Hey there boys, we're back. Wooh! This story is getting popular real quick! It's only been a few days and it's already about to get 90+ followers and 70 favorites. I'm glad most of you like it. But there's a little thing I want to address.
So pretty much over 95% of the reviews have been positive. In fact, I think there are less than 5 reviews that are even a bit negative. First off, do not leave a review that requires a response if you are a guest or if you have PMs disabled. You have a brain don't you? You understand that I cannot respond to you unless you have an account? Or I can't respond because you don't let people message you? Why would you ask a question if it cannot be answered? You want me to point you out like a fucking moron? I can certainly do that but it's annoying. Anyway, the main point. I had a little rant about how shit many stories on this site are for being ludicrous and worthless and some fuckin imbeciles decided to give their worthless opinions based solely on emotion rather than logical arguments.
First off, these dumbfucks kept mentioning "NTR" when I literally never said it….I never mentioned NTR. But I guess they assumed I did because I said that OC/Self insert stories are shit. Here's the thing: THEY ARE. I have not read ONE SINGLE fuckin OC/Self insert stories that are well written or enjoyable to read. They're all fucking garbage. And the reason is because amateur authors don't know how to write original characters well and when they insert themselves it's just some stupid fuckin wish fulfillment that is terribly cringey to read. It has nothing to do with NTR and shit, I wasn't even thinking about that, I was talking about stories that replace Issei mainly. Regardless, these stories are always shit. That's my problem. And of course I hate garbage that inspires more garbage.
Second, saying "tHiS iS fAnFiC" is NOT AN EXCUSE for justifying the creation of worthless garbage that serves no greater purpose whatsoever to the community other than inspiring more garbage. And don't you dare try saying you are writing something "for yourself" if you are uploading it. Because if you are uploading it under the guise that it's "just for you" then you are a egotistic fuckin retard who is lying because if you didn't want others to praise your garbage you wouldn't upload it. If you upload it it's cuz you want someone to see it. At the very least, I can appreciate or forgive authors who acknowledge that they aren't good writers and are just writing because they have a passion for it, not a talent for it. If you realize you're not good at it but still want to try your best at making your own story then that I can respect. But if you just write it because "tHiS is fAnFiC. Let me just write some dumb shit cuz I hate Rias and I wanna see my OC fuck everybody" then you are an absolute pathetic excuse of a writer who is doing nothing worthwhile with their time. You're not inspiring anything and nobody cares about what you're uploading. If you encourage that then your opinions are worthless and your credibility as a reviewer is null. (Also none of this applies to lemon stories obviously because porn is a whole different subject).
And lastly, to clear things up, I don't necessarily have problems with crazy stories in general, only crazy stories that are IMPOSSIBLE to write well. Like for example the one that got sent to me: OP Humanoid-Dragon Issei who was transformed by Great Red after unlocking his gear along with Juggernaut Drive for the first time, with Holy powers & Amaterasu powers with a Harem including: Yasaka, Kunou, Ophis, Xenovia, Grayfia, Tiamat, Kuroka, Katase, Aika, and Jeanne- who he can make his servants through some sort of Dragon transformation shit that doesn't make sense?! Do you understand now?! Can you make sense of that?! Do you think it would ever be possible for any writer to write such an atrocity properly?! NO. IT'S FUCKING GARBAGE. Not because it's crazy, but because it's so crazy YOU CAN'T WRITE IT WELL. And don't say "It's just for fun" because if you find such an impossible mess of incoherent bullshit "fun" then you are FUCKING BRAIN DEAD (unless you're reading them ironically). Well…...I suppose I'm stupid for trying to convince some meaningless unthinking reprobates…..But hey…..I'm petty like that.
Well, the majority of you didn't even have to read that tbh because most of you are great. It's really like 3 people I think. So for those of you who so badly wanted a response to your shit comments, here you fuckin go.
P.S. The ones who said the dumbest shit were actually all just guest readers. Go figure.
[Proofreading note: this rant is old and was already written into the latest chapter of RD of stupidity because the chapters were technically updated out of order so it'll look weird to see it here if you've already read that chapter lol.]
P.P.S. Make sure to listen to some sad ass music when you read this chapter.
-SCENE-
…..Sob…..Sob…..
The sound of weeping.
The sobbing of an older women; a senior woman. The old woman was sitting in the first row of a church, holding on to a young boy, while weeping softly. Sitting next to them was a middle aged couple, and their young daughter, who was sleeping in her father's arms with a blanket over her head.
The boy that the old woman was holding onto had a never-ending stream of tears running down his cheeks silently. His expression contrasted his tears, as it was seemingly blank. Yet, the sorrow in his heart was incomparable.
Many people were seated in the rows behind them. Two large families, each on a different side. The side corresponding the respective coffin of their loved one.
And in the front of the church, there were the objects of interest.
Two coffins, and two portraits on the side of each coffin.
—Two empty coffins.
….Sob…..
Sobbing was heard throughout the church. Though not very loud, a few of them were noticeable. Light music was being played while a couple of televisions were going through a slideshow of pictures of the family.
..Most of them included their son.
The slideshow began with their first Christmas together as a young couple, and ended with a photo as recent as a month ago. displaying their time at the beach with their son and his young friend. Whenever the slideshow ended, it faded to black, then showed a slide displaying their birth dates and death dates. After that, the slideshow repeated itself over again.
