The Gremory Heiress' Peerage
Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of I'm Too Sober For This! Sorry this one took a minute but when you're busy you're busy and that goes for my beta readers too. But once again I'd like to thank Steeler Steelix, Pyromania101 and Thirdfang for their help in making this fic enjoyable. Also, quick announcement, I've made a ! That's right, if you like what I do now you can support me here ( www. maskedspider) and, if all goes well, I'll be able to spend more time doing this and cranking out chapters faster! But before I get ahead of myself let's get to the chapter and with no review questions this week, let's dive on in!
Nighttime: The (Renovated) Kuoh Home of Emiya Shirou
"I'd say I don't believe you," Issei began with a tired expression, "But not a single bit of what you did is out of character. If anything, it was a little too in character."
"What can I say?" I shrugged, wincing slightly. "She was saved by her parents, but the job wasn't completely done. I—"
"Had to save her, yes we all know." Sona sighed while rubbing her temple. "I just think you've already forgotten we're in the middle of one international incident."
"One that we've managed to handle so far." I pointed out. "With luck, Ajuka will be coming up with something soon."
"I hope so." Issei grimaced. "I can only put off my backlog for so long. And speaking of irregular problems, you've got a—"
"Shirone on my back, yes I noticed." I interjected before glancing over my shoulder. "It's safe to come down, Karasuba's not—"
The white-haired cat girl's response to this was hissing at said Red Dragon Emperor's name. I suppose I couldn't really blame her, Karasuba had given her a scare when she first arrived at the school.
The situation was made worse after the elder Hyoudou twin had captured and snuggled with the neko girl on the couch for several minutes, scaring her out of her mind.
Perhaps Shirone would be less afraid of my new Queen if she acted a little more like she was willing to listen to what I said. Which reminds me, I should catch everyone up. I had gone to the Hyoudou household and had a "nice" chat with Karasuba's parents. It turned out that her father at least was aware of the supernatural world to some degree.
After that, I took Karasuba to a fake version of Kuoh that Sera had replicated some time ago and duked it out with her on the condition that we go until sundown. The hope had been that I could wear her down and find out more about her, which I did, but that wound up backfiring spectacularly when I revealed that her reason for coming after me, Excalibur, wouldn't be able to grant her wish.
She then proceeded to unleash her Juggernaut Drive, a convenient little berserker side function that apparently all Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing wielders had. One that turned them into absolute monsters of destruction, and basically enabled Karasuba to mop the floor with me for the next several minutes.
One that nobody told me about.
I made a mental note to ask Sera or even the alternate Issei if there were any other fun bits of trivia or aspects about the Sacred Gears that I should know about that might be relevant to my personal health in the future. Just in case it became relevant.
The only good news for me during that period was that even with her life force draining, she still wanted to draw the fight out long enough to enjoy it.
It was during those last few desperate moments when she was about to end the fight with possibly her most powerful attack that I found a weapon capable of taking her down without killing her:
Rule Breaker.
With it, I was able to reset her Sacred Gear and shut off her Juggernaut Drive (when I had said this, I couldn't help but notice Issei's eyes widen slightly before he quickly schooled his expression), though I couldn't do anything for the life she lost. Again, it didn't seem to bother the elder Hyoudou twin that she was probably going to die by the time she reached thirty but it did bother her that she was still alive.
That was until I offered her a new purpose: to become Queen of my peerage. Surprisingly, she accepted.
Not so surprisingly, at first, was Sona and Rias' reactions: a mixture of terrified and infuriated.
I'll admit, it probably didn't seem like such a wise idea at first, reincarnating a dragon emperor into a Devil and thus boosting her power even higher than it already was. I mean, I already explained to Issei what happened the last time that was tried, but I was confident it would work out. Of course, there was still convincing the rest of the Underworld that it was gonna work out.
But as the saying goes, one thing at a time, and right now I had a more immediate problem. "Shirone, I promise, it's safe to let go."
"You promise?" She asked meekly, peeking out from behind my shoulder to look up at me.
I sighed, knowing I probably had to play "that" card.
"I promise, and I'll even make some food for you if—" I hadn't even finished my sentence before she jumped off my back and seated herself at the dinner table.
