There isn't much to say here except that I apologize for the length in between updates. As time has gone on, I have found less and less time to write, with schoolwork and sports piling up. And so, without further ado, here is the continuation of Of Queens and Emperors.

Chapter 12

"Please Shirley, this isn't something you have to do. You don't have to get revenge." Lelouch pleaded with the orange haired girl who had just declared war on the Fallen Angels and had joined Cao Cao's faction.

"Ah, but she does. Revenge is a more powerful urge than you realize." Cao Cao interrupted, intervening in place of Shirley, who merely stared back at Lelouch with hard eyes.

"Revenge." Lelouch said to himself before a familiar splitting ran through his mind, bringing him to his knees as he clutched his forehead in agony. The pain was more pronounced than it had been in the past, specifically pounding away at the back of his head, as if it was focusing on something in the back of his mind. Suddenly a flash of images came to his mind, and he saw it all unfold before him.

"You people killed my mother!" He spat angrily in the face of the blonde haired man that he instinctively knew to be his brother, Clovis. He was inside of Clovis' mobile base, and he was in complete control, with a gun placed right up to the nervous blonde's temple, his finger just itching to pull the trigger.

To tell the truth, he was silently relishing the moment. To see Clovis tremble, and to see those blue eyes, wide with shock and fear, it was euphoric. He had lived with vengeance burning in his heart for all of his life, and now, he was finally going to have his chance to enact revenge. It would finally be retribution for his innocent mother, slaughtered at the hands of the Imperial Family.

It was all their fault. He didn't know how they did it, but he knew exactly why. They always looked down on his mother for being a commoner, and, to a slight extent, they saw him as one too. In a way, he was getting his revenge not only for his mother, but also for himself. He and Nunnally didn't deserve the treatment they received, being thrown aside like rag dolls.

He would enact revenge upon everyone, and they would all pay for what they had done! It was only fair! He had lost something precious and dear to him, and now, they would all feel his wrath!

"I swear it wasn't me! I had nothing to do with it!" Clovis screamed, Lelouch's Geass having just worn off. His interrogation had gotten him nowhere closer to uncovering the truth unfortunately. What he did know was that Clovis was innocent.

"I believe you." Lelouch said, lowering his gun for a moment before he suddenly pointed it back up, jamming it right in Clovis' face, "However,"

"Please, you can't! We're still brothers!" Clovis pleaded, but to no avail.

He would not be stopped. Familial ties had no place when it came to vengeance. He was going to get his revenge, one way or another.

"You can't change the world without getting your hands dirty." Lelouch sighed, a devilish grin coming over his face as he pulled the trigger.

Lelouch panted as his mind played out the rest of the scene with astounding clarity. His eyes were wide in shock as he relived his deeds. Although he had told Shirley that revenge wasn't necessary, his memories were telling him anything but. He had been on the warpath as well, which made him no better than Shirley. This realization made him go silent, unable to say anything in response to Cao Cao's words.

"You understand, don't you? Well then, I suppose we have to be on our way." Cao Cao said, nodding to Georg, who began summoning a magic circle.

"My offer still stands." Cao Cao said as the magic circle took effect, transporting the three humans in a flash of red, leaving Lelouch alone with the withered remains of Seiryu.

"Partner, we have to move!" Kohryu insisted from within Lelouch, who remained motionless.

"Lelouch, are you okay? You haven't said anything since the party." Sona asked worriedly, placing a hand upon Lelouch's own, causing him to flinch slightly at the contact before he relaxed into her grip. However, his mouth stayed sealed and his eyes stared forward blankly, even as she could see him grow more comfortable in her presence.

She and Serafall had found him standing alone outside of the front gates of the castle in his current state just as they were about to leave the party. However, she had gotten no information from him about why or how he got out there. In fact, she had barely managed to elicit any sort of response from him for the last few hours, only occasionally receiving empty nods and slight hand gestures in response to her repeated inquiries.

