Eternal Saṃsāra: The Wanderer of Worlds, Book 1

[82] Helping Out a Friend and an Enemy

Chapter 82: Helping Out a Friend and an Enemy

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"Take them to a VIP room, and make sure they receive whatever they want," Rias told a staff member, who quickly nodded.

We were at the end of a hallway, where we luckily crossed paths with this staff. After telling the suited man the necessary commands, Rias turned to me.

"Look, I need to go now. It's... going to start soon. I'll catch up with you guys after it ends." She said and turned around to leave without waiting for our reply.

Mem-Cho looked slightly confused by her nervousness, naturally so, since she didn't know the situation here. I knew, so I held Rias by her arm before she could leave.

"Hey, Rias. Are you sure you're going to be alright?" I made her turn back to look at me.

"...." She went silent.

Despite what Issei Hyuudo was, he had a powerful Sacred Gear. In this world, Issei didn't end up in Rias' peerage—Sona Sitri chose him instead. I even knew the reason behind that, Rias had told me. She wanted to recruit a 'certain someone' so she gave up choosing Issei and waited for that other person.

That 'certain someone' was naturally me. Yet, she hadn't approached me to make me join her peerage. Not that I would, but that was not the point here.

Since I knew that her aunt told her about my encounter with the Phenex Family, it's easy to guess that Rias might know about my heavy rejection toward Ranefer Phenex when she invited me to become a Devil.

So, Rias was most likely scared to ask me to join her—since that might put a strain on our friendship.

So indirectly, it was somewhat my fault. If I had cleared up to her that I had no plan to join her Peerage from the get-go, she might have sought out someone else to join her Peerage by now.

"How much time is left until the Game?" I asked after witnessing Rias' silence.

"About half an hour... why?"

I had limited options for helping her now. Obviously, I wasn't going to join her little Peerage. I wouldn't say I liked that I was walking the Emperor path now, but it'd be similarly bad if I walked the Demonic path like in my 9th life. I couldn't take the risk for Rias.

I could lend Mem-Cho to help Rias; she was already a Devil, so she didn't have to go through the hassle of reincarnating. But I didn't like the idea of making someone from my sect join another faction; joining a Peerage is just that. Also, it's not as if Mem-Cho was a game-changer card. She could bypass the Phenex Clan members using her time powers, but she wasn't exactly invincible. She wasn't a fighter.

But I did have one last option. It was a far fetch, but I could try that.

"Rias, take me to where your Peerage is waiting."

* * *

Rias quickly led me and Mem-Cho to the other end of this Colosseum-type building.

She opened the door and we stepped in as nervous eyes turned toward us.

"President, you're back!" a blonde young man with blue eyes, Kiba, heaved a sigh of relief.

There were only two other people in the room. Akeno Himejima, whom I have met before, and a loli – a white haired little girl who shivered as our eyes locked.

"President, what's he doing here?" Akeno asked with a frown, staring at me. She also shot a look at Mem-Cho, who waved at her awkwardly.

Akane wasn't my goal here, but the girl who was sitting on the couch behind her.