Celebration and Despair
Though he could theoretically evolve himself to be a LSS, Alex had absolutely no intention of undergoing the process at the current moment due to his uncertainty of being able to control the rage that came with it. He had concluded that when the time came when he was confident he could control it, or if too strong of an opponent appeared then he would undergo the evolution. Alex then turned his attention back towards the group in front of him as they all continued to ask questions and make a commotion. He then held up one of his hands for silence, gradually calming everyone down though they still gave him intense looks. Alex then looked at Grayfia as if prompting her to speak, before she asked,
"You said you wanted to keep this a secret, for how long do you expect this be the case though?" Everyone else also gave Alex pointed looks at her question, to which Alex answered,
"Not for long actually, I just want to verify the possibility of this before announcing it. However even if it works, I'm not planning to start turning every devil in Asora into a super devil, except for a select few it'll have to be something they've earned." Everyone nodded in agreement as giving so many people a sudden amazing power up was only asking for trouble. Serafall then asked,
"So why are I and Son-tan here?"
"As the devil with the highest authority I figured you needed to know right away, and if it's possible to see if you, Sona and Elmenhilde wanted to be evolved as well. If everything works alright then I plan to ask Ravel, Ingvild, and Roygun as well when I get a chance." Serafall nodded in acceptance as, though she didn't necessarily crave power, seeing several people including her own beloved little sister suddenly pass her would be depressing. Sona then stepped forward and asked,
"So what haven't you told us then?" Alex sighed and stated,
"The process will be very painful to whoever's undergoing it, as your body is being modified at a cellular level. Which is also why instead of picking someone I'm asking for volunteers since the results will be different for me." Everyone was silent then as they were unsure of being the first to try this process, before a certain Crimson haired woman stepped forward and declared,
"I'll do it!" Everyone looked at Rias in surprise while Grayfia said,
"No, it's too dangerous and uncertain, I'll go first!" Rias however shook her head and stated,
"Big sis, I trust in Alex to ensure I'm alright, plus there's regeneration magic so everything should be fine if something does go wrong! Besides, I was Alex's first peerage member so I think is only right I'm first for this as well." Though there was more Grayfia wanted to say, she was stopped when Alex put his hand on her shoulder to reassure her. Taking in a deep breath, Grayfia then nodded and stepped back to allow Rias to step forward towards a stone platform Alex was creating wit magic for her to lay on, something she couldn't help comparing to a sacrificial alter. As she laid down Alex said,
"Don't worry, though it'll be painful, I'll make sure nothing bad happens to you. Rias nodded and said somewhat cheerfully,
"I know, I trust you." Feeling gratified by the trust she had in him, Alex stepped back and started forming a complex magic circle under her to channel the Evolution magic. Alex then summoned his boosted gear gauntlet, and let it start building up power in case it was needed, either to complete the evolution or to add power to his regeneration magic. Everyone present was holding their breaths as Alex said,
"I'm starting... Now!" As he spoke the light from the magic circle became even more intense as Rias herself started glowing red slightly. Rias's face soon started twitching as an uncomfortable feeling instantly spread throughout her body, before it quickly started escalating to a dull ache, then into a stinging pain. At this level it was still bearable, but the fact they were only a few seconds into a process that they had no idea of how long it would last left a sour taste in her mouth. The stinging continued for a few more minutes, but nothing could have prepared her for what happened next.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Rias's voice broke the suspenseful silence as her body suddenly jerked, and she released a bloodcurdling scream. As each and every cell in her body was being forced to change, forced to evolve, Rias felt as if every single bit of her body was individually set on fire, or was being struck by lightning over and over.
