Ray stood on the sidelines. Anna Blair's therapy had brought about a fierce sense of competitiveness. She who had started as the strongest of the group, had now reclaimed her rightful spot.
*WHOOSH!*
The girls couldn't only stare in awe at her powers' spreading destruction and beauty.
Even Ray stared at her skilful use of Natural Pigmentation to decompose into thousands of small leaves and flowers ranging from all kinds from marguerites to sunflower petals, stringing along a scent of nature and peace that didn't go along the destruction her powers caused, entwining her foes, piercing their bodies and corroding them from the inside.
Those void creatures didn't even have a chance, let alone the girls who desperately sought to compete before they were even able to.
The elf danced before her Lord, displaying her skills eagerly with the most beauty that she could output, her hand extended forth as she re-materialised and in it, a bow made out of flowers and roots.
A gigantic void walked humongous.
<5th Tier: Thunderstrike!>
As if resembling the god of thunder, Thor, this void created a hammer made out of thunder. A pity for him as his thunder hammer flickered, sending him into a row of confusion before the hammer flew off his hand and landed on a flying Akeno who grinned at finally having her chance.
"Look at me, Ray!"
The hammer changed colours from a feeble blue into a rampaging white that nearly blinded everyone present.
*BAANG!*
With a fierce step she swung all her momentum carrying that hammer, using her wings to propel herself.
"HAAAA!!"
*BOOOOMMMM!!*
Akeno smashed.
The lightening explosion shook the cave and sent the storm of flower petals into a disarray. The void was obliterated and his smaller minions alongside him within the lighting storm that unfolded right after.
"That was cool~" Ray hugged Akeno from behind.
The priestess giggled and turned her head around plucking her lips with a request.
The Sun God met that request with a soft peck on his girlfriend's waiting lips, Akeno blushed, not expecting him to comply.
She turned around and hugged him back ignoring the piercing glares around.
"Cool, right? That could be us if you leave like that again next evening~"
"…"
Ray sweat a droplet, who was getting smashed? There were yet doubts lingering. The girls still weren't too happy over his little escapade with Anna Blair.
They saw the brightness of her expression, the arrogance of her behaviour, her obsessive eyes and the power beneath her might. They concluded she received a secret massage while they were left to waste in the pond.
"Akeno, I love you" Ray mumbled romantically to a hopeless stonewall of degeneracy.
"If you love me then let me tie you down!~"
"There are different levels within love…" he tried to push her away but she wouldn't let go! There was a new face to his girlfriend that he didn't know and didn't want to explore further.
"Akeno, that's enough…" Rias remarked, saving the day... although she looked like she wanted to let Ray suffer a bit more if only that resolution weren't a double-edged sword on herself.
She couldn't decide whether she wanted to see the Sun God tied up or not.
Hearing her king's authority, Akeno giggled and released her boyfriend, not before whispering on his ears that he 'better be prepared for tonight', a remark Ray laughed to in utter dismissal, already starting to make plans for the evening.
The Sun God would never allow that to sun fall.
...
"Anna, would you join my peerage?" Rias whispered as they headed down the tunnels, a bit shy and reluctant.
"Ah?"
"Eh, me?"
Both Annas asked simultaneously, putting Rias in a predicament. She had been looking for the best time to ask and only now realised this certainly wasn't the best... but she was already too deep in.
'Go big or go home!'.
"I want both of you!~" She shouted, for some reason she grasped onto Ray's sleeve like that action was going to give her more force. The Sun God frowned, he didn't mind Anna-chan joining, that was his plan for the beginning, however, Anna Blair was a different matter altogether.
"Of course, I will join! You meanie when were you planning to ask me!?" Anna-chan pouted hard and jumped on the redhead, Rias had been so distant about the topic that she thought she'd never raise it.
Rias embraced her friend back, surprised. She always thought she had to be strong enough to 'recruit' Anna who was already a youkai of her league before entering the dungeon.
'It seems I was the only one thinking useless thoughts...'
"Thanks, An-chan!"
"Rias, she can't… she's going to be the elf queen–"
"I would love to join your peerage, Rias!" The elf answered happily with cheering ears.
!!!
"A-Ara..." Akeno giggled awkwardly, she was expecting her friend to get ruthlessly rejected.
"Do you even know what a peerage is?!" Ray shook her shoulders, wondering what this elf was thinking.
'Joining these three means that I'm likely to be able to travel to my lord's world in the future~ besides, they're not bad girls... and they have an intimate relationship with him, which means I too could...'
*cough!*
"Is it something like a party, perhaps? As in… a group of adventurers joining together?" The elf who mysteriously blushed, tried to delve further into a proposal she already knew she was going to accept.
"Girl, it is not it at all. This clumsy redhead is going to be your king, you are going to have to follow her orders" Ray said.
"Ray, don't say it like that! I'm not a tyrant master, right Akeno?" Rias asked for a second opinion.
"..." The priestess evaded her king's gaze in betrayal.
"Akeno!?".
"If I join your peerage, would I be able to travel to your world often?".
"Ah... yeah?".
"Then I accept~ what do I have to do?".
"Anna-chan are you sure?! It is an important decision" The youkai felt something was fishy, she acted mature but in truth sought to understand the motives of her love and name rival.
"I am sure... we are friends, aren't we?~"
...
Rias ended up accepting gladly, she explained to Anna Blair that those who joined her peerage were no different from her family. Her problems would be their problem. Little did she know, the elf had her own agenda.
Rias pulled out two crimson chess pieces: Two bishops.
*WHOOSH!*
Anna Yamada and Anna Blair officially became members of her peerage.
"Yay!" Anna Yamada jumped happily on Rias, while the elf jumped on Ray.
"..." The Sun God's confused gaze met the elf's lovestruck gaze.
'You can never get away from me, my god~'.