Days Left: 13
Rias' POV
It didn't sink in until the next day ended.
She stood in the shower, letting the hot water comfort her as she tries to not let that image which she so painstakingly cultivated break. Even when shrouded in her own privacy, she refused to let it shatter.
She has to hold it together.
She is the Princess of Ruin, the Heiress of the Gremory Pillar, the sister to the Satan Lucifer.
Rias Gremory.
"..."
"You're spending an awfully long time in there, Buchou." Akeno's voice rings out from outside the bathroom. "You alright?" She turns off the shower.
"Y-yes." She tries to not let the stutter affect her as she takes her time to dry herself, like always.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Her Queen assaults her with the dreaded question that she's been expecting but not willing to answer the moment she comes out, fully dressed.
With that, the image is gone. It breaks. All that's laid bare is a girl who doesn't know what to do next, having trapped herself in a trial of her own making.
But, it's her Queen. One of the very few people who can read her like a book. "I feel like I lost Issei. I had a chance, and I blew it. Akira was right." She finally admits her fault. "It's because Issei never treated me like someone too important."
Even though he understood the relationship between them as King and Pawn, he never let it get to him too much. Seeing how he seemed to be obsessed with a specific part of her body was indeed part of the thrill at first, but she learned more about him as time went on.
Issei was shy, cute, funny, but most importantly, casual. When she was with him, she never really felt like she was Rias of the Gremory Family. She was simply, Rias. A senior who was helping a junior learn the ropes. That was it. That could have been it, and something more. That was the very sense of normality that Rias had craved for so long, something only her Pawn could have provided. Kiba, Akeno and Koneko didn't fit the bill because they had been together for far longer, to the point where Rias saw them as her family.
But she was also the one who practically destroyed every single hope of that future happening with her own hands.
"What do you intend to do now?"
"He wouldn't accept my apology." She knows it in her heart. He would almost certainly never accept it. And for the first time in her life, she hates the fact that she's right.
"It's worth trying."
"If you say so." Rarely has her Queen ever given the wrong advice, even if she carries a burden in her heart as well.
Akeno's POV
At home, Akeno reflects in the shower.
What does Akeno Himejima want?
That's not the first time she has asked herself this question, nor would it be the first time that she found herself an answer.
No. Would it be more accurate to say that she has never gotten an answer from the bottom of her heart?
In her short 17 years of living. she has never met one as frustrating as Akira Kurusu. He is both pleasant and annoying to be around.
Sure, she did use teasing as a means of making others flustered, but it's not just for her own enjoyment. One might call it a self-defense mechanism of sorts when she comes into contact with others, much like how pufferfish would puff up at the first sign of danger to scare away predators. After all, years of spending her time in a castle in contact with very few friends her age led to her... not so well developed social skills, hence her teasing.
That's why she didn't know what to do when Akira slipped past her defenses with ease. It was as if her teasing was designed for him to slip through.
He just slipped through, saw through every single weak spot of hers directly and even attacked one of them while making off with a treasure. Worst of all? It was as if the treasure he made away with was her hear...
No.
No.
No.
She is most definitely not continuing that line of thought and she is most definitely not in love with Akira Kurusu.
End of story. Maybe a nice dinner and rest would do the trick. What possessed her to come up with such a line of thought, anyway?
When she opens the door to her room, there's a bento box sitting neatly in the middle of the room. She opens it, taking in the fragrant aroma of the curry, ignoring the fact that it's in her room and the scent will remain for the next few days. A small price to pay for salvation. She doesn't even bother to question how Akira got into her room despite her own wards.
It'll be nice if he could cook this for her every day.
Days left: 8
Streets of Kuoh, Night
Akira's POV
Hopefully, Akeno didn't mind him breaking into her room, because he did make an excessive amount of curry due to habits. It's only been a week since he moved out and he still can't get rid of that habit. It's not like Raynare is around to eat, so it would be a waste to just throw it. Anyway.
Sneak: 100.
