135 [135] Promise of Eternity
Chapter 135: Promise of Eternity
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[First Person Point of View]
"Ah," the middle-aged devil man was the first to break the tense silence in the room. He smiled at Mem, which made her frown, as he stood up and began to walk over. "There you are… Ohh, you have your mother's eyes."
The man himself had red eyes, and the tall girl in the room who wore the same emblem on her clothes as him, making it obvious that she was a family member, perhaps his own daughter, had greenish blonde hair and red eyes too. If so, it seemed the Agares Clan ran on those two characteristics.
Many assumed Mem-Cho's blonde hair was dyed, I thought the same at the start, but it's not. Her hair was black at birth, but after she turned 18, it began to slowly turn blonde as her devil blood grew more prominent. As for her aqua-colored eyes, they came from her mother's side of the family.
Such colored eyes were quite rare for an Asian person to have, which explained why Lord Agares took an interest in Mem-Cho's mother back in the day. Anything exotic was a feast for the devils.
"It may be sudden," the man walked over to Mem-Cho, and subsequently at me since I was standing in front of her, as he spoke, "But… it's not a lie, I am your father."
He reached out a hand, reaching toward her head as if to pat her head. I would have grabbed it and twisted it the other way right then, if not for Mem's gentle tug on my shirt. She didn't want it.
'Right, it doesn't hurt as long as he doesn't propose anything outrageous. I'll let him be as long as he keeps up the good father act,' I decided. Considering that he might just be acting as a good father to convince her mind, to pull her into the family, I was aware that this wasn't a good idea. Still, this was the better choice instead of starting with an aggressive approach.
I stepped to the side, my eyes lingering sharply on the man's movements, as his hand rested on her head and he ruffled her hair. "We have much to talk about, much to catch up to. But there is no rush, we can take it slow," he said as he looked at me for the first time, his smile vanishing. Of course, he hadn't missed the disapproving look I'd been sending him from the beginning, I hadn't bothered to hide it. "After all, our meeting is overlapping your boyfriend and Sirzechs' discussion. How about we sit still for a bit, as the two of them unwrap what they have to talk about?"
"Mm," Mem nodded. I didn't bother to comment on that, I didn't mind it.
The middle-aged man smiled, looked at Sirzechs and asked, "Is that okay with you if we're in the room while you talk, Sirzechs?"
"Uh, yes, of course. It's not exactly a state secret," he said and Lord Agares smiled. He pulled Mem-Cho toward the couches placed against the wall, while she wore a complicated look on her face.
I looked at Rias, and she understood my intent as she joined the two of them on the couch. Her Queen, Akeno, followed.
The blonde-haired girl near the table stood in silence for a moment before stepping away. She did not join the Lord on the couch and rather crossed her arms to stand a bit far from the table.
"Please, take a seat," Sirzechs said, and his maidwife pulled the chair for me when I walked over. I slowly sat down, feeling many eyes on my back, while Sirzechs let his smile drop.
"I heard your proposal for Rias," he said, "and I disagree with it. Anyone else and I'd have been more discourteous with this, it's incredibly outrageous to invite a member of a faction to join another. I've decided to look over it since it's you, who has helped the Devils greatly by curing Lady Ranefer. Plus you're a young man, mistakes happen. I hope you understand."
"There is a misunderstanding," I said with a shake of my head. "Joining a Sect does not mean she's leaving her family, nor her race. It's basically a school, a [Guild]. I've never intended to imply her betrayal to the devils when I asked her to join me."
"Uh-huh," he raised an eyebrow. "Sect is not a term I am particularly familiar with, but it's not a new word to me either. Back in the day, China had quite many sects. I hear that, while many of them indeed acted as schools, many tried to stand up to be a faction of their own. Like a 'Clan'. I'm glad you cleared up your interpretation of it."
Well, I fucking lied. I do intend to rise as a faction of my own, as a Pantheon. But that's something that should be kept to me for the time being.
"I'm glad we cleared that up," I said.
"Still, it does not benefit Rias in any way I can see. People join 'schools' to learn as well as make connections, a sect is not so different from that, is it? What connection can she make there, or what can she learn there that she can't learn by herself?" He asked, "Keep in mind, she's the heir to a Duke Family in the underworld. She does not lack any resources. From what I see, it's you and your sect who'll be receiving all the benefits."
"Such as?"
"To start, by having the sister of a Satan in your sect, even if Satans are said to keep themselves out of their family matters, it'll give the world the idea that you have the undisputed support of the said Satan. As in, me." He said. "It's not a bad thing, don't misunderstand, I wouldn't mind supporting you personally. After all, you're a good friend to Rias. But my title carries a lot of weight. An enemy of you might see the Devil Faction as its enemy too. And we've already seen and experienced the danger level of the enemies you deal with. All in all, this seems like a one-sided deal to me with you receiving all the benefits."
"I see," I said nonchalantly. I didn't find his points invalid; in fact, it's true that the real reason I'm trying to bring by my side is because of the benefits he spoke of. But he was wrong on one part. "Firstly, it's an insult to my Master to assume that Rias will not receive any benefits. That she will not learn anything, or make any powerful connection that she can't all by herself."
"Pfft-" I caught the sound of a laugh from my side, turning to find the blonde girl covering her mouth as she looked away.
Did she find this funny? How cute.
