The Lone Vigilante Issei – High School DxD
Hey everyone, it's me Hide Shinyama.
I apologize for the wait, but there four good reasons for it.
One, I have just recently moved to Ireland for a 5 month internship and had to do a lot of preparations and research for it.
Two, while I'm there, the only electronic device I have there is my Samsung Galaxy J3 2017. In other words, I have to key down everything I write and upload my chapters from there. While I may be able to do these things, it still takes some getting used to.
Three, I'm adapting to my new surroundings, so finding the time to write isn't easy.
One thing is for sure. To some degree, I might get things done faster, since I can relax on a bed, while writing (I can't do that with a PC).
And lastly, I have been trying to figure out how to go on with the story, since there are many possibilities on how to do so. At least now I have an idea on what to do.
But enough of that, let's get to the story.
This one is more of a transition chapter so it might not be that exciting, but we will be getting more adventures soon.
In the meantime, please enjoy this chapter.
Chapter 24 – Hiding in Ambush
16th September, Sunday, 10:08 am – 5th floor, Apartment complex, Nerima
It was a beautiful day outside and right now the boys were eating breakfast around a table. This would be a normal event for most people, except for the boys this was quite an unusual event.
For one, they were in a different town altogether. Two, they were eating in an apartment they had never been in. Three, that apartment was theirs and they could live in it rent-free. And lastly, there was a complete stranger among them eating breakfast with them.
At least, that was how Issei felt.
Issei looked at the man who calls himself Shinyama Hide. He didn't seem too remarkable appearance-wise, but something told him that he was different from the average guy. He didn't know what it was, but he knew it had to be something. After all, why else would the succubus go out of its way to trap him in some dimension? Then again, he may have been just like any other victim that lost their lives to the succubus.
But after what Matsuda and Motohama told him, Issei wasn't so sure.
This man seemed to know everything that was going on about the succubus, the events that they had gone through, Monika and their girlfriends and the fact that they had been trapped in an illusion. How would anybody know about these things?
And that hadn't been enough, how on earth did he even escape that void? How on earth did a landlord from Nerima get caught in a trap set up in the vicinity of Kuoh? Did he have some business to do there?
Issei attempted to ask him, but the man just ignored him, leaving Issei without an answer.
But the biggest question Issei had was this:
Just who was he?
All he got from the man was: "I'm just a landlord, Issei. Nobody special."
With that, the man ended the conversation by saying he had to get ready to make breakfast. He said he made it for them. After some tummy grumbling, Issei decided not to pursue the matter. He was hungry after all.
But that didn't mean Issei would give up. That man was way too suspicious. After talking with Ddraig, Issei decided to bide his time and simply observe.
One way or the other the man would show an opening and then the cat would be let out of the bag.
For now, it was time to enjoy breakfast. Issei was currently munching on a croissant, with a cup of juice next to his plate.
And speaking of enjoyment, while Issei was still pondering all these things, Matsuda and Motohama were eagerly talking what they were going to do for today, now that they were in Tokyo.
"We should definitely go check Akihabara as soon as we can," Motohama said with excitement, almost as if he could dash off, the moment he was told to so.
"Yeah!" Matsuda agreed with a nod in a similar manner. "First, we need to get the next a Wii U, then we will get some worthwhile games like 'Girl Gymnastics XXX' and 'Ballet Girl Supreme,'" he said as he couldn't wait to depart as well.
"Really, man?" Motohama raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Did you have to ruin the moment with your flexibility fetish again? And a Wii U, too? Why not get a PS4? That's way better and the games – including hentai games for it – are way better," Motohama argued.
Matsuda glared back. "Oh, shut up! Just leave me alone!" he bellowed.
Motohama shook his head. "Man, you're pathetic…"
"Guys, are you still going to fight about this? Why can't you guys just agree to disagree and find a console and some games we all like. You know, like multiplayer games," Issei suggested in order to diffuse the situation.
Matsuda and Motohama looked at Issei, before nodding for a bit.
"OK… Not, too bad of an idea… I guess…" Matsuda reluctantly agreed to Issei's suggestion.
"I agree," Motohama stated. "So… any ideas?"
"Boys, I hate to disrupt your conversation, but I think we have more important things to discuss than your free time activities," the landlord Hide told them.
All three boys looked at him confused.
"What things?" Issei asked for them all.
"Why, about further arrangements for your time here, of course - especially when it comes to the issues of your allowance and education," Hide replied.
"Oh, yeah… those things…" Issei simply said.
"Right, allowances… without that, we wouldn't be able to buy anything," Matsuda added.
"So? How much money are we going to get?" Motohama asked with obvious interest.
"I'm glad you asked," Hide said. "First of all, I should explain some things about your rent. Normally, this apartment here would cost ¥70000 per month. That means, it costs ¥840000 a year and 4.2 million yen in five years."
Issue whistled impressed.
"That's a lot of money…" Motohama commented.
Hide nodded. "That's right. Fortunately for all of you, all this rent for the next five years have been paid for, meaning that by the time these five years are over, you will have already had a job – hopefully. You three are veeeeery lucky. Monika is quite the philanthropist."
Suddenly, the Boosted Gear appeared on Issei's arm, much too everybody's shock.
[Indeed she is] Ddraig spoke up.
"Wha-wha-wha… Ddraig!? Why are you…?" Issei asked flabbergasted at Ddraig's audacious move. What on earth was he thinking, appearing in front of the landlord like that!?
