DxD: Building A Demon Clan From Scratch.

After Lynn's reminder, Kotoko remembered that setting. Her face suddenly stiffened, and even the pain in her forehead was temporarily forgotten.

She had accepted a commission, obtained a portion of Hell, and even gained a few capable and adorable subordinates—yet she still had to pay a reward?

She was the one who had paid, so why did Lynn end up with all the benefits?

She pulled herself together, then asked calmly, "So, what does Master Lynn want?"

She hadn't forgotten the price list of the Supernatural Investigation Club.

Maou-class commissions were evaluated on a case-by-case basis!

She could only hope that what Lynn had said earlier still applied.

Lynn stroked his chin, eyes fixed on the glowing Evil Piece, and said, "Naturally, I want you to become one of my followers."

Knew it!

A gloomy feeling rose in Kotoko's chest.

Yes, of course. Otherwise, you wouldn't be pulling this piece out.

Lynn continued, "You've seen how things are in Hell. That Three-Eyed Spider might not be that powerful, but with the environment of Hell behind it, it's a bit troublesome."

Kotoko pursed her lips.

What Lynn said was accurate.

And...

The Hell Correspondence system had been built by that spider. Solving the issues with the Hell Website meant dealing with that thing sooner or later.

It would be impossible to accomplish the task with only her negotiation skills.

Well...

She sighed in her heart, falling into silence and confusion.

"Of course..."

Lynn suddenly changed the subject and smiled. "Even if I'm a devil, devils nowadays are surprisingly trustworthy."

"Let's forget it this time. Next time..."

A magic circle rose beneath Lynn's feet, and his final words echoed in Kotoko's ears.

"...please don't send me another commission."

As soon as those words fell, Lynn's figure vanished.

Kotoko stared at the spot he had disappeared from in a daze before murmuring, "He... just left?"

She had thought she might lose her virginity tonight.

But...

Lynn's sudden departure gave her a sense of relief.

Yet his decisiveness also made her feel a bit empty.

"No, no, no!"

Kotoko shook her head, then laughed at herself. "Do I really want to be someone's harem member?"

The Supernatural Investigation Club was pretty famous at Shuchiin!

But...

For devils, having a harem seemed completely normal!

"Well... I'll worry about that later..."

Kotoko quickly accepted it.

If she was destined to become Lynn's harem member, then it was bound to happen eventually.

Let the future unfold on its own.

But...

Kotoko looked at the pitch-black street, her eyelid twitching. "He just abandoned a defenseless girl like me out here?!"

She was still scared of walking alone at night!

"Princess! Princess!!"

Suddenly, a duck-like voice called out.

Hearing the familiar sound, Kotoko finally exhaled in relief, but then glared at the little monsters that floated over with a disgruntled look.

"You only came out after the devil left?"

She looked at the cowardly monsters with disappointment in her eyes.

"M-My Lady Princess…"

The little red-skinned monster trembled. "That devil was terrifying!"

"Uh-huh!"

The others nodded frantically, still shaken. "He's way too scary!"

"We don't want to end up as devil food!"

Ghostly wails echoed along the dark street.

"Alright, alright."

Kotoko waved her hand dismissively. "Let's head back to the base camp."

She took the lead, leaning on her cane.

Even if Lynn didn't make her sell herself, she still needed to compensate him somehow.

Kotoko understood that well.

Just because someone didn't demand compensation didn't mean she didn't have to offer it.

Besides, she was dealing with a Maou. She had to tread carefully.

Especially after the trip to Hell, her understanding of Lynn's power made her all the more cautious.

She'd need to go home and check if any of the old geezers had stashed away some valuable treasures.

Kotoko stroked her chin, thinking about who she could squeeze something from.

Suddenly, she said, "What if…"

"I just became a devil?"

The surrounding monsters were horrified. "Princess, are you going to abandon us?!"

They all burst into exaggerated wails. Kotoko was nearly overwhelmed by the noise.

But...

