Life: 02
Everyone has their vices, for some it's alcohol or cigarettes for others like a certain brunette, its porn and other lewd activities. For me my vice is rolling in a gacha game which usually wouldn't be too bad. But when you add in the gamer to the mix that can pull anything or anyone from across the multiverse of media, then it becomes problematic. So maybe I need a new vice that won't risk the premature termination of my new life. But I seem to be getting ahead of myself allow me to go back a few days ago.
It's been about a month since I asked for my Evil Pieces and in that time I've spent a lot of it with Sairaorg. I'd say that we've become close, at least as close as two kids who have known each other for a short amount of time can be. Which is just fine, I think I'll only be able to convince him to join my Peerage when we're closer, but until then it's been fun just being able to be a kid again.
As of right now it'll probably be another month or so before I get word back on my Evil Pieces, apparently while it wasn't unheard of for a Devil to get their pieces early, there was still a process that took time. This has given me time to think about the people I would be recruiting into my Peerage.
Other than the Bael clan head, I was still considering the possibility of recruiting Vali, Kuroka, Koneko, Arthur and Le Fay, Cao Cao, Georg, Siegfried, Jeanne, Valerie, Xenovia, Ingvild, and if possible Ddraig. That last one came from the idea of extracting the Boosted Gear from Issei before the start of cannon and then releasing the Welsh Dragon and reincarnating him. After all Regulus was able to become Sairaorg's pawn in cannon through the same method, however I would be putting my life at risk and it would result in the death of Issei Hyoudou.
Well, unless I found a way to remove it without taking his life. Besides Indra took the True Longinus and Dimension Lost from Cao Cao and Georg and neither died then, so there must have been a way. And if not then….I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
"Hey you alright Barisol? You look like you're lost in space." Sairaorg said nudging me out of my thoughts.
"Yeah I'm fine I was just thinking about something." I wave off and he gives me a look that tells me he's not convinced.
"And what would that be of?" Being ever so inquisitive Sairaorg asked me.
"Well you see I'm going to be getting my Evil Pieces early and I'm planning to one day take the title of Champion of the Rating Games." I gave a sheepish smile and Sairaorg's widened for a moment.
"That makes sense actually…" He mumbled to himself before shaking his head and giving me a supportive smile, "If anyone can do it, I believe you could. No, you definitely will!"
"Really you think so?" His determination and faith in my abilities filled me with both pride and embarrassment, something that seems like such a strange mixture to feeling but I am.
"Of course I do, I know you'll be a great King when you get your pieces." When did this happen? I know that in the world of anime lifelong relationships and bonds tend to form within the first hour of knowing someone, but I would've thought that it wouldn't be the case given that this was real life for me now.
Wait? Perks…
Sallos Bloodline: +1 CHA every 2 levels. Allows access to Sallos family power.
I mentally tapped the the text mentioning about the Sallos family power only to be given some hidden text.
Those born of the Sallos family are known for their charisma and ability to rally allies! People are more likely to be friendly towards the player and their allies! In addition any person the player talks to is instantly at ease because of their presence! The player will be able to effortlessly make a target spill their thoughts to them due to the player's intense personality and is able to discern the desires of others within the course of either observing or speaking with them! Positive reputation gain is increased by 1000%! This is due to their power the Fated King!
The Fated King, eh? Maybe a little on the nose but it works. Although that does make me wonder about the other.
"Hey, you're doing it again." Once again my friend interrupted me from mental query.
"Sorry sorry. I was just starting to wonder what you had in mind for the future." At my question his face turned dower.
"I wanna prove my father and all the old Devils they're wrong. I wanna show the entire world how far a "defect" can go." He clench one of his hands into a fist as he spoke.
"While you don't have any magical ability, you do have your body and determination. I'd say so long as you put your mind to it and put in the work you'll do just that." I say giving him an encouraging smile.
"That's like what mom said to me…" I heard him mutter.
