It's time to see how Issei became a member of Melody's peerage. These events take place days before Luke's date with Yuuma. I'll be honest, I had a difficult time getting this chapter started, but once I reached a certain point it became much, much easier. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

Early in the morning when no one else was around, Melody was in front of a locker and slipped an envelope inside it.

Hopefully he accepts my invitation. She thought to herself as she walked away. I can sense a great power from him. I need to know what kind of person he is before I recruit him.

After school that same day, Melody was waiting at the town plaza, wondering if the invitation she left had been accepted.

"Oh! He's here!"

Melody walked up to a young man with spiky brown hair.

"Issei Hyoudou?"

"Uh, y-yes?" The boy turned to face her and seemed surprised.

"I'm the one that left that invite in your locker." She stated.

"Y… you're Melody Morag!"

Issei was shocked because Melody was one of the most popular girls in school due to both her looks and her natural charisma.

"Sorry for all the secrecy." She apologized. "Your friends seemed like they would get jealous easily if I just came up and asked you to hang out."

"W-well, they did…" Issei chuckled as he scratched his cheek. "Wait, you… want to hang out with me?"

I can't tell him everything, but I'll try to be as honest as possible. She thought before speaking again. "I know you have a reputation at school as a pervert, but I thought that we could be friends."

"O-oh, friends, huh?" Issei nervously chuckled.

"Hm? Oh, I'm sorry if you thought I was asking you out on a date. Ugh, I should have made that clearer."

"There's really no need to apologize. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up."

"Oh, don't be like that. I'm sure you'll get lucky someday."

Melody gave Issei a reassuring smile and he smiled back.

"So, where do you want to go?" Issei asked.

It was now evening and Melody and Issei were at the park.

"Wow! Time really flew, didn't it?" Issei said.

"Yeah, it really did." Melody nodded. "I'm glad we got to hang out. You might be a pervert, but you're a nice guy." I'm absolutely positive now. He's definitely worthy.

The lights at the park suddenly turned on.

"Ah! I should probably head home now!" Issei exclaimed a little. "My parents are probably worried about me. I hope we can hang out again sometime."

"Hold on!"

Just as Issei was about to leave, Melody grabbed his arm.

"Before you go, I have something important I want to ask you."

Issei noticed that her usually laidback nature had completely changed to something more serious. Melody took Issei behind a thick bush and looked around them to make sure that no one else was there.

"You may not have realized it, but you hold an amazing power within you." Melody said.

"… Huh?" Issei just stared at her in complete confusion.

"I am a Devil. If you agree to become my servant, I can help you cultivate this power."

Issei just looked at Melody in disbelief and nervously laughed. "You… you're just joking, right?"

"I can't fault you for that reaction."

A pair of bat-like wings appeared from Melody's back, causing Issei's eyes to widen in shock. She then slowly flapped the wings a couple of times to help prove to him that she is a Devil.

"I-if you are a Devil, I won't sell my soul to you!" Issei shouted.

"Shh! Keep it down!" Melody tried to shush him as she retracted her wings. "I'm not asking for your soul. You would have more obligations, but you can still live out your life normally. Of course, you will be compensated for your work and, if you play your cards right, you might be able to rise through the ranks and obtain servants of your own."

Issei's ear seemed to twitch when she said those last few words. "… These servants… Can I create a harem?"

"Well, yeah, a lot of Devils have harems."

"And I can have sex with them?"

Melody then looked at him with her eyes half-closed. "… As long as it's consensual, I don't have a problem with it."

"Then I accept!" Issei excitably replied.

"Wait, don't you want to at least take some time to think about it?" Melody looked at him in exasperation before regaining her composure for her next words. "I need you to understand a few things first. Once I make you my servant, you will become a Devil and there is no turning back. You will forever be vulnerable to light. Sunlight you can adjust to after a few days, but attacks from holy weapons will feel like poison and there won't be anything left of you. However, you will have access to demonic powers and have an incredibly long lifespan. I just want you to gauge whether the benefits outweigh the risks. Are you absolutely certain-"

"Yep! Let's do this!"

I didn't imagine this going badly… but I didn't think it would be this easy. Melody thought with a nervous smile before taking out 8 Pawn chess pieces before looking back at Issei. "I need you to stay still."

Melody closed her eyes and a violet aura surrounded her.

""I, Melody Morag, call to thee, Issei Hyoudou. Heed my command! Be reborn as my Devil servant. Rejoice, for thou hast been given life anew as my Pawn!"

All 8 Pawn pieces floated toward Issei and entered inside his chest. Once all of the pieces went inside him, the aura around Melody disappeared.

