Disclaimer: I own nothing, but my original characters!
#Opening a Rental Business
[Partner, I'm so bored! Let's harass Albion and his host!]
Such an exclamation from Ddraig stopped me from my experimentation. I turned up towards the whiny dragon and deadpanned at him.
"It hasn't been a week since we harassed Vali last time. In fact, it was only around four days ago! Find something else to amuse yourself in the meantime."
[But, what? I only can move about a hundred meters around you! Why don't you bust the Heaven and release me from this accursed shackle yet?]
I snorted at that. Honestly, I'd lost all respect I had for Ddraig after finding how annoying he could be. You think because he was an ancient dragon it would make him wise and patient. Unfortunately, no! He was a very selfish dragon who liked to whine.
A few months passed by since I took over Hyoudou Issei's place in this world. Meanwhile, my real body and soul were stored safely in my sub-dimensional storage, frozen in time stasis.
Many things happened in the span of five months. I had started harassing Shota-Vali three days after I became Issei Hyoudou, per Ddraig's request. Alas, his inborn talent and his newly gained Balance Break weren't enough to give him an edge over me. Not with limitless mana and ability to create any spell my pocket.
In the end, it was a total curbstomp, much to Ddraig's sadistic glee as he taunted his rival like nobody business. So brutal and heartless his taunt I felt pity for Albion. The Vanishing Dragon's bloodcurdling scream of rage was the stuff of legend, something I could vividly recall until today.
Whenever I visited Vali for his weekly beating, I would put on Scale Mail and Illusion Magic to cover my real self. I didn't want my identity as Hyoudou Issei to be known soon.
Besides that, I had dismantled the threat for my future systematically. Not everything had been erased, but I had gotten rid some nasty elements that could endanger me. For example, Samael.
The likes of Rizevim Livan Lucifer and Hades were waiting their turn. I had yet prepared myself enough to storm their dens. Even though I had my Free-Magic Creation and Perpetual Mana Reactor, I still felt wary of the old-timers like those two. They could maintain their survival for more than millennium in this brutal dog-eats-dog world, and it spoke something.
For my mundane life, the life of Hyoudou household went on without hassle. In fact, Hyoudou household started to climb the ladder of society. How, you ask? Well, I used Clairvoyance spell to peek into this world future. I used this magic for industrial progress in the span of one to five years. I then hypnotized Mr. Hyoudou to get a loan from the bank and put his money to the stock I noted. There was no regret in using Gorou because I wasn't his son.
Early in this month, some of our loan to the bank had been returned. And I planned to create something to earn more pennies in the near future.
As Ddraig went on with his whining, I returned back to my experiment. I was experimenting on a copy of Dimensional Gap as well as how to create my personal world. This was quite important for my plan.
[Partner, did you hear me? Are you ignoring me? Hey! Listen to me!] Realizing I'd been ignoring him, Ddraig complained. He flew from his hammock to reach me. He stopped and hovered above my head as he watched on the tennis ball-sized kaleidoscopic orb floating between my palms. [What are you doing?]
"Hmmm... I'm trying to create a copy of Dimensional Gap." I answered offhandedly. Currently, Ddraig and I were in a new sub-dimension I'd created. This place was covered by hundreds of powerful barrier. Even if there were five pairs of Heavenly Dragons prior their sealing went all out, I was confident they couldn't break the barrier.
[Why?] Ddraig sounded curious. So, I answered bluntly.
"To pull Ophis into my future Empire."
And what an ambition it was! Alas, I wasn't fully interested in it. Maybe, I would feel interested in the future. But, not now.
[What Empire? Forget it! Did I hear you plan to get Ophis' attention? That's a dumb plan, partner! Do you know what Ophis is? They are called Infinite Dragon God for a reason.]
"Meh. I, of course, know about it. She's one of Ultimate Trinity of this universe."
[Ultimate Trinity?]
"I meant the three ultimate lifeforms of this universe. Great Red, Ouroboros Dragon, and Trihexa."
