Dxd: A demon Among Devils

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It had taken Belial flaunting its immense demonic power to make him think the way he thought. This one made him think things a magnitude darker by simply existing.

He would not allow it to manifest. It would be disastrous to do so. But still, by merely lurking behind the thin veneer that was the wall separating the mind between reality was enough for its existence to be felt. Like spilled ink he could sense its essence spreading into the room, drowning the inhabitants with its presence, eroding their resistance with its black malevolence.

There was a crash behind him as the female devil that had offered him refreshments gave in to the sudden, irresistible urge to kneel. Broken glass scattered and the porcelain lid of a teapot rolled away. The hauntingly eerie sound it made as it traversed the floor in wobbly patterns was the only noise that could be heard over the silence that had settled.

"Oh my," Sirzechs smiled.

"You feel it too?" Lord Phenex murmured, and he could not help but notice the man's words were slightly slurred.

"It is demanding my obedience," Diehauser's face carried a bemused expression as he watched the other maids bend knee one by one, their bodies trembling as they tried to but could not fight the command of a higher power, "I can defy it, but it is not a pleasant feeling, by any means."

"No," Lord Gremory agreed. The slight twitch in the fingers of his left hand was the only outward sign that showed he was affected, "it is not."

He allowed the Persona to linger for a second longer before banishing it from his mind. Even then, it did not go quietly. It faded from his conscience slowly, almost tortuously, and the dark, vehement chuckle that it left echoing in his head taunted every fiber of his being.

He shook his head to clear it, and was unsurprised when he finally looked up to see those that had fallen to their knees had gotten to their feet once more. The girl that had dropped the plate, the one that had been first to kneel, scrambled up behind him, and pressed her back against the wall. The fear on her face was painfully obvious.

"Which one of the Great Satans was that?" the Emperor asked. Excitement flashed in his eyes.

It was none of them.

He knew of Lucifer. Of Beelzebub. Of Asmodeus and Leviathan. But he did not recognize them as these devils recognized them. They were powerful kings of Hell, rulers of vast portions of the Underworld, but they were not Satans as he knew of them.

There was only one Satan.

"Your Four," he said slowly, "… they had to answer to something."

The weight of his words was almost as heavy as the stillness that followed.

"That's it then," Diehauser finally said. The grin on his face was almost feral, "That's all the proof we need," turning, the descendent of Belial spread his arms wide in a magnanimous gesture, "My fellow Pillars and Lords, I have a proposal."

"A proposal?" Lord Phenex tore his gaze away from him, "Now that is interesting."

"Indeed," Lord Gremory nodded, "it is not often you hear a proposal from the Emperor."

Sirzechs noticed his puzzled look and smiled.

"All proposals from the Emperor tend to be interesting."

If at all possible, Diehauser's grin grew wider.

"I propose we confer the title of high-level devil to the human, Minato Arisato, along with his right to peerage as well as any other rights his new status might imply."

Now that was intere-… Wait… What?

"As I've said," Sirzechs said lightly, seemingly amused by the whole situation, "All proposals from the Emperor tend to be interesting," the devil winked at him again, "I second the proposal, by the way."

Somehow, he felt incredibly betrayed, and did not know why. It must have shown on his face, for Sirzechs chuckled in response.

"There are tests for these type of things, Diehauser," Lord Phenex protested, "Not that I disagree with your decision, but this flies in the face of tradition."

The Emperor laughed.

"The boy holds the Primordial Aspect of Belial inside him and can call upon others even more powerful than that," the man's eyes gleamed, "What tests could we offer him that he would not pass with flying colors?"

Lord Phenex leaned back, his expression thoughtful.

"I am human," he tried to argue.

"No, you are not," Diehauser said cheerfully, "You are Nephilim. And I will not have Heaven grant you your due before the Underworld does."

If that was supposed to make him fall silent, it worked. His eyebrows rose at such a bold declaration.

"We are just gifting him titles now?" again it was Lord Phenex who voiced his opinion, "The lad is powerful, there is no doubt, but with all due respect we cannot just give him titles on a whim, especially ones that belong to legends and tales."

"Have you not wondered, old friend," was the response the head of Phenex received, "why he can call upon the greatest devils, the greatest amongst us and not fall under our sway? Humans can be turned into devils. They can be resurrected into devils. But they cannot go back to being human. The process is irreversible. That is how the system works," the man's gaze fell upon him, "Now enter one who cheats said system, one who can hold the presence of a devil inside him to trick an Evil Piece into believing he is one of us, one who after doing so can return back to his normal state without consequence. That, in itself, is the definition of a Nephilim. A human who cannot be influenced by the sway of Heaven nor Hell, yet wield both their powers together with impunity.

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