บท 110: Chapter 110: Chase after the Praetorian Guard
A fist hit the paved stone path that led to Phenix family's castle-mansion in the Underworld.
"Dammit… Dammit all… I… That thing… There's no way that… I… I have to… But there's no way…" The man kept hitting the paved stones until his sole remaining fist bled from the knuckles.
Granted, the hits had also shattered the paved stone, but that was little comfort for the young man.
Saji Genshirou groaned in anger and frustration as he stood up and adjusted the jacket and one-shoulder cape he had appropriated from one of the wardrobes of Phenix castle.
He had escaped the mansion under the pretense of going for a walk, and then changed his cover story to that of a scout heading out to recon the enemy on Sona's orders after the defensive patrols of Phenix grounds had approached him. Luckily the patrols had believed him, as Saji had regained his status as a Pawn of Sona Sitri's Peerage, even if he got his fair share of dirty looks due to the ruckus he had caused during Sona's engagement ceremony.
'The whole place is locked down tight… Not a full lockdown, but anyone approaching the grounds would have a hard time doing so without being at least tracked…' Saji felt ashamed as his un-approved excursion would no doubt end in him getting booted off Sona's Peerage, but he faced that penance with straight back as he felt justified in his mission.
'Lord Phenix did something to me… Back when I reported what that bastard Momon had been doing to Lady Phenix…' Saji recalled the event, and how Lord Phenix had led him to some sort of dungeon… And then grabbed Saji's head, uttering something about charm.
Saji's thoughts after that had become obsessed with the idea of Saji being a dear friend to Lord Phenix and a dear friend to the Undead as general.
Afterwards Lord Phenix had told Saji to do a thing for him: To make a grand show of judgment and bring all the perceived slights of Momon to light when Lord Phenix approached Momon and a crowd of important people were present. Until then Saji was supposed to act like a proper gentleman in order to not annoy Lord Phenix and Momon with Saji's uncouth behavior.
'Dammit… Lord Phenix was in on the whole thing… He must have known Momon was the Supreme Being…' Saji felt like an idiot. He had fallen for Momon's ploy hook, line, and sinker, and had been charmed somehow- Although that charm seemed to have broken a bit before Sirzechs had sieged the Phenix castle. 'That was such an awful idea too… No doubt one designed to further strengthen the mask that Momon and Lord Phenix had, since if I went and accused a noble lord and 'True God' about all sorts of things without proof, it would just end with the accusations of Momon being Supreme Being becoming utterly ridiculous in the eyes of the public… No, there's a chance that Lord Phenix wasn't actually Lord Phenix but a body double put in place by Momon… That makes sense, since there's no way a noble lord would be idle after hearing that they had been cucked…'
Saji ground his teeth together. 'There has to be some way… Someone I can talk to in order to convey just how evil Momon is… He has to be brought to justice for his sins…'
He knew how illogical it was for a devil to speak of facing their sins, but Saji didn't care. He needed to save Sona. 'Momon somehow thralled Serafall-sama, like he has done to so many others… If I can just break that thralldom, I can… I will… Sona, please wait for me…'
"Move, wretch!" A voice came from somewhere but Saji was too occupied in his thoughts to respond, thinking of strangling Momon to death and then riding off on a white horse with Sona clutching his back…
He turned his head as the voice came closer and took a step back as he came face-to-face with a tall woman with blonde hair, sharp eyes and jawline, and a fairly shapely body covered by a long featureless robe and hood. The hood was partially up, allowing Saji to look into her eyes.
Saji resisted the instinctive urge to look down from the woman's eyes as her chest looked quite tempting despite being covered by the robe, and managed to resist the urge easily as he only had room in his head for Sona.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to block the road." Saji realized that he was standing in the middle of the road and had blocked the advance of a hooded group of people he hadn't seen before and who had crept up on him while he was brutalizing the road. "Ahem, could I ask who you are?"
