NOVEL NEXT Chapter 39: Into the Corridor
"If this is a joke, it's not a very good one..." remarked Rias, exhaling from her nose as she stood slightly in front of Vahn with her arms crossed and an understandably annoyed look.
"I'm afraid it's not," replied Grayfia, further explaining, "Approximately ten days from now, specifically at seven o'clock post meridiem on the third of May, Lady Rias's Peerage shall engage Master Riser's Peerage in a Rating Game to determine whether you will marry him or Vahn-sama."
"But that doesn't make any sense..." chimed in Vahn, his expression even uglier than Rias's as he asserted, "Rias's Peerage only has five members at the moment, and one can't even compete. And members of the Phenex Clan are said to be immortal. How is she supposed to win?"
"As a King and someone seeking to take the reins of her own destiny, that is something Lady Rias will need to figure out on her own," stated Grayfia, further explaining, "The ten days she is being allotted is to facilitate that. Under ordinary circumstances, they would have settled things the day the challenge was issued."
"I see..." muttered Rias, cupping her chin with her right index finger and thumb. Vahn saw this, so while he still found the situation unfair, mostly because he wouldn't be allowed to participate, he remained silent to give her a chance to think.
"Who even is this Phenex guy...?" asked Issei, unaware of what had transpired the previous day as he had been on a training date with the blue-haired Tsubasa from Sona's Peerage.
"Riser Phenex. He's the third son of the Marquis Phenex Clan," explained Akeno, her usual smile nowhere to be seen as she revealed, "Before she submitted a request to have it rescinded, he was Lady Rias's fiance and a notorious profligate and playboy..."
"He sounds like a real jerk..." remarked Issei, prompting a faint smile to return to Akeno's face as, in many ways, Riser was the type of Devil Issei aspired to become. Their personalities were drastically different, but both were perverts obsessed with harems.
"Are there any special rules for the Rating Game...?" asked Rias, believing she had figured out her brother's plan.
"Indeed," responded Grayfia, beaming as she revealed, "Since there is a rather drastic disparity in the number of members each King can field, the limitations regarding the use of Magic Items have been amended for Lady Rias's Peerage. So long as the items are produced by an existing member of the Occult Research Club, such as the Magical Swords produced by Sir Kiba's Sword Birth, there are no usage restrictions whatsoever."
"I understand," said Rias, beaming from ear to ear as she gave a curt nod and stated, "Please inform my brother and the Phenex Clan that I accept their challenge."
"I will do so at once," responded Grayfia, offering a courteous bow to both Rias and Vahn, her eyes slightly narrowing at the latter before she gave him a playful wink and promptly teleported away.
"Man, she was incredibly hot..." remarked Issei, his face turning red and his smile turning somewhat creepy as he imagined burying his face into seemingly fathomless depths of Grayfia's cleavage.
"More importantly, everyone should return home and pack their luggage as if you're moving," said Rias, leaving Issei confused until she explained, "My brother gave us these ten days factoring in our access to the Corridor of Intertwined Fates. In other words, we will be staying there for the next ten days, translating to a minimum of sixty in-corridor time."
"Sixty days...!?" exclaimed Issei, generally excited by the prospect of training in the Corridor, but sixty days was a very long time, especially when he had a backlog of anime, manga, and video games he had been looking forward to playing.
"You're still thinking like a human," remarked Rias, crossing her arms as she attested, "If we scaled something like the average Summer break to the lifespan of a Devil, then, rather than forty days, it would be closer to four-thousand. Sixty days is nothing when you can live for six thousand years or longer."
"Right..." replied Issei, rubbing the back of his head. It was difficult to wrap his head around, but someone like Rias's brother had been alive since before the creation of the United States. Sixty days might feel like a long time to him now, but unless he suffered an accident or lost his life in something like a Rating Game, it would be the year seven thousand by the time he reached just half his new lifespan...
"Try not to look too glum, Issei-kun," remarked Rias. "If I'm forced to marry Riser, none of us will be happy. Also, this is a good opportunity to familiarize yourself with your Sacred Gear and learn the skills associated with being a Devil, specifically Magic and Flight. As someone who enjoys anime and manga, I would think the prospect of being able to fly and fire beam attacks would be exciting to you."
"When you put it like that, you're totally right, Kaichou...!" exclaimed Issei, flames appearing in his eyes as he struck a guts pose.
"That's the spirit," said Rias, smiling as she added, "Now, hurry back and finish packing. Someone will be by to pick you up around 8 AM tomorrow to ensure your parents won't find your sudden leave of absence unusual."
"Right, I've been meaning to ask about that," said Issei, crossing his arms as he asked, "Altering their perception isn't going to mess with their heads or anything, is it? I mean, more than it already does..."
"They'll be fine," assured Rias, explaining, "The only time issues like that occur is if you implant suggestions that contradict their desires or beliefs. If, for example, you tried to convince a girl who historically didn't like you or already has a boyfriend that the two of you are dating, it could result in an existential breakdown or mental collapse."
"That example feels really targeted..." remarked Issei, his concern turning to a cramped smile.
