TrumpasaurusRex wrote this on a review for chapter 2
So he got a major downgrade from canon? Damn.
Canon Issei took 8 pawns to reincarnate. And this one took 4.
Removing the boosted gear from him is a really bad decision.

Look m8, it's a bit premature to claim my take is a "Really bad decision", when the story is still in the very early stage and isn't canon. Personally I don't see the trouble in issei being significantly weaker. Brute strength or cunning (which is just a word for the bad kind of smart) isn't everything in this world where everyone worship power like god - is the theme of this story. Also how fucking depressing is it to only be valued when you have some kind of flashy power or tits

That said, i like your funny name

Nonetheless once again i am extending my gratitude for the overwhelmingly positive support. If this fic is a game, it'd be like having a 95% on steam. was really worried over the beginning chapters because of how slow i was taking things, but you guys didn't mind. so thanks. Thank you and woo me

I am basically rebuilding or renovating plenty of DxD structures and filling some of the potholes. A patchwork at best, like duct taping a broken vase and praying it won't crumble, but it'll take some time nevertheless

Lastly— dudes, I've never played any game from the Metal Gear series but I watched a STREAMER play metal gear revengeance, and I finally got why it was such a memorably memeable game. I get it now. I'm now a fellow kid too

Memes are the DNA of the soul indeed

Raiden is just so hilariously edgy he's like sasuke times 4. Everytime a cutscene played he spoke a badass one-liner with that forced badass raspy voice, both my ears and eyes got cut a thousand billion times. He's just that powerful

So just imagine whenever Issei goes on his 'action protagonist' impersonation like the one in the last chapter, he's impersonating raiden's voice. I'm telling you this because it might happen occasionally as it is a running joke between him and his two buddies, and because this Issei is kind of a troglodyte gremlin. I just haven't shown his full power yet. Wait until you see him activating his cootie inhibitors when he sees Raynare, A GIRL, again

Lastly, 'where have u been dzanzy?'
ask ur mum

okbai

Quit Staring at Me, That's Rude

〖Chapter 3〗

⦕ The Devils and Their Morning Ritual ⦖

Despite the lavishness of the clubroom, for an old school building he had half-expected for his room to be a small, musty one filled with cobwebs and rat-infested.

The dorm room turned out to be twice as big as his bedroom, and twice as furnished.

Granted he didn't have that much personal stuff or bothered with decorations like posters or anime figurines, or even shelves to store his games as they were all stored inside his PC anyway.

Wooden flooring covered the entire hallway, but the room was tiled. The shelves were empty and there was a dresser that was just about his height lodged at one of the far corners. The single bed tucked by another corner, flanked by a bedside table with a table lamp sitting on top of it. A study desk sat in front of a window in the middle of the room with the blinds currently shut. Next to it was a cupboard to store things like books and… things.

And of course, an already running AC unit. Sorry Earth, but this boy had tasted and further appreciated the comfort of air conditioning and he wasn't planning to stop using it anytime soon.

It was a rather standard room. At least from his own assumption and imagination. It would be nicer if he could sleep and keep to his words, but whatever part of his brain that was controlling when to sleep had told him 'fuck you' and 'to hell with your dreams'. That, and He was still too enthusiastic to simply tuck in for the day.

He genuinely expected something close to when he had a sleepover at Matsuda's place; play games and watch anime or movies until dawn and regret it the following day, but no. The Devils had another plan in their mind, and that was to be responsible and remain in their room, potentially sleeping, as they all need to wake up early for school, and conserve their energy as they each had their duties during the evening.

As if he needed more reason to feel like a kid. In his defense, he never experienced the dormitory life.

But there was no school on Saturdays. On all counts that should warrant a whole day of staying in bed. Like most of his equally asocial peers, Hyoudou Issei preferred to spend his weekends indoors. During most occasions at least. Partly because he didn't have that many friends to hang out with due to his besmirched reputation, and because his friends were the type to laze around in their bedroom and jerk it off until Monday slapped them in the face.

Still, there were days where he wanted to stretch his legs. He'd walk around the town on his own, drop by a movie cinema if there was a good movie that had just come out, or visit one of the local restaurants if they weren't so crowded.

But more often than not, Issei would rather stay at home and play computer games than participate in society.

That routine might have to change now that he became a Devil. With all the supernatural hibbie jibbies roaming about, he expected he would need to learn how to defend himself or run the hell away as efficiently as possible.

First thing he noticed was that he was among the first to wake up. It was still dark out when he detached himself from the slight discomfort of the unfamiliar bed (it was soft and plush, but it wasn't his), and because he never liked that sluggish feeling from lack of sleep, Issei hit the shower room first thing first. It was a strange thing; often he slept for mere four hours yet he could stay awake the entire day without feeling drained. Perhaps his body had acclimatized itself with his torrid sleep schedule and deficiency that not enough became just enough.

