Yo, author here
This chapter is a little longer because I felt like just the original two thousand words took a while to develop the plot, but don't get excited, I won't do that again in the next chapter anyway, that's it
Enjoy reading, rejoice and...
See you all on next time
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(...Continuing)
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He had seen him before, but not close enough to get a clear sense of his face, but now that he was seeing him, he had to admit that this guy was very handsome.
'No homo, but that face is very pretty, his popularity with the school's female audience is justifiable, however... he looks a little feminine.'
He was referring to the fact that this guy's facial features were very soft, in fact the guy seemed to have smooth, soft skin that would make even a woman jealous.
'Actually, I think if this guy put on a wig and a dress he would definitely be mistaken for a woman, heh, Yuuto Kiba, the first femboy at Kuoh academy, oh right, there's already Gasper, nevermind.'
With the boy in front of him tilting his head a little because he was looking at him, he saw how Kiba looked at him curiously as he asked.
"Is there a problem?"
Taking his hand to his chin and rubbing it lightly, Micael responded.
"It's not a big deal, I'm just thinking that your appearance lives up to your popularity."
"Oh...i see."
Kiba responded with a calm tone, but a tense, bitter-looking smile ended up appearing on his face.
Seeing his strange reaction, Micael asked curiously.
"What's wrong?"
With his smile turning into a faint bitter laugh, he scratched the side of his face as he responded.
"Haha...it's not a big deal, it's just...my popularity is sometimes problematic."
Seeing how he seemed to be remembering bad memories, Micael decided not to ask for details, but still gave his honest opinion.
"I can imagine, being so beautiful must certainly attract a lot of problems or things like envy or jealousy, I think Rias and Akeno and even Toujou-san here are in the same situation as you..."
Saying his words while crossing his legs with his shin on his thigh, he saw Kiba regain his none-but-bitter smile and in his peripheral vision he even saw Koneko moving her head and looking in his direction.
However, unaffected by their reaction, he continued.
"...But in the case of girls aside, for example, I think you're a handsome guy but I'm not jealous, after all you seem a little feminine to me, I know that soft and more effeminate features are popular among men in Japan, but Personally, I don't find it very attractive, it doesn't convey much masculinity."
"Uh...thanks, I guess."
Smiling bitterly again, Kiba didn't know whether to laugh or cry, he honestly felt that Micael was both praising and insulting him at that moment.
Seeing Kiba's expression, Micael soon spoke.
"I hope you weren't offended by me being so direct, I didn't mean to offend you, I apologize for that."
"No, it's okay, in fact, I find your straightforward attitude quite comforting, haha~."
"...Right"
Responding to him, Micael felt a little strange, looking at the other guy who was smiling brightly and almost seemed to have some sort of glowing aura around him, Micael felt a little suspicious upon hearing those words.
Squinting his eyes slightly, he thought.
'Those last few sentences of his were very...sus, but I don't think he even realized how strange those words might have sounded...right, he's a nice guy, in the literal sense if I'm not mistaken, he doesn't have a dirty mind like an ordinary guy.'
With Micael looking at him with a narrowed gaze, Kiba scratched his head in confusion and a strange smile on his face, wondering why he was being looked at like that.
While the two interacted, the girl sitting next to Micael remained silent, eating the sweet cookies she had with her, but if Micael had been looking at her now, he would have noticed an almost imperceptible curve in the corner of her mouth.
Despite the lack of change in expression, the girl seemed to be enjoying their interaction, if that barely noticeable smile was anything to go by.
Unfortunately, Micael was focused on something else and didn't notice, but if he had, he would have certainly pointed it out to her, which wouldn't have resulted in anything good for him, but anyway, with a momentary silence surrounding them, it would soon was interrupted by Akeno's return.
Creak—
With the door creaking after opening it, Akeno appeared with a tray in her hand, closing the door she went to the table between the sofas and placed the tray there.
"Apologies for being late."
