The school campus is abnormally quiet after dark, the shadows stretched out and the atmosphere with an undercurrent of menace. The previously bustling hallways of Kuoh Academy are now empty, hauntingly so, with an unnatural stillness that pervades.
Footsteps come towards the Student Council room—calm, careful, but not frantic. When the boy reaches the door, he hesitates, raps once, and waits.
No reply.
Seconds later, the door groans open. The same silver-haired girl who had greeted him earlier waits on the opposite side. She says nothing, only a soft nod as she moves aside to let him through.
Inside, the air is still. Low lights create long shadows on the walls. Four people alone are there, their eyes shifting to the new figure. The ordinary buzz of well-ordered activity gives way to something colder, more ritualistic.
Sona Sitri, sitting at the head of the room, returns his look with quiet authority.
"Genshirou Saji. You arrived."
She indicates the chair in front of her. He sits down readily.
In silence, she pushes a contract over the table—a formal agreement emblazoned with the Sitri family crest. It includes every point mentioned in previous meetings: his protection, his terms, the favor he'd asked for his family. All of it is written with meticulous care.
He reads through it, nods once, and requests a pen.
Sona hands him one with no fanfare.
He signs.
There is a moment of awkward silence heaped with meaning.
Then Sona gets up. "Lay down on the floor."
The instruction is plain. He complies.
As he settles down on the floor, the room gets dark for a moment before a shining blue magic circle erupts to existence under him. The Sitri clan sigil shines brightly, wise and proud. Devil-kind symbols flutter like iridescent fireflies, dancing in the air.
Sona takes a velvet-covered box and opens it gingerly. From inside, she takes four red chess piece— four Pawns.
"This is the Evil Piece," sona declares in a calm voice. "With it, I invite you into my peerage."
She kneels down, puts the piece upon his heart, and forces it downwards.
The reaction is instantaneous.
The article glows, then disappears into his chest, gone into his very soul. A burst of red energy explodes from the circle, flowing across the floor like rippling water.
His body responds—arching ever so slightly, hands shaking, breath holding in his throat. But he does not scream. The change is ugly… but not deadly.
And then, there is only silence.
The magic circle fades and disappears, only leaving the gentle thrum of leftover power in the air.
Saji stands stock-still, beads of sweat on his forehead, his face blank as if waking up into a new world.
Sona steps back, her voice steady but firm.
"It is done."
She turns to her peerage, each of whom stands watching in somber silence.
"Welcome Genshirou Saji, the newest Pawn of House Sitri."
Saji eased himself up off the floor slowly, his legs shaking under him. The change had put his entire body into shock—muscles protesting, nerves humming, as if he had been hit by lightning and run over a battlefield.
One of Sona's peerage members, Tsubasa Yura, noticing his struggle, moved forward and caught him before he could fall again.
Easy there, champ," she told him, her voice warm but commanding. "You just became a devil. Your body's had a complete makeover. Everything's stronger, faster. but unstable too. You have to acclimatize."
She steered him gently toward the couch nearby, sitting him down.
"Thanks," Saji grunted, his voice thankful, though his head still reeled with what had occurred.
Sona came next, her face calm but gentler than normal. She offered her hand, calling forth a glimmering Sitri-blue magic circle that floated above her hand. Out of it, a shiny black wristband and a tiny pill box appeared.
"These are yours now," she told him, holding them out. "The band is specially made to control your strength and demon power. Your power is unstable at the moment. The wristband will stop you from harming yourself… or someone else, accidentally."
She then pointed to the pill container. "Take one of these every day for the next four months. They'll acclimate your body to devil physiology and shield you from the sun until your system develops a natural resistance."
Saji took the items cautiously, looking down at them as the gravity of his transformation weighed upon him like a heavy cloak.
Human no more. The decision had been made.
He was a devil now.
And there was no going back.
Sona glared at Tsubasa and instructed, "Help Genshirou-san home, will you?"
Tsubasa nodded wordlessly, falling into step beside Saji. Without objection or struggle, he let her lead him out of the Student Council room. They left in silence—no words spoken, no grand goodbyes. Just the soft snap of the door shutting behind them.
The instant they were out of sight, Sona exhaled a tired sigh and collapsed onto the couch, her usual poise and dignity falling from her shoulders like a discarded cloak. The austere, composed Student Council President was gone—for a moment, at least, she was simply a tired girl who had talked herself around a political bomb.
She wasn't alone.
The remaining occupants of the room reacted much the same. A collective breath held too long was finally released.
Tsubaki was the first to speak, pinching the bridge of her nose as she leaned against the wall. "Sona, next time, try not to walk straight into a political nightmare."
Sona's head jerked up, eyes lowering. "And you could've warned me about just how bad it could get when I first suggested the idea of hiring him!"
