happily stood there waiting for someone to say something.
"Ah!" The Archangel Gabriel finally let out a noise, pointing at Jeanne.
"Eh!?" Jeanne blinked, pointing at herself.
"Aaah!" The Angel threw herself at the Saintess.
"Neh!?" Jeanne, not knowing what to do, could only accept that the Angel seemed to subsume her into her impressive cleavage.
"Aaaah!" The Archangel then began to weep as she held Jeanne tight.
"….Um." I looked around.
Michael coughed awkwardly. "Just….please let her have this. Gabriel always regretted what happened to her and carried it in her heart all this time. I don't know what's happening but…."
"Say no more." I relented. "Jeanne wanted to come to specifically meet Angels anyways."
I watched for a moment as Jeanne's face was pushed between those large mounds.
She could thank me later.
"Michael."
"Yes, Azazel?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong but….Jeanne D'Arc willingly let herself enter into the System after spending some time in Heaven so her spirit would pop up every now and then, right?"
"That is correct, yes." The Archangel nodded.
"Alright, then I have a question."
"Please." He gestured for him to continue.
"The fuck." He pointed at Jeanne.
"Azazel, please mind your Language."
"I'm with the used Car Salesman on this one." The woman dressing up like a Magical Girl added in.
"I would normally have something witty to retort with, but right now, I'm seriously stuck on the issue at hand." The Fallen stared at his sibling.
"You're asking a question I have no answer to." Michael responded, glancing at me.
I cleared my throat. "Something something, Will of God."
"Do you seriously think that's going to work." Azazel deadpanned.
"Something something, Mysterious ways."
"Cute." He said dryly. "But you know the Church is going to be on your ass, right? A living Saint with Father's blessing? You bet your ass they're going to do everything they can to get a hold of her. Especially because she's apparently hanging around with a Devil."
I knew he didn't mean that in an insulting way, but more of a statement of fact.
"Aren't you all no longer at war or whatever?" I questioned.
"Not fighting doesn't mean we're close." He corrected.
"True." I couldn't deny that.
"There's also the pertinent question of how this is at all possible." Azazel eyed me.
"Anything is possible through God." I said sagely. "Right, Father Swole?"
"That is something we preach." He couldn't disagree with me.
Those three little kids he brought with him were….sort of confused and bewildered by what was happening.
That blue haired girl that I released a little bit of my Spiritual Pressure on just had a blank look on her face.
"We can't force you to answer." The other Archangels poke up. "However, if we have a sufficient answer, we will have to do what we can to understand it ourselves."
"Is that a threat?" I narrowed my eyes at him, bringing back the tense atmosphere from before.
"Hold up there, Junior." Azazel interjected. "No one's threatening anyone here." He quickly corrected. "But what do you think is going to happen when this gets out? The Church, if they can't have her, they're going to denounce her as a Witch."
I felt myself getting angry at that.
"I don't mind." Jeanne's voice was the only thing to calm me down. She seemed to wrestle free from Gabriel's bosom. "Truthfully, I never really considered myself a Saintess. I just did the best that I could under the Lord's directions." She smiled beautifully. "I like where I am right now and don't want to change that."
Well, that sort of shut them right up.
"And she was already touched by the Devil, so it's kind of moot at this point." I added.
"D-don't say that! They're going to misunderstand!" She squeaked, hitting my shoulder.
"You don't have to worry." Michael smiled warmly. "Azazel was merely speaking hypothetically. The Church will not take such actions against you. I'll be sure to keep a very close eye to make sure."
That sounded ominous.
"Right, purely hypothetically." Azazel rolled his eyes.
Hmm, was he trying to build up some good will?
It's obvious they had no idea what was going on, only that their apparent Saintess was right here, right now when she really shouldn't be.
"There is another option available as well. You would make a wonderful Angel." Michael offered.
Jeanne's eyes widened. "A-Angel? Me!?"
"That's right." Michael smiled. "We will soon have a way to reincarnate humans into Angels. If you are willing, I believe a spot would be reserved for you especially."
Jeanne flushed, smiled and looked utterly ecstatic. "Will!" She ran at me. "He invited me to be an Angel! I could be an Angel!"
"You would be the best Angel." I couldn't help but smile at her happiness.
"Do you really think so?"
"I know so." I nodded.
If that is the path she wanted to take, I would support her with everything I had.
She beamed happily.
