Chapter 3 - Enter, Izayoi Hyoudou
Kuoh Academy, Occult Club Building - Highschool DxD World - Three days after the end of the previous chapter / 1 Month, Three weeks, and two days before the start of canon
(Rias Gremory's P.O.V)
Three days…
It's been three days since my talk with Sona, and we've both come up empty about securing a location where I could train my peerage without my family or fiance noticing. At first, we did consider many options that were available in our personal fund range, but when those turned out to be too small we looked into warehouses, unused gyms, and various other places.
Unfortunately, all of the larger places would either cost too much to buy or are just simply unsuitable. However, when I say those places cost too much to buy, I don't mean my family wouldn't be able to purchase multiple of the same building without issue.
What I mean is that buying such places with the help of my family would immediately bring up questions as to why I need such a large space. This basically means that I'm entirely out of luck if we were to solely count on places on my homeworld specifically…
It was during yesterday that had the idea of potentially buying one of those apartment places through the company to use as both a home away from home and as a place to train away from the eyes of my family.
There is just one problem with that, however, which is that I can't exactly do that until I've captured my entire current peerage if I want to ensure that there is very little chance that any peerage members I miss will end up unintentionally causing a man-hunt for me by my brother…
Meaning I'll have to put off buying a company home until my immediate peerage is captured and brought into my retinue as well. Speaking of which, Akeno had earlier today pointed out that Koneko could be bought off with sweets and all and Yumi would probably be persuaded to be bound by the shroud so long as I choose my words carefully.
With that in mind, all that remains is to figure out the perfect moment to make the proposal to them, which I think I can probably bind either Yumi or Koneko next week. However, I can't do both as I don't want to be greedy or forceful to my adorable servants lest I ruin their trust in me as their king~!
Still, there is one other thing that did happen during the last three days that is of note, which is that both me and Sona have noticed a string of suspicious deaths that may indicate a stray devil has entered our territory.
I and Sona are just waiting for confirmation about the identity of the suspected stray devil before my peerage and I will deal with it as it is my turn to attend to stray devils this time around. This is mostly due to the fact that as dual owners of the territory of Kuoh, we both share the responsibility of protecting it.
Last time, about a month before I gained the memories of my past life, It was Sona's turn to deal with the Stray Devil Incursion. This time, if it is confirmed that there is a Stray Devil in Kouh, it will be my turn to deal with it.
If I were to use the memories of my past life as a reliable source of information, should it turn out to be a confirmed stray devil presence, it would mean that there would be at least one more stray devil sighting before Izayoi would be approached by Raynare.
However, before I go any further in my musings, I hear a knock on the door to the main club room. As I turn my head to look who it is that's coming in, I smile as I see Akeno in the doorway, she enters the room before shutting the door behind her.
"Hey there Rias, have we heard anything regarding the suspected stray devil in our territory yet…?" Akeno asks, to which I shake my head as I peer out of the window of the club room, just gazing out into the afternoon sky before I respond by saying…
"Not yet, unfortunately, but I should have confirmation before the end of the day.." Although if I had to be honest I do hope that me and Sona aren't just going into this expecting a stray devil and it turns out to be just a serial killer who had a proclivity for the occult…
Still, if it does just turn out to be a serial killer, it would actually be fairly easy to resolve by simply nudging the mundane authorities in the right direction without revealing ourselves, something that can be done quite simply with the benefits of hypnosis magic that any devil usually learns in order to cover up any supernatural activity should it be momentarily exposed to unaware eyes.
