Now, now, I never thought this chapter would be so long in such. I thought it would reach 3k words, and in the end, it hit the double. Maybe I'mm really exaggerating on the narration, but, oh well, no action in this chapter, but some development. I hope you all enjoy. Stay golden~.
as always, Highschool dxd does not belongs to me.
Well, with my headache kinda out of the way, since that pill from Yoko-chan worked wonders on my body, I can finally do something productive with my day!
But no one is home, the dish is clean, I did all the paperwork right before my vacation, which is still running, and if I ever try to call for an new assignment, with all my freetime now, I would probably end it in a hour or so, and it's still morning. In other words, my whole day is a free day even if I try...
Sigh, okay... Let's exercise the brain, then. It has been a while since I last picked a book, since college if I remember correctly, so let's try something simple... Oh, how about the 48 Kyoto poems? Or feudal Japan history? Nah, let's pick this one, Kurosawa's biography, or maybe Divine Comedy?
...
Sheesh, no wonder people used to call me a caterpillar when I was little, look how many books I've read! How come I forgot that I used to be such a bookworm? Oh, look, metamorphosis! I used to read that to my children... And step-children all the time, no wonder Ichijou hate centipedes.
*DING-DONG!*
Oh, a visit right now, so soon? How curious. Whatever, I put the book back in the shelf, and put the usual black shirt with blue shorts to cover myself before I could answer the door. With that out of the way, I walked to the door, and opened it with no worries...
"Hello?"
"Good morning, Lady Anzu. How are you in this lovely day!" It's her! Rina-chan's mother, Alice!
"Err... Yeah, discarding the mind-breaking headache, I'm pretty fine, thank you, Alice-san. How about you? Doing fine?" I said. I didn't see her leaving the house, and I was kinda worried about it since she probably is still new here. Her Japanese is perfect, but she doesn't know anything else. I'm glad that she apparently went back home safely.
"I'm good as new, even more now that I've seen you today.". Aw~, Isn't she creepy in an adorable way? Seriously, we just met yesterday, and the way she talks to me is making me nervous. More embarrassed, actually. "Oh, my. Look at you, blushing like that. You're Ichijou's mother, after all."
"Huuuh~... Yeah." I mumbled under my breath. Sometimes is so uncool to be caught in such embarrassing state. I gotta stop this before I explode, so I took a step aside and pointed into my house. "So~... Welcome? Would you like a cup of tea or anything? Just no alcohol today, I will begin to work next week."
"Well, thank you. Nothing like some snacks and tea. I'm sure today's gonna be a good day." She bowed, took her way inside, dismissing her shoes at the entrance, Louboutin ones at that. There's still some tea on the fridge, and maybe some snacks too. "If you don't mind, Lady Anzu, I'll take my way to the living room, I hope you don't mind."
"Not at all. Make yourself at home!" I said as I headed to the kitchen to pick things up. I picked the tea jar, poured some in two clean cups and picked some snacks too.
Come to think of it, I wonder what Alice-San does for a living. I know she's not as young as she looks, having a teenage daughter at that, but since she can afford all of those pretty dresses plus those expensive jewelries and shoes, I guess she can be pretty rich. Is she a noble? A princess, even? But why would she be on Japan? Maybe she's an minister or at least married to one. That would make sense.
But after that week, I noticed that not only Rina-chan speaks fluent Japanese, but she's enrolled in Kuoh academy as well. How come? Unless... Oh, God. Don't tell me both are the daughters of the yakuza! Oh, what in the world!
*BAM!*
Ow~, I'm overthinking, and the headache hit me again. Nah, this can't be it. Both of them are too polite and fluffy to be considered mafia girls. But this makes me wonder a lot of things... I finally finished my little plate of snacks, so I walked towards the living room with it to offer some to Alice-San...
"Hey, Alice-san, there it goes. I hope you like lemon tea because that's all we got for now." I said, bringing the plastic plate full with candy to her. She was sat on my little table, typing on a notebook she pulled out of nowhere(no, seriously, where did that came from?!). Alice-san turned to me and smiled, picking one of the glasses to take a quick sip. I sat next to her and picked my own cup. "Whatcha doing?"
