Secrets and Confrontations I

Chapter 11

P.S this story starts a few years before the start of our favorite DXD verse!

AND I DON'T OWN ANY DXD MATERIAL, ALL CREDIT TO THE ORIGINAL WRITERS!

"Talking out aloud"

'Thinking with ones mind'

"Spirits inside the sacred gears talking"

Without further delay, lets start the chapter!

Kuoh 

"Wait where am I?" Issie said confused as he suddenly appeared in someone's living room. 

"Hey who are you?" someone screamed at Issie from behind the couch. When Issie turned around to see who had screamed at him, he found a man wearing glasses hiding behind the couch while holding a knife in self defense. 

"Who are you? Usually its Koneko-chan that comes here! So who are you?" The man in glasses demanded of Issie again. 

"My name is Hyoudou Issie sir. I am over here on behalf of my master Rias Gremory. Unfortunately, Koneko-chan was double booked tonight and couldn't attend to your needs which is why I am here" Issie informed politely to the man in front of him. 

"Rias Gremory? Wait so are you a Devil?" the man asked tentatively. 

"Yes sir! I serve the same master as Koneko-chan. So what can I do for you?" Issie asked confidently. While he demonstrated a calm and professional exterior, Issie on the inside felt anything but that, Issie felt like a nervous reck but he persevered. He always wanted a second chance at life and now, when he was getting his second chance, he was going to grab it by both hands.

"Alright alright! No need to be so formal! My name is Tenakth. Koneko-chan used to help me sleep at night" the man now named as Tenakth replied to Issie's question casually. 

"Help you sleep? How did she do that? Did she make the bed for you or sing a lullaby for you" Issie asked uncertainly. Apart of him was intrigued and somewhat at the thought of someone like Koneko singing a lullaby. Another part of him felt… horrified at the thought of singing a lullaby for a customer. His horror intensified when he realized that according to everything, he was told regarding forming contracts, the person in front of him was within his right to ask Issie to sing him a lullaby. Since he was representing Rias and Koneko here, he was going to be honor bound in completing the potential request. 

"Koneko usually dresses up in a cute little lion outfit then swing me around until I get sleepy" Tenakth admits with a blush. 

"Ehhh… You want me to do that?" Issie asked in shock. 

"Of course not. What kind of man wants to be eased into sleep by a dude!!" Tenakth replied indecorously. 

"So, what do you want me to do?" Issie asked confused.

"I don't know it is the weekend so I don't want to sleep this early" Tenakth sighed as he looked around his room. Issie who followed his gaze noticed the enormous collection of anime manga. 

"How in the hell did you get the editors version of "gamer girlfriend" manga. That stuff is expensive as hell. Rumor has it that the collection version of the manga includes a personalized note from the author" Issie started to drool as he noticed his favorite non-erotic manga. He had been saving up to buy manga for the last few weeks, but between his impulse to buy erotic manga's along with eating out with friends regularly, he was never able to save up the money to get his favorite manga. 

Tenakth, who knew the in demand of 'Gamer Girlfriend' manga, smirked in pride, "Lets just say the publisher of the manga owed me a favor" 

"I want one, what can I do to get this manga?" Issie begged as he grabbed Tenakth by his shoulders. 

"What can you do for me?" Tenakth wondered as he glanced all over the manga's in his room. An idea struck him as he gained a devilish grin, "I will give you this manga if you beat me in a manga battle" Tenakth said seriously as he slammed a Dragon Ball Super newest manga on the coffee table in front of them. 

"You're on!" Issie proclaimed enthusiastically as the duo began their manga battle.

Later

It was almost midnight when the entirety of the ORC received an emergency request from Duke Agares to exterminate a stray Devil that was cited in Kuoh. Due to the fact that the stray Devil belonged to one of the relatives of Lord Agares, the matter had to be dealt with quickly and most importantly discreetly. 

Soon after receiving the stray extermination order, Rias ordered her team to meet them in the industrial district.

"You called us Rias-sama?" Yumi asked as she looked towards the assembled group of Devils. Her and Kenta weren't the last ones to arrive as the group was still waiting on their newest recruit, Issie who hadn't returned from his contract. 

"Yes we have received a Stray Devil hunt from Lord Agares himself. The Stray is identified as powerful and dangerous which is why we have been tasked to exterminate the stray immediately" Rias replied with a nod. 

"Then what are we waiting for shouldn't we head in and kill the stray ourselves" Kenta asked curiously, he was sleepy and the only thing this cat needed was sleep. 

"We are waiting on Issie. I have decided that this is the perfect time to include in the hunt. This way he will not only learn about the good of being a Devil but also the one of the biggest negatives about being a reincarnated Devil" Rias sighed as she looked at the duo. 

"Fair enough" Kenta shrugged as he leaned against the nearby wall of the compound. 

Soon enough a panting Issie entered the industrial compound where the entirety of Occult Research Club was waiting for him.

"Soo… Sorry for being late Buchou" Issie apologized as he tried his best to get his breathing under control. 

"Why are you so late Issie? Isn't your house a five minute walk away from here?" Rias asked her pawn curiously. 

"No I was at Tenakth-sans house until now" Issie replied still panting. 

"You were there until now? You left for the contract a little over six hours ago" Rias asked shocked. 

