Chapter 10 - Part 1 - Drug Dealer Skyward and School Memories*

Japan, Kuoh

Skyward Household

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

When we arrived home, it was quiet… too quiet, that I became suspicious.

"Why is it so quiet?" asked Kuroka.

"Mmm. It's usually a lot louder than this, even on calmer days it's a lot noisier," added Suzaku.

As I was about to take the first step—

"Aniiiiiiiiiikiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!" the voice of a screeching Vali erupted from the elevator as he ran towards me.

I sighed and put my hand up. "I'll spar with you later; can you give me some time to unwind?" I asked. However, before he could answer me, Lavinia lunged at him and hugged him. Vali looked very uncomfortable.

"Vaa-kun, we just came back from a trip. Can you give us some time to get used to the pace here?" she asked in a gentle way. Vali's lips twitched but he agreed in the end and Lavinia let go of him. He muttered something about seeing me down in the [Training Facility].

"Nia-chin can neutralize Lucidrago very quickly, nyahahaha~" Kuroka then started looking around the place trying to detect Akeno. "Where's Akeno nya~? I wanna brag to her about my engagement~ nyuhuhuhuhu~" she said and skipped away.

"Well… dismissed, we can meet up later and discuss this in the meeting room with Team [DxD] and then inform the rest of the alliance," I told them and everyone left except for Suzaku who stayed by my side. "Is something wrong?" I asked her.

"Can I stay with you? I'll be going back to my clan later on so…"

"Sure thing, I was just planning on going to my office for a bit and sort through the things the Hindu gods might add. I'll just remove anything that isn't relevant. It may be boring though," I said, but Suzaku insisted on going.

So, we arrived in my office, and instead of heading to my desk like usual, I moved over to the couch. However, what I found on my desk was an explanation on why everyone was mostly missing, and the one to write it was Grayfia.

Team Slash/Dog was at an assignment with Fusae again, something apparently happened in Australia, so Team [DxD] went to it. The Gremory peerage were back in the Underworld with her since they were asked by Sirzechs and Asteri to help with Millicas' training. Grayfia also went back there to interrogate Euclid more.

Raiko and Rose were still apparently in their homeland, and they were coming home a day late. The rest were either in my home doing their usual things or in the [Training Facility]. I read this note with Suzaku as I had gone back over to the couch.

"Will you be fighting Vali Lucifer?" asked Suzaku.

"Hmm? Yeah, I mean he won't leave me alone otherwise, so I'll have to. But it'll be better than being stuck doing this all the time, though I'll try to get it done as quickly as possible," I replied and summoned some Android fairies.

"Do you want help?" she offered.

"You'll be doing your own work soon. I don't want to burden you with more work, Suzaku. If anything, you staying with me is going to help me a lot," I said.

"How would that—mmm…"

I interrupted her by kissing her. She was quite surprised, but also kissed me back.

"W-why…?"

"Well, I won't exactly get to relax even when I come home. I need to deal with this, then Vali and whatever other drama happens after I showed the world, I have another form beyond [Juggernaut Overdrive] and potentially my [Queen] for my [Boosted Gear]," I told her. "I need someone right now. Normally Nia would be attached to me, but she's gone to be with Vali, so…"

"Are you jealous?" she asked, interrupting me.

"W-what? No… she wants to spoil Vali and she's within her right, you know? You could always leave and spend time with everyone else. I'll be fine…"

"You're mopping now, fufu."

"..." I didn't know how to respond, so I simply turned back to the documents that the Hindu gods had made up. I wasn't jealous, that would be weird.

Vali and Lavinia have a sibling-type relationship, and I'm pretty sure Vali will have two wives, that vampire lady in his team, and Genbu Doumon from the Doumon clan, well, if they meet up again, I mean.

As I continued to read through them Suzaku gently grabs my other arm and hugs it. I glanced at her and she was still smiling at me.

"…You won't drop this, will you?" I asked. Suzaku simply smiled at me in response. Even though she is very mature, responsible, and kind, she can be very playful or mischievous at times.

"I'm not jealous, I can tell you that, but… at times I wish I was born around the same time as Lavinia and had helped her. We have talked about possibly changing the past, but we don't know if she or anyone else here will stay relatively the same, or undergo a drastic change. So, when I evolve, I'll only do minor changes to this world, but everywhere else… well, you already know."

"But if you have access to everything at that point, can't you just prevent or simply not have anything change? Force a change on something else, but not have the rippling effect… that theoretically be possible, right?" she asked me.

My chest suddenly shines and—

Cúntóir: Answer: It should be possible, yes. He will have control of everything at that point… add, remove, change laws, concepts, and anything you can think of. Nothing will be beyond him at that point.

"And what about now?" I asked Cúntóir. She goes silent for a few seconds before she spoke again.

Cúntóir: Answer: It seems I am allowed to say this then. You have always had access to it, but… your 'evolution' will just change your body to be able to handle it. If you were to use it right now, you would essentially kill yourself. Just like how you change from a hybrid to an outer god. The abilities are there, but they're locked so you won't kill yourself. This is because Azathoth knew your character very well… and how most of your earlier jobs were just a suicidal charge for you.

"…What?" I asked a bit confused.

Cúntóir: Answer: No… it's nothing. You still don't have that part of your memories. Anyway, certain things you can't do because your body can't handle them. Compare it to Midoriya and his use of OFA. His body needed to slowly get used to it, but if he went past a certain threshold, he'd just injure himself. It's times a million for you. You'd just outright die if you tried it. And you know the state of Azathoth right now.

I slightly sighed. "So let me get this straight… When I evolved, my body changed enabling me to use my powers, except certain ones since it would kill me. But since I reached my 1st requirement, I've had more access to them, and now since I'm nearing my 2nd requirement, I have access to even more. The final step is 'evolving' to get a new body, essentially."

Cúntóir: Answer: Yes, essentially.

I put my hand out and tried to change the multiverse, but Cúntóir immediately appeared and smacked my head.

"Didn't I just say you would kill yourself?!" she shouted at me.

"Even doing something small will kill me?" I asked.

"Yes! What part of 'will kill you' did you not understand?!"

"Aaron…" muttered Suzaku as she looked at me with an upset expression too.

"Okay, okay, I won't."

The door suddenly swung open and Lavinia barged in and jumped towards me.

"Don't die!" she shouted and I caught her. She was already crying for some reason and I started to comfort her.

"What happened to staying with Vali?" I asked.

"He started to avoid me, which upset me, so I came up here, but then I heard you might die, making me more upset," she said and buried her head in my chest.

"I'm not dying though…?"

"You were close to it!" snapped Cúntóir. Cúntóir then told Lavinia what we talked about and she started to lightly hit me on the chest.

"No! You can't die… also, I've been meaning to ask again, did he die during his first evolution?" she asked Cúntóir. However, Cúntóir simply closed her eyes and left.

'That wasn't really encouraging, you know?' I said to her but also got no response. Lavinia—no, both of them looked at me worriedly. "I'll be fine, even if I die, it's only temporary," I told them. But that wasn't the right answer as they seemed to get even more upset.

"It's probably going to happen, and we can't do anything about it, so I can't really say anything about it without me sounding like an asshole. So let's just leave it at that, okay?" I asked them.

"You weren't awake for your first evolution, right?" asked Lavinia.

"I wasn't. I along with Ddraig and Albion were put to sleep, and by the time we woke up, I had finished evolving," I replied.

"Did you suspect anything at the time?" asked Suzaku.

"Honestly? No, I was too excited with evolving and began exploring our universe. However, I found no other life here, so we might be the only ones in our universe that's 'alive', which was a bit disappointing."

Well, it's not like this universe was anywhere near what I knew since a lot of things have been different, so my knowledge was only useful in certain instances. But when I looked back at both of them, they seemed to be in deep thought, so I went back to reading and sorting through the documents.

As I picked up another one, it was one of Indra's suggestions, and it said 'Have a fighting tournament every year!' that would be very expensive and I doubt everyone would want to fight every year, some would probably want to get stronger first, right? Now that I think about it, how often will this International Rating Game occur?

Every year? Every two? Three? Four? Five? Ten? I'll need to speak to the other organizers about this. I guess Tiamat, Azazel and Ajuka should be the first ones I'll speak to. I mean, at that point in time I can just conjure any amount of money I want so it's not about the lack of finances, but… I do wonder what wishes the winners will want.

I think I'd suggest every five years. I think that's more than reasonable. It'll also give any teams that want to participate enough time to train and get stronger so they'll have a better chance of winning, or finding new teammates for this team.

