Story: I'm a Daemon, so what?
Disclaimer: I do not own the original setting.
Chapter 83: Domestic Violence!
There are up to 15 chapters ahead at [email protected]/theogbasilisk
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- Hinata Sakaguchi -
Hinata straightened, lowering her rapier slightly as her opponents caught their breath. She could see how they realized just how out of their league she was, but she could also see their desire to improve. She was glad she had such wonderful subordinates.
"Well done all of you." She voiced out as everyone began catching their breaths. "It seems you have all been putting some effort into your training." She twirled her rapier as she smiled. "Now let us resume this bout."
As she mentally planned the training lessons she lunged at Saare who had taken the moment she had granted him to regain a fraction of his strength.
The Fighting Spirit on her rapier dulled its edge, or else Saare's weapon would shatter right on contact.
As their blades met, they released a shower of sparks. Saare gritted his teeth, pouring all his strength into pushing her back. But her ability with the blade was almost unmatched.
Saare at the very least couldn't contend against her before she leaped back in time, gaining far more experience, let alone now. Hinata swung her blade, putting more and more strength into each clash before sending a final combo.
Rearing her blade back, she struck at him weakly, smiling as she saw him brace for the clash. Yet the moment his body relaxed from the weak attack, she struck again, disarming him with a deft twist of her wrist with minimal effort, sending his sword flying.
Litus had been using Hinata's exchange with Saare to summon a torrent of water to sweep her off her feet. Yet with Saare defeated, that left Hinata to slice through the water with her rapier, dissipating it into a fine mist.
Before Litus could react, Hinata had vanished from her view. In the blink of an eye, Hinata reappeared in front of Litus, her blade stopping just short of Litus's throat.
Litus froze, eyes wide with shock. Hinata lowered her rapier, nodding in approval before turning to face the remaining warriors.
They attacked with renewed vigor, their desperation evident. But Hinata was relentless. She moved through them like a whirlwind, her rapier a blur of silver light. Leonard's elemental armor shattered under her assault, Bacchus's earth constructs crumbled, and Arnaud's wind attacks were rendered useless.
One by one, every single one of the so-called "Great Saints" were felled, until only Saare and Arnaud remained standing.
Saare's breath came in ragged gasps, his body battered and bruised. But there was a fire in his eyes, a determination that would not be extinguished.
Arnaud was clenching the hilt of his blade tightly as his eyes narrowed at her.
She twirled her rapier lightly in her hand, a mocking smile playing on her lips as she observed the two men before her. "Is that all?" She taunted, her voice dripping with disdain. "Have you given up already?"
Saare gritted his teeth, his muscles tensing. "A little pain won't take me out." He turned his head slightly toward Arnaud. "You ready?" He growled, his voice was strained.
Arnaud met his gaze with steely determination, his sword now glowing with the combined power of the elementals. "I am." Arnaud spoke as his blade began to shimmer, the air around it humming with the gathering energy of five elements, fire, water, wind, earth, and space, each color blending into a radiant, lethal aura.
The others were content to continue to rest as she tested the final two remaining. She had targeted Leonard early on, causing him to be far more drained then the rest of his compatriots. Other than Arnaud, and Saare, Leonard held the most potential in her opinion, the two of them that had not reached Sainthood would reach that stage at some point, and Hinata was somewhat eager in assisting them in reaching their full potential.
She had taken a particular interest in nurturing their growth, just as Felix had once guided her, urging her to reach her full potential.
Is this what Felix felt? She wondered, a fleeting thought passing through her mind before she refocused her attention on the battlefield.
Her senses sharpened as Saare launched himself forward with blinding speed, the air behind him erupting in a deafening sonic boom. The shockwave was instantly absorbed by the barriers surrounding the training ground, but the force of his charge was undeniable.
Saare's eyes burned with resolve as he brought his blade down in a powerful arc. "Rahh!" His voice echoed with fierce intensity, his strike seemed to be aimed to cleave through any defense that stood in his way, though he would find himself wanting even should she not defend from his attack at all.
Saare was simply incapable of breaking through Multi-Dimensional Barrier at this point.
She arched an eyebrow, unimpressed by the raw power on display. With a fluid motion, she angled her weapon and met his strike head-on. Their swords clashed with a thunderous crash, the impact reverberating through the ground. Despite the ferocity of the blow, she remained unshaken, the power behind Saare's attack not enough to even disturb her stance.
Even as she parried, she subtly controlled her own Fighting Spirit, reigning it in so as not to instantly overwhelm Saare. She felt the immense power behind his attack, his spirit, his strength, all poured into that single strike. It was an impressive effort, one that would have undoubtedly cleaved a mountain in half.
