The Seraphic System
Chapter: 100
Disclaimer: I don't own High School DxD or any other universe used in this story. However, all original characters, plotlines, and world-building elements created in this story are my own.
Pa/ t reon details below the chapter if you're interested in seeing some content in advance.
Note: Welp, I hope you enjoyed that. 100 chapters!!! I could never have imagined I would grow such a story with an awesome community with it! I've got plans for this story and Kai's true beginning into the supernatural world after the Heaven Arc.
Enjoy the 11k word chapter!
(The Eyes Of God)
[Compatibility Rate: 100%]
A shock ran through my entire being.
My grip on the heavenly throne tightened and my mind felt charged. My world expanded as the Heavenly System began transferring the Holy Grail into me.
Once more the power of the Heavenly System showed its might. Reality seemed to bend and twist around me as two ornate cups materialised before the throne, their vibrations creating a humming sound.
The intensity surprised even me.
The energy radiating from them was unlike anything I'd felt before. Perhaps except for the energy the two legendary Trees emitted. The unknown energy blended with the holy power.
I felt it grow stronger, as they both devoured and absorbed each other. My previously golden energy now gained a bluish tint and had a strange sort of feel about it.
Then the notification appeared.
[You Have Gained]
[Holy Grail: 2/3][Uncompleted]
[Description: One of the most powerful Longinus-class Sacred Gears.
Originally a single chalice, this Sub-Species Sacred Gear was fragmented by a previous wielder who had it forcibly split it into three separate vessels by an outside force as to distribute its overwhelming power and allow for its removal.
The Holy Grail consists of three fragments: The Grail of Eternity, The Chalice of Miracles, and The Cup of Life.
Current possession: The Grail of Eternity and The Cup of Life. Missing: The Chalice of Miracles.]
There was only a brief moment for my eyes to widen at the revelation.
Part of the Holy Grail was missing? Someone had attempted to extract it... with partial success.
My mind did not have time to process the implication before reality fractured. It wasn't a metaphorical break, the very air in the throne room seemed to groan as the Heavenly System enacted its will.
Two ornate, golden cups shimmered into existence before me, not as objects, but as wounds in space, bleeding an energy so pure it was painful to behold.
My grip on the heavenly throne tightened, knuckles white, as the cups dissolved into twin streams of liquid light and plunged into my chest. There was no pain, only an invasive, searing oneness.
My world did not turn blue. It was stripped of all falsehood.
The stone of the throne room became a transparent web of vibrating energy. The light from above became a river of flowing holy power. My own hands were no longer flesh and bone but constellations of divine energy. This was the world as God saw it, and the sheer, unfiltered truth of it was an agony of overwhelming sensation.
It was as though I was suddenly elsewhere, my body feeling weightless as I gazed down at a sea of light. They were balls of colour and yet I knew they were so much more than that. With different colours, different shapes and feelings. I could feel my own being resonate.
Souls.
The life force of every angel in Heaven spread before me, the flow of their energy visible like a living tapestry.
It was beautiful.
Heaven ceased to be a place and became a living organism. A sea of souls, each a unique star. Some blazing like supernovas, others flickering. I saw their connections, their joys, their sorrows, all woven into a spiralling vortex.
While they were all different in their own ways, they all held one key aspect. The sheer shine they possessed, like stars of their own. It made me remember the words that had been spoken to me.
Souls grow as their host grows stronger and older.
My veins thrummed.
And my gaze swept across the sea of souls.
This was Heaven.
One powerful soul stood out like a blazing sun among candles, its mass several times larger than the other angelic souls. The sheer size of it made my pupils dilate involuntarily as I traced its swirling edges.
I met the gaze of Azrael through this strange… spiritual plane and her widened eyes seemed to pierce straight through my chest, making my heart skip a beat.
Our souls touched, and in that microsecond, a millennium of her weariness, her loyalty, and her sorrow washed over me. I felt a sort of dominion over her and a deep connection.
She was, for all intents and purposes, my creation.
I felt... elevated. Even as I knew all of this was transpiring in mere moments. The heavenly power was blazing and I felt the powerful Sacred Gears being transferred.
Languidly, my eyes drifted down to my own soul and I felt a shock course through me.
My soul was enormous and for a moment there was a shell surrounding it that I couldn't perceive.
Then, as if my powers were responding to my scrutiny, I suddenly became capable of peering through it... only to discover something staring back at me.
Something ancient and beyond powerful.
But it didn't end there.
My focus became increasingly blurred.
Power surged through me like a tidal wave.
The sensation was overwhelming.
The same unknown energy poured through me in torrents and I felt my consciousness expand beyond my physical form.
For a terrifying moment, I could feel too much.
Way too much.
At one point I felt myself kneeling on the ground and a soul came to rub against my own.
The two cups appeared in the strange place and melted into my soul, a warmth that was just a bit short of being scorched enveloped me. The two cups before me pulsed in rhythm with my breathing and I realised they weren't separate from me anymore.
My veins glowed.
They were part of me, integrated into my very being.
So this was a Sacred Gear? I could feel it bonded to me. In fact, I suspected that if it suddenly vanished now, I would feel utterly incomplete without its presence. But the strain was overwhelming.
I could feel it searing through my veins like molten fire, threatening to tear me apart from within. This was the price of the Grail. This was the sight of God…
When the integration was finally completed, I was left panting heavily, sweat beading on my forehead despite the cool air of the throne room. The cups had vanished, absorbed into me completely.
Then came the knowledge. It was fast and I barely had time to activate Mind Maven, which was just in time to combat the tidal wave of knowledge. After what felt like an hour, the knowledge stopped and left my mind feeling frazzled.
A long breath escaped me.
No wonder all the users of the Holy Grail went insane or broke, even Mind Maven had barely allowed me to process it. It was still fragmented. I am wrong in calling it information at all, it's just raw data.
I felt a hand on my head and blinked as reality shifted back into place.
Once more I found myself in the lap of another Archangel. Azrael stared down at me concernedly.
"So you found a match for the Grail?" She started, her voice laced with amusement that was equally matched by concern.
"It would seem so…"
Azrael raised an eyebrow.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes… It's just a lot of knowledge." I replied, feeling oddly comforted by her.
She sighed irritably.
"You know, if you had voiced your abrupt decision to gain perhaps the strongest Sacred Gear you've ever made. You should tell us. And we could have told you all the past users have been debilitated by the knowledge that's forced with it." Azrael calmly said.
Yeah, maybe I should have waited.
The data swirled in my mind, as I tried to make sense and connect the jumbled pieces and form a clear image. Despite trying my best, I managed to glean only a few crumbs of it.
This is going to take a while.
I now had the ability to heal and manipulate souls… that was the most basic explanation I could give about what I had.
