Welcome to the next chapter of DxD – The Last Amagiri, but before starting the story. Let's answer some reviews:

Altair95: Thanks. Kensei is the kind of person who would confront anyone even a god to protect other people more so if it was someone important to him. Yea, all the Valkyrie Squad members acted as their guide around Asgard, even meeting a dwarf and reveal of a dark elf. It's always funny seeing the reaction from Valkyries who're bitter about not having found anyone for themselves, but see someone a lot younger than themselves already having two fiancées. Well, he cannot help wanting to get into a fight if it involves a challenge. I'm not, I just thought that I would give my explanation on the matter out of the way if anyone who read the Magic Knight or Twin Dragons also reads the Last Amagiri.

Norse Exhibition I

"Odin-sama, do have any idea what you're asking us to agree to?"

Inside another meeting room, Odin was sitting there beside his son, Vidar, who seemed to be listening to all of the immediate complaints. It wasn't surprising since Odin is asking that all of them agree to accept allying with a group, which consisted of children (from their perspectives at least). Most of them believed that he was merely playing an odd prank on them, but the others could tell that he was serious.

"I realize how ridiculous this sounds, but I'm sure that all of you have read the same paper Zane handed me."

Odin pointed out referring to the documents that Zane handed to them and handed out to the others.

"We've all read the documents and the clauses and offers do sound reasonable, but these are children making deals with the gods. Do you believe that these children will be able to complete all the promises made inside the documents handed out to us?"

"Based on your words, one of them has one of their Longinus. It isn't one of the normal varieties, but one of the biggest threats able to destroy the world."

Odin could see some of them giving honest replies and concerns, which even he considered.

"Not that I'm again this idea, but I do have to agree with the others. What guarantee do we have that these young ones won't falter and decide to attack those devils who put them in that situation in the first place? Not that I can even blame either of them for doing so. But, an incident such as this could affect our side as well."

"My strength might've diminished because of this old body of mine compared to my prime, but I believe that my eyes haven't failed me. I talked to and saw all three of them, Freyr. I could tell that greater than anger inside all of them, there was the greatest desire to protect whatever those children have left. Even after suffering through that incident, neither of them in my opinion has been warped or changed. I could tell there wasn't the slightest hint of deceit in their eyes."

All of them were surprised to see how Odin himself described Kensei and the others as despite his more or less perverse attitude, he was still the Chief God and didn't take that position likely. So, hearing those words caused a lot of the Norse gods to begin to consider his words. It was then that Vidar held up his hand causing their attention, then brought up a suggestion.

"If all of you are interested in what I have to say. I believe that there's a way to make things easier."

Vidar started wearing a light smile on his face.

Meanwhile, in the same area where the competition took place, Vandil who accepted Kensei's challenge was laid out on the ground. On his body were several small not too serious bruises from the battle as Kensei let a couple of breaths escape from his mouth. He had his hands placed on Vandil as he threw him to the ground using a move typically found in the Aikido martial art, which revolves around countering physical attacks.

At first, during the battle, he fought against Vandil strength to strength, but even he had to admit that the man has likely been focusing his entire life on training his physical abilities. And desiring to see how he'd fair against him since supernatural powers were off-limits in the ring, Kensei decided to instead pit technique against power. After realizing that he had been downed by the teen who challenged him, Vandil thought back throughout their match from the beginning.

"I know that I have him beat in terms of natural physical abilities and endurance, but even with that, I wasn't able to get a single deceive blow against him even after all those attacks. It was almost as if neither of the attacks that I launched affected him in the slightest."

Vandil was completely at a loss and couldn't think of a single method to defeat him.

That revelation that he was incapable of overcoming Kensei instead of causing him to desire, instead caused him to let a loud laugh escape from his mouth. All of the people who were already watching the match and those who became interested in what was happening listened as Vandil laughed.

"Hahahaha, I surrender."

Vandil declared, showing no hint of further resistance causing Kensei to let him go.

Vandil started standing back to his feet, then allowed a wide smirk to form on his face as he looked down on the young challenger who he towered over, but was still defeated.

"I have to apologize in advance, I became far too arrogant since the opponent facing me was far stronger than I and also had a weaker build. But, now I see there are still things I need to learn before I can call myself a warrior. Would everyone give one big round of applause to the winner of the competition!"

Hearing Vandil's request relayed using a thunderous voice, all of the people started giving applause to Kensei loudly causing it to echo around the area. In response to this, Kensei started waving around returning the cheers wearing a generous smile on her face. After turning lightly, he looked to see Brynhildr standing there as well with Kurogane in a position so that she could clap freely. But, she faintly blushed after noticing Kensei waving in her direction.

"Now, please bring in the rewards that our competitor has won."

"Right, sir!"

As requested, the people assisting him in the competition went to collect the rewards that Kensei won defeating him in the competition. Moments later, the assistants brought out a bag that he assumed was filled with the money and a wide arrange of weapons.

