*-Lotus-*
I don't think I've ever felt this heavy in my life. Even keeping my eyes open took immense amounts of strength. I grunted as I opened one of my eyes. It closed immediately, but I caught a glimpse of the roof, so I was at least back inside.
If strength was the problem then I'd need to become stronger. First things first I needed to be able to move. I thought of how I wanted to move, and I felt a gate of power open inside me. I opened my eyes and sat up. I was in Me and Roxy's room. I got up and immediately fell back onto the bed. My strength wasn't fully back to normal. I was a little stronger, but no where near as strong as I was before we put the limiters in. I could see my staff sitting in the corner by the door. I tried pulling it to me with space magic, but all it did was fall to the ground with a rattling sound.
I tried summoning another burst of strength, and this time a larger portion of my power came back to me. I stood up and was able to walk, but there was a bit of staggering in my steps. I got my staff and shrunk it to use it as a walking cane. I opened the door with mild difficulty, and slowly made my way towards the stairs. I stood there debating whether or not I could make it down without falling when Mom suddenly appeared at the bottom.
"Lotus! Wait right there sweetie I'll come get you."
Mom quickly rushed up the stairs and scooped me up in her arms. It put a bit of a dent in my pride, but it was better than accidentally falling down the stairs.
"Thanks Momma."
"Of course. How are you feeling? Are you still nauseous? Should I bring you back to your bed?"
"I'm just a little weak Momma. Did Death leave any notes behind? I need to understand how these things work if I'm gonna find a way to get my strength back."
Mom let out a breath she had been holding in and started going down the stairs.
"She did. She left them with Roxy. She seemed to be in quite a rush to leave."
"It's complicated."
We got to the bottom of the stairs and I saw Roxy, Rudy, and Lilia in the kitchen.
Lilia was cleaning some dishes, and Roxy and Rudy were reading over pieces of paper. Roxy and Rudy looked up as Mom got down the stairs.
"Good to see you awake. We were worried about you."
Roxy got up and came over. She put her hand to my head.
"Your temperature seems normal. How are you feeling?"
"Weak. I need to see the notes. Can I?"
"Of course."
Mom sat me down in a chair next to Rudy.
I reached for a sheet of paper, but my hand grasped air. I immediately reached further down and got the paper. Rudy seemed to be the only one to notice.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine Rudy. Now let's see what I'm working with."
The paper I had grabbed was instructions on how to cast the spell to create the limiters. In other words not what I needed right now. I grabbed another piece of paper on my first try. This one talked about how many limiters I had, and what they did. Perfect.
According to the notes I had 5 "restraint levels". It went from 4 to 0.
When I had none of my limiters released I was at 1% of my power. When I released one limiter aka release restraint level 4, I was at 5%. Release restraint level 3 put me at 15%. Release restraint level 2 put me at 50%. Release restraint level 1 put me at 100%. The final limiter aka restraint level 0 required a bit of an explanation.
When I am under the effect of a restraint level it doesn't just hold back my energy. It stores it. Whenever I go into restraint level 0 I had access to all that stored energy. This did lead to certain problems though. That energy stored up and never got released. The only way to release this energy was to go into restraint level 0, but that was essentially going 200% and would make me a beacon to be found instead of keeping me hidden. However, if this energy built up for too long then when I went into restraint level 0 the instant release of all that power could cause me to lose consciousness and become a mindless overpowered monster acting only by instinct. Not to mention the way my body would be broken just to be able to hold all that power.
This did cause a bunch of problems for me though. If I were to release none of my restraint levels I wouldn't be strong enough to do anything.
This was how things looked.
All restraint levels active: 1% magical power
Release restraint level 4: 5% magical power
Release restraint level 3: 15% magical power
Release restraint level 2: 50% magical power
Release restraint level 1: 100% magical power
Release restraint level 0: 100% magical power plus all built up magical power
Nothing in the notes said anything about limiting my physical strength, but my running theory was that it was due to how in tune my body was in touch with my mana. In other words, if something bad happened to my mana then something bad happened to my body.
I sighed, leaned back in my chair, and checked the last piece of paper I was interested in. Most of the papers were just instructed on how to activate the limiters, so I didn't need those right now. This last one was about how the limiters hid my presence, and how to hide and reveal it. It seemed simple enough. I tried hiding my presence, but I didn't feel any different.
"Huh?! Where'd he go! Lotus?!"
I flinched as Mom started frantically searching the room for me. I felt a poke on my cheek as Rudy felt around my chair.
"He's right here. He's just invisible."
I tried revealing myself, and Mom sighed in relief as she hugged me.
"Give your mother a warning next time you do something like that. I almost had a heart attack."
"Sorry Momma. I-"
I tried speaking, but a familiar feeling wrapped itself around my neck. Guess I rolled low on my word count today. It's not even lunch time... I think.
I grabbed my staff with my tail and propped it on my shoulder. The strain on using my staff was more than I was used to.
"How long was I out?"
"It's only been about a day. Here. I had Lilia set aside some food for you."
Mom handed me a bowl of soup. It was still mildly warm. Rudy had some kind of grin on his face.
"I've been keeping it warm for you. I know Lilia's beef stew is your favorite, and I knew you'd like it better warm."
He seemed oddly proud of himself to be doing something so simple.
"Thank you Rudy."
I'd thank him anyway though. It is true that Lilia's stew is my favorite, and it's just not as good as it could be when it's cold.
The stew was delicious as usual. As I ate I tried thinking of where I was in magic potential. I knew the numbers, but I needed to try and figure out what I could and couldn't do.
It's been 3 weeks and I've had a wild ride. The domains I once held pride in were now reduced to weaker versions of themselves. Well almost. My beast and war domains were pretty much untouched since they relied on outside sources, and my sun domain only had certain limitations. I could still make the sun disappear, but my control over fire was reduced so much that I struggled with even the most basic of fire spells. I could still cast up to intermediate level magic in water and wind, and I could still use summoning magic without issue, since the summoning magic I knew mainly relied on outside sources like my beast and war domain did.
I'm probably gonna have to use my knowledge of summoning magic if I want a reliable way to fight with magic without releasing my restraint levels. With summoning magic I had two options I could use, but I'll get to those in a second.
There were some things I discovered though. My sin was still completely normal. It wasn't affected by the restraint levels now and it wasn't before.
