Another chapter for the pile!

As always, I'll take advantage of this little section to answer a review:

The name is agron: I understand that it's confusing, something like that can confuse anyone, but I'm relieved to know that it's not something that's presented as a nuisance, although I'll try to keep polishing those points. Regarding the demon or devil thing, in my language they were always presented as demon, so it would be strange for me to change the name now. Besides, I think they are essentially the same thing. If I'm making a mistake, maybe it's because of some error in the translation, and that's something I should be careful about, but I honestly think it's not like that. If you see something strange about that or other things that you find annoying or confusing, feel free to keep commenting.

The Beast of Sanity: I'm really glad you're liking it so far. I hope this and the next translated chapters to come will also live up to your expectations.

With nothing more to add, it's about time to get started.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 7: SURPRISE AFTER SURPRISE!

Issei slowly opened his eyes, everything was dark. The day before he had slept like never before, and his contented face was proof of it.

All the memories of yesterday made him feel really happy. When he first met Tiamat, he had simply thought of escaping anyway because of the danger and emotional instability she presented. But now that he knew her better, he realised that she is a good woman with a rather... strange character, but very nice, no doubt. Without him and her realising it, the two had become good friends in just four days. Surely it was due to the great loneliness that exploded in Tiamat after being a millennium without company, and on Issei's part... Well, he had felt quite empathetic towards her, as they had been through very similar things.

"I never thought I could sleep so well in a cave..." Issei tried to stretch her arms out, realizing that one of them was stuck under something. Before he could think what was going on, the familiar smell and the touch he received on his forehead from another forehead caused a small smile to emerge on his face.

Slowly, but surely, he began to pull back the blankets covering his face, only to see a large amount of beautiful light blue hair spread out in various directions as he pulled back the blankets. Finally, he managed to pull it back to the side of her face to see how Tiamat had her forehead pressed to his as she slept with a very serious face, but with an aura of tranquility around her. Her long silky hair was strewn all over the makeshift bed, giving the dragoness a rather beautiful appearance.

Tiamat frowned slightly as she felt the coldness begin to invade her body, pressing her nose to Issei's. Her arms wrapped around Issei's back, pulling him into a tight, delicate embrace, seeking to snuggle his body against hers as much as possible.

As comfortable as Issei felt right now, he had a duty to get up.

"Hey, wake up. It's morning..."

Tiamat opened her eyes, meeting Issei's eyes instantly due to their closeness.

"Are you going to look for your mistress?" the dragoness asked, not moving an inch from her position.

Issei noticed that her tone seemed somewhat misguided, and he obviously knew why. "I promise I'll be back before you know it." Issei's face grew serious. "But for now, I must catch up on my studies." Issei looked up with a small smile on his face. "Come to think of it, I don't know how I'll be able to dissuade Matsuda and Motohama."

"What about your parents and others?" Tiamat asked with some intrigue.

Issei chuckled dryly at her question. "My parents must not even have been aware of my absence, since my two best friends are on bad terms with them and don't dare come to my house. As for the other people... to be honest with you, apart from my friends at the Club, Matsuda and Motohama are the only people who know of my existence."

"I feel quite honoured that I have come across your existence." Issei was a little surprised by Tiamat's words. Usually, that comment could be taken as sarcastic, but the very occasional, very special smile that appeared on Tiamat's face made it very clear to him that she wasn't being sarcastic.

Before Issei could respond to the sudden comment, Tiamat raised her face slightly towards the entrance of the cave, causing Issei to follow her gaze.

"Apparently we have visitors." Tiamat said with her typical apathetic expression.

"Wow, it's the dragons that tried to kill me last time." Issei would point discriminatingly, making the three dragons present a little nervous at the memory of what happened. "What are you waiting for, come on in!" Issei declared with a toothy grin, causing the three dragons to quickly bow for their hospitality.

"This is my home, you know?" Tiamat commented with a roll of her eyes as she watched Issei invite without asking her first.

LINE JUMP.

"If Raiser wins the Raitng Game, the marriage will be in a month and 15 days." Sirzechs' statement caused everyone assembled to nod seriously, except for Raiser, who had a stupid grin on his face.

"The Rating Game?" Rias queried with a clear impatience in his tone, almost jumping out of his chair.

