Toshio POV
The walk to Rias's room felt longer than it should have, each step pulling at the fresh scar tissue across my chest.
Kiba walked beside me in silence, his usual grace dimmed by the horrors Aeshama had forced him to relive. It seemed I helped him feel better, but he'd obviously not recovered.
When we reached the door to Rias's temporary quarters, it opened before I could knock.
Akeno stood in the doorway, and the exhaustion on her face was clear. Her violet eyes were red-rimmed, her usual composure frayed at the edges. She looked at me first, then Kiba, and I saw her shoulders sag slightly.
"She won't respond to me," Akeno said quietly, stepping aside to let us see into the darkened room beyond. "She hasn't moved from the futon since we brought her here. She won't eat, won't speak, won't even look at me when I try to talk to her."
I glanced past Akeno into the room. The lights were off, with only moonlight filtering through the paper screens to illuminate Rias's motionless form on the futon. She lay on her side facing away from the door, her crimson hair spread across the pillow like spilled blood.
"How long has she been like this?" Kiba asked, concern clear in his voice.
"Since we returned." Akeno's hands twisted together in front of her, a nervous gesture I rarely saw from her. "I've tried everything I can think of. Nothing works."
I looked at Akeno, then at Kiba, weighing my options. I'd managed to help them both work through some of their trauma, at least enough to start processing it. Maybe I could do the same for Rias.
"I was able to help you both," I said, meeting Akeno's eyes. "Maybe I could try with Rias too?"
Akeno studied my face for a moment, and I saw conflict there—worry for her King warring with something else. But whatever she felt, concern for Rias won out.
"Please," she said softly. "I don't know what else to do."
I nodded, then looked at Kiba. "Why don't you two get some rest? You both need it after everything that happened."
"You're one to talk. Your injuries would have killed most people," Kiba remarked. He wasn't wrong, but I've experienced worse. Injuries and pain.
Akeno hesitated, her gaze moving between me and the darkened room. I could see her reluctance to let me go while they rested. She was still worried about my injuries, especially the one she caused. I stepped forward and put my hand on her shoulder.
"Akeno, I'm okay. Really. Meet me in our room?" She relented and nodded.
"Take care of her," Akeno said, and there was weight in those words.
"I will." She gave me a quick hug.
Kiba placed a gentle hand on Akeno's shoulder, guiding her away from the door. She went with him, but not before casting one last worried look back at me. Whether for Rias' current state or my injuries, I couldn't tell.
I waited until their footsteps faded down the hallway, then stepped into Rias's room and closed the door quietly behind me.
The darkness pressed in immediately, heavy and oppressive. I let my eyes adjust, making out the sparse furnishings—the low table, the folded clothes in the corner, and Rias's unmoving form on the futon.
"Rias?" I said softly, moving closer. "It's Toshio."
No response. She didn't even twitch at the sound of my voice. I turned on a lamp on the nearby bed table.
I knelt beside the futon, studying her in the dim light. Her eyes were open, staring at the wall with the same vacant expression I'd seen in the underground chamber. Tears had dried in tracks down her face, but fresh ones were forming, falling silently onto the pillow.
"Rias," I tried again, reaching out to touch her shoulder gently. "Can you hear me?"
Still nothing. It was like touching a statue—she didn't pull away or really react at all. Just continued staring at nothing while tears fell.
I settled into a more comfortable position beside the futon, my good hand resting on her shoulder. The contact felt important somehow, like an anchor to reality that she desperately needed.
"I know you're in there," I said quietly. "I know that demon showed you something horrible. Something that felt completely real. But it wasn't, Rias. Whatever you saw, whatever you experienced—it was an illusion. A lie designed to break you."
The tears continued to fall, but I thought I saw the slightest flicker in her eyes. Not much, but something.
I kept my hand on her shoulder, my thumb moving in slow, gentle circles through the fabric of her dirty school clothes that she hadn't changed out of yet. The motion was my attempt to comfort and remind her that someone real was here with her now.
"You don't have to talk about it if you're not ready," I continued, keeping my voice low and steady. "But I'm not leaving. I'm going to stay right here until you're ready to come back."
Minutes passed. Maybe ten, maybe twenty. I lost track of time, focused entirely on the woman in front of me and the small signs that she was still fighting somewhere inside that prison of trauma.
