Devils Don't Fall in Love, Ch 137-140

Chapter 137 - Isn’t That Even More Worrying?

Back at the camp, the massive bonfire had long since been lit. Towering flames roared upward, radiating heat and light, providing ample illumination for the area.

The Underworld had no sun, and no moon either. The sky above was pitch-black, devoid of any natural light source, so the bonfire was the only thing keeping the camp visible.

Of course, even without light it wouldn’t really matter. Most creatures in the Underworld had night vision, devils included. But once night fell, the temperature around the camp dropped sharply—by more than twenty degrees—bringing it close to freezing. Even devils felt the chill, so lighting a fire for warmth was necessary.

Under these conditions, Yukino and the others returned, completely worn out.

Only Leo was nowhere to be seen.

That alone made the girls grind their teeth in frustration.

“He actually ran away. How shameless,” Yukino said through clenched teeth.

“Where could he even go at a time like this?” Asuna analyzed seriously, clearly not ready to give up on getting payback. “He didn’t just hide in a tent, did he?”

“If he were hiding in a tent, we’d spot him instantly,” Utaha snorted, irritation dripping from her voice. “He’s not that careless.”

“With senpai’s strength, he’d be fine anywhere,” Mahiru said helplessly. “He probably went back into the Ancient Battlefield.”

The girls exchanged looks. Knowing Leo, that was entirely possible.

After all, he wasn’t afraid of ghosts at all—and they’d just had a bad experience there. Even if they knew he was hiding in the Ancient Battlefield, none of them would dare go back.

Thinking about that only made them angrier.

Just then, a bat flew in from the distance and transformed into a humanoid shape in front of them.

They immediately recognized it as one of Leo’s familiars.

The familiar pointed toward a nearby tent, making the girls pause.

“Is it telling us to go over there?” Asuna asked, looking at the tent.

“That tent hasn’t been used, has it?” Utaha said after observing it for a moment.

“What’s inside?” Mahiru grew curious.

“Is he hiding there? Did he send a familiar to call us over?” Yukino said, already striding forward as she spoke, marching toward the tent with obvious momentum.

The others immediately followed, clearly ready to settle accounts with Leo together.

But when they lifted the tent flap and stepped inside, the sight that greeted them made all of them freeze.

The interior of the tent was completely empty—no equipment at all. Only a pool had been constructed in the center of the ground.

Several statues stood around it, continuously spraying water inside. Thick steam rose from the surface, making it immediately obvious what it was.

“A hot spring!” Asuna exclaimed first, her voice filled with surprise and excitement.

The others’ eyes lit up as well, their earlier anger instantly replaced by delight.

“Why is there a hot spring here?”

“This doesn’t look like something that was already here.”

“It must’ve just been built. The bricks are all new.”

Yukino, Utaha, and Mahiru all spoke in turn.

“This must be the ‘surprise’ he mentioned, right?” Yukino quickly pieced it together.

And she was right.

Leo knew very well that this round of special training was intense. For the sake of the future, he had no intention of going easy—he’d already decided to push his servants hard. The next month was going to be rough for them.

They were still girls. Even after reincarnating as devils and gaining much stronger bodies, training in a place like the Ancient Battlefield was taxing. Their bodies might hold up, but mentally it was another story.

So, to reward his servants after a full day of grueling training, Leo had his familiars build a hot spring here, letting the girls relax both body and mind.

Once they realized this, the lingering resentment toward Leo finally began to fade.

“At least he had the sense to prepare something like this,” Utaha muttered. Her snort had softened into something closer to a huff—most of her anger was gone.

“I can’t believe we get to soak in a hot spring here.”

“There are bathing supplies too.”

Asuna had already started testing the water temperature, while Mahiru noticed stools, soap, and wooden buckets tucked into a corner.

Everything needed for bathing was ready. All that was missing were the people.

After a full day of training, their clothes were in tatters. Dirt, sweat, and grime coated their pale skin, turning it gray.

Girls naturally cared about cleanliness. During training, they hadn’t had the luxury to worry about it—but now that a hot spring was right in front of them, how could they resist?

They felt filthy. Sticky. Uncomfortable.

No—extremely uncomfortable.

“So… should we go in?” Mahiru asked cautiously.

Why hesitate?

Because a certain guy might suddenly pop out at any moment.

“He wouldn’t be hiding somewhere to peek, would he?” Utaha said bluntly, not hiding her distrust of Leo.

“If it’s the president… he probably wouldn’t do that,” Asuna said, though her tone lacked confidence.

