I uh...
Oops. I got carried away and ended up writing an entire story instead of an interlude. I ended up trimming it back down to something approaching a reasonable length (the point of this interlude was to explain Naoya's motivation in tricking Kazuya onto the Throne and the angels' motivation in going along with that; such an explanation really only needs a rehash of the last day of the lockdown - I probably could've gotten away without copying over so much of the dialog but eh. Heh heh) and, after I polish the rest of it up, will post it in Unlisted Fiction and link it back here.
yes i know it's north of 7500 words just imagine how long it used to be don't look at me
Anyway, here is Interlude 1. If y'all have any other questions for Philemon, please feel free to ask them now, if you don't, please feel free to let me know. I don't really want to resume the quest until Q&A time is done. Apologies for this having taken longer than I would've liked to get out!
Interlude 1
"Choices"
A story about an old angel and an older human.
On the morning of the final day of the lockdown, Remiel watched over the young reincarnation of Abel and the collection of friends he had won to his side. There was a certain majesty to the children's plan, Remiel had to admit.
Compel Cain to alter the summoning program, make way to the server, and overwrite the current logic with the new code. If the server hadn't long since mutated into the King's Gate, it would have even worked.
Still...
"
Ah, Kazuya and his cohort. It seems that your plan is coming together. Now... If you can truly alter the summoning program, I must uphold my promise and show you the path to the server."
The hacker child, Atsuro Kihara, responded with confidence. "Yeah? Well, you'd better be ready for us. We'll find Naoya and then come see you."
"
I look forward to it. But the deadline for the government's final option is drawing near. If you do not succeed by then, everything will end in failure."
Abel's eyes were hard with resolution. Good. He was prepared to see this through. "We'll deal with it."
"That's right!" Atsuro concurred, "Once we have Naoya's help, we'll bring our plan to Commander Fushimi!"
Unsurprisingly, it was Yuzu who voiced the biggest concern with this plan. "I still don't think Naoya is just going to go along with this... He's up to something."
Of course he was. Remiel would have been more surprised if Cain hadn't already arrived at the exact same conclusion that he had. The Throne would accept the new programming and enforce it upon the server only were the King to order it to do such. Abel's ascension to the Throne of Bel was a time-limited proposition.
Finding purpose in that power was not.
Still, these children could use some reassurances. "
Naoya... He is special indeed. This is an exceptional matter, and I will lend you my help. For your part, you must continue to try and persuade Naoya."
"Y-You're gonna help us!?" How tragic it was that her response was drenched in surprise and disbelief. Was the idea of support from an angel truly so alien to her? "An angel's going to help us... That's at least something of a relief."
"
It is too early for succor yet. Everything hinges on whether you can bring in Naoya. I pray for the success of your actions..."
Remiel departed without waiting for a response. The message had been delivered.
Kazuya and his friends had made themselves very easy for him to find. It would seem that his kid brother really did understand him well.
Naoya couldn't help but laugh to himself. And how many cycles had it been since he was comfortable referring to himself in his mortal identity?
Finding Abel again after all these years had been a blessing. If only the meddlesome angels could have been trusted to leave well enough alone...
...but that was an impossibility.
"Oh...! N-Naoya!" Such a stereotypical magician. Yuzu wore her heart on her sleeve.
"Yelling anxiously after you see me? Am I that much of a monster?"
Her face fell. "Oh... Um, no..."
"Just a little joke. Don't worry." Naoya chuckled. "This is good timing... I needed to talk to you all."
And they, of course, needed to talk to him as well. This was the day that the world changed forever.
"Kazuya. I came to ask for an answer from you. Today is the deadline, after all. In fact, I've heard that it's been cut short."
It wouldn't surprise Naoya in the slightest if the deadline was a complete fiction from the angels. It would serve its purpose to drive the children forward without giving them enough time to breathe, but everything revolved around Kazuya's actions today. There was no reason to trigger the final option so long as Kazuya kept moving forward.
Conversely, there was no reason not to trigger it the very instant that Kazuya fell or failed in his purpose.
Naoya asked the question he already knew the answer to. "Now... What are you planning to do?"
"I've already made up my mind, Naoya." Kazuya's hard stare reminded Naoya far too much of his own. They truly were brothers.
"We want to use the summoning server to control all the demons." Atsuro seemed to find one particular patch of dirt at Naoya's feet incredibly interesting. "Please... help us..."
Controlling all the demons through the server was impossible without the King's power, now that the server had merged with the Throne. That was an incontrovertible fact. It was also an incontrovertible fact that Kazuya would not accept his right of conquest willingly.
Naoya supposed there was a chance that he could still accept it out of responsibility to the world, or some trite. It was worth at least a token effort.
"The answer is no. What I want is for Kazuya to become the King of Bel. You wouldn't lose anything from it... control of the gate would still be in your hands."
"That isn't the point."