"Guess that works in this world too." Issei quipped before suddenly standing up.
"And where might you be going?" Sona questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"To learn a few tricks from the master of unlimited cooking works." He stated with a completely straight face before following me into the kitchen. We both got to work pulling out assorted cooking utensils before Issei asked the all-important question. "So what's on the menu for Jailbait?"
"I was thinking pork cutlets." I offered. "'Shirone' is pretty fond of them."
"Not fond of the nickname either, even if it is true." Issei pretended to ignore the glare the white-haired Nekoshou was giving him from across the room. "Come to think of it, the one in my world went by Koneko due to the shitshow with her sister and trying to get away from it all."
"She went by that too until the battle with Kokabiel." I explained while we pulled out the necessary ingredients.
Seriously, Rias was many things, but her naming sense left much to be desired. Who named their underlings "Kitty Castle"?
"So it can still do that even if it's a replica. Neat." Issei mused as I handed him some of the ingredients to chop up. In hindsight, maybe I shouldn't let him handle a knife, but if we get this done quick enough, it should be okay. Better him than Karasuba at any rate.
His preparation and knife work were passable at least. It was clear he had some experience in the kitchen. A pleasant deviation from all the dragon and porn nonsense that he was otherwise mired in. "I don't know what she saw when I used Excalibur, but she realized she still loved her sister, Kuroka, even after what she did."
"Does that mean that said sister hasn't shown up to learn of said feelings yet?" Issei gave me a wary, cautious, and surprisingly pitying glance. "Because if she hasn't, fair warning: back home her picture's next to "sis-con" in the urban dictionary. Zechs and Sera don't even compare to her. Don't be surprised if she does something a tad bit mass murdery to get to Jailbait in the near future."
"Duly noted. Thanks for the warning." If the Maou were what Kuroka was being compared to, then I'd have to keep a bigger ear out for the elder Nekoshou than I already have.
"Anytime." The otherworlder nodded, preparing some of the spices. "Still kinda hard to believe that a traced Excalibur has that kind of effect here. Aren't your copies supposed to be knocked down a level of power or something?"
"All my projections are basically flawless replicas here." I explained. "Since I don't have to worry about Gaia restricting my magic and I have a reincarnated body, my abilities have skyrocketed. But I'm not the strongest one here, obviously."
"Yeah, you mentioned your Zechs beat you." The Sekiryuutei recalled, giving me a skeptical look. Something about my explanation apparently didn't sit right with him, but for once he kept his thoughts to himself.
"It's not something I like to remember." I shuddered slightly. "Seeing his True Form once was enough."
"But you still managed to turn him into a pin cushion." Issei reminded me.
"Yeah, that was the silver lining." I agreed. "But it's also because of that fight where I saw his True Form that I know, I'll never think of Sirzechs as a true friend."
"That scary, huh?" The otherworlder commented absently as the stove was turned on and the burner lit up. "You think the other Maous have True Forms? If it's just the Super Devils, then Ajuka should have one too. And that prick, Chucklefuck, but if he's anything like the one in my world, then I doubt he's going to show up anytime soon."
"Never asked." I made a mental note for later to ask Sera who this supposed third Super Devil was. "Not sure I really want to know. If I found out that Sera had a form like that…" I let my sentence trail off while staring at the now sizzling initial ingredients in the pan.
"Could be worse." Issei reasoned. "Take it from me, someone with a beautiful body but a twisted heart is an absolute waste. Sera's absolutely crazy about you, and that won't change even if she takes on some super monster form. Knowing your luck, her feelings for you would snap her out of the transformation like some bad romance manga." I looked down and noticed his grip was kind of white-knuckled on the knife.
"Guess you're speaking from experience. You know, what got me through the years were people with good hearts. I think you could find some in your world."
"There are people with good hearts in my world. That's not the issue." Issei sighed heavily as he relaxed his grip on the knife. "It's just… finding them and then trusting them to endure and stay around when the pressure's raised… it's not something I've been willing to risk attempting for the past few years. For them or me."
