Here I am with another translated chapter!
First of all, I want to thank you very much for the support you are giving to this project. At first I thought that doing translations for my stories might be a waste of time, but the fact that we've reached 100 followers in such a short time proves how wrong I was. Thank you again, and I hope I can continue this translation to the end.
I know these translations are not perfect, but with everyone's reviews and my work I will do my best so that the translator doesn't ruin this experience.
All these thanks aside, it's about time to answer a review:
The Beast of Sanity: Yeah, about all these back-to-back updates, I doubt I'll be able to continue this tomorrow, mainly because the next chapter is really long to translate and correct the mistakes (at least the ones I notice) in just one day. Back to the chapter, I'm really glad that so far you're liking all the development the story is taking. I hope this will continue in the future, and I hope you like this chapter too.
With nothing more to add, it's time to begin.
Enjoy!
"NO!" Issei shouted at the top of his lungs, sitting up in bed in an instant as a cold sweat broke out all over his face.
The protagonist looked around in utter shock. "My room?" he asked himself, beginning to take in all that had happened. "I see... I lost." He commented, lowering his head in disappointment.
Before he could think of anything else, he felt arms wrap around him over his shoulders.
"Issei, you're finally awake!" Exclaimed the sweet, familiar voice with great joy, sinking his face into the chestnut's neck.
"Tiamat?" Issei asked, not reciprocating the embrace out of the shock of the moment. "Just a moment." He added with great seriousness. "For how many days have I been unconscious?"
Tiamat pulled away from him and looked at him with great concern. "You were unconscious for three days. Since you did not visit me after the day of the battle and I did not feel any emotions through our union, I became concerned and decided to come to see how you were doing. I have been taking care of you these days, but unfortunately my healing is not able to heal internal wounds."
"My parents didn't say anything about your presence?" Issei asked, with great impression.
Tiamat quickly denied. "No. When I arrived, you were alone in the house."
At that moment, the realization hit Issei's head. "Right... they were going on a month-long trip..." Issei looked towards the closed window with great melancholy and sorrow, causing Tiamat to look at him with even more concern.
"I was afraid this might happen... I only hope I can find a way to remedy it."
CHAPTER 10: A NEW POWER!
Issei watched silently as Tiamat got out of bed and went to open the window. Although her body and soul were there, her mind was elsewhere.
"... I let her down. I couldn't return the President's favour." Issei thought, clenching his fists tightly. "How will she be right now?"
"*Comrade...*" Ddraig interrupted his thoughts, bringing Issei's attention to him. "*I understand that you're worried about her. But keep in mind that no one came to check on you, not for a single day, not for a single second. You were simply left here to heal on your own. On the other hand, Tiamat was with you from day one, and she was the only one who took care of you and worried about you. Even if me and that crazy dragoness don't get along, I have to say that Rias doesn't deserve a bit of your attention right now, the one who really deserves your consideration is the woman in front of you, opening that window. You'll have time to think about your mistress' situation later, so make sure Tiamat gets the attention she deserves*" Ddraig's words made Issei's eyes widen as he watched Tiamat finally open the window, causing a blinding light to illuminate her beautiful figure while a blizzard shook her hair in a mesmerizing way. It would have been quite splendid, if the woman didn't have such a worried look on her face.
"... You're right. Ddraig... I don't want to worry her any more than she already is with my negative thoughts." Issei thought seriously.
When Tiamat turned her gaze back to him, she looked a little surprised when he was giving her a big friendly smile.
"Thank you so much for taking care of me, Tiamat. You even came to the human world to treat me... I don't know how to thank you." Issei looked in another direction with an embarrassed expression on his face.
"You just have to keep your promise." Issei looked at her with great surprise as he felt her sit down next to him. She was giving him a sympathetic smile. "I hope you'll take me out to eat in this small town soon." That clarification made Issei chuckle, while Tiamat was visibly relieved to see that the situation wasn't as dire as it seemed, as he was still just as sweet to her.
