I stared blankly at Iliya. The tea was dripping from my mouth, but I didn’t even think of wiping it off.

 

This punk… What did she just say?

 

 

“I’m saying this just in case…”

 

 

Seeing my reaction, Iliya continued in a huff.

 

From her expression, she seemed to also be quite embarrassed by what she just said.

 

 

“If you spout some nonsense like ‘What the hell are you talking about?’, ‘Stop messing around’, or ‘I’ll pretend you didn’t say that’, I’m going to actually hit you. Got it?”

 

“...”

 

 

I could only open my mouth without saying anything, so she rattled on.

 

All the answers that I was planning to give her were blocked before I could even get a word in.

 

 

“You didn’t mishear me or anything. That was my confession to you, Teach.”

 

“...Why…?”

 

“Why do you think?”

 

“...”

 

“Don’t even think of giving me stupid answers. I know that you know and you’ve just been avoiding me all this time.”

 

“Uh…”

 

 

I couldn’t come up with a response, so she rattled on again.

 

 

“No, I’m not asking you to give me an answer right away. I know better than anyone that this is very sudden and this is not an easy decision to make.”

 

 

She quickly said her piece without pausing. Her eyes never left mine as she did so.

 

 

“But I can promise you one thing.”

 

 

Her eyes were firm, completely different to how it looked when she rambled on just now.

 

It was as if she was trying to make sure that I heard her words loud and clear.

 

 

“I’m not influenced by the nature of your soul, or whatever that is.”

 

“...What?”

 

“And yet, I still ‘confessed’ to you. You understand what that means right, Teach?”

 

“...”

 

 

Before I could even answer her, Iliya gulped down the tea before her.

 

Since there was clearly hot steam rising from the tea, that thing must be piping hot, but that didn’t seem to bother her.

 

 

“Thank you for the tea! I’ll get going!”

 

 

She said those words before storming out of my room.

 

Contrary to how she came in high spirits and confessed, her departure looked as if she was running away from me.

 

 

“...”

 

 

What the fuck?

 

 

“...Ugh…”

 

 

Seriously, what the fuck?

 

 

●

 

 

A distance away from Dowd’s room, after Iliya ran out.

 

She flopped down, covering her blushing face with both hands.

 

…I did it…

 

I finally did it…

 

She contemplated so hard about whether she’d do that or not, but in the end, she decided to just give up to the urge and did it.

 

 

Ugh… How am I supposed to look at his face after this…?!

 

 

She muttered inwardly, as if she was on the verge of tears.

 

He’ll reject me, won’t he? He’s definitely going to reject me…

 

There are so many more amazing people around him. He has no reason to even cast his glance at me…

That was her genuine thought, yet she still went out of her way to confess anyway. The reason for that was…

 

 

[Gotta say, that was a good approach, no?]

 

“...Shut it.”

 

 

None other than the ‘advice’ this hateful being gave her.

It was this punk who had been instructing her to hit on him more aggressively, and advised her to be the very first person to ‘confess’ to him like this before it was too late.

 

 

[But it’s true. Especially the part where you pointed out how you’re not affected by the nature of his soul, I like that a lot.]

 

“...”

 

[It’s like you were saying, ‘I’m not those slutty Devils who fell for you because of your ‘skill’. My love for you is real, my whole being is yours. I fell in love with you like a—’]

 

“Just shut up already…”

 

 

Iliya barely managed to spit out that reply while stroking her ears, which were increasing in temperature by the minutes.

 

She knew that she’d end up being teased like this, yet she still listened to the advice anyway.

 

And that was because she herself had been anxious. Mostly about how Dowd’s ‘first time’ had been taken away by an unknown person.

 

 

[An unknown person? I thought you were sure that it was the Student Council President or whoever?]

 

“...No. The circumstances were a little strange, you know…”

 

 

Iliya replied, narrowing her eyes.

 

She didn’t even need to use the Eye of Truth. It was as clear as day that Eleanor and Dowd didn’t do ‘it’.

 

Because if they did, she’d have noticed some kind of changes in their relationship ages ago. But, the vibe between the two didn’t change much, or even at all.

 

One thing for sure though, his ‘first’ was taken away in Tristan Duchy. As for who did it…

 

 

[It must have been the Devil then.]

 

“...What?”

 

[It’s pretty obvious. Having sex with a Devil means the Devil takes the Target’s ‘Soul Data’. It’s like preserving it in advance in case something happens. So that it doesn’t get corrupted when the time is rewinded.]