"Well, you know the old saying, mother knows best." We both laugh at that.
Maybe now would be a good time to ask him.
"Hey, Sairaorg, I gotta ask...when I get my Evil Pieces would you join me?" The Bael heir looked shock for a moment before regaining his composure.
"You'd want me to join?" He raised an eyebrow to which I rolled my eyes.
"I wanna point out that you had the same reaction when I said I wanted to be friends." I pointed out and he seemed to blush a bit from embarrassment.
"I know that!" He looked away and crossed his arms.
"Listen I wouldn't have asked unless I knew for a fact that I wanted you in. You are my best friend, I can trust you, and you'll become strong in the future I just know it." I explained and he looked at me with a mock appalled expression.
"So you mean to tell me that you only want me in your Peerage because you think I'll become strong? Here I thought you valued our friendship." He said feigning hurt.
"Oh don't get me wrong I do value our friendship, I just also understand it is to have someone you can trust at your side, and as it stands outside of my parents there is no one I trust more than you." At hearing my words Sairaorg looked to be deep in thought, "You don't need to answer me now. Take all the time you need."
"Alright, I'll think about it." He said before we both went back to playing hide and seek.
It was while I was in the woods behind the Sallos estate, hiding from Sairaorg, that I had managed to get some much needed alone time to take a look at the description for my mother's family power.
Those born of the Eligos family are known for their ability to instantly identify the best personal course of action during combat! It is essentially in the realm of predicting the future and it is possible to negate the penalties inflicted by visual and auditory interference! However unknown to most is the fact that it actually accommodates all matters related to the achievement of a goal! This allows the player to always have a general sense of where to go or what steps are needed to take in order to complete a goal! However it is not an omniscient power and will not outright tell the player what they need to do! For all tense and purposes you can call it Instinct!
That was useful. Like really useful, almost stupidity so. But it does make me wonder what else is hidden within the game. I mean is there a gacha function in the game?
Welcome to the gacha!
You have to be kidding…
The gacha lets you test your luck and gain anything from rare items, skills, or even other entities from across the multiverse! You get one free roll a day! You can spend money to continue rolling after your free roll!
Would you like to roll?
Y/N?
Roll the gacha huh? It's like the game is aware of my weakness for these things. Ugh, what the hell I'll give it a roll. My vision went blank, in many ways it reminded me of the endless abyss that I had awaken to after dying. The darkness was interrupted by a summoning circle that started to shine three times only for a flashes to go off. Afterwards I was brought back to reality where I ended up staring down a terrifying sight.
It was hideous with a hunchback-like appearance and sharp teeth that were disfigured. It's limbs were longer than what a normal humanoid should have. It's skin was glossy and taut almost as if it were to small for it's frame giving it a skeletal appearance.
I had to force myself to stand absolutely still as it moved around me in search of prey. I of course recognized this thing. It was a fucking wendigo. What the literal fuck. The gacha suddenly felt much more dangerous.
The wendigo ended up running off further into the forest but I stood there as still as I could for the next ten or so minutes before I took of in the direction of the estate. Call me what you will but I wasn't even going to attempt to fight that thing. Hell I'm not even level one! How was I supposed to beat it?
Even if I killed it with fire the things spirit would roam around until it possessed somebody else. No, so I couldn't kill what I could do was leave it alone and ignore it. The woods now belong to the wendigo and that was the end of that.
Mental Pollution has leveled up and is now level 2!
….
I have no comment for that. As a matter of fact I wouldn't even acknowledge it.
"Master Barisol? What are you doing back so soon? And where's lord Sairaorg?" A maid had asked reminding me of the fact that he was still in the woods with the...wendigo...oh fuck!
Quest Unlocked!
Friends for Dinner!
Your carelessness has put your one and only friend in mortal danger, wow you suck at this friend thing! Now it's up to you to save him should you accept this mission! If not then he will surely be wendigo chow!
Objectives!
Save Sairaorg Bael
Rewards!
