One-Punch DxD: NEO

"Chickenheeeeeaaaaaad."

Issei stirred.

That word… he had not heard that word since he was still a kid.

"Chickenheeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaad."

The only person that called him that was…

"You look good in girl's clothes by the way. Everyone sawwwwwwww, magical boy chickenheeaaaaaaaad."

Triggered by his trauma, Issei opened his eyes as he woke up. Or so he thought.

He was in a white void. There was no other word to describe it, a complete and utter space of white as far as the eyes could see.

Issei looked left and right. Where was he? Did the asshole with the mist trap him?

"Boo!"

"AGH?!" Issei jumped back and armed Boosted Gear… but later relaxed his guard when he saw a familiar face.

"Hello, Magical Girl Chickenhead! It's your favorite Ghost Boy calling you from beyond the graaaaaaaaveeee!"

It was the face of an old friend. Issei smiled a little and he laughed at the playful soul's attempt to be spooky, waving his arms around while saying 'Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh'.

"…Seriously?" Issei shook his head a little. "Did you really come down all the way from Afterlife just to nitpick me because I became a magical girl for a day?"

It was still traumatizing, but he still could not help but relax and smile.

The mischievous boy from the haunted house departed to the afterlife after fulfilling his duty to oversee his mother's soul resting in peace, saved from the evil spirit that murdered the family.

It was the first time that he saw a spirit ascend to heaven like in the movies, literally picked up by a guardian angel and greeted by his family. It was the most heartwarming encounter he ever had.

"Ahahahahahahahaha! Oh yeah! Everyone in heaven saw! The Son of the Strongest Man, the youngest hero ever on stage, even genderbent! My sister and I laughed our butts off!" The smaller male flashed a smile.

"Also, I want an autograph from the Black Shoggoth. He looks awesome!" He pumped his hands in the air.

"Heh..." Issei snickered. "Alright, alright. To Sarui Ilugo, right?"

"Oh yeah. Hm?"

The boy perked up a little.

"Oh, right, uh, I don't have much time to speak with you."

"How the hell did you manage to speak with me anyways?" Issei asked with a smile.

"There are a lot of sages in heaven, and I had to bother and annoy one of them until he sent me down here for a bit. The guy is an oneiromancer."

Issei puffed his cheeks at the answer. He could picture the energetic kid bothering an ancient wise mage into submission.

"Anyways, you're dreaming and someone is bound to wake you up. Remember everything I told you about my time as a spirit! How I became a superstrong ghost boy and stuff! You'll need it!"

Issei blinked, "What? Why, though? What's this all about?"

"You'll need it! Get some grave soil as soon as you can and some silver so you can rub it into your eyes! Find a way to the Veil! A lot of people are going to get hurt-Wait, already?!"

The white void started to crack and distort. Issei's eyes started to grow heavy.

"Aghhhh, someone's waking you up! Stay with me! Beware of evil sp-"

"-Issei!"

Issei opened his eyes as he woke up. Irina was bouncing on his body with a happy smile.

"Ugh, Irina, why so cheery today?" Issei asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"You were asleep for a while, though. It's almost afternoon!"

"Really?" Issei blinked as he turned his head to the clock. It was literally two minutes before noon time. He even went to bed early…

"You look happy, though. Did you have a good dream?" Irina asked.

"...More like I met a long lost friend…" Issei smiled. "You want to test out the bow I gave you, right?"

"You bet!" Irina replied before she leaned in and pecked his lips, then she walked out, "Come on! Everyone's waiting already!"

Issei slowly rose up. The bitterness from yesterday still remained in him, forcing him to frown a bit, though meeting Sarui brightened his spirit.

"Grave soil and silver…" Issei muttered as he ruminated on his old friend's words as he prepared himself.

Once they entered the training room, Issei made eye contact with Rias.

"Morning, Issei~" Rias smiled and waved.

Issei frowned and ignored her, walking away from the girls that betrayed him to the magical girl. Responded with such treatment, Rias simply giggled good-naturedly.

"Morning, Isa-chan." Gold greeted while Platinum and Vali smiled from ear to ear.

Issei flipped them off. One of these days he would have his vengeance. This was much worse than him sending Vali off to school against his will.

"By the way, here." Platinum showed Issei his phone. It was ridiculously large to fit his muscular hand that can hold a person.

Issei stared at the website on the screen and saw…

"...What abomination of the internet am I seeing?" Issei asked, his frown deepening as he saw the words Isachan and home page.

"Your fanpage." Platinum, Gold, and Vali wore the most annoying smiles Issei ever wanted to punch off. "Did you know? You're a hit!"

Issei stared at the screen with a mounting horror - there were various pictures of his gender-bent self; some of them were from photos, fan art, etc. His appearance as Isa was not too different from his regular self, only with more feminine face structures, longer hair, and altered muscle proportions here and there.

That, and his… breasts.

That time when he realized he had the breasts every girl dreamed of having one day was both mortifying and curious, but mostly mortifying in that moment.

The way those things threw him off balance every time he tried to move in high-speed combat was… he had respect for any woman that could fight with those lumps of fat. He planned to feed Azazel's nuts to Rover one day.

"Do you want to see the NSFW version?" Platinum's smile turned wicked as his face was painted with an ominous shade. "So many talented artists are drawing you after their debut. I heard that there's a doujin in the works."

"What? He has hentai art already?!" Tsubasa jumped in and peered over his shoulder. Vali broke down into laughing wheezes, failing to not lose himself in his laughter.

"There are rumors that Black Shoggoth is going to do the hentai. Others… Yuri."

Issei buried himself in his hands and screamed all of his rage and indignation into them.

"Aarghh! Fuck this shit! I'm done!" With a furious scowl, Issei stormed away. "Go train by yourselves for all I care!"

"Come on, chickenhead! Don't be a coward!" Tsubasa called out with a cheeky smile.

Issei stopped upon hearing Sarui's nickname. He turned around, flipped Tsubasa off, and resumed stomping out of the training room, flipping everyone else in the process.

He entered the living room, walking past a stoic Saitama as he headed towards his room upstairs, slamming the door shut. Issei took a deep breath to calm himself, closing his eyes to block out the world for a moment.

"...I so don't deserve this." Issei muttered. It looked like he would have to distance himself from the girls and the three douchebags for a while until the magical girl fiasco dies.

For now…

He decided to focus on Sarui's message, mostly to clear his mind. He started to change his clothes.

He had a graveyard to visit.

"Let's see… grave soil, like, just any grave soil?"

Issei muttered as he was playing with a clump of earth in his hand. He was currently in a cemetery complex within Kuoh, recalling the message he heard in his bizarre dream that morning.

