"...I see an unfamiliar ceiling."
The line Issei had always wanted to say slipped from his lips unintentionally.
Taking a proper look around, it seemed this was a hospital room. Issei found himself lying on a bed, receiving a blood transfusion.
Though the area was partitioned by curtains, he could sense a presence, indicating someone was lying in the adjacent bed.
Gradually, memories of what had happened began to return to him.
"I see... So I lost in the end..."
He couldn't remember the details clearly due to losing consciousness from blood loss near the end, but ultimately, he had been taken down without being able to accomplish anything...
"Dammit... What was that about 'I'll cover for the senpai who left'? I couldn't do a damn thing..."
It was frustrating. Even though Kazuki had finally acknowledged his growth, just when he thought he had turned the tables, he ended up being forced to retire without even putting up a fight against that guy's ability and Sona's tactics.
'I have no face to meet senpai like this.'
As he was wallowing in such frustration, a knock sounded at the door.
"Issei, are you awake?"
"Buchou?"
As he responded, the curtain opened, and Rias peeked in.
"How are you feeling?"
"A bit dizzy, but I'm fine... Um, how did the game go?"
"We won. Only you and Xenovia were taken out on our side. Sona's team was completely wiped out."
"I see... I'm sorry, Buchou. I wasn't able to do anything."
Issei apologized to Rias for his blunder.
"Not at all. You defeated Saji, didn't you? Everyone was amazed that you managed to materialize part of your armor, even if it was just a portion."
Rias comforted him. But,
"But in the end, I was forced to retire by Saji's ability. I can't bring myself to say I'm a winner!"
That's right. He had fallen perfectly for Saji's ability and the President's tactics and retired in a pathetic state. Who would acknowledge this as a victory in such a condition!?
"Well... It's true we were outmaneuvered by Sona. But that was my failing as the [King]. It's not your fault."
Gently stroking the head of the frustrated and angry Issei, Rias spoke.
"But—'If you can't accept it... Issei, become stronger..."
"Buchou…"
Rias's blue eyes pierced straight through him.
"In this game, I fell for Sona's tactics and could do nothing but watch as you disappeared. It was frustrating. I've had more than enough of that feeling! ...I will become stronger than I am now, so I will never repeat the same failure again! So Issei, you must become stronger too, with me, with all of us!!"
"...Yes!"
Tears welled up in his eyes at Rias's words.
'That's right, I'm not alone!! Buchou is here! Let's do it! I'll get stronger! I'll train more, get stronger and stronger, and one day I'll even be able to defeat Saji and Vali! And one day I'll become the strongest Red Dragon in History.'
With renewed determination, Issei carved a new vow into his heart…
He knocked on the door. Hearing a "Come in," in response, Kazuki, accompanied by Asia, entered the room.
"Good work. It was a nice fight."
"Was it?... In the end, I lost as expected, just as I predicted."
Sona, who had been lying in bed, sat up with a wry smile.
"Not at all. Our side, Gremory, originally had the advantage in combat power, but you managed to take out Issei and Xenovia. Everyone in the VIP seats was praising that 'Reversal' ritual of yours and the skill with which you forced Issei to retire."
"Is that so?... Well then? What did you guys come here for?"
"To visit you, and to ask for permission."
"Permission?"
"Permission to treat your servants. You know about Asia's ability, right? Besides, Shinra-san and Nimura-san were hit by Shirone's 'KI,' so they can't be treated without Senjutsu. I wanted to get the master's permission first."
"I see... Understood. Please go ahead with the treatment."
With Sona's permission, Asia began the treatment. A gentle green light enveloped Sona's body, healing her wounds. The treatment was completed in less than a minute.
"Incredible, in such a short time... Thank you, Asia-san. Could I also ask you to treat my girls?"
"Yes! Please leave it to me!!"
Asia replied cheerfully, gave a polite bow to Sona, and left the room.
"She's amazing... Hasn't her ability improved since the last time I saw it?"
"It's the result of her hard work this summer.... More importantly, are you okay?"
"If you mean my injuries, she already treated them~!!"
"Not that. I mean this."
When Kazuki tapped his own chest with his finger, Sona's expression darkened.
"..."
