Yeah, not much to say about this chapter but to deliver some exposition and build up drama for the new chapters ahead. 9k words in just that. I hope I did a good job.
Like always, dxd does not belong to me~
"What?" It was all I could muster after that question. I mean, really, what? Is she asking me to be part of her peerage? Wait, is that even possible? I know Gremory said something about 'trading', in which two Devils can trade their pieces for another one, but... Is she really considering trading with me?
"You heard me, Sekiryuutei. I can make you reach strength and influence better than you can ever archive staying with Berolina's peerage. Ludger might not be the one true heiress of the clan, but since the death of the Supreme Lord Zekram has thinned the links between the one true Great King clan and the other families, I guess that Ludger can take you under his wing with the Bael name and then train you in order to reach higher grounds." She said, putting now her hands on her hips and flicking her hair into the air. "In exchange, not only I'll have the one true Crimson Heavenly Dragon by my side, I'll also be known as the one devil that crafted the strongest Sekiryuutei that ever lived, even better than the Hero of the Underworld, Issei Hyoudou. So... Be mine, Ichijou Tsukino."
She extended and offered a hand to me. First, she's a total bitch, insulting me, my mother and senpai, making Yoko's lunchbox go to waste for nothing, and calling me trash. Now, she wants me into her peerage after all of that. Of course I would say no, but instead, I stayed quiet. No... No?
Someone... Stronger than senpai. That would be awesome. Gremory used to say a lot of his own abilities, how he could simply stomp so hard on the ground that it would create craters and level mountains, how he defeated his opponents with not just brute strength and his own sacred Gear, but also by using his brain and lucky shots, how he was able to defeat someone as fearful and dreadful as Lord Rizevim Livan Lucifer and be able to simply destroy his Sacred Gear Canceler. He was already someone worthy by his second semester as a second year, while I haven't even reach Balance Breaker and just a few times won against someone probably weaker than me.
Is that how... Annie feels like? Being stuck with people around you and having your time when you could be just outside training your ass off so that you could become someone useful or worthy? Well, I do want to become stronger, but at what cost? Abandoning Gremory, Tasha and Ryuubi, just like Annie did? After all, they ARE more experienced than me, therefore my presence there is quite irrelevant, like Ludger said, and while I would have to stand her bitchy attitude, she did say I'll become stronger than senpai if I take her hand and accept her proposal. Someone stronger than the Hero of the Underworld. If I take her hand, I no longer will have to be just 'the Sekiryuutei' or 'Issei's Legacy'. Even more, people will recognize me as the strongest of them all, and that's what I want... Kinda. Eisha, Belzard, senpai and the others... Stronger than them...
However, again, if I take her offer, what will happen to me? As a person? Will I become just a decoration for her? I've learnt so much with my little group, and even if I hate to admit it, I got the biggest memories out of them, even if sometimes they were kinda painful. If I take her hand, right here right now, no longer I'll have to worry about getting beating or ridiculed for being weak, and I'll grow stronger and stronger, while 'Ichijou' will slowly rot away, becoming the 'Strongest Sekiryuutei ever'. I won't be friends with anybody anymore. I can just leave Gremory and her shenanigans, leave Kuoh and it's crazy events, leave the human world with only a few people that like me, and make 'Ichijou' disappear, turning myself into 'the Strongest Sekiryuutei ever'. That would be cool, right?
What do I have to lose, anyway?
...
...
...
"I refuse." And so, even after all of that, my resolution came stronger, and I slapped that hand away. She didn't even blink for that, just sighed and returned the affected hand on her waist.
"What a fool, you're just like the previous Sekiryuutei: a sentimental mongrel. Rather than take the hand, you rather walk on the unknown path that could pretty much lead you to your doom." She said, taking a wet wipe out of her pocket to wash her hand with. "What makes you refuse my proposal? It's not Berolina Gremory, because you wouldn't have lost the Rating Game against Nemesis otherwise, nor your little peerage, which shown to be on a higher level than you. So... What is it? What's your resolve that prevented you the certain future as the 'Strongest Sekiryuutei', someone that could pretty much rival Gods in just a few years?"
"I dunno." I answered, such a simplistic reply made her show emotions for the first time as she wilded her eyes in surprise. "I really don't know. Maybe I'm really an idiot. A idiot that likes to have fun with people rather than being a boring someone that, while it can be the strongest, there's no one around to be happy about."
"...?!"
"I mean... Senpai wasn't anything special since the beginning. He was just someone that was lucky enough to be born with a Longinus Sacred Gear. Lady Rias wasn't a tyrant with rigid training, either." I said, remembering everything both Raven and Annie told me about senpai and the others. "I don't know the whole story, but she went to the human world so that she could be just... Herself. Not a Gremory, nor the little sister of Lord Sirzechs, the satan Lucifer, but just... Rias. So... Even if senpai knew about what she was since the beginning, I guess It wouldn't make a difference from the start. They would still fall in love with each other, wouldn't they? So... It wasn't her name, but herself, and it wasn't her training, but the will of senpai who made him what he was."
"So you're saying you can reject the name of Bael. This is irrelevant for what we're discussing right now." She said, now staring directly at my soul. I could feel a mixture of pain and sorrow coming from her, I don't know why or how. "But I have you know, out of our generation, the youngest and weakest King is indeed Berolina Gremory. Even if she really matures and becomes a clone of Rias Gremory, her power won't be enough to make you reach your full potential. Generations passes and learns from their predecessors's mistakes and flaws, and when I say this, even if she reaches Lady Rias, she'd be long passed by others, stomped and crushed, and you'll be like her, for having such a lowlife and worthless King, who has only a name and a lineage."
