Draconic Codex - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Issei awoke with a start, his eyes wide and his heart trying to beat itself out of his chest.

Before he could even get his bearings or clear the fog of sleep from his mind, the absolute darndest thing materialised in the centre of his vision.

WELCOME TO THE DRACONIC CODEX v377

Please Select Your Difficulty:

• Whelping

• Drake

• Dragon

• Divine

No FUCKING way!

All vestiges of sleep and fogginess were purged from his mind by a shot of adrenaline so powerful, it had him shaking like he'd just downed ten cups of espresso. 

Issei continued to gape at the translucent, retina-burning crimson screen in mute fascination for several uninterrupted minutes, mentally reading the nonsensical text over and over until a rather unpleasant memory forced itself to the forefront of his mind, breaking the trance.

One he very much would have preferred to forget.

Pain, anguish, butt-wings, Rias’ crying face, death.

That wasn't a dream…?

As absurd as it sounded—there was only one logical explanation.

I’ve been Isekai’d!

Re-reading the notification screen blotting out his vision, Issei groaned and rubbed at his aching eyes. Instead of being awed and amazed by the world-shattering discovery floating in front of his face, he was forced to acknowledge an unpleasant realisation.

His least favourite class—one he'd only taken to pad out his credits—was, without question, the mind-numbingly boring one on UX design. 

Aside from it being basically all theory, he'd been forced to listen to some boomer—one who'd clearly never played a video game in her life—give endless, boring lectures on UIs and what made one good or bad.

He’d thought it was all horseshit. Some of his favourite games had terrible UIs!

But now, when confronted with this abomination burning his retinas…?

He owed Sogabe-sensei an apology…

Whichever brain-dead retard thinks this Christmas tree colour scheme is a good idea needs to get their head examined. And they've apparently had so many iterations to get it right—

You have selected Divine Difficulty 

Initialising. . .

What?! NO! Fuck that! I don't want my new life to be hard! Back, go back! 

After his decision, the text on the window disappeared only to be replaced by a pixelated puff of smoke that revealed a chibi red dragon floating lazily in the middle of the screen, its tiny wings flapping endlessly on repeat. 

Issei could swear the chibi little fuck was smirking at him!

Is this a fucking loading screen…?

Issei had about three blissful, uninterrupted seconds where he could rage at what had to be some kind of divine computer program before his idiot brain decided to crash the party, flushing all his adrenaline and righteous fury in favor of a full-body grief spiral and dopamine crash.

He remembered. 

The look in Rias’ eyes as he died in her arms… the way she’d wept as he bled out, having never even laid eyes on his murderer.

A flash of rage surged in his chest, the feeling so visceral and foreign that it completely snapped him back to reality, a clarity the likes of which he'd only ever experienced after an epic jerk-off session returning his focus.

He finally took in his surroundings, manfully ignoring how absurd it was that he hadn't done that immediately. 

Give me a break, It's not every day I get isekai’d…

He was in… a bed.

A very comfortable, familiar bed.

If he’d really died and been isekai’d… why was he in a room that looked remarkably like his girl’s bedroom? 

Why was the scent of her subtle perfume so strong?

Why could be see the mountains and lake around KU out the fucking window?!

What the fu—?

His turbulent thoughts were interrupted when the door quietly clicked open and a blissfully familiar, crimson-haired beauty shuffled in holding a tray of food and tea. 

Issei would have typically suspected foul play immediately, but just a casual inspection of his girlfriend had him biting his tongue. 

Rias never wore clothes in the privacy of her own dorm room, especially when it was just the two of them. That fact alone would have normally been enough to set off warning sirens in his head, but the deep red rings and bags under her miserable blue-green eyes—an unwelcome sight on her typically perfect, immaculate features—and the disaster her long, luxurious crimson locks now resembled told a story of their own. 

Issei bit his tongue and said nothing until Rias finally noticed he was awake, then he offered her a small, thin-lipped smile. 

The transformation from abject mystery to pure joy had his heart melting into a puddle of goo.

