Highschool DXD : Gacha Life

Born to Blow

Still getting used to that ability. Hard to believe I gained it just from taking down Raynare's group. I can turn anything I touch into a potential bomb. The world really doesn't play fair, does it?

The forest clearing had become my second home over the past two weeks.

I pressed my palm against the rough bark of a dead tree about fifteen feet away, feeling the familiar tingle as explosive energy seeped into it. To anyone else, it would look perfectly normal, but to me, a faint golden glow outlined the marked area.

Three marks active now. Seven more before I hit the limit. I stepped back and raised my right hand. Let's see how much power I put into that one.

Snap.

The explosion was clean and controlled—just enough force to split the dead trunk down the middle without damaging the surrounding trees. The golden glow vanished as the mark detonated.

Good. Still have fine control over the energy output. Last thing I need is to accidentally level half the forest because I got distracted.

But my mind kept drifting back to breakfast. To Asia's face when she said she wanted to choose her own path.

She actually said yes. I was so worried about protecting her innocence that I almost made the same mistake everyone else did—deciding what was best for her without asking. The memory brought an unexpected warmth to my chest. But that look in her eyes when she talked about helping other people in similar situations... there's steel underneath all that kindness.

I moved to three more trees around the clearing, pressing my hand against each trunk in turn. Each touch left its invisible mark, the golden glow visible only to my eyes. Now I had four active marks total.

Now I just need to find others. Strong people who aren't already tied down to the devil factions or the church or whatever other power structures exist in this world. I frowned, considering the problem. Can't exactly put up recruitment posters around town. "Seeking supernaturally gifted individuals for morally ambiguous vigilante work. Must have own transportation."

The devils I knew—Rias, Sona, their peerages—they were devils first. They had their own hierarchies, their own loyalties to the Underworld. I needed people who were powerful but independent. People like...

Like who? I don't actually know anyone else. The realization was frustrating. Two weeks ago I didn't even know the supernatural world existed, and now I'm trying to build an organization within it. Maybe I should expand my search radius. Check the next town over, see if I can find other Sacred Gear users.

I raised my right hand again and snapped my fingers three times in quick succession. Snap. Snap. Snap. The three remaining marked trees exploded simultaneously, each with perfectly controlled force. The sound echoed through the forest like distant thunder.

Still only using about thirty percent power output. Could probably level this entire clearing if I really wanted to, but that would kind of defeat the purpose of having a training spot.

Problem is, Sacred Gear users don't exactly wear name tags. And it's not like I can walk up to random strangers and ask if they can shoot laser beams or turn into werewolves.

A sigh escaped me as I ran both hands through my hair. This was going to be harder than I thought. Building something from scratch always was.

"Akira."

What the— I spun around, instinctively reaching for my armor's activation before I recognized the voice. Koneko stood at the edge of the clearing, her white hair catching the dappled sunlight.

Koneko? What's she doing here? We'd been in the same room twice during my visits to the club, but we'd never actually spoken. She was always the quiet one, observing from the corners while everyone else talked.

"Koneko?" I let my hand drop. "What brings you out here?"

She approached with that silent, cat-like grace I'd noticed before, stopping just close enough that I had to look down to meet her golden eyes.

"Buchou wants you."

Buchou. Right, that's what she calls Rias. "She say why?"

"No."

Well, that's helpful. "Guess I'll find out when I get there."

Without another word, Koneko knelt and placed her palm flat on the ground. A magic circle bloomed beneath her feet—intricate blue patterns that seemed to pulse with their own inner light.

Really need to learn that trick. Getting tired of hiking up to Chysis's place every day. My legs are getting a workout I never asked for.

The teleportation was instantaneous. One moment we were surrounded by trees, the next I was standing in the familiar clubroom of the Occult Research Club. The transition always left me slightly disoriented—like stepping off a merry-go-round.

Afternoon sunlight streamed through the tall windows, and Rias looked up from a pile of paperwork with a smile that seemed a little forced around the edges.

She looks stressed. Not a good sign.

"Akira, thanks for coming." She gestured to the chair across from her desk. "I need you to write a detailed report about last night."

I dropped into the chair with a frown. "Report?"

"Everything that happened. The park, tracking them to the church, the fight itself. Sona needs to submit it to her sister for the official record."