Then, so quietly I almost missed it, she spoke.
"They all left me." Her voice was hollow, scraped raw. "Everyone."
Relief flooded through me at the sound of her voice, but I kept my own tone calm and even. "Who left you?"
"Everyone I cared about." Fresh tears spilled down her face. "My peerage. Akeno. Kiba. Koneko. You." She swallowed hard. "You all just... walked away. Like I wasn't worth staying for. Then you all…" She didn't finish, but I could assume.
I moved my hand from her shoulder to her hair, stroking gently. "That wasn't real, Rias. We're all still here. No one walked away."
"It felt real." Her voice cracked. "Watching you tell me I wasn't worth the effort. That I was too needy, too demanding. That you were tired of me chasing after you. Then you were all taken from me."
My chest tightened. So that's what Aeshama had shown her—her deepest fear that the people she cared about would abandon her. That she'd be left alone.
"I would never say those things to you," I said firmly. "The real me, the one sitting here with you right now—I would never abandon you. None of us would."
She finally moved, turning slightly to look at me. Her blue-green eyes were devastated, hollowed out by whatever hell she'd been trapped in.
"How do I know you're real?" she whispered. "How do I know this isn't just another illusion? Another nightmare designed to break me?"
I considered that question carefully. How did you prove reality to someone who'd been trapped in a perfect simulation of it?
"Because I'm wounded," I said finally, gesturing to my scarred chest and useless shoulder. "Because I'm exhausted and in pain and barely holding myself together. An illusion designed to comfort you wouldn't include those details. It would show you someone perfect and strong, not someone who's just as battered as you are."
She stared at my injuries, her eyes tracing the scar tissue where Akeno's lightning had punched through. Some of the vacancy in her gaze began to clear.
"You're really here," she said, and it was half question, half statement.
"I'm really here."
More tears fell, but these felt different somehow. Less empty, more cathartic. She turned onto her back, staring up at the ceiling instead of the wall.
"It was so horrible," she whispered. "Watching everyone I love reject me. Watching my brother kill all of you because I wasn't worth keeping around. Being trapped in that cage, unable to speak, unable to move, just... alone."
I kept stroking her hair, letting her talk at her own pace.
"Riser was there, laughing at me. Telling everyone how pathetic I was for thinking I deserved freedom or love. And they all agreed with him. Every noble family, every person who'd ever judged me—they all laughed."
She turned her head to look at me again, vulnerability naked on her face.
"I know it wasn't real. Logically, I know that. But it felt so real, Toshio. Every moment of it felt like the truth I'd always been afraid of."
"The truth is that you're surrounded by people who care about you," I said gently. "People who chose to follow you, to fight beside you, because of who you are. Not because of your family name or your power, but because of you."
She closed her eyes, fresh tears sliding down her temples into her hair. "I want to believe that. I do. But the fear is still there, sitting in my chest like a weight."
"That's normal," I said. "What you went through—it's going to take time to process. The fear won't disappear overnight. But every time you reach out and find us still here, it'll get a little easier."
Rias was quiet for a long moment, then her stomach growled audibly. She flinched at the sound, embarrassment flickering across her devastated features.
"When was the last time you ate?" I asked gently.
"I... don't remember. This morning, maybe?"
No wonder she looked so pale and fragile.
"You need food," I said, standing up carefully despite my shoulder's protest. "And a bath. You're still covered in dirt and blood from the shrine."
"I don't want to move," she whispered, curling slightly into herself. "If I move, if I try to do anything normal, it feels like admitting the nightmare was real. Like I'm trying to clean away evidence that it happened."
I understood that logic, twisted as it was by trauma. But she couldn't stay like this forever, trapped in this room, trapped in her own fear.
"The nightmare was real in the sense that you experienced it," I said carefully. "But it wasn't true. There's a difference. And taking care of yourself isn't erasing what happened—it's proving to yourself that you survived it."
She looked at me with those hollow eyes, and I saw her struggling with the concept.
"Let me get you some food first," I suggested. "Something simple. You don't have to move, don't have to do anything. Just eat a little, okay?"
After a long pause, she nodded slightly.
I left the room and found a Youkai attendant in the hallway. Within minutes, they'd brought a tray with rice, miso soup, and some pickled vegetables. Food that was simple and easy to digest. I carried it back to Rias's room and set it on the low table beside her futon.
