A few moments before. . .
3rd Person POV
An old man, donning rich blue robes, with long white hair and a long white beard, and sporting a gold monocle, thoughtfully stroked his beard. "I say! Young Devils these days are nothing to scoff at!"
Beside him, a man with long crimson-red red nodded. "We are thankful for the Allfather's kind words."
The old man chuckled. "Oh you Devils and your silver tongues. Never mind, I do enjoy the lip service. So! Tell me how wonderful I am! Ahahaha!"
He and the Devil leaders had themselves a good laugh. Behind them, a gruff muscular man and a beautiful woman stood by silently. They were the old man's bodyguards; although given the old man's identity, one might think he would not need any, even with his current appearance.
"Baraqiel! Rossweisse! Come join us jolly fellows," Odin called to his two guards. "I know it's your job to protect me, but even I need to let loose sometimes, much less you two. Especially you Rossweisse, if you're so uptight all the time, you'll never find a good husband to take care of you. Hahaha!"
The woman's face turned bright red before she berated Odin. "Since when did this turn into flaming my romantic failures?!"
But Odin acted like he didn't hear anything. "Like those two that just fought, they're quite strong, the pillars of the future, dare I say. Who knows, maybe one of them is into older women. Hehe, and that human is quite interesting too. Anybody would be lucky to have him."
Suddenly, the ears of every adult within earshot perked up.
"Human? Old geezer, are you sure your eye is working well?" one of the Devil leaders said skeptically.
Odin nodded. "I didn't give up my other eye for nothing, Beelzebub. That sacrifice granted me infinite wisdom from Mimir's well. With it, how could I not tell that there was a human here?"
"Then I guess Mimir has finally failed you. You see, there were no humans invited to this gathering. No human should even be capable of entering this plane under our watch. We four leaders personally made sure that no one that wasn't invited made it in. Tonight is a night only for Devils and special guests like you. Ah, don't beat yourself too much Odin, you know the saying: there's a first time for everything. I guess it was just your time tonight. But I reiterate, everyone has made sure that there are no uninvited guests, especially human ones. Isn't that right everyone?"
All the other adult Devils nodded and murmured in agreement.
Except one.
Sirzechs Lucifer avoided eye contact with everyone around him. He showed no reaction to Beelzebub's words, aside from his constantly shifting gaze.
On Odin's side, Baraqiel's eyes scanned the room, trying to find this human the Allfather spoke of.
Odin took no offense to Beelzebub's words and smiled in return. "Perhaps, perhaps. But I am so sure of myself, that it makes me think one of us might not be telling the truth."
At that moment, Odin met Sirzechs' gaze. The old man's one good eye blinked, but Sirzechs caught the slight changes in the wrinkles around his eyes, which told him that it was not just a simple blink, but rather a knowing wink.
Still, Sirzechs refused to show any reaction to this geezer's provocations.
"Old geezer, are you calling us Devils liars?" Beelzebub said sternly.
"Ohohoho, no, not at all," Odin chuckled. "But if you would just do me one small favor."
"Wha---" Beelzebub was cut off by another Devil leader, a bald man with a goatee. "Name your price. If it is within reason, we might be able to do something about it."
"Ah of course, of course. Thank you Asmodeus. Now, all I ask is that you show me that no one here is a human, just that. If you can do it, I will publicly apologize to the entire Devil community on one bent knee. How about it?"
This response sent a ripple of murmurs through the crowd of adult Devils. On one hand, the Allfather was risking his own face in wanting to prove a point. On the other hand, it was akin to challenging the security, and by extension the ability, of the Devils as a community. The pride of both sides was at stake.
The question at hand was: are the Devils willing to risk it? Odin sure as hell was, but what about the Devils?
Finally, Sirzechs interjected. "Now, now. Let's not get too hasty. Allfather, there's no need to go to such lengths, is there? And my brethren, please, this is supposed to be a night of celebration, not of quarrels. So, let's just put all this behind us, ok? So what if there's a human here? It's not hurting us, is it? C'mon, what do you say?"
