I own nothing but my OC(s).
Chapter 4: First Mission
Kyoto, Japan, Yasaka's Palace
Two weeks have passed since Keith has been introduced to the Supernatural world and started his training with the True Longinus. True to Hokori's words, the young man became more and more proficient in using the Longinus with each training session. With each day, the wolf's respect for the young man grew. Seeing his determination, as well as progress in this short time made him see Keith with new eyes. For instance, he began calling him 'Keith', instead of 'brat, snot-nosed brat and kid' which in the human's book was a win.
Keith had learned many useful things about the Holy Spear, such as that it could extend based on his will, as well as project Light energy when he had to keep at a distance. He didn't go in depth about anything else since its Balance Breaker was out of reach for him right now, so he would not load his brain with information he did not need for the moment.
After his tortu -ahem- training with Hokori, he would spend most of the day with Yasaka, learning about the Supernatural, as well as messing around a bit with magic, which unfortunately he couldn't really use. Sure, Yasaka said that he had decent magical reserves, however he couldn't use any kind of magic which was strange in itself, but he didn't let that bum him out. At the very least, he could use the Youkai's teleportation circle, as well as summoning flyers which would call upon Kunou, Kuroka and on some very special and important occasions, Yasaka herself.
He was fine with that.
What he learned though, in his training with Hokori is that he could, with some effort, create illusions of himself, which was a win in his book. Hokori told him what he lacked in magic, he made up for with speed and precision. They can't hurt you if they can't hit you, right? Of course, he was nowhere near enough to go one on one against a Devil or Fallen. It would be sheer luck if he managed to kill one. He is only human after all.
Coming back to him learning about the Supernatural, his knowledge got better with each lesson. He found out that there are many things out there besides Youkais, Devils, Fallen Angels and Angels. Gods, Dragons, mythological monsters, this world has it all.
Speaking of Gods…He met one in these two weeks, or rather, he met a Goddess.
Flashback
'Who in the hell would want to meet me.' He asked himself as he made his way up to Yasaka's meeting room. From what Kunou said, he understood that this person is someone very important. Probably that's why she wasn't here with him.
As he arrived at the doors, he knocked and immediately he received the response to come inside.
When he entered he saw the two fox Youkai and the Nekoshou dressed in formal kimonos, each having different patterns: Kunou's had butterflies and was white with red in colour, Yasaka's had little birds and was yellow with black, not much different from her usual attire, and finally Kuroka's had kittens and was totally black in colour.
Then there he was, dressed in black jeans, a dark grey t-shirt and a jacket on top and black shoes. He likes dark colours.
"Uh…you are all dressed…nice." He said awkwardly. They were in fact drop dead gorgeous.
"Is that all nya?" Kuroka teased, giving one of her smiles which held mischievousness.
"Mm, I thought we looked pretty good, right?" Kunou asked her mother.
"I believe we do, but it seems someone is too shy to admit it." Yasaka said, joining in on teasing.
Keith coughed in his fist.
"So, who am I supposed to meet?" He was curious, but also dead tired due to his first training day, as well the training he did today.
"She should be here any minute now." As on cue, a bright light appeared in the room, the three Youkai immediately bowing, a sign of respect.
Keith on the other hand…was confused as fuck. Out of the light came a wonderful woman dressed in a regal gold kimono which didn't do much to hide her curvaceous body. She had raven long, straight hair which was flowing similar to a river. On top of her head laid a golden tiara, signalling she was probably, in Keith's mind, royalty.
'Who is that…' He was unable to avert his eyes from her.
"Welcome, Amaterasu-sama." Yasaka greeted the raven haired beauty. "I hope you are well."
Keith's eyes almost bulged out of his head. This was THE Amaterasu, like the Goddess of the Sun?!
'No fucking way…'
"I am good Yasaka-chan, thank you." She responded, a kind smile on her face. "I too hope that nothing bad happened since we last talked."
"Some Stray Devils made their appearances, but nothing we couldn't handle."
"Glad to hear." Her eyes darted to Kunou and Kuroka who smiled nervously at her.
"Am I that scary?" She asked playfully. "I am pleased to see you again, Kunou, you too Kuroka."
"The pleasure is all mine, Amaterasu-sama." Kunou said, her nervousness dissipating.
"Likewise, Amaterasu-sama." Kuroka said respectfully, which if you asked anybody else, was uncharacteristic of her. She always liked to tease people.
When the Goddess's eyes met Keith's, he flinched. Her eyes were something to behold: golden bright as the Sun itself.
She offered him a gentle smile and approached him.
'Shit! She's coming!' He was freaking out. Meeting Youkais, sure, he could handle. Meeting an almighty Goddess? Not so much.
