Chapter 17: Acina

Merry Christmas! (Or early Christmas depending on where you're from.) 

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(First Person - Avalon) 

"So many choices," I grumbled aloud while sitting on the kitchen top counter and staring at the open refrigerator. 

My open refrigerator to be precise, we have three of them in the house. One of them is for everyone with a normal appetite, and then one for me and one for Adaloth. 

All my food appears to have been freshly restocked, but it's been so long that I'm struggling to choose what I want. 

Maybe I should just eat a bit of everything? Although Venelana gets angry whenever I do that, something about a 'balanced diet' or whatever. 

"You're up early," I heard an approaching voice call out to me. 

It was none other than Souji, who I had already sensed arriving about an hour ago, but I wanted to sleep in for a bit longer so I didn't bother to get up. 

I am Lucifer's sleepiest soldier, who is handed his toughest naps. 

"I can't sleep when I get hungry, my stomach won't allow it." 

He sat down next to me as I felt his eyes lingering around my crutch and CAD. 

"I take it you've heard about Lith?" Knowing him, he won't talk about it unless I bring it up first. 

"I have," he said in a melancholic manner. "Did he tell you that he was my student as well?" 

"He did, I was surprised to have met another Demonic Sword wielder other than myself." 

I'm still mad at you for not telling me you had another student, but since this is a time of grieving I'll give you a pass. 

"That Demonic Sword was given to him as a reward during the Civil War, he's the only one to have wielded it for such a long amount of time without succumbing to the effects of its corruption." 

It was probably a monumental feat, but since I've never experienced corruption myself I don't have a whole lot of insight to offer on the subject. 

"Speaking of Demonic Swords," Souji continued. "Lord Beelzebub informed me that you've successfully contacted Tomoe." 

I lifted up the back of my shirt, showing him the seal as I noticed his heightening concern. 

I'm still not sure what exactly went down between him and Tomoe, but I don't want to be rude and probe him about something he's uncomfortable with. 

"Lith was an exceptional commander," there was no need to feign sincerity, it was the truth after all. 

"He was an idiot." 

Souji made an attempt to sound indifferent, but I could hear the frustration in his voice. 

He and Lith were a lot closer than I had anticipated by the looks of things. 

"Maybe," I exhaled. "However, being an idiot might also be what made him so special to begin with." 

"What do you mean?" 

"His subordinates all seemed to be aware of what kind of person he was, yet they chose to faithfully follow his lead for over a century. I could be jumping to conclusions here, but I think his reckless charm was the core of his success." 

"The core of his demise would be more accurate." 

Your tough act isn't very convincing, Souji, at least not to me. 

"Lith," I heard his breath shake for a second, but he was quick to recompose himself. "Wasn't even an actual student of mine, I had only been reincarnated under my Lord for about a decade when we met, and we just happened to be present at the same garrison." 

"Yet you still decided to take him under your wing." 

"He was probably only a little older than you back then, and he kept pestering me to train him non-stop. Even going so far as to sneak into my Lord's quarters, just in hopes of getting me to agree." 

"You must've impressed him somehow," Souji was probably at least in the top 5 of Knights even back then, I can't blame Lith for wanting his mentorship. 

"I don't know what it was that drew him to me, but to get him to stop bothering me while I was working I decided to give him about an hour's worth of training every day, and as time went on, I started to see sparks of talent stirring within him." 

Even if he wasn't all that blessed bloodline-wise, his ability to hold a Demonic Sword like that was without a doubt a talent in its own right. 

"And before I knew it, days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years." 

"If you trained him for that long, then I don't see how he wasn't your student." 

"I never took him formally under my wing, I was just giving him pointers throughout the duration of the Civil War. Everything else that he cultivated from that point onwards was purely his own know-how." 

I looked at Souji's waist, noticing what appeared to be an extra-scabbard attached to it. 

One that had the exact same presence of Lith's Demonic Sword. 

"He should've known better than to challenge a Cadre, his death was purely his own doing." He held the scabbard in his hands, droplets starting to roll from the corner of his eye. 

"If you're planning to give it to me, I'm afraid I'll have to refuse." 

He turned to me, understandably confused. 

"It's not that I don't want it, it's that I physically can't have it. Tomoe and I have a pact, and one of the conditions of it is that I can't contract any spirit other than him." 

That Demonic Sword also appears to have something sealed inside it like Muramasa, though it doesn't feel nearly as powerful as Tomoe. 

Albeit, it's probably a lot less annoying. 

I heard Lith call it once, but I can't remember its name. I think it started with a 'Z' or something?

"Of course he imposed a term like that," Souji for some reason didn't seem to be very surprised. 