"The rewards include a pouch filled with gold coins and a weapon that were made by a famed blacksmith who wanted to gift one of their works. All of them have also been imbued with Norse magic and runes making the weapons almost unbreakable."

Vandil declared showing Kensei the showcase of weapons, which were weapons ranging from swords, battle-axe, halberds, etc. Interested, he looked through the choice of weapons, thinking that he would choose the sword, but a weapon, in particular, caught his attention. It was a long staff that did have runic letters engraved on it, not that it was within his area of knowledge. Although most would assume it was for magic users, it looked more like a bo staff used in various martial arts.

"I'll take this one."

Kensei stated grabbing onto the long staff, which felt comfortable in his hands.

"Are you sure? You do appear more comfortable with a…."

To make his point, Kensei started spinning around the staff in his hands expertly before piercing it in the ground, causing a notable indentation.

"My clan's martial art uses different kinds of weapons and my previous master used a special staff himself so this might surprise him the next time we meet."

Kensei replied thinking back to the time he was training with Sun Wukong who used his Ruyi Bang, but there were also memories of being hit in the head using that staff too.

"Well, this is our victor, everyone!"

Once again the people cheered for Kensei holding both of the prizes he won in his hands, then started walking in the direction of Brynhildr. She stared at him wearing a somewhat gentle smile on her face as she held out both of the items he requested she held for him; his shirt and Kurogane.

"That was an amazing match. I believe that was what is referred to as martial arts from your homeland," Brynhildr stated as Kensei placed the staff he won inside his dimensional storage and retrieved his shirt. "It was interesting seeing what your homeland's fighting style was like from this perspective."

"That Vandil guy was a lot stronger than I thought he was going to be," Kensei said as he put his shirt back on Brynhildr seemed to be taking a careful look at him the entire time until his shirt was back on. "If I had used touki during that fight, then it would have been easier, but it wouldn't have been all that fun."

Both Kensei and Brynhildr were walking from the arena as people and Vandil despite suffering defeat cheered for him as he moves further from them. In response to this, he turned around and started waving back at them, while laughing cheerfully.

"I'm surprised to see that the people here have started taking a liking to him," Brynhildr thought as she noticed the smile on Kensei's face and recalled the previous events. This even included Vandil who lost, which she believed could mean one thing. "Could this all be what my subordinates referred to as 'male bonding'? Well, that aside, he appears to be the kind of person who can capture the hearts of others."

"Huh, I wonder what Claire, Alice, and the others are up to."

Kensei wondered out loud.

"Hmmm," Brynhildr hummed as she activated a magic circle beside her ear with impeccable speed. "I'll check in with the members of the Valkyrie Squad."

"Alright."

Kensei said returning Kurogane to his side and retrieving the staff he won from his dimensional storage to check it one more time.

"Schwertleite, Grimgerde, Rossweisse, Helmwige, and Ortlinde, can all of you respond at the moment," Brynhildr contacted the five Valkyrie in charge of leading around Maria, Zane, Alice, Claire, and Hisui. "I'm checking up on your current situation."

{{{{{We can hear you, Chief.}}}}}

All of them replied over the personal communication channel, which was silent for Kensei.

"What are your current situations? Schwertleite, you're first?"

{Right, Chief. Maria and I are exploring the training areas where we train the young Valkyrie.}

"Alright, Grimgerde?"

{Zane and I alongside Lena are exploring the different shops where the blacksmiths like those from the Dwarven tribe frequent.}

"Rossweisse?"

{Alice and I are visiting various beautiful locations around Asgard that she can sketch out. I also need to mention that Alice-san is an amazing girl! She didn't give me a lip about being a Valkyrie whose ages match….}

"Remain on point, Rose," Brynhildr stopped Rossweisse from speaking further about the one topic forbidden by a lot of the Valkyrie. "Helmwige?"

{Well, Claire and I are exploring the different restaurants to test out different dishes. She appears to have a great handle on the various ingredients in them.}

"Ortlinde?"

{Well, I believe that'll be easier to report, Chief.}

"How so, Ortlinde?"

{Look to the right.}

Doing as such, Brynhildr turned to the right where there was another event going on, where there was music that was playing and women dancing. She noticed Ortlinde standing there waving her hand while smiling wryly toward her leader and Chief Valkyrie.

"We'll reconnect at a later time."

{{{{Right, Chief!}}}}

The others replied as Brynhildr disconnected from them, then gained Kensei's attention.

"Kensei, I believe one of your friends is in the area."

"Oh, then it's probably Hisui. Among the others, she's the one person that I can never get accurate since," he stated responding to Brynhildr before speaking to himself. "That's the main reason she's able to sneak inside of my house and get into my bed without me knowing."

"Did you say something, Kensei?"

"Nothing. Let's see what she's doing this time."

Kensei suggested as both of them started walking toward whatever was happening in the area that seemed to be booming with music.

Once Kensei and Brynhildr arrived at the area, what both of them found were several women standing inside the center dancing to the music that the musicians were playing; all of which were also accompanied by the clapping and stomps of the people following the rhythm. Although, the women were dancing around a single person who in one's opinion was the literal center of attention.

