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The Gamer's Guide to Freedom by The Dark Wolf Shiro

Anime X-overs & High School DxD/ハイスクールD×D Xover Rated: M, English, Supernatural & Fantasy, Words: 191k+, Favs: 5k+, Follows: 5k+, Published: Aug 19, 2020 Updated: Oct 2, 2021

2,363Chapter 13: Handling the Household

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own original characters and works, if you recognise it from somewhere else, surprise it isn't mine.

Discord Link: discord .gg/k3jTZB9

Pat reon Link: Pat reon TheDarkWolfShiro

The Gamers Guide to Freedom

Chapter 12: Handling the Household

"My King, and husband, is willing to accept almost any price for your assistance, healing our ancestor has been a Phenex family dream for centuries and the records suggest that Phoenix tears were extremely effective on Phenex's." Rayna explains making me raise an eyebrow at her being so blatant. Telling the person holding the cards that you're willing to give almost anything for them is generally seen as a bad idea when negotiating, something an old devil like Rayna certainly knows.

"You realise that bringing back an original Devil is going to have... ramifications, problematic ones at that." I point out making her wince slightly. "I might be new to the Pillars, but even I know that. As such, I find myself hesitant to get involved. Phenex is going to be awakening in a changed world, and as the person waking her up I don't want to deal with the people she pisses off." I say after a moment.

"And we understand that, though my husband has gotten permission from the Satans to continue our attempts to awaken her, that was years ago but they can't go back on their word." Rayna assures me. "The risks and seriousness of the situation are why we are willing to hand you a blank check, for lack of a better term."

There are pros and cons to going through with this, and even more so for turning her down.

If the Phenex's have been trying for that long, they won't give up easily and the risk that they might even try stealing Nyx or her tears out of desperation is always a threat, and turning them down would anger them. The Phenex's are powerful and more importantly, they are well connected. Making an alliance with them is a good move since it gives me a connection with their allies, and angering them could anger their allies and make me enemies in people I have never even met.

"To start with, I want an alliance between the Phenex and Dantalion families, with a promise of support should any backlash come to me for helping wake Phenex up." I say after a moment of thought, making Rayna pause before she nods.

"Any alliance would have to be agreed upon by my Lord, but I can't see him refusing." she agrees making me smile.

"Secondly, I want any and all Phenex tears Ravel produces while she is in my Peerage." I continue, getting another nod after a moment. "And finally, I want 5% of the profits from the Phenex Tears business for the next ten years." I say making her eyes widen.

I have a lot of money, but I don't have any actual sources of income (yet) and running an actual business is going to probably be costly before it actually starts making me money. Having some passive income can only be good.

"That... you underestimate how much money that would add up to." Rayna warns making me shrug.

"Almost anything, right? Those are my demands, you can take them to your lord." I say easily making her pause again, before she nods.

"I will, he will likely come to negotiate or close the deal himself." Rayna says as she rises, giving me a deep bow, my eyes drawn to her considerable cleavage. "Good day, Lord Dantalion, take care Ravel."

"I will, mother." Ravel promises.

"Oh, one final thing. Riser has asked permission to take a brief respite from his chores to visit you later today, if you do not mind we have given him permission." Rayna says as she forms her magical circle.

"That's fine, I'll be expecting him." I say easily as I wave, watching her teleport away. Turning to Ravel, she blushes slightly at my stare. "I have no idea how to run a business." I admit after a moment making her giggle slightly, Nyx flaming out of her lap to parts unknown.

"Most don't, but I have been raised to help run my family business for as long as I can remember, and if you truly want to work from commissions, it shouldn't be that difficult. We simply need to set up a way for your potential clients to contact you without showing up in person, a business DevilMail and number to start. A business bank account as well, but I can set all that up if you wish?" Ravel says making me stare at her deeply. "I can have the clients contact me, and make a list of the clients and their requests to give to you so you don't have to deal with their calls themselves."

"I love you." I say after a moment, her maids giggling as Ravel turns bright red.

"M-my Lord?" Ravel stutters as I stare at her.

"I mean, yes. That sounds wonderful, thank you. You should do that." I correct watching her blush rise as she fidgets in place.

"It is nothing, as a member of your Peerage it is my place to serve you in whatever capacity you require." Ravel says proudly, despite her raging blush.

+10 Affection with Ravel for making her heart race [40/100]

+20 Obedience with Ravel because she has reaffirmed her position serving you [45/100]

Before I can reply, Riser (and Better Rias who is know wearing a red silky harem dancer's outfit) teleport into the room, Riser letting out a groan as he practically falls into the seat, making Ravel move over to next to me with a scrunched up face.

Huh, repulsion wards don't help if they teleport straight through them, good to know.

"Brother, what in heaven is that smell?" Ravel asks making him pause as he sniffs himself before wincing.

"Burnt horse shit, father wasn't amused at me trading you away and I've been clearing the stables all morning, why the fuck did you ever want a pony?" Riser scoffs making her blush again. "Sorry Kuro, but I needed to escape before he could make me do anything else. Apparently, fire isn't the right choice for cleaning things and he won't even let me get my Peerage to help." Riser groans making me chuckle.

"Lemme guess, you used me as an excuse to escape work?" I ask making him nod, not even ashamed. "Nice, can't fault you for wanting to avoid manual labour."

"It didn't even work, I have half an hour before I have to go back." Riser admitted making me laugh slightly at his pained expression. "I only convinced him by saying I wanted to apologise to Ravel, and apologising shouldn't take long." he finishes mockingly, impersonating his father presumably.

"Are you going to apologise?" Ravel asked after a moment of silence, making him stare at her blankly.

"...why would I do that?" Riser asks making her sigh. "You don't look particularity put out, and you're not the one cleaning up your stupid horses crap."

"I thought you'd grown a braincell for a moment, brother." Ravel says with a sigh as Riser pauses.

