Chapter 54: “Hanging out”

Story: I'm a Daemon, so what?

Disclaimer: I do not own the original setting.

Chapter 54: "Hanging out"

Once again, 15 chapters ahead at p@treon.com/theogbasilisk

Give me your money! Or don't it's up to you

__________________________________________________________________________

- Felix -

I looked to the side in embarrassment. "Ah… well. Can you just teleport us?" I sighed.

Luminous giggled lightly. "Cute." Before I could respond, we were engulfed in a wave of light.

I felt that I could interfere with Luminous's Spatial Motion and sort of hijack it and take us to a different set of coordinates.

Interesting. Usually, I'm the one who teleports everyone around, so I haven't been in the kind of situation where I can experiment with that.

I'll have to leave it for another time. I'll just enjoy being a passenger princess for now.

I looked around the area that Luminous had teleported us to.

Night Garden was located directly under the capital of the Holy Empire Ruberious, so it was an underground city.

Through various Magics that have been employed, you can't even tell that you are underground. If I looked up, I could see the sun and clouds.

Luminous's subjects were basically living the good life thanks to her efforts. If I remember things correctly, thanks to Veldora and the previous Great Tenma War the Vampire numbers had dwindled a lot, so Luminous had to do something to further prevent the decline of the Vampires.

She created a way for Humans to live in relative peace in harmony. Even with their freedom being restricted, they lived a decent life.

They didn't have to worry about dying to a random Monster attack, or dying of starvation. They had everything they ever needed, except for freedom.

She used the willingly given blood of her Human subjects to feed her Vampire subjects without any kind of death, basically allowing the Vampires to live in relative peace.

As an added bonus, since the Humans, in their perception, were living happily and willingly giving their blood to the goddess Luminous, the blood tasted better than normal.

I looked around where exactly Luminous had teleported us.

We seemed to be in some kind of fancy restaurant now. Though we did not appear in the waiting area, we seemed to have directly appeared in a hidden booth.

Luminous separated from me and took a seat on one of the couches. I sat opposite to her.

"This is the restaurant that I most regularly go to when I wish to dine out. They know to keep my identity hidden and always serve quality meals. I did not wish to wait with the common Vampires for a seat." Said Luminous.

I nodded. I imagine that if she appeared in the normal waiting area, there is a chance some people may recognize her, causing word to get out about the location of one of the True Ancestors, which could be annoying.

Though I doubt any would overextend, power was worshiped in this world, so no one would bother Luminous if they thought there might be consequences for such an action.

I imagine if Roy was still known as the Ruler of Vampires, then Luminous would have to put even more effort into remaining hidden.

After all, if she appeared in public, word would soon get out about her. Vampires were a long-lived race, and there were bound to be many who would recognize her.

Before I could think further, I was interrupted by the curtain to the booth opening, and in came a well-dressed older gentleman.

He bowed towards Luminous and then to me. "My Lady, I was not expecting you today."

Luminous nodded. "Indeed, a friend of mine wished to dine out today, and so I brought him here."

"It is an honor that you would think so highly of us Lady Luminous."

Luminous waved the man off. "Think nothing of it, Athan."

The Vampire I now knew was named Athan nodded. "Now, what would you like today, Lady Luminous."

"Hmm, get me some blood wine and Fire Dragon Steak." Said Luminous.

Dragon Steak was seriously the regular Wagyu Steak of this world, very fatty and tender, and only the rich could afford it.

Athan nodded and then turned to me. "What did you wish for, My Lord?"

"Give me what she got, but instead of blood wine I'd like red wine."

Athan nodded. "Very well, it will be ready shortly." 

And with that, Athan left.

"He was pretty strong. What's he doing working as a waiter?"

He had all the basic Skills of a Vampire, Blood Raise, Charm, Coercion, Paralyze, Self-Regeneration, Shadow Motion, Steel Strength, Transform, and then he had some less common Skills as well.

He had no Unique Skills, but he was still quite strong, easily at the Special-A Rank.

Vampires would really be the ultimate race if they did not have their weakness to sunlight and need for blood.

The sheer amount of Intrinsic Skills they had was absurd, and each of them was useful too, not to mention their immortality and power.

Luminous smiled smugly. "He is one of Louis's direct subordinates, one of the Seven Great Nobles."

"Seven Great Nobles?"

Luminous nodded. "The Seven Great Nobles are a group of Vampires that have evolved past the standard Vampire and are capable of ignoring the sun and no longer require blood to function. Each of them are direct descendents of Louis and Roy."

"I see, so Athan is one of these Seven Great Nobles."

"Indeed, he wished to work as a waiter and Louis saw no reason to reject his desire, and so here he is."

I guess every being of sufficient age has a bit of a weird character.

Wanting to work as a waiter isn't the oddest characteristic I know of.

