The underworld.
I was calmly drinking my coffee, now sitting in a small living room, small for demons, of course, which was still part of the arena. Sona left almost immediately after the fight ended in a draw, which surprised me, and Misla went to check on her son.
As for the fight, it was surprising that it ended in a draw again. The reason was that Issei, because of me, of course, did not receive the full boost that was in the canon. Yes, he had compensation in the form of training with the Servants, but the time spent with them was very insignificant. However, this is the world of anime, and the main character rapidly gaining strength is the norm here.
At one point, I heard footsteps approaching, and a minute later, a group of people I knew well, well, demons, entered the room. Of course, it was Sirzechs, Greyfia, and Rias.
- "Oh, look who it is! Two tomatoes and white sauce? Just a little more and you'd be a full-fledged salad," I smiled, at which all three stared at me irritably and sat down opposite me. "Why have you come to me? To the great, intelligent, strong, magnificent..."
- "Yeah, yeah, we know how great you are," Rias interrupted me and rolled her eyes.
- "Exactly, Tomato-san! I'm glad you understand everything so well."
- "That was sarcasm."
- "No, it wasn't."
- "Yes."
- "No."
- "Yes."
- "No," I said and covered her mouth with magic as soon as Rias tried to object. At first, she touched her mouth in confusion, then glared at me menacingly, just like a house mouse, and started poking me with her finger and stamping her feet. "See, you agree with me."
- "Mmm!" Rias muttered, and seeing this, Sirzechs laughed, while Greyfia shook her head.
- "You really are something, Romani-san. It's amazing how you can combine such opposite character traits," said the scarlet Demon Lord, unable to hide his amusement, and then his usual polite smile returned to his face. "But still, I would be grateful if you would break the spell on Rias. She has something to say."
- "Really? Well, okay then," I said and waved my index finger in the air. Rias felt the effect of my magic wear off, then turned her head away from me, crossed her arms, and snorted, making it clear that she had no intention of talking to me.
- "Now, now, Rias, stop sulking," Sirzechs began, placing his hand on her head. "You wanted to talk to Romani-san, didn't you?"
- "Lady Rias, behave yourself," commented Greyfia.
- "Yes, yes, stop sulking, Tomato-san," I added. "Otherwise, you'll start to spoil, and all your assets will sag like a half-empty bag of sand."
- "They won't sag!" Rias declared heatedly, then calmed down, corrected herself, and took on an important air. "Ahem. First, Sairaorg's mother asked me to tell you that they will visit you later, when your cousin has recovered. He wanted to come with us, but we talked him out of it."
I shrugged.
Well, it was obvious that Misla would stop him from doing anything like that. Both Sairaorg and Issei must be completely exhausted right now, considering their fight, which was quite typical for a shonen anime: lots of shouting, grand speeches, blows delivered in epic poses, names of moves, and so on.
- "Secondly..." she was about to continue when she was interrupted by the sudden opening of the door. Of course, it was Mo-chan, who opened the door as if it belonged to her, followed by Merlin with his usual sly smile on his face.
However, when Sirzechs and Grayfia saw Caster, their expressions changed for a moment. It was pure annoyance with a slight hint of vindictiveness, anger, and... embarrassment? Hmm. I wonder why that is?
- "Now, now, Mo-chan. You can't behave like that in front of guests. Bad girl," I grinned, and as soon as my words reached her ears, Mo-chan instantly summoned Clarent to her hands and lunged at me, intending to take my head off. And, of course, her sword was stopped by my index finger, sending a shockwave through the room that slightly damaged the interior and furniture. "You're so cute when you're angry."
- "What did you say, you bastard? Die!" she screamed, growling and pressing down on the sword, which was streaked with scarlet lightning.
- "See, Mo-chan, Master thinks the same as I do," Merlin nodded. "Maybe we'll find you a boyfriend? You'll discover all the joys of adult life. Especially..."
- "Huh?!" Mo-chan let out a sound and directed a bloodthirsty gaze at him. "Say that again, you flower bastard."
- "He's right, you know," I agreed with Merlin, causing her eyes to return to me. "You're a grown girl, even if you are in your rebellious phase, and it's time for you to experience your first spring."
- "You're both dead!" Mo-chan growled, jumping back and raising her sword above her head. "I am not a king, but I follow the path of a king..."
- "Oh? Noble Phantasm?" I sneered, watching as the base of Clarent's blade opened and a thick scarlet lightning bolt shot out, reaching tens of meters in height. "My daughter is indeed at a rebellious age."
- "I will destroy everything to bring peace to the king..."
- "Do something!" Rias exclaimed. "She's going to destroy everything here!"
- "At full power? Bad Mo-chan," I said and snapped my fingers, blocking her mana and interrupting the activation of the Noble Phantasm. Then my magic circle lit up beneath her, transporting her straight to Artoria's side.
