บท 50: Khaos Brigade (10)
Chapter 50: Khaos Brigade (10)
Azrail Astaroth Pov:
"Is this the place you mentioned, Va-kun?"
"This is… A little different from what you said…"
Lavinia and Tobio stared at the enormous stone doors in front of us while Vali, Arthur, and I stood behind them.
Unlike before, the stone doors had no runes embedded in them and didn't lead to a cave with artificially stretched space but a man-made cave moving deep inside the mountain range.
"Yeah…"
"There's nothing here…"
Vali and Arthur look at the enormous stone doors, somewhat confused.
'Of course, there's nothing here. I only left the bare minimum of evidence while cleaning up this place…'
I had no intention of letting someone study the runes Pythagoras deciphered, so cleaning up everything was a given.
Erasing the runes inside the dome was enough to cancel out the artificial space and return the cave to normal. As for the runes on the stone doors, my shadow devoured them.
The runes outside weren't high-level enough for me to care, but why leave them for someone else?
Naturally, such a lousy cover wasn't perfect, and it wouldn't be difficult for someone with half a brain cell to conclude that I cleaned this place up in a hurry.
'Tobio or Lavinia might've already figured it out…'
But in the end, it didn't matter much.
Even if everyone here knew, what could they do about it?
After destroying the runes, I had secured the most precious things Pythagoras owned, including Gleipnir, Logos Arts, and his rune language.
Now, there was only one more thing I wanted from this trip.
"We'll go and check the insides of this cave..."
As Tobio and Lavinia walked into the cave, I called out to Arthur.
"Can you go with them, too? There's something I need to talk about with Vali…"
"Oh… Sure."
It took Arthur a few seconds to catch up, but when he did, he rushed inside the cave immediately.
Vali then turned towards me. "What is it?"
"I'll be blunt…" I placed my hands in my lab coat's pockets, speaking in my usual tone. "Give up on recruiting Arthur…"
"Why?"
"Because unless you do that, he won't agree to become my [Knight] even if he wants to…"
Vali stared at me without blinking.
"What is in it for me?"
"I saved your life… Isn't that the least you can do for me?"
After thinking for a second, Vali let out a small sigh. "You're right…"
From his lacklustre reaction, it seemed like he had expected something like this from me.
"How about it, then?"
"You want Excalibur Ruler, too?"
"Isn't that obvious?" I chuckled at Vali's words. "And wouldn't it be odd for a descendant of Lucifer to carry a Holy Sword with him?"
Since Pythagoras had already revealed Vali's lineage, there was no point in not mentioning it anymore.
Vali didn't reply to my comment, and instead, he asked. "Why are you so interested in Arthur?"
"His potential and talent as a [Knight] aside…" I paused, glancing towards the cave Arthur had disappeared moments earlier. "I want Caliburn and Excalibur Ruler for research…"
Vali tilted his head in confusion. "Research?"
I just shrugged my shoulders at his question. "Right… While we are on the topic, are you creating a team to defeat Rizevim Livan Lucifer?"
Vali's eyes widened slightly at those words. No matter how mentally prepared he was for this conversation, my mentioning his goal so casually surprised him.
But soon after, a dense demonic aura appeared around Vali's body as he clenched his fists in anger, veins bulging on his forearm.
The wind blew past us for aesthetics and increased tension, causing Vali's silver hair to flutter vigorously.
Just hearing Rizevim's name got such an intense reaction from him.
No matter how level-headed or mature he acted, Vali was still a teenager.
It wasn't hard for me to break his composure.
'Of course, a backstory with shitty parenting strikes again…'
Was it that hard to write characters with depth without involving shitty parenting?
"Haah…"
It took Vali a few seconds to calm down, and when he did, I continued without waiting for him to reply. "If that's your goal, I'll help you deal with Rizevim in the future. That should be enough for taking Arthur and Le Fay, right?"
That remark made Vali vigilant, and he narrowed his eyes. "What do you want in return?"
At least he understood that nothing was free in this world.
"After you are done with him, hand over Rizevim Livan Lucifer to me. It doesn't matter if he's dead or alive, but his soul must still be intact…" Vali's eyes widened once again as I spoke. "That's all I want…"
"Why…?"
I gave the White Dragon Emperor a small smile. "I want to see what makes Super Devils different from us common folks…"
That wasn't a lie.
I had always wondered — What made Ajuka, Sirzechs, and Rizevim different from the rest of our species?
Why were they born with powers that devils couldn't achieve even after living for thousands of years?
The answer must be in their souls since Great Sage had already scanned Ajuka and Sirzechs' bodies, concluding they were the same as other devils.
'I have nothing to lose in this deal…'
Considering his potential and status as a main character, Vali would most likely get his revenge against Rizevim unless he became a complete bum.
And what if I somehow figured out how Super Devils worked before the plot with Rizevim arrived?
My promise to help Vali could go to hell, then.
"You make it sound like a walk in the park… I've seen how strong Rizevim is myself. Even Albion said defeating him would be extremely difficult..."
"You worry too much…"
Even if things turned out for the worse, I could always bail out.
"Seriously…"
Vali sighed at my carefree attitude. It didn't seem like he had high expectations of me despite my strength.
"Just recruit some people with decent potential and train them until they are traumatised... A few Sacred Gear wielders would be perfect, right?"
"Sacred Gears won't do anything against Rizevim… That's why I went through the trouble of finding Excalibur Ruler to recruit Arthur and Le Fay…"
"Why?"
