Disclaimer: I don't own Highschool DxD.
Better Do What You Can
"Joshua?" Kunou asked hesitantly from next to him. "Are you sure about this?"
"Yeah, I've been doing this for ages, why wouldn't I be?" He asked with a raised eyebrow before turning back ahead. In front of him extended a not so small training area. The place was actually pretty close to where he'd been going to work so far and where Kunou and Yasaka lived. He supposed that made sense, really, considering this was where their guards were supposed to get training.
Besides that, there was an assortment of youkai standing in line, which Joshua was pretty sure was major overkill, really. He'd just asked for a few people to train combat with, since it had been weeks since he'd last trained physically. Even his Neutral Magic wasn't seen much action. He trained mostly with wards as of late, for obvious reasons.
Yasaka, apparently, had decided to massively go over what he expected and arrange a whole event of this or something. She was sitting off to the side with Azazel and even Serafall. He couldn't imagine they would be very interested, since Magic was his strong point and they had to have a good idea of where he stood on that front. He wasn't going to tell them not to watch though.
Instead, he decided to get on with it, using Appraisal on the guards that had offered/been asked, or so he supposed. Evidently, Yasaka had already screened them or had someone do so, because most of them had at most a single stat that broke into the B rank. Most even had stats in D rank, although it was usually Magic, which as youkai made sense.
He took another look at his own screen, to compare.
[Joshua Davis
Title: Ward Specialist
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: C
Strength: C
Speed: C
Dexterity: C
Vitality: C
Perception: C-
Magic: B-]
'Ok, so maybe I did it to check on that sweet sweet B rank,' Joshua thought to himself. He couldn't help it, he was so very proud of that stat. Evidently, level 75 was where one broke through to B-, it seemed. That was good to know. He'd have to keep an eye on that in the future, for reference.
'Anyway,' He told himself, refocusing before he started just wasting everyone's time. There was a time and place to get lost in his own thoughts and this wasn't either. 'My stats are very balanced on the physical side, so I need someone like that…'
With that in mind, he quickly found the best candidate. It was one of the crow people. Karasu-Tengu, he was pretty sure they were called. The man had mostly the same stats as Joshua himself did, there were some minuses and pluses in his C ranks and Magic was D+, but overall, it was a nice match up, he supposed.
"I'd appreciate it if you'd spar with me," He said, speaking in Japanese. He'd gotten better at that since they moved to Kyoto, but he supposed that was no surprise, really.
[Japanese - Lvl 23/50]
"I hope I can give you a good fight," The man replied, apparently having zero problems with this, despite the fact that it was clearly out of his job description. That was nice of him, but then again, most youkai had been nothing but friendly and helpful since they arrived. 'Maybe it's just a Japanese thing?' Joshua mused.
"So, I don't know if there's like, a spar etiquette over here but my sister and I usually just throw a knife up in the air and start when it lands," Joshua said slightly hesitant as he saw the rest of the guards move aside but staying inside the training area, looking at the two of them. Well, he'd never really fought with an audience, but he could just act like they weren't there, he supposed.
Not like it could get worse than three faction leaders watching.
"That works for me, Joshua-sama," The youkai replied, making him grimace. He'd have to remember to tell them not to call him that. For the moment though…
"Ok then," He nodded to himself, pulling a third dagger from a storage spell and throwing it in the air. The Karasu-Tengu took his stance, spear in hand. Joshua did the same from the other side, somewhat excited. A slight grin spread on his lips. 'Sairaorg's attitude might have rubbed off on me a little.'
And the knife fell.
A second later, the two clashed, their weapons blocking one another. Joshua had to give the Karasu-Tengu – Joshua realized absently that he hadn't actually asked for his name and he hadn't looked at it on the screen either. – credit, he was very good with his weapon. A second after the clash, when Joshua went to strike with his second dagger while the spear was blocking the first, the Karasu-Tengu was forced to block his second knife with the shaft of his spear.
'I'd missed this,' Joshua thought as his opponent and him continued trading blows. 'I'd missed this a lot more than I thought I would,' He added, his grin widening before his eyes narrowed ever so slightly. The spar was fun, but it was also supposed to be training.
"Don't hold back," He urged the Karasu-Tengu with a hiss as the fight continued. "This is for actual training, I need you to push me."
"Understood," The man growled.
'That's more like it,' Joshua thought as the next hit almost knocked the dagger out of his hand. That was what he wanted. He wanted to improve. Raise his levels, his stats. He wouldn't always be able to hide inside his defenses, as much as he'd like to. Maybe he'd never be a powerhouse of direct combat, but anything he could have was a plus.
