Chapter 26: Before the Gathering of Young Devils & Mole Hunting

A/N:

" " : Dialogue,

' ' : Thought,

"Italicized text" : Telepathy,

[ ] : Spells, Techniques and Sacred Gear Casts,

"Bold text" : Ddraig & Albion.

Sorry for the late chapter. I had to get my younger cousin to the hospital, and couldn't do any writing.

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Haruki POV

The dreaded day has arrived. The Gathering of Young Devils is starting later today, with a so-called party for them to attend and try to make connections. In the meantime, I went about, sightseeing around the Gremory family territory with Rias and the others, checking out the multiple castles and other areas under them.

Issei found out that the 'language' ability that the devils have is mostly limited to speech and doesn't work well with writing. So he was mostly confused by the different signs and writings around the territory. But Kiba and Gasper helped him out, so he's been using the chance to learn the devil language in writing.

Like yesterday, we were welcomed in any place that we went, with some people offering congratulations on the eventual marriage between me and Rias. Some shop owners even gifted us some items, which we agreed would be given to Mom and Dad as souvenirs.

After some more hours of sightseeing, we returned to the Gremory main residence to clean up, then begin heading to Luciferd, the former capital of the Underworld, where the original Lucifer used to live, by train.

We move through multiple magic circles, covering a great distance each time. After three hours of journeying in the train, we finally reach Luciferd. Despite the fact that the devils still have an aristocracy similar to the French in the 18th century, their infrastructure is actually modern, with many streets having urban homes.

Stepping out of the surface train station, we use Shūndō to move faster than anyone can notice into the subway, so as to avoid any uproar or delay. All the better, as Gasper still has quite a bit of agoraphobia in him. After entering the subway train, we spend another five minutes traversing the underworld's railway system, until we reach our destination.

We arrive at a large platform in the basement of the largest building in Luciferd, where the Gathering of Young Devils is taking place. We enter an elevator that takes us all up to the top floor where the meeting is taking place.

As we head up, Rias tells them to remain calm and collected, regardless of what the other devils may try to do to them, as she won't excuse a poor showing.

That's all well and good, but if any of them is stupid enough to fuck with me, insult any of my girls or do anything of the sort, I have no qualms in giving them a little... education.

After reaching the top floor, we all walk out of the elevator, where one of the employees of the building was waiting for us. "Welcome Gremory-sama, Haruki-sama. Please, come this way." I guess I've also got a bit of clout down here.

We follow the employee for a while, then happen upon a group of devils. "Sairaorg!" Rias calls out. And from the group, a tall, built guy with black hair and violet eyes walks forward. Looking closely at his face, I notice that he looks a little similar to Sirzechs and Rias. Must be that Bael bloodline at work.

"It's been a while, Rias." Sairaorg says as he shakes Rias' hand. "And this must be the Natsuhiko Haruki that I've heard so much about." He says, looking at me with a smile. "That's me. And I must say, you've trained your body quite well. Keep it up." I say, tapping his shoulder in a friendly gesture.

"Hahaha. I'm glad to hear that." He says with a hearty laugh. "So, Rias, are you going to introduce me?" He says. "I would have, if you didn't trail off to speak with Haruki." Rias responds, her voice carrying a certain edge.

"Hehe. Sorry." Sairaorg apologizes, and Rias just rolls her eyes. "This is Sairaorg Bael, he's my cousin on my mother's side." Everyone looks at him with some surprise, as they understand the prestige that comes with the Bael name. "I'm Sairaorg Bael, the next head of the Bael family."

After a quick bit of surprise, Rias turns to Sairaorg. "So, what are you doing out here in the passage?" She asks, and Sairaorg groans. "We came out because it's too idiotic in there." Hearing his answer, Rias bends her head to the right with a questioning gaze.

"... Idiotic? Have the other members arrived then?" She asks and he sighs. This just keeps getting better and better. "Agares and Astaroth have already arrived. Zephyrdol came last and started arguing with Agares immediately he arrived." He says with a clear dislike for those he's talking about.

If my memory serves me right, Agares is Seekvaira, Astaroth is Diodora, and Zephyrdol is the idiot from Glaysa-Labolas that gets steamrolled by Sairaorg in a Rating Game. I let out an annoyed growl at the prospect of even hearing Diodora or Zephyrdol around me.

"See, he hasn't even met them and he's already annoyed by them." Sairaorg says, and before anyone can talk about that, the building began shaking as a loud smashing sound rang out from a nearby room.