It was almost as if he had been traumatized by something, but by what, she could not understand, even as she observed his blank violet eyes, still devoid of any sort of life.

"I'll break the spell!" Serafall cried out, smacking his head with her wand, causing his head to fall forward, but he did not so much as wince at the strike, quickly righting himself and resuming with his original position, his messy black hair now splayed out across his hard and emotionless face.

"I'm sorry." He whispered suddenly, breaking his self imposed silence.

"You're all right!" Sona sighed in relief, wrapping Lelouch in a tight hug that he reciprocated with equal strength. If anything, he actually gripped her tighter than she gripped him, as if he was about to lose her forever.

"Sona, I'm sorry." He repeated into her shoulder, crying softly as he did. He couldn't hold it back anymore. Not when the image of Shirley, with her eyes burning with revenge and her shoulders slumped in defeat and depression, was still seared into his mind. He had failed her because he hadn't been strong enough to mount an attack on the Fallen Angel stronghold.

Even though he had trained for months, it still had not been enough, and in the end, she paid the price for his weakness. Although he knew that Seiryu wasn't her actual father, she had no way of knowing that. To her, it was as if she were losing a legitimate parent. And he knew that feeling all too well. The anger at the world, the fear for the future, the void that was left by losing such an integral part of one's life, he knew it all too well. And yet, he hadn't been able to save her from that fate.

"Why are you crying? If you're okay, that's all that matters." Sona reassured, gently stroking his back. Although she was glad that he was at least speaking, his sudden breakdown was concerning to her, to say the least.

"I failed her. I failed her completely." He choked out as tears fell from his face. He knew that he was responsible, and seeing her experience the same thing that he had only served to reawaken those feelings. Most of all, he had felt the desire for revenge coursing through his veins, and he knew exactly what it would do to Shirley.

It would eat away at her and consume her, until she was a monster who wouldn't be able to recognize herself in the mirror. Her life was ruined, and it was all his fault.

"Failed who?" Sona asked concernedly .

Lelouch took a deep breath for a moment, stopping his sobbing, "Shirley. She's joined them, and it's all my fault."

Sona's eyes narrowed at his words, "What do you mean by them?"

"Cao Cao and Georg. They took her away, and I was powerless to fight back against them. I was so weak." He said angrily, slamming his fist against their bed, threatening to punch right through the mattress.

"Lelouch, listen to me. You are not weak!" Sona screamed straight in his face, causing the raven haired teen to stop and stare at her in shock.

"If you were, I never would have fallen in love with you." She whispered the second part, almost stumbling over her words. In response, Lelouch placed his hands on her shoulder and pulled her figure towards him, nestling his head in the crook of her neck.

"Thank you. I…I love you too." He replied softly, saying the second part slowly. It was nothing but the whole truth. There had been a time when he had been interested in nothing but using her for his plans. But now that she had seen him at his weakest, and had still accepted him, he could no longer deny it.

He needed someone to rely on, someone who would be there for him when he was at his lowest, and still support him. And so far, Sona had proven to be that person. She was the person who he wasn't afraid to confide in, and she was the person he wasn't afraid to cry in front of, because, more than anyone else, she knew that he was mortal, with weaknesses that were every bit as prevalent as his strengths.

It may have been just in the situation, or maybe it could be attributed to the mess of hormones he currently was, but he couldn't help but feel an immense attraction towards Sona in that moment, and he felt an immense desire to hold her close to him and for her to comfort him in his time of need. He knew that maybe these feelings weren't a result of rational thinking, but he didn't care, and he didn't want to care. What he wanted was for someone that cared about him and didn't let him feel like a failure. What he wanted was to be with Sona. As those feelings coursed through his veins, he knew that there was no longer any doubt about it.

He was truly in love with her.

Watching her sister and her boyfriend confess to each other in such an intimate way, Serafall could only sit and stare at her lap. Nobody had ever spoken to her in a way like that before.

