Another chapter!
Finally, Issei learns of just who it was that'd (indirectly) caused his previous death, and he's...well, he isn't happy. He wasn't burning with anger or anything, but he sure as hell was disappointed. Also added some backstory as to where the System came from, cause why not.
As usual, some notes (and spoilers) below:
-I think I've already mentioned this, but there's a reason why the Satans aren't showing up. They're a little, uh, busy. The reason will become clear in later chapters.
-For those who stuck with me from the beginning, yes, I shamelessly stole Hanami's [Enlightenment of the Sacred Fig] and renamed it lol. I couldn't think of a better name to fit what's to come in the future.
Anyways, enough from me. Enjoy the chapter!
Issei woke up.
It was a sudden awakening. Like someone had suddenly turned the lights on in a lightless room. He blinked, his mind still clouded and his ears filled with ringing. He stared emptily at the white above him, not quite sure who he was and what was happening.
And then his memories came flooding in. His death, his rebirth, the Cages, the Fallen, the Executioners, the Goblin ID, the beast, the Ancient Star-
He bolted to his feet, before wincing as a spike of pain laced through his legs. He looked down and saw the black and blue splotches covering his legs. The wounds he'd inflicted on himself hadn't healed just yet. It hadn't been too long since he slayed the oceanic beast, it seemed.
He looked around, and blinked. The ocean he'd been swimming through was no more. Instead he stood in a white void, alone and without a sound. There was no mana around him, no life, and he shivered as the emptiness struck him. This is wrong, his mind screamed. Even the emptiest of places was filled with something. Some trace that it'd once served a purpose, some leftover mana that implied that someone had been there once. Something. Anything.
The whiteness around him was devoid of that. His eyes saw nothing but white, his ears heard nothing but silence, and his mind's eye felt nothing but emptiness. The three senses he relied on most, all rendered useless in this whiteness that seemed to stretch on forever.
It made him feel slightly sick.
Still, that wouldn't stop him. He'd gotten this far already. It was time to see where the hell this Ancient Star was. He gave another look at his legs, and he smiled wryly as he-
Wait, what?
His expression went blank as he saw…something close to his chest. It was some sort of crystalline rock, floating just inches from his heart, slowly spinning as it occasionally pulsed a bright purple.
How…did he not see that?
He shrugged. He'd been building himself up to explore this endless void, but it seemed he didn't need to do that. Which was good! He really didn't want to spend more time in this place, but he couldn't help but feel slightly let down at it all.
Ah, well. Whatever.
[You have discovered the Ancient Star. Begin identifying?]
He raised an eyebrow. Identifying? That was…interesting. He wasn't sure what that meant, but he proceeded with the prompt nonetheless.
[Identifying…]
[Item Identified. Determined Item as [Lost Data #7]]
What?
[Nature determined. Integrating [Lost Data #7] into System Catalogs]
What?
[Integrating…]
And Issei felt pain.
It was not physical pain. It was unlike the ringing pain he felt in his bones, unlike the burning he felt whenever he used too much of his mana. It was something different, deeper. It struck his heart and left him hollow. It was a despair so wrenching it emptied his chest. It was a sadness so painful that left his soul grieving over a wound it would never heal from.
He sucked in a breath, and laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed, his heart pulled by some unseen force and from a humor he didn't understand. He laughed and screamed and cried and everything else in between.
I'msorryI'msorryIdidn'twantthispleaseforgivemeI'llgopleasedon'tleavepleAsEdON'TgO-
By the end of it all, he was left an empty husk. He sank onto his knees, and he could feel nothing but the dull ringing of his own hollow heart.
[Data Integrated. Traits Function has been recovered]
He gave the notification an empty stare, before he struck it with his fist. The transparent screen wobbled before it shattered in a shower of sparks. He watched it in silence, mustering as much anger as he could to combat this withering in his heart.
[Side Quest {Neolithic} has been completed! Rewards have been moved to the Inventory]
He sighed. "ID Release."
The whiteness began to twist, and Issei closed his eyes as he let gravity take hold of him.
…
It was daytime when he returned. His mom greeted him happily when he came down from the roof, but her eyes filled with concern when she saw him. He dropped onto the ground, and with no words he said he swept her into a hug. He didn't explain, nor did she ask. She just hugged back and held him close.
He spent the rest of the day just…idling. He couldn't quite muster any energy to do anything.
