Devil’s Whisper (12)

Chapter 62: Devil's Whisper (12)

[Underworld: The Naberius Clan's Research Facility.]

"What's wrong, Shirone?"

"I miss Mama…"

Kuroka watched her younger sister sulk on the bed, burying her face in the pillow while kicking the mattress with her legs.

"Don't worry…" Kuroka crawled over to her sister's side and patted her head. "I'm sure Mama will come back soon…"

Although Kuroka said that, both of them knew those were empty words.

It hadn't even been a week since they arrived at the Naberius Clan's Research Facility, and from what their mother said, she wouldn't return for at least a few months.

In truth, Kuroka felt the same way as Shirone.

Although no one said anything to them and all the necessities were provided on time, living inside this research facility felt like captivity.

They weren't allowed to leave their room, much less talk to others or walk around the facility.

The researchers delivered their food through [Transportation Magic], and someone would check up on them once a day.

The food here tasted terrible, and their room had nothing inside except a bed.

In short, there was nothing for them to do besides sitting around all day.

However, that wasn't the worst part.

What bothered them was that the research facility had no connections to the outside world or nature.

There wasn't even a single plant inside.

Nekoshou were creatures who lived close to nature, so living inside an isolated place like this made Kuroka and Shirone feel suffocated.

The two had never lived in such an environment, and the sudden change was too much for them to adapt.

"Mmh…" Shirone growled, raising her head and staring at the room's entrance. "I'm hungry…"

"So am I..." Kuroka also stared at the metallic door. "Our food should have arrived by now…"

The facility fed them two times a day, and although the food here tasted terrible, it always arrived on time.

"Maybe they forgot about us?" Kuroka crawled off the bed and walked towards the metallic door. "I'll go and ask them…"

Watching her older sister leave, Shirone hurriedly walked behind her. "Wait for me…"

While the researchers told them not to leave the room, it didn't mean they were locked inside.

It was just that the two of them had no reason to disobey the researchers until now.

The metallic handle opened with a clang, and the moment Kuroka pushed open the door—

"Run away!"

"Someone, save—!"

BOOM!*

"Monsters! They are everywhere!"

"Noo—!"

Crack!*

Several loud noises appeared all around them.

It was almost as if someone was punching against their eardrums, and Shirone subconsciously covered her ears in fear.

'What… happened?'

Kuroka's body froze. The laboratory had disappeared completely, with its roof collapsed and walls crumbled.

Dozens of researchers from the Naberius Clan were fighting against hordes of monsters but to no avail.

No matter what spells they used, the monsters would regenerate and attack them relentlessly like mindless beasts.

The devils who tried to fly away were hunted by hundreds of Draconic Vultures.

Draconic Vultures were one of the strongest air-type monsters in the Underworld. It was rare to see even two of them, much less hundreds.

But that wasn't what creeped out Kuroka the most.

'Those monsters… They are not alive…'

No matter how much she tried, Kuroka couldn't sense any life force from those monsters.

Their bodies had flesh, bones, blood, and vitality but no soul or magic power. It made them immune to someone reading their life force through Senjutsu.

Vitality so immense that the body could function without a soul — Kuroka had never heard about such monsters.

"Huh?"

Amidst the chaos, Kuroka saw a devil desperately running towards them, being chased by a massive orc.

When she saw him, her face paled.

She could tell from his ki — he planned on using them as bait for the monsters to help himself escape.

However, before the devil could reach them, the orc lunged forward and slammed his massive mace into the ground.

BOOM!*

Instantly, the mace crushed the devil's body like a mosquito, sending pieces of blood and gore flying in all directions.

Kuroka felt a shiver run down her spine.

The devil was much stronger than her, but he died so pitifully. Had the orc attacked her, could she have survived?

No. Not in a million years.

Crack!*

The orc removed his mace from the ground and crouched down, scraping the devil's remains with his fingers and licking them.

'We need to run away before it notices us!'

Kuroka glanced at Shirone, noticing that the latter was trembling with fear, unable to think, much less move.

Without wasting a moment, Kuroka picked up Shirone and ran away while concealing their presence with Senjutsu, but before she could run too far from the laboratory—

"Grrr…"

The orc turned towards them.