That's about it when it comes to my findings.
Also, despite my limiters holding me back, I was still able to grow stronger. It'd take significantly more work, but it was possible.
Today was the first day in the past 3 weeks that I finally took a break from my experiments, and since my experiments were over I decided now would be a good time to decide which of my two summoning options to go with. I could summon and make a few contracts with some spirits to use their magic instead of my own. Not only would that let me use the spirit's own magic, but it would use their own mana as well. The only real downside with this was that they wouldn't be able to do much to help with my physical strength.
On the other hand I could try making a contract with a demon. I'd only need one, but I could contract more if I wanted to. Depending on the demon I made a contract with they could help with my magic and my physical strength. Finding a reliable demon though... It wouldn't be considered impossible. The current holder of wrath owed me a favor, and with both my sin and the transport crystal I could get an audience with him easy enough.
Why do I need an audience? Well that's easy enough. The current wielder of the sin of wrath is the king of hell. At least he was last time I checked. The sin of wrath was thrown around a lot. It was called "the strongest sin", but that wasn't just because of the power it gave you. It was called that because of how strong its will was. All sins had a will, but Wrath was by far the strongest. It caused its wielder to go insane and slaughter anything that breathed. So far Lucifer was the only wielder to be able to tie it down.
But to do it sooner or later? I could do it right now, since today was essentially a free day for me. At the same time though I'd be going into what is essentially the most dangerous place in the multiverse in a weakened state. I could release my restraints, but if Poseidon caught wind of me then I wouldn't be able to hide fast enough. I suppose I don't have to ponder on it too long. I haven't even decided if I should use a demon yet. If I use something to bribe him with I'm sure I could get Rudeus to power a spirit summoning scroll for me.
Actually, the new moon is tonight. I'll just ask Death her opinion on the matter.
After I decided to wait to ask Death I wandered over and sat beside the window. Walking with fewer of my restraints released had been strenuous, but I've slowly been getting used to it. I've had to rely more on my cane though. Having nothing better to do I watched Rudy and Paul spar from the comfort of my chair. I call it a spar, but it was more of a step by step slow motion walkthrough of a battle. Rudeus gets in a stance, Paul gives an example of an attack, and Rudeus tries to correctly guess the counter. It was basically a quiz. They were using sticks in place of swords.
Would I benefit from joining them...
Nah. My Touki and sword skills are already better than Paul's. I just needed to get my strength back. Though he is advanced level in North god style. The North King I ate got the title of North King by coating his sword and throwing knives in various poisons. There were hundreds of ways to progress in the North God style. Maybe Paul has some I don't know.
During their spar Paul didn't use any North god techniques I didn't know since he mainly used examples with the Sword god and Water god styles, but what I did see was the horrible habits that Paul was giving Rudy in their training.
Gods I'm gonna have to help him break those aren't I? I don't want Rudy to die because of Paul's errors. I'll give him some pointers next time we have free time and Paul's not home.
Roxy groaned as I placed a green hand on her stomach. She's had her period multiple times before while we've been here, but this was the worse her period cramps had been before. Right now I was her personal pain reliever. Healing magic didn't put a full end to the cramps, but it was able to help the pain.
I did have to release two restraint levels to help, but I'd say it's worth it.
"W-water."
I created a floating water ball.
"Here."
She lifted her head to sip the water and then laid back down. She brought her hands up and pulled me down. She nuzzled her head into my shoulders and pulled me into a hug. Essentially I was now her pain reliever and teddy bear. With one hand I kept using the healing magic and I brought up my other hand to brush her hair.
"So comfy..."
Despite this hitting me straight in my pride, I suppose I could suffer through this for now. I just wish there was more I could to help her.
Just then a small and familiar book appeared above my head. It opened its pages and words appeared.
Notice: It is possible to use the sin of lust to manipulate the target's body in a way to make the menstrual cycle unneeded.
You're saying that I can make it so she doesn't have her period? Wouldn't that mess up her body?
Answer: No. Instructions shall be generated to help ensure everything goes fine.
I thought about what the book was telling me. I was worried I might mess up since the only time I had actually used body manipulation was when I tested it out when I first got my sin, but if the book told me what to do then it should be fine.
"Hey Roxy. What would you do if I told you I could make it so that you never had to have a period again?"
Roxy peeked up at me.
"I'd say you were crazy. Then again you are you. Can you really?"
"I can."
Roxy hugged me tighter.
"Please do. But when you're done can we stay lying down a little longer?"
"Sure."
I looked at the book as step by step instructions started appearing. The hand that was channeling healing magic slowly pushed and fazed into Roxy's stomach. She groaned as my fingers wrapped around her uterus. My sin flared and I could feel its energy draining as Roxy's uterus was changed and rewritten. I followed each step and once I was done I pulled my fingers out causing Roxy to moan lightly.
"Feeling better?"
"Much better."
Roxy pushed forward and hugged closer into my arms.
"So um... I've been meaning to talk to you about this. I'd say in a year or so, year and a half at most, I'll run out of things to teach Rudy. When that happens I'll be leaving... I know that Zenith, Paul, and the other villagers would love for me to stay here, but... I want to get stronger. You and Rudy call me your teacher, but you're both so powerful. It won't be too long until Rudy is on equal footing with me. He wants to call me his teacher, but I can't live up to that title."
"He sometimes has the effect on people, but why did you want to talk to me about it?"
"Well... before everything that's happened I wouldn't have wondered about it, but you've got a family here now. You've got parents, a brother, and whatever you consider Lilia to be. If you came with me you'd leave it all behind."
Roxy stopped talking to catch her breath.
"Sigh. I want you to stay here."
"What?"
"With your family. You said it yourself. This is the first time you've had something that really feels like family. I don't want you to lose that because you followed me. You have an amazing thing here, and it's not like we wouldn't be cutting each other off. We could always talk to each other over the pockets. Besides, knowing you you could probably make some kind of magic tool to find me wherever I go."
Roxy went silent and we just sat there together.
"Can I have some time to think about this?"
"Of course... So what now?"
"Now? We sleep."
Roxy tried raising her head to look at me.
"Huh?! Wait what do you mean we-"
I think she was trying to say something, but I was just too comfy to try and listen.
