"Are we… going to meet an angel?" Irina suddenly asked, catching both Xenovia and Asia completely off guard.
"So what if it's an angel? We've already fallen and become devils. Angels and devils are opposing forces," Xenovia sighed gloomily.
"Oh Lord… please forgive me for my sins—ow ow ow ow!" The three girls who came from the Church began praying in sync, as if their hearts were still united. But not long after, cries of pain echoed from them.
Naturally, this was to be expected. They were already devils. Praying like that would obviously give them splitting headaches.
Xenovia and Irina becoming part of Rias's household should have been a cause for celebration, yet Yoru found it somewhat troublesome. After all, with this, hiding his own identity had become even more difficult.
Still, there was one silver lining—thanks to their joining, Yoru could temporarily get out of his annoying task of handing out flyers.
Although the Three Factions Conference was supposed to be held, it wasn't something that could just happen on a whim. There was a lot of preparation involved.
As a result, the conference Yoru had been looking forward to was delayed all the way until summer. By then, he had nearly forgotten about it.
On another note, as for Shirou's disappearance, Sona no longer seemed to care. The girl hadn't brought up his name in quite a while.
To Yoru, that was good news—at least he didn't need to worry about Sona being saddened by it. Though he suspected she might already know something and was just pretending otherwise.
Following Sona's request, he had bought some groceries. Carrying two plastic bags, Yoru exited the supermarket.
It was already quite late, and the streets were empty. As he walked, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
The surroundings were eerily quiet. But it didn't take long for Yoru to realize that the absence of people wasn't just because it was late.
"A barrier…"
At some point, a barrier had been erected around him—so skillfully that even Yoru hadn't noticed when it was placed.
"Was it the moment I left the supermarket? I sense the energy of a fallen angel... are they here to avenge Kokabiel?"
As far as he could recall, Kokabiel was the only fallen angel he'd seriously offended. As for those lesser two-winged ones he'd killed long ago, Yoru never even spared them a thought.
Those small fries were the most expendable no matter which faction they belonged to.
Even if the three major powers were suffering from a talent shortage, the talentless were no better than nonexistent—they had no real value.
"It's not that. I just heard from Vali that a young devil strong enough to kill Kokabiel had appeared. I got curious, so I came to see for myself."
A light chuckle echoed through the dark night as a man's figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
"Seems the rumors were true. You really are quite something. Perhaps you'll even surpass Azazel one day."
As the man appeared, a strange pressure began pressing down on Yoru, causing him to frown slightly.
Standing before him was a man who looked mischievous, around his twenties.
"Azazel?" Yoru muttered. Based on the voice and appearance, only one person among the fallen angels matched: the governor Rias had once described as bold to the point of lunacy.
"Oh? You guessed right away? Color me impressed. A pleasure to meet you, soldier of the Gremory household. I am Azazel, Governor of the Fallen Angels," the man in a suit introduced himself casually.
"The Three Factions Conference hasn't started yet, right? And even though the meeting is being held in this city, for the leader of the fallen angels to sneak off ahead of schedule... what exactly brings you here?"
Yoru wasn't at all intimidated by this seemingly unserious man and raised an eyebrow as he questioned him.
"Ah, this isn't exactly the best place for a conversation."
Azazel glanced around and then snapped his fingers. Before Yoru could even react, the scenery changed. He and Azazel were suddenly standing in a luxuriously decorated room.
It was a spacious place filled with ornate furniture and decorations—clearly the home of someone very wealthy.
Of course, the homeowner didn't seem to be present. Right now, the only two people in the room were Azazel and Yoru.
"Make yourself comfortable."
Saying that, Azazel took a seat and began pouring red wine from the table.
"Does there have to be a reason for me to come here? Being governor of the fallen angels is a tough job, you know. I'm always busy cleaning up the messes caused by my unruly subordinates."
Azazel sighed wearily as he spoke.
"You already know the Three Factions Conference is about to begin, right? So of course I came to this city. And while I was here, I figured I might as well check out this youngster who supposedly defeated Kokabiel."
While speaking, Azazel finished pouring two glasses of wine and slid one over to Yoru.
"So now you've seen me. What do you think?" Yoru gently sipped the deep red liquid and showed a look of admiration.
"Delicious."
"But of course! That's one of my prized collectibles. Not something you'll find just anywhere."
Seeing Yoru's reaction, Azazel smiled proudly, like a child showing off his favorite toy. Yoru couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head.
"You came all the way here… don't tell me it was just to chat and have a drink?"
"What do you think? You really think I came to scold a junior and throw a tantrum?"
Azazel chuckled, looking completely at ease.
"Since you know who I am, you should also know that I'm a rather unpredictable guy."
"True. Azazel—the man who fell from grace due to his lust for women. When it comes to being outrageous, no one even comes close."
"Hahahaha! Exactly! If we're talking about being reckless, no one beats me!" Azazel burst into laughter, utterly unfazed by Yoru's blunt remark about his fall from grace.
"Well, I suppose our little chat ends here. The next time we meet will be during the conference."
With his glass now empty, Azazel casually set it down, stood up, and spread twelve jet-black wings.
"A few extra wings aren't going to scare me," Yoru said, narrowing his eyes.
"Hahahaha... You really are interesting, young soldier. I look forward to our next encounter."
With those final words, Azazel tore through the space in front of him and vanished.
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