"Well Tenakth-san wasn't sure what to ask of me. Eventually after getting bored, we started playing Dragon Ball super manga battle. If I had won I would have gotten the contract" Issie replied sheepishly. 

"Manga battle?!? What are you twelve playing games like that" Kenta replied shock after learning what Issie had been doing for the last few hours. 

"What is a manga battle?" Rias asked the question which many of the Devils present were wondering. 

"A manga battle is a battle where two players choose two characters from a manga to battle. They battle over generic attributes like speed, power, battle IQ and ability to pull a clutch moment out of their asses. The only rule that most players have to abide is that you can't chose a main character of the manga. That makes the battle one-sided. Kids mostly play this game but as it turns out some people also play the game to acquire a Devil contract! So Issie… did you win?" Kenta threw a question at the end towards Issie. 

Issie to the surprise of many blushed in embarrassment, "No I lost the manga battle against Tenakth-san" 

"Despite the fact it is almost shameful to publicly admitting your manga battle loss, it was still your first attempt at making a contract. You can always have another go in forming a contract later on and hopefully earn yourself a contract with traditional contract earning methods" Kenta sighed as Issie looked down in embarrassment. 

"Out of curiosity, what character what characters did you both choose?" Rias asked curiously, now understanding how the game was played.

"He chose Krillin" Issie gave a short reply. 

"A good choice. Krillin might seem like a weak character but he is quite skillful and crafty warrior" Kenta nodded in acceptance of a good choice by Issie's client. 

"What did you chose?"

"Yamcha" Issie replied sheepishly.

"HE IS THE WEAKEST CHARACTER IN THE ENTIRE MANGA!!!" Kenta bellowed at Issie after hearing that. Apart of his brain was wondering if Issie was playing a prank on him. 

"Kenta-san we should keep our voices low! We don't want to spook our stray yet" Yumi said calmly, trying to diffuse the situation. 

"Agreed, you both could work on your differences later. Right now we have a stray to kill" Rias backed Yumi. Despite how much she found the situation amusing, she couldn't astray from the task in front of her, it would set a bad example of herself in front of hers and Marid's team. 

"I have put up a human repelling barrier Buchou. We are good to proceed!" Akeno informed her King. 

"Everyone lets head in!" With that Rias led the group into the factory to hunt and kill the stray. 

The group soon walked into what looked like the main processing room in the factory.

"What in the hell is that smell" Issie said as he rushed to one of the corners of the room to puke. The smell in the room was very bad and the sudden jitters he felt in his spine only made matters worse. 

"Smell blood" Koneko commented in her monotone voice as she moved quickly to cover her feline nose.

"There was definitely a stray Devil here" Kenta stated as Yumi nodded her head in agreement while observing their surrounding. 

"What makes you say that?" Rias asked curiously. She obviously had sensed the weird magical signature in the room, not to mention the awful smell she smelled before Akeno and Yumi had created an air filtering barrier around the group, but Rias wanted to know how Yumi and Kenta reached to the same conclusion. In her mind it was entirely possible that they might know of a secret detection spell due to Marids exceptional skills in magic. 

"Apart from the awful smell and foul magical signature in the area, there are a few spots in this room that are embedded into the ground which leads me to believe that whatever was here had been resided here for a long time. The ground doesn't sink on its own like that" Yumi pointed out to the group of the dents and sunken parts of the ground around the building. 

"Interesting" Rias commented slightly impressed by her nephews peerage members. 

"Lord Marid always says, if you ever reach an impasse on anything supernatural, start relying on human methods as most supernatural's don't expect you using human means to get an answer to your solution" Yumi said proudly. It was one of the first lessons Marid had thought after he had reincarnated her as a Devil. 

"Sounds like something that won't work in most supernatural cases" Rias looked doubtful at Marids lesson to Yumi.

"You would be surprised how many times this tactic actually works" Yumi replied with a serenade smile that was often found on her face. 

Before Rias could say something else, the group was put on high alert by Koneko, "Buchou something is moving near those machines" Koneko pointed to the far side of the room. Her discovery grabbed the attention of the entire group who then could all see a shadow moving very slowly in the shadows.

"Wait they are here?" Issie asked nervously as he realized he was the closest one to the stray Devil. 

"Don't worry Issie we are here for you! Just move back towards us slowly" Rias calmly instructed her newest pawn. Issie who now felt the all kinds of nerves in his body, slowly started to creep towards his group. 

"I can smell something disgusting. But I can also smell something delicious. Is it sweet? Or is it sour?" the stray spoke sinisterly from the shadows.

"You must be talking about yourself, but then I dare not even ask when you bathed last, I can smell you from here" Kenta clapped back with a hand on his sensitive nose, similar to Koneko. 

"You insolent insect! I will crush under my feet!" it bellowed from the shadows.

"Stray Devil Vaizor, by defecting from your master, you have been given the punishment of death" Rias said calmly as she regarded the place where the stray Devil was hiding.

Soon with heavy footsteps the stray walked towards the group. Out from the shadows, the Devils saw the body of a gigantic beast. It's a grotesque being with an unnatural form having a woman's upper body and the lower body of a monster. It's holding something that looks like a spear in both of its hands. The lower body of the monster has four fat legs with sharp claws along with a tail that from the size of it is definitely more than nine meters tall. 

