Sirzechs had a hard time concealing his anger at the result of the match, but as he retreated into the medical wing he was already thinking of ways to ensure the wedding between Rias and Riser never happened.
The reason he had gone to the medical wing was not to check on Rias, she had been taken by their parents back to the Gremory estate once everything resolved. The only ones in the medical wing now were those who had been forcibly transported from the Rating Game by the safety precautions and one particular individual had drawn quite a lot of attention. Sirzechs was incredibly strong and so he knew he'd have no issue resisting the suicide attack his sister's Knight had pulled off against Riser's Queen, but should he grow even stronger, well, Sirzechs got a chill down his back.
And there was something else he needed confirmation of, something that had been on his mind ever since he'd seen the Knight's face. Normally the medical wing was divided by team, but in this case Sirzechs had asked the Knight be moved to an individual room upon arrival. Standing before the door, the Satan paused momentarily before deciding to just enter. He ended up walking in just as the Knight on the bed started to groan.
"Awake already, impressive." Sirzechs spoke as he made his way to a seat near the bed. "I would like to speak with you, if that is alright." It was a demand, not a question, and Sirzechs could see the resignation in the Knight's eyes.
With a sigh, Lelouch shifted so he was leaning his back against the pillow. "Sure, why not." Lelouch could see the serious look in the redhead's eyes. "I assume you're Rias' brother?" The family resemblance was quite obvious.
Sirzechs nodded, a small smile gracing his lips as he thought of his beloved little sister. "Indeed." Wiping his expression clean, he got straight to the point. "But that's not why I'm here." Leaning forward, Sirzechs clasped his hands in front of his chin and stared pointedly at the boy's face. "Do the names 'Zero, the Man of Miracles' or 'Demon Emperor' mean anything to you?"
Lelouch could not hide the shock in his eyes as he stared at Rias' brother. "How do you know those names?" His body felt tense as he prepared for the worst, but Sirzechs didn't move.
Sirzechs narrowed his eyes as the spark of recognition and shock entered Lelouch's eyes. "So you are him." Forestalling any response, the Satan held up his hand and leaned back. "I'm not going to hurt you, I just have some questions." With a light smile, he allowed his power to flicker just enough to put pressure on the boy in the hospital bed. "I trust you will be honest with me?"
Lelouch choked as for a split second he couldn't breathe, the very air filled with power. Breathing deeply once the air returned to normal, Lelouch could feel his entire body coated with sweat. "Yes, of course." Lelouch may not be able to die due to the Code, but he really didn't want to see what someone like the monster before him could do even if death wasn't an option.
"Good." With that, Sirzechs lounged in the chair with one hand on his cheek as he stared at the boy. "To answer your question, my friend was messing around with one of his experiments and gained insight into another world through the Dimensional Gap." Sirzechs leaned back slightly and reconsidered. "Or was it part of the Dimensional Gap?" The Satan hummed in thought before shrugging. "Either way, this world looked quite different from anything he'd ever seen, it looked almost like a temple in the sky." Repositioning his gaze back onto Lelouch, he noticed the boy paying very close attention. "In that world, he witnessed a self-professed man of miracles command a Deity and erase his own father and mother from existence." A chuckle escaped Sirzechs lips. "Naturally, he shared this information with us and, with his experiment, continued observing this anomaly for as long as he could." Leaning forward with a grin, Sirzechs stared. "He witnessed the man of miracles conquer his world as the Demon Emperor using his powers."
"I see." Lelouch paled as he stared at the Satan watching him from his bedside. "I assume you're wondering how I ended up in this world then?"
Sirzechs nodded solemnly, pleased the young man before him wasn't playing the fool. "We saw you die, after that we ultimately decided to stop observing your world." Sirzechs chuckled as he shrugged absently. "My comrade lost interest after the most interesting man in the world chose to commit an elaborate suicide." Staring down the young man who'd conducted his own death, Sirzechs gave a lopsided smirk. "Though it was quite the spectacle." Serafall had been greatly inspired by the drama and developed many new ideas for her show.
The dramatic gesturing villain that recently appeared in Magical Girl Levia-tan was almost certainly Lelouch's influence, though Sirzechs wasn't certain whether Serafall had realized the man himself was in there world. Which did bring things back around to the reason Sirzechs was here.
