What was once was a field covered in blue flowers was now nothing more than a wasteland similar to those in Hell. Chaos was now outside the temple, busy resting.

- It's a shame. That was a really nice field- Samukai said drying his weapons.

- That's how black comet works. And that is why I love it- demon gave a cocky smile, but it quickly turned into a frown of pain- ugh, and that's going to hurt for the rest of the evening- he said looking at his tail. Or rather the bone that was slowly regenerating.

- Well, you sure are lucky to have such great regeneration- warrior took a closer look at the wound in place of the wing. It was worse than he at first imagined. It was like looking into pure oozing darkness.

- Heh, if you will be as great as me you to will have such healing factor- Phantom looked at the shadow- Noktum, when I regrow my tail, we start with your training

- So should I prepare for battle or prepare the books?- magician asked.

- Books- demon gave a short reply.

Noktum took the bag and started taking various magic books. Soon on the ground were lying many books covering nearly all magic schools. There were spells, both offensive and defensive, arts, traps, curses, blessings, circles, aspects, and even one book about united magic! The only ones missing were martial arts, but that was to be expected.

- Quite a collection you have right there- Samukai commented at the sheer quantity that Phantom possessed.

- I needed to keep myself occupied in Hell, especially during the peaceful times. And learning magic seemed to be the best choice

- Peaceful times? Is there such a thing in Hell?

- It's not really a peaceful time literally, more like a period where we were sealed from anything. And during that time it was so boring. The only things that you could do were either train or fight in the coliseum. Even that gets boring after a few centuries, let alone millennia. You know, since you asked me a question I will now ask you. Why do you have so many swords?

- So that's how we play. Two of them are for weaker monsters and arts of duality- samurai pointed at his crossed blades- and Izanagi for stronger monsters. My turn, why use scythe? It's not that great weapon to begin with

- Anything can be staff, so I thought to myself "Why not go with a cool one?"- demon then summoned his scythe- Now, how did you die?

Before Samukai was able to answer that question, Noktum spoke.

- Master, maybe you could teach me union magic?

- We'll return to that later- Phantom pointed at the warrior- Noktum, you sure pick a hard one

- I doubt he would have much problem with that- samurai said.

- And what makes you think so?

- I saw him summon that abbadon of yours, without even chanting its name

This surprised the demon. Samukai must have been bluffing, it would have been difficult for a novice to pull off an abbadon, let alone silent cast it.

- You say so, Noktum cast abbadon, now!- spellcaster commanded.

Shadow summoned a red pentagram. It started spinning. Soon it released a red beam that lasted for a few seconds and then stopped. Demon laughed.

- Now I know why lord Lucifer gave you to me! You have the potential, but you need a competent teacher. Worry not, I come second, right after lord Beelzebub- Phantom said, pride filling his eyes. Warrior wanted to say something about the competency, but decided to let demon have this one- Now as for your answer

- Well, there is nothing much to say about it. I was, at the time, busy keeping wyverns away from my lord's garden. Everything was like any other day. Then we heard horses coming our way. Soon enough those fucking bitches from the south appeared from the woods, killed everyone and burned the village, because fuck me, my lord and my home! I hope that every single one them was later on killed in most painful way possible!- Samukai took a deep breath- Sorry, I got carried away a little

- And by south you mean?- demon asked.

- Those damn savages from Suzaku!

- Say, have you ever wanted to kill them?

- Yes! When I was dying and during my first few years in Hell, after that I kinda gave up on that

- Why?

- I didn't seemed like I would ever had a chance to get out

- Well now you're here so I don't see where the problem is. We can go all the way to Suzaku, it's not like we have a deadline on this mission

Could Phantom really mean that? Could they really go to Suzaku? It's not that demon would pass upon a chance of destroying something, but Samukai didn't know how to feel about this. After all these years, he could avenge his home, but would that be the right thing to do?

- I...I need to thing about that

Demon wanted to say something, but stopped when he felt something wet hit him. The rain has started and it did not seem like it would go away anytime soon. Noktum casted a barricade to shield the team from the rain, even if just a little. Shadow also hid the books in the bag to make sure none of them would be damaged.

