Chapter 18 - The Crimson Otaku’s Anime Night

We arrived at the school bright and early for our second day, honestly? We wanted some peace and quiet, at least in the morning. We reached the door to the classroom with about 30 minutes to spare before our first class.

As we entered the class, an incredibly amusing sight awaited us, Rias was there and she was avidly reading the latest issue of Dag-so-ball Super. She was so into it that she didn't even notice us entering and approaching her until it was too late. I snuck up near her and spoke in a low voice.

"So, the number 1 onee-sama of Kuoh Academy is an avid reader, eh?"

"Eeep!" she jumped right out of her seat.

"Hahaha"

She looked at me and then quickly hid her manga in her bag.

"Mou, you shouldn't have seen that" she pouted.

"No worries, no worries. I sometimes partake in such activities myself"

"By sometimes, he means that he 'sometimes' gets into a mood and shuts himself off from reality and reads his stuff" chimed in Valerie.

"As if you don't do the same, miss xianxia"

"Hmpf, and who made me this way?"

As we jabbed at each other, Rias just looked at us with stars in her eyes, happy that she found 2 fellow connoisseurs with whom she could discuss her entertainment. I turned to her.

"Apologies, I don't think I introduced myself. I'm Hiro Zeltris, please call me Hiro"

"Hi, Hiro-san! My name is Rias Gremory, happy to meet you"

I wanted to tease her a bit.

"Gremory, huh? Like in the Ars Goetia?" I could imagine her sweatdropping internally.

"Y-yeah, it's similar, have you read it?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm an avid fan of reading and that extends to occult stuff as well"

"What did you read about the Gremory?" she innocently asks but I could feel the undertone of pride in her voice.

"I remember they had something to do with camels, right?" I 'innocently' respond.

I could see her eyes widen a bit and her body shaking at the mention of camels. Fun fact, Rias was terribly afraid of them since an incident in childhood, quite ironic since the main representation of Gremory in the Ars Goetia is a demon sitting on a camel.

"Y-yes" she uttered out "Anyway, you said that you enjoy reading mangas?" she quickly changed the subject while I smiled 'innocently'.

"Indeed, I even have a signed copy of the first volume" and I did have one, stumbled upon the guy once, 'borrowed' some blood and took his signature. I know I said that I usually only drink from women but that argument is null and void when it comes to someone with knowledge and/or power.

"REALLY?! Can I see it? Please please please!"

"Heh, I like your enthusiasm, sure. I'll bring it someday"

"Say, Hiro, how about inviting Rias-san to our place and showing her your collection?" intervened Valerie, the oh-so sage of harem seeking.

'Thanks for the help, Val' I mentally sent her.

"Oh, sure, you can come over some time. I have quite a lot of stuff that I've picked over the years"

"Really? When?!" She was almost shaking from excitement. It felt like tricking a kid with candy and luring it into the van, #noragrets though.

"How about Friday after school, you free?"

"Should be but I don't know yet for sure. I will find out and tell you"

"Sounds great"

After this, the three of us settled into talking about some weeb stuff as we passed the time.

Slowly, the other people started to come into the class. Among them, one Akeno Himejima.

"Ara ara~ Rias, going after the taken man so soon?" she then proceeds to tease Rias using her seductive voice.

"W-what, no!" and she got flustered immediately.

"You must be Akeno-san, the other member of the famous onee-sans of Kuoh. I'm Hiro, nice to meet you"

"Fufufu, Valerie-san talked about you"

"Only the good things I hope"

"Indeed" *wink*

*ding dong*

Our talks got cut short because class was about to start so everyone settled into our usual routine.

Soon enough, it was time for lunch and Val and I invited the duo to join us on the rooftop, which they gladly accepted.

Lunch was a quick affair with the four of us talking and joking all the time as we got closer to one another. Rias had no time to put up her proud persona as it was shattered at the moment that we caught her reading manga so she behaved like a normal person. Akeno still tried to tease either Rias or me but that didn't fly.

"Hiro-san~ you just got here and are already trying to seduce us, Valerie-san might get jealous, you know?"

"Who said anything about seducing" I got closer to her, whispering in her ear "aren't you implying something ~Akeno-san~? Plus, you seem like a great girl, anyone who gets to marry you will be a very happy man" her face promptly flushed. Akeno was a person that was easy enough to read, she projected this persona of a seductress in order to hide away her insecurities and to push some people away. When dealing with these people, don't shy away like a beta Japanese mc, push the boundaries further while showing some restraint.

As per my expectations, she retreated and conceded my victory but it was just the first bout. As Akeno and I were trading light-hearted jabs at each other, Rias was talking with Valerie while stealing glances at me from time to time, whether it was because of Akeno's teasing or something else, I didn't know.

Lunch finished quickly and with that, what awaited us was the rest of the school day which ended soon enough.

"We'll take our leave then. See you on Friday, Rias-san" with that, Val and I left for home.

—

(Rias pov)

I am Rias Gremory, Heiress of the House of Gremory, and this has been a very confusing week for me. It all started when, 4 days ago, two new transfer students joined our class, a guy and a girl. The first time I saw them, she was beautiful and he was handsome, especially his beautiful but scary orange eyes and that messy midnight black hair.

The first day passed easy enough and I had no contact with him, I spoke briefly with his girlfriend, Valerie who was a smart and confident girl. During classes, he would either look absently at something or doze off but he always had the answers ready for anything thrown his way. I knew nothing more about him, just that whenever Valerie mentioned him, she got that loving look on her face.

The second day marked the beginning of my confusion and the strangeness of it all. I arrived in class earlier than usual because my order for the latest Drag-so-Ball manga issue had arrived in town and I couldn't wait for them to deliver it to me so I got up early and went to buy it. Seeing that I was early but not too early, it didn't make sense to return home, so, on a whim, I didn't go to the ORC and went to class. I arrived there and, seeing that nobody was around, I couldn't resist and opened up the manga to read.