"Well, then... Might as well grow with her." I am kinda losing the grip of what I want to say. Poetry classes are kinda helping, but if continue like that, I might bore her to death. After all, I don't know anyone that much but... That's the reason I want to stay at Gremory's peerage. "I mean, you did say generations passes and learns from mistakes of the past... Doesn't mean she can also."
"..."
"Look, what I'm trying to say is... Shit, what was it again... I can reach my full potential myself, and I want to do it the way I want." I finished, taking a deep breath and sweating a bit. Oh, crap. I'm going full 'shounen hero talker' here. Since when Am I so noble? "I'd accept getting you to train me, but for me to become the strongest just for the sake of others... No, thanks. I rather become stronger for others. To fight not just for them, but also with them. Not be a bother, but a companion. And you're right, I'm not the son of someone important or have a special snowflake quality, but that's the reason I want to become stronger even more: to show people like you that I can surpass expectation!"
"...!"
"And even if Rina's the weakest King, she can also surpass those expectations, all while having fun like someone our age. We can live eternities, anyway. After all, everybody else has their ways to become stronger, I can learn from them too, so can her. So... I refuse your proposal, Ludger Bael."
"..."
"Also, you're kind of a bitch."
Yeah... I want to become stronger, but not for the sake of being the strongest. Maybe that's one of the reasons I want to become stronger: to walk besides others without feeling like a bother, a load. They are powerful, well, I can also be. After all, all I need to do is wait ten seconds, and if... When I reach Balance Breaker, not even that! I'll be the Sekiryuutei Ddraig and senpai can be proud of, the Sekiryuutei that can reach and fight alongside his companions, the Sekiryuutei that can show that he can be worthy with whichever path he choose to walk, the Sekiryuutei that can reach higher and higher and serve not just as an idol, but a paragon, like Senpai and Lord Sairaorg were in their time! And Gremory can also have her shine, and when she wakes up from her coma, might as well teach her too, that she can be stronger than Lady Rias, that she can be herself!
Heheh... Maybe my time at the springs cleaned up my mind better than I was expectin- Oh, crap! It's all coming back! No! No, no, no! Get away! Get away! I don't want to remember!
"Fool... You're just a fool thinking like that. Fantasies won't take you anywhere, only to a early death and suffering when they're crushed right in front of you." So she's still thinking like that. Whatever, I've said what I wanted to say, so there's no more reason to work my ass for her stupid way of thinking.
"Look, I don't care what you think about me or my resolution. If you want to talk about anything, just wait until today's Trial. Until then, leave me alon-..." I turned to give her my best 'piss-off' stare, but I stopped mid-sentence when I saw it: she was crying again. Her expression stoic as ever, but even so, salty water was running down her cheeks. She blinked a few times, and apparently just now noticed that. Out of instinct, I reached a hand for her. "Ludger-San..."
"Don't touch me." However, Ludger slapped it away and covered her crying face away from me. She picked that same tissue and dried the tears away. "Don't get any ideas, Sekiryuutei. This is just an allergic reaction. It has been some time since I killed my emotions in order to gain such power. Those are... Nothing too much."
"Killed... Your emotions." I blinked one eye out of reflex, and she crossed her arms and straightened her posture to bypass a sense of superiority. She's shorter than me, so I guess it didn't make such an impact she was aiming for. Her lack of expressions, however, was already another story.
"Elites don't need to cling on such childish concepts. The strongest walks alone, or at least by others with ulterior motives. Someone who was once a human could never understand this, since weak creatures such as them need companions to walk straight. I don't need it... At all." She said, now aiming all of her emotions and contempt towards me. I felt my heart a little heavy due to her wave of negativity, but at least tried to stand up against it. She sighed once more, and turned around, walking away not before telling me this. "I have you know, I'm not doing this for your sake, but for the sake of the Sekiryuutei's legacy. As well as the safety of this school, which's under attack by the five dragon kings. If you don't do something about it, they will, and you might not like the results, Sekiryuutei."
And with that, she left me be. Why I keep talking with her, anyway, she's stuck-up, like really stuck-up. Rei-chan tried to be like that, and failed, but this girl... Ludger Bael, she might be one of those that doesn't like a good chat, rather avoid anyone unless it's absolutely necessary. Come to think of it, since they're royalty, Alice-san and Nemesis-san would also be like that in the end, yet, they're not, not THAT much at least. Maybe it's the Gremory genes in them, maybe it's their interactions in the human world, I personally don't know, but I'm glad that they're like that.
Now that I think about it, I did say some pretty epic lines back then, yet, I don't know how I'm gonna do it. Maybe it was just the blood boiling at the time, but as long as I believe in myself, I'll be good for now, right? Aria-san and Hyung will never reject a chance to fight me and beat my ass, and maybe talk with Rei-chan about the Issei era(ugh, I'm still not used to this.) will also help me improve. Still, maybe Lord Calico is right, I think too much. For now, I defeated one of the Dragon Kings will little to no repercussions, so maybe others, if not myself, will do much better.
Well, here I am, monologuing like there's no tomorrow. Who'd have thought that, maybe I'm really pushing this protagonist thing, like Miyama would say...
"Hey, Ren, what do you think?" I said, turning to a random direction and squinting my eyes to see the fair outline of a camouflage in a random wall. Turns out, however, that he was actually hiding on the ceiling, as he descended from there and landed in front of me.
