20 - My Confession... to the Priest

Once again, everyone in that room was looking at me, waiting for an explanation. However, I didn't have to give them a complex explanation if I didn't want to, right?

"I'm not stupid. I can think rationally," I replied, slightly touching my forehead with one hand. "Stop and think about it. If there is one Fallen Angel in the city, there are others.

It's so obvious that even though you didn't believe me when I said I knew the location of the other Fallen Angels, you completely trusted the only plural word in my statement."

"Yes, that's obvious," Koneko said and took another potato chip from the bag and started chewing. "But that doesn't explain how you know where they are."

I took a deep breath. "The Fallen Angels know where they are and are not acting here randomly. The City of Kuoh is indeed devil territory, but they probably know that only two teenage girls are in charge of this region. They must underestimate Rias-san and Sitri-san. However, they aren't idiots to the point of acting carelessly. The proof of that is our current prisoner. Raynare was in disguise when she approached me and only showed her true face when we were under a supernatural barrier."

"Hmm... That makes sense. When you called me over to that park, I immediately sensed remnants of a magical concealment barrier in that area," Rias agreed, staring at her desk.

"If everyone understands that part, it's easy to understand the other part." I smiled and asked, "What are the only areas where we devils can't get too close or act?"

Everyone was silent for a second as they thought, and it was Akeno Himejima who raised her hand first.

I snapped my fingers and pointed at Akeno, allowing her to answer.

"The area around the old town church is always covered by a sacred barrier," Akeno said.

"Correct answer." I nodded with my arms crossed and a smile on my lips.

"So... you don't know exactly where they are. It's just a deduction," Koneko stated.

"Yes, it was just a deduction at first, but now I'm completely sure." I affirmed and turned my attention to the club president. "Rias-san, do you remember what I did earlier today and why you scolded me?"

"Scolded?" Akeno asked, surprised.

"Yes, a scolding. The way Rias-san pointed out what I was doing and reprimanded me, it was as if she had been following me."

Rias looked away and pouted. "I wasn't following you, not personally at least... I had a Familiar follow you to see how you would do on your first task alone."

I nodded. "For those who don't know, earlier, when I was handing out flyers, I got too close to a church."

"How reckless, Leonard-senpai," Kiba said.

"He wasn't ready for a mission alone yet."

"I should have been accompanying him again. It was my fault."

"But I didn't do it on purpose," I said to stop the public judgment. "I was following a nun to the church. Don't worry, she didn't know what I was, but I knew who she was, so I wanted to see where she was going."

"A nun?" Koneko, Kiba, and Akeno asked simultaneously.

"It's completely normal for Church employees to make occasional visits to Kuoh," Rias explained in a serious tone. "Most Church members have no idea that demons actually exist, so some enter our territory and don't suffer the direct consequences of doing so... We only attack when they're exorcists."

"But a nun with a Sacred Gear going to an abandoned church? That seems too suspicious."

"Sacred Gear?" Rias asked with wide eyes. "The nun you found today had a Sacred Gear? Why didn't you mention it before?"

"You scolded me and then left. I didn't have time."

"Oh, Buchou~ That's not like you," Akeno said with a playful smile to Rias, who gritted her teeth and blushed.

"The situation has completely changed then," Rias declared and stood up again. "We're going to the church right away to check if they're there."

"What about the stray devil we were going to hunt?" Kiba asked, sighing in disappointment as he looked at his sheathed sword.

"Don't worry about a mere stray devil, Yuuto-kun. I'll ask Sona and the Student Council to handle it. Because if Leonard-kun is right, and I want him to be, today we're going to fight Fallen Angels." Rias said with a tight smile and clenched fists. "They will kneel and beg for forgiveness for entering my territory." 

"That's the Buchou I know." With her arms crossed and a serene expression, Akeno affirmed.

When I realized it, I was already in front of the double wooden doors of that church I had seen so far away earlier. Thanks to the effect of a resistance spell cast by Akeno, I wasn't feeling the effects of being inside a sacred area. However, we had to be quick because protective magic like this had a time limit.

As I expected, the church door was ajar and there was a strange aura in the air. Even so, I put my hand on the doorknob and pulled it before taking my first step inside.

The interior of the church was dark, but there was a subtle light coming in through the broken stained glass windows. The place looked abandoned from the outside, but inside it was well maintained. There was no graffiti or broken benches, as one might expect from an abandoned church.

In a situation like this, I would normally introduce myself and try to call out to someone, but of course I wouldn't do something stupid like that because, while the others were hunting the Fallen Angels away from this church, I had my own reasons for being here. 

"Before we go, I'd like to ask you something." I spoke to Rias before we left the club building.

"What do you need?" Rias asked. "I know it may be too much to ask of you, but you are also a King now. You must protect the sovereignty of the devils in this city."

I shook my head. "I don't oppose that, but I want you to spare the life of the nun I told you about."

Rias smiled and nodded. "Don't worry about it. We're not bloodthirsty, and we'll spare her if she's innocent."

I noticed that Akeno was looking at me from the corner of her eye at that moment, but it didn't matter. I would probably never be able to have Akeno in my peerage, but I could have Asia.

When I reached the middle of the large hall of that church, I was surrounded by pews. The light passing through the stained glass windows illuminated my face, but further ahead was complete darkness. The full moon did not reach the altar of the church.

"Resist the devil, and he will flee from you," said a male voice that came from my left.

"Haha... That phrase fills my heart whenever I remember its meaning."

I glanced to my left and saw a white-haired man emerging from the darkness between two large windows. He was a young adult with white hair who wore a black overcoat, just like a vampire hunter from the Victorian era.

The aura of insanity emanating from this priest was recognizable, as was his smile when he finally stepped into the light of the sweat.

He was Freed Sellzen, the most annoying and persistent villain in the entire High School DxD universe. If I got rid of him now, I would avoid a lot of trouble later on.