"Damn strays do get to be something ugly, it should be thanking us for killing it, with a face like that its killing me" Kenta comment aloud causing everyone to giggle while Rias just kept looking straight forward with a slight smile.

"Leaving your master's side and rampaging as you please definitely deserve death. In the name of Duke Gremory, I will gladly eliminate you!" she announces with authority.

"You all will never kill me" the stray bellowed at the group as she charged forward. 

Unfortunately for Issie, he was the closest one to the stray at the time and was hence the first target of her rage. 

"I will kill all of you Devils right here and now" Vaizor rushed in to take a swipe at Issie. 

"uffg" Issie was barely able to dive out of the way. 

"Kiba take care of its arms" Rias told her Knight as she herself summoned Issie to safety. 

"I will provide cover for your blind spots Kiba-kun" Yumi replied with a smile as she moved forward. 

"That is very sweet of you Yumi, but I will take care of this" Kiba replied with a smile as he took off. 

"Wow where did Kiba go?" Issie asked in surprise as he just saw Kiba vanish from his spot. 

"Yuuto's position is Knight. Its trait is speed. Those who become a [Knight] receive a boost to their speed. And when combined Speed that you can't follow with your eyes, and sword skills of a professional. He becomes the fastest Knight." Rias replied to Issie with a smile. 

"He is pretty fast and smooth with his cuts" Yumi commented with an impressed look as she saw Kiba moved in quick to cut one of the strays arms. 

"You can see Kiba?" Rias asked shocked. 

"Despite the fact our team doesn't take part in stray Devil hunts that often, Lord Marid makes sure to train all of us regularly. That does not include the fact that due to my sacred gears, I make the perfect scout. If I am unable to watch for sudden movements or spot people in hiding, it could be considered a fatal error for me or my team mates" Yumi replied with a soft smile. 

"Marid must have trained you to your limit for your senses to pick Kiba since Kiba is pretty fast" Rias replied with impressed look. 

"That he did" Yumi replied with a proud smile; proud of the fact that how much Kiba has improved since their days in the church. 

"Gyaaaaaaaa!!!" the stray screamed in pain as Kiba continued to give the stray deep cuts and dismember her massive limbs. 

"Koneko your up next" Rias ordered her one and only rook to take the stage. 

"Yes Buchou" Koneko nodded with a monotone voice before running towards the stray Devil. 

"What is Koneko-chan skill Rias Buchou?" Issie asked curiously. 

"Issie, Koneko is my rook. Her specialty is simply strength and endurance. Nothing short of a high level attack will harm her. When she matures, she will even be able to rival perhaps even surpass many high class Devils in terms of pure strength" Rias replied with a smile. 

As if the fate has willed it, Vaizor used her all of her remaining limbs to jump and in the air only to come down on Koneko with all of her might. True to Rias word, Koneko not only received no damage, but also had grabbed the stray only to throw it towards a nearby wall. 

"Damn Koneko-chan is strong" Issie replied nervously. Everyone in his groups were immensely stronger than him. Even the newly converted Kenta was far stronger than him. Issie had to continuously  remind himself that out of the group he had the shortest time in the supernatural world while the others had been part of the supernatural world for at least a few years. Even then Issie couldn't help but feel pity for himself. 

'No I will grow stronger not only to protect myself and my family but also to protect those who have given me a second chance in life'

"Ara Ara I guess it is my turn. After all I can't let others outshine me like that" Akeno said with a sadistic grin as she transformed in her Miko priestess outfit, her battle attire. 

"Akeno has you already know is my queen and my right-hand woman in this case. She is the strongest person in this peerage after me and the undisputable vice president of the Occult Research club. Due to her Queen piece, she can utilize the traits of all other pieces like pawns, Knight, Bishop and Rook" Rias said to Issie as Akeno prepared herself to engage the stray that was eyeing to attack her any moment. 

Unfortunately for the stray, before he could do anything, Akeno walked forwards fearlessly before mercilessly attacking the stray with potent thunder spells. 

"Guuuuuh!!!" the stray groaned in pain as he got with Akeno's thunder spells.

"Looks like you still have some energy left in you. Then how about this?" Akeno put her hands towards the sky. Instantly, the sky sparkled with magic and potent lightning bolts descended down mercilessly and struck the stray. 

Another lightning bolt hit the monster.

"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

The monster gets electrified again. It already sounds like its dying. Even so, Akeno strikes down the third lightning. Akenos face while striking down the lightning bolt looked scary and cold even though she is smiling.

""Akeno excels at attacks using demonic-powers. She could use natural elements like lightning, ice, and fire. And most of all, she is the ultimate sadist." Rias continued as Akeno continued to strike the stray with her lightning bolts. 

"She looks to be enjoying herself too much" Yumi said nervously as she witnessed the Akeno's sadistic behavior.

"Uhmm, I am scared of Akeno-san" Issie mumbled as he took a step away from the battlefield. He had cold sweats all over his body after seeing Akeno's treatment of the stray. 

"You all don't have to be afraid of Akeno. She is very kind to her comrades, so there is nothing to worry about. It just takes her a little bit to calm down once she starts dishing out punishments" Rias spoke to both Yumi and Issie to ease their concerns about Akeno but it looked like she was unsuccessful. 