"...what happened to you calling me Onii-sama?" Riser asks, making her raise an eyebrow at him.

"You traded me away, and now you aren't in charge of me any more. We are equals in our family, and the only people who I have to listen to are father and Lord Kuro." Ravel points out calmly. "So if my idiot brother is being an idiot, I can tell you to your face because you can't actually do anything about it." Ravel continues with a small smile.

"You can't call me that, what happened to cute submissive Ravel?"

"I still am 'cute submissive Ravel' to Kuro who is my King and as such my master who I now serve however he pleases, idiot brothers don't need respect or obedience." Ravel says with a cold smile making Riser look at her in confusion. "On that note, My Lord, how do you wish for me to refer to you? Riser liked Onii-sama or My King because he is a megalomaniacal pervert." Ravel continues, taking jabs at the dumbstruck brother. "Sir, My Lord, My King, Master or something else?"

"Well, you are basically my secretary so I guess Sir works?" I reply after a moment making her smile.

"Of course, Sir. A good choice, very professional. It doesn't scream arrogant pervert unlike some." Ravel compliments making Riser stare at her.

"Stop insulting me, go back to nice Ravel. I can still spank you." Riser says quickly, making her turn to him blankly.

"Actually, you can't. The only person allowed to disciple me would be Sir, and if he has a problem with my actions I will happily submit to a spanking, perhaps he'll actually use it as a form of punishment instead of a barely concealed excuse to grope me?" Ravel retorts making Riser blush slightly at the giggling coming from his former pawns.

"You're fine Ravel, and do I even need an excuse to grope you? The only limitation placed on me is that I can't take your virginity, right?" I ask making her blush slightly as she shuffles a bit closer, sitting next to me.

"O-of course not, Sir. Thanks to a certain drunken fool, I am your servant and as the King of the Peerage I am yours to command as you please." Ravel agrees making me chuckle at her spreading blush as I stare down at her. "It is the Kings right, his prerogative, to do as he likes with his servants."

"Tch, you were never so submissive to me." Riser mumbles as he gropes his Better Rias for comfort.

"Yes I was, when have I ever failed to obey you? Anything you ordered me to do, I did without hesitation. Father told you the same thing Mother told Lord Kuro, that my innocence was to remain intact, and as Sir has realised that leaves open a lot of options, you just lacked the intelligence or boldness to take advantage of them." Ravel pointed out making Riser pause.

"Wait... if I told you to pleasure me, or let me touch you then you would have?" Riser asked with a dumbstruck look.

"Naturally, I was your servant first and sister second... and I did let you touch me. No actual spankings last that long or involve that much squeezing. Besides, our parents are cousins so it would hardly be unusual." Ravel pointed out as Riser stared dumbly.

"You know what, let's move on. Just sit there and be quiet please." Riser asks tiredly, disappointment clear on his face as Ravel looks at him smugly. I get the feeling she isn't exactly happy about the whole being given away for a Rias Sex-doll either. "So, you decided to go through with the whole business idea then?" Riser asks making me nod easily.

"Pretty much, not exactly sure how it is going to work but I have nothing to lose. I'll go into the Wardcrafting business in the future anyway so I could use the experience and the infrastructure already in place." I agree making him nod.

"Makes sense, I've already got an idea for another pet I want even if I'm gonna have to wait to commission it, fucking punishments." Riser mumbles as I raise an eyebrow. "Gonna be honest, hate-fucking Bette is a whole lot of fun and her complete obedience is sexy as fuck and that got me thinking... you know how many times Akeno has insulted me, that big-titty bitch loves taking shots at me since she knows I won't do anything since it'd make Rias cry to her brother, but quick question... could you make a Fallen Angel looking version of Akeno? She's half-Fallen and she fucking hates it." Riser chuckles making me pause.

"I mean, adding black wings wouldn't be hard since I could do that with a crow but she wouldn't have any of the powers of a Fallen unless I can get my hands on some Fallen samples... which would piss of Azazel so I'm not doing that." I continue making Riser shrug.

"It'd be great for her to have Fallen powers, but honestly I just wanna face-fuck a fake Akeno." Riser admits.

"How very noble, brother." Ravel says with a slight sneer.

"...I can and will commission a sex doll version of you if you don't shut it." Riser says bluntly making her pause and glance at me.

"The customer comes first." I say after a moment making her blush and look away as she mutters about idiot perverted brothers.

"Heh, anyway I'll help out a little when I am finally free from chores. Showing off Better Rias and making it clear where I got her is easy enough." Riser promises easily making me smile.

"Get anyone you send to say you sent them and I'll give you a discount on whatever you want making." I offer making him chuckle.

"Referral benefits, gonna offer a loyalty card as well?" Riser laughs making me shrug easily, I don't know what the fuck I'm doing. "I'm game though, I know plenty of rich dumbasses.

+5 Reputation with Riser for the offer [40/100]

"I'll add it to list of questions, should probably make a form for potential clients as well." Ravel mutters as she pulls out a notepad and writes something down.

"I should probably get going before dad comes looking for me." Riser says with a sigh.

"Before you go, I want to give Better Rias a check-up. I did make her while I was drunk and I want to make sure she isn't going to explode or anything like that." I say making his eyes widen.

"Do your creations usually explode?"

"It's been known to happen, and I'm normally sober when I make them." I admit as Riser gestures for Better Rias to slither over to me.

Placing my hand on her shoulder, I let my magic run through her as I make sure I didn't break anything when I made her.

You know, Nagas have all the genetic data of the humans that made them, and the magic used to change them is still within their bodies... so theoretically, I think I could add a trigger of sorts to make them change their between 'human' and Naga forms.

Fuck it, if she explodes I'll make Riser a Rias/Akeno/Koneko set as an apology.

