Before I start my introduction to the revised chapter, I want to announce that Infinity DxD has reached 1,000 FOLLOWERS! I can't tell you how much I appreciate your support for liking my story, even though it's pretty much a huge mess right now. And I'm glad to know that with the still growing fanbase, you all have faith in me. You all have no idea how much that means to me.
So from the bottom of my heart, I give you all my sincerest thanks!
With all the sentiment out of the way, I hope you all like the revision!
Chapter 3: Exposed
The Devils in the room kept looking at Sean for his reply to Rias' statement. He knew that the Devils would approach him about this eventually. Issei was confused at the mentioning of the American having power. He didn't know what to think, but he stayed quiet so he could find out what Rias was talking about.
"Well, should we tell her?" Sean mentally asked the gods in his mind. as he adjusted his glasses.
"The situation isn't ideal." Thoth said. "It would cause more problems if you refuse. They might even use force, if you don't."
"They wouldn't do much." Heimdall added. "If they do try to attack us, you could take them."
"No, that would be even worse than not saying anything." Chronos argued.
"I agree with Chronos." Morrigan pitched in. "They're probably just going to ask us to join them."
"I wouldn't mind joining if these hot young things are in it!" Izanagi declared in his usual perverted manner.
"You are saying that about children, you pig!" Izanami yelled at her husband as she punched him in the back of the head.
"Would you two stop for once?" Sean tried to stop the squabbling of the divine Shinto couple. They just ignored him while Izanami lectured her husband about faithfulness and devotion. Sean just sighed at them. "What about you, Yama? What do you think?" he asked the Hindi god.
Yama was silent as he thought about how his host should proceed. "Try explaining the Gauntlet different than what it really is." Sean mentally nodded.
"Actually, that gives me an idea. Sean, just tell them this." Thoth told him.
"Alright, Thoth." Sean then brought his attention back to Rias, who had simply waited for his response.
He held his left arm in front of him and willed his Gear to appear. Suddenly, the golden glove from the comic he loved showed up on it again. It was shining, glorious golden glove that look metallic with exquisitely detailed lines running along its frame. The jewels that were on it were arranged on the first knuckles of his hand: yellow on the pinky, red on the ring finger, purple on the middle, blue on the index, green on the thumb. And on the center of the back of his hand, the final jewel was colored orange. Everyone marveled at the Sacred Gear that the American summoned.
"So that is your Sacred Gear?" Rias asked.
"OK. So what exactly do you know about my power?" he asked.
Rias smiled at the response of the American. "Well, Koneko says that you were able to avoid the Kendo Club catching you along with Issei by switching places with a tree branch." Issei looked at Sean in shock and anger, remembering the beatings he received that day. "Then, Kiba saw your encounter with a Fallen Angel. He said that you just walked away from her and leaned on a building wall while the Fallen Angel just threw her light spear where you were previously standing as if you were still there." Rias explained.
"So, you not only have the ability to manipulate space, but also create illusions effortlessly." Rias summed up. Sean smiled at the somewhat accurate information that the redhead acquired.
"Well, that is true. So how about you tell me what you, a Devil, want from me, a human?" Sean cheekily asked. Rias and the others were surprised that the American was able to tell that they were Devils. Issei was perturbed at what Sean just said.
"Devils? Every one in this room is a Devil?" he thought, starting to freak out.
"Yes, Issei. Everyone in here, except me, is a Devil. Even you." Sean informed him.
Issei looked towards the American in surprise. "How did-"
"'How did I know what you were thinking?'" the American interrupted the resident pervert. "It's simple. I can read your mind."
Issei grabbed his head with both of his hands in an vain attempt to prevent Sean from reading any more of his thoughts. Sean ignored his actions.
"He's right, Issei." Rias told him. "We're Devils. And so are you." Everyone that was sitting stood up and opened a pair of bat-like Devil wings from their backs. Issei's surprise only grew seeing this. But what really stupefied him was that his own back grew the same kind of wings everyone else had. Everyone's wings folded back into themselves while Issei just kept staring at his own before doing the same.
"While seeing your dumbstruck face is funny to me, we should get back on track." Sean said.
"Yes. So that glove is your Sacred Gear?" Rias repeated.
Sean nodded. "That's right."
"Hang on. What's a Sacred Gear?" Issei asked.
"Sacred Gears are an intense power that's found in humans and are bestowed to them by God. The only people I know of who've possessed them are historical figures. So you and Harris are kind of big deals in the supernatural world." Akeno explained.
"And this is mine, the Arcane Gauntlet." Sean said. "It lets me use magic and spells without having to figure out the mystic equations that Magicians usually have to use to perform said magic and spells."
"Well, that's handy." Rias commented.
"Tell me about it."
"Now with that out of the way, it's time to explain your new position in the club, Issei." Rias told her new member.
She went on to explain the concept of the Three Faction to Issei. Sean just drowned it all out as he heard it all from the gods in his head.
"Thanks for that, Thoth." Sean said.
