AN: Ask and you shall receive! The love for this fic is surprising me.

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Also, just saying but the Pat vote is to decide where my focus goes every month. I have tried FF's poll style, QQ's, Discord's, nothing ended up working. I appreciate the care when readers tell me to write what I want, but I think that's missing the point. I need direction lol. In the time between posting chapter 1 to 2 today, I thought of three fic idea's I really want to write, I'm aware I have a problem.

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Disclaimer: I own no source material.

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Chapter 2: The Legacy of Lupa.

0000

December 1991.

Getting adopted was a swift process.

Well, swift if you had the right resources anyway.

Mr. Lupa used small mental suggestions to urge Ms. Ana to fast-track the paperwork, and soon they were out the door into the streets, with Hei promising the matron to come back and visit when he could. There weren't any children Hei was particularly close to, so he had no one else to say goodbye to.

The older man grunted as they left. "Best not to go back anytime soon."

"Why?"

"You saw what your Sacred Gear said back there. The gears awakening must have been picked up on someone's radar already. I left a slight gap in that young woman's memory so she won't remember you if anyone asks about a child being adopted recently. Should only last a week, but it will be enough time to keep both of you safe from the vultures."

Hei paused and processed that with a wince as he realized he could have been leaving Ms. Ana to the wolves. "I didn't think about that."

A light cane tap on his shin stopped Hei from stepping in dog shit as the old man chuckled. "That is what I'm here for child. You will learn in time."

Hei hummed in acknowledgment and looked down in gratitude as the two walked on. It felt nice having someone to watch over him. Although, he didn't come to his decision right away, but instead used his Sacred Gear to help him decide.

0000

Earlier:

Hei stared at that aged palm and considered the offer before him. 'I haven't had a chance to really process it, but the Sacred Gear? God of the Christian bible? I'm in Highschool Dxd….fuck. It's not an instant death world but it is a world where plenty of things can sneeze and kill me.'

The thought alone of the loli dragon who wanted her silence rang through his head. 'Shit. I should have paid more attention to this world before. But I never thought I'd actually end up in it!' Hei growled and shook his head while the old man simply raised a brow.

"You refuse?"

Hei quickly denied. "No, no, I'm just thinking. It's a big decision."

The older man nodded in approval. "Very well, take a moment to think. But remember we are on the clock, the longer we wait, the more chance something will show up tracing your signal." He sat back and closed his eyes to not pressure the younger man.

But Hei felt the pressure build regardless, knowing he was on the clock as he thought furiously. 'I have the Greed Island deck; I could just disappear and try and build up from safety somewhere. But where would I go? Back to the place I worked in Alaska? I have no way of knowing if the topography is the same in this world as mine. Not to mention how to get there as a four-year-old.' He tossed out the idea. 'No, that won't work. I could find somewhere nearby to lay low. But even then, where the hell would I find a better teacher to give me the skills to survive in a world like this? I don't know shit about fighting.'

His mind went back and forth trying to decide before a recent memory popped into his head as he remembered a Designated Card he was staring at when Ms. Ana knocked on the door. 'That could work.'

Hei looked back at the old man. "Hey, you said you were a mercenary, right?"

The corner of Mr. Lupa's lip twitched upward. "Among other things, yes."

Hei nodded and came to a decision. "My Sacred Gear has an ability that will me decide, do you mind if I use it?"

The old man cracked open his eyes to look at Hei and study him for a moment before grunting in reply. "Very well." He raised his cane, and Hei watched in surprise as a small magic formation came to life at its end. "I can muffle the energy signature briefly."

A feeling like a bubble went up around them, and Hei marveled at it until the old man's cane tapped his leg gently. "Don't let your mind wander, child."

"Right, sorry. Book." The grimoire reappeared, and Hei quickly grabbed a card from the list before holding it up and pausing. 'Um…how did it work again? I say something?'

Mr. Lupa noticed his pause and narrowed his eyes. "You do know how it works, correct?"

"Of course I do."

"Go on then."

