Issei, the true Dragon of the Apocalypse (translated into English)

by Jyanzein

[Issei x Tiamat/Penemue/Ross/Ophis] How much would a world change where the supernatural existed, and Angels behaved like Angels, Fallen Angels behaved like Fallen Angels, and Demons... behaved like Demons ? Issei has barely entered the world of the Factions, so he can't answer that question. But he will quickly find the answer. WARNING: sexual scenes and explicit violence.

71. Chapter 70: The twilight of tomorrow

Here I am with a new translated chapter!

This new update took me some time, since it's a really long chapter.

It never hurts to say that this is a translation, so there might be some mistakes. I apologize in advance for that, and I hope such mistakes are not annoying enough to annoy the reading.

Now it's time to get started.

Enjoy!

The Asgard infirmary was in complete silence due to the fact that there were only two patients in that place.

The blurred and confused vision of one of the patients began to become clearer amidst all the gloom of his unconsciousness. The first clear visual flash his eyes obtained was the white ceiling.

"What...?" Issei tried to move, but the word tried was key.

His teeth pulled away sharply as he felt every fiber of his body ache, especially the arm he had tried to move.

"What the hell?" Issei looked down at himself carefully, and there he could tell that his left arm was on some kind of machine completely in a cast, while the rest of his body didn't seem to be doing too well either.

"Somehow I knew this would end badly..." Issei thought with a bored look after lifting the sheets a bit, seeing that almost his entire body was bandaged, especially his abdomen.

"If I do a little force, I feel like I'm going to fucking die." Issei thought with his eyes rolling after remembering that a not exactly small piece of ice had pierced his abdomen. "I wonder why that is...?" He said rhetorically to himself.

His deductions of how shitty he was stopped after feeling a finger tap his exposed shoulder.

"Are you awake yet?" Ophis asked, not stopping her action.

"Ehh... I guess so?" Issei replied with a blank stare after the Goddess' strange actions.

"I'm glad." She said, pausing to give him a tiny smile. "It's already been a day since your victory. Surely the others are about to arrive."

"That's right, how is Rossweisse?" Issei asked with clear concern.

"She's fine. Well, within the meaning of being fine..." The Goddess stated with some hesitation, getting Issei to look at her in confusion. "When you were hospitalized, she made a big fuss to stay by your side. Even Penemue and Tiamat had to force her out so they wouldn't interrupt your treatment."

"Hehehe, I can imagine the situation." Issei couldn't help but laugh.

It was so good to see that everything was back to normal for the Valkyrie.

Then, at that moment she noticed something important.

"Wait a minute, did they have to hospitalize me?" Issei asked with wide eyes.

"You almost lost your arm, but they did a great job." Ophis held up his thumb, getting Issei to sweat slightly.

"You know, at first I thought about asking you why you didn't heal me. But considering everything you've already done for us it would be too many demands..." Issei stated as he rubbed his hair.

"My healing can carry against very negative effects to anyone but me, so it wasn't a good idea. And as for helping Rossweisse, you honestly don't have to thank me." She clarified with a simple bow of her shoulders.

"Don't say that. The fact that you decided to go into such a dangerous and far-fetched plan B is more than enough to thank you for. Luckily we didn't have to go that far..." Issei breathed a small sigh of relief at the last point, not noticing Ophis' gaze harden slightly.

"When everything started..." Issei raised his gaze after hearing how the Goddess began to speak. "I had nowhere to go, and I lost myself in the emptiness inside me. I remember in my early years I didn't understand anything about myself, the only thing I could understand was that infinite nothingness expanding inside of me and that was the only real thing I had left to feel."

"Ophis..." Issei said with sadness in his voice after hearing her words, but the Goddess didn't stop there.

"I was confused. All I ever did was look everywhere only to find looks of fear and disapproval. So, those things made me wonder: Who am I? What do I have besides negativity? Because I can't justify the way everyone looks at me. I was always lost, empty and alone." Ophis clasped her hands a little, demonstrating a more serious look than usual.

"But still, I never stopped my search. I always searched for a way to heal, to feel. I want to release the loneliness I kept all this time. Eliminate that emptiness that still hasn't gone away. I want to heal, I want to feel, I want to be close to that real thing I've been trying to find for so long: a place to belong." Ophis put a hand to her chest, feeling a little strange after communicating her regrets to one person.

"I'll never know myself if I don't do this. And I will never feel anything but emptiness until my loneliness has healed. I will never be anything, until I face myself. I will face, I will break, and I will rebuild myself by being near you, by being near them." Ophis finished, and at that moment she couldn't help but blink in some amazement as she felt Issei's hand caress her cheeks.

He was doing that to remove the tears that came out without her consent.

In fact, she herself saw her hands in surprise as she felt something coming out of her eyes.

"If it causes pain to you, why are you telling me all this?" Issei consulted her carefully as he continued to comfort her with his caresses.

"Because Rossweisse went through the same thing." Issei couldn't help but be surprised at such an answer. "She may not have traveled the same way as mine, but we both had to face the same enemy: loneliness." Ophis lowered her head a little and closed her eyes to feel even more the caresses on her cheek. "But now that I think about it, maybe she had it easier since she was always next to that God, plus before Thor isolated her, she had more people. She probably knows another feeling besides loneliness, something I've never experienced..."

"That's not true." Issei's statement made Ophis look at him with great surprise.

The protagonist widened his smile at the woman's reaction, then rested his hand on her head.

"You have shown a lot of empathy after all." He concluded as he began to stroke her head, getting Ophis to widen her eyes slightly.

"Empathy?" She looked doubtful, but still paid close attention.

"Empathy is the capacity to understand and share the feelings of others. It's true that in this case you both went through similar things, but the fact that you can reflect your problems back to her and feel regret for it makes you a wonderful woman. It makes you someone who is so much more than just a nothing. In fact, it makes you someone much better than a lot of people." Issei gave her a toothy smile after his words and ruffled her hair, managing to make the Goddess blink in disbelief.

"Is that true?" She thought aloud, causing Issei to pause.

"Of course! You're a sweetheart!" He exclaimed with a toothy grin, and this time Ophis wasn't surprised, she blushed.

"Do you like me the way I am?" She caught Issei's hand with her own, giving him a rather tender view of the man who was taking her heart.

"Of course I do. We may have had some problems when we first met, but I always thought you were someone lovely." He replied without hesitation, managing to make Ophis' blush increase even more.

This time, she didn't say a word. She just moved closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder with unparalleled tenderness.

It was a rather cute action, so Issei couldn't help but smile fondly at her.

END OF ARC-CHAPTER 70: THE TWILIGHT OF TOMORROW.

"Even Great Red needs to eat to maintain his existence. So open your mouth." Ophis poked the chopsticks over Issei's lips, making Issei sweat.

"I understand, but I'm telling you again, I can do it on my own, I really can." Issei tried to convince the Goddess, but she held a completely unchanging look and that only indicated that she was not going to give in.

Finally, Issei had no choice but to accept the Goddess' gesture, and the minutes passed.

The first rays of light were present, and with them came two new visitors.

"You're awake already!" Tiamat's worried look changed instantly after seeing Issei.

She ran to hug him tightly, but was stopped in mid-air by Penemue right at the last second.

"Have you already forgotten the condition he's in?" Cadre stated with a dangerous look, causing the Dragoness to rub her arm in slight embarrassment.

"You're right, I'm sorry." She apologized, earning a smile from Issei and a snort from Penemue.

Tiamat sat down next to him and took his hand very carefully.

"Congratulations, you did it." She gave him a big beaming smile that was instantly answered by Issei.

"If it hadn't been for you girls, I would never have been able to get where I am now." Issei was sincere with both women who were looking at him proudly.

At that sight surrounding him, Issei's smile softened a little.

"I know I've said it many times, but thank you for taking so much of your valuable time to help me with my training." Issei stated, causing Penemue to hand him a smile.

"You have become a formidable warrior, Issei." Cadre declared, drawing everyone's attention. "You were even able to master Tiamat's technique and mine in such a complicated and decisive moment as that..." Penemue closed her eyes and folded her arms, widening her smile a little more.

"I'm so proud of you."

Being that Issei had always been known for being a very insecure person about himself, he had to say that those words gave him a rush of confidence and satisfaction that he had rarely felt in his life.

Most likely it was especially due to the one who had said it to him. After all, Penemue was not a person who was known for giving compliments, far from it.

That he knew very well, and that was why he felt truly pleased.

"Thank you very much, mistress!" Issei exclaimed with a toothy smile, getting Penemue to reply with a nod.

"I'm very proud too!" Tiamat exclaimed, squeezing his hand a little to convey the affection she felt for him. "In fact, you don't know how happy I was to see you use my ability."

The Dragoness lifted her gaze and she lost herself in her somewhat distant memories when she first met Issei.

"I remember when I first showed it to you. I remember that your magic reserves were really poor and you were far from being able to achieve something like that..."

"Personally, I don't think anything is impossible." A challenging smile adorned Issei's face after saying those words, something that confused Tiamat. "For that very reason, you'd better be prepared for when I manage to surpass you."

"Ehhh?" She sneered with her gaze. "You still think you can win that bet? You're so stubborn."

"I wonder who made me this way." Issei bowed his shoulders, getting a chuckle from Tiamat.

"Are you calling me stubborn?" The dragoness frowned her pretty brow to feign annoyance.

