The next morning, Damon walked casually through the halls of Kuoh Academy, hands deep in the pockets of his hoodie, his second massive pack of Skittles already opened and halfway devoured. The sweet crunch of rainbow sugar accompanied each step as he made his way to the student council room.
Another day of pretending to be normal… what a strange vacation, he mused with a smirk.
When he pushed open the door to the student council room, he was greeted by the sight of a full gathering. Sona and Tsubaki were seated on the couch, deep in discussion, surrounded by several other students—clearly important ones, judging by their presence and the intensity of the atmosphere. One girl with crimson hair was seated across from Sona at a chessboard, mid-game.
Damon blinked, but didn't falter.
"Hello," he said, flashing his usual confident smile. "Hope I'm not disturbing anything important."
Before either of the girls could respond, a blonde boy standing off to the side scoffed. "Yes, you are. Don't you see the President is in the middle of a game with Rias?"
Sona's eyes narrowed. "Enough, Saji." Then, with a more composed voice, she looked to Damon. "You're not disturbing at all, Damon. Come in."
He walked further in, plucking another handful of Skittles as if he owned the place. His gaze casually swept over the unfamiliar faces.
That was when a sultry voice chimed in from the couch. "Ara ara… who is this cutie?"
A tall girl with dark hair and a mischievous smile eyed him with interest, her voice rich with teasing curiosity.
Damon's smirk widened. Of course. Even devils have eyes. He gave a polite little bow, red eyes gleaming with amusement.
"A humble transfer student," he said smoothly. "Though I suppose being humble has never really been my strong suit."
Tsubaki, seated next to Sona, sighed—but there was the faintest hint of a smile on her lips.
Without missing a beat, Damon stepped forward with the same confidence that made people either admire him or envy him.
He reached out, gently took the dark-haired girl's hand, and with a charming tilt of his head, brought it to his lips, brushing a soft kiss over her knuckles.
"May I know who this beautiful lady is?" he asked, his voice smooth like velvet, laced with just the right amount of arrogance to be infuriating—or intriguing.
Akeno blinked, her teasing smile briefly faltering as a faint blush crept to her cheeks. She hadn't expected him to be so forward… or so graceful.
She chuckled lightly, recovering fast. "Ara… you're quite bold, aren't you?"
Damon let go of her hand and popped another Skittle into his mouth with a smug grin. "Only when beauty demands it."
Sona cleared her throat softly, adjusting her glasses as she composed herself.
"Let me formally introduce the members of the Occult Research Club," she said, gesturing toward the group seated across from her. "And their president… Rias Gremory."
Damon's crimson eyes flicked toward the red-haired girl now in focus. She was beautiful, radiating both elegance and an unmistakable pressure of power underneath her composed exterior.
Damon gave a small nod, his lips curving into a confident smile. "Rias Gremory, huh? A pleasure," he said, his tone respectful, but still carrying that ever-present spark of royal arrogance.
Rias smiled gracefully. "Likewise… Damon Allister, correct?I've heard you made quite an impression on Tsubaki "
He chuckled lightly, tossing a Skittle into his mouth. "I tend to leave impressions. It's a curse, really."
Suddenly, without warning, a soft blur of motion rushed across the room. Before Damon could react, a pair of delicate arms wrapped tightly around him.
A sweet, familiar voice burst out, trembling with emotion.
"Damon! I knew it was you!"
Damon blinked, momentarily surprised as he looked down to see a blonde girl with emerald-green eyes clinging to him with tears welling in her eyes. For a moment, the room fell silent.
He tilted his head slightly, studying her face. Then a flicker of recognition lit his gaze.
"…Asia?" he said softly, voice unusually gentle. "You're here too?"
She nodded quickly, her grip not loosening. "I prayed I'd see you again… after you disappeared."
Damon sighed, his expression unreadable for a second. Then, with a soft smile that only she could bring out of him, he gently patted her head.
"Well," he said with a smirk, "I can't have my adorable little nun crying, can I?"
Everyone else in the room looked either confused… or extremely curious.
Issei blinked in confusion, stepping forward slightly.
"Wait, Asia… you know this guy?"
Asia turned toward him, her face lighting up as she nodded eagerly. "Yes! Damon was my only friend when I was at the church. Even though we weren't allowed to talk much… he was always kind to me. He—"
Before she could finish, Damon casually raised his hand and gently placed it over her mouth.
"Asia," he said with a teasing smile, though his eyes glinted with authority, "didn't Sister Mary Ellen tell you not to talk too much about certain things?"
Asia looked up at him and gave a small, sheepish nod.
"Good girl," he murmured, the smile returning—this time a bit softer. With a casual flick of his wrist, he pulled a cherry lollipop from his pocket and popped it into her mouth.
"There. Now eat quietly. Sweet things are better than sweet words."
Asia giggled and obediently nodded, holding the lollipop with both hands like it was a sacred relic. The room remained quiet for a moment, everyone unsure of what to make of the strange but oddly wholesome exchange.
Issei, still baffled, leaned toward Kiba and whispered, "…Who is this guy?"
Kiba only shrugged, eyes narrowed. "No idea. But he's not normal, that's for sure."
Sona narrowed her eyes at Damon, her tone becoming more serious.
