His head hit something solid and Issei woke up from his sleep. He groaned as everything was turned upside-down – wait, was it just him who turned upside-down? Ugh. Whatever – and he pushed his upper body off the floor and stood up. A yawn was expelled.

"…Huh," he muttered. "I'm back in my room… again?"

That was weird… Looking back at the curtains and the streaming sunlight that slipped through the narrow gaps, Issei could tell that the weather was clear and bright. Looks like it's going to be a field day again…

Man, he didn't want that. Not only was he running ragged from school, club activity and training, he now also had the duty of going out clearing requests on specific days. Though it was a little arbitrary, the boy had lost in drawing the lottery and ended up with a very tight schedule. I sure am out of luck.

Resigning himself to his fate, Issei sighed. "Oh, well. Let's just get on with my life."

With that he changed into school uniform and went down the stairs. He went straight to the dining table and participated in a quick breakfast with his parents…

"Hm? Issei raised an eyebrow as he saw only his mother. "Where's dad?"

"He's off to work," the woman answered. "It's too bad that you missed each other, Ise. Were you playing game all-night long again?"

Usually, Issei would agree to that but for the past two weeks, his answer had been a resolute no. It was easy to tell that his parent had noticed and so his mother – Kanae smiled.

"You're working hard, aren't you?" She asked. "Don't push yourself too hard."

"I know, mom." Issei sat down in one chair, clasped his hands and began eating breakfast. "But I'm doing this cause it's what I decided to do. I want to get stronger and be useful for everyone. I want to fight alongside the girls."

Needless to say, this was related to the secret war against the world-ending eldritch abominations. It seemed that both of his parents had been in the know for a while so after Issei told his secrets to the Hero Club, this kind of talk quickly appeared and became a regular thing in the Hyoudou household. It still feels weird whenever we talk about this…

"I understand," his mother said. "Just… Please, take care of yourself, okay?"

Glancing at his mother, the woman with slightly aged facial directed a concerned gaze. It clipped a part of Issei's heart, seeing how worried his parent was. Even though his father was always around to reassure both of them, but… Now that I think about it, dad must be worried in his own way.

He was probably hiding it better than Issei or Kanae.

It must be something only a father could understand, as he was the head of the family and also the one who watched over Issei's activity during the war. Sometimes, the boy tried to imagine how it felt to be on his father's position, but… that ended up in utter failure. He didn't know what Ichiro was doing in Taisha and even when he asked Sonoko, she too couldn't explain everything without going on a tangent.

"Sigh. Bear with it, Issei. This isn't going to last forever, anyway." The boy shook his head.

"Hm? What is it, Ise?" His mother asked.

"Eh, nothing! Thanks for the food!" Issei hopped off the chair and picked up his schoolbag. "I'm off!"

"Ah, wait! What do you want for dinner?!"

"Anything's fine!"

Quickly wearing his shoes, Issei scrambled to the front door, left home and ran straight to school.

Lately, studying had felt like a chore. Not that it wasn't like that before but as Issei drummed the tip of his pen on the notes that were on his desk, he realized he couldn't pay attention much to the classes. He sometimes lazed off but this sense of discomfort upon finding nothing to do was weird, if not irritating.

Taking his mind off the matter, the boy glanced to the right. Yuuna was jotting down the lesson with a quiet hum. Sometimes, her body or head swayed to the sides as the tune she let out rose in volumes. That easily made Issei's heart to race but he wondered if his friend was always energetic even during classes.

However, looking a little further to the corner where Tougou stared long and hard at Yuuna snapped Issei's mind back to reality. Ah, looks like Yuuna-chan isn't paying attention either…

"Alright," the math teacher said. "Now, how do you solve these problems? Hyoudou, Yuuki."

Ouch! She noticed!

With great regret and much lamentation, the boy dragged past the classes school was over. By that point, most of his earlier energy and enthusiasm went down the drain so when he attended club activity...

"Everyone, please help yourself." Tougou smiled, bringing out a lidless box that displayed reddish brown... Were they some sort of sweets?

"Yay, botamochi!" Yuuna pounced from the other side of the club room with drool leaking from the corner of her lips. "Thank you, Tougou-san!"