'Ah…'

The image in Kuroka's eyes changed without transition, and the massive orc stood right ahead of them, blocking their path.

She tried to run away, but her body refused to move.

'We are done for…'

The orc raised his mace before slamming it towards Kuroka and Shirone, causing them to shut their eyes in fear.

BOOM!*

However, the imminent death they expected never came, and instead—

"Are you alright?"

A pleasant, soft and gentle voice entered their ears.

Kuroka slowly opened her eyes, glancing at the golden barrier that appeared between her and the orc's mace.

"Ah…" Kuroka hesitantly turned towards the female devil standing beside her. "You are…"

The girl appeared to be a few years younger than her, with long, blonde hair and almond eyes.

The devil turned towards him with a smile.

"It's fine. You're safe now."

The dense Demonic Aura surrounding her body subsided as the barrier protecting them disappeared.

"No! We aren't—!"

Noticing that the orc was about to attack again, Kuroka tried to warn the devil, but the latter cut off her words.

"Don't worry…" The devil glanced towards her left. "He will protect me…"

At the same time, another voice emerged from Kuroka's side.

"Seriously. A [Queen] is supposed to protect her [King], you know?"

'Huh?' Kuroka's eyes widened slightly. 'When did he…'

She followed the female devil's gaze, staring at the person who appeared between her and the orc out of nowhere while holding a sword.

Despite being able to sense his Ki, Kuroka somehow didn't notice his presence until the female devil called him out.

He appeared to be the same age as his companion, with black hair, crimson eyes, and a single beauty mark under his left eye.

'How can someone's life force be so feeble?'

Even though he stood right in front of her, alive and well, his life force resembled someone on death's door — so fragile that she subconsciously filtered him out of her senses.

But before she could ask anything, Kuroka saw the orc raise its mace in the air, intending to slam it on the black-haired devil.

"Be careful…!"

"It's alright…" The black hair devil smiled at Kuroka as the sword in his hand fell into his shadow. "The orc is already dead…"

As the devil's words finished, a thin, vertical red line appeared on the orc's face before his body was perfectly divided into two halves, falling to the ground.

"Amazing…"

Both Kuroka and Shirone stared at the scene with their mouths agape.

'I can't tell how strong he is…'

With the blonde-haired devil, Kuroka knew the former was much stronger than her, but when it came to the black-haired devil, she couldn't sense anything.

For Youkai, being unable to sense someone's strength through their life force meant one thing.

The difference in strength was far too much.

"Hmm…"

Moments after the orc's death, its body transformed into dust and vanished, catching the blonde-haired devil's attention.

She turned towards her companion. "Did you do that, Azrail?"

"Nope…" The black-haired devil shook his head, surging his demonic power and creating a barrier around them. "From what I can tell, these monsters are mere puppets. When they die, their connection to the caster is severed, which causes their bodies to fall apart…"

Kuroka stared at the barrier. "This is…"

"A barrier that conceals our presence. The monsters can't see or sense us as long as we stay inside…"

"Oh…" Kuroka nodded at the blonde-haired devil's explanation. "Then, what about the researchers outside?"

"They are all dead. You two are the only survivors."

Those words made Kuroka's hands tremble, and she bowed towards the two devils.

"Thank you for saving us…"

Had it not been for them, Kuroka and Shirone wouldn't have survived this disaster.

"Thank you…"

Following her sister's lead, Shirone also bowed.

"More importantly…" The blonde-haired devil walked over to Kuroka's side, staring at her with a curious gaze. "What is this facility, and why are Nekomata inside the Underworld?"

"Ah…"

Kuroka stared at the two devils with her mouth agape.

She realised that it'd be a long conversation.

.

.

.

[Half an hour ago.]

"Seriously, how strong are you? I can't tell no matter how much I try…"

"What made you ask that?"

"Master wouldn't let me wander this deep into the forest, but she said it's fine if you are with me…"

"Tiamat did?"

"Yeah."

Latia and Azrail walked through the forest, carefully analysing their surroundings to find their prey.

"In that case..." Azrail glanced at Latia from the corner of his eyes with a smile. "Try to figure it out yourself…"

"Tch…"

Latia clicked her tongue in annoyance, but before she could complain further, she heard some rustling in the nearby bush.