Still, that friendly, comfortable moment was completely shattered when Issei's stomach rumbled loudly. A flush of embarrassment erupted on Issei's face, causing Tiamat to turn a smirk on him.
"Is anyone hungry after not eating for three days?" the dragoness asked with an amused tone in her words.
"Damn, I'm just now realizing that." Issei replied, clutching her stomach with a slight grimace due to the great aching emptiness she felt in her abdomen.
"Don't worry. I'll go get some fruits to eat right now." Tiamat commented, giving him one last hug more, which this time Issei was able to reciprocate. "Really, I'm so glad you're awake now..." The hug continued for longer than they both thought it would, until finally Tiamat broke away. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
LINE JUMP
A few minutes passed, during which Issei did not move from the spot at any time. An expressionless look decorated his face, making it impossible to tell whether he was well or ill.
No one could guess, except for his friend inside his head.
"*Are you still thinking about that?*" Ddraig questioned with a disapproving tone, not understanding why he still cared after what he told him.
"... I'd just like to know how they're doing. If they didn't come to visit me, it means they're mad at me." Issei commented, raising his gaze. "... I don't think I'll be able to see their faces again, especially the President."
"*Do you think they lost because of you? No shit, they barely got to collaborate in the battle! You did most of the work!"
"But I didn't finish it!" Issei shouted, angry at himself. "I'm supposed to be the sekiryuutei, someone capable of defeating the Gods themselves, but I couldn't even defeat a High Class Demon!" He added in great frustration, making Ddraig unable to comment on the matter. You don't need to hide it from me, I know I'm the weakest of all your bearers!" Issei finished shouting, on the verge of tears from the great frustration built up.
"*...*"
An awkward silence fell in the room for several seconds, until finally Ddraig decided to answer her.
"*It's true, you are the weakest bearer of all...*" Issei clenched his fists and teeth tightly at Ddraig's words. "*But you are also the bearer with the biggest heart of all.*" The Dragon's words surprised the protagonist. "You're the only bearer I've had so far who only wants more power to protect their loved ones. All the others only wanted power to dominate, allowing themselves to be totally corrupted by my power and turning me into a mere tool of their own. But you proved to me that you were different from the very first days... you proved to me that you really are my partner. For that very reason, I know that you will not end up consumed with power and reach levels that are even unimaginable to me.
Ddraig was surprised when Issei began to laugh at his words. "Don't you think you're being a little over the top? You're one of the Two Heavenly Dragons, it's impossible for me to reach a level that even you don't know about."
The dragon chuckled, agreeing with his bearer and causing the mood to twist to a much more cheerful one, abandoning the depressing vibe. "*Yeah, you're right. I just got a little carried away for the moment...*"
Before Issei could thank him for easing his frustration, a magic circle he didn't identify appeared in the room, activating his gauntlet instantly in defense.
"Sorry for the inconvenience, sekiryuutei. I come to bring a message from Sirzechs Lucifer, elder brother of Rias Gremory." The albino woman who appeared to be a servant bowed her head in respect.
Issei dematerialized his gauntlet and watched her with wide eyes. "My President's brother?"
The albino nodded. "That's right." The woman withdrew a small piece of paper from her hand that had a strange seal in the centre. "The wedding will be in a month, and you are invited." Issei took the paper and looked at it with great surprise. "But Mr. Sirzechs didn't ask me to talk to you just to give you the invitation. He intends for you to be the one to crash the wedding."
"Barge in?!" Issei widened his eyes in complete surprise.
"Right. Apparently, you don't know that the second condition for hastening the marriage date had been that anyone who wished to break into the wedding and take Rias' hand through a confrontation against Raiser is allowed."
"Is it allowed?" Issei commented/questioned in complete astonishment, until he finally turned his attention to one particular part. "Wait a minute... If I save the President, will I be engaged to her?" Issei thought, reluctant to marry her.
