He was grateful. She gave him something to hold onto, a little candle in the dead of night. His hands gripped the blanket a bit tighter. He would always cherish this grace she gave him.
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|DxD|- Chapter 14- Sephiroth Graal
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April 22, 1991, Night Realm, Romania
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Earth had many small realms built upon it. To call them 'realms' would be giving them too much respect. These realms were large swaths of land commandeered by illusion barriers designed to ward off the mundane. It was simple territorial expansion.
The vampires had taken part of what is modern-day Romania and turned it from a wondrous lustre of nature into a cesspool of barren mountains and bloody rivers. Baraquiel would never cease to be amazed at the vampires' ability to pervert what was beautiful into rotten remains.
This entire realm was covered in a dense layer of red fog that blotted out the sun and coloured everything in a red hue. He could smell it. The fog was blood, the blood of thousands upon thousands of humans. He could hear the faint cries of their souls calling for a god who would never save them, for he was dead.
The heel of his boots cracked against the pebbles beneath him. Far off into the distance, he could see elegant castles and gothic-style buildings. The Night Realm was divided into two factions. One was led by Queen Camilla and the other by King Tepes. He was here for the latter, Tepes's daughter to be more specific.
Baraquiel lifted his foot and the gritty gravel beneath his feet shifted to royal-red carpet. The smell of stale dirt turned to blood and rusted iron. Tall pillars in an elegant hall replaced the empty air and barren view.
Severed limbs, crushed bones, dripping organs, and canines steeped in blood—he barely kept his disgust from showing on his face. Vampires dined on long pristine wooden tables burdened with dead or dying humans.
Blood dripped on ceramic plates and humans groaned their last as their lives faded away. Vampire nobles—plump, thin, short, and tall—different in size yet sharing the same delight, feasted on the humans and drank their blood like wine.
Their noble clothes and frilly white collars were stained with blood. Their chins and beards held clot and flesh. They dined no different from vultures who buried their whole heads into corpses. Vampires viewed themselves as noble predators, but they were no different from parasites in his eyes.
"Tepes."
The vampires froze. The room fell into silence. All eyes were suddenly on this recognisable black-cloaked figure standing right in front of their king—the Cadre of Grigori, Baraquiel. No one had seen how he came in.
Any fuss died down and shouts were swallowed. This was a special guest of their king and a benefactor of their faction.
"Lord Baraquiel. How wonderful for you to visit us."
King Vladimir Tepes, leader of the Tepes Faction, an aristocracy that sought complete domination over the country of Romania. He stood up with his arms gracefully open in a benevolent show of royal prestige. His nasal whine of a voice rang like a harmonica played a pitch-too-high.
"Forgive my state of disrepair. If I had known of your swift arrival, I would've prepared more fitting accommodations for you."
Vladimir embodied a scheming merchant more than a king—a sheep in wolf's clothing. Grigori never cared for this man nor aiding his faction in the civil war against the Camilla Faction. Vladimir's only worth was being the father of Valerie, a human-vampire hybrid who was born with one of the thirteen Longinus.
"Sephiroth Graal."
Baraquiel replied gruffly.
"Yes yes, indeed."
Vladimir donned a politician's smile. He felt embarrassed for having a foreign force intrude on his court without prior notice. Already, he could imagine the thoughts of his retinue looking down on him. He would swiftly deal with any rumours later.
"I shall escort you to her, Lord Baraquiel. Once again, please forgive the mess."
A "mess", he said. Dying humans on tables clothed with bright red fabrics were relegated to a "mess". With every fibre of his being, Baraquiel despised the vampires.
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|DxD|
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The Scramble had done much to decimate much of the vampire population. Their current status was a far cry from fifty years ago. Much of their top-level fighters were eliminated by external enemies including the Ariyans, leaving Queen Adela Camilla as the only surviving Ultimate Class.
The Skirmish period resulted in the cold war between the two factions reigniting. The Tepes believed this was the best chance to take dominance and usher in a new era for the vampire race. But the Camilla refused to bend the knee and submit. The strength of their queen was the reason for their backbone.
