Before I can even entertain any thoughts of killing, no, of surviving against Daimadosu, I'll need to boost myself a little bit. I've gotten quite a few boons from this little day trip, so it's about time I put them to work.
Let's see what we're working with.
Level: 184 (25/340)
Available Stat Points: 165
Skill Tokens: 62
...Holy fuck. 55 levels. That's insane! I should've started fighting on the frontlines weeks ago, I'd have been stronger than bloody Sirzechs by now!
No, no time for losing myself in fantasies. Focus on the Stats, on the Skill Tokens.
[Say... are you tired of bad luck with your Skills, User?]
...is this a fucking ad-read, Anya?
[Since you've reached Level 150, you've unlocked quite a few new aspects of the Barebones System! But, since you're busy, I'll introduce you to one you can make the most use of right now!]
[If you want to, you can exchange 15 standard Skill Tokens for 1 EX Skill Token!]
I don't even blink, don't hesitate a single second before I turn as many Skill Tokens into EX Tokens as I can. Fuck the standard Tokens, I'm tired of Sodium Knowledge and Origami Mastery (Novice). I want ruinous power, not bloody Shadow Puppets.
4 EX Tokens, 2 Standard Tokens, 165 Stat Points and a dream. That's all a man needs.
Alistair Mammon (Luocha)
Level: 184 (25/360)
HP: 12400
MP: 8322
STR: 90
AGI: 100
INT: 100
VIT: 100
LUK: 80
Fucking stupendous. Maximising Stat Skills is always the best choice when it comes to distribution, and what a clean, beautiful spread of Stats I have.
80 STR Skill Unlocked:
Iron Fists: User's fists deal 1.5x more damage to all targets.
I have a gun. Why the fuck would I ever choose to punch something.
80 AGI Skill Unlocked:
Momentum Transfer: User deals increased damage based on current velocity.
If I throw myself at something, it does more damage when I hit. Simple, effective. I like it.
100 AGI Skill Unlocked:
Sonido: User can 'Sonido' in any direction, utilising a burst of super-speed to cross various distances in the blink of an eye. Makes a sound askin to static upon use. 50MP Cost, 1.5 second cooldown.
Oh, fuck yes. The great equaliser, finally I won't be speedblitzed by Devils who have no right being as fast as they are. Works wonderfully with Momentum Transfer too, now that I think about it.
80 INT Skill Unlocked:
Faux Naturale: User is capable of concealing their magical presence to a certain degree. Effects are weakened based on the level difference between the User and those observing them.
100 INT Skill Unlocked:
Practical Learner: User gains a stacking 0.5% Damage Resistance to magical attacks upon taking spell damage, lasting until the User is no longer in a combat encounter.
A damn shame Physical isn't considered an element, but no doubt some of the more useful skills I've gotten my hands on.
80 VIT Skill Unlocked:
Battle Hardened: User is far more resilient to trauma, taking less damage and receiving less wounds from attacks.
100 VIT Skill Unlocked:
Bloodletter: User cannot die from blood loss, and suffers no adverse affects from losing blood.
How the hell does that even work? You know what, fuck it, I'm not gonna complain.
60 LUK Skill Unlocked:
All The Difference: User is much more likely to be in the right place at the right time.
80 LUK Skill Unlocked:
Ricoshot: User's projectile attacks will always connect after a ricochet, guaranteeing a hit on a vital area.
A shame I don't have any coins in my pocket to start shooting Thorn at. Would've made that Skill far more useful.
Alright, so the Stat Skills were a mixed bag, but I suppose I can't win them all. That's fine, I'm already more than pleased with the Stat boosts I've gotten. Everything else at this point is just icing on the cake.
4x EX Skill Token Used!
Self-Hemomancy: User can freely control their own blood within a 10 meter radius of them. 15MP/s Usage cost. 15HP/s cost negated by intrinsic Skill Bloodletter.
Well Rested: User will gain a passive 5% EXP boost if they slept well the night before.
Toxicologist: User is more resistant to poison effects and damage over time.
Thou Shalt Not Die: User can heal others of all wounds, however the target must be mortally wounded for this Skill to have any effect on them. 250MP Cost.
Not bad, not at all. Hell, I'd wager Toxicologist alone is worth the scratch. If Bidleid pulls some Chimera bullshit, I'll at least be better off against it.
Hemomancy as well opens so many doors when it comes to my offense, especially when paired with Bloodletter. My mind almost can't keep up with all the different ways I can put it to use.
