DxD: The Tale of Blood, Chapter 4 (Patreon)

"You have not told me what you did to me, nya~," Kuroka asked, now wearing a black dress that Hilda had helped her change into.

They were back inside the Darcaedes Castle and were on their way to the hall where the party was taking place.

"Did you use your Clan's Trait?" She curiously asked the young boy who was shorter than her in height, but still quite tall for his age.

"How much do you know about the Darcaedes Family's Traits?" Hilda curiously asked.

"My old master was obsessed with the Darcaedes, so I know a few things that I heard from him," Kuroka told her, and her voice did not contain any hint of guilt or resentment towards her old master. The dead simply did not matter to her. "I know that Darcaedes Family's Clan Trait is Blood Control and that they have ridiculous healing that can rival that of Phenex, and they can also help others heal using their powers."

Kuroka glanced at the maid, and seeing her nod, she continued with the things she knew about the Darcaedes Clan Trait.

"It is also said that they have such great control that they can even get rid of the genetic faults as well as overwrite the gene sequence. The first Darcaedes was witnessed converting Half-Devils, born of the union of Devils and Humans, into Pure-Blood Devils, getting rid of their human blood." She sceptically spoke, not really buying into what she had heard, and she found neither Hilda nor Raizel confirming or denying her words.

"And?" Raizel asked, and Kuroka was curious why he was asking the question since he had already read her memories.

"And that you can copy another Clan's Trait by ingesting their blood. But temporarily." She said and then smiled. "And now I know that you can use your Blood Control to suck a person's blood like a vampire and see through their memories, nya~!"

Raizel chuckled at her words and finally nodded.

"Everything you have heard and figured out is true, except that it is not called Blood Control. Our Clan's Trait is called the Blood Nirvana." He told her and heard her exclaim. "And there is more to it."

"You can really turn a Half-Devil into a Pure-Blood Devil, nya~?!"

"Yes." He nodded and then looked at her. "I made you perfect. You are now a Half-Devil and Half-Nekoshou. However, since your blood holds the magic of another race, I can not turn you into a full Blood Devil."

"What?"

"Let's just say that you are now the first of a new Devil House." He smiled and then frowned a little as weakness started creeping in.

"You over-exerted yourself." Kuroka immediately caught on to his change in expression, even though he immediately schooled it.

She had been observing him for a while, and she had already deduced that he had grown weaker.

"What I did was not easy. So, of course, it's taken its toll on me." He grinned. "But I will be fine after I get some sleep."

"Yes, and you would probably be sleeping for months after what you have just pulled." Hilda critically said, and Raizel only grinned some more.

"She's worth it."

"I believe you." The yellow-haired maid smiled and then increased her pace as she walked ahead, approaching the tall door of the Hall.

Kuroka felt a myriad of emotions rile up in her heart, and the minute she stayed outside the hall with Raizel, waiting for his arrival to be announced to the guests, she kept wondering how her hopeless day had suddenly turned into a hopeful one.

A little anxiety kicked in when the door opened and her new Master stepped forward, and she braved up to meet the scrutinising eyes of the Devils present inside the Hall.

Just as she had expected, her presence alarmed the guests. Some gasped in shock, and others concentrated their eyes on her, narrowing them.

She was certain that by now she was all over the news, so it was not surprising that she had been recognised so quickly.

"I thank you all for coming here today to join my birthday celebration. I hope you are having a good time and that it will only get better for you now that I am here." Raziel smiled without a hint of any stage fright and with confidence that made even the people who were concentrating on Kuroka turn to look at him and listen to his words.

"Happy Birthday, Heir Darcaedes!" Falbium Asmodeus stepped forward before anyone else could.

"Thank you, Satan Asmodeus." He smiled at the tall bald man with a goatee.

"May I ask why the Devildom's latest most-wanted criminal is standing by your side, Heir Darcaedes?" He inquired, narrowing his eyes a little at the Nekoshou by his side.

He was in charge of the Devildom's military and security, and his men have been searching for Kuroka for the last two days without much success.

"Why, of course, Satan Asmodeus." Raizel smiled. "Allow me to introduce everyone to my Bishop, Kuroka!" He grabbed Nekoshou's hand and pulled her forward, not only shocking the guests but also the members of his own Peerage who just learned that he had found another member.

"She killed her former King, the head of the Nebarius Clan." Falbium reminded him and gauged his expression. And inside, he already knew that he could no longer hope to catch this criminal.

