Arrival at Vatican

The next day early morning, just when the Airplane landed Ambulances and police vehicles surrounded the plane, it was a hassle for the medics to move the injured people out first because the passengers all wanted to get out of the plane as fast as possible, not to mention the police who had to control the people.

Masaru and the girls followed the crowd and when they came outside while using the crowd as a cover they instantaneous increase in speed allowed them to disappear past the police's checkpoint and then they followed those who already passed through to go towards the luggage pick up zone.

"Won't they become suspicious of us?"

Shirone was bothered about the fact they will be flying back to London then teleport but Masaru shook his head

"We only used the airplane to enter the country undetected, the units stationed in the country all use magic sense to determine if any special kinds arrive. They also monitor in other means, however, they won't be strict in monitoring the airport. So once we are done we can leave with teleportation magic"

Shirone nodded thinking this way of infiltration is quite unique as not many people in the supernatural world would use such a means to enter the country unless they came for official business which made it easy for them.

Everest yawns while they moved fast, the moment the three of them got hold of their bags they started to move fast avoiding checkpoints and camera's along the way.

If the use of magic was not restricted it would have been easier but because they needed to avoid being detected by chance they had no other choice but to move especially through doors marked for Staff members only, it was only when they were outside at the parking lot they felt relieved.

"I never expected to train in stealth operation in such a manner, but it was a good experience"

Masaru could only chuckle feeling what they did was a hassle but there was no way he could risk the chance of being discovered too early,

"Do you remember where the Hotel was?"

Shirone nodded at Masaru's question and went ahead while Everest and Masaru followed from behind,

"I have been meaning to ask... But do you think Akeno will be able to get information about this creature? I can't help but remember the story my father once told me about that multiple head dragon in the far distant past, even he did not want to mention its name in fear it might get resurrected"

Masaru thought for a moment

"I am not sure if my speculation is correct... But I believe the people mistook that beast as a being on the side of the devils since it only has a destructive impulse of wanting to destroy everything and anything, I am not certain but I feel what that man wanted to warn the people of man was not the dragon itself but the creatures who are behind that dragon... What if this dragon is but a small part of that group of creatures I faced?"

Everest felt a shiver run down her spine, like a dragon she held pride for being brave but the thought of Trihexia only being a part of the creature's military strength would be too crazy and scary to think of. Masaru looked up thinking before saying

"I am not certain why I thought about it, it was just because I remembered this dragon, called Trihexia, had parts of many creatures on it which gave me the same feeling I felt when I faced that shadow. I could not make out its body because it was completely malformed like a Lego puzzle build but each piece is different from the other..."

"Stop... Don't talk about it anymore, the more I hear the more I can't help but feel dread at such thoughts"

Masaru gently caress her hair,

"Don't worry, as long as I am alive I will not allow you or anyone close to me get hurt. So let's get stronger together okay?"

a Faint blush appear on Everest's face she pouted

"Ye-Yeah...."

But then she thought

'Saying such things so earnestly is unfair' She thought while feeling frustrated that she could not counter-argue against that line.

"We have arrived"

Shirone announced while she stood in front of a three stories hotel that was not too big nor too small, from the looks of the stars next to its name it was a three-star hotel.

"Good work Shirone"

Masaru gently caress her hair because of his habit for doing so when she has done something good

"Nyaa"

Shirone felt proud and happy at the same time, she naturally heard the discussion between Masaru and Everest. But different from Everest, she believes as long as something is not invincible they can kill it. The only problem would be to grow strong enough to do just that.

Masaru went in first booking their rooms under new identities because they did not book beforehand the process was quite tedious but it was completed.

They booked a single room with three beds since the two girls did not mind the setup, as for Masaru he chose this way for emergencies if they need to teleport fast to run, then every second they spend to getaway could cost them their lives. Nothing Impure after all.

Masaru took out the bag Elizabeth gave him and took out the four barrier stones he requested of her, it was not a protective barrier but only a barrier that prevented from Mana leaking out or from mages sensing their mana.

He set it up in the four corners of the room before he could with relief materialize the communication magic circle,

"Morning Master, it appears you have safely landed?"

>\/<

Akeno who received Masaru's call was currently training together with Ingvild against Diana in Close combat and physical body strengthening training, she immediately stopped including the other two as they listened on their conversation.

"Morning Master, it appears you have safely landed?"

Akeno naturally spoke to tease her master but his serious tone changed her mind

"Sorry to bother you this early but have you investigated the matter I asked you about?"

Akeno began to report her findings which she compiled together with Diana including the report she gotten from Diehauser,

"To think the theory I thought of just a while ago would be this accurate..."

Akeno felt troubled at Masaru whose tone felt he stumbled upon something dangerous and troublesome.