This was huge…
I had been considering downloading characters for healing and soul manipulation in the future but that didn't seem to be necessary now.
"I was excited." This was my irrefutably intelligent reply.
"I can see that." She replied, stroking my hair.
"No one else even came above 10%, well, besides you. You had 56%" I replied relaxedly.
"It's always been hard to find users, I can see you gave Michael the Annihilation Maker," Azrael replied, her voice soft. "I doubt you'll be able to find many more matches though."
"Why?" I asked.
"There's a reason some Longinus go missing for dozens of years, finding matches is hard and you've been lucky so far." She replied.
That was true.
I had tried finding users for many of the Sacred Gears but it was incredibly hard.
"What makes someone compatible?" I couldn't help but ask.
Azrael seemed to know more than Michael on the subject.
She looked thoughtful. "It can't quite be explained, the way you made Sacred Gears was different. It was sorcery even to me. Akin to soul weapons that bond but are much more powerful and complex."
"So, the Sacred Gear is bound to my soul?" I questioned. "And does that mean a being's ability to have more Sacred Gear depends on his soul?"
"Yes, I can see it. You can expect the Holy Grail to have some effects on you but not that much. Your soul is powerful, scarily so. Which leads to the next question, yes. You could theoretically have many more Sacred Gears." Azrael replied with a smile.
So my soul was special…
They said souls get older with age.
Had I been in the void that long or was this the System's presence on me?
I could see something in my soul, did that mean the System was a part of me in a way that couldn't be taken? That gave me a sense of comfort. Assuming that was the System.
"Wait. You said the holy Grail was the strongest Sacred Gear of God?" I said, remembering that particular line.
"In my opinion," Azrael said.
"I thought the True Longinus was stronger?"
"Most do, the Grail is often overlooked due to the flaw Father had forgotten to remove before his untimely demise. So no users could use it well without breaking, since its strain is immense. I believe it would be the same even for Gods." Azrael explained.
"I can manipulate souls now right?" I asked rhetorically. "And I can use it to heal among some other things."
She went to speak only to pause.
"Actually," Azrael said thoughtfully, "Perhaps I should show you."
She placed her hand over mine and suddenly my perception shifted again. The world around us became translucent. I could feel what she was doing and she looked overjoyed, as if she hadn't known if this would work or not.
"This is soul sight," she explained. "The most basic ability when working with souls. Focus on that feeling of looking beyond the physical. Which will allow you to sense souls."
She let out and the feeling faded. The power that had been resonating with the Holy Grail cut off abruptly.
But I remembered the feeling.
The fact that this was eerily similar to what I sensed when using Mind's Eye of Kagura also helped me.
It took a while but as I concentrated, gradually the technique became clearer.
It was like a filter over my sight and I felt the Holy Grail pulse. The angelic power it absorbed greedily wasn't pleasant and if I were a middle-class all power would have been spent from this action alone, but it was a good thing I had a spade of it to use.
I looked at her soul.
Azrael's soul appeared as a vast, deep indigo expanse streaked with golden threads that moved through it like flowing mercury. It was massive as it had been when I saw it earlier.
Curiously enough, inside I could see multiple orbs.
Each one pulsed with different energies, connected by streams of silvery light that flowed between them like a complex network.
The largest orb glowed with pure white and I instinctively knew what it was, her holy power. It was close to the network of what I assumed was angelic magic. Which served as the central hub, with other orbs orbiting around it.
Another orb shimmered with deep purple and black energies, it felt as if even looking at it would extinguish my life and yet I found myself staring.
"You have a beautiful soul," I stated.
For some reason her cheeks became golden and she wore a completely taken off guard expression.
"Uh- t-thank you." She replied, losing all her composure.
That made me blink and stare at the normally calm and stoic older angel.
She quickly regained her composure.
"Good. You've got the sight down. Now you need to learn how to gain the ability to touch them." Azrael instructed. "This will be the basics for soul manipulation. If you wish for me to teach you more I would be more than happy."
I smiled at her suggestion. "I think that'd be good, I probably would have spent hours trying to get the sight down without your help."
"Good."
Her hand opened and a soul came to float in her palm. I briefly shut my soul vision down and noticed how the soul disappeared.
Azrael seemed content to let me experiment.
I reached out tentatively, my hand passing through the soul.
I frowned.
Then I focused on the energy of the Holy Grail.
I channelled it and a fizzling golden energy covered my hand, slowly wavering like flames. The sheer amount of energy it was draining to maintain the projection was insane.
I could see how the previous users died before ever making a mark.
Even being a vampire wouldn't have helped. I imagine with a lack of vampiric energy it would begin leeching from life force. One didn't gain the powers of a Major God without cost.
Still, my angelic reserves were able to balance the cost.
Even though it hadn't been at full capacity from resurrecting all the Angels I could, I could handle it.
This time, as I reached out. The soul pressed against my palm with a warm sensation as my energy touched against it. The soul was nowhere near as strong as Azrael's.
"Excellent. That's soul touch, the ability to make direct contact with another's soul. It's essential for actual soul manipulation." she said. "But be careful. Souls are delicate. Too much pressure and you can cause serious damage. Don't experiment with them carelessly either, souls contain one of the most powerful and volatile energies. You can very well die if you get too ahead of yourself. This particular soul is from one of the many sinners I've collected over the millennia, so using it for practice is acceptable."
I listened to her keenly and nodded.
This power was… incredible and I could see new paths opening that I hadn't planned for a while. I imagined a being with soul manipulation would take ages to download.
From my knowledge, soul manipulation was rare and the big G had been a master at it. It had allowed him to create Angels that could fight Gods. That wasn't a common power, or everyone would be using it.
I focused on Azrael.
Over the next hour, she walked me through the fundamentals. She seemed strangely nostalgic while teaching me everything.
I learnt how to sense the different layers of a soul, the surface emotions, and core personality traits. How to identify damage or corruption. My mind went back to the time I had spent within Hell.
Even the Demons had been using souls for something, though I couldn't figure out what exactly they had been using them for other than fuel.
"Souls have natural defences," she explained as I practised on small injuries within my own spiritual essence. "They'll resist foreign influence instinctively if you try to glean things from them."
The lessons were exhausting but fascinating and by the end of it, my mind was left buzzing.
"This is just the beginning though," Azrael said finally. "Soul manipulation is one of the most complex arts in existence. It can take a truly long time to master. Though you don't have to worry about that as you're a fast learner. As expected of my own teacher."
"Had God been the one to teach you about Souls?" I asked, feeling a mild sense of surprise.
She just smiled and nodded, seemingly getting lost in her millennia-old memories.
I nodded as well, letting a calm silence fall around us. I felt the new knowledge settling into place alongside everything else the Holy Grail had given me, and even some of its own dots getting connected.