"I'd say that you need a little of ham in all that cheesiness." He said with a faint grin, now extending his arm and resting his elbow on my shoulder, supporting his body there. "In all honesty, like I've said before, you're you. You do what you got to do, and leave the rest. That's also a ninja thing: we're just everyday folks doing their jobs, no questions asked, never compromise. That's a ninja's motto."
" 'You're you'... You know who said that once? Your sister." I said, while he gave me a look that mixed disbelief and boredom.
"I can't believe she got so hammy as well. Maybe it was because she was walking with you, guys." He sighed. Huh, if only he knew it was actually from her that I got a lot more emotional and passionate. Thinking about it, it was after her training I got use to scream a lot. Oh, great, now I'm turning nostalgic. I should really relax more, this is an old man's thing. "Whatever, let's eat our lunch and be done with our patrol."
"Unfortunately, she destroyed my lunchbox." I said. Ren then passed me a curry sandwich. "Huh... Thank you."
"You're welcome."
And so we began our little journey to walk around and talk like old friends. What Ludger said is still hammering my mind a little, but I'm sure that someone in our group can take care of whatever comes when I won't be able to do it. I wonder... How's Miyama gonna get what she calls it a 'bigger force'?
.
~~x~~
.
"So, what I'm trying to ask you is... Could you please kill the students of some classes in this school, Miss Annabelle Hellsing?"
"Sure."
It was one of the strangest encounters of my life, mainly because it were them who came to me. It all started not long ago, when I was paying a little visit to good old Kuoh, to find something to eat and maybe pay a little visit to some... Old acquaintances, after all, this place is filled with traps thanks to my... Brother Ren, so I needed to not only disable some of those, but also avoid drawing unwanted attention.
When I was about to pick a fallen lunchbox some loser wasted, I was surprised to be discovered immediately by a strange girl with short white hair and strange orange eyes, who was strong and fast enough to disarm and spar with me for a long time. She said that, if I'm interested, her group might want to contract my 'services'. Out of curiosity, and for the fact that she also offered me some good food, I followed her to the old building. Surprisingly or not, the misdirection spell was lifted from the place, so it became just an old building. The girl, her name was Madaraki Eiko or something, guided me to inside of the old building, and once there, I met the leader of their little Group, Miyama Rei.
We exchanged some words and greetings, and then he explained to me: he wanted to eliminate something known as 'Ultimate Evil' in Kuoh Academy, and for that, he must find a special someone within the students here. I asked him why to kill if a possible candidate might be one of them, and his vague response was just a shrug and Miyama saying that 'special someone' would survive his games. That whole 'mass murder on class 1-D' was just to find it, and he might have, but nothing concrete. So my job would be to kill as much as students I can in order to find this special snowflake amount them. And of course, being a ninja, I accepted...
... Not.
"Just kidding. To kill everyone in this school. I don't know if you're stupid or just plain naive, but the daughter of the current Lucifer is the headmistress here, not to mention that the student council president is also a powerful devil." I said, crossing my arms and legs on the sofa the previous occult research club used to sit on. Kinda ironic. He, who was with his feet on Lady Rias's table, also shrugged. "Besides, I might be a ninja, but attacking such important people might not only taint the name of my village, but also mark me as a SSS-class terrorist. This means the entire three factions will be at my ass."
"This is a risk we have to take, miss Annabelle. After all, only the ultimate Evil knows where my father lies, and when we figure it that out... We'll kill him." And another one with father issues. However, I heard about this, the Miyama house, that particular experience laboratories that used to create and experiment humans in order to evolve them further and into God-like beings. I thought it was just an old fairytale Devils would tell their children, but apparently not. "Besides... I'm aware of your current objective. Killing the current Vampire King isn't also an act of terrorism?"
"...!"
*VOOSH!*
*CATCH!*
"Don't be too harsh, I know you're not that kind of character." He said as he nonchalantly picked my flying kunai in his direction in midair. He's smart and also pretty fast, no wonder he can control one of the Dragon Kings, the Golden panties Gigantiss Dragon Fafnir. He threw my knife to a random direction, and put himself straight on his chair. He threw in front of me a small card with a little caricature of me, and spoke. "Now, let's get down to business. I read in your bio that your current objective is to become the Vampire King by Killing the Current one and take his place. Now that the Carmilla and Tepes faction are in peace since they were all near extinction once, they're now accepting anyone who's strong enough to lead them. Currently, the vampire Lord is Nosferatu Black who, despite his age, can still hold himself in a fight. However... Can he defeat five dragon Kings?"
"..." I continued to quietly listen to him, picking that little card in front of me only to discover in shock there was an entire bio of me there. Blood type, height, weight, birthday, you name it, it was there. Who is this guy? What is this guy?
"We don't have much money to pay for your service, but how about a trade?" He said, leaning forward and making his sick-green bangs cover part of his eyes of the same tone. "You kill everybody in this school, leaving only those you couldn't, and we help you pass through the royal security plus the ninjas and Kill the Vampire King."
"Deal." I said with a smirk. Oh, I get it now. I don't actually understand their motives to want everyone dead here, but as long as it doesn't concern me, and to top it all, can help me achieve my objectives, of course I would accept it.
"Glad to hear that. We can provide you with food and a home, plus someone for you to train with, while doing your job and, when the time comes, we'll help you against Lord Nosferatu." He said, throwing his gaze elsewhere as he extended his hand to me. Now, everything I gotta do is accept his hand, and maybe my dream will come true.