"When the wedding is underway, I'll come looking for you to break into it."
Issei cleared his thoughts and looked at her, nodding quickly. "I'll think about that later. Now I just need to concentrate on saving her." He thought with great seriousness.
The woman disappeared in a magical circle, leaving Issei alone again in the room.
He rose from the bed slowly with an expressionless look on his face.
Finally, Tiamat appeared on the scene and looked at him with a raised eyebrow as she saw that he was up. "Did something happen, Issei?"
Issei's expressionless gaze slowly transformed into a large smile that promised to restore his pride at all costs, causing Tiamat to be visibly surprised. "I have a second chance. Say, how about training me for another month?"
Tiamat's surprised look quickly changed to a sharp, pleased smile.
If anyone not involved in the conversation had seen her, it would have given her a bit of a scare.
"...Will you stand to go a full month without returning to the human world?"
"I wasn't planning on showing my face until it's all sorted out anyway, and being there makes that job a lot easier."
"Pack your bags."
TIME SKIP: 6 DAYS.
The silence in the Hyoudou residence was palpable. Not a sound had been heard for the past 6 days. Matsuda and Motohama went to visit their friend out of concern, but found that there was no one in the place, so they thought that their friend had accompanied his parents on the work trip, and that his mobile phone had broken in America, or something like that.
After Matsuda and Motohama left the place, two more people appeared in front of the Hyoudou house.
"I can't believe my brother is forcing me into this." Rias commented in disgust, looking at the small house.
"His orders were clear." Asia stated earnestly. "You have to be as close to him as possible and pretend you didn't care about the outcome of the Rating Game. Spend the next few days together with Issei at his house so that he starts to feel loving affection for you." Asia bowed her shoulders with a small smile. "Knowing what Issei went through, it will be difficult to get him to open up to you, even if he is in love." A dangerous glint crossed Asia's eyes. "You only have to kiss him non-stop when you're sure he's already in love with you. That way, we'll have him on our side forever."
Rias gave a big sigh, and knocked on the door of the dorm. "I know that. But it bothers me that I have to marry Issei. It's really repulsive just thinking about it." He whispered quietly, Asia being the only one who heard him.
"Don't worry about it. Remember your brother mentioned that when you do your part, he'll help you cover up your relationship if you ever like someone." Asia whispered softly, causing a small smile to appear on Rias' face.
"You're right. What really bothers me is not being able to punish him, to make him feel the humiliation I felt when I lost in the Rating Game. It's the Sekeryutei, it's unbelievable that he can't handle a mere High Class Demon like Raiser." Rias spat with venom in his words.
Asia just nodded in understanding of Rias' repressed actions, only to raise both eyebrows in confusion. "Don't you think it's strange that he hasn't picked up yet?"
Rias looked at Asia with the same expression. "You're right... Grayfia had said six days ago he was already conscious..." Rias put a hand to his chin. "It's very strange..." The redhead concluded her thoughts, entering the house from the back.
LINE JUMP
"Are you tired already? It's barely 11 o'clock at night. You could have held out for another hour yesterday." Tiamat declared, giving him numerous thrusts without even flinching, while Issei dodged or blocked them with his gauntlet with difficulty.
He had long since had his power-ups maxed out, but it was no use if he had already been training for over 15 hours without any rest, except for lunch and dinner.
Finally, Tiamat's sword ended up shattering the gauntlet into a thousand pieces, causing Issei to fall backwards in a thud.
Tiamat sighed to herself, relaxing and dematerialising her ice sword.
The dragoness watched as Issei's chest heaved down and up with great intensity, looking like she was about to be seized by a seizure. "Let's stop for today. You can't continue to be like this, it would be counterproductive." Tiamat declared an end to the training, kneeling in front of Issei's face earnestly, then giving him a tiny smile.
Issei returned it, then gazed into her beautiful sea-blue eyes with rapt attention. "It's been 6 days since this started... I never thought training could become a real hell." Issei thought, having a small flashback of how it all started...
