Fire raged all around as the temple crumbled to pieces. The culprit behind the flames was a blazing figure at the center of this tragedy. Nearby, there was a young girl with long, jet-black hair that cascaded down to her knees, weeping beside the lifeless body of an older woman who bore a striking resemblance to the girl.
The fiery figure, which took on the form of a child, walked towards the girl. The area surrounding them was filled with charred bodies, and the flames encircled the three individuals in a fiery ring. Every step the fiery figure took scorched the wooden floorboards, creating a haunting creaking sound. The noise caught the attention of the girl, who looked up at the fiery figure.
Tears and anger filled the girl's eyes as she glared at the blazing form. "Stay away, monster! I hate you!" she cried out. Her words pierced the heart of the fiery figure, causing it to turn away and flee from the scene. However, even as the fiery figure retreated, the flames in the area continued to protect the circular space, as if the fire possessed a life of its own, a protective energy rather than a destructive one.
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In an abandoned classroom, three individuals had gathered. Among them was a disheveled-looking man and two girls who could easily be considered unattainable beauties by the average student.
No exaggeration was needed. The first girl, positioned near the window, was a beauty with long, black hair and a slender body that exuded an air of sophistication. Many boys who laid eyes on her saw her as the epitome of a "yamato nadeshiko."
The second girl, who appeared somewhat bored as she fidgeted at her desk, drew the attention of the first girl. She possessed a more voluptuous figure but had a cheerful disposition that could brighten any room, akin to an adorable puppy. She was the embodiment of every teenager's fantasy—a kind-hearted, curvaceous girl who naturally captured the gaze of men who beheld her.
These girls, who could be anywhere else enjoying their youth and natural beauty, found themselves in the company of a somewhat disheveled man—that would be me.
If this were a story, I would introduce myself as Hachiman Hikigaya, a second-year student at Sobu High School. Some might describe me as having exotic looks, or so my mom says, as I inherited my distinctive appearance from my father.
I would also mention that these two girls standing in front of me were head over heels in love with me, as if I were the protagonist of one of those crazy harem series where the special-looking guy manages to win the affections of the most popular girls in school. But this is real life, and I'm just a bored guy who decided, out of nowhere, to narrate a day in a club's life, compelled by the educational institution imposed upon us by the corrupt politicians chosen by Japanese society. That's why I'll never forgive the Japanese, even though I am one.
But not everything can be perfect; life is not a harem series. If I ever dared to summon the courage to date the two girls in front of me, I'd probably end up with 15 bullets in my back and tossed into the sea. So, I'm content in my solitary position at the age of 17, well, not really 17 because even a loser like me had a childhood friend in the past. But like a fleeting spring flower, this friendship lasted only a short while, and now I've cut almost all contact with her.
Ah, spring for some ends before it even begins, but don't shed tears for me because I'm happy in my current situation with these two acquaintances in front of me: Yui Yuigahama and Yukino Yukinoshita.
"Hikigaya-kun, would it be too much to ask for you to stop imagining an indecent relationship between us while you stare?" Yukino spoke with indifference, and damn it, I sometimes forget that ice queen can read my mind.
As I was saying, my acquaintance Yui Yuigahama and the ice queen Yukino Yukinoshita.
Ring Ring Ring
Interrupting my internal thoughts, my phone started ringing, and a message appeared on the screen.
"Code 603."
"Girls, I think it's time to disrupt our pleasant tranquility and go to work," I told them with all the enthusiasm that a young man with an old spirit could muster.
"Yes, it's about time," Yui exclaimed joyfully as she got up and shook off her boredom. While doing so, her ample assets bounced with her, diverting my healthy teenage gaze.
"These things are so big; they might have their own gravitational field," I thought as my gaze was involuntarily drawn in that direction.
But a chill ran down my spine, and I quickly snapped out of it, realizing that Yukino was giving me a look that suggested my demise was imminent.
"Yui, don't get too excited; you might wake up the beast in the room," Yukino said as she addressed her friend, putting an end to the hypnotic motion. Part of me was relieved to be released from its grasp, but the other part resented it, and that part always seemed to win in the end, or so I sometimes liked to believe.
"Hikki, you pervert!" Yui's immediate response, as she blushed and covered her gravitational orbs, as if I were the culprit.
But no, gentlemen, this was clearly a conspiracy of the majority to blame the poor minority – that is, me – and receive all the reproachful glares. However, I defended myself by employing one of the 108 skills I had developed throughout my life, and this time, it was skill number 69: Rising and ignoring the glares as I headed for the door. Damn, sometimes I feel like the definition of a Chad.
But ignoring my self-indulgence, I pointed to the two girls behind me and said, "Are you ready to reproach me or to accompany me?" My words were quite clear, and the two girls gathered their things to accompany me out. If this were an adult-only TV show, this would be the signal that we were heading to a love hotel to engage in activities that would have my mother locking me up for being a stud.