"The International Rating Game tournament will happen in the future, probably after Rias, Akeno, Ingvild, Sona, Tsubaki, Kiyohime and I graduate. The idea of implementing 'tryouts' for my team in the future has crossed my mind. I can pick from a lot of people, so I was thinking of having 'tryouts' for members in the future. I know the spot for [Queen] will be sought after by a lot, so…"

"You haven't picked your teammates yet?" asked Suzaku.

"No, Aurelia also wants to make her own team, I think—" as I was about to continue, the door opened and the woman of the hour appeared. It was Aurelia.

"Hmm. I didn't think you would be talking about me, Aaron-sama. But I do have a list of potential candidates. I just finished training a few of the alliance members down there. Will you look through the list?" she asked and sat down on the opposite couch.

"Sure thing, and good job," I replied, and she pulled out a piece of paper and gave it to me.

I looked through it and it was a fascinating line-up.

[Team Golden Rakshasa]:

King – Aurelia Le Guin

Queen – Possible candidates: Rossweisse, Scathach

Knight – Possible candidates: Haru, Aífe

Knight – Possible candidates: Ara, Duvalie, Yoru

Rook – Akaza

Rook – Kuroka

Bishop – Possible candidates: Narberal Gamma, Edel

Bishop – Ravel Phenex

Pawn (5) – Ouryuu Nakiri

Pawn (3) – Possible candidates: [Dragon] (In talks) (Can be put as a Rook)

"…Hmm. I thought Ouryuu might try to get into my team, but I assume that you spoke with Tiamat about this already?" I asked her.

The possible candidates of her team were quite interesting, I'm even more surprised that Rossweisse wants to be [Queen] in her team even I thought she might ask to be in mine. Also, she already has Kuroka, Ravel, and Akaza as definite team members.

"I have, since I am essentially 'playing' for you, just like Cao Cao, she saw no problem with it. I also asked Ouryuu Nakiri about it and he didn't mind—in fact, he said it would be an honor. The dragon… fufu, I do hope he accepts seeing as how he essentially wants to be a subordinate of yours," said Aurelia.

I had a sneaking suspicion on who it is, but I won't say it yet. "I'm surprised you didn't ask more of the Electa to be on your team. Also, did you approach Ravel, or did she approach you?" I asked.

"She approached me after she heard I was recruiting a team for a future event. She accepted the [Bishop] position and will be the one that creates the plans and strategies for the team. I am capable of it, but I wish to see her grow in that aspect," she explained.

"What about Akaza and Kuroka?"

"Kuroka… she has her own reasons, but she wanted to fight her previous team, Team Vali if given the opportunity. Akaza wanted to join since we would have the opportunity to fight strong opponents during it," said Aurelia.

"…" Since [Team Red Dragon Emperor of Blazing Truth] won't exist in this universe, Rias will essentially have the same team, right? Or will she still try to recruit Vasco Strada and Crom Cruach into her team? There is no limit and she can swap out reserved members after all…

Cúntóir: Answer: Don't forget about Valerie not being on her team.

Ah right, she became the designated healer once Asia left her peerage too. But now, I'm really curious to know how the new team will perform. It would essentially be full of powerhouses. If we lay it out…

[Team Rias Gremory]:

King – Rias Gremory

Queen – Akeno Himejima

Knight – Xenovia Quarta

Knight – Kiba Yuuto

Rook – Vasco Strada

Rook – Shirone Toujou

Bishop – Asia Argento

Bishop – Gasper Vladi

Pawn (8) – Crom Cruach

Reserved members: Lint Sellzen [Knight]/[Pawn]

She's still missing a [Rook] and all 8 [Pawns] her peerage after all. So her team for the tournament should be set for that…

"What about you, Aaron-sama? Do you have your team ready yet?" she asked.

"No," I replied and told her my plans.

"I see. Well, whoever they may be, it will surely be the strongest team in the tournament to face—the last exhibition match, fufu. If we do win, I do look forward to fighting you."

"…What wish do you want?" I asked.

"I do not have one. However, I will leave it to the others, so essentially, Rossweisse, Scathach, Aífe, Kuroka, Ravel, Ouryuu and the Dragon. The other Electa have said they do not have anything they want since we can just ask you directly," she explained and chuckled.

Well, they're right about that. They can just ask me… but those guys, huh? Kuroka might ask for food, or something serious, the rest I'm unsure about, but… Rose might ask for something specific…

"I would like to say that I don't aim to win everything. The same with the other Electa that are joining me. What we aim to do is let these young ones experience a various number of things. Scathach and Aífe will also be part of that group, but also wish to win since they also want to wish for something," said Aurelia.

"So you won't be constantly aiming to win? Well at least hold back to make it entertaining for the ones watching," I told her.

"Of course, that was the plan from the start. The other Electa already knew that. However, if we come across teams that have been to your [Pocket Dimension] or [Training Facility] we won't hold back and treat them like proper opponents, the same with some God-class teams."

"Well, that's to be expected. If you didn't, they'd probably feel insulted, and it'd make this entire event even better, so you better do that," I told her.

"Apart from having a team… what about your team's name? You surely have that, right?" she asked.

"Team…name…" I muttered.

I hadn't thought about that, but I guess having a team name wouldn't be bad. But I wasn't sure what it would be. I know Issei had [Team Red Dragon Emperor of Blazing Truth] and Vali would surely follow the same path with [Team White Dragon Emperor of the Morning Star].

"I haven't but I'll cross that line when I need to. I still need members after all," I replied and she accepted my answer.

"I will get moving then, sorry for interrupting you," she said and left.

When I looked back at the two women with me, they were still in deep thought.

"I want to participate in the tryouts," both of them said at the same time. They then looked at each other silently, and an even bigger rivalry was brewing.

"I know the Five Principal Clans have relaxed a bit, but is it fine? You're the head of the Himejima clan. Will it be okay?" I asked Suzaku.

"Yes, it should be fine. I will make arrangements for it, but it's as you said, your team will essentially be the last team that's going to play in the tournament. I believe I can spare a day, Aaron."

I nodded. That makes sense, though, depending on the type of Rating Game we'll play, it may last more than a day. Especially the [One Day Long War] Rating Game.

"…I will talk to Fusae about taking my place in Team Slash/Dog, and will soon retire from the team. But I won't mind doing future missions with them if they require my help," said Lavinia.

So she's finally going to leave, huh? The Ice Princess' departure from Team Slash/Dog. As for her future career, I'll assume she wants to be in my business/side so I'll think of something that's beside being a 'secretary' since there are way too many people fighting over that already.

"And if she refuses?"

"I don't think she will. Fusae may be a bit quiet, but she's like any other girl and person, Aaron. She'll enjoy spending time with others even without voicing it."

As we continued to talk to each other, another person knocked on my office's door. I told them to come in and it was Vali to our surprise.

"Are you coming down?" he asked.

"…How long has it been?" I asked back.

He gave me a confused look and said, "It's been around two hours since you came back."

I didn't think we had been in here for two hours. I looked at the clock on the wall and saw that two hours did really pass. I sighed and shook my head and summoned an avatar. "Can you finish these for me?" I asked him and he nodded. "Alright, Vali, let's go," I told him and we left for the [Training Facility].

…

Third Person Point of View

…

Once in the [Training Facility] Aaron noticed that there were multiple groups there and they were hard at work. He also noticed that Ddraig and Albion were busy training Haru and Yoru. Once he was done with Vali he would go over there and check on them.

Vali led them to a different spot near his team that were being trained by Aurelia and the First-Generation Sun Wukong.

"Jin-boy, I heard you went to my gods? How was it? I also saw the match. Good work on the win over Sakra," said First Gen Wukong.

"It was fine, they were all quite nice and thank you," replied Aaron.

"Come on, I can't wait forever," said Vali impatiently.

"Alright, I'm coming," replied Aaron as he walked over to him. "So? Same rules as when we first fought?" he asked and smiled at remembering their first fight.

"Yeah, but I'm going all out as soon as it starts. Fight me with your own [Divine Dividing]," replied Vali.

"How troublesome, very well." Aaron didn't mind and went along with his little brother's request. He glanced to his side and Lavinia seemed troubled.

"Who do I cheer for? Vaa-kun or Aaron?" she asked herself and put a hand on her cheek.

"Why not both of them? It's just a sparring match and there are no stakes," replied Suzaku. As they spoke to each other, a crowd started to gather near them as they also wanted to watch the sparring match between Aaron and Vali.

"Mmm, okay~! Go Vaa-kun! Go Jin!" shouted Lavinia and waved to the two.

"I'll be the arbiter then," said First Gen Wukong. "Are you two ready?" he asked them.

"Yeah," they both replied.

Sun Wukong nodded. "Begin!" he shouted.

