italics - Thoughts

Bold underlined - Spells/Sword Skills

[Bold] - Ddraig

[Ddraig] - Ddraig mental speech

{Bold} - Albion speech

[Issei] - Issei mental speech with Ddraig

[Issei] - Issei speaking with Ddraig

Underlined - Timeskips/Flashbacks

"Bold" - Rating Game Announcement

Disclaimer: I do not own Highchool Dxd, Sword Art Online, or any of its characters. All rights belong to their creators.


Chapter 26: The In-laws 1

The drive was surprisingly short. Less than 15 minutes, actually. And all too soon, Asuna could see the familiar sight of her family home coming up in her sight.

"Ojou-sama." The butler that was driving them towards the Yuuki family house looked at Asuna. "We are arriving at the family house."

"…Thank you for informing me, Kaito." Asuna forced the words out of her throat. Not because of any negative feelings towards the butler. On the contrary, in fact. After all, this butler was the one that had seen her change, had helped her with her newfound wish to cook and for swordsmanship(although, it was quickly cut away from her life when she managed to get her hands on a Amusphere to stop the others from calling her a barbarian).

And this butler knew how much she did not want to attend this meeting with her family, and as such had attempted to ask if it would be alright if he purposefully damaged the car to allow them to spend as little time as possible among her family. A kid thought, but ultimately, one that was useless, as the Yuuki family would have sent out another car for them to get to the get together.

"Ojou-sama." Kaito stopped the car outside the mansion-like residence. "We have arrived."

"…Thanks you Kaito." Asuna nodded her head towards the elderly butler. "We would be coming out at the appointed time, so have a good rest in the meantime."

"As you command." Bowing his head as low as possible, Kaito promptly drive off, but not before mouthing that he would be waiting to drive off at their convenience.

A lump formed in Asuna's throat, but she quickly pushed it down. Keep calm, girl. You are a Swordswoman at heart. There is no use panicking, and there is no need to panic. And, Kazuto-kun is here with you. Taking a quick peak at her boyfriend, she could see that he was in awe at the Kyoto-style mansion that was the main house of her family. Even if everyone else treats you like something you are not, Kazuto-kun won't.

Sucking in a deep breath, Asuna forcefully calmed her rapidly beating heart. Yes, keep calm. Remember, there is no reason to think the worst. Just walk in, speak with the people who had called you here, and go. If we keep this brief, we would be able to meet up with Issei-san and the rest for the remainder of the tour.

"You alright?" A squeeze of her hand alerted Asuna to the presence of her boyfriend, now closer than before, looking at her worriedly. "You sure that you have to do this? You could ignore this if you don't want to do this, right?"

"No, I won't be able to ignore this." Asuna let out a frustrated sigh. "If they went out of their way to contact my mother to tell her about this meeting, it means that I HAVE to do this meeting. Even if I attempt to put it off, they would most likely find me and drag me to the meeting, no matter what I am doing."

"And besides," A small, almost invisible, hint of her old persona came out as she smirked at her boyfriend/husband. "I am the Vice-Commander of the forefront of the Clearer guilds, the Lightning Flash, Asuna. I have faced down petty squabbles between guild leaders and your agreements. I have felled monsters that would have killed me and a few hits with my skills in swordsmanship and will. If this little thing makes me afraid and back down, then I am no Swordswoman."

"Well said." Kazuto nodded his head, giving Asuna a small peck on her cheek, smirking. "Well, after you. You know this place better than me, so I would be counting on you to lead us around this place."

"Anything for my beloved husband." A similar smirk on her face, Asuna walked through the doors confidently, head held high, ready to face whatever may come her way.

..

Urg…This is too suffocating

It did not take much time for Asuna and Kazuto to reach the hall where everyone was gathered. And when they did, Kazuto was a little surprised by the insides.

The interior resembled like it was from one of those Victorian-styled mansions, even though it was a Kyoto-style mansion on the outside. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling at regular intervals, and tables were all set up at equal distances from each other, allowing people to mingle and eat at their leisure. To be honest, Kazuto felt like he had been transported back in time a little.

The only reason why he was able to differentiate the time-travelling like sight from the 21st century were the little things. Small bursts of cold air cooled the room, while also making it hard to notice. Electrical sockets were placed behind coverable portions of tiles or carvings. Sounds of cars and the sight of high-rise buildings could be seen outside some of the windows, which led to balconies. And the hanging chandeliers were utilising miniature but powerful LEDs instead of candles to light the large hall.

But that was not what really dampened the mood.

It was, as Asuna had feared and confided to him about in the past. Her cousins, aunts and uncles were the main cause for the change of their mood. Her blood relatives.

The moment that Asuna had walked through the doors, the quiet murmurs that Kazuto had managed to pick up with his enhanced hearing instantly died down, eyes all being drawn to his chestnut-haired wife/girlfriend. Then, just as suddenly, the chatter started to come back in full swing, but this time, there was always at least a set of eyes on his partner and him. And every so often, there would be someone who would come up to Asuna and 'speak' to her about what had been going on in their lives. It was a little amusing and interesting to hear about all the degrees, job occupations and pathways they were going down. Some of them, he had even struck up a conversation, having sensed a possible path he could take after graduating from Kuoh.

But after a while, it became less and less amusing, less and less interesting, until all that was left was an unpleasant yet barely bearable flaunting for their educational careers, with subtly hidden barbs and jabs at what they had been through, hindering or stunting their growth.

Honestly, to say that touching VR is nothing but a waste of time. Kazuto could barely hold back the scoff when he heard that. VR can be used in many different ways. Commercial uses, Educational uses, Military uses. Even Recreational. It just so happened that the recreational path was the one it is most known for. I bet that down the line, VR, or AR, would be used everywhere and be part of a person's daily life.

And…. Kazuto could also hear about the 'other' things they were saying about Asuna.

..

"Worthless"

"Poor girl, corrupted by games."

"She lost a good portion of her life and educational prowess when she touched that cursed headset. Serves her right."

"Hmph. Why is SHE here? Her achievements are not worth anything!"