"I'd like to continue talking to you, but we have a lot of things to do. You know, tomorrow is Monday and I think all of us have some explaining to do. Especially you, Issei." Declared the Cadre returning to her typical serious expression, getting Issei a little nervous.

"Now that I remember, I may find myself in serious trouble."

"For all we know, your buchou was humiliated by her cousin. She is most likely more irritating than ever now." The Cadre stated, earning a glare from Tiamat.

"Wait, I still want to talk to him about..."

"No time for that." Penemue grabbed her by the hair and pulled her towards the door to Issei's stunned gaze and Ophis' unconcerned one.

"See you when you get out of the hospital." The woman closed the door, and at that moment a silence arose between Issei and Ophis.

A silence that didn't last long.

"Ouch!" Issei groaned as the chopsticks with noodles hit his cheek.

"Open your mouth." The Goddess commanded in her typical stoic tone.

"Hey...!" Tiamat complained as she grabbed her battered hair. "Why did you do that?! I just wanted to talk to him about what I saw yesterday!"

"I know, that's why I pulled you out." Penemue replied matter-of-factly, earning Tiamat's attention. "It's weird for me to say, but I agree with Azazel. Issei just barely woke up from a battle where he almost died and his body is really hurt. It's best if we don't fill his head with questions and let him rest until he can recover."

"But..." Tiamat lowered her head with slight sadness.

Penemue watched this, feeling some empathy for the Dragoness.

"I understand that you want to tell him about his possible parentage with the Dragons. But it's best to keep quiet for the moment." Penemue approached her and positioned a hand on her shoulder.

Tiamat raised her gaze, and her surprise showed as Penemue gave her a small, but warm smile.

"I can see that you are very excited at the idea of Issei belonging to the same species as you. I'm just asking you to wait a little longer. Besides, we still don't know what kind of procedure we should do." She explained, and the dragoness seemed to understand.

"I see you are here early." Dulio commented, who appeared wearing a doctor's gown. "How is my special client?"

"He's awake already." Penemue replied, earning a nod from the Angel.

"Very well, that's good. I'll need to run a couple of diagnostics on him and explain certain things, so I'll need to be alone for a few minutes." Both women nodded and left.

As for Ophis, it was a little difficult to get them to convince her, but finally Issei managed to convince her when he said he would buy some candy for her tomorrow.

Dulio told him how the procedure had gone and the reason they had called him. Issei had to be a little scared by the latter, since the Angel had made it clear to him that he was the best doctor in the world and if it wasn't for him his arm would have been completely lost. He also told him about the different incisions, magical treatments and other things they had to do to his body so that it could withstand the numerous operations.

At that moment, Issei realized that he had been a lot more screwed up than he thought, and if it hadn't been for Dulio's help, maybe his body wouldn't have a chance to recover to the fullest.

"Well, that's it..." God declared, dematerializing his diagnostic tablet. "I have only one more thing left to tell you. Due to the condition of your body, the possibility of using your Sacred Gear is practically nil. You will have to wait for your body to fully recover and that will take about 2 months."

Dulio adjusted his glasses, putting on a serious look for the first time in the entire conversation.

"That means you won't be doing any physical activity for the next two months."

Those last words made Issei's eyes widen in shock.

"But...!"

"No buts." Dulio interrupted him. "Right now I can discharge you, but certainly your body couldn't withstand an overload in such a state. In the worst scenario, you could even die." The man stated with great seriousness, and Issei had no choice but to accept what the man said.

Seeing that the protagonist came to his senses, Dulio smiled.

"I have to do some final checks on you. But I can assure you that in a few hours you'll be free to go." The man stated, earning a nod from Issei.

"I understand, thank you for everything."

After saying goodbye to the Angel, minutes passed where Issei was completely static.

Before he started with the supernatural, the brown was not a person who liked to move around much. In fact, he was more than happy as long as he had to move as little as possible.

For that very reason it was quite funny to see how all that idle feeling had completely changed in him and now he couldn't help but feel stressed out simply by being still and with no one to talk to.

To his luck, that quickly changed when the door opened. And this time, there was no Penemue to stop what was about to happen.

"Issei!" Rossweisse cried and jumped on the bed to give him a big hug, causing Issei to widen his eyes at such a sudden act.

"Ross?" Was all he could say as he continued to be stunned.

"I see you're finally awake." Vali stated, leaning against the door as he stood with his arms crossed.

"I thought I wouldn't be getting any more visitors for today." Issei thought aloud with a smile.

"The reality is that I was quite busy, but I felt that I should come after...well...everything that..." Rossweisse couldn't help but get rather shy as she broke away from him and averted her gaze numerous times. "I just wanted to thank you..."

"There's nothing to thank, you know I'm always going to support you." It was the simple reply from Issei, who delivered a toothy smile, managing to make the beautiful woman blush even more.

But before that conversation could make the Valkyrie any more nervous, Issei remembered certain key things.

"By the way, did the old man already arrange the whole marriage thing for you to break it off?" Issei's question made Rossweisse return to her usual expression.

"You mean Lord Odin? I already asked him to do all that. He wanted to come see you, but since you left Thor armless and crippled..." Rossweisse slowly fell silent, watching Issei's eyes widen slightly.

"Shit..." Was all he could say. "I mean, I don't regret anything. But I understand perfectly well that it must be a hard thing for him. Even if he's a complete idiot, he's still his son." Issei added as an afterthought, receiving a nod from the Valkyrie.

"Don't worry about it. Lord Odin understands the circumstances more than anyone, and he's partly grateful to you for giving Thor a lesson of reality." She tried to comfort Issei, something that seemed to work.

Seeing that her task had worked, the Valkyrie continued to explain.

"To be honest with you, I must leave now. I still have to talk to Tiamat and Penemue about everything that happened lately. I need their approval." Issei could only look at her with great confusion, but he didn't even have time to ask, as Rossweisse gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before disappearing through a magic circle.

"Wait a minute, why does she need to consult these things with Tiamat and Penemue?" Issei couldn't help but wonder, earning a small mocking laugh from Vali.

"Even though you've spent so much time around women, you still can't understand them one bit." The albino added amusedly, then widened his eyes. "Or you just don't want to understand."

"What the hell does that mean?" Issei couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at his rival's "unobvious" insinuation.

"I'm just saying you're still a jerk." Vali walked over and sat down next to him, earning a bad look from Issei.

"Did you come just to insult me?" The protagonist complained, causing the albino to grin.

"Actually, I wanted to congratulate you. You did a great job over there." Vali stated with a smile.

"Hehe, I'm sure I can defeat you now. If only I could use my Sacred Gear..." Issei declared with an air of smugness.

"You're still far inferior, Issei." Vali stated matter-of-factly, gaining Issei's attention. "But, I hope you recover quickly to have a real battle between us." He concluded, getting the protagonist to smile at him.

"I'll be looking forward to it too." Issei raised his hand to shake it with Vali.

Several hours later...

Tiamat, Penemue and Rossweisse were in one of the many spas in Kuoh, where delicate towels covered their beautiful bodies. The first two were relaxing while the last one was more serious than usual.

"It's not that I dislike being with you, but I don't have much time today and tomorrow will be a very hectic day..." Penemue clarified, then opening her eyes and focusing her gaze on the Valkyrie.

"So I would like you to tell us why you summoned us so urgently here, Rossweisse."

"To tell the truth, I also very intrigued." Tiamat stated, who focused her gaze on the aforementioned.

"Relax, this won't take much of your time. In fact, I'll be as direct as possible." Declared the Valkyrie solemnly, then dropped the bombshell bluntly.

"I'm in love with Issei."

Both women looked at her with slightly widened eyes at her statement.

"Not only that. I want to be with him, and I will do everything I can to make it happen." The Valkyrie concluded without hesitation, managing to stun her two friends even more.

"All right. But why are you telling this to us?" Penemue was the first to snap out of her astonishment, although she still looked quite surprised.

"Don't play dumb, you know perfectly well why I'm telling you." Rossweisse clarified instantly. "I know perfectly well that you two are as much in love with him as I am. For that very reason I wanted to warn you, since I also consider you two my best friends and I wouldn't want any conflict to be created between us." After these words, Tiamat would laugh loudly.

That fact was an action that caught the attention of the other two women.

"Don't worry! In fact, I can assure you that we are very happy that you have decided this!" the dragoness clarified with a toothy smile on her face.

"As I had told you before, we know that Issei is somewhat hurt by his past experiences and that's exactly why we were looking for someone to make him happy. And to be honest with you, I think you are more than perfect." The Cadre stated, giving the Valkyrie a smile.

"Wait a minute... So you're not going to get angry or annoyed?" Rossweisse asked rather astonished.

"Of course I'm annoyed." Tiamat replied instantly.

They both didn't miss that droopy look on the dragoness' face.

"If Issei gets a mate, I know things can't be like before. I know everything will be a lot harder between you, me and Issei. Probably one of the things I'll miss the most is sleeping next to him. Yes, that would hurt me a lot, but..." Tiamat lifted her gaze, giving her a cute smile.

That smile seemed to be intended to hide that pain as she always did...

But Rossweisse could very easily see through that fake smile.

"As long as my best friend and the person I love most in this world can be eternally happy, that pain is just a small splinter stuck in me that I'll have to deal with!"

Rossweisse was silent for a few seconds, then looked at Penemue.

