The world around Issei, which had just consisted of blissful nothingness a moment ago, exploded into a waking nightmare. The image of Rias exiting a hotel surrounded by a crowd of grinning, sleazy men pierced his consciousness with the sharpness of a white-hot blade. Fatigue, muscle pain, mental exhaustion—all of it evaporated, washed away by a tsunami of pure, primal panic.
He looked around wildly. Before him stood Tannin, a mighty dragon whose jaw had literally dropped in astonishment. And beside him, arms crossed over his chest, stood Jin. On his face played the most smug and cynical smirk Issei had ever seen. And then it hit him. It was a lie. A cruel, base, but incredibly effective lie.
"Well, I told you," Jin drawled lazily, addressing the stunned dragon. "He's still full of energy. Just needs the right motivation."
"YOU!" Issei roared, pointing a trembling finger at Jin. His face burned with a mix of shame, anger, and relief. "YOU PROMISED NOT TO DO THAT! YOU PROMISED NOT TO JOKE ABOUT MY FEELINGS FOR BUCHOU!"
Jin looked at him with an absolutely static, inscrutable face. The smirk vanished, replaced by a mask of cold indifference.
"I lied."
This short phrase, thrown out without a shadow of remorse, sounded more deafening to Issei than any physical blow. Tannin, finally recovering, snorted menacingly, releasing streams of smoke from his nostrils.
"Boy," he rumbled, addressing Issei, but his withering gaze was directed at Jin. "Consider your rest over. Now you won't sleep at all until you learn to distinguish truth from enemy provocations!"
Issei turned to the dragon, then back to Jin, who had already turned away, examining the landscape. The realization that even more hellish training awaited him was superimposed on the humiliation of the recent trick. It was too much. He fell to his knees, raising his hands to the purple sky.
"No-o-o-o!!!"
Towards evening, when the sun of the Underworld began to dip towards the horizon, painting the golden clouds in crimson tones, they returned. Tannin dropped them off on the spacious lawn in front of the main entrance to the Gremory estate and, casting one last heavy look at Jin, soared into the sky and disappeared behind the mountain peaks.
Issei trudged behind, squeezed dry like a lemon. The short burst of adrenaline had long passed, leaving behind only ringing emptiness and aching pain throughout his body. He could barely move his legs, dreaming only of a bath and a bed. Jin, on the contrary, looked fresh and rested. The short entertainment at Issei's expense seemed to have finally dispelled the remnants of his apathy.
Their appearance on the doorstep caused a real sensation. The door flew open, and the whole company poured onto the porch. Rias, Akeno, Kiba, Koneko, Asia, Xenovia—they all looked at them in surprise, but most of all, they were struck by Jin's presence.
"Jin?!" Rias exclaimed, her blue-green eyes widening. "What are you doing here? You refused to come!"
"Changed my mind," he answered shortly, walking past them into the hall. His gaze slid over their faces, and he waved his hand with his usual carelessness. "'Sup."
Issei was immediately surrounded by the girls. Asia gasped worriedly, examining his abrasions, Akeno with a sly smile asked if he needed a "special healing procedure," and Xenovia simply stated: "You look like you lost a battle."
Jin was met by Kiba.
"Glad to see you, Izayoi-san," he said with a restrained smile. "Though your appearance is, as always, unexpected."
"Get used to it," Jin huffed, looking around the luxurious decoration of the hall. "I'm not here for long. Taking care of some business."
Soon they were invited to dinner. The huge dining room was flooded with the warm light of magical chandeliers. The long dark wood table groaned under exquisite dishes, the aromas of which would make any gourmet lose their head. At the head of the table sat Lord Gremory himself, Zeoticus—a tall, stately man with the same crimson hair as Rias and a sly, life-loving look. Beside him sat his wife, Venelana—an elegant, incredibly beautiful woman whose aura was filled with quiet dignity and the power of the ancient Bael clan.
Sirzechs was already present at the table, greeting Jin with a restrained nod, although poorly concealed curiosity could be read in his eyes. Grayfia, as befits a loyal Queen and servant, moved silently behind his back, overseeing the serving of dishes.
"Ah, here is our long-awaited guest!" Zeoticus boomed, seeing Jin. His voice was full of loud, sincere joy. "Izayoi Jin-dono, I've heard so much, so much! You are the young man who put that pompous peacock Phenex in his place and saved my daughter's honor! Excellent work! Sit, sit next to me!"
He pointed to the empty seat beside him. Jin, seeing no reason to refuse, sat down. Venelana bestowed a warm, polite smile upon him.
"We are glad to welcome you to our home, Jin-san. Thank you for everything you have done for Rias."
"Trifles," Jin replied, accepting a glass of something resembling wine from Grayfia. "I just didn't like his suit."
Zeoticus burst into deafening laughter. "Ha-ha-ha! Excellent answer! I never liked it either! Well, how do you like the Underworld, son? Settled in yet?"
The question was asked. Jin took a sip from the glass—the drink turned out to be tart, with notes of berries and something fiery. He slowly turned his head and looked straight at Sirzechs, who was just bringing his glass to his lips.
"Basically, wonderful," Jin drawled with light irony. "Except for the fact that your pass dumped me in the middle of wild mountains on the territory of an extremely inhospitable dragon. Had to chat a bit before he agreed to give me a lift here."
Sirzechs choked on his wine. A few drops spilled onto his impeccable suit. He coughed, trying to save face, but a slight blush appearing on his cheeks gave him away completely. Grayfia was immediately there with a napkin, her face remained impassive, but a barely noticeable reproach towards her husband flashed in her eyes.
"Ahem..." Sirzechs cleared his throat, accepting the napkin. "A misunderstanding. Obviously, there was a slight glitch in the teleportation crystal. Glad you could settle everything peacefully."
"Oh, more than peacefully," Jin confirmed, returning to his plate.
Zeoticus and Venelana exchanged glances, not fully understanding the essence of the exchange but feeling the hidden tension. Rias just sighed heavily. Jin and her brother—an explosive mixture.
"Anyway," Zeoticus intervened, trying to defuse the situation, "your power is impressive! I watched the recording of the fight with Riser. Magnificent! True might!"
"Yes," Sirzechs picked up, having already recovered. "We were all amazed. Your abilities are unique."
"Speaking of abilities," Jin looked around the luxurious hall flooded with light, servants in liveries, exquisite food. "Your territory looks excellent. I admit, it's not even so scary to sin in the human world if you know that after death you might end up in such a place."
He said this with complete seriousness, like an outside observer sharing his logical conclusion. He hoped it would pass for a joke, for a compliment to their way of life. But the reaction was... wrong.
Awkward silence hung over the table. Zeoticus stopped smiling and looked at Jin puzzledly. Venelana frowned slightly, her polite smile became strained. Even Sirzechs looked baffled. They looked at him as if he had just spouted utter nonsense.
Issei, sitting next to him, forcefully jabbed him in the side with his elbow, his face expressing panic. Jin cast a questioning glance at him. 'What's wrong?'
It didn't dawn on him immediately. For them, the Underworld was not a place of punishment, not a theological concept from human religions. It was their home. Their motherland. And his words, albeit spoken without malice, sounded like a ridiculous and inappropriate remark.
'Does something like this count as racism?' a detached thought flashed through his mind. It seemed he still had a lot to learn in this strange world.