Riser sat comfortably in his private study, the dim light from the chandelier casting a warm glow across the room. Miwa stood beside him, her expression serious yet calm as she briefed him on the recent developments in the devil society. A stack of letters and documents lay on the table between them, the remnants of an ongoing conversation.
"Master, as per your orders, I've been monitoring the activities of Rias Gremory's peerage in Kuoh," Miwa began, her voice steady. "Recently, an incident involving a Holy Sword occurred in Kuoh, one that ties directly to Rias's knight, Yuuto Kiba, and the Church."
Riser raised an eyebrow, curious but not surprised. "Holy Sword? Go on."
Miwa nodded. "Originally an orphan named Isaiah, Yuuto was taken in by the Church. He was selected to be part of a project called 'The Holy Sword Project,' led by Valper Galilei. However, when the project failed to produce any useful results, Valper deemed the children—including Yuuto's friends—failures and had them executed. Yuuto was the only survivor, and this event sparked his deep hatred for Holy Swords, particularly Excalibur."
Riser leaned back in his chair, deep in thought. "So, half of season two has already transpired," he mused. "This means the peace treaty that i speak to you about between the Three Factions will be coming soon."
Miwa nodded again. "It appears so, Master. The tensions are rising, but things are moving toward the inevitable treaty."
Riser waved a hand dismissively. "Enough about that for now. What about the gift Sirzechs promised me?"
At this, Miwa smiled and stepped forward. "Ah, yes. Sirzechs' maid, Grayfia, made a delivery shortly after you left, Master. She brought a magic tome—a very rare one, in fact."
With a flick of her wrist and a soft incantation, a glowing magic circle appeared in Miwa's hand, and from it, a thick, ancient-looking book materialized. She handed the book to Riser.
Riser took the tome, feeling the weight and age of the artifact. He read the title aloud, "'How to Establish Contracts for Summoning Spirits' by MacGregor Mathers."
A small spark of recognition flashed in Riser's eyes. "MacGregor Mathers… I feel like I've heard that name before."
Miwa, offered an explanation. "MacGregor Mathers was one of the founders of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a powerful magical organization. He's most famous for compiling and translating the book about the 72 Pillars of Solomon, also known as the Lemegeton. His contributions to the magical community are legendary. At some point, he was reincarnated as a Devil by Sirzechs Lucifer himself."
Riser raised an eyebrow, flipping through the pages of the tome with renewed interest. "So, Sirzechs gave me a book written by one of the most influential figures in the magical world? That's quite the gift."
Miwa smiled and then presented a small ticket, which she handed to Riser. "This was also part of the delivery. Grayfia said it grants you access to the Familiar Forest, which is managed by Tiamat, the Chaos Karma Dragon."
Riser's eyes widened slightly in surprise as he examined the ticket. "Tiamat, huh? Sirzechs really went above and beyond this time. A contract with a familiar from her forest is no small matter. It looks like he's trying to make up for his earlier mistake quite seriously."
Miwa nodded in agreement. "It's an unprecedented gift, Master. Sirzechs clearly wants to ensure that the bond between you and him remains ."
Riser chuckled softly, still inspecting the tome. "Yes, he must have felt that the previous incident warranted some serious amends after i had shown my stance. A book on spirit summoning from MacGregor Mathers and an invitation to the Familiar Forest... he's certainly not taking any chances."
Miwa's voice softened, almost in admiration. "You're right, Master. The quality of the gift is beyond what anyone would expect, even from someone like Sirzechs. It shows how much respect he has for you."
Riser leaned back in his chair, a pleased smile spreading across his face. "It's good to see Sirzechs valuing this alliance. With this tome and the connection to Tiamat's forest, we'll be even stronger in the days to come."
He closed the book, setting it aside carefully. "Thank you for keeping me informed, Miwa. I'll need to study this tome in depth. But first, we need to prepare for what's to come With the peace treaty approaching ."
Miwa gave a respectful bow. "Of course, Master. I will continue to gather any relevant information and report back to you."
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Two weeks had passed since Riser received the magical tome from Sirzechs. During this time, he had immersed himself in studying it, learning about the intricacies of summoning spirits and the various forms of magic that existed. As he poured over the book, his mind wandered, piecing together the larger puzzle of how different powers and forces interacted in his world and beyond.
Riser sat in his study, deep in thought. The realization of how magic worked in this world became clearer with each passing day. He began to categorize the powers that governed everything around him, building a mental framework that would help guide his path to becoming stronger.
