Highschool DxD: A New Opportunity - Chapter 50

Part 3

MC’s POV

I find it hard to describe my mood.

*Boing* *Boing*

*Boing* *Boing*

That said, I find this to be an extremely suspicious situation, nothing can be so good, and the fact that it was prepared by that super dangerous devil, I can only feel like things will take a sudden turn somewhere. My guts are telling me to grab my maids and run, but I had already accepted to sell my soul to that guy in exchange for many benefits, and I must fulfil my part of the deal.

Sighing, I take a look around the carriage we were riding. Sitting beside me on one side of the carriage was Marion-san who was observing the two other passages sitting in front of us.

*Boing* *Boing*

“New maids, more ‘gifted’ than me, more powerful than me…” Marion-san’s mutterings were a bit pitiful.

*Boing* *Boing*

Yet I cannot deny those words. One was at Middle Class (High), and the other one at Middle Class (Mid), above my level, and obviously above the bitter maid who was weaker than me by a good amount. The gifted part is quite true as well since the shaking of the carriage is like a grim reminder from Marion-san. I was honestly trying my best to not fall for my instincts, but the fact they moved in such a synchronization was hard to ignore.

Sitting right in front of me was one of the maid’s that came to work under me, Sirius. A girl with high levels of charms, with a height of over 169 cm, she had short white hair in a bob cut that reached her shoulders along with red eyes, she was dressed in a frilly maid uniform that could hardly hide her curves, in particular, the open window of the upper part showed a generous amount of her ample brėȧsts, going down she had a something akin to a mini skirt that bȧrėly reached mid-thigh, just slightly below that she wore white stockings, creating what it is known as ‘Absolute territory’s, and while this might seem unnecessary, every time the carriage shook, a certain part shook as well, drawing the eyes Marion-san and me. Her name was Sirius, just like the star.

*Boing* *Boing*

I can only say… Impressive.

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Getting down the carriage, I could feel the sun rays bathing me, or rather, burning it. That damn fake sun, from all the hours of the day he could’ve chosen one where the sun did not rain on me so ruthlessly. I dropped some seeds on the ground and soon I caused them to grow. This particular plant created a big leaf where it began growing into a Gigante’s tree so I took the lead that was almost as wide as me and passed one to Marion-san who had just gotten down. With calm movements, she took it and…  covered me.

This girl-

“This is for you, you know?” I gave it a twirl and it was not covering her.

“Murmur-same, please stop joking.” Marion-san turned it over to cover me.

As the other two maids got down I created another two and I handed them some leaves, but they-

“Honorable Master! I understand!” Sirius-san clenched her fist in shaky determination.

Just like that, she also covered me with the leaf.

“I will accomplish your order!” Alkaid-san did not stay behind and did the same.

Face palming, I sighed.

“This is for you guys to cover yourself, the way to the castle is unnecessarily long so we are bound to get quite a bit of sun on our skins,” I said. “I can create one for myself, also, Sirius-san, I told you to call me Nora, honorable is not something I should be called.”

“It is a maid’s job to serve the master!” Marion-san declared.

“I might lack the regular skills of a maid such a cleaning and the like, but I will do my best to service you,” Sirius-san muttered.

“I-I have to serve you, or I might get thrown away…” Alkaid-san spoke in a fearful tone.

Ah! What should I do with these people? While I am a huge fan of a maid’s way, making three girls use the leaves to cover me from the sun while they are receiving its full might does not sit well with me.

While I was pinching the bridge of my nose in irritation, I caught with eyes the figure of Nil who had gotten down the carriage driving seat. His figure as the three maids fought to cover me looked lonely, and I felt a bit of pity. Old guy, sorry about that, I completely forgot about you.

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After handing one leaf to Nil, I reached a compromise with the maid’s, which came to be a blessing for me. Instead of having them cover me while they remained uncovered, they would use the three leaves to cover the four of us as we walked glued to each other. Sirius-san and Alkaid-san took their positions to my left and right, blessing me with a soft feeling as they stuck close to me, and since they had used the sacred method of rock paper and scissors, they end up taking that spot while Marion-san stayed behind me.

That is why, please stop staring at me with that accusatory look Marion-san, I did not ask for this, you lost, and any possible benefit I am getting from this is just a coincidence. Indeed, just a coincidence that I am enjoying myself.

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“Did you take a look around the area?” Zekram-sama asked.

After being guided to Zekram-sama’s office by Nil, the man in question, or rather, the devil asked me that when I sat in the only chair located on from of his desk. Nil took a position slightly behind Zekram-sama, while the maid group formed a triangle shape around me. Sirius-san and Alkaid-san beside me, and Marion-san behind me.

I nodded at the words spoken to me, I did happen to check the few villages he had close to his castle.

“They looked like rural villages and there was hardly any modern technology but the lifestyle of the people there was not bad. They lived on farming and used the rich land to accomplish that. I did notice that the land was made like that through a lot of effort though, the land on the villages and their surroundings looked rich, yet when we went far enough, the earth looked almost dead, I saw some vegetation growing but those were plants that only grow on hard soil.” I explained.

Nodding with a satisfied expression, he seemed pleased by my answer. I went for a detailed explanation of what I saw since I doubted he asked for a simple ‘they looked nice’.

“I have considered that it should be time for you to take upon certain responsibilities, but I am still preparing the proper paperwork,” Zekram-sama said. “That said, I thought you would need to learn from the basics regarding how to study the land, yet it seems you are more well versed than I considered. That is a good thing.”

I knew that getting new maids did not come for free.

“However, I did get you a mansion in the capital so use that as your base of operation when you are there. While you will not use it that much when the paperwork is done, I think you might need it for the time being.” Zekram-sama commented. “It is is a bit far from the centre of the city but I consider that something good since you will have some privacy.”

New maids and a mansion, is this the famous grandpa in a ring’s treatment? The guy takes me under his wing and gives me his treasures little by little. Yeah, no, that is not happening.

