After Rod left, Griselda, still weighed down by unease, reached out to her superior, the Seraph Gabriel.
Ordinarily, she would never contact a Seraph without cause. The Seraphim were stationed in the Seventh Heaven, devoting their strength to maintaining the System that upheld the Church's structure and the functioning of the Heavenly Realm itself. Ever since God's disappearance, that System had grown increasingly unstable. Simply keeping it operational was already exhausting the Seraphim's power.
Yet this matter left her no choice.
A column of golden holy light descended, and Gabriel appeared before her.
Clad in white, six radiant wings unfolding behind her, the Seraph's voice was gentle as ever.
"Griselda…? Is something wrong?"
"It's about the Holy Swords again, Lady Gabriel." Griselda did not hesitate. "Now that we've confirmed the mastermind is Kokabiel, an executive of the fallen angels, I don't understand why my request for additional reinforcements was denied. Xenovia and Irina alone have virtually no chance against him."
She lowered her gaze slightly.
"They may die."
Gabriel let out a soft sigh.
"Oh… Kokabiel…"
She paused, lightly pressing a finger to her lips as if organizing her thoughts.
"Michael and I both know him well. He can be… very troublesome."
"Do you know why he moved the Holy Swords to Japan?"
"I… do not."
"It is said that the younger sister of the current Lucifer governs territory there." Gabriel tilted her head slightly. "Kokabiel likely wishes to create a disturbance… to draw someone strong out, either from Heaven or the Underworld."
"If Michael, myself, or any Seraph were to go personally, we would be stepping directly into his trap."
She lowered her eyes briefly.
"And if Lucifer were to appear as well… that might cause something very, very bad."
"A three-way war…" Griselda murmured, quickly grasping the implication.
The ancient war had never truly ended; it had merely been suspended indefinitely. If Kokabiel succeeded in drawing out both a Seraph and a Maou, it could reignite the unfinished flames of that conflict.
And neither Heaven nor the Underworld desired war now.
Once begun, such a war would no longer stop at anyone's command.
"Even so," Griselda insisted quietly, "sending only the two of them… is practically sending them to their deaths."
"You are right," Gabriel admitted immediately, without defensiveness. "They are not his equals."
There was genuine regret in her voice.
"But if they can at least destroy the Holy Swords, that will already prevent something worse."
"And if they fall… I will personally guide them home."
Then, unexpectedly, she smiled.
"Besides… they will not be alone, right? "If he finds the Holy Swords first… then perhaps things will not turn out so terribly."
Griselda fell silent.
…
After leaving Heaven, Rod teleported back to Kuoh Town.
As it happened, Akeno and Koneko had just arrived after school. With time pressing, they had chosen to train in the estate's courtyard rather than traveling to the outskirts.
After several days of practice, Akeno could now channel the light within her and form a spear of holy light. However, compared to Raynare's effortless control as a fallen angel, she still had a long way to go.
Koneko had mastered the flow of Ki and was learning basic senjutsu under Kuroka's guidance.
When Rod appeared abruptly in the courtyard, the girls paused mid-training and stared at him in surprise.
"Don't mind me," he said casually. "Carry on."
He strolled over to a lounge chair, lay back comfortably, and opened the system map.
The red markers representing his targets were moving steadily toward Kuoh Town. Japan was not large; at this pace, they would arrive within half a day.
Satisfied, Rod abandoned the idea of striking early. Since their destination was Kuoh, they would inevitably show up nearby. All he needed to do was intercept them before Xenovia and Irina and claim the Holy Swords first.
Decision made, he relaxed into the chair.
Lavinia sat nearby, quietly watching, occasionally glancing at Akeno and Koneko's training.
Time passed.
As night fell, the girls concluded their practice. Before dinner, Akeno approached Rod, who had already put on an eye mask and appeared to be enjoying a rather peaceful nap.
"I told Rias your suggestion today."
"Why only now?" Rod replied lazily. "Time is money, you know."
Akeno sighed inwardly.
Could she really be blamed?
His original critique had been far too blunt. Rias was sensitive by nature, and family matters already weighed heavily on her. If Akeno had delivered Rod's words verbatim, Rias might have collapsed on the spot.
It had taken days to carefully rephrase his criticism into something gentler.
Even so, once Rias confronted the truth, her composure had cracked.
As the eldest daughter of the Gremory house, Rias detested being treated like a sheltered noblewoman. Determined to change that perception, she insisted on handling anything she reasonably could by herself.
"So she's just pretending to work hard," Rod concluded, clearly amused by the description of her reaction.
"She's trying her best," Akeno protested softly. "She works harder than anyone. She has many strengths."
"Like what?"
"Well… she's athletic. During the sports tournament, she only needed a few days of study and training to lead us to victory against Sona Sitri's peerage. She's also excellent at household tasks, cooking, cleaning, laundry. She's proficient in Chinese, Japanese, and Western cuisine…"
Rod stared at her.
"?"
All of those were admirable qualities, especially for a high-born devil. But was that really the point?
Wasn't this starting to sound suspiciously similar to a certain goddess of water who learned every supportive spell imaginable but failed spectacularly at anything that truly mattered?
If Rias devoted even half the effort she spent on housework and sports toward mastering her Power of Destruction, would she still be facing a forced engagement?
"In that case," Rod said smoothly, "suggest she come here as a full-time cook. If she agrees, I'll personally guarantee her safety from Riser, even if she chooses not to grow stronger."
Raynare, overhearing this, immediately became alert.
Akeno smiled awkwardly.
As if Rias would ever lower herself to become your personal cook.
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