"Err, Kuro... why does she have legs?" Riser asks as Better Rias falls to her knees before rising, still smiling at us.

"Better Rias, change forms." I order watching her legs grow scaly as her tail grows over them returning to her true form. "Better Rias, change forms." I order again watching the scales recede and shrink back revealing her long naked legs. "Ha, I'm a genius." I say smugly. "You're welcome, and it looks like she isn't going to blow up any time soon."

Probably.

"You know... without the tail she just looks like Rias's less bitchy twin." Riser points out as he looks over her.

"...so?" I ask making him smirk.

"Oh she is going to be so pissed off." Riser chuckles making me pause.

"That sounds like a personal problem." I say after a moment of thought.

"You won't hear any arguments from me-" Riser starts before a buzzing makes him flinch. "Damn it, I've gotta go. Ravel, I swear if I ever hear you saying you want a pet again I'll burn the fucker myself." Riser promises as he rises, Better Rias joining him quickly as he gives me a nod. "I'll be around when I escape my punishment, later Kuro."

"Later, Riser."

+10 Affection with Riser for giving him a way to piss off Rias [50/100]

[The Nobles Favour] – Riser Phenex [50]

Nobles are hard to please at the best of times, but not for you. You have an instinctive understanding of how to appease the prides of nobles and gain their favour.

"If you don't have anything else in mind, Sir, I can start setting up your business accounts for you... though, about the name." Ravel pauses as I stare at her.

"...I can't be bothered to change it, just shorten it down to Inil Inc or something." I order making her smile slightly as she bows.

"As you wish, Inil Incorporated it is." Ravel agrees as I freeze, feeling one of my wards trigger hard.

Well, well... hello possibly vengeful and certainly angry spirit.

Time to deal with our little haunter while she is caught in the web I weaved for her.

"Thanks Ravel, now if you'll excuse me I have some personal business to take care off." I say giving her a pat on the head as I immediately set off, knowing the Spirit could just fuck off back to the afterlife if I wait too long.

Reaching the spot I identified as her entry spot, and likely where she died, I pause as I get my first look at the Spirit that has been causing (Izan) so much trouble.

You know, when he said he was killed by a naked ghost with a sword I thought he was over-exaggerating to be honest, but as a pair of glowing white eyes turn towards me, a screech leaving the pale blue girl as she lunges, her blade unable to reach me as she hits the edge of the spirit ward I am careful to remain on the edge off I have to admit.

It's a pretty good description, she is a ghost with a sword and she is naked, well mostly naked as old dirty bandages wrap around her small chest and privates, providing little cover thanks to them rotting leaving her breasts and pussy on almost full display as she smashes her blade against the invisible barrier in an attempt to get to me.

She has some power to her, I can see that from her decent level, but this ward was made to contain rebellious spirits and she isn't making any progress.

I'd almost be aroused at the jiggling if it wasn't for one slight issue... her 'body' is in a seriously bad condition. Still bleeding cuts and wounds cover her body as the spectral blood falls to the floor and simply vanishing, she has shards of glass sticking out of her left shoulder and back from where she was thrown through the window, and in some places her limbs have been completely dismembered, not that it seems to be an issue for her as her lower arms simply hovering in place despite having been cut off with the same sword she is now trying to stab me with.

It didn't take long to find out what happened in the murder house I have been gifted, this isn't a very big town and something like a double murder suicide isn't easily forgotten.

"Rin Yamaoka, I assume?" I ask, already knowing the answer. Three people died here but Rin is the only one who was in her late teens, and her wounds match the police reports Sona got me.

It didn't surprise me that Sona has her fingers in the local services at all.

Despite her rage-filled face, there is a working mind in there somewhere and realising she can't get to me she simply glares at me, the sword in her hands twisting unnaturally as it sunk into her hand and vanished.

Neat trick.

"Leave my home." Rin hisses, her voice echoing through the gardens as I stare at her.

"That's not really an option, I'm afraid." I admit making her glare harder. "But we don't have to be enemies, I do believe this has been a rather unpleasant series of misunderstanding. I really don't care that you killed Izan a couple of times, it barely inconvenienced the bastard, but I can't have you attacking my guests."

Honestly, Izan has probably already forgotten since he's been locked in his room with three servants ever since, he's got bigger things on his mind than ghosts.

"Leave. My. Home." Rin repeats angrily as I smile.

"No, but I really don't think you have fought this through. With my little ward, you can't leave this spot and no matter how many times you leave and return, you'll be haunting this five meter cubic space for the rest of eternity, I can just have you bricked in and move on with my life." I point out as she lets out a screech.

-40 Affection with Rin Yamaoka for stealing her home [-50/100]

"But you also haven't thought about what would happen if I actually left, and let this place fall into ruin. Real estate is in short supply around here and how long do you think people would wait before they simply demolished the estate and built over? You can't kill everyone who comes, and sooner or later you'd attract people with the power to erase you for good. Driving me away isn't a good idea." I explain calmly, I don't know what happens when something like light magic or the power of destruction hits a ghost but if I can fight ghosts with fire magic then the devils and fallen could definitely deal with her if they wanted to.

But where others see crazy naked ghosts, I see an opportunity. I've always wanted a guard dog.

- Rin Yamaoka -

Glaring at the smiling man, though she doubted he was truly human with how easily he restrained her, she thought about his words and despite the rage filling her she couldn't find fault in them.

"What do you want?" Rin asked, her voice weak from lack of use. There was something about this man that drew her in, it was why she chose the other spirit to start her attempts to drive them out (that and his use of her underwear and school uniform for his sick games).

Being in his presence, she could feel her rage subside slightly and her senses return somewhat, allowing her to do more than screech again. She didn't know what it was, and she certainly didn't trust it but it was nice to be able to speak.

With her mind returning, she also felt other emotions than anger and betrayal for the first time since her death, like embarrassment as she felt his eyes gaze over her almost naked body briefly.

