The Lone Vigilante Issei – High School DxD
Hi there, it's me Hide Shinyama.
Good to see you in 2019 everyone. And because of that, let's get on track with Issei and the others, shall we?
After crashing into a forest in the middle of nowhere, Issei and Co. have to survive. While, out in the forest, Issei learns how to cope with killing his opponents. His opponents may have been wild boars, but Issei learns as he goes.
After a delightful meal, a mysterious golden boar comes forth and rampages through the forest, looking for something.
What could it be looking for? Is it the perverted trio? Are they going to be all right?
Find out in…
Chapter 18 – Gullinbursti Arc, Part 2
15th September, Saturday, 2:36 pm – somewhere in the forest
The huge golden boar trudges through the forest with his hooves. Whenever it made a step, it made a slightly audible tremor that could be heard twenty meters away. Its bristled fur glistened in the sun, as it scanned its surroundings. It came to a halt.
It seemed like it found the place it was looking for. Looking at his surroundings, the huge boar saw that the ground had been disturbed. It was obvious to the golden boar that this was the scene of a fight. Not that that's unusual in a forest.
But the scene before him came of as much more devastating and more importantly…
…it reeked of blood and death.
Now normally, blood and death are nothing new in the wild and the huge boar understood that. In fact, they happen every day, whether it be the boars fighting each other or wolves and foxes hunting down smaller prey and eating them. However, there was something particularly cruel and vicious about what happened here.
The more than two-meter tall golden boar looked around and laid his eyes on the trees. Sure enough, he found something.
What the boar saw were bloodstains on the tree-trunks. Judging by the appearance of how the bloodstains got there, one or both of the boar parents had to be thrown or smashed into the trees with vicious force.
The boar growled angrily.
Sure, he understood that killing or being killed was a way of life out here, even if he didn't like it – more so if it's among fellow porkers like himself.
But this? This was needlessly cruel. There was no need to be this sadistic and violent towards a beast in the wild. While some beasts on this earth certainly can be considered violent and cruel, at least they were beasts living out the way they have always lived and trying to survive.
But the mythical golden boar knew better. The being behind this was no beast of the forest – it was a human. Humans had no need to kill a beast in this forest, they had more than enough food of their own – including farm beasts that they liked to slaughter for food. But to go out into his domain and kill his kindred like this?
They didn't do this to survive, they did this out of spite! And in doing so, orphaned those poor little piglets forever.
White fumes came out from the boar's snot in anger.
Unforgivable…
The boar raised his front hooves high into the air, before landing on them with a loud thud that could be heard from more than a hundred meters away.
But what happened next could be heard over miles and miles.
"BWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" the golden boar roared with a terrifying roar.
Birds flew up into the air in a panic all around the forest, as the powerful beast let out its terrifying roar.
15th September, Saturday, 2:39 pm – with Issei, Matsuda, Motohama and Ddraig about a few miles away
((BWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!)) the boar's roar echoed far and wide until it reached the ears of a certain sleeping trio of perverts.
"What the…!" "The frigg!?" "WAAAHHH!" Issei, Matsuda and Motohama yelped, as they woke up to the terrifying sound.
They were breathing heavily, as they recovered from the shock. After they calmed down, they looked around them in a panic.
"Guys, what the heck was that noise?" Matsuda asked the others.
"Was that a wolf?" Issei asked as well.
Motohama shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. But if it was, I certainly didn't imagine it to be this loud."
"A wolf?" Matsuda looked at Motohama and Issei with incredulity. "A wolf would howl. This sounded more like… like… burping and farting than howling…"
"Burping?" Issei said surprised, before narrowing his eyes and facing Motohama with suspicion. Motohama looked back at Issei with a frown.
"Motohama… Did you do this?" Issei asked dangerously.
"Me? What are you talking about? Of course, I didn't!" Motohama responded defensively.
"Well, the only one who has been farting and burping throughout lunch was you," Matsuda pointed out.
"What? That's not true!" Motohama insisted. "I mean, yeah. Sure, I did that a few times, but… you guys did it, too! I mean, Issei passed out gas this one ti-"
"I did it quietly at least," Issei said quickly, his cheeks a bit red. "I didn't do it as loud as you did, though…"
"True…" Matsuda confirmed with a nod, his look stern.
Motohama threw his arms in the air in frustration. "Why do you guys have to gang up on me?"
Issei and Matsuda looked at each other before responding and crossing their arms. "Because the facts are on our side."
"Yeah, but… didn't you hear how loud the sound was? It had to come from really far away. There's no way I could ever make these sounds on my own, right?" Motohama reasoned.
Issei wanted to say something at first, but then remembered that he had someone who knew better. He summoned the Boosted Gear, which appeared on his left arm in a flash.
Issei immediately asked, as soon as the gauntlet appeared. "Ddraig, you heard that sound didn't you. What do you think? Was that Motohama passing gas, Motohama burping or something else?"
Ddraig didn't say anything. Issei frowned.
"Hey, Ddraig!" Issei called out, knocking at the gauntlet with his right hand, as if trying to get his attention.
[I heard you, Partner… *groan*…] Ddraig groaned in annoyance.
"What's the matter with you?" Issei asked.