"Immortality..." Tiamat thought aloud, rubbing her chin. "Actually, it's not that far-fetched, as some Demons are born with certain powers due to their lineage. From what you told me, their strengths were fairly balanced; with the exception of their magical reserves; which is really strange..." Tiamat looked at Issei intently, giving him a deductive look. "No Demon would manage to hold on to the High Class for long if you're no big deal. And apparently, immortality is what makes you the big deal." Tiamat removed her hand from her chin and snapped her fingers. "All you need to do to win is defeat his immortality."
"You make it sound so easy..." Issei replied with a roll of his eyes.
"Of course it's easy." Tiamat commented seriously. "All you have to do is reach beyond. Break your limits."
"Break my limits?" Issei asked somewhat alarmed. That definitely didn't sound like an 'easy' thing to do.
Tiamat nodded. "That's right. To do that, you need to take your Boosted Gear to the next level."
"|Balance Breaker...|" Ddraig stated, joining the conversation. Issei raised his hand as he watched the gauntlet materialize. "If you don't mind, I'd like to explain this to the boy, since you only know about it from our confrontations, Tiamat," Tiamat just nodded, letting Ddraig continue. "The Balance Breaker is not something that allows you to break your limits, it is actually an evolution of the Boosted Gear," Ddraig explained, clearing his throat. "That evolution will allow you to manifest a great deal of my power, causing all of your qualities to be greatly enhanced. The problem is, it's immensely difficult to release it the first time. You'll need to reach a certain amount of power, which, to be honest, you still have a long way to go." Issei lowered his head, somewhat dejected by the last part. "But that's not the only condition. You must also have a great trigger of negative emotions, along with a small compatibility with my soul. That is, a small compatibility with dragons."
Issei and Tiamat looked at the gauntlet in amazement. "Dragon compatibility?"
Ddraig began to laugh loudly at Issei's concern, causing Issei to look at him like he was an idiot. "The last point you've had since birth, thanks to my soul residing within yours."
"Then that shouldn't be a condition in the first place!" Issei shouted, at Ddraig's tasteless joke.
Inside Issei, Ddraig's amused expression changed to a serious one when he heard his words. "That's right. That's not a condition, since humans have no compatibility with dragons in the first place..." Thought the dragon to himself, turning around to look at his soul. "His body used to be human, no doubt about it." Ddraig narrowed his eyes with great seriousness. "But his soul..." Ddraig remembered the purple flash in the battle against Raynare, and how quickly his Boosted Gear evolved, even though the power required was still below average. "His soul is very strange. It's as if... he has a strange connection to our species." Ddraig finally bowed his shoulders with a smile. "It would be impossible for him to achieve Balance Breaker in just a month of training. But his strange compatibility makes me think he might. That is why I can consider compatibility a condition on this occasion." The dragon concluded his thoughts, waiting with great anxiety to see how events would unfold.
"In short..." Tiamat's words made Issei pay attention to her. "To break your limits you need to train, train, train, train, and train. Since you will be staying here this time, I will make sure the training is much more rigorous than the last." Those words caused the chestnut to become instantly serious as a cold sweat ran down his face, swallowing hard.
If the previous training had been too hard, he didn't even want to imagine what this one would be like...
And in the end, it turned out to be a living nightmare...
...
...
"Are you alright?" Tiamat's question brought Issei back to the present again. "You've been staring into my eyes for several minutes..."
Issei instantly realised that Tiamat's face was closer to his than he remembered, adding the fact that she had also been looking him in the eyes for all that time without saying a word.
"Yeah, it's just... I was thinking about how it all started." Issei replied, getting up with great difficulty, being supported by Tiamat.
"Is something bothering you?" The dragoness consulted, resting Issei's full weight on her shoulder affectionately.