100 EXP!
Increase reputation with Sairaorg Bael!
?
?
?
Accept?
Y/N?
Of course accept it!
Without giving it much thought I ran out of the estate and back into the woods. Damn my lack of foresight!
It didn't take me long to find him and it seems like he hasn't ran into that thing yet. Good this will make things easier. The quest said to save Sairaorg not defeat the wendigo, so I might be able to avoid a confrontation.
"You do know the point of the game is for me to find you and for you to hide, right?" Sairaorg asked completely unaware of the danger that he was in.
"Sairaorg look we hav-" Anything I was going to say was cut short by the screech of the wendigo.
"Shit." Was all I could say when it appeared in front of us, crawling on all four legs.
"What is that thing?" Sairaorg was shaking and pointing at the thing in a panic.
God damn it….ow…
The wendigo lunged at the Bael heir, shit what do I do? What can I do? Think, think! I'm the gamer and a Devil! These things are weak to fire...so I'll just have to create a spell that conjures flames!
I ran at the beast gaining its attention and imagined a fireball, I concentrated on its details, the size, heat, color, shape, and effect.
Skill creation failure! Insufficient MP, stats, and elemental affinity!
So here I am within arms reach of the wendigo who is longer paying attention to the panicked Sairaorg but rather the idiot that charged it without a means of hurting it because I lack the ability to actually create a simple fireball. Well I had a short run.
It swiped at me but I managed to duck in time. Thank my Devil genes for making me faster than regular humans otherwise I would've been hit.
"Sairaorg, run and get out of here. I'll buy you sometime." I ordered and he gave me a confused look.
"But won't that thing-"
"Don't worry about that. I'll be fine, afterall I still have to take my rightful place at the top, remember?" I interrupted him and gave a confident smile, which did a great job at hiding how scared shitless I was right now.
His eyes were wide and his mouth was left hanging open.
"Right! I'll go get help!" He said before taking off.
The wendigo screeched and charged for Sairaorg, but I got in the way taking a direct hit.
You took 50 damage!
That was half of my HP gone, and with just one hit...I'm not gonna have fun here.
"Life drain." I activated the skill while wrapping my arms around the wendigo.
It thrashed about in an attempt to knock me off. However I was regenerating health now faster then it could take by just slamming me against a tree. Once my HP and MP were back to full, I activated my Berserk skill.
Immediately I felt a sort of haze fall under my vision, as if I was looking at everything through a filter. The wendigo tried to bite down on my shoulder but with a squeeze of my arms it roared in pain.
You did 1 damage!
The notification didn't bother me as I was too busy increasing my hold on the beast all the while sapping its HP and MP. It screamed and hissed at me as it fought for its freedom. Despite its best efforts I continued to hold it back and once again tried crushing its body with all my might.
You did 1 damage!
Even if my attacks did the barest of damage my life drain was still in full effect. So when it managed to free an arm and slashed at my back I didn't care too much.
You took 25 damage!
The pain didn't register thanks to the effects of Berserk. It continued to attack and dealt consistent damage, but I didn't care about that. Right now I was buying my friend enough time to get to safety and to get help. Besides any damage that it dealt I would manage to heal back from in no time.
The wendigo once again tried to break from my hold, only to be dealt a singular point of damage in return. It bit into me as a form of revenge.
You took 50 damage!
In that moment it managed to free its other arm from my grasp. It went to grab me and throw me off but I managed to swing myself around onto its back were I continued to drain more of its vast pool of life.
Having grown irritated with the parasite keeping it from its meal the wendigo slammed its back against a large tree. Why it went back to resorting to this method I am unaware, however regardless of the amount of damage I took, I refused to let go.
Although I am left to wonder just how much did this thing have in terms of HP? I had been draining it for quite sometime now and it still has yet to show any sign of tiring. Was it possible that its HP value was so high that not even me being able to drain 10 HP a second for ten minutes would do anything? Had it even been that long? It certainly felt like it.
