RSE BOOK 1 epilogue. (Patreon)

The moon stood high in the sky and bathed the world with its stolen light. Despite the ungodly hour, though, not everyone in the city slept. The streets were lit by flickering yellow lamps as people walked in groups of two or three. They spoke in monotone voices and knew to mind their own business.

But behind these lights and the apparent peace, shadows lurked and dangers roamed unrestrained.

Somewhere in the less reputable part of town, in a deserted alley…

“Ugh!! Bitch!! Lord Alastair won’t let you go. Lady Kali will avenge us.”

A man giggled hysterically as he was lifted in the air. The dainty hand that choked him cut the giggles off by crushing the man’s throat. It was a woman’s hand.

She was, no doubt, enchanting in her allure. The darkness hid her beautiful features, but deep golden eyes gave off an eerie, nigh majestic, glow as they shone in the dark.

Hers was an ethereal beauty, the likes of which could make bards chant poems for days on end. Sadly, the man did not have the time to appreciate her beauty as he gasped for air, fighting for his dear life. 

Well… he tried to put up a fight.

Sneering at the feeble attempts of the man who had previously mocked her to free himself, the woman only had one thought.

‘Weak.’

She twisted her wrist in a violent motion.

Crack!!

The sound of bones breaking resonated in the black alley, echoing between its narrow walls.

She hadn’t really intended to kill him, but the difference in their power was so high that the slightest slip of control at hearing that name had been enough to snap the man’s neck.

The result was immediate. An incredulous shock and despair briefly flickered in his eyes before the light of life slowly faded from them.

Once she’d ascertained his death, she tossed the body aside with a flick of her hand. Curling her nose at the stench of death—why did the weak ones always lose control of their bowels when they died?—she walked away.

‘I wonder if Alastair Norima or the Norima clan will send someone stronger? It would be best if they gave up, but I need to prepare myself.’

Remembering the dying man’s words, she couldn't help but frown.

Lady Kali was a Peak level devil. She was better known as Lord Alastair’s hound. It was appropriate—the woman was a real bitch, despite being a Moon Rabbit.

Her companions weren’t currently accessible, as they had been sent to another mission.

If Alastair sent that bunny-like devil against her, she’d be in trouble. The last time Kali had caught her trail, she’d only managed to survive and escape thanks to Valerio’s help.

A bleak laugh escaped her lips. 

She had taken the mission to infiltrate Spartanburg because she thought it would be easy, and because she could observe her little sister from afar. But it now seemed she’d underestimated the deep currents running through the small town.

It was allegedly the home of small fry. 

If half of what she’d learned since coming here was true, that was far from the truth. Some of the biggest fish swam in this little pond. Or, rather, the fish that swam in this little pond had connections to and the protection of the most powerful among Hell’s elite.

If she wasn’t careful, she might die for real this time.

“Fufufu! Well, I can’t die yet. I have yet to give birth to the next generation of Nekoshou.”

She couldn't let her race face extinction. She would never let that happen.

‘Sadly, the White Dragon Emperor refused me. Fufufu! I wonder… will the Black Dragon Emperor turn me down, too?’

Shaking her head while a wry smile curled her lips, she walked to the end of the alley and vanished. 

Nyaa!!

From the shadows, a black cat with abnormally intelligent eyes strutted from the alley onto the boulevard. Looking both ways before continuing merrily on its way with lethargic yet graceful strides that only a cat could make, it wrinkled its nose to rid itself of the fetid stench of death.

Behind it, a ray of moonlight shone where the woman had stood. It cast its silver light on a macabre scene where ten devils lay in a pool of their own blood—all dead.

***

“Shit Shit Shit Shit! Argh!!! Who is that bastard?”

Not far away from Spartanburg, in what looked like the ruins of a mansion, a handsome golden-haired, golden-eyed man clad in what appeared to be rather expensive clothing could be seen repeatedly kicking at a crumbling wall while spewing curses out of his mouth nonstop.

His face was distorted with a mixture of rage and hatred and his eyes looked like they wished to destroy everything that had the misfortune to come before his sight.

