The world is always bustling; waves rise again after the calm.
Leon did not yet know that an old acquaintance was about to return, and even if he did, he probably wouldn't care much.
Compared to that, he was more concerned about the future development of his peerage, especially the recently joined Mahiru Shiina.
This "Angel-sama," who had decided to no longer be an angel, was a Longinus wielder just like him and Yukino Yukinoshita. Furthermore, the ranking of her Longinus was higher than Yukino's, causing her potential to leap to the top of the Eligos peerage. Leon could not afford to ignore this.
Therefore, during this period, Leon took personal charge of guiding Mahiru Shiina. Just as he had guided Yukino Yukinoshita back then, he taught her to control demonic power and utilize her Sacred Gear. He even personally supervised her nightly devil activities, just as he had when he first recruited Yukino. It could be said he was leading this Angel-sama into the world of devils by the hand.
Mahiru Shiina studied very seriously. She could feel Leon's attention and personally experience that feeling of being constantly expected and needed, which caused this Angel-sama, who had lacked love since childhood, to quickly fall for it.
Originally, Mahiru's personality leaned toward being sensitive, vigilant, and cold; the "angelic" persona known to outsiders was merely a mask.
However, with Leon's personal guidance, Mahiru became increasingly obedient in his presence. Her gaze toward him grew softer, and gradually, she truly began to resemble an angel.
Gentleness, kindness, innocence—these qualities, which outsiders attributed to Mahiru but which she felt had nothing to do with her, might actually be her true essence. Once she encountered someone she could treat with sincerity, this essence would reveal itself.
It could only be said that there are no wrong nicknames, only wrong names.
Leon remained oblivious to this, as his focus was truly on Mahiru's potential.
"The Incinerate Anthem" is one of the three great holy relics, the highest‑ranked holy artifact besides the Holy Spear and Holy Grail; its purifying and divine power is scarier than Yuuki Asuna's "Holy Sword Creation" and poses an even greater threat to demons—a terrifying superweapon.
Mahiru's talent after reincarnating as a devil was also superb. After being granted the "Bishop" piece by Leon, her demonic power directly surpassed that of Asuna Yuuki and Utaha Kasumigaoka, making her the peerage devil second only to Yukino Yukinoshita.
Thanks to the demonic power amplification trait brought by the "Bishop" piece, Mahiru's demonic power after reincarnation reached the level of a Middle-class Devil, roughly on par with Yukino's initial power upon reincarnation. Combined with the fact that she was also an honor student with grades at the top of her year like Yukino, her learning ability was naturally excellent.
Thus, under Leon's personal guidance, Mahiru absorbed knowledge rapidly like a sponge.
However, unlike Yukino Yukinoshita, Mahiru focused more on refining the power of her Sacred Gear rather than her demonic power.
Yukino's Sacred Gear and demonic power complemented each other; the better her demonic power, the better she used her Sacred Gear.
Mahiru was different. Her Sacred Gear was a Holy Relic, a supreme holy object. Not only did it not complement demonic power, but the attributes were also in conflict. Consequently, she focused on cultivating the Sacred Gear's purification and holy powers, using her demonic power purely as an energy source to sustain the Sacred Gear's operation.
Unfortunately, Mahiru had been a devil for too short a time and lacked the unique conditions for Sacred Gear application that Utaha Kasumigaoka possessed. By the time the weekend arrived, her control over the purple flames was still quite clumsy, limited only to releasing and recalling them.
At this level of Sacred Gear proficiency, she likely couldn't even threaten a battle-hardened Middle-class Devil and could only bully Low-class Devils with insufficient strength.
Of course, reaching this stage in less than a week made Leon very satisfied.
He believed that with the talent Mahiru had displayed, she would soon catch up to Yukino and the others, becoming another powerful member of his peerage.
Soon, the weekend arrived.
After various storms and rumors gradually died down, Sobu High once again welcomed the holidays.
On Saturday, in the basement of Leon's manor, the Eligos peerage gathered together.
"Are you all ready?"
Leon looked at the four peerage girls before him, the corners of his mouth curling up unconsciously. He looked like he was admiring a masterpiece he was proud of, his expression carrying a hint of inexplicable pride.
He couldn't help it. Standing before Leon, the elegance displayed by Yukino Yukinoshita, Asuna Yuuki, Utaha Kasumigaoka, and Mahiru Shiina was truly extraordinary.
They had all changed out of their daily school uniforms and into casual wear.