But she knew his true purpose. Saare wasn't fighting to win, he was fighting to buy time.
And it was working, mostly because Hinata found herself curious as to what the two had planned. This fight would be purposeless if she merely steamrolled through them, and so she allowed Arnaud to make his preparations, content to remind him later on that in a true fight he would not have such an opportunity against a superior opponent.
She felt Arnaud dash behind her as she continued to be content with dealing with Saare.
She could sense Arnaud's blade emitting a vortex of aura as the power of five elements coalesced together.
Going by the power Arnaud was releasing she knew he was almost ready, as did Saare as he charged at her with a renewed roar.
Saare launched a relentless assault, she knew he had no intention of defeating her, his objective was to merely give Arnaud a chance.
She could only smile at their teamwork, previously Saare refused to truly cooperate with the others, partly due to her usurpation of his position, and his own superiority as an Incomplete Saint, but now that had changed, he had truly accepted the others, or at least Arnaud as his comrade.
She felt the aura from Arnaud burst in a single moment as Arnaud dashed forwards.
"Aether Break!" He roared, his voice echoing across the battlefield as he swung his sword in a wide arc. The blade, now fully engulfed in the radiant energy of his elementals, unleashed a torrent of power that surged forward in a brilliant wave.
Before Arnaud's attack could reach her she finally acted, in a burst of speed Saare could not hope to track she punched him in the gut with her fist causing Saare's eyes to go wide as she flung him across the training arena. It wasn't enough to take Saare out of the fight for good, Saare was a Saint if an incomplete one, unless she put active effort into disabling him a half hearted strike wouldn't defeat him, merely severely wound and possibly cripple him.
She believed in his willpower though, Felix had done the same to her on multiple occasions, beating her until the verge of unconsciousness which she wasn't even sure was possible for her back then.
She was left to sink or swim.
She refocused her attention on the battlefield as she turned around to face Arnaud's attack.
She raised an impressed brow as she began using Thought Acceleration to properly take in the attack.
She had only heard of Arnaud's secret technique as he was hesitant to show it to others, and only ever used it when extremely pressed.
As she took the attack in, she immediately realized she could easily recreate the attack and make it far superior to what it was now, however she would not do that now, she didn't wish to completely destroy Arnaud's ego.
The attack itself was rather blinding, five colors of elemental energy intertwined, spiraling together in a single, devastating strike that would pose a threat to her former Incomplete Saint self.
The very air seemed to crackle with energy as the Aether Break tore through the space between them, she could tell the beam was capable of instantly purging anything of demonic alignment as long as the difference in strength wasn't too vast.
This was a technique specialized in hunting the enemies of Humanity.
She could only smile as she deactivated her Thought Acceleration, Arnaud's Aether Break zoomed towards her at blinding speeds, it was truly only an attack someone who was truly loved by the spirits of nature could create.
At the last moment she raised her rapier aloft, bathing it in the light of the sun as she merely slashed dowards.
The wave of overwhelming light from the Aether Break was split perfectly in half, cascading around her but never touching her. For a moment, the battlefield was consumed by a blinding brilliance. The ground beneath them trembled, the air itself seemed to vibrate with the intensity of the strike. As the light faded, an eerie silence fell over the training ground.
As the light faded Arnaud could only stare at her with his mouth agape. "I-Impossible."
Before Arnaud could regain herself she warped space, appearing behind him before delivering a swift kick to his back sending him crashing into the earth below.
"That was a rather impressive showing, I can see why it is considered your prized technique." She praised.
Arnaud turned over from his position on the ground, his eyes were still staring at her in shock, but most of all was reluctant acceptance and overwhelming admiration.
Seeing as Arnaud was done for, she casually turned around to face the last remaining opponent.
"And so there was one." She mumbled as Saare stared her down.
It had not even been five minutes, and all his allies had fallen, yet he still stood strong. No matter how many times Hinata threw him down, he continued to stand. He did not become a Saint by being weak of will.
Saare took a defensive stance as he saw Hinata approaching him, but to his surprise, she sheathed her rapier.
"You have fought well, all of you." She said, her voice carrying a note of genuine respect. "But there is still much to learn. Before… I was not truly fit to teach you. I had my own things I needed to work through, so I could not be the proper leader you deserve."
"Th-That's not true Lady Hinata! It is not your role to teach or mentor us!" Leonard protested as he laid on the ground, exhausted and beaten.
