NOVEL WEB Chapter 5: Fame & Gear True Power!
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Under the watchful eyes of three beautiful girls, Badr quickly focused his mind, attempting to summon the sword and shield that had appeared before.
He felt a sense of calling, and the next moment, his consciousness was in a boundless void.
Although he could still feel his body, everything before his eyes was nothingness.
The calling grew more apparent, and Badr searched for its direction, finally spotting a distant white light.
With a thought, the white light, as if summoned, flew toward him, growing larger.
This is...
As the white light approached, Badr's heart skipped a beat. Within the light, he saw a massive black city.
The towering city walls, seemingly forged from refined iron, were grand and imposing, stretching endlessly.
The walls were engraved with countless patterns of birds and beasts, and the black city exuded an astonishing aura.
On the city walls stood soldiers in black armour, like statues.
What is this place?
Badr couldn't understand. The city before him, though awe-inspiring, felt like a dead city.
His attention was drawn to the grand gate in the centre of the city wall. At the top of the gate stood a statue.
The statue depicted a man on a tall horse, but the man had no facial features. He sat on the horse, which reared its front hooves high, its mane flying, making the rider look heroic.
In the statue's hands were a long silver sword and shield—the very sword and shield that had appeared before Badr.
The silver sword and shield stood out vividly in this black and gold city.
The white light Badr saw was the glow emitted by this sword and shield.
Badr's consciousness reached the statue. As he gazed at the sword and shield, his vision blurred.
In his mind, he saw a vast army charging. A man wielding a sword and shield led the army to victory.
The scene shifted to a flag of triumph flying high, soldiers shouting "Our King," and countless people kneeling in loyalty.
But this king, after numerous battles to protect his people, was finally ambushed and killed. His blood stained the shield, and the sword in his hand was broken.
That day, the heavens wept, an angry wind howled, and a blood rain fell as if the gods mourned him.
The sword and shield, bathed in the king's blood, gained new life and extraordinary power.
- The King's Sword and Shield.
The name appeared in Badr's mind as if whispered by a gentle goddess, telling of its history as the weapon of a king;
A king of men, a benevolent king, hence the name.
Badr regained consciousness and opened his eyes. A silver-white sword and shield appeared, floating before him.
"Ara, ara, what a powerful aura. There's a strong presence contained within this Gear," Himejima Akeno murmured appreciatively.
Badr slowly extended his hand, grasped the sword hilt, and drew it from the shield's unique sheath. The silver shield seemed to have a life of its revolving around him.
"Hehe, a sword and shield, huh? You do look a bit like a knight," Rias said with a satisfied smile, looking at Badr.
Badr felt he could do more than this...
It seemed he could summon the black city as well!
Just as he was about to try, Rias's words stopped him:
"But the power of the Gear isn't easy to control. You need to work hard to improve yourself. Forcing the Gear's power can harm you."
Badr immediately took heed.
The black city indeed seemed beyond his current ability to summon. He couldn't recklessly play around and risk self-destruction...
After practising several times and familiarizing himself with summoning the Gear, Badr was satisfied. Rias then said:
"Alright, you're free to move around now. I need to take a bath after last night's healing."
"Thank you for your hard work."
Badr stood up to thank her, glancing at Koneko Toujou, who had been eating snacks and bread since he entered the club room...
Her quiet eating was quite cute.
He nodded at her as a greeting and left the club room, returning to the classroom.
Immediately, his classmates surrounded him, curious about how he managed to join Rias's Occult Research Club.
Badr was speechless, thinking the club was full of devil girls, which they couldn't join.
Outwardly, he smiled and said Rias thought he was suited for the club, which led to many boys jealously beating their chests.
"Damn, why do you get to be close to President Rias!"
"Akeno-senpai!"
"Koneko-chan!!!"
The boys' jealousy grew, and they howled in unison: "So envious!"
Badr maintained his smile, inwardly bored.
These adolescents... such trivial matters, why do they care?
I've even slept naked in the same bed as Rias; did I care?
Soon, Rias and the others arrived in the classroom, greeting Badr.
This action made the boys secretly grind their teeth at Badr again.
Badr could only respond with silence...
During a break, Rias jokingly said to Badr:
"You're famous now."
"Heh... I don't need this fame," Badr replied, annoyed.
"Oh? Becoming popular and fitting in better isn't good?" Akeno asked with a smile, sitting beside Badr.
