Chapter 109: Exorcists, Valkyries, and Gods
—
The day passed with a lot of activities. I stood as a spectator for the most part, only occasionally showing the girls some tricks.
Although I've never been an 'Idol' in the modern sense, I've been treated as its more traditional idea a lot of times. Many have worshiped me as their God, so I knew the 'yes and no's of this work.
Plus, I have researched about it enough in my 10th life, and this too due to Ai.
Ai seemed slightly surprised at first when I helped the girls with expertise, but she knew about my other lives, so the surprise didn't last long. The day continued just fine and came to a conclusion where I saw off the girls.
I took a few minutes off my day to drop Mem-Cho home, who loved using me as her Pegasus. Shoko sent us a well-hidden, slightly envious look, though Yuzuru didn't bother to hide her disapproval.
Unfortunately, I couldn't be at two places at the same time.
The day ended just like that, and the next one began with gentle sunlight hitting my eyelids.
* * *
"I'll be going," Ruby said as she finished eating and walked out of the house.
She'd wait for me a few yards away from the main gate so that she didn't have to say Ai goodbyes. She's been doing this thing for the last two months.
Ai tried to keep an indifferent expression as she continued her food, but I didn't miss the quiver of her lips. Asia did too, which spoke volumes about how far this has come since she wasn't the most observant of people.
"Ahm," Ai noticed our attention, quickly clearing her throat and drinking water. "Be quick Aqua, don't leave her waiting there."
"You know I've really tried talking to her about this," I finished my food and said. "But she doesn't listen. She's stubborn."
"...."
Ai never treated Ruby badly, not once. Even when she cast me aside for not being her "son", she kept Ruby by her side. Ruby too loved her back, she'd been doing that since her last life. Ai was the only thing that was by her side in her last moments... second only to me.
Though Sarina had never admitted to my face, Doctor Gorou held a bigger spot in her heart than Ai ever did. In the end, Ai never even met her in her last life, but the Doctor sacrificed part of his own life to take care of her. Beyond a doctor, he gave her attention and care she never received. That's why she vowed to marry him, even though Gorou discarded it as a joke every time.
Sarina couldn't stand Ai slapping me. Not when it happened after Ai and I separated. I came to check up on her, to warn anyone lurking in the shadows that I was still there, but instead, I was met with slaps. Although I completely understood the reason behind that, as it looked like I was forcing a kiss on her lips, making her shed tears, which completely justified Ai's reaction, Sarina herself refused to understand that.
'How dare she do that to you, when she has no idea who you are! You died for her once. You treated her so kindly these 15 years, yet said all those harsh words to you about you not being her son! Yet you came back to keep her safe, only for her to repay you like that?!' — was what Ruby yelled when I brought it up to her. I could have tried convincing her further, but I knew it wouldn't work. She was too stubborn and in love to listen to logic.
And really, when someone's feeling angry for you, it's hard to argue, let alone get mad at them. Ruby was clingy, but she was adorable.
Still, I need to think of a way to melt the ice between them... Then again, it's not as if Ai and I are in the best relationship state either.
"I know you did," she put her fork and spoon down and looked me in the eyes. "I thank you for that. I just... you know?" a sigh escaped her lips. She looked away. "I loved her, and I knew she loved me. Even when you left that day, you told me how much she loves me, and that I shouldn't cast her away. Even before that, you said that Ruby sees me as an ideal mother, even if you don't. So it hurts kind of to... see both of you to just distance yourself from me."
"Hmm,"
She smiled and looked into my eyes. Her pupils were odd; one with a white star and the other with a black one. She was happy that Ruby and I were closer to each other than ever, she was happy that I treated her with love and humor even now even if it wasn't the same dynamic as before. Yet, she felt extremely sad that she was pushed away from both of us, one way or another.
This was the saddest I've seen her in the last two months. Although she claimed to introduce the JIF situation with the girls to give them a big opportunity, a part of that reason was hope. She hoped Ruby would begin to like her again because of being presented with this opportunity. But... has anything changed? No.
She gave me a sad smile, "Sometimes, I wish I had a genie lamp to fix all this. Take care in school."
She got up, paused, and walked away. I was left with Asia for a bit before I too got up and walked out of the house.
I walked out of the gate in a daze... and then quickly took a U-turn.
