Chapter 188: The Devil Sacred Gears; Vessel of a Demon
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Rumors were fast to spread, more so since devils from so many different clans were gathered when the Belphegor scouts reported their sightings.
"Whoa, he did all that himself?"
"I just thought the other rumors were exaggerated…"
"The Black Dragon Mountain Range didn't fall even after its original leader passed, even the Satans, old and young, let it be..."
"Kyah~ not only is he handsome, but he's so powerful too! Should I have gone and hit on him even though….."
The devils interpreted the situation very differently from one another, although most were just thankful that this person didn't have a bad relationship with the devils. If he were an enemy, wouldn't all of them have died when he opened a portal to this place, bypassing the teleportation magic barriers?
Even Lady Belphegor didn't have the same flirtatious expression she had last night. When she allowed him to visit the mountains, she expected it to be some long-term expedition. He certainly hadn't come looking like a warrior, after all, he had dressed as if he were on a date. She expected him to scout the place and then leave to return later with a bigger force, where the fight would continue for a few days or weeks.
But he made the Black Dragons' race extinct in a single night…
Natural to say, his name spread like wildfire once again. Against Thor, the spectators were Shinto Gods; they didn't reveal much information other than the result. Even in Vedas, only the result spread through the world, little about the actual battle leaked to the outsiders.
However, the devils at the birthday party had to make sure the report was correct with their own two eyes. So, they visited the place to check on their own, and all they found was as the scouts had reported. Nothing but scorched earth.
"...."
"...."
"...."
All doubts and even praises died as the air grew eerily cold. If not for the DM he left to Rias before returning to Earth, they'd have thought he perished here too.
Genshirou Saji, though, was having a hard time. His left forearm was hurting like crazy, and it didn't feel like physical pain. "Ugh…"
"Huh?" Akeno blinked, turning to her side to find Saji falling to his knees. "Hey, what happened? What's going on?!"
She crouched beside him, grabbing his shoulders, and the commotion caught the other people's attention. Rias and Belphegor turned to the scene, and everyone in the area took a step back.
– Bang!!
A black-purple mist exploded out of Saji's arm and Akeno was sent flying backward as a result. Koneko rushed to catch her immediately. The mist cleared, and a dark purple jewel appeared in Saji's hand, his body also gained many black snake-like marks. The orb exploded, softly this time, and the essence merged into him. Saji shouted, screaming, his veins popping, as a new voice emerged.
"HOW DARE HE!" The voice of an Ancient Dragon growled out of his arm. "How dare he kill my kin! THAT ARROGANT CHILD!"
Vritra, the Black Dragon King, was killed and sealed inside a Sacred Gear. It just so happened that Saji was the one who had that Gear; and through Saji, he witnessed his kingdom's demise.
Saji Genshirou passed out, while his peerage shouted in worry.
****
How useless.
She hadn't felt this useless even during her Rating Game against Riser.
A member of her peerage passed out from his Sacred Gear's overstimulation, and she couldn't even console him. Because the reason behind this all was someone she had fallen for.
At this rate, there will certainly come a time when these two will clash.
How was she supposed to keep Saji alive if such a thing really happened?
Rias realized she depended on Aqua a lot, but did he… really think of her as closely as she thought of him? She felt bad for thinking this since recently he's been more affectionate towards her, but still.
If he were to become an enemy for some reason, what would she do?
She was a member of his sect, and she was aware that she wasn't even the 2nd strongest after him. If her senses were accurate, there were at least five more people stronger than her in the sect.
That was one reason why she wasn't included in this expedition plan of his. She wasn't sure what the expedition was about, but she knew he was training the members of the sect to prepare for it. Yet, he barely trained her or her peerage, except for Akeno, Koneko, and Kiba sometimes. Kiba's sword techniques have improved a lot after he was shown a few tricks. But it wasn't as intense of a training that he gave to the other members.
So one way or another, Rias realized she needed a lot of power. Either to save her own peerage for an undesirable enemy, any enemy at all actually, or to at least be helpful to Aqua in whatever he wants her to be in.
That was why she was here, on her own, while she sent her peerage home. In the gloomy office in a grand room, mostly empty except for books. This was an island floating in the sky, and Rias sat behind a table, before a Satan.
Rias sighed. "So it can't be done, Ajuka?"
"No, Rias. A King Piece can make you stronger, indeed, but it has its dangers." Ajuka Beelzebub gently shook his head and said.
A King Piece. The strongest of Evil Pieces.
Rias learned about the King Piece from Roygun Belphegor, who, while drunk, had revealed that her Satan-Class strength came from it. When sober, she later begged Rias to keep that a secret.
Rias agreed. But at the same time, she had an idea in her head.
The Devil Peerage system used the chess pieces to work; the Evil Pieces. Akeno, for example, had the Queen Piece inside her. That gave her a power boost, an incredible power boost. Likewise, other members of a peerage would have the Rook Piece, the Bishop Piece, and even Pawn.
However, the Devil Kings of the Peerages didn't have a King Piece. It's not that King Pieces existed, they certainly did since Lady Belphegor used one, but it was tricky. Just like the other Evil Pieces, the King Pieces were created by Ajuka in the past and possessed great danger toward the user just as much power as it gave out. So after a meeting among the four satans, its usage was banned and information about it was also restricted.