The last few days had been exempted from the equation as those nights were sleepless because he just discovered a fuck ton of new stuff.

Not sure if he should be proud of it. Probably should feel concerned for the potential long-lasting effects. But for the moment, he couldn't care. He'd rather let his future self deal with those problems should they arise, because he's an idiot with short vision currently pacing aimlessly down the hallway of an old school building mostly made out of wood.

He couldn't help wondering if he had made the right call. Sure the pay was great… amazing, actually. It went way above his monthly stipend. He didn't even think any ordinary high schooler should be paid with that much money. But then again, he was no longer ordinary to begin with.

Or ever was.

Well, maybe he was during the first couple of years as a baby.

As he ambled on, head down, eyes staring emptily at the woody floor paneling, the young boy realized he wasn't the only one who had woken up. How did he realize it? Because instead of stopping his pace when he spotted a pair of fuzzy slipper-wearing legs in his peripheral vision, he contemplated why the wood floor suddenly stopped.

"Oh!" a girlish squeal was let out as they both stumbled one step back.

Issei didn't yelp, but he blinked a few times, before registering what just happened and why his forehead stung a little. "Oh I'm sorry! I wasn't paying attention— are you okay, Senpai?"

"I didn't either," came her reply, in a woozy voice carrying a yawn at the end as Himejima Akeno rubbed one of her eyes, still very much unalive. "...Yuuto? You've…become less blonde."

"...Yeah I…dyed my hair," he told her with a flat tone. "I'm trying out a new look, see."

"Is that so? How nice…" Akeno yawned again, covering her mouth and stretching her other arm as she did, causing the strap of her loose and baggy lavender-colored tank top to fall over her shoulder once she drew her hand down. She blinked her sleepiness away as they were too stubborn to go away, and unceremoniously tugged the strap back up her shoulder.

Squinting, she realized one thing, "...Hmmm? Ah? You're not Yuuto."

"No. No I'm not," he confirmed, for he was not Yuuto Kiba and had no interest in stealing another person's identity. Even if he did, Kiba would be the worst choice as all of the school students would immediately tell he wasn't their blonde European prince and would re-enact the burning of that one French chick on his ass.

"Hmm…? Ah, Issei-kun, of course," she smiled warmly, sleepily, woozily.

"Good morning Akeno-senpai."

"Well it is morning… My my, aren't you early…? And… you've showered?"

"I don't sleep much." Sadly. "And I just didn't know what else to do so I hit the shower… Anyway, your hair is… er… very impressive."

Impressive was one word to put it. Her usually straight and smooth and unbelievably long dark hair was currently without its orange ribbon keeping it in a neat ponytail. They cascaded freely down her back like silk, barely hovering above the floor with a thousand of cowlicks, making her hair seem puffier than it was. Adorably cute but still somehow managed to stay erotic with that bedhead of hers.

"Oh," she giggled as she regained more consciousness, and immediately proceeded to tease him. "My, shouldn't you pretend to not notice it? A girl can get very conscious about her hair, you know."

"Well I wouldn't know," he responded, surprisingly unbothered. "They're still pretty, I mean. It's like you just came out of a saloon, except the moment you walked out that place you got blasted by a wind. And it's very long too," he added, this time with a bit more concern in his voice. "That said… Have you… ever tripped on them, Senpai?"

Akeno was still in the middle of processing his analogy and unexpected reaction to her tease when he had finished asking. But once she processed it, she giggled, and smiled at him.

"Once or twice in the past," she then said. "The ponytail certainly helps, especially during summer where I would get all sweaty and hot… oftentimes bothered."

It was still too early for him to catch that innuendo, so it flew way above his head. "Yeah. My hair isn't even half as long but when summer comes I just want to shave it clean."

"Hmm," Akeno hummed. Perhaps that one was too subtle for him… Oh well, she had plenty more opportunities in the future to have a little coyish fun with this new Pawn of theirs. "How was your sleep, Issei-kun? Did you have any trouble?"

"It was alright," he supposed. No nightmares. Could have been worse. "Uh… I know it's a bit early to ask, but what are we gonna do today, Senpai?"

Akeno took a moment of pause before replying with another question. "Today's Saturday, isn't it?"

"Yea?"

"Well, that means it's my turn to play the cook," Akeno hummed. "Are you an experienced cook, Issei-kun?"

"Oh lord no. I can make soft-boiled eggs though… Just dump the eggs in a pot of boiling water for three and a half minutes — just like Chef Ramsay says."

Her smile widened, as if she was pleased to learn of his inexperience. "Not very experienced then."

"I'm more of a consumer than a productioner… producer, I mean," he unabashedly confessed. You don't want me anywhere in the kitchen, Senpai. My own mom doesn't even want me anywhere near the kitchen when she's cooking up stuff. Not that I start a fire or anything that drastic, but let's say I won't trust myself to cook for myself."