"He must be quite the interesting character."

Luminous nodded. "Indeed, I have known him for quite a long time now. He is far more likable than Prelix."

"Prelix? Ah, I think Ramiris mentioned him once. He was also a creation of Twilight's right?"

While Ramiris knew a lot about the world, I had come to find out that a lot of her memories were pretty hazy due to not being in full maturity yet.

So, while she did remember a significant amount, she had also forgotten plenty, so there are things she is not aware of.

Luminous nodded to my question. "Indeed, he was one of the Pupils of the Ancestors, and one of the few who did not take my murder of Twilight well."

"Oh? How come?"

"He seemed to want Twilight's approval and was always jealous of me for being the so-called perfect creation."

I nodded in understanding. "So he had daddy issues then."

Luminous laughed lightly. "Indeed, that is one way to say it. I imagine he would be infuriated if he heard you say that though."

Before I could respond, the curtains opened, revealing Athan holding a silver platter.

"Here is your blood wine Lady Luminous, and here is your red wine My Lord." Said Athan as he placed the drinks in front of us.

"Thank you, Athan." Said Luminous.

"It was my pleasure, My Lady. The food will be ready soon. Please excuse me."

I took a sip of the red wine. "Mmm, this is quite good. I do prefer Azeroth's own wine, but this is a close second."

Luminous nodded as she took a sip of her own blood wine.

I wonder how blood wine is made?

'Answer. It is a fairly simple process. Blood is simply added in during the fermentation; the stronger the being the blood comes from, the better it tastes to Vampires.'

'I see. Thanks Odin.'

"Back to Prelix, what species is descended from him?"

"A variant of Vampires is descended from him, the Night Stalkers. They are more powerful than regular Vampires in general; however, they suffer from severe side effects from being exposed to sunlight as well as extreme withdrawal if they do not indulge in blood for some time." Informed Luminous.

"I see."

"He and two others used to reside with me before leaving due to wanting to experiment further with Humans." Said Luminous.

"Oh? I didn't know that."

Luminous nodded. "Indeed, alongside Prelix, one of the True Ancestors of the current Humanity stayed with me, Pippin, and then the True Ancestor of Onikind, Ashley, also stayed with me."

"Huh, I had no idea that so many True Ancestors still lived, or did they die after they left your care?"

Luminous shook her head. "Last I checked they had taken over some small Kingdom by the coast and had founded a Magic Tower meant to further advance Magic. Though I'm sure they have many dubious dealings going on in the background. None of them care much for Humanity, and Prelix thought them to be bugs to be stomped on."

"Huh, sounds interesting. Maybe I'll visit sometime."

"Feel free, though I will warn you that they will likely try to capture and experiment on you." Warned Luminous.

"Well, they can try. I'm sure their attempts will be amusing."

It didn't take long for Athan to arrive with both of our Fire Dragon Steaks.

He set both of our plates in front of us. "I do hope the two of you enjoy." And with that, he left.

Very professional, would rate as a 9/10, I'd give him a 10/10 but that is reserved only for Raiden.

I took a bite of the steak, which practically melted in my mouth. It wasn't necessarily spicy, but it did warm my mouth the more I chewed it. It was surprisingly pleasant. "Hmm, it has a bit of a kick to it. I guess it gets that from the Fire Dragon."

Luminous took a bite of her own and nodded. "Indeed, it is part of why I prefer the meat of Fire Dragons to any other Dragons."

I took a sip of my wine as Luminous asked, "Now, why don't you explain to me what this Naruto that you called Rimuru is?"

"Ah, right, I did tell you I'd tell you about Naruto, didn't I? Well, I'll give you a summary, then I can give you the manga to read on your own time."

"Manga?" 

"Manga is a method of telling a story. It primarily uses drawings and chat bubbles to get the story moving forward. It comes in all kinds of genres and has varying art styles as well. If you want, I can leave a couple of different series for you to go through."

Luminous nodded. "I would like that. Perhaps, in the future, we could try reading a few of them together."

Ah, she would probably get bored if she read it all by herself. I sure as hell remember it being way more fun to talk about the different stories I read than just mindlessly reading them and moving on.

I have a feeling if I told Luminous that Veldora loves manga, she would purposefully not read it. She was extremely petty when it came to Veldora.

"Alright, I'll leave some manga for you then, but only if you promise to train your new Ultimate Skill."

Luminous pouted but relented. 

"I shouldn't even have to get you to do that. A Skill is only useful when it is truly mastered."

Luminous glared at me. "Tsk. Just because I consider you a friend does not give you the authority to nag me. I have agreed, and I am not one to break my promises. Plus, I would have gotten around to training the Skill eventually."

Ah, Luminous still has her pride. That's good. She's been acting pretty weird today; maybe I'm just being delusional.

