(Diodora POV)
You know, when I was alive in my previous life, I enjoyed wasting time… just simply doing random things for random reasons with random thoughts echoing through my head.
It helped distract me… at least it gave me a distraction from the silence. When I was young, you could barely make a noise lest you remind the owners that you still exist. When he was young, he thought that… he hoped that maybe one day there would be some noise.
So in my foolish youth, I made noise. I played music, maybe to try to get some attention or to feel less alone… but then reality smacked me in the face as the music was deafened, and I was left locked in my room….
As I smashed my fist into a nearby mountain, I could feel a small part of it shake… again and again, I applied strikes against the rocky surface, each one causing decently sized indents… I made sure I didn't use any demonic power, as I could feel that with every single hit my body was growing stronger and stronger.
More specifically, I was using demonic power, but mostly just to keep the gravity runes active. By now I've already gotten used to five times my own weight and a day ago increased it to 10 times. Originally, my body, which was not exactly out of shape but quite thin, has now begun to get some definition.
I was still a 10-year-old, so it wasn't anything insane, but it was nice to know that something was changing. After a few hours of slamming my fist into the side of a mountain, I stopped, and as I felt the flow of demonic power into my fist, I struck….
Crash!
The part I was punching collapsed, and while some of the debris attempted to fall on me, I simply created a shield using my demonic power. Usually, the shields were created in the form of our family crests, but I would rather use it as little as possible.
I've attempted to analyze the crest and to put it simply: a family crest is like a funnel that allows you to use more demonic power without the energy leaking out, making the usage of such demonic power more efficient. Attempting to use it without a crest is like trying to hold onto water in your fist. While you can do it, there is going to be a few leaks.
However, I wanted to make that fist utterly inescapable… as much as I could, I attempted to use demonic magic without the crest behind me. I have dozens of glowing orbs of my own demonic power constantly shifting around me.
A small lapse in concentration, a minor distraction, is all it takes for these orbs to self-implode, and I made it like that as a punishment for being distracted.
Taking a breath, I walk away from the rubble while keeping the orbs of demonic energy around me, the orbs themselves being superheated atoms. If they were to ever strike something, they would quite literally melt through most materials.
Fire magic wasn't a specialty of my family. That was more for the Phenexes… I attempted to make a theory on how such a thing is possible, how demonic power could be used to create something meant to heal. Something truly meant to heal, not only in the form of self-regeneration, but their Phenex tears… I would like to get my hands on some, but they are incredibly expensive.
A small vial of them costs more than this manor. It's how that family has become so popular in recent years.
Pulling out my wings, I take flight and return towards the manor, and as I do so, I feel a faint rumbling in my pocket. And as I pull out the small device, a small smile makes its way to my face as the 300 points have been deposited.
However, while I am tempted to make some purchases now, I have to think about what I'm going to do first. While I wish I could simply buy an entire pocket dimension for myself, I don't immediately need it given the fact that this mansion is very isolated. The land itself borders where the young dragons take root.
I was slightly tempted to fly over and test myself against them, but I do not believe going there without invitation would be without consequences. That reminds me that I could technically become a dragon given the heritage section. In fact, I could become many things, from a cultivator to a mechanical monstrosity; however, I am less than enthused.
Especially given the whole dragon aura thing that I've heard about sometimes… but that was probably just a fan creation. There was technically a devil heritage; however, it mostly revolved around making deals like devils from Chainsaw Man, which is something to consider for the future.
Landing in front of my door, I placed my hand against the nearby wall, allowing myself entry. It is a basic security measure, but one I have installed myself. If this place was going to be home, I'm going to need it a lot more heavily defended than it is now.
I also need to figure out a way to spoof the various recording crests around the area. Thankfully, there are very few of them, but it's going to take some more time to fully analyze them.
I continue my normal routine, cleaning myself up and making myself some lunch. I almost find it funny how normal this all feels, as if I wasn't a few minutes ago destroying areas that would take the equivalent of a tank shell to make a dent in.
But even I knew that the power levels here were definitely something to be aware of. The higher levels of Shiva and even the super devils can destroy countries, while the dragon gods can destroy the world. A normal high-class devil can destroy mountains, and ultimate class becomes a near country-level threat, but there are also inconsistencies in between the power levels themselves. But I wasn't one to power scale for too long, as that is a pit one never wants to stay down in for too long.
God, the times I can remember making those power scaling debates on forums was something I never knew I'd look back on with a smile. But such mental debates are for a future time. As I sit down in the chair, I get comfortable and pull out the phone.
The design is rather sleek, something pseudo-futuristic. However, that may just be the fact that this is how I interpret it. I barely even have to touch the thing for it to follow my commands. So I take a deeper dive into its features, and I immediately head over to the defenses.
I notice the ones that have already been purchased for me. However, some are only at level one out of two. However, given my lack of points, I need to spend them carefully, and given the fact that I'm in a world of gods, I immediately head over to the polymorph and wildscape defenses.
Both of which would protect me from involuntary transformations, which, given my current climate, would be beneficial.. I also buy the second level of corruption defense to make sure that the various darker influences be shut out entirely.
Finally, after some deliberation, I choose information defense to use the final 50 points on to buy both levels of it. Now I can fully hide my power level. I fully plan on keeping myself below the radar until I reach a certain level, and while it is cowardly, it's also smarter given how attracted to power the devils are and the innate nature of this universe makes it so that those with higher power always somehow end up in trouble.
And similarly to Faerie Feast, I feel a dial in my head—one that allows me to manage the level that I show to others—and surprisingly enough, it actually has another beneficial effect. It allows me to somewhat measure my own progress.
