Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
Serena POV.
I sat lazily on the edge of the crater where Shalba had been. Once I sold him, there was really no immediate danger that required me to act. The other members of the Old Satans faction would either surrender or be wiped out by the others; either way, it was all over.
And it wasn't just here; I'd been watching what was happening in Pentagram City and Lucifaad through the others. It seemed that everything had been resolved without any problems there as well. Lucius and Ravel were already dealing with the aftermath in the city, and there was nothing for me to worry about, so I simply sat back and waited. I really wanted to go find the Sacred Gears they had obtained by killing the devils of the old faction and had managed to seize.
There were several I was genuinely curious about. Like the Hekatonkheires of Seryu. Was it… was it really a Hekatonkheires? As far as I remembered, there were three of them: Cottus, Briareus, and Gyges. Each with a hundred arms and fifty heads.
The biblical God was exceptionally brutal. He had no qualms about using the bodies, corpses, and even souls of other beings to create Sacred Gears; countless examples existed. So it really wouldn't surprise me if one of the Hekatonkheires was transformed into a Sacred Gear, or all three.
At this moment, the Hekatonkheires was in its dormant state, a small sleeping dog, which, I'll admit, was… cute. Cute enough for Enid to have taken it in. I could only sigh as Enid practically ignored the monster that thing was.
Although… there wouldn't be anything wrong with her keeping it.
After I've experimented with it…
I mean, Stylish had been able to modify Hekatonkheires even in this world, at least from what I saw of Seryu's fight against the girls. And besides, Azazel and the fallen angels had also modified many Sacred Gears, so it was possible.
Hmm, I could do that later. If Enid decides to keep that thing, it would be good if that thing was strong enough to protect her in any situation.
Then there was Mastema. The Sacred Gear in the form of angel wings. I was genuinely curious whether they were real angel wings. If the Biblical God had been ruthless enough to create a Sacred Gear from one of his angels. I couldn't recall God ever tearing off or cutting off an angel's wings, not even Lucifer's.
Mastema was the name of a fallen angel; sometimes his name alluded to Satan, as they fulfilled similar roles. Even so, it was highly improbable that his wings had been transformed into a Sacred Gear, so it must have been a coincidence, but it wouldn't hurt to study the wings closely.
The rest was pretty normal. Well, there was Yatsufusa, but I wasn't really interested enough in necromancy to study it closely. The only Sacred Gear missing, and not present at all, was Wave. So I didn't even know if Grand Chariot existed here.
"It was about time they came." I said boredly, coming out of my daydream as I felt everyone approach me.
"Sorry, sorry, there were a lot of things to sort out and clean up," Azazel said playfully. I glanced over and saw Sirzechs approaching, with Michael, Rias, and her Peerage beside him. And to my surprise, Vali appeared as well.
"You arrived just in time," I said playfully, gazing at the sky. At that very moment, the dimension shattered, a massive hole opened in the sky, and Great Red emerged from it. I stared in awe at the Apocalypse Dragon. It was truly breathtaking.
I sighed once more before glancing sideways. I almost expected Vali to start talking, and he did, but to my surprise, he was speaking in Issei's direction. I raised an eyebrow at that. Did Vali still consider Issei a rival? I mean, the White Dragon and the Red Dragon were destined to be rivals, especially with someone like Vali.
But I figured that with all the time he spent training and fighting with the rest of my Peerage and me, he hadn't had the time or need to meet Issei. I could only hum.
"Ophis." I said simply as Ophis appeared beside me. Oddly enough, and to my surprise, she wasn't looking at Big Red. Given Ophis's hatred for Great Red, it's truly astonishing that she's ignoring him. I looked at her closely and saw her, still clutching the calcified apple from the Final Shape in her small hands.
"Join me, return to the silent world." Ophis said, looking directly at me. I just raised an eyebrow.
"No, thank you." I said easily, without even hesitating. Ophis's eyes trembled slightly; her expression didn't change, but she did seem bewildered and confused. She hadn't expected me to reject her.
"I wasn't asking you," Ophis said dangerously. I just snorted amusedly.
"You think you can force me? I remind you, I'm the only one capable of calcifying objects to that extent. I don't think anyone else can replicate it, so you can't kill me. And forcing me to do it will only make me less inclined to do it. You won't accomplish anything," I told Ophis easily. Ophis looked frustrated.
"I want silence," Ophis said, almost like a tantrum. I just stared at her. I took a deep breath, slowly stood up, and dusted myself off before looking Ophis directly in the eyes.