I nodded. "I see. I'll leave it to you then. The stronger you are, the stronger our alliance becomes."

We made small talk while we ate, it didn't take long for us to finish.

Luminous chugged the rest of her blood wine before looking at me. "Now, do you still have time to accompany me?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I don't really have anything else to do."

I never told anyone when I'd be back, so I should be fine.

Luminous nodded with a satisfied smile. She offered me her elbow, which I gracefully took, and then we vanished.

–

After a long day, Luminous and I appeared back in the lounge of her inner sanctum.

"Well, that was fun." I voiced out.

Luminous nodded beside me. "Indeed, I did not think you would make for pleasant company, Felix."

"Hey! I make for the best company!"

Luminous smirked. "I do not wish to crush you, so I shall not argue about the truthfulness of that statement."

"I'll take that as a win."

"Of course you would." Sighed Luminous.

Before Luminous and I could continue our conversation, we were interrupted. "My Lady!"

We both turned to the voice. It was a short white-haired male, I don't recognize him but he must be somewhat important if he was allowed access to the Inner Sanctum.

"Saare." Luminous greeted with a hint of annoyance.

Ah, Saare, I think that is the name of one of the Ten Great Saints.

Saare kneeled. "My Lady, I apologize for arriving unannounced."

Luminous sighed. "I am most displeased, however, I will excuse your actions for now."

"Thank you, My Lady."

This guy is an Incomplete Saint just like Hinata, and he also has a Unique Skill.

Most impressive.

Unique Skill: All-Rounder has been analyzed.

Unique Skill: All-Rounder has been absorbed into Odin, Lord of Cursed Knowledge.

This is actually an incredibly powerful Unique Skill. It allows the user to copy all the Arts of an opponent once the opponent has been analyzed. Of course, the user of this Skill still needs to master the Arts; they just copy the knowledge, but that alone is still incredibly powerful.

Arts have no true limit as to how powerful they can get. Melt Slash is an Art, Dimension Fault is an Art, and even Time Stop is an Art, though I doubt that is nearly as easy to copy.

Still, if this Saare is smart, he will go far.

"I thought only Hinata knew about your true identity, Luminous." I responded.

Luminous nodded. "That was how it was previously. However, I have disclosed my identity to a few people Hinata approved of. The times are changing, so it is best that things change around the Western Holy Church as well."

I nodded. "Well, I'm surprised that I haven't heard of an uprising."

Luminous rolled her eyes. "As if I would be so careless, no those who were informed were intelligent enough to understand the significance of what I have done for Humanity."

"I see. Well, I'll leave you to your business. It was a fun date, Luminous."

Luminous' face twitched for a moment, but before she could respond I teleported back to Tempest.

- Kagali -

It had been far too long since Laplace had checked in, it should not have taken him too long to get out of the Great Jura Forest and arrive at one of their secret bases.

But for some reason, Laplace's message had yet to come, something that worried Kagali greatly, a worry that only turned into resignation and despair after she felt the artifact that notified her of Yuuki's status break into pieces.

It was fairly common for such artifacts to be used by various nobles and royals; it was an easy way of finding out if one of their kin had suddenly passed away, and it was not difficult at all for Yuuki to get his hands on one for each of their members.

Yuuki's artifact breaking could only mean two things. It may have malfunctioned, which was not impossible. Such a thing has happened previously. But the far more likely one was that Yuuki was dead.

Kagali had no idea how such a thing could happen so suddenly. As far as she knew, Yuuki would be going to attend the Tempest Founding Festival as a friend of Rimuru's, while Laplace would be taking out Hinata Sakaguchi.

They had everything planned out. The Anti-Magic Area covering Tempest was disabled thanks to Mariabell's influence, then the planned Chaos Dragon attack which was bound to cause enough chaos for Laplace to be able to take advantage of. 

Laplace had all the resources he needed to successfully take out Hinata Sakaguchi, and yet he had not contacted her about the success or failure of his mission.

The artifact connecting to Laplace had not shattered, meaning that he was alive. There were two possible reasons why he had not contacted her yet, one was that he was in a precarious situation and could not afford to make contact, or two, was that he was captured by the enemy.

Kagali was leaning towards the latter, which would explain the attack on Yuuki in that case. Kagali did not doubt Laplace's loyalty, so she would assume that they had some method to access the information he possessed, and Laplace knew everything.

It would make sense for Demon Lord Rimuru, or Demon Lord Felix, to come after Yuuki. He was involved in the Falmuth Invasion and partially involved in this attack on the Founding Festival.

Kagali could feel her fists clenching. She had lost almost everybody dear to her thanks to that blasted Daemon and Slime.

She needed revenge. This hatred inside of her was greater than even the hatred she held for Demon Lord Leon.

No, she would do anything to see Demon Lord Rimuru dead, and she would do far more to see Demon Lord Felix dead.

