Ball of Nothing - Chapter 154
Chapter 154
"Really?" Zero's eyes sparkled . Mii nodded, confirming the first piece of good news in a while .
"Gaia will create a new body that looks like your current self . Please do your best to control those powers, the new body is not indestructible . I would suggest holding off any kind of magic experiments to after you have started your magic training with Merlin . "
Zero pouted but agreed . It wouldn't be good if he got kicked out of his body again . There were still so many things that he wanted to do . Fun things like combining magic to perform neat tricks as seen in his inherited memories can come later . For now, all Zero wanted was to get out of this boring mindscape .
"Isn't there anything we can do here in the meantime?" he almost whined . Conversations have run dry between him and the dragon with Bob being a very monotonous story-teller . Nobody wanted to listen to the tales of how he conquered time and escaped danger . Zero was more interested in knowing about the strange creatures that existed in a different dimension but Bob was terrible at describing them .
Mii thought about it . She still had many errands to run before Zero gets his new body . Truth be told, she thought that Bob could be a little more useful by distracting the curious overpowered being . Sadly, there was nothing much a baby dragon could do, ancient or not . If only there was a way to entertain the doctor-in-training while getting her work done . . .
"That's it! I'm such a genius . Zero, do you think you'd be keen to help me out on a little problem that I have right now?"
Zero blinked . Having something to do was better than having nothing to do . "Sure! What do you need help with?"
Mii smiled widely . This was too easy . "Are you able to contact Baal through meditating?"
Zero looked slightly unsure . It was usually not an issue . However, he was now in his mindscape . It might not work the same way . "I could try," he told her honestly .
"Good . Here is what the plan is, I need you to let him know the details so that he can pass the word to Merlin and Wiser . I need to go see Buddha and Hua Tuo and coordinate matters . Who knows, if you do well you might be able to return to your body quicker . "
Hearing that he would be out of the mindscape quicker if he assisted, Zero threw in his lot with Mii's plan .
***
"Ok, let me get this straight," Baal sighed . Zero had contacted him via the same way they usually communicated . Even in a different time and space, the brat managed to sniff him out . A terrifying gift that Baal didn't know if he should be thankful for or not .
"You want me, the Great Demon Lord of Hell, to pass on a message for you . "
"Yes . Can't you?"
" . . . "
" . . . "
"You know that I would never do this for free, right?"
The Demon Lord could feel the petulance from their mental link . Although Zero has matured, his character at the core hasn't changed much . The teen still wore his heart on his sleeve and through their mental connection . Knowledge wasn't everything in the world and Baal was glad that he still had the advantage over his friend who was still wet behind the ears . Give and take a few decades and Zero would prove to be a worthy rival .
"Do we really have to negotiate in the form of stories?"
Baal smirked, spooking Coux who happened to catch a glimpse of the lazy demon . The half-succubus quickly led Amaraline away, not wanting to get involved in whatever Baal was planning .
"It's one of the ways we could negotiate seeing how you don't have much to offer me . "
Zero thought long and hard . "How about games? We can play games . I can be your game buddy to entertain you instead of telling you stories . "
"What kind of games do you have in mind? Mind you, I might be lazy but I'm not dumb . There is no other demon in Hell who can win against me in any game . "
"How about the Elements game?"
Baal blinked . "What's that?"
"We have six types of magic elements . Light, Darkness, Fire, Water, Earth and Air . I thought about this game after inheriting more knowledge about magic . This is how it works . . . "
Water -> Fire
Fire -> Air
Air-> Earth
Earth -> Water
Dark <=> Light
Same Element = Same Element
"That's unfair . You can always throw light and darkness to tie every round," Baal pointed out and Zero giggled .
"That's why we will be playing with two hands~" he sang .
Fire + Air = Dark
Fire + Earth -> Light
*No two hands with the same element .
** Left hand vs left hand, right hand vs right hand . Any combination will take the form of one element only .
"That's . . . "
"Interesting right? I made this game myself!"
"Let me confirm the rules again," Baal blinked . He might have the experience but Zero had the creativity to make up for whatever he lacked . "If I use a combination, I can only deal the same element against both of your hands . . . "
"That's right!"
"That doesn't seem fair . . . you can take opposing elements and win with just one hand!"
Zero smirked, mirroring Baal who found it irritating . How dare that twerp act so mighty!
"That's your call to make . Besides, I don't think I made this clear enough . Dark and light take each other out . That also means if you throw dark and light on your team, it counts as team kill . While dark or light wins every other element, they cannot co-exist . "
Baal blinked . "That . . . makes a lot of sense . Assuming I throw dark and one element and you throw a combination, it's a fifty-fifty chance of an all or nothing . Did I get that right?"
Zero nodded . "Yupp! Exactly how it is . Then again, I might not throw a combination . Remember, it is left vs left and right vs right . It could be a draw too if we throw light in opposite directions with the other as an element . There are many ways this game can end up . Did I interest you?"
