Chapter 39: Wondering Emotions

Let's see, it was suppose to be somewhere around... Ah found it, the library. And apparently my King is here referring to as many books as she can find, "Hey Rias."

She perked up and snapped at me, happily glomping me with extreme enthusiasm, "Daisuke, oh it's been so long. I missed you so much."

"It's only been a couple days. You could have called me or something if you wanted."

"But I didn't want to interrupt your training, and I can't smell or touch you either. To think I would suffer withdrawal symptoms like this."

"Rias, you're overreacting."

"We couldn't meet each other so I often thought about you during my spare time. Every night, I had to hug my Daisuke body pillow instead of you or I can't find peace of mind."

"I stand corrected, you're not overreacting." Chuckling in mirth, I patted her head and surveyed, gotta hurry before Miho is done with her maid lessons. Now that I got a better look, Rias' clothes are a bit ruffled and her smell is stronger from sweat. Looks like she's putting in extra effort compared to before. This will motivate the pinkette more, she does intend to surpass the red headed High-class after all, "Say, is it okay if I borrow some books here back to training?"

Rias finally released me and nodded, "That's fine. What kind of books do you need?"

Venelana's words were still fresh on my mind. Talking about my feelings for the pinkette in front of Rias doesn't sound like a good idea, "About ones with spacetime topics."

"They should be on the shelves at the back."

"Thanks." A lot of books were skimmed through until I found them. Judging by the way they're organised, I found the encyclopedias for youkais or spirits, there's nothing specific about salamanders though. After dumping them in storage, "By the way, how are Koneko and the others?"

"They're doing fine, some wanted to find you because they're worried about your... you know."

"Oh, that. Don't worry about it, I mostly got over it. The only real problem is my policy of not killing." Sighing, "Didn't think I had to go through this of all things. Where's Koneko by the way? I want to at least check on her before heading back."

"Why? Is there something wrong with her?"

"She overworked herself and collapsed around this time. I already talked to her about it, just wanted to be sure."

"She should be at the training room right now."

"Thanks." I nodded in appreciation but before I could leave, Rias called out to me.

"Daisuke, if you ever want to talk about your past, know that we'll help you anyway we can. After all, we're a family now."

That surprised me a bit, she was slightly hesitant with the way she talked just now. Normally she'd be more confident, guess Rias is trying to approach gently in case I have panic attacks or something. I smiled, "Thanks, but tell everyone I'll pull through, assuming Second-shishou doesn't roast me extra crispy first."

The red head giggled, "Alright, good luck with your training."

In a facility where a certain white haired nekoshou is, there was a training obstacle field to help improve one's speed, reflexes and endurance. With her cat features out and blindfold on, Koneko was in starting position. As the system announced to commence, she dashed through the course, nimbly dodging the fake floor panels, incoming projectiles, swinging saws etc.

Her sharp ears twitches whenever a loud hazardous object was about to collide into her, her nose picks up any metallic scent approaching, and her tail stabilizes her balance whenever she executes complex maneuvers. But her reaction time wasn't fast enough when a boulder suddenly crashed her with the speed of a missile into a wall.

Koneko grunted, panting in exhaustion. She was about to get up and try again before detecting a new presence. Removing her blindfold, the female Rook was surprised to see a hand in front of her, "Daisuke-senpai?"

"Hey, good job. Saw what you did back there."

"Thank you." She accepted my help, "What are you doing here?"

"Venelana-san gave me my final lessons, and I thought about checking to see if you're okay." I gave her a headpat, she openly purrs whenever I do that now and it's so fucking adorable, "Have you started on senjutsu yet?"

A moment of hesitation paused her, "Not yet... I'm still getting used to my youkai form in public."

"I was hoping to find Akeno as well but she's training at another place. Heard you guys are worried about me with my own past but I'm fine so don't get distracted."

She stopped purring, ears and tail down as guilt was written on her face, "Senpai... I'm sorry."

Didn't expect that. Sitting down, Koneko mimicked while I asked her slowly, "What are you sorry about?"

"You were always so positive in everything, you never faltered when someone or something tried to stop you, you always fought bravely. I thought you could heal my pain because you never experienced it before, like someone who can make light of it since you don't understand it. You were the light I chased after for shining so bright." My kouhai began trembling, "I thought you had an easy life when you were a normal human, but I was wrong. Senpai, I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

My arms went to envelop her in a warm embrace, gently caressing her head once more, "To be fair, my pain isn't as severe as yours or the others."

