Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
"Greetings, Lord Lucifer, Lord Beelzebub." I greeted both Satans as I entered Ajuka's laboratory. Curiously, without Grayfia, both were waiting for me.
"Lady Prince, it's a pleasure to see you again," Sirzechs greeted jovially.
"Serena." Ajuka greeted with a small smile.
"Serena?" Sirzechs looked confused before looking at me. "Ajuka can call you by your name, but I can't?" Sirzechs asked, almost offended. I rolled my eyes.
"You can call me whatever you want." I sighed tiredly. Sirzechs smiled.
"Okay, Serena! You can call me Sirzechs if you want! You don't have to be formal with us! " Sirzechs exclaimed. I sighed, but nodded.
"No Lady Lu-Grayfia this time?" I asked curiously.
"I thought you wanted this to stay as quiet as possible?" Sirzechs asked amusedly, I snorted.
"If it were a concern for the strongest Queen to open her mouth about sensitive topics and state secrets, then there would be a lot more trouble," I said dryly. Sirzechs's eyes sparkled with amusement as he chuckled.
"True, unfortunately, Grayfia had urgent errands to run so she won't be present." Sirzechs said amusedly. "Though I wonder, why was that the first thing you pointed out?" Sirzechs asked mischievously. I raised an eyebrow at him.
"Let's not beat around the bush, Sirzechs-" his name sounded odd in my mouth "-Grayfia is definitely a more attractive sight than you," I said mockingly. Sirzechs froze and looked at me in disbelief, beside him Ajuka laughed.
"I like you more and more, Serena, speaking the truth at any time." Ajuka said as he looked mockingly at Sirzechs. Sirzechs just snorted before letting out a laugh.
"You're right Serena, Grayfia-chan is the more beautiful half of our marriage." Sirzechs said cheerfully. I rolled my eyes in amusement.
"All right, if you're done with that, can we focus on what's important?" Ajuka asked, though he had a smile on his face.
"Of course, of course," Sirzechs said quickly. To my surprise, there was a table set up with tea and snacks in the middle of the lab. I snorted in amusement, but took a seat along with the two Satans. "I understand you have a sweet tooth for chocolate. Please help yourself," Sirzechs said with a smile as he pushed some rather fancy chocolate brownies my way.
I raised an eyebrow at him, but poured myself without hesitation, grabbing a small brownie and taking a bite. Mmm, delicious.
"Is this some kind of bribe?" I asked simply as I grabbed a second brownie. Sirzechs laughed lightly.
"Not at all, just being a good host." Sirzechs laughed.
"So, Serena, did it work? " Ajuka asked directly, completely sure of my answer. I didn't disappoint and nodded.
"It did it. Thanks for that. The paperwork really helped." I said honestly. "I'm officially engaged to a pillar devil. The engagement party and contract signing will be in three days." I announced with a smile.
"Congratulations, Serena. Who's the lucky devil and family?" Sirzechs asked expectantly, as if it were some kind of gossip. I smiled shakily at him.
"The Phenex, I'm engaged to Ravel Phenex," I said timidly. Sirzechs froze in place. I took out two invitations I had written with Ravel before coming and slid them across the table and left them in front of both Satans. "By the way, one of the conditions for the engagement is that I would not sell or restrict the most... potent potions to the Gremory family until Riser and Rias's marriage is arranged," I added slowly.
Sirzechs froze for a few seconds as he stared at me before looking at the invitation card on the table. He then slowly moved and regained his posture.
"I suppose it's only fair. Miss Ravel is an excellent catch." Sirzechs said slowly with a sympathetic smile, I sighed in relief before Sirzechs moved quickly. "Give me back my brownies." Sirzechs quickly snatched the plate of brownies in front of me and placed them next to him protectively. "And I'm Lord Lucifer to you." He added as he closed his eyes and ate a brownie.
I stared at him in complete disbelief, my mouth agape at the shamelessness and meanness he'd just displayed. He was a damn Satan! Not a 5-year-old! That didn't matter to Ajuka sitting off to the side. He was trying not to laugh out loud while covering his mouth and shaking with the effort.
"Oh, come on!" I exclaimed in disbelief and groaned in frustration. "The Phenex were the best deal I could have gotten! They're some of the richest Devils around, it was necessary." I quickly defended myself. Sirzechs wrinkled his nose, but didn't move. In fact, he even looked away, the childish thing. Sirzechs grabbed another brownie and threw it in his mouth. I rolled my eyes as I pulled a bag out from under my skirt and held it up in the air.