"Just taking a few seconds to download it and... Done! Here!" She passed me the computer, and after seeing the image on it, I almost spat on my tea: on the screen, there was a semi-naked young girl wearing a scanty devil outfit surrounded by other anime cute girls! And above them all, there was a title screen: 'Highschool Devil X Doki!'. Is that a game? "I was thinking that maybe we can play this game from a friend of mine! She's still developing it, but we can try the Beta-version! How about it?"
"Uuuuh~, it's not one of those erotic games creeps buy in Akiba, right?" That's a semi-serious-semi-rhetorical question. It looks like a creep's game, but the title screen seems innocent enough. I adjusted myself on my seat cushion and reached for the touchpad. Alice-san sat right next to me to look also at the screen. "Well... I got nothing better to do. So... Let's be adventurous for today. I'll try your game."
She smiled and clapped her hands in childish glee, while the only thing I could do was to smile at her behavior. Going like that, this game can't be all that bad. Okay, click the title screen, new Game, choose a file to save your data, and now the name of the protagonist... Would it be creepy if I go with Either Hajime or Ichijou? Yeah, yeah it would. So I picked the first name it came to my head...
"Huh~? Amano Ryuusei?" Alice-san said while creeping at the screen.
"Amano is my maiden surname. And Ryuusei... Well, that was the name Hajime wanted for Ichijou. I picked that one to remind me of him." I answered. I clicked at beginning and the opening narration started. Apparently, I'm a highschooler with not a single problem on my back and full of dreams of a fulfilling school year. So far, so good. Taking a bath, knowing the new school, going to the office to talk with the teachers and schedules, everything seems like a vanilla high school drama. But then...
'? - Hey, you! You're the heir of the Crimson King's legacy!'
Ryuusei - Eh...?'
"Eh...?" The protagonist is a faceless one, but I have the impression that we're sharing the same expression right now.
The girl with long red hair presented herself as Lisa Grimoire... Brrr! What a bad nostalgia! And she's the heiress of a powerful clan of demons in the underworld. Unfortunately though, after a 100-years war, the numbers of demons has decreased in a despairing level, so she's turning humans into Devils so that they won't go extinct. And apparently, I'm the host of the Dragon Flame, an ability that grants me the ability of one of the thirteen God Arms, weapons created by the elder gods to help humans in times of need, which homes the spirit of the Crimson Dragon of Domination, one of the two dragonic Paladins serving under the Dragon God Suophy...
...
...
Oh, my God! This went to 'average' to 'mind-blowing awesome' in just a couple of texts and sprites! This lore is just sweet! This means there are other God Arms around the story, right? I wonder if they're just as awesome as Dragon Flame! I wonder if I'll encounter this Dragon God Suophy as well! He seems like a powerful God! Maybe he's a giant dragon! And according to the description, I also have an eternal rival called the silver dragon of Supremacy! Oh, my!
I have a feeling Today might not be a boring day after all.
.
~~X~~
.
"Oh, my Gods, this can't be beef! It looks like it, but this size is out of this world!"
"I can't believe it either. This place must be pricey as all heck."
Me and Ren said to each other as we see that ginourmous piece of beef roosting right in front of us in that Korean pan. This is not just any barbecue, this is a feast of meat! This place also looks so expensive...
"Err... Serena-kaichou, doesn't that seem a little too bold?" I asked the smiling lady by the other side of the table. "I mean, I'm glad we're eating this, but isn't this place a little too expensive for a highschool student, even if she's the heiress of a devil clan in the underworld."
"Ah, chill out, Ichijou-kun. Let me tell you a story: not to long ago, this place was actually a ramen shop ran by a lower demon and her daughter." She said, putting herself comfortable on her seat and putting another fat piece of beef on the pan. "Lucia-chan was her name, and she wanted to give birth to the anti-Christ. Of course, my old lady didn't want any disturbance, and just it happened that Lucia-chan fell in love with the guy that would give her the anti-stuff. We sealed it's powers away and now they live a normal life with his harem. In return, the Sitri have good discounts here."
"What a story." I said, picking a piece of meat, putting it on some sauce and munching it down. A freezing chill ran down my spice, as they delicious flavor danced in my mouth. That beef was delicious! It's good to be... A resurrected devil, I dunno. "Wooow! This is delicious! I can die happy now!"
"And I can kill you happy now!" Ren said with that same expression and a piece of meat hanging from his mouth.
