The World of the Soul Reapers.
Hell.
Nelliel walked out of Lynn's office in a daze.
Pesche Guatiche, who had been waiting outside for a long time, widened his eyes the moment he saw her and then rushed forward excitedly.
"Lord Nelliel, you've finally recovered!"
"Pesche…"
Nelliel fell silent when she saw the joy on his face.
Because of her, Pesche's mask had been shattered, and he had regressed from an Arrancar back to a Hollow.
Thinking of this—
Nelliel's expression grew even colder.
Nnoitra Gilga…
You deserve to die!
"Thank you for all your hard work during this time."
Pesche had tears in his eyes as he kept shaking his head, so emotional he could barely speak.
Seeing this, Nelliel gave a slight twitch of her lips.
"Let's go, Hueco Mundo."
At that, she said in a cold voice, "Some people must pay the price for what they've done."
"But…"
Pesche looked a little hesitant.
"Don't worry."
Nelliel's eyes sparkled. She clenched her fists and felt the new power surging through her. In a low voice, she said, "I've obtained new strength from Lord Lynn."
Back when she was still ranked third among the Espada, Nnoitra Gilga wasn't even her match. He had only dared to sneak attack her in collaboration with the other Espada.
Now that she'd gained new power, she was fully confident—
Even against two of them at once!
—
Hueco Mundo.
Yotsuya Miko and Nelliel soon found Midoriko and the others.
"You're… Nello?"
Midoriko was stunned when she saw Nelliel's curvy adult form.
This…
Was too big of a change, wasn't it?!
Nelliel smiled faintly.
"Sister Midoriko."
She still used the childhood name she'd called her by.
Midoriko had a strange look on her face.
It was fine when she called her that in her child form, but now…
She glanced downward slightly and twitched her lips.
You're clearly a grown woman now… is it really appropriate to call me 'sister'?
Nelliel's return—and her transformation—stirred up quite the reaction among some of the leveling teams.
Eventually, Midoriko smiled and said,
"Welcome to the Peerage."
Nelliel froze for a moment, then smiled and nodded solemnly.
Although she didn't fully understand everyone's personalities yet—
She could already feel it.
This place…
Was nothing like Las Noches.
And—
After spending some time together, Nelliel had gradually gotten to know a few of them.
She liked the atmosphere here.
That's right.
"These two are Ingvild and Katerea. They arrived after you left."
"Hello."
Ingvild Leviathan greeted quietly—
And was immediately smacked on the head.
Katerea Leviathan frowned.
"As a descendant of the Leviathan bloodline, can you show a little more pride?"
"Ugh…"
Ingvild shrank back.
Katerea rolled her eyes.
Tch. With this kind of personality, how's he ever going to make it into Lynn's bed?
Seems like… I'll have to do something about it.
On the side—
Nelliel quickly got acquainted with the two.
Inwardly, she thought—
Two more powerful fighters.
But more than that…
Her eyes lingered on Katerea Leviathan.
Strong.
That sensation… was like standing in front of one of the Espada.
Katerea felt Nelliel's gaze. She smiled slightly, crossed her arms, and said,
"I've heard all about you."
"How about it? As a welcome party for the new member, want to go on a rampage?"
"A rampage?"
Nelliel blinked, confused.
Katerea pointed toward Las Noches. Her smile widened into a devilish grin.
"Of course… by turning that place upside down."
There was a flash of excitement in her eyes as she recalled the time Lord Lynn had personally annihilated the old Maou faction's stronghold.
Back then, she had been nothing more than background decoration. In the end, she'd become Lynn's reward.
This time—
She wanted to prove herself too. To show the might of Leviathan!
Nelliel's eyes widened in disbelief.
Tear down Las Noches?!
She fell silent.
Even she had only planned on luring out Nnoitra Gilga and the others for a personal reckoning.
But Las Noches…
That place belonged to him.
Aizen Sosuke.
Nelliel opened her mouth, wanting to dissuade her.
But Katerea raised her hand to interrupt.
"Don't worry, I've already cleared it with Lord Lynn."
Hearing that—
Nelliel closed her mouth.
If it was Lynn's will—
Then, as his knight, she only needed to charge forward.
With that thought, her eyes became resolute and unwavering.
Katerea narrowed her eyes.
"Very good eyes…"
"Well then, let's assign combat operations."
Well…
"Combat operations" was more like dividing opponents to fight.
—
Meanwhile, in Las Noches.
Nnoitra Gilga frowned.
"…Where the hell did that bastard Tesra go?"
—
Main World.
War King's Territory.
After several days of negotiations—
The Lion King Organization finally confirmed the location of Beast Vassal No. 12.
Hmm…
Dimitrie Vatler's death at the hands of the Lion King Organization had created a huge ripple effect.
During the talks, the War King hadn't been particularly friendly.
But—
Yukari only said one thing.
"Go speak with Lord Lynn."
The War King fell silent.
He was far more informed than the Lion King's people.
After all—he was the true ancestor of vampires, with deep connections across major factions.
The story of Lynn wiping out the Old Maou faction's base single-handedly—
Was already well known.
Although he was a top-level combatant himself—
His strength barely measured up to a regular Maou.
If he had infiltrated that base alone, never mind destroying it, escaping with his life would've been a miracle.
So he had no illusions about Lynn's power.
That was someone he absolutely could not afford to offend.
He'd lived in peace for many years. He didn't want unnecessary trouble.
However…
As a commander, he couldn't just stand by while one of his own was killed.
What's worse—
That incident had earned him ridicule from Aswad-Guul and Giada Kukulcan.
At the thought of them, Ki Juranbarada's lips curled slightly.
If it had been them, they'd have lost their minds.
That woman, Giada—she might've even ended up warming the devil's bed after getting beat down.
He shook his head at the idea.
But…
He still couldn't just do nothing.
Otherwise, it would look like the War King was weak.
And that—
Would be unacceptable.
So…
All that was left was to play the card of the Flame Banquet.
Ki Juranbarada narrowed his eyes.
—
Elsewhere.
After leaving the War King's territory, Yukari sent word to the Lion King Organization.
"No. 12 is imprisoned on the island of Gozo, to the north."
(To be continued.)