AN: Hello my fellow forum dwellers, hope you are all alright. Here I am with another chapter to you all.

  Just a warning before anything; My College Csses start next week, so the frequency of chapters may drop, and when finals come it absolutely will. I will try to continue on weekends, but I have very little free time with work+college+studying so don't expect miracles. ;-;

  On another happier note, I've been pying ZZZ recently and the game is honestly a bst, it's quite fun, and the fact that I got both Evelyn and her Weapon(?) in less than 90 pulls made my week. :D

  Now, on the subject of ZZZ(Zenless Zone Zero), let's get to the question of the week:

  If you reincarnated in ZZZ(1 or 2 years older than Belle and Wise) and could choose three Elder Scrolls Magic Schools to use(Destruction, Restoration, Alchemy, Mysticism, Shadow Magic, Thu'um, Enchanting, Sword-Singing, etc.) which one would you choose?

  And now, here is the chapter:

  ~Yasaka Hirume~ With gritted teeth, Yasaka instantly tapped into her Senjutsu and Youjutsu, doing her best to cast an illusion over the breath attack.

  Sadly, as prodigious as her species was at using illusions –the attack was simply too much, too quickly. But she still managed to distort it enough –its looks went from a mighty Dragon's Breath to a particurly strong party light.

  By the time she finished weaving the Illusion, the Berserker Devil and Shi-Woon had already traded a few dozen punches and kicks, Martial Techniques of many varied schools being used by Shi-Woon and subsequently copied by Antares.

  "What a shit show…" Yasaka compined and prepared to go full Yokai and stop this before it got even worse. But before she could transform, she felt a familiar presence approaching at incredible speeds.

  With red scales adorning his arms, and eyes bzing in the color of a volcano, Ichiban arrived with a double kick, hitting both Shi-Woon and Antares simultaneously. The two fighters were thrown into separate directions, hitting the broken and now molten pavement like a sack of wet socks.

  Shi-Woon growled and slowly stood up, his powerful limbs covered by dragon scales grew tout and his posture tightened. Ichiban narrowed his eyes, and started bsting the Dragon Boy with his much superior Draconic Aura; "Control yourself, Shi-Woon." He admonished with a grave voice. But all he received was a growl and a small roar in response.

  Sighing, Ichiban gre turned harsher, his bzing orange draconic eyes shining like a star; "Cease this foolishness boy. Control yourself." Shi-Woon stopped, his body twitched and trembled as if the very act of containing his aggression was a herculean task.

  Frowning, Ichiban punched the Ptinum boy in the face, his fist carrying with it an imposing might and bzing mana. With the sharp pain of the punch, the young Yakuza finally managed to get a grip on his consciousness and deactivate the transformation.

  Breathing deeply as if he were an overweight man who just run a marathon, Shi-Woon gred at Antares, who was being pressed on the ground by Ichiban's aura. He opened his mouth to comment, but before he could even say anything –he was spped in the face.

  "Do you have any idea what the fuck have you just done?" Admonished Ichiban with barely contained anger.

  Shi-Woon lowered his head; "… he beat up Aniki." He tried justifying himself.

  Ichiban massaged his temple, his wild afro getting even wilder with his anger; "Have you ever tried talking to him before you started bsting? Maybe try to understand the Why or the How?"

  "… does it really matter? He beat up Aniki, so he–" Shi-Woon was spped to the ground, the sheer force of Ichiban's sp denting his face and creating a massive crater on the destroyed pavement.

  "The fuck it doesn't matter!" Ichiban took a deep breath; "Context. Fucking. Matters! It's the literal difference between- you know, I will not be repeating myself. Again.", Ichiban grinned maliciously while picking up his cellphone, Shi-Woon paled.

  "No, please, don't call them. I don't wan to-" Ichiban interrupted with a wider grin; "Too te.".

  "Yo, Sae-Hee, how is it going? Ichiban speaking.", called Ichiban in a very chirpy tone; "… Yup, he made a mess again… Yeah, in front of the Kashino Batting Center, oh that is perfect… Thank you Sae-Chan, see you in 5."

  Shi-Woon's expression turned grim, a somber air taking over his whole body; "…why… I wanted to be the one to break it up to them, so–"

  "So you could embellish your actions and put yourself in a better light? Yeah, no. Won't be allowing that nonsense to continue." Turning towards Antares, Ichiban frowned when he saw the boy continue to struggle against his Aura like a maddened berserker; "You cannot afford to lose control like that, you are a Ptinum Dragon, dammit –act like it!"

  "I wasn't that far–"

  "Boy!" interrupted Ichiban with a piercing gre; "You were just about to bst the entire street with your Breath Attack." The older humanoid Dragon then turned his gaze back to Antares; "If this Devil.", Ichiban spat; "Wasn't here, you would have-"

  "As amusing as this discussion is." Started Yasaka, making the two Dragons pale considerably; "We need to clean up this mess, quickly." It was finally dawning on Yasaka that they may have a political shitstorm on their hands, and the excuse of 'Sorry, I didn't stop things before they escated because I was ogling the Devil.' will not fly at all.

  Robotically turning towards the fox, the two Yakuza started sweating bullets. "O-Oh Y-Yasaka, how n-nice seeing you here." Stuttered Ichiban, followed by Shi-Woon; "Y-yeah, g-greetings Lady Hirume. H-".

  "What part of quickly, did you two fucktards not understand?" Interrupted Yasaka, trying to suppress her growing annoyance. Again.

  Schooling himself, Ichiban turned towards Antares; "And how about him? He is still in the Bck Origin Threshold." Ichiban frowned, and turned towards his protegee; "…how is he using your technique, Shi-Woon?"

  Gritting his teeth, the Ptinum Yakuza almost growled; "He learned it during the battle.".

  "… What?" Ichiban eloquently asked.

  Rolling her eyes, Yasaka expined; "The boy is a genius, that much is obvious." She then cupped her chin; "Now, how do we wake him from this state? Without worsening the situation, of course…".

  "When Shi-Woon falls victim to it, I usually just beat him up until he wakes up." Informed Ichiban in a little distant tone.

  "Any attack that touches the conscious should do." Added Shi-Woon with a slightly evil look while looking at Antares; "As long as you shake the grip his unconsciousness has on his body, his conscious should be able to retake the reins." Yasaka nodded and prepared to use her Senjutsu.