"No problem. That should keep them from asking too many questions about you." the Egyptian god replied.
"Hopefully. Though I'm not sure that their curiosity will diminish." Chronos added.
"More importantly, don't think I didn't notice you blushing from that Akeno girl, Sean." Morrigan gained a blush on his face as he inadvertently glanced at Akeno, but soon averted his gaze when she saw him looking at her. He did think she was beautiful, but he wouldn't be swayed by feminine charm so easily.
"Stop it, Morrigan." he told the Celtic goddess.
"Ooh, our host has a crush!" she teased her host again.
"Well, I don't blame him." Izanagi spoke out. "She's a real Yamato Nadeshiko, if I ever saw one! You really know how to pick 'em, Sean!" Sean could just imagine the cheesy smile and even lamer thumbs up the Shinto god was giving him. Right before said thumb was soon grabbed and bent farther than it should be by his irate destruction goddess of a wife.
"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking, Izanagi!" Izanami said in a faux calm voice while she ground her teeth in irritation. Izanagi started to cry anime tears at the sound of his finger breaking under the abuse of his wife's temper.
"OW! What's the big deal?" the Shinto god said, in pain of his thumb being broken by his wife. "I was just-owowowow!- expressing how proud I am of him finding a girl he likes."
Izanami squinted her eyes accusingly at her husband, only to see that he was indeed telling the truth. While Izanagi was a pervert, like Issei, he was worried that his host would never find a girlfriend. Sean never really socialized with people after the constant bullying he received back in America. Izanami let go of her husband's thumb while Izanagi tried to make the pain stop.
Sean sighed at her behavior. While she was justified in her anger at times, Izanami can really act like a jealous girlfriend that would question her boyfriend's moves every time she found some kind of fault with them. Her host found her behavior rather immature of a goddess.
Sean ended his talk with the gods in his head and took notice of the conversation that was happening with the Devils. Issei was staring at a picture of himself and Yuuma, they looked like they were talking to each other and Yuuma had that same fake smile she had when Sean first met her.
"That's right. It wasn't a dream, Issei. She's real!" Rias said with a serious tone. Issei couldn't tear his eyes away from the picture. The weight of reality came crashing down on him as he realized that everything that he and Yuuma went through was real.
"It's a cute picture of you two." Rias said, bringing Issei out of dumbfounded stupor. "You remember it, don't you?"
"Of course I do." Issei answered, recovering from the shock but still feeling uncomfortable with the subject of his "ex-girlfriend". "But how is this possible?"
"She's also a Fallen Angel." Rias explained. "Just like the being who attacked you last night."
"That's just it." Issei replied. "Did I meet her? None of my friends remember her. Not even Sean and he actually talked to her."
"Oh, I remember her." the American said. Issei looked at him in surprise and irritation.
"Wait, you do remember her?!" Issei asked incredulously. "But yesterday you said you didn't!"
"I lied." Sean said simply, crossing his arms. "Yuuma probably didn't even bother to erase my memories because she planned on killing me anyway." Issei could see that. It wouldn't make sense to just erase the memories of someone who was going to die.
"In any case, erasing memories or mental suggestion is usually better for everyone, including your parents." Rias resumed her explanation. "When a Fallen Angel accomplishes their goal, they erase all traces of themselves from everyone around their target."
"What goal?" Issei asked.
"To kill you." Rias answered. "But only after she learned if you had this dangerous power she was so worried about. And when she did, she stabbed you with a spear of light." Issei winced at the phantom pain of the spear piercing through his gut.
"Now that that's out of the way, Issei, you should try and activate your Sacred Gear." Rias brought up. Issei was a little excited for this. After seeing Sean's Infinity Gauntlet, he was hoping that his own Sacred Gear was just as badass.
"Close your eyes and think of the part of you that you feel is the strongest." Rias told him. Issei did so as he raised his left hand in the air and tried to focus.
"Focus, focus, focus, fo-" Issei chanted and stopped as his face suddenly had a big smile on his face. Sean rolled his eyes as he figured that Issei was having another perverted thought run through his mind.
"Very good. Concentrate. You can do this." Rias encouraged him in trying whatever it was that he was doing. Issei tried to do as Rias said, but his struggling became more visible as he failed to do so. He eventually dropped his hand in defeat.
"I can't! I'm a weak soul!" Issei whined. Sean shook his head at Issei's pathetic self-pity.
"You're not weak at all. It's just a little hard right now." Rias tried comforting him.
Issei adopted a blush with a look of frustration, but it soon was wiped away. "Are you sure this isn't a mistake?" he questioned Rias.
"A Fallen Angel tried to kill you because she believed you were a threat. It's not a mistake." Rias told him.
"I can verify that too." Sean added. Issei looked at him in surprise. He didn't think that Sean would say anything positive about him.
"The Arcane Gauntlet also allows me to sense other energies that are around me." Sean explained. "It's how I found out that you guys were Devils." Akeno and Koneko were startled at this revelation, although they didn't show it. Did this mean that he could sense their other energies, too?
