Olympus, the World ruled by the Greek Pantheon, was filled with Humans, Demi-Humans, Demi-Gods, Half-Gods, and life that was recorded in myths on Arz.
Olympus was much bigger than Arz as well, and quite a place for sightseeing, which was exactly what the Prince Darcaedes had been doing for the last few days as he searched for his target.
The technological and Magical advancements of this world were centuries behind Arz and Underworld, but despite that, it was a place that thrived with life and was very close to nature, making it unique and beautiful in its own right. And though he had come here to find the Demi-God he came to know about after reading the memories of the Giant they slew, he decided to stay here for a while and explore more of it.
"Master, there are rumours about the Black Dragon Slayer arriving in Hecta to deal with an Evil Dragon, the place is 500 miles to the northeast." Kuroka appeared by his side in the air and informed him what she had learned from the city below them.
"Let's go." Raizel nodded and then shot off, flying away in the direction Kuroka had spoken about.
His peerage members were right behind him, trying their best to keep up with his speed, pushing themselves to their limits.
They were not only here for sightseeing and to find their target, but also to grow stronger, and Raizel was making them all work on their flying speed using their wings.
He reached their destination first, only taking fifteen minutes to cover the distance, and then he waited for several minutes for his peerage to gather by his side.
The first one to arrive was Freya, followed closely by Moka and Kuroka, and Ban was the last one to arrive, having taken twice as much time as Raizel did.
"Shall we?"
"At least, let me catch some breath!" Ban complained but was ignored, and Raizel used his Devil Magic to change his appearance and dress before he teleported inside the town, blending right in with the natives.
The rest of them did the same as they started collecting Intel on the Black Dragon Slayer, who also went by the titles of The Black Swordsman and The Berserker.
Raizel was quite amused that the people of this town revered his target like a God, even though he was just a Demi-God without any divinity.
The five of them met again in the sky several minutes later, and they had pretty much gathered the same Intel.
"He's gone up in the mountains to search for the Evil Dragon," Freya told them, and as soon as Raizel nodded, they were off, flying towards the faraway mountains that pierced through the clouds.
A bright smile beamed on Raizel's face when he started hearing the cries of a Dragon and the sounds of the heated battle that was taking place.
He reached the place just in time to witness the Dragon with rust-brown scales unleash an explosive beam of light from its mouth.
It struck the target head-on and the deafening explosion that followed rocked the place, resulting in shock waves that travelled as far as the town they were coming from.
The Dragon thought he had won, however, when the light subsided, through the dust and debris, emerged a man dressed in metallic armour, carrying a large black sword as he jumped up in the air, swinging it at the beast, who was utterly dismayed that his enemy had survived.
The sword struck the claw that tried to stop it, and then cut right through it, making the dragon howl in pain and react out of instinct. The Dragon's tail struck the man and whipped him away at a terrifying speed, making him crash into the mountain.
"That's one tough guy, nya~!" Kuroka was excited as she watched the tanned man stand up and walk out of the crater, still unharmed. "But I suppose it is because of that Magical Armour that he wears." Her keen eyes did not miss on the peculiarity of the Armour the Demi-God was wearing. And then there was the giant sword he was wielding, which had an ominous presence about it and smelt of Evil Magic.
"Truly the son of Hercules," Freya commented after she took a good look at their target and saw how tall and hulking the man was. He was nearly nine feet tall, and then there was his massive black sword that was just as long as he was tall.
The five of them did not interfere in the battle. They enjoyed watching it and observed the style and strength of the Demi-God who was sired by Hercules in the womb of a witch.
When the fight ended, the man was doused in the blood of the Dragons he had just slain, standing tall as he blankly stared at the corpse of his latest victim.
"Who?" The Son of Hercules asked as soon as he heard the spectators of his battle step on the ground.
He had been aware of their presence, having sensed them the moment they arrived.
"It's no longer as fun as it used to be, right, Guts?" Raizel spoke and walked forward to stand by the side of the man, who was shocked to see that the one speaking was just a young boy of eleven years.
