Chris wakes up the next morning in a daze. The sun is barely peaking over the trees in Japan. He makes the attempt to get back into his daily routine: get up, workout, take a shower, and get ready for the day. He throws a set of workout clothes on that he found in his closet and makes the trek toward the large double doors that lead out of his room. He walks down the hall and finds the grand staircase that takes him to the enormous front doors. Thus far, there has not been a peep in the house as Chris slowly walks toward the front door.
"Where are you going?" Chris spins around to find a woman that was not in the original group from the day before.
"Ma'am? Who are you?" Chris looking at her, taken back by the fact that he has never seen her before and she's standing at the grand staircase in nothing but a long, worn-out jersey. Her long, silver hair had that just-rolled-out-of-bed look.
She gave a large yawn and spoke, "I am Rossweisse, one of the teachers at the Kuoh Academy. I'm certainly no ma'am either! My grandmother is a ma'am!" Rossweisse crosses her arms.
Chris chuckles, "I'm not sure what to say, I'm sorry?"
"Thank you," She smiles, however that smile quickly becomes a stern look, "Now, where are you going?"
"I was going to go workout outside, since I have no idea where anything is and no one is up."
"If you need to work out, there is a training dojo in the basement."
"Dope! Sounds like that's where I need to be."
Chris and Rossweisse exchange good-byes and he proceeds down to the training dojo. He walks down the stairs that end in an enormous room with every bit of work out equipment one could hope for.
Man, I could really let loose down here! They've got everything! I don't know what his family does, but I need in. Chris chuckles to himself and got to work. He quickly came to realize that his strength, speed, agility, everything physically about himself feels different. He was stronger, faster, more agile!
"Oh my god, I'm crazy strong! This is so awesome!"
Chris hangs a punching bag next to what looks like a sparring arena. He starts testing out his punches and kicks, progressively getting harder and more forceful. He lands a solid right hook as the punching bag snaps off the chains and sails to the far wall. He looks at his closed fists and yells, "This is fucking dope! I'm like a superhero!"
Suddenly, a large commotion breaks out upstairs. Chris hears several female voices shouting at each other as he rushes up the stairs. At the top he sees several of the girls arguing with each other as Rias is wrapped up with Issei. He cannot believe what he is seeing and hearing, they're arguing over him! Chris approaches the commotion and looks around, puzzled by what he is witnessing. A blonde girl spun around, "Oh hello, Chris!"
"Hey... Asia, correct? What's going on?"
Asia gives a smile and chuckles a bit, "You remembered my name, I'm so glad! We tend to fight over Issei's affection, it's silly really because we know he loves all of us. We just can't help ourselves sometimes."
"Chris! You've gotta help me bro!" Issei reaches out while Rias has her arms wrapped around his waist and chest.
"Dude, isn't she your girlfriend?" All the girls slowly look over in Chris's direction, each giving a look that could kill in an instant. Chris snickers and backs away with his hands up, "Uhhh... my bad?" Chris slinks away from the bickering to find Azazel sitting at the large counter in the kitchen.
"Good morning Chris, how did you sleep?"
"Not bad considering what happened to me yesterday. That was... a lot to say the least. Silver lining though, I have super strength!" Chris said forcing a laugh.
"Not bad kid, that may very well not be the only thing you'll discover. We're going to find out what you're able to do with that power, you'll need to learn to control and harness it at will. Call it intuition that if it's not controlled, you very well may have a house full of enemies rather than allies."
"That's a little cryptic, man. Helluva a foreshadow!"
"You may joke, but Rias has been given the title of Ruined Princess of Destruction and for good reason. Her power is also nearly limitless, most of the Ultimate-class devils are like this. Make no mistake, if you lose control and hurt Rias Gremory or anyone in the House of Gremory, legions of enemies will find you."
"I get it man! Don't hurt the head chick or head chick's friends! Are you going to help me with this in that case? Seeing as you're the mentor and all that..."
Azazel looked down at the counter and smiled, "I know someone that might be able to help you with that."
"SAIRAORG?! You want him to train with Sairaorg? You've done lost your damn mind Azazel!" Issei freaked out. Chris remembered Rias talking about this Sairaorg and his thirst for fighting. He has no demonic power but is the strongest among all the younger devils. That is until Issei defeated him.
"He is the best bet for getting Chris to harness this power within himself. He has no demonic power, so he has honed his body to become that power. By training with Sairaorg, Chris can use his physical strength to harness that power." Azazel said brazenly.
"How long are we talking about training for?" Chris gave Azazel an unsure look.
"My father can talk to the school board and allow for Occult Research Club field trip for a couple weeks." Rias said looking around at the group.
"Oh, a training field trip will be so much fun!" Asia said excitedly.