"Can you sit up?" I asked.
She tried, but her movements were weak and uncoordinated. I helped her, supporting her back as she shifted into a sitting position. She swayed slightly, and I steadied her with my good arm.
I picked up the bowl of miso soup and held it to her lips. "Small sips."
She drank mechanically, her eyes distant. But she drank, and that was progress. I alternated between the soup and small bites of rice, feeding her slowly. She didn't resist, but she didn't really engage either—she just accepted what I offered like a doll being moved through the motions.
As I was feeding her, I realized why this experience had hit her harder than the others. Akeno and Kiba had both suffered extreme trauma. What Aeshama did was just have them relive it, with some additions.
Rias, on the other hand, probably hadn't ever experienced any kind of trauma. Akeno and Kiba have had time to process what happened to them. For Rias, this was completely fresh and raw.
I recognized the symptoms, my mind switching and recalling clinical implications. Severe dissociation symptoms, intense intrusive recollections that continue despite a return to safety, eating disorders (lack of eating in this case), and insomnia, to name the main ones.
I hoped that she would recover from this without lingering triggers. On my way to her room, I switched to my new title (since I still needed to sleep to equip three) to hopefully help avoid that.
When she'd eaten about half the food, she shook her head slightly. "I can't. I feel sick."
"That's okay. You did well." I set the bowl down and helped her lie back against the pillow.
"Now the bath," I said. "You'll feel better once you're clean."
"I can't," she whispered. "I can't do it alone. What if... what if I'm in there and the nightmare comes back? What if I close my eyes and I'm trapped in that cage again?"
I felt a pang of sorrow at the raw fear in her voice. She wasn't being dramatic or seeking attention; she was genuinely terrified of being alone with her thoughts again.
"I'll get Akeno to help you," I said. "She can stay with you the whole time."
"No." Rias's hand shot out and grabbed my wrist with surprising strength. "Not Akeno. I can't... she can't see me like this. So broken and useless. I can't let her see me fall apart. I'm her King, I'm supposed to be the strong one." New, desperate tears formed in the corners of her eyes. I didn't bother to tell her, 'A little late for that.'
"Rias, Akeno would want to help—"
"Please." Her grip tightened, desperation clear in her eyes. "I need... I need someone who didn't see what that demon showed us. Someone who wasn't trapped in their own nightmare. I need..." She swallowed hard. "I need you."
Every logical part of my brain told me this was a terrible idea. Helping her bathe crossed so many boundaries, especially given her vulnerable state. But looking at her face, seeing the genuine terror of being alone, I couldn't bring myself to refuse.
"Alright," I said quietly. "I'll help you."
Relief flooded her features. I stood and carefully lifted her from the futon, cradling her against my chest despite the protest from my injured shoulder. Thanks to my increase in physique stat, her weight felt minimal. I could even use the upper part of my arm to support her back as I carried her in a modified bridal style.
The bathroom was attached to her quarters—traditional Japanese style with modern amenities. A large soaking tub sat in one corner, and a shower area with a low stool occupied another section. I set Rias down gently on the stool, and she swayed slightly before steadying herself.
"I'm going to help you out of your clothes," I said, keeping my voice clinical and detached.
She nodded mutely, staring at the tiled wall in front of her.
I worked carefully, unbuttoning her dirty school uniform blouse with my one good hand. The fabric was stiff with dirt and grime. I noticed some small splatters of blood. I wondered if was from my final blow to the demon.
I tried to focus on the mechanics of the task, treating it like any other mission objective, but it was impossible not to notice her body as I revealed it.
Her pale skin was unmarked despite everything she'd been through. The illusion had been purely mental, leaving no physical wounds or scars. Somehow that made it worse—there was no visible evidence of the torture she'd endured.
I removed her skirt next, then her undergarments, keeping my eyes focused on my task rather than letting them wander. Rias didn't react and just continued staring at the wall with that same vacant expression.
"I'm going to start the water," I said, moving to the shower controls. "Tell me if the temperature isn't right."
I adjusted it until steam began to rise, then tested it with my hand. Warm but not scalding. I stripped down to my briefs—I wasn't getting in fully clothed, but I also wasn't going completely naked. This was already complicated enough.
I used the detachable showerhead to start the rinsing process. Rias closed her eyes, and I saw her shoulders relax slightly at the warmth.
