Chapter 43

3° person P.O.V.

When Raiser admitted defeat shock was the only thing on everyone's mind. Many even started to doubt their ears, as it didn't make sense. Why would Raiser just give up when the situation was so overwhelmingly in his favor?

As Rias looked at Raiser he gave a self-mocking smile and said.

"I wanted to marry you as it was my duty as a devil, but forcing a bride that goes to the point of saying to the entire world that she will refuse this marriage is not something I desire." He then gave a hollow laugh and continued. "I hoped that you would see reason, that you would understand why this was a good thing for our two clans. It is a shame that you could not do it. Obstinate to the very end, you really are a fiery woman that does what you want."

Rias looked at him, the feeling of elation was surging inside her. She was free! Finally, she was free from it all!

She could do what she wanted, and be with whoever she wanted.

"But, I demand an explanation for all of this!" Raiser said, clear anger in his voice. "You denied the contract between our two houses, ignored years of friendship and decided all of it yourself. What do you think you were doing? What reason did you have to deny this marriage with such intensity? Am I that terrible of a person?"

The answer left her lips without a second thought. It was a natural response, one that spoke volumes about how she felt and what she thinks.

"It is not that you are terrible, but that no matter what I will decide what is good for me myself. If I decided that I won't marry you I simply won't marry you."

Raiser shock his head, clear disappointment in his eyes.

"So be it. I hope that house Gremory can remain one of the pillars of our society in the future, even with you in charge." As he said that he was teleported away together with Rias.

She was happy, simply happy that her peace and freedom was her own again. She would decide what she wanted, and she would obtain it no matter what. This situation where she managed to defeat Raiser, a devil famous for being a rising star of the new generation was the prof she needed.

She would be the next leader of the Gremory house, and she would take them to new heights. Now all that she needed to do was get her peerage and return to Kuoh, where her destiny awaited.

But

She failed to see the undercurrents of the situation.

What she had done was not so simple as she imagined. She had defiled the alliance of the two clans and provoked many old devils as those final words of her 'I will decide what is good for me myself!' would remain on the minds of many devils. Old devils that saw those words with other eyes.

Eyes of anger and repulse as those words carried a different meaning on their ears. For them, those words meant not the freedom to choose, but the freedom to defile the devil council, to defile the old laws, to challenge their social structure.

To defile the orders of the elders.

And THAT, that was not something they would allow to go unpunished.

///---///

On one of the cabins watching the match, the emotions of one of the integrants were complex to say the absolute least. Syrzechs Lucifer was experiencing many different emotions right now.

At the same time that he was happy that his sister was free to choose her destiny, he was sad that she was growing up and decided to follow her own decisions. But above all, he was worried.

Worried about those last few words of Rias, and how they would be seen by the devil elders in the government. They are the actual force that makes the decisions for the entire race and is controlled by the elders and leaders of the main houses and clans. Those elders and clan leaders are old bats that love power and control above all else and those words would make them uncomfortable. And an uncomfortable elder is not a good elder.

Even if she did not mean it to sound like that, they would still see those words as a direct provocation and fear that she might start a trend that would make the other heirs and young devils decide that they can do whatever they want.

Syrzechs was terrified of what might happen now. He was thinking that bringing Rias back to the underworld, even if it might make some damage to the devil race, was acceptable if it meant her security. But now all he wanted was for her to go to the human world as soon as possible as he didn't know what those old bastards might do in the dark. And the worse part is that even in the human word he still believes that she could potentially be a victim of those elders.

And what infuriated him was the fact that he would HAVE to accept the terms that the Tower requested, as he would not dare to send any help or additional bodyguards to his sister as who knows if they are on anyone else paycheck.

He was also feeling powerless as even if he was known as THE Lucifer he had no real power in the government, he could not act thoughtlessly as any big actions of his might have undesirable consequences to his whole race and he was more of a figurehead and muscles to those old bastards than anything else. If he moves carelessly even a new civil war is not completely impossible, especially since there were still some clans that survived the last one and desired nothing more than to overthrow the new government.

Meanwhile, Azazel was looking at all of this with an empty look, the only thing on his mind was his daughter and what he should do. He was a genius, known as one of the most brilliant minds in the world, but he simply could not get to an answer. Even when the answer was scarily simple he just could not see it due to how obvious it is.

To say that you are sorry and apologize sometimes is the hardest path of all.

Baraquiel was holding himself back quite a lot as he wanted nothing more than to run toward his daughter so as to make sure that she was fine. He was immensely proud of her, the power that she had shown was incredible in so many ways, but he knew that he could not leave this room like this. He was but a guest and any actions of his may start a conflict with those older devils that fought for years against his race, maybe even fought against himself.

