Challenger

Please see the author's note at the bottom. This first chapter has been rewritten. One of my drafts and earliest works from 2018, so please pardon the mistakes.

Chapter 1

My name is Issei Hyoudo. Age 18. Occupation: High school student, and Destroyer of Hell. This is the story of my rise and my eternal glory.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The area around Kuoh academy was usually quiet. The bustling grounds were deserted. The weekly vacation means the school grounds were free from its usual lively atmosphere. He still arrived there early in the morning, just like every day. And just like every day, his eyelids were drooping. But that couldn't be helped. He was not a morning person.

Issei is a very studious student and thus wanted to make use of the break to catch up on his studies. The reason he showed up in the deserted schoolyard had nothing to do with classwork. He simply wanted to confirm if he had gone insane. He didn't have much sleep last night. Every time he tried closing his eyes, he would get the urge to visit the schoolyard. He did not have any idea why. The school was closed tomorrow, and he had no reason to visit the place more than necessary.

Issei yelled at the top of his lungs, "Give me a break!"

Ignoring the weird look of the passerby and a startled-looking dog, he finally arrived at the deserted courtyard. In the courtyard filled with crows, a man was standing while facing the school building. Issei didn't know exactly what he expected, but before Issei even called out to him, he responded without turning and confirming his existence.

"So, you came. Not that I didn't expect this."

Issei frowned a little. "Just now, I wanted to call out to him. But why? I do not even know him."

He had known he was here even though he hadn't made any noise, and had easily identified that it was Issei without turning. He had a terrible feeling that this person could read his mind. After what had happened last night, he could accept it if you told him that Japan is actually on the back of a giant turtle that has been asleep for a million years. Before he could ask any question, though, the man answered his question,

"I am a scientist from the Fallen Angel Institution. I have a proposal for you."

"I would ask what that is, but how about introducing yourself first?"

"I would explain everything in your terms, but my way is faster. But before that, I thought you knew what is going on, host of the Red Dragon Emperor. If you did not, why did you show up here?"

I have no idea why I did.

"Let me see if I understand it right. You experienced a disturbing mental attack all throughout the night, and your solution was to show up where a possibly hostile entity told you to?"

"... I do not care! Just tell me what you want!"

The man appeared in front of him as if he had teleported, closing the distance between them instantly.

The man placed his hand on Issei's head. He suddenly remembered experiences that were not his, even though it was as though he always knew this information. Issei experienced the life of the person in front of him. Hope, excitement at creating something new, the success of his experiment, and finally the crushing emptiness as his own creation spelled his doom. As he tried to shake off the disoriented feeling and checked to see if he had any injury, he glared at the man,

"What are you doing, you think you can just waltz up to me and tell me, devils and demons exist!?" As he yelled, the surrounding birds flew up in the sky.

The man remained nonchalant as he replied, "This is a reality. Either you accept it or get left behind. "

" Don't tell me I am supposed to believe everything just because you told me so!"

The man simply unleashed his pitch-black fallen angel wings, shutting up Issei's rant.

As he tried to come to terms with the new reality before him, he asked the man just to confirm,

"Why are you giving me this power? Surely there are better candidates for this?"

"Simple", the man replied. "You have one of the Heavenly Dragons, which is enough power this new sacred gear will need. Boost can increase power until it is enough to operate. I can no longer extract the sacred gear from you. But my revenge can't be stopped. I will do whatever is necessary to achieve my goal. If this is how it is going to be, so be it. Will you accept it?"

"What did I just tell you!? I do not trust a fallen angel!"

Before he finished the sentence, Issei interrupted, " I don't care. You try to make me the protagonist of a shady scheme by a fallen angel. Say, do you know why you are called a fallen angel? The answer is simple: Because you have betrayed the trust of Heaven. And if God felt you are untrustworthy with all of his wisdom, I don't want anything to do with you. I am just a human."

"You don't have a choice. I will extract it from you and give it to someone else if you refuse. My entire life's work will not be worthless." The black wings moved slightly.

"So, I was right. You initially planned to steal it from me, that was your plan A."

"Indeed. Why would it not be? You said it yourself. I am a fallen angel that has betrayed the trust of God himself. Why did you think that I wouldn't be unfair to you?"

"Fine. Give me the sacred gear. I will use it well if it means staying alive for a few more days."

The man replied in an annoyed tone,

"Of course, I was going to do that. I am already slated to spend an eternity in Cocytus, frozen because my research is apparently "against nature". Another murder would mean absolutely nothing. My fight to get out of the facility to be here instead of Azazel took its toll. I can no longer do pretty much anything."

Issei didn't know what to make of this. Here was a man, or rather fallen angel, who was offering to hand him potentially the most powerful tool in existence. He also just admitted to wanting to murder him. He wondered what would happen if he really refused the offer. Did the man have another candidate for the sacred gear?