Satoshi did not count how many times he watched the slideshow repeat itself. At this point, he memorized the entire order of the ensemble of pictures. He was glad that his little girl was asleep on his shoulder. It was early in the morning, so she is always asleep during this time. He would prefer that she didn't watch her beloved Great aunt or her beloved cousin weep together. His wife was the unlucky one, being seated right next to the crying duo on her left. Although, she did volunteer, as to not let her daughter easily hear their sorrow and interrupt her sleep.
Every once in a while, someone went up to the coffins to pay respects or spend a few seconds of silence in front of them.
It felt like the services had been going on for hours and hours.
With each passing minute, the reality before him had finally set in for Satoshi.
—His cousin was gone. So was the man's wife. The Hyoudou family, was essentially no more. And his aunt, Issei's grandmother, now only had one 'son'. A grandson that has yet to have had children with his wife. The only true remnant of her deceased child being his very own son which she held in her arms, her grandson.
Satoshi's gaze was locked onto the coffin of his cousin. A coffin, he knew well, was empty.
But in his voice, all he could hear, was his cousin's voice.
("Satoshi! You won't believe it! He's alive! My boy is alive! We're at the hospital right now! He's in my arms! My baby boy is alive! He's healthy! His name is Issei! After two failures, we finally did it! Oh thank God! Thank God! I may just become a Christian after all! Ahahahaha!")
...
...
"..Oba-san."
The thing that snapped Satoshi from his memories was the robotic sounding voice of his nephew. Satoshi turned to his wife, whom the boy had seemingly called out to.
…The boy had a hand tugging on Akane's shirt.
He was looking up at her with an emptiness in his expression and hollow eyes…
"Where are Mum and dad?... I want to see them…"
.
.
.
The boy's grandmother slowly wrapped her arms around his entire body, putting him in a blanket and, holding onto him as she began sobbing loudly.
Sob! Sob..!
Her cries reverberated off of the walls of the quiet church...
..One of Satoshi's shaking hands was brought up to his face as he held his head in it, and the sounds of his memories played in his head again.
("Ohohohoho~! A daughter, huh! Well, that should definitely make both of our mother's happy! Who knows, my mother might end up liking her more than she likes Issei! Though I doubt it. Ah, and if we get desperate, we can just marry them off in the future! How about it? Hahahahaha!")
—He could not cry, for he had his sleeping daughter in his arms. Yet as if to respond, his body would begin to quiver, to an unreasonable degree…..
The Hyoudou family— was no more.
Part 1
It was the next day. The day after the services.
In the early morning, a young girl named Maki Aikawa, was watching some of her favorite TV shows, mostly consisting of "Magical Girl" series. Though she enjoyed watching the series regularly, she didn't seem to be enjoying it as much as she normally would.
"Mama!"
Maki called out to her mother from the Kitchen, who was cooking an ensemble of her favorite foods from "Hambaga" to "Taaki" and more. There was also a large cake on the table.
"When is Nii-Nii gonna wake up?"
She asked her mother with a sad face. It's no wonder she would be asking that. Of course she would want to be spending her birthday with the cousin she loved so much.
That's right. It was her birthday today. The day after the services. What cruel irony. Her mother responded in an unsure manner
"Well, dear….. I don't know. Onii-chan is very tired from yesterday after all…."
Maki lowered her head dejectedly. She grew a bit of a pout.
Pom!
She wiggled her little body off of the couch she was sitting on, landing on the floor, and made her way out of the room.
"..Maki-chan?"
Akane looked back when she didn't hear her daughter respond. She didn't see her on the couch, so she decided to peer out of the kitchen. The only thing she saw was a small body making its way up the stairs.
"Ah! No, no! Maki-chan, wait!"
Akane quickly turned the stove off, as to not burn anything, and scrambled over to catch her daughter before she reached the upstairs bedroom that she didn't want her to. But as she made her way up the stairs, she realized she was a bit too slow.
Knock, knock..!
"Nii-Nii! Let's play!"
"No, no, no! Maki-chan!"
Akane knelt down to Maki's level and placed her hands on her shoulders.
"Listen, Maki-chan. You can't be bothering onii-chan when it's a time like this. I know it's your birthday and I'm sure onii-chan wants to spend time with you too…. But he can't.."
"But why? Nii-Nii don't love Maki?"
"No, no, that's not it. I'm sure that he does, but.."
Unfortunately, Maki was much too young to comprehend the concept of death yet. So even if Akane tried to explain Issei's grief to her, Maki wouldn't understand it. If anything, it was sad that she was just a young girl, wondering why her beloved cousin was locked in a room on her birthday, rather than playing with her. She wonders if this is how the memory will stick in her head.
….Knock - Knock, knock - Knock…..
An odd pattern of knocks was heard from the other side of the door.
"..Ah!"
Maki ran to the door excitedly and reciprocated the knocks. Though, unlike the previous knocks, they didn't have a proper sequence.
Knock, knock, knock, knock!
….
Knock, knock - Knock, Knock - Knock - Knock..
The series of knocks continued, and again, Maki reciprocated them.
Knock! Knock, Knock, Knock!
But after Maki's last knocks, the door went silent. There was no response.
….
Maki's smile faded away and was replaced with a sad pout.
