I once again need to apologize for the late chapter. Work has been stressful lately and I've also been playing Metroid Dread. Since this is a side story and I've kept you waiting long enough, this will be a shorter chapter compared to the others.

I forgot to mention in the last chapter that I had reached over 100 followers before I posted it and I'll probably hit 100 favorites not long after I post this chapter.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

It was the morning after Melody had become the next Morag heir and she had arrived in front of the Sigmund residence before they headed to school. After she told her servants she was heading there, Katherine had shyly asked if she could come with her, to which Melody agreed and now both of them were standing in front of the Sigmund home. After ringing the doorbell, Alastair opened the door and looked at both of the two young women.

"Lady Melody, to what do we owe this sudden visit, which you know I hate?" Alastair remarked.

"Sorry, I forgot that's one of your many pet peeves." Melody apologized. "Are Seth and Luke here?"

"Please, come in." Alastair held the door open for the girls.

After they were inside, Alastair guided them to the living room and cleared his throat as he entered before them.

"Lady Melody and Miss Katherine have arrived." Alastair announced to the current residents eating breakfast.

Those current residents include Luke, Seth, Annabelle, Hana and now Rias, the last of whom Melody was surprised to see. Rias and Luke were sitting on the couch while having their breakfast.

"Rias, what are you doing here so early?" Melody asked.

"I live here now." Rias cheerfully replied. "Didn't Seth tell you?"

"Sorry, I wanted you to focus on the battle." Seth apologized while rubbing the back of his head.

"I just wanted to improve my bond with my adorable little servant."

Rias hugged Luke like a stuffed animal, which made him and Melody blush, and Katherine angrily puff out her cheeks.

"Wait, you w-what fi-battle, Melody?" Luke inquired.

"After seeing Rias's Rating Game, I decided to have one with my eldest brother, Kaidon." Melody answered. "You're now looking at the new heir to the House of Morag!"

"Wow! Congratulations, Melody!" Rias said.

"Is that a good thing?" Luke asked.

"Considering how much of an asshole our older brother is, yes." Seth stated.

Luke then looked at the white-haired young woman standing next to Melody, and the new heir took notice of this.

"Oh, that's right. You've only met a few members of my peerage." Melody realized. "This is Katherine Petrova, she's one of my Knights as well as a Dhampir. She really wanted to meet you, Luke."

"Melody, don't just tell him that!" Katherine panicked with a flushed face.

"So, you're like Alucard?" Luke asked.

Melody and Katherine looked at Luke with blank expressions and tilted heads, completely unsure of what he was referring to.

"… Who is that?" Melody asked.

"As in she's a human-vampire hybrid, then yes." Seth said to Luke.

"Oh, that sounds cool." Luke said.

"Not as cool as you…" Katherine sheepishly murmured with a blush on her face.

While nobody else could hear what Katherine quietly said to herself, Melody certainly did.

"Katherine, is there anything else you want to say to Luke?" Melody sat Katherine down into the empty spot on the couch next to Luke.

"Wha-what…?" Katherine was about to exclaim, but she suddenly started to get drowsy.

After a yawn, Katherine fell asleep and leaned her body against Luke's. The first thing Luke immediately noticed when she leaned against him was a soft sensation pressing against his arm. He moved his eyes slightly downward and saw that her breasts were the things he could feel on his arm. Any bafflement he had from seeing someone suddenly fall asleep for no reason was entirely gone as he felt himself get flustered and warm due to the half-vampire's large and soft breasts touching him. However, it was only temporary as he Rias pinched and pulled his cheek.

"Luke, you better not be thinking of anything indecent." Rias leered at him while pinching his cheek.

"Come now, he's still a teenage boy." Annabelle interjected. "And he's a Devil now. It's completely natural for his eyes to wander and be curious about the female anatomy."

"A-A-Annabelle!" Luke stammered with a completely red face.

"Hmhmhm!" Annabelle giggled. "You're so cute, my Little Luke."

"By the way, Rias?" Melody asked.

"Hm?"

As Rias's attention went back to Melody, she stopped pinching Luke and he rubbed his numbed cheek.

"Luke and Fumiko haven't been in your peerage for long, right?" Melody inquired. "The moon will be full tonight. Will you be taking them to get familiars?"