The protagonist lowered his gaze instantly, indicating that Tiamat had hit the mark. "You know... I've been thinking that I might not be able to beat her..."
"As I surmised, the defeat dealt him more trauma than failing his mistress." Tiamat thought perceptively. "What makes you think that?"
"He is a High Class Demon who was blessed by fate with his immortality. And I... well... I'm the weakest sekiryuutei who ever lived."
"Are you telling me that you weren't blessed by fate?" Issei lowered his head even further at Tiamat's question. "You consider that you weren't blessed by fate, being that the Underdeveloped Lizard ended up in your body, having millions and millions of choices?" The chestnut raised his gaze slightly, widening his eyes slightly. "There is only one other person like you in this vast world, and you would say that fate has no great things in store for you? No matter how weak you are, if you are the sekiryuutei, sooner or later you will become a world power. And that, that can only be achieved thanks to your destiny." Issei looked up with great surprise, seeing Tiamat's serious face curve into a genuine smile. "All you need to get there is a little spirit." Tiamat pressed her cheek against his in a very affectionate act, causing a small blush to shoot across Issei's face. "And I know very well that you have that spirit. So..." Tiamat rested her free hand on Issei's hair and ruffled it affectionately. "Don't waste it..."
Issei gave a big sigh, then gave her a tired smile. "You're right. I just got a little carried away in defeat."
"Life is not a utopia." Tiamat replied quickly, looking at him piercingly. "No matter who you are or how strong you are, there will always be a time in your life when you will suffer, because life is not perfect. And what's really important is not how good most of your life was, but the times when it was a nightmare and you still managed to move on." Tiamat's piercing gaze changed to a big smile that was dedicated solely to Issei, causing a pleasant little shiver to adorn the chestnut's entire body. "If you ever hit rock bottom, I'll be sure to be there for you. Just like you helped me when I was at my worst, I swear!"
Issei could only watch her with a small blush from all the intense emotions the dragoness gave off and they permeated the bottom of his heart.
After a few seconds, she gave him a big smile and broke away from his grip, feeling her strength had mysteriously returned. "In that case, I swear too!" The chestnut held out his menikin, causing Tiamat to look at him with some confusion and surprise. Seeing that her now best friend didn't understand the interaction, Issei took her arm gently and slowly pulled it up. "If you ever find yourself in a delicate situation, I promise to help you again, and as often as you need it." Issei linked her little finger with Tiamat, causing the dragoness to watch the interaction with confusion, until finally she smiled and tightened the little squeeze even further.
Tiamat lowered her gaze with an imperceptible blush as she saw Issei staring at her, with that incredible smile on his face that made her body shake with multiple emotions and incredible feelings. "... Thank you for making me feel so great..." Tiamat transformed the small grip into a much firmer one as she gently took his hand. Issei was visibly surprised by her act, but didn't have time to say or do anything. "Are we going to take a bath?"
Issei blinked twice, then sniffed his armpit and shivered slightly at the smell. "Hell yeah, I stink!" The young man looked at her with great surprise and suspicion as he saw that Tiamat appeared to be untouched. "Hey... Why don't you ever end up tired or sweaty?
A somewhat mocking smile appeared on Tiamat's face. She started walking, leaving a couple of steps behind Issei. "Because you don't make me do it." She replied, with an amused and mocking tone in her words.
"Hey!" A throbbing vein appeared on Issei's forehead, quickly running towards Tiamat, falling over in the process due to all the fatigue returning to his body.
LINE JUMP
"What do you mean he wasn't at home?" Sirzechs' ever-calm face could not hide the quiver of his eyebrows, indicating his anger.
"We searched for him all over the city, and no one knows anything about him." Rias replied, lowering his head in submission.
Sirzechs leaned back in his seat, thinking carefully about what to do. "... They have to find him. If we don't, our plans may not work." The Demon King stated, thinking carefully. "If we don't find him, we can still resort to plan B."
"Plan B?" Rias would ask with a raised eyebrow.
