300 powerstones extra chapter as promised. Enjoy!
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It took him a while and a half to recover as he groaned himself back to a seated position.
"Phoenix Tears?" I offered him a vial as an olive branch.
"No." He rejected it, but I could tell the message got through from his expression.
"You won, boy." He sighed, gesturing me to move on, "Go on state your requests."
"Well, if you insist." I grinned, "But before we begin."
I pointed at the vial of Phoenix Tears I had offered him.
"For your discretion. Not one word of this gets out, what has happened and will happen here today." I scanned the room, sending a warning with my eyes to all the nekomata elders in the room, while Magari shamelessly swiped the vial off the table before I had even finished speaking. "If anyone asks, Magari-chan won a bet against Nura-san and we were just here watching him be a sore loser."
"Nyo need to worry nya! We're tight-lipped cats here, yeah?" She looked back at the elders and they all nodded in unison.
"That's reassuring." I thanked them, "Now for my paid requests."
I took back all but two of the vials of Phoenix Tears we had bet, and pushed them to Nurarihyon.
He picked them up and stored them in the sleeve of his kasaya as he spoke.
"Go on."
"My first request is a little complex. I want you to kill Glenda, Witch Of The South. She is a part of the Wizards of Oz." I slid him a slip of paper with the coordinates, "This is where their headquarters are, Emerald City, in the Dimensional Gap."
He raised a curious eyebrow at that.
"Assassination? What is complex about that?" He memorized the coordinates and burned the paper.
"A few things. First, it must look like an accident, if possible, or an assassination by some other rival faction, the kind of thing that does not lead back, in any way, to us. No witnesses either."
"That's simple enough." He agreed.
"But before that, I want you to observe her for a week or so. See what she does, where she goes, who she talks to." I danced around the subject, choosing my words carefully, "I have reason to believe that she is doing something I'd rather she not. So if you see that she is about to adopt a child, or is preparing her home or a home, to welcome her, I want you to kill her before she manages to do that."
He understood immediately.
"And if she has already adopted this child? What then?"
"Kill her still, if possible, out of sight of the kid. We don't want her to be traumatized. But regardless, make sure to wipe the kid's memory and bring her to me." I tossed him a cell phone, "Use this to contact me. Tell me if the kid hasn't been adopted yet. We will go adopt her."
He nodded.
"Very well. But I must ask, why not just do it yourself? You don't know where this kid is?"
"Unfortunately not. But I know this, Glenda's intentions with this kid are not good. She is a cold-blooded monster who will do anything to advance her understanding of magic and sacred gears. This kid, she isn't adopting her to give her a home. She is doing it to experiment on her. To pick her apart, slowly, to further her own goals. So don't feel too bad about ridding the world of the monster that she is." I said this more for the benefit of Dulio and Sairaorg, who were sitting beside me, rather than anyone else in the room. Nurarihyon wasn't about to have second thoughts about killing someone after all. He was a youkai whose hands were stained in centuries of blood. One more wouldn't really matter much to him.
Nurarihyon understood this and wisely kept his mouth shut about it.
"And your second request?"
"This one's a lot simpler." I smiled, "All I need you to do is kidnap a mother and son from Lucifaad."
Nurarihyon's eyes grew sharper at the mention of the city and he leaned forward.
"You don't mean-"
"Yes. Them."
"You want me to sneak into the house of Lucifer and steal his grandchild and daughter-in-law right from under his nose? Are you crazy?"
"Don't tell me you, the great Diayoukai Nurarihyon, master of stealth, can't do it?"
"Just because I can, doesn't mean I will!" He protested, "Rizevim Livan Lucifer is not someone you can offend on a whim. He is a monster, in the truest sense of the word."
"And he will not care for it, even if you slaughtered his entire clan in front of him, much less kidnap two insignificant pests under his roof. He is utterly apathetic to everything that doesn't excite him." I countered, "Just don't get caught."
That was a blatant lie. This was the exact sort of thing that would excite that bastard. But it was a risk I had to take now.