She giggled. How adorable. He might not be a highborn like Rias or as academically gifted, but Issei definitely had a talent for tailoring words whether he realized it or not. But finally, a boy that wasn't immediately a perfect butler like Kiba… The Knight couldn't be more dear to her but sometimes Akeno hoped Kiba was just half as talented.

"Then why don't you help me by keeping me company, Issei-kun. It can get terribly lonely sometimes."

"Sure thing, sure thing. Hey, maybe I can pick up a thing or two by watching."

Her smile became slyer. "Of course… watch me as closely as you like, Issei-kun."

Break

The kitchen area was fairly modest. Not as grand or elaborately decorated like the rooms he had been in, and three times smaller than the kitchen in the main school building. It was just as clean, however, and it had two stainless steel stoves, a huge fridge, some counters to chop tomatoes and onions and other spices he had no idea the name or function of other than adding spices, and a bunch of kitchen knives.

And there the young boy seated, on a chair just several paces away from the working area so he wouldn't be a hindrance to the person that actually knew what she was doing. She had her ponytail up this time, but both his eyes fixated on Akeno's fingers and hands as she did all the work, hoping he might learn something or two about cooking. Or chopping veggies.

Without him knowing, his silent, intense, contemplative stare had been gradually making her nervous, which was exceedingly rare for Akeno. She'd say something about it but she'd hate herself if that made him feel uneasy around her.

Thankfully for her, amidst the rhythmic chopping of the green beans, he broke the silence with a question. "Man, I never understand how they do that."

She lifted her head to glance, "Hm? Do what?"

"The 'chopping quickly without cutting your fingers' bit. Not just quickly, but neatly too."

She chuckled. "Practices, of course."

"Yea but even the cat paw's thing—" and he clamped his left hand and stared at it. "It's uncomfortable for me."

"There are more ways than one to hold things. The cat paw's is for children with smaller hands, I think."

"I didn't know that." Figures. "Did you learn how to cook, Senpai? Or you just sorta wing it the first time."

The rhythmic sound suddenly stopped, and her smile faltered for a flash before she went on. "My mother taught me how. For the most part. She's an excellent cook."

"Seems like a thing with moms, honestly," Issei snuffled. "My mom's a great cook too, but she doesn't let me or dad in the kitchen."

"Really? Why is that?"

"Well I don't know everything but dad said it's something about her pride. She didn't like being a stay-at-home housewife, so she made the kitchen her work area kind of thing."

Her smile was more genuine this time. "That's kinda cute."

"She's scary when angry though," Issei frowned, shuddering as he remembered that time he broke the cookie jar when he was a runt. His mother wasn't angry at him for snatching cookies, but because the jar fell on top of his head. No lasting injuries, thankfully. "But I don't think she'll mind having you around. Hell, she might even pay you."

Akeno tittered as she smoothly set aside the green beans onto a plate. Simmering on the stove was a pot of miso soup that was starting to fill the room with its calming aroma, tickling his stomach and making him realize he was pretty goddamn hungry.

"Can you grab the salmon from the fridge for me, Issei-kun? It should be in a container inside the right door. …Unless Koneko-chan got hungry last night."

At the mention of that particular species of an Atlantic aquatic vertebrate, his mouth and eyes opened wide as Issei pogged. "Salmon? Oh man, I love salmon!"

Goodness. His glee was so childlike and honest that Akeno thought her chest was about to explode. It might as well just did, since he rushed over to her, then probed her if she was going to make fried salmon, and be wowed when he noticed there were more slices in the box than the heads under this roof.

"You're even more excited than Koneko, Issei. How cute."

"Cute? No I ain't cute. I'm a man. I'm just enthusiastic," he corrected her, causing her to giggle softly. "But seriously though, you've no idea how much I like salmon. Or fish. Seafood in general, really."

"Koneko-chan loves it too, although she's never as… mmmn, open about it. A very quiet girl, she is. Not shy, just quiet."

"Speaks very quietly too, sometimes. I almost couldn't hear her when we were walking back home."

"She didn't speak silently because she wanted to, you know," tittered Akeno. "It's because she thought it was loud enough for others to hear."

"Really? She doesn't know how quiet she is?"

Her bluish black bangs swayed as she shook her head with a smile on her face. "But because of that, her friends almost always tone their voices down and pay extra attention to her whenever she talks, and she always gets confused afterwards. It's adorable so don't tell her."

"Yea, that is cute." Issei nodded along, picturing a bewildered Koneko surrounded by her classmates tipping their ears over. "How long have you guys known each other by the way, Senpai?"

The salmon's skin began to sizzle crisply over the pan, and Akeno didn't bother stifling her giggle upon seeing his expression. He was like a dog that got distracted by a thrown ball or a squirrel.

"Hmmm. A good couple of years or so. She was our newest member until you came around."

His eyes widened. "Couple of years? Whoa. That's… that's a big gap."