  "There is no need." Interrupted Antares in a slightly hoarse tone, still pressed to the ground by Ichiban's aura, he continued "I am already awake."

  The trio looked puzzled at Antares, surprised he managed to exit the Threshold on his own the first time he entered it. A terrifying talent indeed thought the three simultaneously. But being a Kitsune, Yasaka noticed something was amiss; "… all this while you could've exited the Threshold on your own?" She pressed.

  "That's correct." Answered the Devil pinly, knowing lying is futile before a Senjutsu Master; "I was trying to bait Ichiban into fighting me so I could steal some of his techniques."

  Yasaka deadpanned, while quite a big part of her couldn't help but think; 'Why do I think that is hot?'

  Utterly speechless at the Devil's shamelessness, the Red and Ptinum Dragon looked at Antares without knowing what to say.

  Feeling the pressure being lifted from his body, Antares got up and stretched for a bit. Using his HUD, he sent Eu and Neptune a message saying he was okay. A few heartbeats ter, Neptune looked out from the Batting Center where she was protecting Ms. Kashino. He then proceeded to set his Goetia of Gravity to send a detailed message to his brother. Liking it or not, this mess was already way beyond his pay grade. Heck, he even emailed Sona of all people.

  Looking at the purplette, Yasaka raised her eyebrow; "Is she with you?" Asked the Kitsune.

  "Yes." Answered Antares with a nod; "She is my Queen, I just reincarnated her yesterday, so she is still getting used to things."

  "She seems pretty weak." Commented Shi-Woon sharply, earning a side gre from Antares.

  Observing and scanning Neptune for a few more moments with her Senjutsu, Yasaka detected the girl was mostly worried about her King. "… can you expin to me what happened?" She asked Antares.

  "Sure." Agreed the Devil amicably; "I was on a date with Neptune-", the purplette spluttered with an 'awawawa' in the distance; "When the Green Dragon there." Antares pointed at the unconscious Yakuza; "Decided that our, and I quote; 'Shitty Devil's presence' was corrupting holy soil. And while we simply ignored him." Ichiban and Shi-Woon winced, likely knowing where this was going. "He kept insisting, and insisting, and insisting."

  "Then he said something unintentionally funny. Which caused Neptune to ugh." Ichiban and Shi-Woon tried to look smaller, while Yasaka internally winced, knowing the innate pride of a Humanoid Dragon was not going to tolerate that.

  "As you three already expected it. He didn't like that, and started shouting, threatening, and referring to Neptune in a very uncouth manner." Antares gaze sharpened, and a wave of killing intent that made the trio briefly flinch bsted towards the unconscious Yakuza; "The only reason why he still draws breath, after spouting such disgusting words at a member of my family, is because of our treaty and the fact that you are the Overseer of this territory now."

  Full of indignation at his comrade being accused like this, Shi-Woon snarled; "You… Stop lying! Aniki would ne-"

  "He is not lying." interrupted Yasaka with a pin expression, making Shi-Woon shut up instantly and Ichiban purse his lips. The fox then drew her cellphone and started sending message after message at incredible speeds –in less than a minute she had sent more than a dozen of them.

  "… I called the construction crew and the repairmen." She informed while pocketing her cell phone again; "Things should be back to normal in one or two days tops."

  "Do you want me to pay for the damages?" Antares offered an olive branch, knowing he is currently at a massive disadvantage – it's three Ultimate Css beings, two of them Humanoid Dragons and one a Kitsune, against him and Neptune, who are only high css.

  " …I am also partially responsible for this destruction." It was almost painful for his Pride to say that, he was responsible, yes, but he was being attacked for literally existing, but he still chose to be the mature one here, to try to de-escate the current situation and gain time so the true professionals deal with it.

  "There is no need." Yasaka shook her head amicably; "We will take full responsibility for this mess." Shi-Woon and Ichiban made a sound like they wanted to protest, but a gre from Yasaka was all that was needed for them to shut up.

  "What would you like as compensation?" offered the Kitsune in a courteous but slightly curious tone.

  "… a bribe so I don't tell my brother in the future? How intriguing." Antares answered, warring between feeling absolute admiration for the sheer boldness of the fox before him and growing rage –that anyone would think he would ignore an attack on his family like it was nothing.

  Feeling his reaction, Yasaka shook her head; "Not that. Its-"

  "We will be drafting a proper contract." Added the redhead Devil interrupting the Kitsune mid-sentence, earning a confused nod from Yasaka, and sour faces from both Humanoid Dragons.

  Antares, for his part, did not want to make any agreements in this situation, but that doesn't mean he is opposed to drafting a contract. His pn was mostly buying time so his brother could arrive –and someone actually competent at dealing with foreign factions could take the reins. The most difficult part was continuing the conversation without lying, as Yasaka would see through all lies, so he interrupted her and started crafting a narrative. The key part here is that the narrative needs to be absolutely true if he doesn't want it to be seen through.

  "So do tell…" Continued Yasaka with a rather seductive undertone in her voice; "How may I help you?" Neptune—who even a little far away—could still perfectly hear the talk, narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the Kitsune, earning a teasing smirk from the blonde fox woman.

  "A permit." Answered Antares pinly. A very ambitious but beautiful idea forming in his mind. It was both something he actually wanted—he may be risking things by talking in half-truths—but he is a Devil, this is as much his territory as it is Yasaka's.

  "A… permit?" Yasaka repeated confused; "For what?"

  "I want a permit to challenge all Dojos in Japan." expined the Devil Heir in a pin and uninterested tone, but his scheme was obvious to anyone who bothered to listen. Antares actually felt a little proud of himself, crafting a scheme inside another one, all for a couple of seconds more.

  "You-" started Shi-Woon in anger, he knew exactly why Antares wanted such a permit, to do with All the Dojos in Japan as he did with him. He wanted to protest, of course, but a kick on his shin from Ichiban quickly shut him up.

  "Oh, so you want to steal their techniques as well." Commented Yasaka with a foxy grin, pying the politician she was trained to be "I approve. Those old men have gotten way too fat and zy, coasting on their past achievements. An upstart, such as you, going around and stealing their 'prized' techniques like they are some kind of cheap trash?" the Fox smiled evilly, her Kitsune side becoming clear; "Is bound to light a fire under their asses." And like all politicians, she said exactly what Antares wanted to hear. Antares nodded doing his best to appear and feel as sincere as possible.