Sirzechs would flash a delicate smile at his sister, indicating for her to calm down a bit. "Two weeks from now."

Kiba, Koneko, Asia and Akeno looked at each other with slightly widened eyes. "Two weeks?! That's too short a time!" They thought in unison.

"Alright." Rias stated stopping abruptly, leaving everyone present a little surprised by his curt attitude.

"Wait, Rias. We haven't even-"

"I'm sorry father." Interrupted the girl as the rest of her entourage stood up. "But if we only have two weeks, I can't waste any more time here." The redhead replied, striding out of the dining room, followed by her entire entourage. Everyone present would just shake their heads at their daughter/sister's attitude, while Raiser folded his arms with an arrogant smile on his face.

"She doesn't even have all her pieces... this is going to be really fun, as the whole royal family will be watching me crush that spoiled brat." Thought the Phoenix with great confidence of his victory.

"President, what do you plan to do?" asked Asia seriously as she followed closely behind.

"First we have to find Hyoudou. In these two weeks I will squeeze him as much as possible so that he can become the best pawn of the Underworld." Rias said with a clear withering tone, something a bit unbecoming of her. Rias stopped abruptly and turned away with a palpable seriousness on his face. "The same goes for us. We'll have to try our best to win the Rating Game." Rias turned his attention to Asia, making the former nun flustered by his stare. "Especially you, Asia. You're new as Hyoudou, so you'll have to level up as quickly as possible. Your Sacred Gear is very important to me, and that's why I revived you. I know you won't disappoint me." Rias stated with a small smile at the end, causing the nun to nod quickly.

"Do you think Issei will achieve that level you mention, President?" Koneko asked, no real concern in her words.

Rias' gaze would grow serious and a little dark at the question. "He is the Sekiryuutei, one of the most feared weapons in the world. It is the least I can expect from my servant, considering its destructive and fearsome potential. But...if he fails..." A malicious glint would flash across his eyes. "I'll make sure he suffers the same as me for being a complete failure."

LINE JUMP

"Guar, wa, wiwira!" The male dragon exclaimed with a small smile on his face as they all shared the food at the campfire.

"He says it's a shame you're leaving." Tiamat opened her lips slightly to take a mouthful into her mouth, exposing her two cute upper fangs.

"Don't worry, I'll be back fairly quickly." Issei replied with a small smile as he continued to devour the exotic fruits.

"Waa, vi, vir!" Said the little dragoness with a big toothy grin.

"She says when you come back, she wants to play with you." Tiamat commented as she tossed the inedible part of the fruit into the fire.

"You bet!" Issei replied with a toothy grin on his face as he repeated Tiamat's action. Her smile quickly faded as she picked up her backpack that lay next to her. "It's about time." He culminated as he glared at Tiamat.

Tiamat quickly got up from the ground. "Before you go, I would like to tell you something." She stated with her typical expression.

Issei would just nod and walk to the entrance of the cave, as they were watched by the three dragons.

"What did you want to talk about?" Issei inquired as he looked at the horizon seriously.

"Thank you..."

Issei looked at her, surprised by her simple word.

"Thank you for opening my eyes, thank you for showing me that I can still find happiness in life if I look for it, thank you for being my friend..." Tiamat looked up at him, causing a strong wind to blow her beautiful hair. A big grateful smile appeared on Tiamat's face, making her small fangs visible again.

"Thank you for everything!"

Issei stood static for a few seconds due to Tiamat's big beaming smile. When he reacted, he brought his right hand to her shoulder with a small comforting smile on his face.

"I've said it before, but... I promise I'll be back as soon as possible! I still owe you dinner! Issei replied with a big toothy grin.

Tiamat placed her hand on top of Issei's affectionately, causing him to be slightly surprised by the gesture. Her surprise grew out of all proportion when she saw a light blue glow appear on her right hand at the same time as a glow of the same hue appeared over Tiamat's breasts.

"With this, it will be much easier for us to communicate." Tiamat commented with a small smile.

"What is this?" wondered Issei as he looked at the light blue mark on his hand. "Doesn't it look like Tiamat's dragon form?" he thought as he looked closely at the mark.

