[Make the Exorcist Fall in Love]

>Previously on Childhood's End: https://archive.4plebs.org/tg/thread/96080959/#96087099

With the power of God within me and the power of Anime uniting Hell around Mr. Priest, we were finally ready to confront the most powerful potential opponent in this reality. I grit my teeth, lunged towards Lucifer-and went past him.

"Oi, where're you going?" called Lucifer, casually bitchslapping the rest of the alliance with a barrage of angelic matter. "For a second there I thought really thought we were going to fight, you know! Your new divine body and my old angelic form-"

"It's not complete"

He smiled at that, even as Mammon went flying from a casual wingclap. "Really? You're not satisfied even with THIS much power?"

"We've both foreseen the rise of Baba Yaga. The coming apocalypse. I need something extra to seal the deal-and besides, didn't I already say your pet project's none of my business?" I reminded him. Many of the demons threw wary looks at me, but I wasn't immediately attacking (despite the boy frantically looking to me for some sign).

He laughed at that, and it was like the first sun of spring even through the jaws of the demonic horrors trying to close in on him. "Good! That's very good! Greed is really more Mammon's purview-look there he is, coming back with more quaint heaps of wealth-but seeing what I've seen. It takes a certain amount of pride not to give up"

He extended his free hand. "Are you sure you won't lend me your power in earnest?"

"Positive" I said. "We both know that this time, you run out of luck. Don't draw this out when your friends are on the line"

"I won't!" he protested. "But-you can still change that!"

I stared down at Mr. Priest, still shouting at me to stop purging Hell just this once. Hoping against hope to live a normal life after all this.

"Well, maybe if things were otherwise" I said slowly, "I would"

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