To stay or to go... each one had its own pros and cons. If I go with Roxy I'd be traveling with her like we did before we got to Buena, but I'd also be leaving my family behind. On the other hand if I stayed here I'd be with my family, but Roxy would have to travel alone.
I thought about offering to teach Roxy old world magic here, but I knew the kind of person she was. She wanted to be a better person to live up to the mantle Rudeus was placing her on. She wanted to be the teacher he could be proud of, and if the teacher got stronger by learning from her student could she still be the proud teacher? Or would she be the humble student?
I looked over at the astral projection of my wife.
"So what do you think?"
She held a thumb to her chin as she pondered the question.
Either stay or go, you leave something behind. Roxy wants you to stay, but she'd likely be overjoyed to have you go with her. On the other hand, Zenith is likely to kill you if you make Roxy sad by staying behind.
"That's... true. I wish I could be in two places at once."
I suppose that would solve your problem wouldn't it.
"Yeah. Guess we can come back to that in a second. Onto my next question. Theoretically, if you were to have a large portion of your power sealed away and you had two options to get some back would you choose the spirits who could give you impossibly powerful magic, but little to no help with your physical strength? Or would you choose the demons who could give you both powers, but have higher risks?"
Death stared at me blankly.
Well... and this is theoretical of course. I'd say whoever picked any part of those options is a fool who needs to leave the battlefield and live the peaceful life he was granted.
"But, theoretically, this person has already been attacked by one of this world's gods and is looking for a way to stay safe without removing his limiters since he is being hunted by a higher and stronger threat... theoretically."
Sigh... If you have to choose then go with the demon. So long as you still have Lucifer's "I-owe-you" then you should be able to get a good one. Besides, spirits are such a hassle.
"Thank you for your theoretical input. Think you can set a date for me?"
Sure. How's tomorrow sound?
"That should be fine, but what are we going to do about security. I can't raise my limiters in Hell. Poseidon would sense me immediately."
Oh don't you worry. With who I'm sending with you you won't have any issues.
"If you say so. I trust your judgment."
I walked through the transport crystal's portal to the coordinates Death told me. From what I could see I was on the first level of Hell. Hell was split into different rings and levels. The different levels of hell were where sinners were sent to be tortured after they died. The punishment got worse the further down you went. The rings were separated from the levels, and is where all Hell-born demons get to indulge themselves on the seven deadly sins, with each one getting its own circle.
Now who did Death send for me?
"Papa!"
I got tackled from behind and fell over.
"Shi? Oh look at you! You're all grown up."
She helped pull me up off the ground. She was no longer the small girl I remembered. She looked around 17 years old now. Her hair was still as black as night, and went down to her shoulders. She was wearing a black hoodie and grey sweatpants. Her glasses looked like they were ready to fall off her face at any moment, and seemed to be fashioned after clocks. Her pitch black wings were fluttering as she hugged me.
"Heya Papa. Been a while."
Standing behind Shi was Dae. Her hair was as white as the clouds and was pulled into a bun. She was wearing clothes that I never thought I'd see her in. When she was younger she was always particular about how she dressed, making it a big deal to be the best dressed wherever we went.
Now though? She was wearing a dress that went down to her ankles, but it was tattered and frayed at the bottom. The cardigan she wore wasn't in any better condition.
"It's good to see you to Dae. What's up with the clothes?"
She looked like your run-of-the-mill Hell-born demon.
"It'll make sense soon. Come on. Let's get you to Lucy."
Did she just call the king of hell a nickname?
"I feel like I'm missing some serious context here."
Shi turned to me with a wry grin.
"Trust me. This is nothing yet."
We walked across some fields that smelled like gasoline and burning flesh. If you ignored the smell and sounds of the screams of those who were burning alive we actually had a pretty nice conversation. Our conversation did have to come to an end once we reached a large castle made of black brick.
The guard at the front gate nodded at Dae and opened the gate without question. Odd. Anytime I came to visit they'd always ask me questions even though I was Lucifer's friend. It was a bit of a hassle just to visit someone, but Lucifer was one of the very few people I could call a friend. Before my new life I could count my friends on one hand. There was Death, Lucifer, the current wielder for greed, and the current wielder for gluttony. The only reason I was friends with the last three was because I was close to them before they gained their sins.
We walked, unguarded which I only found more strange, through the halls of the castle until we got to a large set of doors. Dae went up and knocked to a certain rhythm. Was it some kind of secret knock?
The door creaked open and the guards that had been standing inside the room exited as we went in.
Sitting there on an elevated throne was the king of Hell himself. He had tan skin with grey hair, and was wearing a black suit with red highlights. Instead of a crown he had a jewel floating between the two horns coming out of his forehead. His other two horns came out of the back of his head. With all four horns it looked like it made a crown.
Dae ran up the stairs and tackled him with a kiss...
Wait what?!
"It's been a while Lucy. How ya been?"
"I've been quite well. And you, Dae?"
"Great! I got to see my Papa today!"
"Really? That's wonderful. How was he doing?"
"You can ask him yourself. He's right over... Papa? Are you okay?"
Everyone stared at me.
Ain't no way ain't no way ain't no way ain't no way-
I was hard reset with a karate chop to the head from Dae.
"Oi! Don't be rude Papa!"
"Right sorry."
Lucifer, who was now in front of me, examined me curiously.
"You've gotten shorter."
"And you've gotten bolder. Sigh. Putting that aside for now. I have a reason for coming here other than just exchanging banter. I want to cash in my favor."
Lucifer's eyes widened.
"Really? Very well then. What would you like?"
"I need to make a contract with a demon. Preferably one that could boost my physical and magical power, but also one that would be controlled easily."
Lucifer seemed lost in thought for a moment until a lightbulb went off in his head.
"I've got just the one. Come with me."
Lucifer opened a portal and we all went through. From what it looked like we were now in the wrath ring. It was kind of like a huge two story house. The top floor was accessible to anyone, and was a place where you could let out all your frustrations in rage rooms. The bottom floor required premium access granted to very few people. It was a prison meant for the strongest demons.
We were on the top floor, but we were looking at the door to the elevator that would take us down. Lucifer turned to look at the girls.
"As much as I'd love to have you join us I'm afraid you both will have to wait here. The fewer people that go down, the better."
Dae looked a bit saddened, but quickly got a boost in her mood when the rage room next to us opened. Shi on the other hand, conjured up a chair with magic and started reading a book.
