"What the hell Azazel! The fight is finally starting to heat up against the Utsusemi Agency and you're pulling me out? That scrub Tobio and the others can't handle this by themselves, y'know!
Inside the Grigori headquarters, a certain white haired youth exploded in rage against a sketchy looking blonde and black haired man in a worn haori. Against his fury, the older man wore a knowing smirk as he rubbed his chin.
"Only temporarily. I wouldn't ask you to come back if it wasn't important, Vali. Ikuse-kun and the others will be fine by themselves for a week or so. We are still in the preparation phase anyways. Besides, I thought you didn't care about him. Why are you so suddenly concerned about staying by his side?"
"Tsk, he may be an idiot and a scrub but even he doesn't deserve to die. Besides, fights tend to come to him. Makes things fun."
"Ah, look at my little Vali, being a total tsundere."
"SHUT UP OLD MAN!"
"Your adorable nature aside, I needed you to come back ASAP because Ritsuka is going to be going head first into danger soon and you are the only one I can trust to protect her."
At his words, Vali's rage subsided as it was replaced with incredulation.
"What? What do you mean Ritsuka is in danger? The brat lives with you. No one is stupid enough to attack Governor General of the Grigori."
"Not in a few days."
"What."
"She's being sent to America to do an errand for me, and she needs someone to chaperone her."
"What."
"So, I thought you'd be perfect for the job!"
"Have you gone senile old man!? You're pulling me out of a war to chaperone a god damn brat? For some god forsaken field trip?!"
Puns aside, Vali winced briefly in pain upon mentioning the heavenly father, but it did nothing to lesson his annoyed scowl.
"What? I thought you'd enjoy a brief trip to America. Besides, Ritsuka misses you. You're the closest thing she has to an older brother you know?"
"Let me ask again old man. HAVE YOU LOST YOUR FUCKING MIND!? I finally found a worthwhile fight and an actual fucking war with the lives of people on the line, and you decide to pull me, one of your best fighters available out of it to BABYSIT a brat!?"
"Wow, how cold blooded of you Vali. I didn't think you the type to let someone you consider family to be assassinated. Ritsuka has a chance to bring her father out of a coma and you'd rather she go alone, in hostile territory, just so you can play around?"
"The hell are you talking about?"
"One of my contacts informed me that one of the Native American gods is willing to aid in the treatment of Baraqiel, but only if his daughter re-enacted one their legends performed a long time ago. It's a now forgotten tale, but it's one of a daughter who heard of a cure in a distant lands brewed by a wise woman. It was in a dangerous land, far past that of her tribe's enemies. No one in the tribe was brave enough to make the journey, so she decided to travel there herself, alone if need be. None in her tribe had the courage to follow her, save for her eldest cousin, whom out of familial love decided to travel alongside her. Facing many trials and tribulations from nature, the gods, and their enemies, the pair reached the wise woman, who out of respect of their ordeals, gave them the cure they so desperately desired. The journey back was just as bothersome, but in the end they succeeded and they lived happily ever after."
"So, why the hell does this matter? Can't we just buy it or trade something for the cure?"
"Yeah, about that... apparently they won't give it to us unless she undertakes a trial like the girl in the story. She won't be allowed to fly directly towards the reservations in America, she has to land in New York City and travel the rest of the way by land."
"New York City? Are you FUCKING serious?! That's one of the few places in America that has a strong Vatican presence! Not only that, it's only a short distance away from Washington D.C., where the headquarters of the American Vatican branch resides at. Add to that the various magic associations, devils, strays, and agents of various pantheons that have also set up shop in the city to assert their influence and we get a bonafide clusterfuck! And knowing the brat, she wouldn't suspect a thing and walk into someone's white van! Sending her there would be a death sentence!"
"Yep, which is why I need you to go along with her. You would fit the role of the older cousin, so the Native Pantheon will have no issues with you providing Ritsuka assistance. And truth be told Vali, we need Baraqiel back before the war flares up."
"Oh? And why is that, old man?"