“He wouldn’t peek,” Yukino said after thinking it over, shaking her head.

“And why do you think that?” Utaha asked skeptically. “I don’t see him as a gentleman.”

“He’s obviously not,” Yukino replied calmly. “But knowing him, if he wanted to watch, he’d just come in openly. There’d be no need to sneak around.”

“After all, he’s always saying we’re all his, and that whatever he wants to do with us is only natural.”

“I trust him more to just lift the curtain and come in to soak with us.”

The tent went silent.

Painfully so.

Because… she wasn’t wrong.

At least, based on what they knew of Leo, that was entirely possible.

“Isn’t that even more worrying?” Mahiru muttered.

The girls exchanged uneasy glances.

“He’s not actually going to come in, right?”

“Should we block the entrance?”

“What would that do? If he really wants to come in, even sealing the whole tent with a barrier wouldn’t stop him.”

Utaha, Asuna, and Yukino began discussing countermeasures, trying to think of a way to prevent it.

But no matter how much they thought, they couldn’t come up with anything reliable. In the end, they hesitated, too afraid to enter the hot spring.

Finally, Mahiru bit her lip and made up her mind.

“If senpai really wants to do something… we wouldn’t be able to stop him anyway. We might as well follow our hearts.”

She remembered the conversation she’d had with Leo on the day she became a devil.

“You’re not going to do anything weird to me, are you?”

“Maybe. Who knows—maybe one day I’ll feel like it.”

“You’re pretty straightforward. Aren’t you afraid you’ll scare me away?”

“A devil scaring people away—isn’t that normal? If you’re already a devil, why worry so much? Living according to your desires, doing whatever you want—that’s what a devil is.”

Mahiru remembered clearly that it was after hearing those words that she accepted the Evil Piece Leo offered her and reincarnated as a devil.

Which meant that from that day on, she’d already accepted the reality of becoming Leo’s servant—and the possibility of a future where he might do as he pleased.

What truly moved her, though, was another line.

“The one who’ll stay by your side through the long years ahead won’t be your parents. It’ll be me—and the companions under my command, servants just like you.”

That was what sealed her resolve.

If he was someone who would accompany her through the long years ahead, someone who would give her the recognition she needed… then so be it.

At worst, she’d consider it a servant’s perk for her master.

Mahiru’s cheeks flushed slightly. After hesitating for a moment, she began to undress.

More than anything, she really couldn’t take it anymore—she was just too dirty.

Seeing that their underclassman had already started undressing, the other girls looked at each other, then sighed.

“Well… we are servants.”

“And after seeing this hot spring, there’s no way we can pretend it doesn’t exist.”

“If he dares to come in suddenly, we’ll settle accounts with him later.”

Yukino, Asuna, and Utaha each convinced themselves in their own way, then followed suit, shedding their clothes and revealing bodies stained with dust and mud.

Naturally, they didn’t step straight into the hot spring. Instead, they grabbed wooden buckets, rinsed off the grime, and only then eased into the water.

“Haa…”

The next moment, they all let out a long sigh, their expressions relaxing.

“So comfortable,” Asuna said happily, clearly the biggest bath lover among them. “It feels like all of today’s fatigue just melted away.”

“Look—the wounds are healing,” Utaha said, raising her arm. The cuts and scrapes vanished at a visible rate, making her click her tongue in amazement. “This water wasn’t brought in from outside, was it?”

“It can heal injuries too?” Mahiru blinked. “Did they add Underworld medicinal herbs or something?”

“Probably. Even hot springs with healing properties wouldn’t work this fast otherwise.”

“The water’s coming out of those statues. Maybe it’s something they’re doing.”

“Well, it is devil stuff. Being weird is normal.”

The girls began chatting happily, full of praise and affection for the hot spring.

Only Yukino remained quiet. For some reason, she hadn’t said much since they got in, keeping silent.

“What’s wrong, Yukino?” Asuna noticed quickly and asked, puzzled. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“It’s nothing,” Yukino replied coldly, completely unlike the others basking in bliss. “I just don’t feel like talking.”

Her overly cool and gloomy attitude left Asuna and Mahiru confused.

Only Utaha raised an eyebrow, her gaze drifting downward toward Yukino’s chest—then she smiled.

Like a fox that had just stolen something tasty.

“It’s okay, Yukino,” Utaha said gently. “You’re still growing. There’s still plenty of room for improvement.”

One sentence was all it took.

Asuna and Mahiru instantly understood.