- Now, it's my time to ask- warrior said after a few minutes of silence- What is with that your obsession about power and Lucifer?

- I think I already told you that in this world the strongest survives. Besides, what soldier would I be if I was weak? By being strong I can somehow repay lord Lucifer for everything he did for us

- Like what?

- First thing first, without him we wouldn't have a home to live in. Not only that he gave us everything and let us rise from our knees after everything that happened. In exchange we swore our loyalty to him and it is our duty to serve our Lord. I'd even dared to say that this is privilege more than a duty

- So he's kinda like your savior of some sort?

- Yes

- Say, is getting stronger his wish or yours?

Phantom was slightly taken aback by the question. What was warrior meaning by that? It was natural for the king to wish for his people to be strong and it was natural for the people to follow their leader.

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- I guess it's both- demon said after a while- After all I want to get stronger and no one is changing that. Now is there something you fear?

- I hope you ain't asking that to scare me in the future. But yes, bugs. Especially the big ones. Well it's more of a disgust than a fear, but still. And why do they need so many eyes and legs?- Samukai shuddered a little- Do you have any fears?

- No- it was a quick answer.

Oh come on, it isn't nice to lie, you know? Pharaoh's voice echoed in the demon's mind.

The hell would you know?

I know more about you that you can imagine

Weirdo

- Well it is expected after our leader- Noktum joined to the conversation. Now the wind joined the rain and the barricade set by the magician wasn't as useful as before.

- One hell of a weather. Can't any of you do something about this?

- Do I look like I can control the weather? I can only make it rain fire if you want

- No, I think it's fine as it is- warrior then took a glance at demon's wounds. To his surprise wings were nearly rebuilt, all that was left in them were some holes. As for the tail, at least an entire bone structure was made, so that's something- You know, the more I think about it, you are kinda like a ballista made of glass- Demon raised his head, looking at the samurai with a slight confusion.

- Why is that?- Phantom asked with sheer curiosity.

- You can hit hard, but don't seem to be able to endure many hits

Phantom chuckled a little.

- I guess you're kinda right. But who need endurance when you have regeneration of my level

- Fair enough. Say why have you chosen spells? I could see a potential warrior in somebody with six arms

- Believe me, I tried using weapons at the very beginning, but it wasn't for me. Then lord Beelzebub noticed my magic aura and decided that I shall learn spells. And I'm glad that I've listened to him since no other magic school could provide me with such amount of power

- I see. So what about you Noktum?

- It's pretty similar to master's. After all I was designed as a mage so I haven't got much choice

- And what about the Fenfir? And why is he called like that?

- A simple guard dog, really nothing special- demon answered- as for the name, lord Lucifer decided to name him after Fenrir due to his massive size even for a hellhound. Well then I'm gonna rest for a while and let my tail regrow, and then we can continue our chit-chat

An hour later, demon's entire tail was nearly regenerated; all that was left was a tip. Noktum was now talking with Samukai, Fenfir serving them as a support. Wolf had his tongue out, trying to catch as many raindrops as possible. Phantom couldn't blame him. Hell hounds weren't used to seeing rain and always took an opportunity to play or simply taste it when they had a chance to do so. Phantom himself was playing with the crystals, which glowed illuminating the rain drops that were near them. Now since he had three of them pharaoh should react, but for now he remained silent.

Oi, Pharaoh. I already got three of them. What is your plan? A minute passed. Then two, and a few more. Demon was growing impatient due to lack of answer.

Great! Now I can finally teach you something. But first do you know how spells are composed?

Was Pharaoh making a fool of him? Of course he knew how every spell is composed. Just as there is fire, wind, earth and water there also is the fifth element responsible for creating this world called magic. But compared to others it is not visible to a naked eye and it attaches itself to any other element it can find. That is the earthly part of the spell. Then there's the spiritual part in which auras exist and where magic aura allows the spell to even exist in the first place. It was the very first thing he was taught by lord Beelzebub.

Why are you asking?

Because you all miss one last ingredient. Chaos. And what if I told you that you are able to overload spells with Chaos?

