During the night after the Harvest Festival, congratulatory parties were held for Iruma, Isabelle, Acheron, Asmodeus, Clara, and Lavande in their efforts of completing the event. Meanwhile, the instructors of Babyls were also having their own party for a job well done at keeping the festival up and running safely in a reserved restaurant named Knucklebone Mountain, all hosted by Robin!
With a beer in his hand, Robin praised everyone for their hard work with a toast. Their lineup of food ranged from grilled assortments to salads with edible eyeballs. A tipsy Blushenko bawled over the fact his class wouldn't listen to a single word he utters. His colleague was shocked and concerned to know that he was quick to get drunk. Robin checked out who were missing out on the party on his checklist. Two instructors on duty, Raim and Furcas, were unable to make it. The only three people missing were Orias, Kalego, and Shichiro. One of the professors told him that Orias can't drink alcohol, thus may not show up. On the other hand, Blushenko stated that Kalego would refuse to show up every single time, regardless of getting invited or not.
The staff outside their room welcomed more customers. And look who actually came out to party! It was Shichiro and Kalego, which was quite the surprise! Their colleagues raised their beers welcoming the two. And apparently, Kalego wasn't a type to be going in pubs. Shichiro pushed him over before telling everyone that he caught his shorter friend from leaving, which Dali and Robin were glad to have Shichiro to help with. And of course, it's customary for Kalego to grab Robin's face for anything he tries to receive acknowledgement from.
Once Kalego and Shichiro were seated, Dali asked what drink would they fancy. Kalego was fine with anything, not to mention Sullivan would be covering the tab on this party. At that notion, Kalego didn't hesitate to take the most expensive wine on the beverage menu, Daikoku Makyo from 6666, also known as The Pearl of Evil. His colleague also noticed that it wasn't just pricey, it was a strong one! But it seems that Shichiro is a kind that has great tolerance to such a drink. Robin was enthusiastic to try it, but the buff harpy demon barred him from that because he may not be ready for it, much to Robin's dismay. Marbas then asked Kalego if he would like some bar snacks like pickled vegetable, fried or barbequed chicken. But he stopped at the thought it'd sound offensive to someone who ends up being a bird for a familiar. While he didn't make such a fact explicit, he did apologize for it before Kalego wondered what was wrong with that.
"You don't like barbequed chicken, Professor Jimmy?" Asked Robin, addressing the wrong name.
"Oh, this is Professor Marbas." Corrected Shichiro, "And you teach...?"
"I teach the Art of Torture, actually." Answered Marbas nonchalantly.
"That's a shock!" Beamed Robin in excitement, "You totally seem like a Jimmy 'cause you look so dull!"
"You don't hold back, do you?" Remarked Marbas, a little overwhelmed by the reaction he received, "My family is the artistic sort."
And by that, his older sister turned out to be a manager for a dem-dol- that was Maru, Kuromu's manager! Good thing be chose to keep that detail confidential.
While the topic of relatives was up, Momonoki wanted to have some alcohol, even if her grandfather Morax offered her some kombucha. He absolutely wouldn't allow his granddaughter to drink with men around, so he chose to ensure none of them would get close to her at all by becoming a barricade. Robin managed to knock him out of the way to bring Momonoki to a seat next to Kalego. He asked her what was she like as a new teacher, to which she nervously replied that Kalego was her mentor on the job. That was quite a coincidence because Robin was under the same wings!
"Okay, so who was your mentor, Professor Kalego?" Asked the archer, "Who was it? Who was it?"
"It was yours truly!" Said Dali, the instructor supervisor.
Surprisingly, none of his older colleague even believed him, thinking Dali was either joking, lying, or drunk. But Shichiro defended that point as Dali explained the dynamic between him and Kalego from years ago. Apparently, not much had changed from his cold and harsh personality, and when the rule of new instructors hosting mixers was brought up, Kalego ended up getting a reservation at a super classy restaurant, which was the kind of place he's already accustomed to attending. He was also a kind to do his work perfectly, but still insanely unapproachable. To top it all off, Dali claimed that it was unbelievable to think that Kalego would become close with the members of the Misfit Class, catching his junior instructor off-guard and spitting his sip of wine. Dali may have chosen the wrong words for that, but Suzy countered that the Misfits are all amazing students.
And of course, they wouldn't stop a chance to talk about the ever popular main stars of our show! All from the entrance ceremony, duels between them and two honor students, returning back with the Guardian of Cutthroat Valley, bringing never-before-seen flora into the Netherworld, and delivering a spectacular fireworks show to the Battler Party. Before Dali could ever mention Kalego's situation as Iruma's familiar, the latter summoned his magic three-headed hellhound before Dali decided it was best to take back his words for his own sake. Then Suzy, Marbas, and Momonoki continued on with the opening of Royal One and the incident at Walter Park. Everything the Misfits have achieved with the biggest leading figures they followed were phenomenal achievements that make them truly misfit from the norms!
"Yes, that was certainly a terrifying incident." Remarked Momonoki.
