Chapter 38 I'll do it.

I did my best to control my outward reactions as Serafall's words registered to me. If the Fallen were already in Kuoh Town, then we'd already reached the start of the canon timeline. That shouldn't have been possible judging from what I remembered. Wasn't Rias's engagement to me supposed to have been in limbo for years before everything kicked off? Did the Phenexes arrange the contract late because I was such a weird kid?

I forced myself to focus on the matter at hand. If the timeline didn't exactly match up, then the timeline didn't exactly match up. I would need to be careful of relying too heavily on my knowledge in the future and do what I could to strengthen my position now.

"Yes." I said, answering Serafall's question. "Sometimes they're just there to spy, but most of the time they're there to steal a Sacred Gear."

Serafall leaned forward, her elbows resting on her knees. Her serious posture was completely offset by the borderline stripper apparel she was currently wearing. Even with such a serious topic to focus on, it was throwing me for a loop.

"Are you saying the Grigori have a way to transfer Sacred Gears?" Serafall said, her tone bellying her disbelief.

I nodded and said, "Yes. I didn't think this would happen until much later or I would have done things differently." I might have even decided not trading Seekvaira for a mutation bishop and losing out on the person it was meant for was worth trying to get Boosted Gear for myself. "That said, the Fallen should be in possession of the Sacred Gear Extractor. It would be easy enough to capture it when you deal with the Fallen."

Serafall shook her head, saying, "I can't do it myself. If a Satan were to get involved, we'd give away that we knew something was wrong. I was hoping you would go."

I raised an eyebrow at Serafall. "Me? Rias is the other ruler of Kuoh, and you should be well aware that we should be kept as far apart as possible."

"It's precisely because you embarrassed Rias that I want you to help Sona. You and your queen are each worth Rias's entire peerage." Serafall turned to Clarissa and said, "I haven't seen you fight, so I don't know how much of an asset you are. I mean no offense."

"None was taken, Lady Leviathan." Clarissa said, bowing her head respectfully.

Without forcing Clarissa to use her nickname, Serafall turned back to me. "You admitted your visions aren't entirely accurate, but enough is lining up that I don't want to take any chances. I'm working with Sirzechs, Falbium and Ajuka to prepare for any surprises from Kokabiel, but I don't have any way to protect Sona. That's why I want you to help her with the Fallen in her city. If you can capture the Sacred Gear Extractor and give it to me to pass on to Ajuka, all the better. I'll pay you for your time in whatever you want, but I'd really like this to be sorted out sooner rather than later."

Nodding my head in understanding, I said, "Okay. I'll do it." It was unavoidable that I would end up in Kuoh Town. I was already planning to take Seekvaira to retrieve Issei. This was just a little early. Besides, if the Fallen had only just arrived I had the chance to grab another peerage member to bolster my ranks. I really needed to prioritize building my peerage while I still had the chance. Things would escalate soon.

Smiling happily, Serafall floated over the coffee table and hugged me. "Thanks, Flaming Chicken-chan! I'll make it up to you!" Pulling back to fix me with a serious look, she said, "But don't flirt with my So-tan. I really like you, Flaming Chicken-chan. I don't want to have to kill you."

And there was the terrifying devil I'd met in the office.

"You don't need to worry about me flirting with Sona." I said quickly. "My sense of self-preservation wouldn't allow it."

Serafall gave me a satisfied nod. "Good. Now you should get going. I'll tell Sona to expect you."

There was a flash of white, and Serafall disappeared.

Sighing as I leaned forward to lean on my knees and rub my forehead – dealing with Serafall's brand of whiplash was exhausting – I said, "Get ready to leave. We'll be fighting Fallen Angels so prepare accordingly. We'll teleport to Kuoh town in fifteen minutes."

Yubelluna and Clarissa both stood and went about their preparations.

This was certainly going to be interesting.

X

Standing across from a black-haried girl seated behind a desk, I was beginning to understand why Serafall wanted me to back Sona up. Her peerage was about as dysfunctional as it could possibly be.

"We don't need this asshole, prez!" a blonde boy said as he glared daggers at me. "This bastard stabbed Kiba. I'd rather fight the Fallen alone than fight with him."

"Yeah!" a bubbly brunette said, also shooting me a stinging look. "He hurt Akeno and ruined Rias's reputation!"

Not bothering to hold back my sigh of exhaustion, I ignored the peanut gallery and focused on Sona. "Look, heiress Sitri, I understand you're probably unhappy with this situation. I'm not exactly fond of it either, but we have credible intelligence that the Fallen are up to something more sinister than merely encroaching on your territory. That's the only reason I'm here. To investigate that information and act upon it if it's proven accurate."

"Fuck that! Prez, let's just–"

Sona raised a hand, cutting off the boy's protests. "Will you follow my orders?"

I nodded. "I'm not here to usurp your authority. My job is to back you up. I'm going with you to the church no matter what you say, but outside of that, and so long as your orders don't endanger my peerage or conflict with my purpose here, it's your show."

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