"That's right!" Atsuro concurred, finally lifting his head up to meet Naoya's stare. "And what is this gate you're talking about?"
The King's Gate, through which all demons summoned under the Throne's power must pass. And through which Kazuya himself will pass to claim the Throne, as is his right.
"...it's what you all call the summoning server." Naoya offers instead of the truth. "The server I made has already changed into the 'King's Gate' ... Babel."
"Babel... the King's Gate...! So that's the server we're aiming for..."
"I call it a gate, but in fact, it's a sentient demon... pure power itself. Only those Babel accepts can obtain its dormant power and become the true King of Bel. And you... are qualified to earn that right. Do you understand, Kazuya?"
"I'm not qualified." Kazuya insists.
Denying it won't do you any good, brother. "Bel's power now sleeps inside you. That means you are involved in the War of Bel, and are qualified to win the War and earn the mantle of the King of Bel."
Kazuya shakes his head, and that is that. There isn't really any point in pursuing this any longer, but...
...it wouldn't do for them to get overly suspicious over how easily Naoya was about to 'give up' on his goal.
"Listen to me... What matters to you is gaining control of all the demons. Well, as long as Kazuya becomes the King of Bel, that wish is easily granted."
"But only the King of Bel could control the demons then, right? No... that's not good enough. That way, power's in the hands of one person. Right or wrong, a dictator's a dictator. If someone managed to deceive Kazuya, that kind of peace would end immediately. Like what you're trying to do right now, Naoya... It would be meaningless."
My, my, Atsuro. How mistrusting. Truly, the student understands the teacher well.
His speech continues after a glance towards Kazuya, who nods. Seems he would prefer to let Atsuro do the talking. "What I want is a way for the public to use demons however they wish."
Naoya closes his eyes. "Utter nonsense. An ideal coated with sugar, containing just as much substance. Look at this country. Allegedly elected politicians devour money while the voiceless citizens are exploited. Isn't it futile to pursue a democratic solution for such an ignorant, faceless mass?"
"But still...!" Atsuro protests. His stare is nearly as hard as Kazuya's own. They're both getting ready for the fight.
"That justifies dictatorship!? If mankind denies their potential, there'll be no advancement! I want to believe in mankind's potential!"
"Mankind?" Naoya scoffs. "I've watched mankind for endless ages. Pin your hopes on the masses, and you'll only be betrayed. If you still say you're going to do this... I'll tell you how to reach the server. You can hack into it yourself and do what you please."
"If I had the time, I'd love to do it myself! But I don't! Nobody else can do this unless we have your help, Naoya!"
Oh, don't worry, Atsuro. You'll have all the time in the world to explore the limits of the server once this is all over, with the blessing of the King.
"So, lacking your own power, you rely on others. That's a reckless, risky approach." Naoya says instead.
"Like you're any different!" Yuzu snaps. "You have all this selfish talk, but you're the same way, Naoya! You can't do anything without Kazuya! You're relying on others just like we are!"
Her eyes and her magic brims with an earnest desire to follow her two best friends to wherever this road they've chosen leads, and with an unspoken understanding that Naoya is blocking the way forward. Everyone who matters here is now prepared to fight him.
Excellent.
"I'm starting to get tired of these lectures... let's play a game and settle this."
"A game?" Kazuya asks rhetorically, his own magic bursting to life. They understand each other very well... Kazuya already knows what this game is.
"That's right, a game. You've gained the angels' cooperation, haven't you? Dealing with the angels would be difficult, even for me... but as far as the Ordeal goes, the angels will not interfere in whatever humans choose to do. As long as you obey me of your own free will, they can't do a thing about it."
"So, those are the stakes of this game?" Atsuro has neither the power of two and counting Bel demons, nor Yuzu's overwhelming natural aptitudes for magic, but his own strength and intellect are no less dangerous for it. Perhaps more so, for how he does not radiate magical threat and is that much more likely to be overlooked compared to the twin stars that are his best friends. "Then if we win, you have to come with us."
"Of course." Naoya's smile turns vicious. "But don't think you have a hope of winning against me."
"We're strong now, thanks to you!" Atsuro shoots back. "So strong we've even surpassed you!"
That may well be true. It will be interesting to see if Naoya even needs to pull his punches anymore.
His brother has truly grown strong over the last seven days. It's something of a relief for Naoya to see that all of this had paid off. His brother would have the strength to stand on his own and be safe.
"Alright... I concede defeat. Such a waste, Kazuya. Your power could surpass that of the ancient demon kings."
And it would, by the time all of this was over.
"Looks like we win." Kazuya announces. His stare remains hard, but there's the faintest traces of smugness in his smile.
"Don't worry. A promise is a promise. I'll keep my word. You wanted to get to Babel, right? Unfortunately, that's impossible right now; Babel's main form is currently in the demon world. Humans cannot enter. A horde of demons would tear you apart... if the plane itself didn't get to you first."
"What should we do?"
