Welcome to the Dragon's Den
Chapter 20.
Part I
Issei disliked troublesome things. Well, any being naturally tended to avoid things they disliked – i.e troublesome things. The brunette young adult watched his junior stare at him with dull, cat-like pupils full of unshed tears; if anyone was to walk-in on this scene, people might get the completely wrong idea, especially considering the body he was carrying on his left shoulder like a potato sack.
The red dragon emperor took a deep breath, wondering what he was to do. At this point he might as well reveal himself and stake his claim. If the two devils had already began to send people to his apartment, it would be much better to simply introduce himself properly and be done with the game of cat-and-mouse.
Also, mighty rude of them to put people to stalk me and barge into my home unannounced. He mused, taking slow steps towards the white-haired girl sitting on the floor. Her golden eyes trembled, the girl not truly looking up to him, her eyes stopping midway up to his waist; he was not even releasing his aura and she was on the verge of wetting herself. I didn't think I was this scary. Oi, don't wet yourself kouhai, it might give your king the wrong impression!
He raised one hand towards her, but the simple motion made the girl begin to shiver uncontrollably; a few moments later he had to lunge forward to grasp her head, less she clonk it hard against the wooden floor.
It was pure luck that Kuroka was away, otherwise things would have gotten awkward really fast. Chances were it would still be troubling, as Tojou Koneko-san here could probably sense sage aura as well as her sister (which might explain her current state), and if she decided to tattle on to her master, Issei might have to end up facing a clown-cart's worth of devils looking to blast him with magic. Well, I'll cross that bridge when it comes to it.
He draped the girl over his other shoulder and stared at the mess that was his entrance door. His brows narrowed a bit, his displeasure at having his home invaded clear in his face, but the mercenary took another calming breath and released it as a thin cloud of white steam from his nostrils. I'll bill it to Sona-kaichou. He mused, conjuring a simple illusion spell to overlap against the door frame until it was repaired.
The little trick done, the hidden dragon began to pull on the power of [Dimension Lost], the fog-like mist wrapping around him and his packages to teleport them to their destination. He felt some resistance to his spell, but it was nothing that he couldn't push past with a little more juice.
It took no time for him to vanish from his home and appear right in the middle of the Student Council's room, Issei not expecting Sona or her peerage to be here; it was long after school hours and even if they enjoyed working longer than needed, they could do so in the comfort of their home. Or he could spawn right as Tsubaki-san was changing her shirt, giving him a perfect vision of her bra-clad breasts, the milky-white skin alluring and displaying the charm of a Japanese-miko (Shinto priestess).
"Thank you for the meal." He said gratefully, bowing his head to the long-haired fuku-kaichou.
…
…
…
CLANG!
WRAACKKKK!
CRASSHHH!
"I fail to see what the problem is, Tsubaki-san." Issei spoke solemnly, calmly dodged the blade of her her naginata, even with the added weight of his packages: Koneko under his left arm's hold while Kiba was draped over his right shoulder. The pursuing miko angrily slashed with her weapon, trying to attack him with all her being (and forgetting to put on the shirt that had caused such incident). He thanked her for the show, why was she angry? If anything, wasn't it her fault for having such poor security measures in the room that was meant to be their base of operations? If anything, Sona should be paying him for exposing such flaw in her defenses.
"Get back here, Hyoudou! Shaming me once wasn't enough for you, you had to do it twice!" She shouted, the cool-beauty behavior that she was known for nowhere to be seen.
Well, desperate times asked for desperate measures. He was hoping to use Yuuto-san as a bargaining chip against the crimson-haired princess of the Gremory, but he could afford to lose the advantage, as he had a second chip to fall back to. Thus, with all the grace of a man carrying a heavy flour sack, Issei tossed the unconscious Kiba towards the weapon-wielding girl, seeing her following slash immediately change directions so as to avoid bisecting the pretty swordsman in two.
It also led to the body crashing against her in a spectacular fashion, her previously anger-flushed face being substituted into a shy-maiden's expression, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to make a sound that wasn't a foolish one.
"Have fun, Tsubaki-san! Please, don't forget to use contraceptive magic, it would be a shame to see my colleague have to skip school due to an early pregnancy." He stated, opening one of the windows in the third floor and waving the girl farewell.
"HYOUDOU!"
Yeesh, some people don't know how to take a joke; it would take at the very least if you are very lucky about a year of full-on, bareback creampies for a devil to get preggo. He let the thought swim in his mind, making his way to the old school building where Rias-sempai's club was located.
He noticed a few more wards and protective spells around the place, taking care to avoid triggering any of those as he made his way to the building. It might have been old, but it was well-cared for, not having a single speck of dust. He was impressed, since the place would make for a cozy den. There was the smell of devil all over the place, but it wasn't too bad.