At the same time, he wiggled his eyebrows at Odin and made a few secret gestures with his hands.
Odin, with his 'infinite wisdom from Mimir's well' obviously caught the signals and understood. He nodded, showing Sirzechs that the Allfather would give him some face and keep his little secret.
As for the Devils, they agreed that if no one were to bring this up again, they would be willing to let it go. Of course, that didn't stop some of them from having thoughts of scouring the venue for any potential intruders.
Seeing the situation de-escalate, Sirzechs gave a sigh of relief.
"One thing's for sure," Odin added a final remark. "You Devils' future will be secure with youth like this."
All the Devil leaders smiled and nodded their heads in satisfaction.
Suddenly, the sound of loud mocking laughter filled the venue.
"So this is what the great and all-powerful Allfather has been up to? Frolicking between worlds? Indulging in endless opulence? Bargaining with lesser beings? How pathetic! You, a once awe-inspiring deity that no one would dare utter a harsh word against, are now so willing to risk your reputation for a mere hunch? No wonder we've fallen this much."
A handsome man dressed in pure white robes with pale blue hair streaming behind him like a lightning bolt appeared in the air within the venue.
Almost instantly, Rossweisse's clothes transformed into Valkyrie armor in a flash of light, and she and Baraqiel placed themselves in between Odin and this man.
"Loki, god of mischief, what are you doing here?" Rossweisse demanded.
The man, Loki, laughed. "You said it yourself; I'm the god of mischief, so obviously I'm here to cause mischief! However, today I am feeling a bit. . . deadly."
Right as the words left his mouth, a giant wolf crashed through the ceiling and landed in front of Odin and the Devil leaders.
"Fenrir!" Rossweisse cried out.
Screams and cries of panic filled the halls as guests frantically dashed towards exits. As soon as the wolf landed, it lunged towards Odin with its mouth open, ready to swallow the Allfather whole, as once prophesied.
However, the Devils did not remain idle. Despite Fenrir's sudden appearance, everyone was quick to respond and dozens of high-level magic intercepted the immortal wolf before it could harm the Allfather.
Fenrir was forced back by the spells, but still focused on killing Odin.
Up in the air, Loki watched on with joy. "The time has come for change, oh father mine! With your death, the end of times shall arrive, and I will remake this world anew once I have destroyed it all! Witness me and fear my power!"
Loki spread his arms and unleashed a wave of power that sent tables and chairs flying.
Guests down below could only protect themselves with their own magic. But, some groups were able to help others, like Sairaorg who was warned by Y/n shortly before the latter left.
Throughout all this, Odin remained absolutely calm.
"So now you reveal everything?" he said with a smile. "My child, you may be a god that has lived for millennia, but you are still so naïve. You think I didn't know you were coming? If it was truly so, then giving up my eye for wisdom would've truly been worthless. It is not your place to start Ragnarök. Not yet."
As he said that, Odin lifted both his hands towards the levitating Loki and the still-rampaging Fenrir that was being held back by the Devils' magic.
The two beings were held frozen before they were encased in seals and talismans. Once they were completely encased, the two trapped beings disappeared from the venue.
Before the Devils could breathe a sigh of relief, Odin spoke. "I have not banished him, only teleported him somewhere he will cause minimal damage. If we want him gone, we still have to fight. My seals will hold him for some time, so use it to find people who can defeat him."
Everyone nodded in understanding. "Don't worry Odin, we already have some people in mind. Only, they might be a bit young. We'll consider it their first real battle, and if they can't handle it, we'll have some higher-ups step in."
Odin nodded. "Good. Bring them here and let's brief them on the situation. I want to use all the time before the seals wear off to bring them to the best shape possible for this fight."
Y/N POV
"President! Issei! Y/n! You're back!"
The remaining members of the ORC ran to meet us as we emerged from the forest.
