Thank you for the 115 views and 6 likes I get on the first day. *bow* I made this story out of interest, and it turned out…Well, enough chit-chat, This is Bloodborn chapter 2! Enjoy!
Highschool DxD is not mine, of course.
It happened faster than he thought. Now, Hiiro was standing inside a dark alley, intending to face his foolish pursuers here and end them quickly, preferably without being noticed. He couldn't believe they'd find him like that. Perhaps the church had made more deals to the darker world than he thought.
HIS world, that is.
Hitmen would reveal any kind of information if they had a pack of money right in front of their face. Maybe making a name in his world so quickly wasn't a very wise decision, after all. He didn't expect this kind of situation would arise from his flawless professional acts. He should've listened to Tamamo before.
" At last, we've found you, hhh…, vile being! Hhh…, Surrender yourself to God's grace!"
About ten men in white robes holding light swords caught up to him. Funny, how they made threats while catching their breath. He muffled his laugh and grinned.
" Take a deep breath, guys. You'll feel better."
They took his advice then suddenly gasped.
" HEY! Don't sway us with your filthy tongue, mongrel!"
He shook his head in exasperation and sighed audibly. He just helped these guys catch their breath, and he got this? What did they learn in church, anyway? At the very least, couldn't they say 'thank you'?
" My, you all have rough tongues. You sure you're the children of God? Have you ever heard God swearing to His enemies? No matter. I'm tired so I'll spare you guys…30 seconds, I guess? There's someone waiting me, and I can't be late."
They lunged at him, some with guns some with swords. Some even went yolo and used their fists to fight. However, due to their number, they couldn't fight to their full potential in this kind of terrain.
Freaking noobs, not knowing basic terrain advantage.
…
" Hmph. Waste of time. They can't even last 5 seconds. Now, to this restaurant…crap! I forgot to charge my phone! It's out of battery!"
He grabbed one of the battered priest and pushed his to the wall.
" You know where the Le Bleu Restaurant is?"
The exorcist already wanted to faint, with his whole body aching like crazy. This man just pummeled them without even sparing a glance at them. He gave him detailed information, not wanting to anger him further. Hiiro nodded and threw him back to the back of the alley. He walked away, much to the priest's chagrin. But, suddenly a red liquid blade jutted out from his heart.
" Sorry, but I can't have any of you relay any information about me."
He walked out of the alley, leaving a pile of corpses in his wake. Those ten priests were all impaled by at least 10 red stakes each, stabbing all their vital areas, and yes, the part that would be very painful to get hit if you're a man too. The man who told him about the restaurant only got one spear in his heart. Now that's a record.
" Aa-ah. I'm going to be late at this rate."
He ran to the designated restaurant in full speed, not wanting to make his beloved angry. IT would be too scary to imagine, much less experienced. Oh, the horror. He remembered her grilling him black slowly because he accidentally fell on her. Despite that, she never really wanted to kill him, of course. With his level of regeneration, her flames would only involve wounds that he'd recover in mere minutes. That's how much she calculated her torture before throwing it at him.
But, getting char-broiled is still painful, so he'd pass.
He met another priest who wanted to kill him again while screaming loudly about abomination here and there, but he used one finger and pushed it to his chest. Suddenly, the crazy priest froze and fell to the ground with foams in his mouth. He smiled and waved to people around him and told them about his 'shock therapy'.
"Well, using your bloodlust to virtually kill your opponent is cool."
Apparently, it could fix insanity, with large paranoia and trauma as side effects. Pretty good deal if you asked me.
He finally reached the restaurant, and found that Tamamo was already getting hit on by a bunch of hormonal males. Some was even drooling at her. Disgusting perverts like them should be cleansed, especially for drooling over a goddess, or divine beast? Eh, formality, screw you.
" Sorry I'm late. Traffic issues."
He entered the fray. All men staring at her turned to him and laughed. They shooed him like he was a little kid.
" Oi, kiddo. Go away and get some milk there. This is for adults only."
One of them even pushed him back. He thought, good luck, and willed his energy to send the man back to hell. The guy who touched him flew across the room and crashed to the window, and fell down from the third floor.
" We're taking this outside if you want, gentlemen. No one, absolutely no one flirts with Tama-chan."