"Just give me a sec."

Hei didn't know the eyes of one old man could be so judgmental at that moment, but thankfully, he managed to recall it. "Right, right, it was Gain. Gain Golden Scales."

A flash of light appeared on the table beside them as an item quickly materialized into reality.

Designated Card #3: Golden Scales - When faced with a two-option choice, these scales will tell you which is better for your future. The heavier they are, the worse the future. The more extreme the difference in weight, the less time one has to choose. One-time use.

Like something out of an Egyptian exhibit, a solid gold scale appeared before them, making the old man whistle. "That's pure gold."

"How do you know that without touching it?"

"Experience, child."

Hei rolled his eyes at that before hurrying to activate it. He ripped a piece of paper from a book and quickly wrote down two options as he explained to his guest. "The scales work by putting two written options on the scale." He held up the slips. "One says to go with you, the other says to go on my own. Whichever one is heavier leads to more danger."

The older man hummed in interest. "Fascinating. Divination abilities are rare. Go on then."

A shaky nod was his answer as Hei put the slips down, and the resulting slam of one side hitting the table was no different than a gunshot going off in an enclosed room.

"…."

"…."

The two watched in silence as the scale vanished into motes of light with its job done before the old man casually asked. "Was it supposed to have such a…loud reaction?"

"Well…not really?" Hei re-read the card's info in his grimoire and paled. "Oh, it says the more drastic the weight difference, the less time I have to decide."

"Is that so?"

"Mn. Maybe we should go now."

"I concur."

For an old man who walked with a cane, Mr. Lupa could be incredibly quick when he wanted to be.

0000

Hei wasn't all that bothered by the rushed adoption, but the concept of what mental suggestions can do nagged at him something fierce. 'I need to get mental defenses. I don't know how big this world is on mental magic, but I don't want to find out the hard way.'

Mr. Lupa seemed to sense his thoughts and answered without turning around. "There are ways to defend oneself from mental magics. It shall be part of what I teach."

"How do you do that?" Hei grumbled.

"Do what?" Came the amused response.

"You know what I'm talking about. How do you keep knowing what I'm thinking?"

"Wisdom comes with age."

"So do hemorrhoids."

As she caught that line, a passing woman spat out the water she was drinking, and the old man guffawed good-naturedly. "Indeed they do." He walked on without a pause. "You have a shit poker face. It's easy to read."

"I do not!"

A hand settled down on Hei's shoulder as Mr. Lupa looked down at him. "Hei, this is your first lesson. Don't lie to yourself or me about your abilities. Accept your weaknesses. Only then can you work on them to make them strengths. It's my job to identify those weaknesses as your teacher, I achieve no gain in lying to you. Understood?"

Again, that feeling of warmth passed through Hei as he couldn't meet the old man's eyes. "Mn. Sorry."

He received a gentle pat on the shoulder before the hand was removed. "No need to apologize, simply try to be aware. Now come, the bus is leaving in two minutes." Mr. Lupa eyed the sky briefly with narrowed eyes before pushing on while Hei shuffled to keep up.

"A bus? What kind of supernatural mercenary takes the bus?"

"The old kind. Besides, I never said I only dealt with the supernatural."

0000

Two beings with dark feathery wings floated a few miles above the city while looking down at a device in their hands.

"The signal came from this area. It cut off then spiked a bit soon after."

"Probably another human teen thinking they became a superhero again. It's how it usually goes."

"Sacred Gear awakenings usually go like that. Think it's something good this time?"

"Who knows, hopefully the human doesn't start waving it around. Erasing memories is a pain in the ass."

"True, let's keep an eye out for someone in their teens and search the general area. I don't want to report anything until were sure we can find it. Last guy who called it in without results had to explain himself to Kokabiel."

One of the Fallen Angels shivered. "Don't have to tell me twice, that guys getting more pissed off by the day without anything to fight. He needs to get laid."

"It is what it is, just stay out of his crosshairs and we'll be fine. We're just the bottom rung two wingers so no one cares about us."