"That's good," I murmured. "Just focus on how the water feels."
I grabbed the shampoo and squeezed some into my palm, then began working it through her crimson hair. The strands were tangled and matted with dirt, but I worked through the knots patiently, my fingers massaging her scalp in slow circles.
Rias's breathing gradually evened out as I worked. The repetitive motion seemed to calm her, grounding her in the present moment.
I rinsed the shampoo out, watching the dirty water swirl down the drain, then repeated the process with conditioner. By the time I finished with her hair, some color had returned to her face.
I grabbed a washcloth and soap, lathering it up before starting on her shoulders and back. I kept my touch clinical and methodical, trying not to think about how intimate this was.
I had shared showers with Akeno and knew how almost every one of them ended up. A small part of my mind expressed a desire to have that same level of intimacy with Rias. But now was not the time.
But it was impossible not to notice her body—the curve of her chest, the way the stool she sat on emphasized her rear and thighs, and the way goosebumps rose on her skin despite the warm water. I forced those observations into a mental box and locked it away. Maybe for later.
I shook my head of that thought. 'Shinjūka, I blame you for these horny thoughts.' I silently grumbled. I heard her chuckle in the back of my mind.
"I've done nothing. You're just becoming closer to how you were meant to be." I could clearly hear her amusement. I refocused on my task while trying to stay unfocused on the visuals.
I moved to her arms next, washing each one carefully. Then her legs, starting at her ankles and working upward. My movements slowed as I reached her thighs, hyperaware of how close I was getting to areas that definitely crossed the boundaries of friends.
I knelt in front of her, washcloth in hand, trying to figure out how to proceed without making this more awkward than it already was. At least for me. Geez, I hated being a teenager. Rias still stared off into space, tears still occasionally mixing with the water running down her face.
"Rias?" I said softly. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Silence stretched between us, broken only by the sound of running water. I continued washing her thighs in slow, careful strokes, giving her time to gather her thoughts.
Then her voice came, so quiet I almost missed it over the water.
"It was so horrible."
Before I could respond, she lunged forward, her arms wrapping around my neck as she buried her face against my shoulder. The sudden movement threw me off balance, and we tumbled backward onto the wet tile floor.
I hit the wet tile hard, my injured shoulder preventing me from catching myself. Rias landed on top of me, her naked body pressed against mine as sobs wracked through her frame. The washcloth fell from my hand, forgotten.
"It was so horrible," she cried against my shoulder, her tears mixing with the water still running from the shower. "They all left me, and then Sirzechs—he killed you all right in front of me. I watched you die, watched everyone I care about turn to ash, and I couldn't do anything. I couldn't even scream."
Her whole body trembled violently. I wrapped my good arm around her waist.
"I'm here," I said quietly, doing my best to keep my voice calm and reassuring. "We're all still here. None of that was real."
"But it felt real," she sobbed. "Every second of it felt completely real. The way you looked at me with disgust, the way everyone walked away like I meant nothing to them—"
"That wasn't me," I interrupted gently. "The real me would never look at you that way." I wasn't surprised this process was repeating.
She clung to me tighter, her face still buried against my shoulder. I could feel every curve of her body pressed against mine, the warmth of her skin, and the way her chest moved with each shuddering breath.
This was, objectively speaking, an incredibly compromising position. I was acutely aware of every point of contact between us, of how little separated us. My teenage body had its own opinions about the situation, physiological reactions I absolutely did not want to be dealing with right now.
I tried to focus on anything else—the cold tile beneath my back, the sound of running water, the pain radiating from my shoulder. Anything to distract from the beautiful woman sobbing in my arms and the way my body was responding despite my best efforts.
"He put me in a cage," Rias whispered, her voice breaking. "After everyone died, there was just this tiny cage. I couldn't move, couldn't speak, and couldn't do anything but exist alone in the dark. And I knew—I knew that's what I deserved for being so pathetic and needy."
That's the distraction I needed. My brow furrowed with anger at what that demon had done to her. Aeshama had found every insecurity and every fear and weaponized them with surgical precision. It was impressive, really. She was clearly a master at her craft. It wasn't her moniker for nothing.
"You're not pathetic," I said firmly. "You're one of the strongest people I know, Rias. What you went through would have broken most people completely, but you're still here. You're still fighting."