“Damien, calm yourself. Hitting an unresponsive wall won’t change your situation. Anyways, you already have enough of those so-called holy maidens in your circle, right?”

The man, Damien Sneed, threw a venomous look at the old man who had interrupted his tantrum. The old man was tall and wore a red jacket with yellow-padded shoulders. He had a fantastical set of pointy ears, white hair with a matching beard complimenting his visage, and deep-set, purple eyes. No one looking at him would or could confuse him for a normal run-of-the-mill human.

“Don’t provoke me, Alastair! Asa is different from those broken toys. She would have been the jewel of my collection. My plan was perfect! But—Argh! That filthy dragon boy ruined everything!”

Alastair looked at the raging Damien with disdain oozing out of his purple-hued eyes.

In the noble circle of the underworld, Damien Astaroth was from the same family as Aiden Astaroth—the current Astaroth heir. In public, he always acted the perfect gentleman. But in reality, the man was a sick pervert who enjoyed nothing in this world more than to defile nuns and holy maidens.

He would always find a way to make them excommunicate from their respective churches, and when they were floundering in the pit of despair, he would appear like a knight in shining armor and ensnare them in his clutches.

In the end, he would take everything they had and convert them into devils in his circle. Thanks to that, unknown to most even in the circles of the underworld, his entire circle was composed of such girls.

‘Such a waste of time,’ the older man thought.

Scoffing at the foolishness of the next generation, Alastair shifted his gaze to look at his other companion. She was a much easier on the eyes and not nearly as petulant. She wouldn’t be, she was his servant, daughter, and creation.

“Kali, dear, were you able to locate that infuriating wild cat? It’s of utmost importance that we crush her while Valerio and the rest of his team are too busy to cover for her.”

Kali was a tall, olive-skinned young woman with silver hair, a slim yet shapely figure, and gold-green eyes. She could easily be mistaken for a model if not for the cold cast of her delicate features. Aside from her slim curves, her most distinctive features were a rabbit tail and rabbit-ear-shaped horns. 

Alastair had created her after compiling all of his tastes in women such as having a well-shaped and sturdy figure and the beastly features among other things. So for him, she was the perfect woman. One he was not willing to defile in any possible way.

The reason why they had left the comfort of his laboratory and followed the crazy Diodora was that Alastair wished to hunt down a rather complicated target. 

An artificially created Peak level devil. 

While it was true that Sakura as a Nekoshou already had incredible potential, those researches, and the myriad of experiments conducted on her throughout her creation into a Peak level devil, still had great importance to him as obtaining them would allow one to create an army of Peak level devils or at least of Upper level with the potential to reach thresholds that were only reserved for those at the top of this universe.

Sadly, until now Sakura had been too slippery for them to get a grasp on her and Alastair never had any chance to act.

That was the case until now, that is.

At the end of the day, Sakura was nothing more than a fugitive and a killer. He would use that to his advantage.

“Well, boy… if you’re down pitching a fit, we need to get a move on. It isn’t like it’s too late to grab Asa.”

It had been an unpleasant surprise to learn that Lane Karteros’s son now lived here. Even more so, to hear that he was the wielder of Boosted Gear, one of the thirteen pieces that together made Longinus—the spear that had pierced Christ’s side and represented the greatest set of Divine Gear in existence. But it would change nothing for the matter at hand. 

In fact, for Alastair this was news of great intrigue.

If he could get some samples from the boy, this trip would truly be worthwhile. He knew that Abaddon was preparing something big, so this would be the perfect moment to act. Who would Lane accuse if his son vanished during an attack by the Fallen Angels?

Be it the Devils or the Fallen Angels, Alastair didn’t care for anything more than the outcome—a dead Leonidas Karteros. Either way, it would be extremely advantageous for his faction.

After all, the more chaos there was, the happier their leader would be.

“Kali, I want you to get in contact with the Mephisto faction and see how it is going. Use the fact that you are hunting a stray and ask for cooperation.”

“Understood.”

Kali nodded expressionlessly. She didn’t ask why he was making her do the deed. Her job had never been to think. But only to act as she was ordered to. 