"I believe Akeno has done enough to neutralize the threat. We should kill the stray and get out of here. Apart from the fact we all have a long day tomorrow, we still have a black lion youkai who is looking for every opportunity to exact his revenge on us" Kenta spoke calmly to Rias.

"You are right. Akeno that's enough" Rias ordered to queen to stand down. 

"Ufufufufufufufu. How much of my lightning can you take? Right, monster-san? You still can't die yet, okay? The one who finishes you off will be my master" Akeno regarded the heavily electrocuted stray with a gleeful smile before heading towards the group. 

On her way back, Akeno took a moment to notice the expression on everyone's faces. Rias had a look of disappointment on her face, Kiba held an uncomfortable expression, Koneko upkept her stoic attitude while Issie and Yumi held somewhat fearful expression which she loved. To her surprise, Kenta held a look of disinterest which pipped her interest. 

"You look calm Kenta-kun! Have you been expecting this" Akeno asked clearly amused by Kenta's calm and yet stoic attitude. 

"Morelike I have seen and endured torture far more heavy than your little light show" Kenta replied dismissively. 

"Oh this just the beginning of my capability Kenta-kun. I have a much a bigger arsenal than this" Akeno replied seductively as she reached out for Kenta. 

To her surprise, Kenta side swiped her hand, clearly unimpressed with Akeno's attitude. 

"You try and do anything like that on me and I might just flip the tables on you and see how you like being tortured to death" Kenta send a nasty glared towards Akeno. To his surprise, his threat and glare towards Akeno only made the queen even more aroused. 

"I might just take you up on that offer soon enough" Akeno giggled. 

"Who knew one of the most famous woman of the school would be both a sadist and a masochist" Kenta chuckled at that, letting his stoic attitude slip for a bit. 

Meanwhile Rias headed towards the electrocuted stray with Kiba, Yumi, Issie and Koneko to finish the job.

"Any last words" Rias asked the stray Devil calmly. 

"Kill me" the stray groaned in pain. 

"So be it. Stray Devil Vaizor, as the punishment for betraying your master after willingly entering servitude with him, you are hereby sentenced to death" with that Rias produced blast of power of destruction which covered the stray Devils entire body. Within the next few moments, the stray Devils body disintegrated completely. 

"Good work everyone. It looks like its over" Rias announced to the group. 

Before she could summon a teleportation circle for the group, both Kenta and Koneko's senses flared. 

"We are not alone" 

"Someone's coming"

"Uhh where?" Rias asked. The very next second, the wall on the southside of the industrial building broke down and two more beast similar to Vaizor stepped out. 

"What have you done to Vaizor???!?" both the strays screeched. 

"Your fellow stray is dead! Have some pride in the fact that she died while fighting for what she thought was right… even though she wasn't right at all" Kenta replied disinterested. To him there was two more monsters he had to deal with before the night was done.

"Looks like that our information was wrong on the stray Devils yet again Buchou. I am now strongly under the suspicion that someone is genuinely tampering with the information that is provided to us by the higher ups" Kiba noted as he summoned another sword to fight off the strays. 

"It looks like it. I will have a word with Onee-sama about this. Hopefully we can find the culprit behind all of this" Rias sighed as she walked towards strays that have just arrived. However, before she could order her team to form a defensive line, both Yumi and Kenta stepped up to deal with this threat. 

"If it is alright then leave these to us Lady Rias. Lord Marid might get annoyed if he found out that we didn't help out during the stray Devil hunt" Yumi regarded Rias with a smile before taking the battlefield alongside her fellow peerage members. 

"Very well then, but do keep in mind that if I see that you both need help, me and my team will make the intervention no matter how much you both get upset by it" Rias sighed as she gave her nephew's peerage permission to exchange with the new strays in front of them. 

"Fair enough" Yumi replied as she took a stance beside Kenta. 

"How do you want to do this?" Kenta asked Yumi curiously. 

"We can each take a stray to deal with it?" Yumi suggested. 

"How about we make a bet?" Kenta asked with a smirk. 

"What do you have in mind?" Yumi asked, curious of what her junior was thinking. 

"Loser cleans the whole apartment tomorrow" Kenta suggested with a grin. 

"Sure" Yumi nodded as she produced her sacred gear, staring light on her hand. Kenta himself prepared for a fight as he summoned a spear made out of fire, courtesy of his own sacred gear. 

"Here we go" Kenta said as he sped towards his enemy at impressive speed. 

What transpired after that was a one sided beatdown. Kenta was too quick for the stray to catch. With well timed jabs with his spear, the stray was cooked inside out. Within the minute, the battle was over as the stray had his flesh burnt, limbs dismembered and magical arsenal exhausted beyond their limit. 

"Looks like I won this bet Yumi, better luck this time" Kenta said looking towards Yumi.

"You did well indeed Kenta-san but I would have you informed that I won this bet" Yumi replied with a light hearted chuckle. 

"How did you win the bet, you have barely moved from your spot" Kenta replied before taking a look around the battlefield. To his shock he couldn't find the second stray anywhere on the battlefield. 

As if reading Kenta's mind, Yumi responded to his unasked question, "I killed my stray just as you started to engage with your own stray". 

"How did you defeat it without moving from your place" Kenta asked the obvious question but his question was answered when he saw a flash on Yumi's arm. 