The white Dragon Emperor, perhaps?

"Okay. What do I have to do? I know nothing about magic." Issei said at last.

The man who had been watching Issei closely while Issei was deep in thought suddenly smiled and raised his hand. A ball of red light manifested in his hands and he directed it towards Issei. The ball of light entered his body and instantly Issei felt his sacred gear awaken as well as felt the new sacred gear the man had given him.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Dragons have always been seen as a symbol of power and wealth. They guard vast treasures and are immensely powerful beings. And among them, there existed two who were in a class of their own.

The Heavenly Dragons. It was said that even Gods feared them. And thus the God of the Bible destroyed their bodies and sealed their spirits in two powerful sacred gears. And now one of them was about to awaken.

Ddraig, the Red Dragon Emperor, awakened inside his new host. He had done this for over a thousand years now, hosts that were incredibly talented, witnessed the rise of one shocking genius after another, but this time, something was different. He immediately realized there was another sacred gear inside his human host that did not belong in this world, even though his senses were muddled from his slumber. It didn't have any power yet, but something about it bothered him. He had other hosts with more than one sacred gear before, but this one felt… Unnatural.

"Well, I will be off. Let's hope we meet again someday."

The man took off to the sky without giving Issei a chance to respond, say goodbye, or thank you, not that he had any intention to do either. Issei had a feeling the man wanted to be at a safe distance before he activated his power.

Issei watched him go and suddenly dropped to his knees. The panic of his new world settled in as he felt the dragon awaken inside him. He also realized the strange man used some mind manipulation power to ensure he didn't freak out. But the effect is wearing off and deep panic settled in. Panic and confusion so intense that it far surpassed the ones he felt when his parents suddenly died in a car explosion.

An hour later, when he cooled down enough, Ddraig decided to talk to his human partner. They will be stuck together after all, at least until Issei died, and he moved on to a new user.

"Hello, partner. How do you do?" He asked casually.

"Hello. Ddraig-san. How have you been?"

Issei replied just as casually; deciding to just go with the flow and not let the dragon see him in panic, completely unaware that Ddraig could read his every thought.

"I would love to talk, but we don't have much time. You need to trade a body part with me to get some power as soon as possible. We are on a clock here. They will have noticed the missing sacred gear." Ddraig said in a brisk voice.

"Yeah, I know. How do you suggest we start?" Issei replied, trying to stand up.

"Well, you may not know this but there are devils, both natural-born and reincarnated, here in this very school. The two great ladies are actually high-class devils. They should be able to help. And there are a few interesting characters here too. I wonder what they can do. Want to go check it out?"

Perhaps, if Issei was not in a panic, he would have realized the inconsistency.

How did Ddriag, who had been asleep until now, know about these things?

"Yeah, lets. But, not today. This is too much for one day as it is." Issei said, "How about we talk about something else?"

"What do you suggest?" Ddraig asked though he knew the answer.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The dark room contained a boy in a girl's clothes. It had the appearance of a typical hacker's cave, complete with blinking monitors with codes flowing through them. Gasper Valdi looked up from his computer when he sensed someone approaching his door. Resisting the urge to hide in his cardboard box, he decided to check out who it was. He nearly freaked out when he realized it was one of the ordinary students. Deciding not to open the door, he suddenly felt extreme pressure on him; his bishop piece was ripped from his body, as were his sacred gear and vampire powers. He became unconscious at the sudden loss of all of his powers, as even his intellect was ripped from him. The entire event took only a few seconds from start to finish.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Outside the door, Issei felt new powers enter his body. The new sacred gear started to analyze its power and immediately assimilated it inside itself along with all the techniques it contained, suddenly unlocked and pushed to their fullest extent. It didn't stop there, as it began enhancing the power it received.

Issei rapidly left the place. He was feeling exhausted after using his sacred gear without any training. Any other confrontation would have to wait. He had been exercising for the last two weeks, but his human body could only take so much.

"But it won't be long now. Soon, I will surpass all of them'"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Rias Gremory was worried. Someone had suddenly put her Bishop in a coma; he was missing his sacred gear and his devil piece, and had turned into an ordinary vampire. She wondered who could do this, as she heard extracting sacred gears usually resulted in death. The only person she could think of who could do this would be Ajuka Beelzebub, one of the four great Satans and inventor of the devil piece system. As for why he would do such a thing if he was involved, she had no idea.

As she watched the sunset from the old school building, Akeno Himejima, her queen, tried to reassure her.

"It will be alright. Whoever did this will be back thinking everyone here is easy to defeat, and we will kill them then."

She said with a sadistic look unbecoming of a person who was one of the two great ladies of the school. No doubt this will ruin the fantasy much of the school body had of her if they could see her now.

