Fanfic / Marriage of Heaven and Hell

"So it's on and on and on..."

"What have I gotten myself into? My life's now literally a harem anime from Hell."

— Makoto Fujiwara

Marriage of Heaven and Hell is an Alternate Universe Fic by iBlewupthemoon based off High School D×D that asks, "What If? the protagonist was a Celibate Hero angel (or so he says) instead of a pervert devil?" We get Makoto Fujiwara, the son of the Seraph Gabriel and a human who is thrust into the world of angels and devils when his best friend is attacked by fallen angels.

But that's not all that's changed. Heaven is under new management as the Norse Goddess of Death, Halja, unleashed Ragnarok on Heaven itself with the power of the Red Dragon, retconning every Longinus user up to that point out of existence in the process, and planted herself as Heaven's new ruler.

To stop her, Makoto is going to have to team up with the Occult Research Club to restore the Balance Between Good and Evil. Which, of course, means that harem hijinks will ensue.

Available to read on Fanfiction.Net and Archive of Our Own

Not related to the book by William Blake that the fic gets its title from.

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Marriage of Heaven and Hell provides examples of:

• Aborted Arc:
  • Viser, the stray devil from Volume 1, is Killed Offscreen by Enrico Stark and we don't get to see the fight.
  • Riser decides against the Rating Game with Rias Gremory and asks them to rescue his sister instead. They instead have to fight Milcom Amon.
• Accidental Pervert: As Genre Savvy as Makoto is, this doesn't prevent Makoto from finding out how Rias sleeps.
  • He also invents Dress Break by complete accident.
• Adaptational Early Appearance:
  • Kalawarner, Dohnaseek, and Mittelt all appear before Raynare this time around. This leads to Kalawarner dying much earlier.
  • Diodora Astaroth appears at in the first chapter of Volume 2 instead of Volume 5 and is revealed to be working for Halja.
  • Suzaku Himejima appears in Volume 2, whereas she appears much later in the Light Novel.
• Adaptational Modesty: Played for Laughs in chapter 4 of Volume 5 when compared to the side story it was based off. When Riser makes it to the hot springs he was trying to peep on, he finds out, to his dismay, that all the girls were wearing Modesty Towels, partly because Ravel had warned them he would try to spy on them.
• All Myths Are True: Par for the course. Makoto is surprised when Rias compares the weaknesses of devils and vampires
  "Wait. Is she implying vampires are real too?"
• All Women Are Lustful: Downplayed compared to High School DxD, but most of the female devils are still very seductive and are either Shameless Fanservice Girls, enjoy teasing and flirting with Makoto, or both.
• Altar Diplomacy: While not forced upon him, Grayfia suggests that Makoto marrying a devil could help end the feud between the angels and devils.
  "If we can prove that the forces of law and chaos are able to do more than just coexist with one another, I think we can stop this senseless violence for good."
• Anatomically Impossible Sex: Discussed multiple times whenever the possibility of Makoto being in a sexual relationship with Koneko, who is significantly smaller than him, is brought up. At one point, Aika asks if they "...y'know" after catching the two of them in a Sleep Cute moment and Makoto begins to reply that he's "pretty that sure that is not physically possible for the two of us-" before he gets violently jabbed by Koneko for the mere suggestion.
• Anxiety Dreams: Makoto starts to have several of these after his Dividing Gear awakens. It doesn't help he has to deal with Rias' Arranged Marriage and an ever-growing harem at the same time.
• Arc Words: The finale of Volume 4, aptly titled "How You Feel," uses the phrase multiple times referring both to Akeno reconciling with her father and Makoto and Akeno confessing their love for each other.
• Aren't You Forgetting Someone?: One of the prisoners cheers out when Makoto, Sairaorg, and Riser help Rahab rescue them from Ahab Amon.
  Prisoner: It’s Sairaorg and the White Dragon Emperor!
  Riser: Hey, I’m here too…
• Armor-Piercing Response: When Raynare asks the infamous question of "Would you die for me?" Makoto reveals he was onto her the whole time by referring to her by her actual name that he overheard Mittelt mention.
  "Somehow, I knew you were going to say that, Raynare!"
• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: Kuroka is arrested in Volume 5 for "The murder of her master… and trespassing on a private train."
  • There is an Ironic Echo of this statement after Ahab Amon is later arrested at the end of Volume 5 for " Unlawful imprisonment and trespassing."
• Astonishingly Appropriate Interruption: As Rias vents with him in the sauna, he comments how awkward it would be "if we weren’t this chill with each other, or if I was stuck calling you-" right as Rias collapses from the poisoned champagne and he exclaims "President!"
• Big Damn Heroes:
  • Rias comes just in time to save Makoto from the Fallen Angels in Chapter 1 and she is also joined by Aika and Akeno in saving him from Raynare in Chapter 2.
  • After Enrico Stark ambushes the Himejima mansion and injures Akeno, Grayfia shows up to help Makoto escape.
• Book Ends: Makoto has a Power-Strain Blackout and then walks into Rias waking up in her usual sleeping attire both at the end of the first chapter of Volume 1 and at the end of Volume 2 and Akeno is right behind him both times. His much less frantic reaction the second time indicates him beginning to get over his Paralyzing Fear of Sexuality.
• Brick Joke: In Chapter 1, Aika comments that she hasn't been able to read Makoto's "manhood" since they met in Middle School. Come Chapter 2, after Makoto finds out the hard way that Rias Sleeps in the Nude, Aika is implied to have found out.
  • In Chapter 1, Makoto says that his mother got their Big Fancy House from "God-knows-where." When she later reveals it was a gift from the Gremory family, he corrects it to "Lucifer-knows-where."
• Broad Strokes: Most volumes don't strictly follow The Stations of the Canon and will often be interwoven with characters and plot lines from later light novel volumes, side stories, and OVA's. For instance, Volume 2 combines the Arranged Marriage plot from the original arc with Akeno's backstory from Volumes 4,7,and 15 and Asia's history with Diodora from Volume 6.
• The Call Knows Where You Live: While Makoto runs away to try and make sense of his situation, he is asked on a date by Yuma Amano, who happens to be Raynare, a fallen angel sent to assassinate Makoto.
• Chekhov's Gag:
  • The fact that Yuma Amano was still in Makoto's Contact List becomes a recurring joke in Volumes 1 and 2 and comes in handy when Makoto is cornered by Halja.
  • Motohama randomly mentions "mysteriously disappearing panties" in Chapter 2 of Volume 3. They track those down while trying to locate Valper Galilei in Chapter 3.
• Chekhov's Gunman:
  • Mittelt mentions how Raynare would be interested in the Downfall Dragon Spear. Makoto correctly assumes that she would be the next fallen angel that comes after him.
  • The servant at the Himejima shrine during the first flashback chapter ends up being Gabriel's husband, Hikaru Fujiwara.
  • The devil who killed Viser ends up returning in Volume 2 as one of the antagonists.
• Comically Missing the Point: When Makoto argues that he's outnumbered 15:1 by Riser and has no chance fighting him, Gabriel says that the ratio is actually 8:1 when you include the King, which is still much more than Makoto's peerage.
• Crashing Dreams: Makoto hears his waifu alarm clock going off in his dream.
  "WAKE UP BITCH OR I SHALL CHOP OFF YOUR BALLS"
• The Danza: In-Universe. Serafall and Makoto's characters in the Show Within a Show Miracle Levia-tan are both named Affectionate Nicknames given by the former.
  Makoto: She really had to make her cutesy nickname for me the name of the character, though…
• Darwinist Desire: Kuroka requests that Makoto "make a child" with her after he helps defeat Kokabiel, stating her desire to have his angel and dragon genes, even if Makoto turns into a fallen angel as a result. Even though Xenovia believes her to be a "threat to Makoto's virginity," she also agrees that his "genes are quite impressive" after offering to "bear his children" if Rias or Akeno reject a confession from him.
• Deadpan Snarker: Mostly Makoto, but several characters, particularly Koneko and Aika get in as well.
• Delaying Action: In Volume 3, Makoto taunts Kokabiel to the point he has a Villainous Breakdown so he can buy time for Gabriel to arrive and finish him off.