Lucifer placed his hand on the elevator door and we both went in. In seconds the elevator went down and stopped.
"The walk is gonna take a while. I know you're not the most vocal person, but I imagine there's something you'd like to talk about?"
"Perhaps. So you and Dae... how'd that happen?"
"Ah. I suppose you would be interested in that wouldn't you? I suppose we have to time. It wasn't too long after your forced reincarnation. Dae had taken an interest in the cycle of death and how everything worked. When she wanted to investigate Hell Death asked me to keep her safe, so I acted as her guide around all of Hell. Hell is huge as you're aware, so covering just the basic areas took a year. After she had seen everything I told her that it was time she returned home. Well she clung to me, cried, and professed her love to me. At first I had thought that it was just a childhood crush, so I told her to come back when she's older. Imagine my surprise when the day after her seventeenth birthday she comes and chases me throughout all of Hell to ask me out on a date. She was quite persistent and it was a deal so I had no choice. Now? I have no regrets in dating your daughter. Nor will I have any if we get married."
"Oh you'll have one regret for sure."
Lucifer looked at me. He seemed both curious and annoyed.
"You'll have me as your Father-in-law."
Lucifer looked forward, and I could see his shoulders tighten up.
"Betcha didn't think of that. Now did you?"
"Not particularly. But even then. I'd say it's worth it. She's a truly wonderful person you know. I know your situation makes it difficult, but if you ever wish to visit your family just ask me, and I'll set up a date when you can all come here. Hell it probably won't be long until the girls find a way to live in your world without Poseidon noticing."
"Thank you for that, but I do have another question. I was able to take on the gods in a 6v1 battle. Three of those gods including Zeus, Ares, and Helios. Why is everybody so worried about Poseidon?"
Lucifer stopped walking and stared at me in shock.
"The fuck do you mean why is everyone worried?! How could we not be? The strongest god this side of the multiverse is hunting you down and- You don't know."
"Know what?"
Lucifer ran his hands over his face to calm himself down.
"After you killed Zeus and were taken under Death's wing Poseidon went on a killing spree. He waited until you were gone so that you wouldn't be able to stop him. He slaughtered as many gods as he could find and stole their domains. Any gods left from your old timeline are being sheltered here. I wasn't going to let him gather every domain left, so I went up and gave the remaining gods a shelter."
"A lot of things are starting to make sense now."
We continued to walk in silence for a bit. The metal that made up the room quickly started to get rustier and rustier. It eventually got to the point where the rust had eaten holes in the floor. At the very end of the hallway was a terribly rusted metal door.
"This is it."
"Damn. How old is this demon?"
"He's been here longer than I have."
I stared at Lucifer.
"Wouldn't that mean he's insanely powerful? I need a demon I can control with as little effort as possible."
"And I got you one."
Lucifer opened the door. You'd think it wasn't rusted at all with how smooth the opening was.
The room was huge and seemed to be fashioned after some kind of indoor swimming area. Instead of water however, the pool was filled with a black and red liquid that was oddly still. Red lines were drawn on the surface of the liquid.
Lucifer went forward.
"Hello? Still sentient at all?"
The liquid rippled and all the lines opened into a bunch of eyes that were staring at us.
"Oh! Guests! I haven't had any of those in a long time. Who are you? Can you tell me who I am?"
"Sentient, but senile. Right up your alley."
I went forward and looked down at the odd creature.
"Howdy. I'm Lotus, and I want to make a contract with you."
"A contract? What's that?"
"Well. You would help me be stronger, and I would let you see things you wouldn't believe. What do you say?"
"I'd be able to get out of this place?"
"Yes?"
"Could I smell the flowers?"
"Uh huh."
"Then I would love to make a contract with you! Well. I would if I could. I'm afraid I don't have a name."
The eyes in the liquid looked dejected.
"Well that's fine. We'll just give you a new name."
"Lotus I don't think-"
"Truly? Wonderful! What do you have in mind?"
"This is a really bad id-"
"How about Kirai?"
The liquid rippled in what I assumed was joy.
"I guess it's too late now. Ready to sign the contract?"
"Yep."
"Yes sir!"
"Great."
Lucifer shoved me into the pool. I felt every cell of my being prickle with an indescribable rage and anger. I wanted to lash out and let my rage flow freely. Then it was gone. I was calm, and the pool was empty. I stood up and looked around. Good lord how deep is this thing?! I was estimating around 100 feet deep at minimum.
"Oi! You can't just throw me down here!"
Lucifer peeked over the edge of the pool. He was hardly a speck in my vision.
"Sorry! But you had to absorb him! Just get up here!"
"And how do you-"
Oh for goodness sake. I looked around for my staff, but I couldn't find it.
If you need a way to get up you can use my wings, sir!
'Wings?'
Yes! I'm starting to remember some things, and I had wings. You can use them to fly up!
'Right. So what I just think about them or...'
Channel mana to your back. Then they should grow!... You do know how to fly, right?
'Yes I can fly.'
I channeled mana to my back as Kirai told me to. Black and red flame shot out my back. They were roughly wing shaped and I was able to lift myself easy enough with them. I flew up and landed beside Lucifer. I kicked my staff up and used it to speak.
"Now this is what I needed. I feel better already."
Lucifer gave me a worried glance.
"Was naming it a good idea? If it gains too much of a conscious it may become too much to handle."
"Look at you worrying over little ol' me. It's fine."
"Whatever you say. Come on. I don't want to keep the girls waiting."
We started walking back through the halls. It was nice, quiet, and peaceful. That is until we walked past one specific cell. A raspy voice called to me.
"The flower named child. What path shall you walk. A path paved in blood, or a path paved with roses?"
Lucifer let out a sigh.
"Just ignore him. He may be a prophet, but he's not all there. You know?"
"Yeah. I got it."
We kept walking, but the old man wouldn't stop talking.
"When the end time comes and Heaven meets Hell what will you do? Save the living whom you love, or save the dead with which you've lived. Hehehe. Paint the walls of reality red, wielder of chaos! May reality die and chaos be reborn! Oh master! Creator! God of all and is to be! The one who is and always has been! Through time, space, and void may your soul be shattered oh wielder of fate! May Death die and live again! Oh almighty one! I quiver in anticipation for what you may do! Eeeeeheehahahaha!"