"And here I was, bringing a bag with a large amount of potions to give to you since I'm not bound by any contract yet." I sighed fatefully. "I guess I could give it to the Phenex." I went to tuck the bag back under my skirt only for it to disappear from my hand and in its place was the plate of brownies. I looked over at Sirzechs and raised an eyebrow at the outstretched bag with the potions inside.
" Serena dear, did I tell you how radiant you look today? " Sirzechs said as if nothing had happened. I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't help but smile.
"I'm worried about all the devils as a whole with you at the front," I said dryly, Sirzechs laughed amusedly. "By the way, most of the potions are inside that bag, with a few exceptions, difficult to make or due to lack of time. As I mentioned, some take months to complete." I said simply as I put the plate of brownies on the table and grabbed another, the chocolate being chocolate. Sirzechs nodded.
"Understood." Sirzechs said simply before putting on a more serious expression. "So, if we're done with our light chat, let's get to the real thing?" Sirzechs asked, losing his amused smile. I nodded.
"I guess I'll start by saying that Iokal tried to kidnap another Succubus," I said simply, both Satans' faces immediately fell and they had a murderous expression.
"'Attempt,' I suppose she's safe, right? " Ajuka asked slowly. I nodded.
"I'd already shown interest in this particular succubus, so I'd given her a lifeline in case she was taken. It teleports her to my mansion, bypassing conventional teleportation defenses." I said simply. They both nodded, the murderous glare leaving their faces, though they still held an icy expression. "The succubus is completely fine. She's staying at my mansion for the time being, and will do so until I can build the city and bring all the succubi over."
"Do you need help building or defending the city?" Sirzechs asked directly. I shook my head.
"Not really. I excel at creating things; I can have a small city up and running in a day or two. And while I normally wouldn't refuse more defenses, I prefer to place the barriers myself so they're completely tied to me," I said with an apologetic grimace.
"Do you think they'll be able to stop high-class devils or higher?" Ajuka asked seriously. I hummed softly.
"Not really, no." I said honestly. "The defenses I can make that would accomplish that would severely restrict and limit the succubi and other devils living in the city, and that's the last thing I want to happen." They both grimaced, realizing I was right. The protective barriers that would be able to stop someone truly strong were the ones where you'd practically have to lock yourself in place. "Luckily, I have other ideas."
" Ohh? Can we know? " Ajuka asked curiously.
"Some intention barriers placed on defensive and offensive barriers, if they harbor any negative feelings or aggression towards the succubi the barriers will activate. Nothing truly lethal, but they should stop enough people for me or someone from my Peerage to arrive immediately. As long as they are within the city limits, I should be able to arrive in a few seconds no matter where I am." I said honestly. They both nodded.
"You'll understand why I'll have to go check the wards once they're up, right? " Ajuka asked, and I nodded. The succubi had practically become the most important resource in the entire underworld.
"I know, and I don't care." I said simply, Ajuka nodded.
"And for the sake of transparency, I should admit that I snuck into the brothels unnoticed by the succubi and took DNA samples from a few of them," Ajuka said simply. I bristled completely and glared at him. He didn't flinch, simply pulling out some papers and placing them on the table. "There's a list of the names and the recessive pillar traits they have." I stared at him for a few seconds, and he just stared back. I clicked my tongue and grabbed the paper.
There were a dozen succubus names I recognized immediately. Each had between two and five recessive genes. Half of the pillar names were there. I could tell there were some unknown genes, about five. I assumed they were genes from extinct pillars; there shouldn't be any DNA samples to compare them with. But there was one problem, a very important one.
"I hope this trick doesn't happen again, Lord Beelzebub." I said slowly as I stared at him. Ajuka sighed and nodded.
"I apologize, but I really needed to make sure that this… was possible, and that it wasn't a mistake, that you weren't just some lucky coincidence. Luckily for us, and the collective luck of all devils, it's real. Recessive genes are in all succubi. They carry pillar traits." Ajuka said in wonder. I glared at him once more.
" And I don't care, you will never conduct studies on them again without consent," I said firmly. Ajuka nodded firmly.
"I won't, you have my word as Satan," Ajuka said firmly, and I sighed. I placed the papers on the table and tapped them with my finger.