"So what did you sense about Issei's?" Rias asked Sean.
"Well, I couldn't tell what it was exactly. Only that it was strong." Sean said.
"See Issei?" Rias told him. "You just need to keep trying to unlock it."
Issei wasn't too sure about himself having some kind of badass power that Sean said he had. But if Rias says that he could, then he could at least try.
"OK, I will!" Issei enthusiastically said.
Rias giggled at the newfound determination of her new servant.
"Now there's just one more piece of business we must address before moving on with the Club's activities." Rias looked at Sean.
"Sean Harris, I offer a place for you in my peerage. This means that you would not only be my Devil servant, but also a member of the Gremory household. You will be turned into a Devil. You would gain more power than you already have, extended life, and the opportunity to have servants of your own, once you prove yourself." Rias said. "Do you accept?"
As soon as Sean heard the word "servant", he already had his answer.
"No."
"Very well. Allow to get one of my- Wait. What do you say?" Rias figured that the offerings of being a Devil would entice anyone. She didn't expect such a swift denial.
"I said 'no'. I don't want to." Sean repeated.
"May I ask why?" Rias asked.
"I refuse to be anyone's servant. It's as simple as that." Sean told her.
"It's not like that. In the Gremory house, servants are treated as family." Rias tried to reason.
"I don't care. I'm not going to be anyone's servant." Sean stood by his decision. This outcome certainly threw Rias for a loop. She never thought that she would have to deal with someone that would actually refuse her offer.
"I see." Rias joined her hands together in front of her, elbows on her table in contemplation. Her eyes close as she thought of her next move. Sean had made his stance quite clear on the matter at hand, but it would be dangerous to leave such a power running freely in her territory.
"Very well, then." This time, Sean was the one thrown for a loop from the Devil's response. After Thoth explained how Devils recruit humans with Sacred Gears, he thought for sure that "no" wouldn't be an answer for any of them.
"Really?" Sean asked.
"Really." Rias replied. "I won't force you into becoming a part of my peerage, if you don't want to. Though the offer will be open if you decide to change your mind."
Sean's eyes narrowed in skepticism with Rias' quick acceptance. The gods told him that Devils were greedy by nature and for a Devil to pass on the opportunity to gain more power for themselves. The human glared at the redhead Devil while the Mind Stone started glowing on his "Arcane Gauntlet".
With that, the Devils were put on edge a little from the human's sudden intense look on his face and his Sacred Gear glowing. It was like he would attack their President at the drop of a hat. The tension in the room was starting to get to the others. They could only look back and forth between Sean and Rias as they had their staring contest.
Rias, on the other hand, was a little unnerved by the human staring daggers at her. "Is there something wrong?" she asked. But Sean didn't respond as his glare didn't waver.
He could hear all of Rias's current thoughts: her interest in his Sacred Gear, her disappointment in his rejection and her growing discomfort in his intense leering. The Devil knew of her beauty and how the few boys that attended Kuoh Academy gawked at her. But the way Sean's eyes looked at her was different. It was as if he was trying to stare into her very soul. However, the human could hear that Rias's thoughts on accepting his answer were genuine.
"OK." Sean finally said as the Mind Stone's glow faded and he blinked rapidly to wet his dried out eyes. The earlier tension was broken with that simple two-letter word.
"What's OK?" Rias asked, confused.
"It's OK that we agree with each other." he replied as the "Arcane Gauntlet" disappeared from his left hand. "Now that that's over with, I'm outta here." With that, Sean turned around and left the room. After Sean exited the room, Rias let out a breathe of air that she didn't know she held in. Sean's piercing eyes truly unnerved her with their unrelenting gaze.
As soon as she collected her composure, began to describe the basic duties of being a Devil to Issei, which involved making contracts with humans that have strong desires. And by making these contracts, Issei could climb the hierarchy of Devil Society. Eventually, when he reached High-Class, he would gain his own servants and the gears in his head began to turn at the thought of having his own all-girl peerage that he could have "sexy time" with them.
This brought out some awkward laughter from Kiba and Akeno and hateful glaring from Koneko while Rias simply smiling that her new servant at least had a goal to strive towards. With the formal introduction to Devil work out of the way, Rias dismissed everyone for the day, leaving her and Akeno alone in the room.
"Well, at least he's motivated." Akeno commented on Issei's behavior.
"That he is." Rias agreed, though she sounded a bit distant.
"Hm? Something wrong, Rias?"
"It's Harris." The ORC President sighed out.
"Oh, are you a bit sad that he turned you down?"
"It's not that, Akeno. If he's just running around without any affiliation whatsoever, with the power he as, he's going to have a big target on his back." Akeno silently agreed with her best friend. Power often attracts those with power. Case in point, the meeting they just had with the human.
"So, it looks like we're going to have to keep an eye on him. And maybe, in time, we can convince him to change his mind." Rias declared.