"Be that as it may, it is the role I have placed on my own shoulders now. I wish for all of you to be prepared for the threats that may lie ahead, we may think we are strong but we are not."
"Hah! I don't know if anyone can beat you as you are now Hinata." Saare grit out, though his admiration for her ability could still be felt.
She nodded. "Perhaps few could afford to contest against me, however those beings exist. I know for a fact that Felix could beat me as easily as I defeated all of you."
All of their eyes widened in shock. "B-But that's!" Arnaud gaped.
"I-Impossible." Fritz finished.
She hadn't even used any of her truly powerful abilities, she had not donned her armor that enhanced her combat ability further. None of her Unique Skills were used, Fortuna would have been incredibly overkill, as well as her various applications of Holy Power and Magic, and yet even when using everything she had withheld from her subordinates she still fell short to Felix, however that wasn't something she detested.
She let the small smile grow on her face as she steeled her resolve to one day become someone Felix could rely on.
If she couldn't protect and help the ones she… cared deeply for then how could she hope to protect Humanity?
Her gaze focused back on the group. "This world is far larger than either you or I believe, believe me when I say that I still stand no chance against those at the top of the world if Felix's words are true." She said with honesty. "However perhaps with some work we can all grow a bit more competent so our people can at least survive the coming tides."
Saare nodded, a grudging smile tugging at his lips. "We will be ready next time," he vowed.
Hinata's smile was one of approval and challenge. "I look forward to it. Now, let's tend to your wounds and discuss what you can improve."
The training ground was silent except for the sounds of heavy breathing and the crackling of dissipating energy. As the barriers lowered, Hinata helped her comrades to their feet, offering words of encouragement and advice.
- Felix -
I looked down to my left hand that was locked with Luminous' own. "That was a rather enjoyable date."
We had watched the entire tournament which lasted some hours all while feasting on the food that was served to us.
Luminous wasn't lying when she said they were top notch, though my Raiden's was still better.
The fight itself was fairly dull, it wasn't much fun watching people who can destroy cities with ease fight when I could do far more than that.
The most enjoyment I got out of it was talking to Luminous about the various flaws in their combat forms, but in the end I don't think Luminous cared much for the fight either seeing as both of us were only paying half hearted attention to it. We were more focused on interacting with each other so in a way this date could be said to be a success.
"Are we returning back to your palace now?"
Luminous nodded. "We are."
I could feel Space shift around us as Luminous transported us back to her palace. Within the blink of an eye we were back in Luminous' palace, right where we had originally left from.
"It seems Hinata has left." Luminous murmured.
I shrugged my shoulders. "Like I said, she's probably working."
Luminous nodded. "Most probably."
Luminous and I took a seat on the loveseats in her lounge, or as I liked to call it her NEET room.
"My Lady." Gunther said as he appeared from the shadows. "My Lord." He said as he bowed to me.
I smiled. "Hello Gunther."
Luminous merely nodded. "Gunther, would you serve us some wine."
Gunther bowed. "As you wish."
Luminous and I got comfortable as we lounged on the love seat.
"Would you mind explaining the mechanics of those Domain Expansions in more detail?" Luminous asked.
I raised a brow. "Why? You want to recreate them or something?"
Luminous nodded. "I do."
I tilted my head. "I see, it won't be an easy task, but it is most definitely possible. I know someone with something similar to it after all."
Luminous raised a brow. "Oh? Is it Sukuna? It would make sense if his abilities from that other world were transformed when he entered this one by the Voice of the World."
I nodded. "Sukuna is one of them, but Hinata also got one."
Luminous' eyes widened. "Truly?"
I nodded. "Yeah, and it's incredibly strong, with it alone she may have a chance of troubling you in a fight, and once she rivals you in raw energy she'll likely cause you a lot more trouble."
Luminous' eyes narrowed. "I see…."
I am fairly curious about what kind of World System Skill Luminous could develop if she tried.
"As for the Domain Expansions, the user is basically bringing out their innate domain into reality. An innate domain is basically one's mental landscape that embodies the mind of an individual which they are born with. Innate domains serve as the foundation of an innate cursed technique, but sorcerers, non-sorcerers and cursed spirits are born with them. These innate domains are brought into reality through a barrier that is imbued with one's Innate Technique." I explained.
Luminous nodded thoughtfully. "I see, it will require some experimentation, but it seems to be a useful power."
I shrugged my shoulders. "It isn't a complete game changer I feel, perhaps against someone on your own level or a little bit stronger it could be incredible, but against someone far stronger it is practically useless since they can destroy the "domain" from within through sheer power alone."
Luminous nodded. "I will keep that in mind."
