Level Up!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.

Betad by Beans, Mike God of Lore, Marethyu, Priapus, Old man of the mountain

The Gamer's Guide to Necromancy, Remastered

Chapter 09: Level Up!

– Raynare –

It was time to admit something, if only to herself.

Kuro held all the cards. He'd proven that he'd told Lord Azazel about the fertility potions, and between that, his piece of Excalibur, Boosted Gear and whatever he'd done to make this lair feel so pleasing to her Fallen senses, Lord Azazel would value Kuro over her.

She didn't like him; the smug asshole was so convinced he was better than her, a mere teenager acting like he was superior to her… but Mittelt and Kalawarner had worked out the situation faster than her. 

Facing away from him as he lounged on his throne, she bounced on his stupid human cock, hating the way her body shuddered with pleasure from whatever magic he was using on her. 

His lair had a fucking colosseum, and from the VIP box, she watched as Mittelt and Kalawarner fought against the endless hordes of wolves, bats and bears, skewering them with light spears. They had been given back their magic in a very restricted amount, but she was still left powerless.

They were winning his trust, and she had failed to do the same. Not that he seemed to mind, enjoying her anger as she rode him to completion. A whining moan left her as he pulled her against his chest, his hand reaching around to roughly grope her breasts.

The sounds of violence were briefly drowned out by her moans as she came from his fat, mortal cock, and she felt his seed spurt into her womb, her body bucking as she gasped.

"See, isn't it better to be a good girl, Ray-Ray?" Kuro asked, giving her a smug look as she slipped off his cock and fell to her knees, panting from the extreme sensations that had just coursed through her body.

His fucking sex magic was just cheating; no matter how many times she was inflicted with it, she couldn't get used to having every sensation enhanced a dozenfold.

"Ooh, finally," Kuro said, distracted before she could reply as he waved his hand and ended the fight. Mittelt and Kalawarner flew up to them, Mittelt giving her a smug look as she spotted Raynare on her knees, panting in exhaustion.

She knew she looked like a slut, cum leaking from her pussy with some staining her breasts and sticking to her hair. She'd been attending to the asshole for far too long while he watched the two ass-kissing cowards fight for his amusement.

"Did that work, Sir? I still don't know what you were trying to do, but did we kill enough of the creatures?" Mittelt asked, giving Kuro a submissive look. The spiteful little whore loved her new position, in charge of her and Kalawarner.

"Oh, yes, you did great," Kuro said with a grin. "Come here, Mittelt."

As Mittelt approached, shoving Raynare to the side with a smug look, Kuro gestured for her to kneel. The slut immediately reached for his cock as she knelt between his legs, making Kuro chuckle and gesture for her to stop.

"That's not what I want, Mittelt, well, not yet," Kuro joked, rising as he fixed up his trousers and looked down at the confused Mittelt. Kuro reached forward, placing his hand on her head as Mittelt frowned in confusion.

"S-sir, what is happening?" Mittelt asked, sounding nervous as she started to grow with light. Kuro just smiled.

"You're getting promoted," Kuro explained, and a flash of light engulfed Mittelt. "Rise, Mittelt, the four-winged Fallen."

All three of the Fallen froze, even the ever-passive Kalawarner gasping as they looked at Mittelt as she stood back up. Four magnificent black wings protruded from her back, standing proud as Raynare felt her mind shatter.

"H-how-" Mittelt gasped out, reaching out to touch her wings in shock, and Raynare's mind screamed the same question.

It was a simple, unchangeable fact that Angels, and by extension, Fallen, were created with a set amount of wings, and while it wasn't impossible for a Fallen to gain more wings as they gained power, it was insanely rare and only seen in extreme cases, with true freaks of nature. She was over a thousand years old and still had a single pair of wings after all this time.

Their cursed father had created her for a laughably irrelevant position in Heaven, so she'd never needed power and had been made with the bare minimum, two pathetic white wings which had since turned black due to her Fall.

Mittelt and Kalawarner were the same; they had been made for minor roles and been cursed with so little power compared to others of their kind. She prided herself on being strong for a Fallen with one pair of wings, but even the weakest two-paired Fallen was more powerful than her.

