The Underworld, the Realm of Devil ----
A black vortex-like void appeared in mid-air at some unknown time, slowly rotating.
It didn't emit even the slightest aura or fluctuation, as if "nothingness" itself had transformed into a visible black hole and appeared here. Let alone ordinary Devil, even demon kings would probably not be able to detect its existence if they came here without witnessing it firsthand.
Suddenly, several streaks of light flew out of the black hole, transforming into three figures of different sizes that appeared in the air.
"Is this... the Underworld?"
Leo, who was in the lead, had twelve jet-black Devil Wings spread behind him. He held the hand of Kanna, who had already woken up, with his left hand and the hand of Stella, who was silent, with his right hand. He looked down at the scenery of mountains and rivers for a long time before finally confirming where he was.
"That Ophis guy is surprisingly considerate."
Leo felt that the reason this entrance, which connected the Underworld and the Dimensional Gap, appeared here was probably because Ophis had done it on purpose.
Because he was Devil, Ophis opened the entrance and exit on the side of the Underworld.
"Unfortunately, I don't want to go back to the Underworld now; I'd rather go back to the Human World."
Leo could only say that the Dragon God God's thoughtfulness had been misplaced.
He was more concerned about how the Summit Meeting at the Kuoh Academy was going and whether his familiars had escaped the Different Dimension set up by the Hero Faction and returned to the Human World. He didn't really want to go back to the Underworld.
"Well, it's already good enough that you came back at all."
Leo quickly stopped thinking about it.
Compared to the Dimensional Gap, the Underworld is at least familiar territory, and he can jump back to the Human World through the magic array, although it will take some time. Compared to being trapped in the Dimensional Gap, it's nothing.
The most urgent thing is to contact Yukino Yukinoshita and the others to see how they are doing.
Thinking of this, Leo released Stella's hand, raised his palm, and was about to unfold the communication magic array.
However, before Leo could contact Yukino Yukinoshita and the others, someone else contacted him first.
" Leo! You're back? Where are you now?!"
The voice emanating from the magic cube and the projection that appeared were none other than Sona Shitori.
The usually calm and rational next Clan Head of the Sitri Clan suddenly spoke with some urgency, his demeanor unusually unsteady.
The obvious mix of worry and joy made Leo smile.
"Yes, I'm back. Everything's alright for now." Leo's tone softened unconsciously as he spoke to Sona Shitori, "I'm in the Underworld now, out of danger. Don't worry."
" The Underworld?" Sona Shitori visibly relaxed, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, and said, "That's good, that's good."
"How's it going on your end?" Leo asked, seizing the opportunity. "Is everyone alright?"
"Thankfully, at least no one was killed." Sona Shitori had regained her composure and said, "That day, the dense fog, suspected to be released by the holder of ' Dimension Lost ', filled the entire Kuoh Academy, forcibly transferring you and your familiars away, but leaving us behind in the academy."
"We were attacked immediately after the fog cleared."
Sona Shitori seemed to have guessed that Leo had lost contact with the outside world and was now eager to know what had happened that day.
So she briefly recounted what had happened that day, giving Leo a general understanding of the situation.
In fact, the events unfolded much like in the original story. While Leo and his followers were forcibly transferred into Different Dimension and engaged in a great battle with the Hero Faction, the Old Satan Faction also launched an attack.
They attacked the school buildings and the guards of the Three Factions stationed at the Kuoh Academy. After eliminating the guards, they launched an attack on the leaders of the Three Factions, practically telling everyone that they wanted Sirzechs, Serafall, Azazel, Michael, and others to die there.
Therefore, the leaders of the Old Satan Faction, that is, the descendants of the former Old Maou, all took action.
Of course, if that were all, it wouldn't be so surprising. What's unexpected is that people who originally belonged to their side also participated in the attack.
" Vali Lucifer Lucifer, that guy has actually secretly joined the Khaos Brigade and been recruited by the Old Satan Faction."
Sona Shitori spoke of this matter in a heavy tone.
At the same time, as if afraid that Leo was unaware of the inside story, she told him before Leo could respond.