"Screw you, Ren!"
"Okay, but after we finish this!"
"Hell yeah!"
"You two have a great chemistry. Looks like someone is expanding the horizons of his harem." I rolled my eyes with that comment, while Ren only sighed, annoyed. This again. "Hey, I don't judge, but keep in mind that the devil society is kinda lacking those days. That's why we need harems in the first place. It's not a matter of games, but survival."
"Understood." I said with a gulp. Huh, this kinda makes sense. Lacking devil society equals more effort to produce babies for the future generations. The Phenex apparently don't have this kinda problem. I put another piece of stuffed cucumber on the frying pan, and waited for it to cook, taking another sip out of my soda. "Hey, kaichou, if you don't mind, how was your grandfather, Lord Genshirou? Rina once said that he was a better friend than Vali. Is that true?"
"Oh, right. Saji Genshirou, the true Prison Black Dragon King, and the only user whom was able to fully awaken Vritra. I heard big stories about. The devil who could have the world, yet chose a single woman." Ren said, taking his time to look like a sage old man while taking a sip out of his soda. Let me guess, that single woman is lady Sona. "He had a harem, but... Still faithful to a single one."
"And what a lucky woman gramma Sona was." Finished Kaichou, also sipping on her tea. More stories from the past. Gremory said stuffs about Sona Sitri, the revolutionary Heiress of the Sitri clan, creator of the Rating Game school for all classes of Devils in the underworld... And the so called 'hypocrite bitch' according to Nemesis-San. "Beautiful, smart, intelligent, she could fight gods in the same level during the Golden Era. Yeah, she was awesome..."
"Yeah, indeed."
"But also a hypocrite bitch..."
"What...?"
"Yeah..." And suddenly the aura around her became somber and gloomy, her eyes being shadowed by her blue bangs as she miserably was hanging a piece of meat about the pan. Wow, what the hell? " 'Equality for all', she used to say, yet, she refused to marry someone who wasn't smart as her... Lady Gremory and Miss Nemesis mock me all the time because of that. Gramps Genshirou had to learn at least five million combinations to win against her. Keep in mind, I'm her direct granddaughter, and our Lord Grandmaster Millicas, whom miss Nemesis is granddaughter of, was a little boy in that time..."
"..."
"Hypocrite bitch... Hypocrite bitch... Hypocrite bitch..." Let's turn back on topic, shall we? Seeing the super-heroine known as Serena Sitri depressed is kinda making me nervous. What the hell? Why am I feeling so down seeing others down?
"Hey, let's turn back on topic, shall we? I mean, I want to know about Lord Genshirou. His... Multiple Sacred Gears, the Vritra set." I said remembering that girl from today, Matsuoka Kiruko or something. She said that she had Vritra, and by his own presentation, I'm really dealing with the black prison dragon. I want to know everything about him and his sacred Gears. If that Rei guy could make a number on me and Yoko, who knows what her sisters may be capable of.
"Hey, Tsukino-kun~, what's troubling you?" Shock! She knows! She... Might know. Ahit, I lied about being a devil from my family for a whole month and a half, but I can't lie to Kaichou? That's really lame.
"Huh... You recall that guy from earlier and his sacred gear, right? Miyama Rei-kun, right?"
"The boy with the Panties golden Gigantuss Dragon King Fafnir's sacred gear, yes. Truth to be told, Fafnir disappeared during... You know what. I'm kinda glad that someone was able to create a sacred gear out of his soul." She said, sipping on her drink. A few seconds later, however, she shot her eyes open in realization. First the Vritra talk, now about Fafnir's sacred gear."Wait... Don't tell me that..."
"Yes, there's more of him, in Kuoh academy no less. A girl with the Vritra set..." I gulped. "Matsuoka Kiruko is her name. But she didn't seem interested in all of that. Still, I want to know everything about your grandfather, Lord Genshirou. I want to know about his sacred gear, how much he was able to control it, and how I can stop that girl..."
"I see. Well, Aria-san and Hwan Jin-young-dono did train you in order to at least defeat someone of their initial caliber. Unless she's able to enter Vritra Coronation, I can assume you, you'll be on the okays." She said so nonchalantly, I bit my lips on nervousness. Well, does she care about our school at all? Granted, she must be powerful, creating barriers with that amount of power and kicking a dragon scale mail with minimal effort. But I don't want to endanger no one in the vicinity. If she can do what Rei did to class 1-D... I clenched my fist in anger. No way I'm gonna let her do as her please. "Besides, we have Nemesis-San, the second youngest King in the Rating Game Rankings and Aria-San, one of the DxD children. No worries."