It was her fault, she knew. By continuing to act like a child, no one ever took her seriously. And no one would ever look at her in the way that Lelouch and Sona were looking at each other in that moment. At this realization, Serafall could feel her heart drop and strangely, she felt depressed at the notion.

"So this is what real pain is?" She whispered to herself, clutching her chest tightly. All she wanted was for someone to look past her childish exterior, and see that there was still someone underneath. Someone with real feelings and real worries. Someone who needed to be loved intimately. She had her fans, and they were important, without a doubt. But none of them knew the real her, and none of them were interested.

All they cared about was the Magical Girl Leviathan, not about Serafall. That was the choice that she had made when she had chosen to take on the persona of a magical girl, and it was the choice she had wanted to make.

So why did she hurt so badly right now?

Sunlight poked through the slightly askew violet blinds of Sona's room, causing Lelouch to stir slightly in his sleep as the light washed over his face. It was peaceful, a large contrast to the worry and weight that it normally carried through the night. On his naked chest, Sona slept gently using Lelouch as her pillow while he kept a protective arm wrapped around her figure. To the side of them was an empty space where Serafall would normally be.

As he slowly awoke to the sounds of dragons hissing, Lelouch peered down on the noticeable weight that was plaguing him all through the night, giving her a slight shake. For a moment, he watched silently as Sona lightly stirred at his touch, and he couldn't help but think that she looked incredibly cute without her glasses on as she lifted her head off of his chest and lightly rubbed her eyes.

Immediately, he shook his head at the thoughts, attributing it to hormones before he recalled the confession he had made to her last night. He loved her, and it wasn't really uncommon for him to think that about her in that way, considering that fact.

"Good morning Lelouch." Sona said drowsily, crawling forward to get face to face with a flustered Lelouch, whose blush only reddened as she gave him a good morning kiss.

As she stood up, revealing her naked pale figure in its entirety, Lelouch observed that, for someone who he normally thought of as being rather conservative and prudish, Sona was awfully skilled at using her body to steal his attention. For the moment, Sona continued with her normal morning routine, unaware of the effect she was having on Lelouch, alleviated by the nightgown she slipped on after finding it discarded on the floor.

Stretching out slightly, Sona crossed to the blinds, pulling them wide open and admiring the sunlight that instantly warmed the entire room. She took a deep breath of clean air with her eyes closed before she opened them to see a familiar looking carriage parked outside of the entrance of their castle.

"What? You're stealing my precious sister's boyfriend?" Serafall asked angrily with her cheeks puffed out, while Sirzechs nervously nodded. He had not intended on arguing with Serafall when he had come to the Sitri residence this morning, but he knew that if wanted to get to Lelouch, first he would have to convince the current Leviathan that his plan was for the best.

"Yes. We both know that he has a lot of potential as a Sacred Gear user, and he could be an asset on our side. We just don't know exactly how good he is yet. Under Sairoarg, he'll learn and mature far more quickly than any normal human ever could." Sirzechs replied from his seat across from Serafall in the Sitri Clan's dining room. It was large and spacious, with most modern amenities contained within, and most importantly, a small table that was perfect for discussions.

"But still…" Serafall trailed off, unable to truly think of anything to say in response. Sirzechs was right, as much as she didn't want to admit it.

"Serafall, I know that, for the most part, we ignore our jobs. But now, this is an opportunity we can't pass up. Think about it! If we have two of the Heavenly Dragons on our side, wouldn't we finally have the leverage in negotiations? And if we have that, then maybe we can finally make our dream of peace between the factions a reality!" Sirzechs argued.

"I just don't know if it is right that we're taking him away from the life he's created for himself to serve our own purposes." Serafall replied, abandoning her usual tone for one that was far more serious and mature, understanding the severity of the situation.

"It's for the best. It'll have to be." Sirzechs sighed. He didn't feel incredible about what he was doing either, but there was no way that he could let a chance for peace slip by without him making some sort of effort.