If she's some kind of soul-sucking changeling, she’s welcome to my heart—it's not like I could stop her…

After her initial shock at seeing him awake, Rias yeeted the tray she was previously delicately balancing and rushed to his side. Issei preemptively winced in preparation for the loud shattering and clattering of fine porcelain and silver on hard, unforgiving stone floor but gaped instead as Rias threw herself into his arms and sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder.

Her voice was muffled, but Issei didn't miss the repeated, watery apologies. 

Or rather, be heard them, and he subconsciously rubbed soothing circles into Rias' back through the thin silk of her nightie, but his entire focus was lasered in on the suspiciously not destroyed tray of food and tea.

The suspiciously not destroyed and hovering in mid-air surrounded by an inexplicable violet light tray of food and tea. 

Unable to tear his gaze away from the impossible phenomenon, Issei shook the cobwebs out and stuttered out the only relevant question he could think of. 

‘W-what happened?’

His voice cracked, his mouth and lips surprisingly dry, but given what he remembered of his death, there was a suspicious lack of any pain. 

In fact, he couldn't remember a time he'd ever felt better…

‘You were attacked on your way home.’

Issei bit his lip and nodded slowly. ‘I…remember that. I also remember, well, I thought I died in your arms. How am I here? How am I still alive?’

Tears started to fall from her eyes again, and Issei felt an irrational spike of anger.

Rias should never cry. The sight of her misery alone was enough to stoke a fiery-hot rage in his heart. He wanted to destroy the one responsible, to obliterate them until not even atoms were left of their very being.

If only he’d seen his attacker…

‘To answer that,’ she began in a watery, warbling tone that instinctively had Issei wanting to wrap the woman he loved up in a hug and never let go, ‘we first need to have that conversation I’ve put off for far too long…’

Pulling back from his hug, Issei reluctantly let her go until she stood a meter away, her hands clasped and her head bowed.

It would take a lot for anything to distract him from his girlfriend's incredible rack. Especially with how she was standing, her biceps bracketing and highlighting her unsupported tiddies, the thin, silk nightie not even having the decency to hide the shape of her nipples.

But with a relieved sigh and a shimmer of strange, unnatural energy, a pair of bony, oil-black protrusions grew out from her lower back, and his attention was suitably, viscously stolen.

Issei quietly gaped, his dark eyes wide with disbelief. 

‘...I thought the butt-wings were a weird, fever dream.’

His girlfriend rolled her eyes, an indulgent smile lighting up her previously miserable features. 

‘You would fixate on that…’

Then, with an arc of her back and a spreading of her arms like she was stretching out some kinks in the morning, the wings stretched out, one ominous spike at a time. 

Fully extended, Rias had a wingspan of almost five metres. 

My girlfriend has a wingspan…

While Issei processed that, he mentally corrected himself. While the black, skeletal protrusions were clearly wings, of a sort, there was no way in hell they could support flight. 

There wasn't even any sign of a membrane between the phalanges. The butt-wings misnomer had come about because it looked like the wings grew from her shoulder blades and, when not fully extended, the limbs extended down her back before kinking at the joint and out, right at the butt level.

Skeletal wasn't entirely accurate either. While they definitely looked like they belonged on some kind of undead dragon, there was something intangible about the wings, as if they were not-quite flesh, forged instead of shadow and oily smoke, yet still undeniably solid. 

Sensing his curiosity, Rias pulled the wings in and wrapped them gently around his shoulders. He shivered, not out of disgust, but at the strange, tingly feelings that broke out on his skin wherever they brushed his skin.

‘What you're reacting to right now is my aether…’

He turned to Rias and shot her a deadpan stare. She had the good graces to flush before elaborating, ‘Just think of it as magic. You're feeling my magic.’

Issei snapped his mouth shut. What could he even say to that? 

Well, there was something he absolutely wanted to say, but he bit his lip before he launched into an unnecessary and unhelpful tirade.

