Okay, here you are guys. The second part. The final part of the prologue. After this, cannon will begin. But now, we have Issei's last months before the true timeline.

We'll see how Issei will adapt to the new world.

For those of you who may not have really understood the narrative purpose of the last chapter's events (which is not many of you thank god), I'll give you a little TL;DGet-it. This story always had the minor theme of 'eating' in it. But more than that, it has a major theme of 'parallels' in it. Looking in the mirror and seeing something you have seen before, something you don't want. The event of Issei committing cannibalism was always hinted at. Because the minor theme of 'eating' was always present. From the beginning of the story this was the only event I knew was going to take place 110%. The most terrifying thing Issei could ever imagine was being eaten alive. Why is that? Well, what was it in the past that made him believe that?...It was always hinted that something like this would happen. Because the major theme of 'parallel' demands that there is something to be hated and feared, and at a moment's notice, you will become that thing yourself. Issei - is the unfortunate victim.

Ah, also, I don't know if you've noticed it but you should take another look at the poster image for this story. In that image, Issei is covering his right eye with his Boosted Gear. If you know me, you know that everything I do has a reason. That's why I tell you to read the titles of the chapters.

Prepare yourselves. These last two chapters of the prologue are possibly the heaviest ones of this story. Again, get your best playlist of music for this. You'll need it.


The one who smiles.


-SCENE-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH—!"

SPLASH!

A loud splashing sound silenced the scream of a person. The splashing of water? No. It was too heavy. It was a splash into something heavy and dark. A thicker liquid.

Suddenly, something splashed its head out of the giant pool.

"PAH-HAAAAAAAAH!"

Issei brought in a sharp inhale of air. He was just under some sort of liquid. It was thick, heavy, and had a familiar smell. A terrible stench. He looked around.

—He was in a giant pool of blood.

(—!?)

Issei clutched at his mouth to prevent himself from vomiting. He was standing naked in a giant pool of blood that went up to his abdomen. He was stuck in a well? No, it looked more like a cave or cavern. The only entrance to the place was the hole above. There was something like a long pipe or something similarly shaped that led down to the place. It really did resemble the entrance of a well. He couldn't see up it because it was pitch black.

What he didn't understand was why it was all red. The blood was red and that was obvious, but why would the walls be red? The entire cave like place was wide and had red walls that went around him in a circular manner. What was this place?

….

Was it Hell?

SPLASH!

Something splashed in from behind Issei. He slowly turned his body to it. Something bubbled out from the red liquid.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

—A human head.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

And without warning, Issei had heard a blood curdling scream. But it wasn't his. It was the voice of another man. After that, a splash. Issei looked up.

There were countless human pieces falling in from the entrance above his head.

Issei finally realized where he was.

He was in the belly of a beast.

SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH!

The last thing he heard, was what sounded like thousands of screams.

.

.

A̵̢̧̨͎͉̫̝̖͚̳̻̯͕̿̽̇̿̓̈́̏̑̚͘À̷̵̢̧̟͓̤̠͕̹̀̌ͩ͗ͭ͂̌̑͂̆̈ͮ͐͒̍͞Ā̵̟͙̣̠̱̦͎̝͎̟̥͚̯̽̆́̎́͜͞ͅȂ̷̟̜͍̱̭͙̤͈̲̗̦͈ͣ͂̓͘A̴̢̜̤̲͍̜ͥͫ̉͆ͤ͌ͩ̌̄̆̍̈̆ͨͭ̐̒̂̀͠͠Aͤ́ͥ̏̔͏̵̨̨̮͖̠͇͉̝̟̤͖̟̯̺͎̲̘͇ͅĄ̷̷ͣ̋̅ͭ̊ͤͩ͊ͧ͐̈́͆̀҉̥̖̜ͅẢ̢͇͕̤̩̘̖̟̖̻̈́̈̀͒̓̃̆ͯͭ͐̽ͤͩͮA̶̭̞̠̟̤̣̥̱͓̙̱̞̔̈͐͊̋̇̓̀A̠̖̺͚̱̰̗̮̥̗̮̺̭̠͚͖̣̠͛̿ͬ͆ͯ͑̇̅̄ͦͣ̅͜͞͠Ã̷͚͎͓̣̳͔ͭͬ͑̔̿̉͒͑ͬ̂ͭ͐Ā̴͔̳͍͓̤͇̪̮͆̀̀̅ͦ̀̎̾͘͝A̵̢̺̳̹̹̥͇̪͉̯̦͉̳͍̼̠̙̫ͦ̀̍̈̏͐ͧͯ̏ͬͬͫ̓ͭͮA̷̡̧̯̠̣̗̪̙̝̞̲̠ͪ͂̿̿ͩ̾̂̐̇̃͆̍͌̃A̶̱̭̤̘͗̊̐̀̇ͦ́Ă̶̫͚̗͉̬̗̱̦̮̪ͧͦ͂ͪͣ̔͊̄ͯ͆͆͗ͣͣ̈́̀͡͝A̡̯̱͉̮̫̙͓ͥ̉ͯ̊̃͌͊ͬ̑̈́ͬͨ̎̏͐ͣ̾̕͢Ā̸̮̲̠̥͓̦̫̼̦͉͎̥̻͈̎̄ͮ̆̋̔͆ͯͬ̿̇ͫ̉̎͒̚ͅĄ̡͈̗̪̯̝̘͍͙̝͉̰̗̘̰͊̔̐͋͂ͧ̌̓ͣͧ͌ͯ̅͌̏́Ȧ̲̬̲͈͖̞̼͉̳̳̭͇͔̖̟͎͔̣͚̈́̀ͥͬ̆̈ͣ̇ͤ̎ͧ̕A̶̶̸̢͖͓̳̤̻͔̪͓̘̜̻̘̻̰̼̤̻̣̫̒̏ͩ̍͆̎͐̌̇̎̆́͆̏́A̸̘͍̥̤̳̗̲̜̥͙̪̳̫̺̼̙͓͇ͥ͑̐̃͆ͬ̈ͨͬ͘͜͝͡Aͣ̍͋͂͛͊͂̈̂̓̒̾҉̖̭̼̯͇̬̙̠͇̫̝̼̭̜̱͎͔͉̥Ā̊͋͒̌͏͍̮͉͔̕͝A̸̶̛̺̙̟̩͉̞̣͔͓͂̋͗̋ͤ̆͋̿͒ͪ̅̈͞Ȧ̸̡̧̛̺̥͎̖̠̰̘̜̘̹̫̬̙̒̿̍ͧ͊̃̌̿͋̅̚Å͑́͗͒͒̐̿̄̊̊ͬ͑̀́̚̚͏̣̩̳̫̖̞̹̮͖̹̞ͅA̸̴̽̔̈̈́̓̏͑͆̋̇͌͟҉̠̞͓̺͖̤͎ͅĄ͍̠̭͉̝̇̿̐ͭͪͥͭͮ̋ͥͨ́̕A̧̟̦̰͍̪̥̜̜͍ͭ̑ͦ̀̏̓̆̌͑͆̅͑ͤ͊̿͗A̸̤̥̝͗͗ͧ͋͌ͤ̑͘͜ͅAͣ̉̅̇ͭ̄́ͥ̈́̑̀̌͑ͬ̔̔͊̽͏̺̩̲̰̤͚̞̻͉̻Ẳ̸̸͇̱͕̜̱͓̖̩̻̺̉ͥͮͫͥͧ̈́̾A̷̡̛̲̯̞̠͎̞ͫ̆̈́ͭ̓̀ͅÃ͋͑ͥ̀̒̏ͥͪ͂ͣͭ̂̎̚҉̧̥͖͚̝͚̣̺͟Ḁ̵̴̧̙̟͔̖͖̺͔̩̗̺̱̦̻̮̃̊̈̃́̉ͤ̚̕͢ͅA̷̞̙͎̰͔̤͙ͬ̊̃̾͊͒͂ͬ̾ͣ̏̿̐̆͂̑̚͞A̶̢̢̜͉̦͇̣͆ͯ̚ͅȦ͛̿̇̍̏͊ͦ̑̈ͤ͏̡̱̳͖̱̙̗̘͇̞̪̺͓̕͜͡A̸̢̯̩̪͚͚̮͖͓͈̺͈̪̘ͫ͐̐̇͛ͭ́͜͜ͅA̶̺͈͔̘͎̝̺ͦ̍̑̍́̚͡A̷̫̲͎̮̮̝̪͍͎̲̹̟̩͉͔̬̮͇̓̔̈̽ͦ̕͝͞͡ͅA̾̈́̓ͥ͟͏̻͕̙̠̪̯̯͙̞̲͇̀Ȃ̈ͣ̉̈́̑̍̄̎̌ͨ͏̧̬͍͉̯̕ͅÄ̸̭̳͚̙͍̘̲͔͍́̅̅̔̽̈́ͭ̅ͫ̃͌ͦ̍̿̀͟͢A̴̷̭̱̦͓̲̞̟̣̰͂ͩͤ̄̈͗̎̚A̿̐ͬ̿ͬͣ͆̾̃̊̀̄̉̉̆̄̚̚͏̭͓̹̟̲̗͢Ȁ̸̧̻̜̲͓͔̘̼̦̫̺̘̼͕̖͔̒̑̑̈́̅̇̌̎̀͜͟Ã̴̵̢̪͓̺̫̜̮͖͑̅́͒ͬͪ̆͋ͭ͌͑̄̈́̉̇ͪ͟A̛̝̮̝̭̖̪̦͔̣̻̬̙̠ͭ͌̓̑̊̊ͤͮͬ̿̏ͥ̕Aͯ̋̓̊̽҉̰̠̝͍̩͢ͅÄ̷́͛̒̃͛́̆̍͏̛̥͖̤̹͓̺̭̗̫͓̩̗̜̻̝̰͇̗̤A̸̢̒̽ͣͫ͆͛̄͋̽ͦͦ͂͟͝҉͇̜̣̦̯͈̙̞̣̖Ã̷̴̴̷̱̞͍̫̮̼̟͖̦͕̙̯̘͔̮̙̭̟͋̑̍̋̈͛̄͂ͫ̑ͯ̊A̵̠͖͔̦̙̒̊̈̚̕ͅA̵̶͙̲͖͓̝̣̳̼͑ͣ̒̔ͥ͋ͨA̛͈̰̹̭̫̠ͦ̋̆͌ͪ̌̎̇̅̊̕͜͞͞ͅA͉̝͙̰̭̰̤̱͉̥͔̜ͥ̐͐ͧ̀̒̆̈́͋͛̋ͫ̅̆̊͌̋́ͯ̕͜͠͞A̙̮̬̝ͥ̓̓ͨ̃͒̎̀A̴̶̷̺̙̝͕̺̽̿̇͂ͧ̏̿̅̽ͪ̊͛͆͋ͫͮ̔̔A̸̤͕͚̦̞̥̟̯̟ͩ͑ͣ̌ͣ̉͋͌̂ͨ̍͌̈̀̋ͫ̽͑̀̚͢ͅAͬͨ̓̓̀́͘͠͏͕̖̖̫̙̮̼̼̙͔̫͎̣͖̭̳Ã̧̽̊̀҉̠̳̠̟̼͍̯̣̠̦͎̮̜̪̥̝͟A̵̸̡͖͉͔̮̼͖ͫ͛̂̀ͧ̈́ͫͭ̂͠͝Ả͂͋́̀̽͊ͨ̍̒̊͝͏̸̘͙͎̹͙A̓͐̉̅͋͛́ͮͣ̔̑̿ͤ̏̒҉̹͎̼̤̼͔̘̫̼͕̞͟͝͞Ȃ̷̶̖̫̦͇̦͚̞̞̱̮͍̞ͩ̐̐̒ͫ͂͆ͬͅA̾ͪͪ̐͑͋̂ͩ͌͊̈́̈́̏́͏̴̢̩̣̞͇̱̙̲̱̲̗͕̭̜̼̀ͅA̷̧̜͈̰̝̮͉̳͓͖͓̮̗͗̎͊͆̒̌̑̈́͗̾̑ͨ̋̕͝Ą̸̆ͮͯͧ̋ͮͤ̇ͧ͌ͮͭ̐̇̅̿͑͘͜҉̭̱͖̪̤̜̣̯̘A͙͎̯̯̺̥̫̠̼̙̼̦͎ͤ͋ͬ͗ͨ͛̎́̓ͥ̀ͥ̎̑͛́̓̀͜ͅA̶̵̹͖̳̹̟̙̝̺̙̜̺͇͓̙͍̲̼̲̅͑̎͛͛ͭ̄͐ͨ̋ͯ̓Ḩ̷̸̠̹̻͈̙̥̖̖̹̫̻͙͉̫͒̌̔̔̐͆̈ͭḨ̴̵̛̼̮̠̙͓͍̐̈ͧͫ͑͞H̰̫͍͚͇̞̫̙͚̤̬̟͓͓͎͂̄͌ͫ̍ͮͪ͊͋̍̊̍ͬ̈̀̚̕͜Ḣ̴̩͎̩̰̟͉̺͔̻̦̱̠̲̟̙͇͓͔̋͐̐ͤͩ͂͛̌͐ͣ̑ͪ̎ͨ̀͢H̵͌̊̒ͯ͑̅̍͆ͫ͏̶͈͎̪̣̣̤͙̮͝͡H̶͎̞̬̲͉̤̼͚̰̾͒ͬ͒ͩ̀̕͜͢Ĥ͑̓́̇͛̑̚͢͏̷̝̣͚̣͍̱͕͇͔̝̹͠H̸̥̜̖̱̣̔̄͗ͥ̈́ͦ̇͛͛͂͐ͭ̔ͫ̂̄̀͟H̴̺͕͈͍͍̥̤̯̞͍̜̯͇̹̣͚͖ͨ̀̿̾̈̀̕͡Hͣ̿̇̅ͭ̿ͥ́̊̅̿ͦ̉̀͋̏̌̇̓҉͏̶̙̝͍̻̯̬͕͓̫̲̰̰̟͎̦̕H͌͒͆ͮͪͭ̄͋ͤͯͦͥͧ̄͂ͭ͋͟͜͏̰͓̬͎͖͇̣̜̦͙͇̹̬̜̯͕H̶̶̶̝̹̫̦̺̱̟͕̭̮̰̥̦͓́͌̓͛͗͂ͭ͌̏̇̈́͟͞H̨̰̱̦̠͎̣͎͓̄ͦ̎͌͝ͅH̤̣̬̙ͨͮ̔̅̌̊̔ͦ̀͞H͌͊̈́́̍͆̾ͭ̑ͦ̊̏͂͛ͨͦͮ͒̀͠҉̱̺͍̫̣̜̫̪̰͓̝A̵̢̧̨͎͉̫̝̖͚̳̻̯͕̿̽̇̿̓̈́̏̑̚͘À̷̵̢̧̟͓̤̠͕̹̀̌ͩ͗ͭ͂̌̑͂̆̈ͮ͐͒̍͞Ā̵̟͙̣̠̱̦͎̝͎̟̥͚̯̽̆́̎́͜͞ͅȂ̷̟̜͍̱̭͙̤͈̲̗̦͈ͣ͂̓͘A̴̢̜̤̲͍̜ͥͫ̉͆ͤ͌ͩ̌̄̆̍̈̆ͨͭ̐̒̂̀͠͠Aͤ́ͥ̏̔͏̵̨̨̮͖̠͇͉̝̟̤͖̟̯̺͎̲̘͇ͅĄ̷̷ͣ̋̅ͭ̊ͤͩ͊ͧ͐̈́͆̀҉̥̖̜ͅẢ̢͇͕̤̩̘̖̟̖̻̈́̈̀͒̓̃̆ͯͭ͐̽ͤͩͮA̶̭̞̠̟̤̣̥̱͓̙̱̞̔̈͐͊̋̇̓̀A̠̖̺͚̱̰̗̮̥̗̮̺̭̠͚͖̣̠͛̿ͬ͆ͯ͑̇̅̄ͦͣ̅͜͞͠Ã̷͚͎͓̣̳͔ͭͬ͑̔̿̉͒͑ͬ̂ͭ͐Ā̴͔̳͍͓̤͇̪̮͆̀̀̅ͦ̀̎̾͘͝A̵̢̺̳̹̹̥͇̪͉̯̦͉̳͍̼̠̙̫ͦ̀̍̈̏͐ͧͯ̏ͬͬͫ̓ͭͮA̷̡̧̯̠̣̗̪̙̝̞̲̠ͪ͂̿̿ͩ̾̂̐̇̃͆̍͌̃A̶̱̭̤̘͗̊̐̀̇ͦ́Ă̶̫͚̗͉̬̗̱̦̮̪ͧͦ͂ͪͣ̔͊̄ͯ͆͆͗ͣͣ̈́̀͡͝A̡̯̱͉̮̫̙͓ͥ̉ͯ̊̃͌͊ͬ̑̈́ͬͨ̎̏͐ͣ̾̕͢Ā̸̮̲̠̥͓̦̫̼̦͉͎̥̻͈̎̄ͮ̆̋̔͆ͯͬ̿̇ͫ̉̎͒̚ͅĄ̡͈̗̪̯̝̘͍͙̝͉̰̗̘̰͊̔̐͋͂ͧ̌̓ͣͧ͌ͯ̅͌̏́Ȧ̲̬̲͈͖̞̼͉̳̳̭͇͔̖̟͎͔̣͚̈́̀ͥͬ̆̈ͣ̇ͤ̎ͧ̕A̶̶̸̢͖͓̳̤̻͔̪͓̘̜̻̘̻̰̼̤̻̣̫̒̏ͩ̍͆̎͐̌̇̎̆́͆̏́A̸̘͍̥̤̳̗̲̜̥͙̪̳̫̺̼̙͓͇ͥ͑̐̃͆ͬ̈ͨͬ͘͜͝͡Aͣ̍͋͂͛͊͂̈̂̓̒̾҉̖̭̼̯͇̬̙̠͇̫̝̼̭̜̱͎͔͉̥Ā̊͋͒̌͏͍̮͉͔̕͝A̸̶̛̺̙̟̩͉̞̣͔͓͂̋͗̋ͤ̆͋̿͒ͪ̅̈͞Ȧ̸̡̧̛̺̥͎̖̠̰̘̜̘̹̫̬̙̒̿̍ͧ͊̃̌̿͋̅̚Å͑́͗͒͒̐̿̄̊̊ͬ͑̀́̚̚͏̣̩̳̫̖̞̹̮͖̹̞ͅA̸̴̽̔̈̈́̓̏͑͆̋̇͌͟҉̠̞͓̺͖̤͎ͅĄ͍̠̭͉̝̇̿̐ͭͪͥͭͮ̋ͥͨ́̕A̧̟̦̰͍̪̥̜̜͍ͭ̑ͦ̀̏̓̆̌͑͆̅͑ͤ͊̿͗A̸̤̥̝͗͗ͧ͋͌ͤ̑͘͜ͅAͣ̉̅̇ͭ̄́ͥ̈́̑̀̌͑ͬ̔̔͊̽͏̺̩̲̰̤͚̞̻͉̻Ẳ̸̸͇̱͕̜̱͓̖̩̻̺̉ͥͮͫͥͧ̈́̾A̷̡̛̲̯̞̠͎̞ͫ̆̈́ͭ̓̀ͅÃ͋͑ͥ̀̒̏ͥͪ͂ͣͭ̂̎̚҉̧̥͖͚̝͚̣̺͟Ḁ̵̴̧̙̟͔̖͖̺͔̩̗̺̱̦̻̮̃̊̈̃́̉ͤ̚̕͢ͅA̷̞̙͎̰͔̤͙ͬ̊̃̾͊͒͂ͬ̾ͣ̏̿̐̆͂̑̚͞A̶̢̢̜͉̦͇̣͆ͯ̚ͅȦ͛̿̇̍̏͊ͦ̑̈ͤ͏̡̱̳͖̱̙̗̘͇̞̪̺͓̕͜͡A̸̢̯̩̪͚͚̮͖͓͈̺͈̪̘ͫ͐̐̇͛ͭ́͜͜ͅA̶̺͈͔̘͎̝̺ͦ̍̑̍́̚͡A̷̫̲͎̮̮̝̪͍͎̲̹̟̩͉͔̬̮͇̓̔̈̽ͦ̕͝͞͡ͅA̾̈́̓ͥ͟͏̻͕̙̠̪̯̯͙̞̲͇̀Ȃ̈ͣ̉̈́̑̍̄̎̌ͨ͏̧̬͍͉̯̕ͅÄ̸̭̳͚̙͍̘̲͔͍́̅̅̔̽̈́ͭ̅ͫ̃͌ͦ̍̿̀͟͢A̴̷̭̱̦͓̲̞̟̣̰͂ͩͤ̄̈͗̎̚A̿̐ͬ̿ͬͣ͆̾̃̊̀̄̉̉̆̄̚̚͏̭͓̹̟̲̗͢Ȁ̸̧̻̜̲͓͔̘̼̦̫̺̘̼͕̖͔̒̑̑̈́̅̇̌̎̀͜͟Ã̴̵̢̪͓̺̫̜̮͖͑̅́͒ͬͪ̆͋ͭ͌͑̄̈́̉̇ͪ͟A̛̝̮̝̭̖̪̦͔̣̻̬̙̠ͭ͌̓̑̊̊ͤͮͬ̿̏ͥ̕Aͯ̋̓̊̽҉̰̠̝͍̩͢ͅÄ̷́͛̒̃͛́̆̍͏̛̥͖̤̹͓̺̭̗̫͓̩̗̜̻̝̰͇̗̤A̸̢̒̽ͣͫ͆͛̄͋̽ͦͦ͂͟͝҉͇̜̣̦̯͈̙̞̣̖Ã̷̴̴̷̱̞͍̫̮̼̟͖̦͕̙̯̘͔̮̙̭̟͋̑̍̋̈͛̄͂ͫ̑ͯ̊A̵̠͖͔̦̙̒̊̈̚̕ͅA̵̶͙̲͖͓̝̣̳̼͑ͣ̒̔ͥ͋ͨA̛͈̰̹̭̫̠ͦ̋̆͌ͪ̌̎̇̅̊̕͜͞͞ͅA͉̝͙̰̭̰̤̱͉̥͔̜ͥ̐͐ͧ̀̒̆̈́͋͛̋ͫ̅̆̊͌̋́ͯ̕͜͠͞A̙̮̬̝ͥ̓̓ͨ̃͒̎̀A̴̶̷̺̙̝͕̺̽̿̇͂ͧ̏̿̅̽ͪ̊͛͆͋ͫͮ̔̔A̸̤͕͚̦̞̥̟̯̟ͩ͑ͣ̌ͣ̉͋͌̂ͨ̍͌̈̀̋ͫ̽͑̀̚͢ͅAͬͨ̓̓̀́͘͠͏͕̖̖̫̙̮̼̼̙͔̫͎̣͖̭̳Ã̧̽̊̀҉̠̳̠̟̼͍̯̣̠̦͎̮̜̪̥̝͟A̵̸̡͖͉͔̮̼͖ͫ͛̂̀ͧ̈́ͫͭ̂͠͝Ả͂͋́̀̽͊ͨ̍̒̊͝͏̸̘͙͎̹͙A̓͐̉̅͋͛́ͮͣ̔̑̿ͤ̏̒҉̹͎̼̤̼͔̘̫̼͕̞͟͝͞Ȃ̷̶̖̫̦͇̦͚̞̞̱̮͍̞ͩ̐̐̒ͫ͂͆ͬͅA̾ͪͪ̐͑͋̂ͩ͌͊̈́̈́̏́͏̴̢̩̣̞͇̱̙̲̱̲̗͕̭̜̼̀ͅA̷̧̜͈̰̝̮͉̳͓͖͓̮̗͗̎͊͆̒̌̑̈́͗̾̑ͨ̋̕͝Ą̸̆ͮͯͧ̋ͮͤ̇ͧ͌ͮͭ̐̇̅̿͑͘͜҉̭̱͖̪̤̜̣̯̘A͙͎̯̯̺̥̫̠̼̙̼̦͎ͤ͋ͬ͗ͨ͛̎́̓ͥ̀ͥ̎̑͛́̓̀͜ͅA̶̵̹͖̳̹̟̙̝̺̙̜̺͇͓̙͍̲̼̲̅͑̎͛͛ͭ̄͐ͨ̋ͯ̓Ḩ̷̸̠̹̻͈̙̥̖̖̹̫̻͙͉̫͒̌̔̔̐͆̈ͭḨ̴̵̛̼̮̠̙͓͍̐̈ͧͫ͑͞H̰̫͍͚͇̞̫̙͚̤̬̟͓͓͎͂̄͌ͫ̍ͮͪ͊͋̍̊̍ͬ̈̀̚̕͜Ḣ̴̩͎̩̰̟͉̺͔̻̦̱̠̲̟̙͇͓͔̋͐̐ͤͩ͂͛̌͐ͣ̑ͪ̎ͨ̀͢H̵͌̊̒ͯ͑̅̍͆ͫ͏̶͈͎̪̣̣̤͙̮͝͡H̶͎̞̬̲͉̤̼͚̰̾͒ͬ͒ͩ̀̕͜͢Ĥ͑̓́̇͛̑̚͢͏̷̝̣͚̣͍̱͕͇͔̝̹͠H̸̥̜̖̱̣̔̄͗ͥ̈́ͦ̇͛͛͂͐ͭ̔ͫ̂̄̀͟H̴̺͕͈͍͍̥̤̯̞͍̜̯͇̹̣͚͖ͨ̀̿̾̈̀̕͡Hͣ̿̇̅ͭ̿ͥ́̊̅̿ͦ̉̀͋̏̌̇̓҉͏̶̙̝͍̻̯̬͕͓̫̲̰̰̟͎̦̕H͌͒͆ͮͪͭ̄͋ͤͯͦͥͧ̄͂ͭ͋͟͜͏̰͓̬͎͖͇̣̜̦͙͇̹̬̜̯͕H̶̶̶̝̹̫̦̺̱̟͕̭̮̰̥̦͓́͌̓͛͗͂ͭ͌̏̇̈́͟͞H̨̰̱̦̠͎̣͎͓̄ͦ̎͌͝ͅH̤̣̬̙ͨͮ̔̅̌̊̔ͦ̀͞H͌͊̈́́̍͆̾ͭ̑ͦ̊̏͂͛ͨͦͮ͒̀͠҉̱̺͍̫̣̜̫̪̰͓̝̮͎̮

