[Next Day]
Arthur pushed open the door to the Occult Research Clubroom without any hesitation.
Inside, silence reigned. Rias stood at the center, her crimson hair catching what little light filtered in. Akeno sat nearby, her usual serene smile belied by a coldness in her eyes. Koneko crouched quietly in the corner, her expression unreadable. Asia looked tense but curious, and Issei and Kiba exchanged wary glances. Grayfia stood beside Rias, stoic and composed as always.
The room has an atmosphere where no one is talking.
Oh, she must be about to explain her marriage contract with her peerage. Arthur thought to himself.
Rias cleared her throat, glancing briefly at Grayfia, then at Akeno, Koneko, Asia, Issei, and Kiba in turn before locking eyes with Arthur. She inhaled deeply.
"Everyone's here," she said, her voice steady but hard. "Before we begin the club meeting, there's something important I need to tell all of you."
"Ojou-sama, do you want me to explain the situation?"
Rias rejects Grayfia's offer by waving her hand.
"I've got this," she said, and Grayfia quietly retreated.
Arthur leaned against a table, crossing his arms.
"The truth is—"
Just then, the floor beneath her glowed—Rias's magic circle flickered, then transformed. Its swirling Gremory crest morphed into something new, unfamiliar.
Issei blinked. "Starter… what is that… Isn't that supposed to be Gremory's magic?"
"It's… Phoenix," Kiba whispered. "Phoenix clan magic."
The light shines through the room, and a person appears from the magic circle.
FLAME!
Flames come out from the magic circle, and the room gets filled with heat.
There is a silhouette of a man inside the flames. When he swings his arm across to the side, the flames disappear.
The fire arced around him, dancing on his shoulders, but he remained untouched. He was tall and handsome in a reckless sort of way, dressed in a deep red suit—shirt open to the chest, no tie. He looked like a bad-boy host who'd walked straight from a nightlife district.
"Fuu, it's been a while since I came to the human's world."
The guy looks around the room and then smirks after finding Rias.
"My lovely Rias. I came to see you."
Rias is looking at him with her eyes half closed. It doesn't seem like she is welcoming this guy. But the guy doesn't seem to care and approaches Rias.
"Now then, Rias. Let's go and take a look at the ceremony hall. The date of the ceremony is decided, so we need to check it before then."
What a frivolous guy!
The guy grabs Rias's arm.
In the next second, the man was airborne, flipping backward through the room like a ragdoll before crashing into the bookshelf with a thunderous bang! Several tomes tumbled down over him like an avalanche of dusty judgment.
A stunned silence filled the room.
Arthur stood exactly where the man had just been, hand half-lowered from the strike.
He gave a small shrug and said, tone light and entirely insincere, "Oh dear. Reflex. My body tends to react… poorly to unwanted touching."
The sarcasm was laid on thick, and everyone in the room knew he wasn't sorry in the slightest.
Riser groaned on the floor, tangled in splintered wood and scattered books, looking very much like a man who just learned that flair didn't equal invincibility.
Arthur dusted off his cuffs with a calm motion. "You'll find I have a very low tolerance for people grabbing what's not theirs."
No one said a word. Even Grayfia's stoic expression twitched at the corner of her lips.
Rias, for her part, looked away—but not before a ghost of a smile passed her face.
Riser slowly stood, eyes flaring with fury. "You dare—?! I am Riser Phenex! A noble of the Underworld! Who do you think you are to strike me?!"
Arthur met his glare with a mild look. "Someone who doesn't care for titles, flames, or your sense of entitlement. You came in uninvited, laid hands on someone who clearly didn't want it, and acted like you own the place."
Arthur took a single step forward, and even though his tone remained casual, the pressure in the room shifted—becoming heavier, sharper. It was like a predator had just acknowledged the presence of another animal in its territory.
"Touch her again," Arthur said calmly, "and I'll make sure you never feel your arms again." but he was serious.
Riser's flames sputtered to life around him, dancing off his shoulders and licking the air, but for all his bluster, he didn't take a single step forward.
The flame gathers around Raiser's back and forms into wings of flame. Exactly like a firebird.
The atmosphere is intense. But there is one person who interfered calmly. – It's Grayfia.
"Arthur-sama, Raiser-sama, please calm down. If both of you were to continue, then I won't be quiet about it." Grayfia said.
"Riser-sama, You are here to talk about the engagement. Please remember that." Grayfia said.
🔹🔹🔹
"The tea made by Rias's [Queen] is superb."
"Thank you very much."
Raiser praises Akeno's tea; he looks like the previous beatingdidn't even happen. Arthur has to say that Riser has a thick skin.
And Akeno is also smiling, but she doesn't say her usual "Ara ara" and "Ufufu." Yeah, she didn't like him one bit.
Rias is sitting on the sofa. Raiser, who carelessly sat opposite to her. Enjoying his tea, while Rias was tense.
"Raiser! I told you before! I will not marry you!"
"Yeah, I heard that before. But Rias, that won't do, you know? I think the situation of your household is quite serious."
"That's none of your concern! If I'm the next heiress for the House of Gremory, then I will choose who will become my husband! My father, brother, and everyone in the clan are rushing it! Also, it was a promise that I will be free until I graduate from the university of the human world!"
"That's right. You will basically be free. You can go to college, and you can do whatever you like with your servants. But your Otou-sama and Sirzechs-sama are worried. They are afraid that your household will become extinct. We lost a great number of pure-blood Devils in the last war. Even if the war has ended, our rivalry with the Fallen Angels and God hasn't ended yet. It's not rare for the successors of pure-blood devils to get killed in the worthless battle against them, which leads to the household becoming extinct. So for a pure-blood Devil that also happens to be a high-class Devil, getting together would be the obvious solution for the forces of Devils. A pure-blood high-class devil. Even you know that these children will be important from now on, right?"
Rias and Raiser start to argue about something Arthur wasn't interested in.
Rias becomes quiet when Raiser starts a serious topic. Though her sharp eyes haven't changed. Raiser continues to talk after drinking the tea.
"The newly produced Devils—the ones like your servants, the reincarnated Devils—are expanding in terms of strength, but that would make us, the high-class Devils with old history backgrounds, lose our place. There are old nobles who get close to the reincarnated devils because they are very powerful. Well, that might be alright. The newly produced Devils are also important for our future. But we can't allow the pure-blood Devils to go extinct, right? You and I were chosen in order to prevent the pure-bloods from going extinct. My house is safe because I have my older brothers. But there are only two siblings in your house. And your brother is someone who left the house. Then there would only be you, Rias, who can inherit the House of Gremory. If you don't take a husband, the House of Gremory will go extinct in your generation. Are you trying to crush the household that has been continuing for a very long time? Because of the past war, there are not even half the number of Devils who were referred to as "72 pillars." This marriage has the future of the Devils on the line."
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