Heart Devil [OP Yandere Schizo Ramble LitRPG XD]

Central Neel, Capital City Serenis, Pantheon Grand Temple

Arden stood before a marble statue seated on a pure white throne, the avatar of his god. The marble man was rather frail-looking, but his handsome features and noble air emitted a refined aura, giving off the feeling he was more of a scholar than a fighter.

He was Janus, heavenly summoner and god of peace.

The god shifted nervously in his seat as he pondered over the words of his champion. He was feeling stressed from the report of events.

"So this devil mentioned the coming of Ragnarok?" He asked, gazing down at his champion with a face mixed with anxiety and apprehension.

Arden nodded, his face sympathetic as he answered. "Indeed, but I don't know the full details of the little devil's origins; all I know is that she isn't a greed devil and she came from the other side. Whatever power she's from, they seem to be well informed about this side, to an extent at least."

Janus slumped down in his throne, already exhausted thinking about how the next council meeting will go. If the devils of Hellnia know of the term Ragnarok, it is most likely they also know of the treachery and subterfuge done by the more radical gods.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a heavy sigh. He had voted against making deals with the angels to collapse the path to Hellnia, and he had not participated in the purge that followed.

He shook his head. 'But I'll suffer all the same.'

He was just a young god back then; he had no sway in the council's rulings, and on top of that, his vote had caused a rift between him and many other gods. Even his champion at the time looked at him in disgust.

But Janus knew better. The actions they chose would not bring them peace; worse, it would bring mass destruction across the planes of Neel.

He had seen it.

Arden walked up to the throne and patted the frustrated marble on the shoulder. He smiled gently at his god. "Cheer up, Jan; at least things have changed a bit; the path is different now."

The marble shrugged helplessly at his champion's words. "I still need time for the new path to reveal itself; the fate I saw could very well happen just as before despite the break."

Arden's face hardened at the words. He spoke a little sterner than usual. "I won't let that happen. Things will change."

The god chuckled. "What can a mortal do in a game between gods?"

Arden locked eyes with the man seated on the throne, feigning detachment for the future ahead.

He spoke coldly. "I'll do what I must." The seriousness in his voice causing the frail god to shrink a little; it seems his attempts to brush off the situation only made it worse.

"H-hey, don't go out doing pointless things. Arden, you don't carry the branch; your actions will only play into their hands. Let's just wait until my vision is clear; we'll figure things out then."

At Janus' words, Arden clenched his fists and nodded. "I understand. It's just frustrating, being used like this but helpless to do anything."

Janus nodded. "It is, haha, but the strong get to do as they wish; it's the world we live in." He rubbed the back of his neck as he muttered. "If only my gift was a little stronger…"

"..." The cherub said nothing. What could he say? Even when it came to reading fate, some were born superior.

He decided to change the subject; there was no use stressing over things they couldn't control for the time being.

"Ah, my lord. I invited the wizard here. She encountered the little one the longest; I figured speaking to her would be a good idea to gain a better picture of the force backing the young devil."

Janus raised an eyebrow at that. "Hm? And her goddess didn't object?" It was quite abnormal for a god to speak with other gods' champions without express permission, and he had not seen nor heard from the goddess of knowledge.

Arden shook his head, his humble face showing a bit of annoyance. "She didn't even bother glancing at her champion when I made the request. She was more interested in her disciple than her. Had the child been there, I'm sure she wouldn't have even answered my request."

The refined god's jaw tightened at that. Some gods only care about their champions if they are strong; if a champion weakens, they'd lose all favor in an instant. The wizard's god is most likely just waiting for a new successor to take her place.

'All they care about is power and worship. Do our responsibilities not matter?'

Ever since he ascended to godhood, all Janus saw was more people fighting for prestige and power. He thought ascension would elevate humans above worldly desires and petty conflicts.

He glanced over to his champion.

He wanted to laugh at himself for such thoughts, but who was he to talk? It wasn't like he was any different.

"Fine then, let her in." He said, adjusting his posture to a more refined and scholarly one.

The half-angel smiled and shook his head. He looked better relaxed, but a god had their standards, he guessed.