"Not sure what you are talking about, Kid, but I am not in the mood to deal with a God." The man replied, having concluded that the boy was not simple as his instincts declared him extremely dangerous.
"How about a deal with a Devil then?"
The words halted Guts in his steps and he curiously turned to look at the boy again, who now had his wings out.
"What's a Devil doing on Olympus?" He asked, curious, but not scared as he felt the four other kids surround him.
"I was fighting a Giant a few days ago, and he told me about a certain hateful man who killed his younger brother. And here I am to greet that very man and make an offer to him." Raizel smiled at him, folding his hands behind his back. "I am Raizel Darcaedes, son of Pandora Darcaedes."
His words seemed to take their effect as Guts looked at him in shock. And Raizel knew that the man would now listen to the offer he had for him.
"I want you to join my Peerage, Son of Hercules."
"I am Guts, son of Lorel." The man narrowed his eyes dangerously, but the young Prince only grinned at him.
Hercules was a Demi-God with a voracious sexual appetite, which he had inherited from Zeus, and Guts was a result of a mistake his mother made by falling to the charm of the Demi-God who was revered for his strength.
"Well, Son of Lorel, how about you let me turn you into a Devil and fix your troubles with Magic?" He asked. "Your mother was quite a Magician, and she would be proud if her son could use Magic just as well as her or even better." He teasingly said but managed to brush the right chords in Guts' heart.
It was Guts' desire to one day be able to use Magic and make his mother proud. As strong as he was, he did not want to be known by people for the strength he had inherited from Hercules, who had never looked back at his mother after he had spent the night with her.
"You truly are a Devil." The man narrowed his eyes at him and gripped his sword tightly.
"We can do it the hard way if you want." Raizel nodded as he unleashed his Demonic Power, making it apparent to the Demi-God how unfair their battle would be to him. "However, I do not wish to use force." He lightly said.
"And if I refuse?"
"Your call." He shrugged. "I will decide if I want to kill you after your refusal or let you go. Or maybe one day I will come after you to take this sword from your hands to give it to one of my Servants."
The blunt honestly caught Guts off-guard, and he furrowed his brows, tightening his grip on his beloved Dragon Slayer.
"It seems that that sword is very special to you. So, why not join me and start a new life with it, away from this world."
"I was born here."
"But you no longer feel like you belong here."
Guts was not feeling well that the young Devil seemed to see right through him. He had heard that the Devils could sense your desires, but this Prince seemed to be able to see right into your heart.
Time passed, no one spoke, and Guts felt ever more conflicted.
He recalled the life he had spent, the few years with his mother, the years after her passing where he had only one goal, and that was to survive. The days when he made some friends, joined a band and adventured the Midland. Then came the memories of the betrayals he suffered, the people he lost to enemies or old age.
Guts realised that he had nothing left in life except for the sword in his hand, his beloved Dragon Slayer. And then he asked himself if he wanted to continue living. And the answer he found was yes.
The start of new life with new adventures and magic sounded quite appealing.
"I agree." He answered and watched the Devil grin at him.
"Great!" Rizel recalled his Demonic Power and walked over to the hulking man who was nearly nine feet tall. "Stay still." He ordered as he summoned his Evil Pieces, which soon started revolving around Guts.
Whilst the Evil Pieces revolved around their potential host, Raizel created an incision on Guts' neck, making his blood flow out for him to taste it.
He licked his finger that was coated in blood and then sank his fangs into the Demi-God's neck, overwriting his Gene-Sequence with his Devil Blood, turning Guts into a Half-Devil.
The process took a while and drained him, but in the end, it was a success.
For a moment, Guts really thought he had made a mistake and that he was going to die, but once he felt the alien power course through his veins, felt his senses heighten beyond what he thought was possible, a sense of relief and excitement washed over him, which was something he had not experienced in a long while.
Guts was lost in this marvellous feeling and did not even realise when Raizel let him go, and when he regained some clarity, he found a lone Evil Piece floating before him.
"You will be my Knight from this day onwards, Guts, the Son of Lorel..." Raizel declared, and the Knight's Piece entered its host's chest.