It's been a very, very long time since I last posted anything on here, and I'm sure you all thought I probably never would post again. Well, with recent changes that have happened, I have some good news and bad news. I stopped posting because people who for some reason decided to flame me for no apparent reason kinda ruined it for me. I write because I love writing, so I write more for my own enjoyment more than anything else, and getting flamed for stuff people don't like about my writing was making me want to stop. Thus, I stopped posting.
Luckily, however, someone recently pointed something out to me. That even though there are those that don't like this story or my writing style in general, there are a lot more that do like it. So, he suggested I start posting somewhere else primarily, somewhere where there will be virtually zero trolls. And so I set up a pay-tree-on. I'm going to link it, but, I'm not sure if it's against guidelines so I might have to remove it. So, if it does get removed, my pen name on pay-tree-on is the same as it is on here. I'm hoping this will solve the problems I was having with this site, one of which is the lack of communication with my fans on this site. So, from now on, I will be posting primarily on pay-tree-on, and those who are members will get more interaction in the future direction of this story and other stories I make. The updates on this site will be delayed.
FFN censors certain words and links, so this isn't the exact link, but it should help you find it. Type in pay-tree-on(not the actual name, FFN censors it, but if you search that up you should find the website), it's a com website, then put /Filing. It should take you right to it.
Zeoticus Gremory considered himself to be an experienced person when it came to life. After all, he was several centuries years old. He had been there to watch kingdoms appear and fall. He had not only been there but had fought for a good portion of the infamous Three Way War between the three races of the judo Christian pantheon. Yet for all that, he had never quite seen someone as enigmatic as the young man happily chatting away with the Phenex clan, one of the most prestigious families of the entire devil race.
The young man was either ignorant of the social dictations that were expected of him when talking to such a prestigious family, or he simply didn't care. The young man sat there, playfully chatting with the core of the Phenex family, blissfully ignorant of the baffled stares he was receiving from most of the other families in the ballroom. It wasn't every day that you saw someone acting chummy with a family of the Phenex's standing. Especially not in public. In fact, he would wager it was the first time anyone in the ballroom had seen such actions.
Turning to his son, who was currently brooding. Over what, he has no idea. It always seemed to be one thing or the other with him. However, if he was to wager a guess, it would be that his precious Rias-tan was being married off to Riser Phenex. Zeoticus had to admit, Riser was less than appealing when it came to people he wanted his only daughter to marry, he believed that with time, Rias would get over it.
After all, it was his belief that with time, you could come to care or fall in love with anyone. When you came to be as old as Zeoticus was, you tended to look past things like the actions of someone still in their adolescence such as Riser. Sure, right now he was a rather detestable person, with his huge ego and all. However, Zeoticus could see past that, see the person he really was, or rather the person he could mature to be.
Riser Phenex was a very disciplined man, that he knew for sure. After all, it was a requirement to have a physique such as his. A lot of people didn't understand how hard it is to build muscle, especially for devils. One would assume devils would have an easier time with their quicker recovery time and natural strength, however, it was quite the opposite.
Muscles are built through the process of exercising which puts little micro-tears in the muscles that would heal given time, only stronger. That is where the root cause of why it is so hard for devils to build muscle lies. It is fact that in their genetic makeup, devils have naturally stronger muscle fibers than humans do. Which meant it was unbelievably hard to cause those little micro-tears in their muscles.
By the time the average devil male or female reaches adolescence, their muscle fibers are already as strong as a human that has been training rigorously for decades, all the while taking every steroid and supplement under the surface of the sun.
So naturally, when you see a pure-blooded devil-like Riser or for another example, Sairaorg Bael, with the physiques they have, you have no choice but to make the assumption that they have an incredible amount of discipline to weather through the huge disadvantage devils have when it comes to building muscle.
That is why Zeoticus knew that Riser Phenex, once given time to mature, of course, would become a very respectable man. He had a discipline very few have. Which meant he would be able to achieve whatever he put his mind to, no matter how hard, as he has the discipline not to call it quits along the way.
Zeoticus shook his head, his mind had wandered away from the task at hand. Looking at his son, who he took quite a bit of pride in, asked the question that has been plaguing his mind ever since he first saw that young man talking with the Phenex's.
