Beta read by n1ch, Shigiya, Solitary heart and 8kagi
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-Hachiman POV-
For years, I knew to never let my guard down, when things go too smoothly then something is bound to go wrong. Because nothing ever goes as planned and no one can predict what will happen in the future with certainty.
For example, I never saw myself going from an average high school kid, who just wanted to mind his own business and not work hard in life–to becoming your cringy shounen dragon fighter maybe protagonist. My dream of becoming a househusband went so quickly down the drain that I didn't even notice it before it was too late.
Though I never stopped practising, just not as regularly nor did I do it in front of Akeno of all people–she would cling to me like a magnet and suffocate me even more with affection and teasing. Mom was the only one who knew of this little side of me, I begged to never reveal it to anyone.
'I should try cooking for once now that I'm not in Kuoh, haven't done it in a while…' It would save me some money from eating outside every day–returning to my roots as some would say. 'Mmmnnn, maybe some curry, can't remember the last time I made it. Oh yeah…, I made it for Komachi the last time we saw each other.' A little part of me wondered if I'll ever go back to cook for my sister one last time. At this point, she's probably already married and might even be a mother for all I knew.
Wait, I was getting lost with my inner monologue again!
"You're awfully quiet, Hachiman-kun. Hope I didn't surprise you too much." The prince of lies said as he was munching on some donuts.
Raynare, that cowardly bitch literally jumped away from her seat and ran to the economy suit, leaving the seat free for Sirzechs to come over to take it for himself.
"It's not often that you get to meet one of the Maou's in an airplane of all places," I said, turning my gaze to the window, keeping me distracted from the fact I was having a casual conversation with a guy who was known to be a freakishly broken devil and also one of the leaders of the devils.
"It does seem odd, doesn't it? Well, I do own the airline after all."
Wait…, what!?
"The Gremory owns a vast expanse of different businesses all across the world, not to mention the centuries' worth of our family's accumulating fortune made us grow larger as well."
So you're all stupidly rich that you make Scrooge McDuck look like a poor man, yeah, I got to experience that from living with your sister as she constantly slapped me with her wealth.
'That doesn't sound right.' Good thing I didn't say that out loud to the widely known super siscon, probably would've killed me before I even realized it.
"If it's not too rude to ask, why are you here Lucifer-san? I doubt you need a plane to travel around the world." Play it cool, I'm sure he's just curious about me since I'm his sister's magician and housemate. There was nothing to worry about, so relax!
"I heard that my sister has a crush on you…" He said with a calm smile on his face, a bit too calm if you asked me.
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'I'm going to die!'
Red alarm bells rang inside my head as thousands of mini Hachis scrambled around in complete pandemonium! My mind was working in overdrive trying to find a suitable answer to Sirzechs. Like did he know that his sister nearly slept with me that night? Or the fact that she touched Hachiman jr!? He must know about the relationship between me and Akeno, right!?
Even though the inside of the cabin was cold, my face was burning hot with sweat glistening down my forehead. Of all the things he could have asked of me, he had to bring up his sister.
I'm so SCREWED!
"She'll get over it." My mouth gave an automatic response which I was used to giving Azazel… it might not have been a good idea with him.
"Will she? I do wonder about that… are you planning on breaking her heart?" I heard the slight change in his tone, taking a quick glance at his face, I saw how his smile still remained but his eyes were conveying another thing entirely.
"I won't hurt her if that's what you're wondering. Rias is now in a fragile state of mind at this point in her life. She needs to gather her focus and put all of her efforts into defeating Riser. When she is free from this long existing burden–one she carried for years–she'll be clear of mind to make her final decision."
There, I used every ounce of my delegation and speech skills to, hopefully, pacify this man. Now, I just pray that he doesn't get ang–
"Pft-Hahahahahaha!" To my surprise, Sirzechs all of a sudden began laughing out loud as I had just told the man the funniest joke he'd heard in his life. "How amusing, in the past, hundreds if not thousands of suitors flocked the Gremory estate, asking for Rias' hand in marriage. All of them show off their wealth, power, and status to either mother or father. These people always tried getting to them first rather than Rias–though some did, but those were very rare cases. In the end, she was the one who was endlessly pursued without care for her own opinion and feelings about the matter. They all cared about the power her name carried and the benefits that come with it."
I felt his hand patting my shoulders. "Now we have Rias doing the chasing yet you stray away from her. But you still keep her feelings and wants as a priority, always taking that step forward whenever she needs help… it is with this knowledge that I can with perfect peace of mind leave my sister in your hands…
"… Hmm, I approve."
"..."
Those words hit me like a freight train, I felt like I was back to being a ten-year-old boy standing in front of Baraquiel once more.
"You're getting the wrong idea here, Lucifer-san."