She still had access to her vast resources, and she could not control the three heads of Cerberus the same way Yuuki could, but they were each loyal to Yuuki in their own way.

Damrada had even sworn loyalty to Yuuki, so she knew she could rely on him and his vast connections for her plan. He would want revenge for Yuuki.

Misha and her tamed Magic Beasts would have their own resources, and she was grateful to Yuuki for taking her out of the slums in the Eastern Empire.

The only one she was not completely certain about was Vega, but Vega was a man who reveled in trampling on the weak and growing stronger. She would find a way to tempt him to her side.

Tear she knew would remain by her side no matter what. Even in her new life, her former maid was always with her.

That thought brought back fond memories, back when she was a little girl, back before her father…. 

She shook her head. She shouldn't be dwelling on the past now.

"President…" She turned to where the voice was coming from and was met with Tear, who was standing in the doorway to her room. Her head was low, and she clearly looked like she had lost her spirit. The usual playfulness in her voice was gone.

Kagali nodded. "Tear." She had already informed Tear about the fate of Yuuki and the likely fate of Laplace, and Tear did not take it well. First, they lost Footman, then Clayman, and now possibly Laplace.

It was far too much loss in such a short period of time. They had promised not to lose anyone else. But that promise had been broken, again.

Their family was being torn apart by the Demon Lords. But she knew that while she could blame Demon Lord Felix for their deaths, he was not in the wrong.

This was a world where strength mattered most. Those with power could do whatever they wished. There is a reason Guy Crimson ruled an entire continent uncontested because Humans were too afraid to make a move on him. 

The True Dragons are feared and allowed to do whatever they wish due to their strength. Even Veldora's rampages were only stopped by the other True Dragons or the occasional Hero. 

When it comes to the deaths of her loved ones, Kagali knew that Demon Lord Felix was not exactly in the wrong.

They made the first move all three times. They were the ones who originally released Charybdis to attack Tempest, they were the ones who gave Clayman permission to continue with his plan, and it was under Yuuki's direct order that Laplace ambushed Hinata Sakaguchi. The deaths of Footman and Clayman were justified, same with the likely capture of Laplace.

That didn't mean Kagali couldn't be angry about it, though. No, she was infuriated, and then Yuuki died.

Without Yuuki, what was the point of their dream? He was the one who was meant to lead them to their paradise.

Kagali sighed. She could think about all of that after she got her revenge. In the end, no matter what, both Demon Lords will likely get in her way, if only due to her participation in 3 of the attacks on Tempest.

"What did you need, Tear?" She asked softly.

It had only been some hours since Yuuki's death. Perhaps they could release their version of the story, and spread rumors that the two Demon Lords were behind the death of Yuuki.

While Kagali doubted it would cause a significant amount of harm, if the rumor gets traction it will damage Demon Lord Rimuru's popularity, something that may halt Tempest's rapid expansion.

She always had trouble planning around the two Demon Lords. Her Skill always acted oddly when it came to them.

Kagali did not think Demon Lord Felix cared much for his reputation. If anything, he seemed to just be assisting Demon Lord Rimuru with his goals while doing whatever else he wished.

The life of a Demon Lord was one filled with extravagance and hedonism, with all the Demon Lords being free to pursue whatever desires they wished for.

While an alliance of Demon Lords like the one between Demon Lord Felix and Demon Lord Rimuru was unheard of, both Demon Lords were free to pursue such an alliance.

The status of a Demon Lord made one practically untouchable in the Western Nations.

"President…" Tear muttered again.

She shook her head, she was getting lost in her thoughts again.

"Sorry Tear, go ahead."

Tear nodded, hesitating for a moment before pushing the words out. "The Western Holy Church has made an announcement. On the way back, one of the squadrons came across an attack."

Kagali suddenly got a bad feeling.

"They said they were too late to prevent the attack but were able to identify who exactly was killed in the attack. The Princess of the Kingdom of Siltrosso, Mariabell Rosso, and the Guildmaster of the Free Guild, Yuuki Kagurazaka. They had said they found evidence of the attack being due to a mercenary group called the…"

Tear stopped for a moment, clenching her fists in a mixture of anger and sadness. She struggled for a few moments, and after lifting her mask to wipe her eyes, she finally spoke up.

"A mercenary group called the Moderate Harlequin Alliance, a group that had attacked the Holy Empire Ruberious in the past."

Kagali paled. That should not be possible…. According to a theory Yuuki had, he believed that the Demon Lord Valentine was the God Luminous. After all, Laplace had said he had killed Bloody Lord Roy Valentine, someone who could rival her at the peak of her power. And yet there was now another Demon Lord Valentine on the Demon Lord's Council.

Yuuki believed that Demon Lord to be the true Demon Lord as well as the goddess Luminous of the Western Holy Church.

