In the background, you can hear explosions. That's because Raynare is training her Light Beam. Beside her is Asia with a bunch of dying plants. She is using it to train her ability to distinguish between friend and foe. There are numbers on the plants, and this would determine whether it is friend or foe.
As for me, I'm racking my brain to figure out how to sever the contract between Rias and me. It's been a week since the end of the Rating Game, and I still haven't made much progress. Even Raynare has gotten better at using Light Beam, from twenty seconds of charge time to five seconds. Ahhhh! I don't have any idea how to sever the contract! Raynare and Asia didn't miss my irritation.
"Uhm…Ise? Are you alright? You look exhausted," Asia said.
"Yeah, you've been analysing that spell formula for a week, and every day you get more and more irritated," Raynare said.
"I'm fine. It's just I haven't gotten a single clue on how to remove the contract. Instead, I just figured out how the Devils make the Evil Piece, which happens to be the opposite of what I want," I said with irritation.
"Seriously? You figured out how to make an Evil Piece? That's one of the most guarded secrets of the Devils," Raynare said.
"I know that! But it is useless for me. What I need is to figure out how to remove it. It's like everything I do gets reversed…That's it! Reverse! I need to reverse the spell formula! That way, rather than binding us, it would release us. I need to test it out. Maybe this would also work against those that were forced to be reincarnated into a Devil as well," I said, finally having a theory on a way to move forward. When Raynare and Asia saw that I finally had something on the spell formula, they decided not to disturb me and instead, they continued with their training.
After a full day's worth of training for Raynare and Asia, we left the Mirror Dimension. We entered the house, and we found Grayfia waiting to greet us. I don't know how she does it. She never once failed to greet us at the front door.
"Welcome back, Issei-sama," Grayfia said with a bow.
"It's good to be back, Grayfia. Where is Rias?" I asked.
"She's in her room," Grayfia replied.
"Did she stay in her room all day?" I asked.
"Yes. I asked her why. And she replied that she didn't want to mess up anything, and the best way to do that is to stay in the room," Grayfia said.
"I know I told her not to do anything stupid, but it isn't healthy to remain cooped up in her room all day. Did she at least eat the food that you gave her?" I said.
"She did. She even asked for seconds," Grayfia said. I nodded.
"Right. Grayfia, can you come with me for a moment? I need to speak with you in private," I said.
"Of course. That's not a problem," Grayfia said.
We headed to my room, which was empty since Raynare and Asia was in the dining room eating dinner. I conjured a chair for Grayfia to sit on while I sat on the bed. I looked at her, and her facial expression hadn't changed.
"I wanted to talk to you about why you're here. Rias, Sona and Serafall told me that you weren't fired. They told me that you quit. If that's the case, why did you decided to work for me?" I asked.
"Do you remember how we met? I do, vividly. That punch you delivered was magnificent!" Grayfia said with a hint of lust on her face.
"W-What?! Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked.
"Ah! In the Underworld, none will dare to do what you did. I have tried being in a relationship, but since I'm one of the most powerful Devils in the Underworld, none would dare hit me. You see, I'm a masochist. That punch you delivered was electrifying. I quit my job in the house of Gremory because none have made me feel the way you did. And I want to feel it once more," Grayfia said. That's a bummer. Being a masochist and one of the most powerful Devil, it's obvious that her partners would not dare hit her in case she gets angry.
"I thought that if I approach you, you may gain interest in me. I had no such luck. You ignore me for the most part and treat me as an employee. But now that you know why I'm here, I wish for you to consider me as a woman," Grayfia said while she got close to me.
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Hold on a minute…I'm not the type of guy that sleeps with women and forget about everything else," I said.
"Hmm? But I've done my research. I know that you slept with Miss Raynare on your first date. Was that wrong?" Grayfia said.
"No, you got that right…But at least we went on a date first!" I said. And the look on Grayfia tells me that she wasn't backing down.
"Then, let me use this chance to ask you out on a date. And don't say that you already have a girlfriend. Miss Raynare told me of your dream of having a harem and the fact that I already asked Miss Raynare for permission to ask you out," Grayfia said.
"Wait a minute! Raynare knows that you're interested in me?! Why didn't she tell me anything?!" I said.
"That's because I asked her not to," Grayfia said. Her face was still very close to me.
"Okay, I'll go on a date with you, but don't think that the date will end on a high note," I said. I then pushed her face away from mine. But that was a mistake since it looked like she got hornier. Right. Masochist.
The following day was a school day. Raynare, Asia, Rias and I were walking to school. Over the week that Rias has stayed with us, my opinion of her is slowly changing. Emphasis on slowly. She is different when she isn't desperate. She looks more level-headed. I guess this second chance for her is turning out to be a good thing. Although Rias and I have never been in a prolonged conversation, we do occasionally have small talks. Like I told her, I dropped all my previous anger towards her. I am genuinely trying to get to know her.
When we arrived at Kuoh Academy, every student that saw us was staring. Mostly at me. They have this hatred for me because I was walking beside Rias, I ignored them. Though one person's look was more distinguishable, and that's Aika's. She was staring at us with extreme curiosity. I guess Raynare and Ddraig were right. She isn't going to be leaving me alone.
When I got to class with Raynare and Asia, Aika continued staring. There wasn't a single moment that she took her eyes off me. And she wasn't even hiding the fact that she was staring. No. She wanted me to know that she was watching me. Hey, at least she doesn't stalk me home.