"Botamochi…?" Issei tilted his head from his chair before directing curious glance to Fuu who silently worked on plastering stickers onto a handmade wooden board that was as thick as a pencil. "What's that?"

"Crunchy, sweet, fluffy like cotton candy and incredibly addictive," Fuu replied with one eye closed. "Maa… In one way, it's Tougou's ultimate weapon beside her Megalopolis. And ropes. Or cold smile."

Megalopolis? Issei almost tried to ask but he felt prickling gaze put onto his back. After sweating bullets, Issei chose to refrain and decided that yes, he must not ask lest his life be in grave danger. This must be some sort of Divine Intervention aiding him to not perish by hands other than Vertexes.

Setting aside his mortality and chance for survival, though…

"Say, Itsuki-chan," Issei called out to his junior. "Is there a new request coming in?"

The girl with princess-cut blonde hair and light green eyes that she shared with her older sister nodded. Her smile was as adorable like always.

"Un! There are so many that the request box is overflowing!"

Needless to say, the news struck both Issei and surprisingly Fuu with a pained grunt. They both looked each other and immediately shared the sentiment, which was getting ready to be overworked to death.

"Somehow, I think there are too much troubled people…" Issei sighed as he asked for some request forms to check on. "Uh… Let's see, finding lost pets, volunteer service for the nearby kindergarten… Cooking advises… Drug testers for scientific experiments?!"

The last one was way too shady! Could that even be allowed, especially when the people who asked for it were just high school students!?

"Yeah, well, sometimes those kinds of things always appeared in a drove." Fuu waved and sighed. "Just sort them out and make sure the spams don't get mixed in with the proper requests."

"Eeeh…? Buht, harrent dwhey win nweed of help, Fuu-senpai?"

"Yuuna, swallow your food first before talking."

She did.

Issei exasperated at the display of no grace from the resident ball of energy. Next to her, Tougou offered a glass of warm tea and Yuuna accepted it, taking a large sip of it. However, the more ridiculous thing was that even with her chin lifted high, the cow fairy hanging onto Yuuna's red head refused to fall and simply mirrored the refreshed expression of its summoner.

…What kind of fairy is that? Can that even be called as a fairy? No, wait, the more important thing is that how can it be allowed to pig around and move everywhere without asking for permissions?

"…Hm?" Yuuna raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong, Senpai?"

"Eh, well…" Issei raised a finger to point at the white cow with four wings. "Actually, I've been meaning to ask about that fairy on top of your head, Yuuna-chan…"

"Oh, you mean Gyuuki?" Yuuna grabbed and presented the mascot-like fairy. "Isn't he cute? He eats a lot and he can even use a pompom! Also, his favorite food is beef jerky!"

Whut? The boy felt like he had heard something he shouldn't have. Not only could it cheer people up like some mascot, it also cannibalized?! What part of it was a 'fairy that protects the world'!?

"With 'Gyuuki' as a name, somehow, I'm not surprised." The Club Leader rubbed her temple. "Eeeii! Enough with the short break! Let's finish our work already!"

Uwooooh!? Fuu-senpai snapped!

Before night fell upon Sanshu, the sunset would always shine upon Seto Inland Sea. People said that the Walls that separated the sea from the sky was distracting but Issei could appreciate the scene and burn it into his memories. After all, even with all that, both the remnant of the Great Bridge and the sea were still a wonderful sight to behold.

It's a perfect reward after a terrible session of one-sided beatdown.

"I wonder if I should note this place down…" The boy mused as he leaned himself against the railing surrounding the squared viewing spot.

"Hmm? I don't think Taisha will approve, though…" From nearby Sonoko's voice rang out. "You see… I like being here so ordinary people can't just waltz in~"

Aww. That was too bad, but the boy could accept that. After all, his bedridden friend always looked exhausted and even staying awake for six hours was her maximum limits. She needed much rest if she wanted to recover and leave the bed. Turning around, Issei walked to a chair set up next to the bed and sat on it.

He gave a toothy grin to his friend. "Then this will be our secret base! Only for both of us!"

