"Oh?"
Lynn's eyes immediately lit up. "Oh? Then do you have something better in mind? What do you have for me?"
Rias: "..."
She gave him a look of exasperation.
"Are you treating me like Santa Claus?"
Lynn shrugged. "What can I say? You're the only rich, kind-hearted, and gorgeous noble lady I know."
"Hmm! Kind-hearted and gorgeous..."
Rias extended her hand to the side, conjuring a magic circle.
A white and gold flintlock pistol materialized in her grasp.
"Take thisFlare Gun."
Lynn's eyes gleamed. "Does it have holy attributes?"
Rias: "???"
"You're seriously picky?!"
Kuoh AcademyOccult Research Club
Rias sighed and rubbed her forehead in frustration. "I just gave away the Flare Gun that easily?"
Akeno handed her a cup of tea with a gentle smile.
Rias picked it up and muttered in frustration, "Akeno, why didn't you stop me back then?"
Akeno chuckled, "Because, my dear President, you had already fallen under the spell of his 'sweet-talking' magic. There was nothing I could do."
Rias sighed again. "I'll just treat it as an investment."
Yes, an investment!
She actually had high hopes for Lynn.
Although they had frequent contact through their phones, they had only met in person three times.
Yet each time, she could sense subtle changes in him.
Especially this time...Her expression grew serious.
"Akeno, did you notice? Compared to last time, Lynn seems..."
"More unfathomable?"
Rias hesitated but nodded.
His strength had clearly grownby a lot.
That was the feeling she got.
"Unfathomable, huh..."
Akeno's gaze darkened slightly.
To this day, she hadn't forgotten the black lightning that danced at Lynn's fingertips the last time they met.
She murmured, "President, have you ever considered..."
"That he has always been unfathomable? You're only realizing it now."
Rias was taken aback. "Is that so?"
She wasn't sure.
During their first meeting, apart from being struck by his personality and looks, she hadn't noticed anything particularly special about him.
But today felt... different.
And thenHer expression shifted as she thought about Lynn's servants.
Whether it was Utaha or Mahiru, both were insanely talented.
An Archivist devil servant, and now... an Angel + Devil mix servant?
She thought about Lynn's other servants.
Muttering to herself, she said, "Could it be... all of Lynn's servants have some kind of special ability?"
"Looks like I really need to study Lynn more closely."
Rias made up her mind.
At the very least, she needed to learn a thing or two about servant recruitment from him.
Akeno smirked playfully. "President, wanting to 'study' a man this closely is a dangerous sign, you know~"
"You're overthinking it, Akeno."
Rias smiled and shook her head. "Lynn is Sona's fianc. How could I possibly have feelings for him?"
Akeno raised an eyebrow. "Oh? But isn't Sona planning to annul that engagement?"
"Heh..."
Rias let out a cold chuckle.
"I have a feeling she's already changed her mind about that."
Knock, knock!
The sound of someone at the clubroom door interrupted them.
Rias: "..."
"See?!"
She shot Akeno a look before sighing. "Akeno, go ahead and invite Sona in."
Akeno: "..."
Even she couldn't hold back a small laugh.
Shaking her head, she opened the door and welcomed Sona inside.
Sitting across from Rias, Sona hesitated for a while before finally speaking.
Her gaze was uncertain, as if she was struggling with something.
Seeing her like this, Rias didn't even bother pretending anymore. "You're here to ask about Lynn, aren't you?"
"Ah... um... yeah."
Sona's gaze flickered.
Rias sighed, massaging her temples.
Then, in a calm voice, she briefly explained Lynn's purpose for recruiting stray devils.
Hearing this, Sona frowned slightly.
"Five servants already? Isn't that... a bit too fast?"
Wouldn't that risk gathering a team of ordinary talents?
Rias didn't mention Mahiru's abilities to Sona.
Just like she hadn't mentioned Utaha's before.
After all, that was Lynn's business.
He trusted her enough to let her witness his servants' abilities, but that didn't mean she had the right to share it with others.
Seeing Sona's worried expression, Rias couldn't help but tease, "Isn't this better for you?"
"If things escalate to a Rating Game for the engagement, you'd win easily, right?"
Sona fell silent before firmly stating, "I won't participate in a Rating Game."
Doing so would inevitably expose Lynn's lineage to the Old Satan Faction.
And thatShe would never allow.
Rias paused for a moment, then reminded her, "Sona, does Serafall know about your plan to cancel the engagement?"