"He's worried about his boyfriend on his class." Ren said. I spit-take to that one, turning to him and tried to stab his hand with the nearby meat scissor. "What? I'm a ninja after all, your minimal body movement can say a lot about what you're thinking."
"Smartass..." I mumbled. Geez, he's worse than Nero-san, and he has a sacred gear specifically for that. I bet he can read minds as well. But... Yeah, that's an specific person I'm worried about. And that person is sitting right next to Matsuoka-san now. I turned back to Serena-kaichou. "But anyway, since I'm the closest to the threat, maybe some more information regarding the enemy is needed when the time comes."
"..."
"Oh great, five days with a homicidal manga-lover dragon and a royal dragon lady and I'm already talking like a gentleman out of a English movie."
"Seriously, Ichijou! One day I'll find the Sephiroth Graal and use it to finally figure what the hell you keep talking about once and for all!" Shut up, Ren.
"Compassion and strategy. Not bad. I kinda like that side of you." Kaichou said with a softer smile and picking one more piece of meat out of the pan. "You want to know, we can talk about it, no prob. I trust you. If the time comes, I know you'll try to do the right thing. However, let's eat, first."
"Yeah..."
"However, you want some more barbecue? Because maybe those around won't satisfy you two."
"What are you talking about? Those pieces ar-Gaaaaah...!" Oh, shit! I talked too much! Those meaty, fatty and delicious pieces of beef were now dry, skinny and burned pieces of ash. It doesn't even look like bacon, they're just... Black things that were once meat. In Serena-Kaichou's side, on the other hand, were saved and fat pieces of barbecue. "A-Ah~...!"
"Well, Congratulations, Ichijou! There's one more person in the world that hate your guts!" Ren said, pinching my cheek with his chopsticks. Oh, buddy, you have no idea...
"Now, you want barbecue, or maybe some ribs would be more of your liking?"
.
~~x~~
.
'Ryuusei - And as the flow of Crimson elixir left my body, I could only turn around and face my dearest lover... And also the most dreadful enemy. We shared so many moons together, yet, destiny torn us apart, like a thin, old bamboo against a typhoon. But, if we ever encounter ourselves in the afterlife, then maybe we can smile at each other again, laugh again, with all of our friends, without any chains holding us to face each other as enemies...
My eyes are heavy... I'm losing consciousness... My mind is goin blank... At least... I wanted to hear your voice one more time... My dear Valerie Lucifer...
BAD END.'
"Bullshit! That's bullshit! I collected all of her Dragon Blizzard parts so that the past possessors won't seduce her away and make her activate Distortion Drive! Why?!" And that was my response to another bad ending in Highschool Doki X Devil! What the hell! That's the tenth bad ending I got! First was being killed by SouSou because I didn't picked the Elixir of the Burning Bird! The other was when that Black witch killed me because I didn't activated Chaos Driver in time! And now I died because Ryuusei can't make the past possessors of Dragon Blizzard calm down and stop tryin to seduce Valerie into a berserk state, killing us both in a fight. I pouted. "Alice-San, this game cheats!"
"Well, indeed, there's so many death traps... But hey, at least you got one happy ending, remember?" Alice-San, sipping on her tea, said with an uneasy smile.
"Yeah, being transformed into a octopus monster and molest the heroines for all eternity." I gave her a sardonic grin. Really, that ending was sick. I almost stopped before I knew it was actually just one of several other endings. "Seriously? Who the hell come up with these ideas?!"
"..."
.
~~ Not long ago...~~
.
'No, Alice. I won't turn Tsukino Ichijou into a tentacle porn monster...'
'Aaaw~? Why not? Think of all the possibilities, the fun!'
'The fact that Cohen will decapitate you with his bare hands if he ever find out that you even THINK of doing that...'
'...'
'Not such a hot idea now, huh?'
'Worth it!'
'Leave me the Fuck alone!'
.
~~Now...~~
.