  'Is it weird that I think that is hot?' Thought the more Kitsune part of Yasaka's brain. Again.

  Both Ichiban and Shi-Woon looked utterly speechless at the shameless interaction before them, a high-ranking official bribing a Devil with stolen Martial Techniques, might as well open the Treasury and let the Hell dweller pick whatever he wanted.

  "Yasaka! You couldn't possibly allow-" started Ichiban with a few cracks in his voice, showing his anxiousness and surprise.

  "We may be just on the verge of faction war because of what happened today, Ichiban. So I can and I will." The Kitsune cut with a sharp tone; "Whatever argument you have, can be discussed ter." Yasaka then turned towards Antares, picked a strange metal talisman from her sleeve, and smiled shrewdly; "Here Heir Gremory, if a Dojo causes trouble for you, just show them this talisman and they should follow your demands."

  Nodding his head, the Devil pocketed the Metal Talisman; "Thank you Yasaka." he then gnced at Neptune and signaled with his head towards her, prompting the purplette to slowly approach the group and wait quietly behind Antares; "With this, you can consider the matter mostly settled for my part." Antares closed his eyes and took a deep breath to temper his chaotic emotions; "I just want one more small thing…"

  "Hmmm…" hummed the fox deep in thought before signaling with her hand; "I am willing to listen, you were slighted today, so….".

  Antares nodded, his gaze passing through Shi-Woon and Ichiban, and set on the knocked-out Yakuza; "I don't suppose I can ask for his head?" Ichiban and Shi-Woon instantly went to protest, but a bone-crushing wave of Natural Energy pressed against them, stopping both Humanoid Dragons from moving or even speaking.

  Yasaka turned a little more serious; "... I am afraid that's an internal Yakuza matter." She briefly closed her eyes; "Not even I can execute them because someone said so-"

  "Fox." Antares interrupted, his patience wearing thin and his Wrath rearing its ugly head; "He threatened to run a train on my Queen, My Family." Antares growled out, his voice raspy and on the verge of shouting. He also could swear he started feeling the weight of Shamash on his hand, a hair trigger away from appearing.

  Shi-Woon's own Draconic Aura exploded outwards, breaking Yasaka's hold on him; "Lies, all Lies!"

  "Shut up." Yasaka instantly cut him, reapplying the pressure back. Ichiban, relying on his experience, wisely remained quiet. The fox turned towards Shi-Woon; "Do you have any idea how bad it looks on you, on our jointed faction, when you are defending," Yasaka pointed out at the Green Yakuza; "This Scum?"

  "He is a Devil, of course, he is lying." Gritted out the Ptinum-haired boy, generational hate shining in his eyes.

  "I am a Senjutsu master, boy," she added with a heavy reproach; "He did not lie. I would've known if he had done so." Antares felt a little bit guilty, even if all that he said and felt were genuine.

  "And it would do you well to remember–" Yasaka gritted her teeth but still maintained her composure; "The Devils are our allies now." Shi-Woon paled a little.

  Yasaka slowly walked towards the downed Yakuza, and with a swift kick using her Senjutsu, she woke him up.

  "WHA-" The Green Dragon instantly saw a very irate Yasaka before him, and before he could even speak, she plunged one of her cws into his ribs. "Tell me, boy." Yasaka almost growled out, a few of her Kitsune features turning sharper and very deadly looking; "Shimano Kizu, If I watch the camera tapes from the Batting Center…" The green Yakuza gulped, the look of fear in his eyes intensifying quite a bit, but Antares could something quite concerning hidden in his gaze –disgust, at Yasaka.

  Easily seeing through the man before her, Yasaka's gaze turned harsher; "Will you have been a polite, honorable, and respectful young man as is required of a member of the Shimano Family?"

  The man snarled; "I only treated them," the man almost spat the word, "With the amount of politeness their kind deserves."

  Yasaka shook her head as if absolutely done with him. With a sigh, the fox woman made a few hand-sings, half a dozen talismans made of golden fox fire flew and hit the man into each one of his limbs –the man gasped, entering in panic at the sight of the talismans, his mouth moving hastily but no sound was emitted.

  Yasaka shone in golden fire for a moment—looking akin to the middle morning sun—and made another set of hand signs, turning the talismans into solid steaks of a shining golden metal, the steaks impaled in the man's limbs, but not even a drop of blood was spilled. With another wave of her hand, golden chains erupted from the bottom end of the steaks and completely wrapped the Green Yakuza.

  Turning to look towards Kuoh Academy, Yasaka's expression turned grim before twisted into one of determination; "Kage, Tora, Ushi, Uma, please escort Mr. Shimano to Prison Cell 47." she spoke towards the air.

  Four people fully dressed in bck with porcein animal masks suddenly appeared beside Yasaka. Antares almost jumped away, his muscles tightening ready to defend himself as much as possible –these people were basically living shadows, they didn't emit any sound or smell, and their presence was a bnk for all of Antares' senses bar his vision. They felt just like Yasaka when she was one with nature.

  Without even gncing at anyone in the street, the quartet power walked toward Kizu, pulled him up, and disappeared. Antares' anger started to dissipate slightly, seeing the instigator was going to be punished greatly relieved him, but he was not an idiot –they still hadn't signed any contracts, yet. He decided to not think about the fact that the Yokai had super Sage Ninjas under their employ, at least not right now.

  Still trying to maintain his civility, Antares half bowed towards Yasaka; "Thank you."

  The fox woman smiled weakly; "... that bribe talk was all nonsense, wasn't it?"

  Seeing as the jig was up, Antares smiled back weakly; "It was."

  The Kitsune part of Yasaka wanted to kiss Antares for successfully tricking her like this, while her more rational part wanted to punch him up for giving her more work, but she supposed this was also her fault –if she had stopped things earlier, it wouldn't have escated to this point.

  Yasaka turned towards Shi-Woon, who was awfully quiet. The fox woman massaged her temples before sighing again; "I know you didn't go for the kill Shi-Woon," She started a little more softly before she closed her eyes and firmed her posture; "But you gravely wounded and attacked a Duke Heir from the Pilr Cn of Gremory—and for that—you will be judged."