I have nothing to lose, right? When I'm done with all of this, not only I'll be the Vampire King, but also the Future Kaguya, the ninja protector of the village. And when this happens, mom and dad won't have a choice but to obey me, and then become a couple again. So that we can finally live together as a bunch of psychos...
After all this time I lost with Gremory's little group, I need something of a handicap or backup to help me out. It's just unfair that only Lord Nosferatu got to have his security. Not to mention, they'll probably tighten the protection around campus after all this ruckus is over and the meeting comes closer. In short, I really need this help, and this came in a good time...
I'm a ninja. Never compromise, no questions asked, no bonds. Just you and your blade. Tons of us comes and goes, so we better don't bother about it at all. Those who I once call 'my peerage' were just stepping stones, and once I'm done with them, of course I would disband from them and follow my own path. Never thought it would be this early, though. I am a lone wolf, and I'm willing to do anything, even abandon those I pretended to care about to reach my goals...
After all, Gremory was all talk, talk, talk, her incessant talking about Lady Rias, Lord Issei and those other things no one cares about anymore, her childish and stupid behavior, her cursed-to-be-doomed plans and works and just plain stupidity... But she was also quite supportive on me, took me to a good place to train and live, didn't have any hard feelings about my insults and she was pretty kind and fun to be around, even if I'm not like Lord Gasper.
Tasha was a pain in the ass, with her non-stop barrages of dirty jokes, impressive rack and aloof attitude. The think I hate the most is the fact that I can't read a person, and she was so mysterious and quiet she just generally pisses me off... Then again, she did know for what I was fighting about, and cared about me as a family. She read my mind like a book, and she does care about what I think, so much she didn't even tried to stop me.
Liu Bei, fun incarnate. Her long speeches are really tiring and sometimes I just wished for her to go away and mind her own business, but alas, she was always the one to put her nose where she did not belong... Still, that was part of the fun to have her around. After what we did back in the Jade Palace, I'm surprised that she defended us against lord Son Goku, and just like me, she joined the peerage so that she could look further into the world and know more about it. We would have so much to talk about it...
The only things I will miss are Mama Orochi's dishes, my friends back in Kuoh, the boobs of the Gremories and other girls, the funny video-game nights, the jokes and insults of my training with Ichijou...
Come to think of it... Ichijou, the number one loser, probably the most insignificant guy in my group, I don't think he'll be missed when I leave... Yet... Yet... Yet...
Ah, whatever. Like I've said, I don't have any... Any... Any...
"..."
*DRIP! DRIP!*
"I can't... I can't do it."
"Miss Annabelle?"
"I can't do it, Miyama. I love them too much." And it was just a short bit. A tiny, little, insignificant moment that probably wasn't even worth the time of my brain, yet, I don't know why, my vision is blurry, and I can feel the hot tears coming down of my eyes. What's going on? I was about to shake hands with him and seal our contract in blood, yet, in this little moment I had, I realized that I can't do it. I can't simply walk away from them. For some reason, I can't.
Huh... Maybe I'm really my mom's and my dad's daughter...
"Heh... Maybe I'm really losing grip of what's important. Instead of taking everything to gain more power, I'm sticking with the loser team because they mean so much to me. Tch, what a drag. What is this, a shounen manga?" I grinned to myself, seeing his expressionless face suddenly change to a more surprised one. I dried to tears away, and stood up from the chair, cleaning my skirt and turning around to walk away from here. "Sorry, Miyama, but a no's a no. I don't want to get involve anymore. And it's definitely not because I miss my old comrades or anything. I just don't want a part on this madness. So, see ya."
"Very well, then. You did join Berolina Gremory's peerage, and while she doesn't want to see you anymore, maybe the sin of being turned into a devil has reached you." He simply said, now turning his gaze to an old book in the bookshelf and picking it up. It was 'how to kill a mockingbird.'. Pretty ironic. "Then, you can go away. Go live your life and have things the way you want. You're dismissed."
"..."
...
...
"Wait, what?" Really? That easy? I know their location, I know what and why they're planning this, and hell, I even know who they are, as in which one of them. Is he really gonna let me go that easily? Than it comes to me, I'm technically alone now. People won't trust me since I'm stray. And even if this juicy information comes to their ears, they'll still apprehend me for running away. Worse, since Gremory's dad in a maou, God knows what he'll do to me. Heheh, well played. However. "Oh, I get it. Since I'm a stray, they won't believe a single word that I'd say, right?"
"It's your word, not mine. But this can be the only outcome, am I correct?" Without taking his eyes off the book, he said it again. He's extremely on the wrong if he thinks that he has me on his hands.
"Cheating, huh? So... What if I kill you?" I said with my best snake impression, sticking my tongue out and letting my bangs cover my eyes so their golden shine could do the intimidation work. He closed his book in a smooth move, and turned to me. "Think about it: if I kill you and bring your head to the high ups of devil society, you, a terrorist with a Dragon sacred Gear, they will have no choice but to pardon me. I'd be free to tell others where the rest of your sisters are, and all of your plans will go down the hole. It might take a while longer for me to become the vampire king, but at least I'll be able to stop you, and have everyone trust me again, which is a plus to come closer to Lord Nosferatu during the meeting."
"Are you really planning to do this? If your answer is yes, you're out of luck. If you do anything against me, Tsukino Kyou will die."
"...!"
"Oh, what. Did I hit a wound or something?" How... How does he know about mama Kyou?! "Your face... Is just like Light Yagami's face during the last chapters of Death Note. Don't you think I already thought of any possibility. Very well, let me explain: I fought Tsukino Ichijou. He was a tough one, mainly because he could read me like a Manga. When we came to a conclusion, I'd figure that he must have a family, since he said he was so different from me. It didn't take long for me to pinpoint the Tsukino household. Super easy, in fact."