Rias proved that she was the one by smiling indulgently at his expression, and beckoning him with a flick of her wrist. 

‘Go on, get it out of your system. You look like you're about to explode, and we’ve got a lot to cover.’

He opened his mouth to speak, closed it with a snap, pursed his lips, and then he was off.


‘This is all totally normal, I’m not losing my mind. Just processing that my girl has actual wings. That’s fine, that’s cool.’


Rias raised an eyebrow.


Issei caved.


‘What the fuck is this bullshit?! Those wings shouldn’t be able to lift a kite let alone you—’


She raised her other eyebrow.


‘Oh don’t give me that look, the only thing fat about you is your tits and you know it! Your bra would do a better job of lifting those things than whatever the hell those are! I’ve seen cosplay with wings that are more aerodynamic and believable! What the actual fuck?!’

He was panting by the time he was finished, the old pet peeve coming to the fore in a stress fuelled diatribe.

Rias waited to see if he would continue. He didn’t really have anything else to say, but his hard-won instincts told him he should anyway.

‘That isn’t to say your wings aren’t… beautiful? Like the rest of you?’

Rias tried to suppress the grin, but she failed miserably. Reaching out a hand, she cupped the side of his face and Issei instinctively nuzzled her palm, holding it against her cheek.

He looked up into her eyes, hating the signs of misery he still saw there with a fiery passion. ‘So…what? Are you some kind of superhero? Magical girl? Am I dating batgirl?’

Rias let out a surprised giggle and brought a hand up to cover her mouth. ‘Batgirl… that’s a new one. The answer is no… and yes? Kind of? First, because I know it’s genuinely bothering you, the wings don’t physically let me fly—think of them like magical foci that are a part of me. I channel magic into them, and they instinctively cast a flight spell on my body.’

She rolled her eyes again at his slack-jawed expression, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she sat in his lap, her wings folding back and disappearing into her shoulder blades. Making herself comfortable, she wrapped her arms around his waist, her head resting on his chest.

‘Before we start, I just want you to know that I love you—I really love you. The reason I didn’t tell you about all this was for your own protection.’ Before he could interrupt, his girlfriend let out a bitter chuckle and buried her face deeper into his chest. ‘And look how good that turned out…’

She pulled her face back and Issei was ready to go to war at the sight of tears streaming down her cheeks again. Rias quickly composed herself however and reached into her cleavage, pulling out a… sheet of paper.

‘Did you just—?’

She shot him a quivering, mysterious grin but ignored his look of incredulity. ‘There’s… a protocol for this. I’ve never had to use it before, so please forgive the awkwardness. It’ll cover the absolute basics, and I’ll answer as many questions as you like after, okay?’

Unsure of what else he could do or say, Issei nodded warily, his grip tightening around Rias’ waist as she looked to the sheet in her hand, cleared her throat, then read.

‘First and most important, the supernatural is real. Most fiction you’ve consumed—heaven, hell, devils, angels, gods, dragons, yokai—it’s all derived from truth, distorted by time, and sometimes by design.’

Issei gaped… because what else could he do? The thought of not believing Rias hadn’t even crossed his mind, he’d already seen too much—felt too much—to know, instinctively, that she wasn’t lying. At his encouraging nod, Rias favoured him with a sad smile and continued. 

‘Second… you died.’ Her lips quivered and fresh tears spilled from her eyes when she spoke the words, and while Issei felt his stomach doing the unpleasant kind of flip-flops—the unwelcome news causing all kinds of havoc on his mind—a part of him had already accepted this as truth, so it didn’t bother him as much as it should. More concerned with Rias’ obvious distress, he kissed his girlfriend’s tears away and squeezed her tighter before she continued. ‘Not m-metaphorically, not emotionally. Literally. After you were attacked and by the time I got to you, you were beyond saving by mundane means. Within minutes, your body had ceased to function.’

The memories of that night came flooding back, and Issei’s jaw tightening in rage, but he chose not to speak and let Rias get on with it. She looked concerned and vulnerable, and Issei wondered what else she could possibly say that could be more shocking than what she already had.

