The Devouring Dragon-Chapter 54: A War of Intellect

"Anything over 1%," Ajuka said in response to Sirzechs' question.

"The chance of her being captured if she contacted the Beast King alone?"

"45.7%," Ajuka replied as casually as ever.

"So, if not just Rias, but also Sona Sitri, Ravel Phenex, and the last direct member of the Astaroth clan have been captured, and the chance of Serafall being captured is so high..." Sirzechs leaned forward again, his red aura flaring out slightly as the teacup in his hand shattered. The tea itself didn't spill, as it was also evaporated into nothing.

"Why didn't you stop her?"

"Because these numbers are speculation," Ajuka emphasized the word, surprising Sirzechs, "They aren't certain."

"You never need certainty any other time," Sirzechs growled back, his aura flaring a bit again, "Your estimation is always enough."

"You should never trust an estimation."

"You should never trust a normal person's estimation," Sirzechs countered, "Your estimations are never wrong."

"But they could be this time," Ajuka said with finality, and Sirzechs huffed in frustration.

"Just explain to me what the hell is going on, Ajuka," Sirzechs groaned, leaning back in his chair as he gestured for Grayfia to bring him another cup of tea. "Why are you acting this way?"

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"You know how my magic works, correct?" Ajuka asked, though he already knew the answer. He and Sirzechs had known each other for centuries - he was the man who knew the most about Ajuka's magic aside from the man himself.

"Formulas," Sirzechs answered easily, "You see the formulas that make up the world."

"Correct," Ajuka nodded, still maintaining his overly pleasant smile, "Everything in the known world can be explained with formulas. From the cells that make up our bodies, to the plants that grow in the spring, to the trees that lose their leaves in autumn, to even magic. Everything has a formula, be it H2O or something far more complex. Far, far more complex."

"Where are you going with this?" Sirzechs raised an eyebrow at him, "Your brain is practically a supercomputer. Are you telling me there's a formula you can't comprehend?"

"To call my brain a supercomputer would be incorrect," Ajuka shook his head, his smile still not dropping, "Even a human brain is far more complex than the world's greatest supercomputer. My brain is light years ahead of that, but even then it is not infinite."

"That's where your magic comes in," Sirzechs reasoned, "It allows your brain to work beyond its normal capacities. It's as if you're using a million percent of your brain."

"Yes, my magic allows me to enhance my brain's capabilities far beyond their normal limits," Ajuka nodded again, "But, again, it is not infinite. If it were, then I'd be able to process every formula and compare them in an instant. I'd be able to crack the equation for the whole world, and I'd be the ruler of the known universe already. However, in this instance, it is not the limitation of my brain that is the issue."

"Then what is it?" Sirzechs asked bluntly.

"It's the world," Ajuka replied just as bluntly, "Everything in the known world has a formula, but not everything in the world is known."

"Enough of all this smart talk," Falbium finally intervened, lazily leaning forward in his chair, "Just tell us what you wanna do, Ajuka, so I can get back to my bed."

"This situation is very unique," Ajuka responded to Falbium's query, "To put it simply, this Beast King fellow is a genius."

"A genius?" Sirzechs asked incredulously, looking at Ajuka like he was stupid, "I'd argue he's either stupid or insane. Kidnapping both Rias and Sona... he's pretty much guaranteed his own death."

"And yet, he's still alive," Ajuka shook his head at Sirzechs' words, "That's why he's a genius. He's done something insane, but in a way that ensures he won't die. The line between insanity and genius is very thin."

"It's luck," Sirzechs countered, "He's lucky that Serafall and I value our sisters so heavily. If we viewed them as normal devil families view each other, then his entire forest would be a scorch mark without a care for their safety."

"Is it also luck that he kidnapped Latia Astaroth, the last direct member of the Astaroth line?" Ajuka asked with a raised eyebrow, "That knowledge isn't widely known. Even the girl herself likely didn't know."

"You keep an eye on the forest, right?" Sirzechs replied back, "If he left to gather that type of information, then you should've known."

"Prior to leaving to attack the Astaroth Territory, the Beast King had never left the forest," Ajuka shook his head in finality. "He made quite a stir within the forest, but he never left."

"Then how'd he know?" Sirzechs asked, to which Ajuka shrugged.

"The highest probability is that Tiamat knew and told him. However, it would take a genius to extract that information from her and use it in this way," Ajuka replied, "He knew he wouldn't be able to trick us with Tiamat forever, so he's manipulating your and Serafall's emotions to gain an upper hand. If you can't win a battle of brawn, you must win a battle of intelligence. That man has challenged us, no, challenged me to a battle of intelligence, and he's winning at the moment."

"Why'd you let him live in the first place?" Sirzechs narrowed his eyes at Ajuka, "If you knew someone this strong was hiding in that forest, you should've taken action sooner."

Ajuka's grin widened slightly at Sirzechs' words, and he leaned forward as his pleasant grin grew wider, "That's the best part. I didn't know!"

"Of course you did," Sirzechs looked at him confusedly, "You even warned me not to let Rias go to the forest because he was there."

"I knew he was there," Ajuka confused Sirzechs even more, "But I didn't know how powerful he was. I observed him personally when I warned you to keep Rias away. When I observed him, do you know the probability of him becoming strong enough to take down Tiamat within a year?"

"Low?" Sirzechs asked bluntly.

"Zero," Ajuka's grin widened again, looking slightly psychotic, "And yet he did it in less than half a year! Of course, no probability is ever truly zero, but it was low enough to be considered zero. So, when Tiamat claimed she had dealt with him, the probability of her lying was too low for me to consider taking action."

