Disclaimer: Neither High School DXD nor Elder Scrolls belongs to me, all rights to their respective owners.

Chapter 27

— Your power is not the truly terrifying thing you have, Edzard. The truly terrifying thing is the ability you have to use it. —

Savos Aren to Edzard 201 4E.

Issei was sitting on the sofa in his living room as he thought about how things had changed in the short amount of time that had passed since the Rating game against Riser Phenex. One of the main things that had changed was that his king had moved into his house.

As he continued to sit on the sofa, his mind traveled to the time he fought against Riser in the final stage of the Rating game.

Flashback

Issei was propped up on his left knee as he tried to get to his feet. He felt his body completely destroyed, his energy was on the floor. Still, he wasn't planning to give up, not with everything at stake. His will to keep fighting had kept his king from giving in to his enemy.

The enemy he was facing was a handsome young man in his 20s with short blonde hair who was wearing a burgundy blazer with gold embroidery on the right with matching pants and black dress shoes. Beneath his open jacket is a white dress shirt that is not fully buttoned giving a glimpse of his chest. This guy's name is Riser Phenex, Rias Gremory's current fiancé.

"You really don't know when to give up, do you?" Riser said looking at Issei getting up.

"Give up? I'm sorry, but that word is no longer in my vocabulary." Issei answered getting up. "Don't worry, Buchou. You just back off, I'll take care of the Yakitori."

"No, Ise. Stop now. Your body is at the limit." Rias said with concern seeing Issei getting up and preparing to fight.

"Don't worry, Buchou." Issei said raising his left arm. "Come on, Draig."

[Are you sure, partner? Your body is greatly weakened.]

Draig was the spirit of the Red Emperor Dragon that inhabited Issei's sacred gear. The dragon had been awake since the moment Issei managed to fully manifest his sacred gear. While no one knew the reason for his premature awakening, the dragon said that he had defected a few months ago. According to what the dragon remembered, this was because Issei was close to a very powerful dragon, which had unconsciously forced him to wake up. The dragon had been indispensable for Issei's ten-day training.

"Yes, Draig."

[Ready partner. Remember you only get one chance]

"I know. Let's start with this." Issei said.

"Ise?" Rias asked confused.

Issei just smiled and extended his sacred gear again. Out of nowhere it began to glow blue. Clenching his fist, Issei released the spell. This spell covered Issei's entire body.

'Good. The first phase is ready.' Issei thought as he clenched his teeth. Although he had felt excruciating pain, he now felt that his strength had greatly increased. 'Now for the second phase.'

Issei extended his arm again and pointed at Riser. A small and almost imperceptible ball of lightning formed in the palm of the gauntlet.

"What are you doing?" Riser asked confused.

"You'll see, Yakitori." Issei said with a smile. "Eat this, you bastard!"

As he shouted that word, a large bolt of lightning shot out from the gauntlet and struck Riser's body squarely.

"Aghhh!" Riser cried out in pain, as he felt great pain throughout his body. After a few seconds, Riser fell to the ground as much of his body was numb.

"Ise. What was that? Since when can you use magic?" Rias asked approaching her pawn.

"It's just a one-time use thing." Issei replied looking to where Riser had fallen. "Come on Buchou. Let's get this over with."

However, after saying that, Issei had to take Rias in his arms and jump to dodge a ball of fire. When they were in a safe place, they saw that the attack had been launched by Riser.

"You bloody low-class scum!" Riser yelled getting up.

The pure-blooded devil's body showed various wounds, which were slowly healing.

"Damn. How does he still stand up from receiving that attack?" Issei asked.

[Calm down, partner. The bird is worn. His demonic power level dropped a lot after receiving that attack.]

Issei looked at his gauntlet and nodded. "How are we doing? It's ready?"

[Yes. We can do it now. But I warn you something. You will only have one or two minutes at most]

"Good. More than enough time. Come on Draig!"

[Bost]

[Bost]

[Bost]

[Bost]

[Bost]

[Bost]

[Welsh Dragon Over Booster]

After that last shout a red light covered Issei. As the light dissipated, Issei was covered in red colored draconic looking armor with various green gems on various parts of the armor.

"Ise. I-I-Is that it?" Rias asked in amazement seeing the Boosted Gear's Balance Breaker.