[*Sigh*… One, I'm tired and I need my rest. Two, can you really not differentiate between a sound coming from flatulence and the cry of a boar?] Ddraig asked rhetorically with fatigue.
Issei and Matsuda looked at the Boosted Gear in surprise.
"A boar?" Matsuda asked.
"How can a boar squeal this loudly?" Issei questioned skeptically.
Motohama on the other hand laughed. "Ha! I told you it wasn't me!" he said triumphantly.
"Yeah, whatever…" Matsuda waived his mistake off dismissively, giving Motohama a tick-mark on his forehead.
"But anyway," Issei went back to the issue. "How is that possible? Can boars really be this loud? I didn't know they could make this kind of racket."
[They don't, Partner. In fact, it's impossible] Ddraig simply replied.
This caused everybody to be confused.
"Wait, but didn't you say…" Motohama began, before Ddraig interrupted him.
[I know what I said and I stand by what I said] Ddraig replied. [The sound you just heard came from a boar. However, boars don't have the ability to cry out this loudly. Meaning that something is amiss.]
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama were starting to get worried. When Ddraig said something is wrong or "amiss" in this case, then you could know that something is in fact wrong.
"What do you mean?" Issei asked concerned.
[I don't know. But I do know one thing. Whatever gave out that sound, must have been huge. Unnaturally huge, if I may say so] Ddraig explained.
The three boys stayed silent, as they tried to comprehend just how huge the monster is. Each of them had different images, yet all of them had the same fear of the unknown in their minds, along with questions, too.
Just what on earth could this creature possibly be? And why is something as huge as that in the middle of a Japanese forest?
[People] Ddraig spoke, taking them out their thoughts. [Whatever this creature is, I suggest we get a move. Right now.]
This caused Matsuda to look at the Boosted Gear confused and Motohama to scratch his head in confusion.
"Wait. Why?" Issei asked Ddraig.
[There is no telling what this creature might do] Ddraig explained to the boys. [For all we know, it may pose a great danger to the three of you. More so, if it lets out a cry like this. While it is possible to fight this creature, that only goes for you and not Matsuda and Motohama. They would simply be overwhelmed, even with their newly acquired weapons. And even if you were to fight it all by yourself, we don't know if that's the only one out there. There might be more. That is why fleeing is the best option – until Matsuda's helicopter is recharged that is.]
Everybody nodded at Ddraig's explanation and subsequent plan with reluctance, sighs and fatigue in their eyes. They had just done some hard work finding lunch, were taking their well-deserved nap and now they had to take a hike? Could they ever get some rest? Now that they thought about it, they never even rested properly from the events at Sakabasu Detention Facility. Maybe just for a few hours, but by no means enough. They were surprised, they weren't getting insomnia or something because they were really tired.
Yet… if there really was some kind of dangerous monster out there (and the evidence thus far showed them that this was the case) …
What other choice did they have?
[Everybody, get your stuff. Also, make sure to wash yourself in the river, before you go] Ddraig suggested.
"""Huh?""" all the of them interjected, their confusion replacing their fatigue momentarily.
Ddraig sighed at the prospect of explaining further, but decided to do so anyway. [If this huge creature has a good sense of smell, like I do, then you can be certain that it can trace your scent. And to be honest, you three do have need for a bath.]
The three boys just stood there with sour faces because of Ddraig's remarks, but didn't counter his logic.
And so, Issei nodded to Matsuda and Motohama and they all went to the river to wash themselves.
15th September, Saturday, 2:54 pm – Kuoh, Kuoh Academy, hallway
Classes had just ended for Rias Gremory, the popular second-year student, as she made her way to the student council office. She ignored the looks of various onlookers, as they looked at her, either with fascination or lust. Normally, she enjoyed being at the center of the attention, but today she was focused on more pressing issues.
The issues being the mysterious black helicopter that had appeared at Sakabasu Detention Facility and had flown off eastwards.
Rias had received word a few hours ago that despite Akeno's, Yuuto's and Koneko's efforts, the helicopter had mysteriously vanished. She frowned upon hearing that Akeno had shot down the helicopter out of sadistic pleasure, even though she and the others had only been ordered to follow the helicopter and learn more about it.
Rias had given her queen a scolding, right after her debriefing and told her she would be punished later. The reason why Rias didn't do it now she had yet to find out a fitting punishment for Akeno, reason being her macho-sadistic pleasure at being in pain. She would have to come up with something later.
Right now, she needed to deal with her childhood friend Sona first. She sighed, as she stood in front of the door. She just hoped Sona wouldn't chew her out too severely.
Rias knocked on the door.
"Enter," Sona's voice came from within the room.
Rias opened the door, turned around to close it behind her and saw Sona, seated behind her desk as usual.
Though what was not usual was that Sona was dressed in what seemed to be a pink magic-girl outfit with her hair tied up into twin-tails. Rias couldn't help but be surprised, as she flinched back at the unusual sight before her, which was out of character for her strict, no-nonsense friend. Rias' surprise turned into giggles, as she tried her best to in her giggles with her hand over her mouth.
Sona blushed furiously, as she tried to explain. "It was Serafall! She came out of nowhere and forced me to wear this outfit for an entire day!" she exclaimed.
Rias continued laughing, as she tried her best to calm down.