"Mhmm. Rias is pretty picky when it comes to picking her slaves."

This time, he giggled giddily. "Yea I wasn't gonna say anything about that, but what's with the 'Servant' and 'Master' thing?"

Akeno shrugged. "It's a thing among pureblooded Devils. And while I don't think we'll see any nobles soon, but… in case we do, try to make yourself small when they're around. Rias and Sona are perhaps the only few nobleborn that don't place themselves above us reincarnated Devils. Rias will keep you safe and even scold them as we can't and shouldn't unless we want to cause trouble for her, but she can't always be around."

"Oh, okay. I'll… I'll keep that in mind." he didn't think he'd experience the classic snobbish-noble tropes firsthand, but he never expected to be a Devil in the first place. Eh well. Ignoring jerkasses is what he does best anyway. And surely they can't be that bad…

Break

Kiba was the first to show up at the dining table, which was located at the old school building's cafeteria now turned to a rustic lounge with, of course, Victorian-themed furnishing all around. As he had expected, the blonde Knight looked all fresh and ready for the day, having showered earlier before he joined in.

"You're up early," Kiba said in surprise.

"Not by choice," Issei replied in an ironic jest.

Following him was Koneko. The minute girl with hair as white as snow didn't look half as eager as Kiba. Cowlicks jutting out everywhere with a grumpy look on her small face. Definitely not a morning person, and not one he should bother early in the morning. Or any part of it.

As Kiba and Issei helped Akeno to set the table, Koneko lagged behind, preferring to sit and be unhelpful, and buried her face in her arms for a little catnap before breakfast.

"She always like this?" Issei couldn't help but ask.

"Every morning," confirmed Kiba, chuckling handsomely as he did. How anyone could chuckle 'handsomely' shouldn't be possible, but this guy made it possible, Issei thought. He was like a character straight out from a shoujo anime minus the obnoxious flowers blooming everywhere whenever he made an appearance or did bishounen shit.

As moved around the pantry and the lounge back and forth, Issei asked another question but about another girl, "Where's Prez? Is she coming in or… I dunno, eat a different time since she's a noble. That sort of thing."

"She's not like that," Kiba quickly denied. "She's likely in her room, asleep. Mornings on Earth are rough for her, you see, as we have a sun unlike the Underworld."

That word pumped his inner chuunibyou in a snap. "Have you been there?"

"I have," Kiba nodded, smiling quaintly as the two settled the last few dishes on the table and took a seat next to each other. Koneko was dozing off at the other end. "I think we'll have another trip soon enough."

"Oh man I can't wait— so what's it like? Is it like… dark all the time? All fiery and stuff?"

"It's always cool. Not just warm, cool. And while there are running rivers of lava and lakes of fire, the Devils have terraformed the place."

"Where it's at? Another planet or something? Or inside Earth?"

Kiba blinked. "...I…never wondered about that… It can't be anywhere on Earth, that's for sure. It's a place specifically made for us humans after all… but… other than that, I genuinely have no idea. Maybe Prez knows more."

"Wait, did it even have oxygen before? An atmosphere? That sort of thing— how did you even breathe over there?"

"I have no clue," the blondie chuckled. "You've really opened my eyes here."

"Dang. Guess I'll ask Prez later," and thus Issei made a mental note, one that he would immediately forget later on after his meal. "What about the lighting then? You haven't answered. Is the place all dark and gloomy?"

"Hm… I've never asked, to be honest. Satan Beelzebub created an artificial sun for human turned Devils, like you and me, but I don't know what it was like before that."

"Wait wait wait— a sun? Dude created a frickin' sun?!"

"The entire day and night cycle, actually. Climate cycles too. And with the help of Satan Leviathan, the Underworld can and has experienced winter. Not many liked it though, if I remembered right…"

"What?! Hang on— slow down a little— I'm still stuck at the 'creating a whole sun' here… Isn't that basically a god-thing to do?"

"Hell's 'sun' and 'moon' are less of an active star and more of a… well… a giant, floating light bulb and a dimmer one… but, yes. They are all extremely powerful people. There has been discussion whether they are more powerful than the Heaven's Archangels, but that isn't something anyone wants to find out anytime soon, I don't think…"

"These Satans must be crazy strong… Godlike strong."

"Yeah, they kind of are. You shouldn't say that in front of a God though," Kiba smiled and laughed. It was good to see a complete newcomer's reaction to the unthinkables from their point of view. Unlike him, Kiba had been made aware of these things from when he was just a child. Not something to brag about, or even remotely prideful about… he'd pick a chance to experience a normal childhood over what he had in a heartbeat.

Breakfast was amazing and Issei couldn't possibly ask for a better cook. If he was in a cooking anime, he'd probably be the side character that cries after eating something this good.

