As the day edged toward dusk, a group of tired-out girls were chatting excitedly about dinner plans.
Meanwhile, Yoru, who had been seduced nonstop all afternoon, finally let out a quiet sigh of relief. He was already thinking about how to properly release all the desire building up inside him—with Sona.
"Niisama and Kiba should be back soon. Why don't we just have a bonfire dinner here at school tonight?" Rias said with a cheerful smile after some discussion.
"Yoru, can you go to the school gate to pick up my brother and Kiba?"
"Sure," Yoru nodded lightly in agreement.
"You all go on and get things ready. I'll go pick up Kiba and Lord Sirzechs."
"Got it," Rias replied, waving him off before rejoining the other girls.
When Yoru reached the school gate, the people he was expecting weren't there. Instead, he was met with an unexpected silver-haired figure.
A handsome young man with short, neatly-cut silver hair stood gazing up at the school building. An odd, sinister aura radiated from him.
Yoru recognized him immediately. This was the same boy who had appeared that night and easily defeated the Fallen Angel cadre—Vali, the White Dragon Emperor.
Vali, noticing Yoru's gaze, turned to meet it. With a smile as pure as an angel's and piercing blue eyes that seemed to draw one in, he spoke.
"What a nice school this is."
"What's a Fallen Angel underling doing here now? The Three Faction meeting hasn't even started yet."
Yoru frowned slightly at Vali's seemingly random comment.
"Oh? You recognized me, huh?"
Vali scratched his head with a sheepish smile, a little embarrassed.
"Let me properly introduce myself since this is our formal meeting. My name is Vali—the White Dragon Emperor… Vanishing Dragon."
But Yoru wasn't in the mood for small talk. The moment Vali finished introducing himself, Yoru made his move.
"Ah, ah, it seems I'm not very welcome," Vali said mildly as a cold blade hovered right at his throat.
Still, he didn't show the slightest fear. He could tell Yoru had no killing intent.
"What a pity… I'd love to have a proper battle with you here. But with the Three Faction meeting about to begin, it wouldn't be ideal for someone representing the Fallen Angels to clash with a representative of the Devils, don't you think?"
"Fair point."
Yoru shrugged and calmly withdrew his weapon. He hadn't planned on fighting Vali anyway.
One reason was that he didn't want to cause trouble at Kuoh Academy. The other—Yoru knew he didn't stand a chance against him.
"Yoru, where do you think you rank in the world in terms of strength?"
The question came out of nowhere, making Yoru raise an eyebrow again.
"Is that a question that even matters?"
"I watched your fight the other night. I don't know all the details of your Sacred Gear, but I'd say you're definitely among the top hundred strongest people in the world."
Yoru didn't quite understand Vali's intentions, but he was a little surprised by the statement.
"There are a lot of strong people in this world. Even Sirzechs Lucifer, the so-called 'Crimson-Haired Maou,' doesn't make it into the top ten."
Sirzechs isn't even in the top ten? That shocked Yoru. If he had to name the strongest person he'd ever met, without question, it would be Sirzechs.
"But the number one has already been decided. No one can shake that position."
Vali spoke with a faint sense of melancholy. His expression was hard to describe, but Yoru could tell he wasn't referring to himself.
That was the kind of look you'd wear when you'd seen a being so overwhelmingly powerful that it left you in despair—someone you'd never be able to surpass.
The strongest in the world… Are they really that strong?
"Well, that's enough for today. I look forward to our next meeting… strongest soldier."
With a graceful bow and a faint smile, Vali turned and walked away from the school gate.
"Strongest soldier, huh?" Yoru chuckled, touching the tip of his nose.
A few days later, the long-awaited day of the Open Class finally arrived.
This event—technically called "Open Teaching"—allowed parents and guardians to visit the school and observe classes. Even middle schoolers from Kuoh Academy's lower division could join, with their guardians in tow. It was a pretty casual setup.
Not only parents and guardians, but younger students from the middle school also came to watch the high schoolers, which made things awkward for many. No one wanted to embarrass themselves by answering questions wrong in front of their juniors.
"This just isn't my thing…" Rias sighed, clearly troubled.
She wasn't too thrilled about her brother or father showing up uninvited. Two red-haired men entering the classroom together was bound to draw attention.
"Akeno's been super excited about this since this morning, though," Yoru said, chuckling at Rias' dejected expression.
"It's her first time taking part in such a big, lively event. That girl… she must've felt really lonely before."
"Yeah… living all alone in that hypocritical place for so long, and then even getting branded a witch."
Thinking of that sweet yet pitiful girl, Yoru couldn't help but smile softly.
The morning classes during Open Day were… chaotic. For example, the English class had them making clay figures, while the math class had them designing architectural models. If one word could describe the experience, it would be messy.
But Akeno was unexpectedly delighted. Her face was flushed, and she looked thrilled—not because of the classes, but most likely because Yoru, as a student council member, had stayed by her side the whole time.
What a silly, easily satisfied girl.
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