At this moment, the sun was setting in the west, painting the sky with a glow of evening clouds.
The evening sunlight shone on the path in front of the old school building, spreading over the open space and casting a golden hue throughout the forest.
"Yo, members of the Gremory Peerage, we meet again."
Kaiser greeted Rias and her group with a raised hand, like a visiting guest.
However, Rias and her group did not seem welcoming at all, even showing a hint of hostility towards him.
"What are you doing here?"
Rias directly questioned, her attitude far from friendly.
Clearly, she still held a grudge from the last encounter.
Kaiser, however, seemed oblivious, speaking nonchalantly.
"I have something I need to discuss with you."
This statement instantly increased the hostility emanating from Rias and her group, along with a subtle rise in vigilance and alertness.
After all, the last person Kaiser said this to was the female Fallen Angel he had captured.
Back then, Kaiser claimed he had business with her, only to end up blowing up her base and wiping out her subordinates.
Now, with Kaiser suddenly appearing here and saying such words, how could Rias and her group not be on guard?
"So, are we your target this time?"
Rias asked, her crimson aura slowly igniting around her.
"You could say that." Kaiser replied casually, and just as Rias and her group were about to enter battle mode, ready to explode at any moment, he changed his tone, "Relax, I'm not here to fight you. I just need your help with something."
Help?
Help with what?
Akeno Himejima, Yuuto Kiba, and Koneko Toujou exchanged glances, while Rias looked completely unconvinced.
Seeing this, Kaiser didn't waste any more words. He waved the Gravisheath he had been holding, causing several figures to descend from the air.
"What are those...?"
Rias and her group were stunned.
"These are the Peerage Devils of a certain trash Devil," Kaiser said to Rias. "I hope you can help settle them so they won't be persecuted."
Upon hearing Kaiser's words, not only Rias but the entire Gremory Peerage looked puzzled.
"You say they are Peerage Devils?" Rias furrowed her beautiful brows and asked, "Where is their master?"
Kaiser's response was straightforward.
"Dead."
The blunt and cold reply made Rias and her group all change their expressions.
"You killed their master? An Upper-Class Devil?"
Rias's delicate face turned somewhat grim.
"That's right."
Kaiser nodded.
"Do you know what you're doing right now?" Rias trembled with anger, her crimson aura growing thicker, her voice icy as she said, "You're admitting to killing an Upper-Class Devil, one of my kind, right in front of me!"
Admitting it was one thing, but Kaiser also asked Rias to help settle the Peerage of the Upper-Class Devil he killed, saying they shouldn't be persecuted. How could he have the face to say such things and do such things?
"If you knew what that trash Devil did, you wouldn't find what I'm doing now so strange." Kaiser glanced at Rias and said, "I can't be bothered to explain the details. As long as you investigate the identities of these Peerage Devils, you'll know who I killed and why I want you to help settle them."
"I'm not asking you to do it for free. As I said earlier, I'll tell you what's been happening lately."
"So, this is a transaction."
Kaiser held up three fingers to Rias.
"Three."
"You have three chances to ask me questions."
"I will answer your three questions truthfully and guarantee that the answers will be genuine, without any falsehood."
Kaiser smirked.
"So, do you agree?"
Upon hearing this, Rias clenched her fists and fell silent.
Though she was furious, she realized this was a good opportunity.
If she could make good use of these three questions, most of the issues that had arisen recently might be resolved.
Under normal circumstances, Rias would never compromise like this; her pride wouldn't allow it.
But Kuoh Town was indeed in a precarious state, like a vortex, drawing in people from various factions.
If the truth behind the recent events wasn't uncovered soon, and if a severe and irreparable conflict occurred during the investigations, it would be too late for regrets.
"President..."
Akeno Himejima and the others seemed to understand Rias's feelings and focused their gazes on her.
Rias took a deep breath to calm herself.
The crimson aura gradually disappeared from her body.
