After dinner, Ethan, Mio, and Maria arrived at Basara's home. Yuki and Kurumi naturally followed. Basara had called them earlier, and after hearing the description of the attacker, Ethan had a rough idea of how to rescue the succubus pair. However, the execution required careful planning.
In the living room, Basara served tea and snacks as they talked. Ethan first shared the intel from Rias, then said, "The one who attacked you is likely Zolgear's subordinate. They probably wanted to kidnap you to threaten Mio."
Knowing the sisters' mission, Basara's mindset was much calmer. The Hero Village wasn't great to him, but his old friends were fine. He would have felt conflicted if their mission clashed, which was why he had been avoiding them. Everyone agreed with Ethan's deduction, especially after Maria confirmed that the person who contacted her was the same one who attacked Basara.
"That person is strong, but definitely no match for you, Ethan," Basara said, touching a fresh scratch on his face. "They don't have the strength to take Mio by force, but Maria's family is a problem."
"It's not that much of a problem," Ethan said calmly. "Everything is solved if Zolgear dies."
"Zolgear is an old-school Devil King powerhouse," Kurumi frowned. "Unless you can kill him instantly, Maria's mother and sister will be in danger. I think it's better to rescue them first."
Maria gave Kurumi a look of gratitude. She didn't care if Zolgear lived or died; she just wanted her family safe.
"True, that's safer," Ethan agreed. He was an Ultra Devil King, but even with the Balance Breaker of a Longinus, he couldn't guarantee an instant kill on Zolgear. Unless he reached God-class. Given enough time, Ethan surely could, but Zolgear wouldn't give him that time.
"That old man really loves using hostages. What a pain..." Ethan spat, remembering how Mio's parents were used the same way. Back then, he had been able to rescue the Naruse couple silently and use a "golden cicada shedding its skin" trick so they could live under Gremory protection. But saving Sheera and Lucia from Zolgear wouldn't be as easy; it was arguably harder than killing the man himself. Zolgear was a master of magic; rescuing them undetected was nearly impossible. Plus, he had to find their hiding place first.
Everyone realized the issue and fell silent. Even Rias hadn't come up with a perfect plan, let alone Basara. Rias's planning was top-tier, but without better intelligence, she was limited.
After a moment, Ethan spoke. "I have a method, but there's some risk."
Everyone looked up in surprise. Basara said, "Tell us, Ethan. It's better than sitting here."
"The idea is simple," Ethan mused. "Zolgear can take hostages, so why can't we? The subordinates he took with him must know his location. Those sent on missions are his inner circle. If we can catch that masked man..."
The realization dawned on everyone. The plan was feasible, but there were many variables. First, as a loyal subordinate, torture might not break him. Even if he talked, they couldn't verify if the location was a trap. There were also secret signals to consider. One mistake could lead to the death of the hostages. Once the plan failed, the dying Zolgear would certainly go berserk.
Ethan knew the masked man, Lars, was a secret traitor. If he brought the Naruse couple out, Lars would surely betray Zolgear. Once the hiding place was found, he could also flip Zest. That dark-skinned, busty homunculus girl had a will to resist Zolgear; if she hadn't been created in the image of his lover, she'd have been erased long ago. Basara and the others didn't know this, and Ethan couldn't explain it. Of course, he couldn't guarantee Lars and Zest were exactly like his memories either. Like the change in the sisters, any error would be troublesome.
"If that doesn't work, there's another way," Ethan continued. "But this way requires Mio to take a risk."
He explained quickly: Maria would bring Mio to Zolgear in exchange for Sheera and Lucia. Zolgear wouldn't kill Mio immediately, which would give Ethan and the others an opening to strike. But this also had risks. One was Maria's acting—could she fool an old fox like Zolgear? If she failed, Mio might be handed over without getting the hostages back. Second, they might not be able to save Mio before Zolgear acted. Mio wouldn't die, but if her power was drained and her body violated, killing Zolgear afterward would be meaningless.
Ethan was reluctant to use the second plan. If forced to choose between the succubi and Mio, he would choose the redheaded tsundere beauty every time. Sheera and Lucia were great, but he had no real connection to them. As for Mio... he already considered her his woman. No one else was allowed to touch a hair on her head.
The atmosphere remained heavy. The second plan spared the succubi from risk but put Mio in great danger.
"Let's do it," Mio said, clenching her fists. "We have to save Maria's family."
"Mio-sama..." The succubus loli was moved to tears but ultimately refused. "No, I can't let you take that risk." If she wanted that, she wouldn't have confessed the threat in the first place.
Kurumi added, "I don't recommend it either. If Mio disappears, as her monitor, I'd have to report it. The village would act, and they would rather sacrifice one Mio to stop Zolgear."
They had only known each other for a week. They were on good terms, but the bond wasn't deep enough for the sisters to abandon the village for Ethan's side. Basara stared at his cousins, his expression growing grimmer.
Ethan fell silent. He knew it couldn't be rushed. There was still room to maneuver, and they needed a proper opportunity. That opportunity would be the next time Zolgear contacted Maria. Time was running out for the old man, and every day he hid in the Underworld increased his risk of being caught by the Devil King's forces.
Three days later, Saturday.
On a quiet morning, Ethan had one arm around Mio and the other around Yuki. Feeling their seductive, fragrant bodies, ripples began to form in his calm heart. Because Zolgear could strike at any time, Ethan had been staying by Mio's side. Yuki, who was monitoring him, had moved from standing by the bed to sleeping in his arms.
The fragrance unique to pure maidens stimulated Ethan's nerves. Even though he had played with almost every part of them over the past few days—doing everything but the final act—having two perfect, naked bodies in his arms still made him burn with desire. Yuki and Mio's feelings were clear: they were ready whenever he was. Ethan wasn't intentionally holding back; he was just being mindful of Maria's emotional state.