Hisui was dancing in the center of the women following the same rhythm of the music, as well as moving her hips around in a manner that seemed to entice the men. In the crowd of people, the men instead of focusing most of the attention on the women were focusing on Hisui who moved around as if it was natural at dancing; from the ways, she stepped, moving her legs, and hips. Even the women watching her seemed to be enticed by the dance which looked too beautiful; even her ears and tails seemed to match it.

"W-Wow, she's remarkable."

Even Brynhildr seemed to drop her serious expression for a moment after seeing how natural Hisui danced to the music of the Norse faction without missing a single beat.

"Yea, for all her nonchalant and a little flirtatious, but Hisui picks up on things almost as fast as Maria and Zane in some situations," Kensei said as he continued watching as Hisui danced and spun around on her heels, feeling a little enticed himself. "J-Jeez, that girl certainly knows how to attract a crowd."

"Ah, Chief."

Ortlinde soon found Brynhildr who was still watching Hisui dancing around in the middle of the women.

"Ortlinde, how did this…?"

"Well, Hisui-san wanted to find someplace where the most fun was had and where she could move around. And I recalled there was supposed to be an event where dancers could perform to their hearts' content. I guessed that Hisui would be allowed to dance as well, but I didn't think that she'd attract this much attention."

Hearing Ortlinde's explanation caused Brynhildr to look back at the crowd.

"I didn't believe everyone would warm up to them this fast."

As Brynhildr said those words, Hisui finished dancing before taking the same pose as the dancers, which caused an immediate reaction from the crowd that exploded with applause and cheers.

"I wasn't expecting to see a show like this!"

"That catgirl stole the show though!"

"I believe she's one of the guests that Odin-sama accepted!"

"I hope we'll see her dancing again!"

Those were simply some of the praise that Hisui was receiving from everyone around them.

Kensei could even see that she was being swarmed around by the dancers she danced around with all that time, most of them praised her and even wondered whether or not she'd want to them with them again. It didn't take all that long for her to notice his presence as Hisui turned toward him waving her hand with the same energy, that he'd expect from her at this point and despite all the dancing she was doing.

"I'll talk to you all another time, my fiance is calling me!"

Hearing those words caused the dancers to gasp, they then started gossiping to one another about what was just heard from Hisui. Said green-haired nekomata immediately started running over to Kensei and even vaulted over the various bystanders in front of her and landed perfectly in front of him without much effort.

"Hello, Ken Ken. Did you enjoy the show?"

Hisui asked in anticipation.

"It certainly was something I had to see for myself. You did have some amazing moves."

Kensei replied smiling lightly.

"Oh, listening to Ken Ken praising me, makes me feel all special~ How about another private lesson?"

"P-Private lesson."

Ortlinde stated feeling her mind rush with the potential possibilities.

"I'm sure it's nothing of that nature, Ortlinde," Brynhildr reasons professionally, but internally. "P-P-Private lessons. I hope that it isn't anything of that nature! I-I mean, he's already been in some certain situations with his fiancées, in addition to the one named Alice…and possibly the one named Claire. A-Ah, how are children younger than I am experiencing these kinds of situations when I haven't had even one?!"

Brynhildr's internal thoughts couldn't be shown on her actual face, but Kensei aimed his glance at Hisui wearing a blank look on his face.

"I don't like the way you put it, but I don't mind. You're a great student."

"And Ken Ken is a great and attentive teacher. I mean, teaching me in such a close manner, showing me how to move my hips and…ouch!"

"Knock it off. At least, not in public."

Kensei once again bonked Hisui on the top of her head, causing the nekomata to let out a whine.

"Stop amusing you…."

"Don't you dare?"

Kensei realizing the next potential word that could leave her mouth stared at Hisui who stared bonking herself on the head while sticking her tongue out. Even Kensei who can admit that he can be dense about some things had an idea about the next words Hisui might say.

"You're no fun."

Hisui stated jokingly staring at him.

"You two have an…odd dynamic."

"This is the feeling of being in love with Ken Ken. It causes my heart to flutter and emotions raise whenever I'm in the same room as him. There's not a single moment of the day that I don't think about spending the night in the same bed as my precious Ken Ken."

Brynhildr and Ortlinde stared at Hisui wearing an odd expression on their faces hearing the honesty, which didn't hold the slightest bit of shame. In response to that, Kensei placed his hand on top of Hisui's head and started to pet her comfortably, even brushing her ears causing her to groan presently.

"She's odd, but she's more honest about her feelings at least."

"Ah, Ken Ken's petting his…ouch ouch ouch."

Kensei then started pinching her cheek, but not so tight that it would cause actual harm to Hisui.

"She can sometimes take it too far. So, then we need to do things like this sometimes."

He bluntly pointed out, letting go of Hisui's cheek, which was now reddened.

Brynhildr found herself once again marveling at the interaction between Kensei and the others, which made them all appear like one close-knit group. Soon enough, a magic circle appeared beside Brynhildr's ear causing her surprise almost as she responded.

