Chapter 40: Grayfia's Unusual Behavior, Application of Dimensional Abilities

As Grayfia watched Lucien and Seekvaira entangled in front of her, a flicker of surprise passed through her calm silver-gray eyes.

She remembered that Lucien and Seekvaira had only just met recently, right? How had they progressed so quickly?

Glancing at Katerea lying on the ground, Grayfia gradually understood.

So that was it.

Lucien and Seekvaira must have defeated a powerful opponent together, and during that time, their feelings had rapidly deepened, leading to their current state.

Lucien noticed Grayfia's arrival, but he didn't push Seekvaira away. Instead, he continued to be intimate with her right in front of Grayfia.

As for Seekvaira...

She had never been able to exit her bewitched state on her own; it was always Lucien who ended it.

And so, Lucien and Seekvaira remained entangled in front of Grayfia for over ten minutes.

It wasn't until Lucien confirmed the information he wanted that he finally let go of Seekvaira.

The reason Lucien did this was to verify the information he had received from Hayasaka Nao.

Hayasaka Nao had told him that Grayfia had once wanted to adopt him, held a high level of goodwill toward him, and might even have maternal feelings for him.

But just now, Lucien had gotten the exact opposite result.

After seeing Lucien and Seekvaira being intimate, Grayfia's eyes had never shown any signs of "approval" or "happiness."

On the contrary, Lucien saw "relief," "helplessness," "anger," and even... "jealousy" in Grayfia's eyes.

For a moment, Lucien wondered if he had misread her.

Seeing that Lucien had finished, Grayfia finally spoke.

"Lord Lucien, Lady Seekvaira, good day."

"I heard from Lady Rias about the attack on your residence, Lord Lucien."

"After examining the traces of the spatial magic, I reverse-engineered the teleportation spell and arrived in this alternate dimension."

"However, it seems you had already dealt with the threat before I arrived."

"Impressive, truly impressive."

"To defeat a terrorist with Maou-level strength... It seems Lord Lucien indeed has the ability to help Lady Rias resolve her engagement."

Grayfia deliberately brought up "Lucien helping Rias resolve her engagement" in front of Seekvaira.

But Seekvaira showed no reaction to this.

"Thank you for your praise, the Silver-haired Queen of Annihilation. Seekvaira is deeply honored."

After saying this, Seekvaira nestled into Lucien's arms, her face once again radiating a blissful smile.

...

Grayfia stared at Seekvaira, her brow unconsciously furrowing.

She hated this feeling of having something that belonged to her taken away by someone else.

Lucien.

From the very beginning, he had been hers.

After Lucien absorbed Leviathan's blood and reincarnated as a devil, she had thought she had let go, treating Lucien as a person rather than an object.

But now, Grayfia realized she had been wrong—utterly wrong.

She had merely convinced herself that she had given Lucien freedom.

In reality, her emotions were far more complicated.

Toward Lucien...

She felt relief at having set him free.

Guilt over not being able to restore his talent.

And conflict over not wanting to disrupt her relationship with Sirzechs because of him.

These tangled emotions had led to the current situation where, despite wanting to adopt Lucien, she could only let him wander outside.

...

Lucien noticed the way Grayfia was staring at Seekvaira and felt increasingly uneasy.

What exactly was Grayfia's relationship with him?

A foster mother and son? Impossible.

Lovers? Even more impossible.

Then what was it?

...

As Lucien pondered this, Grayfia turned her attention to Katerea.

"Lord Lucien, may I ask you to hand over this terrorist leader from the Old Satan Faction to me?"

"You and Lady Seekvaira defeated this terrorist together. I will apply for the rewards you deserve."

"..."

"Alright, then I'll thank you in advance," Lucien replied calmly.

Of course, he had to say that. After all, Lucien didn't have the authority to deal with terrorists.

However... Lucien had no intention of sitting back and letting Katerea fall into Grayfia's hands.

...

Under Lucien's control, Katerea successfully woke up.

"Huh!?"

Katerea opened her eyes and, seeing Grayfia approaching her, nearly popped them out of her head.

The Silver-haired Queen of Annihilation!? When did she get here!?

She had to escape, and fast!

Thinking this, Katerea hurriedly stood up and began casting a spatial spell to flee.

"Do you really think... you can escape in front of me?"

Grayfia snapped her fingers, and in the next moment, the spatial spell at Katerea's feet instantly collapsed.

Watching the silver-haired maid approach, Katerea was truly panicked.

She absolutely did not want to fall into Grayfia's hands!