"Actually, I think I have a way to help with that." Akeno added. Rias expectedly looked over to her friend, eager to hear her thoughts on how to increase her chances of gaining another peerage member.
XXXXX
Sunday morning came, meaning that Sean had the day off from school and the manga cafe. So with the free time he had, he decided to get some exercise in. He was dressed in his exercise attire: a plain white T-shirt and black running shorts, but was running barefoot.
On his left arm, an armband that held his phone and it wirelessly connected to a pair of Bluetooth earphones he had on. The phone was playing "Wait and Bleed" by Slipknot. And in the same hand, a water bottle with half-full with ice to ensure a cool and refreshing drink that replenished over time.
However, despite the new day, the sun was absent. Overhead, a starry night sky with the moon shining bright. And under them, Sean was running across sandy dunes with some wind picking up behind him.
Why sand at night? Because right now, Sean Harris wasn't in Kuoh, Japan on a Sunday morning. Instead, he was sprinting across the seemingly endless sands of the Sahara Desert on a Saturday evening.
"The kid gloves are off now, Sean." Heimdall said over the music. "Now that the Devils know about you, your training is going to be more strenuous."
"Yeah. I figured that much already, Heimdall." Sean responded, pressing a button on his earphones to pause the song while he kept his pace.
"It's not just that. Your progress has started to stagnate. The training regimens I've been making for you aren't being effective any more."
"Yes, I can attest that your improvement rate has been declining lately." Thoth agreed.
"So do you guys have any suggestions on that?"
"The best way to fix that problem is to find a suitable sparring partner." Heimdall proposed.
"And just who do you think I should ask? I'm not going back to Rias and her group for that."
"Sadly, no. From what I could sense, none of them are strong enough to even give you enough of a challenge for you to get stronger." Morrigan replied.
Sean slowed himself to a jogging pace. "So what? That's it? I'm not gonna get any better?"
"Not necessarily. You just need to find someone more powerful than the ORC to help you."
"You could try asking Sona if she could help you." Izanagi suggested.
"Uh, no. I'm not desperate enough to go to her for help." Sean immediately shot down the idea.
"It wouldn't have mattered anyway. The Sitri girl isn't really much stronger compared to the Gremory." Morrigan mentioned.
"But he can't just leave things as is." Izanami argued.
"Well, what other options do I have?"
"It would be pointless to worry about it when you don't have many available options." Chronos made his opinion known. "For now, you'll just have to make some changes in your exercise routine until those options present themselves."
Sean cocked an eyebrow at the time god's choice of words. "Is there something you wanna share with me, Chronos?"
"I believe there's something that humans would say about this kind of situation. What was it again? 'No spoilers'?"
Sean had a flat look from the Greek god's response. "Seriously? For an old god, you sure do act like a child sometimes."
"I don't know about that. Sure, I have my childish side, but only because that it gets boring in here sometimes. At least I'm not an annoying pervert like Izanagi."
"Hey!" the Shinto god objected. The other gods and Sean laughed at Izanagi's expense. And with that, Sean finally stopped. The sand began to burn his feet more steadily as Sean made his Infinity Gauntlet appear.
The Reality Stone shined as the sand began to move and shift into a single spot. The color began to change into a pure white and started to spread outward. It finally stopped when it took shape of a beach towel. Sean quickly sat on top of it and sighed in relief at the end of his physical activity.
"It's good to be back in my homeland again." Thoth wistfully commented.
"Glad you're happy, Thoth. Because I can't really say that I care much for all of the sand here."
"Running on sand is a more effective workout than the usual sidewalk. Plus, the sand's softer surface will lessen the soreness in your feet."
"I know. You told me that when I started doing it."
Sean laid back on the towel and stared up into the Egyptian night sky, the stars shining brightly in contrast of the darkness above. He reminisced of his times that he spent outside because of his father's abuse. Though he hated being forced outside, the gods did make that time better. Heimdall would tell tales of battles he had taken part in, Thoth would teach him the constellations and Morrigan would also teach him how to use magic. Thinking back on those times now, he couldn't help the smile that grew on his face.
"Okay, that's enough stargazing." Chronos suddenly interrupted Sean's recollection. "It's time to move on to the next training session."
"Right." Sean complied. He stood up from the towel and patted down any stray sand that got on his clothes. After that, he waved his Gauntlet clad hand while using the Reality Stone to change the towel back into sand. And finally, the Space Stone shined in place of the Reality Stone and with another wave of his hand, Sean conjured a portal that led to the woodlands on the outskirts of Kuoh and went through it.
XXXXX
With the portal gone, Sean was now back home and ready to continue his training. After the warm-up in the Sahara, it was now time to work on his fighting techniques. While sleeping, the other gods would teach him different skills based on who was teaching him at the time.