Vali quickly entered his Balance Breaker and started chanting.

"I, who is about to awaken—"

The shallow thoughts of the past wielders of [Divine Dividing] flowered out of Vali gems.

{What we strengthen is the height of the Heavenly Dragon!}

{The path we go is the road of the domination of the White Dragon Emperor!}

{We stop the infinite and devour the dream!}

The past wielders did not have any grudges or hatred anymore. They were simply filled with an overwhelming sense of fighting spirit. It was due to Vali subduing them with his own fighting spirit, and dreams of surpassing both Great Red and Aaron.

"Am the White Dragon Emperor who will take the law down to the darkness—"

"I walk the road of domination with infinite destruction and by piercing through the imaginary dream—"

"I shall become a pure Emperor of White Dragon—"

"{{{{And I shall have you obey the silvery-white illusions and the perfect evil ways!}}}}"

{Juggernaut Over Drive!!}

Vali donned the silvery-white armor, different to the one that Aaron possessed. This was HIS [Empireo Juggernaut Overdrive]. He retracted his helmet and smiled confidently at Aaron. "Now bring yours out," he said.

"G-o V-a-a-k-u-n~!" shouted Lavinia which made Vali blush.

"You certainly worked hard," replied Aaron as he entered his own Balance Breaker and his own [Empireo Juggernaut Overdrive] without chanting.

"Are you not going to use the new armor?" asked Vali.

"Baby steps, Vali. Let's see how much you improved, alright?"

Vali smirked and flew towards Aaron. When he arrived in front of him, he did a few faints and threw an uppercut his way, yet Aaron calmly dodged it and threw his own punch at Vali, who barely managed to block it and was blown away.

This did not deter Vali as he immediately flew back and exchanged blows with Aaron, a giant grin plastered across his face. However, after a few seconds of that he jumped back and put his hand out. Aaron did the same thing, and—

"Divide!"

{{Divide!}} both Albion and Amaris' voice shouted. But only one of them worked and Vali grimaced.

"That's just unfair," he said and frowned at Aaron.

"Your [Divine Dividing] abilities still won't work on me, Vali. It's better to—"

"Compress!"

{Compression Divider!}

Aaron also countered with his own [Compression Divider] and the two cancelled each other out. He shook his head at Vali disappointedly.

"There are no rules in a real fight!" shouted Vali and he flew towards Aaron again.

"Well, this isn't exactly a death battle," replied Aaron as he dodged Vali's attempts at punching him. Vali continued his assault, as he mixed in some martial arts which surprised Aaron. He hadn't thought Vali would try to learn a fighting style.

"Martial arts?" Aaron asked as he dodged a powerful punch from Vali. "I didn't think you'd learn that, Vali."

"Because of my loss to that Phantasma member, I wanted to expand my knowledge even more and learn some!" replied Vali and both his and Aaron's fists collided, forcing them away from each other.

Vali fired several powerful demonic balls at Aaron and he got rid of them using [Compression Divider].

"I'll admit, you have gotten stronger, Vali. But you need to be stronger for whatever future opponents show up that will challenge Team [DxD]."

"I know that! So use that armor!" Vali demanded and Aaron chuckled.

Aaron knew that he didn't need to use it, but still decided to respect his little brother's wishes. "Fine, you asked for it," replied Aaron. He put his right hand on his heart and started to chant.

"The Pure White Dragon dwelling within me, rise up from your supremacy—"

{The Pure Ever Lasting Outer God I possess within me, claim the throne of the beginning—}

[The Jet-Black God of Infinity—]

{The Mysterious and Unfathomable Creator of Realities—}

"{We shall transcend the limits to accept the oath—}"

"{[Thou shalt kneel down before our bright and glorious existence!]}"

"{[O ∞ O!! O ∞ O O ∞ O!! O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O!!! O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O!!!! O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O!!!!! O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O O ∞ O!!!!!!!!]}"

{[O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O Outer God!!!!!!!!!!!!!]}

{Outer ∞ Drive!!!!!!!!}

Aaron entered his [Diablos Outer God] form and faced Vali. Vali took down his helmet again and grinned. "Let's go!" the young Lucifer shouted and flew towards him.

Vali cocked his arm back and covered his fist with demonic energy. He then threw his punch at Aaron who also met his punch… but to his surprise and horror, once their fists collided, Vali's entire armor was shattered. Aaron had barely put any power into his punch, but he still shattered Vali's [Juggernaut Overdrive] armor.

"Wha—?!"

Aaron followed it up by kicking Vali in the chest and launching him away.

{Vali!} Albion shouted with concern.

"I'm fine…!" he replied and coughed up some blood.

"Jin!" Lavinia shouted from the sidelines. Aaron retracted his helmet and gave her a troubled look. He wasn't trying to kill him, but injuries were still going to happen while they fought, so this was inevitable.

Lavinia knew that but was still a bit upset at her fiancé. She sighed and went back to silently cheering for the both of them.

"Not yet!" shouted Vali as his armor was reequipped and he flew back at Aaron. Both of them clashed for the next few minutes until Vali's timer on his [Empireo Juggernaut Overdrive] started to run out and the young Lucifer was breathing hard.

"I…can…keep…going…!" he said with difficulty.

"You're clearly exhausted. We can spar another time, Vali. Let's stop for now," said Aaron as he looked at Vali with concern.

Everyone else in the room had gone back to their own training, motivated to continue after seeing the short exchange between Aaron and Vali. Aaron walked over to the still panting Vali and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Rest," he said and Vali's armor disappeared and he fell unconscious. Aaron caught him and shook his head. "Jeez, you really are troublesome," muttered Aaron and smiled.

{He was just excited to fight you,} said the other Albion.

"Oh, I know," he replied and exited his armor and placed Vali in one of the resting areas.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

I looked at the sleeping Vali and sighed again. I know he wants to get stronger, kill Rizevim and also protect his biological mother. I also knew that he had been checking up on her, so I'd been helping them too. Last time I sent them a relatively large check and had around twenty shadow soldiers protecting them.

Vali's mother's memories had been completely wiped after the death of his father. Rizevim probably didn't want to deal with her and just erased her memories and left her to fend for herself. Fortunately, Vali's mother started a new life for her, and he has half-siblings.

The only thing that Vali wanted was a normal family, that's the illusion that was shown to him during his death match with Aži Dahāka.

"He really wants to catch up to you, huh?" asked Lavinia as she arrived beside me and started stroking Vali's hair.

"I mean, don't most younger siblings look up to their older siblings when they were younger? I just see it as that," I replied as I looked at Vali. Well, if they aren't assholes to each other, then what I said still holds true.

"Vaa-kun…—"

I stopped her and said, "I know, that's why I'm helping her out, but I doubt he knows that I am, and that's fine. But if he asks me in the future, then I'll tell him. Lucidrago-sama just wants a family after all, even if he won't admit it himself."

Lavinia stopped stroking his hair, grabbed my arm and kissed me. I was a little taken aback, but I still kissed her back. She said nothing and went back to stroking Vali's hair.

'What in the world was that?'

[…You know, I'm wondering if you're really not dense or not,] said Elsha.

'Huh?'

{He'll learn. They all do,} added Amaris.

…

Kuoh Academy

…

"What's wrong with you two idiots?" I asked. It had been a few days since and I was back in school. It was early morning and I found Kouta and Najima in the classroom already. Both looked exhausted though, like they hadn't slept at all.

"Can't sleep… nightmares or I'm just hallucinating…" replied Kouta.

"Same… same… I can't sleep, some bitch that calls herself Lilith keep appearing in my dreams or room, it's like sleep paralysis or something… ugh…" added Najima.

"…" I had noticed some demonic bats and other creatures trying to spy on me before, but I simply killed them. But the name 'Lilith' caught my attention. Did they mean the mother of all devils from the 72 Pillars? If so…

"Can you tell me more about these dreams?" I asked. "Here, eat these. They'll make you energetic," I said and gave them the pills I gave Azazel from the start of summer break.

They looked skeptical and both ate them, but they immediately perked up.

"Holy shit what is this?! It feels like I just slept for an entire month!" shouted Kouta as he started to jump up and down.

"Right?! Holy crap! I want more!" demanded Najima.

"I'll give you both one more if you tell me about those dreams of yours," I told them and they agreed. First, Kouta started.

"It started around a week ago or something. I started seeing shadows from the corner of my eyes, but when I looked at them, there was nothing there. From there it escalated. I put it off as me stressing about upcoming tests and us graduating, but… now I'm not sure."

"Anyway, the dreams were as weird, all I kept seeing were creatures and some lady just talking to herself, something about Bating Games or whatever the hell she says."

