3 Chapter 3 - Hunting Strays
"Okay! Let's hunt stray devils then!" Lala became even more excited about the hunt. She wanted to see the capabilities of a stray devil, being a genius scientist herself.
Without hesitation, they entered the abandoned building.
"Kekeke. Well, well. What do we have here? Isn't this a pair of meals walking right into my trap?" When they entered, they heard an evil laugh and a voice coming from above them.
Lala and Ryuuga saw a giant creature with red tiger stripes, but it had the head of an old man.
"Wow... so ugly! Do devils always look like this?" Lala observed the stray devil and showed no fear.
"Well, it's originally a youkai called Gyuuki. But it looks different from the usual Gyuuki though. It must be contaminated with something. Pure-blooded devils usually look more human-like." Ryuuga explained to Lala, feeling puzzled by the stray devil's appearance.
Normally, Gyuuki have an ox head and spider-like legs, but the stray devil they encountered had a human head.
"Bitch, let's see who is ugly!" The stray devil roared angrily upon hearing Lala's comment. He cursed her and spat out purple-colored liquid from his mouth.
[Special Energy [Devil Energy] has been copied.]
[Passive Skill [Language] has been copied.]
[Active Skill [Poison Spit] has been copied.]
[Special Energy [Monster Energy] has been copied.]
[Special Magecraft [Monster Arts] has been copied.]
Recognizing the attack as poison, Ryuuga acted swiftly to protect Lala, urging her to dodge.
"Cursing and attacking my woman, you're seeking death." Ryuuga glared at the stray devil, feeling like a Chinese young master with his bold declaration.
Without hesitation, he leaped towards the stray devil with lightning speed, delivering a powerful punch to its head.
The impact created an explosive sound within the abandoned building.
"Seems like I overdid it." Ryuuga remarked as he surveyed the headless corpse of the stray devil. It hadn't even had a chance to scream before succumbing.
Ryuuga realized he had acquired numerous powers at once.
Previously, he only gained Passive Skill and Active Skill from Lala's bodyguards, Maul and Smutts. Now, he has acquired Special Energies and Special Magecraft.
Special Energy and Special Magecraft functioned similarly to Passive Skills but were more about affinity than skill. Now, he could harness Devil Energy and Monster Energy (Youki) at will.
Additionally, he had an affinity for Monster Arts or Youjutsu.
Language was an innate power of devils. Now, Ryuuga could effortlessly communicate in foreign languages, understanding them all.
As for Poison Spit, it is as its name suggests. He could spit out poison capable of dissolving non-divine materials.
"Ah! You're cheating! I wanted to fight a stray devil too!" Lala threw a tantrum at Ryuuga upon seeing the stray devil's demise. However, deep down, she felt really happy when he defended her and called her his woman.
"Don't worry, we'll hunt some more tonight." Ryuuga reassured Lala, patting her head.
"Okay!" Lala nodded excitedly.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Ryuuga and Lala were already at home. They had hunted three more stray devils before returning. Unfortunately, these were pure devils with low-class power, so only Ryuuga's Devil Energy increased.
But he also gained a new power from them.
[Active Skill [Devil Wings] has been copied.]
[Physique of [Royal Devilukean] has been copied.]
Now, he could also generate a pair of devil wings behind his back.
In addition, he copied Lala's physical power, which already made him as powerful as a Peak Ultimate-Class Devil.
Lala was always gradually becoming stronger every day. One day, her power might even surpass her own father's.
[Bar Mission: What's a bar without waitresses? Go to the Phenex Clan in the Underworld, and collect your waitresses! Progress: 0/15. Reward: Unknown.]
'Damn, you want me to green Riser, Iselle?' When Ryuuga received the mission, he knew immediately that what the system implied was Riser's peerage and younger sister.
[Host, I believe that your current power is enough to defeat his backing. Other than that, it's good to have some waitresses to manage the bar, right?]
"Well, it's not a bad idea." Ryuuga felt that the bar was too empty. He needed some girls to liven up the mood of the bar. However, he will do it tomorrow because he wants to watch movies with Lala tonight.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Time skip again.
Lala and Ryuuga went to school after they woke up. Yes, he found out Lala was sleeping in his bed naked again. Well, he didn't mind at all.
School time should have been boring, but today was not that boring. When Ryuuga was sleeping, suddenly the classroom door opened, which woke him up, and a beauty with long black hime cut hair entered the classroom.
She wore glasses, and behind those glasses, her heterochromatic eyes were shining brightly with a combination of blue and yellow.
"Oh? Isn't that the vice student council president?" One of the boys in the classroom recognized the beauty who entered.
Yes, she was Shinra Tsubaki, the current Vice Student Council President and also the Queen of Sona Sitri's Peerage.
