"How can this be..."
Rias began to protest, but Takeyo caught her eye and subtly shook his head, silencing her objection before it could fully form.
If neither Sirzechs nor Michael had any complaints about the situation, then Rias voicing her disapproval would accomplish nothing. Her status, while significant as a high-class Devil heiress, only granted her the right to observe these negotiations, not to influence their outcome.
The Fallen Angels were willing to offer compensation for Kokabiel's transgressions. For the Three Factions, that represented an acceptable resolution to move past this incident.
"Thank you for your understanding," Azazel said smoothly. "I'll ensure my subordinates are properly restrained in the future."
His tone shifted to something more casual, almost conversational. "Actually, I did send the White Dragon Emperor to handle the situation this time. But ah, I never expected Takeyo here would be so powerful that he'd defeat both Vali and Kokabiel simultaneously. Talk about impressive,"
The frivolous delivery didn't diminish the weight of his words.
A heavy loss for the Grigori, indeed. If he didn't handle this situation properly, he'd face severe consequences from the other faction leaders.
"Defeated... simultaneously?"
Everyone present turned their attention to Takeyo.
Michael's halo flickered with surprise. Kokabiel possessed ten wings, a Cadre-level Fallen Angel whose power matched that of Satan-class Devils. Even with the support of Heaven's system, Michael knew he would struggle against such an opponent.
And this human boy accomplished that feat?
Even the Joker of the Hero Faction didn't possess that level of strength, did she?
Seeing all eyes on him, Azazel couldn't resist adding fuel to the fire.
"Yeah, Not just Kokabiel either. Vali was with him, and Takeyo defeated them both. The really interesting part? Vali was using Juggernaut Drive at the time,"
Azazel's grin widened as he recalled the battle. "He probably didn't expect to get beaten so thoroughly even with that form activated. Hahaha,"
The harmonious relationship between foster father and appearance, or lack thereof, was on full display.
"Pardon me, Azazel," Vali interjected calmly, "but I should clarify something."
All eyes shifted to the White Dragon Emperor.
"I already knew I wasn't a match for Takeyo," Vali admitted without hesitation. "After all, we'd fought before this incident, and he defeated me using his sun flames back then,"
He shrugged with complete nonchalance. "I only activated Juggernaut Drive to complete your mission, not because I thought it would let me win."
Being defeated? That wasn't something Vali found shameful enough to hide. He respected strength, and Takeyo had proven his superiority.
"Juggernaut Drive?"
Michael and Gabriel exchanged glances, the only ones present unfamiliar with Takeyo's current capabilities.
Being thrust into the spotlight this way made Takeyo's eyebrow twitch with mild annoyance.
Seriously, talking about strength evaluations during a Three Faction peace conference? With this time, he could be doing something actually productive, reading, studying, or spending time with the girls he cared about.
"Azazel," Takeyo said, cutting through the speculation with evident irritation, "don't you remember this is a Three Faction peace conference? It's not a forum for discussing my personal combat capabilities."
He coughed slightly, a trace of golden blood appearing at the corner of his mouth, immediately recapturing everyone's attention.
"Eh heh heh,"
Azazel waved his hand dismissively, though his grin suggested he'd gotten exactly the reaction he wanted. He'd been curious if he could gauge Takeyo's true abilities, but the boy had clearly prepared countermeasures against such probing.
Fair enough.
"Let me provide a summary, then?" Azazel said, leaning forward on the conference table as he looked at the representatives from both Angels and Devils.
"Really,~ I'm the one longing for peace here, yet no one else is willing to bring it up? Guess that makes me the responsible party,"
Despite his perpetually frivolous demeanor, Azazel was proving himself a genuinely unique Governor-General.
During these critical talks, he was the first to formally propose the concept of peace. Later, he would use his own abdication as a bargaining chip to facilitate the alliance between the Three Factions and other pantheons, even bringing Ophis into his camp.
Frivolous as he appeared, Azazel was destined to become a Governor-General who transcended his era, someone history would remember.