"Oh! Something about some titty dragon, right?" added Najima.

"Yeah! Like Oppai Dragon or whatever, she keeps saying she wants to meet him or something!" exclaimed Kouta.

"Yeah, Oppai Dragon this, Oppai Dragon that! Whoever the hell his guy is, he better meet her since it's fucking annoying! I can't sleep! Shit!" said Najima as he slammed his fists on his table.

"Now more pills!" they demanded after tell me more about their situation.

I relented and told them to take it in one week, otherwise they won't be able to sleep for two months straight. It was a lie, it won't have that effect, but I didn't want them abusing it, so they stored it somewhere safe…

But I wasn't expecting Lilith of all people to try to contact me. No… maybe she had been trying to? And I had just been killing all the creatures she made… if I look at it from that angle then I'm the one that's been delaying this, but why?

[Well, we know that the original Lucifer abused the hell out of her, and now, her current body is being used by Hades, presumably,] said Ddraig. The two Heavenly Dragons had joined me today since they left the training for the next few days to Ophis and Irene.

{She may have a new body, and they are still using her old body to mass-produce Satan-class to Super Devil-class artificial devils. She may want to side with the alliance, as to why? I wouldn't know. It's better to ask her ourselves,} added Albion.

I walked out of the classroom and made my way to the rooftop. On the way there I came across Sona and Tsubaki.

"Where are you going?" Sona asked me.

"Rooftop."

"That's prohibited," she replied and looked at me unamused.

"Even better, I'll see you guys when class starts," I said and walked up the stairs, but to my surprise, they followed me. They didn't speak though, so when I arrived at the rooftop they just stood there and I moved near the fence.

"I think Lilith, Lucifer's wife is alive, and is trying to contact me," I replied after looking at the students coming to school.

"W-what? She's—Lilith she's alive?" Sona asked a bit shocked.

"Hmm." I told them about what Kouta and Najima had told me. At first, they were skeptical, but as soon as I mentioned them saying 'Oppai Dragon', they began to believe them.

"What do you plan on doing?" asked Tsubaki.

"Well, I'll confront her. If she really wants to switch sides… then we'll have even more information on the enemy. We know where their base is now, and Velgrynd is searching the multiverse for me. So if Lilith has anything useful, or information that Avezza didn't have then we can be better prepared for the upcoming attacks."

"We know that there will be attacks, but not on the locations, only vague estimates. Grigori, Heaven, the Underworld, the Five Principal Clans, and the Sacred Beasts." Sona listed out the possible locations of the attacks.

"Well, the Halloween operation is coming up. We know they'll target the families of the Five Principal Clans, maybe even the Sacred Beasts, so I'll try to get in contact with the Chinese pantheon, but if not, I'll just do a quick visit and explain the situation," I told them.

I didn't know when to go to the Chinese pantheon. However, seeing as how this operation may be two parts, I didn't want to risk it—for the safety of Suzaku and the other inheritors of the Sacred Beasts.

"Do you need any help with it? I can contact the Satans," offered Sona.

"No, it's fine. While we know the original Satans are back, the majority of the alliance and supernatural don't know that Lilith is alive, hell not even the girls at home. You two are probably the first to know, but I do plan on telling them tonight. Anyway, just leave this small issue to me for now. When I need help, I'll ask you, okay?"

"Alright, I understand. But it's strange that she didn't hurt those two," said Sona.

"Well, maybe she really did have a change of heart?" I mused.

If she was trapped in that giant flesh for years on end, then finally found by his own son, but only to be used by Hades when he dies, I would also have a lot of things going through my head… though this is merely speculation on my part. I wouldn't know why wants to change sides until I talk to her.

"I find it hard to believe. If the original Satans didn't, why would Lilith-sama of all devils change so suddenly?" asked Sona.

"I have some information that may change that line of thinking. But I'll tell you later tonight, if you have time, bring your peerage to my home, alright?"

"Very well. We'll go back to the classroom then, Aaron. Also, come down as soon as you can," she told me.

"Sure," I replied. However, I didn't hear them leave. When I turned back to glance back Sona, she was waiting there rather impatiently. "Haha, sorry. I guess I'm spoiling you now too, huh?" I said and walked over to her. She didn't deny it and I kissed her. Satisfied with that, she left with Tsubaki who gave me a strange look.

[So? What do we do now?] asked Ddraig.

'I'll go to both of their houses and check if there's anything strange. This town is under my barrier, so it's generally impossible to get in unless they use Lapis' items. I'm guessing Lilith has some item of that nature,' I replied to the dragon.

[After school then, huh?]

'Yeah.'

…

When I arrived back in the classroom, it was chaos as usual. The two that I gave the pill to were full of energy and were basically bouncing off the walls of the classroom. The devils there looked at me with annoyance (Sona) or amusement (the rest of them) because I'm assuming those two told them.

"Our drug dealer is back!" both of them shouted.

"Don't call me that," I replied as I sat back down in my seat.

"How much?!" A few other guys approached me and asked me.

"…What?" I looked at them in confusion and they went on to ask for the pills that I gave Najima and Kouta. "A million yen per pill," I told them and they became speechless.

"That's too expensive you bastard!!" they shouted. But the two idiots I call friend started snickering to themselves.

"Fufufu!"

"Huhuhu!"

"We each have one more from Skyward-sama! We are gods!" they announced… and then immediately got jumped. A small brawl started as they started to hit and grab at Kouta and Najima.

"…Should I help?" I asked myself. I was technically the reason this started, but…

"What the hell are you idiots doing so early in the morning?" asked Azazel as he popped his head into our classroom. He yawned to emphasize that he was tired.

They then started telling him about the legendary pill I gave my two friends and Azazel snickered. "Ah that, yeah Jin gave me that since I'm the Occult Research Club supervisor. They're pretty good, I ran out though, so I'll ask for more from him," he said and left.

You do know you only ever got that once during summer, right? He's trying to get a rise out of them and it worked as they started screaming louder at each other. But they stopped hitting my friends and they ran away, probably to Griselda to get patched up.

"1000 yen!"

"2000 yen!"

A few of them gathered around me again, but before I could continue, another teacher came in and calmed them down. They also asked if I was dealing drugs to which I denied. Though they were skeptical, they accepted my answer.

…

Lunch, I was back on the school's rooftop. The rumor spread about me having magical pills that energize you, so people were hounding me about it, so I escaped to here. Most wouldn't come here since they'll get in trouble with Sona, so it's one of my safe havens.

Right now, I was scanning all of Kuoh, but there were no signs of Lilith or her monsters. However…

"Is that the group Lianne told me about before I left for the Hindu pantheon?" I asked myself. I saw a group that had around six members. They all wore skin-tight black bodysuits and masks. It looked like they were trying to be ninja's but failing at it.

Then Lianne and the Stahlritter appeared in front of them and they threw a smoke bomb to the ground and ran away. One of them tripped and was dragged away by his group. I was just confused, but I'll ask Lianne about it now.

[Lianne, I just saw that. Can you come to the school's rooftop and tell me more about it?] I asked her.

After that, she appeared behind me along with the Stahlritter.

"That's stalking you know, Aaron-chan, fufu~" teased Ennea.

"You have this kind of fetish, I didn't know. I will take it into account," said Ines.

"What the heck are you two talking about…?" Duvalie asked confused.

Ignoring the trio, Lianne came to my side and looked down at the students. "They have been doing that quite recently, however, they are humans—perhaps magicians, very new and immature magicians. Nevertheless, some liked playing 'ninja' and always fled that way," she said.

"Human magicians that want to play ninjas, huh? Let's assume they only found out about the supernatural. Why choose to go here? Maybe they found out about a few devils here and wanted to get into contact with them?"

"Or they know of your status and want to meet you? You're quite well known now," said Lianne.

"That's also an option."

But in the end, I wouldn't know until I asked them, so… hmm. If they come back, I'll confront them, but for now, I'll focus on Lilith and whatever may come after that. I glanced back at Lianne who had been staring at me and said, "When they come back, let me handle it. If you want to accompany them feel free. But I want to get to the bottom of this."

"Very well," she replied and turned around.

I stopped her and asked, "By the way, why didn't you make a team for the future tournament?"

"I do not see the need to make one. However, I won't stop those three if they wish to participate. Aurelia has tried to recruit Duvalie, and she is thinking about it. However, if she does, she will need to fight for that spot as there are two others, correct?" she asked.

"Yeah, Ara and Yoru," I replied and looked at the trio. Duvalie was still getting teased back and forth between the two and she was getting quite angry. Meanwhile, Aífe and Haru will compete for the other [Knight] position…

Lianne came back over and gave me a peck on the lips before she left with the Stahlritter. I may as well rest up before I confront both Lilith and whatever the hell those ninja magicians are doing.