‘Third, you’re obviously not dead. This was my doing. I revived you using devil magic. Because that’s what I am… and now that’s what you are too.

Yeah… that’ll do it.

He obviously had a million questions, but he instinctively knew this wasn’t some kind of sick joke or prank. If the sincerity or anguish in his girlfriend’s eyes wasn’t proof enough, he also felt the truth of her words in a way he couldn’t quite understand.

Not yet, at least.

‘So you’re saying I have nonsensical butt-wings too?’

The surprised burst of laughter at the unexpected, ridiculous joke lightening his heart in a way that put a real smile back on his face.

‘You do,’ Rias confirmed, making to wipe her face but Issei caught her wrist and handled it for her. ‘I love you, I’m sorry, I’m such a mess…’

‘Shh, don’t apologise—let’s get this orientation over with yeah? I have so many questions…’

With a watery chuckle and a clearing of her throat, she did.

‘Fourth, you’ll feel stronger. Faster. More durable. You may also unlock magical potential over time… if you put in the effort.’

At the mention of him potentially being a mage, Issei couldn’t have masked his excitement even if he wanted to. Rias gave him a knowing smirk this time before continuing.

‘Fifth. Unlike other supernatural beings, devils can absorb power through intense emotions—lust, desire, hunger, fear, etcetera. As a new devil, this is the quickest path to power, but it can also be overwhelming. It’s my job to help and guide you through this.’

Issei’s eyes had progressively grown wider and wider in surprise during her last point. However absurd it sounded, the matter-of-fact way Rias had described such a thing made it feel so real.

Still, even in this trying time… Issei had a one-track mind.

‘So… I’m gonna be even more horny now?’

Again, Rias let out a surprised musical laugh that had him grinning like a goofball.

‘I don’t think that’s possible, my love.’

This time it was Issei’s turn to let out a surprised bark of laughter. ‘Hah! Pot, kettle, Woman.’

Rias favoured him with an impish grin, ground her soft, sensual ass against his groin, but didn’t otherwise deny his words.

‘Sixth, you’re a part of my house now—we devils refer to this as a peerage. That makes you my responsibility, both to protect and nurture you in the hopes you’ll be the best devil you can be.’

Issei shot her a weird look at that one, the wording felt… strange. ‘So I’m like your… pet now?’

Rias cracked a grin at his oversimplification, but didn’t refute him.

‘You’ve always been my pet, Issei.’

Issei flushed with delight and embarrassment, then he mentally berated himself for feeling delight and embarrassment. 

He didn't refute Rias though, and the teasing smirk she favoured him with let him know he was a good boy. 

Arf…

All humour drained away from Rias’ features as she read then communicated the next point. 

‘Seventh, and I don't think I need to stress how important this is given how you died, but you need to avoid any unsanctioned contact with angels, fallen angels, exorcists and anyone aligned with the Heaven or Fallen factions.’ At his incredulous stare, Rias nodded grimly. ‘The one who killed you was a Fallen. One thing fiction gets absolutely correct is the animosity between Angels and Devils, and our respective factions.’

Issei was bursting with questions, but he held himself back and just took a mental note of them. He'd let Rias finish first. 

‘I'm not overstating this Issei, this isn't a joke. If you run into a Fallen or an Exorcist as you are, they'll likely kill you on sight. They already tried, just because you might have joined one of our peerages.’

Our? Rias isn't the only devil here? And what's so special about me? 

Again, as much as he wanted to interject, he took a mental note of his questions and let Rias continue. His girlfriend thanked him with a sad smile and a kiss on the cheek.

Clearing her throat, Rias continued after tucking the piece of paper she was reading from back into her immense cleavage. 

It disappeared in a flash of light. 

Rias couldn't hide her grin at the look of awe on his face. 

‘Finally, the why. You must be thinking, “if Rias could bring me back to life, why did she have to turn me into a devil without asking?” And honestly? That's a fair question.’

