Chapter 19

"___" Text speech

'___' Internal thoughts

[___] status

(___) skills

(Great Sage:___)

{Author:___} author notes

Some things are subject to change depending on how I develop this story

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'Wow, was I always this selfish or evil? Seems to me like I've been planning lots of things that take advantage of others, is it because I turned into a devil that my disposition become inherently evil, or was I always this much of a douchebag? Hmm… questions for later.' Meelis decided he'd ignore the fact his thoughts were evil, or manipulative, and just decided to go through with his plans, it's not like he was doing anything bad really, if he did nothing she would die, so in his mind his actions were justified.

Cleria continued, "The church controls a part of the town and because of that we usually stay out of each other's view so as to not provoke any conflicts."

Meelis, wanting to draw more information out of her asked, "Cleria-sama-" only to be interrupted by her.

"Please, just call me Cleria, considering your connection with Rias-sama and your status as a Zagan, I should be the one saying Sama." Cleria clarified her position, both out of respect for them and because in Devil society status means a lot, and most of the time if someone disrespects the status of another devil, bad things could happen, and while she herself did not care much for these things, she could not assure that Rias and Meelis did not care.

"Ok then, Cleria, about those exorcists from the Church, who are they, and also where are they, should we be wary of them?" Meelis decided to frame his question as if he was asking about the members in general and whether they were hostile, otherwise if he directly asked her if she was dating an exorcist, not only could he not explain how he knew but that would also be a very weird question to ask her, especially on their first meeting as it might draw suspicions from her.

Cleria paused for a moment, her expression briefly hardening before she let out a sigh. "The exorcists here are a mix of independent and church-sanctioned agents. They're not necessarily hostile unless provoked, but we keep our distance. Most of them tend to operate out of the old church near the outskirts of town." She glanced at Meelis, her eyes searching his face as if trying to gauge his intentions.

Meelis nodded thoughtfully, masking his inner excitement. He knew about her relationship with Masaomi Yaegaki, an exorcist, and that their love story would ultimately lead to tragedy. This information could be his leverage, but he had to play it carefully. Pushing too hard, too fast, could risk exposure.

"That makes sense," Meelis replied, keeping his tone neutral. "It's always good to know who's in town, especially since we might be crossing paths with them. We'll do our best to avoid unnecessary conflict."

Cleria seemed to relax a little at his words. "I appreciate that. Kuoh has been peaceful for the most part, and I intend to keep it that way as long as possible. Devils and exorcists rarely mix well, but so far, we've managed to coexist."

'Rarely mix well huh.' Meelis reiterated in his head.

"Who's the leader of the Exorcists?" Meelis asked for more details.

"The leader of the Exorcist Faction in Kuoh Town is Touji Shidou, he has a few subordinates, many of whom are quite average, but Shidou-san and his direct subordinate Masaomi Yaegaki are quite strong, so I would recommend not to provoke them in any way." Cleria warned, though Meelis was unsure if she meant it as a warning for their safety, or as a warning to not harm them.

"What about the non-church exorcists?" he asked as he did not remember much about the holy faction of DxD compared to the devils. He wondered if it was that faction Freed belonged to.

"Those belong to the five Principal Clans, they follow the leadership of the Shinto Gods, they're not really related to the Church, but they are still considered exorcists, they don't usually go around there as this is considered a Devil territory and the Shinto Gods have a contract to allow the Devils here, so likewise the Five Principal clans don't like to come here often, so don't worry to much about them." Cleria clarified.

"I see."

Rias, who had been quietly observing the exchange, stepped in. "Of course, we'll be mindful of the balance here, Cleria." She smiled warmly, diffusing the slight tension. "We have no interest in disrupting the peace."

Cleria smiled back, though there was a flicker of something unreadable in her eyes, perhaps weariness, or maybe caution.

"I'm glad to hear that. Please, if you need anything while you're here, don't hesitate to reach out to me."

As they exchanged pleasantries and prepared to part ways, Meelis couldn't help but notice the slight nervousness that lingered in Cleria's demeanor. It was subtle, but the closer he looked, the more he realized she was hiding something. It seemed her relationship with Masaomi had already begun to weigh on her, and Meelis knew that the clock was ticking.

'So, judging by that demeanor, she must have some guilty conscious or nervousness by seeing us here, which most probably means that she already started her relationship with Masaomi.' Meelis judged internally

'She's going to need help sooner than she realizes.' Meelis thought, his mind spinning with ideas on how to intervene without giving away too much. He glanced over at Grayfia, who was standing a bit off to the side, ever the silent observer. Her sharp gaze indicated she hadn't missed a thing either.

"Well, it's been nice meeting you Cleria, but we have to go and look for possible peerage members, if it gets too late, most of them would head home and we'd miss them." Meelis began to end the conversation to leave soon, even if she was in danger, it was not at the moment, so he wasn't worried they'd be attacked, especially with Grayfia by his side, plus he had other things to do.

"Is that so, sorry to hold you for too long, Meelis-sama, Rias-sama, now let me walk you out." Cleria smiled and apologized as she guided them out of the mansion.

"If you have any questions or requests, don't hesitate to ask me, I might not look it, but I am good secretary and detective!" she smiled happily at them.

'Good Secretary and Detective? Maybe, considering she did get caught regardless, then she's either not as good as she thought, or her opponents were too thorough in tracking her down.

"Yes certainly, if we got any questions about Kuoh Town we'd ask you first." Meelis responded back.

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-Scene Change-

As everyone left the mansion and headed out to the more populated areas in town, Meelis slowed down his walking speed to match Grayfia's and asked her about Cleria.

Grayfia nodded, her face thoughtful. "Cleria-sama seems like a good person. It would be a shame if something were to happen to her, she seems to be troubled by something, or hiding something, as to what that is I do not know, but it seems to be related to the Church."

Meelis smirked. "Exactly. Which is why we'll need to keep an eye on things. The church might not be the only problem around here."

Grayfia, still quiet but clearly aware of Meelis' intentions, simply nodded in agreement, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Remember, Meelis-sama," she finally spoke, "we are here for reconnaissance and to recruit possible peerage members, but if you plan on involving yourself in the course of events here, do so with caution."

Meelis glanced at her, his smirk softening into a more thoughtful expression. "Don't worry, Grayfia. I always have a plan."

But even as he said the words, he couldn't deny the nagging feeling that there were too many variables in this situation, too many things he couldn't yet control.

'I really need to power up my Demonic Power, luckily it isn't much of an issue now, and I still got plenty of time to grow stronger.'

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LP: 500

Devil Nobility Class: Low, Mid, High, Ultimate, Special (these are the actual cannon rankings of DxD)

Devil Strength Rank: Low(F), Mid(E), High(D), Ultimate(C), Satan(B-), Maxed Longinus(B), Dragon Kings(B+), Heavenly Dragons/Super Devils(A), Indra/Shiva(A+), Ophis/Red(S+ to EX)