The aura of fear morphed into an aura of death.
All members of the Occult Research club felt it.
It embraced them, whispering to their very souls.
They have felt it before.
Koneko Tojou remembered her sister who went mad with Senjutsu.
Yuuto Kiba remembered the holy sword project and the painful experiments.
Akeno Himejima remembered the night her mother was assassinated and she was forced to flee.
Rias Gremory did not remember anything. As the heiress of one of the 72 pillars of the underworld and the little sister of one of the current leaders of it, she had lived a privileged and safe life. One far different than her beloved servants.
It was the first time she had found herself in such a situation as her mind ran plans among plans, only ending up in her death as the once-brown and currently blood-red eyes looked deep. Deep into her soul.
"Issei, please stop it. We're here to get some desserts, not to pick a fight," said the gentle and firm voice of Mei Raiden, the new transfer student, if her memory serves right. The way she gently got beside the perverted breast-loving Kuoh academy student and how her fingers traced patterns on his arm... It was intimate, familiar... similar to how her brother and sister-in-law were in private.
The red eyes softened in an instant, retaining the same color it had yet the black sclerae surrounding them turned white.
"I apologize..." Rias said, making use of all of her strength and training in etiquette to stand as perfectly as possible. All plans she formed in her mind paled and all instincts she had told her to be careful of not only Issei but the danger mainly came from the young woman by his side.
Instantly, Kiba pushed his body as much as he could and stood in front of Rias. The moment his eyes saw the young woman, he knew. She too, is a swordsman and from what he could feel from her, she was skilled. Far better than he currently is.
It was like standing in front of Mt. Everest from far away. An unsurpassable peak that he can't reach. And in that moment her eyes left the form of his perverted schoolmate, and dark clouds replaced the snow. One wrong move and it will not be Issei who they will face but this woman.
"What do you want?" Issei asked, his voice neutral as he looked at Rias with red eyes, daring her to make a move. His magical power coiled around his body like a snake ready to strike yet... they felt like puppets on a string dancing under his palm.
"I apologize," Rias said before her eyes focused on the now-frozen plastic spoon on the table. 'Ice magic?' "I only wanted to ask you about what happened at the church. If you want, we can buy you some desserts, "
"I'm listening..." Issei said as he looked at Rias.
After a few minutes and a small tub of ice cream later, Issei looked at the young woman in front of him as they sat at a booth on the second floor. Mei by his side and both Akeno and Rias are in front of them. Discreetly preparing one of his weapons stored in his pocket dimension, the young man looked at them as he stuffed his mouth with a spoonful of ice cream.
"We wanted to ask you some things. My cute little Koneko here found your scent in the church,"
"Sloppy," Mei whispered under her breath in the Dragon language that only he could understand.
"Shut up," he replied in kind. "That would be impossible, I was with Mei in my house," Slinging a hand around his fellow Dragonlord's shoulders, the young man smiled and leaned in, lips puckered for a kiss.
"No PDA," Mei said with a gentle smile, stopping his kiss with her spoon.
"Tease,"
"Ehem,"
"Gross," Koneko whispered at the sight of the two Dragonlords.
"You... live together?"
"Why is that a problem?" Mei asked with a gentle and sweet smile that reminded the rest of the ORC of Akeno whenever she wanted to 'ask' someone.
"N-no! I-it's just surprising since Hyoudou's reputation—,"
"Please pardon me for cutting you off but I do not see why I should care about what others think of the people I trust," Mei firmly replied, glancing at her fellow Dragonlord by her side. "Issei is a pervert but I trust him with my life,"
"Mei..."
"I also know how to make him behave so I'm fine," She couldn't help but add it. The Dragonlord of Doom always made sure to tease her as much as he could.
"Is this because of all of the puns?"
"Maybe~?"
"By the Equilibrium..."
"So, stray devils huh?" Issei asked, leaning his back on the backrest of the couch in his family's living room. A magic circle floated in front of him as he wrote some symbols inside it.
"Yes, I admit that Father's information about Devilkind is limited." The dragonlord of storms said as she looked at her tablet. "Kiana-chan told me a lot of things but they're not as detailed as I wanted,"
"We already know that a civil war happened 500 years ago in the underworld," Issei said, using a hand to gently rub his sleeping dragon's scales. Brown eyes scanned the magic circle revolving in front of him.