No need to look overly cooperative and give the game away too early.
"The angels were going to tell you that, weren't they? There's no need for me to answer."
This would keep them honest, besides.
"Th-that's right." Atsuro offers hesitantly. "Remiel's supposed to tell us the way to the server once we capture Naoya...!"
Naoya sighs. It's almost physically painful to listen to that acknowledgement of angelic dependence. Another sacrifice to the plan.
"Well? What do you want from me? I can't do what you want without specific instructions."
In truth, Naoya already knows what Atsuro will specify. But hearing it from Atsuro directly will 'keep him honest.'
"Oh, right! Um... I want you to alter the summoning program so that only people... only authorized people can summon and control demons."
"Specific people? Any machine with the right alterations can access the server at the moment. To do what you want, the server's security would need to be tightened as well."
"Hehehe... that's right! Any COMP or PC or anything without clearance, no dice! That's covered as part of our game's prize too, right?"
"...where did you learn to act like this, Atsuro?" A jokingly suspicious glance is leveled at Kazuya, who shrugs sheepishly. "Well... I did promise, so I don't have a choice. I'll make the alterations."
Ordinarily an impossible task. But certain liberties could be taken with the King of Bel's edict imposing the new architecture on the Throne. Naoya wouldn't even need to slip in any failsafes against Kazuya's possible reactions to his ascension... the Throne would not permit the rightful King to abdicate.
"H-hold on!" Yuzu seems worried. Rightfully so. "Can we really trust him just like that? For all we know, he's not done with his plan to make Kazuya the King of Bel!"
"So untrusting... never fear. With the angels on your side, I can't possibly escape. And besides, the chance to get a glimpse of my brother's potential was more than worth it... Moving on. I need the source code, and time to rewrite it, for this to work."
"Oh, right! The blackout! Even if we had the source code, without electricity..."
For such a genius, Atsuro could be impossibly dense sometimes.
"I assumed by now you'd have checked my apartment. Come to Aoyama in 3 or 4 hours. I have the source code and a generator there."
Naoya feels the presence of angel long before the puppet body finishes making its way over. "Hmph... and here comes the one who'll take care of your other concern."
"
It seems you've decided to be docile and cooperate."
"Don't talk to me." Naoya snaps back. "You make me sick."
"
I am the angel Sariel." The angel responds, largely ignoring Naoya. "
I am here at Remiel's request to pick up this man."
"The angel with the evil eye... I knew you'd be the one sent to keep me from escaping."
"
You are a deceiver. You would no doubt seek to deceive these humans and form a scheme... but no trickery will work before my sight. Uphold your promise to them."
What a sick joke it was that he and the angels were running the exact same deception. The goal was different but the steps were exactly the same.
...but for his beloved younger brother...
"Oh well... I'll see you all later. Don't forget to come by my apartment in Aoyama."
...anything was a fair price to pay.
"
I've been waiting for you. Sariel tells me you were able to capture Naoya."
There hadn't been a doubt in his mind for their success. For all ten thousand years of ice that had frozen over Cain's heart, there was still a channel of warmth within for his beloved brother. All Abel had to do was prove that he wanted this, and Cain would fall right in line.
"
He is currently at work altering the program at an apartment in Aoyama. I have set Sariel and members of the Shomonkai to keep watch over him. But then... he seems to have no intentions of escaping."
Abel's gaze was firm. "We did our part."
"
I understand. As promised, I will explain your task to you. You are trying to rewrite the server software to control all the demons, yes? Naoya must have told you that the server is now an entity known as Babel. Belberith took the server to the demon world in order to use it as a medium. Belberith, you see, is trying to obtain the Throne of Bel."
To be more precise, he needed the medium that Cain had already established. It was not possible to summon Babel into multiple places at once.
"Why did he need a medium?"
"
As a high-energy data entity, Babel cannot be seen or touched. Belberith..."
Took the bait that Cain had offered without so much as a second question, preferring simply to capitalize on and repurpose someone else's hard work.
"
...contrived to use the server to manifest Babel in order to interact with it. He is most likely keeping the server within close reach in the demon world. But Belberith is still participating in the War of Bel. This shows that Belberith is not yet qualified to become King."
The moment of truth. Everything hinged on Abel accepting this next task.
"
Only the one most worthy of becoming the King of Bel can awaken Babel... Thus, you must make yourself qualified to become King before Belberith does."
The children's eyes narrow practically as one. It would be best not to allow them too much time to think this over.
"
There is no need for you to go to the demon world. Babel is the King's Gate; the final trial for one seeking to become the King of Bel. When one who is worthy calls upon Babel, it answers that call by showing itself. Connect the two worlds by eliminating the power that divides them. By doing so, you will open a portal through which you can summon Babel into this world."
"...if that's true, then we have two tasks before us." Who is...? Ah, yes. Keisuke Takagi. One of the many who had been saved by Abel's boundless mercy. "Create a portal to the demon world, and become qualified to be the King of Bel."
