Issei's eyes widened as he could only gaze in amazement at the mighty being known as Ddriag, the Red Dragon Emperor. The Welsh Dragon stared down at his host.

"I never would have expected to meet you this soon, my host."

Issei continued to stare in awe.

'So this is the dragon sealed within me, or rather the Boosted Gear? Damn, he's got a lot of serious power. Buchou's explanation was no joke. No wonder Reynalle was frightened when I used my gear, and no wonder Buchou was surprised when I managed to unlock the Twice Critical mode.'

Ddraig must have read his mind, because the dragon chuckled in amusement.

"While I appreciate the praise, we must now get to important matters. The reason you are in here within your mind."

Issei remembering his objective, shook his head and cleared his thoughts.

"Yeah. I came here to talk about something with you."

The Welsh Dragon nodded, letting his host continue.

"I don't exactly know how long you've been sealed in the Boosted Gear. But recently... have you sensed another soul as of now?"

Ddriag gained a thoughtful expression and nodded.

"As a matter of fact yes."

Issei's eyes widened. Ddraig continued.

"In fact, I have encountered him before. He had shown up out of nowhere. He looked just like you, except his hair was black, and his eyes. His eyes were strange."

Issei listened with great eagerness and with extreme patience.

"They were a dark emerald color, with no pupils. It was like you couldn't tell where he was looking at all. His eyes held no traces of humanity at all, but only madness. And yet he was extremely crafty and intelligent."

Issei nodded his head, letting the dragon continue.

"He then spoke to me, telling me that his only goal was to spread carnage, and complete darkness. To put it bluntly, he looked like an Omnicidal Maniac to me. Just the thought of being near him, brought a sense of unease even to myself. Then something strange happened. A transparent image of his face distorted from his head, and as he continued to rant about all he wanted was the annihilation of everyone and everything, the image became more monstrous. Veins started to bulge, and so did the eye with his eyes becoming constricted. He truly was a Complete Monster."

Issei stared up at the dragon in slight horror. He gulped nervously. Ddraig continued to add.

"Then something even stranger happened. A crimson aura appeared around him, and my power started to drain. Imagine my surprise, when I found out he was absorbing my power. Now I'm not going to exaggerate, but even though he absorbed only a portion of my essence, he possessed enough power to rival myself. It was almost as though he had become a part of me."

Issei stood shell-shocked. "A part of you?"

He adopted a serious expression.

'Reynalle had said that the other me wasn't even using the Boosted Gear when he fought her.' He looked up at the dragon.

"Ddraig."

The Heavenly Dragon gave his host his attention.

"That soul you had encountered. I think he was my alternate personality. Another me." Ddraig hummed in acknowledgement.

"Hmm. It would explain the similar appearance. The only question is how and when he came into existence."

Issei rubbed his head. "Yeah, I know. I still haven't figured that out yet."

His eyes widened. "Did you recover when he absorbed your energy?" Ddraig nodded.

"Thankfully yes. I was able to regenerate my energy. He had disappeared after that whole ordeal. I haven't seen him since."

Issei narrowed his eyes. 'Probably locked deep inside my mind.'

"Issei." The young man looked up. "Now there is something I must tell you."

Issei started to sweat with nervousness, but he nodded.

"Earlier today, I felt his power rush through your mind. Since he had absorbed my essence, we are now more or less one and the same. That means I can sense whenever he is to emerge from your body. Although lately, he has shown the ability to block my presence. Anyway, the area surrounding your subconscious was in total disarray. Then you suddenly appeared. You looked like you were asleep, but then I realized that the soul had taken control of your body. Since he had blocked me, I could not see where he was nor could I see what he was doing, but I could still sense him."

Issei nodded and let him continue.

"I knew it was risky, but I had no choice but to lend you a portion of my power so you could unconsciously take back control."

Issei blinked in shock, lowered his head, his brown hair covering his eyes. He looked back up and gave a grateful smile.

"Arigato, Ddraig." The dragon smirked and nodded. Issei's expression became serious again.

"But that still doesn't solve anything. I don't know how he was born. And... why the way he is."

He adopted a pondered expression and crossed his arms. The host and the dragon were mutually silent, each deep within their thoughts.

Then Ddraig spoke up.

"Perhaps you should confront him."

Issei looked up instantly, but then he looked down.

"Yeah...maybe. But now's not the time."

Ddraig narrowed his eyes, but understood his host's hesitance and let it go.

"Yes, it is possible you will have another chance."

Issei nodded and sighed, rubbing his head. Ddraig raised his head.

"You have been doing that a lot frequently."

Issei looked up and removed his hand.

"Sorry. It's a growing habit." The dragon grunted in acceptance.

"Ise-san!"

The host and dragon's head shot up at the female voice. Issei nodded in recognition. "Asia..." Ddraig looked down.

"A friend of yours?"

Issei bobbed his head and a small smile.

"Yeah. One of my precious people."

He turned to the dragon sealed within his Sacred Gear.

"Thanks for talking with me, Ddraig. I'll make sure to keep in touch."

The dragon smirked and dipped his head down.

"Likewise, host. Farewell."

Issei closed his eyes, exiting his subconscious. He opened his eyes, got up off his bed, and walked downstairs to see a horrified Asia with dropped groceries. Issei's eyes widened with shock at the nun's expression, and he looked to see her pointing at a still sleeping Reynalle. Issei ran over to Asia, grabbed her hand, brought her to his room and shut the door.

"Asia-"

The girl cut him off, as her tears poured from her bright green eyes.

"I-Ise-san. What is she doing here?"

Issei sighed and started to rub his head, before quickly putting his hand down.

"Asia-chan, it's a long and...weird story."

The nun's tears continued to fall, but slightly lessened when Issei wiped them away gently with his finger.

"It's all right. She's not a threat anymore. You can be sure of that."

Asia was slightly relieved, but she looked hesitant to drop it.

"But Issei. Why is she here? We haven't seen her in three months."

Issei looked down and sighed. He didn't want to explain the part about his other self, so he only gave her the less severe parts of his story.

"I found her bloodied and unconscious on the bridge from where I walk home. So...I picked her up and brought her here."

Asia's tears dried up and she hesitantly looked down. Issei bit his lip, and narrowed his eyes.

"She's not a danger anymore, Asia."

He placed a hand on her cheek.

"I'm here to protect you, and believe me when I say I intend to make sure of that. I never break a promise."

A small sad smile appeared on Asia's face, and she engulfed Issei in a hug. Issei let a small blush cross his face, but then a warm smile split his face and he returned the hug.

Later, as he said good night to Asia, Issei went back downstairs to check on Reynalle. A unreadable expression was adopted on his face. He noticed the Fallen Angel shivering on the couch. Issei's expression changed to that of annoyance and saw a blanket on the furniture next to the couch. After a long moment of hesitance, he walked over to the furniture, picked up the blanket, and placed it upon Reynalle. The Fallen Angel immediately stopped shivering and snuggled deeper into the couch. Issei's annoyed expression morphed into exhaustion and he treaded on upstairs.

As he changed into his night clothes, Issei looked outside his window and set his sight on the moon. The moon was so bright, contrasting with the absolute darkness of the night sky. A serious but tired expression appeared on his face, and as he stared at the moon, only one thought passed through his mind.

'I will not let you harm the people who are precious to me. I absolutely cannot let you.'

"Yami no jinkaku.."