"...Do you think the same?" She asked her, receiving a nod from the Cadre.

Rossweisse couldn't help but let out a small sigh, then turned away.

"I'm glad everything ended well between us." The Valkyrie declared as she walked out of the Spa, but her gaze hardened just as she delivered one last look to those two women who were her best friends.

Then, one last thought crossed her mind in those moments:

"But once I can be together with Issei, I'll make sure we'll all be happy together!"

In the evening of that same day...

After Dulio discharged him, the first target location for Issei was the apartment of a certain Cadre who had asked him to come visit her as soon as possible.

"Luckily my legs didn't receive that much damage..." Issei thought with relief when he rang the doorbell.

Penemue invited him in, and his surprise was not long in coming when he saw that Azazel was also on the site.

"If you're both here, I guess this is more serious than usual." Issei commented to the two present.

"It's nothing serious." Azazel waved his hand dismissively to disdainfully dismiss it. "First of all, I'd like to congratulate you on what you've done. Actually, I'm sure you're not entirely aware of the great accomplishment you made." Azazel clarified at last, earning a coy smile from Issei.

"Come on, it's not that big of a deal..." He rubbed his hair, trying to downplay his great accomplishment.

"Anyway, I certainly didn't come here just to congratulate you." Cadre declared, fixing his unconcerned gaze on the woman. "Penemue will have to leave for three days. Apparently, the Greek Gods want an ambassador who belongs to the Biblical Factions to find out if the humans started focusing on the beliefs of old once again."

"The Greek Gods? Now that you mention it, I had heard from Penemue that they had locked themselves away on a mere whim since their believers disappeared..." Issei commented to himself, remembering that somewhat distant talk he and Penemue have had.

"As far as I'm concerned, they're like wayward children." Penemue declared. "Since that time they always demand these types of meetings to find out about the outside world, and they won't leave their stupid floating mountain for anything in the world. They didn't even help in the battle against the Trihexa. They're fucking brainless." La Cadre spat at last with great annoyance.

"Unfortunately, you're the only ambassador who came to their call these last thousand years. Knowing them well, they won't want anyone else unless there really is no other option." Azazel stated matter-of-factly, earning a click of the tongue from Penemue.

"Preferred ambassador? Maybe so, since that stupid old depraved fool always tries to outdo me every time I go. I'm just warning you that they all got weaker and weaker as the years went by, so, if he does anything strange, I'm going to rip him to shreds." Declared the woman with a solemn tone.

"Ya, ya...I don't think he's that much of an idiot to over provoke you." Azazel chuckled, then focused his gaze on Issei. "Basically we did this meeting so you would know that she'll be away for the next three days. I'm also here because I wanted to ask you for a favor."

These last words caught Issei's attention.

"And what is it about?" The protagonist asked with interest.

"Can you lend me your katana for a few days?" That request rather surprised Issei. "You see, I noticed in this last month that this weapon of yours is much more special than I thought, even being a gift from God himself. It is for that reason that I want to study it."

"I knew this would happen at some point." Penemue couldn't help but give a small sigh as she folded her arms. "In fact, I find it surprising that you took so long to ask him." She concluded, focusing her gaze on Azazel.

"It would have been very impolite to ask him for it while he was training like crazy. For that reason I think this time is more than opportune." The Cadre gave his reasons, though Penemue continued to give him that unfriendly look.

Azazel could only give a small sigh at this.

"Very well, very well!" Azazel snorted. "I promise to treat the katana like a queen!"

Penemue seemed to lower her suspicions after those words, and her softened look showed it.

"All right, I trust you." The Cadre gave Issei a small nod, indicating that there would be no problems.

Issei returned the gesture and quickly summoned his katana with sheath included, handing it to Azazel.

"I promise it's in good hands, brat." Azazel declared with a half-smile.

"Then, I guess I should be going." Issei fixed his gaze on Penemue, giving him a small smile. "Have a safe journey!" The protagonist reached out to shake hands with the Cadre, so his surprise was great when she tugged his arm and enclosed him in a tight hug.

"Be careful." Were her simple words as she hugged him tighter, making Issei smile at the affection shown to him by that woman who apparently lacked emotions, according to the opinion of many.

Azazel just nodded at the sight, feeling happy to see two of his precious people getting along so well.

That cute moment was broken after a few seconds when Penemue kissed him goodbye on the cheek to Issei's embarrassment and Azazel's laughter.

"This scene made me remember old times..." Declared the Fallen Angel with some nostalgia as he remembered Ludmiel.

"Azazel, you know you are one of the people I trusted the most." Those words took the Cadre by surprise, who saw how Penemue wore a rather worried expression.

"Please, take care of him."

Azazel looked somewhat taken aback by this, but finally smiled.

"Don't worry, I won't let them get any scratches on him. Or well, at least, no more than he already has."

Meanwhile, with Issei...

"I'm back!" Issei shouted, then opted for a bored look. "Well, it's not like anyone's waiting for me in this house anyway..." He concluded to himself, climbing the stairs with some difficulty.

The protagonist laid his head back on the pillow very carefully, feeling his whole body finally relax.

"So this is what it feels like to be shitty? I really don't wish it on anyone..." Issei thought with his eyes rolling, as he felt like an 80 year old man at the moment.

Those somewhat sad thoughts were completely diverted when he felt someone crawl under his sheets without his consent.

At that moment, he remembered something crucial.

"It's true, for a long time now there has always been a person waiting for me..."

That joyful thought of Issei's became a reality when a beautiful light blue hair and a wonderful face blinding with happiness came into view.

"Finally we sleep together again!" Tiamat purred with great joy as she snuggled next to him with great care, making sure not to hurt him.

The next day...

In the end, Issei could not get out of the Academy and had to go because his parents were on a business trip and for obvious reasons were not aware of his current condition.

Besides that, he really had to go to solve certain "problems".

Somehow he was able to spare himself the explanations with Matsuda and Motohama, stating that it was a very long story and he preferred to tell it when he felt like it. Or in language the readers would understand: basically he couldn't come up with a convincing enough lie for everything that had happened to him, and so he fled from any kind of debate.

Finally, the hours passed and the Academy was over. Issei somehow managed to get by in all the classes, though he knew perfectly well the reason he had come.

Right now, he was talking to that reason, while being spied by two very familiar men in the distance.

"What could he be talking to Rias about?" Wondered Matsuda, who was hidden behind a wall along with Motohama.

"I haven't the slightest idea, I guess it'll be club stuff or something." Replied the bespectacled man, then focusing his gaze on the bald man.

"Don't you think Issei was facing a lot of problems lately?" Motohama consulted him, receiving a quick nod from Matsuda.

"Actually, I feel bad for him..." Both friends lowered their heads, feeling quite empathetic for Issei.

But that didn't last much longer, as Motohama was quick to raise his gaze as a spotlight came on over his head.

"Hey..." A somewhat strange smile emerged on the four-eyed man. "And what do you say we...give him some kind of help with a certain female teacher who holds him in high regard?"

Matsuda initially looked rather taken aback by his friend's words, but quickly opted for a smile to match his own.

"I think it's an excellent idea..." The bald man declared, only for both of them to then start giggling in a strange manner at the same time as they slowly hid their faces behind the wall.

Oblivious to all this, Issei continued his apology to Rias, and incredibly everything was going very well.

It was even a little suspicious...

"I told you not to worry, I understand perfectly!" The redhead exclaimed with a smile, then looked at Issei with some embarrassment. "In fact, I should be the one to apologize for those things I said the last time we met."

"Don't worry about it, Buchou!" Issei exclaimed with a smile. "I'm sure you were just as upset as I was, though we each had our own concerns."

"So, is everything okay between us?" Rias asked with a smile.

"Of course!" Issei exclaimed with a smile, raising his hand to shake it with Rias', but his surprise was clear when she greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.

A surprise he evidently didn't find very pleasant.

"Still, I want you to make it up to me, even if it's just a little!" Rias exclaimed with a cute smile. "Tomorrow, after school!"

Issei knew he couldn't get rid of the whole thing so easily. But if he just had to hang out with her, then it really wasn't a problem, so he was quick to nod.

Meanwhile, Matsuda and Motohama had infiltrated the female teachers' lockers in dark clothing of dubious provenance.

"Are you sure this is her locker?" Asked Matsuda, who was trying to open the lock with a paperclip.

"There's no doubt in my mind. I think so..."

"Which one?!" The bald man groaned, but just then he managed to open the locker, noticing that there were quite a few stuffed animals.

"Wow, I didn't expect Miss Penemue to have that kind of taste..." Motohama stated with genuine surprise upon seeing the locker so colorful.

"You know, a lot of times rough women secretly like to be like that." Replied the bald man to him matter-of-factly as he placed a love letter in the locker.

"Well, all that's left to do is wait until Wednesday when I get back."

They both walked out into the hallway on their tiptoes, and upon making sure no one had spotted them, the two gave each other a toothy grin and a thumbs up.

"Mission to make Issei happy: accomplished!"

An hour later...

"I can't believe that bastard Sirzechs kept us for an hour! I was a breath away from giving him the beating of his life!" Tiamat snorted in clear annoyance as she opened her locker, being joined by Rossweisse.

"Well, I understand if they're a little upset. After all, Issei defied Rias' orders to rescue me." Declared the Valkyrie, who saw all this fuss as quite normal.

