The Unexpected Summoning Ch.8 (Harry Potter/High School DxD)

Read Chapter 7 here 

“So I’m coming along with you?”

“Grayfia wants you to see our abilities. I should have thought about that. You’ll be able to see our abilities before the rating game,” Rias looked at herself in the mirror while running a hand through her hair. While Akeno was in a self-imposed competition with Rias, it was completely one-sided.

She wasn’t a fan of her sister-in-law catching them in the act. That was why Rias made sure to make love to Harry well before Grayfia was supposed to arrive.

“I guess that makes sense,” Harry said thoughtfully, “So, do you know where she’s going to take me?”

“We’ll be going to France, Harry-sama.”

“Fuck me!” Harry yelped in surprise as he jumped away from the unexpected voice behind him.

What was even more surprising was the look Grayfia gave him. Harry would have sworn she was amused, but that couldn’t have been right.

“The area has been cleared, Rias-sama,” Grayfia turned away from Harry, “I can take everyone there whenever you wish.”

“We will be ready to leave soon. Issei will arrive in a few minutes with Asia,” Rias said with a roll of her eyes, “If I have to guess, Issei probably did something to make Asia feel down. He’s probably late from constantly apologizing to her.”

Harry could see that happening. After all, Issei had done that exact thing in front of him multiple times already.

“I’m here!” A loud shout came from downstairs, announcing the arrival of the devil in question.

Less than a minute later, Harry was standing in a teleportation circle with Rias and her peerage. He recognized the lukewarm greeting he received from Kiba and Koneko, well, lukewarm for their personalities. Right before the spell became active, Harry reminded himself to spend more time getting to know them.

Within the time to take a blink, the whole group appeared in what might have been the most beautiful estate Harry had ever seen.

Leaving aside the ridiculously large manor that bordered on being a palace, there was an abundant amount of greenery surrounding the manor while picturesque, snow-topped hills acted as a backdrop. It didn’t take long for Harry to realize that those hills were a massive mountain range. The only reason they looked smaller than they should have was from their distance.

“Where are we?” Harry asked with awe.

[Well, it is not the same planet you were on a few seconds ago.]

“The underworld,” Grayfia confirmed pseudo-death’s words.

“This is called the underworld?” Harry was skeptical, “I know Rias said devils have changed, but this is ridiculous. This should be called heaven!”

As if to disprove Harry, a roar that rattled his bones echoed from deep in the forest. He had heard an angry dragon roar at him from a few feet away, and that was nowhere close to the sheer volume of whatever this beast was.

“Harry-sensei,” Issei said with a quivering voice, “Why did you have to say that?”

“My mistake. I should have known better,” Harry replied while focusing on where the roar originated, “From the range of a rabbit to a god, where does that thing fall?”

[You will die if you fight that.]

“For you? A step below a god,” Grayfia replied, “If you could defeat that Wood Ogre, you might be able to withstand an attack from me.”

“… Brilliant,” Harry felt that he was saying that word far too much recently.

“A barrier protects the area,” Grayfia explained when some in the peerage started to look worried, “Nothing can get in without permission from the Gremory Family.”

“Even that?” Issei asked while pointing in the direction of the roar.

“Don’t worry, Issei,” Rias reassured, “The barrier can even hold back Grayfia for a minute. There’s nothing around that can do anything like that.”

“Rias-sama, please show Harry-sama the ability of your peerage. I must leave with him soon.” Grayfia ignored the awed looks she received from the young devils. This might seem impressive to them, but compared to some monsters that still walked freely, it was nothing.

“Right,” Rias nodded, “Akeno, you start first.”

“My pleasure,” Akeno winked at Harry before two bat-like wings spread out from her back. It was the first objective evidence that wasn’t verbal that proved Akeno was a devil.

“I’m best with lightning,” Akeno said before flying up into the air and lifting her arm, “You had a taste of it already, Harry. Maybe something you’ll let me shock you with anything held back.”

Harry witnessed a magic circle appear in the air before it started to crackle with contained lighting. Less than a second later, Akeno brought her arm down, making a thick bolt of lightning explode on the forest floor.

Harry squinted to ward off the bright flash of light and almost gaped at the destruction of Akeno’s attack. The area affected might only be a few tens of meters, but it was charred to ashes, erasing the existence of the trees that were previously there.

All he could think about was that this was the spell that Akeno had used to knock him out when they first met. Harry stared at a giggling Akeno with newfound wariness.

[Please. You will still welcome her into your bed. What is the use of your caution?]

“Obviously, I’ll still do that. I just have to be careful if I make her angry in the future.”

“How was that?” Akeno landed and hid her wings before hugging Harry’s arm, “It was impressive, right?”

Before Harry could answer, Rias pulled Akeno away and said, “Koneko, you go next.”

The small girl gave a slight nod before clenching her fist and narrowing her eyes. Harry would have cooed at how adorable she was if not for what happened next.