"Ai!" I called from the door and she came down the stairs, looking at me. I hesitated a little before walking over and hugging her gently. It was a platonic hug, which she realized soon, easing into my arms.
"What is it?" She let out a soft laugh and said. She liked the hug. She needed it.
"I told you about going to the beach one day, right?" I reminded her. "To take some pictures, edit them with magical effects, to give the people an idea that superstar Ai has magical powers?"
"Yes?" She looked confused.
"Can we do that tomorrow?" I said.
She raised her head to look up at her.
Although I should have delayed this trip a bit more thanks to the busy crowd around us, I couldn't let this family remain like this.
I'll fix this family, as well as fulfill the magical conditions I just spoke of.
* * *
The extreme gazes that I've felt on my back have lessened now. The world was a whirlwind of activities and viral events, moreover in this school; I would have been more surprised if I remained the center of attention for this long.
But a few sparing glances were sent my way now and then. Bothersome but bearable.
"Hey, onii-chan!! You think I'll do well in JIF?" Ruby hopped excitedly beside me as we approached the school gate, while Tsubasa walked normally.
"No, not if you laze around," I told her, making her stop and scowl at me. "What? Sure, your Copy ability allows you to memorize dance moves with a glance, as well as singing, which is a cheat and a half," I reminded her, "but then you also have talent flowing through your veins. How can you fail? Unless, of course, you stay lazy like the last two months and don't work hard."
"I am not lazy."
"You are. Just because your training speed is phenomenal doesn't mean training itself is negligible." I shot her down when she tried to argue. "Don't fail."
Now she grew nervous. She had hoped for me to elevate her ego a little, and tell her that she'd win anyway, but I had gone too far.
She grumbled as we walked, staying back for a bit before she quickly caught up to me and Tsubasa. "Hey, aren't you putting too much pressure on my shoulders?"
"Well, well, well..." I put on a dramatic laugh as we walked inside the school. All the while, my [Jade Perception] remained 100% focused.
Beside me, Tsubasa was frowning, looking at Ruby and me. I knew what she was thinking about, she had mentioned it to me already once. She was curious why Ruby and I were so much closer now, and that if we weren't a bit too close for siblings.
I had brushed her off last time, but she hadn't changed her mind.
As much as I wanted to focus on her to try convincing her again, my attention was on somewhere else within the school. The presence I sensed yesterday.
* * *
[Third Person Point of View]
"How interesting..."
Sometimes she wondered if she was the main character or not. Not even two months since she joined, the school was a fuckfest of a supernatural conflict. Although nothing had gone down the rail yet, the air smelled like it would soon.
Oh, and of course, she was joking about the main character part. If this was an anime, then the genre would be action/harem with the main character obvious in the entire classroom.
'Though Issei Hyuudo from the other class fights for the position too. Kind of... Barely.' Just because of his Sacred Gear, which allowed his power to increase phenomenally, and nothing else. Not that Aqua himself was slower than him; he was always a step ahead, and from the few presence she sensed in the school right now, he'd prove that once again today.
As Quku continued with her English class, she noticed Aqua's distracted face. His chin was resting on his hand, his eyes glued on the air as he tapped his fingers on the desk. Shoko beside him noticed his expression and could have warned him about it, but the girl had rather immersed herself in watching his daydreaming expression.
Oh, how nice it must feel to be young.
Quetzalcoatl almost threw a chalk between his eyebrows but decided not to. From the way his fingers were moving, he seemed impatient for the... lunch break. He was dying to throw some hands, and Quetzalcoatl had no reason to annoy him further.
The bell of lunch break rang, and Aqua left immediately.
....
In the old school building, where the Occult Research Club was located, Rias sat with her childhood friend Sona. They sat opposite two couches occupied by individuals from two different factions, one closely related to the Devil Faction, a direct enemy, and the other someone distant, and therefore somewhat neutral. It was an odd mixture.
Moreover, since one of them was a Goddess. Hel, Daughter of Loki, ruler of Norse's Hell realm, sat beside a Valkyrie, Rossweisse. Hel was a beautiful woman with a tall figure and long hair of mixed colors of red and blue, dressed in a robe of white and more prominent black colors. Rossweisse was a beautiful young woman with long, straight silver hair and blue-colored eyes who appeared to be in her late teens, dressed in battle armor.