"Just a little quirk of my powers. By fighting in the arena, you build up a form of energy that I can use to promote you into a stronger form. For Fallen, that means more wings," Kuro said as if he hadn't just spat in the face of their heavenly father's design with the same mocking indifference he treated her with. "You're close, Kala. Mittelt was just a little more enthusiastic than you, the little murder gremlin."

This was such an impossibility that Kuro may have well have strolled into Heaven, taken a shit on the Golden Throne, wiped his ass with Michael's wings and then spanked Gabriel on his way out.

For all her life, she had hated her weakness. She'd hated it during the peak of the Great War, where she'd done minor administrative duties in Heaven while her brothers and sisters died fighting their enemies. She'd hated it when she fell, and she'd hated it with every single sighting of an Angel or Fallen with more wings than her. She'd fallen out of sheer bitterness towards God, who she saw as failing her by making her so damn weak.

For all her pride and bitterness, she knew how pathetically weak she truly was.

"W-wait, could this give me even more wings?" Mittelt asked, making Kuro nod.

"Against these weaklings? Probably not any time soon; each 'promotion' is exorbitantly more expensive than the last. They're the only enemies I have access to at the moment. Plus, the stronger the combatant, the less energy they get from fighting weaker foes. I suspect I could get you up to six-wings against the Beast waves with enough time, but then you'd be too strong to get anything from fighting them," Kuro explained, rubbing his chin with a slight smirk. "Man, Azazel is gonna be paying me so much."

Kuro wasn't wrong. 

For access to this training arena, Azazel would give away a lot. 

As she stared up at Kuro, she felt her worldview shatter. How had Kuro done what Azazel had never managed? How had he worked out how to grant them more wings, going against God's design for them? What was Kuro?

He was no human; it wasn't possible. Maybe he didn't know it, but he had to be something bigger than a mere human.

"Kala, get back into the ring. I want you and Donny to be four-winged before I go to bed," Kuro explained, sending a skeleton to fetch Dohnaseek. Raynare felt her heart go cold, a shard of ice stabbing deep into her chest.

Mittelt and Kalawarner had tossed their pride aside, serving Kuro in exchange for comforts… and now they'd get what she had dreamt of since her days as a minor administrator in Heaven.

"L-Lord Kuro-" Raynare started, making Mittelt snort as she sat in Kuro's lap.

"Ah, there it is. Where has all your screeching about our pride as Fallen gone, Ray-Ray?" Mittelt asked, making Raynare flinch back as she looked at the amused Kuro. Running her hand along Kuro's chest, Mittelt kissed his neck. "Why am I not surprised that pride went out of the window the moment you saw even a glimpse of power?"

"Ssh, Mittelt, let Raynare speak," Kuro ordered, his arm around her waist. "What is it, Ray-Ray?"

She went to speak before she hesitated, seeing Kuro in an entirely new light. She had fucked up, being so abrasive, and now she was paying for it. Kuro wouldn't accept an apology when it was clear what she wanted, but what did she have to offer that Kuro couldn't take from her by force?

"Cat got your tongue?" Mittelt asked, making Raynare throw a half-hearted glare towards her, and her four wings still on display. Mittelt was enjoying this, a dark smirk on her lips.

"I- I was wrong about you," Raynare admitted, making Kuro smirk. "You are so much more than a mere human; you have to be, to be able to do such a thing."

"I'm not a mere anything, but I am human," Kuro replied, and she was sure that he was wrong. Maybe he was a Demigod of some kind? "Or maybe just human-adjacent."

His amused smile told her that he knew something, but he was obviously in no rush to tell her.

"P-please, give me a chance to make up for my mistake, my Lord," Raynare pleaded, still on her knees, as Mittelt scoffed and went to speak before Kuro squeezed her waist. "There's a girl coming to Kuoh, a Sacred Gear user, Twilight Healing. Give me a chance; I can bring her to you, either to claim her Sacred Gear like you did Boosted Gear or to convert her to your side. She is a naive one, banished from the church with nowhere to go."

Kuro paused, stroking his chin as he watched her for any deception. She was asking for a chance to leave the lair, but she knew that he was all too aware that she didn't want to escape him anymore. 

"Oh? Shouldn't you be sending her to Azazel? Maybe you could buy your way out of the fuck-up you made with Twilight Healing," Kuro pointed out, but his tone was all too knowing. 