[Partner, I just remembered something] Ddraig said in the hearing of everyone present. "This man knows who I am. Matsuda and Motohama told us about how he knew about everything that has transpired around us, including me. Thus, hiding is useless."
"That's right, Ddraig," Hide said with a nod. "There are no secrets hidden from me, including the supernatural. If you have any problems about anything – and I mean anything – please don't hesitate to ask me for help."
[We will keep that in mind] Ddraig said. After that, he dismissed himself along with the Boosted Gear.
The man laughed. "What a creature… Anyway, let us get back to where we left off…"
The boys recovered from the surprise that had just happened and listened to what the man had to say once more.
"Now, Monika is not the only who has been generous. In fact, your girlfriends have been generous as well. They have left you enough savings for the next ten years."
The boys whooped and gave high-fives to each other at what they heard.
"Ten years! Can you believe that?" Matsuda asked the others with excitement .
"Heck, yeah!" Motohama exclaimed.
"We don't have to worry about money ever again!" Issei said with a pumped fist.
However, Hide held his hand up. "Hold it. I said you could last ten years with it – if you use it wisely. First of all, each of you will receive ¥2500 per week. And keep in mind that about half of it will be spent on necessities, like food. You three do need to eat after all."
"Oh…" Issei said stunned, with Matsuda and Motohama being frozen in action as well.
They looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. "Eh… well at least ¥1250 will remain with each one of us, right?" Matsuda stated, trying to make the most out of it.
But Hide wasn't finished. "Keep in mind, that this is just an estimate and you could end up needing to spend more. Also, other things like shampoo, soap, washing powder, clothes and so on, you must also provide for yourselves. Don't expect me to do all the shopping for you."
The boys' happy attitude had dampened significantly. They should have known there was a downside with receiving all that money. They realized living in their own apartment came with its own responsibilities.
Oh, well… guess they had to save up their money bit by bit, huh? Hopefully, they had enough money to spare in the meantime.
"Now that that's out of the way, it is time to talk about the school you three are going to go to…" Hide continued with the next item on the agenda.
The boys listened closely, as Hide cleared his throat.
"I have enrolled you three in Furinkan Vocational School. You will be going to class 1-3 first thing on Monday at 8 am," Hide explained.
This statement made the trio raise their eyebrows. They looked at each other with some bewilderment at what they had just heard.
"Furinkan… Why does that name sound so familiar…?" Issei wondered. "Guys, does 'Furinkan' ring any bells?"
"Nope," Matsuda shook his head. "Though, I'm pretty sure that 'vocational' was not together with that word…"
"Umm… what's 'vocational'?" Motohama asked, while raising his hand.
"'Vocational' means job-related, in other words you are going to a school that is going to prepare you in a certain career-field of your choice," Hide explained.
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama widened their eyes.
"Job-choices? Already!?" Matsuda asked in disbelief.
"But, we haven't… well, not really, but still! We haven't…" Motohama fell over his words, as he tried to explain himself.
"He means to say that we haven't really set our careers on stone. Well, at least I did, but… I don't know about them…" Issei finished for Motohama.
"No worries," Hide gestured them to calm down. "You're going to start with the first-years and those haven't picked a specialized field just yet. So don't worry. For this year, you're just going through all the basic education of all the fields, before choosing one. You'll probably have to catch up with the rest of the class and whatever it is they learned."
After Hide finished speaking, Issei had a question.
"What kind of fields are there? Is detective work also among them or something like that?" Issei wanted to know.
Hide chuckled a bit at what he heard. "Unfortunately, no. The career fields the school offers are IT, administration, manufacturing, agriculture, home economics and designing."
Issei visibly deflated. He had hoped that a job-based school like that would enable him to get closer to his dreams, but if what the landlord said was correct, it didn't seem to be that way.
Hide saw his disappointment and realized that he had forgotten something important. And that was that Issei Hyoudou was a young man full of dreams and hopes and that these lay deep within his psyche to make the world a better place so that nobody would suffer like he did. Hide almost wanted to smack himself in the face for forgetting this fact. This is why he sought to cheer him up.
"Look, I know you have your dreams and hopes, but there… is no such thing, as becoming a professional private consultant straight away. People like them spend years getting experience in other fields, before using their knowledge and experiences to become detectives… in the meantime, it is best to take advantage of the opportunities you have at Furinkan and widen your horizon. You still have a bright future, after all. Maybe you will become a detective along the way or… maybe not and instead pick a career that fits you better. Do you understand, Issei?" Hide asked Issei, hoping these words of encouragement would be enough.
Issei looked at Hide with an uncertain expression. Hide couldn't see any particular change in Issei's mood, yet he could see that Issei was trying to lift the mood with a nod.
Hide smiled. "Don't worry, OK? The same goes for you two as well," the landlord looked at Matsuda and Motohama. "Even if your desired careers can't be learned at school, you can still get to it later in life. There are many ways to do it after all. Speaking of school…" Hide took a deep breath. He stood up from the breakfast table and made his way to the sofa.
That was when Issei, Matsuda and Motohama saw some clothes folded neatly on the sofa. There were black blazers, white shirts and black pants. They looked completely new.
"These here," Hide gestured to the folded clothes. "Are going to be your new school uniforms. These have been commissioned to me on advance by the school. I also paid for the clothes as well. All you boys need to do is to make sure they stay clean. As you probably know, nobody likes to see dirty uniforms. I will be getting more uniforms soon, but first I need to know whether they fit you or not."
