Although it had been a little sudden for Akeno, she truly had no intention of letting Rod leave through that door.
What happened next naturally needed no further explanation.
Akeno, who had already been willing, showed Rod just how impressive her character model truly was.
As for her other skills, however, those were a little harder to praise.
Although her performance in the hot spring had made her seem like a veteran driver with plenty of experience, once it came time for actual practice, Rod's impression was that she was still very much a beginner.
His evaluation: all theory, no practice.
Still, since she had come to him willingly, Rod naturally had no intention of demanding too much.
Besides, if Akeno really had behaved like some seasoned veteran, he would have started getting suspicious instead.
...
The next day.
Morning light filtered through the window lattice, scattering fragments of warmth across the headboard. Even the air seemed wrapped in a faint sweetness.
Rod glanced at the girl beside him, who had gone soft as melted clay.
A slender, fair limb peeked out from beneath the thin sheet, seeming to glow faintly under the sunlight.
Perhaps sensing Rod's movement, Akeno slowly woke from her light sleep.
Remembering what had happened the night before, a maidenly shyness appeared on her cheeks.
Although Akeno felt that her relationship with Rod had progressed a little quickly, the result was exactly what she had wanted.
"Actually, last night, I originally only meant to tease you. I didn't expect you to actually..."
Akeno did not finish the rest, but her tone carried a faint trace of grievance.
Rod, however, clearly did not take it seriously.
"If you really felt that way, you would have thrown me out last night."
Hearing this, Akeno's expression stiffened.
Although she had frozen at the time, her mind had actually been turning very quickly.
She knew that if she did not seize that opportunity, there was no telling how long she would have to wait for the next one.
Perhaps there would never be another.
After all, in her mind, Rod was exactly that kind of person.
If an opportunity appeared, he would immediately act on it. But if he was rejected even once, then once that chance was gone, it might never return.
"Besides, you were too rough last night."
"My bad. But I didn't expect you to be that inexperienced either. At first, you came at me with such a commanding aura that I thought you were incredibly strong. In the end, after only a few dozen times, I knocked you down with one strike and had you begging for mercy. You're completely different from how you usually act."
"..."
Akeno was instantly speechless.
If you do not know how to speak properly, you can just stay quiet.
"Speaking of which, the others shouldn't know, right?"
Akeno asked cautiously.
She still wanted to keep something like this a secret.
"Not many."
Rod thought for a moment.
"Lavinia often runs to my room to sleep. Asia occasionally comes over too. And scents can't be hidden from Kuroka and Koneko. Other than Rias, everyone else can probably guess at least a little."
"How is that any different from everyone knowing?!"
Akeno was instantly shocked.
She had deliberately kept her voice down last night because she was afraid the people next door would hear, but in the end, all that effort had been useless.
"It's fine. No one will say anything about you anyway."
Rod thought about it.
After the other girls found out, not only would it not turn into a battlefield, they might even envy Akeno.
This was all thanks to the fact that this was the world of High School DxD. If this were an ordinary school romance anime, the first half would be normal jealousy and rivalry, while the final episode might turn into a hatchet ending.
That said, Akeno still felt a little uncomfortable, and she also felt as though something was missing.
If everyone except Rias knew, then suddenly it did not feel very thrilling at all.
No, wait.
It was precisely because Rias did not know that it was even more thrilling, wasn't it?
At that moment, Rod suddenly remembered something.
"I might be going to Kyoto in a while. Do you have anything you need me to do there, or any unfinished wish?"
Since he would sooner or later have to go to Kyoto and play hero games with Cao Cao and the others, he might as well see whether he could trigger a new mission ahead of time.
And when it came to people connected to Kyoto, among those around him, there was no one more relevant than Akeno.
The moment Kyoto was mentioned, Akeno's originally resentful expression changed sharply.
It was as though the obedient, lazy cat had instantly transformed into a lioness suppressing her anger. Even the aura around her shifted.
For most ordinary residents of Japan, Kyoto was a wonderful place.
Although many parts of Japan had entered the modern era, Kyoto still preserved many buildings in traditional historical styles. It was an important city for the inheritance of Japanese tradition and one of the places many tourists loved to visit.
But for Akeno, Kyoto was both a place filled with warm memories and a painful land she did not wish to remember.
Kyoto was where she and her mother, Shuri Himejima, had lived for more than ten years.
That place was filled with beautiful memories from her childhood.
But at the same time, it was also the den of demons where her mother had been driven to suicide by the Himejima family and where Akeno herself had been hunted down.
When she escaped to a neighboring city, it had been Rias who stepped in and saved her.
At the same time, however, Rias had made an agreement with the Himejima family.
Akeno would never be allowed to set foot in Kyoto again for the rest of her life.
If she did, she would be killed without mercy.
Although Akeno had never stopped wanting to avenge her mother, her individual strength was far too small.
On top of that, now that the Three Great Factions had formed an alliance and everything was moving in the direction of peace, her personal wishes had become even more insignificant.
Perhaps even after a hundred years, a thousand years, or ten thousand years, her wish would still never come true.
Besides, after a hundred years, all of her enemies would already be dead.
What meaning would revenge have then?
Akeno knew that Rod was a mercenary, and she also knew that he understood her past.
But she was unwilling to trouble him over something like this.
Especially now that she had only just become his woman.
If she immediately thought too highly of herself because of that, would that not be the same as using her purity as a bargaining chip to fulfill her desire for revenge?
Akeno wanted revenge.
But she absolutely did not want to achieve it in that way.
More importantly, she did not want to make things difficult for Rod.
The Five Principal Clans had deep foundations and formidable strength. Even if Rod was powerful as well, targeting the Himejima family would be the same as going against the entire Five Principal Clans.
That was asking too much.
Rod, however, did not care about any of that.
If a mission was clearly about to trigger and he gave up halfway, could he even call himself human?
"Don't feel burdened. I'm asking this for my own sake too."
"?"
Seeing Rod's firm attitude, Akeno did not understand the reason, but she felt that he was doing this for her. Her heart was moved beyond words.
In the end, she could only tell him her wish, while also hoping that he would not act impulsively.
Rod agreed on the surface, but inwardly, he smiled.
The mission had successfully triggered.
Just then, Akeno felt a warm hand slip beneath the covers.
The familiar motion instantly made a wave of heat rise through her body.
"?!"
Akeno could not help looking at Rod, both of her hands catching his mischievous one.
"It's already daytime. Something like this should wait until tonight..."
"It's fine. These two days are holidays anyway. Most of them are still asleep, so we won't disturb anyone."
Rod slipped under the blanket, while Akeno reflexively hugged him close. Her mind clearly told her not to do this, but her arms held Rod firmly all the same.