"I think it's a golden rabbit…"

"Golden rabbit?"

"You've never had one, right?" Latia slowly moved towards the bush with long, sneaky steps. "It tastes incredible…"

She moved the bush aside excitedly, only to be disappointed the next second.

Rather than the golden rabbit, there was a massive group of worms inside, which made her face cringe in disgust.

"That doesn't look like a rabbit to me…"

Azrail walked over to her side with a small light, and she growled. "Shut up. I'm not allowed to use [Detection Spells] in training…"

"But I can…" Azrail smiled and turned around, raising his index finger and pointing at a distance. "The Berbal Leopard is hiding eight hundred meters in that direction…"

"Really?"

Latia's eyes widened in excitement, and she hurriedly turned around.

The Berbal Leopard was the stealthiest monster in the Underworld, which made it nearly impossible to find it without a [Detection Spell].

To make it worse, Tiamat ordered Latia to hunt it with only [Demonic Power Enhancement].

She couldn't find it despite searching for over three days, so now, her happiness was off the charts.

"Thank you, Azr—!"

However, when she turned around, she saw something weird.

Azrail stood behind her, holding a handful of worms in his right hand.

Their eyes met, and he smiled at her.

Before Latia could react, Azrail's left hand pulled her t-shirt's collar, and with his right hand, he poured the worms inside.

"…"

Latia's body froze. The sudden change of pace was too much for her to keep up with, and she looked down at her body.

From outside, she could see the worms crawling all over her stomach.

After a few seconds, reality hit her, and—

"Eeeeeek…!"

Latia felt shivers across her body.

"[Clean!] [Clean!] [Clean!] [Clean!]"

Her Demonic Power surged, spamming [Clean] as she madly ran around the forest while flickering her t-shirt, throwing the worms everywhere.

"[Clean!] [Clean!] [Clean!] [Clean!]"

Within a few seconds, Latia spammed [Clean] over a hundred.

"Haah… Haah…"

After removing all the worms from her body and using [Clean] a few more times, she fell to her knees, breathing heavily.

"Pfft…"

"Azrail…!"

Latia growled at Azrail, who tried his best to suppress his laughter.

"You're dead meat, asshole!"

Without any warning, Latia charged towards Azrail, aiming her fist at his face.

"Give up…" Azrail easily dodged the punch and moved back, creating distance between them. "The last category you want to compete with me is speed…"

Those condescending words made Latia smile, and a vein bulged on her forehead. "Is that so?"

[Acceleration!]

Latia's Demonic Power surged as a thin, barely noticeable golden barrier appeared around her body.

Unlike normal barriers, this one wasn't rigid and had no fixed shape. It covered Latia's body like armour from head to toe, changing its shape as she moved.

Seconds after the spell activated, Latia charged without warning again, and—

"Huh?"

Azrail's eyes widened in surprise.

Instantly, Latia's speed increased by ten times, and before he knew it, her fist was centimetres away from his face.

However, despite being caught off guard, Azrail dodged the punch easily before creating some distance between them.

'I knew this wouldn't be enough to match his speed, but his reaction time is insane…'

Latia smiled at Azrail. "You look surprised."

"You achieved Perfect Demonic Power Control…" After a few seconds of pause, Azrail's lips curled into a smile. "Krens gave you Lilia's book, didn't he?"

"Yes."

The Astaroth Clan's [High IQ] granted a person nigh-perfect control over their Demonic Power, but it wasn't perfect.

Latia made her control perfect through the training method mentioned in the book Krens gave her over a year ago.

'It took me years of practice to achieve Perfect Demonic Power Control. How did Azrail and Lord Beelzebub achieve it by themselves naturally?'

As her strength grew, she realised — the gap between her and Azrail was unimaginably wider than she thought.

As expected of her [King].

"A spell that coats your body in the Agares Clan's [Power of Time], accelerating time to increase your speed, reaction time, and thought process…"

"Correct." Latia wasn't surprised when Azrail explained how her spell worked, and she asked, "I accelerated time by ten last time, but do you know what my maximum limit is?"

The last time she showed him her [Power of Time] was after his engagement banquet, and her limit back then was fifteen times.