"You took on such a challenging class, Professor Kalego!" Bawled Blushenko. "I deeply admired you for it."
"You just never what they'll do next!" Agreed another teacher.
"Yes, exactly. We can't let those rascals out of our sight!" Added Robin, "Students and teachers are like family, after all! We have to treat them that way!"
Or were they, Robin? He was still a newbie, so he hadn't known what came next. Kalego objected to that notion as all the other teachers sat in silence with drinks down. Dali dimmed the room to correct Robin's word.
"The fresh young talents at Babylus will breathe new life into our dear Netherworld." He said, "The Misfit Class as well as the other students, are a treasure to the Netherworld. And... we are their sworn guardians. Thus, we only have one goal to fulfill. Our utmost priority is to protect our precious students. To shield them from danger. To that end, this is our pledge. Any enemy that goes after our treasure shall receive the gruesome "discipline"."
And with that historical motto, Dali raised a toast. Shichiro came back from no being in the room, applauding that show while Kalego was irked by the audacity to use Babylus's sacred motto as a toast.
"Anyway, that is our oath. Do your best and commit it to memory." He told Robin, "New instructor, carve it into your heart. Any enemy that goes after our treasure shall receive the most gruesome "discipline" we can duel out. Incidentally, your actions today were also based directly on our motto."
But wait a second, Kalego! What exactly did Robin do that aligned with the final sentence of Babylus's historical vow? Well, hold on to your seats, readers, because we're taking you on a flashback to a few hours beforehand!
Right around when Ryūko, Iruma, Isabelle, Acheron, and Lied were given the title of Young King, Robin was at the highest peak he could climb, where he could get a bird's-eye view above the forest arena. In there, Ocho was happily skipping over completing his mission to bring some data. Certainly, he had fun making Coco so-called cheat in the Harvest Festival, but he can't remember anything from those events because Ocho altered those specific memories within the timeline. Who knows how he got into Babylus's arena without getting caught at the entrance.
"Yes, indeed... There's no denying it. I was truly number two again today." He grinned, "The pure joy of supporting the false number one is the simply unmatched for a believer in the Second Faith."
This all meant that Coco had absolutely no idea that the Netherworld religion which loves and reveres the number two, the family of the Second Faith actually existed!
With that shocker out of the way, Ocho skipped to find his way out back to who he called that "revered one". Unbeknownst to him, Robin and Kalego were working together to spot intruders with the help of both Shichiro's Buzzer and Robin's keen eyes. It actually took so long for them to find their trespasser, but they finally caught onto Ocho's tail.
"Babylus will happily accept every demon." Told Kalego to Robin, "But any buffoon that infiltrates our school without permission won't escape that mistake unscathed."
On that note, Robin charged his invincible Bullseye Shot and it chased down Ocho with a great hit! The little spy thought he could get away thanks to the "revered one's" spell they cast upon him to avoid getting recognized. Robin missed Ocho's vitals, as Kalego said, but he begged the question if that really was best to do. Kalego said with clear caution that he didn't know who was plotting such a scheme, but that situation was given as a warning and if ever it occurred again, none of the instructors are to hold back at all. That was one of the ways the oath referred to "gruesome discipline". With that, he genuinely praised Robin for disciplining their enemy on that day. It was a rare sight to see Kalego ever complimenting Robin out of sincerity, so the latter had the right to feel happy about it. But it would be wise if he didn't get a big head for a single compliment before ever rewarding himself with Daikoku Makyo. All the while, Dali and Momonoki watched, agreeing that those two were close. The former then called on for a bingo tournament, where everyone had a great night out. Shichiro spotted Kalego getting a bingo on his card before receiving the prize of a golden statue of miniature Sullivan.
•°•°•○•°•°•
At that same night, where thunder struck outside an ominously lit manor far way, Ocho was on his knees as he bleeds from injury.
"Reporting..." He said, struggling to hold himself together, "Among the first-years at Babylus, there are a number who may be inclined to return to our origins. And I... I also believe... there are quite a few students in the Misfit Class who possess true potential and motivation..."
The person he was reporting to, this revered one, was no other than the founder of the Six Fingers who masquerades with his position at the Thirteen Crowns' Thunder Lord and Kaminari's uncle, Baal. He burned away a sheet of paper in his left hand, looking down on Ocho from his throne.
"So... why gives you that pathetic look, Ocho?" He asked.
At this question, Ocho furiously slammed his fist against the floor, swearing that the guardians of Babylus would not get away with straying him away by force and he would pay that favor tenfold. Baal was unamused by the display, stepping on his head while telling him to shut up and stop dirtying his floor.
"Tell me, did you get info about Iruma?" He asked, "If you got anything about his sister and their housemate, then spit it out."
Ocho handed over what appeared to be recording devices and revealed he planted two bugs on Iruma's and Isabelle's clothes before the contestants entered the wilderness. On the other hand, Ryūko was nowhere to be found or recognized, meaning Ocho couldn't even find her in the first place before the competition began.
