Play House (1)

Chapter 21: Play House (1)

[Bucharest. Romania.]

Inside my office, I sat across Elmenhilde and Millacra, calmly looking at the two of them while Amy stood behind me.

"Now that your investigation is complete, I take it that you're satisfied?"

"Yes, Lord Azrail. Queen Carmilla will be extremely pleased after hearing that we successfully killed the one responsible for all those disappearances and murders."

Millacra looked delighted after they 'caught' the 'criminal' responsible for the abduction of hundreds of Vampires and Dhampirs thanks to my help, and she happily gulped down the blood in her teacup.

"This is delicious, Lord Azrail…"

"It is fresh blood extracted from a Magician, so the taste is only natural."

Magicians would occasionally give up on things like these in exchange for knowledge regarding magic and research materials.

From what Amy told me, the blood she bought cost three novice-tier spell formations, which wasn't much considering we learned those spells in our childhood for convenience.

"Ehehe…"

Millacra licked her lips in delight, and the moment she was about to ask for some more, Elmenhilde snapped at her.

"Millacra, mind your manners."

The vampire cinnamon roll shrunk back in her chair at those words, and we continued our conversation without interruptions.

After we were finished with the formalities, Elmenhilde turned towards me and smiled.

"Well, this is it, Lord Azrail."

"Indeed."

The two of us got up before shaking hands, and I smiled at her.

"I look forward to our next meeting, Lady Elmen."

Elmenhilde's hand trembled slightly, but she still managed to force a smile on her face.

"Yes..."

Her usefulness aside, it was quite fun to own a vampire.

I might want more in the future.

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"Amy, it's time for your training."

Amy, who wore a proper maid outfit like always, tilted her head in confusion at my words.

"Do I need to explain what training is?"

"Master, I know what training means. But how is a healer like me supposed to train other than constantly using [Healing Magic] to increase my proficiency?"

Sometimes, the people of this world made me wonder if it had an IQ cap on it.

"You will use [Healing Magic] until you pass out from exhaustion, but that's not all…"

A [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared on the table between me and Amy, transporting over a dozen books to our location.

"This is…"

"Books on the anatomy of various species simplified to the point that even a novice can understand it… The ones here only involve Devils and Reincarnated Devils, though."

While researching the [Recovery Sacred Gears] I had in storage before, I learned quite a bit about how the overall concept of [Healing Magic] worked in this world.

And I had to admit, it was very inefficient.

[Healing Magic] worked on all species and parts of the body with the same effects, which, if altered ever so slightly, could produce much more potent effects only if a healer bothered to understand how someone's body worked.

It was weird how not even the best healers users bothered studying such things beyond a certain level.

'Maybe everyone who knew magic since birth was so engrossed in it that they never paid any attention to the basics, always relying on improving their magic-based abilities only…'

While continuously using [Healing Magic] to increase their proficiency was a decent training method, it could only take someone so far in the long run unless they possessed some truly broken abilities.

"Other than the 'basic' training, make sure to memorise everything stated in these books within the next few months… And there's no need to call me Master. Just use my name."

'Let's see how far she can push past her limits…'

I couldn't help but grin at the thought of training Amy this way, similar to how Alice had trained me for the last four years.

It was about time I started to traumatise others in the name of training.

"I understand, Lord Azrail, but this training… It is safe for me, right?"

Amy's worries probably came from the grin on my face, so I smiled and repeated what Alice had told me before my training.

"Don't worry, you won't die... probably."

Amy looked like she wanted to say something, but she couldn't express her worries as I continued.

"We'll start with assessing your current level and capabilities, okay?"

"Yes."

For someone worried about her safety, she was strangely determined, which was a good thing. She wouldn't make it through the training without such determination.

"First, I'll ask you some simple questions... Do you need to know a patient's condition when using [Healing Magic] on them?"

"No, but depending on their condition, it will take different amounts of Demonic Power to heal them… That is if I can even heal them."

Hmmm.

"What's the extent of your [Healing Magic] for flesh wounds?"

"It can heal small things in an instant, like when I healed your arm, but life-threatening injuries would require a lot of time, and I don't have enough Demonic Power to pull that off right now, so the best I can do is patch up the wounds."

She wasn't bad. Not at all.

"Can you reattach a limb severed by a sword?"

"Yes… Although, it'll take a minute or two to attach it."

Phoenix Tears could do that instantly, but since Amy wasn't a one-time-use item and had a lot of potential to improve, it was acceptable.

"Can you cast [Healing Magic] from a range? Maybe something like an area of effect application."

"I can't. It only works on the person I'm in physical contact with or if they're near me. And it only works on a single target at a time."

After inquiring about everything I needed to regarding Amy's utilisation of [Healing Magic], it was time to start with the practical test to get a better note of her abilities.

