Volume 6 – Chapter 15 – Part 1 – To Be A Hero and A Story of the Past

Skyward Household

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

"Cheers!" everyone shouted as they clanked their drinks.

Today, we celebrated both Xenovia's and Saji's win the seat of Student Council President and Vice President. It had been a few days had passed since then and everything had mostly calmed down.

Saji himself was ecstatic. He ate and drank like there was no tomorrow. Of course, I along with Grayfia, Inaie, Raiko and the Pleiades made the food for the celebration, so that made them even more excited.

As the party carried on through Friday evening, everyone started to slowly recollect the time that they had in Kuoh Academy, and a many became nostalgic when this occurred. There were also many others who came by because of their win, so Kunou and Ophis were playing with each other as a few others like Yasaka, Irene and Grayfia spoke to each other.

I had been quietly drinking to myself with Shin in my lap and both Lavinia and Ingvild by my side. Both Suzaku and Akeno were dragged away by Shuri earlier to talk about something, I think it had to do something with whatever they spoke about before.

However, I noticed that Momo was missing after I scanned the room we were in. I also checked in the other rooms like the kitchen and dining room but she wasn't there. Finally, I checked the other floors and found her on the rooftop.

"…I'm going to go up," I told the two women beside me. "I won't be long; someone may need someone to talk to."

Both of them smiled and let me go. However, Lavinia took Shin and cuddled with him. Earlier, when Tobio saw this, he was shocked and confused, but just laughed it off in the end. Gin and Shin played with each other earlier, but Nattsu became confused, so Gin left to play with him instead. Sae was very close to giving birth, according to Tobio and Mom.

I silently excused myself and headed up to the rooftop. Once there I saw Momo with her arms on the railings as she looked out at Kuoh. I walked up to her and stood beside her. We stayed silent for a few seconds until she started talking.

"Xenovia's speech was amazing…it definitely came from the heart and it touched both the students and teachers. She expressed them for the students that she formed bonds with while mine was…mostly catered to the Student Council and former President Sona."

"There's nothing wrong with that. That's where most of your experiences were, that was the place where you belonged and treasured. Expressing your feelings towards them wasn't anything bad, Momo. Honestly, it could have turned out either way if Xenovia read her previously prepared speech. But I guess she said what was on her heart instead and got the approval of the vast majority of the students," I told her.

She smiled sadly but agreed.

"What will you do now? Will you try to stick with the Student Council?" I asked.

"No…Tsubasa and I will step down from the Student Council. The new first years are very promising and they're part of the current DxD Alliance, so they'll be fine without us. The others will stay too, so it won't be the end of them. Genshirou is there to help Xenovia so she'll have a reliable helper."

I nodded. "Reya is also there too along with Ruruko and Tomoe…so yeah they'll be in good hands." Momo began to shake so I hugged her.

"…I wanted to show former President Sona that I could do it…but in the end I failed…" she sobbed into my chest.

How do I answer this? Sona definitely had expectations for her or at least someone in her peerage to succeed her. However, at the same time, I don't think she really cared if they did or not. While the Sitri household isn't like the typical devil families, they're not the same as the Gremory clan. However, they still treat their servants well…

"…Sona looked very proud of you when you gave your speech, Momo. She is still proud of you even if you didn't become the next President of the Student Council. You're still part of her peerage and you're one of her prized [Bishops]. So don't sell yourself short."

"That's right, Momo. Whether it was you, or Xenovia who won, I would still be proud of both of you. We have spent 100 years together already; don't you think our bonds are already quite strong?" said Sona.

"P-president?!" A surprised look appeared on Momo's face as she turned around. She wiped her tears away as she did this, though it was clear she had been crying.

Sona had followed me up here earlier, but chose to stay behind the door and let me try to console Momo before she stepped in. She came towards us, grabbed Momo's head and brought her to her chest and began stroking her head.

"Perhaps it's just me and my sister, but the Sitri clan and Gremory clan are quite close because of my Onee-sama and Sirzechs Lucifer-sama. We have started to follow some of the things that the Gremory clan do for their servants, I too want to follow it, so I don't want to put too much pressure on my servants."

She shook her head. "Although it seems like I failed because it seems like I put a burden like that on you. I'm sorry," she apologized to Momo. Momo again started to quietly weep into Sona's arms as I watched on.

Seeing as how I didn't have a place here, I walked past them and wished them luck. Although as I left, I felt Sona's gaze on my back the entire time.

However, instead of heading back to the party, I made my way to the [Training Facility]. In there I found Cao Cao's team training along with Medusa, Yoru, Haru, Rubicante and…Lilith. When I glanced at the screen near the control panel, they had set the time for 50 years in here to 10 minutes outside.

I had tasked Cao Cao's team to get stronger before I send them to their mission to the Phantasma's universe, they were also briefed on what kind of place it was by me and what Ayelet and Yanuyo had told me before. They also knew of our three allies there, Caeda, Radelia and Sekudia.

Their first order of business over there is to meet up with the Resistance and get updates from Sekudia. After that, their task is to slowly liberate the universe. Any planet or race that is willing to join us will be liberated. Others who refuse…they will die. I'll also give them a device so they'll know if whoever they speak to is being truthful or not.

Lying to his team won't work. Apart from that, Cao Cao has completed his team, but he asked me if he could go somewhere first before I send them to that universe and I agreed…anyway, the most recent members of his team are Leonardo, the kid with [Annihilation Maker].

Perseus, the inheritor of the spirit of the original Perseus and the wielder of the Sacred Gear [Aegis Mineralization]. Marsilio, a descendant of Marsilio Ficino and the wielder of the Sacred Gear [Dreamlike Curse].

The rest of his team is Cao Cao himself, Heracles, Jeanne, and Georg. Apart from that, I'm also sending Yuanteng and Elsa along with them. As far as I could see they'll all reach Universal-class once this training session ends and I want two Electa to be able to bail them out if possible.

Leonardo…his mastery and control over his Sacred Gear has increased by quite a bit, however, he hasn't made anything 'permanent' as he's experimenting with them since he goes into the library and reads a lot of manga and light novels to increase his creativity. Since I haven't seen anything yet, hopefully he has something in mind.

Looking over at the two dragons, they were sparring with each other. They've made significant progress so far and have been taking smaller missions for Team [DxD] along with Medusa. Normally, I would have expected them to join the party, but I guess they're desperate to catch up.

Though…the Vali Team has been missing since then and even Le Fay wasn't here and when I asked Kuroka she just shrugged and kept repeating 'nya' or 'food' so I doubt they keep her in the loop anymore. They're still in this world, I know that much, but they're around Europe right now. I wonder what they're looking for?

They'll come to me when they're ready, but for now I'll leave. I teleported back to the main entrance hallway and came across Yumi. She trotted over to me like a sick puppy and asked, "…When will I get my reward?"

"…Tosca…was your reward…?" I replied.

"No! I want something else! I'm relieved and glad that she's alive and I can have one of my comrades be here, but I need something else…!" she summoned one of hew new swords that had holy, demonic, divine and draconic properties and started to swing it around. "See?"

"It's not a Balance Breaker, but it's a step in the right direction, I guess?" I replied and sighed. "So? What do you want?"

Yumi smiled, closed her eyes and pursed her lips. I sighed and flicked her forehead.

"…Ow! Why not…?!" she asked and puffed her cheeks.

"You're still only like this because of the Raygun, Yumi. If you want something like that then—"

"Then change me now," she told me seriously and stared at me.

"You can't just—"

"I spoke with Tosca and she supports what I'm doing. She's the one that told me to permanently change and not have to rely on the Raygun," she explained and crossed her arms. "Though…my chest isn't as large as former President Rias, Akeno-san, Suzaku-san or Lavinia-san," she said disappointedly.

You're already pondering about that sort of thing…? Or have you always thought like that…? I seriously sometimes think you were born the wrong sex, Kiba…

"Well…if you're sure, then fine…" I sighed and poked her forehead. After this…he—or she can't go back unless I change her back. After poking her forehead, I had permanently changed Kiba Yuuto, into a female, and he'll keep the 'Yumi Kira' name.

"…Yumi, I have a question."

"Hmm? Can it wait until I get my reward?" she asked but I shook my head.

"It'll be quick…anyway, why did you choose to name yourself 'Yumi Kira'?" I asked.