"And the existence of dragons,"
"..." The young Dragonlord of Doom went silent. Dragons... as dragonlords, it's their sworn duty to deepen the bonds between dragons and mortals... however...
"Issei?"
Red eyes met with a pair of brown as Draco looked at his human.
"It's been a while since I last hunted a dragon," Issei whispered with a bone-chilling smile to both Mei and Kurikara. The Dragonlord of Storms and Energy dragon looked uneasy... they knew Issei would never harm them. His mastery of the Dragonlord arts made him a master of taking care of dragons along dismantling them.
With his training completed under the tutelage of the dragonslayer, Galanoth, Issei was one of the few invited to take care of Akriloth. He lost badly at first due to the power of the great dragon of fire and its shocking mastery and knowledge of how Dragonlords like them fought and used magic. Why shouldn't Akriloth know? It was only after they met and talked with their mentor, Lady Celestia, and the current high priestess of dragons of the time that they found out that Akriloth was once served by Dragonlords a long time ago.
The Great Fire War, where Issei slew the great dragon of fire, Akriloth in single combat. A cementation of Issei's legacy as the greatest Dragonlord of Lore. The first time where she saw Issei become unhinged and more focused on killing than protection and healing himself with his mastery of the paladin arts.
The scent of burning flesh and blood as the Dragonlord dueled the strongest fire-element creature empowered by the elemental orb of fire as he used the reforged legendary weapon of ice. She remembered how he brutally tore through scales and flesh as his armor burnt with the heat. She watched along with the others as his blade took the life of the great dragon of fire, destroying the balance of the elements in lore.
"The Student Council and the Occult Research Club," Looking at the Dragonlord of Doom, the Dragonlord of Storms and her dragon focused on his words. "Devils... The fallen and rogue church agents around the city,"
"The stray devils that hide here too," Mei added, looking at her fellow Dragonlord.
"Aegis," Issei called to his first soul ally and one of his closest companions. Hearing this, the elemental spirit of Valor floated beside the young man. "I... I understand if you would like to break our bond. I will be killing a lot from now on,"
"No," The elemental spirit of Valor said with a smile. "Issei, I am your Soul Ally. We have been together and as long as I get to share your adventures with you, I won't mind being a corrupted elemental spirit,"
"Weave with me," Issei said with a small smile, remembering the mortal form of the elemental spirit voluntarily protecting his parents on their date. The mentor who introduced him to the art of Soulweaving and a brother in all but blood.
Gently, the Dragonlord of Storms approached the Dragonlord of Doom from behind and wrapped her arms around him. "Don't forget about me, Issei," Mei said with a smile as she looked at his eyes with warm purple eyes. "I promise you will always have me by your side,"
"Mei," The perverted young man said with a gentle smile, his brown eyes softening as he looked at the young woman he had been through a lot. "Thank you,"
"Good," gently pulling away, the Dragonlord of Storms loosened her ponytail and sat by his side. "Now, before we can have a repeat of some misadventures we had with Maya, how about a movie night?"
"Netflix and chill?" Issei asked, stars twinkling in his eyes as they shifted to several colors.
"Behave or no cuddles tonight," like silver bells, the young woman giggled and leaned her head on his shoulders. "Pervert,"
"Says the one I always caught making out with the idiot? Ow! Ow! Ow!"
"What was that, Issei?"
"Nothing..."
"That's what I thought, now pick a movie,"
"Yes, Ma'am..."
A soft growl from both Kurikara and Draco made the young Dragonlord of Doom glare at them. "I heard that..." As the movie progressed, the form of the Dragonlord of Doom changed, revealing the countless scars all over his body he had received from all the battles he fought in and his brown hair grew streaks of white as he relaxed and let his guard down.
"We're home!" The Hyoudou matriarch and patriarch announced, followed by the invisible form of the elemental spirit of Hope.
"Oh my," Miki Hyoudou gasped at the sight in front of her. Their only son with white streaks on his hair asleep on the couch. Mei Raiden, the newest addition to their household and a polite young maiden slept with her head on his shoulder, holding his arm. Their dragons, Draco, their grandson, was asleep on Issei's lap while Kurikara lay on Mei's side, curled like a cat.
