Ok, normally I would be waiting for a while longer before posting the next chapter, but letting things fester as they are is not an option. I saw a lot of Reviews that are showing dissatisfaction with the levels and Issei's loss of power, even if I explained the latter before, I will explain things yet again. First, the levels. Guys, you see, I think you noticed the ranks, yes? No way you didn't. You see, levels are not everything in this fic. Sure, they work to give you a rough estimate of someone's stats, but not on their overall level of power when it comes to their skills, which is what Ranks are for. You see, a Level 99 C Rank is about as strong as a level 25 A rank Skill-wise, with more than a 70 levels gap to go, the ranks are the real killer here. There is also not a clear way to explain how one gains a higher rank, but it usually relates to their Skills. A report between the number and level of their skills will result in their rank, but also their mastery levels. Now, Kuroka and Akeno have the same Rank, they are both B ranked, indicating high skill-proficiency, but they are both high in level as well. Rias is A rank only due to her race, which will be explained more later.

Now, when you take both factors into account, that gives you a different perspective on things, but then come ME into play here. You see guys, this version of Kuroka I have going on here is not the same as in canon, meaning she doesn't have the same level of power that is near the Ultimate class, but that is because of the decade she spends mostly training Issei. A decade of peace had her get rusty, so to say. Now, I am not saying Kuroka is weak, as she could still defeat Rias, but not her entire peerage together. Be real guys, even in cannon that was never 100% likely if you keep the mist out of the equation. She developed a perfect poisonous mist that could counter pure-blooded devils. Also, the level cap in this is high, around 999. So expect some individuals to have crazy high levels.

Then come the nerf, which some of you stated issues with. Let me explain some things, ok? Ok. It is a TRADE. Issei lost 10 years of training, yes, but in exchange, he gained the Void System, which will make him even more OP than before in less than a few months. It was a fair trade when you stay to think about it in the longer term, as Issei, and be sure to keep this in mind, DOES NOT HAVE PLOT ARMOR IN THIS! This means that if the stuff with Vali that happened in Se 1 was to repeat again, with no plot armor, Issei would have been killed before you could even blink. I don't mean to bash him, but this is the truth when removing plot armor and MC privileges.

Also, as I said before, my experience with Gamer-type fics is not that great, and if anyone who does have experience wishes to help me and teach me some stuff, then I welcome them with open arms. Just PM me, I will give ya my Discord, and we can talk there. I will even modify some of the earlier chapters for consistency purposes and the likes.

That being said, I have listened to the reviews, and I have decided to further edit stuff in Chapters 5-6 to do some justice. I will lower the levels of the ORC, but the Ranks will remain mostly the same. Also, I should mention that Rias, Sona, Sirzechs, and everyone with a Peerage have a way more efficient EXP gathering system, in the form of the Peerage System, the details of which will be explained later.

Thank you, everyone, for the reviews, for they do help me improve in my Gamer-type fic writing skills, which will have long-term benefits to the quality of the story.

It has been roughly one entire week since the close meeting they had with Rias and her Peerage, so Issei and Kuroka took a critical decision to lay low for a small while. Granted, Issei was still on a timer regarding his Leveling up, but he discovered some things that helped him, somewhat. For starters, he managed to finish the Main Objective of one of his quests with the time he had on his hands!

Academic Beginnings!

You need to pass an exam to get into Kuoh Academy, and luckily for you, the system has your back! Kind of.

Main Objective: Dedicate 10 hours of studying to the following subjects:

Literature (10/10)

Mathematics (10/10)

English (10/10)

Social Studies (10/10)

History (10/10)

-Complete

Additional Objective: Score 1st in the Exam!

Quest Time Limit: 3 Months

Main Objective Reward: +10 INT, Perk: Bookworm, and 3000 EXP

Additional Objective Reward: +5 Relationship with Kuroka, 5000 EXP.

Failure Penalty: -10 Relationship with Kuroka and locking away access to any future Quests related to Kuoh Academy.

Safe to say he might need to study some more in the future, just to be sure, but Issei didn't waste time and got himself the Main Reward, which included a Perk! From his knowledge, he cannot level those up or improve them in any way, but they do come with passive effects, and this one was not so bad in the long run. The [Bookworm] Perk offered him the ability to gain EXP upon consuming a Skill Book, namely around 1000 EXP per book.

It might have been more useful at the start, but the EXP curve was growing constantly, making this a pretty weak perk. Still, anything that helps him level up faster is welcomed! Not to mention the quest came with a bit of EXP and 10 INT points for his Stat.

Solomon informed him that the higher a Stat, the harder it will be to raise it without the use of SP or via quest reward. Still, he needed a way to improve his Weak Affinity Perk somehow, the negative bonus was killing him!. At least he finished that obnoxious quest that keeps wanting him to study, he can dedicate more time to training his skills! Oh yeah, baby! Day action!

Unfortunately, they were still in hot water, even after a week. "This is so boring." He whined as he sat in the living room, Kuroka sitting with him on the couch and watching some TV. "We should be out there, grinding, not wasting time!"

"Nya, although I can agree with you, Ise, we are still not safe to go out!" Kuroka reminded them. "The Devils are still looking, and it is not like we can go out during the day."

"Brilliant, Kuroka!" Solomon suddenly said, his ethereal voice without a body booming and giving them a spook. "The Devils, they expect us to hunt at night! I have been pondering on ways to resume our activities, but it didn't cross my mind that we might go out during the day until now!"

"Heh. And they called you a wise man." Ddraig commented to the king. "How come it took you this long to figure this out? What occupied your mind for so long?"

"Well, there was that one show Issei watched a while back," Solomon said, but Issei was quick to stop him.

