[Rae Phenex POV]
'Non-existence? What is he even talking about?'
I had heard of lots of strange abilities throughout my life. I'd participated in the Great War and the Devil Civil War, and yet hearing my youngest son saying he had essentially bought a high-class fighter from non-existence using nearly a thousand Phenex tears was something I had no clue how to deal with.
What part of that was I supposed to ask about?!
Riser said he summoned Erza. At first, I wondered if that meant he hired her somehow, paying someone hundreds of tears for her.
But his reaction said otherwise. He was confident in his decision and didn't seem to care about the tears.
Were the tears actually sent to non-existence as he said? Did that mean he was talking about the Dimensional Gap? Maybe something beyond it or something else entirely?
I was burning with questions, so I did the only thing I could to answer them.
"Riser, would you mind explaining what you mean by that?"
"I guess I could, but I need you to do something for me then."
"Oh?"
"I don't want you sharing what I say with anyone, not even father, unless I say something. You'll understand why when I explain."
"That will likely depend on exactly what you tell me, but if I feel it harms the family, then I will be telling your father since he has a right to know."
Riser nodded in understanding.
"That's fair enough."
From there, Riser gave a brief overview of what had happened to him over the last few days.
I had noticed the changes, but hearing it from him explained everything.
After all, as much as I love my son, I knew he had an arrogance streak from being a member of the Phenex clan.
Whether these changes were a good thing would only be clear in time.
As for whether these new memories made him my son, he still had Riser's memories. If anything, it reminds me of those news stories where people hit their heads and become savants. He was still the same person, just more.
These new memories of his matured Riser well beyond his years.
More shocking was that these memories told stories of our world. The multiverse theory was one Maou Beelzebub had looked into out of curiosity, but since crossing the Dimensional Gap was unheard of, it was impossible to prove its existence.
Not only proving the existence of the multiverse, but also knowing the most likely future we'd face was both disturbing and fascinating.
Then he went on to describe his strange new ability, letting him sell tears for anything he wanted.
The more Riser told me, the more shocked I became.
It was no wonder he asked me not to reveal anything. His father would use that future knowledge to prepare, and in doing so, alert everyone that we knew something. Revealing the shop seemed less important, but I still understood the why.
Phenexs were the only ones who could produce tears, and, more importantly, Riser was the only one who could use this shop. Some of the options Riser mentioned sounded extremely powerful. Should anything somehow slip that we could buy god-like power, Riser would likely be hunted down, even by other devils.
Those who were nervous that we'd stop selling tears to gain more power for ourselves, people who wished our family would lose power, greedy people trying to take advantage of Riser, all of them were threats, with many of them more powerful than us.
The four Maou protect our family, but if they were to extort us to obtain more power, there's always the threat of leaving us to the wolves. The Phenex clan only had so much power after all. The Phenex clan was already extremely protective of our bloodline; the last thing we needed was to go about the world alone.
It was better to keep this secret.
Once Riser started making his own tears, so long as nothing killed him, he would eventually become the strongest.
After several minutes of sorting out my thoughts, I finally spoke.
"I'll keep your secret, Riser, not just for you, but for the family. We can't risk anyone learning about such an ability.
I'll keep providing you with tears to hasten your growth, but in exchange, I want some of the rare stuff from that shop. Rare delicacies, interesting trinkets, maybe a servant or two to fill out my peerage."
"I'm fine with that. You've already helped me get Erza after all."
"Ah, yes. That reminds me. Why did you buy her specifically?"
"Aside from the obvious, she's the daughter of a human-turned-dragon, enhancing her strength and magical ability without actually being a dragon. Her best ability is to switch between armor in seconds, and with my ability to buy any armor or weapon in existence-"
"You could give her the best armor for any situation," I finished. Indeed, it was no wonder he bought her for so many tears. Her potential was incredibly high with a draconic bloodline, and her draconic lineage wasn't even active.
"Miss Scarlet," I asked. "While my son may have said you are loyal to him, I'm curious as to why."
"I can only say that I am Mrs. Phenex," Erza said, somewhat upset that she didn't have a better answer. "However," she said, perking up, "I'll give it my all to keep Master safe, even if it costs me my life, "Erza resolutely declared.
"Master?" I cocked my head toward Riser for an explanation.
"In her world, she's a member of a guild, and they usually call the guild master that. Since I'm her new boss, I'm the master. I told her she can refer to me normally in private, though. Erza," Riser said, turning to the red-haired girl, "my family can be considered private."
"Yes, Riser," Erza nodded.
One of those types, then. If Erza's as capable as she is serious, then Riser will be in good hands.
Riser and I discussed what he planned to get from the shop, though I mostly gave suggestions for what could be useful.
Erza chimed in at one point, asking for strawberry shortcake when she heard food could be bought. Riser's snort at her question told me it was as much of a quirk as Maou Lucifer's and Maou Leviathan's adoration of their new siblings.
When we finished talking, Riser excused himself and Erza. As he reached the door, I spoke up.
"Riser, could I speak to you alone for a second?"
"Um, sure, what is it?" He asked, closing the door behind Erza.
Getting up from my chair, I walked over to him before bending down and hugging him.
"Don't worry about whether or not you're my son," I comforted. "I'm your mother, so if anyone would know the answer, I would, and I can say with absolute certainty, you are."
Riser hugged back tightly, as if scared of letting go.
Several minutes passed before his grip loosened.
"Thanks, Mom," Riser said before leaving.
"Still a child," I said to the empty room.
__________
Author's Note:
Yes, I had the MC reveal their system and transmigration. While it makes sense to keep such a thing secret, he wouldn't be able to hide it forever, especially after it cost him so many tears to use. Honesty is the best policy after all.
Don't know how well I handled the past-life reveal and the comforting at the end, but I think I did okay.
Thanks for reading; I'll see you next time!