She wasn't sure if the embarrassment was more from her exposed body or the destroyed state her father left it in, leaving her once attractive form looking like something from a horror movie.

"I want to be able to go about my day without worrying about someone wandering into this little section of the garden, and I want you to join me in protecting my new home... and I can make it worth your while. I brought Izan back from the dead, giving him a living breathing body. I can do the same for you." the man offered, still smiling as she glared at him. "Or if that isn't convincing enough, allow me to alter my offer slightly. I can do the same for your mother." he continued making her freeze in shock. "With a new body, she wouldn't even be bedridden. I can undo the crimes your father committed, and all I want is your loyalty. A small price, really."

Looking into his confident gaze for a hint of deceit, Rin forced down the strange warmth that filled her spectral body before she faded from the mortal realm once more.

She needed to think, and she needed to do so while whatever magic he had over her wasn't clouding her judgement.

- Kuro -

Oh well, I'm in no rush and the bait has already been thrown out. Besides, I have this.

[Deathly Presence]

The Death Magic coursing through your body has taken its toll, leaving you pale and somewhat sickly looking, and you give off a natural aura that most living beings find intimidating or off putting. Undead creatures find this aura appealing.

Her affection was slowly rising during the conversation, as one-sided as it might have been and by the time she decided to flee I got her back to -10 which is a start in turning her to my side.

She has potential, especially since I need something to help me wipe out the ghosts haunting the dungeon near my castle. The fact that there can be sentient beings in the dungeons has gotten me very interested in what is behind all the pissed off ghosts and undead that I used for grinding.

Or it might just be a tomb of angry ghosts, in which case I wanna kill them all and loot it.

I mean, am I really a murder hobo if they were dead when I got there?

Speaking off ghosts and making bodies, I have another ghost hanging around that I need to deal with. Azazel basically dumped Araquiel on me and she's just been hanging around the house avoiding basically everyone ever since and I could have sworn I saw her watching me through the ceiling earlier so I'd rather have her in a body that's easier to keep track off.

I need to stock up on human bodies very soon, I'm almost out but I have enough to make a human version of the Fallen, she won't have any powers but without Fallen samples I can only do so much.

Changing the bodies appearance to match the dead Fallen takes barely five minutes, and while I doubt I got all the details correct I also don't actually care that much so as I hollow out its mind and turn it into a servant I reach out through the magic I am using to keep Araquiel in this realm and call her to my location.

"Y-you called, Lord Dantali- Wait, is that... me?" Araquiel asks as she flies through the wall, pausing as she sees the body lying on the bed.

"Well yes, but actually no. It's a human body I've made some adjustments to so you have a body of your own. Anyway, in you go." I say simply forcing her into the body. It's easy enough and I've seen Izan go in and out of his body enough times to know how to stick her in there.

She barely has time to let out a squeak before she is forced into her new body, sitting up quickly as she gasps, taking her first breath in centuries, her eyes looking around rapidly as I stare at her idly.

"There, now you aren't wasting my mana to maintain." I say simply as she moves from the bed, rising to her feet with a baffled look.

"You just... made a body, so easily?" Araquiel asked, her voice ever so slightly wrong but I can fix that. Voice cords are a pain in the ass to work with and tapping her shoulder I quickly rearrange a couple of things to make her body more accurate.

"It was less that I made a body and more that I modified an existing one, which is childs play." I say as I step back and give her body a look over, seeking out any flaws or fuck-ups I made in my haste. "There, that should be good enough."

"I... it feels strange to have to breath again, and it has been a long time since I felt the cold." Araquiel admitted as she looked towards the open window, a cool breeze blowing through the room before she pauses and looks down at her exposed body. "Umm, not that I'm not extremely grateful my lord but I- I didn't have breasts this big." she admits making me glance down at the d-cup breasts.

Ehh, close enough.

"Shame, anyway Azazel wants me to keep you here and busy while he works out how to break the whole super-hell to the Fallen and I figured you'd want something to keep yourself occupied while you were hear, especially since I have no idea how long you'll be around." I explain making her blush slightly even as she stares at me. "And he also told me you were a researcher of sorts before your death."

"I, that's right. I was an archivist in Heaven before I fell and spent my days in the grand library of heaven." Araquiel agrees making me smile at her.

"So I was wondering if you'd like a job, it comes with a bed, three meals a day and you get to earn that body." I say, reminding her that she'd still be ethereal without me.

"O-of course, my lord. Whatever you want, anything is better than going back t-there." Araquiel replies submissively as she moves back and sits on the edge of the bed. "D-do you want me on my back or... maybe on my knees?" she asks making me pause as I stare her down. "Y-you brought me back in your bedroom, with a more voluptuous body and want me to earn it, I can read between the lines. I-it's fine, I don't mind."

"Obviously you can't, as I wanted you to work for me as my personal researcher." I deadpan back at her making her eyes widen as she turns bright red. "This isn't my bedroom, it's yours now actually, and you're naked because I like being able to see what I am working with when I'm making modifications to bodies... that said, you don't mind, huh?" I ask with a slight smirk as her blush spreads down her neck, her face almost steaming.

"W-what do you want me to research?" she asks quickly making me chuckle to myself.

"Animals and magical creatures, along with legendary figures who have passed away." I reply making her pause as I go through one of the drawers.

All empty, but I have a change of clothing in my inventory so I place my hand in the drawer and 'pull out' a plain white shirt and toss it at the embarrassed Fallen. I guess Lust wasn't one of her sins, though with how easily she offered herself I suppose it could be.

"I... don't understand, legends? Animals?"

"Specifically, I want to know about creatures either mundane or magical with interesting powers or abilities, and I want to know of skilled figures who have passed away. To be specific, I want to know their skills, powers and what afterlife you think they would have ended up in." I explain making her eyes widen slightly.

