On the following morning, after leaving the girls unconscious in the bedroom due to the intense night they had shared, Alear was seated behind the desk in the main office of the Häagenti mansion. The gentle sunlight streamed through the tall windows, illuminating the neatly organized piles of documents, territorial reports, and political proposals accumulated across the desk.
He was wearing a white dress shirt with the sleeves slightly rolled up, paired with elegant black trousers. His magenta-pink hair was carefully combed, and his eyes of the same color attentively scanned the document in his hands.
The atmosphere in the office was peaceful, interrupted only by the soft sound of pages being turned.
At that moment, Lotte quietly entered the room carrying a silver tray. With elegant and discreet movements, she placed a cup of fresh, aromatic coffee beside him, accompanied by several freshly baked chocolate cookies.
"Here you are, Alear-sama. Strong coffee, just the way you like it, and chocolate cookies..."
Alear lifted his gaze from the documents and offered her a faint smile.
"Thank you, Lotte..."
The maid gave a respectful bow, maintaining her calm and professional expression.
"It is my pleasure to serve you. If you need anything else, please do not hesitate to call for me. With your permission, I shall take my leave..."
Seeing him nod, she quietly left the office, closing the door behind her with the same care with which she had entered.
Alear picked up the cup, took a slow sip of the hot coffee, and bit into one of the crunchy cookies. He then returned his attention to the document before him.
It was a formal letter from the Astaroth Family.
Lord Astaroth had contacted him to request a private meeting. Naturally, he was not the only one. Since his awakening, Alear had ignored numerous similar requests from various noble families, some of them conveyed through Serafall or Venelana...
However, the situation was now different. He could no longer continue relying on Serafall, who was constantly occupied with her responsibilities as a Satan, nor on Venelana, since he had relieved her of her duties. As a result, he needed to handle these matters personally.
Furthermore, with the important political meeting approaching, it was an opportune moment to review the proposals he had received and identify potential allies.
At present, he had Serafall, Seekvaira, and Ravel as future wives. While he was not opposed to the idea of political marriages, he preferred to avoid that path for the time being. For that reason, all proposals involving marital arrangements were ignored once again.
His focus was directed toward economic interests, information exchange, military cooperation, and the cultivation of strategic influence. In practice, financial matters were the least concerning among them. Thanks to his [Golden Rule], which guaranteed him a virtually inexhaustible source of wealth and prevented him from ever falling into poverty, he was, in all likelihood, already the richest devil in the entire Underworld.
Even so, wealth alone was not enough to consolidate power. Information, military alliances, and political influence remained indispensable resources for any leader who wished to strengthen their position within the complex political landscape of the Underworld.
The Astaroth Family was the house that had produced the current Satan Beelzebub. Up until that point, he had completely ignored their attempts to contact him, something that could be interpreted as a direct slight against Ajuka. However, knowing the scientist's personality, he doubted the devil would care about something so trivial...
In the original story of High School DxD, that was also the family of which Diadora Astaroth was the heir. However, apparently, things had taken a different turn in this world. Following a scandal involving Diadora, he had been stripped of his position, and Latia Astaroth ultimately assumed the role of the family's heir...
What had the incident been?
As someone who had begun constantly seeking information about that world after realizing how little he truly knew about it, he obviously remembered reading about the case once on Devilnet.
Apparently, everything revolved around the fact that Diadora's infamous nun fetish had been exposed much earlier than it had been in the original story. However, it was not merely a peculiar taste or a relatively harmless eccentricity, something many devils possessed to one degree or another...
The problem was that, once information began surfacing, it became evident that Diadora's obsession had long since crossed the boundaries of what could be considered a personal preference. The more details emerged, the clearer it became that his behavior was excessive even by the permissive standards of the Underworld...
That was precisely what transformed the matter into a scandal of enormous proportions.