"Congratulations, you are now a Devil."

"So… what happens now?"

"You can go home."

"Huh?"

"You said your parents might be worried and you should head home, right?"

"Oh, right!"

"We'll meet up tomorrow after school to tell you everything about Devils." She handed Issei a piece of paper with writing on it. "The rest of my servants will be there as well. Get a good night's sleep."

With that, Melody left and Issei just stared at the note which said in fancy handwriting,

'Modest Major, Ask the person up front for the Velvet Suite and give them your name. They will know what to do.'

The next day after school, Issei went to a two-floor building in the town square with a large sign reading 'Modest Major', with the image of a celesta under the first M like an umbrella. He walked inside and saw a large number of shelves lined with records and CDs, as well as various music players from modern stereos to old phonographs. There was only one person in the entire store, a young man standing behind the counter. His hair was somewhat spiky and appeared to be dyed violet. He was also wearing the Kuoh Academy uniform.

"Good afternoon, how may I help you?" The young man pleasantly greeted him.

Issei walked up to the counter. "Uh, the Velvet Suite, please? My name is Issei Hyoudou."

The young man left the counter, went up to the entrance, flipped the 'We're Open' sign and locked the door.

"You must be Melody-sama's new servant. My name is Spiral Hirano. Like you, I'm a second year at Kuoh Academy. Please, follow me."

"What kind of name is 'Spiral'?" Issei questioned.

"I think it'd be best if you didn't make fun of my name." Spiral simply gave Issei a strained smile.

Spiral guided Issei up a flight of stairs and the only thing on the second floor was a small hallway leading to a single, bland door. Once they reached the door, Spiral took out a velvet key from his pocket and unlocked it. The moment the door opened, Issei could hear the beautiful sound of a piano being played. When the door was fully opened, Issei couldn't help but marvel at the sight. Behind that plain-looking door was a room covered in fancy red wallpaper, the ceilings painted the same color without a single blemish in sight, complemented by a stained redwood floor. In the center were two velvet leather chairs and sofas wide enough for four people, complete with velvet leather pillows on each side of the latter items. There were several people sitting on the sofas, most of them wearing the Kuoh Academy uniform. One was a small girl with her black hair tied into pigtails who turned to look at Issei and Spiral. Sitting next to her was a slightly taller, skinny girl with medium-length amber hair keying on her laptop who took a quick glance at Issei as she continued typing. On the couch across from those two girls was a young woman sitting up while sleeping. The slumbering girl had long white hair, skin as pale as a white moon and pointed ears and was wearing the Kuoh Academy uniform customized to a gothic Lolita style. Leaning against the wall behind the sleeping girl was another young woman around the same age leering at Issei with her arms crossed. She had her aqua-colored hair tied into a ponytail and there was a scar under her left eye. She was also wearing black leggings under her uniform that completely covered her legs. Issei then noticed something at the back of the room. There was a concert grand piano and playing music on it was Melody. The sound was so beautiful, and her strokes and movements were so elegant it was as if he walked into a high-class theater.

"Welcome." A gentle, beautiful voice spoke up.

Issei's eyes widened as he saw a beautiful, tall young woman approach him. He couldn't help but be enraptured by her soft, silky-smooth voice, white, flawless skin and long, flowing azure hair that reached well below her waist. Even through her Kuoh Academy uniform, Issei could clearly make out her voluptuous figure, especially her very large breasts.

"My name is Misaki Shirayuki (Age 17)." The young woman smiled and politely bowed. "Melody-sama will be with us in a moment. Please, have a seat and enjoy the music."

Issei did as she said and took a seat next to the sleeping girl while Spiral sat on the other sofa next to the girl with pigtails and Misaki took a seat on one of the chairs.

"Please, help yourself to some refreshments." Misaki motioned to the table centered between everyone, where there were a couple plates of cookies and several teacups. "I made them myself."

Spiral poured some tea into the cup in front of Issei. Issei took one of the cookies and held the teacup with his other hand. After a bite and a sip, he gave Misaki a smile.

"Wow! It's so good!"

"Heheh, I'm glad you like it." Misaki then motioned her hand to the others in the room. "Allow me to introduce you to the rest of the peerage."

"I already introduced myself." Spiral said before turning to the pigtail girl next to him. "This is my little sister, Azusa Hirano."

"Hello." Azusa kept her greeting simple.

"Ueda-chan?" Misaki looked at the amber-haired girl with the laptop.

"Yeah, I'm Hikaru Ueda." She said very quickly without taking her eyes off of her screen.

