"Hehehe…"
Remilia hung upside-down in midair, a hollow look in her eyes as Flandre amused herself.
Flandre stared at Remilia with anticipation and mischief in her eyes.
Shaking her gently while comparing her sister to a caterpillar, Flandre giggled away.
So this is what they call a strong sisterly bond?
Natsuki looked on warily, and once she confirmed Flandre wasn't going to go berserk again, she finally relaxed.
Honestly, she didn't want to fight Flandre again if she could help it.
"Looks like she's not going to lose control again…"
"She was just suppressed by light energy. Both Remilia and Flandre have devil traits, so light works quite well on them. Flandre might be energetic now, but her strength has definitely taken a hit. That's probably why her destructive urges haven't resurfaced."
Ren's light wasn't ordinary light—it carried a holy aura from angels.
That holy energy was especially effective against dark beings like vampires and devils.
Ren didn't intend to seal away Flandre's power with this. Though that was an option, there were other methods, like the one he'd mentioned before—feeding Flandre special foods he'd developed during training.
Those foods provided a stable boost to her power—completely manageable by Flandre herself. So there was no concern she'd lose control from a sudden power-up.
"Light energy? Is that another type of power from your world?"
Nayuki turned her eyes toward Ren, who remained something of a mystery compared to Remilia and Flandre.
"You could say that…"
"Then… you're also a human from another world? Remilia didn't acknowledge you as her master at first. Also, why did you all come here? Was it your doing?"
After a brief pause, Nayuki asked directly.
She'd considered trying to probe indirectly, but figured there was no point.
Ren was far stronger than she was. If she asked sneakily and got caught, he might hold a grudge. Better to be upfront.
If he didn't want to answer, she'd just pretend it was routine questioning.
Ren glanced at her but didn't seem interested in hiding anything.
"Yeah, I came to this world with a purpose. Remilia and Flandre are here because they formed a contract with me."
"A master-servant contract?"
"Something like that…"
"And your purpose is…"
"Emmm… collecting ingredients to make pet food. That's why I came to this world."
Natsuki stared at Ren, her face expressionless.
Her eyes seemed to say: Do I look like an idiot to you?
After a long pause, she said calmly, "If you don't want to talk, fine."
Ren shrugged. He didn't plan to explain further.
But I'm telling the truth! I really am here to gather ingredients!
After all, the DXD world doesn't have anything like True Ancestor bloodlines. So I came to this world to make bloodline crystals—what's wrong with that?
Sigh… No one believes the truth anymore. It's kind of depressing, honestly.
Huh? You mean the training missions? Those are mostly for Remilia and the others to complete. What does that have to do with me?
I'm just the one helping them get stronger!
"Waaah! It's the big brother and sister from earlier!"
Suddenly, Flandre ran over with a joyful expression and went in for a hug.
Seeing her approach, Natsuki instinctively vanished from her spot.
Flandre landed on the ground with a thud and looked around with teary eyes, eventually spotting Natsuki behind her.
"Boohoo… does this sister not like Flandre? Did Flandre do something wrong?"
As soon as she saw her sister about to cry, the lifeless Remilia snapped back to life.
"Hey! You damn witch! You made my sister cry! Believe it or not, I'll stab you a hundred times with Gungnir! Apologize to my sister right now—"
"Uh…"
It's not like she hated the girl. She just reflexively dodged.
Natsuki hadn't realized it would hurt her feelings so badly.
But she could tell: Flandre really was about to cry.
And based on what Ren and the others said, that destructive power constantly burdened her mentally. Even though Flandre was technically older than most people, she had the mind of a child.
"If the petty big sister won't play with Flandre, then the big brother will!"
Just as Natsuki reached out her hand, Flandre was scooped up by Ren.
Her hand froze awkwardly in the air before she slowly lowered it.
She didn't dislike kids like Flandre. In fact, from how Remilia spoke, she could tell the elder sister didn't want Flandre to have this kind of power.
Flandre had even attacked her sister during her rampage earlier.
As a teacher, Natsuki naturally wanted to guide a child like her.
Remilia's face wasn't looking too great either—her little sister had landed in the arms of a man. Of course she was upset.
Flandre looked up at Ren, her tearful eyes reflecting his face.
"Boohoo… Big brother, you don't hate Flandre?"
"Of course not. You're so cute—how could anyone hate you?"
"Big sis always locks Flandre in the basement…"
"Your sister's awful then. Poor Flandre, locked away for so long. Come here, big brother's got something good!"
"Whoa! It smells so nice—what is this?"
"A tasty treat! We'll eat it right in front of your sister and not give her any, okay? That'll show her!"
"Hehehe… big brother, you're so mean—but Flandre likes it!"
As she looked at the glittering crystal in Ren's hand, Flandre's face filled with desire.
She bounced happily over to Remilia and showed off the crystal.
In that moment, Remilia's pupils shrank. A strong urge to consume the crystal overcame her.
Fortunately, she had decent self-control, and the pull wasn't overwhelmingly strong.
It was more tempting to mentally immature kids like Flandre.
"What is that… exactly?"
"Hehe, big sis wants to eat it? Too bad—it's mine!"
Before Remilia could stop her, Flandre popped the crystal into her mouth.
The moment she swallowed, her magic surged wildly.
Remilia and Natsuki's eyes widened.
That thing… had that kind of effect?