"Your sacred gear" Kenta said aloud in understanding at how she was able to defeat the stray so quickly. 

"Is that another sacred gear? I thought you had a barrier type sacred gear" Kiba asked in shock. 

"You would be right with that as well! The truth is I have two sacred gears. One is barrier type sacred gear and the second one is the staring light" Yumi replied with a serene smile so often found on her face. She soon summoned both of her sacred gears on her arms. The red composite bow sacred gear also known as the Staring Red on her right hand while a silver-white gauntlet on her left hand. 

"Staring Red? I have never heard of that sacred gear before" Kiba asked in shock. After all it was quite rare for someone to have a sacred gear, let alone have two unique sacred gears. 

"Staring Red is a fairly common sacred gear. It is a part of a set of seven species of sacred gears known as the Staring Seven lights. All of the sub pieces of the sacred gear are formed out of light in gears native color and each possesses the ability to fire arrows of light at their target" Rias educated her knight while giving a impressed look towards her nephews only Bishop. 

"It is indeed a sub piece to the original Staring Seven lights. However, without all the other pieces of the original sacred gear, my sacred gear has low energy output. Thankfully, with the training with Lord Marid, I have been able to increase the magic output of my sacred by several folds. I can now go up and hold my own against an average High class Devil" Yumi replied with a light blush and healthy amount of pride. 

Rias who was suitably impressed with not only Yumi's claim of her own power but also by the teaching prowess of her own nephew. 

'Marid was able to increase her power by this much with only Staring Red!! I should start training my own peerage should Riser come knocking before my time is up!' Rias silently vowed to herself. 

Before anyone else could comment on Yumi's claim, the entire conversation was halted by warning from Kenta, "Everybody stay sharp we are not alone!"

"Hmm whose there?" Rias asked curiously as she extended her own senses to their limits to see what Kenta was talking about. Fortunately, or unfortunately she soon remembered the magical signature of the entity who had sneaked into their stray Devil hunt. 

"Its quite painful to watch you guys be so weak. Here I thought I might get a challenge here in Kuoh" A bored Zill replied from the shadows.

"This is the second time you have shown yourself like this! Do you plan to fight us or just be an annoying fly on the wall" Kenta replied angrily. 

"Please, you say as if you could beat me. Even if you all join forces and try and fight together I can not only survive but win against all of you!" Zill replied confidently, his tone dripped with bloodlust. 

"You were singing a whole different tune last time you actually fought us" Rias retorted back with a smirk. 

To his credit, Zill didn't let his calm attitude waver, "The only reason you won that engagement  was because that bitch of a Devil struck me from the back! If he had fought me like a true warrior I would have killed him in a minute too". 

'Boy you are wrong' Yumi who was not affected by Zill's rude comment about Marid chuckled mentally. 

"Like hell you would kill us!!" Akeno shouted as she took to the skies and unleashed a powerful thunder bolt on Zill. 

"Looks like someone has a death wish" Zill replied disinterested. To the shock of many, Zill didn't move and waited for the thunder bolt come near him. Once in striking distance, Zill gathered an impressive yet concerning amount of dark Ki in his hands, "Lets see how you like getting hit by your own spell" with that Zill literally punched the spell back at Akeno. 

"Akeno move" Rias shouted for her shocked queen to move but the thunder bolt travelled at such a speed that it was almost impossible for her to dodge the bolt. 

Luckily for her, there were two Devils that were on the case, "Yumi now!" Kenta shouted as he threw a spear made of pure fire at the lightning bolt in an attempt to redirect the bolt away from Akeno, while Yumi tried her best to create a powerful barrier around Akeno. Fortunately for Akeno, with the combine effort of both Yumi and Kenta, the bolt was redirected away from Akeno and into the one of the remaining walls. 

*BOOOM!!* with the explosion as a result of thunderbolt, a big portion of the wall was destroyed on the spot. 

"Lucky Bitch" Zill huffed after seeing how close Akeno came to being killed by her own attack.

"Why you!!" Rias said angrily before volleying a blast made out of power of destruction towards Zill. 

"You would have to do better than that to catch me Gremory" Zill replied disinterested as he nimbly dodged the attack towards him. 

"Quit dodging" Rias spoke angrily. 

"And make your life easier? Never" Zill darkly chuckled. Soon however, his tone turned seriously, "Oye Listen you lot!! I am not here to kill you or beat you down again!" Zill retorted. 

"Then what are you here for?" Kenta asked with barely restrained rage. 

"I am here to check up on the strongest group in this city who are the closest to rivalling me. Ofcourse you are way too weak to actually rival me in terms of pure power but you lot are stronger than most supernatural who reside here" Zill replied with a cocky smirk. His statement was met with a growl from both Rias and Zill. Both of them ready to attack Zill on a minutes notice. It was Zills mastery over Ki manipulation that held them back from attacking. 

"Then what are you here for?" Rias asked angrily. 

"To see where you stand in terms of pure power and fighting capability" Zill replied smugly. 

"Why you!!?!" Kenta spoke angrily before summoning a fire spear courtesy of his sacred gear, "You will regret underestimating me!!"

"Make me change my mind Kenta" Zill spoke with supreme confidence before bringing out his own tails and ears; transitioning into his own Youkai form. 