Akeno's Japanese dishes made him feel like he had never left home (temporarily). Mother would definitely appreciate her presence in the kitchen. Rias was nowhere to be found, however, and apparently, she always took Saturday off from everything. It was her 'do not disturb' day. Her portion of the meal was set aside and kept warm by a dish cover enchanted with fire magic, courtesy of Akeno.

Issei would like to have a day like that too. When he got a reason to back it up, because as things stood; his list of responsibilities must be tiny compared to Rias'.

But today, he would be learning to do magic stuff, and he couldn't be more excited to be finally able to shoot fireballs.

The school's field was completely devoid of life apart from the Devils. He and Akeno were standing on the field while Kiba and Koneko remained seated on a nearby bench, apparently conserving their energy for the 'unexpected turn of events'.

Knowing that, he couldn't help but feel a little bit skittish.

"Is this place alright? What if someone sees us? Ooooh— I guess this is why students are absolutely not allowed to go to school during weekends huh?"

"Mhmm," Akeno replied, now clothed in her tracksuits. Issei had a shirt and shorts on. "The gates are closed and we have an alarm system. Any ordinary intruder would think twice before barging in."

Issei nodded blandly, but his mind didn't stop thinking about the other possibilities. "...What about drones?"

"Hm?"

"Drones," he said again, as if that would make it any clearer. "I know a kid or two who got one of those…"

"Oh," Akeno blinked, and smiled. He's so cutely acute. "Well… in that case, I have a new aiming target and someone to brainwash. Don't worry about it, Issei-kun. We have it under control."

Alright. Maybe he should leave it at that for now.

"Now then, let's start with the basics," she restarted. "Rias told you that Demons rely on their imagination, but it isn't as simple as that. It is much simpler than what Humans have to go through to conjure a single spell, however."

"Uh-huh, alright. How many kinds of magic are there, by the way?"

"Hmm… too many to recount at once without a white board, but utilitywise, it's separated into eight categories. We'll go through all of them for another day, and while each Devil has their own family's bloodline power and specialty, Devils are proficient in Evocation and Enchantment. Evocation is the most common one across all… types of Magic."

"What is it?"

"Like what the name says, it's evoking something. Manipulating or reshaping an energy into something. For Devils, it's our Demonic Power. Angels and Fallen Angels both have Angelic Power, although the one Fallen Angels have is more… corrupted, to say the least."

"Corrupted?" parroted Issei, complete with a slight head tilt and lowered caveman brows.

"Not as pure," Akeno smiled sweetly, "the more virtuous an Angel is, the more powerful they are. But for Fallen Angels, the more 'sinful' they are, the stronger their spells become. You can usually tell how strong they are by the number of wings they have. An Archangel has twelve golden wings for comparison sake."

"Twelve…" Issei tried picturing one. All he could think about was that biblically accurate drawing of an angel he saw on the internet. One that was just one giant eye with wings all around it. "Huh… I see… So Raynare isn't that strong then?"

"Not very," One of these days, Akeno would like to show her the difference in their power. Nothing could satisfy her sadistic need as well as stripping down a Fallen Angel from their pride. "

"But enough preamble, hm…? Boys want to do it more than just simply hearing about it, no?"

"Uh-huh, yeah, yeah. Practice makes perfect, or so and so," he nodded enthusiastically, completely missing Akeno's innuendo. "So… what do I do here if I want to… throw a fireball or… something like that? Focus?"

"When I was a beginner, closing my eyes always helped," Akeno said, and Issei immediately shut his eyes, causing her to smile and titter at his response. "Imagine that you are holding a ball of fire… but you need to be specific. Detailed, I mean. How large do you want it to be, if it swirls on your palm or simply stays still, how hot it is— and this is important, you need to have enough Demonic Power in you to manifest it. Otherwise nothing will happen, and it'll be mildly disheartening."

"Alright—" Issei firmly nodded as he stepped up his imagination game a little bit. A great ball of fire… his first thought formed. An image now. It was a swirling ball of flame the size of a football. The European one, because he didn't want his first fireball to be shaped like a deformed egg with laces of fire.

Actually that sounded pretty rad. Normal looking fireball is too… uninspired.

As his vision remained dark since his eyes were closed, his spectators', on the other hand, had theirs opened slightly more than normal.

"I think I feel something—" he muttered vaguely, unsuredly.

"You can open your eyes, Issei-kun," Akeno told him, smiling, without looking away from the tiniest, cutest fireball she had ever seen.

And thus he opened his eyes. Floating and violently twisting two inches above his palm was a swirling purple flame. And there it was, a violet, egg-shaped fireball swirling above his palm with the size barely comparable to a groundnut.

Despite the size, Issei didn't let it bring him down and instead gaped his mouth open, pogging at his own magical work.

"Oh wow— I made this," he muttered, ecstatic in spite of his normal tone. He was thinking he had become a mage or some sort. "Guys— look! It's— it's—! …Isn't this kinda small?"

