The storm clouds loomed heavy over Kuoh Town, dyeing the early night sky a suffocating grey. As if warning the world one last time, a distant roar of thunder rolled across the heavens.
Then the rain began.
One by one, the droplets plummeted toward the earth. Down through the newly created crater in the mansion's ceiling they fell, hissing as they struck the crimson armor of the Red Dragon Emperor.
The armor appeared to house a humanoid creature rather than an actual human. Emerald orbs embedded into the chest, the back of the hands, and the shins, their glow pulsing eerily in the dim light. Two wings were folded tightly against the figure's back. The helmet concealed the face entirely, leaving only a sharp visor, glowing green eyes, and a pair of horns thrusting forward from its jaw like tusks.
The armor shifted as Hyoudou Izo exhaled, standing dead center in the ruined room.
"Give up, you are surrounded."
His eyes were fixed on the wounded priest, who struggled to push himself up from the rubble.
"Ke… KEHAHAHA~!"
Freed burst into another manic laugh.
"Today is really something…" he said, finally managing to push himself upright. "Two bastards I wanted to kill just happened to appear before me, one after the other."
The red helmet turned.
Izo's gaze settled on the body nailed upside down against the wall.
"Ah, looks like that guy ran away." Freed looked around the room, cackling to himself.
'Ran away?'
Izo's eyes swept across the room.
There were four subjects present in the room. A young nun lay unconscious in the corner. The priest sat amid the rubble. The corpse was nailed upside down against the wall.
And finally, himself.
Izo expanded his senses through the mansion and its surroundings.
Nothing.
Whoever Freed was talking about was already gone.
He would deal with that later. For now, a murderer stood in front of him. The corpse on the wall had been under contract with the devils, making this slaughter a blatant provocation from the exorcist.
Izo raised his arm, the emerald orb glowing intensely.
"Hold up! Hold up!"
Freed immediately raised both hands.
"Striking me means inciting a conflict with the fallen angels, you know?!"
?!
Izo froze. For a moment, he simply stared at him.
Then a sudden burst of anger exploded through him.
"The exorcists are aligning with the fallen angels?"
Freed answered with nothing more than a toothy grin.
Are they really thinking of starting a conflict here?
Izo's head boiled with anger, his thoughts racing.
The fallen angels currently operating in Kuoh were led by a man who was reputedly below the Cadre class, Dohnaseek. And whatever reputation he had earned within Grigori, Izo had already met the man himself.
They were no match for him.
Therefore, Izo had assumed they wouldn't be stupid enough to seek an escalation in vengeance of their fallen comrade.
But allying with exorcists… Do the fallen angels really plan on…?
The three Biblical factions had already paid dearly for the last Great War, which ended five centuries ago. The Devils had suffered even further after their own civil war, becoming the weakest of the three factions.
None of that made another war impossible. All it needed was a catalyst.
Kuoh was already a sensitive ground, its ownership tied to the Gremory and Sitri houses through their heirs, with several other factions openly operating within it. And a fallen angel murdered here could become that spark.
Izo's mind raced through the possibilities.
"Listen, I've got no interest in fighting you, Sekiriyuutei…" Freed said cautiously, his eyes fixed on Izo's arm.
Before Izo could respond, a voice suddenly reached him through his communication magic.
"Izo!"
Sona's voice.
"Someone has escaped from the target location! They have breached the perimeter and fled. It appears they're using some sort of teleportation magic… no, that's not right. It is too irregular, maybe a …"
Izo's eyes narrowed.
Sacred gear.
"A sacred gear user…"
His gaze snapped back toward Freed, who gave him a knowing grin.
Freed's eyes narrowed into slits.
"Hm~? Ahh, I didn't believe it at first, but maybe you guys weren't the ones who killed the fallen bitch."
His grin widened.
"Who knew all devils weren't liars?"
That was all Izo needed to know. The culprit was nearby.
"Kaichou," Izo said through the communication link. "Secure the perimeter. I think we've found the one responsible for the fallen angel's murder."
BOOM!
Izo launched through the same hole he had entered from; his senses spread outward in the direction Sona had given him.
One hundred meters.
Then one hundred and fifty.
Two hundred.
There.
******
What am I running from?
Trees and thick bushes hindered my path despite my best efforts to steer clear of them. The repeated use of Warp was causing my lungs to scream in protest. Yet, my body refused to stop.
Where would this senseless running lead me to?
I had no idea.
All I knew was that… The moment I saw that figure in the armor, every instinct in my body screamed at me to get away.