"Sirzechs," Zeoticus said, drawing Sirzechs out of his brooding. "That boy over there, talking with the Phenex family. Who is he?" Zeoticus inferred. He watched as Sirzechs looked over to where he is indicating, only to frown when he saw the boy, his shoulders once again morphing into what Zeoticus liked to call his son's brooding shoulders.
"That would be Shin Hyoudou, Rias-tan's only pawn," Sirzechs said with a bit of disdain in his voice, his frown only increasing when he heard his father let out a heartfelt laugh.
"So that is the boy you have been complaining about so much this past month," Zeoticus said cheerfully. He had been curious about this boy ever since he first heard of him around a month back. From what he had heard, Shin Hyoudou is a very interesting person. From his enigmatic and humorous personality. To his seemingly careless yet calculated actions. Most of all, however, the sacred gear he wielded and the future potential it has.
Sirzechs however, was confused. As far as he knew, he hadn't talked to his father about Shin at all. Maybe some angry grumbling or the name being mentioned when talking about Rias. But not a direct conversation about Shin that would erect this kind of reaction from his father.
With a great amount of confusion on his face, he asked the question currently on his mind. "How do you know of Shin Hyoudou? I don't recall telling you anything about him. Certainly not enough to warrant this kind of reaction." Sirzechs asked.
Zeoticus looked at his son with a face that said he should already know that answer. "You should already know son that there is very little that doesn't reach my ears," Zeoticus said. However, the frown on his son's face told him he isn't satisfied with the answer.
Releasing a sigh, he elaborated further. "To put it in the simplest terms as possible, you complained about him to one of your wives, who in turn relayed that information to one of mine, which naturally, was relayed to me." Zeoticus put simply.
Sirzechs' face faulted, his eyes narrowing in annoyance. "You can just say it how it is father, you heard of him through the gossip vine," Sirzechs said.
"Alright let's go with that then," Zeoticus said dismissively.
Sirzechs rolled his eyes. "Just what all have you heard about him?" Sirzechs asked of his father, curious just how much his wives had gossiped about.
Zeoticus looked up towards the ceiling, obviously recalling everything he has heard about Shin Hyoudou. "Well, I guess the main part is that he is Rias' only pawn, has great potential, and is simultaneously illiterate and intelligent," Zeoticus said, Sirzechs nodding along in agreement the entire time.
Sirzechs was just about to start talking when his father cut him off. "Oh, and of course the whole fiasco when he played you like a fiddle. Blackmailing you into doing what he wants." Almost instantaneously, Sirzechs face fell into indignation.
"He did not!" Sirzechs disagreed almost instantly.
Zeoticus smirked at Sirzechs. "Really? Sure sounded like it."
Sirzechs sneered. "Then the story must have been twisted in the gossip."
The smirk didn't leave Zeoticus' face. "Sure, let's go with that."
Zeoticus, seeing his son starting to get annoyed decided it was about time to switch topics. "Regardless, how much I currently know about him is irrelevant. What is important is what I see him possibly doing in the future. With his determination and potential, he has the possibility of shaping the world as he sees fit. It would be wise to keep an eye on him." Zeoticus said seriously.
Sirzechs suddenly got serious as well, sitting up straighter as he analyzed Shin carefully. "I agree. The kid has enormous potential that he hasn't seemed to register fully just yet. He doesn't know, but every higher up in the devil community has heard of him. Information spreads fast. Especially when it's about a future up and comer." Sirzechs said.
Zeoticus nodded in agreement. Not all devils knew as much about Shin Hyoudou as Zeoticus did, however, most have at least heard of his name in passing. After all, the implications of his Sacred Gear are monumentous. It actually explains why the Phenex clan took to him so warmly. As one of the more prestigious families, they have heard of him and know he is a future powerhouse. Establishing connections with them will do good for them in the future.
"The only problem is, I'm not sure what to think of him. He's smart, but not in the book sense, more like he's creative. Thinks of things others don't. But when it comes down to battle, he's reckless and makes stupid decisions." Sirzechs said, relaying what information he did know of Shin to his father.