"Yumi is the Japanese word for 'Bow', but as a feminine name, it means 'Beauty'. Kira…well, I tried to change 'Kiba' into something else and chose that, because it sounds like 'kira kira' for glittery and shiny, the SFX sound effect they use in anime, I guess?" she explained and scratched her cheek. "A-anyway, I want—"

I sighed and kissed her forehead. I had so many mixed feelings about it, but decided to indulge her. Even though she didn't single-handedly defeat Cristaldi, she still helped with it, the same with Vasco, albeit briefly.

"Are you okay with that?" I asked. When I looked back at Yumi her faced had turned crimson red…that I didn't expect. Before I could say another word, she dashed away back into the living room.

Speaking of Tosca…she's awake, and living in the same house as Gasper and Yumi. Their house now is a bit livelier, but if I think about it, Gasper is in that house with just women too, huh? He lives with Tomoe Meguri, Sona's [Knight] and Coriana Andrealphus, Sairaorg's [Bishop]. It used to be two guys, but since Yumi kept changing, then it's just Gasper there as the lone guy.

Though, I wouldn't be surprised if Yumi eventually asked me to move in here. As I moved to the kitchen-dining room, I heard a loud commotion in the living room and decided not to go back there.

When I arrived in the dining room, there were a few people there. Sae, Tobio, Kalawarna, Kouki, Grayfia and Latia.

"Enjoying your time?" I asked and sat on an empty chair. Before they could answer, Irina came into the room with a look of panic.

"T-tv! R-rating game! Riser Phenex!" she shouted and we looked at each other before rushing to the living room.

'It's finally starting then…?' I thought and arrived in the living room.

…

Third Person Point of View

…

A certain amount of time has passed since Aaron and everyone in his home saw the tape of Riser Phenex vs Diehauser Belial's Rating Game. However, this was not about them—right now we were following a certain young man to a remote village in Italy.

This young man was the former wielder of the [True Longinus], Cao Cao. After his training had finished in the [Training Facility] at Aaron Toole's home, he decided to visit the one person he wished to speak to. This was before he and his team were sent on their first and most challenging mission to date.

Cao Cao arrived at a certain farm where he saw an old man working there. The old man wore farmer's clothes and a straw hat and had a very impressive build.

"…Your Eminence, it's the first time I'm meeting you," greeted Cao Cao.

The old man's wrinkled face turned into a smile. "Buongiorno, former Holy spear wielder, welcome to this farm."

The old man was the Vatican's Cardinal Priest Vasco Strada. Not too long ago he was a person of interest to the Church as he had led a rebellion of warriors along with another priest. They were defeated by the group known as Team [DxD], an anti-terrorist group.

He along with everyone else accepted the judgement of Heaven without resistance. They told no lie when they reported to Heaven, and as a consequence, Vasco Strada was confined to this lonely farm in Italy.

A strong barrier made by Aaron the Middleman was erected around it for several kilometers around the farm. It would be impossible for even Vasco Strada to escape, Vasco Strada, for all that he did was stripped of his position and confined to this…very relaxed prison.

One would think he would remain in this place for the rest of his life which wasn't much, but fate had a different plan for him and it was slowly turning.

"This is the land where I originally grew up. Sometimes, I used to come here to plant trees…it looks like I'll have to earnestly work hard here in the future," Strada explained as he stroked the bark of a tree.

"…I again repeat, it's our first time meeting, Your Eminence Strada. I'm…a subordinate of Jin Skyward, Cao Cao." He introduced himself once more as Strada wiped his face with a towel.

"Hmm. That young man? Certainly, he has many powerful subordinates, but now that you have lost your spear, what do you use?" he asked.

Cao Cao brought out the spear that Aaron gave him. "Jin Skyward gave me this. It's called [Arredoval]. It still holds many secrets, but it functions nearly the same as the [True Longinus] that I once wielded," explained Cao Cao.

"Hmm-hmm. I can feel it…this spear is truly magnificent; I would call it a holy relic in of itself…so why have you come here today?" Strada asked.

"…I came to visit for personal reasons. I wanted some questions answered before I was sent on a long and grueling mission by him." He dismissed his spear and Strada gestured for him to take a seat on a chair, and they both did.

"…Hoho, this is truly quite unexpected. Well then, after coming all the way to such a remote place, what did you want to ask me?" asked Strada.

Cao Cao opened his mouth after hearing Strada, but it hung there for a few seconds, unsure of what to say. However, he finally asked, "…Being a hero, what do you think of it, Your Eminence?"

Surprised by this, Vasco Strada rubbed his chin as he thought about the question that Cao Cao had asked him. "This…is a strange question young man," he told him.

Cao Cao looked down and continued. "…I was born as the inheritor of a certain hero's blood. On top of that, I was chosen by the Holy Spear. I used to believe that…these so-called 'Heroes' were at the zenith of humanity, being able to defeat powerful otherworldly existences. I so wished, so thought, and so lived."

He then looked up at the bright blue sky as the sun shone on them. "But I lost to a certain young man's subordinate. My way of life was taken away from me, quite literally, right in front of my eyes and he didn't even lift a finger."

"At the time, I didn't think he had a second thought about it, but he then brought me back to life and made me serve him…but that defeat became a reason for me to review and change my way of life, even if I was forced at the start."

"Your Eminence, as a person admired by the people as a hero, I want to hear your thoughts on this, and I would like to know what a real hero is," explained Cao Cao

For someone who not only inherited the blood of a hero, but was also bestowed one of the strongest Sacred Gear, the [True Longinus], and was born a genius…when he faced Aaron, his subordinates and comrades, it was the first wall he had encountered in his life.

He was born with the blood of his ancestors flowing through his veins, and by fate, wielded the strongest spear that was capable of killing even a god. Cao Cao originally thought of himself as an existence that couldn't be compared to normal humans. So he hunted the occult, defeated the occult, and punished the occult as a way of life.

All of this was in the pursuit of strength and trying to find the reason he existed. But in front of that man—the Dual Dragon Emperor, even the spear which he held so highly…didn't stand a chance.

After he heard this, Strada smiled and chuckled. "Hehehe."

The fact that a legendary person laughed at Cao Cao left him speechless. But Strada smiled at him again and said, "This may sound disrespectful, but you're too young. You're simply too young! Although you look to be above twenty years old, compared to me, you're no different from a little baby. Ever since you called yourself a hero…you have been mistaken."

"Those who determine heroes are the people without power. Because they do not possess power, they will yearn for power, and so they will seek heroes, and decide who they are. Former wielder of the Holy Spear, are you playing the role of the people's Hero?" asked Strada.

Cao Cao's mouth hung open, speechless at what he had just heard. He was not chosen by anyone! He thought that because he was a descendant of one, that he should be seen as one, and he thought as much! He took for granted the blood which flowed through his veins and the spear he once held.

Seeing his reaction, Strada continued. "You were not pursued by the people. Claiming to be a hero or something like that…that's nothing but a child's game of pretend! Because of that, you are no match for the Dual Dragon Emperor who courageously walks his own path, not deterred by the opposing opinions around him!"

The old man's words completely denied the existence of the Hero Faction itself and Cao Cao was unable to refute any of it.

'…It's as his Eminence has said…that man, he faced me straight on with his comrades and subordinates and defeated us. As the Middleman, as the Dual Dragon Emperor, he faced everything head-on, for his goals, for his dreams and for the people he protects… Because of that, he defeated me—they defeated us. Looking at myself now…what would the people of the supernatural world think of me now?' thought Cao Cao.

Strada was silent for a while as he watched the young man think about what he had said. Finally, he said, "You're just a mere human, and just a young man at that. Your ancestors may have been heroes, but in reality they were ordinary humans. Thus, you are still a human. Don't these so-called heroes praise those who advance forward courageously?"

'The Dual Dragon Emperor…he was a nobody, someone who randomly showed up, spouted nonsense about peace, but eventually gained the respect of the entire supernatural world because of his deeds…did he ever think of becoming a hero from the very beginning? …No, he definitely didn't. He simply said he wanted a harem and peace was just a byproduct of it…'

Strada said with a smile, "Although I was called a hero, even at this age I don't consider myself to be a hero. But as long as there are people who look up to me, I will continue to be called a hero. I am simply a human. I live like any other human, and I will die like any other human. That is enough. If people respect me as a hero, then that's fine. I believe the Dual Dragon Emperor thinks this way too."

Cao Cao was shocked as he briefly saw Vasco Strada and Aaron's figures overlap. Cao Cao looked at the ground and frowned. 'I was afraid that he would say that…'

"Hehehe." His Eminence laughed and stood back up while putting his hat back on. "Ah, I'm old now, so I speak long-windedly. From the start, you already had a vague idea of this answer, did you not?"