"Rizevim has the [Sacred Gear Canceller]…"
"Wait a minute..." I opened my mouth to say something, but the words came out after a delay. "Does that mean he can—"
"Negate the traits and abilities of Sacred Gears, yeah…"
Vali answered the question before I could even finish.
"For real?"
"For real."
I pursed my lips and stood there quietly.
'That's such a cheat… How the hell did I not know about it…'
As someone who spent half a decade researching our race's history, I felt like spending a few years in the Astaroth Clan's library again.
But still, the [Sacred Gear Canceller]'s existence made sense.
An antagonist who could negate Sacred Gears, the protagonist's primary power system, wasn't entirely out of my expectations.
'Let me guess… In the canon timeline, Issei somehow gains [Penetrate], one of Ddraig's original abilities that allows the user to bypass all defences and nullify Rizevim's [Sacred Gear Canceller]…'
At this point, I didn't even need Great Sage to guess the plot of DxD.
[Sacred Gear Canceller] negated everything related to Sacred Gears.
[Penetrate] could bypass all defences.
However, logically speaking, [Penetrate] was an ability of Ddraig and given to the user by the Boosted Gear, so it shouldn't work against [Sacred Gear Canceller].
But for argument's sake, let us assume that [Penetrate] might also consider [Sacred Gear Canceller] as a 'defence' and bypass it.
The matchup was similar to an immovable object vs an unstoppable force.
As for why the unstoppable force won and not the immovable object?
Plot.
'Still, [Sacred Gear Canceller] sounds interesting…'
Lucifer could negate supernatural powers, from Demonic Power to God's Divine Blessings, and his son gained the ability to negate Sacred Gears, one of God's creations.
Maybe hating the Biblical God was in their blood?
If Lucifer was a Discord Mod, Biblical God was grass.
'Putting in some effort might not be too bad, especially if I can learn a few things about negating supernatural powers…' With those thoughts in mind, I spoke. "So, how about it?"
"I won't recruit Arthur… But whether he joins your peerage or not depends on him."
"That's enough…"
At this point, Arthur wouldn't refuse my offer.
Honestly, I wanted to recruit Vali, too, but there was no way he would accept that, so mentioning it would only waste my time.
'Although, for someone who knows a Super Devil personally, Vali agreed without much resistance…'
If a child came up to me and said he'd help me beat the living shit of Ajuka in the future, I'd laugh his words off.
'It could also be that Albion said that not to expect much from me…'
That wouldn't be surprising.
But then again, even if Albion doubted that I might not fulfil my promise, the simple chance of making me an ally was worth far more than permanently recruiting Arthur and Le Fay.
"Hold on…" A strange thought crossed my mind, and I looked into Vali's eyes. "If Rizevim has the [Sacred Gear Canceller], how do you plan on fighting him with [Divine Dividing]?"
"Ah…" Vali's movements paused at that question, only for him to continue a few seconds later. "We don't talk about that here…"
From his reaction, it wasn't hard to tell that he never thought about it before.
"…"
The high evaluation I had of the White Dragon Emperor fell sharply.
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.
.
A few minutes later, Tobio, Lavinia, and Arthur returned from the cave, mentioning that no matter how much they searched, there was nothing extraordinary about this mountain range.
We talked for some time before the three Longinus wielders decided to take their leave, and I turned towards Vali.
"You asked why I need Caliburn and Excalibur Ruler, right?"
"And…?"
"Stay for a while if you seriously wanna know why…"
Vali seemed confused about why I'd suggest this, but he agreed to stay for a while out of curiosity, which made me smile.
While I couldn't recruit Vali, and it'd be incredibly suspicious if he suddenly disappeared after meeting me, it didn't mean I had nothing to gain from him.
"Before I forget, Azrail…"
"Yes?"
Lavinia walked over to me and pointed her index finger towards me, her shadow overlapping mine. "Let's exchange magic circles…"
For context, knowing the other person's magic circle was the basis of establishing a [Audio-Visual Communication Magic Circle] with them.
It was similar to exchanging phone numbers but for supernaturals.
"Huh…? Why?!"
The one most surprised by Lavinia's words was, without a doubt, Va-kun.
"Azrail saved your life, Va-kun… We can't repay him if we don't even know how to contact him…" Lavinia explained to Vali before turning towards me with a gentle smile. "If you ever need help, feel free to contact us, okay?"
'This isn't the effect of [Charm (Passive)], but a genuine display of goodwill…'
I had no reason to deny a gesture like that, so I placed my index finger on Lavinia's fingertip. "I'll make sure to do that…"
"Until next time, then…"
Lavinia stepped away from us as a [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared under her and Tobio.
'That spell formation… Is Lavinia related to the Wizards of Oz?'
As random thoughts passed through my mind, the two humans disappeared.
'Well, whatever the case might be… Lavinia is the perfect test subject to check how [Charm (Passive)] works…'
At first, I planned on testing it out on a female devil from the 72 Pillars, but now that I thought about it, it'd be better to test [Charm (Active)] on them instead.
[Charm (Active)]'s potency depended on the target's strength, mental state, and willpower. It was the perfect skill to check on someone weaker than me.
As for [Charm (Passive)], which affected everyone regardless of strength, Lavinia was a much better test subject because of her strength.
If my plan worked, I'd learn how [Charm (Passive)] affected the target, its potency, long-term use, application on the masses, the emotions it could amplify, where its limits were, and how bad it could get if abused.
According to Lyra, the skill had many more applications than simply seducing others, but I wanted to know how it operated, too.
