Shuri considered it briefly. This could be her gift for Igor to remember her by once he left her care.
"Alright, Nagasaki-san. Please wrap it all up for me."
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|DxD|- Chapter 10- Questions
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In the town of Kuoh, there was a fairly recognizable area where all the rich and affluent lived. That district was on the hill where magnificent houses and manors were built that overlooked all of Kuoh. The sun would gleam on the glass balconies and sparkling pools.
It was late morning with afternoon steadily approaching. Cleria and Diehauser had been conversing for almost two hours. From the moment she had her first realization, her cousin had steadily been teaching her about their race and culture.
She could not fathom how deep the trenches were. Her growing awareness of how dark her situation was made her understand this—it wouldn't just affect herself, but her clan and possibly others. And all of this would stem from one singular mistake that would prove fatal.
It was still shocking to come to. Human politics could not begin to scratch the surface of how long-lived races thought. According to her cousin's theory, her simple mistake would be their clan's undoing within the next few centuries.
This naturally brought the conversation to the very boy who, if mishandled, would be the very first domino that spelt her doom.
"Now then, cousin. When did Shuri say we could meet her little one?"
Diehauser had his elbow on the table and his cheek resting on his palm. He had completely relaxed, and so was Cleria. While she could not completely let go like him, she had calmed significantly.
"We spoke earlier today. She said he would be ready tomorrow morning since she has to explain the supernatural world to him."
This made Diehauser sit up in slight surprise.
"Well this is interesting. He doesn't know of the supernatural?"
"There's a high likelihood he views his clash with Jonathan as an encounter with a beast. We still haven't figured out how he arrived here without being noticed."
No teleportation wards were triggered nor was there any high-energy transfer shift. It was impossible for Igor to enter the forest without triggering the boundary that surrounded it and Kuoh.
"Alright. I can make do with tomorrow. In the meantime, let's continue. I know your familiars have been observing him since this morning so tell me what you know."
"..."
Her mouth twitched slightly. Of course her familiars were detected by him.
"Please wait."
She tapped her finger on the table and a small magic circle formed and disappeared. They waited and moments later, a woman with long silky raven hair appeared through a magic circle to the side of the desk. She lowered her head in a small bow to both.
"Mistress Cleria. Lord Belial. How may I assist you?"
"Lina. My cousin wishes to know what we have so far on Igor. Please share that with him."
"At once, Mistress."
Lina faced Diehauser with respectful subservience. Her king may be casual with her cousin, but that did not mean the same sentiments would be extended to her.
"Lord Belial. Here is what we have verified so far. Igor is purely human and has no Sacred Gear. He is no reincarnation nor does he have a second soul in him. What we did find is, his soul is stronger than the average human's, though that might be a consequence of a unique energy resonance we have detected as of late. His perceptive capabilities have shown significant enhancement for him to walk sightless without difficulty. There has been a marked growth in his energy since we found him to today."
"Any likes? Dislikes? Alignment? Inclinations? Special interests? Et cetera?"
Diehauser remarked offhandedly. Any information could be valuable under the right circumstances.
"There is, Lord Belial. His responses to stimuli are similar to a child for the most part. He showed interest in a well-known children's animation and Shuri purchased the books for him. He hasn't shown any clear dislikes to be classified as such. His anti-social tendencies may be a result of existing trauma. His moral disposition has yet to be verified. Most of what we see may be trauma or instinctual response. At the moment, he treats Shuri as his guardian and tends to stick close to her. While any special interests have yet to be verified, it has been seen that Shuri's daughter shows a unique preference to him."
"Wonderful. Thank you for your service, Lina. You've helped me more than you know."
"It is my duty, Lord Belial."
Diehauser stood up, drawing Cleria's curious gaze.
"Are you leaving, cousin?"
"Of course. Is it not natural to bring a gift when visiting someone for the first time? It's better to start looking for one now. Maybe he'll be less trigger-happy if the big bad devils bring him something nice. Don't you think, Cler?"
"..."
Cleria fell silent. She did not like that grin.
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|DxD|
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The sun faded over the horizon and darkness slowly enveloped the skies. The hours slipped by like sand through fingers and in each of those moments, Igor spent his time reading. Akeno had fallen asleep on the drive back and hadn't woken up since.
This book on history was interesting to him. It focused on the continent of Europe and its different empires. It was a picture book with depictions of wars between tribes, to wars between nations. He learned of a person named Jesus who was the Son of God. The book didn't mention much on him, but it did say he inspired the birth of the church that had massive influence for over a thousand years.