Rias quickly goes to the door of the room where the sound came from and opens it. In the room wee two groups of devils facing off against each other. On one side is a group of goblin-like devils with pointed ears and somewhat large noses. On the other side is a group of seemingly normal devils.

The devil leading the goblin-like devils is a guy with multiple tattoos on his upper body, green hair and a bare upper body. The one leading the other group is a girl with pale greenish blonde hair, that's wearing a blue robe that exposes very little of her skin, and having a cold expression on her face.

"Zephyrdol, I see you really want to die. Just so you know, I could kill you without getting any problems from the higher-ups. So, if you continue, I will kill you." Seekvaira says coldly. From her power, I can tell that she's a step away from the Ultimate Rank.

"Hah! I'll say it again, bitch! I said that I'd teach you in one shot in a private room with great trouble! The Agares' onee-san really doesn't like being without her guards, now does she? Heh, is that why you're still a virgin who hasn't let a man come near her till now!? Geez, all the women of families of the Satans stink of virgins and are unbearable! That's why I said that I'd do a formal opening ceremony for you!" Zephyrdol spits out vulgarly.

A short jolt of anger runs through me, and I release a powerful downward push of gravity on Zephyrdol, slamming his face into the ground. This development surprises everyone in the room, except for Rias and the others.

"Hah. I knew that there were devils that didn't respect Sirzechs or those connected to him, but I didn't think that there those stupid enough for that among the younger ones." Zephyrdol's peerage turns to me with hostility, while Seekvaira and her peerage look at me warily.

The first of Zephyrdol's peerage members takes a step toward me and faints, as I focus a veritable flood of killing intent onto him. Senjutsu for the win as always.

"Then again, with what you've said, I take it that you're also insulting Ajuka, Falbium and Serafall, and by extension Rias and Sona, who are my girls." I say, walking to Zephyrdol's restrained body. "So, tell me how I should deal with you, idiot." I grab his head and hold it up against the increased gravity, putting a great amount of stress on his neck.

"Who... the fuck... do you think... you are?" He squeezes words out of his mouth. "You think... you can do this to me... and not face the consequences." I let him speak.

"Well, if someone who hasn't reached the Ultimate Rank can kill you without any backlash, I think someone who'll soon become a Dragon King can do the same and even the Satans won't talk." I say, causing scales to appear on my face, and my eyes to turn reptilian.

Hearing the words I said must have opened their eyes to who I am, because he starts looking at me with a bit of fear, and Seekvaira backs off with her peerage.

"Understand this, shit-for-brains. If I give them a good enough reason, none of the Satans would say shit even if I killed multiple relatives of theirs, let alone one. So, as far as your life is concerned, you are a single convincing lie away from losing it, capisce?" I say, pulling his head upwards some more, watching him groan in pain from his neck muscles bearing more weight than they could ever take.

"Y-Yes." He manages to squeeze out a single word, and I let his head hit the floor under 7 times the gravity of Earth. It isn't enough to severely wound his head, but it is enough to give him an extra bit of pain.

As I get up, I look Seekvaira in the eye, and she flinches, but her peerage members all stand in front of her, ready to try and protect her if I choose to attack. The keyword here being try.

I turn away from them and walk back to Rias and Sairaorg, not looking back at either group. When I reach them, I release the gravity hold on Zephyrdol, and return my scales to skin, and my draconic eyes to human eyes.

"Thanks, I was going to put a stop to that myself, but you stepped out before I could move." Sairaorg says with a wide grin. "Don't mention it. I just wanted to shut that idiot up. If you want, you can still go and beat some sense into him. I've got a feeling that pushing his face into the ground wasn't enough to fix his head. Though, I don't think anything can do that." I say, and I am proven right just a few short seconds later.

"You son of a bitch! You think that just because you've got the Satans' sisters as your bed bitches, you can do this to me?!" Zephyrdol shouts, as he's been propped up by his peerage members.

"Sairaorg, you can choose how he ends up right now. Either you beat him up, or I'll kill him." I say, my voice calm and my right hand turning into a metal blade. Sairaorg sees that my intent to kill Zephyrdol is very real, then rushes him down, and punches him, sending Zephyrdol crashing into the hall's wall.

The peerage rushes at Sairaorg, ready to retaliate. "Look after your master. That's what you should do. Turning your weapons at me will gain you nothing. The function will begin soon, so make sure that your master recovers in time. And tell him that he should be more careful with his tongue, before it becomes a noose that kills him." He says to the servants, and a few of them look at me, only to flinch and turn away as they feel the residual killing intent in my senjutsu.