The moment he placed his hand on the doorknob of the opening doors, a lightning spell circle shone atop his hand. Issei stared at the yellow circle, waiting for it to take effect. It soon fizzled out without so much as giving his hand a mild buzz or tingle. He raised a brow, opening the door effortlessly. The insides were a fancy thing too, as one would expect from a well-off academy being (secretly) backed up by devils and with a long history of catering to the daughters of the rich. Issei observed it with curious eyes, aware that his entrance was noticed as soon as he stepped foot into school grounds.
I would be disappointed if you didn't sense me when I came in with such crude methods. The ruckus that Tsubaki-sempai caused wasn't exactly subtle too. He mused, running his free right hand under his jaw. It didn't take long for him to sense the two devils inside one of the grander rooms, their magic and aura rather stable; which meant that they either were waiting on him, or were stealthily preparing magic circles to blast him to kingdom come.
[Hahaha! It amuses me that you'd think that these brats would be capable of hiding any spellcraft from you, partner!]
I mean, they could try…
[and risk splattering the intruding cat that you have in your grasp? I very much doubt that these soft, thin-skin brats would have the gall.]
Would it kill you to be a bit more soft-spoken? Not everyone is as strong and ruthless as the mighty Sekiryuutei!
[Your sarcasm does nothing to me, partner! Besides, it is not like I have spoken any lies!]
…
Issei opted to remain silent and knock on the double-doors leading to the room. His answer was silence, so he opted to rasp his knuckles against the doors once more.
"Enter, please." The feminine voice was muffled, but the hidden dragon could pick up on the hint of nervousness lacing it. He felt a flame slowly being stoked, but opted to dampen it. Damn draconic instincts acting up these days.
The doors were easily opened, the atmosphere inside the room visually cozy. Visually that is, considering that the two devils had piercing stares directed at him. The two beauty sisters of Kuoh, Rias Gremory and Himejima Akeno were staring at him, or more importantly, at the person that he was carrying under his left arm.
"Let be the first to tell you, Hyoudou Issei-san, that it takes ludicrous courage to pull off whatever it is that you are trying to do here." The crimson-haired princess of ruin started off strong, intertwining her fingers and placing her hands in front of her mouth, her blue orbs pointedly displaying her displeasure at his acts.
Not gonna lie, that is pissing me off a bit. He commented with his soul roommate, receiving a sounded huff. He headed deeper in the room, constantly under the watchful eye of the two devil girls. Reaching the middle of the room, Issei spotted two couches facing each other, the tapestry under his feet doing a poor job of hiding the drawn magic pentagram on the floor. The brunette deposited his prize on the left couch, remaining close to the passed-out Koneko.
"I'll take that as a compliment, Gremory-san." He stated in a calm manner, not flaring up his aura or killing intent. It would be in poor taste to scare them even more. "If you are worried about Yuuto-san, then rest easy. Tsubaki-senpai should be already using him though, so I recommend waiting a bit instead of barging in their room. Take it from me, she doesn't enjoy peeping." He tried to ease the mood, joking and leaning a bit forward, almost as if telling them a secret.
His spiel seemed to work on Akeno, the Yamato Nadeshiko (seriously, her appeal was +S) lightly chuckling with that infamous "Fufufu~!" that only the best practitioners of the Onee-san arts could accomplish.
"I also didn't harm Koneko-san here, but she might have been a bit overwhelmed due to my messy room. I seriously need to take laundry a bit more seriously." He commented off-handedly to himself the last part, aware that whatever he said would be taken with a fairly large amount of skepticism and doubt, but that was inevitable. He wanted to settle this more or less peacefully, without the need to strong arm them.
"You will have to forgive me for doubting your words, Hyoudou-kun. Our Koneko is a tough girl, it would take more than some dirty underwear to spook her." Akeno's words were melodious and somehow seemed incredibly salacious even all she had said were common words.
He nodded, but his focus was more on the subtle movement of her breasts as she breathed. Seriously, those knockers rival Kuroka's! He made an imaginary measurement, his lips unconsciously becoming lecherous before he got himself in check.
"You underestimate the mess a healthy young man living by himself can leave behind!" His words were spoken as if giving out sagely advice, whereas he was spouting bullshit.
Rias flared her magic power, covering herself in a black-ish aura. "I'm not interested in theatrics right now, Hyoudou-san. I'd like to ask you some questions, and I'd appreciate it very much if you could answer them honestly. It will keep things much more…civil." Rias' tone was almost like a sharp knife, her intent very clear.
*GGGGGggggggghhhhhhhhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr*
The previously somewhat cordial mood was shattered as a growling noise left Issei's throat.
[This damn Gremory bat is really pushing the limits, partner.]