"Rias..." Grayfia muttered, her heart breaking from seeing her little sister in such pain while she just stood by and watched. She then glanced at Alex and similarly hoped he was ok, him directly being the one to put one of his loved ones through this suffering. As a testament to her willpower however, regardless of how much pain she was in Rias never once asked them to stop the process, though none of them tried to think of the possibility that she was simply unable to do so. As the minutes slowly crawled by the sound of Rias's voice continued to rise and fall as her body started jerking hard enough to look as if she was having seizures, enough to where Grayfia finally said,
"That's enough, stop it!" Alex agreed and was about to halt the process, but before he could,
'Don't stop now, keep going as is and you should succeed. I did tell you there would be intense pain.' Since it was one of the first real responses he'd gotten from Lauren the past few days, Alex gritted his teeth and said to Grayfia,
"Not yet... She can do this..." As she glared at him in response Grayfia was about to say something else, but,
"N-no, n-not yet..." Suddenly they a all heard the dirt words Rias uttered since they began, making Grayfia bite back her argument to make Alex stop. After Rias insisted they continue the minutes slowly ticked by while the intense pain continuously wracked her body, each minute instead seeming like an eternity.
After well over an hour, with Alex using the built up energy in his gantlet to replenish his personal reserves, he finally got the ok from Lauren to stop the process. As he canceled magic Rias's body slowly lost its red glow and seemed to relax for the first time since beginning as she let out a sigh, before her breathing seemed to stop altogether.
"Rias?" Grayfia said hesitantly before she and Sona rushed over to examine her. Alex sighed as he fought the exhaustion of using the age of gods magic for over an hour, and kept an eye on Rias's status for any changes in her condition. As he watched it however several changes were suddenly made and a sudden rise of power could be felt from the sleeping Rias.
"Look out!" Alex cried as he rushed forward and grabbed Grayfia and Sona around the waist before flying a short distance away, with Serafall, Yue, and Elmenhilde swiftly joining them. They then watched as Rias's eyes suddenly shot open, except they were pure black without even the slightest bit of white. As the power of destruction started radiating from her body, Rias started to slowly float up into the air while the destructive air around her started to quickly eat away at her clothes, leaving her naked before it spread to the stone table sitting beneath her. With her skin laid bare for all to see, everyone present was able to watch as her skin started turning a deep red as if a rash was spreading across her body. Once it spread to her head a pair of red slightly curled horns sprouted from within her hair, while a set of red wings seemed to grow from her back and a tail sprouted from right above her rear. By this point that bubble of destructive energy had grown to fill the area around Rias for roughly 200 feet, destroying everything within so completely that not even dust was left. Rias then righted herself in the air as she started examining her own body, before finally checking the notifications that had been going off for a while now.
[NOTICE! Race changed from Devil to Super Devil! New ability obtained, Super Devil Form! New skill obtained, Destuction manifestation! Aura of destruction skill changed to Domain of destruction, Enlarged magic pool skill changed to Immense magic pool, Magic control changed to Magic mastery! Skills Absolute destruction, Magic recovery rate, Extinguished star, Apocalyptic extinction, Reapers ruin, Destruction duelers, and superhuman strength increased!]
After going through each of the notifications in her head, Rias turned her attention towards her nakedness while outside and decided to address that first. Her first thought was to simply summon her clothes like normal, but recalling what happened to her previous clothes decided against it. Instead she tried out her newly acquired 'Destruction Manifestation' skill, and willed the destructive energies in air around her to converge on herself even more, before condensing to form a reddish-black formal gown that went down to her ankles and left her back open for her new wings and tail. It wasn't until this point that she finally turned her attention on the others who watched silently as she adjusted to her new form and abilities. Though she wanted to go to them, Alex especially, Rias held herself back due to the giant bubble of pure destructive energy surrounding her, before focusing on dispelling her 'Domain of Destruction' skill. Once it was safe to approach her, everyone was instantly at her side while still main ting a few feet due to the fact that her body still radiated raw destructive power.
"Rias, are you ok?" Grayfia asked the instant they closed in. The newly changed girl nodded and replied,
"Actually, I feel better than ok. I have more power than I thought I could ever possess, I wonder if this is what my brother felt like for his whole life?" Grayfia was inclined to agree with Rias's comparison as she spent most of her life around Sirzechs, and had seen him transform several times during the devil civil war. As if she was too eager to test her new powers, Rias turned away from everyone and pointed a single finger at one of the nearby mountains before a beam of pure destruction several feet wide shot out and flew forward before anyone could react.