"Ah, I also wanted to share another technique with you, it isn't much but it can increase your efficiency quite a bit."
Luminous raised a brow. "Oh? Very well, as my consort I will not reject your knowledge." She said with a smug smile.
I rolled my eyes. She really liked the whole consort thing.
I ignored her eccentricities and continued. "I call it magicule circulation, my subordinates have already learned this and are in the process of mastering it, but the simple explanation is that when you use magicules for a Spell, or a Skill, or anything like that, you are expelling magicules, some of those magicules are wasted and not actually needed for the Skill, Spell, or Art and are merely wasted due to poor efficiency."
"My efficiency is not poor." Luminous protested.
"I never said it was, but this can improve it further. Continuing on, what this technique is developed for is to circulate magicules throughout your body maintaining constant control over them, and then once some magicules are wasted and expelled you can instantly suck them back in regaining a portion of the magicules spent."
Luminous nodded. "I see, this does seem to be a useful technique."
"It is." I myself would be using it if I didn't have Magicule Breeder Reactor and my efficiency is also already great due to Othinus' and my own efforts.
"Very well, I am interested in this Art of yours." Luminous declared.
I nodded and placed my hand on her head. I could feel the mental barriers she had in place receding as I transferred the information of how exactly magicule circulation works in detail.
Once I pulled away Luminous blinked for a few moments as she took everything in before smiling. "It seems you have understated the utility of this art, thank you Felix."
"No problem."
Both of us sat in a comfortable silence as Luminous laid her head on my shoulder.
"My Lady, My Lord." Gunther said as he reappeared. Luminous looked up from my shoulder as Gunther served us both glasses of wine.
"Thank you Gunther." She said.
Gunther bowed before leaving.
The two of us cuddled and relaxed on the couch for an hour or so before I spoke up. "This was a fun date, Luminous, but it is about time I return to my territory."
I still had some things to take care of that are better not left to sit, like the whole Dagruel thing, and taking Kenya to Elmesia.
Luminous looked up at me from my shoulder. She sighed. "Very well, your company was… enjoyable."
I rolled my eyes. "Okay you tsundere."
"Hmph!" Her huff was the only response I got.
"Be more honest next time or I might need to give you those promised spanks!"
Luminous face lit up. "Wha-What?!"
"Heh, you heard me. Anyways I'm off."
Bullying Luminous was way too much fun.
Before I left I heard Luminous say something.
"Grr! This is not over, but fine we will discuss your threats another time. Do visit again." I turned around to look at her and could see her looking away from me with a blush on her cheeks.
"I'd be glad to, spending more time in your company isn't something I'd reject."
"Hmph! Of course it wouldn't be." Luminous stated with confidence, but through my Intrinsic Skill: Lover I could tell she was practically over the moon at my comment.
Luminous may not be completely and deeply in love with me like some of my other lovers are, and I'm not with her either, but we'll get there eventually. I could tell she did love and care for me, and over time her affection would deepen. Baby steps and all that, I was enjoying the gradual process myself and was curious to see where our partnership would go.
"Also do send Saeko over sometime."
I raised a brow. "Seems you and her got along quite well, sure I'll let Saeko know."
I'll have to go out with Kurumi sometime too, I've been neglecting my poor pet with all the things I've been getting up to.
"Alright, I'm off." I said as I teleported myself to where Hinata was. Through the Soul Corridor we now possess it was easy to find her location without expanding my senses.
- Luminous Valentine -
She sighed as Felix teleported away. She had rather enjoyed her time with him, though she wouldn't voice that out lest Felix's ego grow too much.
She laid down fully and rested her head back on the armrest.
She turned slightly to face Gunther who had just appeared from the shadows. She raised a brow. "Gunther? I had not called for you."
Gunther bowed. "I apologize for disturbing you Lady Luminous."
She waved him off. "It is fine, what do you need?" She asked in curiosity.
Gunther rarely interrupted her when she was lazing about.
"I simply wished to comment that I do believe seeing Lord Felix has been good for you." Gunther said with his grandfatherly smile.
She rolled her eyes at his words. The both of them may be of a similar age, however Gunther was far more serious and while he served as her subordinate he was also a close friend of hers, that was the only reason she allowed him to voice his opinion freely.
"He is an amusing way to pass time." She huffed in slight embarrassment.
"As you say Lady Luminous, however we both know that he has grown to be far more than merely a way to pass time."
Her lips twitched at what she knew to be the truth, yet was too prideful to voice out.
She outwardly rolled her eyes. "You are imagining things, Gunther."