"Solomon, not bringing that up! That was private me-time and you know it!"

"Not so private when you have two beings sharing your body, young man!" Solomon rebuked him, making Issei flinch. "Besides, why not use Kuroka? She is twice as good as those sloppy actors on the internet!"

"What are you talking about?" Kuroka asked, not confused, but more or less feeling awkward about it all and hoping they were not thinking about what she thinks they were thinking.

"Some show Issei watched a while back, something with mutants. They had a catgirl in there, and he commented on the looks of it. No worries, he added that she did not compare to you." Ddraig said, which had Issei sigh in defeat and Kuroka sigh in relief. For a moment she believed Issei was still using the porn on the internet when he could just ask her-

She blushed deeply as she realized her train of thought, making her clear her throat. "Anyway, nya, what were you saying, Solomon? Can we go out during the day?"

"Well, yeah, but the issue is mainly the Strays." The Wise King said. "You see, I highly believe they hide during the day or at least try to keep out of sight, so Kuroka's senses are going to be crucial here more than ever. For that reason, Issei, you will need to boost her once before leaving the house and make sure to focus it on her senses."

"Alright, when can we depart then?" Issei asked, excited, as was Kuroka.

"Right away, actually," Solomon added. "It is, what, barely noon? This is the perfect time to go out and look for them!"

"Are you sure? What if we bump into one of the Gremory peerage members?" Issei asked in worry, but then Solomon seemed to chuckle.

"They are young, Issei, remember? I expect them to catch on to us moving to daytime, but not quick enough. It will take them time before they catch on, so we may have some free passes until then. Now, shall we?"

Everyone agreed with Solomon, so Issei and Kuroka got ready at once. Since they were going out in the daylight, they made sure to wear more casual and less eye-catching clothing that might stick out in the day. Still, they went out and began to look around. Issei kept his [Aura Suppression] active, despite it being maxed level now, but it still gave him protection. If anything, it was even better now! He and Kuroka were heading towards areas where the Strays might gather during the day to hide, so they mainly targeted apartment buildings, abandoned places, and heavy industrial warehouses. All they did was go around the area, Kuroka using her senses to locate any possible presence.

And honestly, they didn't really have a lot of success until they walked deeper into the city. Granted, they were also going deeper into Gremory territory, increasing the risk. But Solomon ensured they had nothing to worry about as long as they kept vigilant, and eventually, they walked past a small run-down apartment building that had Kuroka perk up, which Issei noticed. "They are there?"

"If by 'they' you mean a couple dozen? Then yes, I can sense a large gathering of them." Kuroka replied, and Issei felt worried about the amount. A couple of dozen strays were no joke, but he got an idea. "I know that face. So, what's the plan?"

"We abuse your mist, what else?" Issei asked rhetorically, then the two of them went to the apartment buildings. The entrance to this layer had to be somewhere around there, however, the moment they stepped into its perimeter, a large notification filled their vision.

ALERT! ALERT! You are about to enter the Raid Zone: Stray hideout. The Recommended Level for this area is 10. Know that you cannot exit the area until the Boss at the end of it is defeated if you choose to accept.

Do you wish to take on this Raid Zone?
Y/N

Ok, that was new, however, Solomon was quick to update them on what this was. "This is a Raid Zone; a location where we will find multiple enemies with a 'boss' at the end. We can gain special loot from here, not to mention nice EXP gains, but after we conquer it, it shall disappear. Those Raid Zones are rare, and we cannot use them more than once. Entering here, since it is a Raid Zone, makes me worried we might encounter something truly powerful, but…We have no other choice if we desire to achieve Level 15 in time."

Understanding what he meant, Issei and Kuroka shared a look before Issei tapped the 'Y' button and they entered the perimeter of the apartment building. It was strange as if they entered a different space or something. "I am researching it, grant me some time. I can say this; those Raid Zones seem to have a barrier around them, similar to the one we use when we combat Strays. That being said, unwelcome guests can still visit us."

"Roger that," Issei muttered as he and Kuroka looked around the place, finding nothing of interest. There was not even anyone living here by the looks of things, and the presence of the Strays was all over the place, making it impossible for Kuroka to accurately pinpoint the Strays. They eventually decided to check the bottom floor rooms, finding them to be just as rundown as the outside area.

Except for one which piqued Issei's interest. "Wait." He said, looking down at the floor. He remembered once, back when his parents were still around and they moved the furniture around how the spot underneath was pretty dusty, and right now he was looking at the opposite of it. He noticed how a spot in the room seemed to have less dust on it, namely towards the wall. Now that he thought about it, this wall was out of place when compared with the outside look of the apartment, as the apartment was supposed to be larger.

For discovering the clue of this Raid Zone you were awarded one WIS.

Due to your WIS stat reaching 50, your [Weak Magic Affinity] Perk was converted into [Normal Magic Affinity]

That was nice, overall, but not important at the moment. Issei scanned the wall, running his hand on it and eventually feeling a strange cut. He dug his nails into it, and lo and behold, the wall slid to the side, revealing a pair of stairs going down. Bingo. "Looks like we discovered where they gather during the day," Kuroka said, walking to the stairs. "After you."

Issei nodded and deployed his Sacred Gear in all its glory, not taking any chances as he and Kuroka went down the stairs, noticing how dimly lit they were. Overall, they didn't go that far and eventually opened up a bit, Issei noticing the room the stairs seemed to lead into directly, but also what seemed to look like guards sitting at the exit. He nodded at Kuroka, then she took a step forward, summoning her mist and letting it flow down the stairs at the feet of the Strays.