"The Agency has thrown in their lot with Maestreif's Peerage alongside the remnants of the Oniyama-kai against the divided Himejima clan. At Suou's request, those of the 5 Principle Clans have intervened to support the growing devil sponsored insurrection. It has devolved into a civil war, with the heretic and progressive practitioners of the other families providing financial support for the progressive faction of the Himejima. The situation has deteriorated to the point where Yasaka, the leader of the Yokai in Kyoto is intervening to prevent the reveal of supernatural world. The situation is so dire that the leaders of the Himejima progressives are pleading for our support. The Grigori will not abandon our own, so soon we'll have to intervene ourselves."
"Oh? I thought you were all about peace old man. What changed your mind?"
Azazel's eyes hardened as he looked into Vali's eyes, his voice unnaturally cold and chilling as he spoke.
"This has nothing to do with the ceasefire. Maestreif is acting independently of the Satans. Besides, what I seek here is not war, but an extermination. His machinations has led to my best friend in a coma, his wife on life support, and only one of his 3 daughters accounted for. The Grigori seek peace and a better future, but I think the world needs a reminder that even my patience has limits."
"So this trip is to make Baraqiel wake up and lead us into a roaring rampage of revenge against the assholes that tried to mess with us?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
"...when do we leave?"
Azazel smiled wryly at Vali's sudden about face.
"As soon as possible, and knowing Ritsuka, tomorrow morning once she knows for sure you are coming with her."
"You already prepared tickets?"
"I had faith in you."
"So you are certain the Grigori are coming this way?"
"Indeed Your Grace, the spawn of the Traitor Baraqiel makes her way to the pagan tribes of America, seeking a cure for her stricken father."
Inside an office adorned by symbols of the cross and paintings of holymen and saints, two men sat. The elderly man wore a black with red piping Cassock with a pectoral cross around his neck, the other was a young man dressed in a gaudy red suit with blue hair and orange eyes. All seemed right and holy in the room, save for the devil wings the man in said gaudy red suit brazenly had on display.
"The ones in the Dakota reservations correct? Why then, would they bother landing my territory? Wouldn't it make more sense for them to directly fly to those states and take a cab the rest of the way?"
"Apparently, the pagan gods of this land want the Grigori to enact one of their lost fables before giving them the cure to Baraqiel's condition, so they must land in New York and by land, travel the rest of the way."
"Disgraceful, not only did those traitors turn their backs on the Lord, they now consort with lesser pagan gods to accomplish their means?"
The bishop's face contorted in disgust at the thought of his Lord's creations sullying themselves even further by seeking the aid of a defeated pantheon, all the while not noticing the devil's attempts to suppress a smirk and laugh at the irony before him. After taking several moments to school his appearance, the devil finally spoke once more in an even tone.
"Indeed. We can both agree that it is in neither of our faction's interest that Baraqiel return to the world of the living, so intercepting this child should be your top priority."
At his words, the bishop's brow rose in surprise. Leaning forward, he placed his hand upon his chin and leaned forward, sporting a good natured grin towards his guest.
"Oh? I have to deal with this alone? As you said, Lord Devil this is a matter concerning all of us. Why must I deal with this alone?"
"It is simple, Your Grace. As per our contract, I assisted you in rising through the ranks of the Vatican in exchange for non-sensitive information that you can pass along to me as well as three favors. I am calling in that second favor."
"Is that so? Very well Lord Devil, I shall fulfill your request. However, I will still ask as to why, if only to sate my curiosity."
"Heh, very well Your Grace. I currently do not have the resources to intercept the child at the moment. Azazel is not a complete fool, he has assigned a guard to escort the child."
"And? You are a High Class devil with the resources of the nobility. Surely you can overcome a single guard."
"Ah, but therein lies the problem; the guard is the White Dragon Emperor."
At his words, the bishop shot up from his chair, slamming his hands down with a deafening thud upon his mahogany desk. His face showing nothing but shock and fear at the task before him.
"WHAT! You want me to take down a dragon!? Are you out of your mind?! I'm not his Holiness! I don't have access to the kind of resources needed to take down a monster like that!"