Naturally, this only happened because someone from a secondary branch of the Astaroth Family apparently harbored a deep grudge against Diadora. For a long time, this individual gathered compromising evidence, discreetly investigating his activities and accumulating an absurd amount of incriminating material. When they finally judged that they possessed sufficient proof, they released everything on Devilnet...
The result was devastating.
Honestly, even someone like Alear, who had already witnessed every kind of absurdity across two lifetimes, felt his stomach churn after reading some of the leaked material.
And if he, with all his experience and tolerance, had reacted that way, it was easy to imagine the impact it had on many devils concerned about their reputations or simply incapable of dealing with the contents of the revelations.
The repercussions were immediate.
Within a matter of days, the scandal spread throughout the entire Underworld. The name of the Astaroth Family became constantly associated with the revelations, while public pressure increased with every new comment, discussion, or leak derived from the case.
To prevent the entire house from being dragged into the mud alongside him, the family leaders made a drastic decision: Diadora was removed from the line of succession.
That was how Latia Astaroth officially became the heir.
As for Diadora, his reputation never recovered. At present, he was treated as a true pariah among his peers. While no one could deny his lineage, talent, or potential, few nobles wished to be seen in his company, and even fewer were willing to associate their family names with his.
In a sense, his social standing had been destroyed overnight. Even those who had previously pretended to tolerate him began keeping their distance, fearing that any association with him would tarnish their own reputations.
Honestly, Alear believed there was something more behind the entire affair. To him, it was difficult to believe that everything had happened solely because of personal revenge or moral outrage.
In his view, it was far more likely that someone had used the scandal as an opportunity to pave the way for Latia Astaroth's rise as the family's heir.
After all, this was the Underworld.
A place where political intrigue, succession disputes, and power struggles were as common as breathing. Noble families constantly conspired against one another, and even internal conflicts between different branches of the same house were hardly uncommon.
Given that reality, concluding that someone had carefully orchestrated Diadora's downfall to benefit another successor candidate seemed almost like the most obvious explanation.
Of course, he possessed no concrete evidence to support that theory. However, considering the timing of the revelations, the manner in which they were released, and who benefited most from the consequences, it was difficult not to harbor a few suspicions.
In any case, he decided to accept the invitation and meet Lord Astaroth in person. Besides being a valuable opportunity to establish diplomatic relations with one of the most influential houses in the Underworld, the meeting could also serve to revitalize a field that the Häagenti Family had abandoned long ago: alchemy.
He had looked through the family library and found himself somewhat disappointed by their limited knowledge of alchemy, though it was better than nothing. Fortunately, he had received training at Atlas Academy and later refined his abilities under the guidance of Paracelsus von Hohenheim during his time in Chaldea in his previous life. Very few alchemists could even dream of receiving such an exceptional education. Thanks to that experience, his understanding of alchemy had reached an absurdly high level. In theory, if he possessed the necessary resources, he would even be capable of creating a Philosopher's Stone.
And that was not his only specialty.
Over the years, he had also developed his own branch of alchemy, focused primarily on the creation of potions, elixirs, magical stimulants, medicines, and various compounds capable of producing a wide variety of effects. In many respects, he considered himself more of a specialist in "pharmaceutical alchemy" than a traditional alchemist.
The real problem was much simpler: raw materials. He possessed knowledge in abundance. Technique as well. Experience was beyond question.
What he lacked was a stable source of magical ingredients and rare materials in sufficient quantities to begin large-scale production...
In theory, he could simply use his [Creation] ability within the [World Where I Can Personify God] to solve that problem. After all, within that space, he possessed a level of control over reality that approached "omnipotence."
And, in fact, he had already tried.
Using his authority within that world, he had successfully created various magical materials, alchemical ingredients, and even finished products such as potions and elixirs. The process itself worked perfectly.
The problem arose whenever he attempted to bring any of those creations into the real world.
For some reason, objects produced through [Creation] remained confined to his personal world. No matter how many attempts he made or how many different methods he experimented with, nothing could cross the barrier between the two realities.
