Ch 84: The Star and the Chariot.

It was close to 22:00, and there were still people in the streets. Noah and his group attracted a lot of attention as they walked, but they were used to it by now.

"Hey, Noah." said Miyabi. "All of us are your Cards, but what are our positions exactly?"

Noah scratched his chin.

"I will admit that I haven't really decided, as I intend to treat all of you equally. As equally as possible, at least. Does it matter?"

"Of course it does! When we introduce ourselves to others. At the very least, you need to designate who is the Queen, and who is the Ace. The Ace is the *BAAM* strongest, while the Queen is the second in command!"

"In that case… Lizel is the Queen, as she is the most knowledgeable about the Devil War and is good at scheming… I mean politics." grinned Noah as he winked at Lizel. Lizel winked back, accepting her due.

"The Ace will be… Alice, since she had a Longinus after all. Once we share powers, she will be night unstoppable."

"Reina-chan will be the Knight, and Miyabi… The princess spot would suit you, I think."

Reina and Miyabi nodded, happy with their spots.

"Then there are the Prince spot, and the 2 through 10 remaining. Do you girls have a favorite number?"

"I wouldn't mind the prince spot. Or any other, really. As long as you treat us all equally…" replied Claire.

"Same here." said Hisui. Rui nodded as well.

"Ok, so Prince spot for Claire, Ten for Hisui, Nine for Rui. And seven free spots for future additions. Like the two we're about to meet."

"Are they strong?" asked Rui.

"They are. There is no such thing as a weak Candidate in the Devil War. I just happen to have a wide-ranging arsenal of abilities and spells by now, and a few of them can counter them hard. Like my immunity to curses, and Shunpo. And… they're already waiting for us." smiled Noah as he spotted the two young women waiting near the Academy's gate.

"Hi, Stella, Neith." called out Lizel as they reached them.

"Hi, Lizel." smiled Stella, before turning to Noah. "Hi, Noah-kun. And…"

"Hello, Stella-san, Neith-san. It's nice to see you again. Let me introduce you to Alice Evangelista, Claire Belial, Hisui Aozaki, and Rui Kagami. They are Returnees, and aside from Rui, have extensive combat experience. You already know Reina-chan and Miyabi."

"Yes. It is nice to meet you all. And you certainly seem to be quite proactive, between gathering so many pretty girls and already dealing with three other Candidates. I'm quite impressed."

"H-Hello, everyone." shyly said Neith.

The girls in Noah's group all greeted the Star and Chariot candidates, and Hisui suddenly flinched.

"Ah? Are you perhaps that singer I saw on television?" suddenly asked Hisui.

"That's it! I was wondering where I has seen her before." exclaimed Rui.

"Yes, Stella is among the ten most popular singers worldwide." nodded Lizel.

"And I have to take a flight to America tomorrow early morning, so if you do not mind, I'd like to get that duel out of the way quickly." said Stella.

"Sure. Considering yours and Neith's abilities, a wide-open terrain would be better. The academy's soccer field?"

"It would be a good place. But you know about our abilities?" asked Stella, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Lizel.

They all started walking toward the soccer field as they spoke.

"I didn't tell him anything. His goddess told him a lot about various things, apparently." said Lizel.

"That is correct. I also know about the holder of the Death Arcana, as an example, and why I am the only one who could hope to defeat him."

"What is so special about him?" asked Stella. If she could obtain information on another candidate, she wasn't going to let the opportunity pass.

"Is name is Lost… something, don't remember his last name aside from it having ten or twelve letters. Not that it matters. Lost originally was a normal low-ranking devil in the underworld, but he and his whole village got kidnapped by a high-ranked noble devil scum who used them as experimental subjects. Only Lost survived, but his body became some kind of half living magic formula, half sentient slime, that he can reshape into whatever he wishes. He can turn his body into some kind of tar swamp and swallow anyone, absorbing their powers and bloodline, and physical attacks are fairly ineffective against him, as he has no vital organs and doesn't bleed."

"Your Star of Death won't do anything to him. Your Star of Extinction will at most slow him down a little, forcing him to reform his splattered body. Add to this quasi-invulnerability the powers of the Death Arcana, which include a curse that somehow kills you by erasing your future, and… I just don't see you winning, Stella-san. He has gotten a half-dozen Candidates to follow him for a reason."

