On the streets of Los Santos, inside a 24-hour fast-food joint.
Sephirot and Lady picked a seat by the window and sat down.
The table was piled high with fried chicken and burger boxes.
Alessa had a fried chicken leg gripped in each hand, her mouth stuffed so full of fries that her cheeks puffed out like a hamster's.
Sephirot took a sip of Cola, looking at Alessa's state and shaking his head helplessly. "Great, another foodie."
Lady rested her chin on one hand, gazing at the scenery outside the window. Hearing this, she turned her eyes toward Alessa.
"Her... do you plan on letting her stay inside your body like that forever?"
"I don't know. Her source of darkness remains with me; she can't wander too far from me."
Sephirot rubbed his brow. "But if I really let her stay on her own, and she loses her temper one day, half of Los Santos would probably suffer for it."
"So you plan on carrying her around like this indefinitely? Like an accessory?"
Lady arched an eyebrow. "Don't plan on sending her to school or letting her live a normal human life?"
Sephirot glanced at Alessa, who had completely abandoned any semblance of table manners, and shook his head. "We'll see later..."
"I'm afraid she'd hang all the bratty kids in school from the ceiling like teru teru bozu dolls."
Lady seemed to imagine the scene and let out a soft chuckle. She stopped dwelling on the issue and shifted to another topic:
"Get some good rest these next couple of days. In a few days, I'll take you to see a weapons dealer. It's what I promised you before."
"Oh? What's their story?"
Sephirot felt a spark of interest. An arms dealer personally introduced by Lady certainly wouldn't be anyone ordinary.
"A madwoman named Nico. You might have heard of her."
At the mention of the name, Lady wore a smile that was part admiration and part headache.
"The woman is a top-tier mechanic and alchemist. She spends the whole year driving a beat-up van all over the world. She's obsessed with all sorts of weird and bizarre demonic materials."
"She happens to be heading back to Los Santos this time, so I figured I'd introduce you two."
"So it's her..."
Sephirot muttered to himself. The image of a woman with a cigarette dangling from her mouth and tattoos covering her body immediately surfaced in his mind.
He remembered that Dante's favorite pair of handguns - Ebony & Ivory - were crafted by Nico's grandmother.
Thinking about it, the Holy Flame of Exorcism that Enzo the black market dealer gave him a while back seemed to be one of Nico's works as well.
Come to think of it, while he was well-acquainted with Nero, he had never officially met this Genius Mechanic face-to-face.
Just like Lady, they were constantly on the move, rarely returning to the Agency.
...
A few days later.
The screech of brakes echoed outside the Agency.
A battered, mud-caked van pulled a stylish drift, sliding perfectly into a parking spot right in front of the Agency.
Mounted atop the van was a neon sign that read "Devil May Cry." The Agency's front door was kicked open.
"Hey! Miss me, everyone?"
Nico walked in with a swagger, a half-burnt cigarette dangling from her lips, but the bright grin on her face faltered the moment she saw the state of the room.
She scanned the surroundings in disbelief. "Good God... did you guys get robbed? Or did a pack of demons ransack the place?"
Lady, who was busy wiping down her weapons, raised an eyebrow in surprise at the newcomer. "Yo, Nico. What brings you here unannounced? Nero didn't come with you?"
"Don't even get me started on that brat!"
At the mention of his name, Nico rolled her eyes in annoyance. "He hasn't been taking commissions or hunting demons lately. His head is completely filled with playing house with his little girlfriend."
"It's been nearly half a year since I've had any new demon materials to work with. My hands are itching for a project. I had to hit the road myself to find some fun."
She glanced around once more and asked, "Speaking of which, where's that old man Dante? Where is he hiding now?"
"Who knows with him?"
Lady put her gun away and patted Sephirot, who was lounging on the sofa next to her. "Come here, Sephirot. Let me introduce you. This is Nico. I'm sure you've heard of her."
"Haha! So this is that little boy you're always talking about, the one you picked up?" Nico laughed heartily. "You've got good taste. He's definitely easy on the eyes."
Sephirot's eyes twitched slightly. Though he wanted to retort, he wisely chose to remain silent in the face of these two women.
"If you ever need any weapons modified, just come find me!"
Nico stepped forward with a boisterous air and gave Sephirot a firm slap on the shoulder as if they were old friends.