"B-but-"

"And I also had good people around me to lift my spirits up. Now you have Rias and everyone else helping you right? All of us got your back Koneko so there's no need to fuss about my problem. If you're that worried about it, how about you buy me ice cream next time for a change?"

"I didn't know you like ice cream that much."

Deadpanning, "Unlike you, we normal people only want one or two cones. I'm not gonna empty your wallet like you did the last time I treated you."

That made her lips curve upward slightly. Koneko then spent a few more minutes snuggling to me, her tail swaying with light movements, "... Senpai, do you hate your grandmother's killer?"

"Well, I didn't think about it that much when I was wallowing in despair. I kept thinking it was my own fault at that time but yeah, guess I do hate him."

"You don't sound like you hate him."

"It happened a long time ago, I don't even know what he looks like when I passed out. Besides, I learned that hatred isn't the answer to anything. It's the same for Azazel-sensei when he was the first to ask for peace. If I do get the chance to meet him, I won't kill him but I do wanna beat him to a bloody pulp or until he pisses himself, whichever comes first."

Koneko smiled happily to my response, "Thank goodness, the usual kind senpai is always the best senpai. You are much stronger than a human now, I didn't want you to get drunk on power. I think Azazel-sensei's advice for you to kill was wrong."

"Thanks Koneko, doubt I could avoid killing considering a devil's lifespan and job description though."

"Will you... do it if it is really necessary?"

Will I do it? It's more like can I do it actually? Now that I think about it, I had the chance to kill Raynare after Issei and I beat her at the park, glad I didn't but it would have meant one less enemy to deal with. Forcuis was the first I nearly killed, then again I was on the verge of death as well so my only thoughts were to win and survive. Bomb Queen was the first opponent who made me realize I'm strong enough to kill yet it doesn't sit well for me, even Kokabiel and Vali made me feel like someone who doesn't have the right to decide whether they live or die. In the end, I thought there had to be other ways to win and pulled back at the last second.

"Who knows. But one thing's for certain, I'll fight with everything I got to protect everyone. That's why, don't forget your reason to fight as well."

"Yes, senpai." The nekoshou began to rub her cheek on me again, "Senpai, I couldn't see you for days now, please pamper me more."

Shaking my head, "Yare yare, what a spoiled kouhai. Guess I got no choice."

I administered the usual treatment, rubs and scratches. Her purring returned with a vengeance as I targeted all the right places, 'Aaahhhh, what a soothing feeling. The kitty power is strong within this one, I'll never get tired of this.'

"Senpai, rub my belly."

My hand instantly stopped at her weird request, "Why?"

"Because Miho-san looked happy when you rubbed her belly, so I want some too."

I relaxed my body, "Oh, didn't know you can transform into a cat."

"That's because I can't."

And then I panicked once more, "You want me to belly rub you in your current form?"

"Yes." She answered cheerfully. Isn't she aware of what she's asking!?

"I-I don't know. Doing it in your animal form might be more natural, don't you think?"

"Please senpai, your hands feel really good."

"Um-uh-"

Koneko leaned very close to me, her eyes moistened with flattened ears as she spoke in a very sad yet cute voice, "Daisuke-senpai purrrr-lease~ Meeoow~"

Her words echoed in my mind several times, the sight of her unparalleled adorable allure has been burned into the deepest recesses of my mind. With that, my leftover sense of rationality shattered like fragile glass, "Let's do it."

The nekoshou mewled in joy before lying on her back, eagerly lifting her shirt and revealing her tummy. My hand went to rub her exposed area, eliciting satisfied mewls, purrs and a swishing tail, "A-ah senpai, lo-lower- Yes! Right there!"

With every touch, her body twitched in ecstasy, her smile never left as she tried to arch upwards to feel more of my hand. My mind was solely focused on the cutesy expressions on her face, and by the time I was done Koneko panted with a flushed face, completely content. She then proceeded to rub herself against me in a cat-like manner, purring without a care in the world.

One thing's for certain though, all my stress was completely blown away but it feels like I've done something unforgivable to Miho... Nah, it's not like I'm attracted to Koneko that way, I'm sure it's just my imagination.

Walking down the hallway was a pink haired familiar. After finishing with her lessons with the senior maid for the day, she went to search for her master but the Gremory matriarch said he left with determined features. She reluctantly bowed in appreciation, her teacher specifically instructed to not let her personal feelings get in the way of her judgement, something that's been happening more frequently since she arrived in this unknown territory.

