The sound of silence filled the atmosphere of a certain household.
Silence that was very much unnerving, tensing, grating on one's sanity.
More specifically, Kimihito Kurusu's.
Who was currently sitting on a chair, while sweating bullets. Accompanied by six other female demihumans who had come to stay inside his household, their faces riddled with expressions of confusion, suspicion, curiosity, fear, jealousy, and fascination. Though their attentions weren't pointed at him, specifically.
Instead, they were directed towards the most out-of-place person in the whole living room, A person whose face remained hidden underneath a cold, expressionless visor.
The Doomslayer.
Or, "Doomguy", at least that's what Smith called him anyway. Why anyone would be named such a haunting title is beyond Kimihito, though it did sound eerily similar to the nickname of a certain character from a certain video game he used to play when he was young. He could vaguely recall it, but alas, his memory had failed him.
The, "Doomslayer", in question, had not moved a single inch from his standing position, his back laid against the wall, arms crossed over his chest. If he was breathing, the suit he was wearing made it difficult to even notice the chest movement. One would mistake him to be a costumed mannequin, or a heavily armored corpse.
Perhaps he was in deep slumber, Kimihito thought, but he had never heard of anyone who could sleep while standing. Nor had he ever done so himself. Well, except that one time at the public toilet. But such embarassing memories need no further recalling.
What he can recall, however, was the brief yet tense talk he had with Smith earlier, when she decided to just drop off the armored giant in front of his house.
-
10 minutes ago
"You want me to...take care of this, thing?"
"Technically, Mr. uhh, Doomslayer, is more of a secondary host, rather than a homestay. As such, certain rules within the Cultural Exchange Program which usually applies to liminals in this country, have been loosened or changed for a special case, such as Doomguy here! In fact, he'll be quite a helpful companion for a lonely guy such as yourself, since I know it's been hard for you to deal with all the girls under your roof, so consider this a favor from me, okay?"
Kimihito couldn't contain his stupor at seeing the Cultural Exchange Coordinator's mischievous smirk. In other words, she was practically dumping another responsibility to him because she was too lazy to do so.
Taking another look at...Mr. Doomslayer...what kind of name is that? That couldn't be his real name, right? Unless it's a normal thing for his species, which would be...come to think of it, Smith hadn't mentioned what kind of liminal Mr. Doomslayer is.
"Umm, Smith-san, what is his species, exactly?"
Smith's usual smirk suddenly changes to a frown, much to Kimihito's surprise. He'd seen that frown before, only when she was serious, and that rarely happens.
"That...is rather a hard question to answer, Kimihito-kun."
Wait, did she just call him by his name? Now he knew that Smith was definitely not playing around anymore.
"Master, what is the commo-" Centorea's question was left unfinished, as her hooves suddenly stopped in their tracks, her eyes fixated towards the newcomer in front of her. A green behemoth. Metallic skin covering its whole body. A mirror plate for a face. And an aura of pure darkness surrounding its very being.
It was like standing in the presence of the Grim Reaper itself.
Her instincts prompted her to immediately draw her sword, only to realize her hand was grasping air, as she was unarmed at the moment.
"Master, fall back!! I sense ill intent from this green beast!"
Cerea's voice caused Kimihito to jerk his head behind, shocked at her sudden presence. He could see sweat forming on her forehead, and she was staring directly at the Doomslayer, instead of him. Was she intimidated by the Doomslayer's presence?
Well, he couldn't blame her, really.
"Ah, Cerea! It's fine, nothing to worry about!! Smith-san just brought us a new guest for-"
Before he had the chance to finish his half-baked answer, another familiar voice called out to him, belonging to a certain eight-legged liminal with a questionable obsession for bondage play.
"What is all this yelling? Oh, did Honey bring a new girl aga-"
Rachnera Arachnera found her voice suddenly gone, as she into the cold, empty mirror where a face should've been. The tall thing standing right beside Ms. Smith did not convey any sort of emotion, yet somehow she could feel a whirlpool of negativity radiating from its being, filled with nothing but madness. And hatred. And it scared her.
She never managed to finish her sentence.
Hearing all the ruckus from the front door, Papi and Suu suddenly went from behind the now frozen Rachnera to see what was going on, only to end up the same way as the latter. The only person who didn't end up the same way was Meroune Lorelei, who was stuck inthe living room while bound to a wheelchair, and had been apparently forgotten by the rest.