"Thanks to her touching that NerveGear, we managed to get ahead, didn't we papa?"

"Yes, son, that is right. Be thankful, and remember to stay away from those wastes of time. They aren't worth it."

"Poor girl. She is so traumatised that no one would love her and marry her. After all, who would love a cripple?"

"Anything and everything related to VR should be scrapped."

..

Grr… Kazuto had to restrain himself when he heard that sentence. Yui will never be not worth it! She is my daughter, and to hell with anything that tries to harm her!

And, from the brief stiffening of Asuna's limbs, he could tell that she agreed with him. But because she had been raised in this sort of environment ever since she learned to talk, she was able to hide her discomfort and anger behind a fake smile. The only reason he did not go out there to have some…choice words…with the person who had spoken that was Asuna's quick squeeze of his hand.

"-and, what have you been doing, Asuna-san?" The latest of Asuna's cousin finishing up his long speech. A disgusting smile was on his face as he peered down at Asuna. "Have your studies been any good lately? Last I heard, you were still stuck in that 'Survivor School'."

Survivor school? Kazuto was briefly confused by this, but his mind quickly realised what had actually happened. Ah, so the school has not released any information about some Survivors being able to transfer out, should they be deemed fit enough to return to society. Something me and Asuna had long accomplished by passing our psyche evaluations and since our grades are pretty good.

"…It has been fine, so far." Asuna replied after a brief pause, a fake smile on her face. "I think that I would be able to released and to another school of my own choosing."

"Oho?" The cousin raised a brow in intrigue. "Is that so? What sort of school are you going to transfer to then, Asuna-san?"

"It's most likely some backwater university." Before Asuna could open her mouth, she was interrupted by a man wearing a suit, a small pair of glasses framing his face, long, black bangs hanging from the sides of his face.

"Julian-san." Asuna nodded to the new arrival, a small frown on her face. "What were you saying about me transferring to a backwater university?"

"Exactly what I said." The cousin named Julian said in a smug tone. "From past records, you have always been near the forefront of our little race. Top scores in every subject, scoring nearly a perfect score with every test that has been placed before you. Such intellectual ability should not have dulled too much after you escaped that death game. And from what I heard, you have had no trouble with your examinations in that Survivor School of yours."

"…What are you playing at, Julian-san?" Asuna's tone had a hint of hostility in it. Has she her rapier on her, Kazuto had no reason not to believe she would have a hand on her rapier, ready to draw it and strike at a moment's notice. In fact, she had already half-settled into a quickdraw stance. The only reason why no one had noticed the oddity of it was because she had taken a step back instead, disguising the motion as if she were stepping back to look at Julian better, but was a little repulsed by what she was seeing.

"Me? Playing?" Julian scoffed. "Hardly. Unlike you, who got stuck in a game for a few years, I have been stepping up even more. Some of which is why we have called you here today. Along with your," He directed a distasteful look at Kazuto. "boy toy."

Did he just call me a pretty face? Kazuto did not know if he should feel insulted or not. On one hand, he did have a somewhat feminine face, so it was not that much of a stretch to say he looked good. On the other hand, he had been insulted by Julian as someone whose only good feature was his looks.

Asuna was in the same boat. She did not know if she should be angry that Julian insulted her boyfriend, or if she should agree with him that he looked pretty. In the end, she decided to shift the focus towards another direction. "Is there a reason why you came over to me, Julian-san?"

"-Oh, right." Snapping his fingers, Julian nodded his head. "I nearly forgot. If you would follow me…"

A little suspicious as to where they were going, Kazuto and Asuna followed the well-dressed young adult, who led them to a room near the end of the hall they were in. Once they were inside, they were met with two other adults, on male and one female, seating inside, with some papers spread out before them. They looked very similar to Julian. Must be his parents.

"Uncle, Aunt." Asuna wasted no time in greeting the two. "To what do I owe the pleasure of you calling us here?"

"Ah, hello Asuna." The male nodded his head slightly. "Please, take a seat. We have much to discuss."

"If you won't mind, I would prefer to stand." Asuna replied in a cordial tone towards her uncle. "I wish to go back to my friends, so the sooner we get this done, the sooner we can leave."

"Watch your tone when speaking to your uncle Satoshi, Asuna." The lady barked at his girlfriend. "He is already doing you a favour by-"

"It's fine, Ichika." Asuna's uncle, Satoshi raised a hand, stopping his spouse from speaking further. "She is understandably confused. We called her away from her trip with her friends without much warning after all." Facing Asuna, he replied to her unasked question. "And as for why we called you here, little Asuna, it's because we are looking out for you. Apologies for the sudden meeting, but the sooner we finish up, the sooner we can proceed with the plans."

"…plans?" Asuna asked hesitantly. "If you don't mind me asking uncle, what plans?"

"Why, the plans for us to get married, dear Asuna!" Julian chose to cut in, the smug grin still on his face. "After this discussion, we would be having a wedding in a week's time, making you my spouse."

"…I'm sorry, what?" Asuna asked, her face and tone devoid of any emotion.

"This is all for your own good, Asuna." The aunt, Ichika, gave a sympathy-filled look towards Kazuto's girlfriend/wife. "After you escaped from that death game, we have noticed some rather…concerning…changes and rumours floating about."

"…changes?"

Rumours? Kazuto narrowed his eyes at that particular word, not liking how it was phrased.

"Why, yes dearie." Ichika shook her head lightly. "You were such a good role model of what a Yuuki should be: Charismatic, intellectual, beautiful, had all your life planned out. In fact, dare I say, you were the perfect example of what a Yuuki should be."

"But that death game changed you, whether you know about it or not." Ichikca gave a small frown. "Your grades and results are not high anymore. You seem to be putting too much care into your looks and figure. And instead of the past, beautiful charisma you had, you are more...savage, towards others."

"Indeed." Julian nodded his head, not giving Asuna time to rebut her aunt's words. "It seems that you have been traumatised by going through that death game. It has left some rather unpleasant scars on you, no? It's why you have a pretty face next to you everywhere you go, hanging onto him like a lifeline."