" The Khaos Brigade is an underground force jointly affiliated with terrorist groups such as the Old Satan Faction and the Hero Faction. This underground force was established at some unknown time and, under the name of ' Uroboros Dragon,' it has recruited unsettling and dangerous elements from various forces, rapidly growing to a scale capable of influencing the world without anyone knowing."
"Especially among the Three Factions Devil, angels, and Fallen Angel, many people dissatisfied with the status quo have secretly joined this organization. Figures like Kokabiel, who are unwilling to accept the status quo and want to incite war, are numerous within it. Many radicals and heretics within the church have also joined it."
"Prior to this, no one had noticed the existence of this organization. Only the Governor General of the Fallen Angel sensed something amiss and secretly sent people to investigate, eventually discovering its existence."
"As for us, we only noticed some clues and began our investigation after the incident involving Leif Trix."
At this point, even Sona Shitori was still somewhat shaken.
The fact that such a dangerous force appeared without anyone's knowledge is simply terrifying and frightening.
Especially after learning that the leader of this force was actually the " Uroboros Dragon " Ophis, not only did Sona Shitori, but the leaders of the various forces also changed their expressions drastically.
"It seems that His Highness Sirzechs and his sister, Princess Serafall, already knew something beforehand. Even when Governor General Azazel mentioned the ' Uroboros Dragon ' and the Khaos Brigade, they weren't too surprised, only their expressions were somewhat grave."
Sona Shitori's observational skills were already very keen, and she noticed the situation immediately, but she found it strange and did not say anything on the spot.
Now, when the matter is brought up Sona Shitori casually mentioned it.
"And then what? What happened next?"
Leo did not tell Sona Shitori he already knew about the existence of the Khaos Brigade and Ophis, nor did he mention that the reason Sirzechs knew something beforehand was because he deliberately reminded him.
After the incident involving Leif Trix, Leo deliberately brought up the " Ouroboros," an obvious symbol, in front of Sirzechs. If Sirzechs still couldn't guess that the Old Satan Faction was backed by Ophis, then he was a terrible Demon Lord.
Since it concerned " Uroboros Dragon " Ophis, Sirzechs could not ignore the potential horror hidden behind this matter and obviously conducted a thorough investigation afterward.
Judging from Sirzechs's previous attitude, he must have investigated something along the " Uroboros Dragon " line, and in the end, he probably discovered the existence of the Khaos Brigade, just like Azazel.
After the Three Factions decided to make peace, Sirzechs actually wanted to bring up this matter.
Unfortunately, before they could do anything, the attack came.
As for Vali Lucifer's betrayal and joining the Khaos Brigade, not only Leo, but even Azazel probably had some idea of it.
That Fallen Angel Governor General was incredibly clever; Vali Lucifer was someone he had personally raised and mentored—practically his son. How could he not have noticed something amiss with Vali?
Even if he didn't notice anything unusual, Azazel would still suspect that Vali Lucifer might do something, because he knew very well how warlike Vali Lucifer was and how much he loved fighting the strong.
Peace is something others would love to have, but for Vali Lucifer it was almost like the death penalty.
He doesn't need peace; he only wants to spar with the strong and enjoy the thrill of battle.
As a result, since the Three Factions have decided to make peace and will no longer target each other, and are preparing to create a peaceful world, Vali Lucifer naturally does not want to stay here any longer.
Joining the Khaos Brigade, becoming an enemy of the Three Factions, or even other Mythological System factions, might be even more appealing to him.
Therefore, Vali Lucifer's betrayal and departure were foreseeable, and Leo had no reason to be surprised.
He still wanted to know what happened next, and whether it was the same as what he already knew.
"Later----"
Sona Shitori slowly recounted the events of that day to Leo, letting Leo know what happened afterward.
Unlike the original story, because the attack was launched by the Old Satan Faction and the other factions of the Khaos Brigade did not take any action against the Three Factions, Sirzechs and Serafall felt that Devil should take responsibility for dealing with the Old Satan Faction. Therefore, Azazel, Michael, and others became spectators and did not participate.
At that time, Vali Lucifer challenged Sirzechs Lucifer. The descendant of the Original Leviathan didn't say a word, but directly swallowed Ophis's "serpent" and launched an attack on Serafall, the current Leviathan, thus starting the war between the Old Maou.