Azrail remained quiet, and Latia's smile widened. "Twenty-five times…"

She maximised the output of [Acceleration], increasing her speed by twenty-five times before rushing towards Azrail.

However, unlike the last time, he wasn't surprised.

"Not bad, but…" Azrail activated [Way of the Wind], dodging Latia's attacks by a hair's breadth. "You aren't an actual speed type…"

Azrail grabbed Lyra's forearm and threw her body into the air.

"Unlike you, I'm already fast — [Way of the Wind] and [Gravity Magic] exist to increase my speed further. They aren't the source of it."

'A difference of base stats, huh?' Latia thought, activating [Gravity Magic] and stabilising herself mid-air. "Alice said the same thing after witnessing [Acceleration]…"

While [Acceleration] increased Latia's speed from 10 to 250, [Way of the Wind] and [Gravity Magic] increased Azrail's speed from 100 to 1000.

"It is the truth, after all. Multipliers only work properly if there's something to multiply…"

"Maxed out physical attributes, immense demonic power, intelligence, and magic talent…" Latia descended to the ground, standing across Azrail. "You're like someone's pay-to-win character in an RPG…"

He chuckled at her words, but before he could answer, she continued, "But Azrail, I'm a Wizard-type. The speed buff is only an additional bonus. [Acceleration]'s real purpose is to hasten my spell casting..."

Latia snapped her fingers, and a massive magic circle appeared ahead of her.

[Dragon's Breath.]

Instantly, Azrail got attacked by Latia's strongest [Fire Magic Spell] point blank, but as she expected—

"You shouldn't do that. What if we destroyed the forest?"

A thin wall of darkness appeared between Azrail and [Dragon's Breath], devouring the spell without difficulty.

'It is as Master said — Long-range spells and projectiles are meaningless against [Darkness Magic] users unless I'm much stronger than them…'

Much to Latia's dismay, Azrail was a perfect counter to her most powerful abilities.

'Though, I doubt I'd win even if that weren't the case…'

The wall of darkness disappeared, but much to her surprise, no one was there.

"Honestly, I'm surprised…"

Azrail's voice came from behind her, and Latia hurriedly turned around, only to find him sitting on a tree branch not too far away from her.

When their eyes met, he smiled at her. "I never thought someone other than Ajuka could surpass my spell-casting time…"

It was a genuine compliment.

'That must be [Shadow Movement] — an ability that completely hides the user's presence...'

Tiamat had told Latia a lot about various magics and attributes, including [Darkness].

"But isn't this enough? Picking a meaningless fight isn't like you…"

At those words, Latia smiled and deactivated [Acceleration]. "I wanted to see how far apart we are…"

'So Alice wasn't bragging…'

A while ago, Alice visited Latia and Tiamat in the Familiar Forest. She told them about her regular sparring with Azrail and how his strength kept increasing at an unfathomable rate.

'I knew I was no match for him, but being unable to do anything feels disheartening...'

Naturally, Latia hadn't used all her abilities or gone all out yet, but she knew what would happen even if she did.

As if reading her mind, Azrail let out a small laugh. "Don't be disappointed. You are the only one in our generation who can keep up with me. There's no shame in that…"

'Sometimes, I'm glad he's like this…'

If he weren't, she might have developed an inferiority complex.

After a pause, Latia stared at Azrail with a determined gaze. "Then, show me how much you have grown."

Alice told her that rather than learning new abilities, Azrail solely focused on refining his basic skills, such as swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, [Way of the Wind], [Gravity Magic], and [Darkness Magic].

On the other hand, Latia focused more on developing new abilities while training with Tiamat.

Their approach was completely different.

"Alright. Don't look away…"

Azrail rested his hands on his thighs and intercrossed his fingers, only for his body to blur for a brief second.

'An afterimage!'

Before Latia could think further, Azrail appeared near her and pressed her nose with his index finger. "Boop."

"…!"

Subconsciously, Latia stepped back, but before she could, a hand emerged from her shadow and grabbed her ankle.

"Ah…"

As Latia fell backwards, her eyes met Azrail's, and she did the most logical thing possible.

"Hey! Let go!"