“I am surprised that you managed to get maids of this quality though, even I using my influence can’t hire them…” Zekram-sama had a thoughtful look on his face.

Nil handed him a file that I am pretty sure he did not have a second ago.

I wonder if getting these two was that much of a feat?

I could feel a complicated mood coming from Marion-san.

“It is ok, regardless of what anyone says, you are my first maid. I will not throw you away.” I spoke to the depressed maid.

Her mood got better and her face had a smile hanging on it, until-

“I will make you much stronger, you will become super strong, don’t worry, I will raise the training schedule,” I reassured.

For some reason though, Marion-san smile froze and tears were gathering at the corners of her eyes. How strange.

“I got a gist of the situation, you made quite a big impact over there,” Zekram-sama spoke.

Having finished reading the file Nil handed to him, he looked at me with a hard to read expression.

“Now, let us get to the main point I called you here for?” Zekram-sama muttered.

What? You are saying giving me some cute girls to serve me was not your main goal? Why am I not surprised.

“You are familiar with the Gremory and Sitri, am I corrected?” Zekram-sama asked.

It was not hidden knowledge so I simply nodded.

“They could be said to be the light of the devil’s society, always the good guys who attract everyone’s attention,” Zekram-sama commented. “That said, you should be aware more than anyone that not everyone decides to walk on a path of light. Some are pushed to a dark path or choose it by themselves.”

Like it was not his business, Zekram-sama continued.

“Either way, both sides exist despite the fact they clash so often, and neither side can be completely eradicated. It is something I learned from experience.” Zekram-sama’s glare on me got heavy. “You have been focusing too much on the light, and while you have seen the darkness… you have yet to see a certain thing, and I will show you.”

Staring me from his position, I almost felt like his figure became larger, and pressure like I never felt before caused me to stiffen. I had to stop Sirius-san and Alkaid-san who pulled out their weapons when they saw my state.

It is good they want to protect me, but he would probably wipe the floor with them, he is a guy who survived until this point and simply hiding was not the reason.

I did not retort or try to get away from here, I had already accepted a lot of things in exchange for his help. That said, I had the feeling that something I have never faced before will happen, and it will change many things.

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Using several teleportation circles, Zekram-sama took the lead of the party this time. It kind of felt like when in an RPG you can’t decide what the character you are supposed to control does.

For one reason or another, we also had to wear hooded cloaks and I even had to hide my Youkai traits, my newly added maids had been doing it since the beginning so I was the only one who had to do it, one mask on our faces was added to our equipment, they had many designs and in my hands ended a fox one. The irony was interesting as always but the mood was only good heavier the more places we moved to, I could tell that we were not going to a nice place.

The last place we teleported to was a city, we came out of a four-story building with a simple design, and we had to leave as soon as we teleported. It seemed like a commonly used location since there were multiple teleportation circles and people other than us used them. The city looked unnecessarily grand, almost to the point of being made by someone with bad taste who was hell-bent on making it look luxurious but made it look vulgar. Ostentatious and flashy, with many buildings containing showings, I wouldn’t recommend reserved people to come here or they might get headaches just by looking around. The people moving on the streets did not have a good vibe and despite the flashiness of the place, a hard to understand gloominess was hanging around. Some people wore skimpy clothing while others wore hoods and masks, or noble-like garments. The smell of tobacco and other ‘less legal’ substances drifted in the air, making me feel that law was not very common around here.

As I was walking-

“You must always remember, you must take revenge for what they did to us.”

“I don’t want to take revenge…”

“Stupid! Have you forgotten what I taught you!?”

A tall and blue-haired man in his thirties was arguing with a girl with similar blue hair, both wore noble-like clothes, and the man seemed angry, enough to be about to hit the girl. Just before he did it, I glared his way and directed my killing intent at him, he froze like a frog facing a snake.

“Stop or else…” I warned.

There are a few things I won’t tolerate, and this one was one of them. The girl looked young yet she probably had to face this on daily basis, I could spot a few bruises under her sleeves after I used my ability.

The girl sighed in relief and maybe she was so focused on what she would feel to notice I caused the man to stop, but the man looked scared yet he tried to put on a strong bravado until I raised the amount of killing intent and he hastily grabbed the girl and walked away.

“Your actions might cause him to go harder on her later…” Zekram-sama commented.

Under his mask, he looked indifferent and just observed me.

“I know, but you can’t just look away from something like that when it happens in front of you, besides…” I pulled a tiny special needle from my pouch. “I am not much of a nice guy myself and can be quite nasty.”

Aiming carefully, I threw it at the guy, he felt it because I saw him touching the area it hit but he failed to find anything so he continued to walk away.

It was the needle that was formed by the substance I prepared, it will dissolve pretty quickly so it is hard to notice, I did not have that much practice making those so the content will only weaken him, make him forgetful and distracted.

“I see.” Zekram-sama looked slightly pleased. “Now, then… let’s see how you deal with that, your petty tricks won’t help you there.”

Ominous words left his mouth as he turned around and continued to guide the group until we reached a tall and wide building with no windows and only one large door, it had a dome shape and would easily double in size of the biggest stadium in my past life. The door was being guarded by a pair of gargoyle-like beasts that had over three meters tall and bulky bodies made of stone. Their eyes scanned us for a moment before Zekram-sama pulled a badge and they just ignored us after that, allowing us free entry.

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It did not take long for me to learn what kind of place this was and it caused me to feel uncomfortable. I was aware that this sort of thing still existed in modern times, and even in my old world you would hear about it now and then, yet it makes me sick that in this world, something like this exist to this scale.

“Welcome to the slave auction this time around, we have a wide ȧssortment of goods you will certainly enjoy!”

The voice of the host as he walked around the wide stage could be heard clearly despite lacking any sort of microphone so it was probably some magic spell. I was sitting on a chair in a special VIP room, separated from the regular people sitting on chairs near the stage. We were in a higher place and a window I was told only allowed one-sided view protected us from any prying eyes.