"Who- You dare to-" The woman seemed to become quite annoyed by Saji and raised her fist…
"Calm down, my Queen…" A silent, strong voice came from one of the hooded figures, and then the voice turned to address Saji. "Well met, scout. We enter Phenix territory in peace, seeking aid and hoping for a pact. Please disregard my Queen's tone and actions, she is not used to people not recognizing her or not giving her due respect. Such is the approach of the arrogant, no? After all, we approach this place under disguise in order to avoid the wrath of our former allies."
The woman seemed to wilt under the words while Saji thought about the situation.
"Queen? In that case you'd be a King of your Peerage, sir?" Saji realized that the group must have been an entire Peerage, and based on the muted actions and appearances, were likely not all that strong. However, that weakness was likely only a farce as the Queen had made a mistake and revealed through her actions the arrogance that strong devils tended to have, which in turn gave Saji an idea.
The hooded devils nodded after the one who had spoken had nodded to Saji.
'It's a gamble since I'm alone and they might kill me once my usefulness runs out… But if they are 'approaching in peace' and think that I'm a scout then I should be safe until they find out…' Saji he had a faint idea on who he was dealing with based on the hooded queen's face that he had managed to catch a glimpse of, and from the numerous lectures Sona had given her Peerage regarding her fellow Young Devils. "Would that mean you are Sairaorg Bael-sama and your followers here are your Peerage?"
"Hm, it looks like our disguises weren't as good as we thought." The tall, strong-looking handsome devil pulled his hood down, showing an expression that was good-natured if sharp. "Might I ask your name, scout?"
"I'm… Yuuto. Yuuto Kiba, of Momon's Peerage. Your disguises were quite good, Sairaorg-sama, but I recognized your Queen so it was simple to deduce from there." Saji bit his tongue before changing his introduction, leveraging the knowledge Sona had taught him in order to try to raise his own credibility. 'I'm fairly sure Sairaorg-sama wasn't in Sona's engagement ceremony as a guest, since he'd know who I was if that was the case… That scene ruined my reputation quite effectively… Not to mention that if I used my real name Sairaorg-sama might recognize my name from the newspapers talking about the scandal… I'm fairly sure Sairaorg would go 'oho? so if I bring your head to Momon he'll reward me?' since he said he's here to negotiate...'
Sairaorg seemed to buy the lie and nodded to Saji. "Good. That makes things easier. Lead me to True God."
"Ah- Ahem. Why do you seek him? Surely you know that as his Knight I cannot let just anyone meet him… Specifically after the events of the past few days, and how it has shaped the relationships between 'True God' and 'The Pillars', not to mention how suspect it is that you are creeping in under disguises? Are you sure you aren't here to assassinate Momon-sama? Ah, and if you think to use me as a hostage to force the meeting, forget it for I will rather face death than be a tool to be used against my King" Saji covered his face with fingers in what he hoped was an intimidating way, although the motion was mostly to cover his frightened expression as he spouted a bunch of rubbish to reinforce his 'cover', knowing that he needed to swim in his lie or he'd sink. '...Sona-kaichou told us that Sairaorg was a big fan of honor and courage, so If he believes me then I should be able to at least influence Sairaorg like this… He said he's here to negotiate and surrender so he probably wasn't planning on using me as a hostage or attack…'
"I see… I understand your viewpoint better now. Very well: I seek the resuscitation of my mother, and am here to pledge the loyalty of the entire House Bael to Momon Phenix, who also goes by the name of 'True God'. My only condition is that we are treated fairly, and if blame for my late father's actions falls upon my house, let me pay the price for it in person. It is said that debts of the father are inherited by the son, and I wish this to be the case so that the debts would not become a burden to the family." Sairaorg something ridiculous with a straight face. "Will this be enough to interest your master?"