Seeing this, Rias breathed a sigh of relief, Sirzechs was still smiling, Greyfia maintained a professional expression, and Merlin giggled.
- "I apologize," I began ironically, wiping away a non-existent tear. "Children always want their parents' attention, and Mo-chan is no exception."
- "I understand. Rias-chan was the same. How much furniture and toys she destroyed when she went through that phase. Ah, memories..." Sirzechs said nostalgically, causing Rias to blush with embarrassment and lower her head, while Greyfia rolled her eyes.
- "Anyway," I got their attention while Merlin stood behind me. "What were you talking about, Tomato-san?"
- "Well, it was about the Servants," Rias recovered. "I wanted to thank them and you for the training. Their methods are a little questionable, but thanks to them, we were able to reach the finals. We might even have won, but I was indebted to Sairagorg, so I let him win. That's all."
Hmm... In theory, she would have won, because she would have scored more points. Mo-chan must have torn them apart, and that was considered extremely effective training, of course, within the world of DxD and the like. However, I didn't care, because the arc ended exactly as it was supposed to in the canon.
- "Oh? Well, okay," I raised an eyebrow and shrugged, then looked at Sirzechs. "What are you doing here, sis-con fetishist? I'm not so scary that you have to fear for your beloved little sister's life."
- "Actually, I wanted to tell you about His Majesty and the 'little' surprise he has in store for you," Sirzechs began, rising from the couch.
- "Well, that's not news," I shrugged. "What's changed? And what was the reaction of you and your fetish when Caster entered the room?"
- "I'll be happy to tell you, Master," said Merlin, assuming a businesslike, satisfied, and proud expression. "You see, I recently noticed that the flame of passion between the spouses had died down a bit, and I decided to fix that."
Before I could ask how exactly he did it, an icy chunk flew toward him from Grayfia... which I blocked with a smirk on my face.
- "Lord Merlin, if you continue, I will be forced to take action," Grayfia said in an absolutely icy tone, as a dozen more chunks and a blizzard appeared behind her. Sirzechs cowered before the guard in front of his wife's anger and, for some reason, blushed deeply.
- "Oh? Tell me. Right now," I smiled and, binding Sirzechs and Grayfia with chains, looked at Merlin, who looked VERY proud.
- "You know about 'that' story, Master, don't you? I'll give you a hint..." he began and paused dramatically, heightening my interest. "Artoria. And THAT very night."
At that moment, it was as if I had been struck by lightning. A flash of insight pierced my mind, and with a very, VERY broad smile, I turned my gaze to the married couple. Sirzechs lowered his head and clearly wanted to disappear from this world, and Grayfia...
Oh, the eternally stoic and cold queen turned so red that her skin resembled the color of Gremory's hair. Her hands clenched her maid's apron tightly, her bangs hid her eyes, and steam was naturally coming out of her head.
- "How did you pull that off?" I asked Merlin with great interest. "They are strong, and you wouldn't have been able to achieve your goal so easily."
- "Of course! I'm a professional at this!" Merlin continued, his nose turned up in smug satisfaction. "A little charm magic, the right moment, and a couple of drops of a special potion to loosen them up... And then... I've never seen so much passion in twelve hours! It was like they were doing it for the last time! In every position! Every hole..."
At that moment, I felt the building shake. A black and red aura spread throughout the room, like a dry force screaming for destruction. And, surprisingly, my chains slowly began to break under the pressure of the Power of Destruction.
- "That's enough," Sirzechs said authoritatively, hugging Grayfia, who had almost lost consciousness from shame. "Why don't you punish Caster, Romani-san? He's taken too much liberty."
- "Oh? Why do you think I would punish him? I like everything," I asked, still smiling cheerfully.
- "Because the surprise prepared by His Majesty was carried out with his help."
At these words, I froze, because Sirzechs's words meant that Merlin wanted to play a joke on ME. Caster tried to escape, but he was immediately bound by chains and knocked to the ground, and the flow of mana into his body was cut off.
I slowly turned toward him and stared at him.
- "I've been framed! He's a demon, Master! You know his mouth can lie! He just wants to discredit my honest name!" Merlin twitched on the floor.
- "Then why did you try to escape, you dick wizard?" I asked, approaching him and kneeling down, drilling him with a cold and distant gaze.
- "I-I can explain everything! Master! J-Just stop smiling so creepily!" he begged, and I summoned Excalibur to my hands and filled it with mana.
- "You'll tell me everything," I said and released the sword from my hands, which began to hover over a certain part of Merlin's body, or more precisely, an opening. "You'll tell me everything, won't you?"
- "NOOOOO…"
-0-
A/N: How's the chapter? Give us your opinion. You may well be able to influence future chapters.
My P.a.t.r.e.o.n: P.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m/mirzael
You'll be able to read more chapters there.