"
The qualification is given to the one with the strongest power of Bel." These children should already know this part, but it is always helpful to have a refresher.
"
There is only one way to heighten the power of Bel sleeping inside oneself... You must take it from other Bels. Either through a ritual, or in single combat. Regardless, becoming qualified to be King is the purpose for the War of Bel."
Remiel's gaze hardens as he surveys the gathering before him. "
It is out of the question that the other Bels will hand their power over to a human. Thus... combat with them will be unavoidable. Be prepared."
None shy away from the challenge presented to them. All are worthy to stand behind Abel now, and walk this road together. Remiel's gaze softens with approval.
"
The next Bel you were meant to fight originally lurked inside this body. This was Jezebel, sent into this world as Belberith's lackey. However..."
...Jezebel had been ripped from Amane's body by Belberith in desperation half an hour ago. It was all that Remiel could do to safeguard Amane's mortal soul, that it not perish as collateral damage from the taking.
Even so... her soul was in tatters now. She would wake again in time under Remiel's care, but he was well and truly bound into this host now until she would regain the strength necessary to stand on her own and release him. Perhaps, that was His way of issuing punishment to Remiel for his own role in all of this. An Ordeal fit for a wayward angel.
It was a punishment he would gladly bear.
"
...however, her presence no longer stains this world. And it is a safe assumption that Belberith now has her power."
The children did not need to know the truth of what had happened.
Atsuro's eyes widen with realization. "But wait, that would mean he just got more qualified to become the King of Bel... at this rate, if Babel does appear, it'll be in...!"
"
Yes. With Belberith and the server both in the demon world, that is where Babel would manifest. Were that to happen, there is nothing that any of you could do. You must create a connection between the worlds and summon Babel into the human world."
"How do we do that?" Abel is ever determined to keep moving forward. Less talking and more action. He responds unfortunately well to the pressure of a deadline.
...or perhaps some part of him already knows what is happening, and he's resolved to get it over with as quickly as possible.
"
The human world and the demon world sit adjacent to one another. All that prevents them from connecting is a wall of power between them."
"A... wall of power?" Atsuro asks hesitantly. He is having second thoughts? But it is far too late to turn back now.
"
Since becoming the capital, Tokyo has been protected by the Four Devas... until now. Their duty is to prevent demons from entering Tokyo, and the wall of power that I speak of is maintained by them. Their power is so tremendous that for the Shomonkai to use COMPs within Tokyo, they were required to defeat one of the Four Devas..."
"Jikokuten." Abel concludes.
"Was that the incident at Asakusa six months ago?" Atsuro asks, and then answers his own question. "So Jikokuten was slain, and then it got easier to summon demons. That's one mystery cleared up..."
Atsuro blinks, as if waiting for a response. Remiel motions for him to continue his thought instead.
"Well, if the Demon Summoning Program was just recreating rituals, then normal rituals should've worked to summon demons too. But if the Devas were placing a barrier in the way, then it makes sense why not."
"
Yes. Currently, even if Kazuya were to make himself worthy to become the King of Bel, Babel would not be able to cross over from the demon world and materialize in this world. If we do not defeat all of the remaining Devas and remove the barrier protecting Tokyo, it will be impossible to call forth Babel, the summoning server."
Conversely, once that is done, it will become much easier for anyone to summon demons. Atsuro's eyes widen slightly as he comes to that realization without further prompting and he suddenly refocuses all his attention towards his own feet.
...but it is far too late to turn back now.
"
If you fail, this world will be swallowed by the demon world, and demons may come here at will. What awaits humans then is certain destruction. However, at this rate, this will happen no matter what is done today. The spread of the summoning program has lead to an overwhelming number of demons in this city, completely destroying the balance between the worlds and hastening Tokyo's corruption. If this continues, it will be only days before the imbalance crushes the human world. This is part of the reason we angels are watching the lockdown so intently."
"Damn it... We don't even have a choice here!" Atsuro's gaze remains firmly pointed downward.
Remiel elects not to mention that they had made their choice already and that these were simply the consequences of it. There was nothing to be gained from hammering the point home.
"Fine..." Atsuro's gaze finally comes up to meet Remiel's own, regret and duty in equal measure. "Where do we go to find the rest of the Devas?"
"
I sense one... to the north. The fiercest of the spirits is at a temple near Ikebukuro."
"We're going for the strongest one first!? Th-that's not the normal order...!"
Abel puts a reassuring hand on Atsuro's shoulder. "Let's do this."
"What the... aren't you even a little worried about this?!"
Yuzu comes around on Atsuro's other side, a far cry from the girl who had spent so much energy on attempts to run. "The temple near Ikebukuro... wouldn't that be Eikokuji? C'mon, everyone, let's go!"
"You too, Yoohoo...? Oh man..."
