Mel angrily shouted,

"What the hell are you going to get from there?"

The old man couldn't help but rub his forehead in frustration. Out of the endless possible other responses, this was the one that came out of Asura's mouth.

"Can you really get information about the cultists there?"

While vigorously nodding, Asura crossed all his arms,

"Mhm, totally, hundred percent, there's no doubt. Anything you could want is there."

He opened all his arms in a welcoming manner, like a drug dealer selling goods he promised were authentic.

"Technically, we don't have to go to one... Look, I know she'll answer me there, but I got no other way to contact her. I bet we can figure out a lot from them. Just truuusssttt me. Okay? I know a guy who knows a guy who knew a guy who had a brother who worked at one. He said he got what he wanted."

The old man would regret this, but he had no other choice. They may have found one of Malachi's hideouts, but that was due to Asura's intervention anyway. Many have tried to use their unique methods to locate him, but Malachi is somehow hiding or repelling the incantations or blessings used to hunt down demonic mana.

They have searched that factory before, and nothing, no leads, no evidence, or even a fiber, has been left behind. Who knows what would have happened without Asura's excursion if Malachi had succeeded?

"Asura, let's see if you can get information. This will be the one time I trust you. If you disappoint me we will have another talk."

Asura leaped from his chair, celebrating his victory by throwing his hands up in the air,

"I'm useful for something!!! Woooo!"

Mel was disgusted that the old man was even considering his idea. She sat back down, baffled that the old man had agreed to such an absurd plan. Ash became enraged, stunned by the old man's compliance.

"If this is some sick joke to go to the strip club for fun, I'll find a way to slit your throat. I don't care if I have to tear the blade from Hephestine herself, but I will kill you."

Wain's eyes darted back and forth from the old man to Asura. He asked,

"Can we really go to a strip club? The Angels only give blessings to those who follow Judex Divinum's law. They don't just hand it out to anyone."

Understanding Wain's concerns, the old man rubbed his beard as he explained the situation.

"Yes, it's fine. It isn't against the rules to go there if an investigation is needed. Otherwise, it would normally be off limits."

Asura returned to his seat. After sitting down, he propped up his feet once again,

"Lame. You all can't have any fun, can ya."

Ignoring Asura's comment, the old man continued,

"Look, Mel will act as the leader and the battery, as usual, for the team. Wain will act as a support, providing backup if needed to Asura and Ash. Ash will be a frontman, and Asura will be a defender. Don't use your herbs unless it is necessary, Wain."

Asura raised his eyebrows and knitted them together. Confused, he asked the old man,

"Battery? Like a battery that goes in a remote?"

"Yes, Asura, it's kind of like a remote battery. I guess we never explained the composition of a team or how they worked. Our holy power comes from an Angel's gift. A type of contract between an angel and a human. This contract bestows humans with holy mana that allows them to use incantations. Just as I stated in the lecture before."

"However, if an Arch Angel gives a blessing, we can store holy mana within our bodies, not create. We only have a certain amount of holy mana our bodies can withstand before they reach a limit. Once the holy mana runs out, we can't replenish it ourselves. We need to pray in a cathedral or be provided through other means to refill a figurative cup within our bodies."

"The exception is someone we refer to as a battery. They develop a special connection to their Angel and can converse freely with them. These special individuals can directly receive mana without restoring it like others do with prayer or potions. They can also provide it to others if needed. Holy mana is not restricted to only being used by those who have gifts from the same Angel, but instead, all of it comes from Judex Divinum, which means it can be used universally. The more mana used from batteries and other sources without rest will result in Purity Burn."

"Purity Burn?"

"It is like mana exhaustion that monsters experience but much worse regarding the consequences for reaching that point. We may be able to store a certain amount and use it, but as we continue to replenish it, our limit begins to deteriorate the longer we continuously force it into our bodies."