Nurarihyon is the only one who can successfully evade Rizevim's senses and escape. More than that, he is the least likely suspect, because no one would imagine that Nurarihyon would do something like this. It simply makes no sense.
And he knows it too, the drama queen. Bet he just wants to extort more Phoenix Tears out of me.
Most importantly, I had to do this now, before it is too late.
I have no idea when he escapes his father or when his mother is mind wiped and spirited away to the human world. All I know is that he is thirteen years old at the start of Slash/Dog, which means he around six or seven now, and he trained in Grigori before that, but after escaping his abusive father. That is a seven year gap I know nothing about, and I can't exactly post a spy out there without showing my hand, the one thing that could lead to my doom. No, it must be done in secret and that I have no way of doing other than this. And I'll be damned if I let the crows get him first.
Besides, this way he'll get to grow up in an actual family and learn to be a person instead of a battle maniac.
"Don't get caught, you say! As if they will just come with me without protest!"
"They will." I smiled, and explained, "They are both being abused by the Razevan Lucifer. He beats them and starves them, their days are spent in torture and pain. If you offer them escape and respite, they will take your hand in a heartbeat. Just remember to pick up the mother first, so she can convince her son."
"But again, leave no traces. It cannot lead back to us." I added.
"No shit it can't lead back to us. Where will you keep them, where they will be unseen and out of his reach?" He asked, frustrated, "I cannot hide them forever."
"You won't have to. I will take care of that. All you need to do is get them to me unnoticed." I assured him, "Besides, don't tell me you don't like the excitement of the whole affair. Gets your blood pumping no?"
"It'll get my blood pumping alright, straight out of my body when he finds out what I have done and blows my head off."
"He won't find out. That I can promise." I assured him, "Just do the first request for now while I arrange for a safehouse for them. Then all you have to do is deliver them both to me and your role is done. No one will ever know it was you."
"You are a headache, you know that, boy?" He rubbed his temples and sighed, picking up one of the Phoenix Tears and downing it.
"Nyahahaha!" Magari laughed at Nurarihyon's misery, "Told ya he was a handful, didn't I, boss nyan?"
He gave her an annoyed glare and turned back to me.
"A murder in the Dimension Gap, a kidnapping in Lucifaad." He spoke, almost intrigued, "Now I'm really dreading your last request. What next, a heist on Heaven?"
He chuckled self deprecatingly, but that laughter died down when he saw my face.
"Well…you're not that far off…" I replied shyly.
I snapped fingers, my creating a slip of paper with my magic, imbued with a spell that only let it's intended recipient read it. A rather good use case for magic, a little anti-memetic biddy based again on Nurarihyon's own ability that I managed to analyze and create in the time it took him to recover.
Personally, I feel the people of this world don't use magic to its fullest extent, especially demonic magic. It was basically Arc Of Embodiment++ and they used it to throw fireballs and water whips and lightning bolts, and even when they get creative- quite literally, because it can be used to create objects from nothing- they only ever make swords or spear for temporary use. That's like if you had a green lantern power ring and all you used it for was to shoot green lasers and fly around- oh wait, that's exactly what green lanterns do these days.
What a waste of literal imagination magic, the kind of thing that can make your dreams come true, literally.
Thankfully, whatever brain bug had gotten most of devilkind had skipped me, and I can say, it was pure joy being able to use magic this way. Anything except holy attribute stuff, and I mean anything- even sacred attribute is allowed, if a bit weakened- was possible here.
I slid the paper over to him and he went over the request, then looked back up at me incredulous, as if his mind refused to believe what his eyes were seeing.
He looked back down to read it a second time. He looked back up at me. Then back at the slip. Then back at me.
Finally, he slumped back against a wall and gave in.
"I shouldn't have been so hasty about taking that Phoenix Tear." He muttered forlorn, and turned to Magari.
"Magari. The next time I make the mistake of drinking around this brat, just slit my throat. It'll be less painful."
"Aww~ Come on. It's not that bad."
"It's far, far worse!"
"You're being dramatic. It's just a simple escort mission-"
"Those are the worst kinds of missions!" He interrupted, annoyed.
"You game?" I was genuinely surprised.
