Chapter 59: Chaos Begins
I have no idea of what to say about the latest OPM... That was some Flashpoint Paradox shit happening there
Within the bustling crowd of Kuoh Town that night, many pass-byers either ignored or did not pay attention to the group of three men surrounding a young woman who was pressing her back against the wall. Perhaps it was because the young woman did not look so troubled despite the leering gaze the men were giving her.
She was a teenage girl with pink hair with her bangs combed to the side. She was clad in a simple t-shirt under a black biker jacket and a skirt that only covered half of her thighs, complete with a white sandal-shoes. There was a black choker around her neck, and some accessories on her wrists and earrings.
Katase simply gave an amused smile as she watched the men around her attempt to woe her.
"...Say, I actually forgot to ask - which school do you go to?" one of the boys asked her.
Katase looked up, her eyes rolling playfully before she smiled in reply, "Kuoh Academy. You know about it?"
"Aha! I knew it! No wonder you look familiar. How about I show a fine cherry blossom like you a good time?"
"Oh, and I bet you have friends who are cute like you, right? Why don't you call them over?"
Katase hummed while tapping her finger on her chin, "Hm….. How about this? You boys show me your idea of a good time, then I'll decide whether my friends can join or not." She finished with a knowing wink.
The men looked amused, "Ho, we got ourselves a bold one here. Well, let's not shy away from her challenge, eh?" the acting leader then jerked his head to his buddies before they walked away.
Katase then followed suit, surrounded by the boys - one in front of her, one on each side, and the last one behind her.
They exchanged banters, casual topics and jokes as they walked through the crowd; even Katase laughed as she allowed one of the guys to wrap his arms around her shoulder and pull her against him - his palm reached to her breast and cop a feel, which she relished the feeling with a subtle moan as her reaction caused the boys around her to leer her more.
Eventually, they had walked far enough from the crowded street, towards a secluded old office building.
"Heeh… So this is your so-called 'cool place'?" Katase mused as she walked forward, looking around the interior.
"Yep, pretty cool, eh? We got this whole place for ourselves." the leader of the boys bragged.
The leader nodded to the others, and they began to spread out, with himself approaching Katase's defenseless back. Not that he knew that Katase was grinning as her hand grasped something inside her jacket.
The man behind her was about to wrap his arms around her when something unexpected occurred.
"Wait, wha- GAHK!"
A scream - followed with a crunching noise, then gurgling as everyone turned towards the source… Only to see one of their friends was being assaulted by what appeared to be a person gnawing on his jugular.
The acting-leader walked away from Katase, flabbergasted at the gory sight as blood was splattered across the floor, "What the fuck…?"
Suddenly windows were crashed, doors were broken open as everyone looked around to see… Some sort of a horde of zombies made out of clay and earth.
"Whoa!"
"Holy shit!"
"What the fuck are these guys?! One of 'em got Taku!"
The undead merely moaned and began to make their way towards the nearest other guy.
"No, no, stay away!"
Things had gone really south as Katase watched the boys being chased, caught and eaten alive. The last guy realized that things were hopeless before he proceeded to grab Katase by her arm.
"Come on, let's get outta here-"
However, the next second the man found Katase had pried his hold off her, pulling him before throwing him towards a group of undead that was flanking them.
Katase simply cringed when the boy she used as a shield and distraction was being dismembered.
"Sorry…" She whispered while still cringing at the bloody sight, before she re-assessed the situation around her.
"Okay… I really didn't see that coming. What the fuck are these guys anyway?"
Katase pulled out a pair of blades - a survival/combat knife on her right, which she 'borrowed' from her father's stash, and a karambit on her left, which she purchased online.
"Well, I guess I still gotta work for my cut from time to time." Katase shrugged, creaked her neck a bit before she lowered herself into a combat position.
XoX
Murayama had no idea of what was happening anymore.
To be precise - she was already wondering what happened to her best friend, ever since that night during the Test of Courage with that board.
The change was subtle, but it was definitely there; some people noticed them, but they soon dismissed them as Katase's 'summer debut'.
But Murayama knew better - it was not a summer debut. The changes in her best friend gradually became too drastic. Her uniform gradually grew more and more scandalous, to the point that the teacher once called her out.
What really worried Murayama was the way Katase reacted; she did not seem apologetic or regretful whatsoever, she was irritated.
There was also the way she talked - her tone became more frivolous, even some of her choice of words could be considered vulgar. Then there was the way she interacted with her peers; everything about her was changing.
It was like she was becoming another person… she feared the worst when she thought about that ghost.
She tailed her friend who was… hanging out with a bunch of strangers, men other than Kiba! And she was flirting with the lesser, vulgar boys!
Then came the zombie hordes.
Yes, a zombie horde. A literal undead horde rising from nowhere in the market district. Only they were not made of corpses, only dirt and stone.
Murayama immediately ran for cover when they infested the streets, people screaming when they arrived.
They were attacking people left and right. Actually, she was starting to see what looked like zombie ghosts levitating above the actual clay zombies. She labeled them as zombie ghosts but they looked mutilated, butchered to deformity, and they were somehow firing lasers at the people!
What was this world coming to?!
However, to her surprise, swords rained from the sky and impaled many of them, immediately setting them aflame in white fire before they crumbled to oblivion.
"Wipe out the evil hordes! Make sure none of them get to the civilians!"
Then an arrow of light was shot into the sky and exploded into a radiant blinding flare, turning night into day as Murayama blocked out the sudden glare. She heard many unholy screams as many more of the undead were burned into oblivion.
Murayama blinked out the blindness in her vision as she looked for the source. She was stunned stupid when she saw them.
"Gremory-senpai!? Kiba?!"
The most popular lady in Kuoh Academy, along with the ORC and a few extras were flying in the air. Most of them had bat wings protruding from their backs while three others had shining wings of light, one of them bearing blood-red angel wings.
There was Akeno, Koneko, Asia, Irina, Xenovia… There were a few faces she had never seen before, like the one with a skull mask on the side of her face, holding a scythe.
They did not seem to hear her as they dispersed into groups, flying in all directions as they laid siege upon the undead hordes.