She didn't like it but for the sake of not besmirching her master's name, she'll put up with it. Miho couldn't let her impulses take over her all the time as a maid needs to remain compose in front of anyone, even if it means going against her territorial instinct deeply rooted in her nature since birth. It'll take time to get used to it but she'll endure it for her goals.

Knowing Daisuke, he's most likely at the library to collect more information, something which is also on the salamander's to-do list. If she's wrong, Miho can always mentally ask her master to summon her via the contract circle. There's no signal here so her iphone is out of the question.

Upon arriving, she saw Rias contemplating with a troubled face. The red head saw her and spoke in surprise, "Oh Miho, are you looking for Daisuke?"

"Yes." Replying succinctly, the pinkette scanned but found no one else.

"He went to find Koneko-chan a few minutes ago at the training room, he's concerned that she might be training her body too much."

"I see, however I also came to obtain books." She went to the shelves, finding important information such as magic. Not demonic magic, but normal magic that even humans can learn. Grayfia is the Ultimate Queen who taught her the importance and basics of magic which can be beneficial as a maid and fighter.

The books include fire magic and summoning magic. Daisuke wondered if their contract circle would allow her to summon him instead after some modifications. Unfortunately, there are very few books about magic here since most devils prefer their own powers but it'll do for now. She's been practicing both japanese and devil language so it's time to put her knowledge to the test.

There were none about spacetime though, they must have already been seized by the dimensional traveler. Those topics were beyond her, but she has recently started to learn more about it to aid Daisuke's problem. A vain attempt considering that the amount of details makes her head spin but at least she could try. Miho did pick up reading as a hobby after all.

Something that Rias noticed. Speaking suspiciously, "Are you... are you looking for books about spacetime?"

"Yes, it would be beneficial if I can understand a little."

"Wha- Why?" The red head almost did a double take, "Even Daisuke would have a hard time to deeply dive into that topic. Do you believe you can actually learn all that? "

"I have always been in Hanwei-sama's care." Miho held the books to her chest, walking to the Gremory, "I have little to offer in return so at the very least, I wish do what I can for him as his familiar and maid. May I borrow these materials for some time?"

Rias locked eyes with the pinkette, she didn't think about helping her Rook that way considering he always asks whenever he stumbled upon something, and most of the time was about magic or training. Any problem she could resolve was mostly involved with her finance and connections. However, Daisuke's was highly classified. Asking someone to rip open a hole between dimensions would be too laborious and conspicuous, and that's if she can find someone who could accomplished that.

If there was something Daisuke would ask of her, she would immediately grant it to the best of her abilities. He already confidently stated that he has a few ideas to get back home so Rias left it to his own devices until he needed help, it didn't occur to her that there might be other methods to help. But still, the Gremory heiress has other tasks to do including tending to the rest of her peerage yet instinctively, she knew she doesn't want him to leave her side.

Miho caught sight of the red head casting her gaze downwards, tightly clutching the hem of her skirt, "Rias?"

She was always aware that the salamander was ahead of her in winning Daisuke's love. She thought she would catch up after moving in with him, using her charms and kindness to take the lead. She had full confidence, assuming that Miho was only slightly ahead because the Rook lived with a beauty under the same roof. But that wasn't it, not even close. Miho was much further ahead than her in a short amount of time.

Standing up to her parents was understandable as Daisuke has done the same for her when Riser threatened her future. But Miho was the only person who knew about his sad past, receiving much more trust while Rias only had a brief mentioned about it. No matter what the King does, Daisuke didn't see her the same way as he did with Miho.

"-y..."

The pinkette barely heard a whisper, confused and slightly distressed about her well-being, "Could you repeat that?"

"WHY!?" The heiress glared in frustration, her eyes tearing at the edges which mars her natural beauty, "Why you!? Why does Daisuke always favor you!? What do you have that I don't!?"

Startled by the abrupt explosive behavior, Miho wanted to ask what she meant yet the latter kept screaming as her emotions were made known.

"I've known Daisuke longer than you! I've helped him with everything I can! I've done my best to appeal to him but he only looks at you! If you never met him in the first place, Daisuke would be mine right now!"

