Volume 2 – Chapter 11 – A wonderful dream, a strenuous future

Jin's dream

Jin Skyward

"I… Accept your offer, however, I would like to move in one week's time, if that's acceptable."

A week? I didn't mind, but why?

"I see no problem with that, but may I know why? I mean if you don't mind sharing that is."

Irene let out an awkward chuckle as she nodded and crosses her arms.

"The Dimensional Gap has been my home for a very long time, it just seems strange leaving it for a new one… I know you created those 'shadows' to take my place, I am grateful, however, as I said it still feels strange."

Ahh— So, she feels uneasy and will probably feel homesick… Ophis never said anything about that… Well she's not much of a talker. I should ask her about it. I nod to myself.

"Sure, I don't mind."

I'm in no rush, she can take her time.

"Jin, if I may… May I request something?"

I nod.

"You seem capable of many things, so I was wondering is it possible for you to connect the Dimensional Gap in your necklace to the one where Ophis and I were born from?"

I see, she wants to be able to check up on it at will. It's possible I did something like that during the past week after all.

"Yeah, it's possible. It's quite easy since I've done something similar within the past week."

"Truly? Many thanks in advance, Jin."

We fall into silence for a few seconds, now that I think about it… Did Irene see what I saw earlier? The fact that she arrived just as the ship disappeared isn't a coincidence, is it?

"Hey, Irene. Did you see the bed and window when you came here?"

"I did not, however, I did hear some beeping but it vanished as your figure came into view."

Hmm, I nod. It looks like I'm the only one who is able to see it, for now, maybe Azathoth is limiting who's able to view it? So, for now, it's only me… I mean I haven't seen Cúntóir or the two Heavenly Dragons once in my dreams. But Irene can still come here which is weird.

"I shall take my leave, I shall see you in a week, Jin. Farewell."

She quickly waves to me and disappears.

I wave as she disappears, I sigh… If what that soul said was true, my life was quite normal… So why does Azathoth have a need to hide it from me? I really doubt I'll have some mental breakdown from it.

My past 'self' also touched his heart. Perhaps I died due to some kind of heart disease or heart cancer? Maybe my heart just grew weak, I don't know. It was heart-related. At least I didn't die in some absurd way like getting hit by a truck, struck by lightning, or some other dramatic way.

"Just unfortunate circumstances then?"

I let out a chuckle, as the dream slowly started to fade away. Times up here then.

…

Japan, Kuoh

Jin Skyward

I wake up from my dream. Having spoken with Irene and knowing when she'll move in is reassuring. One week from now, she'll move in. But a week has passed since my date with Rossweisse and I took advantage of that. I also went against what I had discussed with Ddraig.

When I got home, I immediately headed to a random bedroom that was unoccupied. I created a doorway that connected to the place where I first met Yasaka and Kunou. When I stepped through the door, both of them were there and were quite surprised to see me.

I'll use this same trick to connect Irene's Dimensional Gap in the necklace to the one she's currently residing in.

Seeing as how both of them wanted to spend more time with me, I had this idea, maybe I'll do it for more people I know, like Gabriel. Once I told them what I did, I created the same door and we walked through it.

They found themselves in a relatively small room so I expanded it. I told them they could use this place as another bedroom if they choose to stay the night here. They were quite happy with it and so they came by quite frequently during the past week, they even stayed for a night or two.

That's also how Kunou and Ophis met. Ophis had been coming out of her necklace more often. As a result, the two of them formed a quick friendship. Kunou also started calling Ophis 'Phis'. I tried to correct her but she was adamant on calling her that so I left it at that.

The only one left to complete the loli trio is Lilith… But seeing as how I saved Ophis from that fate, how the hell will she come to be? Ddraig suggested that she may literally be my biological child in the far future with Ophis…

Yeah, that was a weird thing to hear from him. Albion and Cúntóir teased him and called in a grandpa that wants to see his grandchildren, this made him flustered.

They get along well with everyone else. Yasaka and Grayfia get along quite well... Perhaps because they're older and can bond over whatever they talk about. But I did notice a lot of weird glances from them, Yasaka licking her lips while giggling.

Rossweisse started to text me more, even calling me through her phone or using the transceiver on the ring, and we've made plans on meeting up again— well, a visit to her home and as well as meeting her 'granny'— Göndul.

Even though she was, well, old. She's still quite energetic and fiery and that's from the brief meeting I had with her, she— apparently was quite insistent on meeting me, getting to know me… In a way evaluating me for her granddaughter? I mean sure… Whatever floats your boat.

We haven't made detailed plans yet since our date wasn't that long ago. Rose apologizes a lot during these calls or texts but I said I didn't mind so she's a little less anxious with them.

I also placed Igris in Akeno's shadow and Iron in Reni's shadow during the week. I'm still thinking about whom to put in whom. I'm probably gonna have to create other shadows that aren't from the solo leveling universe since I need them in the other girls' shadows.

Now, to the more pertinent parts of the week that passed… The Gremory peerage, Ingvild, Reni, Kuroka, Grayfia, Natsume, Shigune, and Gabriel… I took them into the training facility and we spent a year— Well two years in there.

We spent a year there around Wednesday, and then just yesterday, Thursday we spent another year there too. The goal? To help increase their mastery and control of their powers… Well that was mostly aimed at the Gremory peerage, Ingvild, Reni, Kuroka, and Grayfia.

I helped Shigune, Natsume, and Gabriel go up in raw power during it. I had them fight Greed since it would provide them with valuable experience.

Why did I want the Gremory peerage to gain more control and mastery? While this may be looking too far into the future, the Devil Youth Rating Games will be held soon. In addition, the Gremory vs Sitri Rating Game will be a thing.

I want the Gremory peerage to have a better chance this time around than in canon, they barely scraped by the win. Power isn't the only thing that decides rating games after all— When special rules are in place… Like that match, some teams will have a disadvantage and some will have it as an advantage.

Maximize their power in small quantities. If they can hit hard with small attacks, then it'll make it easier for them. Seeing as how some of their stats jumped up but not ranks… So they're still all Ultimate-class with Akeno being the lone Satan-class in the peerage.

Grayfia and Reni have begun to share ice techniques and spells… So they've grown quite close during the two years of training. Reni has started to use 'Ice-make' magic, she even managed to get her Ice dolls to start using them… That was quite a spectacle to see. Grayfia couldn't get her own creations to do it, unfortunately.

But she did start adding to her own arsenal of power, strings— Made out of ice, I didn't give her that idea, she came to me and told me it, actually. If she can stop time and use assassin techniques… Wouldn't that be a killer combo? With her unlimited ice daggers and knives… She just had to include ice strings?

I used them once, they were quite flexible and durable. However, since it's from her own magic their strength will equal Grayfia's which is Low Tier God-class. This means that, anything or anyone below that power can't break free unless they use special techniques or items.

Ingvild joined Kuroka in unlocking and training in touki. Since losing to Beru, she had begun to consider training in using it. However, it was more of a draw but she didn't see it that way. I didn't think she was that competitive. She also took note of the 'Ice-make' magic that Reni and Grayfia could do, so she started to try it out herself.

She came to me for some advice and we got to work on it. She's also been trying to work on some kind of water armor for herself. If paired up with her [Sea Serpent of the End] and her [Nereid Kyrie] Sacred Gear… In theory, she can keep that up 24/7 which in itself is terrifying.

Gabriel apparently revealed our relationship to the other Great Seraphs… Michael was shocked and supportive, the other two relented as they wanted her to be happy. I haven't gotten a visit from them yet, but I'm sure the next time I see them they'll want to talk to me about it.

This is how Gabriel was able to visit me a little more often during that week… Well twice since she participated in both training sessions in the training facility.

Natsume, Shigune, and Gabriel as I mentioned all grew up in power, and Natsume moved from Ultimate-class to Satan-class. She worked on her wind magic, her power, and control of it shot up dramatically, with her fighting Greed and training it with the help of Sylph.

I also saw the new 'form' they're working on, it's quite powerful and I look forward to seeing it used in actual combat, when they used it against Greed, he had to change how he fought since it became quite troublesome.

As with Beru, I instructed him to hold back. So, he had to work around that. Natsume also asked Gabriel to teach her light magic… Despite the fact that she had no aptitude for it, so, I gave it to her. She can use light manipulation instead of light magic which is a step-up. So, the two of them have become even better friends.