An innate, primal sense of impending disaster took hold of me, like the world was going to end if I didn't run.
In any other world, a suit of armor like that would have fascinated me. I would have even stopped to stare at it. But…
What about Asia? What about the psychotic priest? If I run away now…
The conflicting thoughts weren't enough to prompt me to look back.
Perhaps as a blessing or a curse, raindrops had started to fall from the dark sky, filling my vision with even more obscurity.
Maybe it was paranoia, but I felt like something was chasing me. A massive presence was tearing through the chaos behind me, closing in rapidly.
SHINE.
The path ahead of me- no, the entire surrounding forest, was suddenly illuminated by a bright flash.
I turned to look back.
A globe of concentrated red light was hurtling toward me at terrifying speed.
Ah…
The incoming light swallowed my vision, painting the world a terrifying, bloody hue as it expanded to crush me.
Just before it reached me—
Shine.
An answering heat flared within my skull. My eyes ignited, bursting into a defiant, piercing red.
The world went dark.
When the void opened, a shockwave slammed into me before I could even understand where I had reappeared, sending my body crashing into a tree.
My eardrums felt like they were irreparably damaged. Coughing uncontrollably, I instinctively pulled my hood lower, trying to hide my face in the shadows.
What just happened…?
Smoke rose from the surrounding forest, battling against the falling rain.
Just as I tried to regain my footing—
"Don't move."
The voice cut through the ringing in my ears.
A heavy figure emerged from the smoke, making its way toward me. The moment I heard the clunk of armor, I knew.
I raised my arms and lowered my body, keeping my face hidden beneath the hood in one last attempt to conceal my identity.
The figure stopped several feet in front of me.
"Were you the one responsible for the fallen angel's death?" the voice demanded.
I kept my eyes fixed on the muddy ground, not responding.
"Answer."
The red light flared again, dyeing the rainy haze in a violent crimson glow. A sphere of concentrated energy hovered in the figure's grasp.
Getting hit by that attack meant certain death. Forget being nailed to a wall; not even my ashes would remain.
The only reason I had escaped the previous one was because the attack hadn't been aimed directly at me. It was a warning shot.
An adversary stronger than Raynare. And for some ridiculous stroke of luck, he wanted answers instead of killing me immediately.
Was there even a way to escape this? Or had the concept of escape already slipped from my mind?
I was exhausted beyond words. Running through these trees and repeatedly using Warp had drained whatever borrowed strength adrenaline had given me.
My will to fight was fading with it.
But perhaps it was the last, stupid, stubborn bone in my body, still itching for one final struggle, that made me refuse to answer him.
"…"
SHINE.
The red light surged forward from the figure's grasp.
I narrowed my eyes, bracing my mind to trigger the warp. But what would come after the warp was painfully predictable. This armored adversary could track and target me no matter where I reappeared. Still, there was…
…?
However—
The red light suddenly vanished.
Even through the dark, rainy night, the long raven hair stood out distinctly.
Ophis, the Ouroboros Dragon, turned her small frame away from the stunned armored figure and focused her gaze on me.
Her expression remained as unreadable as I remembered. Yet, perhaps just my imagination, I felt like I could discern a faint hint of anger or disappointment.
"What are you doing?"
********
The thunderstorm rolled over Kuoh Town, the heavy rain drumming against the leaves.
"What are you doing?"
Those void-like eyes stared through me. Her tone didn't feel as flat as the last time I'd seen her.
"Why do you refuse to use my gift?"
I stayed silent. It hardly felt like the right moment to explain my internal logic as to why using Warp against the armored enemy felt pointless.
The child stood between me and the armored man, apparently having decided that the latter wasn't worth acknowledging.
For some reason, I felt like he was wondering the same thing I was.
What just happened to that ball of light?
What did she do?
"Why do you limit yourself to simple movement?" Ophis demanded, seemingly genuinely bothered by my actions.
… What?
Is she talking about Warp mechanics? I haven't really had the opportunity to use it that much. But it is not like I have been using Warp just to run away. I just fought the priest with it—
"…Human, do not tell me that you haven't discovered anything beyond mere movement…"
Thunder roared in the distance.
A sudden surge of emotion welled up inside me.
… What is that supposed to mean?
More to the Warp- no.
She was clearly talking about something else… Other abilities?… But why was only the Warp ability revealed? Is she lying right now? No, why lie about something like this? I…
My pupils dilated as thoughts danced chaotically in my head.