"I don't feel strong," she said, her voice small and broken. "I feel like that cage is still there, like I'm still trapped and this is just another illusion designed to hurt me."
I shifted slightly, trying to ignore the ache in my injured shoulder. The movement caused her to press even closer, and I had to actively fight down my body's response.
"This is real," I said, keeping my voice steady despite the distraction. "I know it doesn't feel like it right now, but this is real. The water is real. The tile beneath us is real. I'm real."
She pulled back just enough to look at me, her blue-green eyes searching my face with desperate intensity. Tears still streamed down her cheeks, mixing with the water lingering on her face.
"How do I know?" she whispered. "How do I know you won't disappear? That I won't blink and find myself back in that cage?"
I raised my good hand to her face, cupping her cheek gently. "Because I'm choosing to be here. Right now, in this moment, I'm choosing to stay with you. And I'll keep choosing that, every day, until you believe it."
Her breath hitched, and fresh tears spilled over. She leaned into my palm, her eyes closing as if she could absorb the reality of my presence through touch alone.
"I was so alone," she whispered. "Even before the cage, when everyone was walking away—I've never felt so completely alone in my entire life."
"You're not alone now," I said firmly. "And you won't be. Not as long as I have any say in it."
She opened her eyes again. The vacancy was still there, but underneath it I caught a glimpse of the Rias I knew. The stubborn, determined woman that leads her peerage with fairness and love.
"Promise me," she said, her voice a whisper. "Promise me you won't leave. That you won't decide I'm too much work or too needy or—"
"I promise," I interrupted. "I'm not going anywhere, Rias. You're stuck with me."
A sound escaped her that was half sob, half laugh. She buried her face against my shoulder again.
We stayed like that for several minutes.
Eventually, her breathing evened out, the sobs tapering off into occasional hiccups. She didn't pull away, but her grip on me loosened slightly.
"We should finish getting you clean," I said gently.
She nodded against my shoulder but didn't move to get up. I carefully shifted us both, using my good arm to help her up. But of course, because of the world I was in, it couldn't end there.
As she began to stand, she slipped. She landed on top of me, her boobs pressed into my face, a nipple particularly close to my mouth. My lower brain, having a mind of its own, couldn't resist anymore and began to stand at attention beneath the thin fabric.
I quickly helped her up again.
"Sorry, it's kind of… oh." She noticed then. We both stood, me turning away from her.
"Yeah… teenage body, beautiful girl, skin contact." I shifted awkwardly. "Makes it difficult to control."
Then, she began to laugh. It was small and quiet, but a far cry from her previous mood.
"It's okay. I guess it's kind of my fault for putting you in this position." The mirth in her voice was a relief to hear.
"Do you think you can finish without help?" I asked, hoping she'd say yes. Glancing at her face, I saw her eyes widen slightly in alarm.
"I'll still stay in here with you, though." That seemed to pacify her.
"Yeah, I think I can." We finished our shower. I was actually able to get myself washed too. There was more dried blood on me than I realized. Rias helped wash my back. My briefs didn't survive the endeavor, now stained red from the crimson runoff. But there was no way I was going to remove them.
Thankfully, I had a change of clothes in my inventory I was able to use. I helped Rias dress into some pajamas. This being because we had to relocate.
"I don't want to leave you alone in here, but Akeno is expecting me back. Do you want to sleep with us?" Rias' earlier confusion about my insistence on her putting clothes on was resolved. She thought for a moment.
"Yeah, I think I'd like that," she said with a small smile.
We walked over to my room, opening the door to see Akeno in nothing but skimpy panties, what she usually slept in. Seeing us walk in, she saw Rias actually functioning and jumped up to pull her into a hug.
"Rias, I was so worried." Watching the two best friends embrace each other was heartwarming.
I watched them hold each other for a long moment, Akeno whispering reassurances while Rias clung to her with desperate relief. Finally they pulled apart, and Akeno's eyes found mine over Rias's shoulder.
"Thank you," she mouthed silently.
I nodded, then cleared my throat. "We should probably get some sleep. It's been... a long day."
That was perhaps the understatement of the century.
Akeno glanced down at her state of undress, then at Rias, then back at me. A faint smile touched her lips despite everything. "I should probably—"
"Don't bother on my account," Rias said quietly. "I'm too tired to care about modesty right now."