"Azazel failed us by letting his office get so compromised," Raynare said, making Kuro smile grimly. "Give me a chance; with all your bartering chips, Azazel won't even put up a fight if you try to keep me. Keep me, forever."

"Why would he want to keep you when he has me?" Mittelt argued, but Kuro once more silenced her with a look. 

"Because I'm greedy, I never planned to let any of you three go. Donald Duck can fuck off though, I don't care about him," Kuro admitted with a cocky smirk. "Fine, I'll give you a chance to prove you deserve the power I can offer, Raynare, but even with more wings, you will serve under Mittelt on my own little Fallen squad. Is that going to be a problem?

"No, my Lord," Raynare swore, making Mittelt give her a suspicious look. She was under Kuro, not Mittelt. God had failed her, Azazel had failed her, but if Kuro could grant her the dream she'd longed for since her earliest days, she would serve him in whatever capacity he desired.

Her eyes lingered on Mittelt's wings, head bowed as Kuro smiled.

"Good girl," Kuro praised, and despite her pride, despite her anger, she smiled.

– Azazel –

My, my, Kuro just didn't stop coming up with impossible surprises, did he?

Looking at Dohnaseek, his eyes lingered on the four wings on display.

"And you say he managed to 'promote' Kalawarner and Mittelt as well?" Azazel asked, making Dohnaseek nod deeply.

"He did, Lord Azazel. My own training session took around three hours, and Kalawarner took a similar amount of time. I watched Kalawarner get her new wings myself, and there was no trick. Mittelt allegedly managed it in two," Dohnaseek explained, the shock evident in his tone.

An arena that could allow Fallen to gain more wings and so quickly? He wanted to claim it was a lie, but he could feel the strength in Dohnaseek; he was undeniably more powerful than when he had been captured. Dohnaseek's report of the desecration of Kuro's lair was also very intriguing, but what about the power to take any of his weaker angels and make them into four-winged fallen in a matter of hours? Dohnaseek mentioned that he only felt slightly stronger until Kuro did something to 'promote him'. Kuro was a key component.

"And Raynare? "Azazel asked.

"Raynare was constantly antagonistic with Lord Kuro, and as such, she was not included in his experimentation. I believe she was trying to find a way to earn his trust and permission to use the arena, though before any further developments Kuro claimed I was 'killing the vibe' and sent me away," Dohnaseek explained, making Azazel snort. So Kuro had kept the three female, attractive Fallen Angels and sent the man away? 

Dohnaseek had confirmed that he was sleeping with Kalawarner and Raynare, and he imagined it wouldn't be long until Mittelt jumped his bones.

"Thank you, Dohnaseek. Take some time to relax, though I may need your services soon," Azazel said with a small smile, looking at the letter Dohnaseek had delivered. Dohnaseek's new station as a four-winged Fallen meant he was now considerably more valuable than before. The power difference between a two and four-winged angel was significant.

Kuro didn't care that he was giving up a bartering piece, because he was giving them a chance to examine Dohnaseek's promotion and the fertility potion Dohnaseek had brought with him to show that both were legitimate. The first taste is free, after all.

As Dohnaseek bowed and left, Azazel chuckled to himself. During a civil war, Kuro was offering a way to increase their numbers and empower their forces? What a savvy businessman Mr Sasaki was.

– Kuro Sasaki –

Waking up at midday, I check my phone as I push Kalawarner off me. Our training went late into the night; I didn't even sleep with her last night; I was too tired and had to get some sleep. That said, I like waking up with a hot, naked woman lying next to me.

I have that practice game against Sona today, so I'm not surprised to wake up to a message from Rias. It isn't until tonight, but I quickly confirm that I am still attending. I got paid already, after all, having gotten five bodies for my help.

Plus, if we win, I get a lap dance from Rias and a favour since she said she'd do the lap dance for free because Grayfia pissed her off. Raynare has set off, hunting Asia for me. It's a little early, but Asia is apparently already on her way, and Raynare is just helping speed things up.

It's a risk, I suppose, to let her out of her prison, but I suspect she'll be back. Asia could be helpful with my experiments. Having a healer around would let me push myself further, knowing there's someone to put me back together. It would also be helpful for the arena to have a healer on hand.

