High School DxD: The Lucifer's Devil Trigger — Chapter 55

Chapter 55: The Broken Fox and the Spider’s Web

He watched Yakumo Yukari—a being vastly older and stronger than himself—standing obediently among Levi’s retinue. The usually enigmatic Youkai Sage didn’t dare to breathe too loudly, let alone meet the young devil’s gaze. In that single, quiet observation, Nurarihyon understood everything.

He finally understood why Levi Lucifer dared to walk into their stronghold with such absolute, unapologetic arrogance.

The atmosphere inside the Nura Clan’s reception hall was suffocating. Youkai were inherently more stubborn than humans; in their eyes, the law of the jungle wasn’t just a concept, it was the very foundation of the world. Nurarihyon saw the reality of the food chain laid bare before him, but a lifetime of pride meant he still didn’t want to bow his head so easily.

“Are you Levi Lucifer?” the old Supreme Commander finally asked, his voice rough.

“Yes. Just Levi is fine.”

“Fine, Levi. I’ll be blunt.” Nurarihyon narrowed his single visible eye. “I’m sure you have zero interest in hearing about the blood feud between the Nura Clan and Hagoromo Gitsune regarding this supposed ceasefire.”

Nurarihyon was a shrewd, calculating man. He had never intended to stop the war, having ignited it specifically to pave a bloody path of glory for his son and grandson. But the board had been flipped. So, he pivoted, preparing to shift the weight of the conflict.

“But hatred isn’t a one-sided coin,” the old youkai continued. “I want to mount Hagoromo Gitsune’s head on a pike for revenge, and she likely wants to skin me just as badly. I’ve ruined her grand design twice now. How could she not hold a grudge?”

Nurarihyon knew exactly how deep that grudge went. The last time he had exploited Yakumo Yukari’s assistance to plunge a blade into Hagoromo Gitsune, he had coated the steel with a special concoction provided by the Sage. It was supposedly a poison brewed by the Sage of the Moon herself.

This time was entirely different from their past skirmishes. Back then, he had merely delayed the fox’s ambitions. This time, the lunar poison had completely shattered her hopes of giving birth. Even though the mere thought of the fox made Nurarihyon’s blood boil, he had to admit—she was undoubtedly drowning in a rage far deeper than his own.

Therefore…

“The Nura Clan can agree to lay down our blades,” Nurarihyon offered, leaning forward slightly. “However, Levi, you are the one stepping in to mediate. If Hagoromo Gitsune refuses to stop, we cannot unilaterally cease fire and bare our necks to her.”

He let out a dry, humorless chuckle. “After all, if we fight you, we die. If we don’t fight back against her, we die just the same. We can only guarantee that we will listen to your command—that is the extent of our promise.”

Levi listened to the old youkai’s terms, his expression entirely unreadable. He gave a brief, dismissive nod.

Whether Nurarihyon was hiding ulterior motives or plotting a counter-scheme in the shadows, Levi couldn’t be bothered to care. His objective in stepping into this mansion was singular: force the Nura Clan to halt their march. They had agreed. That was enough.

“You don’t need to worry about the rest,” Levi said, his tone casual, as if discussing the weather rather than a supernatural war. “Just pull your forces back. I’ll deal with the remaining factions one by one. Whether it’s Hagoromo Gitsune or Yasaka, I will make them quiet down.”

Nurarihyon raised a skeptical eyebrow. “And what if Hagoromo Gitsune simply refuses to stop?”

“Refuses?” Levi let out a low, dry laugh. “Doesn’t she want to see Abe no Seimei? Since she’s so desperate for a family reunion, I’ll just let her see him. She’ll naturally calm down after that.”

“But wasn’t Abe no Seimei dead long ago?”

The spectral form of Keikain Hidemoto, who had been hiding quietly in the corner of the room, finally broke his silence, unable to suppress his curiosity.

Hearing the onmyouji’s spirit, Levi’s smile brightened into something sharp and dangerous. “Exactly. So as long as I send Hagoromo Gitsune straight to hell, won’t she be able to see her precious son?”

Leaving those words hanging in the heavy air, Levi turned and walked out of the hall, his peerage trailing silently behind him.

The moment the doors slid shut, the youkai commanders who had been biting their tongues finally swarmed around Nurarihyon. The tension in the room was so thick it felt like wading through deep water.

A hulking youkai commander, his face flushed with suppressed fury, slammed his fist into the tatami mats. “Commander! Are we really just going to let the matter of the Second Heir and the Young Master go like this? We’re bowing to devils!”

Nurarihyon let out a long, ragged sigh, his posture slumping as the adrenaline faded. “Let it go? You think I don’t want to chop those bastards into pieces with my own hands?”

