Chapter 5 - End of Incident

"Run! You can't fight him!" Cleria pleaded, her voice desperate. She didn't want another victim to appear because of her.

Ryuuga ignored her plea. His focus entirely on the devil leader. With a swift motion, he reached into his sleeve and produced a gleaming dagger. The weapon was exquisite, its blade a striking blend of gold and black that seemed to pulse with an inner light. Intricate runes were etched along its length, glowing faintly with the energy of his Qi.

"Kekeke! What can a child with a fancy knife do against me? I'll squash you like a bug!" The devil leader laughed uproariously. The devil leader's mocking laughter filled the air as he lunged at Ryuuga, his claws extending menacingly. "Die, brat!"

Ryuuga moved with blinding speed, his form a blur as he dodged the attack and countered with a slash of his dagger. The blade cut through the air with a high-pitched whistle, meeting the devil's flesh and drawing blood.

The devil hissed in pain, surprise flashing in his eyes.

"You bastard kid!!" He retaliated with a ferocious swipe, but Ryuuga parried it with his dagger, sparks flying from the clash.

The battle intensified, the devil leader launching a series of brutal attacks. Ryuuga met each one with deft precision, his dagger a golden-black streak in the dimly lit space. The runes on the blade glowed brighter with each strike, channeling his Qi to enhance his strength and speed.

The runes on the blade were carved by him, as he mastered talismans and rune arts in his previous life. The runes he used on the blade are meant to increase Qi output and input with each attack. However, the only limitation is the material, which is quite a poor conductor of Qi.

Despite his power, Ryuuga found himself struggling. The devil leader's power was higher than him, and every clash sent shocks of pain through his arm. Yet, he refused to back down.

"You're good for a human, but it's over for you!" The devil leader roared, summoning Devil Energy around his claws.

Ryuuga smirked, his eyes glinting with defiance. "I've faced worse than you."

Channeling his Qi into the dagger, Ryuuga unleashed a powerful technique. The blade emitted a blinding light, and he launched himself at the devil leader with renewed vigor. Each strike became more forceful, pushing the devil back.

"Impossible! How can a brat...?" The devil leader's confidence wavered, his attacks growing more desperate.

With a final surge of Qi, Ryuuga executed a devastating blow, the golden-black dagger piercing through the devil's heart. The leader's eyes widened in shock and agony, his body convulsing before collapsing to the ground, lifeless.

"I haven't felt this way in a long time." Ryuuga muttered, exhausted. In his previous life, his Qi was so immense that a single slash could destroy several universes.

He walked toward the fallen devil and absorbed all the Devil Energy from him. As he took in the abundant energy, he felt his body and power growing stronger.

"Innate Realm…" Ryuuga whispered. He had reached the Innate Realm in just a month, advancing from the Warrior Realm. That was truly a mark of a genius.

Unlike normal cultivators, he didn't need to meditate to break through ranks.

As the devil leader died, the copy of Laeding binding Cleria loosened. Without the spell to maintain it, the rope's power vanished.

Ryuuga walked over and picked up Laeding, storing it in Arcadia through a small portal he created. He wanted to research the rope's materials and properties to potentially mass-produce it.

"T-Thank you..." Cleria said as she stood up, still in shock. She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed. The boy she had underestimated turned out to be so strong that he could defeat a Peak High-Class Devil.

"Don't mention it." Ryuuga replied, shaking his head. He had accomplished his mission. Cleria was safe, and now he could rely on her to repay him later.

As for her peerage and Masaomi, he didn't care about them at all. Having lived for millions of years and experienced the pain of losing loved ones, his heart had grown more ruthless and less empathetic towards others.

Ryuuga turned around, heading towards the door that had suddenly appeared in front of him. Cleria was startled. She didn't expect the boy to help her and then leave without asking for anything.

She thought he might want some kind of reward… Well, she wasn't entirely wrong. Ryuuga just didn't want his reward right now.

"W-Wait!" she shouted, trying to stop him. She had made up her mind.

"What?" Ryuuga glanced back with a confused expression. What did this girl want from him now?

Cleria exhaled slowly, trying to calm herself. She needed to think clearly about her decision, but it seemed like there was only one way out for her.

"Let me go with you." she said with resolution. She knew she couldn't return to her clan because the devils from the Great King Faction would hunt her down.

She had no place left in the Underworld. Even her family couldn't help her because they were under the influence of the old devils. The Belial Clan was a poor family, and only Diehauser had brought them any prestige.

"Why should I take you with me?" Ryuuga asked, intrigued. It seemed like he wouldn't need to claim his reward later. The girl had thrown herself into his clutches. Wait, he sounded like a hentai protagonist.

Shit. He wasn't after her body at all! Believe me!

"I can be your maid, assistant, manager, or whatever. Just take me away from here. I have no place here anymore…" Cleria pleaded.

"Hmm…" Ryuuga muttered, considering whether to take her with him.

"Wait! I also have this!" Cleria suddenly remembered something she always carried in her bag. She took out a golden box and opened it in front of Ryuuga. A reddish aura shone from inside, and he could feel the powerful devil energy emanating from the items within.