Remiel smiles approvingly. This was going to work.
Bishamonten falls easily before the collected might of the future King of Bel and those who would follow him. Zouchouten and Koumokuten fall together not long after, in spite of a well-coordinated flanking effort. Naoya feels all of this transpire. Feels the increasing weight of the air as the demon world draws closer to the material plane.
Faster than expected. His brother was truly an exceptional person.
Sariel watches his work intently from the corner of the room. There is nothing worth seeing here. Both understand the game and the stakes. Naoya cares nothing for the motivations of the angels in this Ordeal. And as long as the angel in the room isn't spewing endless blather about justice or atonement...
"
Your brother will be calling for you soon." Sariel intones uselessly. Naoya can feel their approach just as well as angels can. Anyone with any magical sense at all could feel that group.
"Quit your bleating. You're here to watch me, remember?"
"
You-" Naoya tunes him out. Ha. What could they possibly do to him? He was already suffering from eternal damnation. That sort of punishment didn't stack.
The work continued. Even having been prepared for this eventuality, rebuilding the server to Atsuro's specifications was an interesting challenge under such a tight timeframe. A lot of the existing framework was simply unusable. Drastic corner-cutting was needed to deliver on time. Entirely too much of the new code was being hastily built up from the assumption that the Throne could handle the gaps until the Administrator was able to properly shore everything up.
Atsuro had risen to every other challenge he'd been issued by his teacher, though. This would be no different.
After a time, the Shomonkai runner finally makes it up to his apartment and knocks loudly on the door. "Naoya! Visitors!"
Excellent. A chance for some fresh air away from the stifling presence of the angel.
"You're earlier than expected. You seem to be more powerful than I thought..."
"Not finished yet?"
Sigh. Even with the deadline, such patience was unbecoming of Kazuya.
"I told you, don't rush things. There's still one more step before you can summon Babel. Kill Belzaboul and Belberith. Once you have their power, you'll be qualified to become King."
Atsuro's voice is traced with the slightest bit of regret when he speaks. "I'm trusting you, Naoya. I really believe that you won't betray us..."
"Hmph. Belberith is at the top of the Hills building. You can summon Babel there, too."
"The top of Hills?" Kazuya asks.
"The Shomonkai lab is on the highest floor. That's where the server used to be. I'll... catch up. You go beat Belberith to clear a path for me, okay?"
"Alright."
"Um... Naoya?"
For an instant, Naoya wonders if Atsuro is about to voice regret over his decision. Whether he'll admit that his resolve has been shaken by having to slay the remaining Devas, who likely placed their responsibilities onto his shoulders with their dying words.
The instant passes. Atsuro instead asks how much longer the work is expected to take.
"The current server software runs under the assumption it's being controlled by COMPs. For what you want, I need to revamp the interface and beef up the security protocols. You wouldn't want a hackable demon army, would you?"
"Ahhh... I didn't think much about the security side of things." A surprisingly honest admission. "The power of demons would be tempting on a national scale... Normal security wouldn't stand up to attention like that."
No amount of security would. Fortunately, the Throne of Bel itself was not a machine and could not be hacked. Even were someone to hijack the machine or steal the code, they could do nothing without an edict from the King.
Still, Naoya had to sigh. That sort of oversight by the student needed to be corrected by the teacher at once. "You didn't plan for that? You really are dense... Anyway, I'm working on the system kernel. I need a little more time to finish it."
"We're counting on you." Kazuya offers with a smile.
"Um... Naoya, I..."
...well, this won't do. Time for a confidence builder for one of the greatest students he'd taken in several lifetimes.
"Hmph. More problems, Atsuro? If you're my right-hand apprentice, then hurry up and do what needs doing."
"Right-hand apprentice? I-I'm...? H-Hahaha! Yesssss! Let's do this thing! C'mon, Kazuya, Yoohoo! Let's go! I'm up for anything!"
He says, but Naoya knows his student better than that. He doesn't quite believe it yet, but it's enough to get him moving forward again.
And he will believe it eventually.
"What rowdy children..." Naoya says to nobody in particular as they head off to secure Kazuya's new Throne.
"Now... if this works, mankind will gain incredible power. But great power carries great risks with it..."
And, were it anyone other than that group, they would have no chance of using it to the fullest.
Naoya laughed at the sheer magnitude of the incredible gift all mankind was about to receive care of his beloved kid brother. Kazuya would be safe, would have the strength to resist any outside manipulation, and the world would take an enormous step forward.
Not quite as planned... but better all the same.
Completed program in hand, Naoya strode past Commander Fushimi at the door and into the elevator hall of the Hills building. The teleportation grid that had been carefully etched into the walls was still intact, and Naoya activated it to whisk him away to its companion in the elevator hall on the top floor. An exceptionally smug smile spread across his face as the spell took hold.
If his brother wanted to run up 53 flights of stairs, that was his prerogative. If he didn't, that was his own fault for not asking Naoya about a faster route to the top.