Ah. Politics. Should have seen this coming. "Where's Sona? This seems like her kind of thing."

Rias's smile turned genuinely amused. "She and I had our monthly rating game practice. Loser handles the paperwork and misses the familiar trip."

Monthly rating game practice? And here I thought they were just friends. "Familiar trip?"

"My peerage's getting their familiars today. It's... important." She stood, gathering files from her desk. "But someone needs to stay behind and make sure this gets done properly."

Familiars. Right, magical creatures that serve as companions. I remember reading about those. I looked at the stack of blank papers she slid toward me and sighed. "This is going to take forever."

Twenty-one deaths condensed into bureaucratic language that won't make the higher-ups panic. Joy.

"Take your time. We'll be back in no time"

As Rias and her peerage prepared to leave, I noticed Koneko hadn't moved from her spot by the window. She was staring out at the school grounds with an expression I couldn't read.

That's odd. Isn't getting a familiar supposed to be a big deal for devils?

"Koneko?" Rias paused by the door, concern creeping into her voice. "You coming?"

"...No."

No? Just like that?

"Everything okay? You've been down lately" Rias asked in concern.

Koneko finally turned from the window, but something in her posture seemed... off. "Just don't feel like it today."

There's definitely more to this, I thought, watching the subtle tension in the petite devil's shoulders. But knowing Koneko, she's not going to elaborate unless someone pries it out of her.

Rias studied her Rook for a moment, clearly wanting to push but ultimately deciding against it. "Alright. But if you need anything—"

"I'll be fine."

After they left through a teleportation circle, the clubroom felt strangely empty. I picked up the pen and got to work, trying to put twenty-one deaths into language that wouldn't raise too many eyebrows in whatever supernatural bureaucracy existed in the Underworld.

"Hostile entities engaged in unprovoked assault." Yeah, that sounds better than "I hunted them down and killed them all."

An hour later, footsteps echoed from the hallway. Sona appeared in the doorway, her usually perfect composure slightly ruffled. There was tension in her shoulders that suggested today hadn't gone her way.

Let me guess—she lost.

"Lost the match?" I asked, holding out the completed report.

"Rias got lucky with her last piece placement." Sona accepted the papers, scanning them quickly. Her expression softened as she read. "This is very thorough, thank you."

Lucky, right. From what I've seen, Rias doesn't rely much on luck. "Just the facts. Though I'm guessing the political fallout's going to be messier than the actual fight."

"Almost certainly. The Underworld takes territorial violations seriously, even posthumously." She tucked the report into her briefcase with practiced efficiency. "Try to avoid starting any more supernatural incidents for a few weeks?"

If only it were that simple. "Can't promise anything."

A ghost of a smile crossed her lips before she composed herself again. After Sona and her people left, I gathered my things and headed out. The sun was getting lower, painting everything in shades of gold and amber.

Lost most of my training time to paperwork. Bureaucracy follows you everywhere, even into the supernatural world.

I was halfway to the forest when I heard them—soft footsteps matching my pace about twenty feet behind. Not hostile, just... following. The sound was almost imperceptible, but after last night, my senses felt sharper than before.

Someone's tailing me. But who? I kept walking until I reached the tree line, then stopped and turned around. Might as well find out what this is about.

"You planning to follow me all the way to my training spot, or are you going to tell me what this is about?"

For a moment, nothing. Then Koneko stepped out from behind a tree, her golden eyes meeting mine directly. For the first time since I'd known her, her usual stoic mask had cracks in it.

So it was her. But why?

"You're different" she said quietly.

Different how? "Different how?"

She took a step closer, tilting her head slightly like she was trying to figure out a puzzle. "Your scent. It changed after last night"

I ain't smelling bad, am I?

She paused, searching for the word but couldn't find the word to describe it.

"That's why you didn't go with Rias today?"

Another long pause. When she spoke again, her voice was barely above a whisper.

"I wanted to ask something"

Understand what? My curiosity was definitely piqued now. Koneko wasn't the type to seek people out for casual conversation.

For the first time since I'd met her, Koneko's expression showed something other than neutral calm. What I saw underneath was complicated—curiosity mixed with something that looked almost like longing.

...

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