[No, princess. This isn't his balance breaker He still has a long way to go to reach that level. This is an incomplete state. But it is more than enough for this battle.]

"Good. Come on Draig. Activate the last two!"

[Charge Frost]

[Charge Shock]

After that shout, an aura of lightning and frost formed on the armor's arms. Issei looked at his arms and summoning the wings of his armor, he charged straight at Riser.

When they were face to face they began to hit each other. Issei managed to defend himself very well thanks to the increase in power that his incomplete form of Balance Breaker and the strengthening scroll gave him.

"Damn insect!" Riser yelled as he threw a punch at Issei's face.

Issei, seeing the attack coming, used his own fist to block the attack. The clash of both fists generated a small shock wave. After that blow, both began to continue hitting each other. This exchange of blows lasted a good time and for all those who watched the fight it seemed that both were on the same level; however, those with more combat experience saw Riser's regeneration and movement speed slow with each hit that landed on his body.

They both continued to attack each other and as they did so they continued to insult each other.

"Down you damn bastard!" Issei yelled as she punched Riser in the face. "Buchou's virginity is mine and I won't give it to you!"

Riser spat out a little blood as he took the hit; however, he managed to steady himself and hit Issei right in the stomach. "Shut up you piece of shit, Rias's virginity is mine!"

Issei spit some blood through his helmet, but he didn't fall, instead steadied himself and landed another hit on Riser. The high-class devil counterattacked hitting Issei. And so they continued beating each other for a while.

The amount of damage received forced Riser to land and support himself on his right knee as he felt his body heavy. Feeling something hot run down his face, he brought his hands up and his eyes widened in shock and fear at the sight of his blood. He quickly started looking at his body and saw that his wounds weren't healing.

"What's wrong?! Why won't my wounds heal?!" Riser yelled in panic. He then looked up to the sky and saw Issei flying. Clenching his teeth, he yelled at him. "Damn bastard! What have you done to me?!"

Issei saw Riser yell at him and remembered that bastard had almost made his king cry. Clenching his teeth, he spread out his hands and began charging up a large amount of power.

"Dammit Yakitori already falls!" Issei yelled as he used a dragon shoot. The beam of energy was so great that he ended up engulfing Riser completely. Issei's attack ended up hitting the main building of the Kuoh academy replica, thus creating a huge explosion. As both the explosion and the dust dissipated, a badly injured Riser could be seen beginning to disappear in specks of white light.

End Flashback

Issei stopped thinking about the battle against Riser when he felt someone touch his shoulder. Focusing his gaze, he saw his Buchou looking at him with concern.

"Buchou, what's wrong?" Issei asked.

"You're fine, Ise. I've been trying to get your attention for quite a while." Rias replied looking at Issei.

Issei put his hand to his head and apologized while scratching the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, Buchou. I was thinking about what happened in the battle against Riser."

Rias sat next to Issei and looked at him before speaking. "Don't make me remember. We almost lost thanks to my own weakness. If it hadn't been for you and those scrolls, we would have lost and I would be tied to Riser for my entire existence."

When Issei was about to say something, he was stopped by the sound of the doorbell.

"I wonder who it will be. Since we were not expecting visitors." Rias said as he stood up.

Issei got up as well and started walking towards the door while he was closely followed by Rias. Issei's eyes widened in surprise when he opened the door and he saw who were the people who had rung the doorbell.

"Edzard?" Issei asked surprised to see his friend.

Rias opened her eyes in surprise when she saw Edzard, but especially when she saw the young woman who accompanied him, since that young woman was the same one she had tried to reincarnate a few months ago.

'What's going on here? Why is she with Issei's friend?' Rias thought worried that someone as strong as that young woman was with Issei's friend; however, it is at that moment that she remembered something important. 'Waiting. It's supposed to be Edzard who gave Issei the scrolls he used in the battle against Riser.'

That thought came thanks to the fact that after the battle against Riser, Issei had told her about the scrolls and therefore about his friend. Although thanks to them they had won, she did not like the consequences. This was because the use of said items had significantly reduced Issei's life expectancy by over three hundred years.