That also depended on him though. No matter how good his sparring partner was and how much he was pushed. He also needed to push back. He needed to push for improvement.
[Perception has gone up a level.]
'More, I need more,' Joshua thought to himself. 'A whole lot more.'
[}-o-{]
[Azazel]
"He chose someone that's roughly around his level, slightly better, I'd say," He commented, eyeing Joshua as he continued sparring. That had been an interesting conversation, the one he'd overheard when the man had asked for a spar, basically.
It wasn't everyday that one met a magician that was willing to fight up close. Even less so when it was one that wasn't even combat oriented at all, like a warder was. Azazel was coming to know that Joshua Davis was far from normal in any capacity though.
"I didn't feel any spell being used. Did Jo-tan use Senjutsu?" Serafall asked childishly, feigning awe as they watched the spar. It wasn't anything too impressive though, to them at least. Then again, few things were, honestly. What he'd noticed, and evidently also the other two, was much more interesting though.
"That wasn't life sensing. It'd be possible, but Joshua isn't anywhere near that level yet," Yasaka replied, taking a sip from her cup of tea.
"So he could just tell? That'd be impressive in its own right. Or was it luck?" Azazel wondered as the fight continued.
"No, it didn't seem to be luck. To me, at least," Serafall commented before adding. "Jo-tan is just that good."
She was pleased and with good reason. Unless something drastic happened, Joshua was all but on her side. He was friendly enough with her and seemed to also have a good professional relationship with her sister and Rias, Sirzechs' own sibling. Furthermore, from what Azazel knew, he could be considered friends with Sairaorg Bael, which was interesting in its own right.
"It's certainly interesting," Yasaka mused, almost distractedly. Azazel could almost see the gears turning in her head. At that very moment, she was the one that held the most of Joshua's loyalty, as it were. The man would probably do almost anything if it meant helping little Kunou and anyone with eyes could tell that much. It didn't really translate into him being an asset to the youkai faction, but it was a very good grasp on someone that would probably become a power in everyone's eyes soon, if he wasn't already.
There was Shed too, Azazel knew, but he was more of a wildcard in the situation. Not something the Governor appreciated, but it was what it was. He'd just have to see how that affected things.
"Ok, I think that's enough for now," They heard Joshua say in Japanese, pausing the spar when both him and his opponent started looking more than a little tired. Then, he thanked the Karasu-Tengu and they went their separate ways.
"Awww, that's just adorable!" Serafall cooed from the side a moment later, which… wasn't unwarranted. Azazel didn't much care for it, besides the amusing implications that surrounded the action, but seeing Yasaka's daughter bring a towel and a bottle of water for Joshua was adorable, he supposed. Still, he found something else much more important, which was why he turned towards the Kyuubi and grinned from ear to ear.
"Not a word, Azazel," Yasaka said, her tone gentle but he knew the words were meant to be curt. He simply continued looking at her with a wide smile, making her eyebrow twitch.
[}-o-{]
[Joshua Davis]
"Kunou," Joshua started, not needing to go further than that one call. Really, he'd told the girl to relax enough time that she knew what he was getting at with just the tone of his voice. If her suffering sigh was anything to go by, that is. "You don't need to be so tense, just do as I told you. I'll be here every step of the way to make sure you don't mess up too badly."
"But Joshua," The girl muttered, evidently not wanting to complain too loudly. "This has to be good."
"Kunou," He repeated with a patient smile. "It's your first time cooking anything at all. Nobody expects restaurant quality from you. Honestly, if you make something edible, you'll already be doing better than Jeanne did."
"I heard that!" The teenanger protested from the living room, making him roll his eyes.
"Still…" Kunou mumbled, looking down at the ingredients they'd prepared.
"Ok, let's get started, if you are too tense, I'll just have to do this myself and wait for another time," Joshua threatened, getting a nod that was all too stiff from the girl. He withheld a sigh and turned to the table. "Now, look closely, I'll do a bit of every step and then you'll continue from there, ok?"
"Ok," She answered, eyes focused intently on the things in front of her. Joshua couldn't help but smile at the sight though. It had to be some kind of crime, to be that adorable.
As he demonstrated the steps for Kunou and explained little things that she might miss by just watching, his mind went over other things. Projects came to mind, as they usually did. Most of the time, they were inconsequential at the moment, things that would be saved for times when he didn't have anything better to do. Like cleaning wards and alarm sound illusions.