She's a smart girl, and if I can call her back from hell I can certainly do it to others.

As she buttons up the shirt, which really just makes her more attractive because naked with just a half buttoned shirt is pretty fucking good, she takes a moment then nods.

"I can do that, if you can get me access to a good source of information." Araquiel agrees making me smile at her.

"Excellent, follow me then. It's time you meet your coworkers, well co-worker at the moment." I correct as I head towards where I can sense Ravel, Araquiel following behind me quickly and quietly, tugging at the end of her shirt to try and cover her pussy as we move through the somewhat bustling estate.

It doesn't help.

Opening the door, I pause as I step through the door and stare Ravel down as she looks at me and the mostly naked woman behind me curiously.

"...I was gone for like thirty minutes, tops." I deadpan as I look around the former bedroom that has been redecorated into a little office in record time, the bed missing and a desk and computer in place as Ravel looks over some paperwork. "Did you bring the secretary outfit or did you have to go home for it?" I ask making her straighten up with a proud smile.

Her fancy red dress has been replaced with a simple black pencil skirt and a form fitting white shirt as she sits at the desk, piles of paperwork in front of her.

"Thirty minutes was more than enough, I sent Bülent home to get me some more appropriate clothing for my new role, that's all Sir." Ravel explains proudly.

"Huh, nice work. Anyway, this is Araquiel and she's going to be Inil Inc's researcher for the foreseeable future. Get her a computer with a connection to the Devilnet... and some clothes please." I order making Ravel nod immediately, not even questioning the clearly angelic name.

At least outwardly, at any rate.

"Of course, Sir. Do you have any preference on her uniform, or mine for that matter?" Ravel asks easily making me shrug.

"Nah, you do you. I'm pretty sure you two could pull off just about anything anyway. Good work, Ravel." I say moving forwards and petting her head gently as I pretend not to notice that she's added a perch for Nyx in her office, or the bag of dried fruits that's already half empty as Nyx stares at me smugly.

That bird is going to get fat, and Ravel won't think she's so cute when she has to deal with phoenix gas.

"Thank you, Sir." Ravel says with a blush as she bows slightly.

Riser lost out on this deal, he got a sex toy and I got out of a hell of a lot of work.

"I'll leave you both to it, no rush on the results Araquiel since I have a lot to deal with anyway." I say as I leave them to whatever they are going to be doing.

I just want to keep Araquiel occupied since idle people tend to cause trouble, besides if having her work stops me from having to work myself I am 100% down.

I'm a busy guy, and delegation is one of my favourite words.

Right, looking over my short list of things I wanted to deal with today before I could go back to sleep studying my Grimoires, I quickly write out a note and pass it to my ever present Gadget, patting her bony head as the skeletal mouse runs through the house with the paper in her mouth.

I left Mickey and Minnie in the dungeon, because dog sized skeletal rats are rather noticeable so I decided they would be better off lurking around the tower watching for intruders.

Heading to my own office, I take a seat and simply wait as Gadget returns to me quickly, her job finished as she sneaks under the desk and hides. She knows her true purpose is simply to stay close enough to me that I don't get stuck with the undead debuff and is skilled at hiding away.

Now, I just have to wait for Aria to follow the order I sent her.

- Aria -

Getting orders via skeleton rats was disturbing the first few times, but it was almost preferable to Nyx being sent as the prideful bird always deliberately burnt whoever she was being sent to out of spite.

The rat simply dropped the letter at her feet, and when she picked it up it scurried off to parts unknown, leaving her unsinged. It wasn't like Nyx ever truly hurt her, though the powerful bird could easily do so, but it was still annoying to deal with.

The order was simple enough, though she'd be lying if she wasn't slightly concerned as she arrived at Kuro's office, spotting him lounging in his chair as they gathered in front of him.

Beside her, Helia, Grayfia and the two new maids all lined up in front of the sleepy lord and waited for him to speak.

"So, the number of staff here has risen sharply, and I figured it was time to actually set the pecking order so to speak instead of leaving it vague which of you was in charge when I'm not around." Kuro started as he confirmed her fear. "I know there have been some... slight disagreements over this.

Glancing at Grayfia, she resisted the urge to glare at the much older (and much more powerful) woman, she might have been a maid for centuries but she was barely a real servant, just some noble playing dress-up.

"Right, Aria step forwards." Kuro said after a moment, watching her immediately step out of the line.

She was fairly confident that she'd done enough to keep her position, but she was Head Slave and only she and Helia were actually slaves, unlike the three devils.

There was the chance that she'd be passed over to make one of the much more powerful women the head servant, and she couldn't completely hide her nerves as she watched him.

"From now on, you are the head of the house servants. Coordinating the rest of the servants is your job, as it keeping everything in order. As long as it doesn't contradict an order from me, the rest of you are to obey Aria as if the words came from my mouth." Kuro ordered making her fear fade away as a triumphant smile broke out on her face, smugly staring back at the irritated Grayfia. "Bülent, Marion. I want one of you two to be assigned to serving Ravel at all times, she is going to be working hard on my behalf and I want to make things as easy as possible for her. Aria, you can take care of the actual scheduling because I hate dealing with minor details like that." Kuro admitted as she nodded immediately.

"Of course, My Lord. It will be easy enough to arrange alternating days." Aria said, eager to prove he hadn't made a mistake.

"Good, you two can go about your business. Aria, Helia and Grayfia stay behind, I have more to discuss with you three." Kuro said easily, the two maids bowing in unison as they departed.

They were well trained, and didn't share Grayfia's pride which made them far more pleasant to work with, though it would be interesting to see if that changed now that she was above them, despite being a human.

"Right, Aria and Helia first. Congratulations, you aren't slaves any more. Aria, arrange for a salary, you can access the Dantalion bank account anyway."