"…That might have been the case, but I still lost to him—even if indirectly," said Cao Cao. "Your Eminence…will I ever be able to defeat that man?" he asked him. Even if he knew in the back of his head the answer, he wanted to hear someone else say it.

The old man sighed and said, "…Go and love something, young man. Whether it be yourself, or even something intangible. Love, if you don't have the heart that loves something, then you won't be able to reach someone who has love. The object that you love will appear in front of you one day, and at that time…you will gain 'power' from within your body and soul."

Cao Cao became confused, but Strada continued and spread his arms open—at that moment, a powerful yet gentle breeze hit both of them.

"First! You should keep on chasing the Dual Dragon Emperor. That man…he is at the mercy of love. He loves as many people around him as he can, whether it be his lovers, his friends, his comrades or the random people of the supernatural world or the human world. He will show them love."

"Jin Skyward is a man that loves everything around him, and in turn, he is loved back by those around him. Compared to my old bones, you're still near his age are you not? Yet…his presence is tens of thousands of times brighter than yours."

Cao Cao looked at Strada in confusion and disbelief. 'That's right…the Dual Dragon Emperor Jin Skyward lives because of love. Not only is he loved by others, he also loves them back. Does he draw power from that…?'

Cao Cao got up and turned around then he summoned his spear. He began walking away, a smile on his face. "…Will the me of now be remembered in the future as a person who pursued 'love'?" he asked himself.

…

Once Cao Cao left, Strada held his hat down as tears streamed down his face. "Perhaps I should have told him this, but…I think what I told him was enough."

Vasco Strada looked up at the bright blue sky and sighed. "That man will become a pillar of this world—that time when I looked back at him in that dimension…I thought I saw the Lord, his presence was so bright and comforting…if I live long enough to see him again, perhaps…I may ask him for a favor…"

A man made of love, a man made to love, a man made to share love. A man who showed kindness to everyone he met, yet was still merciless. Vasco Strada couldn't help but think that Jin Skyward was the second coming of his beloved Lord and wished to follow him to the ends of the earth.

Vasco Strada had made a decision.

…

Akeno Himejima's Soliloquy

…

It's been a while since we saw the match between Riser Phenex and Diehauser Belial. It was quite one-sided. While all of Riser's peerage was wiped out, the remaining ones were Riser himself and Ravel. Diehauser used his [Worthless] to invalidate both Phenex sibling's Immortality trait from their clan.

This was a huge disadvantage for Riser. However, Ravel who did not rely on it too much during her 100 years after being told by various people had learned to fight on her own, as well as use her demonic power and magic efficiently. But she also learned hand-to-hand combat in cases like this and was the one that pushed Diehauser back.

However, after a short exchange between them both backed off and Diehauser did something which caused Ajuka Beelzebub-sama and Tiamat, one of the Dragon Kings to interfere in the match. While we couldn't hear what they spoke about, it was clear that something of significance was revealed during it.

When people looked to Azazel for it, he had no clue, so we went to Aaron and…he told us everything would be fine for both siblings even after they supposedly 'disappeared'. His words reassured us, but we were still quite worried about them even with our past with Riser himself.

A few more days had passed since then and now the TV in the living room that had access to all channels across the world and the supernatural world was showing the news.

[Sudden accident in the Rating Game!?]

[Champion Belial has disappeared during the middle of the match!]

[The Phoenix family's third son, the eldest daughter and Champion have disappeared together!]

We were gathered back in the meeting room with Team [DxD]'s leaders and anyone that wanted to join us.

"So, the whereabouts of Riser, Ravel, and the Champion Diehauser Belial are all unknown right?" asked Yumi.

Sensei raised his index finger and said "Firstly, what can be confirmed is that before the three people disappeared, the game system's emergency program was triggered."

I see, so it did trigger near them end since we saw Tiamat. However, the emergency program wasn't well known to everyone and even a few people around us were confused by what Azazel said.

Former President Sona saw their confused expressions and explained, "Originally, in order to respond to any kind of situation there were a corresponding set of procedures for professional Rating Games. For example, if the location for the match was destroyed more than expected then they would initiate a procedure for repairing it."

"So what happened? Did The Khaos Order attack?" asked Gasper.

Azazel sighed and said, "That is currently being investigated, but one thing that is certain is that there is a high possibility that there was some kind of improper conduct performed during the game."

Everyone was shocked by this, especially the devils. But when looking at Aaron, he maintained a steady and calm expression as if he already knew something like this would happen. However, something illegal happening in a Rating Game isn't something unheard of, but it is rare. Most would not wish to risk something illegal happening because it's being monitored by professionals, especially Ajuka-sama.

"That's prohibited! Could it be the Champion!?" asked Saji.

We could understand his shock, we didn't believe that Ravel would do such a thing, and her being near Riser and become more headstrong I doubt she would let him do something foolish. But…their opponent was Diehauser Belial, the Rating Game Champion, someone like him…even I couldn't believe he would do something illegal.

Azazel shook his head. "The managers believes that it's the opposite," he said grimly.

"…Just because something is prohibited or illegal doesn't mean people won't do it and abide by the rules, Saji." Aaron said finally putting his thoughts out for everyone.

"Err…ugh…w-well, I guess so…? B-but it's a professional Rating Game, the risks are too…" Saji agreed but still tried to argue.

"Do you know anything about it, Jin? What about the whereabouts of the two Phenex siblings?" asked Rias.

Aaron looked to his right at Latia who tilted her head confused and then looked back at us. "They're fine and safe, as I said before, even Ravel has shadow soldiers in her shadow so I know where they went. So rest assured they're not in any danger, but…yeah I think Qlippoth and the Khaos Order and Diehauser are responsible for this," he explained.

"…Yeah, he said the same thing to us when we held a meeting with the leaders of the alliance. Apparently after the match, Diehauser disappeared taking the siblings, but soon after, Jin's shadows found them and right now both of them are in a secret place that Ajuka took him and Serafall to a few months back," added Azazel.

Aaron got up and put his hands on the table in front of him. "With that said, this meeting is adjourned. We can assume that the Khaos Order are targeting the devils this time around and it has something to do with the Rating Games…and if my guess is right, the Belial family."

He looked at all of us and added, "Don't forget what happened with Masaomi Yaegaki and Cleria Belial…if the Diehauser found out…then he wants answers and I doubt the current government would give him that, or the church—so who will he go to?"

Our eyes widened at the realization. Does he mean…?

"It also has to do with what I told you before…the [King] piece, unrest, and chaos is going to break out soon in the Underworld, so I suggest that everyone prepare for it."

"You knew about that too, huh? I only got that out of Ajuka a few months ago…but if it's about revenge…the Rating Games, and for Cleria…you don't think he'd do anything reckless?" asked Azazel.

Aaron shook his head. "Hurting the citizens of the Underworld? I don't think the Champion would do that. However, exposing the liars, both the Great King, and certain devils in possession of the [King] piece…then he'd definitely do that. Everyone would lose trust in them, right? He probably also wants them to pay for their crimes."

Aaron sighed and added, "It's always the past mistakes of the previous generation coming to bite the current generations ass. It doesn't matter if it's in the supernatural world or the human world…it's exhausting."

Aaron once mentioned that he would like to avoid making as many mistakes so that the next generation after us won't suffer too much. However, he doesn't want to completely remove the 'challenge' for them, so they can still grow as individuals.

"Anyway…you're all dismissed," he said and sat down. Everyone had many questions, but we all started leaving the room. I joined Rias who spoke with Sona.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

Ophis, the Spectre's egg and Crom won't be attacked here, so that's a none factor on what's going to happen in the future, nevertheless I will want to add extra layers of protection there, so I'll do that later.

The place where Ravel and Riser were taken to was the place that Ajuka and I spoke about [EXE] (Eguze) for the first time and how I'll lead it in the future. It's out of the boundaries of this universe, pretty amazing of him to do without outside help…well, outside help from me or anyone related to me. Maybe from Kanzaki and Kirino might have assisted him, but I'm not sure since I can't access their memories.

"Why did you look at me earlier, Aaron?" Latia asked me.

"…The place Serafall and I visited a few months back, your uncle Ajuka owned it. It was outside the boundaries of this universe, so he must have gotten outside help. I have my own speculations, but those two are being kept there."

"…I see, to think uncle had made such a place already. I wonder who he had help from? …Are you certain he received help?" she asked.

"Ajuka is smart, but I noticed certain things there didn't belong to this universe—no, to be more accurate…they didn't belong to this timeline."

