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And so, Badr shared his suspicions about the possible influence of his Sacred Gear with Rias. She nodded thoughtfully.
"I've done extensive research on your Sacred Gear, but there are no records of it anywhere. However, considering its immense power, it's not unreasonable to think it might possess some extraordinary abilities..."
"Indeed. Leaving it unused would be a waste. We need to find a way to utilize this power."
"You're right."
Rias smiled. "It's certainly a good thing that you're becoming stronger. However, you've asked the wrong person about Enhancing holy power... I've got it! Let's head to school. I'll introduce you to a new companion!"
"...A new companion? Someone you recruited recently?"
"Hehe, you'll find out when we get there."
Rias chuckled mysteriously. After changing her clothes, she dragged Badr off for their morning training.
After their workout and a brief rest, it was 8 a.m. Badr and Rias arrived at the Occult Research Club's clubroom.
Akeno and the others had already gathered, but there was an extra person present, someone Badr knew quite well.
"Xenovia?"
The person who had teleported into the clubroom with them was one of the two Holy Sword wielders they had encountered before. Moreover, unlike the other, Xenovia was a natural-born Holy Sword user, wielding the complete Durandal.
"We meet again."
Xenovia greeted Badr.
"Is the new companion you mentioned Xenovia?"
In response, Xenovia answered Badr's question with an action.
A pair of black devil wings unfolded behind her, then quickly retracted.
Badr was silent for two seconds before looking at her with a puzzled expression. "Is this really alright? You were a Holy Sword wielder before. Reincarnating as a devil must be something you find hard to accept, right?"
He remembered how Xenovia had harshly mocked Asia initially, which had angered Badr enough to reprimand her.
"Ah, that's precisely why I need to apologize to Asia. I'm sorry. I didn't consider things from your perspective. After becoming a devil, I've experienced the same scorn and hatred from others."
Xenovia spoke sincerely. "So, Asia, if you want to vent your anger, you can hit me."
"Eh... There's no need. I'm actually quite happy after becoming a devil!" Asia replied with a smile.
For some reason, Badr felt a faint holy aura emanating from Asia...
Was he mistaken? Asia was clearly a devil...
"Honestly, I don't know if the decision I made was right or wrong. Oh, Almighty God, please guide me... Amen... Ouch!!!"
Xenovia suddenly clutched her head and crouched down, her face contorted in pain.
Badr and the others watched, speechless.
The scene seemed oddly familiar.
Asia had been like this before.
Praying to God after becoming a devil was bound to cause a headache.
"Rias, what's Xenovia's peerage piece?"
"She's a Bishop."
Rias explained with a smile. Xenovia would have been a good fit for a Knight, but that position was already occupied by Badr, who held two peerage pieces.
Since Xenovia wielded Durandal, she required a substantial amount of demonic power. Therefore, between the remaining Rook and Bishop pieces, Rias chose to bestow upon her the Bishop piece.
Its vast magical capacity was perfect for the former Holy Sword wielder.
...
With the addition of a new comrade, Badr extended his warm welcome.
Moreover, as a natural-born Holy Sword user, Xenovia possessed considerable strength. Her presence would undoubtedly make future battles much easier.
"Speaking of which, Xenovia, I have a question for you." After welcoming her, Badr posed his question.
"How does one enhance holy power?"
Except for Rias, everyone was puzzled by Badr's sudden inquiry.
Seeing their confusion, Badr didn't hide anything. He demonstrated his holy power in front of everyone.
"...Incredible. Aren't you a devil?"
Xenovia, intimately familiar with holy power, stared wide-eyed.
"It might be due to my Sacred Gear. I've become capable of manipulating holy power, but I don't know how to strengthen it quickly. I can only instinctively gather and accumulate it, which is incredibly inefficient."
After listening to Badr's explanation, Xenovia didn't hold back.
"Holy power typically comes from the blessings of faith or bestowed by a God."
Badr frowned slightly. "Those are difficult for me to achieve."
As a devil, how could he possibly gather faith?
As for receiving a God's blessing, that was even more ludicrous. The Gods were all dead. Even if one were still alive, they would likely try to kill him, a devil, rather than bless him...
Xenovia realized he was right and chuckled awkwardly. "Other than that, you can only slowly meditate..."
Suddenly, an idea struck her, and her eyes lit up. "Oh, there's another way. You can absorb holy power from sacred objects."
"What are holy objects?"
Rias interjected.
"Things like holy swords, holy cross seals, sacred relics, and the like. They're basically objects capable of inflicting large-scale damage on devils."
She sighed, spreading her hands. "During the previous Great War, the devil race suffered greatly at the hands of these sacred objects. Later, their numbers dwindled. I never thought we'd need them now..."