Shigune… Well what's to say? She's gotten even better at fire magic, both in power and control, and has also trained hard with the use of her whip and its abilities. Shigune was Middle-class in power without Poh, but after two years, she became Ultimate-class. She improved a lot, even without the [Pocket Dimension] training. Her potential before I changed it was quite high, it was Mid-Tier God-class.

She also worked on mastering the use of her Sacred Gear, Poh. Shigune with her whip can 'devour' anything that's below her rank, Poh is still a wild card but much more manageable thanks to training with him over the past two years. Greed had to take him out during their sparring sessions as he would have been sucked in.

I— We focused on 'training' during the two years, so my relationship with everyone mostly stayed the same, of course, they didn't stay stoic, I got closer with everyone at a steady rate. But no substantial changes happened.

I invited Yasaka, Kunou, and Rossweisse during these training sessions but they had to decline since they couldn't spare a single minute in their schedules, Odin had Rossweisse on a job, and the two nine-tailed foxes were busy managing their factions.

I did promise them that I would bring them to 'that' place instead and have them grow in power there instead. That's after this month— So after my meeting with Suzaku Himejima… Which is tomorrow.

In other news, on the same day I got back I headed over to Gasper and Kiba's home and upgraded them. I asked if they wanted their own training facility but declined and said that my home wasn't too far so they'd just come over instead. I shrugged and didn't push it; I also added the combat androids and their panels. Those two will get lovers at some point… Probably, maybe who knows…

Today is Friday. We have one day of school before the weekend hits… If Suzaku, Slash/Dog plus Sae, and the Himejima family stay… Then they'll all be leaving by Monday. I'll need to take everyone including the Gremory peerage grocery shopping.

I'll be mentioning that for breakfast.

…

After sifting through what happened during the week, I look down and see the girls still asleep. Grayfia was already awake though so I can assume she's getting breakfast ready. I look to my side and see Rias naked, along with Akeno.

These two— Well Akeno started to compete with her for some reason… She's always been fine with sleeping in a nightgown… Even if they were see-through. But Rias can't sleep without getting naked… So, yeah.

I could see it was around half past seven in the morning so I decided to get up. I really need to get a schedule set up since there are going to be a lot of women down the line. How many people can sleep with me a night? How will the rotation work? Any special circumstances that will affect them sleeping with me? Like birthdays and other such things.

I'll mention that to Grayfia when I get downstairs.

Shuffle~ Shuffle~

I turn around and see some of them had changed positions after I got up, Shirone looked uncomfortable as Kuroka was hugging her and her face was in her chest.

Poor girl… Can she even breathe? She'll be fine… Probably… Anyway, I opened the door and left. I quickly stepped into the bathroom to freshen up, and then headed downstairs.

I should go and check the spare rooms to see if they're in good shape or if they're big enough. Since they'll probably stay over the night after all.

I get to the kitchen and see Grayfia working away.

Tap~

I tap her on the shoulder and she turns around, we kiss, and I help her with breakfast. I will go over what's happening tomorrow with everyone. I gave Grayfia a quick rundown and I'll be needing her help with cooking for tomorrow.

She was fine with it. I hypothesize that Akeno may want to help with cooking, the same with Reni since her team and Sae are coming over. Wait, does that mean Sae belongs to Slash/Dog? Has Tobio been training her? I'll know when they get here tomorrow.

…

During Breakfast

Everyone was silently eating breakfast as they were all tired. There was occasional chatter, but those didn't last long. It was Friday after all, most students are happy about it, laziness is part of it, I guess…

"Ahem."

I get everyone's attention and they look at me. I'll relay this to Kiba and Gasper later.

"So, tomorrow. I'll be busy preparing tomorrow for the upcoming visit of a certain clan head, parents, and team. Reni and Akeno will be helping with cooking tomorrow, right?"

I turn to them and they nod.

"Certain clan head?"

Rias tilts her head confused.

"Yeah, Suzaku Himejima, team Slash/Dog with their friend Sae and finally Akeno's parents will be coming over. As to why?"

I explain to the ones that didn't know and they nod understandingly.

"You and your Himejima obsession…"

Rias sighs and shakes her head, earning a few chuckles from the girls. Having no idea how to respond to that, I just kept eating. I stop and look around… I need to expand this place again, the table, the general space, and the number of chairs and sofas around. The number of people coming is a lot after all.

"Anyway, after school today can we stop by the market to pick up a bunch of ingredients? I'll pay for Kiba and Gasper's stuff too."

"That's fine, they usually buy their groceries on Friday too."

Rias agreed and pulled out her phone, probably texting Kiba. Breakfast went relatively smoothly the rest of the morning.

…

I was on my way to school, I was walking there, why? I have no idea I just felt like it. Everyone else teleported to the clubroom so I was alone.

I pass by the same dog and it starts to bark and scream again.

'It's you again! Hey, you! Human! Hey! I'm really a god trapped in here! Me! The almighty dog!'

'…'

[How about checking, Partner?]

It won't kill me too…

…

Name: Snuffles

Age: 2 (Dog years)

Potential: Low Class - FFF

Rank: Low Class - FFF

Gender: Male

Race: Canine/Dog

Titles: True God King Emperor Snuffles/Sniffer of Butts

Sacred Gear: None

Level: 10 (0%)

Hp: 420 (Hp Regen: 11 per minute)

Mp: 420 (Mp Regen: 14 per second)

Str: 15

Vit: 30

Dex: 45

Int: 31

Wis: 9

Char: 100

Luk: 102

…

What in the fuck is that title? Did he give it to himself?

[Bwahaha! True God King Emperor Snuffles?]

I stared at the dog as Ddraig kept laughing.

{Well, he did have quite an ego.}

Some dogs are strange… Not all, mind you, but this one is just... I sigh, shake my head, and keep walking. After a few minutes, I finally reached the gates of Kuoh.

"Hey Jin-senpai!"

"Kyaa it's Jin-senpai!"

"He smells nice toda—"

Smack!

"Dude! What the hell?!"

I'm sure you're wondering why my popularity has suddenly risen. It's simple, during the week, I was asked to help the baseball team out during a match. One of their key players was sick so I stepped in.

I became a relief pitcher, and although our team wasn't terrible, they didn't qualify for the postseason last year. This was the first time since the creation that we qualified. This current tournament wasn't the biggest, it's the one before summer that's popular, but still, it meant a lot to the team.

Even though the male baseball team was formed last year, they didn't go far. So, making it this far was a big deal. We also competed against one of the favorites to win… So it was quite shocking to everyone that we beat them.

Did I have a key role in the win? As a result, I did have a no-hit game and got only strikeouts while keeping my ball count relatively low. I came in around the 4th inning. We were behind one and after my little boost in morale we managed to snag the win in the final inning.

I left it to our catcher to get the winning hit, and all I had to do was run for it.

Smack!

"Hey, hey! It's the team's carry!"

Someone in the same year as me but a different class came up to me and lightly smacked me on the back.

"Hey, Thomas-kun."

Thomas Anderson, the team's current ace and captain. A half Japanese half American guy, he was liked by everyone on the team and was dating the female manager for the team. Hated by other guys for his popularity but was still nice to everyone.

"Now, now, don't be modest, Jin-kun~ we won and qualified for the first time since the club's creation! If we need you again, you'll help right?!"

He was quite excited, and many of the students were still happy about it. So, some of the hostility towards me faded away, but it's still present.

"Yeah, sure, like I said. Just give me a call and if I'm not busy with my own club's activities then I'm more than happy to help."

"Cooool!!~"

He taps me one more time as he runs away to his club. What an energetic guy. I wonder if he only drinks energy drinks to keep that energy up early in the morning. I get greeted by a few more baseball club members and other students. It was a pleasant feeling.

I eventually reach my classroom and take a seat.

"Haaaah…"

The devils weren't here yet, only the normal humans.

"Hey Jin, still both popular and hated, huh?"

Kikijo Kouta-kun came up to me along with Higuro Najima-kun. These two were normal humans. Kikijo was in the Manga Research Club while Higuro was in the Go Home Club. I made friends with them over the month.

I hung out with them sometimes but since I'm busy most of the time, I can't. But we're pretty buddy-buddy at school. Kikijo wants to work in an anime studio in the future, while Higuro plans on inheriting his family business. They have a bakery in Kuoh, it's pretty popular. I've been there to buy some of their stuff before.

"Shut up, it's exhausting having so many eyes on me all the time."

"Cause it makes you cool?"

Higuro snickers.

"Because I get both likes and hates, it's weird."