…

As I passed by a certain part of the school on my way to my classroom, I came across a certain scene.

"Himejima-san, are you really engaged to Jin?" a male's voice asked Akeno.

[Oooh! Juicy drama?!]

{Shut up…}

"Hmm? Yes I am. Why do you ask?" asked Akeno.

"Why?" he asked.

"Why?" repeated Akeno, sounding confused.

"Why did you pick him? Didn't he say he had a foreign girlfriend? Isn't that two-timing?" the guy asked.

"Hmm… well, he wasn't joking about having a harem though?" said Akeno nonchalantly.

"Wha—are you being serious?" he asked shocked.

"Yes I am, and I'm part of it. Is that a problem to you?" she asked.

However, the guy didn't answer and I eventually saw him as he walked past me and he angrily looked at me. I finally rounded the corner and saw Akeno, who looked confused but walked over and embraced me.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"Maybe they were jealous of Harem King-sama?" she said and giggled. "I didn't know him, but he asked me out earlier before you arrived. Though it's not the first time that happened this year," she said and sighed.

"As popular as always, Great Onee-sama. So many girls in this school would kill to have that kind of popularity you know?" I pointed out to her.

"It's tiring though, having to act a certain way in school. I'd rather be myself like when we're at home. But you're also quite popular yourself, you know?"

"For all the wrong reasons," I added and we laughed. "Well, I guess I'm popular with the sports clubs, but apart from that, it varies not that I care though. As long as I have my friends here, and you guys, my remaining school life is fulfilling enough."

"Remaining school life…" muttered Akeno. She then looked up at me, a mischievous smile on her face. "Hey, come with me. I think Griselda-sensei will be okay with it~"

Akeno didn't let me answer as she pulled me away towards the infirmary. Once we arrived in front of it, she told me to stay outside while she spoke with Griselda inside. After around two minutes, she came back out and pulled me in. My eyes met with Griselda and she blushed.

"…Akeno, I think I know—"

She cut me off, and pushed me towards the bed and pulled the curtains around us. She immediately opened her top, pulled up her bra, exposing her breasts and said, "I know a few of the girls' wanted memories like this, especially Rias, ufufu. How about I take mine first?"

…

Lemon Start

…

We immediately started kissing again, and I placed Akeno on the bed. As we kissed, I pulled her skirt up and pushed aside her panties exposing her womanhood.

"Eager, aren't we?" she asked and softly giggled.

"It's been a few days since I got to do it. A lot of things have been happening lately. We rarely have time for this," I replied and put a barrier around the infirmary. "How did you even get Griselda to agree to this?"

Akeno smiled and said, "So she could listen to us and learn?" she added a cute head tilt at the end and I chuckled at her.

"You're one cruel woman at times, but if she agreed then…" I zipped my pants and let out my erect member and Akeno licked her lips.

"Hello Toole. Jr~ it's been a while~" she greeted my penis which felt weird.

"You're already quite wet. Were you expecting this?" I asked.

"On the way here and talking to Griselda-sensei, ufufu~" she admitted. "Come, Aaron," she said and spread her arms out, as if asking for a hug.

As I leaned over to kiss her, I also pushed my member into her vagina, which caused Akeno to moan during our kiss.

"Mm, mmmmmmmmmmmh…! A-Aawon… ah, aaahh…!"

Every inch of her walls closed in on my member, they wrapped me in fleshy ecstasy. Every time her body trembled, the folds squeezed me again.

"Did you just—" I asked as I stopped kissing her.

"Y-yeah, I did… you just jammed it all the way in… ah, aaahh~" replied Akeno.

"You're adorable when you're like this. It makes me want to fuck your brains out," I told her.

"W-wait don't… I-I'm still cumming…!"

"…Scream all you want. I put a barrier up earlier." I pulled my hips back, only to plunge into the hilt once again.

"Ooooh?! Aaaahh….! Haaaaa…!" Akeno made a strange sound and started to moan loudly into my ear. I'm pretty sure Griselda could hear everything too.

I repeated the process over and over again, with the same amount of force.

"N-no—wait…! Aaron… please… I'm…! Uuuuugghhh... I'm cumming…!"

I felt Akeno squeeze me even harder as I continued to pump away into her. I continued to thrust as I savored the sensation of Akeno's insides without giving her a break. It had been a relatively long time since we had done it.

"Hah, hah, hah! Oh Satan, I don't know how many times it's hit me… my mind's going blank…! No, no, no, no…! Aaron…! I'm cumming again…!"

Again, I felt her insides squeeze me, but I didn't stop thrusting into her. But as I did, I pushed waves of juices out of her. Right now, in school, with a few minutes left of lunch I was fucking my fiancé—dominating her, with no foreplay, as she moaned and let one of my other lovers hear it all.

The thought of it was actually pretty hot. I wonder if Griselda was playing with herself during all of this? Or was she taking notes? But… because of those thoughts, and it had been a while since I did it, I was nearing my own climax. Akeno's constant squeezing didn't help either.

"Akeno, I'm—"

"Mmm! Go ahead, do it! Cum…!" she said and wrapped her legs around me. "I'm already losing my mind. Paint my insides, Aaron…!"

I continued my pace as I kept thrusting into her. I also leaned back down and started kissing her. Akeno also wrapped her arms around my neck. She didn't plan on letting me go. As I neared my limit, I felt the curtains move and someone was watching us. It was probably Griselda.

However, we were interrupted when the door to the infirmary room opened.

"Excuse me…! Eh? Griselda-sensei what are you doing?" asked a female student.

"Ah, I was just checking on a student who was sick. Please don't disturb them. How can I help you?" Griselda replied and left our spot.

Akeno's vagina tightened even more, and when I looked back at her—it didn't take a genius to figure out what she wanted. So to tease her, I removed the barrier around the room and continued to fuck her.

"Ha…! Ha…! Haa…!" she panted quietly, become even more aroused.

I leaned back down and whispered into her ear, "You little masochist pervert. Does the thought of someone we don't know walking in turn you on?" In response to my question, she tightened even more and she captured my lips again.

Our tongues intertwined as we also exchanged saliva. 'Cumming! I'm cumming!' Akeno shouted at me telepathically.

"…Why is there a squeaking sound?" asked the female student.

"Ah, I've asked the school about it. There may be some rats here, and they apparently are going to try to exterminate them today after school, so just stay away from that spot. I did set up traps over there," replied Griselda.

"Uwaaa… I didn't think the school would be that kind of place. Everywhere I've been to has been quite clean."

"There are some spots that get overlooked, but don't worry it should be fixed by the end of the day," she reassured the student.

"Mmm. That makes sense. The school is always on top of things, like bullying… that's why I moved here," said the girl sadly.

"Oh dear… you were bullied? If you don't want to talk about it then you don't have to," replied Griselda.

I had been strangely invested in the conversation as I continued to fuck Akeno while sloppily making out with her. But…

"Make me pregnant~!" she whispered into my ear after briefly separating from me.

"…Fuck…!" I groaned out and released my seed into her. I didn't expect Akeno to do that to me. I kept on cumming inside of her, it felt like it was never going to end.

Splurt~ Splurt~

"…Aaaahh… so hot… ufufufu, do you… have an impregnation fetish, A-a-r-o-n~?" she asked as she panted.

"…No… jeez, where did you even get that idea from?" I asked. But I started to thrust into her again making her jolt up.

"E-eh…? W-wait Aaron we have to stop…!" she said, though she started to shake her own hips too.

"Your body and words aren't exactly telling me the same thing," I replied and smirked.

"…Meanie… we'll be late for classes you know…"

"Let's skip then," I replied and continued to fuck her for another two rounds.

…

Lemon End

…

Rias Gremory's Soliloquy

…

Classes had ended for the day, but Akeno and Aaron had mysteriously disappeared after lunch. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find them, nor could I detect them. I asked my other servants but they also didn't know, but Shirone did say, 'If it's those two, they're probably fucking. I mean, Akeno-senpai does want to make memories here… though we're all guilty of that.'

I even asked Yuuto—Yumi about it, and he—she likewise didn't know where they had disappeared to, but also agreed with Shirone's theory. If I did believe that, where would they go to? I waited for the rest of the humans to leave and asked the remaining devils here with me. I also told them what Shirone had said.

"Ingvild? You seem to have an idea of where it might be at," I said.

"W-well, Akeno did say she wanted to do it in the school's infirmary during our 100-year stay. I wasn't sure if she was being serious or not, and knowing Griselda-san, she may humor them… sh-she does want to be a good wife to him," said Ingvild.