With a quicker-than-expected running speed, Koneko sprinted to a tree that was a few meters thick and threw a punch at it. Harry could hear the muted impact of her tiny fist hitting the hard tree trunk, but he couldn’t see any imprint on the tree. Just when he assumed that Koneko was too young to have impressive powers, there was a loud crack.

A second later, the back of the tree was blown out violently as splinters flew like shrapnel to imbed themselves into the surroundings. Harry watched with wide eyes as the massive tree tilted until it fell and crashed onto the ground.

“Kiba!”

The only other boy in the group smiled as he stepped forward. Harry had to downgrade Koneko’s speed when he saw Kiba’s. The blonde was a blur as he ran to another poor tree that was to be the test dummy.

With swords that seemed to appear out of thin air, Kiba’s arms left afterimages as he slashed the tree before jumping back. Harry didn’t underestimate the aftermath, and he was proven right when Kiba lightly pushed the tree.

There was a clean slice that was almost invisible that became apparent when the tree started to slide. It stayed upright as it followed the diagonal cut and slammed onto the ground before falling right next to the tree Koneko punched down.

[You are worried.]

“I just learned that people that could easily kill me have no chance against Riser’s peerage.”

“Asia and Issei are new,” Rias added when she saw they looked disappointed that they couldn’t match the others, “I’m sure they’ll be able to catch up to their seniors in no time.”

Harry felt a little guilty when he felt relieved that innocent-looking Asia and Issei didn’t do something ridiculous like split the ground open or demolish another poor tree gruesomely. At least not every devil in the peerage could demolish Harry.

“If this is what a weaker peerage is like, how am I supposed to be the trump card in the rating game?”

[You will be fine. I can only see you losing in a fight with them if you become careless.]

“Would you like to see more, Harry-sama?” Grayfia broke him from his thoughts.

[There is no point.]

Harry agreed with pseudo-death. It might be somewhat helpful to find out more about what his future teammates could do, but with their strongest attacks already known, he had a general idea of what he had to beat easily.

“Wait, I haven’t shown him mine!” Rias objected.

She didn’t reveal her devil wings or make any drastic moves, but with a simple raise of her arm, she stunned Harry more than any of the others could.

It seemed like a simple power. A spell that erased everything it touched. Something Harry himself could replicate, but it was what pseudo-death said that stunned him.

[Now that is interesting. It is deeply hidden, but your woman has the potential to touch the power of death.]

When Rias saw that Harry’s jaw had dropped, she preened and gave Akeno a challenging look. Not aware that while her power was impressive, the current form wasn’t what Harry was awed by.

“You mean like yours?”

[Only the lesser powers over the soul. While she wouldn’t be able to delete anything from reality, she might be able to deny a soul from continuing its natural cycle.]

“And you wouldn’t care that she would be able to do that?”

[She would be one of many. What does it matter to me? I was not a god of death, but death itself. Everything comes to me in the end. Besides, I am no longer that now. Just a shard on a great adventure.]

“… You sounded scarily like that old man.”

[Ah, Good! Although you do not sound as mad as I expected. You have negative feelings towards the man.]

“Maybe I should start calling you old bastard if you want to be him.”

[A name? I like that idea. Of course, not what you suggested. Not only is it incredibly insulting, you feel an odd affection for it. No, thank you.]

Harry didn’t want to let this idea go any further. It was already uncomfortable enough that his forced soul resident quickly sniffed out feelings he didn’t want to recognize. A new label Harry had just created. Much better than mistakenly calling it a soul mate.

“Harry-sama?” Grayfia had moved within arms reach of Harry when he was lost in his internal conversation. She found it curious that this wasn’t the first time she had seen Harry with glazed eyes like he was in his own little world. Grayfia had seen enough Longinus users to get an idea of what was going on.

Still, Grayfia would let Harry admit it in his own time. Even though it might require a closer watch to ensure there weren’t any adverse effects.

“Harry!” Rias shouted after he had ignored Grayfia multiple times.

Harry blinked and saw everyone staring at him. “Er, hello? What did I miss?”

“It’s no matter,” Grayfia didn’t let Rias ask why Harry was absentminded, “Are you ready to leave, Harry-sama?”

Harry visibly perked up in interest. He would finally find out what powers were locked away. Pseudo-death was unreasonably close-lipped about them.

[It will be more enjoyable for me if you find out yourself. Also, I have decided on a name. I am now Tom.]

“You have got to be joking. I’m not calling you Tom.”

“I’m ready,” Harry resolved to ignore the troll and answered Grayfia, “So, uh, what’re we doing in France?”

“There is some unrest due to some of the native creatures that live there. I asked the responsible organization to hold off on fixing the issue. This will be a good test for you.”

“Huh,” Harry was a little surprised that Grayfia went through this much effort for him, “You didn’t have to do all that.”