Rias returned to her usual demeanor, coldly looking at Kaiser and saying:
"Are you sure you'll answer my questions truthfully?"
"Of course," Kaiser replied indifferently. "You may not trust me, but even if my answers are false, it won't harm you, right?"
If Kaiser's answers were false, Rias could simply renege on her promise and abandon the Peerage Devils Kaiser brought.
Of course, knowing Rias's nature, once she learned about these people's pasts, she wouldn't abandon them.
Kaiser was confident in this, so he didn't intend to deceive Rias.
As long as Rias was willing to keep her promise, he wouldn't mix any lies into these three questions.
"Buzz..."
At that moment, Kaiser waved the Gravisheath again, causing its blade to vibrate slightly, controlling gravity to send the floating women in the air over to Rias.
Akeno Himejima, Yuuto Kiba, and Koneko Toujou checked these individuals while remaining vigilant. After confirming there were no obvious issues, they temporarily sent them to the old school building.
Akeno Himejima also took the opportunity to deploy a magic circle, secretly investigating the identities of these Peerage Devils.
Soon after, Akeno Himejima's expression changed noticeably.
"President..."
Akeno Himejima immediately approached Rias and whispered something in her ear.
Upon hearing those words, Rias visibly lost her composure.
"The Upper-Class Devil you killed is the successor of the Astaroth family?"
Rias looked at Kaiser in utter shock.
In response, Kaiser only said:
"Is that your first question?" Kaiser said expressionlessly. "If that's your first question, I'll answer you truthfully."
Rias really wanted to say yes.
That was the successor of the Astaroth family, a blood relative of the Satan Beelzebub! Such a person died in Kuoh Town; this was a big deal!
Even without the recent chaos, Kuoh Town would have become just as lively, with an even stronger sense of tension.
Currently, the mysterious incidents have only drawn the attention of various factions, leading to conflicts and friction. If the news of Diodora's death reached the Underworld, it would lead to a grand-scale demon hunt for the perpetrator.
If that happened, even if Kuoh Town wasn't destroyed, it would suffer collateral damage.
Thinking of this troubled future, Rias even felt like killing Kaiser.
But Rias suppressed her impulse and didn't consider this her first question.
Because Kaiser had already said he killed a trash Devil, and as long as she investigated the identities of those Peerage Devils, the situation would become clear.
In that case, this rare opportunity to ask questions shouldn't be wasted.
"...Why did you attack those Fallen Angels last time?"
Rias suppressed all her impulses and asked this question.
"Didn't I already tell you? I had some business with the Fallen Angels there!" Kaiser raised an eyebrow and said, "I didn't intend to attack them directly; they attacked me first. I was just defending myself, right?"
As if self-defense would go to such an extent.
"Don't brush me off!" Rias glared at Kaiser and said bluntly, "I need to know the detailed cause and effect, or it doesn't count as answering the question!"
"Alright." Kaiser didn't intend to brush Rias off, so he shrugged and said, "It's not as complicated as you think. I just wanted that Fallen Angel to bring someone to me."
"That person isn't particularly special, just someone with a rare Sacred Gear, so there's nothing particularly important involved, nor any conspiracy."
"I just wanted to recruit a talent, but that Fallen Angel also had their eyes on that talent, which led to the conflict and the situation."
"Does that answer satisfy you?"
This explanation not only failed to reassure Rias but made her even more concerned.
If what he said was true, then what kind of person could be considered a talent by both him and the Fallen Angels? What was special about their Sacred Gear? Was there really no conspiracy involved?
Rias had these doubts but didn't voice them.
"Second question." Rias looked directly at Kaiser and asked, "Remember when we first met, you told me the instigator of the large-scale destruction in Kuoh Town was someone named Siegfried, right?"
"You also mentioned he was trying to recruit you."
"But according to my investigation, the person who inherited the name Siegfried seems to no longer be with the Church."
"So, where is he now?"
"And what faction is he representing to recruit you?"
Rias finally asked the most crucial question.
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