Well...
Perhaps he'd write Yuzu a grimoire on the subject. He somehow doubted she'd be open to personal instruction once this was all done with, but it would be a shame for power like hers to go to waste.
And...
Perhaps his second biggest regret, behind Kazuya not taking the Throne willingly, was failing to provide a proper magical education for one of the greatest magical talents he'd encountered in a long time.
Maybe he'd make up for it by teaching others. The government was bound to start organizing schools before terribly long. Professor Minegishi... That had a nice ring to it. Too bad he'd likely need a pseudonym.
Naoya strides into the facility's central control room with an affected air of nonchalance. "Hmm? I don't feel Belberith. I take it you've already defeated him?"
"......! Naoya!" Yuzu glares. "You're laaaaate!"
"Heh... I'm glad I'm late. If I'd been on time, you would have made me do all the work. Now... if Kazuya summons Babel and rewrites the program, that'll be the end."
Exact wording. Only Kazuya had the authority to impose the new programming. Well... this fiction only needed to last a little longer anyway.
"There's no turning back now. We have to prepare quickly and summon Babel."
"I'm ready." Kazuya confirms. Naoya hopes that's true.
"Alright, Kazuya. Free the power of Bel inside you, and summon Babel, the King's Gate."
Kazuya closes his eyes and
resonates with the power that is his by right of conquest. To the sound of each of his friends in turn offering words of support, Babel descends from the swirling portal to the demon world in the sky. Rather than crash into the building, it simply distorts reality around itself - pulling the winning King-candidate and his retainers into a space created purely for its trial.
"This is the demon summoning server our COMPs were connected to...?" Atsuro asks breathlessly.
It's not, exactly. The trial's warped space has made it far larger and more imposing than it is in reality, or than it ever really needs to be. Seriously, it's standing over a hundred feet tall in this space.
"That's right. The King's Gate, Babel... The proof of kingship that the demons of Bel sought... Kazuya... If you're going to have a change of heart, now's your last chance."
Kazuya shakes his head in denial from his position as the challenging King-candidate in the middle of the gathering of humans. Unfortunate. Some small part of Naoya hoped that he would pick up the mantle willingly when confronted with it at the very end.
"Kazuya has no intention of becoming King, Naoya."
Indeed. Seems he doesn't. But intention tends not to matter to cosmic power sources. By their actions in the coming moments, a new King was about to be born, however unwilling at first.
Some different small part of Naoya hoped that some day Kazuya would forgive him for this.
"Heh... why the cold shoulder? I was only joking."
Naoya surveys the trial space. Three consoles. Babel also understands how it needs to structure this trial for its soon to be King. Good.
"I'll head to the main console in the center. Keep me covered while I hack in from there. Atsuro, you can head to the sub-console once I've established a connection. Wait quietly until I start the attack. All you have to do is stay alive until then."
"R-Roger that!" Atsuro confirms.
Kazuya and his friends move as an effective unit. Adding Naoya as an escort comes easily and with the practice of a team that has done this kind of thing a number of times before this week. They have Naoya safely delivered to the central console and are easily dealing with the trial demons summoned forth.
"Well... I'm starting the attack. Hack tool activation... confirmed." Naoya says, for nobody in particular's benefit. The only purpose of this 'hack' is to activate one of the sub-consoles to receive the new program, and to trigger the 'security program' that Kazuya will need to defeat in combat to complete the trial.
Of course, the scientist in Naoya couldn't rightly pass up the opportunity to get a rare in-depth look at the effects of a demonic possession as applied to a server instead of a living being. "Ah, the merge with Babel has made the program evolve on its own... Interesting."
Ah, but the console refuses to progress the trial. "Hmph. What a useless fail-safe. ...Let's try this, then." Force the trial along by activating one of the sub-consoles and having Atsuro start the overwrite procedure from there.
There. "Atsuro! Head to the right console. Kazuya, your job is to support Atsuro and I!"
"Got it!" Both confirm.
After seven days, Atsuro is more than proficient at leveraging the COMP's movement enhancing abilities. He pushes off the ground as easily as one might a springboard, and glides over the artfully-broken platforms of this space to land gently in his seat at the sub-console.
From there, it's trivial for him to come in on the channel Naoya forced open for him, and start overwriting the existing code with the new programming. And that finally gets Babel to wake up fully, its giant head for visual interfacing manifesting on the front of the server.
"Whoa! What is this!?" Atsuro cries.
"It's the security program!" Naoya calls out, willing the Throne to play along. "If we don't get around it, our hack is dead in the water!"
"Get around it... meaning... destroy it, yeah!?" Yuzu calls back. "Okay, we'll get right on that!"
Kazuya is the only one capable of dealing the finishing blow, but Babel will simply keep on trucking until that happens, so there's no need to try and convince Yuzu to pull her punches.