Sadly, his hype didn't last long, and disappointment mixed with slight confusion replaced his initial joy. "Man, this isn't your regular small, this is advanced small."

"But it does tell that you are capable of using your Demonic Power."

While he appreciated Akeno's silver lining, he felt the need to ask the others. "Are you guys' this small?"

Kiba shook his head. Koneko shook hers as well. They both had a somewhat sympathetic smile and a sneering, satisfied look on their face respectively.

He brought it closer and Issei scrutinized his nut-sized fireball that was still spiraling atop his palm. "Why's it so small?"

"Not stimulated enough, perhaps," thus said Akeno, her smile growing wider, satisfied by her own innuendo.

"Whew, Kiryuu would freak out if she finds out her Senpai cracks perverted jokes…"

"Hmm? Oh, it's in my nature. Does it bother you?"

"No, I have a wide range of humor. Especially the ones that make people uncomfortable—" Issei cleared his throat, "anyway, does this mean anything bad, Akeno-senpai? Should I be worried?"

Akeno placed a finger against her smooth lean cheek. "Mmm… I don't doubt you have plenty of room for growth. And unlike your senior Devils, you were a pure human, Issei-kun. By that I mean you were raised as a human without ever learning about our existence or magic itself. I'd imagine it'll take a while for you to learn, but to be able to create even the tiniest bit of magic on your first try is still impressive. Rias would be pleased."

"Pardon my intrusion," Kiba then chimed in from the side bench. "But doesn't he already have the eyes? Shouldn't we put more focus on them instead of basic magic? It is powerful after all."

"Mmmn… that is true…"

"But I wanna shoot a bigass fireball…" muttered Issei, jokingly disheartened at first. "Also I don't wanna be rude, but I don't think you guys can help me… uh… nerf my eyes a little bit. It's got only one mode and it's locked on 'evaporate'."

"Ah, you're right… I'm sorry," Kiba smiled wryly, regretting his words. He forgot their newest recruit wasn't accustomed to violence. And likely shouldn't, as Rias had ordered them to the first day of his recruitment. No matter. Kiba would protect him as he would protect his allies.

Meanwhile, Koneko was still stumped at the word 'nerf' to start getting gloomy about her hidden powers.

A few, somewhat awkward seconds passed with the violet flame constantly swirling noiselessly upon his palm, being stared at by all the Devils present. Akeno actually noticed his discomfort, but she kept her quiet because it amused her.

That silence would soon be broken by its caster with a somewhat uneasy tone.

"So uh… How…how do I get rid of this thing… It's not gonna explode or anything right?"

"Not if you don't wish it to."

Beads of cold sweat began to pour. Magic is dope, but just like drugs; it's dangerous.

Break

Issei's practice lasted for another hour, during which Kiba and Koneko exercised on their own further away at the sandy track field. Being a Knight which excelled in speed, defense was Kiba's main concern. Albeit getting hit wouldn't be a concern if his opponent couldn't reach him in time, but since his main weapon was a sword — a close-ranged weapon (unless he unscrew the pommel of his sword to end his opponent rightly)— he must get close and commit himself if he wanted to inflict respectable damage against a more durable opponent.

Like Koneko, for example. Although her speed was nothing to scoff at due to her heritage, Kiba was still twice as quick and agile. Her short stature and reach wouldn't help in catching him off guard either, but her low center of gravity gave her a sturdier balance. All she needed to bring him down was one solid hit to his jaw.

Anticipating a thrust with his wooden sword, Koneko sidestepped, grasped the wooden blade with just enough pressure to grip it without shattering it, yanked it hard, and thrusted her own arm straight into the center of Kiba's chest. But the moment she pulled on the sword, Kiba quickly let go of it instead of holding on, taking one leap backwards as Koneko's palm narrowly missed him.

The reddish sand billowed as he skidded, wiping sweat off his forehead as he pulled his bangs back.

"That was close," he muttered in relief. "You're getting quicker Koneko-chan."

"You're just getting slower," huffed his sparring partner, earning Kiba's approving smirk. Koneko might have the quietest, softest voice in the entire group, but her sass game was up there with Akeno.

Kiba? He wasn't great at it, but he was decent at reading people. Just not the people that obsess over him for whatever reason.

"You seemed more motivated than usual," he said casually. "Are you trying to impress our newest recruit?"

"No," Koneko replied with a straight look. "I want to be stronger."

"To protect him?"

She nodded.

Kiba chuckled, gazing down the field to where their new multi-Pawn just sneezed, sending tiny violet sparks in the air.

"I think I understand the feeling."

"Mmn," Koneko nodded. There was a brief moment of silence where she was deciding whether she wanted to share a thought with Kiba. "...Kiba-senpai?"

"Yes?"

"You know what I am," she began. At this point, Kiba had only noticed her subtle, gloomy look. A sad one he hadn't seen for a long time. "You know about what…my sister did back then…"

Kiba loosened up, keeping his tone friendly. "Yes I do."

