DxD: The Devil

Banquet (2)

---

"Greetings, Lord Gremory, Lady Gremory."

I bowed to the Gremory head and his wife, Zeoticus Gremory and Venelana Gremory.

They had soft smiles on their faces.

"You have grown into a fine heir, Vael," Zeoticus said in a gentle tone.

"Indeed," Venelana added. "The Underworld eagerly watches to see the heights you will achieve."

A small but elegant box appeared in Zeoticus' hand, carved with gold and adorned with intricate ornaments. He extended it toward me, and I accepted it.

With a flick of my fingers, I placed the box away.

The Gremory walked downwards as I sat on a grand chair. Now, it was time to receive gifts.

So far, only the Agares and Gremory clans had come forward, but there were still many lefts.

'Of course, I would have to wait until I returned home to actually see what the gifts were. Everyone presented the same-sized box, with the real gift sealed inside. And if the gift was large, well… magic handled that.'

'Still, the design and materials of the boxes differed—some were decorated with rare metals, others embedded with gems—but all of them were certainly expensive.'

Another noble family approached—the Sitri Clan, the third of many still to come.

"Greetings, Lord Sitri. Lady Sitri," I said, bowing.

They soon presented their gift.

"I heard you are quite proficient in chess," Lady Sitri said. "My youngest would like a match with you."

I nodded. "It would be my pleasure, Lady Sitri."

They left. I would speak with them again once the formalities of gift-giving were over.

According to my mother, the banquet was divided into three parts.

The first was my introduction. The second, receiving gifts. And the third, the celebration itself.

Which meant I wouldn't be meeting the younger devils—or those of my generation—until the final stage.

The gifts I was most looking forward to were from the Devil Kings and the Great King himself—Zekram Bael.

Although he could have simply counted the gift from the current Bael head as his own, Zekram was not a man to do things so simply. From what I had heard, his gifts were always something extremely valuable or incredibly useful.

He was a wise and powerful devil. Nearly every devil in the Underworld who remained loyal to the Devil Faction respected him. That included the Devil Kings and the heads of the 72 Pillars.

Although his faction, [The Great King Faction], was questionable. But then again, Belial was a part of [The Devil Kings Faction], so maybe Brisha had just biased me.

I chuckled to myself.

Another clan approached—the Bael.

'I can feel the arrogance.'

Then, the Belial.

'They are typically ranked lower among the remaining pillars.'

The Phenex.

'They might be the richest.'

The Buné.

'Bulky. Both the head and his wife.'

The Astaroth.

'He seems rather welcoming.'

And so on.

I did notice a few peculiarities. The House of Forneus looked… unsettling, to say the least. Their faces resembled anglerfish. I had already met the head of Glasya-Labolas and his wife when I was younger.

But the most interesting one was Naberius.

"Greetings, Lord Naberius."

I bowed.

His hair color matched mine, and he too had horns growing from his head. However, his horns were much smaller, and their color was different.

They were black, like my father's. Meanwhile, my horns were slowly turning red.

"It is good to meet you," he said.

I nodded.

"We are actually related. And no, I don't mean in the way all devils are related. Your grandmother was my aunt."

Oh. So that explained our similar hair and horns—

"No, that is not why both of our families have white hair and horns."

…Can he read minds?

"I can, actually," he said.

Oh shit—

A smirk tugged at his lips. "I'm joking. I can't read minds. I was just guessing your thoughts."

Huh. Then how was he—

"Well, it's easy because it relates to our clan trait."

'Can he really not read minds? I should research him later.'

He smirked again. He knew what I was thinking. But he changed the topic.

"You are free to visit our territory anytime. And since you have acquired your Evil Pieces, I heard from one of our branches that they've obtained a rare specimen."

I understood exactly what he meant.

'Sick bastards.'

But I showed no reaction.

"For your gift," he continued. Like the others, he summoned a beautiful, expensive-looking box.

As I watched his departing figure, I made up my mind.

'I have to visit their territory.'

I had now received gifts from all the high-class devils, including the Extra Demons. One of the more famous among them—Mephisto Pheles—had personally given me a gift, stating it would greatly aid my magic.

He even complimented me.

"Your power is impressive for someone of your age, Vael Beleth."

I merely nodded.

And now, the time had come.

I was finally going to be receiving gifts from the Devil Kings and the Great King himself.

A grin momentarily escaped me, but I quickly suppressed it.

The entire Devil Society was watching me.

But still—

I was excited -

I was also looking forward to the gifts from El Cid as well.

"Now! Let's proceed to the final stage of this ceremony. The Great King—Zekram Bael—shall now present his gift."

A loud voice resounded throughout the banquet hall. I recognized it immediately—Naud Gamigin, a renowned announcer in Underworld media.

Receiving gifts from the Devil Kings and the Great King required one to step forward personally.

'Some kind of stupid tradition.'

I made my way to the opposite side of the hall, where they sat upon their thrones. I had a chair. They had thrones.

But I understood. They were kings.

All eyes were on me as I stopped before the Great King—Zekram Bael.

I bowed. "Greetings to the Great King."

"Rise," he said, and I straightened.

'Rise? Bitch.'

"Your lineage is one of prestige. Grow stronger and uphold it well."

He stretched out his hand, and a box materialized in the air. He handed it to me, and with a flick of my fingers, I stored it away with [Storage Magic].

"Take this as well," he said.

A ring materialized in the air before me—a black ring, its surface adorned with faint, ancient runes that seemed to shift when viewed from different angles. I could feel the sheer demonic power pulsating from it.

"I heard you enjoy training. This will aid you," he added.

I nodded as the ring slipped onto my middle finger, fitting perfectly.

I wanted to ask what it did, but before I could, he answered as if reading my thoughts.

"You'll understand once you open the box."

"Thank you, Great King."

CLAP!

Thunderous applause filled the hall as I moved to the next person—my uncle, Falbium Asmodeus.

"Greetings, Lord Asmodeus." I bowed.

My uncle nodded. "Happy sixth birthday, Vael Beleth."

I allowed a small smile. "Thank you, Lord Asmodeus."

He returned the smile—subtle but warm.

Just like the others, he presented a gift box. But then he spoke again.

"Here, take this as well."

A necklace materialized before me—a white gold chain with an intricate yet understated design. It exuded a calm yet powerful aura.

I nodded. "Thank you."

"It will protect you in times of need." 

I nodded again and wore the chain. 

It was great and it looked really nice.

I then moved towards Ajuka Beelzebub. 

I greeted him and he gave me a knowing smirk. He too gave me a box. It was exhausting at this point. He gave me nothing extra though. 

I moved towards Sirzechs, the same thing continued, and he gave me a box blah blah blah and same thing happened with Serafall. 

And soon the gift taking ceremony was over and I was finally able to go downstairs. 

----

Author's Note: This chapter is incomplete cause I got exam tomorrow and don't know shit. I am planning to sleep now and wake up at 1 Am and start studying. My exam is at 7 Am so yeah i am fucked. 

And this exam is important as fuck. (It's the finals and I don't know shit. Don't read too many fanfictions before exams)

VOTE AND REVIEW PEOPLE, ITS FREE! (I spent 3 hours writing this so you gotta vote because I am failing tomorrow)