"Evil Pieces?" Ryuuga guessed. Now, he was truly interested. There were definite benefits to taking her with him.

"Yes, with the King Piece too." Cleria nodded. She assumed Ryuuga knew about the Evil Pieces, which is why she revealed them. She raised one of the chess pieces to show him. It was, as she said, the King Piece.

The King Piece was an extra piece not officially used in Rating Games. The Evil Pieces and Rating Games were created by the current Beelzebub, Ajuka. He designed them to allow pure devils to reincarnate other races into devils, compensating for the significant losses from the Great War.

In addition to the 15 standard Evil Pieces, Ajuka had experimented and successfully created nine King Pieces. However, the King Piece was forbidden in Rating Games as it was considered cheating.

The King Piece could multiply a user's devil energy from ten to a hundredfold. Six of them had been taken by the Great King Faction, which used them to elevate several individuals to top ranks in the Rating Games.

Now, one of these King Pieces was in Cleria's possession, leaving Ajuka with only two more. Perhaps in the original story, it was never mentioned because she was killed and the piece was returned to Ajuka.

"Okay, come with me, Test Subject No.2." Ryuuga said with a smile, using his power to create a binding loop around her body.

The binding loop was similar to the chain created by the devil leader earlier. It was one of the applications of devil energy, but Ryuuga used Qi instead, converting it as needed.

With a smile, he dragged her towards the door. He was excited about the new research opportunities she presented.

"Eh?" Cleria was stunned. What had she gotten herself into?

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

"Interesting… So you have the ability to negate powers?" Ryuuga muttered in interest as he saw Cleria negating one of his attacks. Even though he had only used 1% of his power, she still managed to nullify it.

But, he hadn't attacked her with Qi. It was Devil Energy. He had used Devil Bullet against her, yet she was able to negate it.

"I'm surprised that you're also a devil…" Cleria said in astonishment. She was somehow confused about how he could use Devil Energy while fighting with another unknown energy she had never seen before.

"Well, woman, you're wrong. I am still a human but with devil traits." Ryuuga replied with a hint of disgust. How dare this woman regard him as the same race as those lowly beings? Wait… but she is a devil too…

"Oh…" Cleria didn't fully understand and simply nodded. Although she was curious, she didn't want to make Ryuuga uncomfortable. Who knows if he might suddenly throw her out.

She also wondered about his origin. He obviously looked like a five-year-old, but for some reason, he had a mature mind and didn't act like a kid at all.

Then, Ryuuga continued his research on her. Although he remembered the plot of the story, he didn't recall the details too well because he had lived for millions of years. He had already forgotten those useless bits of information.

"I see. You must know the composition of the power before being able to negate them, right?" he smiled and glanced at Cleria. This was one of the weaknesses he had found in the ability she called Worthless after he had attacked her with his Qi.

"Wow! You're right." Cleria exclaimed, surprised that Ryuuga could analyze her power to its core with just a tiny detail.

He only smiled at her reaction. After reaching the Innate Realm, all his senses had sharpened. Now, his brain could think faster and better.

Suddenly, Ryuuga felt a jolt in his body. As he had analyzed the ability called Worthless, he found that he could also use it now because his body had adapted and learned it. This was the greatest function of the Devouring Evolution Scripture.

But he still needed to learn it and master it through effort.

As he obtained the power, he decided not to show it to Cleria. She might be surprised to death, considering it's her clan's power that no other devils, except those with Belial bloodline, could use.

Ryuuga then continued his research on Worthless and the Evil Pieces. He wanted to create a system similar to it, one where he could empower the people he chose.

If the researchers of Heaven could create the Brave Saints system in the original, why couldn't he create something even better?

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

"Ancestor, the girl from the Belial Clan is missing, but she might still be alive out there."

In a grand and majestic throne room, a middle-aged man knelt before another who looked similar to him.

The kneeling man was the current head of the Bael Clan, the strongest clan of the Great King Faction.

"Humph. Send all our troops to find her. Whoever finds her will be handsomely rewarded." The man on the throne snorted, deciding to deploy all his forces to hunt down Cleria.

He couldn't risk the information about the King Piece getting out. If those foolish devils found out, there might be rebellions popping up all over that they'd have to deal with.

The man on the throne was Zekram Bael, the first Bael spawned by Lilith and Lucifer, and the head of the Great King Faction.

"Yes!" The kneeling man obeyed, stood up, and left the room.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

"Ryuuga-chan, are you sure you won't come with us?" Irina's mother asked as they all stood outside Ryuuga's house. The Shidou family was moving from Japan to England, and they wanted to bring Ryuuga along since they already considered him part of their family.

The incident yesterday had ended with Cleria Belial going missing and Yaegaki Masaomi dying to protect her. Truly a fool.

"Yeah! Come with us, Ryuu-chan! Please!" Irina pleaded, her eyes wet with tears. She didn't want to be separated from her best friend.

"Sorry, but I'll stay here." Ryuuga said, shaking his head as he stroked Irina's head. He knew she was already attached to him.