The experiment would still happen even if I couldn't maintain contact with Lavinia in the future.
Having the chance to snatch one of Grigori's Longinus wielders was just a bonus, with Lavinia being a beautiful woman as a cherry on top.
If it didn't work, I wouldn't lose anything from my side.
[…]
'What is it, Great Sage?'
[You were being down-bad for Lavinia minutes ago, and now you're thinking of her as a lab rat, Master.]
Despite our time together, Great Sage still couldn't keep pace with me.
'I do that for every woman I find attractive, though… It has nothing to do with affection or interest…'
It was the same for Serafall, Grayfia, Venelana, and Lyra.
Would I smash? Absolutely.
Were any of those moments genuine? Not really.
I could find someone physically attractive and still use a scalpel to slit their throat without hesitation.
The weird internal monologue was something I developed to keep myself entertained in my previous life, which never changed from then on.
'Is it that hard to tell whether I'm monologuing things seriously or just saying things for the sake of it?'
[Very much so, Master.]
Poor Great Sage.
She wasn't getting paid enough to deal with this stuff.
[…]
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.
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[Bucharest, Romania.]
"Brother!"
Seconds after we appeared in Bucharest, Le Fay rushed towards Arthur and hugged him tightly, her small hands clenching on the back of his shirt.
"I'm fine, Le Fay…"
Arthur patted the back of his sister's head as the last bit of concern on his expression disappeared. For a brief second, he glanced at me and nodded gratefully, and I gave him a thumbs up in return.
"Azrail…!"
"You're back…"
While Arthur and Le Fay reunited, Lieselotte and Selina approached me.
"Were you two comfortable here?"
"Yes… Miss Amy took great care of us."
"She even told us about the human world and the underworld…"
As expected, Amy was a good babysitter, too.
"Is that so?" I turned towards Amy with a small smile, who stood near the overseer's desk. "Thank you for taking care of them, Amy…"
Amy smiled sweetly at my words and bowed respectfully. "It is my duty to follow your orders, Lord Azrail."
I could tell that Amy had numerous questions inside her head, but she refrained from asking them right now.
'Well, considering Liese and Selina probably told her about when I saved them, it'd be strange if Amy had no questions…'
But it wasn't something that I needed to address immediately.
I doubted Amy would even ask unless I initiated the conversation.
"By the way… How long has it been since I left them here?"
"You left them here three weeks ago, My Lord."
'Three weeks, huh…'
I spent one week preparing [Random dead human NPCs, barrage] and borrowing Alice's familiar after leaving Bucharest, so the couple of minutes I was inside Pythagoras' dimension equated to fourteen days outside.
I had lost track of time since everything was all over the place.
'Considering how intense the gravitational fields were at the end, two weeks is less than expected…'
I gained a lot on this trip, from Gleipnir, Logos Arts, Caliburn, and Excalibur Ruler to an unknown Rune Language.
However, despite that, it didn't push me behind my schedule—not even by a day.
If anything, my schedule was doing better than ever, and it was all thanks to Lyra.
After the small reunion ended, Arthur explained what happened after I left Lieselotte, Selina, and Le Fay in Bucharest to everyone present.
He also covered the part about [Random dead human NPCs, barrage] with what I told him previously.
{If people knew I had such a powerful spell, it'd cause me a lot of trouble. I wouldn't have used it if your lives weren't in danger, so I hope you can keep it a secret.}
Although low effort, that excuse was enough for Arthur to swear an oath of never revealing what happened inside Pythagoras' dimension.
[Gravity Collapse]'s existence was still a secret, so I'd prefer it to remain the same for a few more years.
The only ones who knew about it were Alice, Tiamat, Hydra, Arthur, Albion, and Vali.
As for the destruction I caused in the Familiar Forest, Tiamat took care of it.
"What about our promise, Arthur?"
"Of course…" Without waiting for me to mention it, Arthur removed Caliburn from his waist and presented the sword to me with a smile. "You can examine it however you want…"
I smiled at his words, and my shadow rose from the ground before devouring Caliburn.
Despite how abruptly his sword disappeared, Arthur showed no signs of worry and continued. "If you are fine with it, can I accompany you while you examine Caliburn?"
'If I am fine with it, he said...'
Before our duel, Arthur's main condition in lending me Caliburn was for him to tag along with me, but now, he wanted my permission to accompany me.
Indeed, time could do wonders.
Since I had no reason to deny Arthur's request, I agreed. "Sure."
To begin with, I wouldn't have brought Vali along if I didn't want them to see me examining Caliburn.
With that, our next destination was decided, but before I could continue—
"Hey, Azrail…"
Lieselotte tugged my lab coat's sleeve from the side, and I turned towards her and Selina.
"What is it?"
"Can we go and bury our uncle and aunt?"
"Oh…"
I told them not to leave Bucharest until I returned, so it was no wonder that they didn't bring it up earlier. Otherwise, Le Fay could've taken them to their hometown any time.
But there was another problem.
Lieselotte and Selina's townsfolks, including her uncle and aunt, were… Gone. Reduced to atoms.
'Should I tell them the truth…'
Lieselotte and Selina would probably appreciate that their relatives went out with a bang, right?
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[Underworld: Fourth Laboratory.]
"Woah…"
"It's a real laboratory..."
"It's the same as I saw in movies…"
The moment we appeared inside my fourth laboratory, Lieselotte, Selina, and Le Fay went wide-eyed in surprise.
Vali and Arthur also looked around curiously.
'Great Sage, how is it going?'
