DxD: Wrong Way

Aoki never expected that Miyajima Sakura, who usually appeared strong and confident, could be so sensitive and delicate when it came to love.

It wasn't that this was bad; it was just a bit annoying.

After struggling for a long time, Aoki had no choice but to comfort her first.

"Miyajima-senpai, I didn't mean to lie to you. I was just trying to make a joke. I didn't expect you to…"

Miyajima Sakura touched the tears in her eyes, suppressing her grievances as she sobbed, "I'm not stupid; it's all my fault. I used to… before…"

As she spoke, she nearly cried again.

"It's okay, it's okay. Don't cry anymore," Aoki said gently, hugging her and whispering in her ear, "You might be in danger recently. I found you here because I was worried about you."

Miyajima Sakura stopped sobbing and looked at Aoki suspiciously.

She suspected that he was deliberately trying to divert her attention, but his earnest expression made it hard for her to dismiss him entirely.

"What danger?"

"I can't tell you what the danger is yet."

Aoki paused, noticing the skeptical look on Miyajima Sakura's face.

He added quickly, "After school, I'll wait for you at the school gate. We can go to your house together and talk about everything in front of your parents."

Finally calming down, Miyajima Sakura broke away from Aoki's embrace.

"Alright then, if it's true, I'll forget about how you just took advantage of me."

"That's not what..."

Aoki started but decided against arguing further. It was better to let things settle for now.

"Uh… okay," he conceded.

"Hmph!"

Sakura stamped her foot in frustration before walking away angrily.

If the talent hadn't been detected, he could have let it go

Since it had been detected, it wasn't up to him to decide whether or not it should count.

Watching Miyajima Sakura's graceful figure retreating from view made Aoki feel an urge to avoid overthinking the situation.

…

After parting ways with Miyajima Sakura, Aoki returned to Kuoh Academy.

Regular classes weren't necessary for him

Although he hadn't been an outstanding student in his previous life, his grades were acceptable enough for him to manage typical high school knowledge.

Now that he had joined Extraordinary College, the academic requirements were even lower

If one was strong enough, they could enter the university department of Kuoh Academy without much hassle.

The only thing worth noting was that long-term absences could lead to dismissal from the academy.

Normally, Rias and the others studied hard during school hours while running errands at night

Any more troublesome tasks were typically scheduled during holidays.

If someone wanted to go out frequently during class hours, it was best to get Rias's permission and frame it as a mission so that no higher-ups would bother them.

As Aoki pondered how to deal with Liasti later on, Koneko came into his classroom and grabbed him by the collar, dragging him outside.

"Hey! Koneko… slow down!"

Aoki grimaced as she looked at him with piercing eyes.

He struggled briefly but soon realized that the petite white-haired girl possessed surprising strength.

Not wanting to damage his uniform, he bent slightly forward in cooperation as they exited.

"Isn't it just missing half a day of class?"

"No! Akeno-senpai said you must be brought to her personally."

Koneko's expression remained stoic despite her commanding presence.

Students in the hallway stepped aside as they passed by.

Many glanced curiously at Aoki, who felt somewhat embarrassed by their stares.

The two continued until they entered the club building where the strange looks faded away.

Aoki knew exactly what those students were thinking: they assumed he was going after such an innocent little loli due to rumors from before and his frequent appearances alongside Reina Hamazaki and Shinra Tsubaki.

This had solidified his reputation as a scoundrel who toyed with girls' feelings.

Some well-meaning classmates even gave him nicknames like "Pretty Boy," "Carnivorous Man," "Playboy," "Inccubus," or "Fourth Member of the Perverted Trio."

Despite these unflattering titles, many girls still sought friendly interactions with Aoki simply because he associated with Shinra Tsubaki and Himejima Akeno

Being close with them elevated their status too!

"Koneko," he pleaded softly as they walked along, "please let go now… Don't worry; I won't run away."

"No."

Leaning closer to Koneko's ear, he whispered enticingly, "I'll buy you ice cream after school."

The white-haired loli glanced back briefly before continuing to hold onto Aoki, now gripping his sleeves instead of his collar.

"Eh~"

Taking a deep breath, Aoki quickly straightened up, trying to loosen her stiff grip.

"Koneko, why did Akeno-senpai suddenly ask you to come see me?"

"I don't know," Koneko replied, looking at Aoki.

"I wanted to find you this morning, but when I realized you weren't there, Akeno-senpai's face turned ugly."

"Has anyone come to see Akeno-senpai before?"

"I have no idea."

"So Akeno-senpai received something?"

"I have no idea."

Aoki's mouth twitched in frustration as he said helplessly, "So what do you know?"

Koneko shook her little head and suddenly exclaimed, "I know you promised to buy me ice cream after school!"

Aoki rubbed his head in exasperation.

He knew he was being stingy, but he seemed to have underestimated her persistence.

However, thinking about it from another angle, the situation probably wasn't too serious; otherwise, it wouldn't be Koneko who came for him but Himejima Akeno herself.

Not to mention that if she really wanted to find him, he didn't believe she couldn't track him down.

As they arrived at the Occult Research Department, Koneko pulled Aoki inside and announced, "Akeno-senpai, the mission is complete."

"Okay, thank you for your hard work, Koneko." Himejima Akeno set down the photo she had been examining.

"You can go and rest now; I'll talk to Ao-chan alone."

Before leaving, the white-haired loli lip-synced a reminder to Aoki not to forget the ice cream he promised her.

"…"

Aoki rolled his eyes and gestured for her to leave quickly; he wouldn't renege on his promise.

"Akeno-senpai, what happened?"

After Koneko left, Aoki took the initiative to bring up the topic.

"It's still about me, right?"

Himejima Akeno glared at him angrily.

"You know that if I hadn't stopped you, do you think you'd still be here in one piece?"

As she spoke, she pulled an envelope from her drawer and handed him several new photos.

Aoki took them and quickly understood why Himejima Akeno was looking for him.

He knocked his head in annoyance

How could he have forgotten such an important matter?

"Is that you in the photo?"

Seeing his reaction confirmed Himejima Akeno's suspicions.

She continued, "Those people were killed, right? Why did you kill them?"

"They struck first," Aoki replied calmly.

"The dagger belongs to two of them."

There was nothing objectionable about his statement.

He had anticipated being confronted about this moment but hadn't expected it would be Himejima Akeno rather than the police.

"Well then," she said after confirming that he wasn't indiscriminately killing innocent people.

"Let's not dwell on this for now."

She paused before asking again, "Why didn't you tell me about this right away?"

This was the question that truly concerned her; everything else was secondary.

"I forgot…"

"Forgot?!"

Himejima Akeno widened her beautiful eyes and stood up from her chair as her voice rose involuntarily.

Aoki turned his head away in embarrassment and scratched his cheek sheepishly.

"Well… I forgot."

After dealing with those yellow-haired guys all night and then spending time with Sakuramachi Touko before worrying about Miyajima Sakura's situation upon returning home

He had simply lost track of things.

Himejima Akeno closed her eyes and slowly sat back down.

"So… you didn't skip class this morning because you were worried about being arrested?"

"Ah… well," he admitted hesitantly.

"I was in a hurry and didn't have time to ask for leave."

Looking seriously at Himejima Akeno, he added earnestly, "I'm sorry for causing you trouble."

It didn't matter how those photos ended up in Himejima Akeno's possession or who gave them to her

All that mattered was that he needed to apologize first so they could move forward without further complications.

"It wouldn't have been a problem if you had told me in advance," she replied with a resentful roll of her eyes directed at him.

"Now we can only wait for Buchou to return."