GREMORY EXPRESS – SITRI TERRITORY
The train remained stopped for only a few seconds before the carriage door opened again, and the demonic presence that entered immediately made it clear who had boarded. Sona entered first beside Tsubaki, maintaining her impeccable posture while silently analyzing the environment before partially turning toward the corridor behind her.
"Behave yourselves." Sona kept a firm tone while looking toward the other carriage. "Especially you, Issei."
The answer came almost immediately from the other side of the door.
"Yes, Buchou!"
Issei's overly obedient tone made Akeno hold back a quiet laugh while Rias merely let out air through her nose, clearly already used to it.
Gasper stood up right after, moving away from the seat where he had been sitting beside Rias before Sona had even fully entered the carriage.
Rias slightly raised an eyebrow when she noticed the movement.
"Where are you going?"
"I'll leave you girls talking." Gasper answered directly, already adjusting his posture to leave the space between them. "I think it's better."
"You don't need to." Rias answered immediately, without hiding that she preferred him there.
"Ara ara…" Akeno rested her face on her hand while smiling at him. "But you were the one who wanted to stay alone with Rias earlier."
She tilted her head slightly, not hiding the provocation.
"And now I wanted to sit on your lap."
Sona cast a sideways glance at Akeno before returning her attention to Gasper.
"Does my presence bother you that much?" she asked directly, without changing her tone.
Gasper closed his eyes for a moment before the thought came automatically.
'What a bunch of troublesome women… I just wanted to leave them talking peacefully.'
He opened his eyes again before answering, maintaining a steady tone.
"That's not it." Gasper looked at Rias first and then at Sona. "I just think the four of you will want to talk among yourselves."
Rias lightly crossed her arms, clearly not completely convinced.
"And what are you going to do alone?"
"I'm staying with Ravel." Gasper answered without hesitation. "She just joined my peerage and still feels distant from everyone."
The environment fell silent for a moment after the answer, not because of tension, but because it made too much sense to be easily contested.
"She's my servant now." Gasper kept his gaze firm while continuing. "And I still haven't properly talked to her since she joined the peerage."
Rias slowly let out a breath after hearing that, looking away for a moment before internally accepting the logic of the situation.
She didn't want him to leave.
But she also perfectly understood the reason.
As a Gremory, raised since childhood hearing about responsibility toward servants and demonic bonds, she knew Gasper was doing exactly what he should.
"…Fine." Rias finally answered, without prolonging the resistance. "You're right."
Akeno observed her reaction for a moment before smiling lightly.
"Ara ara… Rias suddenly became mature."
"Don't start." Rias answered immediately.
Sona merely adjusted her glasses while observing Gasper.
"At least you're taking this seriously." She answered simply.
"I need to." Gasper answered in the same rhythm. "She's part of my responsibility now."
He didn't prolong the conversation any further after that. He simply turned and walked toward the carriage door, ignoring Akeno's gaze following him until he left.
"I'll come back later." Gasper spoke before leaving.
The door closed right after.
CLACK.
The corridor returned to silence while he headed toward the carriage ahead, leaving the four girls behind.
And the moment he left, Rias slightly sank into the seat before slowly letting out air.
"Just sit already." She rested her arm on the sofa while looking at Sona and Tsubaki. "Since you invaded the carriage anyway."
Sona ignored the light provocation and sat beside Tsubaki without changing her posture, while Akeno naturally occupied the other side of the sofa.
"Something is happening in Kuoh." Sona went straight to the point as soon as she sat down.
Rias's expression immediately changed.
"What?"
"Some humans disappeared over the last few days." Sona crossed her legs before continuing. "Everything points to kidnappings."
The atmosphere inside the carriage changed instantly.
"Who would be stupid enough to kidnap people in my territory?" Rias slightly narrowed her eyes, clearly irritated.
"There's suspicion of Fallen Angels." Sona answered directly.
Akeno's smile disappeared immediately upon hearing that, and her expression visibly hardened.
"Are you sure?" Rias asked immediately.
"Yes." Sona maintained a firm tone. "The information came from reliable sources."
Rias crossed her arms, the irritation becoming even more evident.
"So they really decided to cause trouble again."
She slowly let out air before continuing.
"As soon as I return to Kuoh, they'll pay for this."
Sona observed her for a moment before answering.
"You'd better be careful." She calmly adjusted her glasses. "It's no secret that Kuoh is a territory shared between the Sitri and Gremory Houses."
Her gaze became more serious.
"So either they're extremely stupid… or someone powerful is supporting this."
Rias didn't seem worried about the possibility.
"It doesn't matter." She answered without hesitation. "Now we have Gasper."
Akeno immediately opened a small smile.
"Ara ara… that's true."
"He'll handle it." Rias maintained a firm tone, completely confident.