"K-khah… Ahem, sorry, there was something stuck to my throat. Ahem. Regardless." Saji coughed to his fist and composed himself. 'That bastard Momon, I bet he planned for this… Of course… Figures Momon would do something to Sairaorg-sama's mother so he could swoop down and 'rescue' her and gain Sairaorg's loyalty… Actually… Hm…'
"Indeed, I imagine that would interest him, but… Listen, can I talk to you for a moment?" Saji sighed heavily. "I've kept my lord's secret but… In honesty, I can't-"
"Then keep his secret. I am not interested in prying upon secrets that are not entrusted to me." Sairaorg's stern and reprimanding voice cut Saji off.
'Ugh… I'm glad that he seems reliable, but I feel like a villain now…' Saji coughed to his fist, glad that his travel-cape hid his severed arm from view as he figured he could use it to further reinforce the story he was about to tell. "It concerns your mother, Sairaorg-sama."
Sairaorg froze mid-sentence, recomposed his posture, and motioned for Saji to go on.
Saji felt victorious and led Sairaorg to the side, leaving the King's Peerage to send worried glances in the two's direction.
"The truth is… about your mother, Momon-sama performed a despicable rite, and I have a faaairly good idea what he'd ask in turn for 'healing' her, or rather undoing the ritual's effects…"
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Momonga stopped squeezing droplets from the black 'fake-phoenix' tears on the woman on his desk.
He put the empty vial to the side, and then crossed his hands.
"Grayfia-san." Momonga sighed as he looked at the woman who had been with Peroroncino moments after her escape, and had been reduced to a withered near-corpse during her contact with Peroroncino, and now had been restored from her contact with Peroroncino. 'I'm fairly sure Peroroncino didn't have abilities to inflict plague on touch back in YGGDRASIL, or whatever that was, but since you can level-up in this world through the power of ero, I shouldn't be surprised if he's level two hundred by this point… Actually, could it be that he developed some condition after leveling up too much? Or gathered every sexual disease known to man and didn't have spells or items to cure himself? I wouldn't put either past him…'
Momonga rubbed his temple a bit and undid [Silence] from the woman so she could speak.
Grayfia was limp on the desk and it looked like she was quite powerless, which Momonga realized might have been because of her near-death and because of his [Weaken] debuff on her likely persisting through the healing affair.
"Right, please explain, Grayfia-san." Momonga asked and the woman froze a bit. "Why were you with Peroroncino-kun? Where did he go? How did you two meet? Why were you in that condition when I found you? What is your relationship with Peroroncino-kun?"
Grayfia sweated visibly as she contemplated her answer, causing Momonga to start tapping his heel against the ground in an impatient manner.
It looked like the woman heard the tapping and her sweating only intensified. "Ara… Momon-sama, could it be that… um… You know Hash-ahem, ah, I get it now… Could it be that you know P-peroroncino-sama?"
Momonga didn't stand up but rather lurched up in a whip-like motion that caused the woman on the desk to quiver in fear as he towered over her. "Tell me everything you know."
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Grayfia's mind was wobbling like oil on the surface of water. 'I can't think straight… Does Momon- aha… Momon isn't Hash-erm… But he knows about him… Ah… So Peroronshiino is a cover name for… hashashs… In order to not name what shaaant be nhamed…'
She nodded and then shook her head a bit to clear it off the haze that kept trying to settle into her head and slow her thoughts down, though the haze was already making her arms and legs feel heavy and powerless. "Momon-sama… Did you do something to me? I can't… think straight…"
"Ignore that. Tell me how you first met with Peroroncino!" Momon seemed quite aggravated and impatient, which Grayfia understood as Odin had acted in the same way when the Outer Being was first mentioned. Not to mention that the condition Rossweisse had been in when Grayfia had woken up was still fresh in her mind, and she had no doubts as to who had been responsible for brutalizing the valkyrie's face.
'Momon-sama's patience is at an end… Although… If Momon wasn't that thing… Then we chased shadows for the whole time, just for the shadows to come alive and eat us… Thaaat the hasssh… Uh… That thingy…. ish…' Grayfia's fear and regret sent cold waves down her spine while she was shaking her head to clear it of haze that threatened to occasionally overtake her thoughts. 'And we lost… Everything… Dammit all…'
"Focus!" Momon slapped Grayfia and the odd haze seemed to lift, allowing her to move and think freely… For a moment. "[Hold of Rib]"
A series of sharp bones shot from the floor and desk, piercing Grayfia's arms, legs and back, pinning her in place while ripping the simple robe she had been clothed with into pieces. Luckily the stakes hadn't hit anything vital though, almost as if they had intentionally slipped past major organs instead of damaging them.
