The morning sun cut sharp ribbons of gold across the sheets, illuminating the tangled sprawl of limbs on the mattress.
Satoru stirred, blinking against the light, and felt the warm, heavy weight of a naked body molded against his side.
He glanced down, tracing the vibrant cascade of crimson hair spilled across his chest.
Right. I remember now.
He shifted onto one elbow, his gaze dropping to examine his hand.
The skin looked impossibly clear, the subtle friction burns and calluses from his relentless physical training completely smoothed away.
I'm a devil now.
He turned his head toward the side of the bed where Rias lay sleeping, her pale skin contrasting sharply with the sheets.
When she had tried to seal his contract and make him her servant, her attempt had triggered a violent, cascading anomaly—mutating all eight of her pawns simultaneously.
It was a bizarre, unprecedented outcome, but looking at the limitless well of energy humming beneath his skin, it was a net positive.
His potential had blown past any normal threshold.
Aside from a terrifying surge in stamina and vitality, though, the core of who he was remained entirely unbothered.
Reaching over to the nightstand, Satoru picked up his phone, silently angling the camera down to capture the breathtaking sweep of Rias's bare form in the morning light.
The shutter click broke the quiet. Rias's eyes fluttered open, her crimson gaze locking onto him without a trace of alarm.
Instead of scrambling for a sheet, she simply stretched lazily, offering him an unobstructed view.
"What are you doing?" she asked, her voice thick with sleep.
Satoru smiled, crouching over her with the phone still in hand. "Just collecting a few memories."
Rias's lips curved into a knowing, Gentle smile as she reached up, lovingly tapping the tip of his nose. "Now, I am Your master. As of today, you answer to me."
Satoru's smile turned amused. "We'll see about that."
With a sudden, explosive pop of displaced air, a massive pair of obsidian-black wings burst violently from his shoulder blades, unfurling with a razor-sharp snap that made the windows rattle.
Rias exhaled a long, shuddering breath, her shoulders instantly sagging as the residual tension of the night before bled out of her.
"It actually worked... For a terrifying second there, I thought your soul was going to reject the piece entirely."
Satoru flexed the wings experimentally, feeling the taut muscle memory snap into place as they drifted forward. "Good to know. Now, I suppose I've got to master flying."
_____
_____
_____
They were now in the club room...
He reactivated his [Limitless Potential] trait, letting the invisible rainbow-tier engine hum back to life, and flicked open his updated personal panel.
[Satoru Mikami]
Race: Devil
Strength Tier: Level 2
Active Traits: [Spiritual Healing Bracelet (Blue)], [Pawn (Purple)], [Senjutsu (Purple)], [Boost (Red)], [Limitless Potential (Rainbow)]
'…As I thought. It all comes from interacting with others.'
His attribute panel had grown noticeably stronger, and his mood rose with it.
Just as he was about to propose a sparring match with Rias, the door creaked open.
"President, I'm here."
Yuki stepped across the threshold, her breathing even, unfastening the strap of her duffel bag as she slid a slender wooden practice sword back into its leather scabbard.
"Right on time. We have a new addition to the household,"
Rias said, gesturing toward Satoru with a light smile. She quickly briefed Yuki on the chaotic eight-piece Pawn conversion.
Yuki's eyes flicked over to Satoru, a look of profound realization crossing her features.
"Eight Pawns? That explains how he managed to defeat Koneko yesterday."
"Yuki," Rias continued, her tone shifting into a command. "Satoru is looking to hone his combat capabilities through live sparring. Make sure you find time to cross swords with him regularly."
"Understood." Yuki offered a polite nod, turning her attention to the new recruit. "A pleasure, Mikami-kun."
"Do you have time right now?" Satoru's voice cut through the air, sharp and immediate, before Yuki's boots had even settled on the rug.
He was again Surprised by her being a girl unlike the original Yuuto Kiba.
Seriously everyone was getting Genderbend in this universe.
For a moment, silence fell. Then, Rias and Akeno both exchanged looks of helplessness.
Akeno pressed a hand to her mouth, her shoulders shaking with silent amusement as she leaned over toward Rias.
"Just like you predicted, President. He really is an battle maniac," she whispered, her eyes dancing with mischief.
Yuki let out a low, breathy chuckle, the initial surprise fading into a bright, competitive spark.
"I don't mind at all."
After hearing Koneko's exasperated
Words, she had been curious about the human who had flipped the dynamic of their peerage upside down in less than a fortnight.
They went to an Open area...
Yuki reached into the club's equipment rack, plucked two standard wooden bokken from the rack, and tossed one across the area toward Satoru, who caught it effortlessly by the grip.
"Mikami-kun, are you ready?" Yuki asked, settling into a fluid, classic swordsman's stance.
"Anytime." Satoru raised the wooden blade, his stance shifting into an optimized hybrid of kendo and close-quarters leverage.
"Then... I won't hold back."
Knowing that Satoru possessed the ability to Boost from Koneko, Yuki didn't dare to underestimate him. She launched the first strike.
Whoosh!
A sharp, ear-piercing shriek of tearing air rang across the clearing, and a black-bladed shadow streaked through the sunlight, falling straight down in a devastating arc.
However, moving with fluid, instinctive precision, Satoru raised his wooden practice sword just in time, intercepting the blow squarely in front of him.
Bang!
The two wooden blades locked in a violent stalemate, vibrating fiercely in mid-air.
"…Blocked?"
Yuki's eyes widened slightly in genuine surprise. This wasn't at all what koneko had described from the night before.
Satoru wasn't activating his Boost ability, so how on earth were his speed and physical strength matching—or even rivaling—her own?
No... it's not just matching me.
As the seconds ticked by, Yuki felt a crushing wave of immense force pushing back from the other end of the wooden sword.
A cold sweat broke out along her spine as she realized the terrifying truth: she was actively being suppressed.
Refusing to panic, Yuki applied a sharp, sudden burst of force, springing backward to break the distance and landing light on her feet, her expression turning entirely grim and professional.
[Sleeping Rias]
*****
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