She moved toward the futon that had been laid out—large enough for two people comfortably, three if we didn't mind being close. Without ceremony or hesitation, Rias began stripping off the pajamas I'd just helped her into.
I turned my head away, trying to be respectful. Akeno giggled at my display.
"Toshio, you don't have to look away," Rias said, and I heard the faint amusement in her voice. "You've already seen everything."
Fair point, but I still kept my eyes averted until I heard her settle onto the futon. When I finally looked back, she'd positioned herself on the left side, the blanket pulled up to the bottom of her chest, not bothering to cover the rest.
Akeno moved to the middle without being asked, understanding instinctively that Rias needed to be bracketed between us. She settled onto the futon with her usual grace, then patted the space on her right.
I moved to the right side of the futon and lowered myself carefully, trying not to jar my shoulder. The moment I settled, Akeno shifted closer, her body warm against my side. On her other side, I could see Rias doing the same, pressing against Akeno like she needed the physical contact to prove this was real.
Akeno reached out with both hands, one finding mine, the other presumably finding Rias's. I felt her fingers intertwine with mine, squeezing gently.
"Is this okay?" Akeno asked softly, looking between us.
"Yes," Rias whispered.
I squeezed Akeno's hand in agreement.
We lay there in silence for several minutes. I stared at the ceiling, reflecting on the day as we all lay there. Akeno and Rias both fell asleep within minutes. I took a little longer, but my final thoughts were of what I'd describe as happiness at my success of helping my friends recover.
XXX
I woke to the soft sound of breathing on either side of me. Thanks to Gamer's Altered Body, all of my previous injuries were completely healed. I stayed still for a moment, taking in the warmth of Akeno pressed against my right side and Rias to my right, both girls taking real estate on either shoulder.
The system notifications were waiting for me, as expected.
{All level rewards applied. Health fully restored. Injuries healed.}
I rolled my left shoulder experimentally, careful not to disturb the one using it as a pillow. Full range of motion, no pain. The scar tissue across my chest from the incomplete regeneration had faded to nothing.
I carefully extracted myself from between Akeno and Rias, moving with deliberate slowness to avoid waking them. How I ended up between them, with both cuddling up next to me, I had no idea. Not that I was complaining.
I glanced back at their sleeping forms. Both women needed the rest more than I did—their psychological wounds would take longer to heal than any physical injury.
I moved to the small bathroom attached to the room and splashed cold water on my face, performing morning rituals.
A soft sound from the futon drew my attention. Akeno was stirring, her violet eyes blinking open slowly. She saw me standing by the bathroom and smiled, though the expression was still tinged with exhaustion.
"Good morning," she whispered, careful not to wake Rias.
"Morning. How are you feeling?"
She considered the question for a moment, her gaze distant. "Better than yesterday. Still... processing everything. But better."
I nodded, understanding. Trauma didn't heal overnight, but at least they were both moving forward.
Rias shifted on the futon, her eyes opening to reveal that same vacant look from last night. My chest tightened with concern until her gaze found mine and some clarity returned to her expression.
"Toshio," she said quietly. "You're still here."
"I promised I would be."
Something in her face relaxed at that, and she sat up slowly, the blanket falling away. She didn't bother covering herself, and I forced my eyes to remain on her face rather than wandering.
"We should get ready," I said, moving toward the small dresser where I'd stored some clothes. "I have a feeling today is going to be important."
Akeno rose from the futon with her usual grace, though I noticed her movements were more subdued than normal. "I'll help Rias get dressed."
The two of them moved to the corner of the room where Rias's clothes had been set out by the Youkai attendants at some point.
Using energy sense, I noticed there was activity throughout the compound—Youkai warriors moving with purpose, scouts returning from overnight patrols, and the unmistakable spiritual signature of Serafall somewhere in the main building.
"Toshio?" Rias's voice pulled my attention back. She stood fully dressed in a fresh Kuoh Academy uniform, her crimson hair brushed and tied back. The vacant look in her eyes had receded further, though shadows of yesterday's trauma still lingered. "Thank you. For last night. For everything."
"You don't need to thank me."
"I do," she insisted quietly. "You could have left me in that room, could have let Akeno handle it, but you stayed. You helped me when I couldn't help myself."
Akeno moved to Rias's side, taking her hand. "We should get breakfast. You need to eat properly after yesterday."