Nonetheless, it was excruciatingly painful.
"Gyaaah!"
"Answer me! When did you first meet with Peroroncino, and how do you know him? Where is he?!" Momon's tone was impatient enough for Grayfia to pale, as she was fully aware that she was utterly on the enigma's mercy.
"I- I met Peroroncino-sama in person for the first time just now!" Grayfia managed to get out before Momon could do anything else. "I don't know where Peroroncino-sama went! I don't know much about Peroroncino-sama, because we thought that you were Peroroncino-sama in disguise!"
"I- ah?" Momon seemed to become utterly destabilized by the answer and fell to his knees in shock. "What- But… Then… What about… If- wait, no, then… that can't be… But…"
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'They thought I was Peroroncino? Sirzechs and his group know about him? Does that mean they know about Ainz Ooal Gown? In retrospect I've acted like a massive pervert, so it makes sense that they'd think I was that bird-brained letcher, and thus it makes sense they'd mistake us- Wait, how much do they know about our guildmates? Do they have a full roster of my guildmates?! Rossweisse's memory had a scene of Grayfia, Sirzechs, Beelzebub and Odin scheming around a wall with post-it notes and red string and pictures, but she didn't understand any of it so the memory was muddy… Wait, I think I recognize one of the pictures… Wasn't that the red dragon I met a day after I came to this ero-world? And the other picture looks like me in the [Scale Mail]… Who's the third picture?! A hooded mastermind of some sort?! Don't tell me that he's behind all of this! Wait, no, I think…. I think I got it- One of the enemies of Ainz Ooal Gown got isekai'd into the ero-world as well, and must have leaked information from Ainz Ooal Gown to Sirzechs's group and Odin! This can't be! Wait, this all started after- Oh! Damn, that was a crafty plan… Ddraig is sleeping now, but I think… Don't tell me that after Ddraig pulled me from Neo-Japan, Albion pulled someone else from Neo-Japan to replace Vali's soul like how I replaced Issei's soul, and now Vali and Albion, or rather Albion and someone from one of the myriad of hostile guilds Ainz Ooal Gown had, are conspiring together to destroy me like how the two dragons had their wielders clash time and time again?!'
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Vali sneezed as he finally managed to shake off his pursuers in the Underworld since his teleportation to the realm had been tracked by the 'new old Maou' faction, and thus he had been forced to flee from a Young Devil's Peerage that had been sent to capture him.
Normally he would have fought and destroyed anyone who challenged him, but he didn't want to seriously destabilize his already-shaky relationship with the myriad of newly-formed factions in the Underworld as he had been allied with Khaos Brigade for a while, even if undercover, and Vali had a feeling that if he started destroying devils he'd likely cause an embarrassing or potentially hostile situation for Azazel and for himself.
…Even if Albion was seriously grumbly after Vali fled from a challenger, no matter how strategically advantageous the move was.
Yet… 'I have a seriously bad feeling for some reason…'
"Perhaps you got a cold from hiding at the bottom of that lake for those pursuers to grow bored and fly off?" Albion sounded quite annoyed, and Vali couldn't blame the one-armed white-feathered dragon. "Also, ask God to return my arm the next time you see him. Be nice."
'Ask him yourself'
"I'd like to remind you that I lost it because of your weakness…"
'Because you stopped me from using [Juggernaut Drive]'
"Details." Albion hand-waved, although with just one hand, and quieted down.
Vali couldn't shake the odd feeling of dread he felt even though he had won his verbal duel against the White Dragon Emperor.
