The Seraphic System
Chapter: 18
Notice: I've started up a pa/ t reon with six chapters in advance, details at the bottom of the chapter if you're interested I'll keep posting regardless.
To those worrying about not interacting with Canon Dxd be patient, it's coming. The India arc is closing up and is more of a learning curve. If you don't care about it, don't read.
(Rescue Mission)
After sneaking around for a while, I had finally located the entrance, it had taken a while, searching around the mountain. There had been more of those hooded figures surrounding the mountain along with the figures wearing the demonic face masks.
Which meant they were that bitch's underlings and that Sunita was behind the interrogation of my angel. I grimaced, she hadn't seemed like the type of person to show any mercy.
I hoped he hadn't sustained too much damage. The entrance to the fortress wasn't subtle at all, with a large number of guards stationed in front of it. The entrance had reinforced pillars holding a gate.
It practically screamed "secret entrance." Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to observe and play it cautiously.
I sighed. What a mess.
I wanted to relax for a while after the whole situation with Namara, which was still fresh in my mind.
This was the last time I took a job from that stone-humping lecture-giving asshole.
I refrained from summoning the other angels, as their presence wasn't subtle, and I would prefer not to meet Sunita again.
I had no idea how her powers worked, but I had a few ideas, each less appealing than the last. A quick use of appraisal showed that all of the guards were in the high-class range.
I really needed to get some sort of sensory ability.
I took out one of the Tempest Chakrams that had originally belonged to Namara. Once the chaos settled, I'd have to find time to master its use properly. I didn't want to swing and hope for the best.
They had been a pain in my ass when Namara had used them. I wanted to be able to use them in the same way. The circular blade hummed in greeting and lit up visibly. I grinned.
I opted not to attract attention and approach stealthily. I was unsure of the gate's strength, so I waited for an opportunity and seized the chance.
When the gate creaked open and a guard emerged, I quickly descended from the tree and wasted no time in taking action.
Slamming my hand on the ground, chakra left my body as roots shot up and instantly impaled all six of the guards. I quickly commanded the roots to cover their mouths as they tried to scream in pain.
I connected myself to the roots and absorbed all their mana. I had to be connected to any of my roots to use the absorption part of mokuton. Once I was done I stuffed them all into my inventory and made my way inside the cave.
They were alive. The impalement had only been through their legs to absorb their mana better and restrict their movement.
I didn't think antagonising the Hindu faction any further was a good idea and it would look bad on Shanu if I went on a killing spree.
All of that had happened in only ten seconds. It was almost terrifying to think I was still technically in the lower realm of ultimate class. I pulled my angels out of my sub-dimension and they all appeared ready for a battle.
"Guard the entrance. If you find yourself overwhelmed, retreat to me." I commanded.
While I wanted to go in quietly that wouldn't work if someone realised all the guards were gone and tried to alert someone inside. My angels nodded, all in their battle attire with their shields held ready.
My angels took up defensive positions around the main entrance and I entered through the open gate. I was greeted by a large hallway, with weird patterns on the walls which I assumed were related to the Hindu pantheon.
Sneaking through the fortress by sticking to the shadows cast by the torches hung up on the large pillars of stone, which I had become pretty good at doing after all the practice. My eyes scanned for any guards.
This place was suspiciously devoid of any life, which was annoying since I wanted to interrogate a guard. This place is huge and I didn't have any sort of way to navigate around, which made finding where the missing angel was being held difficult.
It took me a while of looking around until I stumbled upon dozens of cells. A quick look into the first cell made me scowl. Blood was everywhere, I guess my suspicions were correct. This place was being used as an interrogation site.
"Away from anybody who could protest, it seems." I mused as I noticed the noise-cancellation padded walls.
I had been feeling a sense of urgency throughout my search, but now realising just what type of place this was made me abandon all notions of attempting to remain unnoticed.
I went, cell to cell. I was ripping open metal doors with tremendous force. All of the torture rooms had various things inside, with some having creatures bound in chains, some alive but heavily bruised.
I'm assuming these were enemies of the Hindu pantheon in one way or another, perhaps other creatures from different pantheons were sent here to spy since I noticed a large amount of creatures not of the Hindu pantheon with appraisal.
Judging by the secrecy of this place and the lack of personnel, this was probably the human equivalent of a black site. An unregistered location that focused on gaining intel, regardless of the questionable methods.