The men gulped and looked at their bloody comrade, who had become a dead carcass below them. They understood that even if they sued him by law, it wouldn't even be self defense because Hiiro didn't even touch him. Magic? That was impossible. Hiiro had just pushed his body forward, sending the man flying with brute strength.
Oh, there were many kinds of people.
And this one was an example of a very foolish one.
This brave (LOL) man walked to him and they went outside. Looks like he was the leader of that mob earlier, with buff body and muscles, just like what a gay would like.
" Yuck"
Was Hiiro's only thought.
But, he didn't even have to raise his hands, as Tamamo suddenly threw her bag with such precision and power that the target crumpled to the floor instantly. Turned out, the bag was filled with spells used to enlarge space, to make sure she didn't have to grab another bag every now and then.
Cute, smart, and violent. What could be wrong?
He lifted his hands and put all humans inside to sleep. He set it so they wouldn't remember anything except what they were eating. Then, he left the place, dragging Tamamo behind him. She let herself be dragged, albeit with a frown on her face. He looked at his watch and noticed why.
He was half an hour late.
" Mou, I can't believe you're late. I don't mind, but they'll start attacking me. What will you do if you find a bunch of guys ravaging your girlfriend?"
" I'll turn this whole world to hell and send them to the pit. My brethren know how to make people suffer eternally. I'll join them, just in case. But, it's not like anyone can do that. I'm sorry, Tamamo. I should've cared more."
She placed her head on his back.
" Even for once, a girl wants to feel protected, you know? I can defend myself, but I'm happy to see you doing that."
She straightened up and gave him a slap on his back.
" Well, you're an idiot at this thing, so chill. It's not like I'm going to leave you because of one botched date. We can go together later."
" Yeah."
Man, she was awesome. He was really lucky to have her. How many women had beauty and gorgeous personality, anyway?
" Why are you smiling?"
" Nah. I'm just pretty happy being with you."
She blushed at his response, but her pride as a female stopped her from letting him get any satisfaction of making her blush. She'd usually hide her face in work because if anybody knew that Hiiro's partner was her, it could cause a huge riot and a bunch of troubles to deal with later. But, now, she was more than free to not wear a mask.
They both attracted a little too much attention.
Hiiro's phone vibrated, and he quickly picked it up.
" Hello."
" Gremory-hime. You've decided when to train?"
" Please come here, to Kuoh Academy."
Then, she hung up. He wanted to ignore her plea, but his guts told him that she wasn't in good position to have a nice, long chat over phone. Tamamo nodded to him, and they both marched to one of the devils' stronghold, Kuoh Academy.
They reached the academy in no time, considering Tamamo's sense of direction was far more advanced than Hiiro. Going to the Occult Research Club's room, they barged in, ready for battle of either wits or strength.
" What's this, Rias? Another batch of your servants?"
Tamamo growled at the comment, only to see a man in his late twenties flirting with Rias, who had a disgusted look on his face. The man turned to her and looked straight at the fox goddess, who raised one eyebrow. He smirked and walked to her with cocky attitude.
" What's your name, beautiful? Riser here wants you to know him better."
He put one hand on her chin, getting another very disgusted look on her face. Before she could rip off his hand and castrate him, Hiiro took the initiative and shot his hand, head, and chest with magically infused bullets from his magnum gun. Everyone stared in shock as Riser screamed in agony when he tried to regenerate. His head popped out, alright, but the pain was simply excruciating.
" Y-you brat! How dare you!"
Hiiro shot him with a deadly glare, seriously tempted to test his new shotguns on this spoiled immortal kid, especially his new Ithaca 37 he got yesterday. But, shame, a magic circle appeared and a woman in her early 20s appeared. She was maturely beautiful, although she paled in comparison with Tamamo, but still pretty. Her silver hair was tied to braids, and she wore a traditional French maid uniform.
" Riser-sama, cease this ridiculous action, and you, who just shot a hole through a Phenex heir. The penance will be severe."
She said that with serious tone, although she had a slight smile on the last part. Perhaps Riser was famous as an Underworld-class prick. In that case, there might be less risk of getting hunted after he ripped him to little pieces.