The arena is in use full-time. When the Fallen aren't using it, I have my skeletons and zombies fighting the bestial hordes full-time, growing stronger with each slain foe. My horde has grown once more: my tomb successfully saved several wolf corpses during a raid, so now I have a small pack of zombie wolves to go along with my hyenas.

I've also increased my Wraith and Ghost horde since my A+ Int lets me control more undead than before. I'm not quite at the 50 I need for my quest, but I'm close.

Still, looking over my options, maybe I'm ready to go a little further. The beasts are getting stronger slowly, but they're still just animals. Both the threat they pose and the loot they drop are fairly low-tier, but I have options. I can link my dungeon to other planes, allowing the variety of invaders to increase dramatically.

In addition, I can send out my minions (including Viser and the Fallen, once they officially become mine, which they are close to) out into the linked plane to gather me new resources and loot. I hold off, sending a mental order for my skeletons to leave the arena and expand the labyrinth even further, constructing new traps.

I can build an engineering workshop to research and craft better traps, which is something else to consider once we have more intelligent enemies than the beasts. My current layout is effective in dealing with dumb animals. I've been using my failed clones as bait for the bears and wolves, luring them into death traps, but any more intelligent enemy wouldn't be so easily lured and trapped.

Stretching, I check the time with a smile, turning to look at the still-sleeping Kalawarner. Moving the sheets off us, I reach over and grope her large breasts, enjoying the way she mumbles in her sleep before I climb onto her. I haven't actually fucked her before, but I don't think she'll mind as I rub my cock against her already-wet slit, slapping my cock against her mound a couple of times before I push into the submissive little slut. Her legs part, even while she is sleeping, and I take my time as I slowly slide my cock into her pussy.

I could wake her up, but there's something fun about trying not to get caught, even if there are no real consequences to getting discovered. Kala lets out a cute little moan as I move my hips, but she's a heavy sleeper, and while her body reacts, she does not as I start to pick up speed.

Moving my lips to her breast, I take one of her large nipples into my mouth and suckle on it, forcing her to lactate. Fallen Milk is actually rather sweet. I'm becoming a bit of an expert on Supernatural Breast Milk, which is not a sentence I ever thought I'd be saying, but life comes at you fast.

So does Kala, as I feel her slutty body clench down on my cock, and she awakens with a moan of pleasure. I suppose it's cheating; I do have [Enhance Sensitivity] bound onto the collars I make them all wear, but I do smirk at how quickly I made her cum as her legs immediately wrap around my waist.

"G-Good morning, Master," Kalawarner says, surprisingly composed as I use her waking up as a sign to start truly pounding her. "You could have woken me up if you desired my body."

"I did wake you up; I just used an orgasm instead of my words. I figured you wouldn't mind me starting early," I say with a grin, pumping into her as she gasps, arms wrapping around my back.

"Of coOourse not, certainly not after the gift you gave me yesterday," Kalawarner replies, panting as I pound her into the soft bedsheets. "I am yours, to use as you please."

Well, I won't say no to an offer like that as I start to truly hammer into her, gripping her hips tightly as I use my submissive little Fallen as a cocksleeve.

– Viser –

She'd known she'd be paying her 'rent' with her body from the moment she'd seen Kuro; he wasn't going to protect her from the two Devil heiresses for free.

She figured she'd be paying in sexual favours, but Kuro had decided to put her to work, teaching her how to do some of the simpler parts of the herbology work since his undead would kill the plants. As she carefully harvested the mushrooms Kuro needed for his potions, she had to admit that she found it enjoyable. He had quite the greenhouse down here, along with a large mushroom farm where plants grew far faster than logic would dictate. He was a busy man, and having an assistant who could handle the simpler parts of his work sped things up.

In some ways, he reminded her of her former master, the madman who turned her into that abomination. Spotting him working on an experiment in his alchemy lab, she carefully placed the gathered ingredients into the attached store ensuring that each set was correctly labelled.

She'd seen the rows of tubes, each one with a different cloned body within. Several looked like her, backup bodies in case hers proved to be non-viable. That was a large part of the reason she didn't try to leave, beyond her position as a wanted stray. What if her body developed issues down the line? She had no idea how to fix any problems that came with her cloned body; she needed Kuro for that. 