"That... is the most sense he's made in the past 1,000 years."
"That didn't make any sense."
"Precisely." Lucifer looked back at me with new eyes. "Do you know chaos magic?"
"Never heard of it. Why?"
"May Khaos reign eternal! Shatter the chains that-"
Lucifer slammed his fist into the wall.
"Shut it old man!"
Lucifer picked up his pace as he walked.
"Chaos magic is a kind of magic that is actually a combination of 3 magic types. Time, space, and void magic."
"If you combined those three wouldn't you get some kind of creation magic? That's how everything is made right?"
"Yes, and you would. However, you can also get chaos magic. To get creation magic you put the three types together in a specified order. To get chaos magic you mush them together all willy nilly. It lets you do what you want when you want."
"Uh huh. So if a person were to have magic eyes of these three types of magic how hard would it be to use chaos magic?"
I opened my other eyes just as Lucifer turned to look at me.
"Ugh. Of course you do. I suppose it wouldn't be too difficult. So long as you get the combination right and don't go overboard."
I could help you learn chaos magic sir.
I looked beside me and Kirai was now standing beside me. He was humanoid, but his lower body was covered in red eyes. He had a huge fluffy red coat covering himself. His face was pitch black with the only thing on it being a half circle of five red eyes. Lucifer's eyes widened and he pulled out a book. He stopped on a specific page and kept glancing between the book and Kirai. The book was titled Wrath for Dummies.
"Khaos, can you come here for a second? Kirai you stay there."
I walked over and looked at the book.
"This is the first wielder of wrath."
I looked between Wrath and Kirai. They seemed to be the same height, they had the same coat, and Wrath also had red eyes decorating his coat. Lucifer flipped the book to face it towards Kirai.
"Do you remember who this is?"
Kirai tilted his head, but then the black liquid on his face peeled back and showed a matching face.
Yes I remember! It's me! That's who I am!
"Holy shit I just had you make a contract with the original wrath."
...
"Welp too late to go back now. Thanks for the opportunity!"
I started walking again. Lucifer followed suit and Kirai disappeared. I don't know where he went exactly, but I knew he was with me.
"You are taking this far too lightly. And while he is crazy there must be some merit to it. You don't get the title of prophet by spouting non-truths."
"Lucifer I have spent all my lives as a living "fuck you" to any prophet that tries to predict my fate. Need I remind you that I'm a singularity?"
"I know that, but before he got put in here he had a 99% accuracy rate on his prophecies. Even with singularities when he wasn't 100% accurate he was still pretty damn close."
"I'll be fine Lucy. Trust me."
"Don't call me that. Only Dae can call me that."
"Fine fine. After you."
I motioned to the elevator.
We went through and found Dae sitting outside the rage room breathing heavily. Shi was done with the book she started before and had a new book in her hands.
"How'd it go?"
"Great! I don't feel heavy anymore, and I got my wings back."
"And he had a prophecy given to him by a prophet with an incredibly high accuracy. How long until your mother can go join him?"
Dae and Shi both stood up.
"Well soon we hope. If you're asking about that does it mean it's bad?"
"Certainly sounded like it."
"Oh come now. It wasn't that bad."
Lucifer looked at me like I was crazy. He's not entirely wrong.
"Do you need me to repeat some of what he said? 'Death shall die and live again!' 'Heaven meets Hell!' 'Lead a road paved in blood or one in roses!' Need I go on?!"
"Nah I think they got the picture."
We both looked at the girls. Dae was rapidly putting together a communication circle, and Shi was creating a magic circle I'd never seen before.
"Sigh. At least they got Death's common sense. Look I've got one more thing to give to you. Consider it a gift to help you not get yourself killed. It won't do much of anything now, and it may never do anything to help you, but if anything happens to me I'd want you to have this as back up."
Lucifer handed me a small glass orb. It had the tiniest tint of purple in it.
"What is it?"
"If something were to ever happen to me, and my condition is bad enough that the sin of wrath abandons me it will be teleported and trapped here. It won't hold for long. Just long enough for a new weirder to claim it. It's truly a worst case scenario sort of thing, but I know that if anyone could handle it, it's you. I pray that the prophet was truly just spouting nonsense. I wish you the best of luck."
"Same to you. Oh! And before I forget. You have my blessing."
I think I may have broken Lucifer. He just sat there staring into space. I suppose that was his limit then. I put his gift in the void and turned to the girls.
"Well then girls. It seems I'm off."
Dae ended the call she was on and Shi compacted the mana circuit she was working on into a small orb.
"I told mom about the prophecy. I'll need Lucy to tell me the whole thing later. She doesn't seem worried though."
"Thank you- ow!"
Shi pulled her hand away from the back of my head.
"It's a magic circuit for good luck. You'll need it."
"Ha! Please. I'll be fine girls. Your old man is tougher than he looks."
Shi let out a small giggle before pulling me into a hug.
"I'm sorry. If I had known that it would've impacted your physical strength so much then I would've tweaked it before I sent it to you."
"Shi you learnt a forbidden magic just to get these limiters created in a timely manner. Having to do one thing to help me isn't going to bring that down in value."
Dae hugged me from my side as she tried to hide her teary eyes.
"We're gonna miss you Papa."
"I know. But just remember what I said. No matter what happens. I'll always return home in the end. Death's arms embrace all souls. Now I'll see you both later. Okay?"
Both girls pulled away and gave me sniffling nods of approval. Using my transport system I opened a portal back home. As I was closing it an envelope flew through the portal. Once the portal was closed I checked the envelope. Shi's name was printed on it.
No one was in the kitchen so I sat down and opened it. Inside was a small note and a pocket watch.
Dear Papa,
We probably won't have a lot of time that we can spend together, so I wanted to give you this. It's a magic watch to help empower your time magic. Mom said you had some, and I know it's forbidden magic, but I also know that you probably will just ignore the rules. You never seemed to like the angels.
It won't be able to do certain things for long periods of time, but I hope that it will prove useful to you. You can hook it to your limiter's chains to help you carry it. It also always records the local time.
From your lovely and lonely daughter, Shi.
I should talk to Death about getting her out more. But a pocket watch to help with time magic? Now that's just the thing I needed. I put the envelope down, but picked it up again when I realized that there was one more note inside.