"If you keep dragging this out, who knows what she might do?"
Sona's expression froze.
She had completely forgotten about her troublesome older sister.
"I... I'll talk to her."
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Sona, You're Too Extreme
I know the updates have slowed down these past two days, guys, but I'm really sick right now. I have a bad cold and cough that's only getting worse.
Once I get better, I'll do a mass release.
"As long as you understand the seriousness of the situation."
Rias simply reminded her before letting the matter drop.
After all, this was Sona's issue to deal with.
But after spending time with Lynn, she didn't want unnecessary troubles to affect him.
At the end of the dayLynn was also a victim in all of this. Forced into an arranged marriage.
Even though he had agreed to the annulment, that wasn't enough. He wasn't allowed to just walk awayhe had to resolve it through a Rating Game.
It felt all too familiar.
Rias couldn't help but feel a sense of shared suffering.
ButShe had her family and her Maou brother to rely on.
Lynn was all alone.
Not only thatHe had to hide his identity, avoiding the Old Satan Faction that might come after him. Banished to the human world at a young age, cut off from his clan
And yet, he was still being dragged into their mess.
How tragic Lynn!
A wave of motherly compassion suddenly surged within Rias.
And to think she was feeling regretful over giving him an enchanted weapon earlier.
But that didn't matter!
If Lynn wanted it, then she'd give it to this poor person!
She glanced at Sona, her eyes suddenly flashing with an idea.
Lynn's peerage probably lacked light-attribute and holy-based spells, right?
"Ahem!"
"Hm?" Sona looked at her in confusion.
Rias carefully chose her words before speaking.
"If you're really worried about Lynn, why not prepare some light-attribute and holy spells for him?"
"...?"
Sona looked even more confused.
"Light-attribute and holy spells? For Lynn? For a Devil?"
'Had Rias lost her mind?'
Sona shot her a suspicious look.
'What kind of nonsense is this?'
Rias froze for a second.
How was she supposed to ask Sona for light and holy spells without exposing Lynn's peerage?
She fell into deep thought.
Seeing her dilemma, Akeno chuckled and stepped in to help.
"Our dear President here isn't quite sure why, but it seems that Lynn-kun does need them."
Well, technically, that wasn't a lie.
After all, when Rias gave him the Flare Gun earlier, Lynn had even asked if it carried holy attributes.
"Oh, I see!"
Sona suddenly understood.
So it was Lynn who wanted them.
She had no idea why a Devil would need something that countered his own kind.
But if Lynn wanted it well, whatever.
Sona thought for a moment.
Light and holy attributes naturally counter Devils.
Spells or weapons with those attributes weren't easy to come by for their kind.
ButThat wasn't a problem!
Sona's expression turned serious as she looked at Rias.
"Rias, there have been a lot of Fallen Angels lurking around Kuoh Town lately, haven't there?"
"Don't you think"
"They're getting a little too noisy?"
Fallen Angels should have plenty of light and holy-based spells, right?
Rias: "?"
Sona, you're being way too extreme!
That could cause a full-blown diplomatic incident!
Shuchiin Academy Supernatural Research Club
"Lady Rias sure is generous," Shiina Mahiru mused as she carefully examined the Flare Gun.
The weapon wasn't just beautifully crafted, its compact size also suited someone like her perfectly.
And more importantlyIts performance was outstanding.
The infusion of light energy was completely smooth, with no resistance whatsoever.
In fact, it felt almost effortless.
Not to mention, the efficiency of its magic power utilization was terrifyingly high.
It completely outclassed the ordinary human weapons she had been using before.
Lynn explained, "According to Rias, this gun is only behind the level of an artificial Sacred Gear."
"Sacred Gear?"
Mahiru tilted her head slightly, unfamiliar with the term.
"A weapon crafted by the gods is naturally called a Sacred Gear." Lynn explained.
Mahiru's eyes widened slightly in disbelief.
"This world actually has gods?"
Lynn raised an eyebrow. "Devils exist, so what's so strange about gods?"
"Ah well, you have a point." Mahiru looked a little embarrassed.
"Mahiru, this world is much bigger than you think," Lynn said, his eyes deep and unreadable.
"If you don't want to stay at the bottom, then keep leveling up."
"Until you reach the very top."
He still hadn't forgottenThe hidden threat left behind by his family name.
The Old Satan Faction.
That time bomb was bound to explode sooner or later.