He directed a sly, yet somehow sympathy-filled grin towards Asuna, hand spread open, as if to allow Asuna to rush into his arms to comfort her. "Poor, poor girl. No one would want to marry you once they learned that you were a traumatised shell of your former self. It's alright. You can rest easy with us. We would take good care of you. Even if you are a cripp-"

Kazuto snapped.

"That's enough!" He gritted his teeth, fist clenched hard. All the occupants turned to look at Kazuto.

"Oh, so the toy speaks." Julian mocked. "What's wrong? Hit a nerve, did I? Unable to take the realisation that this girl before you is a fake, only clawing onto you as a support of her fragile mind?"

"Don't speak about Asuna that way!" Kazuto tried his best to keep his tone cordial, but it was getting harder the more times they spoke. Family or not, he should not be belittling Asuna the way he was doing. "She is strong. Stronger then you will ever be! She does not need your sympathy for some misguided notion that she is a frail, weak girl!"

"Please." Ichika scoffed. "Boy, you have no idea on what you are meddling with. My niece is taking way too much time on the little things. Most likely, she puts on so much makeup to hide the bags and horrible state her skin is in from countless nights being unable to sleep. She reacts instead of precisely acting whenever someone speaks with her. Her mind is not the same as it once was, too filled with uncertainties to be a properly functioning girl."

"…Is that so?" Kazuto hummed. Disregarding Asuna's aunt for the moment, Kazuto zeroed in on her other relative. Her uncle, Satoshi.

"…" Satoshi only kept quiet, only impassively looking at both Asuna and Kazuto.

"Don't bother trying to save your false girlfriend, kid." Julian arrogantly huffed. "This is all she is good for now. A representation of does who are led astray by wastes of time."

"…What did you say?" Asuna spoke up, voice frosty with anger. A quick glance down told Kazuto that her knuckles were turning white.

"You heard me." Julian looked at Asuna straight in the eye. "In the beginning, you were a high tier girl, the perfect Yuuki. But ever since SAO, you have become nothing more than a shell of your former self: A girl who is afraid of the world, hiding behind a façade of false bravado and craving normality on the inside."

"You!" Asuna, using the speed she had been known for in SAO, attempted to slap her cousin in the fcae, but Kazuto was faster.

*Bam!*

With a solid sound, Kazuto's fist made contact with Julian's face. Yet, to both their surprise, it was to see him not even flinching. What in Satan's name? I know that I limited my strength, but why didn't he flinch? At the very least, he should have been knocked back!

"As I thought." As if he was disappointed with the outcome, Julian shook his head. "The two of you are savages."

"This is us being courteous." Kazuto fumed. "If we wanted to, we would have demolished you."

"Resorting to lies? How petty." Julian smirked. "Tell you what. We can have a duel. I heard that your family practises kendo, Kirigaya-san?"

"…my sister does. I have not done so in several years." Kazuto admitted. What is your game here?

"I see, I see." Julian nodded. "In that case, how about a wager? The three of us shall fight. The winner shall have one request that cannot be refused. Should the loser attempt to do anything unsavoury after the duel, they would be forced the do two other requests for the one who was attacked."

"…What's the catch?" Asuna narrowed her eyes. "I highly doubt you are confident enough to fight against someone with experience in kendo, when you yourself have none."

"Guess it yourself." Julian shrugged. "I may have experience with kendo. I may not. My educational life and my recreational life are two separate things. So," Holding out a hand, Julian looked at Asuna. "what do you say?"

And yet, Asuna's two lives are one and the same? Kazuto thought to himself in anger.

"…It would be a deal, then." Asuna shook the outstretched hand. "When, and where?"

"Tomorrow night." Julian huffed, looking extremely pleased with himself. "I have to say, your parents have helped us quite a bit this time. Remind me to thank them."

"I'll keep that in mind." Asuna directed a false smile towards Julian, before looking at her uncle. "May we leave, uncle?"

"…You may." Was all he said, not a change in his expression. "See you tomorrow night, niece."

"By your leave, Uncle. Aunt." Asuna nearly spat out the last word. "Cousin."

"Don't lose too badly now!" Said cousin gleefully said as Kazuto and Asuna walked out the door, before shutting it.


"How did Julian managed to not react towards that hit you gave him, Kirito-kun?" Asuna asked her boyfriend the moment they were away from prying eyes and ears. "Did you hold back too much?"

"No, I made sure that my Sacred Gear was supressing my strength to that of my human parameters before we became devils." Kazuto responded to her, eyes furrowed. "So, how did he not even react? At the very least, he should have been knocked back a few steps."

"I find this very suspicious, to be honest." Asuna frowned. How did Julian not even react? The last time we met, he was focused mostly on the academic part of his life, like every other Yuuki child. How much did he change since the last time I saw him half a year ago?

"…Asuna, did you know that douchebag?" Kazuto suddenly asked as they stepped out of the mansion.

"…Yeah, I do." Asuna wanted to do nothing more than kick Julian in the unmentionables. "Remember when I said that I was alone with someone older than me the last time I attended a family gathering? That's him."

"Wait, you mean that Julian…-san, is the one who you think was being set up with you?" Kazuto blinked in surprise. "Didn't you say he was a banker?"

"He is pursuing a career as one." Asuna corrected her boyfriend. "Which is the main reason why I find this entire think suspicious. And what did he mean that my parents were to be thanked for this situation? They only knew about the my meeting with them around the same time I did!"

"Well…" Kazuto coughed. "You can ask them yourself? Their car is there."

"Car?" Asuna blinked in confusion, but when she followed the direction of her boyfriend's hand, it quickly hardened. "This is good. We can question them now."

There, at the end of Kazuto's pointed direction, was her mother and father, Kyouko and Shouzou Yuuki, standing next to a black sedan.


Timeskip

"So, what are you doing here, mom?"

Kyouko could not help but wince a little internally when she heard her daughter speak to her in such a cold tone. Well, I guess I do deserve some of this. I didn't tell Asuna about the marriage after all. Knowing my little girl, she is sure to have figured out what had happened by now.