Murayama's jaw hung down as if her joints no longer existed.
What was happening? There were many, many questions in her head that she could not find a good start. Why were they summoning swords or spears of light? Were they not human?
She did not know what kind of world she stumbled into. She was not even sure if she was dreaming or not.
However, in her stupor, she did not notice one of the undead emerging from an alleyway shambling towards her. She only turned around when she heard a noise, and a decomposing face was opening its jaws wide at her, leaving her frozen in sheer terror.
"Heads up!"
"Kyah!" Murayama yelped as she flinched, finally losing her footing and fell on her rear, seeing a knife had been embedded through the zombie's forehead.
She turned and did not expect the familiar face of her savior.
"Katase…?"
The said girl exhaled as she blinked at the girl she happened to rescue, "...The hell are you doing here?"
"I… I…" Murayama had begun to be overwhelmed by the turn-out of events. Before she could have finished her sentence, her mind finally gave in and she fainted.
"Wait, wa- Oh, for fuck's sake…" 'Katase' sighed in exasperation at the sight of the unconscious girl. She put her hands on her hips, contemplating her next move.
Seeing the devils and angels flying around to stop the growing pandemonium, 'Katase' believed it was time to make herself scarce. Glancing at Murayama, she finger-saluted, "Welp, have a good night. In case you don't make it… You will be missed."
'Katase' then retrieved the knife, yanking it from the zombie's skull, and was about to leave the area when she suddenly stopped in her tracks.
'Katase' frowned as her body was now quivering, struggling to remain still.
"Oh, fuck you. Really? Really?! I… fine! Fine, I'll let you have this one." 'Katase' grumbled as she pivoted around her foot and moved towards the brown-haired girl.
With surprising strength, she picked the girl up in a bridal carry.
"Just so you know, I'm only doing this because she's hot. You owe me for this!" 'Katase' spoke to herself as she started making her way out of the danger zone.
Hyperspace Gates.
It was a hyper advanced invention developed for space age travel, a versatile technique meant to ignore distance and boundaries, able to grant access to another dimension and more.
One man could use it to transport and seal others in combat. Then another copied the technique for his personal use. No mere mortal could counter it… there was one man that could touch it somehow when he did battle with man that could copy almost anything.
Despite the supernatural nature of the gates, it was not magic. It did not function on the principle of magical power.
Which was why the Old Satan Faction used it to open several hyperspace gates to the Underworld from the confines of their base, ignoring whatever magical defenses the Underworld had against any form of spells.
Armies upon armies marched through the hyperspace gate in the middle of Lucifaad, Lilith, the Gremory Territory, the Astaroth Territory.
In the Astaroth Territory, they came without warning, giant beasts resembling the giants of Ireland, the Fomorians that followed Balor to battle followed again.
Balor was renewed, his two eyes glowing red and blue, the body he inhabited holding great, great power as he growled. Horns curled from his head, black fur of the darkest pitch bedecked his upper body. His form was broad, rippling with muscles, a dark baleful aura constantly surrounding him as he towered over the devils, over some of the skyscrapers.
On his back was his weapon, the odachi which Muramasa forged for him. Aithrí Dorcha was the weapon's name, Balor's name for the weapon, the dark penance.
He gazed upon the buildings of the Astaroth territory as his Eye of Destruction activated, a fiery wave of pure annihilation beamed over the buildings and eradicated everything in his sweeping gaze. As instructed, he only destroyed the buildings to cow the civilians in fear. The Old Satan Faction wants to rule this world, not destroy it.
It worked since many of the Devils were running away from him and his army, the tiny little bats that they were. Balor knew what it meant to keep his word as he marched, his army of Fomorians marching with him.
"Herd every Devil into a cage. The founders want them for… processing." Balor ordered his servants as they marched.
In the middle of Lucifaad, three of the four original Satans arrived.
Asmodeus, Leviathan, and Beelzebub, all of them were bedecked in the finest cursed armor made from the materials of Malebolge.
Their bodies were more Trihexa than Devil, their hearts the only thing tethering them to their roots.
Walking alongside them were their generals, their commanders, as they ordered the ten billion horde of Evil Spirits to rush forth and lay waste to everything while their finest soldiers stood beside them, all of them having bodies bedecked in armor forged from Hell.
In the Sitri and Gremory Territory, The Hero Faction entered. From the massive hyperspace gate, Leonardo entered the Gremory Territory with one of the Malebranche accompanying him as his protector, Alichino, the Demon of Infinite Faces.
"Ohhh hoh hoh hoh." Alichino laughed at the sight of an army of humanoid creatures Leonardo was commanding, all running through the hyperspace gate and destroying the noble's territory.
Holy-attribute lasers fired and burned the buildings, the monsters capturing any civilians they could get their hands on.
"So this is Annihilation Maker… honestly, I can see the limitations. You might be able to make any creature your mind allows, the concept of level still applies. For the small and weak, you can only grant the basic abilities. A young bright mind such as yours should try to reach higher." Alichino advised as Leonardo looked back at him.
"Do you want to know? What it means to have true creativity? I still have the knowledge of creatures of great might in my mind. You just need to expand yourself." Alichino offered Leonardo his giant demonic hand.
Leonardo stared at the jester's hand. He frowned a little.
"Oh, skeptical? No, I'm not giving you power. It is knowledge that fuels your strength. The mind is your true weapon here." Alichino tapped his head. "But it might hurt… whether you take it or not depends on you."
Leonardo pondered the demon's offer. The creature was an enigma, and it could do almost anything, a living demonic doppelganger with more overpowered abilities than it should have. However, before Leonardo could raise his hand, Alichino wrapped his arms around the boy when a barrage of spells rained down upon them.
Most of the monsters Leonardo forged were either wounded or destroyed.
"Oh, well, it seems we'll continue this chat later. We have guests!" Alichino giggled as he unwrapped his arms for Leonardo to see his attackers.
Hovering high amongst the skyscrapers, Leonardo saw the military forces of the devils hovering above, armored and armed in dark armaments.