“W-Who even cares about that?!” Yukino snapped, as if someone had stepped on her tail.

“Oh? You don’t care?” Utaha narrowed her eyes, smiling. “Then why have you been sneaking glances at us this whole time—especially me?”

As she spoke, she deliberately pushed her chest forward, sending exaggerated ripples through the water.

The sight was devastating.

“You did that on purpose!” Yukino clenched her fists.

“I’m just showing you a role model,” Utaha teased. “Giving you motivation to grow. This is about feminine charm—you should take it seriously. You don’t have to beat Asuna, but at least don’t lose to Mahiru, your junior.”

Asuna and Mahiru immediately flushed, instinctively sinking lower into the water.

But Yukino still caught a glimpse of their pale curves—and nearly spiraled into self-doubt.

Among the servants, Utaha was clearly the most developed, followed by Asuna. Even though Mahiru was a first-year, she didn’t lose to the upperclassmen at all. If Asuna weren’t so obviously the type who’d never leave her future kids hungry, even as a second-year she might not beat that angel.

Only Yukino…

She might as well change her name to Yukinoshita Flat-no.

Normally, she didn’t think about things like this. But now that they were all naked together in the bath, there was no avoiding it.

The cruel reality made her dizzy, feeling like the world was unfairly targeting her.

"My mom and my sister are both so big… so why am I—" she muttered bitterly.

Asuna and Mahiru quickly tried to comfort her when they saw she was about to shut down.

Meanwhile, Utaha hummed smugly, as if she’d just scored a small victory.

Outside the tent, the night echoed with voices and occasional laughter from the men’s camp.

Perched atop a tent, Leo smiled faintly. Four wings spread from his back as he leapt into the air, flying off toward the Ancient Battlefield.

Chapter 138 - Probably Not a Bad Thing?

For a while after that, the special training of the Eligos servants settled into a steady routine.

Mornings were for basic physical conditioning and demonic power training. Afternoons were dedicated to individualized training tailored to each servant. At night, they entered the Ancient Battlefield for live combat drills. Not a single day was skipped, and the intensity only kept increasing.

Every day, the Eligos servants trained until they were completely exhausted, filthy from head to toe, pushing past their limits who knew how many times.

If ordinary human girls had gone through training this brutal, even if they managed to endure it, their looks would’ve taken a serious hit. At the very least, their smooth, soft skin would be gone for good. Getting rougher, darker, and coarser would’ve been unavoidable.

Yukino and the others had worried about that at first, but as the training went on, they realized they’d been overthinking it.

Whether it was because their natural foundations were just that good, because they’d been reincarnated as devils, or because the hot springs they soaked in every day were laced with beauty-enhancing ingredients—who knew. But after a full half month of training, even though they’d gotten dirty and their image had taken a beating more than once, they hadn’t grown uglier, darker, or rougher at all. They were still just as beautiful as ever.

If anything, because they were constantly pushing past their limits, Yukino’s old weakness—her lack of stamina—had completely disappeared. The other girls were the same. They all still looked delicate and soft, yet even Mahiru, who appeared the most fragile, could now lift a massive five-meter-tall boulder over her head with one hand. And her figure hadn’t changed at all—she still looked gentle and slender.

As time passed, Leo’s indiscriminate magical bombardments during morning training no longer sent the girls scrambling in panic. No matter which servant it was, they’d gradually learned to calmly evade the demonic power blasts raining down from above. The same went for demonic power training. Even when Leo deliberately released interference to disrupt them, they could maintain the stability of the demonic power they were manifesting. Their control over demonic power was visibly improving.

Even during nighttime combat training, while the girls were still afraid of ghosts, they no longer tried to turn around and run. Urged on by Leo, they’d grit their teeth and charge in, screaming at the top of their lungs while fighting with everything they had. The noise they caused grew louder by the day.

Leo could clearly feel it—his girls were undergoing a complete transformation.

Their demonic power was steadily increasing, their presence growing stronger, even their eyes had changed. They no longer gave off the feeling of ordinary human girls. There was now an indescribable aura about them.

Yukino gradually began to exude a cold presence, like an ice queen. Asuna was starting to resemble the “Flash” Asuna from Leo’s memories—beautiful and sharp, dazzling and fearless.

Utaha’s literary-girl vibe shifted into something far more mysterious, like an intelligent mage. As for Mahiru, she looked more and more like an angel descended from the heavens, carrying a sacred air that made it hard for anyone to believe she was a devil at all.

In just half a month, the changes in these girls were so dramatic that even Leo was stunned.