• Dies Differently in Adaptation:
  • Kalawarner is killed in an Adaptational Early Appearance by Makoto.
  • Asia is killed by Freed under Halja's orders instead of by the Fallen Angel ritual
• Disappeared Dad / Missing Mom: Makoto has the former and and Akeno has the latter, a fact that she uses to empathize with him when he's downtrodden about it. It's revealed later that they were both killed by the same assassins.
• The Dog Was the Mastermind: It is revealed that the one who had Rias poisoned and made multiple attempts to sabotage the Rating Game against her team was an unassuming cameraman, Korgull Naberius, when he attacked Makoto, critically injuring his right arm with Null Ripper, leaving him unable to use Dividing Gear until it heals naturally.
• Dodgeball Is Hell: The Occult Research Club has a Dodgeball Game against The Student Council involving enchanted balls, a (non-fatal) Heroic Sacrifice from Asia, and Makoto, per tradition, taking a dodgeball to the plums.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: Before it's revealed that Makoto is helping Asia heal Saji's butt after being disciplined by Sona, some of the comments the two of them make are quite suggestive.
  Saji: Yeeeoww! I said be gentle!
  Makoto: The more you squirm, the longer this is gonna hurt.
• Dudley Do-Right Stops to Help: After he finds Aika critically injured in the forest, Makoto's secret identity as an angel is revealed to the fallen angels as he heals her. After Rias saves them, he figures out his identity himself and defeats and kills Kalawarner. However, because of this, Halja then sends Raynare to hunt him down and assassinate him and she and the rest of the remaining fallen angels attempt to take over Kuoh Town.
• Emergency Transformation: Subverted with Aika, whom Rias was originally planning to reincarnate into a devil after she was attacked by fallen angels. Makoto managed to heal her in the brink of time, but she went ahead with the transformation anyway.
  • Played straight with Asia, whom Makoto reincarnated as an angel after Freed stabbed her to death.
• Enemy Mine: Both Makoto and Raynare are trying to take Halja down.
• Et Tu, Brute?: Raynare's response to being betrayed by Freed and Mittelt.
  Raynare: You two dare betray me? I am your master!
  Mittelt: Lady Halja is our master. Not you, dumbass.
• Fantastic Racism: Ahab Amon considers the refugees of Heaven as "tresspassers" in the Underworld and attacks New Heaven when it is used as a sanctuary for his and Diodora's captives.
• Featureless Plane of Disembodied Dialogue: The prologues of many of the volumes are written in this fashion, often depicting dialogue between characters not yet properly introduced and/or establishing a conflict.
• First-Person Smartass: Like the original light novel, the fic is from Makoto's perspective and he uses this to give characters nicknames and riff on dialogue.
• Fixing the Game: It is revealed that somebody is trying to sabotage Rias and Sairaorg's Rating Game after she is poisoned and Makoto is forced to assume the role of King in her place for the game. The team is attacked multiple times until the perpetrator, Korgull Naberius, ultimately attacks Makoto with Null Ripper right as he plans to finish off Sairaorg.
• Forgiving the Accidental Pervert: In the beginning of Volume 3, Makoto is led to believe PE is about to start and accidentally walks into the girls' locker room while they are changing. None of them retaliate against him as he apologizes profusely and begins to walk out and Ravel even greets him. Meanwhile, Hagane finds out Matsuda and Motohama are hiding in her locker and Koneko violently throws them out in the usual manner before more gently nudging Makoto out as well.
  Matsuda: C'mon! Makoto just waltzed right in here! Why didn't y'all freak out over him!?
  Koneko: Because, unlike you two, he at least tries to respect women.
  Makoto: Tries?
• The Four Loves: Makoto alludes to these in Volume 4. His relationship with Akeno is closer to Eros while his relatonship with Rias is closer to Philia with some unrequited Eros.
• "Friends" Rent Control: While the house is not confirmed to be as ridiculous as Issei Hyodo's home after Volume 5 of the original light novel, It is still described by Makoto in the very first lines of the fic as "a fancy house bought from a fortune accumulated from God-knows-where" and is large enough to house a club full of angels, devils, and a fallen angel. The only head of household is a single mother with a school counseling job, albeit at a prestigious academy. The only hint to who pays the large amounts of potential house payments and property taxes is the fact the house was a gift from the Gremory family.