We immediately ran towards the infirmary, with Ingvild behind us shouting 'it's just a theory though!'. No, if it's Akeno she would definitely go through with that! I've known her for a long time! Even Sona and Tsubaki were coming with me—the closer we got to the room, I could feel it—a barrier.

"A barrier… they really did…"

"They spent the rest of the afternoon classes having sex…" muttered Tsubaki as she blushed.

As I slid the door open, Griselda-sensei was at her desk writing on something, though she looked very flustered and…

"Haaaa…! Haaaaa!"

The sounds of my [Queen]'s moans echoed around the room. Griselda looked at us, blushed even more and pointed to a certain bed with the curtains around it.

"C-c-c-cyuuuummiiiinnnngg~~!" Akeno screamed and then the sounds of flesh smacking against each other stopped. Only heavy breathing could be heard. The smell of pungent semen and love juice permeated the room too.

I looked at Ingvild who was familiar with the smell while Sona and Tsubaki seemed confused.

"What is that smell…?" Sona asked.

Ingvild blushed and replied, "It's semen… a lot of it."

This made Sona blush and we finally approached the bed. I pulled the curtains apart and saw Akeno face down, ass up and semen dripping from every orifice of her body. Her mouth, both her holes… breasts, thighs—everywhere was just dripping semen…

"…Oh, hey. It's already after school, huh? Sorry about that… we kind of got carried away," said Aaron as he awkwardly chuckled.

No one said anything, apart from Akeno who muttered a variation of 'dick', 'cock', or something about being impregnated.

"How long were you at it?" I asked. Aaron removed the semen from the sheets and removed the smell.

"Uh, we had to remove the barrier earlier, and I put that new one up just around an hour ago… so in total… I guess two days?"

"T-two days?! Y-you had sex for two days straight?!" Sona half-shouted at Aaron in disbelief. She then shook her head and said, "P-put some clothes on!" as she looked away. He still had a boner after all.

"Haha, sorry." He clicked his fingers and put some clothes on. He also cleaned Akeno up and tucked her in properly. "I do have some business after this… so Najima and Kouta should be looking for me," he mumbled.

"They did approach us earlier and said that if you showed up to see him at Najima's bakery," said Ingvild who was patting a sleeping Akeno's head.

"Akeno… Akeno… wake up." I walked over to my [Queen] and gently shook her. Thankfully she woke up, and I told her, "We still have contracts to do tonight… are you up for it?"

"Rias… ufufu, I'm very refreshed and ready to fight Trihexa, so contracts won't be a problem," she said and got up. "My baby is here after all~" she said happily.

"…I haven't—"

"I'm just joking, Aaron~ jeez, you're no fun sometimes," she said and kissed him on the cheek. "Let's get moving then, President~!" she then got up and walked towards the door.

She really lives life at her own pace… I shook my head and parted ways with everyone. "We'll be back by tonight, see you then," I said and left.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

"Well… I'll get going then…" I said and turned away, but was stopped by Ingvild.

"I'm coming with you, apparently Yua-san is going there since she's dating Najima-kun," explained Ingvild.

"Sure, I don't mind. See you later tonight, Sona."

"…You will be punished later, Aaron," said Sona as she left still a bit flustered. Finally, we walked over to Griselda who had her hand on her heart.

"Sorry about that, Griselda. I wasn't expecting to be doing that with Akeno for so long."

"N-no, it's fine. It was a learning experience; I believe I know you a little bit more and can prepare…" she said and looked away.

"Is that so? Well, I'll see you tonight then," I said and kissed her which made her blush even more.

"Yes… take care and return home safe. You too Ingvild."

"Yes, Griselda-sensei!"

…

Ingvild and I made our way to the Najima bakery. We had been there before while we hung out with her friend group along with mine. It was an interesting experience—it was the first time Ingvild acted jealous since she's usually supportive and open.

"Have you been here since that one visit we did?" asked Ingvild.

"Yeah, a few times, mostly to buy their bread, and say hello. I mean most of the time we're pretty busy, right? How's your music career coming along by the way?" I asked back.

"It's fine. I recorded my second album and plan to release it soon. Shigune also helped, and so we'll get credit for that, but I released a teaser on my YouTube and DeviTube channel yesterday."

"What's it called? I'll listen to it later," I asked.

"Pride Kakumei."

When I heard that I froze on the inside. How did Ingvild write up a Honeyworks song…? I swear… if Azathoth is the one feeding her this then I'm seriously going to scold her once I save her. Of course, I'll have a few things to say to her once we finally talk too…

"Wait a minute, is that why you asked me to say those lines…?!" I snapped my head at her and asked in semi-horror which made Ingvild laugh.

"You finally caught on, huh?" she asked and whipped a tear from her eye. "Yep, that's why I asked you to say those words very dramatically."

"Wait, so…" I remembered back and started to say the lyrics of that section.

"I'll keep on fighting."

"I'm not afraid."

"You are here."

Ingvild stopped me and said the next line.

"I am here."

She looked at me and I continued.

"Please wait for me."

"It's alright."

"I will not lose."

And she finished it off.

"I'll believe in that."

I smirked and said, "I really liked that part. It was such a strange section to post. I'm guessing it's near the end of the song, right?"

"Mmm. It is, you really sound like you know about it already," she said and squinted her eyes at me.

"Skyward-sama, please don't flirt with one of your harem members in front of my family's shop," said Najima. Both Ingvild and I looked up to see him there moping with Yua waving to us.

"Oh hey, Najima. Sorry for disappearing earlier. Where the hell is Kouta?" I asked and looked around. I also didn't sense him anywhere near us.

"He left, saying he had a sudden date with Hashimoto-san, his girlfriend… tch," he explained and clicked his tongue.

"Don't complain, we spent some time together with him earlier, Higuro," said Yua in a scolding manner to Najima. "It's been a while, Jin-san, Ingvild~!" Yua then went up to Ingvild and they high fived.

Najima Higuro, or Higuro Najima. I've mostly called these guys by their family names, the same with Kouta. Kouta Kikijo or Kikijo Kouta, I never really called them by their first name, I never knew why, but it just stuck and it would feel weird if I started now, but… maybe I'll surprise them at graduation, who knows…

"I brought some food too, if that makes it any better," I said to him.

"Well, whatever you make is delicious, so I won't complain. My parents will also like them too," answered Najima.

We stood beside each other and watched Yua and Ingvild speak to each other.

"So, how far are you with Yua-san?" I asked.

"W-what's it to you…?!" he asked back a bit flustered.

"I was just curious, man. You don't need to tell me either," I replied.

"...Nothing. We're really close though. We've started talking about what college we're going to. Thankfully, she's also attending Kuoh Academy College Division, so we'll be together even there. But… no, we haven't gone past just kissing," he said while blushing.

"Good for you man, you better invite me to the wedding," I replied.

"W-w-w-w-what the hell, Jin?! That's years in the future!" He half-shouted and smacked me on the shoulder. I just laughed at him as he kept on muttering himself.

After a few more minutes of speaking to each other, the two girls finally finished and walked over to us. Najima became flustered when Yua peered at his face, but Ingvild just came to my side and hugged my arm.

"Do you really have a harem, man?" he asked a bit incredulous.

"I'm also curious about that, Jin-san," said Yua.

"Well—" I was about to answer them, when Ingvild turned my head and kissed me, shocking the both of them. As if that wasn't convincing enough—

"Ah! Jiiiiin~!" the familiar voice of Lavinia rang out and she ran over to us. Immediately she bear-hugged me as soon as she arrived.

"T-t-t-the foreigner girlfriend!" shouted Najima. "She's real!"

"It would be stranger if she wasn't real, Najima," I replied and gave him a strange look.

"Why are you here, Lavinia?" asked Ingvild.

"I was out with Kanami-chan and Natsume-chan to get some ingredients for dinner. I spotted you so I came over. They should be coming over too," replied Lavinia, and on cue, Natsume and Kanami appeared a few seconds later.

"Oh, Jin. I didn't think we'd see you in this part of town," said Kanami.

"He did buy things from here before, Sis. Are you going to buy something in there?" asked Natsume as she pointed to the bakery shop.

"Yeah, let's go," I said and turned around.

"Um…"

"Everyone here is in his harem, if that's your next question, Najima-kun. We all live with Jin too," explained Ingvild. Both Najima and Yua became speechless.

…

Once we entered the shop, I ordered my shadow soldiers to investigate the entire home, and report back anything they find suspicious. I also had some canvass the entire neighborhood. We walked up to the counter and Najima's dad finally turned around.

"Wel—oh, Jin! It's been a while since you came back, are you here for something?" he asked.