He could feel himself sweating in nervousness already, and it wasn't because she was hot.
"Relax child." She spoke, her voice warm and welcoming. "I do not wish to harm you."
He gulped and nodded, then bowed.
"It is my outmost pleasure to meet a Goddess such as yourself." He was very aware that she could blast him with a snap of her fingers, so he decided to be at his best behaviour. "My name is Keith Nakamura."
The Goddess of the Sun giggled, amused by his efforts of being polite.
"You do not need to be so tense dear." "She said. "I am merely curious to see the new wielder of the Holy Spear."
"I am not anything special though." He humbly said. "Just a human."
"A human with the power to kill Gods and shape the world however he pleases." She corrected him.
"I see." Then her words registered in his head. "Wait a minute, kill Gods?"
Amaterasu nodded. "The Sacred Gears that are part of the Longinus class have the potential to kill Gods and destroy the world."
He was holding such power? He who days ago was working in a bakery. This must be some joke, it has to be.
"I am afraid I am not joking." As if she read his mind, she indirectly responded to his thoughts.
"N-Noted." He said, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Now, tell me, how did Yasaka-chan recruit you?" She was eager to hear his story.
After he told her about the Stray Devil that attacked him and how Kunou saved him she frowned.
"Stray Devil." She said. "Very rare in Kyoto." She looked at Kunou. "Did this Stray say anything?"
"No." She shook her head. "When I asked her, she attacked me and I killed her."
Amaterasu hoped that this was just one rare occasion, otherwise this could become a problem if more Strays were to be found. She had to come back now and talk this with the other Gods.
"If this problem persists, tell me." She then looked at Keith. "Farewell for now, Keith Nakamura."
She then disappeared in a burst of light.
"So, what do you think about Amaterasu-sama nya?" Kuroka asked, a teasing grin on her face. "I saw that your eyes were glued on her."
Keith blinked at that. Was he really staring that intently?
"Beautiful, but really intimidating." He said shortly. "I honestly didn't expect a Goddess, of all beings, to come and meet me."
"She felt a shift in balance here when you summoned the True Longinus for the first time." Yasaka said. "She then contacted me and I told her about it."
"Just like that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Mhm!" Yasaka had aa smile on her face. "The Shinto Pantheon and the Youkai Faction are together."
"Oh, wow." He was surprised to hear that. "Wait, but I thought that Gods weren't able to interfere with mortals." He said confused. "Or is it only for the Greek Gods?"
"Only the Greeks." Yasaka nodded. "They swore on their river, Styx."
"Is it still a thing?" He asked, eager to find more.
"Nowadays no, yet again they do not really leave Olympus much either." Kunou told him. "Anyway, how was your training today?"
Keith shivered at that question.
"It was eventful." He said cryptically.
"Anyway, I believe now is the time for you to begin your lessons about the Supernatural." Yasaka said, shooing Kuroka and Kunou away. They left reluctantly.
Back to present
Keith was currently waiting for Kunou and Kuroka, who told him that they needed to find and kill a Stray Devil spotted in the West of Kyoto. Seeing as his training goes well, Hokori allowed him to go with them, of course on the order that he was only to observe. He was forbidden from interfering, not that the fox and the cat would let him.
Speaking about the two, he noticed that he spent a lot of his time with either one of them or both. From what they talked, he found out that Kuroka was a Stray Devil, which the latter held some fear that he'd be disgusted or afraid of her, but it didn't happen. Keith just nodded and asked her how did she remain like that and not turn into a monster like the scorpion lady that attacked him.
Her response was simple: Senjutsu. She used it to alter the Evil Pieces in a way that would not turn her into an abomination.
About Kunou, he learned that she had a father, but did not really remember him as he left when she was still very young. Keith could see she wasn't very comfortable talking about that so he avoided asking more. In turn, he let them know about him: how he remained orphan ever since he was 10. Both Kunou and Kuroka felt sorry for him, but he let them know that he was fine. While it didn't really feel easy to talk about this, he had time to come to terms with it.
He was brought back from his thoughts when he felt two hands grabbing his own and pulled it between two soft mounds.
"Are you thinking how to get me in your bed nya?" Kuroka whispered in his ear sensually which sent a shiver down his spine.
"Kuroka-chan, don't you think you are a little too close to him?" Kunou made herself known, pouting. She didn't know why, but she felt irked about the Nekoshou being that close to him.
"Oh?" Kuroka had a teasing smile on her face. "Is Kunou-chan jealous nya?"
The kitsune's cheeks became red as soon as the words left her mouth.
"N-No!" She denied, flustered.
"Really nya ~?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Hmm, then you shouldn't have any problem with me being close to Keith-kun nya." She stuck her tongue out playfully, which made the fox's eye twitch.
