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High School DxD · Heaven
At the platform where the Heavenly System was located, Kaito and the other three gathered around it, marveling.
"Wow! So this is the system the Bible God of this world created!"
Milim, wide-eyed with curiosity, reached out and touched the dazzling light orb on the platform. Fortunately, the anti-theft system didn't activate. Otherwise, all of Heaven would have gone on high alert.
"Milim, stop touching things at random. This system has been unstable ever since that Bible God died. If you actually break something, those angels will pin it on you and squeeze you for millions of Tempest Coin. I don't have that kind of money to bail you out!"
Kaito stared at her with barely concealed panic.
"Huh? Kai-chan, aren't we sneaking around? If they find us, can't we just run?"
Milim tilted her head at him.
"Ahem... that's beside the point. The point is this thing is old, decrepit equipment now, so we should be careful."
Kaito caught himself, realizing they were essentially trespassing, and cleared his throat awkwardly before resuming a serious expression.
Not that the system being broken was really a problem. Fixing it completely would take Kaito no effort at all. But he wasn't these angels' benefactor. Why would he bother?
Besides, he could sense something else. A very faint soul fluctuation, buried deep within the system. Almost certainly the contingency left behind by that Bible God who had died so abruptly.
"Kai-chan, could that soul inside actually be the Bible God? We're standing right next to God!"
Rimuru had sensed it too. She looked at Kaito with wide eyes.
And understandably so. In any world, the name of the Bible God carried enormous weight. Whatever one's personal feelings about it, Christianity was the world's largest religion, and as its figurehead, the influence that being had once wielded was genuinely staggering.
"It's probably him. But he's just God. I'm more powerful than God, so how come I never see you look at me like that?"
Kaito shot Rimuru a sour look.
Rimuru reached over and patted him on the head with a smile.
"Kai-chan, I'm just too used to you. And honestly, the way you carry yourself day to day makes it very hard to see you as someone important."
"Hmph. Fine. I just don't have the aura."
Kaito brushed her hand away, then produced a wooden stick from somewhere and crouched on the ground. He began drawing circles, muttering under his breath.
"Drawing circles to curse you, I curse you..."
Rimuru watched him with a helpless expression.
"Alright, enough. Let's focus on why we're actually here."
The childish sulk vanished from Kaito's face instantly, replaced with complete composure, as though the person crouching on the ground a moment ago had been someone else entirely.
"Wow, Kaito, how do you switch like that so fast?!"
Ramiris, floating nearby, stared at him with her mouth open.
"Low-key. Standard procedure."
Kaito dusted off his hands and looked around.
"So... what exactly is the business we're here for?"
Rimuru blinked at him.
"Didn't you bring us here? What are we doing here?"
Kaito stroked his chin, thinking hard.
Right. What had they come for? Something about bringing the angels into the Jura Tempest Federation. Yes, that was it.
His expression shifted immediately into one of total confidence.
"We're here to see beautiful female angels!!!"
"Oh, oh, oh! *3"
The other three lit up with expressions of sudden clarity.
"Alright, let's go then. We can deal with this broken system later. I don't want to get stuck paying for anything."
"Hehe, let's go! I want to see how the angels here compare to that lazy Dino!"
(PS: Dino, one of the Eight Star Demon Lords in canon, was originally an angel who fell and became a demon lord.)
"Michael, if what you're telling us is accurate, then this enemy is no small matter. What does Azazel say?"
Raphael, one of the Four Great Seraphim, spoke with a grave expression.
"Hmph. Azazel spends every day collecting and researching Sacred Gears. He probably won't take this seriously."
Uriel, standing nearby, crossed his arms with clear irritation.
"Uriel, don't be too quick to judge. Azazel might..."
Gabriel began carefully, but Uriel cut her off before she could finish.
"Gabriel, don't defend that traitor. If he hadn't led so many angels to fall, God would never have died."
The other three Seraphim went quiet.
Michael, ever the diplomat, broke the silence.
"Enough, Uriel. Now isn't the time to revisit the past. We need to focus on how to handle the threat in front of us."
"Hmph."
Uriel fell silent, though not happily.
Michael continued.
"Azazel received word about the devils being conquered. He said he'll bring Baraqiel and Vali here shortly."
"Azazel is actually coming to Heaven?"
Raphael raised an eyebrow.
It was a significant move. The three factions had ended the great war, yes, but a genuine peace treaty had never been signed. The tension between them had never fully dissolved. And now Azazel was not only coming himself, but bringing Baraqiel and Vali along. If anything went wrong, the Fallen Angels would suffer serious losses.
"He probably calculated that we have no choice but to work together this time. Otherwise, I'd never believe that man, who threw everything away for a woman, would have the nerve."
Uriel's mockery was characteristically blunt.
"There may be more to it than that. It probably also involves the Khaos Brigade."
At the name, all four Seraphim's expressions shifted.
The Khaos Brigade's ranks were filled with descendants of gods from various mythologies. On its own, that would have been concerning but manageable. What elevated it to a genuine threat was its leader: Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon God, one of the two Great Dragon Gods. The power she commanded was enough to make every mythological faction uneasy.
"Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon God... No wonder Azazel is risking it all to come here."
"Are you talking about that infinitely adorable little dragon? She'd make a great mascot!"
"Who's there..."