"Despite your proclivities, you're a good person, Issei-kun," said Rias. "But Devils are, in essence, masses of desire. No one wants to become a Stray, but new and inexperienced Devils get so drunk off their newfound power and ability to manipulate humans that it consumes them. So it's fine if you have Munemaru, for example, peek up skirts or peep on girls in the locker or shower rooms. Those are ultimately innocuous actions. Just don't cross any lines you can't step back from..."
"Yes, Kaichou..." responded Issei, feeling guilty and ashamed as he hung his head. Fortunately, none of the people present judged him too harshly for his actions. Rather, as Devils generally didn't bat an eye at things like nudity, they didn't care if he saw girls in their underwear or spied on them naked. After all, desires such as lust were perfectly normal, especially for Devils. His biggest issue was that he acted like an irredeemable pervert, not that he was one...
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"Alright, if everyone is ready, gather around and link hands," ordered Rias, personally holding Vahn's right hand as Akenko, Koneko, Asia, Kiba, Issei, and, at the behest of Sona, Saji, Tsubasa, Tomoe, Reya, and Ruruko joined them. Sona would have liked to join as well, but as they couldn't leave the Academy unguarded, she and Tsubaki would be staying behind to keep an eye on things and look after the reclusive sealed member of the ORC.
"I wonder if this is what a school trip feels like...?" asked the final addition to the group, the silver-haired, silver-eyed Grayfia, standing to Vahn's left and holding his hand with a relaxed smile. Her explanation for being there was to prevent Riser from coming to look for or spying on them, but Rias suspected the true reason was to investigate the Corridor more efficiently and keep an eye on Vahn.
"Maybe? I've never actually been on one..." answered Vahn, shrugging before he initiated the transfer to the Eighth Floor's Starting Zone. Once there, everyone promptly released hands but remained in a loose circle, the only exception being Grayfia, who continued holding Vahn's hand until he looked at her strangely.
"Pardon me," said Grayfia, retracting her hand and folding it over her left atop her lap, defaulting to her highly dignified maid persona.
'She's definitely here for Vahn...' thought Rias, narrowing her eyes slightly but choosing not to make a fuss as she addressed the group, stating, "I'll review our objectives once more. As we descend deeper into the Corridor, the strength of monsters, the ratio of time compression, and the quality of items increase. Our goal is to delve as deeply as possible, but since there are rare and useful items to be found in hidden rooms, we will also explore each Floor thoroughly. In simple terms, we'll be spending four to six days on each Floor before moving on, with our penultimate goal being to reach the twentieth. Any questions?"
Seeing no one raise their hands or speak out, Rias gave an approving nod before appending, "Alright, then, for the sake of exploring as much of the Floor as possible in the shortest period, we will split into groups of two to three. The groups are as follows: Issei, Tsubasa, and Reya will form one group; Kiba, Koneko, and Asia will form another; and the last two groups will be Saji, Tomoe, Ruruko, and myself, Akeno, and Vahn."
With Rias looking at her, Grayfia offered a slight nod and affirmed, "I will be traveling independently from everyone else to secure the Ending Zone and, with Vahn-sama's permission, scout lower Floors. Rest assured that any items I recover while doing so will be turned over without exception."
"I don't see any problem with that," responded Vahn, looking to Rias, who, in turn, nodded in affirmation, stating, "It would be beneficial to be able to access deeper Floors if we require more time, and I can't imagine a better scout than an Ultimate-Class Devil."
"Then, please excuse me," said Grayfia, offering a maidly curtsy before turning away, materializing her bat-like wings, and taking off at a speed only Rias and, to a lesser extent, Akeno could follow. This was actually a leisurely speed from Grayfia's point of view, but since she could surpass the speed of light and tear through space if she pushed herself to her absolute limit, a few times the speed of sound was comparably a snail's pace...
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'I have a long way to go...' thought Vahn, checking Grayfia's progress through the Corridor of Intertwined Fate's menu to find that, in less than a day in-corridor time, she had cleared the First Stratum, which appeared to have ten Floors, and was presently on the Sixteenth Floor of the Second...
Interrupting Vahn's train of thought, Rias and Akeno entered the room of the literal cottage they had prepared to make their stay in the Corridor a little more comfortable. Rias normally slept naked, but when she wanted to appeal to him, she wore incredibly sexy lingerie. Tonight was thankfully and evidently no exception as she entered the room wearing a pink thong and bra, the former barely held in place by a thin purple string tied at the sides. As for Akeno, she was wearing a black lace brasier and panties that perfectly conformed to the contours of her body, a black garter belt, and black stockings.
"You look like a goldfish~" joked Rias, combing her fingers through the fringe bangs framing the right side of her face as Vahn stared at her and Akeno with his mouth partially open and eyes wide.
"Thank you...?" responded Vahn, unsure what to make of Rias's words but understanding that she wasn't insulting him.
"No. We're here to thank you..." retorted Rias, pulling at the strings of her thong and licking her lips as Akeno took the initiative to approach Vahn, sensually humming, "Excuse me..." before combing back her bangs and lowering her head to prepare him. Neither of the two women stood to gain much from the current Floors, so while they shadowed Vahn and provided him guidance throughout the day, the primary objective of their stay in the Corridor was to strengthen their bond. Rias had absolutely no intention of marrying Riser, but just in case, she planned to make the most of the time they had left...
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