Taking the cups and teapot off the tray, she spoke as she began to fill the cups.
Waving his hand in a carefree gesture, Micael answered her.
"It's fine."
Finishing filling the cups, she took one and offered it to him with a smile.
Taking the cup with both hands, he thanked her.
"Thanks."
Taking the cup by the handle and holding the saucer with his other hand, he raised the cup to his mouth and took a sip.
Nodding in satisfaction, he looked at Akeno as he said.
"Very good, like last time."
The girl who was waiting holding the tray in front of her had her smile widen at his words, she then bowed slightly before turning around and heading towards the door she had entered through.
Sipping the tea silently, Micael watched the other two do the same, with Kiba sipping the tea like him and Koneko just picking up the cup and drinking it after she finished chewing.
They stayed like that for a moment with Akeno returning soon after, then grabbed a cup for herself and sat on the couch next to Kiba.
Taking a sip of tea after sitting down, she spoke to Micael.
"I hope you don't mind waiting a little longer Micael-kun, Rias is not a morning person."
"It's okay, did you tell her I'm here?"
"Yes, I already woke her up, she will be here soon."
Nodding to her, he took a sip, thinking he wasn't surprised that Rias was still asleep when he arrived.
He would talk to the girl about it when she showed up, after all he certainly wouldn't want to be forced to wake up early because of someone else, on the other hand, it's a huge lack of responsibility on her part, but he won't demand too much from her either, she is just a teenager, it can be said that they are both wrong in this case.
Looking at Akeno, he asked something he wanted to know since entering the building.
"By the way, how did you know I was at the door?"
Smiling, she replied.
"Well, it's simple actually, around the school there is a barrier that warns whenever something or someone passes through it, so I already knew that someone was here, and using the barrier's own monitoring system I saw that it was you."
She finished with a smile, then raised the cup to her mouth with her little finger raised.
"Monitoring system?"
"Yes, it basically functions as an invisible camera that can be used anywhere within the barrier."
Nodding thoughtfully, he drank all the tea in one go before placing the cup on the table, then crossing his arms, he asked curiously.
"And how is the image from this invisible camera transmitted? Where does it go?"
"The signal is made with electrical waves and the captured images are magically transmitted directly to the computer screen."
She finished her explanation by gesturing towards the table.
Micael looked in that direction and saw what he had already seen before, a closed notebook on the table.
"...Mm."
He responded in a murmur.
Seeing his reaction, Akeno asked back smiling weakly.
"What's the matter? Did you expect it to be different?"
Turning his gaze to her, he replied as a hand went to his chin and rubbed calmly.
"Yeah, I was actually hoping it would be something more magical, you know? Like a crystal ball or a hologram, something like that."
Laughing lightly with her fingers covering her lips, she replied.
"Fufufu~ well, I'm sorry to disappoint you."
"No, it's okay."
Shaking his head to say that it was okay, he replied, choosing once again not to comment on her strange habit of laughing like an anime ojou-sama and not commenting on it.
With silence reigning between them again, with everyone in the room focused on their own thoughts, they stayed like that for a moment before the silence was broken by the creak of a door opening.
Creak—
With that sound, Micael along with Akeno, Kiba and Koneko looked in that direction, seeing Rias appearing through the door.
Pushing the door behind her with one arm to close it, Rias walked towards them while yawning.
"Uaaah~"
She yawned with her hand over her mouth.
Looking at her in silence, Micael saw how the girl still looked sleepy, with even some parts of her hair a little messy.
He watched as she walked over and stood near the table, then placed one hand on her hip and the other on her eye and rubbed it as she said.
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Buchou."
Kiba greets her with a smile along with a brief nod.
"Mm, mornig."
Koneko greets her in her characteristic way, neutral and weak tone along with a curt nod as well.
"Good morning."
Akeno greeted with a slight smile on her face.
"Good morning to you too, Rias."
Micael responded along with a nod in greeting as well.
