Fortunately, nothing more happened. Redhead muttered an apology, jumped off me, grabbed Akeno, and ran off, leaving me laying on the ground.
It wasn't until an hour later that I was able to move again. As I started making my way back to the house, I mulled over why I'd done what I did to Issei and Redhead. I wasn't sure.
Issei needed true anger to unleash his full potential. I doubt that the power of grabbing breasts will take him far in real life. Redhead, on the other hand? I just said what felt right, but I don't know why. "You aren't some replacement for your brother." I didn't like how right it felt to say.
By the time I got back, it was already late into the night. Issei was waiting for me at the base of the stairs. 'Hope whatever he wants to say is quick.'
He stood up, summoning Boosted Gear as he walked toward me. "Ryou-san, why did you do that? That was cruel."
"BOOST"
"The world is cruel, Issei. People die. People laugh. The world keeps moving."
We stopped walking, facing each other about ten feet apart.
"Was everything about it a lie?" he asked.
I blinked at that. "Of course it was. I wasn't paid by anyone, and I don't have a brother. Why?"
He didn't seem convinced.
"BOOST"
"You looked sad."
What? Me?
"Your expression doesn't change much, but I've been getting better at reading you. Surprised, right?"
I was. I don't know if Issei had always been this sharp, or if it's just this version of him.
"BOOST"
"I'm going to punch you in the face for earlier today." And with that, he charged at me.
He was weaker than before, so I simply blitzed to his right and kicked his leg, toppling him over.
"Right, well, when you do that, I'll be inside." I turned and started walking away.
"BOOST"
Come on, Issei, haven't had—
"Dragon Shot!"
I didn't dodge in time and got nicked in the face by a red beam.
Looking back, I saw Issei on his knees, breathing heavily.
"I told you, I'm going to punch you in the face, you emo prick."
I twitched at that. 'Should I just knock him out?'
Before I could act on the thought, Redhead and her group came running out the door. Rias looked concerned as she asked, "What's going on?"
"We were doing some late-night training, Rias-senpai. Sorry if we disturbed anyone," Issei said.
"Rest is also important, Hyoudou-san. You two should hit the bath" she replied, before walking back inside with the others. Issei and I followed suit.
The bath or rather the Onsen, was nice. Really nice.
S'igh~ I need to visit the Blood River. Something's going on with me. As much as I don't want to, I'll ask Azazel if he's heard of anything like it.'
The door slid open, and a frowning Issei stepped in. 'if he starts something I'm knocking him out and throw him in the water.'
He washed off quickly and then hopped into the water. He didn't say anything, so I closed my eyes, relaxing.
"You didn't answer my question from before," he said after a while.
Tilting my head back, eyes still closed, I replied, "I did. The world is cruel, Issei, and sometimes you'll have to be crueler than the world to survive."
I could practically feel his frown deepening.
"Or you become stronger than the world's cruelty."
What?
"You're forcing yourself to stay alone. No matter how much someone tries to reach you, you shut them out."
I snorted. "Yes, Issei, I suppose I do. But I've got bigger things to worry about than wondering if I need a friend."
"What could be so important that you don't need friends? Everyone needs a friend, Ryou-san!"
At that, I opened my eyes and looked him dead in the eye.
"Muramasa's curse is what's important. But you wouldn't understand, would you? You've got a Sacred Gear. It's not cursed, it doesn't try to drive you insane, does it?"
'I really need to figure out what's going on with me. I'll leave after this.'
We fell into silence after that. One of us frowning, the other trying to rest.
"Do you really need to leave, Ryou-kun?" Redhead asked for what felt like the hundredth time since I told her I had to go. Everyone was gathered by the door, watching.
"Yes. If I'm not back in the next two days, don't bother waiting for me. I'll watch the Rating Game from here. Goodbye." With that, I walked out of sight before breaking into a run, making a beeline for the warehouse.
It didn't take long—just a few minutes before I arrived at the warehouse where Azazel was lounging around, watching something on a screen. He turned toward me, about to ask something, but stopped, a wary look crossing his face.
"You okay there, Ryou? You look like shit." He wasn't wrong—I felt like it.
"I need your help with something. I'll pay you back later. Still got some of that wine?" He nodded and gestured for me to sit while he got up to retrieve the wine.
A few minutes later, we were both sitting on the couch, glasses in hand. "So, what's up? Must be important if you stopped training with your friends." I twitched at that.
"Not friends." I took a moment to collect myself. "Have you ever heard of a place filled with blood w—"
Before I could finish, I was pinned to the wall, a light spear at my throat.
That answered the question.
"How do you know about that place, Ryou?! All records of it were destroyed. So answer me!" His aura surged with every word, and his grip tightened until I couldn't breathe.
It seemed he finally realized what he was doing, because he released me, throwing me back onto the couch. "Ryou. Answer me."
Coughing and trying to catch my breath, I looked at him warily. Azazel being this serious was… unnerving.
"Why do you think I asked for wine?" I managed to say, trying to lighten the mood, but the light spear grew sharper.
"Calm down, Azazel! I've been to that place, or some form of it."
Azazel froze, then collapsed back onto the couch, his expression making me worry. It looked like the weight of the world had suddenly hit him. After a few minutes, he grabbed the wine and downed it in one go.
"Ryou, that place… There's only one form of it. You shouldn't be alive right now. Your mind should be mush."
"I must have a pretty strong mind, then."
"Or," he said, his voice grave, "it's weakening."
That made me shiver. He looked older, worn out, as if what he was about to say next carried a heavier burden than anything before.
"That place? It's in the Dimensional Gap. The most basic explanation? The Dimensional Gap is the boundary between worlds."
'But it looked so different from what was shown in the anime…' I thought, though I kept that to myself.
"That specific place" he continued "is something that dear old Dad, the Biblical God created."
'Oh, shit.' That was way worse than I expected.
"Now the pieces are falling together. Ryou, the creator of Muramasa somehow put a curse on it that links to that place. He was either a madman who knew what he was doing or an imbecile if he didn't."
The weight of that revelation hit me like a ton of bricks. But Azazel wasn't finished.
"Ryou. tell me, have you done anything while in there? Experienced anything?" His eyes drilled into mine. The look in them told me he wouldn't hesitate to pry the truth out of me by force if he had to.
I hesitated, but there was no point in lying. "I… drank from the blood there."
He blinked, then paled, before his expression twisted in sheer disbelief. "You fucking did what?!"
Azazel yelled so loud I thought the whole world could hear him. He didn't stop screaming for a full minute, cursing every breath. His face was a mix of fury and something that looked a lot like fear.
Eventually, he put his head in his hands. "It's not all bad, is it?" I tried to reason. "I mean, I went on a bit of a rampage that I couldn't control, but I got stronger. And I've only been getting stronger since then."
Azazel raised his head, looking like he'd aged several decades in the span of minutes.
"Ryou, that place is where the Beast of the End is sealed."
He took a deep breath before saying the next part, as if uttering the name itself carried unspeakable weight.
"Trihexa."
'Fuck'