"A good thing that your goal is to strike down a child and not the monster itself. That said, there are some hypothetical weaknesses that you may be able to exploit. Our mutual friend, the Grigori, will be able to send you the details."
Taking a deep breath, the bishop sighed and sat back down. His face was still flush and his breathing unsteady as his eyes quietly spoke of unease. All the while, the devil sat quietly with a neutral face, unwilling to comment on the bishop's agitated state.
"Very well, but I will need some additional support with this Lord Devil. Some information about devil activity that I can tie into this mess to give me plausible deniability, should there be an investigation."
"Hmm… a local devil operation which can serve as a plausible information source that created a misunderstanding that caused you to ambush the Girgori... I can manage that. Your information will be delivered via our usual method within a few hours. It should be enough time for you to plausibly raid an operation and prepare for the trespassers."
At his words, the elderly man nodded and sighed in relief, pausing to glance at the clock set above his office door.
"Good. It is time for you to leave now anyways. Some of my less trustworthy subordinates should be arriving momentarily and I don't wish to cause yet another tragic accident."
"Say no more, friend. Until next time."
With a bow, the devil disappeared, the bright glow of a teleportation circle whisking him away as someone knocked on the door.
At a certain international airport, Vali could only sigh in annoyance as his rubbed his wrists while being escorted out of the TSA detention by unamused police officers. At his side was an annoyed Ritsuka, following along with a black duffel bag with wheels.
"Ugh… what a pain in the ass. American airports are always such an unnecessary mess."
"It would have gone faster if you didn't threaten to beat that TSA agent to death Vali."
"And he wanted to feel you up. What is he, a pervert?"
"A bored employee forced to check people for weapons."
"Pff, with that kind of security? I could sneak in a bomb if I really wanted to."
"Vali... don't say that kind of stuff out loud while inside the airport when they are already mad at us."
"Whatever."
Shaking her head, she grabbed onto Vali's arm and dragged him away, trying her absolute best to ignore Vali's snarls at the mutterings of the surrounding crowd, speculating as to who is supervising who in the pair.
As the two walked out of the Airport, Vali eventually stopped sulking like a petulant child and slowly adopted a stern glare as he surveyed their surroundings, scanning the throngs of people milling about for potential threats to his charge, only for his eyes to narrow upon seeing a black haired teen with purple eyes walk towards them.
"Ah, Vali-sama! You were only 2 hours late. I was expecting the delay to be 4 hours at least from your charming personality."
"Oh, it's only you, Gollethos. What are you doing here?"
"To assist you obviously."
"Uh Vali, who is this?"
"Oh right, you never met this guy before. This is Gollethos, one of the old man's subordinates who works in New York City. Pretty much, he's one of our go-to agents when it comes to North America in general."
"Oh, pleasure to meet you Mr. Gollethos."
"Oho? A child that shows proper respect, unlike a certain wannabe edgy blood knight we both know."
"That wannabe edgy blood knight is right here you know."
"All bark and no bite."
Vali only half-heartedly glared at the cocky fallen angel, unwilling to give the fool the reaction he desired. Ritsuka glanced at the two briefly in confusion before facing the new Grigori before her.
"So, why are you here Mr. Gollethos?"
"To help the two of you on your journey."
Vali's eyes immediately narrowed at his words.
"Oh, the old man told me this was a task for me and the brat, no one else. The American Gods won't give us the medicine otherwise."
"True, but that doesn't count until AFTER you leave New York City. I'm here to take you to your accommodations for tonight before starting on your journey proper tomorrow morning."
"Cool! That was nice of Uncle Az! Come on, lets go Vali!"
"Of course, I'll drive us there. Unlike the hotel, it is nothing special unfortunately. I am trying to keep a low profile you know."
Nearly jumping for joy, Ritsuka grabbed her chaperone's hand and pulled him along to follow their guide, not once noticing Vali harshly stare at their new companion in suspicion.
"Uh, Mr Gollethos?"
"Yes?"
"Why are you driving a white van?"