"You see when I asked you to investigate I came across a man that was manipulated by a strange kind of energy. Even with my spellbook, I could not make out what this energy was and when I scan it got reflected, so I left it alone since I did not want to ruin my trip to the Vatican after all... But during the process, I noticed this man was eyeing the women who were a part of the Nexus group so I had you investigate.

Never in my mind, I would have known this man would suddenly start to attack the woman but thanks to some fool who tried to act a hero he caused other passengers to get hurt instead so I moved in to take care of him but nothing can knock it out physically. I could not test with magic since I was incognito but the strange thing was Grendel told me to kill him instead"

Diana who heard what Masaru said felt troubled, an opponent you can't knock out physically is troublesome.

"Are you okay?"

Diana was the one to ask since she knew the first kill was difficult to handle even for Devils,

"Oh, mom! I'm fine. Honestly, I did not even have time to consider the fact I killed him because the moment I killed him the strange energy that was in that man transferred over to me. I could not see what kind of creature it was but I could make out the form from its shadow, it was like an abomination stuck together of different creature parts.

If it was not for my spell book that eliminated the creature that tried to control my body I would have been controlled at minimal or dead at worst"

"What is the speculation you came up with?"

This was something Akeno wanted to focus on since the main point will lead to this,

"Because of my experience with this creature the first thing that came to my mind while I was trying to figure it out was Trihexia, 666 or also known as The Dragon of Apocalypse. It matches your report in many ways, The fact it consists of several creatures in one, it's destructive impulses.

I believe that man was actually trying to warn not only Heaven but also the humans about the possible reappearance of the creatures behind Trihexia, if that is true I can't help but wonder where Trihexia would be in the power ranking. If it is cannon fodder then we are in a serious situation that could affect every mythology and supernatural power"

This news caused the two girls and lady to shiver of fear as the tales of Trihexia was not actively told but it was famous enough that everyone knew about it even if they never read that black book, it was tantamount to the amount of fear they held for that creature.

"So I want you to report this to Ajuka, he research has quite a lot to deal with Soul Related, Dimensional Gap and several other topics. Tell him I need his help to investigate this matter, if I come across another one of these puppets I will catch it."

Diana could not but feel angry at Masaru's recklessness

"You can't place yourself in danger! Think of a different plan"

"Other than me who has the Spellbook, only God tier and Satan Tier beings can face against the mind attack of these creatures... Do you understand mother? It's not that I don't want to, but only I have the ability to face it right now. The interactions between factions are too restrained while they were monitoring each other without realizing what is brewing beneath them"

Diana sighed

"But please make sure to put your own safety first, you promise?"

"Yeah, I promise... Since I have to give my mother some grandchildren and my grandparents want great-grandchildren"

Diana was shocked at her son who would actually dare to tease her, even Ingvild and Akeno were blushing at the surprise attack

"Hehe, got you girls for a change. Anyway be sure not to spread this information around, Ajuka must know but if you feel the need then only Sirzech will be fine. Reporting it to that Magical Girl and Military Devil Kings is simply going to complicate the matter more than necessary"

"Understood"

Akeno never thought her master would get involved in something far dangerous compared to the faction wars,

"Well today we will be resting and only start our search operation tomorrow, the incident in the airplane will naturally attract some attention so we will be laying low for now. Take care Akeno, Mother...

Be sure to send my regards to Ingvild, Angelica, Stephani and Ichika. And if possible, train hard. Because I am not certain how much manpower the devils will be able to spare for this enemy but I believe we will be involved as the ones who discovered it first"

After the call was shutdown Diana took charge,

"The two of you will not reveal the information to the rest of your team. Leave that decision to Masaru, I will personally get in contact with Ajuka and Sirzech so while I am gone I want the two of you to train seriously... Because if what Masaru said is true, usually those who discover such things tend to be more likely dragged to the front lines when they face it"

>\/<

"I am sure the two of you heard the discussion so even while we are on the mission we must not neglect our training"

Shirone and Everest nodded, the both of them knew things turned serious and if Masaru's speculation turned out to be true they will need to figure out the power scale of Trihexia among those creatures.

'If only I can get in contact with a being that lived for even longer than others---... This is troubling but I will first check with Ajuka if it's possible to contact that one'

Masaru thought while increasing the restriction and gravity on his body to train himself even while he was standing still, he was not sure why but he felt this was not something that was mentioned in the dxd although he could not remember it but he knew from what he saw when he met Rias he could already see her power growth will be extremely slow if she keeps up with this meaning if such creatures popped out in front of them they would be instantly killed instead.

Even Plot armour will be insufficient to protect them from Absolute strength.

The next morning Masaru, Shirone and Everest woke up early to start their investigation. They opted to move together for the first few days since the plane incident drew more attention than they expected and the three of them were wearing the hooded jackets Jacob gave to Masaru to hide their mana and presence so it will seem like they were Mob characters in the background.