"I wish I had half of your patience..." Tiamat couldn't help but sigh, but her attention was drawn away as she saw how Rossweisse was reading a letter.

"What's that?" The dragoness approached curiously, but before she could read anything, Rossweisse put it away in her pocket.

"Sorry, I have to go ahead now." The Valkyrie ran off with a big smile, something that quite missed Tiamat.

"I know it's fake, but this opportunity is perfect!" She thought to herself as she finally reached the door of the large building.

It had been a while, so there was no one hanging around the Academy grounds, everyone was at their respective clubs.

And when she saw Issei walking alone with a large cart covered in decorations, she knew there was no better possibility than this.

"I can't believe the year-end party will be tomorrow." Issei paused, watching as the few clouds in the sky calmly passed by.

"The Academy went by really fast. I most likely got that feeling from all the time I was doing other things..." The protagonist said to himself as he rubbed his hair, remembering how his whole adventure started.

Issei was very lost in his memories, so he couldn't notice how a certain Valkyrie was approaching him. For that very reason, his surprise was absolute when arms wrapped around his back and enclosed him in a nice hug.

Issei instantly realized who it was thanks to the woman's distinctive scent, but that only made him even more confused.

"Rossweisse?" Issei inquired instantly, though it didn't take long for him to respond to the hug when he clasped his hand in hers.

Ross rested her chin on the head of her future lover's as she looked very happy.

"Yes, I do." They were the woman's only words, and it only confused Issei even more.

"Excuse me?" He asked, not understanding anything that was going on.

Rossweisse broke off in a sudden way, only to turn around until she was facing him rather prettily, revealing a love letter between her hands.

"I want to go on a date with you."

Those words made Issei's brain stop working.

In that short circuit, his mind was able to process a few words.

"Something is wrong..." He said aloud to himself, but Rossweisse didn't seem to mind.

"I'll see you tomorrow after school!" She gave him a big smile, making Issei finally react. "I'll be waiting for you at the square!"

Rossweisse left without giving Issei time to explain himself, or rather, understand what the hell is going on.

The brown-haired man stood staring at where Rossweisse was standing before as a silent blizzard accompanied him.

Finally, his brain was able to formulate the key question.

"What-what just happened...?" He thought with a poker face.

"Hm!" Ddraig nodded to himself with much excitement. "Looks like this is going to get very interesting!"

In the evening...

"Hey, it's been a while since we last went to the Family Realm..." Tiamat commented as she circled her finger over the protagonist's bandaged chest.

As was customary, they were both lying on the same bed.

"Do you want to go back? I thought that place brought back bad memories for you." Issei stated with some surprise in his words.

"To be honest, I can only remember the good times we had together." She Said with great sincerity. "Besides, I don't only want to go back to relive those first beautiful moments. I also want to know how our dragon friends who were together with us when you were training are doing."

"That's right, it's been a long time since we went there..." Issei looked somewhat worried as he thought about how the 3 dragons would be. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to go. I made a promise with the Buchou and to be honest, I would also like to participate in the festival. You know, we spent quite a while to decorate the whole Club and I plan to enjoy it, even a little bit."

"Very well, I understand." She nodded and took the opportunity to nestle her face on her future lover's chest.

She closed her eyes, then spoke her last words.

"I'll send them a greeting from you."

Elsewhere in Kuoh, Rias was sitting at her counter as she watched the whole place fully decorated. As was customary, she would reflect a completely satisfied expression upon seeing her work completed.

But evidently, that was not the case.

In fact, she remained with a rather annoyed expression while rubbing her cheek for some strange reason.

"If it wasn't for that idiot..." The redhead couldn't help but spit out with great venom as certain memories from the previous day came back to haunt her.

"PLAF!"

The sound of the slap echoed throughout the Gremory mansion along with Rias' scream as she fell to the floor with the chair included.

She raised her face, fearful as she saw how her brother was looking at her with an expression she had never seen on him before.

"You only had one job..." Sirzechs said quietly with a sinister face covered in anger.

"YOU ONLY HAD ONE DAMN JOB!" The Demon King raised his hand to hit her again, causing the redhead to close her eyes in great fear.

But in the end, the blow never came.

Sirzechs' ragged breathing was the most audible, indicating that he was trying to regain his composure.

"But what bothers me the most, is that you lied to me." The Demon King sat back down to take his face in unparalleled frustration. "You had said you got close to him, that you already had him under your control, and now I'm faced with all this, how the fuck are you going to explain it to me?"

Silence took over the room as the Gremory family watched this in complete silence.

Receiving no response from the fearful Rias, Sirzechs grew even angrier.

"RESPOND MEEEEEE!" The Demon cracked the table with a single blow, causing his sister to cover her face in great fear.

"I promise to fix it! Just give me three days, no, even less!" She cried, in a desperate attempt to earn her brother's forgiveness. "I promise I'll fix it!"

"Until the festival." Rias raised her stunned gaze after hearing her brother's words.

"I'll give you time until the festival." He clarified, holding his sinister face all the while.

"Yes! I promise that...!"

"But I warn you..." Sirzechs raised his hand to point at her, interrupting her in the process.

"If you fail me again, the consequences will be severe."

After remembering those last words, the headache in Rias' head deepened.

"Why is it so complicated to seduce a brainless fucker?! I'm even sure that if it hadn't been for the threat of that crazy dragoness it would have been all easier!" Rias gave a big sigh, knowing that regretting about the past wouldn't bring anything good.

"I made a bad decision. If I had told my brother back then about the threat, maybe I wouldn't be in this situation right now. As it stands now, he will most likely take my words as an excuse and another lie to try to save me." Rias gave a big sigh, then became very serious.

"I guess I have no choice but to go all in..."

The next day...

After making much of the way to the Academy, Tiamat could tell that Issei was somewhat distant.

"Is there something bothering you?" The Dragoness asked with the intention of finding out what was going on with him.

"Don't you think Rossweisse is acting a little strange?" Issei answered her with another question, making Tiamat confused at what she heard. "I mean, she played a bit of a strange joke on me yesterday..." Issei explained instantly, gaining even more of the woman's attention.

"What kind of prank did she play?" Asked the dragoness rather interestedly.

"Well, she asked me out on a date." Issei couldn't help but feel somewhat embarrassed after saying that.

The Dragoness looked somewhat surprised at first, but her expression quickly changed.

"If you ask me, I don't think it's a joke." Was Tiamat's simple reply, catching Issei's attention.

Before he could answer her, the woman waved her hand and said goodbye to him.

"I'd like to keep talking, but I have a few things to prepare before class." The dragoness said with a cute smile as she walked through the gate at a brisk pace.

"Now the two are joking with me?" Issei couldn't help but wonder with a roll of his eyes.

"OE, ISEEEE!"

The brown-haired man was tackled by his two friends as they hugged him by the neck, causing him to wobble a bit from his condition.

"We noticed you looking a little hyped up, is something going on?" Matsuda asked with his goofy grin.

"Something strange is going on. Yesterday Rossweisse showed up with a love letter that was supposedly delivered by me, saying she agreed to go on a date with me..." The brown-haired man declared, showing his confusion in every word.

At that moment, Matsuda and Motohama's expressions changed completely.

"Shit, I knew that wasn't her locker, you idiot!" Matsuda reproached Motohama instantly, earning a quizzical look from Issei.

"You have to look on the bright side! The result ended up being successful anyway, and on top of that the prize comes a couple of days early!" Motohama exclaimed somewhat hysterically, causing the bald man to stop immediately.

Meanwhile, Issei seemed to understand perfectly what was going on right now.

"Now that you mention it, you're damn right..." Matsuda commented in mumbles while rubbing his chin.

But the two were unable to continue with their conclusions, as a very angry Issei emerged behind them.

"You guys...!" Issei exclaimed as he waved his one hand in a strange way, as if he wanted to strangle them. "What the fuck did you guys do?!"

"Come on, bro!" Matsuda slapped him hard on the back. "It's no big deal!"

"In fact, you should be grateful." Motohama clarified as he adjusted his glasses. "You got a date with a beautiful woman."

"Actually, I'm sure from her reaction she must have taken it all as a joke..." Issei was about to continue talking, but a message rang his cell phone.

His two friends looked over his shoulder with interest, and at that moment there were multiple reactions.

"I'm looking forward to this afternoon!"

The problem was not Rossweisse's message, but the photo. In it you could see that she was winking and lying down in her underwear, so her huge cleavage was on display.

Poor Matsuda went flying from the nosebleed, Motohama's glasses shattered and the protagonist fell backwards to the ground.

It was definitely not going to be a normal afternoon for Hyoudou Issei.

He was obviously nervous and confused throughout the hours, so at no point did he remember the duty he had with Rias.

That only became more apparent when the Academy ended.

Issei was heading out towards the square not knowing what to really do, until Rias' call distracted him.

"Issei, where are you?" The redhead's voice made the brown-haired man more stressed than he already was.

"Sorry, I completely forgot. In fact, something life and death came up right now." Issei described it as he felt the situation right now, but Rias only seemed to care about one detail.

"What?! You're going to leave me stranded when we're already dating!" She sounded really annoyed.

Just as Issei was about to answer her, a certain Valkyrie hugged him very tightly, gaining the attention of the people passing by.

"Sorry, I have to go." Issei cut off the call just as Rias was about to start complaining again.

And just at that moment, he could notice the beautiful dress Rossweisse had chosen for this event.