• God-Karting with Beelzebub: By chapter 3, not only only is the angel protagonist in the same club as a peerage of devils, but they begin to share the same roof as well. Said roof also happens to be a gift from the family of the leader of the devils to the current leader of the angels.
  Okay. I am apparently an angel and I am now on a first name basis with a devil. This has to be some sort of sacrilege.
• Gone Horribly Right: Played for Laughs with Makoto's "Armor Break" ability for dealing with Hagane's magic armor, which ends up functioning virtually identical to Issei's Dress Break, though it, thankfully, didn't go through the underwear.
  "It worked!... Too well."
• Good Thing You Can Heal: Makoto manages to get out of situations that would normally kill him very frequently. This is especially evident in his first fight with Raynare where he sustains similar injuries to the ones that killed Issei and lives.
• Healing Hands: Both Makoto and Asia have a close-range healing ability. Asia later develops a healing projectile she can use from a longer range, which she first successfully uses after Makoto is injured by Diodora's Queen.
• Hypocritical Humor: After they find out Valper Galilei and the stolen Excalibur pieces are in Kuoh Town.
  Makoto: Now that we know where those swords are, we can't afford to rest until we track them down and destroy them... Now let's grab some lunch. I'm starving.
• I Am Who?: The identity of himself and his mother is a complete surprise to Makoto
• The Illuminati: Makoto suggests that Rias and Sona might be part of this.
  "So it's not just the Occult Research Club that's controlled by devils, but the Student Council as well. This is quickly turning into some Illuminati-type shit."
• Inadvertent Entrance Cue: After clarifying that Makoto is only on a short-list of marriage candidates after beating her in Chess, Sona adds that she knows that Rias and Akeno like him more and she doesn't want to "rain on their parade." Makoto replies by saying that someone also likes her more than he does shortly before the lights on the train start flickering and Saji runs into the car.
• I Need to Go Iron My Dog: After Gabriel reveals her past and how she ended up on Earth, Makoto says that he's Late for School and leaves... even though it's a weekend.
• Intimate Healing: When Makoto is suffering from a Heroic BSoD as a result of anxiety from Rias falling ill from poison and having to lead her peerage in her stead against Sairaorg Bael, Asia and Akeno offer to sleep next to him to help relieve this anxiety.
• Ironic Echo: Makoto uses the "Would you die for me?" line against Halja right before Yuma attacks her.
• I Shall Taunt You: Makoto taunts Kokabiel into a blind rage in order to buy time for Gabriel to arrive and defeat him.
• Lap Pillow: Rias and Asia offer this to Makoto in Volume 2, Chapter 2 after he's fatigued from being kept up from nightmares induced from both anxiety about Rias' Arranged Marriage and his Dragon Spirit awakening.
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall: On several occasions, such as when Rias tells him the club would be living with him in his house, he comments about it being like living in a harem anime.
• Leave the Two Lovebirds Alone: After Makoto and Akeno confess their love for each other, Baraqiel suggests "giving the new couple some time alone." Rias agrees and tells the rest of the club, who was eavesdropping the entire time, to give them some privacy. Makoto, of course, thinks they're referring to sex.
• Let Me Get This Straight...:
  Makoto: God has been dead for centuries.
  Gabriel: Yes.
  Makoto: Heaven has been taken over by the goddess of death.
  Gabriel: Yes.
  Makoto: Forcing you to live on Earth where you fell in love with a human.
  Gabriel: Yes.
  Makoto: And gave birth to me.
  Gabriel: Yes.
  Makoto: It's official. Nothing makes sense anymore.
• Let Us Never Speak of This Again: Makoto has this attitude towards "Armor Break."
  Koneko: What are you going to do, Strip his clothes too?
  Makoto: We are not speaking of that again.
  • Koneko repeats the phrase word-for-word after Aika catches her and Makoto in a Sleep Cute moment.
• Mistaken for Masturbating: After Makoto's dragon arm flares up in Volume 3, Motohama asks if he has a "sudden urge" after he had just accidentally walked into the girls' locker room while they were changing. He then clarifies he had to see "the nurse" (Akeno) after he had "injured" his arm (which had been actually cut off by Halja and replaced with said dragon arm by Albion).
