Chapter 1

Shiro’s POV

After the initial shock of Kuro’s departure with the head of the Belith House, the crowd finally broke it’s silence and erupted into applause. It seems Kuro had done it once again, he had stunned the good people of Hell with his performance. They were all chanting his name. I can’t help but ponder whether they would show the same level of enthusiasm if they knew what he really was. At this present moment, they see him as one of their own, not just a Devil, but a commoner. Someone whose lineage is ordinary, someone who doesn’t even know his last name. Yet, someone that has the strength to defeat those that should outclass him in just about everything.

From my short time in Hell, I have gathered one simple fact. Here, strength and power is everything. However, I do not refer to pure brute strength alone, power manifests itself in different ways in Hell. Whether it’s brute strength, financial might or political and diplomatic prowess. They all have a place here and those that excel at these things, are the ones that thrive in the Ars Goetia.

Prior to departing with Alessia Belith, Kuro nodded at his highness. His highness responded with a look of understanding. I have no idea what he plans to do with Alessia Belith, but since his highness gave him the go ahead, it is probably related to the summit. Also, I have already come to terms with the fact that Kuro will help just about anyone in need, it just so happens that said people tend to be attractive noblewomen…

I can’t blame Kuro for that, can I? In spite of this, I will still be giving him a Miyabi-esque telling off, for taking so long to come back and failing to even say hello, before setting off again.

“Ladies and gentlemen, the Seir House has done it again! Who would have thought that they would be able to topple one of the favourites. It seems that Kuro has taken off somewhere with the defeated Baroness but…”

“Hahahaha, are you jealous Sabrina?”

“S-shut up! Y-you guys need to let me do my job, hmph!”

It seems that the crowd were teasing Sitri again. I have no idea why they believe that she has feelings for Kuro. As far as I’m aware, they have never met outside the arena. Also, I do not get the impression that she fell for him at first sight either. If anything, she does nothing but belittle and undermine him at every opportunity...

His highness is currently conversing with the crestfallen former Baron of the Belith House. Normally, Sitri would have called the match to an end by now, but it seems she is preoccupied with arguing with members of the audience. Her face is scarlet and it appears as if one more mention of Kuro would make her explode with anger.

“L-ladies and gentlemen, I-I will now call this summit clash to a close. We were once again treated to a masterclass in how to succeed as the underdog by Ku...t-the Seir House and I’m sure that we are all waiting with baited breath, to find out how far these newcomers can go. Remember folks, you can view highlights of this Summit clash, as well as a complete analysis of all the recent matchups by tuning into “Sabrina’s Summit Summary” live on DTV. We will be featuring some special guests this time, so set your alarms and mark your calendars people!”

Following this last announcement. Sitri finally ended today’s proceedings. His highness gave the former baron a reassuring look and returned to us. As he was returning, Alessia Belith was descending toward her side of the arena. It seems that she was no longer under the influence of the power that she had evoked to try and defeat Kuro. She helped the fallen Aiden Belith to his feet and led her household out of the arena. As she was leaving, the crowd gave her a standing ovation, it seems she also won over the good people of Hell with her performance today.

“Welp, I suppose we should also be heading back.”

“But your highness, shouldn’t we wait for Kuro? Alessia Belith has returned, I’m sure Kuro isn’t too far behind.”

“Hmmmm, something tells me that Kuro won’t be back for a while haha, I think it would be better if we waited for him back home.”

“O-OK.”

His Highness led Alice and I back to the villa. Along the way, we discussed the implications of our victory. According to his highness, we only needed to take one more Household to qualify as one of the top 4 Houses. His highness also predicted that our next opponent would without a doubt be the Kimaris House. This Household is known to govern over many African territories and its base of operations is the African nation of Ghana. It also has a vast territory in Hell to go along with it. Defeating it, will more than guarantee selection as one of the top 4.

“If the intel we have on Marquis Kimaris is correct, then he normally battles with an Akrafena. He claims to be a one man army and is extremely conceited. To date, he has single handedly defeated all opponents, although unlike Baroness Belith, his vassals are not just for show.”

“I’m sure we will be able to handle it your highness. Just one more to go and then we may even get the chance to clash with the Bael House.”

“...Shiro-san is correct my lord, this is just the final hurdle. Everything has gone according to plan. Neither of us have had to reveal our abilities and Kuro has been growing in strength.”

“Haha, yep, I suppose you guys are right. One more to go…”

Despite the level of positivity in our exchange, his highness was still pondering something on our way back. I was uncertain as to how long we will have to prepare for the clash against the Kimaris House, so I decided to tune into Sitri’s show, to see if I could gather any further information that would assist in our level of preparedness.

We finally arrived at the villa’s entrance. Eliza and Beth greeted us at the gates. They were both smiling happily, they seemed to have adjusted to their new lives well. I was initially reluctant about taking them on as servants, but his highness insisted and Alice likes them a lot too.

We entered through the front doors and officially began prepping for the upcoming battle against Marquis Kimaris.