CHAPTER 15
Rias couldn't believe her eyes. Not that her subordinates faired any better.
Right before their eyes, was the, honest to Maou, Sekiryuutei.
His claim about them becoming allies, Rias admitted to herself, caught her, completely, off guard.
Suddenly, her mind came to a grinding halt upon remembering something, which connected a couple of dots.
"You..." Rias' soft, yet disbelieving voice as she addressed him brought the attention of the room to her, making them notice her wide, trembling eyes. "You're the person we were looking for a year ago."
Akeno's eyes, immediately, mimicked those of her best friend, before her head snapped towards the brunet.
Said person was calm, yet wore a knowing smirk on his face. He said nothing in response, though.
Slowly, all the Devils relaxed their postures, seeing his calmness.
Issei's knowing smirk dropped, his expression turning soft as he looked at them, mostly Rias, and he dismissed his Sacred Gear, leaving his arm bare, again. "Yeah, that was me activating the Boosted Gear for the first time, up on a hill at the edge of Kuoh." he confirmed her claim.
Rias relaxed even more at his words. Surprisingly shocking as this revelation was, the brunet seemed harmless towards them. In fact, he had proposed an alliance between them at the end of his introduction. The fact that he released no aura whatsoever was another plus in her mind. "Everyone, calm down." even as she ordered her subordinates, she did it in a soft, motherly tone.
Issei caught onto that fact and his respect for the redhead rose even more.
As soon as Rias' words reached their minds, the three beside her, completely, relaxed their postures to non-threatening ones.
Kiba's face adorned an awkward smile as he spoke. "Sorry about that, Ise-kun." he apologised for his earlier demeanor.
Issei just nodded at him in understanding with a matching smile.
The blond sighed in relief at that. He didn't want his friendship to be ruined because he was about to protect his superior.
Koneko took the initiative and returned to the couch she occupied before. Her eyes, though, didn't stray from the brunet as if he was, still, a threat to herself and everybody else, especially Rias.
Issei took notice of it, but didn't have a reaction. That said, he followed her example and returned to his seat. There wasn't any reason to not be comfortable anymore, now that his introduction was over.
Kiba was next to have a seat. Although, this time, he sat opposite of Issei at the same couch as Koneko. It was just in case the need arose and he had to act.
Rias, again, leaned back on her desk, with Akeno standing by her side.
After a long, awkward silence, the redhead decided to start the conversation again. "So, Ise, you said you wanted to be allies with us?" she asked conversationally, wanting this to be as civil as possible.
"Yeah." Issei nodded in agreement with a small smile. "After all, we have something in common." he added.
"And that is?" Rias rose a skeptical eyebrow as she crossed her arms under her breasts. She wasn't willing to trust him completely after his revelation, which classed, violently, with her desire to recruit him in her Peerage.
Everyone missed Koneko's miniscule twitch at that gesture.
"To protect Kuoh of any threats, of course." the brunet said as if it was obvious, unaware of the redhead's thoughts about him.
Rias didn't drop her guard. "Why should I believe you?" she asked suspiciously.
"Why would I lie to you?" Issei replied with his own question, albeit sounding a little exasperated by her mistrust.
"Ise-kun." Kiba interjected, sensing that things were about to get heated, gaining his friend's attention. "For all we know, you could be a spy from another Faction and you were sent to destroy us from the inside." he, calmly, explained.
"That's true." the brunet conceded the point with a nod of his head. "However, I'm not. I told you guys that, even today, I'm being followed by someone. While I know she's a Fallen Angel, I don't know her face. That, and Kuoh is my hometown, the place I was born and raised in." he, strongly, told his friend.
Kiba looked at Rias, wanting her to take the lead on this, once again.
She, immediately, took the hint. "Then, you won't object if I have Koneko to be your shadow, in order to identify this Fallen Angel and report her findings to me?" though she phrased this as a question, it wasn't really one.
And Issei knew it. "Of course, not." he, carelessly, shrugged his shoulders. He was, internally, relieved to see Rias lose some of her stiffness upon his agreement.
"Why did you hide yourself for a year, then? For that matter, why reveal your identity at this time and not earlier?" Akeno brought up another subject altogether.
Judging from her expression, Rias was curious as well. The same went for Kiba.
"According to Ddraig, I wasn't ready to confront anyone from the Supernatural." the brunet, honestly, replied. In his head, he heard Zangetsu's mocking laugh about the half-truth he had just spouted.
He ignored it.
"Why, though?" Kiba asked curiously.
Contrary to what the Devils expected, Issei turned absolutely serious. "Honestly, I, still, think I'm not ready, because, according to Ddraig, there will, probably, be some threats that will have to be removed in a permanent fashion. In layman's terms, I'll have to kill. Be it Supernatural beings, or humans with Sacred Gears, like myself, I don't think I'm ready to face such things."
His confession caught them a little off guard, not expecting him to have such a problem.
That said...
