— — — — — —
Nelliel stumbled out of Lynn's office, still a bit dazed.
Pesche, who had been waiting outside for quite a while, saw her and his eyes widened with joy. He rushed forward excitedly. "Lady Nel! You're finally back to normal!"
"…Pesche."
Nelliel looked at him for a long moment, her expression complicated.
Because of her… Pesche's mask had been shattered, and he'd reverted from Arrancar back to a basic Hollow.
Her expression grew colder.
Nnoitra Gilga.
You really deserve to die.
"Pesche, you've been holding down the fort all this time. Thank you."
Tears welled up in Pesche's eyes. He just shook his head rapidly, overwhelmed, unable to even speak properly.
Seeing that, Nelliel's lips tugged into a small smile. Then her eyes turned serious. "Let's go. Back to Hueco Mundo."
Her voice chilled. "There are some people who need to pay for what they've done."
"But…" Pesche looked concerned.
"Don't worry," Nelliel said firmly.
Her eyes gleamed as she clenched her fist, feeling the newfound power flowing through her body. "I've received new power."
Even when she'd been ranked the Third Espada, Nnoitra hadn't been able to beat her in a fair fight. He'd had to ambush her with others just to win.
But now? With this new power?
Even if she had to face them all again—she was ready.
— — —
Hueco Mundo
Nelliel and Miko met up with Midoriko and the others.
"You're Nel?" Midoriko blinked in shock, eyes widening at Nelliel's curvy figure.
Wait, what the heck…
Wasn't she a little kid before?!
Nelliel smiled warmly. "Midoriko-nee."
She still called her the same way she did in her child form.
Midoriko's expression twitched slightly.
Nelliel's return—and her new form—definitely stirred up a few waves among the leveling squads.
Eventually, Midoriko smiled and said: "Welcome to the Familia."
Nelliel blinked in surprise… then smiled back and gave a firm nod.
She didn't fully understand what kind of people made up this "Familia" yet.
But it couldn't possibly be worse than Las Noches.
Besides, after spending time around them these past few days, she'd gotten a feel for their personalities.
And honestly… she liked the vibe here.
"Oh right," Midoriko added. "These two joined after you left—Ingvild Leviathan and Katerea Leviathan."
"H-hi there…" Ingvild gave a timid little wave, only to get smacked lightly on the head.
Katerea clicked her tongue. "You're a Leviathan—can you please act like it?"
"Uuugh…" Ingvild shrunk back.
Katerea rolled her eyes.
Nearby, Nelliel took a moment to size the two of them up.
"Another pair of powerhouses," she thought to herself.
Though… her gaze lingered on Katerea.
Strong. She gave off the same kind of pressure… as a First Seat?
Katerea noticed Nelliel's stare and smirked, folding her arms. "I heard about everything that happened to you."
She tilted her head with a playful glint in her eye. "So? As a welcome gift for joining the Familia, how about we raise a little hell?"
"Raise… hell?" Nelliel blinked, confused.
Katerea pointed dramatically in the direction of Las Noches, a wicked grin spreading across her face.
"Yeah—let's go turn that place upside down!"
Excitement flashed in her eyes as she recalled how Lynn had completely wiped out the Old Satan Faction all by himself.
Back then, she'd been little more than background scenery… and then became his "reward."
Now?
She wanted to make her mark too. Show off the pride of House Leviathan.
Nelliel, meanwhile, just stood there, stunned.
Turn… Las Noches upside down?
She went quiet.
Even she had only planned to lure out Nnoitra and his lackeys for a one-on-one reckoning.
But Las Noches? That was his territory.
Aizen Sosuke.
She opened her mouth to object—but Katerea raised a hand and cut her off.
"Relax. We already got Lord Lynn's approval."
Hearing that, Nelliel closed her mouth.
If that was the king's will… then as one of his knights, all she had to do was charge forward without hesitation.
Her eyes hardened with resolve.
"Heh…" Katerea narrowed her eyes with amusement. "Now that's the look I wanted to see."
"Alright then—let's divvy up the targets!"
Well… "divvy up" might've been a stretch. More like picking which enemies to crush.
---
Las Noches
Nnoitra Gilga frowned.
"Where the hell did Tesra run off to?"
— — —
Main World — Warlord's Empire
After days of negotiation, the Lion King Organization had finally confirmed the location of representative Twelve.
And yeah, the death of Dimitrie Vatler—directly linked to the Lion King Organization—had caused quite a stir.
And let's just say, during the talks, the Warlord didn't exactly treat them with kindness.
But… Himeragi Yukina only had one line throughout the whole negotiation:
"Take it up with Lord Lynn."
The Warlord: "…"
He knew very well how dangerous Lynn was.
He wasn't just some vampire noble—he was one of the ancients, someone deeply connected to every major power out there.
So when Lynn single-handedly wiped out the entire Old Satan Faction?
Yeah, word got around. Fast.
Even though the Warlord himself was a Primogenitor, one of the strongest vampires alive.
Among devils, his strength barely counted as "average Satan" level.
If he'd gone alone into the Old Satan Faction's headquarters, forget winning—he'd be lucky to crawl out alive.
So yeah—he knew better than to cross someone like Lynn.
The Warlord had been enjoying his peaceful life for far too long. He wasn't about to stir up trouble over something that wasn't worth it.
Still, one of his own had been killed. As a leader, he couldn't just do nothing.
And to make things worse, those bastards—Aswad and Giada—had been mocking him ever since.
He clicked his tongue.
Tch. Like they'd do any better.
Well… maybe Giada would just end up becoming Lynn's bedwarmer after a good beating?
Thinking about Giada's personality, the Warlord shook his head.
Still, he had to make some kind of move.
Otherwise, people might start thinking the Warlord was just a pushover.
So… Time to make use of the Blazing Banquet.
His eyes narrowed.
...
Meanwhile, after leaving the Warlord's Empire, Yukina sent word back to the Lion King Organization.
"Representative Twelve (Avrora Florestina) is being held on the Island of Gozo."
.
.
.