He still didn't know what that Lost Data actually was, but…he had a suspicion now. He had a feeling this System he had wasn't actually. Or, at least, it had belonged to someone else before he'd come across it. Someone who fell and was drowned in regret. Someone who…somehow knew Asia.
…He didn't want to think about it at the moment.
[ID Localization]
Lvl - 18/200 | 12%
Allows you to enforce and dismiss an Instant Dungeon in the area around you.
Known IDs:
…
Sunset Upon the Fallen City - Lvl 25
Crystal Caves - Lv 35
Accursed Quarry - Lvl 50
As promised, new IDs appeared. It was different though. These IDs had names. It probably meant that he'd be brought into separate worlds instead of having Kuoh be overlaid by some apocalypse. Hmm. He wondered how that'd work.
[Terra Crystal]
A fragment of Earth, formed from Life and Desire
When consumed, increases Intelligence by 25 Points
The Reward he'd gotten from taking down the Goblin Seer. It was another Runic Stone, just without the randomness.
[Consuming [Terra Crystal]...]
[Successful. +25 Intelligence]
Nice. Next was-
[[Serration] Skill Book]
When consumed, gives the user the [Serration] Skill.
The Reward from the ocean beast. He gave the Skill's description a quick read, and immediately decided to give it to his mom. Using some MP, she'd be able to enhance her next attack, allowing it to apply the Bleeding Status. Useful for someone who fought with swords, not so useful for someone like him who fought with blunt objects.
[Faded Photograph]
You can see little of what it is showing. It seems to be a commemorative picture, with several people standing together. Their faces have long been blurred by time, and their features hidden by smog. Only a shock of blue hair is visible amongst it all.
A strange relic. It seems to be the first of six. What'd happen if all six were gathered?
…this was the Reward he got from completing the Neolithic Side Quest. The description was true. It was an old, faded photograph. But it also wasn't. For as ordinary as it looked, he could feel great magic surging from it, like the seemingly ordinary image was a gate holding back something much larger.
He couldn't bear holding it for more than a minute. Something about it felt wrong.
…
He sighed. He'd gone over his Rewards to take his mind off…everything, but all it did was make him feel even worse.
He brought his hand to his chest. It was whole, the flesh bounding beneath his fingers. He could feel the pulsing of his heart—a recognition from the world that he was still alive. He wasn't dead. He wasn't gone. He was still herepleasedon'tleavemedon'tgo-
He grit his teeth. He hated this. This…mixing of his mind with these foreign thoughts. They were scalding in their intensity, drowning out every and all things with an overwhelming regret that felt painfully familiar.
He shut his eyes and took a breath. Sleep claimed him minutes later.
"Thank you for saving me, Sir Hyoudou."
Issei's eye twitched. "Just call me 'Issei'." He repeated for the third time in the past five minutes. "Please."
Ravel stared at him strangely, as if she couldn't comprehend that he just wanted her to relax. Which-, from what little he'd heard about Devil Society from Ni and Li, sounded entirely plausible. Still, he wished the girl could be a little less polite. Would save him from having Riser glare at him from the distance like he was Death itself.
He internally sighed.
He woke up the next day feeling…slightly better. The hollowness in his chest remained, but he could function well enough. The day had been simple enough, until Riser and his peerage suddenly appeared by his doorstep. Ravel had wanted to thank him for saving her apparently.
What did that have to do with bringing the rest of Riser's peerage with him? Who knew. And it wasn't as if Issei could ask the man at the moment.
"How're you feeling these days?" He asked. "Feeling pain anywhere? Or maybe a weight?"
Ravel stilled for a moment. The girl turned to her brother. Riser stared back. A silent conversation seemed to stretch between the two, and Issei sat back and let the world fade into his mind's eye.
"I am fine, Sir Hyoudou." He heard her say, and he watched as the flames of her magic trembled slightly. "I have healed well."
"Sure." He said simply, his focus still fixed on her flickering flame. "So why're you all here? Thanking me's good and all, but I don't think that warrants bringing your entire peerage here." The world rushed back into view, and he smiled at the slight discomfort in her eyes. "So, got anything to say?"
She attempted a polite laugh. It came out rather stilted. "I-, forgive us for our unannounced visit, but there is something pressing that we must speak of."
"Oh?" Issei leaned forward. "Tell me more."
She slowly nodded. "We know of Galilei Valper and of the many e-experiments he has run in this town." Ravel took a shaky breath. "But we have recently found that he is working together with Kokabiel."