They take their chairs and sit beside me; we talk about random crap and mundane things while joking around. I'm close with these two, but not to the extent Ingvild is with her friends. We do this until homeroom begins.

…

Lunch

Occult Research Club

It was lunch and I was relaxing in the clubroom with everyone except Ingvild since she was hanging out with her friends. My two friends were busy as well. Shirone and Asia were on my lap, and Akeno to my left.

Rias was at her desk and the two guys across the table were eating their lunch. We were just reviewing our day to see if anything had happened.

"Oh, by the way, Jin. Do you mind telling us about the rest of the Slash/Dog team?"

Rias stops sipping her tea and looks at me.

"Sure. You've already met Natsume and Shigune so I don't need to go over them."

Even if we spent two years in the training facility, everyone did get to know each other. Gremory Peerage and the two girls of the Slash/Dog team minus Reni since they already knew each other. The same with everyone else.

Gabriel… She got along with everyone, I mean she's really friendly, but I would say she got along with the… Blondes of the group. So, Asia and Reni, she was a ball of wholesome angelic energy. She did well in the training, reaching Low-Tier God-class in power.

"So, the other one with the Fo— Sorry, Five Fiends Sacred Gear is Kouki Samejima. He named his Sacred Gear Byakusa and he's more like a delinquent. He's a good guy though so don't worry about him."

"Five? I thought there were only four."

Rias seemed confused, it's understandable… It was recently only known as Four after all but due to me doing my thing it turned into Five.

"Yeah, I turned the Four into Five. I'll explain in a bit, but the final member and current Leader of the Slash/Dog team is Tobio Ikuse. He's a cousin of Akeno's but the two of them haven't, you know, met yet."

"He's a powerful individual as he's the wielder of one of the Longinus [Canis Lykaon]. As I said earlier, he's a powerful person. Only True Satan-class and God-class beings can hurt him. He's mastered his Sacred Gear to that point after all."

"Sae Toujou, the new person to get the 'Five' of the Five Fiends Sacred Gear thanks to me."

I explained what had happened to her and what an Utsusemi is and how I turned it into a real and true Sacred Gear.

"Last time I saw her, she was in a wheelchair and was about to put herself through rehabilitation and probably being trained by Tobio and other fallen in the organization. I guess you could say she should be back on duty right now."

"So yeah, that's it. Those are the members. As I said you know about Reni, Natsume and Shigune already. The whole team is full of powerhouses, even more in the future once Sae catches up with them."

I'm quite excited for the future, especially the Azazel Cup. The individuals I've influenced, and how much more powerful they'll be… The Azazel Cup will be one hell of a spectacle then.

[Will you participate, partner?]

I haven't thought about it…maybe an exhibition match or register as a one-man team? I mean the ones I can add to my team are Ingvild, Ophis, and potentially Irene…

[Who knows, Partner? The future is still ahead of us, who knows who else you'll meet.]

Right, I still have a lot of people to meet and interact with. In retrospect, they certainly looked sad, yeah… What she endured was terrible, more so when she was nearly killed by her Utsusemi.

"Akeno, care to tell us about Suzaku Himejima?"

Everyone turns to her as she nods.

"The things I may know may be outdated… So don't take them as fact. As you know she's the current head of the clan, since my mother and I are both exiled by the previous head… We don't know what's been happening."

Akeno proceeds to tell us about Suzaku and her fond memories of her when growing up. Despite their closeness, she never made contact with her, even when she was a reincarnated devil.

She doesn't know that Suzaku looked out for her all those years… She was the head and many of the elders were still disgusted by her existence. So, once Shuri died and Akeno was exiled, she swore to reform the systems of the clan and bring Akeno back eventually. The same can be said for Tobio as the clan elders were afraid of him.

Even if I hold the title of Middleman and Red Dragon Emperor, I doubt I can influence them that much. The next best step is to join forces with Amaterasu and form a friendship and alliance with the Shinto Gods.

I can proceed from there and help Suzaku that way. I'll suggest this to her when I meet up with her.

Tap~

"Jin? Haven't you spoken to her a few times?"

Akeno taps me on the shoulder and I nod. Well, I spoke to her twice, we mostly texted but whatever.

"Yeah, we spoke twice and have texted quite a bit. I more or less know her… She's a kind person like Akeno says, she wants to change the existing systems of the clan so she can bring you and Shuri back, as well as Tobio."

Akeno looked a bit stunned as she stared at me.

"S-She is?"

"Yeah, the way she was talking about it made it sound like she is. After Shuri's death and your exile and as well as Tobio's rejection from the clan, she wants to reform it."

"I know she wants to talk about it with me, I already have a plan set, but I still need to make contact with those gods…"

"Gods?"

Everyone looked quite confused, I don't blame them.

"Yeah, the Shinto Gods. Your clan can use one of the five phases since you're blessed by the Shinto Gods. The Himejima clan can use fire manipulation. Not forgetting about the fact that you guys are in possession of one of the Five Sacred Beasts— The Vermillion Bird."

"They choose the most talented to be their wielder, and of course, the current head, your cousin— Suzaku Himejima is the current wielder."

"Anyway, enough with the history lesson. She'll be here tomorrow along with the rest; I'll have a talk with her once the party slows down and we get to have our time."

Akeno was still staring at me; I don't think she thought I knew that much about her clan.

"Um, Jin-senpai?"

Gasper speaks up.

"What's up?"

"We're invited?"

"Well, yeah. You're her peerage and second family. Of course, you're invited. This is a great opportunity for you Gasper, to meet new people and see new faces. Try to mingle and chat with them as much as you can."

"Y-Yes!"

He answered with a bit of a stutter. We fall back into a brief silence as we continue to relax and eat our lunches.

"Oh, that's right. Next month the 'Ball Tournaments' will be held for a week straight. Let's start preparing for it early, shall we?"

Rias begins by explaining what it is.

In this event, the school plays ball-related sports, such as baseball, basketball, soccer, and the like. These matches include classes, genders, and clubs, so I'll probably be participating in our class and clubs. Rias seemed quite hyped up about this. I believe clubs are mandatory? But I'm not too sure about that…

"So, starting next week we'll start practicing all kinds of sports, okay?"

I had zoned out and Rias had finished her explanation, well whatever I'll give it my all. I'm pretty sure most clubs will be wary of me. So, they will definitely try and shut me down.

"Yes, President!"

"Huhuhu, we won't lose any this year~"

Seems like they lost some last year, making her more fired up. I wonder if it's because of Sona… Who am I kidding, they have a rivalry going on, of course, they'll compete.

I'll relay all this to Ingvild later, but… I glance at Kiba who had turned back to eating his food. The ball tournament is around the same time as the Kokabiel events… So, that's when I have time to do things then?

Probably not exact, but I have a vague reference I can use... I'll see how much he's changed by then. How he'll react to Irina and Xenovia with their Excalibur pieces, only time will tell.

…

After School

Shopping district

Along with the Gremory peerage and Ingvild, I was in the supermarket buying groceries, but I needed to buy more. I can't just put them into my inventory or people would freak out so I asked them for help.

Kiba and Gasper were quite thankful for me paying for their weekly groceries. They said they would put their groceries back into their home and come back to help later on tonight.

I texted Grayfia that we'll start making some of the desserts tonight, as well as other foods that need to be cooked overnight, or marinated.

"How about this? Is this okay, Jin-senpai?"

Gasper has a bag of carrots and shows it to me.

"Yeah, that amount is fine, make sure to add yours and Kiba's share."

He nods and runs back to get more. I wonder who cooks between them? I would guess Kiba but I never asked Gasper.

We had been here for around half an hour just buying more and more stuff for tomorrow, as well as what to cook for tonight.

"Jin, about Ingvild…"

Rias comes over to me with a handful of bags. She wanted to tell Ingvild about what we discussed during lunch.

"It's fine, I told her earlier on our way here, she knows and she's fine with it."

Rias smiles and nods as she walks back to Akeno.

[Damn, Partner, are you cooking for a fiesta or something?]

{It is a party reunion all in one, Ddraig.}

I'm also helping out Kiba and Gasper with their groceries, it's fine.

Ding!