"Well, the key to that is taking the first step." Sona added, having entered the kitchen just a moment ago. I hadn't known she could hear us over the sound of sizzling food. "You've probably guessed that I absolutely loathe the physical aspect of combat, but I made the decision to dress up in a tracksuit and get drenched in sweat day after day once I realized where I was lacking. And if I can do something like that, then surely you can overcome the little obstacles that are keeping you from moving forward."
Issei and I stared dumbly at her for several moments before the Sekiryuutei turned to me.
"You got her into a tracksuit?" He spoke in a tone that I genuinely couldn't identify. It was a peculiar mix of horror, awe, and sadistic glee that made me think he'd try and repeat the same feat in his own world for his personal amusement.
Whether it was an attempt to change the topic of conversation and avoid giving a definitive reply, or his genuine reaction to seeing Sona in a tracksuit was anyone's guess.
"She got herself in, I instructed her in training." I responded carefully. "She starts saying all kinds of weird things once she's tired enough."
"Like you've never done anything stupid while exhausted." Sona shot back with a slight tick mark on her head.
"Don't need to be exhausted. Sorry you have to do it the hard way." Issei voiced with genuine pity in his tone.
Well, at least he was self-aware.
Sona opened her mouth to reply before thinking better of it and recomposing herself. "Anyway, I thought I'd inform you that we have some guests."
"What kind of guests?" I asked, not really sure if I wanted to know the answer.
"Calm down, it's Rias and everyone else from her Peerage but Issei." Sona reassured.
I tried not to sigh in relief. The otherworld Issei had made it abundantly clear that he didn't want to be in contact with his other-self or family in this world when he shoved the box he stuffed Karasuba into my arms and walked away without a hint of remorse. Though that did raise one question.
"Where is Issei if he isn't here?" I decided to ask. I was pretty sure that Rias wouldn't just leave him at the school all by himself.
"He's at his parents' with Karasuba and Illya." Sona relayed. "Based on what you told us, I'm assuming he'll be safe so long as his parents are in the room?"
"Karasuba loves her parents more than anything. And she and Illya are probably going to be preoccupied with whatever they're doing, so he shouldn't be in harm's way."
"At least, I can give Rias some assurance then. I'd also recommend getting a meal ready for everyone. None of us have had dinner yet with everything that's been going on. Do you think you'll need any ingredients?"
"We're fully stocked at the moment unless the head chef has some secret ingredients I don't know about." Issei shrugged. "No doubt Jailbai—I mean Shirone is the reason for it."
"As you've no doubt guessed, Shirou took on the responsibility of feeding her once she discovered how delicious his cooking is." Sona revealed.
"Knew it. That girl's a bottomless pit who can sniff out a solid meal anywhere. I bet you two met on the roof or something during lunch and she ate all your food."
"She stole a few bites off me before I gave up and let her have the rest." I confessed shamelessly while adding some seasoning to the ingredients in the frying pan. "From that point on, I just started bringing a lot of extra food to school with me."
"You're just a walking trope for this sort of thing, aren't you?" Issei asked skeptically.
"I'm just going to say 'yes' and move on." I shrugged, ignoring the accusing stare that he was giving me.
"And Shirone appreciates it." Sona added. "We all do. Now if you need me, I'll be in the dining room. Enjoy exercising your Pride."
With that, the bespectacled girl turned and headed out the kitchen door and went to the nearest table.
"'Exercising your Pride.'" Issei repeated with a raised eyebrow while passing me some more ingredients and seasoning. It was clear that he was confused as to what she was talking about.
"I guess it might work differently in your world." I deduced. "When a person is reincarnated as a Devil in this world, they typically have to choose a Sin to embody. Shirone, the obvious example, is Gluttony, while someone like Kiba used to be Wrath. I was almost Wrath myself, but chose Pride instead."
"Seems like an odd choice given that you're typically a pretty humble individual." Issei noted while clearly contemplating something specific.
"So I've been told. The thing is: these Sins are mandatory to indulge from time to time." I explained. "Reincarnated Devils that don't indulge in their chosen Sin usually start losing their minds. Some break and start going into overdrive on indulging their chosen sin while others revert to a Sin they naturally embody. I would ordinarily embody Wrath, but because I chose Pride, I have to indulge in that to keep from sliding into Wrath. The main way I do that is reminding myself on a daily basis that I'm a damn good cook and everyone's going to know about it."