Until..
Dakun!
—The door suddenly flew open.
"Oooooooooooy! Who the heck is knockin' on my dang door so much, eh?!"
"Aaaahahahahahaha~!"
Out of nowhere, the door to the room swung open, and a broadly smiling Issei came out and attacked Maki with "ferocious" tickles.
"Ora, ora, ora! Take that!"
"Hyaaaaahahahaha~!"
He finally released her and stood over her "menacingly".
"You better ruu~un! Or else the scary Dragon will burn you aliiive~!"
"Aaaaaaahahahahaha~!"
Maki scurried across the floor to reach the stairs and crawled quickly downstairs. Issei only smiled as he watched her make her way down.
Akane didn't know how to respond. But she knew that she felt worried.
"...Ise-ku—"
"—It's okay."
"Eh?"
Issei interrupted her sentence. He turned to Akane with a small smile.
"I'm okay…... I have to be okay... Because today is Maki-chan's day..."
….
Issei walked off without saying anything more, making his way down the stairs.
Don!
"...Haaah... Hah... Hah…"
—In the dead of night, Issei was standing in the middle of a forest. He was training, for the first time ever.
He planted his gauntlet into the body of a tree. The impact was not substantial. It hardly left some scratches.
[Unfortunate, partner. It doesn't seem as though you've done any damage. As I thought, even with your potential, you are still much too young.]
"...Hah…. Why?... Is this really everything?..."
Thud!
Issei fell flat on his back, onto the floor, clearly exhausted.
[I'm afraid so, partner. In the end, you are still just a boy. You may be able to handle two boosts of your strength, which is leagues above what any other host of mine could do when first activating their gear at similar ages, let alone activating it so young.— In fact, as of currently, you are the second youngest host in history to have unlocked the Gear.— However, none of that necessarily indicates that you would grow properly.]
'..There was somebody younger than me?'
[Indeed. He was only the ripe age of 5 years. Meanwhile, you are nearly 2 years above him. He was quite a terrifying host. His circumstances prompted the Gear 'necessary' for his survival. Not only once, but every waking day. Had he lived a full life, I do not doubt that he would have become my strongest host.]
'...He died young?...'
[Correct. He was killed before he reaching a proper adolescence.]
'..Ado…?'
[He was the age of 15.]
'...That's really young…'
[It is. Quite unfortunate. However, I find it even more fortunate that you lived through your experience. I sense potential within you that surpasses even his.]
'..Really? You think I'm gonna be strong?'
[Exceedingly so. Your current state is not exemplary, that much is true. Nevertheless, I feel that, should you pursue strength, it will not evade you.]
'Which means…'
[—I believe that if you do not neglect your training, you may become my strongest host.]
'..Neglect?'
[To ignore or leave alone. —If you train, you will become strong. That is all that matters.]
'..Okay…. But, like you said before…. How can I train?... You already told me that I was too young to do anything…. So what do I do?'
[Indeed, the greatest obstacle we currently face is that there is not much training you can accomplish at your level. The most ideal choice would be to advance your 'base' level. Your body is that of a child, but at the very least, you may able to increase the limit of your boosts. That would solve many problems. But as it is, that doesn't seem possible without proper regiment of some sort.]
'..So all I can do is work out like a normal person?'
[I do not believe that will be enough. Something more may be necessary. But we must make do with whatever we currently have. So increasing just the strength of your body will have to do.]
'...Being a kid sucks…'
[..Partner!]
Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeee!
[—?!]
Issei's body whipped up in terror.
—That noise. That same noise. A "scream". An ear piercing screech.
The screech of a Nightwalker.
CHILLS..!
Issei jumped up to his feet almost immediately.
'..A monster! The monster! The Nightwalker! Why?! How?! This wasn't—! Ddraig! I thought you said they would have captured all of those things!'
[I do not understand either, partner. The Devils themselves had stated they would capture every specimen. I did not exactly trust their words, but even so, there was a full scale barrier of an unbelievable class surrounding that entire town of yours. Even if they did not capture them all, they could not have escaped as long as the Devils were there. Most especially the Nightwalker, which has a very noticeable presence. There surely should have been no possibility of one escaping. It seems that there was much more to the situation that we did not know of at the time.]
'Who cares!? What do I do?!'
[Escape, partner. It is advancing in your direction. From the west, behind you.]
Tks! Crack! Tks!
'I can hear it moving in the trees! It's moving fast!'
[It's making its way straight towards you, partner. It's time to return to your home. If you make your way fast enough, it should easily lose you as long as I mask your presence. They may be cowardly when confronted, but the moment a Nightwalker is made aware of their advantage, they know no fear. The trick of activating your Gear will not work as it did last time. Not as long it is aware of your current strength. And I do not know how long it will take until your power resets.]
Issei bolted, running through the forest, back to where he came from.
'How can it tell how strong I am?!'
[Think of it as a wild animal. The moment it reaches you, it will immediately become aware of your difference in strength, even with your two boosts.]
'Okay, so can it smell me?! Or how will it find me?!'
[I believe its primary reliance is on sound.]
'So then shouldn't I stop running and making noise?!'
[No. In that case, it would simply hear your breathing.]
'Right! Ah, man! Well, hopefully I lose it before I escape the forest—'
(—!)
Skid!
Issei suddenly grinded to a halt in the middle of a small clearing.