"She did." He nodded. "And Zeroma Nebarius deserved it for conducting his experiments on Devils and other races, all in hopes of turning himself into an artificial Devil whose powers could rival Satan Lucifer." He turned to look at the Crimson-Haired Satan in the audience, who was standing next to a young girl, undoubtedly his little sister given how similar they looked.

Before anyone could ask any questions, Raizel constructed a transparent screen with his Devil Magic and replayed the memories he had extracted from Kuroka in his mind, which appeared on the screen for all of them to watch as well.

Even though Kuroka had killed her Master to protect her younger sister, which all of them now knew about, it did not lessen the severity of her crime.

Killing your King, no matter the reason, warranted a death sentence. A Servant's duty was to protect their Master, not to kill the one they served because their morality and emotions suddenly kicked in.

However, there was nothing anyone could do to Kuroka now that she was part of his Peerage, and he happened to be the Heir of the House of Darcaedes.

Falbium's mood was a little sour after watching and learning what the Head of the Nebarius Family was up to. Added to Kuroka's crime, which he could do nothing about now, he truly felt a little embarrassed.

"Your decision is admirable, Heir Darcaedes." Sirzechs suddenly spoke, wearing a very sincere smile, a true Devil's smile.

"We are all selfish in our own right." He grinned and then looked at the young girl, who was curiously looking at him with a bright smile, and nodded to her, which excited her a little.

The drinks were magically served when he clapped his hands, and then he walked down the platform, accompanied by Albedo, who was tonight's Host together with him. She was representing his mother in her absence, and every single guest showed her immense respect because of her heritage and her role as Pandora Darcaedes' Queen.

Freya, Moka, and Ban were keeping Kuroka company, and of course, they all had their questions and wanted to introduce themselves to her. Therefore, they were happily busy chatting with each other.

Once Raizel and Albedo greeted every Lord and Lady of all the Devil Houses, his mother's Queen and his ever-so-sweet aunt allowed him to go and greet the younger generation of Devildom, who were gathered on the other side of the hall, making acquaintances and friends on either their parent's instructions or their own accord.

A group of youngsters caught his attention because of a certain crimson-haired and teal-eyed girl, whom he had seen earlier with Sirzechs Lucifer.

She was seemingly upset about something as she glared at a young boy, who he knew was the Heir of the Astaroth Family, Diodora, younger brother of Ajuka Beelzebub.

"Do not speak ill of Akeno!" The young girl fiercely warned, and Raizel smiled as he sensed her Demonic Power flaring up.

"Lady Rias."

Suddenly, a maid appeared next to her, placing her hand on the little girl's shoulder, which immediately calmed her down.

"He keeps badmouthing Akeno." She told the maid, who did not speak but just turned to stare at the Heir of the Astaroth Family, succeeding in intimidating him and forcing him to excuse himself away.

"Grayfia Lucifuge." Raizel walked over and called out the name of the maid, who immediately turned to look at him and bowed.

"Prince Darcaedes."

"Neil told me about his special cousin who was revered as the strongest Lucifuge only at the age of sixteen." He stopped next to Rias and looked the lady in the eyes. "But his cousin let her House down." He added, gauging her expression. However, Grayfia remained impassive. "You are a beautiful Devil, aren't you?" He chuckled and then glanced at the group of kids who were standing next to the crimson-haired girl, before looking back at her. "Please excuse us."

Hearing his words, Grayfia bowed and then walked away, going to stand by the side of her Master and Husband, Sirzechs Lucifer.

"Good evening!" Raizel smiled at the young girl, who was around three years younger than him, almost seven years old, and he courteously took her hand and planted a kiss on her knuckles. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Heiress Gremory."

"Prince Raizel." Her smile dropped a little at being called the Heiress of her House, but she politely greeted him back and curiously looked at him.

"May I ask why you were upset at Heir Astaroth?" He inquired, making her furrow her brows. "I heard you take the name Akeno." He insisted and she fidgeted a little, lowering her head.

She would have excused herself away and not bothered to answer if it was anyone else, but even if her parents had not told her, she knew that the House of Darcaedes was of a higher social standing than theirs.

Therefore, she could not afford to be disrespectful to him and had to answer his question since it was not really a private matter anymore.

"Akeno is my friend and stays with me at my home." She informed him.

"Oh, did she not come with you?" He asked as he glanced around.

"No..."

"Why not?" He interestedly asked.

Rias glanced into his eyes and immediately lowered her head again.

"She's a Fallen." She froze as soon as she said those words, expecting him to show some disgust as most other Heirs and Heiresses showed when they learned what Akeno was. But even after a few seconds, Raizel did not speak.