"Do Devils not have these traits in your world?" Sona looked at Issei curiously from her place at the table.
"Actually, it's the Fallen that have it." Issei disclosed. "The roles of 'Sins' and 'Virtues' are heavily tied to God's system and laws, so when an Angel, a 'Virtuous' entity that's fundamentally defined and supported by it, falls via 'Sin', they're conceptually rewritten to adapt and support the inverse set of concepts in order to maintain some form of stability. Even if it wasn't intentional in their design. Devils back home are more… representatives of organized Chaos. Fundamentally unstable across the board, for better and worse. More… impulsive. Versatile. And it explains why your magic isn't nearly as restrained as either Angel species, but that chaotic power and nature sometimes causes innate problems as a species. The low birthrate, for example."
Huh. When he puts it like that, it does make sense how that turned out to be the case in his world. I quickly glanced at Sona, and judging from her contemplative expression, she was probably lining up everything she knew about her species with what he claimed to determine how plausible it was.
Issei decided to continue with a question of his own. "So, does this practicing of the embodiment of Sin trait of yours also hit Pure-Blooded Devils? Are there any discrepancies between the old blood and new?"
"You could say that." I nodded. "Different universe or not, Devils are still creatures of Sin. So they exercise that one way or the other here. Rias exercises her Greed by being a little possessive of her Peerage, while Sona exercises her Pride by reminding everyone at the school that she's in charge in subtle but still informative ways. She does it so effectively that even the adults are afraid to get on her bad side."
"You're telling me that Enabler 2.0 enforces the rules so hard that even the teachers and staff are afraid to cross her?" Issei asked with a raised eyebrow.
"It's the Sitri and Gremory families that provide a lot of funding for Kuoh Academy." I explained. "But I'll bet even if they didn't, Sona would still be feared."
"Too bad more of her older sister didn't rub off on her. Must make your job tough."
"Eh, I'm used to dealing with straight-laced women that do things by the book. It's unpredictable girls like Serafall that I'll probably never get used to. Not without losing my sanity first, which I'm sure is happening ever so slowly even now."
"Then we can both agree on something." Issei concurred as he walked over to the fridge, took out a large can of beer, cracked it open, and poured the contents into two glasses before handing me one. "Crazy women are probably gonna be the leading cause of death for guys like us."
"I'll drink to that." I clinked my glass with his before downing the contents, an act he quickly imitated. No doubt this would be the first of many this evening.
We pointedly ignored the accusing stare Sona was fixing us with.
"So," Issei began as he picked the knife back up and resumed cutting vegetables, "Where's your Knight?"
"At a friend's house." I answered without looking at him.
"Shame. I'd have liked to get a look at her oppai."
I did not grit my teeth. And I certainly didn't suddenly have the urge to stab him.
Several Minutes Later: The Dining Room
"So to my understanding," Rias began after we'd all had a minute to eat (Shirone was already on her third serving), "You've encountered my and Sona's peerages in your world?"
"Hard not to when you came seeking me out." Issei deadpanned, wiping the corner of his mouth with a napkin. "I honestly wonder what you would've done if Gasper hadn't had a similar problem to mine? Speaking of which, is that Dio right there?" The reason he was asking was because the supposed blonde, effeminate vampire was wearing Halo Master Chief armor, painted bright pink.
He claimed he was Doughnut, not Master Chief, and I for one was not going to try to figure out what he was talking about.
"Dio?" Rias asked with a sweat drop at the Italian word for God. "I'm not sure I understand."
"And here I was wondering if you were at least 'weeb' enough to know what Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is here." Issei shook his head, clearly disappointed.
"It sounds like it should be popular but I'm positive that such a thing doesn't exist in this world." Rias pointed out.
"That's nonsense." Issei scoffed as he whipped out a phone he'd gotten that connected to this world's Wi-Fi and internet. He'd set himself up as soon as he'd had the chance, porn doesn't watch itself, after all. The Red Dragon Emperor quickly scrolled through several pages after typing in the desired keywords for his search.