Instead, we were going to do something that could be classified as much more fantastical – far more fantastical than the school loser having intercourse with the hottest girls in school that guys used to read about before the isekai trend hit. Damn, that thing got me hooked two years before I climbed out of the abyss.
But getting back to the point – God, sometimes my mind wanders so far from reality that it feels like it's being written by a bored college student. No more distractions, Hachiman. What we were going to do could be considered an isekai if you removed the medieval setting – well, partly, as we retained the medieval age but kept the bathrooms and Max Coffee stands. It was an isekai with extra steps.
"So, Hikigaya-kun, where are we going this time?" Yukino asked again, pulling me out of my fantasy – this time, it was about enjoying a good Max Coffee.
"I caught sight of an undesirable character near the hills, a popular spot for horny students," I told the ice queen honestly because what we were looking for could be found in those places where the reiaju went to exchange various fluids and other things that it was still too early for minors to discuss.
The journey to that place was only possible on foot, or so it was for the common people. I was far too cool to follow the path of the reiaju, and at the same time, I distanced myself from their envious glares. I mean, they would see a guy going to those steamy places with not one but two beauties, instead of just one. For those worms, I'd be a god.
Which I already am, but I don't like to brag, and at the same time, I want to avoid those looks because, unlike them, I am a responsible guy, and my situation doesn't allow for such things. Firstly, the two girls behind me. Two girls who would probably stab me in the hills and bury my body in a place where no one would look, not because it would be hard to find, but because no one would bother. Well, my little sister would probably search for me and find me to hand over to the murderers.
But these two would defend themselves, using their beauty to emerge as innocent, and my corpse would be reviled as a pervert. To avoid that cruel fate, I, Hachiman Hikigaya, will steer clear of that entire situation.
"I think I saw traces of the target to the southeast," Yui interrupted my thoughts once again. I'm starting to realize that I'm way too easily distracted. When I looked to where she was pointing, I noticed my partner with bird-like wings. Well, not bird-like wings because those could be white, but rather, wings more akin to those of a crow. A fantastic creature. No, Hachiman, stop getting distracted and focus.
"The beast hasn't tasted human flesh yet, but given its desperation, it must be getting close," I said, flying alongside her. Unlike Yui and Yukino, who had a pair of black wings each, I possessed the astonishing number of twelve wings. I wasn't just better than those walking reiaju; I could consider myself an angel or something close to it, perhaps a kind of flying human who doesn't sit well with the Almighty and would be struck down by lightning if He were here.
Fortunately, I'm invisible to the Lord of the skies, and no divine lightning has struck me—well, no lightning of the divine kind. Other types of lightning have indeed struck me.
Returning to the point, we flew for a few minutes in the direction Yui had indicated and spotted the target. It was the typical ogre you might find in those board games that my closest thing to a friend, Zaimokuza, plays way too much and forces me to try out.
"Why is an ogre here in Japan, so far from Europe, where its territory is?" was the thought that crossed my mind until I felt a peculiar aura emanating from the beast, which, when I sensed it with my abilities, I recognized immediately.
"Demonic aura, a deviant," I pronounced with great concern. This caused Yukino and Yui to stop in mid-air while I approached the creature and, like a hawk, used my enormous dark wings, as dark as my soul – nah, I've outgrown my edgy phase. Let's go with a description more like a night without stars in the sky.
The motion I made worked to catch the ogre's attention. Like any frenzied beast, its first instinct was to roar at me and lunge with tremendous force, striking me with incredible precision in my side. If I were a regular human, I would have been obliterated. However, instead of exploding, my body was only partially damaged. There was no cause for concern because where my body had been, flames now raged, closing immediately after the blow and leaving me unharmed, as if nothing had happened.
"Surprised, beast? Did you expect me to be like the others who hunted you down and disintegrated upon your strike? Unfortunately for you, I am the consumer of the Mera Mera no Mi, making me a Fire Man," I said with a smile. Of course, this was an obvious lie because this wasn't One Piece, and I hadn't sailed with Luffy and his crew to find the One Piece while gathering my own nakama. Who am I kidding? I'd probably be some random Marine who died at Marineford.
Well, I'd share Ace's fate of dying at Marineford, but the power I had just displayed was somewhat similar, except without the weakness to the sea and haki. What I was showing was the power I had possessed since my tender childhood, proving that my dear old grandpa God didn't hate me so much.
It was a sacred weapon that allowed humans to fight the supernatural, and in my case, it didn't stop there. What I possessed went far beyond that, something people had called "Longinus" because of a certain spear that wounded a certain prophet. Mine was named
"Incinerate Anthem."
But it didn't end there. I was a special boy, apart from my exotic beauty. I had awakened in my base state, something my uncle called a "sub-species," and I named it "Ace," as it allowed me to transform my entire body into a fiery style that strongly resembled a certain character from One Piece. However, my flames were of the normal color, not the purple my uncles claimed was the true color. Thankfully, the power hadn't diminished, and I'd gained some immunity. I could also consume others' flames, but that was from a different anime.