"Welp, not that I got anything specific. Then silver…." Issei then fished out from his pocket - a small vial of silver dust. He pocketed it from Genos' lab.

[Partner…]

Ddraig then spoke up.

[Now that I recall - combining grave soil and silver before rubbing them into your eyes…. That's a spell concoction that will allow you to see… Things that are normally unseen by naked eyes, and this whole thing smells trouble. Are you sure you want to go through this?]

"Maybe. I just want some fresh air away from all of the magical girl crap." Issei sighed as he looked at the ball of dirt. "...Still… Hah, it's been so long since I've encountered ghosts, you know? With all of the hype on undead and necromancers these days, you don't see any of them that often."

[Hah. Necromancy isn't limited to just corpses, boy. Look at me. Look at God. Necromancy deals with souls. When I and Albion were killed, God took our souls and stuffed them into the prison you call Sacred Gears. Let that sink into your head for a while on what Necromancy can do other than raising undead and summoning ghosts.]

Issei remained quiet for a few seconds before he exhaled, "...Huh, so Necromancy is scarier than what the movies depicted. Got it."

He remained silent as he looked around. It was very peaceful, being with the dead and nature, grass and gravestone with the silence… he could think more clearly here than back home now.

It was calming.

[What do you plan to do now?]

Issei sighed.

"Like I said, I'm gonna keep my distance… thinking about it, I think I'm gonna need to unwind the stress. Got any ideas on how?"

[Why not head to the massage parlor? It is a good start to air out that stress. Then you can try training somewhere quiet to ease your mind.]

"Not a bad idea, but let's finish what we're doing here and work from what we find." Issei tossed the ball of dirt up and down.

The spell would leave a small migraine once it wore off. He poured some of the silver ashes from the vial onto the soil on his palm, clump them together for a few seconds, and he took a few specks on his thumb before he rubbed them over his eye-lids.

The spell would last for around a day as he opened his eyes.

"...Hmm." Issei looked around.

The Veil was the place where all deceased spirits entered before they were ferried off to the afterlife, a place where evil or stray spirits tend to roam. Almost all nonhuman souls were carried off to the afterlife, minus some extremely rare exceptions.

Humans, on the other hand, had a problem with being ferried off to the afterlife for some reason. He suspected that whatever force that carries people to the afterlife prioritizes those with power over anything else triggered postmortem.

And his next objective was to find a way into the veil… though he had absolutely no idea how other than dying and becoming a ghost. No living being could enter the veil as it was taboo unless during certain situations. Issei could peer into the Veil to an extent though with the spell, enough to see lingering invisible spirits.

For him, it was like a gray film tinting every color in his eyes the last time he tried this.

Although something was off.

Issei could see something like ripples distortions like when a pebble dropped into the still pond water, though there was more than one source in this case. There was no noise, though.

Unfortunately, the spell did not include his sense of hearing, so if anything happened specifically in the Veil without touching the material world, he would be deaf to it.

"Strange…" Issei scratched his head. Unfortunately, there was extremely limited information on the Veil even in the Grigori libraries. All information on the Veil is prohibited to all except for Gods and divine beings that govern the dead and the afterlives.

"Um…"

Issei turned to the voice.

"...What are you doing here?" Issei asked Ravel.

She was in her usual light purple dress with the feathers. Her hairstyle was still combed in the iconic twintail drill hairs.

"I'm looking for you, actually." Ravel replied with a slightly sheepish tone, "The others are worried after seeing you stormed out of the house earlier."

"Now they feel guilty? Well, too bad. Tell them I'm not seeing them for a while." Issei frowned. "They've taken the magical girl shit too far. I do NOT deserve this level of humiliation."

"About that…" Ravel took out a phone and read the screen, "They expected that this will be your response, so…. They sort of asked me to relay these counter-arguments."

"...Like what?" Issei quirked a brow.

"Ahem. They said that it is your fault for making a deal with a Satan, a literal devil king, without thinking things through. After all, she did, and I quote, 'loophole' you."

"I deserve some payback, even more so." Issei frowned.

"They also said that they at least deserve some… catharsis, after what you've put them through in their training camp."

"I did it for their own good, and they asked for it. It is either that or marriage with your brother." Issei argued back.

"Also, you will only be a trend for a while. You will fade into anonymity in no time."

"Screw them, I still won't go back." Issei stubbornly refused.

"Err, in that case…" Ravel then kept reading through her cellphone, "Your mother and father said, I quote, 'if you don't grow up and get your act together, you will be grounded for a month', and… Your father and mother also will tell Irina's parents about what you two have done together."

"…Why!?" Issei asked.

Why are they doing this to him? He did not deserve this kind of betrayal.

"I'm not sure, to be honest… But the point is, everyone wanted to apologize and I believe it will be very immature of you to stay angry at them." Ravel argued.

"Hah…" Issei sighed. "It still pisses me off that they're resorting to something so cheap. Hah, fine. Tell them I'll head home in a while. Gonna go to a massage parlor to relieve the stress, first."

"I understand. But back to the present - what are you doing here, Lord Ise?" Ravel asked again.

"...Stuff." Issei replied as he looked around, before he glanced at Ravel, "Tell me, Ravel… Have you ever seen spirits?"

Ravel blinked at the question, "Like elementals and souls of the deceased? I never saw them myself, but I am aware that they exist. Why are you asking?"

Issei paused. Right now, he was taking in the sight of vibrations of the thin gray film, the window to the veil.

"Met a ghost once… Well, him and a bunch of evil spirits. It's rare to see a spirit able to interact with the material world from the veil, you know?"

Ravel blinked again, "You did…? Um, well, how did it go?"

"We… kind of had fun. It is a strange yet fun kind of story. He lured me into helping him lay his mother's soul to rest. And get this, the fun twist is that the ghost boy is super strong, you know? First time I met someone that can telekinetically throw me around like a ragdoll. He can even become intangible, so annoyingly invincible haha."

"You fought him?"

"Yeah. He said he wanted to play with his first friend… before he went away. We were playing heroes and villains… have you ever seen a ghost pass away peacefully? It's… very touching you know? Family members greeting you as you make your way to heaven, flashing you a smile before an angel comes down and picks them up?"

Ravel found herself smiling slightly at the visual description of a happy ending, "No… but I can picture it."

"Yeah… I am feeling a bit nostalgic today." He nodded to himself. "You want to come with me?"

"Where?" Ravel asked.

"To this massage parlor. I came there once with Kiba, and the staff there is pretty good." Issei offered his hand.

Ravel looked a bit conflicted - on one hand, the boy she fancied was asking her to accompany him to the town, which could be considered as a date. On the other hand, everyone back home had asked her to bring him back.

