- Arthas -
"I… don't think it was plain abuse. Kurumi was someone who was very close to her sister from what you told me."
"Hmm."
"And yet her sister knew nothing of any abuse, so either it was hidden very well or… it wasn't exactly abuse. Obviously, she could have been blackmailed too. Probably using her sister as a threat." I said, thinking a bit more.
"That does sound reasonable. Then… why would she snap and leave her sister alone when running away?"
"Probably because she had no other option. It could be that they were planning to go after her sister and she found out, that being the final straw that broke the camel's back and snapped. As for why she left her sister there, she could have been injured and wasn't sure she could escape with her sister so she decided to distance herself from her in the hopes of sparing her of the punishment."
"Hmm. Quite possible."
I continued. "As there are other possible scenarios too. Just as you said, her master could be jealous of her. But abusing her wasn't the only course of action was it? Jealous people only destroy the object of jealousy when they can't have it for themselves. What if they tried to do something to her, probably experiment on her to find some way to empower her. There is a very high chance that it could have caused her to lose control."
She frowned a bit at this, looking more in thought.
"Lastly, it could be a combination of these two. You did say that Kurumi was becoming stronger at a very quick pace. Maybe they were experimenting on her, like the Super Devil thing you told us about that day? I doubt devils, as you have told me, would give up so easily on a chance to gain such power as your son has."
I stopped at this point.
"You really thought about this, didn't you?"
"I have been talking often to Kurumi and probing her too. I guess I just have a different method of dealing with people than Bina. I learned this from my mom."
"And you are pretty good at it. Your mother must be a very good teacher. I would love to meet her when we get out from here."
I smiled at her words. "You think there is a chance that my theory could be true?"
"Hmm, as much as I don't want it to be, I won't deny that it is probably the most likely case." She said, looking serious. "That said, if it's the first case… then, she wouldn't have much of a foot to stand in a legal case at least in the Devil Law System. Her sister wasn't touched. You cannot do anything to someone just for having a plan. Not to mention she was a pure youkai so the Devil Law System will give the Naberius House a direct preference."
"And the second case?"
She went completely blank. "If that happened… then the Naberius House would be ruined completely."
"Huh?"
"You remember I explained the reasons why the experiments of making Super Devils was stopped?" She asked, quietly.
I nodded.
"Those were all the reasons given for the public. There was something else which was never brought out to the public or it could cause riots in the underworld." She looked at my confused face and continued. "During the Super Devil experiments before the Civil War, something happened which frightened all the houses doing such experiments into quitting."
"What?"
"One of those experiments made something no one had expected… a disease. Normally Devils are immune to most diseases, our demonic power generally destroys any kind of parasite or disease but this one was different. It could not be destroyed by the demonic power of our devil race. In fact, even until now, with all the advancements in the devil race's medical field, we haven't been able to find a cure for this disease."
"Which disease?"
"The Sleeping Illness."
…
"In this disease, the devil starts falling asleep very often. The time for their naps increases and in a few months, they go completely comatose… and never wake up. They don't die. They just never wake up. In some extreme cases, the people directly fall into a comatose state. Not even the strongest devils are immune from this disease and once caught, their fates are sealed more or less."
She looked at me. "The oldest cases of the Sleeping Illness go back to before the Civil War when the experiments started with there being twenty eight cases in just three months. This scared the houses so much that they completely abandoned the experiments. Even now, it is a matter of life and death and a spread of such a disease or satan forbid, another new disease of that kind could destroy the Devil Race, completely. That's why the Super Devil experiments were truly banned and even after four hundred years, there haven't been any other Super Devils in the underworld yet."
That's… wild.
"Arthas."
"Hmm?"
"Just try to verify if that theory about experimentation is true or not. If it is, then not only will her name be cleared, I will make sure that she gets rewarded for her actions as well when we get out of this world."
"Okay."
"And obviously, I will reward you myself." She smiled as she got on top of me again, with a sultry smile on her lips. "Actually, now that I think of it, you will be going to the Capital with Bina, right?"
"Yes. What of it?" I asked, looking at her suspiciously.
"Oh don't look at me like that. I am not going to have you jump her or anything… at least not now."
…
"Rose is going to go with you too. Just take care of her. She is improving a lot. Give her some more time. I am asking if you know how to deal with Bina."
"Umm… what exactly do you mean by 'deal'?"
"I mean, how exactly do you interact with Bina?"
"Professionally." I replied succinctly.
That was exactly what I did when with Bina.
A purely professional behaviour.
"Oh and what exactly are the professions of you two here?" She asked.