One of them coughed up, then slowly, they fell down as they became short of breath, allowing Issei and Kuroka to step in. "Y-you- Intruders-" Before the Stray could say anything else he was met with a quick [Power Punch] to its skull, Issei earning a CRITICAL notification as he noticed the Stray's head bleeding on the ground. The other Stray got spooked by this and tried to flee, however, Kuroka caught them quickly as she fired her Senjutsu at it, killing the Stray.

They looked around the room, noticing how it seemed to be more of a small hallway meant to welcome in the Strays coming in here to hide during the day. At the other end of the hallway was a door, no more guards this time. "Hmm. I am picking up a large concentration of Strays behind that door." Kuroka said, then she focused her mist towards the door, but they were met with a nasty notification.

Due to a preventive enchantment, poison-type magic or Youjutsu cannot be used.

"Tch. Damn it." Kuroka said, cursing a bit. "Past that door, my mist won't work." She said, but then Issei stepped forward. "Issei?"

"It's alright, Kuroka, you remain here." He said, holding up his gauntlet. "Hey, Solomon, since we are underground and all, can I go all out?"

"Well, as long as you are careful not to bring the whole house down on us. I don't imagine the Gremory peerage having an easy time finding the entrance, so we should have enough time."

"Finally! Having to watch you hold back so much annoyed me to no end! This will put a smile on my face." Ddraig commented, then Issei focused, closing his eyes and putting up his armored arm with his Boosted Gear.

Then, he suddenly opened his eyes. "BALANCE BREAKER!"

[SCALE MAIL!]

As the announcement played out, Issei found himself covered in his armor from head to toe, and internally he admitted to missing this armor. The Red Dragon Armor was decorated with green jewels that covered his body, having a pair of rocket thrusters at the back that gave him a temporary boost of speed and flight, assisted by retractable draconic wings. And the best part?

[Boost] [Boost]

No cooldown when using the [Boost] ability. With two [Boost] charged in, Issei held his arm at the door and charged a [Dragon Shot], using it to blow off the door from its hinges then charge in. And what he found was matching the expectations. It was like an underground bar, with multiple Strays walking around or sitting on chairs. He noticed some extra hallways to the side, but for now, he was going to let loose. As predicted, multiple Strays jumped at him to attack him, but Issei was faster than them while like this, allowing him to charge in and grab one of them by the neck before he threw it into another Stray who got to close for comfort.

Then, he began to use his fist, namely abusing [Power Punch] with each punch. The Skill's damage output was enhanced by his boosted STR stat, allowing him to pretty much one-shot the lower-level Strays!

Skill Level-up! [Power Punch] is now level 2

Skill Level-up! [Power Punch] is now level 3

Skill Level-up! [Power Punch] is now level 4

And it was leveling up easily as a result.

He [Observed] as much as he can, finding the ones who were higher in level. They were shooting him with everything they had as well, but his armor was more than enough to take the damage. The bonus his Balance Breaker gave him, together with the [Boost] made him more than a match for those Strays as he continued to take them out one after another, seeing them fall like flies.

Granted, his little rampage was cut short as he found himself struck with lightning, causing Issei to scream in pain a bit. That dealt 450 points of damage, and it was clearly magic. When he looked in the direction it came from he saw a Stray with a magical circle in front of himself. In fact, he saw multiple Strays doing that! He was surrounded, however, he was not about to be easily taken out, so he began to maneuver around and use his [Wyvern Shot] as much as possible to take them out.

He noticed he was not gaining EXP anymore either, which was strange, but he had no time to worry about that as he was busy dodging spells. At one point, his feet got stuck in ice, and he saw a Stray grinning as it tried to strike him directly with its magic, but thankfully, Kuroka was there and she made short work of them using her Senjutsu.

"Oh dear, I hope you haven't forgotten about me." She said as she strolled into the room, using magic to get into her normal attire. Some Strays tried to assault her, but her use of Senjutsu made them regret it as she fought them off. The majority were focused on Issei either way. Breaking free of the ice, he decided to go further and utilized a third [Boost] then he aimed his arm forth. Maybe, just maybe, it was time for him to use his newly achieved magic he got a while ago.

Focusing his Fire Magic, Issei remembered Solomon's method as well, so he began to imagine a basic fireball coming out of his hand, visualizing it and then releasing it, seeing it strike a Stray dead on and light them ablaze as a result.

Skill Created! [Fire Magic: Fireball] (Level 1| 100/400)

With that Skill created Issei began to fire a combination of it with [Wyvern Shot], taking a long-range approach to clear out the remaining Strays in this room. Then, slowly, he stopped, letting out a sigh as he turned off his Balance Breaker. "Now, that is what I am talking about!" He cheered, Kuroka going to him as well as they looked over the destruction they caused together. "Easiest level-up I will ever see!"

Skill Level-up! [Fireball] is now level 2

Skill Level-up! [Fire Magic-Novice] is now level 2

Skill Level-up! [Fireball] is now level 3

"Actually, Issei, think again," Solomon said, then Issei understood what the Wise King meant when he received a notification.

First Room of the Raid Zone Complete!

(Progress: 1/2)

"Wait…You meant to tell me there is one more room in this place?" Issei asked, then he checked his Stats, and what he found made him regret going so big at the very beginning.

HP: 1520/1700 (1HP/Min)

STA: 750/1450 (1STA/Min)

Mana: 970/1300 (1 Mana/Min)

"You recklessly burned through half of your Stamina by using your Balance Breaker and all of those Skills together at once." Solomon pointed out, giving Issei a slight scolding. "While I do commend you on the new spell, this is not good considering the boss is most likely in the next room!"