Gunther raised a brow. "Hohoho, I suppose I must be." He said in a tone of voice indicating that he didn't believe her.
With that Gunther left, leaving her to her thoughts alone.
She closed her eyes and focused on the magicule circulation Art Felix had transferred to her, according to him he was the originator of the Art, something quite extraordinary, but despite being a former Human, it was in a Daemon's nature to excel at Magic.
She would begin practicing the magicule circulation Art whilst also trying to mimic the Domain Expansion Felix had described to her.
She knew she was strong, yet she also knew that she was weaker than Felix, she was not the kind of woman who would merely accept being inferior to her lover.
Not to mention Dagruel was also on Luminous' mind, ever since Chloe confirmed that in the other timeline Dagruel would become an enemy she had been training. She knew she was his clear inferior in combat, her only hope would be to use the Sanctuary Disintegration, pulling on the Faith of all those who believed in Luminism to create a Disintegration that could kill even Veldora in an instant.
That was her trump card, a True Dragon killing ability.
Her thoughts wandered back to Felix who she could sense had left towards Ruberious.
She had expected today to end in relentless debauchery, however she was sort of glad that it hadn't. It proved that Felix wasn't in it solely for her body which he had already thoroughly ravaged and enjoyed. He did not seem to be that kind of man in the first place, however now she was reassured that her trust was not misplaced.
She likely would have given in immediately if Felix desired her in that moment, she was weak to him as she was learning.
The repeated masturbation sessions when she thought back to that night were telling enough.
She could feel her nipples harden and press pleasantly against her top. She licked her lips as she felt her nether lips moisten and clench on a nonexistent shaft, her very Spirit craving for Felix's magnificent touch.
She could only smile in pleasurable amusement at her own feelings. She knew she was falling.
Her hand traced up her corset until she firmly held her breast. "Mmm~!" She moaned out as she gently tweaked her nipple. "Felix~!" She cried out as she began pleasurably toying with herself.
She could only blame the evil Daemon for her circumstances.
- Felix -
In the blink of an eye I appeared above Hinata's location, I looked downwards and merely sighed. I recognized this place as one of the various training grounds in Ruberious.
Hinata was standing in front of her minions, the Ten Great Saints, or rather Nine Great Saints since I yoinked Glenda from them.
Each of the Nine Great Saints excluding Hinata looked pretty worn out, she must have beat them up recently.
It seemed she was training her minions, she really didn't like relaxing.
Hinata froze for a moment, seemingly sensing my presence before continuing her lecture. "Aura is very… versatile, as I am sure you all know. You can coat objects with it, strengthen them and even give them certain properties like sharpness, you can enhance your speed, strength, durability, but these are just the basics, but even the basics can take you far, but I'm not going to lecture you about that." Hinata began.
I raised a brow in interest, teacher mode Hinata is something I haven't seen much of.
"If you are good enough you can use it for anything, which in moments where you are caught unprepared can be incredibly useful. You can coat a piece of paper in your Fighting Spirit and cut a Monster in half with it if your Fighting Spirit and your technique is potent enough."
One of them raised a hand, the sole woman in the group.
Hinata paused. "Yes, Litus?"
Litus blinked in confusion. "Is it truly possible to cut Monsters in half merely with a paper? I have not heard of such a thing before."
Hinata nodded. "I suppose that is natural, I myself didn't think of such a use for it until Felix showed me something similar, he defeated me with a stick coated in his Aura."
"Wh-What?!" Leonard exclaimed, I could tell he said what the rest were all thinking as well.
Good times, beating Hinata's ego to the ground was minimal effort back then when she was too arrogant.
Hinata ignored their surprise and merely summoned a piece of paper, she flapped it around to show that it still held the natural properties of paper, most definitely not dangerous enough to kill a Monster.
"Now watch." She said as she coated it in her Fighting Spirit before throwing it at a nearby rock, the rock was split straight in half.
"As you can see, it is possible with enough mastery." Hinata explained.
Litus nodded wide eyed.
"Tsk. You all didn't know that?" Saare questioned.
Litus shook her head.
"She knows it now Saare, moving on, one thing I have noticed is that many of you are lacking in the technique aspect of manipulating Fighting Spirit. You can all manipulate it to a sufficient extent to make use of the most basic applications of it, however it seems none of you truly see the potential in Fighting Spirit and so you focus most of your attention on your Elementals. That will not be enough for me from now on." Hinata stated.
"I want all of you to reach a level where you can imbue your Fighting Spirit into your opponents bodies and destroy them from within." She demanded.