"Hello, this is Brynhildr."

{Brynhildr.} Speaking on the other end was Odin. {It should be around that time that all of you return. I've finished discussing things with the other gods and we seemed to have come to a certain arrangement with one another.}

"I understand, Odin-sama. I'll inform the others to return as well."

{That's good. I hope all of them enjoyed themselves around Asgard.}

"I assure you that all of them have found things that fit their particular interests. I hope to hear good news."

{Yes.}

After Brynhildr and Odin finished their discussion, she turned to face Kensei who was still being adored by Hisui, while wearing a wryly smile because of all the attention both of them were attracting.

"Odin-sama has requested that we all return to Valhalla. The meeting with the other gods concluded and we'll be hearing the results, I believe."

Brynhildr informed them of Kensei and Hisui to become surprised.

"It wasn't all that long that we left…not more than almost an hour at best. Did things go alright?"

"Well, I guess that we'll be finding out soon enough."

Hisui and Kensei surmised finding themselves wondering about what the gods talked about, as well as what their response to them was.

"Then let's head back to meet them."

Just like that, Brynhildr and Ortlinde began escorting Kensei and Hisui back toward Valhalla to meet up with all of the others who were being escorted around.

It took them longer than expected because of the crowd of people around the area, but the four of them returned to find Zane, Maria, Claire, and Alice returned as well ahead of them. Seeing that Kensei arrived, Claire and even Alice rushed toward him excitedly, which could be seen in their eyes.

"Nii-san, you wouldn't believe the number of different recipes and ingredients that exist in Asgard. It feels almost as if an entire world of possibilities in coming up with new recipes."

Kensei laughed lightly realizing that Claire did find herself loving cooking different dishes for them over the years, with coming up with newer dishes becoming a hobby of hers.

"Kensei, you wouldn't believe the number of artistic and beautiful structures that exist around Asgard, even if I'd spend another hour sketching, I wouldn't be able to finish all of them."

And Alice was as ecstatic as always in finding different kinds of things that she can sketch out on her sketch pad. It was obvious to him that both of them enjoyed themselves in Asgard since this was one of the few instances where the two of them were this excited after going on a trip. Hearing those words from them caused a smile to form on his face before placing his hands on their heads.

"I'm glad to hear that you two enjoyed yourselves. But, this won't be the last time we'll be visiting places."

Kensei said smiling at the two of them who smiled back.

"So, did anything happen on your end?"

"Well, I faced a competition against this guy named Vandil, then I won some gold, and this neat staff was created by a blacksmith famous here apparently."

"Oh, can I see that staff?"

Zane caught the last part of the staff created by a blacksmith.

"Sure."

Kensei pulled the staff from his dimensional storage, then tossed it over to Zane he managed to catch it in the air and held it in his hands.

"Huh, this is well-made, I can't find a single issue with it at all. I can tell that it has been enhanced by using magic and runes, it can be a great weapon in combat even for a martial arts specialist like yourself. If possible, I want to see what kind of modifications I can make in the meantime."

"So, about the gold coins that I won."

"Well, that's all yours," Maria pointed out. "I know that you're likely suggesting that we add that on top of what we took from Hagun Island, but even that alone is enough to support everyone even with what Zane has planned. It's a prize that you won yourself, so use it however you see fit."

As always, Maria was being as courteous and wanted him to spend the money on whatever he wanted since he won it himself.

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind," Kensei replied as Zane handed the staff back to him, which he returned inside the dimensional storage. "So, Zane can you guess how things went?"

"Well, I thought that the meeting would take longer than an hour. So, this comes as a little bit of a surprise that all the gods finished talking. Of course, it was within my guess that the gods wouldn't be as open-minded as Odin to discussing business with a group who're still children in their eyes, which has experienced things lasting for over a millennia compared to us. But, we'll need to wait and see what happens next, then think about how to deal with it based on their decision."

Zane surmised as all of them started huddling together in their usual group.

"That's pretty much all we can do. It's not like we're all that powerful or influential compared to gods or…those old devils. All we can do is attempt to build up as much as we can for the sake of the others back at Kibou Town. And to be prepared for whoever or whatever comes after us."

"Maria's right, all we need to do is hope for the best."

Kensei talked agreeing with the words that Maria said.

"I don't think we have to be that worried. We've been having the best luck so far."

Claire added right after Kensei nudging closer to him.

"I share the same feeling as Claire. I believe we're earned at least that much."

Alice started recalling all the things they've been through.

"Well, we'll find out soon enough."

Zane finished it off.

Near them, the Valkyrie Squad was also gathered in their own group, once again using magic to ensure that their conversation wasn't being heard. Kensei and some of them thought that it was an important meeting that neither of them could hear, but, in actuality, it was completely different.

"Alright, Chief, how was he?"

Helmwige asked wanting to know about Brynhildr's experience with Kensei.