They were outside? I looked around and saw that pretty much everyone who had attended the gathering was now outside. There was a gaping hole in the roof, and I could hear sounds of fighting coming from inside.
"What's the situation?" I asked.
"Rias! You're back!" Sona and her peerage also arrived. "Here, let me brief you three. So, everything was going just fine, but then Loki showed up. He started mocking Odin and his choice to associate with Devils. Then Fenrir crashed through the roof and began trying to kill Odin because Loki wants to start Ragnarök. But, the Devil leaders are holding him back while Odin deals with Loki. By my guess, it should be over in a few moments since Odin is acting personally."
"So let me get this straight, a dissatisfied warmonger crashed the occasion and is now trying to kill somebody important to start the end of the world?" I asked.
Sona nodded.
I thought about it a little. "If that's the case, haven't we seen this already?"
Rias gave me a strange look. "Y/n, what are you ta--oh. Oh."
Of course, I was talking about an already-vanquished foe, Kokabiel. He was the same as Loki. He didn't like the fact that the Three Factions were getting all buddy-buddy, kinda like how Loki didn't like how the Abrahamic and Norse factions were trying to get buddy-buddy. So he decided to restart the Great War so everyone dies in the fighting.
I guess you could call this Kokabiel Part 2. Of course, this time it's not Kokabiel and the involved parties are so much more than just Angels and Devils.
Meanwhile, the sound of fighting from inside the venue died away.
"Lord Odin should've finished taking care of it," Sona said. "Let's go inside and see if there's anything the leaders need."
"Wait, Odin? As in the Allfather? As in Gungnir and Huginn and Muninn and all that? That Odin?"
"Yes, Y/n. That Odin. He's here to inquire about a possible alliance, the entire reason Loki showed up."
"Ah, gotcha."
Kiba tapped my shoulder. "By the way Y/n, where's Koneko?"
The other members of the ORC cast inquisitive gazes at me, Rias, and Issei.
Rias looked at me before speaking. "She--" she started.
I held up a hand to stop her. "No, I can do it. So Kiba, or everyone actually, Koneko is unable to join us right now because her powers are on the cusp of a big breakthrough. No doubt, it will be a big help to us in the future, but she needs time alone right now to give herself the best odds. Should everything go well, she will be back with us before we get back to Kuoh."
And though I didn't add it, there was a 'hopefully' that followed the last word.
They seemed satisfied with my answer, and didn't press any further. Rias and Issei smiled appreciatively at me.
We all approached the large door leading into the venue. For a moment, I wondered why we still had to go through the door. I mean, there was a huge hole in the roof and all the windows were broken. But I guess it would be uncivilized to enter in such a manner.
Rias and Sona told everyone else to stay outside while their peerages plus me checked the situation inside.
Inside, the devastation caused by Fenrir was laid bare for everyone to see.
Not a single piece of furniture was left standing. Not a single piece of china or silverware remained intact. No fabric was untorn. Glass and liquid and wood fragments littered the floor. And keep in mind, there were only a few minutes between when I first heard the explosion and when I arrived. It served as a testament to Fenrir's power.
Still, there was one part of the venue that remained untouched. And there, a group that I assumed to be the Devil leaders and Odin were talking with serious expressions.
"Lord Sirzechs, Sister, Lord Odin, "Sona called out to them. "Is everything resolved?"
All the leaders looked at us, and I felt an old man's gaze falling on me. He had one eye and was flanked by a Fallen Angel and a woman in armor. He should be Odin. But why was he looking at me?
"Sona!" Serafall exclaimed. She tried to jump on Sona but Sona dodged and Serafall hit the ground hard. "You're so mean!" she said, but Sona paid her no mind.
"Ah, speak of the devil, or Devils! Pun intended of course," Sirzechs greeted us with a light chuckle. "Perfect timing you guys, we were just talking about you."
I rolled my eyes. Dad jokes really do transcend realms, reaching even the (supposedly) strongest man in the Underworld.