Baal had to admit . Zero was getting better . It was time to raise his game before Zero left him behind in the trial of dirt . "I accept your game on the terms that we have three practice rounds . You can decide the term of winning . "
Zero agreed . "We should play first three to win . If I win, I want you to give me a tour of Hell!"
Baal raised his brow . Although that request sounded troublesome, it wasn't something difficult to do . It's not even going to bother him if the person he's playing tour guide for was Zero . Even if the teen didn't ask for it, he would've made some sort of arrangements after Zero recovered .
"Deal . If I win, you're going to have to accompany me to school for a week . Lucifer is dying to meet you and I have to go back and give a guest lecture as payment for his services to clean up Kerberos' mess . Speaking of which, you had better think of a good way to punish the sheep and the dog when you return . I'm sick and tired of hearing Kerberos' howls every night! I can't sleep!"
Zero felt slightly sorry for his friend . He couldn't imagine the horror of not being able to fall asleep . It must feel terrible . That was something Zero looked forward to rectifying once he got his new body . For now, he was content to have Baal help him kill some time .
"Well then, what are we waiting for? I'm bored out of my mind . . . let's play already!"
Baal shook his head . Patience isn't one of Zero's strongest suit . In fact, the Demon Lord wondered if Zero had any patience in his nature . He highly doubted it . The doctor-in-training couldn't sit still and do nothing . It was an impossible feat from the very start . Solo was also one of the most impatient fellows he'd come to know from Duu's memories . Baal shook his head sadly . Zero was missing out on a lot .
The three practice rounds ended rather quickly and Baal was feeling confident . Other than his official title as the King of Laziness, Baal was also known to be the unofficial King of Games . Nobody, not even Lucifer, could beat Baal in any game . The Demon Lord blinked at the result . How had he lost?
"This is ridiculous! How could I have lost? You must have cheated!"
Zero blinked innocently, too innocently for Baal to believe he was up to any good .
"I didn't! It was in the rules . You can use any kind of magic when playing this game . . . "
Baal felt as if someone had thrown a bucket of iced water over his head when Zero said that . It didn't occur to him at the start during the practice rounds that this was a huge handicap in Zero's favour . The practice rounds flew by so quickly with Baal winning two out of three games and Zero's adorable pout . The Demon Lord hadn't noticed it till it was over .
"Zero . . . You cheater! Normal people can't use all elements in magic, much less cast them separately in each hand! It was rigged!"
Zero rolled his eyes . "Says who? You could cast darkness, fire, air and water yourself . There was nothing unfair about it . Besides, you were able to cast combination magic . . . "
Baal seethed internally . Who knew that after transformation, Zero would have the guts to talk back to the most fearsome Demons of Hell with such disrespect .
"Don't be cheeky, combination magic isn't the same . I had to cast them beforehand, not hold them and cast them immediately . For an ordinary person, that split second wouldn't have made a difference . For you, I don't trust that you wouldn't have noticed it and swapped your decision halfway . Tell me, how is it that you won three out of three rounds without even contemplating your choices . You knew what I was going to cast, you prepared for it . "
The brunet didn't deny or admit to it but that gave Baal all the answers he needed .
"I'm not keeping to the deal . It's not fair and you know it . "
Zero sulked . "Oh come on! Nothing is fair, you said that too right? There is only the strong and the weak in this world . Are you running away just because I've grown stronger?"
Baal felt as if Zero had carved a hole in his pride and added a sea full of salt into it before kissing his cheek to make the boo-boo fly away . It wasn't helping .
"Zero?"
"Yes?"
"Do me a favour . "
"Ok?"
"Don't talk to me for a week . Have fun in your mindscape, I hope boredom drives you insane . "
Baal shut their mental connection abruptly and threw his paperweight across the room, creating a huge hole in the wall . Despite the outwardly rage, the Demon Lord was still numb on the inside from both shock and disbelief . Where had the sweet and innocent Zero gone? For some reason, the Demon Lord felt as if he had failed for the very first time in his life . Perhaps he was raising Zero the wrong way . . .
He sighed . Baal suddenly felt as if he'd aged tremendously . Now he understood how Lucifer and Raphael felt raising him when he was younger . Being a parent was such a difficult thing . With that in mind, the Demon Lord picked up his pen and started drafting a letter . He needed some practical advice and he needed it fast . Who knows which other poor souls Zero would start scamming while in his mindscape .
"No no . . . that wouldn't do," Baal shuddered at the thought of Zero following Schaf and Mammon's footsteps . If there was one thing Baal would work for, it would be to prevent such a nightmarish future from coming true .
"Please don't grow up too fast Zero, you're making me feel old . . . " the Demon Lord of Laziness whispered and scribbled his signature at the end of the letter before having his familiar deliver it . Whatever the case was, Baal was determined to not let the teen make his societal debut with such a twisted character . He would fix the mess caused by the divine entities' memories with or without help .