Shortly after Rhode departed, the Vatican Gendarmerie and the Church's Knights arrived on the scene. They rescued the nuns and, upon discovering Diodora's corpse, immediately cordoned off the area.
A fallen camel is still bigger than a horse. Even though Diodora was dead, the residual aura clinging to his body was enough to tell the exorcists that he had been a High-Class Devil.
The infiltration of a High-Class Devil into the Holy Land of the Vatican was no small matter. They had to report this to their superiors immediately.
Rhode watched from a distance for a while before moving on. However, he didn't head straight back to Heaven to turn in the mission. Instead, he made a trip to St. Peter's Basilica to unlock the teleportation waypoint there. Afterward, he tried to catch a glimpse of Asia, but she was likely being held in a high-security area, so he couldn't find her.
With nothing left to do, Rhode returned to Heaven.
Griselda was buried in paperwork when she noticed a head leaning over her shoulder again.
"Still researching Sacred Gears, I see," Rhode's voice drifted into her ear.
The sudden sound gave Griselda a visible start. Beneath her habit, her ample figure gave a sharp, involuntary shudder.
Rhode sat back, satisfied with the reaction. Griselda shot him a reproachful look; to this day, she still couldn't fathom how Rhode managed to slip into her private office so silently. Moreover, the look in his eyes was distinctly... improper. She began to suspect he was doing this on purpose.
However, she didn't scold him. Watching him settle in, she asked, "Did anything go wrong during the mission?"
"Nope. It's done." Rhode leaned back in the ergonomic chair and stretched. Although his physique was already incredibly strong, using Clock Up with a physical body still put a significant strain on his system. Right now, his lower back felt a bit stiff.
"Done?" Griselda's reaction was initially flat, but as the realization dawned on her, her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief. "It hasn't even been twenty-four hours. You're already finished?"
"Are you doubting my capabilities?" Rhode glanced at her.
"No, I just... I'm wondering if you have some sort of insider information. How else could you have completed it so quickly?" Griselda was genuinely stunned. The Church had been monitoring this case for months without making any real headway, yet this guy had wrapped it up in a single day.
If she hadn't seen the photo of the primary suspect herself, she might have suspected Rhode was the culprit. Or perhaps, was he using cheats?
To verify the news, Griselda placed a call to the Vatican. Rhode watched with curiosity, wondering how exactly a phone in Heaven connected to the human world.
A few minutes later, Griselda confirmed that an incident had occurred just outside the Vatican's perimeter. The deceased was a High-Class Devil, and the nuns who had been missing for months had been found and were currently being processed at the cathedral.
"Is this a coincidence, or what?" Griselda found it hard to believe.
A Devil actually dared to operate within the Vatican? And what was wrong with the Vatican's barriers? How could a High-Class Devil slip in without anyone noticing? While Griselda knew the Church was currently short-staffed, she hadn't expected the defenses of St. Peter's Basilica to be this porous.
"Those nuns were deliberately led into making mistakes by that Devil so the Church would punish them," Rhode explained.
Griselda nodded. "I understand. I'll send people to escort them back later."
"One more thing," Rhode added. "The Holy Maiden of St. Peter's, Asia Argento, was also caught up in this. What will happen to her?"
He was curious to see how the plot would shift now that he had thwarted Diodora's scheme.
"If she was framed, then naturally she will be fine. However, since this incident has caused quite a stir, the final decision isn't up to me." Griselda sighed. "I will report to my superiors first. If there's a verdict, I'll let you know."
"Fair enough." Rhode nodded and stood up to leave. "Don't forget to wire the money to my card."
"Don't worry. At the very least, Heaven doesn't do back pay." Griselda felt a bit speechless.
Not long after Rhode left, Griselda sought out her direct superior: Gabriel, the Seraph with six golden wings.
With a golden pendant on her forehead and a pure white lily tucked behind her left ear, Gabriel radiated a gentle light from her halo. But the most eye-catching thing about her was the stunning beauty that even her loose robes couldn't fully conceal.
"I have already been informed about Asia's situation. We will proceed with the standard protocol: excommunicate her from the Church."
"Eh? But... Lord Gabriel, Miss Asia was only deceived by a High-Class Devil..." Griselda was shocked by the result. Such a swift verdict felt uncharacteristically harsh.
"This is a joint decision made by myself and the other three Seraphs. Her Sacred Gear is too significant. If the world learns that the Church's Holy Maiden can heal Devils, the very foundation of our faith will be shaken. It is a tragedy; Asia is a good child," Gabriel sighed softly.
Griselda remained silent, unable to argue. This was the only way to handle Asia. After all, she was one of the few in Heaven who knew that God had disappeared. Without God to maintain the System of the Tree of Life, many problems had begun to emerge in the world.
"By the way, regarding that person... what do you think of him?" Gabriel asked.
Griselda knew she was asking about Rhode. She thought for a moment before replying, "He's quite frivolous, and I'm in no position to judge his private life. However, despite being only sixteen, he is far more mature than his peers and incredibly powerful. Over the past year and a half, he has completed every mission I've given him with a hundred percent success rate. He is very reliable."
"Then do you think he could be brought into Heaven?" Gabriel asked.
"Do you want him to work for us? Honestly... it would be difficult. I've dropped hints about him joining the Church more than once, but he rejects me with the same reason every time: he hates the feeling of being restrained."
Griselda paused, then added, "Besides, if he actually joined Heaven, I suspect it wouldn't be long before he caused the other angels to Fall."
"If that's the case, then never mind." Gabriel looked helpless. A talent like that was indeed ill-suited for the rigid structure of Heaven's formal workforce.
────────────────────────────────────────
My : https://[email protected]/AuAuMon
High School DxD : Reincarnated into the Multiverse, but it's High School DxD (53 Chapters – Ongoing)
────────────────────────────────────────