[Answer. Utilising the laboratory's sensors to further examine Divine Dividing's connection to the Sacred Gear System in more detail. It'll take some time before pinpointing all the differences between Divine Dividing's connection and an average Sacred Gear's connection.]
'I see…'
That was the reason why I asked Vali to follow us.
Ever since we ran into each other, Great Sage had been analysing Divine Dividing's connection to the Biblical God's Sacred Gear System.
'Keep focusing on that. I'll deal with Caliburn and Arondight myself…'
[Understood.]
All Sacred Gears shared a thin, almost non-existent connection with the Sacred Gear System, and I could detect that connection around me.
That was also how I found Tobio and Lavinia despite them hiding inside shadows, which made them completely undetectable.
The same types of Sacred Gears had similar connections, including the Longinus, but it was hard to differentiate between them.
I had already examined Boosted Gear's connection in detail, along with some probing into the Incinerate Anthem's connection, but the data wasn't enough to let me detect other Longinus yet.
I needed more raw data on other Longinus connections, and that was where Vali and Lavinia came in.
As long as Vali stayed inside this laboratory for some time, Great Sage could examine Divine Dividing's connection in detail.
Coupled with the data I planned to collect from Lavinia and Alice, it'd be possible to create something like a Longinus Detector—a better and improved version of my ability to sense Sacred Gears.
'If it works, inviting Vali to this place would be half successful…'
As for the other half, only time could tell.
"Let's see…"
I summoned Caliburn and Arondight from my shadow before placing them on the nearby table.
Two holograms appeared above each sword, revealing information about the materials used in their crafting, current state, energy levels, and frequencies.
'Sure enough, Caliburn also uses the same method to generate Holy Power, so it should be the same for every holy sword in our mythology…'
Thanks to Arondight containing both Demonic Aura and Holy Aura, I knew how it generated them after some research.
'In that case…'
I condensed my Demonic Aura around my index finger and placed it on Caliburn's blade, slowly tracing it downwards.
After my fingertip reached the blade's centre, I increased my Demonic Power output and—
Whoosh!*
A wave of dense Holy Aura emerged from Caliburn, creating a strong gust of wind within the laboratory before subsiding the next second.
'The Holy Aura's regulator in Caliburn works fine, unlike Arondight…'
The Holy Aura in Arondight was suppressed by its Demonic Aura, hindering the sword's connection with the Biblical God's Holy System.
'I'll need to rewire Arondight's Holy Aura regulator without damaging it further…'
If the regulator received more damage, Arondight would lose its ability to generate Holy Aura and become a Demonic Sword.
'But it'll still be pointless if I can't make Holy Power and Demonic Power coexist…'
In the worst-case scenario, the two opposing energies might cause Arondight to destroy itself.
However, the chances of that happening weren't even one in ten.
"What are you even trying to do?"
The dense wave of Holy Aura caught everyone's attention, and Vali walked over to my side.
"Making Arondight a Holy-Demonic Sword with the properties of both elements…"
"Huh? Isn't that impossible?"
"Why?"
From the side, Le Fay spoke. "Because the Biblical God would never allow that… Holy Power and Demonic Power are the complete opposite of each other…"
With a neutral expression, I turned towards the little witch. "Can you prove that?"
"I…" My question took Le Fay by surprise, and she hesitated to continue. "Isn't that obvious?"
I chuckled at those words. "Holy Power and Demonic Power are energies that exist on opposite frequencies—nothing more, nothing less… Holy Power isn't something that only the Biblical God can create, but something that only he knows how to create…"
Although dumbed down, the explanation was still accurate.
Biblical God didn't control 'Holy Power' as a concept. He only controlled the Holy Power he generated.
If someone had enough 'faith' and knew how to create Holy Power from it, they could utilise that power without trouble.
In fact, each mythology had its own version of a 'sacred' ability as the Holy Power.
"You can't just label something as impossible without even trying. Look here…" I pointed towards the hologram above Arondight. "This sword already has both Holy and Demonic elements—just not in equal amounts…"
Technically, Arondight was already an imperfect Holy-Demonic Sword. All I needed to do was give it some final touches and alter it to my preference.
"My goal is to balance the two elements and find the correct magic frequency that can act as a bridge between them, allowing them to coexist…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
Vali, Arthur, Le Fay, Lieselotte, and Selina stood there without blinking, internally realising that they didn't meet the minimum knowledge requirement for this conversation.
'Right… These brats don't even know what magic frequencies are…'
I'd be surprised if they understood what I meant beyond a superficial level.
"Forget it. Just watch me work if you're interested…" With those words, I turned towards Caliburn and Arondight. "Also, don't touch anything without permission…"
And so, the next few hours passed in silence.
As I worked, Arthur and Vali observed me with interest. The former even helped me out by utilising Caliburn as per my instructions.
On the other hand, Le Fay, Lieselotte, and Selina were munching on the various snacks inside my laboratory to their hearts' content.
Everything was going peacefully until—
"What's this?"
"A gem?"
"So pretty…"
Le Fay picked up the transparent box above the snack container, gaining Lieselotte and Selina's attention.
"Lord Azrail, what is this?"
'A pretty gem inside this laboratory?'
I had no idea what Le Fay was talking about, so I leisurely turned around, but the moment I saw the small box in her hands, my eyes widened.
'Hold up, isn't that… Holy—!'
I activated [Way of the Wind], appearing a step away from Le Fay and snatching the small box from her.
My actions took everyone by surprise.