The three boys stood up from their chairs and inspected the uniforms in question.
"Black and white, huh?" Motohama remarked.
"They're just like or old school uniforms at Kuoh Academy," Matsuda commented.
"Yeah, but look. There is no ribbon at the collar. And also, the edges of the sleeves and collars are blue," Issei pointed out.
Matsuda and Motohama looked closer and true enough it was just as Issei had said.
"Hmm… good eye. I think you really are cut out to be a detective," Hide praised Issei.
"Hehehe… Please… I'm really not that good…" Issei said, fidgeting and blushing at the same time.
"Thank you very much, Hide-san," Matsuda gave a small bow of thanks at the man's kindness.
Seeing this, Motohama and Issei followed suit, doing a similar bow in Japanese fashion.
"My pleasure, boys," Hide replied.
They made their way back to their table to continue their breakfast. Just before Hide took a bite, he remembered something.
"Oh, yes. Else I forget, Matsuda, Motohama. I called your parents not too long ago. I told them you would call back. You should give them a call," Hide revealed.
Matsuda and Motohama looked at Hide in surprise.
"Y-You did?" Matsuda asked in surprise.
"How did you…?" Motohama wanted to ask, but Hide answered him quickly.
"…know? Monika gave me their numbers. They visited you in prison and gave her their contact numbers," Hide pointed out.
Nobody said anything, especially Issei, though inwardly he was sighing deeply. He wished his parents were still alive. Matsuda and Motohama had it good…
"Anyway, they asked how you three have been doing and whether you have been safe and all. I told them you were, but since you were busy changing I did not want to disturb you. My cellphone is right over there on that table there," Hide pointed at the black cellphone in question.
The boys turned to look behind them and saw what their landlord was talking about, before facing Hide again.
"Oh! And please call them as soon as you finish breakfast. I don't want them to call the police on me. That's especially true about your parents, Motohama," Hide informed them.
"Why would my parents call the police on you?" Motohama asked with a bit of suspicion.
"They don't quite trust me. I mean, I understand them. I wouldn't trust any random stranger to be around my children, if I had any," Hide answered. "Hence the phone call."
"Oh… I see…" Motohama just said.
There was an awkward silence for a while, before Motohama got up.
"I think I am done. It's best if I call them now. Thank you for the meal," Motohama said, as he went to the small table and took the cell phone.
Hide nodded, while Motohama made his way to make his call in private.
Facing Matsuda and Issei, Hide spoke, saying "There is another thing I need to tell you boys. I told both the Hibikis and the Todorikis that you since you are still being wanted by the law, you will be using other names from now on."
"Other names?" Issei asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Like a codename or something?" Matsuda wondered.
"Not quite," Hide answered. "The right term is 'alias'. It would be no good going around with your real names when the police are looking for you. You should also be getting a new look, too."
"What do you have in mind?" Issei inquired.
"Oh, well. I have this in mind…" Hide said, as he proceeded to explain.
16th September, Sunday, 11:54 am – on the streets of Nerima
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama were out on the streets on the way to the next supermarket. Hide had sent them out to get groceries together with a list on what they should buy. He also gave them a wallet with their pocket money inside and some cotton bags to carry the groceries.
He had them do this, stating that this way they could learn to be independent. Hide also explained that he didn't have time to take care of them, since he had other things to do.
OK, pretty reasonable… But what they did not understand, is…
"…why he had cut my hair short!?" Issei complained, while feeling his hair.
Much of his proud mane had been shorn off and replaced with a buzz cut where the side of his hair was particularly shortened. Issei almost felt like he was bald or something. When Hide first explained that they needed to change their look, he was already wary on what that might entail. But when Hide told Issei to sit down on one of the chairs prepared by him and then revealing that he needed his hair cut…
"Argh!" Issei held his hair in frustration at the memory of having to sit through the haircut.
Nevertheless, he let it happen because doing that was still better than being found out by the police and then thrown in jail again, but still!
As if that hadn't been enough, he almost botched it by shaving off too much hair. The only way to save face was this particular haircut!
"Relax, it could have been worse," Matsuda tried to calm his friend down. "You still have much of your hair. You're not completely bald or anything."
"Says the guy who actually is!" Issei retorted. "And I don't understand why Motohama gets to keep the majority of his hair."
"He gets better at his haircutting skills, I guess," Motohama smirked, while showing off his hair, which was cut shorter, but not too short like with Issei at the side.
Issei clicked his tongue in annoyance. "And what about our names? What is up with that? Why did he have us pretend we are all adoptive brothers, huh?"
"Hide brothers… Not the worst name, I guess, but it does need some getting used to," Matsuda commented.
[Indeed, 'Onii-chan'. Pfff… Now you've got two little 'sisters' to oggle over. Pfft…] Ddraig joked while trying to hold in his laughter. Currently, the Boosted Gear was out on Issei's arm because Ddraig had been complaining about being cooped in for so long.
"OH, WILL YOU JUST SHUT UP!" Matsuda yelled at Ddraig in irritation.
"Yeah, we're not girls!" Issei joined in as well.
"Yeah, so keep quiet! You're getting on our nerves!" Motohama reacted with annoyance.
[Can't you three just take a joke? Sheesh… Spoilsports…] Ddraig responded seriously at their apparent lack of humor. [But seriously, you said so yourself that you are the oldest in the group. So, you really should get used to being called Onii-san or something like that.]