Beside me, Zekram-sama looked indifferent, probably used to this kind of thing. Nil was also calmly standing at one side with his eyes closed, waiting for any order his master would say. The girls looked a bit pale and uncomfortable but they remained around me.

“Take this card, it is commonly used by aristocrats around the Underworld no matter where you go, you can only face problems in small and remote villages but it is uncommon for that to happen. I have placed a large amount of money there, you can consider it yours. The number on the left part indicates the remaining money so keep that in mind. Every single digit counts as a gold coin so be aware of that.” Zekram-sama said. “You have to be careful since the money I am giving is your starting money, the money you will use to manage a piece of land I will hand to you later. However, it is up to you how you use that money.”

My attention was no longer on the stage as I listened to the words of the oldest devil. He spoke suggestively as he handed me a black card but his eyes were on the stage.

“I only wanted you to find a servant with strong fighting capabilities but you got two, that said, I think you might need something else. How about a meat shield? I think you can use one I’m a case of emergencies.” Zekram-sama cruelly said.

“I would never-” I was stopped mid retort.

“Have you ever considered that even you wish for something to not happen, it will happen? When you leave this place you will have a slave following after you.” Zekram-sama coldly spoke. “Your naivety will cloud your mind one day, get rid of it. Do not try to deny what you see in front of you, or simply try to detach from this situation like it has nothing to do with you. Now that you are here, you can’t say you are uninvolved. You are part of the dark side of devil society already.”

Using a bone-chilling glare along with some pressure coming from his demonic power, Zekram-samaimpeded me from talking back.

“Nora Shiki, you have to look deep into the abyss to know what you are dealing with. Have you been blinded by being with those peace-loving idiots? You can’t neglect darkness.” Zekram-sama released the pressure. “Sit there with your mouth shut for the rest of the auction if you truly want to probe you want nothing to do with this place.

Finished saying that, he simply got himself comfortable on the luxurious chair and I kept my mouth shut as he asked.

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“Here we have a good specimen for those who like sturdy fellows, a werewolf with an impressive physique.”

The host introduced a werewolf of over two meters ripped with muscles, he had a collar on his neck and chains bound on his body despite being on a cage, his eyes were red and filled with vicious rage, and his grey fur looked tough to pierce with ordinary weapons.

“He has a wild nature but as always, with the slave crest, he will follow your commands if you decide to buy him. The starting price is 300 hundred gold coins!”

I was not sure whether that was cheap or expensive for a slave, but many people began biding like crazy after the host said those words.

“That is quite a bargain for a werewolf on his prime, but I can see they used some sort of drug to make him lose his reasoning, he is being made look fiercer than he is,” Zekram-sama commented. “You could also bide for him, he would be a good meat shield, after you take that substance off his body, and nurture him correctly.”

His words were suggestive, but I ignored them.

“And, sold to the lady over there for 1000 gold coins!”

The werewolf guy end up in the hands of a woman who after seeing behind her mask with my ability, I saw a face full of ŀust as she licked her lips.

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“This time we managed to get a drake, the ones who caught it…”

Another one was introduced and my feelings were getting duller with each passing second. I could feel the worry from my maids, but one glare from Zekram-sama stopped them from talking.

“That one is no good, it is too showy and you would not be able to carry him everywhere, although if you get him, you could use it as a ride,” Zekram-sama said.

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Gloomy feelings were flooding my mind and I was on the verge of throwing up, disgust was one word I found lacking to describe what I saw.

Elves, dark elves, sirens, harpies, and many other fantasy creatures were shown on stage. Creatures I never had the opportunity to see before were easily displayed on the stage. Being bought like pieces of meat and their futures became uncertain.

Is this some kind of torture? To do something for them seems unlikely for me… no, it might be possible.

“Now now, for the last merchadience, we have an interesting catch.”

As those words were said, the figure of a young girl around 15 or 16 years old perhaps as her body had shown signs of development, long black hair and green eyes, she would probably be a beauty if her eyes did not look almost dead and the obvious scar on her neck wasn’t there.

“Her strength is around Middle Class so you might wonder why this human girl is a special product, well, it is confirmed that she has an unawakened high-grade sacred gear.”

At those words, those who were still sitting around showed clear interest. The girl just looked left and right, some fear showing on her face, but like many others before her, her body was chained down.

“Truthfully, her worth does not end there, she fought bandits attacking her village from an early age and almost wiped out many of those, but an unfortunate incident cause her to fall into the bandits’ hands, and you might be wondering what that is.”

The girls visage paled and tears threatened to come out of her eyes, she looked like she was pleading for the host to not say anything but while her mouth moved, her voice did not come out.

“It is quite the funny story, to be honest, the people she was protecting with all her heart and soul sold her out to the bandits, they had been told that if they handed her over, they would not attack the village again. The most amusing thing was that her parents drugged her and personally presented her to the bandits. Even they felt disgusted by their actions and cut their heads on the spot before proceeding to slaughter the village. Thus, she was left alone. The scar on her neck was when the bandits got tired of her cries because of her parents’ death, despite their betrayal, she still cried for them. Quite the moving story. Oh, but don’t worry gentlemen in the public, she is still a vɨrġɨn, the bandits considered many things and given the dire situation they decided to sell her untouched to raise her worth.”

What the f**k?

“She can’t talk? Then screaming is impossible for her, that takes all the fun of torturing her.”

“The sacred gear sounds attractive and she looks very tasty so she would make a great ‘partner’.”

“A black-haired human, my son broke the last one we got for him so perhaps getting a Low Class one was a mistake, this one should be about more sturdy, right?”

Words after words kept getting thrown, and they seemed to crush that girl’s spirit. With tears spilling down she looked from one place to another, seeking help.

“I can see that she caught your interest, the starting price is… 10000!”