As she nodded in acknowledgment of the greeting, she continued rubbing her eye as she yawned again, only after a few seconds did she stop and then lower her eyes, looking at the table with the teapot.
"Didn't you bring me a cup for me to use?"
She asked after a moment, looking in Akeno's direction.
Akeno tilted her head slightly, the strands of hair in her bangs moving as she responded.
"I thought you were going to have breakfast first?"
"Nevermind."
Responding to her and shaking her head slightly, Rias walked over to the couch where Micael and Koneko were.
Imagining that she was going to sit down, Micael and Koneko moved to the corners of the sofa, making space in the middle for her.
And doing as expected, pressing the hem of her skirt to her thighs as she turned her back, she sat between them and then reclined on the sofa.
Then, turning her head to Micael, she smiled and said.
"So what do you want to talk about?"
"I want to discuss the details of our agreement and I would also like you to give me an explanation about the supernatural side of the world, since I have no idea about anything."
Nodding briefly, she replied.
"Mm, i see."
Then, turning her head to Akeno, she spoke.
"Akeno, bring me a cup, please, and also bring a package of those packets of cookies that Koneko is eating."
Nodding in acknowledgement, Akeno placed the cup in her hand on the table and stood up silently, walking to the door.
Then, turning to Micael and smiling she intended to start explaining, completely pretending that she didn't notice how Koneko looked at her like she had committed a crime or something.
However, before she started speaking, Micael spoke first.
"By the way, I'm sorry I made you wake up early."
Hearing his words, she smiled as she waved her hand reassuringly as she said.
"No, it's okay, it was my mistake to leave without exchanging any form of contact."
"It wasn't just yours, it was my mistake too."
After saying, Micael took out his smartphone from his pocket and pointed it at her while saying.
"Do you have LINE?"
Seeing his gesture and hearing his question, she took the smartphone from his hand as she said.
"I'll add my account, for now we can communicate through LINE, then I'll give you an app that we use in the underworld, it's safer."
She finished saying, offering the smartphone back to him with a slight smile.
Nodding in understanding, he took out his cell phone and put it away before asking while looking at her.
"So what are the things I should know about the supernatural side of the world?"
Adopting a thoughtful expression with a finger on her chin, she spoke.
"Well, where do I start..."
...
The girl explained everything to him, from how the devil's society worked, the human magic system, the Sacred Gears, who she was and even talked about Sona, as well as explaining how they were practically the owners of the city of Kuoh and many other things.
After a few minutes of Rias talking and answering his questions, Micael had one hand on his chin, resting on his thighs.
"I see...so, does that mean you're like a princess of the underworld?"
"Mmhm...not exactly, but...not wrong either."
At that moment, Rias was eating the cookies that Akeno had brought, so she had to take a break between answers to chew on the cookie.
Swallowing the cookie she was chewing, she continued to respond, her fingers covering her mouth.
"Apart from being a high-class devil, being the younger sister of the strongest Satan has its privileges, so no, saying that I am a princess of the underworld is not wrong."
"Mm."
Responding with a murmur, Micael remained in a thoughtful pose with his hand on his chin, this behavior was not entirely an act, because in addition to the things he already knew, she also spoke about things he had no idea about and also reinforced what he already knew.
And that's what he thought about, the most detailed aspects of the information he already knew, but had forgotten over time.
As he remained silent, RIas finished drinking the tea from the cup and placed it on the table, then looking at him, she spoke with a smile.
"Now that you know about my status and influence, how about you reconsider-"
"No, I'll pass."
But, interrupting her before she could finish, he responded while waving his hand in denial without looking at her.
With the smile on her face trembling for a moment, Rias had a finger extended because of her previous action, then smiled bitterly as she lowered her hand she spoke.
"But, you didn't even know what I was going to ask..."
Coming out of the hunched position and leaning back against the back of the sofa, Micael placed his leg on his thigh with his arms crossed as he looked at her and said.
"You were going to ask me to join your peerage, right?"