…Then again, nobody told her the exact time when she had to bring him back home, did they?

…and she could not recall the last time they spent time together like this…

It was time to let her inner devil take flight. She accepted his hand with a giddy smile.

"Sure!"

"What's taking her so long?"

Rias muttered as she paced around the living room back and forth. She was with her peerage and the Church girls, biting her thumb nail with worry.

"…Do you think Ise hates us now?" Koneko asked. Her ears were drooping a little.

The girls started to grow concerned by his growing absence. Hours had already passed since he stormed off, already almost lunch time by now.

[No, no.]

Both Irina and Tsubasa blinked as they replied in unison, with the latter gestured the former to elaborate further.

"Maybe we did go a bit too far in having fun out of his expense, but it will be a cold day in heaven and hell when Ise hates us over something like this." Irina said with a wink, "Still, just apologize and he will come around."

"…But where could he have gone?" Akeno asked. Then Akeno widened her eyes. "You don't… think he went away to fight Lady Leviathan out of spite, do you?"

"No, no, that's unlikely." Rias spoke, "Not only that Lady Leviathan is all the way in the Underworld, I doubt Ise can just go there without immediate help."

On cue, the front door was opened, and a pair of familiar faces arrived in the living room.

"I'm back." Issei greeted as he took off his shoes.

He sounded… very relieved for some reason when he entered, like he exorcised a demon out of his shoulders.

In fact, it looked like he was glowing with an aura of relief.

Wait, Ravel also looked a little dazed. The girls squinted when the blonde was breathing… in a certain manner. Her cheeks were rosy red.

"Welcome back, Ise!" Asia - blessed her heart, simply ran towards him happily.

"Sorry for being late. Had to go somewhere to release my stress." Issei smiled as Asia hugged him.

Their eyes turned owlish - the glow up, the late home-coming, and stress release?

"Ravel is a bit out of it at the moment. Mind helping me lead her to bed?" Issei asked.

"Eh? Oh, n-no, you don't have to…" Ravel's blush turning redder only incited their suspicions.

"...Man-stealing grilled chicken." Koneko remarked with narrowed eyes.

"Hm? What was that?" Issei asked, with an oblivious tone.

"…Issei…" Irina started to whimper. "D-Did you really…"

"Oh, yeah, I went to the one place with her. Man, it was soooo gooood." Issei sighed with a satisfied smile. "It's like all of the evils of the world left my body, you know?"

Issei had yet to realize the can of worms he was opening, when Tsubasa cleared up her throat. "Um… Ise, babe? I'll ask this once and I want you to answer honestly - did you have sex with Ravel?"

Issei was immediately snapped out of whatever euphoria left in him and he finally found that the girls were sporting various ominous glares and smiles on their faces.

"What?" Issei blinked.

"Issei, I know we did something terrible to you, but did you really have to… sleep with another girl just to hurt us!?" Irina shouted, tearing up.

"What? No, I went to the massage parlor with her." Issei denied, unfazed by the drama.

That caused the others to blink, "...Massage parlor?" Akeno asked.

"Yeah, I told you about it. I went there with Irina and Xenovia, that place, remember?" Issei turned to his childhood friend.

Irina stared at her boyfriend before she replied, "...Are you talking about that massage parlor?"

"Oh yeah. Man, that place was heaven."

Ravel leaned on Issei's side, looking eerily blissful.

"…You're telling me that you went to that brothel with her?" Irina asked.

Issei froze. He completely forgot about that aspect of the place. It did not help when Ravel started hugging his waist.

"…No?"

"Ise…" Irina gave a growl with a pout.

"Iri, you know I never went to that kind of place. Like I said before, the public services are that good." Issei sighed.

They did not look convinced.

"Are you seriously… you know what, screw it. Don't believe me? Fine, fine, go to that place and try the deluxe package if you care, I'm not dealing with this overused trope. Moving on," Issei decides to skip the drama as he helped carry Ravel off her feet. Ravel blinked as she started blushing hard.

"I'm going to carry her to her room. Then we're going to discuss our plans for summer. Meaning, Iri, your real test is coming soon. Be ready."

Issei walked away with Ravel in his arms, leaving the girls behind, stunned by his rejection of their questioning.

They did not expect Issei to walk out on them like that willingly.

"…So…" Ravel fidgeted in his arms. "Do we… have a relationship now?" She asked.

Issei remained silent as he walked the stairs. "…Ravel. If I asked you for sex for real, are you okay with?" Issei asked.

"I…!" Ravel found herself unable to reply.

Seeing the girl having a hard time to answer, Issei only sighed as he ruffled her crown, "...Sorry for asking like that. Just… forget that I asked and take your time."

Ravel blushed profusely.

Issei at least confirmed that this girl was indeed infatuated with him. He had no idea why, but she was. Now he wondered how he should process this as he opened the door to her room.

"I…" Ravel took a deep breath when Issei let her down. She fidgeted her plimsoll shoes. "I don't mind if it's you."

Issei froze. His mind trailed to Ravel's very erotic reaction to the heavenly pleasure of the parlor…

"Shit, I'm being corrupted." Issei hissed as he shook his head. At this rate, he might become perverted as the idea of him being the center of all these beautiful girls with their quirks and charms entertaining him.

"So is that a yes? Are we in a relationship?" Ravel asked with a hopeful smile.

"...What is it about me you like, even?" Issei asked.

Ravel fidgeted for a second before she took a breath, "...Ever since I learned how to read, I've always liked heroes in fairy tales - those who fight and protect the innocents in the face of unknown dangers."

Her mind reeled back to the sight of the young man who stood against the villain to protect the girl in his care.

"When I saw you standing up to Diodora Astaroth to protect Asia Argento behind you, I… was reminded of those fairy tales." Ravel smiled sheepishly, "I think that was when you got my attention, then, the days I spent here with you, gave me more insight about your character."

"...Aaahh…"

So it was one of those.

Issei started to get it… the unexpected perks of being a hero, specifically getting the girl. He didn't even expect to land it.

"...I see."

Now, here comes the big question. What should he do with this revelation? Should he accept her? Or reject her? He already had two girlfriends…

"I think we should spend some time getting to know each other more first but…" Issei rubbed his hair. "I think we can work this out."

"Really?!" Ravel jumped with a smile.

"Yeah… though I have to address Irina's problem first. We'll talk about this later, okay?" Issei asked.

Ravel nodded as Issei left the room.

"...Fuuu… alright."

[How does it feel to be a true lady's man?]

Ddraig asked.