.

.


….Shiver!….

"Mm... Nii-Nii?..."

Maki sat up from the bed while rubbing her eyes sleepily. She felt something shaking from beside her. The form of her cousin quivering from next to her.

"Nii-Nii? Nii-Nii?"

She tried shaking him lightly to wake him up, to no avail.

"Nii-Nii, Nii-Nii."

Despite her worried calls, he did not wake. He only shook violently and heaved heavy breaths while clutching at the bed sheets. Maki didn't know what to do.

In her desperation, all she could think of was holding him gently as they slept. His body slowly came to a stop as the minutes passed.

"I love you, Nii-Nii…. I will always be with you…"

And with that, they slept through the night, undisturbed.


Part 1

DIN!

A priest flew back into a tree, unconscious from the impact.

—9 months since the factory incident. 9 months since the first meeting of Issei and Marie. 1 month since the 'Imperfect Balance Breaker incident'.

"Tch! Fall back, you fools! Go back! Now!"

The leader clicked his tongue in frustration. He was standing on a tree branch and ordering his squad to turn back away from the two enemies. Issei and Marie stood against the group of what seemed like only 20 priests. The priests began to run away as the leader gave his final words.

"Che! If only we hadn't lost half of our total members..! Damn! The Sekiryuutei and an Excalibur wielder—. What an unfortunate combination. We will return. We will find our way. We are God's light..! Just you wait, Sekiryuutei, Excalibur Blessing. We will certainly find a way to rid ourselves of both of you."

The leader jumped into the treeline to escape with his squad. Marie quickly jumped onto the branch he was previously on to take chase.

"Let's go, partner!"

She didn't receive a response.

"Partner?"

She turned to see Issei standing in his same position, unmoving. No. His body was visibly shaking. She could hear him making heaving sounds through his grit teeth. There was an expression of horror on his face. His right eye was twitching violently.

"Huuu—! Huuuu—! Huuuu—! Ha—! Half—!"

He was in a state of panic. Marie glanced to the group of escaping cultists. She glanced back to Issei. Her glances switched again and again with a conflicted expression. Then, she closed her eyes in frustration.

"Half—! Half! 50! Half! 50! Half!—Half!"

SHINK!

Marie sheathed her sword and jumped down from the the tree. She landed in front of Issei, and grabbed ahold of both his shoulders.

"Partner! Look at me! Can you hear me!?"

"50 people!? 50 people!?"

"Partner! Partner, come back!"

"Ha—Half! Half!"

"—Issei!"

Issei was snapped out of his state by the sudden call of his name.

Was it his mother's voice?

"Issei! Look! Here I am! We're not there right now, we're here. Do you see?"

—It was Marie.

"..M-Marie?"

"Yes! I am here!"

Issei clutched his head and shook it. There was sweat left on his palm from where he wiped.

"W-What? Where are the cultists?"

She let go of his shoulders.

"They're gone…"

"..?!"

Issei was shocked, but soon began to realize it.

"...It's my fault…"

Marie shook her head.

