The unknown Demon's POV:
-"So, can you tell me more about them? Are they better or must I expect the same boring fights you gave me?" I asked, sighing as this 'fight' was underwhelming.
-"Oh good, another warmonger. We had enough with Jaune here."
-"I admit that I like brawling, but I also need to test their level, it's part of my job after all."
-"Your job? So you being absurdly strong at birth, wiping the floor with my ass and this brat's tears really has a purpose?" Jaune clicked her tongue, unconvinced.
-"Hey Jaune, if you tell them about it I swear I'll take your head in the most painful way I could ever imagine." The brat is lying face downward, waiting for her butt to heal before getting up.
-"Now, now. Exciting yourself that much won't do good to your burn lil' miss. And yes, I have a job here, assessing you all is part of it. But man, my body is itching, I want to let loose. If your siblings are in the same league as you, I might as well take them together to have somewhat of a challenge."
-"We are not siblings! Owowow, my butt."
-"You were born at the same time in the beginning of time from the Great Spirit of Darkness, so for my convenience I'll call you siblings," I assume they don't like it, but I'll act as if it was common knowledge.
-"... And you want 'somewhat of a challenge', so do you think of us as pushovers?"
-"Honestly yeah, even if in your case Blondie, I was one the worst opponents you could ever get."
-"Oh? Want to detail a little?" Jaune got curious. I know what she's thinking. If I got a Skill designed to defeat her with utmost efficiency, she could blame it, saying it won't count as a true loss.
-"Not now, I don't want to let them know too much before facing me, or our fight will be biased more than necessary."
-"You noticed while you were toying with Violet?"
-"I'm pretty confident in my instincts and Arts, you must do better than that if you want to hide your presence to me, and that survey spell was too close to go unnoticed."
-"Don't tell me they saw it? They saw me being..." Violet, still face on ground, paled.
-"Huh, sorry but yeah, they got a full view."
I gave her a pitying look. I understand they have a bitter rivalry, and with that her pride will shatter. The poor girl tried to get up, got pale and fell, her face meeting again with the dirt… Well, she did deserve it anyway.
-"...Worst day ever."
-"Knowing them, it was maybe a test for you. I'm sure they will raise their guard even more now they have an idea of your sharp senses."
-"My, I didn't think that you of all people would have understood this, Jaune," said a newcomer with white hair. "And all this time I was sure you didn't know how to use your brain, my respect for you has increased."
***
Blanc's POV:
After I gave my instructions to my minions to prepare an all-out assault in case of emergency, we emerged in front of this suspicious demon. And now that I see her in the flesh, I must say she possesses such a fierce presence. As I suspected she was waiting for us, her gaze made me feel uneasy, as if for the first time in my life I'm facing a true predator. I can see Noir tensing a little, unconsciously. Even him, with his hobby of studying anomalies, knows when to act with caution. I don't think we are really in danger thanks to our combined power, but as we witnessed, everything can happen now.
-"You're just arrived and are already spitting your venom huh, Blanc." Jaune reacted, but in a tamer way than usual. "You got here sooner than I expected. Long time no see Noir, you're late to the party for someone as weird as you."
-"Kufufufu, you sure are energetic for someone who got pummeled mercilessly some days ago."
-"Wha- you were spying on me?"
-"It pains me to say that I was not here, but one of my lineage was fortuitously close to the scene, and reported to me immediately after seeing you lose consciousness. It was a masterful display of dominance on your part, young demon."
The said young demon turned to Noir. She remains unfazed by our sudden appearance, still giving a sense of superiority in her posture.
-"Oh thanks. So you are the two remaining Primordials? By coming together, I suppose you are wary of me after witnessing this child's reeducation?"
-"As you say. It was a delightful sight, but don't expect us to be as naive as these idiots, said Noir while pointing at Jaune and Violet, a mocking smile on his face. "Being aware of your strength, we won't let ourselves be caught off guard if you want to face us."
-"Hmmm. You two are stronger."
-"Oh, how could you tell?"
-"I feel you know how to fight. Even if you look relaxed, those stances show something else entirely. Especially yours, missy."
She truly is a talented fighter, I can tell. She has noticed my hostility and the fact we have honed our skills in a league further than these idiots. She tensed a little, ready to bare her fangs, nothing like what she displayed against Violet earlier. We were right to come together, it won't be easy taking down an opponent who can't be fooled by appearance alone.