This limitation turned his domain into an excellent tool for research, development, and testing, but not into a practical source of resources for external use.
And that was precisely why the Astaroth Family interested him so much.
His plan was simple.
The Astaroth Family was widely known for possessing access to an enormous variety of rare magical materials, alchemical ingredients, and resources used in all manner of arcane research. Few noble houses possessed an acquisition and storage network as extensive as theirs.
Much of that was due to Ajuka Beelzebub.
As a researcher obsessed with magic, technology, and the development of new theories, the current Satan spent much of his time locked away in his laboratories conducting experiments. Naturally, research of that magnitude required an absurd quantity of resources, something the Astaroth Family provided without hesitation.
In return, even without participating directly in family administration, Ajuka benefited his house in countless ways. His inventions, discoveries, and prestige continuously strengthened the Astaroths' influence throughout the Underworld.
Therefore, if Alear wished to establish a reliable supply chain for future alchemical projects, he would be hard-pressed to find a better partner.
Perhaps he could also include the Vassago Family in this project.
Furthermore, the Phenex Family also seemed like an interesting partner. In addition, they were already his allies due to his future marriage with Ravel. Perhaps it would be worthwhile to speak with Lord Phenex at some point in the future and hear his thoughts on the matter...
As he considered the possibilities, another problem came to mind.
Even if he succeeded in securing access to raw materials, establishing commercial agreements, and organizing product distribution, there still remained one fundamental limitation: production.
In other words, at that moment, he was the only person capable of producing certain potions.
That meant the entire operation would end up depending exclusively on him.
A company incapable of functioning without its founder was a company destined to encounter problems sooner or later.
That was when a solution occurred to him.
Could he create Homunculi?!
That was a good idea. They could act as research assistants, laboratory operators, and even production supervisors. Naturally, they would not be capable of replicating all of his genius, but they could perform repetitive processes and follow pre-established procedures with far greater precision than ordinary workers. More importantly, they would be loyal to him as their creator...
The more he thought about it, the more viable the idea seemed.
However, a project of that magnitude required appropriate facilities.
Laboratories, incubation chambers, ingredient storage systems, testing areas, and numerous safety measures.
Perhaps it would be a good idea to construct an underground workshop dedicated exclusively to that project...
Alear leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers against the desk as he carefully analyzed the possibilities.
After mentally organizing his long-term plans, he picked up a quill and began drafting formal responses. One by one, he sent confirmations for future meetings with various noble families, establishing the first steps toward creating his alchemy-focused commercial network. At the same time, he also began outlining projects related to the trade of [Mystic Codes] and other products that could become extremely valuable in the future.
Little by little, his plans for the Underworld were beginning to take shape.
After the events of the previous day, Alear also felt far more confident in dealing with most problems that might arise using only his own strength.
The Master and Servant Contract ritual had brought about far greater changes than he had initially expected. His [Demonic Power] had increased drastically, reaching the peak of High-Class in terms of quantity. In addition, his physique had also been strengthened thanks to the [Binding Vow] he had made earlier, further amplifying the capabilities he already possessed. Although he was still far from reaching his true peak, the difference compared to a few days ago was undeniable—he had effectively saved himself at least six months of physical training...
The girls had also received considerable benefits through the bond established between them. It was the sort of growth that would make countless Underworld nobles lose sleep if they discovered the details.
His thoughts briefly returned to the collars of servitude they wore. The color changes he had observed were a clear indication of their emotional state and loyalty. Apparently, without even realizing exactly when it had happened, he had completely earned the trust and devotion of each of them...
It was a somewhat unexpected conclusion.
Not that he was complaining.
Considering everything they had gone through together up to that point, perhaps that outcome was more natural than it initially seemed.
With that thought in mind, he returned his attention to the documents scattered across the desk and continued writing. There was much work to be done, and the future would not build itself.
Later, he would have to take the girls to train once again for two weeks inside his Longinus...
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