"Uh, shouldn't we go?" He asked, trying to defuse the two bickering, if you could call it that, Youkais.
"Ahem!" Kunou regain her composure. "Of course, let's go." She said. "We have a Stray to hunt."
They left in a magic circle, Kuroka still clinging to Keith's arm.
They teleported near an abandoned building.
"They sure love dark and creepy places." Keith deadpanned.
"Oh, are you scared nya ~?" Kuroka asked playfully. "You can grab my hand if you want nya."
"No thank you." He said as he followed Kunou inside, leaving a pouting Kuroka behind.
"Is it even here?" The young man asked. It really looked abandoned. No claw marks or dry blood stains on the walls as he had seen when he was first attacked.
"Yes, I can sense its life energy nya." Kuroka affirmed.
"From what I heard about this Stray, it is said to be quite powerful." Kunou said. "So please Keith, stay behind us."
He wanted to argue, but he knew she was serious because she didn't use 'kun' to his name. Whenever that happened, it meant that she was extremely serious, so even if he argued he would get nowhere.
Keith nodded and stood behind them.
Before anyone could say anything else, they heard claws scratching the walls.
"Oh, what do we have here?" A booming masculine voice said. "Two little Youkais and a tasty snack."
Kunou got her fox fire ready while Kuroka coated her arms in Senjutsu. Keith wanted to summon his Sacred Gear but decided against it. He couldn't do anything against the Stray…for now.
"Show yourself, monster." Kunou said, narrowing her eyes.
The Stray laughed, his voice sounding like shrieks.
"I will have fun breaking you." He stated, coming out of the shadows. He had a bulky body with two huge arms and long legs, with a tail which ended with a sharp tip. His head was monstrous, having long ears, similar to an elf, a big jaw with razor-sharp teeth and two red eyes with black pupils.
Kuroka let out an un-lady like snort.
"As if an atrocity like you could do anything nya." She threw a Senjutsu ball at him. The Stray only gave a creepy smile and put his huge arms together, making the Senjutsu ball hit them and nothing happen. She didn't use that much power on him to gauge his strength.
"Weak!" He bellowed, then jump towards them with the intention to crush them. All of them dodged easily. Keith noticed the difference now. He was much faster than he used to be. He begrudgingly admitted it that Hokori's training was very effective. Sure he was no match for Kuroka or Kunou, but it was a start.
Kunou formed a ball of fire and threw it at the Stray, engulfing him in it, making him scream in pain as his tail began to melt.
"ARGH! YOU BITCH!" He howled. "I WILL KILL YOU!" He outstretched his hand and out of it came a beam of lightning with the intention to hit Kunou who just put her hand forward and a shield made out of flames ate the attack.
"Is this all?" She asked bored.
The Stray let out a deep growl as ice and wind coated his hands.
"I will kill! I will kill you! I will kill you!" He yelled in a deranged manned as he combined his hands and a blast of ice surrounded by wind shot out, going for Kunou.
She just sighed before jumping over the attack with ease and landed gracefully a few meters behind. Then with amazing speed she dashed forward and cut the Stray's hand with her elongated claws eliciting another howl of pain from the monster. He jumped backwards as his hand fell to the ground with a loud thud.
"She's very fast." Keith couldn't but admire her speed. He too was advised by Hokori to focus on speed and precision.
"She is a very powerful Youkai after all nya." Kuroka said with a nod. She then put her finger forward and some weird inscription-like letters appeared on it which created dark mist around the Stray, making him cough and fall to his knees.
Seeing Keith's confused face, she let out a giggle.
"That, cutie, is called Youjutsu nya." She said. "A technique that is exclusive to us Youkai nya."
"C-Curse you!" The Stray got their attention as he attempted to get up but with no avail. "W-What did y-you do, w-whore?!"
"Oh my, such a foul mouth you have nya." Kuroka said. "Don't bother to move, the mist will paralyze and poison you from inside out."
The Stray spat out of blood. His eyes becoming duller.
"I cannot die like!" He yelled trying to fight the poison. "H-He said that I-I will get more p-powerful if I-I joined h-him!"
Kuroka willed her mist to disappear.
"Who is 'he' nya?" She asked, approaching the Stray together with Kunou and Keith.
"Fuck you slut!" He yelled only to cough more blood on the ground.
"Tell us what you know, filth." Kunou order, looking him in the eyes, her turning into slits. "Do you know what is with the slowly raising number of Strays in Kyoto?"
The Stray cackled madly.
"Oh, don't you wish to know, little fox?!" He then spat blood at her feet.
Narrowing her eyes, Kunou snapper her finger and fire immediately engulfed the Stray, burning him alive.
