DxD: Building A Demon Clan From Scratch.

Chapter 75: Cool Saeko (BONUS)

At the same time.

Black Bullet World — Late at night.

A group of little girls gathered inside a single house, chatting away non-stop.

They were clearly ecstatic.

"Mr. Lynn is totally an angel!"

"No! He's a Devil!"

"Right! Angels never came to save us!"

"That's gotta be God!"

"Nope! He's a Devil! A Devil!"

"Then… is he a Devil-Angel?"

"It's decided! When I grow up, I'll become a priestess who serves Lord Lynn!"

"What?! No way! I'm the only one who can be Lord Lynn's priestess!"

"Hey! Quit fighting! We're all Lord Lynn's priestesses!"

"Yayyy!!"

After their spirited argument, the energy finally faded, and they drifted off to sleep.

—

The next morning.

The cursed children woke up early.

Even though they were only around ten years old.

Their harsh lives had made them unusually mature.

Lynn hadn't just taken them in, he had turned them into Devils, completely breaking the curse of the Gastrea virus.

In their eyes, Lynn was their god!

They were determined to repay him.

So they looked forward to doing anything they could for Lynn.

Lynn smiled as he saw their eagerness.

He didn't turn them down.

They needed to feel useful, to feel that they had value.

That sense of being needed would help them heal.

"Then, I'll leave the mission of bringing back more companions to you."

"Yes, sir!!" 

—

Outer District.

Nishida Tsubomi arrived at a remote sewer.

She squatted down and knocked on the manhole cover rhythmically.

After a short while, a small head peeked out cautiously.

The girl wore a ragged cap. Her long silver hair was messy, her brows sunken with fatigue, and tension flickered in her silver-violet eyes.

Upon seeing Nishida Tsubomi, she breathed a sigh of relief.

In a weak voice, she said:

"Tsubomi… you're back…"

"Fuse-chan, I brought good news!"

"Ah… really?"

The girl quickly stepped aside. "Come in!"

Nishida Tsubomi nodded and slipped skillfully into the sewer.

What a shame, her freshly changed clothes would soon be soaked with that damp, sour smell.

She composed herself and looked around at the children gathered within.

It was a small hiding place, with only fourteen cursed children, including herself.

They all stared at Tsubomi with hopeful eyes.

Tamako didn't let them down.

"Everyone, listen up!"

"Our savior has come!!"

—

At the same time, similar events unfolded at twelve other hiding spots.

Not long after.

With the efforts of the first batch of cursed children, word had spread.

Though many of the others were still hesitant, skeptical, or fearful.

Their trust in their companions was enough to push them to leave the sewers.

They followed their friends toward the shelter described as a sanctuary created by "God."

—

Two military-green trucks were parked at a central location that could access all the hiding spots.

Saeko leaned calmly against one of them.

Her gaze remained sharp, constantly scanning her surroundings.

The outer area was far from safe.

Gastrea creatures would sometimes appear, attacking any cursed children who ventured out to scavenge.

According to the first batch of girls, a total of 113 cursed children would be rescued this time.

With such a large-scale migration, if they ran into Gastrea, it could trigger mass panic.

Still—

As long as it wasn't a Stage IV Gastrea, Saeko could handle it alone while protecting the girls.

"We've got incoming."

Saeko suddenly spoke, her eyes landing on Nishida Tsubomi, who was waving from a distance.

Seeing this, she smiled faintly.

"They're here. They're here."

From the other truck, Shizuka jumped down and began looking around.

Hmm.

Among Lynn's Peerage, only Saeko and Shizuka knew how to drive.

When Lynn first found out, he was speechless.

He immediately had them practice in the Zombie World.

Of course.

If they could learn Teleportation Magic, that would be a different story.

Nothing else, just transferring cursed children would be so much easier.

"Sister Saeko! Sister Shizuka!"

Nishida Tsubomi arrived with thirteen more little girls.

Saeko smiled gently. "Go wait in the truck for now. You're the first ones here."

The girls behind Tsubomi looked nervous and uneasy.

They kept their heads low, avoiding eye contact with Saeko.

One girl even tried to shrink herself into invisibility, praying no one would notice her.

After some comforting from Tsubomi.

They finally climbed onto the truck.

Soon after.

The second, third, and fourth waves arrived without issue.

But just as the fifth wave approached.

"Huh? What's going on?!"

Mariko, who was leading that group, exclaimed.

Boom boom.

A subtle tremor shook the ground beneath their feet.

It felt like something was moving underground.

And the next second.

A massive beast erupted from the ground behind the group!

"Ahh!"

One of the cursed children at the rear screamed and fell.

She turned around, eyes wide in terror.

What appeared was a centipede-spider hybrid Gastrea.

Its face had no features, only a massive vertical mouth that filled the entire space, lined with three rows of jagged teeth.

A poisonous mist seeped out from its abdomen.

"This is bad!!"

On the truck, the cursed children who were already seated panicked at the sight.

Their hearts sank.

We're gonna die!

What do we do?! What do we do?!

As cursed children, the fear of death was deeply rooted in them.

Clang—

Just as despair settled in.

Saeko's katana was unsheathed.

She raised the blade and slashed in the direction of the Gastrea.

Whoosh.

A white arc tore through the air, cutting forward at extreme speed!

Before the Gastrea could react, the slash struck its tough carapace!

Shhhhk!

With a loud thud, its upper body was sliced clean off and hit the ground.

"Eh?"

Every cursed child froze at the sight.

"So cool… that big sister's amazing!"

Someone on the truck whispered in awe.

Mariko also stood stunned for a moment.

Then she quickly shouted, "What are you doing?! Move! Go!"

The others snapped out of their stupor and rushed forward, helping the girl who had fallen.

Mariko, who had inherited Gastrea traits, knew.

Unless its core was destroyed, a Gastrea wouldn't die.

She yelled out, "Sister Saeko! You have to destroy the core or it'll regenerate!"

Saeko narrowed her eyes.

Though she had cut the creature in half, its lower body still twitched.

From the severed part, dark tumors squirmed wildly, as if something was about to grow.

Core?

Saeko glanced around but saw nothing resembling a core.

Well then…

If she couldn't find it, she'd just slice it apart again.

She swung her blade a few more times.

The spider-like Gastrea was chopped into pieces, its body clattering to the ground.

Haaah~

The cursed children shivered in fear.

"So it was in the abdomen."

After chopping the creature into a rotten mess, Saeko finally spotted its core.

Without hesitation, she destroyed it.

Then she calmly sheathed her blade and turned to the girls with a gentle smile.

"All right. It's over now."

Silence filled the area.

What a cool big sister… though, a bit scary.

(To be continued.)