DxD: The Heir of Asura

{Late Evening, Sacred Gear Research Facility}

—Rizevim Livan Lucifer—

When the siege was launched, Marius was one of the few who believed it wouldn't be enough to take down the Carmilla Faction.

His father, however, was confident they would be crushed. After all, he had spent a fortune training his troops and arming them with the most advanced weapons and armor the vampire world had ever seen.

"Father is furious," Marius muttered, leaning against a pillar.

Even though he had known from the start it wouldn't be enough to defeat the Carmilla Faction, he hadn't expected such a miserable loss. They hadn't even managed to cut down half of the Carmilla's numbers.

"How many did you lose?"

The voice belonged to none other than Rizevim Lucifer. King Tepes believed the devil was off gathering his forces, but in truth, Rizevim was standing in the laboratory of his son—staring at three massive glass capsules.

"Around half the army, give or take," Marius answered. "Far too many, if I'm being honest."

Rizevim turned his head slightly, a faintly amused look on his face. "That is indeed more than what I expected."

The truth was, Rizevim and Marius had a different plan than King Tepes. Rizevim wanted the King to suffer a little before joining the battle—just enough to prove that his help was far more valuable than the King realized.

As for Marius, he wanted his father's incompetence exposed to the faction, ensuring their support when the time came to move against the King.

Both had wanted this battle to end in a loss. But neither of them had expected it to turn out so pathetic.

"Did you watch the battle?" Rizevim asked. "What happened?"

He had been busy with the three capsules, while also micromanaging the Old Satan Faction. He hadn't bothered to pay attention to the first clash. There hadn't seemed to be a need.

But when Marius answered, he found himself annoyed for not watching.

"As we feared, one of the devil pillars joined the Carmilla side. They found a loophole in the treaty," Marius explained. "And to make it worse, that devil pillar had a Longinus user and the son of Tannin backing him."

Rizevim paused, his expression tightening into a scowl. "Faiser."

Marius blinked at the name. "You know this devil? Then again, of course you would. You're a devil too—one of the original four."

But Rizevim said nothing more. His face turned unreadable.

When King Tepes first reported that the Carmilla Faction had secured the support of a weaker devil pillar, Rizevim expected it to be one from the lower houses—someone insignificant. That was why he hadn't paid much attention.

Now, knowing it was Faiser, he felt a stab of annoyance. He had been too wrapped up in his experiments to give the matter the focus it deserved.

"Did the soldiers record the battle?" he asked. "Magic crystals should be able to replay it, shouldn't they?"

Marius nodded. "It won't be that clear—we only managed to save a handful of soldiers—but it should be enough to see the battle if we extract their memories into a crystal."

That made Rizevim look a little relieved. Marius didn't notice it, but the truth was the devil was more than just annoyed at the mention of Faiser.

He was furious. But somewhere in that anger, he was also glad it was Faiser.

'Who would have guessed you'd walk to your death on your own, Faiser?'

The Asura Heart he had been searching for so desperately had finally appeared before him. Just an arm's length away to snatch.

"How long before these can be deployed?" Marius asked, staring at the glass capsules.

"Soon," Rizevim said with a pleased voice. "They'll be ready soon. And when they are, I'll need your sister's Longinus."

Marius didn't reply. It didn't matter to him what Rizevim did to his sister. In the grand scheme of things, Valerie Tepes was nothing more than a tool. Both to him, and to his father.

"And once they're ready, I'll require the flesh," Rizevim reminded. "It's more important to me than a simple artifact."

Marius still didn't understand why Rizevim valued it over all the other artifacts, but the devil clearly knew its worth. To him, it was beyond anything the vampire world could offer.

"Well," Marius crossed his arms. "As soon as you revive these three Evil Dragons in the capsules, the flesh is as good as yours."

Rizevim smiled. "Of course."

After all, what were three undead Evil Dragons compared to the Flesh of Asura?