“Before I awakened my trait, it took me a full fifteen years to break through from being an outstanding Mid-Class Devil to the High-Class Devil level...”

That kind of growth rate was already considered fast among devils. After all, there were plenty in the Underworld who hadn’t grown at all in hundreds or even thousands of years. But among pure-blood devils, it was only average—he couldn’t even compare to someone like Sona, whose combat strength wasn’t particularly outstanding, let alone geniuses like Rias.

Of course, genius was still just genius. No matter how talented you were, you couldn’t beat someone who was outright cheating.

In the future, there would be countless monsters who reached inhuman levels in just a single year. Take the Red Dragon Emperor, for example—he went from being a useless Low-Class Devil all the way up through sheer hacks. In just one year, he could already stand toe-to-toe with Maou-Class beings. If he went all out and paid the price, he could even defeat a god-level existence—a Super Devil. It was cheating on top of cheating.

Compared to monsters like that, so-called geniuses were nothing.

And while Yukino, Asuna, Utaha, and Mahiru all started out as ordinary human girls, in their own stories, they were all heroines.

In other words, these girls had the potential to be cheaters too.

The proof was right there.

After just half a month of special training, the girls could already hold their own against Leo—so long as he held back from using Zenith Tempest.

Especially Yukino. Her demonic power had fully broken through to the High-Class Devil level, and she could now fight alongside Absolute Demise, coordinating perfectly to achieve a two-on-one effect.

At this point, her strength was enough to contend with an Ultimate-Class Devil. If Leo didn’t use Zenith Tempest, he actually couldn’t take her down anytime soon.

The other girls had all seen remarkable growth as well. Mahiru, in particular—also a Longinus wielder, and one whose Sacred Gear ranked even higher than Yukino’s—was advancing at a pace that could only be described as astonishing.

Leo didn’t dare take Mahiru’s purple flames head-on. The Holy Power and Purification Power within them meant that if he so much as brushed against them, he’d suffer serious injuries. It was just like his last fight with Cao Cao—he’d only touched the Holy Spear with his hand, and it had nearly been ruined.

And if the girls fought together, their combat results were even more terrifying.

Leo tried it once, letting the four girls team up against him. In the end, he was forced to go all out just to handle them.

That meant once the Eligos servants joined forces, they were already qualified to make Leo use his full strength.

That kind of progress was no joke. Even Leo couldn’t help but envy it.

“If I’d had that kind of growth speed, I’d have become a Maou in fifteen years, you know?”

Not just Maou-Class—but an actual Maou.

After all, among the current Four Great Maou, two had reached Super Devil tier, while the other two were well above ordinary Maou-Class.

If Leo had grown as fast as Yukino and the others, reaching Super Maou-Class in fifteen years wouldn’t have been a problem. Reaching Super Devil level wouldn’t have been impossible either.

Unfortunately, he just wasn’t born to be the protagonist.

“Good thing I’m cheating now too.”

Thinking about his Servant Conversion trait, and then about Zenith Tempest—the second-strongest Longinus in the world—Leo’s bruised ego finally felt a little better.

At the time, Leo didn’t realize that precisely because he’d become a cheater as well, two good things—no, not one, but two—would soon come knocking.

That day, Leo was preparing to head to the Ancient Battlefield to continue his own training.

A month of special training wasn’t just for the servants—Leo needed it too. His intensity just wasn’t as high as theirs.

In the mornings, he trained alongside the servants in basic conditioning and demonic power control. At night, he secretly watched over them during their Ancient Battlefield combat drills, just in case anything went wrong. Only in the afternoons, when the servants were busy with their individual training, did he have time for himself.

That was why Leo had been entering the Ancient Battlefield every afternoon lately—not just to hone himself against the creatures roaming within, but also to make use of its harsh environments.

Zenith Tempest was a Sacred Gear deeply connected to nature, one that controlled natural forces. The brutal environments of the Ancient Battlefield had a very positive effect on Leo as its wielder, helping him better understand the cruelty and severity of nature.

So he deliberately chose the harshest environments to train in. He’d even entered toxic swamps more than once, nearly getting himself melted alive.

But it worked. This self-destructive training greatly deepened his understanding of nature and of Zenith Tempest.

If there’d been a volcano in Eligos Territory, Leo would’ve seriously considered swimming in magma to see if it would spark even more insights.

These realizations might not directly boost his power right away, but as long as they kept accumulating, Leo was certain he’d eventually apply them in new ways and push Zenith Tempest to an entirely new level.