Feeling herself freeze, she stared at Kuro blankly before she let out a quiet laugh which quickly grew into a full belly laugh.

Of course he'd be so casual about it, it was completely in character for Kuro to just be so utterly laidback and she should have known that by now.

"My Lord... what does that mean?" Helia asked hesitantly, confused by her new found freedom.

"Basically you do the exact same thing you do now but you get days off and money... I think? Aria will take care of it." Kuro said easily, once again pushing the work towards her with his usual hatred of dealing with petty details.

"Of course, My Lord. You have my utmost gratitude." Aria said quickly, amused that he told her to arrange her own salary. She wouldn't take advantage of his trust, not when she was closer than ever to her goal, but it was entirely in character for him to simply ditch the work and not care about 'minor details' like salary or schedules.

"Mhm, you can both thank me tonight, for now I need some time alone with Grayfia." Kuro said, not even bothering to be suggestive making her smile again.

That was her Lord. The lazy, horny and surprisingly kind man she had all but raised, a part of her wished Lady Nyra could see her son, but with the spirits floating around it seemed ever more likely that she just might.

Which was worrying as Nyra would not take someone else being in charge well, and Kuro was far less of a pushover than his father was. It was a ticking time bomb waiting to happen, if Kuro ever decided to summon his parents spirits.

Neither would approve, for different reasons. Kuro was far too hedonistic for his father, and with Kuro being Lord Dantalion his mother would hate not being the one in charge any more.

But that was for the future, for now she had work to do and a promotion to celebrate... bowing deeply she gestured for Helia to follow her as she left the office, seeing Kuro's smile turn to a slight scowl as he turned to the silver haired maid.

Sucks to be her.

- Grayfia -

As Kuro turned his stare her way, she met it stubbornly, already feeling her pride cry out at the idea of some human girl being her superior.

"You know, I really don't think you get the whole servant thing." Kuro started making her pause in confusion. "Do you know that servants aren't supposed to just wander off when they want to, even when their masters are distracted?"

Ahh, that was what this was about, her decision to leave the 'party' early.

She had hoped that he was too drunk to notice that she snuck away after they moved to the Phenex manor, but clearly she underestimated him.

"You seemed occupied with Lady Phenex, and I believed you wouldn't mind me calling it a night early." Grayfia said after a moment, making him smirk slightly.

The truth was she was afraid she'd be made to drink with the others, something she had avoided carefully. She wasn't an angry or sad drunk, she was simply a very horny drunk and she didn't trust herself to not humiliate herself in front of both her mother in law and the Phenex family.

"You believed wrong." Kuro said simply as he looked her over. "I know you just cosplay as a maid for whatever fetish you have, but servants don't leave until they are dismissed, and I didn't dismiss you."

Gritting her teeth, she glared at him lightly. She did not have a fucking fetish, she wore a maid outfit because she had been raised as a servant for the Lucifer house, and even though she had turned on her family she had simply changed who she served.

From Lucifer, to Sirzechs to Kuro. Quite the downward spiral.

Perhaps that wasn't fair to Sirzechs, but she couldn't help but think that Lucifer had far more pride than Sirzechs, and would be far less willing to pass his wife to another man, and he certainly wouldn't let himself be paralysed to inaction like Sirzechs had.

Despite the propaganda the New Satans had spread, she wasn't convinced that the new Satans were truly stronger than their predecessors, she had seen Lucifer in battle before and while she was sure Sirzechs could match him she wasn't convinced he could actually beat the original Lucifer.

And now she had gone from serving the two most powerful men the Underworld had ever seen to submitting to a child, a smug teenager who had her under his control.

He had a fraction of her power, and yet she was stuck obeying his whims because her husband wasn't willing to use his immense power, both political and magical, to simply make him back down.

"I... apologise for my misjudgement." Grayfia said reluctantly, putting her thoughts behind her. No matter her thoughts in the situation, it didn't change the fact that she was stuck serving Kuro until Sirzechs decided to put a stop to it.

"You know, you are kinda bad at this whole serving thing." Kuro continued as she clenched her fists. Logically, she knew he was right. It had been centuries since she served the Lucifer house and Sirzechs had always had far more lenient, she had grown prideful as the Strongest Queen and forgotten what it felt like to actually be a maid. Lilith would have had her sent to the punishment chamber and broken her if she was this disobedient in the past. "But I do think you're learning, very very slowly. Lift your skirt." Kuro ordered making her internally sigh.

Gripping the edge of her uncomfortably short maid skirt, she lifted it calmly as she gave him a deadpan stare. She knew what he was checking for, and as he glanced down at her naked slit, she knew she had passed this little test.

She had learnt her lesson last time, and even if she disliked it she wasn't going to give him more reasons to 'punish' her by disobeying and wearing underwear without permission.

She doubted she could get out of her time serving him without being fucked, but she had no reason to speed things up.

"Good girl." Kuro praised as he rose from his seat, walking around his desk towards her. "Sit on the edge of my desk." Kuro ordered as he reached her, making her move quickly as she reluctantly hopped up onto the desk.

Standing in front of her, he placed a hand on each of her legs and slowly parted them, moving between her spread legs with a smirk as he gripped the top of her tight uniform and tugged it down, watching her breasts bounce free with a lusty smile.

"You know, I've been thinking about how to actually punish you if you keep being disobedient, and I think I've worked something out." he said simply as he reached down and ran his middle finger along her slit, his free hand reaching up and groping her breast roughly.

"And what would that be?" Grayfia asked, keeping her voice steady even as his finger pushed into her and started to slowly pump into her pussy, quickly followed by a second one.

Instead of answering, he simply laughed quietly as he added a third finger and sped up his fingering of her, a reluctant moan managing to escape despite her best efforts to keep quiet as he leaned forwards and latched his lips onto her other breast, his teeth grazing against her nipple lightly as he swirled his tongue around it.