"Because they are ubiquitous."
"Ubiquitous?"
"Can be found anywhere. A white van can blend in anywhere in America. They are pretty common."
"Oh."
A few moments passed in tense silence as an antsy Ritsuka wiggled in her seat, trying to get a better view of the city outside while they waited in one of the infamous New York City traffic jams.
"So how much longer will it take?"
"Not sure, could be an hour, could be six. Traffic here could be described as its own layer of hell you know."
"Huh, that bad?"
Ritsuka only continued to fidget around while Vali sat silently, only occasionally opening his eyes to glance at the nearby surroundings as the hours dragged on, with only the honking of car horns and the endless repetitions of popular songs on the radio, until finally, at the darkest hour of the night, just before the coming of the next day, their guide finally spoke up.
"Ah, we are almost there everyone. After a few more turns we should be in the right spot."
Leaning to the side, an excited Ritsuka looked out only to see the drab dark buildings
"Cool! But where is the hotel? All I see are warehouses and office buildings."
With a roar, Vali suddenly opened his eyes and tore through the seat and a magic infused arm swinging to decapitate their driver, only for the Fallen in question to barely dodge the blow with a smirk as his wings unfurled and he flew through the van roof. His taunting words echoed through the deafeningly still and silent night in New York.
"Can a dragon that destroys protect a new witch? Let's find out, shall we?"
"Fuck, I knew it! Traitor! Ritsuka, get down, NOW!"
Immediately obeying, she closed her eyes and curled into a ball on the van floor. The light of Vali's wings bathed her in magical energy as he formed a demonic barrier around himself and his ward. Not a speck of fear adorned his face as rocket-propelled grenades and gunfire rained down upon the van.
"Fools. Divide… Divide… Divide…"
Tsk, if it were just myself, I wouldn't even need to bother dividing their power like this. But I'm not risking Ritsuka, not like this. These cowardly bastards are targeting her for some reason. They WANT me to charge forward so they can take her out. Hmm… so what is the best way forward? These cowards need to die, but after Ritsuka is safe.
Narrowing his eyes, Vali scanned the buildings around him, raising a brow to the occasional different colored spears of light lobbed towards Ritsuka and the holy sacraments of exorcism launched from the various buildings.
"Oh, so there's more than one traitor working alongside the church. Oh well, they'll die all the same. I'd rather not have to use my dragon scale though… using it on such small fry would be embarrassing… Hmm... "
As he stood amongst the ruined remains of the van with his ward, musing on the best way forward amongst the cacophony of war and ruin clash with is barrier, he failed to notice the widening eyes of terror on his ward's face as she looked upon his back, protecting her against the dangers of the world. Memories of mother and her ruined home began flashing before her eyes.
No… no… NO! NOT AGAIN! Jeanne, Jeanne alter! Where are you?!
Here master, I never left your side. I'm inside you now remember?
Bad guys… they're!
Yep, traitors are trying to get your family killed again, with 'holy' men judging an innocent girl to burn for their own purposes. It's sooner than I expected, but I have faith in you, we've been practicing for this remember?
Just imagine a trigger to turn on my circuits and focus on the armor you wear in my dreams, right?
Bingo. Let's go master! Tonight we'll see how well these traitors and 'Holy' men BURN.
Ritsuka closed her eyes, remembered the final stand of her mother all those years ago, her protective back standing between Ritsuka and all that would harm her. At the image, her circuits flared into existence as malefic mana exploded out of her very being, a black armor and mantle materializing onto her, followed by a sheathed sword upon her waist and a dragonic banner in her left hand. All looked on in brief silence at her sudden transformation, before beginning their attacks anew with even greater vigor. At the sight, Vali merely raised a brow in curiosity. As Ritsuka slowly opened her eyes, he noticed her bronze colored eyes were replaced with a sickly bright yellow, with a twisted smile slowly beginning to form on her face.
"I see, I see… Once again, idiotic rabble are trying to hurt me by murdering my family before me. Heh, heh… ahahahahahaha! Blessed are the meek? What idiocy! Lies to suppress others, to become sheep before their abusers, their accusers, their killers."