Rias and Sona's eyes brightened "Us? Really? What about?"
Sirzechs walked towards us with the one-eyed man. "I'm sure you already know, but this is Odin, the Norse Allfather. Just now, he banished Loki and Fenrir, preventing any further potentially devastating damage from being done."
"Lord Odin," everyone else said as they bowed.
Me? I kept one eye on him as I bowed ever so slightly.
"Boy! What do you think you're doing? Show some respect!" one of the Devils behind Sirzechs shouted at me.
At the same time, an invisible pressure tried to force me down into a lower bow.
The shout caught me off-guard and I couldn't react to the pressure in time. My legs buckled and I saw my surroundings rise while I fell.
But before I could hit the ground, a frail arm stuck itself in front of my chest. It was stronger than it looked, much stronger, and it stopped me from hitting the ground.
I felt the pressure disappear immediately after I was caught.
Surprisingly, it was the old man who caught me.
"Whoa there, son," he said with a chuckle. "Floor's absolutely messy, so make sure you don't trip, okay?"
I smiled sheepishly. "Haha, uh, yeah. I'll be sure to watch my step. Thank you. . . uh, Lo--"
He held up a hand to stop me. "Please, just Odin is fine. That was quite a show you put up for us back there with Sairaorg. The least I could do for you since you riled up my fighting spirit is do away with courtesies. I think they're pretty dumb anyway."
"My lord," the armored women cut in. "Please care about your image. After all, one of the things Loki hates about you is how you don't act like others who have a lot of power, that is to say, aloof."
"Tch, don't mind her kind. She's always nagging me, no wonder she isn't married yet. Probably scares all the men away. Say, kid, you wouldn't happen to be into older women, would you?" He completely ignored what the woman said and even put his arm around me.
I felt awkward. The woman was beet red and glaring at Odin, but Odin acted like she wasn't even there.
"Actually, sir--"
"Odin."
"--Actually Odin, I already have someone," I told him.
He patted my back. "Ah, that's a shame. Well, if you ever turn single again, give me a call. Rossweisse's still probably going to be single by then."
"*Ahem* Can we please get to the matter at hand?" Sirzechs cut in.
"Of course! Of course!" Odin nodded and stepped away.
Sirzechs sighed. I don't blame him. Just a casual conversation with the old man and I could already tell he was a loose cannon.
"So here's the situation. . ."
And here's what I gathered:
The enemies at hand are the god of mischief and the immortal wolf. Who knows if more might show up once the god breaks free, cause he sure has the ability to summon more. He's a magic man, not much else right now. As for the wolf, kicking and scratching is its game, pretty much fighting with just its body, no special tricks or anything magical. It might be hard to contain given its history, but that's about it.
Moving on to the vanguard.
Apparently, it's us.
Now, I don't know about you, but sending teenagers to fight a god and his lapdog doesn't seem very morally upright. Nor does it sound like a fair fight.
I've fought beings from Heaven and Hell, but this is the first time I've faced someone with true divinity, someone who could draw power from faith.
Old man Odin claims that breaking out of the temporary prison will drain Loki of some of his powers, levelling the battlefield to some extent, but weak or strong, a god is still a god. Also, Odin claims that there will be a special surprise later to help us in our fight with Loki.
Now, I know all about the idea of now showing your cards too early, but c'mon, this might put our lives at stake.
After reviewing the intelligence at hand, something unexpected happened.
*SWOOSH~ BOOM!*
"Where is she?!"
A lone figure descended from the hole in the roof. It was someone with white and blue dragon wings.
Vali Lucifer.
Without looking at him I called out, "She's a bit preoccupied at the moment."
His face twisted in anger. He raised his leg to step forward and start walking towards me.
"Not. . . another. . . step," a cold voice said.
I don't know when it happened, but Sirzechs appeared in front of Vali with a ball of pure Destruction in his hand. Obviously he was prepared to fight Vali if the latter tried to press any further.