The change came when Vladimir's daughter, Valerie Tepes awakened her sacred gear. For the first time, his daughter finally did something useful. The Sephiroth Graal allowed him to push a new offensive, toggling the cold war into active.
It had been a little over ten years since then, and the situation has…still remained the same! He blamed his daughter for her pacifistic tendencies. If she had just held on a bit longer, the war would've been over in a year. Now, many years later, he was stuck playing henchman to a fallen angel, a matter he had no choice in since their presence was a deterrent for the Camilla.
"Lord Baraquiel. Once again, I apologize for letting you see us in that state. If you truly had—"
"Hm."
It was a grunt, a grunt that told him to 'shut up'.
"Ah…yes."
Vladimir shrank away. The palace was as large as the hallways were long. This stretch of passage was over a dozen metres in height alone. Dangling from the top were beautiful ornamental chandeliers. The decorative windows were massive and tall enough to cover four floors of a building.
Baraquiel's boots echoed like dull hammer strikes against the tiles. Vladimir's words slid off him the way water glides off a duck. The vampire king had purposefully chosen to walk in this long passage to get as much time with the Lightning General as he could.
"The power boosting pills you provided really helped our last offensive and we have secured vital pieces of territory. However, the Camilla have mounted a strong resistance and we are under threat of being overrun, especially given there's word of Adela planning to act personally."
Vladimir's faction had the greater number of soldiers and High Class combatants, but Adela was Ultimate Class. Even with the power boosting pills, that gulf could not be bridged. His intentions were obvious. He wanted, needed, the help of Grigori. Their presence alone made Adela hesitant. If they just raised a finger, then—
"Grigori will not involve itself in the internal conflicts of the vampires. Our concern is the wielder of Sephiroth Graal. In exchange for researching her, we will provide you with the fruits of said research. Nothing more and nothing less."
Baraquiel delivered the words with a calm voice. His eyes remained on the end of the hallway while the old king tried to win his favour. As if he would ever help such a coward.
"Ah…"
Vladimir paused. Baraquiel didn't. The old king was left to stew in his thoughts for a moment. He stared at that broad back and indignation welled up.
[Bastards! Who do they think they are!?]
His eyes locked onto Baraquiel. His face turned ugly with long-subdued anger. He was a KING! A noble entity who wielded power by birthright! Repeatedly, he was magnanimous in lowering his head, but these bastard Fallen Angels continued to look down on him.
His fingers twitched. That long coat wasn't a magic artifact. A quick blade to the back and—
"Hrghhh!"
His tongue thrashed against the taste of fingers. A pair of palms rested on the bridge of his nose and beneath his chin. The dull brass button of a coat filled his vision like a dull sun. His jaw was forcefully opened wide. He could feel his skin stretched so thin it would tear if another millimetre of force was applied.
Baraquiel was standing right behind him. Somehow, he had escaped his perception and placed him in a killing move without his awareness in the slightest.
"Hiygghh!"
Saliva bubbled in his mouth when he tried to speak. He was terrified, absolutely terrified for his life.
"Listen to me."
Baraquiel began slowly. His voice was a deep groan rumbling like the faint gallop of horses. Vladimir could swear he heard a crackle of lightning. His stomach felt like it was spinning on itself with uninvited warmth. He really wouldn't kill him, would he?
"If you ever show intent to kill again, I will rip your head from your jaw. Nod if you understand."
Vladimir nodded frantically. It would be very easy for Baraquiel to stretch his jaw and spread it open like a bear trap.
Baraquiel let go and walked ahead. This short period with Vladimir confirmed one thing for him. He was still the same coward as he was before. He would report that to Azazel.
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AN: Baraquiel is doing the most. Looking forward to seeing dear old Valerie Tepes. I'm curious to see how the war shaped her life compared to canon.
Anyway, if you noticed, there was an update to the synopsis. A smart guy on Fanfiction.net pointed out how the title and original synopsis might be misleading for new readers as they wouldn't know the OG story. So it'd be disorienting for them since they expect Super Saiyan titty stuff from the get-go. Shout out to RealTalkerDisOne for the heads-up. Appreciate it brother…or sister…or in-between(?). Never know these days.
Chapter 14
END