I wasn't, but that is a fair question…

‘The truth is, I didn't do anything, not directly.’

Again, Rias reached into her cleavage dimensional storage and pulled out a small, long and narrow intricately carved wooden container the size of a jewellery box. 

How much shit is she storing in her Tits of Holding?!

Setting the case on her lap, Issei looked on in confusion when Rias opened it to reveal the velvet lined interior housing an incomplete chess set.

Rather, there was a rook, two bishops and a knight piece. The rest of the chess set was represented by empty voids that no-doubt once held the missing pieces. 

Rias plucked out the one remaining knight and twirled it in front of his face. She held it in between thumb and forefinger, and Issei couldn't help but be captivated by it. 

At first, it looked like little more than an intricately carved, but regular knight piece from any fancy chess set, but then it started to glow red and Issei sucked in a shocked breath, his eyes widening with awe. 

He couldn't explain what was happening, but there was something familiar about the energy radiating off the glowing artefact.

‘This is what's called an Evil Piece—pardon the name, a brilliant idiot’s idea of a joke…’

She smiled fondly at that, before shaking her head and continuing.

‘They were created by one of the greatest minds the Underworld’s ever known—a devil who looked at our dying race and decided to gamble everything on a solution.’

What? Dying…?

She turned the piece slightly, and its crimson glow pulsed with subtle heat. Issei could feel it—not on his skin, but deeper, like something brushing against his soul.

‘After the Great War between Angels and Devils, we were losing people faster than we could birth them. Too many dead, too few left to carry on. So instead of creating new life the old-fashioned way, this system was born—an artefact that can bring back the recently deceased and remake them as one of us.’

She offered him a small smile. ‘I didn’t cast the magic that saved your life, Issei. This did—or ones like it. The Evil Piece rewove your body and soul into something new… something different. It didn’t just save you, it changed you.’

Her eyes softened and she favoured him with a brittle smile and mischievously twinkling, red-rimmed eyes. ‘You’re still you, but now… you’re also mine.’

Issei let out a rueful chuckle. ‘That's both incredibly creepy and super sexy.’

Rias returned his smile with the same energy. ‘If nothing else, at least you know your transformation didn't change the fact that you're a dirty pervert.’

‘God forbid—oooooh what the actual fuuuuuck?!’

A pain the likes of which Issei had only experienced once in his life—right before his death—stabbed him in the temples and threatened to bring him to his knees. 

Rias wrapped his head in her arms and consoled him, rubbing gentle, soothing circles over his temples.

‘I'm sorry, I should have warned you, don't mention His name—there's power in it, a power that's antithetical and antagonistic to your very being now.’

Issei groaned in pain as the throbbing steadily decreased, his face buried in Rias' chest. 

‘Ooooh, what a cuuuuuuunt.’

Rias giggled, her fingers running through his hair.

‘That'll work, you can just call Him that…’

Issei groaned again and sat up, giving Rias a peck on the forehead in thanks. The fact that He was real the most shocking thing he'd learnt that day. 

But not the most important. 

‘Why me?’

‘How do you mean?’

Clearing his throat, Issei was about to vent his frustrations at Rias before realising his question had been too vague, but he didn't think the other obvious interpretation needed asking. 

If our positions were reversed, I wouldn't let Rias die either. Better to ask forgiveness…

‘You said a Fallen killed me. Why?’

Rias didn't answer immediately and instead looked to the door as it cracked open and… something let itself in. 

Issei gaped as a little, terrifying, oily black creature skittered into the room, the bizarre sight made even more ridiculous by the fact that it was wearing an appropriately sized, pink, frilly maid costume and was holding a tray of steaming cups of tea steadily with its tail.

Rias regarded the creature with a face devoid of all emotion before bending down and taking a mug in each hand and handing one to him. 

Issei nodded in thanks before Rias turned to the creature and raised an eyebrow. ‘Why are you still here? Go clean the toilets on the second floor.’