-"So Noir, do you want to go first or will you let me get this honor?"
-"I'll fight you two at the same time if you don't mind."
-"Ho? Why do you want it? Lowering your chances against us... Blanc and I, unlike those little girls, won't show you any mercy if you try to just play with us."
-"As I said to Blondie, on top of probing your level, I want a challenge to enjoy myself. But I also want to test the limits of my current body and skills, seeing how far I can go with it."
-"My, what confidence."I laughed at her impudence. "Don't sulk if it gets too difficult for you, I'll personally throw everything at you, we have our honor to defend and our land to preserve from the menace you represent."
This idiot, she got a lotta nerves, underestimating us like that. We will show you your place, you won't keep this smug look for long.
-"Menace you say? I think we got a misunderstanding, I don't care about overthrowing you or anything like that, and even if some say I look like a ruffian, I'm actually easygoing. I just got a job and I'm doing it."
Is she really? She's talking like this freaky Noir, not caring about power and status. But she's not lying, I can't see any signs of underlying malice or deception behind her words.
-"Kufufufu." Noir got curious at what she implies. "A job? So may I assume your birth has been planned by the World itself?"
-"More or less, I'm here as something like a guardian for the Demon Realm. And honestly I don't even care about winning, it's just that I needed to calm Blondie down and let Shorty know about the harsh reality of pissing off adults."
-"Oh shut your trap! We are demons, threats and provocations are part of our way of life, so you won't last long if you lose your temper every time you hear something you don't like!" Violet began throwing a tantrum, forgetting what happened earlier. "Even someone as pitifully hotheated as Jaune doesn't have such a foolish and barbaric display of dissatisfac- Owowow, not my cheek!"
-"This one here didn't have enough earlier, don't you think? With how long all of you are alive, I'm sure those three imagined more than once some ways to torment you if you were to fall under their clutch to make you shut your bratty mouth," the newbie said while releasing a little of her aura at Violet, pinching her so hard the brat's eyes got teary. "So don't whine because someone actually did it, knowing I was pretty soft on you and healed you afterward. I'm sure they enjoyed this show and won't let you ever forget this humiliating experience until the end of time."
-"You bet we won't! It was hard to hold my laughter, even if I did pity you a little after what I went through before you." Jaune retrieved her usual boisterous ways. "Don't worry about the old hag Blanc, she stayed calm… Well, kind of, in my castle, when I was recovering. She could have ended me if she truly wanted, so I'm ready to vouch for her if needed."
*chuckles* Was it only that? A unique demon tied to the fate of this forsaken place? How amusing, I sense she only told the truth until now, and if it wasn't the case she's too natural to make such a lie work, so we might have overthought it a little.
Jaune seems to not really hold a grudge against this one, contrary to that she may even have taken a liking to her. But it's better to be safe than sorry, I'll drop my guard only after I've tested her myself.
-"What are you, our mother? You're just born several days ago so don't talk like you know about the world. Am I right, Blondie?"
-"Think what you want Shorty."
-"... A mother huh?"
-"Hmmm? Did you say something old hag?" Jaune taunted her, I don't know if she's brave or dumb.
-"Nah nothing. So, just to be on the same wavelength I'll resume. I want to fight you two at the same time, for my job, for some enjoyment and for testing my limits. I don't care about winning nor taking your place and I'll tell you all who I am when we are done. Sounds good?"
-"Sounds good. Are you ready, Noir?"
-"Ready when you are, and I give you the honor of the first strike." He smiled, all teeth out. "Show us what you got, youngling."
As he said that, I'm materializing my whip and start harassing her. Now this misunderstanding is lifted, I can appreciate the most promising combat I had for many years. From what I saw, she's mostly relying on close combat, but can use nuclear magic in unorthodox ways. Let's see how much you can adapt to the turmoil of a serious battle.
I see Noir coming close behind her, his claws ready. He released beforehand a haphazardly moving dark ball, certainly infused with his Unique Skill. I saw it once, this spell binds its target in his mental world when it connects, and his randomized path makes it harder to escape, even with Magic Sense.