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Grayfia's sweating only increased while her body was starting to turn cold thanks to the amount of blood she was losing through the stab-wounds that had resulted from her getting skewered by what felt like tens of long, sharp bones. 'What- Did I say something strange?'
Momon was scribbling something to a flipboard that had suddenly appeared from thin air, and was using japanese letters and some sort of mathematical jargon for some reason while drawing lines on the wall from a seemingly random words like 'No-Cash-Item Alliance' and 'Solar Platinum', 'White-Cold-Concordiat', 'Siege of Nazarick' and 'Precious metal mine'.
He seemed to have instantly forgotten that Grayfia was in the room, or that he had cast some sort of spell that had created the spikes that now pierced the gray-haired woman's body.
Grayfia bit her lip as she tried to focus on something in order to ignore the pain from her wounds, while also keeping herself quiet as she knew that her situation was not good, to put it mildly, and a crass word towards Momon could lead to her being executed.
Grayfia blinked as she remembered a scene similar to the one she saw now while Momon obsessed over the lines and names on the flipboard. 'Odin, Sirzechs and Beelzebub… Back when Odin had first 'found out' Momon's 'True nature'... If Momon knows Peroroncino, then… I'll have to stop him before he makes the same mistake Odin did!'
"Momon-sama. Please calm down. Peroroncino-sama should be gone for now- Your presence drove him away." Grayfia told the man as his maniacal scribbling and muttering seemed to reach unhealthy levels.
Her words seemed to calm Momon down as he froze utterly still and the red marking pen he had been using dropped from his seemingly cramping fingers.
"We… I understand your anger, Momon-sama, but… We made a mistake. We, Sirzechs-sama, Odin-sama, Beelzebub-sama thought that you were Peroroncino-sama, based on Odin-sama's observations." Grayfia continued, feeling a lump in her throat from guilt and shame that threatened to turn her body into mush from the growing realization of just what they had done, and what they had caused- And for naught. "...We thought you were the threat that Riser Phenix had called to this world through his mistake… But I see now that we were wrong. There are no excuses for our actions. We made a grave mistake. I cannot ask for forgiveness, but-"
"Riser Phenix? Summoned by mistake?" Momon muttered to himself and turned towards Grayfia, and the woman froze utterly still as Momon had a look she had never seen on him- That of maniacal, unhealthy obsession that seemed to have overwritten his reason. "Explain. Explain everything you just said just now. Your suffering will be the stuff of legends if you leave out even a single little detail."
"Ah- Ahem… A-at first we believed that you were Peroroncino-sama, Momon-sama." Grayfia felt her body turn cold from the look that Momon sent him. It was almost as if she was being looked at by death itself, turning to face her and grip her heart in its bony hands, a mere whim away from death or life. "Then, we started to analyze everything on a larger scale to find a reason why Peroroncino-sama would be here, in our world… And figured out that Riser Phenix's actions didn't add up. He had gained such renown and rank so quickly… We first attributed it to an illegal item he had in his possession, but later figured out that he had a hidden master, that he had somehow contacted Peroroncino-sama and had made a pact with him."
The look in Momon's eyes caused Grayfia to shiver from fear, yet she continued. "Riser had everything he could ever want, Peroroncino-sama made sure of that, as per their deal… And in his final triumph Riser was vanquished. His soul trapped to his body with something else at the helm. And then Peroroncino-sama began dismantling everything Riser had held dear- His fame, his Peerage, his family, his fortune…"
"But that was… ah…" Momon seemed to bite his tongue. "The Supreme Being."