"Why didn't you stop me then?!" Issei protested.

"You were having fun."

"Wh-Know what, I give up," Issei said, admitting defeat. "So, I am expecting the boss to be on the other side of…Which door?" He asked, looking around. True, there were multiple hallways he could go down on, but something told him only one led to the actual boss room.

"I say we split up," Kuroka suggested. "I will take a hallway and explore it and you take another one. If any of us finds the boss, we will go get the other, sounds fine?"

"Sounds good to me. Let's go." Issei said as he went down the hallway, noticing how the dim light was barely enough to illuminate the place. However, he eventually reached another door, an iron one this time. He nodded and drew back his fist, using [Power Punch] to break down the door this time. However, what he found more or less shocked him. It was an underground arena, like some kind of fighting ring. This didn't make any sense, but then it clicked with him.

Underground fighting. Those Strays, or at least the smarter ones at the top which was the boss of this Raid Zone, were conducting illegal fighting matches here. It was both a hideout during the day and a place for them to enjoy some additional bloodshed. He walked further, looking around the empty seats around the arena. It was a badly made one as well. It was more or less a cage made out of iron wire situated on a piece of rock from when they must have dug out this place. But here is what he didn't get.

If this was an underground fighting arena, shouldn't there be stronger Strays in here? The ones he had taken out at the entrance, which was likely a bar or something similar, as revealed by his [Observe] Skill, were pretty much like the Strays he had been killing with Kuroka so far, nothing special about them. Seriously, was it amateur night or something?

Granted, the answer was given when the door suddenly closed shut behind him, Issei looking at it to notice a Stray there with a wide grin on his face. Their skin looked dry as hell and it was light-gray in color, almost like old concrete. But he was not alone. Looking to the left he noticed two others, one with a long serpentine tail and another, female one with elongated nails. Then, he looked behind himself as he saw the last two. There, sitting on a chair, was a Stray who didn't share the same mutations as the rest with another Stray without mutations wearing a three-piece suit next to them. "Well, well, well. When I received the alarm about intruders I believed it was the Gremory or Sitri peerages storming my little place. I never imagined the Red Dragon Emperor himself was at hand." He began to clap, sarcastically. 'Bravo! You sure did show all of my clients how it's done."

"So I take it this is your place? I must say, I expected some harder resistance at the entrance." Issei said, mocking him. In truth, he was worried, however, as he used [Observe] on the Strays around him.

[Concrete Stray]

[Level: 15 B]
[HP: 7000/7000]
[Reincarnated Stray (1 Rook)]

[Saber Stray]

[Level: 17 B]
[HP: 6500/6500]
[Reincarnated Stray (1 Knight)]

[Snake Stray]

[Level: 14 B]

[HP: 5000/5000]

[Reincarnated Stray (3 Pawns)]

All of them were B-rank, meaning they were pretty powerful compared with other Strays of similar levels. Those guys were the same rank as Danbooru, but something tells Issei he shouldn't rush to compare them. However, he then used his skill on the ones sitting above, and that cut his breath.

[Fancy Stray]

[Level: 25 A]

[HP: 13000/13000]

[Reincarnated Stray (7 Pawns)]

[Stray Boss]

[Level: 27 B]

[HP: 10000/10000]

[Reincarnated Stray ( 1 Queen)]

Apart from the System giving them some names to refer to, Issei realized he was in pretty deep shit. The first three? He might be able to deal with them if he doesn't hold back, but the ones that seem to be running the show are worrying him and also catching his curious eye. The Boss was there, indicated by his name and level, but strangely, despite his status, the one dressed in a more fancy suit had higher specs. Something was not right here.

"Well, what can I say? It is so hard to find useful goons nowadays." The boss said with genuine disappointment. "At least those fuckers are likely dead by now, otherwise I would be more than happy to finish them off myself. Oh well, I will settle with you. I admit I wished I had caught the kitty here." The fighters chuckled at his words. "She does look good…But she has her own company."

"What?" Issei said, catching on to that part.

"Kiddo, you don't actually believe this is all I have correct? Those are merely the best fighters I have! The rest, however, are waiting in their rooms to be called to battle, which I believe will happen sooner than later."

Kuroka was in danger? Fuck! Splitting up was a bad idea in the end. However, that didn't matter now. What mattered now was actually surviving this and going to her before anything bad happened with her! "So, are you going to just stand there?" Issei asked, then he deployed his Balance Breaker again, despite knowing he had around…15 minutes before he was out of Stamina, and that is not counting the Skill he was likely to use. He likely only had 10 or fewer minutes, most likely only eight.

Seeing the Red Dragon Emperor get riled up, the Boss smirked. "I am afraid so…Kill him." And so, the devils which were around Issei charged in at him, the first to close the distance being the lady with the sharp claws. She was fast, ridiculously so, and Issei barely managed to block her nails which came down from above, but that was only one hand. Using her free hand she went forth with a stab at his side, which he noticed and leaped to the side. However, she still managed to scratch him a bit. The Stray with a serpentine tail went at him next, using its tail and coiling it around Issei's arm, but the boy used this to his advantage and actually swung the Stray into its ally, namely the lady with the nails, knocking them both back.

He tried to get them with a [Wyvern Shot], but he forgot about the third Stray which grabbed him by his midsection and drove them both into the stands. This action took 400 of his HP, however, Issei used his [Power Punch] on its back, dealing SOME damage. 330 damage. WHAT THE HELL WAS THIS STRAY'S DURABILITY?!