The old man stopped for a moment,

"Imagine a glass cracking, and it begins to leak. Our bodies do the same. It is like a muscle that becomes sore as you use it. At first, it can deal with heavy loads of weight, but we must take the weight off as time progresses. After a while the limit shrinks to zero, that point is when our bodies begin to burn from the inside out. The mana then becomes uncontrollable, resulting in an explosion inside the body. There are signs to show if someone is beginning to experience this, and most of the time, the symptoms are large golden cracks that will spread all over the body."

"Batteries do not experience Purity Burn as we do but can still experience it if pushed to the extreme. Instead, most of them almost have an unending supply. However, there is a downside to being a battery. Most of them are only gifted defensive blessings, leaving them unable to deal with most monsters by themselves. Mel is the only one here who can share it amongst others."

"How the hell do you share it? Oops, my bad... Like, is it telepathic or something?"

"You can transfer it without touching it, but it is less potent than if you were. The best way to describe the feeling is to imagine the mana swirling inside to leave your body and manifest in the person you are focused on."

Asura raised his hand, even more confused about the team's layout.

"Then why is Mel the battery? Her guns seem more effective than Ash's skills with a sword to kill monsters."

"She is more than capable of dealing with any monster except you. You witnessed her skills firsthand as she took out the group of beasts that chased you. She has two blessings from two different Arch Angels. One provides the defensive blessing while the other provides the offensive blessing."

"Two?"

The old man nodded,

"Unlike almost everyone else, with a few exceptions as every rule has, every human can only bear one blessing. Otherwise, we explode. Funny how everything we do can result in us exploding. The mana burns through our bodies like a nuclear reactor that is unable to be contained.

However, as you can see, Mel is fine. Her ability to maintain her mana while distributing it is unparalleled, even amongst the others. With enough training, she could even become an Arch Knight one day if she fixed her attitude."

Sitting proud of herself, Mel raised her head after hearing the praise. Her selective hearing ignored the last comment as she sat happily, enjoying her inflated ego.

"Most teams have individuals who take a specific role like a battery, support, defender, and frontman."

Asura scratched the side of his head while contemplating the information.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"So, Wain is the support, Mel is the Battery? Why is Ash a frontman and not me? It can't be Ash. He's too weak. His blade couldn't even cut me."

Ash snapped at Asura, retorting,

"And all you can do is eat every hit. You are unable even to kill monsters. Obviously, you will not be able to do much since you love to eat blows. We need someone who will hit them back rather than be hit."

As Ash turned back around, an annoyed Asura reached into Wain's bag. Grasping into an unknown void, he found an orange he had seen earlier. His lips curled into a smile as he stared at the orange sphere in his palm. Without hesitating, he jumped up from his seat, clutching the orange with two of his hands.

The old man watched Asura pull his arm and leg back like a professional baseball pitcher. The ogre threw the orange with all his might straight into the back of Ash's head, sending a loud squish that echoed throughout the room. The impact completely squished the orange flat, sending the juice all over Ash's head. Unprepared for a sudden attack, Ash's head flew down onto the desk, thumping his forehead against the wooden surface.

Laughing triumphantly, Asura raised his hands, celebrating his bullseye. The old man sighed while Mel laughed, and Wain sat in shock with his mouth open. To Asura's surprise, the old man ignored his action as if he hadn't just sent an orange missile into the back of his student's head. Asura completely expected to pay for his crimes afterward. Without even acknowledging it the old man proceeded with his lesson,

"You will be the defender who protects the group, Asura, so don't run off without the team. With no demonic mana or holy weapon, you cannot kill anyone like Ash said. The best you can do is disable a monster for a while. Ash will act as the offense alongside Mel. With her abilities, everything should be fine since you are only going to a strip club, but you must always be vigilant and prepared."

Ash rubbed the back of his head as he slowly raised his it off the desk. Ash whipped his head back, furious by Asura's actions. The ogre couldn't help but laugh, seeing what was painted across his forehead. A giant red splotch from where it rested against the desk reminded Asura of Rudolph from Christmas movies. Although Ash was seething with anger, he managed to compose himself as he talked to the old man,

"The strip club isn't open at the moment since it's about eight a.m. We're going to have to wait until the evening or night. I recommend we regroup after they open."