Once again though, my musings are broken by the arrival of both Yumi and Koneko, hopefully with confirmation regarding the suspected stray devil sighting. However seeing their cute faces look all so serious, it's quite clear what the answer is as Yumi is the one to speak up as she says…
"Rias, we just returned from our search for the suspected stray devil and we have unfortunately confirmed the presence of a stray devil along with their assumed hideout, what are your orders…?" I stand up from my desk at that with a stern look, as there is only one response to give in this situation as I respond with the command…
"We shall head out immediately to handle the stray devil, as per my responsibility as one of the owners of the territory of Kuoh, our objective upon our arrival is simple…Search and destroy.." While Koneko and Yumi are slightly surprised by the heavy-handedness of my response, I can tell that my firm and commanding response as Akeno trying to hide her blushing and arousal…
However, once the surprise wore off, both Koneko and Yumi are quite understanding of the order as all four of us make our way to deal with the stray devil, making sure to lock the building behind us before we teleport close enough to the place where Koneko and Yumi found the lair of the stray devil that we can make it on foot.
Abandoned Kuoh Town Warehouse - 10 minutes later
(Rias Gremory's P.O.V)
As we arrive at the lair of the stray devil, it's immediately apparent why the stray devil chose this warehouse as its hideout as it has been abandoned for at least several years as well as the dilapidated state is more likely to be a squatters hideout than a stray devil's lair…
This makes me wonder if there were homeless squatters living in this warehouse before the stray devil took it as its lair, which may indicate that the stray devil still retains a measure of malicious cunning despite whatever corruption they may have undergone.
However, this brings up a very important question to consider before we head into the warehouse. The question is, am I dealing with a more run-of-the-mill Stray Devil, or am I dealing with a stray who has the means to control their own power like a certain black cat and their Senjutsu?
While my past life may have not known this due to the lack of information regarding stray devils in general, here having lived a decade and a half at least as Rias Gremory, I actually know the reason why Viser looked so monstrous as a Stray Devil where Kuroka was seemingly entirely unchanged.
The answer lies in the fact that the whole thing about Stray Devils is that most stray devils need their master in order to keep their growing power in check so that it does not turn them into monsters.
The Keyword in question being most, as there are beings like Kuroka who have alternative methods of utilizing their power that can allow them to act independently without a master.
As for why this isn't so well known, this is mostly due to the fact the nobility prefer to keep such information from their peerages so that they don't encourage the appearance of more stray devils.
With that in mind, I decided to send in my bat familiar to scout ahead to see what we might be dealing with. While my bat familiar is busy scouting out the interior of the abandoned warehouse, I decide to make an immediate battle plan, one that is simple enough to allow for flexible on-the-fly changes.
"Koneko, I want you and Yumi going through the front and draw the stray's attention, Akeno I want you to head to the roof and try to find somewhere that will let you get a shot from behind, don't hold back…" I say, laying out the plan as Koneko gives a small nod, Yumi has a serious look on her face as she nods while Akeno is giggling softly with an ominous smile on her face, nodding briefly to acknowledge her part in my plan.
"As for me, I intend to prepare a surprise for the stray just in case we're dealing with something stronger than the average stray devil, once it's done I'll need to deploy it after performing at castling with you Koneko…" I say as I lay out my role, Koneko raises a single eyebrow in curiosity but simply nods, with everyone's role in things sorted all that remains is to await my bat familiar's return.
And speak of the devil, Ironic phrase I know, I soon see my bat familiar returning and it seems that the Stray devil in question is a recent reincarnation so I should hopefully not be needed beyond dealing the final blow.
"Alright then, everyone let's deal with the stray quickly so we can be back in time to get dinner started~" I say with a confident smile, my three adorable servants nodding their heads as Koneko and Yumi head through the front entrance and Akeno extends her wings to fly up to the roof so she can be ready…
As for me, I hold out my right hand and focus on my power of destruction, gathering the demonic power as I once more begin to make the Null Star within the palm of my right hand. It forms even easier than the previous time I had attempted it, soon completing itself as I now have a swirling, spiraling orb formed through the power of destruction.
Now I merely just need to wait for the right moment to appear….