For now, this demoness doesn't seem to have problems taking us at the same time, she deflect my attacks with one hand and manage to evade Noir assault with minimal movements. But she can't remain on the defensive for too long, as we slowly push her back to a wall, and I will go harder.
-"My, where is that cocky attitude of yours now? I'll accelerate, so don't concede too fast. Death Vein."
This spell draws a sigil on the ground, where waves of dark magic encircle all living beings who step on it. I gave a protection brand to Noir, allowing him to continue his attacks on her without having the spell targeting him. Because we pinned her on the spot, her stamina will slowly but surely deplete, eaten by a deadly cocoon.
She realized it, and pushed Noir back with a hammer. Good, we forced her to use a weapon, meaning she takes it seriously. But this swing made her lose focus on my side. I see a gap in her posture and I'm not gonna waste it.
As a precaution, I first unleash a White Flare to make her lose her balance. With that tough body, I know it won't kill her, but as long as she is weakened we will make it work.
Also, since the beginning I used my whip as a way to carve in her hand a death curse. Even if she countered my blows the contact gradually glued microscopic abyss cores to her. I just need to ignite it before Noir's spell explodes, and she will be done, trapped and at his mercy.
-"Heh, you're good."
-"You're surprising as well, standing this long. But..."
As expected she withstood it but she couldn't really do anything else at the same time. Noir came back swiftly, ready for a pincer attack, a myriad of mental spells in standby cornering her. As fast as ever. Will you be able to withstand this?
-"Hell Stigma!"
My spell activated, I think it will have enough force to blow away her arm. I can let Noir finish the job now... What? It didn't explode?
-"Good try, but a little too weak. Now, I must clean off the battlefield or it will be ugly for me."
She took control of my curse? It's much more difficult than what she did against Violet. She must have a very strong Skill to do that.
*Ruuuuummmmbbbbbllllleeee*
-"!!! Get out of here Noir!"
-"I didn't wait for you to tell me, I can sense it, something dangerous is coming."
*ROOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAARRRR*
Urgh! Is she serious? Blasting off all those spells with a war cry? What intense pressure. My head hurts... Is she finally going all-out?
-"Huff, huff... Whew, I didn't expect I would need to use one of my secret techniques. But now I'm sure of one important thing."
-"Care to share what you think, young demon?"
-"... With the tool it places on me as I am now, I must face the hard reality, what a letdown."
-"Will you spit it already?!" I asked before losing my patience.
-"...I've really lost my touch."
What?
-"..."
-"Okay I'm done, first my butt and now my ears. Did I hear right?" Violet wasn't amused.
-"Hey, are you for real? That wasn't strong enough for you old hag?" Jaune was dumbfounded, as she found someone crazier than her.
-"Pfft. Kufufuahahaha!" Noir was doing his Noir. As expected. "You are truly funny, you're saying you could do better than that? As if it wasn't your first life and you were reincarnated. Are you?"
-"Yeah I am. I'm a former human."
*Deep silence*
How is that possible? A demon being reincarnated is already a rare occurrence, and here she spawn with a strength equal, if not superior to ours, called by the World. And she was human before?
I know some individuals had a great potential, especially the first Hero, but no other ever approached his might, nor anyone had such a mastery with abyss cores and Nuclear Magic except us ancient demons. And the Cardinal World is supposedly the strongest because of the system created by Veldanava, could another one rival it?
-"With those faces you're making, it would be better if we put a stop to this brawl and I start giving you a deserved explanation."
-"Huh, it was short but whatever, I waited for days to finally hear your story." Jaune summoned a drink. "C'mon guys, take a seat."
-"Kufufu. I wonder what awaits us, I can't wait."
***
The old hag's POV:
Hah, it was good. For once I needed to be careful, they didn't lie about getting serious from the start and I could have a glimpse of what I could do after being reborn. Now, time to tell my 'story'.
-"To summarize, and as I said before, I'm a former human. But not from the Cardinal World as some of you already noticed."
-"You bet we have," said the brat who now had enough energy to physically express her displeasure. "Never a stupid human ever had the skills to stand against us with our own magic specialty here, so how can you do it?"
-"You will know if you don't start to interrupt me all the time, got it Shorty? So I came from a world where a part of the system was available, even if it didn't work the same way as here. Because of it, I became a feared fighter, proficient with Nuclear Magic among other things, and was revered as one of the mightiest entities out there."