"With this mark, both of us will be able to communicate all the time, as we will be able to talk to each other through a magic circle whenever we want. This will help us a lot when you want to come and visit me, I would only have to use some magic to create a teleport seal, although I could also teleport to your position if you wish. It will also allow me to sense your emotions, knowing exactly when you are in danger." Issei widened his eyes slightly at what he heard. Tiamat shook her head in amusement. "You are the Sekiryuutei, surely many enemies will want to assassinate you, and I will make sure to prevent it."

Issei looked at the mark even more surprised. "A single mark can do all that?!"

"Exactly." Issei looked at her with great intrigue after her words. "That mark is a sign of trust between the two people who wear it. This mark is known as the 'Seal of the Familiar'."

A small blizzard passed between the two, while not a word was spoken. The only distinctive thing between the two was Issei's completely shocked expression.

"W-wait a second..." Issei finally broke the silence. "You're telling me... you became my familiar... being a dragon, plus you're so much stronger than me?" he asked completely in shock, not quite digesting what was happening.

"Yeah, so what?" Tiamat placed both hands on her hips with a raised eyebrow.

Issei was even more surprised by her simple answer. "B-but...you had said that if a dragon becomes a Familiar of another dragon...it is considered a dishonor among its kind."

"That's right." Tiamat replied as she nodded with a small smile on her face.

"S-so, why?"

"Because..." Issei would be surprised beyond belief as Tiamat would wrap her arms around him very gently and slowly, hugging him with great warmth and affection. "Because you are my friend." She whispered in his ear.

"Do I need another reason to do this?"

"No... I don't know what to say..." Issei declared as he reciprocated the embrace with the same intensity as Tiamat, causing the woman to unconsciously hug him even tighter.

"You don't need to say anything, just accept it. It's the least I could do after everything you did for me." Tiamat broke away from the embrace slightly to look into his eyes with great seriousness. "I just have to tell you that this mark has one major flaw. Never allow your arm to be cut off, or we will lose the connection. Make sure you always have the gauntlet active throughout the fight to try and make sure nothing bad happens. And don't tell anyone, very few are aware of this weakness, and it would be best to keep it that way." She stated very seriously.

Issei nodded seriously, knowing it was a very delicate thing.

After those words, Tiamat would tighten the embrace slightly again, causing the two to bump noses.

"Have a safe journey." Tiamat declared with affection in her words.

"Thank you..." Was all Issei said as he broke away from the embrace. He quickly turned around and raised his hand in farewell.

Tiamat just continued to stare at him for several seconds. Finally, she closed her eyes and gave a smile... it was amazing that Issei managed to get so many radiant and sincere smiles out of her in just one day.

Definitely, he was very special to her...

Tiamat gave an intrigued look to the three dragons who were watching her very attentively.

"Is something wrong?" Tiamat asked, curious.

The three dragons knelt down in front of her, causing Tiamat to startle a little. "We're sorry we interrupted such an important moment when you were cuddling, Dragon Queen!"

"'Interrupted'?" Tiamat wondered aloud. "We were just talking. We slept together because it's so cold at night. Don't misunderstand things." Tiamat replied as an imperceptible blush appeared on her face.

The three dragons looked at each other in confusion. "Talking? But they were too close, practically invading each other's personal space, and they were so comfortable with each other close. We hear you two are friends, but it seems a little too close to be...just friends." The mother dragoness spoke, causing the other two to panic a bit as she practically defied Tiamat's word without realizing it.

Tiamat lowered her head, darkening her gaze. At this action, the other two dragons were terrified out of their wits and were about to apologise to him.

"You're right, but I like being with him like this. I don't care what the others think."

The three dragons were immensely surprised, and not by her words.

It was when she raised her face, as she had a huge blush on her cheeks.

LINE JUMP

"We finally found you..." Rias said as she let out a great sigh of exhaustion.

"How have you been?" Issei consulted with a toothy grin as he approached his fellow demons.

"Fatal." Koneko replied simply, causing Issei to stop in her tracks and look at her in confusion, then turn her gaze to Rias, waiting for an answer.

"We couldn't look for you yesterday, because I had a meeting at my house. Sorry." Rias replied with a slightly apologetic tone, then turned serious. "The problem comes in what was dictated at the meeting. I've never told you before, but I'm engaged to a man I don't love," she said, lowering her head slightly. She commented as she lowered her head slightly. "I don't know what my older brother was thinking, but the point is that the wedding has been moved up several months.