There are those who would teach him the physical things: Heimdall taught hand-to-hand combat and axe proficiency, Morrigan instructed magic and spearmanship, Izanagi would show him various swordfighting styles. While others covered the more mental category: Thoth taught him tactics against a multitude of different species along with more intellectual things or Yama, with meditation and self-control. And for things outside of combat, Izanami would teach etiquette and Chronos would help Sean with time management.
Right now, Sean was in a large clearing surrounded by numerous trees. Luckily, no one had ever came out that far to distract him. And so far since, he had only trained his physical body solo. But now that the resident Devils knew about him and his Sacred Gear, he could use his Infinity Gauntlet more liberally.
"OK. So what's on the regimen for today?" Sean asked.
"For now, you should work on fighting multiple enemies at once." Heimdall mentioned.
"How many should I make though?"
"Since the Devils know about you now, you should be able to fight at least sixteen at once because of the maximum amount of Evil Pieces per peerage." Thoth suggested.
"Right." Sean kneeled down and place his left hand on the ground. The Reality Stone shined as a wave of faint red light surged outward from his hand. The ground started to rumble when Sean stood up and its intensity grew until the quake suddenly stopped as quickly as it began.
After that, the dirt began to rise and took the form of human hand. The appendage extended out into a fully formed arm, which slammed onto the ground and pushed against it. This allowed a much larger form to emerge and it took the shape of the silhouette of a human. The humanoid mannequin was finally able to stand on its own two legs, its body becoming sturdier and more rigid.
After the first one was fully formed, more dummies began to join its brother from the earth that spawned it. There were nine more that were identical to the first one. However, the next two were noticeably different. They were bigger and bulkier, like circus strongmen. Another pair arose from the ground; they wore mitres and holding croziers. The final two golems then rose from the dirt. One of them was like the other plain ones from earlier, while the other had a more feminine build to it. The feminine one had a tiara on her head while the masculine one wore an ornate crown.
Each group of dummies represent the roles of a Devil's peerage: the eight plain golems, Pawns; the sword wielders, Knights; the bulky ones, Rooks; the ones with mitres and staves, Bishops; the womanly mannequin with the tiara, a Queen; and finally, the manly one adorning the crown, a King.
"This should be adequate." Thoth commented.
"Now then, use the Soul Stone to give them some autonomy." Yama instructed.
Sean nodded and placed his hand on the first dummy's chest. The Soul Stone began to glow and the energy from the orange Infinity Stone let out a similar wave like the one from the Reality Stone across the dummy's body.
When it dissipated, the stone dummy began to move on its own. Moving it own limbs for the first time, it looked all over itself to see that it was actually alive. Or at the very least, active. Sean began to move towards the other dummies and used the same "life"-giving energy of them as well. After finishing the last one, the group of earth puppets were walking around as if they were actual living beings.
"Alright, everyone! Line up, shoulder-to-shoulder!" Sean shouted to the mannequins with a sense of authority. The dummies instantly followed their creator's command and quickly moved to stand next to each other in two ranks of eight, half of each of the golem facing each other. Their posture and formation was as if they were a group of Army grunts standing at attention to their drill sergeant.
"Good." Sean said curtly and walked between the ranks while clearing his throat before he continued. "Now, all of you are going to help me train in fighting against a group of enemies solo. As such, I will implant some knowledge of various techniques, CQC, swords, and magic. And after that, you're all going to engage the enemy: me." Sean stopped at the other end of the ranks of stone golems and turned to face his creations.
"Do I make myself clear?" The dummies were unable to speak, but they all responded with a swift, synchronized nod in response.
Sean then placed his hand each the dummies' heads as the Mind Stone started to glow and that shine permeated each of them, imbuing the dolls with the information that he had from his lessons with the gods about fighting. Next, the Power Stone soon radiated its own light and transferred to the mannequins as well. And finally, with the Reality Stone, a pair of swords rose out of the ground as they materialized from it.
They both froze in place with half of their blades still submerged in the dirt. The dummies began to back away from each other as they took their fighting stances against their creator. But two of the plain-looking golems stayed and walked over to the newly made weapons. They each took a hand, grabbed the hilts and pulled their weapons out, revealing the rest of the obviously sharp blades.
Sean, standing on the opposite side of the legion of stone humanoid golems, dismissed his Infinity Gauntlet and readied his own stance against them as he prepared for his heavily outnumbered spar.
XXXXX
Eventually, Sean had finished his training for the day as he sat limply on a park bench. His arms draped along the back part behind him, his legs on their heels, and his head tilted back facing the blue cloudless sky. Sweat dripped from his brow, stained his clothes, and one quick self-sniff later, he could tell that he could knock out anything that came within three feet of him. Luckily for the people in the park right now, they were far enough away from him to not test that possibility.
"Oh god! That is ripe!" Sean gagged out from the overpowering smell of sweat that permeated him.
"Then you better get back home and shower right now." Izanami replied.
Sean nodded and tried to stand up, but he dropped from his muscles crying out from the soreness of his earlier exertion. "Ow! Feels like I overdid it a little. It hurts just trying to stand."
"Stop making excuses! Get up, go home and take a shower!"
