Rod's meeting with Gabriel ended quickly.
Gabriel was, after all, a Seraph, and with the conference taking place tomorrow, there were many things she still had to prepare.
Rod, on the other hand, had not come for nothing this time. Aside from getting a Holy Sword for free, he had also managed to get up close to Heaven's number one pair.
When he left the church and drove home, Xenovia and Irina were kept behind by Gabriel.
Since they would be taking part in the conference as guards, Rod did not say much and simply drove back home.
"Did Xenovia and Irina not come back with you, Mr. Rod?"
Seeing that Rod had returned alone, Asia asked curiously.
"No. Gabriel summoned them separately for a different matter."
After all, the current situation was completely different from the original story.
In truth, there had only been one thing Rod changed back then.
He had not let Kokabiel get the chance to reveal the news that God was dead.
A single change had altered Xenovia's fate and kept Rias from benefiting off it.
"Ga... Gabriel?!"
Asia did not react at first, but the moment she processed the name Rod had just said, her eyes widened like bells.
"Then... does that mean..."
"Yeah, it's Seraph Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphs."
Rod nodded.
In truth, Heaven did not have only four Seraphs. It was just that among them, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael were the four with the most special status.
If Rod remembered correctly, there were also Metatron, Sandalphon, and Raziel among the others.
Actually, the number of Seraphs alone was enough to show that Heaven really was the strongest of the three factions.
A Seraph's strength was roughly on par with Maou-class.
And if you added in the God of the Bible while he was still alive, Heaven was unquestionably the number one power in the world.
After all, beings on the level of Seraphs would already count as chief gods.
"I-it really was Lady Gabriel?! Th-then if that's the case, will the Lord also appear in Kuoh?"
Hearing that, Rod thought to himself that the grass on the grave of the God of the Bible was already several meter high. If she were still alive, there would be no need for the three factions to hold peace talks.
The Underworld and the fallen angels would not even have the qualification to negotiate.
After all, if Rod remembered correctly, that war back then had actually been started by the God of the Bible (herself).
It had not been because of some "battle is fun" mindset either, but because after sealing away the Beast of Revelation and learning that her end was approaching, the God of the Bible decided to wipe out the fallen angels and the Underworld, both of which were capable of threatening Heaven and humanity.
A textbook case of the Legendary Lovebird turning into a conqueror.
Unfortunately, the founder had not even finished the campaign before dying halfway through, exiting the stage in vain.
"God probably won't appear. Only the Seraphs will be attending this conference."
Rod decided to keep the truth that God was dead sealed away for now.
With a heart as fragile as Asia's, he felt she would faint on the spot if she found out.
"Do you want to go see a Seraph with your own eyes? Once the conference starts, I can take you along and let you see the world a bit."
"Huh? C-can I? N-no, it's better not. I'd definitely embarrass myself, and that would only cause trouble for you, Mr. Rod."
After agonizing over it for several seconds, Asia hurriedly waved both hands.
Seeing that, Rod did not force the matter.
"Then afterward, I'll get you an autographed photo of Gabriel."
At that, Asia nodded over and over again.
And once the two of them had finished talking, Kuroka padded over with her catlike steps, then jumped into Asia's arms and asked, "Can I come to tomorrow night's conference too, nya? Shirone will be there, nya."
"First go ask Koneko whether she'll allow you to go, then come ask me."
"Okay, nya."
After saying that, Kuroka jumped out of Asia's arms, slipped outside, made one round around the courtyard, and came back a few seconds later.
"Little sister agreed, nya. She said she wants to see big sister tomorrow night, nya."
"..."
Rod was speechless.
You think I'm blind?
"All right, then. This time I'll just bring Lavinia with me. Everyone else stays here."
Lavinia had also been one of the people involved in the Kokabiel incident, so there was no problem with her attending the conference.
Hearing that, the blonde girl quietly nodded at Rod.
As long as she listened to him, that was enough.
And according to what she had heard, the White Dragon Emperor Vali was one of Azazel's people, so perhaps she might see him at the conference.
...
Time quickly advanced to the weekend.
And that also happened to be the very day the conference between the three major factions was to be held.
Before it was even time to get up, Katerea used the scale to remotely contact Rod and do a brief review of the plan.
Rod was not worried that Katerea would mess up the plan.
After all, it had never been some elaborate scheme to begin with.
For it to succeed, two things mattered: first, deceiving the rest of the Khaos Brigade, and second, trusting in the character of Sirzechs and Serafall.
To be honest, if these had been devils from some other world, the plan Rod proposed would have failed without question.
But as Maou, Sirzechs and Serafall had more humanity than many actual humans.
"There's one more thing. Azazel's subordinate, the White Dragon Emperor Vali, is a sleeper agent we contacted. He agreed to help us disrupt the conference. If we make our move, he may interfere with us, so you need to be careful."
"Got it."
After that, Katerea ended the communication.
...
By evening, after dinner.
Rias's familiar drove Rod and Lavinia to Kuoh Academy.
On the way there, Lavinia clutched tightly at Rod's sleeve, seemingly carrying a trace of nervousness about possibly seeing Vali again.
"Don't worry. This time, even if I have to drag him over, I'll bring him to you."
Rod spoke with a light laugh.
Hearing that, Lavinia let out a soft sigh.
"That child is very stubborn. If you do that, it might backfire."
"If we can talk it out properly, that would naturally be best. But you saw him that day too. He clearly wasn't someone willing to have a proper conversation."
Rod shrugged.
"Don't worry. I won't hurt him."
"No, I'm worried Rod will get hurt..."
At those words, a strange expression appeared on Lavinia's face.
"Vali, like me, awakened his Longinus from a young age, and he trains very diligently. He mastered the use of Balance Breaker when he was still a child. After so many years, he may already have reached an even higher level. But you're still only a beginner with your Longinus..."
"Oh, right. Regarding Balance Breaker, have you felt anything lately?"
Lavinia asked with obvious concern.
"You've been watching a lot lately, so that should have something to do with your Balance Breaker too, right? Are you planning to make your Longinus develop in an armored direction?"
"Yeah."
Rod nodded.
Though everyone said cramming at the last minute might not help, he really had begun to feel something similar regarding the Balance Breaker of Incinerate Anthem lately.
Its development toward an armored form was basically certain by now. The only question was what it would end up looking like.
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