One of the Gremory Generals, Timtharos, immediately responded to the invasion as he ordered his forces to rain their spells at the enemy. Using formations from the devil civil war, the warriors on the ground lined into formation and fired their spells from afar. However, the invading creatures were sturdy, strong, as they raised their arms to power through, firing holy lasers through their singular eye between their arms at the soldiers.
Screams came from the devil side as Leonardo continued summoning more, bringing more of their numbers from the hyperspace gate as the devils forces fell back.
Timtharos grimaced as he raised his shield, blocking the holy lasers aiming at him.
They were using their weaknesses against them. They could not hold on for long against the unknown creatures.
"Stand back."
Stronger spellfire rained down upon the enemy forces, the bombardment clearing out the strange, muscular cyclops.
Falbium Asmodeus landed before the horde, the creatures stopped as he faced against…
"...To think that I'll see a child here." Falbium was no longer drowsy, his casual front dismissed in the face of danger.
"Ohhhhh, you are an interesting one." Alichino giggled behind Leonardo.
"...Are you controlling that child?" Falbium accused.
"Oh, no no. The boy never speaks. He is doing this of his own free will. I am simply… his assigned guardian. I'm curious about the power of God's artifact, so I chose to stay with him. Oh, and I am Alichino, at your service." The demonic jester bowed dramatically, his arms both poised to the left.
"Alichino… I'll cut this short. Take your army and go back where you came from, and I will forget this transgression." Falbium warned.
"But I am curious~ You seem special for a descendant of discardable pawns. I want to see what the children of Lucifer are like in the current generation. And I want to try something fun."
"Fun…?" Falbium's demonic aura shimmered in the air. "You call invading the Underworld 'fun'?"
"Challenging the race of my makers is what I call fun. Also." Alichino tapped his chin. "Let's see… which form, which form… I don't want to use this too early… but I just can't resist it~" Alichino shuddered with leaking excitement.
Falbium squinted at the monster. He had no idea what the creature was, but something about him unsettled him.
"...Oh, why not? Not like I have anything to lose~" Alichino giggled.
"Mode."
Alichino raised his hand over his jester mask and swung it down. When the demon jester's hand passed by his face, Falbium widened his eyes when another man replaced the invader.
The man replacing the jester was wearing the literal cosmos, stars, galaxies, nebula forms, constellations, the blackness of the void, all of it condensed into an unfamiliar humanoid shape. His face was but the cosmic night, no eyes, no nose, no mouth, only night and stars.
His hair was V-shaped, his face young and chiseled. Every single color of his body was replaced by the theme of the cosmos minus the bandages wrapped around his arms, waist, and legs.
"I was thinking of whether I should choose this form or the Monster King. The Monster King looks fun, but I'll leave that for later. There are also the monster forms of my host but… ah, I just can't resist. Now then."
Alichino's voice was left unchanged as the cosmic man aimed a finger at Falbium.
Falbium activated his defensive aura. As long as it is active, he could deflect whatever the creature could-
"Bang."
Falbium felt a sharp pain in his side.
He looked down… and saw a clean hole beside his stomach, the size of the creature's human finger.
"I call this 'space finger gun.' Or the Hyperspace bullet. I like the Hyperspace Bullet better."
Falbium stared at his wound as blood leaked his lips. He could not even see any projectile firing from the thing's finger, just the damage. It completely pierced through his aura like air.
"Bang."
Falbium dropped to a knee, another finger-sized hole appearing in his knee. He would grunt from the pain, but the shock at seeing his powers failing him was far greater than any physical wound.
There was no pain greater than shattered pride and faith for a Devil.
He couldn't remember anyone penetrating his defenses like this. It was the first time he felt physical pain of this scale for years.
"My Lord!" Timtharos shouted.
"The hyperspace bullet is an application of the hyperspace gate. See the giant portal behind me? It was an invention of a certain man from another world used to travel long distances and other dimensions. And now I am using a derivation of it. The penetrating power of this technique is already god-tier and it scales to the power of the wielder, and it seems that I am far above you. You might have surpassed the original Satans, but in the end, the creation surpasses the race of the maker. Bang."
Falbium winced when he felt the pain in his shoulder.
"Alichino…! You damned monster! What are you?!" Falbium cursed as Timtharos held his lord's shoulder.
Alichino remained silent.
Leonardo was silently staring at his protector in awe of his power.
"...I am the living remnant of your kinds' sins. I am a tool born for patricide. I am a relic, the crimes of a species that forgot its past. I am the manifestation of the twisted desire to obtain everything, to become something closer to the true meaning of the word, 'God'." Alichino's tone was no longer playful, a dreadful calm that doused Falbium's rage as if it was candlelight.
"My host does not like to murder innocents. Leave like a frightened dog with his tail between his legs if you wish to live. I will not say this again." Alichino coldly warned.
Falbium grit his teeth, wanting to rebuke with action as the pride in his devil blood called, but his general grabbed his shoulders and flew, lifting him.
"General!" Falbium shouted at his subordinate.
"We must retreat! The thing in front of us is too strong! We must wait for Lord Sirzechs and Ajuka to help us deal with them!" Timtharos shouted. "All forces, retreat! We must reposition! Lead any civilians you encounter into the evacuation shelter!"
"...Wise man." Alichino swung his arm over his face, returning to his original form.
Leonardo watched as the rest of the Devil soldiers flew away from the scene.
"Well?" Alichino turned to the boy. "Shall we continue?"
Leonardo stared at Alichino. He offered the demon his hand, now very curious to learn more about the world he and the other demons stood for.
And the realm where that man stood.
Shaalba Beelzebub and Creuserey Asmodeus marched towards the Grigori territory with an army of their own, Trihexa-enhanced devils and a hundred million undead spirits amongst them.
Unfortunately, they could not enter the Fallen Angel territory unannounced due to the strength of the holy wards there. The evil spirits could not touch that place easily or they would die in droves regardless of their numbers, so Shaalba and Creuserey had to undo the wards themselves with their own magic.
They could see the borders of the Fallen Territory, the gates of the Governor in sight.
Shaalba and Creuserey continued to march as the evil spirits wailed the closer they approached the gates, stopping while the two noble devils and their living followers prepared their greatest spells.
