(Illustration: Gabriel.)
...
Griselda: Hm?
What had she just heard?
Seraph Gabriel, Angel Milana, and Holy Sword wielder Linte? Holy Son-sama had already "reserved" them for tonight?!
"Lady Asia, is what you said true?!" Griselda's red lips parted in shock.
"Of course it's true." Asia's smile didn't waver.
"So, Sister Griselda, you don't need to worry about not having the qualifications."
"Since Akuto-kun let you stay here in his home, it means he's very fond of you. It also means he intends for you to become his partner as well."
"If you have that many questions in your heart, why not ask Akuto-kun face to face tonight, hmm?"
"..."
"Alright. Thank you very much for your guidance, Lady Asia."
Griselda nodded, her gaze becoming incomparably firm.
...
And so, night fell. Griselda ate dinner early, then was shut into the wardrobe by Asia.
After dinner, Akuto and Asia began their usual nightly "recreational activities."
Considering there were others coming tonight, Akuto decided to first "feed" the people already at home.
Asia's choice was undoubtedly correct. Although she didn't blend in that well with Saint Olivetan's group, ever since she'd debuted as part of the "Church Trio" with Irina and Xenovia, the time Akuto spent on the three of them had indeed increased quite a bit compared to before.
"Hmm? This is..."
After eating, Akuto glanced toward his own room and immediately spotted Griselda hiding in the wardrobe.
"This is a present I prepared for Akuto-kun~"
Asia smiled as she met Akuto's eyes. Before he could respond, she leaned up of her own accord and pressed her soft lips to his.
And just like that, with Asia and the other girls surrounding him, Akuto was warmly "escorted" back to his room.
Since tonight's theme was "maids," Asia, Xenovia, and Irina had all changed into white-stocking maid outfits earlier in the day.
With three pairs of slender, silk-clad legs and maid skirts swaying in front of him, Akuto was in an excellent mood as he enjoyed their company.
And it wasn't just Akuto—Asia, Xenovia, and Irina each felt the thrill and freshness of the situation as well.
Because they all knew that, inside the wardrobe, the nun who was like a mother to them—Griselda—was watching everything.
Normally, among the three, Asia was the most gentle and attentive, Irina the shyest and cutest, and Xenovia the most straightforward and bold.
But tonight, Xenovia, who was usually all energy and stamina, was uncharacteristically shy, like she couldn't bring herself to fully let go.
Akuto really liked this gap-moe side of Xenovia, so he pretended not to notice, while quietly adjusting positions and angles.
In the end, with Akuto's adjustments, his head and feet ended up in a line perpendicular to the wardrobe, while Xenovia, who was sitting astride him, was facing directly toward it.
As she moved, Xenovia kept sneaking glances through the crack in the wardrobe door. It was as if, through that narrow gap, she really could see Griselda's gentle yet stern, motherly gaze.
With all that stimulation piled together, Xenovia was the first to be overwhelmed. Under Griselda's unseen eyes, Xenovia's endurance gave out unusually fast tonight—her vision went white and she slumped into Akuto's arms in a faint.
Inside the wardrobe, Griselda felt a wave of rising heat throughout her body. The resolve in her eyes softened, turning moist, but even so, she forced herself to stay clear-headed.
Seeing that she was still managing to remain conscious, Akuto smiled faintly and quietly circulated his succubus bloodline to its fullest.
Because Griselda already believed in him, even with some distance between them, she soon felt that charm working on her. Her slender fingers trembled, clutching tightly at the hem of her habit, knees pressing together as she struggled to steady her breathing.
Tonight was destined to feel endless.
...
Griselda gradually lost any sense of time passing. Only when the seraph with golden wings—Gabriel—arrived did her eyes finally light up again.
"Ah~ Lady Gabriel's body is so sacred..."
All this time, Gabriel had carried the title of "Heaven's Number One Beauty." Even Griselda, who had always considered herself fairly beautiful, could only feel overshadowed standing next to Gabriel.
As a high-ranking member of the Church, it wasn't as if Griselda had never seen Gabriel before. But seeing Gabriel in the past and seeing her now were two completely different matters.
Because now, behind Gabriel, there were fourteen golden wings spread out!
She had surpassed her former twelve golden wings.
After this evolution, Gabriel's presence had only become more striking, and even her features seemed subtly refined. That was why, even though Griselda had already met her before, she still couldn't help being swept up by Gabriel's beauty all over again.
...
At this point, Griselda felt like her thoughts were "blocked on both ends."
According to Asia and the others, Akuto possessed the power to grant further evolution to believers and angels, making him the most qualified successor to the will of the God of the Bible.
In practice, Akuto had indeed achieved that perfectly.
Logically, a Holy Son-sama who could do something like that should have been someone who perfectly inherited the divine one's will.
However, Holy Son Sai Akuto seemed to especially like making believers and angels into his partners at his bedside.
Not for any greater divine plan—just because of his personal preferences, he had taken a huge number of saints and sisters into his harem.
Previously, Griselda had believed that Akuto took those saints and sisters to another world to spread the faith.