• Mistaken for Profound: After Rahab breaks the seal on Arondight by punching Sabnock, leading to their victory in the first round of the Rating Game with Sairaorg, Rahab says "What is steel compared to the hand that wields it?” Hagane considers this statement "surprisingly profound" but Koneko comments that she's "pretty sure that's just a movie quote."
• Mood Whiplash: Makoto's nightmare in Volume 2, Chapter 3 goes from all the girls, including Raynare, arguing over Makoto, to all of them being dissolved away as he's confronted by Halja.
• Mythology Gag: Makoto and Aika get into a discussion about Season 3 of Milky Spiral Seven where Aika complains about it being a weak season that ended on Filler. Makoto says it was supposed to get back on track with Season 4, similar to the situation with BorN that lead to Ishibumi seeking out a different studio for HERO, which followed the Light Novel more closely.
• Not Distracted by the Sexy: In the beginning of Volume 4, Makoto is too busy trying his hardest not to get "absolutely humiliated" by Sona Sitri in a game of chess (and somehow winning) to pay much attention to the fact that Rias was showering right next door during the game.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Raynare doesn't even attempt a Wounded Gazelle Gambit and instead pleads that Makoto finishes her off before Halja can do it herself, indicating the gravity of the situation before Halja appears proper shortly afterwards.
• Once Done, Never Forgotten: Xenovia considers Kuroka as a "threat to Makoto's virginity" after a solitary request to bear his children in Volume 3, even after she herself insists she isn't that interested in that anymore.
• Or Was It a Dream?: In one of Makoto's anxiety dreams in Volume 2, Akeno suggests that he have "ménage à trois" with her and Rias instead of having to choose between them. Four volumes later, while helping Makoto relieve his anxiety about Rias' illness and having to lead them in the Rating Game against Sairaorg in her stead, she and Asia offer to sleep next to him to help him return to normal, and Akeno jokingly remarks that she "always wanted to try a three-way," much to Asia's chagrin.
• Out-Gambitted: Akeno and Makoto, with Ravel's approval, cook up a plan to defeat Sairaorg's Queen, Kuisha Abaddon. Makoto knows about her Hole ability, having thoroughly researched it, and correctly assumes that if she uses Holy Lightning against her, she will turn it back on her for a killing blow. Akeno lets her think she won by falling for that trap and, during the flash of light magic, escapes the attack and sets up an attack directly above her to finish her off while she lets her guard down.
  Rahab: Let me get this straight. The plan was to fall for the Queen’s trap, knowing it’s a trap, narrowly escape the trap, and while the Queen is exposed, thinking she’s won, hit her with your own trap.
• Pass the Popcorn: After Rias suggests that Makoto stay back and observe their fight with a stray devil, he wishes he had brought popcorn.
• The Peeping Tom: Matsuda and Motohama, as usual. They, of course, get run off and Makoto, of all people, has to give them advice.
  Makoto: Maybe next time stop yelling stuff like "Murayama's got huge titties" while you're peeping and maybe you'll get a glimpse for more than five seconds.
  Matsuda: A very excellent point.
• Power Perversion Potential:
  • Armor Break is supposed to break through armor. Unfortunately, it can't distinguish between armor and clothing.
  • Makoto was taught a spell to restrain a person's hands and feet with rope. Makoto uses it to stop the Legendary Sage when he tries to run away, though he states this wasn't Akeno's intended purpose.
• Please Put Some Clothes On: After Makoto finds out the hard way that Rias Sleeps in the Nude, he tells her that she should ask his mother for some of her old pajamas the next time she has to crash at his home. She responds, without hesitation, that she can't sleep with clothes on.
• Plot Parallel:
  • Yuma's actions to Makoto in Volume 1 have a similar effect on her as her actions in the original Light Novel has on Issei. She is unwilling to forgive herself for what she did and believes she is not worthy to be trusted anymore.
