RU-RU-RUNEAS GREMORY! HEROINE OF THE UNDERWORLD! - Chapter 1

Present Time - 2000 A.D.

"Daddy? Did you tell Grayfia-onee-chan to call me?" Ten years old Rias Gremory asked as she opened the door to her father's study.

"Ah, my little Rias, come, come!" Zeoticus Gremory, Head of the Gremory Clan and Rias' father said joyfully as he ushered his daughter in. "Come here, Rias. I have a lot to tell you." He patted the place next to him on the coach.

Rias excitedly went to her father's side as she sat next to him, almost bouncing in her seat from the anticipation.

"What is it? Nee-san didn't say what this was about, only that it was an important tradition." Rias said eagerly, a wide smile on her face, hands clamps into tiny fists on her knees. She looked the image of a polite good girl.

"Yes, quite so." Zeoticus wrapped an arm around his daughter's shoulder, to which she leaned into the hug, and with his other hand he gestured to a certain book on the shelf and it gently flew toward him.

Rias gasped.

"Grandma Runeas' Tome?!" She asked in wonder and excitement.

The book was a giant red grimoire with black linings that spelled the image of the Gremory Pillar Family Crest. The Gremory Crest was drawn with gold filling the black lines.

"Yes, I think it's time for your to learn about our Great Ancestor." Zeoticus said with a smile.

"But I already know all the stories and songs." Rias said before she raised a finger and began to sing. "Ru-Ru-Runeas Gremory! Heroine of the Under~world~! Fifty thousand Fallen slaughtered~, not a sweat~ across her brow~!"

"Hahaha, yes, yes, I know those too." Her father chuckled. "But no, sweetie. The true and in-depth events of her life. Not the stories you were taught in school. And it's very, very important for your to learn." Zeoticus lost his smile as he took a deep breath, to open up this heavy topic. "Because its time for your to learn not only what our Great Ancestor's true history was from her perspective, but what our real Demonic Ability is."

"Eh?" Rias blinked. She tilted her head in confusion at her dad, who held back an 'awww~' at her adorableness. "Dad, I already know what our Family trait is. I used it lots and lots already." She said cheerfully with a smile. "It's Luck!"

Zeoticus took a deep breath, knowing that by the end of this, just like what happened with Sirzechs and even himself when he was this young, Rias will look back on her life and her actions, and panic due to how many, well, close calls she had run into.

"Well..." Zeoticus grimaced, rather than reply, he gave a side nod and just opened the grimoire. "You'll see what your Grandma Runeas has to say about that."

===x===

Date: 8000~ B.C.

Consciousness doesn't arrive slowly. It doesn't come gradually and gently for my new life as it should.

Rather I was violently thrown into the living world, rupturing out of a pool of blood confused and screaming.

"Welcome." A grandiose voice spoke. I looked toward it to see a naked midnight black haired woman waist deep in pool, arms spread wide in a welcoming gesture. "Arise, my child. Rise as a new pillar devilkind's rule across the Underworld and soon all of Creation. " Said the woman who was yorokobe shounen'ing me.

I looked from the naked woman to the pool of blood, then realized what the warmth I was feel was, and followed the pool of blood to see I was also submerged in it.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!" I screamed and tried to stand up and run out of it.

Only to stumble and fall and just get covered with more blood.

The woman laughed.

"Aww, what a lovely omen you are, my child. Just born and already wanting to play and bathe in blood." She giggled. "I bestow upon your blood the name Gremory. May your power remain ever monumental, as your grasp and rule never fails."

I finally managed to get my feet under me to see the "pool" was a massive natural shallow lake in the ground. I expected this place to be some underground lake, but with blood. Yet while the walls were untouched and cave like at the start, the further away from blood pool I looked, I saw more sculptured walls and walk paths. The smooth magic forged walls (how did I know that?) extended upward to a vast degree to the sky. Hundreds of stories high with a scarlet burning moon shining down on me.

No, that wasn't a hyperbole.

There was a mood in the sky. It was crimson red, and it looked like it was made of blood that was set on fire.  

"Ah yes. The Sheol. A beautiful work of art and magic. Truly a better creation than that boring old Moon He made." The woman commented.

"Who—What? The fuck!?" I finally addressed the woman, my mind in so much panic and overstimulation that I just had no filter right now. "You! Who!" I cried out, before my brain finally ran a proper sentence. "And that thing should be fucking destroyed. No, fucking erased outta existence!"

The woman laughed in delight again.

Okay, seriously, is she high!?