Badr shook his head and calmly said:
"Why fit in? In the world of the ugly duckling, even swans are guilty."
You can't force atmosphere, especially when Badr had nothing in common with them.
Hearing his words, the three girls were momentarily speechless, unable to argue, and fell silent.
Badr's nature was unique, but he was also somewhat aloof...
Loneliness and aloofness are different;
The lonely yearn for social interaction and fear solitude, while the aloof don't care about others' opinions, are self-centred, and often arrogant.
Badr was undoubtedly the latter but differed from typical aloof individuals.
Most aloof people are unaware of their flaws, which can be annoying. Badr, however, was very aware and consciously hid and disguised it.
To others, he seemed approachable, always able to find topics to talk about.
But those who truly knew him found him incredibly intimidating...
Fortunately, Rias and the others knew Badr didn't disguise himself around them, and his mature and calm demeanour was apparent.
Class time I was passed peacefully, much like I had in ordinary school life.
However, the powerful feeling within him constantly reminded Badr that he was no longer human.
After school, it was time for club activities.
Badr followed the school's rotation schedule and arrived at the club ten minutes late.
Upon entering, he heard the sound of running water; someone was bathing in the club's bathroom.
On the sofa lay folded clothes, with girls' undergarments neatly placed on top. The bathroom curtain was dim and semi-transparent, revealing a graceful figure bathing.
Akeno and Koneko were in the clubroom, so the one bathing must be Rias.
She loves bathing...
Badr thought, nodding to Akeno and Koneko in greeting before sitting on the sofa.
Noticing Koneko eating again, Badr was speechless. She doesn't gain weight.
Of course, a devilish beauty wouldn't get fat...
"Vice President, what's the usual club activity?"
"Though we're called the Occult Research Club, that's just a front. We don't need to care about it. Our real task is distributing flyers and finding people willing to summon us devils to make contracts."
Akeno replied with a gentle smile, holding Rias's clothes for her to change into later;
She wasn't just Rias's first servant but also her sister and partner. Their relationship was very close, like an older sister caring for her younger sister.
"Flyers?" Badr was puzzled.
Do Devils need to hand out flyers?
"This." Koneko handed Badr a paper.
Looking at it, Badr saw a purple magic circle drawn on it. As a devil, he could sense the faint magic from the paper.
At this moment, the curtain opened, and Rias came out after her bath.
Her hair was still wet and only wrapped in a towel, exposing her shoulders and collarbones. Her white legs were strikingly beautiful, and she walked barefoot on the clean floor.
Tiny droplets clung to her white skin, her body exuding a faint mist, and a subtle fragrance wafted to Badr's nose.
Rias's cold and alluring, mature and wild charm was fully displayed.
Such a scene would make the boys at school wail in envy.
But this beautiful sight was for Badr alone.
Rias took the towel from Akeno, who handed it to her and continued the conversation:
"As I mentioned, we devils now gain power by distributing flyers to find humans to contract with. So, we need to advertise ourselves!"
Badr opened his mouth;
Honestly, this was very different from his understanding of devils...
Handing out flyers...
So down-to-earth.
As if knowing his thoughts, Rias smiled and explained:
"Usually, this job is done by familiars. We mainly fulfil the summoners' wishes, making them willingly sign contracts to gain power."
"We'll take you to find your familiar when the Familiar Forest opens next time."
Akeno patted Badr's shoulder with a gentle smile: "For now, start with handing out flyers. It's an experience every devil needs."
Since they said so, Badr had no objections, calmly taking the stack of summoning flyers.
And I am heading out to distribute them.
...
Along the road, Badr stood at a busy corner, holding a flyer and handing it to passersby while saying:
"Want to try summoning a devil? Only a dollar for an experience."
He found the phrase quite amusing;
Some passersby looked at him with puzzled expressions but took the flyers out of curiosity.
Looking at their reactions, Badr sighed and decided to be more proactive.
"Summoning a devil can fulfil all your desires!"
...
"Only a dollar!"
...
"Experience summoning, a chance to change your destiny!"
Finally, some people were moved and stopped to ask questions.
After a long time, Badr ran out of flyers and returned to the club with sore legs. He reported his flyer distribution success to the three girls.
Rias handed him a glass of water and gave a rare, gentle smile:
"You've done well. Come and rest; tomorrow, you'll probably receive your first summoning."
...
As expected, the next day, Badr was summoned by someone...