"A comrade, guildmate…" I replied.
"Unfortunately that is where you are wrong."
"Huh."
"Whether it is your relation with me as my lover, or you being her master through the contract from the auctions… you are her Master. So what you think is professional behaviour… might be the exact opposite to her."
My eyes twitched at her words. "You are messing with me, right?"
"As much as I enjoy your reactions, this time I am being serious." She replied with a smile of her own again.
Bullshit.
"It's not bullshit. And no, I don't read minds. Your expressions were just too obvious. Bina is very serious about her duty as a maid. It is a large part of her character. In fact, it has been observed that every Lucifuge is always attached to someone they consider a master of their own. Without that, they become aimless. In the outside world, that master is my son as the current Lucifer. However, inside the game world, that master is us. If you want to act professionally with her… then act as her master. So, this time, when you go out to the capital with her… just treat her as a maid. "
"You are really not trying to mess with me, right?"
"I won't be there to see your expressions so what's the point?" She asked.
"Point."
She went on to explain how I should behave with her… which if I was being honest, sounded like a method to get her to hate me more than anything.
Later, we went on for another round of sex and fell asleep on top of each other.
She did promise me another big reward later if I mastered Battle Aura before returning back to Llyne.
…I mastered Level 1 of Battle Aura the next day.
- Sona Sitri -
"Two more of our contractors were found dead in their houses while trying to summon us. It looks to be the work of some deranged psychopath, probably some exorcist as we have found signs of light weaponry used there." Tsubaki reported.
"Must be a stray exorcist. With the current situation of the three factions, no one will want to cause trouble… or at least not everyone. Still, it would be prudent to check." She said, while thinking of some things. "Didn't Tsubasa spot some Fallen Angels in the city recently? Keep an eye on them from a distance."
These kinds of things were easier when Rias was around as her peerage was better at taking care of threats while her peerage managed the other aspects of the territory. It was just what they were better at and made things convenient for them. Now, with her and most of her peerage members trapped inside that place… things were getting hectic for her.
"Actually, take Kiba-kun with you. He has been feeling… lost recently. Perhaps having a task to do will help him regain a sense of direction again. I know you have been worried about him too." She added looking at her queen blush slightly.
Sona knew that Tsubaki had some good feelings about Kiba-kun. It would be a stretch to call it love for now but going further it could definitely develop into something like that. She didn't mind it either.
Their families were close and even if they got married, it wouldn't be a problem for either of them later on.
Even Sirzechs-sama knew this and had sent Kiba-kun back to Kuoh Academy to assist her under Rias' name. The reason he gave was that Kiba-kun could work here to keep the name of his king alive in the territory among their contractors while the real reason was for him to not get any more depressed than he already was.
Things have been extremely hectic in the underworld… no, the entire Supernatural World after the reveal of the game called Soul Art Online and the ones behind it.
Many wanted to stop the game and yet, after the example made out of Rizevim Livan Lucifer, no one dared to do anything.
Obviously, there were always some exceptions to this rule, some fools who thought Rizevim was an idiot and wanted to try either way, just to mess around… each and every one of them was killed in the same way, without any mercy.
The Gamemaster, probably out of some twisted sense of humour or out of sheer apathy, didn't even find another place to hang them and just chose the same place where he had hung Rizevim Livan Lucifer.
All the Satans were working overtime on several matters.
Her sister was running around other factions, trying to get any kind of help she could.
Sirzechs-sama was doing everything he could to keep the populace in control.
Falbium-sama was working with members of the Grigori and Heaven to try to find a way to defend themselves, in case someone actually pissed off the Gamemaster enough to make him attack.
Ajuka-sama on the other hand was busy conducting the rescue of the people trapped in the game through indirect means which didn't interfere with the warnings of the Gamemaster.
Even the human world wasn't spared.
There were several students from Kuoh itself who had been trapped in the game, their fates unknown.
Kuoh Academy was feeling different because of this too.
And now this…
She just hoped things didn't escalate too much.
From what she had overheard her sister speaking, it almost seemed as if a slight trigger could make another war like the Great War erupt, only this time with more than just the three factions… and wasn't that a horrible thought?
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Author's Note:
I am back with another chapter of 'Soul Art Online.'
I wanted to complete the Greenfrost part in this chapter alone. I even skipped the smut I had planned for this but just couldn't.
Anyways, I plan to complete the Capital part in the next two chapters and get everyone in Llyne for the World Quest after that.
We got to see a slight look at what was going on in the outside world.
Next time, we will see the start of the Second World Quest.
Enjoy the new chapter.
Good Day, Peace Out.