"Already wishing to destroy the work of your rivals. My, you really are born to be a ruin for others." The woman held chin in thought. "Hmm, yes. Drawn to magical work yet wish to break it." She grinned before looking me right in the eyes. Her gaze froze me on the spoke, as my brain started replaying everything she said, and making connections. Oh. The woman said 'Underworld'. She said 'Hell'. Holy shit, was my life so bad I went to Hell when I died? Am I gonna get tortured?

"Umm—"

"Listen well, child. I am Lilith, the First Woman, regardless of what any filthy Angel lies and says. I am the Mother of All Devilkind and I am the Wife of Lucifer the Morningstar!" She was speaking almost as if to herself than anyone else. Her eyes full of zeal and mania. "I am the Queen of Devils, Lilith!" She announced with demonic energy rolling off of her, as the blood back rise and float around us. "And you my littler ruinbringer." She purred. The sound was pure lust and sensuality. I'd probably find it hot (and I'm straight!), if I wasn't scared shitless! "You are Runeas Gremory. Rise, my child, as a new power to bolster the Forces of Hell. Rise and slaughter the Grigori and ripe down the Heavens from their silver towers!" Lilith declared with another power flare, which... kind was starting to be less awe inspiring and scary and was just scary and weird.

Also, oooooh shit. This is way worth than if I had went to hell as a sinner.

I'm a fucking devil.

I'm Runeas Gremory.

Meaning I was reborn at the height of the Great War. Or fuck me, maybe the beginning of it.

Water filled my eyes as tears burst down my face.

"WAAAAAAAAAAH!" I could only cry at the horrible fate of my new life.

"What is this? Tears of joy? My, you really are that eager to start your role in our conquest of creation, aren't you, my little hellion?" Lilith said wistfully, a hand over her heart. "I've only known you for a little while and you already make me proud." She said as she took me into her chest in a perverse version of a hug.

But I don't wanna to be evil or conquer creation!

"WAAAAAAAAAAH!"

===x===

Present Time - 2000 A.D.

"...So Grandma Runeas wasn't born into the world laughing manically? What about the world darkening with her arrival, and her 'woe onto this poor innocent world' speech?"

"Embellishments." Zeoticus sighed and shook his head. "She happened to be born on a day where their was a solar eclipse on Earth. "As for the speech, when the Ancestral Devil Pillars met for the first time, they all bragged in various ways about their first words or actions, upon greeting Lilith or Lucifer. Paimon bragged about his singing, and apparently your Grandma Runeas rolled her eyes, unimpressed by his song. Twysta Paimon took offense to that and demanded if she she impressed Lucifer and Lilith more, or if she can sing better than him, or otherwise bow to him."

"So what did Grandma do?" Rias asked.

"You know 'Joy to the World'?" Said Zeoticus.

"The Christmas song?" Rias raised an eyebrow.

"Yep. Your Grandma Runeas sang it, but with the lyrics changed." Zeoticus replied.

"So the Christmas song was originally... Wait. Daddy, you said Grandma Runeas sang 'Joy to the World' but changed the lyrics. But 'Joy to the World' was only written two hundred years ago. Then could Grandma have known it back then thousands of years ago, unless she invented it, but you said she didn't..." Rias' thought went round and round. One could almost imagine her eyes going into swirls.

Thankfully Zeoticus clarified soon enough.

"Our Great Ancestor just... randomly has knowledge of the future." Zeoticus said with all the aplomb of a whale belly flopping.

"Say, what? I've never heard that ever in any of her stories!" Rias' said, awe in her voice. "That's amazing. How come there are no stories of this? Or is that an extra secret ability we Gremory have?" She asked the question in a hushed tone. Even though Zeoticus' would be warded against scrying or spying.

"Haha, no. No." Zeoticus shock his head with a chuckle. "That's something only our Great Ancestor has, and as for why it's not something well known?" He let out a deep sigh. "Because not once has this ability ever helped her, nor be advantageous to her. And sometimes she even forgets she knew about future information."

"...Ah." Rias had a stiff thrown off expression on her face. Like the image she had built up on her Great Ancestor was meeting the reality of who Runeas Gremory was, and said image was breaking. "That's... lame."

"Yeah, hahaha, yeah it is a bit. She would just randomly know things, but never have the change to act on them most of the time. She would sometimes use phrases that only recently have I seen used in modern human cultural zeitgeist. Sometimes I can't understand her perspective at all. The only who who seemed to do so, was her best friend while he lived, King Sol..." Rias' father paused and held a melancholic frown on his face. "Actually, let's wait, till that comes up. Better not skip ahead." He said, before focusing on the grimoire again. "Let's start with her first battle."