"A bit strange since I don't see myself as a lady's man." Issei responded as he walked down the stairs.

He froze when he saw Vali, Gold, and Platinum standing there.

They were all smiling.

There were all wearing… magical Isa merch, from hats to holding wands with his genderbent picture.

It was a little ridiculous to see the hats dangling from their antennas and the shirts being stretched to the very limits on their masculine bodies, both bearing his gender bent pic doing a magical girl star pose.

"Welcome back. I hope you like our souvenirs." Vali smirked as he waved a plastic replica of Isa's red wand.

No more games.

Issei clenched his teeth so hard that it nearly cracked.

He summoned Ascalon. Tension ignited the air as all eyes laid on the dragon-slayer blade.

"You. Whip out your Juggernaut." While he wanted to get back at the other two, Vali must come first. He helped feed him to the magical girl.

Vali's smirk fell when he saw Ascalon.

"...Are we doing this?" Vali's lips slowly curled back up with anticipation.

"You scared of losing to an overhyped chunk of metal, chickenass?"

It was time to put Vali in his place.

XoX

"You know, I was wondering when you'll finally let me go all out."

In the training room, Vali started to rant.

The girls, from Rias to Ravel and Xenovia to Asia, watched with expectations with the two metallic sperms standing by the side with tense interest. It would be the first for them to see the ultimate form of the Balance Breakers of the Dragon Emperors.

Issei ignored him as his eyes focused on Vali's posture.

"I've been practicing every day since that day. Now that you have Ascalon…"

Issei already summoned Ascalon and started measuring the angle. Yes, he could do it. He slid his foot back as he twisted his body ninety degrees, his head still facing Vali while his body was facing right from the neck down.

"Let's see if your sword of legend can slay Albion's full power."

Both Dragon Emperors donned their scale mail instantly, red dragon knight facing white dragon knight.

"I, who am about to awaken."

Issei looked up at the ceiling. He already started using the awakening breath. It was the first time his mind was so crystal clear with focus… was this the true power of rage and vengeance? Issei took this to note.

"Am the Heavenly Dragon who has taken the principles of supremacy from God."

Issei shifted the angle of his stance a little. The accuracy must be spot on.

"I envy the 'infinite' and I pursue the 'dream'."

He had an idea what to do when Vali starts with Dividing.

"I shall become the White Dragon of Supremacy."

Vali would definitely start with Dividing.

"And I shall take you to the limits of white paradise!"

[JUGGERNAUT DRIVE!]

Vali's form immediately evolved, his humanoid form growing into a dragon clad in armor.

[Divi-]

[Explosion!]

However, before Vali could make the first move, Ascalon sliced the air and impaled his chest like a thrown spear, right in sapphire jewel center

Then Issei followed and punched the hilt of Ascalon, closing the distance frighteningly fast with a green trail marking his flight.

An uppercut to the jaw sent the dragon head's skyward, the red dragon knight spiraling over his head and mounted his neck, two clawed fingers spearing both dragon eyes as dismounted, corkscrew spinning around the dragon and spun the the dragon like a drill, throwing him sideways until he landing on his stomach as the impact lodged Ascalon deeper into Vali, piercing his solar plexus.

Everyone watched, stunned, as Issei grabbed Vali's horns, planted his feet on his nape, and pulled with so much might that he tore off the dragon's head.

The bleeding cambion revealed, coughing from the sword in his stomach, felt no reprieve or respite when his foe threw away the armor dragon head and jumped down, smashing his fist into his nape, his head caroming off the floor only to for an uppercut to smash his jaw, launching him out of the armor.

Issei jumped, already propelled above Vali, a raised fist charging with dragonic power as the green eyes of his visor stared into Vali's stunned gaze before he smashed Vali's back down, his boosters propelling him in his descent.

The training area rumbled, the cracks reaching the walls to the spectators' shock.

When Vali crashed, the impact with the floor knocked Ascalon out of Vali's chest, spinning in the air right into Issei's hand as he stood over the defeated White Dragon Emperor.

"...Sword beats dragon." Issei said as he walked away, banishing his scale mail and sword, revealing a calm, stoic, yet terrifying version of the boy that they teased for being a magical girl for a day.

The current Issei bore a presence so eerie and unsettling that they found him unapproachable, all of his negative emotions worn like a fiery shroud that would burn any that dared to enter.

For Irina, it was similar to experiencing Saitama's moment of rage.

Issei stopped.

"Asia."

"Y-Yes?!" Asia meeped. Rassei was trembling in her hair, very afraid by Issei's aura.

"...Please tend to Vali for me. And everyone, meet me in the living room once you're done." Issei said as the girls started to part ways for the victor, their eyes on his back until he left the training room.

The silence returned to the room as Asia remained stunned, until Vali's groan snapped her out of her stupor and reminded her of her duty.

As she immediately ran towards the fallen White Dragon Emperor, the girls gulped a little.

"...Flawless victory." The platinum sperm praised.

"And his first. He focused his anger well." The golden one nodded.

The two metallic sperms followed Issei towards the exit.

"Burn this fight in your memories well, girls. This is how the rage of the mighty must be wielded."

The sperms imparted their wisdom as they left the arena, leaving the girls to digest the events in their minds and souls.

The girls were uncomfortable around Issei after his overwhelming victory against Vali in his full power. Vali was seated across Issei, holding his chest, the place where Ascalon stabbed.

Even though Asia healed his wounds with Asclepius and Twilight Healing, Vali was still reeling from the reaction of holy energy and devil flesh.

"Alright, now let's discuss our plan of action. But first, how are you feeling, Vali?"

"Like I almost died, you ass." Vali grimaced.

"Great, you'll live. Moving on."

Issei sat on the living room couch. He could feel the catharsis calming him down, relaxing his stress.

"Summer vacation is approaching fast and waiting for no one. Before I start, do you girls have any plans this summer?" Issei turned towards the devils in ORC.

"I-Ahem. Yes. High-class devils of my age-group are required for mandatory summons to Underworld this year for our debut in official Rating Games." Rias replied, "Unless it's an absolute emergency, I will not be around Kuoh until…. I say one or two weeks before the summer break ends."

"Cool, cool." Issei took a deep breath. He could feel himself calming down from the adrenaline rush. "Alright… is it possible to delay that? I'm gonna need all the help I can get to help Iri."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Rias sighed, "Even with the treaty between the three factions, while we might be allies, there are still lingering enmities and freshly forged contracts can be easily broken. Also…. The situation concerning Irina can be seen as a domestic affair; unless Lady Leviathan and whoever is in charge of their foreign relations are involved, we are not free to do as we please, regardless of our motives."