Meanwhile - On the Roof of the Abandoned Warehouse
(Akeno's P.O.V)
It didn't take me long to find a suitable opening on the roof that would allow me to sling my spells down on the stray, even getting a sneaky look at it myself. The Stray Devil seems to haven't gone too far in their mutation yet, as they still look like a human male with long, shaggy black hair.
Of course, that is if you ignore anything below the waist as they have a full-on spider body, you'd think they'd be some sort of spider Yokai if it wasn't for the clear demonic energy they emitted with not a hint of what would make them an actual Yokai.
I can see that the Stray Devil has multiple cocoons hanging off of ceiling beams, likely either the bodies of their victims so far or unconscious soon-to-be victims. Seeing them makes me remember the fiery cocoon that Rias had me in a few days ago, the memory igniting a warmth within me that has me blushing~
"Who knew that Rias could be so dominant all of a sudden~" I say to myself, my mind wandering as I begin to fantasize about what she might do to cute little Koneko or the Adorable Yumi when the time comes~!
"N-not now Akeno, save it for later~" I say to myself, not wanting to let Rias down by letting my own habits get the better of me when I have yet to do anything to warrant it. Although I might need to see if Rias could be up for putting me through the process a second time for fun~
I shake my head as I force myself to keep focus, there will be plenty of time to think about that later~
Soon enough, I spot Yumi and Koneko approaching the Stray Devil, catching his attention as he slowly comes down from his self-made webbing, he grins before saying… "My My, such beautiful maidens coming into my humble abode, had I known I would be having guests, I would have made sure there was room for the two of you~"
Considering I can't see his face, I can only assume he's making quite a creepy face for both Koneko and Yumi to grimace, with Yumi soon responding by saying…"Don't worry, we won't be here long as we're just here to do some pest control…"
There is a pause as I can see that he's trying to comprehend what Yumi just said, unfortunately for him that's all the time that our dear Yumi needs to use her sacred gear to quickly create a blade with a flame attribute and rush at the stray devil using her speed to strike at them.
While the Stray devil is able to get out of the way of a fatal blow, that doesn't mean their right arm didn't get a cauterizing slice along the forearm for Yumi's trouble. As the Spider-like Stray Devil lets out a pain-filled hiss, their attention is brought back towards Koneko as she comes in for a telegraphed hay-maker...
As the Stray Devil grins and takes a deep breath, I can tell he's about to try something nasty so it's only right I take action now, channeling a quick lightning spell and sending it surging through the hole in the roof.
The lightning spell slams into the back of the stray devil's lower spider body, making them jerk visibly as they are now wide open for the haymaker punch to slam into their still human-looking torso.
It knocks them back as they grit their teeth, as their uninjured left hand begins to attempt to form some form of magical circle, that is exactly when Yumi rushes forward and slices off the left arm entirely to prevent the Stray Devil from finishing forming their magic.
I can see judging their body's jerky motions that they must be panicking, growing more frustrated and enraged by the second. If only I could see their expressions for myself, but alas I don't have the opportunity from my position up on the roof~
It's right then that I see Koneko get consumed by a magical circle, replacing her is Rias herself as it seems that Rias has chosen to make her move now. It's then my eyes widen as I see that she's created an orb of some sort with what looks to be her power of destruction in the palm of her right hand as she extends her wings, flying forward.
Just before she is about to pass right by the Stray devil, she slams the orb into the stray devil with the action culminating in just two words passing from her lips.." Null Star..". As Rias continues to fly forward, the orb bearing the power of destruction glows like a blackened star just before it detonates, utterly destroying the human-looking half of the Stray Devil and a small portion of the top half of the stay devil's spider body too…
Well now, I didn't know Rias had something like that up her sleeve, now I wonder if she had it all this time or if it's something she very recently came up with. Although judging by how she has a slightly shaky landing on her feet after the blast went off, I think it's a very recently made technique.
Still, with the Stray Devil dead all that remains now is to see what remains of the victims and just handle the remaining cover-up work. This means I should probably get down there and help out, especially since all I was able to do was throw a single lighting spell.
