Discussion ; Sword-Fight ; Plans

This is annoying.

I want to get this done quickly, as there are several other important things to do.

"Let's set the matters regarding the Devils to the side," I state, "Explain to me the characteristics of these 'Phantoms'."

From here, Azazel begins to explain what Phantoms are,

"We don't know much about them, except for the fact that they're powerful existences, and they hate everything that's not a Phantom.

"They're currently unable to enter Asia due to various forces unifying to fight against them."

Forces? Does he mean organizations? Besides, hating everything that's living… that sounds like an Unknown.

"Do they have any objectives?" I inquire.

"Based on what we know so far, they only have one objective – Find Genesis."

That term again… What meaning does it hold? According to religion, it signifies the beginning of all time and creation. What are they seeking exactly?

"Recently, the Phantoms have been actively researching Italia for reasons that we don't know of. However, it can't be anything good, so we decided to hold this conference to unify all races against them.

"We've already lost so many of our strong forces during The Great War, so we can't afford to dawdle around any longer."

That's to be expected. Enemies that are way beyond them are preparing for something that they don't know of, so it's only natural that they would brace themselves for an onslaught.

Nevertheless, that part about the Phantoms investigating Italia is worrying. I can't have them unseal Virus and the rest of the Codes that were played a role in the Heavenly War.

Anyway, this makes it all the more important to get rid of problematic ones like the Devil factions.

Turning to face Sirzechs, I say,

"Now that I've gotten an idea regarding Phantoms, it's time to deal with you. Have you made your choice?"

Sirzechs gets nervous and doesn't respond in any meaningful way. After a few seconds, it seems like he finally wants to say something, however, before he can do so, I sense a presence outside the door.

Checking them out, I find Grafiya coming over with a serious expression on her face.

She knocks on the door a few times, before opening it and walking over to where Sirzechs is.

Bending over a little, she whispers into his ear,

"There is a problem in the Underworld that's related to you. Please head back as soon as you can."

Sirzechs complexion seems to get lightened up as he gets up from his seat and says,

"It seems like there is some trouble in the Underworld. I-"

Before he can finish what he has to say, I use telekinesis to slam him back into his seat and say,

"Don't make use of this opportunity to get away from this conference. If there is a problem, let's discuss it, no? If it's too much for you, I might even be able to lend you a hand."

As if. This lovely maid has offered me the perfect chance to strike a vulnerable spot of the Underworld.

Sirzechs is currently caught up in a dilemma, as he doesn't know what to do.

Fortunately, the others are aware that I'm not fond of not having plans foiled, so they all neutrally stare at the struggling man.

After a while, he says in a desolate tone,

"Report it here."

This immediately results in Grafiya's eyes to widen as she says,

"I'm afraid that's not a good idea."

Sirzechs waves his hand dismissively while saying in a pitiful tone,

"Do I look like I have much of a choice here?"

Grafiya closes her eyes for a few seconds before taking in a deep sigh and saying,

"There is a video that has been going around on the internet. The video contains a rather sensitive matter regarding Sirzechs Lucifer."

Oh? That's interesting. Some material to blackmail the guy over here? Yes, please.

Lifting my arm, I snap my fingers before creating a laptop and turning it on. After connecting it to the academy's internet, I instruct,

"Care to show us the video?"

Grafiya lets out a sigh before looking at Sirzechs in a way that makes it seem like she's pitying him.

She begins to use the laptop while saying,

"The video was posted by an anonymous individual on DeviTube. Naturally, it got taken down, but by that time, there were already several other versions on various other media platforms."

After a while, she backs off from the laptop.

So, assuming that she's done, I use telekinesis to move the laptop close to myself and look at the words displayed on the screen:

"Noble Swordfight"

Huh? A sword-fight? Is it going to be a video showcasing him performing badly in a sword-fight? In that case, this isn't much of blackmail material.