Riser was still agitated, and flared his aura. Orange flames raged inside the room, raising the temperature to beyond human endurance. Grayfia was ready to match his power, but she felt like something snapped inside the unknown man and halted.
She was glad she made that choice.
At least, she had time to make a barrier against the coming dread that threatened to destroy both the room and everyone inside. Hiiro suddenly released a vast amount of power, dwarfing both her and Riser's magic power combined. It felt like a flood of fiery red liquid that stormed their very being, expanding with time. She winced when the flooding energy started to turn into matter. She'd heard about the theory that energy created mass and matter, but she couldn't fathom how much energy would be needed to do so.
Until she found her barrier corroded before her own eyes.
Crimson sticky liquid made her barrier crumble to pieces, when it's supposed to hold off ultimate-class attacks. The shield boiled and sizzled, until she must drop it before it could corrode her body and soul as well. She wanted to create another shield, but she fell backwards to Rias' hands, already out of magic power.
" W-What? I'm out of magic?"
She stared at her hands in disbelief. Those hands, which had ended many magicians with their own techniques, couldn't hold off a nameless guy's burst of energy. She was the queen, the queen! The one hailed as the best mage Underworld had to offer was outmatched by a random burst of energy.
" Well, don't feel too bad about it, silver queen of annihilation."
She found herself protected by a transparent golden barrier that banished any blood touching it to non-existence. The fox goddess herself had raised her arm to prevent them from getting corroded to the core by the blood splattered everywhere. But, there was someone who took the full brunt of that burst.
Riser was rolling on the ground, wailing in agony as the blood melted his skin and flesh in speed far surpassing his regeneration. He recovered, alright, but not fast enough. Tamamo sighed and put her hand on Hiiro's shoulder.
" That's enough already."
He shivered and exhaled. All the blood present drifted away, and the room dried, although the damage was still present. Nearly all tables, sofas, chairs, and walls there were destroyed beyond repair, like the room was sprayed by a whole truck of very potent acid. The fox goddess raised her hands, and all the damage caused by her partner was reversed. After a few minutes, the room was already polished beautifully.
Except for the poor phoenix.
" Hear me, Riser Phenex! I am Hiiro Bloodreaver, newest pawn of Rias Gremory. IF you dare hurt even a strand of her hair, I'll have you experience the most terrifying death known to mortals."
That was embarrassing.
But he had no other idea on how to introduce himself.
Man, he wished he had the brains to pull out an amazing plan like Tamamo, instead, he could only make plans to fight. Political war was completely out of his mind. He had to rely on her when time came.
Some boyfriend he was.
By revealing the extent of his strength here, the enemies could find a way to stop him from entering the battle, which would mean Rias' defeat. He forgot that he was still new in her peerage, which would make banishing him before battle easier for them. But, he couldn't just keep a cool head while Tamamo was being flirted and touched by that crispy fried mongrel over there.
"Riser-sama. This is why I told you to stop."
Grayfia struggled to stand up, even with Rias' help.
" He's far stronger than you."
Riser coughed and wheezed, trying hard to catch his breath. His peerage came, worried about what might happen to their master. Now, he was being helped by a voluptuous purple-haired woman that seemed to be his queen. He stood up and escaped to a magic circle summoned by his bishop. Grayfia turned and faced the Gremory princess.
" Princess, you will have 2 weeks to train your peerage and develop a strategy to defeat Riser. As strong as your pawn may be, it will all be for naught if you're taken down, I hope you remember that."
She also disappeared from the room.
The ORC had already prepared for departure to the training camp Gremory clan owned. They'd been granted permission from Sona Sitri, who oversaw the school's maintenance as Student Council President. The perk of knowing the STC president well, you got to skip classes without much consequence. Hiiro and Tamamo also came, with Tamamo taking a younger form of her, about 16 years old. They didn't bother getting a car and transported themselves to the place with magic circle.
" Okay. The place is up there. C'mon everyone, pick up your things and march up as fast as you can!"
'As fast as you can', she said.
Funny, she was talking about a-DAMN-MOUNTAIN!"
Not like it was too big deal, but it wasn't wise to wear them out before training even began. But, why would he care? He had his request, and that didn't involve worrying about her servants' endurance. He lifted his pack and floated up just a few inches from the ground. Tamamo also did the same.
