"Your arms," Altair said as he took out a yellowish potion, added powder to it, and placed it on Lily's arms.
The reincarnated devil let out a sound of satisfaction. The marks of sacred magic burned on her skin. She did not have Altair's resistance to sacred light. She gritted her teeth and continued fighting.
Serafall approached to ask them some questions. Apparently, the fallen had made two simultaneous attacks, targeting Altair and everyone close to him. Fortunately, the fallen had insufficient information about him; otherwise, they could have sent a larger force and achieved their goal.
"I would have arrived earlier. However, there was a meeting between the Maou's... it was either a coincidence or they had been informed of the meeting schedule. I suspect that Kokabiel is part of another organization: Chaos Brigade," Serafall commented, looking directly at Katerea.
Altair received her gaze next. It was apparent what she was asking, even though she didn't demand it. Altair felt that he could refuse without consequence.
'Chaos Brigade'
"Katerea," he called to the woman.
"Please don't," the woman didn't want to be interrogated by Serafall; she would die of shame if that happened.
Altair looked at her silently. He knew that the woman obeyed him completely, but it would also be good to have her respect. Now, was that really something he could achieve?
"Tell me what you want to know, I'll interrogate her myself," he said as he watched a black dot approaching in the distance. "Wait!" An ice spear had formed in Serafall's hand. "She's coming with me," she said. Kalawarner landed on her knees, sweat running down her body. She stared at the ground with wide eyes, not daring to look in any other direction. "While I interrogate Katerea, you can talk to her. Don't kill her," Serafall nodded.
"Okay, here you go," she said, handing Altair a list of questions. It wasn't that she had a script; she just made them up on the spot.
"Kalawarner, answer everything Serafall asks." he didn't give her orders to behave or not to attack. If she did, she would die immediately.
He followed Katerea into another room. He prepared a magic pen to take notes of the meeting. Not all of those pens were like the ones Rita Skeeter used to enrich her gossip.
He didn't ask what he already knew, but he did ask more specific questions that Serafall had requested. There were names he didn't know, but they were pretty standard to Katerea, judging by the information she revealed about them.
Rizevim Lucifer. Apparently, he was a direct descendant of the Original Satan, Lucifer Morningstar.
The strongest devil in the old Satan's faction. Katerea fervently believed that if that man had participated in the war between the new Maou and the old ones, the outcome would have been different.
When Altair asked if she had seen Sirchesz's power, her answer was yes. But even so, she dared to say that with Rizevim, they would have won.
He was not part of the Chaos Brigade; he was from the old Satan's faction, and even then, only superficially. He was an enigmatic and powerful man who, for the most part, went unnoticed, not out of fear, but instead due to a lack of interest. Katerea praised his strength and criticized his lack of action.
About the Chaos Brigade, he had obtained all its factions, or at least the ones Katerea was aware of. The apparent goal was to banish the Great Red from the dimensional rift.
Altair had to ask who the Great Red was and what the dimensional rift was, and when he heard the explanation, he was sure Lily would greatly enjoy that information.
Serafall's other questions were directed at their amount of resources, sponsors, movements of Old Satan's faction, and possible infiltrated devils.
Altair wondered if he could blackmail the Phenex family for having their son infiltrate another faction. The Phenex family's position became a little murky with the Phoenix Powder, though not as much as one might expect. After all, there were blood purists who would not want to touch the inventions of a half-breed, and Altair hoped they could maintain that mindset when a loved one was on the brink of death.
When he came out, he saw something similar to gratitude in Katerea's eyes.
He saw Kalawarner trembling in a corner, while Serafall was beaming on the other side. He smiled slightly at the fallen man as he walked over to Serafall and handed her several sheets of paper containing what he had learned from the interrogation.
"Arigato," said the magical girl.
Although supernatural beings spoke in a language that was not defined, but somewhat magic that allowed them to understand each other and be understood, there were times when language was emphasized, as it was at that moment.
"You're welcome," Altair replied. "Thank you for coming," he said. It seemed that Lily could have taken care of everything, but having a guarantee was much better.
"Now, let's talk about your move," Serafall said cheerfully but seriously.
Altair clicked his tongue. He liked the place, and although he had been designing barriers to control who could and could not enter, his projects had not produced much.
But he couldn't deny that they needed to move to a safer place. After all, the devils might not attack them, but the same could not be said for other supernatural beings, such as the fallen.
In that attack, they had underestimated him and sent a relatively small and weak force, but the next attack would not be like that. They might even send one of the leaders of that new faction of the Fallen.
"Some time ago, I spoke with Sona about the Phoenix Powder. Part of our negotiation included a territory in the underworld," Altair said.
"True, true," Serafall tapped her chin with her finger. "But I planned for you to stay at the Sitri mansion. It's safer," she said, not as an order, but as a wish or an offer.
"And Lord Sitri will be happy to have me under his roof?" he asked, rolling his eyes.
Going to the Sitri's place would put him under their watchful eye as they sought to decipher his plans.
"Lord Sitri offered a better price for the Phoenix Powder," Serafall said as she shifted her weight from foot to foot.
"That will be quite nice for the future," Altair said. "And my territory... did I have to speak directly to Lord Sitri about that?"
Serafall pouted at his refusal.
"Lord Sitri mentioned it... Within my territory in Hell is the former land of the Marchosias; it's an option for you," said Serafall, her eyes shining as if she wanted him to change his mind.
"Marchosias," he said the name. An extinct house, more than half of the houses of the Ars Goetia are extinct in that world. "I'll take it," said Altair. "I'll go first to explore it. I don't want a curse or anything like that," he said to Serafall.
"Fine, I'll accompany you. Let's go now. In the meantime, your peerage can wait in my territory," said the devil cheerfully.
"I'll tell them to pack." They were magicians; it wouldn't take them long to pack all their things.
While the girls went back and forth, packing all their belongings, Altair remained by Serafall's side, for no specific reason; he already had all his things in a trunk, so he didn't need to pack, and they refused any help. He didn't want to spend a long time waiting, so he was about to call the elves of the Malfoy house to help them when he felt an annoying presence to his right.
"Now that we're alone, Altair-chan... why can I smell Sona on your fingers?" asked the woman.
'Oh, shit,' Altair looked at his hand. Despite the fight, Sona's scent was still slightly impregnated, although it was pretty curious.
"How do you know what Sona's vagina smells like?" he asked the Maou.
Serafall's face underwent several changes, from surprise at the question to a slight cough of embarrassment and finally blushing.
"Ididn'trecognizethatsmellbecauseIusuallystealherunderwear," she said quickly without paying attention to her words.
"Want to try?" Altair said as he extended his hand in her direction. He watched her upturned nose as she inhaled quickly.
Serafall stared at the hand, mesmerized. But she didn't move, and it wasn't until Altair's fingers touched her lips that she jumped back in fright. Altair ran his fingers over Serafall's red lips, and she unconsciously stuck out her tongue to lick her lips.
"Mhmahh!" she moaned with pleasure as she took a giant leap away from him. "I'll be right back," she said as her legs trembled.
She disappeared in a circle of magic.
'Another day alive,' he said as he looked up at the sky, wondering if God was watching him.