"But there's a problem here." I pointed out the names of the succubi. Ajuka looked confused. "Half of these succubi… don't have wombs," I said simply. Both Satans paled completely.
"I... so many?" Sirzechs asked, horrified. At least he knew about the practice the pillar devils engaged in, but I guess he didn't understand how often this happened.
"Yes, so many." I said simply.
"Can they be healed with Phoenix tears?" Ajuka asked, frowning. I hummed.
"It should be possible, but it won't be necessary." I said simply, both Satans looking at me in confusion. "My bishop is building a clinic. She wants to take care of the succubi and other devils who settle in our city." I said honestly.
"Your… bishop? Enid Sinclair, if I'm not mistaken, right? Is she capable of doing it? " Sirzechs asked seriously. I raised an eyebrow at him, not surprised that he knew her name.
"She is the heir to Florence Nightingale's spirit, excels at healing with her own hands, and is blessed with a healing Sacred Gear on par with Twilight's Healing " I said honestly. That made both Satans' eyebrows raise.
"Nightingale? And you didn't bring her to the Rating Game with you? " Sirzechs asked in surprise. I snorted.
"Despite being a very good healer, she has the bad luck that she isn't very necessary when her patients have regenerations comparable to the Phenex," I said dryly, Sirzechs paused for a few moments before nodding.
"Fair enough." Sirzechs said simply.
"How reliable is that healing?" Ajuka asked simply.
"Spectacular, they'll be as if nothing had happened," I said playfully. "We can arrange for you to be present for some of those cases, check them before and after the cure to be completely sure." I said simply. He was really in favor of that; he wanted to know if there would be any problems. It was unlikely the Rejection of Phenomena would cause any problems of that sort. But it was better to be safe than sorry.
"That would be nice," Ajuka said, nodding.
"So you've got everything figured out? Do you need our help with something? " Sirzechs asked curiously. I grimaced.
"A couple of things," I said simply before looking at Sirzechs. "I want you to facilitate the purchase of territory for the Phenex." I said dryly in his direction. Sirzechs grimaced before sighing.
"Don't worry, I'm not mean enough to block this." Sirzechs said seriously, I raised an eyebrow and looked at the plate of brownies. He just smiled. I snorted audibly.
"Well, it's also necessary to expedite the paperwork or whatever is necessary for the devils' move. Of the succubi and other common devils. I understand that when word gets out, there's going to be a sort of exodus of devils trying to leave." I said dryly, which surprised both Satans before they sighed in unison.
"Are things that bad in Lucifaad?" Sirzechs asked ruefully. I grimaced.
"I honestlyhave no idea. I don't recognize the difference because I grew up there, and once I was able to make contracts, I stayed in the human world with my queen. So I can't tell you if there's any difference from other places," I told them honestly. Both Satans grimaced.
"I'll... look into it and prepare everything necessary so there aren't any problems." Sirzechs promised, and I nodded.
"I suppose the last thing would be resources. For the first few months, it'll be impossible to be self-sufficient. If I had more months to prepare, maybe. But since it's urgent, we absolutely need to get the necessary things imported." I said simply. Sirzechs nodded.
"I suppose you have some financial economic plan planned, right? " Ajuka asked curiously, I grimaced.
"I left it to my Pawn, he excels at it. In fact, he enjoys paperwork-" Both Satans shuddered and looked at me in horror. I chuckled. "-Besides, Ravel indicated she wants to help, so we'll be fine. I hope." I muttered slowly.
"We'll be on the lookout, any problems, please contact us. If things in Lucifaad are as bad as they seem, then your new city could be a lifesaver. Moving to another territory ruled by a Pillar Devil is complicated, not to mention that commoner Devils might not feel safe or encouraged to do so, you, as the ruling Succubus, would be like a beacon calling them." Sirzechs said solemnly. I sighed. All that was left.
"I really don't want to become any kind of idol for the masses," I said dryly, both Satans looked at me with pity.
"Then you are doing the wrong thing." Sirzechs laughed in condolence. I sighed tiredly.
"Just… let's move on. There are a few other minor details I'd like to discuss with you." I said wearily as I pulled out a stack of papers.
The next conversation gave me a headache. I had never signed up to do all this. Luckily, my only job besides negotiating things was to relay everything to Lucius, who, while not interfering in all this, was listening to everything necessary to plan everything properly.
This was really getting bigger and bigger.
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