Hallo!
Once again, a big 'Thank You!' to readers for your support and patience as this projects goes on.
The Discord worked as well as I expected (complete bust), so I'm not even gonna worry about it anymore. Talking with folks here works well enough, anyway. In other news, AO3 got attacked by a dipshit hacktivist group that shall not be named. No ransom, no reason, they just did it because they could. Scumbags...
To ArguableReader: Thank you very much for the information about the light novel and anime. I knew there was some odd reason for the complete shift in studios between seasons 3 and 4, but I didn't know all the details. Most of my knowledge about canon events in DxD comes from the now-denounced anime, the broader-than-a-barn wiki, and fan-fictions. I know I should defer elsewhere but, for the life of me, I simply cannot stand reading the light novel. The writing style and Issei's first-person POV hurt my eyes so badly that I can hardly focus on the story Ishibumi is trying to convey.
Alright, enough about that. Let's roll.
Disclaimer: I do not own High School DxD, nor do I own Type Moon, any of its intellectual properties, or any other property used in this work.
Published: August 4, 2023
Updated: TBD
…
Chapter 17 – A New Threat
"Uuughhh…"
Laid out flat on his back, a tired groan escaped between ragged breaths as Connor stared at the clouds lazily drifting in the evening sky. The black t-shirt and workout shorts he wore were caked with dirt and soaked in a fair bit of sweat, making it feel like he was wrapped in a wet bed sheet.
For the last three weeks, Caster had kept his promise of kicking his ass in order to help him. Both figuratively and literally. Outside of regular school, Connor was put through physical and intellectual boot camp that on occasion made him question if this was Caster actually mad about being a Caster.
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays were spent studying. More specifically, intensive studies of tactics and thaumaturgical theorem, all while relearning everything he knew about runic magecraft.
The Primordial Runes, based on what Caster told him, were first transcribed by Odin of the Norse pantheon after he sacrificed himself upon Yggdrasil in his undying quest for knowledge. After the nine days and nights that he hung from the world tree and stared down into its roots, the truths of the world came to him in visions, taking the form of runes. Upon returning from the tree, Odin shared these truths –the very realization of mysteries– with his brothers Vili and Vé. Together, the three constructed Asgard, the home of the Norse Gods, and passed down the runes to its new inhabitants, which in time found their way to the mortal races of Earth.
Over the course of millennia, however, mortal storytellers and scribes misinterpreted the runes' meanings, causing their true definitions to become blurred. Their individual effectiveness gradually dimmed because of this, and future renditions of runic magecraft required longer, more complex chains to achieve similar results. By the dawn of the 21st century, the craft was a shell of its former self, deemed inefficient and impractical by most magi.
Efforts to return to the old knowledge were met with lackluster results. As Connor had learned them from his grandfather, the Elder Futhark runes required a physical surface to be inscribed and filled with magical energy in order for the runes to activate.
Caster, meanwhile, could manifest the Primordials in mid-air in the blink of an eye and rewrite natural law as he required.
And on the subject of eyes, he had even found a solution to Connor's Mystic Eye problem. After a brief study of their functions and aftereffects, the Heroic Spirit inscribed a pair of runes behind Connor's ears that would steadily and safely release excess magical energy absorbed by his eyes, thereby negating the optic neuritis they apparently caused. Ecstatic as Connor was to use the Eyes painlessly, Caster recommended that he maintain his minimal usage policy. He wanted to make sure that Connor wouldn't become dependent on them.
Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays focused more on intensive physical training. Laps around town, obstacle courses, live-fire exercises, sparring with Caster one-on-one, the list went on. This was all chiefly meant to improve Connor's endurance, spatial awareness, reaction time and ability to pace himself before Caster deemed he was fit for the next stage of training. In addition, his magic circuits would become more accustomed to Caster actively expending magical energy.
The most grueling of the drills was on Saturdays, where he had to survive for as long as possible against swarms of wooden effigies that Caster created with his magecraft. By themselves, the effigies were easy to destroy, but Caster would continually rebuild them and occasionally spawn new variants until Connor was overwhelmed and reduced to a bruised bag of meat – as he was currently.
All in all, this 'rudimentary course' of Casters' was more akin to combat specialization training.
'Different strokes for different folks, I guess, but how does he make his strokes sting like a motherf–'
His reverie was interrupted by Caster moving to stand over him and block his view of the clouds. Asia was there as well, looking at him with much less worry than she had once she became aware of Caster's training regimen. It still made Connor laugh sometimes, thinking about how much taller the Heroic Spirit was compared to her.
"You're getting better, kid. Every new minute is another step forward." Caster tapped his staff into the dirt and, in the next instant, every one of the wooden effigies collapsed into heaps of sticks and twisted vines. The ground beneath those piles then split open to drop the pieces down into the earth and close up again, leaving no evidence.
Caster looked around to survey the damage dealt to the area, but stopped when he noticed Connor blankly staring at him. "What's that look for?"
The magus-in-training grunted. "Nn, I'm just wondering to myself again if this was actually what you did to train at my age."
