Kiba Yuuto, hypnotized by the Kaleidoscope, fell face-first onto the ground.
Standing beside him, Hiro gave a slight nod toward Xenovia and Irina, who were looking over in surprise not far away.
"Thanks for the trouble."
"No, this much effort doesn't count as anything."
Irina transformed her Holy Sword back into ribbon form. Smiling, she placed her hands behind her back and skipped over.
"Compared to that fallen angel yesterday, this wasn't even a warm-up."
"Indeed. The gap in strength is too large."
Xenovia, her greatsword strapped to her back, spoke calmly as she agreed.
Outwardly, she looked composed.
But internally, it was far from calm.
She hadn't clearly seen his movements just now. Neither the trajectory nor the techniques he used were visible to her.
He was on a completely different level compared to her and Irina.
Then again, without that level of strength, even possessing a Longinus wouldn't be enough to injure a ten-winged fallen angel.
Thinking of this, the resolve in Xenovia's heart only grew firmer.
"Even if Yuuto is no match for a ten-winged fallen angel, isn't it a bit rude, Miss Xenovia, to belittle my servant so openly in front of his master?"
Stopping Asia from healing Kiba Yuuto with a raised hand, Rias walked over leisurely, arms crossed. There was no hostility in her gaze toward Xenovia and Irina-if anything, there was gratitude.
"Regardless, my servant caused you trouble this time. Thank you for holding back."
"We don't need verbal thanks. Just keep your promise, and that will be enough."
Receiving such a blunt response after offering courtesy, even Rias couldn't help raising an eyebrow, a trace of irritation surfacing.
"We've said what needed to be said. We'll be leaving now, Irina."
Xenovia didn't give Rias a chance to respond and turned to go.
"Yes, yes, I get it."
Irina pouted, clearly dissatisfied, and glanced at her teammate who was already walking away.
"Well then, see you next time, Hiro-kun."
"See you."
Hiro smiled softly and waved as the twin-tailed girl walked three steps behind Xenovia, turning her head back with every step.
Although the Holy Sword Retrieval incident involved devils, fallen angels, and the Church, and had nothing to do with him as a pure human, he had no reason to stand by while someone tried to destroy Saitama Prefecture.
Rias and Xenovia's agreement was only that devils wouldn't interfere.
It placed no restrictions on him.
And even if it did, whether he would follow them was another matter.
Seeing his expression, Rias misunderstood it as reluctance to part with the two Holy Sword users and immediately spoke up, a hint of jealousy in her tone.
"They're already far away. What exactly are you still looking at?"
The moment the words left her mouth, Rias cursed inwardly. She quickly turned her head toward her queen standing on her right.
Sure enough, the surprise on Akeno's face shifted smoothly into the familiar, teasing smile.
"Ara, ara~ what a strong sour smell, Hiro-kun. Where do you think it's coming from?"
"Akeno!"
Rias snorted softly, her face gradually matching the color of her hair.
"Akeno, what are you talking about? I don't understand."
In this situation, Hiro wisely chose to play dumb.
"Cough."
After teasing each other for a bit, Rias coughed lightly, straightened her clothes, and looked at Hiro seriously.
"Hiro, there's something I want to ask your opinion on."
My opinion?
Could this be about Suguha and the others?
His eyebrow lifted slightly as the thought surfaced.
Seeing that he didn't speak, Rias continued.
"A few days ago, I received an application to join the Occult Research Club. The applicant is a classmate of yours and Koneko's. A girl named Asuna Yuuki."
"Asuna?"
Hearing that name, a flicker of surprise appeared on his face.
"That's right. Asuna Yuuki. The one who sits next to you. The young lady of the Yuuki Conglomerate."
Koneko, who had been silent the whole time, spoke up at just the right moment. Her expression remained unchanged.
"Now that you know, you should understand why Asuna wants to join the club, right, Hiro?"
Facing Rias's question, Hiro nodded quietly. His feelings were a bit complicated.
He didn't consider himself a love saint, but he wasn't a titanium-alloy straight man either.
Asuna's feelings toward him weren't something he was completely unaware of.
Back at the Anteiku coffee shop, she had already pushed through her shyness and made things very clear.
If he still didn't understand after that, he'd just be stupid.
"So, should we let her join? If you ask for it, letting her in isn't a problem."
Rias crossed her arms and spoke casually while watching his expression.
Hiro thought for a moment under her gaze.
Then he shook his head.
"You're the president. You can decide this yourself. There's no need to ask me."
Tch.
Outwardly, Rias showed no reaction, but inwardly, she felt a trace of disappointment.
She'd thought she could get Hiro and Asuna into the research club together this time.
Instead, he tossed the decision right back to her.
With the matter settled, Koneko carried Kiba Yuuto. Asia, Rias, and the others returned to the clubroom.
Hiro headed toward the school gate, planning to continue his "treasure hunt."
In a world mixed with who knew how many works, he didn't dare assume that what he currently knew was the full picture.
Maybe somewhere in the distant stars, a group of Star Gods had already lost their home planet and begun wandering.
Or maybe, on some other planet, a "Steel Earth" had already formed, with Steel Shell Cities rising upon it.
"Yo, Hiro-kun! We meet again!"
Just as he stepped out of the school gate, a lively, playful female voice rang out from his right.
Thanks to his Observation Haki, he was already aware of Xenovia and Irina's movements, so he wasn't surprised.
"Irina, and Xenovia. Were you two waiting for me?"
Irina skipped over and hugged his arm. Hiro asked knowingly.
On the weekend campus, aside from Rias and Sona Sitri, there was no one else around.
Due to differing national conditions, Japanese schools generally didn't have dormitories.
Kuoh Academy was no exception.
"Yes. There's something we want to talk to you about. Privately."
Xenovia nodded slightly.
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