Gasps of surprise and grunting noise could be heard as soon as he said that, but the host did not seem bothered.

“This is the price that the bandits specified so there is not much I can do, feel free to bid for her, unlike our usual rules, we will allow you to bid by units despite the fact we usually do not allow it when the price is this tall, considered it a service on our part.”

Grinning wickedly, the host shut his mouth and waited for others to speak.

“Even if it was confirmed to be high grade, it could be a supportive type instead of an offensive one so her worth could be lower…”

“For a Middle Class of another race, it might be worth it…”

“I need to get a new woman for my son or he will get annoying, ah, who cares! 10001!”

“Here we go, the first offer, who offers more?”

“10002!”

“10003”

Like that, the numbers kept increasing and the light was about to disappear from the girl’s eyes.

“10100!!!”

“10100 gold coins, who offers more!? The man over there has is about to get her, anyone else wants to bid before that happens?”

It was probably my imagination because there was no way she could’ve directly stared at my eyes, but it felt that way, the girl was pleading with me. All the feelings of powerlessness from before pushed me and I spoke aloud.

“15000.”

There was silence and many eyes got directed at our VIP room, maybe it was because, during the whole auction, we had not shown interest in any of the ‘products’, people were surprised but quickly lowered their heads fearfully. It seemed that the VIP room held many meanings.

“Unbelievable, raising the price for so much at once, now then, anyone else who dares to raise the price? I must remind you of the punishment for raising the price for fun!”

Many people who had raised their hands midway immediately lowered them.

“And… sold! This lovely and valiant girl has been sold to the guest on the VIP room.”

Along with those words, I felt relief over being able to help that girl, but I also felt like I lost something. I had bought another being.

“…why did you buy her?” Zekram-sama asked.

He who did not try to stop me even if he could simply show no change of expression.

“Do you plan to release her as soon as we leave?” Zekram-sama inquired. “Are you truly that naive? What do you think will happen to her? She will be captured easily, the fate of a runaway slave is no different from a stray devil.”

Biting my lips, I could not deny those words, I truly could not accept owing her like that.

“You know what is worse? You are technically abandoning her to her fate. Giving her hope just to crush that hope as you leave her alone.” Zekram-sama added.

“Master-” Marion-san tried to speak up for me but-

“Silence, the servant should not get in the way when the master is having a conversation.” Zekram-sama raised his voice.

Some irritation rose from me as he spoke to my maids that way so I retorted.

“I am saving her, there is nothing wrong with that!” I said.

“Saving her? Those are some nice words said by a hero of justice, but don’t get full of yourself! You planned to abandon her, you think you are saving her just because you helped her for a tiny bit?” Zekram-sama berated me. “You have to think of the consequences of your actions, it is the same as before, that child, you think you did her a favour? While you handled the situation well and made it so the man would not hit her again for while, you can’t expect that to never happen again. You did not act simply out of kindness but self-satisfaction!”

Hitting the armrest of his chair, Zekram-sama angrily glared at me.

“Responsibilities, remember that well, as the Murmur’s heir, you will need to learn to take full responsibility for everything you get involved with.” Zekram-sama shut his mouth.

I was left thinking about my actions, and since the auction was pretty much finished, I stayed quiet. Mulling over what to do about that girl took surprisingly quite a bit of my time.

At the end, I was naive for thinking that.

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“As you all know, the main event is finished, and now we have the ‘leftovers’, they can be used to anything you might like, they are pretty cheap so you can even eat them, no one will worry about them in the real world now that they ended here.”

Snapping his finger, the host signalled to the ‘leftovers’ to enter the stage. Two… children ‘came’ in.

They were not tied by any chains… because there is no need to.

The first one was a girl with long white and red eyes, she looked like the very description of someone who lost hope in life and her body seemed to have been nurtured.

The second one was a girl whose eyes looked no different than the first one, with no hope in life, with short brown hair and golden eyes. Her arms and legs were in a terrible shape, bent in the wrong direction and from a quick use of my ability, I could tell that her bones were broken and left to heal that way, she was dragged to the stage but she hardly fought back, her face grimaced in pain so she could still react to her injuries.

“Let us start with the brown-haired one! She is genius in anything you put her through, but sports was her was she was known for, she end up here after the jealousy of her friends exploded! Isn’t that nice!? 30 Gold coins!”

“She is a cripple, she hardly worths the trouble, and even if she was a sports genius, like that she won’t be useful.”

“Wouldn’t heal her cost more than the actual value she has? Not to mention that you can’t guarantee she will show the same skills again…”

People began complaining as soon as the price was given.

“Now now, I told you that she can be used as food too. The other one is pretty cheap! 1 Gold Coin! The value is set because she is useless at everything she does, no matter how much you try to teach her!”

The people began complaining again, but I was focusing on something else, Zekram-sama was staring at me. He knew what I planned to do, but he was waiting for something else.

“I will take responsibility for them,” I said as I glared at the oldest devil. “I will make sure they have a bright future and won’t certainly abandon them, the same goes for that other girl.”

Understanding how serious I was, Zekram-sama just looked away.

“Do as you please, the many are for you to use as you see fit, you might have troubles later, but that will be part of the responsibilities you will have to take care off one way or another,” Zekram-sama muttered.

“If no one bid this time, they get disposed-”

“I will take them, 50 gold coins each of them,” I spoke.

The price is way higher than what he asked, but I considered that necessary, the attention of both girls was attracted to the room I was and some interest was displayed despite their hopeless expressions.

The moment I decided to take them, I thought it was important that not only I healed their bodies but their mental state needs some care as well.

Nonetheless, I should’ve paid attention to what the man meant with ‘disposed’, I wouldn’t have been so shocked if I had known.

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As the auction finished, we were walking down a hallway that led to the area we would ‘get’ our merchadience. It led to other auctions taking place, we were on a fairly normal action but there were other ones where you could get more powerful slaves or even monsters.

“Hey, where should I take the disposable goods?”

