The appearance of the Satans took Rhodes by surprise. His first thought was that Rias might have arranged this, but seeing the massive reactions from her and Sona, it was clearly not their doing. At the very least, Sona Sitri would never have let her sister, Serafall, come out in public dressed like that.
"Sister! Why didn't you tell me you were coming?!" Sona cried, struggling to peel the clinging Serafall off her body, her expression one of utter dissatisfaction.
"Sirzechs and I talked it over and decided to give you and Rias a special surprise! Hehe!" Serafall tried to hug Sona again, only to be held back by Sona's stiff arms.
Sona wasn't buying it. "This isn't a surprise! It's a jump scare! And even if you're visiting in secret, please don't dress like this! It's fine in private, but we're hosting a guest right now! Even if you don't wear your formal Satan uniform, you should at least wear normal clothes!"
Serafall looked utterly perplexed. "Eh? But this is my formal attire! I spent so much time picking this out specifically to meet Sona-chan's savior!"
Faced with Sona's interrogation, Serafall simply struck a cute magical girl pose. In the room, only Rhodes—with his broad range of "hobbies"—actually thought she was cute. Everyone else was simply terrified by their status.
Even Lavinia felt the weight of the moment. As a witch, dealing with devils was part of the job; she had even signed a contract with an Underworld devil in the past, though it had long since expired. But this was her first time meeting the sitting Satans.
Kuroka's behavior was even more pathetic. The moment they announced their titles, she stopped harassing her sister, Shirone. She was on the verge of hissing, nearly entering a full "spiny-back dinosaur" defensive mode. Looking at her twitching tail, Rhodes knew she was panicking internally.
Xenovia and Irina's reactions were just as severe. They had expected a simple dinner, not an encounter with the rulers of the Underworld. As Holy Sword users, they had been raised to believe devils were evil and the Satans were the Kings of Evil—Satan himself, the ultimate demons that only Seraphs like Michael could challenge. Given the setting, and because their experience differed from the original plot (meaning they didn't know God was dead), their reaction was even more intense than Kuroka's.
Xenovia's hand went instinctively to the hilt of her hidden sword, Durandal. This was a legendary holy sword on par with Excalibur. In terms of raw sharpness, Durandal was the strongest of them all. Her instincts as a Holy Sword user warned her that these opponents were not to be taken lightly; she needed to strike with everything she had.
Yet, even as she gripped the hilt, Xenovia's hands were trembling uncontrollably. The devils in the room felt their skin prickle from the holy aura radiating from Durandal.
Sirzechs's expression remained unchanged, his gaze mild as he looked at Xenovia. "That is Durandal, isn't it? A powerful sword equal to the Excalibur that was shattered all those years ago. I see they've found a worthy successor."
"But there is no need for such concern. I harbor no ill will toward the Church, especially since I'm appearing today as Rias's brother."
"Put it away, Xenovia," Rhodes said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
The girl hesitated for a moment before finally letting Durandal vanish back into its pocket dimension. She didn't trust Sirzechs or these devils, but she trusted Rhodes. He was a comrade who had fought by her side and was currently the one providing for her and Irina.
"Everyone, please sit. It seems you haven't finished your meal," Sirzechs said with a smile. "Serafall and I haven't had dinner yet either. Rias, you don't mind if we join you, do you?"
"There are no seats left!" Rias snapped, glaring at her brother. He hadn't given her a single heads-up. If Rhodes misunderstood and thought this was her idea, his favorability of her might drop! She made a mental note to explain everything to Rhodes after her brother left.
"No matter, we can squeeze in," Sirzechs said, completely unfazed.
Ultimately, Sirzechs and Serafall managed to secure seats. Sona and Rias couldn't exactly leave them standing—regardless of being their siblings, their status as Satans made it impossible.
The banquet, originally meant for Rhodes, continued under a bizarre atmosphere. Though Sirzechs and Serafall claimed they wanted to blend in with the "youthful vibe," the others couldn't exactly let loose and speak their minds. The gap in age and status was simply too wide.
As the guest of honor, Rhodes naturally became the focus of the two Satans.
"So, you're the human who killed Kokabiel? You're much handsomer than I imagined! I was expecting some old man," Serafall said. Having heard that a powerful human had slain a Fallen Angel leader, her first instinct had been to imagine a grizzled veteran. After all, most of the talented younger generation of humans had already been snatched up by various factions. A human like Rhodes, who belonged to no one, was rarer than a giant panda—especially one with that much power.
"Sister, can you show some respect? Mr. Rhodes is my savior!" Sona protested. She was mortified that her sister had imagined her hero as an old man. Rhodes was easily the most handsome man she had ever met.
"Well, I know that now! It's fine, Sona-chan. Besides, you're the one being mean—you found out about the Fallen Angels and didn't tell your sister! And when Kokabiel attacked, you didn't contact me immediately! When I heard, I was so devastated I almost launched an invasion against Grigori! ~~~"
That's exactly why I didn't want to tell you! Sona screamed internally. They were both Satans; why was her sister so unprofessional?
Rhodes also found it a bit hard to keep a straight face. From an outsider's perspective, Serafall's personality didn't exactly scream "Satan Leviathan." Even setting Katerea aside, Rhodes remembered a female devil named Grayfia. She was roughly the same age and just as strong as Serafall; the two had been rivals during the Underworld civil war.
Thinking of this, Rhodes found it odd. Usually, Sirzechs took Grayfia with him whenever he went "incognito." Why wasn't she here this time?
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High School DxD : Reincarnated into the Multiverse, but it's High School DxD (216 Chapters – Ongoing)
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