Warning HP at critical levels! Continual damage will result in death!
"Get away from him!" I heard someone yell out.
The next thing I know I was being held by Khazak who looked both worried and pissed. There was someone besides him that I hadn't seen before but looked familiar. I heard the screech of the wendigo and a few reassuring words from father before I passed out.
When I woke up I was expecting to be back in the abyss that represented my death. Instead I was in my room, lying on my bed with Lemrina looking over me.
"What are you doing mom?" I asked her and she tilted her head to the side ever so slightly.
"Just making sure you're still alive." Was all she had to say.
"Oh, is that it?" At my question she nodded her head.
"You've been out for three days." She then turned her attention onto the book she had in her hands.
I see so I'm still alive...that's good…
"Wait is Sairaorg okay?" As soon as the words left my mouth I felt something tackle me down.
"Barisol!" The aforementioned boy cried.
"Hey now I'm alright." I tried sounded as carefree as I could.
"You were really hurt! They said it was a miracle that you were still breathing with your injuries!" He looked at me with his tear ridden eyes.
I was about to say something when two more individuals walked in. The first was my father, the other was the one that had been with him when I was holding back the wendigo. Now getting a good look at him I recognize him immediately, Diehauser Belial.
"Good to see your awake." The emperor had said to me, "Your parents told me that you were planning on taking my spot. I have to say after witnessing your tenacity against that creature, I'm quite eager to see you grow."
I was completely speechless at the words of the grey haired man. Khazak cleared his throat to gain my attention.
"I thought I should let you know that after this event involving that creature, I have spoken with the Four Maos and Lord Bael and they all agree that you have proven yourself worthy of obtaining your Evil Pieces early. So congratulations son, I'm proud of you!" He smiled widely at me which made me feel...happy.
Quest complete!
You saved Sairaorg Bael from being eaten by the wendigo that you unleashed unto the world! Nice going hero!
You gain 100 EXP
Your reputation with Sairaorg Bael has increased!
You have guaranteed your Evil Pieces!
You have unlocked the Fated King and Instinct!
You have cleared the tutorial stage! And it only took you five years!
You have level up!
Berserk has leveled up!
Life Drain has leveled up!
Tutorial? You have to be kidding me! This entire time I've been in the tutorial stage! What even?
Whatever. I think I've learned a very valuable lesson here. And that's not to roll in the gacha.
AN: I had meant to respond to the reviews I had gotten for the first chapter last time but I kinda forgot about it and by the time I remembered there had already been a review for the new one. So I figured I'd just do a big chunk of them here.
Guest-Questioner: Well I due hope you enjoy what I've done so far and continue to do so in future installments.
akasuna123: I don't have a luck stat because I feel that its kinda a boring state to have, and because knowing myself I'd poor all of my future stat points into luck. Besides I like to leave things up to chance, for example I rolled a dice to see if Barisol would have to face off against the wendigo when he went to get Sairaorg.
Guest 1: Eh, I never said it was god but if that's your interpretation go for it.
Guest 2: I can see why a Peerage of nothing but girls would seem preferable, but I also realize the value of certain characters in terms of what they are capable of. For that reason I'm not going to go full waifu mode here. You have some really good suggestions and I won't lie one that you mentioned is guaranteed a spot, but I won't say which one.
AscheriitXL: Yes, yes he is.
Oblivious IJ: I mean who doesn't want to be friends with Maito Gai, let alone a sane one. But yeah Sairaorg is one of my favorite non-waifu characters in the series so I couldn't resist.
Guest 3: No worries I intend to continue. And don't worry he won't, I have no intention or having Barisol be weak but I also don't want him to be overpowered from the get go, which can be hard given the nature of the gamer and the pure power creep that is High School DxD.
Well that's all I have for now. Thanks for reading and reviewing which makes a huge difference since it lets me know what you guys like/want or anything I need to work on. See you guys next chapter.