Chapter 1: Introduction
"Issei, are you awake?!" A familiar motherly voice flows through my room as I am in the middle of changing clothes.
"Yeah, mom, I'm just about done getting dressed!" I responded.
"Breakfast is ready when you get down here!" She shouted back.
Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Issei Hyoudou, and I'm 17 years old. Today I'm about to start my first day at school. I recently arrived in Kuoh Town, about a week after my mother, Miki, got a new job as a stocker associate at the local branch of a large corporation based in Kyoto.
It wasn't always the two of us. A stranger in a dusty black trench coat murdered my father, Guru, right in front of me one and a half years ago. We never caught the assailant or found him. Since then, I've been having nightmares about that day when that man took the very most important person away from us. Although Mom always displays it for my benefit, she felt as though someone had ripped out her heart and set it on fire on the inside. A few days later, my mom took a job and worked tirelessly to ensure our financial recovery. Her effort led to a promotion and a branch assignment in Kuoh Town. For the first time in months, she can finally get a chance to take it easy. I'm so proud of her, and I know that my dad would be too.
After I got done getting dressed, I went downstairs to see my mother in the kitchen with a hearty plate of breakfast for me on the dining table.
"Good morning, mom." I greeted.
"Good morning, son." In addition, my mom greeted me back with a kiss on the forehead. "So I might be coming home late; there is leftover pork roast in the refrigerator."
"Okay," I said as I was digging into my plate of breakfast. "How late will you be, exactly?"
"I'm not sure, but once you return from school, there's a small list of chores you need to complete before the end of the day."
"Okay, I'll get it taken care of."
"Do you need a ride to school? I can drop you off on the way to work." My mother suggested this.
"Nah, I'll be fine walking; don't worry." I politely decline.
As several minutes passed, I was walking out the door and following the sidewalk on my way to school. The sun is shining, the cherry blossoms are floating through the air, and the scent of the city fills my nostrils. Despite being a new student, I can't say I'm excited to start school. So I don't know what it will be like at a school that recently went from all-girls to co-ed.
SMACK!
I was so lost in my train of thought that I didn't pay attention to the school sign right in front of me.
"Well, I guess I'm here." As I rubbed my forehead, I commented.
"Are you okay?" A voice came from behind me.
"Yeah, I wasn't looking and planted my forehead on this sign." I got on my feet and turned to see the voice's source, who helped me pick up my bag from the ground. "Thank you very much."
"Are you a new student?" She asked.
"Issei Hyoudou, second year." I greeted.
"I'm Koneko Toujou, first year." She greeted me back.
She actually looks really cute. She has really nice white-dyed hair, complete with an adorable black cat hair clip. She's a bit smaller in height, but I'm not judging, and she also has a sack of sweets on the side of her bag, which suggests that she has a sweet tooth.
"Nice to meet you, Koneko," I said. "So, since I'm new here, do you know where I report to?"
"So, you'd need to report to the student council; they'll take care of you and assign you to a homeroom class, where you will be going from here on out, so you are going to need to talk to the head councilwoman, named Sona." Koneko explains.
"Where's that?" I asked.
"Walk to the school entry door and take a right; at the end of the hall, you'll find the door that says Student Council."
"Okay, thank you, Koneko." I thanked her as she smiled and gave me a nod.
After I got acquainted with Koneko, I did what she told me to do and proceeded to find the Student Council room.
I entered the building and came to the hallway, where students occupied every corridor. The sounds of teenage gossip, laughter, and small talk filled the air, just like at any other school. There were barely any other male students here, mostly because it recently became a co-ed school.
It's going to be hard trying to make new friends here. Well, I never had that many friends to begin with. When I was little, I had a childhood friend. I don't know where she went off to. Her news of moving was so sudden, and I didn't even say good-bye to her. She could be anywhere in the world right now. I never forgot her, and I hope that she has never forgotten me.
"Excuse me. Are you a newcomer?" I looked to see a woman with black hair and glasses.
"Um, yes, I'm Issei Hyoudou." I greeted her with my right hand and offered a handshake.
"Welcome to Kuoh Academy; if you can follow me, we'll get you all set up." The woman shrugged off my handshake offer and got straight to the point. I guess that not every girl is on board with having to share a school with boys.
As I was following the person who welcomed me, I was just looking around and seeing a bunch of art, pamphlets, and many other things that the school had put up on their hallway wall.
"Before we get you all set, I want to get things straight." The woman whom I'm following said a little coldly, "The students of Kuoh Academy take pride in our school spirit, assuming that you heard that this used to be an all-girls school."
"Yeah, I heard." I acknowledged.
"Well, good. Just to be clear, there are only a few of you males here, so like any other males that I come across, I expect respect, understanding, and good character here at Kuoh Academy. Don't make me have to tell you more than once, Hyoudou." She said it with such firmness.
