The fine, golden sand of the beach spread out beneath my feet, warmed by the midday sun shining brightly in the cloudless sky.
The rhythmic sound of the waves breaking on the shore brought a sense of tranquility that was in stark contrast to the chaos and violence we had experienced days before.
The sea stretched out before me on a vast blue carpet.
Rias said that the best way for all of us to recover from the stress of fighting Kokabiel was to take the trip we had promised ourselves after the stressful situation with Raiser Phenex.
"After all we've been through, we need to regain our strength." She had said with a smile that, even though I was tired, still managed to warm my heart.
And frankly, I had no argument with it. My body still ached in ways I didn't know were possible.
So I sat in a beach chair, somewhat relaxed.
From my vantage point, I could perfectly see the scene of Rias, Akeno, Koneko, Xenovia and Asia, all dressed in bikinis that showed off their perfect curves, playing beach volleyball on a makeshift court.
As expected, Xenovia joined the Occult Research Club after hearing of God's death. She reincarnated as a devil, and I won her heart because she became a colleague of mine.
Asia didn't react well to the news about God either, but she didn't cry too much because she said her faith was still alive.
So on that sunny, warm day, her laughter mingled with the sound of the waves and the rustling of the palm trees beside us, and it felt like paradise to me.
Rias, in her red bikini that perfectly matched her blonde hair, stood opposite Akeno, who wore a black bikini. The two were the captains of their respective teams and exchanged competitive glances as one attacked the other.
Ria's every jump made her long hair float in the air, and Akeno's movements seemed designed to seduce, as her huge breasts quickly aroused me.
Koneko, with her usual serious face and simple white bikini, was next to Rias, and despite her shorter stature, she jumped high and hit hard to cut the ball back to the other side.
On the other side, next to Akeno, Xenovia, in a blue bikini, showed her brute strength with every serve and defense. She still didn't have much control over the super strength she had just gained by becoming a devil.
Asia, for her part, seemed oblivious to everything but the game. Her aqua bikini matched her golden eyes and hair, and she smiled brightly with every point her team scored, even though she didn't help her team win much.
Seeing Asia smile like that brought me a little peace. She, who had always been the sweetest and purest among us, deserved moments of happiness like that.
"Leonard, why don't you join us?" Rias asked as she adjusted her bikini bottoms.
I was about to agree when I remembered that I was hard and at least sitting down would allow me to hide it a bit. "I think I'll just watch for now. I'm still recovering."
"Arara~ Don't tell me you're afraid of losing to me, Leo," Akeno teased with a mischievous smile. She knew exactly how to tease me and she did it with a mastery that sometimes left me speechless.
"Maybe I'm just giving you a chance to shine."
At that moment, I noticed Kiba approaching. He was coming from the direction of the beach kiosk, carrying two bottles of juice. As he approached me, he handed me one of the bottles with a smile.
"Looks like you're having fun." He commented as he sat down in the lounge chair next to me.
"Recovering, actually," I replied, accepting the bottle of juice and taking a sip. The cold liquid went down my throat and brought relief from the heat of the day.
Kiba looked out to sea and let out a satisfied sigh. "It's great to be here, at the beach. After all, we've been through... we deserve it."
I silently agreed with a nod. He was right; after the fighting and the chaos, moments like this were precious.
"To be honest, I didn't think we'd be able to defeat Kokabiel and find the Excaliburs. I owe you a lot, Leonard. If it weren't for your efforts, we wouldn't have been able to capture Valper Galilei... and I... I wouldn't have done justice to my fellow friends. Now he will suffer greatly in the underworld."
"I only did what was necessary. But... I feel bad not knowing what happened to most of the Excaliburs. We got them back, but they disappeared as quickly as they appeared, except for Xenovia's and Irina's ones."
"That's nothing for you to worry about, Leonard. I'm responsible for the Excaliburs, and my mission now is simple: find their whereabouts and make sure the other five are destroyed. I will serve Rias forever, protecting her and taking care of the responsibilities I have been given."
"Rias is lucky to have a knight like you at her side." I said sincerely, knowing how much Kiba meant to her and the group. He was more than just an ally; he was a friend, someone we could all trust, even if I didn't like him very much because he was so handsome.
Kiba finally looked away from the sea and at me. "You know, Leonard... I never imagined that you and Rias could be together. Was that kiss... a declaration of marriage?"
His conclusion surprised me. Not that it was completely unexpected, considering the closeness Rias, and I had developed, but the direct way Kiba mentioned it made me almost choke on my juice.
"Ahr...! We're not together. There's... a mutual feeling, maybe, but... it's complicated, you know?"
Kiba gave a small smile, one that indicated that he understood more than he was willing to admit. "You don't have to explain, Leonard. This relationship stuff is really complicated. Some days, I get so many love letters that I can hardly find the time to answer them all properly."
"Damn popular..." I muttered.
Kiba laughed. "In the end, the most important thing is that you two are happy if you love each other, no matter what form it takes. I hope that one day I will be lucky enough to find what you and Rias have."
Kiba was surprisingly understanding about my attachment to girls, and that made me like him a little more.
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