"Calm down, Grayfia." The man chuckled, placing a hand on the maid's shoulder as he stepped out from behind her with a smile "I suppose this is what I get for dropping in unannounced…if I'd known Ria-tan had guests over I'd have taken better care to reign in my power."
"S-Sirzechs Onii-sama…!" Rias stammered, the heiress looking torn between relief that Shirou hadn't assaulted her elder brother and shocked by said elder sibling's presence in her club-room "What are you doing here?"
"Nii-sama?" Shirou repeated, blinking at the normally cheerful heiress in confusion even as he dismissed his blades, much to the relief of Kiba and Koneko, who stepped back with twin sighs of relief "Wait…isn't Rias' brother-?"
"Sirzechs Lucifer." Xenovia supplied from the side, the former exorcist's gaze locked firmly on the redheaded man, her body trembling, as if repressing the urge to flee with all her willpower "Former heir to the house of Gremory, Leader of the Four Satans and the strongest Devil in recorded History."
"It would appear my reputation precedes me." Sirzechs chuckled, looking honestly flustered by the attention as he rubbed the back of his head "If memory serves you must be Xenovia Quarta, Durandal's chosen wielder, correct?" he turned to regard Shirou "Which means you must be Emiya Shirou."
"Ah, yes." Shirou stammered, the redhead hurriedly offering a polite bow towards the Ruler of Hell, shivering as the sheer magnitude of what he'd almost done finally struck home "S-sorry about earlier…"
"Don't mention it. I tend to have that effect on people when we first meet." Sirzechs assured him with an amused smile "Though I have to admit you surprised me. Regardless of species, most people tend to faint or run away when I forget to reign myself in." he chuckled, looking honestly amused and strangely approving "You're the first to try and attack me, it's actually rather refreshing!"
"Your...welcome?" Shirou offered, glancing between the chuckling Satan and the rest of the room, only for Rias and the maid, Grayfia, to sigh in exasperation, the two women clearly used to the man's behaviour, while Akeno merely tittered behind her hand, clearly enjoying the spectacle.
Then again, Shirou could kind of understand why Sirzechs could be so cavalier about his attempted murder. Even though the wave of power from before had vanished, he could still smell traces of it emanating from the man, as if someone had erected a dam in a failed attempt to hold back an ocean.
Not even Kokabiel had possessed that much power, and Shirou had only managed to defeat the Fallen Star of God through the use of Archer's arm in combination with Issei's Boosted Gear. The fact Sirzechs could be so friendly despite possessing such overwhelming power just made him all the more terrifying.
'At least he isn't an arrogant ass about it.' Shirou noted, recalling how Gilgamesh had lorded his superiority over everyone and everything he laid eyes upon. True, the Golden King of Heroes had a reason for his arrogance, but it was still a refreshing change of pace, pants-wetting terror aside.
"You still haven't answered my question, Nii-sama." Rias cut in, the heiress coughing into her fist to draw her elder brother's attention back to her "Just what brings you to the Human World?"
"You honestly don't know?" Sirzechs mused, a teasing smile forming on his face that reminded Shirou far-too-much of Fuji-nee whenever she was in one of her more playful moods "Isn't it almost time for open-house?"
'Was it seriously that time of year?' Shirou wondered, ignoring Rias' squawk of alarm in favour of marveling at how quickly time had flown. While he'd never really paid much attention to Open-house back at Homurahara, the other students had really invested in the occasion, treating it like an unofficial sporting event of festival.
"I have to admit, both father and I have been rather looking forward to seeing how seriously Ria-tan has been taking her studies." Sirzechs gushed, clearly enjoying Rias' embarrassment in a way only an older sibling could, to the point Shirou actually felt sympathy for the girl, as Lord only knew he'd suffered similarly with Fuji-nee as a guardian.
"Grayfia!" Rias exclaimed suddenly, rounding on the silver-haired maid with an indignant glare, her features a mask of betrayal "It was you, wasn't it? You're the one who told him, aren't you?!"
"But of course." The maid, Grayfia, confirmed, her calm, reserved tone a stark contrast to Rias' own indignation or Sirzechs' amusement "As the Chief Maid of House Gremory, I have been entrusted with overseeing all the reports from the school, and as Lord Sirzechs' Queen, it is my duty to keep him informed of any and all developments here." She turned to regard Shirou with an unreadable expression "Regardless of how minor."
Shirou shivered, unable to help drawing parallels between the demonic maid before him and Sella, the older of the two Homunculus maids that had been entrusted with caring for Illyasviel during her stay in Fuyuki. While he hadn't spent much time in her company, it was clear from her posture and clipped tone that she highly disapproved of his presence, and that it was only Ilya's orders that she endured it.
"Even if that's the case, putting Father aside, it's still highly irresponsible of you, Nii-sama!" Rias persisted, clearly unwilling to give up without a fight "What would the people think if they learnt the Devil King ignored his duties to attend something so mundane?"
"You really are a good girl, Ria-tan." Sirzechs chuckled, reaching out to ruffle her mane of crimson hair, earning only a halfhearted resistance from the girl "But don't worry, do you really think Grayfia would've consented to my coming here if it would adversely affect my work?"
"That's…true I suppose." Rias conceded, flushing slightly as her brother continued to ruffle her hair dotingly "But then why have you come today? Open House isn't until tomorrow?"
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