"Umm...what's going on there? I can't see anything from here..."
None of the girls heard Mero's plea, or if they did, none of them could respond.
"Darling...what, the heck, is that."
Miia was the first to question Kimihito regarding the armored being in front of them. Kimihito himself, unsurprisingly, found it difficult to answer her question. Not because he was hesitant, but because he also had no idea what the Doomslayer is himself. Turning to Smith, he found himself pleading for her help once more.
"Smith...help me out here, please."
Smith looked at him with her sunglasses down, and simply responded, "Alright, but let's get in first to make things comfortable."
_
Gathered in the living room, Kimihito and his harem awaited for Smith's explanation. Though the girls were still on edge with the presence of the unknown armored entity currently standing behind Smith, appearing like some sort of grim reaper waiting to claim another poor soul. Smith turned to the girls, and then to Kimihito.
"You wanted an explanation, and I guess I am obligated to give you one, since this is not your usual case. The Cultural Exchange Agency wouldn't want me to leak all this information, but..."
She looked at him dead in the eyes, before letting out a sudden sigh.
"...perhaps, it's better if I let you and the girls know, rather than leave you in the dark. It'll be easier for all of us. Kimihito-kun, you have heard of the Asaka Tragedy, haven't you?"
The mood of the entire room suddenly darkened. Kimihito widened his eyes, and noticed all the girls, even Suu, suddenly having all the colors drained from their faces. He couldn't help but bow his head down in gloom as well.
Of course he had heard of the incident. Everyone had. Hundreds of innocent lives, gone within an hour. Both humans and liminals were victims of the terrorist attack, as the media had mentioned. He was only thankful that the incident happened far from where he and the girls lived, otherwise...he struggled to even imagine the worst that could've happened.
But it didn't end there. Suddenly there were small riots done by people about the liminal rights and how they're hazards to human society. Some liminals didn't take it too kindly either, forming public protests claiming that the attack was done on purpose by humans to blame the liminals with the intention of severing the Cultural Exchange Bill and cutting off liminals from human society entirely.
The situation was so bad that everywhere there would be fights between humans and liminals, the local police and the CESS had no choice but to take action and arrest the ones responsible. The arrest and deportation rate was at an all-time high.
For the last week, Kimihito had decided that the girls should just stay in the household for a while and not go out until the situation has cleared again, while he only goes out at least once a day to buy supplies. It wasn't his decision, initially. Smith had contacted him before to give him the advice that he might need now. After all, he was afraid that the girls might get caught up in all the chaos or worse, get hurt or ended up hurting others and risk getting deported. His homestays were reluctant at first, but after much convincing, they eventually relented to his request. Though it took Miia and Cerea much more convincing since the former was too attached to him and the latter was too protective of him to let him walk out of the house alone without their company.
He thought that neither humans or liminals should blame each other, since this attack was a disaster that affected both sides, and neither side could have benefited from this incident in any way. Whoever did the attack were clearly heartless psychopaths, or as one would put it, people who just wanted to watch the world burn.
"...yeah. I think we all have."
"Good, then I'll get to the point. Kimihito-kun, Mr. Doomslayer here...he was there, during the attack."
Smith's words immediately got Kimihito-s attention. Even the girls suddenly perked up upon the revelation.
"What are you getting at, Smith-san?"
Smith kept her stoic facade. She seemed even more serious than usual. Almost like a different person.
"When the attack happened, I...I acted without thinking and sent the MON squad to deal with the problem. We weren't informed enough about what was happening, so we just sent the nearest local police force and the Security Squads currently available.
What they encountered that day...Kimihito-kun, the perpetrators? They weren't human, or liminal. It was something else entirely. Something I couldn't even imagine possible, even in this world where myths and legends exist. Long story short...the only reason the girls in my squad were still alive, is because of him."
Her words were sharp like needles, pointed towards the being behind her, who had remained silent the whole time. Kimihito gulped, his eyes filled with sheer wonder, and slight terror. So the Doomslayer, not only was he present during the attack, he also fought it back, and was possibly the one who managed to end it.
But there was still one question Smith hadn't yet answered.
"You..haven't told me what race he is."
Smith turned to the armored being and nodded, and the being suddenly moved his hands toward his head. A sudden hissing noise is heard, and the Doomslayer finally opened his helmet and unveiled his true face.