"Ufufufu… Why don't you… put your school uniform back on… Kaichou…? Ufufu…" Rias laughed at her friend's predicament.
Sona pointed a finger at her school uniform, lying disorderly on the floor covered in ice. "That's why!" Sona answered embarrassed.
Rias laughed even louder upon hearing that, as she made her way to her seat. Sona tried her best not to flip out and waited for her friend to calm down. After a minute or so, Rias did so, trying to catch her breath from laughing so much.
"Wow… that was good… Thanks Sona… Thanks for helping me relax…" Rias stated with a smile.
Ignoring her remark, Sona went straight to business. "Tell me. Any results on the mysterious helicopter?"
Rias' smile turned neutral, as she cleared her throat. "Unfortunately, the helicopter disappeared," Rias simply answered.
"Disappeared how?" Sona asked Rias.
"Disappeared in the sense that it's gone. No trace of it to be found anywhere," Rias answered, as the relaxed mood in the office had turned business-like.
"I don't want you to explain the definition," Sona responded, as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "I want you to tell me in detail how it disappeared."
Rias sighed, before explaining what her peerage had told her.
Rias explained how her peerage had followed the mysterious black helicopter until Akeno shot it down. She went on to say that despite everybody's efforts, the helicopter was nowhere to be found. In the end, it was decided that they call off the search and come back.
Sona face-palmed in frustration.
"Akeno engaging with the helicopter and shooting it down? She was supposed to… ugh! How stupid can she be?" Sona commented with an annoyed look on her face.
"Don't worry about it, Sona," Rias tried to reassure Sona. "I'll think of a punishment right after this meeting."
"That's not the point!" Sona shouted, her patience at an end, as she stood up, causing Rias to flinch. "We have a potentially dangerous entity out there of whom we know nothing of or even what their goals are! And now, they've disappeared! What are we going to do, if they cause harm to innocents elsewhere or even us!? What then!?"
"Calm down, Sona!" Rias put her hands up defensively in order to calm her down. "I'm sure that everything will-"
Just then, the two high school students were interrupted by a magic circle that had appeared in the room. Out of the circle came a handsome, bearded man in the flower of his manhood. His hair was blonde and short, yet looked fabulous nonetheless. His clothes were clearly of Germanic or Nordic origin and consisted of armor, boots, a cape and a sword in its scabbard.
The man lifted his hand to greet them. "Greetings, Rias, Princess of the House of Gremory and Sona, Princess of the House of Sitri. I come in peace."
Sona and Rias were flustered at the man's arrival for he was quite the looker. At the same time, they realized he was also a god or demi-god of the Nordic Mythologies and so put their argument aside for the moment to focus on their guest.
"Greetings, as well… whoever you are…" Rias started cautiously. Beings from other mythologies weren't allowed to enter Kuoh because of political agreements between the various mythologies and thus there was reason for her to be wary (more so, if she was the Governor of Kuoh).
Rias winced, as Sona nudged her with an elbow. "Rias, be more polite," Sona rebuked her in a whisper, before facing the newcomer.
"Forgive, my friend. We just wanted to ask for your reason for coming here," Sona said, while Rias rubbed the spot where Sona had jabbed her.
"Forgive my intrusion," the man bowed graciously in an apology. "But I come here with an urgent request in regards to a certain problem involving one of my subjects."
15th September, Saturday, 3:12 pm – back with Issei, Matsuda, Motohama and Ddraig
The three boys were walking through the forest, marching up a taller hill in the forest. Thankfully, the hill wasn't very steep, though it did go up a few hundred meters. The three of them braved up the hill, wearing mostly only their underwear and shoes.
You might be asking why they were walking around practically naked. Well…
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama washed themselves in the river not too long ago and were about to leave. But Ddraig told them to wash the boar furs and their clothes as well. When asked why, the Red Dragon Emperor told them that the mysterious monster would probably smell the scent coming from their clothes and the boar furs to trace them.
The trio begrudgingly did as Ddraig advised them; cleaned and washed their clothes and boar fur, as well as they could, before they headed off. Of course, their clothes were wet after washing them in the river and thus couldn't be worn until they dried off.
Staying in one place was not an option and so the three of them had to carry their clothes with them on their shoulders.
The perverted trio had to admit, walking around with nothing but their underwear on was… rather embarrassing. How could anybody do something like this in the open? No, scratch that. How could models, male and female, do this for a living? Because of that, the three boys actually grew to respect models – something they never thought they would ever do.
Moreover, walking around naked was nothing as sexy like manly action movies and animes would like to depict (especially if you are not confident in your body).
Lastly, it was cold! The wind was blowing and right now, the temperature was in the teens somewhere. Not exactly, the right kind of weather to be out practically naked!
Oh well… at least they had fur coats to cover them, even if they could only do so much.
Well… except for Issei that is.
"Guys," Issei said with a rather grumpy face, carrying everybody's wet clothes on his arms. "Why do you get to wear the fur coats, while I have to walk around with everybody's wet clothes?" he asked with a slight growl of discontent, while giving out shivers.
"Because," Matsuda decided to answer, as he huddled the coat of fur closer to himself with a contented smile because of the warmth it gave. "You have Ddraig, a fire-breathing dragon that gives you superpowers strong enough to kill gods. Someone like you would naturally find a way to keep yourself warm."