“Huh? Downstairs, the basement where we keep the monsters…”

I happened to overhear the conversation of two workers, and before my rational mind could stop my body, my eyes pierced through several floors until I saw it. The fate of the disposed of, the unwanted ‘goods’… they ended as monster food.

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My mind was a mess after that, and I managed to get my act together by the time we met the new girls. They looked at me in fear, and I could not blame them.

After I paid the guy, he left us in the room alone with the girls. I continued to stare at them and they at me, no one spoke and I saw when Zekram-sama restrained my maids, it was like telling them not to interfere with my actions. He probably wanted to see what I would do.

Taking a step forward caused the girls to tremble.

Saying that I came to save them is not correct, I am a scum who bought them like pieces of meat, they won’t trust me, and saying it was ok wouldn’t put them at ease. However, I could only do that.

“I doubt you will believe me, but I am not here to harm you,” I spoke in a kind tone. “I don’t want you to trust me because of my words, you don’t know me enough for that, but I want you to do it because of my actions. It will be ok, they won’t harm you anymore, it is ok.”

They must’ve been pretty desperate since they reacted easily to the part where I reassured them. However, none of them made a move.

I bit my lips at that, I was frustrated.

Perhaps when I tried to reassure them, I was trying to reassure myself.

“You three, listen well, he is your new master, you are obeying his orders from now on,” Zekram-sama spoke.

Stepping in, he ignored my glare.

“Regardless of what you were or who you were before, you are now his servants, forget about your past, he will grant you a new life, a new beginning, let him show you what he is capable of and wholeheartedly follow him,” Zekram-sama exclaimed.

The eyes of the girls looked about more alive than before as they scanned my figure.

“They have nothing to live for, and the old life is something that torments them in their dreams so you need to choose your words wisely,” Zekram-samaadvised. “You decided to take responsibility for them, do not forget that. Oh,they still need that slave crest, the geass.”

“Is that necessary?” I asked.

“They are slaves, if they are seen without them when they leave, many will give you unnecessary attention. Trust my word on that.” Zekram-sama bitterly said. “Worry not, they are not going to remain visible for a long time, it could be troublesome for devils who get their evil pieces this way if the geass remained visible.”

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My mood was not the best after the bestowal of the crest, it was a painful process and the begging eyes of the girl’s made me want to step in, but Zekram-sama restrained me. There seemed to be a difference between the mind control geass and the slave geass but I could not focus on it at that time, I could only hastily ease their pain when everything was done, their eyes softened somewhat whenever they looked at me after that.

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The way back was awkward and my mind was weary, we had some issue moving the brown-haired girl but everything worked out in the end.

I thought I was going to be taken to the castle again, but instead, I was teleported to a large manor big enough to house hundreds of people with ease. The girls looked exhausted so Sirius-san and Alkaid-san took them to a room for them to rest, I had provided basic treatment from them and got rid of several ailments they had so their bodies urged them to rest now that they did not feel that much pain. Only Marion-san remained at my side, along with Zekram-sama and Nil.

“Devil society is much darker than you think, and no one is free from such a thing,” Zekram-sama commented.

I could only nod at that, my head was a mess and I honestly just wanted to go home and take a nap, I was tired, not my body, but my mind. I doubted I could take any more shit.

“Even the history of your adored Gremory is not that clean.” Zekram-sama nonchalantly said.

“Huh? What are you talking about? They are good people!” I retorted.

I had met them, and along with the Sitri’s, they were people who helped to clean the mess I caused at that facility, despite their hiding, I was not so naive to think it all disappeared by some magical spell.

“You did not know? I think it has been a few generations ago since they stopped getting involved in that, but let me tell you something betting my status as the oldest devil. The one who started that auction from before was the first generation Gremory. He sought to get many women so he created a way to get a supply of them. Several generations after him also got involved in that.” Zekram-sama spoke.

Eh? No, no, no… no way. It has to be… No, no, no.

No, no, no, it can’t. My friend, no, my friend can’t relate to-

They are good people… right?

After those words, my mind could not keep up anymore, I heard that Zekram-sama muttered some other things but I was not listening, I did not even notice when he left and the worried stare of Marion-san was on me.

After that, I honestly can’t remember what happened. I was told I disappeared for a couple of days.

Part 4

3rd Person POV

“Is there something you want to say, Nil?” Zekram called out.

Calmly sitting in his office, the oldest devil was skimming over some documents when he spoke to the butler standing near him.

“Sir, was it necessary to put him through all that and even tell him such a thing when he was so stressed? I think his mind could be on the verge of breaking… he is only 10 years old…” Nil muttered.

The oldest devil stopped his actions and turned to face Nil.

“He will eventually find out, and it was perfectly fine to push him this far.” Zekram seemed unconcerned.

“However, you could’ve waited until he was more mentally prepared! Even if he overcomes this, won’t he simply cut his connections with the Gremory? Were you aiming for that?” Nil raised his voice. “His personality might even become chaotic and he could even decide to join the extremist side from that city!”

Not minding such a thing, Zekram calmly stared back at the butler.

“If that happens then I will erase him with my own hands, it is my responsibility, he can’t endanger the Underworld.” Zekram coldly said. “I don’t care whether he remains allies with them or not. I decided to support him not as the older leader of the King Faction but the individual, ZekramBael.”

Nil continued to stare at Zekram for a while before giving up and turning around.

“My apologies, I went too far, Master.” Nil apologized.

“It is ok, I do admit I was a bit forceful and hasty, but I wanted to see… what he is made off…” Zekram sighed.

—————————

3rd Person POV

In another place, unaware of the fate of the cat.

Gondul and Rossweisse were coming back to the villa of the older lady, they had been too busy until now to come here. While they passed through the village, the young valkyrie kept getting thanked over and over which left her puzzled until she asked for the reason and learned what the boy did. It left her speechless but it sounded like something he would do. So, for every thank you she received, she also thanked him in her heart, making her think about him all the way through until they arrived at the villa.