-"My, it explains a few things if the system is involved." Blanc looked unfazed, waiting for me to continue.
-"I suppose so. After almost 200 years, I died in a battle against one of my peers and before my mind disappeared, a mechanical voice told me something."
-"The Voice of the World, as I thought. Someone as unique as you couldn't be born with pure luck indeed." This guy seems to have good intuition, even if he looks weird.
-"I'll take it as a compliment. So she said that it would be a waste to let my power fade in the cycle of reincarnation and decided to create a special body for me and gave me a task: to protect the Demon Realm against anything that could threaten it."
-"Eh, what a big deal." The delinquent rolled her eyes.
-"Be sarcastic if you want Blondie, that's my story abbreviated. So for starters, I wanted to encounter those who rule this realm to have a rough idea of their strength and test my own. And the rest you already know."
-"Kufufu, that sure is interesting. But I wonder why the system would appoint you as a guardian here. This place is not really the one who will need the most protection in the Cardinal World."
-"As you say. In reality, this story of me being a guardian for the Demon Realm is mostly a facade made by the system. It's just a way to give me a powerful body by tweaking the rules a little."
-"Oh?" They all said it in unison, told you they're siblings.
-"Yeah, originally it planned to make me the eight Primordial... You can look at me like that, I'm totally serious. But no soul strong enough was available to be my angel counterpart, so a new species was created for me, called 'Hell Legate'. This fake mission is a way the system created to confirm my authority as your equal. And except for my 'job' I can do whatever I want, so take care of me."
-"..."
Here come the deadpan faces. I can understand, it's something hard to process for them, getting a new colleague abruptly, and not starting our collaboration in the best way possible. Heh, they will get over it soon enough, because I haven't finished with them yet.
-"Now you got to hear what you wanted, I'll continue with a harder pill to swallow. Because I didn't fight all of you just for fun, I have some comments to make, and You. Wont. Like. It!"
They flinched, and I turned to the brat first.
-"H-Hey! Stop with that face, you're startling m-"
-"Violet."
-"YES?"
'Pfft.' No, no. I won't laugh, it will ruin my presence. Even the two mature ones have lost their smiles when I said that, I want to enjoy this sight some more. Poor thing, I must have given you quite a trauma, if you're not able to reply as usual. Don't worry, the others will get their turn, and you will find a little comfort witnessing the faces they'll make.
-"You're weak. I would even say the weakest of the group. You got the least magicules, but you didn't compensate for this weakness. Not enough tactics, your moves are obvious, your skills unpolished. You fight like you act: as a brat, almost throwing a tantrum because your attacks didn't work. Your only redeeming point is your poison mastery. You'll have to work really hard if you want to be more than a laughingstock."
-"Eh.... Hehehehehe..."
*Blam*
...Was I too harsh? I didn't expect she would faint as soon as I finished. Whatever, next.
-"Jaune."
*Gulp*
-"You call your petty fireworks Nuclear Magic? It's one of the strongest kinds of magic in the universe, which requires dedication and hard work to control it. Even as a demon, getting mastery over it is an arduous path. It's not just to make big booms and look badass, that's the kind of mentality that will bite you when you least expect it, like when we met.
Do you really want to risk all you got because of such vanity? It would be disappointing, because you have great potential, surely you're the one who has more room to grow. Maybe one day you could even best those two so don't remain as a loser."
She got really pale. Maybe because it's the first time I don't call her by a nickname. And because of my scolding too, but it's for her good. Jaune, you're a weird demon yourself, being that close to some of your servants. You already started to rethink about what you want to do in your life before we leave your castle even if you didn't notice.
I hope this speech will be the spark that will ignite your desire to get stronger and not face another peril helplessly again. Because it won't be the last...
-"Next, Blanc."
-"I think I won't like it."
-"You don't say. But at least it's better than these kids. Despite not having a great amount of magicules, you've honed your skills correctly. A good combination of magic and melee, the ability to think and adapt, all basics are nurtured. BUT! You're too classic, too conventional. It wasn't that hard for me to get a grasp of your plans, I just got along to see the extent of your abilities as long as I wasn't in a dire situation.