The only reason the Western Holy Church would make such a false statement was if they were ordered from up top, or it was indeed just a coincidence, which was highly unlikely.

The Emperor of the Holy Empire, Louis may have been responsible, but Kagali felt the order could have come from even higher up on the hierarchy, from the goddess of the Western Holy Church herself, Luminous.

The only reason that Demon Lord would make such an announcement was if she was in league with whoever killed Yuuki, and as she had now found out, Mariabell as well.

Seeing as it was likely that Demon Lord Felix or Demon Lord Rimuru were responsible, then that means that there is likely an alliance between three Demon Lords, two of which hold a massive amount of political power.

This… this was not good.

The death of Yuuki Kagurazaka would shake the world, he may not have publicly shown it, but he held a vast amount of influence over the world.

With his death, there would be no Guildmaster of the Free Guild, and while Yuuki had built the Free Guild up to survive his absence, Kagali did not think anything like this would happen.

She could not afford to take the helm of Guildmaster no matter how much she wished to. Such a position would put her in the public's eyes too much, not to mention Demon Lord Felix and Demon Lord Rimuru may know of her true identity and come after her.

Kagali could not take the risk.

"Do they know our identities?"

Tear nodded slowly, clearly exhausted. "They announced that a few of us had already died, but they revealed our existence. Currently, the world knows who we are and what we look like due to an artist rendering."

Kagali banged her fist on the table. "Damn it!"

"Uhm, there is more, though this might be good news." Tear added, forcing herself to smile behind her mask after seeing how angry Kagali was.

"What?!" She shout out. 

Tear didn't call her out on her sudden aggression, something that made her take a deep breath. Tear did not deserve this aggression.

"I'm sorry, Tear…" Kagali whispered, taking another deep breath. "What is it?"

"Ruberious had also announced that the leader of the Holy Knight Order, Hinata Sakaguchi has taken a leave of absence." Announced Tear, trying to lift Kagali's mood.. 

"Finally, some good news!" Kagali exclaimed. "That likely means that Laplace's attack was at least partially successful. Whether she is truly dead or simply injured remains to be seen."

Tear nodded along, finally regaining some of her usual energy. "Laplace is the strongest! I can't imagine him failing at anything…."

Tear shook her head and focused back on the matter at hand. "What do we do now President? The entire Western Nations is out for us now."

Kagali took a deep breath.

She began using her Unique Skill: Planner to the fullest. It allowed her to come up with a plan based on the information she possessed that would always be profitable. 

Of course, it hasn't been very helpful in her most recent plans, but she had no other choice but to rely on it at this point. She was far too used to Planner's plans being successful that when the Skill's plans failed, she was panicking.

Something she would have to correct in the future. If her Skill was proving to be unreliable then she would have to find a way to make up for that flaw.

She considered how she could go about getting her revenge and freeing Laplace when her mind went back to something Tear had said.

"You said that the death of Mariabell Rosso was confirmed?"

Tear nodded.

Part of Kagali wanted to rejoice at that. Mariabell had always been a thorn in the side and always thought so highly of herself, but Kagali was focused on something else now, her revenge and freeing Laplace.

Before she went further, she looked at Tear.

"Tear, I want to get revenge for the deaths of Clayman, Footman, and Yuuki. I want to free Laplace. Will you help me?"

Tear nodded, temporarily regaining her determination. "Of course, President! You don't even need to ask!"

Kagali found a smile growing on her face. "Thank you, Tear. Now you said that the death of Mariabell Rosso was confirmed?"

Tear nodded. "Yup!"

Kagali nodded. 

Mariabell Rosso, to the public's eye, was just some Princess from some small Kingdom in the Western Nations, so her death wouldn't cause too many ripples.

But she could use that. From what she knew, thanks to Yuuki, Granbell Rosso was seemingly attached to his granddaughter. Perhaps they could collaborate if he also wished to get revenge.

He likely didn't have as much information about the circumstances as she did, so she could use that information to get Granbell to the table.

Granbell had vast resources available to him. Even the Guardian of the West was likely his subordinate. Publicly, it was well known that the Count of the Cidre Border had a very powerful subordinate, one that was single-handedly keeping the Daemons of the Ice Continent out of the Western Nations.

The Cidre Border was located just north of the Kingdom of Ingrassia. It is the border directly facing the Ice Continent.

The Count was responsible for keeping the Western Nations protected from the Daemons of Guy Crimson, and there was a Guardian who had been assisting with this duty for generations.

The Guardian wore a mask and armor that covered him from head to toe. No one knew about his true identity, but Yuuki was able to find out so much thanks to Damrada and his contacts. Thanks to all the information he acquired, Yuuki was able to deduce that the Guardian of the West likely only answered Granbell Rosso.