  Shi-Woon frowned, the gravity of the situation finally drawing on him; "I… I just did what I thought was right," he gritted his teeth; "I saw one of my brothers being attacked by a Devil, and I–."

  "Ne ne ne," Started a feminine voice out of nowhere, sending chills down Antares' spine; "Did you start the fun part without me?"

  In an explosion of blue light that shook the entire street, a woman appeared –she had smooth bck hair done in a beautiful twin-tailed haircut held by two purple ribbons, and her eyes were of a pinkish-violet color that seemed to shine with amusement at the world before her, she wore a female bzer coupled with a sharp pencil skirt that rested just a little above her knees, giving her the appearance of a very professional office dy, but Antares knew her as anything but such.

  Ichiban's and Yasaka's expressions turned grimmer, they knew exactly who was before them. "Serafall Leviathan," Stated Yasaka with another urge to sigh, her carefully cultivated composure momentarily breaking.

  "That is indeed my name Lady Hirume," Serafall smiled, and Antares once again felt a massive chill go down his spine, a Serafall that isn't acting like a perverted magical girl? A serious Serafall? He briefly sent a look of pity towards Yasaka, something that made the fox woman's brows twitch in irritation.

  Completely ignoring the exchange between the Kitsune and the Gemory Heir, Serafall's smile tightened a bit; "Now I am sure there is a perfectly good and reasonable expnation about why would any of you attack one exceedingly important member of the underworld."

  Ichiban lowered his head, as Shi-Woon's teacher and Guardian he felt partially responsible for this mess. Yasaka cringed, knowing there weren't any viable excuses she could possibly make at the moment.

  "But before we start our very productively and undoubtedly fruitful talk," Antares could almost taste the irony in the woman's words; "I need to have a few words with Heir Gremory."

  Serafall turned and scanned Antares, almost wincing when she saw his state –malnourished, probably from the excessive use of his weird regeneration ability, tired, droopy eyes, low mana, and equally low Ki reserves. She supposed that anyone who had such big battles back to back would feel like this, the Satan could see he was in no condition of going through the political shitstorm that will follow, he needed to rest.

  Serafall looked Antares in the eyes; "Go home Heir Gremory." Antares raised his eyebrows towards the Yakuza and Yokai. Serafall sighed; "I can see how tired you are." pointed out the Ice user.

  "If it is required of me, I can still go on for quite a while, Satan Leviathan." Answered Antares in a polite tone, his Goetia of Gravity cycling his remaining Ki to revitalize his body as much as possible.

  "Your presence won't be strictly necessary, for now at least." she shook her head; "As the Satan of Freign affairs, this is my responsibility." She briefly gnced at Neptune before turning back towards Antares; "So go home, eat a hearty big dinner, and have a good night's sleep, you will need it tomorrow."

  "Tomorrow?" Asked Antares while scratching his head.

  Serafall chuckled; "Do you think this will be over today?" She was almost cackling by now.

  Antares winced; "That bad?"

  The Magical Girl raised her eyebrow; "Yes." Antares could almost taste the future tiredness in her voice.

  "And don't worry about them," Serafall indicated the Yokai and Yakuza with her head; "I will bleed them dry." An evil smile formed on her lips, a smile that told Antares he needed to run –now.

  "Before I go," started Antares a little hesitant; "What about my brother? He hasn't answered any of my messages…"

  Serafall winced, and replied with carefully chosen words; "He is in a pce that doesn't have service."

  Antares froze, with the Devilnet on and about, the only pce that someone like Sirzechs will not have service is– realization finally dawned on his face; 'Did brother go to the Dimensional Gap to train?' he added inwardly while making a mental note to thank Sona ter, as she was probably the only reason Serafall arrived so fast.

  Before he could reply, Antares saw a small magical circle lit up right beside Serafall, but none of the two Devils panicked as they both recognized the Beelzebub symbol engraved on it. After a fsh of green light, a fsh drive beled Footage appeared on the ground. Serafall sighed, drew her phone, read a couple of messages, and then picked up the fsh drive.

  She then looked at Antares and Neptune; "Sleep well, I will go fetch you two at 9 a.m. sharp tomorrow." Serafall then waved her hand and created a Teleportation Circle under them –and in a fsh of blue light, both Devils were gone.

  Turning towards the Kitsune and Red Humanoid Dragon, Serafall adopted a very pin expression that hid a mountain of malice, tiredness, and frustration; "Now, can someone please expin to me why–"

  .

  .

  .

  ~Razen Antares Gremory~ In a fsh of blue light, both Devils arrived home—more specifically in Antares' office—Neptune instantly jumped into his embrace, her hug as strong and tight as she could make it; "Thank the CPUs you are Okay." She almost sobbed; "I was so worried for a moment. I know we fought worse, but then I saw so much blood and broken bones that I–"

  "Rex Neptune, I am okay." Comforted Antares with a small smile while patting the girl's back; "As you said, we fought worse and survived." He then paused and pursed his lips; "And while it may not look like it, he didn't go for the kill today –I would've been dead otherwise." He sighed; "Shi-Woon just wanted a beatdown, so he held back quite a bit."

  Neptune deadpanned; "He blew off like… half of your torso? That's a murder attempt in my books."

  Antares shrugged; "I walked it off."

  Neptune felt her left eye twitch in irritation; "You don't get to act all worried and concerned about me and not allow me to do the same mister." She huffed; "What's all that big talk about family? Aren't you part of the family as well? Isn't your well-being a concern as well?"

  "I-I…" Antares felt a little confused at such a sudden concern, in his own mind the wounds he received weren't that much of a big deal, after all, Shamash was way worse. But he is mature enough to recognize he can be wrong. "Sorry, I never thought of it in that way…" he then briefly scanned his office, his mind spinning for a few moments; "Did Eu tell you about the Extermination Contract we did in Brazil?"

  "She did." Neptune pursed her lips; "She also mentioned you were wounded… very badly."

  Antares nodded and summoned his Cleaver of Shamash; "It was mostly self-inflicted, mind you," he carefully passed his finger on the middle of the bde, making sure it stayed dormant; "One single use of Shamash here, and bam, I had the sun in the palm of my hand."

