— — — — — —
Everyone present possessed unusually sharp senses, so the change in Riser's condition became obvious almost immediately.
The girls standing nearby quickly stepped away, leaving him completely exposed in the center.
Realizing what had happened, Riser's face turned bright red. Embarrassment and shame warred across his expression as he repeatedly bowed toward Ryo.
"I'm terribly sorry! Today, I... I..."
When Ryo had glanced at him, Riser had thought the man was about to punish him. Combined with the immense pressure he'd been under these past few days, the fear had gotten the better of him.
He had literally wet himself.
"Brother... this is..."
Ravel looked equally mortified. Given their relationship, stepping away felt wrong, but staying beside him wasn't any better.
Who could have predicted Riser would actually be scared into peeing himself? Moments ago, everyone had assumed he was joking.
"Pff... There's really no need for that, haha." Ryo couldn't help laughing as he waved a hand. "Go on. Change your pants, take a bath, and then come see me again."
"But..."
Riser wanted to say something more, but Ryo interrupted with a smile, "You don't seriously think I'd punish you over something this trivial, do you? Off you go."
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone's impression of Ryo improved considerably.
"Yes, sir!"
Riser visibly relaxed. After giving another bow, he practically fled the platform. Judging by how fast he ran, he'd probably wanted to escape from the moment the accident happened.
Then Ryo turned around.
The smile vanished from his face.
Looking completely calm, he asked Rias, "Rias, who was that? Why was he acting like that?"
The speed of the expression change froze everyone's smiles in place.
Fear instantly crept into their eyes.
Surely... He wasn't planning to settle accounts later, was he?
Ravel nearly screamed when she saw the sudden shift in demeanor. Fortunately, she reacted quickly enough to cover her mouth before making a scene.
Rias herself had been startled.
After glancing at Ravel, she answered somewhat awkwardly, "That was Riser Phoenix, the third son of the Phoenix family. He's also..."
"Oh." Understanding dawned on Ryo's face. "Your fiancé. No wonder he was so terrified."
Truthfully, Ryo hadn't recognized Riser at all. They hadn't exchanged a single word, so he hadn't known his name either.
But now he remembered. The unlucky guy who was supposed to marry into the Gremory family before getting defeated by the protagonist.
Ryo vaguely recalled that Riser's personality resembled Laius Perseus from Little Garden.
Well, the old Perseus. The current Perseus was a genuinely noble knight.
As for why Ryo remembered anything about Riser in the first place... That was naturally because Riser had an adorable little sister.
Thinking of that, Ryo shifted his gaze and immediately spotted Ravel.
The blonde girl stood there nervously with her hand over her mouth.
Unlike her brother, she hadn't embarrassed herself, but she was still frightened enough that her slender legs trembled beneath her gothic dress.
The sight immediately amused Ryo.
"Rias, aren't you going to introduce your friends?"
"Me! Me! I'll do it!" Sona's older sister, Serafall, instantly raised her hand volunteering for the task.
Ryo responded by planting a palm on her face and pushing her aside.
No chance. If he let Serafall do the introductions, she'd spend the next several hours talking about how adorable her Sona-chan was. Nothing else would get done.
Even Rias looked embarrassed watching Serafall get shoved away so unceremoniously.
Still, since Ryo had asked, she continued. "This is Sona Sitri, the future head of the Sitri family, and beside her is her Queen, Tsubaki Shinra."
The two women being introduced both wore glasses.
One had black shoulder-length hair, while the other had long black hair styled in a traditional hime cut.
And thanks to what could only be called the world's malicious design, both possessed remarkably impressive figures.
Smiling, Ryo shook Sona's hand.
Sona was visibly nervous. So nervous, in fact, that her thumb accidentally brushed across his palm.
Ryo's expression became slightly strange.
In certain places, a woman scratching a man's palm carried a very different implication.
Sona clearly knew that.
The realization instantly broke her brain.
Fortunately, Ryo simply smiled and withdrew his hand. As though nothing had happened, he moved on to shake Tsubaki's hand, offered a small compliment, and continued the introductions normally.
"And this is Seekvaira Agares, heir to the Agares family. Beside her is her Queen, Alivian."
Seekvaira. Another glasses-wearing beauty.
Like the others, she had long hair, though her appearance was noticeably more serious and composed.
Ryo shook her hand as well.
Meanwhile, Sona was still staring at her own hand, face burning red.
"I just..."
"Oh my~ Sona-chan, how bold." At some point, Serafall had reappeared and wrapped an arm around her sister's shoulders. "To flirt with your brother-in-law like that."
Sona jumped, "You saw that?"
Then she froze, "Wait. What do you mean, brother-in-law?"
"Hm? Brother-in-law?" Serafall replied innocently.
The act lasted all of three seconds. Then she pouted with visible jealousy.
"Sona is so unfair. You've never teased me like that, but you'll tease Ryo? That's just mean."
Sona's mouth twitched.
She genuinely didn't know how to respond.
"Damn it. If Sona liked some random boy, I'd just get rid of him beforehand. But I can't beat Ryo. This is so frustrating!" Serafall kicked a suitcase in frustration.
The suitcase happened to contain Ryo's clothes.
She had packed it herself, and now it had become her chosen victim.
"Sister, please stop. This is so embarrassing."
With Serafall causing a scene, Sona no longer had the energy to worry about the "brother-in-law" comment and could only try to calm her down.
Meanwhile, Rias continued the introductions.
"This is Ravel Phoenix. The gentleman from earlier was Riser Phoenix."
Ravel nervously extended her hand for a handshake.
Instead, Ryo raised his hand and gently rested it on top of her head.
"So this is the little cutie of the Phoenix family."
He smiled, "You really do look like you were raised on pure adorableness."
"Eh?"
The sudden replacement of a formal handshake with a head pat left Ravel staring blankly in confusion.
"If you like her, it's fine then," Rias said after a brief silence.
At the same time, she understood perfectly well why Ryo's attitude toward the Phoenix family had changed so dramatically.
And she was equally aware of the calculations running through the Phoenix family's minds. At this point, she could practically congratulate this little bird, raised on nothing but cuteness, for securing their future.
Did anyone really think it was a coincidence that every family had sent its female heir to welcome Ryo?
Once the introductions were mostly finished, Ryo stopped Rias before she could introduce her own peerage.
His gaze briefly landed on Koneko.
"Let's save your peerage members for later, once we're back at the shrine."
A smile tugged at his lips.
"The best desserts should always be enjoyed last."
Then he added, "Compared to that, I'd rather see what all of you are capable of before the younger generation of angels and fallen angels arrive."
"I understand."
Rias let out a quiet sigh before bowing respectfully, "In that case, please allow us to escort you to the hotel."
"Then I'll look forward to it." A faint smile appeared on Ryo's face.
.
.
.