Issei just lowered his head slightly, not knowing exactly what to say. "Is there... any way to cancel the wedding?" He finally asked, not trying to indulge Rias in vain.

Rias' seriousness was completely erased and he would sketch a small smile. "There is. Remember the explanation I gave you about the Rating Games?"

Issei looked up with a hint of surprise. "We'll play a Rating Game to break your engagement? But you don't have all the pieces yet..." The young man clarified as he rubbed his hair in confusion.

Rias just nodded with a smile. "I may not have all the pieces, but the servants I have are very strong, or have impressive skills. That obviously includes you, Issei."

The aforementioned smiled at him seeing that he had quite a bit of confidence placed in him.

Rias' smile would falter a bit, making the whole atmosphere a bit more tense. "But nothing detracts from the fact that Raiser's team is well built, and for that very reason is among the best at the moment. We will have to train very hard these days. Especially you, Issei, since you have great potential, you just need to unleash it. That will be achieved with training, training, and more training." Rias' seriousness was quite palpable in his last words.

"I will not let you down, President!" Issei exclaimed as he raised his fist in determination. "By the way, how much time do we have?" he asked slightly embarrassed for not having asked such a key question from the beginning.

Rias raised his hand, framing two of his fingers. "Two weeks. I'll make sure you become the best pawn in two weeks."

Issei nodded vigorously. This was his chance to repay the favor he owed Rias for reviving him, and he intended to make good on it at all costs. Not only because of the favour he owed him, but because he himself knows that the only motivation he has to fight is to keep danger away from his friends, to keep them safe, to make sure nothing bad happens to them...

What's the point of fighting if he can't fulfil the only real ambition he has to fight?

LINE JUMP.

"Yes, in the end it was what we had thought. They were delayed by a day, because something very important came up." Issei commented quietly, making sure passersby wouldn't hear him talking to himself as he walked to school after being absent for 3 days.

"Okay. Did you tell him that I'm your Familiar?" Tiamat asked from the other side of the small celestial magic circle that was being covered by Issei's hand.

"Not at the moment. I didn't find the time to say it because of everything that happened." Issei replied seriously, as he adjusted his suitcase so it wouldn't fall off his shoulder.

"What exactly happened?" the dragoness inquired with a clearly curious tone.

"I can't tell you now, I'm just getting to the Academy. Talk to you later." Issei whispered even lower so as not to be overheard, as there were many students on the small bridge in front of Kuoh Academy.

"I understand, have a good one." The small magic circle disappeared, causing Issei to remove his hand from his ear with a small smile.

Issei stopped in front of the entrance as he looked at the academy with a small smile. "Even though it was only three days, it's good to be back." He thought as he took a step inside the Academy.

"Oe Ise, Ise!" The aforementioned looked forward with a small bead of sweat as he watched his two friends run towards him.

Issei's expression changed again when he saw them closer.

"What the fuck happened to their faces? !" Issei questioned as he watched in great excitement as their faces were somewhat swollen and bandaged.

Matsuda slowed down in front of him as he rubbed his bald head nervously. "Well... it's just that you weren't around yesterday to rein in the Kendo Club girls again."

Motohama adjusted his glasses as he looked at him very seriously. "Don't change the subject, you know you owe us some explanations..."

Issei just gave a small sigh as he started to slowly move forward, being followed by his two best friends who were watching him very carefully.

LINE JUMP

"Two weeks without going to the Academy?!" shouted Issei, practically rising from the couch.

"That's right." Rias nodded with a smile. "We need to focus as much as we can on our training."

Issei sat back, giving a big defeated sigh. "What will I make up for Matsuda and Motohama this time?" He wondered aloud.

"You don't have to worry about that." Rias replied, causing Issei to look at her curiously. "My family owns this school, so my brother already invented a two-week curricular excursion for the Occult Club. No one will be suspicious."

Issei clapped his fist in his palm as he nodded in compression. "I see! I should never have doubted the President's preparations!" Issei exclaimed with conviction, causing everyone to look at each other with a bit of amusement due to his words.

"President, you still won't tell us where we're going to go." Kiba would make his point as he watched her intently, his typical smile etched on his face.