"No, it's not."

Issei clenched his fists tightly in self-frustration.

"Yes… It is…"

Marie looked off in the direction that the group escaped to. They were nowhere to be seen.

"Well... There's no helping it now. They are most likely far away from this place by now."

She turned back. Issei had his head lowered to the ground, but his gaze was set on the palms of his hands.

….

"Let's take a break for now."


Marie and Issei sat silently with their backs against some trees. Issei sat against the trunk of one, meanwhile, Marie sat on the one right beside it. Both were gazing off to somewhere in the distance. Though, Issei's expression was one emblematic of an empty sorrow.

"...Are you okay?..."

Marie asked Issei softly. He averted his gaze from her. She couldn't see it, but his right eye closed unconsciously.

"...Yeah…"

Slide..

Issei heard something slide beside him. Then, he felt something soft land on his shoulder. He turned to look. Marie was resting her head on his shoulder and looking up at him with a kind smile.

"Do you want to talk about it?.."

Issei's right eye shut even tighter as he turned his head away.

"...No… Never…."

Marie frowned in disappointment.

"..Okay…"

Marie's face suddenly lit up, as if a bulb appeared over her head.

"Oh, oh!"

She placed her hands around her neck and pulled something off. A golden chain. She pulled something out from her chest that was connected to the chain. A golden necklace with a large green jewel (with a perfectly oval shape), and a cross attached to the back of it. It looked a bit like two necklaces in one. Marie removed the necklace and held it out to Issei.

"Here you go!"

"...What's that?"

"My necklace, silly!"

"...Where has that been?"

"Huh? I've been wearing it this whole time!"

"Where?"

"Around my neck!"

"I've never seen it."

"It was sitting on my chest!"

Marie pointed right towards her bountiful cleavage. Issei realized why he never saw it. It wasn't sitting on her chest, it was sitting in her chest.

"Oh... So, it's a booby necklace then."

"Shut up!"

"Ow!"

Marie gave Issei a quick punch in the shoulder, prompting him to soothe it with a rub.

"..…Tch... So... Why are you giving this to me?"

"Ugh, I'm not giving it to you! I'm letting you borrow it."

"..For what?"

Marie gave him a proud smile.

"Whenever I was in doubt, or whenever I needed something to make me feel better, I would always hold onto my necklace and pray. No matter what I went through, it has always made me feel better."

Issei raised a curious brow at her declaration.

"You didn't do that that time at the factory…"

Marie averted her gaze for some reason. Issei couldn't make out her expression.

"That's….."

She held out the necklace closer to his face.

"—Anyway! Here! You can hold onto this until it makes you feel better!"

Issei deadpanned.

"No... Well... I don't need it…"

Marie puffed her cheeks like an angry child at Issei's refusal.

"Mmmmmmmmmm!"

Issei stared at her blankly and silently. But, after a few seconds, he sighed.

"Haaaah….. Fine."

He took the necklace from her hand and held onto it. Marie smiled in satisfaction and laid her head back onto his shoulder.

"What are you….. Ughhhhh…"

Issei rubbed his nose bridge with a sigh. He gazed out into the sky while his left hand held onto the necklace tightly.

But as time passed…his grip loosened…. His breathing became softer…... And finally, his right eye slowly opened itself again.

….

...

"..Mm.."

Marie shifted in her sleep. She slowly opened her eyes. For some reason, she was still in the forest, lying back against a tree. It looks like she and Issei fell asleep for a nap in the forest.

"...Hmm…"

She heard some light breathing below her. She looked down.

"...Hmm…"

Issei was lying on one of Marie's legs, sleeping peacefully, in a fetal position.

….

….

Marie held a hand tightly over her mouth, and—

"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!"

She squealed as loud as she could. Her face was red with a mad blush, but her expression was one of extreme joy. For some reason.


-Partners-

"...Huuu…"

A soft breathing was heard. Maki was sleeping alone in bed, in the early morning.

—12 months after the factory incident. 4 months since the 'Imperfect Balance Breaker incident'. One year since Issei and Marie's first meeting.

"...Hah…."

Issei sighed lightly while standing in front of a mirror in his bathroom. He looked up to his reflection - and slowly opened his right eye.

SLLG….

A small, disgusting wet sound was made as he opened it. Rather than being a yellowish, almost golden eye color he had gained over the past years, what instead revealed itself - was a sharp, green, reptilian eye.

The eye of a Dragon.

Issei picked up something that looked like a capsule of some sort. He opened it and pulled something out delicately. It was a colored contact lens. He carefully placed it into his eye.

After a couple of blinks, his eye was just that of a normal human.

4 months ago, during the "Imperfect Balance Breaker incident", as coined by Ddraig, Issei had lost his eye to an arrow of light. He was able to replace it, but at the cost of "sacrificing" what was left to Ddraig. Unfortunately for him, it didn't end there.

After Issei had essentially recovered from that event, he had questions to ask Ddraig. Those questions were:

("What did you take from me?")

[Your eye, of course. Though, I have "taken" nothing from you. I only possess what you have given me. Unfortunately, your eye was not the only thing that became "inhuman".]

("What else did you give me?")

[You were pierced right through the skull, partner. Your eye was not the only thing that was affected. That is precisely why you were in such a disoriented state. I'm afraid that, in the affected areas, there were some important pieces of you that needed to be replaced.]

("...What pieces?")

[Your brain, partner. I'm talking about your brain. There were some pieces to it that were pierced by the arrow. You were not bleeding internally, thanks to the burning light, but if it gone on any further, then you would not have been able to function or live. That's why, whatever was taken from you by the arrow, I returned to you. So, your eye is not the only part of you that is a Dragon, Partner.]

("My...brain?")

[Yes. Thankfully, since it was an arrow, it's area of effect was thin. However, considering that it pierced straight through your head, the arrow made its way right through what you would call your "temporal lobe" and "occipital lobe". Because of this, there are vital things that have been affected by the change from human to Dragon anatomy.]

("...What changed?...")

[Both the "temporal lobe" and "occipital lobe", in mammals like you, are both separately responsible for sensory objectives like sights and sounds. The occipital was mainly for sight and other similar functions. Ironic, considering you had just lost your eye. That aside - the temporal is mainly for the function of sound, interpreting sounds, and comprehending speech and other similar functions. Including understanding language. If I were to say it optimistically, you essentially received improvements from these changes. For example, Dragons have the capability to easily comprehend any spoken language. Devils have a similar ability, but unlike Dragons, they cannot interpret written language at the same unbelievably fast rate as Dragons can. In other words, any language you do not know, you can speak once it is spoken to you. And any language you cannot understand in written form, you can learn to write in days. Also, your natural senses have dramatically increased as well. —No, it wouldn't be inaccurate to say that your previous senses would not compare in any way. Even with the influence of the Boosted Gear sharpening your instincts, as your instincts are now, there is no fair comparison to be made. I suggest you test out your senses like sight and sound. You will see and hear things that no other human can. Possibly even above supernatural beings as well.]

("Why did I go crazy with the Imperfect Balance Breaker?")

[Well, considering that there was an arrow through your skull inhibiting your senses, it isn't absurd to say that was the reason. However, even I know that isn't the case all the way through. You did continue to rampage even after you received your pieces during the transformation, after all. So, I believe that it is because you had received the new Dragon pieces from me that caused you to rampage. When you were pierced by the arrow, you were in a maddened state. That's why, when your damaged pieces were replaced by the Dragon parts, the sudden change had forced you to adapt to them at a moment's notice and caused you to go berserk. Your entire mentality was being ruled by deadly, brutal instinct rather than rational thinking. At that time, you were hardly even mentally present, if at all. You were essentially nothing more than an enraged mini Dragon. It is reminiscent of "the Drive".]

Issei then asked him the heaviest question.

("….What….am I?...")

[You are human. Your composition is still over 95% human. In truth, physically, you are 98% human. The only reason I do say 95% is because there are obviously parts of you that have been affected by the influence of the Boosted Gear. Such as your physical strength. Your base physical strength and durability has already surpassed that of humans, even without boosting. This is a somewhat confounding phenomenon, but it has surely taken place with all of the possessors of the past. It is not an uncommon thing amongst Longinus possessors with high potential to naturally surpass the realm of humans in terms of physicality. In terms of your mind, you are still human. Your mindset and the effects of the events of your past are certainly proof enough that you are human. That is what I believe.]

Those were the answers that Ddraig gave to Issei.

Despite having unlocked and using his version of Imperfect Balance Breaker, Issei did not yet unlock the complete Balance Breaker. He was still one step away. He asked Ddraig:

("Why don't I have Balance Breaker yet?")

[I'm not sure. It seems as if your body is physically capable of maintaining it, even if only for a limited time. Not to mention, your potential was high from the beginning, so it is odd that it has not come to you. If I had to come up with an explanation, it has to be because of the odd berserk mode that your Imperfect Balance Breaker turned out to be. Most users unlock the Imperfect form only because they aren't strong enough to handle the complete form. Yet, somehow, you ended up being forced into that form despite being compatible for the complete form. And right after you had unlocked that unique form, your Boosted Gear entered a "stagnant" mode where it could not be used. It wore off after a few days, but there are times when it will pulse oddly and lose the ability to Boost. I assume that it will stop when you unlock Balance Breaker, but even so, it feels as if you've been "distanced" from the complete form for an inexplicable reason. Regardless, the point is that in order to unlock the Balance Breaker, you will need to experience an event which triggers your spirit. Most evolutions occur during these types of events, as I explained before.]

Issei sighed as he concluded his flashbacks. It was time to meet up with Marie.


"Alright, I guess that's it for today."

Issei sighed and cracked his neck. It was nighttime. Marie and him had just finished their patrols. It was odd to even call them "patrols" at this point though. Finding any of the Genesis members was beyond extremely difficult. There was almost always month to month gaps between any altercations with the cult. It was a bit humorous, and neither would admit it, but they were essentially just hanging out most of the time.

"Okay then. I'll see you tomorrow, partner~"

Issei narrowed his eyes slightly at Marie's departure. Issei noticed that, in the past few days, Marie had been acting a bit unusual. Even though her tone and attitude were mostly the same, he couldn't help feel a certain melancholy emanating from her. Like an little invisible cloud was hovering over her head.

But he feigned ignorance.

"Yeah, see ya, partner."

With those goodbyes said, they turned away from each other and walked off in their own directions.

But a few steps into his walk, Issei stopped. He almost immediately turned on his heel and jumped to hide in the shadows. Rather than following Marie, he merely looked at her from afar. She was already around 10 meters away, but every detail about her was crystal clear. In fact, it felt like he was seeing her closer than she actually was. So much so that he noticed a tiny tilt in her step.

'That's not heading towards the school….'

Now Issei had decided to follow her. Marie was taking some turns at some familiar streets, but not the ones he was expecting. Issei recognized this path.

'As I thought…. She's…...heading into the forest?'

Marie's form walked into the 'training forest'. This was the forest that Issei and Marie always trained in together. They spent a lot of time there and it was a hot spot for fighting cultists out of the public view, besides the abandoned places.

Why was she going in there? Issei didn't sense anything around. He quickly followed her in.

'Marie?'

He watched Marie from his place behind a tree. For some reason, she started removing some of her equipment. She laid her sword onto the ground and sat down against a tree. She brought her knees up and curled her body up a bit. She turned her coat over her, and...closed her eyes.

…..

"Hah?"

Issei didn't understand. She was going to sleep?

"...Good night, partner…."

….

"What the hell are you doing?"

"..?!"

Marie jumped up in shock.

"Wha—?! Issei?!"

Issei stood in front of the troubled Marie with a confused expression.

"O-O-Oh! Écaille! Um, what are you doing here?.."

"No, that's my question. Why the hell are you cozying up next to a tree?"

"U-U-U-Um, I'm just—! I'm on night watch!"

"Night watch? You mean a stake out?"

"Yes! That! I'm looking out for enemies!"

"Except you have to be awake for a stake out."

"Well— That's— Um."

"Marie."

Issei looked at her seriously. Marie couldn't help but feel a sense of security in his expression.

"Tell me the truth."

Marie gradually lost her false attitude and sighed. She had her head lowered a bit with a sad smile.

"...I'm afraid that...I'm on my own."

Issei tipped his head in confusion.

"Huh?"

Marie sighed again and slid back down against the tree in a depressed state. She wrapped her arms around her knees. Issei slid down next to her, against the same trunk of the tree.

"...I'm afraid that my resources have been taken from me…. I have officially been deemed a failure…"

Issei raised a brow.

"Failure? What do you mean?"

Marie smiled sadly.

"Do you remember once when I told you that this case was expected to have a duration period of one year?..."

"...Yeah…"

"...Well, it looks like my time is up!"

Issei turned to her with what looked to be worry. She had finished her statement with a playful tone, but while looking at him with a terribly sad smile. There were tears at the corners of her closed eyes.

"What do you mean?... I don't understand…. You mean….you've 'failed' the mission?"

She nodded her head meekly.

"..It seems that I have taken too much time to 'solve' the case. For that reason, the church has lost faith in me, and they have ordered my return home. But because I denied, so that I could keep trying, they have ordered the academy to take my resources from me. So that's why, I'm back to the woods!"

She waved her hands out playfully, but there was pain in her expression. Issei started feeling a twitching in his eye.

"..They kicked you out?.."

"Mm. Well, not out of the church, at least. They're just trying to get me to return home by not providing me any resources…. So... Now I'm here, teehee!"

She raised her arm in the same, playfully sad way, again. Issei simply remained silent.

….

Without saying anything, he stood up and brought out his phone.

"Eh? Issei?"

He dialed a number and put the phone up to his ear.

"—Hello? Baa-san? Yeah, it's me. I gotta ask something. You know, about Marie-chan."

"..!"

Marie jumped up from her place.

"W-Wait, Issei! No! Stop, stop! Hang it up, hang it up!"

"Yeah, yeah. She's right here with me."

"Issei, please! Please! Just let me talk, please!"

Marie looked at him with an extremely pleading expression. Issei took a glance at her.

"...Hold on, Baa-san. I'll call you back."

Issei hung up the phone. Marie slid back down against the tree again. Issei followed.

"I….am a failure…"

Issei quietly listened to Marie's words.

"...I… Before I came here, I was considered the pride of the Rouen Cathedral…. I was revered throughout France as a professional Exorcist….. My ability to wield Excalibur naturally...and my skill was praised... I was..considered important…."

Marie began to spill her heart out. She spoke in a quiet and soft voice with her head in her knees. Issei said nothing, but silently processed the information she gave to him. He held his right eye closed unconsciously.

"But ever since Genesis came to be…the Church lost faith in me…. Did you happen to hear about that bombing in France a couple years ago?"

Issei nodded. —That's right. There was a bombing that he remembered hearing about in France. It was a church.