Was I surprised by the brutality? No. I'm sure the gods wouldn't lower themselves to be involved but the Deva and Devi were tasked with keeping the peace in their respective territories.
India is a large country known to house the most powerful pantheon. Naturally, many other factions would send spies to monitor them, hell. I'm sure most pantheons, even if allied, spied on each other daily.
Azazel had mentioned spying once or twice in the anime and he seemed oddly informed about whatever happened. Fallen Voyeur.
My hands reached another cell as I ripped the door open once more. I had been through a few dozen by now and each cell made my patience wear thinner. I was greeted by a rather horrifying site.
The male angel I had sought was suspended, his wings ensnared by chains that cruelly hoisted him aloft. Gravity, relentlessly pulling the chains, inflicted a gradual severing of his once majestic wings, leaving a trail of gore in its wake.
The once pristine white wings were now painted golden. The feathers were covered in his gold blood. His torso was visible, with cuts all over it. There was evidence of torture all over his body and a bucket below him collecting the golden blood.
His eyes looked up and I hated the way they lit up in joy.
"F-father." He exclaimed in a raspy voice.
I didn't know how to react. It was all too much. I was beside him for a moment. The chains cut as the male angel fell down. His body flopped down uselessly without any strength.
He had no strength, his body had endured too much to the point he couldn't move.
"Thank you for remembering me." He said only for his eyes to start glazing over.
Shit.
Had he been holding out in hopes of seeing me again? Just how frantically loyal are they?!
I opened up the system store in a panic, quickly scrolling through the items before scowling and searching for the potions section. My eyes scanned through the many potions.
Turns out the genre of potions had a lot of results, finally finding what I wanted. A healing potion that I immediately purchased. Taking out the cylindrical bottle containing blue liquid, I quickly uncorked it uncaringly, tossing the cork aside.
I shoved the potion into his mouth unceremoniously. He looked to be on the cusp of death and I didn't want to risk him slipping away because I tried to be gentle. The potion's effects were instant, the price had been rather steep so I wasn't surprised.
The wounds sealed up, his wings making a few snapping noises as they were put back into their rightful place. A paleness his skin tone had taken on became visibly healthier.
Yet, despite this, he didn't wake up. His eyes remained glazed. I quickly tried to listen for his breathing but quickly realised he wasn't breathing. I gently shook him, hoping for a response, but he remained still.
"Come on!" I whispered.
I checked his pulse and found nothing.
My heart sank as the truth settled in, he was gone.
I felt my shoulder slump in defeat.
I stood there for a while. Simply reflecting. After a while, I finally let out a defeated breath. Kneeling down I carefully stored his body in my inventory. My hands shook as feelings rushed to me.
I hadn't been fast enough. I felt what I had been trying to cover resurface itself. My hands came up to my head and memories unwilling flooded my head.
Damn it.
-{Flashback}-
Tears poured freely down my face as I looked down at the casket holding my grandfather, his face was set in that kind smile he always gave me. I sneaked a peak towards my father who looked on emotionlessly.
Mother smirked as she spoke to a friend of hers and my siblings made quiet toasts.
I looked down at the pendant he had given me, a picture of us laughing. The clouds were dark and it lightly rained down. I prayed for the first time in my life, to whatever being managed in this world to please to care for him.
I wasn't religious but for my grandfather I would make an effort. I sniffed.
Why did I feel so alone even when I was surrounded by family?
-Flashback End-
I stumbled and slapped myself. Why did this hurt so much? I hadn't known him for more than an hour and I found myself hurting. I had been trying so long to suppress myself and pick those I care for carefully.
Maybe I had been trying to cover the fact I hadn't come out fully sane during my stay in the void, I tried to cover it and excuse my behaviour as hurt but the void wasn't a place meant to be left.
I punched the wall with a scowl and cleared my thoughts.
I almost missed the familiar forest at this point. Sure, it had been mostly me killing the various magical creatures that resided within it but it had been simple. Kill or be killed.
Maybe I should've accepted Tiamat's offer. I had run away because she seemed a bit insane, and I didn't exactly want to be under the control of a more powerful being.
It was times like this when I missed my grandfather. I know I had held hate for him when I was stuck in the abyss with nothing but my emotions keeping me going, but he had still been the closest person to me.
He was kind, this world needs more people like him. Not people like me.
I stopped those thoughts as I felt more memories starting to churn.