It made sense. She wanted me to perform for her, to show her something interesting. How would it be entertaining for her if all I could do was run away?
There had to be something else in her 'gift.' What lay beyond just the warp—
A sudden, violent crimson flash shattered my thoughts.
The armored monster blurred forward. A blade bathed in red energy, hissed from its sheath, cleaving downward toward Ophis in a swift arc.
WHOOOMMMM!!!!
The armored warrior was violently forced to his knees, his metal plating creaking under an immense, invisible pressure. Even from my spot on the ground, I could feel the sheer force pressing down on him.
"…Sekiryuutei of the current generation," Ophis remarked in a flat tone.
Sekiryuutei?
I stared at the kneeling figure in red armor.
It didn't take much to realize who was in that armor.
…Izo.
My heart started to drum painfully against my ribs.
My brother.
The same brother I had grown up with was standing in front of me, hidden beneath some fancy armor that looked like it was straight out of a fantasy novel.
Izo. He… just what is this? Is that armor his Sacred Gear? The Longinus? He is this strong…?
Both Ophis and Izo gave off the same otherworldly presence. Standing in the vicinity, I could feel just how far above me they were.
"…Watch, human."
Izo's armored body suddenly rose into the air and was hurled backward into the distance at a terrifying speed.
CRASH!
A distant impact echoed through the trees.
"The power of gravity," Ophis said flatly.
"…"
A blur of green broke through the haze. My armored brother wasn't done yet. He emerged from the trees looking almost unscathed and stopped several feet in front of Ophis.
He appeared far more cautious than before.
"…I don't know who you are. But I request a truce," Izo said, taking slow, cautious steps toward her. "I am unaware of the relationship between the two of you, but the person behind you is the prime suspect responsible for—"
A massive dark sword suddenly dropped from the sky.
Izo blurred backward with inhuman speed.
BOOM!
The blade buried itself in the earth, sending a tremor through the forest.
"The power of materialization," Ophis continued. Her words were directed entirely at me. She wasn't even looking at Izo.
"…"
I didn't need to see Izo's face behind the helmet to know that he was furious.
"…No matter who you are. As Devils that govern this area…"
…?!
"You ought to show some damn respect!"
Violent red energy flooded across the blade he held in his hand. Two wings emerged from his back.
BURST.
With the wings acting as propellant, Izo closed the distance in an instant, bringing the glowing blade down on the dragon child.
CLANG.
A shield-like object materialized in front of Ophis, blocking the strike perfectly.
Multiple clangs followed in rapid succession.
Izo attacked from one angle, then another, moving with inhuman speed as he tried to find a way around the shield, but every single strike was perfectly neutralized by Ophis's minimalist movements.
Seeing the futility, Izo pulled back, creating distance.
The red energy from the sword had now spread across his entire armor. He lowered his stance.
[BOOST]
[BOOST]
[BOOST]
[BOOST]
[BOOOSTTTTOOOO]
An unknown voice shouted the words. The red energy surrounding Izo exploded outward, then immediately pulled back in, condensing sharply around his blade.
With a roar, Izo crossed the distance once again and brought the weapon down on Ophis—
FLASH.
It was as if time slowed down just as the world lit up. The weapon held in Izo's hands… I saw it clearly for the first time since this confrontation began. My eyes widened in recognition.
Then… the area exploded.
**********
"…"
Raindrops fell softly onto my cheeks as I lay flat on my back, staring up at the dark sky.
Nothing was obstructing my view anymore. The trees and bushes had been blown away. The ground around me had been blasted apart, leaving a wide stretch of ruined ground as if a meteor had struck the forest.
The reason I was still alive had to be because of...
The small girl with raven hair stepped into my field of vision. Red and black sparks danced around her body.
"Dark lightning," she said.
"…"
Was she implying that the lightning strike had been hers?
I stared at her without answering. There were too many thoughts fighting for space inside my head. If I opened my mouth now, I wasn't sure what would come out.
"Your brother is fine. He is just injured."
"…Is that so?"
Some tension I hadn't realized was there loosened in my chest. I fully relaxed into the mud, letting the silence stretch once more.
Hearing no further response from me, Ophis continued.
"How was it? A Longinus user?"
Her tone was flat; however, I felt like I could discern a distinct hint of mockery.
Still, a longinus user, huh?
"… Far above."
Far, far above.
That was all I could come up with.
Raynare had seemed powerful when I encountered her. Freed had nearly killed me with his glowing weapons. Until right now, I had thought that was what a supernatural battle looked like.