Badr felt a pang of regret. If that was the case, he had lost a potential avenue for rapid growth.
"There are still quite a few sacred objects out there, they just haven't been discovered yet. Even among the common folk, there might be Gears once used by saints."
Xenovia paused in thought, then added, "I'll teach you the meditation. There are no shortcuts to success."
"Alright, thank you."
Badr expressed his gratitude with a smile, not feeling discouraged. He always maintained a positive attitude.
After all, in this world, there was no such thing as free power. Power always came at a price.
Having obtained the method for Enhancing holy power from Xenovia, Badr was in good spirits. He stood by the window, gazing at the school outside.
"It seems the school has been mostly repaired."
"It's fully restored. Classes will resume tomorrow. We have one more task to complete today, and that's cleaning the swimming pool," Rias said with a smile.
"Isn't that the Student Council's job?" Badr asked, puzzled.
"Oh my, have you forgotten who accidentally injured the Student Council members with a single sword strike that day?" Akeno teased, her eyes twinkling.
"..."
Reminded by Akeno, Badr recalled that day when he had not only sliced through half the school and over a dozen mountains with a single swing of his sword but also accidentally injured the Student Council members who were maintaining the barrier.
"...Are they alright?"
"Don't worry, the Maou Leviathan healed them," Rias assured him, waving her hand dismissively. "To repay the favor, I took on the task of cleaning the swimming pool. And as a reward, we get to have the pool all to ourselves today!"
Akeno suddenly wrapped her arms around Badr's neck from behind, whispering seductively into his ear, "I've prepared a very sexy swimsuit, you know~"
"Hey, Akeno!"
Rias frowned. She had intended to say that to Badr!
"Ara~ ma~, someone's jealous again," Akeno chuckled, her eyes narrowed in amusement.
Badr raised an eyebrow, replying with a straight face,
"It has nothing to do with how good the swimsuits look. I just enjoy swimming. Let's go."
The school's swimming pool area was located near the old school building. Fortunately, it had remained unscathed during the previous battle.
However, precisely because of that, it had been abandoned and unused for a long time. The last time they had gone swimming felt like ages ago.
Looking at the pool covered in a layer of dead leaves, everyone's spirits were lifted.
"We get to be the first ones to use it after cleaning it. Let's do our best, everyone!"
"Yeah!!!"
Using magic to clear the leaves and scrubbing diligently, the six of them spent almost the entire morning cleaning the pool.
The once filthy pool was now sparkling clean.
Akeno activated a teleportation spell, transporting clean, clear water from a nearby lake to fill the pool. Everyone cheered.
"Time to change into our swimsuits~" Akeno announced with a smile, and the girls headed towards the changing room, chatting and laughing.
Badr entered the men's changing room alone, found a pair of swimming trunks, put them on, grabbed a pair of goggles, and left the changing room.
Even changing into swimsuits took the girls a considerable amount of time. Badr jumped into the pool and swam a lap.
The weather had become quite warm, making the prospect of a refreshing pool party all the more enticing.
Finally, the changing room door opened again, and Rias and Akeno emerged first.
Badr floated on the water's surface, relaxed, resembling a floating corpse. Hearing the sound, he lazily turned his head.
Rias was wearing a pure white swimsuit that complemented her fair and healthy skin, creating a stunning sight.
Akeno, on the other hand, wore a blue swimsuit with red accents on the chest area, creating a striking contrast.
Both Rias and Akeno possessed exceptional figures that defied simple descriptions like "devilishly good."
"So, how does my swimsuit look?"
Rias stood by the poolside, her voice filled with anticipation as she noticed Badr's gaze.
"It looks great."
"Oh my, I'd also like Badr to see mine."
Akeno stood beside Rias, their perfect figures creating a visually impactful comparison.
Badr's lips curled into a faint smile. "They both look great. It's a shame that women wear beautiful clothes for men to see, but men prefer to see women without clothes."
"..." Koneko Toujou, who had just emerged in her school swimsuit, overheard Badr's comment and fell silent for a moment.
"...Pervert."
...
Seeing Asia and Koneko come out together, Badr shifted his gaze towards them.
He noticed they were both wearing the plain school swimsuits, commonly known as "school mizugi" or "dead pool swimsuits."
However, even in ordinary swimsuits, their beauty shone through.
"How cute."
Badr returned to the poolside, his gaze lingering openly on Koneko and Asia, causing Koneko to become wary.
"I'll hit you if you keep staring like that."
She glared at Badr, her words blunt.
Badr replied honestly, "I'm looking openly."
"..."
...
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