"Yeah. I just hope he doesn't kill anyone before that happens."

Rais replied, not fully reassured. She had a bad feeling that this was the work of someone extraordinary, beyond the boundary of a natural occurrence. No stray should be able to achieve such a feat. Trying to push the thought away from her, she decided to focus on the matter at hand, healing Gasper. The boy was lying on the sofa, unconscious, even after a week.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was a week later. Issei was heading home from school when he realized someone was following him. The new powers he had gained were still in its developmental phase, but it appeared he had gained enhanced senses. The downside of it is that he was getting constant headaches from the information overflow that he isn't used to. He wondered what other powers he will gain when he fully activated his sacred gear.

Looking behind him, he saw a very cute girl wearing the uniform of a school he didn't recognize. This was unusual because there weren't many schools in this town. He should have been able to recognize it immediately.

She approached him shyly. Issei waited for her to say something, but when she said nothing, he decided to speak first.

"Do you want to say something?" He asked

"Ah! Yes. You are Issei-kun, right? I am Yumma Amano. Please go out with me!" She replied while she turned crimson.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Are you really going out with her?"

Ddraig asked while Issei got ready the next day. In the last week, Issei had gotten used to his new life. He trained all night and got little sleep, but his panic attacks were few and far between. He had also gotten used to Ddraig and chatted with him all the time since his only two friends were killed in an explosion some time ago. Coincidentally, they died the same way as his parents forced him to live in an apartment alone.

"Yeah. There is something off about her. No girl has ever willingly asked me out. I want to know what her deal is."

"Willingly, you say? Did you blackmail someone?"

"Yes. If they think I am stupid, then I will completely control them and prove I am superior to them." Issei replied nonchalantly.

"You are a, how do I say this? Not evil maybe, but dark. Or maybe evil. These kinds of things are subjective. That is interesting, I haven't had a host like you in a while…" Ddraig replied.

"Maybe. But I don't care. I have decided to go with what I feel like. I want to confront God and ask why he made life the way it is. If I am unsatisfied with the answer, I will kill him. If the Longinus is as good as that fallen angel said it is, then it should have at least this much power, right?"

Ever since the incident two years ago, he had completely shed his old personality and became more mature. He hit the book and put all of his efforts into becoming smart. Not that he had much success. But he did stop being completely dense and became as smart as a kid around his age. With the intellect he ripped from Gasper Valdi, he should become smarter, at least in terms of technical abilities.

Issei pulled on his favorite clothes as he left the student apartment he lived in. While reaching the train station, he asked Ddraig a question he was wondering.

"Ddraig, there are thirteen Longinus, right? Where are the other twelve?"

"I have no idea. The fallen angels should have a user with them. I heard that information from my last user. It is a boy your age. He is your eventual and final enemy. The Vanishing Dragon. Your opposite number. You two are destined to fight each other, just like every one of your predecessors. As for the others, I have no idea. The True Longinus user likes to keep to them. He should be very powerful by now. Let's not fight him until necessary."

"I want all of their powers. With the new sacred gear, I can turn them all into formidable weapons. And then I will challenge God." Issei didn't know it yet, but his goal was very similar to the final opponent he must face.

"If you have all thirteen, then you may be able to challenge him, provided you have enough raw power from somewhere. But you need a body strong enough to handle it. Needless to say, your human body is ill-suited for such a thing. I don't know where you can find one like that." Ddraig said.

"Don't worry," Issei reassured him. "I know who can help. For now, I just want to capture these devils."

As usual for a train station, it was bustling with people. Quite a few people were selling souvenirs. A few peddlers have set up shop carts.

"Sorry, Amano-chan. Were you waiting long?"

Amano Yumma was already waiting for him there. Of course, Issei already found this suspicious. It was perfectly alright for a teenage girl to be excited about a date. But that didn't explain why she was here an hour before the appointed time.

Deciding to forget about everything else for a moment, he went with her plans for the entire day.

"Say, Issei-kun, what kind of Ice-cream do you like?"

"Ice-cream, you say?"

He looked around and saw the Ice-cream vendor selling Ice cream to a few kids. Weird, he could have sworn that one of the kids had a weird aura to it.

"Well, I like everything. Say, Amano-chan, what do you like? "

"I don't really like Ice cream. I just read that is what you were supposed to eat on a date …."

"She sure is cute. But still, this sinister feeling I am getting from her is just like that fallen angel."

"AH, don't worry about it. Say Amano-chan, where do you want to go? How about the zoo?"

"NO!"

"That is a pretty strong reaction. And now we have a cute girl who doesn't like Ice cream and doesn't want to go see cute animals at the zoo? Is it because animals have a strong negative reaction to her? Is the myth about animals sensing evils true, Ddriag? "

But there was no response. It seems he was busy with his own thing.