But there was a problem.
"What? This can't be right. This can't be real." He then collapsed to his knees and raised his arms dramatically. "How can I be dumped into a degenerate soulless world that doesn't know the greatness of Jojo?! How the flying fuck is it that you got Fist of the North Star here but not Jojo?!"
"Nya-ha-ha." Shirone snickered, having just swallowed another mouthful of food. "Poor Issei doesn't get to read his porn story."
"It's not porn." Issei revealed before suddenly striking a pose. "It, like the Fate series, is a work of pure art synonymous with Japanese pop culture! A staple of a generation! But from the Eighties. And everyone's jacked to kingdom come. And constantly poses like strippers."
"And there it is." Shirone smirked.
"Even the guys?" Gasper asked from under the helmet.
"ESPECIALLY the guys. And it is one of the most manly, testosterone-supersaturated sources of stupid entertainment out there that isn't porn."
"I thought you said this was a Japanese comic, not American." Sona scoffed.
"I said manly entertainment. Not wish-fulfillment nonsense where everyone's dressed in spandex and latex." The teen waved her off absently before pausing as though he just remembered something. "Barring Golden Wind and some of Stone Ocean."
Not helping your case, buddy.
Then, out of nowhere, he whipped out several copies of said manga from his Sacred Gear so fast that even I barely caught it flickering in and out of existence. Karasuba had a similar trick, but even she couldn't whip out her Boosted Gear and put it away that fast. He then distributed them in the blink of an eye.
"There, now you all have homework. Read these masterpieces and then get one set to Serafall for mass production. This world will no longer be deprived of the art of Araki!"
"You're doing all of this just so we'll get a comic book reference." Sona deadpanned. "How wonderful."
"You'll thank me eventually." Issei responded just as evenly. "Now, moving on. Yandere, why are you all the way back there? Stop trying to be a Kuudere. It's not working."
"You mean me?" Akeno asked while pointing to herself. Unlike everyone else, she was eating her food while standing at the far end of the room. "I just like this spot better, is all. Don't mind me."
Issei was about to ask what was so great about it before I stood up.
"Hold on, this'll explain it way faster." I spoke up before walking towards Akeno. As soon as I got around the table, she moved away from the doorway, and me. I took another few steps towards her and she took another few steps away, ensuring that the distance remained relatively the same between us. I continued approaching her and she continued evading me, and before long the both of us were circling around the room as Sona, Rias, and everyone else looked on. "You see," I then sat down while Akeno, caught by surprise, continued to circle for a bit, "She's been doing this ever since she saw Excalibur."
"Oh my." Akeno purred while winding back up in the same spot where she started. "Are we done already?"
"Akeno," Rias sighed slightly, "Is there some kind of reason you're doing that?"
"Why, whatever do you mean, Buchou?" Akeno asked with her usual smile on her face.
"Guess we're never finding out the issue behind that one." Issei dryly commented with absolutely zero interest before moving on to the next Peerage member. "And you're obviously different from the Jailbait I know: you're actually laughing."
"I just realized that I still love my sister, even if she has done some bad things." Shirone admitted. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must continue indulging in my sin."
"That much hasn't changed." He noted. "But I imagine a lot of people would switch over to gluttony after tasting some of Emiya's cooking."
"What can I say? I know how to make the good stuff." I stated as more a matter of fact than opinion. I wasn't kidding when I said I took pride in cooking, after all.
"Guess that just leaves you, Man-Slave." Issei directed his gaze onto Kiba.
"Do I even want to know why that's the nickname you gave the 'me' in your world?" The blonde swordsman frowned.
"Well, assuming you're also not gay or spayed," Issei began, "You're the only guy, not including Dio and an underwhelming me, in a Peerage full of hyper-sexualized and overly sensual women, one from a family of nudists. Which ultimately means you're either regularly getting some form of action to keep yourself steady, or you just play along with whatever they're doing day in and day out like some sort of butler or manservant."