The strength of a High-Class Devil alone was nowhere near enough.
Seeing the weight behind Lynn's words, Mahiru fell silent for a momentthen nodded firmly.
"I'll do my best!"
Motivated by their conversation, Mahiru practically radiated newfound determination.
After bidding Lynn farewell, she immediately headed to the world of the zombiesTo grind for experience!
Watching her retreating figure, Lynn couldn't help but smile.
Softly, he murmured
"I'm looking forward to it"
His expectations for Mahiru were high.
[Fallen Devil.]
She was already at a level where she could easily pass off as a real Fallen Angel.
If she ever crossed paths with the actual Fallen Angels, who knew what kind of interesting things might happen?
And besides
Swoosh
Lynn spread his Fallen Angel wings.
Unlike Mahiru, he had eight of them.
"This 'Governor General of the Fallen Angels' position"
"Maybe I could take it for myself? Or just pretend to be?"
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PS: Don't forget to drop your stones here
I'm the Fiance Here!
"Huh? Is someone cosplaying in that classroom?"
At Shuchiin Academy, a blonde girl dressed like a gyaru looked on curiously.
"Ah... they're gone."
—
Supernatural Research Club
Lynn retracted his wings.
Impersonating the Governor of the Fallen Angels...Kinda interesting, but not really.
What mattered most was the growth of his peerage.
The zombies in their base in the 'Apocalypse World' were nearly wiped out.
If this kept up, his peerage's efficiency in farming experience would only decline.
Maybe it was time to consider changing locations?
Still, no rush. He'd wait for Saeko's report first.
Now that Saeko had reached the Mid-Class Devil level, he had sent her out for solo exploration in further regions.
Hopefully, she'd find somethingmaybe even a better base for the peerage.
Also, now that she was a Mid-Class Devil, Lynn wasn't sure if zombies still provided her with any experience.
He opened his system panel.
The [Devil's Contract] skill remained completely inactive.
No idea when he'd get access to a second world.
At least, right now, his peerage was thriving. Owning an entire world meant they weren't lacking ordinary resources.
Lynn even had his peerage gather valuable materials and sell them in the main world.
That way, they could at least sustain themselves comfortably.
Even after graduation, none of them would have to resort to getting normal jobs.
Actually... his apartment was starting to feel a little too small.
But Sona had given him a house before, so that was fine.
...
Speaking of Sona, he couldn't help but think about Rias.
"Come to think of it, Rias really gave me quite the gift this time."
The Flare Gun suited Mahiru perfectly.
The advanced lightning magic? That was Rias' way of testing out Utaha's abilities.
And this time? Just one casual compliment and she handed him such a valuable weapon?
Rias really did consider him a friend.
Thinking about it, Lynn felt it was only right to maintain a good relationship with such a generous friend.
He pulled out his phone and found Rias on his contacts.
[Lynn: "Rias, the gift is perfect. Thanks a lot! I owe you a meal sometime!"]
After putting his phone down, he rubbed his chin.
That should be good enough, right?
Just then, his phone buzzed.
At first, he thought it was Rias, but it turned out to be a message from the 'Lynn's Harem familia Chat Group.'
[The Traditional Woman of the Busujima Family: "Master, during my exploration, I found a woman who claims to be Takagi Saya's mother."]
[The Traditional Woman of the Busujima Family: Image.jpg]
Lynn clicked on the picture.
A mature woman with long purple hair and an elegant demeanor appeared on screen.
Though, she looked completely exhausted.
[Drill Twin-Tail Girl: !!!]
[Drill Twin-Tail Girl: That's my mom!!]
Lynn's expression turned a little odd.
"Well, damn... it really is her."
If he remembered correctly, Takagi Yuriko was supposed to have a temporary safe zone.
Thinking it over, he sent a message in the chat.
[Sigma Man: What's her situation?]
[Traditional Woman of the Busujima Family: By the time I found her, she was exhausted and about to be surrounded by zombies. I saved her.]
—
Apocalypse World
Takagi Saya anxiously stared at the chat messages.
[Sigma Man: In that case, bring her back.]
"Mmm!"
Takagi Saya covered her mouth as tears streamed down her face.
Mom was safe!
Meanwhile, at Kuoh Academy
Sona sat in silence, staring at Rias.
Rias, holding her phone, stiffened. She awkwardly brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
She had left her phone on the table, so when Lynn's message came in, Sona saw it.
And now, this atmosphere...