"It's natural." Rias gained everyone's attention. She sported a soft, albeit understanding expression with a matching smile. "Up until last year, you were but a normal teenager. You had no idea about the Supernatural, but you had to get involved, since you awakened the power of the Red Dragon Emperor. Speaking of whom, he was right; unfortunately, there will be a time for you to kill an opponent." she elaborated.
"I figured as much." Issei sighed in dejection, his shoulders sagging a little. "That said, I, also, know that I need allies. I may be strong, but I'm not foolish enough to try and protect everything and everyone on my own." he, shamelessly, admitted.
Even Superman needed allies to watch his back. And, even if he was stronger than Superman at the moment, he needed people he could trust so his ultimate goal came to fruition.
Starting with Kuoh.
"Speaking of strong," Kiba interjected, again, with a curious expression. "how powerfull are you, Ise-kun?"
Before Issei could answer, someone else did it for him.
"He can take us all on and come out unscathed. Completely."
All heads turned to Koneko, who had been silent the entire time, wearing shocked expressions.
The fact that she said it so nochalantly, despite her monotone, was far more disturbing for Issei than anyone else.
Rias regained her composure quickly enough, turning her head to face the, still, shocked brunet. "Is that true?" her skepticism matched her interest at that information.
Issei payed no attention to the redhead, his eyes locked to Koneko's golden ones. "How do you know that?" he asked in bewilderment.
Rias didn't like being ignored, but let it slide. This time.
"I can feel anyone's power from a certain distance close to me."
Her monotoned answer made him even more stunned.
"This means she has known about me since that time I met them in the Student Council office!" Issei came to a terrifying realisation in an instant. "Ddraig?! How is this possible?!" he, basically, demanded.
Instead of talking to him mentally, the Dragon materialized himself in the form of the Boosted Gear on the brunet's left arm.
Issei was so surprised at the development, as were the others, that he broke the eye-contact with Koneko and looked at his materialised gauntlet.
[Hmmm...] Ddraig's thoughtful hum sounded like a low growl. [I had told you that this girl is a Nekomata of some kind, partner. Youkai of any kind can sense others through the power of Senjutsu, which I have no knowledge on how it works. Though, for this one to sense all of your power and not report it to her superior for over a year, she must have had you deemed as a non-threatening individual.] he explained in a casual manner, his booming voice veverbating throughout the enclosed room.
The Dragon's words managed to, visibly, calm the brunet down.
On the other hand, Rias was, internally, furious at Koneko. However, she needed to address the more important entity first, before she spoke her mind to her servant. "Greetings, Red Dragon Emperor. I am Rias Gremory, heiress to the house of Gremory in the Underworld. I am honoured to be in your presence." she, regally, albeit confidently, introduced herself to Ddraig.
[Greetings, young Devil of Gremory.] Ddraig was casual, but like Issei, he didn't address Rias by her name.
Unbeknownst to everyone, Rias was hurt about that fact. She knew it wasn't the Dragon's fault, but, dammit, she wanted to be known as Rias Gremory, not Rias of the house of Gremory.
Forcefully, Rias pushed the negative feelings to the back of her mind. "Is what my servant said about Ise true, Ddraig-sama?" she, curiously, asked the best source for information concerning the person of her interest.
[Yes, my partner is absurdly powerfull for a human in his age, Supernatural or not.] the Dragon confirmed in both seriousness and pride, much to the Devils' shock and Issei's embarrassment, with the latter sporting a faint pink dust on his cheeks.
"Ddraig, partner, please don't say any more! You'll scare my allies!" Issei pleaded.
[As you say, partner.] Ddraig huffed in compliance.
Rias mind caught up with the brunet's words and regained her composure. "You, still, want us to be your allies, Ise?" she asked him in surprise.
The brunet blinked twice and locked gazes with the redhead. "Well, yeah. Why else do you think I revealed myself to you guys?" he confirmed, although sounding like he was talking to a particularly difficult five year old child.
Rias pouted childishly, puffed up cheeks and an adorable blush adorned her face.
Issei's heart skipped a beat at the sight.
Kiba chuckled awkwardly, albeit silently.
"Ara~! Buchou is being scolded~!" despite her words, Akeno was, clearly, amused.
Rias blush intensified. Along with her pout. "Mou~! Stop treating me like a child!" she complained like a child, stomping her foot on the carpet as if that would help her arguement.
Ddraig found no interest in the current happenings, so he dematerialised himself.
"I wasn't trying to." Issei smiled with his hands up in surrender. "Although, I have to admit, you look adorable like that!" his smile widened at his own words.
Rias huffed in indignation and turned her face away from everyone, trying to ignore Akeno's amused giggles and Issei's matching chuckles.
"As fun as this is," Kiba took control of the conversation, taking pity on Rias. "we have a meeting to finish, in order for us to perform our Devil duties." he said, somewhat, seriously.
While not showing it to Kiba directly, Rias was thankful for her servant's intervention as she regained her composure.
"What duties?" Issei asked, curiously, as he eyed his friend.