"I can't see why those have to be the only two options." Kiba was unimpressed. "Buchou and the rest of the Peerage respect my boundaries. Part of my reincarnation is a subtle release of charm magic which is why I'm not able to trust regular girls pining over me. But more importantly, I had no interest in relationships in general because I embodied the sin of wrath. I had a singular focus on the source of my vengeance to keep my mind honed and focused. Or at least I did until recently."
"So what, you switched Sins?" The Sekiryuutei asked with a raised eyebrow before looking around. "Is that even allowed here? Or possible? Doesn't exactly sound like the sort of thing that should be if it's so important to your species without severe long-term mental and magical ramifications."
Huh. In hindsight, he does kind of have a point there.
"I pretty much had to." Kiba affirmed. "The bastards that experimented on and tortured me were tried and executed, so the only thing I had to direct my anger at were the holy swords themselves. But when I saw the beauty of a true holy sword, I couldn't possibly hate it. So in order to keep indulging in a mandatory sin, I switched over to lust. It's been an interesting process so far."
"Let me guess, you gotta learn a whole new version of swordplay?"
"Yup." Kiba confirmed, somewhat surprised that the guest came to that conclusion so quickly. "I've been getting help from the only 'experts' I know of: the Perverted Trio."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Shirone mouth the word "stupid" before going back to her meal.
"Do you happen to have any of their 'recommendations' on you?" Issei asked, turning surprisingly serious.
"Well, it's a little embarrassing," the swordsman scratched his head before reaching into a bag that he'd brought with him and pulling out a couple of DVDs, "But I was planning on watching these later. They're supposed to be high quality."
Issei snatched the porn out of Kiba's hand in the blink of an eye and examined it with scrutinizing eyes, seeming to appraise it as if it was some sort of diamond. Hell, he was even inspecting the maker's mark and subtext on the bottom of the casing.
"This… is amateur shit." Issei declared before blowing a bit of fire out of his mouth and incinerating the DVDs.
I frowned slightly. There weren't any ashes or minor debris leftover. That wasn't something that normal fire did. Or most magical ones. If anything, those sort of results only come about when using something like the Power of Destruction.
"Hey! I was borrowing those!" Kiba exclaimed before Issei produced a few more DVDs and held them up to his face.
"Give them these." Issei instructed. "This is the good shit. The high-class produce that goes through all the steps to be produced and put on the market and people buy full price over the counter and are put in the running for Videos of the Year awards. Paced. Crafted. Sensual. Planned. I reviewed them all myself, and they have earned every high grade allotted. Of course, if that's too much for those plebs, I have other samples that will suffice. I'm honestly disappointed in the 'me' from this world. His standards are clearly subpar, and I refuse to allow another to be dragged down to such petty levels. Come! Your real porn education starts right now!"
"Oh, can I join?!" Asia joined in, matching Kiba's tone while raising her hand. "I got a question about one I watched a little while ago!"
"I have an encyclopedic knowledge of porn." Issei declared proudly. "I can answer any question you have… from my world at least. History and actor differences across reality need to be taken into account."
"Whether it's answering questions or watching videos, could you please do it in another room?" Sona facepalmed in annoyance. "Some of us are still trying to eat."
"That's okay, my laptop's in another room, anyway." Asia reassured before signaling to Issei and Kiba to follow her.
"She wasn't completely innocent when I found her." I sighed. "But I feel like it will be a very bad idea to let her learn more about porn than she already has."
"I am a staunch advocate and source of quality education!" Issei clearly took offense to that.
"Repulsive as it is, I'm actually glad it came up this time." Sona admitted. "It saves me the trouble of getting Issei to leave the room."
"What exactly is it you want to keep a secret from him?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"It's not so much of a secret as it is a feeling." The Sitri heiress explained. "As you know, Ajuka has been hard at work trying to find a way to send him back to his own world. To my understanding, he has managed a bit of progress in that endeavor, but he and the other Maous are likely also investing their time and resources into creating countermeasures against our otherworld visitor."
"Somehow, I don't find that too surprising. It's just the thought of another Red Dragon Emperor running around is enough to put people on edge. Do you think any of them are going to make a move when they learn what I did?"
"Not once I inform my sister that you, in your infinite wisdom, made the Red Dragon Emperor of this world the Queen of your Peerage. I still personally think she's more trouble than it's worth, but the one good thing that might come out of it is that the others will think twice about trying anything."