"Alright, it's time for a practical test."

"Practical test?"

The two of us watched as a small Magic Circle appeared on the table.

"Lord Azrail, this is…?"

Amy seemed curious about it, maybe because she couldn't recognise it.

"It's a [Transportation Magic Circle] that can transfer your [Healing Magic] to the other side."

"But other types of magic can't pass through [Transportation Magic]… Even if someone tries, it'll disrupt the formation and cause the spell to collapse."

"Well, that's usually the case, but this transportation spell exists to let magic pass through it..."

As someone with a decent amount of knowledge about Magic, Amy looked amazed, and after a few seconds, she asked.

"Then, wouldn't it allow me to heal others at a distance by placing this Magic Circle on them beforehand?"

I shook my head.

"There are several drawbacks to this spell formation right now. For example, if you pour some [Healing Magic] into it, only half of it would make it to the other side, so it's a bit lacking in that department. Other than that, it takes around fifteen minutes to create it and cannot be placed on people directly. Not to mention, once created, we can't move the magic circle around."

There was a lot of room for development, but I created this spell in only three days, so I wouldn't say it was that bad.

After all, at full potential, it could easily make Amy one of the most versatile healers in the Underworld.

"As expected of Lord Azrail… Even with the drawbacks, it's amazing!"

The passion and amazement in Amy's eyes made me wonder if my lovely maid was secretly a Magic Nerd. It'd be funny if she were, honestly.

"Now, you'll be pouring your [Healing Magic] into this Magic Circle, and while you do it, I'll measure your current level."

"But what's on the other side of this magic circle?"

"It's trash; don't worry about it."

Amy looked confused, but she didn't ask more as a [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared under my feet.

"I'll contact you after preparing everything, so wait here, okay?"

Amy nodded, and the magic circle under me activated.

---

[Human World: Darkness Magic Research Facility.]

At the centre of a decently large white room, there was a table big enough for one person to sleep on. It was a place that Elmenhilde had prepared in advance because of my orders.

A Magic Circle appeared above the table, and as one would expect, it was the one I had prepared for Amy's training.

"Alright, Great Sage, teleport the useless ones here."

[Answer. Understood.]

A normal [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared above the table, and soon, a man teleported to the table, lying with his face up, followed by a dozen or so people who teleported all around the room.

These were test subjects I had previously collected. However, they ended up worthless, and their life force wasn't enough to properly charge any laboratory up, so rather than disposing of them, it was better to use them for Amy's training and to measure her progress.

"Well, let's begin."

As those words finished, the temperature around the table slowly dropped until the man's skin turned red and purple.

It was a first-degree frostbite, one that spread throughout his entire body and would take several months to heal after considering the scale it happened on, at least with an average human's healing abilities.

The meticulous control over my Demonic Power was truly praiseworthy.

Next, a [Communication Magic Circle] appeared next to my face.

{Lord Azrail?}

"Everything's prepared... Now, pour your [Healing Magic] into that Transportation Circle..."

{Yes.}

A green light came from the magic circle, only to slowly envelop the man's entire body as the frostbite around his body started healing rapidly.

After about seven minutes, the man returned to normal with his condition perfectly stabilised.

"Seven minutes, huh? So around three and a half minutes if you were to do it in person. How about it, Amy, do you feel tired or depleted of your Demonic Power?"

{Not really. It was similar to taking a light jog, like knowing I worked on something, but my body didn't feel any fatigue…}

"Hmm. If that's the case..."

Once again, the temperature started to slowly decrease until the man's limbs were hard and black, similar to a rock.

It was a fourth-degree frostbite.

If a first-degree was equivalent to a light jog for Amy, it'd be a waste of time to go through with second and third-degree, so it was best to jump straight to fourth.

All the tissues in that man's limbs were already dead, and in the most fortunate of cases, he would survive after getting all his limbs detached, at least with Human Technology.

Devils had a way of recovering from things like this, with the Phoenix Tears being the most prominent, so I was curious how far Amy's [Healing Magic] could go.

"Alright, Amy, go for it again."

{Yes.}

Amy started pouring her [Healing Magic] into the Magic Circle again. However, this time, there were no visible signs of the patient's dead tissues being repaired or healed, even after his condition stabilised.

Maybe it was because Amy couldn't recover the dead tissues, but the patient's limbs started removing themselves, leaving him amputated in all limbs.

The process alone took around half an hour.

"So, are you tired?"

{A little bit, but nothing serious.}

Hmm.

A [Transportation Magic Circle] appeared below the limbless man, and he was transferred to the disposal room.

Following that, a woman appeared above the table.

I raised my hand, and this time, flames started appearing around the woman's body, giving her a proper first-degree burn.