"Yes, in fact, I was planning on telling them later today after school." Rias answered.

"A familiar?" Luke asked.

"Don't worry about that right now, Luke." Rias replied. "We should get going now or we'll be late."

"Do you mind if I come along with you later?" Melody requested. "I was thinking of taking Issei, Asia, and Hikaru to get their familiars as well."

"Of course, you can come." Rias accepted. "If there are more of us, we can probably get them more powerful familiars."

"… Uuhhh…" Luke blinked in confusion due to not fully understanding what they were talking about.

After classes, Luke and Fumiko met up with the rest of the Occult Research Club and had familiars explained to them.

"A familiar is a monster or supernatural being magically bound to a Devil, either as a servant or an ally." Akeno explained. "They are a basic requirement for us Devils. Familiars often assist their masters with various tasks such as information gathering, relaying messages, or helping out with odd jobs or janitorial work. Remember how you handed out leaflets when you first became a Devil? That's usually a job for familiars."

"They sound more like gofers." Luke commented.

In a small buff of smoke, a crimson bat appeared on Rias's palm.

"This is my familiar." Rias stated.

"This one here is mine." Akeno said as she summoned an oni so small that it could fit in the palm of her hand.

"Today, you two will capture familiars of your own." Rias announced to Luke and Fumiko.

"Best of luck." Yuuto waved to them.

"Yeah." Koneko nodded.

"Yuuto and Koneko aren't c-coming?" Luke asked.

"You two aren't the only ones looking to acquire familiars today." Rias responded. "Melody will also be with us so Issei, Asia and Hikaru can capture their familiars. We can't just bunch up, so it'll be just the newcomers, the Queens and Kings."

This will be my first time meeting Hikaru in person. Luke thought. I only know her because she spoke through my head when we went to rescue Hana and Asia. And I don't think I've ever met Melody's Queen. So, after this the only member of her peerage I need to meet is her second Rook.

The magic circle on the floor started glowing.

"Buchou, the preparation is complete." Akeno reported to Rias.

"Now, let's go and capture your familiars." Rias said to Luke and Fumiko.

Luke, Rias, Akeno and Fumiko set foot inside the magic circle and were enveloped in a bright light.

When the light died down, they were now in a dense forest with giant trees.

"Many Devils that are familiar tamers live here." Rias stated. "Today, this is where I will have Luke and Fumiko obtain their familiars."

They could make out a bright glow coming from behind them, making them look toward the light. Once the light faded, Melody, Misaki, Issei, Asia and Hikaru appeared, with Issei and Asia looking around in confusion.

"This is the forest where you will capture your familiars." Melody said to her servants.

Issei then saw Rias's group as they approached them.

"Is this everyone?" Rias asked Melody.

"Yeah." Melody nodded. "Luke, Fumiko, this is my Queen."

Melody motioned to Misaki, who politely bowed to them.

"I am Misaki Shirayuki. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Luke-kun. Melody-sama has told me a lot about you over the years."

"M-Misaki?!" Melody stammered with a steaming red face.

"I-It's nice to meet you, t-too." Luke greeted Misaki, his face blushing from seeing such a beautiful woman in front of him. Issei's hanging around this beauty?! Lucky bastard!

"I-I-I'm F-Fumiko K-Ka-Kazuya!" Fumiko panicked and bowed her head. "N-nice to muh-meet you!"

"'Kazuya'? Isn't-"

Misaki interrupted Issei with a wave and shook her head. Issei looked down at the ground.

"I'm-I'm Asia Argento!" Asia bowed to the Gremory group. "It's so nice to meet you!"

"I'm L-Luke Sigmund." Luke introduced himself to Asia. "We were n-never prop-properly introduced, since we were busy fighting a ho-hoard of priests."

Luke then saw the amber-haired girl who was just looking around.

"Is that…" Luke muttered.

"Yo." Hikaru simply said before continuing to look at her surroundings.

"That's Hikaru Ueda." Melody said. "She's the one who was speaking through your heads when you went to rescue Asia."

She seemed so chatty when she was talking to us using her Sacred Gear. Luke thought. Maybe she's one of those people who prefer indirect communication?