"Damn…" Issei leaned back into the recliner. "...So each to our own… hah. Well, as for me, I had an idea on how to track Valper's trail."

Issei smirked a little.

"Get this. I requested Azazel to send me… a part of Valper's corpse." Issei hinted.

"What? Why… Oh." Xenovia understood. "You plan to use the dog to track Valper's scent in certain locations… but will it work? I mean…"

"A serial sex-offender like him likes to spread his scent around if you catch my drift. I sincerely doubt that they can clean something as filthy as him from anything completely." Issei explained.

"I believe your plan is a long-shot, Ise." Genos chimed in, alerting everyone of his presence as he sat down amongst them. "Valper left the Vatican for Japan for at least one week, and during that time, I noted there was at least one downpour on the Vatican, considering it was still Spring. Most of his scent would have been washed off by the rain by the time we arrive there."

"There has to be something though. I mean, can't we teach Rover how to pick the scent of corrupt bastards?" Issei asked.

"You are over-simplifying matters, Ise. To begin with, who are these, 'corrupt bastards' that you want Rover to track? We haven't even gotten their names."

"Well… why not have Rover sniff the officials at the Vatican for starters to see if anyone's off?" Issei suggested.

Genos shrugged, "...I suppose that is more actionable. I believe I can smuggle Rover into the Vatican with some help from Michael."

"Yes!" Issei pumped his arms up.

"However, it will still be a struggle." Genos added. "In fact, there is a high chance that they'll be prepared for us."

"True, I'd say it's safe to assume that a squad will be waiting for us as soon as we land in Rome." Issei nodded, "We can't let them get their hands on Irina… Wait, we can't let them get to her parents too, can we?"

Irina looked alarmed when her parents were mentioned.

"I've been keeping tabs with Touji Shidou." Genos intercepted, "Last I heard, he and his wife were laying low in England. Several Black clones are looking out for them too. They will be fine for a while, at least."

Irina sighed in relief, with Xenovia patting her shoulder.

"...What about Sister Griselda?" Issei asked, "Any news on her? How long is her house arrest?"

"Unconfirmed." Genos answered. "The archbishops are being vague and eluding all attempts for a straight answer. However, I have a contingency for that. I snuck one of the Black clones into the Vatican."

Everyone blinked at the information as they imagined Black cackling and peeping into every room while breaking every holy rule like the devilish demon he is.

"...And when did you snuck him in that place?" Issei asked, "Are there any updates yet?"

"When I met Gabriel with Saitama." Genos replied, "...But as for Black…"

"Still looking, you know?" Black reminded Issei of his existence hiding behind his couch. "Currently peeking for any transaction papers and writing them down. Good thing I came in prepared, brought my own break-in kit and stuff."

Issei and the others were now curious of the tools at Black's disposal, but they decided to leave it be.

"Alright, putting that one aside, I guess it's just me, Irina, Asia, Xenovia, Rover, more Blacks and…." Issei then turned to his uncle, "...Is dad coming along?"

"No, he is busy. His status as the strongest comes with responsibilities. Like stopping wars."

'By punching them in the face.' Issei thought with a mental snicker, before he asked, "...Do you know where he is going?"

"He is heading to a confidential location to oversee delegations from the Shinto Pantheon. You do not need to worry about him." Genos nodded.

"...Cool, then." Issei then continued, "So, yes, the party I said earlier, plus Uncle Genos… Did Michael give us permission to teleport?"

"No, the church will consider it as 'infiltration.'"

"Damn." Issei didn't need to know what that meant. "I assume we have a private plane somewhere like your car the other night?"

Genos nodded, "We do, going through public airlines is the same as marking ourselves for our enemies to track. We can go inside Rome more discreetly while still following the legal channels."

"Ohhh. What can it do? Can it shoot lasers? Wait, can it travel to space?! No no no!" Issei asked, his inner child excited. "…Can it transform into a battle Mech?"

Genos stared at his nephew for a few seconds before replying, "We are going to use a standard private-jet. What you have in mind is still on the drawing board."

"What? You have a battle car at the ready but nothing on the Mech jet?! Booooo!" Issei jeered.

"The parts for that are far more complex, difficult to manufacture, and the raw materials needed are hard to reach. Assuming that Black will contribute with his secret stash of wealth and connections."

"Hell, I'm down for it!" Black, as if on cue, popped up behind Issei's couch. "I'll throw in as many gold bars your way if you make it turn into a battle suit for the big me's! No wait, build more battle mechs as well! We need those!"

Issei nodded furiously.

"Noted, but I promise nothing on the deadline. Moving on." Genos then carried on, "Regarding the Occult Research Club's trip to the Underworld, I want you to keep this."

The cyborg then proceeded to distribute several documents with the member's names written on each of them.

When Rias opened her file, she gave a quick look before she turned to ask, "What is this, Mr. Genos?"

"Your training regimen." Genos' reply garnered several looks from the devils, "In the light of your upcoming debut in official Rating Games, it is safe to assume that you will be pitched into an official match. For that, you all need to grow stronger."

Some of the members were reading, with Rias nodding in understanding, "...While we appreciate the help, sir… Why are you going this far?"

"It has become a part of my duty, after all." Genos replied, "As of today, I am effectively the advisor of Occult Research Club. On a related note, Azazel will be the advisor of the Student Council, or should I say, Sona Sitri's peerage."

"...Eh?!" Everyone balked at the announcement.

"Ohhhhhhh, you guys are screwed." Issei pursed his lips.

Rias swiftly read through the contents. Her expression contorted with disbelief, blinking thrice before she looked up.

"…Are you serious?" She asked.

"I am." Genos simply replied, "While I won't be able to oversee your training in the Underworld, Azazel and Shemhazai have been notified of this endeavor, and one of them will act as your supervisor. I expect an admirable performance once you dive into your first real Rating Game. I also will test you myself, to see how far you are following my instructions to the letter."

"Also… Issei, are you ready to prepare Irina for her journey?"

Irina… Issei inhaled as he gave his attention to his childhood friend. She returned his gaze. There was a hint of hesitation before it was replaced by resolution.

"Yeah… though it depends. Gotta make sure she's ready for the ride."

In a certain location in Rome, Griselda Quarta just finished putting on her white tank-top, as she was preparing herself to retire for the night, inside her domicile turned prison. The air had gotten hot lately due to the upcoming summer, and even with her air-conditioner running, the temperature in her abode was still too warm to her liking. Thus she only covered her lower-half in a simple pair of panties.

As she combed through her golden locks in front of the mirror, she looked to the side - at the moon outside her window.

Her thoughts hurried towards her two charges in the Hyoudou's household.