Seeing an opportunity to avoid further embarrasment, Rias grabbed it with farvor. "We, Devils, try to make humans' wishes come true to the best of our ability. When it's completed, the human in question has to pay the Devil accordingly. In the old days, however, the Devils demanded the souls of humans. Something that may, still, happen, should a human be in their dying breath and are saved by a Devil. If that is to happen, the Devil can reicarnate the human into Devil as well, though as a servant for life. For example, Akeno, Koneko and Yuuto are my servants due to different and personal circumstances." she, thoroughly, explained, sounding confident and regal the entire time.
"I see." Issei nodded in understanding, since Rias' explanation was simple enough. However, there was one question. "How do you, Devils, reicarnate humans as one of your own people?" he asked in genuine curiousity. After all, it was something not even Ddraig knew about.
Rias' smile widened at his apparent interest. "For that to explain, I need to tell you about the history of Devils as a whole."
Issei looked uncomfortable at that. While he did like interesting expositions, something that Rias seemed to excell at, he didn't want to know the history of the redhead's race. For now, at least. His parents would get worried. "Is there any short version for that?" he, almost, caved in at her adorable pout, but held strong. "You can tell me the long version another time." he negotiated.
"Fine." Rias sighed in dejection that she wouldn't show off her knowledge. "Akeno."
At the redhead's call, Akeno just nodded and went behind the desk. Once there, she opened a drawer and collected something, before handing it to her friend.
Upon receiving it, Rias took a seat in-between Kiba and Koneko. Taking the hint, Issei adjusted his position to be opposite of Rias.
What was on the coffee-table between them, was a chess board. One side had all the white pieces, while the other had dark red ones, albeit missing some.
More specifically, the brunet noticed, the red set missed a Queen, a Bishop, a Knight and a Rook.
Issei looked up at Rias, patiently waiting for her to explain.
"There is a system that allows a certain amount of Devils to reicarnate humans, as well as other species as long as said species are weaker than the Devil reicarnating them, into one of our own and it's based on chess. It's called the Evil Pieces system. The Evil Pieces have the same qualities as a chess piece, albeit altered to match our abilities as Devils." Rias lectured.
The brunet's curiousity matched his interest at the topic. However, time was of the essence. He didn't want to bear witness at one of his mother's tantrum's. "So, what are their abilities?" he asked.
Rias smiled confidently as she explained. "Rooks have enhanced physical strength, giving them the ability to attack and defend more effectively. Knights gain enhanced speed and, often, they specialize themselves in wielding some kind of weapon. Bishops have their magical abilities enhanced and Queens are the jack of all trades, possessing all three abilities. As for the Pawns, while weak on the surface, they can be extremelly dangerous, considering they have the ability of promotion to whatever piece their body can endure in enemy territory, or the King's allowing them to do so."
"Very interesting." Issei admitted as his eyes fell on the chess board, for a moment. Then, he raised his head and looked at everyone there in curiousity. "So, who is which Piece?" he asked.
"That, Ise," Rias smiled playfully as she leaned back on the couch. "is a surprise for a time when we can show you, instead of just telling you!"
"Fair enough." Issei accepted, easily, with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. "I have to go, anyway. I don't want to worry my parents." he added, somewhat, apologetically as he stood up.
Rias and Kiba followed his example.
"Don't be a stranger now, Ise-kun." the blond bid his goodbyes in his own way.
The two boys shared a firm handshake at that.
"Nah, I'm pretty sure we'll socialise more, from now on." Issei joked as he retracted his hand.
"That's true." Rias confirmed his assumption with a smiling nod. "See you tomorrow, Ise."
"Goodbye, Rias-san, Akeno-san, Koneko-san." the brunet nodded at each girl in farewell, before he left.
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As he left the school premises, Issei felt Koneko follow him in respectable distance.
He was glad for that.
And, as he walked towards his home, his mind replayed the entire meeting he had with the Devils.
All in all, while not exactly as he had planned, it went smoothly in his favour. Or, at least, that's how he felt about the matter.
As he crossed a bridge for a short cut, his eyes landed on a black haired girl with a high school uniform he didn't recognise, although it had a red 'P' as a dinstictive feature on the chest area. The girl, also, seemed to be around his age, with violet eyes, slim, yet curvaceous figure and her hair was long enough to reach her mid-back.
His nose twitched and caught the familiar scent of his stalker on the girl.
It seemed that he was so lost in thought, that his stalker was able to maneouver however she wanted.
Also, it seemed that she had decided to make her move, considering her eyes lit up as soon as she got sight of him.
"Hello! Are you Hyoudou Issei-kun?!"
Issei, mentally, sighed. He didn't want to deal with her as well, but, it seemed, fate had other plans for him.
"Yes, miss. And you are?"
"O-Oh! I'm Amano Yuuma! I've seen you around a lot a-and I l-like you! So, please got out with me!"
Issei was so stunned at the cutely stuttered, yet bold declaration, complete with a bow to the waist, he said the first intelligent thing that came to his mind.
"Huh?!"
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