In the Occult Research Clubroom...
"What did you do to our Koneko?" Rias asked sharply, her crimson eyes narrowing.
"Yes, this is a little shocking, to say the least," Akeno added, her tone cool but curious.
Their gazes were locked on a surprising sight. Kousuke sat calmly on the couch, while Koneko rested her head on his lap, purring softly as he gently caressed her head. Even Issei looked at them with wide eyes full of envy—he had tried to approach the petite girl countless times, only to be met with rejection or a swift retreat.
Rias and the others in the club hadn't even noticed the pair had slipped out, too invested in their conversation but upon their return, the scene unfolding before them immediately drew their attention. Kousuke hadn't expected this either—he was just being a little nosy like he always was back in the Other World.
"We just talked for a bit, that's all," Kousuke replied with a soft chuckle, continuing to run his fingers through her hair.
"Your headpats... feel nice," Koneko murmured with a rare, content look. The usual wall of stoicism was nowhere to be seen—she truly looked like a happy, affectionate little sister.
"That can't be it... don't tell me you're also going after—" Issei muttered, eyes wide.
"My heart is solely for Tsubaki," Kousuke said with a firm, unwavering tone. He saw her as the little sister he never had, nothing more. His heart leaned toward a very specific type to begin with—older women.
Although mentally he was older than Tsubaki, appearance-wise, she was older than him. The gap-moe from a cold beauty like her was just too irresistible to him.
Seeing Koneko warm up to Kousuke so naturally, Rias decided to relax a little. However, now she seemed even more eager to invite him into her Peerage—her family. He already got along well with her Peerage members to begin with.
"Cough, let's talk about something a little more serious then." Rias said, clearing her throat and changing the subject. "Kousuke-kun, you heard that I'm a devil from Tsubaki right?"
"Yes," he nodded calmly. It was a lie—he'd known long before Tsubaki ever said anything—but it wasn't entirely false. She had filled in a few extra details. "I know that everyone here except me is a devil."
"...Aren't you scared?"
"Huh? Why would I be? Are you going to eat me or something?" He said before faking being scared.
"That's not what I meant!"
"Then it doesn't really matter, does it? At the very least, you all still look human to me." He recalled the stray devils he had met—those were true abominations. If someone told him they were actual devils, he would've believed them on the spot.
"You're much calmer than I thought." Akeno thoughtfully said. She recalled when Issei first found out about their actual identities, he immediately ran out of the academy's premise in slight terror.
"I'm just open-minded. If I were scared of devils, I wouldn't be dating one."
"That's right. If you've heard about us from her, then that must mean she already told you about herself," Rias said with a nod.
"Kousuke-senpai... is nice," Koneko said before stretching her arms. Kousuke thought she really looked like a cat at that moment.
"Hey, I'm a Senpai too!"
"...Pervert."
"Why only me?!"
"Though I heard there's another member aside from Kiba-senpai who isn't here," Kousuke said, looking around the clubroom. He hadn't met this one member yet, but he had heard how cute she was from Issei's friends.
"Oh, you mean Asia? She's visiting the Church," Issei replied, remembering that she mentioned it earlier that morning when they left his house.
"An ex-nun turned devil visiting a church to pray? That's got layers of irony." Kousuke chuckled. Then he blinked ."Wait, aren't you worried about her?"
"It's fine. This town is managed by us, including Sona and her Peerage. If anything happens, we'll know immed—"
Rias froze mid-sentence. Her expression shifted rapidly from neutral to a deep frown, and finally to worry—an emotional upheaval in just a few seconds.
"Issei! Akeno! We have to go! Asia's in danger!"
"...Shit really hit the fan, huh? My bad," Kousuke muttered apologetically. He hadn't expected his joke to turn out true.
"No, it's not your fault," Rias assured him quickly.
"What exactly happened, Rias?" Akeno asked. Everyone was already on their feet, tension thick in the air. Even Koneko's usual stillness had given way to alertness.
"My familiars were attacked—those priests from the Church, they just showed up out of nowhere. Asia is safe for now, but only because they managed to stall them. We have to move."
Rias raised her hand, and a teleportation circle spread across the floor beneath their feet. "Kiba was already informed. He's en route as we speak."
Rias and the others stood around the circle before the spell fully engulfed them, vanishing them from the clubroom.
...
Near the old Church...
"Wow, what kind of 'good guys' destroy their own house?" Kousuke said before whistling as he stared at the barely intact old church. Rias and her Peerage members turned toward him upon hearing his voice, surprised he had somehow tagged along.
"Wait, why are you here?! The spell should only work on my Peerage..."
"Don't mind the small details." He said, waving it off. "Oh look—is that one of those Church bastards you were talking about?" He pointed into the distance where a robed figure stood, wielding a sword basked in light. They were facing off against a busty woman with bat-like wings—She must be Rias's familiar.
"A holy sword..." Akeno murmured.
"Me and Akeno will handle them," Rias ordered. "Issei, you and Koneko go find Asia. She should still be nearby." The two nodded and immediately split off in different directions. She then turned toward Kousuke, who was watching them like he was viewing a show.
"And you—please stand back."
"Alright, go break a leg!" he said encouragingly, casual as ever.
Rias sighed. She couldn't understand how he had managed to come with them when he was clearly a human and definitely not in her Peerage.
She shook her head. That could wait. Right now, she needed to focus on the enemy in front of her.
How dare they attack Asia while she was praying in the Church? In her own territory at that?
She was going to teach them a lesson. A strong reminder that no one must underestimate a Gremory, especially not after hurting her family members.