Sona let out a long sigh, her gaze at Akuto filled with both helplessness and doubt.
Helpless—because even after reaching this point, Akuto still refused to annul their engagement.
Doubt—because in her view, since Akuto's intelligence was on par with hers, he couldn't possibly be the type who would throw himself into danger recklessly just for the sake of a pretty girl.
"Akuto-kun, since you already know all of this… why won't you dissolve our engagement?" Sona bit her lip lightly, her eyes brimming with doubt as she looked at him.
As always, Akuto's reply was straightforward.
"Didn't I already say? It's because I like you."
Upon hearing this, Sona's face flushed a deeper shade of red as she fell silent.
She felt both shy and confused.
Even if he liked her, did he really have to go this far?
Besides… she distinctly remembered that Akuto had said something similar to Reya before, hadn't he?
Could it be… that he said this to every girl?!
Just as Sona's silence deepened, a familiar voice suddenly echoed.
[Hmph! Don't even dream of reaching above your station, little butterfly! Sona-chan will definitely annul her engagement with you!]
On the office desk, a projection suddenly lit up. A twin-tailed girl in a pink magical-girl costume leapt into view.
Her name was Serafall Leviathan—Sona's older sister, and also… one of the Four Great Satans of the Underworld!
Though called a Demon King, Serafall's outfit showed none of that dignity.
For she was dressed in a magical-girl cosplay, wielding a cute, pink wand.
Beneath the frilly pink skirt, a pair of black-and-pink striped stockings hugged her thighs tightly, perfectly framing her pale, porcelain skin—the "absolute territory" that made eyes irresistibly drawn.
If not told in advance, no one would ever guess that such a youthful, adorable girl was in fact the mighty Demon King Leviathan.
Though Serafall never directly interfered in Sona's engagement, she had been closely monitoring the situation all along.
And now, on the day of their official confrontation, she decided to speak.
"Oh?"
Akuto raised an eyebrow, glancing at the projection of Serafall on the desk.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for triggering a Wicked Path Quest.]
[Quest Rank: Gold.]
[Quest Description: A girl who loves cosplay, but whose true identity is that of a Demon King. Even among the countless maidens of the multiverse, she is one of the most unique. Moreover, this Demon King girl also comes with attributes of being an elder sister, a sis-con, and yuri tendencies.]
[Quest Requirement: Obtain one of Serafall's worn cosplay outfits.]
Akuto's mouth twitched.
Because he realized—the system's quests always reflected his inner thoughts.
Even before transmigrating, Akuto had fantasized: if he ever crossed into another world, he had to play cosplay games with Serafall, and afterward collect her worn outfits as keepsakes.
[So in the end, I really am a pervert…]
Akuto found his compatibility with the "Wicked Protagonist System" disturbingly high.
Sona, seeing his silence, thought he was cowed by the Demon King's authority, so she didn't press him further.
Instead, she sighed softly and made her final decision.
"In any case, this engagement… I'm determined to annul it.
If Akuto-kun won't agree, then I will follow the proper process on my side."
For that, she had already prepared thoroughly.
"First, this."
Sona pulled out an elegant set of chess pieces.
"Akuto-kun. As you know, only by meeting my requirements in every aspect will I acknowledge someone as my husband."
"Is that so?" Akuto smiled. "Then, excluding intelligence and strength… what impression do I make on you?"
"Excluding those two, huh…"
Sona studied him carefully.
Physically, Akuto's build was indeed top-tier.
"If Akuto-kun hadn't said the same kind of words to Miss Reya before… I think I would quite like you."
She had completely recalled now—Akuto had given Reya a similar "confession."
So her words carried a subtle warning.
Don't go saying the same things to me that you've already said to her. Do I look like the kind of woman willing to share her man?
But Akuto only chuckled and shook his head.
"I see… But the truth is, I really do like Reya."
"To say something that goes against my heart, just to earn your approval—that isn't my style."
Sona realized Akuto had completely ignored her subtle warning, and instead spoke freely as he pleased.
That freedom… left her helpless, but also… made her admire him.
As someone born into a high-ranking Devil family, she had never once been able to express herself so freely.
"…Anyway, let's begin a game."
An hour later—
Looking at her scattered chess pieces, Sona felt her confidence shaken.
Counting the one she lost half an hour ago, this was her second consecutive defeat.