But now, it seemed more likely that Akuto intended to "claim" all those saints and sisters in that other world. In fact... it was very possible he had already done so.
When she thought about how Holy Son-sama might actually be someone who had sunk into lust like this, Griselda felt like she was about to mentally collapse.
Yet when she thought about how, even if he had sunk into lust, Holy Son Sai Akuto's image in the eyes of the outside world was still that of the single most excellent successor, Griselda felt her outlook collapsing even further.
So in the end... was there something wrong with her way of thinking? Why did everyone else seem to think there was nothing wrong with any of this?
And so, under Griselda's gaze, Gabriel slowly bent down, her golden wings and pale feet stretching gracefully.
As a seraph, Gabriel's wings were a particularly special, radiant gold.
It was Akuto's first time seeing the room filled with drifting golden feathers, and he found the sight strangely fascinating.
The blonde seraph's wings fluttered as she shared an intimate, sacred union with him, golden feathers floating down around the bed like a shimmering veil.
Fortunately, an angel's feathers were condensed energy and could be regenerated as long as there was power to sustain them. Otherwise, at the rate they were falling right now, no number of wings would have been enough.
"Lady Gabriel hasn't fallen. Is it because, while she's united with Holy Son-sama, she's completely free of impure thoughts?"
Griselda knew that, once an angel had relations with the opposite sex, the chance of falling from grace was extremely high—but it wasn't absolute.
In theory, if an angel could keep their mind entirely free of impurity during the act, they could maintain their status as an angel.
In practice, with the help of special barriers, Heaven really had seen the birth of a few "miracle children" (hybrids between angels and humans).
However, looking at Gabriel now—taking the initiative to cling to Akuto, eyes occasionally rolling back as if overwhelmed—Griselda really couldn't describe that as being unaffected by impure thoughts.
So, that only left one explanation.
It could only be because—Holy Son-sama was a truly special existence. As long as the one they were with was Holy Son-sama, angels would not fall, no matter whether impure thoughts touched their hearts or not.
After arriving at that conclusion, Griselda no longer knew what to say...
She only knew that Gabriel's strength was truly impressive. After evolving into a fourteen-winged angel, she was the one who held out the longest.
"Next up should be Linte."
Griselda shifted her gaze slightly toward the girl with the special black-and-white hair.
By the edge of the golden bed, Linte was covering her eyes with both hands.
But through the gaps between her fingers, Griselda could clearly see the shimmering moisture in the girl's eyes.
Obviously, Linte's attempt at "not looking" was no more than self-deception.
"Mm... so this is the final trial?" Linte's throat bobbed as she swallowed, her white feet shifting restlessly in her black loafers, toes rubbing against the purple stockings that hugged her legs.
"Linte-san, don't worry. Shu-kun is very gentle."
By now, Asia, who had been the first to be overwhelmed, had woken up again and was gently helping the somewhat nervous Linte.
Akuto reached out with both hands. One hand gently stroked Linte's unusually colored hair, while the other lightly squeezed her small foot through the purple stockings.
Akuto had to admit it—Linte's black-and-white hair and distinctive purple tights were both very eye-catching.
Maybe it was the Sacred Gear's influence.
The Sacred Gear called "Purple Flame Rite Altar (Holy Cross)" seemed to attract hosts with certain aesthetic quirks.
In the original story, leaving aside the very first wielder, Iacusta, who used "Purple Flame Rite Altar (Holy Cross)"...
The second-generation Holy Cross user, Varg, was a witch who loved wearing purple gothic lolita outfits.
After Varg, the third-generation Holy Cross user, Linte Sellan, was a reincarnated angel who loved wearing purple tights.
If he also considered the White Dragon Emperor's silver hair, then maybe Sacred Gear users really did like colors that matched their own gear?
Very soon, Linte began putting into practice the "knowledge" she had just learned from the harem's formation earlier.
"T-then... p-please take care of me, Akuto-sama."
Linte stole a glance at the fainted Gabriel, then closed her eyes and slowly leaned in, accepting his embrace.
With a soft rustle, her eight pure wings spread wide. The tips of her purple-stockinged toes tensed and relaxed again and again. Each time her toes curled and stretched, the wings behind her seemed to tremble as well.
Looking at this extremely cute girl who still forced herself to muster courage for this "final trial," Akuto supported Linte by the waistband of her purple tights around her waist, and sank into thought over a particular question.
[Originally, my idea was that if I ran into Varg or Iacusta later on, I'd strip "Purple Flame Rite Altar" off one of them and transfer it to Varg.]
[But now that the Teigu has evolved into a Sacred Gear, and with my "Teigu Creation Compendium," I've gained absolute understanding of all Teigu. My knowledge and practical experience with Sacred Gears have improved a lot recently.]
[According to the God of the Bible's knowledge, Sacred Gears automatically seek out hosts with high compatibility. And according to the system's theory, characters in the original plot obtaining the power they're "supposed" to get is the result of destiny.]
[If I forcibly change that destiny and let two separate "fated" paths stack together... would that allow "Purple Flame Rite Altar" to show even greater power?]
(End of Chapter)
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