Disguising themselves as religious people to bait Freed, the only lead they have into attacking them? That's pretty smart. However, he doesn't trust them to be able to deal with Freed, as Issei liked to call, insane priest. Whoever Freed is, he sounds dangerous. It's a good thing that Akira bothered to map out their patrol routes in the first night, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to pick a suitable spot to keep watch.
It's a nifty little T junction that has several vantage points as well as obvious ambush points. The perfect place for an ambush... or to keep watch. He chose the spot with the highest vantage point because Freed would almost certainly never jump from a height of over fifteen meters. After all, more speed didn't mean he didn't have to obey the law of physics.
As for who he's keeping watch on? It's Irina's group. It's Irina, Koneko and Asia, to be precise. Issei, Genshiro, Xenovia and Kiba are all fighters who can easily defend themselves and the Pawn is also offensive support, so he isn't too worried. The other party, however, is a different story.
Koneko is a Rook piece, but she's also a devil so whatever sword Freed is wielding will surely hurt her more. That's a big disadvantage in itself. Her Rook piece places emphasis on strength and not agility, a poor matchup against an agility based fighter. The biggest problem is the fact that they have Asia with them. Asia cannot defend herself. That's a fact. So protecting her becomes a burden and neither of them can fight at 100%.
"What made you come here with me though, Kuro?" He sighs, stroking the cat who seems to be content, not even deigning to answer his question. For some reason, the cat decided to tag along. The cat sure as hell ain't ordinary, but if the cat doesn't want to expose herself, what can he really do?
"I see it." He mutters again, his Third Eye flickering on. "Just what the hell are you?"
His Third Eye catches nothing in the surroundings either, other than the silhouettes of the people he's following. He's going to have to do a lot more research about ca-
Damm, he's dumb. "You're a youkai. That explains why you seem in sync with nature." He speaks out his thoughts just loud enough for the cat to hear. The swear is mostly because it's something that should be obvious in the first place, given how one of his earlier Personae was Nekomata, a cat youkai of all things.
"So you finally figured it out? I guess the gig is up." She sounds rather smug.
"There's one thing I cannot figure out. Why do you have the taint of devils within you? Were you once a peerage member?"
"You could tell that? Well, then let me reintroduce myself." The cat hops off his lap, before transforming into a woman. A very attractive woman. "My name's Kuroka, it's a pleasure to meet you. I also happen to be a SS rank Stray Devil, so do take care of me!" He desperately tries to averts his eyes from the cleavage that is vividly displayed with every single inch of self-control.
Whew. Crisis averted. "So on whose behalf are you watching me for?" He doesn't draw his weapon out yet. Kuroka has yet to display any malicious intention against him, otherwise, he would have already been dead in his sleep.
"Can't say~ I must admit, however, that you are a man of mysteries, nyan." So she didn't eavesdrop on his conversation with Azazel. Good. Then again, someone as strong as the leader of the Grigori wouldn't allow someone to eavesdrop on their conversation like that.
"If I weren't, you would have already discovered my secrets." He responds with a flat tone. So that line of questioning is gone. No matter.
"Spoilsport. Not going to ask why I decided to follow you?"
"You're watching Koneko. You're related to her somehow, but you can show yourself to her directly for some reason, and being a SS rank stray is only part of the reason." Once he figured out her identity and why that familiar taint existed, it wasn't hard to piece together her motive for coming with him. Koneko's aura looks similar to Kuroka, but her youkai side is clearly more subdued, unlike Kuroka.
SS rank strays are dangerous, apparently. Then it shouldn't take much effort to see Koneko, given how weak Rias is. There's also the matter of how she concealed herself. If he wasn't paying attention, he would have missed that minute detail.
"How did you know?" Kuroka's smile remains, but it is reminiscent of a menacing one as compared to the mischievous smile from earlier. It's a good thing that he's prepared for people like Kuroka who try to get close to him, however.