"If anything, I prefer 'Aniki'. Sounds way cooler, too," Matsuda remarked.
"You sound like some kind of gang-leader or something rather than an older brother," Motohama said with a wry face.
"Still better than being called 'Onii-chan'," Matsuda answered back, shuddering at the thought of Matsuda and Motohama calling him 'Onii-chan'.
"Better 'Onii-chan' than 'Ototou'," Issei said. "I'm the youngest and Motohama is in the middle. And being the youngest one sucks!"
"Heh, yeah… hey… wait a minute…" Motohama spoke up, as something came to mind.
"What?" Issei asked.
"If I am in the middle, doesn't that mean I am both 'Ototou' and 'Onii-chan'?" Motohama asked them.
All of them looked at each other weird, but didn't say anything. Matsuda shrugged his shoulders first and then Issei did the same, before walking on in silence…
[Of course, I am thousands of years older than all of you, so I should be the one you should call 'Aniki'] Ddraig interrupted the silence with dragonish pride.
Having been told off for so long whenever Ddraig made a trolling comment like this, Ddraig expected the same to happen again.
Instead, much to Ddraig's surprise, they didn't flip like usual and instead looked at each other, came to some kind of unspoken agreement, before then speaking up.
"If anything, Onii-chan would be better," Issei remarked calmly.
"Agreed," Motohama nodded.
"Yeah, a cutesy way of addressing a troll like him is exactly what fits him, Matsuda stated .
Ddraig was shocked… and then outraged.
[YOU DARE MOCK ME!" Ddraig bellowed. "I AM DDRAIG, ONE OF THE TWO HEAVENLY DRAGON EMPERORS! AND I DEMAND THAT YOU-!]
"Oh, look there's the supermarket! I think I should dismiss the Boosted Gear," Issei interrupted Ddraig upon seeing the Bonsai Market.
[I AM NOT FINI-] Ddraig tried to speak his mind.
"We'll talk some other time, 'Onii-chan'," Issei said cutting off the angry Dragon and dismissing the Boosted Gear.
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama were laughing now.
"Hahaha… serves him right!" Matsuda said in laughter.
"Hahaha… Totally!" Motohama laughed, while giving Matsuda and Issei high-fives.
"Hahahaha… Yeah… say, who has the shopping list?" Issei asked, now changing the subject.
"I do!" Matsuda said, while he pulled out the piece of paper in question.
"And I've got the purse," Motohama flashed it before everyone.
"Good. Let's get to work…" Issei said, as he and his buddies walked towards the Bonsai Market.
Just then, Issei stopped and turned around. He used his dragonized ears and nose to sense out what he had perceived.
"Issei, what's wrong?" Matsuda asked concerned at his abrupt action.
Issei didn't answer. After a few seconds of surveillance, Issei turned around to acknowledge Matsuda and shook his head.
"It's nothing," Issei answered and walked ahead of them.
Matsuda and Motohama were skeptical. But decided to just forget about it and follow Issei into the supermarket.
16th September, Sunday, 12:09 pm – Bonsai Mart
"Two carts of milk," Matsuda read out from the list.
"Got it!" Motohama said, as he picked out two carts of milk from among the many carts in the open refrigerator.
"Is it the 1 percent version?" Matsuda asked.
Motohama inspected the carts of milk. "Yup. It is," he confirmed.
"Hey, Matsuda! Should I get margarine or butter? I know the list says butter, but you know… margarine is cheaper…" Issei stated.
"It's better if we follow the list… so take the butter…" Matsuda replied.
Currently, the trio was going through the shopping list and putting the items on the list in their shopping bag. So far, they had gotten everything except the items that are normally found in the refrigerator. Matsuda was holding the list, Motohama was holding the purse in his pocket (in order to make the payment at the cash register) and Issei was bagging in the items. At first, Issei thought it was kind of unfair to have him carrying the heavy shopping bag, but seeing that everybody had a part to play – and that somebody had to carry the bag – he decided to let it be.
Of course, like with most shopping, one faces the dilemma on what to buy, which goes for our three heroes as well.
"But wait. This shopping list is for us, right? What does it even matter to us, if we eat butter or margarine? Unless you two mind it that is," Issei reasoned.
"I don't know," Matsuda replied with a shrug. "To be honest, I don't even know whether the landlord just merely wanted to help us be independent or if he is not testing us. With this guy, I just can't tell."
"Agreed," Motohama said, as he came from the sidelines. Issei opened the bag so that Motohama could put the milk carts in.
"Speaking of that guy… what was his name again?" Issei asked Matsuda and Motohama.
"Shinyama Hide… I think?" Motohama answered uncertain, since he himself had barely managed to remember the man's name.
"Yeah… tell me… You two said that he was trapped with you in that dimension with the succubus, right? Tell me something. How did he manage to get out of that dimension? I tried to ask him, but he refused to do that. You told me that he got swallowed up by the succubus' dark matter, so how did you think he did that?" Issei questioned.
The two boys scratched their heads and then shrugged their shoulders. "No idea. But whatever he did, he found a way," Motohama answered.
"Yeah. We do know that he can punch the air and then a big boom would come out from his fist. Maybe he did that or something similar," Matsuda speculated.
"Possible," Issei nodded. "Say, Ddraig, do you think he's some kind of supernatural being or something?"