"Besides, Issei," Motohama continued with a similar contented smile, as he enjoyed the fuzzy feeling of boar fur. "You're the strongest of us, so naturally you are the one who can endure suffering the most. Something you have proven over and over again…"
Issei just muttered angrily upon hearing that. "How about I make you suffer you little…"
[Partner, calm down] Ddraig soothed an angry Issei. [Complaining won't get you anywhere.]
"Yeah, yeah… says the dragon that won't allow me to use its fire to warm myself!" Issei retorted.
[Partner, you can't handle my fire just yet] Ddraig replied.
"Any why not?" Issei tried to shoot a glare at Ddraig, but couldn't since Ddraig was speaking from within his head.
[Partner, my fire is a very strong fire. Once, it starts burning, you cannot quench it unless you have strong magic to counter it, which you obviously don't have] Ddraig said to Issei.
"What about the bonfire?" Issei questioned Ddraig irritated. "You had no problem lighting it up."
[Pff!] Ddraig snorted. [That wasn't my unquenchable fire. That was a simple spark. One that almost anybody can do with some physical or magical friction.]
"Well, why not use that?" Issei questioned again.
[Because that only has an effect, if you use it on something like a bonfire. It is not meant for warming the human body. Unless you want to set yourself on fire] Ddraig answered sardonically.
Issei groaned in frustration, as he rolled his eyes. This was getting nowhere. There was no way, he could warm himself up… unless…
"Hey, Ddraig. How about a warm-up run? That will keep everybody warm. I'll tell the others to-"
[Partner, don't] Ddraig interrupted Issei. [You go running, and you'll only exhaust yourself. Save it for more immediate emergencies.]
Issei seethed at having his ideas shot down again. "And what?" Issei argued. "Am I supposed to freeze here to death? Is that it?"
[Partner] Ddraig answered. [Temperatures like these won't freeze you, let alone kill you. You'll get used to it. You'll see.]
Issei groaned even louder in frustration, but decided to say nothing. He didn't want to argue anymore.
There was silence for a few seconds, before Ddraig gently spoke up. [Partner, I'm sorry for coming off to harsh. I… I just wanted you understand that… to be become stronger, you have to endure – including the cold. That is why, there such a thing as cold exposure training. In it, you expose your body to cold temperatures in the open and in the water. It really helps, Partner. And… I really wanted you to start it with you. I'm… I'm sorry, Partner…]
Issei said nothing, he just walked on, before finally responding. "It's alright. I forgive you." Issei simply said.
Nothing more was said. Ddraig smiled, from within Issei. His host was still so young and many responsibilities were on his shoulders. But in order to grow with it, he had to it step by step – with the right kind of relationship built between both host and supernatural entity.
Only then, could they become strong.
Nobody said a word, as they made their way up the hill. After a ten minutes, they reached the top.
Seeing a nearby rock, the three of them sat down to catch their breath. Issei and Motohama sat down facing in one direction, while Matsuda faced the way that they came from. All three of them were exhausted going up the mountain that they needed to have it.
As Matsuda looked up, he was astounded at what he saw and signaled to the others.
Motohama and Issei turned around. "What is it?" Motohama asked.
Matsuda pointed towards the direction they came from. "Look, guys. See how high up we are," Matsuda said eagerly.
Matsuda and Issei both took a look and widened their eyes a little.
Indeed. They really were high up. They could see numerous tall trees stretching down the hill, becoming smaller and smaller the further the trees were. The path downward seemed to stretch unendingly. It was hard to believe that they had managed to go all the way down there to all the way up here.
Also, when they looked around them, they noticed that there wasn't any way to go higher. Which meant…
"Guys," Issei spoke up, his lips forming a smile. "We're at the top of the mountain!" he announced.
Matsuda and Motohama looked at him with surprise, which turned into enthusiasm and high-fives. What an achievement…
However, Ddraig interrupted their joyous moment, the Boosted Gear appearing on Issei's arm with a flash. [People, I hate to break this to you. But it's not over yet] Ddraig told the three jubilating boys.
The happy atmosphere had turned to silence.
"""WHAT!?""" Issei, Matsuda and Motohama shouted at the same time.
"What are you talking about, Ddraig? We're on top of the mountain, aren't we?" Matsuda asked exasperated.
[No, that's not it] Ddraig answered. [Rather, it is about that creature we heard howl earlier. I have the feeling that any moment it could pose a serious threat to us, should it come our way.]
"That thing?" Issei asked incredulously. "I mean, come on. Doesn't that thing have better things to worry about, like… catching its next meal or something?"
[You may be right. However, we don't know if it's next meal isn't you. It still poses a threat to us and thus caution is what we need the most. Therefore, my point still stands] Ddraig insisted, as the three boys hung their heads and groaned.
Can they ever take a break? They've walked for like half-an hour up a hill, mind you and now Ddraig had to spoil their well-deserved rest. They haven't had enough sleep either, so when was their insomnia going to kick in?
As they sat there on the rock in frustration, Ddraig continued to speak. [People, there is another reason for being cautious.]
Issei looked at the Boosted Gear tiredly. "Oh, yeah? And what's that?" he asked.
[It's about the nature of the creature] Ddraig said.