"Yeah... What a sick world..." Alice-San finished with a smile that I can only call it bullshit. Well, not worth crying now. The story is so interesting and intense, t just keeps me going. Now, now... From the last saving, We were having a Ranking Duel with Maximilian Bourne, Lisa's cousin, and his punches can cause earthquakes and disasters, but since I'm using the Ultimate Flare Armor, I should be fine...
'Ryuusei - Suddenly, the earth began to tremble, as from the shadows, a great, Black Bull Emerged from nowhere! What is this?!
Max - Behold, host of the Dragon Flame! This is the Minotaur! I've collected his lost soul after his defeat by Perseus, and now, he has become my Pawn! Now, face my new power!
[CHAOS BRINGER: BULL HORN BURST ACCEL!]'
...
"Bullshit! Valerie said only The Dragons of Domination and Supremacy could have an ultimate Flare armor and Nordic Armor!" I said, as I saw Maximilian's body being covered by an black armor and then launched himself onto me! Oh, crap! And then... Sudden blackness! Another bad end?!
...
[I, WHO SHALL AWAKEN...]
Wait, it's not game over yet... Oh, no! I remember that! That's the chant for the Distortion Drive! Oh, no, last time, I almost killed Arina and Lisa!
[AM THE FLARE DRAGON THAT BURNS THIS WORLD TO RETURN IT ANEW!]
Oh, no! Oh, no! No, no, no! Nononono! C'mon, I chose the 'fight spirits' option, while the others were 'let them win the match!'. I remembered what happened last time, and I won't let it happen again! Let's do it!
'Ryuusei - [I, who shall awaken, am the Flare Dragon that rejected resurrection and put the burdens of this world on his shoulder...]
[I LAUGH AT THE FLAMING INFERNO, I ENVY THE COLD UNIVERSE...]
'Ryuusei - [By having infinite light and warm, my flames burn away the darkness and look out on those precious to me!]
[I SHALL BECOME THE DOMINATING INFERNO FLAME DRAGO...]
Ryuusei - [I shall become the true Aster-King Dragon, and I promise you all! I shall illuminate the path that leads to the warm heaven!]
- You've unlocked [OMNI SOLARIS DRACO!] -
"Yeah! I did it!" I said, now in a tone rivaling Alice-san in childish euphoria, as Ryuusei reached a new level in his Dragon armor! After a fierce battle, Lisa was declared the winner, and I became a middle-class demon, the screen saying that I've unlocked new routes! Yes! I did it! I let myself fall one back as I rested it on the floor. "Woooh! Not a happy ending yet, but I think I'm doing some progress!"
"Indeed, the beta would be ending soon, but you've been doing a great job with it, Lady Anzu." Alice-San said, looking at me from the sofa, as a new CGS shot appeared. Oh, right, I have an album of those, usually when something big happens between me and the heroines, sometimes more than one. Not that I care that much. "Oh-hoh~... You unlocked a hot flag with Lisa~! She said that durin the bath, she's all yours~!"
"Ahah~? Let's see." I got up, facing now a sprite of a naked Lisa-chan asking in a really tsundere way to stop staring a decide what should I do next. The options were 'back-washing'; 'Make-out sessions' and 'I can't contain my instincts any longer, so I launched myself onto Rina and poured my hard, bursting love into her cave as she exploded in ecstasy'...
...
...
Meh, I'll go with the last. Last time, I got a bad end because I chose just a kiss and one idiot out of nowhere killed me saying I was unworthy of Akina's affection(seriously, how rude...)
*CLICK!*
'Rina - Nyah~! Ryuusei~! Don't be so harsh! I know that I said anything but be gentle...! But.. If it's with Ryuusei, I guess it's okay.'
"And I unlocked a new CGS and I earned affection points with Lisa. So much for a servant, eh?" I said, skipping the indecent parts(really, they're kinda creepy), and saved once more. Phew, what an evening. I poured some more Tea and drinking it as the title screen again appeared on the computer. With a 'New!' Warning on the gallery option.
"Well, the game is rolling good and smooth, not to mention you said you were enjoying it. I'm glad that Absinthe-chan's work is moving forward." Alice-San sighed, staring at the screen until it faded to black, sleep mode at that.
"Yep... The story is good too. To think just because I got a God Arm a beautiful girl would like me like that. But I wonder if she really likes Ryuusei."
