RSE B2 CH 12

Upstairs, a magical portal suddenly opened in Lucy’s room. The blank faced succubus maid walked out of it with a weary sigh.

‘I should work on some anti-teleportation wards,’ she thought to herself.

She pondered the thought, twisting it this way and that, but was too tired to do more than add it to tomorrow’s To-Do list. Gwen and Livinia were pleasant women to chat with, but this didn’t mean that what they’d spoken of hadn’t been mentally taxing.

It seemed the Old Guard faction was on the move.

The ruling system of the devils was a little hard to understand now but, in the past, doing so had been much easier. The original four Dukes of Hell were the devils’ absolute rulers, with Lucifer at the helm. Thankfully, those four succumbed during the Great War that saw each faction—composed of Angels in the Heavens, Fallen Angels on the Mortal Plane, and Devils in the Hells—fighting the other two.

When the Dukes of Hell fell five centuries ago, it created a power vacuum that others rose swiftly to fill. On one side there was Salvatore Mephisto and the Calamities supported by Baal, the retired former commander of the armies of Hell in the Great War. They came to be called the Calamity faction. That faction wanted peace above everything and also wanted to change the way of the devils. 

Opposing the Calamity faction were the Old Guard faction, composed of the descendants of Lucifer and the Dukes of Hell. They had many supporters—primarily those who did not wish to change their ways.

When two sides with different ideals opposed one another, it typically resulted in one obvious outcome: War.

Five hundred years ago, the fire of civil war raged through the devil world, erasing many of the devil’s seventy-two noble families in its wake. The bodies piled high in the vicious fighting, decreasing the already low number of Devils. Thankfully the Calamity faction won. But the price was high and had been paid in blood.

If Aiden Astaroth, now known as Aiden Leviathan, hadn’t created the system of Demonic Pieces, things would be even worse. Still, no victory was perfect, and what they were calling the Old Guard faction survived, laying low and biding their time.

As a daughter of Asmodeus, Lucy and her mother had once been members of the Old Guard faction, alongside Gwen Lucifiuge. But Lucy had never adhered to their conservative ways and was more than happy when her mother had married Zane Mephisto. When Gwen fell in love with Salvatore Mephisto and they married, she also left the Old Guard faction.

It was funny how the Mephisto family had seduced high-ranked members of the Old Guard into their ranks.

Still, as a direct descendant of Asmodeus, Lucy still received solicitations from the Old Guard. Some of them—and Lucy snorted at the memory—had even tried to seduce her away from the Calamity faction. They thought she was easy, just because she was a succubus.

‘Truly ridiculous.’

She was about to go to bed when she realized she still needed to take care of Leo. He’d have come home several hours ago.

‘How shameful. To think I nearly failed my duty.’

Thankfully, she’d made dinner and left it in the over to stay warm, instructing Asa to let her Master know. They should have eaten without her.

This was what she thought until she walked down the stairs and saw that the table was set for dinner, and the oven was still keeping dinner warm.

“Oh… Lucy, there you are.”

“Leo. Why haven’t you… ?” Her voice trailed off.

Leo understood the unsaid part of her question. “I told you that we will eat together, unless one of us is out of town or has clearly communicated that we have other plans.”

“No, I mean…what are you wearing?!”

For once, Lucy was the one who was flabbergasted by what she saw before her. After all, reaching into the stove to retrieve their dinner from the oven was Leo… he was clad in nothing but a pair of boxers and an apron.

“Ah, do you like my apron?”

Leo grinned before shrugging one shoulder. “I liked it when Asa did it for me, and I thought I would tease you with some fanservice.” His cheeks were a rosy hue as he said this.

He was clearly embarrassed about his attire, but Lucy had to admit that he was right. She liked what she saw. Leo was a handsome young man. And thanks to his regular training, he had a body to die for. The fact that he had more scars than any young man his age should—the proof of his struggles—only made him hotter in her opinion.

Lucy blinked rapidly, gulping softly as she felt the host of raging butterflies in her gut sink lower. She discretely rubbed her thighs together, her lacy underthings growing damp. 

Her reaction didn’t escape Leo.

Because a flustered Lucy was a rare sight, he enjoyed it tremendously. More than ever, he was certain his decision to tease her hadn’t been a mistake. Then again, the fact that Asa had fled from the kitchen with a nose bleed with a face as red as a tomato should have been proof.

“Ha ha ha!” Leo laughed. “Take a seat. You left dinner to warm in the oven, and I’m serving your plate. I already prepared a tea for you.”

“But…”

“Hush now.” Leo waved her concerns away. “You always take care of me. Let me return the favor—at least for this evening.”