There was no noise, no boom, no concussion of sound as the mass of energy tore through the air directly into the side of a mountain; there was no destruction, no rubble, and no devastation as it went through and continued on to the mountain after that, and the one after that. What everyone witnessed at that moment wasn't just destruction, it was complete erasure of everything that was in the path of Rias's attack. Everyone who watched the display was wide eyed at the seeming endless hole that bore through several mountains until a check from Yue confirmed that it had continued clear out into the ocean. Cold sweat dripped down everyone's backs when they witnessed the difference in her power, while Rias's face seemed to pale a little bit even after her transformation.
"Maybe you should take some time to get accustomed to your new capabilities..." Alex muttered while everyone, including Rias, slowly nodded. She then spent the next hour or so going through a series of exercises to experiment and gauge her new powers, something that while they tried to be careful still ended up remodeling the landscape around them. This also had the dual function of allowing Alex to rest and recover his magic energy to perform the evolution on the next person to go, Grayfia by the lots they drew. This had annoyed Yue, who was now forced to acknowledge the difference in power between her and Rias, but she didn't say anything since Alex promised them that he'd get through everyone that night. As she finished up her exercises, Rias ended her super devil transformation and reverted back to her hornless, tailless, and wingless pale self, which also dispelled the gown she created out of pure destruction. Before anything else however, she rushed towards Alex since it was safe for her to do so and threw her arms around him while saying,
"Thank you so much." After saying her thanks Rias didn't give Alex a chance to respond before sealing his lips with her own while he wrapped his arms around her in return. Considering the circumstances no one tried to interrupt the twos moment, but when they saw Alex's hands work their way down from Rias's back to her still naked butt Grayfia immediately seized his ear and pulled him back from Rias, while Yue grabbed some of Rias's hair and yanked her back.
"What was that for?!" Rias pouted as she rubbed her head where her hair got pulled, before Grayfia answered,
"We knew what direction that was headed, and there'll be time for that later. For right now we need to focus since we'll probably be out here all night." Though she was still pouting slightly, Rias didn't argue as she quickly dressed herself while Alex quickly prepped for the next round with Grayfia. As he prepared another stone slab on the now flattened mountaintop, Grayfia went to lay down on it while Rias seriously said,
"The pain was more intense than I ever thought I could bear, so be careful big sis..." Grayfia looked Rias in the eyes and nodded confidently before the latter backed away to give her sister and Alex breathing room. Alex sighed and summoned his boosted gear once more before starting to forcefully evolve someone for the second time that night.
***
While Alex was pushing his evolution magic to the limits, someone else was sitting in their residence in Verbergen while also thinking about increasing their strength. Shizuku was staring intensely at her status as she determined what job she should pick next. Though the monsters in the Haltina Labyrinth helped increase her job level tremendously, it still left her just shy of a new job. So Shizuku spent the last few days accompanying Anne as she went to sightsee around the Sea of Trees, and look for more plant seeds to add to her quickly growing collection. With her playing bodyguard against fairly tough monsters that made the Sea of Trees their home, Shizuku was able to finally max out her 'Swordswoman' job and pick a new one. Currently she was trying to weigh potential benefits of the different options available to her.
[Available jobs- expert swordswoman, ninja apprentice, samurai apprentice, speed demon, female knight, spirit knight]
At a glance Shizuku was partial toward the 'Expert Swordswoman' and 'Samurai Apprentice' jobs since they matched her current fighting style and training more than the two knight related jobs. As for 'Speed Demon' job, she wasn't even considering that one since she wanted to polish her skill more than her speed; and the 'Ninja Apprentice' was a definite no since she adamantly refused to be a ninja. In fact she only blamed her having that job option and the related 'Ninjutsu' ability on the kunai Alex gave her, an opinion that would've tempted the man in question to tell Shizuku the truth about her family history. After several minutes of careful deliberation, Shizuku decided to choose the 'Samurai Apprentice' job as it would compliment her family's sword techniques the best. Just as she was about to select that option,
"Nyaaaaan, Shizuku play with meeeee!" Kuroka cried out as she draped herself over the swordswoman's back, bored out of her mind. Annoyed, Shizuku snapped,
"Can't you go and play with someone else right now? I'm training!" Kuroka wined in response to Shizuku's complaint, and said while rolling onto her lap with her now four tails waving around them,
"You're too stiff, just use Evolution magic like I did to get a power up." Shizuku's brow twitched at Kuroka's suggestion as she preferred to rely on hard work to get stronger, but before she could say anything she noticed the status notifications that had popped up.