I can do that later, though. I need to focus on the now. All my boosts and boons have been used, I can't get any stronger than I am at the moment.
A bountiful harvest, no doubt. I already feel like I could wipe the floor with my previous self ten times over, but whether I'll stand strong against the Asmodeus is another question altogether.
If I wanna find out, I'll need to find my way to Sirzechs, which is proving to be a challenge since the Sublevels are nothing short of a bloody maze. Feels like I've gone down ten floors of holding cells and found no trace of anyone.
How deep does this prison go? Who the hell were they holding down here? There's no inmage registry, no warden left standing for me to interrogate for any sort of listing. He was one of the first to die.
Castell Eligos apparently ruled Cain's Throne with an iron fist, which to be honest isn't much of an issue in my books, but clearly was in Daimadosu's. His staff are all gone now too. The lights are on, at least.
Ignoring the odd chill I get every now and then, I push forward through the winding corridors and never ending stairwells, ignoring the screaming I hear from each cell.
I take back what I said, about this place being the Mariott. The upstairs was clearly just for the petty criminals amongst Ars Goetia. The Sublevels makes it look llike the Garden of Eden by comparison.
As I walk through the dimly lit hall, the prisoners beg anyone listening to free them. To give them forgiveness. To see the sky again. They can't do anything else but plead and, ironically, pray.
Their bodies are bound to a metal frame, standing straight with every limb trapped in Manasceran bindings, eyes covered in a blindfold. I can only barely hear them through the windows to their cells. One sided, of course. These Devils don't deserve a glimpse of what's outside their cages.
I'd have expected them to not receive such treatment. As Clan Devils, I'd have expected this whole place to be nothing more than a holiday resort for them. Clearly, I was wrong.
I almost feel sympathy for them. I can only imagine the horror of it all. Spending hundreds of years trapped below the earth in a small padded room, harvested every day so that an heir can be made to continue your bloodline and end your miserable life.
But then I think about what they did to wind up here, what utterly vile actions a person must need to commit to be considered so foul amongst a race of Devils, to shatter the nigh immune status Nobles have. I find myself losing any sympathy I once held quite fast afterwards.
Scream all you want, filth. You'll find no forgiveness from me.
------------------------------------
This isn't right.
The prison can't extend this deep into the Underworld. I've been walking through hallways and stairwells for nigh on five minutes now, and I've seen neither hide nor hair of Sirzechs or any Loyalists.
I've not even received a single transmission from any of the Satanihilus outside either. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I was trapped in a loop or something. But how?
Last I checked the Key of Solomon, which granted was a few weeks ago, there's only one Clan in Ars Goetia capable of actually producing illusions in any way, ones that don't disappear with a shake of the head.
I've not yet encountered them, but I know they can cast a 'haze' over a certain area of their choosing. Be it bouts of amnesia, intense misdirection, or simple fuckery with the senses, anyone who passes that area experiences it. Makes them incredibly popular for home security.
It also would explain why I feel like I've been making no progress for the last five minutes. I haven't. I was merely tricked into believing I had. I've just been walking in fucking circles.
"There wouldn't happen to be a member of the Marbas family here, would there?"
Silence. Utter silence. My surroundings don't shift, don't blink, and nothing changes. I'm not sure why I thought that would work, but it was worth a shot.
Truth be told, there's only one real solution when you find yourself put in a daze of some form, at least one I know of that I can count on to always work. Sensory overload.
-349MP!
With a thunderous boom, I throw an explosion of raw Mana at the nearest surface, and watch with mild fascination as my eyes seem to break the veil over them, white spots and ringing ears clearing the haze placed over me.
Each blink brings clarity, and as my eyes refocus I make out something distinct, a giant tunnel, blasted into the flooring of the Sublevels leading directly down to the bottom of Cain's Throne, the lowest layer.
Seems like whoever cast the haze is long gone. A shame. It also seems like Sirzechs was far too powerful to be caught in this trap, and in his stead I was the bloody victim. Despite all my talk and bluster, I'm still not nearly experienced enough to recognise or even avoid something like this it seems.
No matter. I can't afford to be wasting any more time than I already have. If Daimadosu got away because I was lost in la-la-land, I'd never forgive myself.
With all the grace of a missile strike, I throw myself into the gaping pit and spend a few seconds freefalling before I spread my wing just to be sure I don't die on impact.