"Hello, Miss Miki. Mister Goro, Issei, and Mei fell asleep a while back," Aegis said with a smile as he looked at his Soul ally and his fellow Dragonlord. To see his Soul ally sleeping peacefully without any nightmares from the influences of his adventures and fights warmed his soul.
"Thank you for looking after them, Aegis," Miki said with a smile, gently raising her phone to take a photo of the sleeping Dragonlords. To her, having someone close to her son was a precious gift. Issei was an honest kid and both she and her husband raised him to the best they could. He might be a pervert but he is honest and with what she heard, it only made her prouder.
Not only that, they now have a grandchild who was a dragon.
"Aegis, can you tell us more about Soulweaving?" Miki asked surprising the elemental spirit of Valor.
"Please, I know Issei is a master of Soul weaving, and... we want to learn it so we can bond with him,"
"I see... but there are some things you must know about Soul Weaving. It has a cost, after all." Aegis said with a sigh. While it was not a taboo to talk about Soul Weaving, it has an interesting side effect.
"Please tell us,"
"Very well," The elemental spirit of Valor said.
"I shall help explain," Elpis, the Elemental spirit of Hope said as he floated next to Aegis. "The art of Soulweaving was formed by the First weaver, Roirr," The elemental spirit of hope explained to the parents of his unofficial Soul ally, saying the history of the art of Soulweaving and the first weaver, Roirr.
The elemental spirit of Duality remained silent as it observed the Elemental spirits of Hope and Valor explain Soulweaving. 'This should be expected, after all, Pandora's soul is mixed with the souls of the corrupted elemental spirit, Greed, and the remains of the soul of Tomix Danao,'
At the gate of the city of Kuoh, Kiana Kaslana, flanked by a girl with golden-white hair, walked towards the restaurant where she would be meeting with a contact. As she walked, she barely registered a presence and bumped into the person.
"I'm sorry—MEI!" The sister of the Holy Church cried out as she tackled the young woman.
"Kiana-chan!" Mei wrapped her arms around the sister of the church as tears formed in her eyes. While she was close to Issei, she was the closest to Kiana in their group.
"I missed you so much!"
Far away from the two, at a nearby cafe with a cup of coffee in hand, the Dragonlord of Doom discreetly watched the Dragonlord of Storms and the sister of the church's reunion with a smile on his face.
"You're not gonna go to them?" Elpis asked, looking at Issei. His perverted unofficial soul ally already knew about the appearance of the third member of their unofficial party and he did not say anything nor did he make any move.
"No, they need this. It's very heartwarming," Issei said with a smile. While he is perverted and would have wanted to see the sight of two beauties hugging each other, he chose to deliberately lead Mei on a bit of an errand to make her meet Kiana first. Seeing the way the two interacted, reminded him of the people he lost.
The innkeeper of Falconreach who always supported him and even gave him free room and board, Serenity also known as Dyana Valrith lost her life due to his stupidity. 'I should have destroyed that thing,'
"Issei," The next... no, the first person he had a personal relationship with that he lost was none other than his mentor in the arts of the Dragonlords, Lady Celestia. She lost her life, killed by the undead version of the former great dragon of fire and the mad pyromancer Xan during the battle of Falconreach when Emperor Sepulchure of the Shadowscythe empire attacked Falconreach.
The Necrotic blade of Doom tore through his armor and flesh, marring his body with doom. The scar on his chest from torso to hip throbbed and it was the first time he revealed his nature to the legendary Doomknight.
But what hurt the most was the loss of his best friend and brother. Tomix Danao, the man he befriended and helped. The hero of Ravenloss and the weaver of the first Chaosweaver. It was the first. The first time he fully broke... on his grave. Five years of being sealed away in enchanted ice only to lose a good friend and a brother... it broke him.
He never saw him again and he spent a while scouring the plane of elemental spirits along with Aegis to look for him. But they found nothing. Tomix, his best friend and brother was dead, soul eradicated after he fell to the void core. Elpis, the amalgamation of the souls of Greed, Pandora, and the bits and pieces of souls Tomix had that were still intact.
Sadly, he was not the same Tomix he knew. Not that mentor who taught him how to be a battleweaver. Not the person who made plans with him to create a weaving academy in Ravenloss. A Tomix from an alternate timeline where he became an elemental spirit.
"Lesbian pair 1 has been reunited," Issei said with a smile, happy for his friends and partners. The disguised spirit looks taking the form of a watch on his right arm and rings glinted in the sunlight as brown eyes turned a shade of lifeless blue.