"Easy for you to say. You don't even have a body." Sean grumbled.
"Did you say something?" Izanami asked with a dangerous tone in her voice. The kind of tone that she had for Izanagi's perverted comments.
"Nope! Not at all!" Sean hastily replied.
"I didn't think so."
Sean fought against his body's protests and stood on his feet. He felt like he couldn't walked all the way back to his house with the aches constantly interfering with his movements. After a few steps, he stopped and stood still just to dull the aching. He was not going to walk all the way back home like this.
He couldn't just use the his Infinity Gauntlet out in public with anyone else around to see him. Looking around, he noticed there was a bathroom close by. Hopefully it was empty so he could use it to get back home. With some effort, he stiffly moved towards the restroom door. Entering the room, he had the misfortune to have some bystanders already using the facility.
"Great." Sean thought, annoyed. While he could go to a stall, make a portal and go home to shower, the stall could be in use by the time he finished and came back. Wanting to avoid that scenario, he came up with another idea.
Going to the back of the restroom, Sean went inside the larger stall. Locking the door behind him, Sean summoned his Infinity Gauntlet. The shining flash wasn't so obvious, thanks to the bright lights. The Reality Stone glowed dully as he raised his arm over his head and dropped it down in front of his body. The sweat and stains on his clothes began to disappear along with the smell until he was as clean as he was when he left his house before going to the Sahara Desert.
"Well, it's not the same as a shower, but I guess it's just as effective." Izanami commented.
Sean left the bathroom and plopped down of the metal bench he was sitting on earlier, the pains still persisting on impeding his motions. Sean decided to put them in the back of his mind and the exhaustion finally caused him to nod off. He didn't even wince from the sunlight beaming down on his face and through his eyelids. Though after some time, the light suddenly dimmed quite drastically.
"Sean, you might want to-" Thoth began to say before he was immediately struck silent.
"Want to what, Thoth?" Sean thought as he opened his eyes and sat up on the bench, only for the top of his head to be impeded by a soft, yet bouncy obstruction. The sudden feeling made him pause in thought as the sensation on his head felt strangely familiar. It was only a few seconds later that he was able to identify this kind of feeling. The very same one that he felt from Morrigan not too long ago.
"Are you feeling comfortable, Harris~?" a familiar voice asked with a alluring tone. Sean's eyes went wide as he recognized the voice's owner.
Moving quickly, Sean rose from the bench entirely and turned to see Akeno, standing behind the metallic seat. The Devil didn't seem to be distraught with what had just transpired. She just stood there with the same closed-eyed smile she had when they met in the ORC building.
"I'm so sorry, Akeno! I didn't meant to do that, I swear!" Sean hastily spouted out any kind of apology to the Devil.
"Ufufu~ Are you sure? You didn't seem too eager to move when your head came up to my chest. It makes me wonder if the Perverted Trio has become a quartet." Akeno replied with her hand covering her mouth.
"Hey, there's no way I'd ever be a part of those depraved bastards!" Sean irately retorted.
Akeno giggled at his reaction. "It's OK, Harris. I was just teasing you. Though your reaction was pretty cute."
Sean's irritation suddenly vanished and was replaced with exasperation. "Funny." the human dryly said. Turning around, Sean proceeded to go home. Or at least he tried to as the aches came back in full force. Groaning in pain, his body locked up on him and stopped him in his tracks.
"Is there something wrong?" Akeno asked.
"No. Just... overdid it with my workout."
"Maybe I can help." Akeno offered as she sauntered over to Sean. "I've gotten some good feedback from my contracts; they involve massages." The Devil came up behind the human and placed her hands on his shoulders.
"So, what do you say~?" Akeno whispered into Sean's ear while her hands slowly traveled down his arms. "Wouldn't it feel nice for you to feel my hands on you, relieving you until all your tension just melts away~?"
Sean's face became more red by the second with Akeno's close contact and her breath from her whispering against his ear. Using Yama's breathing techniques, he started to think about his situation more rationally.
With his body being too achy, he couldn't go all the way back to his home by himself. And with all the people in the park, he couldn't use his Infinity Gauntlet to go straight home at that moment. He could use the bathroom method like he did earlier, but he wouldn't be able to get very far from Akeno even if he tried.
"I bet it would, but there has to be another reason that she's offering this."
"Sean, if you spend ages thinking about every single little thing, you're gonna get left in the dust. For your own sake, STOP QUESTIONING EVERY LITTLE THING AND JUST GO WITH IT!" Izanagi desperately tried to reason with his host.
Sean sighed in defeat. "Alright, fine. With my body aching like this, I'll appreciate it if you can help."
The human tried to walk, but it was very slow going. It was like his joints were made of rusted metal, taking a lot of effort just to move the way he wanted them to. Akeno saw this and went over to help by putting his arm over her shoulders. Sean made no objections to this and just went with it.
"Now, we just need to go somewhere more... private~." Akeno suggestively mentioned.