Nodding in agreement, the old man was about to speak, but Asura cut him off.

"Of course, you would know that, you unholy priest! We should punish the adulterer!"

Asura pointed at tomato head as he laughed, causing Ash to turn brighter red, matching the color of his forehead. Ash pulled his fist up, ready to strike at the laughing ogre as he shouted.

"It's common knowledge! Why would a strip club be open at eight am!"

The old man stomped on the ground to interrupt their bickering, sending tremors through the floor. Dust scattered through the room as the desks and chairs rattled. With a stern tone, he shouted,

"Enough fighting! We will meet later tonight after they open. You have all been up for the past few days, so take this time to get some rest. Be prepared and be ready when it opens. This is the end of the discussion."

Tossing his papers aside, the old man left his desk and headed straight out the door, leaving no time for questions.

"Guess he is busy today..."

Mel was the next to leave after the old man, leaving without a word.

"Count your days, Asura."

Ash's gaze never left Asura as he walked out of the room. Seething with anger, Ash clenched his fist digging his fingernails into his skin. Asura couldn't help but mimic his narrowed, furious eyes that rested on him. Pushing his eyebrows down with his finger, the ogre mocked the upset priest.

"Oh, look at me. I'm a stuck-up racist priest who gets mad at everything."

Wain and Asura looked at each other while laughing hysterically. Wain has never seen Ash so frustrated and embarrassed. Although he never wanted to take revenge into his own hands, he did find it amusing that the one who always belittled him was powerless against an immature monster. After taking their time laughing, the two decided it was finally time to leave and return to their rooms.

Walking down the halls, the two were quite surprised when Lilly burst from the shadows and ran straight to Asura. Surprised by the unexpected attack, Asura grabbed her as she squirmed around. Trying to hide herself, she buried her face in his arms as if it made the rest of her disappear. Immediately after, Marco and Joel ran up with the Nun he had met earlier.

"Lily, you can't run like that. What if you fall and get hurt?"

Lily giggled as she clutched the ogre's shirt,

"It's fine. Mister Demon would catch me."

She turned around with a massive grin on her face. "This mischievous little gremlin." He laughed,

"Quit calling me a demon, you little rat. It is mean. Call me Asura."

"OK, mister Asoora. What are you doing?"

"Getting ready to beat up some bad guys. Shouldn't you be getting ready for school?"

Marco and Joel nodded energetically, answering it for Lily. From behind the boys, the nun let out a sigh,

"Thank you for catching her. Yes, she needs to get ready. Please give her to me."

As the nun reached out, Asura passed Lily into her arm. Pressing the child gently into the woman's grasp, Asura's fingers grazed her skin, causing her to recoil. Although she tried to hide it, the nun slowly wiped her hand against her side. Not until that moment did the full extent of how much she abhorred his presence become apparent to him.

Asura knew people hated him because of his race, but he hoped his actions and time here would have influenced their opinion, even if it were just a little. "Guess four days of being nice can't replace thousands of years of monsters eating them." Asura thought to himself,

"Look I ain't going to hurt you, lady. You can't fight me, so I'm not interested."

Taking Lily fully into her arms, she watched as the ogre walked away down the hallway without another word.

"I'm sorry for my assumptions. I am just a little scared from previous experiences. Forgive me. I know you have been working with The Temple."

Asura waved back at her, a little annoyed by the constant use of excuses. With his other hand, he motioned Wain to follow.

"Whatever, just quit assuming."

Following his friend, Wain looked back at the nun and Lily, squirming from the nun's arms. Lily waved goodbye to Asura as the two walked away.

"Goodnight, mister Asura."

Smiling, he replied,

"Goodnight."

Out of the blue, the faint smell of quotidian mana filled Asura's nose, making it wrinkle. "Quotidian mana? How?" The ogre whipped his head around, studying the walls as if they produced the mana.