Hyoudou didn't answer with words, but as a dragon should, he acted. His careful hold over his draconic aura was released ever so slightly, the tone settled by the red-haired beauty being completely overtaken by the hidden dragon's presence.
*Shivers**Shivers**Shivers**Shivers**Shivers*
*Shivers**Shivers**Shivers**Shivers**Shivers*
The girls trembled, only now aware that they might have bitten off more than what they chew. Issei began a slow march close to the crimson ruin princess's desk, their shivers increasing the closer the young adult got to them. It might have been an illusion caused by their fear, but the two could swear they sensed choky smoke invade their nostrils, the temperature inside the room increasing by a few degrees.
Koneko began lightly whimpering , the hidden features she had becoming prominent once more.
Issei stopped right before the beautiful wooden desk, the two devils feeling pathetically small under the weight of his aura and magic power. A few moments later the door to the Occult Research club burst open once more, Sona's entire peerage pouring in the room with the addition of a speedy knight. A jagged sword was aimed at his neck, the metal colored a deep tone of red.
The pressure inside the room increased further, and the scene from earlier in the day repeated itself, most everyone of Sona's peerage crumbling, passed out.
Kiba shouted in pain, gasping out for air as he was flipped, slammed on the floor and then stepped on, his blade forcefully ripped away from his hand and batted aside like it was a common butter knife.
Sona and Tsubaki surrounded Issei in a formation, yet their expressions were grim. They invoked their strongest spells and got ready, everyone in the room standing still as if waiting for the straw that would break the camel's back.
Issei's oppressive aura choked their breaths and scratched at their throats like terrible smog, his gaze that of a predator that expected nothing less than submission from prey. The rattling of chains seemed to echo in the air for a moment, the group just about ready to burst into violent action.
Rias and Akeno seemed to be emboldened by the arrival of reinforcements (opting to ignore the passed out bodies on the floor), the two trying to expand their aura to alleviate the weight that Issei seemed to pressing on them. The black aura of Baal's Destructive Power manifested around the girl like a ravenously hungry beast; Akeno's frame was covered by lightning, the crackle of the element a dull, muted thing.
"I have come here to peacefully talk things out, figure out people were encroaching in my personal life, yet all that I have been presented with were threats and disrespect." He stated, his voice now a deep rumble that wouldn't be out of place if spoken by a dragon. "Do devils only understand the language of power? If so, I'm very much willing to speak it so." Issei's eyes heavily glared at the red-haired girl, their slit shape and dangerous glint making the Gremory Heiress flinch in place.
Red aura spilled abundantly from Issei's body, the draconic energy permeating the entirety of the room.
"Issei-san!" Sona called out, a serpent made of water coiling around her shoulders. "We can still solve things peacefully, we just want to understand your nature." At the logical argument, the oppressive wave of draconic energy seemed to roll back by the slightest margin. Sona, seeing that she had managed to get some ground stood with her back straight, fixing her glasses in place with her shaky hands. "You were a rather known factor into our lives, a constant presence that seemed as ordinary as far as ordinary goes; however, it is very clear now that our assessment was erroneous, no doubt caused by our lack of knowledge that you yourself planted into our minds."
The Sitri heiress kept going, glad that the monster in front of her was – at least – listening to her. She had only felt suppressed like this once, when Serafall had released her magic aura once on a fool that tried to get too handsy with Sona. Not even Cocytos (the frozen circle of hell) seemed to compare to that. Issei, at least, seemed to be way more reasonable than Serafall.
Issei let a rumbling hum echo from his throat, firming his foot that was pinning Kiba to the floor. His aura receded further, their feelings going from certain death to dangling from a thin rope atop a chasm.
"We just need to understand you a bit." The dragon – she felt under the gaze of one anyway – narrowed his brows. "Nothing too invasive or bothersome, just a mutual understanding." Sona declared, feeling her legs wobbly.
Issei let the group stew in silence for a couple of moments, content on letting them come to terms with the mistake of their arrogance. He was not unreasonable (much unlike a certain dragoness when putting him on the meat grinder), but he wasn't about to let them step all over him. Cover aside, it was bothersome to pretend to be weak when you were in your own home.
He suppressed his power, cutting off the red aura that was emanating from him and choking the devils up. They immediately cut off their own auras, aware that antagonizing him was fruitless.
"Now that we can talk like civilized people…" Issei said, changing his mood and trying to bring about a nice mojo to the room once more. He took his foot off from Yuuto's back, lifting the knight with ease and placing him on the couch next to Koneko; that done, the dragon procured himself a seat, finding comfort on the opposite couch and sitting down. "Akeno-san." He called out, the girl owlishly blinking, finding the gaze of all awake occupants of the room settling over her. "What cup size are you rocking?"
[DxD]
To be continued