This time though, he held onto these ideas as he'd been doing more and more as of late. They could be used in the near future. They would be. After all, they were all about ways to keep Kunou safe and how to keep in contact in case he was needed. Even if he stayed in Kyoto and continued teaching her, he'd still be away from time to time. Especially if he planned on traveling around with Jeanne.
'A communication circle, simple enough,' He thought. He'd make it a card, since the girl seemed to like those. Maybe he could make a bunch, have his own network of cards, devil flier style. The one for Kunou was the important one though.
'Maybe I can add a few things to the card? Or make other cards too,' He mused as he stopped and looked as the girl took over the process from him. 'A panic button maybe? I have to start working on proper teleportation instead of switching. That'd be a nice addition, even if I'd probably have to talk to Yasaka about that.'
'Lots of plans, as usual,' He mused, smiling as Kunou looked at him for approval.
"Wasn't so difficult, was it?" He asked her with a chuckle. "Ready for the next step?"
"Yes," She replied simply, nodding and smiling in a way that made him want to pull her in a hug or something. Instead, he decided to continue with the class. There'd be time for such things after cooking, maybe he'd spoil her with dessert or something.
Oh, who was he kidding. He was totally going to do that.
[}-o-{]
[Serafall Leviathan]
She knocked insistently on the door. She knew he was inside, so why was the meanie not opening? Well, if he was going to be mean, then she could play that game too.
"Yes, yes, who is-" Joshua "greeted" as he opened the door. "Oh, it's you. Did you need anything, Serafall? I'm kind of in the middle of something."
Well, there were pros and cons to him being so casual about her presence, she supposed.
"Not even gonna invite me inside?" The Satan asked, pouting at him while he just rolled his eyes. He did open the door though, walking inside and leaving her to follow him. He probably didn't realize that could be considered an insult, but it was amusing nonetheless. Serafall wondered how other people would react to seeing that action. "And do I need a reason to want to visit?"
"Considering the record so far?" Joshua asked back and she could almost see the raised eyebrow as he guided her to the living room. The table was almost completely covered on one side by books and notes. "Take a seat wherever, do you want tea? Snacks?"
"That would be nice, thanks~" Serafall replied, happily taking a seat on an offered chair. He wasn't wrong about her always coming over with business, really. "And just to let you know, I actually came just to be a nice friend." That was really the reason for the visit. She needed a more friendly relationship with Joshua. A formal one was nice, and their attitudes to the whole thing offered a sort of closeness of its own, but it wasn't enough. Especially considering the powers that were now circling around the man.
The political approach wasn't good enough with Joshua. Actually, if it was purely that, Serafall would go as far as saying it would be detrimental. There were few things that the man seemed to care less for than politics, if he didn't absolutely have to. It was both refreshing and frustrating.
"Huh… Well, that's something, certainly," Joshua commented from the kitchen.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Serafall called, indignant. "Oh, are you working with Communication Magic already? I thought you were going to start with Hexes," She noted, reading some of the titles of the books on the table.
"I'm working on both, you just arrived when I was with communication," Joshua replied, walking into the room with a tray of snacks. "I'll have some tea ready in a bit."
"Both?" Serafall asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah. I work on both whenever I want to take a break from wards. Sometimes it's one, sometimes the other," He explained with a shrug, taking a snack after she did.
Serafall wondered if he knew how crazy that would sound to other magicians. An average magician would focus on a single branch and at most learn a few specific spells from others. Talented ones would go for a few branches that were related to each other and single spells for others. Geniuses would get a bunch of branches through their lives.
Joshua was already working on four entire branches, with wards, illusions, hexes and communication. She also knew he had a few neutral and spatial spells under his belt. All that in less than a year of knowing about the supernatural…
What did that say about him?
"So, was there anything in particular that you wanted to talk about?" Joshua asked, raising an eyebrow at her, noticing her silence. Shaking herself, Serafall focused on the present and not on her hosts stupidly fast progress.
"Well, it's sort of business, I guess," She admitted, deflating exaggeratedly on her chair while Joshua raised an eyebrow. "But I've talked with Ajuka," She started. "Sirzechs also had a word with him after I told him what you said. Nothing like that should happen again."
"I don't like the "should" there, but I'll take what I can," Joshua said with a sigh. "I appreciate the effort, I guess."