"After all these years of waiting, I finally have a real date!" She cooed with great love as she gave him all her affection with that hug, making Issei feel a bit overwhelmed.

"Wait, I-I have to tell you that letter is a sham!" Issei told the woman immediately, earning a cute smile from the Valkyrie.

"What difference does that make? If you didn't want to have fun with me, you wouldn't have come!" She said very happily.

Issei couldn't answer anything at that, because in part, she was quite right.

Rossweisse broke away and continued to give him that beautiful smile.

"I've always wanted going to a karaoke since they've been around! What do you say we go to one for fun?" She consulted him with quite a bit of interest.

"I don't have any money..." Was the first thing that came to Issei's mind to say, who still looked quite overwhelmed by everything that was going on.

"Don't worry, I've already been given my first salary as the Queen of the Valkyries, and I'd like to spend it hanging out with you." She took his hand gently, startling Issei a little.

Rossweisse started walking, so Issei had no choice but to follow her.

"Have you ever been to one?" She asked him with interest.

"Not really." Was Issei's reply, who still didn't seem to respond accordingly to what was happening.

"That's great!" She chirped happily. "Then we can both enjoy this new experience to the fullest!"

"Y-yes..." Was Issei's dry reply.

At first, Issei was not very comfortable and confident with everything that was going on. But after listening as the Valkyrie joyfully sang song after song, the protagonist was slowly absorbed by the joyful atmosphere surrounding his beautiful friend.

Time passed, and night began to creep in on Kuoh as the two of them continued to have fun, eating different somewhat expensive things, playing some somewhat complicated video games, and singing. But the strange thing about all this was that Issei hadn't sung once, and Rossweisse took no notice of this situation.

Issei clapped her hands with a smile when the Valkyrie finally finished singing. She looked somewhat shaken, but that wasn't going to stop her from having fun.

Issei ended his applause abruptly when Rossweisse threw the microphone at him, catching it miraculously.

"You didn't sing all day. I think it's going to be time for you to let loose a little." She commented, sitting down next to him as she drank from a juice box.

"Actually, I'm not good at singing. You know, my voice isn't made for this kind of thing..." Issei tried to explain, but found it was hard to talk sense into her when he saw her give him a smile covered in complicity.

"Are you embarrassed?" She teased him a little, thinking it was cute seeing how he was embarrassed at her words.

Rossweisse looked at the screen. She was thinking silently for a few seconds, but finally made the decision to set the control down on the side of the red armchair.

"I don't think you should be so shy about it." She insisted, looking at him carefully. "After all, you do have a nice voice. And your lips..."

Issei looked at her with confusion after her last statement, and that confusion instantly turned into another feeling as Rossweisse mounted him.

"Your cheeks too." She stroked the protagonist's cheeks gently, earning a blush from him.

Rossweisse herself began to blush a little at what she was doing. It also didn't help that the more she saw him, the closer she got to his face.

"Actually, everything about you is really cute, I love it..." She said at last as her eyes slowly closed, being about to kiss the man she loved so much.

Issei was completely paralyzed as he watched Rossweisse's face getting closer and closer, to the point where their lips were about to pink.

But just at that moment, Issei pushed her aside in an abrupt manner, leaving Rossweisse with a confused look on the couch.

"Sorry, I have to go to the bathroom!" Issei used the simplest excuse to escape as quickly as possible from there, locking himself in the bathroom and leaving the Valkyrie alone.

Ross settled back on the couch and rubbed her hair with some concern and sadness.

"Maybe I hurried too much?"

Issei placed his hand on the faucet as the water ran non-stop. Still, he was not using it in the least. His gaze remained somewhat lost as the water poured down endlessly.

"That wasn't nice, brat." Ddraig made his presence known, denoting his nonconformity to the situation previously presented.

"I couldn't help it, I..." Issei looked at himself in the mirror, seeing his reflection.

Just at that second, Raynare's figure appeared for a short second. And, as if by pure instinct, Issei smashed the mirror with a loud punch that echoed throughout the place.

The sound of falling glass mingled with the water, and silence came after a few seconds before an Issei who was breathing in clear agitation.

"Not that I want to fight you now, but I've had enough of this." Ddraig stated with a sigh. "I understood you when you didn't even want to accept how you felt. I understood you when you buried that feeling for them for fear of being rejected."

Ddraig's gaze grew overly serene, and his voice grew a little huskier.

"What excuse will you use now?"

"This is not like what happened before. I'm not afraid, I'm just confused. Very confused." Issei tried to explain himself as he saw his hand shaking. "It happened all so suddenly..."

"You're lying to yourself again." Ddraig's withering words made Issei's eyes widen.

"You're confused because one of the women you love the most just made it clear that she's interested in you. That's something in complete contrast to everything Raynare said." Ddraig explained, opting for a distant look for what he was about to say. "After all, she had made it quite clear to you that you were trash and that no one would ever be able to love you. But now the exact opposite is happening. You're just confused because your mind is looking for an excuse for you not to get your hopes up and avoid breaking down again."

Issei picked up one of the pieces of glass and stared at his own reflection rather dismayed at Ddraig's words.

"I...I just think she's doing this because I saved her..."

"That's your new excuse?" Ddraig asked him seriously, then drew a toothy grin.

"If you're so sure, why don't you confront her?"

Issei could see in his reflection how his eyes widened without his consent.

"...I don't know."

"Do you have something to lose?" Ddraig asked him as if nothing. "If this is a simple misunderstanding, it will be fixed very quickly and easily."

"But..."

"But if it's not a misunderstanding, that means she really loves you." Ddraig interrupted Issei. "You've already lived under your own fear for a long time, and I'm sure at no point did you ever entertain the idea that Raynare was wrong."

In those moments, the revelation hit Issei with great force.

Ddraig couldn't help but smile proudly as the protagonist began to slowly harden his gaze.

And at that precise moment he decided to give him the ultimate help to face himself.

"So, what will you do?"

Issei remained silent as he watched his reflection in the glass, until he finally dropped it.

"Like you said, I lose nothing by trying."

Unaware of all the deep conversation between the two individuals who thought of themselves as brothers, Rossweisse remained in the same spot as her worried gaze deepened with each passing second.

To her luck, Issei finally arrived.

"Issei..." She tried to speak, but said nothing more as she watched as the protagonist walked over to where she was and sat down next to her.

Seeing that the awkward silence was taking over between them, the Valkyrie began to get very nervous.

"I'm sorry about earlier. Forget about it and pretend all that never happened..."

"I'm the one who should apologize." Issei interrupted her, surprising Rossweisse by his words.

Issei finally looked her in the face, and in that moment she could feel how he was conveying a lot of insecurities and questions to her.

"Instead of leaving like a coward, we should have cleared all this up from the beginning." Issei clarified, lowering his head ruefully after remembering what he had done.

"What do you mean by that?" She inquired rather curiously.

"I understand that you feel very grateful that I saved you from the arranged marriage, but I don't want you to pay me back like this." Issei's fist clenched along with his teeth at what he was about to say.

"I don't want you to force yourself to do this with me..." He said it as a whisper, but Rossweisse was close enough to hear him.

The Valkyrie looked quite shocked by everything Issei told her. But that expression slowly changed to a smile that made it clear she understood.

"Does that mean you're thinking I'm doing this just out of obligation?" Issei couldn't help but look at her with great shock as she laughed sweetly.

"Am-I'm making a mistake...?" To say Issei was overwhelmed right now was an understatement.

Rossweisse laughed again in that sweet way, then answered him.

An answer that completely threw him off.

"Of course I do."

For some reason, his heart began to beat very fast, and a myriad of incredible emotions began to dominate his body. In fact, he was sure that if this kept up, he might start floating because of how good it felt.

"But...I can't understand..." Issei tried to search for a clear answer in his head, but he could barely think for what he was going on.

"I guess it's hard to understand something so complex for a heart as wounded as yours." Rossweisse answered him, who slowly began to mount the young man.

Issei couldn't help but blush and feel completely overwhelmed by the awesome warmth that the Valkyrie's body was transmitting to him, even when they still had their clothes on.

Rossweisse rested her hand slowly on his chest, and her gaze covered with tenderness and love deepened even more.

"Ever since we met, you were very important to me. Even much more than you or I could or wanted to understand back then." She explained as used her other hand to hug him around the neck affectionately. "When I found out how hurt that woman left you, I just wanted to help you heal all that pain. At that time, I wanted to help you as your friend. But it's impossible for me to think the same way anymore."

Issei was in complete silence. He could only feel grateful to hear how much Rossweisse had cared about his well-being.

But nothing in the world had prepared him for the Valkyrie's next words.

"That's right, because I don't want to help you as your friend. Because since you saved me, I am finally free. I am free to be able to embrace all these feelings I always kept hidden away. It was amazing to feel how the pain was replaced by frustration, anger, joy, and so many other emotions that could finally come out when I jumped into your arms that time." Rossweisse's eyes softened, showing a great deal of love and affection never before seen in her. "And when I was finally able to embrace you, that pain also became yet another thing I was unconsciously hiding from the first moments I was able to meet you..."

Rossweisse paused for a short second, making sure Issei could take in her next words:

"That feeling is love."

At first, Rossweisse thought that Issei had not heard her words clearly, as he had not even reacted. But she knew how wrong she was when the brown-haired man's eyes began to form tears.