"Hello, Issei. How are you?" asked the young man with a smile on his face. He was dressed in a short sleeved white t-shirt, a pair of black jeans and low leather boots. To Rias's naked eye, he looked like a normal human, but his eyes weren't those of a human. Since there were no humans with cross-shaped pupils. The young woman next to him was wearing a blue long-sleeved T-shirt with blue jeans, which reached to the calf. Also, she was wearing a pair of sandals with low heels. Finally, there was a girl in the young woman's arms. This girl was wearing a yellow dress with ruffles at the bottom of it.

Issei blinked for a while and then put on a smile. "When you came?"

"Last night. We didn't want to come and bother you so late." Edzard replied.

After that, Issei made them enter. Once inside the house, everyone sat at the table while they waited for Issei's mother to arrive. When the woman came into the room, she smiled and happily greeted Edzard and Asia, before taking Marie into her arms and starting to rock the little girl.

Edzard and Asia put on a smile seeing the scene.

"Ahem." Rias faked a cough to get Edzard and Asia's attention. Her actions were rewarded, as both Edzard and Asia turned to look at her.

Issei looked away from his mother and saw Rias looking at Edzard and Asia. And it was at that moment that he remembered that he had not introduced them.

"Buchou, I know I told you about him a while ago, but I will introduce him properly. This is my friend, his name is Edzard Rolandson." Issei said introducing Edzard. "And next to him is his family. The cute girl next to him is his wife, her name is Asia Argento. And the little girl who is with my mother is their daughter and her name is Marie Argento Edzarddottïr."

After saying that, Issei turned and seeing Edzard, spoke. "Ed, Asia-san. I present to you Rias Gremory. She is the president of the Occult Research Club, the club I belong to."

"It's nice to meet you, Rias Gremory. It's good to see that idiot Issei has made more friends than those two perverts." Edzard said with a friendly smile on his face.

"Hey!" Issei yelled feeling offended by what his friend said.

Edzard and Asia laughed softly hearing Issei who started to rant against Edzard.

After introducing themselves, they all headed to the living room. Once seated, they began to chat about trivial matters. From the conversation, Rias learned that Issei's friends were her age and had had Marie two years ago. That information made her start to wonder how a two-year-old girl could behave so well and, above all, speak Japanese fluently. She also learned that none of them studied, as they traveled all over the world.

After a few hours of talking, Edzard, Asia and Marie left the place, but not before telling them that it was very likely that they would stay in Kuoh for two or three weeks.

Rias was very thoughtful as she sat at her desk in the room that was the ORC headquarters in the old Kuoh academy building. Her normally soft and silky crimson hair was currently slightly unkempt. This was because she had been busy the last two days thanks to the recent events that had transpired. First, her knight remembered his trauma thanks to a photo he saw at her pawn's house. Second, two exorcists arrive and tell her that one of the leaders of the Fallen Angels has stolen some of the Excalibur. Third, said exorcists fought against Yuuto and Issei, winning resoundingly. And finally there was her concern for Issei's friend.

"Buchou. Are you still worried about Issei's friend?"

Rias stopped thinking about what was happening when she heard her queen's voice. Looking up, she saw Akeno approaching with a tray with a cup of tea and biscuits in her hands.

"Yes, Akeno. I have tried to understand what kind of person Edzard-san is. But I haven't achieved anything so far." Rias replied looking as Akeno placed the tray in front of her. So, reaching out her hand, Rias took the cup of tea and took a sip. She let out a reassuring sigh as she felt the hot liquid run down her throat. "Thank you, Akeno."

"You're welcome, Buchou." Akeno gave with a smile. "Then why do you care about Edzard-san? From the little you've told me he doesn't seem like a bad person."

"You are right. He seems like a nice person, but…"

"But?"

"There is something in his eyes. When he looks at me, I feel like I'm completely naked in front of him." Rias said as she felt a shiver run through her body.

"Ara, ara. Are you worried that he will look at you with perverted eyes?" Akeno asked mockingly.

"No. It's not that kind of nudity." Rias replied quickly denying her queen's words. "When he looks at me, I feel like he can know everything about me. Also, he is with the girl he wanted to reincarnate a few months ago."

"I understand. If he's with someone that strong, that means he's very strong too." Akeno said putting her hand to her chin thoughtfully. The teasing smile he previously wore was gone, for this matter was serious. "Have you managed to perceive what level of power he has?"