"You'll have to forgive Ueda-chan." Misaki said. "It was very difficult just trying to get her out of her room to be here today."

"Uunnh…"

Issei looked to his side and saw the sleeping girl waking up. When her eyes were fully open, he noticed her red irises.

"Did… Did I miss the meeting?" The girl drowsily asked.

"No, you woke up just in time." Misaki assured her. "Please introduce yourself."

The young woman turned to Issei and smiled. "Hello. I'm Katherine Petrova (Age 16). It's so nice to meet you." Despite being a bit groggy, her cheerful tone was apparent.

Misaki then looked at the young woman sitting behind Issei and Petrova and nodded to her.

The aqua-haired young woman simply looked to the side. "Akira Kazuya (Age 16)."

"My apologies. Kazuya-chan isn't very talkative." Misaki said.

Issei turned to everyone in the room. "I'm Issei Hyoudou. It's great to meet you all."

The music came to an end and Melody stood up and walked over to the chair next to Misaki to take a seat.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting." Melody apologized. "Once I start a song, I can't stop until I finish it."

"Oh, no, it was amazing." Issei insisted. "Are you in the music club?"

"I'm the President of the Music Club." Melody replied with a grin. "But here, I am Melody Morag, only daughter of the Extra Demon Devil Clan Morag. I didn't have time to explain Devils to you last night, so I'll do so now."

Melody then explained everything about Devils and Evil Pieces to Issei, including the traits and values of the pieces.

"Hikaru is my only Bishop, Spiral and Katherine are my Knights, Akira and Azusa are my Rooks, and Misaki is my Queen." Melody stated. "Issei, you are my only Pawn since making you my servant required all eight pieces. Meaning your potential is very high."

"H-how is it that high?!" Issei exclaimed. "Does it have to do with that power you mentioned?"

Melody nodded. "A select number of humans are bestowed with special abilities. These are called Sacred Gears and you happen to carry one yourself."

"Seriously?!"

"Issei, raise your hand, close your eyes and imagine the most powerful thing that comes to mind." Melody ordered. "As long as it represents power to you, it can be anything."

"Power? Like Son Goku from Dragon Ball?" Issei asked.

"That's fine." Melody answered. "Imagine him at his strongest. Lower your arm and stand up."

Issei did everything she requested of him, posing as if he's charging the iconic Kamehameha.

"That image of strength should be vivid." Melody continued. "Go all out."

However, Issei was just standing there motionless, afraid of the possible laughter he would get from everyone in the room, especially Misaki.

"Just do it!" Akira shouted at him.

"Gh! … Kamehameha!" Issei stuck his open hands together and thrust them forward at chest height.

When Issei opened his eyes, his left arm was enveloped in a bright light. The light was taking form and when it disappeared, there was a red gauntlet on his left arm with a green jewel-like object on the back of his hand.

"What the hell is thiiiiiiis?!" Issei screamed in complete shock.

"That's your Sacred Gear." Misaki stated. "I have one, too."

Misaki raised her right hand and snowflakes began swirling around it.

"Hikaru also has one." Melody added.

Issei looked toward Hikaru, who now had a black visor with luminescent neon green stripes.

"I'm analyzing his Sacred Gear now." Hikaru said. "It shouldn't be long before we know what it is. By the way, mine can analyze anything in my sight, communicate with anyone I've been in contact with and anyone they've been in contact with and see everything going on in a 1,000 km radius. It's called Omniscient Oracle, the All-Knowing Sun. Shirayuki-senpai's is called Eternal Frost, the Never-Melting Snow."

"I can tell even from here that your Sacred Gear is powerful." Spiral commented on Issei's gauntlet.

"Do the rest of you have Sacred Gears, too?" Issei asked.

"Nope!" Katherine cheerfully replied with her arms in the air. "It's just you three!"

"Devils don't just recruit servants for Sacred Gears." Melody said. "It could be anyone with extraordinary abilities or potential. Some Devils even recruit specific servants for personal reasons."

"I'm sure Hyoudou-senpai's Sacred Gear is a State Change type that boosts his power, but I'm going to continue analyzing it, just in case." Hikaru said as she was examining the information in her visor at lightning speed.

"There's a special room in the basement." Melody said. "We regularly use it for training, so you can see what the traits of the Evil Pieces look like firsthand."

"I'll be staying put. If I see any new information, I'll contact you all."

Everyone followed Melody down the stairs to the first floor. After going into the staff room, they walk down another flight of stairs where, like the second floor, there was only a small hallway and a single door. When Melody opened the door, there was a large gymnasium which left Issei speechless.