"You know Sera wouldn't let them try anything anyway." I pointed out. "Not when me and him are basically drinking buddies at this point."
"My sister can do a lot of things, but even she would have difficulty against all the other Maous at once." Sona frowned. "That's why I feel it's worth the risk to reveal Karasuba's presence in your Peerage."
"Just make sure it stays between them for now." I suggested. "They're having enough trouble already explaining away that bout at the ceremony."
"Of course, I don't need to be reminded of that. I just wonder if you really think things will settle down by the time they resume the Rating Games. Announcing Karasuba as a member is going to cause trouble all on its own. And that's assuming we can get the other Hyoudou back to his world."
'What will we do if we can't?' Rias thought from across the table, silently listening to the entire conversation. The mention of the Rating Games brought a memory to the surface
Flashback: The Gremory Mansion after the Incident at the Ceremony
To say her Peerage was tense would have been an understatement.
Poor Shirone in particular was currently hiding in the corner of her room. The Nekoshou's Senjutsu abilities making her even more sensitive to the events from earlier.
Rias, for her part, was putting up as brave of a front as she could, taking a deep breath before speaking. "So here is the situation." She began. "I was able to attend the meeting and learn who exactly this Issei doppelganger is or at least what we know. It seems he is like Serafall's Queen, Emiya Shirou: a person from another world. And for clarification, not the one Shirou came from."
"So you're telling me," her Pawn began, "That the person who was able to hold his own against all four Maous is an alternate version of me? Oh man! I'm a badass! That's awesome!"
"I think the reason for that is this otherworld Issei actually possesses the Boosted Gear." Akeno pointed out, causing the Pawn to deflate. "That killing intent he let out earlier certainly felt draconic in nature."
"It was a dragon." Shirone spoke up with her head still buried in her arms. "It felt like… Hyoudou Karasuba, but different at the same time. Like different branches of a related species. And his foundation was more… established. I am certain, though, that it was the Welsh dragon, Ddraig, that resided in that gauntlet he summoned."
"He has also clearly mastered its use." Kiba added. "His combat performance was steadily increasing as the fight wore on. Had the Maous not cornered him and if Emiya hadn't intervened, there might not be a stadium standing right now. And I'm probably lowballing the damages at that."
Rias would have liked to point out that the Maous could cause damage like that, too, but thought better of it.
"The good news is: his appearance wasn't meant as some form of attack against us." Their King clarified. "It was actually an accident."
"Are you sure, Buchou?" Her Pawn asked. "He was summoned right in the middle of the ceremony near all of those important-looking delegate guys."
"Just as Sona was being ridiculed by them for having an 'unrealistic dream.'" The Gremory heiress pointed out. "And his initial appearance was at the Sitri home during a tense moment between Serafall and her parents. She's going to test it now, but it seems the one responsible for the teleporting was surprisingly our dear Student Council President."
"What? But why would she do that?" Akeno asked with a puzzled expression on her face.
"We believe it is unintentional. Apparently, she has had or is exhibiting some form of teleportation magic on her that reacts to her emotions. From what I've heard, a wizard named Zelretch is to blame. He hails from the same world as Emiya."
"Oh, so someone else who hails from the same world as the guy who obliterated Kokabiel is behind all this." Issei summed up before switching to very heavy sarcasm. "Greeaaaaat."
"Sona is talking with Shirou, Serafall, and our guest at this very moment." Rias reassured them. "With luck, we'll have the answers we need about how and why another Issei is here and what we can do to send him back. So for now, you're all to be on your best behavior."
"Is there a reason we can't just stay away from him until he gets sent back?" Shirone asked, still in her little corner.
"Because, right now, the only one this otherworld Issei seems to trust is Emiya Shirou." Their King reminded her. "And since Emiya is looking after Sona right now, I intend to provide her with all the support I can. Not to mention, if you avoid this 'Issei' you won't get to eat Emiya's cooking quite as often."
This got the Nekoshou's attention. "Fine, I'll do it." She pouted, getting to her feet. "If Shirou's there, then everything will work out fine."
