"Ahn~! My head hurts!" Waking up with a head-splitting headache, Rias opened her eyes groggily. Something felt stuck to her cheek. With blurry eyes, she blinked a few times until her vision cleared. She was in the dining hall. Looking down at the empty dish, a medium-rare steak slid off her cheek and fell onto the plate.
"Did I fall asleep?" Rias touched her cheek, then looked around. The hall was silent. The seat beside her was empty. Her mother, sitting next to that seat, was also in the middle of waking up. Her father stirred as well. Akeno and Koneko were slowly coming to, while only Millicas remained asleep.
The servants and maids lay scattered across the floor, motionless. It seemed someone had knocked them out.
"Someone? Wait! Where is Yusuke!" The last scene before she lost consciousness flashed through her mind. Rias shot up from her seat, swiveling her head frantically as she searched for her man.
"Rias? Yusuke? Where is Yusuke?!" Her cry snapped the others awake. Panic crept onto Venelana's face the moment she noticed the empty seat beside her.
"Yusuke!"
"Senpai!"
Akeno and Koneko also turned pale, fear creeping in as they realized Yusuke was gone.
"Where is Grayfia?" Zeoticus Gremory's face drained of color. He pushed himself up with one hand, scanning the hall for his daughter-in-law. As a politician, his mind immediately jumped to the worst-case scenario. Everyone had fallen into a coma, and both Yusuke and Grayfia had disappeared. That could only mean something had gone terribly wrong.
"Onee sama?!" Rias froze as if struck by lightning. Her face turned visibly pale as her eyes locked onto Grayfia's empty seat. A moment later, realization crashed down on her. "Grayfia! That bitch kidnapped my Yusuke!"
After Akeno's betrayal, Rias had valued her bond with Grayfia more than ever. She trusted her deeply, relied on her without hesitation, and even shared her plans with her while working together to get Yusuke to her side.
Now, facing the truth that she had been betrayed again, and by the person she least expected, someone who had even stolen her man, her love, the pain was unbearable. Rias felt her heart squeezed tight, as if it were being pierced by millions of poisonous needles.
'Rias, you are such a beautiful woman. I want to become your husband.'
'I love you, Rias, I like your crimson hair, red as blood, more brilliant than strawberry blonde.'
Her last conversation with Yusuke replayed before her eyes. The man who had been beside her no long moments ago was gone. He had shown his love so clearly, without hesitation. And because of her ugly greed and selfishness, she had thrown it all away.
'Its all my fault! I had him by my side, but couldn't protect him!' The double shock of losing her man and being betrayed by the one she believed was her closest ally hit her at once. Rias struggled to breathe, clutching her chest tightly with both hands.
Regret flooded her. Pure, crushing regret. It was the only emotion left. She regretted not accepting Yusuke's proposal. She regretted failing to suppress her dissatisfaction over sharing him.
He was gone!
Gone forever!
"Impossible! Impossible! Yusuke! I will find him!" Akeno's loud, hysterical cries echoed through the hall as she stormed out, already searching for her man. As she ran, magic circles flared to life, one after another, as she contacted the other women.
"Senpai... Senpai!" Koneko's eyes seemed to have lost their light. Just earlier, she and Yusuke had been cuddling together, eating sweets, and playing video games. They had looked so sweet and peaceful together, like a perfect couple.
The contrast was so immense it shook the girl to her core. The pain was countless times worse than when she had lost her sister, worse than when the entire world had seemed to turn against her, demanding her execution.
She also remembered the words Yusuke had said to her. How he confessed his love. How he asked her, even begged her, to accept the idea of sharing him with other women. She had always believed that if she worked hard enough, one day she would have Yusuke for herself, or at most share him with Rias.
But right now, it appeared that even the chance to see him one last time was gone. The amount of regret and pain she was experiencing far exceeded what Rias was feeling. The trauma from her past surged back, haunting her all over again.
'Why? Why? Why is everyone I love leaving me!? Unfair! Life is so unfair!' She collapsed onto the ground, hugging her legs and curling tightly into herself. Her voice broke as she muttered weakly, "Senpai... Where are you, senpai! Come back, please. I won't be mad even if you sleep with other women."
