My Wives are Beautiful Demons

"Breaking news! The Vatican has confirmed the death of Pope Adrian this morning. Local authorities have classified the case as 'extremely grave' and are not ruling out the possibility of assassination."

The screen changes to another channel.

"The Pope's body was found in his chambers, but details about the cause of death have not yet been released. Vatican Police investigators are conducting an unprecedented security operation."

Change of channel. Now, a serious anchor surrounded by experts.

"The impact of this tragedy will be felt by millions of faithful worldwide. Churches in several nations have already begun organizing vigils, and crowds are gathering in St. Peter's Square to mourn."

Another channel change. A live journalist at the Vatican, with hundreds of mourners crying in the background.

"The scene here is one of pure emotion. People are kneeling, praying, some visibly desperate. Many are asking: who could commit such a terrible crime against the supreme leader of the Catholic Church?"

A sudden channel switch to a debate program where experts discuss the incident.

"Unconfirmed sources suggest that the Pope's body was found in a... shall we say, disturbing state. The Vatican has yet to comment officially on the violence involved in the death."

Another channel. An agitated reporter in front of the Vatican.

"Rumors are already circulating on social media. Some believe this could be related to extremist groups. Others mention a possible internal coup."

A quick switch to a conspiracy theory show.

"The Vatican has been hiding something for centuries. Was this death just an accident? Or are we dealing with something much bigger than we imagined?"

The television kept changing channels rapidly, each bringing a new version, a new theory, a new angle. The world watched, perplexed, at the impact of the brutal death of the most influential man in the Church.

Morgana sighed, massaging her temples as she examined once again the insane formulas Alice had handed her.

"Just when I think things can't get worse..." she murmured, isolated from the others who were sprawled on the giant sofa.

Roxanne, Stella, Sapphire, Katharina, Ada, and even Raphaeline were there, all in silence, absorbing the chaos broadcasted on the screens.

At first, confusion dominated the room, but soon...

"H-he... killed the Pope?" Zex asked with a trembling voice, sitting at the table next to Morgana, her hands clenched tightly on her knees.

"Well, that's what happens when you show things he despises to a man with firmly defined principles," Sapphire commented from afar, her carefree tone contrasting with the gravity of the situation.

"But—" Zex tried to argue, but her own hesitation betrayed her. She took a deep breath, crossed her arms, and huffed. "Ah, you know what? Screw it. Good thing he killed that bastard."

"I agree. Hopefully, he's sitting on the Devil's lap now, getting a good ol' trident up his ass."

Iridia's carefree comment made all heads turn in her direction.

"Hm? What?" Iridia blinked innocently.

"For a woman of God... you sure have a filthy mouth," Roxanne commented, raising an eyebrow.

There was a brief silence.

And then, everyone agreed.

"Anyway, it's surprising that he killed the Pope. Even though he wasn't the strongest, he was probably the smartest," Roxanne shrugged.

"Hm? Smart?" Raphaeline laughed dismissively. "Girl, that guy was the dumbest of them all."

Ada shot a curious look at her mother, clearly expecting an explanation.

"Ah, Demon Queen secrecy, you can't even imagine." Raphaeline let out a theatrical sigh.

"Mom." Ada crossed her arms, clearly demanding an answer.

"Alright, Stella." Raphaeline gestured.

Stella nodded and began: "Well, he'd been sentenced to death for quite a while. Actually, it was a general consensus. Fallen Angels, Angels, and us, Demons, agreed to eliminate the Inquisition."

"Why?" Katharina asked, furrowing her brow.

"When the non-aggression pact was made, it applied to everyone. The Angels have their own territories in the skies, so they gained more political power, and the rest, lands. That's why only the Vatican is a major headquarters, so we divided the continents equally, ensuring areas for each faction. But the Inquisition took its share of land because of a certain incident..." Sapphire spoke carelessly.

"A long time passed, and in these thousand years, no Inquisition leader broke the contract that the grandmother of that little girl over there helped establish... until..." Stella spoke, looking at Zex, who diverted her gaze, clearly uncomfortable.

"Until they kidnapped me," Roxanne finished, crossing her legs and dramatically sighing. "Wow, I caused the downfall of an entire organization just because I wanted to eat sweets."

She picked up a donut from the table, took a bite, and grinned mischievously.

"I feel so guilty." She mocked, licking her sugar-covered fingers. Just before Roxanne could take another bite of the donut, a strong purple light filled the center of the room.

A magical formation appeared, drawing complex symbols in the air, and before anyone could react, two figures emerged from the light.

Sepphirothy and Vergil.