"Simple deduction. I've seen the aura within the two of you, for one. It's easy to draw a conclusion based on that. You practically look like an older version of her too." Replace Kuroka's expression with a more deadpan one, change her hair to white, and boom, older Koneko. Pretty sure Youkai mature rapidly at a certain age or something. "Two, Rias cannot hope to stop you should you wish to visit her directly. So there must be a reason why you're keeping your distance."
"You're good. So... How strong are you?"
"Strong enough to beat you. That's all you need to know. And I doubt you want to announce your presence when your sister is so near." He warns. He's confident in beating Kuroka, even if he might have to bring out some of the bigger guns. But silencing her or preventing her from spilling about his power might be troublesome if he uses it in front of her. Killing is not needed. She doesn't hold any intention to harm him but her allegiance is still a mystery. Definitely not with the devils, or she wouldn't be a stray. Not with the three factions, at least.
Youkai? Possible. Shinto? Possible as well.
"So what are you thinking about now?" The next moment, she has closed the distance between them.
"Nothing much. Come on, let's go." He begins to make his way down from the vantage point, making use of his parkour skills to get down to the ground safely. Kuroka does not follow.
"Go where?"
"Go back, of course. Even if I drive you off, you'll still come back anyway." Kuroka has no real attachment to the place they're staying at. It is just a bluff. One that pays off upon Kuroka's guilty reaction, her eyes refusing to make contact with him.
"You're an odd one." Yes, he is.
"If you're not going to follow me, then I suppose Morgana's the one who's going to get petted." Kuroka immediately leaps towards him, landing perfectly on his shoulder as she transforms back into her cat form. Hook, line and sinker.
As expected, cat youkai are no exception to the attack that is headpats. Although, he probably is asking for trouble, having a infamous cat youkai stay at his home.
It doesn't even take a few minutes for them to run into trouble. "I should really stop jinxing myself."
"I don't know who you are, but I bet you're in cahoots with the shitty devils, aren'tcha? The stench of the devils is all over your body, it disgusts me." Damm it, Kuroka.
His dagger is raised to block the target of the patrols. They trade a few more blows. Freed clicks his tongue, clearly displeased at the fact that Akira is still matching him blow for blow despite what should be an advantage in speed.
This pretty much serves as training for him. It's not his first time fighting against opponents who have seemingly an edge in speed, but it does serve as good practice.
"So it's true. You have a piece of the Excalibur. A piece that gives you speed. However, what if I do this?" An opening. Freed swung slightly too far off, clearly attempting to rely on his superior speed to make up for any gaps he might make during combat. The gap might be a small one, but it still buys Akira some time to do it.
He swiftly rips off the mask the moment it manifests, not bothering to call out the name of who he's summoning.
A Garudyne forms around them, courtesy of Norn. Yes, them, with himself as the eye of the storm. Hopefully, Kuroka's looking in front and not behind, otherwise, it'll be weird to see three goddesses attached to a clock floating behind them. Anyway. Essentially, Garudyne is a miniature storm with deadly wind blades condensed into a small area. Small enough to affect one person and anyone close to them. However. what if he has a Wind Immunity? What would happen to him, as well as the surrounding people?
"What the fu-" Freed doesn't even get the chance to swear before the fierce winds rip and tear into him like a hungry lion. It's hard to beat the wind's speed of over 100km/h, when Freed can barely even clear three-quarters of that even with his sword. Basically, the fastest human's running speed is around 45km/h, but Freed's slower than that. But with Excalibur Rapidly, that is probably increased up to over 100km/h. However, that is only if he's running in a straight line and not wasting energy. During combat, his fighting style appears to heavily rely on the weapon's speed or his natural agility to disorientate and attack enemies from various angles, so the super speed that Freed displays is definitely less than the speed of the winds he summoned.
The winds die down, the sword clatters onto the floor as Freed grasps his wounded sword arm. He takes a moment to admire the handiwork of the winds. He's cut and bleeding in several places, most noticeably his right arm and forehead. Of course, he did reduce the power of Garudyne, otherwise, Freed wouldn't be still standing. What he needed was the longer duration, as his weaker wind spells might have the power required but it also lasts for a shorter amount of time, which wouldn't be able to guarantee Freed's current state. Freed looks like the kind who would rather swear and curse at everything rather than spill information, so getting the sword is the better option. For lack of a better description. he looks like the kind that should be in a mental hospital.
