Streetlights flicked on one by one, their yellowish glow reflecting off the asphalt that was still warm from the day. The neighborhood was quiet, almost too quiet, a sharp contrast to the chaos that had unfolded just a few hours earlier.
Ace stopped in front of a two-story house that looked ordinary from the outside.
"We're here," he said briefly.
Asia stood beside him, holding her suitcase with both hands. She looked at the house for a moment, then turned to Ace.
"This is… your house, Ace-san?"
"Yeah," Ace replied as he opened the gate. "Relax, I'm home!"
Asia followed Ace inside the house. "Excuse me, sorry for the intrusion."
Lala, who heard Ace, came over to them. "Ace, weren't you in the basement earlier? How did you suddenly end up outside?"
"Kamiyama-san called me, so I went out for a bit," Ace answered.
Lala noticed the blonde girl behind Ace. "Who's this?"
"Oh, this is Asia. She's having some trouble, so I'm helping her."
Asia bowed slightly. "Sorry to trouble you."
Lala smiled. "It's fine. Ace does like helping people, especially girls."
"Lala, please show Asia to the guest room. She'll be staying here tonight," Ace said.
"Okay," Lala replied.
Ace walked over to Craftbot, who was pressing numbers on a phone. Ace grabbed its head and pulled it away from the phone. "What are you doing?"
(This is what craftbot looks like)
Craftbot struggled to shake Ace's hand off its head. "What else? Reporting this to your mother."
"Why do you need to report it? Do you really have to report everything?" Ace asked, confused.
"Normally no, but a few days ago you came home carrying an unconscious girl, and now you're bringing another one. And both of them are blonde. Of course I have to report this," Craftbot replied.
"That was only twice. Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern. So this is just a coincidence," Ace said.
Craftbot rubbed its chin thoughtfully. "Hmm…"
While Ace and Craftbot were arguing, Lala showed Asia the guest room. "This is the guest room. You can use this room."
Asia bowed slightly. "Thank you, Lala-san."
Lala returned to the living room and saw Ace and Craftbot fighting.
Craftbot pinched both of Ace's cheeks and pulled hard, while Ace pressed down firmly on Craftbot's head.
"Ow, Ace, don't press my head so hard."
"Yhou alscho shhtop pullhing my cheeksh!"
After they finished, Ace walked over to Lala, who was watching TV. "Lala, can you treat my cheeks?" Ace handed her some ointment.
"You're suddenly acting spoiled, Ace," Lala said as she applied the ointment to Ace's red cheeks.
Craftbot floated angrily in front of Ace. "Ace! You pressed my head too hard, look, there are marks!" It pointed at the fingerprints on its head.
"Just repaint it and it'll be gone," Ace said.
"What?!" Craftbot snapped.
While they were still arguing, Asia came into the living room. "Um…"
The three of them turned toward her.
Lala gestured for Asia to come closer. "Come on, Asia, let's watch something."
Ace stood up from the sofa.
"Where are you going, Ace?" Craftbot asked.
"To cook. Help me," Ace said.
"Alright, alright."
After a few minutes, the food was ready. Once they finished eating, Ace told Asia about what had happened.
"Why didn't you take me with you, Ace?! I've upgraded my armor, I wanted to try it out," Lala complained.
"Even if your armor is strong, you still lack combat experience. It's still dangerous. But we can look for a level 2 or semi–level 1 cursed spirit for you to fight sometime," Ace said, trying to reassure her.
After that, they went to their respective rooms to sleep. As Ace was about to enter his room.
"Ace-san!"
Ace turned toward Asia. "What is it, Asia?"
Asia spoke shyly, bowing slightly. "Once again, thank you so much for helping me!"
Ace smiled. "I told you, it's no problem. You should get some sleep. You must be tired, right?" He went into his room, and Asia returned to hers.
---
Kento and the two devil heiresses were waiting for Azazel.
"So, Fukumiya-san, what exactly happened here?" Sona asked.
Kento glanced at them. "You don't even know what's happening in your own territory," he mocked.
"We were dealing with something else," Rias replied.
"Something else? Even so, that's no excuse to ignore what's happening in your own area," Kento said.