After a week of training, I've reached the high end of low class, bordering on the beginning level of mid class. To be honest, it doesn't surprise me given how fast devils seem to increase in power, but also how they quickly seem to plateau unless they are a part of some powerful bloodline. I believe it was even stated that Rias would have become an ultimate class devil without even trying. Simply existing long enough would allow her to reach such a level.
But I also equate this to the talent bolstering my growth and strength.
However, before I close the phone, I notice something else within the talent section. I see I have a free template; however, it is limited to a tier below me—at least a tier below me at my strongest, that being tier 6—so I can buy a tier 5 for free.
Now this was something I wasn't expecting, and for a few moments, I just stared into the fireplace and pondered. This would be a very important decision. I went through my mind, considering each and every possible character that I could remember, and as one comes to mind, I am reminded of a certain red-haired axe wielder.
And given the fact that this character has little in terms of metaphysical changes, I wish to test this template stacking, and as I confirmed my choice, I found myself in an entirely new place.
While I was sitting in front of a fire this time, I had someone with me—a small yet stoic man, his beard basically covering a large part of his body—and as he stared at me dead in the eyes, he picked up the axe that was next to him and handed it to me. Yet as I reached forward, my hand was entirely different, both of them wrapped in bandages, covered in blood.
As my hand grasped the axe, I saw a slight twitch of some unknown emotion from the man before he let go, and as I swung it in my hand, it felt lighter than anything I've ever felt.
"I've lived a very long time. I've seen so much. Now it's your turn…. They will be coming soon. Now show me that you can swing that axe!" As he stood up, the fire died, and quicker than I expected, I rose to my feet, the axe in hand, and before we either said or moved at all, I was already using a vertical swing. Yet before my axe could strike his head, I found myself back in the manor.
Breathing heavily, I saw the axe still in my hand. I gripped it hard as memories filled my mind. I remember my training with Eisen—the pain, the fear. I remember him throwing me in front of monsters in order to gauge my endurance and strength.
The last thing I remember was him and his last words and the look in his eyes when I gripped him. From my memories, I would never have believed we parted on good terms. Then I recalled the anime where he was simply surprised.
Even I could feel the new strength filling my muscles. Again, nothing impressive, but it was something.
Yet before I could be alone with my thoughts any longer, I heard a large crashing and roar from the distance.
Faster than I ever thought I could move, I exited my home and flew faster and faster. Barely even a half mile away from my home, I saw it: a demonic beast… it looked like a giant boar. Legends say that Lucifer created these demonic beasts as a final middle finger to the angels. If they ever managed to get control of the underworld, these beasts would multiply endlessly, so they would forever be a constant thorn in God's side.
They come in many forms, each one mutated by the demonic energy within the underworld. This one, however, looked at me with a bloodlusted look in its eyes.
Its breathing so hot, its nose created flames with every exhale… as we stared at each other, I noticed the innate stance it was preparing to charge. The giant pig, nearly the size of a two-story house, then huffed and started charging at me.
Instead of running away, I ran towards it. Yet before it reached me, I slid under its tusks and, using my axe, I swung into its underside, causing some somewhat deep gashes.
The pig roared in pain but more annoyance as it crashed into a nearby boulder. It turned around and again tried to charge me, and as I ran out of it, it immediately dove its tusks into the ground to keep me from sliding under it again. However, I expected this, and as I jumped into the sky, I slammed my axe into its back.
The impact caused a large crater to be formed under the pig, and again it screamed in pain. This time, however, as it tried to shake me off, I slammed my axe into its left eye before being shook off.
As I landed, memories flashed in front of my eyes of a large dragon standing in front of me. But unlike Stark, I had something he didn't, and as I felt the demonic power flowing into my arms, then into the axe, it shined in a red light. And as I held it towards my left side, I charged straight at it. The pig, trying to regain its balance, barely noticed me as I jumped into the air and slammed my axe down straight into its skull.
The impact of the axe created sparks across the pig's face, and as I noticed that it was somewhat still alive, I charged a ball of demonic energy. And as it roared in my face, causing some spit to land on my chest, I looked directly into its only good eye and shoved the ball of demonic power into its mouth.
I then jumped back with the axe in my hand, and as I used my demonic power to clean the blood off, I turned around as the pig began to blow up in size, and soon enough it exploded in a shower of gore. However, none of it landed on me.
And as I watched the demonic power begin to consume the body, I then thought to myself, "Wait, I could've used this pig for food…" but then I remembered the last time I tried to eat one of these things and it tasted terrible.
As the large body burned to ash, I stared at the axe in my hand, and as the last of the memories flashed in my eyes, I saw a girl with purple hair and an elf with white hair staring down at me.
Shaking my head, I distract myself from my stupor. And as I placed the axe against my back, I use my demonic power to keep it connected to my body. And as the sun begins to set, I feel an overwhelming urge to keep training.
But as I again returned to my home, a letter forms in front of me. Grimacing in annoyance, I open it, as it bears the seal of my father. The letter itself contains the usual hidden dribble and insults, and the constant comparison to my older brother. Yet the letter itself most importantly carries the date for this year's youth gathering for young devils.
I make a mental note to make sure to continue my training while making time for dance practice, as it has been a while since I've practiced myself. And while this is annoying, it isn't the end of the world. These events are most likely meant, at least at face value, to show the connectivity of the various noble houses, but you barely need to scratch off the flowery words until you see the innate need for such an event, that being forming connections with the future generations.
To be honest, I could care less, but again my identity helps in keeping my anonymity from my previous memories. Barely anyone even wanted to speak to me during these events, so I'll keep that energy in the future ones.
I have no need for control of this underworld, nor power in their political games.
Let them speak their empty words while I learn to hold the world in my hand.
For now, however, I need to write a response back while making sure to keep it as short as possible.