Issei winced in sympathy for the terrifying little demon as it scurried away with an angry glare. 

‘No idea what that was… but I'm assuming it pissed you off?’

Rias waited until the creature had left before turning to Issei with a smile that didn't reach her red-rimmed eyes. ‘You could say that. He's my familiar, a Shadow Imp. He was supposed to protect you, but quite literally fell asleep on the job.’

Issei frowned. ‘Little prick…’

Rias snorted and shook her head, her eyes trailing up as she thought. 

‘To answer your question, first I need to explain what a Sacred Gear is.’ She paused, taking a thoughtful sip of her tea and considering her words before continuing. ‘A Sacred Gear is a rare type of artifact embedded in a person’s soul—born with them, like a divine mutation. Some are weak. Most, honestly, are harmless. But a few… a few are powerful enough to change the world.’

Issei swallowed hard when Rias' gaze met his, her cold eyes impressing on him how serious she was. 

‘You have one of those, Issei. One of the strongest. It awakened the other day—during Professor Vale’s class, when you went and touched the dragon statue. A wave of power flared from your soul when it did. I noticed… and so did the Fallen.’

Issei couldn't look away from Rias’ penetrating gaze even if he wanted to. 

‘They couldn't risk someone with so much potential falling into the enemy's hands, or worse, joining a devil's peerage—so they killed you.’

Issei gaped, then his eyes narrowed in confusion. ‘Wait, if the Fallen sensed my power or whatever, then that means—’

Rias winced guiltily and cut Issei off. ‘Yes,’ she replied apologetically. ‘The Fallen was in our class—she went by the name Yuma.’

Again, he gaped in disbelief.

His jaw was starting to protest.

‘The big-tiddy teacher’s pet killed me? Seriously?’

Rias rolled her eyes and favoured Issei with an indulgent smile. ‘Why do I get the feeling that even had the Fallen attacked you head-on, you still would have been unable to identify her?’

Issei didn't bite. ‘Where is she?’

He paused at the sound of his own voice. It was guttural and harsh, he realised it matched his emotions rather well. Rias only smiled in understanding before answering.

‘She went to ground, Kiba is looking for her as we speak. As soon as he finds her, we'll know.’

Issei calmed at the explanation and nodded slowly. ‘Kiba, that pretty boy always following you around that you promise isn’t trying to steal you from me? He’s a devil too then?’

Rias nodded in confirmation, a teasing grin on her lips. ‘Along with Akeno, Koneko and Gasper—you haven't met him—the five of you make up my peerage.’

Issei’s face scrunched up in confusion. ‘I thought you said you hadn't done the intro thing before?’

Rias hummed in affirmation and repositioned herself in his lap. 

As much as he loved her, Issei really wished his girlfriend would take a seat on the huge, comfy bed. 

Apparently being reborn as a devil didn't stop his blood from needing to circulate…

‘I haven't. The others all had priors with the supernatural world in one way or another and didn't need the introductory speech—Kiba is the only other one that was a human, but he has a… history that I'm sure he'll share with you some day when you're closer.’

Issei's eyes widened in surprise. ‘The others aren't—weren't—human? Wait, don't tell me, Koneko was a gnome and Akeno—that one was definitely a succubus!’

Rias burst out laughing, and it did Issei's heart good to hear the sound after being forced to stare at her red-rimmed eyes for the past hour. 

Wiping a tear from her eye, Rias regarded him fondly. ‘You're much more durable now, and they don't need to hide what they are from you anymore—Akeno especially can be… a little sadistic when you push the right buttons…’

Issei frowned in thought, not taking the warning seriously.

‘I was only joking about Lolibait, but I thought for sure I'd be close with the skank.’

Rias shook her head and looked to the ceiling, as if praying for patience. Given the massive headache that still had his temples throbbing with painful aftershocks though, he very much doubted that to be the case. 