[Why do you stop, partner?]
….
'...Ddraig…. What happens when I escape?...'
[What do you mean?]
'...This thing…. What will happen to it?...'
[I do not know. It will most likely try to find its way out of the forest and reach civilization. Luckily, your residence is quite distanced from this place. It will reach others before it reaches you. Surely, the Devils will be made aware of it once many inexplicable deaths are reported. Either way, it will not pose immediate threat to you or your current family.]
….
Rustle…
To Ddraig's surprise, Issei turned his body in the direction of the sounds of rustling. The rustling and cracking of tree branches were headed straight towards him.
[What are you doing, boy?]
'...You're telling me to escape... Run away, just like last time..?'
—Within Issei's mind, the images of a bloodied girl and her mother's severed head flashed quickly by.
'...You're telling me to let this thing run loose?...'
[Of course I am. —You are but a mere child. There is simply nothing you can do.]
….
...
—Issei's mind went into disarray. The entirety of Issei's memories from that day played back in his head, while Ddraig's words repeated themselves continuously. Memories blended with trauma.
Little did the boy ever know, how much exactly these words would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Corpses.
[There is simply nothing you can do.]
Blood.
[There is simply nothing you can do.]
Eyes.
[There is simply nothing you can do.]
Vomit.
[There is simply nothing you can do.]
Heads.
...
...
—And a woman's severed hand.
[There is simply nothing you can do.]
.
.
.
.
[It's here.]
[—!]
Rustle! Crack! Rustle!
Before he knew it, Issei was hearing harsh rustling and cracking sounds from all around him. It was as if there were more than one beast. No, it was just too fast for him to follow.
'..Ddraig. If you want us to survive then tell me where it's coming from.'
[A foolish endeavor. You will lose your life for nothing.]
Break!
[The left!]
KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEE!
In a split second, the sudden breaking of a branch under pressure sounded off, quickly followed by a screech. The beast was flying straight at him!
DING!
The best defense Issei could do was hold up his Boosted Gear and hope that the slash didn't connect. It worked to deflect the attack, but Issei was sent sliding on floor, on his back.
Skid!
Immediately after its attack failed, the Nightwalker immediately launched itself back into the trees, in order to repeat the process.
"Urgh…."
[Stand up. It will not let you rest.]
"Right…"
In fact, just as Ddraig stated—
Break!
—The Nightwalker immediately leaped out from the treeline behind Issei.
[Behind!]
DING!
Issei deflected the attack at the last second, and again, he was sent sliding against the floor.
Skiiiiid!
"Argh!"
As if to toy with him, the Nightwalker slept back into the cover of the trees again.
Rustle!
'..Nngh! Is it just gonna keep doing until I die or something?!'
[Most likely, yes. It doesn't seem as if it is trying to confront you. Rather, it is almost toying with you, like an animal would with its meek prey.]
'Well, what do I do so that it does face me?!'
[I would highly suggest you avoid direct confrontation. The current situation is already bad enough, but at the very least, you can still survive by running. Then again, you have no intention of doing so, isn't that right? If that truly is the case, then we are facing almost certain death. You may technically have a better chance at survival if you kill it during a confrontation, but that possibility is extremely low. Both your chances of survival and death would increase during a confrontation, but your survival is only guaranteed if you flee.]
'Okay! So how do I get it to fight me?!'
[Hmph... Foolish boy. If you so crudely desire to die, then simply find a way to damage it so that it may confront you. As I have said before, they may be cowardly in nature, but once they are aware of their advantage they should know no fear. Therefore, injuring even slightly would only agitate it greatly, since you are a weaker existence than it. It will face you then.]
'Okay! So I just have to hurt it! Tell me when it's coming, Ddraig!'
Just as Issei and Ddraig's communication was ending, the Nightwalker lept out from the treeline again, and their game of 'attack, deflect, flee' started all over again.
Break!
[Right!]
'Woah!'
DING!
'Ah! A little bit earlier than that, Ddraig!'
Break!
[Above!]
"What?!"
However, this time, the beast unexpectedly jumped high above Issei, quickly descending on his body which had already been knocked to the ground.
DON!
It landed right on top of Issei, with its legs landing on his sides, causing him to eject spit.
KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEE!
It screeched straight in his face as it raised one of its claws to slash him.
[Now, you fool!]
(—!)
Without a second thought, Issei instinctively sent the claws of the Boosted Gear into what could be classified as the throat of the beast.
Spllgg!
A disgusting wet noise. Issei's claws did not pierce it, but it left some scratch marks on its smooth skin, and a dark colored blood spilled out a bit.
KIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
The beast screeched in what seemed like pain and removed itself from Issei, jumping back into the trees while continuing to screech.
Issei lifted his upper body and wiped some sweat from his brow.
—He felt disgusted. After what happened back in Kuoh, he was finally able to get a good look at the foul beast from up close.
Its body was similar to a human structure, but with elongated features and almost no meat on it. And yet, whenever it took a breath, its stomach would fill up with air in a repulsive manner. Its skin was smooth and almost looked gelatinous, as if it was wet skin from an amphibian. To contrast that, it had some loose, dead skin hanging from various places. Contrary to what Issei first believed, the beast did have a mouth. It was hardly noticeable. It was a long mouth with things resembling teeth, but as if the teeth were made from just the skin of its mouth. The mouth could never open beyond a certain extent, because there were 'strings' of skin holding it mostly shut.