Still, herbology was an art that she was rapidly starting to enjoy. Kuro took note of her interest, praising her green thumbs, and he hinted at teaching her some alchemy if she continued doing well. That was where he differed from her old master; Kuro didn't mind teaching her his knowledge instead of just using her as a test subject.

Humming to herself, she went back to the greenhouse. She wasn't sure what the future would bring, but spending her time growing and harvesting plants was better than hiding in ruins and feeding on human flesh.

– Sona Sitri –

She had politely asked Kuro to visit her before the practice game, a dark look in her eyes as she watched the bastard strut his way into the room, led by Tsubaki, approaching her with his usual casual grin.

"Hey, Sona, what's with the pout?" Kuro asked, making her scowl deeply. She was not pouting, the smug prick.

"Do you have any idea what you have done?" Sona asked, her tone cold as he paused.

"Okay, I can think of several things you'd be angry about… but why don't you tell me what's got you scowling at me? I'd hate to implicate myself," Kuro admitted shamelessly as she sighed. Oh great, what else had the bastard done?

"Kuro-tan!" Serafall cheered, making Kuro pause and turn as a magical girl missile collided with him. 

"Oh, hey, I see you got my message," Kuro admitted as Serafall beamed at him.

"Yup," Serafall agreed, popping the P just to be annoying. "One pair of sexy magical girl titties, ready to be milked! I've even moved to Kuoh for a little bit, so you have easy access to these puppies."

"...Sona, are you pouting because your sister moved to Kuoh?" Kuro asked, and Sona simply let out a growl, her cheeks starting to burn at his highly amused tone.

"I like my peace and quiet; I like when things are orderly. Ever since you showed up, my life has been turned upside down; you are an agent of chaos. Disorder made flesh. Do you have any idea how little work I've managed to get done with Serafall around?" Sona grumbled. Serafall was being Serafall, which meant that her life had become infinitely more annoying. She loved her sister; she truly did, but only in small doses. Serafall pouted at her annoyed words, but she knew her sister too well to believe it.

"Okay, but chaos is fun; you can't deny I've been helpful. The Fallen have gone from being a thorn in your side to my little pets, and Viser isn't hunting in your territory anymore," Kuro pointed out, making her roll her eyes.

"That is why I tolerate you, Kuro," Sona deadpanned, making him chuckle. "Barely."

Kuro grinned at her and then turned to Serafall.

"I take it you're the reason Sona wanted me to come here early?" Kuro asked, making Serafall exaggeratedly before she straightened up, dropping her childish magical girl act as she gave Kuro an intense stare.

"Do you have any idea how much you changed with your little wonder potion?" Serafall asked, making him grin.

"I have an idea or two, yeah. I take it that the tests went well?" Kuro asked, making her snort.

"Quadruplets. Never, in the entire history of our people, have we seen quadruplets, and you went and changed that. Rumours are already stirring; there wasn't a chance in hell we'd manage to keep this secret," Serafall admitted, chuckling. 

"Ah, both participants drank it then? I figured triplets were a high possibility, but quadruplets are a bit of a surprise. Grayfia has high-quality milk," Kuro admitted, shrugging. "So, what's the problem?"

"The problem couldn't be more simple. Devils have been trying to find a solution to our fertility for centuries, and a human goes and solves it in a week. You'll no doubt be amused to know that Ajuka is pouting at his utter inability to reverse-engineer your potions," Serafall said, making Kuro grin. "This issue is that you are human, the solution to one of our biggest problems, and it's out of our hands."

Sona frowned, looking between the two. In truth, she'd been too busy dealing with Serafall being… Serafall to get the full details of whatever it was that Kuro had made. She couldn't deny that she was looking at him in a new light after learning of his creation.

"Join my Peerage," Serafall said bluntly, making Sona's eyebrow rise. Serafall didn't have a Peerage; she had a single piece, Behemoth, which was using both of her Rook pieces. "I'll personally fund your research, whatever you need, and swear I won't order you to do anything. You'll be free to research and lounge around all you want as long as you keep making the fertility potions."

"Nah, I don't do well with authority," Kuro said with a helpless shrug. "It's a personality thing; I just don't like the idea of anyone being above me."