Before Serafall could say anything else, they both turned at the realization that someone else was about to enter the dining room from the faint footsteps each of them picked up.

In strode Lelouch, who was dressed in a simple white t shirt and black shorts, followed shortly by Sona, who was still dressed in her nightgown and currently in the process of wiping the sleep out of her eyes.

As Lelouch sleepily scanned the room, his eyes widened at the sight of the crimson haired Devil.

"Sirzechs, what are you doing here?" He asked, surprised by his sudden appearance.

"Lelouch, I've come to ask you for your decision. Are you going to become a Devil or not?" Sirzechs asked frankly, immediately putting Lelouch on the spot.

"Devil?" Sona asked suddenly, having not been informed of Sirzechs' plan.

"Yes, I've offered Lelouch the chance to become a Devil, as a part of Sairoarg Bael's peerage." Sirzechs explained, causing Sona's eyes to widen at the sudden development concerning her boyfriend.

"Lelouch! Why didn't you tell me about this?" Sona asked, hurt that Lelouch had not deemed it important enough to inform her that he was going to join someone else's peerage.

"I wasn't sure about my decision. And I'm still not sure." Lelouch replied, directing the second part of his statement at Sirzechs.

"I'm sorry. I understand your reasoning, and I can see the benefits. But I cannot make a decision without first meeting Sairoarg." Lelouch continued.

"I figured you might say such a thing, so I took the liberty of inviting Sairoarg as well." Sirzechs sighed as his cousin walked into the room as well, clearly having just woke up from the unkempt appearance he had.

"Can we clear out the room?" Lelouch requested, to which Sirzechs nodded.

"Of course." He said, standing up from his seat and ushering Serafall and Sona out of the room, leaving Lelouch alone with Sairoarg, but not before he received a concerned look from Sona.

"So, you are still considering my invitation to join my peerage, right?" Sairoarg began, shaking his head once to fully wake up. He wanted to be fully alert when it came to this conversation. He was on the verge of gaining an exceptional pawn, and he could not miss this opportunity.

"Yes, although it is as a pawn." Lelouch said the last part with particular venom, still slightly insulted by the thought. However, at the same time, he knew that training under Sairoarg would be the fastest way for him to improve and to grow strong enough to protect Sona. He could not fail her like he had failed Shirley.

"I will tell you now that I treat all of my servants with the upmost respect that they deserve and require." Sairoarg finished, not amused by Lelouch's attitude.

"And I want to let you know that I will not be dominated by you. This is an equal partnership, one that is mutually beneficial, not that of a master-servant relationship." Lelouch interrupted, still determined to keep his independence.

Sairoarg looked at Lelouch's expression, which was completely serious, and released a hearty laugh at his words.

"Of course. I wouldn't have it any other way!" He chuckled, holding his hand out to shake Lelouch's.

"I appreciate someone with the same kind of ambition as me. To suppress someone like that would be akin to suppressing myself." Sairoarg said with a smile.

"So, I guess this is the beginning of our partnership." He offered hopefully, waiting for Lelouch's response.

Lelouch looked at the outstretched hand, before he smiled in turn and grasped the open fingers in a firm handshake.

"I look forward to the outcome of this partnership." He replied.

As they finished shaking hands, the door opened and Sirzechs strode in, followed by Sona and Serafall.

"I'm glad to see that you've made the right decision." He said happily.

"All right then, I'll make the circle right away!" Sairoarg exclaimed, placing his hand out in front of him to create a magical circle, before he directed Lelouch to lie down in the middle.

Placing a deep purple pawn piece on Lelouch's chest, Sairoarg began the incantation.

"I command thee, Lelouch, on my name, Sairoarg Bael, become my servant and become a Devil. Thou shall now live a life of great fulfillment as my pawn!" He chanted, causing the pawn to glow brightly and sink into Lelouch's chest.