However, the one most surprised was Vali.
Now that I used [Way of the Wind] without holding back, Vali couldn't follow my movements like before, which most likely surprised him.
But I couldn't care less about him, focusing on the transparent box in my hand. After confirming that the lid was closed tightly, I heaved a sigh.
'All my efforts in saving these brats almost went to waste…'
As expected, bringing children into research facilities was never a good idea.
'More importantly, why is this thing still here?'
The last time I used this rock was when checking the limits of my immortal body.
Did I forget to toss it back into my dimensional storage?
"L-Lord Azrail… Is everything alright?"
Le Fay looked scared, which was understandable, but I still narrowed my eyes at her.
"I said not to touch anything without permission, remember?"
Le Fay shrunk under my gaze, instinctively lowering her head to avoid eye contact. "I apologise…"
No one spoke anything.
It was their first time seeing me speak seriously in the short time we had known each other, which probably surprised them.
"I'm not saying things for the sake of it, you know…" I held the small box between my index finger and thumb, raising it towards Le Fay. "This rock emits radiation at 50,000 sieverts per hour…"
For context, Chernobyl's Elephant's Foot — the worst nuclear disaster in human history — only reached around a maximum of 10,000 sieverts per hour for a while after the disaster.
The rock in my hand made Chernobyl's Elephant's Foot look pretty in comparison since it could maintain a stagnant output at 50,000 sv/h for a long time.
"Sieverts…?"
It seemed like Le Fay didn't understand what I meant, so I simplified the explanation to the most basic level. "Had you opened this box, everyone other than me and Vali would've died within seconds…"
Yeah.
Even in this world, humans were still susceptible to things like radiation, including those related to the supernaturals.
It wouldn't be a stretch to label the rock I snatched from Le Fay as a literal death sentence for humans without a barrier to protect them.
After all, humans had little 'aura' compared to supernatural races, which meant they couldn't defend against such things passively.
But then again, considering how dense this rock's radiation was, even High-Class Devils wouldn't survive for long in its presence.
At best, they might survive for an hour or so.
"P-Pardon?"
Le Fay's face went pale at my words, unable to fully comprehend them, similar to everyone else.
50,000 sv/h of radiation was enough to kill a human within seconds, as the DNA within their cells would be shredded beyond repair, and all cellular functions would cease immediately.
Following that, their body would suffer from a complete molecular disintegration, and death would occur due to instant and total biological breakdown.
"Even if you somehow survived after being in this rock's presence for a few seconds, the damage to your DNA would be beyond repair… At that point, it'd be nigh-impossible to save you, even for me…"
Those words, coupled with my strangely serious tone, made everyone silent. However, the only one who understood the situation's severity was Lieselotte since she knew the potency of my healing abilities.
My blood couldn't heal someone who didn't have at least a single recognisable blueprint (DNA), which made its regenerative properties useless in this case.
My DNA could repair and evolve even after complete destruction because of my adaptation, but that wasn't the case for others.
"I don't like when someone disturbs my research, so from now on, don't touch anything without permission... Got it?"
Le Fay, Lieselotte, and Selina nodded vigorously.
'If I let them be, they'll probably keep causing trouble…' After thinking about it for a second, I continued. "Also, Le Fay…"
"Yes?"
"While I work on Arondight, teach Lieselotte and Selina magic…"
At least learning magic was better than wasting time.
"What kind of magic?"
"Hmm… Start with the basics like [Transportation Magic] and [Elemental Magic]…"
If someone were familiar with the human magic system, it'd be easier for them to master Demonic Power once they reincarnate as a devil.
Not to mention, I'd prefer for Lieselotte to master the basics of Merlin Ambrosius' Magic System before trying anything with Gleipnir and Logos Arts.
"Leave it to me, Lord Azrail…!"
Le Fay gave me an overly enthusiastic nod, and I smiled at her confirmation before turning towards Vali.
"Can you look after them?"
"I don't want to…"
"What if I say please?"
"Uh…" Vali seemed annoyed at the thought of becoming a babysitter, but soon, he agreed with a sigh. "Fine. It's not like I have anything better to do…"
'Maybe the White Dragon Emperor is more of a pushover than I thought…'
Vali seemed like the person who hated following orders, but as long as I made him feel like he was doing things out of his own violation to contribute, he was easy to order around.
'If I cement my position as someone he can't catch up to in Vali's mind, it might be easier for me to order him around in the future…'
And with those thoughts in mind, five days passed.
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.
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"It's done…"
A pleasant, almost ecstatic surge of dopamine hit me as I watched Arondight levitating above the table ahead of me.
Two energy streams circled the sword — one black and one white — moving from its hilt to the blade in an endless spiral.
Naturally, they were Arondight's Demonic Aura and Holy Aura, coexisting perfectly without repelling each other.
Even the points they intersected at didn't disturb the constant flow.
"Unbelievable…"
"A real Holy-Demonic Sword…"
"Father wouldn't believe it even if I told him…"
Vali, Arthur, and Le Fay were flabbergasted, staring at Arondight without blinking.
After watching me fail hundreds of times during the last few days, they had all given up on witnessing a perfect Holy Demonic Sword.
While none of them said anything out loud, it wasn't hard to tell.
"You did it, Azrail…!"
"Congratulations…!"
Contrary to the others' surprised reactions, Lieselotte and Selina were excited beyond belief.
They probably didn't even understand the significance or uses of a Holy Demonic Sword but were simply happy because I succeeded in what I wanted.