[I'm not sure, Partner. I couldn't really tell what he was either. He smelled like an ordinary human, so he might be a magician of some kind. But I am not quite sure] Ddraig answered.
"Ok… but good theory…" Issei replied.
"Huh? What did Ddraig say?" Matsuda asked Issei.
"Yeah, unlike you, we can't hear him if he is in your head. What did he say?" Motohama wanted to know.
"He just thought Hide-san might be a magician. But even he is not sure," Issei replied.
""Oh…""Both Matsuda and Motohama voiced and nobody said anything more.
"Say, guys?" Motohama asked.
"Hmm?" Issei responded.
"Do we have everything on the list?" Motohama asked his question.
"Hold on…" Matsuda took a look on his list. "We still need cheese, some salami, some bacon and some meatballs…" look he read out loud.
They went straight to work.
While, Issei went to the meat department Ddraig spoke up.
[You noticed it, too, didn't you?] Ddraig asked Issei.
"Yeah, I did," Issei confirmed Ddraig's question. "I have yet to tell Matsuda and Motohama about it. But I don't know what to do next. Got any ideas?"
[Of course, here is the plan…] Ddraig told Issei of his idea.
16th September, Sunday, 12:21 pm – back on the streets
After the trio found all the items on the list and paid for them at the cashier, they made their way back to their new apartment. Currently, Motohama was trailing right behind Issei and Matsuda, both of whom were walking side by side to each other.
The reason? Well, it was because Motohama one carrying the shopping bag, much to his own chagrin. And he had good reason for being this way, for the bag was full and, moreover, rather heavy. The only reason he agreed to carry it was because of the discussion he had with Issei, Matsuda and Ddraig earlier in the supermarket.
'You guys better be correct…' Motohama complained mentally.
Right now, the pedestrian path had people going up and down the street just minding their own business. It was a hassle for them to dodge these people, which was even more problematic for Motohama, who needed to be careful about bumping into people with the goods.
As they made their way down the road towards their new home, Matsuda started a discussion.
"Say, guys. What field do you guys want to pick?" Matsuda asked the two of them.
"Field?" Issei asked confused at what Matsuda was talking about.
"For school, remember?" Matsuda reminded Issei.
"Oh… that… I don't know yet. But as far as I am concerned, we don't have to decide that now. Only after the first year finishes, right?" Issei asked rhetorically. Yet after saying that he couldn't help but let out a sigh. "Unfortunately, none of the fields lead directly into the detective business."
"Well… I'm sure you'll find something," Matsuda attempted to cheer his friend up. "Anyway, I was thinking about doing either designing or IT, depending on what gets me closer to my dream of becoming a professional photographer."
"Oh, yeah… that… you always were good at this stuff… makes me wonder why you left the photography club on the first place," Issei said.
"Heh… too many prudes. That's all I'm saying," Matsuda gave a mocking laugh at his former club members. "They could never understand the delights of pornography. Some them were a bunch of shrieking feminists, so there was no way I could stay there for too long."
"Tch," Issei clicked his tongue. "Feminists. Ruin everything."
Matsuda nodded, before turning back to look at Motohama.
"Hey, Motohama. What field do you want to choose?" Matsuda asked Motohama, who was still straining to carry the bag.
"Motohama?" Matsuda addressed him once more, getting him to finally react.
"What? Did you say something?" Motohama asked.
Matsuda shook his head at his friend's lack of attention. He decided to ask again.
"I asked about what field you want to do at school," Matsuda said.
Motohama thought for a bit, before he shrugged. "To be honest, I don't know. At first, I wanted to do something in the field of biology, like a doctor. But then, I after sitting down with Yuri, I realized… I didn't really know what to do. I found out that there were a whole bunch of jobs in that field, many of which have tough requirements. But even choosing just to go into the realm of biology would be too narrow of a choice."
"Too narrow?" Issei asked this time.
"Yeah, what Yuri told me was to expand my horizon. Think about many possibilities and figuring out whether I'm good at those fields or not. Then I can slowly choose my field and then my job. Until then, I want to keep my options open. That's what she taught me… That's why…" Motohama smiled sadly at the memory of Yuri. "…I fell in love with her…"
Issei and Matsuda immediately became sober. Getting over their girlfriends won't be easy. The pain was still fresh after all. But both of them knew that dwelling on it, won't do them any good.
Matsuda put his hand on Motohama's shoulder. "Let's get going," he said to Motohama.
Motohama nodded sadly and tried his best to keep his emotions in check. And so they walked on.
Ddraig, being in the Boosted Gear, couldn't take part in the conversation. All he could do was just shake his head in sadness, not simply because of his host's heartbreak, but also of things that were to come. He knew, after living thousands of years, that in one way or the other, they were going to deal with situations like these more often.
Sooner or…
[Hmm?] Ddraig thought he sensed something, something suspicious.
He immediately notified Issei. [Partner, it's time. Get ready.]
Issei nodded and went into action.
He tapped Matsuda on the shoulder and gave him a look. Normally, Matsuda would have been confused by this gesture, but not in this situation.
Matsuda simply nodded, yet still he and everyone else continued to walk forward.
After a minute or so, the masses of people passing by was getting thinner, they didn't need to maneuver around the passing pedestrians like they used to. It was at that moment that Matsuda suddenly spoke up.
"Hey, I think we're supposed to turn in here!" Matsuda said in an unusually loud voice, pointing to narrow street between two big brick buildings.