Magic circles upon magic circles appeared above them, magic meant for siege warfare casted, firing a barrage of spells be it arcane or elemental, raining down on the magical barrier that surrounded the territory. The barrier became visible the moment the first spell made contact, a shimmering rainbow color.
Shaalba prepared a grand spell that would inverse the holy attribute surrounding the Fallen Angel territory into a cursed territory.
However, the gates suddenly opened.
Shaalba and Creusery raised their hands, stopping their forces when they saw two people exiting the gates.
"...That man… That man!" Creusery shouted as he recognized that man. "He is the one that foiled our plans to kidnap Sirzech's brat!"
Shaalba widened his eyes. Then he blinked and squinted at the bald man in a ridiculous yellow and red costume, his bland white cape drooping behind him.
"...This is the strongest man?" Shaalba would be a total fool if he removed himself from the current trends.
He was aware of the alleged strongest man and heard that his appearance was… very deceptive. The strongest man was bald and held a face that did not scream special in any way, and his attire was ridiculous, white cape, red gloves and boots, and a yellow costume. His head looked like a literal egg with a human face, and his bald scalp was the shiniest he had ever seen, so shiny that light was stronger when refracted from it.
This man fit the description very well. He was accompanied by a young man with short blonde hair and sharp eyes with black sclera. He had no information on this one.
"So Azazel decides to send the strongest human." Shaalba crossed his arms when the two approached them.
"Uhhh… wait, you look familiar." Saitama pointed at Creuserey. "Uhhhhh, oh. Weren't you supposed to be dead or something? I remember-"
"I came back from Hell." Creuserey grimaced. "Where is he? The silver one? I have a score to settle with him."
Saitama looked at Genos.
"He is currently busy at the moment in the human world," Genos answered.
"Tsk!" Creuserey grit his teeth. "...Damn. Fine, I'll settle with resolving matters with you, you stupid baldy. I need to repay you in return for the humiliation you left us since that day. Strongest human or not, you are still an inferior life form. Allow us to show you the difference between a pathetic mortal and a superior Devil of noble lineage."
Creuserey clenched his fist as his aura exploded from his form, his muscles rippling.
Shaalba uncrossed his arms as his aura exuded, joining Creuserey as their presence overwhelmed the two and their subordinates.
"O-Ohhhh, they're going all out!"
"Lord Beelzebub is going to show us his true power!"
"Show them their place, Lord Asmodeus!"
The devils behind them cheered with vigor. The two humans, however, looked very bored and unimpressed.
"Uhhh, sorry but, I don't have time for this. Got a job to do and stuff, sooo…. Yeah. Duty calls,"
Then the two exploded; The two being Creusery and Shaalba at the swat of the baldy's smoking, red-gloved hand.
All the devils and evil spirits heard was a loud, wet slap and then suddenly organs and blood splattered the closest devils behind them as they stared at the lower halves of their leaders and their protruding spines and intestines.
"...Eh?"
The devils and evil spirits could not process the sight.
Where were their upper torsos? Why were organs and blood splattered around, and why are the two non-devils not dead?
It happened so fast and without warning that they couldn't process that their leaders died just like that as they stood paralyzed on their feet.
"Okay, Genos. We're kind of in a hurry, so, uh, do the thing." Saitama requested.
"Roger that."
Genos aimed his cybernetic palm at the Devils and evil spirits, activating the Smiting Testament function of his newest model.
Genos' mechanical body was colored in silver and gold, no daedric theme, smooth and humanoid, bearing an angelic semblance as his palm fired a golden cone of holy light that spread as far as the eyes could see.
Millions of the Evil Spirits instantly perished under the sweeping cone of holy light, sent to Oblivion, while the devils were burning in agony as they fell on their backs, screaming while their skin burned off and their bones turned black.
Originally, the Smiting Testament set was meant for battling rogue Superdevils and the like, but Genos and Azazel had to modify it to mass purge armies of evil instead.
Azazel was busy right now with another matter, like gathering an emergency strike force without the strongest man to end things due to his choice in saving lives above all else.
So the two set off, leaving dust in their wake as they ran towards the closest settlement in danger.
Through the hyperspace gate, Siegfried, Hercules, and Jeanne walked with six of the Malebranche members and another battalion of Leonardo's creations.
Behind the three humans was the host of the Malebranche. Unlike Leonardo, these three were here in search of a treasure the Sitri had.
"So the next clue to Atlantis is here?" Libicocco, the female fire elemental demon, mused.
"Still think that it is absurd that you guys saw Atlantis before it sank. What was it like?" Jeanne asked the demons around them.
They were a bit difficult to adapt to due to their appearance but they were easy to talk to once they got on their good terms.
"A human culture reaching its apex." Scarmiglione answered.
The creature was like a combination of a demon, a fly, and a hermit crab.
It was demonic in shape and form, three-fingered talons of black and gray, four red eyes on each side of its face. It was flying on vestigilly small bat wings, his hunchback carrying a large snail shell conglomerated from many demonic horns.
"One that broke from the influence of God and paid the price. Trampled by waves of envy and dragged down so that God can stand above it," Calcabrina, the demonic fusion of horse and gorilla, followed as he walked on all fours like a gorilla.
Jeanne had the privilege to ride the largest of all the Malebranche, the Demon that Tramples the World.
"The Clay of Adam is one of the ingredients we need." Siegfried answered. "The Sitri Household should have it. Khamael was great enough to bring a piece of the tree of Eden with him, so we got that down. We just need the blood of a holy man or woman that turned away from God."
They have deciphered the clue to obtaining the ingredients needed to reveal the map's contents to lead them to legendary Atlantis.
"Did God really sink Atlantis out of envy?" Hercules asked as he watched the creations of Leonardo rush through the gates and trample the garden of the Sitri house mansion, feet crushing the leaves and trimmed bushes and flowers, breaking through the gorgeous fountain holding a statue of the original founder of the Sitri Clan, reducing it to rubble in the waters.
The Sitri Household warriors then appeared, those from the rating games and the standard Devil soldiers joining the fray as they unleashed their magics upon the creatures.