"Yes ma'am." I agree.
She acts as if I'm some kind of pervert. I hope that they all don't see me as such.
When we arrived at the council room, they instructed me to sit and wait until they were ready for me. The room that I was in was a little dark, but it had a relaxing atmosphere, and it was actually making me sleepy a little.
So far, things are looking pretty neutral. I'm going to try and do my best to fit in. I should find a club to join or do after-school volunteer activities. I haven't figured out what they offer yet.
"Mr. Hyoudou, you may step in." The woman came back and told me to go into another room. The other room appears to have a private desk, which means that this is someone's private office. "Lady Sitri will be with you shortly."
The woman closed the door, leaving me in the room all by myself. I made myself comfortable by sitting in a chair across the desk.
"Sorry about that; I was in a long meeting, and I hope that you didn't wait for long." Another woman came into the room and sat at the desk.
"No worries, I have a lot of patience." I replied.
"You're Issei Hyoudou, right?" She asked, "I'm Sona Sitri; I'm the President of the Student Council here at Kuoh Academy." She greeted.
"Nice to meet you." I greeted.
"Sorry about my assistant, Tsubaki, but she really isn't that cold-hearted; she is actually a sweetheart once you get to know her." She explains.
"It's alright. I don't judge." I said.
"So you came here from Kyoto a few days ago; how've things been so far here in Kuoh?" She asked.
"I mean, it's a start." I answered.
"We've all been there at a certain point," she commented. "So let's get you ready for the day, shall we?" Sona got down to business and pulled a file of documents from her desk. "So you recently came from Kyoto, and you have been doing online classes."
"Yes, I did." I confirmed.
"All right, I have some paperwork that you need to fill out, as well as a couple of signatures."
"Wouldn't the staff handle stuff like this with all due respect?" I respectfully replied.
"The school allows us to handle things like this; it's a certain way for them to trust us when it comes to small, productive things like this." She explain.
She went over the documents that I signed and went over a few things about the school, which didn't really take as long as I thought it would. As time passed, I got my school identification card and my assigned homeroom.
"Now, if you have questions about anything, feel free to stop around; I'll be more than happy to assist you with anything." She said.
"Okay, thank you very much, President." I thanked.
"You have a good day, and welcome to Kuoh Academy." She said so and led me out of her office.
It was already nearing the end of school. I thought that the day would go by really slowly, but time flew by without saying goodbye. I'm now in my homeroom class. It wasn't a horrible day, but it wasn't exciting either. I have been taking online courses for a long time, but this is my first time physically attending a school since... I mean, I was in pre-educated classes before, but that was a long time ago.
"Man, thank the Lord that it is almost time to go." I said to myself as I sat back at my desk.
"Burned out already?" I looked up to see a blonde man with his bag over his shoulder.
"You could say that," I replied. "Just like any other day, right?"
"Kiba. Kiba Yuuto," the man introduces with his hand out as a handshake offer.
"Issei Hyoudou." I greeted him and accepted his handshake.
"So, how long have you been here?" he asked.
"Just today, but I've been in Kuoh for about a week," I said. "I came from Kyoto."
"Well, how's it been treating you?"
"Well, I can't make a remark yet." I said.
"Have you gone through the list of clubs and after-school activities?" He suggested.
"I haven't gotten around it. Hell, I don't know what this place offers, let alone if there is anything that would let a newbie like me join in."
"Well, take a look." He said this as he pulled out a brochure and handed it to me. "We have a variety of activities."
I looked at the brochure that Kiba gave and went down the list. Kendo Club, Literature Group, Chess Club, Manga Club, Soccer Club, Sewing Club, Robotics, Student Councils, and Occult Research.
"What about occult research?" I asked.
"It's a club that studies the supernatural, mysticism, and other phenomena, but I think that this club is inactive," Kiba explains.
"Well, thank you, Kiba." I thanked him as I put the brochure in my bag. "I'll keep this in mind."
"There is nothing wrong with trying to fit in at any time, man." He stated.
As a few minutes passed, the school bell finally rang, and the hallways began to fill with departing students.
"Finally, I better get home so I can start doing my chores." I thought to myself as I collected my belongings and headed to the hallways with the other students.
"It's Lady Rias and Lady Akeno!" I heard a student shout and point out these two particular third-year students who were walking through the hallways, as everybody appeared to be idolizing them. Rias has crimson, sparkling red hair that goes down to her back, and her eyes are as blue as the open ocean. Akeno has dark purple, straight-lined hair that is tied into a ponytail with a red ribbon.
"They are so cool!" Another student commented.
"Who are they?" I asked myself.
"That is Rias Gremory and Akeno Himejima. They are both third-year students and the most honorable in Kuoh." Kiba came out of nowhere and answered my question.