"Damon, are you… related to the church?"
Everyone in the room, except for Asia, eyed Damon warily. The atmosphere shifted, and a subtle tension hung in the air. It was as if everyone was sizing him up, trying to figure out who he really was.
Before Damon could respond, Koneko, who had been silently observing him, suddenly approached. She sniffed the air around him, her eyes narrowing.
"President Rias," she said quietly, her voice calm but sharp, "It's the scent… the same scent we found in the abandoned house. The same sweet scent that burned my nose when we encountered that stray."
Damon chuckled softly, unfazed by the sudden attention. He gently patted Koneko's head, his voice casual yet tinged with a quiet authority.
"It's normal, little devil. My scent, like my aura, contains holiness, so it might burn your nose a bit. I don't fault you for that."
At this, everyone except Asia frowned, their eyes now full of wariness and suspicion. Damon's nonchalant attitude about his powers, his calm demeanor, and the fact that he seemed to know exactly who they were didn't sit well with them.
Tsubaki spoke up, her tone now slightly colder. "You knew we were devils?" she asked, the implications of his words not lost on her.
Damon smirked, leaning back slightly in his seat as he glanced at Tsubaki with a playful gleam in his red eyes.
"Well, a gorgeous lady like you… you'd have to be either a princess or a supernatural beauty. And given your aura, I figured you were one of the latter."
Tsubaki blinked, momentarily taken aback by his forwardness, but before she could respond, Rias, who had been silently observing the exchange, spoke up.
"So it was you who killed the stray devil," Rias said, her voice laced with a quiet intensity. "The one that was causing trouble."
Damon's expression hardened for a brief moment, his eyes flashing. "Yes," he said, his voice dropping into a colder tone, "When I found it, it tried to attack me, so I gave it the proper punishment for gazing upon my person."
Rias nodded slowly, her expression thoughtful. "Well, while I don't like an unknown individual entering our territory uninvited, I do thank you for dealing with it. It was causing some problems for us."
Sona, still watching Damon carefully, exhaled slowly and folded her arms across her chest. "You don't seem like the typical human," she remarked, eyeing him with a mixture of curiosity and caution. "But I suppose that's a good thing. That stray devil wouldn't have been easy for an ordinary human to handle."
Damon raised an eyebrow but didn't comment on her assessment. Instead, he looked around at the group, his smirk returning.
"I do have my uses, but let's not get too ahead of ourselves. I'm just a guy looking for some peace and quiet," he said nonchalantly, giving Asia a glance to soften the mood.
Asia, still with her lollipop, smiled brightly at him in return, clearly relieved to see him in a less intense state.
But the others, especially Rias, Sona, and Tsubaki, were still unsure what to make of him. The puzzle pieces didn't fit neatly together, and Damon's true nature was a mystery that was far from solved.
Kiba, who had been silent until now, stepped forward slightly, his expression curious but cautious.
"How strong are you exactly?" he asked. "Usually, strays of that caliber are hunted in groups. But when we got there… it was like nothing had ever been there. Just faint traces of its aura and ashes."
Damon gave a soft chuckle, almost amused by the question.
"I don't know," he said with a lazy shrug. "No one's ever been able to push me hard enough to make me go all out. So I guess… we'll never know—unless someone tries."
His red eyes gleamed with confidence—no, arrogance—but not the kind born of pride. It was calm, controlled, as if he wasn't boasting… just stating a fact.
He then glanced down at his watch and sighed.
"Well, look at the time," he said, sliding his hands back into his pockets. "As much as I enjoy chatting with lovely devils and suspicious stares, I've got things to do. Later."
He gave a wink in Asia's direction, flashed a charming smirk to Sona and Rias, and casually walked out the door—still chewing on a handful of Skittles like he didn't just drop a dozen questions and shake the room with his presence.
As the door clicked shut behind Damon, a thick silence settled in the room. The tension, previously playful and flirtatious, shifted into something far more serious.
Rias turned her head slowly, her blue eyes focused on Asia.
"Asia," she asked, voice calm but laced with curiosity, "have you ever seen Damon fight?"
Asia, still quietly sucking on the lollipop Damon had given her, blinked at the question. She pulled the candy from her mouth and answered in her usual soft tone,
"No… but I heard something. One of the nuns whispered that Damon once fought Sir Dulio… and won."
The room froze.
Sona's eyes widened.
"Dulio?" she echoed, her usually composed voice faltering. "You mean Dulio Gesualdo? The strongest exorcist of the Church?"
Asia nodded innocently, completely unaware of the storm she had just unleashed.
Sona leaned back in her seat, fingers steepled under her chin, her mind racing.
"If that's true… then Damon isn't just some talented exorcist. He's someone who took on a blessed holy warrior and came out on top."
Rias narrowed her eyes.
"That would make him one of the most dangerous humans in the world."
Akeno, still smiling, but with a noticeable edge, added,
"And now he's in our territory, flirting with the top-ranked devils in the school, and we know nothing about his intentions…"
Kiba crossed his arms, his usual calm giving way to concern.
"A powerful unknown… right in the middle of Kuoh."
Sona looked toward the door, the place Damon had walked out not long ago, and murmured,
"Just who are you, Damon Allister…?"