Sona and Tsubaki exchanged a quick glance before Sona discreetly sighed, clearly realizing the absurd level of trust Rias had in him at that point.
__
ANOTHER CARRIAGE – GREMORY EXPRESS
Gasper entered the other carriage in silence, immediately finding part of Sona's peerage spread across the seats while talking casually during the trip.
His gaze passed first through Issei and Saji, who were talking nonsense while Kiba laughed at the conversation without trying to interrupt.
After that, his attention shifted to the other side of the carriage.
Ravel sat beside Asia and Koneko, talking much more calmly than he had expected.
As soon as she saw Gasper entering, Ravel stood up immediately.
"Gasper… do you need something from me?" she asked far more submissively than before.
He lightly shook his head.
"No." Gasper maintained a calm tone. "I just wanted to see how you're adapting."
Ravel relaxed slightly after hearing that before answering.
"It's going well." She quickly looked toward Asia before continuing. "Everyone welcomed me really well."
Her smile slightly widened.
"And I already became friends with Asia."
Ravel partially turned toward her.
"Isn't that right, Asia-chan?"
"That's right, Gasper-san." Asia answered immediately, smiling naturally. "Ravel-chan and I are already friends."
Gasper observed the two for a moment before lightly nodding.
"I'm happy about that, Asia." He maintained a simple tone. "It'll make her adaptation much easier."
"Of course." Asia answered in the same rhythm. "You can count on me, Gasper-kun."
Issei, who had stopped talking with Saji ever since Gasper entered the carriage, finally stood up abruptly while pointing directly at him.
"You traitor!"
The loud tone immediately drew everyone's attention inside the carriage.
"How dare you steal something that was mine?!"
Gasper stayed silent for a second while looking at him.
'Steal something from him…?'
The conclusion came almost immediately.
'He's talking about Rias?'
Issei gave no room for interruption, taking another step forward while dramatically pointing directly at Gasper.
"I discovered everything!" He kept his voice loud, clearly outraged. "You're planning to build a harem!"
Saji immediately looked away when Gasper partially turned toward him.
An apologetic expression appeared instantly.
"My bad…" Saji answered quietly, clearly regretting opening his mouth.
Issei continued without realizing the danger.
"You're not just dating Rias-buchou!" He raised his voice even more. "Now you also have a beautiful blonde servant!"
His finger pointed directly at Ravel.
"You stole my dream!"
The carriage fell silent for a moment.
Kiba was struggling to hold back his laughter.
Saji already looked like he regretted existing.
Asia blinked without completely understanding the reason for the despair.
And Koneko simply looked at Issei like she was observing an animal doing something stupid.
Before Gasper could answer anything, another presence stood up from the back of the carriage.
Momo quickly advanced toward Issei without changing her expression.
And then—
THUMP.
The punch hit his stomach with enough force to completely knock the air out of his lungs.
Issei froze instantly, eyes wide while his body folded forward without resistance.
"GHH…!"
He dropped to his knees right after, coughing while trying to breathe.
Momo completely ignored his suffering and turned directly toward Gasper, giving a polite bow without hesitation.
"I apologize for Issei's behavior." She maintained a firm and professional tone. "He completely lost his sense of reason."
"It's nothing." Gasper answered without changing posture, clearly more tired of the situation than angry.
Momo then immediately turned her attention back to Issei, and the pressure in the atmosphere instantly changed.
"Issei Hyoudou." Her tone became colder. "I'm going to report all of this to Sona-sama."
His face completely lost color.
"What?!" Issei partially raised his head, clearly desperate. "Momo, wait!"
She crossed her arms without the slightest mercy.
"You shouted through the entire carriage, caused a disturbance, and even pointed your finger at a High-Class Devil."
"It was an accident!" Issei raised both hands in panic. "I just got emotional!"
"Too late now." Momo answered without hesitation.
"Don't do this to me!" He practically begged. "Buchou is going to kill me!"
"That's not my problem."
Saji immediately turned his face away, clearly abandoning his friend to his fate.
"Good luck, partner."
"Traitor!" Issei pointed at him in despair.
Kiba finally lost control and genuinely started laughing at the entire situation.
While the chaos continued on the other side of the carriage, Gasper simply ignored the rest of the argument and walked toward the seat where Ravel, Asia, and Koneko sat.
He sat beside them without commenting on the chaos behind him.
Ravel observed that for a moment before speaking more quietly.
"Does he always act like this?"
"Yes." Koneko answered before Gasper could. "Unfortunately."
Asia let out a small laugh, clearly trying not to laugh too much at the situation.
"But he seems like a good person."
"That's debatable." Koneko answered in the same neutral tone as always.
Gasper merely rested his head on his hand while listening to Issei continue begging in the background of the carriage.
'I really need to get back to Kuoh already…'
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