Zeoticus, hearing all about the reckless decisions Shin had made, nodded in agreement. "That's true, however, you must remember, he's still just a boy. He has a lot of maturing to do." Zeoticus said, to which Sirzechs nodded.
Sirzechs knew this and that is why he hadn't yet labeled Shin as an enemy just yet. After all, he had only known of the boy for a few weeks, hardly enough to judge his character. Especially when he had only actually talked to the boy once or twice. For now, he would just have to wait and see what future decisions he would make.
Shin quite liked talking with the Phenex family. For some reason that he knew not, they seemed to take quite a liking to him. For the last half an hour or so, they had been making idle chat as they waited for Rias' makeup to be finished so she could make her appearance.
During this time, Shin had gotten to know the Phenex family. After getting through the initial phase in which Ravel was acting pompous brat, he had quite enjoyed the time talking with them, Riser in particular.
It surprised him how well he got along with Riser. Although, in hindsight, he should have seen that coming. The Riser he thought he knew, was an antagonist in a shonen anime, so naturally, he was cast in a bad light.
Sure, Riser had his flaws, just like everyone, but he was no more a pervert than Issei was, and his arrogance was something you could easily look past.
However, it was no time to reminisce as he saw Grayfia approaching the table the Phenex family and him were currently sitting at, which could only mean one thing. Rias was ready.
Shin stood up. "Well, it looks like Rias is finally ready. I should go join the rest of her peerage now. It was very nice meeting you all, I hope to do this again sometime." Shin said as Grayfia arrived at the table.
Riser's father, Robin, yet another bird name, rose along with him. "Yes, it was quite a good time wasn't it," Robin said as he extended his hand out to Shin, in which Shin gladly met with a firm handshake. "Feel free to call if you ever need our help in the future. As far as I'm concerned, you've become a friend of the Phenex family." Robin said good naturally as Grayfia stood, waiting to relay the information she came for.
Shin smiled, quickly glancing over everyone at the table. "I'll be sure to do that," Shin said as he released for the handshake and turned to walk away. "Before I go though, I apologize in advance," Shin said, drawing confused looks from everyone there.
"For what?" Riser asked. Shin sighed, his eyes glancing back to Rias' peerage. Riser's face adopted one of realization. "Ah, I see. I should have expected as such." Riser said, everyone else still feeling confused.
Shin sent one last apologetic look towards the Phenex family before turning and leaving, faintly hearing Grayfia inform the Phenex family that Rias was ready.
With one scan of the banquet hall, Shin quickly spotted the Gremory peerage, sans Issei, gathered near the southeast corner of the room. Walking over to the group, Shin's eyes locked with Akeno's, her eyes portraying an air of confidence in them. However, being a close friend of Akeno for a little over a year, Shin could see the worry present underneath the mask she was portraying.
Shin smiled at Akeno, stopping a few feet in front of her, stopping to take a once over of what she was wearing. A simple black yukata that really brought out her purple eyes. "Well, don't you look ravishing." Shin said with a large smirk plastered onto his face.
Akeno rolled her eyes, very much used to the playful personality of Shin. However, she couldn't help but do a once over of his body, chuckling at the way he was dressed. "I see you're dressed up for the occasion," Akeno said jokingly.
Shin looked down at his Rogue t-shirt, simple jeans, and sandals. Quite obviously out of place for such a formal gathering. "I'll have you know I save this shirt for very special occasions," Shin said matter of factually.
Kiba snorted from where he was standing. "Special occasions? You've worn that shirt 3 times this week already."
Shin glared at Kiba. "Well, they don't know that," Shin stated matter of factly.
Kiba just rolled his eyes as a chuckle left his mouth. Sure, the two of them hadn't spent much time together, however, they had spent enough time together for Kiba to know that this was just who Shin was, and honestly, Kiba found Shin an amusing person.
"Do you know where Issei is Shin? He should have been here by now." Akeno asked, curious. If anyone knew where Issei is it would be Shin.
Shin looked contemplative for a second. "Well... If that guy I bought those drugs from was right..." Shin trailed off to look at the non-existent watch on his left forearm. "He should be unconscious for another three hours. But, the tranqs haven't been used on a dragon before so who knows." Shin said casually as if stating the weather.