"Spiral, Azusa, please show Issei the traits of the Knight and Rook." Melody requested.

"Of course." "Yes" Spiral and Azusa, respectively, nodded.

The two went to the center of the gymnasium, standing on opposing sides. Spiral took out a sword from a pocket dimension and readied himself. A magic circle appeared in front of Azusa and the hilt of a sword rose from it. She grabbed the hilt with one hand and pulled out the rest of the sword, which had a gigantic blade.

"Whaaaaaaa?!" Issei shouted due to the shock. Then he remembered that Melody told him the Rook's traits were high physical strength and high defense. He looked at Spiral and recalled that the Knight's traits were high speed and weapon specialties.

In a flash, Spiral disappeared and reappeared in front of Azusa with their blades clashing. Despite her small stature, Spiral's attack couldn't make her budge an inch.

Wow! He was so fast, and she was so sturdy! Issei thought in awe and looked back to Katherina and Akira. They also have those traits, don't they?

"That's enough, you two!" Melody called out to both Spiral and Azusa and they returned to her. She then turned to Misaki. "Misaki, please create a large chunk of ice over there."

"Yes, Melody-sama." Misaki politely acquiesced.

Misaki stepped forward, took a deep breath, and raised one of her hands. Suddenly ice started to accumulate until it became a thick glacier that reached all the way up to the ceiling.

"Eternal Frost grants me the power to create and manipulate ice and snow that will never melt or break, and I can reinforce it with my demonic power which I haven't done here." Misaki explained. "Only special flames such as those from a dragon or phoenix could possibly melt it. Or if it's been hit with a powerful enough force. However, its power pales in comparison to the Longinus Absolute Demise."

"What's a Longinus?" Issei asked.

"Longinuses are a unique class of Sacred Gears." Melody answered. "They are so powerful that they have the potential to kill God or Satan."

"S-seriously?!" He exclaimed. "They're that powerful?!"

"Indeed." Misaki replied. "However, there are only 15 known Longinuses at this time."

"Now, Issei, what I want you to do is Promote to Rook to increase your physical strength and activate your Sacred Gear." Melody instructed. "Once activated, I want you to try and break that ice."

"How do you expect me to break that?!" Issei questioned as he pointed at the glacier.

"Your Sacred Gear is a power-boosting type." Melody said. "But we won't know for sure which one until either Hikaru finishes her analysis or we see it in action. It could just be Twice Critical, which simply doubles the user's power once for a certain amount of time, but… I highly doubt it."

"Why's that?"

"If that was the case, I wouldn't need 8 Pawn pieces to make you my servant. Now, let's begin."

"A-all right. Promotion: Rook."

Issei could feel his body become stronger and sturdier.

"Now, activate your Sacred Gear." Melody ordered.

"Uh, Sacred Gear Activate?" Issei raised his left arm into the air… but nothing happened.

"You need to put more feeling in it." Misaki suggested. "Sacred Gears respond to the user's desires. The stronger those desires, the stronger the Sacred Gear becomes."

"… I think I got it now." Issei's stance was firm, and he raised his left arm into the air again. "Sacred Gear Activate!"

Boost!

The jewel in the Sacred Gear let out a booming voice and Issei could feel power coursing through his body.

"Okay! Time to break that ice!" Issei proclaimed before charging at the glacier. "Hooooooooooo!"

Issei punched the large chunk of ice only for him to bounce off of it and land on his ass.

"Ah! Let's try that again!" Issei growled as he stood back up.

Boost!

Melody and Misaki took notice of the second 'Boost' coming from the Sacred Gear.

"Uh, guys!" Hikaru's voice could be heard in everyone's heads but Issei's. "I found out what Hyoudou-senpai's Sacred Gear is!"

"Excellent work, Hikaru!" Melody said back to the voice. "Which one is it?"

"Well… Let's just say it's not surprising that he used up all of your Pawn Pieces."

Boost!

Issei punched the glacier for a third time, and it started to crack.

"Yes!" He exclaimed.

Boost!

Another punch was dealt to the ice, and it looked like it could break with one more strike. Everyone in the gymnasium was watching him get closer and closer to shattering the freezing mass.

"One more!"

Boost!

"Hyaaaaaaaaaaah!"

Explosion!

Issei punched the glacier one more time and completely shattered the lower half. Everyone looked on in awe at the sight they just witnessed. Issei was panting heavily, but he had a smug grin on his face.

Clap, clap, clap.

Melody walked up to Issei while clapping. "Congratulations. I knew there was something special about you. We now know what your Sacred Gear is."