"Time…line? W-what do you mean by that?" Latia asked. The ones here with us, Lavinia, Rose, Raiko and Suzaku also became intrigued by this.

"The multiverse is infinite, meaning infinite universes, which also means…infinite parallel worlds and different timelines. I believe that the people who helped Ajuka belong to another world that's similar to ours. I've explained this before but only ONE of me can exist, so any other timeline out there won't have me in it, meaning—"

"Are you saying that they may have come from a further future and have had to deal with the Khaos Order or whatever was equivalent in this timeline?" asked Suzaku.

"Yeah. Whatever happened in their timeline…I would only imagine that it wasn't good—so whoever came here, or at least gave the technology to Ajuka, came from the future of a destroyed world. They may want ours to prosper and prevent that from happening."

"Then what happened to other versions of us?" Lavinia asked.

"…I don't know the criteria since Cúntóir never told me, but I would assume it's after I made you immortal. Anyway, after that, that 'version' of you will stop existing in other timelines. Meaning, you yourself are unique like me now. So…"

"Lavinia, Akeno, Asia, Grayfia, Serafall, Shirone, Natsume, Yasaka, Suzaku, Raiko, Ingvild, Kuroka, Gabriel and recently Xenovia. In that order, I made them immortal, making them [Unique], thus eliminating their counterparts in any timeline that existed, that exists and will exist."

Rose and Latia frowned as they were the only ones I mentioned that weren't immortal, I mean, out of the ones currently here.

"I didn't include Ophis and Irene in it because they're already ageless/immortal. But I think I may need to 'add' my own immortality to remove their counterparts from existing. That's why I added it to Gabriel. I wasn't sure if angels even aged."

"…I've been meaning to ask, but it sounds like you know of the future, Aaron," said Suzaku.

"…Partially. But due to the things I've done, I'm not even sure if the things I know will even happen. I mean a lot has changed, so the future I once knew has been affected way too much. Azathoth is also preventing me from using that ability."

And now I can't even go back to that place. I can only assume that Azathoth has my mom there and is preventing me from meeting her for some strange reason…

"Anyway, just keep an eye out for anything that may happen in the next few days or weeks. Diehauser, the Rating Games and the Underworld as a whole—something big may happen straight after too…"

…

A few days later, we were currently having breakfast with the large household. Some good news, Hephaestus and Kurousagi have moved into my home officially making my home has 32 people living in it. Not including Griffon, Poh, the dragons in me and Shin. But they were still asleep, they're not used to our usual schedule yet.

Cao Cao and his team have also officially been sent out into the multiverse and are making their way towards the universe of the Phantasma. Cúntóir took a small break and helped me set up the way there, we didn't want to alert them by teleporting directly into the universe, so we instead teleported near to it and they would need to enter it by themselves. Elsa is with them and she's an assassin. I think they'll manage.

"That reminds me…today is the career consultation for the seconds years, right? Are you guys ready?" I asked the second years among us.

"It's not just the second years, Aaron. The first years are also asked about this, while it's not as serious for them yet, but they do need to start thinking about it," Rias said while pointing her chopsticks at me.

"First years too, huh? Must be rough…so I can assume Shuri is going for Asia, Griselda for Xenovia, Touji for Irina…what about the rest of you?" I asked.

"You gave Papa a teleporting device, right? Normally I would think Sister Griselda would be the one to come for me too, but Papa should come for me," said Irina.

Rossweisse also added, "Although I'm not the teacher for your class, I will help you prepare some information. Anyway, a career is very important. Discussing this with your parents while using your own ability to choose your career path is very important."

"During today or however how long this lasts, leave the club to us and you guys can focus on that. Ingvild, Kiyome, Rias, Akeno and I are just waiting for our graduation, so we can take it easy until spring."

"That's true, but we can't be too relaxed~ we have some preparations to do~" said Akeno and winked at me.

"That's right. We'll be blossoming female college students you know? We have to try to stand out, fufu," said Rias.

"I'll be balancing my music career and college life. It'll be tough but I think I can manage," added Ingvild.

Kiyome pipped up and added, "I'll also be pursuing a Beast Tamer's path and also balancing my college life. We'll all be busy once spring comes."

"Nyahaha~ I'll be going for Shirone~" said Kuroka as she poked her little sister on the forehead. "I also plan to use magic to give Shirone an excellent consultation~"

"…My class homeroom teacher is a woman, Nee-sama," replied Shirone as she coldly stared at her sister.

"Ara, ara, this is a headache nya…though just because she's a woman doesn't mean she'll be interested in men~" Kuroka pointed out and Shirone sighed at her.

"Don't use magic, Kuroka," I told her and she sighed and huffed while saying 'it's just to make it easier for her, hmph!'.

"The Gremory household usually sends someone for me, so I think that may happen this year again," said Yumi.

"No need for that, Yumi. I will go for you," said Lianne.

When I look at Lianne and Yumi…they kind of resemble each other, so they can probably pull off the mother and daughter combo.

"A-are you sure, Lianne-sensei? You don't need to because—"

"I insist, we look rather alike, don't we? I think we can pull it off. We can say I'm your long-lost auntie or adopted mother," Lianne said as she softly giggled.

"W-well, if you insist then I don't mind," Yumi said awkwardly.

"Good for you Yumi, you have a beautiful mother going with you today," said Tosca. Yumi blushed at the teasing she got from her friend.

"What about you, Gasper?" I asked him. He along with Coriana, Tomoe and Tosca were here today.

"…My father will be coming today…" he told us.

Over the past few months, Gasper's father Lord Vladi came to visit him twice. The first time he did, we were quite shocked. However, whatever was happening in the newly formed vampire faction, it was definitely a positive thing. It seems some of the pure bloods are starting to change, albeit slowly.

This included Gasper's dad which was good news. Maybe because he saw and heard his wife's last wish and is honoring it. However, the first time he came here it was a bit awkward, but they did speak to each other extensively and walked around Kuoh for the day.

At one point they were joined by Coriana and Tomoe, and Gasper introduced them as his lovers which surprised Lord Vladi, but he quickly accepted it and Gasper explained that they weren't just concubines.

I would say the first meeting ended in a good note. The second…was interesting, but Lord Vladi was a lot less stuff during it. He even brought Gasper some food his mother used to like making before he was born.

"That's good, we get to meet Lord Vladi again," I told him and he nodded with a smile.

I had my own plans for today so I won't be going to school, so I'll leave it to Rias and Akeno to deal with the club.

…

Yumi Kira's Soliloquy

…

"Lianne-san, do you know what Aaron-senpai is doing today? I don't think he's coming to school, right?" I asked her as we walked to the academy instead of teleporting. Our 'parents' have to meet the teachers first and do a few things before they're let in.

Because of the incident a few months back with both a student and teacher, the school wanted to tighten up its security. Aaron was the one to suggest this since he didn't want the humans there to be hurt. He did take it upon himself to confront Yami-kun and then got him arrested.

"He should be overseeing the construction of his restaurant, after that he mentioned taking a look at Kuoh Academy college division, so he may be over there with Lavinia and whoever else went with him," she explained and sighed.

"Is it a good place? I know you and the Stahlritter along with several shadow soldiers patrol Kuoh on a daily basis," I asked.

"It's like any normal college, Yumi. Although like the high school division…there are many perverts, so all of you will feel like you're right at home," she said with a genuine smile.

'W-what's that supposed to mean…? I know there are a lot of people that are open about their fantasies, but I didn't think the college students were like that too…' I thought and then asked, "the college students are the same as the high school students?"

"I'm unsure if I should say if they're worse or better. While they are still quite open about it, they have much more freedom…so they go out to do karaoke, drink or just have parties in general. Though comparing it to westerns, it would be a step-down slightly," said Lianne-san. "It's a different experience, so I suggest you try to take hold as soon as college starts."

College, it feels so far away, but at the same time, when I think about it…I and along with the current second years only have a month and a half left before the current seniors graduate then we'll be third years and after that…

We'll still live in the same town, we can even visit them in the college division or Aaron's home, but it still felt strange.

"It looks like I gave you unnecessary worries. Please don't think about it too much, Yumi. For now, let's focus on the three-way career consultations, alright?"

"A-ah, y-yes," I replied and we picked up our pace.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

A few hours had passed, right now it was around one in the afternoon. I hadn't had lunch yet so I should go buy something soon…when I glanced to my side, the workers were already eating since I brought them something to eat and drink saving them the cost of food.

Lavinia, Latia and Raiko came with me, but right now they went to a nearby restaurant to order some more food since I hadn't prepared enough for the workers. I didn't think they had such large appetites, hell, they could almost match Kuroka's if I combined them all together.