She grabbed his collar and forced him to fall on the ground before her, landing on his stomach instead.

"Ouch…"

"Hey, Azrail…"

Latia looked down at Azrail's face with half-closed eyes, with her hands resting on his chest.

"What?"

She kept staring at him, but no words came out.

'If he's so strong right now, he must have reached Peak High-Class even before we turned ten…'

Ever since Azrail's engagement banquet ended, Latia couldn't help thinking about it every once in a while.

'And from what Master said yesterday…'

{That child doesn't know how to hide his true self yet.}

{True self?}

{His presence is extremely vile and evil — I'm surprised he survived for this long without running into someone who could sense his innate nature.}

{Azrail isn't a bad person, Master!}

When Latia retorted, Tiamat laughed. {That child has killed more people than you have met. A soul so rotten it makes Evil Gods like Angra Mainyu and Loki feel tame in comparison.}

Latia wanted to retort further, but when she heard those words, she pursed her lips.

{Do not overthink it. Everyone has different dispositions for different people. I have killed more people than that child ever could, but are you not sitting atop my head with no concern?}

That was true.

In this world, lives had little value.

Even Alice, one of the kindest individuals Latia knew, could kill others without batting an eye.

{But Master, if Azrail has such a presence, why did you offer to teach him?}

{Because his eyes had an insatiable hunger for strength — it felt amusing. A child so strong that his growth rate is incomparable to others, yet he wants to hasten it further instead of being content with his current accomplishments. It has been a while since I came across someone like that.}

{Then, why didn't you force him to stay here?}

Hearing Latia's question, Tiamat laughed.

{He knows his lack of strength is holding him back, so he will do anything to climb higher. Since he denied my offer, he must believe training with me will hold him back.}

Although Latia agreed with those words, she couldn't help but grumble a little. {You talk as if you know everything about Azrail.}

She knew dragons had superior perception, but wasn't this too much? How could someone understand a person so much after meeting them once?

Latia would lose it if Tiamat started naming Azrail's favourite foods next.

After a few seconds of silence, Tiamat continued. {You should learn a few things from that child. He knows what the most important thing in this world is.}

{And what is that?}

{Strength. You can be kind, compassionate, forgiving, envious, hateful, or evil, but you can't be weak.}

That was the kind of world they lived in.

The strong decided the fate of the weak — whether it was for them to live peaceful lives or die horribly.

'Whether it is to protect things precious to me or to live the life I want to, strength is necessary…'

Latia remembered how powerless she felt when she couldn't help Azrail recover after he almost died.

She hated that feeling more than anything.

As Latia stared at Azrail's face, the question Tiamat asked her appeared in her mind. {Tell me, can a few thousand insignificant lives change how you feel about that child?}

No matter how much she tried, she only saw the same person she grew up together with.

After thinking about it since yesterday, she finally found her answer.

'It doesn't change anything…'

Devils were selfish creatures, and Latia was no exception.

To her, Azrail was more valuable than the lives he took or the crimes he committed.

No matter what he did or where he went, she wanted to stay by his side as his [Queen].

"What are you staring at?"

"Tell me…" Latia wanted to ask about the engagement banquet, but she decided it was no longer important, so instead, she asked, "How did you get so strong?"

"Side effects of getting beaten up by Alice and Lyra regularly…"

Azrail's voice was as bland as his personality.

"Lyra?"

"Ah, right. You haven't met her yet. I recruited her as my [Knight] a month ago..."

Latia's eyelid twitched when she heard his words.

'He didn't tell me about it… And to make it worse, it's another girl!'

As if Alice, Rias, Akeno, Lieselotte, Selina, Le Fay, and Amy weren't enough competition, Azrail recruited another woman.

'This guy has no hesitation about meeting other girls, but when I try to do something, he acts like I'll eat him alive…'

Around a month ago, Latia tried to kiss Azrail when they were alone, but instead of reciprocating, he ran away while shouting, "I swear I had nothing to do with this, officer!"

'Just thinking about it angers me…'

A vein bulged on Latia's forehead.

When she tried to do it, he ran away as if she wanted to assault him, but he had no qualms about doing that and much more with Amy.

Latia made her move on him after building her courage for several months, and he did that to her.