"How do you feel?"

Lelouch couldn't respond to Sirzech's question as he strained his eyes open, despite an overwhelming desire to close them in weariness. His whole body was slick with sweat, and his chest heaved up and down, breathing hard, and his heart beating at a million miles an hour. His head was pounding, almost as if someone was wildly hammering away at it, but he could not find the strength in his gelatin arms to try and massage away the pain.

His tongue felt like sandpaper, with a distinct coppery taste of blood that he assumed to be his own, and his throat was dry and raw from dehydration. He blinked once, giving his thirsty eyes some relief as a soothing layer of mucous was spread over the instrument of vision.

A distinct ringing drowned out all possible thought, causing Lelouch to glance around, confused as to where he was and why he was there, mind far too overloaded with sensations of pain to think clearly.

"Lelouch!" Sona cried out in concern, trying to push Sirzechs and Sairoarg out of the way. However, she found that the iron grip of Serafall held her back from moving in.

"All right, I'll take that as a bad sign." Sirzechs said with a frown on his face, "But Ajuka spent so much time creating these. There shouldn't be anything wrong with it."

Weakly, Lelouch managed a nod, wincing in pain as he did so. He saw Sairoarg hover two hands over his chest and suddenly begin glowing red for a second before he lowered his arms.

"It seems like your life force is taking longer in adjusting to your Devil body than I originally anticipated. But from the looks of it, you'll be fine in a few minutes." The young Devil sighed, a relieved look on his face.

True to his word, the pain slowly began subsiding within minutes, until it reached the point where it was no longer noticeable. Gratefully, Lelouch lifted himself up, finding that his strength had returned to him after its temporary disappearance. In fact, it seemed that not only had his original strength been recovered, but it seemed that he was actually stronger than before, if possible.

With an incredulous look in his eyes, Lelouch searched up and down his body, finding that, at least physically, nothing had significantly changed, with the exception of a slightly increased muscle tone that could not have accounted for the significant increase in power that he was currently experiencing.

"You feel stronger now, right?" Sirzechs asked, to which Lelouch nodded, awed at the change that had come over him.

"This is incredible." He replied, flexing his fingers, noticing the metal glint of the Celestial Manipulate.

"Right. How exactly did you know so much about my Sacred Gear earlier? I don't remember telling anybody the details of its abilities." Lelouch asked.

"Well, that's simple, considering that we Three Factions were responsible for sealing Kohryu into that ring." Sirzechs explained cheerily.

However, Kohryu's reaction was less than cordial, consisting of angry growls that blared into Lelouch's ears.

"Why is it that you felt the need to transport Kohryu to another dimension?" Lelouch pressed on, determined to get answers.

"As you know, the Boosted Gear's abilities are to transfer and to double power, while the Divine Dividing's ability is to divide and to absorb power. The Celestial Manipulate is more moderate, with the ability to add and subtract power.

However, whereas Ddraig and Albion essentially cancel each other out with their contradicting abilities, there was nothing to moderate the third Heavenly Dragon's abilities, which were still on a mid tier Longinus level in terms of total strength. So, the only solution we could find was to eliminate the third Heavenly Dragon by sending him to another dimension in which there would never be any circumstances that would allow for the use of the Celestial Manipulate." Sirzechs explained at length while Lelouch sat back and listened intently.

"And yet, here I am." Lelouch said, causing Sirzechs to nod his head slightly.

"Yes, that is true. However, at the same time, the circumstances of the world have changed. Now, it seems that war is winding down, and hopefully, it can stop altogether. Once that happens, the Three Factions should once again have no problem keeping the Heavenly Dragons in check." He replied.

"But for now, what matters is that you need to train as hard as you can to become a capable user of your Sacred Gear. When the time arises, I will contact you once more." He added before he stood to his full height and turned to leave.