"He has shown himself to be a substantial candidate for a love interest," Brynhildr replied as her cheeks started to turn red after recalling the time that he took off his shirt. "Kensei does also take care of himself, Alice was correct about him having a good physique."

"O-Oh, Captain saw his without a shirt!"

"Where, when?!"

The Valkyrie said almost like school girls having a gossiping session.

"D-During a competition in clear view of several people."

"I see, the Captain wouldn't be bold enough to do that alone."

Schwertleite stated.

"Schwertleite."

Seeing their Captain staring at them with intense eyes caused Schwertleite and the others to become silent.

"Where's Lena?"

"Oh, she went to attend to some personal business and said she'd meet up with us later."

Helmwige replied, which Brynhildr thought about, and nodded her head.

"I understand," Brynhildr replied before continuing. "All in all, I believe that he doesn't have ill intentions. He and the others are people with good characters based on all the reports that I heard from all of you."

"Brynhildr-senpai, do you believe things will go alright with them?"

Rossweisse asked.

"I hope so. But, it'll be the decision up the other gods to accept them."

Brynhildr replied as she removed the spell that was keeping their conversation secret, then proceeded to bring all of them back inside Valhalla.

Like before, all of them gathered once again inside of the same meeting room they were in before departing and it was devoid of Odin and Vidar. Kensei and the others even took the same position as before waiting for the two gods to return inside of the meeting room. All twelve of them waited inside the meeting for several minutes for the two of them to return.

It was then that the room opened revealing both Odin and Vidar walking inside the meeting room, then silently walked over to their respective seats.

"Don't leave us in suspense Odin-sama," Zane started amused before continuing. "Did they agree to it?"

In response to hearing those words, Odin leaned forward, linking his fingers together before speaking.

"It was agreed that the proposition sounded appealing to them, but there is the case of questioning the abilities to make them come to fruition. I'm sure that you all can already guess why."

Hearing those words from Odin caused Kensei, Zane, Maria, Hisui, Alice, and Claire to come to the conclusion it was, in fact, their age.

"Of course, that would be the case," Maria thought. "Despite all that we've been through, we'll still inexperienced in real-world situations like this. I can see that Odin-sama and Vidar-sama don't look grim about the situation, it almost looks as if they need to tell us something more serious."

"I thought that would be the case. In their eyes, they're still dealing with children. But, by the expressions on both of your faces, there was an agreement of some kind."

Zane stated causing Odin to nod his head in agreement.

"I talked to them all about the situation and agreement as promised, but the other gods couldn't come around since you're all still young and inexperienced in these situations. It would have gone almost downhill if it continued down that path, but Vidar made a suggestion."

Hearing those words, the twelve other people in the room starred in the direction of the second god sitting beside his father who looked as casual as always.

"Well, it was merely a suggestion, but I didn't expect that the gods would accept it," Vidar started continued with what he suggested. "The thing that I suggested was a pleasant battle between your group and one of ours."

Kensei and the others seemed surprised about the suggestion since it wasn't what either of them was expecting in the slightest. It was meant to be a pleasant meeting and conversation between them and the Norse gods, but it all started divulging into a battle between their groups.

"Uh, Vidar-sama can you go into further detail?"

Brynhildr questioned finding the situation odd herself.

"I'm sure that you're familiar with most situations in the Norse Faction that was solved through battles or contests between one another. I believed that aside from merely going back and forth with those stubborn gods that it'd be easier to instead host a competition between both sides to prove their worth."

Vidar replied.

All of them could see where Vidar was coming from since it would be easier to show them what they would do a lot more than merely telling them what they could do.

"I can understand that," Zane said out loud but his inner thoughts were something more. "But, in this situation that could end up bad considering what the battle entails. Neither of us is indeed the same compared to what we were back on Hagun Island, but there are still people stronger than us. It depends on who those guys decided would end up being our opponents and what the rules for this battle is."

Those were Zane's thoughts on the situation, which almost the same as the others listening to the explanation of Vidar who still seemed to have something to talk about.

"It isn't the kind of intense or serious contest that either of you is likely thinking about," Vidar pointed out to them his usual casual look. "Neither of you is required to win this competition, but at the same time, this is merely to show your capabilities and ingenuity to the others. Since the scale of the battle is still unknown, it will be held inside another artificial space, which replicates a battlefield. But, I'll have you know that the ones who'll be your opponents were chosen by them and not us."

"Alright, those words sound a little ominous."

Kensei pointed out, which was an opinion that the other shared.

"It'll be a six versus six battle. Your group against the Valkyrie Squad standing behind us."

Vidar replied pointing to the six Valkyries standing behind him and Odin, which Odin further attested by nodding his head in agreement.

Even Brynhildr and the others appeared surprised that they would be the ones who would end up fighting against Kensei and the others. All six of them spent almost an hour touring around Asgard with them and now they were told that they'd now be fighting against them in this competition.