Ignoring them, Sairaorg tells Seekvaira to clean herself up, and she nods a bit timidly and leaves with her own peerage. After she leaves, he turns to his own peerage members, four of which are blonde, and tells them to call the staff to clean the place up.

"Haru?" I hear Sona's voice close by and turn to her. "What happened?" She asks, seemingly noticing my anger. Letting out a breath, I hug and kiss her. "It's nothing much, just an idiot running his mouth." I say, dismissing Zephyrdol's bullshit from earlier, and we all gather around a table to chill while the staff clean up and repair the place.

After a few more minutes, the place has been repaired, and multiple young devils from different families have gathered in here, mostly exchanging greetings. Rias, Sona, Sairaorg and I are seated at the table drinking tea, while their peerage members are standing around us, exchanging their own pleasantries.

A familiar face approaches us, and I smell a little fear. "I am Seekvaira Agares. The next head of the Agares family, rank Archduke." Seekvaira came and gave a courteous bow in greeting to us.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Rias Gremory, the next head of the Gremory family." "I'm Sona Sitri, the next head of the Sitri family." Rias and Sona return her greeting. "I am Sairaorg Bael. I'm the next head of the Bael family, rank Great King." That reminds me, I'll have to deal with the old bigots of the Great King faction and those in support of them.

But that'll have to wait, because a blond haired slimeball is heading our way. As he comes closer, it gets harder for me to hold back, and once he reaches us, he eyes Asia sleazily, yet subtly. "I am Diodora Astaroth, the next head of the Astaroth family. Please take care of me, everyone." He said with a sly smile.

Everyone looks at me subtly, probably expecting me to extend my greetings as well. I take a sip of my tea, and speak out calmly. "Rias, Sona. Call Sirzechs and Serafall." Everyone looks at me strangely.

"Why?" Sona asks. "Because I've found a member of the Khaos Brigade." Their eyes widen as I say this, and before anyone can make any moves, I tap my foot on the floor, remolding it.

Diodora's legs sink into the floor, and two earthen spikes filled with light magic pierce through each of his arms. The suddenness of my actions shocks Sairaorg and Seekvaira into stillness. But Rias, Sona and the others immediately begin moving to subdue Diodora's peerage.

As for the traitor, the pain is just about to reach his brain. "Aaaarrgghh!!" There it is. I was starting to wonder why he didn't shout with all that light being pumped into his body. Deciding to shut him up for the time being, I toss a mass of ice magic at his mouth, encasing it and dampening the sound.

"Haru, how'd you know?" Akeno asks as her lightning holds down two of the girls. "He smells like Ophis. That's all the proof I need." I say, then take another sip from my cup. Rias and Sona look at each other, then immediately contact Sirzechs and Serafall.

Of course, what just happened had drawn the attention of all the devils in the room to us. Seemingly recovering from her stupor, Seekvaira looks at me with serious eyes. "Do you know what you're doing?" She asks coldly.

"Yeah, taking care of trash. Even if he wasn't a member of the Khaos Brigade, I'd have still found an excuse to fuck him up." I say nonchalantly, then turn to Diodora. "So, did you enjoy breaking those sisters? Who am I kidding? Of course you did." I say, and Asia's eyes widen.

"I remember now." Asia says out loud. "Remember what?" Issei asks. "His face. He's the devil that I healed, the one that led to me being excommunicated." Asia says, her voice cold. Upon hearing this, Issei raises his left arm, preparing to let off a base level Dragon Shot.

"Ise, stop. He'll get what's coming to him, but killing him now will fuck this up." I tell him and his eyes narrow, but he stays calm and returns to holding down Diodora's knight and rook.

"Rias, Sona, please tell Sirzechs and Serafall that they should call Ajuka and Falbium . They'll want to be present for this." I say, then cross my legs and lean into my seat. "Are you sure about what you've said?" Sairaorg asks.

"I'm absolutely certain." I respond calmly. "Alright, then." He says, then leaves it be. I look at the other devils, and it's safe to say that this gathering has effectively taken a sharp turn away from what they expected.

Telling everyone to hold Diodora's peerage members upright, I create metal chains with multiple runes on each link, then control them to restrict the former nuns and suppress their demonic power, and do the same to Diodora.