"Yeah, yeah, come on, your depressing me with this topic."

"On the upside, we're practically immortal, let's go drinking later."

"Hell yeah man. I think I saw a nice strip club around here; it is Barcelona after all."

"I know right? We got lucky to get assigned here."

The two fallen flew off in search of the signal with half-assed zeal, unaware that their target was already moving away from their search area, or that they guessed wrong on the target's age range entirely.

The case was reported back inconclusive to Grigori HQ the following day.

0000

The two rode the bus toward a different edge of the city. The orphanage was in the poorer district toward the south of Barcelona, whereas their destination took them to the west, toward the forested areas.

Trusting in his Golden Scale card as well as his instincts, Hei followed along without complaint but stayed observant of the path they took in case he had to run.

It took almost two hours by bus with how many stops it made, but soon the two were walking up to the front gate of a large property.

A single-floor L-shaped home with stone walls wrapping around the property's perimeter at seven feet tall, enclosing a large courtyard from outside view.

From where he stood, Hei could make out the courtyard extending into the tree line, going beyond his sight.

"This is your home?"

"Mhm. It is yours too now, child." Mr. Lupa unlocked the gate and guided him in. "I settled here many years ago. From a safehouse, to a residence, to a home." He chuckled at a distant memory and pushed open the front door.

The house was simple and clean on the inside.

The old man gestured to a couch in a sitting room near the front door while sitting he sat in a rocking chair. "Sit Hei, I know you have many questions, and now I can answer them. Don't worry about having to run, I'm glad you had the forethought to pay attention to the route here, but you are no prisoner."

Hei clicked his tongue at being found out and sighed. "It's a little creepy how easily you catch things, old man."

"Comes with age."

"Of course it does." Hei's response was a mature action of sticking out his tongue. "I do have questions."

"Ask."

Hei crossed his arms and tried to be serious. "Why did you pick me? You said something about requirements but you've been awfully generous so far."

A dry chuckle echoed in Mr. Lupa's throat. "Generous eh? Perhaps. Wait until training starts and tell me how generous I truly am. But it is a fair question." He rocked back on his chair and looked at something beyond what was before him. "To answer your question, I must tell you what it means to be a Lupa." An air of passion filled the old man as he spoke with a trace of awe. "Lupa is not a family name, but a legacy. Passed down from generation to generation to a single individual at a time, going back all the way to the age of Rome."

Hei's eyes widened slightly as he listened in. "It's been going on for over fifteen hundred years?"

Mr. Lupa smiled widely. "It has indeed. Beginning with an orphaned farm boy whose farm and family were burnt to the ground by savages and then passed down from one soul to another. Gender, age, social status, none of it mattered. We have been kings, shadows, peasants, and everything in between. All choosing how to live their lives on their own terms, but all equally capable enough to inherit the weight of the legacy. How it began I cannot say. Some say Lady Lupa herself trained the first, but the goddess hasn't been seen in centuries, so the truth could never be confirmed."

The topic of a goddess made Hei blink and then recall more about his current world. 'Right, DxD. Gods are still around and free, that's a terrifying thought when I think about some of their myths.'

"So you know about the supernatural, do you?"

Hei scowled as his thoughts were seen through again. "Stop doing that."

"Stop making it so easy. Consider it the first of many assignments I give you. Be conscious of your facial expressions. Think, process, but give nothing away on the outside." The scowl on his face lessened as he took in the advice, and his new teacher nodded. "Good, now how much do you know?"

Without trying to give away too much, Hei tried to mix lies with truth. "Um, well, the pantheons of gods exist. The Christian myth has three races who had a big war a while ago. Other supernatural races and creatures exist like vampires and Yokai. And everyone has a boner for destroying things."

Mr. Lupa snorted in humor. "A bit crass but not incorrect. Although, you seem to be missing quite a bit of education." He hummed and stared at his young apprentice's face while Hei tried not to fidget but let it go. "No matter, educating you is part of my responsibilities, after all."