"Oh! I know this one. It's where our family gained their battle cry!" Rias cheered. "LEE-ROY! JEN-KINS!" 

"'Jump in and play', yeah," Zeoticus smiled and nodded. "And it was the only time, she ever said it with complete confidence."

===x===

Date: 8000~ B.C. 

I stood before a fortified city in the distance. Angels lined up the city walls, like flare lights.

Although the only reason they seem to glow so bright is how dark the sky was. The world seem blacked by the eclipsed sun.

That was ominous. Or lucky, I guess given that I was a devil now.

After being born and Lilith giving me a name, I was more or less thrown out, given 26 legions of devils and told to conquer a city in the name of Hell.

Petra City of the Edom Kingdom.

The area I was in was called Canaan. I think that's where modern day, or rather, where future Jordan will be.

The legions I was given were made up of 15 legions of Low Class Devils. 8 legions of Middle Class Devils. And 3 Legions of High Class Devils, with myself as the Ultimate Class Devil leading them.

I didn't have time to check anyone's tactical ability, or how well they can lead, or if the legions should be structured this way or that way.

Then again, I'm not sure if anything would help, since I don't have war tactics or strategy for shit!

Seriously! Who gives a newborn 156000 troops and told 'go wild and take over a city'.

It's not even me alone. There's Balam, Paimon and Astaroth. Each one of them has their own legions and is attacking from a different side.

We're I could see and feel my fellow Devil Pillars attacking from the other sides of the walled city.

They were just attacking with reckless abandonment. Throwing waves of devils at the magic walls, while they sat back. Mine was the 'weaker' side.

Yeah, weaker my add. Barrier here was weaker, but most of the angels are concentrated here.

Also, why the zerg rush strategy? Did devils have a population problem?

No, wait. This 10,000 years before modern times, the very the beginning of the Great War. Devils don't have a population issue yet. Lilith can make any number of them, while Lucifer and the Satans command them.

Heck, soldiers I have are basically the 'mass produced' versions of devils. Extra Demons, that don't have a linage. Meaning no bloodline trait like mine, a standard Pillar Devil would have.

Odds are some of those devils will gain enough achievement to congregate into one group and be raised up as a Clan that will make up the Extra Demons clans of canon. Maybe. This is just a guess though.

"Your ladyship, Duchess Gremory, are we to attack now?" As my assistant. Or is it right hand man? Second-in-command? I literally don't remember his name was. Bel-something? Belfavore? Yeah, Belfavore.

"I'm thinking, Belfavore." I said to buy time.

"Err, what?" The assistant devil I was given (assigned to me?) blinked in surprising, looking thrown off. "That...? Your ladyship, Laaz Belph—"

"Yes, yes, I get it. Now be quiet to I can have sometime to think." I said turning my head to give my... vice-captain? Would that be his rank?

No. Vice-Commander. I'm the Commander of this army, so he'd be the Vice-Commander.

Right, I turned head to look at him, and give him a disgruntled look so he'd be quiet and I could focus without him interrupting my train of thought.

Something bright that sent a shiver down my spine passed by my head insanely fast.

The Light Spear pierced right through a soldier behind me. And then multiple dozen of ones behind him. The spear's light and heat burned the skin of the devils it passed by and those around it when it finally struck the ground.

The devils screamed and shouted at this sudden attack.

I slowly turned back to see the angels still glowing bright with one of them, pointing at me, glowing a tiny bit shiner. No, it was holding a spear of light and was charging it up.

"Did they just fucking fire that one spear right at us? Why not all of them do that?" I wondered out loud, incredulous.

The angel noticed me noticing him, and stopping charging the spear, opting to throwing it quickly.

The spear zoomed much faster, but didn't feel as strong as the other one.

I flared my demonic power in defense, and prepared dash away.

I wasn't fast enough.

But it turns out I didn't need to bother.

The Light Spear embedded itself into the ground, doing nothing but kicking up dust and burning some of the weaker devils near me.

It struck the ground right between my legs.

If I was a dude, it would have been a close call. Even now it still felt like it.

"L-L-Lady Gremory!" Bel-Bel cried out in panic.

"Right. You know what, fuck planning." I said, stepping to the side over the spear, walking around and away from it. "I thought maybe I'll try to be nice. Killing an angel is suppose to be bad, right?"

"Err, what?" Said Belfavore.

"But now? I'm just gonna beat that shit outta those cheating spawn camping zealots! So let's just 'leeroy jenkins' it!" I said with a murderous grin.