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

~~~

Abigail walked into the temple of Sir Arden's god Janus at his request. Her mind was distracted as she walked past the pillars and embroidered walls decorated with paintings and artifacts.

She had been recovering for the past day in the temple's infirmary for heroes, a place that boosted healing, chi flow, and circuit recovery. One of the only benefits she was allowed to access nowadays, it seemed.

But she couldn't be bothered to care about that anymore; a few hours ago, she truly felt an illusion shrouding her mind shatter before her.

The paladin Arden had requested her goddess to allow Abigail to speak with Janus, god of peace, to recount the battle she faced with the young Hannya.

To Abigail's disappointment, her goddess had waved the question away, not caring, and instead asked about her disciple's whereabouts, eager to speak with him.

The more humiliating part was the fact that her goddess had asked this to Arden and not her, who was standing next to him. She treated her like air now.

She could guess the reason why. It seemed that her goddess had heard about her defeat to the young devil.

It was obvious. Before, when she spoke to her, her goddess at least pretended to be polite and worried. But after finding out about her loss to a being that shouldn't be any stronger than an adult demonic beast at that age, the goddess of wisdom had dropped all pretense, ignoring her disgraceful existence completely.

She truly felt her mind become clear about the world around her, and the small truths she kept buried deep down began to take root and sprout within her.

The gods don't really care about their champions.

The champions aren't chosen to fight against evil and bring peace to the plane.

Evil told to them might not be an absolute evil at all.

These three thoughts began to echo louder in her mind as she thought of the callousness, empty words, and hypocrisy of her goddess.

If these were the qualities of those deemed gods, then what makes them any different from powerful humans? What sets them apart from the devils they label with all three of those characteristics?

As she walked and thought those things, her mind drifted back to the young devil she encountered. The young devil high priestess who offered to lift her curse without a second thought.

An offer that, somehow, shook her heart at the time. And it seemed it was still doing so. Perhaps it was not only the promise of restoring her power that made her think twice, but also the display the young devil had shown in battle.

'Hannya magic…'

The class of magic was clearly named after the young one, a truly devil-like thing to do, but the ability to name it as such spoke volumes in and of itself.

The little priestess was a magic genius. One that managed to create a new school of magic. A feat that most likely gained her the title of high priestess so young for the power backing her.

To be no older than 5 years and achieve that much, she far surpassed Abigail's own ability, it seemed. Such intricate spells were in a league of their own compared to the ones she'd studied and developed.

'If I took her deal, would she be willing to teach me that school of magic?'

Abigail wanted to laugh at her thoughts; she was actually desperate enough to consider taking that deal.

A deal with a devil. A hero's bane.

Or maybe she just wanted to spite her goddess right now. She still wasn't sure. She was so angry and embarrassed she didn't know what to think about anything anymore.

She shut her eyes tight and brushed away that unrealistic power fantasy; she just wanted to get this meeting over with and go back to her tower. Leaving there was a mistake.

The information she gathered was essentially useless; her disciple, for some reason, seemed to have lost faith in her words; her goddess had truly given up on her; and rumors were resurfacing about her weakened and useless state due to her defeat.

The only good thing about this trip was Matilda's ruined reputation. She felt a little guilty about the absolute schadenfreude that bloomed in her heart when she heard the priests snickering about her sorry state and hasty retreat from the city when the elf woke back up, but Abigail had long since had enough of her backhanded comments and superior acting demeanor every time they met.

Elves always acted that way towards other races outside of angels and elementals, the higher species a great deal of them worship instead of gods, but Matilda seemed to target her specifically for some reason. Abigail felt a strange sense of gratitude towards that little devil for crushing her rival even quicker than her.

'Ha, now I'm thankful for that devil; I must really be tired…'

She was indeed tired. A great deal of things had been grating at her for a long time. And it seemed hiding in her tower could only keep those thoughts out of mind for so long.

"Welcome, champion of goddess Thoth, Magic Hero Abigail." A warm and refined voice echoed throughout the temple chamber before Abigail, shaking her out of her rant of grievances and wonders.

As she walked closer to the throne at the back of the spacious temple, she gazed up at the marble man seated upon it. A frail-looking, handsome individual with an artistic and noble air. A different feeling one usually gets in the presence of gods; most felt arrogant and detached, but this one felt amiable and good-natured, especially with the gently smiling Arden standing at his side, a silent endorsement of his god's benign nature.

Abigail knew all would recognize this god; he was one of the most popular ones currently, partially because of his desirable boons and giving nature, and partially because of his powerful and reliable champion.

But for some reason, today, Abigail felt no awe or comfort despite feeling his soft radiance and soothing aura.

She only felt suspicion. This one could be just as hypocritical and two-faced as her own goddess, and this could be just an act to get what he wants, just like Thoth did when she formed a contract with her all those years ago.

Her guard raised, thinking that. He probably treated Arden well because he was useful, but she would not expect the same respect and treatment for herself from now on.

She had just learned this clearly.

She greeted respectfully but a little curtly, just ready to get this farce over with. "Greetings, god of peace, Janus. How may I assist you?"

Janus, noticing this distant air coming from the magic hero, felt a little aggrieved getting treated like an abusive scammer. He knew why she was acting this way and why she felt the world was currently wronging her; his champion had already given him the rundown.

With her curse, her defeat, and her goddess's behavior, he could understand.

He decided to ease the tension that was subtly running through the room; a peaceful atmosphere was always the best to trade information in.

And as the god of peace, he knew the best ways to achieve that vibe for her…

"I'll get straight to the point, steadfast champion. I'd like to know all the information you might have gathered when encountering that young devil. Every detail. And in exchange, I will tell you one truth regarding gods and their champions. In fact, I will answer that first if you'd prefer." The peaceful god smiled.

Honesty.

That was what the magic hero currently needed to feel more at ease in this place. Janus knew that Abigail was currently feeling betrayed and surrounded by enemies. An irrational feeling, but an understandable one, given how that fool Thoth was acting towards her champion.

Hearing that, Abigail only raised her guard higher. She wanted to scoff at this obvious lie.

She didn't even bother acting humble, deferring her question for after. She would ask it now.

And she knew the question she would ask. A question she got the same answer for each time, knowing deep down it was most likely a lie.

"Fine." She replied shamelessly, earning a smile from the refined god. "Then tell me, is a hero's purpose to eliminate all evil in order to bring about peace for the plane?" She stared at the god of peace intently, waiting for the basic roundabout reply she always got.

Janus smiled at the question. Quite direct. He would answer in kind.

He spoke honestly. "The answer is no. Evil has nothing to do with a hero's purpose."