One hour later, London outskirts.
After formally bidding Meredith farewell, Le Fay arrived at the agreed meeting point.
"Huh? Bro, why're you dressed like that?"
Le Fay blinked, puzzled, at Arthur in casual clothes.
As the Pendragon heir, Arthur was meticulous about his appearance.
Whether at formal events or daily training, he always wore a suit.
This ill-fitting casual outfit was a first.
Arthur adjusted his glasses. "Got into a fight with a pig. My usual clothes were ruined."
Le Fay tilted her head. "Pig?"
Arthur: "Yeah, don't worry about it."
He couldn't admit he lost to a pig.
Recalling Roy's performance in their fight, Arthur's eyes dimmed with melancholy.
He'd tried to tame the beast but got schooled instead, even serving as a whetstone for Roy to steal his swordsmanship.
Utter humiliation!
But the fight taught him there were always stronger foes.
To reclaim his pride next time, he'd find his own whetstones, like Roy did.
"Let's go, Le Fay."
"Time to meet Cao Cao."
…
"Roy, you're back."
Rias set down her documents, looking up.
"How'd the meeting go? Any trouble?"
"Ran into an overprotective brother."
"Brother?"
"Yup, handled it."
Roy replied lightly.
Strength-wise, Arthur was no slouch.
He was Roy's toughest foe yet.
Even Balance Breaker Siegfried paled in comparison.
But Roy's growth since a week ago was greater.
In Balance Breaker, he easily matched Arthur's sword swings.
With his immortality as backup, victory was inevitable.
Defeating Arthur earned him another Red entry.
[Holy King Sword (Red): Swordsmanship talent +1000%, can wield any holy sword without conditions, slight physical boost when holding a holy sword.]
Holy King Sword's effects mirrored Demon Sword Master's.
One leaned toward holy swords, the other demon swords.
Lacking holy swords, Roy tossed it into storage, planning to equip it later for sword practice.
"Oh, Rias, Meredith's on board."
Roy recalled the restaurant talk, summarizing it. "Barring surprises, she'll live with us."
"Her past makes her personality a bit unique. Keep that in mind."
"No problem."
Rias nodded.
She was used to handling problem children.
Besides Roy, her peerage members all had quirks.
One more like Meredith was no big deal.
After chatting about Meredith's situation, Rias shifted topics. "Roy, you free this afternoon?"
Roy: "Yup. What's up?"
Rias: "Wanna go on a date? We can walk around and look for someone."
Roy: "Who?"
Rias: "Not sure of their identity yet, but they appeared two days ago."
"Since then, they've been attacking Gremory devils and our contracted humans daily, brutally."
"Your wide-range sensing could help us find them."
"No problem, I'm on it."
Roy agreed instantly.
Due to various factors, Kuoh Town and nearby areas occasionally saw stray devils or evil spirits.
Roy had handled such search commissions before.
But as they prepared to leave, a red glow flashed from Roy's pocket.
"Hm?"
Roy paused, pulling out a business card and glancing at its info.
"Rias, the date and search'll have to wait. Got a private commission."
"You're just a rookie devil, yet you're busier than me," Rias sighed, having guessed the situation from the glow.
"Wrap it up quick if you can. I got movie tickets for 2 p.m."
"2 p.m.? Plenty of time."
Roy glanced at a nearby clock, flashing an OK sign.
Infusing mana into the card, a teleportation circle bloomed beneath him.
The scenery shifted, and Roy appeared in a high-tech room.
"You're here."
A voice called out.
Roy turned, spotting Mob Kageyama. "Mr. Roy, long time no see."
"You remember me?"
"Of course. Not many espers are as strong as you."
Roy replied, eyeing a blonde boy nearby. "What's the deal? This guy causing trouble again?"
"No, no misunderstanding."
Teruki Hanazawa stepped back instinctively.
He still remembered Roy's last lesson.
"We summoned you to help save someone."
"Save someone?"
"Yeah, my brother was kidnapped by a group called Claw," Mob explained quickly.
"Besides him, they grabbed a few other espers."
"If possible, I want to rescue them all."
"No problem."
Roy agreed readily.
"Thanks, Mr. Roy."
Mob bowed gratefully.
But Teruki, puzzled, spoke up. "Mr. Roy, can I ask something?"
"Go ahead."
"I looked into you secretly. You're a devil, right?"
"Yup."
"Don't you charge for commissions?"
"Usually, yeah. But not for Mob."
Knowing what Teruki was getting at, Roy kept it brief.
He took commissions for entries, not pay.
As a natural esper prodigy, Mob could handle most foes himself.
Him summoning Roy meant one of two things: a tricky evil spirit or a human powerhouse he couldn't touch.
Either was prime experience for Roy.
Plus, Mob was just a middle schooler with nothing valuable, so Roy gave him a free pass.
Petty cash didn't compare to farming entries.
"Enough chit-chat."
"I'm on a clock. Let's wrap this in an hour."
"An hour? That's tough," Teruki frowned. "We haven't even found Claw's base yet."
"No worries. Just ask someone who knows."
Roy glanced at the door.
As his gaze landed, a bang echoed.
A middle-aged man with black-and-white hair kicked the door open, hands in pockets.
"Found you. Which one of you is—"
Boom!
[Congratulations on defeating Tsuchinoko. Obtained Green entry 'Air Whip.']
"See? Info's here."
Roy lifted Tsuchinoko, scanning his memories, then looked at Mob and Teruki. "Got Claw's branch location. You coming?"
---
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