"Over there, then." Sean answered while ignoring the obvious wordplay as he pointed towards the men's room he used earlier.
"Ara ara, a public men's restroom? How daring."
"You said you wanted somewhere more private."
Akeno kept her smile, but she was a little surprised from Sean throwing her words back at her. She was expecting more of what happened when he realized his head was touching her breasts. But this was quite the turn of events. Her surprise was then replaced with amusement. She could appreciate a challenge.
"Hang on, let me check in there first." Sean said. Akeno didn't reply, only brought Sean's arm down from her shoulders.
Opening the door, Sean hobbled inside to check if anyone else was using the room. No one was using the urinals, that much was obvious at first glance. Though, the real problem was the stalls. No one to simply walk out and catch the human boy and Devil girl together in a restroom and send obvious misunderstandings.
"Though, judging from what Akeno said before, she'd probably just add fuel to that fire." Sean thought.
He then went to the center of the front of the stalls and reluctantly crouched down. The pain was immediate as he lowered his view to find any pairs of feet under the doors. Fighting through the pain and desperately trying to keep his balance to prevent himself from falling onto the unsanitary floor, Sean saw no pairs of feet inside the stalls.
Groaning as he stood back up, Sean went back to the restroom door. Cracking it open, he saw Akeno patiently waiting for the human to return, still smiling.
"Alright, we're good." Sean assured her, opening the door for her.
"What a gentleman." Akeno remarked before entering and the two ended up stood in the open area of the restroom.
"OK, should be able to use it here." Sean spoke as he revealed his Infinity Gauntlet. Akeno paid full attention to Sean as he used his Sacred Gear in front of her. With the Space Stone glowing, Sean waved his hand and a blue light shined in front of them. The light then expanded out and revealed Sean's apartment living room.
"Let's go then." Sean urged Akeno. She brought his arm over her shoulders again and they went through the shimmering portal. It was a different experience for Akeno. The transportation circles she normally used just brought her to the location she wanted. However, using Sean's portal, it was like walking through an open door.
XXXXX
The inside of Sean's apartment was dark. Despite the midday sun, Sean had window curtains that would make one think that it was already nighttime. Switching to the Mind Stone, Sean waved his hand again and made the curtains open up, letting sun into his humble home.
"Not much, but it's home." Sean summed up his abode in a nutshell.
"It's pretty quaint." Akeno commented.
"Thanks, I guess." Sean took his arm off of Akeno and limped his way over to his couch. He plopped down right down and let out a loud groan. He really wanted the pain to stop soon.
"So, what do you need for this?" he asked.
"Nothing much. An open space and maybe some candles." Akeno listed off the items.
Sean shrugged. "I got some emergency blackout candles under the kitchen sink."
"One last thing, you'll need to be better dressed for the occasion." she told Sean before she left to retrieve the candles. Sean rolled his eyes as he knew what she meant and went toward the bathroom.
Opening the door, Sean went in and found the cabinet where he kept his towels. Picking one out, he started to take off his clothes. As he did so, his mind began to run wild, thinking about how he had a beautiful girl in his home and she was going to give him a massage. He shook his head vigorously to rid himself of any thoughts that could make the situation any more awkward.
Of course, someone couldn't help themselves in speaking out about it.
"I'm so proud of you, Sean! You're taking your first step into the adult world!" Izanagi excitedly cheered.
"This is seriously not the time, Izanagi."
"I'm proud of you too, Sean. If you play your cards right, you might have yourself your first girlfriend in no time." Morrigan added.
"I don't know about her, though." Izanami said with suspicion. "She seems way too flirty."
"Oh Izanami, there's nothing wrong with being flirty. The reactions that some boys make can be pretty funny to see."
"Of course you wouldn't have any problem with that, Morrigan."
"Ugh, I just can't help but wonder why she would even do this."
"Hey! I told you to stop questioning everything and just go with it! Sometimes, going with the flow can lead you to having the time of your life." Izanagi reminded.
Sean sighed in defeat as he wrapped the towel around his waist and exited the bathroom. He went toward the living room, but he didn't see Akeno in there. She said that she needed an open space for the session, so Sean assumed that she was talking about the living room.
"Akeno?" Sean called out.
"I'm in here." she answered. Her voice sounded like she was calling from his bedroom.
When he entered, his room was somewhat dark with only the candles on his dresser providing the only light. Inside, he found Akeno sitting on his bed. He also noticed that she had changed her attire as well. She was now in the pure white bath robe as it showed off some cleavage, awaiting for Sean so they could begin their session.
Akeno took note of Sean's body. He had a well-toned figure that suggested that he trained hard to get it. Any girl that caught a glimpse of him in his state would have their face glowing red. However, Akeno just had her eyes lidded and licked her lips at the sight.
"Now, just lie facedown on the bed and we can get started." she instructed.