"Oh, that's great! Which is it?" Issei asked.

"The Red Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet, Boosted Gear. A Longinus. It doubles your power every 10 seconds."

Issei's eyes widened in shock and pointed at his face. "I… I actually have a Longinus?"

"It's no wonder why you consumed 8 Pawns." Melody gave him a wide grin. "Maybe that harem you want so badly isn't far off."

Issei had a goofy smile on his face as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"That's why you became a Devil?" Someone aggressively questioned.

Issei turned to the source of the voice to see Akira glaring at him.

"Although, I shouldn't be surprised." Akira continued. "You are one of the Perverted Trio."

He was about to say something back, but Misaki held out her arm in front of him and began speaking.

"Kazuya-chan! Melody-sama would not have chosen Issei-kun to become her servant if he was irredeemable! Apologize to him this instant!"

Akira just looked at Misaki's expression and could tell that she would not back down.

Akira exhaled. "… I'm sorry." She didn't seem like she was fully apologetic, but her next words were unquestionably genuine. "I do trust Melody-sama's judgement and Issei-kun's power is without question. I'm willing to work with him, but if he does anything indecent…"

Akira held out her right hand and tightly clenched it as if implying that she was crushing something. In response, Issei whimpered as he covered his groin with both of his arms.

Back up in the Velvet Suite, Issei had returned with Melody and Misaki and he marveled at the room again.

"I still can't believe a room like this would actually be in this building." Issei said.

"My mother is the president of a big record company, and she also owns this store." Melody stated. "I needed a place where my peerage could meet, so we had this room installed. The walls are soundproof, so even if there were customers in the store, they wouldn't be able to hear us."

"That explains why I couldn't hear your music until the door opened." Issei surmised.

"I really do apologize for Kazuya-chan's behavior earlier." Misaki said after taking a sip of tea. "She's a genuinely kind person, I assure you."

"Well, it is my fault for being a pervert." Issei confessed while nervously looking off to the side.

"There's nothing wrong with being a pervert."

Issei looked back at Misaki, surprised by her words.

"We are all born with lust." Misaki resumed with a pleasant smile. "It's the most natural of desires. Although Melody-sama might come off otherwise, she's actually quite the pervert herself."

Melody's normally composed demeanor immediately broke apart with Misaki's words and her face was red.

"M-Misaki?!" Melody stammered. "He doesn't need to know about that!"

"But isn't it true that you have rather dirty thoughts about him?" Misaki asked.

"Bah! Look, Issei, just ignore everything she just said about me!" Melody got up from her chair, somewhat shaken. "I-I just realized Mother needed me home for something! Misaki, please lock up on your way out and don't tell him anything else!"

Melody left the room, and Issei and Misaki were now alone.

"Hmhm." Misaki giggled. "You know, I'm actually quite the pervert, myself."

Issei looked at Misaki in disbelief that she just admitted that without much shame, although there was a small bit of pink in her cheeks as she said that.

"There is one thing Kazuya-chan said that I do agree with."

"Huh?"

"If you do anything indecent without our consent, they will be gone." Misaki had a calm, but sinister smile as cold air exuded from her hand.

A/N: And that's how Issei joined Melody's peerage. I hope you enjoyed the new characters I introduced. They will certainly get more of a focus in later chapters, especially Misaki.

The music shop "Modest Major" is named after Modest Mussorgsky and that won't be the only reference to Night on Bald Mountain I will be making with Melody's family, believe me.

By the way, I considered inserting cues to play specific songs at certain story moments, but I'm not sure if it's something I want to go through with because on one hand it can enhance the moment, but on the other hand it might take the readers out of it.

Next up is the beginning of the Riser arc. I hope you all enjoyed! Stay tuned for next time!

Rias Gremory Peerage: Rias Gremory (King), Akeno Himejima (Queen), Yuuto Kiba (Knight), Koneko Toujo (Rook), Fumiko Kazuya (Bishop), Gasper Vladi (Bishop), Luke Sigmund (8 Pawns)

Seth Sigmund Peerage: Seth Sigmund (King), Annabelle Wright (Queen), Alastair Wright (Rook), ? (Rook), Hana Sakuya (2 Bishops)

Melody Morag Peerage: Melody Morag (King), Misaki Shirayuki (Queen), Katherine Petrova (Knight), Spiral Hirano (Knight), Azusa Hirano (Rook), Akira Kazuya (Rook), Hikaru Ueda (Bishop), Asia Argento (Bishop), Issei Hyoudou (8 Pawns)