Underneath the 74th floor of hell, a grey fog surrounded everywhere bringing almost everything to a standstill. A castle with a gloomy aura stood erect among the barren land. That was not the most outstanding characteristic of this floor, On every floor, there were wails and sounds of anguish and torment but on this floor, silence reigned supreme.
"Abimelech you know the gossip around the kingdom nowadays?" a demon of short stature and elf-like ears was dressed in a white bishop tunic. A young man with bright red hair and gloomy eyes diverted his attention from the bloody whip he held; the abused human girl was still shivering in pain. "Cassius, don't forget the only reason I appointed you bishop in my parish is for information not to report the incessant chirpings of birds." swallowing his saliva in trepidation the dwarf-like demon changed his playful tone and rephrased his intentions "This upcoming Walpurgis night a new rookie is to be expected." lifting his brow to express his confusion Abimelech shifted his attention back to the battered figure chained beside him "So? I admit rookies do appear once in a decade but surely it does not warrant as worthy news" placing his hands behind his back Cassius continued in a firm yet steady tone "The rookie of this year did not inherit his title but rather supplanted a demon." as if sensing his master's impatience he continued "He defeated Jorgen" "Hmm? if my memory doesn't fail me Jorgen was part of that Old witch's club. Things are about to get interesting. The fifth circle isn't going to take this lightly....hehe" Each demon lord did try to infringe other floors of their kin. The more floors you could sabotage the more your demonic rank. Asmodeus had stolen; well sabotaged six floors from Pluto which lessened his influence in the congress of gods and devils. He has been pushed back two ranks below. The only solace Pluto had now was his undeniably vast wealth, even that is contested with Beelzebub. In reality, the prestige of the Greek gods was the only thing keeping him in congress.
"So that's it huh?" In a carriage, Bradque was currently browsing through the stack of papers presented to him. It was information he had instructed Veronica to fetch ahead of time. "Have you considered who you're going to ally yourself with?" drumming his fingers with crossed legs he was still contemplating on his limited choices. He had already pit himself against Asmodeus for eliminating Jorgen, allying himself with Pluto would look like the most promising choice as the enemy of my enemy is my friend but "From this data gathered Hades is allied to Asmodeus due to River Styx." River Styx did hold a potent amount of death energy. Death was a law meant to be neutral to all sides. However, that was a myth brought about from the first Hades, Hades was just a title and the generic ideology that death was impartial was due to the impartial stances taken by Hade's predecessors. But now River Styx had been engulfed by the fifth circle of hell which Asmodeus reigns over. "There is only one choice remaining, I choose her" saying that he picked up a particular file which was titled "The Noon-day demon". "Master I expected this, but she is a minor demon lord." nodding his head slightly Bradque interrupted her "I agree she may be a minor demon lord but everyone god or the devils knows she is bound by no sides. A necessary evil, Acedia the demoness of apathy."
Walpurgis night, an event held by nine demon lords in name only. They review, challenge, and socialize throughout this night. In the past, the venue rotated within each territory of demons. Hence, the major absence of prominent demons. you would not want to be attending Walpurgis on the fifth circle where the law of Wrath is abundant whereas you are a demon lord of Sloth. You could be dead anytime or rather demon lords died anytime during this period. To counteract this a neutral faction chooses the venue. This time around it was the three sisters of fate responsible for organizing the event. Since they could perceive the unforeseeable future they were awarded this task.
"The duke of the first circle of hell, his wickedness, Duke Abimelech" Bradque was dressed in a simple two-piece suit. Although he was putting on an apathetic expression whilst twirling his glass of wine, his mind was vigilant. Paying attention to all the names announced his countenance became darker by the second. All these big shots had spontaneously appeared at this Walpurgis night. It was without a shred of doubt he was going to be gobbled up. 'But still, I should thank my stars, no major god or demon lord is present. In the end, I am just a lowly Tiro-ranked demon lord. This is a matter of face and I'm just a pawn or rather an opportunity to remind other demons of the fearsomeness of Asmodeus. But I didn't come all the way here to just become chew toys for your dogs. I am going to survive this ordeal no matter what.' As if to reaffirm his will Bradque's slouched posture changed his eyes were still droopy but they had restored their focus and his back was straightened. 'Oh? so that's the snotty brat that took Jorgen out. He's nothing special. Well, that in its own right is special.' Abimelech had just arrived with Cassius trailing two steps behind him. He assumed this newbie had some sort of special aura or backer but he was plain. His hair was dark, his posture slouched and his eyes looked droopy and sad, the light within them was still wavering. At that moment, he saw his posture straightening and his eyes gleaming with determination. He had experienced this sight once from that 'man'. Like nothing had happened Bradque's stance went back to that of an apathetic underling.