She wasn't even sad — just angry.

'I don't like children, he said. You are also a child, you fucking walnut! We are the same age!'

The only thing stopping Latia from throwing a temper tantrum was her grown-up act.

After all, it'd be embarrassing for a sophisticated lady like herself to curse out loud.

"Haah…" Latia took a deep breath to calm herself and got off Azrail. "Tell me about her…"

No matter how she felt, she was still Azrail's [Queen] and needed to fulfil her duties.

Unlike him, she wasn't a slacker when it came to work.

"Her name is Lyra Darkvein, and I used my Mutation [Knight] Piece to reincarnate her as a devil…"

The name sounded so low effort that Latia thought it was a fake, but before she could dwell on that, her eyes widened in surprise.

"Mutation Piece? She's so strong?"

"Yes…"

"What about me? Is she stronger than me?"

Although she asked that, Latia wasn't expecting a serious answer.

Azrail's strength was leagues above her, so if he couldn't reincarnate his new [Knight] with a normal Evil Piece, then that meant—

'She's stronger than me…'

Despite training so desperately to keep up with Azrail, she couldn't even be the second strongest in his peerage.

'I need to step up my game…'

At first, Latia planned on developing her Demonic Power over the decade, but she changed her mind.

'I'll finish developing it before we turn fifteen…'

"Don't make that face. Lyra's a millennial old Vampire. Her being strong is only natural…"

"A [Queen] is meant to be the strongest after their [King]. Otherwise, it'll mess up the peerage's hierarchy…"

Hearing Latia grumble, Azrail smiled and patted her head. "Since when were you so competitive?"

"I've always been like this…" Latia moved her head, pushing away his hand before crossing her arms. "Anyway, where did you even find someone like that?"

"You know how Alice and I have been looking into the vampire whom I fought in Bucharest?"

"I thought you two already gave up on that…"

"We were about to after not—Huh?"

"What the…"

Before their conversation could continue, Azrail and Latia's eyes widened as they simultaneously turned towards the side.

"Such an intense wave of Demonic Power…"

"Someone broke a massive concealment barrier…"

Moments after that—

BOOOOOOOOM!*

An enormous explosion occurred dozens of kilometres away from them, sending an intense shockwave through the forest.

Without any words, Azrail activated [Way of the Wind] while Latia used [Gravity Magic], flying towards the explosion's source.

The two weren't worried about their safety.

If something happened, both Alice and Tiamat would come to save them without fail.

.

.

.

"This is quite the scene…"

"The monsters here aren't unique, but they all have extremely potent regeneration for some reason…"

"That Clan Trait and those spells — this research facility most likely belongs to the Naberius Clan…"

"Yeah…"

Latia and Azrail stood mid-air, looking down at the gruesome scene while hiding inside a concealment barrier.

Over a thousand monsters were attacking the hidden facility, brutally murdering the devils inside despite their fierce resistance.

"I'm surprised no one has noticed the weakness of those monsters…" Latia held her chin, staring at the battlefield with a frown. "It doesn't seem like anyone here is a fighter…"

Her words made Azrail chuckle. "They are barely holding onto their lives. How do you expect them to notice such minute details?"

"You're right…"

"Should we help them out?"

"Why?" Latia turned towards Azrail, somewhat confused. "They aren't from the Astaroth Clan, so whatever happens to them isn't our concern."

The Astaroth Clan and the Naberius Clan were competitors in technological advancements, so saving them was the last thing on Latia's mind.

Even if the two of them contacted the Astaroth Clan, their family would have the same reaction.

"Fair enough."

"We should collect some information and leave…"

It was only a matter of time before someone sensed the sudden surge of Demonic Power and came to investigate.

'Although I said that, there isn't much we can get from here…' Latia turned back towards the hidden research facility. 'The place is mostly destroyed, so I doubt there's any useful data inside…'

As her eyes scanned the entire battlefield, she noticed something strange.

'Nekomata? They aren't Reincarnated Devils, so why are they inside the Underworld?'

She saw two girls trying to sneak their way out of the research facility.

'From their similar appearance, they must be sisters…'

Latia observed the Nekomata sisters for a few minutes, watching as the two slowly escaped from the research facility.