  • Volume 6 has a few differing, yet parallel scenes to Volume 10 from the Light Novel. In the Light Novel, Rias walks in while Issei is using the Sauna and wants to have her first time with Issei, but he is unable to confess his feelings. Here, she walks in wanting to vent to Makoto about the earlier Press Conference and she suddenly falls ill after unknowingly drinking poisoned champagne. Both Issei and Makoto are later consoled by members of the Club who knew him from the start of the series after the fallout from the previous scene.
• Power-Strain Blackout: What happens to Makoto after he uses his angel powers for the first time.
  • This happens again shortly after Makoto achieves Balance Breaker for the first time.
• Precision F-Strike:
  • In the middle of his Heroic BSoD, the normally straight-laced Yuuto exclaims to Freed that he's "not in the mood to deal with your shit!"
  • Kokabiel tells Makoto to "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" after Makoto taunts him for being oblivious to Halja taking over Heaven, signaling his Villainous Breakdown that ultimately causes his demise.
  • Diodora snaps and calls Luther a "fucking traitor" after he calls him out for his pitiful attempt to make him reconsider his defection.
• Prepare to Die: Makoto lets his rage out against Halja after she has Asia killed and, while he doesn't succeed in killing her, manages to run her off as she finds out that he's in control of the White Dragon Emperor.
  "You will pay for what you've done! Your legacy of bloodshed ends now!"
• Pretty Freeloaders: Defied, since they're actually helping defeat Halja, but Makoto name drops this when Rias mentions that the Occult Research Club will live in his mother's house.
  • Kuroka plays this straight, however, as she crashes at Makoto's house uninvited after Volume 4.
• Psychosomatic Superpower Outage:
  • Makoto is initially unable to reuse his Power of Retribution after first using it against Raynare and Halja as he is unable to nail down the proper emotional frame of mind.
  • Later, in Volume 6, Makoto's anxiety about Rias getting poisoned and him having to lead her peerage for the Rating Game against Sairaorg causes him to lose his Balance Breaker in the middle of a sparring session with Aika. Akeno, Asia, Yuuto, Koneko, Aika, and Yuma later console him as he is attempting to pull a frantic all-nighter studying for the Rating Game and they help him relieve this anxiety.
• Reset Button: Halja essentially does this to the canon, sending the universe back 18 years before the start of the story.
• Ripple Effect Indicator: Akeno as a baby is Gabriel's first clue of the effects of Halja's Cosmic Retcon.
• Rivals Team Up: After Korgull is exposed as the one attempting to sabotage their Rating Game after ambushing and critically injuring Makoto, Sairaorg teams up with Rias, his opponent, to defeat him. Because of this, it is decided that the victor of the Rating Game was both of them.
• Save the Villain: Makoto saves Raynare from Freed when Halja tries to have her killed.
• Sexy Discretion Shot: Akeno and Aika groping Rias and Rossweisse respectively in Volume 5 is only described through their reactions.
• Show Within a Show: Makoto and Aika watch and discuss the in-universe anime Magical Girl Milky Spiral Seven as well as participate in Serafall Leviathan's show Miracle Levia-tan as The Rival of the main character and a minor antagonist respectively.
• Shut Up, Hannibal!: Makoto yells “BULLSHIT!” and attacks Raynare when she claims they share a common enemy.
  • He also doesn't give Diodora the pleasure of monologuing about his intentions with Asia.
• Significant Name Shift:
  • Makoto initially refers to Yuuto Kiba by his surname. However, when he suddenly runs away during Volume 3, Makoto addresses him as Yuuto when confronting him and refers to him as such from then on out, indicating the deepening of his friendship with him.
  • After helping him understand his Power of Retribution and Sacred Gear, Makoto refers to Rias as "President" geniunely for the first time and urges her to "help him be the best master that he can be" and she agrees on the condition that they still stay on a First-Name Basis.
• Skinship Grope: After Rias catches Aika peeping on Yuuto washing Makoto's back for BL material, Akeno offers to grope Rias' breasts, which Aika is convinced is even better doujinshi material. When Rossweisse chastises them for doing this within earshot of the boys' bath, Aika begins to grope hers as well. While they can only hear their responses, Makoto gets a nosebleed and he and Yuuto decide that is best to go ahead and leave.