How were they doing? How was Irina fairing with her scars from Valper Galilei's machinations? Is Xenovia eating properly? She heard that the Three Factions had signed a treaty to cease further hostility.

She could relieve herself from worry at the thought of them being safe from the clutches of war.

Her mind wandered to the rumors she heard regarding her ward being charge with… treason for her affiliation with Valper Galilei.

Inconceivable

Her grip on her comb tightened slightly. Still, considering her being charged with heresy for revealing taboo knowledge to Xenovia, Griselda had little to no power to speak in the court. She could consider herself fortunate to be placed under house-arrest instead of the Vatican prison.

Regardless, all she could do was wait until her incarceration period was over - her allies in the Vatican would be ready to welcome her back and rally to plead for Irina's innocence.

She took a glance outside - particularly, at the house across the street from her own. The Vatican has placed a couple of guards to watch over her quarters. They were secretly Archangel Michael's hand-picked exorcists, so they were supposedly trustworthy enough.

However, something was awry.

She walked closer towards the window. Instincts honed by her experience warned her of dark omens.

The road outside of her house was quiet - too quiet, even; with a little to no light illuminating the night. Then, she narrowed her eyes when the house where her guards were staying suddenly went dark, like someone had shut off the lights altogether.

There should be at least one guard watching her house from the windows even at this time. They took day and night shifts when she asked.

Griselda closed the window, curtains and all, and walked towards the dresser.

oXo

Several figures were huddling together just outside of the rear door under the cloak of starless night. The helm of the group worked on the door-lock, tweaking and fiddling with lock-picks, while the others stood guard for intruders.

The door whispered a click.

"It's open." The lock-picker whispered before reaching for his radio, "...Taotie, this is Hundun. We are coming in through the rear."

[Affirmative, wait for our signal. We are entering through the front.]

"Understood."

The group then remained quiet as they opened the door, standing-by for their further instructions.

[Move in, regroup in the living room.]

Every single one of them was bedecked in full-body leather and kevlar armor, all holding submachine guns, equipped with silencers and all, their heads covered in full face gas masks.

They were trained professionals, mercenaries forged in modern war, favored by men in great stations of power.

Once they were in the living room, the group was revealed to be 6 people in total. The one acting as the leader of team 'Taotie' nodded to the one leading 'Hundun', before tapping on his radio again.

"Qiong Qi, this is Taotie; having regrouped with Hundun. What's your status?"

[...In position.]

"Copy, we are moving out." The leader then addressed the rest, "Search through the house, check every corner and room. Remember, capture if possible, eliminate if necessary; the woman might be unarmed, but she is still one of the Vatican's best combatants. Be cautious."

oXo

From her hiding spot, Griselda scowled. She recognized their foreign tongue, mandarin.

Foreign mercenaries have invaded her domicile, and they most likely killed her a silent prayer to them, promising to avenge them by surviving the best she could.

Footsteps approached, the soldiers dispersing, the sound of them spreading to cover more ground in their search. Fatal mistake - gave her the chance to pick them off.

She did not have her holy arsenal, the enchanted battle maiden attire that would enhance her abilities to take on the supernatural or the Holy sword that allowed her to stand to the might of even Malkuth. They were confiscated by the superiors, but she could take on mortal men with ease, training or equipment regardless.

Swiftly, she changed her clothes, a black T-shirt and a pair of black trousers, the dark color to blend her with the shadows.

Her only weapons available were the few knives from her kitchen.

Two soldiers went inside her bedroom. She watched quietly just behind the door at the corner of the room,

Griselda's eyes were honing at the backs of the mercenaries who began to scan around. When one soldier was about to check on her dresser, she took action.

With both knives in hand, the third sheathed in her pants, she snaked her right arm around and stabbed his throat from the right, through the jugular and the vocal cords.

"Wo mei you kan-guh?!"

When the other turned around, she threw the knife from her left hand while gently lowering her first kill, the knife piercing through the lenses of the mask and into his right eye.

It was so sudden that the man could not even scream.

Griselda had already let the second soldier's corpse fall against the nearby wall. She quickly ran to him and set the corpse down before it could thud.

Now she had firearms at her disposal. She already recognized the make as silent submachine guns with silencers, composite stock for light grip. She proceeded to search the body for ammunition and weapons, retrieving a sturdier combat knife for warfare, more effective.

Armed and ready, more ammo in her pocket, she carefully peeked out from the door, finding an empty hallway. Confirming and ensuring her anonymity in the upper floor, she approached the stairs and peeped down, hearing more footsteps.

It appeared the mercenaries had split into teams of two - one team to check upstairs, which she had dealt with earlier, the other two were looking deeper into the house - dining area, kitchen and toilet; while the last team remained in the living room to stand guard.

While their backs were still turned on her, Griselda quietly trekked down the stairs with her stolen guns trained on them. She glanced around, making sure that the other two were still roaming back inside, and waited for the two soldiers in the living room to look away from each other.

One soldier roamed near the cabinets and tapped on his radio, "Hundun-1, this is Taotie-1. How is the upper-floor? Over."

Knowing that they would learn about the death of their comrades soon, she aimed her SMG at the other soldier, who was just about to turn towards her general direction.

She pulled the trigger, and the small hail of bullets pierced through the gas-mask of the enemy soldier, killing him as his body fell to the floor.

Unfortunately, the other soldier who was radio-calling took notice of his comrade's demise and quickly hid further inside the living room, preventing Griselda from having an aim on him.

"CONTACT!"

The merc's shout could be heard throughout the house, and Griselda has already heard more footsteps coming from the dining room.

As soon as the other soldiers came up and met with Griselda's eyes, all hell broke loose as bullets flying around, destroying everything in the path - walls, floors, furniture, etc. were littered with holes.

Pitted 3 on 1, Griselda had no other choice but to retreat upstairs. She quickly went back inside her bedroom and locked the door. She looked for something that she could use to barricade the door, but she was not strong enough to move the desk or the bed - not when she had only a short time before the mercs caught up on her.

Thus, she decided to lay low behind her bed, ready to gun down anyone who would barge through the door first.

However, around half a minute later, there was not even any attempt to break through the door. Griselda furrowed her eyebrows - what are those mercs planning?

A few seconds later, she stood up, wanting to inspect outside. However, her vision suddenly blurred, followed by a sudden disorientation as her head felt heavy. Struggling to keep herself steady on her feet, she shook her head while blinking to regain her focus, but to no avail.

She massaged her head, thinking hard of what could possibly cause her current ailment. It was then she noticed it - a faint smell flowing in the air, and she traced the smell back to the ventilation hole on the ceiling.