"Am I?" He asked bemused, thinking that I was acting dumb of the situation.
"Yeah, you are," I replied, wondering what he was implying.
We had a moment of silence and we soon heard the pilot's voice announcing our descent to Dublin's international airport.
"We'll see, oh and by the way… " A large red magic circle formed beneath him slowly encompassing his figure. "...Be careful out there, Knockbridge is where the grave of someone very powerful lies, whose legend is still known till this day." With that said, he vanished leaving no trace of himself. I noticed how some air hostesses disable a small magical barrier around us.
'So even the crew are devils as well… how did I not notice that?'
I just stared at the spot where he vanished, for some reason finding his last words to be very ominous. The possibility of it being an undead problem like a Sluagh–a restless undead spirit who could not move on and ended up haunting the countryside. 'Maybe a Dullahan?'
An undead was not something I could kill or destroy easily, as my strength lies in the physical aspect, I can't exactly punch a ghost in the face. Akeno and Shuri-san have much more experience with this kind of stuff since they are both Mikos and are known to perform purifying rituals for spirits.
I can do some research about it when we land and maybe get some tips from the mother-daughter mikos.
And speaking of 'we', I'm gonna make that cowardly crow pay for ditching me!
"First, I need to find where Raynare ran off to."
{Break}
-Kuoh, Mountainous region-
-Third POV-
"Hee-hee…"
"Haa-haa…"
The sound of two haggard people moaning filled the air.
"Fuck… I… can't last… much longer!"
"Same, haa-haa, I'm going to break at this rate."
Out of context, many would misunderstand the wording of the two's proclamation. But in reality, it was something completely different.
Right now, in the mountains near Kuoh. Rias, Sona, and their Peerage, along with Issei were brought here by both Kings after an agreement was formed between the groups to help each in their training–especially for the newer recruits.
Sona had called everyone into the council room and announced a co-team outing with Rias' peerage members. She made everyone and Issei pack their stuff for the trip. The other members have already gathered to the location, using a teleportation circle.
The weather was perfect and the sky was clear of clouds. The surrounding was filled with trees, and one could even hear the cries of the birds. In terms of viewing the mountain, it was an incredible sight, perfect for training.
But the only problem here was the steep slope. Every step the two dragon gear users took drained their stamina away the longer they climbed the mountain–sweat already soaking their clothes. It was especially hard for the non-devil of the group!
"Hurry up you two. We have to reach the villa before it gets dark."
Sona, who was way ahead of them, urged the two sternly. Beside her was Tsubaki, looking at them apathetically, both not even looking winded.
"Even while being a devil, Saji-san still sucks."
"True but it's okay, while it is embarrassing for a human to equal him in physical strength–we'll make sure to train them both to be proper devil and soon to be devil for Issei," Sona said, adjusting her glasses.
Saji heard the two talking. The man flinched and felt ashamed at letting his Kaichou down with his less than stellar performance. 'I swear I'll surpass everyone here, even that bastard Hikigaya!'
Crack
""My back!"" They both cried out in pain, their ton-filled backpacks finally weighing them down.
Though they also were carrying Reya, Momo, and even Tsubaki's belongings! According to Sona, this was a good form of training.
'What's inside this luggage!?' Thought Issei, struggling to push himself back up.
"Kaichou, I gathered some herbs. We could use it for the meal tonight! I want to make something healthy today!" Ruruko said that while walking past them with an excited expression. She was also carrying a huge piece of luggage on her back, but she might as well be carrying nothing for how easily she was moving around. They lost their words when they saw the short-stature girl walk up the mountains without any difficulty.
Ruruko had quite the stamina since she also went to gather some herbs during their trek.
"Come on guys, you can't be a real man if you can't handle this much! Honestly, Hachiman could handle this with no problem!"
Then Tsubasa came after her, while carrying more luggage than any of them, and walked past the two with Momo, Reya, and Tomoe carrying the same amount!
"Oi! Don't question my manhood! I can carry this stuff easily!" Saji cried out, angry at being underestimated once again.
"Yeah! What he says! We can totally outmatch Hikigaya-sempai" Followed Issei, flames of determination burning inside of him.
""Uoryaaaaaa!"" Both boys got fired up and then went up the mountain at full throttle.
"Ha! See you behind looser!"
"Fuck you Saji! I'm gonna be the first one to reach the top just like I'll be the first one to become THE Harem King!"
"I'm not letting you touch Kaichou!"
""FUCK YOU!""
While repeatedly insulting each other like that over and over again, they reached the mansion on the top.
The boys were greeted by the sight of an irritated Rias and her peerage, with Azazel at the back making fun of her ahoge by continuously pulling it. The heiress was seconds away from unleashing her Power of Destruction on the old crow.