What? How?

Well I can teach you how, but if your body survives is another question

I'm strong enough to endure some magic

Don't be so full of yourself since you are speaking about something that is far beyond you. But of course those lessons won't be free. Yet I guess you've figured it out

Demon grunted at that response but said nothing. Meanwhile Samukai decided to ask Noktum about something that was on his mind.

- Say, when we were trying to drag him of that weird thing in the maze, have you also seen some kind of a desert?- warrior asked in a hushed tone.

- Yes, I thought I was the only one- shadow responded in an equally quiet voice- but the more impressive were those towers. I've never saw anything like them

- Yea, it's almost like they weren't from this world or something. I believe that they were as tall as mountains

- Possible, but who built them?

- I don't know if there is a way to build them. I mean how do you want to build something made of glass?

- You're kinda right. Do you think he often has those visions?

- We could ask him but I doubt we will get an answer- Noktum said, scratching his horn.

- What are you talking about?- Phantom asked, deciding to join them.

- Nothing, really- warrior replied- Say, when we were in that maze, have you seen anything weird?

- Like what?

- I don't know desert

Demon froze for a moment. Now he didn't know if he should tell them what he saw, or if to even tell them about the Pharaoh. It's not like they would've believed him if he told them that he was talking with a Pharaoh that, possibly, only he can see or even talk to. On the other hand it's not like they weren't used to this kind of stuff. After all Hell was a home for many bizarre beings.

Oh, don't even bother. It's not like anyone is going to believe you anyway

And here it was again. As always echoed in his mind. While Phantom didn't like to be bossed around, he decided to tell them about Pharaoh later on, if there is going to be a better occasion to do so.

- Not really

- If you say so- samurai said not really convinced. Demon took way too long to answer a simple yes or no question.

Can you stop being so closed about yourself? We are supposed to be a team dammit! Samukai screamed in his mind.

The rain seemed to go away slowly. A few rays of sunlight started to pierce through the clouds, illuminating the destroyed land. Puddles formed everywhere, making it look like a mini version of a valley of a hundred lakes.

- Give me a few more minutes and we can depart. Now since you asked me so many questions, it's turn for me to ask- the demon stopped to clear his mind and take a deep breath.

Samukai waited, not knowing what the demon may ask. Could be something about his life? Why was he a samurai? Why did his armor have such colors and not others? Why can't he stomach extreme violence? Impatient, he waited.

- Am I a good leader?

That question took the warrior aback. Of all the things he expected, it was not one of them. He truly didn't know what to answer. Could it be that Phantom is actually trying to change? Or was it to see how much better he is than humans? Warrior had a hard time deciding if he should judge the demon by human standards or those from Hell. He even needed to think of traits from a good leader. There definitely was power, but did the demon have anything else.

- I'm waiting

- I...I truly do not know

- What do you mean you don't know? Simple yes or no

- It isn't so easy you know?

- So I'm gonna take it as a no

- Give me one week. Then I will be able to say if you are good or not

- Fine, but you will help me and I will continue my teaching

- Yea, that would be the case

Phantom looked at the sky. Really clear for something that was filled with clouds just a few moments ago.

- Well then, it's time to go. Next stop, Vatican- Phantasm said as he got up.

In the meantime somewhere far beyond any edge of the universe a familiar figure was standing in a seemingly endless void. Though it was hard to call it a void since it was filled to the brim with colors that have not existed anywhere else than there. A pharaoh clad in nothing but darkness stood before one of the few gates that existed before anything. The gate squirming and screaming at him.

- Yes, yes, I know you want to be free, but it takes time

Gate seemed to glow in anger at the words of the pharaoh. He stood calmly and waited. Soon the gate returned to its normal state. Many voices calling to him, cursing him, pleading, or just seemingly speaking nonsense.

- Now, I assure you, this time I will succeed- he needed to return since something noticed his presence. Many shapeless forms started coming out from the colors, trying to get the pharaoh as far from the gate as it was possible.

- Oh my, I've been here longer than needed. Well then time for me- the pharaoh vanished grinning like a madman knowing that his new toy will be his key to the gate.