Vali glared at Sirzechs. "I'll give you some face because you're the strongest of the leaders, but this man you're protecting took someone from me. And I want her back."
"Your problems are not our problems," Sirzechs replied. "Unless you can provide aid, I suggest you leave and come back at a more suitable time. Given your lineage, your power, and the fact that I did not immediately make a move, that should be enough face for you."
Faced with an ultimatum, Vali didn't try to argue and chose to leave.
"This isn't over," he spat at me. "I want her back."
Then an idea popped into my head.
"Oh, don't be in such a hurry to leave. Maybe you can help us," I called out to him.
His wings were already about to carry him off, but he froze mid-action.
"Y/n?" Sirzechs said with a confused look. I nodded at him, assuring that I was sure of what I was doing. Reluctantly, he stepped aside and let Vali approach us.
"Let's make a deal," I continued. "Right now, Loki is a stray rabid dog. What do we do with rabid dogs?"
"We put them down," Vali responded.
"Good. But this particular dog is quite strong and it'll take a lot of effort to put him down."
"So what? You want me to help you take him down?"
I snapped my fingers. "Exactly. Help us beat Loki, I'll give Kuroka back to you, provided she completes the task I gave her."
Vali stepped forward. "What did you do to her?"
"Hey, that's not important. Right now, the topic at hand is Loki. So what do you say? Are you in?"
Vali closed his eyes in thought. I thought it was a pretty simple decision to make. You scratch my back, I scratch yours. I'm not like those schemers who lead you on deal after deal without giving you anything in return.
I'm telling the truth. If he really helps us beat Loki, and Kuroka finishes taking care of Koneko, I'll give her back.
Of course, Vali doesn't know how honest I am. Humu humu, I'm such a nice guy.
"Deal," Vali finally said, sticking his hand out.
I grabbed and shook his hand. "Pleasure doing business with you."
"But," he added. "I get to bring my team."
"Whatever suits you," I said.
Behind Vali, a blue magic circle appeared and two more people appeared within the circle.
The first person was quite familiar. It was the monkey boy that I'd met twice, Bikou. But the other one, I didn't know him. He had blonde hair and wore glasses, and he carried a sword. The sword was obviously special; it exuded a powerful saintly aura.
Behind me, Kiba exclaimed. "Excalibur fragment!"
"Heel!" I said over my shoulder. "They're on our side for now."
Vali explained the situation to the two young men. Judging from his face, monkey boy didn't like the deal, but he had to do whatever says. As for the other young man with the Excalibur fragment, he seemed to have no problem with it.
"Okay, we're ready," Vali said to me.
"Hold on, not so fast," Odin suddenly said. "I just put the seals up. We're not fighting him now."
"What?!" Vali exclaimed.
Odin rolled his eyes. "What? You want to fight a god at their full strength? If we let the seal run out, it'll weaken Loki much more than if we try to fight him now."
Hearing this, Vali had no retorts. He may be a protégé and a battle maniac, but he's still a few years too young to go toe-to-toe with a full-fledged god. Of course, that also goes for me.
"So what are we supposed to do until then?" Vali asked.
Odin shrugged. "Talk. Get to know each other. Eat. Sleep. I don't care. Just find a way to keep your sanity while we wait." And then he walked off, armored woman and Fallen Angel guard in tow. "I'll summon you all when it's time," he called out one last time.
Vali looked at me.
I looked at him. "What are you looking at me for?"
"You better keep your word."
I chuckled. "Puh-leeze. I always keep my word. Don't you worry 'bout a thing."
He narrowed his gaze at me one last time before storming off somewhere with his two pals.
I turned to Rias. "Say, we have places to stay for the time being, right?"
"Yes, why?" she asked.
"Good, 'cause I need somewhere to cultivate my inner peace."
Rias rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say. I'll get someone to prepare a room so you can get your beauty sleep before the big fight."
"Thank you dear, that's very kind of you."
"Whatever!"
To be continued. . .