Koneko hurried to support Daniel as Rias approached with Akeno.
She had been waiting in the clubroom, but when she noticed that Daniel and Issei were taking too long to return, worry drove her to come.
The moment she saw Daniel's condition, anger flared. Were the fallen angels trying to start a war between factions? Did they not take the Gremory clan seriously? Rias was furious—this wasn't the first time her servants had been attacked in her own territory.
With a deep breath, she tried to calm herself.
"Buchou… Daniel has lost a lot of blood," Koneko said, her eyes betraying her worry for Daniel's wounds.
Rias also noticed the urgency.
"Akeno, take Issei home. I'll go with Koneko to Daniel's house."
Akeno nodded, moved next to Issei, and began preparing the magic circle.
Issei hesitated before speaking.
"Hey, thanks for earlier. But I swear I won't be a burden again," he said, raising the red gauntlet on his hand.
Daniel, dizzy, could only nod.
Moments later, two magic circles glowed, and the street fell silent once more, leaving behind holes and scattered rubble.
---
The soft sunlight was beginning to filter through the curtains. Daniel opened his eyes, confused, and sat up while checking his shoulder. Aside from a slight discomfort when moving it, there didn't seem to be any serious problem.
"Why am I naked?" he thought as he looked under the sheets. He remembered Koneko and Rias-senpai bringing him to his house, discussing his treatment, and laying him down on his bed.
"Then they cast a sleep spell on me…" he murmured.
Nothing in his memory explained his current nudity. Scratching his head, he resolved to be more careful; he would avoid getting hurt again—he didn't want to wake up like this ever again.
After looking for his clothes, he went downstairs. The house seemed empty.
In the kitchen, he found a note:
"I went with Buchou, don't be late for class."
The message, brief and to the point, could only be from Koneko. Daniel hesitated for a moment; he didn't feel like going to class, but remembering he had already skipped the day before, he resigned himself, went upstairs to shower, and got dressed.
---
As he walked toward school, he decided to take a different route. He wanted time to reflect before arriving. He turned onto another street, thinking about what had happened with his wings. Why hadn't they stopped the spears of light? What had been different?
Energy? He recalled that day he couldn't control either his energy or the spread of his wings—something he could do now.
"Do I need to coat them with gray energy?" he wondered as he neared a park.
Suddenly, he came across Issei. Both froze for a moment before smiling awkwardly and greeting each other. Daniel began thinking about how to change his route without seeming rude.
Luckily, Issei took the initiative, hurriedly stepped back, and shouted that he had forgotten something at home.
Whether it was true or just an excuse, no one could say. For Daniel, it was a relief—he didn't want to walk with Issei or risk being stabbed by another fallen angel.
He continued through the park. As he silently cursed how troublesome the fallen angels were, he heard a thud and a feminine voice.
"Ouch! Why did I fall?" said a girl dressed as a nun, lifting her face off the ground.
Daniel turned at the sound, finding her in a rather suggestive pose: her skirt had ridden up, exposing her white underwear.
He hesitated. As a devil, should he look or not? If it were Issei, he probably wouldn't even pause. Maybe he should ask Kiba what the proper protocol for such situations was.
Even as his thoughts drifted, his gaze didn't move away. Finally, he stepped closer to help her; after staring so much, the least he could do was offer his hand.
"Uh… miss, your skirt. I mean—are you all right? Do you need help?" he asked, holding out his hand.
The girl lifted her head and accepted his gesture.
"Auu… why do I keep tripping? …Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you so much~."
Once they were both standing, Daniel was ready to leave. He had done his good deed for the day, though he doubted it truly counted as "good" now that he was a devil. Should I steal candy from a kid to balance it out? he thought wryly.
The young woman bent down to pick up the things that had spilled from her bag. At that moment, the wind blew away the veil covering her head.
Long, beautiful blonde hair spilled out. Seeing it, Daniel could only think: There are so many foreigners in this city.
Rias, Kiba, Koneko, even himself… none of them looked Japanese, despite the system having sent him to this country.
Although his mind began to drift, he offered his help once again. He remembered his father's words: "We must help those far from home; arriving in a new country is never easy."
Once everything was packed back into her bag, the girl sighed.
"Thank you very much, you're very kind."
"It's nothing. Are you here as a tourist?" Daniel asked.
She shook her head as she picked up the veil from the ground.
"No, it's not that. I was assigned to the church in this city… You must be a local resident. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Daniel was surprised. Work? She didn't look any older than him. To go abroad for work at her age must have been tough.
He felt empathy—he was in a similar situation himself… with the difference that he could never return home.
The girl seemed to notice the change in his expression.
"Is something wrong?" she asked, a little worried.
Daniel shook his head and forced a polite smile.
"It's nothing. By the way, is there anything else you need?"
She thought for a moment.
"Umm… I can't speak Japanese very well… I got lost, and people couldn't understand what I was trying to say… I was lucky you spoke Italian so well."
Daniel blinked. They were speaking Italian? Was this some kind of system blessing? Or because he was a devil? Now that he thought about it, he seemed to have two overlapping translation skills.
"So then, are you trying to find the church?"
She nodded, her eyes shining with expectation. Sadly, Daniel didn't think he could help. He still remembered with embarrassment how he got lost just days ago and ended up turning into a demon.
"Well… I think I can act as an interpreter," he said, scratching his head.
The girl giggled.
"Don't worry, that's already a big help," she said, picking up her bag. "By the way, my name is Asia Argento."
Daniel nodded as he took the girl's bag.
"Daniel. You can call me that."
The system had given him a surname with his new legal identity, but he didn't remember it clearly. As for his parents' surname… remembering it still pained him.
And so, the two began their search for the church.
As for attending class, Daniel decided that the mission with Asia was more important. He wasn't just making excuses to skip school… or at least that's what he wanted to believe.