Magic was handy, no doubt about it.
After they all had changed, all of them gathered outside. Kiba and Rias in their jerseys, Koneko, Asia and Akeno in gym uniforms, while Hiiro wearing a casual green T-shirt and shorts. Tamamo was just an onlooker this time, intending to evaluate them first. 'Know thyself, know thy enemies, and win a thousand battles' was her favorite phrase.
" Umm, I'm a brawler, so I can only teach Koneko. Kiba, I'll see your sword skills later, so try 1000 swings for now. Rias and Akeno, practice your magic. Tama-chan, if you please?"
She stood up and guided the Great Ladies of Kuoh to some intensive magic training, or at least wanted to, until Rias raised her hand.
" Can I know about your ability?"
He stared at her, then looked up, then crossed his arms. After a long minute of consideration, he nodded. A client deserved to have knowledge of his power level, after all. It's just a regular work ethic. All to make his client relieved. He reached for something invisible in the air, and his hands disappeared, then reappeared when he pulled it back. He had a simple sack which released clanking sounds whenever he shook it.
" This."
He pulled out a small, round metallic ball, with diameter around 2 cm. He looked at their surprised reactions, and shoved the sack to his pocket. Everyone came near him, trying to figure out what could be so special about this little thing.
" Pachinko balls?"
He nodded. Then, he proceeded to hold out his arm, and placed the pachinko ball between his thumb and pointer, like he was going to flick.
" Get behind me, at least 3 meters far. You don't want to get hit, I assure you."
Electricity sparked from his body, and formed loops. It crackled, mostly focused on his right hand. Even from that distance, the devils could still feel tingles on their skin. The sparks must be high voltage. He concentrated for a while, and finally flicked the pachinko ball.
It flew in a speed that would make sound ashamed. They heard a boom from distance, and saw that the hill had another crater on it, like a giant had decided to play volley there, and went 'Oops, I missed my spike, teehee~'. From Hiiro's position, there was a blazing trail on the ground, extending to the massive crater there. He turned to the spectators, and found them failing to close their mouths.
" How's that? Good enough for you?"
They snapped out of their shock. Akeno was the first to launch questions.
" What was that?"
" My variety of railgun. If you're skillful enough with thunder manipulation, you can do this too. You'd need great amount of magic to generate the fuel electricity, though."
They stared at the blazing trail Hiiro had just made so casually. He just shot a railgun using a mere pachinko ball, and threw a blast good enough to blow up tanks. Tamamo smiled proudly at his feat.
" Just for your information, that wasn't even 10% of his maximum output. If he put too much, the pachinko ball wouldn't hold out."
" Well, I can use tougher metals to whip up stronger shots, but that's more than enough for demonstration, I guess."
They were all thrown to an awkward silence, until a certain queen broke it.
" ….I wanna learn that."
Tamamo had Akeno, Asia and Rias covered, so he basically had the rook and the knight to train intensively. But, really, servants of Rias Gremory were…unique, especially the queen and the rook. Both of them were hybrids, and each held little to no mastery over their born element. He wondered how often they talked to Rias about this, and why the hell did they reject their birthright? He just couldn't understand that.
" Hey, you're a nekomata, right? Try using your power."
The white-haired mascot flinched, and looked down, suddenly interested in her feet. Getting no response, he turned to the blonde knight.
" Which is your sacred gear, Blade Blacksmith or Sword Birth?"
Kiba looked at him in surprise. This man had figured out his sacred gear and Koneko's heritage like flipping the back of his hand. His only flaw was his inability to identify his sacred gear, but that was already a close call.
" How did you know?"
Out of curiosity, he asked that question. Feeling no harm would be done if he answered the knight, he enlightened him.
" You smell like melted iron, and blood. You, chibi, smell like milk and yarn. Your power hasn't matured? Have you ever used it before?"
They looked at each other, trying to swallow how they had been found out by Hiiro's miracle nose. Hiiro shrugged, and clapped to get their attention. He focused on Kiba first. It's better to teach someone who didn't hate his power first. He'd handle the mascot girl later.
" Now, try making a sword, the strongest one you can create using that sacred gear of yours."