The girl with flowing dirty blonde hair gazed on him before she tugged her lips to form a smile. It was weak. It was soft. Even so, Issei could tell she was happy. That was a clue he finally discovered after talking almost every day with Nogi Sonoko.

"Han-kun, you sure know a lot of pick up words," Sonoko drawled. "What would happen if I fall in love with you?"

"Of course I'd be happy!" Issei laughed. "But seriously, that's a good thing right?"

He thought that it was. His father said that to be in love was the happiest moment in life. That it was already a miracle to find love and that cherishing that feeling was the best thing ever. Issei was certain he was right.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have seen his parents flirt with each other, much less living their lives to the fullest. They were always so lovey-dovey and enjoying their days that it the boy felt envious. After all, he had yet to find the love of his life.

Well, I'm also surrounded by cute girls all around right now, but…

"I guess so~" Sonoko replied, bringing Issei back to reality. "Say, do you have someone you like?"

…Huh? "Umm… Which 'like' are you talking about, Sonoko-chan?"

To his question, Sonoko hummed in thoughts. She raised her left hand and waved an index finger.

"Well~" The girl in discolored purple hospital garb paused as if trying to kick up the importance of her next words. "How about 'like like'? I'm sure there's a girl you have some interests in, right?"

Mrgh. Issei instantly burned up from within as the cute gesture was combined with adorable pronunciation of her request. Since he was pretty tired after his personal training, the boy and the girl decided to just talk about trivial things but his suggestion about a Q-and-A session backfired spectacularly!

"Ehe he~ Your face is all red now." Sonoko giggled. "You're so cute, Han-kun!"

"What – y-you were teasing me!?" Issei exclaimed in shock.

Gaaaaaaaahhh! I need a hole to bury my worthless self in now…!

"You see," the girl said, further taking the boy's focus away from hiding his face with his hands. "If it's me, I really like my friends. I also really like my family and there are looooots of things that I adore."

…Huh… That sounded nice, but…

"Isn't that being a bit too greedy, Sonoko-chan?" Issei honestly asked.

"Un. But it's not wrong, right? Why do I have to discard a thing when I want everything?" Sonoko tilted her head.

...No, it wasn't wrong. The boy thought of the same thing as well. There was nothing wrong about wanting something. Even more, that was perfectly normal since it was just how people were. The old man he once met back in his hometown said the same thing, and…

"Then," the brown-haired boy leaned forward a little. "Is it okay if I say the same thing?"

"Ohho~ Aren't you being audacious, today?" Sonoko beamed. "Hmhmm~ Flirting with a goddess like me~ Han-kun really is a dragon."

"Eh, I don't think me being a dragon has a relation with that…" He scratched the back of his head. "Besides, it's fine, right? I really like you, Sonoko-chan."

Oh. Now she stilled and formed a big 'O' with her mouth. He didn't expect her to be greatly surprised but that was a good sign for him to continue, right? Alright, man up, Issei! Here goes nothing…!

"Before you said something similar like what Tougou-san did – no, I don't care about how you look like, Sonoko-chan," Issei explained. "And I'm not saying this out of pity. I really really like you."

There was a brief silence.

However, it was terminated once a twinge of red graced the bedridden girl's cheeks. Even with bandages covering the majority of her head, the boy could tell that Sonoko was blushing and damn was she the cutest girl ever!

"E-Ehh? Umm… Thank, you?" Sonoko replied with a statement that could easily be taken as a question instead of a proper answer. "Han-kun, that's a bit too fast for a move, isn't it…?"

"Well…" Issei scratched his cheek. "I… don't think so? I mean, it's my choice whether or not I should express my feeling, right?"

That's not wrong but…, Sonoko's murmuring faded in the blowing winds. Ah, Issei just realized that the sky was about to be shrouded by darkness completely. A quick glance upward was enough to tell that night had arrived and… Maybe I should wrap this up for today.

"Alright!" Issei exclaimed, left his chair and flashed a grin. "See you tomorrow, Sonoko-chan!"

"Ah, wait…!"

Before he could hear the entire sentence, Issei fled and went straight to the last place to go for today. Though saying that…

"I said it!" Midway through, Issei yelled in horror and thrill. "I seriously said it! Holy shit! What the hell!?"