Keith for his part tried to think at what the Stray said earlier.
'So he was given power by someone.' He said in his mind. 'Interesting…'
Before anyone could move, Keith felt a presence approach him and in an instant he summoned the True Longinus, turned behind and slashed, cutting the Stray's hand, which was severed by Kunou, in two. He was surprised to see it still alive, if not a bit disturbed. It then turned to dust thanks to the Holy Relic and disappeared.
"Good reflexes Keith-kun." Kunou praised, giving him a hug, pushing her breasts against his chest.
"Uh, it wasn't that fast." He accepted the hug, not that he could do much.
"Oh my." Kuroka said, hugging him from behind, driving her own big tits against his back. "Would it kill you to accept the praise nya?"
He willed his blush to go back in the depths it came from and laughed nervously.
He didn't say anything back.
"Let's go back." Kunou said, not before looking at Keith and shaking her head slightly without him seeing, breaking the hug, Kuroka breaking her hug too, as they disappeared in a magic circle.
"This is troublesome." Yasaka said as she massaged her temples. Kunou, Kuroka and Keith went back to her and reported what happened.
"I do not know what he meant by 'him'." Kunou said, rubbing her chin.
"I might have a theory." Keith said suddenly, receiving the undivided attention from the three female Youkais. "I believe that this 'him' he mentioned is the one that pulls the strings."
"What do you mean nya?"
"The Stray said that 'he' promised him more power so he joined." Keith said. "Therefore, I think that this 'he' is the one that brought the Strays here."
Yasaka narrowed her eyes in thought. This might be a very plausible theory.
"Why do you think this 'he' would want to bring Strays here?"
"Possibly to frame the Devil Faction and make you believe that they are the ones who drive Strays here."
"Good thinking Keith-kun!" Kunou jumped on him and gave him a big hug, wrapping her tails around him.
'This is a first.' Whenever she hugged him, she used only her hands, now she was using her tails too.
"Indeed." Yasaka nodded, giving him a smile. "You continue to amaze me with that brain of yours dear."
After Kunou let him go, he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He wasn't really used to praise all that much.
"It was just rational thinking." He said dismissing the praise.
"Not really nya." Kuroka chided in. "We didn't think of it like that."
"Even so." He continued. "You would've caught on it."
"Just take the praise Keith-kun." Kunou said exasperatedly. Every time she or anyone else praised him, he would dismiss it.
"Anyway, it's getting late, I will see you all tomorrow." He dodged the incoming argument he would have had with the three of them and ran out of the room, going to sleep.
"That man…" Yasaka just shook her head, but smiled, nonetheless. "He is too humble for his own good."
"No kidding nya." Kuroka chuckled.
Kunou only puffed her cheeks. The three of them left the room and went to their own separate chambers.
A/N: Hello everyone! Exiled here with another chapter. So I decided to do a small time skip since I didn't want to drag on too long with training chapters since, let's be honest, they are kinda boring, at least in my opinion. So Keith became more efficient in using the True Longinus, he met Amaterasu and he went on his first 'official' mission. Well…he didn't do much but hey, at least he cut an already slashed arm, so that's that. I do not plan to drag on too much about him only staying at the palace. I have to think what to write for the next chapter. Also, I do not really know how to make Kuroka, Yasaka and Kunou's relation with him not seem rushed. I have to think about that too.
Anyway, let's see the reviews.
Halcyus Lance: Why not both? I believe Serafall is both amusing and chaotic which is exactly what Keith needs in his life right? :P
Nehef: I believe this fanfic can be considered slight AU since I am making Yasaka, Kunou and Kuroka stronger than they officially are. I want to give Yasaka more power so she could compete with the other Faction leaders. You will know how strong soon enough. Also as said in this chapter, Amaterasu herself felt Keith's Sacred Gear so she came to see what's up. As on the Youkais hating Devils…Idk about that if I am being honest. I searched up and didn't find anything saying that Youkais hate Devils, sure aware when it comes to them that's what I am going for here. They will not hate Devils, nor will they like them, but will tolerate them (meaning they will be polite as long as the Devils are). True, Longinus wielders have it rough.
sanjiv121606: I had a brain lag when I said that I never heard of it. I remembered stumbling upon it once when I was reading about Sacred Gears and I can in fact say that I've heard of it before. But I will keep Gae Bolg as Cao Cao's Sacred Gear.
And so, this is the fourth chapter everyone!
Thank you all for reviewing, favouring and following. As I stated before, if blows my mind how much of these I got in the past days. As I said, I just scramble words on "paper" lol. Now I saw that in the last A/N I wrote "people" lmao. My bad.
Also I apologise if there are any spelling or grammatical mistakes.
Stay safe & sound!