DXD SI : Chapter 6 : The "Poor" Devils.... (Patreon)

Clan Head Office, Bael Territory, Underworld

–Magdaran Bael–

He waited outside the Zephyr’s office, recognising the power play and ignoring it entirely. He struggled to understand why Zephyry needed an office at all, let alone a secretary, since the man was barely capable of keeping things running, let alone doing something to grow the business of the Clan. 

In fact, it was a common consensus that the only reason Zephyr was made the Clan Head was because he displayed values that were “closely matching those of the founding times of the Clan.” 

That was just them saying that Zephyr displayed the highest propensity for violence and cruelty, just like the era where entire Devil lines were made extinct because of the war, and then the Civil War that came after. There were many other candidates more worthy than the waste of Demonic Energy that was his sperm donor, but all of them were sidelined for Zephyr.

As he looked at the Secretary, the one who actually ran the whole office, and probably reported to Zekram all about it, he thought of just how stupid one has to be not to realise that an Ultimate Class being working for just a High Class devil was not a normal thing. 

While it did seem like even Satan Class Devils were just popping up left, right, and centre in the anime, it was incredibly difficult to grow to become an Ultimate Class. Hell, most pureblood Devils, through the virtue of their birth, will easily grow to reach High Class, but Ultimate Class? Now that was a whole different ball game.

You would have to either be born with a genetic freak of a mutation like Sirzechs, Ajuka, Rizevim, and more to naturally become an Ultimate Class Devil or train like a madman. The Satans were born with that potential, and yet, they trained harder than any devil of their generation, resulting in their current prowess.

It also helped that they grew up in a time of strife, allowing them to constantly hone themselves in life and death battles. It was a known fact that peacetimes did not create strong devils, which was why he thought the Rating Games were introduced, in part anyway. Part of it must be the Satans’ absolute exasperation with the way Devils continued to kill themselves even in peace times simply because they could not contain the battle lust that was inherent in every Devil.

So, how did an Ultimate Class Devil, an existence that could kill multiple high Class devils all at once, end up working for the Bael Clan Head, as a Secretary of all jobs? Simple. Zephyr could not be trusted to do even the most basic things, something that even Zekram was undoubtedly aware of.

He probably needed a controllable puppet in the seat, while he, or rather, one of his chosen devils, pulled the strings to make sure that the entire Clan remained in his control. Now, how do you make sure that a prideful devil like Zephyr allowed a vastly stronger person to continue to shadow and advise him at all times of the day?

You simply appeal to that same overinflated ego. It must be a great cause of honor for the man to have an Ultimate class devil call him sama, so much so that he remained completely blind about her machinations.

Zekhram really was the ancient scary devil most of the people in the know made him to be. He really knew how to play every single devil in front of him, irrespective of their inherent strength or political inclinations.

Melantha Furcas.

An older devil from the Furcas clan. A clan that specialised in taming horses. Usually, a house like that would be lucky to have a peak Ultimate Class devil like Melantha here lead them, but here she was, acting as a secretary to another Clan. 

A vassal clan of the Bael. He supposed that doing this guaranteed far greater protection than simply leading her clan.

They must have made it look like it was Zephyr’s idea, just to further stroke his ego. Seeing someone stronger submit to him must have blinded him or rather, he must have been just that stupid from the beginning.

Just as he was sizing her up, she was also doing the same. He was well known within the clan to keep his Demonic Energy suppressed under seals all the time. It was a rather suffocating feeling, especially when kept at it for long. Most devils usually employed the technique to send out false information about their power levels, only to undo all the seals as soon as they were in their own safe places.

He, on the other hand? He had been under these seals for over 7 years now. At this point, he had forgotten how it used to feel without the seals. No, that would be a lie. He did remember but it was a dull echo, an alien feeling to him. The suppression seals could be undone with only a flex of his Demonic Energy, so there was no real risk of someone using the seals to weaken him, but it also somewhat restricted the flow of his Demonic Energy.

It reduced his reaction timings, made the flow of energy slower, and more painful. All things that most Devils sought to avoid. And yet, something he sought out actively, all so he could train himself and his Demonic Energy. He supposed that it was one of those things that could only be understood by an out of context person. After all, from where he was from, nothing of this sort existed, that much he could remember.

So, to him, this pain, intense at first as it was, was a small price to pay for both, the ability to keep his power levels hidden from normal Devils, and also to increase his strength for the inevitability that was the crash of the current iteration of the Devil Society coming their way.

After what felt like a lifetime of eye contact, she nodded and spoke in a light tone, “You may go in now.”

Nodding at her, he entered Zephyr’s office, ready for the kind of conversation he wanted to avoid but now had to face, because bloody Zekram Bael promised him a ten times increment in money and space. Money, he could arrange easily. But warded and fortified space? Within the Bael Clan main Grounds? Impossible to do without Zekram’s explicit approval.

That was the only reason why he was even going through with this whole farce. He pushed the door open, and was greeted with a level of opulence most Clans wouldn't have in their office, let alone the Low Class devils and the poorer clans. 