"..." I was still mute, as he threw again a card in front of me. Despite all of my fears, I picked it up to take a look. It was really Ichijou's house. Address, number, street and even the number of people living in it. What the hell is that all about?! "You... You bastard!"
"You threatened me, and suddenly I am the bastard. That's unfair, y'know. But, like I was saying, I know about Tsukino Kyou, her step-daughters and children, and the fact that you used to live that, as well as her being the progenitor of the Current Sekiryuutei." He said, picking another book and tossing it to a random side. "I have you know, I have four sisters willing to kill Tsukino Kyou and her daughters and burn that residence to the ground. If during any time of this day, my heartbeat comes to none, they'll know, and without a second thought, kill everyone related to the Sekiryuutei. You can just walk away and pretend nothing happened at all and just continue to live in the shadows training, accept my proposal and defeat the Vampire Lord, or try to kill me and have a mad, sad and desperate Sekiryuutei running after you like the three factions would. Your choice."
"You... You...! Don't you have any shame?! Using innocent lives to try to threaten me?! Killing people that don't know anything or has nothing to do with it?! You're the worst! A coward!" I lost my cool. For the second time, I lost my cool. I don't know it was because my perfect plan was foiled, or because it has About Tsukino Kyou and his son we were talking about, but I lost it. I was ready to kill him at any time.
"Shame? Cowardliness? 'The worst'? What are you talking about? We are just using Hyoudou Issei's motto: 'Friendship, hard work and Victory'. We are using our 'Friendship' in order to 'work hard' and make plans upon plans to achieve 'Victory'. Simple as that." He said, now looking directly at me with his sick white eyes. My hand was twitching in anger, as he opened his arms wide, putting himself in a defenseless state. "But, as much as I hate to kill innocents, this is the dimension I want you to see I will go. In order to defeat the Ultimate Evil and know the localization of my Father... I'm willing to eat even Raw Onions."
*ZING!*
"What...?!"
*STAB! STAB! STAB! STAB! STAB!*
"Ughh...!"
"But I guess you're right, after all. I can't let someone who has so much information go away that easily. I changed my mind." And everything went so fast. Before I knew it, my whole body had been stabbed by countless swords and pointy weapons coming from golden portals behind his back. I couldn't even react to it, the speed of them were absurd. I was pin to a wall, and from there, I descended from the ground. Immobile. I can't feel my legs, I can't feel my hands, yet, my body is burning. It hurts... It hurts so much. "Ah... I guess that you're not the one. Don't worry, since you're not the one, nor you can defeat me by any chance, I guess it doesn't matter if you live or die."
*OPEN.*
"Hey. Sarah enters the room." And from the door, I saw a new figure enter the room. A tall girl with spiky azure hair and green eyes, wearing Babel institute's uniform came in and tapped the Miyama on the shoulder. "Tururu~, s'up, little bro. Doing great? End of message."
"Hey, Sarah. No, not really. That chick has quite the objective and past, but she's not the one we're looking for. You can take her off the list like class 1-D and the rest." He said to the tall bluenette. At this point, my vision was already blurrier than before, and soon, the only thing I could distinguish were colors and tonalities. "By the way, how's your infiltration in the student council doing?"
"Tururu~, I don't think they suspect anything. I said I was going to be a double-agent, so of course they have my backs and racks onto me. End of message." The tall one said, as The blur of colors I figured it was Miyama walked towards me and stopped when he was close enough, at least enough to cloud the light coming from the windows.
"Perfect. Don't worry, miss Annabelle. We're not murderers, we won't kill you. But at least we will leave our mark in Kuoh, as well as in you."
"..."
"Ah, ah. She's dying. Can't even talk. Well, time to use Susanoo's sake. You'll be alright the next moment you open your eyes, but won't be able to say a thing."
And that's everything he said, before picking something from one of his golden runes and drop on me. It was some kind of water, hot, heavy, dense and wet. After that, I passed out, and remember nothing else after it...
...
...
It was already nighttime when I woke up, still on the old building, where the old Occult Research Club used to meet. My body was sore and twitching, yet, there was no wounds or holes on me. They only thing that was out of place were my clothes, now looking like Swiss cheese.
Was that all a dream? An illusion? No, that was very real. The nightmarish sensation of being pierced by several swords at once, while being taunted by someone who can't even reach at your level. It was just a surprise attack, of course he wouldn't win in a fair fight. Plus, he has a hostage...
Realization hit me like a bullet when it came to me: Mama Kyou's in trouble! All of the Berolina's pieces were away from home when I met with Miyama! How about their house?! How about her?! I stood up and tried to dash to the door, only to feel a sting of pain that made me kiss the floor. Crap, it's still hurts, my whole body is still immobile. Even the reaction moves hurt like I'm breaking some bones. Still... I need to... I need to see if... They're alright...
For some reason... I need to see if they're alright...
*PULL!*
"What's...?!" When I thought couldn't get any worse, a set of strings reached for me and rent me immobile. No, this cannot be! I turned around and saw Ren, ... His strings on hand, grinning.
"Yo, Sayuri. Remember me? I'm still around school. I knew that coming for a quick checkup in the old building would pay off this time."... He said, gripping even tighter around... His strings. Shit, I was too careless. I can still stand on ground, but those strings are making harder to move.