Serafall sighed, pouting slightly.

"Worth a shot, but I figured as much," Serafall said with a casual shrug as if she hadn't just had her very generous offer shot down immediately. "Which leaves us with the issue. We can't afford for the miracle cure to our race's fertility to be only in the hands of a human. Our enemies will try to kill you when word gets out; expect Exorcist assassination squads coming for your head the moment the Church hears about this. Plus, even if you don't get killed, we cannot risk the knowledge of how to make your potions to die with you, whether through violence or old age. I'm sure you have plans to extend your life, but I can't risk the future of my race on the chance that you find a magical way to achieve immortality."

"Well, I'm not planning on dying anytime soon, but I can't say I don't see your worry," Kuro admitted. 

"If you won't join my Peerage, you big meanie, become my Contracted Magician instead," Serafall said, making him pause. "I will fund your magical and alchemical research and protect you from our enemies myself; I'll even set up a store for you to sell your potions to the Underworld. You wouldn't be under me, even if I'm sure you'd enjoy that, I'd simply be your sponsor. There's only one demand from me: I want you to take on a devil apprentice in your alchemy. They'll not be allowed to sell your potions or share the knowledge for as long as you live without your express permission; we can use magic to bind them to that. You can pick the devil, as long as they're part of the Pillars and not associated with any problematic organisations."

– Kuro Sasaki –

I can't deny that Serafall makes a tempting offer, and I pause as I consider how this would change my current plans. I can work with this. Ooh, I can definitely work with this.

"I want an exit clause; once the devil is capable of creating my fertility potions, I can break our contract and go independent again," I demand, and Serafall nods readily. "I'll need a selection of female devils of varying power to milk; I'm still very much in the research phase of my fertility potion, to be completely honest. I'll also need a selection of plants from the Underworld to test for their alchemical properties."

"Done, easily. I'll arrange for a selection of girls, including myself and Grayfia, for the most potent milk. Grayfia is proud of what you used her milk for, even if she thinks you're a disrespectful little brat," Serafall jokes, making me snort. "Ooh, why don't you get milked, Sona?"

"I think not," Sona growls, but I pause. "Oh no, whatever that look means, forget it."

"I just think it would help my research to have the milk from two members of the same family. You're sisters, but Serafall is far older and more powerful. My current sample collection is just Grayfia's milk, after all. I don't have any other samples. I need to learn what makes her milk so potent. Is it her power, is it her age, is it her bloodline?" I point out.

"I'm sure you can find another pair of sisters to milk," Sona says, her ears burning as Serafall looks at her with a growing grin. "I have no interest in being milked in some perverse game."

"But Sona-tan, it's not perverse! You're the one being a pervert; this is just science!" Serafall says scoldingly, making me snort. 

"I have one demand for whatever devils I take as my apprentices," I say, getting Serafall's attention. "Whatever devil I pick, I want them to be wholly focused on what matters, which is obviously me (and my teachings). If they're in a Peerage, they will temporarily leave until I deem that their apprenticeship is complete; if they're in any other type of contract, it will be put on hold until their apprenticeship is finished."

Sona freezes before she gives me a fond smile and Serafall giggles.

"Ah, is that so? You realise that the Phenex family won't be pleased with this," Serafall says, making me snort.

"Do you think they're gonna be besties with me when I cut in on their Phenex tear trade with my own, cheaper, healing potions?" I point out, making Serafall pause. "I want Rias; Riser can kiss my ass."

"He'll likely take offence to your interference. I get the feeling he isn't eager to marry Rias, but a human stealing her from him is another thing entirely," Serafall explains, but then she shrugs. "Meh. The Phenexes can cry to Sirzechs if they don't like it, and they've had that monopoly locked down for a long time. Nothing wrong with a little healthy competition. Sure, I can agree to that."

I get the feeling she couldn't care less about Rias' engagement woes, and I'm not worried about pissing off Riser. I'm counting on it, in fact. How hard do I have to poke the Phenex family until they take offence? 

"Then you have yourself a contracted magician," I say with a grin, making her beam at me. As she goes to reply, Rias and her Peerage teleport in, and I see Rias pause as she spots me already here.

"I was expecting you to be late," Rias teases, making me snort.