Hmm? I take my phone out of my pocket and check who it was… It was Natsume.

|Hey, what's up?|

|Jin, so uh do we like wear formal clothes or something?|

|Natsu, no one's getting married, it's a casual get-together, just wear what you want.|

|So, my usual clothes would be fine, right?|

|Yes! I didn't think you would fuss about this that much. The more you know.|

|I-I just wanted to be sure, okay?! Geez…|

|Hehe, it's fine, my bad. But yeah, just regular clothes and you're set… If you guys want to stay for the weekend then bring extra clothes, toothbrush and all that.|

|Stay over the weekend? Is Suzaku staying that long?|

|Yeah, she has a few days off her schedule so I would assume she'll stay over, the same with the Himejima family.|

|Okay! I'll go tell everyone else, thanks Jin!|

|Yeah, see you.|

Natsume only sent me a cute heart emoji, heh. She's still pretty shy about the whole relationship. That's fine, we can take our time.

"Someone texted you, Jin-senpai?"

Shirone came over while eating something.

"Yeah, it was Natsume, she was going to wear formal clothing and I had to stop her."

Shirone just gave me an amused look. She held up some bags and I nodded. That number should be fine. With this, we should be set. We go over to everyone else and check their baskets and bags. I confirm that this should be fine. We go over to the checkout.

"Just add them all together, including your share, Kiba, Gasper."

They nodded and proceeded, the cashier looked incredulous.

"Geez, Jin-chan, is there a party or something?"

The older cashier, who I know as Saku-san was the one checking our things out.

"Haha, yeah actually. A small family reunion and get-together tomorrow, thankfully it's the weekend otherwise it would be difficult to set it up."

Once she finished scanning everything as everyone helped bag everything, she tells me the amount, I hand over my card and her eyes widen in surprise. She awkwardly coughs and swipes it for me.

"Jin-chan… Is Rich-chan."

She shakes her head as she hands the card back.

"Haha… Maybe."

We finally leave the market and go home.

…

Outside Jin's house.

Hmmm?

"Who's that? He looks familiar…"

Rias squints her eyes as everyone else sees the figure that was just standing outside my home.

"It's Azazel, I wonder what he's here for?"

"Th-The leader of the fallen angels?"

Rias looked a bit shocked as she stared back at Azazel who had noticed us and had started to wave his hand. We finally reach him as he looks at us amused by the number of bags we had.

"Hey Gremory peerage, Jin, and someone I don't know."

She's Ingvild you crow-brain. But I haven't formally introduced them yet…

"She's Ingvild, anyway, do you have some business with me?"

He nods.

"Yeah, we finally got around to interrogating them. Raynare was compliant, the rest were not. We wanted your opinion on it. So, I, the gracious Governor general came to your home to pick you up."

He smirked at me as I rolled my eyes. The rest probably did the same.

"Yeah yeah, I'll get back out to you, let me just get my stuff back inside."

"Sure thing."

He waves us off as we make our way into my home. Gasper and Kiba had run back to their own home to put their own groceries away. Once inside I was greeted by Grayfia, Kuroka, and Reni.

"We saw Azazel earlier, but he said he was waiting for you nya."

All three of them came over and took some of the bags that I had in my hand; I had stashed a lot of them in my [Inventory] earlier so it wasn't that bad. The same with the girls, but some wanted to carry… For whatever reason.

"Yeah, he wants me to go to Grigori with him, finally got Raynare and her group to talk… Well Raynare's gonna talk."

We get to the kitchen and we start to unpack our groceries. Everyone was doing their part so we got it done quickly.

"Grayfia, start without me, I'll try and get back home and help… Also, the same with dinner, if I don't make it back on time, start without me."

They all nod and I kiss my lovers. I headed back out to Azazel as he was just looking down at the ground.

"Hey, I'm ready."

He nods and we teleport away.

…

Grigori

We had teleported to his office.

"So, mind telling me why it took this long?"

Azazel just smirked and shook his head.

"Yeah, about that, I had to set up the thing with Sae with you… The other part was that I had meetings with other beings from other factions and pantheons. Finally, they were being monitored for a while."

"Monitored?"

"Yeah, to make sure they didn't kill themselves because you know, you literally sealed up their powers. Her group always wanted power, they were weak and were seeking more power, you literally made it impossible for them to go up anymore."

"A blow like that can have huge impacts on them— Especially their mental health."

Yeah, most supernatural beings want to get stronger, if you're not, you're basically dead or waiting to be killed. You'll never mean anything in the grand scheme of things… Power, whether it's literal power or another kind— Such as political power.

You need it in this world, even in the human world, without 'power' or political might— The right connections… You'll just be another blue-collar worker that won't amount to much.

"I guess, so where they at?"

"Raynare is the only one there, the rest are locked back up."

I nod, and the conversation ends there, I follow Azazel as he makes turns and goes to an area I haven't been to before. We finally reach a door and he opens it, once we both step through I see Raynare sitting in the middle.

Shemhazai, Penemue, and Baraqiel were also there, as well as a few other fallen that I'm acquainted with.

"Hey, didn't expect all of you guys to be here."

They nod at me as we turn back to Raynare, she was already sweating and nervous. She looked like she was going to cry. She looks at me and we make brief eye contact, but she quickly averts her gaze from me.

Is she that scared of me? Jesus.

[I'm pretty sure it's for different reasons, Partner.]

Doubtful, but whatever I'll think about that on another time. For now, we need to get as much info out of her.

"Well, Raynare? Care to share?"

"….Me and my team's rankings in Azrael's organization was already low, we weren't told much and the things we were told were just very vague or small snippets of whatever they were planning."

"But the notable individuals we knew of were Kokabiel, Valper Galilei, Avezza, Darcel and Azrael himself, but I'm sure that there's more that I haven't heard of or met…."

He... Azrael, he always... Went into this special room, and he would never let anyone else enter, not even Kokabiel, who is always with him. He would get very hostile to anyone who tries— He nearly killed Darcel once over it."

"And what about your base? Anything about that?" Azazel asks and Raynare shakes her head.

"Never any details, I looked outside a few times but it was mainly ruins and rumble, the grass, trees, and anything to do with nature was mostly dead. Even the water around that place was dark and muddy, it had a weird smell. But…. I think it's somewhere in Europe."

She stops there and doesn't say anything. Everyone was still looking at her, I walk over to her and put my hand on her head. She instantly stiffens when I do.  I look through her memories…. And everything she has said has been true.

I see her doing a few easy missions, times by herself but nothing concrete. But she didn't mention this last one… She caught Azrael and Kokabiel talking about something. Khaos Brigade and taking over it as new leaders.

"I see."

I take my hand off her and turn around to walk back to my spot.

"What did you do, Jin?"

Azazel asked as everyone else was looking at me now, the same with Raynare.

"I looked through her memories, she told the truth, and yeah, it's mostly nothing in terms of their location, they were quite tight lipped about it. But she didn't say all of it… Right?"

I look back at her as she flinches, but she reluctantly nods. I can only conclude that Nyarlathotep is hiding them since I can't find their auras anywhere.

"I went back to the place once to get something from what I called my 'room' I overheard Azrael and Kokabiel discussing something about taking over Khaos Brigade since their leader apparently went missing."

"Right, apparently their boss went missing around a month ago, things were shaky but it's mostly stabilized now, did they join forces and are now collaborating?"

"Their boss WAS the Dragon God of Infinity— Ophis. But it seems like they're being led by new leaders. Word is that maybe… The Old Satan Faction and their Original Satan Descendants are part of the leaders…"

They all turn to me once I said the leaders and possibly new ones.

"How do you know that, Jin?"

Azazel asks as the rest become suspicious.

"You could say I have a spy in there. She's part of a team in one of their factions, but she's unofficially resigned last month. But she's been going back and forth there, gathering info for me. It's Kuroka, by the way."

"Do you know what happened to her then? Ophis, I mean."

"Yeah, I do."

He sighs.

"You won't tell us, will you? Can you at least tell us if she's still a threat?"

"She's fine, she won't be a threat, hell— Consider her an ally now. But I can assure you she won't be making trouble anymore."

"I'll take your word for it then. So, Kuroka is your double agent then? What? Did she join with them originally, and when you helped her, she switched sides?"

"Yeah, word for word."

"I'll need to inform Sirzechs about this then, if the Old Satan Faction is involved…but knowing them they'll just deny, they're crafty after all… They probably hid any type of evidence."

He ruffles his hair out of frustration.

"Anyway, thanks, Jin. We got a lot more than we bargained for; you can go home now if you want. Raynare, go back to where you were too."

We both nod and leave the room together. Once we stepped out and I close the door I stood there as she slowly walks away.

"So? Care to explain why you hesitated to kill my clone that day?"

Once I asked Raynare stops dead in her tracks but doesn't turn around or answer my question. I wait for her to do or say anything, but after a full minute of silence I let out a sigh.

"Fine, whatever."