Ah well, there is always next time as it was just bad luck for the Stray Devil to choose somewhere like this. With that, I make my way down to meet with my friends and of course my king/mistress Rias, time to get everything in order~
Kuoh Academy, Occult Club Building - The following morning
(Rias Gremory's P.O.V)
Well, last night's clean-up of the stray devil went fairly straightforward and without issue after Akeno came down from the Roof. Unfortunately, none of those in the cocoons spun by the stray devil were alive by the time we had gotten to them as they had probably been dead for at least several days.
Every single one of the bodies was those of the homeless squatters who were in the warehouse at some point in time, meaning there is almost no chance of anyone looking for them.
This meant I had to regrettably destroy their bodies entirely with the power of destruction in order to maintain the cover-up as many of them were not exactly intact either, although I had to do the same to what remains of the body belonging to the stray devil, so at least the dead got their vengeance in the end.
Thankfully we were able to avoid causing much of a disturbance as well as avoided being spotted on cameras to my knowledge, so it was at the very least a quick and simple task. What wasn't exactly an easy task was meticulously destroying all the webbing the stray devil placed up in order to ensure anyone who went into the warehouse now would just find a normal abandoned warehouse…
Still, we were able to at least handle it before we had to get back to the club for dinner, so there is that at the very least. Although I did have Akeno pestering me regarding my Null Star technique that I used to end the fight, considering it's not something I've shown off until last night.
I soon shake my head to break myself out of my internal musings, as with today being Sunday, there are no actual students here at Kuoh, just myself, Sona, and our Peerages. This means that I can just relax in the club building…
As for what I plan to do with this time?
I smile as walk to one of the other rooms in the club building, heading for the sole kitchen that exists in the building as the club building did once exist as a dormitory some time ago before I and Sona came into the picture.
With that in mind, I think it is the perfect time to make something delicious for today's lunch dessert. As I head into the Club Kitchen, I grab an apron and put it on, making sure it's tied up neatly before I decide to flick through a cookbook stored in the same room to see what I might make for lunchtime's dessert.
Seeing a recipe for a quick and easy chocolate cake, I decided to go with that, getting out the cooking utensils required for baking a cake. After that I quickly open the fridge to grab the ingredients, idly noticing that we'll have to restock the fridge soon lest my adorable Koneko be without her sweet treats~
Either way, once I get the ingredients, I start to work on making the cake mix itself and make sure to not deviate from the recipe too much as I want my dear peerage to eat a delicious chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and not muddy sludge.
As I finish making the cake mix itself, I deadpan when I notice that a full carton of milk is flat out missing from the fridge during my second trip over to it, only having noticed it now due to all the ingredients I removed earlier.
"Oh Koneko….what am I to do with you…" I say as I shake my head with an amused smile, knowing almost immediately who the culprit is due to knowing of her….other nature so to speak.
Anyway, I decide to make a trip to the local supermarket later once I'm done with the cake, with that sorted I return my focus toward actually finishing making the mix itself, pouring it into a pre-prepared cake tin and once that's done I make sure it's all spread out evenly so it doesn't rise in a deformed manner.
After that I put it in the oven, the recipe in question calls for it to be in the oven for about 15 minutes so I decide to put it in for that long. Once it's begun baking, I check the recipe to see if there is a frosting recipe listed alongside it, which it does and so I quickly rush to grab the ingredients for that next.
Once that's done, I wait until about roughly 10 minutes later with 5 minutes remaining on the oven timer, before I begin to make the frosting so that it will be fresh and ready to be slathered onto the cake.
Speaking of which, I only just finished making the frosting just as the cake is finished baking in the oven, smiling as I grab oven mitts, only to stop when I realize something Important. I didn't exactly place the cake into the oven with said mitts, which may mean…
Cautiously, I open the oven and hesitantly press a finger on the hot Iron grating, expecting to feel intense pain only to feel absolutely no pain and, if anything, only felt a paradoxically soothing sensation.
