Yubelluna perched on Tenra's lap, flipping through the pages of the Codex of Divinity and Demonhood. Now that she knew her master's ambition, she wanted to understand every doctrine he'd written—every line, every secret.
As she read, her eyes shone with awe. The deeper she delved, the more she admired Tenra's brilliance. What kind of mind could conceive all this?
"Wait… Lord Tenra, this Codex—"
She stopped, stunned.
There was no mistaking it. However faint, she sensed the aura of a Sacred Gear radiating from the tome. That shouldn't be possible.
Tenra's lips curled into a knowing smile. "You noticed? It is a Sacred Gear."
He waved his hand. The Codex shimmered, dissolving into motes of light—then reformed in his palm. One became two, two became four, and in moments, dozens of identical tomes fluttered down, filling the desk.
"Lord Tenra… how did you do that?"
Yubelluna's voice trembled. Everything she knew about Sacred Gears said they were divine artifacts, created by gods and bestowed upon humans. But this Codex—her master had written it himself. How could it be a Sacred Gear?
Tenra leaned in, his voice a wicked whisper at her ear. "Yubelluna, your master can do anything."
The Codex had nothing to do with the old gods. It was Tenra's creation, through and through. The secret lay in his greatest weapon—[Sacred Gear Plunder]. Over the years, Tenra had pushed its limits, unlocking abilities beyond mere theft. [Gear Share] let him distribute powers. But [Gear Forge]—that was something else entirely.
[Gear Forge] gave Tenra the ability to create Sacred Gears, just as the gods once did.
But it wasn't so simple. Unlike the convenience of [Gear Share], [Gear Forge] was unpredictable, unreliable. Tenra had tried countless times, but only the Codex of Divinity and Demonhood had successfully become a Sacred Gear. Everything else had failed.
Even then, he couldn't control what abilities the new Gear would have. He couldn't simply imagine a world-shattering artifact and make it real. The process felt random, almost natural—each Gear's power had to be discovered, developed, explored. In some ways, it was a frustrating, almost useless ability.
Still, the Codex had revealed some of its secrets over time. It could replicate infinitely—as long as Tenra's spiritual energy held out, he could create thousands of copies. One was the master edition; the rest, sub-copies. Only Tenra could write or revise the master, and any change would ripple through every copy.
He'd split the Codex into two sections: the Sacred Codex and the Demonic Codex. Only Tenra could view and edit both. For everyone else, the book revealed only one side—pure souls saw the Sacred Codex; wicked souls, the Demonic.
What other powers the Codex might hold, Tenra didn't yet know. Perhaps, once it was finished and believers gathered, new abilities would awaken.
Yubelluna gazed at him, utterly entranced. Even if Tenra hadn't explained the mechanism, she understood one thing:
He was already doing what only gods could do.
If she'd ever doubted his ambition, now she saw hope flickering at the horizon.
"Yubelluna, which do you see? The Sacred Codex, or the Demonic?"
Tenra's smile turned mischievous as he swept the extra copies away, leaving one before her.
Yubelluna's cheeks flushed. "The… Demonic Codex."
Tenra burst out laughing. "So your soul isn't so pure after all, Yubelluna!"
She tried to hide her embarrassment, but Tenra simply scooped her up and carried her to the bed.
The night was young. They had plenty of time to enjoy themselves.
Soon, Yubelluna's breathless moans echoed through the room, mingling with Tenra's laughter.
Morning broke. After breakfast, Tenra set off for Kuoh Academy, surrounded by his usual retinue of beautiful girls.
"Yo, Issei."
He spotted Issei Hyoudou heading for school and called out with casual friendliness.
Issei's smile vanished. Every morning, he ran into Tenra—the guy who seemed to have everything. It was infuriating.
Usually, Tenra would greet him, then walk off with his entourage, leaving Issei trailing behind, forced to watch their shameless flirting. Today, Issei decided he'd had enough.
He ignored Tenra and the girls, turned his head, and strode ahead, determined to be the one leaving others in his dust for once.
Let them eat his wake, he thought, picking up the pace.
Tenra watched Issei's childish display with amusement, but didn't bother to respond. The girls, though, shot Issei icy glares.
"Heh… brave, aren't we?"
Raynare licked her lips, eyes glinting dangerously. "Master, want me to kill him?"
Tenra rolled his eyes. "Is killing people all you ever think about?"
Raynare grinned, unrepentant. "Of course not. I also think about how to please you, Master."
The other girls muttered under their breath; even Mittelt and Kalawarner edged away from Raynare, as if her darkness might be contagious.
Tenra ignored the drama, leading the group onward. By the time they reached the park, Issei had pulled far ahead.
Suddenly, a startled cry rang out. A girl tripped and fell right in front of Tenra and his companions.
Her nun's habit flipped up, revealing a flash of white panties to everyone present.
The girls blushed scarlet. Tenra's mouth twitched as he looked away, thinking, Seriously? Is this divine fanservice?
"Ugh… why did I fall?" the girl whimpered.
"Are you alright, miss?" Tenra stepped forward and helped her up.
At that exact moment, Issei—far ahead—paused, sensing something. He glanced back, puzzled.
For some reason, he felt like he'd just lost something important.
Again.
He couldn't explain it. Why did it always feel like "again"?
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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