"Plan B is to not mention anything to the sekiryuutei about the engagement, indicating that we're not looking for that. We'll keep it a secret, until you get his full attention. And if he asks to cancel the engagement, it would be best to tell him that he can do so after a couple of months. In those months, you'll get close enough to him that he'll start to see marriage as a good idea," Sirzechs stated with great calm in his words. The supreme demon took on a sinister gleam in his eyes all of a sudden, causing Rias to glare at him. "If all else fails, we will have no choice but to resort to plan C. Which, would be a shame..."
LINE JUMP
Tiamat watched in genuine surprise to see Issei standing behind her. "Do you plan to bathe near me?" Asked the dragoness; who was already naked in the lake; upon seeing that the protagonist was in the same place as her.
"I was thinking that if you don't mind my presence even a little bit, I think I should think the same." Issei replied somewhat nervously, beginning to take off her clothes.
"Are you over your embarrassment already after 6 days?" Tiamat would ask with a small amused tone in her words, then widen her eyes slightly in shock. "His torso..." Thought the dragoness, seeing that the exercises had begun to show in a big way, and her marked chest and the 4 squares protruding from her abdomen were the proof.
Issei continued to take off his clothes, leaving only his boxers. Unbeknownst to him due to the embarrassing situation, Tiamat wandered all over his body with her eyes wide open.
"I've seen men's bodies before that were much more worked out... but for some reason, Issei's body makes me feel... strange." Tiamat averted her gaze with a small blush as she realized she had been looking at him for a long time. "Why couldn't I stop looking at him?" The dragoness wondered, dipping half of her face into the natural hot springs to hide her blush.
Somehow, this very normal situation for her wasn't exactly normal anymore.
She was sure it was something she hadn't felt in over 2000 years, but she didn't know what it was precisely.
She only knew that it felt good...
Tiamat woke up from her thoughts when Issei stepped into the water, seeing that his face was much less nervous than the first time. It probably wouldn't take him long to get used to bathing next to her, as long as that dense mist still covered most of her body, of course.
TRANSITION: 18 DAYS.
(the transition indicates various events in the days covered, as opposed to the time skip)
"Come on, keep running!" Tiamat commanded, as she watched Issei chase after the dragon dad with the intention of catching him. This had become routine training, as they always received his visits in the morning.
Issei finally fell to the ground after running for more than three hours. He was not using any power-ups on Tiamat's orders, and for that very reason it looked like he would never be able to catch him.
Tiamat slowly approached Issei, watching him seriously. The protagonist rolled onto his back while breathing completely agitated.
"Let's move on to the next one." Were Tiamat's simple words, causing Issei to turn serious and jump to his feet.
"Eight hundred!" Issei would be doing some sit-ups, the last exercise before having a little friendly battle with Tiamat.
The dragoness watched carefully as Issei's whole body was shaking, but even so her expression didn't seem to waver one bit. "Come on, you're only halfway through!" exclaimed Tiamat, then gave her a small smile. "Since the day we talked about his defeat, his mentality has strengthened drastically. Now, he not only has in mind to return the favour to his mistress, but he also wants to take the victory against that man at all costs." His smile increased even more as he saw Issei's completely sympathetic expression. "We already have another thing in common, we both love fighting. Though you don't know it yet..."
"One thousand seven hundred and forty-five!" Issei exclaimed, standing on his head, doing completely insane push-ups while maintaining his balance with perfection. Sweat ran down the entire length of his face, while his body trembled from each lowering and raising. Still, he seemed to have no intention of stopping.
"Remember, it's two thousand now." Tiamat declared, watching him with great attention, being joined by her three neighbouring dragons.
Issei would be watching with great seriousness as the three dragons had surrounded him. His body was visibly trembling, and the large amount of sweat running down his entire body indicated that he was completely exhausted, having just recently finished his daily exercises.
Tiamat would be watching him, leaning against the cave entrance with her arms crossed.