• Sleep Cute: After opening up to Makoto about her sealed nekomata powers, Koneko falls asleep in his arms. Aika takes a picture of this the following morning and Koneko threatens to smash her phone if she shares it to anybody.
• Sleeps in the Nude: Rias, as Makoto finds out the hard way in Chapter 2.
• Spared by the Adaptation
  • Raynare is spared by Makoto at the end of Volume 1.
  • Mittelt manages to escape before Rias kills her and is seen having betrayed Raynare along with Freed.
• Spit Take:
  • Makoto nearly does one when he finds out his mom is an angel and actually does one when she explains the rest of her backstory.
  • Makoto spits out the water he was drinking when Seekvaira Agares tells him he made a Childhood Marriage Promise to her online.
• Supporting Harem: While many of the original girls are still here, most of them have little interest in Makoto outside of platonic friendship, focusing on what is initally a Love Triangle between Makoto, Rias, and Akeno. Rias joins the supporting harem as Akeno becomes Makoto's official Love Interest.
• Sure, Let's Go with That: When Makoto finds Rossweisse attempting to drown her sorrows after being left behind by Odin at the meeting, a man who may have been trying to hit on her mocks him and Makoto rolls with the insult.
  Makoto: Excuse me. I’m here to take her home.
  Man: And who are you supposed to be!? Her dad!?
  Makoto: Yes. Now back off, creep.
  Rossweisse: About time someone remembered me…
• Taking the Bullet: Makoto does this to protect Aika from Freed's light bullets. He got better.
  • In a more humorous example, Asia takes a dodgeball for Makoto during the Gremory-Sitri game.
• Tamer and Chaster: The Ecchi elements of High School DxD are significantly toned down, focusing more on Slice of Life. Though, there is still a fair share of Fanservice and sexual tension at its core.
• Tampering with Food and Drink: In Volume 6, Rias brings a bottle of champagne into the sauna that, unbeknownst to her, had been spiked with a deadly poison. Thankfully, Makoto changes his mind on not wanting to try the champagne and she is merely stricken ill by the poison after taking a brief sip.
• Team Hand-Stack: An example of literal Huddle Power as Makoto has one with Serafall Leviathan, Ajuka Beelzebub, and Kuroka in Volume 4 to borrow their power and activate his Balance Breaker.
• Three-Way Sex: Akeno suggests this in one of Makoto's dragon-induced nightmares in Volume 2, Chapter 3.
  Akeno: The choice is obvious is it? Ménage-à-trois!
  Makoto: What does "ménage-à-trois" mean?
• Thwarted Coup de Grâce:
  • Rias first comes to Makoto's aid as she stops a killing blow intended for Makoto from Kalawarner, Mittelt, and Dohnaseek.
  • Makoto takes a burst of light bullets meant for Aika by Freed, which would have been potentially fatal to a devil like her.
• Unishment: Instead of giving Yuuto one thousand spankings for going after Valper without permission, Rias instead orders him to go to karaoke with Makoto to make amends with him after he chewed him out earlier in the volume.
• Verbal Backspace: Makoto tries to do this after he gave a long speech to Yuma about why he's willing to forgive her for her previous actions and how she doesn't need to feel guilty about it when he decided it was "way too cheesy."
• Wall Pin of Love: Played for Laughs as Koneko gets on Makoto’s back in order to pin Yuma to the wall and confront her when she suddenly transferred to the academy in Volume 4. Yuma being Yuma, she insists that Makoto’s trying to pull this trope off.
  Yuma: Goodness, Makoto. If you were this happy to see me, you should have done that yourself.
  Makoto: I'm not that happy to see you…
• Whole Episode Flashback: Chapter 6 between Volumes 1 and 2 is entirely focused on how Gabriel ended up on Earth.
• Woman Scorned: Rahab quotes the trope namer as she infuriates Akeno, who claims she ruined her "perfect date" with Makoto by confronting him.
• You Fight Like a Cow: Most fights between Freed and Makoto devolve into banter.
  Freed: Nice to see you've finally graduated from Taking-The-Bullet Academy, Angelface!
  Makoto: With honors, to boot.
• You Have Failed Me: After Halja catches wind of Raynare's plan to revolt against her, she tries to have her killed.

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