‘Koneko was a Nekomata and Akeno had a Fallen for a father.’ Seeing the look on his face, Rias hastily added, ‘I'd advise you not to bring that up with her, not unless you've a resistance to electricity I don't know about. I should also add, just like there's good devils and evil devils, the same can be said about the Fallen. The faction you need to concern yourself with are called the Grigori, but you're nowhere near strong enough to even think about them yet.’

That was a lot of words she just said, and while he knew they were important, Issei couldn't really get past the fact that Koneko was a cat-girl. 

He looked up at the ceiling with a glare. 

You really are a miserable cunt…

Issei let out a long, slow breath before looking into Rias’ eyes. ‘Okay, this is crazy, and I’m a devil now—what does that mean? Do you, like, own my soul or something? Do I… need to do something? Am I still me? And most importantly, what did you tell my parents? I can’t imagine they were fine with me missing mum’s birthday…’

Rias pursed her lips at his barrage of questions, then let out a small grin at the mention of his parents.

‘In order—being a devil can mean whatever you want it to mean. Want to grow stronger and become all-powerful? I can help you with that. You want to be a chef and own your own restaurant? Easy. Want to own your own dev studio and make the game we've always dreamed about? That sounds incredible. All that is to say, everything is the same as it was before you were attacked, except now you're effectively immortal and, if you want, I can help you grow stronger…’

He mentally skimmed over the bombshell that was immortality—he just couldn’t deal with that right now.

‘I mean, there's literally no guy alive that would turn down magic powers,’ he replied with a cheeky grin, ‘especially if they had such a sexy teacher.’

Rias rolled her eyes but pecked him on the lips all the same.

‘As for your soul, that’s just church propaganda that has unfortunately seeped its way into pop-culture. You can be bound by contract, enslaved, killed, mind controlled but nothing can assail your soul.’ She frowned, before wincing and inclining her head apologetically. ‘I shouldn’t say nothing, there are some real old monsters out there with godly powers, but nothing I know of can target and harm the soul.’

Issei felt queasy in his stomach as Rias listed off the possibilities. ‘I’m not sure that made me feel better…’

Rias gave him a comforting hug before continuing answering his questions. ‘As for what you need to do? If you want to help me, growing more powerful is the best way to do so. It’s all tied back into the Evil Piece system, but I don’t want to fill your head with even more details—unless you really want to know?’

Issei suddenly felt… very tired.

‘Not really, no. I trust you’ll tell me if it’s ever relevant.’

Rias nodded in confirmation and smiled. ‘Suffice it to say, I’ll be rewarded handsomely if you grow to a certain level of power, but that’s not something I want you to worry about, okay?’

Issei nodded and pinched Rias’ ass in confirmation. She let out an adorable yelp, then returned the favour. Issei giggled with delight and Rias continued once more.

‘As for if you’re still you, refer back to the soul question. Your body was remade from scratch. Every cell, every thread of flesh and bone - all rebuilt with the demonic essence from the Evil Pieces used to reincarnate you. You look like you, and you feel like you, because your soul guided the reconstruction.’

Issei’s eyes widened and he looked down at his own body, or what he could see of it. He was just in his boxers, but from what he could see… he certainly didn’t look different. Issei surreptitiously gripped his junk through the fabric and scowled in annoyance.


Stupid, useless, traitor soul…

Luckily, Rias didn’t notice his self-examination.

‘As for whether that makes you different? That’s a philosophical debate. The Ship of Theseus. If you replace every part of the ship, piece by piece, is it still the same ship? Or is it something new, just with the same name?’

Issei frowned. ‘That’s not helping.’

Rias shrugged with surprising nonchalance. ‘I’m just pointing out both sides of the debate. Personally, the part that matters most, the captain of the ship—or rather, your soul—that’s what matters most.’ She put a hand over his heart and smiled gently. ‘That’s the part I fell in love with. Everything else? That’s just… a vessel—a meat suit.’

Issei barked out a laugh. ‘I couldn’t have worded it more disgustingly myself—and you were doing so well too, what, with quoting back at me our Mythology textbooks.’

