Algernon understood the silence perfectly. It was consent.
A cold, absolute resolve hardened his gaze. He didn't wait for a verbal answer. With a decisive, brutal exertion of his Law of Space, the very fabric of the Meeting Hall tore itself apart. A massive, warping vortex of pure spatial energy enveloped Algernon and the four ruling devils. The speed and force were so overwhelming that the Satans, caught mid-decision, had no chance to resist the teleportation.
In a sickening lurch of reality, the five of them were ripped from the political capital and deposited onto a new stage—a desolate, chaotic dimension where the skies were perpetually churning and shattered debris of ancient, lost worlds floated in the murky atmosphere. This was a place reserved for absolute destruction.
The Satans immediately stabilized themselves, their forms instantly manifesting their protective auras. Serafall Leviathan, recovering quickest, looked around the desolate, hostile landscape.
"You brought us here alone," Serafall stated, her expression a mix of awe and stern disbelief. "Are you sure you don't need your peerage, Algernon? Issei and Kuroka are powerful allies."
Algernon turned to face them, his black armor shining against the desolate backdrop. He gave a slow, arrogant, and thoroughly wanton smile—the look of a king looking down on everything.
"If I cannot crush the current rulers of the devil race by myself," Algernon stated, his voice ringing with power and finality, "then I, myself, would doubt if I am worthy to be the sole ruler of the devil race."
Sirzechs Lucifer inhaled slowly, his immense, crimson aura—the Power of Destruction—flaring to its maximum limit. His initial grim face now terrifyingly calm. There was no negotiation here, only a final, violent test of sovereignty.
"Your confidence is monumental, Algernon," Sirzechs stated, his voice now calm, yet laced with terrifying power. "But you challenged all four of us and we will show you why we hold these seats."
The very air turned molten and crimson. Sirzechs didn't hesitate; he shed his physical form and went into his ultimate state: Destruction Mode. He became a colossal, churning vortex of pure Power of Destruction, a moving singularity of annihilation aimed straight at Algernon.
Simultaneously, Ajuka Beelzebub launched his counter-strategy. Complex, crystalline formulas of his unique magic erupted across the dimension, not targeting Algernon's body, but his mana pathways and the rhythmic flow of his power. Ajuka sought to disrupt the timing of Algernon's Destruction Law and throw his attack rhythm into disarray.
From the flanks, Serafall encased the air with immense blocks of ice, trying to restrict Algernon's lateral movement, while Falbium projected heavy, dense shields of light-absorbing energy to slow his reflexes.
The combined attack was swift, coordinated, and utterly devastating. Algernon met the onslaught with a powerful eruption of his own Destruction Law, coating his armor in a protective, scarlet layer. He successfully neutralized Serafall's ice and Falbium's shields, but Ajuka's disruptive formulas were too quick and too intricate.
A brilliant formula flared directly beneath Algernon's right shoulder, momentarily severing his precise control over his aura. That single fraction of a second was all Sirzechs needed. The colossal vortex of destruction slammed into Algernon's flank.
A sound like grinding mountains filled the dimension. Algernon staggered backward, his crimson armor cracking audibly, and a ragged, deep cut opened across his chest, spilling dark, powerful blood onto the desolate ground.
The momentary pain brought a terrifying focus. Algernon ceased all direct offensive power and centered his will entirely on his absolute command: Spatial Law.
"A brilliant coordinated effort," Algernon admitted, a trickle of blood running down his lip. "But you fought with power. I fight with structure."
He began to subtly manipulate the very boundaries of the dimension. Ajuka's complex formulas, which had been tracking Algernon's chaotic mana flow, suddenly found their targets slipping away. Algernon used micro-warps and hyper-compression fields to dodge the formulas, making his location irrelevant to the space around him.
He then targeted Sirzechs, the greatest physical threat. The colossal, churning mass of destruction was still surging forward. Algernon didn't try to stop it. Instead, he created an inverted spatial field directly in front of the Satan. The Destruction Mode energy, designed to annihilate matter, suddenly found its own space folding violently back in on itself.
Sirzechs' form of destruction, trapped in the closing spatial prison, was forced to consume its own energy, rapidly shrinking the massive aura until Sirzechs was forced to violently solidify back into his human form, spent and backlashed by his own power.
With Sirzechs neutralized, the battle was decided.
Algernon executed his final, devastating move. He unleashed a massive field of Dimensional Severance. This wasn't teleportation; it was a surgical dissection of the battleground. He isolated the three remaining Satans—Ajuka, Serafall, and Falbium—each within their own small, self-contained pocket dimension, impossible to breach without their own immense power or weeks of concentrated effort.
Algernon stood alone in the center of the ravaged field, his chest bleeding, his armor cracked, but victorious. he exerted his Law of Space once more, tracing invisible lines across the dimension.
With a series of precise, surgical warps, he yanked the defeated Satans from their dimensional prisons. Ajuka Beelzebub, Serafall Leviathan, Falbium Asmodeus, and Sirzechs Lucifer materialized near him.
All four were utterly spent, their auras diminished, but they did not struggle. They knew Algernon had won. Their silence was the concession of the war. Due to their terrifying vitality, their wounds rapidly vanished, and they returned to their normal, regal appearance, but remained perfectly still, waiting for the scarred and triumphant victor to deliver his decree.
Algernon looked at them his gaze cold and absolute.
He issued his first imperial command, giving them no room for dissent. "I need all prominent devils—every clan head, every high-ranking noble, and every political leader—gathered in my castle in Athelgrad until midnight. Not tomorrow. Tonight."