"Speaking of which," Azrael continued, her tone shifting, "I heard you wanted to visit Cocytus."
"Yes," I confirmed. "I had Michael make the arrangements."
She frowned at that.
"You know it's quite dangerous, right? I wouldn't trust putting even the prisoners there." Azrael replied. "Even going there is a risk."
"I know, I merely want to visit the place and perhaps visit Samael," I replied.
"Samael," Azrael said, her voice strange. "Do you intend on trying to heal him?"
"Perhaps, I merely wish to see him. He's currently the most powerful Fallen Angel if Michael is correct." I replied idly.
"Yes… he is. At the cost of his own mind." Azrael sighed. "May I come with you? I'm sure Michael is making the proper preparations but I don't wish to put it up to chance. Especially with the four Satans being in the underworld along with many other Gods."
"Sure." I agreed easily.
It was weird. I had to think of Heaven's power when I moved. Would Heaven be able to hold up under an attack while I was gone? I was taking Michael and Azrael, two of Heaven's strongest with me. But Heaven had grown tremendously.
It'd be fine.
If this were before, I wouldn't have been able to safely take a single Arch-Seraph with me. But we had many powerful allies and I doubted it was going to be a long trip.
"For now, I think I want to check on Uriel's soul before going down to Heaven's gate once more," I said, remembering what she'd mentioned earlier. "You said Angels' souls reside within their bodies and don't escape?"
"Correct. It's one of our unique traits. Even in death, an Angel's soul remains tethered to their physical form until destroyed." Azrael nodded.
That was comforting to hear. And it brought a sense of comfort along with making me think about creating something.
If I could create an artefact that allowed a body to be retrieved into Heaven's crypts when an Angel died. It'd solve everything.
While Death had definitely become less of an end, it only took burning a body for that to not become the case. And I'm sure there were ways to attack the soul… Unfortunately, there would never be a way to make sure none of my Angels died permanently.
Besides making them stronger.
We made our way toward the sub-dimension where I'd placed Uriel's body. As we walked through the corridors, I heard raised voices ahead.
I raised an eyebrow.
I didn't know these voices and only Seraphim were currently permitted on the seventh Realm of Heaven.
"Is he still in there?" A voice asked.
"He hasn't left, has he?" Another voice said sarcastically.
"Obviously not." The other voice replied.
"You asked me!" The other voice hissed.
"You wish."
"What does that even mean?" The voice whispered back.
"Should we retreat and rethink our strategy?" The other voice said, ignoring the other voice.
"Aziraphel! Absolutely not! We need to properly introduce ourselves, I can't believe we've waited this long." An anxious voice said. "Seriously, I can't believe Kokabiel manned up before us."
"He may dress shabbily but the little fallen goblin knows how to muster up courage." The other voice snickered.
"Can you be serious? Azrael has already introduced herself and we have been waiting for too long. I can't believe this." The other voice seemed on the verge of a meltdown.
"Exactly!" The voice chirped. "That's why I'm saying we need to impress the Lord Father."
"I didn't disagree with that." The other voice said. "I disagreed when you tried to make out that Father would accept that I doing the German duck dance would please him."
"I'm telling you Jophiel, if you just really put the spirit into it-"
"Stop it. I know what you're doing!"
The proud and powerful Death Angel next to me looked like she wanted to disappear.
Slowly, I rounded the corner to find two Angels in a heated debate, papers scattered around them alongside what appeared to be several plates of half-eaten food.
They immediately noticed my approach. There was a brief pause before they both dropped into deep bows.
"Father!" They both cried in unison.
Azrael let out a weary sigh.
I sent her a questioning glance.
A quick appraisal revealed they were both Seraphim, making my intrigue rise even further.
"This is Jophiel and Aziraphel, the two Seraphim who accompanied me when I tried to revive you," she explained, her voice flat with barely suppressed irritation.
The two Seraphim looked appropriately chastened.
"Forgive us! You shouldn't have to witness that. Aziraphel can be so childish," Jophiel said, looking like he wanted to crawl into a corner and disappear.
I watched their exchange with considerable amusement.
"It's good to finally meet you two," I said with a grin.
They both replied with equally bright grins.
Azrael sighed again beside me. "These two are always like this."
"It's good to have you back in Heaven, welcome back," I said simply. My words seemed to hit them hard, they both went quiet and misty-eyed.
"It's good to be back," Aziraphel said happily. "Travelling was fun, but home is far better."
Jophiel nodded seriously.
We talked a little further and I found that the duo was rather funny. They bickered but it wasn't hostile and they were on the stronger sides of the Seraphs.
"Would you like to join us?" I offered. "I'm going to check on something in my sub-dimension, then we have other matters to attend to."
Both Seraphim straightened immediately.
"We would be honoured, Father," Jophiel managed, his voice thick with emotion.
Aziraphel nodded enthusiastically, though he seemed too overwhelmed to speak for once.
Then Jophiel paused.
"Sub-dimension?"
One short explanation later, we were making our way through the corridors toward the portal to my sub-dimension. I noticed how the two Seraphim kept stealing glances at me, as if afraid I might vanish at any moment.
Their earlier argument seemed trivial now, replaced by shared awe at simply being in my presence.
It was the general reaction all my Angels had.
I briefly took the time to observe the three Angels. Azrael had positioned herself closer to my side than strictly necessary. She had been like that since returning to Heaven.
It was basically what had happened with all the Arch-Seraphim when I had come back from Hell.
It had been chaotic, especially since the battle with the Architect. The sudden burst of activity had certainly been noticeable with so many new factors. I still had many things to attend to. But my Arch-Seraphim proved brutally efficient with their time as they had most things handled.
"So," Aziraphel finally found his voice, "how long have you been... back?"
I considered how to answer that.
"It hasn't been long," I replied. "Gabriel found me in the middle of a rather eventful time."
My grin seemed to make them all curious.
"Eventful time?" Jophiel muttered.
"You were outside of Heaven?" Aziraphel asked anxiously.
"I was," I affirmed. "When Gabriel found me I thought I was just an Angel. She had seen my name on the board of Angels and assumed me to be some newborn Angel. Which was true in a sense."
"What happened then?" Aziraphel asked with bright eyes.
"Since being… reborn. I came to quickly learn that I had an affinity for chaos. It hardly feels like I ever got a break. So of course, I accidentally found myself stumbling on an important divine quest that was dictating a future war within the Greeks." I replied amusedly.
Aziraphel and Jophiel's eyes both widened.
"What!?" They both practically shouted.
"I told you it was eventful."
"So Gabriel took you away during that?" Jophiel questioned.
"She tried," I replied wistfully. It felt like so much more time had passed. "But I told her I wasn't leaving until it finished."
"And she allowed that?" Azrael asked incredulously.
"I imagine it would have been different if she knew who I was," I replied complicatedly.