"Issei... Are you sure you're fine?" Aegis asked. The elemental spirit of valor and his first Soul ally. The only being that knew of him and his condition.
"I'll be fine." The young Dragonlord said with a smile. "I don't want to spoil this reunion." He replied as the blue eyes erratically changed from blue, to green, and red.
"If you say so..." The elemental spirit of Valor quietly replied to the Hero of Falconreach.
"Well, now. Let's see if we can do it," Issei said as he watched the scene. 'The others should be alright,' The rest of their group were filled with highly-extraordinary people. Unlike them, he was the only one from a life not related to the Supernatural.
Mei Raiden is the daughter of a well-known businessman affiliated with the Supernatural while Kiana's family has long since served the church.
An ominous ring and necklace glinted from his finger and neck as he watched the Dragonlord of Storms and Dragonlord of Blazing Light interact warming the stone-cold heart beating inside his chest. They were lucky...
AWAKEN
For a split second that memory of that... thing resurfaced in his mind. It was only after years of mastery of his true nature that the Dragonlord of Doom suppressed his Necromantic aura as his control slipped a bit.
The greatest secret of Lore that he, only a pervert, could know along with the former Emperor of the Shadowscythe Emperor and one of the few enemies he could never beat, the Doomknight Sepulchure and the former Dragonlord of Destiny and current Dragonlord of the newest great Dragon of fire. The former king of Swordhaven, Alden Alteon, a good friend and former Dragonlord of his deceased energy dragon, Zvezdana of the golden hand, and some trusted friends.
The entity in the Mana core. Something he and Draco could never beat. Remembering the way it killed someone he couldn't harm with conventional Lorean magic such as his favored Dragon and soul-weaving arts terrified him. He couldn't even carelessly cut or crack the reality inside the mana core in fear of destroying it. He was prepared to fully commit himself to destroying Akanthus without magic.
Remember
A sudden sharp pain echoed in his head, to his very mind.
"Fuck... not again..." He whispered as he saw something. A cascade of purple and green. A chaotic mess... five people. A warrior, mage, rogue, healer, and a man carrying a dragon's skull... lords... chaos...
"I need to get back to Lore," The Dragonlord of Doom, the fabled hero of destiny, and the Greatest Dragonlord in history resolved himself. Things needed to be done and he only needed to get back to his full power before he could tear apart a portal between Earth and lore. A one-way ticket. "I need to make it sleep,"
The origin of all in the timeline. The creator of the savior and his dragon, the world-destroyer. The entity in the mana core. Until then... until that time comes, he will learn. He will train... for those who sealed themselves away...
The fool weaving a spell that he can use as a basis.
The mage who can generate an untold amount of magic, using his very self as a battery to power the spell
The bitter enemy he once fought against, the mad pyromancer turned into a skeleton healed by enchanted flames burning for eternity.
Until then, he will wait.
'I will learn,'
'No matter how many forbidden magicks it takes,' The Dragonlord of Doom thought as he remembered the world he loved as his own. His home, the land of Lore and its chaotic existence... 'No matter how long it takes,'
"Sir, here's your special Baumkuchen, enjoy," The waitress said with a smile.
"Yes, maybe after some desserts?" Issei said as he took a slice of his dessert while ignoring the neat stacks of plates on his table. "After some desserts," The Dragonlord of Doom said with a smile.
"Excuse me, are you Issei Hyoudou?"
'The fuck?' 'The hell?' Weaver and Soul Ally thought at the same time as a young woman approached them.
"Please, go out with me!"
'She wants to kill you,' 'Yep, she wants to kill me,' The two thought as they saw the soul the young woman had, filled with disgust, annoyance, and desire to kill.
"Was wondering when something like this would happen," Issei said with a smile.
"Uhm?"
"Well, I am free... this Sunday," Issei said with a smile. Elpis sighed, hidden in the view of the naked eye as he floated near the Dragonlord of Doom.
'I just hope no misunderstanding will happen this time,' the Elemental spirit of Hope thought as they looked at Issei.
Phew! Finally finished this chapter! I am quite happy with what I wrote. Here, we have Issei having a close and intimate yet playful relationship with Mei.