[…You… Are you serious, partner?] What do you think!? […No. That's just so like you. Sigh, youths these days… Now I feel old.]

Wasn't he always old? Issei didn't get the implication but that wasn't important! The big thing here was that he had confessed to a girl for the first time in life! God, was he an idiot to just straight up do something like that but it somehow worked…! How did this happen? What kind of sorcery was at work here!?

[I don't think it's merely because of luck, but… Ah, hell. Why should I care anyway?] Ddraig scoffed.

"Oh, shut up, Ddraig. Go ahead and ruin my fun, will you?" Issei rolled his eyes.

[Then I'll just say that your goddess hasn't replied whether or not she will reciprocate your confession.]

Oh, shit! He's right! Fuck me with a silver spoon!

[That'd be a disturbing thing to see.]

Arrgh… I said it wrong! "A-Anyway, are you ready?"

To the cough into his fist, Ddraig sneered as if his host's question was an obviously foolish thing.

[Of course I am. How about you?] The Welsh Dragon replied back with another question.

If it was about that… Issei licked his lips as his feet brought him to a place with pieces of concrete and asphalt jutting up from the ground. Wherever he looked was scene of destruction, a trace of a natural disaster.

The boy took a deep breath in as he looked up to the twisting and turning remnant of the Great Bridge, the bells' chimes guiding him as he paced in a steadfast rate to a section of the ruin.

As he stepped into the audience of nine stone tablets, Issei stopped walking – noble red flower petal floated into his sight and the world once again changed.

Everything shifted like a ripple on the surface of a still lake. A drop of echo, followed by a wave that disturbed calmness and manifested a motion of movement. Issei shuddered as the earth twisted and the sky distorted before it all cleared up as if everything before the change was an empty lie.

When he looked up, the sky was dark and without stars. It was a familiar sight that sent chills down the boy's spine, but this time, there were pillars that surrounded it from the left and right side. Although the entire place was darker than the sight he had seen before, it had a shade of blue. Issei could also see balls of light floating from below and slowly gathering up at the tip of the tilted pillars.

[As I thought, we're displaced from reality and the correct spacetime axis,] Ddraig informed. [Partner, I believe that even if we're out of this place, we're just going to end up back in your room again. Whatever thing we do here will give no effect to our body or even to the surroundings.]

"Well... I kind of expected that considering what we saw and experienced the last few times." Issei chuckled mirthlessly. "At least I don't have to worry about breaking things up or be broken into tiny pieces."

Indeed. He had been here several times – two times in a week to be more exact – but he still couldn't stop getting surprised by the idea of being abducted and put in a pocket dimension that was completely detached to reality. Though he was worried and panicked at first, he swallowed his bitter pill and after some internal discussion with his partner, the boy decided that staying until he was kicked out of here was the best course of action.

After all, this meant he was in a situation where he could do image training as much as he could without risking his life. It was perfect if he wanted to go all out and test new things out.

[Hah! You're doing good if you can be nonchalant despite being trapped by a conglomeration of gods.]

Yeah, yeah. Say whatever you want, Ddraig. Still... Looking around, Issei remained being unable to stop himself from getting entranced by the beauty of the landscape surrounding him. He had to admit, sometimes the Shinju did something really cool but he wondered why the Jukai not looking like this in the first place. Even if it was purely for aesthetics alone, it would have at least boosted everyone's morale. Not that he could imagine himself understanding the whims of God—

"Oho! You're here again, huh, Nii-chan!"

…Issei sighed. Even if he closed his eyes, it would be a futile effort. There was nothing that could stop the storm from brewing and so he braced himself by activating his Sacred Gear and turned around. The boy placed a hand on his waist.

"You know," Issei muttered. "At least do something with the way you address me. Sure, I don't hate being called that but really? Even after you kicked my sorry asses for a dozen times in a row?"

A wide grin was plastered on the face of a girl several years younger than him. With her arms folded behind her head, the brown-haired girl Issei encountered by accident laughed as her red coat tails flowed alongside the winds... and he expressed a grin that mirrored hers in spirits.

"Here I thought I'm the student here… Gin-sensei."