"I HATE that silence," I told Ophis, completely and utterly honest. Her eyes widened slightly. I could even see the urgency on Sirzechs, Azazel, and Michael's faces, and Vali's near horror. And they wouldn't be wrong. Truly, rejecting someone like Ophis so bluntly was tantamount to suicide. But Ophis wouldn't do that, not when I was the closest thing to getting her the silence she wanted, or at least something equivalent.
"But... silence." Ophis said, frustrated, as she gripped the calcified apple even tighter. I just hummed softly.
"The silence you seek... is the silence achieved by the absence of everything that made sound possible in the first place. And that encompassed absolutely everything. All of existence makes noise." I told Ophis. Her eyes shone with recognition, or perhaps emotion, that someone finally understood her. "What I am capable of doing... I call it Final Shape."
"It is... to crystallize something in a 'perfect' and immutable moment. To stop change. To stop the senseless cycle of action and reaction. An eternity calcified in the final form. Timeless. Immutable. The object exists, but it is beyond reality... Silent."
"But I hate it," I said, almost vehemently. "I am the GARDENER." The words came out before I could register them. My words carried enormous weight as they resonated around me. "I am the one who sows possibilities, the one who breaks stagnation, the one who adds new rules through complexity and growth. I seek a diverse, unpredictable, and constantly changing universe. Without end, an evolution full of possibilities—that is who I am," I said firmly.
I could feel my entire being resonate with my words. It wasn't necessary for anyone but me to understand; I was sure no one would, but it didn't matter. Those words mattered only to me.
I loved magic, mysteries, the supernatural; it was the very core of my being. But… but I was also more. I was the Gardener. I AM the gardener.
"If you want an analogy... I cultivate." I continued, looking her in the eyes. "I plant seeds. I watch them grow. I change the soil when necessary. I prune the branches that threaten to destroy the rest of the garden."
"But I never stop growth," I said firmly. "If you force every flower to stay exactly as it is..." I continued. "If you prevent a single leaf from falling. Suppose you don't allow a seed to become something different. If you stop every change, every accident, every possibility..."
"You get... that," I said with disgust, staring at the calcified apple. "Perfect... unchanging... And dead," I said coldly. Everyone fell silent.
"It's not dead," Ophis finally said.
"No. That's precisely the problem," I said bitterly. "It exists. But it will never change again. It will never rot. It will never grow. It can never become something different. And I hate it." I said through gritted teeth. "I like what you call 'noise,' if that noise means something is alive. Noise means something is moving. That something is changing. That something can fail. And it also means something can improve and grow beyond its limits." I finished my monologue with emotion.
"I want silence," Ophis said. I could only look at her with pity. She seemed truly frustrated by everything, almost anxious, almost hopeful. For her, silence was home, a home she'd been forced to leave because of Great Red. And Final Shape might not be her home, but it could give her the solace she so desperately needed.
"I know." I said sadly.
"Then give me silence," she said, almost desperately. I just stared at Ophis, and now I could see her much better than before… despite her power, despite her having lived so long, despite being one of the most powerful beings in this universe… now I could only see someone who had lost her home. I breathed heavily, looked back at the calcified apple, and felt nauseous. I couldn't… and I didn't want to.
"I can't give you that silence," I said finally, without any hesitation. "I'm not going to destroy the garden so you can hear what the absence of flowers sounds like," I said without wavering. "I love the noise you hate, Ophis. I love that things change. I love that they fail. I love that something that exists today can be completely different tomorrow. I love that the rules change, and I love making them change."
"I can't give you that silence, because that silence implies calcifying all of existence. Silencing it. And I refused to do that." I told Ophis; she almost seemed defeated. "But... perhaps I can create a place where you can rest." I said finally. Ophis's eyes stared at me.
"A home?" Ophis asked, staring at me. I smiled for the first time.
"A new one," I told Ophis. She just stared at me. I chuckled. "Although I don't know if I'll be able to create it, so you're free to continue with your original plans regarding Great Red," I said honestly. Ophis glanced at me, then at Great Red still flying through the dimension, then turned to stare at me. Finally, she nodded, and then Ophis disappeared. I sighed wearily.
" Hey, hey, hey, what was that?!" Azazel asked urgently. "You don't make deals with Ophis! Do you even know what you've gotten yourself into?" he asked quickly. I chuckled.
"Of course," I said curtly with a strained smile.
"Do you think... Can you do it? Create a home for her outside the dimensional gap? " Sirzechs asked, frowning. I shrugged.
"No idea," I said honestly, then smiled broadly. "But it'll be really interesting to figure out how to do it. That's the fun part." I said as my eyes sparkled. Azazel just shook his head with a wry smile.