A few seconds later, four magic circles appear on the floor, and with them, Sirzechs, Serafall, Ajuka and Falbium teleport into the room, not far from Rias and Sona. This rightfully shocks the young devils around us, as they didn't expect that a simple call was all it took to make all four Satans gather at the same time.

*The four Great Satans*

As they appear, I see the serious frowns on Sirzechs' and Serafall's faces, the sheer disappointment in Ajuka's and the unenthusiastic look of boredom on Falbium's. "So this is who has betrayed the devils." Sirzechs says coldly.

"Yeah, and I can also dig out some other things he's done, if you want." I say, dropping my now empty cup, and holding my hand out. "Go ahead. He's an enemy and we have no reason to hold back on him." Sirzechs says, making me smile.

I remove the gag on Diodora's mouth, and swiftly grab his head. "Speak the truth, and you'll be freed." I say, using mental compulsion. His eyes go blank and his jaw goes slack. "When did you join the Khaos Brigade?" I ask my first question.

"Eight months ago." He says, his voice neutral. That's a little over three months from Raynare's attack on Issei. "What have you done with the boost from Ophis' snakes?" I ask him, and his mouth unconsciously widens into a deranged smile.

"I killed Lashur Glaysa-Labolas. And I enjoyed it." This guy's more fucked in the head than I gave him credit for. "I saw you looking at Asia earlier. What'd you plan to do to her?" I ask, looking at the dead man talking.

"I was going to trade one of my toys for her, and then enjoy her as she breaks from my hands like the others, until I'd cleared whatever that filthy dragon had done to her myself." Issei's hand is immediately covered by the Boosted Gear, and a Dragon Shot begins charging.

But Sirzechs grabs his hand and stops him before he can fire it off. Meanwhile, Rias' body is covered in her PoD, and she looks at Diodora, ready to execute him in an instant.

Many devils look at Diodora with profound disgust, especially Seekvaira and Sairaorg. Not only does he abuse his own peerage members, he also planned to do the same to another devil's peerage member. Despite the fact that they are devils, they still look unfavourably at such behavior.

After that, I let the Satans ask their own questions, with them trying to dig into the Khaos Brigade's structure, only to be disappointed with the fact that he wasn't important enough to have access to that information.

The Satans eventually decide that Diodora is to be executed, and Issei, Asia and Rias directly volunteer to do so. Rias and Issei look at Asia, wondering if she is being serious, but seeing the venom in her eyes was all the answer they needed.

They move out of the way for Asia to take out Diodora for good. "[Twilight Curse: Healing Blight.]" She says, releasing a powerful healing wave onto Diodora. His mind clears of the compulsion and seeing Asia healing him, and starts laughing, not knowing that she is personally seeing to his death.

He lifts his hand, only to see multiple pustules and tumors developing at extreme speeds. Everyone else is surprised at the formation of cancers on his body, but don't keep it for much longer, as his body starts to tear itself apart.

Bones pierce through his skin, his immune system attacks his body, weakening him further, he goes blind, then his mouth and other parts of his body begin to swell, as the flesh underneath grows without restraint. By the time Asia stops channeling her power, Diodora is reduced to a pile of living tumors.

Ajuka looks at the scene with regret, as he is bound by his duty as a Satan to make decisions for the betterment of devils and the underworld. And so, he could only watch as his blood relative was brazenly executed in the presence of multiple young devils.

After Diodora's speech has been reduced to unintelligible groans, Rias comes forward and engulfs him in her PoD, reducing him to nothing. With that, every one of his peerage members is made free of his hold. Luckily for them, Ajuka, one of the major participants in the creation of the Evil Pieces, is here, so he removed the pieces from them, freeing them from the corruption that was designed to be a punishment for stray devils.

On the floor where Diodora previously was, a few purple snakes writhe around. I grab them and put them in stasis, then create a crystal container and put them inside. After confirming that they won't escape from their containment, I poke open a hole to my pocket dimension and toss it in.

If this was anywhere within human society, this meeting would have come to an end, but it's not, and so this show will have to go on. The Satans all thank me for the contribution I have made in taking care of the mole in their camp, then teleport away.

It seems that they've decided to give the other devils some time to think and process what had just happened, but not enough, as about 15 minutes later, an employee came into the room, calling us to the room where thw actual gathering is meant to take place.

We just dealt with a young traitor, now it's time we deal with the elder bigots.

Chapter End.

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Word Count: 3615

Thanks for reading.