"Sorry pal, but I'll be taking this." Freed tries to reach out for the sword, but Akira is swifter in putting a hole through the left hand that reaches for the sword. Now he sure as hell can't grip anything. Killing Freed would have no point, but wounding him further should buy them some time. Maybe.
He approaches Freed, who takes several steps back away from the sword, Nataraja aimed at him and ignoring the barrage of profanities all aimed at him. Freed might be insane, but he can only be insane if he's still alive.
He grasps the sword. Pretty light. Seriously though, what's with all the fancy curls on the sword. They're even present on the hilt. Almost reminiscent of Usumidori's sheath, but there are more curls and it extends from the tip of the blade to the hilt.
It doesn't suit it. Right, mockery of Excalibur. "YOU FUCKING BITCH! How the fuck can you wield it?! That shitty priest said only I could!" Freed might not be the most vulgar person he has had the misfortune of meeting, but he is surely pretty close to the top.
"Then he's clearly wrong." He quips.
"I'll be back! Just you wait, you shitty thief!" A flashbang. Akira averts his eyes just in time to prevent that light from blinding him. When the light dies down, he's gone.
Well, it's not the first time that he's been called a thief anyway.
Days left: 7
After School, Cafe
He's standing in front of them. Holding a very familiar sword. They act as if he's holding some rare loot. Then again, it is rare. Only seven in the world, by the way.
"Is that-" Xenovia breaks the silence.
"Yes."
"Did you-" Kiba is next.
"Yes."
"You actually can-" Irina's the third.
"For the third time, yes. Before you ask, no, I did not kill him. There wasn't a point." The best-case scenario right now is Freed continuing to hunt people with another 'Excalibur'. It is known that the party(Kokabiel) who stole the sword has one more. How is that even a good scenario? It just goes to show how bad the situation is for him to have to wait for the enemy to take action.
"How can you hold it? It's said that only those with light properties can hold it." Huh, interesting comment by Xenovia. That's something he never knew. The property of light? How would one exactly classify it as such? By whether they're inherently a good person? By the deeds that one performs? So if one committed genocide but it was truly for the sake for the greater good, then would he or she be eligible? Or is it just a way for the Vatican to control who wields each sword? In their eyes, each of these 'Excaliurs' is no doubt valuable weapons, so whoever can use it would be most likely indoctrinated by the Vatican to prevent anything unwanted from happening. This is definitely something worth considering.
"If it picks its users like that, then it proves my theory."
"Theory of what?"
"Theory of it being a mockery to Excalibur. The real thing sure as hell wouldn't have allowed someone as vile as the priest to hold it." True. The priest is better off being in a mental hospital. Plus he shouldn't be able to wield it either if that were truly the case. He isn't exactly someone who would be prime material to be a swordsman. He doesn't speak out his thoughts either.
"So what now?"
"Your decision. I only came across him due to a coincidence. It's not like I can act now. We still have too little information to work with for me to do anything substantial. As for the sword, I'm keeping it." Kokabiel is still forcing him to play the waiting game, unfortunately. Freed's encounter last night has also revealed his existence, which isn't a good thing.
The sword, no matter how much they want to protest, is going to stay with him. "Why? You aren't a member of the Church, nor do you need that weapon."
He can't outright say that Oberon wants to inspect it up close. "You will be burdened to keep it. Unless you can prove to me that you can keep the sword safe, I'll be keeping it until it is over." While the sword might paint a target on his back, that is a plan that he came up with before meeting up with them today. If they so choose to try and retrieve it from him, whoever comes would have to be skilled enough to pry it from his hands. Added benefit is he has a chance to find more leads, something they lack all too much in this situation.
"Tch, fine." Now, to do some other stuff.
Getting Kuroka off his back had been rather easy. Just place her in an area where Koneko was. Clearly, her sister takes more precedence over spying on him.