He obliged, and created a sword he always had hanging on his waist. The one he called 'Holy Eraser'. Even without asking, he could figure out what the sword was capable of, and it was very disappointing. He glanced at Kiba and sighed.
" Are you serious? We're fighting against devils here. Will you use that sword anyway?"
He nodded.
" You stupid or what?"
A massive arrow with 'idiot' written on it stabbed Kiba with an audible 'jleb'. He recovered from that mental strike quickly, only to find some more coming. Hiiro closed one eye and began lecturing the poor knight.
" Your sword is useless against anyone who doesn't have holy element. Why'd you bring sword of darkness to the darkness itself, anyway? Your sword's power won't be any good, you might as well buy one at the scrap shop and use it against Phenex."
Kiba was already buried below a ton of bricks, each had 'idiocy', 'useless', and many other insults the hitman just threw at him. Koneko shook his head at their antics and started doing push-ups to kill time. Hiiro's lecture continued until dawn (just kidding), and Kiba was already half-dead from getting his pride stepped on about a thousand times.
" So, you get it? DON'T—USE—THAT—SWORD!"
He emphasized his point so clearly, with no place of argument. Kiba rose up with a tired face and glared at him.
" So, what do I have to do?"
" Try making as many varieties of swords as possible. You should be specific on what sword you want. Its concept, power, and uses. Imagine it as your other hand."
He then turned to Koneko, who had finished her 200 push-ups.
" For you, little kitty, I'm going to have you learn Senjutsu whether you like it or not…Don't worry, I'll be gentle."
This girl was a rook piece, so surely she wouldn't fall to one or two punches, right? Maybe 30 seconds if he's lucky. Rooks were supposed to have solid defense, after all. But still, he might have to hold back if he wanted to play longer.
" Chibi girl, I'm using my legs only. Feel free to pulverize, hit, and vent out all your stress on me. Just make sure I can't go back up."
Koneko puffed her cheeks in frustration. Ever since she met this guy, it'd been chibi girl, kitty cat, or mascot-girl. She was going to let this guy have a taste of her mind. She was a rook, after all, meaning she had the ultimate strength. Nothing could go wrong, right?
" You suck."
Hiiro stood over the fallen girl, with restless breath and ragged clothes. Not accepting her defeat, she stood up and tried to land a flying kick on his jaw. He leaned back, then swayed his hips, slamming the girl and sending her to the ground again. She jumped up and started lashing out a combo of punches at him.
" I see…boxing, huh?"
He deflected her punch with his leg, and without touching the ground, he spun again, and landed a roundhouse kick to her shoulder. After his foot touched the ground, he body-slammed her, sending her away again. He ran to her, finding her fist suddenly appeared in front of his face. He side-stepped and let it pass, then kneed her stomach.
" You're too vulnerable, kitty."
He put down his leg and kicked her full-force, sending her high to the sky. She coughed, but Hiiro was ready below. She curled up and rolled on the ground to avoid impact. She recognized his style of fighting, mostly after watching competitions on Youtube.
" Taekwondo?"
If so, then there's no wonder he looked so comfortable fighting with only his legs. But, even so, kicks needed balance, and with his hands pocketed, he wasn't in optimal form. His kick was at least one-third of his full power.
And it was more than enough to break her magically enchanted defense as a devil.
He let out a hearty laugh at her deduction, then he bent down, leveling his eyes to hers. His eyes had a dangerous glint, and he made sure she couldn't let it slide.
" That's right~ Now that you know, try to defeat me—"
He found Koneko unfurling her tails and ears in a second, and the next second his reflex had already taken charge of his body, evading the strike with narrow margins. He ducked from a blast she released from her hand, and avoided an aura-clad kick with a back-flip. He landed about 3 meters from her and clapped.
" Okay, training's done. Good job, you're now a proud nekomata, Koneko-chan."
He left her and went to see how the blonde knight was doing. The white-haired loli followed behind him, but not before slipping her tails and ears back inside her body. He found the knight being restless in front of a bunch of swords he'd generated from his gear. But, with a glance, Hiiro could tell that all their difference was their ability. There was no different in strength whatsoever.
" I see. This boy's a natural technique-type. That explains his pitiful strength."