As if responding to Katerea's emotions, the Snake attached to her body erupted with immense energy!

"Rooooar!!~"

The Chaos Serpent roared.

Almost instantly, Katerea's power surged to Super Devil-level!

This boost far exceeded Katerea's limits!

Maintaining this state, even the slightest movement made her feel like her body was about to tear apart!

"Is it really worth going this far?"

Grayfia shook her head and continued walking toward Katerea.

No matter what spell Katerea tried to cast, Grayfia was confident she could disperse it before it took effect. This was the absolute confidence of a God-class expert!

However, things didn't go as she expected.

"Haaaaaa!!~"

[Serpent That Devours the World!]

Despite her body nearly tearing apart, Katerea launched an attack at Grayfia.

The largest-scale "Serpent That Devours the World" swept through the surroundings.

To protect Lucien and Seekvaira behind her, Grayfia cast a spell to block Katerea's attack.

And then.

Right in front of Grayfia, Katerea's figure began to fade.

Throughout this... Katerea hadn't used any spells!

"The ability to traverse space without using any spells!? How is that possible!?"

For the first time, Grayfia showed a hint of surprise.

Wasn't this ability unique to her!?

She had been with Lucien for over a century, and it was only through his influence that she had gained dimensional abilities. So why did Katerea have them too!?

Could it be because of Ophis?

Because Ophis was born in the dimensional rift, could she grant others the ability to move across dimensions?

If it wasn't because of Ophis...

Grayfia turned her head and gave Lucien a deep look.

If it wasn't because of Ophis, then it had to be because of Lucien.

Could it be... that the Old Leviathan Faction had stolen some ability from Lucien when they kidnapped him?

Grayfia immediately dismissed the possibility that Lucien had actively helped Katerea.

After all, there was no realistic basis for Lucien to assist the Old Satan Faction.

Katerea had likely come here to kill Lucien. Why would Lucien help his enemy escape?

...

Katerea successfully escaped, and Grayfia had no reason to stay any longer.

Soon, Grayfia sent Lucien and Seekvaira back to Lucien's home.

At Lucien's doorstep.

Grayfia's brow remained furrowed.

If the Old Leviathan Faction had truly awakened dimensional abilities, things had just become much more complicated.

"Lord Lucien, take this."

After a moment's thought, Grayfia took out a silver-gray jewel.

"What is this?" Lucien asked curiously.

"This is a jewel I created using my own abilities."

"If you encounter danger, you can use this jewel to call for me. It can bypass all spatial restrictions and deliver the message directly."

"Alright, I understand. Thank you."

Lucien pretended to accept it, but he had no intention of using it, let alone carrying it with him.

Who knew if Grayfia had embedded some kind of surveillance spell in it?

...

After a few more reminders, Grayfia left.

The moment Grayfia was gone, Seekvaira threw herself into Lucien's arms, pressing her lips to his.

She had been waiting for Grayfia to leave!

That woman was far too intrusive!

Why did she have to stick around and play the third wheel?

Once again feeling Lucien's presence up close, Seekvaira was intoxicated and fully immersed.

She didn't even notice when Lucien brought her back to the bedroom.

All she knew was that she didn't want to be apart from Lucien.

Taking off her glasses, Seekvaira saw the world in a completely different way. The rational, cold demon princess had transformed into an emotional, lovestruck girl.

A girl in love is blind, reckless, and uncontrollable.

Moreover, when she had kissed Lucien earlier, Seekvaira's body had already been infused with the power of a high-dimensional succubus.

In the bedroom, Lucien and the princess of the Agares family were tightly intertwined.

[Ding~]

[Detected fortune being seized. High-dimensional succubus bloodline activated.]

[Ding!~]

[Congratulations, host, for obtaining: Pure-blooded Agares Demon Bloodline.]

[Host's level has increased by 20 levels. Current level: 129 (Mid-tier High-class Devil).]

"Crack, crack, crack~~~"

A mix of soreness and numbness spread through Seekvaira's body, causing her to stretch and let out soft sounds of bones shifting.

The black stockings of the Underworld princess lay beside Lucien's hand, her toes inside the stockings alternately curling and relaxing.

Her toes clenched slightly as Seekvaira instinctively hugged the young man in front of her, her smile filled with joy and a hint of infatuation.

After what felt like an eternity.

Seekvaira's crimson eyes suddenly widened, her toes almost tearing through the stockings.

"Splash!!~"

At the same time, Seekvaira's demon wings instantly unfurled.

Under the moonlight, Seekvaira's demon wings were smooth and lustrous, like black jade.