"I told you before, didn't I? 'I'm not your servant or a rival young devil. So, as a fellow student at Kuoh Academy, I'll always listen to your complaints or moments of weakness.' I thought now might be that time."
"...Aren't you one of the 'rival young devils' yourself now?"
"Ahhh, that's still a ways off for me. After all, I'm brand new at this and don't even have a single servant yet?"
"——Pfft, hehe... That's a rather self-serving way of looking at it... But alright, will you listen?"
Saying this, Sona got out of bed and stood before him. Then, she pressed her head against Kazuki's chest.
"...I lost. I tried all sorts of strategies, did my absolute best, but it wasn't enough."
"Yeah."
"I misread a lot of things. The new abilities of Yumi-san and Toujou-san, the strength of the new combatant Kuroka, and most of all, Rias's growth as a [King] exceeded my expectations.... That's right, the cause of my defeat is me myself. If I had predicted Rias and the others' growth better, the result might have been slightly different. I'm sorry, everyone, I'm sorry..."
Sona's spilled tears wet the floor. Seeing those tears, Kazuki made a decision.
"Hey, Sona. Leaving aside Akeno and Issei, I was the one who coached Yumi and Shirone."
"Is that so?"
Sona looked up. He gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with his finger.
"Yeah. So I have a proposal—why not train with us?"
"Train with you?"
Sona murmured with a puzzled look.
"Yeah. The rating game is over. Didn't you finish the game thinking 'I want to become stronger'?"
"...I suppose so."
"Then wouldn't training together be good stimulation for both of us?"
Saji already saw Issei as a rival, and after this game, Issei would probably be conscious of Saji, too. 'Besides, since Rias sees Sona as her rival, wouldn't having your competitive opponent nearby give you more motivation?'
"...That's true. We would appreciate that."
"Well, I'll have to talk to Rias about it first. Let's discuss it and then do it."
"Okay, understood.... Thank you, Kazuki-kun. For being so considerate."
A smile finally returned to Sona's face. Good, girls look so much better with a smile than with a sad face. And besides—
"...Hmmm. This is the first time I've seen Sona's face without glasses. Glasses are nice, but without them is refreshing too."
That's right—Sona, who had been sleeping until just now, wasn't wearing her usual glasses. Thanks to that, Kazuki had her bare face all to himself.
He noticed that she, who usually gave a cool impression because of her glasses, had an unexpectedly (though it might be rude to say) lovely bare face.
Looking at her like this, it was clear she was sisters with Serafall; 'She resembles Serafall-neesan a lot.' He thought.
"~~~~!!"
Noticing she wasn't wearing her glasses, Sona immediately turned her back to him. Her ears were bright red, making it completely obvious she was embarrassed.
Seeing Sona like that, a mischievous urge welled up in Kazuki's heart.
"Why are you hiding? Let me see your cute face a little better."
Placing his hands on Sona's shoulders, he whispered softly by her ear.
"Mmm!... S-Stop it... calling me cute..."
Reacting to his voice, Sona shivered, her back trembling. Whether her ears were sensitive or not, her reaction was utterly adorable.
"Come on, Sona. Look this way?"
"Ahhhh!!"
When he blew a soft breath on her ear, Sona let out a short scream. Getting carried away, he was about to play another trick on her when—
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
—He noticed a gaze fixed on them.
"Um... Serafall-nee-san? What are you doing?"
"Hmm? I was just happy to see Sona-chan and Kazu-kun getting along so well, so I ended up watching~!!"
There, with a full-faced smile watching them, was Serafall-nee-san, aka the Satan Serafall Leviathan.
"Hey, Nee-san? Since when have you been...?"
Sona asked, her eyes wide and trembling slightly.
"Hmm~~ Since around 'She's amazing... Hasn't her ability improved since the last time I saw it?' Maybe?"
Serafall answered nonchalantly.
"That's practically from the start! Why didn't you say anything!?"
"Ehh~~, but you two were getting all lovey-dovey. As your big sister, wouldn't I want to keep watching?"
"Like I'd know that~~!!"
Before Kazuki knew it, the sisters had started a game of chase. Wondering how things had turned out like this, he decided it was fine since Sona had regained her energy.
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