That wasn't as good a reaction as she'd hoped, but it was certainly better than she expected. It was good that the man was so… casual and calm about most things. Serafall couldn't begin to imagine how complicated things would have been otherwise. Then again, if he wasn't like that, the situation would have been pretty different altogether.
"How's the Phoenix Tears thing going, by the way?" Joshua asked and Serafall had to hold back a grimace. She knew he'd ask about that eventually, but she'd hoped he would do so at a later time when she had better news to give.
"The House of Phenex is… stubborn with who they give their Tears to," She replied, aware that her attempt at sounding polite failed miserably. She hadn't tried too hard, after all. She couldn't take her annoyance out on the Phenex, but she could still do petty things. It was another benefit of her little act, really. Nobody took stuff like that quite as seriously as they would otherwise.
"Is it because I'm human?" Joshua asked, being entirely too perceptive for his own good. "I've read books that came from a devil's library. Those don't paint humans in that good a light, so I connected the dots," He added, probably seeing something in her expression.
"I'm sorry. But don't worry, I'll convince them soon enough," Serafall offered. She would. She owed Joshua quite a bit, and she wouldn't let some bigotted firebirds stop her.
"There's no need," Joshua waved off, suddenly gaining a glint to his eyes that she remembered seeing in Azazel's. "Can you get some of those tears though? I don't need to own them or use them. I just need a vial or whatever."
"For what?" Serafall asked, not quite following.
"I want to take a look at the stuff with my wards, magic and life sensing. That sounds like it could be interesting data," Joshua explained, looking more excited than the Satan remembered seeing him before.
She couldn't properly appreciate that though, as the gears in her mind turned. She knew exactly what Joshua wanted that information for and Serafall had to wonder if that was even possible. Could Joshua make a ward that would have the same effect as Phoenix Tears? That was impossible, right? And still, she had to ask herself…
What if…?
"I can do that," Serafall replied, bouncing excitedly on her chair, her act very useful at that moment to hide her actual thoughts. "But that would lower how much that's worth compared to what you've done," She added with a pout, to which Joshua helplessly shrugged.
Seriously, paying Joshua was a headache each and every time, she'd realized by then. What does one give to a man that wants nothing? Joshua only seemed to want information and while Serafall knew the value of that, especially to a warder, paying everything he did with books felt lacking.
"You are really annoying to make deals with, you know?" Serafall complained, knowing that Joshua wouldn't jump to a misunderstanding. That was one of the best features of the man, everyone in the supernatural world seemed to be looking for things to be insulted about.
"Well, you could always leave me alone," Joshua commented with a wry smile, highlighting one of his few "flaws". His desire to be left alone and away from politics was a problem, yes, but mostly for the man himself. Unfortunately for him, Joshua would never be able to escape them, especially the way he was going.
"No can do, Jo-tan~," Serafall replied, shaking her head for emphasis.
"Yeah, guessed as much," Joshua muttered, standing up to go for the tea. "I was thinking about traveling around a whole lot after I'm done with this job. Jeanne loves being a tourist, it seems," He called from the kitchen, making her perk up. "Yasaka mentioned having her backing if I needed it. Would you give me yours?"
"I can do that!" She agreed, easily. "There are a few places where my backing might not be… that good, however," She admitted then, because it was better for Joshua to know immediately than to find out later. "Places under the Church's influence, for example…"
"Yeah, I get it. Good thing that I might be able to get them to let me be then," Joshua nodded with a smile as he walked back with a cup of tea for each of them. "On a different note, can I ask you something though?"
"Anything," Serafall agreed, beaming at him as she took her drink in her hands.
"What's up with the magical girl outfit?" Joshua asked. Frankly, she'd expected that question to happen a lot sooner, but that just went to show the man's ability to roll with things. Hell, he'd probably left it be if not for the more casual setting of the current meeting.
Maybe she should've done something like this sooner?
"It's my Levia-tan costume!" The Satan announced proudly. "I have a magical girl show, you know? It has me kicking baddies asses and bringing peace!"
"Huh… Somehow, that's less weird than I expected," He said, looking somewhat amused, although his expression turned strange for a split second before clearing. What was that about?
"Everything ok?"
"Yeah, it's nothing," He waved off easily.
"And what's that supposed to mean, mister?" Serafall asked, eyes narrowing.
"Nothing, nothing," Joshua replied with a grin. "So, tell me more about this show. Is there any way I could watch it? I imagine it's not on human TV, is it?"
Suddenly, Serafall realized something.
Joshua might just be the best person she'd ever had to deal with.