"Those guys believe that if they see you six fighting against the Valkyrie Squad, then it would prove that you're all worth forming a connection with the Norse Factions. Of course, as Vidar pointed out neither of you needs to beat them but put up a good enough fight to where it'll convince the other gods and people about your worth. So, at this moment, it'll be best that you think about what your game plan will be."

"It might sound harsh for me, but I believe that the Valkyrie Squad here should depart as well. It might be viewed as favoritism if you're seen in the same place despite being informed about this. Also, it would be best that you consider them as opponents and not children or inexperienced opponents. These six deserves that at least."

Both the Valkyrie Squad heard the opinions of both Vidar and their Chief God.

All of them couldn't help feeling complicated about the situation since they spent almost an hour with Kensei and the others touring parts of Asgard. At that time, of course, all of them did bond with one another throughout their tour, but all of them were still Valkyrie who served the gods.

"I, the Chief Valkyrie will accept these terms," Brynhildr said professionally showing neither weakness nor anxiety. "It wasn't something that I expected, but as the Valkyrie Squad Captain and one bearing the name, Brynhildr, the next time we meet will be on the battlefield."

Kensei and the others could see the seriousness in her tone and expression, which was something that all of the people in the meeting room would expect from the Chief Valkyrie. Following Odin's advice, Brynhildr began walking outside of the room with the five Valkyrie following behind her dutifully. Their departure left Kensei and the others as well as Odin and Vidar as the only ones inside the meeting room.

"Well, that leaves all we needed to speak about the situation. It would be best that you all return to the Wayland Residence to prepare for the upcoming battle."

Odin stated before letting a light breath escape from his mouth.

"Alright, we'll need to prepare for this match against the Valkyrie Squad," Zane said standing up to his feet. "But, if all we need to do is put on a good show, then we'll earn praise from those other gods."

"I feel complicated fighting against someone I bonded with, but it looks like we don't have many choices."

Maria added.

"When I said that I was looking forward to fighting against the Chief Valkyrie. I didn't think that it'd be like this, but since Brynhildr-san looks as if she was resolved in this, then I'll do the same thing."

"I share the same feeling as Maria and Ken Ken. But, if simply putting on a good show is all we need to do, then I'm confident that I can attract a crowd."

Kensei and Hisui added right after Maria.

"I'm pretty used to fighting with Nii-san and the others. And since we're all fighting together like this, then I'm sure we can pull through like we always do."

"I might not be effective on the battlefield, but I can use my powers to support everyone."

Claire and Alice added right after them.

Odin and Vidar could see that despite fighting against the Valkyrie Squad, neither of them were discouraged nor dismayed about the situation, but instead, all of them looked as confident as ever. Seeing this alone was enough for Odin himself to once again believe that he wasn't in the wrong in trusting them.

"Well, then youngsters, I hope to see a good show from you all."

Odin started smiling as he and Vidar stood up from their chairs and started walking outside of the room.

Finally, this left the six of them as the long occupants, causing silence to overcome the room as all of them were wondering what was going to happen next. Tomorrow, the six of them will be fighting against the six members of the Valkyrie Squad, which they have gotten to know as of late.

"Well, this didn't go the direction that I was hoping," Zane started slumping in the seat that he was sitting in, letting a long sigh escape from his mouth. "I knew that the other gods wouldn't accept the idea, but I didn't expect that we'd end up needing to fight against the Valkyrie Squad. At least, we don't need to defeat them since it would be almost impossible, especially going against Brynhildr."

"I went over different scenarios about what might happen, but this was beyond what I might have believed. But, it is at least favorable that we don't need to defeat them. But, we'll talk about this more at your house."

Maria reasoned, which was something all of them could agree to.

Meanwhile, inside of the location, the Valkyrie Squad members were meeting one another discussing what was happening at the moment. All of the six members who have gotten to know the people who'd soon become their opponents tomorrow in an event suggested by their leaders.

"Ah, this isn't fair," Schwertleite stated sighing out loud. "Why do we have to be the ones to fight them? I ended up bonding with Maria, now I have to fight against her."

Schwertleite spoke in an exasperated tone, which the others could relate to.

"I feel the same, but what can we do. It has already been written in stone since it was the other gods' choice and we received the request from Odin-sama himself."

Ortlinde added glancing at her colleagues.

"She's right. No matter how we feel, we're still Valkyrie who dedicated and trained ourselves for the Norse Gods."

Helmwige surmised which all of them could understand since fighting for Asgard was one of their main missions and reason for being there in the first place.

"What's wrong with this atmosphere? Did someone talk about your nonexistent love lives again?"

Hearing those blunt towards caused them to turn to see Lena walking inside of the room, which caused them to gain a depressed aura for a second before returning to normal.

"N-No, it has nothing to do with that!"

Rossweisse replied recovering from the harsh words after a mere moment.

"Well, have you know that we have to fight against our guests."

"Hmm, what happened?"

She found herself interested in the events that occurred after she left them.

"I believe in response to hearing their request to form a connection with the Norse Factions, the gods didn't think that they wouldn't be able to make good with their promises and decided to test them instead. So, tomorrow, the six of us will be fighting against them in a replicated battlefield inside an artificial space."

