The basement no longer looked like the icy tundra it had been that morning. It had returned to its normal state.
A crimson magic circle pulsed with light, and under Leo and Yukino's watchful gazes, it took shape into two figures.
Seeing them, Leo smiled—more openly than usual. Yukino, on the other hand, looked a little tense but also curious, studying the newcomers carefully.
They were two women—striking in every sense of the word.
One stood slightly ahead, the other behind, much like Leo and Yukino that morning on their way to school. Their positions made it clear which was the master and which was the servant.
The one in front was a slender girl with shoulder-length hair, a figure similar to Yukino's. Her features were sharp and refined, accentuated by the glasses on her face. She exuded a cool, composed, and intellectual air.
The woman behind her also wore glasses, but her long black hair cascaded down her back. She was equally beautiful—perhaps even more so, with a taller, fuller figure that gave her a mature, alluring charm.
To be honest, Yukino was surprised to see women like this appear from the magic circle.
Their looks and bearing alone would've made them top-tier beauties even at Sobu High—probably the kind of girls everyone whispered about, admired from afar, the "untouchable flowers" of the school.
And they were both devils?
Were all female devils from the Underworld this stunning?
While Yukino was still processing that thought, the two women stepped fully out of the glowing circle.
"About time you came by for a visit, Sona," Leo said with a grin, walking forward to greet the one in front.
The usually reserved girl allowed herself a faint smile.
"I've been waiting for you to finish your business here. This doesn't count as keeping you waiting, does it?"
Sona's smile was subtle—barely visible—but for anyone who knew her, that alone was a sign of closeness.
"If anyone kept someone waiting, it's me," Leo said, shrugging. Then he turned toward the woman standing behind Sona. "It's been a while, Tsubaki."
"Yes, Leo-sama." The tall woman bowed politely. "The last time we met was during your promotion ceremony to High-Class Devil in the Underworld, when I accompanied the President."
That had only been a short while ago, but unlike Sona—who kept in touch with Leo from time to time—Tsubaki truly hadn't seen him since then.
"Let me do the introductions," Leo said with a small smile, gesturing behind him. "This is my first servant and my Bishop, Yukino."
Yukino nodded curtly to the two women, her demeanor cool and detached—her discomfort with social interactions on full display.
For a servant, behaving so coldly toward another High-Class Devil could easily be seen as rude or arrogant.
But Sona didn't seem bothered; she had clearly done her homework on Yukino already.
"I'm Souna Shitori—real name, Sona Sitri. I'm a third-year student at Kuoh Academy. Pleased to meet you, Yukinoshita-san." Sona gave a polite nod before introducing her companion. "This is Shinra Tsubaki—my Queen and first servant. I hope the two of you get along well."
Tsubaki bowed gracefully in greeting.
"Kuoh Academy?" Yukino turned to Leo.
"It's a private school in Kuoh Town," Leo explained. "Used to be an all-girls school a few years back, but it's co-ed now. Sona and Tsubaki both study there—Sona's even the student council president."
"Kuoh Town..." Yukino murmured.
She recalled hearing about it—it was a small city in Kanagawa Prefecture, not far from Chiba. You could make a round trip by train in a day.
There weren't any notable noble families there, at least none her own family ever paid attention to. Who would've thought a pure-blooded High-Class Devil lived there?
"I'm not the only High-Class Devil based in Kuoh Town," Sona added, seeming to catch her thoughts. "My childhood friend also lives there—she's a student at Kuoh Academy too. She's actually the reason I enrolled there. You should visit sometime. Both Rias and I would be happy to have you."
Another High-Class Devil living there too?
Was Kuoh Town really that important of a place?
Yukino wondered silently.
Normally, she would've asked outright—she wasn't the type to hold back her curiosity.
But this was a world she had known nothing about for the first seventeen years of her life. For once, she restrained herself, careful not to embarrass Leo.
Still, the feeling sat uneasily in her chest. For someone as proud and competitive as Yukino, ignorance was never pleasant.
I'll just have to study more later, she resolved. At least enough to understand the basics.
She didn't realize that Sona was already quietly observing her—and very closely.
Even though Yukino had only just reincarnated as a devil, the faint aura of demonic power radiating from her was far from weak. It was already approaching the level of a High-Class Devil.
And there was something else—an unmistakable pulse of Sacred Gear energy.
It was the strongest Sacred Gear signature Sona had ever sensed—so strong it made even the calm, composed heir of the Sitri House grow serious.
"It seems your guess was right," Sona said, pushing up her glasses. "Yukinoshita-san really is a Longinus possessor."
"You knew about my Sacred Gear?" Yukino couldn't help but ask.
"Of course." Sona smiled faintly, glancing at Leo. "Your master had his eyes on you from the start. The moment he received his Evil Pieces, he told me he was going to recruit you as his first servant—so that a rare Longinus possessor wouldn't slip away right in front of him."
"In fact, not only I, but most devils who keep tabs on your master know about it. Word spread fast once people heard you'd lost control of your Sacred Gear before."
"If not for our unspoken rules—no trespassing on another devil's territory—you'd have been swarmed by offers. Every High-Class Devil in the area would've tried to recruit you."
A Longinus possessor—one of only thirteen in existence. Someone with the potential to slay gods and Maou alike.
Who wouldn't want such a servant?
But Leo had all the advantages—timing, proximity, and luck. No one else stood a chance.
Still—
"I thought you'd make her your Queen," Sona said honestly. "I didn't expect you to assign her as your Bishop."
Even Tsubaki raised an eyebrow.
A Longinus wielder, just a Bishop? That seemed like a waste of potential.
Normally, if the Queen piece was still available, giving it to someone like Yukino would be the obvious choice.
After all, the Queen wasn't just the King's strongest servant but also their right hand—the one who stood beside them through everything. Everyone who knew Leo's plan had assumed he would make her his Queen.
Who would've guessed she'd end up as a Bishop instead?
"It's not because I'm stingy or unwilling to give her the Queen piece," Leo said quickly, noticing all three women looking at him. "It was the piece's own choice."
"The piece's... own choice?" Sona's eyes narrowed slightly. "You mean, that's part of the mutation caused by your unique trait—the change that occurred when you bonded with your Evil Pieces?"
Of course Sona knew what kind of trait Leo had awakened.
In fact, anyone paying attention to him did.
After all, it wasn't something he could—or even tried to—hide.
Many had witnessed the ceremony where he received his Evil Pieces and his trait awakened. The strange phenomenon that occurred when the pieces connected with him had caught the attention of Beelzebub himself.
Upon inspection, the Maou concluded that Leo's Evil Pieces had undergone some kind of unknown transformation.
That was why Sona had mentioned yesterday that many people were keeping an eye on Leo—his background and abilities were both exceptional.
Among the higher ranks of devil society, Leo's uniqueness was practically an open secret.
He'd even used it to his advantage, turning it into a way to earn favor and support from the higher-ups. Many of the rare books in his study had come into his possession thanks to that attention.
And Sona's real reason for visiting today was, of course, to learn more about exactly what kind of change had occurred between his trait and the Evil Pieces.
"This isn't the best place to talk about it," Leo said, winking at her. "Let's discuss it over tea."