"We're youkai, not savages. And we I need something to occupy my time. Life here is insanely boring. Even more so when you live for hundreds of years."
"Two favours." He tried negotiating, but I shut him down.
"You can't do this to me boy. Be reasonable." He begged, "Five favours."
"I am being reasonable." I argued.
"Reasonable? Reasonable and Preta Hell do not exist in the same sentence!" He shouted, at the end of his rope, "One does not simply walk into Preta Hell! The Hindu pantheon will have my scalp for this! There won't even be dandruff left of me once they're done with me."
"Wow. A little louder please. Why don't you announce it to the whole world?" I snapped back sarcastically, "Besides, that is if we get caught."
"You don't understand do you? Indra's eye sees all, it scours flesh and stone alike. Nothing is hidden from him."
That gave me pause. Maybe this needed more consideration.
"So you are afraid of something. And you still want to go through with it? Are you crazy- no of course you're crazy. You were born crazy! Your mother was born crazy-"
"Hey! No words on mother." I warned, my tone chilling.
"Screw you and the horse you rode in on. You're asking me to sign my own death sentence." He was down to rambling now, the alcohol he had chugged was finally hitting his systems, "So yes, your whole family is out of their kami damned minds!"
"Alright, enough wallowing." I relented, his looked up, eyes full of hope only to be crushed instantly, "We don't have to do it now. We can do it in a few years."
"Oh! Oh, such wonderful news! I can have a delay in my death sentence for a few years? How mighty generous of you, you fucked up little chicken shit piece of-" he finally broke and lunged at me.
Magari finally stepped in, separating us both.
"Enough boss nyan! You promised. And didn't you sneak into Naraka regularly back in the day. No need to be so dramatic. You're drunk. Sober up first."
"Back then I had help. Friends in high-" He stopped as a realization struck, "Ah! Boy, you might just be in luck."
"Why is that?" I asked.
"While I have been barred from entering Naraka again-"
"Because he kept riling the Rakshasas up into rebellion for shits and giggles." Magari commentated in the middle and he grabbed her by her tiny little face and squished it, even as she giggled like a little girl, flailing happily in his arms.
"As I was saying, before someone rudely interrupted." He noogied her, "I have a friend who may be able to help you. He is in the service of Indra now, so he has access to the seven realms of Naraka."
"Sun Wukong." I put a name to it.
"Great, you know him."
"Is there anyone who doesn't know the Great Sage Equal To Heaven?"
"Tch! That pretentious title…he used to lord it over me all the time, only to get put in his place by that young upstart Buddha." Nurarihyon reminisced.
"So…" I dragged him back to the point.
"He owes me a favour for stealing him some immortal peach wine from back in the day- good stuff- and I'll call it in. You can go with him and have your five minutes of flame in there. But never ask me for a favour ever again."
"Deal." I smiled, my mission fulfilled.
I got up to get on with my day- I had a trip to Kuoh to plan, a bunch of other stuff to practice, etc.- when suddenly everyone went stiff, as if on alert.
Steam wafted off of Nurarihyon and Magari as they purged the alcohol in their systems, and jumped to their feet.
"What's happening?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Someone's here." Magari said, "And they aren't hiding their presence anymore."
"You noticed too?" Nurarihyon smiled, his hand to his sword, "I was wondering how long he was going to keep quiet."
Thankfully, I had warded the room before we started talking so the contents of my deal weren't in danger of being leaked, but for them to be so spooked…
"Who the fuck is that?" I looked out and saw someone standing atop a tree in the distance, red and scaled, two gnarled horns coronating his temples.
Finally, I recognized him.
Mephistoheles' Queen.
Blaze Meteor Dragon King.
Tannin.
......
The deal is made. Bova Tannin enters the scene, and he just sucks at spying.
Tell me what you thought of the chapter.
Was getting Vali rushed? His existence won't be revealed to anyone of course. #secretpeerage
What would you suggest?
Thanks for reading.
The 3000 collections chappy is being written as we speak. Will be out in a few hours.
Till then, don't forget to donate your powerstones and if reach 600 powerstones, that's another extra chapter.
See ya~