Kenji was not happy.
He stared down at his unconscious daughter, the vial of the potion lying just on the ground beside her. The very air around him seemed to be trembling with fury just seeing her like that, he felt the need to bring that bastard crow back to life and kill him again.
Then he turned his cold gaze to the teens and young devils gathered around the field. "Well," he said again, the word dropping into the silence with the finality of a guillotine blade. Every single person, from the battered members of Rias's peerage to the wounded, lesser injure Devils of the student council, flinches visibly.
Wounded and exhausted though they were, most of them were now healed, thanks to the quick application of Asia's Sacred Gear. But even so, they were under no illusion that they could win against this man in front of them.
This human. This monster.
Rias stepped forward, other members of her peerage shifting to her flanks. Relief showed on her face when Sona and the rest of her family emerged from where they'd been regrouping, the shattered barrier offered no shelter now. Even if they could raise it again, would it even matter against this monster? He had already torn through Sona's powerful protection like it was made of tissue paper once, what's to say that he couldn't do it again.
"Mr. Takahashi, we thank you, and we—" Rias began, trying to inject a solemn, diplomatic tone into the disastrous situation.
He cut her off, his voice knife-quiet, he was not in the mood for all this talk. "That's not what I asked."
The young Devils went stone still at the tone the man used. "I asked what brought my daughter here. Why was she here, involved with you bats?"
That single word, dripping with pure contempt, bristled the feathers of nearly every Devil present, but no one moved to defy him. They had just witnessed him turn an entire army of fallen into mist and then decapitate the leader of the Grigori.
The fear was too immediate for them to even think of doing anything stupid right now. Kenji observed them, noticing the fear in their eyes.
He knew his little girl was still human, so she wasn't part of their slave club, and he was going to make damn sure she never was.
He sighed inwardly, seeing that the group couldn't even manage an answer at their current state. He didn't want to waste time on posturing.
"Move," he commanded, his patience completely expended. He scooped Ayaka's small, still form into his arms, adjusting his hold gently.
It was time to go home. And it seemed that's when someone else decided to make an entrance.
A powerful crimson magic circle flared to life at his feet as he prepared to leave. He knew the color and signature, Gremory, so he expected someone from the family, and, just as he expected, the strongest Queen herself stepped through when the light faded.
Grayfia Lucifuge stood there, immaculate in her maid uniform, her silver eyes narrowing instantly as she took in the devastation of the school, the body parts scattered everywhere, and finally, Kenji.
Though her initial focus was on Rias, her gaze flicked to Kenji after sensing his power.
He ignored her, treating her like any other obstacle, and began to walk away, making his way past the pulverized edge of the crater. He had come for his daughter and nothing more. He would not be pulled into the politics of Devils tonight.
"Wait," Rias called weakly from behind. He kept going.
"Wait." Grayfia's voice was low, cutting, and edged with the cold authority of the Underworld's highest ranks.
Kenji felt the temperature drop at his back. He stopped and turned, lips pressed thin with annoyance. "I am neither a contractor nor one of your Devils, so why must I answer to you?" he said curtly, his golden eyes radiating cold dismissal.
Grayfia's demeanor, which rarely faltered, matched his own freezing contempt. "This concerns the heir of House Gremory, and the presence of unprecedented power on her territory. As maid to Lord Lucifer, I have been sent to investigate. I would like you to explain what transpired here." The magic circle on her palm began to spin with ready power.
"Do it if you dare, bat," Kenji said flatly. "You'd be dead before that spell reaches me."
He watched her carefully. Did she truly believe that just using the name of a Satan would compel him to stop and answer her, or was it she who was supposed to scare him? It may work for others, who were part of their faction or others who care or were weak, but it wasn't going to work on him. Grayfia's title, her status as the Strongest Queen, meant precisely nothing to him. Right now, he had killed Kokabiel and had already added the man's remaining stats to his own. He was at the peak of ultimate class, so even if she was Satan class, he'd win.
"As I have said, I am not one of your slave pets. Do not involve me with your kind," his voice lowered at the end, a subtle shift that made the atmosphere crackle as the weight of the air around them started getting heavy. "You won't like what happens."
With that, he turned back and continued leaving. He felt her spell charge. No doubt she was ready to attack him, her intent clear, and He was prepared to kill her if she released it, regardless of who she worked for.
"Grayfia, enough!" Rias shouted, her voice laced with panic. She didn't want a fight to happen here, especially not between her sister-in-law and the man who had just saved their lives, a man who had demonstrated the capacity to end them all effortlessly.
A part of her still believed Grayfia was invincible, but after seeing the dismantling of Kokabiel, Rias knew a fight would yield nothing but catastrophic results.
She rushed closer to the departing figure. "Thank you again, Mr. Takahashi. Truly." And she really meant it.