* * *

{Nighttime, Carmilla Estate}

The situation was calmer than I expected. Less noisy than when humans get drunk, more controlled. That didn't mean there weren't shuffles here and there—there were plenty—but overall, it was tamer than I imagined.

Maybe because not everyone could enjoy the deaths of their friends and family. Or maybe because it took alcohol far stronger than this to get vampires truly drunk.

Whatever the reason, I liked it. Not too somber, not too loud.

"Drink, Lord Faiser!"

In that cozy moment, I heard Bova's laughter. He didn't need nearly as much alcohol as vampires to get drunk, and his face was already bright red, almost matching his hair.

"W-We won this war!"

That set off cheers among the vampires, excitement quickly overtaking the lingering gloom. Winning while keeping casualties low was no small thing.

"Maybe a glass," I said, walking closer as the cheers grew louder.

"To the man who helped us win this war!" shouted one of the commanders—not even mine, but a vampire commander.

"To Lord Faiser!" The vampires cheered, raising drinks and tearing into food.

We hadn't won the war. We'd only won the first battle. But that didn't matter right now. They deserved this after putting their lives on the line.

"Have some blood sausages, sir."

Some girls hurried over, serving food and drinks with flushed faces.

I smiled and took a plate as they ran off in a rush.

Holding the plate, I hesitated.

Because honestly, I wasn't sure if I should eat this.

The reason?

"Relax," Elmenhilde's soft chuckle came from my right. "It's pig's blood. We don't serve human blood to guests."

That was the reason—and I was glad the worry wasn't necessary.

"It's good, Lord Faiser." Next to her was Ingvild, her face bright and warm. "It's really good!"

Thankfully, she wasn't drunk. Or at least, she didn't seem like she was.

"I'll take your word for it." I took a bite of the blood sausage, and to my surprise, it was actually good. Normally, I didn't like them, but this one was different.

"Come dance with us, Boss!" Bova's voice roared across the place. He was drunk out of his mind, jumping and flailing in a way that looked more like a seizure than dancing.

I waved him off with a smile. Dancing wasn't for me.

"Not in a dancing mood?" Elmenhilde asked.

I shook my head. "This is more than enjoyable enough."

Looking around, I couldn't remember the last time I had this much fun. Maybe back when I was young—barely old enough to drink. That was a long time ago, in another world.

And truthfully, watching my dragon break tables and make a fool of himself was more fun than joining in. As long as I didn't have to pay for the damages, I was happy with the show.

It didn't take long for me to get completely drawn into the party.

The place was decorated with lights and colors, music echoing through the halls and easing the heart. A few soldiers sat quietly, drinking alone as they remembered their fallen comrades, while the rest celebrated the victory and the lives they had saved.

"We lost a few," Ingvild said softly, wrapping her hands around mine. "They did their best." Her grip tightened against my arm.

"They were strong," I said. "And because of them, hundreds of thousands are safe."

Before coming here, I had paid my respects to the fallen—burying them alongside the dead vampires.

"But what's lost is lost. We can't bring them back. All we can do is respect their sacrifice, and protect the rest." I smiled at her. "And the others deserve this. They fought with their lives on the line."

My queen gave a gentle nod, keeping her hands wrapped around mine.

"I have to admit," Elmenhilde said as she walked up to my other side, her hands folded behind her back, "I didn't expect you to make such a difference on the battlefield."

She looked a little awkward. "Thank you," she added. "And… sorry for doubting you."

She really was cute, with her blonde hair and bright red eyes. And even though vampires had a ridiculously slow heartbeat and blood flow, there was still a faint blush on her cheeks and ears.

I didn't say anything back. I just smiled and turned my gaze to the night.

"L-Let's eat a few more things!" she blurted suddenly. "You haven't even seen the delicacies of the vampires!"

That was true. I hadn't.

"Let's go!" she said with unexpected enthusiasm. "I'll show you the best sweets of our faction!"