And the worst is your lack of firepower. Your Death Magic is good against weaker opponents, sweeping an entire army of weaklings, but it renders you disadvantaged when battling opponents equal to or stronger than you. And there are a lot of them in the vast world, who will see you as nothing much more than a nuisance. So do something about it."
-"Tch. You don't mince words."
Is that displeasure I see in her face? But she appears to already be aware of her flaws, meaning she has a better mentality compared to the troublesome duo.
-"Now Blanc, you have confirmation you're not good enough to surpass me as you are. I told you you're taking too much time polishing everyday skills instead of battling. All of you call me weird, but it's a quality in more ways than you could envision."
-"Don't be too full of yourself, Noir, because it's your turn and you won't be safe from me."
-"Actually, I'm quite curious about your opinion so, go ahead."
-"Good, that's the spirit. For you, I've got nothing to say about your skills, nor your raw strength. But tell me, for how long didn't you fight seriously? Because you give the impression of getting rusty.
Jaune told me about you, a peculiar demon who ceased to pursue strength millennia ago when your rival managed to incarnate. And now you confined yourself in your lair, rarely getting out and doing some research on whatever you want. Why aren't you interested in power?"
-"Hm, you got good eyes. I admit I've let myself go, as I don't partake in those three little boring games of being the first to incarnate. I've gotten so strong that any fight was too easy, so why go further? Now I'm only interested in searching for the truth of the world."
Mmm... That's peculiar. I can understand it, but you are taking the wrong path.
-"The truth of the world? Quite a grand objective. But you won't go that far if you continue to search alone and without seeking power again."
-"Mind to elaborate?"
-"If you want to reach the Truth, it means you want to approach the realm of a true god. You will normally agree with me if I say no one except 'him' could know and do everything. So to compensate, train yourself, push your limits, for no one can become a 'god' if he's only able to watch and dream. Also, seek the strength, skills, experiences and wisdom of those who can give you something. Alone, you are fated to fail this quest, even with the eternity before you."
-"Not really something an ancient demon like me would envision spontaneously, but I admit there is something interesting in it."
-"That's the way humans would follow. I did it in my past life, and the results were tremendous, because y'know, I'm here now. And last thing, don't think you're still too strong. It may be the case here, even if Blanc is not too far behind. But for the true powerhouses of the world, the five of us are nothing more than insects as we are now. And Guy would laugh at you if he were here."
-"Okay, that's good and all," Jaune raised her hand, taking the opportunity to talk before I continued "But I've been bothered by a little detail."
-"Go ahead Blondie."
-"Oh, so it was a once in a lifetime occurrence? Nevermind. You say exciting things, you can do some good shit and your old life sounded fun, but I want to know how strong were you? Because now you're the same as us, lacking a proper name and not incarnated. You should have regressed quite a bit, it sounded like you realized it when you fought before."
"Ah, you don't say. It's quite depressing indeed, I could almost split a small continent in two if I used my full power, and now I can do barely more than yeeting a small hill at a castle. And I won't talk about the difference in resistance between the two worlds, because from what I saw it barely counts."
*Quartet of Wat?*
Violet fainted again.
-"So it's another reason why I'm disappointed in your current power. I thought beings from the Beginning of Time would be more than... you. Because honestly I would have wiped the floor with you four at the same time without too much difficulty, and not only me but four-five others could have done it. And I don't want to imagine what massacre it would be if you were to face a True Dragon or anything at this level."
-"Enough, I might regret it but screw that, I want to kick your ass. Prepare yourself, you harlot!"
-"Ouch, don't do that Blanc, cool your head before-"
*Bonk*
-"...Before you get the same treatment as us, I couldn't finish talking." Violet got up again after sensing a disturbance in the air. "Hey wrinkly, are you sure she's alive with such a chop on the head?"
-"You emerged from your sleep? First, I look like I'm in my late thirties, you know. It's quite young. And second, why are you so focused on how I look, with you being the greatest flat-chested and brat-looking granny of all eternity?"
-"I'LL DESTROY YOUR ASS AND USE YOUR CORPSE AS A CARPET!!! COME HELP ME JAUNE!"
-"Hey, let me out of this!"
Good, come at me with such high spirits. I'll help you train and reach a new summit, you will all be in great shape for when he will come. I don't know how long exactly I should wait, but I'll be ready to face him when the time comes... I hope so. I don't want to replay this disaster again.