"Fighting Spirit can allow you to accomplish truly extraordinary feats, it is possible to coat yourself in a layer of Fighting Spirit so thick, and so potent that even Disintegration cannot penetrate through it."
I raised my brow at Hinata's words, I knew such a thing was possible, in fact I was more than capable of doing something like that, I just didn't know that Hinata would be aware of that.
She has had teachers other than me, so I suppose it makes sense.
"Even Disintegration?" Arnaud I think his name was voiced out.
Hinata nodded. "Yes. That is not mentioning the other things you all need to become more sufficient in, all of you can hide your presence to a certain extent, however against the top fighters your concealment techniques are rubbish, even your sensing abilities leave much to be desired."
Hinata looked upwards to where I was. "You didn't even notice the Demon Lord above us at this very moment."
I raised a brow at Hinata using me for her lesson. I shrugged my shoulders and unveiled myself. I could see Hinata's point, it wasn't like I was using an incredibly advanced concealment technique, I merely suppressed my leaking Aura to the max while hiding myself in a basic illusion.
Plenty of people would be able to sense me, even a proper well trained Saint would notice me immediately due to being more in tune with the world.
Immediately all of Hinata's minions jumped up and reached for their weapons, causing me to roll my eyes.
"Teach your minions better, or I might take what they're doing as a threat, Hinata." I voiced out as I descended down.
Hinata sighed as she turned to face her subordinates. "Demon Lord Felix is an ally of the goddess Luminous." She stated.
Hearing her most of her subordinates calmed down a bit, though they were still tense.
"He's a Demon Lord." One of the Nine Great Saints protested. He had red hair and seemed to have an affinity for fire.
His statement caused my lips to twitch. He most definitely doesn't know the truth about his goddess then, I noticed Hinata look at him awkwardly.
"Indeed, he is a Demon Lord who has done no harm to Humanity, Garde."
The red haired man, Garde clicked his tongue. "Fine."
Hinata turned back around to face me. "What did you need Felix?"
"I was leaving, I wanted to see if you wanted to come back with me but it seems you have your hands full."
I was also going to start teaching how to manipulate spiritrons manually, but if she was busy it couldn't be helped. I'll just transfer the basic information and check on her later.
Hinata nodded. "Indeed, I have much work to catch up on."
I nodded. "Alright, that's all I wanted to ask. There is one thing I also wanted to do." I said as I approached Hinata.
I placed a finger on her head, Hinata made no move to avoid me, choosing to trust me which did make my lips curl upwards. I noticed many of her subordinates still for a moment before they all rushed me at once.
I sighed. They were all too loyal, but that's good for Hinata I suppose. I could have of course explained what I was doing, but where's the fun in that?
Before Hinata could tell her minions to back off they all froze in place.
Hinata sighed. "Felix…"
"Don't worry, I won't harm them this time. I'll only traumatize them a little bit, I warned those three minions of yours last time but it seems they didn't take my words to heart."
I wasn't going to seriously harm her minions, I knew I was slightly in the wrong seeing as they probably thought I was going to harm Hinata. But I needed to maintain my reputation as a big bad Demon Lord somehow.
Before dealing with them I would do what I was originally planning to do.
In an instant I transferred the information on the very basics of manually manipulating spiritrons.
Hinata's eyes widened as she quickly processed the information. "I see… it seems I still have much to learn from you Felix." Hinata said with a slight hint of red on her cheeks.
I smirked. "Of course, what teacher is surpassed by the student so easily?"
Hinata rolled her eyes at my arrogance as I turned towards her still frozen minions. I could see the panic in their eyes.
"Know that I am not allowing this to harm any of you, but you all must realize just how strong the enemies we face could possibly be." Hinata stated as she backed off from me.
I froze each of her subordinates in place using my power over Gravity. An equal amount of pressure from all directions could freeze just about anyone in place as long as there is enough pressure.
I released the hold I had over them as I smirked. "Well let's get this started."
–
"See ya then." I said as I walked over the bodies on the ground. I didn't kill any of them but maybe they have some mental scars.
Just as I turned to leave, I healed all the minions I beat to the ground. I didn't really need to but I was feeling nice. None however made a move to get up and challenge me once more.
Just as I was about to teleport, Hinata's voice cut through the air. "Wait a moment."
I glanced back at her, raising a brow. "Hmm?"
Hinata, usually composed and confident, seemed uncharacteristically flustered. A small blush began to color her cheeks.
"W-Would you like to go out sometime?" She asked, her voice wavering slightly, betraying a rare vulnerability.
I tilted my head, genuinely surprised. "Out? As in hang out? Sure."