After Kazuto and Asuna had spotted them, the couple had given them the silent treatment when they realised the duo did not want to answer their questions yet. So, from the time when they entered the car until the time they entered a restaurant, not one of them spoke a word to the other party.

"Listen, Asuna-" Shouzou, unable to stand the awkward atmosphere any longer, attempted to play peacemaker, only to falter when their daughter levelled a glare at him. "-never mind. I'll just…keep quiet now."

As I thought. Kyouko suppressed a sigh when she saw her husband. Shouzou is weak against our daughter. How she managed to get him wrapped around her finger at such a young age, I will never know.

"So?" Asuna looked at both her parents unflinchingly, the cup of tea she had ordered for her daughter untouched. "Why did you pair me up with Julian? You know that I already have someone I love with all my heart."

"…" Kyouko kept silent, unsure as to how to start the conversation.

"…Mom, can you tell me?" Asuna's stare softened a tad. "I know that our relationship has been strained, but I felt that it has been getting better these past few months. I know that you won't do this sort of thing without a good reason, especially since you met with Kirito-kun before. I just want to know. Why did you keep this marriage arrangement secret?"

"…" Kyouko kept quiet for a few moments longer, before she finally sighed, taking a sip of her coffee, before she began her explanations. "…To be honest, this should not be happening at all." The mother admitted.

"…" Asuna did not say anything, only choosing to silently raise her cup to her lips.

"At first, before we had our…heart-to-heart chat, I had been working on getting you engaged to at least someone in the Yuuki family." Kyouko continued. "It was all for your wellbeing. At the time, I still thought that you were the small girl I had once raised, the girl who was unable to come to terms with the fact that you had lost two years of your life to a simple whim. I thought that you were being irrational, that you were doing all that you did because you were blinded by some sort of misguided notion that the SAO Survivors had saved you from death. But," Kyouko moistened her lips. "after our talk, I started to cancel the engagement preparations."

"You had made me realise that VR is not all bad." Kyouko closed her eyes, lost in the memories of the past.

"VR could simulate reality to such a frightening degree that it invokes feelings of the past." A memory surfaced in her mind, one of the old house that she once called home.

"VR was not fake. The bonds you could make in them were as real as any." Another memory, this time one of when she witnessed her daughter meeting up with the brown-haired girl nicknamed 'Liz', as well as the young girl named Kayano.

"VR changed you." Two memories surfaced in her mind. One, of before the event, where her daughter was the perfect girl that listened to her mother, but had a distinct lack of…something in her actions. The other, of when she accidently oversaw the fencing class that her daughter had asked her father for for a few weeks. The fierce, yet focused determination that had appeared on her face as she fought against the instructor her father had hired.

"But that change was for the better, not that I could see it at first." Kyouko looked at her daughter. "Now that I look back, I had been pushing too much of my expectations onto you. I was projecting onto you. You reminded me so much of myself. Hardworking, the best at what you do when you put your mind to it, and also lacking something."

"…?" Asuna looked confused at that admission, her eyes blinking rapidly.

"Surprised?" Kyouko gave a small smile. "Yes, I had lacked something in my youth. And that was a drive to be your own self. For as long as I could remember, everything that I did, everything that I had ever wanted, it was meant for my parents, and later on, for the child I would want to have and spoil. None of it was meant for me. All of them, were for my family, both past and present."

"…It was also one of the reasons why I stopped visiting your grandparents as often." Kyouko sighed, staring into the cooling cup of tea that she had ordered, the black surface reflecting her own, passive face as she spoke. "I offered your grandparents to live somewhere else. Somewhere more modern, where things would have been easier for them. Their needs and wants all taken care of by me. So, when they refused, I stopped visiting them. Else, it would have devolved into me trying and failing to get your grandparents to live with us. And when I saw you acting like the good girl you were, not questioning what we told you…well, it reminded me of my past. Where we both lacked the drive to be our own self, to dictate our own path, one free from any sort of outside factors influencing them."

"…If that were the case, why did you try to marry me to Sugou Nobuyuki?" Asuna asked.

Kyouko winced a little. She did not want to be reminded of the incident that caused her daughter to be nearly mind raped, and possibly, raped in real life. "That…was a mistake on my part. I wanted to get you out of that death game earlier, so I decided to engage you to Nobuyuki-san to hasten the process. I thought that if it were his soon-to-be spouse, he would act as fast as possible to find ways to free you from that death game."

"So, when you were finally released from that coma state, I was overjoyed but frightened." Kyouko sighed lightly. "My daughter had seemed to change her personality overnight. You, who had always lacked a drive to be your own self, had suddenly gained one in the two years that no one knew what had happened. Your actions now had more life to them then the past 15 years I had been watching you. Your eyes, which had been full of life and curiosity, now had gained a sharp edge to it, like a sword." Kyouko chuckled when she said that. "At that time, I thought that sharpness was derived from you being out of touch from society for two years. That it signified that you had become more animal-like from playing that death game for two years."

"And yet, she managed to become the top players in SAO." Kazuto cut in. "That was a big surprise, wasn't it?"

"That it was." Kyouko agreed with her daughter's boyfriend. "I panicked a little when I found out about you, I admit. I thought you were like Nobuyuki-san. Someone who acted nice and perfect, but was hiding some hidden agenda. I wanted to get you away from my daughter, but after meeting you, I can say that the two of you are a good match for each other. Although," Kyouko pulled a little of her old self into her next words. "I will be watching you to make sure that you will not be unworthy of my daughter. If I catch you doing something unsavoury…" She left the threat hanging. "Are we clear?"

"H-hai!" Kazuto stuttered. "B-but, isn't it usually the father who does this sort of thing?"

"Oh, Shouzou is bad at this. It's why I am doing it in his place." Kyouko smiled a little, dispelling her other, more strict persona. "That, and I had a feeling that you are more afraid of me then my husband."

"…Then, what about the arranged marriage?" Asuna brought the conversation back to it's original topic. "If you cancelled it, why is it still going on?"