This Guardian was extremely powerful as well; even Damrada admitted that he was a powerful foe, and Damrada had only recognized Hinata Sakaguchi, Rimuru Tempest, and Felix White as threats in the Western Nations in the past.

The Guardian was apparently named Razul by Granbell himself; the armor he wore was his true body.

Kagali was incredibly surprised that one such as Granbell would ally with Non-Humans, but she supposed that even he had to accept Razul due to the sheer power he offered.

However, since no one knew when the Daemons would attack, the Guardian of the West was seemingly always protecting the borders in case of a Daemon attack, so they may not be able to count on the Guardian much.

Still, perhaps Granbell could pull some strings.

With his help, they may just be able to deal with Demon Lord Felix and Demon Lord Rimuru, and if not that, then at least free Laplace. Kagali did not care what Granbell did after that.

She smiled as she finally had the foundation of a plan. Now all she needed to do was get in contact with Granbell, which was fairly easy as Damrada seemed to have some kind of personal relationship with Granbell.

With Yuuki gone, Damrada was proving his weight in gold.

- Felix -

"So he's dead then?" Asked Rimuru.

I nodded with a cheerful grin on my face. "Yup, Soul and all."

Rimuru sighed but nodded. "At least that's one threat taken care of." I could tell he was conflicted on how to feel about Yuuki's death, but I didn't say anything. That was for him to sort through on his own.

"Yeah, anyways, I'm off." I looked at all the papers on Rimuru's desk. "Have fun with all… that."

"Ugh, alright, see you later."

"Bye."

Now that everything that I wanted to do was taken care of and the Festival is over, I should be heading back to my territory soon.

After everything has calmed down a bit I think I'll go and visit another world, perhaps after Chloe and Hinata are unsealed and all taken care of.

And I already knew just what world to visit. 

'You still can't find the world of DxD Odin?'

'Negative. The coordinates that were deciphered from Ingvild's Soul lead to a section of the multiverse that does not yet exist.'

'So you're saying DxD just doesn't exist then?'

'That is the most probable outcome.'

'But how? Ingvild is clearly here, and with my information, I know the world she comes from. How is it possible that her world just doesn't exist?'

'The most highly likely reason is due to the individual Ingvild was Summoned from the future. At this moment, the universe of DxD does not exist, however, that may change in the future.'

'Summoned from the future?!'

'Correct.'

That's… huh. That's just crazy. The fact that the Otherworlder Summoning ritual can pull from different points in time.

So the universe of DxD hasn't been born yet huh? I'd need to time travel if I want to get Ingvild back to her home.

I've traveled to other universes, time travels differently in each of those universes, but in the end they are all still linked to this multiverse, so it isn't quite time travel, more like time dilation.

Traveling straight up to the future, though? That's something completely new. I have no idea just how safe that is and if the Voice of the World will even allow something like that.

The coordinates Odin was able to pull from Ingvild's soul clearly aren't enough to lock onto a universe that is born in the future.

There are only a few options, one I have to wait until the universe of DxD is born, which is likely an uncountable number of years away, or two, I can learn how to time travel.

'Could you get to work analyzing the feasibility of traveling to the future?'

'Affirmative. It has already begun.'

'Great, thanks.'

I'll come up with a plan after I have more information.

Well that ruins the plan of going to DxD at this point entirely. Now, how am I going to break this up with Ingvild? I know she has been looking forward to going back to her home world….

Though there may be a positive side to this, since we have time to prepare, we can save Ingvild's mother from the fate she suffered in canon, so everything isn't hopeless.

Well, I'll have to come up with a good way to explain things to Ingvild soon. It's best not to delay with these kinds of things. Ingvild has put her trust in me. I owe it to her to at least properly explain everything. I'm not a total dickhead.

- Guy Crimson -

He sighed as he looked down at Dino, who was lying on the floor as if the chilling temperatures meant nothing to him. He hadn't even bothered to bring a pillow and was just resting his head on the cold floor without a care in the world.

At least despite his laziness, Dino's strength hasn't decreased. In fact, it only seemed to have increased for some odd reason.

Perhaps some sort of Skill?

Guy had long since suspected Dino of being the bearer of one of the Sin Series Skills, specifically the Unique Skill: Sloth.

After all, Guy did not know anyone else who would qualify for such a skill other than Dino. The Fallen Angel was practically always sleeping.

Perhaps an aspect of Sloth was that it made the user stronger the more slothful they were, it wouldn't be the first time Guy had seen a Skill like that. Milim's Skill came to mind.

"So you're saying Dagruel kicked you out, and now you have nowhere to stay?"

Dino desperately nodded. "Yes! So can I stay with you? Pretty please?"

He really didn't want to deal with Dino long term. That sounded like a pain. In fact, he would likely end up killing Dino out of sheer annoyance.