"That's what scares me the most. I haven't been able to detect any power in it. No sacred gear, no demonic or angelic heritage. It seems that he is what he appears, a normal human. But how could a human have artifacts as powerful as the scrolls he gave Issei?"

'Rias is right. He is not someone weak, otherwise he could not have obtained tools like those scrolls.' Akeno thought with concern as he frowned at what he heard. 'There are only two reasons why you cannot feel the power of another being. One, if he is extremely weak. Two, and the most dangerous, that he is frighteningly more powerful than you.'

"Rias. You plan to do?" Akeno asked looking at her friend.

"Initially I had planned to send our familiars to spy on them. But with recent events that will not be possible." Rias replied sadly. "We must locate Yuuto to prevent him from doing something stupid that will force us to hunt him down."

"I understand." Akeno said placing a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder. "You are right. First we must help our own. Also, from what Issei-kun said about him, he seems to be a good person."

Rias nodded as he looked at her friend. "You are right. We will rely on Ise's judgment on this."

Edzard was watching two exorcists eat everything in front of them as if there was tomorrow. These two exorcists were Xenovia Quarta and Irina Shidou. The first is a young woman around seventeen years old with short light blue hair with a green streak on her forehead and brown eyes. She wears a white cape with blue and gold accents. But, Edzard had managed to see that underneath that cloak was a skin-tight, short-sleeved black leotard with shoulder pads, long fingerless gloves that extend to her biceps, and thigh-high boots, all adorned with ribbons. Her partner, Irina, was a young woman of the same age with long light brown hair tied in two pigtails and violet eyes. Just like her partner, she was wearing that same tight suit and also wearing the same cape.

"Ahh~. It's so good." Both Xenovia and Irina groaned as they continued to eat nonstop.

The young exorcists had been in a financial bind ever since Irina was scammed into buying a fake image of a saint. That had caused them both to lose the funds they had for the mission. So seeing that they had no money, they decided to turn to people's charity. Unfortunately, Japan is not a Christian country, so they were unable to raise almost anything.

And that was how Edzard found them, almost on the verge of fainting from lack of food. He had initially decided not to get involved; however, seeing that they were wearing the same battle clothes Lint was wearing, he decided to lend them a hand. So he approached them and offered to take them out to eat.

"That was good." Xenovia said wiping her mouth with a napkin. "Thank you very much for the food."

"You're welcome." Edzard said with a smile as he drank a glass of cola.

"Thank you very much, Edzard-san." Irina said as she looked at Edzard with tears in her eyes. "I don't know what we would have done without your help. I will pray that God gives you and your family well-being."

"Thanks." Edzard said as he looked up and prepared to call a waiter to bring him the bill. However, when he was about to do it, he saw how Issei and three other people entered the place.

Edzard saw that Issei looked all over the place, until his gaze landed on his table. Looking out of the corner of his eye, he saw the two girls tense slightly.

'So they know each other. I wonder what the story is behind this.' Thought Edzard looking between the two groups.

"I didn't expect to see you here, Ed." Issei said approaching the table.

"The same I say, Issei."

Both Xenovia and Irina looked confused at the exchange of words between Edzard and Issei.

"Excuse me, but. They know each other?" Xenovia asked.

"Oh. Yes. In fact, Issei is a friend that I have in this city." Edzard replied looking at Xenovia.

"I see." Xenovia said narrowing her eyes as she looked at Edzard.

After that, Edzard introduced himself to Issei's companions, who did the same. After these introductions, Edzard invited them to sit down and order something if they were hungry. The young people each ordered something to eat.

'Wow, this tension is really uncomfortable.' Edzard thought as he felt the tension in the air between the exorcists and the young devils.

"So, Edzard-san. How did you meet Issei-kun? Yuuto Kiba asked. Yuuto is a young man with short blonde hair and gray eyes. Like Issei, he wore the male Kuoh Academy uniform.

"I met him several months ago when I saved him from a mob of women who planned to beat him up." Edzard replied taking a sip of his drink

"Waiting. You saved this idiot from being beaten up by women." Saji Genshiro said. Saji is a young man with short blonde hair and gray eyes. He also wore the Kuoh Academy uniform, but without the blazer.

"Yes. It was actually kind of funny as I used too much force on the grip and ended up knocking him unconscious. So I had to stay by his side to prevent them from doing anything to him."