[}-o-{]
[Joshua Davis]
"Joshua-sama?" A voice called, making him deflate. More because of his work being interrupted again than the way he was being addressed. He'd given up on that quite a while ago. He guessed he'd have to be content with not being called Davis.
"Yeah?" He replied looking towards the person who'd called. "Did you get assigned exclusively to me or something, Fuyuko? I feel like it's mostly you around here."
"You've just noticed, Joshua-sama?" She asked, somehow mocking him and still being perfectly respectful. It was impressive, actually.
"What is it this time?" He asked, rolling his eyes at her.
"The young man has been trying to get your attention for a while, Joshua-sama," She told him, making the man blink and turn to his other side, where there was, indeed, a young man kneeling.
"Oh, um… Did you need something?" Joshua asked awkwardly. It wasn't the first time that someone failed to get his attention when he was working or thinking, after all. However, usually people just became impatient and called louder or something. How long had the guy been there for Fuyuko to take matters into her own hands.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything of importance, sir. If I am, I can come back later," The man said, making Joshua tilt his head. He was so very tempted to actually tell him to go away. He'd already been interrupted though, so it was what it was. Still, Joshua was already getting the impression that he was younger than even he was.
"You kind of are, but I'm always working, so might as well get it out of the way, right?" Joshua told the man. "What's your name, by the way?"
"Elliot Francis, sir, it's a pleasure to meet you," The newly named Elliot introduced himself. He looked very stiff, almost afraid, and Joshua couldn't for the life of him figure out why that was so. Was he that tense regarding the attacks made by Annihilation Maker?
"Pleasure to meet you too, Elliot. I'm Joshua Davis, but you probably already know that," He replied with a wry smile before deciding to get to the point. "So, what can I do for you?"
"The House of Water would like to schedule a meeting with you," Elliot answered, sounding like he'd practiced that in the mirror or something. One way or another he sounded and looked quite different from the nervous young man that he'd been before.
"This is gonna become a thing, isn't it?" Joshua muttered to himself, remembering how Golden Dawn had approached him before. This seemed like a much more serious thing though.
"It seems so, Joshua-sama," Fuyuko replied unhelpfully.
"Sir?"
"First of all, don't call me sir, I'm Joshua and nothing else," He told Elliot, whose mouth immediately clicked shut. "Second… Guess we can see about this. I don't promise anything though." He added, sighing.
[} Chapter End {]
PS: So, some people were asking for full stats, skills and all that. I'll drop a summarized version here.
Status
[Joshua Davis
Title: Ward Specialist
Race: Human
Strength: 54
Speed: 52
Dexterity: 49
Vitality: 55
Perception: 48
Magic: 77]
[Joshua Davis
Title: Ward Specialist
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Rank: C+
Strength: C
Speed: C
Dexterity: C
Vitality: C+
Perception: C
Magic: B-]
Skills
[Language
English - Lvl 48/50
Japanese - Lvl 25/50]
[Meditation - Lvl 45/100]
[Cooking - Lvl 32/50]
[Appraisal - Lvl 27/100]
[Parkour – Lvl 31/100]
[Physical Conditioning - Lvl 33/50]
[Unarmed Combat Mastery - Lvl 16/100]
[Physical Resistance – Lvl 24/100]
[Treatment – Lvl 4/50]
[Healing Magic - Lvl 15/100]
[Spatial Magic – Lvl 30/100]
[Ward Magic – Lvl 46/100]
[Neutral Magic – Lvl 18/100]
[Illusion Magic – Lvl 16/100]
[Bond
Cheshire - 24/25
Nagini - 24/25
Morag - 24/25
Margalo - 22/25]
[Drawing – Lvl 41/50]
[Throwing Weapon Mastery – Lvl 35/100]
[Bloodlust – Lvl 4/50]
[Dagger Mastery – Lvl 48/100]
[Piloting
Car - Lvl 25/50]
[Spell Modification - Lvl 37/50]
[Revolver Mastery – Lvl 24/100]
[Magic Sense - Lvl 39/100]
[Life Sense - Lvl 11/100]
[Poison Resistance – Lvl 26/100]
[Mind Resistance – Lvl 20/100]
Titles
[Novice Magician]
[Magician]
[Ward Specialist]
Perks
[Human]
[Bane of Legends]
[Holy Element]
[Demonic Element]
[Minor Blessing of Shed]
(AN:Please remember that this story is not mine and will never be mine. Make sure to give thanks to the original author on fanfiction.net https://m.fanfiction.net/u/11459794/)