She remembered Akuto only as "familiar" with chess, never formally trained. So how could he win two games in a row?
"Sona, did you forget something?" Akuto sipped his tea leisurely.
"Even before my bloodline awakened, I could hold my own against Seekvaira.
Now that my bloodline has awakened, my brain evolving further is only natural, isn't it?"
It was true his brain had evolved. But that alone shouldn't have been enough to completely overwhelm Sona.
What truly made the difference was thanks to Saya.
By borrowing Saya's "Battlefield Simulation" ability, and honing his computational capacity with the Eye of Data these past days, Akuto easily defeated the chess master Sona.
"Fine, I admit you're stronger than me in chess."
"But… among Devils, strength reigns supreme.
Akuto-kun, only if you defeat me once more in a Rating Game will I acknowledge you as my fiancé."
Though embarrassed, she said this firmly—for Akuto's own safety.
But just as her words fell, the door to the Student Council opened.
A silver-haired beauty entered gracefully.
"Sona-sama, your application to the Underworld has been approved. I will serve as referee for your Rating Game with Akuto-sama."
Akuto's expression twitched as he looked at her.
"…Is that Grayfia? She really does pop up to referee every single match, huh?"
Inside Grayfia's pocket dimension, Akuto and Sona summoned their respective peerages.
Grayfia was already familiar with Sona's team.
But what shocked her most—was Akuto's.
An entire roster of beautiful girls! And not just that—the number was astounding!
How long had it even been since he received his Evil Pieces? Just days—and he already found this many peerage members?! Even disregarding quality, the sheer speed was insane!
Damn it! What kind of time-management monster is this guy?
Did he really spend every spare moment after school recruiting girls?
At present, Akuto had already completed three full sets of Evil Pieces.
The most recent he gave to his household's Saintly Maid Brigade.
Of the other two, the Pawns went to the Apocalyptic World's personal guard of heroines, while the rest went to its main heroines.
Now, the ones Akuto brought here were the most combat-ready group (excluding Pawn Kiriko).
According to system rules, once Akuto brought the Apocalyptic heroines into the DxD world, the system automatically granted them legal identities.
Officially, they were now registered citizens of Chuangzhu City, neighboring Kuoh.
Beside Sona, Tsubaki adjusted her glasses.
"President, these peerage members of Akuto-kun's… don't seem randomly chosen."
"Yes… I can feel it too."
Sona nodded.
These weren't fillers—they were a well-trained, battle-ready squad.
The Apocalyptic World itself had evolved. The top fighters Akuto cleared last time had grown stronger, with Saeko even reaching High-class Devil levels back then.
Now, though zombie evolution had slowed, it was likely that world could still produce Ultimate-class zombie threats.
Which meant its heroines could also grow rapidly to that level.
At present though, their powers were roughly at the Middle-class to High-class Devil range.
Peerage Members:
Queen: Saeko Busujima (Early High-class Devil)
Rook: Saya Takagi (Mid Middle-class Devil)
Rook: Yuriko Takagi (Peak Middle-class Devil)
Knight: Rei Miyamoto (High Middle-class Devil)
Knight: Shizuka Marikawa (Mid Middle-class Devil)
Bishop: Rika Minami (Mid Middle-class Devil)
Bishop: Aoi Komuro (Mid Middle-class Devil)
Beyond raw strength, each had awakened their own unique abilities—Saya's "Battlefield Simulation," Saeko's "Sword Dance," Rei's "Way of the Spear," and so on.
It was thanks to these abilities that Akuto himself had grown so versatile.
In pure healing ability, Asia far surpassed Shizuka.
But for team synergy and battle familiarity, Akuto preferred his original apocalypse team.
They had lived and fought together, accumulating priceless experience in slaughtering zombies.
"Saya, I'm entrusting this battle to you."
"Mm! Leave it to me, Akuto-kun!"
Saya gave him a thumbs up.
After twenty days of life-and-death training in the apocalypse, she had truly matured into a capable leader.
"Oh, and Akuto-kun… if we win, remember to give me a reward, okay? I want…"
She leaned close to whisper in his ear.
But because of her overly generous chest, it inevitably pressed against him as she whispered.
Neither of them paid it any mind.
After all, Akuto, Saya, and Yuriko had long since established a "three flying together" relationship.
There was no need to fuss over such trivial "benefits."
(End of Chapter)
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