Hei internally sighed at that. 'I really don't know that much about this world. I couldn't even get through a single season with the perversion comedy aspect. But I do know character names that I would rather not blurt out knowing.' Externally he tried to change the subject. "So, how does this relate to the requirements?"

The older man waved a hand. "Patience child. I'll leave the details of the factions to your future studies, but for now, I'll simply say that the world has two sides. The mundane or mortal side, and the supernatural side. For the most part, the two sides are kept apart rather well. A general veil divides the two, and the supernatural side jointly agrees to deal with things that spill over. And it's a good thing they do since some beings have the power to eradicate a country in the blink of an eye."

"Why don't they?"

"Hm, most likely due to things being better off this way. Less panic, more freedom for the supernatural side, and as humanity thrives in population, they gain more followers in faith or payments. It's easier for them to stay out of the way to reap the benefit than vice versa, as while human history has no record, every time the supernatural meddled in human affairs, destruction and death followed in large scales."

"Like what?"

"Like World War 1 and 2. And don't get me started on Nazi zombies. They still pop up from time to time like rats."

"…I'm not going to ask."

"You shouldn't. After enough fuck ups, they all just agreed to keep things low-key and not instigate human wars. Easier to just fight amongst themselves while profiting from humanity. Devils make contracts and recruit fresh blood. Angels gather faith while the churches train exorcists. Pantheons gather faith and soldiers. Vampires and blood. Each race gains something from humanity. Which is why there are two sides to the world." The old man paused to give Hei a strong look. "And on both sides, the underworld exists. Not the literal underworld, but the under belly of the law, where criminals, mercenaries, and assassins all live." He lifted his cane and thumbed a hidden seam, revealing a blade's edge inside. "Lupa's are mercenaries, hitmen, assassins that deal on both sides of the coin. Some spread the name far and wide on the mortal side, others with special gifts like your own do it on the other, very few do it in both, and many lead different lives altogether. But they are all Lupa."

There was a weight to the man's words that filled the room with something unspoken, and Hei felt as if there were more eyes than just the old man's looking down at him at that moment.

"What happens if the current Lupa dies before finding an heir?"

Mr. Lupa eased back and rubbed his chin. "Mn, good question. Before a teacher fully graduates their student and passes down the name, they require the new generation to leave behind insurance to a third party. Someone they can trust to pass down written or verbal instruction. I myself have a sealed box that remains with a trusted source and will only open if my heart were to stop. A conditional magic tool I obtained many years ago."

"But can't that fail as well? It's been over fifteen hundred years."

The older man hummed thoughtfully. "I suppose so. I have not heard about what would happen in that case, but for better or worse, the legacy continued on to my teacher, and from her down to me."

Hei felt something off about the tale but didn't push on the subject. "So why did you pick me? Why offer me all this?"

"Chance I suppose."

Hei sweatdropped at the casual answer. "Excuse me? You were building up this big mystery and then just say because you felt like it?"

Mr. Lupa chuckled and rocked in his chair. "Yes and no. I do have requirements. My student must be below the age of seven so I have enough time to train them properly. Much of my knowledge has the largest benefit when taught while the body is growing. Next, I would only choose an orphan. I would never separate a child from their family. For obvious reasons and due to the attachments and possible resentment the student might have. Orphans do not have that risk. Likewise, I say it because I too was an orphan, and I have no child to pass it on to."

"So being young and an orphan, that's it?"

"Two more things. The first is that they already must be pulled into the dangers of the world without my actions. I have no desire to thrust an innocent child into the deep end of the world without reason."

"….and what does that make me?"

"A child who would be pulled in whether they like it or not. If I hadn't arrived when I did, you would currently be dealing with the crows. And they don't ask nicely."

Hei winced at that. "Point. And the last?"

The old man looked at him deeply. "Will. My training will be harsh, and my methods can be cruel, but if a student has the will and desire to succeed, they can go far. The stronger the will, the better the results. I can turn a talentless bum into a lethal weapon, but I can't do anything with someone who lacks will."