Happy Jeanne was best Jeanne.
It didn't take a genius to see that they wanted to pull Jeanne over to their side. The simplest way is often the best way to go about it.
"Whatever you want, I'll support you."
She grabbed my arm, looking up at me. "Thank you."
"Ahem." Azazel coughed awkwardly. "Do you really have to flirt right in front of everyone."
"F-flirt!?" Jeanne turned red rather quickly. "That's not what we were doing!"
"Wow, she is easy, isn't she?" Azazel looked at me.
I nodded.
Jeanne puffed up but didn't respond to me. Instead, she turned to face the expecting Archangel. "I…I'm happy. It feels like a dream to be asked this question. To be an Angel in Heaven and…..I'm sorry but I don't think it's right for me. I'm a Human, I don't think I should be an Angel."
Michael's smile didn't falter. "It's unfortunate."
"I-I am honored by the offer!" She quickly added. "I didn't mean to –"
"Quite the opposite, I believe the honor would have been all ours." He interjected. "But do not take my comment as distaste for your decision. Father desired for Humans to choose their own Paths, wherever that may take them."
Jeanne continued to squeeze my arm in clear excitement.
"What about the Grigori?" Azazel suddenly chimed in.
"….I would like to politely decline." Jeanne looked away in embarrassment.
Azazel clicked his tongue. "We don't have all the rules like Heaven. We don't care if you have a Devil Boyfriend, in fact, we welcome it! We'll teach you all the good stuff. Lots of leather, lots of ropes, maybe some whips~"
"Bwah!?"
"She doesn't need help learning about ropes, trust me."
"Will!"
"Ah, always the most pure ones, isn't it?" He gave me a knowing smirk.
"Neh!!!"
"Azazel, you're not allowed to bully her!" Gabriel came to Jeanne's defense. "I-if anyone bullies her I'm going to get mad!" The Archangel puffed up similarly to how Jeanne does.
Cute.
"I was surprised when my Mother appeared with a new Queen." A voice I was familiar with carried a bit. It wasn't too loud, but it was enough for us to hear. I met his gaze, a man I particularly did not care to meet. "Mozart. I wasn't quite sure what to think. But he proved his identity fairly quickly. His talent is something I could only envy. The ones before, and now a Saintess that shouldn't be alive."
My biological Father stood next to his fellow Satan.
I think this was the first time we've ever directly spoken.
"It makes us wonder where and how they are coming from." He finished.
And he wasn't the only one having those questions. It was fairly obvious that everyone around us wanted an answer as well.
I had to be careful with how I responded.
While I wasn't going to go to great lengths to hide myself and the others at this point, I also wasn't going to blatantly reveal my secrets. If they wanted to jump to their own conclusions, then so be it.
But I should at least be smart about it.
A response that was enough to side step the question.
I needed to put forth all of my intellectual capability.
"I had sex with your mom."
[Nailed it.] Ddraig complimented me.
{Well done.} Even my Zanpakutō agreed. {The first actual conversation you've had with him.}
Seeing him utter speechlessness, I knew that I did a good job.
I don't know why Jeanne was hitting my shoulder, however.
[***]
"That was easier than I thought it would be." I mused, watching both the Angels and the Satan's finally leave. Oh, and the used Car Salesman.
It seemed like no one had anything else to say to me after that.
Jeanne whined, burying her head into my shoulder. "Now the Angels are going to think I'm weird."
"Jeanne, you realize that they've seen every single moment of your life right?"
"Yes?" She tilted her head.
"No, I mean Big G has literally seen and cataloged every single moment of your life. Think about it, every time you used the restroom –"
"No! Stop, I forbid you from continuing!" She quickly shushed me.
"All I'm trying to say is…..they already know you're weird."
She dropped her head. "You know how to cheer me up." One of the rare times she used sarcasm.
"It's okay, we're all weird." I gave her a little pat on the head.
"I hope I didn't cause any problems for you though." She whispered. "I just wanted to meet the Angels….I…it turned into something bigger."
"It is what it is. Don't think about it too much." I reassured her again. "Don't worry, I can avoid any annoying questions."
"Yes, I noticed." She looked at me with a dry expression.
"It's not like I lied." I pointed out.
"That isn't the issue with what you said!"
"Mmm, I see no issue with it." I said without a hint of shame. "I don't know why those Church kids ran off, am I that scary?"