"I just wanted to visit and buy some stuff," I replied. I turned to the girls and said, "Go ahead and buy anything you want." They agreed and walked away to pick up what they want.

"C-can you afford all that?" asked Najima nervously.

"Yeah. I make money on the side, and it wouldn't be a stretch to say that I'm a millionaire."

[Millionaire he says…]

{Do we even have a word that's beyond a billionaire? Are there trillionaires?}

Cúntóir: Answer: There are no trillionaires in the human world or population, but there are in supernatural society. At most, there are billionaires among the humans.

"M-m-millionaire! Jin! What the hell have you been doing after school?!" asked Najima's dad.

"Business, oh and it's nothing illegal, I can assure you of that," I told them. 'Though I can't guarantee to them that it's something they're aware of…'

"I'm also here for another reason. I heard Najima—er, Higuro and Kouta had been having weird dreams and nightmares, so I was wondering if you had them too?" I asked.

Najima's dad looked at me then at Najima. He then put a thumb under his chin and thought about it. He really seemed to be thinking about it when…

"Oh? Jin-chan! I'm glad you're here… Oh?! More women! His harem grew!" said Najima's mom. "Are you here to visit? Will you try my new bread?"

"I am, and I don't mind," I replied to her. Happy with my answer she left to get her experimental bread and the father and son duo looked horrified.

"…Man, how can you eat my mom's bread…? We tried even after you gave her advice, but it's still… questionable."

I 'smiled' at him and said, "My stomach has been subjected to a lot of questionable cooking over the years (100), I think I can handle it." I thought back to Sona and a few girls who were terrible at it, but they did improve so that's a plus.

"Jin, to your question… my wife mentioned having a strange dream about a strange man in red armor singing some strange song about breasts... and also another about a woman named Lilith wanting help," he explained to him. "As for me? I haven't but if she did, then Higuro definitely did."

My lips twitched, but I nodded in the end. "I see." I took out my phone and texted Kouta. I doubt I would get to go to his home today, so I might as well ask via text, and it didn't take long for him to reply.

|I'll ask my parents later.|

I guess he was busy with whatever he was doing with Sakura. After that, the girls came back, as well as Najima's mom with… blue and purple bread with a chicken's leg sticking out of it.

She smiled brightly and said, "Please enjoy!"

"Yes, I will. But may I ask… what these two are?" I pointed to the very strange looking bread.

"The blue bread is what I call 'Chiread'! Chicken + Bread! But not by conventional means! I think the flavor is fine? The other one is red bean, spinach and tuna bread! I don't know why it's purple though…" she said and looked at her creations.

"Ah your harem is here too, why not let them have a taste?" she asked and looked at the girls behind me.

It was strange for her to be so nonchalant about me having a harem. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the entire town knew at this point. I mean, when I do go out with some of them, they're usually clinging onto me, so some should start to question who the hell I'm dating, right?

"We don't mind," replied Ingvild and the others agreed with her. I think their stomachs are used to it, so… I also agreed.

I took the blue 'chiread' and took a bite. It tasted like normal bread. It wasn't crunchy or super soft, but… it just tasted like a normal chicken sandwich. The only strange thing was the chicken's foot sticking out of it…

"It's… good, you really improved, ma'am," I told her and took another bite and quickly finished it. The father and son duo stared at me dumbfounded before they reluctantly took small pieces of another one and ate it. They paused, chewed and then swallowed them whole and then ate more.

The girls did the same thing. Natsume and Lavinia took the purple bread while Kanami and Ingvild ate the blue one.

"This is delicious, I like tuna so that's me probably being biased," said Natsume.

"This blue bread is like an ordinary chicken sandwich. I like it," added Kanami.

In the corner, Yua was feeding Higuro and they were trying to be secretive about it, but he froze when he saw me looking at him. I just grinned at him and continued eating my portion. This lasted for a few more minutes and I gave her some pointers. She was happy and skipped back to their home.

"You guys got everything?" I asked the girls. They did. I paid for it all, was thanked profusely by Najima's dad after I gave a ¥730,000 tip to which he nearly had a heart attack and made Higuro speechless.

"You're welcome into this establishment any time, you hear me?!" his dad shouted at me as we left.

"So, are you going to tell us why you were there?" asked Natsume. I nodded and gestured for them to join me at a small park/play area.

We sat down near the benches and I covered the park with a barrier and my shadow soldiers appeared in front of us. I told them about what Najima and Kouta had told me, and the real reason for my visit to his home.

"We found nothing suspicious in the neighborhood, my liege, however…" the shadow soldier looked at the other one and they nodded.

"Lilith's creatures have been teleporting into your classmates' homes via a small magic circle in one of their parents' personal belongings, Najima's father and Kouta's mother. It seems that they left the town for some business and came back with an invisible magic circle in their luggage."

"However, from our findings it seems that she is merely putting strange dreams in them at night, to try to contact you. However, it did not say why she wanted to—your own speculation is as good as ours," they explained.

"Hold on Lilith? Like the original creator of the devils? Like the original Lucifer?" asked Kanami.

"Yes, that Lilith, Kanami-sama," replied the shadow soldier.

"You didn't believe me when I told you?" I asked and looked at her strangely.

"W-well, I just thought you meant someone named Lilith…" she said awkwardly and rubbed the back of her head.

But… it seems like Lilith does want to switch sides for whatever reason. I just need to wait until tonight then and confront her summons. Hopefully after that, I can forcefully teleport her from wherever she was at. Or at least have her leave the base and be somewhere in the human world and I can find her that way…

[Aaron. They're back,] said Lianne through the ring's communication function.

[The ninja magicians? Where?]

[East of Kuoh, we haven't moved but are simply watching them.]

[Alright, I'll be there.] I turned to everyone who had heard and said, "I'm heading east. You guys can return home or join me." I then turned to the shadows, thanked them and dismissed them.

"…We can't keep Grayfia waiting for too long otherwise she'll get upset," said Natsume as she shivered.

"Angry Grayfia is scary," added Kanami.

Lavinia puffed her cheeks and crossed her arms. She wanted to come with me, but in the end, she went back home with them, so it was just me and Ingvild again.

"Let's go then."

"Mmm."

…

When we arrived at the east side of Kuoh, we spotted Lianne, the Stahlritter and…

"Brynhildr-san and Rossweisse are there too," muttered Ingvild.

"Yeah."

Brynhildr, or Zelma moved into my home since she was going to be part of the Norse's group for Team [DxD], the other Valkyries, from her squad were still thinking about joining her or not, but she did move in when Rose came back.

She surprisingly got on well with everyone, though she did tell off a few of the girls for being lazy, especially Kuroka, but most of them were used to that kind of scolding from Grayfia, Yuri Alpha and Raiko, so they weren't that bothered by it.

We quickly joined them as they were standing on top of a small hill that was covered in trees.

"There are still six of them, but they seemed to be even more cautious than ever," said Lianne as we arrived. "What do you plan on doing?"

"Interrogate them. If they give up the information by themselves, I won't need to read their memories," I replied. Zelma looked at me questioningly but I didn't elaborate since I meant what I said.

"Hmm… Ennea, come here," I told the archer of the Stahlritter. She trotted over to me happily, and I pointed to the group's area. "Aim, and we'll trap them. Leave the rest to me. Just fire an arrow."

She nodded, aimed and pulled back the bowstring. I grabbed her arms from behind—almost like I was hugging her. She blushed at this but also pecked me on the cheek. I chuckled before I said, "Fire!" and she let go of the sting and fired at the group.

The arrow hit the ground near one of the ninja magicians and it scared them. But the arrow suddenly glowed and trapped them in a small square barrier. They panicked and tried to break out of the barrier. But they were weak, so they couldn't do anything to the barrier. One of them even started to cry…

"Ufufu, one of them is crying. How cute," said Ennea in my arms.

"…I'm not sure if I should feel guilty or not," I said and let go of her. I along with everyone else jumped down and walked towards the barrier. One of the six, as I said was crying, the other three were talking to each other, making a plan to escape and the last two were attacking the barrier with magic and their fists.

As we got closer to the barrier, they saw us and backed away while dragging the crying one with them. We entered the barrier and stared at them.

"You sure have balls. You've been trying to sneak into my town for the last few days. Why is that?" I asked them. But they didn't answer me so I sighed and added, "It can't be helped them." I summoned the [Boosted Gear]. Now, I did this to alert them to who I was. Since they were still new to the whole supernatural thing, they may—

"W-w-w-wait! You're the Middleman! We've been trying to reach you!!" one of them screams and goes on all fours.

"Reach me?" I asked and dismissed the [Boosted Gear].