Issei cocked an eyebrow. "It's nature? You said it was a big boar or something, right? What about it?" Issei asked again.
[It's not just that. I believe this creature may be of supernatural origin] Ddraig revealed.
This caused Issei and the others to jolt up in surprise. Matsuda and Motohama immediately peered Issei over the shoulder to look at the Boosted Gear.
"Supernatural…" Motohama began.
"…Origin!?" Matsuda finished for him.
[Yes] Ddraig confirmed. [I have reasons to believe it is a supernatural being.]
"What reasons are those?" Motohama asked.
[One, its loud cry. Two, I could sense a fraction of its energy from here. It was faint, but it certainly was there. Which means, that while it may not be anywhere at my level of strength, it still is strong enough to pose a threat to all of you. And if we're not careful, it can kill you with ease] Ddraig warned them.
Ddraig's words shocked all of them. Another dangerous supernatural creature so soon? Could these supernatural beings just leave them alone for once? If the succubus was a complete nightmare, how much could this creature possibly be? Though, wait a minute…
"Ddraig… why didn't you tell us this before?" Issei asked Ddraig dangerously.
[I wasn't completely sure of this myself] Ddraig answered honestly. [I needed to weigh out the possibility of it being so, before telling you.]
Matsuda and Motohama sighed.
Issei sighed, as well, and went deep into thought. Just great… More trouble coming their way and there was nothing they could do except run away. Fighting was a possibility, but as Ddraig said before, it might be a fight they might not come out alive – something that was especially true for Matsuda and Motohama, who didn't have any weapons.
Oh wait, scratch that. They did have weapons. The only problem is that Matsuda's was a size-changing helicopter. But that couldn't be used until 8 pm or so. And right now, it was… 3:29 pm. Pretty neat gift to have a watch.
Anyway, where was he? Oh, yes.
Motohama at least had gloves with the ability to throw dark energy goo at his opponents or something and get them stuck. Pretty cool, actually. Monika even said they could emit dark energy gas or something. The problem, however, is that Motohama hasn't had enough training with his dark energy gloves. While, Motohama most certainly could learn and adapt in a real fight, doing so is dangerous and fraught with risks.
The only who could stand on his own was himself. The Boosted Gear most certainly gave Issei an edge in fighting supernatural enemies, but he only had so much strength. While in theory, the Boosted Gear could boost up his strength infinitely, to do so would be taxing Issei's body to the extreme and force him to reset, draining his power. Dragon Shots were good, but he needed to charge them and if he didn't do it fast enough the enemy would kill him.
'I must get stronger,' Issei contemplated. 'If I don't get stronger, I'll really get killed.'
Issei sighed at the hopelessness of the situation. A helicopter, a pair of gloves and a Sacred Gear whose full potential could not be unlocked. What an underwhelming group of heroes – if you could even call them that – all of them having nothing but items that didn't work the way that they should.
Wait a minute… speaking of items, Issei received a gift, too, didn't he? What did he receive again? Oh yeah… That's right. It was a pair of special glasses.
Yeah, that most certainly didn't count as a weapon. If it could shoot laser beams out of its lenses, that would be cool. But it had no such function, unfortunately… All it could do was…
[…]
That was when Issei widened his eyes in realization.
'Those glasses… could it be?' issei thought, as he suddenly picked up a mental trail to something.
Those glasses enabled Issei to do detective work through scanning. And if that's true, then…
Issei pressed the buttons on his wristwatch, making the glasses appear on his face with a flash.
This surprised Ddraig, Matsuda and Motohama.
[Partner. What are you doing?] Ddraig asked, but Issei didn't answer.
Instead, Issei experimented with the buttons at the temples.
Heat vision, electrical tension vision, toxicity levels, humidity vision…
"Aha… there we go!" Issei exclaimed, as he stood up suddenly.
"Wh-wh-what?" Motohama asked, taken aback.
"Yeah, Issei. What gives?" Matsuda asked this time.
Issei didn't say a word, as he looked around into the distance, before stopping and pointing in a certain direction.
"There! There it is!" Issei pointed out with firmness in his voice.
"There is… what?" Matsuda asked confused, as he frowned at his friend's unusual behavior.
"About a few kilometers away from here. I can see it," Issei announced.
"See what?" Motohama asked insistently.
"It's… Ddraig is right…" Issei merely answered.
The two boys were getting impatient, as they got up and approached Issei from behind.
"What? What is it? Tell us what it is!" Matsuda insisted loudly, getting Issei to glance at them for a moment, before looking back.
"It's a boar… a huge boar… with golden fur…" Issei finally answered.
15th September, Saturday, 3:31 pm – at the riverside
The mystical golden boar came towards the fords of the river, running through the forest. It knew the place very well, having come here often for a drink. In fact, most animals come here to drink of its waters, including many of boar brethren. They would even go into the river to cool themselves off and have some fun. It certainly did a lot to relax the beasts after a long hard day in the wild.
But today, it wasn't here to do any of these things (although it did take a sip from the river, just in case it wouldn't get anything to drink anytime soon). No, rather it was here to follow the traces of boar blood – blood that was shed because of the cruelty of humans.
The humungous boar sniffed with its snout, as it went along the river. That was when it picked up an unusual scent.
Smoke.
