{Present, Devil's Meeting Assembly of Lucifaad}
—Elmenhilde Karnstein—
She was having a harder time than she wanted to admit. When she first came to the devils' world, she was confident.
She had come armed with evidence of a violation — the Old Satan Faction interfering with the Tepes. She was sure everyone would see it the way she and Queen Carmilla did. Either the devils would help them against the Tepes, or they'd offer enough support and compensation for Carmilla to stand a chance.
Everything fell apart the moment Valerie started playing with the numbers — and when the devils denied any ties to the Old Satan Faction.
In minutes, every trump card she'd held vanished. Her last hope crumbled the moment Valerie Tepes produced the treaty.
Her cold, undead heart felt even colder; it was already racing more than it should for a vampire. She felt lost, crushed by the thought of returning to Queen Carmilla with nothing but failure.
"You do realize what you've done, right?"
She heard the only woman in the seat of Satan say it, looking straight at the devil who'd decided to support Carmilla and was now undoing the Tepes' web.
"I know," the devil — possibly the youngest lord — sighed. "It'll be difficult. Maybe it wasn't the smartest move."
"It wasn't smart," Satan Beelzebub said sharply. "You don't know what Rizevim has planned, or what the Tepes faction has planned. Rizevim isn't an enemy you can beat, even with the powers you've gained."
Her lips pressed thin. One devil lord's support was nowhere near enough.
"And don't forget the Tepes also have a Longinus user," the oldest of the devils, Zekram, added. "We still don't know what that Longinus does."
All eyes turned to her. She shook her head.
"We've only recently learned about that Longinus," Elmenhilde said, clearly frustrated at how little she knew. "But we do know it's a support type."
"That narrows it down," the red-haired Satan said to the green-haired one. "Doesn't it?"
"It helps, but not enough for Faiser to pull this off," Beelzebub replied.
Most of the lords had left by then, leaving only the Satans, the progenitor of the Bael pillar, the Lord of Bael, and an extra demon — Mephisto Pheles.
"He doesn't have to do it alone," Lord Bael said. "As hard as it will be, if he can work with the Carmilla faction to gather proof that this all ties back to Rizevim's plan to overthrow the Satans, then we can act."
"Didn't they…" she spoke up, aware of the weight of blood pacts. "Sign the pact? You can't go against a pact made by the True Ancestor."
As the crowd mulled it over, the girl sitting beside Faiser spoke up.
"What if… what if you don't have to prove that the Tepes faction is supporting the Old Satan Faction knowingly, but unknowingly?" She glanced at her King, making Faiser raise an eyebrow—just like everyone else in the room.
"What do you mean, Ingvild?" Falbium asked, curious.
"What if we prove that Rizevim is using the Tepes faction without them realizing it?" she explained. "If we can show that, then while we can't fight the Tepes faction directly, we can go after the Old Satan Faction—while the Carmilla faction handles the Tepes."
That idea almost clicked for everyone. Everyone except Sirzechs.
"Rizevim is the most thorough enemy I've ever faced. He doesn't leave loose ends," he said flatly. "This won't be as simple as it sounds."
'Is there really no way?' she thought, helpless. 'The combined strength of the Tepes and the Old Satan faction—plus Rizevim—is something we can't handle. He's said to rival Lucifer himself… a monster.'
While the room churned with possibilities, Faiser came up with something. Something that reminded her she wasn't just surrounded by underworld nobles, but by devils—the most shrewd race alive.
"We don't need actual evidence," he said. "We just need believable evidence."
"What do you mean?" Lord Bael asked. But it wasn't Faiser who answered.
It was the Bael progenitor. The old man chuckled. "You really are his grandson. False evidence. Enough to be convincing and push us into action, but not enough to be shot down immediately. By the time they try to disprove it, we'll already be facing the Old Satan Faction."
She could only stare in silence, caught between awe and unease.
She wasn't innocent herself—noble vampires were no strangers to dirty politics. But her kind's scheming usually stayed between one or two houses. Here, Faiser was talking about playing both the Tepes and the Old Satan Faction at the same time.
"It won't be as easy as you make it sound," Serafall warned, and she found herself agreeing with the Satan. "Rizevim's a terrifying strategist. As much as I hate to admit it, he's sharper than me and Sirzechs. Only Ajuka and Falbium can really match him."
"I know," Faiser admitted. "But I'll figure something out. And I can't do it without learning more about the factions."
He finally stepped toward Elmenhilde. "Which is why I believe you and Queen Carmilla are the best sources of information."
She hesitated, and he seemed to catch that right away.
"To make you feel a little better," he smirked, "the Tepes faction isn't the only one with a Longinus user."
She blinked at him, confused—until he slid his arm around the waist of the girl beside him. His queen.
"My queen happens to be one as well. And a strong one at that."
Her eyes widened, shock and relief rushing through her all at once. Beyond surprised, she was grateful.
"You mean… we stand on equal ground?" She had been hoping for this moment for days, and now, the devil lord who had chosen to help her also had a Longinus user at his side.
"Not counting the Old Satan Faction, but against the Tepes alone? We do," he said with confidence.
"But… you don't have a proper army, do you? Legions?" She had heard he'd only recently become a lord, and as the head of two fallen pillars, his forces couldn't be that large.
"A few that the Satans helped me gather, but not much of an army." He shrugged. "But don't worry. I'm bringing back someone who can stand against legions on his own."
"Who?"
"My rook," he said. "It's finally time I get him back."
* * *
{Late Night, Skies over the City of Tepes}
—Rizevim Livan Lucifer—
Rizevim was one of the few devils who could destroy an entire faction with raw power alone. Long ago, he had already surpassed his father, the original Lucifer, though very few knew the true extent of his abilities.
Only two had ever faced his full might: Ajuka Beelzebub and Sirzechs Lucifer —the False Satans.
And once this plan succeeded, his power would eclipse even theirs. With just the artifact —the flesh in the Tepes' possession— he could topple devil society itself.
And in doing so, finally settle his rage against the boy who stole the Asura Heart.
Gliding through the night without unfurling his wings, Rizevim looked down on the vampire world —its castles, its foolish king. He couldn't fathom how that king had survived this long, especially with his own son plotting his downfall.
Then he felt it: another presence, vast and undeniable, approaching from afar.
The vampires wouldn't see it. Perhaps a few strong ones would sense it, might notice the massive shadow cast by wings that blotted out a portion of the city. But none would truly understand. That was the difference between them—the weak—and those like him, and the being arriving now.
"You'll scare the vampire children," Rizevim said without turning. "With that form."
The newcomer laughed, wings spread wide, its voice like a roar.
"Since when did you care about bloodsuckers?"
But Rizevim didn't flinch. "I don't want them scared. Not yet. Not until I get what I want." He cast a glance at the massive figure—scaled, heterochromic-eyed. "For now, all they need is trust. Trust in me."
The dragon chuckled, folding its wings and shifting into a human shape. Black-and-gold hair, mismatched eyes, a handsome but dangerous face. "What about after?"
"After?" Rizevim smirked. "Then you're free to do whatever you want, Crom Cruach. Whatever you want."
The King of the Evil Dragons—the strongest of them all, a being on par with the Heavenly Dragons—laughed, a sound that shook the night.
"That's what I wanted to hear, Rizevim. That's what I wanted to hear."
Because to Crom Cruach, nothing else mattered.
Nothing but endless battles.
A life of war.
A life of bloodshed.
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{A/N: Got a pat reon named RedLamp01 with 30+ chapters for this story (60+ total).
Till Chapter 79 available on Pat reon for this story and till Chapter 35 available for DxD: Black Dragon Emperor.}