"Oh yeah, this and more…" Caster started before shrugging. "Alright, it wasn't like this exactly, but you get the idea. The world is unforgiving, and my mentor's teaching method reflected that. The routines showed me what I was doing wrong, and more than that, they showed me how far I'd come from day one. I mean, think about it, you didn't even last two minutes the first time."
"Well, yeah, that's what happens when the enemy force you just killed reanimates and beats the living hell out of you with sticks!" Connor winced, bringing a hand to his stomach as it throbbed.
"You learned your lesson, though, didn't you? At least now, you won't get caught dead to rights for having the object permanence of a toad," the spirit offered with snark, not at all denying how much he laughed his ass off that day. "Don't lose sight of your enemies, even the dead ones. You'll live just a bit longer that way. Little lady, if you will."
Asia knelt down beside Connor, muttering a prayer and clasping her hands before forming them into the shape of a cup. The silver rings of Twilight Healing manifested, and the glowing green power flowed from her cupped hands like water, landing on Conor's chest and spreading through his body with a peaceful fluid motion. Cuts sealed themselves and contusions vanished in the span of seconds.
'Living Water' was the name she gave to this pseudo-spell. Quite the fitting title.
As the painkilling effect set in, the magus relaxed and let his thoughts drift to the maiden of golden hair and heart tending to him.
Introducing Caster to Asia had not been nearly as difficult as Connor thought it would. True to her nature, she graciously accepted the Heroic Spirit for what he was, despite having no earthly clue who he could be. When the man pitched his idea of allowing her to help train Connor, she beamed like a spotlight and agreed without hesitation.
Working off of Connor's theory, Caster hypothesized that Twilight Healing functioned by creating a small Bounded Field that allowed Asia to manipulate the progression of time inside of it. Essentially, she could reverse cause and effect by undoing any physical damage to living tissue while leaving the rest of the body unaffected. A small series of tests found that she could 'heal' any organic matter, so long as she didn't exhaust herself in the process. This discovery segued into the possibility that she actually could treat poisonings, if certain conditions were met.
She adamantly refused to have anything injured or poisoned for her sake, though, because she didn't want to cause suffering to another creature just to practice with its life. Due to that and how little training she evidently received with her Gear in the Vatican, her stamina was not particularly great. She could only use it for about two hours a day before she started getting drowsy.
So, to remedy both problems at once, Caster prompted her to exercise along with Connor during the week and practice the time controlling aspect of her Gear in a different way. When Asia wasn't using Twilight Healing to fix up Connor on the regular, she was tasked with tearing and repairing the leaves on trees without breaking them off the branches. In order to keep her mind sharp, she also had to cycle between trees, choosing a new leaf each time.
The results were phenomenal; Within a week, she saw an improvement of up to twenty percent in her treatment speed. In three, that number climbed to forty percent, and she could manage another full hour of healing. At rates like that, what was possible for her in three months? Or six months? Or a year?
The Church had made an egregious mistake in letting her go, but their loss was Connor's gain. Especially now that he and Asia were a thing, somewhat, for the past two weeks.
Indeed, after much pestering, poking and prodding from both Caster and Aika, Connor decided to do as advised and 'live a little.' He was not, however, going to 'take the girl for a romp and see where it went from there.' That would give Caster more reason to annoy him than he ever cared to provide, to say nothing of Aika; her ridiculous perception ground his gears already.
Asia herself didn't know what to do or expect from this change in their relationship, since most of the advice she got from her own friends was beyond her level of comfort. Just holding Connor's hand was enough to make her blush, so she was fine with taking it slow.
"That should do it for today, kids." Caster dismissed. "We're out of daylight. Pick yourselves up and head home." The Heroic Spirit then wandered off into the clearing to begin repairing the damage and take down the Bounded Field.
Asia held out her hand for Connor to take. He did so and hoisted himself up, being careful not to pull the clumsy girl down on top of him.
"Thank you, Asia."
"You're welcome." Sweat fell from the nun's brow in small trails. This had been her fifth full heal of the day, on top of three hours of leaf exercises, and she was ready to call it quits.
So was he, but first, he needed to make sure he could walk in a straight line. Caster has put heavy emphasis on his legs this time.
Sunday evenings were usually pretty busy in Kuoh, almost as busy as a normal work day. The big difference being that nobody was in a hurry to do anything. Workers, students and children of all ages were given a reprieve from their daily grinds and had a chance to spend the day at restaurants and entertainment centers. From sunrise to sundown, people just seemed to have all the time in the world.
For Connor and Asia, this meant a chance to enjoy themselves as teenagers. With no homework or projects from the Academy at the moment, that left Connor with all afternoon to spend with his… well, he wasn't sure if it was the right time in his mind to say 'girlfriend,' but the idea was gaining traction.
Caster had gone his own way, as per usual on Sundays. The Heroic Spirit had discovered that by donning simple clothes and masking his presence with magecraft, he could freely wander around with no one being the wiser to his true nature. While in disguise, he took the time to experience life like he was a drifter, exploring every fishing hole and drinking spot available in town.
He made it a point, though, to let Connor have his time alone with Asia, just like today.