"…a little." She admitted. "I think you scared them with what you did."
"Well, I don't regret it."
"I wasn't offended…"
"That's because you're a nice person. Don't worry, I'll be offended on your behalf from now on."
"Don't just assume positions like that." She puffed up. "…don't get into fights on my behalf."
"Oh you adorable girl." I couldn't help but pat her head.
You don't know what I would do to protect you.
"Neh." She pouted.
But yeah, Angels and Devils and what have you seemed to have disappeared to their little meeting, leaving us all on our lonesome. The Church kids they brought basically retreated to a corner and no one wanted to go near them.
Well, no one seemed to want to come near us either…
I couldn't imagine why.
{I can't tell if it was a genius move or not. To just….be so bluntly shameless that it makes any further talks awkward.}
It's what I do.
"Wilhelm!" A booming voice carried over the room.
And perhaps I perked up a little hearing it and saw the person practically charging towards me.
"Sairaorg, it's good to see you again." I held my hand out and he took it, squeezing with a bit of strength. "Your aura feels a bit more aggressive."
"Haha.." He scratched his cheek. "Sorry I was training before I came over. I guess I'm still feeling kind of pumped."
Well, I did like his earnestness.
"Oh, Sairaorg, this is Jeanne. Jeanne, this is my cousin once removed, Sairaorg." I gestured between them.
"It's a pleasure." Jeanne smiled happily.
"Nice to meet you!" He held out a hand and Jeanne took it.
Similarly he did the thing again and he looked surprised.
"You're strong." He commented.
"Ah…? Um, thank you." She giggled.
"Where's your peerage? It seems like every Devil here has theirs hovering around them?" It wasn't lost on me that there were quite a few Devils being waited on by their 'peerages'.
"Around." He shrugged. "I don't really need them for anything so I figured they could go do what they wanted!" He grinned.
Well, his simplicity was refreshing.
"Are you wanting to join this…..team or whatever it is?"
"Erm…." He put his hands on his hips, giving it a good thought. "I wouldn't be against it. I want to fight some strong opponents. But…" He looked around. "Not feeling too good about it."
"Worried that it's just for show." And I also didn't miss that most of the Devils here were….weak.
He nodded. "I would rather spend my time training then." He paused. "But if you're here, that means it should be great!"
"I'm actually not participating." I quickly said.
"Darn." He snapped his fingers. "I don't know who all is worth it." He turned to look at the room. "There's some guys from the Norse Pantheon over there." He held his finger up, pointing to some viking-looking guys. "They seem pretty strong, but eh. I want to fight that…oh."
I looked to see where he was looking and that it was the Church people who had retreated from before.
The shy looking girl was now holding what looked like a .50 Caliber Sniper rifle made of Holy Power, pointing it right at a Devil doing an obscene gesture her way.
The Devil in question's expression quickly changed.
But the Women didn't look like she was going to hold back.
….I told Odin I would keep things to a moderate level. I'm fairly sure that something like that would kill that Devil.
I raised a hand to intercept, but the explosive power of the gun and propelling Holy Power was caught by someone else.
That one Exorcist from before. The one who warded off my Spiritual Pressure…
A wind enveloped the bullet, smothering it out before it could do any harm. Then, an almost gentle gust of wind swept that mocking Devil away, sending him to the other side of the room.
Huh.
The Exorcist turned my way.
He smiled and waved.
Cheeky bugger.
"Sacred Gear?" Sairaorg asked.
"I'm fairly sure, yes." Because it felt…divine what he was doing. And I'm pretty sure they wouldn't let any of their Exorcists use any 'Pagan' Divine power unless it came from one of Big G's creations.
"He seemed nice." Jeanne added.
Which, I then believed to be true. If Jeanne thought so, I was inclined to not even think otherwise.
And I may have responded, if I didn't feel a tingle of something coming my way.
My Aura enveloped me as I caught something.
It was heavy, and powerful.
Just the density of Power it contained was enough to send me sliding back several feet. Immediately, the weight of the object set in too.
As I came to a stop, I could get a good look at what just hit me.
A rod with Golden Hoops on both ends.
It retracted back to the source.
I clenched my fist a couple times and then met his gaze.
A rather cocky looking smile appeared on a man not too far off from my own age it seemed. He was wearing some traditional looking Chinese armor with a golden band around his head, reminiscent of a certain Monkey King.