'Now, for the moment of truth…'
I grabbed Arondight's hilt with my right hand, and as expected—
'No rejection whatsoever…'
Despite the sword containing a dense amount of Holy Aura, it didn't affect me.
The Demonic Aura and Holy Aura within Arondight were in perfect sync. In its current state, the sword would do equal damage to both the creatures of darkness and angels.
But that wasn't all.
'Next is…'
When I willed it, the Holy Aura inside Arondight doubled instantly while the Demonic Aura disappeared.
The sword's appearance also underwent drastic changes, with the originally pitch-black blade turning pure white as a holy cross appeared on the hilt.
"Lord Azrail, this is…"
I smiled and continued from where Le Fay left off. "The Holy Sword wielded by the strongest Knight of the Round Table, known as the sister sword of both True Excalibur and Galatine…"
As I spoke, I performed a vertical slash with the sword, creating a beautiful pure white arc with its blade.
"If that's how you do it, then…"
I moved the sword again, and this time, a flying slash of dense holy aura released from the blade, cutting through the wall at a distance from us.
'I'd expect nothing less from a Holy Sword placed on the same tier as Excalibur and Galatine… The Holy Aura in that attack was enough to slash through a High-Class Devil like butter…'
At that thought, I couldn't help but laugh a little.
I finally had a proper weapon to fight against other creatures of darkness.
"That's…" Arthur's eyes widened when he saw the last attack. "Sir Lancelot's [Holy Slash]…!"
[Holy Slash] was one of Arondight's original abilities that it lost when its wielder, Lancelot Du Lac, fell into madness, and it became a Demonic Sword.
"You're right…" I raised the blade towards Arthur and continued with a small smile. "This is the 'real' Arondight…"
Now that Arondight had recovered, it naturally regained all of its lost abilities.
Gulp!*
Arthur unknowingly gulped at my majestic display, and with a hesitant voice, he continued. "How can a devil wield a Holy Sword?"
"What are you talking about? Arondight isn't a Holy Sword…"
The moment my words finished, Arondight's Holy Aura became Demonic Aura, and following that, the sword's pure white blade turned pitch-black as the holy cross on its hilt disappeared.
"It's a Holy-Demonic Sword…"
Before Arthur could ask anything more, I moved the sword again to perform [Holy Slash]. However, this time, a pitch-black slash of dense demonic aura released from the blade instead.
Yeah. Not only did Arondight recover all of its original abilities, but it allowed me to use their demonic versions, too.
'In its current state, Arondight effectively has three different forms…'
A Holy Sword.
A Demonic Sword.
And finally, a Holy-Demonic Sword that utilised both Holy and Demonic attributes simultaneously.
When I repeatedly switched Arondight between its three forms, it left the onlookers speechless.
The surprise was so heavy that Arthur couldn't even glaze me anymore. He just stared at me with an open mouth and wide eyes.
Vali and Le Fay were surprised, too, and amidst the deadly silence—
"For Holy and Demonic Power to coexist so seamlessly that it allows Pure Blooded Devils to wield a Holy Sword…"
Albion's heavy voice echoed inside my head.
"It makes a complete mockery out of everything the Biblical God's Holy System stands for…"
The astonishment and awe in his voice were genuine, and he let out a heartfelt laugh.
"Hahaha! Azrail Astaroth… Your talents are extraordinary. Truly extraordinary."
I smiled at that compliment, not replying.
Unlike the last time he spoke, Albion specifically transferred his thoughts to me and no one else, so there was no need for me to reply.
I was about to continue testing Arondight's other abilities, but before I could—
{I found the one you were looking for.}
Lyra's telepathic message rang inside my head.
{Are you sure?}
{Yes. Although he has changed his appearance, I'm sure... He's the one who delivered me your assassination request.}
{Is that so? Bring him to your dungeon.}
{Dead or alive?}
{Whichever one's quicker.}
When she heard she could kill someone, I felt Lyra's heartfelt excitement through our [Soul Corridor].
{Got it. I'll be there in an hour.}
{That long?}
{It takes time to stage a perfect disappearance.}
{Fine.}
After my telepathic link with Lyra ended, I turned towards the still-surprised onlookers around me.
"We're going back to Bucharest…"
"Huh? What about examining Arondight further?"
"That was the original plan, but I remembered something important... Go back first; I'll be there in a few minutes..."
I surged my Demonic Power, and the Astaroth Clan's [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared under everyone except me.
"Also…" I willed it again, and Arondight transformed from a Holy Sword to a Demonic Sword. "Don't mention the matter about Holy-Demonic Swords in front of someone related to the Church…"
The hardcore believers would go batshit insane if they knew Holy Power and Demonic Power could coexist just because a devil like me decided to do some research.
A Holy-Demonic Sword might even reveal the absence of God to people with active brain cells, something that no one from Heaven would want.
And as much as I felt like doing it for shits and giggles, now wasn't the right time to publicly reveal Arondight's Holy Power.
However, revealing demonic versions of its inherent abilities wouldn't be a problem.
"We know that much..."
At Vali's remark, Arthur and Le Fay nodded.
"In that case, I'll see you all in a few minutes…"
The [Transportation Magic Circle] started rotating before everyone disappeared.
After that, I activated [Shadow Teleportation] and left the fourth laboratory.
.
.
.
[Rome, Italy.]
Inside Lyra's room, I came face to face with the reason for Amy's confusion about how I saved Lieselotte, Selina, and Le Fay.
On Lyra's study table was another 'Azrail Astaroth,' holding a feather pen with dozens of documents on the table in front of him.