"Do you have any designs on the human world?" Sirzechs asked seriously, staring down the man who'd once conquered another world.
Lelouch chuckled and shook his head. "No, I have no interest in ruling anything." The former Emperor then stared dead on at the Satan interrogating him. "As for how I ended up here, it's… quite a story." He shivered slightly, remembering the enormous red dragon from the reawakened memories. "One I only learned recently myself when I spoke with the one who dragged me here."
Sirzechs leaned forward. "Who was it?" It's possible it could have been the will of Him, despite His death Sirzechs still firmly believed He had some form of influence on the world given the fact Sacred Gears still functioned with His blessings.
"Does the name Ophis mean anything to you?" Lelouch asked, having to resist a smirk when he saw Sirzechs pale as white as he'd been earlier. "Apparently she saw me use my powers and wanted me to use them on Great Red to make the Dragon 'go away' in her words." Lelouch shivered as he remembered the sheer size of that monstrous creature.
Sirzechs gaped as he stared at the young man before him. "Do you still have that power?" He closed his eyes and leaned back, thinking things through quickly.
Lelouch sighed, having expected such a question. "Would you believe me if I said no?" That was the problem when people became aware of his Geass. When people learned he could subvert their free will so easily, he became instantly distrusted. Even if he explained the limitations, the fact remained people would still have to trust he was being honest about them.
Sirzechs raised an eyebrow and opened his eyes, staring at the young man dead on. "Interesting answer." He leaned forward, balancing his chin on his palms. "I take it that means you genuinely don't have it or at the very least you can't use it the way you used to."
A snicker escaped Lelouch's lips. "Second one." He admitted honestly, knowing there's no point in lying to the Devil before him. "I need more magical power than the target in order to have any effect and, well." Lelouch shrugged and gestured at himself. "As you can tell, I don't have nearly as much magical power as I'd need to actually do as she asked."
"That's the second time you called the Dragon God she." Sirzechs noted curiously. "I suppose that must be the form Ophis is using then." At Lelouch's curious stare, the Satan elaborated further. "Over the millennia, Ophis has appeared to us Devils, the Fallen, and the Angels and even other Gods in many forms, their current form changes with their whims." He shrugged while Lelouch nodded in understanding. "A being born at the literal creation of all universes in the void between worlds is beyond understanding except in very small respects. She is older than any living creature except maybe Great Red can comprehend."
"I understand." Lelouch nodded at Sirzechs' comments. "So… where do we go from here?" As interesting as the discussion was, Lelouch knew Sirzechs wanted more answers than just how he got here.
Sirzechs stared blankly at the young Devil before chuckling. "As long as you are happy being my sister's Knight and you keep her safe, I have no issues with you being in this world." For a nanosecond, he flexed his powers once more, causing the former Emperor to break into a cold sweat. "As long as you have no designs on conquering the human world, or any other, there will not be any issues between us." A lopsided smirk graced the Satan's face. "I can't promise that my colleagues won't have questions, but I'll make sure to ask they be discreet so your secrets aren't revealed until you're ready."
Lelouch sighed in relief at the terms Sirzechs outlined. "Thank you." He wasn't sure when, but at some point he'd like to reveal his past to an extent to his new friends.
With that, Sirzechs left and the meeting between the Demon Emperor and the strongest of the four Satans ended.
"Oh, by the way, that mansion you're renovating?" Sirzechs spoke as he was about to leave the room. "Don't worry about the costs, I'll handle everything for you." He turned back and smiled at Lelouch's gobsmacked face. "Consider it a gift for giving it your all and helping my baby sister."
With that, the Devil left and Lelouch was stunned speechless.
Two weeks passed in the Underworld after Lelouch met with Sirzechs. It was mid-November, not the greatest time for a wedding, but that was as long as Riser had given Rias to prepare. Lelouch knew Sirzechs had a plan to sabotage the wedding, the Satan had been spending some time with Lelouch discussing strategies once Lelouch let it slip he was also a big brother.
The thought of Nunnally being put in Rias' position made Lelouch boil with rage. Given how Rias felt about Issei, Lelouch convinced Sirzechs that his idea for involving the Pawn was a good idea, but that he'd need to be more discreet if he actually wanted to minimize the political fallout for his parents.