"Right! Now I remember! We came from this alley lane! How could I have been so forgetful!" Issei called out.
Motohama was confused, as to why Issei and Motohama were talking like that and why they thought going in was the correct path to take.
"Guys, what are you talking about?" Motohama spoke up. "We from the main road obviously, how could we have…"
Motohama wanted to say more, but a glare from Issei and Matsuda silenced him. That was when he remembered.
"Of course, how could I have been so stupid!" Motohama playfully knocked his head, while sticking his tongue out. "We totally came through this way! Let's get going, guys!" Motohama told his buddies, while heading into the alley first.
Matsuda and Issei followed, thus reversing the order of who lead and who strayed behind.
After about twenty seconds later, aside from one or two people and the occasional car, the street was completely empty and silent.
Eventually, nobody passed by and the silence was absolute.
And then… a woman came towards the alley entrance where the trio had turned into.
"Ufufufu… Prey… Sacred Gear user…" the unnervingly creepy woman giggled with delight.
The woman was covered in a long trench coat and a hood. Not good fashion taste, but anyone looking at her could probably tell that her choice of dress was anything, except fashion-related.
"Kill… Eat user… must feed… wipe them out…" she spoke in simple sentence structures and smacking her lips.
Now, anyone who was to see this woman would also be able to tell that there were other things wrong about her.
Not only was her sense of fashion bad, but her speech and demeanour were abnormal as well.
Moreover, the words she just said were even more ominous.
And seeing her covered up appearance, it would be easy to think that she was trying to hide her true identity. But for what reason?
She made her way into the narrow alley, following right behind our heroes. She made her way forward towards the next turn to the right where they had presumably turned into.
"Mistress… always take in filthy humans… Sacred Gear users… grrr… cannot accept them..." She growled angrily. "Always moved aside… for them… was strongest… now not… because of them… took my eye… all must die…"
It was then that the woman cast off her coat and revealed her naked body to the world.
Had anyone seen her, he or she would have been revolted at the sight.
Other than having a nice womanly torso, it was filled with scars and covered in blood. Her gray hair was dirty and her face looked horrendous. Her left eye was gone, having been completely cut off by some unknown weapon. Her teeth were sharp and many and it looked like her mouth was filled with teeth.
But worst of all… she transformed…
She crouched down on all fours and grew black hair all over her body. She even grew a tail from behind. Then canine ears grew from her head and a snout and canine teeth as well, increasing the size of her teeth. Her jaw and head, along with the rest of her body grew as well. Her tail had split into several and unlike her body were hairless and covered in scales instead.
The result of the transformation was an abominable hairy wolf with snakes as tails. Truly something out of a horror movie.
The monster trudged forward, nearing the corner.
"Now… they die… now they… PAY! They are…" the monster wolf abomination growled, ready to ambush the poor unsuspecting trio, except…
{Firing turrets!}
"Wha-? AAAAARRGH!" the monster screamed, as she was pierced by multiple rounds of the Chopping Board Type 2 from behind (which was at its original small size).
She collapsed to the ground in pain, yet struggled to stay alive.
"Urrrgh… What…?" the wolf monster asked in pain.
Not a second after she spoke, Issei jumped out of the corner with the Boosted Gear ready.
She widened her eyes in shock. It was her prey.
"Gotcha, you wench…" Issei said coldly, before sending his gauntlet-wearing fist smashing down on her head.
[Squelch!]
Her head was immediately crushed by the force of the Boosted Gear's punch. Blood and brain matter spattered all over Issei's clothes. The wolf's body spasmed violently, before becoming completely still.
The fight – if you could call it that – was over.
"Ugh… yuck!" Issei voiced in disgust. He immediately wiped off the bodily tissue from his clothes as good as he could. "I hate it when that happens! Next time, I'll just blast them with my Dragon Shot, instead of punching their brains out!"
"Yeah, but then you would have the problem of attracting the attention of the police and then we would be back in jail again," Motohama interjected, as he came around the corner with Matsuda.
"Well, easy for you to say!" Issei retorted. "You two had the luxury of staying behind that corner. I had to get out there and finish the job!"
"Hey, don't look at me!" Matsuda protested. "It's not like I did nothing. I mean, if it hadn't been for me giving orders to the Chopping Board Type 2, who knows what that thing would have done to us? Good job by the way, Phoebe," Matsuda said to the helicopter's A.I.
{Your wish is my command, Captain. Awaiting new orders} Phoebe said monotonous as usual.
"Umm… head up to the sky and continue patrolling," Matsuda ordered.
{Yes, Captain} Phoebe replied, before flying the helicopter back into the sky.
"It was a good idea to lure that monster here and have Phoebe ambush it from behind. I was even able to use the helicopter's camera and get a good live feed and a good recording, too. Man, that thing gave me the chills," Matsuda shuddered at seeing and hearing that monster from his watch. Honestly, it was a very nerve-racking experience for the other two as well.
"Yeah Ddraig really has some good plans once in a while," Issei commented .
"Yeah, but why did I have to hold the bag throughout the entire operation!? Huh, Ddraig?" Motohama demanded indignantly.
But Ddraig didn't answer and Issei paid no heed to him, since he was too busy cleaning himself from the filth on his body.
After cleaning himself, Issei murmured. "Man, washing these clothes after every fight is really going to be a pain… and it's all that monster's fault…"
"It was a shame, though," Motohama commented, as he looked upon the monster's dead body. "She had really nice boobs."