"Ah, yes. The arraged marriage." Inwardly, Kyouko was furious at that. After what I told them, they still wanted to continue the marriage. To think that Asuna had managed to elevate herself to such a status that marrying her would be an accomplishment. "I tried to cancel it, but they managed to get everything set up neatly. I could no longer cancel the damn thing. But," Seeing Asuna's face, she allowed a small smirk to appear on her face. Something that shocked her daughter, she was sure. After all, she had never smirked before. "I managed to squeeze in some conditions before they could try to seal the deal."

"…What sort of conditions?" Kazuto asked.

"The first was that this would be a fight for Asuna's hand, like those old stories about jousting for a princess's hand." Kyouko took great pleasure in seeing her daughter blush, restraining the urge to whip out her phone to snap a picture of her. "The second was that Julian would have five months to prepare, since the two of you had experience in fighting and swordplay, whereas he did not. The third, something they demanded actually, was for the two of you to not be informed about this agreement until a day of their choosing." Kyouko sighed. "I never expected them to inform you AND have the duel the following day, though I should have thought about that happening, to be honest."

"…Why go through all this trouble?" Asuna questioned, a frown on her face. "You could have just said that the marriage will be put off, no need to discuss it. That would have solved all the problems. So, why go through all this trouble?"

Smart girl. Kyouko smiled, pleased that Asuna had caught that. "For a few reasons. The first is to show that my girl is not some frail maiden that had been broken by her past experiences. The second is to show that you had surpassed them in every aspect. After all, even if you do not care for the child rankings our family has been hiding as family gatherings, but I do. Since you have consistently remained remained near the top in terms of academic ranking. As for the third..." Kyouko gave a small shrug, a tiny grin on her face. "It is actually a little revenge against everyone that had belittled you for being in that barbaric death game, even when you get higher scores, they would say it is because you are using easier papers to fabricate the results. This would teach them to mess with my daughter and insult her when you trounce that arrogant cousin of yours."

"…I see…" Asuna slowly nodded her head. She would have said something, but their food had arrived, prompting the small group to keep quiet and finish their food first, before they continued their conversation. "…Mom…were you ever going to tell me about this arranged marriage?"

"…Actually, I was." For the first time during their conversation, Kyouko frowned. Now that I think about it, I was going to tell Asuna about the arranged marriage earlier, when I first found out that they were intending to exploit some loopholes in the deal we made. Yet, I never told her…why is that? "I wanted to tell you about the arrangement a few months back, but for some reason, I never did. My memory of that time was a little hazy too…"

To Kyouko's bewilderment, Asuna and Kazuto stiffened up. When she looked closer, she could tell…that they were feeling guilty?

"Yuuki Asuna, what are you hiding from me?" Kyouko, smelling something that was up, instantly used her authority as a mother to extract information from her targets!

"Well…" Hesitantly, Asuna poked her fingers together in embarrassment. "We…mighthavediedanderasedyourmemroiesaboutitwhenyouweregoingtotellusaboutthemarriage."

""…I'm sorry, WHAT?!""

Some time later…

"Okay…" Kyouko was rubbing her head from the influx of information that she had just received. Right now, they were back inside the car to prevent anyone from overhearing the rather…sensitive and absurd conversation they were having. "Tell me if I got anything wrong. The two of you, while helping Kazuto-san's cousin move to her new school, were ambushed by, and I quote, 'A crazed devil-killing priest who mistook you as a pair of devil lover or devils', which caused the two of you to be severely injured."

"Yeah…"

"And after manging to drive away this crazy exorcist, you died and somehow got reincarnated by Kayaba Akihiko, who was a half-devil." Shouzou continued.

"Yes, that's right…"

"And, when we received news of this from CCTV cameras, you quickly erased our memories of that day, as well as got your daughter to delete any footage of the incident."

""That's right…"" Both Kazuto and Asuna looked at the ground, unable to meet the two parents in the eye.

"…This is stupid…We are stupid…how did we miss this?" Kyouko finally groaned, slapping a hand over her face in exasperation. "Shouzou, how did you manage to miss our daughter turning into a devil?"

"Eh?" Asuna blinked in surprise at the rather unexpected response.

"I think it's because I changed the wards on our house and replaced those emergency talismans I setup." Shouzou groaned as well.

"Eh?" Kazuto blinked rapidly, mirroring his girlfriend. "Erm…Yuuki-san, Yuuki-san, what are you talking about? Why are you acting like…that?"

"Call me Shouzou, Kazuto-kun." Shouzou grunted, scratching his head as he whipped out some talismans and a tablet. "And as for why we are acting like this...we know about the Supernatural side of things. Didn't Kyouko tell you?"

"…The Yuuki family has strong ties with the supernatural, more specifically, the Yokai faction." Kyoko admitted when the incredulous looks turned to face her. "I forgot to tell you about that, I guess?"

""WHAT?!""


Some time ago, Issei side

Everyone had been in high spirits when they left the hotel to continue on with their tour. But, after they reached their second destination, for some reason, Xenovia became unusually disappointed for some reason.

"Cheer up, Xenovia." Issei gave a small pat on the girl's back as she pouted. "I know that the name says that it is made of silver, but sometimes, not everything should be taken at face value."

"…It's not silver…" Xenoiva, however, ignored Issei's attempts to cheer her up, still repeating those words to herself hollowly. Her "The Ginkaku-ji…. there is no silver on it…not even a single flake…"

"Xenovia-san's eyes were shining back when she kept saying to herself 'Ginkaku-ji is made of silver, and Kinkaku-ji is made of gold(*1*). They must be very dazzling.'. To be honest, I was also expecting something along the lines of what Xenovia-san was thinking, so I can understand what she is feeling." Asia explained, hugging the trembling girl as she did so. I see. So she had such a great fantasy.

"There are a few rumours on why it's not silver." Kiryuu explained. "Among them is the death of the monk Ashikaga who was involved in building the temple halting it's completion, or because the Bakufu government ran out of money at the time. Anyway, the fact remains that it did not live up to the name of being made, or at least look, like it was made of silver."