KIIEEEEEEEEE!
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!
"Wha…?"
Issei was confused by the sudden noises. He heard a screech, followed by something that sounded like slamming.
'..Ddraig? Do I do something?'
[Nothing significant.]
'Then what is..?'
[I told you once before, didn't I? It is agitated. Do you hear It?]
Issei paused to listen to his surroundings. He did hear the beast screaming quite violently. Almost as if it was enraged. But more than that, he heard some thumping and cracking sounds.
KIIIEEEEEEEEEE!
BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM BAM!
CRACK CRACK CRACK
KIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
'That noise..'
It was breaking tree branches and slamming the ground. Like a child throwing a tantrum, the beast was infuriated.
KIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
[It will surely approach you quickly, as you wanted.]
'...Well…. Great….'
Rustle! Crack!
BAM!
Issei whipped his body around after hearing a large thud from behind him. The beast was sitting there.
Creak…
A sound similar to wood creaking in a large house was emitted from the beast, as it slowly rose up.
The difference in size was suddenly made grossly apparent when the beast finally stood upright. The Nightwalker easily towered over Issei, with more than 2 meters to its height. Step by step, slowly approached Issei, causing him to retreat slowly.
"...Ah…. D..."
[Move, boy!]
KIIIIIIIIIEEEEE!
"Ah!"
The beast slashed at Issei without warning.
He dived immediately to his left in order to dodge it at the last second. But the beast continued to slash at him, again and again, prompting Issei to dodge and dive constantly from near death attacks.
Whoosh!
"Ah!"
Zin!
"Ah! Ah!"
Until finally..
Slice!
"Argh!"
One of the slashes ended up scratching Issei's face and leaving a long bleeding mark under his right eye.
'Uh oh… That'll be hard to explain…'
Issei's back ended up coming into contact with a tree, effectively cornering him.
KIIIIEEEEEEEEEEE!
"Waah!"
The Nightwalker slashed at Issei's head, causing him to dive under its legs and crawl away.
KIIEE! KIEEE! KIIEEEEE!
'Wha…?'
The moment Issei was behind the beast, he turned around and realized that the beast was struggling with something.
It was stuck. Its three pronged claw was strictly planted into the tree that it struck.
Break!
It forcibly ripped its claw from the tree. Issei could see the deep gash left in the trunk. The tree was severely damaged.
'Ddraig… How durable do you think that tree is?'
[Hmm. The beast should most certainly have a greater chance at damaging the tree than yourself.]
'..Glad we're on the same page.'
KIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEE!
The beast screeched at Issei before lunging at him. Issei rolled out of the way and returned to the spot in front of the tree once more.
'This may be a terrible idea!'
KIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
The Nightwalker then released a relentless onslaught of attacks on Issei, who could only block using his Gear.
DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN DIN!
He could hardly stand the impact of every attack, practically being slapped around from the intense pressure. The fact that he could still stand was probably all due to the boosts he was using. With the flurry of attacks being sent, his prior strategy does not seem like it would work out at all, at this rate.
That was until the monster lifted one of its claws high up in to the air, most likely as a charged attack meant to slice him right in half.
[There is your chance, boy! Duck!]
ZIN!
Issei ducked the moment the Nightwalker slashed, and once again, the beast's claw was planted into the trunk. This time, its claw was planted even further within the trunk than before. Issei crawled out from under the beast and stood behind it.
KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
The beast screeched from pure rage. It lifted its remaining left claw and furiously slashed at the tree in order to free its trapped right claw.
ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN ZIN!
'Wha—?! This thing..!'
For some reason, Issei couldn't help but smirk the moment the foul beast finally retracted its claw.
'I can't take another one of those slashing combos.. But it looks like I won't have to! Here goes nothing!'
DON!
Issei dug his gauntlet into the dirt and brought it out with a great amount of force, effectively spreading a large dust cloud into the beast's face.
KIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Issei then immediately made his move and dashed into the dust, and around the beast, to where the damaged spot of the tree was. He was back in his original spot.
Why? Well..
KIEEE!
The beast whipped its head around indicating that, despite not seeing him, could still perfectly hear him.
KIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
It brought up a claw to slash at him.
'YES!'
SLICE!
Issei dove away from the attack and out of the beast's line of sight. It only took once glance back to realize—.
—He had won.
CRACK!
The trunk of the tree released a loud crack. The support of the tree was compromised.
And as a result, the tree trunk broke under the pressure of its own weight, and collapsed..
CRACK!
And the Nightwalker was effectively crushed by the falling tree.
KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE—
—DOOOOOOOOON!
….
...
"Haah..! Hah! Haaah.."
Silence. The body of the Nightwalker under the tree did not move.
"..I did it."
[Indeed you did, partner.]
"..Hehe…"
Out of relief, or perhaps even joy, Issei laughed.
"Hehehehe… Hahahahaha..! Ahahahahahahaha!"
His loud laughter was released freely into the nights sky as he fell flat onto his back.
[Hyoudou Issei. You are an abnormal host. Never did I imagine that I would encounter a host that would defeat a Nightwalker with the body of a child.]
'Yeah.. I didn't think I would ever beat one either… or even meet one….'