"I think you're becoming sloppy from holing yourself in that room too much," Falbium yawned, "If the chance was zero, then it wouldn't have happened. You must have been mistaken."

"I was!" Ajuka nodded rapidly, "But it wasn't my fault. It wasn't because I've become sloppy. It was because the formulas lied!"

"Numbers don't lie," Sirzechs looked at him strangely.

"His do," Ajuka said simply.

"If this man is causing you to become this troubled, then we need to deal with him now," Sirzechs finally sighed at Ajukas vague explanations, "I suggest we go there together, and deal with the backlash from other factions after. What are the chances of our victory?"

"It depends on what you define as victory," Ajuka answered, "If you mean the death of both the Beast King and Tiamat? I'd estimate 85% if both of us go, 95% if Falbium comes as well. If Serafall is unharmed and willing to assist us, then 98%."

"Is 10% enough that I have to?" Falbium groaned at the idea of having to fight, but Ajuka ignored him.

"If you define victory as both of them dying, and all of us living," Ajuka continued, "That falls to 52.5%. If you define victory as both of them dying, all of us living, and all the hostages surviving, then that falls to 2.8%. If you define victory as both of them dying, both of us living, the hostages surviving, and our faction not being crushed by our enemies as we're unavailable? 0.1%."

"So, that route won't work," Sirzechs groaned, "What has the highest chance of getting Rias back safely?"

"I don't know," Ajuka shrugged.

"You always know," Sirzechs countered with a raised eyebrow.

"I told you, his formulas lie." Ajuka's grin grew larger again, "I'm as helpless as you are in this situation. I have no numbers to guide my path."

"So, we're just supposed to sit on our hands and do nothing?" Sirzechs shot back, "Even if you can't use your formulas, you must have some ideas."

"Of course. Even if I can't calculate the trajectory of this situation, I can still use my intelligence," Ajuka nodded. "What is the easiest way to turn a battle in your favor, Sirzechs?"

"Limit them. Throw the opponent off," Sirzechs answered easily, "If you put a devil in heaven, then they'd be helpless. By making your enemy uncomfortable, they can't utilize their full strength."

"Exactly," Ajuka nodded wisely, "So, we make the Beast King uncomfortable. We don't play his game."

"And what is his game?" Sirzechs asked dryly, "Considering he has both Rias and Sona held captive, it would seem that we're already playing it."

"We shift the game to one we excel at," Ajuka decided, "The man is crude and vicious. Serafall and her fellow Leviathan, Katerea Leviathan, have both been taken captive for approaching him, and Creuserey Asmodeus was killed."

"She was? He was?" Sirzechs blinked in surprise at his words, "The scouts didn't inform me of that."

"Because they didn't know," Ajuka waved his hand dismissively, "But mine did. Playing an aggressive and violent game is exactly what he wants. He's putting on the pressure and keeping it fast-paced. So, we'll do the opposite. I'll accept his battle of intellect."

"That's the first comforting thing you've said today," Falbium yawned again, the man's head lying on the table, "What's our first move?"

"We negotiate," Ajuka said simply.

"Serafall tried that," Sirzechs countered, "It didn't end well."

"Because Serafall tried to negotiate with no leverage," Ajuka shook his head, clicking his tongue in annoyance, "You must always negotiate from a position of power. At minimum, from a position of equality. If you negotiate with desperation, then you're asking to get scammed."

"So, how do we gain leverage?" Sirzechs raised an eyebrow at his longtime friend.

"I don't know! Ah, isn't it wonderful? To not know?" Ajuka grinned widely, his eyes shining slightly in excitement.

"I'd rather you did know," Sirzechs replied dryly, but his lips twitched upward slightly, "I haven't seen you this excited since the Civil War."

"When you can see the trajectory of every situation, then life becomes a bit dull," Ajuka justified, "It feels like I'm in my youth again. In a time before I was adept enough to predict every action and reaction."

"I still don't understand how this beast guy is making you get all worked up," Falbium said, looking up at Ajuka from his head's resting place on the table, "I know I don't know everything about your power, but how can his 'formulas lie?' Isn't the whole point of numbers that they don't lie?"

"Exactly. Which is why it's so intriguing," Ajuka nodded, "If a sunflower can see the sun, it'll turn to face it. The chemical reactions within it, which react to a formula's guidance, force it to happen. But, what if instead of turning to face the sun, it turned away from it?"

"It sounds like a hypothetical," Sirzechs spoke, "Because that doesn't happen. They always face the sun. If they didn't, then there would be a reason, right?"

"Correct. If there's a break in a formulaic sequence, then there's a discernible reason for the break," Ajuka agreed. "Formulas are the foundation that the known world lies upon. But, I said it before, didn't I? The known world!"

"It didn't make sense the first time, and it doesn't now," Falbium groaned at him.

"The known world! What exists out of the known world, Sirzechs?" Ajuka asked rapidly, looking with excited eyes at Sirzechs, "What betrays the very laws and principles of the world?"

Sirzechs stared at him blankly for a moment, then slowly spoke as realization dawned on him, "...Gods?"

"Yes! Even if every race from devils, youkai, fallen angels, dragons, and even angels are confined by the laws of this world, divinity are not!" Ajuka nodded rapidly, "They don't abide by the rules of reproduction - they can come from a thought like Athena, or morph from a castrated genital like Aphrodite! They can overstep the laws of this world, and are the only beings who don't have to abide by formulas! Ah! To have a battle of intellect with one would be so enjoyable..."

"You can't seriously mean..." Sirzechs trailed off, looking at Ajuka with wide eyes..

"Yes! That man isn't just a random monster," Ajuka leaned forward, his eyes shining with excitement.

"He's a god!"

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