"...I'm scared, but it's…something I can use to protect the people I care about. To help everyone."

"Hmm… I don't know enough about Youjutsu let alone Senjutsu, but either way I don't think you should push yourself too hard, Koneko-chan. It's only been a year since you're in this… Devil business, but we've managed fine so far with what we have."

That didn't seem to lift her mood. "But what if something bad happens? A strong enemy, maybe we're separated, things like that…"

"Well there's no sure way to know what's going to happen in the future. Like the Prez said; there's no use worrying but there's always some use in preparing. No one will get mad at you. We all understand your… erm… reluctance."

"...I see."

"Maybe talk to Prez later today if you're not fully sure. You know she really appreciates it if we share our troubles with her."

Easier said than done, unfortunately for people like Koneko. "I'll think about it."

"Mhmm," Kiba hummed noncommittally. "What brought this up, Koneko-chan? If you don't mind me asking. It seems… rather sudden. Is it Issei-kun?"

Koneko did a tiny nod. "A little bit. Yesterday when we were walking home, we chatted about his power. He told me he's afraid of his own power."

"Oh?" Kiba raised his blonde eyebrows. "Hmm… I guess that's expected. He doesn't seem like a violent guy."

"But he also said he will learn how to control it so he can help."

"Ah," Kiba saw. Now it was more obvious.

The two peered over at the aforementioned non-violent guy just at the right moment to see him panicking over a ball of purple lights that had been steadily growing in size. They could tell Akeno enjoyed tutoring him, considering she was giggling instead of helping whilst Issei kept repeating her name along with the word 'help' and 'what do I do now?!'

Kiba chuckled. "But that shows he's aware of what he can do. Sometimes we tend to overestimate how easy it is to snuff a soul."

Right… Kiba had killed before. Both during his time as an Exorcist and after he became a Devil. All of her seniors had ended a life and more, and they never did show any remorse afterwards. Most likely because they were Stray Devils beyond redemption and rehab — although then again the noble Devils didn't exactly like allowing redemption and rehab for non-Devils. They'd use any reason as an excuse to get rid of reincarnated Devils. Like what they attempted to do to her. And they might have if not for Satan Lucifer.

"...What was it like, Senpai?"

Kiba blinked. "Hm?"

"To kill someone for the first time."

"Ah," a difficult subject to cover. For most. "My first kill was a Demon. But back then I was… completely indoctrinated by the church to develop guilt. They taught you to see them as lesser beings than animals, and 'exorcising' them brings peace to the world one step at a time…" His smile soured a little, but not completely gone.

Koneko didn't look troubled by his words, thankfully. He'd be sad if his junior got scared of him.

"What about now?"

"Now? Well… it's part of the job," he said simply, rubbing his calloused palm. "I won't say I enjoy it, but I'm way past the point where it bothered me. Which, I don't think it's a good mindset to have if you want to retain that part of humanity in you, which I think you should. It's hard to find it back once you let go of it."

"...I see…"

Kiba smiled reassuringly, for whatever it was worth. "Leave the finishing off duty to us, Koneko-chan. It's alright to take things at your own pace."

"Okay," Koneko didn't look like she had her trouble settled, but nonetheless, not wanting to worry or bother her senior more than she already had, she gave him a nod, and stone-facedly told him, "I'm hungry." as she retreated back into the old school building.

The blonde Knight could only sigh at that, and hope his junior would feel better eventually.

But for now, since he still felt undertrained for the day, he decided to nab Issei for a quick spar. And to measure his physical abilities, of course.

Break

As it turned out, Issei was not at all athletic in the slightest. Average at best with below average stamina. But as Kiba had suspected, his eyes managed to see him from time to time, bottlenecked only by his thinking speed. A little bit of time and no doubt Issei would be able to keep track of him constantly.

What a strange power he had.

"Dude what the fuck, you're faster than Usain Bolt. You were like Usain Bolt of Usain Bolts."

Taking that as a compliment, Kiba laughed heartily as he wiped his face with a pink towel (the result of mixing white towels and the red ones together when he first learned how to do laundry, much to Akeno's amusement).

"That's unfair to him. I'm a Devil while he's fully human."

"How do you even see when you're going that fast? Do you even see or you just… y'know, feel it out."

"A bit of both. It's not far different from training your reflexes as a goalie or by playing sports. Your eyes will get used to it eventually."

"But… man…" Issei sighed aloud. Covering his head and hair was a towel that was slightly pinker than Kiba's. "I never thought I'd see anyone move that fast… Are you faster than a jet?"

"No. No I don't think I'll ever be that fast or if I want to," Kiba chuckled. The whiplash would likely rip his skin even if it was enhanced by the Evil Piece. "So, have you gotten a feel of how long you need to stare at something to… make it disappear?"