A face which shocked everyone except Smith.
"He's...human?" Centorea was the first one to translate her thoughts into words.
"No, that can't be, he must be hiding a tail under those strange-looking clothes...right?" Miia asked, hoping to get the answer she was expecting. But Smith said the opposite of what she hoped.
"Nope, nothing weird under that armor. In terms of appearance, he is without a doubt, human."
If their jaws could physically hit the floor, they would be right now.
"W-wait, Smith-san, why did you send a human to live with us?" Kimihito asked. He got his answer, in the form of a fist to the head.
"Ouch! What was that for?"
"Didn't you properly hear what I said? In terms of appearance, he is human. But physically speaking...that's another thing entirely."
Her answer only made Kimihito even more dumbfounded, which slightly annoyed her.
"...sigh...look, I don't have the time, nor the patience to explain everything to you. To make it short, Mr. Doomguy here, or Doomslayer, Doom Marine, whatever you want to call him, he's not really a homestay, more like a "guest". He's only here temporarily because the agency decided to, and because we don't really have a good place for him right now, and no other host would be willing to except a hulking 6 and a half foot tall man as a homestay, but I could always count on you."
Kimihito's expressionless facade became even dumber.
"I still don't get it."
"You don't have to, just pretend you do. All I'm saying is, Mr. Doomguy would be here to help you out with anything that you need if you have a hard time taking care of all the women trying to take advantage of you and your virgin life. He is obligated to leave the homestay anytime he wants, though he is still required to come back to the household, and if you're still worried, I'll have my squad check on you and Doomy here every now and then.
Oh, and don't worry, he doesn't swing that way, so you're fine."
Smith's lazy information dump and remark caused some of the girls to stare at her, and others to simply blush and look away while coughing. Kimihito didn't say a word, because he couldn't think of any. Smith promptly turned to the girls afterwards.
"One more thing to remember, from now on Doomguy will be Kimihito's assistant, and technically, his personal bodyguard. I know it can be quite hard for you sometimes, but if possible, try to restrain yourselves more often than your usual selves, and no matter what, do not anger the Doomslayer. I will not be held responsible for whatever happens otherwise, so if you intentionally or accidentally do set him off...God help you. If He can."
A tremendous chill could be felt across the girls' spines as they heard Smith's warning regarding the new guest in their household. Something about what she said didn't sit well with them. But the Doomslayer is just a human, right? And they're physically stronger than humans, so what should they be afraid of?
"If you're wondering what I meant by that, just let me tell you that Mr. Doomguy here, has won an arm wrestling fight against Tio-chan once before. Just to let you know." Smith ended her shocking sentence, with a small wink directed at the girls.
If they were scared before, they were horrified now. Tionishia belonged to a species of ogres who are known for their immense strength, being able to easily overpower most, if not all other liminal species. And to think that a "human", managed to defeat one in an arm wrestling match, is just absurd.
Then again, the Doomslayer was no ordinary human. No human could posess such an aura of death.
"Well, would you look at that, it's lunch time. Well then, I'll see you girls later. And Darling-kun, take care of yourself, okay?"
"But it's 9:00 in the mo-"
"Farewell, Darling-kun!! And remember, no coitus like usual, mmkay?"
_
The Present
After his flashback ended, Kimihito once again looked towards Doomguy...what is up with that nickname anyway? Shaking away such thoughts, Kimihito tried his best to make the Doomslayer more comfortable. And if possible, prevent any of his homestays from attempting to do anything reckless towards his new guest.
Something which, judging from the constant glares given by the girls all directed towards the green behemoth, he surmised he may have already failed at.
Miia felt like Doomslayer could be another rival to add to the competition for her Darling's attention, despite the fact that the being was male, and do not swing that way amyway. Cerea was constantly feeling threatened by his presence, even though he had not made any suspicious movements. Rachnera was mostly interested in the armored being, and also slightly scared after hearing about what Smith said regarding the man's physical prowess.
Meroune fantasized that the armored being could be a lonely dishonored knight from a faraway land who had probably lost his loved one and was now trying to find meaning in his life by becoming a homestay, whilst constantly stuck down the road of lone suffering until the end of his life. Papi was curious on why her Boss decided to bring a shiny faceless mannequin into the household for no reason. Suu...was being Suu, as usual.