It's unfortunate, however, I will still play the video to see how badly he must've performed to be considered such a big issue.

As soon as click play, the title screen fades away and shows a somewhat low-quality video of two men sitting in front of each other.

That's normal, right? Well, the fact that they're both naked and staring at each other intensely definitely isn't.

"Sirzechs," a certain blond-haired guy voices in the video.

"Riser," the other man responds to him.

Hold on… is this what I think it is? I form a barrier to prevent Aruru from hearing the sounds before curiously clicking the middle of the timestamp.

Immediately after that, Sirzech's voice resounds as he yells,

"Take in my Wand of Destruction!"

Having gotten a good idea of what the video is about, I immediately channel Destruction into the tip of my finger before blasting the laptop.

A small smile on my face, I turn to look at Sirzechs who's currently staring at the destroyed laptop.

"So, that is the 'Power of Destruction' that you are so well known for, huh?"

Checking the reactions of the others, I see Azazel holding a grin back, while Michael and Gabriel are both as calm as ever.

Serafall is curiously staring at Sirzechs while Vali is facepalming.

Rias is stunned while staring at the back of her brother, not knowing how to react in this situation.

"I kind of feel sorry for you," I say, "You may leave."

Sirzechs proceeds to wordlessly get up from his seat and move to an empty part of the room before forming a magic circle and walking into it.

Seeing him disappear from the room, Grafiya looks over at me with a complicated expression before leaving the room through a magic circle.

"Now then, I'm too tired to deal with anymore for today. So, how about we form the alliance and be done with it?"

Agreeing with my suggestion, Serafall and Azazel both sign a written agreement that I wrote with a little help from Michael.

After them, I signed the written agreement as God before handing it to Michael.

"So long," I say as I get up from my seat and walk to the door before voicing,

"Yuno."

Immediately after I say so, a gateway opens in front of us which leads to the living room of the mansion.

"Michael, you head over to Heaven and make sure everything is fine over there. I'm sure that my return has triggered some events. I leave management to you."

"Understood," he responds.

"As for you, Gabriel, follow me to my living quarters. I have some matters that I would like to discuss with you."

"As you wish," she affirms.

---

"What the hell happened to you?" Misa says upon seeing me and the other girls pass through the gateway.

"Did you finally lose it?" Nao adds.

"Master is more handsome now," Siesta, who's holding a tray of coffee, remarks.

"Will you guys stop it?" I say before moving over and taking a seat on the sofa.

Siesta proceeds to place a cup of coffee in front of me as I begin explaining everything that took place today, including the matter with Sirzechs.

"So, you really were God?" Misa says dubiously.

"Technically, yes," I reply wryly.

"Forget that, aren't those Phantoms going to be troublesome?" Ravel says.

"You're correct," I say, "The only way I can think of to efficiently deal with them is to build a large force and wipe them out in one go."

"So, an empire?" Sora says.

Silence ensues for a few seconds before Gabriel says in a gentle tone,

"We can make use of the current state of the factions."

"How?" I ask curiously.

"The state of the three factions isn't good. That's especially the case for the Devils."

"Are you suggesting that I use them as bait?" I say after thinking about it.

Gabriel nods once with a smile on her face.

That's a pretty good idea. Instead of directly attacking the Devils, I can bait some of them out using various means and make use of the opportunity to loot some powers.

Not only that, but I can have some Devils that are directly serving me to strengthen their foundation in the Underworld.

This ultimately gives me almost total control over all three of the factions. The Angels will obey me if things don't move out of track. I will be manipulating the Devils from the background without showing my hand.

As for the Fallen Angels, if they're against cooperation, I can pressure them using the two factions that I will be strengthening.

This settles most of the problems in Japan, which leaves me with the rest of the countries.

So, I need to establish a headquarters somewhere and form a force for myself.

A good way to do this is to gain control of forces in other Platforms and finding the Core to open a gateway between there and the Rift.