"Issei-senpai, you idiot." Koneko Toujou said as she looked at Issei. Koneko is a petite girl with white hair and hazel eyes. On her front, her hair has two long bangs that go past her shoulders and several loose bangs hanging over her forehead, while her back has short hair. She also wears a black cat-shaped hair clip on both sides of her head. She wears the female Kuoh Academy uniform, but without the cape.

'You missed the word pervert.' Edzard thought as he reached into his pocket. When he pulled his hand out, he was holding his cell phone, which he vibrated showing that he was receiving a call.

"Good afternoon. I see. So, will it be for tonight? Fine, then I'll leave right away." Edzard said as a smile began to show on his face. Hanging up the phone, he could see that everyone was looking at him. So, sighing, he decided to tell them. "I just received a call confirming the reservation of a room in my name at a hotel in Italy."

Issei looked at him confused for a moment until he realized what was happening. "Waiting. Are they leaving Japan yet?"

"No. The only one who will go will be me. And it will only be for about two or three days at most."

"I see. That's good, since I don't want to tell my mom you won't be around for Sunday dinner." Issei said feeling relieved that his mother wouldn't be sad about not being able to spend the weekend with little Marie.

"Okay. I'm leaving. Suitcases don't pack themselves. Edzard said as he got up from his chair. When he was on his feet, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. Reaching in, he pulled out several ten thousand yen bills. "Issei, here. Take care of paying the bill with this."

Issei took the amount of money and his eyes widened, as he had never seen so many ten thousand yen bills together. Looking up, she saw that he wasn't the only one, as Saji and Irina looked in amazement at the amount of money.

After that, Edzard said goodbye to everyone and left the place.

The devils and the exorcists faced each other for a few seconds in an awkward silence, which was broken when one of the parties spoke.

"Then. Sekiryuutei, what brings you here?" Xenovia asked looking at Issei.

Xenovia's question made Issei stop being shocked by the amount of money he had in his hands. So, looking up, he looked at the exorcist and spoke. "I have a proposal for you."

A white sedan was speeding down the highway toward a small Tuscan town.

'This place is beautiful. I already understand why you liked to comment on this place so much, Asia.' Thought Edzard while he saw the landscape around the town he was visiting. He had left Japan not an hour ago by having Mittelt teleport him to the city of Florence. When he arrived at that place, he took a taxi and asked her to take him to this town, which was located more than two hundred kilometers from Florence.

The car moved on for several more minutes, until it finally reached its destination.

"We have arrived, sir." said the taxi driver.

"Thanks." Edzard said as he got out of the taxi, but before he got out, he paid the driver.

The driver received the money and his eyes widened when he saw that there was more money there than he was supposed to collect. "Wait, sir. There is more money here than was agreed upon."

Edzard turned his head and with a smile, spoke. "I know, you can keep the change."

The taxi driver looked at Edzard and, smiling, nodded. Putting the money away, he watched Edzard walk toward the building where he had parked. Shaking his head, he started the car and left the place while he thanked God for the luck he had had today, because he had been paid as if he had made this trip three times.

Edzard saw the building in front of him. The building was just as Asia had described it long ago, when they had still known each other in Skyrim. The building was a church of classical Roman architecture. It was completely built of stone, which showed obvious signs of deterioration due to the time it had been built. Its roof was covered in red tiles, but if you looked closely you could see that some were newer than others.

'Yes. It is just as you described. The environment doesn't seem hostile at all and even the air smells slightly sweet.' thought Edzard as he continued to walk towards the door. However, before he reached the door, he saw something that didn't match Asia's description of the place. What did not fit the description was a new building, which was very large and seemed to be some kind of military barracks.

'What is that place?' thought Edzard; however, before he advanced, he saw a woman walk out the door of said building.

The woman Edzard saw was a woman in her thirties wearing a cap that did not allow the color of her hair to show through. In addition, she also wore a black nun's outfit with white edges adorned with golden crosses.

The woman seemed to notice Edzard's presence, so she calmly approached him. When she was in front of Edzard, she spoke. "Good afternoon, my son. What brings you to the house of God?"