"That's my answer." She continued her speech, bringing her face a little closer to Issei's. "I don't do this because I feel indebted to you. I really, really..." Rossweisse's voice choked a little as tears began to emerge from her eyes too.

"I really love you. I love you too much. That's why..."

Their bodies were almost completely glued together, and their noses collided.

"That's why let me feel your lips like that time, please..."

Speech seemed to have faded from Issei, but he had enough of a reaction to nod.

And at that moment, both of their eyes closed.

And at last...

At last their lips sealed in a kiss covered in unparalleled passion and love.

Perhaps it had been pure instinct, but Issei hugged her back tightly to get closer, something Rossweisse gladly received.

Their lips continued to fuse together throughout, and tears kept streaming down their faces. Neither of them had the slightest intention of separating until they could transmit all that love and affection they had for each other.

All that love and affection that had been encapsulated in both of them for such a long, long time...

Rossweisse's hand clung tightly to her beloved's shirt as she continued the kiss with even more fervor. Meanwhile, Issei responded that gesture as his hand moved to his lover's waist to accommodate her in a better way on him. That gesture made Rossweisse higher than Issei, but even that action was far from enough for their lips to part.

Finally, their lips parted by a weird sound after being connected for a long minute. A thin thread of saliva connected their mouths at the same time as they both did their best to catch their lost air as soon as possible.

"That...that was amazing." Issei finally spoke again, feeling like never before after the kiss.

"I liked this kiss much better than the first one." Rossweisse clarified, resting her forehead with Issei's.

They were both silent for a couple more seconds. Not because there wasn't a topic of conversation, but because they wanted to catch their breath as soon as possible.

"Ross, I love you too. I really love you." Issei added, in case the long, passionate kiss hadn't been enough proof of that.

Issei could feel Rossweisse hug him from behind very tightly.

"You don't know how happy those words make me. But, I'd like you to prove it like you did a few seconds ago." The Valkyrie brought her lips close to Issei's again, entering into a constant brushing.

"I don't intend to keep you waiting." Those were the last words from Issei, who joined his lips with Rossweisse's again.

Ross's hands squeezed Issei's back as she made rather tender little moans, as Issei was stimulating the woman's waist with his own hand without this one noticing.

But before their kiss was intended to break the record of the previous one, a rather furious man burst open the door.

"What the hell did you do to my bathroom, you fucking brat?!" The man shouted in clear fury, not caring that the two were kissing just a second ago.

"Oh, that..." Issei could only rub his hair after remembering what he had done.

"You're not leaving here until you pay me!" Threatened the middle-aged man, pointing at the two.

Issei was about to say something about it, but was unable to due to Rossweisse quickly getting up and grabbing his arm.

"Let's go!" She exclaimed with great joy, rather surprising the young man.

The man was pushed against the door because of the Valkyrie, causing a large vein to appear on his temple.

"You won't escape! Guys!" The middle-aged man shouted, drawing the attention of two rather burly fellows guarding the exit.

Seeing that a cheerful woman was dragging a boy apparently younger than her at a high rate of speed, they both knew they were trying to escape.

The guards got in the way to try to stop her. They didn't know they were making a grave mistake.

After all, Ross couldn't control herself very well when she was very happy.

Those men learned that the hard way when the Valkyrie punched one of them. The blow was so hard that the poor man went flying and dragged the other with him, sending them both crashing to the ground. That act gave Rossweisse and Issei a free hand to escape, who did not waste the opportunity.

"Useless bastards!" The man complained with his face red with anger. "I pay you just to have a woman shoot you down like nothing?!"

Rossweisse ranted as she laughed at the owner's words. All that happiness she was giving off was so contagious that it ended up reaching Issei, who couldn't help but laugh at the antics of the Valkyrie who on many occasions always looked so strict.

After running for several minutes holding hands, they finally got far enough away to rest.

"Hehe, all this was so much fun." She laughed as breath caught.

"True, but I think we should be going now." Issei stated, seeing that night was making an appearance.

The Valkyrie followed his gaze, being a bit surprised to see that much more time had passed than she thought.

"I guess time goes by pretty fast when you're having fun..." She added as an afterthought, then rubbed her hair nervously. "I'm sorry, I knew you wanted to go to the festival."

Rossweisse's sorrow changed to astonishment when she felt a hand land on her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it." Issei replied instantly. "It's true that I wanted to go, but this was certainly much more fun...and exciting." This last he said with a small blush.

"Yes, I think so too." She replied with a beautiful smile, resting her hand on Issei's. "I'd like to stay longer with you, but tomorrow is the school year closing event, so I'd like us both to be rested."

"I completely understand." Issei nodded instantly, and just as he was about to say goodbye, he felt the Valkyrie cling even tighter to his hand.

"So, um..." She averted her gaze with a blush on her face that made her look very cute.

She refocused her embarrassed gaze on Issei, blushing even more.

"I guess we're a couple now, aren't we?" She finally found the courage to say it.

At first, Issei had to admit that it felt a little strange to hear those words coming from one of the women he loved so much. It felt strange, but that didn't mean he didn't feel happy to hear them. In fact, quite the opposite.

He proved that when a big smile broke out on his face.

"I'd love to." Issei gave his shoulder a little warm squeeze, indicating that he really was happy about this.

Rossweisse's blush became a little fainter as a beautiful smile emerged on her face.

"In that case, I'd like us to say goodbye as such..." She said, taking a step forward.

Issei could only smile at this, mimicking the Valkyrie's action.

"I still don't understand what you can see in a man like me..." Issei hugged her around the waist and the Valkyrie wrapped her hands around his neck.

"You have to understand that I don't care what others think or what you yourself think about you. The only thing that matters is what I think, and to me you are extremely special..."

The two soon joined lips under the completely empty street, or so they thought.

"Now I understand everything..." Thought Rias with a sinister aura, who had been following them ever since she happened to see them while they were running.

The redhead looked somewhat upset and angry at first, but her evil grin soon emerged from her face.

"Tonight I'm going to make you forget her completely, Hyoudou."

Meanwhile, back in the Family Realm...

Tiamat could be seen very happy as she ate one of the native fruits of the place.

"It's been a long time since I've tasted one of these!" She exclaimed with a cute smile as she licked her lips from the sweet sugary taste.

She stopped in front of the huge river of hot water that ran from the volcano. That place brought back several memories when she was bathing together with Issei. She also remembered the first time her body reacted when she could see him almost completely naked.

That last point wasn't something she really wanted to remember, the faint but noticeable blush on her face made it clear.

"I think I might take a bath before I go find them and visit my cave." She said to herself calmly as she took off her clothes.

Back in Kuoh...

Issei was walking around the Academy in the darkness of the night. He looked visibly nervous, and the reasons were more than obvious.

"She invited me here alone after what happened. I'm sure she must be very angry..." Issei couldn't help but think with some discomfort at the thought that he would be strongly scolded by the redhead.

Issei entered the Old Building, seeing that the decorations were still in place, though some were thrown or broken.

When he finally reached the main office, his eyes widened at the sight.

"Buchou?" Was all she could say when she saw that the redhead was in her underwear.

"You're finally here. Don't worry, I'm not angry." She patted the free seat on the couch, indicating that she wanted him to sit next to her.

Issei hesitated a bit at first, but eventually agreed. After all, he only found her outfit strange, but in his eyes, it had been a long time since any woman had caught his attention unless they were his crushes.

"To tell you the truth, I just feel a little sad that you were ignoring me all these months." She said with mock sorrow, something Issei could pick up on instantly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" The protagonist couldn't help but frown.

"But I understand why you wouldn't notice me if I wasn't more direct. It's for that very reason that I invited you here, alone..." Issei began to understand where this was all going, and the idea obviously didn't sit well with him.

"Now that we're alone, I'd like to show you when I love you..." She rested her breasts on his shoulder in a sensual way and released her bra, remaining in a topless.

Rias' smile increased as he saw Issei's body become much stiffer after her action.

"I know you're not feeling very well, so I promise to do it gently." She said at last, pushing Issei to throw him onto the couch.

"Wait..." Issei tried to talk some sense into her, but couldn't as she placed one of her fingers over his lips.

"Don't worry, you'll love this." She gave him a seductive smile as she slid her hand down his abdomen, until she slipped it underneath his underwear.

That was the act that broke his patience.

The image of the kiss with Rossweisse flashed through his mind for a short second, and that second was more than enough for his expression to change to one of complete fury.

"BUT WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Issei shoved her with a great force, earning a scream from Rias, knocking her to the ground in the process.

"I-Issei..." The redhead tried to speak, but was so stunned at being pushed back in such a way that she couldn't react properly.

Issei got up without wasting time and walked to the exit, but before leaving he gave a glance to Rias, who was still on the ground.

"Listen, I love other women. You don't interest me in the least." Issei closed his eyes for a short second, then let out a small sigh. "I would have liked to make this clear in a better way, but you really went overboard by doing all this. I hope you understand, and that you don't do this crazy thing ever again."

Seeing that Rias didn't say anything, Issei became angry again.

"Is that clear?"

Rias could only nod hesitantly at such a statement.

She had always been desired by all Demons because of her high position and beauty. She couldn't explain how sullied she felt to be rejected so roundly by one of her own servants.

After a few seconds of Issei leaving, the redhead was finally able to react, and her mind only worked long enough for her to process her current situation.

"I'm screwed..."