I only barely catch a glimpse of the rest of the Sublevels as I fall, but each floor is the same as I'd seen prior. Three, sometimes four cells, inmates bound and blinded, though that quickly changes as I near the bottom.
Empty cells. I was right, Daimadosu wants his own expendable crew of fucking maniacs. Either that, or he wants a distraction long enough to get his real prize.
Thanking whatever vestige of Lucifer remains for my singular wing, I slow my descent enough that I land softly on the steel floor, watching my footing as the molten slag that was once several floors worth of metal rests beside me.
A sign nearby, one that is far too rusty to have even been glanced at in centuries, gives me all the knowledge I need to know about where I am.
Treachery
The ninth layer of Dante's Inferno. At least the Devils who designed this nightmare hole have good taste for the classics. A small upside.
Despite the urgency of the situation, there's something I immediately notice upon reaching this layer and inspecting my surroundings, something that leaves me stunned briefly.
The cells here are all empty.
Not because they've been freed of their inhabitants, but because they haven't been housed yet. Etched into a nameplate just above the empty cell is a name I never thought I'd see.
Cell 103: Bidleid Beelzebub
How many years in advance was this made? Who even created it? No. I can answer those questions later, come back at another date. There's something far more important to be dealing with here.
Tearing my eyes away from a cell that I can guarantee will never be put to use, I instead refocus my efforts on traversing this layer, noticing something distinct about the design of this floor in particular.
It's building up to something. This hall extends far, far beyond what the rest of the holding areas did, and it only seems to keep going on. Countless warning signs dot the walls around me, guiding me towards the final cell of this complex.
The final cell looms in front of me like an omen for the future. My grip around Thorn tightens as I read the name plate above me.
Ludwig Buné. The father of Clan Buné, and most prominently known as the Kinslayer.
Ten thousand years ago, for reasons unknown to this day, Ludwig went mad in the middle of the night and murdered the entirety of Clan Buné. His wife, his sons, his infant daughter. An entire bloodline culled in the blink of an eye.
When asked by Lucifer the reason for his treachery against the Devil Race, Ludwig gave only one response to his Lord.
"They were unworthy of carrying my name."
There's a reason the scant few members of Buné that still exist are looked down upon by the Underworld's High Society. In the eyes of every Clan still standing, a Buné is nothing more than their history. No matter how diluted their blood, how thin the relation, Ludwig's sin will follow them.
There's no door leading into his cell, instead just a gaping hole in the wall. Through it, I can see two figures, one surrounded by unconcious bodies.
Behind them both is a waist-length, green haired man bound with Manasceran to a small wooden chair in this wide, empty room, a blindfold covering his eyes. A long, full beard covers the rest of his face. The chair, bolted into the ground, leaves him unable to move.
Daimadosu Asmodeus
Level 304
Ludwig Buné
Level 338
Walking through the improvised doorway, I can now hear laughter, grunts of exertion, and the tail end of a conversation that was not meant for me.
Sirzechs stands with blood on his knuckles and fury in his eyes, Daimadosu opposite him with a young man locked in his grasp, Garrinore Marbas. Sirzechs can't do anything without putting the heir at risk. Exactly as I thought.
"This isn't about the war anymore, Daimadosu! You're putting innocents in the Underworld at risk! Just- just step away from the controls and surrender yourself."
"...No. I've grown tired of watching you traipse around the Underworld, MY UNDERWORLD, like you're the saviour of our people."
He pauses, a moment of hesitation if I had to assume.
"This realm is my birthright, and I will not allow you rebellious vermin to take what is mine! I will have my reign, even if all that is left of our people is dust and bone!"
Daimadosu's far too deep in his monologue to pay attention to me, seemingly enjoying this power he now holds over Sirzechs. His hand hovers over the controls to Ludwig's bindings, his other around the heir's neck.
The General catches sight of me approaching in the corner of his eye, and I try my best to let him know I'm about to intervene with a raised hand.
I can't get a shot in with Thorn, much too tight of angle. I could attempt a Ricoshot against a wall nearby, but that gives him time to react. I'll need to put the Sonido to use.
"And as long as you still breathe, Sirzechs, my kingdom will never know peace!"
Just as Daimadosu is about to release Ludwig, his hand mere inches away from the controls, I take a deep breath and make my move.
-50MP
Sonido brings me almost face to face with the Asmodeus, his mouth agape in shock, a spark of recognition in his eyes. As much as I want to punch him in the face, I've only got a split second to do something before he can react.