And so Baraquiel continued there, waiting for news about his daughter while hoping and praying to his father to make sure that she was fine. It almost sounded like a bad joke as a fallen angel praying to a dead god to look after a devil. But Baraquiel did not even entertain such thought as he was on his 'overprotective father mode'.

Vali was watching it all with an uninterested look. He came here with high hopes for his destined rival but what he saw disappointed him greatly. He might as well not bother with Issei and focus on more promising people, like Raiser or the guys from Judgment. They seemed much more interesting and ready to fight now, and the thought of how many fights he would get if he killed their precious heir was one that made his blood boil in excitement.

Yeah, that might be a good endeavor for the future. An idea to think over, as imagining what he would get by killing that smug little bastard was one that warmed his heart.

///---///

Castiel P.O.V.

Well… that went better than expected. I can now finally release a sigh of relief in knowing that half of what Rin demanded of me was completed. Now I just need to go see about making an alliance with the Sitri house and I will not need to go back to the Tower to receive special training.

Also, Rias really should think better before she opens her mouth. Did she really not think about what she just said? Oh well, at least this helps to force Syrzechs hand a bit more. Isn't it great when things happen in a way that exceeded the original plan?

Now I just need to sell a favor to our most recent allies, especially since I doubt house Gremory will be getting more Phoenix Tears any time soon. And bye-bye 'friends and family discounts' for them as well. At least this means that they will be forced to buy healing items from us as our alchemy department did produce some interesting items with this objective, even if they are of considerably lower quality than the Phoenix Tears (maybe I should see if I can get better recipes for pills and medicines with Zelretch in the future, food for thought).

It is more money for us anyway so I won't regret it.

Also, we will even give a small cut for the Phoenix clan on the side so as to keep their prices up to the Gremory house. The Phoenix clan won't mind since Rias did dishonor their contract and they would like to still receive some money out of it. On the side, I also proposed to be an intermediary for selling of Phoenix Tears to other Pantheons and groups that devils normally cannot do business with that easily due to politics, and considering our recent history with the Phoenix Clan and our friendship and deep alliance they would be more than happy to do business with us over the Gremory's.

Everybody wins, even Rias because without my convincing Raiser to go along with this plan she would NEVER manage to defeat him and receive their freedom.

...Well, everybody except house Gremory itself. But a little punishment for the inconvenience they caused us back then is nothing that absurd anyway, and I never really agreed to this alliance anyway, I am doing it just because Rin ordered so because if it was just for me I would not agree (that bastard Beowulf trying to steal one of my father's last gifts for me while saying that I did not deserve it and it should be his anyway pushed one too many buttons with me).

Looking at this in a certain way would make it seem that I am manipulating our allies as pawns, and it would not be that wrong of a way to see it. The difference is that I know that it is not just me that is treating others like this but they also treat me the exact same way, everyone looks out for themselves first on this sort of scenario and those who don't understand that are to blame for their own problems. Everyone are pawns in the games of others, no matter the position or the power you have because in politics we are all pawns in the end.

I then turned to Sairaorg and said.

"Dude, I gotta say that Rias did very well in there, considering her lack of manpower and all that. But seeing as she won because of her enemy giving victory to her I must say that you should talk to her to continue training. I don't know about you but I feel that she might go back to being lazy if no one makes her move forward." I said, which is absolutely true.

I honestly doubt that she will desire to continue training seriously after this match as all her motivation was in winning this. If she is to get stronger she must be stimulated to continue her growth, and if she can keep growing she really might become a truly strong devil.

All she needs is the right motivation, and no one is more motivated than Sairaorg when it comes to training.

He looked at me and nodded after a while, understanding what I meant. He might seem like a simple-minded man but Sairaorg Bael is someone that is in the top of all young devils for a reason. All I can say is that I feel happy that he is my friend as I would hate to have as an enemy, he is powerful and great on all fronts you analyze him.

"Yeah, I get that. But hey, let's go see her and her peerage. I did hear that Okuyasu here is very capable of healing and they seem to have a need for it." He said.

"Of course. I was going to ask you to take me and Okuyasu there anyway as the Tower is now officially allied with the Gremory clan." I then turned to Okuyasu and asked. "I know I said all that but do you mind coming with us to see them? I will not force you if you don't want to do it, you are free to choose if you want to come with us or not."

Okuyasu looked at me and scoffed.