Under those circumstances, the Gremory Peerage and Sitri Peerage present naturally couldn't just stand by and watch, and they all took action to deal with the other two descendants of the Old Maou.
The Gremory Peerage dealt with the descendants of the old Beelzebub.
The Sitri Peerage was dealing with the descendants of the Original Asmodeus.
The result was disastrous. Neither the Gremory Peerage nor the Sitri Peerage were a match for the descendants of the Old Maou. The Gremory Peerage, in particular, were in a much more dangerous situation than when they were fighting Kokabiel.
Because the descendants of Original Beelzebub were the strongest leaders among the Old Satan Faction, after obtaining Ophis's "Serpent," their strength was already comparable to that of the Original Maou, Beelzebub. They were not someone that Gremory's followers, who couldn't even defeat Kokabiel was not at the Demon Gremory Peerage Maou-Class, could handle.
Fortunately, Azazel provided some support from the rear. His years of research on the Sacred Gear had allowed him to develop some very practical methods, including an item that allowed Issei Hyoudou to forcibly activate the Balance Breaker without paying any price. This enabled Issei Hyoudou to unleash combat power that surpassed any Gremory Peerage, which was enough to barely hold up the battle line.
Otherwise, Gremory Peerage would have collapsed entirely long ago and been wiped out by the descendants of the Old Maou Beelzebub.
The Sitri Peerage were also in a dangerous situation at the time. If it weren't for their quick thinking in Sona Shitori, they would have had no chance of holding off a descendant of the Old Maou Asmodeus.
In the end, it was Sirzechs who defeated Vali Lucifer first with his unparalleled strength, causing Vali Lucifer to fall on the spot before even Juggernaut Drive could activate his power. He then went to support the Gremory Peerage, which saved the Gremory Peerage from disaster.
Serafall lived up to her reputation as one of the strongest female Devil in the Devil realm, displaying her Super Devil Class strength to the fullest. The descendant of the Old Maou Leviathan, who only reached the Maou-Class by relying on Ophis's "serpent," was no match for her at all and was frozen into an ice sculpture on the spot, defeated and falling down.
After defeating the descendant of the Old Maou Leviathan, Serafall naturally rushed off to rescue her younger sister, and ultimately easily defeated the descendant of the Old Maou Asmodeus.
At this time, Sirzechs also defeated the descendant of the Old Maou Beelzebub and took him down.
This result shocked countless people at the time.
To those unaware of the truth, the Old Maou Demon Lords, in terms of both bloodline and characteristics, should be inferior to the descendants of the Old Maou. Even if they possess considerable combat power, they would be lucky to even fight to a draw against the bloodline of the Old Maou who have obtained the power of Ophis, let alone easily defeat them.
Not to mention others, even Azazel and Michael thought so.
After all, they didn't really understand the strength of the current Demon Lords. To them, who had existed since ancient times and had even fought against the Old Maou, the current Demon Lords, who had only lived for a few hundred years, were not even children. How could they possibly know too much about their strength?
Especially Sirzechs, who hasn't entered his Destruction Form since the Devil Civil War. The Devil haven't revealed the details of that battle, so how could anyone else know that this "young Devil " who stole Lucifer's name is actually among the world's top powerhouses, comparable to the Chief God and God King of various Mythological System?
Although Serafall is not as powerful as Sirzechs, she is already a Super Devil Class, and her strength has long surpassed that of the original Demon Lords.
Therefore, the current Demon Lords are all overpowered. They are only a few hundred years old, yet they have all quietly grown to an astonishing and unbelievable level. How can the old guys like Azazel and Michael, who are still relying on their past strength, bear this?
It can be said that among the Three Factions, the Devil are already far ahead of the other two. If it weren't for the fact that the current demon kings are easygoing, content with the status quo, love peace, and don't care much about power and status, the Devil might have already suppressed the angels and Fallen Angel to the point of being unable to raise their heads.
Therefore, as long as Sirzechs and Serafall are present, this crisis of a collective attack by the Old Satan Faction is practically guaranteed to be a problem.