All the workers here are devils from the Gremory, Sitri and Bael clans. They're more than happy to work at the pace I wanted since I paid them quite well and they didn't need to rush to other sites since they were specifically picked up to work on my restaurant construction and would follow my orders without question which was great.

As I waited for the girls to come, my two friends along with their girlfriends showed up and wave to me. They did text me this morning that they wouldn't be going to school and take their girlfriends on dates. I didn't think they would just meet up like that, though they are that close.

"Yo, Jin. They're on a break right now, right?" Kikijo asked me.

"That's a lot of people though, why is it taking so long to build?" Higuro asked as well while looking at the foundations of the building and a few walls and rooms that were already built.

"I want everything to be perfect, you know? This is my first restaurant that I'll start my business from. After that…I'll see how well it does and go from there. Anyway, you guys skipped school to take them on a date, eh?" I asked back and they just laughed it off.

"Well, we're technically free until we spring, you know? We basically have the last two months off, but we shouldn't skip all the days otherwise they'll be angry at us. But this much is fine," explained Kikijo.

"Right, and we can use this time to enjoy the last parts of our youths! So I'm taking out Yua as much as I can before we gotta hunker down in college! …And my parents' bakery," he told me and Yua hugged his arm and the two started being lovey-dovey to each other.

Kikijo followed this with his girlfriend Sakura. I stood there confused. 'Did they just come here to flirt in front of me or something? What the hell…? Were they that salty about me having a girlfriend before them or is it because I have a harem?'

As I went to speak to them again, the three women who left came back as I felt Lavinia hug me from the back.

"We're back~ …Hmm? Are these two your friends? Oh, I met them a few months back, hello~!" Lavinia asked and looked at them.

"Here's your portion, Jin," Latia said and handed me my box. Raiko came to my side and also fixed my tie since it was a bit crooked.

"T-t-t-t-the foreigner girlfriend! And two more we hadn't seen before!!" Higuro screamed in horror while pointing at Lavinia.

"Y-y-y-you! I thought…I thought it was just limited to the school's beauties! But you had more outside?!" Kikijo asked with a shocked expression and then was smacked by Sakura.

"I do have a life outside school you know? Anyway…this is Lavinia, that's Latia and this is Raiko, they're also…well you two already understand. Nonetheless, what are your plans after this short visit?" I asked them.

"W-well we're going to continue our dates…" Kikijo replied with less spirit than earlier.

"Y-yeah…" the same with Higuro as they seemed to have their energy sapped out of them.

Both girlfriends saw this and became angry. They grabbed their ears and pulled them away as they howled in pain. I saluted them and wished them luck.

"Why did they suddenly deflate?" Lavinia asked from behind me.

"Because they're idiots," Latia and I said at the same time and we scoffed.

"Don't be mean to them, Aaron." Raiko scolded me and poked my nose. "So, what are we doing after this? We're not staying here the whole day, correct?"

"No…well, let's just eat lunch. I already have an idea of where to go," I told them and smirked. They gave me confused looks but I told them I'd explain afterward.

…

"Kuoh Academy college division, huh? So this is where you want to go?" Latia asked as we all looked at the entrance of the college.

"Yeah, I was curious about it and I never went here before. I heard a few reports about it from Lianne and the Stahlritter, but they mostly stopped since nothing really happened here. Well, the occasional mishap and maybe fights? But I'd say that's normal in places like this," I told them.

Some high school students come here to get part-time work, while I don't know anyone that does go here. I heard about it from my time talking to different clubs and their members. But I am curious about the societies this place had. Even if I wasn't planning on attending it myself that much, I still was going to send an avatar to it.

"Can we even just walk in? Don't colleges and universities have security measures and ID verification?" Latia asked again.

"…What kind of university does that? …I mean, the one I went to in my previous life did have ID, but that was used for different reasons. One was for dormitory access, well, if you decide to stay in one. And two, the various facilities at the college. I think you also go discounts depending on how long you've been there? Like seniors getting higher discounts and stuff if they show their ID…"

"I thought you didn't remember much?" Raiko asked.

"…Good question…but that information just came naturally to me…maybe I'm starting to get more of my memories back. That's good for me then, I finally feel like I can move on a bit," I said and sighed.

"Hmmm~! I spy some strange people outside~," said a voice. We all turned out attention to it and found a woman.

A very tall buxom woman with ridiculous curves and her physique is most pronounced by her humongous breasts. She has waist-length blonde hair that has several bangs coming down into her face, two bangs come down at the sides running all the way down that also frames her face and hazel eyes. She wore a white dress shirt with a brown skirt.

She looked like Shizuka from High School of the Dead…the resemblance is uncanny. Also, dare I say, her breasts may be on par with Suzaku, Akeno's and Raiko's…or larger…?!

Curiosity hit me and I looked at Raiko's rack and my eyes nearly popped out of my eyes. It simply said 115.3. Akeno's was 105 and Suzaku's was 104! …Huh?! Then I checked hers and it was 108! Adult women's proportions are something else…

"Why are you just staring at our breasts…?!" Latia asked out of embarrassment in an angry tone. Raiko covered her chest as she sported a blush.

"Uh…"

"…Hmm? Ah, you're Jin Skyward, aren't you?" the woman asked and came over to us. She bent over and peered at me face.

"I am. Who might you be?" I asked back. When I did, I felt Lavinia tighten her hold on my arm and pull me away slightly. "…Wait, how do you even know my name?" I'm 99% sure that this is our first time meeting.

"I'm Koharu Fujiwara~ a nurse for the college division of Kuoh Academy. Now, as to how I know you…well, I heard from various students from the high school division and from some of the college division because of how…eccentric you are? Also, that you have a harem, fufu."

I didn't think my exploits would have reached the college division. However, if they reached the town I lived in, then…yeah, I guess it makes sense. But the harem thing was unexpected. I didn't think they would make such a big fuss about it.

"Is that so? Well…we're not here to cause trouble or anything. I'll be graduating soon so I thought I'd take a look from the outside," I explained to her and she nodded.

"Hmm. Do you want to come in and have a closer look? The Gremory's also have control of the college division too, so having both Sitri and Gremory heiresses enter it next year will be interesting~" she said and smiled.

…Wait what? I blinked at her a few times and then looked at my companions. They were also caught off guard by this and stared blankly at her. "Um, Fujiwara—"

"Call me Koharu, and yes, I'm aware of the supernatural world, fufu. It's finally a pleasure to have a chat with the famous Middleman, Dual Dragon Emperor and Miracle Dragon~" she said and poked my nose.

"If you're wondering how I'm connected to the supernatural world…I'm a magician in a pact with someone from the Mammon clan of devils," she said and leaned in closer. "I look forward to working with you, [EXE]-leader-sama~"

[Another member…an unexpected place to come across them,] said Ddraig.

'Yeah, no kidding. A magician and with someone from the Mammon clan…' I looked at Latia and asked, "you met someone from the Mammon clan not too long ago, right? Can you tell me about them?"

"Yes I can, but…" replied Latia but she looked back at Koharu.

"Mammon-sama-chan is here today. Would that convince you to come in?" she asked with a playful smile.

"…Vanaria Mammon. An outcast of her clan, but she is powerful—her rumored strength is apparently on par with the original Satans. She's…how do I say this…" Latia struggled to find the words, but—

"Peculiarly cute and lewd," said Koharu as she clapped her hands. "Fufu, please follow me then, she is also a lecturer here, the subject is well, various ones, but if I had to say, 'science', since she's quite knowledgeable about biology, chemistry, physics, social science, biochemistry, mathematics, astronomy, computer science and many more," explained Koharu.

"She sounds like a genius," I said and Latia agreed.

"She is very knowledgeable…if I had to compare her to someone, it would be a mix of all the current Four Great Satans. My uncle's intelligence, Serafall Leviathan-sama's eccentric-ness, Sirzechs Lucifer-sama's doating personality, but towards something else and Falbium Asmodeus' laziness…"

Laziness…he's still a military genius you know? But yeah, I can kind of understand what you mean. "Well, I guess we're going in there then. If I'm going to meet a future subordinate then I might as well meet them now."

With that said, Koharu happily entered through the gates and we were officially inside the walls of Kuoh Academy college division. If I remember correctly, Loup Garou (Rugal) is a college student so we should have a chance of meeting him here, and checking his aura…he's definitely here, though we're not near him right now.

But I do wonder… "Hey, when did she start working here?" I asked Koharu.