 

“What does that even mean?”

 

[It means something big is going to happen to that man soon.]

 

“...”

 

 

This angel always muttered confusing information like this to Iliya.

 

She always gave her the correct information about the situation, but she always left out the ‘why’ or ‘how’ parts.

 

 

[That man is like a hot potato even in the Astral Realm, so I've done an investigation on him. There are a lot of interesting things about him that I found out.]

 

“I’m not curious.”

 

[Oh, really~?]

 

“Yes. It isn’t like you’re going to tell me anyway. If anything, it’ll be better for me if you were to just shut up now.”

 

[...Aren’t you being too mean to me now?]

 

 

The Angel grumbled.

 

 

[Fine, I’ll be generous and tell you one thing. You’ll need to prepare for this anyway since you’re the Wielder of the Holy Sword.]

 

“Huh?”

 

[That man is going to get in trouble soon.]

“...Again?”

 

[...You aren’t even surprised, huh?]

 

 

The Seraphim sighed as she continued.

 

 

[Well, it feels more like he’d turn the wheel 180 degrees himself instead of finding himself caught up in trouble… But trouble is still trouble. It would still change the whole Worldline that’s supposed to go on originally.]

 

“Please explain it in human words, Ms. Seraphim. Please.”

 

[No. It isn’t like you’ll understand anyway. Just know that something will happen ‘around this time’ and there’s nothing anyone could do to change it.]

 

 

The Seraphim wasn’t like the Devils, who existed beyond the concept of time since the Gray Devil, practically their leader, was in charge of that.

 

But, beings on her level had enough power to at least grasp the ‘course’ of it.

 

Even inside the time axis that had been ‘repeating' over and over again, this was the part where the biggest plot was determined.

 

And in most cases…

 

Around this time, something that determined that man's ‘ending’ would happen.

 

The Gray, Purple, White, Blue, Brown, Red, and the forgotten Yellow.

 

Depending how he treated any of the seven Devils, the future might also completely change.

 

Though, it was absurd to think that even the fate of the Devils and the whole world was also included in that ‘change’.

 

 

[Most of the Devil's Vessels have gathered in this club thing, right? Although, not all of them are there yet.]

 

“...Yes. Is that important?”

 

[Of course it is. That man is deciding who to put inside his ‘boundary’ for the first time. There will be differences in who he likes more and less. The Devils are really sensitive to things like that.]

 

 

The Seraphim proceeded to explain that Dowd’s decision on accepting who, putting who in what position, things like that would play a major role in deciding the world’s course.

Hearing that, Iliya let out a frown. Her expression turned serious.

 

 

“...So, what you’re trying to say is…”

 

 

She also thought that this was ridiculous, but to sum up what the Seraphim just said…

 

 

“...The fate of both the Devils and the world will be determined by who Teach is gonna accept into the club?”

 

[Mhm. Smart girl.]

 

 

Hearing that, Iliya spit out a curt reply.

 

 

“Are you trying to tell me that such a grand thing would be decided just like that?”

 

[...]

 

“Crazy things like the end of the world and how the future will change, everything is determined by how he’s doing his club activities—”

 

[...I know it sounds crazy, and I agree with that sentiment, but the thing is it won’t change everything immediately. Instead, it will serve as a ‘trigger’ for those changes to happen.]

 

 

The Seraphim let out a deep sigh as she replied.

 

[That’s why you need to put your heart and soul into supporting him so he wouldn’t be harmed. All kinds of things will happen from now on.]

 

 

This is also why a Devil had taken his ‘Soul Data’, because she was worried about that man’s safety.

 

Hearing that, Iliya frowned as she replied.

 

 

“...You don’t need to tell me that. I’ve sworn to protect his life several times already.”

 

[Right, you need to keep him alive long enough to hear his answer to you confess—]

 

 

Before she could complete her sentence, Iliya already threw the Holy Sword on the ground wordlessly.

 

She did that to discipline the Seraphim, and somehow it was working. In fact, when she threw it, the being’s voice sounded a little sullen.

 

 

[...Aren’t you being too mean to me?]

 

“And I will continue to be like that until you learn how to stop teasing me, Ms. Angel.”

 

[Sure, whatever. Anyway…]

 

 

The Seraphim continued. Iliya could picture that she was currently grinning.

 

 

[...Love is scary, don’t you think?]