The 'Azrail Astaroth' placed his feather pen on the table and turned towards me with a small smile. "Good work with the Holy Demonic Sword…"
"Yes. What about the connections?"
"I've broken down the similarities between [Boosted Gear] and [Divine Dividing]'s connection with the Biblical God's
"Sacred Gear System…" He collected the documents on the table and raised them towards me. "Add in the data from Alice's [Incinerate Anthem], and it'd probably lead to a properly functional Longinus Detector…"
Although I already knew the contents of these pages, I still took them and pretended to read them.
"Hmm… Impressive…"
[Master… You're talking to yourself. Please stop.]
Never once in my life had Great Sage sounded so helplessly tired, and after hearing her words—
"You're making it sound like I'm going insane…"
"You're making it sound like I'm going insane…"
Both of my bodies retorted in unison.
It wasn't like I'd develop multiple personalities simply after dividing my soul between different bodies.
'Still, who would've thought that the Vampire Race's [Transform] could work like this…'
[Transform (Active): The user can transform their body or parts of it into a flock of bats.]
That was the skill's explanation, but while messing around it inside Lyra's dungeon, I learned something fantastic.
A Vampire's [Transform] didn't simply split the user's body in a flock of bats, but also their soul.
Although it sounded like a meagre skill, it single-handedly changed my plans regarding the 'resurrection' ability I had in mind.
"Right, before I leave…" I walked over to the study table and placed my right index finger on my other body, surging my demonic power as I continued, "[Parallel Existence]."
Under the spell's influence, 10% of my soul moved from my primary body to the secondary one, increasing the latter's total amount to 25%.
As the name suggested, [Parallel Existence] allowed me to split my soul into various parts and exist in different places simultaneously — a spell based on the Vampire Race's [Transform].
It was the reason for Amy's confusion, as while I was deciphering Pythagoras' runes with Vali's team, 15% of me was also fulfilling my duties as Bucharest's overseer.
Even when we were inside Pythagoras' dimension experiencing time dilation, I was both inside and outside the dimension simultaneously.
For Amy, I (15%) just disappeared for a few minutes and brought Liselotte, Selina, and Le Fay to Bucharest out of nowhere, only to disappear again.
No doubt she'd be confused after hearing how I spent weeks with Lieselotte and the others before bringing them to Bucharest.
The timeline wouldn't make sense from her perspective.
'Despite experiencing it in real-time, monologing about it feels funny…'
One thing to note was that [Parallel Processing] didn't separate my consciousness into pieces or create alternate selves.
I was still one person, existing in more than one place by controlling different bodies.
In gamer terms, I now controlled multiple versions of the same character instead of one, allowing me to do two or more unrelated quests simultaneously.
Pretty cool, right?
Even if my bodies were different dimensions or experiencing time dilation, I could still control them without trouble.
After all, I experienced the difference with time's passage for the 15% me in Bucharest and the 80% me inside Pythagoras' dimension.
Yeah. I was only at 80% on my trip for Gleipnir.
Vali and Arthur might have died of heart attacks if they knew I wasn't at my full power back then.
But then again, having less of my soul wasn't affecting anything other than my Demonic Power Reserves, Recovery, and Output.
It wouldn't make a groundbreaking difference in my strength unless I were at like 50% or lower.
'25% should be enough to recruit Arthur and guide Lieselotte…'
25% of me wasn't suitable for fighting beyond my physical capabilities, anatomy control, and intrinsic skills, but it wasn't a problem.
If the need arose, I could always switch with the 70% body through [Shadow Teleportation].
What about the remaining 5%, you ask?
As my last line of survival, the 5% was in the deepest parts of the first laboratory, a place even Elmenhilde didn't know existed.
It was a perfect safe haven, one I (5%) would never leave.
'The only thing I'm missing right now is a path or recovery method…'
In my current state, I was, in a sense, unkillable.
If someone killed my 70% and 25%, I'd still live as the 5% Azrail with all my memories, experiences, and knowledge from both my lives intact.
However, there was one problem with this method.
In case of death, the 70% of my soul wouldn't just travel to the 25% and merge with it.
If one of my 'characters' died, the part of my soul inside it would die, too.
It'd be a tremendous loss for me, and that was where Lyra came in clutch.
Using my [Soul Corridor] with Lyra, I could create a 'path' for my soul to travel between different bodies using her as the centrepiece.
Though, it was easier said than done.
All the simulations I ran inside my head came to one conclusion: failure.
The second solution to this problem was creating a recovery method for my soul that would allow me to regenerate it.
That was also difficult since I had no idea how the concept of 'soul regeneration' even worked.
I could only think of creating another version of [Life Force Conversion], one that'd let me absorb other souls to heal my own.
But since I wasn't in an immediate need to max out my survival stat, I didn't stress over it too much.
In the first place, killing one of my three bodies was difficult because of their regeneration, anatomy control, and adaptation.
And as long as even 1% of me survived, there'd always be hope.
"I should leave now. It's already been a few minutes since I sent everyone to Bucharest…"
The 25% Azrail activated [Shadow Teleportation] and disappeared, reappearing inside the overseer's office in Bucharest.
Looking at the place 25% was, I held my chin.
'[Parallel Processing] also works fine for a makeshift spell… I know what the other lines of thought are up to without mixing them…'
[Parallel Processing] was a spell I created alongside [Parallel Existence] to make a suitable pair.
It allowed me to split my consciousness to create multiple trains of thought and increase my cognitive abilities.