Ortlinde replied causing Lena to get into a thinking posture.

"It does sound reasonable, the gods can't easily agree to demands for an alliance with people from other factions without questioning them first. But, the question is whether or not they need to defeat the Valkyrie Squad since I can tell that it's impossible in their current conditions."

Lena surmised rationally without showing almost no emotions on the matter.

"No, the deal was that they need to put their capabilities on display to convince the gods."

Grimgerde stated.

"Then it would work on in their favor as long as they fight to the best of their abilities."

Lena pointed out again.

"What do you think about this, Chief?"

Schwertleite questioned.

All five Valkyrie turned to Brynhildr who seemed to be silently listening to them and thinking about what occurred moments ago. She didn't respond or move at all and simply remained there in the same thinking posture that she entered after entering the room. Before long, a light sigh escaped from her mouth as she glanced toward all her subordinates and Lena.

"I believe that we'll proceed as instructed," Brynhildr pointed out in a strong voice catching their attention. "Even if we bonded with them during the time we spent them, we're still Valkyries who serves the Norse Gods. We need to remember that we also carry the pride of the Valkyrie who came before us and act as the symbol for the ones who come after us. If we hold back against them merely because we've bonded with them, then wouldn't that be the same thing as mocking the effort that they put into coming this far?"

Brynhildr announced causing them to realize that she was correct on that matter.

Kensei, Zane, Maria, Hisui, Alice, and Claire has gone through several different experiences to come this far and neither of them had to go through such things. But, their interactions with them didn't make them weak, but they made them who they are at this moment. If either of them were to go easy on them because of that fact, then it'd be the same as treating them like children.

"They wanted to experience the Norse Faction. So, shouldn't we let them experience what the Valkyrie Squad is by showing them we're warriors first and foremost? And give them the respect they deserve!"

[Right!]

Hearing Brynhildr's speech energized them causing the five Valkyries to become more motivated about showing them what their group was about. Seeing her squad become like this caused a light smile to grace their Captain's face who would be described as a transcendent beauty.

"Then we'll prepare to show them what the Valkyrie Squad is capable of," Brynhildr stated again before thinking to herself. "This might be a chance to see what Kensei is capable of as an opponent on the battlefield. So, I'll put my feelings aside and see the kind of person he is on the battlefield. It'll be my blade against his."

Inside the Wayland Residence, Kensei, Zane, Maria, Hisui, Alice, and Claire were having a meeting of their own in the living room. After returning, Zane was bombarded with questions from his parents all about the meeting and he gave a response to all of their questions. Of course, Anne and Smith were surprised a battle would be taking place between them and the Valkyrie Squad. It wasn't like his parents would dispute with the gods without facing the consequences. All they really could do was support them during this situation.

"Alright, we'll get things settled. And I'll just say it, it'll be almost impossible to defeat all the Valkyrie Squad," Zane pointed out without hesitation. "All of them are experienced warriors trained in combat and each uses Norse Magic, magic superior to other factions. Because they didn't have boyfriends or relations like that, the Valkyrie Squad could focus more on their training in Valhalla, more so Brynhildr. All five members under her are at the same level as High-Class Devil. Brynhildr, on the other hand, is at Ultimate-Class Devil level."

Hearing those words was enough for him was enough for them to realize the kinds of opponents that all of them would be up against.

"Following the Hagun Island incident, we trained to become as strong as possible in case someone came to attack us, but we agreed that we wouldn't overwork ourselves physically or mentally. More so, since even those old devils would not dare attack the Shinto Faction and cause an incident," Zane calmly explained. "We all set goals for ourselves to be at least the same level as High-Class Devils and most of us are at that point or reaching it."

All of them did set that goal for themselves in reaching the same level as a High-Class Devil at most since it was most likely that the people after them would be at that level.

"But, most of the opponents we faced were demons and spirits who managed to sneak into Kibou Town, but even the stronger ones weren't that difficult for us to handle. So, a proper estimate of where we stand on that scaling. Among the opponents we faced, the Demon Eater was at High-Class level, but his powers were underdeveloped."

Maria pointed out a logical conclusion.

"Then wouldn't this be a good chance to test that out? I mean, Zane did mention that most of the Valkyrie Squad we're facing at least High-Class. Claire, half-breed or not is still the daughter of a High-Class Devil and she has a good sacred gear too, right."

Kensei noted placing his hand comfortably on Claire's head causing her to flush lightly.

"Well, we all come from great families or have things that make us unique. So, reaching the same level as just a High-Class Devil wouldn't be that troublesome. People like Ken Ken and I can tell that the auras around us still aren't as developed as the ones around people like Brynhildr and most of the training we do is on our own without help from someone else with experience."

No one sitting inside the room could disagree with the words and Kensei believed her as he could also sense the auras around them, including himself. In comparison to Hagun Island, where their auras and presences were a lot weaker, at this moment, it was stronger than at that point.

"Kensei what kind of read did you get from around Brynhildr?"