Miho was doing her best to not flare up from that last part, she really did. But if there was one thing the familiar would not tolerate, it was the Rias' juvenile attitude towards her master, "What gives you the right to throw your tantrums as if you were the only one dissatisfied!? Had you merely move in as our neighbor, that would be understandable! Yet you had the nerve to intrude into our territory without considering our opinions!"

"You would never understand how I feel! Living together with him was a dream I've yearned for a long time! You have everything I always wanted! I would give anything to have Daisuke but every time I earned his affections you received it even more on a silver platter!"

Offended, Miho's body began releasing flames while barely keeping the books safe. Her face twisted into a scowl, "Watch your mouth vixen! Everyday, I spent my time to become useful to Hanwei-sama! Do not dictate what I do to be leisure or not! You were born with riches and grew up to be a such a coddled weak minded woman! The only reason why I have not incinerated you for intruding our territory was out of respect for Hanwei-sama!"

Rias prepared her Power of Destruction in her hands, slowly slipping out of her logical side due to her emotional turmoil as a teenager, "You dare to defy me!? You're just a mere youkai leeching off of Daisuke!"

"My loyalty is with Hanwei-sama, not you! Do not get ahead of yourself vixen, why would Hanwei-sama be attracted to a shallow woman who treats him like an object!?"

"What do you mean!?"

"Sneaking into his room every night and seducing him despite his protests, it was clear that you only care about yourself!"

"Well what's wrong with that!? He likes it anyway!"

"Is that your evaluation of him!? A lowly pervert who engages with any woman as long as she shows some skin!? Someone with no pride who allows his emotions to be swayed because of desire!? Is that how you honestly see him!?"

Unintentionally cancelling her magic, Rias faltered because as a devil, there might be a tiny part of her that says 'yes'. After being praised for her beauty and status for so long, she thought that there may be a chance she could win by displaying her feminine side, "N-no! Of course not!"

"Furthermore, I still have not forgiven you from that time you attempted to revert him into a hatchling for your own conceited selfishness! Hanwei-sama is too benevolent and indebted to you to be angry but I am not! Did you even try to understand how he feels!?"

Rias could only grit her teeth. Both of them were tired from shouting at each other and panted, spotting maids and butlers by the entrance watching them. They quickly scampered off, pretending to not witness anything and went back to their lives. The two girls continued back to glare at each other. Anger, sadness, jealousy, disappointment, and various other emotions swirled in their eyes.

"Oh, hey Miho. Alrea-" It wasn't long until Daisuke came back and sensed the tenseness between them. A moment of hesitation passed before he asked, "Did something happen?"

Miho's sight switched from her master to Rias, who became very meek and scared compared to minutes ago. Heaving a sigh, she shook her head in denial, "No, it was nothing."

Surprised, the red head shrunken slightly further at her love rival's response yet she knew the reason why. The moment Daisuke knew of her outburst, her chances would dwindle down to near zero. Miho knew this but didn't tattle on her. Not to cover up for her because of fear, but to not cause problems for her master. The familiar put his interest first and foremost... as always.

The Rook turned his gaze to his master. She secretly gulped, smiling weakly, "It's nothing... We had a girl talk, that's all."

Obviously to the both of them, Daisuke was not convinced yet he didn't question further, "Alright then. Miho, you wanna head back to training?"

"Of course." As the salamander closed in, her nose picked up Koneko's scent all over him. She didn't like it.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing at all."

"Well, see ya Rias. Good luck with your training."

She nodded in farewell as the two left her alone. Rias went back to her seat and supported her head with her arms propped up, thinking back about the words Miho said. There was never a time she felt more mentally exhausted than right now in her life, not even when her arrange marriage was announced. And she felt a pang in her heart that maybe she's been taking romance the wrong way. First love or not, it wasn't an excuse for her inexperience.

Rias needs time to sort out her emotions.

"Say shishou, how did you become the Ultimate Rook?" I asked while running, "I mean besides the obvious, what does 'Ultimate' mean exactly?"

Second threw a small fireball at us each from behind. We quickly jumped while turning in midair towards him. Miho crossed ten tendrils from her fingertips where the fireball hit the intercepted point while I conjured a low-powered Rasengan and hit it dead on, reflecting the attacks back to him before turning back to continue our run in one smooth motion.

The giant Rook smirked as his own flames disappeared harmlessly upon impact, "Not bad. Well it's pretty much about being the strongest Rook. Once you do well in Rating Games or if your King recommends it, you'll get to participate in an exam where all Rooks face each other in a battle royale but the main point is to show off your Rook strength and defense. It's pretty much the same with the other pieces."