A truly cruel grin adorned the girl's face as an aura of bitterness seeped into the atmosphere. Her furious eyes were all but contained.
"Now then priests, let's see if God truly does exist and is taking your side… I call upon him to protect you from this trial if what you are doing is righteous! May the fires of judgement fall down upon us all, let it be known that those who still stand are just, for God knows his own, after all."
Mana exploded forth from the child, converting into a conflagration of hellfire that consumed the nearby buildings. The sounds of gunfire and holy hymns were replaced by screams of pain and terror as the believers around her died.
"Heh, heh… ahahahahahahahaha! After all these years, nothing has changed! Hypocrites, all of you!"
Bitterly smiling, the golden eyed child looked around her, watching as men on fire ran out from the buildings, rolling on the ground in a vain attempt to put out the flames. Amongst the men was a fallen angel, his wings charred black, losing their former lustrous sheen.
"Ah, the traitor lives. I suppose I have to fix that."
Taking a few steps forward, she looked down upon the Fallen, staring into his eyes as she smugly basked in his ever growing terror.
"Burn."
"Divide!"
She could only look on in utter confusion as her flames were weakened to a pittance by the White dragon emperor. Vali, the man she looked up to as a brother, protectively stood between her and the traitor, shielding him from her flames. Her voice quivering as she spoke his name.
"Vali?"
Why Vali? Do you think I am a monster? Why?
"Vali-sama? Thank you from shielding me from that mons-"
Whatever honeyed words the traitor tried to convey were brutally silenced by a swift kick to the groin by the White Dragon Emperor, followed by another kick to the throat. While the angel writhed once more on the ground in agony from the burns and the beatings, Vali patted the angel down, reaching into his pockets and pulling out a wallet, keys, folded pieces of paper and other assorted items. Skimming through the contents, he nodded before slipping them into his own pocket.
"Ah, there we go. The evidence we need to find the other traitors. Okay Ritsuka, go ahead and finish what you were doing."
Casually walking towards his ward's side, he did not react to the sudden burst of heat and light behind him. Instead, focusing on the small girl before her, whose golden eyes betrayed confusion and insecurity.
"What's with that look brat? You looked like you were going to cry there for a moment."
"When you stopped me, I thought you were going to side with him for a second. I thought you hated me because I turned into a monster…"
Narrowing his eyes, he flicked the child on her forehead, hard, knocking her head backwards and staggering her a few steps.
"Are you an idiot!?"
Flinching, Ritsuka looked down while rubbing her forehead.
"I have a dragon inside of me, why the hell would I care you have something that hates priests inside of you. Who was that anyways?"
"Jeanne Alter. Remember when Uncle Az talked about a spirit in my old house? That's her."
Vali smiled in interest at the thought of what Azazel considered a spirit comparable to an ultimate class devil residing in the small girl.
"Oho, interesting. We'll have to spar later, she seems strong. But first, let's get out of here. I'd rather not have to explain what happened to the fire department and police."
"But what about the witnesses?"
"Let the church can deal with covering up the supernatural. Not my problem so I don't care."
Grabbing Ritsuka's hand, Vali led the insecure child from the ruins of the van. Sighing in exasperation, he ignored how tightly she clasped his hand, gripping him as if he were a lifeline.
Ugh, what an idiot. Fearing that I'd ditch her like that. She's annoying but I couldn't bring myself to hate her. She's good as a distraction when Azazel tries to do something stupid to tease or prank someone.
Shaking his head, he glanced to his side and saw that she was still in her armor.
"Oi, Ritsuka. Your Armor."
"Oh! Sorry Vali!"
Closing her eyes, her face scrunched up in concentration, her amor eventually astralizing in sections before finally her banner and sword disappeared as well.
"Brat, that took you 4 minutes. It should be near instantaneous."
"Sorry Vali! It was my first time doing all of it like that!"
"Then how did you put it on in all in one go earlier?"
"I dunno."