"Gotcha!"

A loud and sudden voice startled Luke, Fumiko, Issei, Asia and Hikaru to the point that they all yelped, and Asia hid behind Issei's back. Fumiko also hid behind Luke's back, but the moment she realized what she did, her face instantly turned pink. The source of the loud voice was a young man in rough clothing.

"My name is Satooji of Madara Town!" The young man introduced himself. "I'm a Devil in training aiming to become a Familiar Master!"

Why does that sound so familiar? Luke questioned in his head.

"Satooji, these are the ones we spoke of." Rias gestured to the five rookie servants.

"Hee, two dull-faced boys and a trio of beauties, huh? Okay, leave it to me! If it's me, any familiar would be caught!"

"He might seem a bit eccentric, but he's a professional when it comes to familiars." Melody assured the five newbies. "He'll definitely help you all catch a few familiars, so be sure to listen to his advice."

"Now, what type of familiar do you desire?" Satooji asked them in a friendly manner. "A strong one? A fast one? Or one with poison?"

"'Poison' d-doesn't sound very f-friendly." Luke said.

"So, what type do you recommend?" Issei inquired.

Satooji smiled and pulled out a catalogue, pointing to a monstrous creature that's drawn out on the entire page.

"I recommend this! One of the Dragon Kings! Chaos Karma Dragon, Tiamat! It's a legendary dragon and also the only female among the Dragon Kings! Even now, there hasn't been a single Devil that's been able to catch her! It's said she's as strong as a Satan!"

"When I said 'recommend', I didn't mean something on the level of a final boss!" Issei protested to the suggestion.

"It shouldn't be a problem for you, Luke." Rias said. "It seems like you'd get along since you're both legendary dragons."

"At my current level, I'm pretty sure I'd end up dead." Luke squeaked. "Are there any beginner-friendly familiars?"

"I see! How about the Hydra?"

Satooji turned to a page with an illustration of a large serpent with many heads, sharp eyes, sharp fangs, and skulls all around it.

"It has a poison so deadly that no Devil can withstand it! On top of that, it's immortal! It even kills its master! Pretty useful, right?"

"… Can I punch him?" Issei asked Melody.

"Come on, Issei. A Hydra is pretty rare." Melody tried to assure him. "If I remember correctly, there should be one in this forest."

"Hahaha, experience the adventure!" Satooji gave Issei a thumbs up.

"Stop fucking with me!" Issei shouted back in frustration. "I don't want a familiar that's stronger than me!"

"Man, you sure are picky! Then what would you prefer?"

"Aren't there any cute girl familiar?" Issei asked.

"That's why you newbies don't understand anything. Listen, you have to catch powerful familiars. Each one has different abilities. If you are trying to become a Familiar Master, you need to catch the same one several times-"

We're not aiming to be Familiar Masters, whatever the hell that is. Luke thought as Satooji rambled. Can't we just enjoy using familiars we like?

"I also want a cute familiar." Asia raised her hand.

"M-me too!" Fumiko spoke up in agreement.

"Okay, I understand."

You didn't even listen to me or Issei! What the hell, asshole?!

As the group was walking through the forest guided by Satooji, Fumiko heard something nearby. She turned her head and saw something glowing from behind the trees. No one else seemed to have noticed it, so she quietly went over to the tree and peeked her head behind it. Whatever might have been there a few seconds ago seemed to have disappeared.

"Was I just seeing things?" Fumiko mumbled to herself.

However, there was now a glowing pink light behind her, and she turned around.

Everyone else had arrived near a spacious, clear lake that is supposed to be home to the water spirits known as Undine.

From the various games I've played, Undine are beautiful water spirits. Luke thought. I wonder if real Undine are the same…

After looking back at his comrades, he realized that someone was missing.

"Where's Fumiko?" Luke asked everyone in a hushed tone.

Rias and Akeno then realized the same thing.

"She was behind us not that long ago." Rias said.

"What if she got eaten by one of those dangerous familiars?!" Luke panicked while keeping his voice down.

"Melody, I'll be taking Akeno and Luke with me to find Fumiko." Rias told her friend. "We'll meet back up later."

"I hope you find her in one piece." Melody nodded.