Ironic, how he used the terms 'boy' on someone of his same age, probably older by a few months. Kiba noticed their presence and frowned. Koneko was done, but he hadn't progressed much.
" If this goes on, I'll be deadweight, damn it…"
He silently cursed his inaptitude. Hiiro closed in and looked at his creations then he shook his head and plucked one of them.
" Oi, Kiba. Rather than using what you want with the swords, feel what you want. Your gear will respond to your emotions, not your selfish desires. If sacred gear could grant desires so casually, it'd be chaos. So, it'll only respond to your hidden self, your true one. Try thinking of the reason you like 'Holy Eraser' so much first, the rest will come later."
He commented at his struggle. Then, he had a light bulb above his head, and poked Kiba's shoulder.
" Hey, how about mimicking a sword you really like? That should be easier than making an original, right?"
He pondered that idea, then nodded. He raised his hand and chanted.
" Come to me, sword hated by the Gods, devour the divine will, and rage upon their being. Bring the world to ruin…"
He chanted while imagining his loved sword, but alas, he'd never been able to make it. He imagined the sword so powerfully, that his gear responded in kind.
" Demon sword, Felo' Melorn!"
The malefic sword of the last blood elf, Kael'thas. The sword he'd wanted so much, ever since he played WoW. Frostmourne was more famous, but he thought the sword that could be more powerful upon each reconstruction was great.
That sword took shape of a red sword with golden hilt, and runes all over the blade. It had strange shape, like it was battered and reformed again. It was clad in red aura with evil sorts of feel emanating from it. Hiiro clapped at this new creation, and examined the blade closely. This aura was dense enough to halt the regeneration traits of a phoenix, albeit momentarily.
" Okay, good enough. Now, swing that sword 100 times, then a spar with me."
Kiba nodded, although his arms were already sore, but he cast them aside to test this new sword of his. Even if it was by one-tenth percent, he wanted to add the possibility of them winning very much.
It took about an hour for him to do the full-course, and he was now lying on the ground, rubbing his sore muscles. Hiiro glanced down at him, his sword, actually, examining it again and again. He'd never seen a devil making this kind of sword. It's crude and unsightly, yet it was more powerful than the carefully crafted ones.
" Come on. Enough rest, let's spar."
Hiiro rose his head and cracked his knuckles. Kiba also stood up reluctantly. His hands felt like they might come off any second. Noticing his blisters, Hiiro flicked his fingers, and the blisters suddenly felt cool and okay, at least better than before.
" There, a little healing magic."
He twisted his hands, seeing no remains of his previous blisters. It was like Hiiro pulled up a magic eraser and erased his wounds from existence. He once again summoned his newly acquired sword, and fixed his stance. Hiiro tilted his head and also adopted a stance, a weaponless one.
" I'm using a sword, you know."
" So?"
" Won't you use weapon, too?"
Hiiro laughed at him, holding his sides like his life depended on it.
" You're a knight, but no need to fight like one, man! Enemies won't wait and neither should you. The moment you enter a battle, it'll be kill or be killed. That's what a fight is."
"…Gotcha."
He nodded and suddenly swiped his sword to Hiiro's neck. A loud bang was heard, like metal against metal.
" …And after you say those things, huh? What a—"
" What a—what, eh? Spill out, blondie."
Hiiro spoke in a rather unclear tone. His words were muffled, like he stuffed too much food to his mouth. Kiba opened his eyes to see him stopping his sword by gripping them between his teeth.
" Better yet, don't blink."
He bit off a chunk of the blade and spewed it aside, then landed a sharp elbow at Kiba's gut. He stumbled backwards, his midsection screaming from the attack earlier. The worst wasn't that, but the fact that he didn't stop there.
He hurriedly created some swords, each broke upon impact with his feet or fists. How could someone break forged steel like some paper doll, anyway? His swords might be mediocre, but they were still made of reinforced steel! Hiiro aimed a kick at his jaw, and unfortunately, he couldn't make swords to protect himself there.
" Oi, stop waiting and start acting."
He opened one eye, and saw Hiiro stopping a centimeter below his chin. From the looks of it, he might have to get fake teeth if a kick like that connected to his jaw. Luckily, they had a healer who could heal pretty much everything.