Rias puffed out her cheeks in annoyance and Issei couldn’t help himself. He squealed like she was an adorable kitten and bit down on her puffed-up cheek.

After their play-fighting was over and they were panting for breath, Issei was laying back down on the bed with Rias’s head resting on his chest, right over his heart.

‘And don’t worry about your parents, I told them you had the flu. Your mother came and brought you a thermos of Miso—she’s adorable…’

Issei grunted non committedly, his mind a whirl with all the new information, his new reality, and the eye-burning notification screens he’d been absently shunting away during their conversation.

‘I’m sorry.’

‘Hm?’

Issei looked down into Rias’ watery eyes and sighed. ‘I don’t like it when you cry.’

She ignored him.

‘I need you to know that you having a powerful Sacred Gear had nothing to do with my decision to finally tell you the truth, or me reincarnating you.’ She paused, trying desperately to not let her emotions get the best of her. ‘With your Sacred Gear awakening, it was only a matter of time before you learned the truth on your own anyway. I wanted you to hear it from me. Because I love you, and I was… so tired of not sharing everything with you.’

Issei smiled at his girlfriend and held her hand, holding her gaze for a few tense moments, before smirking.

‘Sooo, what you’re saying is… me having a Sacred Gear had something to do with it.’

Her cheeks puffed up in that adorable way again.

‘You know what I mean, dummy.’

Issei chuckled and squeezed her hand. ‘Honestly, it’s a pretty big relief. I always thought your parents or your friends hated me or something, and that’s why you kept me at arm’s length…’

Rias climbed up on his chest and cupped his face, her gaze intense. ‘My friend’s don’t hate you.’

He returned Rias’ intense gaze with his most deadpan, and she had the good grace to blush a little.

‘Okay, maybe Koneko hates you a little, but that’s because you won’t stop calling her Lolibait.’

‘She started it,’ Issei waved Rias off with disinterest. ‘I notice you didn’t deny your parents hating me.’

Rias scowled at the mention of her parents. ‘Issei, the only lies I ever told you were ones of omission. The arranged marriage my parents tried to force me into with that piece of trash? Completely true. I haven’t spoken to them in years—as far as I’m concerned, I don’t have parents—so whether they hate you or not means nothing to me.’

‘Wow,’ Issei replied after several moments of tense silence. Rias had spoken to him about her parents before, but it had been more dismissive than the utter contempt she was showcasing now. ‘That’s dark.’

‘It’s true,’ she said resolutely, before a sly smile spread on her pretty, pink lips. ‘Besides, who needs them? I’m sure I’ll be adopting your parents soon… right?’

Issei shoved Rias off his chest and shot her a playful glare. She squealed at being launched on the other side of the bed, then moaned wickedly when he straddled her belly and gripped her tits through the thin material of her nightie.

‘Can you cut that shit out, Woman? You’re going to ruin it for me when I actually do propose.’

Rias’ eyes widened at his words, her entire face flushing crimson. This time it was Issei who yelped as his girlfriend—perhaps for the first time not holding back her true strength—easily flipped them back around, her lips sealed around his nipple as she nibbled and suckled on the hardened nub.

‘You still want to be together? After all the secrets and lies?’

Issei rolled his eyes and snorted, giving his girl a hard spank on the ass.

She didn’t even flinch, if anything, she looked like a panther eyeing a juicy haunch of meat.

‘You’re not getting rid of me that easy.’

Rias, predictably, looked delighted.

Actually, she looked like she was about to devour him. In her defence, it had probably been a bit since they’d last had sex.

How long was I even out…?

Before they got distracted, Issei tamped down on his raging libido and gripped Rias’ wrists before she could start mauling him, his eyes scrunched up in thought.

Seeing her look of confusion, Issei elaborated.

‘Babe, you did an amazing job with all this exposition, really, but I don’t know how you could explain so much and not even mention the annoyingly blaring and insistent notification screens.’

Rias, her eyes wide and confused, looked at him like he’d grown a second head.

‘The what?’