Rias, the one with the crimson hair, took a glance at me, and suddenly I felt my heart stop for a second.
"Are you okay, Issei?" Kiba asked.
"Yeah, I just... nevermind." I said.
"Well, I better get going. See you later, Issei." Kiba gave me a small wave and departed.
"Yeah, catch you later, man." I replied back.
I exited the school building and began to hear gossip from the other students who were looking at me.
"Is that the new student?" One student whispered to another.
"He's so cute." Another commented.
"Please, he is probably a pervert." And another comment.
"They really do like to make quick judgments." I said to myself as I exited the school premises and made my way home.
I came to a bridge that I began to familiarize myself with, since it was the same bridge that I crossed over on my way to school this morning. I stopped to take a quick breather and enjoy the sunset. "It's always beautiful at a time like this."
"Excuse me, sir?" I looked to my left and saw a girl with black hair wearing a school uniform that represented another school.
"May I help you with something, miss?" I asked.
"Are you Issei Hyoudou?" Suddenly, my heart stopped for a second. I wondered how she knew my name. I have never seen her before, and I don't know her. I was getting suspicious.
"Umm, yes, I am. How can I help?" I was curious and played along.
"Well, I was wondering if you were single," she said. "I would like to go out with you sometimes, and maybe be my boyfriend."
I didn't know what to say. This girl, whom I have never met before, unexpectedly recognizes my name and proposes me as her significant other.
"I'm flattered, of course, but the truth is that I have no acquaintance with you, and..." I explained before she interrupted.
"Oh, sorry about that. My name is Yuma Amano." She introduced herself and made a small bow.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Yuma, but I'm afraid that I'm going to respectfully decline. It was a nice offer, though, and I had to get going. See you around!" I quickly left her and continued my journey home.
After walking for two minutes, I arrived home and started doing the chores my mom had requested. I first started cleaning the dishes, which wasn't very much since it was just me and my mom living here, so it took me at least ten minutes to get done. After washing the dishes, I moved on to picking up the living room, which was only a little messy and took me five minutes to do. I continued with other minor tasks, completing them significantly faster due to their lack of complexity.
After all my chores, I decided to go to the living room and settle on the couch to close my eyes for a bit to flow through my own thoughts.
"Yuma Amano?" I whispered to myself and wondered how she knew my name and why she asked me out all of a sudden.
As I went thought-surfing in my mind, I began to go deep into my thoughts, which turned into a dream.
My mind woke me up at a familiar time at a familiar place in my life.
"Let's go, Issei." I hear a very familiar male voice that belongs to one of the most memorable and important people in my life.
"Dad," I said. I was dreaming about my dad, and it's been awhile since I dreamt about him.
"We can't keep your mother waiting." He continued, until a man in black suddenly materialized in front of his father.
Knowing where this was going, I quickly ran to my dad as fast as I could and yelled, "DAD, NO!"
Before it was too late, the man plunged a blade into my dad, causing him to look at me with shocked eyes and utter the faded word, "Issei."
I realized that I was dreaming about the day that my dad was murdered. I knew that day very well. That very moment had been plaguing my mind for a while now. It was hard to let go, since no one could find the man responsible.
"Man, that's a tough one to relive." I heard a deep voice filling the white room that I was in.
"Who said that?" I asked where the voice came from.
"Here I am." A big, purple, black wolf appears out of nowhere in this very room, about 10 meters from me. "Wow, you look just like him."
"Look like who? And who are you?" I asked.
"You know, people have been asking me that same question for eons." The giant wolf said, "My name is Mgelika, and I'm the Heavenly Wolf."
"The Heavenly Wolf?" I asked.
"What? Have you ever heard of me?" The wolf asked with confusion, "I would have thought that he would have told you about me."
"Who?" I asked.
"Aren't you a descendant of Juzo Hyoudou?" Mgelika the Wolf asked.
"Yeah, he was my grandfather. How do you know that?"
"Oh, so you must be his grandson, Issei." The giant wolf said, "Nice to meet you."
"How do you know me, and how do you know my grandfather?"
"He was my host, and now you are my new host."
"New host?"
"Oh, boy, it looks like you have a lot of catching up to do."
"Catching up on what? I don't understand what is going on here."
"All is well, child. Everything will come into place soon. It's time to wake up now." His voice boomed, and with a snap of a finger, I was back to reality.
"That was a bizarre dream." I said to myself, "What time is it?"
I looked at my watch, and it said that it was 10 p.m. I got up off the couch and went upstairs to see if my mom had come back from work. I opened her room and found her lying in bed, clutching a picture of my dad. She is still not used to sleeping alone, and I don't blame her. She always had him to snuggle up to.
I covered her up with her blanket, planted a kiss on her forehead, and let her go back to sleep.
"Tomorrow is a new day."