There was a deathly silence in the main hall of the Gremory residence. Everyone present looked at Sirzechs with genuine interest and surprise.
Misunderstanding and silent indignation hung in the air like a heavy cloud. Rias took a couple of steps back with tears in her eyes. The girl's thoughts were mixed up in a mad hurricane and she blurted out the first thing her grief-poisoned consciousness managed to cling to.
"I hate you, brother! Traitor! Don't come near me anymore!" Rias rushed out of the hall in tears, leaving everyone inside in quiet shock.
"Asia, please be so kind as to calm my sister down. The servants will arrive in half an hour to prepare my sister for the wedding."
"O-okay." Asia followed Rias while everyone stood silently in their places trying to understand what was going on.
The first to break the silence was the son of the Phoenix family. "Sirzechs-sama, what does all this mean?"
"What are you talking about, Riser?"
"Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about Sirzechs-sama. What is going on?"
"Haven't you heard? A wedding between my sister and you, what's so unclear about that?"
"What? You were against it yourself? So why are you planning on marrying Rias off to me now?"
"Since the Phoenix clan has powerful magic, I thought it would be nice to have a family connection. Do you agree, Lady Phoenix?"
"Absolutely."
"What? Mom and you too. What the hell is going on here? Are you all in cahoots?" Indignant, Phoenix spat and walked out of the hall. Sirzechs watched him go, realizing that he had to come up with something. The plan was starting to go wrong. He had to come up with something.
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Rias sat in her room, close to hysteria. Asia tried to calm her mistress down, but all she could do was wipe Rias's tears. "Why is he doing this? Damn it. What the hell is going on here."
"President, I'm sure your brother has his reasons. Everything will be fine."
Half an hour later, as Sirzechs said, the maids came to prepare Rias for the wedding.
The girl's appearance was not very good, so they decided to tidy her up first and took her to the bathhouse.
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Sirzechs was in dialogue with the lab assistants who were monitoring Issei's condition. "So he still hasn't regained consciousness?"
"No Sirzechs-sama. However, there is a slight movement in the brainwave activity towards the emotion known as anger. I don't know what you did, but it has borne fruit, but it is not enough to awaken the young mistress's servant from his coma."
"I understand. As soon as there is a change in his behavior, let me know immediately."
"As you say, sir." The magic circle dissolved and Sirzechs was lost in thought. 'So that means, in order to awaken Issei, we must drive Rias into hysterics. Damn, this is bad. Forgive me Rias.'
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Once everything was ready, Rias was brought to the main hall. The room was already prepared. However, it was clear to everyone that she was in no condition to celebrate right now.
Sirzechs stepped forward and took the first word. "I welcome everyone present at this momentous celebration on the occasion of the wedding of the son of the Phoenix family and the daughter of the Gremory family. I am grateful to you for all of you coming to celebrate this event. Also, in order to improve the relationship between the two clans, my sister will be moving into Riser's house and living with him."
After these words, Rias's face became even more gloomy. Rias caught the barely audible words as she passed by Sirzechs. "It's for your own good."
Rias approached the altar, and in her soul, there was such a hurricane raging that if it broke out now, the space around would become a scorched crypt.
For a second, her mind cracked but immediately returned to its previous state. Rias perked up and began to look around.
"Rias, what happened? Stay still." Riser grabbed Rias's hand, but the girl broke free and continued to look around.
A communication seal formed next to Sirzechs' ear. "Sirzechs-sama, your sister's servant began to move and, having knocked down the laboratory gates, rushed towards the residence building."
"Okay, I understand. Then please do not take any action until further instructions."
"As you command, sir." The seal dissolved and now there is only one thing left. How to make sure that Issei does not burn everyone in the hall when he sees what is happening here?
"Esteemed guests, there is a small problem here. I will ask you all to stand next to the walls and clear the space from the doors to the altar.
A murmur began to spread through the hall and people began to slowly disperse to different sides from the center of the hall. A soft bang was heard. Then another one, but closer. Sirzechs was already beginning to think about how much time he would have to spend on the recovery of the hall.
The third bang was more like an explosion. The source of the sounds was getting closer and closer, with a roar that was already clearly audible. For a few moments, everything was silent, like the calm before a storm.
In an instant, the door was blown to pieces, which scattered throughout the hall. A crimson dragon stood in the passage. Sirzechs noticed that the carapace had become darker than the last time they met.
The dragon's mouth was slightly open and exuded a flame as black as the darkest night.
The dragon's gaze was fixed on one point. The mouth opened a little wider, and the flame went out. A barely audible hum was heard. "Ri ... ace…"