After that sudden thought, Kotoko finally realized what kind of commission she should give Lynn.

Since he wanted followers so badly, why not just give him one?

Yes!

That's settled!

Now that she thought about it...

What exactly were those Blessings?

Kotoko was genuinely curious.

But Lynn had only said it was a power gained after being reincarnated into his Peerage. He hadn't explained the details.

She couldn't understand the strange writing etched onto Kikuri and the others' bodies either.

Even if Lynn had copied it for her, Kotoko wouldn't dare investigate it.

She just had a feeling...

If she probed too deeply, something bad would happen...

That must be one of Lynn's secrets.

And maybe...

If she really did explore those secrets, Lynn might not let her off so easily?

Kotoko fell into deep thought.

Meanwhile, seeing Kotoko's hesitation, Lynn wasn't in a rush to force her into submission.

Sooner or later, she'd fall into his hands anyway.

…

The next day.

Inukimi finally moved out of her den and returned to the Warring States period she was originally loyal to.

This time, she would bring a group of dog demons back to Hell.

Eventually, the entire Dog Demon clan would follow.

Though doing so might erase their presence from the world for five hundred years...

By entering Hell, they'd secure official status within the system!

How many youkai could even dream of that?

Even if Lord Lynn's Hell was still in its infancy, Inukimi had absolute faith in his power!

The Western Dog Demons would rise from Hell!

At the same time—

Muroto Sumire also sent a message to Lynn.

"Master Lynn, we discovered something new after studying monsters."

"Oh?"

Lynn's interest was piqued.

Muroto continued:

"We've found that when processed monster blood is used to infect animals, the resulting meat becomes very delicious and boosts the stats of Peerage members."

"We call it Monster Meat."

Lynn stroked his chin. "So you actually developed something useful?"

Monster meat...

A rare ingredient?

Normally, due to the monster's tainted blood, their flesh couldn't be used as food.

Even animals contaminated by it would die from miasma.

And yet...

Sumire and the others had managed to neutralize it and make it edible.

"Very nice!"

This was a huge breakthrough for the Peerage!

That said...

Lynn also noticed that his Peerage didn't rely solely on killing monsters to level up.

They could also gain experience through other means.

Not to mention conquering other worlds.

Yesterday's example with Ai Enma said it all.

Just by becoming the [Manager of Hell] and receiving Hell's Blessing, she was instantly promoted to a higher rank.

Now, even eating ingredients with extraordinary properties could increase stats?

However...

Sumire's next message revealed another detail.

"So far, the monster meat cultivated by our Peerage can only improve the stats of lower-ranked devils. It seems to be linked to the quality of the meat."

Lynn understood.

It was just a mutated animal affected by demonic blood.

The fact that it worked even on lower-level devils was impressive.

After reading the rest of their findings, Lynn's eyes lit up.

"In the future... maybe we can invade worlds known for gourmet cuisine?"

If monster meat could boost stats for weaker devils, then acquiring high-grade food from other worlds might work on higher-tier devils.

Lynn fell into deep thought.

At that moment.

In the group chat.

Hell Girl: Lord Lynn, [Devil Correspondence] is now officially online.

"Oh?"

Lynn snapped out of his thoughts. Seeing the message, surprise flashed in his eyes. "That was fast."

Clicking the link Ai Enma had sent, a website resembling [Hell Correspondence] appeared.

She had already set Lynn as the highest-level administrator.

As Lynn had requested, the site would automatically seek out those guided by Evil Pieces.

There was no longer a restriction for it to appear only at midnight.

However...

Whether people who entered [Devil Correspondence] would actually request assistance from devils remained to be seen.

Only by making deals could Lynn eventually bring them into his Peerage.

Still...

There was time.

Lynn stroked his chin as he looked at the website's slogan.

[Do you need the devil's help?]

"The devil's help?"

At Shuchiin, in the Totsuki Culinary Club's private activity room.

Erina Nakiri looked at the sudden popup on her phone and curled her lip.