I start to walk away when—

"It…. It was on a whim…. My headspace wasn't in the right place, that's all…"

She turns around while saying that, she tried her best to look serious but was failing miserably at it. Maybe what Ddraig said that day was true? I believed it just a little bit…. Only a little.

"A-huh, sure. Right, well see you."

She could see I didn't believe her, she kept staring at me intently as I teleported away.

…

Japan, Kuoh

When I teleported back, I was in the living room, when I went into the kitchen, they were just about to have dinner. Kiba and Gasper were also here too, looks like they're staying for dinner today.

"Welcome back, Jin."

Grayfia greets me as she gets up and gets an extra plate.

"Oh? You're back nya, how was it nya?"

Even Kuroka stopped as she was about to put food into her mouth.

"It was fine. I'll tell you guys what happened."

I sat down and thanked Grayfia, once I did everyone started to dig in and listened in to what I had to say.

"Hmm-hmm! Double agent Kuroka in the house nya~"

Kuroka was quite happy with herself, seeing as she played a key role in all of this.

"Once those guys became leaders, they stepped in and took control of the chaos… Everything is tense though… On top of the snakes that Ophis gave them before she left, they were recently given red vials… And they increased their strength permanently."

"Some guys that were in Low or Middle-class in power jumped up to High Class or even Ultimate-class. The ones in High to Ultimate went up even higher."

Yeah, I nod, that's probably Azrael's blood, that fucker is increasing their strength now…

"That's probably due to Azrael then. Kuroka, tell Vali soon that you quit, mention my name and I doubt he'll have too many gripes about it."

Kuroka laughs as she nods.

"I already in a way quit nya, but okay I'll tell Vali the next time I see him nya. I've rarely been there lately… So in a way, I already unofficially quit nya."

I feel like he's been avoiding me lately, maybe because he found out I was the Red Dragon Emperor and he's pissed that he lost to his rival twice already? Well whatever reason it is…

"Tell him when we both go then, I'll be there for backup or whatever."

"Always such a worrywart nya~" she nods and begins to eat again.

The rest of dinner was on a lighter note.

…

Third Person Point of View

Khaos Brigade

Team Vali

"Oi Vali! How long are you going to mope about it?"

Bikou was getting annoyed by their leader being sulky and angry with himself for the last few weeks now.

"Can you really blame him? He apparently got beaten by his sworn rival twice, quite easily as well."

Le Fay flew over on her broom as Arthur joined them.

"Hmm, it is what my sister says, while I agree it's frustrating, please try to understand Vali's thoughts and feelings about this, Bikou."

"Alright, alright, sheesh stop ganging up on me already!"

Bikou waved his arms around at the two as they smirk at him. Vali, along with many others found out about Jin being the Red Dragon Emperor after his fight with Riser Phenex, a devil.

Vali at the time was both happy and pissed off. Happy that his rival finally made his appearance, but pissed off that Jin was hiding that from him, and he concluded that the reason for hiding from him is because he either wasn't interested in their rivalry or didn't see him as a rival.

Both reasons pissed Vali off, but in a way, it motivated him. He thought he was in a good spot— On the right track to beating his rival, maybe he was ahead of him? But reality came crashing down when he found out that day.

'I stand no chance as I currently am.'

'Will [Juggernaut Drive] even work?'

'My [Divide] didn't work either, he outmatches me in physical combat even with [Balance Breaker].'

'How do I beat him? Can I even beat him?'

Those were the types of questions that were going through Vali Lucifer's mind, in each part of his life he had to face an obstacle but if he persisted, he got through it, maybe this was just one of those?

Vali didn't know, he was unsure of it, but the only thing he could do now was train, keep training, and get stronger. Vali got up from his spot.

"Huh? You ready now or something?"

His teammates noticed their leader get up; he turns around at them with a calm look.

"We're going training, around the world. We need to get stronger, asap."

He announced his intentions, while he was interested in many other things, he knew he had to get stronger to be able to achieve them.

"I don't mind, are you that fired up about your rival?"

Vali didn't answer Bikou's question, he only started to walk away. His teammates followed after him, not questioning his decisions.

…

????

????

"Ahhhh, my Goddess…"

Azrael was by his 'shrine' again to Nyarlathotep, he went here daily, every night without ever skipping a day. He recently joined forces with a Terrorist Organization called Khaos Brigade, he along with Kokabiel became the new leaders.

He stood at the top since he shared the 'red vial' which was his blood, increasing many of its member's power up.

"With my blood… It provides power, but that blood belonged to you, my Goddess."

That's right, Azrael received blood from an Outer God many years ago, he also received her blessings… Whatever they may be, he can communicate with Nyarlathotep however, she never responded.

With an Outer God's blood, even if it was a very small amount, it helped Azrael reach peak God-class, and even let him breach the strength of Dragon Gods. He was confident in fighting them. Why has he become even more confident?

It's because his Goddess answered him! It didn't last long but she answered him! What did she say?

'In one battle, I will provide assistance. You shall know what battle when the time comes.'

That's what Nyarlathotep told Azrael, he was quite happy that his Goddess would provide assistance to him, after he heard her voice, he had an orgasm in his pants. That's how much he valued her.

To Azrael, he would do anything for her. But he was also quite happy since Avezza is nearly finished with her Divine Beasts, once she was done with them… They would set them up everywhere in Kuoh, if not inside, then outside.

A full-scale assault on that devil-controlled town. Azrael concluded that the Red Dragon Emperor may sense them setting them up inside the town, so he would just do it beyond its borders.

He was confident he could take the Middleman on; he has told his subordinates to let him deal with him, and the rest can deal with his entourage. They were also going to get assistance from the Nilrem on the assault, Nilrem was the magician faction of Khaos Brigade and it was led by Euclid Lucifuge, the younger brother of Grayfia Lucifuge. They will be providing them with magicians.

Fallen that range from Middle to High-class in power, the same with human magicians, Divine Beasts that can kill True Satan-class and God-class beings, Ajamu, Kokabiel, Avezza and Himself with his Goddesses help.

"Easy pickings, that's the quote, yes? Kukukuku."

To Azrael, this will be an easy assault on the city. He only needed to get things ready…

…

????

????

<Your crossroad is coming, Jin. How will you deal with your upcoming hardships?>

<Will you fall into despair and destroy everything?>

<Or will you rise up and meet up to my expectations?>

<Do not disappoint me.>

…

Japan, Kuoh

Next day

Saturday

Jin Skyward

We finished eating breakfast a while ago. Grayfia, Akeno, Reni, and I were busy preparing everything, last night we had already made most of the deserts so we were fine on that front. They all should start arriving around noon if I'm not mistaken.

Everyone else was relaxing, they decided to take today off, holding off on contracts and training. But they were still quite rowdy in their own way. Ingvild, Asia, and Kiba also helped out, but that was on setting things up, like plates, tables, chairs, and decorations.

…

Noon

We had finished with all the preparations, the only thing left now was to wait for everyone to arrive.

Everyone else was nervous, why? I have no idea; I mean this will be the first meeting between the Gremory peerage and Akeno's parents. But apart from that? Yeah, I didn't really understand why…

Ring! Ring!

The bell! Someone finally arrived, alright Jin, show time. I take a deep breath and let it slowly out as I got to the door. Once I open it, I was greeted by a man and woman.

"Shuri, Baraqiel, welcome."

It was Akeno's parents! The Himejima's, I greeted them and gestured for them to come inside, once Akeno heard me say that she trotted over to us.

"My baby!"

Shuri says as the mother and daughter hug each other. Akeno turns to her father and hugs him too. She leads them into the living room to meet her King and fellow peerage members. I follow suit.

"Rias, everyone, this is my mother Shuri Himejima and my father Baraqiel."

Akeno introduces them to them, as well as everyone else in the room who didn't know who they were. Rias walks up to Shuri and puts her hand out, Shuri smiles and shakes it.

"I am Rias Gremory, Akeno… Has been with me since… Well let's not get into our sad pasts. It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am."

"Yes, it's nice to meet you Rias-san, thank you for looking after my daughter in our absence."

Shuri pinches Baraqiel as he nods along furiously.

"Y-Yes, thank you for looking after Akeno…"

Ring! Ring!

I couldn't get a word in since the bell rang again, I run to it and open the door.

"Yo! Bro!"

Kouki bear hugs me as he goes through the door, he was followed along with everyone else on the Slash/Dog team. He finally lets go of me and grins.