"Say Issei-kun, you haven't been to the nursery they set up lately, have you? Let's go there, shall, we?"

"I don't mind. But, Amano-chan, you like trees?"

"Yeah, I love them. You see, my parents are botanists, so …"

They continued talking throughout the entire day as they visited the places Yumma suggested. Thankfully, she didn't ask about his parents; it was a sensitive topic for him. There didn't seem to be any correlation between the locations they picked, except for one thing. The number of people in them was subtly but surely decreasing.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It was nearly late in the evening when they reached a deserted park. It didn't look like it had been maintained lately, and nothing was interesting to see here. A few crows were trying to pick worms from the ground while a few were fighting. If one had to pick a fascinating spot, it would be the water fountain in the middle. Yuuma turned to face him with her back to the fountain.

"Issei-kun, tell me the truth. Do you like me?"

Her cute face had a serious look. For some reason, it didn't suit the carefree face Issei saw though out the entire day.

"What is going on? To suddenly ask something like this? Of course, I like you." Issei replied, albeit not honestly.

"Careful, partner. I do not like this. I am sensing evil intentions from her." Ddraig warned. It seems he has finally decided to join the conversation after going silent throughout the entire day.

"Then, please be honest. You know about me, don't you? I am no ordinary girl. You realized it the moment you met me. I could tell."

Deciding not to play dumb, Issei replied, "Yeah. I have noticed. Who are you, really?"

"Wait, you are not going to deny it!?" She asked, surprised that he admitted the truth so quickly. This was unexpected.

"I am done with being dumb. Now, no matter the consequences, I refuse to even play dumb." Issei replied, somewhat agitated. It was true, after all. He had decided to never be what he was again. There are some things a man refused to compromise on, even if it ended up being detrimental to his goal.

"I am Raynare, a fallen angel. I am sorry, Issei-kun. I liked the date. I really like you too. That is why; I am asking you to forgive me. I will be taking your sacred gear. Once I complete this assignment, I will be more important than any. I will understand if you can't forgive me, but please know that I have no other choice."

Done with the games, she transformed into a gorgeous, seductive woman. The transformation completed, and she began to charge a spear of light in her hand.

"Issei-kun, don't take this personally, just like you can no longer be dumb, I can no longer be weak, no matter the consequences. I, too, am done being weak. I can't stand to be looked down upon anymore. Do you understand what I am saying?"

"Partner, are you panicking?" Ddraig asked.

"Should I be?" Issei questioned him back.

"Perhaps not. Your new sacred gear has already analyzed her abilities. You went out with her because of this reason, didn't you? So you can have all day to analyze her power? I did find it suspicious. You were interested in a girl, even though you had to prepare to face the wrath of the Gremory clan. So this was in preparation for it. Well, you did have the right idea. Fallen angels are natural enemies of the devils. Their techniques can be very effective against them. "

"Yes. But do you think I can use any ability? Boosted Gear will tear my body apart." Issei voiced his thoughts out loud.

"Who are you talking to? Did you lose your mind? I am sorry, Issei-kun. But I am in a hurry. I won't wait for even a second longer. Every second I am weak and powerless is intolerable. I hate it! I hate it! I hate it!" Raynare said.

"Once you get her powers, you should be able to handle it for a while. But before that, you have to activate the sacred gear and transfer enough power for it to make the necessary changes. The backup charge that the person put in there is nearly over. Hurry up, she has become deranged. I doubt rationally analyzing her actions has any more meaning." Ddraig explained.

"Ok. Let's start this." Issei thrust out his hand at the same time replying to Raynare,

"Yuuma-chan, no Raynare-san, yes, I understand how you feel. If you had just asked me for help, I might have even considered it. But you made one mistake I can't forgive. You tried to deceive me. You thought I was dumb too, didn't you? Well, I am not, and I am about to prove it. Do you hate being weak? I hate being manipulated. I hate it as much as you do, being weak. I WON'T FORGIVE IT! EVER !"

"AWAKEN. BOOSTED GEAR"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Authors note: Yeah. I am ending this on a cliffhanger. If you want to know what Issei's Sacred Gear does, then I believe I gave enough "hints". Please suggest a name for it.

If you want me to add anything, I am open to suggestions.

This chapter just set the stage. The next chapter will be the actual story.

Updated Author's note:

Hello, everyone, it has been a long time. A lot of things happened, and I got caught up in a lot of stuff, but the good news is that I am back.

The first chapter has undergone a rewrite, so please give me your updated review on it. I have fixed a few errors in the rest of the chapters.

Thank you for reading the story and leaving reviews. Also, to the people who favorited this story and me, I appreciate it. Thank you.