Man, did this glasses-wearing girl research everything beforehand, to know so much about all the famous sights? Issei thought to himself, mildly impressed by how much she knew about the attractions here. Guess, she was more excited and pumped up for this trip than she said she was. Speaking of, I wonder how this place would like look in winter? Would it be a totally different sight compared to seeing it in Kyoto's autumn scenery?

Xenovia's mood made a quick 180 after a quick lunch. After all–

"Gold! This time it really is gold!"

–this time, the attraction they were visiting, the Kinkaku-ji, was , true to its name, a bright golden colour.

"It's really gooooold!" Caught up in her excitement, Xenovia raised both her arms, her face full of radiance.

I've seen it on television before, but the real thing's glamor is really overwhelming when you see it in person. Issei thought to himself as he watched some other students, Matsuda included, snap some photos as if they were in a trance. Seeing this, Issei took some shots as well, before he had the idea to send it to the other members of the Occult Research Club back at Kuoh Academy.

Ah, and needless to say, everyone got some souvenirs related to the Kinkaku-ji and the Ginkaku-ji.

As they stopped for a quick break, Issei could not help but be drawn to Xenovia's awestruck face, who seemed to be in a dream-like state. She kept muttering '…It really is gold and shiny.' over and over, eyes shining with splendorous light.

Amusedly, Issei smiled to himself as he took a sip of his matcha tea after eating some of the Japanese sweets that had been prepared for them. Xenovia has really shown some rare sides to her today. Guess the one enjoying student life the most is Xenovia. I don't think I would have ever seen the day where she would be out of it from a tourist attraction.

Things proceeded very well too, making Issei almost forget about the attack that he had faced on the first day the had arrived, and start to relax and treat this trip as one of relaxation. As it should have been.

It almost happened. Almost.

Issei was rudely brought back to reality by the appearance of a fluffy-eared waitress serving them some tea, with the other humans knocked out cold. Not too far away, out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rossweisse approaching them, mouth opening to talk to them.

He sighed. Why can't this trip be simple and straightforward?

..

Timeskip

Afterwards, everything was settled nicely.

A ceasefire was declared between the two groups. They were then led to the Inner Capital were the Kyoto youkai lived, which if Issei was being honest, resembled the Edo period of fedual Japan.

There, they met the yokai who had initiated the attack on Issei. The culprit? The kyuubi's daughter, a blonde nine-tailed fox youkai named Kunou, who had been dressed in fancy feathery kimono like a princess from the warring states era, instead of the priestess outfit when they first met.

Kunou apologised for the misunderstanding she had, to which they all accepted. Oh, and Issei comforted the girl after she apologised, which led to some teasing from his female companions/crushes and Azazel.

From there, the conversation shifted to saving Kunou's mother, who, as they suspected, had been kidnapped by the Khaos Brigade.

Long story short, Yasaka had left to meet with some messengers sent by Sakra from Mount Meru, but had been kidnapped whilst on the way. A dying guard alerted them to Yasaka's kidnapped state, which then led to investigations into suspicious newcomers that had entered Kyoto. And, as a result of the kidnapping, the word that Issei's group was non-hostile was not able to reach most of the yokais' ears. Then, upon seeing Issei's group, they jumped the gun and, along with Kunou, attacked Issei's group.

"…Things have become serious again..." Issei sighed, summing up the entire situation in a few words. Well, it was a given, but I am an idiot who shall remain true to his core!

"This sort of thing happens whenever various factions decide to ally with each other." Azazel grumbled to himself in one corner. "The last time with Odin was Loki. This time, it's with the monarch of the Youkai, and the enemy is the terrorists, the Khaos Brigade. "

I bet Azazel-sensei is thinking 'Man, peace sure is hard to maintain.'…Well, its better then war 24/7.

"Governor-dono, Maou-dono, could you help find a way to save Yasaka-hime?" The old tengu that was with them requested. "No matter what, we pledge our full cooperation."

Taking out a portrait, the tengu showed it to everyone. "This is the portrait of Yasaka-hime."

"Oh, thanks. It'll be easier to look for her now that we know how she looks." Azazel hummed. "But what we can be sure of is that the kidnappers, and by extension, Yasaka-hime, is still in Kyoto."

Issei was a little confused by how sure Azazel sounded. "Why do you think so, Azazel-sensei?"

"The flow of ki in all the regions of Kyoto is still stable." Azazel explained. "The nine- tailed fox is an existence responsible for maintaining the balance of ki flowing from the different areas of this land. Kyoto itself can be considered a large scale force field. If the kyuubi left this land or was killed, then Kyoto will undergo dramatic changes. Since there are no signs of that, it means Yasaka-hime is still fine, and the kidnappers are likely still around."

S-so Kyoto was a city like that! Issei was a little dumbfounded by how important Yasaka was for the city. Isn't her presence basically a alarm if she was not in her own city? Dosen't this mean that she is fine? And if Yasaka-san was fine, then the chances of saving her were quite high, wasn't it?

"Serafall, what level of investigations have the devils over there been undertaking?"

"I've ordered them to investigate in detail. Devils familiar with Kyoto have also been mobilised."

Azazel shifted his gaze to the high schoolers that were with them.

"Looks like this time you guys will likely be involved, due to the lack of manpower. Especially since you are experienced in fighting strong beings, and we will be needing your power against the Hero Faction. It's a shame, but please be prepared for the worst. I will be responsible for contacting Kiba and the Sitri servants who are not here. Before that, please continue to enjoy your trip, but we will be counting on you in an emergency!"

"""Yes!"""

Everyone agreed to Azazel's words.

..

Timeskip

"Man, that was such a scrumptious feast!" Issei sighed to himself. Currently, he was in his room, relaxing in a corner while he fiddled with the Amusphere he had brought. He had just ate his dinner and taken a bath, so he would have liked nothing more then to turn in for the night, but his mind was preoccupied by what had happened during the day.

After the meeting with the yokai, Issei and Co. had continued on with their tour, waking Matsuda and the rest who had slept as they did so. And, when they returned, they met up with the other devils to plan for the eventuality of them fighting the Khaos Brigade. All of them were given portable versions of transfer magic circles so that they could return to the hotel immediately should they be told to do so.