[Wait...Did you say Trihexa? Wasn't that thing only a rumor?]
I paused, eyed Ddraig who'd perched on my right shoulder, and said, "I thought you know about the Beast of Apocalypse. Anyway, that thing isn't only a rumor as you think. That thing is a real thing, and currently, that thing is sealed at The End of the World with hundreds of forbidden seals by the late God in the Bible."
[That's right. You've got an objective perspective from a higher dimension. So, what can you tell me about the Beast of Apocalypse?] Ddraig seemed to have interest to something strong. I guessed it was his passion as Dragon of Domination to surpass anything stronger than him.
From here, Ddraig and I chatted about Trihexa and some plot of Highschool DxD I could recall from my memory. To be honest, I only had watched the anime until season four, and the remaining information came from forum and Wikia. Nevertheless, it was quite informative.
[...Boob Dragon, huh? I guess I owe you one for destroying that horrifying future, partner. I believe the White One has the same sentiment with me if he knows he'll be known as Butt Dragon in the future.]
I rolled my eyes at that. "I'm not sure. Hell, I bet Albion won't mind being called Butt Dragon if he can crush you..."
[Why are you siding with him? Aren't you my partner? Traitor!]
"...shush, you! I'm getting to the important point."
After that, Ddraig watched me working on my experimentation silently.
After several hours, my experiment succeeded and I had 100 cubic sub-dimension that looks and feels like Dimensional Gap. I nodded my head in satisfaction. Next, I created a summoning spell to summon Ophis.
I turned on my Perpetual Mana Reactor and tried to pull the Infinite Dragon God into my sub-dimension. A dark circular portal with two meters of diameter and crackling black lightning appeared in front of me. I then began to pull my target towards my position. However, I discovered it wasn't easy. Ophis didn't immediately get pulled to my place.
I frowned in concentration as I pulled the Ouroboros Dragon here. It became a tug-o-war.
My magic energy spilled out of my body like a broken dam, creating a shockwave after shockwave of force. In a comical way, Ddraig was clutching on my T-shirt, trying his best to stay in his place. I was glad that I'd reinforced my clothes first.
Finally, something came out of the portal like a cannonball of black and purple. I quickly dodged the object trajectory, letting it passed over my body and stumbled on the hard floor. Craters were created as it bounced on the ground until it dragged its body on the plain white floor, creating a long trench.
I narrowed my eyes to get the clear image of the object and saw the hilarious sight of the Infinite Dragon God. She was sprawling with her upper bodily part deep in the ground and her two wiry feet spread into 'V' letter in the air.
I turned up towards Ddraig on my shoulder and saw his gaping draconian face, his jaw hanging open widely and his eyes bulging out in incredulity and disbelief. I then returned back my gaze towards Ophis and discovered she was slowly correcting her body from her undignified position. Then finally, she succeeded in pulling out her body from the floor.
In the blink of an eye, she reappeared in front of me. It felt like a frame skip in a video. Her lifeless grey eyes were focusing on my light brown eyes while disregarding her untidy long black hair and dirt on her Gothic Lolita outfit.
"Ddraig, why are you summoning me?" Her voice was flat without emotion, just like her lifeless eyes.
[Don't blame me about something I've never done! It was my current host fault!] Ddraig, the Red Dragon Emperor, one of the Two Heavenly Dragons who screwed up the epic three ways war between Heaven, Grigori, and Underworld, squeaked in fear and indignation. He glared to me accusingly.
Ophis followed Ddraig's red eyes and eyed me blankly. "Who are you?" asked Ophis after stretching her silent for a while.
"I'm now Issei Hyoudou, I guess. Call me Issei."
"I, see. So, what do you want? Why, Issei has summoned me?"
"Ophis, let's talk about business." Ophis tilted her head in confusion at my words. "Check this out first!"