A question he didn't get answered as the Stray tried to punch him, but Issei was able to use his rocket thrusters to jump on top of the Stray, then he leaped back towards the middle of the room, crashing into the cage and breaking it down. He aimed both his arms at the Stray, then he began to fire his [Fireball] spell at it, hearing the Stray scream out in pain.

Skill Level-up! [Fire Magic-Novice] is now level 3

Skill Level-up! [Fireball] is now level 4

However, he found his arm grabbed by the tail from before, pulling Issei to the side and making him stop his barrage. He saw the Stray with the nails charging in again, this time for his head, but he didn't allow it to get any closer and he side-stepped, letting her cut the tail of her own teammate.

The CRITICAL announcement played and Issei showed the Snake Stray's health dropping from 5000 to 3900. Taking out its tail really hurt. Granted, he quickly took the chance of this confusion to deliver a fully charged [Power Punch] straight in the Saber Stray's chest. Although she was female, and he felt horrible for crushing those knockers of hers, there was no other way. He heard the sound of bone cracking, then he heard the FATAL announcement. He dropped the Saber Stray, letting them puke out blood.

He used [Observe], seeing their HP dropping from 100 slowly. He must have caused internal damage with that hit, but he couldn't rest now. He looked at the Stray whose tail was cut, aiming at it, but he was interrupted as the Concrete Stray socked him from the side. He slid back a bit, but Issei was able to recover before he received a second punch. He was sick of this brute already! He pulled back his head, then he delivered a powerful headbutt to the Stray, dealing some damage as well as stunning it.

With this chance, he grabbed them and swirled them around a bit before he threw him into the boss. However, Issei was shocked when he saw the fancy one stretching out their hand, then, as if he was some esper, the Concrete Stray stopped mid-flight. But then Issei watched in slight horror as its body was cut into pieces, dropping dead.

"Come on, you didn't need to kill him!" The boss said, letting out a sigh. "Oh well, if you need something done right, you have to do it yourself." He said, then he jumped in, allowing Issei to see them better. They were around 7 feet tall with their head shaved and the remaining hair tied into a ponytail at the back. But Issei noticed another detail…Four arms. "I never said we were NOT mutated! We simply learned to control ourselves before it was too late." It said, then he charged at Issei trying to deliver a punch.

Issei tried to dodge, but he found himself held by some invisible force. The Fancy Stray! Of course! Due to this, the boss got a clean hit on Issei, which put him below half HP! This was bad, especially as he didn't know how much he had left until his Balance Breaker fades. He needed to think: this situation was highly similar to the couple he killed a while back, with one doing the front fighting and the other offering support, but he didn't know what the Fancy Stray did to offer this support yet!

Landing on his feet after the punch, Issei looked not at the boss, but at the Fancy Stray, then something caught his eye. For a split second, he noticed some kind of thin glow around him. That's it! He saw this trick in anime before, he was using strings! And the counter to strings…IS FIRE!

"Now or never!" Issei declared as he charged in, but as he did, he channeled his Fire magic again. To stop those strings from covering him and interfering he needed to burn them, and the best way to do this at the moment was to cover himself in the fire. This was going to result in a nasty skill for himself, but he had no choice! He felt the mana immediately around his body, then he visualized himself covered in the flames. Slowly, as he approached the boss, his armor heated up.

The Fancy Stray pulled their palms to the side, sending another round of strings at Issei to stop him from moving and allow its boss to strike again, but its eyes widened as he felt no pressure, and what's more, his strings got burned around the Red Dragon Emperor, and he saw the cause…Fire, all over him.

A literal armor of flames was on Issei's armor, and as he charged into the boss he delivered a [Power Punch] to its jaw dead-on, sending them back a bit.

"What?!" The boss gasped in shock. "What was that, Cassius?"

"He burned them…" The Fancy Stray said, revealing themselves. Their eyes were strange, completely dark with no pupils. However, he had two pairs of them…He was some kind of spider mutant. "That fire around him is burning my strings!"

"Grr. You're useless!" The boss shouted at him before he got up again. "Looks like we will have a better fight now, Red Dragon."

"No," Issei replied, then he held his hands out. "I will finish this now." Because he was getting low on everything right now! Using the last of his Mana, he focused himself, then, as the boss charged in again, he unleashed a torrent of fire upon the two of them. The boss tried to fight it, but the flames engulfed him and Issei heard the CRITICAL announcement playout for the Fancy Stray. Apparently, the fire was their main weakness if he were to guess.

He eventually stopped, looking at his work. The boss was kneeling on the ground, their body showing various burns on it. As for the Fancy Stray? Their body was fried all over, but strangely, they were surviving on 1000 HP. As for the boss, he had around 320 HP left. Issei was breathing heavily, his Stamina being extremely low at this point, not to mention his HP and Mana were also not that hot looking. He did create two new spells.

Skill Created! [Fire Magic: Firestream] (Level 1| 100/400)

Skill Created! [Fire Magic: Fire-Armor] (Level 1| 100/400)

However, as far as his stuff goes.

HP:630/1700 (1HP/Min)

STA: 120/1450 (1STA/Min)

Mana: 360/1300 (1 Mana/Min)

He was still doing half-decent on Mana, all things considered, but he was still low. He dismissed his Balance Breaker, looking at the Boss. "You have nowhere else to go now," Issei said, then he raised his arm. His [Boost] were still active, so he used them to summon his [Dragon Shot]

"So, this is it, huh?" The boss said, staring at the attack. "Being killed by this generation's Red Dragon Emperor…Not bad." He said to himself as Issei launched the [Dragon Shot], effectively killing the Boss and the Fancy devil.

"There…Done." He said, collapsing on his ass and letting the [Boost] fade away. However, he relaxed too quickly. The Snake Stray broke one of the nails from the fallen saber Devil and charged at Issei from behind.

