Chapter 39 “A Home Fit for a King”

"Baraqiel does. " Albedo came downstairs too.

Kenji saw that she was limping slightly, as well as completely naked. "If he'd done it yesterday, I'd have won.

If he did it two days before, Tobio would've won, if he did it tomorrow, you'd have won, Pen, but if he did it in two days time, Azazel would've won. "

"You were betting on-" Kenji asked.

"When you would make Valian your Queen. " Penemue answered.

"It's just between the higher-ups of the Grigori, though. "

"Oh, I nearly forgot. " Albedo added.

"If you made Valian your Queen three days from now, Shemhazai would win. " Kenji shook his head.

"Tell Baraqiel he's welcome from me. " Kenji said dryly, flopping down onto the sofa.

"Anything else I need to know?"

"Yes, actually. " Penemue grinned.

"Albedo and I are moving into your house and living with you!"

"WHAT?" Kenji sat up and yelled. "Who's bright idea was this?"

"Mine, Valian's and Azazel's. " Penemue replied.

"Or rather just mine, Valian and Azazel support the idea. "

"But we don't have enough space in this place!" Kenji said.

"That can be fixed. " Valian said.

"Azazel's going to renovate the house himself. "

"Oh, okay. " Kenji said, lying back.

"Just as long as it isn't too big. "

Line Break

"What part of 'not too big' do these guys not understand?" Kenji asked himself, as he stood in front of his new house.

It was, to put it bluntly, fucking massive. It was a seven-story mansion (not counting the three underground floors), with, according to the list of features Baraqiel had given him (along with his thanks of making Valian his Queen on a day of which he would win the pool): a swimming pool, a movie theatre, a bar, an infirmary, its own battle-dimension room, a musical room, a gaming room, a bath that covered the whole roof (with a magic spell over it so no perverts like Azazel could fly over and watch Valian, Penemue or Albedo having a bath), 100 bedrooms (20 each on the first, second, third, fourth and fifth floors), and.

. .

a sex chamber.

"Really?" Kenji asked Baraqiel, after looking at the words on the paper.

"Apparently it was Penemue and Albedo's idea. " Baraqiel said, turning to Kenji.

"I can tell you, I'd have liked a sex chamber for where I live. "

"What?" Kenji turned to the strongest member of the Cadre. "You have a wife?"

"I did. " Baraqiel said, his eyes gaining a sad look in them, which Kenji noticed.

"Sorry. " Kenji said, hurridly.

"I didn't mean to bring up bad-"

"It's fine. " Baraqiel replied, turning to Kenji.

"I've moved on from her now. "

"What was she-?" Kenji asked, but Baraqiel cut across him.

"She was called Shuri Himejima. " He said.

"Himejima?" Kenji asked. "I heard Tobio mentioning that name once or twice.

"

"Yes. " Baraqiel replied.

"He's my nephew-in-law. The Himejima Clan are one of the Five Great Families which are linked to the Shinto Pantheon, and Shuri was a part of that clan, until one day, I was injured from a fight and collapsed, near to where Shuri lived at that time.

She took me in and nursed me back to health, not caring that I was a Fallen Angel, or a member of a different faction to which she served. "

"Sounds like a real lovely person. " Kenji said.

"She was. Believe me, she was.

" Baraqiel replied, a smile on his face. "But when her family found out that she had fallen in love with me and planned to marry me, they disowned her from the family and said that she could basically never call herself a Himejima ever again.

" Kenji unconsciously clenched his fists and growled under his breath.

That sounded a bit like what his family had done to him. And he had a serious issue with that.

"Those bastards. .

. " Kenji muttered.

"We are of one mind. " Baraqiel replied.

"It took a long time, but Shuri eventually got over it, and we married and had a child. " Baraqiel grinned.

"Who'd have guessed that she was a dominatrix-type in bed?"

"Okay, okay, I don't need to hear about your sex life. " Kenji replied.

"What of the kid you had?"

"We named her Akeno Himejima. " Baraqiel said.

"And we lived happily for about seven years, until. .

. "

"Yes?" Kenji asked, sensing that Baraqiel was about to reveal something really unpleasant.

"One day, I had to go out on a mission with the Grigori. " Baraqiel said.

"I can't remember what the mission was, but when I got back from the mission, there were assassins from the Himejima family, who apparently couldn't stand to see Shuri so happy with herself-"

"How would they know that?" Kenji asked. "If they cut all ties with her, they'd just leave her alone with you, wouldn't they?"

"That's a question I cannot answer. " Baraqiel replied.

"But anyway, when I got back from the mission, thenfirst thing I saw were the assassins, coming out of the shrine we lived in, and talking about finishing her off. "

"No. .

. " Kenji knew exactly what was coming.

"Once I heard that, I killed them out of anger, ran into the shrine, and found Shuri dead, and Akeno crying. " Baraqiel said, his voice trembling, but he managed to keep it together.

"But the worst of it was that Akeno blamed, and likely still blames, me for her mother's death-"

"You aren't responsible. " Kenji said, his face hardening.

"It was those fucking assassins that are to blame!"

"Yes, I know. " Baraqiel said.

"I've come to accept that now. I still feel sad about what happened that day, but it isn't worth moping over.

"

"Indeed. " Kenji replied.

"It isn't good to live in the past. " Baraqiel nodded.

"I'm gonna go check out my new place. " Kenji said.

"See you, Baraqiel. " Baraqiel nodded to Kenji again, and left in a flash of black feathers.