She didn't even wait for an answer—grabbing both my hand and Ingvild's, pulling us straight into the crowd.

Ingvild smiled at me, and that was all I needed.

"Alright," I said.

Of course she wanted to explore the vampire sweets.

But well, that's only natural for my Baker Queen, isn't it?

* * *

{Late Night, Castle of Carmilla}

—Carmilla Viviane Dracul—

She sat alone. No soldiers, no guards—there wasn't a single soul near her.

Leaning against a pillar, she perched on the marble balustrade and watched the night spread below the castle. She hadn't stayed for long after announcing the small celebration; she hated noise and crowds. Even though her title forced her to take part, she preferred silence. She didn't skip events, she only stayed as long as she had to.

Now, after announcing the start of the party, she had returned to the castle and sat alone with a wineglass in hand—filled with human blood laced with poison. Human blood mixed with hydra poison was a royal delicacy. It was the strongest liquor a vampire could drink, and only those like her could handle it without losing their minds.

"A queen drinking alone while the city has fun," a voice said—one she had come to recognize on the battlefield. "I don't know if that's sad or comforting."

She turned her head slightly, still leaning on the pillar, her feet dangling over the balustrade.

"Could be either," she said with an amused smile. "But walking up on an unarmed, unguarded queen can only be taken as an offense."

The man smiled back as he approached. "Then I suppose I must use my privilege as your saviour to get myself out of that trouble."

She chuckled. "Saviour? Quite smug, aren't we?"

He shrugged and moved to the balustrade, leaning on it with both arms. "The view is nice from here," he said, watching the lights while music drifted up from below.

"One of the reasons I spend my nights here." Said the queen.

They stood together on the balcony, listening to the music and taking in the view. The queen noticed how calm the devil was. Though he looked young, he carried the kind of ease that comes from a long life. He was different from the other devils she'd met—most of them never treated her as an equal or as a faction leader.

At first she had thought it was because she was a woman—the Tepes faction certainly treated her that way. Then she realized devils didn't care about gender; they simply saw vampires as lesser beings of the Underworld.

But this young lord at her side showed no sign of that attitude. That made her ask, "Why did you decide to fight with us?"

He didn't have to join a losing side. She knew the devil pillars and the Old Satan Faction were at odds—but they could always choose a more preferable time to fight.

"Rizevim," he said in a distant voice. "One of my life goals is to watch him die a horrible death."

She held her gaze on him, surprised by the sudden hard edge in his tone.

"Five hundred years ago, during the civil war," he continued, "he killed my parents, destroyed my pillars, and locked me inside a capsule as an experiment for half a millennium." He glanced at her and gave a smile that didn't fit his words. "Enough reason to join this fight, don't you think?"

'Yes,' she wanted to say. Instead, she only nodded and stared back at the city lights.

"But of course," he gave a light chuckle. "I'm expecting to be paid well for this."

That drew a smile from her. "Well, if we win this war, it's only fair to repay you."

She had wanted to be alone tonight, but strangely, she didn't mind this devil's presence. If anything, it was comforting.

"A drink?" she asked, handing him the glass she'd been sipping from.

Faiser looked at it for a moment, then nodded. "Why not."

He didn't ask questions and took the glass.

"It smells strong," he said, taking a sip. "What is it?"

Watching him swallow, she smirked. "Human blood mixed with hydra's poison."

The devil froze, stunned, and stared at her with an aghast expression. His face went pale as he immediately tried to throw up—making her chuckle.

She had the antidote for the hydra's poison, but she wasn't going to give it to him just yet.

She was going to enjoy the sight for a while.

And as she watched the struggling devil, fingers in his throat trying to make himself puke, she realized this might be the start of an unexpected friendship.

'He's adorable.'

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{A/N: Got a pat reon named RedLamp01 with 30+ chapters.

No chapter tomorrow (Sunday), I am taking the Sundays off. Updates will be from Monday to Saturday.}

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