"Grrrrr, waves didn't come first. Angels and skylight swept land first. We saw through the makers' eyes." Cagnazzo growled.
Cagnazzo was a demonic red hound with six legs and five eyes, two on each side of his head and a giant eye in the middle. He walked on six clawed legs with two swishing scorpion tails.
The three could taste the aggression from this one.
"The land sank but a great pulse of power emerged from it when it graced the waters. We do not know what happened to it. Our makers were still looking for it before they perished." Barbariccia nodded.
"...Interesting to note." Siegfried nodded as well, finding their stories enlightening.
Suddenly, a mountain of ice bloomed before them, freezing Leonardo's cyclops minions in place and blocking their path before they could enter the gate.
"In the name of love and justice, stop right there, invaders!"
Demons and humans looked up when a girl in a pink magical girl outfit teleported above them with two entourages.
The demons were confused.
Not by the female vampire and muscular woman flying beside her, but by the peculiar outfit.
"Just what is she wearing?" Libicocco asked.
"Is this standard fashion for the current Satans?" Barbariccia asked.
"Very scandalous. I can see it catering to a fetish." Scarmiglione commented.
"Is she looking for a mate in this environment?" Calcabrina tilted his head.
"No, no, no. Don't take her seriously." Siegfried waved off.
"How rude!" Serafall Leviathan pouted at the demons' comments. "And you guys! Don't you know a magical girl when you see one?"
The demons stared at her in silence.
"What is a 'magical girl?'" Libicocco asked. "Is it something similar to a 'witch?'"
"...It's complicated…" Siegfried muttered.
"What?! Zelq, Oriana, I thought you two were working hard to spread the wonderful name of Magical Girl Levia-tan!" Serafall cried to her companions. One simply sighed while the other looked ashamed.
"Wait, let me review our host's memories for context." Barbariccia said.
They waited for a moment. The three humans were surprised that the demons' abilities to glean memories were not infallible.
"...You met our host before." Barbariccia realized.
The demons and humans looked at Serafall and then at the man in question. The host was inactive, standing with his eyes staring at blank space.
"Wait, what? He met the Leviathan?" Jeanne was shocked as well.
"I did? And what do you mean 'host'?" Serafall asked as she trailed their line of sight. "...Wait… isn't he…?" She widened her eyes at the creature's outline, when the memories clicked.
"It was a surprise encounter. His luck is astounding. You are not that fortunate for you caught him at his worst moment."
The demons grinned as they gazed at Serafall, who recalled that moment. The man in question that nearly…
She felt a chill in her spine for the first time in centuries as she readied her wand.
"I don't know who you people are, but I won't hold back if you take one more step." Serafall warned with an unencountered level of seriousness her Peerage members never heard of before.
"My king?" Zelq, the vampire woman asked.
"Hehehehe." The demons starting laughing one by one, mocking the Satan and fanning their growing unease with their growing confidence.
Their laughter grew louder and louder, unnerving even their human comrades when their voice reached a cacophonous climax.
"Ahahahahahahaha! How about this, Satan?" Barbariccia finished as he smirked behind his demonic helm.
"If you manage to beat our wielder in one minute, we will retreat and leave your domain alone."
Siegfried, Hercules, and Jeanne stared at Barbariccia.
"H-Hey, what are you doing?" Hercules asked, feeling nervous around the Malebranche.
"I want to see if we can break a Satan. It would be boring if we crushed her instantly."
Serafall squinted at the demonic knight in return.
"And if I lose…?" Serafall asked.
"You will grant us an object of our choice and we will leave your domain alone. You should have at least a Phoenix tear in your possession." Barbariccia answered.
Siegfried wanted to speak out, but he was a bit afraid of them at the moment when they decided to misbehave. There was also no harm in this kind of bet considering the skill of that man.
"...Fine." Serafall's face was no longer casual and playful - she was serious, glaring at that man.
"But answer me this first. What is wrong with him? What did you do to him?" She asked.
"He is currently subjugated against his will. We are technically supposed to obey him as our master." Barbariccia answered. "But we made a deal with the humans that offered him to us as our wielder. I am Barbariccia of the Malebranche, second-in-command of the living weapons made by the fallen human, Lucifer."
Serafall, her entourage, and the humans heard an unexpected combination of words.
"Fallen human? Lucifer is a devil." Serafall stated.
The Malebranche stared at Serafall before they started breaking down into sinister laughter. The obvious mocking ridicule was plain for all.
"Ahahahahahaha….! Do you even know your maker? What is his birthday? How did he grow bat wings? Why is he cursed to have a devilish weakness to Holy light unlike many of the other supernatural races? Do you even know why the Bible depicted him as a Fallen Archangel? You don't even know about us, what he used to kill God with."
Serafall fell silent at the questions they shot at her. She grimaced when the demons stepped back as the man approached her with a snarl.
"We may have demonic forms, but we are weapons in nature. We have long searched for the perfect host, and this man is too strong even for us."
The demons cackled as Serafall prepared her pink heart-tipped wand.
"...Don't cry too early when I break him into shards." Serafall glared at the man.
She did not know him, only that he appeared out of nowhere. He was angry… vicious at the time. He struck fear into her when their eyes met, then he disappeared. She did not know his identity, only his face.
The man was obviously enslaved, bedecked in sacred gear-like armor. She suspected the make to be divine in origin. She still did not expect to meet him again like this.
Maybe she should try and break the shell… the demons were confusing. If they truly obey the man, then once she freed him, they would follow his will to turn against the invaders.
She hoped so.
She aimed her wand at the man with a grand ice spell. However, her wand got stuck in something, a circular tear in the air, when she unleashed her magic.
She did not know that she stuck her wand inside a hyperspace gate.
Her entire world was encased in ice as she suddenly found herself entombed by her own magic, though she was completely caught clueless. She did not know that her wand emerged behind her from the gate when it fired.
"Serafall!"
"Serafall-chan!"
The amazon and vampire shouted at the peripeteia. Serafall immediately turned the ice to water as she grit her teeth, but she felt a critically sharp pain in her chess.