"...That was a designated attack….. It is still not understood how Genesis accomplished such a thing. The explosion had been caused by a Sacred Gear user who blew himself up using his Sacred Gear. The higher ups still do not understand how they obtained a Sacred Gear user that could do that. It was as if he was enhanced by something. And more than that, they didn't understand why they launched an attack right after the explosion.… But the place they attacked, it was said that there were 'Holy beings' in attendance that day. That was suspected to be their target for reasons not revealed to anyone.….. But the point is, I was in attendance during that day as well…. The day that Genesis attacked, I was there. I was ordered to defend the church base that had been attacked. Over half of the church was already gone from the explosion, and we were meant to defend the last of it…. But…."

She paused for a long while. Issei waited patiently for her to speak again.

"...At that time…. I couldn't handle it…"

Her body began shaking.

"...I couldn't handle….the sight of the charred remains….of the children of the church…..spread all across the ground…. I couldn't handle…...the sight of a burnt child….crawling with the last of his life…..begging for help…."

Gradually, her body shook even more and more violently.

"...Before that sight…..I could do nothing but lament….with the body of a child in my arms…. And because of my incompetence, the enemy escaped….. After that, Genesis continued with their operations. They kidnapped people, converted them forcibly, and killed those who would never join….. Time and time again, they would leave a trail of bodies in their path, and I could not stop them despite being considered France's top Exorcist….. The higher ups began to lose faith in me….. I would fail to capture them every time….. At some point, they didn't believe I could do it, and they removed me from the case….. That's when I vowed to them that I would bring down the organization. And if I couldn't, then they would take my Excalibur from me….. It was the best bargaining tool I had, but truthfully, they would have taken it from me anyway, at some point… But, now, I've failed... And that's why…..I don't want to go home..."

Her hands gripped tightly onto her forearms.

"...Because…. I know that the moment I return home….I will have truly failed…. And…. They will take my Excalibur from me….. I will have nothing left…. But, somehow….. Even more than that…...to leave this place, I will—"

Issei waited for what felt like 10 minutes for her to speak again. But, in truth, it was only worth a few moments.

"...I was never an amazing Exorcist….. I was just lucky that I was born with the ability to wield Excalibur….. I was always not good enough in the field….. I was always someone who couldn't handle the pressure….. And in the end, I would always jeopardize the mission for the sake of others…. Genesis was just the first case to make that flaw so obvious... It was only a matter of time before I was treated as I should be…"

Another lingering silence. Then, she continued.

"You know….. At that time... At the factory…. You said….that 'He' wasn't listening…. And I….."

Droplets of water dripped onto the blades of grass between Marie's legs. She had begun crying.

"...At that time…... There was nothing I could say to you….. I….. I couldn't d-deny it!... I…. At that time, inside of the forest….I saw my life flash before my eyes….. In the slow moments of the bullet reaching me….. I called out…for my Father to save me…... But…... The last thing I remember calling out to in my mind….was the person that ended up saving me instead!.."

She curled up even further as her body quaked violently. Her tears fell onto the ground freely.

"...Someone like me!... Someone who doubted her Lord!... Someone who can't fulfill her duties!... Someone who can't uphold her mission!... Someone who can't bear the sight of tragedy!... Someone weak like me!... I have no right to bear the Excalibur!... I have no right to fight for the church!... I have no right to call you my partner!... I have no right to have these developing feelings!... I—! I am nothing but a failure!..."

…..

A long, deafening silence sat in the air for what the two perceived as hours. Yet, it was truly only mere moments apart.

…..

"Don't give me that bullshit."

—Marie's quivering suddenly ceased. She froze completely. She slowly lifted her head a few centimeters, and her eyes moved onto Issei. He was glaring at her with an expression of anger— but there was a comforting light in his eyes.

"Leaving that sort of a task all up to a teenager? Those shitty geezers of higher ups are nothing but spineless cowards who can't do shit themselves. They had no choice but to use talent like yours to fulfil their purpose. A "failure"? Despite your talent, you're a failure? A failure for what? A failure for having emotions? A failure for feeling empathy? A failure for being too kind? They blame you for having all these traits, but they don't acknowledge you for having the talents you have? A failure? A failure for what?"

Marie could only stare at him in silence as he spoke with a burning passion.

"A failure for living? A failure for being you? Those shitbags. There's one thing they could never understand. One thing that makes you so much greater than them."

Her eyes slowly began to widen the more and more he spoke.

"They deemed you a failure because they didn't understand that there was nothing wrong with you. They placed their idea of "faults" over you and let you run off with it on your back. But let me tell you this: You aren't a failure. You are my partner. And I will always come to help you. Even if that church or even God himself fuckin' abandon you, I won't. Because I'm your partner. And because I understand one thing all of those shitheads don't."

His eyes burned straight through her and she felt a powerful pulse in her heart.

"There's nothing wrong with being human!"

At that moment, it felt like a glimmer of hope was lit in Marie's eyes. But that light was something that seemed it was being reflected off of her eyes.

—The comforting light that emanated from Issei's image before her.

….

….

….

Clang….

Marie's sword made a soft sound as it was moved aside from her thigh.

"...Marie?.."

Issei called out to her, but she did not answer. She only sat up and inched herself closer to Issei.

"Hey.."

She lightly placed her hands against his chest and brought her body closer to his. And the distance between their faces decreased substantially.

Until, finally—

Chu..

—Their lips met.

….

Marie's lips were soft and gentle. Only subtle movements were made. Her hands only softly caressed his chest. Their lips made small noises on contact, but the entire rest of the world around them was silent.

….

Soon enough, their lips parted.

Chu..

"...A..."

Issei had no words. Anything he did say was completely soundless, and all he could do was mouth it. And for the first time in what felt like years, Issei's face had a redness to it.

Marie laid her head on Issei's chest.

"...Home…"

"H-Huh?"

Issei tried peering down to Marie's face with a mid-shocked expression. But she merely kept her head against his chest with a soft blush and a gentle expression.

"...I...want to go home…"

It took Issei a minute to process it.

"..A...Ah…. Y-Yeah…. Right..."

He pulled out his mobile phone and called his aunt.

"A-Ah, Baa-san? Y-Yeah, we're fine….Yeah. I'll explain it there. Yeah, we're on our way..."

As Issei's short conversation continued, Marie snuggled her head further in and closed her eyes gently.


"Alright then. Would you mind explaining a bit, Issei-kun?"

Satoshi asked Issei frankly. The Aikawa family was gathered around the Kotatsu in the living room. On one side was Satoshi, Akane, and Maki in between them. On the other side were the two that just returned home, Issei and Marie. Issei started.

"I'm afraid…. I'm afraid that Marie doesn't have a place to stay anymore."

[—!]

The family glanced at each other in uncertainty. Akane spoke next.

"No place to stay? If I recall, you were living at the Catholic school not too far from here, Marie-chan?"

Marie nodded meekly. She was avoiding eye contact with Issei's family out of shame. Satoshi added.

"So, you're saying they kicked her out?"

"...Yeah, that's essentially right."

[—!]

The family became shocked at the announcement. Akane covered her mouth in shock.

"Why would they ever do such a thing?"

Issei averted his gaze and shut his right eye. Satoshi caught onto that detail.

Ever since a few months ago, Issei had developed some sort of "tick". Whenever he became agitated/nervous— or —spoke/thought of something that affected him deeply, his eye would always twitch or shut entirely. It happened once when Satoshi had taken him to visit his parents' graves. Issei's eye was tightly shut the entire day.

That means that this was something that was irking for Issei to speak about.

—And just as Satoshi suspected, Issei began in a lower tone that sounded like it held a tinge of disgust in it.

"...Well, Marie has a certain job in the church. A very special job. That job is something that is very closely observed and upheld. The church believes that if one isn't fulfilling their job in that position, then there should be no second chances and they should be stripped of that right immediately."

"..Oh my, what a harsh system."

Akane couldn't help but comment. Issei continued.

"It only really happens when it pertains to that job specifically…. Unfortunately, the higher church members have begun to lose faith in Marie's abilities. They believe that she has not been fulfilling her duties properly. And for that reason, they have ordered her to return home to France."

"Oh no."

Akane covered her mouth with a bit of a sad expression. Maki showed an extremely displeased expression, mixed with worry. Meanwhile, Satoshi continued listening intently, analyzing every part of Issei in a calm manner.

"The problem is, Marie doesn't want to return home to France. She wanted to keep trying and fulfill her duties. But the church doesn't accept "no" as an answer. Because of her denial, they have stripped her of her resources. Which means, that no other church will take her in, based on the orders given to them by her Cathedral. And they won't send her anything as support. So she's left on her own. This is a method meant to drive her back home forcefully."

Akane clasped her mouth tighter in complete shock.

"I can't believe it. That's…. But that's cruel…. Satoshi?"

Akane turned to her husband for his opinion. Satoshi held his gaze on Issei.

He analyzed all of Issei's movements and words carefully. Issei's expression held a quiet, but burning passion. His eyes were filled with the light of a certain determination to do something, as if he held a fire in them. His right eye was no longer shut. Instead, his intense gaze burned through Satoshi's soul.

Was his eye an indicator of lying or telling the truth? No, not necessarily. That was something that could only be decided by the context of the conversation. Because there were times when Issei would tell Maki a white lie in order to make her feel better, and there were times when he would speak of something personal and real, but both times his eye would be closed. It only shuts if it's something that truly affects him in some way. That's the one certain criteria that remains the same all throughout any situation.

So, in this case, his eye being open— would simply mean that he's not willing to back down.

"Papa. We're helping her, right? We're going to help her, right? We can't just leave her alone. We're helping her, right? Right?"

Maki tugged at her father's sleeve incessantly, holding an expression of deep concern. Satoshi ignored it and instead switched his gaze to Marie. He began to closely analyze her as well.

Marie was sitting in the Japanese 'sazen' style position. She would usually sit in a different position when she came to visit because she wasn't native to the country, and the family didn't really mind, but this time, she wasn't.

The reason she is in that position is precisely because she feels vulnerable and wants to show the family the utmost respect. She is averting her gaze and shifting in her spot constantly. The hands in her lap are constantly fidgeting and she always keeps her eyes down to the ground somewhere. Her expression was one of shame, as if she felt embarrassed that this was happening. Her white attire had light green stains on them in certain places. Her coat laying beside her had dark spots that looked like dirt marks. Her hair was also mostly fixed, but he could easily take notice of the stray hairs everywhere, indicating that she hasn't groomed it in a few hours. Even if she and Issei were outside all day, that sort of subtle, unkempt look doesn't happen from just walking around.

And the final detail— Marie had a sad smile on her face.

…..

Satoshi leaned back and sighed.

"Well, I'll have to adjust finances a bit, but, there's no problem in taking in another person. Ah, but, this means no more expensive shopping trips for your mother to buy new kitchen appliances all the time. Oh well, sacrifices have to be made~"

Marie's eyes slowly widened at those owrds.

"Whaaaaaat? Why is it that my expenses have to be shortened? What about your fishing trips, huh, honey?"

"That is something that is enjoyed by myself, Maki, and Issei-kun, together. It doesn't just affect me. It's simple logic. Also, you don't need new appliances every month. We can keep a fridge for more than two years you know."

"Whaaaaaat?! B-B-But, they're releasing a new crock pot next month! It has a second compartment!"

"For what?"

"More rice!"

"You are wasting our money."

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!"

Even though the married couple was "arguing", the family collectively began laughing together.

Realizing the outcome, Marie had tears building in her eyes.

"I—! I swear I will do everything I can to help you all! I swear, I'll do anything! I'll do any chores you want me to! I'll go anywhere you want me to! I won't ever cause you any trouble! I swear! I swear on my life!"

Marie declared that wholeheartedly while placing a hand over chest. The family smiled in response, and Satoshi nodded.

"Welcome home, Marie."

At that point, tears began falling freely from Marie's eyes. Maki quickly scurried around the Kotatsu and gave Marie a bear hug.

"Yaaaaaay~! Marie-onee-san is staying! Yaaay! Yaaay!"

Marie hugged her back tightly.

"...Heh."

Issei smiled and leaned back onto his arms. Unbeknownst to anyone else, he let out a silent sigh of relief.

All except for Satoshi, who smirked kindly upon noticing it.

'You are so much kinder than you think, Issei-kun…'


-Life-

From that moment onward, Issei's life began moving forward like a dream. As the months passed, many events moved quickly by, and became joyful memories. Despite all of the darkness that shadowed it before, despite the cult that they had vowed to stop, Issei's life - was like a beautiful, fleeting dream.


[]

"...Haah…"

Marie sighed lightly as she stared up at the ceiling in silence. Maki lay beside her, turned away from her, seemingly sleeping.

—It was the same night that Marie began living in the Aikawa Household.

Marie couldn't sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about a certain person. With what felt like a certain sense of longing, she held her hand softly over her heart.

'...Issei…'

"Psst. Marie-onee-san, are you sleeping?"

Maki whispered from beside Marie. Marie shook off her thoughts.

"..Maki-chan? No... I'm afraid I can't…"

"Me neither. I can't sleep well without my Nii-Nii."

"I see..."

Marie sighed to herself again. What was this feeling of melancholy, she wondered. But before she could continue questioning it, Maki suddenly sat up.

"Hm? Maki-chan?"

"Let's go!"

"Eh?"

Maki started sliding out of bed.

"Wait, what? Go? W-Where, Maki-chan?"

Maki hopped off the bed and smiled back at her.

"To Nii-Nii's room, of course!"

"Eh? Wh— Wa—!"

Without waiting for a response, Maki pulled Marie out of bed and towards the door. She opened her door and peeked out. No one was there, all the lights were off. She pulled Marie forward as they snuck to Issei's door. She opened it silently and peeked inside. Issei was sleeping. She whispered back to Marie.

"Come on, let's go..!"

"W-Wait, Maki-chan..!"

Maki pulled them in and shut the door quietly. Then, she quickly walked over to Issei's bed and crawled onto his left side, against the wall. Marie fidgeted in place nervously. Though it wasn't her first time in Issei's room, she felt embarrassed in this context.

"Just like I thought…"

Maki whispered from her spot next to Issei. Marie realized it as she gazed at his sleeping form.

Shift..!

Issei's body was visibly shaking as he slept, and the breathing through his nose was ragged. He was having a night terror.

"Nii-Nii always has nightmares if I'm not here…. Sometimes, I don't know how to stop it…"

Maki laid down facing Issei and gently held onto his hands, that were gripping his bed sheets tightly. His shaking lessened to a degree.

"Come on, Marie-chan."

"Eh?"

Maki signaled for Marie to join her, but Marie hesitated. She looked down at Issei's form, and for some reason, she felt a tightness in her chest.

"..Then, um... Excusez-moi..."