Speaking of the poorer Clans, one of the greatest decisions that Zekram seemed to have made or rather, pushed into law, was the Clan declaration criteria.

If you didn’t have either a sponsor Clan willing to bankroll you or the necessary territory, staff, and finances, then you could lose your Seat in the Devil Senate. Even if you had your bloodline trait, you might need financing from either the New Satans or the Great King faction, or if one clan was particularly brave or desperate, the Old Satan Faction was also someone who was always looking for more influence.

Zekram kept multiple such clans on his payroll, giving himself unfettered access to the clans, creating a vassalage system even for Clans that were previously just as powerful as the Bael or atleast close enough. In a way, the biggest owner of both wars seems to be Zekram Bael, which was, in a rather gruesome fashion, admirable.

It was also rather uncool how all of that, the centuries of events, culminated in this. The waste of demonic energy that was Zephyr Bael occupying (at least on paper) the seat of the Bael Clan.

“Ah, Welcome! Welcome, my son! My heir!” Zephyr said in his usual slimy voice, making no effort to move from his seat or remove his legs from the table that probably was made of something absurd like World Tree or something.

He nodded stiffly, sitting down in front of Zephry.

“As you might know, I have cast out my wastrel son and his useless mother, and currently am one heir short. I was told that you have already been made aware of the decision, so this is just the formality of making it official.”

He nodded once more, not really interested in talking with him. As the man continued to prattle on and on about the greatness of the Bael and how he should be grateful for the opportunity to become Heir, his mind was cataloguing the office.

After what felt like forever of the man talking to himself, he was finally recused from the office. He nodded stiffly once more, noting that the man either did not care or had just not noticed that his supposed heir had not uttered a single word before leaving. Probably was just too lost in his own mind.

Shaking his head, he ignored the secretary, and after exiting the building, a Magic circle manifested beneath his feet, whisking him away from the Main wing of the building to his quarters.

Now that he had become heir, he was to move into the Main Wing, a move he summarily rejected. This place had grown on him, and he had no interest in moving even closer to his sperm donor.

He had thought of his hate for his sperm donor multiple times. Even before he came to know of Zephyr as a person and his actions, he had a ball of hatred against the man. It was irrational, at first anyway.

There was something inside him that just hated the man, and even the Secretary. It was one of the many questions that kept him occupied in the little free time he gave himself, mostly in between training sessions.

Making sure that his room was secured properly, laying down wards that were far more overt than the stealthy ones he had assigned before he had become heir in fear of becoming discovered, he teleported to the office.

It was a secret space he had carved out for himself under his garden, reinforced by the plants and trees in such a way that he didn’t even have to worry about ventilation. He had a hunch that it was not as secret as he wanted it to be, which is why there was nothing of importance stored here.

The most important secret he could house was his strength and his ability to create new strains of Devil Plants that could, in theory, enhance devils. Both were either kept hidden at all times or were just stored in his mind, with the original samples always destroyed.

The Mother Tree, as he had named the giant tree in the middle of the garden, practically sang after sensing his arrival. He smiled, his shoulders relaxing as he finally felt safe and at peace, even if he was quite literally in the middle of the Devil’s den.

__xx__

–Melantha Furcas–

After she was dismissed from her duties as a Secretary, she did the final checks before moving to her quarters, which were located just outside the Main compound, for the Clan Head’s convenience.

As she closed the door to her quarters and placed the documents in the corner, she sighed, and her eyes sharpened, a Magic Circle manifested underneath her, whisking her away.

When she opened her eyes, she kneeled immediately as she was in front of Zekram-sama, sitting on his throne.

“I assume everything went well?” She always wondered why he kept her around, and summoned him just to ask questions that he should by all means, already know the answer to. Nevertheless, it was not her place to ask those questions, which is why she hurriedly nodded and answered.

“Yes, Zekram-sama. The boy was inside for a brief period of time. He made no overt moves, but he didn’t speak to Zephyr-sama as well.” Zephyr Bael was, as usual, lost in his own world and didn’t realise that the boy he had just called his heir had barely disguised hostility in him.

Either Magdaran knew something about them, or his mother had uttered something before dying. Unfortunately, they had no feasible way of confirming that.

“Zekram-sama,” She spoke up after a moment’s hesitation.

“Speak.”

“About Magdaran-sama. His strength, it is–”

“I am aware of his strength, hidden as it might be,” Zekram-sama sharply retorted, the warning clear in his voice as she bit her tongue to keep quiet.

After a moment’s silence, he continued, “You are to continue your duties. It is not your place to question the heir’s strength. Dismissed.”

She took the dismissal and teleported back to her quarters, her shoulders slumping as she realised her back was drenched in sweat.

As she went to get cleaned up, she realised that Zekram-sama probably called upon her personally just to watch her sweat.

There could be no other possible reason why he couldn’t get the information from the multitude of sources he had in the Clan.