"..."
"Ahahahaha~ just kidding. It's just a game, right? Sorry. Gosh, I'm so embarrassed." I said nonchalantly, trying to wash away that creepy remark. I really just sounded like one of those creeps around Akiba who usually by this game. But out of the sudden, Alice-san's smile and eyes became gloomy, sad, as she sighed again. Oh-hoh, did I touched a sensitive subject? "Errr... Alice-San?"
"Hey, Lady Anzu... You remember what I said before, right? What do you think about our children hanging around around each other." She said in a very calm, almost robotic tone. I was taken by surprise, and gulped down the uneasy feeling, my only response being a quick nod. "What I meant by that is... My daughter genuinely likes Ichijou. So, so very much... And that's so rare in our family."
"H-Hah...?" I was at lost at words. So... Is she a child of an arranged marriage? That's kinda harsh.
"You see... From where I come from, my family is known for being one of the most lovable and altruist in the whole place... But that's far away from the truth." She said in a really heavy tone. "My grandaunt, specially, was the most wicked, evil and manipulative person that ever existed."
"I'm so sorry for hearing that..."
"Kinda ironic, right? Some say that she was a kind soul that would accept anyone as her servants and friends, but in reality, she would only pick people with some influence that were in the worst by the time, and treat them a little better. From trash to objects of decoration." She said. "The daughter of a governor; one of the two last heiress of a good family; the knightness with an exceptional blade and skills, a knight with a special ability, one of the guards of a huge empire, the heir of great influence and eyes, an expert Medical maiden... And her husband, a strong warrior that would do anything if bribed a little. My great-grandfather wasn't any better: he married an enemy in order to gain more power under her eyes."
"Oh... I'm so sorry to hear that." I repeated, And I really am. Is she telling me that her family were a bunch of sociopaths disguised as nice people? That's pretty sad. I know my family isn't perfect, but to have those kinds of problems... Brr. "But... Why are telling me that?"
"Well, my daughter, Berolina Gremory, really loves her. She idolizes our name, and still thinks her great-grandaunt was a kind, lovable lady, so..." She reached for my face with her hands, and again, sandwiched my face in between them, spoke with genuine care and love. "No matter what she says, no matter what she calls Ichijou or the rest of her friends, no matter what she does to all of them... She really, really loves Ichijou and the rest, no malice at all. And, to be honest, you're a great friend of mine."
"We just met yesterday."
"I know people who know and hate me for decades because of my name. That's why my family and I rather be in this world. You don't know what I am, but who I am." She said in a rather sad tone, letting go of my face and now supporting her elbow on my shoulder, in a rather relaxed way. "I'm not my great-grandaunt's Great-grandniece, nor my great-grandfather's descendant, just Alice Gremory, your friendly fellow mother and shipper aficionado."
"So... You are here... So that you can start over and make some friends?"
"Huuuh~... Yeah. You can say that."
"Well, rich and melodramatic... You sure is a Tricky bastard, Alice Gremory." I said warmly, cupping and caressing her face. Yeah, she's definitely melodramatic and kinda pathetic. What a drama queen, but thank goodness she's rich, I can ask her some 'gifts', like a new car, or maybe a private island. Just kidding. "Just kidding, I'll remember that. My Ichijou wouldn't be friends to people he doesn't like. If anything, he'd shove her away. Staying this close to him already says how much he likes her, so no worries."
"..." She looked at me with those melancholic eyes again, and smiled, childishly again. "Yeah! When your son marries all of his girls, I'll be sure to have an VIP place for you!"
"..." Well, it's not like my son is the protagonist of an visual novel, but whatever, maybe she'll be a nice couple with Rina-chan. "Yeah, okay, let's put gloomy auras aside and complete this game."
"Yes, indeed." And she simply let go off me and turned back to her seat on the sofa, looking at the screen as I loaded the new file. I wonder with whom(or how) I'll end up with this time. "By the way: Valerie killed you because she was still suffering from the dragon-killer venom."
*BAM!*
I hit myself on the table... Of course! Of course the reason was the dragon-killing poison! I'm such an idiot!
.
~~x~~
.
"Ah~... Nothin but a quick barbecue and ribs to cheer me up."
"Thanks, Kaichou. Sorry about the bill. I promise I'll repay you... Someday."
