A Walk Through The Woods

[Unknown Time — Unknown Place]

{Vali Lucifer}

"What do you think is going to happen?"

Most people wouldn't be able to answer that question. But he had always given me an answer.

"Nothing much." His response surprised me a little.

"Really?" That didn't feel right. "The relationship between the Fallens and the Devils has always been fragile, and you said yourself that the current situation is very delicate for both."

"Vali, you're still just a kid." He laughed it off. "It won't be the reason for a war, don't worry."

Again, he confused me.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I've lived long enough to see it all." He finally looked at me. "How many such events do you think have occurred in the countless years I've lived?"

"Quite a few?"

He nodded. "A lot."

"Aren't things different now compared to the past?" Once upon a time, everyone was on friendly terms.

Then again, they were all angels back then.

"It is," he answered. "But even so, even after Raynare messing up, we won't face a war. A diplomatic earful, most certainly. But not a war."

"Why?"

"Because only a few want war, only a few want unrest and chaos so they can exploit the opportunity." He sighed. "And those people are not the ones in power—not the Devil Kings, not the Seraphim, and neither I nor Semhazai."

He left out one name from the list of Fallens.

And we both knew why.

"It is not easy for those who want war to initiate one with just a few small tricks and annoyances like this," he assured. However, there was an issue.

"But what if someone in power is supporting that cause?"

We both knew what it was.

Even so, Azazel did not want to believe it.

"I will look into it," he said. "But I do not think it's who you're thinking of, Vali."

His only weakness was his trust in his comrades.

"You trust him too much."

This made him go silent for a while.

"Look into it, otherwise Semhazai will give you an earful."

"I will," he said. "Don't worry about it; I'll handle it."

He was extremely lazy, but I trusted him.

He was the most capable man I had ever seen.

We both stared down at the empty void that stared back at us. If anyone fell through here, they would neither be found nor remembered.

"What have you thought about the two Fallens?" I managed to save two, but unfortunately not the others.

He never specified; he just wanted me to bring back Raynare at any cost. So, it was his fault too.

"They do need to be punished, but I can't just confine them in a prison or anything. That means nothing to a Fallen." He thought about it.

"Then put them to use," I suggested. "I don't know what use, but make them work on things they hate. It will also make life easier for you if the annoying tasks are completed without you having to work on them."

This suggestion made him pause and look at me again. "Why didn't I think of that?" He chuckled. "That's actually a good idea."

Now I wondered, what is he going to do?

While I did give him a suggestion, I knew he would use it to come up with a punishment that would be satisfying to his sadistic and peculiar personality, making the others feel miserable.

Maybe I did something quite tragic for those two Fallens.

"And I think I just found a very good punishment for those two."

That smile…

Nope.

I think I made a mistake.

Because whenever he puts on that smile, there's always trouble.

…

…

[Morning — Outside Kuoh Academy]

{Rias Gremory}

"I never knew we could come here." He sounded surprised. "I didn't even know there was a passage here."

We walked down a narrow trail through the forest, outside the fences of the Academy.

And there was a reason he didn't know about this place.

"People cannot come here," I answered. "To protect the nature around here and preserve the habitat of the few tiny animals living here, this place was blocked off, and people are not allowed to enter."

We saw quite a few birds and squirrels as we walked the grassy trail. It was calming and refreshing—almost no pollution, and the fresh air felt sweet.

"Privilege of being a high-class devil, huh?" He joked, and I had to agree.

"Quite right."

His hands slid into the pockets of his pants. "How are you feeling now?" he finally asked, looking around at the birds.

"Better than before." I still hurt, and my right hand's bone was badly broken. "The magic healed quite a lot."

Thanks to it, even the broken bone had recovered, and I was pretty much back to normal.

It would have been fully healed if I had used the Phoenix Tears we had in the vault, but I didn't feel like wasting them after messing up so badly.

"Thank you for helping us," I recalled that he came back for us. "And I heard you saved Issei from two Fallens."

"Yeah… I killed them."

That was surprising. I didn't think he had it in him to kill someone.

"That—" I was about to praise him, but seeing his face, I realized it wasn't the best thing to do.

Instead, I placed my working hand on his shoulder.

"If you hadn't killed them, they would have killed Issei or come back for revenge." He paused as he felt my arm on his shoulder. "You made the right choice, Reo."

I understood how he felt. It's very common to feel that way.

"I went through the same thing," I told him. "Guilt, anger, sadness, and disgust."

"You did?" He appeared a little surprised.

I gave him a fake frown. "Why? Do you think that just because I'm a devil I can't feel bad?"

"N-No, I meant—"

"Relax," I said with a smile. "I was just teasing you. I can understand why you would think that."

Devils have never been associated with compassion.