Rias nodded, though I saw the reluctance in her posture. The idea of facing other people, of pretending to be normal after what she'd experienced, was clearly daunting.
"We'll go together," I said. "All three of us."
That seemed to help. Rias straightened slightly, drawing on whatever reserves of strength she had left.
We left the room and made our way through the traditional corridors of the estate. Youkai attendants bowed respectfully as we passed, their expressions carefully neutral. They'd probably heard about what happened in the underground chamber.
The dining area was a large room with low tables arranged in neat rows. Several Youkai were already eating, their conversations hushed and serious. I spotted Kiba sitting alone at a table near the window, staring at his food without really eating.
We approached his table, and he looked up at our footsteps. His blue eyes took in the three of us, and I saw understanding flash across his features.
"Morning Kiba. You sleep okay?" I asked.
"As well as I probably could." He gestured to the empty spaces around him.
We settled around the table, and almost immediately a Youkai attendant appeared with trays of food—rice, grilled fish, miso soup, and pickled vegetables. Traditional Japanese breakfast fare.
We ate in relative silence, the weight of yesterday's events hanging over us like a shroud. Kiba occasionally glanced at Rias and Akeno, concern evident in his expression, but he didn't press for conversation.
I was halfway through my fish when a young Youkai attendant approached our table and bowed deeply.
"Amano-sama, Gremory-sama," she said respectfully. "Kunou-hime has requested that everyone gather in the main meeting hall. Serafall-sama has returned with important information."
I exchanged glances with the others.
"We'll be there shortly," I said.
The attendant bowed again and departed. I looked at Rias, gauging her readiness for what was coming.
"Are you up for this?" I asked quietly.
She set down her chopsticks and took a deep breath. "I have to be. My peerage needs me. Yasaka-sama needs us."
There was steel beneath the fragility, that core of determination that made her a leader. It was good to see it returning, even in small amounts.
We finished our meal quickly and made our way to the meeting hall. The corridors were busier now, Youkai warriors moving with purpose toward the same destination. The atmosphere was charged with anticipation.
The meeting hall was already filling when we arrived. I recognized several faces—Sona and Tsubaki standing near the front, their expressions serious and focused. Kunou sat in a position of authority at the head of the room, flanked by her head bodyguard and several Youkai elders including Nurarihyon. The sickle weasel scout leader stood off to the side with several other scouts.
Serafall was present as well, though her usual exuberance was muted. She wore her magical girl costume, but her expression was uncharacteristically serious. It was weird seeing her so serious lately.
We found seats near Sona and Tsubaki. Rias sat to my right, Akeno on my left. I felt Rias' hand find mine and briefly squeeze it beneath the table—seeking reassurance, likely grounding herself in reality. She released it shortly after.
Once everyone had settled, Kunou stood. Despite her young age, she commanded the room with surprising authority.
"Thank you all for gathering on such short notice," she began, her voice steady despite the strain visible in her features. "Serafall-sama has discovered something critical."
All eyes turned to the Maou. Serafall stepped forward, and when she spoke, her voice carried none of its usual playfulness.
"My familiar completed a search pattern of the entire region overnight," she said. "I believe we found them. The demons' hideout."
The room erupted in murmurs. Kunou raised her hand for silence.
"Where?" I asked, leaning forward.
"The edge of Kyoto, near the eastern mountains," Serafall replied. "There's a cave system that runs deep underground. My familiar detected significant demonic energy emanating from within, along with barriers designed to prevent detection."
She pulled out a map and spread it across the table, pointing to a marked location. "Here. It's remote, difficult to access, but defensible. They chose well."
Kunou's hands clenched into fists. "Then we attack immediately. We have approximately two thousand Youkai warriors assembled from across the country and ready for combat."
"We need to plan this carefully," the scout leader interjected. "Rushing in without proper reconnaissance could be disastrous."
"We don't have time for extensive reconnaissance," Kunou countered, her golden eyes flashing with barely contained fury. "Every moment we delay is another moment my mother suffers at their hands."
I understood her desperation, but the scout leader had a point. Still, waiting too long could be just as dangerous.
"What about reinforcements from the Underworld?" Sona asked, her violet eyes fixed on her sister.
Serafall's expression grew even more serious at her sister's question. "I was able to assemble approximately two hundred devils willing to participate," she said, and I heard the frustration in her voice. "Most are guards from the pillar families—the Sitri, Gremory, Agares, and Phenex clans contributed the most. But getting even that many was difficult on such short notice."