"However, there's someone else who might benefit from it." I pointed across the room, causing Souji to look at the young girl who was rubbing her eyes as she walked towards us. 

"If you keep the fridge open like that for too long, the food will eventually go bad." Esdeath cautioned. 

They've already been acquainted with one another during the time I spent training at Sylas's main camp, so there's no need for introductions. 

"Esdeath, do you know what this is?" Souji held the scabbard towards her, causing Esdeath to stop in place and adorn a shocked expression. 

Yeah, I think she does. 

"Lith…" Her voice was a low whisper, making me think that it might have been a little too soon to hit her with this. 

"Lith doesn't have any living family, and his second-in-command didn't have any use for it. So I'm not sure who to give it to," he brushed his hand against the sheath. "If you want it, it's yours." 

"I…" She hesitated. 

"If your next sentence is, 'I don't deserve it,' I'm going to hit you with my crutch." 

Even if she doesn't end up using it, letting her have something to remember him by would be a good service. 

Esdeath slowly reached out and grabbed the sheath, staring at it in silence for a while. 

"Thank you…" 

"Don't mention it, you were with Lith during his last moments. I think it's only right that you take his keepsake," giving it to Esdeath also appears to have made Souji a little happier. 

Lith can probably rest a little easier as well, now that there's someone to continue his legacy. 

"Do you know where we'll be deployed next?" I asked Souji. 

"No, I doubt they're going to take your peerage into consideration until after the award ceremony. Although, I do know who's going to be in charge of the Krovos Campaign." 

"Isn't it going to be Sylas again?" I'm still bewildered as to how he survived. 

"No, it's going to be Wilbert." 

"Wilbert? I doubt that decision had much support from the Bael Clan," the Valen and Bael Clan mix together like oil and water after all. 

"It didn't, but the casualty count that Sylas's command resulted in made it easier to push enlisting Wilbert as the General. There's no one who can question his ability regardless of what camp they hail from." 

True, I heard that he once fought the War God Jin Toujou head on. 

Having him as a General is guaranteed to be a lot more fruitful than Sylas. 

"Anyhow, I'm going to head out for some fresh air. Let me know if you need anything," Souji patted me on the back and departed, leaving me alone with Esdeath. 

"Avalon." 

"Yes?" 

"I still want to join your peerage." 

"Because?" 

"Because, I don't just want to fight. I want to fight with you, Adaloth, and Lars, and I want to keep fighting alongside all of you in the future." 

"Isn't that the same reason you gave me yesterday? It doesn't seem like anything has changed to me." 

"That's because there's nothing to change," she said in a resolute tone of voice, causing me to pay closer attention. "I thought about it, and it's still what I want. At some point it's possible that I'll want to do something else, but now isn't that time for me." 

"And when that time comes? Will you regret having joined my peerage if it possibly limits you from doing what you want to do?" 

"Yes, that's also possible." 

"Yet you're still willing to take that risk?" I raised a brow. 

"Yes, I am." 

Devil children really do mature fast, or maybe it's just the influence of war on our generation. 

"Don't you think that's a little rash?" 

"It's not a little rash, it's extremely rash," she affirmed. "That's just the type of person I am." 

Oh well, even if I tried to tell her no right now she'd probably just ignore it and keep pushing. 

"Then I suppose we're similar in that regard," I breathed a light chuckle to help brighten the atmosphere a little.

Let's see here, what piece should I give her? 

Esdeath's strongest point is probably her ice magic, but since Lars has already consumed both my Bishop pieces that's not an option. 

Then again, she's also got really good physical offense and defense, making her quite a capable all-rounder as well. 

But the only all-rounder piece is the Queen, which I already gave to Adaloth. 

I guess that only leaves one option. 

I held out my hand, revealing the presence of eight chess pieces laying atop my palm. 

Like in chess, the Pawn has the special ability to promote to any of the other pieces, the only difference being the King of the peerage needs to actually recognise a place as enemy territory for the option to become available. 

This way, Esdeath can at least choose which of her strengths she wants to enhance depending on the situation she's in. 

I knew she'd have a pretty high value count, but I wasn't expecting it to be as high as eight. 

Granted, whatever's sealed inside her is strong enough to resist my prying eyes, so maybe I shouldn't be too surprised. 

Apparently I'm going to end up forming a quality over quantity peerage like my older brother after all, I'm certainly not complaining. It'll be easier for me to manage a smaller amount of people anyways.

"The Pawn…?" 

"You sound disappointed." 

"N-No, it's just that-" 

"Esdeath, the only piece that has any special meaning beyond pronouncing the strengths of its holder, is the Queen piece, since they're commonly the second-in-command of the peerage. Lars isn't going to suddenly start bossing you around just because you two have different pieces, that only applies to peerages with blockheads for Kings." 