"Hey man, glad you guys could make it…everyone else is in the living room…"

Reni runs over and welcomes her team. She grabs Natsume, Sae, and Shigune's hands and pulls them into the living room.

Looks like Sae can walk on her own two feet now, she looks a lot better now than before… She also has a ring…. Tobio you mad man, you actually went through with it, I was wondering when you'd get her the ring.

"Good job and congrats again, Tobi."

I grab his shoulder again and congratulate him, he looks at me a bit surprised but smiles.

"Yeah, it's all thanks to you, Jin. None of this would have happened if you didn't heal Sae."

We grin at each other and fist bump, he then joins everyone in the living room.

"Tobi! This is your cousin, Akeno! It's the first time you guys are meeting, right?"

Going into her full aunt and mother mode she introduces the two of them to each other. They nod and shake hands.

"It's nice to meet you, Tobio-kun."

"Likewise, Akeno-san."

"Haah! What a great reunion… All that's left is Suzaku~"

Shuri sighs as she looks at me.

"Yeah, I'll go wait out for her. She should be here soon. We can have lunch then, sorry about this."

I leave the room and wait just outside my house. I left the door open and I could still hear everyone chatting away, laughing, and having fun.

…

"Five minutes have passed."

[Why are you talking like Dio?]

"Six mi—"

{Jin, she's here.}

Yes, I had been counting down? Up? Like Dio, heh. Anyway, I look up and see a figure in the distance, she had a calm and collected look. She looks up and we see each other, she smiles and waves at me.

I wave back to her, she's really…

Suzaku is a beautiful, young buxom woman who has long, flowing black hair and red eyes, she has a slim and voluptuous figure. She really did look like her aunt, Shuri Himejima.

[Pfft—]

{Heh.}

Cúntóir: Answer: Haah…

"Jin?"

I come back to reality and see that Suzaku was right in front of me, looking at me in concern. It's our first-time meeting, we only spoke twice on the phone and texted a lot, yet she's already concerned for me. How thoughtful.

"Eh? Uh, oh crap, my bad! I— Uh zoned out…. I was talking to Ddraig, sorry about that!"

[No, he wasn't]

Ddraig's mark appeared and ratted me out…. You fucking traitor!!!!! He immediately disappeared once his job was done while cackling to himself. Suzaku giggled at my expense as I whisper shouted at my hand.

"Haah… It's finally nice to see you, Suzaku."

"Yes, likewise, Jin."

"Shall we?"

I gesture for her to follow and she does. We go through the door and go into the living room.

"Everyone's here then, here's Suzaku Hime— Oof!"

I didn't finish since Shuri pushed me to the side and hugged Suzaku hard, Suzaku also did the same, and the two started to weep in each other's arms. Akeno joined them and the three of them wept together. Baraqiel eventually joined and had a group hug.

A reunion that was far in the making.

"Are you okay, Jin?"

Shigune came up to me as she worriedly looks at me.

"Physically? Yes, emotionally? Also, yes."

I laugh and she also giggles.

"I'm fine, Shigune."

The Himejima's were still having their moment, Shuri quickly turns around and pulls Tobio into them.

"Woah!"

The guy was caught off guard and was brought into the family hug. He just smiled through it and hugged them back.

I stand beside Sae.

"Hey, how's everything lately? Body giving you any trouble? How about the Sacred Gear? Feeling anything off overall?"

I see Sae smile beside me and shake her head.

"Everything has been great, thank you, Jin-san. I haven't started training with the Sacred Gear yet… But overall, I feel great— Very healthy."

"I see, that's good. If you do find anything wrong, don't hesitate to contact me, alright?"

"Yes!"

The little reunion with the Himejima's plus Tobio ends, the women start to wipe their tears away, and a few of the girls… Asia in particular was also crying. Even Rias got a bit emotional for them as she wiped a tear away.

"Alright so—"

I was also pulled in by Baraqiel, sheesh so many interruptions. Everyone was hugging me now, ahhh!! So embarrassing! But… I don't dislike it, I actually quite like it. It feels very warm and comforting.

Is this how a caring family feels like? I like it… They finally let me go and I continue on with what I was going to say.

"L-Let's go and have lunch now, shall we? The food didn't go cold since I used a bit of magic to keep them warm…"

Everyone agreed as they were quite famished.

"Food nya!!!"

Kuroka was the first one to dash into the dining room. We all laughed at her eagerness.

…

Everyone was eating food, chatting, and generally having a good time. A stressless environment? Maybe, Akeno, Sae, and Tobio were chatting it up and getting to know each other.

Shuri earlier freaked out after she found out he had proposed to Sae, he asked everyone to keep it a secret since he wanted to surprise her.

Shuri promised to help them plan out their wedding, they were both happy with it and accepted her offer. I was on a random sofa eating and minding my own business when suddenly Yasaka and Kunou came into the dining room from upstairs.

"Ara?"

"Ara ara?"

Shuri and Yasaka look at each other, blink a few times and then introduce themselves to each other. They chat for a bit, Yasaka snickers and Shuri just stares at me.

"Jin?"

Kunou had come up to me and sat on my lap.

"Yes?"

"Where's Phis?"

As soon as she finished asking that, my necklace glowed and Ophis came out, Kunou smiled and they went up to the table to get food together.

I guess that answers her question? I chuckled to myself but still felt Shuri's gaze on me… Is she going to comment on my current harem or something?

I could see Shuri slowly walking towards me, I look at Baraqiel and he had a nervous look on him, but he didn't try stopping his wife, I did the same thing with Akeno— She along with Tobio had given me their condolences through sympathetic looks.

I'm not dying you know! Don't assume I'm going to just because she's coming up to me! I can feel her emotions and she isn't angry! But, she is looking at me with a blank stare so I'm kind of confused.

"Jin?"

Everyone's chatter had stopped as they all stare in our direction.

"Yes? How can I help you, Shuri?"

"Is this."

She gestures around herself

"Your 'current' harem?"

Baraqiel came up behind Shuri and tried to calm her or stop her.

"S-Shuri come now, honey, let's not bring this— Ow ow ow."

His attempts were futile, she simply grabbed his ear and was holding the all-powerful 'Lightning of God' at her mercy. Baraqiel gave me a look of 'I tried'. That was your best attempt?! Hang in there, man! Try harder! I know you're a masochist but hot damn!

Is this what the future holds for me? Wives are terrifying.

[I don't think so, Partner…probably.]

That probably isn't comforting you know, Ddraig-san! I inwardly sigh, I answered her honestly back then, I won't change my answer now.

"Yes, with a few exceptions. They are."

She stares at me without saying anything and eventually nods.

"Alright, take care of them."

Eh? Wait— What?! Huh? Wait wait wait did she just?!— Hold up wait a minute! Did Shuri finally accept m—

"I haven't fully accepted it yet, Jin. But this shall be a start."

Never mind I spoke too soon, well whatever…at least she is more open to it now… I wonder what Yasaka said to her… She's been smiling at me during this whole little incident.

"Shuri-san"

Natsume snickered.

"He also has Gabriel, one of the Four Great Seraphs of Heaven as one of his lovers."

Oi!!!!!!!!!!!!

Slap!

I facepalm so hard it created a small shockwave around the room. However, Shuri doesn't say anything, she lets go of Baraqiel and goes back to mingling with everyone else, the… 'Tense'? Atmosphere vanishes.

…

"Huhuhu, I apologize for coming unannounced, Jin."

Yasaka had joined me on the sofa as she had grabbed a plate of food for herself, she was already acquainted with everyone as she had visited a few times earlier in the week, Tuesday and Wednesday I believe.

"It's fine, treat this like your second home and that bedroom as another, anyway, any special reason for coming?"

"We just wanted to spend time with you, that is all."

I nod, I see nothing wrong with that. Kunou and Ophis are getting along and are happily playing, well Kunou is— Ophis is just watching over her and commenting every now and again.

"It's still surreal, seeing my daughter and the Ouroboros Dragon together and having fun."

"Yeah, it's shoe-real."

"…"

Yasaka stared at me after I said that pun, she lightly pinches my cheek, telling me she disapproves of it. Really? I liked it; well, my humor is strange so I don't blame her…

…

"Yo Tobi looks like you got a lot stronger since last time."

Tobio and I were in the front garden, I had come out here for some fresh air and Tobio had joined me a few seconds ago. We had stayed silent and just drank our drinks.

"Yes, after my loss again you, I reflected on what you said… So when I finally confessed to Sae, it felt like a huge burden was lifted from me."