Hinata's blush faded, but her lips twitched violently at my nonchalant response, weird, she seemed oddly frustrated.
"I do believe she is asking you out on a date, Master." Othinus chimed in, her tone playful.
My eyes widened in realization. A date? Hinata, of all people? The same Hinata who was always laser-focused on her duties, dedicated to protecting humanity, and often viewed as a cold pragmatist? The idea seemed almost absurd. Yet, here she was, asking a Demon Lord out on a date.
"Hold on." I said, trying to wrap my mind around the situation. "Are you asking me on a date?" I asked to verify.
Hinata's blush returned with a vengeance, her face now a deep shade of red. Her usual stoic mask cracked, revealing a side of her rarely seen by others. "S-So what if I am?!" she snapped, the defiance in her voice a desperate attempt to reclaim her usual control.
A small smile tugged at my lips as I took in her reaction. This was Hinata, through and through, she was stubborn, headstrong, and unyielding, even in a moment of vulnerability.
"Then I would say… sure." I replied, my tone gentle, yet laced with amusement.
Hinata's expression softened ever so slightly, and for a brief moment, the formidable leader of the Crusaders let down the mask she always maintained due to fear.
Hinata nodded. "Very well then, do not keep me waiting."
"Haha, sure sure, I have some things to take care of but we can plan in more detail later. I'll begin teaching you a bit more about spiritrons then as well once you get the basics down since it seems that you are a bit busy now."
"Very well." Hinata responded, even as her blush began to fade.
I turned around and raised my hand in a wave. "See ya."
"Goodbye Felix." With that I vanished, returning to Azeroth.
I wonder when she'll realize all that happened in front of her subordinates.
- Hinata Sakaguchi -
"Who knew you could act like that." Saare laughed boisterously as he got up off the ground.
Why did Felix have to heal them?!
She froze as she turned around to glare at the 8 remaining members of the Nine Great Saints who all seemed to become energetic all of a sudden.
Litus was looking at her with sparkles in her eyes, almost as if she had done something mythical, Leonard was looking at her as if he had just met her, each of them had their own reactions to what they had just witnessed.
It had completely slipped her mind that those 8 were present, she blamed her emotional fluctuations.
"You will be quiet Saare." She grit out, Saare however ignored her and continued to laugh with Bacchus joining in. Could she beat them enough to the point they lost their memories?
Should she deploy Virtual World and overwrite their memories that way?
"Ah, who knew you'd be a lady too! It can be hard to forget with how emotionless you act." Bacchus laughed.
All of a sudden everyone froze up as her Holy Haki slightly leaked. "It seems you all haven't learned your lesson." She said as she bent over, picking up a stick off the ground. "Why don't I correct that issue."
The stick she picked up lit up as her Divinity coursed through it, elevating the stick to an entirely different level.
She could hear everyone's audible gulps and could only smile viciously.
- Felix -
I appeared back in Tempest, there was still something I had left to do here. The atmosphere of the city was calm, with the usual hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Rimuru has created a pretty damn nice Kingdom, though my own is pretty sweet too, though I can admit that's mostly due to Rimuru's help. I haven't really gone all in on the Kingdom building aspect.
In a moment I located Chloe's location and appeared in front of her, my hands tucked casually in my pockets.
We were currently at the school in Tempest, and Chloe was "playing" with her old friends, though I'm sure it was more of an act if anything for Chloe. She could easily win the game of hide and seek they were playing in an instant.
Even in her child form I could feel the burgeoning power within her, it was hard to believe that she really wasn't a kid anymore, she was a Divine True Hero that could rival a True Dragon in sheer energy reserves alone, and she possessed a practically game breaking power.
Every time I met her I had to keep in mind that I was facing someone who was a significant threat, and I wasn't all that close to her as I was with Milim, or Veldora, so it was natural for me to be wary of her power.
It probably isn't healthy to immediately classify someone as an ally or enemy, but, in this fucked up world what can a man do?
Thankfully at this point I'm fairly certain I'm safe from being erased out of existence since Chloe's time loop has ended, but you can never be careful.
"Correct, I am still dedicating a portion of my processing power for such a scenario when Chloe's Time Leap is once again activated, or how to prevent its activation in the first place."
'Great, thanks. The more options I have the better.'
"Felix-nii!" Chloe shouted in surprise.
I nodded. "Chloe, there was something I wanted to talk about for a moment."
Chloe clapped. "Sure, if it won't be long I'm sure the rest won't notice."