"Also, he hates devil nobles and want to kill them all." shrugged Noah.

In the original fiction, the main character, Yuuto, had made friend with Lost, then stopped Lost from murdering Lizel by using his body as a shield, getting fatally injured in the process. And Lizel had traded half of her lifespan to save Yuuto, then they separated. Yuuto had no memories of the incident, because… because of some nonsensical shenanigan from the author Noah didn't remember.

"And you think you can stop such a monster?" asked Stella.

"I'm immune to curses, so his death magic won't do anything to me. And I can replicate the Hole magic from the Abaddon family. It will be a simple matter for me to send him into another dimension." shrugged Noah.

"There's no such thing as a complete immunity to curses! The power of the Arcana is nearly absolute." frowned Stella.

Noah smiled.

"How about you use your Star of Death on me, right now?"

"Ah? Are you sure? It's a lethal curse, you know?"

"Yes."

"Very well, then. Don't complain later."

Stella's eyes glowed slightly, and a black star started appearing on Noah's left cheek, only do disappear immediately after. Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"See?" smiled Noah, adding yet another magic to his arsenal thanks to his Gemini Drive. "My immunity has been granted to me by the Goddess who created the world and every other deity. Something like an Arcana isn't going to take precedence over it.

"You're a monster as expected…" sighed Stella. "Fine, we do not need to duel. Just get rid of that Lost guy, and we'll become your Cards. If you lose to this Lost whatever, we'll follow him instead."

"Ah? That was unexpected…" said Noah.

Stella showed him a bittersweet smile. "…My Star Arcana's Horoscope isn't just a shield. It also gives me a stronger survival instinct, and I somehow know that if you and I were to fight seriously, I would die."

Alice snorted.

"You wouldn't die, because there's no way this pervert would kill a pretty girl. Instead, he would make you his slave."

"Guilty as charged." shrugged Noah. He couldn't really deny it when he planned to do just that to a few of the other Candidates.

"So you're that kind of guy…" mused Stella as she considered him, one finger slowly tapping the corner of her mouth.

Neith blushed intensely and hid behind Stella.

"Yes, I'm a pervert. But I am not a rapist, either, nor do I condone it, and I went after the head of the Devil Candidate as soon as the Unveiling Ceremony was over for a reason. So as long as you say no, I won't force you. Isn't that right, Alice?"

"…That is correct. You are decent, for a pervert." reluctantly admitted the girl.

"I can live with that." decided Stella. She felt confident that she would get Noah to do whatever she wanted, pervert or not. He was handsome enough to be her boy toy, once tamed properly. She would have to see with Lizel first, though, as she wouldn't want to ruin her friendship with her over a man.

As for the cute girls surrounding him… Stella could see them following her when she gave concerts all over the world. They would be good dancers, with enough training.

"Well, we have come to an agreement, then. Get rid of the Death Candidate, and Neith and I will be your Cards. We'll take our leave for tonight." said Stella. Neith urgently needed some time away from them so her nerves could recover.

"Yes. See you later, Stella-san, Neith-san." smiled Noah, spreading his arms, and the girls around him suddenly placed her hands on him.

"Give me a call later, Stella." smiled Lizel.

Stella blinked, wondering what they were doing, when they all suddenly disappeared.

"T-teleportation? Without a magic circle?" asked Neith, relaxing a bit.

"It seems so. If he can also use this in the middle of a battle…" said Stella as she tried to find any trace or residue of demonic magic. There were none.

"Are you really okay with this, Neith? I made the decision for us both, but if you object…"

Neith smiled as she shook her head. "No, I trust you, Stella. I think we would have lost anyway. And… I think he's a nice person. He didn't try to bully me."

Neith, being a very shy person, was often picked on by other devils, males and females alike.

"Yes. I could see that." said Stella in a softer tone. She had met so many people with her career that she had become a good judge of character, and she always made a point of observing how people looked at Neith. Most looked at her with contempt over her social anxiety or lusted after Neith's giant breasts. But Noah had barely looked at Neith's breasts at all, mostly focusing on her eyes whenever he looked at her, and she mostly saw kindness and compassion in his eyes when he did.

If she and Neith had to become another Candidate's Cards, Noah didn't seem like a bad choice.

"Let's return home, Neith." said Stella.