Lars is terrified of you anyways, and so am I to an extent. So even if he was the Queen I doubt he'd do it. 

"If the Bishop or Queen piece were available I'd give you that, but unfortunately that isn't the case. Leaving only the Pawn piece which suits you better than the Rook or Knight." 

"Right, my bad." She recomposed herself, taking the pieces out of my hand and absorbing them. 

"Welcome aboard—" But before I could properly welcome her, my surroundings changed in the blink of an eye. 

What the hell? 

Did I just get put into an illusion out of nowhere? No, I'm supposed to be immune to those. 

And why is it suddenly so cold? I feel like my fingers are about to fall right off! 

"Why so aghast? You've been trying to meet me for a while haven't you? You should be ecstatic that I'm finally giving you the chance," a deep hollow feminine voice called out to me. 

Slowly, I turned around, coming face to face with a truly harrowing creature. 

A wolf, or at least that's what I think it is since its shape is similar to Avalanche. 

Save for the fact that it's at least a hundred times bigger! Not even the Sentinels were this colossal for crying out loud! 

The sensation of being under the wolf's pressure was akin to having a mountain crashing down on my shoulders, the toe-biting temperature making it exceedingly hard for me to keep my composure. 

Wait, what am I doing? I have a good way to deal with frost don't I? 

I conjured multiple wisps of Fox Fire around me, using them to bring my body temperature back to normal. 

"Oh? Not bad, you're able to keep your britches clean whilst standing before me." Each step the wolf took towards me was like a miniature earthquake, its face leaning in closer towards me as it sniffed the air in front of me. 

"Who… Who are you?" I mustered up the courage to ask. "Where am I?" 

"I'll answer the latter first, this is a part of Esdeath's mind, or at least a secluded part of it. As for the other, why don't you go ahead and try to take a guess, little pup?" 

I've been called a lot of things, but little pup is certainly a new one. 

"Based on what you just told me, I'm going to go out on a limb and assume you're the Demonic Beast sealed within Esdeath?" 

"Mhm, I'm the one who's slumber you insisted on disturbing with your constant pestering. Honestly, how hard is it to take a hint and comprehend that I clearly don't want to be disturbed?" 

So I was right, the Demonic Beast was actively blocking my probing. 

"I mean… If it disturbed you so much then why didn't you reach out and tell me to stop?" 

"You're not very sharp are you?" It, or I suppose she sighed. "Reaching out to you would defeat the whole purpose of deflecting you, a little pup such as yourself possesses no qualification to force an audience with me." 

I'm getting mad Tomoe vibes over here… 

"Then… Why did you reach out to me now?" 

"Isn't it obvious? Esdeath's fate is now tied to you, it's only natural that I inspect you first hand." 

"I see… If you don't mind me asking, what exactly are you?" 

"You should know the answer to that as well, you're keeping one of my kin in your household after all." 

"So you're the same species as Avalanche?" 

"Avalanche? Please don't tell me that's actually what you chose to name my kin?" 

"I mean, I wasn't the one who named him…" 

I can't see her facial expression, but I'm pretty confident that she's a little miffed at the moment. 

"I'm confused, you say you're the same species as Avalanche, but even the fully grown versions of him aren't even close to your size. Why is that?" 

"Interrogating me are you? How daring," a low, intimidating growl left her maw. 

Uh oh, did I mess up? 

"I'm his Ancestor, the Demonic Beasts of your era don't even come close to those of mine. Save for a few hermits who are too ashamed to show their faces I suppose." 

Oh, she's quite old then. 

"Did you just think of something rude?" 

And she's got Tomoe's senses. 

"No, I wouldn't dare," I replied with my most convincing smile. 

"I'll pretend that's the truth for your sake," she snarled. "My name is Acina, although your strength isn't sufficient to converse with me on even terms, I will do you the honor of allowing you to refer to me by my name." 

"Then… Acina, how did you end up sealed in Esdeath?" 

"My current situation is all your Ancestor's fault, so don't think for a second that I reside within this snot-nosed brat of my own volition." 

I suppose this is where she and Tomoe diverge. 

"My Ancestor? Are you talking about Runeas Gremory?" At least I think that's her name. 

"Runeas? Of course not, that girl was quite pleasant to be around. I'm talking about the Ancestor of your species, Lucifer." 

Oh, she's not just old, she's old old. 

"Watch it." 

Shit, I forgot, Tomoe senses. 

"If it's alright with you, could you tell me a little more?" 

"Such a demanding little pup, if I were unsealed I'd squash you for your insolence in a heartbeat." 

Then it's a good thing that you're sealed. 