Edzard was about to respond to her, but he couldn't do it, because a small drop of water hit his nose. Looking up at the sky, he saw how it had turned dark gray. Furthermore, her ears caught the sound of thunder in the distance.

"Oh. It looks like she has started to rain." Said the nun looking at the sky. "You wouldn't mind entering the church until the rain passes, would you?"

"No. If it's not much trouble." Edzard replied.

"Do not worry. It's no trouble at all."

The nun began to walk towards a door located to the right of the main chapel.

Once inside the church, Edzard saw that the floor was made of gray stone slabs and the walls were also gray stone.

'This place needs a lot of improvement.' Edzard thought as he saw that several walls had cracks.

"Sorry about the look of the place. But we haven't received much funding for a long time." The nun said as she sat down on a bench.

"Do not worry." Edzard said as he sat down in front of the nun.

"Since we are protected from the rain. Could you tell me the reason why you came to this church?" asked the Nun.

"Curiosity more than anything." Edzard replied. "…. Excuse me, but what is your name?"

The Nun blinked for a few seconds, because she did not understand the question. However, at that moment she remembered that they had not introduced themselves.

"Oh. I am so sorry. I forgot to introduce myself." The Nun said with a shy smile and a slightly flushed face. "My name is Mariella."

"I see. Nice to meet you, Sister Mariella. My name is Edzard Rolandson." Edzard said with a smile.

Mariella's face blushed when she saw the smile that Edzard had on his face. Coming to her senses, she remembered that he hadn't told her the reason for his visit to the church. "It's also nice to meet you Edzard. Now, could you tell me the reason why you have come to this church?"

"Yes. You see sister, I only came here out of curiosity. Since I have an acquaintance who lived in this town for several years." Edzard said trying to keep Asia's identity as secret as possible.

"I see. I guess your acquaintance has told you a lot about this place, right?"

"Yes. She always spoke of this place with great affection." Edzard said with a smile as he remembered the times Asia had told him about her hometown. There was always joy in her tone of voice, but a small amount of sadness could also be heard.

"I guess she told you about this place when it was at its best." Mariella said with a bit of sadness in her voice.

"What do you mean the best moment of this church?" asked Edzard pretending to be confused, since he understood what had happened. 'I guess after the loss of their «Holy Priestess» they lost a lot of funds and now they are struggling to survive with what they have.'

"This church is in decline since we lost our «Holy Priestess» about three years ago." Mariella said while she looked at the ground.

"Did they lose their «Holy Priestess»? Edzard asked with supposed curiosity. "How did that happen?"

Mariella's shoulders began to tremble slightly as she began to sob. "S-s-she was s-s-excommunicated for a crime she didn't commit."

Edzard's eyes widened in shock when he heard that.

'Like what a crime she didn't commit?' Edzard thought confused, since Asia had told him about how she was excommunicated for healed a devil.

"Excuse me, but you say that she was excommunicated for a crime she did not commit. What does she mean by that?" Edzard asked, trying to figure out what exactly had happened.

"Supposedly she had healed a devil. For which she was accused of heresy and expelled from the church. Although, several days later we discovered that everything was false. Mariella said. "That caused her excommunication to be lifted, but unfortunately when we tried to find her, the only thing we found was her suitcase with the few belongings that she had of hers."

"So she's missing?" Edzard asked, hiding very well the surprise he had when he found out that Asia's excommunication had been revoked.

"That is what I expect. But, with the time that has passed we believe that it is very possible that she has died." Mariella's voice seemed to crack with every word she said and that she would cry at any moment.

Edzard reached out and took Mariella's hand and began to try to comfort her. Several minutes later, the nun had managed to calm down enough to speak.

"I am so sorry." Mariella said sadly to be seen in that state by Edzard.

"Do not worry. It is better to cry and vent emotions than to hold back." Edzard said. "From the way you cried, I guess you loved the «Holy Priestess» very much."

Mariella's face turned sad again. "Yes. I met little Asia ten years ago when I first came to this church."

After that, Mariella began to tell how she had met Asia. Above all, emphasizing the way she always saw her as a little sister. She also told him about the consequences of Asia's unfounded excommunication. Apparently, the higher-ups decided to wash their hands and blame everything on the small church, which left it without additional funds. And that ended up being a very serious problem for the church in this town, because they had started to build an adjacent orphanage. In the end they had to use part of the funds they received for the maintenance of the church along with some donations from the villagers to finish this project.