Glowing from the man's palm was a cross, a Christian cross.
On Serafall's chest was a similar cross burned into her body as blood left her lips.
"...What just happened?" Jeanne asked as she watched Serafall fall, landing on the ground unconscious.
"It is one of our host's mystic arts. He made it himself with a woman he met. A very important woman. He made it just for her… The Divine Sacrament of Smite Arts, an eastern reflection of the Christian Faith." Barbariccia answered for Jeanne. "It is extremely lethal to those weak to Holy light. He went easy on her because… she is a girl."
The three stared at the man, unsure how to process that the man developed a type of senjutsu modeled after Christianity. Siegfried was sure that he couldn't do that without years of practice and experimentation.
He was sure that not even Georg could do something like develop his own magic system. The Leviathan's two entourage immediately descended and checked on Serafall.
The magical girl coughed blood as she struggled to lift her head, glaring at the man.
"...You lost. Now, give us what we want or we will lay siege to your land." Barbariccia answered.
Serafall grit her teeth.
"...Fine. What do you want?" Serafall asked.
"The Clay of Adam." Siegfried answered. "The same clay that Zeus and God used to mold sentient life. We know you have some."
Serafall turned to Siegfried.
"...You have a lot of courage to demand something from a Satan-class magical girl." Serafall grimaced, before she turned towards one of her servants, "...Zelq. Fetch the clay of adam."
"...Are you sure, milady?" The vampire woman asked.
"...If we don't do something now, a lot of people will get hurt… do I have your word you'll leave us alone if we give you what we want?" Serafall asked to her assailants.
"We will leave this territory alone and be on our way." Siegfried nodded.
Zelq scowled at the human male with gray hair. She hissed at him, baring her fangs as she spread her devil wings and flew towards the mansion.
The other devil forces were no longer fighting the stationary humanoid cyclops monsters as Serafall and Siegfried stared at each other in the eyes.
Eventually, Zelq returned from the Sitri Estate, holding a closed vase of immaculate ancient design, Greek in origin.
"Here." Zelq spat with spite as she handed Siegfried the amphora.
Siegfried grinned as he took the amphora and opened the lid. Hercules tiptoed over to Siegfried and peeked into the vase.
"...It looks… kind of shinier than I thought."
Jeanne hopped down from Calcabrina and walked over to the vase and inspected the contents.
"Looks… a lot like silvery playdough than clay." She remarked.
"Is it genuine?" Siegfried asked Zelq.
"Allow me." Barbariccia answered as he walked over to Siegfriend and inspected the contents. He took a pinch of the substance and rubbed it between his fingers.
"Yes. This is the same material God used to fashion Man from the Earth."
"...It's weird seeing the material God used to make us." Siegfried commented.
There was a strange connection to the Clay of Adam; he could sense it the longer he stared at it.
"Let us move. Where should we head off next?" Barbariccia asked.
Siegfried tapped his chin in thought.
"We still need to maintain the image of invading the Underworld for a bit more. However, I want to see Sirzechs Lucifer and Ajuka Beelzebub in action before we return." Siegfried mused.
"Yes, the other two. Let us appraise their worth." Cagnazzo snarled.
"I second this motion." Libicocco nodded.
"Agreed." Calcabrina grunted.
Serafall, Zelq, and Oriana grimaced at their answer.
"Let us be off. Let's check Lilith first. If not, Ajuka Stadium." Siegfried was looking forward to witnessing the apex of Devilkind and seeing where he and the Hero Faction stood in this world.
However, everyone present would not expect the cataclysmic battle that would arrive.
"Alright, let's review everything before we set off."
On Kiyome's beach was the gathering of the Grigori's finest fighters available.
Platinum stood with a few trillion conglomerate of himself on his shoulder.
Tobio was with them. His three friends from Slash Dog would help guard Earth in their absence.
Azazel was with them as the leader.
Magnus Rose and Mitsuya were with them, their contracts extended with bonus rewards if they participated.
Issei and Vali stood with Kiyome, Stjarna curiously staring at the entourage from behind them.
Vali brought the rest of his team, Bikou, Kuroka, Arthur, and Morgan Le Fay.
Lavinia was also with them, smiling as usual.
"Saitama, Genos, and Ajuka are off to deal with the Underworld invasion, which involves apparently billions of the damned. The Church is now busy dealing with their own ends on Earth, apparently even more undead are rising around the world in ridiculous droves, which locks them out. So, which leaves us. Their timing is ridiculously impeccable, and we only have a small window to hit them hard where it hurts since most of their forces are out around the world doing bad things. Not sure who else to bring without screwing things up, so I would have to rely on Platinum to turn everyone they meet into precious metals before shit goes down for the worse. Mitsuya, Magnus, you're free to take any leftover precious metals in your way."
Magnus snorted in amusement.
"We will follow Stjarna's lead to the enemy HQ. We have absolutely no idea what's inside, and there will be no backup as far as we know. As for an escape plan, we have transmitters just in case our usual messaging spells fail us. Arthur's sword can lead us to the Dimensional Gap for an emergency escape. Lavinia also can transport others to the gap with her magic. I don't know how Stjarna escaped, but I don't think we can use his method since he did fall out of the sky like a meteor. We will be going in blind… even if that's the case, are you all ready for what's to come?"
Everyone nodded in unison.
"Good. The goal is this: Rescue Stjarna, even if you have to throw him out to Earth's orbit. If he can survive atmospheric entry once, he can do it again. Second, gather as much intel from the base as you can, take whatever you can carry. Third, find the meatball farm that is Stjarna's corpse-father. Transport the Trihexa corpse or destroy it if you can. Fourth, capture or eliminate the puppet masters and find out where this mysterious GOD is. It is not my father, but an eldritch outer god with the same name. This guy is beyond powerful, but he's weakened. Not sure how weakened but better to not take any chances." Azazel warned.
Vali raised his hand.
"...Yes?"
"Who is this… GOD, by the way?" Vali asked.
"Yes. Some of us are in the dark regarding this mysterious person." Tobio nodded.
Arthur, Bikou, Kuroka, and Morgan Le Fay aso nodded.