That was when golden boar realized.
They were here. They were definitely here for smoke could never happen in the wild without fire. If there had been a fire, it would have caused a forest fire, which is clearly not the case here or else it would have noticed.
The boar went a bit faster to where the smoke scent came from and sure enough, as soon as it came up to a small mound, there it was.
There were the residues of a campfire, burning not too long ago. Moreover, the smell of burnt flesh also lingered through the air, which made the boar growl. It knew that the boars must have been cooked and then devoured. It knew that from experience, since it witnessed something like this happen too many times.
It checked around the site, trying to find for additional clues. It went around the campsite and down towards the river again.
It was then that it found something. Numerous footprints everywhere. Judging by where the steps could be found, it seemed like they were taking a bath, which made smelling humans very difficult. But there was one way, the boar could find it.
The footprints.
The footprints had to leave the campsite somehow, in some way. It looked carefully on the ground… and there!
It found a trail of footprints. Judging by where they lead the boar to, it had to be up the hill.
The boar grunted and immediately followed the trail of footprints, moving forward slowly, yet menacingly.
Its slow march turned into a run, going faster and faster.
It would find them. The blood of the boar parents had to be avenged!
15th September, Saturday, 3:39 pm – back on the hill
"Guys, I think, it's heading our way," Motohama said uneasily, as he looked through Issei's detective glasses.
"What? Give me that!" Matsuda took the detective glasses from Motohama. What he saw made his face turn pale.
Issei also looked worried, his annoyance at not being able to use the glasses outbalanced by worry (after Issei had discovered the big golden boar, Matsuda and Motohama had been taking turns hogging the glasses, leaving Issei with little to no opportunity to do so himself).
"What? What did you say about the boar?" Issei asked in worry.
Matsuda slowly turned towards Issei with his face frozen in shock. "That pig… it's heading this way…" he let out with fear in his voice.
"What? Give me that!" Issei snatched it this time and looked at the incoming boar. It looked like it was fuming out of its nostrils. It looked angry, as it ran towards their position.
"Oh, crap!" Issei cursed, as he turned to Ddraig inside the Boosted Gear in a panic. "Ddraig, that boar-thing or whatever it is, is heading our way! What should we do?"
But Ddraig said nothing.
Issei looked with uncertainty, seeing, as Ddraig didn't reply. He looked at Matsuda and Motohama. They shrugged, since they themselves had no idea on what to do.
Issei turned his face to the Boosted Gear, before he asked again.
"Ddraig?" Issei asked again.
No answer again. Issei was about to ask Ddraig again until the silent dragon finally spoke with a murmur.
[Well… Why don't you ask that… fantastic glasses of yours?] Ddraig muttered quietly.
This caused Issei to frown. What's up with that tone?
"Ddraig? Is something wrong?" Issei asked.
[No, nothing is wrong. I'm just saying you should just ask those trusted, high-technologized gadget of yours for advice. I mean it's soooooo good! And I'm just a plain old dragon with lame powers such as doubling your powers and shooting powers] Ddraig said with obvious sarcasm.
Issei was irked at Ddraig's tone and clenched his teeth.
"Hey! Why are you behaving this way? I'm just asking you for advice. Why are you being so…" Issei drifted off until it dawned on him just what the problem was.
"Ddraig…" Issei began to speak.
[…] Ddraig said nothing.
"You're jealous, aren't you?" Issei concluded. Ddraig scoffed at that.
[Jealous? Whatever do you mean?] Ddraig asked mockingly.
"Dude," Matsuda cut in, as he spoke to Ddraig. "The way you have been talking about Issei's glasses makes it rather obvious, so don't play coy."
[I'm not being jealous] Ddraig insisted. [I'm just saying that Issei here should just ask his overrated glasses for help.]
'Issei? Not Partner?' Issei noted to himself the way Ddraig called him. 'He's never used my name before. Not once. Something is definitely wrong.'
"Ddraig," Issei spoke up firmly to bring Ddraig to heel. "We can stand here and talk all day about you being jealous, but we've got a situation on hand and I need you to-"
[Oh! Now you think I'm your slave now. Just great! Just another cool gadget you can use and dismiss at will!] Ddraig exclaimed with even more sarcasm.
Issei was getting frustrated now. Ddraig was really getting on his nerves with his behavior.
"And what makes you think that I would even think about behaving this way?" Issei asked, his teeth on edge. Matsuda and Motohama looked on uneasily, as the tiff escalated.
[Because ever since you three got these overrated glasses, you've been gushing at just how marvelous they are and how useful they are! Why would you not throw me to the side?] Ddraig said, his voice showing anger and jealousy.
Issei couldn't take it anymore. Just how little faith did Ddraig even have in him? To be thinking this way… No. That was unacceptable. That was crossing the line.
"No, I don't!" Issei yelled at Ddraig, causing Matsuda and Motohama to wince. "You're my best friend! The dragon that saved my life! The dragon that helped me to live on and grow stronger! How could I ever be thinking of replacing you? Do you think glasses with special functions could ever make me do that? Sure, they are cool and probably will be of immense help, but not enough to replace you! Do you think I'm a kid – one that would easily throw away his old toys for new and better ones? No! I'm nothing like that! Even if the best and fanciest gadget in the world were to land in my hands, I would never ever leave you! And you know why? Because you're my Partner!" Issei finished with the one word that Ddraig had always used for him.
