Chapter Text
"We can't change what fate has in store for us, but we don't have to face it alone."Caitryn, Arcane
What a peaceful day to take a nap! Dante thought.
Without Lady and Trish showing up for a surprise visit and trying to get money they don't even have or Vergil ordering a cleaning every five minutes while looking at Dante with disgust and disappointment. The boy is actually in a good mood since he didn't try to kick my ass with that pissed off look on his face.
"Brrr-Brrr!"
That was what Dante was thinking in this calm, lying in his old armchair and relaxing his legs on the oak table in his office with a magazine of half-naked models on his face. Well, it would be calm ignoring the sounds of fighting coming from the back yard of the place, but that's just another normal day.
"Brrr-Brrr!"
Or it was, until the phone started ringing.
Letting it ring to see if it would stop and allow him to go back to sleep, on the fifth call the hunter gave up, lowering his legs and the magazine from his face.
"And to think that today I wouldn't have work for the rest of the day." Dante said exasperatedly. As they say, work never rests.
Taking the phone off the hook and answering it with his favorite charismatic voice and animated face, the legendary demon hunter glances at the back door.
"Devil May Cry, how can we help?"
"I see that today you didn't have enough work to be able to attend in person."
"Morrison, I thought you would only call Lady or Trish if there was work involved."
"Of course. I called them earlier but haven't heard back yet." Morrison replied.
"You know how they operate; When they're not trying to get money I don't have to cover expenses, they're hunting." Dante said.
And to think that the next payment would be going to pay for repairs to the streets that were destroyed in the last confrontation between him and Vergil. I still have to have a conversation with that proud mule about property damage and the right time for a 'friendly' fight.
Just the thought of trying to have a decent conversation with his brother completely discourages the legendary red hunter.
"I don't blame you. After all, there are many demon attacks on the Eastern border. And since I haven't heard back from Nero either, I believe you would be available for work...?" Morrison mentioned.
"Alright, send us the address. We'll go there today." She sighed, the red hunter turning his attention back to the conversation.
"Ah, Dante, just letting you know before I forget, there were passers-by who informed the authorities that they saw demons coming out of 'cracks' and from what I understand from the call, there is a village there that demons avoid like the plague. It looks like they are spreading moving around and attacking the cities near him." Morrison explained.
"Maybe it's nothing, but it doesn't hurt to check." Dante commented, shaking the pen between his fingers.
After writing down the information and ending the call, Dante stood up and walked to the door at the end of the office that led to the back yard. Opening the door and slamming it against the wall with his strength, he happily turns to the occupants in the yard.
"I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?" Dante asked happily as he leaned his body with his arms crossed next to the door frame and ignored the chaos in front of him.
In the backyard, there were two blue shapes hitting each other hard while sparks flew around them from the impact of the swords in combat. Nero and Vergil were so focused on finding an opening in the fight against each other that they didn't even turn to see the red hunter, even though they felt his approach through the aura radiating from his inner demon.
It wasn't every day that I saw these two fighting against each other, or as Nero and Vergil think, a 'family get-together'. As if this family were normal. Dante knows that they all have a long way to go to be a decent family, but he is happy with what they have achieved so far. Even after the Qliphoth fiasco, Vergil and Nero's relationship started to suck and I don't even blame anyone, the circumstances were out of hands anyway.
It was still amazing how this family grew in the blink of an eye. After the Order of the Sword was disbanded following the Sanctus attack and all the corruption being dealt with by the government in Fortuna, Nero and Kyrie kept the orphanage running together, adopting three boys to help out and thus growing the family with Nico in tow to help with the business. of the family.
Nero being the amazing kid that he is, after dragging out and finally having an intense conversation – which is more like a threat – with his father without which Mr. 'this-is-too-much-for-my-pride' wouldn't try Escaping this conversation like other times, the boy finally introduced his father to his fiancee Kyrie without forgetting to remember the threat to castrate Vergil if he said anything rude to his precious girl.
But as I said before, the boy was too good and deserved a family and a present father. He could only hope that Vergil wouldn't let them down again and would keep the family he got for now.
Returning to the present, seeing that the combat would not end anytime soon, father and son settled for a draw for now as they were having a silent conversation looking at each other and finally paying attention to the newly arrived hunter.
"I bet the bad news is that you're out of pizza and you need a dick to pay for the next order." Nero argued, looking unsurprised at Dante.
"Surely you could use your downtime to clean up that trash hole you call home." She complained Vergil with disgust as she looked at the crumbs of the last eaten pizza stuck to the red hunter's clothes.