Getting up almost robotically, I put the bucket filled with golden blood in my inventory. Anger simmered within me as I felt rage. The burning liquid of pure hatred ignited in me.
The feeling I had felt for so long meant to be reserved only for my family.
My fist tightened. I let out a shaky breath to calm down. The logical part of me was telling me that moping around wouldn't do me any good.
Leaving the cell as I attempted to bottle my rising anger, I paused. My eyes travelled to the other cells where moans of pain could be heard with all the cell doors opened.
I guess there was nothing to be lost. I went over to each cell and released all the varying races being held. They mostly thanked me and promised to repay this life debt. I simply nodded and finally left once everyone was freed.
My angels looked on guard; they warily let the prisoners pass. They all eased up as they witnessed me.
Avael stepped up.
"Where is our brother?" She asked innocently.
Pure innocent blue eyes searching for the angel I hadn't even had a chance to name yet. God fucking damn it. I was going to skin that Devi.
This really wasn't what I wanted to talk about right now.
"He didn't make it," I responded curtly. Holding in the many emotions I felt.
All of their heads lowered and Avael nodded sadly. I opened up my sub-dimension.
"Retreat back to our home for now, I shall call on you if assistance is needed," I ordered.
"Little brother please, we don't want you to travel alone," Avael replied.
The other angels behind her seemed to share in her sentiments.
"I won't be in any danger, plus I can call on you at a moment's notice if needed. For now, travelling together would merely hinder me." I patiently explained.
Avael nodded hesitantly with a soft frown. They all entered the sub-dimension a moment later. I didn't waste any time and opened my wings. Shooting up, I went high up into the sky before travelling in the direction I knew led to Shimla.
My winged flight allowed me to fly pretty fast.
[Winged flight] (LVL: 73/100) {Adept}
[Winged flight is the ability to use your wings to fly. Those who learn how to use their wings during flight can block and avoid attacks with the more mastery the deadlier you become during flight.]
[Passive effect: flying speed increased by 30%]
Shimla was over 1000 km away from my current location so it would still take a while. I flew at max speed, feeling anxious. Galadriel was too weak to fend off any attackers.
Too much had been lost in the past few days.
My goblin maid wasn't exactly that useful either. At least I would have someone to clean up my new house. She had gotten pretty good at that despite her clumsy personality.
At the speed I was flying at right now, I should be able to make it there within 30 seconds at most. Flying at 200 Mach is no joke.
I had to surround my body in an oblong sphere for minimal resistance and viscous forces.
Heat shimmered around the barrier as red fire appeared in front of the cone.
I'd only flown at max speed a couple of times before, mostly just to see what would happen. Turns out, the air friction instantly scorched my clothes. I bet it'd hurt if I wasn't immune to physical damage.
Creating an oblong sphere of magic allowed me to travel much faster. An idea came to mind and I called upon my wind manipulation. I focused and willed the wind to split in front of me with some success.
My speed barely picked up, but since my wind manipulation was only at the novice stage it wasn't surprising. It was certainly quite the sight to watch the world speed past below you.
I made sure to stay high up in the air with my presence Concealment and my mask. It wouldn't do good for supernatural beings especially of the Hindu pantheon to feel an ultimate class outsider speeding around.
-Scene change-
Slowing my speed as I saw Shimla in the distance, I slowly flew down. The dome of mana burning from the heat. Luckily it was pretty cloudy today so I wasn't easily spotted up in the air.
I dropped down from the sky, into the border area of shimla and instantly felt magic wash over me. A brief glance into the city and I noticed stone constructs patrolling around.
It looks like Shanu was on high alert.
I figured that two ultimate class beings duking it out in India wasn't exactly a regular occurrence. Outsiders usually got the boot lodged far up their rectum. Or worse, if they tried to push their luck and barge in.
Shanu had told me only weaker beings slipped through due to their weak strength. Anyone above ultimate class is repelled instantly by the Hindu foreign relations task force, which was why Shanu was so surprised to see me.
I doubt he was truly worried about me attacking, this was probably more of a lockdown protocol. I'm guessing the Deva's had their cities In similar conditions. Yikes, I knew the consequences would be huge.
I'm truly surprised that the gods hadn't just flicked me out of existence, which was why I was rushing around and trying to get everything in order before disappearing to let things cool down.