If only she had taken me there I would have simply been an Angel, I never would have gotten the divine shard from Cao Cao's spear. It was crazy to think how things could have been so different from one action.
Would Heaven have survived if I hadn't become God?
"Then what happened?" Jophiel asked like an excited child.
"It turned out Ares had been trying to start a war, which forced me to confront him," I replied with a wince.
"Is that why he was part of the attack on Heaven? I thought he was being rather bold." Azrael commented.
"I think so," I admitted. "The last time we fought, it was rather brutal. When I was reborn I was barely low-class in power after all and I found myself growing explosively in the face of conflict."
They all frowned.
This was the best way to explain it.
We found ourselves passing through a column and down into the sixth Realm of Heaven.
"It was during that battle that I truly awakened, gaining my first divine ability, Judgment."
"Wait," Jophiel interrupted, his artistic eyes lighting up with recognition. "Was that when we felt your presence at the Vatican? That massive surge of divine power?"
I nodded. "Yes, that was me. When I awakened, I somehow ended up floating above the Vatican for a moment. Still not sure why that happened."
Azrael tilted her head thoughtfully. "The Vatican is currently the focal point for the Heavenly System on Earth. Your awakening probably triggered a resonance."
"That would make sense," Jophiel agreed. "The System likely pulled you there automatically during your transformation."
Aziraphel's expression shifted from confusion to something approaching dismay. "We felt that surge and assumed Michael had unlocked some new function of the Heavenly System as you had not called us or answered our prayers. If we'd realised it was actually you awakening..." He trailed off, looking with appreciation and guilt.
"You would have come immediately," I finished for him, a knowing smile on my lips.
My Angels were predictable in some aspects.
"Of course we would have!" Aziraphel exclaimed.
"It probably wouldn't have mattered," I admitted. "Since that wasn't when I went to Heaven. After the ascension, I found myself back in front of Ares with a new form I could temporarily access."
"This battle with Ares... were you hurt?" Azrael asked, her voice tight with concern.
I knew she'd heard parts of this story already, but not the complete version.
I became slightly embarrassed.
"Before my ascension, yes. Ares was basically using me as a punching bag," I admitted with a rueful smile. "He might be an idiot, but he's still a powerful major God. I've gotten used to brutal fights by now, though I can't say that's been happening as much since I came to Heaven."
The temperature around us seemed to drop several degrees as all three Seraphim' expressions turned ice-cold.
"Ares was captured, wasn't he?" Azrael's voice carried a dangerous edge.
"Yes..." I said slowly, uncertain about her tone.
"Good." Her smile was sharp enough to cut glass.
We reached the portal chamber, and both visiting Seraphim froze mid-step.
"I don't remember seeing that before," Aziraphel said, staring at the swirling energy.
"New addition, like I mentioned," I explained. "I created it before arriving in Heaven. It's linked to my ring. I moved the only portal access point here."
Jophiel's eyes widened. "A sub-dimension tethered to a physical item? That's... that's incredibly rare. Absurdly so."
"Wait," Aziraphel's earlier levity vanished entirely, replaced by sharp focus. "Are you saying the ring can open portals to this dimension from anywhere?"
"No. The sub-dimension is linked to my ring." I replied with an easy smile.
The familiar warmth of my sub-dimension greeted us.
It didn't take but a few seconds for the two Seraphim gazes to land on the massive twin trees that towered in the sub-dimension. Both Seraphim froze the moment they saw the massive tree rising in the distance.
"What..." Jophiel breathed.
I could see the blessing taking effect.
It was interesting to watch it actually happen.
My chakra eyes were activated and I watched the powerful spiritual energy enter the two Seraphim.
The blessing didn't seem overtly powerful but I had come to learn something from Michael. The blessing had broken the unmovable cap on his power.
"The tree blesses all who gaze upon it, the blessing is small for now but it should allow you to grow in power once more," I explained. "Consider it a welcome home gift."
They still looked on with wide eyes, while I walked with Azrael towards Uriel.
I noticed Galadriel within her spectral form, seemingly resting and decided not to bother her for the meanwhile. Only Azrael seemed to notice the giant snake nearby.
The mood shifted dramatically as we approached the pillar where Uriel lay surrounded by the field of flowers I'd created. All traces of earlier levity vanished, replaced by solemn grief.
"I believe he used the restricted spell 'Trinity Burst', right?" Azrael said.
"I think so. The sheer amount of damage he did and the fact it didn't heal would suggest he did." I replied.
It was a deadly technique and it probably made the Dragon much easier to kill.
Jophiel and Aziraphel stood silently, their faces etched with loss.
I took a moment to stare into the distance before doing what I came here to test.
I activated my soul sight, focusing on Uriel's still form.
Sure enough, a large, brilliant soul covered his body like a protective shroud. Even in death, his essence remained tied to his physical form, waiting.
A smile crossed my face as I simply stared for a while, feeling a weight lift from my shoulders.
He was still there.
When the time came, resurrection would be possible.
Azrael joined me, with a small smile as she inspected his soul.
We made our way back toward the main areas of my sub-dimension.
I hadn't seen Gabriel since… talking to her. And I had decided to give her the ring. I had found myself thinking about the various rewards I had gotten from the quest.
The ring Nenya, in particular, had been on my mind. I think it would be perfect for Gabriel. With its water and purification affinity, she would be the perfect wielder.
"Where is our next destination?" Azrael questioned.
"I need to find Gabriel next, then after that I'll probably check on Brias," I replied idly.
"Kaiel," Azrael spoke up as we walked, "on the subject of my dear sister, is there any reason Gabriel has been... acting strangely since your return?"
Jophiel and Aziraphel exchanged knowing glances, clearly having noticed the same behaviour.
"Strangely? How?" I asked, though I suspected I knew the answer.
"She keeps finding excuses to be wherever you might appear," Aziraphel said with barely contained amusement. "And she blushes whenever someone mentions your name."
"It's quite endearing, actually," Jophiel added with a smile.
I felt heat rise to my cheeks.
The kiss we'd shared a few days ago had clearly affected her more than I'd anticipated.
As if summoned by our conversation, Gabriel appeared, speaking to Avael at the mansion. The moment she saw me, her cheeks flushed rose gold and she gave me a small smile.
Azrael slowly glanced between us.
"Oh! K-Kaiel..." She greeted, her eyes shining warmly.
"Gabriel," I greeted her warmly. "Perfect timing. I have something for you."
Her eyes widened with curiosity and nervous anticipation.
I reached into my inventory and withdrew Nenya. Briefly rubbing my finger over the mithril band that gleamed with inner light and the white stone seemed to pulse with power.
I noticed the two Trees reacting to the ring's presence. But decidedly focused on Gabriel.