It was afternoon now. The servant girls had finished lunch and headed to their respective training grounds. Leo was just about to set off for the Ancient Battlefield again.

But before he could leave the camp, two figures suddenly appeared before him within a magic circle.

“It seems your special training is going quite smoothly.”

A gentle voice tinged with a faint smile rang out, making Leo gasp in surprise as he called out the visitor’s name.

“Sirzechs-sama? What brings you here?”

The newcomer was none other than one of the current Maou—Sirzechs Lucifer.

And he hadn’t come alone. With him was Grayfia, his wife and Queen.

Just like last time, the “Silver-Haired Queen of Annihilation,” dressed in her maid outfit, said nothing from beginning to end. She stood quietly behind Sirzechs—neither like a wife nor like a Queen, but more like a servant. Anyone who didn’t know her would never guess that she was one of the strongest female devils in the Underworld, someone who could go head-to-head with the current Maou, Serafall Leviathan.

“Relax. I’m just here to take a look—and to talk to you about a few things.”

Sirzechs’s attitude was as gentle and approachable as ever, perfectly matching his Queen’s style. He didn’t feel like a lofty Maou at all—more like a friendly older brother next door.

But people didn’t show up without a reason. Leo could already tell—Sirzechs had something important to discuss.

Probably not a bad thing?

Looking at Sirzechs’s warm smile, Leo thought that to himself.

Chapter 139 - Servant Candidates

Eligos Territory, Ancient Battlefield camp, inside Leo’s tent.

After inviting Sirzechs and Grayfia inside, Leo had originally planned to brew some tea for them. But just as he was about to move, Grayfia—who had been standing quietly behind Sirzechs the whole time—somehow produced a tea cart from nowhere and smoothly poured two cups of steaming black tea.

“Please enjoy.”

Grayfia placed the cups in front of Leo and Sirzechs respectively. A faint fragrance spread through the tent, dispelling some of the oppressive atmosphere unique to the Ancient Battlefield.

“Thanks, Grayfia-san.”

Since Sirzechs’s Queen had already prepared everything, Leo didn’t stand on ceremony. He sat down with Sirzechs and enjoyed the tea.

“Are your servants training right now?” Sirzechs asked casually as he took a sip. “Just looking at you, I can tell the special training must be going well. But how are things really? Can you tell me about it?”

“Things are pretty good. The special training has been very smooth,” Leo replied. He knew his servants were already under close scrutiny by the Maou, and since he trusted Sirzechs, he didn’t bother hiding anything. “They’re all exceptionally talented girls. Even without Sacred Gear, they were destined to be extraordinary. With Sacred Gear, they’re bound to soar in this world.”

“If you give them enough time, I don't doubt they'll be able to catch up to Grayfia-san and Serafall-sama.”

At those words, Grayfia’s eyebrow twitched slightly. For once, a hint of interest appeared on her otherwise expressionless face.

“Catch up to Grayfia and Serafall?” Sirzechs smiled faintly. “It seems you’re truly satisfied with their performance.”

“They’re servants I chose with my own hands. No one understands how exceptional they are better than I do,” Leo shrugged. “It’s just a shame they still lack time.”

“Even so, they’ve already shown potential greater than many pureblood devil.”

“In just half a month of special training, they’ve undergone changes that could be called a complete rebirth. Even I have trouble dealing with any one of them if I don’t use my real strength.”

This was something Leo had personally verified, so he stated it plainly, without any hint of bragging.

“That really is astonishing growth,” Sirzechs said, both surprised and impressed. “No wonder the Eligos servants have already become something of a legend in the devil world. Even Rias’s servants would probably have a hard time matching yours in terms of sheer potential, wouldn’t they?”

As Rias’s older brother, Sirzechs naturally understood her servants very well.

They might not seem especially outstanding at first glance, but that was only because each of them was hiding power or potential not yet revealed.

Not to mention the Bishop piece that was still sealed away—just Akeno Himejima, Yuuto Kiba, and Koneko Toujou alone all had astonishing backgrounds. Their uniqueness was no less remarkable than Sharon Holygrail, who had been created as an experimental subject meant to rival a Super Devil—perhaps even more so.

If all of them fully unleashed their uniqueness, resolved their inner issues, and drew out their hidden potential, their futures would be limitless. Even if they didn’t reach Maou-Class, they wouldn’t fall far behind an Ultimate-Class Devil.

Because of this, among the upper echelons of the devil world, the current generation of Gremory servants was highly anticipated, with many placing great hopes in them.