"...Alright. Well… Here is a short version. It is an eldritch cosmic entity that is from the world Saitama was born on… Saitama is not from this world, though I suspect some of you already had suspicions." Azazel smirked.
Vali blinked as he turned to his rival.
"...Wait, so… My rival is part alien?" Vali asked, pointing at Issei who flashed an impish smirk at Vali while the rest stared at Issei, all except Platinum and Black on his shoulder.
"Saitama is… somewhat human-ish. Think of a very distant cousin of the same species, but very hard to figure out without the right tools. The world Saitama is from is very strange, no magic, but full of supernatural-like occurrences. Humans there have the power to surpass themselves and have the power to mutate into other creatures when their negative emotions reach critical levels, which is how Black and Rover were born. There are heroes there composed of humans regular and superhuman abilities, They don't have mages, but they do have… Psychics. Espers, though they're very rare. Well, if you have questions, pester Issei for more. Anyways, if you want to know what GOD is… Saitama and Genos have no idea other than GOD being an eldritch super entity. GOD has the power to manipulate the very reality itself. If you want a good idea of how powerful he is, a fraction of GOD's power imbued in a certain man was able to contend with Saitama… their fight got so out of hand that they were both blasted into outer space and landed on fucking Jupiter… If what I heard from Saitama is right."
Vali, Tobio, Lavinia, and the rest widened their eyes. The ridiculously overpowered egghead could survive being launched into space? They knew that Saitama was strong, but… the reach of their imagination was not enough, it seemed. It was completely absurd when they imagined the baldy engaging in an epic battle like that in space.
"And they continued battling it out in outer space. Apparently, Saitama can live without air… making him more of a God than human at that point. Then fast forward the time a little. GOD's main body was sealed in the moon of his world. When GOD freed himself, he and Saitama did battle for the fate of his universe… causing untold destruction in their bout. Saitama managed to defeat GOD, but not without GOD banishing him and his friends into the Dimensional Gap. How he got here… well, that's another story." Azazel sighed as he finished his narration.
"...What can GOD do specifically?" Morgan Le Fay raised her hand.
"From what I heard, almost anything. He is a cosmic being of great power, though I never met the thing myself. Black narrated that it was like the end of the world when he saw GOD battle Saitama. And Saitama told me that GOD is way, way stronger than the Great Red at his full power."
An ocean of fear swept their unguarded hearts when they visualized the size of GOD's power. They could barely imagine how strong the Great Red is, but to hear that this entity's power is far above even the Great Red?
The ocean may be vast, but compare the largest of one ocean with another from a different world… that was a scale beyond their ken or experience.
"...And the Baldy won against it?" Bikou asked. He sounded unnerved, astonished with disbelief and shock.
"...Yeah. Quite a world he is from, heh." Azazel scoffed. "And if you want to know, a fraction of GOD's power in that one guy I talked about can even beat the Great Red. So yeah, the level difference is… quite high. Luckily, again, he's weakened. I don't know how weakened, but certainly enough for him to rely on lesser beings to do his bidding. Oh, right, fair warning. If you see someone appearing in your vision offering you power… do not take it. GOD tends to take the appearance of others to trick his victims into being his puppets. Anyways, any questions?"
"How did Saitama know if GOD is weakened?" Kiyome asked.
"Genos analyzed GOD and saw that the damage inflicted upon him… was quite severe. There are cases of monsters weakening as well if enough damage is inflicted so the same case applies to GOD."
Arthur raised his hand.
"...What do we do if we somehow run into GOD there if he is that powerful?"
Azazel remained quiet.
"...Good question…" Azazel pursed his lips.
"...Do we even have anything that can hurt this thing?" Kuroka asked, raising her hand.
"Ah… great, now I regret sending Saitama out with Ajuka."
Everyone was starting to grow concerned. They couldn't even win against the Great Red even with their combined power. Platinum was a different story since he was very confident in his power and might.
Saitama had to be sent out to quell the chaos in the Underworld itself, as it was his job, and it sounded bad.
"I don't think we are paid enough to battle an outer god that makes the Great Red look like an ant." Magnus Rose raised his hand.
"This thing is also destroying our world, so I think you two are still obligated to try as Earth is our home." Azazel reminded.
"...True, but…"
"You'll get to take as much platinum as you can from the base depending on Platinum's whims." Azazel threw an incentive.
"...Should we bring Ophis with us?" Issei suggested, raising his hand.
Everyone turned to Issei as the image of the dragon loli joining them.
"...Should we?" Vali asked.
"Having a Great-Red level dragon does inspire confidence…" Bikou muttered aloud.
Mutters of agreement resounded from the group.
"...But if Ophis is like the Great Red… then that means she doesn't know how to fight, correct?" Lavinia asked, tapping her chin in thought.
It was a weakness that none of them expected. The loli dragon god had the power but none of the experience or skill to make full use of it. Even if she had the power to hurt the current GOD…
"Not to mention, bringing Ophis along only gives an opportunity for the enemy to kidnap her. So I'd rather be against it." Azazel chipped in.
"Can they kidnap her? Actually, I don't see Ophis as the kind to get kidnapped…" Issei noted. "Can anyone actually kidnap and contain something like Ophis? Can you do it? If anyone can do it, they would do it already, and the world would end much earlier."
"Well… if your dad can make the Great Red bleed, then that means there is something out there that can make her bleed, as rare as they are. I most certainly can't conjure up anything that can hurt or affect Ophis but… actually, there is another being that might be able to hurt Ophis and the Great Red if given the chance, but I don't think the Khaos Brigade have access to it."
They were curious as to what Azazel was referring to.
"...The GOD creature might be absent." Mitsuya gave his input. "I interrogated Diodora, and he said that GOD does not show his face in their base a lot. He might not be in the facility."
"That… actually sounds relieving, sort of; but let's not take any chances." Azazel replied.
"So… we are good at bringing Ophis? I mean, I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't expect Ophis to join our raid force. They won't see us coming, right?" Issei pointed out.
"Ise, I just said not to take any chances." Azazel replied with a flat look.
"Okay… fine, guess we'll see how weak GOD is the hard way. Are we good to go at least?" Issei asked.