Lucy had become a fixture in his life, and he wanted her to be happy. Words alone were never enough, though. Sometimes, it was necessary to show one’s appreciation and thankfulness through actions instead.

Lucy wanted to protest, but before she could say anything, Asa came back into the kitchen and took her hand. The petite blonde pulled her towards a chair. “Lucy, please. Leo just wants to take care of you… and it’s…” She looked down at the floor, suddenly shy. “It’s the same for me. Let us pamper you… just a little. Okay? You always do so much for us.”

Lucy finally relented. “I am a little tired,” she admitted.

“Perfect!” Asa clapped her hands together gleefully. “Just sit here and let us do all the work.”

Bemused, the much older succubus maid watched the young woman and her young Master serve the casserole she’d prepared earlier, whip up a salad to go with it, and poured tea her for. Dinner was lovely—made so, she realized, by having these two take care of her for a change.

Though it was clear she didn’t realize it, the corners of Lucy’s mouth turned upwards in a gentle smile—one that stayed on her face all evening long. Leo saw it, though, and a warmth spread through his chest at the sight.

Like this, the three of them spent a pleasant night as they discussed, joked around, and shared anecdotes of their respective lives. Leo wanted to know more about Lucy and Asa, and they wanted to know more about him. More than anything, he wanted to strengthen their relationship—not only through physical intimacy but through simple things like an evening spent together.

“By the way, Asa,” Leo said after Asa finished a story about what school had been like in the cloister she grew up in, “I went to the Provost’s office and ensured you won’t have a problem coming back to school. Sharon Sitrin, of all people, works there and she helped me straighten out any issues with your tuition and classes. Everything depends on you working out how to re-take midterm exams and make up any other work you missed with your professors.”

“Oh? That’s great! Thank you.”

Leo snorted. “Don’t thank me, thank Sharon. She got her boss to sign off on everything, including dropping the charges of fraud the school filed against you when your previous sponsors withdrew their funding.”

“I will,” Asa promised. “You’ll have to introduce me to her.”

Asa was a great student. She wouldn’t have any trouble making up the work she had missed. It just meant she would be really busy for the next couple of weeks. She had truly enjoyed being able to attend classes with people her own age. It was how she had met Leo.

‘Truly, meeting Leo was a blessing from above.’

Asa prayed, thanking God for her many blessings… for everything. A few days ago she couldn’t imagine being this happy. She beamed at the two with her.

Eating a lovely dinner with her friend and with her lover. Chatting happily and joking around. Go to school with people her own age. Feeling so blessed, she couldn’t help but wonder if she was worthy of this happiness.

A small voice in her head told her she didn’t deserve this happiness. The memory of a corpse disfigured by Freed flashed in her mind. The sneering exorcist looming over it pointed his finger at her and called her a murderer.

She was unworthy of happiness.

Shivering to herself, Asa realized all she could do was squash those voices and memories when they surfaced, pushing them down deep to the bottom of her heart. She knew that she would never forget the events of that night. She didn’t think she would feel at ease standing close to any man aside from Leo—not after what Freed nearly did to her.

More than anything, though, she knew she couldn’t let go of the guilt in her heart because those who were now dead—in part thanks to her—would not come back. Even so, she refused to show any sign of the uneasiness in her heart. She did not wish to make Leo nor Lucy worry about her. 

These were her issues to deal with, and she would do so. Shaking her head to clear it of such morose thoughts, Asa focused on what Leo was saying.

“… about the fight against Rayne and her Circle. I think we should do it this week. The sooner we get past this, the better.”

“Heh…” Lucy covered her mouth with one hand, one eyebrow ticking up a bit. “I did not think you were so impatient to enslave your cousin, Master. How kinky.”

Leo laughed, cheeks coloring as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I wasn’t interested in her problems at first, if I’m being honest. But now that I know we are family… distant family… I can’t turn a blind eye to her issue with Richard Stolas.”

Rayne had gone from being a pure stranger to a somewhat nosy acquaintance… to family. He had to admit he’d made friends in her Circle, too. As such, he did not wish to see them suffer.

Of course, Leo had no intention of becoming Rayne’s servant. Since she wanted to deal with the problem, he would ensure she had all the means necessary to succeed. 

“By the way…” Led paused, changing topics. “Do you know what kind of snacks Kira likes?”

He wanted to cheer up the petite white haired Cat Spirit. From what little he had seen of her, her favorite foods always cheered her up. But he didn’t want just to offer her a bag or two of chips, he wanted to give her whatever snacks and such were her favorites.