He looked up, his single eye clouded with a deep, unspeakable bitterness. “But look at reality. Even Yakumo Yukari has been leashed by those devils. Without her… you all knew from the start that we couldn’t even scratch them with our current forces. Since that’s the absolute truth, whoever is willing to step in and handle the fox is a benefactor to the Nura Clan.”

He picked up his pipe, though his hands trembled slightly. “Whether it’s Yakumo Yukari or those devils, and no matter what dark schemes they’re brewing in the background… we never had another path to take. Not from the very beginning.”

He struck a match, the small flame illuminating his tired face. “Don’t you agree?”

Walking out through the grand gates of the Nura Clan’s estate, Yakumo Yukari tilted her head, blinking her violet eyes at Levi. “Lord Levi… the Nura Clan is settled for now. But Hagoromo Gitsune’s forces and Yasaka’s faction likely won’t be so agreeable.”

She knew her current position perfectly well. She was a prisoner, her reality-warping boundaries completely sealed away. But her mind was still sharp, and she needed to prove she wasn’t just dead weight. At the very least, she had to probe Levi’s true intentions regarding Gensokyo.

“The business with Hagoromo Gitsune is almost certainly non-negotiable,” Yukari analyzed, tapping her chin. “And Tsuchigumo is a brute who isn’t happy unless his fists are covered in blood, so that will require a physical subjugation. But on Yasaka’s side, we might actually be able to persuade her!”

Previously, Yukari had slipped through a gap in the Kyoto barrier to steal Yasaka’s daughter, Kunou, intending to use the child as a pawn. She had arranged for rogue youkai to guard the girl. But her network had gone dark, the youkai were slaughtered, and Kunou had vanished. After sneaking back to investigate, Yukari discovered that Yasaka hadn’t retrieved the girl—someone else had intervened.

She was just about to offer this piece of intelligence as use, a bargaining chip to earn some goodwill.

Before the words could leave her lips, Levi cast a sideways glance at her. “I’ve already had my people return Kunou to Yasaka.”

Yukari froze, her mouth slightly open. A rare flush of genuine embarrassment crept up her neck.

Levi sighed, the sound carrying a heavy weight of annoyance. “This is the second time you’ve tried to play games, Yukari. I don’t want there to be a third. I despise convoluted plotting when a straight line works better. I captured you because you were in the way, but do not mistake your presence as a necessity. I could have breached Gensokyo without you.”

He stopped walking and looked her dead in the eye. “You don’t need to worry about what I might do to Gensokyo—”

A flicker of hope sparked in Yukari’s chest. Was he actually offering comfort?

“—Because no matter what I decide to do to it, you lack the power to stop me,” Levi finished, his voice entirely devoid of emotion.

As the brutal reality of his words settled over them, Kuroka and Ingvild exchanged knowing glances, their lips curving into amused smiles as they watched the legendary Youkai Sage get verbally dismantled. Artoria simply stood by Levi’s side, her emerald eyes calm, letting out a soft, almost imperceptible sigh.

Far away, in the heart of the Kyoto underworld.

Her black hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall of ink, her pupils dark and hollow. Wrapped in a pristine black sailor uniform, she looked like a creature born from the abyss itself—save for her face, which was so pale it looked drained of all blood.

She sat slumped on her high throne, one hand clutching her abdomen. Her expression was a mask of pure, unadulterated malice.

Nine massive tails erupted from her back, surrounding her like the petals of a monstrous, undulating flower. They thrashed and writhed in a chaotic rhythm, broadcasting the violent irritability tearing through her mind.

She was Hagoromo Gitsune.

“The wound on my stomach has healed,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “Not even a scar remains. But my child…”

She gripped the stone armrests of her throne. Her white knuckles strained against the skin, the stone cracking under her sheer physical grip. “Gone. I can’t feel his presence at all. That damned Nurarihyon!”

The oppressive aura of a pinnacle youkai exploded from her body, a shockwave of dark energy that swept wildly through the cavernous hall. The very air twisted and groaned under the pressure.

Her millennium-long plan to give birth to the Lord of魑魅魍魉, Abe no Seimei, was completely ruined.

To ensure this absolute failure, Yakumo Yukari had personally visited Eirin Yagokoro to procure the abortifacient poison. A concoction brewed by the Sage of the Moon was not something the earthly realm could easily counter.

But Hagoromo Gitsune knew none of this. She knew nothing of lunar sages or divine poisons. She only knew that Nurarihyon’s blade had pierced her flesh, and in the aftermath, the sacred connection to her unborn son had been violently severed.

“Damn him!”

Even though days had passed, the memory of the blade sinking into her stomach made her grind her teeth until her gums bled. Hatred, self-reproach, and blinding anger churned in her chest like a tempest.

She had to kill Nurarihyon. She would tear his clan apart piece by piece.

“Big Sister…”

A small, timid voice broke through the suffocating killing intent. A little girl with black hair, wearing a pink and white kimono and clutching a polished skull, walked silently into the grand hall.