But watching Izo and Ophis fight...
The sheer scale of it… perhaps that is what a real battle between supernatural beings looked like.
And against otherworldly beings like these… my talent…
Ophis cocked her head, waiting for me to say more. When nothing came, she spoke again.
"The powers I gave you, if you had learned to use them properly, this could have ended differently."
"…"
"The powers I gave you also protected you from being discovered by the supernatural."
"…"
'Giving what I needed.'
I finally understood the weight behind those words.
When she had told me that before, I had assumed she meant that she had given me what I needed, just what I needed. An ability that allowed me to vanish or 'run away'. That was how I had come to understand Warp anyway, before I let it sit untouched and gather dust, due to my own selfish reasons.
But that wasn't what she meant. She had given me everything I needed.
I just failed to discover anything beyond Warp.
"Did you really believe you stood a chance against a true supernatural being like your brother, with the power of mere movement? Answer me, human."
…Did I?
Did I really believe that? That my talent, combined with Warp ability, was enough to defeat beings like them?
Maybe I did. After all, I killed Raynare without any supernatural ability.
If I could kill a supernatural being without any fancy powers, then I had all the reason to believe I could defeat another with one.
Why would I think I needed anything else?
When I finally dropped my stubbornness and started experimenting with Warp wholeheartedly, I found far more in that ability than I had originally expected. The more I learned about it, the more useful it became.
So I kept digging into Warp rather than looking beyond it.
I never stopped to ask what that unsettling feeling in my chest meant, the same feeling that had remained with me ever since Ophis gave me her gift.
And the price for those decisions would have been paid dearly tonight had Ophis not arrived in time.
That unsettling feeling finally had an answer.
All those wonderful and mighty abilities I had never discovered, all those possibilities I had never even thought to search for, had been waiting inside me this entire time.
"…This is disappointing."
The words pulled me out of my thoughts. She wasn't looking at me anymore. Her gaze had returned to the sky.
But those eyes…
A sharp pain ripped me apart from the inside.
Those eyes…
Something inside my chest seemed to crack open upon seeing them. Memories I had buried deep within came rushing back all at once.
Ophis finally looked at me.
"Fine, human."
She raised one hand.
"If movement is all you need…"
Black energy violently erupted from my chest.
I screamed. The pain was unlike anything I had felt before. Something inside me was being ripped away, dragged out through my chest against my will.
I knew what she was doing.
The powers I had yet to discover, that massive potential I'd spent all this time mistaking for a single movement ability… they were being taken away from me.
Black energy poured out of my body and gathered around Ophis's palm before disappearing into it.
"…Consider this as my final act of benevolence toward you, human."
With that, my world turned black.
*************
When I opened my eyes, I was back in my room.
My body was completely healed, as if the events of the night had never happened. For a moment, I wondered whether I had simply fallen asleep and dreamed the entire thing.
I slowly sat up from my bed, listening to the rain falling outside.
I pressed one hand against my chest.
That strange vagueness I had carried with me ever since Ophis gave me her gift had disappeared.
Yeah, perhaps all of it was a dream. Asia, Freed, Izo in armor, Ophis, even Raynare maybe…
Izo wearing Gundam-like armor and not being human sounded ridiculous when I really thought about it. And that sword…
No. None of it could have been real.
I was just on suspension from school because I got into a fight with a rich kid. That was all there was to it.
I let out a slow breath and looked toward the window. The peaceful rain falling outside made that explanation feel even more believable.
FLASH.
For some reason, those deeply disappointed eyes kept coming back to me.
"This is disappointing."
"…"
A dream…
——
"Man, where did this rain suddenly come from?"
A delivery boy was making his way through the quiet residential area after completing his last order.
"I should rush home-"
"AAAARRRRRRRRRGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"
An agonized scream pierced the night sky. The biker immediately squeezed his brakes and looked around perplexedly, trying to locate the source.
There was nothing that stood out among the countless dark houses and near-empty streets.
"What in the…?"
——
Issei's chest heaved up and down, his expression contorted in seething anger.
His eyes were unnaturally wide, his pupils glowing a faint, furious red as chunks of plaster rolled down his bedroom wall to his feet. Tiny droplets of blood fell from his knuckles, buried deep inside another fresh crater he had just punched in the wall.
The memories of his childhood flowed into his swimming vision, one after another…
——
Next chapter: Issei's childhood.
***********************
CHAPTER 13: THE GIFT
END.
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