However, the two were surprised when they found the villa much different than they could remember.

Their housing was completely covered by white roses. They walked closer until they could spot a certain thing attached near the entrance.

As the white roses grew to cover the whole house, Gondul and Rossweisse found a note attached to it.

‘This is the proof of your growth, when I arrived here, these roses were a small bud, lacking a lot of things, but now you have grown a lot, however, don’t think that you reached your limit, look at this plant, usually, they do not grow this big, but I ȧssure you, you (Rossweisse) can still grow, as much as these white roses.’

The boy was no more, he had left already, but he left an absurd gift. While Rossweisse read the note, she smiled unknowingly while her face turned a few shades of red, however, she did not notice, nonetheless, someone standing beside her reading the note did.

With a knowing smile, Gondul carefully entered their home without damaging the plants, and a minute later she came with a neat piece of paper, titled, engage agreement.

“Rose, I heard you say the boy spoke to you before about this, so here it is.” Gondul handed the paper to the girl.

Rossweisse did not immediately take the paper but instead seemed lost as she continued to stare at the note. Sighing with a defeated expression, the older valkyrie thought that her granddaughter was truly a special case.

“Eh? Huh? Ah, that, yes, he spoke to me before…” Rossweisse sadly spoke.

Unaware of her expression, she took the paper and stared at it for minutes.

“Well my dear, there is a slight issue here. You see, he left you will all the power to do as you please with that paper.” Gondul raised an eyebrow suggestively. “While you can test it apart, you can also leave it like that, I mean, it is not like it will change anything, right? Before you guys found out, none of them had any issue, did you?”

Confused, Rossweisse nodded, but still tilted her head curiously.

“You don’t have to tear it apart, you can even keep it to tease that boy later…” Gondul suggested.

“To tease him? Yes, I should keep it to tease him, yes!” Rossweisse nodded happily.

Hiding the smirk that crept on her face, Gondul morphed it into a gentle smile.

“By the way, I heard you need to find a new subject to make your essay, right?” Gondul nonchalantly commented. “I know about a certain person who has an interesting sealing barrier…”

Those words picked the young valkyrie’s interest.

“It is the leader of the youkai’s, Yasaka…” Gondul said.

“But… I just broke the engagement with Nora-kun…” Rossweisse lowered her head.

“Now now, it is not like you are on bad terms, are you? Perhaps, you don’t want to see him?” Gondul muttered.

Failing to notice that the conversation has shifted slightly, the young one shook her head fervently.

“No, it is not that! I do want to see him! Ah… No, uh, I think seeing him would be nice, I want to check on his studies of Norse magic.” Rossweisse shyly looked away.

The older valkyrie was pleased with that reaction, and she inwardly thought that the boy messed up by leaving all the power on her granddaughter’s hands. While the innocent girl was unaware of what she was feeling, there was there that pushed her to meet him again, and Gondul would not miss that chance. It was all for her beloved Rose, so she hoped that the boy would forgive her actions.

—————————

3rd Person POV

“I managed to meet him like you asked, infiltrating on the Nordic side was a success. However, is he an enemy? While I had not my Deus Ex Machina with me, he saved my life.”

A figure could be seen holding a conversation in the middle of the night in an abandoned building.

“He is to be watched, for now, keep an eye on him and act favourably towards him, try to get as close as possible and… no, never mind, focus on what I told you.”

Holding a strangely shaped mechanic gadget, the figure heard the voice coming from it cut the conversation.

“*Sigh* But, I wouldn’t mind becoming friends with him despite the mission…” The figure sighed. “Heroes are hard to find, I wanted to meet and see what kind of things he will do, just like the person who saved us…”

Slumping her small shoulders, the figure walked away, when she happens to pass by a window, it illuminated her blue eyes.

———————-

3rd Person POV

A small figure walked aimlessly on the streets of the underworld at late hours of the night, his blue eyes looked devoid of life as he moved forward.

That figure continued to walk no matter what, even if people tried to talk to him, he just simply ignored them.

He would avoid bumping into people or simply use another street to avoid the agglomeration of people. Such as the situation where he used one to avoid a group of people patiently waiting in front of a bookstore.

“Grayfia-san, thank you for saving my spot while I went to buy some food. I truly wished I could use magic, that way I could keep at I needed with me using space magic.”

“Fufu, magic is convenient but that one does not freeze time.”

A pair were holding a conversation in front of the store, it was a woman with silver hair and red eyes, Grayfia Lucifuge was standing there while she spoke to another person who was waiting in line just like her, a woman in her early twenties.

“Is that so? However, it would still be convenient…”

Grayfia smiled wryly at those words, but soon felt the need to turn her head to another place, nonetheless, she failed to see anything other than the numerous people going around.

There was this nagging feeling but she could not find what was causing it.

…

…

…

The small figure continued to aimlessly move around, and once again avoided an agglomeration of people.

“Hehehe, So-tan will look great in this Magical Girl outfit, I can’t wait for the store to open up, lining in for days is going to be worth it!”

A short figure jumped happily on her spot in front of a certain store, Serafall Leviathan had a shiny expression when she sharply turned to one side.

Huh? I thought that…” Serafall confusedly titled her head.

…

…

…

Time went by, and the figure no longer found itself in the Underworld, but rather the Human World. However, he seemed unawares as he continued to walk. The sun and the moon had switched places and the clouds in the sky were ready to make rain. However, nothing changed for that figure, he just continued to walk. Until he came across an event that picked his interest.

A disfigured man, who had arms long enough to reach the ground was chasing after a woman who looked to be in her 40, and her outfit screamed office lady. The disfigured man looked injured but despite that, he could easily follow after the woman, and they soon continued running towards a park, passing by the small figure who went unnoticed by both. The small figure soon went after them as that scene caused something to sparkle in his eyes.