Yet now, the attention and importance placed on the Eligos servants had already surpassed that of the Gremory servants, leaving even Sirzechs feeling a bit emotional about it.

“Potential is just potential,” Leo said calmly. “Before it’s turned into real strength, it’s nothing more than a target that attracts trouble.”

He never thought his servants would lose to the Gremory servants, so even when Sirzechs praised them, Leo didn’t show much joy. Instead, he looked a little helpless.

“If possible, I’d rather keep things hidden a bit longer. Let me or them grow enough first, gain a certain level of strength, and only then make the Eligos servants known to the outside world.”

“Unfortunately, Lafei Trix’s attack exposed all of us.”

“Otherwise, we wouldn’t have had to rush to the Underworld and throw ourselves into this intense training, just to quickly build strength to deal with outside hostility.”

Leo’s words made Sirzechs’s expression turn serious.

“As for the Hero Faction you mentioned, we’re already aware of it,” Sirzechs said, setting down his teacup and looking at Leo. “First the Old Maou Faction, then this Hero Faction we’d never heard of before, and now the Stray Magicians who appeared in the last attack…”

“There’s no doubt about it. A mysterious, unknown, and massive force has emerged without any of us realizing it. And these criminals have gathered around that force.”

“We’ve already begun investigating in secret. Although it’s only been a short time and we haven’t uncovered much yet, we’ve noticed several things that don’t add up.”

Sirzechs recalled the intelligence gathered during their covert investigation.

According to their findings, it wasn’t just the Old Maou Faction within the devil world that had begun acting strangely. In the heavens and among the fallen angels as well, certain individuals had started abnormal movements against the current order.

The Church was the same. Aside from Sharon Holygrail being involved in the Old Maou Faction’s attack, there were others who seemed to be secretly colluding with someone. Some had defected from the Church and vanished, while others had taken actions that were clearly suspicious.

Add to that the human-centered Hero Faction and the Stray Magicians. In nearly every faction, terrorists had begun to surface. And they weren’t acting alone—they were connected to one another.

All of this pointed to one thing: dissatisfied criminals from various factions had begun cooperating to achieve their hidden goals, even joining the same organization.

That should have been impossible.

Not even the famed God of the Bible had managed to unite all factions under one banner. What right did this mysterious force have?

Yet, after Leo’s deliberate reminder during the last incident, Sirzechs had already begun to suspect that if anyone could accomplish such a thing, there was only one possible existence…

“Ouroboros…”

The thought cast a shadow over Sirzechs’s eyes.

If that being was truly involved, then the situation was dire.

Still, these were secrets of the highest order, and Sirzechs had no intention of sharing them lightly.

For now, only the Four Great Maou and a handful of key figures in the devil world knew of this. Outsiders had no idea what was happening.

After some thought, Sirzechs ultimately decided not to tell Leo any of this.

Even though Leo was an extremely important party involved, and much of their intelligence had come thanks to him, knowing too much might not do him any good.

What Sirzechs didn’t know was that Leo actually knew no less than he did—only more.

He knew that the ones who had discovered the existence of that mysterious force, and of Ouroboros, weren’t just himself. The fallen angel governor had also noticed the abnormalities and uncovered a substantial amount of intelligence.

That information was currently known only to the upper leadership of the Grigori and hadn’t leaked out at all.

If not for Leo, the devil world wouldn’t have noticed anything yet. Only the fallen angels would have taken action.

For that reason, Leo had no intention of telling Sirzechs any of this either—to avoid suspicion.

“In any case, we’re already taking precautions,” Sirzechs said. “You shouldn’t face any more sudden attacks for the time being. You can focus on your training—we’ll be keeping watch around here.”

Leo wasn’t surprised by that at all.

He’d already noticed that there were occasional gazes lingering around the camp and the Ancient Battlefield.

Those gazes carried no hostility, so he’d long guessed that Sirzechs and the others had stationed people nearby to watch over them and prevent another malicious attack.

“Then I’ll thank you, Sirzechs-sama.”

Leo expressed his gratitude.

“That’s simply my duty as a Maou. There’s no need to thank me,” Sirzechs said with a smile. “As long as you all grow stronger, you’ll be able to share our burdens in the future. For the sake of that day, no matter how hard things are now, it’s worth it.”

“Yes,” Leo nodded. “We’ll get strong as soon as possible.”

“I believe you,” Sirzechs said gently, then changed the subject. “To help you grow faster, we’ve also prepared a few strategies on our end. We’re planning to provide you with some assistance.”