"And with that, your power multiplied tenfold— Or something, right? God man you're like a manga protagonist."

I finished his sentence for him, he stares at me a bit shocked before we burst out into laughter. But he really did get stronger, I could feel he went up at least one rank… God does love really work that way?

[You'll find out sooner or later, Partner.]

Hey! Don't answer my inner monologues! But whatever, I really don't know. I love the girls but… Since technically I came out powerful and only got even more powerful… I didn't have the typical shonen protagonist power up.

"I guess so… If you put it like that, then yeah. Sae is my everything, after all, I kept pushing through even when she was out of commission… I knew someday she would wake up."

He lets out a sad chuckle.

"If it weren't for you, Jin… Sae might have…"

He trails off and looks into the distance silently, that went from happy and jokes to depressing real quick.

"Hey man, that's in the past, just protect her from here on out, also just give me a call if you both feel something is off."

"Yeah…we will, thanks Jin."

…

"That's mine you bird brain!"

"I got it first you stupid cat!"

I had come out of the bathroom to see Natsume and Kouki arguing… Everyone else minded their own business… Err— Wouldn't someone normally try stopping this…?

It's to me then? I walk up to them and ask what's wrong… Though it wouldn't take a genius to figure it out.

"Okay, stop, what's going on?"

"Bro! I got this last piece of the apple pie first! Your bird won't let it go!"

"Jin! Isn't the term ladies first still a thing, right?!"

Um… Natsu, I think that only applies to certain situations and is not a universal thing… I don't think it includes food. I sigh, snap my fingers and create more apple pie.

"Will this do?"

"Yes!"

"Whose side are you on?!"

Kouki was happy with the outcome; he gave his pie to Natsume and got the new ones I made… But… Why am I the one being yelled at now?!

"Uh…"

"Listen, Jin. You have to support your girlfriend at times like these!"

"Bros before hoes, bro!"

Kouki happy with his new pie walked away, Natsume was still a bit huffy… But calling herself my girlfriend at a time like this— I couldn't help but grin. She notices this and is confused.

"H-Huh? W-Why are you grinning like that?"

"Oh nothing… You just called yourself my girlfriend, even during the two-year training session you didn't, so this was quite a surprise."

"!!!"

Natsume finally realizes what she said and turns beet red.

"Haha! Serves your ri—"

Wham!

"Ahhh! My pie!"

Natsume kicked Kouki, he obviously fell, and his pie flew away. Wait, no, why are you more concerned about your pie than being kicked?!

I sigh and stop the pie from falling, I would rather not deal with a mess on the ground. I make the pie float back to Kouki, he looked at me like I was some kind of God… Well I was, but he didn't know that.

...

"And this is a photo of Akeno when we first went to the beach… Oh! And this one was when she wore her first school uniform…"

Shuri had pulled a picture book of Akeno from… Somewhere, a lot of the girls had gathered around her in the living room to see them.

Akeno was embarrassed as she clung to me, hiding her face on my back. Baraqiel also stood beside me, not entirely sure on how to deal with this.

"Awww Akeno looks so cute, I want to pinch her chubby cheeks!"

Reni was fussing over a young Akeno, making her even more embarrassed.

"I swear… I'll find their baby photo albums… I swear on Jin I will…"

Akeno mumbled to herself. Uhh, I'm still alive here you know? Why would you swear on my name?! Wait! Do you need to be dead or alive for someone to swear on your name?

[Alive]

{Dead}

{[…]}

The great Dragon debate started.

…

"Auuu… I'm exhausted…"

Gasper, Kiba, and I were out back, Gasper needed a bit of time to recharge his social batteries. He had done a good job at holding conversations with every one new he met, he didn't panic— Well okay that's a lie, but he didn't do it as often.

"You did great, Gasper-kun."

"Yeah, you did. Won't be long now till you get a girlfriend."

The two of them look at me weirdly, huh? Did I say something weird?

"What?"

They both snicker and start laughing, yeah no… I'm not following.

"Jin-senpai, the supernatural world will run out of women before the rest of us get girlfriends or lovers. It looks like your mission is to get all women."

Gasper nodded along with Kiba's answer, I'm not that bad! Like… I haven't gone after married women or… Uhh, any widows! Venelana, Asteri, and Misla are some examples…

"I'm not that bad geez."

"When will you cross the line of married women… Or even widows, or women in the middle of divorcing?! Wait, Jin-senpai… W-What's your personal preferences?! Same age? Younger? Older? All of them?!"

Gasper started to… Panic? Huh? I mean… The only barrier there is if they are younger and being below a specific age, apart from that… I'll take anyone, okay that sounds wrong.

"I think he's fine with any, Gasper-kun. President and Akeno-san are the same age as Jin-senpai. Grayfia-san and Yasaka-sama are older than him… And the ones younger are Koneko-chan and Asia-chan."

"Oh!"

Gasper lightly hits his palm with his other hand.

"That's true… Senpai, you're amazing."

Now I'm being admired?! I don't get this at all, Gasper!!

…

Nighttime

The day slowly turned dark and night had arrived, everyone was slowly unwinding, we just had dinner…even though we mostly ate from noon and until now, but everyone was still in high spirits, albeit a bit calmer.

"If you guys want to, you can stay the night."

"Mmm, Natsume told us yesterday, yeah we're prepared."

The Slash/Dog team brought out some bags and showed some clothes, seems like they were prepared.

"The same with us…"

Shuri also produced a bag that was filled with extra clothing… I wonder what other weird tools are in there… I gave Baraqiel a weird look and he just shook his head.

I turn to Suzaku… We haven't had much time to talk to each other today. The only time was when she first got here… Hopefully tonight we have some time to talk.

"I am fine as well… I had planned on staying here in Kuoh for a few days…"

She also produced a bag and showed it to me. Alright cool, everyone is set and ready then.

"Grayfia, do you mind showing them to their rooms?"

I ask and she nods, she starts with Akeno's parents.

"Oh! I'll show my team to theirs!"

They nod and follow Reni.

"Suzaku-onee-san… Follow me."

Akeno grabbed Suzaku's hand and pulled her up the stairs. I turn to the remaining few in the living room, a few of them seem like they were going to pass out already.

"We can sleep with you tonight, right nya?"

"Yeah, there are no problems with that…"

Kuroka seemed relieved like the other girls…well, maybe they weren't so sure with Shuri here and all… Ingvild walked towards me like a zombie and hugged me.

"Ugh… Carry me…"

"Mouu! No fair Ingvild-san…!"

Asia joined in and hugged me too, Kuroka did so and I just had women clinging onto me now…

"Guys… You need to take a bath before we all hit the hay tonight…"

""Ah!""

They all said in unison and let go of me.

"Wanna try to get all the girls to take a bath at the same time nya?"

Kuroka suggested and Asia happily agreed.

"Some bonding time… Jin-san, will you try that with the guys?"

Asia-chan! You're saying very dangerous words right there! I mean it's possible, Baraqiel, Tobio, and Kouki, just us talking about guy stuff! Gasper and Kiba left earlier. I told them they could stay but they insisted on going home so I didn't push it. They did say they'll come back tomorrow so… It's whatever.

"We'll go tell the girls then… We'll pass it along to the guys."

So, they left, and with that… My night became a little bit weirder.

…

Bath

Yeah so, we're here. Guys time… We all sat away from each other, we had some distance so it didn't feel weird. What do guys even talk about at times like this? Games? Their life? Women they're interested in?

How would that last one work? I have a harem, one's a delinquent, one's married and the other is newly engaged.

"So, bro, will you marry everyone in your current and future harem?"

Well, Kouki started it, might as well go with it. Everyone else turned to see what my answer would be.

"I mean, that's the plan, I guess. Some may want traditional weddings, I'm fine with that. If others just wanted to get married legally and quietly… I'll do that too. Some might not care about it and just 'marry' me without any type of ceremonies if you get what I mean."

"Right right like the Dragon God, she's quite clingy with you bro."

Kouki nodded in understanding. I turn to look at Baraqiel.

"I know Akeno wants a traditional wedding, she's told me more than once that she wants to get married, so I'll propose to her in the future. The rest I'm not sure."

"Hmm, I see, well you already got both our permissions so we fully support it, Jin."

Baraqiel turns to Tobio.

"How about you, Tobio? Is there a set date for the wedding or are the two of you still unsure?"

I was wondering about that earlier, but I just guessed they would leave it up to the help of Shuri since she was really excited about it… Well, Sae is a girl so she might have her own dream wedding in mind.