And considering what I just got hit by, I'm fairly sure I knew who he was.
I walked back and he walked forward. He had someone by his side, but I was focused basically on him.
"You're right, he is strong." The one who attacked me mentioned to his companion. He held his hand out to me. "Heyo, I'm Bikou, the new Monkey King."
"Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg." I greeted him. "No wonder I felt a tingling in my hand." I glanced at his weapon. "I'm surprised you can wield that so well."
"Hah, Gramps wouldn't let me go around calling myself the new Monkey King if I couldn't at least use Ruyi Jingu Bang." He declared, slamming the butt of it onto the ground, sending cracks in every direction on the floor.
A Divine Weapon of that caliber was not to be taken lightly.
"Hey, you seem pretty strong…" Sairaorg was basically at my side now, his aura was flaring something fierce as he pointed at Bikou.
"The strongest." Bikou grinned.
"Stronger than him?" Sairaorg pointed at me.
"….second strongest." He said awkwardly with a cough.
"Third strongest." His companion grumbled.
"Still second strongest." Bikou argued.
"You wanna fight!?"
"Anytime." He laughed.
"Hey, have we met before?" I looked at Bikou's companion.
"Wait, did you seriously forget about me?"
"Hmm, let's see." I rubbed my chin. "White hair, leather on leather clothing, constant pout. Are you in a boy band?"
"I'll fucking kill you." He growled.
"Doesn't ring a bell then." I shrugged helplessly.
"Be nice." Jeanne was already on me, pinching my arm.
"Fine." I grumbled.
"Pfft, listen to the girl." The Boy-band wannabe chuckled.
"How was the desert?" I quirked an eyebrow.
He twitched like he wanted to throw a punch. Instead, he crossed his arms with a huff. "You took me by surprise."
"What happened?" Bikou asked. "There's a story there."
"This dumbass came flying into a fight I was having with Kokabiel. Well….fight might be too strong of a word. But he comes in all high and mighty telling me to hand over Kokabiel after he tried to kill my woman. Obviously, I'm not having any of that. So I punted him to the Sahara Desert."
Bikou turned to the Boy Band member with the biggest shit-eating-grin. "Funny, you never told me this story."
"Screw off!" He growled. "And call me by my name! I'm Vali Lucifer! Or you can call me the White Dragon Emperor." He smirked.
"Sounds so fucking edgy when you word it like that."
"It really does." Bikou nodded.
"Eh, I kind of like it."
"Devils have weird naming conventions." I glanced Sairaorg.
"That's….fair." Sairaorg rubbed his head.
"I like it!" Jeanne smiled.
"Stop! I'm supposed to be your Rival!"
"Yeah…sure." I rolled my eyes.
"Dammit, Albion, you tell him!" Vali scowled, and white draconic wings emerged from behind him.
"So you're the wielder of Ddraig this time around." A voice came from his Sacred Gear.
"Sup." We technically already met, but that wasn't in….normal conditions.
"A cocky one this time." He mused.
[Let me out.]
I shrugged, and summoned the boosted Gear.
"[Albion.]"
"Ddraig."
"[Albion!]"
"Ddraig!"
"Oh my God, I'm not going to be in the middle of your murder crush, Ddraig."
"[Screw you, brat!]"
"What he said!" Albion agreed.
"Is this weird for everyone else too?" I looked around, seeing nods.
"Vali, don't agree with him!" Albion shouted from within his Sacred Gear.
"Albion, stop making it weird. I just wanna fight him." Vali looked embarrassed.
"[Good luck with that. My wielder doesn't even need to use me to kick your boy-band ass.]"
"Like hell!" Albion snorted. "Vali is my strongest wielder, ever."
"[Strongest piece of shit is still a piece of shit!]"
"Nice Ddraig." I nodded.
"Dammit, Vali do something!" Albion quickly called for his user. "Use Juggernaut drive and just kill him already."
"Oh, you can use Juggernaut Drive?" I was actually surprised by that.
"Heh, you scared?" Vali grinned.
"Yup, so scared that I'll immediately surrender before even fighting. You win, oh great White Dragon Emperor."
"Wait, Ddraig he can't do that." Albion protested. "Why aren't you getting upset? Even if he's kidding, you've always been keen on our battles."
"[I've had….an interesting time with the Brat as my wielder. I've seen things that made me question a lot about myself. I've experienced things that I couldn't even have dreamed of before. Powerful enemies that would have easily killed me back during our prime….]"