"Does that mean Grayfia-sensei claimed the title of Ultimate Queen by displaying all 3 traits?"

"That's right. Though I kinda cheated a little since mine is a Mutation Piece, ane-san managed to do it with her normal version."

"Come to think of it, how does a Mutation Piece work? Sirzechs-san is the Super Devil Lucifer right? I thought someone as powerful and prestigious as him would get a full set of mutations."

"Not that simple. Regular pieces can only mutate when their inside the reincarnated devil, an anomaly even the creator didn't expect. Said devils need to grow stronger than what the piece can match for it to mutate. They're really valuable since even one mutated Pawn Piece can reincarnate someone when even a Queen can't, they're just that good. The higher the Pawn value, the harder to mutate."

No wonder Issei's pieces mutated one by one in canon instead of all eight at the same time. If it's already that difficult to mutate one Pawn, then how tough would it be to mutate a Rook?

"Alright stop. Looks like you two finally more or less got the hang of breathing." Second scanned our condition. We've been doing some running and mildly tired ourselves, much better than when we first started. "But that doesn't mean you can take it easy now, we're only halfway up this mountain. Time to move to the next part. Jou-chan, I'll be working with you to get your firepower up to snuff. Gaki, go do your own work."

"Can I stay for a bit and watch? Maybe I'll get some inspiration."

"Whatever works with you. Okay, watch this." From the fire giant clone's hand, a small yet powerful condensed fire emitted. Its deep reddish core is surrounded by a slightly lighter shade of orange with red tints, different from normal fire. Reeling back his fist, Second punched forward as a concentrated beam pierce through tress and boulders like butter, and it still kept going without loosing any speed.

"Usually fire disperses when it hits something incombustible like concrete, it's a bunch of energy with no real mass. But my fire is pure and condensed to the point it's like a super hot laser with actual force backing it up. You'll need to breath in a lot of oxygen but you'll get there. Jou-chan, those whips of fire you use have the same principle, you just gotta keep compressing them to the limit."

"You gotta raise your temperature to the highest level and maximize your power, giving out more power and speed. The buildup mechanism is similar to a volcanic eruption. Meaning, you'll be a literal walking force of nature." The Ultimate Rook smirked with well deserved arrogance, "I call this Funkanekken (Eruption Fire Fist)."

Miho's eye gleamed at the prospect, already impatient to get started.

"And you'll also be learning a bit of control from me. Like this one." He nonchalantly threw a ball of fire at a random tree behind him. However, it didn't burn the plant until half a minute later, "I got a couple tricks you can use, not much but they'll help. You and I are the same since we use natural fire, not like most other devils with their demonic powers. Come one, time for your torment."

I wished Miho best of luck before Shunpo to the waterfall area. It's been two days since Miho and Rias talked about whatever topic it is and the former didn't show any difference, hope it won't turn out something like in Season 4.

Slapping my face back to focus, I summoned over 30 clones and got started. One group went to waterfall cutting, another went to a new practice called waterfall climbing, another went to the latest exercise called vertical waterfall cutting, while the others including me got started on new techniques. I wanted to make more but the atmosphere here is still hard on me.

Waterfall climbing is a combination of tree climbing and water walking, something that didn't happen in Naruto Shippuden but hopefully it'll help me make Rasenshuriken easier. Vertical waterfall cutting is the vertical version of it's cannon counterpart, where the clones stand beneath the torrential current and try to cut the water from bottom all the way to the top. Let's see how much and how long they can last with less oxygen.

There's a particular technique I really want to try where I combine both Rasengan and Supairarudoro. As my reserves enlarge, while I thought about mostly using the former, then I felt sad that my hard work on developing the latter would be wasted. It was only a few seconds later that I thought 'Eh what the heck, I'll just use both'. If I can align the rotations to harmonize with each other, I can use both penetrating and rotational power at an amped up level.

Just thinking about it makes me feel giddy like a little girl.

"Gaahh!" The energy on my hand exploded, wounding me in the process. A few clones also popped from failure, prompting me to make more before accelerating my healing factor with Speed Burst. And then I noticed my breathing becoming more labored.

This could take a while...

At the top of the mountain, steam was released from all over Miho as her Awakening deactivated. After constantly sparring against Second-shishou and bathing in his flames for extended period of times, she finally acquired enough power to achieve her number two goal: defeating her master. It was a close match but that moment of victory was one full of fulfilling elation.