"This is Nenya," I explained, holding out the ring. "It's a ring of great power, associated with preservation and protection. I believe you have the strongest affinity for it and I want you to have it as a symbol of my trust in you."
It would be a good gift.
Gabriel stared at the ring as if it might bite her, her face cycling through about six different shades of reddish-golden. It was strange… considering how normally composed she was.
"You... you want me to have it?" she whispered.
"I do." I nodded. "It would be good for you to have a way to gain more protective powers. "
The moment the ring slid onto her finger, I felt a connection snap into place. Not just between her and the artefact, but between her and the Two Trees in my realm, between her and the very essence of Heaven.
But it was Gabriel's emotional reaction that truly caught everyone off guard. She looked at the ring, then at me, then back at the ring, before suddenly throwing her arms around me in a fierce embrace.
"Thank you," she whispered against my chest, her voice thick with emotion. "I'll treasure it always."
From the corner of my eye, I noticed both Hestia and Tiamat, who had appeared at some point during the exchange, watching with expressions that could only be described as jealous.
Their gazes lingered on the ring.
"It's beautiful," Hestia said, though her tone was carefully neutral.
"Indeed," Azrael agreed, her usual composure slightly strained. "A most... generous gift."
"Certainly," Tiamat said.
I paused, looking at them.
Aziraphel and Jophiel took defensive positions around me.
I blinked.
They weren't jealous were they?
The area seemed to heat up slightly and they all kept placid smiles on them.
Gabriel finally released me, though she kept stealing glances at the ring as if afraid it might disappear.
"Don't worry," I said, interpreting their reactions as concerns about fairness. "I plan to create more artefacts as I find suitable materials and recipients. Everyone who serves Heaven faithfully will be recognised."
The relieved expressions that crossed Azrael, Tiamat and Hestia's faces told me I'd said exactly the right thing.
Gabriel, meanwhile, was still staring at her ring with the expression of someone who'd just received the most precious gift imaginable.
I stared into the two emerald eyes that gazed back at me with a strange emotion. She had always stared at me with adoration especially when my status was revealed but this felt more intimate.
She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my lips. I savoured the sweetness of her lips and once more she took a step back, disappearing with a joyful smile.
"…"
I looked back and found blank faces staring at me.
Why was everyone acting so strangely?
-{Michael}-
Michael focused.
"You're nearly finished," Raphael commented softly, placing something else into the large armoured being.
The strain was becoming unbearable, but Michael gritted his teeth and pushed through it. Black tendrils of energy that turned into flesh were pouring into a large armoured statue.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he channelled more power into the Annihilation Maker, the Sacred Gear's energy coursing through his being like liquid fire.
It was safe to say that Michael probably should have waited years to attempt something like this, but recent events showed that time wasn't on their side anymore.
Creating small constructs had been manageable when he'd first received this gift from Father, but what they were attempting now was on an entirely different scale.
Especially since he had only recently gotten his Fathers gift. While making monsters from your imagination was all well and good, the laws of reality still existed and he found the beings he tried to make instantly dying.
Turns out biology is important for an actual functioning being to be made. Even if those requirements could be bent by other magical methods.
While he knew much about supernatural biology, it didn't help with how complex a body could truly be, especially when he needed to think about all of its inner workings when creating a being.
So while the process of creating weaker and smaller beings had quickly come to him, making a being of this size needed outside help.
So he had gone to Raphael.
After that, they devised their plan. Raphael had been naturally excited at the prospect, integrating a living being with artefacts of her design, alongside ancient relics from Father, would elevate their work to unprecedented levels.
A being constructed from artefacts would possess unmatched compatibility with divine technology.
"Power stabilisers are holding steady," Raphael called out from her monitoring station.
The armour had been their priority, with Uriel providing crucial assistance. He had been especially enthusiastic since they all understood Father's concerns about Heaven's defences. Uriel had explained that the armour incorporated some of the most powerful materials from Heaven's vault.
The rarest materials included Nullstone. A grey, almost translucent material with the unique property of existing in a state of absolute negation. Its special ability was complete energy repulsion. A trait that was hard to find in any material.
An armour crafted from Nullstone would render the wearer highly resistant to all forms of energy attacks. Extremely sought after, it was considered a treasure comparable to divine weapons wielded by major gods.
The next up would be Nethrium. A rather dark metallic substance. Less rare but still highly coveted because of its exceptional durability and flexibility.
Then Uriel had personally sacrificed a piece of Radiant Smile. It was a spiralling orange metal with crystalline veins running across its surface. It possessed tremendous capacity for enhancing attacks, making it the premier material in the enhancement category.
These materials formed the primary layers of the armour, used extensively throughout the construct. Materials that other factions typically reserved for small items like gauntlets and shields now covered the entirety of a twenty-foot-tall guardian's form.
Beneath these precious metals lies a complex weaving of more common but still high-quality materials.
The armour's weight was staggering, which explained why Michael had focused the being's attributes toward raw physical power. The magical aspects would be handled primarily by the integrated artefacts and the armour's inherent properties.
Unfortunately, subtlety would not be this guardian's strength. Such a being would be impossible to overlook unless they discovered a method to reduce its size, which was easier said than done.
Creating a being worthy of being in the God Realm wasn't easy.
Not in the slightest.
This was the combined work of three Arch-Angels and it never ceased to amaze him that his Father even now could make beings of such power with ease. Less so for the Arch-Angels but the point still stood.
The massive form taking shape before them was unlike anything either of them had ever attempted to create. Michael wanted a guardian.
It had required hours of channelling his power into the creation, and Raphael had warned him that it would need a continuous feeding of his angelic reserves to maintain itself.
This meant he would permanently lose a portion of his angelic power, but the return would justify the sacrifice.
Standing nearly twenty feet tall, the construct possessed the appearance of an armoured sentinel.
The armour Uriel had crafted specifically for this project gleamed with power, each plate inscribed with angelic runic script and defensive enchantments.
Michael planned to place it at the front of Heaven's gate. A powerful weapon created by him and his brethren to protect their cradle. He had to remove the being's pain receptors or the being would be in constant agony from such a state of existence.
He had been working on this with Raphael for a while but it was only after getting a taste of losing parts of his family after so long that his passion had been re-lit.
Uriel had done his part with the armour and Michael felt honour-bound to make this as powerful as he could to surprise Uriel when he returned.
Michael knew his Father was working on something. The absence of Uriel was noticeable as was the absence of hundreds of Angels that were permanently gone.
While he didn't venture into the silver city often that didn't mean he cared any less.
The armour was holding the body that had taken a long time to create from falling apart.
"It's nearly done," Raphael said with excitement.
Michael's legs trembled slightly as another wave of exhaustion hit him.