Thoughts of how this could even be possible swirl within my mind, but I quickly put them out of my mind for the moment as I pull the cake tin out by hand and place it down on the kitchen bench.
As I begin to slather the chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, I think carefully about what just happened and realize it is likely not only the combination of both the maxed-out wild defense but also the shroud of power's deep weave's fire elemental effect at play as well…
This basically means that any form of fire, be it natural, magical, or scientific in nature is useless against me. While already knew this due to my past life having actively chosen the cloak to counter him, I can already see how it can affect even the more minor aspects of my life.
Still, I can't help but crack a particularly devilish smile at the thought of Riser attempting to use his oh-so-precious flames, only for it to do absolutely nothing to me. This would mean that assuming everything goes as I plan, I would be able to completely turn the tables on him when the time comes.
Unfortunately, It'll be at least a full month and several weeks before that moment in time, assuming I don't do something that tips off my family or Riser himself, so I'll just have to make do with the mere thought of what his reaction might be.
…I am starting to wonder if hanging around my Queen so much is starting to influence my own habits now though…
Regardless, I soon finish Icing the cake up and place it in the fridge for the moment, intending to head out to the supermarket for milk to replace the carton of milk I assume Koneko drank herself.
After hanging up the apron, I quickly dash over to one of the club-building bedrooms that I use as my own bedroom while I am here in the human world in order to change into a nice casual white T-shirt and a pair of denim skinny jeans.
With my clothes sorted, I quickly grab a purse with cash and any cards I may need and write a very quick note on my desk just in case anyone may wonder where I am. Once it's done I head out of the club building and begin to make my way to the nearest Supermarket on foot, making sure to lock the door behind me as I leave.
Kuoh Town, Supermarket near Kuoh Academy - 5 minutes later
(Rias Gremory's P.O.V)
So, I find myself in a bit of a dilemma as I stare at the two brands of 2 Litre cartons of milk, one of them is a full-cream style of milk that I am quite certain Koneko will love to drink as much as possible, the other brand is skim milk that has a sale on that is two cartons for the price of one.
As I find myself puzzled as to which would be the best choice, quantity or quality in this case, it's here a voice I didn't think I'd hear at a supermarket of all places…
"Gremory-Senpai, is that you…?" I blink before turning around to see Izayoi Hyoudou before me, wearing a white tank top that hugs her toned upper body quite well as I can see a noticeable degree of muscle on her arms due to all the Kendo training along with her wearing some brown cargo shorts.
Since this is the first time I've actually had a good look at Izayoi up close, I mentally estimate that Izayoi's current bust size is almost identical to my future Knight Xenovia albeit slightly bigger. Either way, I break out of my brief examination of Izayoi and smile before saying…
"That's me, Hyoudou-san right….?" My smile seems to cause the cute, busty brunette to blush slightly it seems before she collects herself, smiling as she peers over my shoulder to see what I am looking at and seems amused.
"Not sure which one you want to go I take it..?" Izayoi asks me, to which give an embarrassed chuckle and nod, making Izayoi smirk as she walks over to the milk fridge and points at the skim milk brand.
"I usually go for the skim milk as that's the healthier option really, although if you're not worried about that and just want to go full-on flavor I'd highly recommend the Full Cream one instead as it tends to work well alongside an assortment of cookies…." Izayoi says with a casual smile, making me raise an eyebrow at the explanation, especially the comment at the end as I find myself responding by saying…
"So like say Santa Claus or something Hyoudou-san..?" Izayoi chuckles and nods, picking up the Full-cream 2 Litre carton of milk and handing it over to me, after which she says something that genuinely catches me off guard…
"Of course Gremory-Senpai, after all, I can definitely see you rocking a hot Santa outfit…" Silence lingers between us as Izayoi pauses and realizes what she just said to me and blushes, about to stammer out an apology when I just burst out with amused laughter, my large breasts jiggling due to the intense bout of laughter.