"Sona, I'm sorry that I have to take Lelouch, but you have to understand that three pawn pieces would never have been enough to contain his potential." Sairoarg apologized to Sona, who nodded in response. She was hurt by the fact that Lelouch was going to leave her and Serafall, but she understood his reasons, and she had no choice but to accept his decision.

"Lelouch. I still love you, so please, finish your training as quickly as you can and come back to us." She said, hugging Lelouch tightly.

"I will. I promise that I'll become strong enough to protect all of you." He whispered into her ear before he pulled away and stood next to Sairoarg as he summoned a magic circle of his own.

"I'll be back soon." Lelouch reassured as he saw red cloud his vision.

"Welcome to my humble abode." Sairoarg joked as they rematerialized in front of a large stone castle that was every bit as impressive, if not more so than the Sitri Clan's. It was the picture of a typical medieval castle, complete with large walls, battlements, and various towers jutting out of the main keep.

At the sight, Lelouch couldn't help but to feel a bit awestruck as he began to realize the power and strength of the Bael Clan, which had to be strong to have birthed someone like Sirzechs.

Sairoarg pushed open the large wooden doors that had greeted them with relative ease, revealing a beautiful blonde girl with her long hair tied in a ponytail, who instantly bowed as she saw Sairoarg.

"Welcome back, Master." She greeted, suddenly glancing at Lelouch, who had seen the exchange.

"Hello Kuisha. I trust that nothing of note occurred while I was away?" Sairaorg replied, bowing as well to her, a detail that wasn't lost on Lelouch.

"No. Is this the new pawn that you mentioned earlier?" She asked, nodding her head at Lelouch.

"Yes! This is Lelouch!" Sairoarg said happily, patting Lelouch on the back.

"I'm Kuisha Abaddon, the queen of Sairoarg Bael." Kuisha introduced herself, while Lelouch did the same.

"Now then, I'll introduce you to the rest of my peerage, but first, let's spar for a little. I need to train a bit today, and it would be a good chance for me to see exactly what I need to work on with you." Sairoarg decided, leading Lelouch into his castle and towards a room that was devoid of anything but exercise mats that covered every inch of the ground.

"All right, get yourself prepared!" Sairoarg yelled out suddenly, a bright glow covering his body as he did so.

Surprised by the sudden movement, Lelouch had just enough time to put up a wall of ice before Sairoarg punched forward, completely shattering the wall with one punch. As he pulled his fist backwards, Lelouch could feel the intense power radiating from the teen, which materialized itself as a bright glow that Lelouch didn't need Celestial Manipulate to see.

"Celestial Manipulate!" Lelouch cried out, the Sacred Gear responding to his command as his vision darkened, with the only thing visible being the thickly packed mass of quintessence that was Sairaorg. Lelouch gritted his teeth as he realized that absorbing even a tiny portion of the Devil's power would likely overload his body immediately due to the insane amount that was present.

He was no ordinary Devil, that much was for sure.

"You understand then, that I am no pushover." Sairoarg remarked, understanding that Lelouch had just scanned his body.

"I realize that." Lelouch replied, getting into a fighting stance, although he knew that victory was likely already out of reach.

"Partner, I don't know that we can win, even if I lend you my strength. It still wouldn't be enough for someone of his caliber." Kohryu lamented, irked at the fact that he would not be able to overcome Sairoarg.

"I understand. But I can't just give in. Not if I want to become strong enough to protect Sona." Lelouch replied, igniting his fists.

As Sairoarg saw Lelouch stare him down with an intense fire in his eyes, he couldn't help but to smile. It seemed that, at the least, Lelouch had the desire to fight, even in unwinnable conditions. That was certainly a good sign for improvement in the future.

"All right then, I'm not holding back!" Sairoarg announced before he dug his heels into the ground and launch off, moving forward fast enough to disappear from sight.