"...the cadre?" He said, and then blinked.
How did I know that?
Ravel nodded. "Yes. He is the reason for all the Fallen Angels in this town. We don't know what he plans, but it cannot be goo-"
"So all the Fallen Angels are here because of him, huh…?"
"Sir Hyoudou…"
He laughed abruptly. Ravel flinched. So did the rest of Riser's peerage. His mom looked perturbed as well. Asia's expression was as empty as always.
He would've apologized, but he couldn't quite stop himself from laughing.
(He didn't realize that his eyes had begun burning red, nor did he notice the way the air around him seemed to twist. He didn't see the fear in the other's eyes.
Only Miki Hyoudou had an inkling on what was happening. Her son had told her about his new Class—a power born from emotions. And her son, deeply emotional as he was, reminded of the his death in that other timeline-
She culled her anger before it could show.)
"So, you're saying you knew the Fallen were here, but not why." He said.
Ravel shook her head. "Nay. This is not our territory. We only knew once we arrived."
He slowly nodded. Kuoh wasn't their Territory. He disliked that word, but he'd take it. That probably meant either Rias or Sona were the keepers of this town. Or maybe both of them were. And if that was the case, if Rias or Sona knew about the Fallen occupying the town, if they had seen Raynare ask him out and did nothing about it-
Nu, uh. Not now. He wasn't thinking about that yet. Not. Yet.
"Tell me about him," he then said. "Everything. As much as you know."
And she did. She told him of a Cadre of the Grigori, a powerful Fallen who had fought in the war between Angels, Devils, and Fallen. She told him of a warmonger, of a Fallen who desires the return of war. She told him of a silver tongue, of a man capable of convincing even the sternest of knights.
And,
[Main Quest {Fetid Wings, Rotting Heart} has started!]
{Fetid Wings, Rotting Heart}
Difficulty: Extreme
The two heads of the serpent have been discovered. One a powerful warrior and leader, the other an alchemist and madman. They seek to reignite the flames of war, and through it shall they advance in this world of escalation. Stop them before it's too late.
Win Condition: Defeat Galilei Valper and Kokabiel
It was the first time he'd ever seen an Extreme Difficulty. He wasn't surprised. Because unlike Raynare or the oceanic beast, those he needed to face were icons of the supernatural. A madman who could defy life and a warmonger who fought in the war that had slain God himself.
He sighed. "And the Satans can't do anything?" He asked, still confused over the whole 'They can't interfere without causing a war' Ravel explained to him several minutes ago. After all, this was a war. The conflict was already occurring. What war would they be stopping by not interfering with this mess?
Unless them interfering meant causing something much, much worse. Unless humanity matters little compared to the larger conflict that their involvement might incur.
Ravel shook her head. "They can't." She said, though she looked somewhat confused herself.
…Hmm.
The meeting stretched a little too long for his liking, filled with meaningless pleasantries and deflections. He didn't mind though. That just seemed to be how Devils worked. And it gave him time to really go through everything he'd just heard.
His mom came through once again with another feast, and as everyone sat down and ate and talked, he just…sat there.
It wasn't anything too concerning. It was more of a…discontent, a niggling voice that asked why me? Why was he the one saddled with all this? Why couldn't the Satans or some superpowered being come in and fix everything in one sweep? Why did he have to be here? Why did the world have to drag in his family?
It was pettiness, of course. He knew things weren't that simple. But still he thought.
The night came sooner than he liked.
(Later that midnight, just as he and his mom were about to enter the Goblin ID together, Issei asked if she loved him. His mom stared at him strangely before hugging him. He asked if she loved the old him—the useless, worthless him.
Her hug grew tighter.)
There's something weird about realizing that your mother could fight for months on end without tiring.
That realization pinged over and over in the back of Issei's mind as he watched his mom decimate another horde of goblins. She leapt forth with no hesitation, and the gardening machete she'd grown so attached to glowed with burning starlight as she sliced through flesh and bones like they were marmite.
Not that he could say any different, considering another horde of goblins a distance away was burning from a single Flare Rifle he'd fired a couple minutes before.
It'd been hours since they came into the Goblin ID. It was…not his idea. His recent stint into the ID and the talk he had with Ravel had drained him of what energy he had. But his mom wanted to-, no, needed to. "Do you want to join me?" She had asked, spoken more as a statement than a fact. Because as much as tired as he felt, he had to keep moving, had to keep growing. And his mom knew that well.