Although Hanwei-sama felt disappointed with himself for not unlocking Balance Breaker yet, he still congratulated her with a wide and proud smile. The salamander wanted to console him but shishou advised against it. He's the type to break past his limits when experiencing a loss. Besides, Miho can always secretly do it later.

The problem right now is that Miho still can't sustain such hot fire for long, and she still hasn't perfected her new techniques. With her hands on her knees, the pinkette wheezed before facing the fire giant clone again, "Please, one more match."

Second-shishou crossed his arms, "Maybe we should turn in early. Both you and the gaki have made it to the top faster than planned, let's go back and rest."

"Wait please," Even now, Hanwei-sama was still giving his all just like before. Miho doesn't know when she can encounter a highly proficient fire user again but her time now is limited, she doesn't want to fall behind her master, "I can still fight."

Miho made a vow on her pride that day.

It was the first night of their two-week training for her master's Rating Game and to be honest... Miho felt pathetic.

For the whole day, she desperately tried to keep up with the devils. The salamander was allowed to join them for training despite having no direct relation, yet she didn't achieve a single victory against anyone. Kiba was too fast and precise who countered her movements, the durable Koneko broke past her defenses and knocked her down, and she didn't even want to imagine her chances against the Queen.

Devils were beings superior to salamanders. While Miho acknowledge this fact, she still laments her weakness. It was a further shock that everyone including her master had part of their powers sealed to focus on other methods of improving, she was the only one going all out. It hurt her pride.

Hanwei-sama was about to start his personal training when he noticed his damped spirit, "Miho are you okay?"

"... I feel frustrated... about my losses." She felt even worse to show her weak side in front of him.

"I can understand how you feel. Anyone would be pissed off after getting pummeled all day."

"Your victory would be assured if you are allowed to use your Sacred Gear, Hanwei-sama. Although I tried my best, it was not enough."

"Well to tell you the truth, I don't feel very proud of using Double Burst."

The sudden outrageous proclaim struck Miho like a thunderbolt. Snapping her eyes towards him, "Bu-but, it grants you such immense power."

He shrugged indifferently, "True, it would be a waste to not use it and some people might find it offensive if I don't take them seriously, but I didn't do anything special to earn it. I'd rather earn my strength through training, it feels much more rewarding that way."

"Rewarding?"

"Yeah, I may not be able to reach the top but it doesn't matter as long as I can protect everyone I care about. There are countless others who had Double Burst before me. If multiplying your speed and power is all you need, then even a child can do it when he has this gear. I think it would be more interesting if I could freely choose a power before acquiring it though."

"It doesn't have to be unique, there are lots of other fighters who might coincidentally develop the same technique. Just by improving myself and earning new powers that define me are enough. All that's left is to keep training from there and create new moves besides Double Burst's original function."

Miho couldn't help but admire his master's determination, he was everything she desired to be. She crouched down with her back against a tree, "I... I am sorry for not meeting your expectations."

Squatting down to see her at eye level, Hanwei-sama smiled softly, "You're frustrated right? That means you're already doing your best and your desire to get stronger is genuine, you're already meeting my expectations."

A weak smile crossed her features, his kindness was very touching.

However seeing that words alone had little effect, he tried another type of encouragement, "If you're that bothered, how about we think of a special power with your flames?"

"H-huh, is that possible? I do not have the magic to manipulate it so freely."

"I believe that there's potential in anything with an open mind. Let's start small, how would you like to use your flames other than fireballs or flamethrowers? It doesn't even have to be combat related."

She might as well give it a try. Closing her eyes, Miho envisioned a method in which her flames can be useful in most situations, something to help her which is not offense. Since as a hatchling, she was taught that fire is wild and destructive yet also a bringer of life and warmth. The salamander wanted to respond to her master's feelings in not solely fighting, but in their everyday life as well.

"Miho, you did it."

Hearing Hanwei-sama's excited voice, Miho opened her eyes as the flames disappeared, "Eh? What did I do?"

"You made a tendril of fire, that will come in handy in a lot of situations." He smiled joyfully, "See Miho, you're doing a great job."

Smiling, she tried to recreate her new technique but failed. Her smile waned as she exerted her hand with no results.

"Don't think so hard about it. Remember the feeling before you made it, what was the first single thought that popped in your mind?"