"Excuse me, sensei. Sorry for the intrusion, but student Kamiya Ryuuga and student Lala Satalin Deviluke have been summoned by the student council." Tsubaki greeted the teacher and announced her task.
"Sure, sure. If they're being summoned by the student council, then it must be urgent." The teacher agreed right away. Well, the power of the student council in this school was very significant, no less than that of the principal.
"Let's go, Lala." Ryuuga who heard about him and Lala being called immediately stood up from his seat and also called Lala.
"Un!" Lala just nodded bubbly with a smile and followed him.
"Then, we will go, sensei. Thank you. Let's go, you two." Tsubaki said to the teacher after Ryuuga and Lala came to her. She gave a small bow and went away with Ryuuga and Lala.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
"Kamiya-san and Lala-san, my name is Shinra Tsubaki, and as you know, I'm from the student council." Tsubaki introduced herself to both of them.
"Nice to meet you, Tsubaki!" Lala excitedly greeted Tsubaki back. Although it's not polite to call a senpai without an honorific, Tsubaki let it slide because she knew that Lala is a foreigner.
"Senpai, may we know why you brought us to the student council?" Ryuuga also replied to her greeting with a smile and asked.
"Nee, what is a student council?" Lala was curious about the term she had never heard before.
"Lala-san, the student council is an organization inside a school that manages the students and events for the school." Tsubaki answered Lala with a smile this time.
Lala seemed to understand and nodded.
"And as for Kamiya-san's question, we called you because of Lala-san's incident yesterday where she told the whole class about being an alien." Tsubaki explained briefly.
Hearing this, Ryuuga felt that Sona wanted to recruit Lala into her peerage. But why was he also called? Did they find out about his hunting yesterday?
Well, forget it. He would find out in a moment anyway.
Not long after, the three of them finally arrived at the Student Council Room.
"Excuse me, Kaichou. I've brought the two people you called." Tsubaki spoke in front of the door before entering the room.
"Enter." A girl's voice could be heard from inside the room, permitting them to enter. Tsubaki then opened the door and guided them inside.
As they entered, Ryuuga and Lala saw a pair of beautiful girls inside the Student Council Room.
The girl sitting behind the desk is obviously the student council president. She had short black bob-cut hair and a pair of violet eyes, making her both beautiful and cute.
On the other side was the crimson-haired girl with a voluptuous figure. She had long crimson hair with an ahoge standing out and a pair of blue eyes, exuding elegance and allure.
"Well, well. What a grand welcome, heiress of Gremory and Sitri." Ryuuga declared confidently as he entered the room. He wasn't afraid of them at all, knowing he was more powerful.
"As expected, you know about us. So, you're the ones who hunted the stray devils last night, correct?" Rias Gremory smiled. She patrolled Kuoh Town daily, ready to eliminate any stray devils.
But last night, she saw someone hunting the stray devils. It was a pair of a black-haired boy and a pink-haired girl, effortlessly dispatching the stray devils.
Upon returning, she investigated their origins and discovered they were students of Kuoh Academy.
"Correct." Ryuuga affirmed with a nod.
"Ryuuga, who are they?" Lala asked, curious about the situation.
"Lala-san, to be honest, we're all devils here. We manage this town." Tsubaki explained to Lala in a friendly manner. She wanted to ensure Lala felt included.
"Oh! You guys do look like humans, just like Ryuuga said!" Lala's eyes sparkled as she spoke in understanding.
"What are your goals here, Kamiya-san?" Sona, the student council president, asked directly, wanting to understand why a human knowledgeable about supernatural matters was living in their managed town.
"Hmm… I don't really have any goals. Well, I do own a bar in this town." Ryuuga spoke after pondering what he should say.
"Then, what about your knowledge of supernatural matters?" Rias continued.
"Well, I come from a family of magicians, but both my parents are deceased." In the end, he opted for the simplest lie. It wasn't common for there to be a small family of magicians.
They also didn't banish them from the town upon taking over as managers due to their large numbers.
"I presume your family was killed by stray devils, then?" Sona said confidently, adjusting her glasses.
"Yeah." Ryuuga replied with a nod. Thank you for providing me with an excuse, Sona.
"Then, Lala-san. They said you're an alien. Is that correct?" Sona shifted the conversation to Lala's matter.
"Yup! I have a tail! Look!" Lala replied with a nod, showing her tail swaying with a smile. Rias and Sona, upon seeing it, also believed her.
"Can it be hidden, Lala-san?" Rias inquired. It would be troublesome if everyone in the world knew she was an alien.
"Eh? No!" Lala replied. She didn't want to, and she couldn't.
"I see. Well, we've already placed a memory barrier around the school. So, memories of you being an alien will be erased once they leave the school grounds. However, if they return, they'll still remember." Sona explained. It seemed she and Rias had been busy the previous day as well.