The first to manifest was Vergil, appearing with a bored expression, arms crossed as if he were there against his will. Beside him, Sepphirothy emerged from the magic circle as though she owned the place, her sharp gaze analyzing every detail of the room.

Silence reigned for a moment.

It was Roxanne who broke the tension, blinking a few times before murmuring:

"... I've seen a lot of dramatic entrances, but this one..."

"I thought it was necessary," Sepphirothy said, smirking. "It's not every day you take down a Pope, so I thought I'd celebrate."

Vergil sighed heavily. "I'm tired and annoyed."

Stella stood up from the couch, crossing her arms as she looked directly at him. "Either way, I hope you have a good explanation for this mess."

Vergil raised an eyebrow. "If I say it was Wukong, will that clear me of blame?"

Raphaeline sighed, massaging her temples. "Damn... did you make that weird monkey come down to the human world?"

Katharina, who had been quietly observing, let out a soft laugh. "Well, you were never exactly a discreet man, darling."

Vergil looked at her, then at the other wives, and sighed. "So, what exactly do you want me to do? He's the one who killed him."

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Sapphire grinned maliciously. "First, you can start by telling me why you killed the Pope out of nowhere."

Ada, standing next to her mother, nodded with a challenging look. "Exactly."

Sepphirothy rolled her eyes, impatient. "I didn't come here to watch this flirting session and romantic nonsense."

"Then why did you come?" Roxanne asked, finally taking a bite of her donut without seeming the least bit worried.

"To talk about this." Sepphirothy replied, tossing a small object to the maid who had just entered the room.

The problem?

Viviane, the blue-haired maid, had just emerged from the hallway, balancing a tray piled high with teacups, biscuits, bread, a jar of honey, and for some reason, a small decorative flower vase.

The object thrown landed right into her hands, but the poor girl completely fumbled.

"EH?! AH?!—"

The tray wobbled violently in her hands, biscuits flew, the honey jar spun through the air in slow motion, one of the teacups tilted threateningly, and the flower vase... well, that fell directly onto her head.

PLONK!

The impact was enough to make Viviane spin in her own axis as she tried to regain her balance.

In the end, miraculously, the tray landed on the table without further disaster. Except, of course, for the fact that Viviane was now covered in honey, holding the fragment of Excalibur as though it were a piece of hot coal.

Everyone stayed silent for a few seconds, staring at the scene.

"…So," Sapphire cleared her throat, trying to hold back a laugh. "Was it about the honey or the sword?"

Viviane let out a frustrated groan, trying to remove the honey jar stuck to her hair.

Sepphirothy simply sighed. "It's about the sword, you airhead."

"…"

Katharina, Ada, and Roxanne stayed silent, exchanging a quiet look between them. Deep down, they knew that if Sepphirothy and Vergil decided, they could obliterate everyone in the room without effort.

Meanwhile…

"Just speak already, I have more important matters to handle." Raphaeline grumbled, impatient. After all, she was still a Demon Queen, and prolonged discussions weren't her favorite pastime.

As for Stella...

"Take your time." She said, comfortably sinking into the couch next to Sapphire. She grabbed the remote and started flipping through channels uncontrollably, trying to find something—anything—that wasn't broadcasting the Vatican news.

Morgana took the fragment of Excalibur from Viviane's still sticky hands and furrowed her brow.

"This one's much stronger than the others..." she murmured, feeling the pulsating flow of energy inside it.

"Exactly." Sepphirothy crossed her arms, casting a serious look at Viviane—who, well... was still completely covered in honey.

"So, Viviane," Sepphirothy continued, "since you're the one who forged this crap in the first place, explain this properly."

Viviane sighed, resigned. She picked up a piece of bread from the tray and began eating it with the naturalness of someone who wasn't drenched in honey and in the middle of a crucial conversation.

"Hmm... well..." She chewed thoughtfully, ignoring the incredulous stares. "It's pretty simple. Light Magic and Divine Magic are pretty much the same thing. Since Light is an element, if you keep feeding the fragments with Light Magic, they'll absorb that energy and get stronger."

Silence.

"…So, what you're telling me," Sepphirothy massaged her temples, feeling a headache coming on, "is that now we not only have to find the fragments, but we also have to pray that no one is feeding these things and making them even stronger?"

"Yep." Viviane answered with her mouth full, grabbing another piece of bread and licking the honey off her fingers.

"Oh, great." Sepphirothy laughed humorlessly, throwing her hands up. "Now, on top of hunting down these damn sword fragments, we also have to worry about who might be cultivating nothing less than mass destruction weapons."

She exhaled heavily and flopped onto the couch, visibly frustrated.

"What a wonderful day, what a beautiful fate this is."

Vergil simply watched the scene with a slight smile on his lips, clearly enjoying himself.