Beyond that, it was war, war, and more wars. There were some interesting facts, but most were non-essential. He got bored and paged through some sections since it was repetitive. What he liked the most were the cartoonish drawings. The little characters said jokes in their little speech bubbles.
The years after weren't that interesting compared to earlier millennia. The person he liked the most was a man named Alexander. The depictions of him were interesting and entertaining, especially when his soldiers grumbled about wanting to go back home.
But the reason he liked Alexander the most was because he used a spear just like him. He'd been training with the spear for the past five years and it was that very spear that gave him an edge against that monster.
Now that he thought about it, he hadn't thought much about that monster. The details were blurry and were more like a memory…a very distant one.
"..."
Igor sat up. The thought pulled him from the book back to reality. He only just noticed the entire bedroom was dark. He was so absorbed in the stories he didn't notice the passage of time. Akeno's steady breaths were the only sound in the silence. He got up and absentmindedly closed the curtains and switched on the side lamp.
He hadn't forgotten that moment. He could still see it vividly. The way chunks of flesh on his arm fell off, the mouth full of sharp teeth showing a grin, his blood dripping off that monster's jaws…
[This is wrong.]
The clarity was there in great detail, but it was more like looking at a scene through a screen. There was a hollow feeling in his stomach and a desire to vomit, yet the sharp pain he'd feel in his arm was completely gone.
Igor knew his situation in great detail. He was young, but had enough sense of self to know something was wrong with himself. Pain like that doesn't fade in two days. It had taken him weeks to get used to being separated from his parents. It should've taken much longer to accept he'd been almost eaten aliv—
"It's fine. It's fine."
He shook his head in denial. He didn't want to peel open that old wound. He survived. That's all that matters. He was breathing and that thing was dead. He killed it like he was told to. Its head was blasted into fragments so there was no chance it would come for him ever again. And if it did…he'd kill it again. A subtle surge of energy swelled within him. He was much stronger now.
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|DxD|
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Shuri stood outside the door. It was wide open, giving her a view of Igor submerged in a very faint yellow aura. She didn't sense it wrongly. There was killing intent in those eyes, the very same intent she felt from downstairs.
Her hands clenched. She didn't think it'd come from him, but it was clear as day. Igor was never saved. He was the one who killed that stray devil. She'd had her suspicions ever since that incident in the bath, yet she couldn't bring herself to believe such a young boy had taken his first life. How cruel was this world?
She lacked words on how to broach this subject. Igor's origins were a troubling concern for her. From the moment she'd first seen and cleaned him, she'd noticed how his body was abnormally honed. The indentations from years of wear on the spear handle matched the size of his hand. Igor was not a normal child, never meant to be one.
A spark of rage burned in her heart. Someone bred him to be a weapon.
[Who could be so heartless? He's a child for Kami's sake!]
A child should never have such a look on their face. A child should not have killing intent. There was no justification for the monster who pushed such a little boy into this path.
Shuri calmed herself. Igor had settled down and was about to turn towards her. She debated leaving, but decided it was best to use this opportunity to talk. Cleria and Diehauser would come tomorrow and she had to ease him in. That meant helping him understand the supernatural world. Everything else…she'd figure it out later.
"Igor…"
Her voice came out softly. The last remnants of his glowing yellow eyes faded into cerulean blue as surprise took over.
"Auntie? Are you here for Akeno?"
There it was. That innocent look as if nothing happened. If she didn't know better, she would think he was deliberately hiding or trying to deceive her. But it was nothing like that. He just…he didn't know better. No one taught him morality or restraint.
"No, Igor. I'm here for you. Please follow me downstairs."
She turned around and walked towards the stairs. A myriad of thoughts filled her head. No one had come for him these past few days. They were either looking for him, or they had died. Igor may have appeared here because a teleportation went wrong.
Nonetheless, she had made her decision. Igor would grow up here in this home. She would raise him herself into an upright young man, not a weapon for war or subterfuge. She never, ever, wanted to see him show such eyes again.
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AN: So…you do know the full chapter 10 is available on my p@treon, right? Free of charge. No surprise fees. No sign-ups and so on. Go to the forbidden website and look for HolyGambler. No one has a name as unique as yours truly.
Thanks for reading. Until tomorrow with the next chapter.
Chapter 10
END