Seeing the child, Hagoromo Gitsune forced her chaotic aura to recede, swallowing the bile in her throat. “Kyokotsu. What happened?”

Hearing her leader respond so gently, a faint blush appeared on Kyokotsu’s pale cheeks. “Big Sister… a group of devils has arrived at the eastern edge of our territory.”

“Devils?”

Hagoromo Gitsune’s brow furrowed sharply. Devils were not creatures to be trifled with lightly. She knew the hierarchy of the supernatural world perfectly well. Among the Underworld’s denizens, there were plenty of beings who matched her own terrifying strength, and at least two who eclipsed her entirely.

And that was without factoring in the three anomalies known as Transcendents—monsters who walked a path entirely separate from the Satan-class, possessing power that could casually crush the highest-ranking youkai into dust.

Normally, she couldn’t afford to provoke them. If her womb still held Abe no Seimei, she would have immediately bowed her head, conceded the territory, and focused entirely on the birth.

But now? The board was empty.

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” she muttered, her eyes deadening.

Since she couldn’t bring her son into the world, she only had one anchor left keeping her tethered to sanity: the total annihilation of Nurarihyon. If that bastard wouldn’t let her have peace, she would drag his entire bloodline into the abyss with her.

As for the devils? Let them burn the city down for all she cared.

“The east side is Tsuchigumo’s territory, isn’t it?” Gitsune asked, her voice flat. “That brute is becoming increasingly difficult to keep on a leash anyway. Let them make a scene. Tell our forces not to meddle in their clash.”

“Understood, Big Sister.”

“Lord Levi, if I’m reading the leylines correctly, we’re heading straight towards Tsuchigumo’s domain, right?”

Yakumo Yukari glanced at Levi as he abruptly changed their trajectory down the mountain path.

“That’s right. We’re going to find the spider,” Levi replied without looking back.

Kuroka tilted her head, her twin nekomata tails swishing thoughtfully behind her. “Hmm… Lord Levi, if our goal is to persuade Hagoromo Gitsune to stop her rampage, shouldn’t we just march to her throne room and talk to her directly?”

Levi shook his head. “First, if Hagoromo Gitsune truly lost the ability to give birth to Abe no Seimei, then mere words or threats won’t reach her. A cornered, grieving beast doesn’t negotiate. It’s better to dismantle her forces directly.”

He stepped over a fallen torii gate. “Second, even if Hagoromo Gitsune miraculously agreed to a ceasefire, Tsuchigumo wouldn’t honor it.”

Levi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “That guy is a lunatic. His brain is entirely wired for combat.”

“I see.”

Tiamat, who had been walking in silent boredom, suddenly curled her lips into a predatory smirk. “Then who gets to crush him this time?”

She had heard quite a bit of intelligence regarding Tsuchigumo from Grayfia and Artoria during their briefings. Grayfia had mentioned that the giant spider was a top-tier youkai, possessing enough raw physical strength to wrestle with Dragon Kings, and even harbored a natural, innate advantage against dragon-kind.

That specific claim had thoroughly piqued the Chaos Karma Dragon’s interest.

Levi glanced at her eager expression. He knew perfectly well that the “dragons” Grayfia had used as a benchmark were average at best. They certainly didn’t include an ancient calamity like Tiamat, who stood firmly on the threshold of the Heavenly Dragons.

Still, since she was practically vibrating with the desire to stretch her wings, Levi was more than happy to delegate the labor.

“Tsuchigumo is yours,” Levi decided. “Hmm… Kuroka, you go with her.”

Tiamat blinked, her smirk faltering. She hadn’t expected Levi to assign her a babysitter.

“Don’t overthink it,” Levi said, catching her look. “Kuroka is just a hair’s breadth away from reaching the Satan-class. Her total magic reserves and mastery over Senjutsu are already at the threshold; she could break through just by grinding away the years. But she is a youkai at her core—the strongest Nekomata alive.”

He looked back at the black cat. “Fighting a pinnacle youkai like Tsuchigumo is the perfect catalyst for her.”

Tiamat’s draconic pride settled, and she nodded in understanding. “Fine. I’ll set the stage for her.”

Kuroka’s golden eyes practically glowed in the dim forest light. She stared straight at Levi, her posture straightening with absolute devotion. “Rest assured, Lord Levi! Once I comprehend the essence of ‘Fear’ and break through, I will be able to serve you even better.”

Levi didn’t offer empty praises, merely giving her a slight nod of approval.

He didn’t need to say much. He knew the absolute monsters he had gathered under his banner. If he picked any single member of his current team, they would instantly qualify to serve as the Queen piece for the highest-ranking devil factions in the Underworld.

Artoria, Ingvild, Kuroka, Grayfia, Tiamat.

Every single one of them was a walking calamity. And they all belonged to him.