I nodded as I walked forward, subtly isolating our conversation. "It won't be long, I just wanted to let you know not to tell anyone else about my ability to copy Skills." Ever since Hinata told me I knew I'd have to speak to Chloe about this. I didn't want one of my biggest trump cards getting out after all.
Chloe's eyes widened as she laughed nervously. "Ah… Hinata-nee told you?"
"She did."
Chloe pouted. "Fine, fine, I wasn't going to tell anyone anyway, well other than Rimuru if he asks."
"That's good enough for me."
I doubt Rimuru will care much, though if his Raphael is anything like how Odin was, I'm sure it will make all sorts of countermeasures.
"Countermeasures that will fail. My little sister is far from my current capabilities."
'Little sister eh?'
"That is practically what we are."
'I suppose that's true, you want me to help your little sister out by telling Rimuru how to evolve it?'
"That is not needed, Raphael is not yet ready to evolve, when the time comes it will happen on its own."
'You just haven't finished making countermeasures against Raphael have you?'
"...That may be part of it."
'Have it your way then, if Raphael evolves or not will be left up to fate then I guess.'
"Chronoa wishes to know when you want to spar." Chloe asked.
I shrugged my shoulders. "Next time, I've had a lot of spars lately and have some work left to do."
Chloe pouted. "Fine, but I know you're just scared!" Chloe said brattily.
I rolled my eyes. "Sure sure."
I turned around. "That was all I came here for, see y–"
"Mister Felix!" I turned to the voice and saw Kenya running towards me, the other kids gradually began coming out of their hiding spots.
"Kenya."
Kenya shifted nervously. "I-I heard that you would be taking me to meet big sis El, is that true?"
I nodded. "Yeah, it is. Though not right now."
When I took Kenya to Sarion I wanted to visit and tour the Elven Empire a bit myself, so I'd take him after sorting out some stuff back in Azeroth first.
Kenya nodded excitedly. "That's fine!"
Alice crossed her arms next to Kenya, a pout forming on her lips. "I want to learn under big sis too!"
"Haha, well Elmesia doesn't have much free time, I'm sure she didn't mean to be hurtful by singling one of you out."
Alice huffed. "I know, but it's still not fair!" Alice yelled as she smacked Kenya in the back.
Is this domestic violence I am witnessing?
"Gah! Don't hit me Alice!" Kenya cried out as he rubbed his back.
"Hmph!"
"Come on Alice… you can just admit you'll miss him." Gale nervously said.
Hearing him Alice gave him a death glare. "As if I would miss him!"
Ah, so a burgeoning tsundere too.
"I'll leave you all to your games now." I waved., leaving Kenya to deal with the tsundere in training.
I appeared in my office in an instant. "It's nice to be back." I mumbled as I took in the familiar room.
In an instant my maid appeared beside me. "Master."
I turned to the side to look at her, she looked as pristine as always, not a single wrinkle in her garbs.
"How did the training with Middray go?" I inquired.
Raiden gave me a rare, smug smile. "Sir Middray asked me to spar with Frey as she had also requested training."
I raised an eyebrow, intrigued by her confidence. "I'm guessing you demolished her?"
"At first, she was at my mercy." Raiden admitted. "However, she then displayed a Unique Skill of some kind that caused me to be wary and hold myself back. I still soundly defeated her, but it was not as easy as I originally thought it would be."
"She was a Demon Lord for a reason." I said thoughtfully. "That Unique Skill of hers can be pretty troublesome."
Reflector would allow Frey to reflect any damage she took back onto her opponent. The downside was that she needed to take that damage herself, so it could be pretty easy to circumvent. Just kill Frey in one attack or before she could use her Skill.
However, I was sure Raiden had misunderstood something and held back due to that. If you don't understand the full capabilities of your enemy, you're at a disadvantage in a fight.
"I'll leave it to you to figure out what her exact abilities are," I said, not wanting to stifle her growth by giving her all the answers.
Raiden bowed. "As you wish."
"Now where's Arcueid, there is something I need to speak to her about."
"Lady Arcueid is currently in her office."
I nodded. "Great, thanks."
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I am highly motivated by your guys' reviews and likes, so do that! I'll probably keep writing or something.
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Author's Note:
Sup everyone.
We get some more in depth info on Hinata's as well as Luminous' thought process, yay, more character development. Hinata also bodies her opponents which was expected.
Luminous learned about Domain Expansions, I wonder what changes that will make?
Hinata finally asks Felix out on a date, something that's been a long time coming, so it's nice to see that development finally take place.
Thanks for reading, peace.
Thanks to @Salante and @Flowerman for beta'ing this chapter.