Despite herself, she couldn't stop her body from reacting to the unexpected pleasure. It had been a while for her and everything she had done here had been for Kuro's pleasure, not hers so the sudden change caught her off guard. She couldn't stop herself from moaning quietly as he pleasured her, making him smirk around her tit as he stared up at her, nor could she stop her pussy from quickly growing sticky with her arousal.

His smug look pissed her off, but she could do nothing to quell the slowly approaching orgasm even as she closed her eyes to avoid looking into the entirely too amused gaze.

Feeling her climax approaching, she clamped a hand over her mouth out of spite to stop him from having the satisfaction of hearing her cum. She hadn't been ordered not to, so she wasn't disobeying, right?

Letting out a muffled moan, her pussy tightened down on his invading fingers for a moment before he pulled back, leaving her quietly panting, still confused over what he was trying to achieve.

That confusion vanished the moment she heard a camera shutter, her eyes shooting open as she glared at him, his smirk growing as he took several pictures of her.

She looked a mess, her top pulled down and her skirt pushed up as she panted with flushed cheeks and a wet cunt, and she didn't even want to think about how those pictures looked.

"You, Grayfia, are incredibly prideful... and I've put some thought into how to punish you in a way that would actually affect you. This is it, I don't need to punish you directly when I can target that pride of yours." Kuro said smugly as she froze. "Posting pictures on the Devilnet, taking you out in public in the sluttiest outfits I can get my hands on, making you blow me in the middle of a busy club."

"S-Sirzechs wouldn't be pleased if you damaged my reputation so badly." Grayfia warned quickly as she felt her heart skip a beat. This would be something that followed her even after she got away from Kuro, and just being seen in a club wearing a small dress and letting Kuro grope her had been bad enough. She wasn't Serafall, willing to have pictures or even videos of her exposed body on the Devilnet for anyone to see.

She'd already seen the gossip rags talking about her and Venelana's night out with Kuro, complimenting her long legs and wondering how the night had ended. The fact that they left with Kuro and Riser meant she had to deal with false rumours that her night had ended with an orgy, and she had no doubt plenty of idiots believed both she and Venelana had spent the night being fucked by the two young devils.

Some had even suggested that Zeoticus and Sirzechs had issues performing and that they had gone to Kuro for sex, or that the Dantalion family were joining the upcoming Phenex-Gremory alliance, and she and Venelana had been offered to the Phenex and Dantalion men as incentives in exchange for wards and Phenex tears.

Devils loved rumours, the more scandalous the better and how realistic it was barely mattered. It was just some shitty gossip site using click-bait titles to get views but it didn't matter since some people would believe it.

She didn't want to give them more to work with than she already had, as these rumours would already stick around for years thanks to her infamy.

Millicas would hear rumours of her being used as a bartering chip in the future, or that she sought out a younger lover because his father could perform. Millicas's future enemies would use it as a weapon to get to him, regardless of how true it actually was.

"Actually, I asked permission. He said, and I quote 'that as long as you were serving me, I could discipline you however I pleased.'" Kuro refuted as her eyes widened in shock, the sting of betrayal hitting deep.

"I... I see." Grayfia said, defeat colouring her tone. Kuro was right, of course, he had worked out exactly how to punish her when she displeased him, and with Sirzechs throwing her to the wolves she was left with one choice.

Do whatever it took to get through this with her reputation somewhat intact.

"I imagine you do." Kuro said calmly, smiling at her. "If you behave, we can keep your service entirely private. Any pictures will be just for my own private viewing and you can wear your new maid outfit in public, more revealing than what you might be used to but it still covers the essentials." Kuro reassured her. "If you impress me enough, I might even let you wear some panties when you go out in public as well."

Sighing as she stared him down, she had to give him credit. He knew how to force her to play his games.

"What do you want, my Lord?" Grayfia asked with a defeated sigh, until Sirzechs decided that she had been punished enough she was stuck following Kuro's whims.

And since Sirzechs obviously had a plan that involved Kuro, she was likely going to be left with him for the foreseeable future. If she was being whored out for Sirzechs gain, she would at least be able to respect his devilish behaviour but she was being given to Kuro for Rias's gain.

There was nothing respectable about Sirzechs's decision to let his wife be fucked by a much weaker devil to help his spoiled sister get away from her responsibilities.

"Right now? I think I want a blowjob while I work, you don't mind, do you?" Kuro asked as he retook his seat behind his desk, spreading his legs as she held in her sigh.

Moving around the desk herself, she dropped to her knees and crawled into the tight confined space beneath it, trapping herself as Kuro moved his seat forwards. Undoing his belt she quickly extracted his cock and grasped it, not bothering to pull her top back up as she leaned forwards and took his length into her mouth.

She half expected mockery or gloating as she got to work, obediently blowing him under his desk, but Kuro simply opened an old looking book and started reading with a focused look on his face.

She didn't know how long she spent down there, but she learnt first-hand that Kuro had impressive stamina after the first load flooded her throat, only for him to grip her hair and make her do it all again, his shaft remained solid as he barely glanced down at her.

As a ringing filled the office, she paused for a second but continued bobbing her head after a hand rested on her head warningly.

"Hello?" Kuro answered as he left his phone on the side, clearly on speaker as she made sure to quieten her sucking.

"Ah, good. I was worried you'd be busy, Kuro." her husbands voice called out making her eyes widen, pausing again before Kuro simply looked down at her sternly.

Going back to sucking, she mentally shrugged. Sirzechs knew this was happening anyway.

"Lord Sirzechs, this is a bit unexpected. Is there something I can do for you?" Kuro asked, one hand guiding her head along his shaft as she blew him, his gaze still on the book in his free hand.

"There is actually, I had a... inquiry regarding your new business. Are you alone at the moment?" Sirzechs asked as she froze in place.