"No one interferes! Zill is mine" Kenta warned everyone before throwing his spear at incredible speed towards Zill. 

"You have to do better than that to get me boy" Zill lazily side stepped the spear before rushing in towards Kenta. 

Kenta met him half way to start off their own battle. Both of their fist colliding each others marking the start off their duel. Much to Kenta's surprise, he took the worst of the initial exchange when he felt his forearm almost snap in two. 

"Here I thought a Kuroshishi like you would present a better challenge than these weaklings" Zill retorted, seemingly disappointed with the initial power Kenta had decided to showcase. 

"I will have your head for that one" Kenta replied back angrily before regaining his footing. Unfortunately for him, Zill was already on him cocking back a straight right hand aimed for his head. 

'Damn it, he has gotten quick' Kenta cursed in his head before leaning back into an awkward position to barely dodge Zills fist. In his awkward position, Kenta left himself open for a follow up kick to his abdomen.

"Uggghhh" Zill landed a clean strike causing Kenta to skid across the surface. 

"Here I thought you would be more of a challenge now that you have become a filthy Devil" Zill said with a smug grin before leaping towards Kenta. However, before Zill could reach his stunned opponent, he was intercepted by a barrage of light arrows. 

"Leave him alone!!" A very angry Yumi shouted while continuing her barrage of arrows. 

"Psst. Another pest is trying to interfere in my battle. Cant you idiots wait for your turn or are all Devils so degraded that they have no sense of honor" Zill replied slightly annoyed while doing his best to dodge the light arrows thrown at him. 

"You have a big mouth for someone who is outmanned and out gunned. You may be stronger than most of us individually but there is no way you can go into battle against all of us and think of coming out alive" at this point Yumi stopped her barrage and was standing in front of a now recovering and a slightly embarrassed Kenta.

"You don't have no idea how wrong you are" Zill replied with a smug grin as he licked his lips while his eyes went all over Yumi's female form. 

"Is that so, so why don't you come over here and change my mind" Yumi replied confidently as she slipped in her battle stance. 

"Yumi…" Kiba tried to warn her adoptive older sister about the dangers of taking a fight against someone like Zill but he was shushed by Yumi. 

"I will be fine Kiba. Let your older sister take care of this" Yumi replied to her younger adoptive brother with a smile before turning seriously towards Zill.

"Your funeral" with that Zill leapt towards Yumi. 

To the surprise of many, Yumi didn't move from her spot but summoned both of her sacred gears. Zill tried to follow the same battle plan he had used against Kenta and tried to end the fight with one punch. To his shock, his punch was met by a shield around Yumi which not only prevented his strike to land but it rebounded his strike altogether. 

"What the hell?!" Zill exclaimed as he lost his balance. 

Not wanting to give Zill time to recover, Yumi got into Zills personal space and delivered leg chop to his knee, making Zill lose balance on his already over committed strike, "First one to strike wins the battle" with that Yumi used her free hand to palm strike Zill in his center of mass. While the strike itself wasn't powerful enough to one shot Zill, what happened next definitely did end the fight. 

"Shit" was all Zill could say before he felt powerful light arrows hit him point blank in his chest. 

"Ughhh" Despite his best efforts to regain control and minimize the damage, Zill found himself tossed to the other side of the room. Once satisfied by the distance created between her and her target, Yumi redoubled her barrage of light arrows all the while Rias and her group could only watch in awe. 

"When was Yumi this powerful?!" Rias asked in shock. 

"Yumi was always this strong. Once Yumi discovered her sacred gears, she thrived to become the strongest she could be to ensure what happened at the church doesn't happen ever again. Yumi right now is most likely the strongest warrior from our side. Based on your mock King battle with Magderan Bael Marid had us watch, you will probably beat her purely due to your power of destruction. Take that away from you, and you won't stand a chance" Kenta explained to the group, much to their growing shock. 

"Yumi is stronger than Rias Buchou?" Akeno muttered again in shock. She knew at the back of her mind that Kenta was telling the truth but it was still shocking for her to believe that a Devil who had been a Devil for barely a decade is stronger than a high class Devil like Rias. 

"I will put this way for you all… I have never been able to break Yumi's shield, even when I used my battle form" Kenta admitted with a sigh much to surprise of the those listening in. 

'Yumi is stronger than me?!! But she has only been a Devil for barely a decade! What kind of training did Marid gave her during their time away. Wait if she is this powerful then how powerful is Marid' Rias wondered as she watched the battle in front of her. 

Back on the battle field, Yumi stopped her barrage of light arrows after a minute. Now waiting for her opponent to walk out of the wall she had sent him through. 

"Is that enough for now or do you want more Zill?" Yumi asked with supreme confidence. 

"What was in that arrow, it went though my Ki barrier around my body and penetrated my hide" Zill walked out of the wall with a ugly wound on his chest and abdomen. 

"That is what you get to threaten my family lion. You do that again and I will kill you on the spot" Yumi warned Zill threateningly. 

"Duly noted" Zill chuckled as he relinquished his ears and tails.

"Surrendering after first strike?" Yumi asked with some amusement. 

"Oh hardly, but there is no point in continuing this battle right now. You have proved your mettle against me and earned yourself and your family the right to live. There is no point continuing this battle since I know what is going to happen next" Zill replied equally amused as he took out a vial from his pockets. 