"Well, I'll leave those questions for another time. We have a mission and given her level it will last a week. The bad news is that a large-scale demon garden was seen on the Western border and Nico won't be able to take us since she accompanied Lady and Trish for the mission involving the Eastern border so that leaves us with the good news." Dante explained, scratching his stubble.
Vergil and Nero looked at each other before looking exasperatedly at Dante.
"And the good news is...?" Nero sighed, waiting for the older hunter to finish his explanation.
"As it would take days to reach the border by car, we will go the quickest and easiest way, through the dimensional portal made by my beloved brother!" Dante said with a mischievous smile and looking at the two present. "Let's all go together on this mission like a good family having a family get-together!"
"I don't remember saying at some point that I was going to be your new taxi, Dante." Said Vergil, turning his back and heading to the corner of the yard where he left the Yamato's scabbard resting vertically.
"Since you two argue over anything, I'd be surprised if anything good comes out of this." She complained Nero as he picks up his coat near the door.
"Ah! come on guys! It will be a good opportunity to train and see other places and not to mention the pay is very good!" Dante said excitedly.
"Well, that's fine with me as long as none of you kill each other. I'll go inform Kyrie that I'll be gone for a few days." Nero said, going inside to make the call.
Seeing that Nero would already be at work, it wouldn't take long for Vergil to accept as well.
"I hope you use that money wisely before I make you regret ignoring me." She threatened Vergil as she finished sheathing the Yamato and turned to Dante with her famous serious face.
Sometimes Dante wonders how he still doesn't have lines or crow's feet because he likes to constantly frown on that identical face of his. Bless the demonic blood in those veins, then.
"Alright, alright! When we get back I'll buy a new cleaning kit and we'll tidy this whole place up." Dante promised.
If looks could kill, Dante would certainly have turned to ash by the way Vergil glared at him.
With no other answer to avoid wasting more time, Vergil passed his brother at the door and went in to prepare for the mission.
Sighing that he hadn't started a fight yet, Dante walked in and commented on one last thing he forgot to tell them.
"And one more thing; there was speculation from some passersby who managed to inform the authorities. They said they 'saw demons come out of a crack'. Unfortunately, we will have to take a small detour first. We will pass by a village that is unharmed by demons just to check if Everything is normal there and then we will go to the neighboring cities to destroy the open portals and the remaining demons." Explained Dante as he thought. "Kill evil in the bud, just like the old days."
Abruptly stopping the conversation he was having on the phone, Nero turned to him with a frown.
"Portals to hell don't appear randomly, Old Man." Nero said looking at Dante.
"Theoretically, but you know there are powerful demons out there that possess that kind of power." Dante meditated. "Your father is an example of that."
The two looked at each other before turning to stare at Vergil with apparent suspicion.
Vergil, who remained sitting at the kitchen counter reading a book of poetry while waiting for his brother and son to go, closed the book and turned around when he felt eyes on him from behind.
"If you think I've stooped to the point of opening random portals unnecessarily, you're wrong." Vergil complained.
"Well, I don't know if you've noticed, but you have a pretty long history of opening portals and trying to destroy the world. Did you forget the Qliphoth?" Nero replied, before hearing someone talking on the other end of the line and going back to talking on the phone with Kyrie.
"Nero." scolded Dante.
"Leave him Dante, he has a point." Vergil sighed, looking away.
"Alright then. With that question aside, could you tell me how a portal can be opened other than randomly?" Dante asked.
There is no other expert in creating portals other than Vergil. After all, he spent his youth studying and analyzing portals in this obsessive quest for power, which became his past downfall. Dante still shivers with discomfort when remembering the past.
Placing the book on the counter, Vergil stands up and adjusts his blue overcoat before answering his brother.
"A portal can be created in a few ways. As mentioned before, it can be created by a powerful demon, or by a mystical object, or by a witch." Vergil explained, turning around and giving his brother a serious look. "We will only confirm when we arrive at the scene and find out for ourselves."
"It seems like this isn't just happening around here." Nero said, approaching after finishing the call. "Kyrie informed me that more demons than usual have started to appear there. For now everything is under control with Fortuna's resident hunters subduing all the demons, but if things get out of hand I will be taking the first portal back home." Nero warned.
"Calm down kid, it's going to be okay." He calmed Dante, going to get his beloved weapons. "It must be the demon garden from our mission heading to the surrounding cities, we'll have to go now if we want to finish this as soon as possible."
"Then we shouldn't waste any more time." Vergil finished by releasing Yamato and cutting the space, creating a gate.
Little did they know what awaited them on this mission.