Demon Among Devils

Chapter 5: "Yield"

A week had gone by and he was rather surprised it had passed that quickly.

Asia had taken his advice to heart, and when he next saw her again she was up and about, completely healthy, though now a devil instead of a human. He was honestly happy for her. From what little information he could glean from Rias and from the story Asia herself had told him when he sat next to her bed, the girl deserved a second chance. He was considerably less happy though, about the way she treated him after her recovery. The girl had taken to calling him "Angel-san", no doubt in reference to that afternoon he had spent at her side, explaining what he had done and the reason he had done it. It made him wish he had not laid it in so thick, with all the descriptions of the Heavens and the Light and whatnot. He should have omitted some of the more glaring bits of information, and he occasionally kicked himself for not doing so. But then he remembered the suffering the former priestess had gone through, the lies that had been her past life, and the thought of deceiving her was abruptly squashed. She, of all people, deserved to know the truth, and a little discomfort on his part was a sacrifice he was willing to put up with.

Still, it was rather jarring to be walking in the hallway and have a girl suddenly proclaim you as a messenger of Heaven. It brought stares, and not the good kind. So he had taken the girl aside one day and explained to her why calling him an angel in crowded classrooms and busy hallways was not exactly a good idea.

It had gone spectacularly well. And also failed miserably.

Asia: "I understand, Angel-san"

Asia had nodded seriously after his explanation

Asia: "You are trying to remain hidden amongst us so you can help guide people to Heaven"

The girl had then leaned in close to conspiratorially whisper

Asia: "Don't worry, I will do my best to keep your identity a secret."

And so she had stopped calling him angel in public, which was good, and continued calling him that in private, which was bad because as the newest member of Rias's peerage, private meant that it was inevitable for the rest of the devils to overhear.

Rias had been immensely amused, as was Akeno. For the next few days he had been flooded with innuendo from the two, with Rias proclaiming it would be a grand thing for her to have the first angel in history to join a devil's peerage and Akeno asking if he would purge her if she had impure thoughts.

If only he could.

Asia's inclusion into Rias's peerage had also brought another unforeseen side-effect, mainly her influence on Issei. The former priestess seemed to consider the boy her saviour for his attempt at rescuing her, and though the attempt had failed, it did not dull the enthusiasm to which she clung to him. If Issei was seen, then Asia was always in tow, fretting over the boy and smiling lovingly at him when he faced her. Issei, for all his perversity, had not known what to do at first when it was female attention applied to him and not the other way around. In the times he was with them and Asia had done something to cause the boy to blush, Issei would always look to him for help, begging him with his eyes to extract him from some uncomfortable situation. He made sure in those times that he always had some emergency conveniently at hand to attend to, leaving the devil to his well-deserved fate.

He considered that suitable revenge for having to sit through the endless sessions of harem talk Issei had forced upon him.