"Bro I honestly have no clue. Hard to tell when I can't use it. Maybe like if someone throws something really, really hard and fast… like that plate shooting event in the Olympics."

"You watch the Olympics?"

"Nah, I just know there's an event like that."

"Hmm…" Kiba mulled. "Well, Koneko could do that, I don't doubt. Akeno-san and Prez also know plenty of fast-hitting Spells. We'll find out how fast your eyes are then."

Issei nodded repeatedly. "Uh-huh, uh-huh. Sounds like a plan…" he muttered as he idly watched the ransacked state of the track field. It looked as though a horde of wild pigs had stormed the area and left. The Devils must have used some magic to do with the cleaning part because the track field was almost always at a pristine condition.

Wait he shouldn't be focusing on that…

"Hey Kiba, you ever wondered why you have what you have?"

"Have I ever wondered why I have what I have?"

"Yeah, that sword thing. The… Gear, thing."

"Sacred Gear?" Kiba blinked, and Issei nodded. "Well… frankly, no. I see it as a talent. Some people always have something that others lack."

Issei didn't expect that kind of straightforward answer. "Really? You never wondered why God gave you that thing—" The two palmed their heads once they felt a pang of pain. "Ah fuck, my bad… Goddammit, am I gonna have to say 'You-Know-Who' whenever I'm talking about the guy?"

He received sheepish laughter in return.

"Well… anyway… You never wondered what made you get that thing? Is it just as plain as winning a lottery? No thoughts put behind it? Purely random? Like, surely the guy based his decision on something, right…?"

Kiba went quiet for a moment, mulling it over. "Well now that you put it that way… I'm not sure. There's billions of people around to keep track of and there aren't that many Angels around after the Great War."

Issei mentally reminded himself he was referring to the war in Hell, not the First World War. "How many do you think there are?"

"The Devils had just reached two million population a couple of years ago, and it's been a thousand year, so… I'm guessing they're somewhere in a million, most likely."

"Really? Are there just that few genuinely good people around? That's kinda depressing."

The blondie laughed. "Haha— of course there are plenty of good people. The ones that do do end up in Heaven, but not everyone becomes an Angel, Issei-kun. My caretaker used to tell me to think of Heaven as a permanent retirement home, and the Angels are their caretakers."

"Huh. Can't they just pick a guy and turn them into an Angel if they're running low on people?"

"With the same way the Devils do?"

"Yea."

"Ah, reincarnation is so far a Devil-exclusive tech, Issei-kun. We have the upper hand on them in that regard. And numbers. Although… I don't know why he didn't just simply make new Angels."

"Oh yea, I was about to ask about that."

Kiba shrugged. "Well, who knows what gods do and why they do it."

"True."

Deciding to shift the topic back to his eyes, Kiba unceremoniously conjured a basic steel sword as it jumped out off the grass, surprising Issei, and wound up his arm backward.

"Let's test your eyes again, Issei-kun. How far do you think it can reach?"

Issei readied himself, although still seated on the bench. "Alright. Huck it to the skies."

With a bit of an effort, Kiba let loose of his European sword as it soared towards the skies, piercing air, smoothly driving forward like a bullet. Issei waited a second until the sword seemed to reach its peak, until it was no more than a dot in the clear blue skies, and activated his eyes.

His russet brown amalgamated into an ominous violet color as they should, but there was no telling if the sword had been completely disintegrated as the two squinted their eyes, peering into the stratosphere, waiting for the sword to drop or the little shriek.

Instead, what they heard was not a shriek, but four soft thudding noises beneath them. Like something had been dropped into the grass.

They glanced down, and their eyes widened.

Four crimson chess pieces of a pawn, scattered over the lush green grass, lying harmlessly.

They shared a shocked look with one another, the alert visible on Kiba's expressions while Issei looked dumbfounded.

"Was that supposed to happen?"

Kiba took another glance and even picked up a single pawn piece to make sure he wasn't seeing things. It was Rias' Evil Piece alright. Crimson transparent glass, but its appearance was… mangled. Contorted. It was twisted. As though someone had the strength to wring it like a wet towel.

Judging by Kiba's stupefied look, Issei connected the dots that this was not at all normal, and proceeded to freak out.

"...Am I gonna die? Oh my god— am I dying?"

To be continued…

Issei is like a full on offensive mage that just wanted to be a healer or a support class. He's like Megumin except the one spell he got is disintegrating gaze. Bless his heart

I doubt you guys will mind that I expanded Kiba's OMEGALUL pitiful lore or backstory. His was the most basic as far as main supporting character goes, second only behind Rias i'd say

And no, i'm not 'back'. Im busy with monster hunter rise and i'm just about to enter sunbreak, so…

But hey, if you ever wanna hunt together, you can find me in discord . gg /V54pcwA
it's a server currently on health support, but i ain't just gonna invite you to my own server willy nilly

okbai