Everyone just stared at Shin, not sure what to say. "What?" Shin asked. "Is there something on my face?" Wiping at his face and then looking at his hand to see if anything had come off.
"You what?" Akeno asked, finally finding her words.
Shin awkwardly looked between the three other members of Rias' peerage. "Ummm, I'm getting the feeling I shouldn't have said that," Shin said.
"Shin... Why did you drug Issei?" Akeno asked a dangerous undertone to her voice.
Shin, unaffected by Akeno's not-so-subtle threat, explained his reasons. "Honestly, because if I didn't, the idiot would have burst in here challenging Riser to a fight, and we know how that went last time. That wasn't so much a fight as it was a slaughter." Shin said, calming the three of them down slightly, but not fully.
"At least it's something though! Now, what will happen to Rias? Be doomed to live a horrible life?" Akeno asked heatedly. Shin just looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"I think you misunderstand what this marriage will consist of, but to answer your question, no. Rias will not be marrying Riser, she never was." Shin said.
Confused, Akeno stopped for a second to try and figure out what Shin was saying, but couldn't. "What do you mean?" Akeno asked.
Shin sighed. "I don't mean any offense by this, but I know you and Rias like to think you know politics and how they work, but frankly you know nothing of them," Shin said, igniting Akeno's ire. Just as she was about to burst out at him, he raised his hand to stop her from talking. "Let me explain before you yell at me. For starters, Rias was never marrying Riser. Riser was marrying her." Shin said, confusing Akeno.
"So, what difference does that make?" Akeno asked.
Shin rolled his eyes. "A huge difference Akeno. However, I don't have time to explain right now, I have more important things to do." Shin said as he noticed that Riser had just finished introducing Rias and knew now was the time to make his move. Moving forward, he steeled his nerves, which were going haywire at the moment. He liked to have a confident outward appearance and was quite adept at hiding his nerves, however, this was completely different. The only time he had ever felt more nervous was when he met Sirzechs.
He heard Akeno saying something to him, but ignored it, too focused on what he was about to do. His confident strides to the front garnered a lot of attention, eyes following him the whole way up. People, recognizing he was about to do something, made a path for him to the front, the hall suddenly becoming silent.
Making it to the front, looking up to Riser, he smiled. "Fantastic introduction Riser, really I mean that. Sadly, however, I can't allow this engagement to happen." Shin said simply, making Riser scoff.
"What you can and can't allow happening is irrelevant. Your a low-class devil just barely out of diapers. Your opinion is irrelevant. You have no grounds for anything, and if you would like to continue living, I would suggest you go sit back down and keep your mouth shut for the rest of this party." Riser said. Sure, Riser liked Shin, he was a cool guy, however, Shin was ignorant of the way devil society worked.
Or so he thought at least. "That's where your wrong Riser, I can stop this engagement," Shin stated, not arrogantly, not confident, but knowing. Just the tone of his voice alone, speaking as if he had already won, garnered the interest of everyone there.
Riser, rising up to the bait due to his pride, couldn't help but ask. "Oh really? On what grounds?" Riser asked with a smirk on his face.
Shin smirked, hiding his nervousness. What he says next is a very risky play, and he is counting on the old traditions of the devil elders for this to work. "On the grounds that I slept with the bride." Just like that, the room became silent. However, Shin wasn't done yet. "You see, I knew she was engaged, hell I even knew she was engaged to you. The truth is, I just didn't care." Shin said, purposefully sounding as prattish as he possibly could.
Riser scowled. He may not be the smartest of people, however, he knew what Shin's aim was, and honestly, it was smart. Shin trapped him with no way out. If he refused to do anything in this situation it would tarnish his reputation as everyone would believe he didn't care if his significant others cheated on him or slept with other people. Not only that, but according to the old fashion of the devil elders, it was his duty to preserve her honor. If he refused to do so in this situation would be a great insult to the Gremory family and would not only bring him down but his entire family as well.