"DIE!" It shouted, and Issei turned around to see them charging in. However, they were stopped as a projectile struck them from behind, delivering a finishing strike. The Snake Stray was caught in the earlier [Firestream], which lowered its HP enough for this strike to kill. Looking back at the door, Issei saw Kuroka there, her arm outstretched and looking a bit banged up. Her kimono was torn, letting her left breast spill out. She was covered in multiple scratches and bruises, and she was panting a bit from exhaustion.

"Kuroka!" Issei said, going to her as best as he could and catching her as she lost her balance a bit. "Easy there. What happened?"

"I found the rest of the Strays…A healthy bunch, but I managed to take them out by using the hallway as a bottleneck to enabling me to take them out in manageable numbers." She said, then she looked at the destruction around this room. "It looks like you had your own share of action here."

"Yeah."

Congratulations on clearing the Raid Zone!

Rewards:

-30K EXP

-1 Random piece of equipment

-Unique equipment: Bracelet of the Asura

-100K Yen

-3 Healing Potions (Mid-Quality)

-Level-up! Congratulations, you are now Level 9!

"At least we gained a level," Ddraig said dryly. "Makes the trouble worth it. Check the new gear and the options."

"Actually, I'd say to first check the potions," Solomon said, and Issei listened, pulling out one bottle of the potion. It was a red potion of sorts in a small glass bottle. He used [Observe] on it, seeing what this was exactly.

[Healing Potion(Mid-Quality)]

[This potion is used to quickly recover HP when consumed! Once consumed, this potion will recover 30% of your MAX HP value.]

"A healing potion, just as the name says," Issei said, popping the cap and then taking a whiff, only to recoil in disgust. "MY GOD, THE SMELL!"

"Oh, don't be a baby!" Kuroka said, taking the bottle from him. "Surely the taste is better than the smell." She said, then she drank the potion, however, she gagged, trying not to puke and dropping the bottle. "No…It doesn't." However, shortly after consuming the potion, Issei watched as Kuroka's bruises and scratches seemed to vanish almost instantly. While not all of them went away, Kuroka looked better than she did before. "W-Woah." She said, looking at herself.

"It restores HP, duh!" Solomon said, pointing out the obvious. "Drink one as well, Issei." The King said, then Issei pinched his nose as he drank the potion, feeling his body being fixed. He cringed at the aftertaste, disliking it. It was a strange aroma of herbs and something he couldn't quite put his finger on. However, it did its job.

"Ok…Now what?" Issei asked, then he remembered about the items he was supposed to receive. Looking into his inventory, aside from a large amount of cash, he also noticed a golden bracelet with red details and a small box. He pulled both of them out, using [Observe] on them.

[Bracelet of the Asura]

[A unique artifact which was made using the blood of the Asura and carefully collected spider silk, granting the wearer a 40% increase in their STR stat while wearing this item.]

[Random Box]

[this kind of box is usually given as a reward from the system. Once used, it will generate a random piece of equipment which can be anything from an accessory to an entire piece of armor!]

"I mean, I might use the Bracelet, but…Should we use this Random Box now?" Issei asked, then, suddenly, a small notification appeared.

Note: When dealing with those types of items such as the [Random Box], this is where your LCK Stat comes into play! There are several Luck-based things within the System, and your Luck stat will define the overall rarity Rank of the item (Wait until [Observe] reaches level 10 to unlock this bit of information in Items). However, as to balance it, each stat point in LCK translates to about a 0,1% chance to get an item of a Rarity above R.

As for the Rarities themselves, you have C (Common), UC (uncommon), R (Rare), VR (Very Rare), UR (Ultra Rare), and SR (Super Rare)

There is also a unique class of Items, the MR (Mystical Rare) category, which can only be gained as a 0,2% regardless of the LCK stat. Don't be shy, have a try. Currently, you have a…1.6% chance of something above R Rarity.

"Ok, I am calling it, this system is sentient or something," Ddraig said, but no one really addressed the issue as he did, instead Issei focused on the box in his hands. He undid the locks on the front, then, slowly, he opened it. Looking inside, however, he noticed and got out what looked to be a silver necklace of sorts with a blue gem. Curious, he used his [Observe] Skill on it, reading the information.

[Mana Storing Necklace]

[Ever felt low on Mana? Well, now you get to hold extra! This item holds Mana for you, which you can access and use later. This is not a very advanced version of this series of fancy jewelry, however, so the storage is not great, but still useful. The necklace will absorb Mana by itself at a rate of 1 Mana/min, or you can fill it with Mana yourself]

[Mana: 0/2000 Stored]

"I see. This necklace seems to be some kind of external battery for Mana." Issei said, looking at the necklace some more after the box vanished. He could use the boost in Mana, but the issue was that the necklace looked too girly for him, so his eyes went to Kuroka - trying to focus on her face instead of her uncovered boob. "Here." He said, going to her and putting the necklace on the girl.

Kuroka was a bit confused why Issei would give her this item, but she liked it. "Nya, thank you! I assume you will be keeping the bracelet then?"

"I will," Issei said, placing the bracelet in his inventory. "I have to say, those Raid Zones are pretty neat, if not a bit harsh." He continued, looking around at the defeated Strays. "Let's go back, I am beat!"

"Nya, I agree. I could really go for a warm bath…"

"Maybe we can-"

"Nah, ah, Issei." Kuroka said, a coy smile on her face."I said I will reward you when you get first in that exam, and I don't intend to give you any premature rewards. Sorry, dear, but until I see your name at the top of the charts the best you are going to get are cuddles and peaks at my chest!"