At that moment, Azazel descended from the sky. "Well, well, look at this. Isn't this Kento?"
Azazel floated down slowly, his hands casually tucked into his jacket pockets, as if the tense atmosphere was nothing more than small talk.
Kento looked up at Azazel. "It's been a long time, Azazel."
"Yeah, about twenty years. You were still a kid back then, and you still remember me. I'm touched," Azazel said.
"Your subordinates caused trouble. You should keep a closer eye on them," Kento said.
"Relax, relax," Azazel replied with a wide grin. "I understand the situation. Raynare and the others acted without orders."
Rias frowned. "Without orders… but their movements were pretty organized. It's hard to believe it was just personal initiative."
Azazel rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, let's just say there's some internal trouble within Grigori."
Kento nodded as if he understood. "So who's behind this trouble? We'd like to investigate."
Azazel looked at Kento for a moment, his smile thinning. "You're as sharp as your father."
Hearing that, Kento's eye twitched slightly.
"You know Kokabiel, right? He wants to start a war again. We're searching for him, but he's hiding, so you should be careful," Azazel said.
"Kokabiel… I see. I'll inform the council to search for and secure him," Kento replied.
"We'll inform our older brothers and sisters as well," Sona added.
"Alright then, I'll head back and punish them," Azazel said, taking Raynare and the others with him.
Magic circles appeared beneath the fallen angels' feet. "Ah, it seems Kurayami has already found a new owner."
The light faded, leaving the church grounds silent once more.
Kento's eye twitched again.
---
The next morning, after they finished breakfast—
"Asia… Lala and I are heading to school. Stay home for now. If you need anything, tell Craftbot or call me. Craftbot, look after Asia," Ace said.
"Even if you didn't say it, I would," Craftbot replied.
"Alright then, see you after school, Asia. Let's go, Lala." Ace headed out.
"Bye, Asia! Bye, Craftbot!" Lala followed him.
When Ace arrived in class, he saw Masachika looking more exhausted than usual.
"Why do you look more tired than usual?" Ace asked.
"Ogami-sensei's training has gotten even tougher," Masachika replied.
"If you're exhausted, you should tell Ogami-sensei. He won't force you. He'll say, 'Rest is just as important as training,'" Ace said, imitating Ogami.
Masachika rested his chin on his hand. "I guess you're right."
"By the way, are you still practicing swordsmanship?" Ace asked.
"Now we sometimes train bare-handed too. He says it's in case we lose our swords," Masachika replied.
Ace nodded. "That's exactly what I'd expect from Ogami-sensei."
The bell rang and the teacher entered the classroom.
"Right, I should train bare-handed too. What do you think, system?" Ace thought.
[Not recommended, as you do not need it.]
"Why? Like Masachika said, what if I don't have a weapon when an enemy attacks?" Ace thought.
[Host, you are the last person in the universe who would be without a weapon when attacked.]
"…You're right. But I still want to train."
During lunch break, as usual, Ace was eating with his friends, with one extra person: Kirisaki Chitoge, Raku's fiancée. Chitoge was a new student, but Ace didn't notice because he was busy talking to the system.
After lunch, Ace saw Masachika and Alya confronting Taniyama Sayaka, just like in the Roshidere series.
When it was time to go home, Ace ran into Miko.
"What is it, Yotsuya-san?"
Miko hesitated slightly. "Um… you know the cursed spirit in my house… could you exorcise it?"
"Of course. When?" Ace asked.
"Um… h-how about today?"
"Sure. I don't have any plans today."
Ace walked over to Lala, who was talking with Yuki. "Lala, I'm going to help Yotsuya-san, so you can head home first."
"Okay!" Lala replied.
---
Sword of Logos Northern Base, North Pole.
Kento entered the base and called out to Sophia. "Sophia-san."
Sophia, who was seated, looked up. "What is it, Kento?"
"It's about the fallen angels. It seems one of the Grigori cadre wants to restart the war," Kento said.
Sophia stood up. "I see. I'll inform all members to gather information on this. We may also need to request help from the southern base."
"Then I'll begin my own search," Kento said, stepping through a portal.
"Be careful, Kento," Sophia said.