"Fumiko! Where are you?!" Luke called out.

"If you can hear us, please respond!" Akeno also called out.

"Did you find that Hydra?" Rias called out in her own way.

"I shouldn't have let Fumiko out of my sight…" Luke said.

"As Fumiko's Master, she is my responsibility. Don't be so hard on yourself, Luke." Rias said to him.

A crimson bat approached Rias. It was her familiar that she summoned earlier to help find Fumiko.

"She's okay." Rias sighed in relief. "Please, take us to her."

The bat guided Rias, Akeno and Luke through the forest until they were able to see Fumiko sitting on a large tree root and speaking with what appeared to be a shining pink light.

"Oh, Rias-buchou! Luke-san! Akeno-senpai!" Fumiko stood up and ran to her comrades.

"Fumiko, you had us worried." Luke said to her. "I thought you might've been eaten by one of those monster familiars."

"Luke-kun was especially worried about you." Akeno giggled.

Luke blushed at Akeno's words.

"Ah! I-I'm sorry!" Fumiko apologized while frantically bowing her head. "I saw something, and I had to check it out. Oh, I want you to meet-" She looked behind her, but she seemed confused when she saw that nothing else was there. "Huh? Where did she go?"

"'She'?" Rias asked.

"KYAAA!"

They heard a scream coming from far away.

"That sounded like Asia!" Rias said. "Let's head back to Melody's group right away!"

Rias and Akeno took off and before Luke followed them, he turned around and saw Fumiko looking behind them.

"Fumiko?"

"Ah, r-right!" Fumiko slightly stammered.

Luke and Fumiko ran to catch up to Rias and Akeno. From behind the nearby trees, a glowing pink light followed not far behind them.

Rias and Akeno could see Melody and her servants nearby.

"Melody, what happened?" Rias then had a surprised look on her face as she saw what was happening.

"President, is everyone okay?" Luke asked.

However, the sight before Luke completely stopped his thoughts. Melody and Misaki were protecting Asia and Hikaru from slimes and tentacles while Issei was crying like his puppy just died. The girls' uniforms looked like they had melted away and their undergarments were exposed. Luke looked at Rias while shielding his face from seeing Melody and her servants in such an indecent state.

"P-President, I f-feel like we m-missed something…" Luke stuttered.

"Those are slimes that melt clothes and tentacles that target women's secretions." Rias explained. "They are more nuisances than threats, so it's best to just burn them with fire."

Some more slimes were falling from the trees, but Rias held her hand up and completely eradicated them with her Power of Destruction. Luke then noticed a tentacle approaching Fumiko from behind.

"Fumiko, look out!"

Luke ran to Fumiko and blasted the tentacle with a blast of fire.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Issei cried hysterically. "MY FAMILIARS!"

"Issei, these things are useless as familiars!" Melody scolded him while trying her best to cover her exposed cleavage.

That idiot actually wanted these things as his familiars?! Luke thought in exasperation.

When Melody realized that Luke was looking directly at her, her face turned red, and she frantically turned around to hide her front from him.

"No… Not like this…" Melody groaned so lowly that no one could hear her.

While Melody was wallowing in embarrassment, one of the tentacles wrapped itself around Asia's body.

"AH!"

"Asia!" Issei ran over to Asia and gently hugged her, the slimes, and the tentacles.

"Issei, ummm… you are hugging onto me…" Asia said with a red face.

"Surataro… Shokushumaru… I will protect you guys…" Issei sobbed.

"… This is sad." Luke muttered with a deadpan expression.

They then heard something flying towards them. There was a blue-scaled baby dragon floating in the air and blue lightning started to course through its body.

"It's a Sprite Dragon!" Hikaru exclaimed. She didn't seem at all concerned that she was in her underwear.

The Sprite Dragon released a high-voltage shock from its body and electricity struck not just the slimes and tentacles, but also Issei, Luke and Satooji.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaagh!" Luke and Issei screamed as they were electrocuted.

Even though Issei was hit by the lightning attack, Asia was completely unaffected.

"The Sprite Dragon only gives electric damage to those it sees as its enemies." The burnt Satooji explained. "So, it must not have thought that girl was its enemy."