Apparently, despite having the Gremory name and being Rias' little sister, officially Sirzechs was no longer a Gremory. That's why Rias was even in line to become head in the first place and why this marriage had been arranged between her and Riser's families.
Lelouch understood using marriage for political gain, though he found it distasteful. It was Sirzechs' idea to setup a duel between Riser and Issei, but Lelouch convinced the Satan to be a little more underhanded in his method of convincing Issei to attend.
At the wedding party, Lelouch stood next to Koneko, who was wearing a black dress that meshed wonderfully with her white hair and pale complexion, that managed to look tasteful without impeding her movement. Lelouch himself was wearing a suit Sirzechs helped him find, the pair having grown closer in their plotting to a point where they could almost be considered friends.
Akeno was aware of some aspects of the plan, as was Kiba, so they would be on guard to handle any attempts to interrupt. Koneko kept clenching and unclenching her fists as her gaze shifted around the party, constantly aware of the guards.
"Calm down." Akeno's voice whispered from behind Lelouch and Koneko. "The two of you look jumpy." Wedging herself in between them, the Queen pressed her breasts against Lelouch's arm. "Let's dance, I want to talk to you." Akeno winked at Koneko as she dragged Lelouch to the dance floor. "I'll give him back shortly."
Lelouch allowed himself to be pulled to the dance floor, falling into step easily as his old training kicked in, though his gaze did meet Koneko's shortly before he turned his full attention to Akeno. If her true features were showing he had no doubt her ears and tail would be twitching in annoyance.
Placing his hand on Akeno's waist he fell into step as they began to dance. "What do you want?" Lelouch asked, his gaze meeting Akeno, though his eyes kept flickering to the entrance.
"I wanted an answer." Akeno pressed herself against Lelouch, much closer than needed for the particular dance. "You know I like you, I know Koneko likes you." She pouted as she twirled in his grip, the dance music flowing through them. "It's rude to keep avoiding the answer, you know."
Lelouch sighed as he finally decided to bite the bullet. "I understand." Looking at Akeno seriously, he gave her a soft smile. "I'm sorry." There was a pain in Akeno's eyes at his answer, but she returned his smile.
"It's ok." Her reply was uncharacteristically kind and soft. "Just so you know." She leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "If you ever hurt her, your torture will make all of the Underworld blush." She nipped his ear playfully and continued. "And if you ever want more than one, well you know I'm interested." Lelouch blushed slightly at Akeno's words and her nibbling on his ear, but his soft smile remained.
"Thank you for understanding." Lelouch knew heartbreak wasn't easy, but Akeno was being surprisingly mature, minus her teasing about joining in at some point in the future.
The song ended soon and Lelouch returned to Koneko, holding his hand out. Her face went from annoyed to shocked rather quickly. "May I have this dance, Shirone?" He whispered so quietly only she could hear. A light dusting of pink graced Shirone's face.
"Very well." Gently, the Nekoshou placed her hand into Lelouch's and, as he put one hand around her small waist, the music changed to something slow.
Gently pressing against each other, the pair moved slowly in time with the music. "What did Akeno want to talk to you about?" Shirone's voice was quiet as she rested her forehead against Lelouch's chest, nervous about meeting his eyes.
"She wanted an answer about how I felt for her." Lelouch answered honestly as he moved in sync with Shirone.
"And what did you say?" The Nekoshou whispered nervously. Her insecurities rising.
"I said I'm sorry." Lelouch gave a soft smile to Shirone as her head shot up, staring at him in surprise. "She said if I did anything to hurt you, the tortures she would inflict on me would make the entire Underworld blush." As the catgirl's face grew more and more pink, Lelouch gave an exasperated sigh. "She also offered to join in." The two of them had matching deadpan expressions at that, completely unsurprised that Akeno had said such a thing.
Soon enough though, Lelouch's words sank in for Shirone. "Does that… Does that mean?" She stuttered as she tried her best to meet the taller boy's gaze.
Lelouch nodded, holding Shirone a little tighter. "It does." He leaned forward and gently pressed a kiss between her real ears. "As long as you feel the same."
Shirone purred as she felt Lelouch's lips on the top of her head, only just barely resisting the urge to unleash her features. "I do." She whispered, her lips spreading into a wide grin as she and Lelouch stared into each other's eyes.
And then the door to the wedding celebration exploded and the real party began.