"Yeah, but sadly we had no choice," Matsuda shook his head in disappointment. "That thing whatever it was… didn't seem to be reasonable."
[Indeed] Ddraig spoke from within the Boosted Gear. [That was a stray devil. A stray devil is one that used to belong to a devil master, before running away. And judging by what it said, it seemed to have a personal hatred for Sacred Gear users. It must have sensed Issei's Boosted Gear and decided to come after him.]
Issei felt uneasy upon hearing this. "Are all stray devils like this?"
[Not all. But many of them tend to have no restraints on what they do, whether it be killing humans or any creature for that matter. Some of them even mutate when their Evil Pieces react upon defection] Ddraig explained.
"What were Evil Pieces again, Ddraig?" Matsuda asked Ddraig.
[Evil Pieces are chess pieces that allow a devil to take up peerage members. These pieces give the new peerage members different types of powers depending on what piece was used on them, such as a knight having enhanced speed or a bishop enhanced magical reserves or a rook increased strength or a queen having all three of these powers boosted] Ddraig explained.
"Sounds cool," Motohama remarked.
[Yes, only if you are the king, in other words, the master. Every one else is a slave, unfree to do as they please. That is why some of them flee, becoming stray devils in the process. These would normally be hunted down and killed by other devils] Ddraig told them.
"Oh… I see… I take that back…" Motohama said uneasy at what he just heard.
"They kill them!? These devils really are devils! That's barbaric!" Matsuda voiced outraged.
[Yes. But worst of all, is that not only can they turn other devils into their servants, but they can also do the same to other beings as well. Yokai, valkyries, dragons, fallen angels… even humans, especially those with Sacred Gear's, in order to build up their peerages in Rating Games] Ddraig revealed to them.
"Ddraig, I think you've mentioned that term to me before. What's a Rating Game?" Issei asked.
[Rating Games are matches, in which devil masters pit their peerages against each other. The peerage members fight each other and the winner is the group in which the king or master is defeated. The more successful a peerage has in these games, the better his standing in the Underworld. Hence all the collecting of Sacred Gear users] Ddraig answered.
Issei could not help but feel disgusted upon hearing this. This wasn't just slavery, it was like gladiators back in ancient Rome. Fighting and killing for bread and water. To think such a thing could still exist and that human beings were being dragged into this, too…
Now that he thought about it, Rias Gremory and Souna Shitori were devils and they probably had peerages, too. Could they also be partaking in these sick games? And to think that people like them were being looked up to... not just by him, but the entire school!
'I guess the saying is true: 'Looks can deceive',' Issei concluded in his mind.
"Man, I really feel sorry for these stray devils. I would also run, if I were in their shoes," Issei stated.
[Partner, I understand how you feel, but you have to remember. Stray devils are dangerous creatures. Many of them flee for selfish reasons or because they are twisted beings in general. When you see one, it would be best to eliminate them or else they mat grow and become a greater threat] Ddraig warned Issei.
"Umm… Ddraig? I'm just wondering… but… how many stray devils are wandering around like this?" Motohama asked.
[I'm not sure. But the occasional stray devil will appear every once in a while. It's best to be on your guard, especially when you are around Issei and myself] Ddraig answered.
"Huh? Why you two?" Matsuda asked this time.
"Yeah, why me?" Issei asked, not liking the idea of being a trouble magnet of some kind.
[Do you remember what I told you back at Sakabasu Prison?] Ddraig asked Issei.
Issei looked confused for a moment, before shaking his head. "No, I don't. But what has that got to do with anything?"
[Everything. Having a Sacred Gear like mine attracts all kinds of enemies, both strong and weak. That includes stray devils, who are mostly weak. That succubus and that boar may be significantly stronger than this foe, but still belong to the weaker ones] Ddraig answered.
Everybody grew slightly pale at that. Those were weak enemies? If they were weak, then they could only imagine what a strong enemy might be. And that did not make them comfortable.
Seeing that everybody was stunned by what he said, Ddraig decided to snap them out of it.
[Anyway, I think it's best if we get a move on. Let's head back for now. Then when we have free time, we get back to our training schedule that has been neglected these past few weeks. Remember? You three are getting out of shape and you need to be ready for the next fight. We got lucky this time, but next time we may not be so lucky] Ddraig told the boys.
The three of them nodded quickly and headed out of the alley as quickly as possible. They really did not want to stay in a place that had a rotting monster corpse in it. In Issei's case, he really wanted to get a change of clothes. His smelled – badly!
As they made their way home, they forgot all about going to Akihabara and porn games.
Business, it seemed, had knocked on the door and brought a lot of metaphorical thugs with it, the kind that hurt you just for the fun of it.
And to top it off, tomorrow was their first day at the new school. As if they didn't have enough problems!
But little did they realize that more trouble was lying somewhere else.
More specifically, somewhere in the same city within another alley…
"BWEEEEEEEEE!" a black piglet squealed, as it ran away in fright. One might be wondering why he wore a red bandana around his neck, but that didn't matter.
Currently, this piglet was having a particularly bad day from being humiliated once again by his rival, then falling into a pond, turning into a piglet once more and then coming across these abominable monsters!
Thankfully, the piglet was a good runner and could elude his pursuers by hiding inside a trash bin. It smelled, but better that than dead!
As he waited out with heavy breathing and fearful eyes, the piglet saw his pursuers looking around.