"This could give Kiba and I a chance to train some more with each other. What do you think Kiba?" The girl named Xenovia looks over at Kiba with a smirk, "That sounds great to me!" Kiba looks at her with a smile and a thumbs up.
"Well it's settled then! We'll leave in a few hours. Everyone, get ready for our training trip!" Azazel states quickly.
The group disperses as the girls run back to their rooms excitedly, leaving Issei, Rias, Azazel, and Chris, "Azazel, what are you going to be doing while we're all training?"
"I'm going to be looking into these paladins Ddraig had told us about. I'm betting if there is anything on them, it will be in the Underworld's archives."
"We're going to the Underworld?!" Chris's eyes grew.
"That's where all my family and all the other devil families live," Rias said proudly.
"I'll be honest I did not think this was going to be a thing today. Can I even go into the Underworld? I mean it's not like a vacation spot for tourists."
"Don't be silly there is several locations to go sightseeing!" Rias said with a small chuckle.
Chris slouches looking at Rias and giving her a very sarcastic smile and thumbs up, "Great! Let's do this..."
Several hours later, the group gathers down by the front door with travel bags in tow, "Everyone ready to go?" Azazel looks around at the group as everyone is nodding. A red aura surrounds Rias as the discs formed above and under the group once again. The upper disc began to collapse on the group and Chris found himself inside another home that was just as large, if not bigger than Isseis' home. Chris looks around and sees two people walking up with a small kid in front of them.
"Hey Rias!" The child comes running up to her.
"Millicas, it's so good to see you again so soon!" Rias exclaims and smiles. She looks up at the couple walking up to the group, "Mom... Dad, I'm so happy to see you!"
"Rias, honey, so glad you're visiting us again so soon! Azazel told us that you kids are going to start some training for the next few weeks." Rias's Mom said happily.
Her Mom and Dad look over at Chris, "I see you've brought someone new to see us. I'm Venelana Gremory and this is my husband Zeoticus Gremory. We are Rias's parents."
"It's a pleasure to you. This is NOT how I pictured the Underworld being. Where's all the fire and brimstone? Souls screaming in pits being attacked by demons and all that?" Chris said while looking at the beautiful home that he was in.
Rias's father gives a hearty laugh as her mother laughs quietly. "Azazel! Where did you find this kid?"
"Believe it or not he's not from this world, so the way of our world is far different from his. He's the one I had asked you about."
"Ah yes, the paladin. I've asked Michael to join us as well. I believe Heaven may have a part to play in this as well."
"Wait like Saint Michael? The Archangel?" Chris looks at Zeoticus dumbfounded.
"Yes, you've heard of him before?"
"Yeah, in my world he's the patron saint of soldiers and kind of God's right-hand man."
"Well glad to see that role of his transcends worlds, he still is here as well, but God was killed in the last great battle. Michael has been filling in for God."
"Ok, I'm just going to pretend like everything is all good! I shouldn't be surprised by half the shit you all tell me, but here I am still perplexed at the information I'm hearing." Chris gave a snarky look.
"Why don't you all go find a room in the east wing and we'll get breakfast ready for everyone." Venelana motions everyone to a large corridor that leads to a great hallway with several doors on each side of the hall. Each of the girls find a room quickly, as the guys move further down the hall and find their own rooms. Chris walks into a room and looks around at yet another extremely large area, "Ok, I'm seeing a trend here. Badass devil people equate to rich as hell! Pun intended." Chris snickers out loud and gives a heavy, audible sigh. He drops the few bags he had at the foot of the enormous bed and made his way back out to the dining room. As he walked down the hall, he could hear another commotion coming from a room near his. He cracks the door open and sees the girls again swooning and arguing over Issei, "Kind of silly isn't it?" A small voice comes up behind Chris and startles him, "Ah, Damn it! You scared the hell out of me!"
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I'm Gasper!"
"Gasper? Wait, you're a guy?!" Chris looks at Gasper confusingly.
"Well, yeah! But I like to wear girls' clothing because their comfortable! So what?" Gasper looked offended at Chris.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it sound bad or anything. That's cool bro, no biggy! Does this kind of thing happen often to Issei?"
"Yeah, he's kind of a funny guy! He always calls himself the 'Harem King'! It's kinda funny really, but he's got a big heart and has taught me so much about being a man in the Gremory House. He's the reason I did so well in the rating games against Lord Bael. Speaking of which, you should be careful with him, he's very strong and a very good fighter."
"Yeah, thanks for that bud. I don't think I have much choice. I need to be able to control this power so that I don't hurt anyone."
"I have a good feeling you're a really good person, like Issei. Not a nice perve like him, but a nice person, nonetheless!"
"Thanks for that distinction Gasper." Chris chuckled and continued down the hall toward the dining room. He sees lines of wait staff standing all along the walls of the dining room awaiting orders from anyone at the dining room.