[Oh come on! I thought I was going to get some action!]

"I-I'm the leader of this group. I'm Daiki Kimura! I'm a cousin of Hirokazu Miller!" he shouted again.

"Hirokazu? The leader of Team Giichi Stars?"

"Y-yes that Hirokazu! I along with my friends here have been together for a long time, so when we found out about the supernatural, we started to talk about it, but like we thought no normal person would believe us… so I went to my cousin, Hirokazu. He had always been open about this kind of thing. One thing led to another and we're like an unofficial part of his team. He suggested that we gain experience," he explained.

"And you thought the best way was to sneak into one of the most active places of the alliance? This is Kuoh town, the place where the alliance of the Three Great Factions occurred you know? It's almost a central hub of events over the last few months," I told them.

"W-well, we only heard that it was where two devils governed over the town, and that the Middleman lived here, w-we didn't know that this is where the alliance for them was made!" said Daiki.

"What exactly do you want from me?" I asked.

"Test us like you did with my cousin Hirokazu! We haven't been at this for long, but… we want to see where we are in terms of power! We're all budding magicians after all!"

"Do any of you have a Sacred Gear?" I asked him, but he shook his head. "Any unique powers, or abilities?"

He thought about it for a few seconds then looked at the one crying and said, "He can manipulate water without needing to use a magic circle. He only found out once we started to get into the supernatural. He's Yowanaku."

Ice manipulation, huh? I looked at the guy called Yowanaku and used [Observe] on him.

…

Name: Yowanaku Shima

Age: 24

Potential: Satan Class – SSS

Rank: Low Class – BBB

Gender: Male

Race: Human/Spirit Hybrid

Titles: Crybaby Naku

Sacred Gear: None

…

"You're a hybrid," I told him and he looked at me in shock. "One of your parents was a spirit, which probably explains the water manipulation. They must have been a water spirit. Which one of your parents do you think it was?" I asked him.

Yowanaku looked at the ground and contemplated for a moment. "I think it was my mom? She always seemed… I guess 'magical' or 'mystical' at times. They had always been secretive, but I thought it was just them being… well, them. They've always acted like that all my life. So I was always part of it, huh? —The supernatural, I mean," he said to himself.

"Test… well, it's night so let's make it quick—"

"Jin-sama. If I may? Let us, the Stahlritter deal with this," said Duvalie who stepped forward. "My Lord, please deal with these humans too," she said to Lianne.

"Ara? Duvalie is raring to go, ufufu~" said Ennea.

"Hmm. I do not mind, I need to stretch my legs after all," added Ines.

Lianne, who was beside me agreed and stepped back.

"I will join, if I am to be part of Team [DxD], taking part in real combat with its members will be valuable," Brynhildr said and stepped forward. Rose said nothing but didn't join in either.

"Alright. These guys are my subordinates, so it should be an excellent chance for your 'test', what do you say?" I asked them.

"Please!" they all shouted.

I nodded and everyone got ready. I expanded the area a bit and reinforced the surroundings. I didn't want to damage the place.

…

Third Person Point of View

…

Duvalie summoned her shield and sword and faced the team of Daiki. Ines and Ennea also joined her.

"Let's go with that formation!" ordered Daiki and they formed a spear-like formation. Daiki was at the 'tip' of the spear, the other two were on his left and right. In the middle of this 'triangle' spear tip was Yowanaku, while the last two were the handle.

The Stahlritter looked at them silently without any change in expression.

"Do the usual," ordered Duvalie and the other two agreed. Ennea jumped back and made the ground beneath her raise up high in the sky. Ines summoned her halberd and pointed it at the group of new magicians.

Then… silence. The two groups stared at each other silently. Daiki's group was clearly nervous. Whichever team broke first would—

"Aaaaahh!" Yowanaku screamed and summoned a large magic circle above him and a large fire ball was launched towards Duvalie.

Duvalie held her shield up, and the attack hit the shield. But it was still quite weak, so it didn't do any damage to her shield. The two magicians to the left of Yowanaku summoned large barriers that protected him and the two behind them.

Daiki summoned a katana and quickly dashed towards Ines. He already had sweat pouring down his head as he slashed at Ines, but she simply moved her body slightly to dodge it.

"I see. He's using magic to enchant his physical abilities. Enchantment magic, huh? You could call Daiki a magic swordsman," said Aaron.

Daiki had enchanted his body to at least twice his physical limit, however, to his frustration he couldn't land a blow on the pastel-red haired woman. To add insult to injury, the woman he was trying to land a blow on wasn't even fighting back. He only saw her unchanging eyes gazing into his soul.

'Dammit! We managed to kill some monsters and even those 'stray devils', but we can't do anything against them!' thought Daiki with frustration.

The others started firing magic attacks at Duvalie and Ennea. Duvalie dodged the attacks or blocked them with her shield, while Ennea shot down the attacks that came her way. Nothing they did worked, and they as a team felt the frustration.

"How do they compare?" asked Ingvild.

"…Hmm. Well, they're definitely cousins since when I fought Team Giichi Stars, they did make a formation that's almost similar. Unless Hirokazu told them to make one. Well, it wouldn't be out of the question since they wanted to join the team," said Aaron.

Brynhildr then took a step forward and several magic circles appeared all around the team.

"Shit! Change directions!" one of them shouted. The two magicians who were firing attacks stopped and created defensive magic circles around them.

Brynhildr's magic circles then launched countless elemental attacks that broke through their defenses and hit the ground around the team. A small explosion followed and Daiki's team was thrown away in various directions. The only one who wasn't hit was Yowanaku who looked on in horror.

After the attack, it seemed like the four members of his team were knocked out. Both Yowanaku and Daiki grimaced as they continued to fight the Stahlritter and Brynhildr. However, the difference in their strength and experience was noticeable.

"Step aside," said Duvalie and Ines jumped away and Daiki looked at Duvalie in confusion. Duvalie simply pointed her sword at Daiki and the young man charged her.

Daiki used powerful strikes to attack Duvalie, but she simply parried or blocked the attacks with her sword—she didn't even use her shield. With each strike, Daiki felt his arms and hands slowly lose their grip on his katana. He got even move nervous as the thought hit him that if the young lady in front of him were to truly strike back, he would be dead.

"Well, keep on training," said Duvalie as she disappeared from his sight.

"Wha—?!" Daiki was shocked and frantically looked around but he couldn't find the young woman. But…

Shallow cuts started to appear all over his body and then eventually he was soaring through the air. Daiki was obviously confused, but his eyes locked onto the young woman again who had reappeared. He felt a bitter smile spread across his face as he closed his eyes.

'If his subordinates are like this… then what about the Middleman himself? …Shit, how did you even fight him, Hiro?' thought Daiki as he crashed into the ground and lost consciousness.

At the same time, Yowanaku was defeated by Brynhildr as he tried to match her in magic. However, he was still inexperienced, so he resorted to using his water manipulation, which was also easily dealt with by Brynhildr.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

Hmm. They did okay, I think? They held back, but they weren't exactly letting them show off too much. I guess that's 'tough love' from them. I held my hand out and healed them back up. A few seconds later they started to get up and groan in pain.

"To start, you need to train even harder than Hirokazu and his group. I think they're training hard even now; they also have Caeda to help them too. Anyway, you can visit one of the alliance bases to use the [Hyperbolic Regenerative Chamber] to get stronger. I'll inform them that you're potential subordinates of mine," I told them and they seemed excited.

"R-really? T-thank you, uh…"

"Jin, call me Jin."

"Jin-san!" shouted Daiki though he still looked like he was in pain.

Duvalie then walked in front of him and said, "You have potential. Keep training—and when you get stronger, join a certain event in the future and we'll fight seriously then." She then turned around and walked away.

"Fufu, Duvalie is trying to sound cool," teased Ennea.

"Hmm. She was trying too hard, but she's learning," added Ines.

Duvalie closed her eyes and blushed. She was also getting more pissed off at them. I summoned a small card and threw it to Daiki and he caught it.

"That'll inform them. There are various bases across Japan that have them, but there isn't one here, so just go around and check them out," I informed them. They got up, bowed and left the place after thanking me again.

"How was it?" I asked Brynhildr.

"That Yowanaku, like Daiki has potential, and this was a good opportunity for me to get used to other members' fighting styles," said Brynhildr.

She hadn't gotten time to train since she'd been moving her things into my home. I had offered to help her but she declined, saying something about wanting to do it herself and not rely on me too much. She's clearly independent, so I didn't try to stop her. Last night she finally finished and started training today.

"I see. Well, let's go home."

I had to tell them about the Lilith situation. After that I'll contact the other leaders and inform them…

…