Issei stopped ranting and yelling, as he panted for breath, for it had taken a lot of energy to say all these things at once.
After a few seconds, Issei realized the whole weight of what had just happened, making him widen his eyes in shock and look at his friends awkwardly.
Matsuda and Motohama looked at Issei stoically, yet with understanding. Being a spectator to a fight like this was awkward for them as well, yet with the way Ddraig acted, they could understand Issei's frustration. If they were in Issei's shoes, they would never want to part ways with Ddraig either.
Sure, he could be a troll sometimes, yet he was still one of them. Also, his power was irreplaceable. Who would be stupid enough to give up on someone that can kill gods? Thus, they were in agreement with Issei.
Ddraig on the other hand said nothing and neither did anyone else. Only the sound of birds chirping and the rustling of the trees could be heard. The silence was tense, unnatural – ironic considering the sound of nature all over them.
It was then, that someone finally spoke.
[Partner…] Ddraig said quietly, his sarcastic attitude gone.
"Ddraig?" Issei spoke quietly as well.
[I'm sorry, Partner] Ddraig responded with remorse. [I should have never doubted you.]
"I… I shouldn't have shouted you…" Issei apologized with a stutter. "But I meant what I said."
[Thank you, Partner. Thank you very much] Ddraig thanked his host. [Many of my hosts don't thank me in general, so I'm used to being treated as a mindless tool. Forgive me, please.]
Issei smiled. "It's OK. I forgive you. I mean you and me – we're a team, right? What kind of team would break apart over something like this, right?"
Matsuda and Motohama breathed out in relief. Thank goodness, the tension has been diffused. Though, right then when everybody was about to enjoy the relieved tension, Matsuda remembered something. He didn't know what it was, but he knew it was something important.
"Hold on for a minute," Matsuda interrupted Issei and Ddraig, getting their attention.
"Hey, Matsuda. Can't you see we're having an intensive moment?" Issei told Matsuda off.
[Indeed. Can you not act like trolls for once?] Ddraig added in.
Matsuda and Motohama took on a deadpan expression at that.
'Who is Ddraig to talk?' Motohama thought to himself with a frown.
'Hypocrite,' Matsuda remarked to himself, remembering all the times Ddraig interrupted their own moments with each other and Issei.
Nevertheless, Matsuda spoke on. "No, seriously. I feel like we're forgetting something. And I think it was important, too, if I remember correctly."
Issei and Motohama looked at their friend with confusion. What on earth was he talking about?
Suddenly, the sound of galloping reached their ears. Everyone looked around. What was that? They only knew, that the sound of galloping quickly grew louder and louder, as it approached them at running speed.
That was when Motohama pointed his finger at something coming from behind Issei.
"ISSEI! BEHIND YOU!" Motohama shouted with panic written all over his face.
Issei turned around and to his shock, saw it… the huge golden boar from before rushing at him with utter fury!
[PARTNER! BOOST!] Ddraig cried.
Issei did so in a heartbeat.
[Boost!] The Boosted Gear rang, doubling his power.
By then, the boar had already reached Issei.
[BAM!] Issei barely managed to brace himself, as he was thrown backwards by its huge tusks.
"UGH!" Issei grunted, his back hitting hard against a tree, knocking the breath out of the teen and leaving him winded.
"ISSEI!" "ISSEI!" [PARTNER!] Everybody shouted horrified, as they saw Issei against the tree.
The boar turned, its furious face towards the other two boys, snorting out fumes from its nostrils, as it did so.
It rushed – towards Matsuda. Matsuda ran away fearfully, as he slalomed through the trees, trying to outmaneuver the boar, which was gaining ground on the poor boy. Motohama looked on helplessly, as he stood there frozen.
He felt so helpless. If only he had some kind of wea-
That was when it hit him. "Of course!" Motohama shouted, as he activated his watch. The black gloves with dark energy appeared on his hands, sparkling as if ready to use.
"Let's do this!" Motohama exclaimed, as he pressed his right index finger against his right thumb. A black cube started to form, growing bigger until Motohama ended the pressure between his fingers.
"Good, so far so good," Motohama smirked, glad that he could remember Monika's instructions. He focused himself on Matsuda and the golden boar.
"GYYYAAAHHHHHH!" Matsuda screamed, as the boar came inches of skewering him. He ran as fast as he could, but the boar was simply too fast.
Could this be the end for him? Oh, well at least he lost his virginity, so at least he could die without regrets…
Both the boar and Matsuda were heading straight towards him.
This was it. If he missed, they all would die.
Motohama took in a deep breath and threw.
"HYARGH!" Motohama yelled, as he threw the black cube, throwing it as if in baseball practice. The black cube flew a straight line right past Matsuda and covered the boar's face with a splat.
"BWEEEE!" the boar grunted, as it tried to get rid of the black gooey stuff on its face.
[BAM!]
The golden boar hit a tree, tusks first, causing it to be stuck. It tried to wriggle free, but found it difficult to do.
Matsuda, on the other hand, fell to the ground as soon as the boar hit the tree. He was panting heavily, as he turned around to see what had transpired. He noticed how the boar had black sticky goo on its face and was stuck with its tusks in the tree, but was confused as to how it happened.