The practical test concluded after several hours, with Amy being so depleted of Demonic Power that she started panting heavily.

{Haah… Haah…}

"From tomorrow onwards, you'll be repeating this for training every day, from 1 P.M. to 6 P.M. without any breaks... When you don't have anything else to do, make sure to study the books I gave you properly."

{I'll do my best… not to disappoint you.}

From her voice, it seemed like Amy wanted to cry, but she held herself together.

"And I won't be coming back for a while, so while I'm away, don't slack off on your training, and only contact me if it's something important, okay?"

{... Yes, Lord Azrail. Please take care.}

The communication magic circle next to my face disappeared.

'Great Sage, can you manage Amy's training without my help?'

[Answer. There is no problem, Master.]

After everything here was finished, Great Sage teleported me to my third laboratory, which was located within the Underworld.

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[Underworld.]

The third laboratory was the same as the other two. After checking if everything within the Engine Room was in order, I walked towards my all-time favourite hidden elevator, and it took me to the place I'd be working from now on.

The Devil Clan Traits Research Laboratory.

Unlike the Darkness Magic Research Lab and the Sacred Gear Research Lab, which were mainly for Great Sage's use, this one was for me to learn about the Devils from the 72 Pillars and their Clan Traits.

After a minute, the elevator halted before the doors opened, revealing a similar yet different scene from my other labs.

Inside several glass containers, Devils and Half Devils were stored based on their Clan Traits, depending on their importance and powers.

Most Half Devils were from the 72 Pillars, while the Pure-Blooded Devils were from the Middle-Class Clans that served the Pillar Clans. Although they weren't as powerful, the Servant Clans would sometimes also inherit a watered-down version of their Master Clan, which was good enough research material for me.

In front of each glass container was the Magic Circle of the Devils' respective clan, releasing small amounts of their inherent ability.

But most of these here were from random clans. It was hard to get my hands on Devils who inherited the Clan Traits that interested me the most, like the [Power of Destruction], [Immortality], [Hole], [Crack], [Sea Serpent of the End], [Starsent Moment], and so on.

All these abilities belonged to major Devil Clans, which weren't all that active in breeding with Humans, so I couldn't get my hands on Half Devils that inherited their Clan Traits.

And for those of the Pure Bloods who inherited the Clan's Ability, catching them wasn't easy because they were heavily guarded almost all of the time. Exposing myself wasn't a risk I was willing to take, so I'd only move when there was a 100% success rate.

It was the main reason Great Sage was researching the ability to travel through Darkness, hiding my presence completely.

The only ability I got that mattered was [Time Barrier] of the Agares Clan, as they had a Pure-Blooded descendant who inherited it, and I was able to get my hands on him.

Other than that, I also tried looking for the remnants of the Original Satan Clans, but alas, nothing came up. There were barely any descendants left from the Satan Clans, and the remaining ones were all strong, so for now, that matter was on hold.

After checking everything within the lab, I walked into the elevator and went one floor lower.

"Hmm. That's a lot of information..."

There was a mountain of documents that were placed all around the room, numbering almost 25,000.

That was all the data Great Sage had collected within the past few years, and before I could start my experiments, I had to memorise all of that.

[Answer. Transferring all that information into Master's brain is also possible.]

"It won't be as beneficial as reading and thinking about them slowly... There is a reason I don't have you transfer books directly into my brain, you know?"

I rejected Great Sage's offer without much thought. Transferring information would do nothing but kill my thought process, curiosity, and imagination.

If I read these on my own, it would allow me to actively think about the information and be productive while analysing it, understanding everything better.

"Either way, it'll only take a week or so to finish them, so it isn't a big deal..."

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"Hmmm. If it's like this, I guess that explains why Demon Swords don't buff a Devil's Physical Abilities as they do with a Human's, like how Arondight did not affect my Physical Abilities despite me wielding it, and going by that logic, Holy Swords wouldn't buff an Angel's Physical Abilities either..."

"If I mess with Arondight a little, imitating the magic frequency of a Holy Power-based Sacred Gear, it should be possible to bring out more Holy Power from it and balance it with Demonic Power… And if God is truly dead, it shouldn't be a problem to create a Holy-Demonic Sword that even a Pure-Blooded Devil like me can weld..."

"Haah… If the magic frequencies of a Clan's Demonic Power can be copied and applied to a blank Demonic Power, replicating their Clan Trait should be possible. But it lacks the core elements of the workings of Demonic Power."

"I see, so that's why Demonic Power can't produce Light Power despite how it's theoretically possible... The frequencies at which both exist are contradictory to each other, similar to Holy Power…"

"That means light Magic isn't just a high density of photons. Even I can create dense light by collecting photons artificially, but that won't have any special effects on Devils... Going by that logic, Ajuka must've done a lot of research for Reincarnated Devils to be able to wield both Demonic Power and their Light-Based Sacred Gears."