Perhaps he can have his new friend Felix deal with Dino? Though he did hear about the recent attack on Tempest, the Humans must be forgetting the majesty of a Demon Lord if they thought such an attack would be successful.

Rain had said it was a large group of Otherworlders that were quickly taken care of, something Guy did not doubt.

Mere Otherworlders are incapable of standing up to the might of a single Primordial unless they were truly extraordinary. Not to mention there was not just a single Primordial present, but four that were present in Tempest at that moment.

The thing that he was interested in was the apparent release of the Chaos Dragon. He hadn't felt a thing, but that was due to him not focusing his senses in on Jura. He wasn't one to micromanage The Nine Sovereigns, after all.

Rain did not have much information. She said Felix was being tightlipped, but Guy just thought she had forgotten to ask about the Chaos Dragon and was pushing the blame away.

It wouldn't be the first time.

But apparently, the Chaos Dragon was dealt with. Seeing as Milim was present, Guy wondered how that went.

Had she decided after all this time to put the beast down? Or did she seal it with Felix's help?

He'll have to ask next time they see each other.

Hmm, Tempest huh?

Perhaps he can throw Dino to Rimuru? He has been hearing a lot of interesting things about Tempest, Rain had explained a bit about The Dungeon, and he was quite interested.

It was a good way to make use of Small World. It was reliant on Veldora's Magicules, of course, but if Ramiris was in her true form, then Guy had no doubt that she could maintain a hundred-floor dungeon single-handedly.

Ramiris, in her prime, was just that powerful. Even the True Dragons would have to be wary of her.

Tempest was really making a huge mess of things. Sending Dino to spy on Tempest will be useful.

He wouldn't expect much from Dino. This was primarily to get Dino out of his hair, after all.

"How about you go to the Monster Nation Tempest and give me some information about how everything is going over there?" 

Dino groaned. "But that sounds like a lot of work!"

Guy appeared above Dino and looked down at him. "Unfortunately, I'm not giving you a choice, Dino."

Dino began kicking his feet up like a child. "Seriously? Couldn't you send like, Rain or something to do that?"

"Of course not. You know how she is."

"Then send Mizeri—" Dino began before feeling Guy pressure him. Sighing out, he brought an arm to cover his eyes from the light. "Fine, fine, it's not like I have a choice in the first place."

Guy smiled happily at Dino. "Great! See, this is why I like you, Dino!"

"You like me enough not to make me do this?" Dino asked hopefully.

"No."

"Ugh, fine, fine. First, Dagruel kicks me out, and then you make me work… this is not my decade. I swear, what happened to hospitality? A couple thousand years ago, you let me stay here for a few years. I liked that Guy more. Remember the good ol' days? I would sleep in the corner and you would do your thing, whatever that was."

Guy rolled his eyes at Dino's whining. He wondered just how Dino ended up developing the Ego he had now.

Did Veldanava order him to lie on the floor often when he had no Ego? And his current personality is just a side effect of that?

He wouldn't put it past Velda.

"Get up and leave, and take this." He created a letter in his hand imbued with his Aura, which should be enough for Rimuru to take in Dino. It is under the request of Guy Crimson, after all. No other explanation was needed.

Dino sagged his shoulders but accepted the letter, giving Guy one final begging look. Yet after getting nothing but a glare he finally left.

Guy looked to his side where Rain was standing. "You said Felix had another unknown Daemon Duke under him?"

Rain nodded. "Yes, she wasn't nearly as strong as us, but she was powerful."

Guy nodded. "How interesting."

According to Rain, Felix had a few direct subordinates who were a cut above the rest, subordinates who were easily capable of dispatching Saints.

There was Arcueid, Megumin, and Lalatina, who he already knew of, each extremely powerful now that they were named and incarnated.

Not to mention their Lieutenants, Arcueid had the sole Arch Duke of the Daemon Realm under her, a Daemon undefeated by all who had challenged him.

That Daemon was unmatched in the Daemon Realm as long as no Primordial fought him, he may have even evolved into a Daemon Duke if he was named and incarnated.

There is a reason why subordinating a Primordial will mess up the balance so much, each Primordial had such a vast force under them, that, if used to its fullest extent, could burn the world to ashes. 

Before Felix's existence, there were only three beings who had ever reached the rank of Daemon Duke in the Cardinal World, Rain, Misery, and him, and only one who had reached the rank of Devil Lord, him.

Now, there was another Devil Lord, and many new Daemon Dukes. The world was changing quickly.

Truly, a single being is capable of turning the world upside down. It reminded him of when he and Rudra began their game in earnest; the world had gone through many changes back then.

Daemons weren't the only formidable forces under Felix either.

Rain informed him of the Oni serving under Felix, one who had energy reserves surpassing even Saints.