  Neptune chuckled; "I know that reference," before immediately feeling bad due to the seriousness of the subject—but she was never one for much tact to begin with—not that Antares minded it

  Seeing Neptune's guilty expression, Antares chuckled as well; "No need to feel bad, I said it like that on purpose." he then sighed; "You can easily imagine what happened to me when I activated and swung this sword, right?"

  The purplette winced; "Yeah, I can…"

  "Thanks to my regen and a lot of other factors, I managed to survive." Antares then pursed his lips; "You can see now how I would see having my torso blow off to be a 'small matter'."

  "Yeah, I can." Conceded Neptune calming down a bit; "But that doesn't mean you can discard your well-being like this." She then hugged Antares tighter; "So… promise you won't treat yourself so poorly like this, please?"

  Antares closed his eyes and sighed; "I can't promise that Neptune." he then massaged his temples; "The training that I do on the regur is basically a survival hazard to anyone without absurd regeneration."

  She sighed, admitting defeat; "... At least let me and Eu take care of you."

  Antares smiled; "Of course. You two are family." Neptune smiled brightly.

  Separating from Antares the Purplette plopped down in one of the chairs, letting out a tired sigh; "Changing subjects a bit… Who was that blonde Kitsune? Was she the one you told me to call?".

  Plopping down on his chair, Antares scratched his arm; "That was Yasaka Hirume, she is basically the Jointed Japanese Faction Overseer for this territory.", Antares paused and rexed a bit more; "And yeah, I thought she would help us deescate the situation without much issue." Neptune winced, Antares ughed tiredly; "As you can see, it didn't work."

  Remembering the Kitsune woman Neptune narrowed her eyes, her womanly instincts were telling her she was dangerous and was infringing on her territory.

  "Well, as unpleasant as some events today were, we still got a good haul." Seeing Neptune's questioning expression, Antares smiled; "… I learned a Ki Circution technique.".

  Neptune's eyes sparkled; "Are you a cultivator now!?" She asked excitedly.

  "No. More of a Martial Artist." Expined Antares making Neptune slump; "It still gives you plenty of cool abilities, but nothing absurd. It's basically a technique that helps you distribute and circute your Ki."

  "That's fine." Conceded Neptune; "Super Martial Arts are still pretty cool."

  Antares chuckled at the girl's disappointed tone; "Don't worry, If I am not mistaken a Ki Circution technique should be able to help us awaken our Touki."

  Some light returned to Neptune's eyes; "Cool! Touki does sound like it's an awesome thing. But what is it exactly?" She asked with an excited smile.

  "It's your Fighting Spirit, the External Manifestation of your Life Force., Antares then stopped and pondered, using his Goetia to try to find the best words; "… you can think of it as something quite simir to Armament Haki, in use and some effects at least.".

  Remembering the way Shi-Woon used his Touki in the fight, Neptune nodded her head slightly; "It's not the same. But I can understand where you are coming from; it wraps around the user like a thick aura, increases offense, defense, and speed of the user, and-".

  "It also allows you to hurt someone with a slight touch, and that is not even counting the more 'immaterial' stuff as well. As long as it has lifeforce in a way, Touki can touch it." Completed Antares with a smile.

  "So a discount Haki that uses your lifeforce, Got it." Concluded Neptune a little smugly. Antares snorted with a smirk.

  Cupping her chin, Neptune grew curious; "How does one go about awakening it?"

  "Well, I know quite a few ways…" Admitted Antares a little unsurely; "Some are just rumors and specutions, but they should be possible." Neptune picked up a chair and dragged it towards his side, the redhead just smirked and reclined on his presidential chair, groaning inwardly in relief due to his tired body. He was grateful to have some respite from the mess outside.

  "Shoot." Neptune cutely demanded.

  "The first and easiest way to awaken Touki is…" Antares did a very dramatic pause; "To be born with it." Neptune almost facepnted, she then groaned and looked at Antares; "Meanie."

  Chuckling, the male devil continued; "While my tone may have indicated otherwise, I am 100% serious Neptune. Some species of Yokai, especially the rarer and more powerful ones, tend to be born with their Touki Awakened. Yasaka, a Kitsune—albeit being born with Touki is more of a thing for those with 7 tails and up—is a good example of that, albeit I think her skill with Touki is mostly linked with Senjutsu."

  "Senjutsu?" Neptune asked with an expectant voice.

  Antares' smile widened; "It's basically like Naruto World Senjutsu, but more mystical and flexible in a way." He then paused and grimaced a little; "…Okay, I fully admit it's more complicated than that. But it serves as a good improvised summary for now. Remind me to expin it in more detail to you ter."

  "Hn." the purplette cutely nodded.

  "Going back on Touki.", Antares cleared his thoughts; "Another way I know of awakening it is to eat a—for a ck of a better word—'Heavenly Treasure' or 'Immortal Herb'. Something like the Golden Apple of Idun, a Peach of Immortality, a cup of Amrita, Hera's Breast Milk, and so on."

  Waving his hands and summoning two cups filled with a strawberry milkshake, something Neptune gdly took, Antares continued; "And while the conditions to eat or drink some of this legendary stuff may vary, and so do the specific effects—they can in fact—awaken your Touki."

  Salivating a little, Neptune licked her milkshake mustache; "They must taste, Divine.", Neptune chuckled at her own joke.

  Smirking, Antares nodded; "They do. Everyone who ever ingested them only has praises to their taste and benefits." Then the crimson-haired devil slumped a little sadly; "Unfortunately, the Pantheons guard them with an unmatched zeal, and only reward their bravest and most loyal heroes with a portion, and rarely, the full thing."

  "That's a bummer." Neptune pouted before acquiring a pondering expression; "… I wonder what a milkshake using Hera's Milk or Ambrosia would taste like?".

  "You… I like the way you think." Antares shook his head; "Another way of awakening your Touki is via an Artifact."

  "Artifact!?"

  "Yup, something like Avalon, the Scabbard of The Excalibur; The Holy Cross *ought* before it was Broken, The Holy Grail, The Fountain of Youth… albeit that is more of a consumable now that I think about it, and there-".

  "I got it Antares, there is no need to go further." Neptune chuckled and smirked knowingly; "You really like Mythology, don't you?"

  "I do." the Gremory Heir admitted happily; "Now, the fourth way is through a Ki Circution/Distribution Technique… these kinds of techniques mostly help you Awaken your Touki, not directly, but they theoretically allow you to undergo an Overhaul Rebirth, a literal legendary event that will allow for your Touki to be automatically awakened."