I summoned the cube of Fake Dimensional Gap with my magic and showed it to Ophis. The Infinite Dragon God scrunched her cute face at the sphere and looked at it intently.
"It, feels like my home. But, how?" Ophis raised her head and met my gaze with hers. I could see curiosity and expectation in her grey eyes.
"You see..." Then, I began my explanation for my experiment and attempt to recreate the environment of Dimensional Gap. I also explained how I met some troubles on the way towards my success. But, it was mostly about the set of suitable spells I must and mustn't use to complete this little thing.
"I, want it." After I finished my explanation, Ophis demanded my Fake Dimensional Gap. I frowned at her.
"It's not free. You need to exchange something for this."
"I, can just take it forcefully, then." Before Ophis could even finish her exclamation, purplish black aura spilled out of her small frame. In no time, my sub-dimension began to quake, strained by Ophis's absurd power output.
I quickly turned on my Perpetual Mana Reactor in full throttle, trying to match her crazy output. I wouldn't let myself lose in the show of dominance. If I lost, she would take my thing forcefully, leaving behind nothing.
Purplish black and ocean blue aura swirled like a maelstrom in my sub-dimension. One by one, the barriers I put in this place shattered. Fortunately, I built this sub-dimension in a piece of vast Dimensional Gap. If I did this in my basement under Hyoudou's house, I wouldn't be surprised if Kuoh Town, or even Japan, was wiped out of the globe.
Finally, all the barriers were destroyed. The environment turned into that of Dimensional Gap; the never-ending kaleidoscopic color and corrosive atmosphere with void everywhere.
Since I had enchanted my body to nullify the effect of Dimensional Gap, I cared nothing about it. I kept forcing my Perpetual Mana Reactor to match Ophis's insane energy output.
Meanwhile, Ddraig was hiding behind my back while chanting "Boost" like a broken recorder. He was clutching on my T-shirt as if his life depended on it, which he was. However, his power was nothing compared to the insane energy output Ophis and I produced. Comparing his energy with Ophis's or mine was like comparing a lake with an ocean. He was outmatched.
Suddenly, I realized that Ophis was absorbing the void in Dimensional Gap to increase her output.
What?! The little... I ground my teeth in annoyance. Ophis was basically cheating in our match. I glared at her accusingly.
At this point, Ophis's face had twisted into an intense frown. There was a hint of surprise in her eyes for I could match her power output so far. But, I wasn't finished yet.
"Raaaaaarrrrgggggghhhhh!" Utterly fed up by Ophis, I let out a primal roar and forced my Perpetual Mana Reactor to the limit. Immediately, my energy output skyrocketed and slowly but surely, it dwarfed over Ophis's own power output.
More, more, moremoremore! Give me more mana! I screamed in my head as my ocean blue energy started to push back Ophis purplish black energy. Before my energy swallowed Ophis's diminutive form, I saw her shocked expression with a hint of fear.
When my magic energy enclosed her small form, I then began to force her energy to calm down. After sometime, Ophis's energy stopped spilling out from her body. I then slowly lowered my output, leaving only the needed energy to maintain my passive spells.
I eyed the speechless Dragon God dully and said, "I win."
Ophis nodded her head and eyed me warily. "You, win," said Ophis. "You, are strong. Stronger than me. Help me to get rid of Red from my home."
"Nope!" I declined bluntly.
"Why?" asked Ophis while tilting her head in bemusement and disappointment.
"There's no benefit for me."
Ophis opened her mouth, but she quickly closed it, then deadpanned at me. When I looked closely, I discovered that she was pouting like a wronged kid.
Although Ophis looked cute when she acted like a wronged child, I wasn't moved by that. Hell, no! There was no benefit for me from forcing Great Red out of Dimensional Gap, as I stated prior.
"Issei, is mean..." She pouted harder.
"Shut up, you selfish brat!" I retorted strongly and knocked her headband covered skull. "Anyway, let's back to our prior discussion. You can rent my Fake Dimensional Gap or you got nothing. Got it?"
