We decided to use teleportation to return home. It was a small waste of resources, since I would have to recreate the teleportation items. However, it was a good test and we did not have an immediate trip planned afterwards.

  Watching others teleport looked interesting. Their entire body dissolved into lightning which turned into a small ball that went pop. Then they were gone. Doing it myself you did not really feel much. The world went white and a second later we were back home, underneath Haruka's tree.

  "Huh." I watched the giant tree tower above us. "She has grown."

  "Well, what did you expect after turning Ashmedai into a snack?" Lucy answered.

  I had not properly considered that…

  "My ladies, you have returned." Haruka stood behind us and bowed. I immediately gave her a hug.

  "You have grown so much! Well, your tree. I suppose your dryad body stays the same. Hm. I think her hide is tougher." I said as I inspected her.

  "Your generous gift has strengthened the grove." She replied.

  "We brought even more gifts! I need to set up a proper room for people to pick something though." I said.

  "My lady, we should tell Lilith and the other maids that we are back. And introduce the newest maid." Lily replied.

  "Um, yes. I have joined the maids." Kira said.

  "Welcome!" Haruka smiled.

  A lot of demons were watching us. Teleporting into the city had caused a bit of a commotion. It led to Lilith showing up personally. I invited her to the mortal realm and assembled my staff to brief them on what had happened.

  My revelation about devour magic caused a lot of gasps.

  "This is a frightening ability, you should ensure the other demon lords do not learn about it." Lilith said.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  "Only people I trust know how it works, but your ascension was rather public. While that was not the same it is known by now that I have empowered you. Further, Lily's rise will be visible. I will keep the details hidden but it is obvious that I am empowering my people." I stated.

  "They might even think Ashmedai's ritual was your doing and that you have sacrificed a demon army for power." Kira said.

  "True." Lilith agreed. "Especially if they don't know that the original ritual came from Abaddon. I would not be surprised if Abaddon himself spreads false information to gain support."

  "You mean he is going to tell everyone that I am using sacrificial rituals to harvest power?" I asked.

  "Exactly. With you, me, Lucy, Lila and Kira working together any ancient demon lord would be concerned. Meluza and Izanami are our allies as well. If they think you are actively hunting them and absorbing their power they will unite, to a degree." Lilith warned.

  "So you think we need to prepare for an attack?" I asked.

  "Yes. I suspect Abaddon will capture some of the survivors from Ashmedai's army. He might use one of them as witnesses for the other lords. It will take him a bit to unite them but we should be prepared for a major assault." Lilith said.

  "We could strike first. Go directly after Abaddon." Lucy suggested.

  "Hm." I pondered that. "That would make it look like we were really trying to farm them one after the other. It might unite the remaining ones even more. And there would be no guarantee that we would get him. What if he runs and uses this event to rally the other lords?"

  "Farm?" Lucy wondered.

  "Just an expression. Anyway, do you think we can convince the other to stand down? Invite them to a meeting?" I asked.

  "It would be nice if we could expose Abaddon to the other lords. Have you brought more evidence?" Lilith asked.

  "We haven't been able to go through everything." I replied.

  "Would they even agree to a meeting?" Kira wondered.

  "That is hard to say. They might expect a trap. Or use it to lure us into one. Our group is strong but five ancients would be difficult for us to handle. Then again, they would never fully trust each other." Lilith replied.

  "What if we managed to send some evidence to one or two of them before the meeting?" I asked.

  "Even if they know the truth they might still be willing to get rid of you. You have empowered your followers. They will always be concerned about your future growth." Lilith pointed out.

  "What would you suggest?" I asked.

  "I believe our best chance is to leak some information to Ashema. She is someone who would take that seriously. Meanwhile we strengthen our defences and wait for their move. You have empowered your servants a lot. I believe we have a good chance to succeed if they attack us here." Lilith replied.

  "Your gift did incapacitate us for a while, my lady." Iris said. "If we end up fighting other lords keep that in mind. We can't afford that during a battle."

  "Well, devour magic does not eat demons. Unless they try another ritual they are fine. Eating some spells should not be an issue. Also, sorry. I had not considered that." I said.

  "We all appreciate the power, my lady." Iris replied.

  "The grove is mostly on the mortal side but our bodies can fight in the demon realm. Through Haruka we are still connected to the grove." Ash said.

  "Your job would be to deal with regular demons. I think only aura capable people should engage the ancient lords. Actually, it might not hurt to write Izanami." I mused.

  We discussed the topic some more but ultimately decided to go with Lilith's plan. Strengthen our defences and leak some information. The loot we had acquired would certainly be helpful to bolster our forces. I wondered if the ancient lords would truly unite and attack us. I had a feeling we would find out soon.