Marie crawled onto the bed and laid down facing Issei's backside. His body was still shaking. For some reason, she felt compelled put her arms slowly around his waist and hold him gently.

Slide….

Just as she did that, Issei's quaking - visibly ceased.

"..He stopped…"

"Good job, Onee-san! It looks like you're just like me!"

A soft expression gradually grew on Marie's face. She gently placed her head against Issei's back.

"Yes…"

...

...

"Eh?"

Issei woke up confused the next morning, along with two girls inexplicably wrapped around him.


[—]

"Alright, Baa-san! We're heading out!"

Issei announced that loudly from near the entrance of the house.

Issei and Marie were about to head out of the house to go on their routinely patrols. Akane called out from her usual spot in the kitchen.

"Kaaay! Have fun on your date!"

Issei sighed as they stopped in front of the door.

"I already said it's not a date, Baa-san!"

"Marie-chan, have fun on your date~!"

"Yes, Auntie~!"

"Don't encourage her."

Then, Maki suddenly popped her head out from the entrance to the living room.

"What?! No fair! I want a date with Nii-Nii!"

Marie giggled and walked to pet Maki's head.

"Oh, Maki-chan. Maybe when you get older you can. For now, dates are for the adults."

Maki puffed her cheeks in frustration.

"No! I also want a date! If Marie-onee-san gets one, then I will get one too! Even if I must battle for it!"

Marie was taken aback by her response, but she soon smiled in a way Issei had never seen before. Almost like a 'battle ready' smile. An aura of intensity then surrounded the two girls.

"It seems that we have now become rivals, haven't we, Maki-chan?..."

"Yes. That's right."

"I see. Well then, may the best lady win."

"Agreed."

The girls shook hands with competitive smiles on their faces. Sparks flew between their eyes and intense (metaphorical) fires blazed behind their figures.

—The "war" had officially begun.

"...What the fuck are you two doing?..."


[—]

"Alright, next phrase!"

"Ugh…"

Issei grimaced as Marie moved on to the next line on the paper. Issei was sitting and writing at his desk, while Marie sat beside him with papers in her hands. She was currently teaching Issei French.

"Ugh! I fuckin' get it alreeeadyyy. I don't need you to teach me phrase by phrase."

"Hm? Yeah right! There's no way you can get this beautiful language of mine so easy! It is the language of love! It is not so easy to understand!"

"I thought the language of love was Spanish?"

"That is the language of 'romance'! —Also, that one is next., by the way."

"UGH! Stoooop! I don't need it anymore! I get it already!"

"Oh yeah? Then what does this phrase say!"

"The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political upheaval in France and its colonies that lasted from 1789 until 1799. It was partially carried forward by Napoleon during the later expansion of the French Empire. Blah blah, I get it. It's the textbook definition. I got this the first day you taught me. Next language."

"...Eh?"


[—]

"...This is my life…"

Issei sighed. He was waiting alone, outside of a movie theater, on a cold winter's day. He was dressed in a red jacket, black sweatpants, his usual black shoes and some gloves. Though, he had his hands in his pockets.

"Écailleeeeeeeee~!"

He heard a voice approaching from afar, to his left. He glanced and saw the person he was waiting for.

"There you fuckin' are."

Marie was running towards him happily while waving her arm in the air. She was wearing a nice brown jacket, red plaid skirt, black leggings, and brown boots. She also had pink gloves on her hands and pink ear muffs on her head. It went without saying that as she started living with the Aikawa family she finally wore normal clothes.

"You're late."

"Haah!... Hah!..."

She finally came to a stop in front of Issei while trying to catch her breath. She was quite the fit girl, so Issei found it odd that she was out of breath just from that. In truth, it was actually because she was nervous.

"Sorry for being late, partner!"

She saluted him and smiled.

"...Tch…"

Issei clicked his tongue. That's because it was taking all of his will power not to smile. Somehow, that signature action of hers had become his weakness, though he would never admit it.

"I can't believe I was late to our first date! I'm sorry, Issei!"

"Hah? This ain't a date. I'm just taking you out 'cuz it's your birthday, and if I didn't, Baa-san would have my ass."

"It's a date!"

"It's not a date."

"Date!"

"No date."

"Daaaate!"

"Nooooo."

Marie puffed her cheeks angrily and gave a cute "Hmph!" as she turned her head away. Issei fought a smirk.

"Whatever. Why the hell were you late anyway?"

Marie awkwardly averted her gaze with a fake smile.

"Ah, t-that was because we couldn't find my boots…"

In truth, it was because Akane and Maki were both scrambling and trying extremely hard to find the perfect outfit and accessories for Marie to wear. It was literally a panic room inside of the master bedroom as many outfits were tossed out of the closet. Satoshi quietly ignored it as he read a book and drank coffee, with a tossed shirt sitting on his face.

"Hmph. Whatever. Let's head in. The movie's about to start."

"Ah, wait for me!"

Marie clung onto Issei's arm as he walked. Issei caught a whiff of something familiar and sniffed the air. His senses were starting to become anywhere beyond a human's level at this point.

"—Sniff, sniff— Are you wearing Baa-san's perfume?"

"W-What? N-No... Y-You're imagining things."

"You literally smell like that crazy expensive perfume that Baa-san only uses for seriously important occasions."

"A-Are you saying that I smell good?"

Refusing to admit it, Issei just sighed.

"...Haah... Forget it."

And Marie wiped her brow in relief.

"Phew~ Okay, come on! Let's hurry! We have to go Christmas shopping after this!"

"Huh? Christmas shopping isn't till next week. Also, we aren't supposed to go without either Baa-san or Oji-san, since they've gotta pick up gifts."

"But this is personal shopping just for us~!"

"Huh? How the hell are we gonna do that?"

Marie pulled out a credit card that Akane had given her. Issei grimaced as they entered the theater.

"Whyyyyyyyyy…."


[—]

"Merry Christmaaaas~!"

—It was Christmas eve. The Aikawa family, including Marie, were gathered together in the living room of their home, setting up decorations and making preparations for Christmas.

Akane was in the kitchen baking and cooking several dishes and pastries, while Satoshi gave her a hand with everything. Marie and Maki were setting up the tree with decorations together, while Issei handed them the proper ones they asked for.

"Nii-Nii, can you pass me the little Angel?"

Issei brought out an ornament that looked like an Angel and handed it to Maki, who then handed it to Marie. The Aikawa family never really had such decorations like Christian imagery, ornaments, or even the small nativity scene set up on the table before. But ever since Marie moved in they felt it was appropriate to make her feel at home. She tried convincing them otherwise at first, but with their insistence, she complied. And needless to say, it brought sweet smiles to her face whenever they would pick out some religious material. The family was never religious, but this was fine enough for them.

"Ah, it's midnight! Time to put up the staaar~!"

Akane called out from the kitchen as she removed her oven mittens. The family began to gather around the tree.

"Here, here! Put it up, Nii-Nii~!"

Maki handed Issei the star for the tree. He stood on top of the sofa to place the star at the top of the tree.

"Careful, Ise-kun."

"Yeah, yeah, I've got it."

Issei delicately placed the star on the tree.

"Okay, light it up."

Satoshi connected the cord to the outlet and the tree lit up brilliantly.

"Woooooow~!"

"Yaaay! Christmas!"

Marie gazed at the tree dazzlingly while Maki cheered. Marie then smiled at Issei extremely brightly, with sparkles present in her face.

"Écaille! I want to go on a date tomorrow!"

"Huh? I just took you out for your birthday like two weeks ago."

"I want a Christmas date!"

"I don't."

"Ise-kun. Take Marie out for a Christmas date tomorrow."

"Haaah?! Why do I have to?!"

"Ise-kun~"

"...Y-Yes, Obaa-sama."


[—]

"HAAAAAH!"

Issei shot up from his bed with a sharp gasp for air. His body was shaking and sweating profusely. He clutched at his chest and felt his restless heartbeat. Maki and Marie were both sleeping peacefully beside him.

Ton!

He hopped off the bed and quickly ran out of the room. Then he ran downstairs and into the living room. His back crashed onto the couch as he breathed heavily.

"...Haaah!... Hah!... Haah!..."

He forced breath in and out of his nostrils to regulate his breathing. But it wasn't working.

"...Issei?.."

His eyes shot towards the entrance to the living room at the sound of a voice. Marie was standing there in her pink pajamas that matched Maki's blue ones. She walked towards Issei and sat down beside him.

"..."

Without saying anything, she lifted her hand and held it open. In her palm, she held the necklace she usually wore around her neck. She held it out for Issei to take.

"..."

But, instead of taking it—

Grip..

Issei placed his hand over Marie's palm and wrapped his hand tightly around hers, with the cross in between their grips.

"...!"

Marie was surprised by his action, but..

Slide...

Nevertheless, she intertwined her fingers with Issei's and held firmly onto his hand.

"...Haah.."

Only some few seconds later, his breathing had finally regulated.


[—]

"Hm, Hmmmmm~!"

Marie hummed happily as she churned some chocolate mix inside of a bowl. Akane and Marie were baking cookies and chocolate for the upcoming holiday. Valentine's day. Issei was still at dojo so they didn't have much time to finish up Marie's chocolates which were already baking.

—What they didn't know was that someone was waiting outside of the front door.

"Okay, okay. Breathe... Um, okay. How about: [I know you've gotten a lot of these already, but it would make me really happy if you accepted them!]? Ah, no, no. Too guilt trippy."

The girl who stood outside of the Aikawa Household with a box of homemade chocolates behind her back, was none other than Akane Tsubomi. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Okay. Let's just— Um, speak from the heart."

Ding-Dong~

She rang the doorbell and waited nervously. She heard thumping from behind the door. Then, the voice of a woman she didn't recognize.

"Cooooming~!"

The door opened to reveal a red haired girl in a pink apron with a chocolate covered mixer in her hand. There were also chocolate stains on her clothes and on her face.

"Oh! Hello!"

Tsubomi's posture slumped, and the excitement in her expression slowly faded.

"Who might you be? One of Maki-chan's friends? Oh! Maybe you are the friend of Écaille!"

"E..Eke?.."

"Écaille! It is French! Ah, but maybe you know him as Issei. Are you here to see him? Because he is at dojo right now. But you can come in and wait for him! We can make cookies together before he comes back!"

Tsubomi lowered her head sadly.

"Mm. No... It's okay…. Just tell him I said hi when he gets home…"

"Eh? Are you sure? He should be home soon."

"Yeah... It's fine…"

"Oh... Okay…"

Tsubomi turned on her heel to leave. Marie only watched her walk away until she reached the gate, then she finally shut the door. Tsubomi sighed sadly as she stepped out of the gate to the yard.

"Hm? Tsubomi?"

She flinched at the familiar voice. Issei was apparently standing right behind her.

"H-Hyoudou!?"

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh!"

She quickly hid the box behind her.

"Nothing! I was just...checking to see if you were home. I stopped by to say hi."

"That so? Alright, let's go inside then."

"N-No! It's okay! I actually have to leave now! I only came to give a quick hello is all. You know, since it's Valentine's day…. I just wanted to make sure you planned to give back some gifts to all those girls who got you something today! You know, for 'white day'! Hyoudou can be quite forgetful sometimes! Ehehehe…"

Issei raised a suspicious brow at Tsubomi's odd posture.

"Whaddya got behind your back there?"

"Eh? N-Nothing! I don't have anything!"

"Really? Show me your hands."

"Um, I really have to go now so—! Kyah!"

Issei swiped at Tsubomi's left side, causing her to think he was going to grope her, but that was a feint. He instead reached around her right side and swiped what was in her hands.

"Hm? Chocolates?"

"H-Hey! Give those back! They're mine!"

"Who'd you get them from?"

"Y-You wouldn't know him!"

"No, but you always get rid of the stuff other guys get you on Valentine's. So why keep this one?"

"None of your business!"

She kept trying to swipe the box from Issei's hands, but he was too tall. For a 13 year old boy, he was already 170 centimeters tall. So just by holding his hands above his head, it was impossible for her to reach it.

Issei then opened the box and ate a chocolate from it.

"Wha—?!"

"Mm. Not bad. I'll keep this."

Issei stepped into the gate of his house, leaving Tsubomi behind.

"Wha—?! Hey!"

He held the box up as he waved back to her.

"Thanks. I'll make sure to get you something for white day."

"Wha—?! Get back here! I wasn't talking about myself, idiot! Come back!"

Issei opened the door to his house and took a step in. He spoke without turning.

"Thanks."

Then, he shut the door behind him.

Dakun.

"...Ah…"

Tsubomi sighed.

"Haah... That jerk."

She looked down to her shoes. A small smile grew on her face.

….

—The next day at school.

"Hyoudou! Tell that red haired girl who was at your house yesterday that I challenge her!"

"Huh? Marie? Why?"

"Just tell her that, from this point forward, I am challenging her!"

"In what? A swimming race? I'm not gonna lie to you, even though you've been practicing for years, I think she'll win. She's kind of a freak."

"No, not that. Listen, just—! Tell her I challenge her! That's it! Got it?"

"Alright…"

….

—When Issei returned home and told Marie.

"What?! So that woman was a rival in disguise?! I see! Very well! In that case, I accept her challenge! I will not lose to anyone besides Maki-chan! And I don't even plan to lose to her either!"

"...What the fuck has my life become?..."


[—]

Scrub, scrub.

Issei scrubbed the soap in his hair as he sat in the bath. The tub was full of water and just about ready for him to go in. Maki had wanted to join him, but he said no. When she complained and threatened not to take a bath, he stood his ground against her. She ended up giving up and suddenly going up to Marie for something. Whispering something about "cooperation"? Hopefully, she's just asking Marie to take baths with her from now on. It would make much more sense for them to bathe together.

Pat, pat!

"Hm?"

Issei heard what sounded like feet patting the floor from outside of the sliding door of the bath. Was it just his imagination?

"Écaille~!"

No, it wasn't.

Slide!

The sliding door slid open and Marie stood there in a white swimsuit bikini.

"I have come to wash your back!"

Thud!

Issei fell off of his bath seat in surprise.

"WHA—?! What the fuck are you doing, Marie?!"

Issei closed his legs and covered his privates with his hands.

"Maki-chan said that in Japan it is custom to do this "skinship" with others you care for! Therefore, I have come to give you support in the bath, partner!"

Marie winked with a peace sign and stuck her tongue out playfully. And Maki's prank of revenge suddenly became clear to him.

"MAAAAAAAAAKIIIIIIIIIIII!"


[—]

"Are you sure you're not gonna burn yourself?"

"I...don't know…"

Issei and Marie were currently standing beside a shallow river with a soft current. Issei had taken off his jacket and was only wearing his usual white muscle shirt. Marie couldn't help but stare at his toned figure. That was surely no body that a 13, almost 14 year old, should have.

"What?"

"Eh?! What?! I wasn't looking!"