"Urgh.."
Issei lifted himself up from the ground with a groan.
"I actually did it…"
He slowly stepped closer to the fallen tree.
He could only look down at the smashed remains of the monster. Its limbs were still mostly intact, thanks to being so long and spread out, but its main body was completely crushed into some black ink esque liquid. The remains reeked of a familiar "human" smell. Human insides at least. Whether this thing ate people or not is something Issei doesn't know, and does not want to know.
Part of Issei wonders if this beast is the same one from the last time….
'Ddraig… Do you know if this is the same one from before?'
[I do not. Unfortunately, I was awakened a tad too late to recognize any unique features on the Nightwalker fleeing from your first encounter. Not to mention that the Nightwalker beasts do not necessarily possess any specific aura of their own to identify. Though, if I was to be entirely honest with you, I do believe this may be the one.]
'I see…'
…Issei continued to stare down at the beast's remains, silently. His eyes slowly wandered over to the three fingered claw sticking out from under the trunk.
….
—The memory of a woman's severed head being squeezed in between three, large, black claws. Her hollow eyes were ever so slightly open, and her mouth was left agape. She must have died instantly.
….
SPLAT!
Issei's shoe landed on the claw and crushed one of its talons.
12 AM
Issei had finally returned home after over an hour walk from the forest he was in. It was incredibly difficult to find his way home from a place he's only been to once, especially in the dead of night.
Once he reached his home, he quickly and quietly entered through the back entrance he left unlocked, and made his way upstairs.
His body felt heavy after his boosts reset halfway through walking home. He felt like he would collapse soon. Making his way up the stairs was also an arduous task, considering that his heavy body was difficult to tiptoe with, as to avoid making noise.
Issei washed his face a bit in the restroom, aside from some of the blood left by the slash on his face. If he washed it, it would become obvious that he obtained it when he was awake late at night and he was perfectly aware of it. He needed to make it look like an accident, and one that he wasn't aware of. How he will do this, he still doesn't know.
After he cleaned himself off a bit, Issei snuck back into his bedroom silently.
"Huu.."
The moment he entered his room, he froze momentarily. He heard a soft breathing, only to notice the little body lying in his bed.
That's right, Maki was sleeping with him tonight. It was her birthday today after all. She was allowed to sleep with him without objection from anyone.
Issei snuck past the bed and opened the closet slowly. He quickly changed out of his dirty clothes and into a normal shirt and shorts. After he was done, he approached the sleeping beauty on his bed and smiled sweetly at her.
"Huuuu… Nii-Nii…"
He couldn't help but stifle a giggle in response to her sleep-talking. He truly loved his adorable little cousin..
..Unfortunately, his smile did not last long.
Due to the previous event, he was soon reminded of the resemblance between the orphaned girl he saved, and his new lovely family member. Along with that face, came the memories of the girl's deceased mother. He had finally killed the monster responsible for that girl's family's demise.
..But the girl will never know. Even if she knew, would something like that make her feel better? Her family was killed by a monster she didn't even know existed, and now that monster was dead as well, so be happy?... Be happy that the monster who tore her family apart and possibly ate them right before her eyes is now dead..?
….
They were the same, Issei and that girl. They were both young orphans. Just normal, brown haired children with no family, left alone in an empty house, covered in blood…
..Was a beast like that the same one that killed his parents? Did his parents die in a similar way? He doesn't remember much from the funeral…. His parents coffins were empty, he knew that much…. There were practically no remains left of them….
His chest suddenly tightened.
...
...
..Did they get eaten..?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Issei's knelt down to the side of the bed and spawned his gauntlet for a brief moment.
Crack!
He used it to break off a piece of the bed, exposing some of the wood underneath. Maki stirred in her sleep, but stopped when Issei caressed her head. She was a very heavy sleeper.
He reached over Maki's head and grabbed the pillow beside her. He picked it up and began to walk out of the room. For some reason, he had decided to step out for a minute...
Dakun...
He exited the room and made his way quietly down the stairs. He walked over to the entrance of the living area, and slid open the slider door. He stepped into the empty, dark living room.
Pomf!
He approached the couch and dropped onto it with the pillow stuck to his face. It muffled his breathing…
And what was surely soon to follow…
….
("Hey, honey! Put that stupid newspaper down and eat your breakfast already! At this rate, it'll get cold before I even finish making your coffee!")
("No, no, no, dear. A man should never eat his breakfast without his coffee. If anything, I should be drinking my coffee before I eat my breakfast.")
("But I'm not drinking coffee, Tou-san!")
("Of course not, Issei. You are a boy, not a man. You aren't old enough to be a man yet.")
("Yes, Ise. It's just as your father says. You are not a man. Boys are innocent and lovely, while men are idiots and perverts.")
—Issei silently lost himself in the memories of his peaceful past...
And though his hands felt weak, his grip on the pillow tightened.
("Ara, Kaa-san, are you implying that Issei will grow up to be an idiot?")
("Of course not. My baby Issei is a smart, wonderful, young boy. His father, however, is a perverted dummy who's more in love with coffee than food. And I do not doubt that this father of his would influence him with his foolish and perverted ideas.")
("Ha! You hear that, Issei? Your mother thinks I'll turn you into a pervert. Don't even worry about that. Trust me, my boy, I will personally make sure you will be able to fulfill the dreams I could not!")