The male Dragon opened his mouth, causing a small blue magic circle to appear in his mouth, followed by a bolt of lightning that shot in Issei's direction.
The brown-haired man looked behind him and reacted quickly, moving his body to the side to dodge it. Even so, he had no respite as they all began to attack simultaneously.
Issei would materialize his wings to be able to fly and dodge the three attacks with great difficulty due to fatigue. He couldn't think of a strategy as the consecutive attacks began to seek him out in the air, forcing him to dodge them all by the skin of his teeth. In fact, the last attack grazed his cheek, causing him to clench his teeth tightly, and he was knocked off balance by fatigue, falling to the ground with a thud.
He quickly tried to get to his feet, but his limbs did not respond as he had hoped, causing all three attacks to hit him squarely.
"That's enough!" Tiamat would order, rushing over to Issei with some concern as she saw that he was nothing short of unconsciousness. "I know this is very hard, but I must make sure you take the victory this time." The dragoness would state softly as she stroked his cheek lovingly, beginning to heal him.
The dragons looked at each other at the captivating interaction, but didn't comment as they were used to it. After all, they had been coming for more than two weeks in a row to visit them.
A small smile would become visible on Tiamat's face as she watched Issei doing the one-handed push-ups, beginning to fully master the exercises.
"Even if the amount increases every day, she's getting less and less tired... this is getting very interesting..." Tiamat would think, watching him with a smile.
Issei would be doing his daily kicks and punches, but this time he was wearing a large block of ice covering his feet and hands.
Movement was much more hampered, but he still managed to keep up with his exercises somewhat normally.
Considering that it had only been almost four weeks, it was truly amazing.
"... I wonder how fast and strong his punches and kicks will become in such a short time." Tiamat thought, watching him with a sideways grin as he ate a piece of fruit, denoting his beautiful fangs.
Issei would be dodging all of the dragons' attacks in mid-air with considerable difficulty. They had been going at it for more than 15 minutes already, and it looked like it would soon be over by the completely exhausted expression on his face.
The brown-haired man widened his eyes in horror when he saw how a bolt of lightning was inches away from his face, making it impossible to dodge. The impact was heard, only to be followed by Issei falling to the ground with a large wound on his right hand, indicating that he had reacted well enough to block it.
Tiamat became alert at this and was about to stop the training, but was visibly surprised when Issei began to struggle up from the ground, while a large amount of blood stained the ground thanks to the deep cut on his hand.
The dragons watched in complete surprise as Issei slowly rose to her feet, then stood in a defensive stance and looked at them with great seriousness. His piercing and reckless gaze does not match the great trembling of his whole body.
Finally, Tiamat's surprise turned into a big proud smile as she saw that her future partner would not be taken down easily. "Impressive. I can't think of another word to describe it."
The male dragon looked completely shocked as Issei grabbed his head. Not only was he surprised, everyone was open-mouthed, even the chestnut himself.
"..."
A cutting silence garnished the atmosphere...
Until...
Issei raised his free fist and clenched it with great force.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The chestnut's great shout made everyone excited to a great extent. Even Tiamat had a sparkle in her eyes that she had never had before.
She felt great just watching him progress day after day...
It felt great to have him by her side every day, watching him get closer and closer to reaching a new level.
She was very proud of his progress, and very happy with his company.
"I wish instead of a month, it had been a year..." The dragoness thought, looking at him with much affection and longing.
LINE JUMP.
Tiamat delivered a heavy blow to Issei's abdomen, forcing him to his knees, coughing in pain.
"I think it's time to finish. It's already past midnight..." The dragoness thought, looking up at the sky.
The three dragons were watching the friendly fight, nodding off from sleep.
