"This is the cafeteria, where we usually eat."
"This is the training area, where apprentice attack mages practice."
"This is the dorm. All our shrine recruits are girls, so I won't take you in."
Inside Takami Shrine, Yuzutama Yuzuriha guided Roy through various areas.
After touring the public spaces, she led him to a reception room to sit.
"Mr. Roy, what do you think?" Yuzutama asked.
"Pretty nice."
"Quite the concise review. No specific thoughts?"
"Hm… eye-catching. I like places full of girls," Roy replied bluntly.
Yuzutama burst out laughing. "As expected of the Red Dragon Emperor. That's both surprising and fitting."
"So, want to take a wife back with you?"
Roy glanced at her. "Doesn't sound like a joke."
"Of course not. If it builds a partnership with the Red Dragon Emperor, it's a fair deal emotionally and logically," Yuzutama said.
While Agueiss drove Roy to Takami Shrine, Tokyo's investigation team had dug into the Brigade of Calamity's attack on Jujutsu High and Roy's true strength.
One against two, repelling the wielder of Altar of the Purple Flame Sovereign and slaying a descendant of Demon Lord Asmodeus.
The feat was staggering.
The Altar, a legendary holy relic, was a Longinus designed to counter devils.
Yet Roy won head-on despite the disadvantage.
His strength neared Transcendent-tier, topping devilkind.
More crucially, he'd achieved this in just two months since awakening.
His potential was undeniable.
After the report, the Lion King Agency and Japanese government reassessed Roy, giving him top marks across the board.
Their conclusion: ally with Roy at any cost for guaranteed gains.
"So, interested in picking a wife?" Yuzutama pressed.
"Show me the list."
Roy didn't play coy, taking the Agency's personnel manual.
The first page showed a familiar face.
"You're even offering the Three Saints?" he asked.
"It's mutual consent. How's that 'selling'?" Yuzutama countered.
"Then Agueiss Himejima's first."
First?
As Roy pulled Agueiss's file and kept flipping, Yuzutama felt a bad vibe.
"One of the Three Saints, La Folia Rihavein. Strong… and cute. I'll take her."
"Attack mage Kirari Momobami. Her too."
"Dance Princess Sayaka Kirasaka. Yup."
"Apprentice Sword Shaman Yukina Himeragi… young, but high potential. I'll take her."
His calm critiques echoed in the room.
Flipping two pages, pulling a file, and naming names, Roy wasn't picking wives—he was an interviewer selecting subordinates.
"Mr. Roy, hold up," Yuzutama interrupted.
"What?"
"Just got a message from above. You can only take three to five people."
"'Above' meaning you, right?"
"You could say that," Yuzutama smiled.
It went against HQ's orders, but she had to stop him.
At this rate, Roy would poach the entire Agency.
"One more thing, Mr. Roy."
"About the Lion King Agency and Akatsuki's partnership, HQ's drafted initial terms."
"Lay it out."
Roy set the manual down.
"The Agency provides attack mage commissions and target intel. Akatsuki handles the legwork."
"Payment: Agency takes 30% for intel, Akatsuki gets 70% for labor."
"If special circumstances require Agency force, payment's negotiated separately."
Yuzutama summarized the contract, handing it over. "Any objections, Mr. Roy?"
"Looks good."
Roy nodded.
Maybe thanks to Natsuki's input, the terms fit his needs.
He signed the contract and handed over five attack mage files. "I want these five. When can they report to me?"
Agueiss Himejima, La Folia Rihavein, Kirari Momobami, Yukina Himeragi, Sayaka Kirasaka.
Yuzutama pondered. "Agueiss and La Folia are Three Saints. We'll need time for their role handovers."
"Kirari's on a mission. Once she's back, she can head to Kuoh immediately."
"Yukina and Sayaka are here at the shrine. You want to go through formalities or just take them?"
"Formalities."
Wives needed ranking—main wife, second wife.
Taking them straight back would make Rias jealous.
"Have them pack."
"Got it. Give me a moment."
Yuzutama took the contract and left for the dorms.
She needed to prep her two apprentices mentally.
Sayaka Kirasaka was dazed.
She'd been chatting with Yukina in their room, sharing mission stories.
Then her master barged in with a bombshell.
"Master, what's this about finding us boyfriends?" Sayaka asked.
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Yuzutama placed a photo on the table. "You know him, right?"
"Of course. The Red Dragon Emperor," Sayaka said, glancing at it.
Massacring sorcerer higher-ups, raiding Claw's U.S. HQ.
Since entering the public eye, the Red Dragon Emperor made global waves.
Industry folks like Sayaka had heard his name.
"Good. He's your boyfriend," Yuzutama said.
"What?"
"Eh?"
Sayaka and Yukina froze, jaws dropping.
"Wait, you're joking, right?!" Sayaka protested.
"I'm not."
"But this is way too sudden!"
Sayaka couldn't accept it.
It wasn't about who.
The real issue: she wasn't into men.
Even the Red Dragon Emperor didn't spark her interest.
"And why Yukina? She's just an apprentice Sword Shaman!"
"Maybe he's into that?" Yuzutama shrugged.
"I'm not doing it!"
"No choice. It's an order."
Anticipating this, Yuzutama slapped a document down. "Sayaka, this is from the Lion King Agency and Japan's top brass."