Her house used a central air-conditioning system, in which the outdoor unit was vulnerable for the enemies to tinker on. She did not use what kind of chemicals the other mercs outside were pouring into the outdoor unit, but it was certainly as her focus gradually left her eyes.

Then the door was broken through. Refusing to give up, Griselda let out a cry and used her remaining strength to spray the rest of her gun's ammunition in front of her. Unfortunately, her dwindling focus caused her aim to wander off, allowing one of the soldiers to use the opening to run towards her and rammed the stock of his gun on her temple, forcing her down to her knees.

Still refusing to give in, Griselda lunged forward and grabbed the soldier's gun, resulting in the two engaging in a brief tug o' war, in which the sister rammed her knees up to the soldier's crotch, causing him to grunt in pain.

However, before she could have performed a take-down, the other mercs had gotten inside the room, with one of them pried her off his downed comrade and threw her back to the floor. Soon Griselda was overwhelmed by a pair of soldiers ganging up on her. It was only thanks to the drugs in the system that prevented her from fighting back.

The soldiers finally ceased their attacks, now watching the battered form of Griselda Quarta - some bruises covered her face and her exposed skin, with the woman herself coughing hoarsely from the beating delivered on her gut, her eyes glaring weakly at her captors.

The soldier then tapped into his radio, "Qiong Qi, this is Taotie. Target has been subdued. Thanks for the back-up."

[Copy, Taotie. It certainly took a while until the drug took effect.]

"She is one of the best exorcists the Vatican has to offer, after all. No matter, preparing for exfil."

[Got it, we are coming in with the props. Qiong Qi out.]

Griselda could not even move her body anymore, as the soldiers proceeded to tie her up - her hands behind her back, her foot wrapped together and her mouth gagged with a duct-tape. A few minutes later, Griselda then saw a couple of more men entering the room - one of them was carrying a large bag - enough to fit one adult inside.

"Good work on making it to the end." The newcomer greeted his comrade, who replied with a solemn tone.

"Some of us died…"

"We're lucky that some of us even lived."

"Did you bring the guards' corpses?"

"Yes, the rest of the team are setting up the place. The Vatican's first guess will be this woman escaping after killing the guards checking up on her."

Griselda gritted her teeth, but her strength still eluded her.

"Right, now let's wrap her up nicely. We've roughed her up enough. Can't afford to damage her further if we still want those shares once they ship her to China."

Griselda could not help but wonder - China? Where are these people planning on taking her to?

She grit her teeth as her eyes searched for anything, anything that could…

…She stared at the thing smiling at her from the doorway.

Only half of his form was blocked by the entrance frame, the other half staring at her with that wicked smile.

It placed a finger on his lips as the intruders started to cover her in the bag.

It was a black imp with a white face.

She watched as it started to… meld with the floor, spreading like a cancerous mass of living darkness, white faces smiling as it rose to the walls and the ceiling.

The captors were unaware as arms sprouted like fruit from the ceiling, a black stalk elongating like a tumor, full of white smiling faces that looked like they were going to unspeakable, inhumane things to the men around her.

Honestly, Griselda found it terrifying. The sheer silence of its creeping was beyond scary, like she was in a horror flick, only the monster in the movie was out to save her and… do god-knows what to these poor souls. She hoped that the thing wouldn't take revenge on her for cutting him into pieces the last time they met face to face.

"What the hell are you..."

One of the men noticed and followed her line of sight. The man stared in mute horror as the many black arms grabbed them.

All that was heard was the profane screams, gunfire, and maniacal cackling until it all went silent.

"…You know, this won't end well for you." Issei warned.

It was Irina's final test - to prove Issei that she had whatever it takes to venture back to the Vatican - where horrors were inflicted upon her.

"If you want to back down, now's the time."

Irina took a deep breath, before looking back on Issei, "...I'm not giving in, Issei. I'm going with you whether you like it or not."

Issei sighed. He looked down, at the floor, in silent thought, "...You know, I never thought we're doing this when we were kids." Issei smiled a little.

"Me being a girl? Or becoming your girlfriend?" Irina giggled.

"Both. And dueling for the right to come with me on a dangerous adventure… The only thing I can be happy about is the chance to beat the shit out of every bastard that dares come at me." Issei joked.

The two of them remained in contemplative silence.

"...I'm not gonna let you reach the time limit." Issei said.

"You can try." Irina summoned her wings of angelic light. "Son of the Strongest Man or not, I'm going to make it and stand beside you."

Issei closed his eyes and inhaled.

"...Alright. You asked for it." Issei replied.

Immediately, his red dragon knight armor donned his form, emerald eyes gazing into the angel girl's.

Irina summoned her two swords of light and took a stance, sharply inhaling as Issei summoned Ascalon.

The two remained unmoving.

They waited, still like statues, one waiting for the other to make their first move.

Until Issei suddenly vanished, his spot was replaced with a small crater and a gust of wind.

Irina's eyes widened as she quickly held her swords in X-shaped before her, just in time to receive Issei's sudden punch.

The impact was like taking a rocket, one designed to go past orbit. Her last-second reflex stopped her from receiving the direct strike.

The dragon already closed the distance despite her launch velocity. Ascalon swung, the sword of legend clashing against the sword of light as the force pushed Irina to the floor as her back dragged through the ground.

Irina discarded her second sword due to her weaker grip, forced to rely on one weapon to defend herself.

Issei's free hand grabbed both of her wrists at once to her surprise as he lifted her up with one hand.

"Give it up, Iri." Issei said.

In response, Irina struggled to break her hands free.

"Angel strength or not, you can't break free from my grip. I even beat the shit out of Juggernaut Vali."

"Screw you, that was a lucky cheapshot!" Vali shouted from the sidelines while rubbing his chest.

Ignoring the shouting, Issei then saw Irina taking a deep breath. He narrowed his eyes, curiously sensing that the girl was planning something.

"Alright, I'll bite. Show me your trick." Issei decided to go with the flow as he waited for the-

"Whoa!" Issei flung his head back, dodging a surprise lightspear that shot out from below his chin; forcing him to relinquish his hold on Irina.

The said girl quickly kicked him - using his tough frame as a leverage to launch herself away and took to the air.

"Aha!" Irina shouted victoriously.

She knew that she could use his unfair reflexes against him.

Irina summoned more and more lightspears. She knew she could not beat him in close combat, so she must attack him with long range.

From behind his face-plate, Issei smirked. He then set his feet apart, and performed a few motions and manoeuvers with his arms before putting up a stance and silently taunted Irina to have at him.

"Hiyah!" She threw her light spears at her boyfriend.