"Matsuda! Are you OK?" Motohama ran up to him to help him up.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Matsuda responded, as he took Motohama's hand to help him up. As soon, as their hands touched, Matsuda felt the texture of Motohama's black gloves. It was then that he widened his eyes in realization at what had happened.
"Dude," Matsuda said to Motohama after being helped up. "Was this your doing?" Matsuda pointed at the struggling boar.
Motohama nodded with a proud smile. "Yeah. That was me," he answered.
Matsuda looked carefully at the gloves, before remarking. "I have to say: I'm impressed at the gift you got. I really am. At first I pitied you because I thought those gloves were lame, but this really changed my mind."
Motohama looked at Matsuda in shock at his unintentionally belittling compliment, before shooting him a glare. "You take that back!"
Matsuda raised his hands up defensively. "Hey, hey! I said I changed my mind! No need to get all angry!" he tried to calm Motohama down.
[People, I had to disturb you, but my host here is still here] Ddraig hinted at Issei's prone body.
Seeing Issei had caused Matsuda and Motohama to forget their squabble and rush to Issei's side.
"Issei! Are you OK?" Matsuda asked, as he grabbed Issei by the shoulders to see if he was responsive.
Unfortunately, Issei wasn't answering. Thankfully, he was still breathing, much to their relief.
"Oh, good. You're alive, you're alive…" Matsuda said to the unconscious Issei.
Before anyone could do anything else, a loud grunt came from the golden boar. Everybody turned to look and could see that the golden boar was still trying to get out. This time, it didn't merely try to pull itself out, but was trying something else to the tree trunk.
They didn't know what it doing, but before anyone could ask, Ddraig spoke up to get Matsuda's and Motohama's focus.
[People. We don't have time to sit around and wait. We have to get out of here now. Partner here is unconscious and you two can barely fight this oversized boar. You two did a good job halting the boar in its tracks, though. But something like this can only be held for so long. So go!] Ddraig ordered them.
Matsuda and Motohama did as Ddraig said promptly. They propped up Issei by his arms and made haste to get away from the boar as far as possible.
They went down the hilltop as fast as possible, making sure to increase their distance while they can.
While everybody made their way down, Matsuda had to think of what had transpired.
'That was dangerous,' Matsuda thought. 'But there's no doubt about it. That boar was a supernatural creature. Ddraig was absolutely right. And that means we're not safe here. We've got to get out of here. As long as Issei is unconscious, our chances to survive the day are slim.'
15th September, Saturday, 4:01 pm – back on the hill
The golden boar had been suing all its strength in its legs to push its tusks upwards. An illogical strategy to free oneself one had to admit, but for the powerful boar, it made perfect sense.
Slowly, but surely, the tree trunk began to creak and fissure, the cracks moving upwards with every single ounce of effort.
Finally, the tree split in half with a loud crack, both sides falling to the sides with a loud thud.
The golden boar was breathing heavily.
It was angry. Angry at being humiliated by these humans.
And they were going to pay.
Though, it had to admit. It seems like it had underestimated the three humans. It needed to be careful from now on or else they might get the better of it.
And it had just the idea on how to defeat these humans.
"BWWWWWEEEEEEEE!" the boar howled in the air. After a few minutes, a herd of boars came running up the hill and gathered around the golden one, as if summoned by it.
None of them made a sound, yet all of them seemed to understand the situation.
But more so, all of them had one single desire, their gleaming eyes and loud grunts and squeals making this very clear.
To kill the three outsiders at all costs.
15th September, Saturday, 4:04 pm – at the foot of the hill
Everybody tried their best to drag Issei out of here, as they reached the bottom of the hill. That was when they heard a horrible sound, coming from the hill behind them.
Motohama looked back in a panic and then at Matsuda.
"We've got to get out here! I've got a bad feeling about this," Motohama told his friend.
Matsuda nodded. A feeling of dread filled Matsuda's mind, as he realized a horrible truth. A truth that he and his friends had heard before and yet only truly understood it now…
'To kill or be killed. That is the law of the wild.'
There. That should do it.
It seems like Issei and his friends are in trouble. What will they do?
Whatever the case, they will be dealing with a lot of angry pigs in the forest just out there to kill them.
Will Issei regain consciousness before worse can happen? Stay tuned…
In the meantime, I managed to find a timeline for the High School DxD canon events.
Thank you, 'The Ultimate Pawn' for posting it on the High School DxD wiki page! Courtesy belongs to him.
And here it is:
April- Volume 1. Issei gets reincarnated into a devil. Everything else in Volume 1 happens.
End of April/Beginning of May- Volume 2
June/Beginning of July- Volume 3/Volume 4
Mid July-Mid August- Volume 5
September- Volume 6/Volume 7
October- Volume 9/Volume 10
November- Volume 11-Volume 16
December- Volume 17-18
January/early February- Volume 19-21
Late February-April- Volume 22
June- Volume 23
DX4- Somewhere after 23
July- Volume 24
Now, I finally have a timeline and solid dates to put my story's events on. Since we are in September, there will be events happening before the events in April happen.
Thanks for reading and I hope to see you next time.
Until then.
Hide Shinyama