Meanwhile, back in the Family Realm...

"I see, so she made several friends." Declared Tiamat with a smile, who was chatting with the little dragon's parents.

"Gru bru, vi var!" Exclaimed the male dragon, getting Tiamat to smile.

"She told them about us? I hope she didn't slander us." She joked, getting a few refusals from the dragon, who looked quite funny in the lady's eyes.

"Relax, I was only joking." She laughed, then placed her hands on her waist. "By the way, did you take good care of my house while I was away?" This time, the dragoness was the one who nodded several times, earning a chuckle from Tiamat that mirrored her beautiful fangs.

"I knew I could trust you guys!"

A few minutes later...

"Sorry, brother." Rias knelt down in front of Sirzechs, who was sitting at his desk. "I screwed up."

"Hmmm..." The Demon King's relaxed humming was accompanied by the sound of his fingers tapping on wood.

The seconds of suspense and silence were deadly for Rias, who was truly terrified.

Finally, her brother's words made be heard, and it was something she frankly wasn't expecting.

"Stand up."" Sirzechs said matter-of-factly, earning a big surprise from Rias.

"Huh?" Was all Rias could say, who had lifted her face a bit so she could see him.

"I said stand up." The Demon King stated again, then focused his gaze towards the window.

"Wait, you're not angry with me?" Rias consulted him with quite a bit of astonishment as she stood up.

"Of course I am. But I've been thinking about it quite a bit..." Sirzechs' gaze tensed a little. "And frankly, the one I'm most angry with, is myself."

To say those words had surprised Rias was an understatement.

"I-I don't understand..." Were the simple words of Rias, who was searching for an answer.

"Out of eagerness for the Sekiryuutei to become a machine of unattainable power, I let him be trained by a large number of people. I was blinded by the destructive potential he could reach, and that was my biggest mistake." The Demon replied, heaving a big sigh. "I think I knew perfectly well that this could happen, but I completely ignored it. After all, it was obvious that not only would they instruct Issei to become a combat monster, but they would also make him much smarter, and the smarter someone is, the harder it is to manipulate them." Sirzechs added, then closed his eyes. "Besides, I always lied to myself that none of the women around him could ever become interested in him. Well, I still believe that point was true, but I never counted on Issei helping Rossweisse to free her from her arranged marriage. And mainly, that she could be so interested in him all this time..." The Demon King gave another big sigh, then smiled.

"Well, what can be done?" Sirzechs bowed his shoulders indifferently.

"So, what do we do now?" Rias asked him, becoming quite serious.

At that moment, a grim look graced Sirzechs' face.

"There's nothing we can do. True, there is no better time than now, but we can't deviate to the other plan if it has Tiamat's constant protection. She would kill us as soon as she found out what was going on." The Demon declared, earning a defeated look from everyone.

Except for a certain Sitri.

"Indeed, all is not lost." They all looked at Sona with quite a bit of interest after her words.

"The reality is that their connection counts with a great weakness."

"That's right, the seal..." Rias remembered that time Issei had told them about said weakness.

"What seal are you talking about, sister?" Sirzechs asked very curiously.

"In the battle against Kokabiel, Issei accidentally revealed to us that his connection to Tiamat has a great weakness, and that is his seal on his right hand." Explained the redhead. "If I remember correctly, their connection is instantly broken if he loses his arm."

Sirzechs was initially quite surprised at the new information, but that expression changed almost instantly to a mysterious smile.

"In that case, we might have a chance..." Sirzechs declared as he rubbed his chin.

"I believe the same as the Demon King, but it's too risky." Sona stated, drawing everyone's attention. "In Issei's words, the connection is instantly severed and that technically shouldn't give Tiamat any leeway to know where he is. But that doesn't mean she won't go looking for him."

"True, I hadn't thought of that..." Rias stated as she cupped her chin.

"But we know that Dragons are characterized as a very passionate species." On this occasion, the one who spoke was Sairaorg. "From what I understand, Issei is very important to that dragoness. She most likely can't handle the severing of the connection assuming it means his death."

"In part, I share what you say, but it is known that the odds are not fixed." Sona took up the floor again, gaining everyone's attention. "Perhaps it can be split 50-50." She concluded, only to have everyone fall silent as she listened to Sirzechs chuckle under his breath.

"Apparently, none of you remember that none of us will have any hope of survival once the Apocalypse comes." The Demon King stated, making clear mention of Trihexa. "Personally, I think the 50% chance looks a lot better than 0." Concluded the man, then looked at everyone with great seriousness.

"Don't you all believe the same thing?"

The Demons present looked at each other for several seconds. At first they were somewhat doubtful, but quickly agreed with their King's words.

"Then we know what we must do..." Sirzechs declared, rising from his seat.

Just then, a dark look graced his face.

"Bring him to me, sister."

Meanwhile, back at the Hyoudou Residence...

"Looks like Tiamat still hasn't returned." Issei thought aloud as he saw that the house was in complete silence.

For that very reason he didn't expect a certain Dragon Goddess to appear right behind him, patting him tenderly on the head.

"Ophis?" Issei turned around to greet the Goddess with great interest. "I haven't seen you since the hospital thing. Is everything okay?" He asked her with genuine concern, earning a quick nod from the expressionless woman.

"Don't worry, everything is going according to plan." Issei was a bit confused at the slightly odd pun.

Ophis lowered her head a bit, making Issei feel the situation even stranger.

"But..." She said with a tone that showed concern, something that caught the protagonist's attention a lot.

The Dragon Goddess raised her face and took Issei's hand gently, making Issei quite surprised at the gesture.

"I just want you to remember this." Ophis looked quite serious about it, so Issei gave her his full attention. "Whatever happens, remember that I'll always be by your side, even if we're far away."

Issei didn't even have time to answer her, for just as she appeared, the Goddess vanished in a magical circle.

"Seriously, there are times when it's impossible for me to understand what she thinks..." Declared the brown-haired man to no one in particular.

Before he tried to understand the beautiful Goddess' encrypted words, a magic circle that functioned as a communicator distracted him.

"Buchou?" Was all he said, and frowned as he remembered what happened recently.

"It's nothing related to what happened recently." She clarified instantly. "Something very urgent came up, and my brother wants us going to Hell."

"Is it some threat?" Issei was quick to become serious after hearing the woman's words.

"Yes, but it seems we're not entirely sure about it. That's why my brother doesn't want to alert everyone and only called the top Demons to ask us what we thought about it." Rias stated, making it clear that she didn't want any more unwanted visits.

Issei thought about it for a short second, but in the end nodded.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

A few minutes later, in the Underworld...

"I guess I have to apologize to you again. I know you had a lot of confidence in me for the Rating Game..." Issei stated, seeing how Gasper was waiting along with everyone else in the entourage.

"I already said not to worry, really." Replied the half-vampire with a smile. "I understand your reasons perfectly. In fact, I would have loved to go with you to see that battle." This last was said with a lot of energy, bringing a smile out of the protagonist.

"It's a pity they didn't record it. Even I'm looking forward to reliving it all, since it happened so fast that I barely remember some details." The brown-haired man stated, then recalling a certain moment of the confrontation. "Come to think of it, what the hell was that power that surged from my body?"

Being focused on his own questions, Issei failed to notice how Gasper's expression changed to a sadder one.

"Tannin was right, I have to take my trainings much more seriously if I don't want to be saved forever by Issei." The half vampire's fists clenched a little at the memory of how he was humiliated in his battle.

Meanwhile, everyone else was very silent, something that was quite unusual for them. They were even very serious, but neither of them noticed it.

"Let's go, my brother is waiting in the main hall with everyone else." Rias made her presence known as she opened the door, getting everyone to become serious.

They all followed their mistress in silence as they walked deeper into the Gremory family's grand mansion.

"Can you tell me exactly what's going on?" Issei questioned her curiously.

"You'll know when we get there." Was the dry reply from Rias, who didn't even give him a glance.

"I see the Sekiryuutei returned to your ranks, little cousin." Sairaorg appeared as they turned down the long hallway, drawing everyone's attention.

"You were summoned as well?" Issei asked him with slight surprise.

"Let's just say I have some sort of special task, since I'm the only one of Demon who can perform it properly." The Demon declared with a smile, perching next to everyone.

"A special task?" Gasper inquired with much curiosity. "Of what...?"

A large explosion came down the hallway before he could finish the question, alarming everyone.

"Great, we're already under attack..." Kiba stated with great seriousness as he summoned his demonic sword.

"Shit!" was all Issei could say as he took several steps backwards, completely breaking his cast when he activated his gauntlet.

The protagonist tightly closed one of his eyes as he noticed a sharp pain throughout his arm that spread throughout his body.

"Perfect, I won't be able to do much in this condition..." He thought rather worriedly as he watched Gasper and Sairaorg position themselves in front of the large curtain of dust that the explosion had generated.

Issei's gaze became serious, knowing what he should do.

"I think we'd better call Tiamat to give us a hand..." That's what he had thought, but just before he finished his deductions, he could observe something that completely threw him off.

There was another big explosion right behind Gasper that stunned him a little, but that wasn't what impressed him. What really left him speechless was seeing Sairaorg deliver a blunt blow to the back of his head to knock him unconscious.

"What the...?!" Being so focused on what he had just seen, he didn't notice how Kiba moved dangerously close to him.

Issei's eyes widened in complete shock as a large amount of blood shot everywhere, due to his right arm having been completely amputated.

