Chapter 55: Comfort
Following their return to the real world, while Vahn was staying over at Koneko's apartment with Asia, Akeno apprised Rias and Sona, with Tsubaki and Grayfia in attendance, about what had transpired during her stay in the Corridor.
"Vahn's power becomes more astonishing the more we learn about it..." muttered Rias, exhaling a faint sigh before adopting a supportive smile, meeting Akeno's gaze, and appending, "More importantly, I'm happy for and proud of you, Akeno. I know it couldn't have been easy, but I'm glad you could meet your mother one last time, and your decision to allow the past to remain in the past was the correct one..."
"Thank you, Buchou...and you're right, it wasn't easy," admitted Akeno, a sad smile adorning her face before brightening as she teased, "But I feel blessed to have experienced it. And the memories I made with Vahn after the fact have become some of my most precious."
"This does complicate things, however," stated Grayfia, causing every gaze in the room to shift to her as she explained, "When I made my report to Sirzechs-sama, I was informed that representatives from Heaven had come to ask about Sona-sama's and Rias-sama's rumored engagements to Vahn-sama. They did not openly express their disapproval, but it can be inferred from their sudden interest that they do not wish him to come under the purview of the Underworld..."
"I honestly can't blame them...Vahn's existence directly threatens the tentative balance between the Three Factions. Just his purported ability to solve our population issue would inevitably tip the scales in our favor..." sighed Rias, crossing her arms and reclining against the sofa's backrest with closed eyes. She would prefer to avoid warring with Heaven and the forces of the Fallen Angels, but after growing to care about Vahn a great deal, she wouldn't allow them to harm or take him away from her...
Continuing where she left off, Grayfia explained, "That's why, sometime before the forthcoming Summer Break, the heads of the Three Factions will be convening to discuss the matter of Vahn-sama directly. The venue has yet to be decided, but you should be prepared for the possibility of it occurring here at Kuoh Academy."
"Here...?" asked Rias, stressing the word as she opened her eyes to stare at Grayfia with disbelief.
"Mmn...it makes sense," contended Sona, similarly sitting with her arms crossed as she reasoned, "Kuoh Academy is already regarded as neutral territory, and more importantly, it's where Vahn-sama resides. Hosting the summit elsewhere and expecting him to come to them could unnerve him and negatively affect his opinion of all three factions. That said, I imagine the event will be scheduled during or around Open House."
"Haaa...because of the time we spent in the Corridor, I had completely forgotten that was coming up..." sighed Rias. Open House was an annual event where the parents and families of Kuoh Academy students got to tour the campus and stand in the back of the room to photograph or film during classes. Rias had repeatedly told them they didn't need to come, but her father and brother insisted, never missing a single one...
"Regardless of when the summit is set to occur, we should anticipate that Heaven and Grigori have already started intensifying their presence in the city," stated Sona, her expression and tone serious as she contended, "We may even receive some new student transfer requests..."
"That is very possible..." conceded Rias, having once thought of Asia herself as a plant. Now, she was fairly certain that wasn't the case, but if a sufficiently high-ranking member of the Church or an Angel were to ask her to part with information on Vahn, her faith might compel her to obey.