"Chris, are you making yourself at home?" Venelana said with a smile.
"Yes ma'am, I am. Thank you very much for your hospitality."
"Happy to help! You must be so confused, considering your situation." Zeoticus motions to Chris to sit at a chair near them.
Chris moves to a chair next to Azazel, across from Venelana, "I've gotta tell yah, this whole thing is overwhelming. Between the fact that devils, angels and fallen angels exist, the Underworld being a thing and I've got some kind of power in me, I don't know where to go from here. I will do my best to do right by your daughter and family. I'm hoping this Sairaorg can help me control whatever power I have."
Zeoticus gave Chris a stern look and spoke somberly, "Sairaorg has been through a lot and has been shunned in the devil community after his loss to Issei. That doesn't take away the fact that he is a powerful devil in his own right. Be careful."
"We will go tomorrow to meet with Sairaorg and begin your training. Take today to get ready and prepare for what will surely be a brutal training session. Do you have enough clothes or need any other amenities?" Venelana gave Chris a look of concern.
"No ma'am, I think I'm good to go."
"Why don't you kids go enjoy yourselves in the city and do some shopping while you're out? It'll be fun for you to get to know all of them."
"That's awesome, if the girls would get off of Issei's shit for like 30 seconds," Chris said with a smug look on his face.
Venelana and Zeoticus both laughed, "Yeah, Issei is a bit of a character isn't he? He's been good for our Rias!"
The rest of the group comes downstairs shortly after the meeting for breakfast. Rias's parents explain to everyone that they are to go enjoy the day in the city. Rias also tasked Akeno with taking Chris shopping for some clothes as well, per instructions from her mother. Akeno begrudgingly agrees.
Chris gets an annoyed look on his face, Gee thanks. I'd hate to be a bother, Chris thought to himself. The group ate breakfast and got ready for a day in the city. Large SUVs met them out in the courtyard and took to them to a square downtown. Chris hung back a bit from the group, taking in all the sights and sounds of the Underworld. All the people looked human, are all these people devils? Chris thought. They came to a street lined with different kinds of stores and vendors. Asia, Xenovia and Gasper all ran over to a vendor selling jewelry. The group followed behind them and Rias spoke, "We can meet back here in a couple hours. Chris, Akeno… why don't you go find a store to shop at?"
"As you wish mistress," Akeno bowed to Rias and gave Chris a look to follow her. Chris was happy to oblige! Akeno was wearing a light purple dress and her hair was down, not in her usual high ponytail. Chris was captivated by her and he had a hard time finding things to talk to her about, "So... this weather down here is... nice?"
"Yes, I can see how you can think that." She said softly
Ah, geez. This girl is killing me! Chris thought to himself as his pace slows and she moves ahead of him. She turned to look at him, "What do you think so far of all of this? There must be so much to take in?"
"Yeah, I mean you all are great! I'm so glad to have made friends with you all 'cause who knows what I'd be doing had I not met you... I mean you all." Chris said nervously.
"Why are you so nervous? There's nothing to be afraid of! I'm only here to help you get some clothes since you don't have that many."
"I think I have plenty, plus it's not my money I'm spending! Just some rich people I've only just met. It's... weird to say the least."
"This is what the Gremory's do, they are very generous and have taught Rias to be the same, that's why we all do whatever we can for her and Issei. Issei might be a perve, but he's got a brave, courageous, kind heart and that's why we all love them. I will gladly protect them with my life if I have to." Akeno said very seriously.
"That's great, it really is! I know I'm the new guy in the group, but I promise I don't want to hurt anyone in your family. I want to find out why I came here and how to control this power inside me, that's it!"
"We'll see about that Chris. I believe that you want that. Time will only tell. Look, here is a good store for you to find some clothes," Akeno points to a clothing store at an intersection.
They go in and begin looking around. Chris finds a few sets of clothes and begins to try them on. Each wardrobe change Chris comes out and Akeno gives him a once over. As she approves different clothing options, she carefully studied Chris body and how he moved. He was confident, but a bit shy with her, "So... what do you think?" He asked sheepishly.
She smiled and approached him, "These look good on you! You should get all of them."
Chris brought all the t-shirts and jeans up to the front and was able to make the purchase easily when he mentioned Rias's family.
Man, they're like the mob down here. A nice mob though... Chris thought.
Chris and Akeno leave the store and start heading down the street when Akeno finds a vendor selling ice cream. Chris looks at her and sees her looking that at the vendor, "Hey Akeno, would you like to get some ice cream?"
Akeno quickly looks at Chris, "Oh no, we don't have to do that."
"Nonsense! I'd like to buy you some if that is ok?"
Akeno gives a very cute smile to Chris, "That's very sweet of you, I'd love some."