"Huh?"

"N-Nothing, nothing! Just tell me what's next!"

Issei narrowed his eyes but shrugged it off anyway.

"Alright, so Ddraig says that I should be able to build up a resistance to flames if I train with them. So we're here to test it out."

"Right. But, is that really something you can do? I mean, your skin is still human."

"Yeah I had my doubts too. But the times that I was learning to use my fire I somehow never ended up burning myself."

"Maybe you were just lucky?"

"Well, that's why we're doing tests."

Marie frowned.

"I don't like that idea. What if you get burned bad?"

Issei shrugged casually.

"Eh, I probably won't. Even if I do, what's the big deal? I'm already full of scars from other bastards anyway. The fuckin' one from the arrow is still on my head, under all my hair."

"I know... But…. I don't want to see anymore on you.."

Issei raised a brow. Marie was gazing at him with a concerned expression. It felt like she was inspecting his body. He averted his gaze and rubbed his neck awkwardly.

"R-Right…. Well, I'll be careful."

Marie nodded.

"Also, we're never bathing together again."

"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeh?!"

'Alright, Ddraig. How do we do this?'

[Try spawning some flames onto your palm like normal. Then, from there try to gradually spread it onto your hand. We'll see if it burns you or not.]

"..Uh... Alright. Here goes."

Issei lifted up his right arm and spawned flames in his palm.

[Alright. Now try engulfing your hand with it.]

Issei smiled bitterly at the sound of "engulfing". Slowly but surely, he expanded the flame to cover his hand.

"O Lord!.."

Marie flinched as she watched it cover Issei's hand. Issei had his eyes tightly shut, waiting for the burn…..but, it didn't come.

"...Are?"

"W-What is it?"

Issei tilted his head curiously.

"It...doesn't burn?"

That's right. It didn't burn. It didn't even feel that hot. There was only a slight warmth around his hand. But no burn.

[Hoh. Interesting.]

'What is it, Ddraig?'

[It seems your potential has been further solidified by this event. Surely, if this does not burn you, then you do have high potential indeed. Most interesting. Try covering your entire arm with it.]

'What the?! For saying something so shocking you sure sound excited!'

[Well, it has been a long while since I have since a host with such high potential. The last known host who was able to do such a thing so easily was Belzard. But he was my strongest host in history. I wonder how you will compare…]

'Ah, now he's daydreaming.'

Issei hesitated right before expanding the flame. He swallowed some saliva in his throat.

"..Gulp.."

With that gulp, he slowly expanded the fire up towards his forearm. Marie held her breath in anticipation. Slowly, the fire began to cover his entire arm stopping just short of his shoulder. Issei slowly opened his eyes.

"...It doesn't burn…"

[Hooooh…. Hohohohoho….]

"It doesn't burn... Haha…. Hahaha! It doesn't burn at all!"

Issei and Marie smiled as they gazed at the fiery arm.

[Well done, partner. Now try boosting it.]

"Okay! Boost!"

[Boost!]

The flame expanded in size slightly. Marie gasped.

"It's alright! It doesn't burn, haha!"

Even though Issei said that, he did feel a subtle heat building up in his arm. It seemed obvious since it was a stronger flame. But the heat felt as if it was possibly getting stronger.

"...Ahaha...ha…. It's...kinda getting hotter…. Um, Ddraig?"

[Mm. Perhaps you should put this one out, partner.]

'Hehe... Why?'

"...Ahaha…. Ow…. It kinda burns a little bit…. Ow…. Okay, it burns a bit…. Ah…."

The heat had increased. It was definitely starting to burn.

"Ah... Ah— Ah, ah! Ah! Ah! Ow! Ow! OW! Oh shit! OH SHIT!"

"Ah, ah! T-The water, Issei! Put it out in the water!"

Splash! Ssss!

Steam rose from the water as Issei dumped his hand in the river. When he eventually pulled it out, the skin was slightly red.

[As I thought, it seems that you can only withstand flames of yours that are not boosted. In this case, it would be possible to build a resistance to flames at the same level as your own. It must be because of your high potential that it is possible for you to already have a tolerance for your own. Normal flames from a bonfire wouldn't affect you much. Think of it like building a tolerance to poison. We'll try increasing the strength of flames you can naturally handle by having you meditate with your aura around your body. Also, poison resistance is possible as well. But most humans can do that. It will just be faster for you.]

'Wait, wait, wait, slow down. First, how the fuck am I able to handle these flames in the first place? You always talk about my potential but potential isn't a physical thing. What is it that is actually preventing me from being burned?'

[The simple answer: your aura. Do you remember all those moments I've referenced the influence of the Boosted Gear and the Sekiryuutei?]

'No shit, you always say it.'

[Yes well, one of the most key factors of that influence is your aura. The aura of the Sekiryuutei is powerful and alluring. It draws in many existences powerful and not. Your aura is the physical aspect of yourself, or rather of the Sekiryuutei, that gives you the ability to resist such things. It's also the thing that causes you to surpass human strength. Your aura influences your composition. So in a way, you are physically superior to humans in general.]

'Is that so?..'

Issei looked down to his pants. The water only went less than halfway up to his knee. So now, his shoes were completely drenched along with the bottom of his pants.

"Well, there goes my good shoes."

Splash!

Issei heard a splash a couple feet away from him. Marie was frozen in place after jumping into the river without her boots.

"...What are you doing?"

"...Playing?.."

She said that with an innocent smile. Issei deadpanned.

[Let's leave it be. There should be no harm in it.]

Issei turned his head away and ignored her antics, trying to focus on his abilities instead.

Meanwhile, Marie immediately started jumping around in the water.

Splash, splash, splash!

"Yaaay! Teehee!"

Issei would have continued ignoring it, if not for the fact that the legs of his pants were starting to get wet from stray splashes.

"Ah, hey! Cut it out!"

"Oh! Sorry!"

Marie apologized with her hand covering her mouth. She usually only did that when she was trying to hide a smile.

…..

Splash!

Issei kicked water at her legs once.

"Wah! Hey!"

He scoffed in amusement. But the moment he turned his back—

Splash!

—His entire back was splashed with water.

"Oh my lord! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for it to be that much!"

Marie apologized with both hands over her mouth. Issei slowly creaked his body in her direction. He glared at her silently for a few seconds. Neither of them made a sound.

"..."

Marie's eyes suddenly glanced towards her sword, lying with her equipment next to the river, and then back to Issei.

….

[Boost!]

Marie rolled out of the way and caught her sword before a splash could hit her.

Splash!

She stood with her sword, only to dodge another splash of water at the last second.

Splash!

When she landed again, she charged up a holy aura within her sword and reared it back.

"O..Oi…"

"Hah!"

She swung it into the water and released the aura. The splash completely covered Issei.

Splaaaash!

….

"Ah…"

Marie realized it as Issei stood there with his entire body drenched in water.

….

"Boost."

Issei said that as he aimed at the ground below Marie. No announcement from his gear was made as he said that.

"Ah."

But Marie soon realized it.

[Shot!]

And with that, a giant splash of water launched upwards into the sky and fell down like rain.

SPLAAAAAASH!

Drip…. Drip….

In the end, the only thing that didn't end up getting wet was Issei's jacket, which was set off to the side.

—Issei and Marie sat next to a tree with drenched bodies. They had taken off most of their clothes and hung it out to dry on the branch above their head. Issei was sitting in his underwear, meanwhile, Marie was completely naked except for Issei's jacket that she had wrapped around herself.

"...Um... Are you sure it's alright to use your jacket?... You might catch a cold."

"That's my line. I have the influence of the Sekiryuutei to protect me from the common cold, but you're completely naked and vulnerable. It's better that you use it."

Marie was sitting in her signature position of having her knees up against her chest and arms wrapped around her legs. Except this time it was because it was the best way to cover up her magnificent breasts.

"Is that so? Well, if you get sick, then I will laugh while I am taking care of you~ Teehee~"

"Hmph. You're saying that as if it's a bad thing, but you just admitted that you would take care of me."

She averted her gaze with a blush.

"..S-Shut up."

Issei smirked. But Marie randomly started laughing.

"Hehehe…. Hehehe…"

"Hm? What's so funny?"

She shook her head. She had a sad smile on her face.

"It's just…. It's only at times like these that I realize how terrible I am.."

Issei frowned and furrowed his brows. These words sounded familiar.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…"

She crossed her legs and pulled at her feet with her hands in a bashful manner. She retained the same sad, wide grin.

"...Even though I was supposed to fulfill my duties all this time, here I am doing nothing, but experiencing the happiest moments of my life!"

….

"Tch... Shut the hell up."

She opened her eyes. Instead of an anger or agitation, Issei held what looked like a smug smirk on his face, but there was an impression of kindness in his expression.

"I don't wanna fuckinz' hear that from the one who turned my daily life into the most annoying joy and happiness I've ever had. What did I even say a few months ago about being human? Were you seriously not listening that day? What a shithead."

Despite his seemingly harsh comments, there was no sharp tone in his voice. Marie stared at him silently with a distant gaze. There was a deep blush present on her face.

"Issei…"

Her posture loosened a bit, causing the jacket covering her body to slump just a bit. But it was at that moment that Issei accidentally looked down.

Whip!

Issei's head shot back to the direction in front of him. His eyes were opened wide and his expression implied that he was currently having an existential crisis.

"Hm? What's wrong?"

She looked off in the direction that he did, but she saw nothing.

"...God…"

Marie turned back to look at Issei. —There was a strong redness on his face.

"...I can see everything…."

"Hm?"

Marie's gaze moved down instinctively.

…..

She was "open" and "exposed".

"KYAAAAAAH!"

"AAAAH!"

For the first time in his life, Issei was jumpscared by the loudest screech from any person he had ever heard.


[—]

"That was so cool! First you hit him with this! Then you hit him with that! And then he went down like boom!"

Marie made different movements mimicking martial arts as she walked alongside of Issei. They were heading home after Issei had a Jiu Jitsu class he tried out for. He was easily accepted into the dojo. At this current point in time he was registered in two dojos, had one private Tai Chi Sensei, and studied Taekwondo on his own. He wonders if it will ever overwhelm him. Probably not. He is almost already a Dan rank in Judo anyway. So soon he'll have essentially "mastered" that. You can also count him training in swordsmanship thanks to Marie.

(—!)

Issei stopped in his tracks. Marie stopped beside him.

"What's wrong?"

He felt something. They were already in the neighborhoods by this point, so it was one of the houses next to them. The one ahead on the right side. There was an odd presence emanating from it. A familiar one as well. It didn't feel hostile, but he had to investigate.

"Come on."

They stepped towards the house on their right with Issei's command. They stood in front of the yard. He stepped forward.

"Wait here."

"No, I'll come with you."

"No, you can't. You're unarmed. If anything is in there you could get hurt. Just stay here and keep an eye out. If anything happens just run or call out for me. I'll come no matter what, alright? Just stay here."

"...But.."

Issei put two fingers up.

"2 minutes. If I'm not back in 2 minutes, look for me inside. Got it?"

"...Alright."

She nodded meekly. Truthfully, he wished he didn't have to give her that compromise, but he knows his partner well enough to understand that if he didn't she would have ran in after one minute.

He walked up to the front door of the house. He closed his eyes and listened closely.

…..

Nothing. Not even a TV. It seemed as if they weren't home.

Dakun..

But the door was unlocked. He opened it slowly. His head poked in to see a dim light from one room on the right. Most likely the living room.

Sniff, sniff...

He smelled something familiar. Blood. But not an obscene amount like that of a heinous crime. Only a moderate amount. Like the murder of one person, at most.

Creak

He stepped in. He slowly close the door as to not let any obvious light from outside penetrate inside. He walked towards the entrance of the living room silently and peered his head in.

The room was dimly lit by a lamp. He couldn't see over the couches, but he knew there was something there. Because there was an odd smoke or steam being released onto the floor below it. He walked in slowly. No one was around. Not until he walked around to the front of the sofa.

On his left, there was a dead lying on the couch. He wasn't brutally murdered, but there seemed to be a hole in his stomach. He was stabbed? No, he was impaled. The hole went straight through him. Other than that, there were no other wounds. It implied that he was killed quickly.

But then there was the man on the coffee table. He wasn't just any man. He was releasing some sort of smoke or steam from his body all throughout the floor.

—That's because he was encased in some crystallized structure.

(—!)

The man was encased in some crystal like structure. It didn't have a definite shape and simply held his entire body in it. Ice? That would certainly explain the odd smoke coming off the crystal. The only thing that was odd was that the ice wasn't colored. That's why it looked more like a crystal. It was completely clear and devoid of color. It didn't give off the feeling of being cold either. Judging from Ddraig's previous descriptions, this was no regular ice magic.

"Hm?"

Issei noticed something odd about the man. When he looked closely, there was something odd on his arm that resembled chains.

[A Sacred Gear. The "Judgement chains". Amongst those that are not Longinus, it is a Mid-to-High level Gear. Not bad. Not bad at all.]

Ddraig suddenly explained. It was a Sacred Gear. Issei looked around the living room. There was a bible on the coffee table beside the frozen man. In one of corner of the room there were light swords and guns.

'They were cultists!...'

That's right. They were dead cult members. Judging by the fact that they are in a normal residence, this must mean they were brainwash victims. As Issei thought, they were hiding in plain sight.

"..."

Issei scratched his head at the details. They were brainwashed cult members. Both men were dead. One of them was encased in some odd ice. The one who had a Sacred Gear was the one encased. Meanwhile, the other man was just left there. But why?

Issei rubbed his chin curiously.

'He's….being preserved?..'

That was the best guess he had. But why would the man need to be "preserved"? He was already dead. Sure, maybe he had a great Sacred Gear, but what was the point if he was already dead?

But the last and most important question: Who did this?

Fwip!

"..?!"

Issei whipped his head around to the loveseat behind him, next to the fireplace and lamp. The place where the lamp was letting off a dim light. Sitting in that loveseat was a familiar looking figure with a red suit.

[Boost!]

Issei jumped back and readied himself. It was the Angel from months ago. The Angel sat in the loveseat calmly, despite appearing out of thin air. He sat with his legs crossed and flipped something in his hand. It was a playing card. The Angel flicked his wrist.

Fwip!

The card suddenly landed on top of the crystal structure the man was encased in. Just like the last card Issei received that time before, this one had an odd feeling to it. The card shined a small light and letters appeared on it. They quickly rearranged into Japanese Kanji.

(He's mine.)

Issei's gaze shifted back to the Angel, but he was gone. Left in his place was a long cane. It was left standing up perfectly on its own.

"...Gulp.."

Issei nodded his head in acknowledgment.

—This place was "his". It was his territory now. The bodies no longer had anything to do with Issei, now that they were dead. And more than that, Issei's instincts warned him to avoid conflict with the Angel, unless he wanted to be killed.