The devils behind me looked confused but slowly getting excited.

"Lee, what, Duchess?" Belfavore asked in a confused voice.

Ah. Right. 21st century slang and memes, really don't have a place now.

Shit. I better come up with some explanation so I don't look crazy. Or lame.

"It's means to forget thinking and just jump in and play~." I said back with thought, worry or hesitation. "So just follow me!" I turned and dashed forward, leaving shockwaves in my wake.

My devil body was already several times stronger than peak human body. Add in magic augmentation, which was very easy and intuitive to me and I broke the sound barrier.

Also another Light Spear, this one shining even brighter than the last ones missed me, stabbing the ground where I was stand.

That's right. My Demonic Ability is Luck. I was the Original Gremory, which means my power was even several times more powerful than Rias or any Gremory that appeared in the canon timeline.

Time to abuse the shit outta this ability then.

"LEE-ROY! JEN-KINS!" I bellowed and jumped right into the path of the leading angel, before remembering I could fly, and headed to that snipering asshole!

Some kind of Light Mine detonated in the path I was going to talk, and caught a group of Low Class Devils behind me.

Surprisingly the devils didn't lose their morale or escape in terror.

It seems like me heading the attack, unlike my colleagues who sat back and just commanded their troops, really boosted morale.

Heck yeah, being a Badass In Charge was very cool.

===x===

It was a hard fought battle. There were plenty of deaths on my side, and on Balam, Paimon and Astaroth sides too, when they charged with all their legions.

They joined the field too since they didn't want to me showing them up.

The three of them were heavily injured by the end, but they were still alive.

It really was luck that we won just in the neck of time, since any longer and the angels would have been around when the eclipse ended. That weakness I felt from the direct sunlight wasn't much, but I could feel it had visible effects on the Low Class Devils and anyone injured.

It wasn't burning them like some vampires, but I could the tiredness and lethargy enter there forms.

For me it felt like I very lightly might want some caffeine to be jolted up to keep working, but not necessarily need it.

The angels ended up retreating deeper into Edom taking the humans with them, which worked out for us.

The devils fighting under me bemoaned that they didn't get the chance to rape some humans, or eat their souls.

My immediate disgust was too visible on my face, that my second-in-command couldn't help but comment on it.

"Is there a problem, my lady?" Belfavore asked.

"Yeah. 'Rape the humans'? What the fuck are you? Incel edgy teenagers?" I voiced my thoughts without restrain or care. I was too strong for these guys, and Luck would take care of any problem that shows up.

Some of the devils mouthed my words, looking confused.

"Um, they are our prisoners to do with as we wish. That is what Lord Lucifer and Lady Lilith always encouraged us to do." Laaz said. Not opposing me, just explaining.

"To rule over them." I said back. "Raping humans is just beneath us. If you can't seduce one lowly human, then don't fucking bother, you're a disgrace." The devils around me flinched, some scowling while other's taking my words as a challenge. Like they wanted to prove they can fuck a human without resorting to rape. "And eat souls? Really?"

"To rise to greater heights and become stronger." Belfavore said, almost dazed in delight. "Not to mention how delicious souls are." His sentiment was echoed by many devils around us.

"The only real strength is the one you make yourself. Borrowed or stolen strength will always fail you in the end, when you need it most." I said some bullshit like a shounen character. "If you can't grow strong by your own hands, you're not gonna last long, no matter how many souls you devour." I huffed and shook my head. "Go fortify this city, make some new homes, find some booze and celebrate."

The troops cheered and moved about, doing their own thing, and the city devolved into a chaotic mess or booze and sex.

All too soon, after a few hours, our king arrived.

"I have to admit, I thought this would take a few more months, but it seems like Lilith's new pillar was worked out perfectly." Lucifer said as he looked over me and the other pillar, fostering some internal competition so we keep working hard.

I know it would make keeping things friendly with Balam, Paimon and Astaroth difficult, but fuck'em. You snooze, you lose.

"My Luck was simply too powerful, my Great King. No matter the angels' plans or strength, all would have been swept away to build my path of victory." I said in dramatic grandiose as I bowed. Lucifer seems to like the theatrics.

"Huh." Lucifer hummed as he held his chin. "Gremory." He addressed me, sounding speculative. "From the way you worded that... you're saying your Pillar Trait is Luck?"

...Huh?

I looked up at The Devil King confused.

"Errr, yes, my lord." I said back, while Balam, Paimon and Astaroth looked on in envy and annoyance at my cheat ability. Cope and seethe, I thought absentmindedly, while looking back at Lucifer.