Things the watch can do.
Press the button on the side to stop time for ten seconds.
Rotate the button clockwise to skip 10 seconds into the future.
Rotate the button counter clockwise to reverse time by 10 seconds.
Now this would definitely be useful. I clipped the pocket watch onto the chain on my right hand. I was extremely tired, so I went upstairs to take a nap. All in all I'd consider it a good morning.
It's been a year and a half since Roxy started teaching Rudy. It wouldn't be much longer until Rudy and I's fifth birthday. This also meant that my deadline for choosing whether I go with Roxy or stay here was getting closer and closer.
Luckily for me I think I found a solution. With the help of my demon I could create a body made of magic and split my consciousness between them. Each was equally me, meaning no one got the shorter stick. The only issue I had was that I had to control and live through both bodies at the same time.
It was extremely disorienting, but I'd have to suck it up and practice with it. I felt both bodies' senses at the same time. If they ever looked at the same thing the object would blend together. When I moved one body the other one would move similarly. There were rare moments where I would move and the other body wouldn't, but I struggled to copy these results.
I asked Death about this to see if she could help during one of our meetings. She said that it would be a great idea if it worked, but she questioned if I could pull it off.
I dismissed the magic body and fixed my consciousness. I only have four months left by Roxy's estimation. Rudy was learning quick. He's gotten a hold on all the spells Roxy knew except her Saint rank water spell Cumulonimbus. All her lessons now had turned towards math and literacy, as well as all the history she could cover. I myself had earned the title of Saint ranked water mage a while ago. I took Roxy out on a date a little ways outside the village, and she recommended using that time to try and graduate. I had to release 3 of my restraint levels to pull it off, and to keep my mana signature hidden Roxy had to cast the spell at the same time. I had to get extra showy with the spell to prove I was capable of casting it. We both knew I could, but it wouldn't do any good for the other mages of this world.
I sighed and walked downstairs. Lunch wasn't too long ago, so Rudy and Paul were probably going to start their sword training soon. As I sat at my usual spot on the table I sat in a comfortable silence. Roxy had finished her morning lessons with Rudeus, so she was out helping the villagers. Paul and Rudeus were doing stretches outside. Mom was still at the clinic.
And Lilia... where was Lilia? The dishes were clean so she had no reason to be down here, and I couldn't see her in the back yard, so she wasn't doing laundry. The door to the hole in the ground that acted as the bathroom was wide open, and she wasn't in the storage room. Was she in her room? This early into the afternoon? Could she be sick?
I approached the door that led to Lilia's room, and froze. My sin flared up and I could see a purple aura radiating from her room. It was a similar aura to the one that radiated from mom and Paul's room, as well as the one Roxy emitted when we got intimate.
Ah. So that's it. Well I wouldn't interrupt her while she was busy. I turned and walked away, only to be stopped when I stepped on an extremely creaky floorboard.
I immediately hid my presence and waited for what felt like eternity. The door slowly opened and I could faintly make out Lilia's face examining the hallway. Her clothes had a slight wrinkle on them, and her hair was down. I've never seen her with her hair down before. It was nice.
Her eyes settled on me for an uncomfortable amount of time, but eventually she went back into her room.
I breathed a sigh of relief and opted to walk on platforms created by my demon. I went back and sat at the table. Eventually though I got bored. I walked upstairs and went to my room. Yet another day to practice my magic.
Earth magic? Couldn't even summon some sand.
Fire magic? Sparks flew from my hand, but for anything useful I'd need to combine my demon with my sun domain. With that I might be able to pull off an intermediate level spell.
Wind magic? I could cast up to the intermediate level with some strain.
Water magic? I could still cast up to the intermediate level with no problems. Anything above that was pretty much impossible though.
As for my domains, like I said before my war domain and beast domain were pretty much the same. The weapons my war domain created were still as simple and strong as before, and the beasts I made weren't affected by my mana. My thunder domain was basically just a taser, and my sun domain barely boosted my fire magic.
My fear domain wasn't as strongly affected as my other domains, but it still had its changes. I wouldn't be able to raise people's fear levels to the point they have a heart attack, but I was at least able to slightly affect people's fear levels. I'd have to find other ways to use my domain to make it more useful.
As for my void domain, I still had access to the void like I did before. Any attacks I made with void magic were significantly weaker, but if I were to attack someone with void gas they'd probably still die. As for Shadow Step my range was greatly reduced. I was still barely able to reach Rosie's cafe though.
I sighed and laid back in the bed. With nothing else to do I remade the magic body and started trying to move it without moving off the bed. At first it just stood there, but I was eventually able to get it to move. It took one step, then a few minutes later it took another step. Each time it took a step it took less time to control it. Could this be what I needed to try this whole time?
This entire time I'd been trying to control both bodies at the same time, but should I have been practicing by leaving most of my consciousness in one body and try to control the other one with just a little bit of my consciousness?
Today was Rudy and I's fifth birthday and I had gotten way better at controlling the bodies. Turns out I was right. I just had to start by putting a little bit of my consciousness in one body, and slowly increasing it over time. I wasn't a master by any stretch of the word, but I think I should be ready to go in the next month or so.
Something else I found interesting was that I could give a body a specific ability of mine, and it would make it stronger. The downside however, was that the other body wouldn't be able to use that ability.
"Happy Birthday!"
Mom presented two cakes on the table. Rudy and I were sitting at the head of the table.
The cakes weren't your usual style of cakes. It was a type of fruit cake. It was more tart than I thought it'd be, but I wasn't complaining.
"Now time for presents."
Paul walked up holding 4 swords. 2 real ones and 2 wooden ones.
"Remember boys. No matter what it's important to always keep a sword in your hearts. You have to use it to protect what's important to you..."
Paul gave me a quick side glance and then flicked his eyes to Roxy. He continued on with his speech until mom had to cut him off. It's a shame too. That's probably the smartest thing I'd ever heard from him.
I sat the swords beside me. Mom approached us next.
"I got you both books. I know how much you love reading, so I hope you enjoy them."
Mom handed Rudy an encyclopedia on the local plant life. She handed me a book on summoning magic.
"I saw some of those magic circles you draw sometimes, so I thought this might help."
Right. My so far failed attempts at finding spirits who would make a contract with someone bound to a demon. All of which have been unsuccessful.