Nothing more, nothing less.

***

[Underworld]

“HmHmHm~!!”

“You seem pretty chipper today. What gives?”

“Heheh~! Silly you. I am going to see my sister for the first time in like… forever! How could I not be happy!?”

In an office room, unusually sparsely decorated, three people were present as they discussed important matters.

The first of the three, as well as the only man here, was a tall and very handsome crimson-haired gentleman who, at first glance, looked like he was in his mid-twenties. The man had a gentle smile as he listened to his friend hum happily. 

He looked harmless to those who had no idea who he was. But those who were aware of who he was and the status he held would never accuse him of being harmless. After all, he was Salvatore Mephisto, the current leader of the Devils.

His laurels didn’t end there, though. He was War, one of the four calamities of the underworld, as well as one of the top ten strongest beings in the world. He was widely known as the Crimson-Haired Prince of Destruction.

It was a rather pompous title Salvatore had never taken a liking to. He did his best to ensure those who used it knew of his displeasure, but many used it behind his back.

He snorted, then chuckled.

“Why are you laughing?” 

The one who had been speaking scowled at him. “Don’t you think it’s awful? Since she left, aside from the letter letting us know she’d arrived safely, she hasn’t written once. I miss her a lot! With her gone, I felt rather lonely.”

The one speaking was a beautiful girl. She appeared to be in her late teens with long black hair, tied into twin tails and piercing blue eyes. She had a slender, fragile, almost waif-like body—except for one feature. Her breasts were, relatively speaking, rather large. 

She was clad in an attire that could best be described as a pink magical girl costume—a costume which did little to hide her top-heavy form. Despite being a fan of cosplay, the woman was no slouch herself since she was also a calamity, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. She was officially recognized as the strongest female devil in the underworld.

She was Livinia Sitrin—Famine. 

“Would you like some more tea?” 

Their discussion was interrupted by the third and last person present in the room, a young woman who stood silently behind Salvatore until she stepped forward with tea pot in hand. 

She was a beautiful young woman who appeared to be in her early twenties. Her silver hair, that featured a long braid on each side with small blue bows at the ends, reached the small of her back. Her beautiful red eyes shone like precious jewels, giving her a sense of mysterious aura.

At first glance, one would take the young woman for a servant. After all, she wore a maid’s uniform, and even acted like one. To do so would be a mistake, for she was Gwen Mephisto. 

His ‘Gwennie’—a pet name that only Salvatore dared use—was the Queen of Salvatore’ circle, as well as one of the strongest devils. She was also Salvatore’s wife, making them a power couple to be reckoned with.

Despite the influence these powerhouses wielded, the atmosphere was surprisingly warm and pleasant. Sadly, good things never lasted, and the mood changed when it became necessary to speak of important matters.

“Do not forget, Liv, when you visit Earth… be sure to make your presence unknown. We need to catch Abaddon with his hand in the cookie jar. I have already contacted Azrael privately and he is open to discussing matters relating to that accursed Fallen.”

Livinia shrugged. “Don’t be such a worrywart, Sal. I know this isn’t why you asked me to drop by. You have nothing to fear. I will take good care of your sisters. As for that cousin of yours that popped up out of nowhere…”

Even the usually easy-going Livinia grimaced when she was reminded of ‘her’. Famine had never been proud of her title as the strongest woman in the Underworld. And though she was a good deal stronger than Gwen, Saphire remained a legend she had never been able to surpass.

As she was now, powerful enough to raze a country to the ground several times over, she was not sure if that was enough to contend against Saphire. That woman was simply a monster. 

Even so, she wasn’t upset—because she knew that Saphire had intentionally left the underworld. For a very specific reason. For a man.

“Hmmm… I wonder who this Leo character—the one your sister spoke of?—really is. I’m looking forward to meeting him. It will be interesting… interesting, indeed.”

This promised to be a very entertaining outing. 

Livinia did look forward to seeing why Rayne Mephisto had said this young man was ‘special’. She hoped her first meeting with him would go well. 

Only time would tell how the gears of fate and destiny would turn—for all of them.