  "... Overhaul Rebirth? What is that?"

  "It's an incredibly rare medical phenomenon where excessive Ki inside a body rearranges the bone structure, organs, veins, meridians, and your physique in general so it can become the Ideal Body for Martial Arts. It is often referred to as a miracle." informed Antares in a pin tone, before continuing sadly; "And a Devil will never be able to enjoy it."

  "Awwwnnn, Overhaul Rebirth sounded so awesome." Neptune defted, her milkshake momentarily forgotten; "It has a cool name, a cool effect, and it is super rare. It has Protagonist Power-Up written all over it." Antares just made a knowing face at Neptune, prompting the purplette to narrow her eyes at him. "Spew your secrets Foul Demon!", the gamer girl cutely said.

  Antares chuckled; "Sure…" he paused and then smiled; "Have you ever heard of The Breaker?".

  "The Breaker…, Neptune pondered, tapping her fingers on the arm of her fancy chair; "Hmmm…I swear to the CPUs I've heard that name somewhere." She mumbled a few incoherent words under her breath before her eyes snapped open; "OOOOOHHHH, I remember that one. I was actually pretty excited because their Martial Arts looked pretty interesting, but the protagonist was such a disappointment I didn't get very far." She then stopped and looked at Antares; "Did it get better?"

  "Yup." Answered Antares sincerely; "Mc grew quite a bit, and there are quite a few good fights. I think Part 3 is kinda trash, however." Antares' smirk turned slightly wider; "Do you remember the name of the protagonist?".

  "Oh, I do. It was a Korean name, something like Xin-Zhoon? No, not that one… Xau-Khun? Nah, this one doesn't sound right either… Ahh, I think It was Shi-Woon." Neptune instantly froze. She robotically turned towards Antares; "Please, for the love of the CPUs, don't say we are in a frigging multicross, of all things!" she pleaded in an exaggerated desperate tone.

  "Okay." Antares agreed; "I won't say then." And stayed silent.

  "Har, har, har." Neptune rolled her eyes; "Very funny Mister Devil."

  "We are in a Battle Harem meest Multicross, Neptune." Expined Antares while finishing his strawberry milkshake and picking a vanil-fvored one.

  The purplette visibly rexed; "Okay, that is a little bit better." She mumbled while finishing her milkshake, which Antares quickly refilled from his stock.

  "Oh, care to eborate?" The male Devil pressed.

  "Sure." The girl agreed; "Battle Harems are better because they almost always have a happy ending. The true happy ending, where everyone is content, fulfilled, and happy." Antares had to stop and ponder about it, and he couldn't help but admit the girl was right, rarely, if ever, did he see a Battle Harem with a sad ending. Albeit he watched or read an awfully low number of them, now that he thinks more deeply.

  "Do you know how many worlds we have on our multicross?" asked the purplette very reasonably.

  "Honestly. I have no idea." Antares admitted pinly; "I was only able to Identify The Breaker, Yakuza, and perhaps a few Characters from Fate here or there. But do be aware they have been mixed with the supernatural world of Draconic Deus, so they may have either become stupidly overpowered or have another power system entirely.".

  "Fate huh…" Neptune mumbled deep in thought; "Hope the conceptual BS didn't carry over."

  Antares made a so-so gesture; "Kinda. This world has a bunch of conceptual stuff, albeit I don't think it's on the same level of the Nasuverse." Antares then remembered about Ikusautsuwa-no-Oomikami and opened a picture of her he had saved the other day he was researching the Kyuubi; "Here.", he gave Neptune his cellphone; "Check this out, she is the leader of the Yokai."

  Neptune nonchantly picked up the cellphone and upon ying her eyes on the picture she instantly paled, her body froze up and she accidentally dropped the cellphone. Antares was instantly on her side, a comforting hand resting on her back; "Are you okay Neptune?"He asked concerned, offering the girl a cup of fresh Mana Rich Spring Water.

  Gulping down the cup's content, Neptune calmed down for a bit; "Okay. I can guess you never pyed Fate Grand Order, right?"

  A little confused about this question, Antares raised his eyebrow; "No, I didn't. But I've pyed Extel, read a couple of fics, and saw some art."

  Neptune chuckled; "I will expin it to you ter then." She rexed a bit; "We will need quite a bit of time for me to expin Grand Order fully to you. But it will be worth it, considering the massive amount of ideas it will give you."

  "Okay. I can appreciate that." Chancing subjects a little, Antares returned to the previous topic; "How about Yakuza?" He then chuckled and added; "All I know is meme culture.".

  "Pyed Yakuza 0, Kiwami 1, and 2 but never more than that." She then paused and took a sip from her milkshake; "Heard some good and bad stuff about the Like a Dragon franchise, but never pyed one. Albeit now I wish that I did."

  "Talking about Dragons… What is that Dragon transformation stuff Shi-Woon showed?", asked the purplette hoping for an answer.

  Antares pursed his lips; "All that I know are some rumors my brother let slip in some family dinners." He then finished his vanil milkshake and picked a mint-chote-fvored one; "Apparently the Yakuza discovered a way to transform people into Humanoid Dragons. The process is kind of random, or at least that is what the spies were able to gather."

  "Random?"

  "Yeah, by all accounts, whenever someone undergoes the procedure to turn into a Humanoid Dragon, the type of Dragon they turn into is completely random." Antares sipped his milkshake rather loudly; "It can be anything from a Golden Dragon, to a White one. Albeit White Dragons are far from being considered the weakest in Draconic Deus."

  "Huh, does it follow the DnD Dragon Charter?" the purplette mumbled a question while deep in thought.

  "Kinda. From what I know the Dragons someone turns into are very random indeed, to the point DnD doesn't cover plenty of them." Antares then paused and grimaced; "Albeit if they followed the DnD charter, Shi-Woon would be considered a Dragon God."

  Neptune winced as well; "Yeah, he had Ptinum Scales, and the only Dragon who had those was-"

  "The Dragon God Bahamut." Antares completed with a solemn nod.

  "... Those Humanoid Dragons sound awfully simir to Artoria's Dragon Factor and Dragon Core you know? Shi-Woon even used Mana Burst." Neptune started and then cupped her chin; "Albeit, differently from Artoria, they can transform into Dragons."