If he were being honest, this really killed the sightseeing mood. The only good thing was that their guide would be the cute Kunou, who was doing this as an apology for attacking them in the first place. Azazel had said that this would be good in the future, as this would foster good relations with the Yokai and the underworld. And it didn't hurt that Kunou was a real-life fox girl, something that interested Issei immensely. Does she have higher than average hearing, like Koneko? Is her ears sensitive, like the dozens of anime and manga portrays them to be? Is her tail and ears super fluffy?

Of course, she would be hiding them when they acted as their tour guide, but still!

So in the end, our trip is not so simple anymore, huh. Issei hummed, hands wandering aimlessly. To think that the Khaos Brigade would be such bastard…. The fury in Issei's heart overflowed when he thought back to how the young daughter of the monarch of Kyoto was acting. She had been bowing her head, begging them to save her mother whilst in tears. Kunou is such a young child! Surely, she must still be at an age where she still relied on her mother's affections, even though she speaks like an upper-class princess.

This means that we would have to fight… Issei put away the device in his hands, choosing to stare at his left hand instead. We would need all our power if we want to save Yasaka-san, and yet, my possibities are missing…Azazel-sensei and Rossweisse still have not found them, and there have been no signs of them returning so far. Were they still in Kyoto...? But somehow, they felt like they were not far away...

He did not know why he felt that last bit was true. Even if there was no evidence to support, he knew in his gut that his possibilities were still around. At the very least, it was still in the city. But then, where have my possibilities escaped to…

Ah, and I wonder how Rias is doing? Issei's thoughts went towards his girlfriend. I never thought that I would be saying this, but I really miss her presence when we sleep! Ah…her oppai…when we go bac , I have to bury myself in her bosom!

Eventually, Issei got tired of fantasizing about his girlfriend. He was itching to do something to pass the time, and thinking about his girlfriend was only making him depressed about having to hide the current situation from her. What to do, what to do? I can't ask Kirito or Asuna-san about the Amusphere, since they seemed pretty out of it. And when I tired to talk to them, they just ignored me, so I best not bother them.


Unknown to Issei, the couple would have much appreciated some sort of distraction, too shocked they were about Asuna's family being connected to the Supernatural.


Matsuda and Motohama are trying to peak on the girls showering, but they would be definitely be stopped by the Sitri defence team. I have no interest in peeking in on them this time, but maybe it'll be fun to challenge them, this time without using any of our devil abilities? Hmm - what should I do?

As Issei pondered whether or not to peek at the girls' bathroom again...

*Knock knock.*

Hmm? Someone knocked at his door. "I'm in."

"Ise, it's me." Asia? What's she doing here?

"Come in."

Asia entered, she was wearing just a nightgown. "So what's up, Asia?"

"I came to play. Xenovia and Irina are coming shortly as well. Kiryuu said she was busy gossiping with the girls from other classes, so she's not coming."

Play? Issei tilted his head a little in confusion. Like, card games? Or maybe something like spending some time together under the pretext of playing? I mean, they all like me and all...

""Ise!"" Suddenly, two very familiar voices called out Issei's name.

-! Matsuda? Motohama? Issei's eyes widened in panic. Shit, are they going to enter my room!

"A-Asia! This way!"

"Eh? I-Ise?"

Not wanting his two friends to see Asia in a spurt of jealousy, Issei grabbed the puzzled Asia into the closet, closing the sliding door from within. Raising a finger, he placed it to his lips, signalling the the blonde to be quiet under the dim light.

Just in time too.

Without knocking, Matsuda and Motohama opened the door. Both devils could hear their footsteps as they entered the room.

"Ah, Ise's not here." Matsuda murmured.

"Could it be, that guy knows the same old place we are going to peek at the girls' bathroom?" Motohama exclaimed, as if he had a brainwave.

"What?! That's bad! Is he going to savour the female body before us!"

"Ah, it must be! Let's go, Matsuda!"

"Yes!"

*Thud thud*

The sounds of rapid footsteps pounding aginst the floor quickly faded away, leaving the two hidden devils alone once more.

"…" Straining his ears, Issei was pleased to hear that there was no other sounds approaching his room, causing him to heave a sigh of relief. Damn, that was close. But still, there was a place for them to peak? Wonder if the Sitri team knows about it...

"….Erm, Ise…" Blushing a little, Asia grabbed onto Issei's arm tightly, grabbing his attention.

"Yeah, Asia?"

"…Ise, when you were with Rias onee-sama at the Tokyo railway station platform… you kissed, right?"

"A-ah…yeah, we did." Issei answered the girl below him. Did Asia see that? "I-it was a goodbye kiss."

"…I-I see…" Asia pouted. "T-to kiss so intimately… True, Ise and Rias onee-sama are together, but…it's not fair…"

As she spoke, Asia looked straight at Issei, who gulped a little. Her current expression, full of determination…it had a sense of allure, a sense of seductiveness, to it. "Can you… give me a kiss too?"

As she finished her words, Asia drew her face near. Almost naturally, Issei closed the distance between them, their lips meeting together almost naturally. No lust or pretence was in their kiss, only conveying their pure love and care for each other.

How could I forget? Asia, Xenovia, Irina, Akeno, Koneko…they all love me just as much as Rias does. Issei slowly brought his hands up, as if to hug the girl before him. They…They don;t just like me. They love me. And…I do too.

As the two immersed themselves in the romantic atmosphere, Issei's arms nearly surrounding Asia-

-The door opened!

The suddenness of the sliding door being wrenched open caused both kissers to leap back in shock, eyes wide as they turned to look at the culprit who had broken the romantic atmosphere.

"Ah!…..Wawawa…..Umm, Xen-Xenovia! I found them!"

Hair let down instead of the usual twin tails and clad in only a nightgown, Irina could only stutter as she blushed fiercely, her hands waving about in her embarrassment, unable to look at the duo who were staring at her.

"What is it, Irina?" Xenovia popped her head next to the open closet door, before she showed off an impressed look. Like the other two, she was also clad in a nightgown. "Ooooh, this is Asia's precious kissing moment. Asia, so this is what you meant by coming to play in Ise's room. I'm impressed."