Sean approached Akeno and did as she said. He lied down on his bed, stomach first and crossed his arms to rest his head. Akeno started the session by gently rocking Sean's body; her hands moved along the length of his form, from his shoulders to his legs. Sean had his eyes closed, actually enjoying the massage as his body started to feel loose.
"Ara, ara~ you're so tense." Akeno said as she began to press her palm down against Sean's back. The pressure from her ministrations caused Sean to let out a sigh through his nose.
After a few minutes of her palm pressing, Akeno chose to move on with the session by pressing her thumb onto the back of Sean's leg. The human could feel the tension being pushed out of him, along with the stress of his earlier worries. As the massage went on, the situation of Sean being putty in her hands sparked the idea of playing with him go off in her head.
"Are you enjoying the treatment?" she asked.
"Mm-hmm." Sean grunted his approval. Akeno giggled in response.
"I'm glad to hear it. Though it seems that there's still some tension in your back. I'll need to try and add more pressure to it if I'm going to get it." With that, Sean suddenly felt something drop onto his lower back. He opened his eyes and turned his head to see what it was. And when he did, his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.
It was Akeno, sitting on his lower back!
Sean couldn't believe the boldness that the Devil displayed! He never would've thought that she would actually do something like she did! His hormones started to act up and cloud his thoughts, but then he tried Yama's breathing techniques again to try and ignore the weight on his back. Though it didn't help with the blush that colored his cheeks.
Akeno was surprised from the human's attempt to remain stoic at her actions. She figured that he would at least make some sort of objection to her action. Although, this did present her with a bit of a challenge. She had a sultry smile and her eyes lidded as she wondered how long Sean could keep up his resistance.
"Ara ara~ you've become all tense again. Should I start all over to get the other stiff areas?" She shamelessly suggested as she leaned forward onto her palms.
The added pressure increased the pain from Sean's tensed muscles. His face distorted as Akeno continued her massage, but the initial pain soon turned to relief. He couldn't believe that he could feel this relaxed. So relaxed that his eyelids were beginning to droop down until he fully rested his head on his crossed arms. Eventually, Akeno had finished with her massage and got off of Sean and his bed to stand on her own feet.
"So did you enjoy my services?" Akeno asked. However, she didn't get a response from the human. Curious, she took a closer look at Sean's prone, unmoving form. Though, upon further inspection, Akeno found out that he fell asleep. She could only giggle from the aftereffects of their session.
"It seems that it was too much for him~" Akeno thought while covering her smile with her mouth. She was planning on negotiating the terms of her payment, but she figured that would be a discussion for another time.
XXXXX
Sean roused from his slumber and stretched out his limbs. He stopped as he felt that his body was more refreshed than it had been in a while. He got out of bed and did some more stretching to test out his movements and he realized that not only was all of his previous pain was gone, but he actually felt a little energized after Akeno's massage.
Sean realized that he never properly thanked her for her help. He got dressed with a T-shirt and blue jeans then went out into the living room. The curtains were closed but he could see sunlight emanating from around the edges, meaning that he slept until morning.
"Man, she knocked me out cold with that massage, huh?"
"So Sean, was I right or was I right?" Izanagi asked his host, aloud since Akeno already left.
"Morning to you too, Izanagi."
"Yeah, morning. Now didn't I tell you you'd have a good time?" the Shinto god dismissed the morning greeting to get the more "important" matters.
Sean relented to Izanagi's questioning with a sigh. "OK, OK, yes. You were right. I did have a good time."
"See? So try to stop thinking about the "what ifs" and enjoy life. For humans, it's too short to worry about little things like that."
Sean chuckled at Izanagi's advice and starting preparing his breakfast. But before he got to the fridge, he noticed a note sitting on the counter dividing the living room and kitchen. Picking up the note, it read:
"Harris,
I meant to talk to you about the payment of our session, but you passed out before we had the chance. I've discussed this with Rias and she allowed us to settle the payment at the ORC clubhouse after school.
See you then,
Akeno
P.S. I hope you'll consider making a pact with me. Just call me when you get stiff again."
Sean sweatdropped at the postscript. "That girl loves her phrasing." He placed the note back on the table. With the matter of the payment set aside for now, Sean began to get ready for another school day.
XXXXX
OK! The most vocally hated chapter in the story has been revised! I hope you all will like this one better. Though, this one has been a bit over the place during the time I had to take with making the changes.
I can't tell you guys how relieved I am for finally getting this chapter updated! I was mostly distracted by the future of this fic that I couldn't focus on the present. On the plus side, I did come up with some interesting ideas for what to do in the future arcs.
As always, Follow/Fav/Review. Please review. Because I need to know if my stories are worth writing for you guys.
And one last thing, I like to thank a Wattpad author that has been helping me with my inspiration in writing this story! Their name is GeneratorRex20. Not only have they been giving me encouragement, but they also drew fan art about the gods and some moments of the story!
If you want to see them for yourself, go to their profile on Wattpad for "Art of Infinity DxD" or go to DeviantArt and go to their profile of the same username.
Anyway, that's it! See you guys next time!