Thunder and lightning made their appearance on the clouds, announcing the rain that began to fall.

The chase did not last long, the heel of the woman broke and despite desperately crawling away, the man caught up with her.

“Hehe, lucky, after that woman disappeared, no devil has taken custody of this town, I can move as I wish, hehe, escaping was a pain, but now I am truly free…”

The man creepy laughed as he got closer to the woman.

“NOOOO! Help! Someone! Help!”

Yelling at full capacity, the woman sought a helping hand as she crawled felt on her backside as tried to crawl away, however, she soon found her back against a tree and had nowhere to run.

Rain furiously fell and lightning illuminated the sky showing the ghastly appearance of the man, and making the woman terrified.

“I bet you will taste very nice… a little old, but you have enough meat…”

The man was about to attack the woman when a small figure approached at full speed and kicked him away, that kick worsened the man’s wounds and blood was splattered on the woman and the small figure who kicked the man. The disfigured man rolled on the ground for several meters.

“You… Ok?” The small figure spoke in a hoarse voice.

A pair of cat ears and tails could be seen on him, and the blue-eyed boy tried to put on a harmless smile despite the stiff expression his face had fixed and his eyes that looked like those of a dead fish. Nonetheless, what he received in exchange for his action was not the gratitude from the woman he saved but instead-

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH! HELP! Help! Another monster! He wants to kill me!”

The hysterical screams of the woman who looked even more terrified than when the man was chasing after her.

The already stiff smile on his face froze and his eyes looked worse, his extended hand did not try to reach for the woman to help her stand up.

…

…

…

“Yukari-san, what is the hurry? I was on an important mission.”

A voice asked, he was an aloof man appearing in his mid-twenties, with long hair tied back by a blue ribbon, wearing a white suit with gold buŧŧons and shoulder pads, and a matching hat with a blue band, at his side, he carried a katana and a revolver. Flying beside him was a pale young woman with long, black hair and red eyes. She wore a pitch-black sailor uniform with a pink ribbon around the neck, and a black scarf styled after her dragon form’s scales, on her legs she had pink leggings with no shoes.

The person he spoke to had brought him over hastily by using her abilities, even now she was slumped on her couch while staring at a gap she opened, despite the rain that keep entering that gap.

Noticing the mood the woman was in, the man also got closer to the gap and strained his eyes to peer into it.

“Sakamoto, depart at once. He is there, he needs help.” Yukari spoke. “You have always been better than me at talking, and right now, his mind is fragile… not to mention, that $##[email protected]+ dared to say that…”

Focusing further, the man managed to observe what Yukari meant and soon his eyes got serious and he adjusted his hat.

“Oryou-san, let’s go… Hmm? No, never mind.”

The man, SakamotoRyouma, was about to head out but he stopped in place.

“We are not going anymore, Ryouma?”

The young woman flying beside him asked and she looked ready to go.

“I doubt she schemed to get there, and I suspect she simply got lost, but I believe she would be better for the job than me,” Ryouma muttered. “Even I am not so kind to forgive that woman, either…”

Yukari understood his words once she glanced back at the gap and relief filled her heart.

“You were ready to jump in though…?” Yukari teased.

“I would just honestly take him and leave, if I stayed I would probably kill that stray devil… and that woman, after all, that boy…” Ryuoma covered his eyes with his hat. “Besides, wasn’t that the case for you? You were afraid of losing control.”

“Ara? I would simply destroy everything aside from him in that park.” Yukari smiled.

“Ryuoma, Ryouma, Oryou would’ve eaten the whole park.” You seemed to be competing as she said that.

Face palming, Ryouma wishes the boy the best of lucks, because in the future he will have to deal with more people like these two.

…

…

…

The small figure, Nora, just stood there covered in blood and soaked in water from the rain, the woman kept screaming, and something inside him was breaking.

“He… Hehe… Hehehe… Haaaaaa” Nora cried.

Nonetheless, perhaps because of the rain, the tears spilling from his eyes were not noticeable.

“What is it, boy? Hehehe? Shocked? That is how people usually react to monsters like us, hehe.”

The man had stood up and gleefully laughed at the boy’s misfortune, even adding more fuel to the fire that was causing his sanity to disappear.

Taking the opportunity when the boy was simply standing there unmoving, the man got closer and using his large hands, lifted the boy by the neck as he began to strangle him.

“You are such an eyesore, getting the way of my dinner… Hehe, and this woman is the most stupid human I have seen, wasting her opportunity to be saved… Hehe.”

The man tightened the grip on the boy’s neck but he did not react. The woman no longer screamed and fearfully curled in her place.

“Haha, getting lost while looking for the old man’s Udon Shop after a mission, if I tell Tomoe about it, she will laugh at me…”

A carefree voice that did not suit the scene was heard, and between the trees, a figure appeared.

Silverfish pink hair in a ponytail held by a fan-like hair ornament, blue eyes, wearing a blue sleeveless kimono with an obi, black detached sleeves, black thɨġh highs, and sandals on her feet, maple earrings and two katanas were sheathed at her waist.

The man froze, and the woman who shaking felt hopeful after seeing the figure of the girl who appeared.

Blinking in surprise, Musashi rubbed her eyes for a moment to confirm that what was happening in front of her was real.

A woman crying on the ground, a deformed man and held in his hands was-

“I see,” Musashi muttered.

She immediately dashed, unfazed by the weather’s effect on the ground. Once she was close enough to the man, moving at a speed he could not perceive, she drew her sword and cut off his arm, releasing the boy who fell to the ground. Before the man could scream, she kicked him away.

Sighing, she looked at the boy who was in an abnormal state, and she worried about him before she could check him-

“Oh, thank you, thank you! You are a human, right?”

The crying woman clung to her leg desperately. Musashi was about to reassure her when-

“You will save me from these monsters, right? It was so scary, first, the man chased me out of nowhere and then this small creature suddenly started fighting the man and was about to attack me!”

