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Dusk.
Private Kuoh Academy.
"Damn it, why do I have to wear something this embarrassing?"
Irina's face was bright red as she nervously fidgeted with the skirt of her maid outfit. "There are so many people around… This is seriously humiliating."
"You made a promise, didn't you? And maids are supposed to wear maid outfits."
"You're calling this a maid outfit?"
Irina suddenly froze, then burst out, "Underneath this thing…!"
She didn't finish the sentence—but her legs clamped together as a chilly breeze made her shiver.
"Hey, this isn't my fault. This outfit belongs to one of my familiars."
Even though Minato said that, he secretly gave Utaha a thumbs-up.
Nice one. That outfit really is top-tier.
"What's wrong with the clothes?" Xenovia blinked. "Honestly, I think they're pretty comfy—way better than what we usually wear."
"Finally, someone who gets it."
Minato grinned. "I'll ask Utaha to send you a few more sets later."
Irina's eyelid twitched.
No way!
She couldn't let Xenovia hang around this perverted devil any longer.
If she did, it was only a matter of time before she got completely corrupted.
In front of the old school building.
Koneko Toujou had just arrived after school.
Her eyes lit up when she saw Minato, but just a few steps in, she spotted Xenovia and Irina.
Stare.
Her gaze immediately sharpened.
The aura around these two women felt off. Uncomfortable.
Seeing this, Minato quickly explained, "Hey, no need to be so hostile. They're here to talk to Rias."
"Oh."
Koneko nodded, but her eyes kept darting between the two girls, and her thoughts started to drift.
Damn it!
Why is every single one of them so ridiculously stacked?!
Instinctively, Koneko glanced down at herself... and fell into silent despair.
Another match... lost.
Noticing her expression, Minato chuckled and gave her a gentle pat on the head. "Don't worry, Koneko. You'll grow."
Koneko instantly turned bright red and pulled away. "You pervy devil! I don't need your sympathy."
"Koneko, you've totally misunderstood me."
Minato put on a hurt expression. "That was a pure and sincere blessing."
While they bantered, they arrived at the Occult Research Clubroom.
"So these are the two church warriors you mentioned?"
Rias, who had already spoken with Minato over the phone, saw the girls and smiled, "Please, have a seat."
Akeno Himejima gracefully brought over some black tea. "Help yourselves."
"Thanks!" ×2
Irina took a sip and smoothed her skirt before saying, "Sorry for barging into your territory, but the church isn't here to pick a fight."
Rias nodded, signaling her to go on.
"The truth is... we didn't have much of a choice."
Irina looked a bit helpless. "One of the fallen angel leaders, Kokabiel, stole the holy swords from the church."
"And what's that got to do with my territory?" Rias asked.
"Because... we suspect he's hiding in this town."
"...What did you say?"
Rias's calm demeanor instantly vanished.
Koneko and Akeno's expressions changed too.
A high-ranking fallen angel? That's no joke.
They were all bigshots—veterans of the ancient war, survivors from the age of demon lords.
And now one of them was in Kuoh Town?
Even Minato started thinking deeply.
It sounded... kinda familiar.
But something didn't quite line up with his memories.
He sighed. Well, nothing in this world plays out exactly like you'd expect.
"So you're here to take back the holy swords," Rias mused. "And you're letting me know ahead of time so that the devils don't get involved?"
"Exactly."
Xenovia nodded. "We don't want to cause a war between the church and devils."
"That's your excuse for spying on me?"
Minato finally spoke up. "Doesn't really hold up, does it?"
"I told you—it was just observation," Irina huffed. "You're Rias Gremory's fiancé. That gives you a lot of influence over her. Of course we had to investigate you."
"Oh? And what did you conclude?"
"You're just a perverted devil."
"Wow, thanks for the compliment."
"That wasn't a compliment, damn it!"
Irina glared at Minato, then turned to Rias. "So? What's your reply, Lady Rias?"
"I have no intention of getting involved in your fight with the fallen angels."
Rias answered without hesitation, "But I do expect you to keep things under control. Don't cause trouble in my territory."
No way she was gonna jump into this mess. Zero benefit. Total headache.
"Of course. The church will keep that in mind."
Irina and Xenovia nodded respectfully.
With the business discussion over, the two stood to leave.
After all, they were warriors of the church.
Half escort, half supervision, Akeno and Koneko followed them out.
"Minato... what's up with the maid outfits on those two?" Rias raised an eyebrow as she watched them go. "You're not planning something with them, are you?"
"Why not?"
Minato shrugged. "They're battle-hardened warriors. Would make great familiars."
"Well, that may be true, but... their faith is pretty strong, don't you think?"
"So was Asia's."
Rias's eyelid twitched.
Right. Forgot about that.
Just thinking back to that night, when Asia had been praying beside them...
Rias's cheeks flushed.
That night...
Was absolutely insane.
She was drunk... and somehow ended up doing that.
"What are you thinking about?"
Minato stood up and walked over to her.
Snapping out of her thoughts, Rias gave a graceful smile. "Nothing really. Just hoping you'll be careful. I don't want to deal with my brother nagging me."
"Don't worry. I won't make things hard for you."
Minato gently pulled her into a hug, stroking her bright red hair. "But sometimes, even if we don't want trouble... others might bring it to us."
"What do you mean?"
Rias blinked in confusion.
"A fallen angel leader definitely knows this is Gremory territory. But he still came here."
Minato's expression turned cold. "What do you think he's planning?"
"Wait... you think he's trying to start a three-way war?"
"Could be. So make sure Sona stays alert too."
"Yeah, I got it."
Minato stood tall, cupping Rias's face in his hands and smiling. "That was a pretty important heads-up I just gave you. How are you gonna thank me?"
"...You're totally up to something again, aren't you?"
"....."