Azazel's expression was rather grim. As the Governor General of the Fallen Angels, he had specifically left Grigori to prevent Kokabiel from making a catastrophic mistake. The reason he hadn't stepped in personally was for fear that his intervention in Devil territory would cause a major incident. Kokabiel could be labeled a traitor, making his actions individual, but if Azazel acted, he would represent all of Grigori.
That was why he had sent Vali. He hadn't expected to be a step too late.
"Who was the one who killed him?" Azazel asked.
"I don't know. I've never seen him before. He wasn't a Seraph, nor was he a Devil King." Vali shook his head. As the image of the young man appeared in his mind, his emotions, which had nearly calmed down, began to grow restless again.
"Not a Devil King, not an angel... then who in Kuoh could have defeated Kokabiel?" Azazel's thoughts were in a whirl.
There was another reason he had come: to protect Kokabiel under the guise of arresting a traitor. Kokabiel's actions against Heaven and the Underworld were capital crimes; his death was justified. However, after the Great War, the number of Fallen Angel cadres had dwindled to a handful. Azazel had his own selfish reasons; no matter how detestable Kokabiel was, he didn't want to see a comrade he had fought alongside for a thousand years die. Even if he were sealed forever, at least he would still be there.
But if he was dead, he was truly gone. Fallen Angels were different from humans, angels, and devils. Having turned their backs on God, they were accepted by neither Heaven nor Hell. Once they died, their souls, having nowhere to go, simply vanished. Aside from the traces they left behind, no one would remember them.
"That bastard Kokabiel... why did he have to do something so rebellious?!" Azazel felt a surge of regret. Why hadn't he noticed the man's intentions sooner? If he had, it wouldn't have come to this!
An agitated Azazel began to scratch his head, but when he looked up, he saw that Vali also had a frustrated expression. This was strange. He had raised Vali since the boy was very young; aside from when things were going poorly with his Longinus development, Vali almost never looked like this.
As for worrying about Kokabiel? That was impossible. In all of Grigori, Vali hadn't spoken more than ten full sentences to any other Fallen Angel besides Azazel.
"Vali, what's wrong with you?"
"I'm fine."
"It's likely because he saw an old friend. When Vali was out training years ago, wasn't he taken care of for a while by a girl named Lavinia?" The speaker was Albion, the White Dragon Emperor dwelling within Vali.
"Oh, right! I remember now. After you came back, you used to daze off quite a bit. Albion mentioned her often, too." Back then, Azazel had assumed it was just typical teenage thoughts. To help Vali with his "woman problem," he had even handpicked several beautiful Fallen Angels to present to him, but Vali hadn't spared them a glance. He refused to say a word about it.
"Shut up, Albion," Vali said, looking displeased.
"Vali, it's not that I want to talk, but psychological issues are serious. They will hinder your path to becoming stronger. You haven't fully mastered my power yet; if problems arise during the process later, it will be very troublesome," Albion sighed.
"Indeed. One must maintain a steady heart on the path to power. If you want to see that girl Lavinia so badly, I'll go personally and bring her here," Azazel said seriously. Having raised him for so many years, he viewed Vali as his own son. Having no heirs of his own, he treated Vali like his own flesh and blood.
"It has nothing to do with her. And she wouldn't like that anyway," Vali immediately shook his head.
"Then I'll take you to see her."
"That won't work either."
"???" This time, Azazel was truly stumped. His attitude toward women had always been straightforward. If he saw a beautiful woman, he'd strike up a conversation; if they hit it off, they'd be in bed by that night. He was never one to be troubled by love.
"It's likely because of the man next to Lavinia. The two seemed quite close, and that man happens to be the one who killed Kokabiel," Albion added.
"Oh," Azazel said. "So, the man is both Kokabiel's killer and your love rival, Vali?" The Fallen Angel Governor quickly reached a conclusion. Meeting a girl you've missed for years, only to find her close to another man—it made sense.
"Heh, what does that matter? if you like her, just take her back! You are my foster son, the current host of the White Dragon Emperor, nearly the strongest of the younger generation—how many can compare to you? What kind of beauty could a man like you not find?"
Azazel clapped Vali on the shoulder, but the boy irritably brushed him off. Vali lowered his head, and in a suppressed yet angry tone, he muttered, "Lavinia is a woman who could have been a mother to me!"
Albion: "Eh?" Azazel: "Mother? Lavinia?"
Meanwhile, Rhode had returned to the mansion with Lavinia and Kuroka.
Seeing them return, Asia ran out to meet them. When she saw that all three were unharmed, her heart finally settled.
"I kept hearing explosions. I was so worried, but I'm glad you're okay."
"Relax, Asia, how could anything happen to us nya? That bad guy was beaten down by Master nya!" Kuroka gestured with her hands and feet. Her only complaint was that she hadn't done anything this time; next time, she had to find a chance to show off in front of her sister.
"Everything's fine now. Go and get some rest," Rhode said. He then looked at the anxious Fallen Angel trio. "What's with you three?"
Prompted by Rhode, Raynare stepped forward timidly. "We... we were worried something might happen. Worried about you."
"Mittelt, tell me the truth." Rhode didn't buy it.
"It's... it's like this. As Fallen Angels, we're sensitive to the aura of our own kind. That power from earlier was cadre-level, so we were worried the cadre might come for us. We were scared to death."
"If it weren't for the curse, Raynare would have run away already."
"Ow!" Mittelt yelped in pain as Raynare pinched her. Raynare glared at her fiercely.
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High School DxD : Reincarnated into the Multiverse, but it's High School DxD (200 Chapters – Ongoing)
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