"Unlike what the rumours say, it's possible for Devils to learn Senjutsu if they know how to, at least theoretically, and Sairaorg can already use Touki..."

"For a God, it's an instinctual skill to collect faith and turn it into power for them to create miracles. However, it should be possible to replicate that process if I manage to learn how they do it…"

The document in my hand disappeared, and I leaned back on my chair, stretching my arms and legs.

"Finally, it's over after ten whole days..."

After ten days of not moving from my chair, it became apparent that even a Devil's ass could go sore after sitting for too long.

Yeah, I never stood up from my chair for the past ten days, continuously reading through the documents Great Sage had presented to me without any rest.

Diligence was my middle name, though sometimes, it'd get replaced with laziness instead.

I placed my hand on my chest.

[Clean]

"That feels better."

Thanks to how sore my body was, I had to do some mild stretching to get back in shape.

Soon, the Astaroth Clan's Magic Circle appeared next to my face.

"What's up, Amy?"

{Lord Azrail, Lady Alice and Lady Rias have come to visit you, along with Mr Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa.}

Alice and Rias? That was a weird matchup.

"And Heinrich who?"

{Ah, he is Lord Gremory's [Bishop]. He is currently looking after Lady Rias in the Human World.}

"I'll be there soon."

{Yes.}

With that, the Communication Magic Circle disappeared.

After about fifteen minutes, I teleported back to my house in Bucharest.

---

"Hey, Azrail, it's been a while!"

Rias sure was excited, sitting next to Alice while waving at me with a big smile.

Standing behind her was Heinrich, Zeoticus' [Bishop].

"We just met on my birthday, so it hasn't been that long."

"How is it, being the Overseer of such a big city?"

At Alice's question, I smiled and sat in front of them while Amy, as always, stood behind me respectfully.

"It ain't much, but it's honest work."

"Is that so?"

From how it looked, Alice knew that I hadn't been home ever since the investigation with the Vampires ended, but there was no way she knew what I was up to.

"So, what brings you here, Rias?"

"My parents permitted me to visit the Human World, so we came to your territory first. Sona will be coming to see you soon, too."

"Sona is also coming to the Human World?"

"Mmh!" Rias nodded vigorously. "She said she'd be accompanied by Lady Leviathan."

'I can already feel my home becoming a mess… That's Serafall for you.'

Ah, well, that was Future Azrail's problem.

"It can't be that you and Rias just happened to come together, right, Alice?"

"Lord Gremory had a meeting with Lord Sebastian and Lord Astaroth, so he asked me to take Rias to your territory for a visit. After that, she will be going around the Human world with Mr Heinrich."

"Oh…"

Alice smiled and continued.

"Lord Gremory also requested for you to tell Rias about how difficult it is to oversee a territory and that she shouldn't be so stubborn about it."

"Hey, I told you not to tell him that, Alice!"

At Alice's explanation, Rias glanced at me with a somewhat embarrassed expression.

"You've been throwing a tantrum at your house, right?"

Rias looked like a guilty child—which she technically was, avoiding eye contact with me.

Since that was the case, I gave up.

It wasn't like I did anything meaningful as the overseer, either. Amy was the one who handled everything here.

"But I wonder what Lord Gremory has to discuss with Father and Lord Astaroth?"

"Maybe it's about buying something?" That seemed like an excuse Rias came up with on the spot, which confused me a little. "Father was planning on expanding the business, so maybe it's related to that?"

Her behaviour was a bit suspicious.

"If it was related to business, there is no need for my father to be there, Rias, and if it was about Dimensional Trains, there is no need for Lord Astaroth to attend that meeting. Not to mention, I doubt Lord Gremory would need to visit personally if that was the case."

Rias just shrugged her shoulder. She was more interested in the cookies Amy had offered.

It looked like she knew something and wasn't willing to talk about it.

And how should I put it… She seemed a bit embarrassed while talking to me, unlike her usual frank and cheerful self.

My spider senses were tingling.

[Notice. Rias Gremory's heartbeat is a bit faster than normal. It might be that something happened before Master returned here.]

Even Great Sage found it suspicious.

It wasn't hard to tell that Alice had an idea about what was happening without my knowledge, too, but I doubt she'd tell me.

I wonder what happened?

'Well, there's only one way to find out…'

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Words: 3,759

A/N:

Has anyone here read Renegade Immortal? I saw someone compare the protagonist (Wang Lin) to Fang Yuan and Klein in character writing, so I'm kind of interested now.

Additional Lore: (Not related to the question above) Part of Azrail's character (basically his thirst for knowledge) is based on Leylin from Warlock of the Magus World and Lloyd from the 7th Prince Manga/Anime.