"Through this incident, I believe everyone has become aware of a fundamental problem," Azazel said, his expression becoming unusually serious.
"Peace... is what we all truly need, right?"
Michael's surprise was evident. "Azazel, What exactly do you mean?"
He hadn't expected the notoriously carefree and frivolous Governor-General to be the one proposing this. Michael had assumed either he or Sirzechs would need to broach the subject first.
"My meaning is quite simple," Azazel replied. "It's time for the Three Factions to conclude a formal peace treaty."
His golden eyes swept across the assembled leaders. "If we continue this internal conflict, I'm afraid surviving in this world will become increasingly difficult,"
"Whether it's the Demon Kings who fell on the Devil side, or God who died on the Angel side, none of them would want to see the Three Factions consumed by external forces, would they?"
A gleam of determination flashed in Azazel's eyes.
Being a leader of the Three Factions was genuinely a high-risk occupation. The fact that he'd survived this long was remarkable in itself.
If possible, he'd much rather spend his days as a laid-back researcher, studying Sacred Gears, conducting experiments, maybe enjoying some quality time with interesting women to spice things up.
"This is indeed not a situation the Devils wish to see," Sirzechs acknowledged after a moment's consideration.
While the Devil faction possessed the greatest raw power among the Three Factions, that assumed all Devil forces were united under a single banner.
Reality was far more complicated. The Underworld had three transcendent-level beings, the Four Great Satans minus Falbium. However, Rizevim, the son of the original Demon King Lucifer, belonged to the Old Satan Faction.
The struggle between the Devil Reformists and the Old Satan Faction remained deadly serious.
"We also believe this is not what our Lord God would wish to see~" Michael said, offering a prayer.
"So, we're in agreement?" Azazel asked, looking between the two faction leaders. "Does anyone in this room have objections? Anyone can voice their concerns."
"Hey, Red Dragon Emperor's master, how about starting with you?"
Azazel's attention turned to Takeyo with obvious interest.
"Red Dragon Emperor's master?!~"
Michael's halo flickered intensely at this revelation.
He glanced around at the others present, noting their complete lack of surprise. They'd all known this already, hadn't they?
Damn it. Their side had been completely in the dark about this development.
Well, he could only blame Irina for being unconscious during the critical moments in Kuoh. Otherwise, they might have received at least some useful intelligence.
"If I had objections," Takeyo said with a slight smile, "wouldn't I have dealt with you all back in Kuoh rather than letting you leave peacefully?"
"Fair enough..."
"Alright, looks like this gentleman has no problems," Azazel said cheerfully. "Vali, and Toshi? What about you two?"
"No objections..." Toshi said quietly.
"I only need opportunities to fight strong opponents," Vali added with characteristic bluntness.
"Well, Vali, you'll have plenty of chances to fight strong people even during peacetime,"
Azazel spread his hands before turning his attention to the Angel faction.
"I need only to be able to sample delicacies from around the world," Diodora said with a pleasant smile. "In fact, I'll have far more time for travel if peace is established, won't I?"
Internally, though, Diodora was somewhat conflicted.
He genuinely had been traveling when Heaven suddenly summoned him for official duties. The appearance of phantoms representing the Ten Incarnations of Vishnu near Kuoh had made this a high-priority situation.
Not just the Angels, all Three Factions had deployed their maximum security measures. The number of Devils, Fallen Angels, and Angels currently patrolling the area around Kuoh Academy was unprecedented.
"So, that settles it?" Azazel adopted a serious expression. "We're signing a peace covenant, correct?"
"I have no objections to signing the covenant," Sirzechs said carefully, "but there's something we need to address."
"But?" Azazel's brow furrowed. What was Sirzechs planning at this critical juncture?
"Even if we sign a peace agreement, there will inevitably be significant opposition and friction from various factions," Sirzechs continued.
"That's natural," Azazel acknowledged. "But it should be considerably less than what we're dealing with currently."