They were enemies, being members of the faction Loki and faction Odin respectively, so it spoke of the seriousness of the situation if both of them were sharing a couch.
In the face of their presence, the two exorcists, Xenovia and Irina, seemed pitiful. Their situation too was serious in its own right, but Rias and Sona had no choice but to pay more attention to the couch that held a Goddess' ass.
"So you're saying the Devil Faction is declaring war on the entirety of Norse?" said Hel, with one leg above the other, her chin raised as she looked down at Rias arrogantly.
"When did I..." Rias' tone was scared and nervous.
"Please, just because we're unwilling to hand over a student doesn't mean we're waging war," Sona, being the smarter of the two friends, chimed over Rias. "If you're after him so hard like this, why not just pick him up from his home?"
"Sona, hey!" Rias snapped at her for suggesting such a thing, which made Hel laugh.
"Oh come on, you think I haven't thought of that? I take action first and ask later. I've tried visiting his home and taking him from there," she scoffed. "Except Dragon God Quetzalcoatl visits that house for tea breaks! Well, it's not as if I'm scared of her, of course, but we would rather not have the Aztecs have a showdown with the Norse during these dire times."
Both Sona and Rias frowned. They had no idea Quetzalcoatl and Aqua were so close that she was visiting his house.
In that case, they understood. If the timing was bad when Hel attacks that household, and Quetzalcoatl happened to be there, the aftermath would not be well. For anybody.
"We know that she's here too, teaching in this school," the Valkyrie, Rossweisse said. She sounded a lot more hesitant than her pantheon's Goddess. "But she must have restrictions and rules she's going by to stay here. So she can't just attack her if we don't attack her. Even so, we would like to take Aquamarine with us without any fight if possible. I'm sure you understand if force is used here, and Quetzalcoatl retaliates, the school would turn to dust."
"You speak as if I can't turn this place to dust myself?" Hel scowled, her ego hurt.
Sona and Rias remained frowning. This... was not going well. Sona didn't mind if this would be resolved by giving away Aqua, he wasn't a friend of hers, but Rias was stubborn.
"At least let us call our siblings for-" Rias tried, but Hel let out a dark aura that shut her up.
"Nope," she said. "Let's not delay this any longer, please."
They were threatening now. If the Satans were called here, the meeting would be a lot more complicated. Even the Norse Pantheon couldn't just demand someone be handed over from the Satans, at least not for free. That's why they wouldn't allow the Satans to be called.
Rias and Sona eyed behind them; a few of their peers stood behind their couch, and the rest were scattered around the room. They could fight if things went south, but would they survive the battle? They doubted it.
This was not good. At this point, handing over a single student was safer than betting the lives of everyone else. No, to Sona, that had been the case from the get go.
The door suddenly parted open, putting an end to all the dilemma in the air.
"Is this it?"
Aqua walked in with his jaws clenched. Every head turned to him and his blue eyes locked on the strongest in the room; Hel.
"Should have brought some men to fight."
"....?"
The air exploded as he vanished from his spot. The confused people in the room gave in to their alarmed senses; Hel crossed her arms to block the incoming attack, as his fist collided with her crossed forearms.
— Boom!
An impact erupted. The room exploded in splinters and debris, as Hel was shot out of it. Aqua shot along, grabbing her by the collar, and his other hand slammed a punch in her face.
The punch caused the air to explode another time, as Hel was sent flying down to slam against the earth. The ground shattered, dust exploded, and Hel spat out blood.
"Who- who dares!" She yelled, trying to rise, but a hammer of cloud with the weight of a train descended on her. "Shit."
The hammer slammed against her face and lightning spasmed out of it, physical damage which already scaled on tons was further amplified by the lightning.
When the hammer lifted, a bloody face glared at Aqua. She was injured, yet she glared at the mortal that dared make her bleed. She took control of her death divinity and commanded, "Drop dead."
The world responded by tightening a force around his heart. As a Goddess of Death, she could kill mortals with just that word. But she had put more of her divinity into it than usual since this mortal was different from the rest.
But just how different?—she had miscalculated. He growled, "Denied." as the force dispersed like a popped balloon.
Hel remained frozen in her spot, as he floated above her menacingly, with the sky darkening behind him. The world around them shivered and sang as he approached her.
"Fuck."
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