Two hundred devils plus two thousand Youkai warriors. The numbers sounded impressive, but I had no frame of reference for how large the demon force might be.
"That's more than I expected," Sona said, though her tone suggested it wasn't as many as she'd hoped for.
"The other pillars were... reluctant." Serafall continued, and I caught the edge of anger beneath her words. I could tell she wanted to say more but resisted, as I'm sure whatever it was wouldn't be helpful in a room full of Yokai.
I studied the map she'd laid out, noting the terrain around the marked location. Eastern mountains, cave system, difficult to access. The demons had chosen defensible ground, which meant we'd be attacking uphill both literally and tactically.
"What about our combat strength?" I asked. "Do we know what we're facing inside?"
"My familiar couldn't penetrate deep enough to get accurate counts," Serafall admitted. "The barriers are sophisticated. But based on the demonic energy readings, we're looking at a significant force. Possibly several hundred demons, including high-ranking officers. Maybe more."
Several hundred. Against our combined force, those odds seemed manageable, but numbers weren't everything. I'd learned that lesson fighting Kao'Ahn and his companions. But if their inital distraction skirmish was any indication, they probably had many more.
"I'll be participating directly in the assault," Serafall announced, and I saw Sona's expression tighten immediately. "Along with Rias and her peerage."
Rias straightened beside me at the mention of her name. I felt her hand find mine again under the table, squeezing briefly before releasing.
"My peerage will fight as well," Sona said firmly.
"Absolutely not," Serafall responded instantly, her tone brooking no argument. "So-tan, you're staying here where it's safe."
"I'm not a child, Nee-sama," Sona shot back, her violet eyes flashing with irritation. "I'm the head of the Sitri clan in this region, and my peerage is combat-capable. We should—"
"No."
The single word carried the weight of Serafall's position as one of the Four Great Satans. The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees.
"You're my sister," Serafall continued, her voice softer but no less firm. "And your strengths don't lie in direct combat. You have no reason to be on the front lines."
Sona's jaw clenched, but she didn't argue further. I could see the frustration radiating from her. We needed all the firepower we could get. Serafall being stubborn about this out of smothering overprotectiveness was not helping.
"Perhaps they can participate but maintain distance with assistance spells?" I offered. I saw Sona swing her head toward me in surprise. Serafall did the same, but not as dramatically.
"Please, nee-chan. Let me help," Sona uncharacteristically pleaded, throwing in a well-placed 'nee-chan' to soften Serafall's heart. Serafall looked conflicted. Seeing the opportunity to intervene, the scout leader spoke up.
"During the battle, we scouts don't plan on being on the front lines since we aren't fighters. Having assistance with coordinating troops and supplies would be helpful." Serafall looked to him for a moment and sighed.
"Fine." Sona sighed in relief at her sister finally relenting. Serafall turned sharply toward her. "But you better be safe! If anybody touches a single hair on your head…" The temperature in the room dropped precipitously, the Leviathan's aura of demonic ice manifesting.
"Ahem." Serafall was brought back by Kunou clearing her throat.
"Um, now that we know who's participating, can we move on?" Kunou tentatively asked. Trying to pacify a being you know is immensely stronger and older than you probably felt a little daunting.
"Yes, sorry, Kunou-tan. I just get a little, excited, when it comes to my Sonawona-tan." I heard the audible facepalm from Sona. She was going to start leaving marks if she didn't get away from her sister.
"I need to coordinate some supply routes, if you'll excuse me."
"Then you can leave, Nurahiyion." Kunou said coldly.
Nurahiyion left the room. No one stopped him, likely glad he was gone. When the doors closed behind him, a tension that everyone wasn't aware of lifted.
He had been paying rapt attention, looking over the maps and plans laid out on the center table. If it weren't for him standing and looking at the supply distribution map the most, I would have been more suspicious. Maybe he was just an unpleasant guy.
"Now then, let's coordinate the details of our assault strategy. Feel free to jump in, Toshio-tan." Serafall waved me over.
After about an hour more of discussion, we had a solid plan. Kunou stood at the head of the table, looking wiser and stronger than her youthful appearance should have allowed.
"Alright everyone. Prepare for war. And let's go save my mother."