33

The class ended and immediately Rias Gremory left the room with her queen. And then the same was done by the other students.

Inside the third year classroom, only Anastasia and Merlin remained.

"It seems like the little Gremory really wanted to leave the classroom, I wonder why?" Merlin pondered loudly as he tapped his chin with his index finger.

"She must be trying to prepare herself to recruit certain individuals into her peerage." Ana sighed as he knew things would get troublesome really soon.

"You mean you and me?" Merlin initially pointed to his adoptive mother and then to himself.

"And the second year boy named Issei Hyoudou. He is the bearer of a longinus class sacred gear."

"Really, quite impressive. Those weapons are really anoying to fight if the user has knowledge, which of the thirteen does he have?"

"The booster gear, also knows as the longinus that carries the soul of the welsh dragon Y Ddraig Goch."

"My newest little brother is the possessor of the Divine Dividing longinus, right?"

"Yes, Vali's sacred gear holds the soul of the vanishing dragon Albion Gwiber."

When he got the answer, Merlin started to laugh.

"Merlin, whats the problem?" Anastasia looked at the mage.

"Oh nothing important. I'm just happy that things are going to be fun hehehe."

"Whatever. How about a tour of the school, interested?" Anastasia proposes.

"Of course my lady." Merlin holds Ana's arm in an unusual way, as if he were a lady being escorted by a gentleman in royalty stories.

"You never change."

"I wouldn't be so funny if I changed my awesome personality."

Anastasia took Merlin around the school, introducing the locals and chatting about unimportant topics along the way.

As they approached the Kendo club they noticed a commotion.

"For Yahweh sake, not again." Ana massaged her forehead.

"What happened there? Something important in a sword club, how unusual."

"My bet involves three second-year students, who should be aware that their punishments will be extended."

"Oh spying on young girls, what a bunch of peverts."

"Says the pot calling the kettle black."

"Let's join in the fun." Merlin simply went straight to the club when he said that without waiting for a response.

"Wait... and there he goes." Then Anastasia followed the wizard to the kendo club's training hall.

Inside the hall she came across an interesting scene. Most of the girls had an irritated expression, some were focused on a certain blond devil and another considerable portion were drooling over the new student's appearance.

"Hello, could anyone explain to me what is happening here?" Ana asks.

"Ambrosius-sensei, we were practicing normally, but we noticed that the perverted trio was spying on some girls who were in the locker room. We tried to beat them, but two ran away and the third was called by the president of the occult research club."

"First of all, you shouldn't resort to lynching, violence is still wrong. I wish you had reported what happened to the faculty or the student club. However, I would like to know why the student Kiba Yuuto is here, after all he is not a member of this club."

"Aah Yuuto-kun came to inform that Gremory-senpai was asking Issei Hyoudou to appear at her club, apparently it's something important. He stayed here to apologize and help us a little with swordplay." Says another blushing girl looking at Rias Gremory's knight.

"I see. How's the progress?" Ana asks again.

"What progress?" The girl answers doubtfully.

"In fencing, don't tell me you were too busy looking at a boy instead of doing your own club activities."

The silence in the room gave the answer.

"Kiba Yuuto, Is what they said true?" Anastasia approached the reincarnated devil.

"Yes sensei, Rias-buchou called a student who caused trouble here to visit our club."

"I see, is there anything else for you to keep waiting here?"

"Not really, but I would like to ask sensei and the new student to attend the occult research club."

"How about a bet, if you win I'll go to that club."

"What if I lose?" Kiba asks.

"I don't see the need for any punishment, but since you insist, how about helping at the kendo club for a week."

"That's fine with me, what will be the competition?"

"We're at the Kendo club, it certainly won't be arm wrestling." Merlin interrupted the conversation.

"As my dear son said, our competition will be in kendo."

"Okay, but sensei, do you know how to use a sword?" Kiba asked doubtfully.

"Oh if she knows. You'll find out." Merlin replied mysteriously and chuckes as he ends.