To that Vali could only rub his temples in annoyance, completely unamused by Ritsuka's bemused smile as she began skipping at his side, not once letting go of his hand. To any observing, it looked like a scene of family bonding, of a tired relative trying to indulge his younger charge but failing to hold back his annoyance.
A scene contrasted by the backdrop of a city burning behind them.
"Breaking news tonight, a massive 3 block fire has happened in the Bronx this evening as the firefighters are hard at work to contain the fires. Witnesses have already confirmed casualties as the victims were rushed to the hospital in critical condition…"
Inside a certain pizzeria open until 4 AM in New York City, a half-dozen customers were enjoying the last call of the night, the final slices of pizza before the next day. Of which, one was playing the news out loud on his phone for his fellow customers to hear.
"Huh, a three block fire. I wonder what knucklehead decided to do something like that? Probably some idiot playing with fire in a place they shouldn't have been. Kids these days."
Shaking his head, an older man passed two slices of pizza to his last customers of the night, a teen with silver hair and a young girl with odd black and vermillion hair. Nodding in thanks, the pair took their food to their seats and tentatively took a bite. The older man could only smile in pride at their reactions, the silver haired teen's eyes widened in surprise as he paused to stare at the slice in awe before taking another bite. The young girl on the other hand had the subtlety of fireworks display. A blush of bliss appeared on her face as she dug into her meal, uncaring of manners as she rushed to devour it, only to pout and nearly cry when she realized there was no more to eat.
"Valiiiiii… Can we get more slices? Or can I have some of yours? Pleeeeeaaasseeee!"
Chuckling softly at the girl's attempts to steal her chaperone's slice, the older man prepared another slice and set down in front of her, gently tapping her shoulder to gain her attention. Ritsuka nearly cheered for joy upon seeing the food, only to cover her lips upon seeing her savior's finger on his lips, making a shush motion. Smiling, she nodded in thanks and devoted her attention to enjoying every single bite. The child sated, the older man shifted his attention to the teen, who was shaking his head in exasperation at the girl's antics.
"So, mind telling me why the two of you are here? Tourist or not, it's way past your bedtime isn't it?"
An annoyed scowl formed on the teens face as he tilted his head to answer.
"Yeah, but our ride got the address wrong, dropped us off in the wrong area, then took off. Been lost ever since. Noticed this place was open and decided to drop by since the kid was hungry."
"Why not just use a phone to get directions?"
Sighing, the teen reached into his pocket to reveal a crushed phone.
"Some asshat decided to run a red light. The brat here wanted to look up the directions herself to prove she could while we were crossing the street. Was able to pull her out of the way, but she dropped the phone and the car ran it over."
No need to mention this is Gollethos's phone. He doesn't need to know that.
"Ouch, talk about bad luck. Need directions?"
"That'd be helpful. How do you get to…"
A polite bow and wave later, the pair left the pizzaria with the others to let man close shop for the morning. Utterly content, Ritsuka skipped around as she followed Vali, occasionally grabbing his hand to let him know she was still around before getting bored and skipped around him once again, humming various OPs of the shows she watched back in Azazel's home.
This was in complete contrast to Vali, who merely walked in silence, unable to contain a grimace upon his face. After walking silently for an hour, Ritsuka looked up at her guardian in concern.
"Are you ok Vali? Are you mad that I got an extra slice of pizza? We can go back to ask for another slice, the guy there was super nice. I'm pretty sure he'd make another on for you. Do you wanna go back Vali?"
"Maybe on the way back. Pretty rare to get food like that."
"Then why do you look us unhappy Vali?"
"We are leaving the City."
"Isn't that a good thing? I mean, that's what we are supposed to do right?"
"Yeah, but how is going to suck."
"What do you mean?"
"The enemy knows we are here, and that our goal is to reach South Dakota right?"
"Yeah?"
"So that means they will have more ambushes for us. They know the old man has money, and that he would have given us funds for our trip, so they'll be expecting us to take a taxi, a train, or something else to help us travel in comfort. They will be expecting us there, so it will be stupid to use those."
"So how do we get out Vali? Walking? Bicycles?"
