The Gremory mansion was lit from within, doors open, voices spreading through the main corridors. The central hall gathered most of the group, each celebrating in their own way.
Kiba remained near one of the tables, posture aligned, glass in hand, speaking quietly with Saji. There was no exaggeration in his gestures, only restrained satisfaction.
Saji occupied more space. He laughed loudly, gestured, retold moments of the fight with energy that did not fade. With every new sentence, his fist closed in the air as if repeating the punch.
Asia remained seated a bit farther away, her hands resting on her lap. A smile appeared whenever someone mentioned Gasper or Rias. She nodded often, participating without raising her voice.
Akeno moved among them with calculated lightness. She stopped behind Koneko and leaned over the nekomata's shoulder.
"Eating again?" Akeno slid her fingers across the table and brought her face closer to hers. "I thought victory matched something more… exciting."
Koneko brought another sweet to her mouth without looking back.
"Sweets match any situation." The reply came clean, without pause.
Akeno smiled and stepped back two steps, her wings already folded since returning to Kuoh.
At the center of the hall, Rias remained standing. The red dress stood out under the indoor light, the long crimson strands falling over her shoulders without disorder. The smile never left her face.
She was the focus of the night.
The victory had not been only in a game. The contract was over. The decision had been public. The weight had lifted.
But her gaze began to move across the hall with more attention.
Once.
Twice.
The smile did not disappear, but the focus changed.
Gasper was not there.
Rias took a few slow steps through the hall, greeting one person, answering another, maintaining posture. Her eyes kept searching.
Nothing.
She turned toward Akeno, who was already watching her from the corner of her eye.
"Akeno." Rias stepped close enough so the conversation would not spread. "Have you seen Gasper?"
Akeno tilted her head slightly.
"Maybe." The smile widened. "He's not a big fan of noise when everything ends."
Rias kept her gaze on her for half a second.
"I'm going after him."
Akeno brought a hand to her mouth.
A short laugh escaped.
"Of course you are."
Rias did not answer. She simply turned and left the hall.
The mansion's corridors were quieter. The sound of celebration faded behind her as she walked. Her pace was not rushed, but it was not casual either.
She did not need to walk far.
One of the side windows was open, the curtain moving with the night air that entered.
Gasper was sitting on the inner ledge, one leg bent, the other hanging outside. His body leaned slightly forward, elbows resting on his knees.
Outside, the city of Kuoh stretched beneath the dark sky, lights scattered among low buildings and quiet streets.
He did not turn when she approached.
Rias stopped a few steps behind him.
"What are you doing here alone?" Her voice came out lower than it had in the hall.
Gasper kept his gaze on the horizon.
"Thinking."
Rias took two more steps and stood beside him, resting her hand on the ledge.
"About what?"
He exhaled slowly.
"About what changed today."
The silence did not become uncomfortable. The city remained outside, indifferent to what had been decided in the Underworld.
Rias turned slightly toward him.
"You defeated Riser." She did not raise her voice. "You practically decided the game."
Gasper maintained his posture.
"It was teamwork."
Rias crossed her arms over her chest.
"No." She shook her head once. "Without you, the field would have turned against us."
He finally turned his face toward her.
The expression was not euphoria.
It was focus.
"I only did what needed to be done."
Rias moved a little closer, until her shoulder almost touched his.
"You always talk like that." She tilted her face toward the sky. "As if it were just… a function."
Gasper did not answer immediately.
The night breeze passed between them, moving the curtains behind them slightly.
"Rias." He kept his gaze on the city. "You're free now."
She closed her eyes for a brief second.
"I am."
The word came out firm.
She turned her gaze back to him.
"And you?"
Gasper remained silent.
The request for promotion still echoed inside him.
The frozen field. The black flame surrounding Riser. The scream. The victory.
'I took a step.'
He turned his face to Rias.
"I am too."
Rias held his gaze for a longer moment.
Then the smile changed, smaller, more reserved.
"Then let's keep taking steps." She moved away from the ledge and extended her hand toward him. "The hall is chaos without you."