"Oh care to explain!" Yumi asked curiously while keeping a close eye on the vial Zill just took out. 

"There is nothing really to explain. IF we were to continue our battle, I will go in my final Youkai form. I am sure Kenta and that red head will join you in that battle with those Devils behind, who will probably stay back try to find my weak points. Once they find those weak points, they will rush in to defeat me only to realize that those weak points were openings I created to rush them in. From there it is only a matter of time before I start killing all of you. You all have no chance against me unless you are hiding something else or the Nekoshou over there starts using her powers for once in her miserable life" with that Zill opened the vial and calmly poured its contents all over his torso.

"Where in the nine layers of hell did you get you claws on the Phoenix tears?" Yumi asked in shock once she saw the tears healing the wounds she had just landed on Zill. 

"Lets just say my boss has connections throughout the underworld" Zill darkly chuckled before teleporting out of the industrial compound using a Fallen Angel circle. 

"Why did you let him leave Yumi, you had him, with me there, we could have killed Zill" Rias asked Yumi in outrage. Zill was seriously getting on her nerves and with comments regarding her adorable peerage members having not enough power to protect themselves and comments regarding her own lack of magical power had her all riled up. 

"If you excuse my forwardness Lady Rias, the reason I let Zill leave is because if the battle had continued he would have done exactly what he said he would, go after the weaker members of our group. While me, Kenta-san, yourself, and Akeno-san can fight long range, others in our group are predominantly close quarters fighters where Zill has a ridiculous advantage. All of this considering you have a new pawn who has little to no fighting experience in the supernatural world" Yumi calmly explained to Rias. 

"You have no right to make that decision Yumi. While I appreciate you jumping in to protect my peerage members tonight, please keep in mind that I am the Governor of Kuoh and all of you and the denizens of this city are my responsibility. Zill being out there is danger to all of us" Rias scolded her nephews Bishop. 

"I do apologize for not referring to you for a final action call" Yumi gave Rias a small apologetic bow. 

"Buchou, Yumi did what was best for all of us! She didn't have intentions to defy you" Kiba walked forward to defend Yumi from his masters anger. 

"My point still stands Kiba, Zill being out there is a greater danger than whatever he could have done to us right now" Rias bit back at her knight much to surprise of many. 

"We should contact Sona-sama and Marid-sama. They would want to know about this" Akeno suggested to her King. 

Rias who knew what her queen was trying to do, conceded to her queen's unasked plea. 

"Very well, Akeno and Yumi, contact Sona and Marid respectively and tell them what happened tonight. I will teleport everyone back to the clubroom" Rias sighed as she begin creating a teleportation circle for everyone. 

Soon in a bright red flash everyone had left the industrial compound. All but one.

"This is getting very interesting!!" a sinister voice, hidden in the shadows of the compound spoke with amusement before leaving the area itself. 

Meanwhile 

"I believe this is all we have on the agenda for now. Until Lord Marid can finish his concoction, there is nothing to discuss. In the meantime, we will make sure the heroes of the Olympus are well fed and kept safe" Zekram Bael said stoically once all the agendas of the meeting were addressed. 

"Indeed. We Satan's will keep in contact with the Olympians to ensure a peaceful resolution to our problems can be reached. However, for your sake I hope you take care of them and are prepared to hand over Lord Barbatos son and his allies in a worst case scenario" Sirzech Lucifer replied icily. His blunt remark earned him a glare from the only two Satan faction members in the room. 

"We will keep that in mind" with that the father son duo stood up and left the meeting hall leaving the Satan's, Lord Sitri, Sona and Sairaorg the only people remaining in the room. 

"That was entertaining" Marid chuckled. 

"More like reckless from you Marid. While I understand the deteriorating relations between yourself and Great Satan Faction, the way this meeting was handled was reckless. If the word got out that the current leadership of the Devils didn't see eye to eye on current matters, then we can practically kiss our chances for a peaceful resolutions with Olympus" Lord Sitri scolded Marid on his reckless negotiation tactics during the course of the meeting. 

"I don't know what you are talking about Lord Sitri, as far as I can see the negotiations with the Great Satan Faction went terrifically" Marid replied a little confused. 

"Would you like to explain on that" Lord Sitri replied a little perplexed at Marid disinterest in his behavior during the meeting. 

"Gladly. Apart from the fact these guys are one way or another behind my run in with Heaven a few years ago, a run in which could have potentially restarted the Great War, this was the best way to handle these Devils. If I hadn't been that blunt with Zekeram Bael and his son then there was a very big chance that they would have tried to strong arm these negotionations with Olympus as a way to show their political superiority over the current Satan Faction. This was act that would have definitely backfired with the Olympians as they would have waged a war with us despite us having quite a few powerful fighters courtesy of the Rating games" Marid explained with a smile. 

"I see now, but still the negotiations could have gone more smoothly. If the word had gotten out about the two leading factions of the Devil world not seeing eye to eye, the results could have catastrophic for both factions. However, despite my years of experience in deal making and politics, I cant think of a way we could have gotten a better result out of this meeting" Sona and Serafall father admitted with a sigh.

Any further talk was halted as both Sona and Marid simultaneously received a communication request. 