" You know…I've been attacking once you show reaction, yet you still close your eyes and wait for it."
Kiba frowned at that fact. No matter how trained he was, he just couldn't get rid of this annoying habit of his. Being afraid of getting hit was natural, as natural as yawning. But, if you yawned at an important meeting, it's all over. The same goes for battle.
" I can't help it! My reflex won't allow me to open my eyes!"
" Then, be calm. A hot-headed fighter is strong, but you're not one of them. They have nerves of steel. So the only thing you can do is try calming down. If you're calm, you can take on any kind of attack without even wincing."
Kiba calmed himself, trying to imagine himself inside a cave with a fountain. He focused on the dropping water, and his breath stabilized.
" Good. Open your eyes and try to dodge this."
He opened his eyes calmly, to find Hiiro flipping a coin in mid-air, his body covered in electric sparks, and his hand ready to flick it.
" Eh?"
The last thing he saw was Hiiro's smile and an unavoidable beam racing up to him.
" Man, I didn't expect him to faint like this."
He looked at the unconscious body of Rias' knight, thinking on what he should do to this guy. He couldn't believe this knight was so shocked, he collapsed on-spot, and after he stopped the coin right in front of his face.
" What a hassle…"
" What's a hassle, Hiiro-kun? Perhaps you got overexcited and pummeled the knight to half-death or something?"
He heard a melodic voice across the field, and saw Tamamo walking to them. She cast a little glance over Kiba's state and glared at him.
" Now this would be a trouble. How are you supposed to bring him back?"
" Me?"
" Yes, you. Who scared this guy to sleep, huh?"
She pointed his finger at him. It should've been her scolding him, and he hated getting scolded, but her grin betrayed everything. He grabbed Kiba's limp body and slung him over his shoulder, like carrying a sack of rice. If it were female, he'd be more careful, but Kiba's a strong man. Surely he could take being carried around like a sack for a while….right?
" Hmmm….Who I guess? Do you have any idea, Tama-chan?"
She slapped his face hard, but when he turned back, there was no bruise.
" I don't mind whoever it is, just be attracted to women, dolt."
He had several question marks above his head, and the fox goddess released a heavy sigh. He is a man, it's a fact that he's attracted to women, and what's more, currently his only attraction was the fox goddess, who easily surpassed anyone in beauty, at least for him. You can't be with a person that beautiful and not getting used to gorgeous girls.
She was that perfect.
He shrugged, and started running down the hills. He was already late for dinner, and being sweaty was the worst thing you could do while you're near a girl. Shortly later, they both, along with a guy ( he's collapsed, so he didn't really count) arrived at the villa the Gremory clan possessed.
He entered, ignoring the looks he got from other ORC members and threw the guy to the sofa. Some took pity, but this sadistic queen let out a vile 'ufufu' and forced the poor guy to get her all new 'ice bucket challenge'.
Well, it's basically seeing someone endure getting washed by iced water. Fun? Of course it was, but not for the participant.
"…And here I thought I was sadistic" Hiiro muttered.
Kiba's eyes fluttered open as he shivered from the sudden contact with cold water.
" Ara, up already? I thought I could get a bit more fun."
She blasted him with a wave of warm air, which vaporized all water molecules from his clothes, preventing him from getting hypothermia. Both hitmen looked at each other, before sweat-dropping at Rias' queen antics.
Delicious smell came from the kitchen, and Tamamo frowned. She'd missed cooking, especially when they had to go on long trips. They always ate outside, and no chance for her to cook for him.
The book she bought told her one big secret.
'A way to a man's heart is through his stomach'
She rarely had chance to try, and she missed this. She walked to the chair and sat with a rather unladylike style. She crossed one leg under the table and used her arms as pillow. Then, she already started mumbling random things.
" Eat with them, Tama-chan. I'll be outside, no worries."
His words didn't grant him clarity at all. If anything, she was worried. That boy literally lost all of his childhood, and still had nothing to hold on. It was rare for his kind to get a happy life, but still, she wanted him to be an exception. But, how could he achieve that if he couldn't stop distrusting others but her?
All she wanted was for him to be happy, just like how she made her ever since his younger days.