"But when I was placed in a situation where I had to kill, where I had to take the lives of my enemies… I too felt the same things." I recalled being unable to eat or sleep for days. "It was the most confusing and self-loathing time of my life."

I was meant to kill them; it was my duty to protect my peerage. But he is merely a human.

Sorcerer or not, humans have different morals, and killing is much more complex for them.

However, he did the right thing.

"This feeling will stick with you for a while. But once you understand how cruel and disgusting the supernatural world can be, how they wouldn't bat an eye at killing innocents, and how foolish it is to leave such monsters alive instead of killing them—you will realize that you made the right choice."

"It's still difficult to adjust to," he sighed. "I haven't even hurt an animal before, and I ended up killing two Fallens."

"Animals are much kinder, Reo. The supernatural isn't," I said, unable to help myself.

"R-Rias?"

Despite the pain in my arm, I gave him a hug.

"You did the right thing," I whispered in his ear. "Don't blame yourself. You might have just saved the lives of a hundred innocent humans by doing that."

"I… see."

He didn't hug me back, but his heart felt much calmer.

Much lighter.

Whenever someone goes through such emotions, they always need someone to be with them. Sharing our feelings is the best way to calm them.

I'm glad I had people to share my worries with back then, and now I'm happy to be able to repay that debt by being with Reo.

"Thank you," he smiled. "I needed this."

Pulling back, I gave him a bright smile. "Always speak your heart when you're in pain."

He looked down at the ground for a bit, smiling peacefully.

After calming himself better than ever, he nodded. "I will."

He is a nice guy. It's rare to find people like him.

He didn't want much; he didn't even take the opportunity to become stronger, wealthier, or live a longer life.

Instead, he chose to remain human and live his normal life.

"Rias?" He called my name as we walked side by side. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

He glanced at me. "What have you been worried about?"

This caught me off guard.

"Worried?"

He nodded. "Yes, worried."

What does—

"This morning, the nightmare you had. You kept screaming for someone to save you, to take you out of it." We stood looking at one another. "And I can also feel that you're stressed about something in general. You've been trying to find someone for your peerage, and Sona also gave you the opportunity to recruit people first."

He talked with Sona?

"What's going on? What's worrying you?" He looked genuinely concerned about me.

And… it felt good.

I don't know.

It just feels nice that he is worried about me.

"It's complicated." I sighed. "I'd only bore you if I talked about it."

"I mean…" He gave a soft smile. "If it's something you can talk about, I don't mind listening. Speaking your heart always makes you feel lighter."

His smile was infectious.

"I doubt talking about it would make my situation any better." I couldn't help but smile back, despite my worries. "But do you still want to listen?"

He nodded. "I do."

Where do I even start?

"Let's talk as we walk," I suggested, wanting to continue the walk.

"Alright."

I wondered when was the last time I talked about my worries.

Most already knew, but they ignored them.

"Truth is," I took a deep breath, recalling the sour memory. "I'm already engaged."

I saw his feet pause, but surprisingly, he quickly regained his footing and matched my pace again.

"Oh?"

"It's mostly in name so far. I haven't had any rings or ceremonies for it." I tried my best to keep my smile. "But my father and the father of the guy have already decided that we will marry. And unlike with other families, I can't just decline."

"Politics?" He asked.

"Yeah."

It was a political marriage, and I could do nothing about it.

No, there was something I could do.

"Is there no way to break it off?" He asked, and I wondered if it was even possible at this time.

"After crying and arguing for days, I was given permission to break off this engagement only if I can win against the guy in a fair fight. It's supposed to be a peerage versus peerage match, and the prize for winning is my freedom. The cost of losing is him marrying me and taking Akeno and Koneko as his mistresses."

"That…" His forehead furrowed, frowning at the situation. "Is he strong?"

"He is." I wish he weren't. "His blood is of the Phenex, which gives him the inherent ability to heal any wound effortlessly. He is practically immortal with that power, and he has a full peerage, while I have only a few in mine."

He appeared astonished.

Anyone would be.

I had just revealed that I was engaged to a devil with a sort of immortality.

"That's why you wanted me to join your peerage?"

I felt like he might judge me or get angry—but he didn't.

Instead, he looked sad.

"Yes. That was the major reason."

"Oh." 

I could see that he wasn't sure what to say.

"It's fine." I didn't want to ruin his mood. "I will figure something out."

I have to.

I cannot let Akeno and Koneko suffer because of my incompetence.

I will do anything to make sure that they are safe.

"I see…" He looked down, thinking deeply.

"You don't ha—" I wanted to reassure him. I wanted to tell him not to worry, but I could. 

"Rias!"

Because trouble was something that had been following me for a while now.

"We have trouble." 

Akeno's voice rang in my ear.

"A rogue priest kidnapped a girl." 

Trouble just doesn't leave me, does it?

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