"I must say, it was quite a sight, seeing that traumatized brats literally fall into the depths of despair." Said Ocho, smiling again, "Their faces when they were drowning in pure agony was quite-"
Ocho was cut off by a hand that pulled him from the collar. He landed with his back on the floor to face his comrade, who looked at him with absolute envy. This was another demon who returned to origins, former Babylus student and president of the Magical Apparatus Battler- you know him. It's Kirio Amy, back in action! And hearing Ocho getting to see Iruma's and Isabelle's faces of despair and not being able to see them for himself, that was something Kirio despised for all that's worth to see the most optimistic and greediest people he's known fall into that abyss where no second chances are accepted. As he embodied the Eight Deadly Sins of the Orthodox Church, Iruma opposing all those earthly things was what made him Kirio's natural enemy.
"So, what'd you do?" He asked while holding Ocho by the shoulder.
"What'd I do? Just my mission." Replied Ocho, "I gathered information."
"Yeah, but what exactly did that entail?" Elaborated Kirio, "Don't interfere just out of curiosity."
Suddenly, before stating what kind of foes Iruma and Isabelle were to him, Baal played the recordings which revealed to all present in the room a shocking discovery for demonkind - the recordings picked up the phrases "I'm a human being..." and "My cambion heritage..."
"Just as I suspected." Declared Baal, right onto his predictions, "There was always something off about those twin children that suddenly appeared after Sullivan illegally entered the human world. And I would say the same thing too for their housemate and her family... I had a feeling, but this is definitely gonna be interesting."
Hearing this, Ocho remained on the floor and Kiriwo stood up to pay attention to everything Baal said.
"Human.. Iruma is.. human? What is this weird separation between them?" Asked Kirio to himself, "They're blood-siblings, yet one has demon blood with the other left pure as human. And Isa, hearing her say she's a cambion...makes me wonder if either of her parents is human... Now, I guess that makes me a little eager to do things with two of them. Either way, that's not what I should be thinkin' about. I should help the other sibling in their plan under this."
The whole time, he jaw dropped a little with either the idea of eating an actual human or some other thing that may sound a little inappropriate. No matter which way his head was spinning, it didn't change the fact that he had been salivating over those thoughts. That of which Baal had to point out because he hated seeing filth on his floors.
Upon noticing this, Kirio gasped as he went on the floor, distracted by his purely demonic nature as he ever-so desired to see if Iruma and Isabelle would be able to hold back their despair if Kirio decided to eat Iruma and have Isabelle join their cause. This newfound delight of his was going to be the game-changer of everything he knows. His raven-black wings pierced through his black garment and usual white cape as he could barely hold his excitement over something he craves in more ways than one.
All of this occurred while Baal declared this: "Things are about to get a bit ruckus in the Netherworld. And it won't be a child's play like the Harvest Festival. What we're about to instigate now is next level, I assure you. It'll make you buzz with excitement. A hunt."
This certainly had his subordinates eager for what's soon to come. However, the turquoise-haired demon slowly retracted his control over desires as he remembers an important thought of his.
"You sure getting Iruma and Isabelle is a good idea?" Asked Kirio, suddenly looking at Baal with a stare of question.
"Hm? That's funny coming from you, Kirio." Chuckled Baal, "I've never seen that kind of restraint, yet you're still drooling."
"I know that." Replied Kirio, elegantly dabbing his lips with a handkerchief from his pocket, "But this... it's important for you to know. The risk of losin' ourselves a recent and vital ally. You also wanna know if Ocho got anythin' from Iruma's sister. He didn't, right?"
"I couldn't see her at all back at the starting line, Kirio." Said Ocho.
"Just what I thought. That gal's such an enigma that you can't find her real deals at times." Nodded Kirio, "Tell ya what, Big Bro. You'll find out about this ally tomorrow. Kaminari's openin' the gates to them but reconsider that hunt because of that same person. If we get Iruma and/or Isabelle, we'd lose them."
Baal carefully listened to Kirio's warning, having the idea that he needed to be extra cautious when handling another demon who would willingly join his side. He nodded in agreement before dismissing him and Ocho. Once he was alone, he looked down on the recording device, then up his window. Asking himself, could this person of importance to Iruma and Isabelle would be the core of their motives to be his ally? All of that would be discovered the next day.
•°•°•○•°•°•
Back in Sullivan's mansion, Opera was tucking Iruma into bed after a long congratulatory party. In the Abaddon homestead, Isabelle is currently in her original bedroom 👇, reading a book before deciding to go to bed.
And what happened next with the instructors? Well, a majority of them got drunk, leaving Kalego, Shichiro, Momonoki and Robin still sober. Since Robin was the host, he was entrusted to make sure his colleagues get home safely. Oh well, their banquet still ended without an issue and Robin was ready to be welcomed as a big part of their figurative family.
•°•°•○•°•°•
~Interval~
Since Kalego had to bring home the gold statue of mini Sullivan back home, he parodied the historical motto of Babyls as he pledged to protect his room. If that meant to summon Cerberobuth to destroy that statue, there was unfortunately no avail to it as it stood up brightly without any dents or scratches.