They approach the vendor and order themselves a couple cones. As they leave the vendor and continue heading down the street eating their ice cream, "I would have never guessed that we were in the Underworld or Hell or whatever. This place is literally just like the real world!"
Akeno giggles, "Yes, this world certainly mirrors the human world very well. Most of the treats and comforts of the human world can be found here as well."
"Well, ain't that just swell!" Chris started chuckling as Akeno continues to giggle. She looks over at him and smiles, "Thank you for this Chris."
Chris blushes a bit, "Of course, no problem! Happy to do it."
They continue to shop at a couple of other stores where Chris purchased Akeno a nice bracelet. Akeno started to open-up to Chris a bit about some of the things her and Rias had been through together and about Issei. From all the stories that Chris has heard between Rias and Akeno, this group, this... family has been through so much.
"Wow, I can't believe how much y'all have been through. You're all so young!"
"In the world that we live in, our strength is how we rank-up as devils. That's why Issei trains as hard as he does because of his silly dream of being a harem king." Akeno giggles as she tells Chris this.
"Yeah, Issei that guy is... interesting."
"A bit jealous, are we?" Akeno jabs Chris with her elbow playfully.
"Pssh... nah... I'm good." Chris said with some subtle sarcasm.
He shares some of his experiences in his world with Akeno, about his job, his family, and some of the things he wanted to do before he met his demise. Akeno wraps her arms around Chris's, "This was so much fun Chris! Much more fun and... insightful than I had anticipated. I feel like I know you so much better."
"Yeah same here, Akeno. This was fun!" Chris gave her a big cheesy smile, which made her smile.
That smile of hers could light up a room. This chick is awesome, nothing like I had originally thought, Chris thought to himself.
They eventually get back to the meet up location and find everyone waiting around for them to return. The group gathers back up and some idle chatting amongst the members was happening as they walked back to the Gremory house. Chris was walking behind the group and pondering about his training that was going to happen tomorrow. He looks up to the sky as the sun was beginning to go down. The next few days weighing heavy on his mind. The group finds their way back to the house and as they enter Chris gets a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach. As everyone walks in, they see Azazel, Zeoticus, and the archangel Michael sitting at the table. Azazel calls Chris over and invites him to sit down.
"Michael, this is Chris." Azazel motions to Chris
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Chris," Michael speaks very eloquently.
"It's nice to meet you as well. What's the good word?"
"Michael was just talking to us about what these paladins were. Seems God had a last-ditch effort plan to stop the Dragon Kings from rising to power. Michael, if you will." Zeoticus invited Michael to present his information.
"Yes, you see before the great battle took place, God wanted to remove the Dragon Kings from being able to help any of the factions. We trained a small group of human warriors that were to act as our dragon slayers, each a vanguard of the tenets of a paladin: Loyalty, Devotion, Conquest, Glory, and Redemption. These five vanguards were to be the strongest beings, able to dispatch of the Dragon Kings and rival the Apocalypse Dragon himself. They were successful for a time, however one of the paladins broke their oath and was labeled as an Oathbreaker. This Paladin was shunned from the group and instead hunted all those that had wronged him... Angel, Fallen Angel, Devil, it did not matter. The paladins were thought to have been killed during the great battle. We believe one of these vanguards has been reincarnated within you. Which only leads us to believe that the others have also been awakened. I am sorry for this troubling news."
"Wait a minute! There could be more like me out there?"
"Yes, we're still not sure which paladin has possessed you. However, we will be present at your training sessions to observe any issues." Zeoticus said.
Azazel looked over at Chris and put his hand on his shoulder, "Get some rest, your rigorous training will begin tomorrow. Sairaorg will NOT take it easy on you."
Chris gets up from the table and walks toward the hallway where his room is located. He turns the corner and finds Akeno, Rias and Issei backed against the wall. Chris looks at Akeno as she smiles at him. He looks down at his feet, "What are you guys doing?"
"We wanted to hear what was going on. They pulled you over without inviting any of us, so we had to find out what for!" Issei said quietly.
"Hope you heard the good damn news then!" Chris's voice was elevated, tense, "Again, I didn't want this! I DON'T want this power, this… ANYTHING!"
Tears come to Chris's eyes as he is still looking at the ground. Akeno moves next to him and places her hand on his shoulder, "We are here for you Chris. We'll have your back tomorrow."
Chris inhales heavily and continues to his room. Leaving the others at the opening of the hallway. Akeno looks at Rias and Issei, "Poor guy, he must be so overwhelmed."
"I know how he feels, it's how I felt at first about having Ddraig be a part of me. It was confusing, frightening and overwhelming. I'm sure he'll come around though. He seems like a strong guy; he'll be able to handle this power no problem!" Issei said confidently.