"...Sigh, yes."
Rias let out a sigh as she responded, she realized that he was really hard to convince, but she didn't intend to give up, so deciding to change tactics, she adopted a different approach.
Clasping her hands in front of her chest, keeping them together, tilting her head a little and pouting, she blinked her eyes several times as she looked at Micael as she said.
"Please~?"
Looking at the girl in silence, Micael simply didn't say anything, as he was left speechless by the girl's blatant act of acting cute to make him change his mind.
Seeing how the boy remained silent, she continued blinking her eyes looking at him while muttering.
"Mm~?"
Still not reacting due to her behavior, Micael accepted that it was a very convincing act, she really looked cute, but no matter how cute and adorable she acted, it wouldn't convince him.
Then, putting his hand to his chin with a thoughtful expression, he spoke.
"Hmm, let me think..."
Upon hearing his words, Rias immediately perked up, a smile appearing on her face as she was about to speak.
"No."
However, she was interrupted before her smile could fully form, she practically froze in the middle of her action.
Looking at her with a calm face after giving his answer, Micael observed the girl's strange actions, it was a little funny for him, even though he didn't show it externally, he laughed internally.
'Heh.'
Rias stood still in that position, a strange, tense smile frozen on her face, until she was snapped out of her state by the sound of laughter.
"Haha~"
Looking in the direction where that laughter was coming from, she saw Akeno on the other couch covering her mouth with her fingers, her eyes narrowed in clear amusement as she looked at her.
With the corner of her eye twitching, Rias felt an irritation growing inside her, looking to the side, she saw that Kiba, despite not laughing, was smiling, apparently amused by the situation.
She decided not to look at Koneko, because even though the girl was generally expressionless, she had known her long enough to know if she was having fun with the current situation, and Rias was sure she was.
And indeed, if she had looked at her, she would have seen an almost imperceptible smile on the corner of Koneko's mouth as the girl ate the rest of Rias' cookies.
Sensing her growing frustration and irritation, Rias glared at the culprit, who just looked at her with a calm expression.
Then, crossing her arms, she huffed as she turned her face to the side with a pout, making her hair swing and some strands go towards him.
"Humph!"
Ignoring the strands of red hair on her thigh, Micael still remained silent, but now his face was expressionless as her behavior was strangely familiar.
'Why she's acting like a tsundere...and she looks annoyingly like Mari, ugh.'
Groaning internally due to the unhappy memories and resisting the urge to facepalm, Micael wisely chose not to say anything and did the right thing to do, he just waited for her to go back to acting normally without reacting to her.
After a moment, seeing that silence was the only response she got, Rias discreetly looked out of the corner of her eye to see Micael's reaction, directly meeting the boy's blank gaze.
Feeling her embarrassment rising, but determined not to ask for her prestige, she snorted as she said calmly.
"Humph, you have no sense of humor."
Then, this time adopting a calm expression and still with her arms crossed, acting as if she hadn't purposely acted like a tsundere anime girl just now, she spoke.
"Despite your refusal, that doesn't mean I've given up on recruiting you, Micael, I still hope to change your mind."
She spoke calmly, her brow slightly furrowed to show her seriousness.
"Hmm..."
Micael's response was a thoughtful murmur, honestly, he would have found her much more convincing if she hadn't been red in the face, but the girl was blatantly acting like she wasn't blushing.
So, deciding not to point it out, he just shrugged his shoulders as he responded.
"Fine, do whatever you want."
"That's exactly what I'll do."
Crossing her arms again and nodding her head with her eyes closed, she said in a tone of affirmation, as if leaving no room for him to refuse.
"Okay, okay, anyway, I think now that I'm integrated into the knowledge of the supernatural side of the world, we can discuss the details of our deal."
Returning to her serious expression, she looked at him as she said.
"What are your terms?"
Looking at her with a calm face and crossed arms, he replied.
"Well, my terms are as follows…"
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(Continue...)