Last Sunday, the two had gone on a tour of Kuoh's public aquarium. The variety of species wasn't particularly large, but Asia marveled at every water-bound creature she came across all the same. She especially enjoyed the newly completed touch tank that allowed guests to interact with the freshwater rays on exhibit. Thanks to the docile and even friendly nature of said rays, the little nun almost didn't want to leave, and had all but begged Connor for another visit in the near future.
Today, it had been a day for the teens to explore the local game center. Connor had only visited it once before, and he was half expecting it at the time to be like the crowded, loud and blindingly bright arcades in the States. Instead, it was clean, quiet, sparsely populated, and the games were both rewarding and entertaining. If only the good stuff wasn't lost in a maze of crane games.
By 5:00 P.M., Asia had won big. She almost walked out with a loaded armful of plushies and prizes until Connor suggested she get a bag for them all. Her favorite of the bunch, a cat-like Pokémon of some sort, ended up peeking out the top like a little dog in a carry purse. She walked beside Connor with a grin on her face and a little skip in her step.
"Let's find somewhere to eat and we can call it a day."
"Okay!"
Getting to the restaurants and fast food joints in Kuoh typically meant cutting through the town plaza and heading southeast for about five or ten minutes, depending on foot traffic. The plaza sat at the heart of Kuoh, surrounded on all sides by its various districts and business complexes, with a clock tower fit for Grand Central Station standing proudly at its center. Though nowhere as busy as some of Japan's more famous shopping hubs, it still saw a lot of traffic throughout the week, especially on Sundays.
As the foreign teens turned a corner into the plaza, they happened across a very odd scene. Two figures wearing white hooded cloaks with blue and gold accents stood side by side in front of the clock tower. Propped up on the tower behind them was a long bundle wrapped in cloth that Connor could very well distinguish as a sword.
Adding to the bizarre sight before him was the fact that these people were begging for handouts.
"These stray lambs are in need of your blessing!" The shorter figure announced in a high-pitched feminine voice while holding a small box in their hands.
"On behalf of our Father in Heaven, please grant us your blessing!" The second one flatly said, their voice feminine but slightly lower than that of their counterpart.
To no one's great surprise, no passerby had dropped so much as a yen into their 'offering box,' and nobody looked like they had any intent to do so. The two figures deflated, then turned to face each other and started whispering something. This only served to make them look even more suspicious than they already did.
Connor had half a mind to simply walk away and leave well enough alone. As he started to join the dispersing crowd, though, he suddenly noticed that Asia was no longer beside him. His eyes closed tightly as a sense of dread welled up in his stomach. Did he dare look to where he believed she had just gone?
He cracked one eye open and turned to look back to the walkway. And sure enough, Asia was already approaching the pair, bag still in hand.
"Shit..." he hoarsely muttered, though he wanted to say much worse.
'Caster, get down to the square. Might have a situation here,' Connor beckoned via telepathic link.
'On my way,' the spirit answered without objection.
Asia was now just a few steps away from the two cloaked figures, who had apparently not even noticed her. To her credit, she could be quiet as a mouse sometimes.
"Umm… Excuse me," she said in English, halting their whispers. "Do you need some help?"
"Ah! Oh, yes! Bless you, thankyouthankyouthankyou!" The shorter of the pair leaped up and began shaking Asia's hand exuberantly, jostling the poor nun nearly off her feet and making her drop the bag she was carrying. In their vigorous shaking, the baggy hood fell from the person's head to reveal a young woman in her teens, probably no older than Asia. She had chestnut brown hair done into twin tails that flipped and flew every which way, and her amethyst colored eyes glittered with joy.
"I knew it!" she proclaimed loudly. "I knew somebody would come if we prayed for it! God is good!"
"Irina, stop that, you're going to dislocate her arm," the other hooded figure harshly scolded as they stood up and approached the pair, pulling 'Irina' off of Asia. "It's your fault we're in this mess, so don't make things worse."
"Xe, for the tenth time, I said I'm sorry!" the twin-tailed girl groaned.
"Then maybe next time, you'll think twice before buying any worthless souvenirs!"
At that moment, Connor felt Caster's presence on his right side in spirit form.
'What's up, kid?'
'Asia being herself again. Exorcists. I don't know how this is gonna go down, so be ready.'
'Bounded Field, coming right up.'
The slight pull from his magic circuits told Connor that Caster was setting up a Field for sound distortion. Nobody outside it would know what was being said inside.
"I'm sorry about her, she's easily excited and we've had a bad couple of days," the hooded 'Xe' person apologized to Asia. "We appreciate your concern, madam, but unless you… wait a minute…"
The person lowered their hood and stared directly at Asia with slightly shocked marigold eyes. It was another girl, somewhere in her teen years as well, but her features were decidedly not Japanese like that of her partner. Her complexion was slightly more fair and her hair was a similar shade of blue to Tsubasa's, roughly cut to just past her jaw line with a small sea-green fringe over her right eye.
"Aren't you Asia Argento?"
"Huh?" 'Irina' looked again at Asia, her eyes widening in recognition this time. "Oh my gosh, wait, that totally is her!"
Seeing the nun tense, Connor took this as his moment to step in and keep the discussion from going out of control.