"Sae and I aren't too picky, we're in no rush to get married either… So when Aunt Shuri offered to help with the wedding plans we accepted pretty quickly."

He nods and we turn to Kouki, the guy wasn't expecting us to so he looked flustered.

"W-What?"

"Dude, you started it, so you gotta answer. What about your love life?"

"B-Baraqiel hasn't answered though?!"

"He's married to Shuri and their daughter is Akeno, what's more to find out?"

Kouki sighs defeatedly as turns to look to his side. I mean, I won't mention the weird BSDM they do...

"I don't have anyone like that or like anyone."

LIE DETECTING SKILL! ACTIVATE!

He lied. Hehehehe.

"Did you know I have the ability to tell when someone is lying?"

He looked stunned at me, and so did the others.

"Huh? Since when?!"

"Since now, spill it."

He grumbled something but we heard that she is a fallen and has blue hair… He likes Kalawarna…? I didn't expect that. Wait have they even spoken to each other?

"Kouki… Have you two even, you know, talked? Interacted? Anything?"

"Uh… No."

Ahhh young love. It's like his first crush or something, now that's adorable.

[You're young!]

{He's technically 87 quintillion years old… If we go by soul age…}

Baraqiel seemed to figure out who it was, Tobio not so much so he started asking questions about her, Kouki was defiantly trying not to answer them. I just sat back laughing to myself.

…

I can't sleep. Why? I don't know, maybe the day's energy hasn't been used up yet? Not all of the girls were sleeping with me right now, Kuroka, Shirone, Ingvild, Asia, and Rias joined me tonight.

As for the rest? Reni went to spend the night with Natsume and Shigune, Akeno was with Suzaku, and Grayfia wants to be the proper maid so declined my invitation for the night. Whatever, some fresh air then.

I snake my way out of the girl's grasp, they were all quite tired after today… I have no idea what happened when they all took a bath but, there was a lot of screaming, laughing, and giggling. It's probably girls' talk or something.

I left my room and went downstairs and go out to the backyard. It feels like this is my go-to spot now or something, the next action should be looking up at the moon… And so I did.

Heh, I really do look up a lot at it…

[Maybe you did it a lot in your past life?]

Maybe… No concrete proof, well… Apart from what I saw last night in a dream. I was on the hospital bed, looking out at the window, so maybe that's why. I was always looking at the sky— Maybe even at night too.

[You had a dream yesterday? Did you get a requirement or something done?]

Cúntóir: Answer: He did.

{Hmm, seems so, whatever that may have been.}

Slide~ Close~

I turn around and see Suzaku had come out, she had one of Akeno's nightgowns… The less explicit ones. The two really do have the same body since she can fit in it… She sees me staring and blushes.

"Akeno, lent me this… I may have forgotten to bring my own nightwear…"

The seemingly perfect Suzaku Himejima can also make mistakes, cute.

"Is that so?"

She nods as she walks over and stands beside me, we both fall silent for a few seconds.

"Suz—"

Before I could start, Suzaku turns to me and grabs both my hands. I was a bit confused and surprised. She looks at them, a calm smile on her face.

"Jin… Thank you."

This again, it's really no big deal…

"It's really not a big deal, Suzaku… No need to keep thanking me."

She shakes her head disagreeing with what I said.

"To you, it may not be, but to me, it means a lot. My aunt that has been dead for years suddenly being revived, Akeno and Baraqiel's relationship being repaired quite suddenly… And finally Sae, she woke up and is fine now."

"To me, those seem like miracles that Gods can make happen… Jin, are you a god of some type?"

She looks up at me— Staring into my eyes, almost like she was searching for the answers herself.

"Well, I'm a…"

Why am I so compelled to tell her the truth? I couldn't say I was a Human Dragon God hybrid… Is— Is she the one I'll tell first? As I try to find the answer myself, Suzaku kept staring at me, waiting patiently.

"…"

"Yeah… I'm an Outer Dragon God."

She looks confused as she tilts her head.

"Outer… Dragon God…?"

How do I explain this to her…

"Outer Gods are various cosmically significant entities. Generally speaking, they are located beyond the confines of Earth and the solar system, exerting their influence from deep space. However, one Outer God has taken up residence on Earth..."

"…That would be you?"

I nod.

"There are many Outer Gods, the one that created everything known to all of us is… The Outer God Azathoth, he also created many other Outer Gods… Including myself."

"Azathoth created the Omniverse and other verses, the multiverse and the like…"

"Originally, I was a Human Dragon God Hybrid, but around a month ago I had to go onto the moon and evolved into an Outer God…"

"…So, you have the power to do anything?"

"I guess so?"

She smiles and nods.

"You do not abuse it? Even though you can do many things… End world hunger, wars, any types of suffering…?"

"I could say the same things to other gods, why not interfere with humans and have that end many years ago? Why do those responsibilities just fall onto me?"

I was just a normal person before reincarnating, I probably did worry about those things back then, I was just one person who couldn't make a difference, especially with whatever disease or cancer I had.

Just because I can do anything and everything doesn't mean I have to do those things. I don't owe anyone anything.

"You… Have a point, Jin. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

"No, no, I'm not upset it just feels like if I reveal that information to everyone… That's beyond my harem and lovers, they'll probably ask those kinds of questions. And even if I give the same answers as the gods of earth, I probably won't get their easy pass."

"You haven't told Akeno and everyone else?"

I shake my head.

"I plan on telling them soon… I don't know why I was compelled to tell you the truth though."

Maybe during the month before Kokabiel? After it? But I will tell them soon, it won't go past the conference, I want them to know about that part of me.

"I see… But again, thank you, Jin. Even if I do know you're a God now, that doesn't change the fact you helped my family. I don't think I can ever repay you."

"It's fine, really. I want Akeno to be happy, the same with Tobio, we're friends after all. Are you going to ask me to help you with Tobio and the clan?"

She looks a bit surprised and nods.

"Y-Yes, that was my original request I had in mind… Will you help me with that?"

"Don't worry about it, I have a plan… Though it may take a little while. Perhaps I can meet with the Shinto Gods? More specifically Amaterasu? The Himejima clan does use fire manipulation after all and she's the Sun Goddess."

"I get a good rapport going with them, and then have Amaterasu come to have a look at the situation with your clan. I'm the Middleman and Red Dragon Emperor… And now that you know, an Outer God. But that last one isn't known, and I seriously doubt your clan elders care too much about my titles."

She sadly nods, yeah, I guessed as much. These clans work on very old traditions and systems, even with Suzaku trying to change them it will take a while unless something major happens— Like Amaterasu visiting them or something.

"Anyway, that's my plan. Are you on board with it?"

She grips my hand tighter and nods.

"Yes… Thank you again… Jin."

I'm getting too many thank you's right now, Suzaku-san! Please lighten up a little!

"Haha… You know, a lot of Himejima's have been thanking me lately, Shuri, Akeno, and now you…"

She giggles at this, cool I managed to lighten the mood a little! Now that I look at her… Suzaku and Akeno's smiles are almost identical.

Slide~ Close~

We both turn to see who else came out… Shuri and Akeno. Akeno was already giggling as she saw Suzaku holding both my hands, while Shuri stared at me unamused.

"So, you have your clutches on my little Suzaku now, huh?"

This makes Suzaku blush as she quickly tries to explain it to her aunt.

"W-We were just talking, Aunt Shuri…"

"I'm sure you were."

She shakes her head and goes up to me, causing Suzaku to let go of my hands and take a step back, looking a bit worried.

Shuri and I stare at each other without saying anything. Until she sighs heavily and shakes her head.

Uhh??

"Take care of both of them, alright?"

She gestures to both Akeno and Suzaku. Akeno was happily waving at me, while Suzaku was sporting another small blush, stunned at what she heard.

"A-Auntie w-what are you talking about…?"

"Mom, Jin's already doing a good job at that~"

Shuri sighs one last time before turning to leave, Akeno trots over to me and gives me a kiss, she winks as she turns to follow her mother.

"…Thank you again, Jin…"

Suzaku steps back over to me and hugs me, I hug her back on reflex, and we stay like this for a few seconds until she breaks it off.

"I'll go to sleep now… Good night, Jin."

She tells me her intentions as she walks away.

[Himejima's conquered]

{Next up, Sitri!}

My eye and mouth twitched when I heard these two overgrown lizards speak… Haah, whatever. I have a month to get things done.

And so,

1 month and 2 weeks passed by in a blink of an eye…

At the time, I didn't know things would drastically change for me.

…