83: Chapter 83

Sona walked in, and she wasn't alone; the entire Student Council had arrived.

Luo Yu, the Vice President who was perpetually skipping class, was not present.

Asia Argento was also among the crowd. She had joined the Student Council but had not reincarnated as a Devil, making her the only human there.

Rias Gremory stood up, about to make introductions: "Suzaku, this is the Student Council President of Kuoh Academy, and also the daytime administrator of Kuoh Town—"

Before she could finish, she was interrupted by Himejima Suzaku. "Sona Sitri, I know who you are."

Himejima Suzaku's gaze was fixed directly on Sona Sitri. "A pure-blooded noble Devil of the Underworld, heir to the Sitri Clan, and the younger sister of the Maou, Serafall."

She paused. "And Ah Yu's fiancée."

After saying this, she swept her gaze over the others behind Sona. "Ah Yu's three disciples, Shinra Clan's Tsubaki Shinra, Reya Kusaka, and Tsubaki Shinra."

After learning of Luo Yu's identity, Himejima Suzaku had investigated everyone around him thoroughly.

Especially upon hearing that Luo Yu had a fiancée, her heart had been in turmoil, and the discomfort was indescribable. That feeling was just as incredibly complex as when she first discovered he was the Red Dragon Emperor she had been tasked to hunt down.

While Himejima Suzaku was sizing up Sona, Sona was also observing her.

The two of them just stared at each other.

Sona was not entirely ignorant about this new subordinate Rias Gremory had recruited. Over the past few days, whether from Rias Gremory's own words or from Luo Yu, she had gathered a fair amount of information.

In particular, the entanglements between Himejima Suzaku and Luo Yu were what she cared about most. All things considered, this woman could be considered a potential rival—she could tell that Himejima Suzaku's feelings for Luo Yu had never faded.

Thinking of this, Sona sighed internally. The phrase "attracting bees and butterflies" was truly fitting for Luo Yu. He owed too many romantic debts, and he had managed to provoke them without even realizing it, so Sona couldn't really say anything. Not to mention, many of these girls were her seniors.

Furthermore—girls like Koneko, Reya Kusaka, Tsubaki Shinra, and Asia Argento were manageable.

But ones like Akeno Himejima and Kuroka were truly troublesome. And now, there was Himejima Suzaku as well...

At this moment, when Tsubaki Shinra heard Himejima Suzaku mention "Shinra Clan's Tsubaki Shinra," her brows immediately furrowed.

She had no affection for the Shinra Clan and did not value it like Himejima Suzaku did. Rather than hate, it was more like hostility. She would rather people call her by her master's name than have any association with the Shinra Clan.

"Is she... Asia Argento?"

Rias Gremory looked with surprise at Asia Argento behind Sona. That wasn't Sona's subordinate, was she? Why bring her along? She knew Sona intended to recruit Asia Argento, but the girl was still human.

Asia Argento felt Rias Gremory's gaze and, like a startled little hamster, quickly bowed in response. "Ruruko Nimura and Asia Argento are both students in the Student Council without a familiar, so naturally, we have to go together to contract one."

"Sona, you know that's not what I meant. It's already an exception that they agreed to let us into the Familiar Forest, but Asia Argento is a human."

Almost all Devils' familiars came from the Familiar Forest, which was an important place in the Underworld, and races other than Devils were forbidden from entering.

"Don't worry, Luo Yu said that as long as we mention his name, that Familiar Master definitely won't dare to stop us."

Sona said with a smile. "Tch, that overbearing guy."

Rias Gremory curled her lip.

The current Luo Yu was notorious throughout the Three Realms. Who would dare to offend him over such a trivial matter? Unless they were tired of living. "Let's go."

Sona and Rias Gremory didn't chat any further.

Both of them simultaneously activated their magic circles, and red and blue lights instantly illuminated the entire Occult Research Club room.

The light flashed once.

The next second, Rias Gremory and Sona, along with their respective groups, were gone.

The Familiar Forest was neither in the Human World nor in the Underworld.

It was stuck in a spatial rift between the two worlds, a small plane forcibly carved out specifically as a sanctuary for familiars.

Outside this plane, a legion dispatched by the Underworld's New Maou Castle was stationed to guard it.

Familiars were strategic resources for the Underworld, so it was not surprising that troops were sent to protect them. Moreover, the Familiar Forest itself was not lacking in combat power; while it couldn't compare to the lair of divine and holy beasts on the seventh layer of Heaven, anyone who hadn't reached the Super Devil King Class and tried to force their way in was basically asking for death.

As for those above the Super Devil King Class, they wouldn't even look twice at a place like this.

If powerhouses at that level really wanted to attack the Underworld, they would just go straight for the New Maou Castle or other more important targets; there was no need to run over to attack the Familiar Forest, which would only alert the enemy. "Master, we're troubling you again this time."

Sona and Rias Gremory, along with their respective subordinates, stood on the outskirts of the Familiar Forest.

The magic circles beneath their feet slowly faded, and the surrounding scenery was fully revealed—lush green trees and dense vegetation. Just looking at the surface, it didn't seem much different from a forest in the Human World, except for the occasional rare plant unique to the Underworld mixed in.

A faint, chilly aura drifted through the air, and the entire forest was saturated with it.

To a human, it felt eerie and cold. But to Himejima Suzaku, who had recently reincarnated as a Devil, it actually felt quite comfortable.

Standing before Sona and Rias Gremory was a middle-aged man. He was dressed like an explorer and had a slightly disheveled look about him.

This man was the Underworld's renowned Familiar Master. Many future heads of pure-blooded noble Devil families, as well as their subordinates, had completed their familiar contracts under this master's guidance.