"Is everything okay, Asia?" he asked nonchalantly as he approached the trio, catching the attention of two. Of course everything wasn't okay, but he needed to make sure these two other girls knew they had a witness to this interaction.
Asia glanced to him for a split second, and in that moment, he could see that whatever courage she had mustered in offering her aid had disappeared under the bluenette's piercing gaze. Connor stopped and stood slightly in front of Asia, silently conveying a warning for the new girl.
"U-Um… H-Have we met? H-H-How do you know my name?" Asia asked 'Xe' with a worsening tremble.
"Your reputation at the Vatican precedes you. Who is this with you?" the girl tersely asked back.
"I'm Connor Lochlainn, I'm a friend of Asia's," he replied, equally clipped. "Who are you?"
"I'm Xenovia Quarta, and this is my… colleague, Irina Shidou."
"Don't make it sound like you hate me, Xe…" Irina sulked.
*GrrRRRRRRrrrrrr*
A low but loud growl suddenly emanated from Xenovia's abdomen, drawing the attention of all four people (five, technically) away from the conversation.
'Wow… Was that her stomach growling or the bellow of a demonic boar?'
'Yes.'
Xenovia's cheeks took a slightly red shade while Irina put a hand to her mouth and giggled.
*GrrrrrrRRRRrrrRRRrrrRRRRrrrrr*
As if to spite her, Irina's own stomach roared even louder than her partner's had, and with vibrato. Even some bystanders several meters away heard the colossal sound, turning to look in alarmed curiosity. Her face turned fully crimson before she hid it behind her hands in embarrassment.
Caster broke out laughing, though only Connor could hear it. He would have started as well if doing so wouldn't make a scene. With great effort, he held back a snicker.
"Ehh… Just an observation here, but it sounds like you two are kind of down on your luck right now." The indignant expressions he received were his confirmation. "Okay, I'll tell you what. Asia and I were just about to go for an early dinner. How about you two come along, we get you some food, and then we can, uh… talk about other stuff. Does that sound good?"
"That would be great, thank you!" Irina immediately agreed, still giving her best impression of a ripe tomato.
"We can't, Irina," Xenovia objected. "This is not their business, we have to figure this out ourselves."
"Um… r-really, it's fine. Connor and I were… were about to go for food, anyway," Asia shakily offered, receiving a dubious look from the bluenette.
*GRRRrrrr*
Xenovia's stomach let out another growl, audibly reminding her of their situation. Her mouth tightened, then her shoulders relaxed.
"We really shouldn't,… but if you insist, then… we will be gracious about it."
"Okay then," Connor bent down to pick up Asia's gift bag and pass it back to her, giving a light squeeze to her hand as he did so. "Follow me, I know a place not far from here that's pretty good."
Irina trotted behind him without hesitation. Xenovia sighed and gathered up the cloth-covered bundle, fixing it to a clasp evidently on her back before following. Asia stayed close to Connor, still uneasy but slightly assured by his presence.
'There go my evening plans,' he inwardly bemoaned.
'I for one am impressed, kid. You started out with one girl, and now it's three? At the same time? Damn, if only you worked this fast in training, we'd be getting somewhere!'
Connor settled for a heavy exhale through the nose over a snappy comeback. At the same time, he pulled out his phone and began texting someone that he knew would be very interested in this development.
"You brought us to a bar?" Xenovia posed the question.
The group of four stood at the waiting area of Nomura's. Another couple of people stood in line before them, but were quickly being shown in. The wait wouldn't be long since the largest part of the dinner rush was still at least thirty minutes away.
"It's not entirely a bar. I promise you, the food here's really good, and we can get it quicker by going earlier than 6:00 P.M."
"I don't remember this being here when I was little," Irina spoke idly to herself, tilting her head.
About thirty seconds after the preceding guests filed inside, Tobio emerged in uniform, sporting his most practiced smile as he approached.
"Hey, Connor, what's up?" The agent held out his hand to shake. "Got some friends with ya?"
The magus shrugged while returning the greeting. "Eh, something like that, Tobi. Hey, can we get one of the rooms in the back for a bit?"
"Yeah, sure. Let me see if we've got one open." He quickly adjourned back into the izakaya, leaving the four visitors to themselves once more.
"Back rooms?" Xenovia asked warily.
"For private parties. I kinda figured you don't like crowds." It was little more than a token gesture, but one that the bluenette appeared to accept.
Tobio reappeared quickly with menus in hand and ushered the unlikely group inside. Nomura's had two small sitting rooms toward the back of the restaurant right by the emergency exit. Each one was kept immaculately clean and well ventilated for six patrons at a time that just wanted to enjoy their meals in peace.
The four guests quietly filed into the room and took their seats; Connor and Asia on one side, Irina and Xenovia on the other.
"Just let me know when your ready to order, alright?" Tobio said, handing everyone the menus before moving to leave the room.
"Actually," Irina quipped, "can we place our orders now, please?"
"Sure, I suppose." He glanced over to Connor. "What can I start you with?"
"I would like the–"
"Four plates of karaage, two of them large, all the trimmings, with sweet and spicy sauce on the side," Connor quickly cut in.
"You got it. Drinks?"
"Wh- Hey, wait a minute!" Irina tried to protest.