("Oh no, don't tell me you're still going on about that 'Harem King' business even today?")
("I will succeed! Even if it is through my own son! His victory is my victory! And he will capture the hearts of every woman he desires!")
("But I don't care about other girls. The only girl I like is mama!")
("Ara, Ma~! Do you hear that, honey? It looks like you have some serious competition~!")
("Wha—?! No! My own son?! Something like this—! Even his own mother! Has my own child surpassed my knowledge of the Harem dream?! I can't believe It! I won't lose! I cannot lose! Not to my own son!")
("Hahahahahaha~! Oh don't you worry about him, Ise. Your father gets like that sometimes. Try not to be like him, okay?")
("But I wanna be just like Tou-san when I grow up! I want to marry a girl just like Kaa-san and have a boy just like me!")
("Ahahahaha! That's my boy! Ah, but you can't have your real mother, alright? Seriously, Otou-san will cry if he can't even keep his wife so please spare me.")
("Oh hush, you! It doesn't matter who it is Ise grows up to be like or who he meets. He will always be a wonderful boy and I'm sure he will meet a lovely young girl who wants to marry him. He will do great things and become a great man—)
(—"And he will always be our little boy.")
.
.
.
.
.
.
"..WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"
—Issei's overwhelming screams of sorrow were muffled into the pillow, and lost to the night, never to be heard by anyone.
Morning
Knock, Knock!
"Ise-kun, Maki-chan! Time for breakfast!"
Dakun.
Akane opened the door to Issei's bedroom where the two children were sleeping. The first to awake was the messy haired Maki.
"..Mm.. Mama..?"
"Morning, dear~ Ise-kun, are you awa.."
Akane walked over to them with a smile, until Issei lifted himself up from next to Maki.
—He had a long scratch resting under his right eye, with some dried up blood smears on it.
(—!)
"Oh my! Ise-kun, what happened..?! Are you okay?! When did you get this?! Does it hurt?! Oh lord! Honeeeey! Get in here!"
In only a few seconds, Satoshi came running in after his wife's call.
"What..?! What is it?!"
"Look! Look at Ise-kun's face!"
"Unbelievable! What happened, Issei-kun?!"
"Um... I fell and hit my face on the side of the bed last night, but I didn't think anything happened, so I just went to sleep. I guess I didn't feel it a lot hehe…"
Issei faked a nervous smile and rubbed his neck. This was his lie strategy.
"Oh dear! Look at this!"
Akane pointed down towards to the side of the bed, where a broken piece of wood was being displayed prominently.
"Ise-kun! Did this break when you fell on it?!"
"N-No, that was like that already... I think I just fell on it.."
Satoshi knelt down to look at the broken part of the bed. The wood piece that was torn off was nowhere to be seen on the floor, meaning that this section was already broken before Issei hit himself. (Supposedly.)
"Hmm.. Well, Issei-kun certainly isn't lying. There is a bit of blood on this right here. If it had broken off when he hit it, then there would still be a missing piece lying around somewhere, and there would be no blood stain smear on the wood contained inside. The blood would rather be on the broken piece, which is nowhere to be seen . And judging by the fact that there is some blood smears on his pillow and face, Issei-kun must have really just slept on it. The only odd thing is that Issei-kun was sleeping on the opposite side of the bed… But maybe he just moved spots after he fell."
Issei was glad he thought through the strategy behind his wound.
Satoshi was no fool. In fact, he was more like a genius. He's also glad that he smeared blood where he could that would make sense. Though, the pillow was more chance than anything.
"..Well, can you fix it, dear? I don't want Maki or Ise-kun to accidentally hurt themselves again."
"Hm? Oh, yes. Don't worry, I'll do something about it. How odd. I swear this bed has always been in perfect condition. Even when we moved it in, I was sure that it didn't get hit anywhere... Hmm.. Oh well. Both of you, keep your distance from the edge of the bed, ya hear?"
The children both nodded their heads.
"Okay, come on, you two. Ise-kun, let's wash your face, and both of your hands so we can eat some breakfast. Hurry along now, Satoshi has to get to work and take Ise-kun to his new school."
Upon realizing what day it was, Issei thought grimly to himself .
'Oh, right. So that was today huh... Maybe I shouldn't have gone out yesterday. My shoulders hurt a lot…. And everything else too..'
One hour later…
"Nooooo! Nii-Nii!"
"Oh, I know, honey, but Onii-chan has to go school now. Come now, you can play with him when he gets home, right?"
"Noooo! I don't want Nii-Nii to go! I don't want it!"
The little Maki was crying in her mother's arms at the doorway of the household, while Issei walked alongside Satoshi to the car.
It was time for Issei to leave for school after all, much to Maki's dismay.
"I'll be back, Maki-chan! Be a good girl till then!"
"Wuaaaaaah! Nii-Niiiii!"
"Be safe, you two!"
"Yes, we know. We'll be back soon."
Satoshi and Issei entered the car and drove off while waving at the girls standing at the door.
….
Issei and Satoshi sat in the car quietly as they drove to Issei's new school. Satoshi was not a very talkative person, it's part of the reason why his cousin was more popular amongst people than he was. And Issei was that man's child. He was just as talkative and playful as his father. So their compatibility in terms of personality is not very high, despite their relationship being fairly good.
