The Mandate of Khaos: Probabilities (ch. 9)

Can’t we jump into more important stuff? Sakura grumbled mentally, flipping an egg with more force than necessary. The sizzle seemed to echo her impatience.

{This is important,} Amethyst retorted, her voice dry as dust within Sakura's mind. {You asked about the significance of Rias Gremory's arranged marriage to Riser Phenex. Political maneuvering is the important stuff for Devils.}

Sakura felt the beginnings of a migraine pulse behind her temples. This felt needlessly convoluted. She’d assumed the whole affair was… simple. Transactional. Bloodline preservation stuff. Typical nobility crap.

{You thought the marriage of two scions from Pillar Houses boiled down to just wanting pure-blooded whelps?} Amethyst’s mental voice dripped with disbelief. {You should thank old Yahweh your brother doesn't love you for your smarts.} Sakura didn’t dignify the rod’s jab with even a mental huff.

She could practically hear Amethyst sighing in her head before returning to her explanation. {The House of Phenex has historically maintained neutrality between the Underworld's political factions. To now have one of their sons join in matrimony with the heiress of House Gremory, a firmly Progressive House, whose previous heir went on to become one of the New Satans…}

Even Sakura could grasp the implications. House Phenex was aligning itself firmly with the Progressive Faction, and the marriage of Riser Phenex with Rias Gremory served as the formal announcement. However—

So what?

{Huh?}

So what? Sakura repeated, sharper this time. With a precise flick of her wrist, she flipped the sunny-side egg perfectly, just how her brother liked it. Surely you’re not going to tell me that Rias, a Devil, should care about something as tacky as the Greater Good?

The Rod became uncharacteristically silent.

Amethyst had been with her for a month, but Sakura was no closer to figuring the odd construct out. It didn’t bother hiding its origins, past, creation, or anything else, yet it still felt undeniably mysterious.

{Long ago,} Amethyst had said, {Maou Ajuka found a way to travel to other dimensions. There, he met Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg. I'm not sure what happened after, but the end result was that Maou Ajuka agreed to cease his forays into other universes, and in return, Lord Schweinorg would help him completely isolate this one.}

Sakura had frowned then. That sounded like a terrible deal, even to her, so what had the supposedly genius Maou gained from it?

{Me,} had been the answer.

From there, her answers became more a matter of theory than fact. Amethyst theorized that the reason Zelretch had left Ajuka an object that could, inherently, connect itself to alternate realities had been so that if the Devil urgently needed to jump dimensions and go against their agreement, he would be forced to use a method Zelretch would be expecting.

Amethyst harbored another theory, though – one Sakura found herself agreeing with more.

"Yaaaawwwnn~. Morning, Sakura." The sleepy voice of her brother greeted her as he shuffled toward their shared bathroom.

Memories of the previous night flooded back, and she felt herself blushing once again.

Really, nii-san, that was so unfair. To use his power to have her act on and reveal her true feelings… how much more underhanded could he get? Also, he had to be mindful of the danger! What if the suggestion had been just a tad stronger?

She’d have ripped his clothes off and had her way with him right there on the floor!

That was unacceptable! What about their date, then?!

{It's impressive how quickly you switch gears, Sakura-chan…} Amethyst mused, a hint of amusement returning.

Don't think I've forgotten you dodging my question, though. Sakura frowned. Do you truly have no way for me to increase my power quickly?

She could feel Amethyst's frustrations. {Look, my abilities are simple, Sakura. Acting as a replacement for your lost Magical Circuits, I provide you with Magical Energy that you can use to fuel your Trifecta Imaginary Numbers bullshit. I can also, by borrowing on the knowledge of alternate versions of yourself, increase your skills and capabilities in certain areas. If you want to be more powerful, your only choice is to train.}

Sakura braced for the familiar argument.

{Something infinitely easier if you stopped playing the damsel and just told him!} Amethyst cut off her forming protest. {I understand the appeal of the 'weak little imouto' act. It’s sweet, watching him puff up to protect you. But this charade? It’s unsustainable. You’re hobbling yourself.}

She knew that, of course. Sakura wasn’t stupid. She knew she couldn’t keep Amethyst under wraps forever. Still… just a bit longer… allow me to enjoy these carefree days just a bit more…

{You need to recontextualize.} …That was new. {Sure, you won’t be his weak little sister anymore, but that doesn’t mean your positions will suddenly be reversed.}

Power—

{Matters,} Amethyst interrupted. {Power matters. Of course. But that's not all. Humans don’t submit to their guard dogs simply because the dog is stronger, do they? No matter if it’s a pitbull, a rottweiler, or a godsdamned Dogo Argentino. No matter that they could, in more than ninety percent of the cases, maul the throat of their owners out before they even had a chance to defend themselves.}

Sakura found herself listening. More rapturously than she ever had before.

{Recontextualize, Sakura. That's all you have to do.}

She pursed her lips, but nodded slowly. Becoming nii-san's loyal guard dog… heh. Heheh.

Still, she’d hold back on telling him for just a bit longer. Amethyst’s third and final main ability, from what the Magical Girl Rod told her, had been inspired by something her predecessors could do – something about installing Class Cards, which would give the user the power of the Spirits held within said Cards. Of course, there was no such thing in this universe.

There was, however, a little something called Sacred Gears.

Still, she’d held back on attempting to acquire one until now. Both because, while Amethyst could diminish the aftereffects implanting a non-native Sacred Gear had on the body, that was all she could do – diminish, and because even if Sakura did not care for that, Amethyst was limited to one Sacred Gear only either way.

The matter of control was also a problem, of course.

That was why she’d held back until now, trying to find something that fit her perfectly, or was strong enough that once she revealed her powers to Shinji-nii-san, he would feel relieved at having her beside him rather than worried for her safety.

She could hear it in her mind, his hollow laughter that day – the day she had later learned he had failed to acquire any worthwhile ability to fight back against this world. He hadn’t stopped, of course. He likely never would, not truly, not until he stood at the true peak of the world, with nothing capable of endangering him. But he had lost something that day - a spark of hope.

Sakura wanted to give him back that hope. To show him that even in this world, this world where they were outclassed, outlived, outwitted, and completely out of their depth, it was still fine to have hope.

Still, as a human, even with Amethyst's help, her ceiling felt painfully low.

There were tales of humans surpassing the supernatural, but what no one seemed to realize – or rather, no one seemed to want to realize – was that in almost all those tales, the human won despite being human, not because being human held any inherent advantage. They had simply managed to transcend the inherent weakness of their existence through training, wits, or sheer, stubborn perseverance.

If Sakura intended to steal a Sacred Gear worth something, it was unlikely that she would be able to do so as she was right now.

Perhaps… I should just bite the bullet.

There were certain disadvantages to becoming a Devil, yet none of them outweighed the sheer quantity of benefits that came with it.

Even the worst part – being technically bound to whoever their King was along with the possibility of being branded a Stray Devil by them and hunted down – was completely negligible, on account of Ajuka (the architecht of the whole damn system) being heavily invested in Shinji's, and by extension Sakura's, well-being.

Yes, if she wanted to steal a worthy Sacred Gear, Sakura Asutaroto would have to become a Devil.

After all, what were the chances someone possessing an unawakened Sacred Gear worthy of theft just happened to live in Kuoh – the very city where the sisters of two Maous had chosen to attend school?