Although it was also true that this action would tarnish Shin's reputation as well, the fact of the matter is that the elders are already prejudiced against Shin for being a reincarnated devil. Their view of Shin was already low and nothing would change that. So, what was there to lose from making someone hate you that already hates you? Riser had to take back his earlier statement of how Shin didn't understand how the devil world worked. It would seem he understood exactly how it worked, he just didn't care. There was a certain amount of respect to that, even though it was enormously stupid.
Now, the obvious solution to this problem would just be to beat Shin down, however, it wasn't that simple. He couldn't just beat him down in this instance. In the eyes of the elders, that would be an unseemly thing for a pureblood thing to do, especially one from one of the more prestigious houses. He was expected to handle this matter in a more etiquette manner, and there was only one way to do that.
Staring at Shin's smirking face, Riser had to suppress a chuckle at the situation Shin has put him in. Even though every cell of his existence was screaming at him to beat him down for the humiliation Shin caused him, he knew he couldn't, not with the current audience here.
Sirzechs, who was standing off to the side, saw his opportunity to turn this into a direction he wanted, and stepped forward, grabbing everyone's attention.
There was a number of people half expecting Sirzechs to smite Shin where he stood for what he said about Rias, however that never happened. "May I offer a solution to this predicament?" Sirzechs asked, however, everyone there knew he wasn't asking for permission. No, the king of the devils doesn't ask for permission, he was telling them what would happen. "How about a duel, to settle these matters. Whoever wins gets whatever they want from the other. Fair?" Sirzechs looked to Shin and Riser.
Riser scoffed at that. "Ha! Don't make me laugh! What could a low-class devil-like himself possibly have to offer me? A high-class devil from one of the most prestigious pillars in all of devil society." Riser's arrogance shown through once again.
Shin chuckled. He had to admit, Riser had a point, what could Shin possibly have that Riser didn't. "My sacred gear," Shin stated loud enough for everyone to hear, shocking everyone present. "If you win, you can have my sacred gear. Use the sacred gear retraction ritual on me, and then use it for whatever means you want. On yourself, give to one of your peerage members, hell you can trade it for more sex slaves if you want. I really don't care."
To say Shin shocked everyone would be an understatement. "Are you insane? You do realize that ritual would kill you right?" Rias screamed at Shin, forgetting her anger at him for revealing they had sex for a moment. To which Shin just smirked at her.
"Of course I'm aware of that," Shin stated. "So, what do you say Riser? I'll bet a sacred gear of gold against your soul 'cause I think I'm better than you." And just like that, most people in the room deadpanned at Shin. Shin looked around, seeing most people looking at him like he was an idiot. "What? It's a classic!" Shin stated.
Sirzechs, seeing Riser wasn't going to accept, stepped in. "I believe that sounds more than fair. After all, my queen Grayfia herself has had interaction with this sacred gear and classified it as very near Longinus class." Riser, seeing Sirzechs spoke his piece knew there was no way out. After all, he couldn't argue with the king of devil society. "And you, Shin Hyoudou, am I correct to assume you want the bride?" Sirzechs asked.
"Uhh, no, I don't want the bride," Shin said, shocking everyone. "The contract broken? Sure. But marriage? Yea gotta say no to that one. Not my cup of tea." Sirzechs let out a breath of relief, he thought Shin was about to screw everything up. But, this would do just fine. "And..." And now Sirzechs was worried again. "I also want a bag of your finest beef jerky!" Sirzechs facepalmed. Sure, it wouldn't ruin the deal, but who asks for a bag of beef jerky in this situation? A thought briefly crossed his mind that Shin would fit in perfectly with a certain meat and booze loving pantheon, but only for a moment.
"As idiotic as that request is, I'm sure it is more than doable. I would say it is a fair deal, would you not heads of the Gremory and Phenex pillars?" Sirzechs asked, turning to where Zeoticus and Robin were sitting. To which he received a nod. "Very well then. Grayfia, if you would please." Sirzechs asked of his queen and wife, to which she nodded and began creating the battleground that Riser and Shin's fight would take place in.
All my stories are published here and are free to read, however, you can support me on my pay-tree-on if you would like, where you get several benefits such as getting early access to my stories, votes in polls, and suggestions for the stories, and to suggest prompts. The choice is yours, like I said you still get to read all my stories for free. You will also be able to commission stories of any kind on my pay-tree-on.