He spoke aloud to himself, organizing his thoughts.
"Magic is universal, present everywhere but not accessible to everyone. It's like raw material that requires skill, calculation, and logic to shape into something useful. Magic algorithms, calculation, and understanding the logic behind it is how one manipulates the energy to their will." He ran his fingers through the pages of the tome, thinking back to how devils like him harnessed power. "Magic... is everywhere, but not everyone can use it."
He then turned his attention to Senjutsu—the Sage Arts. "Senjutsu, also known as the Sage Arts, is a technique that only high-level Youkai and beastmen could learn. It manipulates the flow of life energy, or chi, in its rawest form. And from Senjutsu, we get Touki, the physical manifestation of one's life force. When wrapped around the body, it acts as both a weapon and a defense mechanism, boosting offensive, defensive, and speed capabilities." He clenched his fist, remembering the technique he learned in the world of Kung Fu Panda. "In that world, chi is abundant. I can see a Youkai ancestor from this world might have gone there long ago and learn it there. It's likely the same technique Po usedin later satges , though in a less refined way."
He chuckled at the thought of Tai Lung scoffing at the Dragon Warrior's power , yet the teachings of chi had clearly worked. His time in that world had deepened his understanding of life energy.
"Next," he muttered, "demonic power. This power exists in every devil. It's fueled by imagination and a devil's innate sense of control over that imagination. Since my rebirth, I've developed a heightened control over my demonic power, making it easier for me to manifest it compared to most devils."
His mind then compared the power of the 72 Pillars with something familiar from another world. "The 72 Pillars… I wonder if it's like the innate techniques in Jujutsu Kaisen. where Sorcerers are born with unique techniques that manifest early in life. Those techniques are proprietary and impossible to mimic. The innate abilities of the 72 Pillars might work in the same way—congenitally engraved into the devil's existence. It's not something that can be copied or transferred easily."
Riser paused, thinking of another type of power: the sacred power used by angels and gods. "Sacred power… that's something I cannot touch. It belongs solely to the angels and divine beings. Devils are inherently opposed to it. It's a completely different kind of energy, one that would never align with my essence."
Finally, he considered the importance of physical strength. "And then there's raw, physical power. That's something anyone can train and improve, no matter their heritage. It's simple and pure—train hard, and you become stronger. Tai Lung is a prime example of that."
Riser tapped the arm of his chair, synthesizing these thoughts into a clear path. "So, I now know the path I need to follow to grow stronger."
His attention shifted to his innate Phoenix ability, the essence of fire and rebirth. "The Phoenix family's power is tied directly to our essence, the fire of rebirth. We're nearly immortal, and our flames heal us. I have some ideas on how to develop this further, to unlock the true potential of the Phoenix ." He considered how the Phoenix's power interacted with other elements. "But there's a challenge. Water magic doesn't work well with Phoenix powers. Our flames and water are naturally opposed, and using demonic power to manipulate water would likely be inefficient for me that grant the need to learn water magic ."
However, Riser knew his family's immense wealth and history gave him a significant advantage. "But our family has accumulated wealth and knowledge for centuries. It's said that if anything magical has been on the market, it has been purchased by the Phoenix family. We own countless tomes of magic. If I delve into the family's library, I can find ways to master magic that doesn't rely on my demonic power, like water magic through the universal magic power rather than the fire-based power of the Phoenix."
He thought back to the spell he had developed, Nova, which used his demonic power and drew heavily from his innate Phoenix abilities. "Nova was a great achievement. I need to diversify my magic if I want to avoid being one-dimensional in a fight. I need to hone both my aura—like Touki—and my physical combat skills, all while growing stronger in magic."
Standing up from his chair, he made his decision.
"But before I continue delving into magic, it's time I visited the Familiar Forest," Riser said, holding the ticket given to him by Grayfia. "Tiamat's Familiar Forest could offer me the rarest of familiars. A familiar would serve as a partner in my growth, and contracting with one from Tiamat's domain could strengthen me in ways I can't yet imagine."
He smiled, feeling both confident and determined. "The path forward is clear, and with every step, I grow closer to mastering all the powers available to me. I'll visit the forest first, but after that, the Phoenix family library will be my next destination. It's time to unlock everything at my disposal."
With that thought, Riser prepared for his journey to the Familiar Forest, knowing that his next step toward greatness awaited him there.
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author :- the pieces taken to make tai lung devil is 1 knight piece