"Lucifer was determined to make me his pet, a prospect which I vehemently refused. Causing him to lash out like the little crybaby he was, and attempt to force me into submission." 

I have a feeling there was more to it than that, but I don't want to overstep my bounds more than I already have. 

"Him and his bitch wife ganged up on me, using their petty tricks to win a tactless victory over me, if you can even call it a victory. Upon which they decided to try to force my soul into submission, making me completely unable to refuse their will no matter what." 

Hearing a Demonic Beast use the term 'bitch', it's quite the world we live in. 

"I managed to resist their binding with the last of my strength, but at that point my body was already beyond repair. Leaving nothing but my soul to wander the Underworld, and with the little time I had left, I ran the risk of becoming Hades' prisoner if he found out that there was a wandering soul lurking about." 

"So in order to prevent that, you sealed your soul in a Devil…" 

"Huh, so there's some intelligence within that hollow head of yours after all, color me surprised." She snickered, causing a vein to bulge out of my head. "The first person who ended up becoming my vessel was a good-for-nothing member of the Sitri Clan, who used my strength to branch off and form his own clan because he couldn't handle the pressure. Truly a worthless specimen, not even remotely worthy of my strength." 

"So that's how the Auten Clan was born," I pondered for a moment. "Wait a minute, if that's the case, then how come Esdeath doesn't know anything about you? Shouldn't there be records of you in the Auten Clan?" 

Acina did the beast equivalent of a shrug. "Don't know, don't care. Once that host died as he was destined to, I was transferred to another a few centuries afterwards, and now I'm in this brat. Granted, she is a lot more passable than her predecessors." 

Taking the time-frame into account, that's actually a lot less hosts than I was expecting there to have been. 

"Is Esdeath at least aware of you now?" 

"No, I haven't interacted with her personally yet." 

"Why not?" 

"Why should I? She's even weaker than you, she should be grateful to have access to any of my power at all." 

"But wouldn't she be a lot stronger if you gave her some guidance?" 

"You seem to have made a grave misunderstanding, while it is true that I pay attention to the strength of my hosts. I personally don't care for how successful or unsuccessful they are, unless they possess the capacity to eventually revive me, what point would there be in me nurturing them?" 

Well… Taking into account how she ended up in her situation to begin with I can't find it in me to really condemn her. 

"Besides, that's the whole reason I reached out to you in the first place. Don't tell me you were under the impression that this was a social call?" 

"Not in the slightest, but what exactly do you want me to do?" 

"You're a vessel like her, you should be able to figure out how to best help her grow." 

I smiled, "So you do care for her after all." 

"No, I'm just tired of every host being so irredeemably worthless. This one has some degree of talent, so I'm hoping I can at least have some entertainment until I find someone capable of restoring me." 

Fair enough, if she's been around since Lucifer's time then I can imagine that life has gotten pretty boring for her. 

"Does the person who revives you have to be your host?" 

"Little pup, are you trying to strike a deal with me?" 

"I might be, and I also might know someone who would be capable of bringing you back." 

Spoiler, his name starts with 'A', and ends with '-juka.' 

"I see, you're using my imprisonment as a bargaining chip to make me assist your subordinate in growing stronger. What a shrewd little pup you are." 

"You can view it however you wish, I'm of the opinion that I'm making a pretty reasonable request." 

"I'm not going to make any promises, show me some actual progress first, and then maybe I'll consider it." 

"I aim to please," I have a pretty good understanding of what Esdeath needs to do to improve, but there's no way my expertise is going to compare to Acina. Especially since she's the root of Esdeath's power, and thus the deciding factor of her strength. 

I wonder, could Esdeath and Acina form a contract similar to me and Tomoe if she's revived? How strong would Esdeath get then? 

"Yeah yeah, just get lost already you insufferable pup." 

Without getting a chance to give Acina a proper goodbye, I was returned back to reality. 

"Avalon? Are you alright?" I'm not sure how long that interaction actually was, but judging from her expression I think it might've been shorter than I expected. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just spaced out for a minute," I put my hand on her shoulder. "Welcome aboard, if you ever need any help with anything feel free to ask Lars or Adaloth as well." 

Now then, all that's left to find is my Knight and Rook. I don't have any potential candidates on my list as of now, but I'm pretty satisfied with my current line-up. So I'll wait until I have the perfect fit. 

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Now the little interlude section post Mortis Campaign is finally over, which means next chapter we'll be beginning the next arc properly. That's technically still within an arc since the war is still ongoing. 

The point is, the story's moving on. 

Avalon's peerage is getting pretty stacked, but there are still at least 2 more members for him to recruit— so we shall wait and see for who they end up being. 

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