"Hmmph" catching wind of the snort being aimed at him Bradque turned his attention to the direction of the snort. 'Looks like it's starting' "Brethren there is no need to beat around the bush now is there?" A demon wearing a blazer with a slim stature and round monocle spoke. His voice reverberated throughout the ballroom almost bringing Bradque back to his school days. The ball music stopped and an intimidating pressure descended 'How nostalgic. my financial accounting professor was this eyecatching.' "Kashgar, there's an order to these kinds of things. A judge-" "Abimelech, no need to feign ignorance about this matter" interrupting the speaker Kashgar went ahead to take the center of the ballroom. Although they were both dukes of powerful lords, Kashgar was delivered a mandate to make an example of this puny devil while Abmilech was being selfish. His tall frame and exaggerated hand impressions had garnered their attention. 'The stage is set. Play start.' "This lowly demon-" pointing towards Bradque who had now become the focus of attention. Blinking in surprise he muttered, "What did I do wrong?" Demons with their exceptional hearing gasped at his tomfoolery, murmuring and disorder started to take place. "I see this is all nothing but a joke to you isn't it ?" towards his rhetorical question Bradque smiled and said while pointing his finger at a single individual "Show me your friends and I'll show you who you are. Based on this notion Kashgar you're nothing but a disappointment of a demon." 'Silence' they could not believe their ears. A Tiro-ranked demon king was being insidious in the presence of an Eventide demon king. "I see you have done your homework" 'Kashgar a deceitful god under the loan of Epicures the demon lord of Heresy, He was loaned to Asmodeus so she could put me down. To be sincere I expected someone with more substance like a major demon from the Church of Belial, guess I expected much from him. Among all the prominent demons only four attend the Walpurgis back to back. Acedia, Leviathan, Pothos, and Agares. The reason you are called the god of apathy isn't that you are lazy or unproductive. Nothing excites you, brings color to your dull life. Similar to a murky tea that has stayed too long in a teacup after some time your past time turns bland. This is my token of appeal to you Acedia' Imitating his exaggerated hand impressions Bradque replied with a joking smile "Of course I have done my homework" stifles and wheezing was heard in every corner of the room but because of his prestige they could not laugh out loud. Abimelech enjoyed watching his rival mocked so he did not hold back and like a dam on the brink of collapse, the stifles and wheezes turned to mockery "Hahaha" an uproar broke out, and the surrounding demons joined in the laughter. 'Their sense of humor must be warped to laugh at this egregious joke. Anyway, it works in my favor.' "Well, that does not surprise me in the slightest since you befriended Pothos a bitch in heat" "Ha-" Silence again. Everyone had the same thoughts in their minds 'Why in devil's name would you bite more than you could chew' If Bradque could hear their thoughts he would explain to them that he was just Saliva; meant to soften the food before delivering it to the teeth. This time only one chuckle was coming from the end of the room. It was a white-haired lady, average in height and stature without makeup but the most eye-catching features were her eyes though she was chuckling they remained unperturbed. That didn't matter he had done his part the rest was up to her Acedia. "Boy, you are punching beyond your weight. Let me discipline you" It was instinct, half of the demons in the ball immediately fainted and Bradque was on his knees hyperventilating while looking at those who fainted from shock 'If Veronica were here she would be one of them.' still, experiencing people drop to the floor with a shriek was something he experienced once when his good friend died of a drug overdose. However, even that does not come close, the raw fear and even the concentrated miasma in the air was suffocating him. 'Anytime now----The deal is done' "Alright enough Pothos" a bored voice rang out canceling the invisible pressure and those on their knees immediately collapsed while those who were slightly stronger and put up a defense barrier slumped to their knees. She had finally approved his dramatic act of allegiance.