But if it were a spirit from this world...
I have mom a hug and thanked her for the gift.
Roxy came up and handed Rudeus a wand. She had been trying to hide it, but I was able to catch glimpses of her crafting it these past two nights.
"It's tradition for a teacher to give their student a wand once they've mastered beginner level magic, but with you already mastering it and Lotus making his own I'm afraid I forgot. I hope you accept it."
Rudy held his wand with a smile.
"I'll treasure it master!"
Roxy tipped the brim of her hat down. She still didn't like when he called her that.
"As for you Lotus, I hope you will accept this as your gift."
Roxy reached behind her neck and untied a knot. She pulled out a necklace. It looked like it was carved out of emerald and was fashioned after three spears that were put together almost like they were posing for a photo.
"This is the symbol of the Migurd tribe. If any demon were to give you trouble then show them this pendant and they'll leave you be. Though I doubt you'll ever have trouble with them."
With a small laugh I accepted the gift and put it on.
"Thank you Roxy. I'll treasure it."
Then to my surprise Lilia approached us.
"Though it may not be my place as I am simply a maid, I too have gifts to present to the young masters."
Lilia handed Rudeus and I handkerchiefs.
"I hope you may have some use for them."
Rudeus smiled and thanked Lilia for the gift. I thanked her as I folded it and placed it in the breast pocket of my shirt.
Since everyone had given us our presents we all ate. Paul drank and showed off his sword swallowing skills. Mom had a healing spell ready in case he messed up in his drunken state, but surprisingly he was pretty good at it.
Once he drank too much though mom went to lay him down up stairs. After her Lilia was the next to retire, and Rudy, Roxy, and I would soon follow her. Before we did though Roxy had something to say to Rudy.
"Lotus was able to convince me otherwise for the advanced level spells, but for Cumulonimbus we're going to have to go just outside the village."
"Huh? Where'd this come from master?"
"It's simple. I'm running out of things to teach you. Your graduation will take place within a week from now. After that I'll be leaving."
Rudy had a shocked and slightly hurt look on his face.
"Do you have to go? Really?"
Roxy put on a forlorn smile.
"I want to get stronger, so that I can be a teacher you can be proud of. With Lotus's help I'm sure you'll be able to grow stronger than me by your next birthday. I'll get stronger so that you can be proud to call me your master."
Rudy looked sad, but ready to accept it. He went upstairs and went to his room. Roxy and I went up to ours.
Roxy and I changed into our night clothes.
"Have you thought about my question? There's not much time left."
"I have. Does this satisfy your answer?"
Roxy turned around and I split into the two bodies. She looked stunned, but then started laughing.
"Of course you'd find a way around it. I don't know what I expected."
"Yep. Now I can stay and I can go. The only difference between these two is that only one can hold the sin of lust."
Roxy nodded in understanding.
"Well, now that that's out of the way. I think it's time I gave you the rest of your gift."
"Hm?"
"Did you really think I'd only give you a necklace when I gave Rudy a magic wand? After everything you've done for me? No way."
Roxy walked towards and slipped out of the nightgown she had just put on.
"Now get out of those clothes."
Roxy kissed me and unbuttoned my shirt. She slid it off my arms. She kept kissing me and started tracing her fingers around the marks on my sin. We made our way over to the bed and sat on it. I set up a ring of silence, and with the other body I hugged Roxy from behind.
"Eep!"
"Forgot there were two of me?"
"I- I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with two of you... but I'm willing to try."
The other body removed its shirt and pants leaving it in just its boxers. Roxy slid me out of my own pants and I started pinching her nipples. Her moans only got louder as my other body pulled her panties away and started eating her out. She pulled me up and moved my boxers away as she started giving me a blowjob.
It felt like I was in heaven. I could feel Roxy's inside clenching together and she squirted into my mouth. At the same time Roxy took me all the way into her mouth and a came deep into her throat. She tried holding the position for as long as she could, but she pulled back once her face had turned beet red. I let her sit back as she coughed and gasped for breath.
Once she had recomposed herself she climbed on top of me. She licked her lips and shuddered as she lowered herself. It was extremely tight. As Roxy ground on me, my other body came around behind me and positioned himself in front of Roxy's face.
"Mind helping me get this wet?"
Roxy started blowing the other me, and she somehow got even tighter. I didn't last long as I blew a load as deep as I could. The other me quickly followed suit. Roxy waited a second before she started riding me again.
The other me went around Roxy, lowered his head, and started rimming Roxy. She yelped and started blushing extremely hard.
"It's dirty down there."
"I know. I don't really care though. Am I good to keep going?"
Roxy nervously nodded her head and then buried her head on my shoulder. The other me slowly slid into her back door and she groaned.
I held her steady with a hug as she adjusted to the new sensation.
"You okay?"
"Y-yeah. I just need a second."
I waited for Roxy to get adjusted and she eventually started moving again. This time much slower as she tried to find the motions that felt the best in this new position. The other me pulled back and slowly went back in eliciting a moan from Roxy as well as another tightening sensation. We stayed in this position for a long time. Sometimes we would flip Roxy over and swap holes. We kept at it for hours until Roxy passed out. I laid down and used the other body to clean up the admittedly large mess we had made.
Thankfully it took so little effort to clean up with space magic that I didn't have to release any of my restraint levels.
The next morning Roxy was incredibly sore, so I had to use a combination of healing magic and my sin to make her feel better.
"You ready?"
I looked over at Rudeus who was nervously holding onto his wand as he looked past the gate. He didn't answer me.
Roxy hooked the last thing on Caravaggio's saddle.
"All set. Come on you two."
"I'll follow along. I don't do well with horses."
Poseidon despises me and since he was the god of horses that hatred seeps into them as well.
"Okay then. Come on Rudy."
Rudeus took a nervous step back. The only reason he hadn't ran inside was because I was using my fear domain to lower his fear levels as much as I could.
"Are you scared of the horse? I promise that he's good."
If only it were that simple. I leaned over and tapped Rudy on his shoulder.
"I'll be here, so you've got nothing to worry about. 'Kay?"
Rudy steadied himself and climbed up onto Caravaggio with a little help from Roxy. They started riding down the path and I used my demon to float a little behind them.
Rudy seemed to shrink into himself once we started passing by other villagers, but slowly opened up once they all started greeting Roxy. His fear slowly dissipated. It didn't fully disappear, but it was far weaker than before.