  "Huh, now that you point it out… they really do, huh," mumbled Antares deep in thought.

  The duo stayed silent and enjoyed their drinks for a moment, earnestly appreciating each other's presence.

  "Still don't understand why I can't have my cool Protagonist Moment with Overhaul Rebirth.", fake whined Neptune, breaking the silence and earning a chuckle from Antares; "You remember what I expined about our origin as Devils, right?" Asked the male Devil.

  Neptune paused and understanding drew on her face; "Ooohhhh, we were created to be the perfect killing machines by Luci. And that includes the Ideal Physique for that."

  "Yup." Antares nodded; "All Overhaul Rebirth would do was maybe correct some minor defects and awaken Touki. So it is still useful, but not as much as it would be for a normal human. Albeit on our case, it is even more useless due to our Company Perks."

  "... you won't see me compining about having my Ideal Body and Immortality, that's for sure," Neptune admitted shamelessly, instantly tossing this Overhaul Rebirth business behind her.

  "Where were we at again?" The redhead politely asked, earning a chuckle from Neptune; "You were expining the ways to awaken Touki. And then we got sidetracked…".

  "Ah, yeah, that." Fake coughing on his hand, Antares refreshed his memory with his Goetia; "There are only two more ways that I know to awaken Touki. One of them is through Inner Peace, but that is considered the most difficult way, even more difficult than all those I've mentioned above. From my knowledge –only Bodhisattvas, Buddhas, and Martial Gods have achieved Touki through such a state. Which funnily enough, is kind of worthless to them, as most of them who reach such lofty states have long since awakened their Touki."

  Neptune deadpanned; "Inner Peace, really? Are we in a Kong Fu Panda movie now?" She joked.

  "Well… Werebeasts do exist, albeit they've become quite rare in modern times.", started Antares a little smugly, earning an eye-twitch from Neptune; "So maybe in Ancient China there was–"

  "That's nonsense and you know it." Interrupted Neptune with an eye roll; "The concept of Inner Peace is pretty common in many mythologies, religions, and Martial Arts. We both know that." Antares faked a pout, making Neptune's eyebrow twitch even harder.

  "You just wanted to make fun of furries, didn't-",

  "Moving on." interrupted the man, shamelessly ignoring Neptune's totally reasonable point; "The st way I know how to awaken Touki is –exercise.".

  "Exercise? That's it?" Asked Neptune befuddled.

  "Yup." Confirmed Antares with an emphasis on the 'p'; "Not normal exercise, of course." He then picked up his cell phone from Neptune's hand and put the Surtr Training on the screen; "It needs to be the really grueling type." Giving his cellphone to the purplette, she read what was on the screen and widened her eyes; "The type where you constantly break your limits, where at every turn you are pushing yourself even further beyond."

  "Plus Ultra?" Neptune joked good naturally. Antares snorted; "Yeah, you got the spirit."

  "That is the most common method, as it's something that is literally accessible to everyone. Be them a Devil, Yokai, Angel, Djinn, Pegasi, Werebeast or a Human." Humming while finishing his milkshake, Antares continued; "The only person who I personally know that achieved this is my cousin Sairaog. And he took years of grueling physical training to do so."

  "But due to its "accessibility"." Neptune made quotation marks with her hands; " I can imagine it's the most used one?".

  "You got it right." Antares concurred; "I think I've yet to talk about Senjutsu, but like I've said before, that is another whole can of worms that will take time to properly expin. And I am honestly pretty tired and hungry right now."

  Neptune chuckled and nodded; "Understandable."

  "I don't know about you–", started Antares while getting up; "But I am famished after that battle. Wanna eat?" Suggested the red-haired Devil with an inviting smile.

  "Thank you Antares, but I am still kinda full, so I will just take a bath." And suddenly Neptune was completely cleaned, as if she has never been dirtied in her entire life; "… okay, this is fucking weird."

  "It takes a while to get used to it." Agreed Antares with a small smile; "But you can still take a bath if you want to, far from me from stopping you." Antares then blinked a little owlishly, suddenly remembering something rather important; "I will deposit your stuff in your room before I go, don't worry."

  Neptune smirked; "You almost forgot, didn't you?". Antares nodded a little sheepishly; "Yeah, I usually don't carry stuff myself and mostly use the delivery service."

  Exiting the office, the duo went towards Neptune's room. "Just drop everything in a single pile above the bed," Neptune asked while looking around her room.

  "Are you sure? I could always help you-"

  "There is no need." Neptune interrupted smiling softly; "I like going through my stuff and organizing things. It's just like making my base in a new survival game, it's half of the fun."

  "Well, if that's what you want…" Antares shrugged; "If you change your mind, you know where to find me." Nodding at Neptune he deposited all that she bought today on top of her bed. The Force user then walked to the exit of the room, opened the door, and stepped forward when-

  "Antares…", Neptune suddenly called, making the male Devil turn his head towards her. "You… You were really cool back there, you know?" Said the purplette with a face-wide blush.

  "Thanks." Antares smiled, feeling a little awkward as he rarely, if ever, gets compliments like these. Not knowing how to proceed, he just nodded and exited the room. Walking down the hallway, Antares couldn't help but mumble to himself; "You were pretty cool as well, Neptune."

  The purplette, who now had very sharp senses, heard Antares words and blushed while burying her head in a pile of clothes.

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  Arriving at the kitchen, Antares decided to inaugurate Faerie Feast. The first thing he did was tone the Perk Down, as making people addicted to his own food sounds quite scummy to him, but even with the addictive part of the Perk severely turned down, Antares still has the ability of a world-css chef.

  But then, he still held himself back from instantly activating the perk, he could, of course, turn it on, and on autopilot and make the most delicious food in the entire country. But he doesn't want that, half the fun in cooking is the process, and doing everything automatically would rob him of that.

  So he tried to activate his Faerie Feast, but just as a guide, a sort of very enthusiastic teacher that was guiding his actions, but never doing them for him. Nothing happened at first, Antares' own inexperience with the recently bought Perk rearing its ugly head, but the perk was nothing if not intuitive.