"Please, like you need to say all that to convince me to heal others. I was itching to go anyway." Okuyasu said with a cocky smile on his face.

I could not resist but to release a light laugh at this. This is so much like him that I can't help but laugh a bit at it. Not the mocking laugh, on no sir, but a happy and carefree one.

As I stood up I started walking to the door with Okuyasu and Sairaorg when someone approached my back. I turned to see and not surprisingly Serenity was right there. She has been glued to me as much as possible since we got out of the death arena. I even had to check up my surroundings to make sure that she would not follow me in the bathroom… I can swear that I saw a shadow moving last time I took a bath.

Seeing no point in avoiding this as I knew perfectly well that it was a lost cause I decided to go with Sairaorg there. But, before I could go much further I felt a weight on my side. As I turned to look I saw Kuroko hugging my arm, trying very hard to place my arm between her breasts, but considering how she was as flat as a mirror her endeavor was fated to fail from the start.

"I will accompany you, Oni-sama! I will make sure that you are protected from everything here." She said that with confidence, and on the first impression she would even have a valiant look… if it wasn't for one of her hands approaching my crotch while she was panting.

Sighing a bit, I put my hand above hers and stopped her movement toward that 'restricted area'. I prefer not to let her do this at least until I actually start dating her.

I then looked at her and could see in her eyes that she was nervous, afraid even. I guess I can understand why. I mean we are surrounded by so many devils and some of them are closer to enemies than allies so seeing me walk away in this situation must be too much for her. The other girls can deal with this better because of the fact that they are used to my stupidity or have confidence about my strength, but Kuroko was not quite there especially since she saw me butting heads with Vali not long ago.

I smiled at her and accepted her request, knowing that it would be meaningless to try otherwise. She was quite protective of me after all.

As we started walking to the infirmary to see Rias and her peerage I kept talking to Sairaorg, Okuyasu, and Kuroko to pass the time. It was quite fun to talk to them, it is a shame that Serenity did not join in but I know that she is VERY shy so I expected as much (even if that moving shadow in the bathroom some time ago did NOT seem shy at all, and no one will make me believe that there was no such shadow).

Approaching the door I noticed that inside there was Rias and the others, the only exception was Issei that was sitting on the floor outside. He was holding his knees, his eyes bloodshot and he was clenching his fists so much that his nail perforated the skin enough for blood to leak.

Seeing this I understood what was happening to him very fast, I went through the same exact thing when I went on my first mission and saw what happened when I got there to late. The self-hate and guilt I felt when I saw Seryu, a girl that I did not even know back then, hurt to that point, with her whole life destroyed in front of her eyes.

Seeing this and knowing that it was ALL because of me, let's just say that I was not happy at all. The only thing that kept me balanced that time was seeing her safe and sound.

Issei is facing something entirely different, but the feelings he is having are probably quite similar. He trained so hard, did all he could, but he saw his own powerlessness right on his face. It might have been a game but he understands that if it was real if it was out there… he would have failed with no 'try again' this times.

Sighing a bit, I turned to the others and asked them to go on ahead. Serenity and Kuroko did not want that, but I told them that I wanted to talk to Issei alone (something that I would never do before he proved himself as more than just a pervert). The two understood and with unpleased faces entered the infirmary. I know that they will heal everyone in there, Okuyasu's sacred gear is just that good, and now I have to focus on this one.

I turned to Issei and said in a loud tone.

"For how long do you intend to stay like that?"

He jumped a bit, clearly startled by my 'sudden' intrusion. He must be really out of it if he did not notice me approaching up until now. I also noticed that his eyes are not that full of the light they usually emanated all the time.

"…So? For how long do you intend to keep feeling sorry for yourself?" I asked again. I know it is not the best choice of words, some might think that he needs comforting and things like that. I disagree.

When someone is like that they need something to push them forward, to strive for. For me, it was my desire to NEVER let something like that happen again under my watch, and if I have to I will push him myself.

He remained quiet while looking at me, rage clear in his previously empty eyes, and even after a few seconds he just glared. Nothing more and nothing less.

Seeing this I continued.

"I saw the game," I saw a flash of anger when I said the word 'game', now I understand what I have to do even better. "and you were terrible. You completely and utterly failed in doing anything you should have. You promised to protect Koneko, and she had to protect and heal you in the end; Kiba defended you until his absolute limit, and you could not even react in time to help him; Rias needed your power in the end, and you ignored her for your own petty revenge." The glare he was giving me was less and less of a glare and more and more the look of a puppy that got kicked by the end of it.

Well, too bad for you because I will not stop now.