"I thought Lilith said she gave you greater Demonic Energy capacity and greater energy control. How the heck did she manage Luck?" The Devil laughed out loud in mirth, while I felt a pit of dread open up in my stomach.

"Err, greater... energy and control?" I asked with barely hidden trepidation.

"Yes, we need a mage fighter who can cast stronger long range attacks, but if Lilith managed to capture something ephemeral and mysterious as Luck, then no wonder you managed to take this city within a day." Lucifer smirked widely at me. A handsome smile full of sharp teeth. "I would say congratulations, but I suppose I should start expecting these result, right Gremory? No, Runeas." He said, looking at me with anticipation.

"Y-Yes! Of course, Lord Lucifer!" I quickly replied so as not to show anything suspicious.

Regardless, there was only one thing in my mind now.

My brain was replaying this battle at fast speeds, over and over again.

I kept thinking about all the spears that missed me. All the mines, the laser beams, the sword clashes with swords made of holy energy!

I fucking matrix dodged one of them, just to style of the angels.

I was so close to dying so many times!

I looked up to meet Lucifer's gaze of pride and expectation. Behind him my colleagues—No, my rivals were glaring at me with envy and resentment. I'm gonna have to deal with them trying to backstab me, while fighting angels and fallen angels, aren't I?

Holy shit. Holy shit, I am fucked.

"I'll... be sure not to disappoint."

Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.

===x===

Present Time - 2000 A.D.

"S... So..." A wide-eye Rias spoke, her face slowly draining of blood as she looked at her father, and the grand revelation.

"Yes, Rias. Our Demonic Ability is just Greater Demonic Energy Capacity and Fine Demonic Energy Control." Zeoticus delivered the news, like a judge's gavel slamming down on a death sentence.

"...Daddy, I fought assassin when I was six." Rias said in a monotone voice, as she replied all the adventured she went on in her life.

"I know. And you didn't." Zeoticus sighed and shook his head. "You shouldn't have been up so late, or wandering around the estate without a guard. I'm sorry you went through that, pumpkin."

Rias processed this information.  

Took a deep breath.

And began to find herself panting.  

"Aaaand there it is." With practiced ease, Zeoticus pulled out a paper bag and handed it to his daughter.

Rias snatched the bag, and started breathing through it.

Skrkk. Fwoop. Skrkk. Fwoop. Skrkk. Fwoop. Skrkk. Fwoop.

The paper bag crumbled and expanded with each of the little Gremory Heiress' breaths.

"Daddy," Rias said between heavy breathing. "They came at me, and I vaporized them with my Power of Destruction without even looking." Rias said wide-eyed, starting to feel her heart beating like a firehouse bell now.

"No. They just ran head first into our defense barrier and got vaporized from that." Zeoticus explained.

"...We have a barrier?!" Rias cried out.

"Yes."

"Since when?"

"Since always."

"I thought we didn't because our Luck was so strong, we didn't need one, and everyone was too scared to think about attacking us due to that." Rias said.

"And what did you think the giant glowing energy shield dome around our estate was?" Zeoticus said.

"Decoration. T-That's what Auntie Lea said!" She cried out.

"You shouldn't believe everything Leanansidhe tells you. The fae under our employment are confused. They don't believe us if we try to tell them the truth or explain, and at this point, it's probably best to leave things be." Zeoticus said.

"Huh!?" Rias said with greater confusion.

"The point is, Rias, our clan trait isn't Luck. We definitely get lucky but it's not something we have any control over. We have to work very hard to get where we are today. And no matter what," Zeoticus got off his head, to kneel down and be at eye level in front of his daughter. He placed his hands on her shoulders, as he gave her the ultimate family advice and mandate. "We can not tell anyone about this. No one. Not even friends, close friends or best friends. No one. The lie is too big now, and it needs to be kept if we want to survive."

Rias gulped, looking for all the world like she was about to scream.

"Cheer up though." Zeoticus gave a half-hearted smile. "On the bright side, due to all the crazy stuff your Grandma Runeas did and the shenanigans our family live through, it is... very difficult to convince anyone of the truth. So at least you have that covered. The tough part will be... surviving our reputation of having our Demonic Ability be known as Luck." He said meeting Rias' eye with the utmost of serious expressions. "Because yes, my daughter, the expectation never dies."

 SKRKK! FWOOP! SKRKK! FWOOP! SKRKK! FWOOP! SKRKK! FWOOP! SKRKK! FWOOP!