"For the nation's future, you and Yukina must agree."
"…"
"When you meet him, don't scowl. It'll affect his impression."
Yuzutama patiently coached, offering tips to bond with Roy.
"That's the gist. Any questions?"
"…None."
"Then pack and get in the right headspace. I'll wait downstairs."
Yuzutama left.
After she vanished, Sayaka sat in silence, then punched the wall.
Bang!
"What the hell! That old hag!"
"Out of nowhere? No way I'm okay with this!"
"Sayaka?" Yukina jumped, startled.
"Sorry, scared you," Sayaka said, calming herself and turning to her roommate. "Yukina, what do you think?"
"If you want to refuse, say so. I can help you escape."
"Huh? That's not great, is it?" Yukina hesitated.
Unlike Sayaka, she wasn't averse to men.
More importantly, the Agency had saved her from a cult as an orphan.
From day one, she'd prepared to sacrifice for them.
This wasn't the sacrifice she'd imagined, but she wasn't opposed.
"Teacher said the Red Dragon Emperor's strong and easygoing," Yukina added. "Following him beats staying here. I think it's fine."
"You too?" Sayaka muttered.
Hearing Yukina, she had no choice but to go along.
They packed, and Yuzutama led them to the reception room.
"Get to know each other. I won't intrude," Yuzutama said.
"…"
"Keep a good attitude, got it?"
"Got it, now go!" Sayaka shooed her off.
Taking a deep breath, she rubbed her cheeks.
Two seconds later, a bright smile with eager eyes emerged.
"Wow, how'd you do that?" Yukina gasped, wide-eyed.
"Dance Princess training includes emotion and expression control. I can teach you later," Sayaka explained, pushing open the door and locking eyes with the man in the chair.
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Roy. I'm a Dance Princess of the Lion King Agency—holy, he's hot."
"???"
What are you saying?!
Sayaka fumbled, and Yukina, trailing, stepped in to cover.
But entering the room, Yukina froze, just like Sayaka.
He's gorgeous.
Meeting his deep eyes, Yukina felt her mind blur, sinking unconsciously.
A hand yanked her back. "Yukina, don't be rude!"
"!"
Yukina snapped back, sensing something off.
"Mr. Roy, sorry," Sayaka said, stepping forward to shield Yukina. "We were out of line."
"Let me reintroduce. I'm Sayaka Kirasaka, Dance Princess of the Lion King Agency."
"This is my roommate, Yukina Himeragi, apprentice Sword Shaman."
"Got it," Roy nodded, eyeing Sayaka thoughtfully.
Their reactions were due to his unrestrained aura.
Testing needed varied samples.
With Agueiss as a baseline, he wanted to see how weaker people reacted.
Sayaka's response proved something.
High alertness from the start boosted charm resistance significantly.
But if strength was lacking, brief mental lapses still happened.
"Not bad. Got some data," Roy said, snapping his fingers to summon a large teleportation array. "Follow me. To my place."
"Understood."
Sayaka responded instantly, watching Roy vanish into the array.
She exhaled sharply, turning to Yukina. "You okay?"
"…Fine. Let's go."
"Stay behind me."
Sayaka nodded, leading Yukina into the array, arriving in an underground magic chamber.
Roy, already there, waved them up to the surface.
"Roy, you're back," Rias greeted, descending from the second floor, eyeing the duo. "Who're they?"
"Lion King Matchmaking Agency hooked me up. Liked them, so I brought them home."
"???"
What's that nonsense?
Rias blinked but didn't press.
She was used to Roy bringing women home.
After chatting with Sayaka and Yukina to gauge their personalities, Rias turned to Roy with good news. "Sona annulled her engagement."
"That fast?"
"Yup. The skill gap was huge. Her fiancé cracked by the seventh chess match and surrendered."
"Nice work."
Roy felt proud.
He'd coached Sona, winning a hundred matches to teach her how to break an opponent's mental defenses.
Sona had mastered 70% of his psychological tactics, living up to his efforts.
"Sona's back tomorrow. I'm getting gifts for her. Wanna come?" Rias asked.
"Nah, got stuff to do."
"Later, then."
Rias left through the front door.
Roy took Sayaka and Yukina to the second floor, assigning them separate rooms.
After brief instructions, he vanished.
"So big!" Yukina marveled, exploring her room.
Compared to the Agency's dorms, Roy's rooms were massive.
It was her first time in such a huge space.
"Sayaka! We don't even need separate rooms. One's enough!"
"…Yeah."
"Sayaka?" Yukina noticed her distraction.
"You okay? Feeling off?"
"No, just thinking."
Sayaka stared at the door.
After a pause, she excused herself to "unpack" and headed to the fourth floor.
Unlike the lower levels, the fourth was a single, lavish suite with ornate decor.
Roy, who'd just parted from them, was training among gym equipment.
"Something up?" he asked, pausing.
"…Mr. Roy, please don't touch Yukina," Sayaka said, hesitating before pulling her collar to reveal ample curves. "I know this is forward, but I'll meet any request."
"Any? That's bold," Roy said, a playful smirk forming.
He pulled out his phone, tapped twice, and handed it to her. "Prove this conjecture in an hour, and I'll believe you're not bluffing."
"???"
This wasn't the script.
Sayaka froze, staring at the phone's screen.
Riemann Hypothesis.
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