The Maniac of DxD (Highschool dxd insert/ semi-crack): Chapter 41

“Take this!!”

“Too telegraphed!”

I shouted back at my opponent, using my spare Gada that I only use for sparring to deflect the Holy Sword.

But Freed proved why he was so hard to kill, despite being a human like me.

The moment the sword was deflected and he was left open for attack, he decisively let go of the sword and used grappling techniques to try and get rid of my Gada.

Of course, there was no way I was going to go easy on him just because he is my employee.

The moment he tried to grab my Gada, I channeled my Touki into the mace and smashed it towards his head with my full might, forcing the former Exorcist to dodge to the side.

But he was not discouraged in the least, just like I expected.

Given the maniacal grin on his face, which mirrored my own, he was just getting started.

Reaching into his coat, he took out a grenade and threw it at me.

I knew that this was a distraction since mortal weapons could no longer harm us, given the level of Touki we both had access to at this point.

The moment the grenade exploded, I realized that this was no ordinary weapon, as I instantly felt hallucinogens and foreign energies trying to infiltrate my mind.

Thankfully, the flame within me easily dealt with them, allowing me to keep track of Freed as he pulled out the rifle Theus made for him at my request.

“Oho! You want to go full force? Bring it!”

“Hell Yeah! Today is the day I win back my freedom! Boss-man!”

The moment he attached the special ammo created for the gun and loaded the round into the chamber, I stored away my training Gada and brought out the real deal.

It was a shame, then, that we were forced to stop our fight when Issei arrived at the battlefield, covering behind his shield and watching us warily.

“What the hell do you want? You shitty Dragon?”

“Issei? What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be at orientation?”

Issei instantly glared at me at those words.

“You mean the same orientation where you were supposed to help me out, given that you and Reya-senpai forcefully drafted me into the Kendo Club?”

I grinned at his words.

“Hey! You know better than anyone that I don’t do well in formal settings like that.”

Issei’s flat stare and grumbling proved that he had forgotten that part about me. Then, he turned to glare at Freed, who returned the glare with equal ferocity.

“And what about you?  Fake Priest?”

“Fuck off! I won’t be caught dead in a formal setting like that!”

“…Fair enough.”

I could not help but grin madly as I saw my precious student interact with my employee in such a way.

These two get along as well as a forest fire and a compressed fuel tank.

In other words, an explosive friendship in more ways than one.

“You still didn’t answer my question, Issei. Why are you here?”

Issei stopped glaring at Freed as the two stopped flipping the bird at each other.

“Right. Akeno-Senpai asked me to call you. She said, and I quote, ‘Rias is up to her usual shenanigans with the church girls and looks like it might blow up’ is what she asked me to say.”

Ah Shit! That stupid Gremory will be the death of me one of these days.

……….Actually, no. I think it is the other way around, what with me publicly airing her dirty laundry regularly on my channel. I am surprised she can still see me eye to eye after the Club Room Shower Incident.

“Alright. Freed? Get back to work. And remember about your new assignment, yeah? I’ll double your pay if you can overperform on the task.”

The insane experiment of the Siegfried Institute saluted me before rushing off with a bust of Touki, heading straight for Akeno’s and Gremory’s class.

Given that Akeno was able to warn me through Issei, it is a given that Rias Gremory is not in class or overseeing the Orientation right now. which means she is at that stupid club of hers along with my charges.

I signaled Issei to follow me as we headed into the deeper parts of the woods behind school.

Since he has skipped the orientation, I might as well have him with me for this.

Soon, we arrived at the old building that this Devil heiress has appropriated for her own use, and surrounded with wards and defenses to hell and back after what happened last time.

Still not enough to stop me, though.

I pulled out a jeweled dagger that gave off divinity in waves and waved it at the wards, directly cutting through them.

This dagger was the payment I received for various jobs that Hecate had me do for her a year ago.

Given that she gave me the option to choose what I wanted it to look like and what enchantments it should have, I asked her to make it look like a crooked ceremonial dagger with a blade made of precious jewels. As for its abilities, I wanted it to break down any magic it came in contact with (up to a certain extent. Not even a goddess of magic can claim to be able to nullify all magics in the world after all)

If my genre-savvy imaginary audience has caught on to the fact that this description sounds familiar? Because it is. I ripped the idea straight out of the Fate series from my old life.

At least, what I remember of it anyway. Like I said before, I have no trust in my own memories, and my head really is mostly empty, so yeah.

I could have just walked through the wards, given that Akeno had already keyed in my signature into the wards, but where is the fun in that? That is why I did this.

With the wards down, I strolled into the clubhouse and came face to face with a situation that put a grin on my face and made me take out my phone stealthily.

“You dare tempt a servant of god to your side? Devil?”

Rias Gremory smirked as she played with a bishop piece.

“I mean, I am just offering. Power, money, freedom, you name it. I can give you anything as long as you agree-“

“Never!”

On one side, Xenovia was glaring fiercely at the Gremory heiress with Durendal drawn while the devil in question sat without a care in the world, probably thinking that her knight would protect her from any harm, given Kiba Yuto’s own glare directed at the holy sword.

Meanwhile, Irina and Asia sat behind Xenovia, lost in thought in their own way. At least, Irina was.

Asia was her usual self with her innocent puppy-like eyes staring with fear as the confrontation unfolded in front of her.

As for Irina, I could sense the emotional turmoil she was feeling, as fear, anger, love, resentment, and helplessness clashed in her mind.

Curious, what did the Gremory girl say to make all this happen?

Sensing that things were about to become sensitive, I put away my phone and dropped the idea of a livestream.

As we stepped in, the group inside noticed our arrival and acted accordingly.

The smug look on Gremory disappeared, and dissatisfaction replaced it, barely hiding the fear she felt, which was also true for her Knight.

As for the Church group, Xenovia’s relief was palpable as she grabbed her companions and pulled them with her behind me.

How amusing! It was not long ago when she would be wary of my presence, so much so that she would run for the hills the moment I did anything inappropriate in her eyes.

Now, she so readily trusted me to take her side like this-

“Maniac Ren, you are right on time. This devil is trying to seduce Irina and Asia with her sweet talk. She is also planning to use her body to seduce Hyoudou for his sacred gear.”

“What!?”

…..I see. That is why she was so confident that I would protect her.

I ignored the shocked squeak from the Gremory heiress, knowing that Xenovia must be exaggerating a little bit or misunderstood something, not about the plan of the heiress but her exact wording.

I felt a tender smile appear on my face as I faced the devil heiress, which made the devils flinch in terror for some reason.

“So, you are planning to take away my entert-ahem, student from me? How bold, Gremory. Akeno never mentioned you were so adventurous. Care to fill me in on the details as well?”

Hey, why are you two inching away from me like that? Why are you two so afraid? It's just a little bit of killing intent, you know? Even a weakling should be able to handle that much!

Oh? Bringing out the Power of Destruction and Sword Birth for little old me?

Why, I thought you’d never bring up the nerve!”

“Hehehe~ I will feast on devil flesh today-wait, wrong phrasing!”

“…..Too late, Shishou. They’ve made a run for it.”

I ignored Issei’s flat words and took off after the devil duo who made a run for it.

Finally! Some good fucking food after being starved for so long!