Frantically, Issei wiped away the small trail of saliva that had formed between the two of them when they had kissed. In his heart, he could not be thankful that they had interrupted at the time they did. D-damn, that was close! Any longer, and tongues would have started to entangle!

"Hmm, looks like Asia is ahead of us. Pardon us…"

"Yes yes! Asia is rapidly advancing in this area! Pardon us…"

Without missing a beat, the two former partners of the Church entered the closet as well, closing the door behind them as they did so.

"Ah, ah wa ahahahahahahahah, fuwuwuwuwuwuwuwu…"

Unable to bear the embarrassment, Asia quickly fainted, her face flushed a heavy red.

"Asia! Hey Asia, pull yourself together! You have me to share your embarrassment! However, this is the kind of situation Asia couldn't possibly withstand!" Hey! I need someone else to help me regulate these two!

Issei's mental plea went unheard.

"Sorry, we came to your room to play, but you seemed absent, so we opened the closet." Xenovia calmly explained as she made herself comfortable, watching as Issei gently laid Asia against the end of the closet.

Why would you open the closet if I was not there?! Were you trying to hide to ambush me when I came back if I had actually left?! Issei shivered, reading the lines of Xenovia's words.

"Oh, and who's next?" Came the nonchalant words, yet again coming from the nonplussed Xenovia!

"W-what do you mean?" Issei asked, a little afraid of the answer the swordswoman would reply with.

"I meant in showing our love to you, of course." Xenovia nonchalantly replied. "Would you like us to kiss you? Or perhaps, something sexier?"

Oi oi! Stop this rapid-fire blunt attacks! My heart won't be able to take it! Issei was stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, he wanted to fulfil their desires and kiss them, and maybe take them as his girlfriends, but if he did so, Rias would undoubtedly be furious at them for being a couple without her knowledge or heads up. On the other hand, if he did not act, he would most likely get attacked at home instead, but this time, it would be even more troublesome for him, since Rias, Koneko and Akeno would be sure to join in, which might result in him being fought over again! W-what should I do?!

"Eh?! Me too?! You must be joking! Won't doing this make me a fallen angel?" Irina said, a hint of surprise and sadness in her tone.

"Well, of you really love Ise and overcome this with spirit, perhaps you won't change into one."

"Use spirit? Yes, yes, if I do that instead…but if I do something that is perceived as vulgar…how can I, as Michael-sama's Ace…!"

"Ise is a great choice. A good man, and also the Sekiryuutei. If you bear the child of the legendary dragon, perhaps it may contribute to heaven's battle potential in the future?"

"…Ise's...Sekiryuutei's child… Heaven's battle potential…"

As Issei was in the middle of his warring thoughts, Xenovia and Irina were slowly making rather dangerous plans.

"Ok, how should we do this. In this narrow space we have one man and three women."

That final sentence snapped Issei out of his internal war.

"Hey, hey! Xenovia, what about the teachers outside?" Issei desperately asked, hoping that it won't lead to anything more than some kisses. He was sure that Rias would let him off lightly if it was just a few kisses...But if they did it before Rias...well, that was simply asking for pain from the main wife.

"Ah, you mean the male teachers. We already used our angel and devil powers to seal this room in a barrier. Nothing will happen no matter who approaches. No problem. Even if moans come from this room, no one will enter."

"I didn't quite understand, but this space is currently filled with sacred and demonic magic!"

Xenovia and Irina were making a thumbs-up sign towards Issei's valid concerns. Are you idiots! These children are truly idiots! The church duo who misplaced their initiative in such matters!


Timeskip

In the end, matters were settled peacefully and without anything dangerous happening.

Man, last night was way too dangerous. Issei could still feel chills from what had happened. To think that the Church trio would have actually gone ahead ad tried to make babies with me in that small, cramped closet…maidens in love are scary! Thank goodness Rossweisse discovered us and prevented things from escalating further!

And Rias has gotten sharper too… That morning, after he woke up, his girlfriend had called him, saying that she sensed danger. When Issei told her that nothing was wrong, she had quickly deduced he was lying, and made him spill everything.

And spill it, he did. He told her about the situation in Kyoto, as well as the dangerous activities of last night. Needless to say, she was pretty angry.

Leviathan-sama…I'm sorry I disobeyed your orders. But girlfriends are scary.


(*1*) - Direct translation would be Silver Pavilion and Golden Pavilion respectively.

AN

Well now, this is the second chapter for the two-part release.

This is a pretty new territory for SAOxDxD crossovers. Most of them have never gone past to the Kyoto arc, after all. And for the few complete fics that I have read that have reached this point, most of the middle part was skipped for one reason or the other. Be it to reach a new arc quickly, or because thanks to some early character development, there was no need for the canon Kyoto Arc, or for some other reason. So, this is pretty much unexplored territory for me. Apologies if the next few chapters are a bit lackluster in the DxD department. Partially because of, as I just mentioned, the lack of fanfics about the Kyoto Arc, and partially because I find the entire Kyoto arc almost redundant thanks to me pairing Issei up with Rias earlier than canon.

I personally feel that the Kyoto Arc setup the entire debacle which we see for the following arc, the Sairaorg Arc if you will. Because of Issei calling Rias into Kyoto, and because of what he said to unlock his Illegal Moves, it caused Rias to be more cynical in their relationship due to her own uncertainty and insecurities. And part of the reason for Issei being the way he is in the Sairaorg arc is because he got absolutely curb stomped by the Hero Faction. Not to say I would be skipping that part. I will be writing it, just not as in depth as this new arc I am writing. To those of you wondering, this arc is, like the title, the In-Laws Arc. It will span a few chapters, at most three to four, and would have some references to certain fics.

By the way, the poll is about to close! And thanks for all the votes! By next month, I will release the girls who will be in the harem, as well as the votes for each of them! As for Klein…his girl will be Dakira! Whoohoo! The guy will no longer be a bachelor!

As always, Anime is Life, and Please review!