"As long as you've got the cash - and maybe some materials that pique my interest - I can build you anything from handguns to a Devil Arm!"
"As it happens, I actually do need to restock some supplies."
Sephirot smiled and looked toward the van parked outside. "Why don't I see what kind of interesting goods you've got hidden in there?"
Hearing that there was business to be done, Nico's eyebrows shot up. She immediately grew energized, enthusiastically waving Sephirot over to her van.
"Come on, then! Let me show you the latest inventions from this Genius Mechanic."
Nico threw open the back of the van. Despite the limited space, the interior was packed tight with an array of exotically designed firearm accessories and weapons.
Cardboard boxes filled with various types of specialized ammunition were stacked high, making the vehicle look like a miniature mobile armory.
Hanging on the walls of the van were various models and colors of mechanical hands.
"Take a good look."
Nico lifted her chin and patted the metal arms hanging on the sides with pride.
"These are the Devil Breakers I custom-made for that kid Nero."
"If a demon ever rips your arm off, come straight to me. I'll make you a custom one that spits fire and lightning - works way better than your original bone-and-flesh version, I guarantee it."
Sephirot picked up a few to inspect them before setting them back down.
He was actually quite interested in Nero's multi-functional prosthetic arms; they had a certain Iron Man appeal to them.
However, his current skill set was already comprehensive. Whether it was the offense of the Devil Bringer, the defense of the Royal Guard, or the mobility of the Trickster, he had all his bases covered. Adding a prosthetic arm now would just be gilding the lily.
The only thing he truly lacked was pure firepower and weaponry.
He couldn't very well rely on his fists to brawl every time he encountered a demon.
After considering his options, he decided it would be best to restock his shotgun shells, especially since the ammo Enzo gave him was running low.
In the end, he purchased a batch of 12-gauge pure silver armor-piercing rounds and high-concentration Holy Water incendiary shells from Nico's armory, along with a few boxes of 9mm pure silver bullets.
Lady, who was trailing behind Sephirot, watched his lavish spending and teased, "Seems I was too soft-hearted last time. My quote was clearly too low."
She leaned against the wall, crossing her arms. "Are those small-caliber 9mm handgun rounds a gift for Patty? How come you didn't pick anything out for me?"
Sephirot gave a subtle glance at the oversized rocket launcher on her back. "Lady, my meager funds couldn't even begin to cover the overhead for your heavy ordnance."
Beep—
The card reader spat out a receipt.
Nico lit a cigarette with an air of satisfaction and continued:
"Seeing as you're such a generous spender, I'll give you a piece of intel on demons for free."
"Have you been paying attention to those serial disappearances in the old-growth forests of West Virginia lately?"
(Translated by yourtl.app)
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TL NOTES - CROSSOVER GUIDE
Some references in this chapter come from source universes that may be unfamiliar to some readers.
The notes below are here to help readers unfamiliar with these universes follow along more easily.
Characters
Nico - A mechanic and alchemist from Devil May Cry 5 (2019). Her full name is Nicoletta Goldstein. She is the adoptive granddaughter of Nell Goldstein, the legendary weaponsmith who crafted Dante's iconic handguns Ebony & Ivory. Nico travels the world in a customized van, seeking out demonic materials to craft weapons and prosthetic Devil Breakers for Nero. Known for her blunt personality, chain-smoking habit, and tattooed appearance, she serves as Nero's weapons supplier and occasional partner. Her van doubles as a mobile workshop and armory, stocked with specialized ammunition and custom-built Devil Breakers.
Devil Breakers - Custom prosthetic arms created by Nico for Nero in Devil May Cry 5. These mechanical arms grant Nero various combat abilities, including grappling hooks, time-slowing devices, explosive punches, and other specialized functions. Each Devil Breaker is a single-use item that overheats and breaks after sustained use, requiring Nero to swap to a fresh one. They replace the Lost Devil Bringer that Nero lost in the prologue of Devil May Cry 5.
Ebony & Ivory - Dante's signature dual handguns, crafted by Nell Goldstein (Nico's adoptive grandmother). The pistols are named after the keys of a piano and represent Dante's balanced approach to combat - Ebony for precise single-target shots, Ivory for rapid-fire suppression. They have appeared in every Devil May Cry game and remain Dante's most iconic weapons.