"It's a big house in the middle of the forest that belongs to my family. It's located outside of Kuoh and a bit away from civilization, so we won't have any kind of trouble using our powers." Rias clarified as he stood up from his seat and looked at them seriously. "The limo should be arriving soon, let's go." They all nodded and followed their mistress.

LINE JUMP.

"She wasn't lying when she said it was a big house..." Issei thought as he looked at the huge three-story house that stood in front of him.

The structure was completely surrounded by trees and some really tall rock formations that were nearby.

They all entered the house and settled into their respective rooms. The house inside was somewhat luxurious, but not to overdo it. Mind you, Issei was sure that the comfort of this place was far above that of his home.

After everyone had settled in, Rias called them to the table to explain the different training sessions they would be doing during the week.

"Asia, I need you to focus on your magical training. You must learn to channel your magic freely, it will make your Sacred Gear much more effective when you need to heal someone." Rias shot a glance at the protagonist. "The same goes for you, Issei. I know you barely possess any magical power, but when you manage to load a good amount of power-ups into your body I'm sure your magical reserves will also skyrocket, as well as your physical strength, stamina and other qualities."

Issei just nodded in understanding as he continued to listen.

"In addition to learning how to use your magic, you should also train your physical fitness and stamina as much as possible." Rias frowned slightly with a piercing look. "I'm not going to lie to you, this is going to be a hard thing for you. I know you like to train, but I'm also sure you've never done such exhaustive training." Issei sweat coldly as he listened to her without saying a word. "Meanwhile, you guys..." Rias looked at Koneko, Kiba, and Akeno. "I don't think I need to tell you where you need to improve." The three just nodded, knowing what they should do. Rias turned his gaze back to Issei with a small smile. "If you need help with physical training, don't hesitate to ask Koneko, as she is the one who specializes the most in that area." Issei and Koneko looked at each other without saying a word for a few seconds.

"I don't think that's necessary." Issei replied with a smile on her face, leaving everyone present surprised. Issei clenched his right fist tightly, causing a light blue dragon mark to appear on it. "I'm sure if my Familiar helps me with the training, there won't be any problems."

"Familiar?" everyone asked in confusion.

Issei nodded with a goofy grin on his face. "That's right!" Issei put one foot on the table dramatically. "He's incredibly strong, and I know he'll be able to help me with my training! His name is-"

Koneko would punch him hard in the stomach, causing Issei to writhe in pain. "Don't rest your feet on top of the table. It's disrespectful." The white-haired girl glared at him as she looked at him with her typical expression. "If you want to train with your Familiar, I have no problem with that. But remember, if you need help, don't hesitate to ask me."

"I just hope it's not an excuse not to train hard, Issei." Asia added with a dangerous look on her face, making Issei immediately nervous.

"How do you think, Asia? You'll see for yourself." He replied as he rubbed his hair nervously.

"Will your Familiar be able to help you with magic as well?" asked Rias with great intrigue.

"Yes. She has a great deal of magical power, and I'm sure she could teach me various tricks."

"'She'? Is she a woman?" Akeno asked with some curiosity. "My, my. She must be quite human-like if you managed to decipher her gender."

"Actually, it wasn't that hard..." Issei clarified as he rubbed his cheek with a small blush as he remembered Tiamat's beautiful face, along with her VERY feminine anatomy.

"Can you introduce us to that familiar?" Rias consulted with great curiosity.

"Well... that..." Issei ducked his head, chagrined. "She hates Demons, she won't want to be among you, unless it's an emergency."

They all looked at each other with a mixture of confusion and intrigue. "But you're a Demon..." Kiba finally spoke, breaking the silence.

Issei rubbed his hair somewhat embarrassed. "That has an explanation. She said I was special because of Ddraig's power. That makes me very different from the average Demon, according to her."

They all looked at each other with slight frowns at his words, but said nothing.

"Did I say something wrong?" Issei asked in confusion as he saw that everyone was more serious than usual.

"It's nothing, you can start your training now." Rias replied with a small smile, then looked around at everyone. "I want everyone to be here before midnight!"

"Yes!" everyone replied in unison, leaving Rias and Asia alone at the table to begin their magical training.

