The next morning.
Rhodes looked at Lavinia, who was curled up and sleeping soundly under the covers, and gave a heartfelt sigh of praise. Back in Kyoto, his spur-of-the-moment decision to take her with him had been absolutely the right call.
She was "natural," powerful, and incredibly understanding. She didn't mind at all that the number of girls around Rhodes was steadily increasing. Of course, this was largely thanks to Rhodes saving her life back then. And if it weren't for Augusta's "assist" from her master at the end, allowing him to take advantage of the situation, it probably would have taken dozens of chapters to reach this stage in their relationship.
Sensing Rhodes moving, Lavinia slowly blinked awake. The moment she saw him, her face lit up with a joy-filled smile. "Good morning, Rhodes."
"If you're tired, rest a bit longer. You don't need to go out for training these next few days."
His Longinus, Incinerate Anthem, was only a few percentage points away from reaching its Balance Breaker state. Even without sparring with Lavinia, it would hit 100% before the summit. His only concern now was ensuring the Balance Breaker form didn't look stupid. Strength was temporary, but "coolness" was forever.
"Okay! ~~~" Lavinia chirped, closing her eyes again. Before long, Rhodes heard a tiny, soft snore.
Rhodes got dressed, stepped out of the room, and closed the door behind him. Before he even reached the stairs, he heard a commotion from the first floor.
Xenovia and Irina were standing forehead-to-forehead, like two rams in heat butting heads. Kuroka, in her black cat form, was covering her ears with her paws. Seeing Rhodes, she immediately cried out for help as if she'd been rescued.
"These two are way too noisy, meow! Can we please kick them out, meow?!"
After a brief explanation, Rhodes understood the situation. Xenovia and Irina were fighting over where to go during their vacation time. Xenovia wanted to visit local tourist landmarks, while Irina preferred going to a bustling shopping district.
"I don't get why they're fighting, meow! If you want to go to different places, just go separately, meow!"
"Eh?" both girls exclaimed simultaneously.
The Church duo froze mid-headbutt and turned to look at the yawning black cat as if she'd just revealed the secrets of the universe.
"That... is actually a solution."
"Why didn't we think of that? Xenovia, it's your fault for being slow! We've been fighting for nothing!"
"You dare blame me? If you hadn't kept repeating 'I want to go to the mall,' we wouldn't have argued! You're just too stubborn! New Church members are so troublesome!"
"What?! You Catholics, who are always bound by outdated rules, are the real problem!"
"What did you say, you damn heretic?!"
"What's that? Heretic?!"
"Meow! They're starting again, meow!" Kuroka clapped her paws over her ears, her cat face twisted in a very human expression of agony. Cats hate noise, and even as a Nekomata, that instinct remained.
Rhodes was used to it; these two fought every few days. But despite the red faces and shouting, it never actually affected their friendship. At first, Rhodes wondered why Griselda had paired them up, but watching them, he realized they had one of those strange relationships where the more they argued, the closer they became.
"Um... please don't fight anymore..." Asia said weakly, unable to watch any longer. "If you really want to go out, why don't we visit the landmarks first and then go to the mall?"
The fighting stopped. Xenovia and Irina both turned their gaze toward Asia. Under their intense, aggressive stares, Asia's delicate face showed a hint of intimidation.
"You're Asia, right?" Xenovia asked. "We've been here for a few days, but we haven't officially introduced ourselves. Before we came, Sister Griselda specifically told us not to discriminate against you. We don't know why a 'Saint' like you was exiled, but if Sister Griselda said that, there must be a reason beyond our understanding."
Xenovia and Irina shared a look.
"When I first saw you, I was thinking about how to handle a 'Witch' like you," Xenovia admitted. "I forgot about it because of Rhodes, but I still feel bad about it. Slandering a Saint in one's heart is a grave sin. Asia Argento, will you forgive us?"
The two of them bowed deeply in apology. Asia, seeing them be so formal, became flustered. She looked to Rhodes for help, but he only gave her a steady, encouraging look. Some things she had to handle herself.
"I... I don't mind at all," Asia said, a radiant, saintly smile blooming on her face. "I'm currently undergoing a trial given by God. It's only natural you wouldn't know. And... because of this trial, I've met many important people. They've shown me a kind of happiness that's different from just helping people in the Church. I think this is what God wanted to teach me."
Xenovia and Irina smiled and let out a sigh of relief. Rhodes, however, had a more complex expression. Because God had actually existed in this world, the faith of these believers was a hundred times stronger than that of people in his previous world. These three truly viewed God as the pillar of their lives.
Especially Asia. She had been raised and indoctrinated by the Church since childhood. Her faith was so strong that even in the original story, becoming a devil didn't shake it. If she had been conscious when Rias made her a devil, she probably would have refused.
But the news of God's death couldn't be hidden forever. During the summit, Michael would likely reveal the truth. Rhodes wondered what kind of faces Xenovia and Irina would make when they found out. He wasn't exactly great at comforting people.
"Um... if you're going out, would you like to come with us?" Asia asked with a bright smile.
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High School DxD : Reincarnated into the Multiverse, but it's High School DxD (216 Chapters – Ongoing)
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