"Only a few months back, you were all probably preoccupied with that Halloween incident, so you probably didn't bother to check this place since someone from Team [DxD] told you that there was no one suspicious since we told them who we were," said Koharu.

That someone must be Rugal, and if he believed that and told Sona then she probably didn't tell me since I was pretty stressed at the time. As we walked through the campus, we saw various buildings of all shapes and sizes. These were shops and buildings that you would find in any college, university, and institute. From what I could see there were many that were run by students.

"College life…I never experienced that," Lavinia muttered beside me. I glanced at her and pulled her closer. Jeez, I didn't expect that from her.

"You're not missing much; it can vary depending on what you want out of college and university. I mean nine times out of ten you won't really speak with most of your school friends after graduation, so…you better cut those losses."

…There it is again. Where the hell is this coming from? I know I attended an institute briefly, but for how long? I have no idea.

"What about you, Latia?" I turned to her and asked.

"I skipped grades like Rossweisse, so I'm already out of school. However, I did attend the equivalent of a university in the Underworld. From what I've read in the human world, they're not much different. Only certain classes and activities are added because we're devils and learn other things," she explained.

"Skipped grades, huh? Interesting…"

I didn't think that happened to her, and she seems to be more adjusted than Rose. Though I don't think Latia was that interested in romance nor was she bullied for her single status like Rose, so that's why she wasn't all that vocal about it.

When I glanced at Raiko, she fidgeted a little, I doubt she had the opportunity for a school life because of how long ago that was. She saw me looking, blushed and looked down in shame…yeah, I guess this kind of conversation would be hard to join in for her.

"Ah, let's turn here and we'll be in her office. She pulled a few strings and used magic to get her own office in another building. I told her not to but she insisted. Sona Sitri should know and she said it wasn't a problem," said Koharu.

We turned a corner and found a relatively large building made of stone and colored red, blue and white with… "Wait is that Ddraig and Albion…?" I asked as there were two dragon shaped designs on the side of the doors.

"Heh, she had it painted like that. If you look up, you'll find something interesting," she said and pointed above the door. It…was clearly my Dual Balance Breaker Scale Mail. "A lot of students called it cool and asked what it was. Vanaria always answered with 'The Dual Dragon Emperor, fufu' and the students liked it too."

"…So she's a fan? I've met quite a few people already," I replied and we entered the building. Once inside there was a small reception with no one there.

"In addition to working as a receptionist, I also join Vanaria here once my day's work is over. Ah, she's known as Vanaria Avarice by her human name. Her office is over here. It's quite spacious so no need to worry," she said and we entered the room on the right.

The inside of her office was very spacious, as what Koharu said. A large desk was near the back of the room with a woman sitting on it.

Vanaria was a stunningly attractive woman with sexy hip-length black hair that had bangs hanging on the right side with two ahoges, green eyes, a mole under her left eye, red round glasses, one earring on her left ear and a voluptuous figure. She had very large breasts.

Her outfit consisted of a green knit turtleneck, a tight black mini-skirt along with her cross-garter motif stockings, and a white lab coat.

She said without looking up, "Ah, Koharu, can you get me some latte? The lectures today killed me and a few students were rowdy and some were too drunk, they should have just skipped the day if they weren't going to—" she stopped there as she looked up.

Koharu smiled at her and waved, then gestured to us. I put my hand up before she suddenly stood up and slammed her desk.

"M-m-m-m-middleman?! Why are you here?! Koharu, why didn't you text me?!" she asked and looked at Koharu a bit horrified. She quickly pattered herself down and fixed her appearance…well nothing was wrong with it, so I didn't know why she did that.

"I'm Vanaria Mammon! Your future subordinate, it's great to finally meet you! Why—I mean, may I know why you're here?" she asked.

"…I came here because I heard that you were here and Koharu said that, well you'll be part of [EXE], so I wanted to meet you before our official meeting in the future."

"It slipped my mind~?" Koharu said and tilted her head. "Fufu, well it's fine, we're having the great [EXE] pre-meeting-meeting." Koharu raised her hand and high-fived a confused Lavinia and Latia.

"I see. Sona Sitri should have a vague idea that I'm here, well, that a devil is here but not who. Anyway, you'll be coming to this place in the future, right? I can give you a list of places that would suit your tastes. I've been stalk—researching about my future boss after all," she said and waved a piece of paper at me.

"I'd appreciate it." I took the list and skimmed through it. "So…you're part of the Extra Demons of the Underworld like Roygun, Kuisha and Grayfia? I heard from Koharu that you're…an outcast? Do you mind telling me about that?" I asked and used [Observe] on her.

She nodded and thought about it. As she did, I confirmed what Latia said earlier was true. Her current rank was Satan-class – S which was pretty high, while I don't know the ranks of the original Satans, but I'd say she's on the higher end of the spectrum.

"I'm just weird? I mean, my clan members use their powers to gain as much wealth as possible. I mean, I do use it to get money from time to time, but I don't abuse it. The fact that I'm the most proficient at utilizing our power is also another factor since I can sell more to the human world or anywhere, really," she explained. "Ah our clan's ability is called—"

"[Ray of Avarice], right? Using your own touch, or beams, or even demonic powers, you can turn anything you touch into gold, diamonds, iron, copper and other minerals of the human world. You can then sell it to them or anywhere you want," I told her. I had also seen that when I used [Observe] on her earlier.

"I'd say it's a useful ability for both combat and non-combat. Just get a large chunk of rock and turn it into gold or anything you want, then you'd make bank. However, doing that would attract a lot of attention, so making them into smaller chunks would be wiser," I added.

Vanaria nodded fervently. "Yes, yes, yes! As expected of my boss! But yeah, I try to not abuse it or else I'd get too much attention on my back. Some family members did that and were caught up in human world trouble. Of course, they used their magic to get out of it, so it wasn't that big of a deal, but it's still troublesome."

"Ahem…" Latia interrupted us as she coughed into her right fist. "It's been a while Vanaria. I take it you've been well since our last meeting?" she asked.

"A-ah! Latia, yep, yep, I've been doing good…but that day was something. Seeing a cat and bird fight together and take down that thing quickly was something…"

That day…that reminds me that Latia told me something about some mechanical creature attacking the Underworld, but Shirone, Ravel and her took care of it. For the time being she let her uncle have it to look over it, while I didn't mind…I also wanted to exam it myself.

"Oh…right…hey, Koharu, you said you were a magician. Are you in any organizations like Grauzauberer?" I asked her and she nodded.

"I'm part of Rosenkreuzer. It's founded by Rudiger Rosenkreutz, a reincarnated devil and the 7th ranker in the Rating Games, also—"

"Known as the [Upsetting Sorcerer]. Yes, I know of him…we…have met each other. He also has a cute kid, likes angels more than devils and the Oppai Dragon, much to his father's surprise though," I finished for her and laughed. "I see…so that's how you two were connected. Rudiger Rosenkreutz is a [Bishop] for the Head of the Mammon clan. Is that how you two were introduced?" I asked.

Vanaria nodded. "Yes. Lord Mammon introduced her to me through Rudiger Rosenkreutz since she was part of his magician organization. That day we made a pact and the rest is history."

"Mmm-mmm, maybe they're going to continue the tradition with a Mammon devil and a magician from Rosenkreuzer?" mused Koharu as she went over to Vanaria and hugged her arm. She then looked at Lavinia and stared at her. "…You look familiar. Do I know you?" she asked.

Lavinia shook her head and said, "No we haven't met before, I'm sure of that…"

"Well, she's formerly Mephisto Pheles' right-hand, Lavinia Reni, the Ice Princess if that rings any bells," I replied.

"Oh! So you're the Demise girl! You're quite famous you know? Along with the Purple Rose and Silent Reader, Grauzauberer has made a lot of famous female magicians over the years. I always wanted to meet one of you three," Koharu said excitedly.

'Silent Reader…? If she's talking about Grauzauberer then it has to be Fusae. I didn't think Fusae herself was famous and she didn't have that title when I first met her. Maybe she got it over the months as part of the new Slash/Dog Team?'

{She does read a lot of books; I would imagine she would still do that while on their missions.}

"…Demise girl…I'm Aaron's Ice Queen…I'm not a princess anymore…" Lavinia mumbled beside me sounding a bit upset.

"Well…all of them are in my home, Lisa, the one called the Purple Rose is a teacher in the high school division and Fusae, the Silent Reader is in a pact with one of my lovers, a devil. Lisa works as a librarian for me and doesn't live with me," I told her.

"Can I visit?" she asked and arrived in front of me.