She heard what the woman said, and immediately, the kind smile she was about to show the woman disappeared and gripped her sword before drawing it. Splitting in half the man who was stealthily trying to attack them.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

The woman cried in fear, but soon calmed down and pointed at the boy in the ground.

“That one, there is still one more!”

Like she had done a good job, the woman looked proud to point at the boy.

“Get lost.” Musashi coldly said as she sheathed her sword.

“Ah?”

The woman was not sure of what she hears so tilted her head.

“I said… get lost! Didn’t you hear me? Do you want to end up like that man over there? Do not test my patience, I am having a hard time not adding your body to the death count! He? A monster? Look yourself in the mirror, you look more like a monster than him.” Musashi berated.

Ignoring the shocked woman who began to back away in fear, Musashi gently picked up the boy.

“What happened to you, Nora?” Musashi muttered sadly.

Even now, the boy’s eyes were open but he did not seem to be staring at anything. Biting her lips, Musashi shifted him until she was piggy carrying him.

“Haha, what lucky encounter, I happened to find a black cat during this lovely weather, lucky me, lucky me.” Musashi merrily spoke. “Oh, don’t you think I forgot about it, Musashi-chan will invite you to eat some Udon, but first, let’s get you a change of clothes, these are kind of dirty. Geez, I told you to not play in the mud, but you are a kitty who does not listen to reason.”

Using an upbeat tone, the girl walked forward as she carried the boy. Musashi considered her options and decided on a store to go and get him some change of clothes.

During the whole way there, she did not stop trying to talk to the boy using a kind but gentle tone full of energy.

…

…

…

“You will have to forgive Musashi-chan, the size is a bit bigger, but there was nothing on your size,” Musashi commented after leaving the store. “Let me get you a nice and warm bath. Oh, what is that? Do you want to bathe with Musashi-chan? Hehe, well, if you insist, she will enter the bath with you.”

Despite her words, the boy did not reply, but the girl did look discouraged, she only felt inclined to try harder. The rain had stopped and she felt like the moonlight was a sign of a bright path ahead.

…

…

…

“Kyaaa! Ecchi! Musashi-chan is in shock!” Musashi blushed.

After arriving at her residence, she undressed the boy to take a bath together and was surprised for a minute. However, she got her act together and undressed as well before she guided him to the bath.

“You look cute but… Ahem, this is nothing for Musashi-chan, now raise your arms like this! Banzai! Yay!” Musashi raised her hands.

Smiling wryly at his lack of responses, she was about to help him do that to wash him with soap but… the boy slowly raised his head, looking at her for a long time, enough to make her feel embarrassed, he tilted his head and copied her. It brought a wide smile to Musashi’s face.

“I knew you could do it, you rascal.” Musashi happily took the soap.

…

…

…

“Um, nice and tidy. Let’s go and get you some tasty Udon and leave your problems behind!” Musashi spoke.

Dressed in a pair of cheap jerseys, the two looked similar given their colour theme, but it did not seem to bother any of the two.

…

…

…

“Old man! Gimme two bowls of the usual! I will use the back area today!” Musashi yelled as she entered the shop.

Not minding the response from the owner, she led Nora to the back of the store where there was a small table for two, but she soon noticed fundamental trouble and instead of sitting one on each end of the table, Musashi sat with Nora on her ŀȧp.

Soon enough, the owner brought her the two bowls of Udon, and after convincing the guy that she did not kidnap the boy, they were alone.

“Here it is, Musashi-chan’s favourite, Udon!” Musashi gleefully smiled.

Despite the lack of response, she could tell that the boy was interested because he was sniffing nonstop.

She was about to help him eat it, but she saw him reach for the bowl and let him do it by himself. He slowly, very slowly brought the bowl to his mouth a drank the broth, it was just a sip, hot enough to burn his cat tongue, but he did not stop. Musashi felt him shaking and noticed that tears were spilling from his eyes. She refrained from saying anything until he lowered the bowl.

“It warms you up, right?” Musashi gently said.

Circling his smaller frame with her arms, she awaited his response.

“Un.” Nora nodded.

Despite his lack of words, Musashi still understood what he meant.

“What is hard?” Musashi asked.

“Un.” Nora nodded once again.

Tightening her arms, she hugged him.

“Were you lonely?” Musashi asked.

Nora trembled and he began sobbing in silence.

“It is ok… I am here with you, you are not alone…” Musashi gently held him.

…

…

…

In the end, the boy slept after crying his heart out, Musashi was troubled for a while but wolfed down the Udon and took him to her place again. After laying the futon, she put him to sleep beside her as she wrapped him with her arms.

…

…

…

Opening her eyelids thanks to the sunlight, Musashi found a pair of blue eyes staring at her, the face was pretty close and a blush covered his face. It took a second for the girl to react before she backed away with a similar blush.

“I-I just put you in bed to sleep! I did nothing else!” Musashi frantically explained herself.

“I know.” Nora calmly said.

Feeling a little awkward, Musashi avoided looking at him in the eyes.

“Thank you,” Nora muttered.

Not daring to face him, Musashi lowered her head.

“You have lent me a hand, for that, I am truly thankful, I, Nora Shiki, will surely repay you,” Nora spoke again.

Nonetheless, Musashi still kept her head low. It was not until she felt Nora walking her way that she raised her head.

“Thank you, for being the light that guided me during a dark time, keeping me from losing myself. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, I am truly grateful for that, my friend, Musashi-chan.”

At those words, Musashi smiled brightly.

“Anytime!” Musashi said.

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Author’s Notes

Well guys, there is the epilogue. I originally had planned to deliver it on time, but at 17000 words on Saturday I kept adding things and spent Sunday all the way to Monday morning writing. Thus what you have there. Hope you like it. When my body is better cuz my hand hurt from writing using my phone, will post the images of the characters I added. Feel free to guess who they are.

About the chapter, feel free to post any question you might have. Have a nice day.