"Ren, release me at once!" I screamed at... Him, making some hand signs, but the lack of space making the seals difficult to do. "I need to see a thing! I think Ichijou might be in trouble!"
"Nice try, Sis. But of course I won't fall for that. Geez, waking with those friends of yours truly made you vulnerable, eh?"
"You shut up!" I finally finished one more seal, and then set electricity across the razor lines. Ren was fast enough to dodge it, but fortunately, ... He loosed the strings enough for me to jump out of it and escape! I jumped out of the window and ran for the Tsukino Household. Damn you, Miyama!
"Come back here, Sayuri!"
.
~~x~~
.
Gosh, today's trial was a waste of time! The one who lead this time was Lady Roseweiss's great-something-daughter. The challenge was to play a video-game that shares the same steam with all the present students. Sounded cool and all. However, I only noticed something amiss when the leader was Yuno-san, I guess that was her name, was doing all the work.
The first minute, the second minute, we could only stare at the massive screen on the podium showing her having all the fun of the game, while we were just looking at our tiny portables and waiting for commands. Sure, she would give us command from time to time, like pressing one button or so, but compared to the rest of the walkthrough, we did jackshit for her.
Things got a lot worse when hours come to pass, and after the upgrades, she didn't need out assistance anymore. Looking at the screen like zombies, of course others would give up and walk away from Kuoh. The first, the second, the third and the fourth hour came, and already half of the students walked away from their chance to enroll in Kuoh. I had to call my mother to say I was going to be late, but for some reason, she wouldn't receive it or call it back. Amount them, I saw Miyama sitting right at the front row, disinterested as always. In the end, Yuno-san finished the game, and the credits rolled. Of course, after that one, there was an uproar, with people screaming and shouting what was the point of all of that. Yuno-san's only response?
"If you wanna be in Kuoh, you need to learn that your assistance will be just eventual and when we want. Learn your place and stay out of the champion's way, coppice?"
And she dropped her joystick and walked away, as some others also walked away from the gym, while others, still altered a little, stayed strong to receive the permission to go on. That marked the end of the Preta Trial.
I reached for Sarah-san and said to her to talk to that particular character that was Miyama Rei. She nodded, and tried to reach for him, but before I knew it best, he disappeared. In just s blur, he disappeared. Sarah-san turned around, nodded to me and also disappeared, probably to chase him down. I message Kaichou to say that Sarah-San chasing down. In response, she responded with a happy face, and saying that she'll try to help her later. Meanwhile, I still need to stay here, beside Bael, avoiding any desperate encounter. Thing went smooth today...
"Today's trial was a drag. If I knew it would be that boring, I won't have come at all." I sighed, taking a sip out of my coffee in a nearby convenient store, together with my fellow Bishop, who was also drinking some powerful energy drink, and Yoko taking her time to drink some tea. They were waiting for me this whole time and were on the bring of falling asleep. Fortunately I came just in time for us to take our time and recover our energies with caffeine. I'll need it to Wrestle my sisters today, anyway.
"Responsibilities. Can't run from them. Like pregnancy." She said without even blinking, while I almost throw up into my coffee and Yoko choked on hers. How does she encounters anything dirty in such things like that?! Still, I can't believe I'm kinda getting use to this. Huh... Maybe living with them is affecting my ways of tolerate the world.
Yoko still whacked her on the head.
"Hurt."
"Only I can make those jokes, Campbell-san." Yoko smiled, patting the witch on her head for comfort. I'm kinda glad we're getting along.
"You can't think of anything but sex, right miss Natalia?" I said it like a joke. She shot her eyes to me in dull surprise.
"Natalia. How. Know?" She asked, now strangely too focused on me, her purple eyes aiming me like I just exploded out of nowhere. She blinked once, I did it also, pushing Yoko away and leaning towards me on the table. Now touching cheeks with me. "Said it."
"Ah... Too close, Tasha-san~." I said, feeling the uncomfortable heat of her cheeks. People are watching, the fox is staring. This is really embarrassing. I fought against a dragon for five days straight, yet is a girl that is making me uncomfortable. Tasha pinched my cheek. "Owowowow..."
"Sekiryuutei Tsukino Ichijou, care to hear a secret?" She said, her tone now a lot more serious and focused I almost got lost in it. Wow, shocking, she knows how to be like that. She let go of me and sighed, she pushed me closer and blocked Yoko's sight with another hand. "Witches should never reveal their real names to anyone. The thing is, our names are given to us based on a thing we call numerology. Magic based on numbers. My powers and abilities lies in every letter and secrets behind my true name. If any other Mage ever discovers it, they can simply solve it and discovers my powers, secrets, techniques and even weaknesses can be uncovered and explored. See what I mean? Don't ever say my name again... Or I'll have to either kill you or cut your tongue off."
"Un... Understood." I said. 'Tasha' then picked my chin and made me stare her by leveling my face to hers. Again, too close!
"Do you, Tsukino Ichijou? Do you? Maybe I should seal your tongue and put my worries to rest." She said, now squishing my cheeks and putting her tongue out. Oh, shit! I'm in this situation again! Need to stay calm and do the right thing... No, not kiss her! Be a man and face-suck her! Just kidding. Yoko jumped on my lap and stopped us before anything drastic could happen.
"Do that, I'm sealing your two sets of lips, Campbell." Yoko made a dirty joke! Yoko made a dirty joke! I'm not even mad, really. Just surprised, it has been a while since she last told a sexual joke or anything with this connotation. Out of instinct, I lightly whacked her on the head. She interpreted it as a gesture of kindness, and smiled.