'Way too close, lady…' I nodded. "I don't see why not? Please call me beforehand since they won't always be at my home."

She rummaged around her pocket before pulling out a small piece of paper and giving it to me. Looking at it, it was her phone number.

"We can keep in touch like this."

"Yeah we can. I'll text you when they're there together, and inform them about you—" my phone buzzed in my pocket. It was from Rose and it told me to meet her at my restaurant. "I'm sorry about this, but we may have to cut our meeting short…I'm required somewhere else."

"No worries, the fact that we know each other now is a good thing. Come back here anytime you want, or we can visit you when appropriate," said Vanaria. "We'll see you guys out."

We thanked them and we made our way out of the campus, all the while talking about college and the supernatural world at large. After we left the campus we made our way back to my restaurant. By this time it was already around four in the afternoon. The day was slowly ending.

When we arrived at the restaurant, Rose was there with…Irina and Touji? Curious, we walked over to them, but before speaking to them, I told the workers that they could go home for the day. They thanked me and quickly packed up.

"Rose, Irina and Touji? How can I help you guys?" I asked.

"How could I not come and say hello to my daughter's husband-to-be? It's also her career consultation today. I wouldn't miss it for the world!" he bellowed and crossed his arms.

"P-papa?!" Irina shouted in shock and immediately turned red.

"Gahahaha!" he laughed out loud, grabbed my arm and pulled me away. Lavinia was forced to let go and he started to whisper to me.

"…Is my daughter pregnant yet?"

"…Excuse me?" dumbfounded by his question, I just stared at him.

"…My little angel may have mentioned something to my wife a few days ago. Something about 'slowly progressing towards womanhood'. So I wanted to ask if she is," he explained.

I don't want to tell her father that I fingered her and gave her a facial. Who in their right mind would say that?!

"Um…we kissed…?" I lied, obviously. However, Touji seemed to buy it (not really).

"I get it, Jin-kun you don't want to tell me and that's fine. But please keep in my that my wife and I will support you if she does get pregnant before she graduates from high school!" he declared loudly. Drawing attention to us since there were still quite a lot of people walking around us.

"Papaaaaaaaaaaaaa?!" Irina yelled even louder, horrified by what he said. She then ran over to him and started to shake him violently.

Ignoring the eccentric father-daughter duo, I walked back over to Rose who along with the rest looked on at the pair in bewilderment.

"So, what did you need, Rose?" I asked and she handed me another letter.

"…I think it's from…her, she wants to meet with you now—somewhere in Romania," she told me and I quickly opened the letter.

It simply said, [Come alone, Romania – XXX Location, 5:00 P.M.]. The others looked at it and I sighed. "I guess I'm going back to Romania and alone. It's nearly that time too, so I should get going," I told them and put the letter away.

"But…" Lavinia grabbed my hand and looked at me worried.

I held her hand and stroked her head. "I'll be fine. If her last letter was anything to go by…we may have another defector, so this talk might have something good come out of it. Anyway, how did you get this letter, Rose?"

"It appeared at my desk in the teacher's lounge. When I asked the others who put it there, they didn't see anyone, so I assumed it got there via another human," she told me. She compared it to how Lilith got into contact with me.

A normal teacher probably found it somewhere, saw it addressed to Rossweisse, and put it on her desk. However, no one saw them doing it or didn't want to admit to it.

"…That's correct, let him go by himself," said a voice behind me. I turned around and saw…Cúntóir…?

"Wait, what? Are you done, what are you—" she came over and put a finger on my lips.

"My work isn't done, but I'm close…I wanted to speak to some of your lovers, so I came out to speak with them. Anyway, please go to Romania, Aaron."

As I reached out to her, I arrived back at where Lord Vladi was in Romania—the place where Akaza had moved them to. "Talk about being in a rush, sheesh. She just forced me here," I grumbled.

'She left me instructions on where it is, Aaron. They're about here…' Rudra told me the exact location, so I quickly made my way there.

It was a rundown cabin near a small lake. There were many trees around it so that it wasn't visible to anyone if you didn't look hard enough, or if you weren't close enough. I approached it and felt like I passed through a small barrier, it felt like an illusion barrier to trick normal humans.

As soon as I reached the door, I pushed it open and stepped inside. To my surprise it was very well kept, unlike its exterior which looked run-down. Perhaps it was just another illusion too? I shrugged and walked inside and went into what I perceived to be the living room.

In there was a woman. When I used [Observe] on her, she was called Valentina. Valentina was an attractive, fair-skinned woman of medium height with a slender build. She had crimson-colored eyes, long wavy dark hair tied loosely, hanging from her right shoulder with bangs on each side.

She wore a black and cerulean blue long-sleeved coat an ornament of blue feathers were on her right shoulder. She wore the same-colored hat with also an assortment of feathers on it too, also had white gloves on each hand, tights and cerulean colored heels.

She was reading a book, but when she heard me come in, she closed it and looked up. "Welcome, Middleman, Jin Skyward. This conversation…has been on a long hold, hasn't it?" she asked. And smiled.

…

Lavinia Reni's Soliloquy

…

Aaron suddenly vanished and I panicked slightly, but Cúntóir told us that she teleported him to Romania.

"Hmm? Where did Jin-kun go?" Touji Shidou-san asked us. "Oh? Are you also someone close to Jin-kun?" he asked Cúntóir.

"I am. It's nice to meet you, Touji Shidou-san. We'll be going home now. If you wish to join us, then feel free," she told him and he happily accepted. Irina-chan wasn't too happy with her father as she kept pestering him while we returned home.

Once we arrive in Aaron's home, a few of them were surprised to see Cntóir again. However, she said she wanted to speak to a few people…though in the end quite a large amount joined us in Aaron's office.

This included myself, Suzaku, Danu-sama, Rossweisse, Akeno, Kuroka, Grayfia, Natsume, Kanami, Raiko and Latia. Originally, she only wanted me, Suzaku, and Danu. She said she also wanted Velgrynd to join us, but that wasn't possible right now…

"So, what did you want to talk to us about, Cúntóir? It's been a while since we last saw you," asked Suzaku.

Cúntóir looked around the room and at each one of us. She closed her eyes and sighed. "Let me tell you a small story about Aaron Toole…from a time before he reincarnated into this world," she told us.

I was shocked—no, we were shocked! When I looked at everyone had the same expression plastered on their face. Yet no one said a word and we waited for her to continue.

"He was a crybaby—no, maybe sensitive would be the right word? Nevertheless, when he was younger…he had a cousin he was close to. They played every day and these were set up by his mother and the other parents. They were quite close, but one day his cousin became ill and there was a high chance of them dying."

"Once Aaron found out about this, he wouldn't stop crying. The thought of death scared him—perhaps even as a child he hated change…but that only became progressively more profound once he became older…anyway, he cried for days and weeks on end, and eventually his father became tired of it."

"He didn't want a weak heir to their family's business empire, so…they made him forget. He was still young after all, so a few visits to a doctor that their family had been going to for many years worked. They also gave him pills for it. Over time, Aaron forgot the existence of that cousin. His mother also went along with it. She at the time thought it was a wise idea, because she hated seeing her son cry and be sad."

"So, Aaron forgot about this cousin of his until he finally saw him at a family gathering around a year after Aoife's death. Once the cousin introduced themselves back to him, all his memories came flooding back and he was shocked that he was alive—he thought he had died."

"However, try as they might, they were very different people at that point, and while they maintained a familial relationship, it was never as close as when they were children. Of course, he confronted his father about this and he told him the truth. This caused a small fight and Aaron left that gathering followed by his mother."

"He asked his mother if she knew and she admitted she did. She explained herself and while there wasn't a big blowout, he himself was quite unstable at the time, so he shut her out as well. Aaron hated change. He didn't like it, he was always against it—that was probably why his depression stuck with him for so long. He would rather wallow in despair than change."

"Most of the changes in his life at that point were relatively positive, well some of them, but with Aoife's death it was one of the most horrible things to happen in his life. This was followed by most of the school populace blaming him for her death."

"…Why? It was some sort of cancer, right? How would Aaron have any control over that…?!" I asked angrily. I didn't like that. It didn't make sense! How could they be so cruel?!

"The ones who started saying it were people that didn't like Aaron, and the fact that Aaron started dating Aoife only made their treatment of him worse. However, Aoife was always there to stop it, though…Aaron's own personality became like that because of his own mother."

"Anyway, the ones that hated Aaron were known bullies and 'bad' people in and outside of the school. They would threaten anyone that wouldn't join in the bullying, so…the entire student populace joined in. Ryan himself stayed out of it and tried to help him, but he couldn't do much. The hate overshadowed his popularity."