'Bel that hath awakened me... Use the power of Bel sleeping within thee to control me... If thou canst, thou shalt fall before my trial!'
Naoya suppresses a sigh at the voice of Babel that rings clear through the minds of all combatants. Of course it wouldn't bother to play along at this point.
It's a small mercy that neither Kazuya nor Yuzu stop attacking. It would be... problematic... if they demanded an explanation from him over Babel's words.
"Well, I've reached the main program. Checkmate. Now... show yourself, Babel. Let's see your ugly face, now that your mask is broken!"
Naoya's proclamation is timed as closely to Kazuya's finishing strike as possible. Babel itself obliges, warping the trial space with a harsh red tint as it sheds its gold plating for a grotesque assembly of eyes and wires. The true form of the server then splits open, revealing the nexus of power within itself. As befitting the 'King's Gate.'
'Thou with new power... if thy plan is to control me, risk thy life to prove thy worth!'
Why won't it just shut up? Self-sabotage is supposed to be a human trait.
"Atsuro, join the fight with the others!" Naoya orders, before calling out more general instructions in an improvised distraction. "Everyone, keep it busy and keep hammering away at it! I'll look for an opening to restrain it!"
That opening will never be found. As before, Kazuya need only deliver the finishing blow, and the trial will be complete.
A new King is minutes away from ascension.
"It's finished. You've all done well."
'I have indeed seen thy power, thou who art child of Man, yet holds the power of Bel. Thou art truly my master... I shall present all my power to the new King of Bel.'
The King's Gate recedes, leaving the Throne behind. Everyone is breathing heavily... the trial was exhausting and hard-fought.
And officially over. Kazuya was the King.
"It's... over, right?" Yuzu asks, somewhat hesitant. "We won?"
"Not quite." Naoya smiles coldly, a false smile designed to say 'hate me.' Kazuya's breath is more ragged than the rest of the group combined. His eyes and spirit both are wavering as he struggles to regulate his new power. Having that much thrust upon him that abruptly... it's no surprise.
He'll be feeling the effects for a while. But if he's going to hate anyone, Naoya will happily bear his younger brother's hatred. That's far preferable to Kazuya hating himself for what he's now become.
"There's one last thing. Kazuya? You'll need to dismiss the distorted space and return both us and the modified server to the normal world."
Kazuya's head whips around and Naoya half-expects his current cycle to end in that instant.
But then his brother takes another slow, pained breath, and starts intoning commands to the server in a long-dead tongue. Naoya doesn't understand it. Naoya doesn't need to - it isn't hard to guess. Phase shift back to the standard material plane, shunt all the excess power back into the Throne, shunt the Throne into the server, impose the Throne's power and authority on the new program, clean up the distortion.
Kazuya's eyes flash
red before returning to a dull grey-blue when the chant is completed. The distorted reality shudders with acknowledgement, and breaks away.
Perhaps most interesting is the way the brightly burning star that is Kazuya's - no, The King of Bel's - magic begins to harden over. He's trying to seal as much of it away as he can, force it down, push forward a mask of normalcy to replace it. A temporary measure at best... the first time he's genuinely threatened, the power will roar back to life in his defense, if he doesn't accidentally undo his own handiwork first. It's a testament to Kazuya's soul that he even has the strength to force it down this one time. The idea that he'd get a second pass at it is inconceivable.
Still... it's a lot to take in. Naoya won't begrudge him the attempt.
Naoya waits for the phase shift to complete before speaking again. Everyone is back in the central control room, normal-sized server in its proper place and looking all too harmless for the Throne that sleeps within it.
"Now for the finishing touch. Type in the command to return all the demons to their world. This is the path you've chosen, so finish it off nicely, Atsuro."
Naoya knows that Atsuro knows that he's typing in the command because he's had the role of Administrator imposed on him. It's only fair. Really, it would be more surprising if those three weren't entirely too willing to share the burdens of the path they've chosen.
"Roger that! This will end it all!"
[root@throne-master-2 /sbin]# exec global_unsummon.sh
Please input the password: nruteR snomeD llA
Password accepted. Initiating unsummon procedure.
Scope: Global................................15363 demons within scope
Unsummoning.......................................................DONE
15362 demons successfully unsummoned.
[root@throne-master-2 /sbin]# exit
Goodbye, Atsuro.
"As requested, the entire summoning program has been rewritten. From now on, human rule over demons will be by direct control. The demons summoned by this server will have no say in the matter... Their power will be entirely yours."
"So... is it over?" Yuzu asks. She looks worried. Like she's missing something important. Naoya idly wonders how long it will take her to figure it out.
"Hmph. You've achieved the result you were aiming for, yes."
"We did it..." Atsuro confirms, almost as much to himself as to the group. "Hah! We did it! We finally settled things, everyone!"
Atsuro turns to Yuzu and goes for a high-five. She pulls him into a hug instead. "It's finally over!" she cheers. "It's finally over... we can go home now..."