"Some would tell you it's crazy to find that funny," Sirzechs said dryly. I shrugged and started to speak when I saw Michael staring at me, his eyes wide and full of… reverence.
"Fa-"
"Michael!" Azazel said suddenly, forcefully. "Come on, we need to finish organizing the armies!" Azazel said, placing his hand on Michael's shoulder before dragging him away from us and teleporting away. Michael followed, staring at me, until he disappeared.
"Is everything alright with Michael?" I asked, confused. Sirzechs smiled crookedly.
"Yes, everything is fine with Michael; he looks like he's doing well. If you saw him around, you'd say, 'Hey, Michael looks really good!' Why? You think it looks bad? It's ridiculous," Sirzechs said quickly with the same strained smile. I just raised an eyebrow. Sirzechs clapped his hands loudly and turned to face Rias. "Alright! Time to go! " Sirzechs said loudly. I huffed and walked over to them.
"I'll return to the city. Khaos Brigade also attacked Pentagram City, so I have to take care of it." I told Sirzechs easily, which made him freeze. In fact, everyone froze and turned to look at me in surprise.
"The city of the succubi was attacked?! We have to do something!! We can't let paradise be destroyed!" Issei exclaimed loudly. I sighed; it seemed the shock of almost seeing Asia 'die' had already passed.
"Right, you mentioned it; I was forgetting," Sirzechs said, frowning.
"Is everything alright? Do you need help? " Sirzechs asked quickly, becoming serious. I shook my head.
"No, the attack is over," I told him honestly. "No harm done; my Peerage dealt with them easily. Still, I need to be present for the aftermath and all the other politicking." I said with a grimace. Sirzechs did the same.
"My condolences. I'd say I'd help you with that, but I have to do the same myself," Sirzechs said curtly. We looked at each other with pity. We both sighed wearily. I created a portal to Pentagram City and crossed through it without hesitation.
"Sera!" Enid squealed the moment I appeared. "Can we keep him?!" Enid shouted as she lifted the Hecatonchire. The small white dog with black ears, fast asleep from inactivity, was shaken from side to side by Enid as she held him in front of my face. I just snorted.
"You really know what that is, don't you? " I asked dryly before relaying all the information about the Teigu to Enid. She just kept staring at me with those big eyes, then tilted her head, looked at the dog, and looked back at me.
"Bella is scarier, and I sleep with her," Enid finally said before shrugging. I opened my mouth to say something, then closed it and sighed.
"Touche," I said playfully. "You won this time," I told Enid, shaking my head as I smiled. "And yes, you can keep it, but—" Enid interrupted me with a squeal before hugging me tightly.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Enid squealed with happiness. I smiled lovingly and placed my hand on top of Enid's head.
"You're welcome, but it's up to you. You can keep it, but only after I've checked it, undone the changes Stylish made, and finished customizing it for you," I told Enid easily. She just nodded happily, not caring.
"Of course! What should I name it? " Enid asked excitedly, already forgetting everything else. I just smiled.
"Should I change its shape? Get a different type of dog? A cat? " I asked Enid curiously. Enid stopped and looked closely at the small dog.
"No, it's perfect like this," Enid said with a wide smile. "Although I wouldn't mind dyeing his fur so we coordinate," Enid said excitedly. I snorted playfully.
"We'll see. For now, he'll remain asleep until the Sacred Gear merges with you, so leave him at the mansion. I'll let you know when everything is finished," I told her. Enid nodded, then ran off toward the mansion. I watched her, amused.
"I see you still can't deny them anything, so we'll have a new pet," Lucius said playfully. I snorted.
"It barely counts as a pet." I said curtly, ignoring the first half of that statement, because, well, there was very little I'd say no to if any of the girls asked me. "So, everything went as planned?" I asked Lucius. He just laughed, but nodded.
"Everything went perfectly. Distracted Globe didn't suffer any damage whatsoever. The city only had a few buildings damaged, nothing that couldn't be rebuilt in a couple of hours. No civilians were harmed; some Aurors and Stars were injured, but Enid healed them almost immediately, so nothing permanent."
"Nothing happened in Lucifaad either. As it was, Bella's attack didn't hurt any civilians. Although there's still the problem with the Lucifaad assassin groups who killed Honest and the other devils, which we obviously know nothing about," Lucius said with amusement. I rolled my eyes.
"Alright, give me a quick rundown while we're walking. Let's get this over with quickly. I really want to play with those Sacred Gears." I said curtly as I started walking. Lucius laughed, nodded, and started walking behind me.