"We do owe him." Kiba recalled. "The least we can do is help out with this issue."
"Oh my, it sounds like quite the interesting situation." Akeno purred. "But I'll do it since my King has ordered it."
"Same here." Issei declared while clenching his fist. "Anything for you, Buchou!"
"Thank you all." Rias smiled in approval. "Now, I'll need to get into contact with my brother and see what his plan is. We'll take our next step from there."
End Flashback
"I have faith in Sera and Ajuka." I assured Sona. Then, I turned to Gremory. "And yes, Rias, I have faith in Sirzechs too. If the Maous can't solve the issue, then I don't know who can—"
"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!"
The rest of us all looked towards the door that Issei and the others had gone through shortly before the two boys came bursting out and racing through the dining room as though Berserker was after them.
"Why didn't you tell me that something so horrible existed?!" Kiba exclaimed while Issei worked frantically to get the front door open as though it was some devious puzzle instead of a turnkey.
"I'm not that kind of deranged psychopath!" The terrified Sekiryuutei yelled back. "It was our mistake for letting her pick the first video! I should have known she'd find that blasphemous sacrilege!"
"Wait! You mean that disaster exists in your world too?!"
"You clearly have more faith in humanity than I do! Less talking, more dooring!"
"Wait, where are you guys going?" Asia called out as she came into the room with her laptop and the source of their misery still running. "I still have questions about this one video."
"It's an abomination that shouldn't exist!" Both Kiba and Issei yelled before getting the door open and racing out of it.
"But that doesn't tell me anything." Asia called as she ran out the door with the laptop held over her head. "Please give me a straight answer!"
Everyone stared at the door as the sounds of two horrified boys screaming like horrified girls filled the neighborhood. Sona, Rias, and then the rest of the latter's Peerage turned all their eyes on me.
"Asia discovered porn a while back." I finally explained while cracking open another can of beer. "It's been… interesting trying to explain it to her."
"I suddenly find myself wondering if her Sacred Gear can heal mental scarring, too?" Rias considered. "I get the feeling that we won't be hearing from Kiba for a day or two."
Hidden Base of the Khaos Brigade
This was both annoying and troubling. Vali honestly couldn't decide how to feel about it.
The attempt to locate Karasuba had failed due to the interference of Serafall's Queen, Emiya Shirou. That was the annoying part.
The part that Vali was up in the air about was what he felt during their mission. The two Red Dragon Emperors had met, yet somehow managed not to destroy the entire city. Or even a quarter of it.
'Is it possible that the Red Dragon Emperor at the Rating Games ceremony lacks a destructive instinct?' Vali mused.
It didn't seem plausible but at the same time it was one of the few explanations he'd come up with that made sense. The Ddraig and Albion of this world had been at each other's throats for centuries, and their feud showed no sign of changing anytime soon. At least, that was what he'd assumed until now.
However, any further musings of his were cut short by the sudden appearance of a purple glowing infinity symbol. A young girl materialized, dressed in the black attire of a gothic Lolita. Her dark hair settled down around her waist as her grey, reptilian-slit eyes moved to Vali.
"White Dragon Emperor, I have confirmed our target."
It was strange hearing her talk. Unlike the child she resembled, this girl's voice was practically devoid of emotion, bordering on apathetic. Yet, her presence here meant that something had piqued her interest.
"Will it require my presence, Lady Ophis?" If it were anyone else, he would tell them that he would only do it if he felt like it.
But this was Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon, the Infinite Dragon God, which meant when she spoke, you listened.
"If you desire to accompany me, my target is the otherworld Red Dragon Emperor after all. You may very well encounter Hyoudou Karasuba as well."
Vali felt a smirk cross his features almost involuntarily. "It would be rude of a gentleman not to accompany his lady on an errand. At least, that's what Arthur Pendragon would say. When do we depart?"
Wanna know what's really unbelievable, that little piece of horror started making the rounds when I was in high school. But let's not talk about that, instead tell me how hilarious you thought this chapter was in your comments and reviews! Also, don't forget to check out my at www. maskedspider! Finally, feel free to stop in next time as the Khaos Brigade starts making its move! 'Til then.