Lelouch saw the Devil disappear from sight, only to reappear directly in front of him a split second later, affording Lelouch just enough time to put his hands up in a desperate attempt to stop Sairoarg's strike. However, even with his arms crossed in front of his face, Lelouch felt himself fly backwards as Sairoarg delivered an earth-shattering punch, sending Lelouch straight into the stone wall behind him.

As he hit the wall with a force strong enough to shatter glass, Lelouch felt himself lose his breath, dropping to the floor and onto his elbows. As the pain registered in his mind, he screamed out in agony and coughed out a lungful of blood, clutching his arms in pain.

However, he had no time to dwell on it as Sairoarg was suddenly upon him once more, ready to deliver a kick to his weakened figure. In an instinctive move, Lelouch dove out of the way of the attack, glancing back to see that Sairoarg's kick had left a dent in the wall behind with its sheer force.

"Ceelestial Manpulate!" Lelouch cried out in desperation, focusing on drawing in enough quintessence to allow him to get back to his feet. As the small specks of light were assimilated into his body, Lelouch could feel some of his strength return to him, and with some difficulty, he pulled himself up to stand across from Sairoarg, a defiant look in his eyes.

"Oh, it seems that you want to continue." Sairoarg chuckled, holding one arm out and gesturing for Lelouch to come forward, "Please, come."

Although he knew that Sairoarg was just baiting him, Lelouch knew that he had no other choice but to attack.

With an impassioned scream, Lelouch enveloped his entire body in a searing violet flame and slapped his arms together in front of his body, forming them into a conduit to send a torrent of flame at Sairoarg. However, to his surprise, Sairoarg didn't even make a move to evade the strike, opting instead to simply punch the flames away.

"Please, you'll have to try harder than that." Sairoarg mocked.

"We really can't win." Kohryu gasped, also exhausted by the fight.

Lelouch weakly nodded, but did his best to shake off his exhaustion and rushed forward, punching at Sairoarg with all of his force. In response, Sairoarg delivered a punch of his own, meeting Lelouch's fist at its apex.

As the two hands met, Lelouch focused all of his strength into the strike, trying to overcome Sairoarg. However, he was hit with an intense pain from that hand as Sairoarg followed through on his punch, completely shattering Lelouch's hand.

"Ahh!" Lelouch screamed out as a vicious pain rocked his entire body, clutching his fractured hand closely to his body. The organ was completely deformed, and it was mangled to a disgusting degree, with fingers pointing off in different directions and the rest of the hand being nothing more than a limp mess of flesh and bone.

There was no time for him to even notice the final strike that Sairoarg delivered before he felt the Devil's boot dig into his stomach and send him flying into the mat.

The last thing he saw before the world went black was the sight of Sairoarg standing over him, a triumphant smirk on his face.

I know that it wasn't a popular decision to make Lelouch into a pawn, but I think that Lelouch could not have viably become any stronger as a human. It took years upon years for Cao Cao to reach the level of physical perfection he is at, and I just don't think that Lelouch could have ever reached that level. Instead, as a pawn of Sairoarg, he can work with a King that respects him as an equal, in addition to meeting an extremely loyal group of servants who would be willing to support Lelouch in the future. So in the end, I think that Lelouch becoming Sairoarg's pawn was the best choice for both parties.

However, if you guys are really interested in the idea, I might end up writing another fic in which Cao Cao and Lelouch work together. It's just that, considering his relationships in this story, it wouldn't really make much sense for him to become a member of the Khaos Brigade. Maybe if Cao Cao was the first person he met in the DxD universe, then I could see why he would join. But as it stands right now, with his most prominent relationships being that of Devils and a Fallen Angel, there is no way I can see Lelouch joining Cao Cao.

As usual, if you guys have any thoughts or ideas, please leave them either in the form of a review or PM.

Also, if you guys don't know, I've started an anime blog that will review some lesser known series or at least, ones that I think are under appreciated. Right now, I'm giving reviews on Oreshura and Psycho Pass. Please check it out from the link on my profile. Every hit really means a lot to me. Thanks for reading!