Following his advice, Miho sealed her vision once more and thought about the difference between her and Hanwei-sama. He was strong, there was no doubt in her mind about that. As a fire spirit who wished for strength, becoming his familiar was quicker to achieve it than staying in the Familiar Forest. She was prepared to serve him to the best of her abilities. In hindsight, Miho might have regretted it if she was the victim of his deplorable acts. Thankfully, he was a good master, better than anything she could have imagined.

At first, she assumed him to be like other devils whose natural growth allowed him to reach this far like what her parents told her. But as she spends more time with him, Miho saw that he trains diligently nearly everyday. Whenever Hanwei-sama meets an obstacle, he takes a few steps back and think about the best means to overcome it. Even now, he keeps training to get stronger to help his friends.

The more she looks at him, the more she reconsidered about her shortcut to power. Eventually her happiness turned into guilt, and guilt turned into shame. Guilt because she made light of Hanwei-sama's strength, and shame because the familiar assumed that drawing in his aura was enough to reduce her training time. Miho wanted to rectify her blunders and become someone he would acknowledge.

"There we go, you're doing just fine."

Regaining her sight, Miho saw a single thin fiery thread extending from her palm.

"See, no need to worry. Once you develop this technique more, you'll be a major asset on the battlefield. So what did you think about to make this?"

Miho stared at Hanwei-sama, he always looked like an existence far out of her reach as she could do no more than watch his back. Yet he always comes back to her with a helping hand whenever she stumbles along the way. Her heart beat harder from a foreign emotion. She didn't want to acknowledge it in the beginning. After all, a relationship between devil and salamander was unheard of, yet all the signs showed was her having an attraction towards her master. The thread lengthened to Hanwei-sama's hand, signifying her longing to bridge the gap and reach his level someday. Seeing the redness of her flames reminded her of a human belief she learned recently.

The red thread of fate. Her pride was to be acknowledged as someone strong but at the current rate she's going, she'll reach there much sooner than expected. So what else compelled her to strive more than ever? Why did she not want to disappoint him so much? It was then she realized that out of everything she wanted, Miho's first thought was to stay by her master's side.

Deciding to wait for the right time to answer, Miho simply grinned playfully, "Secret."

"In that case, how about we take him on together? I want to try out my new spells."

Hanwei-sama returned from his personal training, tired yet still smirking in the face of a challenge. Just by having his presence, Miho felt more confident. That's right, there was no other place that can make her more at ease than this. Resonating with his feelings, she smiled, "Please, one more fight Second-shishou."

"I'm actually running low on tears so how about this." The Ultimate Rook retrieved two pairs of bracelets, "These are special equipment which makes your bodies much harder to move, think of it like wading through thick mud or something. I heard rumors that the Bael kid have something similar. Still want to give it a go?"

They answered with no shred of hesitation, "Yes."

It's been a difficult training, but we finally reunited with everyone. Issei complained that he received unfair treatment for staying in the wild the whole time, kinda funny but he definitely powered up. And strangely, Rias didn't jump on me like last time, opting for a quick hug. Weird, hope she's okay. On the day of the party, we made final preparations and arrived at the party venue.

Miho was in her salamander form, clinging onto my back. There will be some devils who would look down on a familiar so I asked her to stay low for now. We separated from the others, telling them that we gotta meet Azazel as a last minute errand. They reluctantly agreed to let us go and told us to come back soon.

This is gonna leave a bad taste in my mouth but it's something I need to do, "Remember, only fight when there's no other choice."

"Yes, Hanwei-sama."

Knocking the door, I entered to find the three leaders who know my secret, "Excuse us."

"Hanwei-kun, it is good to see you again." Michael warmly greeted.

"It is good to see you as well Michael-san. I didn't think you would come."

"It is mostly to meet Odin-dono and watch your Rating Game, and partly to see your subspecies."

"Forget subspecies!" Azazel had a crazed smirk, "If I'm right, this will be the discovery of the century!"

"Well, we can talk about that later." My face grew solemn, a serious air passed the room as I brought up a topic we discussed weeks ago, "Can we go meet Kuroka and Bikou alone?"

Sirzechs frowned, "Hanwei-kun, are you sure?"

"Yes, if we can stop them before anyone realizes it, there won't be a commotion. Everyone will be nervous if word gets out that terrorists managed to infiltrate the place. And we can't split our forces too much in case someone attacks the party."