That's when it all started. I didn't hear them when they entered, I only noticed him when he talked.

'So, the number 1 onee-sama of Kuoh Academy is an avid reader, eh?'

I couldn't help but jump. I had been caught.

What came next surprised me, I didn't have to be embarrassed, both he and Valerie were otakus too!

Finally, I thought, happy that I wasn't alone and had someone to talk to about my interests. Akeno didn't particularly leaned towards them while the rest of the ORC members each had their own interests.

We then started talking more and more about mangas, animes and they even told me about some novels, I will have to check them out later, but anime and manga first!

Anyway, it was the highlight of my recent days, having someone to talk with about this subject, it felt really good having to show no mask. Not having to behave like Rias Gremory the Heiress but like Rias Gremory, the teenager.

Hiro was not like the other guys who looked at me with only lust in their eyes, he wasn't like my so-called 'fiancee'. Yes, I could see that he appreciated my looks very much but he could also hold a conversation with me, he asked me about what I liked and actually enjoyed talking about my favorites with me. It was a good time and I enjoyed it very much.

Later, Hiro invited me to his place to host an anime viewing marathon and to show me his collectibles, of course I agreed, who wouldn't want to see such rare things?

A little bit later after that, Akeno came and she, as usual, started teasing me. I stole a glance at my new friends to see how they'd react and they just smiled and played along, seeming to not be affected by her and classes soon started.

During lunch, Akeno and I joined them on the rooftop, and I had to say, Valerie was a good cook, when I complimented her, she told me her side. 'Someone has to take care of the doofus, he's probably the smartest person I know but in the kitchen, he doesn't do as good'. It was clear to me now that these two dearly cared for each other. I was a bit jealous, I'm not going to lie. Was I ever going to have something like that?

Akeno continued her teasing of Hiro, with him fighting back and making the sadistic queen back off. I looked at Valerie, wondering if she was becoming upset, she must have heard everything. To my surprise, it seemed like she didn't care, she was even smiling. And I continued to glance at Hiro, he was becoming more interesting as time went on.

That day ended with him telling me once again to come on friday. All was good.

On his third day here, Hiro behaved as usual, he joked around with us as normal, got creeped by the people in this school, and generally made both Akeno and I laugh.

Yesterday, the fourth day, I had to ask myself, was I beginning to like him more than a friend? I think I was, how would I deal with this? What about Valerie? What about my betrothal? I was stressed. He noticed that and worried about me, asking me if I was ok and making sure I was throughout the day. That day passed as well.

Today was the day of the anime night and I was growing a bit anxious. Was I imagining things? How was everything going to go?

School passed faster than I would have liked with everything going great. I soon parted ways with the duo, with them telling me that they'll go on ahead and prepare things as I would be meeting them a bit later.

Later.

Later is now. And I was in front of his house.

What am I going to do?

'You're Rias Gremory' I keep telling myself that there's no reason to be so anxious. What happens, happens, maybe I am exaggerating thins, it is the first time that a guy like this invited me to his home. 'It's just anime'

Patting myself on the back, I rang the door.

*ring ring*

Soon enough, there he was, he opened the door with a smile on his face. A smile that I reciprocated.

It was time to go.

—--

(Hiro pov)

*ring ring*

"It must be Rias, I'll go get it" I told Val.

"Go get her, tiger" *wink wink*

I went to the door and there she was, dressed in casual clothes fit for an anime night but not enough to diminish her overall appearance.

"Hi, Rias! Come on in"

"Hi, Hiro!"

She entered the house and looked around at the place.

"I like the place, it feels homey" and she was right, we moved some things around the house and changed some of the furniture in order to make it feel like a perfect home for us.

"Thanks, now, get yourself comfortable while I bring everything over"

"Sure"

So I went to bring the snacks and drinks to the living room where we had set up this huge TV. I went back with everything and saw Valerie and Rias talking about one thing or another. As soon as Val saw me, she scooched a bit and made room for me to sit between her and Rias.

'My girl' I smirked internally.

I sat between the girls with Rias getting a bit flustered about our closeness but she soon settled down and we began watching some anime that both the girls had recommended. It was a romance-themed one.

Soon enough, we got into it, it was decent enough but not really up to my tastes as I didn't necessarily liked something focused only on romance, but it wasn't so bad that I couldn't watch. As if getting into the mood of the anime, Val soon leaned against me and hugged my arm. I looked over at Rias and she seemed fidgety as if thinking hard about something on the inside.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of battle, she looked like she had won. Surprising me a bit at her boldness, she leaned herself against me and sighed in what seemed to be a good mood.

I smiled internally and leaned my head against hers, making her jump just a bit but she soon settled even more comfortably against me.

That was it for the night, we didn't talk, we just enjoyed everything.

Once we saw a couple of episodes, close to an entire season, really. We got up and I lead Rias to the door, as she had to go.

"I loved having you here today, Rias. We should do this more often" I smiled at her.

"Yeah, I loved it too" she said blushing a bit, probably because she was thinking about our interactions during the watch.

"Good night and see you on Monday, Rias" I said as I went for a hug, surprising her.

"Uh-huh" she simply uttered and nodded, trying to hide her blush in my chest.

Then, she left.

I went back into the house and met with Valerie who just smiled mischievously at me.

'This minx is going to get it tonight' I thought and suddenly scooped her in my arms, taking her to bed.

Today was a good day.

—-

A/N

I hope you liked this chapter, another SoL themed one. The first few chapters of this arc will be more slow-paced until things pick up a bit later

No rant this time xd.

See you next time.