"Yoko, we already have Tasha. I guess we don't need another one telling jokes." I patted her on the head, and she smiled even brighter, while Tasha eyed me with her tongue out, hanging it like she was still waiting for something. Okay, just this once. Just this once. I hugged Yoko, making her bury her head on my shoulder, and faster as I could, I blew a kiss to Tasha, who blushed and put her tongue in again with a smile. Smooth, huh, Ichijou? I just feel bad with Tasha like that. Better her with a smile. "Still, we better be going home. Mama will be mad, and maybe we'll need to battle my sisters... Again."
"I still can't believe they're stronger than us." Yoko said, letting go off the hug to face me with a wisecrack smile. I sighed, I was going all out because I wanted revenge, yet, they still stronger than me. Maybe it's because I used to be beaten 24/7 by them is why I'm able to shake some pretty serious injuries off. How convenient. Mom used to teach me some fighting moves too, and since they're girls, of course mama would show them how to defend themselves too. "Don't worry. One day we will kick them and turned them into your slaves."
"Aaayy~..." Tasha made the hands.
"No! I don't want two making the jokes now! And don't talk about my sisters like that!" I said ignoring the fact that everyone, EVERYONE, was looking at us. I looked at the clock in my phone, and it was almost 7 p.m. Great, I will regret passing through here, but I should call mom again...
...
...
Tch, still no response. I wonder if Ryuubi ate mom's phone or something. I sent s message just to make sure, finishing it with a happy smile... Nah, I'm not that much of a smiley person. I'll write a cat smile instead... Screw it, there it goes without
"Well, I'm dead anyway. You girls wanna stay here for a while longer and drink some more coffee?" They smiled. As I picked another set of coffee and tea. One coffee for me, Tasha and of course tea for Yoko. Oh, I need to order also some camomile, because I'm gonna be sore tomorrow. "Hey, Tasha, since you can handle numerology, what does my name means?"
"Let's see." She picked a napkin, a pen out of her bag, and began to write something in there. After a while, she stopped, analyzed the piece of paper for a while, and sighed.
"So...?"
"Sex-driven sadist."
*BAM!*
"I had an idea that would be it... Could you please read it again?"
"'Kay... Walking console."
"Oh, my..."
"What people has so much expectations out of meeee~?!"
.
~~x~~
.
Oh, today is such a good day. Cohen made me a cake that I ate and I like it, I had tea with Mary and, last but not least, had a good lunch with lady Anzu. Too bad for you, mrs. Mary Beelzebub, but I just got a new best friend that is better and funnier than you~!
(Mary - like I care...)
However, everything came crushing down as I came back home and saw the dear peerage of my older daughter down. What a let down, maybe they're out of tea or something. Time to use that new set Madam Anzu bought for me~. I bumped into Nemesis on my way to the kitchen, who was equally as livid...
"Hey, miss grumpy face. Care to explain why your group is so down?" I asked her. Ms. Leave-me-alone just grunted and walked away again. Maybe she's still upset about Rina and Ludger, I dunno. I shrugged, and walked to the kitchen anyway to brew tea and maybe bake a pie. Cohen lives pie, my dear fly husband, dear. It didn't take long for me to finish the set, and with a golden plate, I took them to the living room, where the downer group was havin their silent reunion.
"Hey~, my dears. I made so tea and pie, for you to drown your sorrows in them and maybe feel a little, for whatever reason~." In response to my little show of affection, my little Nemis eyed me so poisoning. Typical. Mr Nero sighed again, just like Michaelis and Nadja. The dark-skinned busty shaman, however, was polite enough to thank me and pick a cup for herself. She's always so sweet.
"Mother, please, leave us be. Today was a really harsh day." My dear Nemis said, grunting even more and picked a piece of the pie to take a vicious bite out of it. Scary.
"Very well, I won't push your four, but I might add that, as your mother, I'd like to know what's occurring outside. If it's about Kuoh, well, of course, in the name of Grandmaster Millicas, I'll have to interfere."
"..." They all shared glares at each other, and some time passed while I lost interest more and more with this. I wonder how Rina's doing back there. Did she already score with Ichi-pon? Maybe I'll complete my game with a route with a threesome with her, Ichijou and Raven. Huhuhuh, Alice Gremory, you're such a little devil~. Nemesis finally spoke after a few minutes. "Mom, do you know anything about Fafnir and the other Dragon kings?"
"Well, sure. The great five dragon kings, the main enforcers against 666(Trihexa) during the great apocalypse. Too bad they bodies ended up destroyed." I prayed a little for their souls to find some rest in the afterlife, taking a shock in the head as a result. I actually don't care, I do hope they're in peace now. "What about it?"
And like a typical story, she told me everything: the terrorist attack on class 1-D, the eliminatory selection of transferring students back in Kuoh, and now, the information that all of those little pesky kids are actually dragon-sacred gear users, not just any dragons, but based on the said Five Dragon Kings. One is missing, other escaped, and the third is under custody of Serena Sitri-chan. This means two more to go. One more crucial information: for some reason and why, they're trying to destroy the school for some reason in order to defeat 'an ultimate evil'. Could it be our Ultimate Evil?