"Is that why you asked me what I wanted in life?"

"Yes. You desire the strength to be free. That's a monumental task, and yet an admirable goal. I can do great things with someone who holds such a desire."

Hei felt himself flush slightly at the man's proud gaze but pushed on with something else that was nagging at him. "How did you know I'm more mature than a four year old. It took you less than a minute to spot it when we met earlier."

"Observation and experience." The old man replied promptly as his young guest twitched.

"Bullshit. How many children with older mentalities do you know?"

Mr. Lupa chuckled. "I told you before, I have seen it happen. There are far more wild things to happen in life; trust me on that." He tapped his fingers on his armrest and went on. "There are many areas I plan to teach you in. Stealth, Infiltration, Interrogation, hand-to-hand combat, weapons combat, tool maintenance, survival, etiquette, poison usage, torture resistance, spy network building, and above all, information gathering. Oftentimes in life, in dangerous moments, we must act at the drop of a hat on limited information. You must be able to identify those around you and where they stand."

Hei felt himself sweat drop at the listed subjects. 'Ok, there's no way I could learn all that on my own.' The value of a dedicated trainer shined through as he continued. "I get all that. But you're not going to ask questions about who I am or anything?"

The old man scoffed and pushed himself to his feet. "Who you are, who you were, what you have done, what you haven't done. I care not for any of it. I have lived a long life, one I didn't deserve with the things I have done, with a partner I didn't deserve, with happiness I didn't deserve, and through it all I have come to learn a simple fact of life."

He looked down at Hei and held up two fingers. "There are two types of people in this world. Those who distract themselves from reality and achieve nothing. And those who face it and grow. No matter how old we get, no matter what actions have been taken, that doesn't change. Wisdom comes with age? Bah, wisdom comes from taking action. From succeeding or failing and facing the facts while growing from them." A smirk grew on his face as he leaned on his cane. "That's why you will often find yourself faced with beings ten times my age with the maturity of a toddler. Makes them easy to stick a blade in their heart. Don't become easy prey. Lupa's are not prey. We are wolves. We are killers. We are predators."

Deep-seated pride leaked from the older man's bones as he spoke with authority. "Once you become a Lupa, it matters not what came before. So I ask you a final time young Hei, as the current Lupa, as the 29th generation to hold this title, do you have the will to attempt to inherit this legacy? To push through the obstacles you will face and stand tall? To become the wolf to carry on the name of Lupa into the future? To succeed…..and surpass me as the 30th?"

Mr. Lupa's words rung loudly through Hei, and at that moment, he forgot his past; at that moment, he forgot his half-assed plans, and at that moment, he forgot his worries and fears. Something in the older wolf's words brought out the fire deep inside, the flame that wanted to be more than he ever was before, to take control of his own life and destiny.

His red eyes glowed like never before as he stood on short legs and bowed his head. "Teacher."

Mr. Lupa smiled wide in acknowledgment as he stared at his new apprentice in satisfaction. "Good." He jerked his chin to the side. "Go wash up in the bathroom down the hall. The room across from it shall be yours while you stay here. We will gather everything you need tomorrow. Training shall begin the following day at five in the morning. Be ready."

Hei nodded and moved off but paused at the door and looked back. "Mr. Lupa."

"Hm?"

"Thank you."

The older man chuckled at the weight of those two words. "Let's see if you still feel that way in a few days."

A demonic gleam in the man's aged eyes had a shiver going down Hei's spine as he scurried away, unaware of the soft smile that rested on his new teacher's face as he stared off into space and whispered. "It's my turn now, sensei; I shall pass down what you instilled in me. And this time I won't fail."

The name of Lupa would carry on into the new era, and Hei would soon learn that he was not the first to make an attempt at the legacy.

0000

In another dimensional plane, on a continent of warring factions, a domain of darkness existed, where an inhuman, yet enchanting humanoid creature sat on an ivory throne covered in black roses.