He was not only knowledgeable about the various characteristics and habits of familiars, but under his guidance, the success rate of contracting a familiar was significantly higher. After all, contracting a familiar wasn't just about you choosing it unilaterally, nor was it guaranteed to succeed one hundred percent of the time. "Miss Rias Gremory, Miss Sona, welcome to the Familiar Forest."

The Familiar Master took off the brown hat he was wearing and greeted them with a gentlemanly manner. However, paired with his attire, it looked a bit out of place.

He glanced at Asia Argento beside Sona but didn't say anything more.

The Familiar Forest had a rule: except for Devils, no one could enter. Even an heir to a pure-blooded noble family like Rias Gremory had to obediently comply; there was no room for negotiation.

But rules were rules, yet some people simply didn't take them into account. For example, the Red Dragon Emperor.

He knew very well that the fiancé of the heir to the House Sitri standing before him was the ruthless Red Dragon Emperor. Forget about bringing in a human; even if she brought an Angel or Fallen Angels—the mortal enemies of Devils—he could only pretend not to see it.

At the last banquet of the House Sitri, the blood of those pure-blooded nobles hadn't even dried yet. The patch of the Underworld's ground that had just been stained red was still painfully glaring. How could he dare to provoke the Red Dragon Emperor?

Those pure-blooded noble Devil families that were wiped out not long ago were the best examples. Compared to them, his own significance was nothing. If he were truly erased by the Red Dragon Emperor, the Underworld wouldn't even make a peep. "Which kind of familiar would the three of you like to contract?"

Usually, when other pure-blooded heirs brought their subordinates, he would lead them around the Familiar Forest and let them choose for themselves. But this time, he didn't dare to be perfunctory with the Red Dragon Emperor's fiancée.

Himejima Suzaku and Asia Argento didn't speak; they had been called over on short notice by Sona and Rias Gremory, and hadn't thought much about it beforehand.

Ruruko Nimura, however, raised her hand and said softly: "Master, I want a familiar that can provide magic support."

It was clear she had already thought about the positioning for her familiar. "Magic support, huh."

The Familiar Master looked at her and nodded: "You are a melee soldier; having a familiar with magic support behind you would indeed increase your combat power significantly."

He had the strength of an Ultimate-Class Devil and could see through Ruruko Nimura's rank at a glance. This girl looked gentle and weak, but her actual rank was quite different from her appearance. "However, there are many magic-type familiars, but once you add the word 'support,' there aren't many choices left in the entire Familiar Forest."

Sona and Rias Gremory both wore expressions of understanding. This was the norm.

Among familiars, the most numerous were melee types, followed by magic types, and finally, special types like support, healing, and curse-casters.

The Familiar Master led Sona's group into the Familiar Forest. After walking a few hundred meters, he stopped and pointed to a white-haired monkey swinging on a branch not far away.

The Twin Demon Ape familiar came with two support magic spells: weakening and shield augmentation, which were quite practical for a young girl. This white-haired monkey had two differently colored eye sockets—the left was red, and the right was black—and it looked like a demon, making it quite frightening to look at. Ruruko Nimura shivered and quickly shook her head to refuse.

The Familiar Master didn't force the issue. He also knew that the Twin Demon Ape's appearance really wasn't favored by girls. He had previously compiled data, and the number of female Devils who chose Twin Demon Apes was pitifully small; they were basically all taken by male Devils.

After skipping the Twin Demon Ape, the Familiar Master led them to look at several other types of support familiars. This master was indeed quite capable. He was crystal clear about every species of familiar in the Familiar Forest, explaining their characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages clearly and without any ambiguity.

Asia Argento and Ruruko Nimura listened very intently, but Himejima Suzaku was different. Her eyes were clearly filled with disappointment; after looking around, it seemed like none of them satisfied her, or rather, none were powerful enough to catch her eye.

An interesting thing happened in the middle of it all. A young Azure Thunder Dragon took the initiative to find Asia Argento, wanting to form a contract with her. The Familiar Master said that Azure Thunder Dragons generally chose kind-hearted people to serve as their masters, and Asia Argento fit this standard perfectly.

But the Unicorn cub Asia Argento had with her wasn't happy about it, and it immediately started scuffling with the young Azure Thunder Dragon.

Rias Gremory and the others then discovered that this nun who had been kicked out of the Church had actually been carrying a loyal Unicorn with her all along. Even the knowledgeable Familiar Master found it strange; for a nun expelled by the Church to be favored by both a Unicorn and an Azure Thunder Dragon was something he had encountered for the first time.

Following Sona's suggestion, Ruruko Nimura eventually chose a good-looking Black Mist Spirit Bird as her familiar.

The bird was wrapped in a faint black mist, and its feathers were a glossy black, not the ominous black that made one think of a crow. Its eyes were like inlaid blood-red gems, shining brilliantly.

The Black Mist Spirit Bird's ability was to whip up the black mist surrounding its body; within the mist, it could not only interfere with the enemy's senses and perception but also carried corrosive properties, effectively weakening opponents.

Himejima Suzaku stood in the Familiar Forest, looking at the palm-sized cubs in front of her, her brows knitted tightly. "Master, aren't there any familiars in this forest that can actually fight?"

The disdain in her words was not hidden at all. It wasn't that she looked down on the potential of these cubs—the Azure Thunder Dragon cub in Asia Argento's arms would surely be at least a High-Class Devil when it grew up, and it might even reach the Maou-Class, its bloodline almost rivaling that of a pure-blooded Devil. But she was different.