"Nah, I invited you two. No worries." And she smiled at us as we left the barbecue and headed home. I bought a cake from the nearby cake store to cheer the girls and my mom up, since they're probably worried about the classes ending earlier today.
"I shall leave you now, Tsukino Ichijou. Remember, if nothing happens tomorrow, you'll take me to a tour around Kuoh." Ren said it before vanishing in another gush of leaves and wind, probably an escape ninja technique. I gave him a tongue out in mockery.
"Are you two dating or something? Oh my, what a relationship of you two." Serena-Kaichou said with a playful giggle, with I turned an aside glance for her, and sighed.
"The only think I want to wrap around him is my hands on his neck. Still, he IS my escort, so until the job is done, I can't complain."
"Yeah. I wonder why miss Nemesis didn't pick me to do the job..." Oh, Kaichou, trust me when I say is better not to know. "She must really trust you, huh?"
"Y-Yeah..." I waved her a goodbye before some awkward stuff could be spilled out of my mouth, and walked home. However, when I turned around, I saw Kaichou following me. "Hey, Kaichou... You know me, I won't go to any bars or anything, c'mon..."
"I know. I'm just feel like stalking you, and when a bad guy shows up, I'll be there to save you." Y'know, after a while, that kind of mentality kinda makes sense. Let's see, we got Gremory, Annie, Tasha, Aria-San, Nero-San, Yagura, Ginko-san, Ren and now Rei. She's right, I need a bodyguard for now. Well, I mean, everybody needs that. "Besides, I want to know if where Rina used to live was all good and fluffs."
"I have the impression that she'd live there regardless if it was a dumpster." I said. Comparing to the Gremory household, my humble home kinda is a dumpster. "As long as I'm there, that is."
"What a thing to say about your king. Although she does cross the line sometimes." Serena-Kaichou wondered. Then she stopped, and crossed all the way around me to turn around and stop right into my face. "Hey, Ichijou-kun, can I ask you something? What Ren-kun said, is it true?"
"Eh...?"
"You learned all of Gramps's moves and techniques... So that you could protect a girl... Or boy, you're in love with, in your class?" She asked again, smiling like it was nothing wrong. Hearing that, however, made me cringe and shiver. How to respond to that? I'm probably gonna screw up if I ever lie, so my only choice is... To lie. Nah, I can't escape.
"Y-Yeah... You can say that..." I said. My sense of self-worth suddenly went all the way down. As much as I'm in love with Kamiyama, admit that I want to prevent myself just so that I could protect her kinda feels dirty to me. I'm ashamed.
"Hey..."
"What...?"
"So, can you have an affair with me?" She said, as she came closer and hugged me, pulling me closer to her chest! Oh, what?! An affair... With her?! But I'm not even in a relationship yet! No, that's not the problem here!
"K-Kaichou, what the hell is this?!" I asked, my instincts trying to push her away, but my heart liking this soothing, calm gesture. She just giggled.
"Well, you said that you wanted to protect that girl you like, right? So~, if I also become your lover, maybe you'll rescue me anytime, right?" She said in a playful tone, pulling me closer. What kind of logic is that? Is she toying with my heart? That's not cool, not at all.
"Huh~... I know you can protect yourself, Kaichou. After all, you're a Sitri..." I said, not fighting anymore, blushing in between her breasts. I hate when they do this, but also kinda like. It remembers me of mum.
"It's true. So maybe I just want you to be around me in any time of need. Just kidding..."
"That's not funny Kaichou... Not at all..."
"Well, protecting the ones you care about is funny, don't you agree?"
...
But protect those who are dear to me... That's not a bad idea... Again, not at all...
We bid our goodbyes, and again, I was all alone all the way home, the sun still up high in the sky, and no one around due to the commercial hour around here. I hope Ryuubi is doing fine on her errands, not to mention Tasha. I wonder where she went. I sent a message for her, and apparently, she's buying some stuff with Ryuubi. I just hope she don't pull her to the perv side of the force...
I'm still smelling like Kaichou. If my sisters ever know it, I'm screw it. But that hug was kinda nice, she's was nice and warm... It has been a while since I was this close to a woman... Excluding the soap-landing with Tasha and Ryuubi, of course. I'm smiling like an idiot now. What the hell is wrong with me~...
