The rest of the journey was uneventful. When Rhode saw a sign on the side of the road that read "Kuoh Town," he knew he had arrived at the epicenter of the plot.
Passing the sign, a medium-sized town came into view. Though it was an obscure little city on most maps, because it was under the jurisdiction of the High-class Devil Rias Gremory, it featured a full array of facilities and buildings—save for an airport. Rhode had been here a few years ago, but since the plot hadn't started and he wasn't as strong as he was now, he had left since there were no system quests.
Years later, because of Asia, he was returning to the scene for the second time.
"Strange. Is this really the territory of a High-class Devil?" Rhode was driving when he heard Lavinia, in the passenger seat, talking to herself. Her azure eyes scanned the view through the window, her exquisite face clouded with obvious confusion.
"Is there a problem?" Rhode asked. Lavinia was a professional magician; her understanding of mana was far deeper than his.
"No, in fact, I haven't found any problems at all. But the more 'normal' it is, the weirder it feels. Usually, devils like to set up observation barriers around their territory to prevent invasions from hostile factions. But even after entering the city, I haven't sensed the mana fluctuations of a single hidden magic circle."
"There are only two possibilities. One, the lord here has no sense of security and didn't set up any barriers. Two, my magic isn't advanced enough to find the hidden arrays. Personally, I lean toward the latter. After all, I've heard the High-class Devil in charge of Kuoh Town is the younger sister of the Underworld's Lucifer."
"Her strength shouldn't be underestimated." Lavinia fell into deep thought. "Mr. Rhode, it seems we must be more careful."
Watching Lavinia spiral into over-analytical "genius" mode, Rhode almost found himself swayed by her logic for a second. But then he remembered Rias Gremory's track record in the original story.
She dealt with a few low-to-mid-tier Fallen Angels, some Stray Devils, and some Stray Exorcists. Then, during the Excalibur theft incident, she was toyed with by the Fallen Angel cadre Kokabiel. She was helpless against Riser Phoenix, another High-class Devil. During the Three Factions peace summit, she was frozen in time by her own servant's Sacred Gear...
Aside from that, what Rhode remembered most about Rias was the fan service. Although she was the female lead, her "highlight" performances... well, they weren't exactly legendary.
However, regardless of her combat strength, her "peaks" were majestic and firm—exactly Rhode's type.
"I think you're overthinking it, Lavinia." Rhode couldn't exactly explain that Rias's biggest contribution was aesthetic rather than tactical, so he could only subtly suggest she not over-analyze things.
"I know. But there's an old saying in the East..."
"Those who know the vibe are heroes?"
"?"
"Sorry, it just rolled off the tongue."
"Ugh... you broke my concentration, Mr. Rhode. I forgot the saying. Oh, right! 'A careful sailor can sail a ship for ten thousand years!'" Lavinia said the final part in rather clunky Mandarin.
Even though Lavinia was Italian, her accent sounded a bit like a cartoon villain. It was hard to keep a straight face. Rhode maintained his expression, trying his best not to laugh.
Still, Lavinia's caution was understandable. Since finishing her apprenticeship, she had been fighting the Oz witch factions. Those witches were veterans of magic who had spent decades honing their craft; Augusta was both a high-level magician and a Longinus host. Lavinia was used to "high-rank" matches. Suddenly dropping into a "noob" lobby, she hadn't adjusted her mindset.
Moreover, Rias's reputation was indeed intimidating. People might not know who Rias was, but the name of the Devil King Lucifer carried a lot of weight. It was why the Himejima clan had given up chasing Akeno years ago—they were terrified of the big brother standing behind Rias.
Having a magician on high alert wasn't a bad thing, though. Rhode could comfortably leave his back to Lavinia while he checked his system panel for his current mission.
[Quest: Asia Argento]
Content: Protect Asia Argento's safety and keep her from being harmed by the Fallen Angels.
Reward: Church Reputation +10, Random Reward *1.
Once they reached the halfway point through the city, the system's auto-pathing activated. An arrow only Rhode could see appeared on the ground, pointing toward the mission objective. Rhode didn't plan to linger; he headed straight for the Fallen Angels' location. He had been delayed in Kyoto for quite a while, and he imagined the Fallen Angels lurking here were likely running out of patience.
In fact, the Fallen Angels lurking in Kuoh Town were getting impatient.
Ever since Raynare heard about the "Holy Maiden" Asia Argento being excommunicated from a traitor within the Church, she had immediately contacted Stray Exorcists in Italy. She had ordered them to deliver the Holy Maiden to Kuoh Town, Japan, in one piece.
However, after getting a "received" confirmation, all of Raynare's subsequent messages had vanished into thin air. She couldn't get in touch with those Stray Exorcists no matter what. If she hadn't heard from her mole that Asia had indeed been picked up by a man dressed as an exorcist, she might have even considered going to the Vatican herself.
But on second thought, she didn't have the guts. The Vatican was a Church stronghold, and Fallen Angels and Devils were enemies of Heaven. If she were caught there, death was the only outcome. Raynare knew her limits, which was why she used Stray Exorcists as pawns.
That said, the wait was getting ridiculous.
"I say, Raynare, even with a layover, flying from Italy to Japan and then taking a train here should only take twenty-four hours at most, right? Why hasn't the so-called 'Holy Maiden' been brought here yet?" The one speaking was a girl with twin tails, her tone dripping with dissatisfaction and complaint. Although she was a Fallen Angel like Raynare, she wore a Gothic Lolita maid outfit over her combat gear and held a pink spear that looked more decorative than practical.
"Don't worry, they'll be here soon. Maybe they were just delayed by something... like a flight delay," Raynare said, trying to find an excuse, though she was clearly annoyed as well.
"Did the plane crash? I heard Boeing planes have been falling out of the sky a lot lately, and one still hasn't been found," chimed in a blue-haired woman dressed like a mature "onee-san."
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High School DxD : Reincarnated into the Multiverse, but it's High School DxD (131 Chapters – Ongoing)
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