Few were supposed to know about its existence.
"Where did you learn about this, Rias?" Ajuka's voice wasn't really cold, but it sent a chill down her spine. He was curious about who gave her this idea.
"...Somewhere." Rias denied revealing anything. As promised, she didn't want Roygun to get into trouble because of her. It might backfire, but she's not going to go back on a promise.
Ajuka shook his head, his expression was as flat as always. He also had dark circles under his eye, and as an immortal devil, that was a sign that he'd been skipping sleep for months. "Oh well. I would have interrogated you if you were anyone else, Rias, but I suppose I'll just pass this information to your brother." He said, and Rias' face grew red. Was she going to get scolded for this? "Anyway, I can't give it to you. Don't bother to beg Sirzechs about it, he'll be even more against it knowing the danger it can pose to you."
In short, Ajuka was firm in his rejection. There's nothing that'd convince him.
Rias sighed and took her leave. It was pointless to continue this talk, after all.
"I won't see you out, sorry. I'll have to return to the lab and get busy now." Ajuka said as she left.
…..
As Rias walked through the winding corridors of the mansion, making her way toward the exit, a familiar, unsettling sensation tugged at her soul.
It wasn't the first time she'd felt it. On previous visits to Ajuka's lab mansion, she'd sensed that same odd call, like a whisper at the edge of her consciousness.
Once, she had decided to investigate, coming in front of a door, only to be stopped and harshly reprimanded by the Satans.
But today, something felt different. The call was stronger, more insistent as if something within the depths of the facility was reaching out to her.
"Ajuka must have returned to his lab by now…" Hesitating at first, she cast a stealth spell around herself, her form shimmering into near invisibility. With cautious steps, she followed the pull, her heart pounding in her chest.
The corridors grew darker and more labyrinthine as she ventured deeper.
Eventually, she found herself standing before a massive door, the same one she had come in front of as a child. Its surface was inscribed with ancient runes and powerful locking spells.
From what she remembered, the door could only be opened by Ajuka or Sirzechs' Mana, along with the other intricate spells placed upon it. Ajuka had said to Sirzechs, that, "No need to yell at her, it's not as if anyone other than us can open it." And since the greatest Devil Mage said that, it must have been true. But something about the locking spells seemed off as if they needed maintenance or had been neglected.
"Maybe Ajuka's been too busy," Rias murmured to herself, examining the spells closely. He did look quite sleep-deprived, maybe he forgot?
Taking a deep breath, Rias raised her hand at the lock. She didn't know if she should do this, but… her curiosity will kill her otherwise. Maybe this place had secret weapons that'd help her become stronger, who knows? So she began to dismantle the spells one by one.
The process was painstaking and slow, but her determination fueled her efforts. And since Ajuka didn't come to stop her, it really meant that he was too busy. With a final flick of her wrist, the last spell unraveled, and the door creaked open.
"Aha!" She grinned, as a dark ballroom expanded before her. She gulped.
After a last moment of hesitation, she took a step. Darkness greeted her as she stepped inside the grand hall. The air was thick with dust and a sense of ancient power. She had to walk for minutes for the empty surroundings to change. At last, she came to stop in front of what felt like a throne room.
On either side of her walk stood ten statues, their stony gazes watching her with silent judgment. It was not human statues, nor devils, it was demon statues. They felt… monstrous even to her. Rias was still a devil, in the end, she realized these were not mere statues. She felt their presence, but they weren't the source of the call.
"How odd- ah…" she paused when her blue eyes locked ahead.
Ahead of her, a grand staircase led up to a throne. Standing beneath the staircase was another statue, but even that wasn't what was calling to her. No, the call came from the statue seated on the throne itself, exuding an aura of arrogance and power.
The other statues felt eerie, sure, but they weren't openly letting out any aura. However, this figure on the throne was regal, with a horn so majestic it resembled a crown.
She remembered now…
It was just treated as a legend at this point rather than a real story, but she recognized these statues.
…Malebranche, the Evil Claws, the twelve living weapons. Demonic Weapons made by Devils.
That must mean that it was Malacoda, the leader, on the throne. Out of the twelve Evil Claws, he was the only one ordered never to be unsealed.
Yet…
Rias felt as if she was in a trance, her feet moving forward of their own accord. Her eyes clouded. The closer she got, the stronger the pull became. She stopped at the base of the throne, looking up at the statue. Its eyes seemed to bore into her soul, and she could almost hear its voice whispering to her.
"Why… are you calling me?" she whispered, her voice trembling.
The statue remained silent, but the call grew louder, more insistent.
Rias felt a strange connection to the figure as if it was waiting for her, calling her to awaken something within herself.
They were weapons wielded by the original Four Satans, maybe this thing wanted her to use it?
Driven by a mix of curiosity and an inexplicable urge, Rias reached out, her fingers brushing against the cold stone of the statue's hand. Just as she made contact, a surge of power coursed through her, and her vision went black.
In the darkness, she heard a voice from the statue, demonic and resonant. "Oh-ho, look who's here?" an amused voice asked.
Rias tried to speak, but no words came out. The voice continued, echoing in her mind. "Come, my vessel."
And the world went blank.
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