"I declare it again…I WILL CRUSH THAT EXAM!"

"Hey, Solomon?" Ddraig said, getting Solomon's attention, however, the King seemed to know what the dragon meant before he even said it.

"I know, but look at the good part: He is motivated, and that is good."

Shortly after, they decided to head back to their home before the Devils showed up. True to Solomon's prediction, however, they really didn't expect the day's action.

Rias Gremory was currently in her office, roughly two hours after they picked up a large release of power from the underground fighting arena, which was pretty much in shambles now, with all Strays in there deceased. This had the marks of their mysterious culprit all over it, but now it added more to the plate in the shape of fire magic. They found traces of it, and for some strange reason, their skin crawled while in there from the traces of said magic - a sensation similar to when they are close to anything of holy making.

However, that aside, Rias was currently in her office, drinking some tea. Nothing unusual, except this was her fifth cup today, having even sent her Knight, Kiba, to buy more in order to help her calm the nerves. Their culprit acted during the DAY. Up until now, they have only acted at night, which made Rias believe their earlier incursion had changed their plans somewhat, forcing them to take action during the day. Still, this was not good overall, as it made her seem weak.

Strays were being taken out more efficiently, and now even an entire nest of them was found and destroyed by some unknown duo, a possible trio, and it was getting increasingly difficult to keep this from her brother or the Shinto Pantheon. So, she had no choice but to ask Sona for help. She was currently waiting for her, and despite it being the early summer season, she still had some work with the Student Council she ran here at Kuoh Academy.

Her Queen, Akeno, brought her another cup of tea, taking the one she had already finished, and not a moment too soon as Sona entered the room. While to the public she is known as Souna Shitori, Rias knew the truth like the others; her real name was Sona Sitri, the Heir of the Sitri House and a High-Ranked Devil like herself, a pureblood. She was a bespectacled woman with a slim figure, black hair styled in a short bob cut and violet eyes, wearing a pair of glasses over them.

"You said this was important, Rias?" Sona remarked, being in a slight hurry in order to get back to her duties. "What is this urgent meeting about?"

"Take a seat, Sona, we have quite a bit to talk about," Rias said as politely as she could, but the frustration seeping through her voice was something Sona picked up on quite quickly. Something was worrying her quite a bit, annoying her, and she couldn't get rid of it. Sona took the seat offered, Akeno placing a cup of tea in front of her as well.

"I ask again, Rias," Sona said, picking up her cup and blowing on it before taking a sip. "Why did you summon me?"

"It's in regards to a string of murders that have been going on around Kuoh for a while now," Rias said, getting straight to the chase. "I believe you are aware of them?"

"Of course I am. As the President of the Student Council, and as one of the figurative co-owners of Kuoh, it is my duty to make sure the supernatural activity stays hidden. This string of murders that have Stray Devils at their core has been nothing less of a big headache since we kept having to intervene to make sure the bodies were sent to the Underworld and the entire thing covered up." Sona stated. "I half expect this to be an apology for your slacking to use your Power of Destruction to get rid of the bodies, but something tells me this is not the case now, is it? It never was your hand."

"On point as always," Rias said, admitting with a bit of shame. "Those Strays were not killed by any member of my peerage, as I know they have not been killed by any member of yours. As a result, I and my peerage investigated those murders and got quite a few clues. Firstly, we found a steel sword that was used by a Stray, then later by the culprit, only to abandon it when it started to break down."

"So you have the murder weapon?" Sona asked.

"A murder weapon, not THE murder weapon." Rias corrected. "Our culprit seems to be using a mix of magic and physical combat, along with the aid of what we assume to be a Draconic Sacred Gear." She then looked at Sona, giving her a sharp gaze. "If I didn't know you better, I'd say your leash on your most recent peerage member was loose."

Sona scoffed at the light accusation. "Please, Saji is still a greenhorn all things considered, and I doubt he'd be able to take on so many Strays at once, let alone an entire nest. That being said, Rias, you might not be dealing with a normal Sacred Gear user either."

"You think he is special in some regard?" Rias asked curiously. "Pray tell."

"Rumor has it that the White Dragon Emperor is with the Fallen Angels, Rias," Sona said, then Rias immediately picked up on what Sona was trying to say, and that had Rias perk up quite a bit.

"Y-you suspect that the culprit is the Red Dragon Emperor?!" She gasped, then she laughed. "You must be joking! Throughout history, all Red Dragon Emperors had been known to reveal themselves quite easily since their power multiplying abilities make them into literal beacons of power! I am SURE we would have noticed if our culprit was using a Longinus."

"Not all Sacred Gears are flashy and easily sensed, Rias. Sanji, for example, has one of the Vitra Sacred Gears, which is a fine catch." Sona said, boasting a bit both for her pride and to prove a point. "But there is also the possibility they are smarter than their ancestors, and they developed-"

"Sona, I apologize for the interruption, but I didn't call you here to debate whether or not this person is the Red Dragon Emperor or not but to ask you for help," Rias said, and Sona set her gaze on her, waiting to hear more. "The other clues we got had been earned recently, as we managed to almost catch them in the act; we confirmed that we are dealing with at least two culprits, one being a confirmed Nekoshou and the other a male with a Draconic Sacred Gear."

"Hmm. Quite the precarious combination I must say. How does your rook feel about the presence of one of her own?" Sona asked, to which Rias replied bluntly.

"Koneko has shown no signs of acting strangely so far, but I have Kiba spending some time with her to make sure she doesn't freak out." She explained, then she sighed. "Sona, me and my peerage devised a plan, the one which led us to the last bits of clues last time, that implies following Strays around and waiting for them to attack. They seem to employ some kind of mist at first, weakening the Strays, like a poison, so we will know instantly if it is them. We want to ask for your Peerage as well, for help."