"I see. Not only the original set of Vritra, but all the other dragon kings were transformed into Sacred Gears, which are probably artificial since Lord Michael, despite becoming the singularity with all the others Seraphim, is still unable to create lasting ones. Quite a story." I sighed, taking my time to digest all of that story. Yeah, lord Michael became the single identity in highest heavens, passing their roles as seraphim to others, yet despite their combined powers, they're unable to create stable Sacred Gears, even after the destruction of Grigori institute and Lord Azazel's disappearance. Quite impressive that someone was able to create those without his blueprints. Such interesting story. "By the way, you three... A single girl defeated you all by her own terms in such humiliating way... Oh, my. Now you all understand how lord Riser felt during the Gold Issei Era~."
"Shut up, Mother! This is serious, goddamnit!" Joykiller Nemesis, a difficult and annoying habit she picked from her Alastor Grandfather Fillus. That comment indeed left them depressed. I pouted and ate a piece of pie to forget that dude remark, while Nemesis sat next to her peerage, deep in thoughts. "Shit, not only that girl was able to create a Balance Breaker for one of her Sacred Gears individually, she also doesn't die for some reason! Kuram-... Akabane Yoko also stated that boy from 1-D was also hard to go down... Who knows what the others can do! And that Sarah brat won't say a thing! Fuck!"
"Words there, young lady. Being upset won't help you at all." Yeah, you say it, lady Alice. Show her that you can be level-headed and helpful, that you're her mother. Jokes aside, Kuoh being under attack might be a problem. And if that's eating my little, sweet little hardhead daughter from inside, I can't simply wait without doing something.
However, helping her out directly would destroy her pride as a Gremory and the devil in command of all the supernatural around Kuoh city, not to mention that, as the wife of the Demon Lord Lucifer, my direct interference might cause an uproar and unbalance the order in that same city my family inherited and protected for a few generations. Not to mention being sacred gears based on dragons, simple Devils won't work out, their powers alone plus those terrorists's own unique ones. Nemesis's group faced one with powers to avoid death, even against grandfather Lord Sirzechs's [Ruin the Extinct]. This is a problem.
Then it hit me. They're fighting for their 'Ultimate Evil', right? Well, let's unleash our own Ultimate Evil on them.
"Hey, Nemesis..." I said. She turned to me with an expression that was just saying that she'll hit me of I even dare to joke around. I smiled anyway. "You said that they're fighting an Ultimate Evil... Well, how about we use our own Ultimate Evil on them?"
"...!" The whole room went silent, but I could even heard their internal screams. Nemesis and Michaelis went overdrive, while little Nero and Nadja were trying to comprehend the suddenly change of mood around here. Oh, right, they're reincarnated Devils, they probably are too young to know anything. Still facing me; my daughter stood up and shouted. "Are you insane, mother?!"
"What's wrong? It has been so long since we let That take a walk around. Sure, it killed an entire army of dragonslayers, but at least It was a lot calmer from when I was younger." I said, taking a sip out of my tea ignoring the intense stare of my daughter. "Besides, we have the Sekiryuutei, now. Since they're technically cousins, I guess that Ichijou-kun will be able to control It."
"Mother. The risk is too high. That... Thing can' no longer think like anything resembling the part of humanity it has." She said, now a lot more calmer. She's right, the risk is indeed high, but as natural opposing existences, as well as their (more or like) shared genes might help us control it better than before. "Tsukino Ichijou... Might be the Sekiryuutei, but he's not ready to take That face on! He'll die in a second!"
"Who knows, right? Maybe he'll make a new friend. Dragons understand each other better than anyone. And remember that he's not the only dragon you have." I blinked to her; and tossed a set of keys to the ground. For a second, she was surprised. "Oh, no. Nemesis, darling, I think I lost my keys to the secret magical prison in the deepest part of the Gremory Territory. Oh, the humanity. Who knows what the individual with it will do? Maybe she or he can, I dunno, used it to release the Ultimate Evil sealed within it and maybe, just maybe, help her or him with his problems with dragons~..."
"..." Nemesis went quiet; looked at the key, then to me. To the keys, to me, to the keys, and sighed. My dear daughter picked the keys, put it in her pocket and shot me a poisonous glare. "Alice Gremory, you're the kind of a devil Lord Rizevim would be proud of. Your desire to watch the world burn knows no boundaries."
"You hurt me saying this, Nemesis. I don't want to see the world burn, I'm just doing what a devil should do: you either take the hard way, or shake hands with me and make a pact with the devil... Literally." I giggled for my own pun. The mood became heavier and heavier, as we stared at each other for quite some time. In the end, she sighed, picked up her stuff and walked away.
"I won't fall for your mind-games mom. I believe in my own and peerage's strength." She said, leaving the place together with her peerage, but taking the key for herself. "As a matter for protection, I'll be in charge of these keys."
"Okay, do what you think is best. Don't catch a cold. Mama loves you. Say 'hi' to Rina for me~."
I know my daughter. She's a good kid, stubborn and hotheaded like her father, but a good kid nonetheless. However, she has this strange mood swings and priority issues. She say this now, but I won't be surprise if she chooses to use the key under desperate circumstances.
About That... If Ichijou is determinate as he wants to be, maybe he'll be a great help by the time nemesis uses the key to unlock it. It'll be such a heartwarming reunion for me too. Still, I missed the old days, and things won't ever be like that again. Huh, it has been a while since I became so nostalgic, and I'm almost crying as a result. Don't be precipitated, Alice, you know how things work these days.
Out of respect, I picked more two cups of tea and filled them with tea besides my own. Just how they liked...
Just how it used to be...
Before the Great Apocalypse...
Yeah, nothing but some words, exposition and maybe a little development of character this time. I hope I did a good job, but i'm also afraid that maybe i gave too much information. whatever, i hope you all enjoyed. Stay golden~.