Both of them were wearing trench coats and their faces were obscured by their hoods. The piglet did not know who they were, but he knew they were female – and after his life.
They weren't normal, that was for sure. In fact, the piglet was sure they weren't even human.
Then the piglet picked up words… he heard them talking! He listened carefully…
"I'm hungry… Where is that pig? Slurp…" one of them said with a raspy monstrous voice, licking her lips in hunger.
"Forget it! It wouldn't be able to satisfy our hunger anyway!" the other person replied with a similarly raspy voice.
"What do we do now?" the first woman asked.
"We wait for Oka and Kanto to return, then we'll look for the next prey!" the second woman replied.
"Better yet, if… Sacred Gear user…" she growled impatiently.
"We'll get our revenge on them soon… First, we wait. Then we'll plan our next move!" the second woman calmed the first one down.
"All right…" the first woman reluctantly agreed.
Both of them leaned back against the wall and waited.
After about half a minute, another figure appeared from the sky. This person, unlike the two women was male and did not have a hood. He had gray long hair and white scaly skin. His eyes were reptilian and had a skinny, but tall figure. He had an overall intimidating appearance.
The piglet shuddered inside the trash can, peering through the gap of the lid and the bin.
He knew just from seeing that man that he – and possibly the other two women with him - weren't human. Just what were they?
"Kanto! What took you so long? Kao and I have been doing nothing but hunt rodents here!" the first woman snarled at the male monster named Kanto.
But Kanto didn't seem to be in a good mood either. He growled angrily, before knocking down a trash can in anger. Thankfully the piglet was not in that one or else he would be found!
"Shut up, Ako! We've got problems! Serious ones! Somebody has killed Oka!" Kanto revealed angrily.
This caused the two trench coat wearing women to react in utter fury.
"Killed Oka!?" the first woman named Ako shrieked.
"Who did that? A Sacred Gear user!?" the other woman named Kao demanded to know.
"Tch! No idea! All I know is that somebody destroyed her head, like a watermelon. One thing is for sure, we'll find whoever did this. And we'll do it even if we can kill every single one of these miserable humans, too!" Kanto said full of hate.
"Damn these Sacred Gear users! First, they take our place among us Devils, then they turn our master against us and now Oka is dead! How much longer will this go on!?" Kao ranted in frustration.
"We'll get our revenge! We'll go now!" Ako growled, as she spread her wings behind her back.
The piglet went wide-eyed upon seeing the leathery wings appearing from the woman's back. Now he really felt unsettled.
The woman wanted to fly off, but the man raised his hand to stop her.
"Wait! Not now! It's still daytime and we can't afford to be seen or else we will be killed like Oka. She never was that bright to begin with," Kanto said with disdain.
"Then what do we do? Just stand around until they kill us one by one!?" Ako screamed at Kanto.
"No, we wait until dusk. Then we hunt for every nook and cranny and then wipe out every single one of these Sacred Gear users in their sleep! In the meantime…" Kanto pulled both women close to him and started to feel their breasts up.
"Aaaah… Your hands are amazing…" Kao moaned.
"It feels so good…" Ako said in complete arousal, as if she had never been angry to begin with.
"I need to release this urge to kill for the moment. And having my member inside your body is just what I need…" Kanto smirked, as he pulled his pants down.
The poor piglet couldn't help but stare at the scene before him with an embarrassed face, yet still kept his guard up. Those were monsters or demons for goodness sake! He didn't know what Sacred Gear users were, but it sounded like they were out to kill As many people as possible.
What a horrible day, he was having. As if his day wasn't bad enough!
All he could do, while those monster's were having a threesome, was blame the person who brought him into this misery.
'Damn you, Sanma! This is your fault!' The piglet screamed internally.
Oh, how little did the perverted quartet know what lay ahead of them…
Wow, this is a record… in how negligent I have been!
Sorry, for the delay.
Now, there are some things I want to address in this chapter.
One, is the school that our heroes will go to. It is going to be a vocational school that is career-focused. Why? Because I wanted to try something original. I mean, who has ever seen a movie, TV show, light novel (or even a manga/anime) of any kind where the story takes place in a vocational school or vocational college? Please tell me if you do know any in the comments.
Granted, I'm not that well versed in all the career fields, but I'll do my best to come up with something when the three of them go through their lessons. Come to think of it, finding subjects and creating exercises for stories in general is not easy.
Also, creating a school system requires some thought as well.
This vocational school has three years: The first year is a general preparatory class. The second and third years train you in a certain field and once you are done and have gone through three months of practical training, you get a qualified secondary school degree, enabling you to get a job in your respective field.
I based it off the school concept on the vocational school I graduated from not too long ago, along with my former working place which also focused on vocational training.
Another thing is that from now on, Issei, Matsuda and Motohama will adopt my surname "Hide" and pretend to be brothers. Remember, they are still hiding from the law and can't be discovered yet. But don't worry. I will do something about the Japanese authorities soon.
Lastly, as you can see we are dealing with the first Stray Devils. These will be the antagonists for this story arc, which I'll probably call the "Stray Devil Ring Arc" (I'm afraid the title may be too long for me to type in). As I was writing this arc, I had some interesting ideas on what to do with the wider Devil Society for this fanfiction .
What are they? Well, you'll see soon one day.
In the meantime, please read and review. I hope to hear from you.
I hope to work faster the next time and I hope I won't be too busy.
Until then.
Hide Shinyama