Considering that this was Rias's first time, Bokue Keikain didn't push things too far.
From around three-thirty in the afternoon until nearly five in the evening—about an hour or so—once the commotion in the room finally died down, the sky outside the curtains had grown noticeably darker, and faint sounds of students finishing club activities could be heard from the street below.
Back to the scene inside the room:
Once the silhouettes behind the bed's drapes stopped moving, the panting in the room gradually eased.
Behind the drapes, Rias, wrapped in nothing but a single sheet, quietly rested her head on the boy's shoulder, nestled in his arms. Her dark red hair, damp with sweat from the intense exercise, shone faintly, and her chest rose and fell with each breath.
She had her eyes lightly closed, one fingertip idly tracing circles over Bokue's chest, her slightly parted lips exhaling soft, fragrant breaths.
❁❁❁❁
"Rias."
"…Mmm…"
Bokue lowered his head, calling the girl's name gently. But she answered only with a faint murmur.
To him, they might not have gone overboard, but for Rias—enduring such a thing for the first time—she was simply too drained even to speak. Just the sprawling "evidence" covering the four-square-meter area was enough proof of how strenuous her aerobic activity had been for this past hour.
"C'mon, time to wake up—it's getting late." His tone was almost like coaxing a child.
"It's nearly five. If we don't head back soon, Akeno and the others will start to worry."
"…Don't bother me."
She actually gave a slight complaint this time. Then, after mumbling, she shifted in his arms to find a more comfortable position.
"I already told Akeno I was going out for a walk and told them to eat dinner without me. Besides, you exhausted me for so long… I'm tired. How about we spend the night here tonight…?"
Evidently she was truly wiped out—her voice trailed off, getting softer and softer.
❁❁❁❁
In truth, Bokue Keikain didn't mind the idea of staying overnight here, but there was something else to deal with first. Gently patting Rias's bare shoulder where it peeked from under the sheet, he leaned to whisper by her ear:
"Rias, we've been at this for over an hour. If you fall asleep now, I'm afraid that woman waiting outside—Miss Grayfia—will end up with stiff legs from standing around and decide to stay the night with us."
"…!!"
That remark worked like a potent jolt. Just a second earlier, she'd been halfway dozing off, drifting between dream and reality. Instantly, Rias's eyes snapped open.
Right—Grayfia onee-sama!
Crap, crap, crap…!
All her weariness vanished in a flash. Rationality reclaimed her mind, and Rias tried to struggle upright. She'd half-forgotten her situation—nearly dozed off after finishing.
But… ouch. A pang of soreness flared in her abdomen, and her attempt to rise failed, sending the red-haired girl flopping back into that solid embrace.
Even though, from her perspective, it felt like a lengthy internal drama, to Bokue—observing from outside—it amounted to her twitching briefly, then slumping back down like a little fish giving up.
He patted her softly, exuding a fatherly sort of indulgence:
"Don't force yourself if you don't have the energy."
Yet Rias fixed him with a sharp, half-embarrassed glare:
"It's your fault…"
She didn't finish the sentence, instead shooting him another look—this time clearly meaning Look, Grayfia's out there—what do we do?!
Bokue just shrugged. Without further ado, he shifted position, propping her upright in his lap, then leaned out to pull back the bed's curtains.
With the bed curtains drawn aside, the hotel room reentered their view.
Grayfia still stood where she had been, upright and elegant, hands folded in front of her abdomen, her mature and beautiful face betraying little emotion.
"This should settle it, right?"
Bokue tugged the bed's overhead drapery partway up at a 45-degree angle, positioning himself cross-legged in the center, Rias perched on his lap, her face red and lowered.
Repeating himself, he said:
"So with this, I believe the engagement is null and void."
"…"
After a brief silence, Grayfia—who had maintained a poker face since her arrival—finally sighed.
"Yes, at this point, the Gremory–Phenex engagement can't proceed as planned. But it's not so simple. Whether it's canceled can't be decided unilaterally just because Lady Rias has done something like this with you."
Turning her gaze onto the boy as she spoke:
"Bokue Keikain, from now on your relationship with Lady Rias is a done deal. I'll report this to Lord Sirzechs and to the Phenex family. What happens next depends on their response."
"No problem. I'll be waiting."
No trace of fear on Bokue's face. He raised one finger.
"I only have one condition. If they want to negotiate, they'd better do it face-to-face. If they'd rather come at me by force, that's fine too."
"But if they try something sneaky—two-faced or underhanded—then don't blame me for paying a personal visit to the Underworld, maybe dropping the Seventy-Two Pillars down by one."
"…"
Though his words were fearless, Bokue gave off no intense aura—more like stating a plain fact. Grayfia paused briefly, then bowed in calm acceptance:
"Understood. I'll convey that to the Phenex household as well."
Then she turned again to Rias, who was curled up in Bokue's arms, face buried like an ostrich.
"I'll take my leave, Lady Rias."
With that, Grayfia didn't rely on a magic circle this time; she simply walked to the door, turned the handle, and exited without a hint of hesitation.
Outside, Akeno stood leaning against the wall, arms folded across her chest, head lowered so her bangs veiled her expression.
The two women passed one another without a word.
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