Ophis clutched the spot I knocked earlier and peered up towards me with an upturned gaze, her lips quivering. Looking at such Ophis, I felt like a bully. But, I kept my PokerFace and waited for her answer.
"What, does Issei want?" she asked me finally.
"So, you agreed to rent my Fake Dimensional Gap?" At my question, Ophis nodded her head wordlessly. I then continued, "Just complete a task I give you in the future. That's the payment for your rent. Do you have any problem with it?"
Ophis became thoughtful as she weighed her decision. I waited for her patiently.
[Blazes! I never thought I would see the day The Dragon God got bullied like this! Ridiculous! This is so ridiculous that this isn't even funny! My partner is a monster! Extremely mad monster!] Ddraig became a peanut gallery and began badmouthing me.
Feeling annoyed, I ripped him from my back and threw him towards the void of Dimensional Gap. When his cat-sized body was thrown beyond the 100 meter limit of his partial freedom, his body broke down into glittering red lights. He returned back to Boosted Gear, but appeared outside my body a moment later, sending an apologetic gaze towards me.
I ignored Ddraig and focused my attention back towards the silent, thoughtful Ophis. She hadn't answered my question yet.
Fortunately, it didn't take too long. Half an hour later, she nodded her head and said, "I, agree with this term. At least, I can get my silence back."
"What a nice choice you made. Good girl!" I petted Ophis's head. My gesture looked condescending, but the truth was just like that.
Ophis didn't seem to mind and eyed me blankly. I understood what she wanted, so I summoned my Fake Dimensional Gap and opened the entrance, letting Ophis entering her new apartment.
The next moment, it was only me and Ddraig left in the void of Dimensional Gap. I looked around and made a thoughtful frown. "I wonder why Great Red isn't here yet. Our stunt from earlier is enough to get his interest, I think," I mused loudly.
[Um... Partner, let's return back for now. You've succeeded in getting Ophis into your side. Don't be too greedy.] Ddraig advised me with apprehensive tone.
I shrugged my shoulders, nodded to him, and said, "You're right. I don't have the plan to face Great Red, yet."
[...yet? Did I hear you added 'yet'? Tell me I misheard it, please?] Ddraig begged pitifully as his apprehension spiked up.
"You didn't mishear anything, I assure you." I smiled faintly towards Ddraig.
[What kind of dastardly plan you have concocted for Dragon of Dragons?] asked Ddraig curiously.
"Don't you think having three ultimate beings as my personal hounds to sick towards the idiots who annoy me sounds amazing?"
Ddraig's jaw hung open in awe and disbelief at my fearless attitude. I certainly had big ambition. Well, since I had the chance, I wanted to be the strongest force in this world. Why? Was that for World Domination? I assure you that I didn't have any world dominating plan or other heinous plans. I just wanted to be the strongest force so nobody was foolish enough to annoy me. In the end, I wished to live my second life free and unfettered.
Having three ultimate beings as my guard dogs were the strongest persuasion in this world.
[Partner, you're mad!] Ddraig responded flatly.
I shrugged myself shoulders offhandedly and replied with, "Perhaps, I'm. Perhaps, I'm not. Who knows?"
[You're mad! I'm not wrong! You are warped, I tell you!] Ddraig defended his belief stubbornly.
"Whatever makes you sleep soundly tonight, partner," I responded back with dismissive tone. I then looked around and nodded to myself.
"Well… such a shame that sub-dimension was destroyed by Ophis," [You also shared the blame!] I ignored Ddraig's retort and continued as if nothing happened, "Still, that give me an idea. I'm going to build my own world and act like the God-King of that world."
[Before you begin to build your own world, please fully free me first. I beg you!] Ddraig whined pathetically.
I ignored his whining easily, showing how used I was to his antics. I then began to rebuild my base stronger than before. As I did it, I couldn't feel Great Red in my Presence Detection spell's range. I wonder where that dragon is...