"So, uh...Doomguy-san, are you hungry? We already ate breakfast, but I think there's still some leftovers left! I could whip up a nice dish for you, how does French toast sound like?"
Silence.
"Ehh...maybe you don't like toast...b-but that's fine! I could run to the mall right now and buy some new ingredients! Would you prefer steak or fish?"
Absolute silence.
"Umm...maybe you're a vegan? I think there's some leftover cabbages-"
"Master, that is enough!! I don't think Mr. Doomslayer is hungry right now, and if he does not want to taste Master's delightful cooking, then so be it! My master should not be obligated to treat someone who is merely an uninvited guest in his own house!"
Cerea has reached her breaking point and decided to stop her master from trying to please the armored beast who may or may not be sleeping while standing the whole time. The faceless helmet makes it quite hard to determine for sure. Moreover, she couldn't help but feel constantly on alert with him around. This Doomslayer could easily be a threat not just to Kimihito, but to everyone else as well.
"Calm down, Cerea. Maybe Mr. Doomguy here is just shy and doesn't want to put a burden on my Honey. It's bad enough he already had to put up with the rest of you." Rachnera spoke out witha sinister smirk, her words apparently unnerving Cerea even more.
"Are you implying that I am a burden on my Master? Have you not taken a look in the mirror, you freeloader?"
"My, how hypocritical of you. Aren't we all?"
"At least I have a purpose, that is to serve Master, as I am his knight and he is my lord. What do you have to say about yourself?"
"W-wait!! I'm not a freeloader! I live with Darling because he's my future husband and I love him with all my heart!"
"Only if you're lucky enough to be chosen by my Honey."
"He's MY Honey!! I-I mean Darling!!"
"Excuse me, everyone but we should calm down, this conversation is going nowhere.."
"What's with all the loud yelling...it makes Papi's head all swirly..."
What initially started as a simple gesture of politeness for the new guest of the household turned into a verbal battle between Rachnera, Cerea and Miia over who was the best girl for their host. Kimihito merely stood there, slack-jawed, being unable to figure out how to resolve the situation.
"Hey, calm down!!! There's no need to fight- urrghkk!!" A tail suddenly wrapped itself around the poor man's neck for what seemed like the tenth time in that particular week, courtesy of Miia.
"Darling is MINE, and MINE alone!!!"
"Miia, stop what you're doing right now! You're going to suffocate Master!!"
"I'm sure Honey would be fine, it's not the first time, right?"
Just as the three girls continued bickering over one another, a sudden tremendous wave of deathly aura descended upon the inhabitants of the room. Cerea suddenly lost her usual composure, Rachnera's provocations had stopped as her tongue was now frozen, and Miia subconsciously released her grip on Kimihito, who was close to passing out. Meroune started scooting away on her wheelchair by herself, as she was also visibly sweating upon feeling such a strong sense of dread. Even Papi and Suu went completely quiet.
The girls' attention were slowly directed back towards the source of the malevolence, the outcast among the inhabitants of the household. A being shrouded with mystery, and full of rage.
Raw, unwavering rage.
Regaining his senses after taking a few deep breaths, Kimihito tried to make a sense of what has happened.
"Yikes, that's gonna leave a mark...eh? Miia? Cerea? Everyone? Why are you guys so pale?"
Initially oblivious to the potent wave of animosity coursing through the air of the living room, he turned to see the Doomslayer, now standing upright with his hands balled into fists, his face remaining obscured behind the visor. He also noticed the girls have completely been petrified by a seemingly unknown force, which made him wonder. However, the seething repugnance coming from the Doomslayer's being did not go unnoticed, even by someone as dense as Kimihito. Alas, he ended up frozen stiff as well without him noticing it.
This will be a big problem, he knew it. The Doomslayer wasn't like the homestays he had dealt with before. He was used to dealing with abnormal things in his life, but this green behemoth...is nothing like what he was used to. Never had he felt someone filled with so much hate without reason, someone he absolutely could not relate to, an anomaly not even Smith could unveil herself.
However, he realized he needed to lift the tension currently weighed onto the household in order to restore some sort of normalcy. Gathering up as much courage as he could, Kimihito asked the green behemoth a simple request.
"Mr. Doomslayer...whatever you're doing right now, please, stop. Please forgive the girls, they mean you no harm, really. I just want to make everyone comfortable, including you."
