Chapter 23 Lesson 3-17 - The Great TSL Trivia Showdown (Part 1)
"So, let me get this straight... You're tellin' me that Beel and Satan both gave you hints for how to defeat Levi? Ya don't say... How VERY interesting..." As I was sitting next to Mammon in class, I was telling him about how his younger brothers gave me advice on defeating Levi.
"Well, ya know why they did that though, right? It's because I'm lookin' after ya. You've got Mammon to thank for this! Okay, here's the deal. Those two are givin' you special treatment because they know I'm the one in charge of you. They want me to be pleased with them, ya see! So, whaddya think about that? NOW you get it, doncha! It's clear how important I am, and how much my younger brothers respect me!" Mammon was looking so proud of himself upon saying this. I was pretty sure that his brothers are only giving me advice to gain something rather than to please Mammon, but I wasn't going to completely ruin his moment.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." As I halfheartedly replied, I was trying to pay attention in class. Just because I am a human in a demon school, that doesn't mean I can just shirk doing my tasks and schoolwork. "Wh...hey! Come on, it feels weird when you agree with me like that. I mean, doncha think you should've taken that opportunity to put me down or somethin'?" Mammon was shocked that I did put him down as Levi does to him.
"Eh, whatever... Just let this be a learnin' experience. From now on, you oughta respect me like they do!" As Mammon was acting all important and such, I just sigh and roll my eyes. Seeing as I wasn't going to just respect upon telling me to, Mammon sighed and dropped the matter, changing the subject.
"Ugh, forget it. Let's just get down to business. You and me need to figure out what our strategy's gonna be with this Levi thing. First off, what Beel told you is right. If you can make Levi jealous, he's bound to lose his cool. Though there's no guarantee he won't kill ya if that happens. But that's just how it's gotta be. There's no way you'll beat Levi in a competition over who's the bigger TSL nerd. Not if you fight fair. You'd best face up to the fact that this is gonna involve a little risk." As Mammon stated that, as if I didn't already know, I started thinking of how to win and NOT die. I realized that this would be difficult, but not impossible.
"...So, we've gotta figure out how you're gonna manage to make him jealous. He may be called the Avatar of Envy, but it's hard to make him give in to it. Instead of gettin' super jealous of you, he'll get all negative about his own situation. He'll start talkin' about how it's 'not fair' and you're 'lucky' and stuff. You're not gonna be able to get him to lose his cool just by doing a little bragging. No, you're gonna have to do somethin' to make him REAL jealous. So jealous that he nearly pops a blood vessel. Hm... Maybe we oughta ask someone for advice." As soon as Mammon mentioned getting help, I think back on Solomon knowing the password to Levi's room and Satan's advice to speak with Simeon. Though I don't distrust Satan entirely, I had no proof that Simeon could help me with this.
"How about asking a human? Like Solomon." Besides Solomon seemingly knowing a lot about TSL, I recall Levi saying that the original author was a human, and who knows humans better than humans. "So, you mean to ask Solomon, do ya? Hmph. It figures you'd choose him, since you're both human and all. All right then, let's get movin'! Time to go see what Solomon has to say." Just then, the bell rang, and Mammon got up and pulled out of my seat. With that, we head off to seek Solomon's advice. I can only hope that it will help me figure out how to make Levi jealous, and not die in the process...
A few days later, I was on stage with Levi in the student council room which was filled with students of RAD as the audience, and Asmo was MCing the competition. "All right, everyone! Finally, the wait is over! It's time for Devil's Trivia Showdown, the quiz show that pits demon against human! Today our competitors will be testing their knowledge regarding a super-famous, super-popular fantasy series. One that's known by young and old alike... The Tale of the Seven Lords! Now, it's time to introduce our two competitors. First, he's a demon who freely admits to being a giant TSL nerd! Meet Leviathan!" Asmo introduced Levi, who was on the left side of the stage.
"I am the G.O.A.T. None can oppose me!" Levi looked confident, thinking that there was no way in hell that he was going to lose. It was then that I secretly hoped that Solomon's aid would help me win. "And his challenger claims to have been introduced to TSL only recently after binge watching the DVDs! Say hello to Daisy!" Asmo introduced me as I stood on the right side of the stage.
"Hi there." I give a small wave to the audience, doing my best to keep calm, and not showing fear as thousands of demons were staring at me. "You know, I don't even care about this whole competition thing, honestly. I mean, I already know how this is going to end. I'm only doing this because it gives me a chance to show off my encyclopedic knowledge of TSL to everyone." Levi, acting all arrogant, scoffs at me, making me kind of want to win just to wipe that smug smile off his face.
"Serving as judge for today's competition is our very own Demon Lord himself, Diavolo!" Asmo introduced Diavolo, who looked so happy to be here as the judge. We wouldn't be having this competition if he didn't allow it. "Hello there, everyone. Good to see you." Diavolo smiled, giving everyone a cheerful greeting.
"Color commentary will be provided by Satan, Avatar of Wrath. But a good commentator needs to keep a cool head. I wonder, is he really up to the task?" Really getting into the role of Master of Ceremonies, Asmo introduces Satan. "I don't think that's going to be a problem. So, I'm doing the commentary? That's a lot of responsibility." Sitting next to Asmo, Satan had his usual polite smile on his face.
"Now, say hello to our guest demon, the always-famished Beelzebub! For his appearance fee, he requested to be compensated in cheeseburgers. How very Beel of him..." Asmo frowned as he looked over at Beel, who was currently eating said cheeseburgers. "Nothing beats one of Hell's Kitchen's special cheeseburgers. They age the cheese 4000 years for maximum flavor." As Beel continued to eat the ginormous pile of cheeseburgers, I begin to wonder if Beel has a black hole for a stomach.
"And your host for the day is none other than yours truly, Asmodeus. The demon who can make you swoon simply by whispering into your ear. You all know me, you all love me." Asmo looked happy at being the Master of Ceremonies and the center of everyone's attention. I hoped that Asmo would take his role seriously as the competition was about to commence.