In short, [Parallel Processing] was the perfect spell to complement [Parallel Existence], letting me have numerous trains of thought and control multiple bodies simultaneously.
Each train of thought had its own designated body, goal, internal monologue, work, and stuff to think about without concerning the others unless necessary.
They were all connected but separate at the same time.
On a side note, this spell was inspired by Arthur Leywin's [King's Gambit].
'But [Parallel Processing] is still somewhat unstable…'
When my two bodies interacted, I'd unknowingly merge the two trains of thought and create a mess.
An example would be when my two bodies spoke in unison to retort against Great Sage's words a few minutes ago.
It meant that the spell still had room for improvement.
After pondering for a while, I sat on Lyra's desk and started working on [Parallel Processing] until she arrived.
.
.
.
'Hm? Has it already been an hour?'
I got up from the chair and turned around, glancing at the needle-size pitch-black hole that appeared mid-air at the room's centre.
The barely noticeable hole expanded into a curtain of darkness before Lyra's body manifested inside the room under[Shadow Teleportation]'s effects.
In her right hand, she held a middle-aged devil's head.
Upon noticing my gaze, Lyra's lips curled into a small smile. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
As usual, Lyra wore a black, sleeveless body suit that tightly hugged her tall and curvy figure, and the contrast it created with her waist-length white hair made her a sight for sore eyes.
"Did you wear that on purpose?"
It was the same body suit she wore on the day we met.
"These clothes are my work attire… You've read my memories, so why bother with meaningless questions?" Lyra's smile widened slightly, and she tossed the devil's head to me. "He's the one I mentioned…"
I stared at the head in my hands. From his agonising and dreadful expression, it wasn't hard to tell that he had a terrible end.
"Did you torture him for information?"
"No. I kept the head intact because you told me to…"
In other words, Lyra tortured him just for the sake of it.
"Is that so?"
I placed the head on the table and rested my right hand above it.
[A Corpse Never Lies]
Over a thousand years of memories started pouring into my head, and I activated [Parallel Processing] to create numerous trains of thought.
The spell increased my brain's overall processing power, allowing me to sort the memories out much faster.
While I could've asked Great Sage to do it, I decided to use this chance to test the limits of [Parallel Processing] instead.
It took me around four minutes to sort out all the memories, and after that, I sighed.
Although I expected it, not finding out anything about the one who ordered my assassination was a bit disappointing.
The devil Lyra brought was nothing more than a pawn. He didn't know who ordered him to take the letter, its contents, or that the one he delivered it to was the infamous 'Shadow Fiend.'
However, it didn't mean his memories were entirely worthless.
After all, I learned of a rather interesting group from his memories.
"Khaos Brigade, huh…"
A group founded to create an opposing force to the growing influence of mythologies, the Khaos Brigade was built as a cooperation between the Fallen Angel Satanael and the Wizards of Oz.
But that wasn't what caught my interest.
A while ago, Satanael and the Wizards of Oz handed Khaos Brigadeto Ophis, the Dragon God of Infinity, who had the sole purpose of removing Great Red from the Dimensional Gap.
To make it even more interesting, the remnants of the Old Satan Faction had also started to reform because the descendants of the Original Beelzebub, Asmodeus, and Leviathan had allied themselves with Ophis.
If their work progressed normally, the antagonist group of DxD would form by the time canon begins.
'But something doesn't make sense…'
Why would Ophis take charge of this bunch to help her defeat Great Red?
What were they supposed to do against the literal strongest being in DxD?
'Could it be that the rumours of Ophis being a dumbass were true?'
As several thoughts passed through my head, my eyes suddenly widened, but before I could surge my Demonic Power—
Squelch!*
A sword made of darkness pierced my chest from behind.
"As expected, you realised the moment I made a move. Waiting for a few months was worth it…"
Lyra's ecstatic, enchanting voice came from behind me, and I slowly turned my head around, veins bulging on my forehead.
"How did you…"
The blush on Lyra's face intensified when our eyes met, only for her to smile at me.
As always, she looked extremely beautiful, perfect, and… very menacing.
Her eyes gleamed with sadistic pleasure as she continued, "You're just like Lilia… So incredibly talented that you overlook the simplest things we 'lesser' individuals can do…"
With those words, Lyra raised her sword and divided my upper body into two pieces.
As both of my sides fell in opposite direction, I realised—
'Damnit… Digimon is so peak…'
[Parallel Processing] still needed some work.
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Words: 8056
Total Words: 2,14,252
A/N:
Couldn't upload for the last three weeks.
The first few days went in me being lazy and then I had a medical emergency in my family, so I couldn't write (It wasn't anything serious but couldn't find the mood to do so). Wrote this chapter in bits and pieces.
Thank you for still sending Powerstones. Hadn't opened webnovel in over two weeks, so seeing someone still sending powerstones was nice.
-
Anyway, 50 Chapters finished. This is also the longest chapter in this fic till date.
RAAAAAHHHHH.
210,000+ words, too.
Finished Metamorphosis. It was a bit hard to read since I wasn't familiar with the style, but overall, I liked it.
Got so used to reading web novels with small paragraphs that reading text walls again felt like a pain.
Also, y'all are so cooked lol.
The Metamorphosis I mentioned is an old novel (1915) by Franz Kafka, not the doujin.
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Khaos Brigade Curse also ended (finally).
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Today's question: Which one is better — the Nikocado Avacado plot twist or the Reverse Flash plot twist?
Do send powerstones. Thanks xD.
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