'I wonder why the Naberius Clan kept them here…'

However, an orc charged towards them before the two could move away from the research facility.

'Well, there's only one way to find out…' With those thoughts in mind, Latia activated [Acceleration]. "I'm going ahead."

"Huh? Hold—!"

Without waiting for Azrail to finish, Latia flew towards the ground.

The distance wasn't much, and under the effects of [Acceleration], she appeared beside the Nekomata sisters instantly.

Noticing that the orc was about to attack, Latia raised her hand and created a golden barrier between them.

'That attack has enough strength to kill a High-Class Devil…'

However, she wasn't worried.

After all—

BOOM!*

She had already reached the Ultimate Class.

The orc's attack didn't do anything to Latia's barrier, and she turned towards the Nekomata sisters. "Are you alright?"

"Ah…" The older Nekomata slowly opened her eyes and turned towards Latia. "You are…"

A few seconds later, Azrail killed the orc easily, and the older Nekomata bowed towards him and Latia.

"Thank you for saving us…"

"Thank you…"

Following her sister's lead, the little Nekomata also bowed.

"More importantly…" Latia walked over to the older sister's side, staring at her with a curious gaze. "What is this facility, and why are Nekomata inside the Underworld?"

"Ah…"

"Come on, don't startle them…" Azrail grabbed the back of Latia's collar and pulled her away from the Nekomatas. "They just survived a near-death experience. Take it slow…"

Latia paused and turned towards him with a frown. 'Didn't you do the same with Lieselotte? Where did the social etiquette suddenly come from?'

Ignoring her gaze, Azrail turned towards the two Nekomatas. "Your names are?"

"I'm Kuroka, and this is my little sister, Shirone." After introducing themselves, Kuroka bowed once again. "Thank you for saving our lives."

"Thank you…"

Azrail smiled at them. "It's fine. You don't have to thank us repeatedly."

'Wait a minute. I know that look…'

Kuroka and Shirone's eyes were filled with admiration as they stared at Azrail, and Latia exchanged glances between the three of them with her mouth agape.

'Did I... Just increase the competition myself?'

Surely not, right?

.

.

.

[The Human World.]

'I'm sorry, Kuroka, Shirone…'

Fujimai barely held onto her consciousness, and the faces of her daughters flashed before her eyes.

Their experiment had failed.

She had tried her best to protect her husband at the cost of her safety, but in the end, her strength fell short.

She could have survived if she prioritised her safety, but it was too late.

'I'm sorry, Kuroka, Shirone. Had I realised it sooner…'

Despite risking her life for him, she never saw an ounce of love in her husband's eyes.

She did everything for him, but his last words were, "Save me, you useless wench…"

'I just… wanted us to be a family…'

Fujimai never had a family.

Her parents were killed in front of her when she was a child, which made her abhor violence.

'I wanted… to give you what I never had…'

She wanted a place she could call home.

'I'm sorry…'

Her heart was full of regrets, and just as she was about to give up—

"You poor thing…"

Someone walked into her blurry vision from a distance.

His voice sounded distant and clear simultaneously, almost like a whisper.

The child appeared a bit older than her youngest daughter, but looking at him made her spirit wither.

'Such overwhelmingly evil ki…'

It was hard to even look at.

Wherever he went, the world's ki and malice moved away from that place in a rush.

Even the most prominent Senjutsu users couldn't pressure the world's ki this much with their presence alone.

Fujimai felt like throwing up at the sight of him.

She had met devils before, but no one had a presence so disturbing.

"Tell me…"

The devil slowly approached her, stopping a few steps away from her.

"Do you wish to see your daughters again?"

His voice sounded incredibly soothing to her eyes, but she knew it meant nothing.

Even at death's door, she could tell that there was not a shred of kindness inside his heart when he stared at her miserable state.

No matter what she did, he would follow through with whatever he had decided for her.

His question meant nothing.

But at this moment, it all meant nothing to Fujimai.

"Save me…"

She wanted nothing more than to see her daughters again.

Fujimai's words made the devil smile. "Sure. I will save you."

However, unlike what she expected, the devil didn't move. Instead, he watched as Fujimai took her last breath with a smile on his face.

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