  He could feel the perk's 'need' to guide his actions, and now, he just had to think about a pte to make. Pondering a bit, Antares decided to start with something simple, so he settled on Steak, Eggs, and Fried Potato. The moment he settled on the pte he wanted, Faerie Feast instantly provided him with the best recipe, giving him hundreds of options and variations he could make with all the ingredients and tools he had avaible at the moment. It was a little overwhelming, but with two Goetias to process and analyze the information, Antares quickly started to cook.

  First, he started with summoning the ingredients from his Pocket Appartament and ordering a few stuff on the Devilnet as well. The ingredients slowly filled in the balcony made of smooth and shiny basaltic marble.

  Opening the massive double doors of his orichalcum-pted refrigerator, Antares picked 3 arm-sized Giant Pink Cow steaks –fetching a massive cutting board made of Spring Ash mahogany, Antares put the first stake on top of it, creating a Force Pilr, the Devil then put the other two steaks on top of it while he focused on the first one.

  He decided to forego any kind of spice, herb, or any other kind of fvoring –opting to only use coarse salt. He could feel Faerie Feast huffing inside his mind at the many missing opportunities, but Antares decided to make a more simple and nostalgic meal.

  Covering the steaks with a few pinches of coarse salt, Antares set them on the grill and started preparing the potatoes. Simple slices and very few cuts, salt, light pepper, butter, and a few herbs. Collecting everything on a baking sheet, Antares put it in the oven.

  "These instructions are actually quite good." He mumbled in a low tone with a hint of admiration. His cooking skills have never been that great, but with the guiding hand of Faerie Feast, Antares felt extremely comfortable cooking, like he was in his element.

  Flipping the steaks, Antares had the brief idea of using his newfound Herrscher of Fme abilities to cook, but Faerie Feast immediately shut it down, apparently his control of them is so poor, that he might as well burn half his kitchen to a crisp before he even starts cooking the steaks. Not to mention his minor issues with fire. Memories of his body burning to a crisp from inside and outside fshed in his mind, memories of holding a sun shaped as a sword in his hands, memories of-

  Stopping the unpleasant train of thought, Antares refocused on cooking, flipping the steaks and making sure none of them was overcooked. He noticed the charcoal on the grills was already in its ember phase—something that pleased the newby cook—as the ember phase of charcoal on the grill is where the best grilling of the meat is made.

  He tapped the steaks with a thin and small Force Pilr, making sure the thick of the coarse salt fell off them. Flipping the steaks once again, he repeated the same action. Feeling a little thirsty, Antares summoned a beer bottle from his Pocket Space, looking at the bottle he let out a nostalgic smile, he considered himself rather lucky he found this specific brand in such a chaotic mix of a world.

  Picking two 300ml cups he filled them both, taking the right one, he took a sip, and the familiar taste assaulted his tongue. In the corner of his eye, he saw someone –he was a tanned well-built Italian man, with bck hair, bck eyes, and a full greying beard, his arms were wide and muscur, and his hands were rough and calloused from years of hard work. He wore a paint-stained short-sleeved white shirt, and bck shorts that ended above his knees, on his left knee one could see multiple surgery scars, telling a lifetime of battle against a work accident that cost way too much. On his feet, he wore old green-colored flip-flops that had been repaired way too many times and were barely hanging on.

  Still maintaining his usual gruff expression, the man picked up the other cup and took a big gulp, briefly closing his eyes and appreciating the familiar taste. The man then turned and indicated the grill with his head, prompting Antares to nod and continue grilling the steaks. The man carefully observed the Devil cooking, only offering a prompt by pointing a finger when a steak needed to be flipped.

  The man then pointed at the pan cabinet, prompting Antares to nod his head and pick a big frying pan. Turning the stove on, he put the frying pan on top of it, sprinkled a little bit of Autumn Olive Oil, and fetched a few Henritchean Ostrich Eggs from his refrigerator. The man seemed to indicate Antares to hurry up, and the boy swiftly complied.

  Breaking the shells, the devil let the eggs fall on the frying pan, picking a little bit of shredded parmesan cheese, herbs, and soft spices, he sprinkled them on top of the frying eggs.

  Picking one of the medium rare steaks, he put it on a big white pte, and with slow movements he deposited the fried egg on top of it. He did the same with the other two steaks and also did not forget to pick up the potatoes from the oven.

  Setting everything on the table, Antares looked to his side, only to see the man gone. His expression fell a little, and a slightly sad smile adorned his face, he looked towards the grill and saw the other beer cup was still filled to the brim –untouched.

  He picked it up and went to sit on the table, cutting a piece of the steak with his fork, no need to use knives as it was that easy to cut, he put it in his mouth and closed his eyes. A storm of fvors assaulted his senses—it was absolutely delicious—the familiar taste, the sharply and carefully cut meat, the soft rare interior with a well-cooked exterior; it perfectly matched his tastes –but above all, it was nostalgic.

  With his eyes still closed, Antares reminisced about these past moments with a smile on his face.

  "It has been a while… Dad.".

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  AN:

  Yo, another Chapter here my readers, hope you liked it.

  It was quite a bit difficult for me to write those more political scenes, I am no politician, and neither do I enjoy Politics –even in fantasy settings. But It was necessary for what I wanted with the story, so I went with it.

  I hope I gave them a game between Yasaka and Antares justice, while our boy tried his best to tell half-truths true enough they wouldn't ping on Yasaka's senses, the Fox woman was thrown for a loop by the confusing bribe narrative, not to mention our dear Lady Hirume growing crush on a certain redhead, hehehe.

  In this chapter, we can also see a problem that has been brewing since Antares used Shamash, his sense of self-preservation is well, garbage. But character development and lots of love are here to fight that, so let's pray for our boy's well-being.

  Well, about the Yakuza and Yokai, as some of you may already have deduced, their union wasn't as harmonious as some parties made it to be. And if they asked for a year on their treaty with the devils–as stated in previous chapters–there is a reason for that, let's see who will figure it out first. :)

  As a few of you pointed out, the Yakuza are absolutely ruthless to themselves, they take Honor and respect very seriously… and I will leave it at that, no need for even more spoilers.

  Answer:

  I would go with Restoration(Healing + Self-Heal is busted for training), Alteration(It's just my favorite school of magic from the Elder Scrolls period), and for the st one I will go with Thu'um (Sword Singing or Tonal Architecture would also be a bst, but Thu'um is simply way too versatile for me to not get it, it's basically Divine Words Dragon edition.)

  ~ClearSkySage