"You okay?"

"Yeah.. yeah, I am cool."

Asura swiveled around to face Wain, who stood visibly confused by the ogre's erratic movements. The smell wasn't coming from Wain. He was with Wain most of the day, so who is it? "Who could it be? Not Lily or the kids," he thought. They smelled like a child would, gross and like a weird, sweet new smell that all human children have.

"The only other person was the nun?" Asura stared at the nun, who walked away. It couldn't be coming from the nun. Maybe it rubbed off him earlier when she touched him," but he had no mana. Maybe someone else was in the room earlier." Asura had met a few people who were not part of the team.

A few nuns, some worshippers who enter the main hall, and a cook but all of them run terrified by his presence. "Why would any of them smell like quotidian mana?" He couldn't help but argue himself. It just couldn't be the nun.

Wain stood baffled as Asura looked around, inspecting every inch of the hallway. Expecting an explanation, he waited, but Asura turned and walked. By now, Wain was unbothered by the ogre's ridiculous antics. It was becoming the norm for him. Without a question, Wain followed behind, more interested in what he had noticed earlier. He was more concerned with the smile the ogre gave Lily and teasingly poked Asura at his side.

"Guess the big bad monster has a weak spot for kids."

Rolling his eyes at Wain's tease, Asura punched Wain in the arm, causing him to hit the wall.

"Shut up."

After smashing into the wall, Wain rubbed his shoulder in pain. Deciding it was wiser not to tease anymore, Wain walked back in silence as they returned to their rooms. In the silence, Asura pondered the lecture, surprised that the humans had not used the Succubi before.

They have been prominent in this realm for years. Even he knew that. The lustful monsters would obviously have a lot of information on their customers or those mingling with them. Yet humans believe that, as if they have full control over their realm, the monsters have not influenced them greatly from the shadows.

Once they arrived back at their room, they both crashed onto their beds. Asura looked like a spider with all his limbs spread out. The bed was super soft, softer than anything in his realm he could compare it to, at least. He snuggled down into the sheets; he was glad he did not have to sleep on the rocks he usually slept on back home. Their rough texture, partnered with jagged proportions, made it super uncomfortable compared to this sweet heaven blessing his body with the softness of a cloud.

The ogre began to doze off as the Sandman crept into his mind.

-------------------------------------------------------------

A freezing wind blew across Asura's face, waking him up from his deep slumber. Asura jolted upward, feeling sand beneath his hands as he pushed himself up off the ground.

"Sand?"

Looking around at the familiar wasteland he knew all too well, he let out a depressed sigh. He saw the same white sand that always filled the land. Empty with no monsters in sight, he could only frown at the gloomy wasteland. This land was once filled with a great, prosperous, and lively kingdom.

Remembering all his battles here, Asura looked down for a moment as memories from his past flooded his mind. As he tried to remember specific details, a massive headache swept through his head, causing it to throb. He fell to the floor in pain, gripping his skull tightly.

"Fuck man..."

For a few minutes, he could only writhe in agony. Then suddenly, the headache stopped, allowing Asura to lift himself off his knees. The air began to ripple, crackle, and twist. It seemed to be alive. Asura watched from afar. He was powerless to stop this. Like a curtain being pulled, the air separated, revealing a door to another realm.

"Gates... and several of them," he thought. He knew what this meant... the kings were trying to invade this realm and take it as their own. Having another realm, especially this one, would benefit their schemes. Asura angrily shouted,

"Hey stop that. This is my graveyard! I am the only one allowed to be in this shitty place!"

A voice behind him echoed in a ghostly rasp.

"They cannot hear you, nor would they care."

Turning around. Asura was met with a tall, black, ghostly figure standing uncomfortably close.

"Holy crap... You scared me. Also, personal space, dude. Step back, okay?"

Its black, smoky body faded in and out of existence as if it could not maintain a grip on this reality. A swirling purple light from within the thick, smoky body flashed like lightning in a storm cloud. It spoke again,

"Come back and take what is yours."