Issei and Koneko nodded to each other as a gesture of farewell, as they did with Akeno.

"Issei." Kiba put a hand on her shoulder. "If you want to have a friendly fight against a swordsman, don't be shy to ask me."

Issei turned around, then gave a small bow. "Thank you, Prince Charming. I'll keep that in mind." Kiba just sweat at his partner's attitude.

Having said goodbye to Kiba, Issei was now on his own.

"Wait a minute..." The protagonist thought with a slight blush of embarrassment on his face. "How do I call Tiamat if I can't use magic?" Issei would position his hand on his chin as he thought with great fervor. "I know." He stated aloud as he snapped his fingers.

Issei tightly closed his eyes, as his mind visualized something...

The image of the girl from The Ring appeared in Issei's mind, causing him to give a small scream in great fear as he covered his face.

"I'll never be able to top that movie..." He thought with a big sigh at the end.

"Is something wrong?" Issei smiled as he saw that his plan had worked, the small magic circle that appeared in his ear and Tiamat's cute voice heard on the other side was proof of that. "I felt for a second you were completely terrified."

"Just imagine something that scares me. It's the only method I could think of to be able to communicate with you." Issei explained as he rubbed his hair nervously.

"Do you need something?"

"I would like you to teleport me there. I need help with training."

"Really? But you left a few hours ago..." Though the sentence sounded as if it was a rebuke, Tiamat's tone was clearly excited.

"Well... it's not just any training. I'll explain everything when I'm there."

"Alright." The dragoness replied, causing a light blue magic circle to appear at Issei's feet, which soon disappeared in a flash.

LINE JUMP.

"So your dear mistress is on the ropes, eh?" Tiamat stated seriously as she played with her hair after listening to Issei's entire explanation.

The young man nodded. "That's exactly why I'm here. With yesterday, it was clear to me that you have a high level and that you could help me improve quickly. That way, I will do my duty to the President." Issei couldn't help but tense up a little as he watched Tiamat study him with her gaze minutely.

"...Agreed." Tiamat got a big smile in response to his words. "But you will not succeed in winning with only the conviction of doing the favour you owe your mistress and the feeling of keeping all your friends safe." Issei looked at her with great intrigue at her words. "Do you know why I say that?" Issei merely shook his head at the lack of an answer. Tiamat folded her arms, giving him a piercing look.

"You think that's funny?"

"Huh?" Issei didn't know how to respond to the poorly phrased question.

"Do you think it's fun to fight, if your goal is to repay your mistress and protect your loved ones?"

"Well... I don't know if I'd call it fun, but as long as I have those goals I'm sure every fight will be fun!" Issei exclaimed with great determination in his words.

"So, what will you do when it's no longer fun?"

Issei was a little surprised by Tiamat's question, but quickly answered her with a smile. "I'll make it fun!"

"Will it be fun even though you fail to complete either of your two ambitions?" Issei was surprised by Tiamat's curt question, which didn't allow him to come up with a coherent answer. "Even though those ambitions make your excitement for combat incredible, if you fail once, you will be lost forever. All because you failed to fulfil your mistress's favour, and also failed to protect your loved ones, as the same woman will be condemned for an arranged marriage, not to mention what might happen to your Demon friends. After that, will you still find some kind of excitement to keep training? Will you still find fighting fun?"

Issei lowered his head, not knowing what to answer him. So far, he hadn't considered the option of losing, and had never really thought about how it might affect him if it ever happened.

"Don't worry."

Issei was a little surprised by Tiamat's words.

"Though I have only tasted your strength for a day, I am sure you have a feeling you have yet to discover, a feeling I know all too well. If you had faced Raynare without the desire for vengeance gnawing at your conscience, then you would have discovered it then and there." Tiamat changed her serious expression to a small, somewhat imposing smile. "Now, you only train to take down strong opponents who will go after your loved ones." Tiamat widened her eyes slightly with a glint of excitement in them.

"Only when you face them, see the full fruits of your training, and end up taking the victory..."

"Only with that single moment..."

"Only when that moment comes..."

"If you find that moment..."

Tiamat pointed out, causing a great shiver to run through Issei's body.

"You will be completely fascinated by the true meaning of combat!"

END OF CHAPTER!

Hope to see you as soon as possible!

Have a nice day!