While thinking about all of this, I had received several blows from the ogre, attempting to reduce me to a puddle of goo with its mace. All its strikes failed due to my fiery intangibility.
"Sorry, I got lost in thought again and ignored you. I'll end this quickly," I said to the ogre, who was showing signs of exhaustion from hitting me. I understood; I'd feel the same way if I were up against someone like me.
"Kagero," I calmly pronounced, unleashing a torrent of flames straight at the ogre. It quickly began to be consumed by the flames and soon turned to ashes, albeit not before letting out agonizing screams. If it weren't for the barrier conjured by Yukino in the sky, his cries would have echoed across the entire hill.
"Your barriers have improved, Yukinoshita-san," I said calmly as both women descended from the sky. Tattoos on their hands began to glow as their wings disappeared. The sudden appearance and disappearance of the tattoos might surprise an unsuspecting observer, but for the three of us, it was something we had become accustomed to.
"They should always glow when we activate our wings and deactivate them," Yui remarked while examining her empty hand.
"Yeah, it's necessary because that's where our powers come from, and it's the only way we can appear to be normal humans," I explained matter-of-factly, as if this were an everyday occurrence, which it was.
Yukino and Yui's tattoos were special because they served as proof that they were reincarnated fallen angels and could use their powers. On Yukino's, the kanji for gold shone, and on Yui's, it was silver. These were identifications of their positions, a system that the fallen angels had implemented after the success of the reincarnated demons using chess pieces – in my case, shogi pieces. I had this information because I was somewhat close to the leaders of this race.
"It would be much more convenient if they didn't glow. That way, I wouldn't have to go to a secluded place to use my powers. People might get the wrong idea if they keep seeing us go to remote places," Yukino said, a bit embarrassed by her situation.
"My uncle will probably fix that in the next update, but I can't promise anything because you never know with that man," I replied. However, Yukino gave me a judgmental look.
"Oh, Hikigaya-kun, I thought we had made it clear that if you were going to use fire attacks, they should quickly finish off the enemy and not make them scream in pain."
"I'm sorry, I got so distracted from the battle that I didn't control my fiery attack and didn't disintegrate it in one blow. My bad," was my response. One must accept their mistakes when they occur; that's what distinguishes civilized people from others.
"And using attacks from One Piece..."
"Oh, come on, Yui, the only one who can scold me for that is Oda, and I know that if he knew me, he'd like me as if I were the son he never had. Ace is awesome too," I quickly retorted in response to Yui's embarrassing words.
"It's embarrassing; it's like dating a child," Yukino added, adding fuel to the fire.
"Oh, come on, ladies. If I were your boyfriend, then you could be embarrassed, but since I'm your boss, you have to put up with it," I said, ignoring their blushing faces. I had to maintain the dense character who doesn't notice anything; that's why they hired me.
"They don't pay us; your dad does," Yukino responded, recovering from her embarrassment to counter.
"Details," I replied. As I responded, my phone rang, and upon granting an extension, I checked it. There was a message from a number I didn't even realize I had saved with such a description: "Daddy's Electric Princess."
"I need to see you. Let's meet tomorrow in Kuoh at 6:00 PM. Don't be late, or you'll regret it," the message read, delivered with such coldness that, unlike Yukino's coldness, it had a hint of electricity that reminded me of my childhood friend who cut off all contact with me three years ago because of a certain event.
"Why does she need to see me? I mean, she hasn't wanted to have any contact with me for three years, or was it me who didn't want to have contact with her? Oh damn, I forgot," was the thought that crossed my mind as I tried to remember what caused our estrangement.
I put my hands on my head, attempting to recall the situation that led to me distancing myself from my childhood friend. In my concern, the two girls behind me showed concern too, or at least I liked to imagine that, in order to catch my attention.
"What did your phone say, Hikigaya-kun?" Yukino asked, and I felt so imaginative that I thought there might be a hint of jealousy in her tone. But, obviously, that was just my imagination because, for this woman, I was only her power supplier.
"Nothing important. Unfortunately, tomorrow is Saturday, and I won't be available in the afternoon. I have to go to Kuoh City... If something happens, call me, and I'll come flying. Tell the others if they're meeting tomorrow," I said, trying to change the subject as I raised my wings and began to ascend into the sky toward my home, wondering what this woman wanted.
"Akeno, is it my time to die?" was the thought that crossed my mind as fear filled me. After all, my youth was the best time for love to bloom or for what I think the gods call romantic comedy. But that would be for popular people, as my case was more painful. It would be better referred to as my situation: my romantic comedy as a fallen angel suck, just as I expected.
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Hello everyone, it's me again with another story to try a new style of narration and see if you like it.
This is going to be more humorous and cynicical than the story in One Piece.
This is because Hachiman is a fallen angel, not a marine and therefore will be closer to his canon personality.
I hope you like it and if you have questions, let me know in the comments