"This ought to be interesting" Marid wondered aloud once he noticed his Bishop requested a contact with him on their emergency channel. 

Within the next few moments after receiving their respective calls, all smile and amusement vanished from Marid and Sona's faces, something that others noticed.

"I am sorry people but we would have to cut our party short and return to Kuoh. Me and Sona are being summoned to Kuoh" Marid announced as he stood up from his seat alongside Sona.

"Ohhh, is something wrong?" Serafall asked innocently. 

"Ah nothing serious, its just that Marid's newest Rook just messed up during a stray Devil hunt" Sona snarkily replied. 

"Oyeee" Marid protested but by that time Sona had already left the room much to others amusement. 

"I will get her next time" Marid mumbled before heading towards the door. 

"Marid be safe" Sirzech regarded his oldest son, he knew something was wrong for the two young Devils to leave the meeting in such a hurry. Despite their best efforts to hiding their worry off their faces the older Devils knew something had happened back home. 

"You know me Dad" Marid replied confidently with a easy smile before heading out the door. 

Later - Bael Manor

While Marid and Sona headed back to Kuoh, certain other Devils were having their own discussion.

"Father I cant believe you let that little brat talk to us like that. Even if his father and God father are among the two of the strongest being this race has ever produced, that little brat shouldn't have had the gall to demand things of us!" Lord Bael spoke angrily.

"I agree but the situation has changed ever since the last time we broached on the subject of Marid Gremory, son" Zekram Bael tactfully replied.

"What do u mean?" Lord Bael tilted his head in confusion.

"That the situation has greatly changed. After watching Marid negotiate with us, I am strongly under the impression there is something large at play and Marid is in the middle of whatever that is due to come" Zekram Bael confessed to his son.

"Something large at play? Are you talking about the sudden movements of the Old Satan Faction or the creation of the new magicians group?" Lord Bael enquired.

"This may be connected to that but I am more importantly talking about Marid and his demands" the faction leader replied seriously.

"His demand of embarrassing ourselves in front of that cow Zeoticus when we convince/threaten him to give his grandson underworlds most prime property. A property that was part of the gift House of Bael was due to receive at the completion of the marriage contract between Rias Gremory and Riser Phoenix" Marduk Bael asked indecorously. 

"That is the thing son… Marid Gremory gains absolutely nothing by asking for that property in negotiations" Zekram Bael chuckled.

"What do you mean?" Marduk Bael asked confused.

"If Marid is able to successfully able to achieve peace with those pesky Gods, he would qualify one of the three requirements of securing a promotion" Zekram Bael explained much to the shock and then horror of his son. 

"Making a significant contract with party/parties which proof to be bountiful for the future of the underworld" Lord Bael completed his fathers line of thought.

"Exactly, if Marid is able to achieve peace, he would qualify for the promotion of Ultimate Class Devil due to the sheer importance of the peace for the future of the underworld. We could potentially make a case where we could play on Marid youth or insignificant power to stop his promotion to Ultimate class Devil this early on. However, if he somehow managed to secure an actual alliance with the Gods on the basis of that wine of his, then even with all of our political support we won't be able to stop the Satan's in granting him the promotion" Zekram Bael elaborated while pouring himself a drink. 

"But that still doesn't explain how Marids negotiations are connected to this.. oh " Lord Bael stopped mid sentence as he realized what his father was getting at.

"I see you have caught on the implications of this son"

"Yes father. If that brat is able to somehow get the promotion, then as an ultimate class devil he would legally would be able to demand any property in the underworld as part of our traditions. Since this deal will most likely will be completed before Rias and Risers engagement, Zeoticus Gremory would still be the owner of the said property. As a result he would be honor bound to honor Marids wishes" Lord Bael sighed as he understood what his father meant. 

"Exactly which is why I said something big is play at here"

"Could all of this be a big error on Marids part?"

"No Marid looks like a Devil who doesn't make this kind of mistake. He has proved to me he is truly a Devil, more so than even his father and the other Satan's. A trait I was only able to identify in our Lord Lucifer" Zekram Bael explained before finishing his drink. 

"What must we do father?" Lord Bael asked with a sigh.

"Gather everyone part of the Great Satan faction. tell them to ask their informants in Old Satan Faction, Heaven and Church on any information regarding Marid Gremory. Any rumor, trail, knowledge, history, his mentors, friends, his peerage members, his love interest or anything. If they have anything on Marid Gremory I want it. Marid Gremory is becoming a big player in this world quickly and I want to know his plan. It is clear to me something big is at play here and I want to know what it is before its too late" Zekram Bael ordered his son as he himself went onto contact his own scouts within various factions around the world.

CHAPTER END

  Damn that chapter was tough to finish. Alright I wont be writing anything major in the P.S but here is the gist of somethings I want you guys to know. Firstly, I will be going on a holiday soon so the next chapter will be a little delayed. Secondly, I am starting the first major arc of this story. Since I am not following the exact events as in the canon DXD, things will be a little different to how the canon Asia-Raynare-Issie thing plays out. So heads up on that. Also, keep an eye on the next chapter since there will be a lil confrontation between Rias-Sona-Marid. I am excited to write on that!!

Other than that have fun and stay safe people!!

Dragon God Zalama Out!!!!

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