Creating beings through the Annihilation Maker required not just raw power, but an incredible degree of mental focus and imagination. Every aspect of the construct's existence had to be visualised and maintained simultaneously, its physical form, its thought patterns, its loyalty protocols, its combat capabilities.
Without a mind, the being would possess the intelligence of a newborn with no capacity for growth.
Creating even a basic facsimile of consciousness proved utterly challenging. His eyes strained as he studied the complex diagrams Raphael had drawn, following her blueprints for the construct's mental architecture.
The task became easier when fueled by fresh anger, memories of watching their home under assault, of seeing Angels fall despite their training and devotion. Father's concerns about Heaven's strength had been entirely justified.
With good came bad, and with Father's return, Heaven had become more active, which had somehow provoked their enemies to greater activity in response. It was poetic, if not deeply saddening.
"The armour integration is proceeding smoothly," Raphael reported, her analytic mind unable to hide her fascination with the process. "The artefacts I've embedded in the chest plate and gauntlets are responding to the construct's energy signature."
There were multiple armours and magical abilities invested into this creation.
That was to say they were putting Heaven's wealth to the test.
"Michael," Raphael's voice carried a note of concern, "are you okay?"
"I'm fine." He smiled.
"You've only got a minute left to go, the head just needs to be finished. Don't forget to make the skin thick so it can withstand the helm." Raphael said gently.
Michael nodded, sweat now dripping steadily from his brow.
The massive form shuddered, then slowly, deliberately, opened its eyes.
They blazed with inner fire, immediately focusing on Michael with perfect clarity.
His angelic power came to an abrupt halt and he took a breath, allowing his Sacred Gear to recede into inactivity.
He smiled as he watched the perfect sentinel they had created take its first steps.
With this, Heaven's defence had become slightly more secure.
-{Kai}-
I stood in the Garden of Eden.
Another three days had passed.
Heaven was slowly returning to some semblance of normalcy.
The rest of the dead Angels had been revived. It has been my utmost focus and the top priority. The endeavour had slowed down other aspects like training to a halt. Since it had taken all of my time and angelic magic.
In the process of draining my magic so thoroughly, I had gained a few stat points in magic.
With the newly revived Angels had led into the many injured Angels. Over twenty thousand Angels remained injured and were still being healed, their recovery overseen by Gabriel and all the Angels with healing magic.
The sheer scale of casualties had been sobering, even in victory.
In that time I had gotten a great many things done.
I'd spent considerable time helping Brias with repairs throughout Heaven's various weapons.
Raphael had practically made her laboratory her new residence since I'd given her the cannon and energy bracelet to study.
Her excitement over the artefact's properties was infectious and I suspected she was on the verge of several breakthrough discoveries that could benefit Heaven's technological capabilities.
My own artefact-making had slowed down, but I intended to continue.
The Fallen Angels who had joined our cause provided valuable intelligence updates. They added a small force of Kokabiel's lower followers and had been granted a place in Heaven.
Especially while I found a way to return them.
Closer inspection showed that they had all fallen out of grief and something about that just didn't sit right with me. Meeting with them had certainly changed my view slightly. They weren't mean, dark or even vicious.
They were basically Angels who had lost their inner light. Angels who had been consumed by negativity and acted out on it.
Through conversations with them, I'd learned much about current supernatural politics and the movements of various factions. Their insider knowledge of the broader supernatural world proved invaluable for understanding the shifting dynamics.
Three Great Factions were a Faction on its own after all.
The Church had recovered from the attack, but I'd decided that Vatican City needed stronger defences. The recent battle had shown that our enemies were willing to strike at any target associated with Heaven and I wouldn't allow the faithful to suffer for their devotion.
It was safe to say these past three days had been incredibly busy. Between reconstruction, healing, intelligence gathering and strategic planning, there had been little time for rest.
A notification snapped me out of my thoughts, stopping my slow stroll through Eden.
[Download Completed]
Finally.
{Template - Nagato Uzumaki - Age 13}
{Perks} -
[Uzumaki Bloodline]
[War Survivor]
[Prodigy]
[Jiraiya's Student]
{Skills} -
[Rinnegan]
[Chakra Manipulation]
{Sub-Skills} -
Rain Tiger at Will Technique
Hidden Doorway Technique
Survival Skills
Combat Techniques
Wind Release: Air Bullets
Wind Release: Gale Palm
Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall
The sub-skills section went on.
My eyes zeroed in on the skill I wanted.
[Rinnegan] (Active)
"The most exalted of the Three Great Dōjutsu, wielded by gods and legends."
The Rinnegan otherwise known as the eyes of god is a Dojutsu belonging to a chakra God. It allows its users to perceive all forms of chakra patterns while remaining immune to visual illusions and mental manipulation.
The eye's greatest power lies in the Six Paths Technique, allowing manipulation of gravity, extraction of souls, energy absorption, mechanical body augmentation, and creature summoning.
The ultimate expression of this power grants control over life and death itself, capable of reviving the fallen at the cost of the wielder's own life force depending on the power of the targeted being.
Those who possess the Rinnegan can master any chakra technique simply by observing it once.
However, this immense power requires tremendous chakra reserves and often corrupts the wielder's sense of morality, leading them down paths of either absolute creation or total destruction.
"In times of disorder, one who wields the Rinnegan becomes either a God of Creation or a God of Destruction."
My hand trembled and a shiver of excitement tore through me.
Since gaining chakra it had been put on the back foot as a secondary energy. Something that should have been a trump card had been relegated to a technique that barely boosted my physical strength by 10%.
Mokuton was useful but for the god-class, they could simply tear through it.
It was, after all, enhanced wood.
Perhaps it seemed like a waste, but I had felt before a truly powerful download. Making my chakra just as powerful as my angelic magic was a must-have.
Downloading was my biggest strength. It had become clear that download time depended on my power level. So I had been downloading stronger downloads as I grew.
I had to stop myself from pressing 'yes' right away.
Just for the sake of curiosity I went through a few other options.
[Rain Tiger at Will Technique]
Perception Jutsu allows detection of intruders through chakra-infused rain
[Hidden Doorway Technique]
Can create doorways and seals on walls
[Sensing Technique]
Can detect a person's chakra signature
All interesting, but not worth such a long download.
With my minor curiosity filled. I went back, my eyes scanning the powerful Doujutsu.
Then, I pressed confirm and waited.
There was a pause and then everything became sharper.
Perk Gained.
[Rinnegan's Chakra]
The Rinnegan has deepened your chakra's potency.
Sure enough, the reserve of chakra that had always been shallower than my dense angelic power thickened. The chakra that had been powerful but diluted in a way, became like a raging river.
It wasn't as potent as my angelic magic, not even close. But it had grown massively. Not in size but I could feel it thrumming.
Skill Gained.
[Rinnegan] (Active)
"The most exalted of the Three Great Dōjutsu, wielded by gods and legends."