If the aforementioned being was actually convinced by his statement, the sudden absence of the frightening aura earlier was the clear indication for it. The girls suddenly found themselves gasping for air, after unwillingly getting paralyzed by the Slayer's eyeless stare. Despite having been released from the soul-binding aura, they could not help but gaze with terror upon the faceless visor of the Slayer.
He did not lift even a finger, but he had no need to, for his nature and stance alone is enough to give everyone the impression that he was the true man of the house now. And none had the audacity to say otherwise.
Their lives from now on will never be the same again.
-
The Doomslayer was furious.
Granted, he was almost always furious. Except this time the level of fury he was feeling was higher than usual.
And they weren't fully directed at the bunch of immature hormonal creatures in front of him, but mostly at himself, for accepting this in the first place.
Agreeing to be part of the Cultural Exchange Program as a special case was one thing, he expected there would be trouble to come since he would need to get used to dealing with society once more. And perhaps needing to use his voice to "socialize" with people once more. He couldn't even remember how he used to sound like anymore, millenia of fighting in Hell without ever using his vocal cords had seriously hampered his communication skills. Chances are he might've accidentally turned himself mute.
Though, he didn't understand why he would need to take part of this in the first place. Surely they could've thought of better options. The humans could have simply sent him to a war-torn country and have him decimate all the terrorists by himself, and he wouldn't really complain. In his eyes, those who are aligned with evil are no different than demons both in flesh and soul.
As long as he get to keep his suit and all his toys, and not be forced into doing something he doesn't like, he could tolerate whatever the humans decided to propose to him. The rest is up to VEGA, since the AI was the one who did the talking.
But trying to deal with this? He was starting to think he should be the one to do the negotiations next time. It didn't take long for him to figure out what was happening. Having to babysit a bunch of sexually crazed demihumans and their human host who is also dense and ignorant himself, was not something he was expecting to do. At least he knew now that the human was at the very least competent and level-headed enough, despite his idiotic facade.
The human, Kimihito as he recalled it, asked him for what he wants for breakfast, which was very nice of him. But he never needed to eat anyway. He had sustained himself just fine simply with Argent Energy throughout his time in Hell, and God forbid he would never, ever, dare to try consuming demon meat. Even if he starved to death he would not poison his own tastebuds that way.
The girls are a different story altogether. True, he had only been with them for 5 minutes, so it may be too early for him to judge anybody. But seeing their reactions and their pathetic battle against something so trivial like who could be the best half-human wife, it made him wonder if any of the girls have had their heads severly injured at one point in their lives, or if they were simply born that way. Or maybe he was the weird one here, after all this is an alternate universe.
But in all honesty, he was really starting to miss the barren landscapes of Mars and the fiery brimstones of Hell. Fighting a dozen Barons of Hell all at once with his eyes closed and one arm tied to his back would be easier and less grating on his mind than this crap.
The Doomslayer internally cursed at himself. Perhaps he shouldn't listen to VEGA all the time. The damn AI can't always be right.
"You're stress level is increasing rapidly at an alarming rate. It is advisable for you to try and restrain yourself at least for now. Might I suggest a little music to calm your nerves?" VEGA's robotic voice was the last thing the Slayer was expecting to hear, but what the AI said did gain his attention in a positive way.
"Now playing, "Überviolence" by Mick Gordon."
For the first time in eons, the Slayer felt like he could really use a drink.
--
Interspecies Database
[CLASSIFIED INFORMATION. AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.]
Codex Entry 1
Category: Monsters
Entry: Imp
UAC REPORT FILE: 388OAOTY
These Ferocious and agile demons are found all over Hell, and are often used on the front line in concerted attack in either dimension. The revel in battle, feeding off their victims, when the hunger takes them.
UAC REPORT FILE: 8WBD0DT
Despite their low status among the demon ranks and their seemingly endless number, Imps have unique characteristics in battle. Some prefer fighting from an elevated position, while others will rush their target and swipe at them with razor sharp claws. Walls and obstacles offer no defense against Imps as they will leap great heights and easily hang from surfaces. The Imp is capable of channeling Hell energy through its hands and shaping it into a projectile. As the Imp Channels the energy, airborn particles and debris are sucked into the maelstrom to create a condensed, superheated fireball. The mechanics of the Imp's ranged attacks suggest that they are actually a lower form of the"Summoner".
END REPORT