"Hey, Rias. Interested in learning alchemy?" I ask, making her blink as she looks around the room in confusion. She obviously has no idea what is going on, but Sona gives her a nod, and Rias smiles back.

"Can't say I've ever thought about it, but sure," Rias agrees, making Serafall snort.

"Good enough, congratulations, you're my new apprentice," I say, and her look of befuddlement is adorable, pouting as she realises she's missing something.

"What Kuro is failing to mention is that he's just negotiated with me, agreeing to teach a devil how to make his fertility potions. Part of his demands was that any apprentice's pre-existing contracts be paused for the duration of their apprenticeship, which Kuro alone decides when it is finished," Serafall explains, making Rias' eyes widen as they snap back to me.

I just smile back smugly.

"And how long does an apprenticeship take, exactly?" Akeno asks, giggling at the dumbstruck look on Rias' face.

"That's a difficult question, depending on the intelligence and the motivation of the apprentice, plus how much free time I have to train them. It's a complicated situation, but it could be anywhere between a month and several centuries," I say as I rub my chin. 

"And my family has accepted this?" Rias asks, and Serafall just laughs.

"They haven't been told yet, but do you think your father is going to complain about you becoming the only devil who can make fertility potions when word gets out? These potions are game changers; why do you think I'm here, to begin with, Rias-tan?" Serafall teases. "But, to be perfectly honest? Zeo-chan could whine and moan all he likes; this is one of the things where I'm going to have to pull the Satan card. It is essential that a devil learns how to make Kuro's potions; your engagement is downright trivial in comparison. I'll deal with the Phenex and Gremory families. This is something that all four Satans want, and it isn't cancelling the engagement, just… putting it on hold for the foreseeable future; the Phenex have no grounds to complain. Well, complain about that, at least."

"Actually, before you talk to anyone, can you give me a single day," I ask, a smile on my lips as Serafall looks at me.

"What are you scheming?" Sona asks, making me smile innocently as I gesture for Serafall to approach. I whisper something into her ear, which makes her snort.

"I'll talk to the families on Monday. I work so hard that I deserve a weekend off, right?" Serafall agrees, stifling her laughter. "If you manage to pull that off, you really should be a devil."

Rias looks between us but quickly decides that she doesn't want to know as she storms towards me. I give her a smug grin as she grabs my shirt and pulls me in for a deep kiss, and I hear Akeno wolf-whistle as our kiss grows heated, my hands moving to Rias' ass.

"Can you two save the PDAs for when you aren't in my office," Sona asks with a deep sigh, making an unrepentant Rias pull back with a sultry smirk. "We do have a practice match to prepare for."

The look Rias gives me tells me that she's considering just skipping the match to jump me, but she pulls away with a smile.

"Fine, fine," Rias agrees, her hand on my ass. "We can pick this up after we kick Sona's ass."

"Oi. I won our last fight, Rias," Sona points out, making Rias smile.

"But we didn't have Kuro then," Rias says smugly.

"You don't even know what he can do," Sona says with a sigh. "Still, I can't deny I'm looking forward to this. I have had to deal with Serafall moving into my bedroom because of you, Kuro. I want you to know what I'm about to do to you is going to be very personal."

The air goes a little cold as Sona smiles at me, and I just laugh.

"Promises, promises."

— Bonus Scene — Katerea Leviathan 

Getting an agent into the inner circle of the bitch stealing her family name was difficult. Serafall, for all her flaws, was a careful woman.

It had taken years to properly infiltrate her office, and her agent had rarely found anything truly useful as Serafall kept her cards close to her chest.

And yet, all that effort had finally paid off, as Katarea read the report with a thoughtful frown. A human had made a fertility potion, one that had helped a Bael girl fall pregnant with quadruplets.

The buzz around Serafall's office couldn't be suppressed; word would spread soon, and her spies had found that Serafall had gone to Kuoh, clearly seeking Kuro Sasaki, an independent mage. 

If the 'Great Satans' got their hands on this potion, their rebellion would lose all steam. Whoever held the key to their fertility would be in a position to guide the Devil race. It could not be allowed to fall into the frauds' hands, no matter what. 

If they… recruited this mage, turning more families to their cause would be all too easy, so she had a trip to make.