"Yes. Kiyome, are you ready?" Azazel asked.
Kiyome nodded.
"Stjarna. It's time." Kiyome turned to her friend.
Stjarna rumbled as tendrils extended from Stjarna's carapace and lifted Kiyome to his head.
Kiyome sank in the flesh as thick organic plates covered her.
Dendrites slithered into her nape and connected her to the universe that was Stjarna's mind.
Alright, everyone, I am conveying our intention to Stjarna… Stjarna was a bit confused when I told him about GOD… Wait, Stjarna can see and feel from his other half in the base. I think I saw the woman and man known as Psykos and Rizevim leaving. I am asking if Stjarna can feel any outrageously powerful presence akin to GOD… He doesn't sense anything like that. I think we're good to go.
Kiyome spoke to everyone through telepathy.
"Whew. Good news, good news. Alright, everyone! Those of you who can't fly can ride on Stjarna! It is time we take the fight to them, right into their hearts while their main forces are away!" Azazel declared.
To be Continued…..
Omake: How He Arrived
It was meant to be an ordinary day.
Serafall was on a tour around Japan, moving with her employees and Peerage members from town to town.
She would usually perform a live action sequence, playing a scene with her staff playing their roles as the bad guys.
However, Hokkaido, her stage was ruined.
From the skies, something fell on the meteor on her mobile stage, dust kicked in the middle of their routine between Serafall and her actors.
"Ehhhhhh?!" The sudden eruption of dust and explosion caught her off guard. She immediately banished the dust with her wand, secretly using magic to clear the air.
She paused when she saw a man-shaped hole in her stadium.
"Uhhh, is this a part of the script?" One of the actors dressed in a full-body suit with a villainous mask asked.
"I don't remember something like this."
The actors were confused as well as one of them gingerly walked to the hole and cautiously peeked into the darkness.
Two hands erupted from the darkness and grabbed the ledges, a man pulling himself out as he roared to the heavens.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Whoa!" The man stumbled back and fell on his butt, crawling back from the screaming man.
The crowd, the actors, and Serafall flinched when he emerged, covered in grime and blood, viciously snarling like a beast.
He looked around, ravenous for something.
"...Where am I? Where is that thing?!" The man shouted as his searching found Serafall staring at him awkwardly.
He blinked as he looked up at the sky and looked around, seeing the crowd staring at him confused and slightly intimidated by his sheer presence.
"...Whoever you are!" Serafall pointed her wand at the intruder. Whoever the man was, Serafall could deal with him. She could simply put him on ice for gentle questioning later as she had a show to run.
"You look like one of the dark minions' bosses, but you're no match for the power of Magical Girl Leviatan!" Serafall smiled while apologizing to the man in her head.
She had a show to run and she could not stop.
Her pink heart wand glowed with magic as she shot an ice spell towards the white-haired man.
Her spell fired, the caster smiling. Her smile froze like the ice that erupted, freezing the men behind the stranger.
"...Eh?" Serafall was confused. She fired another ice spell.
The man knocked it aside towards the backstage, the people behind the curtains yelping, some of them caught in the ice.
"...What are you doing? Who are you, anyway?" The man asked as he looked around, seeing the ice. "Cryokinesis? Esper powers? No… it feels different. What are you?" The man asked as he looked at Serafall.
"What about you?!" Serafall pouted as she fired a barrage of ice spells at the man.
The ice never landed on the man, frozen water blooming around him.
The fans of magical girl Leviatan were dazed by the sudden transition, seeing their favorite idol struggling against a stranger.
"You cool off."
At the nth shot, rime sprouted from Serafall instead of the stranger.
Serafall was stunned as she stared at the man.
Who was he? What did he do? The man was human, at least… he looked human. He even felt human-ish.
Her confusion transitioned to petulant irritation as she melted her ice.
"Oh, so that's how you want to play?" Serafall decided to show the man his place as she leaked a bit of her Satanic aura to intimidate him.
The man did not look fazed by him.
"...Are you trying to scare me or something?" He asked.
"What does it look like?" Serafall was annoyed by the man's question. It felt like he was looking down on the magical girl.
"Heh. Want to see something fun?"
She squinted at him.
He snapped his fingers.
When he did, ice sprouted over Serafall again, making her blink. The feeling… the sensation, even the magical signature.
"...You… you used my spell?" Serafall couldn't believe it.
"Spell? What, this is magic? I'm not done yet." The man said as he opened his palm at Serafall and then clenched his hand.
The ice imprisoning Serafall turned into scalding hot water instantly before it reformed into ice again.
"Ow owowowowie! What are you doing to me?!"
Serafall hissed in pain.
The ice was not cold. It was hot, very hot. Serafall did not understand what the man just did to her ice as she attempted to unfreeze it, but her magic was not affecting this variant of ice.
"This is the same ice formed on the planet Uranus. This kind of ice is like diamond, hyper-compressed by extreme heat and pressure. You cannot manipulate it the natural way, girl."
Then the man flicked his wrist at her. The ice around Serafall cracked apart, falling off her.
"...Oh. Crap."
However, her magical clothes came with the ice.
Meaning, that he accidentally stripped her of her clothes.
Serafall was in her birthday suit, her fans seeing her in her perfectly naked glory. The remaining, present crowd went silent, their eyes trained at the bare-body of Serafall Leviathan. And the girl was unaware of her dilemma.
The man on the other hand, simply blinked at his own handiwork, "...Good luck." before the man turned away and jumped to the skies.
"...THANK YOU, STRANGER!"
""""OAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"""
The crowd roared with flaming passion as Serafall looked down. She saw her ample breasts poking out, a growing red infecting her entire body and a new sense of fury burned within her.
"...GET BACK HERE! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU!" Serafall summoned a new magical girl uniform and immediately took to the skies, flying after the stranger with all of her blushing hate.
Serafall did not return that day until night, even angrier than ever; afterwards she proceeded to erase every memory of her naked body from her fans.
That's right, the next chapter of NSFW side story will be out soon! Look forward to it! And you know where to find it! P. (Atreon) website.