Tap, tap, tap!

Outside of the house, Marie's foot was tapping on the ground incessantly. She was biting her thumb with a worried expression. It was only seconds from being two minutes. Just as she was about to move...

Dakun.

Issei stepped out from the house and quickly walked back over to Marie.

"What was it?"

"Nothing."

"Eh?"

He slipped past Marie and continued forward. She quickly caught up to him.

"No one was home."

"...Really?"

"Yeah."

Marie looked back to house silently and nodded her head.

"...Okay."

Even if her faith in God was ever tested, there was no one who could say that her faith in her partner was doubted.


[—]

"...I can't believe I'm letting you drag me into doing this shit…"

Issei grimaced as held onto both sides of Marie's blushing face. They were sitting together on his bed, still in their pajamas.

—The backstory is that, just a few days ago, Issei inexplicably "earned the right" to kiss Marie. He wasn't sure what that meant, when she announced it in the middle of dinner with everyone, but either way, it caused him trouble.

In the end, Issei ignored it and thought nothing of it. Ever since that day, Marie had been practically pestering him about subjects related to kissing. Whenever she would read a book, it would be about kissing techniques. Whenever she watched a show or a movie, she would watch ones with kissing scenes in them. Whenever they passed by a couple who was kissing, she pointed them out and halted their patrols to witness it. Whenever Issei would ask how her day was, she would always find a way to start it out with something about lips, lipstick, kissing, lip balm, etc. At some point, she would just wake up and tell Issei she had a dream about kissing someone.

At that point, Issei was practically infuriated. He doesn't know why, but hearing about a dream where she kissed someone happened to be the last straw in setting him off. Possibly because it disgusted him.

—And now, they were both about to "practice" kissing each other.

"...Are you sure this is alright?..."

Issei asked Marie with uncertainty. Marie nodded in confirmation.

"Yes…."

"...You wouldn't rather have practiced it with someone else?"

"Practi—? Oh!... Um…"

She shook her head. Issei worried about what she was about to say with a confused face before. He gave a heavy sigh.

"...Okay…. In that case…"

Issei brought his face in a bit closer.

"...Excuse me…"

And their lips touched.

Chu..

….

Issei felt the same sensation he had felt once before. A soft, almost pillowy, smooth texture. He felt an odd sense of satisfaction from the contact, as if he was accomplishing something grand. It compelled him to continue for what felt like minutes. But the longer it drew on, the more Issei felt like he had to move in further.

Until finally, he slid his tongue out of his mouth.

"Mn! Wa—!"

Issei's tongue slid into Marie's mouth and touched the inside of her cheeks. His tongue slid on top of her own. They were french kissing.

Grip!

But he was suddenly pushed away. A light trail of saliva parted with their lips.

"Huh? What, what?"

"T-T-Tongue—!"

Marie buried her entire blood-red colored head into the pillow, with her bottom left hanging up in the air. It sounded like she was yelling against the fabric of the pillow, since she was releasing muffled sounds .Though, Issei, frankly, had no idea what she was saying.

"Ah, sorry. I...don't know why I did that…. I thought that would be okay.."

(S-S-S-Suddenly doing t-that! M-M-M-My heart! I n-n-n-n-n-need to prepare my heart!)

"Uh huh….. Right..."


[—]

[Happy birthdaaaay!]

Pop, pop, pop!

The group of people popped their confetti poppers as they cheered in unison.

—The Aikawa residents were gathered at a table sorted with an ensemble of food. It was inside of Issei's sensei's (Kiritsugu) dojo. Almost the entire dojo's classes were gathered at separate tables. Narutobi and Tsubomi's families were also gathered. They were all currently celebrating Issei's birthday.

Why in the dojo? Because Kiritsugu insisted. Why are so many people gathered? Because Kiritsugu is too proud of his best student. Why is Kiritsugu cheering while crying at the same time? Well:

"Ahahahaha! To believe that my best student is reaching his older teenage years already! Ahahahaha! I am truly proud as a master!"

"Kiritsugu-san, you are crying again!"

"Ahahahaha! Of course I am! My 14 year old disciple has surpassed me in almost every way! Even though I am teaching him, he has already surpassed me and will surely gain his Dan ranking in no time! Hahahahahaha!"

"Satoshi, maybe you should take his drink away?"

"No, no. Leave him this way. It will be better for him."


The one who suffers.


-I love you-

—Hyoudou Issei, Age 14. Marie, Age 16. 1 year since Marie became a resident of the Aikawa household. 2 and a half years since Issei and Marie's first meeting.

(10:30 AM.)

"Alright, next store."

"Yaaay! Next store!"

Maki cheered as she, Issei, and Marie exited a store.

—It was a cloudy morning.

The three of them were currently on a shopping run for Satoshi's birthday. They had just finished buying all of the decorations. Now, what was next was for Issei to go into the next store alone and come out with the wrapped presents to take back home. It was great that the store could gift wrap certain items purchased within. Other items that couldn't be wrapped would just be placed in a black bag to conceal them. Why was he going alone? Well, unfortunately, Maki has a big mouth and can't keep secrets very well.

The trio were walking beside each other through the mall plaza, with Maki skipping in front of them by just a couple steps.

"Hey."

Issei glanced to Marie who had called him out.

"Are you okay?"

She was looking at him with a worried expression.

That's right. Just before Issei and Maki's birthdays, it was the anniversary of the Hyoudou's deaths. That day, Issei had visited the grave with his family. He was the one who stayed behind the longest. Marie had asked him permission to give a prayer. He agreed. They spent a few minutes there together. After that, they returned home and prepared for Maki's birthday.

Issei looked towards Maki in front of him. He smiled sweetly.

"Yeah... I'm alright... Besides, Oyaji— er, my pops always liked rainy days better anyway."

Marie nodded with a satisfied smile. The group then stopped in front of a certain store.

"Alright. Maki, wait out here with Marie. I'll be back real quick."

"Haaaaaaaai!"

Issei stepped into the store as Maki and Marie waited patiently outside for him. There was a short silence before the girls suddenly became serious.

"So what is your progress, Maki-chan?"

Maki smirked confidently.

"Hm, Hm~ Nii-Nii has already promised to marry me when we get older~"

"Pfft!"

Marie covered her mouth to stifle her laughter, causing Maki to puff her cheeks angrily.

"What!? He said it!"

"Oh, Maki-chan~ Sweet, sweet Maki-chan."

"Moou! Fine then! What about your progress, Onee-chan!"

"Hm, Hm, Hm~"

Marie laughed and and gave Maki a confident smirk. She puffed her chest up with pride.

"We have already kissed, twice!"

It was actually three times.

"Wha—?!"

Maki jumped back in shock.

"N-No! That's impossible!"

Marie smiled fiercely at Maki. Maki fell to her knees in distress.

"No…! This can't be..! Mother…. Mature girls…are just too strong..!"

Marie's smile slowly faded as she felt a gaze locked onto her. She looked around the plaza suspiciously.

"What's wrong, Onee-chan?"

Marie kept looking around, until her eyes landed on a man across the plaza. A man in a coat. He seemed familiar. But the thing around his neck was what caught her eye.

—A bone cross.

"Maki-chan. Go inside and find Issei. I'll be back soon."

"What? Where are you going?"

"Just find Issei!"

"Wha—?! Onee-chan!"

Marie took chase.

She began to discreetly follow the man. The man walked at an odd pace, as if he didn't know he was being followed, but was still nervous about something. Marie followed the man as he exited the plaza. She hesitated on whether she should follow him farther or not. She was armed. She had her sword wrapped in a white sheathe on her back. She always carried it around when she was with Maki, just in case something happened, despite the weird looks it garnered.

'He's going somewhere unpopulated?'

Marie took note of his path and realized that fact. She narrowed her eyes. There was no one else with him. He was all alone.

'Okay!'

She nodded her head firmly as she continued following. If she ended up being led somewhere too conspicuous, she'll stop following. If other people ended up meeting with him, she'll stop. If an ambush takes place with his allies, she won't fight, she'll flee. Even if she knows she can win. She would rather not take the chance.

—She was much too happy with her life now. She didn't want to die.

Then, suddenly, the man started running.

'Wha?! He's running!? Should I stop here? No ,wait!'

The man was running after someone else. Someone who was running away from him. A blonde man.

'He's chasing someone!'

Marie did not hesitate in chasing after them. The man who was being chased ran straight into the familiar forest while bringing something out of his pocket. The man chasing him followed him straight in without hesitation and pulled something out as well. Marie jumped and took to the treeline to follow them both.

'He's losing him.'

The man who was being chased lost his pursuer. The pursuer came to a stop and frantically looked around for the man, but could not find him. Seeing her oppurtunity, Marie jumped from the treeline and landed behind him.

"That's far enough."

The man froze.

"That voice…. Hohohoho…. How unfortunate. That really is bad luck."

The man turned and pulled off the scarf off of his face.

"You!"

It was the last remaining leader of the 'Japanese Genesis division'.

"Heh.. It has been many months since last we met, hasn't it? Where is your partner? Was there a falling out? Ah, perhaps not. I assume you might have been just with him. To believe that we have met just by mere chance, how unfortunate indeed."

"I did not realize that the leader himself would handle the dirty work as well."

"Hmph. Well, thanks to that partner of yours consuming almost half of all our forces, we were unfortunately underhanded in terms of experienced members. I had to take a few matters into my own hands. That man I was pursuing, he is quite important for our next operation, you see. We do want to recreate that little incident that happened in France, after all."

Marie widened her eyes in shock.

"The bombing!"

"Yes, that's right. That man is an important piece to that. So I'm afraid I can't have you interfering with my pursuit of him. I will surely find you after this."

The leader smirked. Marie unsheathed her sword and pointed it at him.

"Heathen. As the Blade of Rouen, I shall cut you down from where you stand! In the name of the Lord, I shall deliver you judgment!"

"Hm... Hm, Hm, Hm…"

For some unknown reason, the leader began to laugh in amusement.

"Hm, Hm..! Hahahahahahaha!"

Marie eyed the environment suspiciously. No one was coming to his aid. He was truly alone. Yet he laughed.

"Ah, ah, truly unfortunate. To believe that I am alone right now. It is terrible. It seems I have no choice then. I'll tell you something, little girl. Did you know, that as a leader, I am a complete failure?"

The man took off his fedora and let it fall to the ground. He tossed aside the light gun he had hidden behind his back, presumably the one he pulled out while chasing the man, and reached into his back pocket to take something else out.

"That's right, you may find it hard to believe, but it's true. I am a failure of a leader. I am much too impulsive and 'uncalculated' compared to my partner from the past. He was more cautious. I tend to be more aggressive, despite giving off the impression of being the same as him. It's precisely the reason he wore those seals around his body to conceal his presence despite not truly requiring it. He was just that cautious. The fact that he was the one that ended up dying, how unfortunate."

The leader brought a jewel. A small purple jewel that was shaped like an egg. He crushed it in his hand, turning the jewel into nothing but shards.

"This was something that was meant to be saved for the [Judgment Chain] user, but it seems he is no longer within our grasp. Besides, once we obtain that man, we will be able to complete the process necessary for our little operation. This will no longer be needed. Ah, but, truthfully? I'm just doing this because I am infuriated with your existence. I simply want to kill you."

At that moment, the broken shards of the jewel began to shine brightly. Then, something with a long odd shape began to coil around the man's hand.

"The only reason any of this will be possible will be because of 'allies' in that shadowy organization. They were the ones who provided us with this item in them first place, so that we could enhance the gear user back in France. Ah, but just like him, I am human. So, of course, after using this, I will not have long to live. But that is fine. We'll be able to conduct this operation in a very short amount of time. And doing this was self fulfilment anyway. —I told you I was a bad leader, didn't I?"

"You—! As we thought, you did have someone on the outside assisting you with that attack! Something bigger..!"

"Hahahaha! That's right. So much bigger than Genesis. Though, Genesis is nothing much at this point. Did you know? The main sect in the Ukraine has already been dismantled. We, in Japan, are all that is left. That is why this is our last ditch effort. Before you bastards can deliver us judgement, we shall deliver our judgement unto you."

The black form that coiled around his hand began to stretch and move. It began sliding up his arm.

"..W-What is that?"

The leader's smile then stretched into one of pure madness. Despite being purely human, he began to release what looked like a pitch black aura around his body.

"This is a gift from our assistance on the outside.… Would you like to know their name? "

The black form coiled around his neck and glowed in a dark purple light.

—Its form resembled that of a snake.

"Khaos Brigade."


.

.

.

.


"Man, fuck this line."

"Nii-Nii!"

"Hm?"

Issei turned to see Maki behind him in the store.

"Hey, Maki! What are you doing here, you're not supposed to see his stuff!"

His expression immediately shifted when he didn't see Marie.

"Where's Marie?"

"She ran off somewhere! She just told me to come find you!"

[—?!]

Issei took out his phone and handed it to Maki.

"Maki, don't leave the store. Stay here and call Satoshi to pick you up. Wait till he gets here. I'll get back with Marie later. Even if we don't come back before the morning, don't come looking for us. We'll be okay. I love you."

He kissed Maki on the forehead and ran off.

"Wait Nii-Nii!"

He ran out from the store and looked around frantically.

'Where is she?! Can you sense her, Ddraig?!'

[Let me focus. Try clearing your mind….. Hmm…. Yes. She is directly West of here.]

Issei bolted out from the plaza and immediately headed west.

'Directly west, could she be in "that place" like usual?'

[Perhaps so. She may have lured an enemy into that place herself. Or they may have lured her. It is the closest and most optimal place for confrontation.]

Issei caught view of the forest as he boosted his speed. He didn't care to listen to the honking cars or annoyed people he whipped past.

[—What?! Partner! There is something there with her!... No, this cannot be. This is not something that is likely. Even so, it is much too small... Then, a small fragment?]

'What are you talking about, Ddraig?!'

[Go into the forest, partner. That is all you must do for now.]

Issei jumped straight into the forest with no regard or being seen. He ran straight through until he saw a small explosion of light.

Poooom!

He slid to a stop.

'What?! Ddraig! That's not the direction you directed me to!'

[That isn't the direction that anything was located in. Something was just relocated to that place…. In other words, something was just sent there. —It is her signature.]

Issei shot straight to his left where the explosion had originated from. He could feel someone getting further away. Slowly, there was a presence that was beginning to fade off into the distance. But he didn't care. Because that wasn't where she was at. He continued running until he heard the sound of a gentle stream. The river. He looked around the area.

[...To your left.]

Issei looked to the left. In the distance, across the river, he could see a large tree. There were other trees blocking his view of it, but it was big enough to see. Much larger than the other trees. He and Marie had been there before. They talked about its size being comparable to the width of a truck.

[Partner..]

—He could see a blood trail on one side of the tree.