Grabbing hold of Garrinore, I wrench him free from Daimadosu's surprisingly strong grip and throw him to the side, only barely dodging the blast of raw Destruction that follows instantly after.
Daimadosu, unable to react in time, takes the full brunt of it with his arm, his body thrown across the expanse of Ludwig's cage, almost all of his forearm turning to dust in mere seconds.
His lungs heave, breathing unsteady as shaky hands reach for a Phenex Tear in his pocket. Refusing to make the same mistake twice, I Sonido over to him once more, kicking aside the Phenex Tear before he can heal himself with it.
-50MP!
Planting a foot on his chest, I raise Thorn level with his head and cock back the hammer, barely a fraction of a second from pulling the trigger before Sirzechs suddenly grabs hold of my wrist.
"I understand you want to kill him. Believe me, I've had the thought myself, but you and I both know his blood is far too important."
I never once lower my aim as I respond to his words.
"So what if it is? I'm sure we could find a new Asmodeus in half an hour with all the women he's no doubt forced himself on."
He grimaces, eyes creasing as his thoughts almost certainly drift to Grayfia and a crime that was only narrowly avoided.
"It's not our decision to make. He's a Satan, the only ones who can decide his fate are the Council."
Even now, his words sound half-hearted. Almost like he's trying to convince himself more than he's trying to convince me.
"The council have no power here, General."
"But his blood certainly does, and that is something the Underworld cannot afford to lose. We are running out of Clans enough as it is, you cannot go around culling the ones you don't like over a grudge, Alistair!"
"So you'd condemn him to eternal torture in this hellhole instead? The Clans would bleed him dry for centuries, they've already got the cells set up and waiting."
Before Sirzechs can retort again, Daimadosu chokes out a laugh, still staring at his feet.
"You both keep prattling on. Blood this, council that." He spits out.
My stomach feels like I'm drowning in lead as he lifts his eyes to ours.
"...aren't you forgetting something?" He says, forming the widest smile I've ever seen in my life. In his eye, spinning rapidly, is the Magic Circle of Clan Asmodeus.
Sirzechs instantly pivots, rushing over to the heir of Clan Marbas who had this whole time been under Daimadosu's control. As he turns, his hand pushes mine down slightly.
Fearing the worst I fire at Daimadosu's head, but Sirzechs's dash threw off my aim, and thus the shot only hits him in the chest.
Before I can correct my aim and fire a second one, before Sirzechs can reach Garrinore and stop him, the young Devil presses down on the controls for Ludwig's bindings, leaving him unchained once again.
------------------------------------
"Ah... free at last!"
The words send a chill through my spine as Ludwig rises from his seat, bones creaking with every movement.
"Oh, Lucifer! Now dawns your reckoning! For your betrayal, I promise to make the Underworld swim in the glistening gore of your profane corpse!"
For the first time in ten thousand years, the Kinslayer stands tall. He towers over everyone in the room, being at least 7 feet in height and almost as bulky. With his blindfold off I can only see utter disgust in his eyes as he looks at me.
"Creature of man and Devil. I thank you for assisting in my freedom, but your blood is a crime against all that our race represents, and for that, thy punishment..."
DANGER
"Is death!"
A second later, the next thing I see is his fist protruding from my torso, having punched through my chest cavity from behind in the blink of an eye, his arms and legs coated in draconic green scales.
"Weak."
-8600HP!
Through the overwhelming agony and breathlessness, I try to shoot Daimadosu again, but all I catch is the feint green of Thorn's poison infecting him before he disappears, teleporting away.
A second later, Ludwig throws me aside like I was nothing more than dirt on his no longer pristine white jumpsuit, his focus shifting to Sirzechs.
With his fist no longer rammed through my heart, I can finally breathe and heal myself, casting the quickest Prayer I've ever cast in my life as I take stock of the situation.
12000HP!
Daimadosu's gone. I'm fighting a dragon man. Fuck. I'm fighting a dragon man with a Sirzechs who won't go all out because he's got some nifty blood and there's a lot of unconcious Clan Devils in his blast radius.
Not only that, but Sirzechs, the greatest Devil I've ever seen, is getting his shit pushed in. Ludwig makes him look like a child as he tries to fight the Buné hand to hand, afraid to use his Destruction for fear of killing any of the nearby Nobles on accident.
Halfway through butchering Sirzechs in melee combat though, Ludwig glances at me from the corner of his eye and almost looks disappointed with himself.