“Grayfia.”

At Sirzechs’s call, his Queen stepped forward and took out a thick stack of documents.

“Please take a look.”

Grayfia placed the pile of papers in front of Leo, leaving him momentarily stunned.

“What’s this?”

Leo picked them up with some confusion and flipped through them.

As he did, his eyes widened in surprise.

They were dossiers—detailed profiles on devils.

Not only did they record each individual’s origins, background, abilities, and even daily life in meticulous detail, they also included photographs, allowing Leo to clearly see what each of them looked like.

And then he noticed something else.

Every one of these devils had an impressive pedigree. They were either descendants of high-ranking devils, members of the bloodlines of the Seventy-Two Pillars, or disciples, students, or close associates of famous figures.

That was when Sirzechs said:

“These are the servant candidates we’ve selected for you.”

Chapter 140 - Another Kind of Help?

“Servant candidates?”

Hearing Sirzechs say that, Leo completely blanked.

What?

The Maou was helping him pick a harem—no, wait, servants?

And not just anyone, either. Every single one had serious backing—either a pureblood devil or someone closely connected to a major figure—being sent to become his servant?

This… what was the point?

“Don’t rush. Let me explain,” Sirzechs said with a smile when he saw Leo’s stunned expression. “Everyone knows that your Servant Conversion trait allows you to strengthen yourself by recruiting servants. You gain an immediate boost, and the higher a servant’s potential and ability, the greater the increase you receive.”

“Given that, the fastest way for you to grow is obviously to help you recruit outstanding servants.”

“So after some discussion, we selected these people as your servant candidates. You can choose whoever you like from the list, and we’ll act as intermediaries to help make it happen.”

After Leo’s identity as the host of Zenith Tempest was exposed—and after it became known that among his Eligos servants there were two Longinus users—the upper echelons of the devil world began to take a keen interest in him.

Some of them harbored ill intentions, but others were far more straightforward. They wanted to win Leo over through cooperation and secure a stake in this astonishing rising star.

Leo’s Servant Conversion trait was no secret among the higher-ups. With him having recently been targeted by malicious forces and urgently needing to grow stronger, they came up with what they believed was the best approach.

Give him servants.

Send their own people under Leo’s command and use that to establish friendly ties between both sides.

The idea had been proposed shortly after news of Zenith Tempest spread through the devil world. It just took until recently for discussions to conclude and for this list of servant candidates to be finalized.

“This list was carefully screened by us,” Sirzechs said, pointing out the key details. “Every single one is a highly promising member of the younger generation. Many come from major families. If you choose them, you’ll gain excellent servants, receive a significant power boost, and earn the backing of the people behind them. Three benefits at once, with no downside.”

“If our generation had more members than just me and Rias, I’d have recommended someone from the Gremory House too.”

In an era where pureblood devils were becoming increasingly rare, very few families were willing to send their descendants to become someone else’s servant. The Gremory House was one of them—even if they wanted to, they simply lacked the numbers.

Other families, however, weren’t short on fresh blood at all. This time, without exception, they each put forward one descendant to become Leo’s servant. That alone showed just how highly regarded Leo had become in the devil world.

There were only thirteen Longinus in the entire world—legendary Sacred Gears said to be capable of killing gods and Maou. Yet among Leo’s Eligos servants, there were already three. The remaining two wielded rare Sacred Gears only slightly inferior to Longinus.

With so many incredible prospects gathered in one place, it would’ve been strange not to be tempted.

So even if it meant becoming someone else’s servant, the devil world’s upper crust couldn’t resist. In the end, they spared no expense, each recommending a descendant and finalizing this list.

Of course, families that lacked suitable descendants didn’t give up either. Some recommended devils closely connected to them—disciples or students. Others went even further, proposing political marriages and suggesting their daughters be betrothed to Leo.

Because of that, the high-ranking devils originally prepared not only a servant candidate list, but also a list of potential fiancées.

That second list, however, was jointly shut down by Sirzechs, Serafall, the Gremory House, and the Sitri House.

Especially the current head of the Sitri House—Serafall and Sona’s father—whose reaction was downright explosive. He nearly stormed over to the families that suggested marrying their daughters to Leo and started throwing punches.

By his logic, Leo had already been reserved as his future son-in-law.

Those bastards weren’t allowed anywhere near him.

Serafall puffed out her cheeks so much they could’ve held oil bottles, but under her father’s insistence, she still begrudgingly took a public stance to support him.

