After "helping maintain peace in Japan" and punishing a criminal earlier, Qin Xiao didn't run into any more trouble for a while.
However, the 110,000 yen he had just obtained was still a pretty decent extra income.
If he spent carefully, he could even cover next month's rent.
Before he realized it, evening slowly fell.
The sky darkened.
At some point, the pedestrians who had been on the street earlier had all disappeared.
And an eerie feeling began spreading around him, making Qin Xiao uncomfortable.
"It's been so long since I tasted such delicious prey…"
"What a wonderful scent. This is the first time I've encountered something like this."
Suddenly, a cold voice echoed around the street.
Qin Xiao immediately sensed something was wrong.
The surroundings had somehow changed.
The street looked old and abandoned, with dust-covered storefronts everywhere.
It felt like he had entered a deserted district.
Crack—
A crisp sound echoed.
Qin Xiao turned around.
What appeared before him was a massive figure.
A human upper body with a snake tail, long black hair hanging wildly like a madman.
His face looked twisted and abnormal.
"A Stray Devil?"
Qin Xiao was surprised.
Seriously?
He had encountered one yesterday—
and now another one appeared today?
"Delicious prey…"
"Don't be afraid."
"It will all be over soon."
The snake-like devil slowly approached Qin Xiao.
Very slowly.
His expression clearly showed he was toying with his prey.
"Honestly…"
"Why do these things keep appearing one after another?"
Qin Xiao sighed slightly while looking at the creature.
Compared to yesterday's stray devil, this one was clearly much stronger.
Just the method he used to bring Qin Xiao here—
without Qin Xiao noticing—
already proved that.
This place had obviously been abandoned for a long time.
He didn't know where exactly they were, but it was clearly far from the city center.
"Hm?"
"You're not afraid at all?"
"You're quite a brave little girl."
"But don't worry."
"It won't hurt."
"It will end very quickly."
Hearing this speech made Qin Xiao's face darken.
And the worst part—
this snake devil was male.
The whole scene felt like a disgusting criminal preparing to attack a young girl.
And Qin Xiao strongly suspected that—
this guy had also mistaken him for a girl.
The blond thug earlier had already done it once.
Now it happened again.
Seriously?
He was androgynous, not female.
Just because his masculine traits weren't obvious didn't mean he was some cross-dresser.
"Hm?"
"Are you scared now?"
"That's alright."
"It will end soon."
Seeing Qin Xiao's shoulders trembling slightly, the snake devil assumed he was terrified.
After all, the girls he had kidnapped before all reacted with screams and fear.
Compared to them, this "girl" who hadn't screamed yet seemed quite brave.
Clink—
Suddenly, the sound of chains echoed.
The snake devil immediately felt danger and jumped aside.
BOOM!
A sharp chain slammed into the ground, leaving a large crater.
"A Sacred Gear?"
"You're not human."
Seeing the Chains of Heaven, the snake devil immediately realized something.
"Hey," Qin Xiao replied.
"When did I ever say I was human?"
"Even if you have a Sacred Gear," the snake devil sneered,
"I'm very powerful."
"I've even killed devils sent from the Underworld to hunt me."
"Two things," Qin Xiao said coldly.
"First—"
"I'm a man, you idiot."
"Second—"
"Don't compare me to those devils."
WHOOSH—WHOOSH—WHOOSH
The moment he finished speaking, dozens of Chains of Heaven shot out from every direction.
Facing the sudden barrage, the snake devil quickly dodged around.
He could feel danger from those chains.
He didn't dare to touch them directly.
But then—
a voice suddenly appeared behind him.
"You seem a little too focused."
"Did you forget about me?"
The snake devil instinctively turned around.
Behind him stood the familiar emerald-haired figure.
BOOM!
Qin Xiao's fist slammed into the snake devil's lower back.
The tremendous force sent him flying across the ground.
The next second—
the Chains of Heaven wrapped around him.
Arms.
Body.
Tail.
He was completely bound.
"Damn you!"
In an instant, the villain who had seemed so threatening earlier became a prisoner.
Although Qin Xiao was still a third-tier Low-Class Devil, the difference in strength between them was obvious.
Even Tsubaki Shinra, also a Low-Class Devil, couldn't break through the Chains of Heaven earlier.
Meanwhile, on a distant rooftop—
several figures were watching.
At the front stood Rias Gremory.
She had rushed here after receiving an order from the Underworld.
This snake devil had not only betrayed his master—
he had also killed two groups of devils sent to hunt him.
After he fled to Kuoh City, the Underworld sent the mission directly to Rias.
So she came immediately.
She had actually arrived when Qin Xiao was first lured here by illusion magic.
But she didn't intervene.
She wanted to observe Qin Xiao's strength.
If he lost and she saved him, recruiting him into her peerage would become much easier.
So she kept watching.
But the result completely surprised her.
A stray devil considered very strong among Low-Class Devils—
had been captured so easily.
And Qin Xiao didn't even seem to exert much effort.
Even Rias herself couldn't have done that when she was still a Low-Class Devil.
Currently, in the Occult Research Club:
Rias – High-Class Devil
Akeno Himejima – Mid-Class Devil
Koneko Toujou – Low-Class Devil
Yuuto Kiba – Low-Class Devil
Among the Low-Class Devils, Koneko and Kiba might not even match Qin Xiao.
Now, after seeing it with her own eyes rather than hearing Koneko describe it—
Rias became even more determined.
She had to recruit Qin Xiao.
If she could reincarnate him as her servant—
her strength would increase dramatically.