'So that's the new building.' Edzard thought; however, at that moment his nose caught the scent of some people approaching the place. 'Waiting. Isn't this smell that of…?'

Edzard reached into his shirt and pulled out a small white envelope. Placing the envelope on the table, he spoke. "Sister Mariella. I know this is not much, but I hope it helps with your expenses."

"Thanks a lot. I will make sure your donation is used correctly." Mariella said while she took the envelope.

"Okay. It looks like the rain has stopped. So I say goodbye. It was a pleasure meeting you, sister. Take care."

After saying that, Edzard got up and left the church. When he was away, he made sure to walk as quietly as possible as he went to a place where he could open a portal to Kuoh. As he walked, he passed two people. One of them was a young girl and the other was an extremely tall old man. Edzard put on a smile when he realized that the girl had turned in his direction the moment they passed each other.

Mariella looked at the envelope with curiosity. From the sensation that she gave when she touched it, inside it was very possible that there were only about eight pieces of paper, which were surely bills. However, before she could open the envelope, the church door opened and two people entered through it.

One of them was a two-meter-tall old man with white hair who possessed an extremely muscular body. This old man wore the typical clothes of a priest. Next to him was a young exorcist with black and white hair.

"Cardinal Strada." Mariella said as she bowed when realizing that she had a cardinal as a visitor.

"Sister Mariella. How has she been?" asked the old man with a friendly smile on his face.

"Very well, Cardinal." Mariella responded with a smile and then looked at the person who was accompanying the cardinal. "Excuse me, but who is the young lady with you?"

"Oh. This is Lint, she is currently working as my bodyguard on this visit."

"I see. Nice to meet you, Lint."

"The same I say, Sister Mariella." Lint said with a smile seeing the nun.

The three of them walked over and sat down at the table so they could talk more quietly.

"So, Cardinal. Any news from Asia?" asked Mariella hoping that they have been able to find some trace of Asia.

Vasco Strada shook his head. "I'm sorry, sister. But we haven't been able to find anything about young Asia."

"I see." Mariella said sadly. "About the other request."

"I'm afraid it's the same answer as before."

Mariella nodded sadly. Apparently this was not a good day for her either, as there was still no news about Asia nor did she get more funds for the small orphanage that was in the church.

Lint's mind wasn't focused on the conversation between the cardinal and the nun, but on the figure she saw on the way here. That silhouette looked quite similar to that of the young man who had saved her several months ago.

'It couldn't be him. After all, what business would he have here?' thought Lint. The person she thought of was Edzard. 'I wonder what he's doing right now.'

After thinking that, a slight blush appeared on her face when she remembered the smile and the kindness with which he had treated her despite being a complete stranger to him at that time. Shaking her head, she tried to push those thoughts out of her head. So, to try to forget them, she began to see the place better. She did that for a few seconds until her gaze fell on a white envelope in the middle of the table.

Looking up, she saw that both Cardinal Strada and Sister Mariella had stopped talking. Feeling her curiosity increase, she asked.

"Sister, excuse me." Lint said calling the attention not only of Mariella, but also of Strada. "What's in that envelope?"

Mariella blinked for a few seconds and then remembered the envelope that was on the table. So, taking the envelope, she spoke. "It's a donation from a young man who was here before."

"A young man who was here before?" Strada asked.

"Yes, Cardinal. The young man came to visit the church and left this envelope as a donation."

"So, sister. Why don't you open it?" Vasco said with a smile. "Perhaps there is good news for you there."

Mariella sighed and began to open the envelope. When she finished opening it, the first thing she saw was a black card.

"A debit card?" Lint asked upon seeing the card.

Both Mariella and Vasco looked at the card without knowing what to do. Mariella took the card and the second thing she saw was a folded piece of paper. Picking it up and unfolding it, her eyes nearly bulged out of her face as she saw what the document contained.

"Sister?" Lint asked concerned when she saw that Mariella was in shock. So she slowly took the paper and read it. As she did, her eyes widened as well, but unlike Mariella, she had a more vocal response. "One million euros?!"

That's right, that document was the card account statement along with its password.

Mariella came out of her astonishment and began to thank God for what had just happened, because with that money she could finish fixing up the building for the children. With a smile of joy, she decided to see the last thing the envelope contained.