He ignored the gratitude. With a subtle surge of Gravity, he rose into the air and then, with a blur that shattered the sound barrier, blasted off and vanished into the sky, leaving behind a smoking trail of compressed air.
Rias exhaled and allowed herself to slump, the adrenaline finally draining away. Her friends relaxed, sinking to their knees, exhaustion and emotional duress left them shaky.
"Lady Rias, who was that man?" Grayfia asked, her silver eyes narrowed in furious thought. Her surprise was genuine. Humans who possessed power near or at the Ultimate-Class level were known and famous or infamous, depending on who they were. For her not to even know who this man was was a surprise to her.
"He is the father of one of my schoolmates, Ayaka Takahashi," Rias told her.
Grayfia's expression hardened into a sharp mask of disbelief. "And why have you never mentioned that someone of his capability was near you? This is absolutely paramount information that should have been disclosed to the family immediately."
"I was not aware of someone like him until today," Rias told Grayfia, the admission stinging with shame. Someone powerful that close.
"Didn't you and my brother conduct extensive background checks on everyone at the academy when I came to the Human World?" she asked. Surely, they hadn't missed that. Ayaka had been in Kuoh Academy for as long as Rias had been here, so the checks should have brought something up.
"We did, Lady Rias, but I don't believe they were anybody that noteworthy in the reports. They checked for magical lineage, Devil contracts, and known supernatural ties, he had none," Grayfia explained.
Grayfia inhaled sharply before calming herself. "I must leave to inform my king immediately. The death of Kokabiel by an unknown human on our land… this is a serious matter." She bowed slightly. "Will you be all right, Lady Rias? Lady Sona?"
"We will be alright, Grayfia. Go tell my brother," Rias told her.
Grayfia activated a magic circle and vanished back to the Underworld. Rias turned back to the sky in the direction where Kenji had flown, before looking down at her right hand, where her knight piece was.
She sighed, a weariness settling in her bones, before turning back to everyone. "Let's head inside. I'm sure we all need to rest." With that, they headed inside to fully recover from the intense battle.
Meanwhile, Kenji landed back in front of his home with Ayaka in his arms. He was barely at the door before it slammed open wide, and Anastasia burst out, her face a stark white canvas of panic.
"What happened? Is she okay?" she demanded, her voice a desperate plea. Anastasia had been frantic when her husband had asked about their oldest child and then rushed out. Now, seeing him return holding their unconscious daughter didn't ease her terror at all.
"She's alright now," he said shortly as he moved into the house, his wife following behind and quickly closing the door. He moved up to Ayaka's room before gently placing her in her bed, Anastasia hovering at his back, her eyes fixed on their oldest child as she lay there in her bed.
"What happened?" she asked, a tremble running through her voice as she gently touched Ayaka's forehead.
"Devils," Kenji spat out, the word.
Anastasia tensed, remembering Kenji's warnings about the three factions, their tendency to cause trouble, and his firm belief that it was better to stay away from them.
Kenji had an idea of why his daughter was at the school tonight, but he decided it would be better to ask her in the morning.
He softened as he looked at his sleeping daughter, the terrifying reality that he had almost lost her today, had he not known what was happening, he was sure she'd be dead or revived as a devil had they survived Kokabiel. He sighed.
"She's going to be fine," he said, pulling Anastasia into an embrace as she kept her eyes on Ayaka. "Where are the other kids?" he asked, trying to shift her focus to something less terrifying.
"I sent them off to their rooms after they finished eating dinner," she replied in a small voice.
He hummed before pulling her into their own room. They sat there in the room in silence for a while, both of them in their own minds.
Finally, Kenji spoke up, his voice taking on a hard, resolved edge. "I want to train you and the kids."
Anastasia's head snapped up. "Where did that come from?" she asked, surprised.
It felt so random. No, no, it wasn't. She knew why he wanted to, she herself had wanted to ask him of the same thing.
Kenji honestly didn't want to train his kids this early he wanted to wait a while.
While many would say he should have, he felt like he was taking away their innocence, teaching them to fight because the world was too dangerous.
"I don't like it," he admitted, his eyes distant. "But I can't be everywhere at once. Today proved that. When Azazel came too, it proved that even the wards I put are not 100% so I want you and the kids to be able to protect yourselves if anything happens."
He covered her hand with his. "That feeling you had when Azazel charmed you? That violation of your free will? I don't want you or them to ever feel something like that."
Anastasia was quiet, processing the grim truth of his words. Finally, she nodded slowly.
"I don't want that either, but with everything you've told me and even from what little I've seen, I believe it's a good idea," she whispered, turning to face him. "You can't be everywhere at once to protect us, and just today proves that." She placed her hand on his cheek.
"Then we'll talk with the kids tomorrow," he said.
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