Issei's arms moved, deflecting them as the light projectiles just bent their trajectories away from him. He then weaved his way towards her like an unstoppable juggernaut.

"Try harder!" Issei shouted as he walked faster and faster, slowly breaking into a sprint as she started to panic.

Her panic deepened when Issei started blocking and smacking her projectiles away with just one hand as if to flex on her.

"Stop being unfair!" Irina shouted as she rose higher and higher, continuing to rain down light spears as Issei soared, green energy propelling him towards her with frightening acceleration.

As Issei got close, Irina suddenly smiled as she pulled out her newest weapon.

Houyi's bow, the X-shaped bow of illustrious make.

Issei widened his eyes when she pulled a more intricate light spear, one with a spiral pattern at the tip.

She released the quiver and let her 'arrow' loose.

It was more like a cannon than an arrow shot from a piece of string.

Issei immediately deflected it away, but he made a mistake in trying to fight against the velocity as it exploded in his hand, killing his ascent as it knocked him back down.

"Aha! Gotcha!"

Landing hard, Issei blinked as he stared at his hand. The armor held yet the vibration still tingled.

"Well… Nothing I can't handle." Issei side-stepped another explosive arrow, backwalking away from a line of explosions tracking his position.

Issei wondered if he really should've given that thing to Irina before the test now that he thought about it as he started swatting some of the arrows away. Despite his attempt to gently deflect them, some of them detonated, forcing a grimace from his lips.

It appears he still had a lot to learn in the Water Stream Style.

Time for the more offensive Explosive Heart Release Fist Style.

Issei disappeared in a blur, the ground where he once stood cracked as he ascended.

Irina fired another arrow. Issei widened his eyes when the arrow turned out to be a super flash bang as he covered his eyes.

"You're really playing this cheap, you know that right?!" Issei shouted at her.

"Bleh!" Irina playfully stuck out her tongue at him while firing a piercing arrow of light.

Issei raised his guard and blocked the exploding arrows, knocked back as Irina continued firing more and more, pelting him with Houyi's artillery.

Then, several 'boosts' were heard from Issei's armor, and Irina suddenly lost sight of her boyfriend.

A sudden pain exploded through her chest. Irina coughed blood as she flew to the wall, Issei's fist smoking steam as he watched Irina clutch her chest in pain.

The reincarnated angel kept coughing as she dropped to the floor, her lungs and heart felt the impact earlier. She looked up and saw Issei looming over her. Before she could have responded, she was already pressed against the wall by her throat.

"Game over, Iri." Issei said coldly from behind his face-plate. His hand was clasped around Irina's neck, with his knee placed between her thighs, effectively pinning her.

"Hack - Yes… Game over," Irina spoke with a smirk, despite her windpipe being squeezed. She grabbed Issei's armored arm that held her with both of her hands, but she knew better than to break free this time, not when even breathing was too hard for her.

"Times up." Genos spoke from the sidelines.

Issei stared at Irina as Irina flashed a confident grin.

Issei undid his armor and looked at his phone.

Two minutes did pass. With a reluctant sigh, Issei then let Irina off the wall and pulled her into his arms.

"Yay…" Irina cheered weakly into Issei's chest.

Pushing her off so he could meet her eyes, "Hah… damn it all. Why did I give you that bow before this?" Issei grumbled to himself.

"Because you love me." Irina smiled weakly.

"Bah." His eyes then hardened, "But I'm not letting you go anywhere alone. If I see any kind of weakness or anything that can put you at dangerous risk, I'll send you back to Kuoh whether you like it or not. Got it?"

"...Alright. As long as you don't cheat me and send me back the moment we get there."

"Deal."

As they gazed into each other's eyes longingly to the chagrin of the girls, Platinum coughed and cleared his throat.

"Attention everyone." Platinum announced, gathering everyone's notice.

"I have received an update from one of my clones… Seems Griselda Quarta has gone….. Missing."

Everyone remained silent and blinked at the creature, until Issei spoke, "...Come again?"

OMAKE

"Sono Issei Hyoudou. Posso sapere l'hotel più vicino?"

Issei tried to speak Italian, starting with an introduction and asking for the nearest hotel.

"How'd I do? Bleh, Italian twists my tongue." Issei stuck his tongue out and flexed its muscles.

"Y-you are doing great, Ise!" Asia commented with a rather excited tone, "The accent aside, you speak quite fluently for a first-timer!"

"Thanks. I always have a knack with languages." Issei confessed as he rolled his tongue a little to get used to the unique dialect.

"Alright, what's next? Hit me." Issei asked.

"Ummmm… how about this?" She asked, showing him one sentence on a card.

Issei hummed as he read the words, then he spoke, "...Rimarrai al mio fianco?"

"Y-Sì! Rimarrai... sempre con me?"

Issei hummed as he tried to recall the words, "...Sì. Sarò sempre con te." He nodded with a smile.

"...How's that?" Issei asked with an innocent smile.

Asia winced slightly at the question, it appeared the boy missed the point of the brief exchange completely.

Asia whimpered a little before she inhaled.

"Y-Yes, not bad. B-But you need more training!" Asia huffed, refusing to give up.

As the lesson went on, unnoticed by the two, Genos and Black were watching just outside the door.

"...We might have to do something about the kid. Things are just looking…. Stupidly sad by this point." Black remarked, earning a nod from Genos, as they wished Asia good luck.

Black might have an idea what to do on their trip.

OMAKE 2

Azazel was sitting in his office - for once in a long time, he was working and looking through all of his paperworks on his desk. One of them being a report about procurement of a piece taken from the corpse of one Valper Galilei to be delivered to Issei.

He was weirded out a little by the request, but then again, it was Issei's mission on saving his girlfriend, so who was he to judge?

After signing another sheet of paper, Azazel sighed and leaned back on his seat, taking a quick break as he scanned how much was left of his work to do.

Then, he spotted an unfamiliar stack of envelopes being bundled together by a rope. Picking up the bundle, Azazel untied the rope and looked at one of the letters - the sender was one Asia Argento, and it dated back nearly a month ago.

Azazel blinked, why would Asia write a letter to him? Did something happen? He opened the envelope and began reading its contents.

A minute later, Azazel blinked and proceeded to skim through several more letters, only for him to sigh.

"Good grief, that girl…" Azazel chuckled, all of his letters contained Asia Argento's report regarding a certain Red Dragon Emperor, as well as days she spent in Kuoh.

"The observation mission was meant to be a small joke."

Now Azazel felt a little bad for the girl. At least he had to give it a quick read - who knew, he might have caught a glimpse of something interesting.

Hope I didn't nerfed Ise and Vali's power too much there. Please review! ^_^

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