They both pick up a training sword made of wood and go to their positions in the arena.

"Sensei, you should put on the hazmat suit, I won't hold back." Kiba tried to warn Anastasia.

"Don't worry about me, but you should follow your own advice." Anastasia returned the concern, but Kiba didn't think it was important.

When both took their fighting positions, the duel judge who was a member of the Kendo club announced the start of the duel.

Both quickly clashed their training swords against each other, trying to gain an advantage by changing angles or the way they wielded it, but neither found an opening.

The duelists were busy while the crowd was excited, the girls in the club screamed excitedly cheering for the boy, but their excitement couldn't match that of a certain half-devil wizard.

Merlin was acting like a cheerleader with two ponpons he got from who knows where, jumping and shouting his mother's name without any shame to theoretically motivate her... or maybe irritate her enough to quickly end the duel out of shame.

"A – N – A – S – T – A – S – I – A give the blonde prince a serious beating." The song coming from Merlin echoes in the room. "Mom rocks, Kiba flops."

The girls in the room are angered by the words of the new boy who was cursing the Prince of Kuoh, but quickly the anger passed as they looked at Merlin's handsome face.

While the audience was freaking out, the duelists were completely focused.

Kiba tried to surpass his teacher with his speed enhanced by the knight's evil piece that granted him speed enhancement, but he noticed that the teacher reacted at the same moment he attacked as if she was limiting herself to the same level of reaction as him.

He then tried another approach clashing swords and trying to beat her with his devil strength, after all if she were a human dependent on magic she wouldn't have improved her physical strength. But to his surprise, he was at an impasse without being able to push the teacher with his strength.

After a few minutes of shouting and a wizard trying new ways to get attention, he noticed from his opponent's expressions that the teacher was losing her patience and the moment he tried to take advantage of the opportunity he was in shock.

The teacher's impatience disappeared from her face, maintaining only a neutral expression extremely close to a blank one, with her sword arcing straight for the attack.

He had already started his own movement and tried to repeat the stalemate by clashing swords again for safety, but the fight wasn't going as he predicted.

He noticed that the teacher took a step to the right and relaxed her posture, letting the sword slide past his sword and disconnect from the impasse, then she turned counterclockwise, using the moment of the previous action to increase the strength of the own attack.

Kiba, after hitting the wind, noticed the movement and tried to turn around to put his sword in the path of the blow to block it, but in the end Anastasia wood sword clashed against Kiba's and broke his training sword in half.

"Looks like I lost." Kiba says but his expression is contemplative, the experience was certainly inspiring for him, especially due to the blows.

"It doesn't just seem like it, it's a fact. You lost." Merlin says loudly.

"It was a good duel." Anastasia says with a smile, but continues speaking in a low voice only to the young devil. "You still have a lot to evolve, but you are on the right path. Remember that your friends are great motivation, don't try to follow a path of loneliness as this will reduce your motivation."

Kiba is shocked by the words but just nods and turns to Merlin.

"Ambrosius-san, would you like a duel under the same conditions?"

"I'm sorry prince charming, but I'm not like you." Merlin replied.

"What do you mean?" Kiba asked without understanding.

"You're a pretty boy who knows how to handle a sword, I'm just a pretty boy. You should know swordplay isn't really my forté." Merlin says without a single bit of shame as he is stared by Anastasia who had a expression screaming 'Bullshit'.

"I see." Kiba then begins to withdraw from the club.

"Hey pretty boy, you said that redheared girl invited me to visit her club? Alright, guide me there, it should be fun to try something new." Merlin follows the knight with a smirk plastered on his face.

"Of course, no problem." Kiba smiles with his classic harmless smile, but from the micro expressions he is relieved.

"Then I'll go too." Anastasia follows the two boys.

"But I lost." Kiba remembers her about their bet.

"I said I would go if you won, I never said I wouldn't go if you lost." She just shrugs and walks to the old building.