"Water, all four of us."
"Gotcha. Be right back with that."
As the agent excused himself from the room, Connor noticed his right index finger pointing to the floor. Looking down, the magus saw a pair of ruby eyes staring up at him from within the shadow of the table, beyond the exorcist duo's line of sight. With how stealthy the sentient Gear normally was, the two would never know that he was right under their feet, ready to pounce at a moment's notice.
"Hey, what gives?!" the twin-tailed girl demanded. "You said this was your treat!"
"What are you trying to pull here?" Xenovia reacted a little more venomously, fingers digging into the table.
*GrrrRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrr*
For the second time, Irina's stomach made its emptiness known. She blushed once again and clutched at her abdomen.
"It is my treat," Connor affirmed, "and don't worry, this isn't some kind of trap. If you want seconds afterwards, we'll talk about it, but it's a pretty safe bet right now that you both need something in your stomachs. How long have you two been without food?"
"…since… yesterday…"
"Oh geez, no wonder you're hangry. Well, all the more reason; the karaage gets cooked pretty quickly here, five minutes tops. Just don't eat it too fast or you'll burn your mouth."
"Your concern is noted." Xenovia commented.
A very uncomfortable silence loomed over the four teens for almost a whole minute. It seemed that everyone either didn't know what to say, or simply weren't willing to speak. Irina kept looking back and forth between Xenovia and Asia, the former of whom was now studying the latter intently. Connor checked again to make sure that Caster was still beside him. He was, although he too was strangely quiet.
Finally, Asia managed to break the ice. "Is… I-Is something wrong, Miss Xenovia?" she timidly asked.
"No, Miss Argento, I was just thinking," Xenovia replied earnestly. "I would never have believed that mine and Irina's paths would cross with yours. The last I had heard, you were seen leaving the Vatican with only clothes and a Bible. You chose a very… strange place to reconnect with the Lord."
"Yeah, I mean, Nagasaki and some of the islands west of Kyushu have some really amazing churches that you could have gone to," Irina chipped in. "I know Kuoh used to have one, but… now, it doesn't… I went there all the time as a kid."
"I'm guessing you have a history with this town, miss Shidou?" Connor asked the brunette.
"Yep, born and raised! My family moved to Italy for my dad's job when I was five, but coming back has been pretty exciting! Lots of new things and places to go!"
Asia fidgeted for a moment.
"I was… tricked… into coming here," she began to explain ruefully. "The people who picked me up after I left the Vatican told me that I was to come here as part of an effort to rebuild the church. It was a lie. They wanted me here so that they could steal my Sacred Gear, and leave me to die."
"That's awful. How did you get away?" Irina asked.
Before Asia could answer, Connor interjected. "There's a really long story to that, actually, but there's something else I think we need to clear up first. I won't ask what you two are doing so far from home, that's not my business, but… how did you end up on the streets begging for money? You don't exactly go halfway around the world without your finances in order."
Irina flinched like she'd been struck, while Xenovia's leery expression soured.
"Here's what happened," she harshly began, "I had gone to book us a hotel room while Irina went into town to get supplies. I left her with the money we brought with us just in case she needed it. Nothing out of the ordinary, we've done it that way plenty of times before. But this time, instead of buying what we needed for the mi– our job, she got scammed into spending all of our money on a worthless fake painting!"
Filing away the slip of the tongue, Connor turned to stare at the flustering girl, only able to say the one word that came to mind.
"Seriously?"
"H– He tricked me, okay?!" she tried to excuse, to no avail. "The guy really made it sound like it was a painting of a Saint! I– I thought it looked like Saint Peter."
"Oh, right. Like Saint Peter would be winking and pointing finger guns at the painter." Xenovia snidely mimicked the aforementioned gestures to her partner, causing her to shrink even further into herself. "I swear, coming back to your hometown has somehow turned you stupid."
"O– Okay, alright, so putting aside the reason for now,… If you have no money, then where are you going to go while you're here? You're not just going to sleep in the streets, are you?"
"Our leaders will have to send someone to pick us up. But we have work to do until then, so… We'll figure something out." Xenovia sounded like she was trying to assure herself more than she was explaining to Connor.
"What about my apartment?"
The sudden suggestion from Asia caught everyone by surprise as she turned to look at Connor.
"They could stay at my apartment for a little while, right?"
"Asia, that's–"
"If we tell Mr. Watanabe that they'll be here for just a few days, then he'll make an exception, right? Romans chapter twelve, verse thirteen, says "Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers." We met them today for this moment, I'm sure of it! God guided our steps!"
A shining testament to Asia's ceaseless compassion as this was, Connor was not convinced, and neither was he enthusiastic about offering shelter to the exorcists. His first impressions of them were not at all favorable.
Irina came off as impulsive and gullible, evidenced by her frivolous handling of money, while Xenovia was quite a bit more boorish and judgmental. There was a subtle aggression in the exorcist's tone when she first addressed Asia, almost derisive if not for her initial surprise. Connor saw it clear as day, and Asia couldn't simply have forgotten that hostility being directed at her.