The woman, for she could be nothing else but, stood eight feet tall, with a figure as seductive as it was deadly. Her entirely black eyes seemed to suck the light from the air, only feeding the sensation of how inhuman she truly felt.

An onyx crown sat upon her head, framing the locks of silky midnight hair that fell from her scalp.

Dangerous, Vile, Seductive, yet Regal.

She was queen of her domain, and all who gazed upon her knew it.

And at the moment, said queen was tapping her armrest with an amused raise of her brow, eyeing the figure at the foot of her throne. "So, you have returned, my wayward daughter."

An armored masked figure bent the knee as locks of dark hair, a shade brighter than the queen, framed a pale face. Red eyes gleamed from beneath the mask, awash with emotions hidden behind a wall of forced apathy. "Thank you for reviving me, my queen."

A scoff left the royals lips as she stood from her throne to step forward, trailing a robe dark as night behind her with a pose that screamed elegance and danger all in one. "We of royal blood do not die so easily. You should have known that when you ran off to play in the human world. But daughter or not, reviving you comes with a cost." A clawed hand reached forward to tilt the armored figure's head up so they could stare eye to eye. "Five years it took to reform you from that insidious poison. I will see you repay me with fifty on the front lines."

The kneeling figure's eyes gleamed with a fury that broke through her apathy like an inferno. "I was caught off guard! Poisoned while they ran to watch me grow weak. I'll serve for every year it took to revive me."

The queen sneered. "Poison is simply a tool. Falling for it was a weakness. Forty."

"You lied. It hasn't been five full years. Ten."

"Tsk. Did you truly count the days during reformation? Admirable. Thirty."

The armored figure growled as a mist filled the throne room in response to her anger. "I will slay three generals for you. Fifteen!"

The queen's eyes lit up with glee at the thickening mist. "So you haven't lost your touch during pregnancy, hm?"

The armored warrior stilled, and wails began to echo through the mist as an edge of bloodlust filled her voice. "Touch my son, mother, and…-"

"And you will do nothing!" A wave of a hand had the mist vanish under the queen's power as the darkness of the throne room took on physical form. "Do not let your wrath blind you to the balance of power here." Cruel eyes gleamed beneath her crown as the gravity of her domain pressed down on the warrior.

Minutes passed as they stared eye to eye, but the armored figure did not bend, earning the queen's approval before she let up and returned to her throne. "You have my temper and will, daughter, but not my power. If you did, we would not be in this situation. You showed weakness, and I cannot afford to do the same lest unrest spread among my subjects. A price must be paid." She sat on her throne as shadows danced throughout the room. "Twenty years you shall serve. And three heads of opposing generals must be paid. I care not from which domain."

The armored warrior grunted at the finality of her tone, a tone she knew brooked no disagreement, and bowed her head unwillingly. "As you say, my queen."

The dull tone of her voice had the queen rolling her eyes at the dramatics. "Oh, don't be so stiff. Your boy shares our blood; he shall be fine."

The warrior's mask faded like mist, revealing a face Hei drew half a dozen times a day as red eyes gleamed in the dark eagerly. "Mother, have you…."

"No, I haven't watched over him. You know how easily that can be discovered by the others. I shan't touch him, nor shall I intervene before one of the others do. But know this, daughter of mine, the time will come when he must come home. And when he does, his worth will be tested." The queen's black eyes glowed with a similar red light in her irises. "And you know the price of weakness."

The armored figure could only grip her fist that much harder as she turned away to avoid another outburst. Her voice trailing over her shoulder as she left the throne room. "My son will be ready."

"Time shall tell, Ilayda, Sgàil Ceò, my daughter of the shadowed mists."

Ilayda Acheron paused at the mention of her title before grunting and moving on. 'I never wanted this life for you my baby boy, I wanted to watch you grow and shower you in love, but I know you have what it takes. Grow strong little Hei. Before it's too late.'

Chapter end.

AN: Dun, Dun, the mystery family plot begins. What race is it? Stay tuned to find out. I only promise that it's not generic.

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