"The only reason why Rias won was because Raiser got tired of being rejected. That was all, you did not make a difference. Even though you have a Longinus, one of the strongest weapons in the whole world at your disposal, you failed it a-"

"DO YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THAT!" his first words were accompanied with him slamming me against the wall. I could have avoided it, he was not in top form after all, but decided to let him go at it. He needed to vent, and I am the best option for that right now. "It was all my fault. Despite my training, I could not do anything! I wanted to help but only got in the way. I *sob*- I should not have been there." Tears started leaving his eyes. His frustration and emotions clearly overwhelming him to his very limit. "If I was not there, then maybe things would have been different. They should never have to babysit me. *sob**sob* I wish they had never met m-"

PUNCH

I punched him in the gut, right when he was saying a thing he would have regretted.

As he fell to the ground I repeated my words.

"For how long do you intend to keep feeling sorry for yourself? What? You think they would have preferred that? That they would want to never have met you?" I asked rhetorically. "Stop putting words on their mouths! You are just running away." I then crouched so as to get on the same line of sight than him and continued. "You are rock bottom. You could not be in any worst position than now, you failed them and yourself." I then stood up and said. "But isn't it great?"

He looked at me confused.

"What is so great about this? It is like you said, I am rock bottom and what is great about it?"

I then gave him a cocky smile and said.

"If you are rock bottom, then there is only one course left for you now. Going up!" He looked at me as if he was seeing me for the first time since I got here, some of the light from before returning to his eyes. "Train Issei, get strong enough so as to not let yourself lose to anyone and to be powerful enough to protect those you want without fail. Isn't this cooler than staying here feeling sorry for yourself?"

The light on his eyes fully returned now… no, they didn't simply return, they had grown even stronger now.

He then stood up and bowed to me.

"Thank you, Castiel-san. I needed that." He then stood up and said. "I will go and look for buchou and the others now." At that, he smiled and left me there.

"Yeah, let's go. But just a heads up, even if you get stronger I will always be two steps ahead." I told him with a confident smile.

"Shut it bishounen." He almost yelled at me, which I released a small amused chuckle to. He is just to easy to tease and irritate.

"But seriously, try to sue that spell again when I am around or even cogitate the possibility of using it on any of the girls that are with me and I can assure you that your death will NOT be painless or fast." I said releasing my killing intent at his direction, with which he could only nod his head. I don't care about the political implications, he tries to use this on one of the girls that are with me and I WILL neutralize him for good.

Now that that is done I can go and see Rias and her peerage as well. The situation with Gasper worries me a bit, that reaction of his was not normal at all.

///---///

3° person P.O.V.

At the cabin where Emily and the others were a light conversation was taking place.

Amidst the talks, Emily decided to ask Yuno something that was bugging her.

"Hey, Yuno-chan, can I ask you something?"

Yuno looked at her and said.

"Sure."

"Why did you not follow Castiel? Normally you would have done the exact same thing that Kuroko did, so why did you not do it?"

Yuno looked at her like she was looking at an idiot.

"Because I don't want to get anywhere close to him right now."

THAT stopped everyone that knew her in their tracks. Yuno not wanting to be near Castiel was as likely as an alien descend on this world.t. Well, technically the funders of the Tower could count as aliens for this dimension, but that is beside the point

And then Yuno said the reasoning why, and everyone clearly understood why she said that. After hearing what Yun had to say NO ONE wanted to go anywhere near Castiel right now. Not when they knew what was coming.

///---///

Castiel P.O.V.

As I approached the door to Rias door I saw someone standing in the way that I did not notice early. Normally I would prepare myself to attack or defend depending on the situation as anyone that can appear in front of me undetected was not to be underestimated.

On this case, however, I knew exactly what I should do.

I turned my back to someone that many people consider the most dangerous individual to have ever liver...

AND RAN LIKE CRAZY!

.

.

.

I manage to get five steps in before he reappeared in front of me. Clear amusement on his face as he put his hands on my armpits and raised me and started turning round and round.

"Have you missed me, my dear god-son?"

"... do you really want to hear the answer to that?" I asked and he could not help but laugh at this.

Yep, here is me. Someone that manipulated two great devil houses and is known as the heir to one of the most prominent organizations on the modern world, now being swung around by an old man like I was a little child.

And that is how I re-met my godfather Kischur Zelretch, the one and only user of the kaleidoscope, the second true magic. A man that is more powerful than any God of this world and the biggest prankster there ever was across all dimensions (his own words, that, sadly enough for me, ring true).