Tsubaki shot her a side glance, her tone dry. " I am pretty sure you researched him yourself and when I attempt to warn you about her you said they have no relation to one another
Sona sighed, slumping against the couch and gazing at the ceiling. "Well… now it's too late."
"Well atleast rias-san warned you before you turn him " said Momo Hanakai with her own sigh.
The room was silent once more, but no longer was it charged with tension—now it was just weighed down with the fact that a new page had been turned, one they could no longer take back.
----
With saji and tsubasa
As the two of them stepped out of the school gates, the evening wind caressing the hems of their uniforms, Saji hinged slightly on Tsubasa for support. His legs were weak still, not used to the change he had just gone through.
There was a subdued tension between them.
For Saji, it was shame—having to depend on another like this.
For Tsubasa, it was the silence—weighty, unspoken, and awkward.
Trying to break it, she finally spoke. "So… what are your plans now that you're a devil?"
Her tone was casual, clearly meant to spark a light conversation, but the question hung in the air like a weight.
Saji blinked, caught off guard. He looked down, guilt creeping across his face. "I don't know," he admitted honestly. "I never really thought about what I'd do after becoming a devil."
Tsubasa scrunched up her face, as if puzzled by the response. "You don't know?" she repeated. "If you didn't know… then why become a devil in the first place?"
Saji sighed and replied "I want to support my family with best of my ability so I just became a devil" with a little determination in his voice.
"So you do have a plan plan after you became devil" tsubasa said after knowing what saji want to do in future.
"I wasn't called a plan for the future for me" saji said "after all I became devil under Sona president so I can spend much time with my family as before and there is nothing I want accomplished as a devil.
"Just because you're a devil now doesn't mean you don't have a life beyond that."
Saji blinked, caught off-guard by her words. "What do you mean?"
Tsubasa didn't hesitate. "Simply put, you have more freedom than you think. Yes, you're bound to certain rules and responsibilities now—but that doesn't mean you can't still live a good life with your family, at least for the time you have."
There was a faint sorrow in her eyes as she spoke, something far older than her appearance betrayed.
"You've got maybe a decade, maybe two, before you'll have to leave them completely," she continued. "They'll age, Saji. But you… you'll barely change after your mid-twenties. From the outside, it'll look like you haven't aged a day."
Saji stared at her, the weight of her words settling on him like a cold fog. In that moment, he understood exactly what she was trying to tell him—he had changed. Not just his body or his soul, but his entire future.
"So," he asked slowly, "you're saying I should make the best memories I can with my family… before I have to leave them behind."
She nodded.
He turned toward her again, eyes troubled. "But is it even worth it? If I have to leave them… wouldn't it be better not to get too close? Wouldn't it be easier for them to forget me, than to be hurt by me disappearing?"
Tsubasa let out a sigh—soft, but filled with quiet frustration and understanding. "Do you want them to hate you for that? Or would you rather they remember you with warmth in their hearts, even if it hurts a little when you're gone?"
Her voice softened as she added, "For me… I want my family to remember me fondly. I want to leave them with the best parts of me, not confusion or regret. So I make the most of every moment I still have with them."
She looked him in the eye.
"And now I'll ask you—when that day comes, what kind of memories do you want your family to have of you?"
After Tsubasa finished speaking, no more words were exchanged between them.
She knew this was a moment that didn't require more voices—only silence and space for Saji to think. What he wanted to do, what kind of future he would choose… it was his decision now.
They walked in quiet companionship. The awkwardness from before had faded, replaced with something heavier, but more meaningful. And soon enough, they reached their destination—Saji's home, peaceful and undisturbed.
Tsubasa came to a stop and nodded toward the gate. "Looks like we've arrived. Can you handle it from here?"
Saji blinked, as if just now realizing they were no longer at the school. "Wait… you're not coming inside for a bit before you leave?"
She gave him the driest look she could manage, arms crossed. "It'd be weird if I went into your house at this hour."
Saji scratched the back of his head, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips. "Now that you say it… yeah, it would be pretty weird."
He gave a small bow. "Thanks for walking with me—and for helping clear my head."
"Just don't forget it," she said with a faint smile, then turned and disappeared into the night.
Saji stepped through the gate and opened the door to his home. "I'm back," he called.
Before he could take off his shoes, two small missiles launched at him—his younger siblings.
"You're late!" they shouted in unison, puffing their cheeks in mock anger. "You promised we'd watch our favorite show together!"
Saji laughed, ruffling their hair. "Sorry, sorry—I lost track of time."
From the dining room, his grandparents peeked in with gentle smiles.
"What took you so long, Saji? Everyone's been waiting for you to start dinner."
He looked around—the warmth of home, the laughter of family, the clatter of dishes being set on the table. In that moment, the answer that had been weighing on him earlier became crystal clear.
He smiled, stepping forward with newfound purpose.
"Sorry for being late, everyone."