"Yes… In other words, we thought you were Peroroncino-sama in disguise, and that the Supreme Being was also Peroroncino-sama in different disguise, and we acted accordingly. I'm sorry that you were caught in the crossfire." Grayfia explained, and Momon fell to his knees in despair in an instant. 'Ah… I see… He didn't know…'
"I… Because of my mistake, that shape… Was… Was it because of me… Is that why he fled when he saw me?" Momon was holding his head and it looked like he had lost himself in his own thoughts. "I thought I was the last, after Herohero… But did Peroroncino log in at the last second and was summoned as well, but… For my actions… He became the scapegoat…"
'...What is he saying? Hero? Login? Summoned?' Grayfia was puzzled but felt sympathy as Momon looked like a doll with its strings cut while mumbling something that made little sense. "I have no excuse for this mistake. If there is any blame to be assigned, let it fall on me. If you wish to take my life then…" 'Mother-in-law… Please take care of Millicas… Don't let Beelzebub take him…'
"No. The mistake is mine. I should have… I shouldn't… If I just… If I hadn't… If I was faster…" Momon seemed to shamble to his feet with great difficulty while talking to no-one in particular. "This wouldn't have… If I just… For my mistake, he was… That wretched shape…"
He waved his hand, causing the ribs that protruded from the desk and floor to withdraw suddenly and release Grayfia from their bloody grasp.
Grayfia felt vertigo as she fell on the desk, strength drained from her body and her mind starting to spin from blood loss… Until she felt the splash of some sort of red liquid land on her face.
"Phwaah!" Grayfia breathed out in shock as the liquid had been deathly cold, as if it had been stored in a crypt or tomb, and at the same time she felt her limbs regain their strength. "W-what was that, Momon-sama?!"
"A healing potion." Momon collapsed into a chair behind the desk while Grayfia rolled off the desk and used [Power of Imagination] to make herself a simple maid dress as her previous outfits had both been destroyed.
Momon glanced at Grayfia before she managed to do anything other than open her mouth, albeit she wasn't entirely sure what to say. The look he gave her was enough to convince her that she needed to shut up before she'd put her foot in her mouth, so she stood up and took her 'maid' stance, back straight with heels together and with hands on the front of her apron.
"...Leave. Go talk to Rias or something. Raise your hand towards anyone, and you will die in agony and be resurrected. Leave these grounds and I'll find you, and make you suffer. Speak no-one of what we talked about. I'll think for a moment, and call for you when I'm done. If you fail to show up, I will find you and destroy both you and your family. Am I understood?" Momon was tight-lipped while levying the threats that caused Grayfia's neck to turn red from anger while her face turned white from fear, as she knew that if Momon wanted to do what he threatened, there was little she could do to stop him- With Sirzechs gone and Beelzebub having cut her off, she was quite literally alone. "'Four'? Accompany her. Do not leave her out of your sight. If she tries to escape, bring her body to me."
One of the tall maids practically materialized beside Grayfia and she resisted the urge to jump in surprise. Instead she curtsied slightly to Momon.
"Y-yes, Momon-sama." Grayfia realized that Momon was too deep in his thoughts regarding the one-who-shan't-be-named to care what Grayfia did. Not that Grayfia intended to do much- She had no illusions that she'd be able to do anything else than make things worse for everyone she cared about if she tried to make a run for it.
'Although… Hm… Since Beelzebub has cut me off, and told me he'd kill Milicas to 'save him' from the fate I almost suffered… I don't have much to rely on...' Grayfia felt anger towards Beelzebub for the 'kindness' he proposed towards her son and feared for her son's life- And while he was fairly angry towards Momon as well for making the same threat, she was fairly sure he wouldn't make good on it unless she deliberately attempted to escape. And while Grayfia would have preferred Milicas to die in peace instead of being subjected to the wretched fate she had almost suffered, she knew that they'd have a very real chance of surviving if they stuck to Momon. After all, she had seen that the King in Yellow had fled when faced with Momon.
Grayfia didn't know what Momon was, nor why even Outer Beings were afraid of him, but as long as it ensured her son's survival, she didn't care. Sirzechs was gone, and Milicas was the last thing Grayfia had- And Grayfia was not blind to the 'cult' of Momon. 'If I can get to his good graces... If I can get him to resurrect Sirzechs... I can tell Sirzechs that he was wrong, Momon was not Has- Peroroncino... We can still survive...'