Rudy started asking Roxy various questions about anything he could see. The air was a bit awkward, but he asked any way. Unlike me he wasn't comfortable in silence. We passed through fields of wheat and flowers until we came across a small hill with a tree on it. Roxy tied Caravaggio on the tree and grabbed her staff.
"I'm going to demonstrate the Saint ranked water spell, it's a spell that summons violent rain and lightning. I'm only going to hold the spell for a minute as a demonstration, but to graduate you're going to have to hold it for an hour. Okay?"
"Okay. Is the reason we came out here because this is a secret spell or something?"
"No. It's just that I didn't want to ruin the fields with any collateral damage."
"Oh okay."
"Stand back now."
Roxy was about to raise her staff, but I cut her off before something bad happened.
"Hold up! If this spell summons lightning then isn't it a bad idea to be out here without protection? We are the only things out here in the middle of the these plains."
Roxy quickly looked around and face palmed.
"Oh! How could I forget that. Okay, here."
Roxy chanted and created an Earth Dome around the tree.
"Keep your ears open. I can only use this spell so many times a day."
Roxy raised her staff and started chanting.
"Grand spirit of water and imperial prince of lightning who ascends the heavens, grant my wish and bring about a savage blessing. Display your might to insignificant beings. Strike awe with a blow of your divine hammer on the anvil, and cover the land in water! Ah, Rain! Sweep all else away and expel everything! Cumulonimbus!"
The wind picked up and droplets of rain started pelting all around us. Thunder rumbled and lit up the sky.
There was a huge flash and bang as a bolt of lightning struck the Earth Dome. After a minute Roxy brought her staff down. The clouds cleared out and the rain subsided. Roxy walked back up to us, and I used some water manipulation to pull the water out of her clothes.
"Thanks. You ready Rudy?"
Rudy gave a firm nod and walked over to where Roxy was standing. He raised his wand and started chanting. Roxy came over and sat beside me in the dome.
"Do you think he can do it?"
The question made me want to laugh out loud.
"I don't think he can do it. I know he can."
I looked down at my pocket watch and marked the time.
Roxy smiled.
"You're a good brother Lotus."
"That remains to be seen."
"I agree with her. You're a pretty good brother."
I looked back at the small doorway. Rudy was standing there as rain poured onto his back.
"Rudy you still have to hold the spell for an hour."
"I know."
"Lotus is keeping the time. We'll call you over once you're done."
"Alright."
I got up and walked outside as Roxy kept questioning Rudeus.
"... Are you not going to go? It takes a lot of concentration to hold this spell."
I laughed as I watched the masterpiece Rudeus had made.
"He doesn't have to. He's made the spell completely self-sustaining."
"Huh?!"
Roxy scrambled up off the ground and ran outside.
"The wind currents he's made manipulate the hot and cold air to keep the clouds in place. He not only cast the spell, but he also made it so he had to have little to no control over it. I've got to say, even I'm impressed. I would've just held the spell together with magic. Good job Rudy."
Rudy grinned as Roxy marveled at his handiwork.
"Are you able to dismiss it?"
He nodded and raised his wand again. The updrafts he made sputtered out and the clouds drifted apart.
"Congratulations Rudeus. You can now officially call yourself a Saint ranked water mage."
"Heh. I guess that puts me above you now Lotus."
"Nah. I graduated months ago."
"Huh?! When?"
"Don't worry about it. Now let's get home. I'm all for wet weather, but it's a bit too muggy for me right now."
The way home was significantly quieter. We held a small celebration to congratulate Rudy on his graduation to the Saint rank. The next day Roxy was in the doorway with her suitcase packed.
"Are you sure you have to leave Roxy? I've got so many recipes I haven't taught you yet."
Mom and Paul were sad Roxy would be leaving.
"Yeah, I'm sure the villagers would be happy to have you stay."
Roxy smiled and bowed.
"I'm sure there are miss Zenith, but I've got someone who probably has those memorized. As for helping the villagers, well, he's got that covered as well."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
One of my bodies walked past the group to stand by Roxy. It was fashioned after my Migurdian body. It was holding a replica of my magic staff that I made with the metal Rosie had given me.
"L-Lotus? What are you doing?"
Momma's eyes started watering up. I spoke up in my human body, the one staying here.
"Well I'm staying here of course."
Momma spun around and looked at me. She spun her head around multiple times to see if she was seeing things.
"I couldn't decide if I wanted to stay or go, so I decided to do both."
In the end I gave my Migurdian body 40% of my consciousness, and most of my magic abilities. I kept my water magic, war domain, sin, beast domain, and physical strength. It looked a little like this.
Human body: Water magic, War domain, sin, Beast domain, and my physical strength.
Migurdian Body: Wind magic, Earth magic, Fire magic, Thunder domain, Fear domain, and my Sun domain.
All my other skills were shared between the two. Any skills specific to a body could only be used by that body, and were stronger when used by that body. I kept Water magic specific to my human body, since if Roxy and I were to ever search for a job she'd be able to provide the Water magic.
Mom sighed in relief.
"I thought you were leaving us. I've been so worried."
"Sorry Momma."
Rudy looked like he was ready to say something, but stopped himself.
"I wish you good luck master."
"Same to you Rudeus. Make sure your brother doesn't do anything to crazy for me. One of him caused enough problems, now with two... we'll just have to keep a real close eye on him."
"Will do."
"I'm right here."
We all laughed as Roxy and the other me walked away. It was an odd feeling. Watching yourself walk away, but also being the one who was walking away. Things were gonna feel weird around here without Roxy, but I at least had the comfort that she'd always be beside me.
It hadn't even occurred to me until I was half-way done with this chapter that it had nearly been a month since the last update. Anyways, this is chapter 6! There was an introduction to a new character in the form of the sin of wrath aka Lucifer who is also Dae's boyfriend. Dae and Shi won't be making any appearances for a while after this, so I figured that since Lotus was going to be meeting up with her boyfriend I may as well let them have some time together.
The other Lotus that went with Roxy will be used for side stories in some chapters, but there won't be that many.
This chapter may have been a bit slow, but it was to set stuff up so I could get the ball rolling.
See you all next chapter, as well as the reintroduction of a certain green haired elf! Buh-bye!