Gasper kept his eyes on her hand for a second.
'In the anime she falls in love with Issei quickly. But this isn't a script. There's no protagonist here. If I want to build something real… I need to act at the right moment. She came after me. She's here because of me. If I step back now, I lose space. If I move forward… I change the dynamic.'
He raised his arm.
His fingers wrapped around her hand.
Instead of simply standing up, Gasper pulled.
Rias lost her balance by half a step and fell sitting onto his lap, her body turning instinctively to keep balance. One of her hands landed on his shoulder so she would not slip.
"Gasper—"
The sentence did not finish.
He leaned forward and kissed her.
The contact was direct. There was no hesitation in the movement. His hand held firmly at the side of her waist, keeping her close. The other arm supported her weight against the ledge.
Rias remained motionless for a full second.
Her fingers were still on his shoulder. Her breathing faltered in the middle of trying to react. Her eyes remained open before slowly closing.
Her first kiss did not happen in a hall, nor under the formal approval of ancient Houses.
It happened there, at the window of her own mansion.
Her body stayed rigid for a few moments. Her mind searched for order, protocol, proper reaction. None came quickly enough.
Gasper maintained the kiss.
Without excessive force. Without violence. Just firm.
Rias did not push him away.
The hand on his shoulder slid a few centimeters, gripping the fabric of his clothes. The other still rested on the ledge, fingers tense against the stone.
The silence of the corridor surrounded them.
She could pull away.
She did not.
Her body began to yield to the contact. The initial rigidity diminished. Her breathing adjusted to the closer rhythm. The warmth of proximity replaced the initial surprise.
When the kiss finally broke for air, Rias did not stand up immediately.
Their faces remained close.
Her breathing still uneven.
"Gasper…" Her voice came out lower than it had in the hall.
He did not release her waist.
Rias kept her hand gripping his uniform for another second before loosening her fingers.
"I'm sorry, Rias." The words came out directly, without avoiding her gaze. "I know I shouldn't have done what I did with my master, but it's something I've wanted to do since I left that hidden room." He kept his hand firm at her side. "It was for you that I dedicated myself to becoming stronger. Not because you're my master… but because you're the woman I love."
He breathed once before continuing.
"You can punish me however you want. I know I deserve it."
Rias did not respond immediately.
'The woman I love.'
The words repeated inside her.
Punishing Gasper did not cross her mind. The marriage contract had been annulled hours earlier. The freedom she demanded before the Houses was now real. And before her was the servant who had faced a King for her sake.
She had asked for the right to choose.
Now there was a choice.
The first kiss still burned on her lips. The first kiss of her life. There was no protocol for that. No formal speech taught how to react to a confession like that.
She looked at him.
The confusion did not erase the firmness beginning to appear.
Rias raised her hand and grabbed the collar of his uniform with more force.
"Gasper."
She pulled.
This time the kiss came from her.
Without technique. Without rehearsal. Too strong at first, awkward in angle, but determined. Her body leaned forward, pressing him against the ledge. Her fingers tightened in the fabric, holding him there.
There was no political calculation in that gesture.
Only choice.
The contact lasted several seconds before adjusting. Her breathing mixed with his. The movement lost its initial roughness and found its own rhythm, still inexperienced, but without retreat.
When she finally pulled back a few centimeters, her eyes were fixed on his.
"I'm not going to punish you."
Her hand slid from the collar to his chest, maintaining contact.
"I just fought to earn the right to choose." Her voice did not waver. "And I'm not going to act like a character who runs away from what she feels."
She kept her face close.
"You were my hero today." Her breathing still uneven. "And you're not just my servant."
The silence between them was not empty.
It was new.
Rias rested her forehead against his for a moment, her fingers still gripping his uniform.
"But don't think that means you can act without thinking again." A small smile appeared at the corner of her lips. "I'm still your King."
She did not move away completely.
The city of Kuoh remained illuminated beyond the window.
And for the first time, Rias Gremory was not following an imposed destiny.
She was choosing.
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