[NOTICE! New skills obtained, Chakra control, Camouflage, Stealth, and Knife Skill! Skills No Beat, and Enhanced Speed increased!"]
Confused, Shizuku looked at her job to see that she somehow managed to select the job she wanted the least, 'Ninja Apprentice'. Shizuku then looked down in her lap at the only reason she could think of for the mix up, and glared. Sensing the change in Shizuku, Kuroka Blinked away and started running while the ponytailed girl shot up while drawing her sword and shouting,
"How dare you do this to me?! I DON'T WANT TO BE A NINJA!!!" Hearing the source of Shizuku's despair, Kuroka couldn't help but laugh and shouted back as she ran away,
"Nyahahahahaha, come and get me miss ninja!" This started an intense game of cat and mouse, where in a twist the one that was actually a cat was acting as the mouse, while the citizens of Verbergen watched in amusement. Meanwhile off to side sat Suzu and Ryutarou who were also watching the chase with interest before Suzu said,
"You know, Shizu-Shizu hasn't seemed to match her "cool beauty" label as much since she began hanging out with them..." Ryutarou nodded and added,
"But I would say she looks like she might be having more fun than before actually, like she's not trying to control herself every moment." Suzu nodded as the two watched while their friend continued chasing the gleefully laughing Kuroka.
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Name- Rias Gremory
Titles- Crimson Haired Ruin Princess, Switch Princess
Race- Super Devil
Abilities-
Destruction
Super Devil Form
Evil Piece-Bishop (A.N. Added which evil pieces since quite a few people requested it)
Job- gravity magic apprentice(60)
Job history- destruction Mage, destruction Archmage, master destruction Mage, Mage, archmage, master Mage, demonic leader, lord of destruction, apprentice martial artist, gun Mage, demonic charmer, destruction overlord, magic gunner
Skills-
Absolute destruction(6)
Magic Mastery(1)
Immense magic pool(1)
Magic recovery rate(8)
Extinguished star (8)
Apocalyptic extinction(2)
Domain of Destruction(1)
Reaper's ruin(8)
Destruction duelers(6)
Command Loyalty (10)
Strengthen followers(2)
Devils allure(4)
Superhuman strength(4)
Creation magic(1)
Gravity magic(4)
Space magic(1)
Regeneration magic(1)
Spirit magic(1)
Evolution Magic(1)
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Shizuku Yeagashi
Titles- onee-sama, class mom, last boss
Race- human
Abilities-
Reincarnated devil
Evil Piece-Knight
Ninjutsu
Job-Ninja Apprentice(1)
Job history-Swordswoman
Skills-
Sword skill(10)
Knife Skill(1)
No beat(4)
Enhanced speed(6)
Ponytail guard(1)
Chakra Control(1)
Camouflage(1)
Stealth(1)
Space magic(3)
Regeneration magic(2)
Spirit magic(1)
Evolution Magic(1)
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Name- Grayfia Lucifuge
Titles- The Strongest Queen, Silver Haired Queen of Annihilation
Race- Super Devil
Abilities-
Immense demonic power
Super Devil Form
Evil Piece-Pawn
Job- apprentice healing maid(25)
Job history- shield maid, Mage maid, warrior maid, maid terror, martial maid, creation maid, apprentice maid knight, maid knight, expert shield maid, expert maid Mage
Skills-
Housework(5)
Bed skills(9)
Massive magic pool(10)
Magic Mastery(1)
Magic recovery rate(10)
Magic Domain(1)
Coordination(9)
Intimidation(10)
Aura of terror(7)
Steel defense(1)
Superhuman strength(10)
Ki manipulation(5)
Sword skills(4)
Creation magic(1)
Gravity magic(1)
Space magic(2)
Regeneration magic(2)
Spirit magic(1)
Evolution Magic(1)
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