Pan!

Issei's body launched itself forward with ferocity he had never shown before. He easily landed on the other side of the river and was almost halfway to the large tree. He ran towards it with no hesitation. When he finally caught view of it—

"...You...came…"

.

.

.

—Marie was lying up against it with a blotch of blood around her stomach. Blood was leaking from the sides of her mouth.

She smiled sweetly at him.

"...I...called...for you…."

Tear!

Issei immediately removed his jacket and tore off a piece of his shirt. Despite the scene, his expression was uncharacteristically calm.

"It's alright. It isn't that old of a wound. You haven't lost too much blood yet. Ddraig. What's my top running speed?"

[—Partner.]

Issei wrapped the shirt piece around her stomach and put his jacket up against it.

"Hold it here."

"..Is..sei…"

[—Partner.]

Issei spawned some fire on his hand, continuing to ignore anything else. He decreased the size until it was only around two of his fingers. He then removed the jacket from her belly.

"I'm going to cauterize it. It's gonna hurt a bit, but at least it will stop the bleeding."

[—Partner. Look at the wound.]

"Bear with me, Marie. We'll be home soon."

As he was going to burn the wound, Marie grabbed ahold of his hand and pulled it up towards her face.

She gently placed it under her cheek, as if trying to feel his warmth...

—But Issei pulled it away.

"Not now, Marie. When we get home."

Silent tears fell from Marie's eyes.

Issei calmly brought his fingers towards the wound. Marie lifted her arm and pulled at something in her chest until it snapped. Issei heard the snapping sound and looked up. When he did, Marie lifted his hand and held it up near her chest. She brought something she held in her hand and laid it into his palm. She squeezed his hand tightly, pressing the item into his palm.

Tears freely began to run down her face.

"...Is..sei….. I…."

Issei held her hand back tightly.

"It's alright. You can tell me when we get home."

He went back to tend the wound, but Marie shook her head vigorously.

"Pl..ease..! ...Plea..se..!"

She gripped onto his hand as tightly as she could.

[—She is calling out for you. Will you ignore her?]

Issei stopped. He looked back at Marie blankly.

In denial.

"What is it that you want to say, Marie?"

Marie struggled to speak as tears fell from her eyes.

"..I... I…"

Issei leaned in closer.

"What? What is it?"

"I…. I…."

Her hand gripped tightly onto his own. Slowly, the corners of her mouth began to stretch a bit. Her expression changed…..

…..

…..

Her expression - was a beautiful, bright, dazzling smile.

"..I'm sorry, partner…"

—With that, her hand slipped out from Issei's grip, and fell silently onto the ground. What was left in Issei's palm— was a green jeweled necklace.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Issei stood up slowly, with his hand still left holding out the necklace.

He lifted his face up towards the dark and grey sky.

….

….

...

"Haha…."

….

….

"Hahaha….. Hahahaha…. Hahahaha!..."

—He laughed.

And he continued to laugh.

Until...

"Hahahahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahaha! Haaaahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahaha—!"

Drip.

"—Ah."

A single drop of rain fell onto his cheek, and slowly slid down his face.

Drip…. Drip

Soon enough, more and more raindrops fell from the sky.

One by one.

Until the rain was falling freely from clouds.

But the pouring made no sound.

There was not a single sound left in the world.

Only the absolute silence.

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And the only sound that filled the world - were the powerful lamentations of a broken child.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The environment around him suddenly started to become distorted. The soil rose from the earth and the trees were ripped from their roots. A green light shimmered out from his levitating body.

The green light formed a pillar that rose high and split the sea of clouds above.

Through the open space in between the split clouds, the sun was exposed, and its light bathed his form.

Through the soft light of the sun, the many faces of that person were shown. As if ascending to the heavens beyond his reach, her very image could be made out in the sunlight above him.

Every expression she made.

One by one.

Every memory.

All together at once.

The people of Nagoya gazed at the light's glory with admiration. A mysterious, beautiful, soft green light that shot into the sky. Yet their minds failed to comprehend — the unimaginable sorrow that was the catalyst for such a light to be.

—The boy's floating form began to take on a new shape.

A soft, red blanket slowly covered his body. His arms. His legs. His torso. His head. Until his entire body was blanketed in a warm shape. His never ending cries continuously echoed into the silent sky. Into the silent world. Never to be heard by anyone but himself. As if the only one who could hear it was the one the cries were directed to.

As if the only one who could hear it was God himself.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The very last sound that was heard, was an announcement. An announcement released from the form himself. As the final memories of that woman were flashed through his mind, the voice was the last thing heard.

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[Welsh Dragon, Balance Breaker]

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The only part of the surrounding area that was left untouched— was the body of a peaceful, slumbering girl.


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[In other news, an odd phenomenon occurred in a forest in Nagoya. A mysterious green light brightly flashed into the sky and subsequently disappeared in a matter of seconds. Investigators have concluded that this was the result of multiple lightning strikes setting a fire to the forest, considering the damage, but as you can imagine, public opinion is still skeptical. Other experts are calling it a phenomenon resembling an aurora, but so far, there is not much more that we know. At the very least, there have been no reported casualties or injuries as of this moment.]

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(7:12 AM)

20 hours since the complete Balance Breaker incident.

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[Partner.]

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[You have to move, partner.]

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[They are still out there.]

Clang

The sound of something heavy. Metallic.

It was armor.

Clang….

In the middle of an empty field of dirt, there stood one tree. One large tree. Completely unaffected, aside from some scratches, unlike the surroundings.

And lying against it—

Clang...

—Was a red suit of armor, with the body of a sleeping girl in its arms.

[You can feel them, can't you? Every single one of them. You know exactly where they are now. You can sense every single one of them. Do you hear me, partner? There was a promise you made. We have a job to do.]

…..

…..

…..

[Take her.]

Clang..

The red form slowly stood on its feet with the body in its arms.

Foom!

Large wings extended from its back. As if all of its movements were completely on natural instinct, it bent downward slightly, and shot power from the jetpack on his back.

[Jet.]

With one burst, it shot off into the sky.

Poom!

The form silently flew through the foggy sky. It flew as if it needed no direction. It knew exactly where to go.

Foom.

It halted gently. Its form slowly lowered down from the sky. Despite not being visible, the form landed perfectly onto the ground with care.

—What stood in front of it was a large golden cross. And below the cross, rested 13 small graves. Graves of children.

Clang

It slowly lowered to its knees, and carefully placed the body of the girl in front of the graves. Its hands caressed the hair on her forehead. In its right claw, there was a golden necklace with a green jewel, and a sheathed blade.

[We have a job to do.]

The form sat silently for a few minutes. Then, it slowly stood.

Clang

It brought an item up from its palm. It placed the item around its neck. As if on instinct, the armor deformed and reformed on the placement of the necklace. The necklace softly fell over his clothing and the armor reformed above it.

[Let's go, partner.]

Foom!

Its wings extended, and it flew off into the sky.

Foom!

….

Fwip!

Standing on the rooftop of the academy, there was a tall red figure. A magician. In the hands behind his back, a playing card flipped in his fingers.

"—Jack of hearts."


-Genesis-

SHIIIINN!

A bright light flashed from a golden, spinning circle. A magic circle. There was a man on his knees beside it. He was frantically holding it together while sweat ran down his forehead.

DOON!

He froze. Just 5 meters away from him, something heavy landed. A tall, dark, menacing form. When the dust cleared, the first color he saw was—

"...Red…"

[That is it, partner. The odd pulsing of energy is emanating from magic circles like these. There are 5 of them in total. They are placed in the proper distances to form the shape of a cross. The abandoned church we saw before landing must be the center point and the last stronghold for the cult. Destroy it.]

Clang.

The form walked forward. The man squealed in fear. Suddenly, the light from the circle began flashing brighter.

[Partner! That pulsing light! It is arming itself to detonate this entire area! Judging from this power, It will eliminate this small southern region. Most likely a blast radius of 2 Kilometers. Destroying them one by one will decrease the blast radius. But the only way to stop anything from happening is to destroy them all completely.]

The form stopped in front of the man. He shrieked in terror at the imposing form.

"Hiiiiiiiii! P-P-Please don't kill me! They have my family! I have to do this! I don't want to do this! But if I don't, they'll kill my son! Please! Have mercy!"

The man pleaded for his life. His hooded figure was revealed.

He was a familiar blond American man.

…..

…..

…..

[Partner, if it continues, then his son will most likely die as well. The remaining members of the cult are certainly gathered in that church for a suicide bombing. That is their last gathering. If they truly have his son, then he will die regardless. At this point, you only have minutes left.]

….

The form raised its arm into the air.

"No, please! I don't want to die!"

[He is not stopping the ritual. —Do not stop yourself.]

"NOOOOOOOOOO—!"

DOOON!

The ground broke apart as the man's head was smashed firmly into it. He was killed in an instant.

The form rose back up and took to the sky.

Foom!

The form gazed to the ground below. There was a small abandoned church below with a magic circle pulsing from under it. Separate from it, there were 3 other magic circles properly distanced from it. It create the shape of a cross. The shape was disrupted as the bottom half faded away. There were only 4 left.

[Do it.]

The form aimed both of its arms towards the magic circles across from each other.

Boooooooom!

And shot at both of them. Their lights slowly faded. There were two left. It aimed one of its arms towards the last one separate from the church.

It shot it and destroyed it in an instant. The last one was being maintained inside of the church.

[Let us finally complete this mission, partner.]

The form descended to the church below.

—Inside of the church, there were many people in robes gathered together. Their last moments. Praying. Sitting at the altar, there was a man maintaining the magic circle below himself. The one who stood above him with his arms extended outward was the last leader of the cult. There was blood dripping from his ears and his body was pale. But he continued to give his prayer at the altar.

Ton!

The doors to the church flew open as all sound subsequently faded from the world.

The light of the sun cast a great shadow of the form standing at the entrance. Its massive shadow cast itself over the entire interior of the church.

The last thing that any of them ever saw—

was the silhouette of a Red Dragon.

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"...Hmmm~"

The soft humming of a lullaby. It was a Christian lullaby. A brown haired boy slept peacefully on the lap of a red haired girl. The girl gently caressed the hair on his head as she continued humming.

The sound of soft humming, and the soft light from the sun, they both drowned out the reality that had existed previously before.

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[Partner.]

—The red form stood still in the middle of a red church.

Everything that was considered part of the floor, and the walls to the sides, were all painted with a beautiful, glistening red.

[Let us go, partner.]

The form panned its head slowly across the room. Its gaze landed on one of the aisles left of it.

There were many robes laid out on the floor with lumps under them. Out from under one of them, there were shoes sticking out.

Shoes that were a few sizes too small to be similar to the others.

Shoes that were too familiar to be like the others.

Blue shoes.

[There is nothing for us here, partner. Let us go.]

….

….

….

The form slowly turned itself back to the entrance, and disappeared from the church into the light of the sun.


-Home-

The Aikawa family was gathered in the living room, sleeping against each others shoulders. They had fallen asleep waiting for the return of their last two residents.

Dakun.

The door to the entrance had opened and the father of the family had woken up at the sound.

"..Issei-kun? Marie?"

He asked as he rubbed his eyes. The rest of the family began to stir in their sleep.

Yet he received no response. Instead, he saw a familiar form slip casually by the door frame.

"Issei-kun!"

He lifted himself from the couch and hurried to the door frame. His family members soon followed after waking.

"Ise-kun!"

"Nii-Nii!"

They walked out and stopped in front of the staircase. The boy was already halfway up. He held a sheathed item in his right hand. One that belonged to Marie.

"Issei-kun."

The boy stopped.

"Where's Marie?"

There was no response.

….

...

He continued his way up.

"Nii-Nii—"

Just as Maki was about to step forward, she was halted by her father.

"Papa?"

His gaze was set at the top of the staircase that the boy had disappeared from.

"...Don't go near it…"

"...W-Why?.."

He shook his head.

"I...don't know…"

"...It?..."

"..."

The family's gazes remained there silently.

Dakun.

—The door closed behind the boy. His body slowly laid itself down on the bed and turned on its side. The fetal position.

….

….

《It's started.》 《Looks like it's started.》

….

….

'...Ddraig…. Those voices….'

[They are not real, partner. They are hallucinations. You could not have unlocked the Juggernaut Drive without Balance Breaker. Once you had unlocked it, the risk of it appearing was low because of the transformation. The voices themselves only make themselves apparent when the transformation of the Drive is taking place. What you hear now is not reality. They are simply nothing more than an extension of your madness.]

Madness.

….

….

….

….

'..I can still hear her voice now…'

….

….

[I'm afraid, that is also…]

….

….

'Madness…..is no longer something I fear….'


The boy finally shut his eyes.

A soft hand placed itself over his hair.

And soft lips touched his head.

"Good night, partner."


Prologue End


This story will now go into cannon after this. This is the end of the prologue.

When I said he would continue down a darker path, I didn't specify for how long. Once the story reaches cannon tone will certainly become much lighter compared to the prologue just because of the nature of DxD cannon. Of course there will still be shrouds of darkness, but compared to the prologue it will be much more balanced out. I'm not trying to keep you reading the story though, just letting you know that I would never do something just for the sake of doing it. Same with Issei's suffering. I'm not making him suffer just to make him suffer. I'm doing it so that in the future or as a result of the events, he may become a different person. Maybe even a better person. But for now, the effects of those events are only somewhat reflected. It will become more obvious during the Cannon timeline.

The effect and importance that Marie has in Issei's character is unimaginable. This chapter was not meant as a cheap way of getting the audience attached to a character only to eliminate them for the sake of tragedy or the plot. The symbolism, themes, and ideals presented in Issei are so unbelievably tied to Marie's existence. She represents more in Issei than can be explained. This entire chapter was the highlight of Issei's evolution into a different person and being in general. As I said last chapter, one of the greatest themes of this story is transformation. The effect on Issei's character by Marie is something I can only show you, not tell you. You will have to see in the coming chapters.

This chapter was the one I had been waiting to write ever since I started this story. I didn't plan all of it this well and I didn't expect it to turn out so magnificently. Truly, I am proud of it. It is a chapter which simply holds too much weight.

The last thing I want to say is that the story of cannon will have much different turns as a result of the completely different character is. It isn't going to be as close to cannon as my other stories. Because this Issei is truly different and his actions will have an effect on the world around him.

Please tell me your thoughts. I don't want to leave you with questions on which part you thought about because I don't want to ruin the flow, but I am more likely to get detailed reviews if I do. Therefore.

What did you think about Marie? How did you feel about her? What is the Magician's odd plot? What do you think of Issei? How do you feel about him? Was there any emotion you felt in this chapter? Genesis is no more, but their 'allies' are still out there, aren't they? What do you think will happen in the future?

Read, Rate, Review go crazy.

Stay frosty.