Don't get me wrong, Issei is close with his party but the only ones that are close enough to him are Lady Celestia, his mentor in the Dragonlord arts, and how to take care of Draco. They have a close relationship and Issei trusts her with his life. The next is his relationship with Tomix. He and Tomix bonded about their outcast status in their respective academies and with Tomix trusting him enough to teach him his version of weaving, they are brothers in all but blood. It was only after Tomix's death during the events of the Void ship saga that Issei truly broke into tears, and the Elpis he has is from another timeline. A timeline either similar or different than his.
The next is Draco, his Dragon and one of the few who has been with him for a long time, longer than he has known Mei and the rest. Hurting Draco is the only thing that will make him get pissed off. The more Draco is harmed, the more pissed he will be, and it's not pretty. A fully pissed-off Issei will stop at nothing and nothing will be left unless someone stops him.
Issei is a human and something else.
Out of his party, he is the closest to the sweetest person in their group.
Also, out of their group, Issei is the most resilient and durable.
Mei is the quickest and fastest
Kiana is the strongest
? Is the smartest
? Is the kindest
There are parts of Book 3 that the girls weren't a part of such as the ending stages of the End of Magic, they stayed in Falconreach and other locations to prevent it so Issei knows a lot they don't.
Fun fact:
While Issei is nothing special, his dragon is. Out of all of their dragons, Draco has the highest potential and while their dragons listen to Issei, Draco only follows Issei's orders.
omake: Canon: Riftwalking adventures
During the events of the Wrath of Wargoth, in a lull of fighting, Issei Hyoudou, the hero of Falconreach blinked as he found himself in a different place. Opening a rift to find a way back to Earth.
Creating an anchor using Aegis back on Lore, the Dragonlord of Doom cloaked his sword in Celestial energy and slashed. Reality was cut, revealing a way for another dimension. Without fear, the young Dragonlord hopped inside. Reality changed as soon as he passed through the rift.
"This is new," Issei said as he stood in front of a green dragon filled with power. A lot of power... Chronomancy... a Dragon of time. "Hi! I'm Issei and I'm wandering the rifts between dimensions!"
The dragon said nothing but did not do anything, merely looking at him.
"Okay... I'm gonna go now," Making sure to not agitate the Dragon, the young Dragonlord covered his sword with Celestial energy and cut another rift between dimensions in another slash.
Hopping inside the rift, the Dragonlord 'fell' through dimensions, watching as countless realities passed by his fall. Issei 'landed' on another dimension.
Issei blinked as he saw a dragon... a wind dragon of sorts writhing in pain. Seeing this, the Dragonlord of Doom moved.
"Shh... it's going to be okay," Issei whispered, using as much Dragonlord knowledge and magic as he could to soothe the pain the dragon was in. Noticing something unnatural in the corner of his eyes, the young Dragonlord blinked on top of the sleeping Dragon and his eyes widened. Crystals formed on the Dragon and they were unnatural...
'Poison?' He thought as he touched one. '... A dragon did this...' he thought as he felt the familiar presence of Dragon-based magic at the blood clot. 'I'm not a healer but I can ease your pain,' The young Dragonlord thought.
In an instant, his body disappeared into cyan streaks as he saw the dragon stand up with pain-fuelled rage in its eyes.
"You dare!"
"Look! Calm down! I don't want to hurt you!" Issei called out, looking at the wind dragon while standing his ground.
"You dare assassinate me, Mortal?! I am Dvaln of the four winds!"
"... For avatars' sake!" Issei cried out as his armor changed along with his eyes and sclerae. "If you won't listen, then fine! I'll knock you out!" Issei shouted as he formed his special dragonlord-based dragonslayer magic into the blade of his sword.
After a battle, Issei looked at the Dragon in front of him and the crystals on the ground, shattered and no longer harmed the poor dragon.
The young Dragonlord looked fine as he removed the helmet he wore and red eyes looked at the dragon. "So... what's your story? I have some time to kill. I'm Issei. Issei Hyoudou, hero and Dragonlord of Falconreach."
"A dragonlord? Forgive me for not knowing the term. I am Dvalin, one of the four winds of Mondstadt. It is nice to meet you, Issei Hyoudou. I would like to thank you for helping me clear my mind."
"Nah, it's fine! It's my job, after all," The Dragonlord of Doom said, ignoring the destroyed remains of the tower they were on.