Nevertheless, Satoshi decided to break the silence.
"Are you nervous about being at your new school, Issei-kun?"
"Eh?— Ah!"
Issei shook away his slight tiredness and focused on his uncle.
"A-Ah, sorry. Um, no, not really. I don't really have anything to be nervous about."
"Huh? You're not worried about being in a new school with new people?"
"Hm? No, why would I be?"
"Well… You'll be in an entirely new environment with people you don't recognize all around you. You're not worried about what they'd say or think?"
"No. If they're all people I don't know, then there's no reason to be nervous about what they think since I don't know them."
"Is...that so?.."
"Yeah."
For some reason, this caused Satoshi to smirk.
"Heh... You're just like your father."
"Eh? R-Really?"
"Yeah. Your attitude towards people is just like his. Even if they think or say something about you that isn't true or nice, you don't care. You can just be yourself and make friends through your own charisma. In the end, you become popular whether people like it or not. Even if he is annoying sometimes, hehe. I always envied that part of him….."
Issei couldn't help but look down at his hands and smile.
So that's what his uncle thought of him. It might seem odd to the average person, but Issei was happy being perceived as an extension of his father. It was something that made him feel proud. Hopefully, there were parts of him that resembled his mother as well.
"You also have your mother's eyes. Maybe most of her facial features in general. Thank goodness, to be honest. No offense, but your father wasn't as handsome as his wife was pretty, hahahaha!"
As if to answer Issei's wishes, his uncle told him exactly what he wanted to hear.
"Thanks, Oji-san…"
"No problem."
Once again, the silence between them returned, but this time, it was a bit more pleasant. Issei rested his chin on his palm and gazed out the window. He lost himself in his thoughts.
The drive was quiet and it seemed like the world was passing him by quickly. Every minute, they passed a place he didn't recognize. It really was an entirely new place, just like his uncle said. Nagoya was a place he never explored. Kuoh technically resided on the outskirts of Nagoya, but it was quite detached from most places. It was like the small town version of big towns. Issei never knew any place outside of it. Even his grandparents, who lived in Kyoto, came to visit him, so he never got to leave Kuoh.
'I suppose….this is my new home…'
Issei was lost in contemplation until something substantial caught his eye.
A martial arts dojo.
(—!)
Issei jumped up excitedly and bumped his head on the hood of the car.
"Uoooooooohhh— Bam! —Ow!"
"Ah! Oy, Oy, what's wrong, Issei-kun?"
Issei didn't even think to rub his head as he answered his uncle with enthusiasm.
"Oji-san! I just had a great idea!"
"Hm? What's that?"
"I want to do Martial arts!"
"Huh? Martial arts?"
That's right. The thing that took Issei's attention was none other than a Martial arts building. Judo, to be specific.
"You want to take Martial arts classes?"
"Yeah! Can I, please!"
Satoshi smiled unexpectedly. He was glad that Issei was taking interest in something like this. It meant that Issei was truly recovering, even if only by a bit.
"Of course you can."
"Yes, yes! Thank you, Oji-san!"
"Hahaha! You better not join and give up the moment somebody beats you though! The Hyoudou's weren't quitters, ya hear?"
"Yeah!"
'Yes! I found it! Ddraig, I found our solution!'
[Is that so? I certainly am glad to hear that, partner. It seems you will have the opportunity to become stronger after all.]
Issei smirked and gained a determined look in his eyes.
'Mum... Dad… Wait for me…. I'll make this right… I'll get justice for both of you. No matter how long it takes.'
End
Alright there we are! Finally man! I'm mad at myself. It took too long to get this one out and got in the way of my other releases. Sorry about the long wait guys. Turns out it's harder to write something completely original. GO FIGURE AMIRITE. Anyway, I'm very glad to announce that this story really gained popularity in only the first 2 chapters that came out. 100+ followers and 80+ favorites. Hell yeah boys! Hopefully those numbers will increase with this chapter.
So we got more development for Issei (trust me he's not fully developed yet that's obviously not how storytelling works) and also a bit of character insight with Satoshi as well. And probably the most sad opening to a chapter I've written. Rip Hyoudou parents. Well, there will be more sadness to come in the future so be ready for that Lmao. Also, yep, Judo. Issei will be training in martial arts. But he'll be doing more than just Judo. Everyone has to start somewhere. Also, Rip Nightwalker fuck. You will be missed.
Anyway, I also asked you guys whether I should do time skips or not, but truthfully I already knew what I was going to do regardless. And I am glad to say that many of you, if not most of you, agreed with me. Most of you agreed with my decision to do [minor time skips]. In other words, yes there will be time skips. But there will NOT be major time skips. I'm not skipping anything 5 years or above and DEFINITELY not time skipping straight to his Kuoh return/high school era. So yeah. That's how that's gonna go. Maki-chan is still my favorite character I've ever written.
Anyway, this chapter was made longer to compensate for the wait time. RD of stupidity has been updated and RD of Golden Light will soon follow. Aaaaaand just like that I've dated this chapter lol. No matter. Ignore that if your from the future. Like a month in the future or something. Who cares.
Tell me guys what you thought and what exactly you want or expect to see coming.
Can't wait to see some stupid fucks try and defend their shit taste in stories.
Read, Rate, Review, go crazy.
Stay frosty.