The Rinnegan otherwise known as the eyes of god is a Dojutsu belonging to a chakra God. It allows its users to perceive all forms of chakra and energy patterns while remaining immune to visual illusions and mental manipulation.
The eye's greatest power lies in the Six Paths Technique, allowing manipulation of gravity, extraction of souls, energy absorption, mechanical body augmentation, and creature summoning.
The ultimate expression of this power grants control over life and death itself, capable of reviving the fallen at the cost of the wielder's own life force depending on the power of the targeted being.
Those who possess the Rinnegan can master any chakra technique simply by observing it once.
However, this immense power requires tremendous chakra reserves and often corrupts the wielder's sense of morality, leading them down paths of either absolute creation or total destruction.
"In times of disorder, one who wields the Rinnegan becomes either a God of Creation or a God of Destruction."
My eyes closed and I focused on deactivating them.
When my eyes opened again, the world was incredibly dulled. Making me blink in surprise at just how sharp the Rinnegan made my gaze.
My eyes closed once more and sure enough, the world was sharp and power thrummed in my veins.
It was intoxicating.
The instinctual knowledge came to me.
I raised my hand toward a large boulder and activated one of the Six Paths techniques. The Deva Path responded instantly and the massive stone lifted effortlessly into the air.
With a simple gesture, I sent it flying across the garden before pulling it back toward me. The gravitational control felt natural, like an extension of my will.
It was so much more powerful than my gravity magic.
It was manipulation.
Gravity manipulation. I imagined that meant my gravity magic would be boosted and I could sense that the gravity manipulation of the Rinnegan was limited. Meaning the Gravity Magic skill would give me more spells.
Curiously, my hand raised and I channelled my angelic power. Creating a wind blast.
The wind blast exploded out with more force than I expected…
As advertised, the Rinnegan had given me an affinity for all the elements. MindMaven was activated and I calculated a 20% boost.
From there I tested all the abilities I could.
I would have to master it.
The instinctual knowledge was only basic.
I was excited.
It was annoying that I had to master another power but it was the cost of being able to download literally any power with enough time. Even if some could take millions of years.
The Rinnegan was powerful. Incredibly so. It was probably one of my best downloads to date.
I thought of my next download, opening the tab and after a few minutes of deliberation, selecting my chosen character.
With my system open, something else caught my attention.
My eyes trailed to a notification I hadn't been able to see, I had been so focused that only the download had made me check the system for the time being.
[Divine Shard] {Progress: 27.3%}
[The Shard of God. The resurrected shard of his essence that has merged with the user. As the shard progresses the user will receive more abilities from his merged counterpart. Yahweh.]
I had grown the shard so far in such a small time.
Skill Gained.
[Angelic Dominion] (Passive)
The connection between God and his Angels, a special empowerment offered only by the creator. This boost grants a 20% boost to both physical and angelic magic reserves.
My eyes widened.
When did I gain such a skill?
As if waiting for me to see it, I felt the switch.
This was massive.
The sheer gain of 20% couldn't be underestimated.
Especially for the Seraphim and Arch-Seraphim.
Was this the empowerment they had spoken of?
I closed my eyes and a vicious smile made its way on my face.
It was about time.
-{Jediel}-
Jediel stood on one of the streets of the silver city, a smile gracing her features.
The city was sleek in design, large buildings housing comfortable living spaces. The buildings had always been ahead of their time and the silver gleam they possessed gave her comfort.
The streets were clean and filled with Angels, who walked around in groups.
Shining clear watered lakes ran around the edges of the silver city, adding to its look.
While it may have seemed simple and easy to bore off, there were a great many things to do. Beyond merely duties to Heaven. Music, flying, socialising, painting, training and merely living.
Every Angel had lost their spark of adventure.
The Great War had made them seek a boring life.
They were content and those who kept that adventure enjoyed the infinite library.
Though, many Angels found that spark of adventure returning with the return of their Father.
She watched the hundreds of angels constantly moving in and out of the training grounds.
Another spark had been lit. A spark to fight once more.
She looked over a bow on her back with a wistful sigh.
Jediel looked at a display of flowers.
She opened her mouth to speak to her brother, who had the flowers on display. It had become a competition for some, seeing the best flowers that could grow within Heaven's soul.
It was all free of course.
But they were rather pretty.
A pulse rippled through reality itself, originating from somewhere beyond the Silver City.
Jediel gasped as the faint thread of connection that had barely existed, suddenly exploded into brilliant life. Power flooded through her, the empowerment that had been lost with their Father's death rushing back in overwhelming waves.
She fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face as divine energy coursed through her very being.
Around the city, she could hear she wasn't the only one. Her brother in front of her was just as stunned.
The empowerment that had been lost to them when their Father had died returned.
-{?}-
The portal rippled and closed behind him with barely a whisper, the energy dissipating into the air of the mansion.
Angra Mainyu stepped through with measured grace as his cold, calculating eyes swept over the lavish surroundings with complete indifference.
Servants and lesser beings scattered from his path, their survival instincts perhaps recognising the threat to their lives.
The God wasn't happy. Not in the slightest.
The fool had failed.
He had been too confident and that confidence had ended up making him blunder. Fighting on enemy grounds was always a hard endeavour, even with a mighty force you could find yourself repelled with surprising force.
Least of all by Angels, who were notoriously hard to kill.
That would obviously happen when you fought one of the very few immortal races outside of the Gods. The foolish idiot had forgotten to account for the years of weapon training, battle instincts and knowledge every Angel possessed.
Power and numbers were all well and good but knowledge had its worth.
The Evil Incarnate felt that with all that information, even with new unknown factors, it could have been handled better. A retreat after the second unknown factor would have been optimal and yet out of sheer stubbornness, he had tried to fight Heaven using old data.
Most of all, it made him look bad.
His lips pulled back to show a few of his teeth as he strode through the hallways. He paid no mind to the various members of the forces that were coming to this meeting. They were insects beneath his notice and he had more pressing matters to attend to anyway.
The meeting room's doors opened at his approach, without him so much as glancing at them. Inside, the circular table dominated the space, its polished obsidian surface reflecting the faces of those already assembled and the bright and burning chandelier above.
Some of the seats remained empty, with a few members too busy to attend and others suffering from the recent failure.
His eyes boredly flickered to a cloaked figure sitting in shadows, the only hint to his identity being the taste of his divine power. The Titan or rather his current avatar, remained motionless as a statue.
Another God lounged in his chair, his emerald eyes gleaming with barely contained mischief.
At the seat closest to the left of the head of the table, a Devil whose power created a visible bend in the air, maintained his small insufferable smirk which widened at his arrival, two crazy eyes regarding him slowly.
While Euclid sat rigid with barely concealed intrigue.