Taking in Asia may have been a spur-of-the-moment decision for Connor, but she was harmless. This was completely different; these two were trained to fight. Trained to kill. Whatever their reasons for being in Kuoh, it would be a bad idea to have them hanging around home, especially if one of them managed to bring their enemies right to his doorstep.
"I'm sorry, Asia, but I'm not sure he'll allow it," he answered, making her expression fall slightly. "It's kind of you to offer, and we can talk to him and see, but let's not count our chickens before they hatch, okay?"
Asia nodded slowly, sobered by the earnest answer, but did not seem ready to give up on the idea. Irina and Xenovia, meanwhile, looked stunned at the blonde, the former of whom was actually starting to tear up.
A timely light knock then came from the door.
"Ah, speaking of chickens, is everyone ready? Come on in, Tobi."
Tobio came back into the room with the four plates of food as well as two cups of dipping sauce all balanced on his left arm and hand. Mouths watering, the two exorcists looked ready to pounce on him for everything he was carrying, but he quickly dropped off the plates and exited before they could strike.
Irina immediately dug in with gusto, but Xenovia had a harder time due to trouble with the chopsticks. Connor saw Asia fidget, looking as if she wanted to help the exorcist with her utensils, but was too nervous to do so. Before long, the bluenette gave up and resorted to using her hands, joining her colleague in clearing their platters of everything.
Connor simply allowed the two to eat while he and Asia more slowly partook in their own meals. It didn't take but a few short minutes for his guests to finish with sighs of contentment.
"Not bad, eh?" he ventured once they stopped.
"Mmmm, so much better now~" Irina leaned back until her head touched the wall, thoroughly satisfied to have something in her stomach.
"Yes, much better. Thank you both for this." Xenovia, for her part, looked far calmer than before. She bent forward on the table and clasped her hands in prayer, Irina quickly following in her example.
"O Lord, please bless and keep Argento-san and her kind friend." the twin-tailed girl quietly proclaimed. "May you safeguard their journey, and lead them toward the gates of Heaven."
"Cleanse them of all unrighteousness, and deliver them from evil," Xenovia intoned.
With a simultaneous "Amen," the two closed the prayer, with Xenovia giving the sign of the cross. She opened her eyes once more to look directly at Connor.
"Now then, I can understand Miss Argento wanting to help us, but what about you? Not that I'm ungrateful, I'm just… confused. Why are you doing this for us? You don't even know who we are."
"No, but I do know her." Connor gestured to Asia with his free hand. "It's just in her nature to help people, quite possibly at the expense of herself. She can't help it. Somebody's gotta keep her from getting into trouble. I kind of owe it to her, anyway."
"You owe her?" Xenovia asked.
"It's part of the long story."
Another moment of silence followed while Connor and Asia finished their meals. The two exorcists waited patiently, lost in their own thoughts.
"I think… maybe we should give them a chance, Xe." Irina suggested, then held up a hand as her partner made to rebuke. "I know, secret mission, but I can tell that Asia-san is genuine about wanting to help us. If she trusts him, then, well… maybe he's not so bad, either."
Xenovia's gaze lingered on her partner for a while, before she looked to Connor, then Asia and back again to Connor.
"May Irina and I have a moment to talk about this?" she asked.
"Sure." Connor slowly stood up from the table, rolling his ankles to make them pop, then pointed to an intercom panel on the wall. "If you're ready for seconds, push the red button and tell them you need a waiter to room 2. And, don't go all out, please. My wallet isn't exactly bottomless."
"That's fine. Thank you for the meal, truly." Xenovia lightly bowed her head.
"Sure thing. We'll be right outside." He showed himself to the door, lightly taking Asia's hand to bring her along as well.
Once the two girls looked back to each other, Connor glanced down to Jin's eyes and subtly cocked an eyebrow. The red orbs responded with a singular small nod.
'Caster, listen in for me, will you?'
'Sure.'
Exiting the room with Asia in tow, Connor walked back to the main dining area. More people were starting to come in now, and the tables were filling up fast.
He took a seat in front of Tobio, who was cleaning the serving areas at the bar.
"So, how'd it go?" the agent asked, looking up from the grill he was scrubbing.
"Not bad. I'm missing some context, though. They both said something about a mission, but I didn't ask further."
"Well, that's–" Just as Tobio started to explain, he caught sight of something at the entrance and stopped talking. Turning to look, Connor recognized a rather unusual group walking inside.
Koneko, Kiba and Issei of the ORC, and Saji of the Council made a rough diamond formation as they entered. Koneko stood at the front, followed by Issei and Saji on either side. Kiba lagged behind them, appearing as morose as Connor had ever seen him. All four of the students were dressed in casual clothes.
"Are you sure they're here, Koneko-chan?" Issei asked, glancing to the lone girl in the group.
She nodded while her nose wrinkled. "Mm… They were with someone… Can't place it…"
The four Devils swept the place left to right and back again until Issei's eyes met with Connor's and he did a double-take.
"Connor-san? Asia-chan?"
"Issei-san?"
"Uh, hey… what are you guys doing here?" Connor asked, looking between them.
"Believe me, I don't want to be here, but these two dragged me along," Saji pointed accusingly to Issei and Koneko. "Kaichō is going to beat my ass when she learns I was doing this."