Something quite impressive for a degraded race like the Oni. From what Rain saw, it seems that rather than restoring her lost ancestral power, this Oni under Felix was evolving in a never-before-seen direction that had even Rain confused.

According to Rain, this Oni was named Saeko and had impressive battle instincts. Should she grow, she would be a formidable foe, which was high praise coming from Rain.

Rain may be useless herself, but she was a Primordial, she did not give recognition lightly, not to mention Rain had said that this Oni had Certain Outcome, a Skill that could even reach the Ultimate levels if properly trained.

Then there was Felix's maid, who was named Raiden according to Rain, she was a Dragon Lord, and according to Rain, Raiden was approaching the level of reserves that Rain herself had.

For a Dragon Lord to be capable of approaching the reserves of a Daemon Duke Primordial was quite astonishing.

She may just be the strongest Dragon descended from the original Elemental Dragon to exist in the current era, though the Dragon Lord that Sylvia's Dynasty had was also formidable.

The Dragon and the Oni hadn't even acquired Divinity yet. She still had room to grow, just like Rain and Misery.

Though he was doubtful that they would reach that level, even Rain and Misery had not become Devil Lords after thousands of years incarnated in the Cardinal World.

Guy had tried to get around the restriction they had, but it seemed they were incapable of undergoing the Harvest Festival.

They should be capable of reaching the status of Devil Lord on their own, however, they would need to train for that as well as enter conflict often, something both Rain and Misery did not do, so Guy believed it would be a long time before those two acquired Divinity, if they ever did.

Then, apparently, there was another new Daemon under Felix's employ named Sukuna. Rain did not get to see his abilities but she had said she disliked him acting similar to Diablo.

According to Rain, he was also as powerful as a Daemon Duke, although he was not quite at Rain's level, but he was still powerful. Though he seemed to be some variant Daemon similar to Beretta, if Beretta could even be considered a Daemon anymore after the changes it went through.

That's two Daemon Duke subordinates under Felix who aren't Primordials. Guy found himself wondering just how Felix managed to get the Daemons under him to that level.

If it were so easy, then the incarnated Arch Daemons under him would have reached that level long ago.

Perhaps he will have to ask him the next time they meet.

Then there was Clayman's former fox, who now serves under Felix. The fox also grew astronomically stronger when compared to how she was under Clayman.

It was quite interesting that everyone under Felix had grown in strength so drastically. 

Naming, of course, had a part to play, but that alone was not enough. His subordinates must be training an incredible amount.

If Naming and Incarnating was enough, Misery and Rain would both be far stronger than they are now, rather than merely being around the same level as the Primordials under Felix.

Their Deathman host bodies are made up of the corpses of a million Humans each.

He glared at Rain and Misery. These two could serve to learn something from Felix's subordinates.

While he didn't doubt that their Physical Bodies were more powerful than the ones the Demoness Trio Incarnated in, Daemons were never physical fighters, and the Magicule bonus that they gained from their host bodies could be made up for with training, which the Primordials under Felix were clearly doing, unlike his own.

"Did you need something, Lord Guy?" Asked the clueless Misery.

He sighed. "No, no."

Misery turned to Rain. "He must be mad at you again." She whispered.

"Huh?! Why would he be mad at me?" 

Guy sighed and ignored those two hopeless idiots.

Then there was Carrion, who had submitted to Felix, Carrion still had the potential to Awaken into a True Demon Lord as well.

Those were just Felix's subordinates, and the Slime also seemed to have a rather significant force under him.

Truly, it seemed like the game between him and Rudra would be ending soon. Why else would it seem like everything was coming to a climax?

Hopefully, Felix will visit soon. He was getting quite bored. If he takes too long, he might just visit Felix himself. It has been a long time since someone so entertaining has shown up.

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I am highly motivated by your guys' reviews and likes, so do that! I'll probably keep writing or something.

I have a discord server, come hang out if you want! https://discord.gg/VxR5Gn72Fp I also have a channel in Shiro's Gaming Omniverse.

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Author's Note:

Sup everyone, this was a bit of an intermission chapter between events. A lot of stuff has happened recently, the attack on Tempest, Hinata going to the past, and now Yuuki's death, so I think this was a much needed breather in between events, after all the chaos isn't over yet.

We get to see Dino annoying the shit out of Guy as well as the next world travel hinted at.

About Ingvild, I realize now that DxD really isn't going to work for what I have planned for the future of the story, so I used my author powers to move it into the future. DxD just has so many broken abilities that would ruin Tensura, Penetrate, Half Dimension, Divide, Boost, Rizivem's Sacred Gear Canceller, etc. Of course this doesn't mean DxD is completely off the list, but it will be a good bit into the future rather than the next world jump like.

Anyways, peace.

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"According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way @Bonvoyage should be able to fly…. He can't, in fact, fly. Which makes Bon sad." - Bon