"What do you mean that Aaron's personality was because of his mother?" Grayfia asked.

"…Do you remember the time when Aaron fought Riser Phenex? After the Rating Game between Rias and his peerage? Or the time when…Lavinia was hurt?" she asked and we all nodded.

"…Do you remember how he was like? Aaron when he was younger, put a boy in the hospital in his first fight. As I said before, he's a loyal friend, so…when some tried to bully and belittle his friend, Ryan. He snapped; he beat up that little boy so badly that their parents wanted to file charges against a 7-year-old. His right eye was nearly pulled out by Aaron, several broken ribs, a stick was shoved up his rectum, a broken arm and leg and he kept going even when the boy was already unconscious."

That…was quite shocking to her. To think a seven-year-old boy was capable of doing that much damage to another seven-year-old. When I glanced around, I saw that there were a few that were as shocked as me after hearing about it.

"His father was obviously both furious and proud of him. He wanted his son to be tough and wouldn't take anything lying down. But…his mother on the other hand was horrified at what Aaron had done. So…she had him promise her to not fight anymore."

"Regardless of what they had done—essentially, she told him to be beaten up and take all kinds of abuse…and he followed that, until a certain incident that nearly got him another charge put on him in his high school life. Before that point, he accepted all the hate and abuse he received from everyone, both verbal and physical."

Cúntóir sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "…I don't know if Azathoth chose him out of true coincidence, or if it was planned. When looking at what Outer Gods are, that side of Aaron definitely qualifies. He was a lot of pent-up anger in him that was generally unresolved, though he was very good at keeping it down."

"But…I guess the silver lining in all of it was Aoife since she influenced him enough to change into that kind of person. But as I said…it nearly all disappeared after her death. However, by some miracle he pulled himself out of it after a long time, but…then he died."

She looked at us and smiled. "Meeting all of you has undoubtedly been a good thing for him. His moral compass is always being challenged here. There were certainly various points where he could have taken a different path—a path that's fitting of one of his Sacred Gears and a path befitting an outer god. A path full of destruction and chaos."

"But with all of you, his friends and Aoife's influence always in his mind whether he was thinking of it consciously or subconsciously…they were definitely factors in it."

To discard the path of destruction and follow the road of righteousness. According to Azazel, from what I heard from him in the past, hatred, sadness, grief, and despair were what made the [Boosted Gear]. Spreading resentment was what the Heavenly Dragons were meant to do…

—Holding the infinite hope and unbreakable dreams and walking the path of righteousness.

—And I promise you all! I will lead you to a path beyond the stars, glowing in true outer light!

Those two lines in his [Queen] form's chant undoubtedly signified taking a different path from the [Juggernaut Drive] and the typical one an outer god takes. To Cúntóir, and to Azathoth, he was different from the other Outer Gods. However, he could always fall down that line since he's still walking that tight rope.

Cúntóir suddenly bowed and said, "That's all I wanted to tell you. While much of his past is still unknown to him…I want you all to keep on supporting him far into the future. This may be selfish of me, but—"

"Why do you even need to ask? We're already here with him, so there's no point in asking…also some of us are already immortal—it would be awkward to break it off with him too, jeez, Cúntóir, have a little faith in us," said Natsume.

"…I see. One last thing—near the end of his life, he apologized a lot even if it wasn't warranted, so if he does start doing that in the future, please stop him. Aoife would be angry with him if he did."

The rest agreed with Natsume and we told Cúntóir that we would. After that…she disappeared, saying that she was nearly done analyzing the crystal.

Just as we were about to leave his office, I said, "…I want to make future 'changes' to be something positive for Aaron. From the little we know; they've mostly been awful experiences for him, so…!"

"Jeez, Nia, I think we all came to that conclusion after we heard that little story from his past. We've already been doing that before we found out, and we'll keep doing that far into the future," Akeno said and winked at me.

"Yes. I prefer to see him smiling more than anything else. That's the Aaron we know," added Latia. The rest agreed and finally left; Suzaku stayed behind along with Danu.

"Um…why was I called here? Everyone knows of your 'Fated One' status, and we know why Rossweisse came here since she wants to be one, but I…"

"You may be the last Danu-sama. Cúntóir did say that she's a goddess, and the fact that you're an Irish goddess is just another indication," said Suzaku.

Danu was clearly shocked, but she didn't say anything and left the room. We didn't know how she felt, but she was clearly embarrassed by it.

"Are you staying for the night?" I asked Suzaku.

"I am."

We glanced at each other; we didn't need words to know her reasoning. All that was left was to wait for Aaron to come back.

…

Jin Skyward's Soliloquy

…

I took a seat and asked, "So, what did you want to talk about? You spoke to Rossweisse about something cryptic."

"Let me ask you too. Do you think the world is fair?" she asked and stared at me.

Rose gave me a rundown of their conversation. Rose concluded that she was unhappy with the state of the world. Maybe she wanted some kind of utopia? Valentina Vordenburg, part of the House of Vordenburg of pure blood vampires, just like Calantha Vordenburg of the Vali Team.

"No. It's obviously not, whether that be in the supernatural world or the human world, nothing is ever fair. No one is born equal. That's even more obvious in the supernatural world where we have powers to change many things—take Sirzechs Lucifer as an example. He's the apex of modern devils along with Ajuka Beelzebub," I told her.

Meanwhile, devils like Roygun Belphegor and Bedeze Abaddon used the [King] piece to strengthen themselves. However, Sirzechs and Ajuka still had to train to get to where they are. However, in modern times they're in a comfortable place, so I doubt they train like they used to.

"And how about you?" she asked.

"…I'm a little different. I'm neither a natural nor a genius. I did train to get a better hold and understand of my powers, but I wasn't born with them…well, maybe the two Sacred Gears, but the rest is a bit more complicated," I replied. She doesn't know the truth, so I don't need to tell her anything in detail.

"Why bring this up? Did you lose someone because of the world's unfairness?" I asked.

"That's not pertinent to what we're talking about right now," she replied. I could tell that it bothered her, but I won't push for it yet. "We, the Khaos Order heard of those two miracles you did. Are you trying to make this world a better place? Why?"

"…Because I live in it?" I gave her a confused look and she stared blankly back.

"Why? You're an outer god. You can simply leave this world and start over in a different one, or even a different timeline to get that perfect world of yours. Why bother with this one in particular? Why pursue this peace? Is it all because of the harem you desire?"

I sighed. Why do they always want to know? Haven't I said it enough? I seriously should just record my responses to these things in the future…or make a card that has those responses. Yeah…I'll do that.

"Because, like I said, I live here. What do you take me for? Just because I'm a god now doesn't mean I'll just discard the things I've built up. Unfortunately for you, I'm not just some unfeeling god that sees everyone as puppets or chess pieces to play with. Everyone in this world has a life, they have a story and I'm not some psychopath that'll kill them for my own amusement. You already know the answers I have for that last question I've made it clear," I told her and sat back on my seat.

After that, we spoke more or less the same things I speak about to the chief gods and other deities in pantheons. It seemed like she wanted to find out my own personal philosophies, ideals, and convictions. At the end of it, she didn't show much emotions as I could get a read on her, but even when I read her thoughts…they were mostly silent.

"…Very well. I have an understanding on what kind of person you are. I will contact you again, and after that, I will tell you my answer," she told me.

"Your…answer?" I repeated.

"Whether I join the alliance of DxD, or let you kill me and get that information from me. Of course, I won't fight you. I stand no chance." She put her book away and patted herself down. "I will see you in the future, Dual—no, Jin Skyward."

She stared me in the eyes as she left.

"What a strange woman. Seriously though, I wonder what happened to her?" I asked myself. I felt the illusion magic that surrounded this place begin to shatter and the once clean room around me was now destroyed, moldy and rotten.

She's powerful…at least Dragon God-class to be able to make illusion magic that powerful. Maybe it was [Reality Manipulation] instead? Well, whatever the case may be…I'm done here. So I returned home.

…

The next day came, and today…we go meet up with Ajuka and the Phenex siblings in that base he has outside of this universe. The leaders of Team [DxD] and most of my household wanted to go with us, and were about to leave.

We were in the [Training Facility] and were about to teleport there. The ones that are missing were the Vali Team. No matter how much I tried to contact them, Vali wouldn't answer. Lavinia said she'd give him a proper scolding later when we find them, but for now…

"Alright, let's go. We can't keep him waiting," I told them and we left. Azazel and Avezza joined us in this.

…