Alice questioned him out of curiosity since he was the closest one who's been around Brynhildr.

"Being around Brynhildr-san was the same as being around a lake," Kensei replied thinking back to the time that he hung around the Chief Valkyrie for the longest. "Her magic power was powerful, but at the same time it felt almost like being close to a calm and clear lake."

Kensei gave his honest opinion with some admiration in his tone since he could still recall the presence that he could sense from being around Brynhildr all that time.

"Ken Ken, you sound almost infatuated."

Hisui teased, realizing Kensei did sound almost entranced after sensing her magic power to some extent. But, it also caused Claire to glance in her direction almost irritated that she pointed that out.

"Not now, Hisui," Maria added in. "Even without high sensing skills, I can tell from a single glance that neither of us has a chance against Brynhildr if she goes all out. But, Odin did mention we don't need to defeat them but put on a good enough show to impress the gods. Besides, in our group, we do have someone who's been an important part of our planning and strategies."

Once those words left her mouth, all five of them turned toward that same person who thought about the plan on Hagun Island and their plans. Zane leaning his head on his right hand glanced toward all of them with a far more wryly smile on his face.

"You know, it doesn't always have to be me. I know that the five of you can come up with something."

"Yea, but we've known you long enough to realize that you do love coming up with different ideas whether they're new inventions or plans. Besides, neither of us can come up with plans that work out as well as yours."

"That's true," Zane replied to Alice then stood up in front of them holding out his hand. "So, let's come up with the kind of plan of action that'll show the entire Norse Faction and gods that we have the best teamwork. The kind of game plan that toppled down an entire illegal underworld tournament in a single day!"

[Right!]

Inside of the same region filled with ice and mist, which existed in the Norse Realm at the lowest level, Niflheim, a cold region that no normal person would be able to reside in for long. But, heading in the direction of a familiar cave was a single individual adorned in a cloak that seemed native to the Norse. The same cloaked person stood in front of the cave's entrance keeping an appropriate distance as a stinking scene wafted from inside the cave.

"Can you hear me? Or are you busy having dinner?"

The clocked individual questioned, hearing the sounds of grotesque gnawing and crunch from inside of the cave, which would make anyone feel uneasy from being this close. However, the cloaked individual remained standing in the same position unfazed as the gnawing sounds ceased. Soon enough, the ground underneath him began to tremble lightly as whatever was inside the cave approached him.

"Gehehehe, I thought that I would be able to eat something fresher. But, what I found was nothing more than a fake body crafted using magic."

The ominous voice pointed out realizing the true identity of the person standing in front of him.

"I see that someone of your nature would be able to tell what this body is."

"I simply have a good nose. If this is some kind of peace offering then, I'm not interested in eating something that was made using magic. Unless something is interesting or delicious in the upper world if someone like you went to the trouble of creating a magical body merely to visit me."

The voice spoke once again in a tone, which sounded almost as if they were salivating from hunger.

"Something is happening in the Asgard at the moment with six unruly visitors from another faction, making a potential mess of how things should remain. I'm sure that you already smelled some new scents from all the down here, correct?"

"Oh, visitors? That explains the new scents that I've been smelling since the other day. One of them, in particular, seems to be attracting my attention the most."

"Well, then why don't you come to visit. It has been a long time since you went on a rampage around the Norse World? And wouldn't it be better to have a fresh meal rather than merely eating on corpses?"

The cloaked man stated again causing the voice inside of the cave to laugh out loud after hearing those words.

"Gehehehe, you don't need to coax me too much. I'm too interested in finding out where this scene is coming from to remain inside of this ice realm anymore. And you're right, it has been too long since I've rampaged and it would be fun to stretch my legs. Gehehehe, guhehehe!"

From inside of the cave, the ominous aura wafting from whatever resided there started raising more and more in response to making their decision. The one who created and control the magical body standing in front of the cave felt the utmost elation from this being targeting them without them needing to do anything at all.

"Well, then shall be get started. I know where they'll all be."

A/N: And there goes the next chapter of DxD – The Last Amagiri, Kensei and the others who were led by the Valkyrie Squad savored their tour around Asgard with Kensei winning prizes for himself. Meanwhile, both Odin and Vidar deal with the other gods who were hesitant in forming a connection with them. Soon enough, it was decided that Kensei and the others would fight against the Valkyrie Squad to decide if all of them has what it takes. Although, both sides were hesitant about the idea, with Brynhildr realizing that it would be disrespectful to hold back against them.

Kensei, Zane, Maria, Hisui, Alice, and Claire decide to come together once again and give the gods and residents a good that neither of them is going to forget. Inside Niflheim, there seems to be business on in the Ice Realm behind the scenes and it'll lead to some trouble for them.

Also, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year and I'm glad to start it off with this new chapter.

Kensei's Harem: Alice, Claire, Hisui, Kunou, Yasaka, Lu Lingqi, Mirana, Sarah, Minako, Koneko, Kuroka, Ravel, Amaterasu, Brynhildr.