"To cover more area, correct?" She asked, to which Rias nodded. Sona seemed to think over the issue for a bit, then, she fixed her glasses a bit. "Very well, we will lend a hand. But, since you mentioned they are working in pairs, I think it is only fair we also spread out in pairs. Whilst it may cover less of an area than individual stakeouts, it does reduce the possibility of our peerage members being attacked."

"That is fine by me," Rias replied. "They recently attacked during the day, taking down quite a large nest of Strays, so we do not expect them to make another move tonight due to the possibility of attracting too much attention. So tonight we won't act, and we may need to modify our plans for daytime as well, but I believe we have a good chance now to catch them."

"I will try and predict their next location based on the pattern of their strikes so far," Sona said. "But Rias, what do you intend to do with them if we do catch them? Technically speaking, their actions have helped us, not to mention the general population of Kuoh. We ourselves are no different since we also kill Strays."

"With permission to do," Rias said, giving her point. "Their actions are against the law, true, but something like that can be overlooked given the right deal. However, I cannot overlook the fact that whoever is behind this has deliberately fired a projectile at me while I was interrogating a Stray." She revealed, which had Sona somewhat surprised. "I was not their aim, the Stray was, to shut them up."

"Quite a bold action from them, to fire upon the sister of Sirzechs Lucifer. If your brother found out, I have no doubt he'd show up at our door with his own peerage to hunt those individuals down." Sona said, figuring out the issue here. She too wouldn't like it very much if her sister dropped unannounced and drowned Kuoh just because someone tried to harm her without success. "So, I guess this entire situation is mostly covered up, then?"

"Yes, it is," Rias said. "And I'd like to keep it like that."

"And what will we gain if we do offer our help? I stand to remind you, Rias, that the duties of the Student Council, especially in a University such as Kuoh, are not to be overlooked. If we end up falling behind in any way because of those activities, I expect to be compensated." Rias was afraid of this. Sona never did anything out of the goodness of her heart, especially when it came to shady stuff like this.

However, Rias was prepared and knew how to deal with it. "If you agree to aid us, The Occult Research Club shall officially lend its funds and help to the Student Council for the duration of the upcoming first-semester of our first-year at Kuoh Academy." Sona hummed at that proposal, seeing the potential for lessening the workload.

"Deal."

In the meantime, in a different location, the Stray Issei met a while ago, Danbooru, was resting atop one of the buildings in the upper area of Kuoh, where the more rich individuals lived. He simply stayed there, meditating with his eyes closed. "I see you are back." He said, not even turning as someone appeared behind him. The person in question was the same Stray Issei believed to have killed before, the Fancy one.

However, they were different, except for their clothing. Now, instead of having that strange spider-like feature, they seemed to only possess deeply gray skin and long silver hair accompanied by bleach irises that could lead individuals to believe he was blind. "I have returned, as promised." They said, fixing their tie a bit. "I come with an update on the underground fighting ring, Danbooru, it was-"

"Destroyed by the Red Dragon Emperor." The monk said before his ally could finish, and he opened his eyes, looking over the horizon. "I am aware. How are you? I could sense his power going up from here."

"It was a close call, but I managed to escape by faking my death." He said, recalling the events. The one he was impersonating has been dead for a long time, killed by him, then he assumed their identity in order to infiltrate that underground fighting ring. This Stray's real name was Leon, and he and Danbooru were working together. Leon specialized in powerful illusionary magic, however, he also bears a more unique ability thanks to his Sacred Gear, Gluttonous Copycat. His Gear could consume corpses and then allow him to mimic the individual's identity perfectly, even copying their powers. The downside was that it only worked on one identity at once, meaning he couldn't hold multiples, and he could not use his original abilities either, not to mention the person he impersonates needs to first be consumed by his gear POST-MORTEM.

Danbooru nodded. "He is progressing nicely." He said, then he turned to Leon. "What else were you able to find out, Leon?"

"Recently, it seems the Gremory peerage have been searching for whoever did those murders, which are the Red Dragon and his spouse. However, so far they have proven to not have a lot of luck." Leon reported. "But that is likely to change if they bring in the Sitri peerage as well."

"Ah, the second sister, yes," Danbooru said, looking into the horizon. "Are you prepared, Leon? You can feel it, don't you? Their crimes, they didn't go unnoticed, and because of that, they have become afraid."

Leon's eyes narrowed at Danbooru's news. "The murders did indeed set in motion a multiple chain event, old friend, but that is why are here." He replied, then he walked next to Danbooru, the two of them overlooking a large mansion by the side of Kuoh. "To wash our hands of filthy sin, we sin more. We clean blood with blood."

"For we know that in the end, we will surrender for the reaper's scythe. But until he comes…"

The two of them jumped off the building, expanding their wings and flying towards the mansion with one goal in mind: To kill the inhabitants and leave. But why were they doing such deeds? Were they good or were they evil? Whose side were those mysterious strays really on? Were they allies or foes?

One thing, however, was certain.

As Danbooru crashed into the mansion, in the middle of what looked like an auction, he shouted. "This putrid business of selling living beings is over…" A slave auction was crashed by the duo, the two coming face to face with nobility from the devils and even humans. However, they did not plan to let anyone escape. "GREAT QUAKE!"

The next day, as the sun arose, the only thing left of that mansion was its rubble, which buried the majority of the people who were there. But the slaves? They had been rescued and taken somewhere else. Somewhere safe.

And the certain thing was that the two have their hearts in the right place.