"Sniff... Sniff... Please come back... Don't leave me alone... Please don't leave me alone... If you come back, I'll help you get any woman you want... Don't leave me... Don't abandon me..."
"Senpai... I love you... I love you... I love you... Don't leave me..."
Her shivering, fragile whimpers reached Zeoticus's ears. His expression twisted into a mix of admiration and unease. 'Well damn! What did that kid, Yusuke, do to make her fall for him this hard? I almost pity him!'
Pa!
Suddenly, a loud, crisp sound snapped through the hall, drawing everyone's attention in that direction except the completely broken Koneko.
"Mother?" Rias stared at the woman who had just slapped her, disbelief written all over her face.
"Get your shit together, Rias! This is not the time to act like this! We need to look for Yusuke and that bitch Grayfia!" Venelana grabbed Rias by the shoulders as she spoke. Her expression was terrifyingly cold. Her hair swayed violently as dark red power of destruction poured out from her body, shattering the floor beneath her feet and sending cracks racing all the way to the walls.
She was far more mature than the three girls. Even though worry for Yusuke gnawed at her, she did not lose herself. Her first reaction was clear and unwavering. Find Yusuke and bring him back.
"Honey, calling Grayfia a bitch might be a bit too much, don't you think?" Zeoticus spoke before he could stop himself.
"Shut the fuck up, monkey! I am already fed up with you! Get the fuck out of here, this doesn't concern you!" Venelana shot back, answering him with a fierce glare. Her face twisted with disgust and open disdain.
Normally, she was composed enough to tolerate the existence of another disgusting man as her husband. Right now, her fury and anxiety were boiling over. The moment Zeoticus opened his mouth, she redirected all of it straight at him.
"Mother... You are right! I need to find him! Yusuke is waiting for me to save him! I must find him and tell him how much I love him!" Color slowly returned to Rias's complexion. She held her mother's hand as she spoke, her expression growing firm and resolute.
Torment churned inside her. She regretted not accepting Yusuke's confession and becoming one with him that night, all because she believed she would soon have him entirely to herself. The mere thought of kidnapping him, of forcing herself on him, and forcing him to love her, filled her with disgust toward herself.
Even so, as her insides twisted with regret and pain, she knew this was not the time to drown in it. She had to find her love!
'Yusuke, wait for me! I will save you!' She would find Yusuke and free him from the grasp of that backstabbing bitch.
"Let's go right now!" Venelana declared. A magic circle enveloped both of them, teleporting them away in an instant.
"What... what is going on? Venelana... how... how???" Zeoticus stood frozen in place, his mind unable to process what had just happened. His wife had insulted him, glaring at him with such contempt and disdain as if he were less than an insect!
...
[Rias Gremory's submission + 1!]
[Rias Gremory's submission + 1!]
[Rias Gremory's submission + 1!]
[Koneko Toujou's submission + 1!]
[Koneko Toujou's submission + 1!]
[Koneko Toujou's submission + 1!]
[Rias Gremory's submission: 71 (Dependent)]
[Koneko Toujou's submission: 79 (Dependent)]
"So noisy." The repetitive ringing of the system notifications stirred Yusuke awake. When he opened his eyes, his vision was blocked by something white pressed against his face. It was soft, warm, and felt far too good to touch.
[You are finally awake, stupid cunt!] Before he could figure out where he was, the system's cold voice echoed in his ears again.
'Shut up!' Yusuke snapped in his mind. 'Where am I? Right... Grayfia. That woman was a freaking yandere. She put something in the food!'
"Babe, you woke up earlier than I expected." Grayfia's voice came from above him. It was nothing like her usual cold tone. It was soft, sweet, almost sultry. Her arms wrapped around him, pressing his head firmly against her chest as she buried her face in his hair, breathing deeply and shamelessly inhaling his scent.
"What are you doing?" Yusuke tried to lift his head and look at her, meeting her gaze. This was not what he expected. He was not chained to a bed or pinned to a wall with some weird, indestructible cuffs. His limbs were completely free.
'What the hell is going on with me?' He felt weak. Extremely weak. When he tried to use his Observation Haki to survey his surroundings, he realized the range of his Haki had been severely reduced.
[Check the thing on your neck.] The system replied. [This woman came prepared. Hahaha. You are so fucked. Totally fucked you are. Unfuck yourself, you must.]
...
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