"...I am, I'm just doing some research in my office." Kuro lied, looking down at her with a smirk as she remained completely silent.

"Excellent, I will require your utmost discretion in this matter but I was wondering if you were open to commissions already?" Sirzechs asked making her narrow her eyes darkly, glaring at where the phone was on the desk above her.

"Technically not yet, but I can make an exception for a Satan." Kuro replied easily, his hand gripping her hair and forcing her to go back to sucking.

"Wonderful, then to business. What would it cost to have a basic human looking doll shaped to look like... well, to look like Rias, similar to the one you created for Riser Phenex, just without the snake additions." Sirzechs asked making her dig her nails into Kuro's legs accidentally as she tightened her grip on them, anger filling her as Kuro smirked down at her.

"I'm sure we can come to an agreement, though the one made for Riser isn't exactly accurate since I just eyeballed it, if you want one modelled to exact specifications I'll need a chance to get Rias's measurements." Kuro explained easily.

"I see, I'm sure I can find a way to arrange that, give me some time and I'll get back to you." Sirzechs replied as she resisted the urge to speak up.

That... that piece of trash. Selling her out to 'save' Rias, all while arranging to get a sex toy made to resemble her?

"Of course, you have my number." Kuro said simply as he said his goodbyes, ending the call.

"You lied to him." Grayfia accused after a moment.

"I was told that you were basically an extension of your King, so why would I feel the need to tell him you were hear? Surely you can hear everything your King had to say." Kuro defended amusedly, smirking down at her.

"A fair point." Grayfia admitted, making him chuckle. It was bullshit and they both knew it, he had an idea of what Sirzechs wanted and wanted her to hear it.

"Now, get back to work." Kuro ordered as she paused, before smirking back at him.

"Well played, Lord Kuro." Grayfia admitted reluctantly, parting her lips and taking his shaft between them, looking up to meet his amused stare.

"I have no idea what you mean." Kuro said in the least convincing voice she had ever heard.

Sirzechs had zero respect for her, that much was clear, and this had convinced her of one thing. Venelana was right, Sirzechs was helping Rias because Rias likely tried to seduce him, probably succeeding.

Her husband had been talked into breaking his oh so important honour and abuse his power, the same power that could have stopped her from being forced to serve Kuro, because his bratty spoiled little sister seduced him.

He wouldn't lift a finger to help her, but Rias gets his help just because she offered herself to him.

She'd be less insulted to find out Sirzechs accepted the offer, spent a night defiling that brat then sent her away with nothing at all, Rias would certainly deserve the shame and humiliation.

...Rias needed putting in her place.

- Bonus Scene - Hades -

In truth, he had almost forgotten about his brief alliance with Loki from ages past and getting a garbled letter from the Trickster had been an unpleasant surprise even if the brief break from the monotony of dealing with his duties as a God of the Dead had been appreciated, though he would never admit it out loud.

Before the Biblical God's death, there was an agreement between the Heavens and Olympus to gain their assistance against the Devils, and part of it meant that any Greek soul would come to his realm regardless of their religion, along with several other Mediterranean countries. It was one of the reasons they maintained much of their power unlike so many other pantheons.

Heaven had tried to change it since, but with God dead they lacked the power to do so and relationships had soured in the long centuries. It was the way of every faction that survived for too long, everyone had bad blood with everyone else.

It left him with no end of souls to deal with, and while he enjoyed the power it gave him he certainly didn't appreciate how his brothers sitting on their mountain dumped all the work on him while they sipped ambrosia and molested mortal women.

And he certainly didn't appreciate the way they would most likely throw him to the wolves when Odin came for him, with a battle-hungry pantheon at his back.

Zeus might decide to support him for the sake of his pride as the self proclaimed King of the Gods, but most of Olympus would simply scoff and leave him to his fate, seeing it as simply the consequences from allying with the trickster after Athena had warned him that it was unwise.

He hadn't decided to kill Freya lightly, in fact he hadn't decided to do so at all.

During the Great War, the Norse assisted the Grigori and as war-loving as the barbarians were they wasted no time causing utter chaos amongst every other faction, and it was only after Freya and her Valkyries decided to 'rescue' thousands of souls from his realm had he decided that enough was enough and started to plot against her.

He should have known better than to trust Loki, but when the trickster came to him with his plan it seemed so perfect. Loki would lure Freya away from her admittedly extremely powerful husband and between them they would capture her and imprison her in Tartarus, using her as a hostage to force Odin to leave the war. Zeus approved of the plan, holding Odin's Queen hostage amused him deeply thanks to the eternal dick-measuring contest between them and he went through with it.

And then after he weakened the Valkyrie Queen, Loki stabbed her through the heart and fled the scene leaving him with the rapidly dying Goddess.

Never trust a trickster, especially one as chaotic as Loki.

Loki had been the one to convince Freya to steal away the souls from his realm, all in a long and complicated plan to slay the Goddess over some slight between them.

And he'd been made the fool who would take the blame, even after he hid the body and destroyed as much evidence as he could.

Odin wouldn't care that he only meant to capture Freya, he'd felt the other gods rage from here and there would be little communications before Odin stormed his realm, possibly with Thor and many other powerful and bloodthirsty gods at his call, and he couldn't count on Olympus to aid him.

Ares would, if only for an excuse to fight the Norse, and he could perhaps bring more of his pantheon to his side, but he had few he could truly rely on.

"My Lord, you look troubled..." his Queen said gently, making him look up from the letter he had been staring at, her emerald green eyes staring at him in concern.

"Call the Furies, Nyx and Cerberus, Persephone, and bring me my best parchment. War is coming."

Authors Note: I'm suddenly working a lot more so not sure how often updates will be, they'll come when they come I guess. Messaging me asking for reviews isn't going to speed things up, if anything it kills my motivation and delays the chapter.

Chapter 21 - 12