Kiba stepped forward. "We were looking for a pair of young women that came to Kuoh recently. They met with both our Buchō and Saji-san's Kaichō earlier about important business, but there's been a new development we need to tell them."
Connor's curious expression dropped into a flat stare.
"Hang on, let me guess… Is one of them a bubbly ball of sunshine with twin-tails and the other hoisting a holy sword around like nobody should care?"
Kiba blinked, as did Saji and Issei. "Um, yes, actually. Do you know where they are?"
"Hold that thought. Asia, stay right here, please." Connor stood up and turned to quickly walk back to the private rooms, to the confusion of all but Tobio.
Shaking his head all while going back the way he came, Connor approached the sitting room door and knocked twice before sliding it open. He peeked his head inside to see the girls staring back at him in curiosity.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt, but there're some folks out here that wanna talk to you."
The two girls looked to each other, puzzled at first, until Xenovia's expression morphed in realization.
Taking off his shoes while seated at the genkan in his apartment, Connor grumbled to himself.
Thanks to Jin, who had continued to follow the exorcist duo in the shadows, Tobio was able to listen in on the discussion between the two groups. Caster had followed them as well, in spirit form, giving a play by play to Connor of the major talking points.
As it turned out, the four Devils had sought out the two girls in order to strike a deal with them. In exchange for their aid, the Devils wanted the assurance that they could destroy at least one of the 'fragments of Excalibur,' which struck both Connor and Caster as absurd. Not simply because of the short-sighted demand, but also the notion that Excalibur could really be in the state that everyone else seemed convinced it was in.
Irina and Xenovia had come to Kuoh in the first place on a mission to retrieve the 'fragments' after they had been stolen from the Holy Church in a series of raids and assassinations orchestrated by a Grigori Cadre named Kokabiel. Why the Church sent only two teens to find and recover a cluster of reforged holy swords made absolutely no sense. It was a suicide mission, if not a wild goose chase.
Xenovia had been the one to recognize this, oddly enough, and had agreed to allow for the Devils to have a shot at one of the swords. Irina protested, but Xenovia countered by telling her that their current chances of success were slim at best, and anything within their power to improve those chances should be taken. Their mission was evidently more important to her than any misgivings she had about Devils.
When the conversation shifted to Kiba, he explained to everyone why he seemed the most invested in this deal. Some odd years ago, he was a test subject for an experiment conducted by the Holy Church called the 'Holy Sword Project.' When the experiment was scrapped, the subjects were tossed into a gas chamber and killed off, with Kiba being the only one out of over thirty children to barely escape. The presence of the Excalibur fragments just brought up the hatred and the memories he held for anything remotely referencing holy swords.
According to Xenovia, the Church had excommunicated the head researcher, Valper Galilei, for his inhumane practices, but they were too late to stop him from executing his last victims. He managed to escape prosecution, and likely execution, by fleeing Europe and in time found asylum with the Grigori.
Connor had to keep a straight face through everything so that Tobio wouldn't know he was learning some rather interesting knowledge about both the Grigori and the Church.
Once the groups parted ways after exchanging contact information, Tobio warned Connor to be careful, but didn't give a reason. That went without saying, but the magus didn't argue. He just hoped that Tobio was looking somewhere other than at him.
When the exorcists came back inside to find Asia, they declined her invitation to stay at her apartment. The two explained to her that they were trained to adapt to situations like theirs, and that they could manage for a short time. Asia was saddened by this, but wished them well and told them that she would pray for their safety all the same.
And after a long walk back home, Connor finally had a bit of privacy to speak his mind on the matter.
"What a clusterfuck…"
"Well, it's not like we could expect anything less, kid," Caster said, reappearing from a swirl of blue motes behind Connor. "With the way you've described this place, I'm beginning to see what you meant by it being a breeding ground for disaster."
"You know, I'm surprised you didn't make any more comments than you did. With the knowledge you get from the Throne, I figured you would've said something about the Church being completely full of themselves." Connor glanced at the spirit over his shoulder.
"That's a given. What I had to say was nothing that needed to be said right then," Caster plainly replied before his expression turned sour. "At any rate, I don't buy any of that bullshit. Humans reforging a broken Divine Construct, let alone Excalibur? No damn way is that happening, in this lifetime or any other."
Divine Constructs were armaments crafted by gods or beings of similar power, so it was theoretically impossible for them to be altered in any way by anything other than the hands of their creator(s). In some cases, even those very creators would be hard pressed to do that anything more to a completed Construct.
"Then I guess the Church must have some other holy-type sword they're passing off as Excalibur due to… name recognition? That's about the only reason I can imagine."
"Maybe. In that case, it's probably Caliburn," the Heroic Spirit surmised. "It's legend is so closely tied to Excalibur's that most people wouldn't even know they were two different things. Similar power, but Caliburn was just a holy sword; breaking it would be entirely possible. There's also no record of it reappearing in Arthurian myth after it was stolen by Morgan Le Fay, so I can imagine people easily confusing it for the real thing if it was ever found but never properly checked."