"An envelope?" Lint asked confused when she saw the envelope, since she didn't understand who put an envelope inside another envelope.

Mariella opened the last envelope and her eyes widened in shock as they filled with tears.

"Sister?" Vasco asked concerned when he saw Mariella cry.

"S-s-she is alive, Cardinal." Mariella said between tears.

Strada got up and went over to Mariella to comfort her, but when he did, he saw the photos and his eyes also widened in surprise. This reaction from Vasco made Lint also get up and look at the photo, and like her previous ones, her eyes widened when she saw the photo. However, unlike the previous ones, she did manage to recognize a person in the photo.

"Edzard?" Lint asked looking at the photo.

The photo Lint looked at showed a smiling Edzard hugging a smiling Asia, who in turn was holding a little Marie in her arms. That photo was a replica of a painting painted during Edzard's wedding reception with Asia.

Both Vasco and Mariella began to see Lint, who felt uncomfortable about it.

"Excuse me, Sister Lint. But do you know who the young man in the photo is?" Vasco asked.

"This…. Yes, Cardinal." Lint answered, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "His name is Edzard Rolandson and I met him a few months ago."

"Wait, sister. If you knew this person and knew that he was with Asia Argento, why didn't you mention it?" Vasco asked.

"I did not know that the «Holy Priestess» was with him." Lint answered quickly. "When I met him he was alone."

"When and how did you meet him?"

"I met him about seven or eight months ago. And I met him in Romania when he saved my life by slaying a dragon."

"A dragon?" asked Mariella confused, but then her eyes widened in surprise. "You're telling me that he killed a dragon."

"Yes. In fact, it was a high-level dragon. And he did it with a sword with Dragon Slayer properties. A sword that, according to him, he had forged alone and without help."

Vasco put a hand to his chin and began to think. Hundreds of possible theories about this young man ran through his mind. However, in the end he only got to one. That young man was someone dangerous, but maybe not evil, since a young woman like Asia would not start a family with someone evil. Finally a smile appeared on his face.

"Apparently she was able to find happiness." Vasco said with affection when he saw the smile that the three that appeared in the photo had.

"Yes. And she seems to have married the young man." Mariella said with a smile seeing the beautiful dress that Asia was wearing in the photo.

The smiles of both church members grew when they saw the other photos. In them the three appeared in different parts of the world. Some places were Notre Dame Cathedral, London's Big Ben, Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, among other places.

Looking at the photos, Lint put a hand to her heart as she felt it squeeze slightly. 'What's happening to me? What is this pain I feel?'

Under cover of night on that same day and several kilometers from the town, a purple spiral portal opened. Two people appeared from the portal. Both were dressed in full armor of black plates with red lines.

"So, when do we start?" asked one of the individuals with a female voice.

"In two days. We have to wait until we have the spell ready." The other replied in a masculine voice.

Author's note:

To those who have made it this far, Thanks for reading. Because being honest, I don't know how to write much in English and I'm relying on Google translators and the dictionaries that come with office 2019.

And here it is, a new chapter. I wanted to upload this chapter a few days ago, but I couldn't because I had two teeth extracted due to root fractures, so I was on total rest. As I mentioned a while ago, there are several changes in the canon, first of all, that Asia's excommunication has been lifted since a long time ago, because she didn't heal that devil using his sacred gear. How she healed him will be explained in a few chapters later. Also take the opportunity to put a little more background to the past of Asia.

Also, Issei has lost some of his lifespan thanks to the scrolls he used in the battle against Riser. I had originally planned to include Ravel as a member of the ORC, but decided against it in the end.

Two problems have also appeared, which the truth will not be so much a problem, but yes, in the next chapter the first clash between beings from Nirm and Earthlings will come, but it will be a clash to measure the waters.

Darkness-1997:

Thanks for the review. I really like that you like the story, but you're right, making the relationship monogamous would have been easier, but it's DxD and it's not DxD without a harem.

Shadow55:

Thanks for the review. and yes, I will continue writing this story until I finish it.

Well, I apologize for any misspelling. Do not forget to leave a review if you liked the chapter or if there is something that needs to be improved or if you have any questions about the story. With nothing more to say, until the next chapter.