As for Sirzechs and the Gremory House, that involved another calculation—one not fit to be spoken aloud.

In the end, the fiancée list was shelved for the time being. Whether it would ever reach Leo remained unknown. But the servant candidate list was delivered directly into his hands by Sirzechs himself.

“Don’t feel pressured,” Sirzechs added. “We chose the candidates, but the final decision is yours. If you really don’t want to choose anyone, we won’t force you.”

With a single sentence, he removed Leo’s last lingering concern.

Leo had worried whether the families were trying to plant spies at his side. From the looks of it, that didn’t seem to be the case—or if it ever was, the Maou had already filtered those out.

Besides, once they become my servants, whether they still work for their families is a completely different matter, Leo thought.

His Evil Pieces weren’t like anyone else’s. They were already linked to his Servant Conversion trait. The instant the reincarnation ritual was complete, the servant’s soul would become his, branded with his mark.

Over time, those servants would only grow closer to him. After all, once even their soul had submitted, how could they possibly feel repulsed by him?

If someone really did try to slip a mole in…

All Leo could say was—

Thanks, bro, for the free servant.

“Take the list,” Sirzechs said. “You can look it over at your leisure. There’s no need to give me an answer right away.”

As if he’d truly thought through all of Leo’s concerns, Sirzechs continued,

“Also, aside from this servant candidate list, we’ve prepared another form of help for you.”

Another kind of help?

Leo’s attention immediately shifted from the list in his hands as he looked at Sirzechs with curiosity.

“You seem to have accepted a request from Tiamat, the Chaos Karma Dragon, to help her find a certain artifact,” Sirzechs said with a smile.

Leo’s eyes lit up.

Sirzechs knowing about this didn’t surprise him in the slightest. He had already asked Sona to help investigate the artifact’s location, and she would naturally rely on her family’s resources.

That meant the Sitri House definitely knew.

And if the Sitri House knew, how hard would it be for others to find out?

For someone like Sirzechs, learning about it would be trivial.

So now that he’d brought it up, Leo knew exactly what that implied.

“Have you already found the Tablet of Destiny?” Leo asked, unable to hide his anticipation.

He’d originally planned to trigger Zenith Tempest’s inherited memories to locate it. After all, the Tablet of Destiny had once been in the hands of a previous Zenith Tempest host before vanishing without a trace.

But the memories he received only covered how past hosts used the Sacred Gear—including memories of reaching Balance Breaker. There was nothing about the artifact itself.

Not a single hint.

It had been a massive disappointment.

By this point, Leo had nearly given up hope of finding the Tablet of Destiny at all.

Who would’ve thought that just when one path failed, another would unexpectedly open?

“You shouldn’t celebrate just yet,” Sirzechs said, tempering his excitement. “We’ve confirmed where the Tablet of Destiny is, but obtaining it will be up to you.”

“Consider this a trial. We can’t just hand every benefit to you outright. Some things you need to earn yourself. To avoid stunting your growth, we’ll support you from behind and provide assistance—but that’s all.”

“That’s more than enough,” Leo said seriously, without a trace of disappointment. “As long as there’s a lead.”

Free gains were great, but relying on them forever wasn’t.

Some things looked easy to obtain, but fate had already marked their price. One day, when you couldn’t pay it back, everything would be taken from you in one brutal sweep.

The goodwill the devil world’s upper echelon had shown him was already considerable. But devils were still devils—believers in equivalent exchange. If he kept taking without giving, the ending wouldn’t be pretty.

Leo would rather take a winding path than let someone shove food straight into his mouth—who knew if it was poisoned?

“So where is the Tablet of Destiny now?” Leo asked eagerly.

“You’re quite lucky—perhaps it was fated,” Sirzechs said, no longer keeping him in suspense. “It’s in Tokyo, currently held by a very large family.”

“A large family?” Leo paused, then frowned. “The Five Great Clans?”

When it came to influential families in the human world—especially ones based in Tokyo—that was the first thing that came to mind.

Unfortunately, he guessed wrong.

The family Sirzechs referred to wasn’t one of the Five Great Clans, nor was it some hidden lineage.

“You’re familiar with the Shinomiya Family, right?”

The moment that name left Sirzechs’s mouth, Leo froze.

“The Shinomiya Family?” Leo said in disbelief. “The one I’m thinking of?”

“That’s right,” Sirzechs nodded. “And more specifically, it’s in the hands of the Shinomiya Family’s eldest daughter—Kaguya Shinomiya.”