Unfortunately things didn't seem to be going my way at the moment. I let out a sigh, slipping through Shanu's guards' perception with the liberal use of appraisal and my concealment doing the heavy lifting.
I had to admit I was so glad I got this mask. I would have been fucked without it. The amount of Shanu's guards out and searching around were much more than I had even seen during my time in Shimla.
It took me a while of slipping around and out of everyone's eyeshot to eventually reach the hotel that had been my residence. I was pretty certain Shanu knew of my presence but there was only so much I could do.
That's why I didn't bother trying to sneak into the hotel. I walked through the main entrance mostly unnoticed. The only one who noticed me was the Guhyaka servant of Kubera. I still don't understand why he looks so creepy.
He looked at me knowingly with a sly grin. I simply raised an eyebrow back at him, and strode past him.
I didn't have the energy to play at the moment. I quickly reached my room and opened the door.
"Galadriel, Grizella." I called out as I entered.
My shoulders felt tense. I almost expected to walk in on both of the corpses but luckily it was just my imagination playing against me. Grizella walked out quickly with Galadriel on her shoulder.
"Master?" She responded.
"Pack everything valuable." I ordered, even as Galadriel slid up to my cheek and gave it a lick of concern.
"What's happening?" She looked confused.
"Just bring me everything valuable quickly. We are moving house." I ordered and she nodded in response.
It took only a few minutes to grab everything of worth and tuck them safely into my Inventory. I sent Grizella and Galadriel into my sub-dimension, with orders to introduce themselves to my angels.
Now that was done, I had two more things to do before I could retreat into my sub-dimension. First, I needed to speak with Shanu and then I would have to give Manasa her stone back.
The moment I exited the hotel, a wave of familiarity swept over me, triggered by the faintest sound in the distance. Suddenly, recognition hit me like a ton of bricks, and I found myself on the ground.
A bullet zipped above me, going into and through the wall behind me. My gaze locked onto a distant glimmer, likely from a rifle scope. My muscles tensed, bracing to defend myself.
Internally I cursed my inability to catch a break. As I started to move, the ground beneath me shook and a towering spike of earth skyward above from where the Assassin was shot.
I saw the assassin deftly dodge as a familiar face came into view.
Adheer.
He stood there with his arms crossed. An expression of seriousness on his face. A moment later he jumped and sent a dozen earth spikes at the assassin. Who in turn pulled out that gun of his and sent a blast that destroyed the earth spikes.
The assassin didn't have time to react as dozens of earth pillars shot up from all around him. I saw him start to meld into the shadows so I sent a shining ball of light into the sky that removed all shadows around him.
Bones cracked as the assassin was flung through the air. As he staggered to his feet, he attempted to flee, but Adheer swiftly stamped his foot, enveloping the assassin's legs in a solid block of stone.
The shadow assassin attempted to shatter the stone with his bare fists, but before he could, Adheer slid before him and delivered a devastating punch straight to his gut. The force of the blow caused the assassin's eyes to roll back and his body to collapse in unconsciousness.
Stone guards flooded the area, thankfully they didn't show any signs of hostility towards me which made me feel oddly relieved. The assassin was taken away just as quickly as he had appeared.
Adheer walked towards me. I would normally make some sarcastic quip or joke to lighten the mood but I didn't have the energy. Expecting Adheer to be, well. Adheer. I was surprised when he looked at me in an almost soft manner.
"It seems you made it out in one piece. My lord wishes to speak to you. Shall we go?" Adheer asked calmly.
I looked at him in something akin to bafflement. Had I finally lost it? I nodded regardless and he gave me a pat on the shoulder as a car pulled up to us.
Did the kick I delivered to his balls give him brain damage or something?
The car ride was driven in a comfortable silence. It didn't take long until we arrived at the familiar mansion gates of Shanu. Stepping out, we went directly to Shanu's office and entered quietly.
Shanu sat with his fingers crossed, his head propped up on his hands. Adheer left the room, giving me a nod before exiting and leaving me with Shanu. I walked over and flopped down tiredly on the comfortable chair.
I saw his eyes soften as he took in my tired appearance.
"Kai." Shanu greeted me.
"Shanu." I responded casually.
Shanu sighed.
"You've caused quite the mess. Many aren't happy about the death of Namara despite his aggression in recent years." Shanu informed.
"It wasn't like I wanted to kill him, it became more of a necessity when it became obvious he wouldn't let me escape." I quickly replied.