She was right.
[Life's Understanding*]
Lvl 99/100 | 93%
Increases experience gain for Skills by 298.5%
Passively provides +99 Intelligence and +99 Wisdom
*(Scholar) Class detected. Increased experience gain by 100%.
Life's Understanding—arguably his most important skill—was on the verge of Evolving. It was probably why his mom had made him join her hunt in the first place. Evolving it would empower him, grant him strength that could give him the chance to face those standing in his way.
He was just a little…apprehensive, he supposed. When Studying had turned into Life's Understanding, he had changed. The thing that made him Issei had shifted. He became…not different, but more. Where he was once a sapling, he'd turned into a small tree, with branches growing from him and not just a single stem.
(He became more ruthless too, and his mind readily created excuses to convince himself that he was doing the right thing. He knew that, and begrudgingly accepted it despite how much he hated it.)
His mom told him he'd be fine, that he'd still be Issei at the end of the day. "You're already different from the Issei I knew months before," she'd said, and he carefully hid back his wince. "But you're my son, and that'll never change, okay?"
He smiled. He was glad his mom could join him in this insane ride.
He fired another Flare Rifle to the east as the book in his hands vanished back into his Inventory. He pulled out another—a documentation about Chinese pottery—and began reading as squeals of pain sounded once more.
He gave a quick glance forward. The pile of bodies his mom had left behind had grown by several inches.
He quietly turned back to his book and began reading.
He'd been reading a lot about China lately. And Korea. And the Philippines. Essentially all nations that were neighboring Japan. He wasn't quite sure why, but ever since that one time he bought a book about Korean temples he'd been hooked. It was like something was pulling at him, dragging his interests and pushing him along.
(It didn't come from Lost Data. It didn't, it didn't, it didn't-)
He wanted to go visit. Maybe even after this whole debacle ended. He wasn't sure where he'd even get the money from, but he could probably demand something from the Devils after saving them and all. Or maybe he could even take a visit to the Underworld. Ravel had said that it wasn't all that different from Earth, and Ni was eager to show him around.
She also said the Phenex family had quite the assortment of restaurants. It was hard to ignore the predatory gleam his mom's eyes had when Ni said that.
It was nice. It was nice to imagine a future past all this. That there was a sunrise coming after this eternal night ended.
…and then what? After Galilei and Kokabiel are dead, what then? Would he just…return to being a student or something? Could he go back to his normal life and live on? That was-, he couldn't even imagine how that'd go.
Thankfully, he didn't need to think about that for too long.
[[Life's Understanding] has reached its max level. Skill Evolution Possible!]
He grinned. There it was.
-[Life Understanding's] Skill Evolution-
[Valiant Minds]
[Ethereal Psyche]
[Vestige of the Immortal Star]
17 more…
His grin grew wider. 20 choices. 20!
He gave each Skill a quick read, and each was insane in their own rights. Some gave him insane bonuses to magic, others made him a super genius. All had the potential of giving him the edge he needed to face those he needed to bring down.
But out of all of them, one stuck out to him.
[Enlightenment of the Fig Tree]
Lvl 1/250 | 0%
For your soul and eyes be blessed by the leaves of the Sacred Fig.
The Sacred Fig blesses you. Nullifies all mental-based curses.
Increases experience gain for Skills by 502%
Passively provides +151 Intelligence and +151 Wisdom
It was a massive upgrade from Life's Understanding, and somehow it was on the lower end of the other choices in terms of pure boosts. But it was that new line that intrigued him. Nullifying mental curses, was it? Useful in general, but knowing how Galilei had the power to brainwash people and turn them into his Executioners-
This was the exact one he needed.
"See the one you want?" His mom asked, and he blinked and looked up to see his mom standing to his left, her entire body covered by a copious spilling of blood. Her machete was completely red from blood.
He nodded as if the image didn't just deal some serious mental damage. "Yeah. This one," he turned the floating panel around. "Sounds interesting."
His mom gave it a read, and he saw the moment she understood.
The world around them vanished in a sparkle of purples and blues, and the sunrise greeted them as they returned to the real world. They were standing in the small garden just behind their home. They went in, his mom went over to take a quick shower, and he laid down on the couch in their living room.
He took a breath.
[[Life's Understanding] has Evolved into [Enlightenment of the Fig Tree]]
And he managed a second of lucidity before he went unconscious.