Yukino Yukinoshita wore a light blue one-piece dress with a pleated hem. The skirt was neither too long nor too short, ending just above the knees. She wore sandals, a ribbon tied around one wrist, and her long, straight black hair was tied into a ponytail, fully showcasing the youthful radiance and striking beauty of a seventeen-year-old girl.
Asuna Yuuki wore a white blouse and a short skirt, with over-the-knee socks and boots. Her hairstyle remained the same, but she wore a necklace she hadn't worn before as an ornament. The style was simple but not plain, giving her the aura of a noble lady traveling incognito.
Utaha Kasumigaoka, like Asuna, kept her hairstyle and wore a white headband. However, she wore a very eye-catching school-style dress, her thighs wrapped in black stockings and her feet in leather shoes—her charm was in full bloom.
As for Mahiru Shiina, her outfit today was different from usual. She wore a simple lace-trimmed top and a skort that revealed her thighs, with white sneakers. Her flaxen hair was tied into twin tails hanging behind her. She was the epitome of purity; one couldn't see a trace of her devil status at all. Instead, she looked more and more like a gentle angel.
The four "unreachable flowers" of Sobu High stood vividly before Leon, each with her own style and grace. Every one of them combined beauty, temperament, and figure. Combined with their clearly meticulous grooming, each was more beautiful than the last.
Seeing such a beautiful sight, how could Leon keep the corners of his mouth from turning up?
And thinking that these girls were all his peerage, how could he not feel proud?
"Wipe that smug look off your face." Yukino Yukinoshita naturally noticed this. She gave a soft huff and said, "I know what you're feeling right now, but please, do as you said before and don't embarrass the Eligos name, okay?"
"Feeling pretty impressive, aren't you, Devil-kun?" Utaha Kasumigaoka crossed her arms, speaking with a half-smile. "To be able to take the four of us as your peerage servants, you are indeed very lucky."
"There shouldn't be any problem with me wearing this, right?" Asuna Yuuki, on the other hand, felt a bit uneasy. "I won't make the President look bad, will I?"
"Don't worry, Asuna-senpai," Mahiru Shiina comforted her softly. "You look very beautiful. Senpai's reaction has already said everything."
The voices of the four "unreachable flowers" intertwined—some soft, some calm, some vibrant, and some melodious. It was like a symphony that made one feel refreshed just by listening.
"What? Can't I even be proud?" Leon showed no sign of guilt; instead, he laughed happily. "Having four beautiful girls as my peerage, just thinking about what it'll be like to bring you out to meet people makes me feel like this life is worth it. Is that not allowed?"
Hearing this, the girls said nothing, but smiles of varying degrees appeared on their faces. It was clear that Leon's words were quite pleasing to them.
Leon was telling the truth. Taking four such beautiful girls out to meet people would certainly not lose him any face.
Even if their destination was Kuoh Town—formerly a famous girls' school where both Sona Sitri and Rias Gremory, as well as their peerages, were filled with beauties—Leon didn't feel he would lose in terms of presence.
Thinking of this, a surge of high spirits rose in Leon's heart, and he couldn't help but wave his hand.
"Since everyone is ready, let's head out."
Saying this, Leon was the first to step into the magic circle, taking the central position.
The girls exchanged a glance, and then two walked to Leon's left while two walked to his right.
Yukino Yukinoshita and Utaha Kasumigaoka stood on the left, while Asuna Yuuki and Mahiru Shiina stood on the right. They even deliberately stepped back half a pace, positioning Leon as their leader and surrounding him.
Vwoom—
The magic circle was infused with demonic power and began to emit a red glow.
The red light enveloped Leon and his party, gradually turning them into light particles until they vanished.
As they departed, in one of the rooms of the manor, the napping Musashi Miyamoto opened her eyes.
"Have they already gone over?"
The glamorous female swordsman scratched her head and looked toward Kuoh Town, her eyes flickering slightly.
"For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this—"
Is it an illusion?
Or is something really about to happen?
A swordsman's intuition is always sharp. Musashi thought for a moment and finally decided to take action.
"To be safe, I'll notify the Underworld to keep an eye out."
Musashi deployed a small magic circle above her palm and made contact.
Kanagawa Prefecture, Kuoh Town, Kuoh Academy, Student Council Office.
At this moment, many people had already gathered in the Student Council Office.
These people were basically divided into two groups, centered around and surrounding two young girls.
Hum—
When the red light bloomed from the magic circle on the ground, one of the girls stood up.
"They are here."
At Sona Sitri's words, everyone present turned their heads toward the center of the magic circle.
There, the figures of Leon and his party slowly appeared, coming into everyone's view.