"True, but I believe we need to prepare for situations similar to Kokabiel's rebellion."
Sirzechs clasped his hands together, clearly leading toward something specific.
"What kind of preparation did you have in mind?"
Azazel couldn't help but feel curious. As long as Sirzechs wasn't opposing the peace treaty itself, he could work with whatever else came up. If he had to start a war here, it would be genuinely troublesome.
"When rogue forces like Kokabiel run rampant, we need the power to sanction them effectively," Sirzechs explained.
"Therefore, I propose establishing a joint Three Faction team specifically to handle such situations."
This was what Sirzechs had wanted to discuss with Takeyo in advance.
Takeyo had known about this proposal from the beginning. Sirzechs had consulted with him beforehand to work out certain details.
"A specialized team to handle these situations? That's actually quite a good idea~" Michael said approvingly.
"So, how should the Three Factions contribute to this team's formation?" Azazel asked.
When he posed this question, he'd already determined the candidates from his own side, and had probably guessed who the other two factions would nominate as well.
"The initial plan is for each faction to contribute one person," Sirzechs said with a slight smile. "Our representative will be Takeyo."
"Then our side can only offer the Joker~" Michael said, glancing at Diodora.
Diodora, who had been looking forward to more peaceful travel time, felt a resentful gaze fix upon Michael.
Great. Another responsibility being thrust upon him with no time for enjoyment.
"For the Fallen Angels, it would have to be Toshi~" Azazel spread his hands in resignation.
"Isn't this excellent?" Sirzechs observed the three candidates. "The three humans upon whom the Three Factions currently depend most heavily will serve as mutual monitors."
He could sense that all three possessed extraordinary power. Any one of them individually could match the so-called Four Great Satans in combat capability!
While Diodora would eventually reincarnate as a ten-winged Fallen Angel, he currently remained in his human body. The Angel reincarnation system hadn't been constructed yet.
"Well then, this matter is settled?" Azazel sighed with something approaching relief.
Finally. They'd reached this point.
Peace. Wasn't that what they'd all been working toward? Yet everyone had hesitated to propose it directly. They'd needed to hold this extended meeting just to reach what should have been an obvious conclusion.
Though Azazel understood this was all necessary process, it still felt unnecessarily complicated.
"Yes, establishing this team is a prerequisite for peace," Sirzechs confirmed. "Then... the covenant of peace..."
"Should be signed immediately~" Michael added with an encouraging smile.
"I have an objection!,"
A sharp, cutting voice echoed through the conference room as magic circles flared to life, accompanied by rising red mist!
In moments, the crimson fog had engulfed all of Kuoh, transforming the entire area around the academy into a separate dimension!
"Space-time manipulation!? We've been transferred to a different dimension!" Serafall's eyes widened with shock.
Generally speaking, transferring masters of their caliber into an alternate space without them even sensing the transition should be virtually impossible!
"The God-Extinguishing tool Dimension Lost," Takeyo said, shaking his head. "If its Balance Breaker is activated, accomplishing this becomes relatively simple."
So the Old Satan Faction had recruited support from the Hero Faction?
Before leaving to spend time with Xenovia, he'd asked Artoria to protect Gasper, specifically to prevent the young vampire from being controlled and activating Forbidden Balor View.
If Gasper used his time-stopping Sacred Gear, the high-level combatants from all Three Factions would lose both mobility and most of their offensive capabilities while trying to protect those frozen in time.
"Yes, it's Dimension Lost!,"
An alluring woman emerged from the magic circle, her voice dripping with malice.
"Right now, you're all in a different world!~"
Following her, a man with an outlandish hairstyle stepped through. This was Shalba Beelzebub. Like the enchanting woman beside him, both were descendants of the original Demon Kings.
"Oh, Really?"
Takeyo cast an interested look at them.
Well, well. This particular sign-in opportunity had genuinely piqued his curiosity.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for triggering a plot sign-in! Sign-in level: Diamond!]
[Sign-in plot: Suppress the Old Satan Faction's Power!]
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