"Only three days to go..." Issei muttered under his breath, causing Tiamat to look at him, though she didn't hear what he said. "I'll make sure I get there..." He muttered again, coughing under his breath. His gaze was shadowed, so you couldn't see the myriad of emotions running through his eyes. "She helped me for this whole month, relentlessly. She took care of me and let me sleep at her house for all these days..." Issei felt like his entire stomach was churning from the myriad of emotions roaming through his body.
Oddly enough, there weren't any negatives.
That must be so, because he was thinking about Tiamat.
He couldn't find any negative thoughts coming from her.
"I will make you proud. I will make you see that nothing was in vain." This last Tiamat did hear, watching Issei intently.
Before Tiamat could tell him that nothing was in vain, that she enjoyed every day being around him, she heard something that completely confused her.
"Boost!"
"Her power-ups hadn't reached their limit?" the dragoness thought.
"Boost!"
This time, Tiamat's eyes widened in shock as she saw a red aura that gave off an immense amount of power completely surround Issei, as he slowly raised his gaze.
Ddraig smiled proudly inside Issei. "Augmentations are not only based on the strength of the wearer, but also on their emotions. But... This is the first time one of my bearers has managed to get more power-ups through positive emotions!" The dragon thought, only to widen his eyes in shock as Issei's aura grew even larger and another "Boost!" was heard in the background. "It's not...?" The dragon said to himself, completely anxious about what was happening.
Finally, Issei raised his gaze fully and the reddish energy burst even stronger again, creating a huge blizzard around him.
Issei clenched his fists tightly, letting the positive emotions fill and dominate him completely.
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
"BOOST!"
At this point, the dragons are being covered by the huge blizzard, while Tiamat could only stare at it in great surprise and bewilderment.
"BOOSTOOOOO!"
Just when everything seemed to be over, a small smile appeared on Issei's face.
"I wonder what smile he'll give me when he hears about my victory..."
The biggest smile that Tiamat ever gave him appeared in his mind...
That smile, had been the first of all the smiles she had given him...
That beautiful smile, it came from the fact that he decided to stay with her so as not to leave her alone...
That simple smile...
That simple memory...
Was the trigger...
"WELSH DRAGON: BALANCE BREAKER!"
A strong reddish light surrounded Issei completely, making his figure impossible to make out.
The dragons shielded their eyes from the blinding light, while Tiamat could only watch in complete stupefaction.
When the light finally dissipated, the dragons' jaws dropped to the ground as they saw crimson armour covering him completely, along with green jewels on different parts of his armour.
The power he radiated was so powerful and pure that a thin crimson aura surrounded him with great intensity. A small deafening sound could even be heard coming from it.
Issei dematerialised his helmet, showing a completely serene and calm expression. In fact, Tiamat was looking at him with that same expression.
They looked so professional, as they didn't even look surprised at what happened.
But...
After a few seconds of staring at each other like that, they both started waving their hands around trying to gesture words, as if they were children entering a toy store for the first time.
"I can't believe it... they themselves are the most surprised." Thought the male dragon with a smile as he watched the two's reaction, which looked like it would last for several more minutes.
"I never thought I could see Tiamat acting like that..." The mother dragon declared, causing the other two to nod instantly. "It's impressive to see how Issei has the power to make her so expressive..."
"No one would believe that that dragoness in front of us is the brooding, murderous dragon queen who prowled for millennia." Added the male dragon, watching the interaction with an amused smile on his face.
END OF CHAPTER!
There are still three days before the battle starts, so I'll give Issei and Tiamat some charity time in those days, and then start the fight between Issei and Raiser. I plan to introduce the second Waifu in three or four more chapters at the latest.
The fight against Raiser will be completely different, because Issei won't use the same method. In fact, it will be a more destructive and exciting one, according to my point of view, of course.
Oh, and before you comment, yes, Rias went to see if Issei was in the Family Realm because of Issei's background. Even so, he couldn't find him for reasons I'll explain in the next chapter. I'm just adding this so you won't be drilling your head until I post the next chapter.
As always, I hope you liked it and I'll see you in the next chapter!
All the best!