"What kind of prank is this?"

She put her phone down and tried the food that had just been delivered.

She lifted the spoon, took a sip of soup—and immediately spat it out, face turning sour.

But...

She knew it wasn't the food.

"The curse of the God Tongue…"

Erina's tone turned melancholy.

Lately, it had become harder and harder to find food that satisfied her tongue.

If this continued...

She didn't know what would happen.

Resting her chin in her hand, Erina sighed. Her eyes fell back onto the website on her phone.

The devil's help?

Erina suddenly became interested.

She picked up the phone and began to type.

[Can you make food that satisfies me?]

Send.

A flicker of anticipation rose in her chest, and then she shook her head, laughing at her own childishness.

"I must be losing it to actually believe in devils..."

But the next second, a reply from [Devil Correspondence] popped up.

[Food… I'm not very good at it…]

Erina was stunned.

Curling her lip, she said, "Definitely a prank…"

Then another message appeared.

[But… maybe you'll find this interesting?]

Erina: "?"

What?

Just as she was about to question it, a black magic circle formed on her phone screen.

Click.

A slab of meat fell onto the table.

"Ahh!"

Startled, Erina threw her phone.

"Paranormal event!!"

She jumped away from the table and crouched in a corner, hugging her head and trembling.

"L-Lord Devil, I thought it was a joke! I didn't mean to offend you!"

Her voice was tearful, nearly breaking into sobs.

Then—

Click

The door opened.

"Huh?!"

Erina yelped and curled into herself in fear.

The devil's really here?!

But…

Hisako Arato stood at the entrance, silent for a moment before asking, "Miss…"

"Are you filming some kind of prank show?"

Erina: "…"

Recognizing the voice, she cautiously looked up and saw the empty room.

She breathed a deep sigh of relief, stood up, and patted her chest.

"What the…"

"I thought the devil had come…"

She mumbled, but Hisako heard it loud and clear.

Hisako offered a polite, awkward smile and pretended she hadn't heard anything.

So this was...

A chuunibyou phase.

Erina, finally calm, noticed Hisako and instantly stiffened.

It's over!

Hisako saw the entire embarrassing display!

This is the end!

Her toes curled in shame.

Seeing this, Hisako calmly said, "Ojou, I didn't see anything just now."

Erina shot her a look of betrayal.

Does she think I'm a child?!

Like she would believe that.

But...

It's just Hisako, so it's fine...

Erina reassured herself, then turned her gaze back to the slab of meat on the table.

Her heart turned cold.

There was no doubt now—what just happened had been real.

A devil.

That word echoed in her mind, and her body began to tremble again.

She was being targeted… wasn't she?

Just as panic set in, her phone buzzed again.

Another message.

Erina froze.

Seeing her freeze, Hisako tilted her head. Wasn't that her phone?

Since Erina wasn't moving, Hisako picked it up.

Her eyes swept across the message.

[Devil Correspondence]

[You must pay a price to make a deal with a devil~]

A devil?

So this was why Erina had reacted that way?

Confused but not taking it too seriously, Hisako handed her the phone. "Ojou, your phone."

Erina: "…"

Thanks, Hisako.

She took the phone stiffly and stared at the message.

Payment?!

She panicked, quickly trying to think of something to offer.

Then she looked up.

"Hisako! I need to cook!"

…

Meanwhile—

Supernatural Investigation Club.

Client information popped up on Lynn's phone.

[Erina Nakiri]

A faint smile appeared in Lynn's eyes.

Seeing her request, he immediately thought of her problem with the God Tongue.

Now, the newly developed monster meat would come in handy.

Compared to regular ingredients, monster meat had far higher quality.

Not to mention—it was an extraordinary ingredient.

Lynn had his Peerage send a sample over.

He was curious.

After tasting food with extraordinary properties, would the God Tongue still turn its nose up at ordinary dishes?

Or rather...

After tasting monster meat, could Erina ever leave... [Devil Correspondence]?

(To be continued.)