The others have their moments of celebration. All of Kazuya's followers are swept up in the infectious joy.
Only Naoya and the King himself are not celebrating.
"...Kazuya. You won an important victory today. But don't forget... Even before the demons, this world was no paradise. From now on, it's all up to humans... and to you."
Kazuya's stare is heavier than Naoya has ever seen it before. A thousand words go unspoken between them. But that's fine. It's worth it, for his sake.
"...I believe in humanity." he says at last. Naoya's smile doesn't reach his eyes.
"Hmph... you would say that, wouldn't you?"
Kazuya... I'm sorry.
Remiel sits on a park bench near enough to the Mori Tower, eyes trained on the roof.
Her eyes... Amane's eyes.
"
Humanity has overcome this Ordeal..." He says in her voice, colored by angelic grace. Nobody is listening. The person who these words would be meant for is not able to hear them now.
"
But you must not forget. If humans lose their way, they will face more Ordeals. I... want to believe in humanity. I want to believe in you. I pray in my heart of hearts for a peaceful future. Not only for the sake of order, but for mankind itself..."
The road ahead was longer than it needed to be, and harder still. A new King of Bel had been crowned, and had immediately shut his mantle away in a box and buried that box in the deepest part of his soul. The situation was truly untenable.
But in this moment... he'd earned his rest. There were none who would begrudge him that. So Remiel could wait to reach out, wait to remind Abel of the duty he had to the world as its uncrowned Savior.
His own Ordeal was only just beginning.
'
Amane...'
Remiel turned towards where he knew the largest Shomonkai congregation to be, considered, and sat back down. She'd be displeased if her partner did all the work without her. This he knew.
END Interlude 1
Your old phone is on silent, tucked away in a forgotten corner of a train, plugged into a very long lasting external battery, taking a neverending journey to nowhere.
It'll run out of power eventually. It's already probably run out its useful life as a false lead if someone's tracking you.
Ten days since the lockdown ended...
...your silent phone is helpless to alert anyone or anything as another call is attempted.
"Yuzu" is displayed on the screen...
...
...call missed. The normal lockscreen returns.
Seventeen missed calls.
...
...
...
"Yuzu! Package for you!"
"Coming, mom!"
Yuzu Tanikawa hastily shoved herself away from the extracurricular work she had been muscling through. The workload for a first-year high school student was already entirely too much even without all this extra study work that the government kept sending. Oh well. The material was interesting and the work was important.
It was hard to believe that it had only been two months since the lockdown... and not that hard to believe that Kazuya had dropped out and dropped off the face of the Earth. Not after what he'd gone through.
Wherever he was, she hoped he was okay, and getting support.
It had taken her just too long to put all the pieces together. By the time she knew to grab Kazuya, let him know that she knew he'd changed and was fine with it and would be right beside him...
...he'd disappeared from the decontamination and exit processing facility. No records, no trace, no goodbye.
Yuzu finally makes it to the front of the apartment and takes the offered package. She didn't order anything, but given a certain group's tendency to send packages without notice...
And yup, close inspection of the box revealed a book inside. No, a grimoire. The faint air of magic around it gave it away.
Nobody really knew who came up with the relevant enchantments to obscure books from those without the author-determined necessary magical capacity to understand and utilize them safely. But Yuzu was the only one that enchantment didn't work on, and while she didn't fully understand it, she had enough grounding thanks to his notes that she had somehow become the one in charge of authorizing these kinds of things.
And she knew it to be safe, so it didn't really matter whose bright idea had it anonymously added to the internal Master Grimoire in the end.
Yuzu examined the book closely, willing the pseudonym she felt on the cover away.
On the Safe Design, Operation, Maintenance and Removal of Teleportation Grids. By Professor Naoya Minegishi.
Yuzu almost dropped the book like it was made of lava. Why?
Hesitantly, she sat the book down on top of her suddenly terribly uninteresting coursework, and opened it to the foreword.
Yuzu-
If you're reading this, then you've decided not to simply use this book as fodder for your practice with destructive magic. Excellent choice.
I don't regret many things that happened, but failing to provide for your education or nurture your gift rates highly on that short list. Perhaps you haven't put it together yet, but the Grimoire enchantment as you call it does work on you - you simply have already shattered ceilings that most of your peers will spend a lifetime reaching. That is your own power that you earned without external lift.
Treasure that gift, as well as this one, and make the most of it. It is a poor substitute for in-person instruction, but we both know that wouldn't be welcomed.
- Naoya
PS: Kazuya is alive, and stubbornly resisting my efforts to find him also. All I can manage to make stick is a health check.
"Bastard." Yuzu breathes, turning the page in spite of herself. A hundred more books like this wouldn't be nearly enough to earn forgiveness.
...but the giddy little girl inside her that would never quite be over the fact that she had become a legitimate magical girl couldn't resist the siren call of being able to teleport.