Connor nodded. He could see it, too, but that raised even more questions. Why would the Church not verify the sword's identity upon its discovery? They had the resources, they had the money, so why would they not make sure it was the genuine article? Or did they actually, and keep the name after the sword's breaking just as an act of deception? If so, why did nobody call their bluff? Was there nobody around that could, for that matter?
The more he thought about it, the worse his resulting headache got.
Caster then gave that impish little smirk of his and wiggled his eyebrows. "On another note, if I didn't know any better, I'd say the little lady was trying to put together a harem for you."
"What? Oh… Yeah, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" Connor rolled his eyes as the man's smirk sharpened. "Too much trouble. Besides, there's bigger problems here already, with more probably on the way. The dysfunctional duo are a bad omen, I just know it." The magus stood up and walked past his contracted Servant, turning into the kitchen to get a bottle of water.
"You're preaching to the choir there, kid." Caster followed, then stopped to lean against the doorframe while crossing his arms. "So, between what we do know and what we don't, I've been thinking…"
Connor raised an eyebrow while cracking open a bottle. "Oh yeah? Thinking what?"
"What d'ya say we try summoning another Heroic Spirit?"
…
…
Connor had stopped with the bottle just touching his lips, lowering it as he turned to face Caster fully. The man's smile was still there, but the look in his eyes told the younger magus that he was not kidding.
"Uhh… Well… right now, a big part of me is asking if that would even work. Since I already have a contract with you, I mean. I don't know if Heroic Spirits are a one-per kind of thing."
"Well, not counting the info dump, you managed to summon me without too much issue. And even if it doesn't work, you've still got me." Caster's smile then completely faded. "But yeah, I get it. I've been wondering about it myself for a while, but I don't think there's any more time left to wonder. We're already in uncharted waters, and you need all the allies you can get. Myself and the little lady won't be enough. And I'm just guessing here but, if something had happened to that vampire girl during my summoning, we'd be made aware of it in one way or another by now, right?"
That was true; Valerie's safety on account of the Graal was a high priority for the Grigori. If she was somehow affected by Caster's summoning, Connor would be the first person they suspected, and Tobio would take him in for questioning with all due haste. He had the means to do it, after all. The fact that he hadn't done so already pointed strongly to the possibility that Valerie was fine and that no one was aware of what Connor did that night.
Caster kept going. "Your buddy at the bar and those Devils seem to believe this Kokabiel guy and his gaggle of goons really are coming to town. If that's the case, can you look me in the eye and tell me you're ready to fight one of them again?"
Connor snorted, resisting the urge to give a silly answer to the silly yet reasonable question. "Like you said, I've still got you, but fair point. Alright, did you have a place where we can do this? Or what it is we can expect?"
"Think about it for a second. Right now, we don't have enough information about what's going on to come up with a workable plan, and sneaking around really isn't the Caster's strong suit. So, out of all the Servant classes I've told you about already, which one do you think is most suitable for gathering information quickly and quietly?"
"That would be the Assassin." The answer was quick, but then Connor's eyes widened slightly. "Wait, have you already got one in mind?"
"Not yet, but give me about a day's prep, and I should have both the catalysts and the summoning location covered. In the meantime, you can start with getting the ritual put together like you did before, then we'll both go over it and see what needs to be fixed before you start. This time, we'll make sure you get it right."
Connor's initial hesitation faded, and the familiar ember of excitement sparked to life in his chest again. He nodded slowly at first but, like a kindling flame, it slowly grew, just like the smile on his face that began to spread.
"Alright… yeah… yeah, you know what? Screw it, let's do this! It's too late to turn back, so let's take this as far as we can and ask questions later! Go big or go home!"
Caster threw his head back and laughed, but not out of teasing or half-hearted scorn like usual. It sounded more proud this time.
…
Done.
Moving into the Excalibur Arc, we've got some more lovely canon divergence.
At first, my approach to this chapter was going to be more like canon in that Asia would be confronted by Xenovia and Irina around the time that they meet with Rias and company. That would've been really forced, however; nothing I could write made sense. Doing it this way seemed more real. Since Asia's not a Devil, just a nun in exile, the two are more accepting of her for the time being, if only slightly. Xenovia in particular would still regard her with a bit of scorn, but she wouldn't go straight to a murderous threat.
I was honestly having trouble deciding whether or not I was going too fast with the last bit here. I've mentioned before that I wanted to bring in up to three Nasuverse Servants to the story, but I hadn't worked out exactly when or how to do that. My sense of pacing is all screwed up now from trying to shift gears, but I think starting that up in the next chapter beats the deus ex machina I had drafted for later in the arc. Plus, I really want to get this next character in here, so there you have it.
Lastly, before anyone says anything about Connor and Asia's relationship, here's the thing. I didn't go into this story with a very clear picture of what I wanted to do with it as far as romance. The only thing that I knew I wanted was for the MC to not initially like the idea of harems. That may change or it may not, I really don't know. Everyone has their own definition of romantic pacing, so let me figure out mine as I go, please.
If you enjoyed what you read, leave a favorite, a follow or a review to let me know. Any advice or support that you could give would be greatly appreciated. If you'd like to take a shot at the challenge listed in chapter 1, send me a PM, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
As always, thank you for reading!
