Chapter 35

{Training day 14}

Now, Eden found himself in the Grand Laboratory of Biology and Spirit. Creating a new race of devils, and an advanced species at that, was indeed a challenging task. Eden's current research wasn't aimed at creating a perfect King Piece; achieving that without Ajuka and his wife's help was not impossible for Eden, but it was highly impractical. Instead, he was laying the groundwork for the creation of an advanced species.

One aspect of this involved the ritual used to strengthen Asia. It had transformed her from an average human into something slightly beyond human. While the increase in mana wasn't enough to classify what he had done as turning Asia into something more than human, her statistics were on par with a reincarnated devil. So, as far as his research went, it was heading in the right direction. Now, his second experiment would involve a core aspect of a species: Angels and their fallen kin had access to the power of light. He questioned why Akeno could use elemental magic and imbue it with the power of light, while normal angels, fallen or otherwise, could not. After conducting some research and asking questions to the two fallen angels, he discovered that it was much harder for angels to use magic compared to devils or even humans. Angels didn't naturally produce mana like other beings; instead, they produced light energy, something akin to mana and demonic energy but much more rigid in its usage. This was why even Raynare's lackluster magical prowess was considered significant by angelic standards.

That's when Eden pondered the idea of evolving Raynare to use a type of magic similar to Akeno's holy lightning. In theory, this should work. He could do it by changing Raynare's genetic makeup since the reason he thought some angels had an easier time using magic than others was due to having the ability to produce light energy that was more conducive to change. However, theory needed to become fact, and that's precisely what he was attempting to ascertain through this ritual. He had already drawn up the ritual circle before he had gone to see Akeno and had told Raynare to meet him here instead of her usual training room.

After waiting for about 45 minutes, Raynare showed up in her usual attire, which basically amounted to a bikini. "What do you need from me, Master?" she said.

Unlike Mittelt, who had submitted to Eden's authority almost instantly, Raynare had been much more snarky. Not that Eden really cared what his servants thought of him, but having a willing test subject was better than an unwilling one. Also, if he had to force Raynare against her will to go through the ritual, that might affect it, considering that emotions played into magic as much as mathematics.

"What do you think of your former subordinate, Mittlet?" An audible groan could be heard from Raynare's mouth after he asked. Mittlet was catching up in power with Raynare every passing day, and Mittlet showing off her martial prowess during the training had made Raynare worry that she was getting stronger than her each day.

"What do you mean by that, Master?"

"I mean if she gets so much stronger than you, she might be put in charge of you."

"Master, I think saying that as if you wouldn't be the person making that decision is in bad taste."

"Maybe, but it's just a fact that Mittlet is more talented than you, Raynare." Raynare didn't say anything, but another growl escaped her mouth.

"And, of course, Raynare, unlike everyone else in training, you have grown the least. When was the last time you felt you truly got better at fighting? A decade ago? A century? Five centuries?" While Eden had been talking, he had been moving closer and closer to Raynare with each word, and as he spoke next, he was right on top of her.

"I can give you an opportunity to become stronger, but you will have to start acting like I'm your master and not your prison warden. But if you don't want to, I can give it to someone more obedient, like Mittlet." About a second passed after he said that, and immediately, Raynare fell to her knees, genuflecting.

"I, Raynare, formally renounce any ties I have to my kind, the fallen angels, and pledge my eternal loyalty to Eden Tsubakihara, the Fateweaver." Eden smiled. Raynare, like Mittlet, was simple. Mittlet was lazy but wanted power, and Raynare wanted power but was lazy. This line of thinking made both of them amazing servants, as long as they had a semblance of power and didn't have to do much. They would be happy to serve. To Rias, the training they were doing was a lot, but what Eden was asking seemed like a lot. To the two fallen angels, compared to having to fight for their lives and being hated by both devils and angels, training in a safe environment where all their necessities were met and they had good food and a comfortable bed was a hundred times better. Mittlet, being lazy, liked how little she had to worry about and knew that the continuous training was only temporary. After that, she would have much more freedom to laze around. Raynare, on the other hand, cared more about power, and because she wasn't getting much and had been reduced to the role of a servant, she was less than pleased. Now that Eden had offered her a path to power and her living conditions were vastly improved, she was willing to submit. To make sure, Eden cast a spell: {Detect Motive}. It was a simplified version of {Detect Thoughts} that he believed was more suitable for situations like this. He wanted to understand Raynare's motives better. Currently, it seemed like she was willing to pledge her loyalty to him in exchange for more power. Perhaps in the future, as Eden acquired more servants, she might seek a position of power or even aspire to become a mistress or concubine in his service, or potentially join his peerage if she gained more strength.

"Okay, this is a magical ritual that will give you the ability to use fire magic, along with other benefits." Eden didn't really know what the other benefits were, but as the ritual made changes to Raynare's body, he would discover them along with her. "Yes, Master. How can we get started?"

"First, put out your arm." After she did as instructed, he pulled a syringe filled with chimera blood from his inventory. The creature he would first try to fuse with Raynare's angelic blood would be a chimera for two reasons. First, chimeras had a natural affinity for fire and fire magic. Second, being a fusion creature, a chimera should be able to synchronize better with Raynare's blood than, for example, dragon blood, which might overpower her angelic essence. Raynare didn't even flinch at the pain the needle caused.

After a moment, she asked a question, "How do you feel?"

"Weird, my stomach feels off, and my head feels hot."

"Okay, that's good. Step into the middle of the ritual circle. Once I start, you'll feel more of that heat, but just listen to what I say." Raynare quickly followed Eden's orders, standing in the center of the circle. He activated the spell {Mana Activation} and, like he did with Asia before, guided Raynare through moving mana throughout her body.

Unlike Asia, where Eden was certain the ritual wouldn't harm her, even if she made a mistake, there was only about a 60% chance nothing would go horribly wrong if Raynare made a mistake. However, she didn't. Maybe her thirst for power drove her through the pain of having mana, a foreign substance to an angel, forcefully introduced into her body