"Good ideas, but no. They'll have people there watching bridges and pedestrian ways out of the city. We need to take a way out of the city with a large number of people but won't leave us exposed to their agents searching for us out in the open."
"So… what does that mean?"
Vali's scowl hardened at the question, causing Ritsuka to inadvertently shiver at its intensity.
"I really hope they were exaggerating brat… It means we have to take the bus… the long way around. We need to reach South Dakota from the West, so we have to go around then back to avoid our pursuers."
"That doesn't sound so bad though Vali."
"American buses for hours on end? That sounds like preparation for the early levels of hell if what the other Grigori said are true."
"Eh, it can't be that bad."
At her words, Vali only sighed once more, as they paused in front of a lit building.
"Kid, those are famous last words. This is going to suck for sure now."
"Will not!"
Following Vali inside, she pouted at his words
This will be fine, right Jeanne Alter?
Master, I'm inclined to agree with Vali, I think you just jinxed us.
So rude!
Heh, but not wrong.
Ritsuka's pout intensified at the servant's words, unaware that the staff of the station found it utterly adorable and smiled.
Author's notes
Heya Peeps!
Sorry for taking so long to update this story. This past semester has been hell, and as those who read my Truth story should know, I've had a rut of bad luck too. (Editor-kun was here) Just add a damaged roof from all the storms ravaging the US over the past few weeks, a loss of internet because of an equipment failure, and a near loss of my summer part time job hours due to a scheduling mishap.
Misfortune aside, I originally wrote a chapter months ago during the semester, but I was unsatisfied with (Editor-kun was here) the work. That chapter takes place after a time skip to the Raynare arc, but I couldn't figure out what was wrong. The writer's block lasted for a few weeks. Wasn't until recently did I realize that it was too exposition heavy as characters were discussing Ritsuka's accolades over the past few years. So I figured I'd write a brief interlude arc to give you guys an example to work with so I can cut down on the exposition.
Oh, and on a related note, I got some PMs and reviews asking about Nozomi somehow preventing Asia from being exiled. To that I say, "Uh, how could she prevent that? She'd be like 12 years old at that point. How will a 12 year old girl tell a bunch of old powerful white men what to do?" She wouldn't even be present in that area. In fact, I'm surprised someone hasn't figured out where she ended up. I left two hints to her fate, one was super obvious in which most of you figured out, yet none of you seemed to have picked up on the other. Once you guys notice it, I think the answer as to when she'll return will be clear. PM me if you think you figured it out, I'll give you a shout out if you get it right next chapter.
As for those upset that I've haven't caused large enough deviations yet from canon (Editor-kun was here), well, in my view the fundamental forces that forced Akeno's flight had not changed. Most of the leadership of the Himejima are staunchly traditionalist, and hated her guts. The fact that this time around more of the clan supported Akeno and her family however, changed the context of her flight and following service to Rias, and from that there will be more deviations down the road. I suppose you could say I'm trying to set up for something cool later.
And holy crap a lot of you have abandonment issues! Saying the story has been abandoned after a few months delay. The only story I'd understand that kind of talk from is Boulder and that is on hiatus due to you guys loving this and Truth a lot more. Might start working on Boulder again after the new Fire Emblem comes out though.
Lastly, wow, the current poll has been crazy. Stories have been rising and falling, with only Golden ending being constantly in first place and Cursed Sword consistently in last pace. All other options have been in flux.
After the next Shackles chapter, I'm working on Dragon Saint next. Thanks for reading!
Editor Notes:
Well, I'm back at it again. While I've had a craving for Katsudon (thank you Restaurant to Another World), Five Guys works as well. I'm also somewhat part to blame for the delay due to the new updates to games I play, and bless the SEGA for bringing PSO2 to the west.
Anyways, Kovaras really enjoyed putting things in continuous-present tense (using -ing) when they shouldn't have been. Then again, that's part of the reason why I'm here draped in a blanket with cream soda and dirty glasses. Other than that, all there is to say is that we're more or less back (until Shadowbringers, that is).