Tiamat was looking at the cave after a long time while enjoying some fruits.

Her contented expression slowly changed as she noticed something strange about the connection she had with the man she loved.

"What...?" Her words immediately choked as she felt the connection being completely lost while a great feeling of desolation and bewilderment began to fill her.

"No..." She tried to teleport to his location, but couldn't find him.

"No..." She brought a hand to her chest and began to rub her seal with the intention of making it glow again, but it began to fade.

At that moment, a myriad of negative feelings began to cloud her mind completely.

"Nooooo!" She gave a piercing scream as her body shook all over, drawing the attention of the two dragons standing nearby.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Her last cry of complete despair was accompanied by the complete disappearance of the seal.

Unable to bear the thought of losing Issei, the Dragoness fainted almost instantly.

"Vi var!" The two dragons cried out in great concern and immediately approached her to find out what was wrong with her.

They both tried to move her to wake her up, but she would not.

Tiamat's skin tone became very pale, her breathing became unsteady and a lot of sweat began to cover her body. This only made the two dragons become much more worried as they tried to wake her up in every possible way.

Issei staggered forward, only to fall to the ground in a semi-conscious state.

"Ki-Kiba..." Was the only thing that left his lips as he watched the blond smirk cheekily.

"The job is done." The Demon declared with clear satisfaction in his words.

"Good job, Kiba." Rias declared with a smirk as she created a magic circle to stop the bleeding on her victim's amputated arm, and at that moment Issei could learn that it had all been a trap from the beginning.

But, even so, there was still a big doubt lingering in his head.

"Wh-why...?" Was all his lips could say as he struggled to stay conscious.

"You had promised we would fight. Do you even know how disappointed I was when you never came?" Sairaorg perched beside him with his arms folded. "I love to defeat, humiliate and even kill my opponents. But when those people aren't able to present even the slightest resistance..." The Demon's gaze hardened exceedingly.

"Do you have any idea how boring it gets?!" The man shouted, smashing Issei's back with his foot, causing Issei to spit out a large amount of blood and lose his gauntlet.

"Calm down, remember we need him alive." Rias stated earnestly.

"And what do we make of the dwarf?" Sairaorg questioned, who focused his gaze on Gasper.

"Then I'll deal with him when we're done with this business." Rias replied in a manner so nonchalant to the point of being sickening.

"Alright, I'll take this one." The man nodded in agreement, carrying Issei like a sack of potatoes.

"Fucking...!" Issei tried to curse him, but failed miserably as he spat blood.

"Save your breath, you'll need it." Sairaorg declared with a laugh as they made their way to the main hall.

When Rias opened the large door, the light made Issei unable to make out clearly, but when they entered he was amazed to see a large number of very important Demons.

Finally, Sairaorg threw him like trash between two guards with spears, making him spit blood. The protagonist slowly stood up, and his gaze held a combative expression that did not contrast with his body that could barely stand.

Issei began to sweat as he noticed how the two Demons placed their spears over his head.

"Don't make any stupid moves, or you'll regret it." Sirzechs declared, who was making an appearance among some Demons.

The Demon King landed several meters away from Issei while all the others watched him with utmost attention, forming a large circle around Issei.

"Surely you must be wondering the reason for doing this to you, and that is very simple. I'll be brief." Sirzechs stated as if it were nothing. "You must be aware of the Apocalypse Prophecy by now, so you must already know what that involves. Personally, I didn't much like the idea of hiding our devious fate from my comrades, and for that reason I shared it with them right away, although we knew how to keep the secret well. We were always thinking of a plan to try to survive extinction, but nothing convinced us. Nothing, until you joined us."

"Pure Demon shit."

Everyone looked at Issei's remaining arm after hearing those words.

"I was already wondering when you would show up..." Sirzechs stated with a sickly grin upon hearing Ddraig.

"I knew scum like you couldn't be trusted, but to do this to my bearer? To want to play with the threads of fate? You fell too low, you species patch!" Ddraig spat with great venom, earning a chuckle from Sirzechs.

"Anything to survive and dominate. We were hiding our true nature for too long in order for this moment to come, but Hyoudou got out of our control. If everything had turned out as we planned, it wouldn't have had to end this way." Explained the Demon King with a tilt of his shoulders.

Sirzechs took a couple of steps forward, being only a few meters away from Issei.

"As you know, the Boosted Gear is essential to succeed in stopping this dystopian future for our race." Culminated the Demon King, causing Issei to grit his teeth.

"If they wanted help, they should have just been more honest with me..." Issei tried to continue speaking, but the spears in his neck wouldn't allow it.

"Did you even pay attention to what I said?" Sirzechs asked him, returning to his original position. "Anything to survive and dominate. We not only want to prosper, we also want to dominate over all other races. That is our goal, and I doubt you want to subjugate the other Factions just because." Rias' brother concluded, then raised a finger as he increased his smile.

"But there is still an option where we are all happy..."

"Don't listen to him, mate! You were already able to see how false they can be!" Ddraig spat with great venom, causing Sirzechs' smile to falter a bit.

"I'm talking to Hyoudou right now, so shut the fuck up." Demon stated with some anger, then continued. "You may not know about this, but Sacred Gears can be extracted by an unconventional method. The problem is that it can only be done if the bearer is conscious and agrees to such removal." Sirzechs explained, returning to his usual smile.

"Basically we are proposing you a plan beyond death. True, we will have to lock you up in our realm as a precaution, but we will give you all the luxuries you ask for." Sirzechs clasped both his hands together, his smile widening slightly.

"The only thing I ask in return, is the Boosted Gear."

Issei's gaze darkened. In the next few seconds he didn't respond to the proposal, until he finally coughed up some blood. Just at that moment, the protagonist said a word under his breath that was heard by everyone.

"No..."

Sirzechs' smile turned into a confused look after what he heard.

"Excuse me?" The Demon said rather confused. "I think you misunderstood. All you have to do is hand over the Boosted Gear to us and in return we will give you anything you want. It's much better than dying, don't you think?"

"I said no." This time, Issei didn't take long to answer and his tone was heard more than clear.

"But, I don't understand..." Sirzechs' smile disappeared completely. "Are you even aware of the choice you're making?"

"That very thing you said, someone like you wouldn't be able to understand..." Issei stated quietly, but this time he raised his gaze to face him.

"I don't care about everything you have to offer me. I don't care if I don't respond the way you want me to. I don't even care what you think of me, because everything you are is everything I am not." Issei stated with clear venom in his words, though Sirzechs didn't seem to fully understand.

"I'm sorry, but with such ridiculous words no one is able to understand you." Clarified the Demon King, impatient at the thought of putting an end to this ridiculous dispute.

"It's normal that they don't understand..." Issei laughed dryly, then pressed his neck on the spears, delivering shallow cuts.

"I'd rather be dead than sell a friend! I'd rather be a corpse than be forced to leave all my precious people!" Issei's anger turned into a dangerous grin as he focused his gaze on Sirzechs, taking another step closer regardless of further damage being done.

"So, when it's all done, just make sure I'm really dead because this corpse will be back from the grave to rip every inch of your skin off!"

He was never going to admit it, but Sirzechs felt his skin bristle at such a threat.

The Demon King was able to react again after a few seconds, and the first thing he did was let out a deep sigh.

"There's no point in trying to dialogue with a insane man..." He said mostly to himself, but those words made Issei's smile widen.

"You say I'm insane. I say you're afraid."

Sirzechs felt cold sweat run down his face after hearing those words.

The hall stood in awkward silence for a few seconds, until the Demon King spoke again.

"Those are your last words?" The man asked him.

He waited for an answer that never came, forcing him to close his eyes in great disappointment.

"Very well." Sirzechs opened his eyes again, denoting that they were devoid of emotion.

"You know what to do."

Issei's eyes widened as he felt both spears pierce completely through his lungs, generating an eerie metallic sound throughout the place.

Issei vomited a large amount of blood and fell to his knees. The guards withdrew the spears, producing another sickening sound of cutting flesh, an action that shook his body with some violence.

Issei vomited a large amount of blood again and fell to the ground in a dull sound as blood kept emerging from his orifices.

Issei shook his head with what little strength he had left to see his blood begin to generate a large pool around him. He tried to move his hand to get up, but his body finally gave in to the deadly damage he had received.

Issei focused his gaze on nothingness as he felt his life slowly fade away.

"ISSEI, OE ISEE!"

"I am the Welsh Dragon, Ddraig. I'm going to do everything I can to help you in your early days within the Supernatural."

"I love you very much, Issei."

"I don't know when, but I'm sure you'll go far, brat."

"Can you sleep over with me tonight?"

"I'm not going to call you by name until you earn my respect, Sekiryuutei."

"I want to be as strong as the boss so I can protect all my loved ones!"

"Do you think I'm a sweetheart?"

"I really, really love you..."

The memories flashed vividly in her memory as her eyes slowly lost their life, until...

Until he finally closed them.

END OF CHAPTER!

I hope you enjoyed it! (although with this ending, I sincerely doubt that)

A pretty rough ending to the arc, but everything will get really interesting in the next arc. I don't want to say much more, as the idea is to keep you interested.

If you're reading this, let me thank you for supporting this project through all the chapters, through all the updates, which are not exactly few.

We are slowly approaching the end, as the next arc will be the penultimate one.

Thank you very much for reading!