"It seems I've grown weak after my imprisonment. No matter. I shall use you as a whetstone to hone my skills before I return to my Lord."
I barely have a split-second to react to those words before his fist is once more in my face, Instinct blaring in my mind as I Sonido several meters away and take potshots with Thorn to try and keep him at a distance.
Much to my chagrin, though, his scales are hard enough that none of the rounds pierce.
"Is that the best you can do?" He smirks.
Just as he's about to dash at me again, Sirzechs coats his fist in Destruction and jumps in with a swing at Ludwig's jaw, his fist powerful enough to leave contrails as it flies through the air.
As if to dig the knife in my heart deeper, Ludwig leans into the blow, being just far back enough that it destroys most of his beard without harming him in any way.
With the impromptu shaving done, Ludwig smiles and rubs his chin, coating his body in more of those draconic scales.
"Thy end is now!"
-1354HP!
That's all the warning I get before he dropkicks me into the floor of the cell, immediately turning and blocking a beam of Destruction, the spell severely damaging his scales for a moment before he damn near teleports into Sirzechs' personal space and sends him flying with an uppercut.
The second I stand back up, Ludwig turns and cocks his fist back, punching his Magic Circle through the air. Small, miniature dragons quickly form from his crest, and I only barely manage to Parry them in time as they explode upon being redirected at him.
I need to think of something. Fast. This isn't even the full extent of his dragonification, things are only going to get worse from here.
A shame, then, that this fucking Devil won't give me a minute of thought to myself, his voice echoing throughout the cell as he appears in my field of view once more.
"Prepare thyself!"
He barrels through the air towards me, fist raised and small dragons floating around his arms. Iron Fists, don't let me down now.
Summoning all the courage I have in my body, I dismiss Thorn and meet his fist midway, the force of his attack being entirely negated as I Parry it back with every ounce of STR I can muster.
With the small window the Parry grants me, I Sonido into Ludwig and use Momentum Transfer to punch him in the chest with the force of a freight train, the Buné flying into the steel wall opposite us.
With Ludwig temporarily gone, Sirzechs moves over to my side so that we can hatch a plan, any fucking plan really.
"You got any ideas, Alistair? I'm open to suggestions."
"Yeah, don't fucking punch him, you've got the most powerful Clan Trait to ever exist, don't just use it to punch things."
"Unless you wanna get accidentally vaporised that plan is a bust I'm afraid!" He says, annoyed with my belittling of his talent. Suddenly, his eyes light up.
"Can you get him in that little Circle of yours?" He says, nudging my shoulder as he takes off his cloak, the pauldrons thrown to the side, uncared for.
"Only for two and a half minutes." I say, watching the shadowed corner of the cell Ludwig collided with as closely as I can.
Sirzechs smirks.
"That's all the time I need. While he's in the Circle, I'll throw these Clan Devils into a cell, and that should give me enough leeway to go all out against him." He pats my shoulder.
"Don't die while I'm gone." He says, a thumbs up following after, as if that is supposed to give me any fucking assurance whatsoever.
"Thank you, General." I say through gritted teeth, summoning Caduceus into my hand and slicing a small cut into my neck to make use of Hemomancy if the opportunity arises.
Just as I finish doing that Ludwig stands up straight, dusting off his shoulders as he walks forward, having unashamedly listened to our whole plan but not caring for it whatsoever.
"Scheme as long as you want. Hatch as many plans, pull as many tricks as you need. I will not allow myself to fall before I see the blood of Lucifer on my hands."
I'm almost tempted to tell him that Lucifer is dead, but I'm certain that would only make him even more pissed off than-
"Lucifer's dead! You're wasting your time!" Sirzechs, what the fuck have you done.
In an instant, Ludwig's entire demeanour shifts, his eyes going through the five stages of grief almost. He bursts alight with green flame, his body twitching and undulating, begging to finish the transformation.
"I see." He says, indecipherable.
To my horror, Ludwig suddenly stops looking like a human being. His limbs elongate, jaw extending, body shifting and twisting in ways God would shed a tear at the sight of.
When the transformation stops I find myself staring down a green bipedal dragon, with jagged teeth and fists that could obliterate mountains. Steam hisses from his mouth with each breath, a taster of the fire that burns within him, and his wings make my hair billow with every movement.
Ludwig Buné
Kinslayer Resplendant
Level 352
Well, shit. The plan's out the window now.