He paused, letting the sheer scope of the logistical nightmare sink in, before offering a final, chilling assessment of his new allies.
"I think you should know that devils acknowledge strength above everything else. I don't expect you to follow me in everything," Algernon stated, his tone flat and analytical. "But I know for sure you won't betray the devil race. That is the only loyalty I require."
The Satans remained silent. Their simultaneous, infinitesimal nods confirmed their immediate, unwilling compliance.
_______________________________________________________
The city of Athelgrad, usually a cold, disciplined hub of martial law and grim architecture, was tonight transformed. It was bursting with activity, bathed in brilliant magical light that caused the granite buildings to shine against the night sky.
The presence of so many teleportation arrays and high-ranking auras created a palpable energy—an atmosphere of forced grandeur masking deep, collective fear.
At the heart of the transformation was Azeroth Clan's castle. Its massive, dark walls were lined with thousands of silent guards, reflecting the gravity of the unofficial summoning. Every clan head of the devil families and every prominent devil was present, compelled by the undeniable authority of the compliant Satans.
The great hall was a sea of velvet, silks, and ancient armor, a volatile mix of the powerful and the terrified. Among the nervous nobility were the new generation, their eyes sharp and their curiosity more evident: Rias Gremory, Sona Sitri, and Sairaorg Bael stood with their peerages.
Rias stood with her peerage, her face etched with deep worry. She kept her voice low, leaning close to Akeno, who was outwardly calm but whose eyes never stopped glancing around the room.
"Akeno, I don't understand," Rias whispered, clutching the fabric of her dress. "Brother told us this was a necessary 'gathering,' but we are here at Athelgard. This isn't neutral ground, this is Algernon's Territory. Why this sudden, mandatory summons here?"
"We can't guess the reason," she replied, her voice low and steady. "We can only wait here."
"But Algernon..." Rias continued, her brow furrowed. "This morning, he told you, we would be invited to a ceremony."
A collective, silent shock was flowing through the assembly, and the focus of every eye in the hall was on the dais at the far end. There was no sign of the traditional four thrones of the Great Satans. Instead, at the end of a newly arranged red carpet, stood a single, towering throne.
It was generously decorated, crafted from obsidian, and shining in a deep, menacing black color. The assembled nobles were silently unified in their realization and their dread, wondering why there was only one seat instead of four.
_____________________________________________________________
The waiting period shattered not with a grand explosion, but with a silent, absolute command.
A massive, crimson surge of Law of Destruction washed over the great hall, instantly silencing every whisper and freezing every movement.
Algernon appeared, stepping out from the grand entrance of the hall. He walked onto the red carpet—the path to his throne—in long, measured, confident strides. His black armor, no longer showing the cracks and bloodstains from the battle with the Satans, was fully repaired, radiating immense, controlled power.
Following directly behind him were Kuroka and Issei, their expressions solemn and focused. But what sent the thousands of assembled nobles into utter disarray, paralyzing them with fear and disbelief, was the sight of the four figures trailing the triumvirate: the Four Great Satans. They were dressed in regal armor that were not their usual attire and they followed Algernon's lead.
Algernon, utterly unaffected by the variety of stunned, hateful, and terrified gazes, kept his pace constant.
As they reached the dais, the Four Satans stopped advancing below the stairs leading to the throne, standing as immobile sentinels. Issei and Kuroka continued up the steps, positioning themselves respectfully on either side, one step behind the single, black throne.
Algernon reached the seat of power. He turned slowly, looking out over the silent, terrified assembly for one final, comprehensive moment. Then, with the weight of centuries of power and ambition, Algernon soon got seated on the throne.
He settled back against the obsidian, his immense Super Devil aura filling the entire hall. He still had no visible emotions on his face, surveying the thousands of prominent devils below him with a calm, absolute gaze.
Algernon finally focused his attention on the four figures standing below the dais.Sirzechs, Ajuka, Serafall, and Falbium immediately registered the command in his eyes. Their regained calmness was not defiance, but resolute acceptance.
In a display of profound, agonizing humility, the Four Great Satans moved with a chilling synchronization. They dropped heavily to one knee, and lowered their heads. It was the ultimate, public act of submission.
The effect was instantaneous and overwhelming. The combined pressure of Algernon's aura and the psychological weight of the Four Satans' submission slammed into every devil in the hall. The air grew impossibly heavy, the atmosphere thick with dread.
Sweating profusely, the spirit of the resisting devils began collapsing. Many of the lower-ranking nobles and ministers groaned, their bodies yielding to the pressure, falling to their knees against their will.
But some, fueled by pride and ancient lineage, fought the inevitable, their muscles trembling as they desperately tried to remain standing.
Algernon watched the slow, painful process of conquest. He observed the remaining pockets of defiance, his gaze utterly tranquil. He needed to leave no doubt. He needed the submission to be absolute.
He finally inhaled, and his voice, though still low, was amplified by his will, carrying the crushing weight of his Law throughout the fortress.
"KNEEL"
The single word was a gravitational event. The pressure intensified a thousandfold, becoming not just force, but a dimensional command. The remaining defiant devils gasped, their spirits snapping under the pressure, and they instantly collapsed onto the marble floor.
Every single devil in the vast hall was on their knees, save two. Rias and Akeno who are still not able to comprehend what's happening before them remained standing, without any pressure, shielded by a silent, protective layer of Algernon's power.
(END OF CHAPTER)
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