"Oh? Go on," Sirzechs ignored her and locked his fingers under his chin to look at me.
"The Immortal Venerable Over Heavens," I ignored the girl too, and pointed a finger toward the ceiling. "The true Leader of the entire Sect, while I'm more of a branch leader of Japan. As his direct disciple, I'm granted a lot of knowledge and power that others don't know."
"I can see that."
"I'm not sure you do," I stood up, "As you said, I have grand enemies. And while that showcases the dangers of being labeled as an ally to me, it also means how grand I am if an entire Pantheon is after me." All eyes were fixated on me as I walked over to the window gently pushing it open, "Of course, all of that is empty words if I don't show my cards. So Let me show you a bit of what the Venerable One is capable of, and what he granted me. Please follow me outside for this."
Sirzechs and Grayfia exchanged glances with the others, while I hopped out of the window. Upon Sirzechs' approval, Grayfia snapped her finger to cast a teleport spell that teleported everyone in the room out to the backyard.
…..
The Lucifer Villa was indeed grand; it was at the center of the Underworld and existed on top of thousands of acres of land. Standing in the expansive backyard, I let my eyes wander a little to register the area better. The evening sky was bloody red for starters, and I couldn't help but marvel at the grandeur of the castle walls stretching far and wide.
The villa itself was an architectural masterpiece from the Renaissance period, standing imposingly, its presence a clear suggestion of the Lucifer family's status. The colorful gardens were meticulously maintained, with exotic plants and magical flora contributing to the ethereal atmosphere.
Despite being accustomed to remarkable sights, I had to admit that the majesty of the Underworld was classy.
I stopped taking the surrounding scenery when the devils finally teleported here. I took in their faces before looking up at the sky.
"What are you planning, Aqua…?" Rias asked in a murmur, but I decided to let my actions do the talking.
I'm going to make another attempt to break through to Archlord, and therefore, subsequently to Sage. I'd have loved to do it in the surface world for the Pantheons to see, but I'll have to manage here this time.
This time, it felt different; I was different. After embracing Ai and getting my heart on the right track, it felt right to advance. I closed my eyes, focusing inward, as the air around me began to crackle with energy.
The air around me grew ionized, swirling with the promise of power yet untapped. Above, the sky mirrored my state, clouds gathering rapidly as if summoned by my will, turning the last light of day into night with their dense cover.
The underworld thundered.
"This time…" I let out a breath. My mind slowed down as I decided on my Archlord revelation. "...My path and my Sect shall carve eternity for ourselves."
Standing in the underworld, within the backyard of this Lucifer Villa, surrounded by the opulence of demonic architecture – towering spires, elaborate gardens, and an expansive estate that stretched beyond sight, I found my will resonating with the universe.
My declaration, my revelation, and my understanding that my destiny was mine to shape, snapped into place.
Reality accepted my words.
The world responded with thunder, and in response I took out the artifacts I stored in my Void Storage, and a spark of Soul Fire lit them into flames. The white fire burned even under rain, rushing to me to wrap me like a cocoon.
Qi exploded outward from my body, a visible shockwave of raw energy that rippled through the air. Energy surged within me, a tempest blooming out of my dantian. I felt the threshold approach, the pure juncture between failure and transcendence.
A waterfall-like wage of lightning crashed down in a relentless torrent, enveloping me in its furious embrace. Soul Fire burned my cells anew, while I embraced the chaos, channeling all of it into a force of pure, unbridled power. It was as if the heavens themselves were anointing me.
My willpower bloomed like a flower and my presence reached the far ends of the underworld.
Many of my Icons tried to peek out, to reveal themselves to the world. I only let one of them out; one that Sirzechs hadn't seen before. I tried to pull that new Icon that sang for Ai and me a few days ago, but it did not want to come out. In the end, I decided to pull out one of my more-used Icons. It'll grow powerful just from this
The [Tiger Icon] let out a shine as it shone brightly like the sun in the night sky, and everyone gasped.
The air resonated with a loud thump, as the storm grew heavier, thundering over my head. It rained, and it snowed at the same time, while the dark clouds began to burn with a white flame.
The world approved me; it recognized the birth of a [Sage].
[The White Tiger Sage].
The rain will continue for days, but I can stop it if I want. I did not, and let it be, a proof of my majesty to the devil world. Under the heavy rain, I stood transformed and naked. Naked, yet not exposed, as I kept clouds gathered around my crotch to preserve modesty. I did not wish to shock the already stunned audience any further.
Silence reigned, every eye fixed upon me in utter shock. The power I had unleashed was undeniable; everyone here realized my words were not empty. They were under a spell that Grayfia seemed to have cast, a bubble of telekinetic force that kept them safe from the rain. But it was too late, the shock had drenched them more than the rain could ever have.
I locked eyes with Lord Agares, who was looking at me with wide eyes, and then at his daughter who had dared laugh at my words earlier. Then I looked at Sirzechs, "I am just trying to prove that," I said under the drum of heavy rain, "Your sister will not be unsafe with me. No, on the contrary, she'll have the entire world on her palms."
His shocked expression morphed, and he smiled at me, "Alright," he said, "Fine, Rias Gremory will join Nexus of Eternity."
And thus he agreed.
As he should have. He was a good brother who knew who to give his sister's hand to when he saw the perfect opportunity.
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