“It’s mutually beneficial,” Grayfia replied. After patiently waiting a few minutes while Rias and Akeno tried to one-up the other in how sloppy their goodbye kisses were, she interrupted, “Rias-sama, perhaps you and your Queen wait for our return to continue this.”

A red-faced Harry was finally let out of their clutches and Grayfia quickly teleported them before any more delays.

The next thing Harry knew, he was in the middle of a differently decorated but equally opulent room.

“Follow me, Harry-sama,” Grayfia opened the door to reveal a street full of pedestrians, “Due to our agreement with the Church, this building is the only place we are supposed to use for teleportation in Paris.”

Harry nodded as he followed her, noticing the stares they immediately attracted. By they, it only included Grayfia. Harry understood the reason.

It’s not every day that you would see a woman with the level of beauty Grayfia possessed walk in public in a French maid outfit. Harry understood it, but he didn’t have to like it.

While he didn’t mind other people having a death wish to have the audacity to give Lucifer’s wife appreciative glances, Harry didn’t like himself being collateral. It was clear as day that people thought Grayfia was with Harry in an intimate sense. With how they stared at him after looking at Grayfia, Harry was sure she had to know what they were thinking.

“I see that my sister-in-law is enjoying her time with you.”

If there was something that could make Harry stop worrying about how other people saw him, that sentence was it.

“Er, I hope so. I certainly am with her.” Harry was ready to apparate at a moment’s notice if this was some way to get him away from Rias to deal with him.

“That’s good to hear,” Grayfia stunned Harry with a small smile, “Rias-sama is the baby of the family. We have our hands tied with her engagement, so you are our best hope in helping her escape it.”

The change in Grayfia’s tone with Harry was jarring enough to him, but a smile, no matter how small, on that previously expressionless face halted his thoughts in their tracks.

“This little outing isn’t the only thing I’d be willing to help you with. Please let me know what else you need to prepare for the rating game, Harry-sama.”

Harry guessed this was what Rias meant when she said Grayfia opens up if she considers you part of the family. Having said that, there was one thing that still bugged Harry.

“Thank you. I’ll definitely let you know what else I need. But, uh, could you call me Harry? It’s odd hearing you say my name so respectfully. If anything, I should be the one doing that.”

The moment was broken when Grayfia shot Harry a stern glare. “Everyone has their place, Harry-sama. And we must be respectful to the roles we have.”

Even though he had no idea what that meant, Harry gave her an understanding look as he nodded. Harry should have gotten more information from Rias about why Grayfia dresses as she did before getting too friendly.

“Sorry, uh, Grayfia… could I call you that?” Harry asked while wondering if he was pushing it.

“That is acceptable, Harry-sama,” Grayfia went back to her cool tone but gave him hope, “If there comes a time when Rias-sama takes you as a husband, the way I address you might change.”

Harry thought that was better than nothing. He hadn’t wholly reversed the small change that Grayfia made when addressing him.

“We’re here,” Grayfia stopped in front of a beautiful garden that looked out of place in the middle of Paris.

“What is this place?” Harry tried to sense if there was anything abnormal about the place, but other than the strange location, there was nothing.

“The creature that controls it is drawing too much attention. With the number of men disappearing here, it’s only a matter of time before it is exposed. Your job is to take care of it.”

Harry frowned and wondered why his magic wasn’t warning him of danger. “What’s the creature? And how strong is it?”

“You’ll find out when you enter,” Grayfia motioned to the entrance, “As for strength, it should be enough to give you a challenge without a threat to your life.”

Harry didn’t like going in with so little information. He hadn’t been an auror for long, but that training was screaming at him that this was an absolutely awful idea.

[I could tell you how strong the thing inside is.]

Harry perked up slightly until pseudo-death added a condition.

[Just call me Tom.]

“Well,” Harry took a deep breath and said to Grayfia, “Wish me luck.”

Harry walked past the entrance without hesitation, expecting to get attacked violently and without warning. When he wasn’t, it was almost disappointing.

Harry had imagined all sorts of fantastic scenarios. The entire garden changing into something horrifying the moment he stepped past the entrance, the innocent-looking plants turning vicious and attacking him, or anything other than what really happened.

Harry looked around the serene garden before glancing back to see Grayfia raising her eyebrow before motioning to the cottage. Since it seemed there was nothing to see other than the pretty flowers, Harry ignored it and knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

Harry paused, wondering why he bothered to knock on the door in the first place. He was going to feed the creature inside to pseudo-death anyway.

[The name is Tom.]

Harry opened the door and heard soft music playing inside. His tensed body relaxed just a little when he saw a woman in all white twirling around the small room to the music. She looked so at peace that Harry wanted to join her himself. He just knew his worries would go away if he did.

“A visitor?” The woman somehow spoke steadily, even with her dancing, “How rare! Come, dance with me!”

Read Chapter 9 here