After hearing that, Luke simply leered at the Sprite Dragon as he summoned his Falchion while Issei was mourning over the ashes of the slimes and tentacles.

"Looks like it eliminated the slimes and tentacles attacking Asia. Maybe this dragon is male." Rias surmised. "I have heard that male dragons take a liking to females from other races."

That explains why the girls are unharmed. Luke thought.

As Issei's drama unfolded, Luke could feel a green aura washing over him. He looked at Fumiko and saw that she had taken out her Supreme Aid and was healing his burns. However, she stopped upon seeing a familiar pink glow nearby.

"What's that over there?" Rias wondered aloud.

This time Luke, Rias and Akeno saw the glow, too.

Fumiko made a gentle smile in the direction of the glow and spoke softly. "It's okay. These are my friends."

The glow seemed hesitant at first, but slowly approached Fumiko and the others. As it got closer, Rias and Akeno couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"Is that…" Akeno gasped.

The glow died down a little and they could make out what looked like a very tiny woman with long pink hair, red butterfly-like wings, and wearing a sparkling white dress.

"A fairy?"

"A… r-real fairy?" Luke looked at the fairy in awe.

"Fairies are a race with overwhelming magical powers." Rias explained to Luke. "It's rare for them to appear in front of beings from other races."

"T-this is the f-fuh-fairy I met earl-earlier." Fumiko said.

"So, this fairy was the reason you separated from us before?" Akeno asked.

Fumiko nodded. "I saw her glowing and followed after her. After I got lost, she showed herself to me and we became friends."

"Oh, maybe you should make that fairy your familiar." Rias said.

"O-only if-if she's o-okay with th-th-that." Fumiko turned back to her new fairy friend. "What-what do y-y-y-you say? Do y-you want to b-be my fam-familiar?"

The fairy looked at Rias, Akeno, Luke and lastly Fumiko before nodding her head.

Fumiko smiled happily and giggled. "Th-thank you!"

Later that night Luke and Rias had returned home where Seth was up waiting for him.

"So, how did the familiar hunting go?" Seth asked in anticipation. "Did you catch a good one?"

"Let's see…" Luke recounted the events that had just occurred. "Asia got a Sprite Dragon…"

"Oooh!"

"Fumiko got a fairy…"

"Wow! And… what did you get?"

"Nothing." Rias answered.

"… Huh?" Seth blankly stared at them.

"None of the familiars I saw clicked with me." Luke stated. "I know familiars are a basic requirement for Devils, but I don't want to take one on purely out of necessity."

"I'm sure you'll get your familiar someday, Luke." Rias assured him.

A/N: Yes, the familiar I chose to give Fumiko is a fairy and it will be very important for her growth later on in the story. Unfortunately, I didn't want Luke to capture a familiar just yet as I already have one in mind for him. It won't be anything like Issei's Skíðblaðnir, I will tell you that much for now, but it will be nice.

If it wasn't evident at the end of Chapter 10, but Katherine has a huge crush on Luke after seeing him in the Rating Game and I wanted a scene where the two can finally meet.

There was also something I forgot to mention in the previous two chapters. How Akira uses her demonic power is similar how Sairaorg uses Touki. I wanted to give her something straightforward and simple as I feel that fits her character.

The next chapter is the beginning of the Excalibur arc. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed! Stay tuned for next time!

Luke Harem: Rias Gremory, Annabelle Wright

Issei Harem: Misaki Shirayuki, Asia Argento

Rias Gremory Peerage: Rias Gremory (King), Akeno Himejima (Queen), Yuuto Kiba (Knight), Koneko Toujo (Rook), Fumiko Kazuya (Bishop), Gasper Vladi (Bishop), Luke Sigmund (8 Pawns)

Seth Sigmund Peerage: Seth Sigmund (King), Annabelle Wright (Queen), Alastair Wright (Rook), Emery Belmont (Rook), Hana Sakuya (2 Bishops)

Melody Morag Peerage: Melody Morag (King), Misaki Shirayuki (Queen), Katherine Petrova (Knight), Spiral Hirano (Knight), Azusa Hirano (Rook), Akira Kazuya (Rook), Hikaru Ueda (Bishop), Asia Argento (Bishop), Issei Hyoudou (8 Pawns)