"Mom, I'm home..." I said at the entrance door, dismissing my shoes and picking my indoor ones. The place was kinda dark, but at least I could see her appearing from the footless frame of the living room, walking towards me.
"Oh, Ichijou. Welcome back." Mum said, walking towards me, her eyes a little brighter than usual and without her typical frown after or during the hangover. "I got the call from school, I'm so glad that you're oka-..."
"Mom...?"
"I'm so... So gla-..."
*TUM!*
"MOM!" And it happened: right in front of my eyes, my mother missed a step and, like a ragdoll, landed on the floor, immobile! What the hell happened! I ran to her and reached for her on the floor, turning her around to face her. She was all right from my standpoint, so why?! "What happened?! Mom! Mom!"
"Ichijou..." She said, reaching for my face. I picked her hand with all of my strength, and my eyes were already blurry. Oh, God, what happened?!
"What?! What is it?!"
"My... My... My legs are dormant..." She said, sniffing a little and coughing. "So sorry for that... I was playing games too much today..."
"..."
"Sorry..."
*SLAP!*
"I deserve that..."
"You bet you do! Goddamnit, mom!" I said, as tears ran down my cheeks as I hugged her on my chest. Shit! Don't scare me like that, mom! I hate you! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!
"Sorry, but my legs really are messed up now. Should've known better." She sighed, patting my head and back. "Oh, you brought cake. That's good. There's someone that would be really happy to see that..."
"What...?"
"Did someone say 'cake'?" And appearing from that same place there was the redhead demon candy lover! She invaded this sacred place again! And she's coming this way! "Oh! Ichijou! And cake! What a lovely combination! Here! Let me pet you, my dear serv-...!"
*TRIP!*
"Oh...!"
"Oh, no...!"
*BAM!*
*SMASH!*
*BOING BOING!*
This is really, really getting annoying...
"Sowwy~, lazy legs, I was sitting there this whole time..." She said next to my ear. I would retort that, by unfortunately my face was buried into mom's bosom. Now I noticed how flat she is compared to other girls.
"Then Don't go around running like that, stupid Alice-San..." Thank you, mom. You're the best...
"Aaaw~..."
That's really awkward... Really, really awkward... Yet, somehow, warm, and good. I like this... Somehow...
To protect those I care about, huh?
"Hey... Lady Anzu, did you paused the game...?"
"..."
'No~! Ryuusei-kyun~, that's my a**hole~! I want your big and meaty stick on my little cave of wonders~!'
"Errr... Mom?"
"Oh, shit! Oh, shit!" And out of the sudden, my mom shoved me away and try to get up and run to the living room, however, her legs left her as she tripped again. Lady Gremory did the same, and the same happened to her. I stood up myself to see what was going on...
"Errr... Mom?"
"Don't go to the living room! For the love of God, don't go there!" My mom said in a crying tone, as she crawled like a legless cockroach to the living room, where I could still hear some indecent noises. However, Lady Alice leaned herself onto her and grabbed her by the waist. "What the... Alice-San, let me go!"
"You promised me!" And now crying too, lady Gremory said facing my mother. "You promised that I could trust Rina with Ichijou! In any way possible! Let him see! Let him see and learn!"
"uuh~... See and learn what?" I know I don't really want to hear the answer, but this isn't normal at all, and it's really bugging me now. Lady Alice turned to me, but my mom, in a moment of hysteria, kicked her right in the cheek!
"Nothing, nothing! Stay away from the living room! I'm sorry. Alice-San, but my son is too pure for that!"
"Let him become dirty! Let him get corrupted! Only then he'll be ready to face the true men's World! THE TRUE MEN'S WORLD!"
"NEVAAAAH...!"
And they continued with this little conversation, while I was kinda having the feeling of watching a beetle fight in Shinjuku. I'm dumbfounded, I have no words for now, I could only watch. Sigh... Does this really worth protecting?
...
...
No, it isn't.
Just kidding.
Yeah, pretty long chapter with no fights but a good development in between chapters. And for those who like either sona or Rias, well, I have you know that I love them both, really, but sometimes I think rias lacks to be issei's grilfriend, same goes for sona and saji. I rather other ones, I think they're not worth the efforts their pawns do for them, just that. Still pretty classy ladies for me, though. I hope you all liked the chapter.