"….Ddraig." Albion whispered.
"[So It's made me reflect on my past and all our battles over the centuries. And I've come to one conclusion…]"
"…what?"
"[Why am I wasting so much time on some weak bitch-ass lizard!]" Ddraig roared.
'Dammit Ddraig!"
"[Hahahahah!]"
Good one, Ddraig.
But I felt like it was getting out of hand, so I put the Boosted Gear away. Even if his laughing didn't stop even as he went back into my soul.
"You see, Vali! He's still the same bastard!"
"Yeah, yeah." Boy Band rolled his eyes, dismissing his wings. "Great now Albion's going to be ranting for hours."
"When Gramps told me stories about the Two Heavenly Dragons, this is not what he prepared me for." Bikou had a blank look on his face.
"Honestly, you don't really know until you get one of them talking in your head." I shrugged helplessly.
"Hah…should I be happy that my Regulus isn't like that..?" Sairaorg awkwardly laughed.
"I'm not going to marry you, Riser! Get away from me!" A shrill voice eclipsed all the commotion in the room.
I think everyone turned towards the source of it.
Sairaorg had a scowl on his face as he stared at them. "Damn Bird. I should have torn his wings off."
"What's going on over there?" I asked him.
"Rias and her Fiance, Riser Phenex. She hates him and he's a dick." He said bluntly. "I should go over there and teach him another lesson."
Sairaorg was about to make a move but I held up my hand to block him.
"She's Venelana's daughter, I may as well do something." I let out a small sigh. I didn't really want anything to do with her, recognizing her as my Aunt that went to the same School as me. But….for Venelana's sake, I wouldn't watch as her daughter gets harassed.
Analyzing the structure of the tiled floor.
Four unidentified minerals.
Simulating their composition.
Adjusting spell sequences to accommodate for new materials.
Casting spell.
A stone pillar shot out of the ground between this Riser's legs. It shot right into his groin, and faster than one could blink, it retracted back into the ground as if it was never there in the first place.
I think most people who were watching the scene questioned if it even happened. If their eyes were playing tricks on them.
But then Riser fell to the ground, clutching his groin in pain.
"….Wilhelm."
"Hmm?" I looked at Sairaorg.
"For now on, you're my new brother." He put a hand on my shoulder.
I felt like arguing with him would prove fruitless, so I just accepted it.
"Nice shot." Bikou whispered.
"Eh, weakling deserved it." Vali shrugged.
I looked at Jeanne.
"What?" She questioned, looking back.
"Aren't you going to chide me?"
"I saw nothing…" She looked away.
Cute.
"So, what's up with the Marriage?" I only vaguely knew the details, Venelana only mentioned it offhand once or twice.
"I'm not too sure about the specifics. But there's a Marriage contract between them and Rias is going to fight him in a Rating Game to decide her future." Sairaorg replied.
"Rating games?" I couldn't help but mentally roll my eyes. "I don't understand the obsession you all have with it."
"They look fun." Bikou chimed in.
"What are Rating Games?" Jeanne asked.
"Play fighting." I answered.
"That doesn't sound too bad." She responded.
"He's over simplifying it. It's a competition that can get pretty intense. Fighting is the main point though." Bikou strangely corrected me.
"Do other factions watch the Rating games?" I blinked.
"Of course. What else do you think people like us watch?" He snorted. "Watching some Devils beat each other up can pass the time."
Huh.
"Are arranged marriages uncommon for…Devils?" Jeanne asked.
"Not really." Sairaorg shrugged. "But Riser's too focused on his Harem and adding Rias as a 'trophy' so they don't get along. I don't think she would be upset if she had a better partner arranged."
Well there's your first mistake. You can't forcibly add someone to your harem. That's just going to completely throw off the whole dynamic, even ignoring the fact that she doesn't want to be there.
He would be miserable if he actually succeeded.
"Speak of the Devil." Bikou grinned at his own pun.
And I noticed what he was speaking about.
I let out a sigh as I noticed that not only was my Aunt walking over towards us, but so was her glasses wearing best friend.
I could practically feel the headache coming on.
[***]
A/N
Happy new years for everyone today and tomorrow!
If you want to read 9 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m. / astoryforone
Had some russian fans tell me they can't use the P-word website. So I created a h tt p s :// bo osty. to/ astoryforone
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