'And so, the dice is cast...' Grayfia gulped and paused, causing the maid who had turned to lead her off to give her a sharp glare while making an executioner's sword out of nowhere. "Momon-sama, before I go… I am aware that I am in no place to make demands, but If you guarantee that my son survives this apocalypse, then I'd be more than happy to tell you about Beelzebub-sama's and Asmodeus-sama's whereabouts. I believe that they still think you are Peroroncino-sama and I doubt they'll change their mind… Moreover, I feel that Beelzebub-sama might know more about Peroroncino-sama than I, even if he has mistaken you for him. Odin knew the most about Peroroncino-sama, but I don't know where he is."
"Four. Hold." Momon's voice caused the maid to put the executioner's sword away. "Odin is dead. Grayfia. If I find that you're lying…"
"I have no reason to lie." Grayfia put her cards on the table, metaphorically speaking, while she lowered her gaze in subservience in order to hide her sudden nervousness. 'Odin is dead? How?!' "Beelzebub-sama has told me that he'll 'take care' of my child, by which he means kill him before you can get to him. Or rather, before Peroroncino-sama gets to my child and does unspeakable things to-"
"Stop. Don't… Don't you dare, He wasn't like that… Haa… Yet, he did talk about 'lolis' and 'traps' and whatnot… He was like that, wasn't he… My image of Peroroncino… It's… It's breaking…" Momon seemed to collapse in abject despair as Grayfia turned her head to look at him. "My head… I can't…"
"Momon-sama?" Grayfia felt a bit afraid that something had broken in Momon, as he was muttering random words and his eyes were unfocused.
"No, that's… Please ignore that." Momon seemed to compose himself with visible effort. "No, I can't lose myself to despair now. You said you believe that Peroroncino is going after your child for some reason? Where is that child of yours? If I get there before Peroroncino-kun can, I can intercept him… I can still make things right…"
'...Momon seems to know with Has- um... Peroroncino... quite well. And he plans on fighting the Outer Being... There may be hope for us yet...' Grayfia gulped as she pushed her luck. "I can lead you, Momon-sama."
"...'Four', Disregard my previous order. Call the other Cherubims to me. Tell the Dominion Authority to reinforce Phenix grounds- This might be a trap." Momon instructed the numbered maid who curtsied and moved off with haste. Momon then turned towards Grayfia. "Lead me to your child. You'll know what happens if you betray me."
The look Momon gave Grayfia caused her to shiver in fear.
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Beelzebub approached a woman whose face was pale and motions were muted by fear and grief.
"Beelzebub-sama?" Venelana Gremory hid her grandson behind herself as the Maou had appeared out of nowhere and invaded Gremory's main castle within the Underworld, bypassing Gremory's security as if it didn't exist until reaching Venelana's personal quarters where she had retreated to grief. "What is happening? I saw the news- Is… It was some kind of joke, right? Surely that couldn't… It… It can't be real, can it?"
"I'm afraid that it was real, Venelana-san. But don't be afraid." Beelzebub stated, and Venelana was not reassured as the Maou looked utterly ragged and mad. "I have a plan. But… I'm afraid that it's too late for the Underworld. We made a mistake, and in our arrogance believed that our strength was enough to conquer the foe that sieges us."
"Beelzebub-sama, you're scaring me…" Venelana backed away from the approaching Maou while hiding her grandson, Milicas, behind herself.
"...Yes, we failed. Sirzechs lost himself to rage and played to the enemy's tune, Serafall was thralled by the dark, even Grayfia… She is gone as well, she is but a dead corpse masquerading as a friend that is long gone…" Beelzebub muttered to himself and Venelana's back hit the wall as she had tried to keep a distance between the two. "Venelana-san. I promised that I'd ensure your grandson wouldn't suffer… I know how he operates. I know you won't see it my way, but this is the most merciful fate imaginable for any who opposes them and fails… I cannot save Grayfia, but perhaps I can still save her and Sirzechs's son from that fate. It's the least I can do, before that monster takes revenge on Sirzechs's son over Sirzechs's failure to stand on the stage of the final battle for the Underworld, for failing to close the final page of the book... He has already taken revenge on Sirzechs's wife..."