"My My, that's quite the compliment Hyoudou-san, I'm glad to hear a cute girl such as you thinks so highly of my form~" As I let out a mischievous giggle, I can see that Izayoi's eyes briefly wandered over to my bust. Seems that no matter if she's a girl or a guy, Izayoi Hyoudou seems to still have some sort of thing for breasts~
"I-I Apologise for my c-crude w-words G-gremory-Senpai—" I quickly cut her off and reassure her that I take absolutely no offense to her words, if anything I am quite flattered by the comment.
Putting that brief incident aside, we end up falling into a bout of casual conversation quite naturally as I soon discover that Izayoi and I share a love of Manga, so we talk about our favorite series while we make our way to the sports drinks section for Izayoi as she needs it for training tomorrow at school.
Eventually, we pay for our meager groceries and leave the supermarket. Just before Izayoi leaves, I end up calling out to her and saying… "Hey Hyoudou-san, I wouldn't mind if we continued talking tomorrow when school resumes…?"
Izayoi stops in her tracks and looks surprised, turning around as she gives an embarrassed, casual smile before she says… "Sure, honestly I wouldn't mind continuing our talk Gremory-Senpai as I will admit it's been…quite nice talking to you, honestly I was worried you were gonna be some spoiled rich girl…"
That just makes me chuckle as in a way I kind of am one now that I think about it, spoiled by my dear big brother. I give the busty brunette a warm smile as I soon say… "Then let's continue our manga talk in school, you didn't get a chance to finish telling me about the latest series you're reading!"
Izayoi smirks and nods, walking off with a wave goodbye before she gives me one last slightly sassy retort as she says… "Depends on how quickly I catch the pervy duo for peeping tomorrow, at least now I'll have a reason to get it over and done with fast~"
As I head back to the club building, I find myself with a rather serene, peaceful smile after the encounter as I can see that I will get along very well with Izayoi indeed when the time comes…
Very well indeed…
Author's Notes
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter everyone, let's get into the plot discussions!
Stray Devil Fight
There were admittedly multiple minor reasons for this to come up, mostly to provide Rias her first post-awakening fight even if she only came in at the tail end of it while also to demonstrate the talents and teamwork between the current three active members of Rias's Peerage.
I also wanted to give my own explanation why we have Stray Devils like Viser in the Anime yet have Stray Devils like Kuroka also exist, based on the premise that the king of a peerage tends to be the one to regulate the reincarnated devil's power. In the end, this explanation is what I ultimately came up with.
It's also to showcase Rias's New technique in combat as well as show that she's still working on perfecting it to be useful in combat as one may make a technique, it's another thing entirely to make it work effectively to your natural combat style.
Rias will probably work on trying to make the Null Star go from purely a close-range technique to something she can use in medium or potentially long-range at some point. She has plenty of time to figure out how to accomplish that after all.
Cooking Scene
A nice fluff scene with characterization as well as a hint of the extent of how beneficial the new shroud is as well as the company defenses she has access to. After all, I don't think it'd make sense if she were able to absorb fire but feel immense pain from the heat of it as it would kind of render the whole point of Deep Weave useless.
It also leads to a certain surprise encounter…
Rias encountering Izayoi at the local supermarket
At first, I had intended to have them meet at Kuoh Academy, however, I decided to scrap that idea as I felt there was more potential for characterization in a chance encounter at a local supermarket instead.
I did try my best to have Izayoi fit the Kendo club girl role in terms of her choice of clothing as well as her overall build, as I do have plans regarding Izayoi in this story before her potential reincarnation under Rias.
As for what those are, I will be keeping those close to my chest for now.
Now then, next time on Devilflare Princess: Bonding with Izayoi, Shroud Experimentations, and Curiosity catches the cat~!
See you all next time!