"We have already stationed guards around the perimeter, but I suppose it won't be that simple." The three of them eyed me at the same time, "There's someone you want to help, isn't there?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"It defines your very nature, Hanwei-sama."

I sighed at Miho's teasing, "Just let it play out as I remember, this will benefit both Issei and Koneko. I also want to try talking to Kuroka."

"Hanwei-kun, she is a SS-rank criminal for a long time now. Can you really convince her to switch sides?"

"Kuroka was never at fault for trying to save her little sister. Guaranteeing her safety and giving her a home with Koneko might work. Think of it this way, we might get information about our enemies from her."

Michael interjected, "Khaos Brigade are still after you, it is very risky."

"If anything happens, I can teleport back here. We've grown strong, Miho and I can take them."

"I'd say we let them go, it'll be a good chance to see them in action." Azazel commented flippantly, "We've already prepared our best to prevent the worst-case scenario anyway."

The other two sighed, "Very well but remember, always prioritize your safety."

"Thank you very-" I instantly turned to the door, activating Tenkugan.

"Hanwei-sama, what's wrong?"

"... Nothing, I thought I sensed someone." Maybe I'm still a bit high strung from Second's training, "Sorry about that, I better get going."

They nodded, "Good luck."

After bowing to them, we exited and made it to the party venue. I stayed hidden at a distance and reactivated Tenkugan, using the new telescopic and x-ray abilities. I could see everyone having fun, some devils trying to get in Rias' good light, Issei chatting with Ravel, Xenovia bringing drinks, but still no cat... Wait a second, after scanning the whole place, I can't find Koneko!

"Fuck." I silently cursed, making a clone to inform the leaders while running towards the exit. Did I waste too much time talking to Sirzechs and the others!? "Miho, change of plans, Koneko's already gone."

The pinkette instantly transformed to her human state. We flew into the forest and got on a tree branch, my Tenkugan was all over the place but still nothing, either they're concealing themselves or out of range. Dammit! I knew I should have worked on it more! If I can't figure something out- That's it!

"Miho, can you find them with your heat sensing?"

"B-but, there are too many heat signatures here."

I grabbed her shoulders, gazing intensely in her eyes, "Miho, you're heat sensing can reach out further than anything I can accomplish. You've trained with Second-shishou and Grayfia-san for a long time now. Senjutsu can conceal their presence, but they don't know you can track body heat. I know you can do it."

She nodded before closing her eyes, taking a deep breath and concentrated. A few seconds later, she furrowed her eyebrows as a bead of sweat trickled down her jaw.

'Come on Miho.'

She inhaled, exhaled and repeated a few more times. I could only watch as the suspense thickened to the point it nearly killed me, until her eyes snapped open, "I found them! Three heat signatures moving away from the forest that way!"

Both of us blasted off at full speed, not caring if we might alert them of our presence as the adrenaline pumped through our bodies. I prayed in my heart, hoping that we'll make it in time. We flew around the branches, cutting through some to save time. Hope and relief flooded us as silhouettes were finally within our sights.

"KONEKOOOO!"

The two youkais stopped to turn around, dumbfounded by our presence.

"What the- Aoi Arashi? How did he find us?"

"So that's him? Vali's other rival?"

Landing in front of them, Miho and I saw Koneko in her sister's arms, unconscious. No way Kuroka's gonna hand her over that easily, guess we got no choice, "Miho, don't hold back. These two are Ultimate-class, give it everything you got."

The temperature skyrocketed around the salamander whereas Double Burst radiated brightly. Everything we've learned in the past three weeks will be tested right here, right now.

"Kakusei: Funkanekken (Awakening: Eruption Fire Fist)."

"Balance Breaker: Supra Burst."

Yousef wick: It'll follow elements from anime, manga, and novel. Azazel stated Sirzechs' full power can easily beat Hades, one of the top 10 strongest. It's even stated in the wiki.

petru95: Thanks. Yes, the beginning is about Demon Slayer but since the anime aired after the fic started, Daisuke never saw it. You'll see more of Daisuke's techniques in the next chapter.

AN: Think of Rias' dissatisfaction as Volume 10's 'What am I to you?'. I'm planning character development for Rias since she stayed almost the same in the novel. With Miho as a true rival, she'll slowly learn to become a better person... or devil. I'll be gone for at least a month or three by the way, so please be patient. Hope you all like it. Please leave a review and tell me what you think.

Ja Ne