A young boy, not older than 7, raced through the temple of Inari, was trying to get others to play with him. He was small, smaller than other kids of his age. He saw some boys playing soccer in distance, and approached them.
" Hey, can I play with you?"
They looked at each other, and nodded hesitantly. Then, one boy with a grin whispered something to them, and they all grinned, especially at the young Hiiro.
" Okay, but be sure to play right."
He was placed as a defender. At first, he enjoyed trying to stop a ball from the attackers, but suddenly, the ball hit his face hard, throwing him to the ground. The other kids held in their laugh and continued playing. Being so innocent, young Hiiro also laughed it off and went on playing. Eventually, they got tired of his tenacity and switched from balls to fists. They swarmed him, beating the youngster for fun.
His cheek was punched, and red liquid fell off his mouth to the ground. His droplets of blood touched the earth, and corroded it, making a hole with sizzling sound. The other kids looked at him in both fear and excitement. They'd seen acid on TV, and his blood was just, if more destructive than said chemical.
" Hahaha~ Freak with acid blood! More!"
He kicked him in the face.
" Monster!"
"Freak!"
" Trash! Go spill more!"
They finally left him there, bruises all over his body. His tears couldn't come out, mostly because he had experienced this often. Every time he returned to the orphanage, he'd also receive more beatings from his senile caretaker. People nearby called him 'The Plague', as he was blamed for causing trouble there, and the misfortune he carried with him.
He walked along the road, fairly reluctant to return now. At least, he'd let his injuries heal first. It usually wouldn't take longer than an hour for the wounds to disappear. Even his bullies were shocked to see him healing so fast. But, they were happy that no one could see their doings on him. Near a sakura tree, he saw a little house, no taller than his waist. It was almost like a doll house made of stone. He'd heard of a little shrine that had too little visitor, and was eventually moved from the main building.
" You….must be lonely, huh? With no one to notice you, I'm sure you would, just like me. But…"
He fished a coin from his pocket and threw it there. Then, he clasped his hands together and prayed to whatever goddess inhabiting that shrine.
" May I have more happiness, tomorrow, and the days later."
He smiled and left that shrine to wander a little more. The small nameplate on the tree was forgotten. What's written was : 'Tamamo no Mae'.
She still remembered that event deep in her heart. He always acted happy and confident, brimming with excitement, but it was no more than a mask. Not for others, but for himself. If he let himself had the littlest of doubt to himself, he'd break, like fallen dry leaves on autumn. Nonetheless, he still had the gall to worry about her.
" What an idiot…"
" Um, Tamamo…sama? Are you okay?"
A voice snapped her back to reality. She realized she had been looking at the food for 10 minutes now.
" Is the food not to your liking?"
Rias stood up. She'd cooked the meal herself, but she wasn't so sure if that would be enough to please the goddess.
" No, it's delicious. You have my thanks, Gremory."
She answered with her usual regal smile. She stood up, and went outside to meet her partner. He might be starving right now, but bringing food from inside while they're still there was bad manner.
She found him sitting on a large rock near the villa. When he's like this, he looked ruggedly handsome, the cool handsome. He looked so calm and in control, the incident at the club room felt nearly impossible to happen. His raven hair fluttered in the wind, giving him more 'wild' look.
" So you're here."
He turned to her and nodded.
" Done eating?"
She nodded.
" I see."
She sat beside him, and leaned to him. She didn't know why she did that, but it felt strangely good. At the very least, he was more flustered than her. He felt warm and comfortable, but not imposing like most men like him would. How could someone so warm be deviated from such cursed society? , she thought.
Then it came to her.
Only those who knew pain could understand kindness, and only those who experienced hatred could know love. Loving parents might be a pivotal part of a child's mental growth, but that was out of question for him.
Living in orphanage until 10.
Streets for 3 years.
And finally, he could buy a house with his own money after 4 years of careful saving.
Snotty brats who only knew to beg and brag would be dead if they experienced what he had.
She looked at him, her cerulean blue eyes meeting his light red eyes. They were so full of veiled pain, yet he still smiled, to live, and to survive. Maybe even finding the true ending the world had in store for him.
" Nee, Hiiro. Let's eat inside."
"…Fine."
Rate and Review. Favorite if you like it, thanks!