 

 

After all, that was the emotion that determined the bond between that man and the Devils.

 

Though it was the most fundamental and basic, it was also the most powerful emotion, more than anything else.

 

That was why, though it was ridiculous, because of it…

 

Because of that one emotion…

 

The direction of such beings’ fate and the future of the world could be drastically changed by every small decision that man would make.

 

There was a reason why Dowd Campbell was dubbed as the ‘Key of the World’ by those who knew about him.

 

 

[Anyway, he's going to announce the evaluation result tomorrow, right?]

 

 

The Seraphim continued, her tone made it sound like she was smiling.

 

 

[Let’s wait and see. Who will that man choose and how will he use that person.]

 

 

Her voice sounded very meaningful somehow.

 

 

●

 

 

“All of you passed.”

 

“...”

 

“...”

 

“...”

 

“You all are now members of our club. Without exception, without distinction, all of you are my subordinates now, so keep that in mind from now on.”

 

 

After Dowd declared as such to the people he had called to the room, a heavy silence instantly enveloped the room.

 

They didn’t seem to expect to hear him spouting such nonsense openly like this.

 

 

“...Hey, I know it’s funny to say this as someone who applied, but…”

 

 

Faenol carefully raised her hand as she said so. She could not hide the bitter smile from her face.

 

 

“...Didn’t you hear this kid’s goal for joining the club? It’s to increase her strength and to kill her sister. Also, Miss Eleanor here said that she wants to destroy this club. And you’re just going to…accept them…?”

 

“Yes. Yes, I am.”

 

 

Dowd answered calmly.

 

 

“As the Club President, I promise that I’ll fully cooperate with you to achieve your goals. That’s my obligation.”

 

“...You know that my goal is to be your ‘possession’, right? How are you—”

 

“I’ll handle you roughly with all my heart. To the point that you won’t feel awkward or feel that it’s wrong to be called a bitch or a slut.”

 

“...”

 

 

I didn't ask you to go that far.

 

Also, how did your preferences change so far so quickly…?

 

A crack appeared on Faenol’s smile, but Dowd ignored it and calmly continued.

 

 

“But there's a condition.”

 

 

Right, of course there is.

 

Hearing that, everyone’s ears perked up, as if they had regained their senses again.

 

Which was understandable, since he was probably going to point out the important thing from here on.

 

 

“A few weeks later, Elfante School Festival is going to start. You guys know that, don’t you?”

 

“...Yes.”

 

 

Eleanor calmly nodded.

 

To put it simply, it was a ‘presentation of achievements’ of all the clubs and the Academy itself.

 

 

“Not only it is the biggest event in Elfante, it’s also the biggest one in the Empire. It doesn’t only involve our Academy, but it’ll also involve strong forces from the outside.”

 

“Yes. Since we are also, by all means, a club, we can’t just attend such a prestigious event without a proper achievement. So, we’re going to do some Devil-related activities, proper Exorcism Club activities.”

 

“So, what’s the condition you were talking about…?”

 

“That festival will be the time limit.”

 

“...Sorry?”

 

 

Hearing what Dowd had suddenly said, everyone in the room looked at him bewilderedly.

 

Time limit? For what?

 

 

“Until then…”

 

 

Dowd said while yawning.

 

He seemed exhausted, thanks to how he had been spending all night doing simulations in his head to figure out if this plan of his would work.

 

 

“As long as you can ‘defeat’ me, no matter in what way, I’ll help you with the goals that you’ve stated when you joined.”

 

 

Suddenly…

 

He said those words.

 

 

“You can try beating me in any kind of field. Come at me with whatever you’re confident in.”

 

“...Are you serious?”

 

 

Eleanor asked dumbfoundedly. Seeing that, he let out a chuckle before continuing.

 

As if he was obviously serious.

 

 

“But, if you lose…”

 

 

Though, his expression, as if he was trying to say, ‘If you’re going to come at me, prepare yourself’, proved that he was actually serious.

 

 

“It’ll be the other way around. You’re the ones who have to listen to each of my ‘requests’.”

 

 

Once again…

 

A heavy silence fell on the room.

 

Then again, it was an appropriate reaction.

 

Since he practically suggested that they did a one-against-six ‘match’.

 

One human against six Devil’s Vessels. And he did it with such confidence.

 

 

[...Crazy bastard.]

 

 

Hearing the Seraphim’s remark, Iliya held her forehead, as if agreeing with her.