Now's the time to analyze the sword. "So, how is it, Oberon?"
"I would curse those who came up with such an idea, were they still alive."
He can feel Oberon's rage, as well as sadness. Also a hint of relief. How odd. At the very least, this means that the sword was indeed reforged from a fragment. And Oberon is not happy to see the shoddy quality produced from it.
"However, this cannot be a fragment of Excalibur."
"Explain yourself, Oberon." How can this sword not be Excalibur?
"Excalibur is the Crystallization of Glory. A Prayer."
'Crystallization of Glory.' He struggles to wrap his head around what Oberon says.
"Think of it like the Bullet."
So... what Oberon is saying is Excalibur is like the Sinful Shell. From what he understands, Sinful Shell is the Seven Deadly Sins condensed into a single bullet. The concept of each of the major sins. Sinful Shell is his trump card. A single bullet that is so powerful that it can kill a God. Most trump cards are meant to be used only once, but this trump card is special in that it will always exist, so long as there is "The Seven Sins".
So if he follows along the line of that thought... "So, as long as there is 'a Prayer for Glory', Excalibur will always exist." That's why Oberon is so confident that Excalibur would never break.
"The story behind this blade has most likely been fabricated.
The Sword is no doubt resting in the care of the Lady of the Lake until a worthy wielder is born once again."
"But that brings up another question. Assume that part of the story is true. What would be the sword that was shattered?" There cannot be falsehood without truth. If not, the fabricated story would not have lasted for centuries, at the very least.
There are two main points to this story.
One: A blade was shattered. This is the truth, because Oberon has confirmed that the current sword was reforged from a fragment of a previous one.
Two: The sword shattered was Excalibur. This is false, because the fae have been caretakers of the sword and the King of the Fae would surely not be able to mistake the sword for something else.
"Excalibur, even if it was a pale imitation, would have never allowed someone as vulgar as the priest to wield it."
Cool. This rabbit hole just keeps getting deeper the more he digs into it. What was the sword that was shattered? And why was such a story fabricated in the first place?
Days left: 5?
Two weeks. That was the deadline that he has to work with. This might be perhaps one of the tighter ones he's had to deal with, alongside Kamoshida's Palace back when he had to be cautious and spend a lot of time slowly advancing through the Palace due to their limited abilities at that point of time.
Unfortunately, there has not been a sign of Freed, nor the other Excalibur since the night he retrieved Rapidly from the grasp of the mad priest. And there are only five days left. Not a whole lot of time to work with, especially when the enemy wants to play the waiting game. There are five days left. Or at the very least, there was supposed to be.
However, it appears that the enemy does not seem content to continue skulking in the shadows any longer.
"So the whole town's been cut off?"
"I'm afraid so. My familiar was shot down when I tried to have it scout the edges of Kuoh. None of the communication spells or devices are working." So any contact with Hell is cut off. He has Raynare out trying to see if there is a weakness they can exploit. He cannot count on Azazel, that's for sure. Raynare, however, is insignificant enough to perform tasks without being suspected.
Or, this might be a plan that the enemy would utilize. Purposefully create a situation. But what kind of situation do they want to enact by performing such a drastic move?
"Let me try." If the town were truly cut off, why would every normal person in the town continue their lives as if nothing is happening?
Case 1: Kuoh Academy. Today, school started and ended as normal, with Club activities continuing as well without even the slightest hint of disturbance. Well, unless you count the Perverted Trio's antics, of course.
"Yo, what's up?"
"I may or may not be caught in a bad situation right now."
"How bad?"
"War into potential apocalypse bad." He didn't want to imagine how a war of that scale would look like if every single mythology did indeed hold some overpowered Gods or beings such as Japan's founder God, Izanagi no Okami. And that might not be far off from the truth.
A sigh is heard from the other end. "Damm it, Akira. You really need to stop yourself from getting into situations."
No A/N, but I'll see when I can get my next chapter out.
Peace out, guys!
322n.