Kiba was already practising some sword moves while smiling at Rias' situation.
Koneko and surprisingly Asia were drooling over some sweet treats that Kala made for them.
Oh, and there was also a suspicious-looking box at the back with haunting red eyes observing everything through the eye-holes.
"Ara Ara, our friends have finally arrived, and some look like they'll die soon enough. I didn't even get a chance to do anything yet. How disappointing fufufufu." Akeno didn't hesitate to poke fun at Issei and Saji's near-dead faces.
…
This European-style mansion was made from wood and stone belonging to the House of Gremory.
It blended perfectly with the scenery of humans by using spells.
Everyone went to the living room to put their bags away, Issei and Saji both slept on the floor after drinking a glass of water. The girls went upstairs to get changed into better-suited clothing, where they can move easier for training.
"I will go to my room, I have some things I want to take care of before we start training. I need to change my clothes as well… these ones are already drenched."
Kiba went to a room located on the first floor while being followed by the moving box which reminded Issei of Snake from Metal Gear.
"Don't peek~"
Kiba smiled at the two boys, while allowing the box to enter the room, and gave them a wink when he closed the door. The two dragon users felt a shiver at disgust and repugnance at his comments.
"I will seriously punch you, bastard!"
"Die, ikemen!"
Both Saji and Issei didn't throw a punch at Kiba as they couldn't even get back up yet.
Saji shuddered when he thought about how the infamous Kiryuu Aika would react if she was here for this moment. 'She'll probably do a BL threesome pairing of "Me x Kiba x Issei", she already made "Kiba x Hachiman" extremely popular around the female populace.'
He would rather die and get eaten by a stray than allow such a thing to happen–especially with someone like Issei!
Slowly, the two dragged their worthless bodies to their respective rooms.
They took their time to get some rest before they needed to get changed. Every room came with a bed and all the equipment necessary for everyday use. But much to Issei's despair, it didn't come with a television… or any internet for that matter!
Animals!
By the time everyone finished getting changed, they gathered in the living room. Rias was wearing a red jersey while Sona wore a blue one, each having their family's sigil on their clothing.
Azazel was the one to make the next announcement, with Kala and Asia, both wearing black jerseys, by his side. "Now then let's start our training outside right away. I have prepared a regimen specially tailored to each and every one of you."
He took out a long list from his pocket, ready to instruct everyone on their specific training while they followed him outside.
"Gremory brat, you'll be studying former rating games from your brother and that of the Belial King. Sitri brat, you'll be doing the same."
The Gremory heiress uncharacteristically flipped him the bird for being called a brat while Sona just nodded to the instructions, but her glasses gave off a menacing glint, showing her dissatisfaction for the comment.
"Akeno, you need to work on your physical stamina. You might be a walking thunderstorm but you can't move around much in a battle or you'll be too slow, making you an easy target for projectiles. The same applies for Tsubaki, both of your magical powers are way above your physical strength even though you both possess the powers of a Rook. You two need to fix that, get it on the same level."
Akeno gave Tsubaki a light smile which the latter returned, knowing what to do next.
"Kiba, Tsubasa, and Tomoe, you three will be doing regular spar matches to improve your combat experience and technique."
Tsubasa was the most pumped with the idea of fighting. Tomoe looked a bit uncertain but Kiba came in to reassure the girl.
"Momo, Saji, and Kusaka, you will both learn some new magical spells and I want to run some tests on ya for a special project I'm working on… Ruruko you will join as well, why not. But Saji will take the main priority as his case is a bit urgent."
All three of them gained a worried expression with Saji unconsciously rubbing his left arm.
"And lastly Issei."
"Yosh! I'm ready for whatever you throw at me old man, so bring it!" Issei cheered.
Azazel looked annoyed at his comment on his age but he found his excitement amusing and couldn't help but wait for his upcoming reaction. "First, don't EVER call me old, the ladies won't appreciate me if you do. And second…"
On queue, an enormous magical pressure soon descended on everyone present in the room. All, aside from Azazel losing their breath–the Gremory side went especially pale when they recognized the familiar power signature.
"▂▂▃▃▅▅■■■■ーー!!" A powerful roar swept the land, knocking back a few trees and causing the mansion to shake even with its magically reinforced walls.
Doom!
The earth shook as if something as big as a mountain landed nearby.
"You have a special guest, a friend of Hachiman's." Azazel grinned when he saw the look on Issei's face, who looked ready to pass out in fear, and he couldn't help but burst out laughing like a maniac! "Hahahaha!!!"
"DDRRRRAAAIIIGGGG!!! I can smell you bastard! Come out and face me, you cowardly welp!!!!"
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The next 5 chapters are already available on my Patreon. With 3 more Broly chapters at /NimtheWriter.