"Good Morning Sir, how may I be of assistance?"

The receptionist in the library welcomed Masaru,

"Morning, sorry that I am bothering you but do you have a map with all the orphanages marked on it?"

The receptionist tilted her head wondering why this man wanted such information, seeing this Masaru swiftly added

"I'm looking for my lost cousin for the past two months, I was told that she has been spotted at an Orphanage in this country but they did not say which one, even though I could not confirm whether this is true or not I rather make sure of it myself..."

The desperate face Masaru was displaying was quite real as the Receptionist did not doubt him for a moment and thus she printed a google map with all the orphanages marked on the map, Masaru paid for the printing including some tip for the lady's assistance before they left the library.

"I am quite shocked at your acting, if I did not know you personally I too would have believed what you said"

Everest was quite shocked at Masaru's acting skills which were simply too flawless.

"It's not hard, I already prepared a story beforehand. The reason I was able to make the correct facial expression was that I filled my mind about last night's discovery and the thought of Trihexia being only a cannon fodder was enough to allow me to imitate a face filled with fear"

Everest who heard this crazy man's way of doing things felt she was looking at a different man and not her master, Shirone who heard this felt she was enlightened on how to act from now on if she finds people troublesome.

"Let's move to the first two orphanages that are nearby to investigate"

The two girls nodded at Masaru's order and began to move, the first orphanage was quite small, a single house with a large yard and according to the Manager there is only four children here. But the problem laid at the second orphanage.

When Masaru and they arrived the building appeared to have been raided, even the police isolated the area while investigating. From the looks of it, the children were kidnapped while the adults were killed, this pattern was strange.

"Let us go to the next Orphanage to double-check something"

Just like the second orphanage this one too was raided but it was raided a week ago, Masaru was not certain if this is a planned raid but felt it will be best to check out the remaining one Orphanage that was near the borders of the Vatican map.

When they arrived it appears that this Orphanage was fine, however, because of the two raids, there was police nearby so Masaru and them could not go too close as they would be assumed be too suspicious and using magic to frequently in enemy territory was dangerous.

"I have confirmed a few things, let's go back and discuss it"

The three of them began moving back towards the hotel,

"Big brother I'm hungry"

Masaru looked at Shirone who was hungry but he knew this glutton has researched some restaurants and local food,

"Let's go eat lunch, Shirone where do you want to go to?"

Shirone's eyes brighten, if her tails and ears were out she would have perked up with vigour.

The Restaurant they chose to eat at was called Arlu, Restaurant Arlu. According to Shirone, they have several dishes she wishes to try today so Masaru did not hold back to spoil this girl who assisted him back at the airport and today while they investigated the Orphanages,

"Welcome to Restaurant Arlu, will it be the table for three?"

Masaru nodded and the waitress took three black covered menus nearby and led them inside to a table near the window where they can view outside.

"Do you want to order your drinks while you choose your meals?"

Shirone ordered her drink followed by Everest and Masaru, when the waitress left Everest felt quite curious about the menu.

"I have to agree with my Father, with devil magic reading different languages became easier than to study them for a long time"

Masaru naturally knew this battle junkie yet pure girl prefer combat overstudies although he planned to have that changed in the future... Somehow.

"What food will you be ordering?"

Masaru thought of choosing a meal Shirone chose since he could not make out what is delicious or not, it was his first time eating in an expensive yet fancy restaurant after all. But the number of items she pointed at made Masaru rethink a bit, he selected a large serving of salad with Lasagne.

Everest was quite loyal to her desire and choice several servings of Ribs while Shirone chose a bit of everything except for the other things she already ate before.

When the waitress came with the drink was about to take orders she felt shocked, the sheer amount the three people wanted to order was too much and if they dine and dash the restaurant will be losing too much money.

As a compromise they gave Masaru 10% discount if he pays everything in full immediately, so he paid since it was not a problem for him. It was quite a sight to look at the other guests who were looking at Everest and Shirone with shock, they never imagined two such small girls could actually eat this much.

Masaru could only chuckle thinking to himself these two gluttons were actually holding back! If they went all out this Restaurant might have some trouble feeding this dragon especially. While the two girls continued to eat Masaru started to sort out his thoughts

'Things are messy ever since the aeroplane incident and now the orphanage raids... We do not have enough information so I will have to send one of them to question possible witnesses while I and the other one will be guarding the two remaining Orphanages against the shadows.

It feels stupid but it is the only clue we got, so we have no choice but to hope whoever raided the orphanages might target the next one soon so we can then capture them and have them lead us to their hideout... Perhaps the girl is there, if not then she will be at the Orphanage the Police is watching over'

Masaru looked at the window outside for some reason he thought

'I hope the incidents are not linked with the one that happened back then in the airplane...'