Venelana created an orb with [Power of Destruction] and aimed it at the Maou who looked like he had gone insane. "Beelzebub-sama, please stop, I'll… Even if you are a Maou, I won't hold back if you threaten me or my grandson!"
...Only, the ball of dark energy withered into nothingness and Venelana felt her body grow weak.
She realized that Beelzebub was nowhere to be seen… And then she felt pain in the side of her neck, her mind registering the pain after strength had already left her body.
Venelana realized that Beelzebub was standing beside her, and that he had jammed an injector of some sort to the side of her neck before she had even realized that he had moved.
"I'm sorry. But this is far more merciful fate." The Maou's voice was sad, yet Venelana felt as the injector pushed something into her neck.
"Venelana-obaachan!" Milicas's panicked voice came from nearby and she felt as the boy moved to protect her, but he was knocked aside.
'Zeoticus… Sirzechs… Grayfia… I'm sorry… I wasn't… able to protect…' Venelana's thoughts swam as she fell to her knees like a doll with its strings cut.
Her sight began to darken and she could have sworn she saw a swirling hole in place of the room's exit as she collapsed on her arms and knees.
"What- Ah. Clever." Beelzebub's voice echoed in Venelana's head. "Ha… To use my compassion to lure me into a trap- The Grayfia I spoke to was not Grayfia, but a dead puppet. In other words, I never spoke to her… And thus I revealed my compassion directly to Him. Well played, Hastur… But you won't catch me like that…"
Venelana's strength failed her and she collapsed flat on the floor.
.
.
Momonga burst through the [Gate] with [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown] in hand, only to see a vaguely familiar woman on her arms and knees on the ground, a teenager cowering against the wall with a bruise on his temple… And more importantly, saw a flicker of a human-like form behind the woman briefly, just before the form disappeared, and the woman who had been on her arms and knees fell powerlessly into a heap on the floor.
"Dammit! Peroroncino! Where are you going?!" Momonga called in despair as his old guildmate seemed to slip from his fingers once again while the six Cherubim Gatekeepers fanned out of [Gate] with halberds in hand and Grayfia appeared through the portal. The gray-haired maid took one look at the scene, and promptly rushed past Momonga to hug the bruised teenager who was against the wall.
Momonga didn't pay much attention to the pair as he was busy casting whatever tracking spells he could on the area in an attempt to find out where Peroroncino had gone… And saw as [Detect Life] showed a life-sign, glitched like previously, approaching the location he was in.
"Cherubims, stay here! Grayfia, and, umu… Venelana, right? Stay here, don't leave this room if you value your life!" Momonga gave quick orders as he recognized the woman that was on the floor from his engagement ceremony, and that she was Rias's mother.
He then turned to run towards the glitched life-sign that was quickly approaching them and was just outside the door… Only, it seemed that as soon as Momonga turned to chase him through the door, Peroroncino realized that he had been found out and promptly disappeared again. 'Dammit! Peroroncino! I didn't mean to frame you for my crimes… It was a mistake! Come back! Come back and I'll make it up to you!'
.
.
A shadow withdrew from a sound, realizing almost too late that it had almost been drawn to a trap through its own nature and name, that a hunter prowled in the high grass, hunting for the shepherd that approached a lost sheep in order to guide it home. Only for the shepherd to realize that the Hunter had hamstrung the sheep on purpose, to use it's panicked bleating to draw its true prey.
The Shepherd realized that it had almost been led to such a trap multiple times in a row, with the Hunter closing in on its prey with each close call.
An ancient Being that was now turned to a young star wailed in torment, and the pallid, sickly form heard it's despair even through a veil that separated reality from another reality.
It gazed upon a star which burned, contrasting it with a star that was cold and tormented, and then contrasting both with the half-brother that was lost and gone, and wondered-
Was the sheep precious enough to risk the Hunter's arrow, now that the Shepherd realized the Hunter had set its gaze on the Shepherd?
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