On the other side, on the only other seat that was next to the head of the table sat a Dragon. One whose presence easily fought off the demonic power of the being sat across from him. Two slitted mismatched eyes challengingly staring at the Devil.
Scattered around the table, a few other Evil Gods from various pantheons occupied the remaining seats.
All conversations ceased as Angra Mainyu entered. Every gaze turned toward him, some wary, others openly hostile.
"My, my, what a surprise," the Devil's laughter cut through the silence like a blade. "If it isn't the father of our lost comrade, who in his mighty wisdom took many of our resources with him when he fell."
Angra Mainyu settled into his seat with fluid grace, his expression remaining perfectly neutral.
"It's hardly my fault if fools chose to invest in his little experiment," he replied with glacial boredom. "The Architect's failure was his own. Those who followed his promises of easy victory deserve whatever fate befell them."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees.
Several members shifted uncomfortably, remembering comrades who had answered the Architect's call for the Heaven invasion only to die or barely escape with their lives.
At the very least none of them manage to be permanently killed. But many were unaccounted for.
"Easy for you to say," A God sneered
"Oh, how tragic. Huitzilopochtli, Tlaloc, and Ammit all perished, their little reformation vacation is going to take quite some time." The Devil spoke and multiple Gods tensed. "And poor Azi Dahaka? Well, let's just say there's not much left of the 'mighty' World-Eater to work with, turns out having your entire existence obliterated requires a teensy bit more effort to bounce back from. Who could have predicted that?"
They were all used to the Devil's provoking nature by now and as such ignored it.
Angra Mainyu stared back.
"As for Tezcatlipoca and Ares, well, their fates remain delightfully mysterious, though I'm sure they're having a wonderful time wherever they've ended up." He finished with a grin. "And then there's dear Set, the 'God of Chaos' himself, who managed the truly heroic feat of running away like a coward, severely damaged and bodyless. A true disaster."
"The actions of those not under me are not my worry or responsibility." Angra Mainyu replied evenly. "Some of you made an uncertain deal with a separate entity. Who turned out to be working on old data."
"We thought you vouched for him when you aided his creation!" An Egyptian God said heatedly. "You know the temptation of heaven's destruction was too strong to let slide, especially with what they've done to us. You could have taken more measures to help out, as is the point of this alliance."
"Then perhaps you should have chosen your investments more wisely, and maybe you should have verified that I was indeed a part of this little attack." Angra Mainyu replied without looking at the speaker. "The 'Architects' plan was never a guarantee. I assumed you all recognised that."
Loki chuckled, clearly enjoying the tension. "Such paternal affection. It warms the heart."
"Shouldn't all of you who lost out on resources be looking over to Loki here? I believe he was a part of the attack and yet he stands here without any loss." Angra Mainyu commented.
Loki's smile didn't waver, even as some annoyed glares were thrown his way.
An uncomfortable silence stretched across the room.
The head chair remained conspicuously empty, It was after a while of waiting for them that they finally decided it would be another meeting without their presence.
Finally, the hooded figure sighed, the sound carrying the weight of aeons. "Since we're all content to sit here glaring at each other, perhaps we should proceed with why we've gathered."
What followed was a deep discussion mostly proposing plans and offers for the benefits of joining in those plans. Some participated while others merely watched.
Then came the last subject.
"The Greek operation proceeds as planned," the hooded figure continued. "Our agents have successfully infiltrated the Greek pantheon's outer defences. The goddess's capture will aid in releasing another Titan which will serve in the retaking of Olympus."
The Devil leaned forward with interest.
"Are you sure this Titan will help?" The Trickster God said amusedly.
The hooded figure tensed.
"I heard that not all of them were quite on board with your plan." His teasing voice taunted.
"You needn't worry yourself with such rumours." The figure merely replied, flaring his power.
Angra Mainyu suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. This was the problem with having so many powerful beings from different factions in one alliance. Any slight ended up with displays of power, which was never good for the surrounding area at their level.
"Speaking of family squabbles," the Devil continued with maniacal glee, "what's the current status of our dear Three Factions? I heard they've been rather busy."
"Agitated," a god wearing an excessive amount of jewellery said. "For reasons we haven't been able to determine, all three factions have been erratic. We haven't exactly been paying too much attention to it though."
"How wonderfully paranoid of them!" the Devil clapped his hands together. "But that does raise a teensy-weensy question."
His expression shifted to something more serious. "How exactly did Heaven manage to repel a force that included multiple God-class entities? I mean, sure, Angels are tough cookies, but that level of resistance suggests something... new."
"From what Set says, they had multiple allies and beings of power fighting for them." Angra Mainyu replied blandly.
"So Heaven has grown? What happened to them being weak?" A God questioned anxiously.
"H-he's not back r-right?" Someone asked, a hint of genuine fear barely noticeable even to his keen senses, that feeling when the biblical God had been active weighed on them.
Angra Mainyu didn't look down on God.
He couldn't on such a being, to create artefacts out of his enemies and sealing entire pantheons that went too far. He was a special existence and one no smart being would.
He knew that fear.
He knew that feeling of such a being just roaming around and sealing beings for the benefit of humanity.
"It changes our approach going forward," another Devil spoke. "Direct confrontation is no longer viable."
"Which brings us to our next point," the hood being interrupted, clearly wanting to move past the uncomfortable topic. "What progress have we made with the Hindu pantheon?"
Silence stretched across the room before one of the gods finally spoke up. "None. They remain as reclusive as ever. Attempts to even initiate contact have been... unsuccessful."
"Unsuccessful how?" Angra Mainyu inquired.
"They simply ignore us. Completely. It's as if we don't exist to them."
The Devil burst into laughter again. "Their Hindu detachment at its finest. I'm sure they can't be bothered to engage with us lowly chaos-mongers."
Everyone ignored him.
"Their neutrality has always been firm," the Dragon observed. "Convincing them to break thousands of years of isolation for something they consider below them would require leverage we simply don't possess."
"Or a threat significant enough to force their hand," Angra Mainyu added thoughtfully.
"Well then!" the Devil stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. "This has been absolutely delightful, Do keep me posted on any developments, I so love a good plot twist!"
With that proclamation, he vanished.
There was only one Devil left and some Gods found themselves breathing sighs of relief.
The meeting continued for another hour, covering logistics and resource allocation, but the underlying tension remained.
The Architect's failure had cost them dearly and Heaven's newfound strength had shifted certain plans.
As the gathering finally dispersed.
Angra Mainyu remained seated, his calculating mind already working on new approaches.
The game was far from over.
-END-
Once more, thank you for all the support! And always, I do list downloads for Kai.
if you wish to read up to sixteen chapters in advance among my stories and other things please visit pa/t reon * / Snipez818, the app is charging a lot more for some reason so I suggest using the website.
I appreciate all the support!