Shanu nodded, probably understanding that I hadn't been able to escape.
"Yes, I guessed that was the case. Did you acquire his Chakrams?" Shanu asked.
I nodded, pulling them out of my inventory. They sparked minutely as I held them. Something Shanu noticed with intrigue.
"Namara's weapons have bonded with you, how curious. I'm assuming there's quite the story to be told about the real circumstances behind this battle, since I sense you possess Namara's inheritance." Shanu observed.
My eyes widened.
"How do you know about Namara's inheritance?" I questioned.
Shanu chuckled at my response.
"A good question, not many bar the gods know about the features of an inheritance. After all it's rarely ever received, especially since it requires the death of the person in question." Shanu replied.
"I've seen an inheritance take place before, I can also sense a bit of Namara's unique storm essence in your aura. Something that was not previously there. Thus I'm assuming you gained an inheritance." Shanu went on to explain.
I thought about it for a second before nodding.
"Yes. Namara was different then I thought he would be." I replied.
Shanu raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? How so?" He asked.
I shrugged.
"I had thought of him as some dickish Deva who had finally gone off the deep end, no offence." I added.
Shanu smiled despite the serious situation.
"None taken."
"Well, when I initially met him. He seemed… suppressed? Throughout the battle, it was evident he held back his full strength. Not to mention, he had thousands of years of experience, how could he possibly fall for my tricks? I realised something was off so I tried to figure out why he was acting strange." I explained.
Shanu nodded along.
"I don't know the full extent of it but from what I understood, a woman he loved died. Which caused him to give up, I guess? I'm not sure. Though I felt I met the real him at the end. He was cool." I added hesitantly.
Shanu looked to be in thought and nodded as if he finally understood.
"I see, here I had thought he killed Minakshi." Shanu mumbled.
"Who?" I couldn't help ask.
Shanu regarded me again.
"Ah, forgive me. Namara was once my friend so finding out the real reason has give me some closure on the matter. In regards to the woman he loved, I believe her name was Minakshi. I'm not completely sure since I had been busy at the time but I remember Namara bragging about finding a soul mate. Ah, what a tragic ending." Shanu lamented with a sigh.
I looked away.
"Well, I guess it couldn't have ended any better. I had wondered how you had defeated Namara but regardless you did what you could." Shanu comforted me. I nodded.
"So, what now?" I asked.
Shanu looked at me guiltily and I already guessed what he was going to say.
"Forgive me for putting you in this situation Kai. I'm afraid it would be best if you depart from India. The situation at this moment is too hot. It would be best if you let it cool down for a while before returning." Shanu explained, looking ashamed.
I wasn't surprised, I had kind of figured I would need to leave India after essentially killing one of their prominent members. I had planned to retreat in my sub-dimension and let things cool regardless but I guess I'll have to leave India too.
"I see. I need to give the stone back to Manasa before leaving." I replied
I spoke to Shanu for a while longer on my plans before leaving.
I didn't know what my plans were but I guess I could figure it out along the way. Before leaving Shimla I planned to have a talk with Nikhil. Then I would head to meet with the Serpent goddess once more.
With that in mind I took off towards Nikhil's home.
-{Michael}-
Michael dismissed another one of his brothers, he had just finished speaking on sending more reinforcements to the Vatican. According to the reports, some suspicious devil activity had been spotted near there.
While Michael didn't want war, he still wanted to be prepared. Michael may be struggling with leading his race but he was a natural born General. Just as Michael went to retreat to his office he paused when someone called him.
"Brother!" A voice shouted with a tinge of urgency.
Michael blinked and turned around.
"Chamuel? Why are you shouting?" Michael asked his little brother.
"Big brother!" He came to a stop in front of Michael.
He pointed and at a certain direction with an expression of excitement.
"The board of angels!" He shouted.
Michael raised an eyebrow.
"Yes?" Michael probed.
"There's new angels!' He practically screamed.
Michael's eyes widened in disbelief and confusion. A second later his form vanished and rematerialised in a golden burst of light at the board of angels. Six new names were inscribed on the board.
The board had five of the new angels listed down as 'Nameless' meaning they hadn't even been named yet. The one at the top though possessed the name 'Avael'
"What?!" For the first time in centuries Michael shouted in utter disbelief.
-END-
if you wish to read up to six chapters in advance among other things please visit pa/t reon * / Snipez818, I appreciate all the support!