Chapter 5 - Sticking Together

"They left me...?" Mittelt said - no. It was between a question and a statement, like she already knew it would happen, but she couldn't believe it had truly happened.

"Yes..." I confirmed with a neutral tone and impassive face. "Yes they did..."

It was a few hours after after I rescued Asia from the abandoned church. I brought her to Zelretch's place and immediately told her to rest since we could talk later, once she had recovered a bit.

She protested of course, saying that she wanted to know more about her savior and also didn't want to burden me anymore. But of course I insisted and in the end she accepted it, although she was quite reluctant about it.

Right now it was 10:00PM, I told my parents that I was staying at my friend's place and also told Mittelt about the result of my assault. She deserved to know what had happen to her comrades after all.

After hearing the whole story, Mittelt had a blank look on her face. Her blue eyes seemed to have lost their light and I was starting to get worried, but before I could do anything, she let out hollow laugh.

"So I'm alone again eh... Typical..." Mittelt murmured bitterly before letting out an un-ladylike snort. "Well, it fine. It not like we really were friends anyway..."

"Can't you return to them? I will let you go if you want to." I offered and she stared at me with a strange look before she snorted again.

"I appreciate it, but it's too late, I can't return. He will not accept a failure after all, he already show me that."

When I heard that I furrowed my eyebrows. That meant this mission was actually a one way ticket upon failure. Then what would happen to Dohnaseek and Kalawarner? The way Dohnaseek spoke before had made it clear that he had no intention of dying, and yet he still went back, knowing the mission was a failure.

Could it be that this death threat only applied to her? It seemed so...

"You can stay with me, you know." I said after moment of silence and Mittelt eyes widened at that, she lifted her face to me and bewilderment is her expression.

"You? You're offering me to stay with you?" She asked.

"Yes." I nodded before leaning back and relaxing on the sofa "I don't see any problem. We've already been together for a few days. So far I didn't kill you and you don't view me as a Boogeyman anymore. That means something, right?" I asked with small smirk and enjoyed her flushed face when I mentioned the 'Boogeyman' part. Really, at first her fear was amusing but it would have become annoying if it had kept going.

"That is different! I'm your prisoner!" She argued.

"Well, then change the word into 'friend' and it's fine."

"What kind of come back is that?! That's idiotic!"

"Not really. Do you want to stay with me or not?"

"Don't change the topic when you're losing an argument!" She yelled with an annoyed expression, but I merely sent an amused smirk and brushed off her last words. She seemed to realize it and puffed her cheeks in annoyance, her face reddening slightly as she gave me shy glance "You... You really want me to stay with you?"

"Of course, your presence already made me quite comfortable for a few days." I answered and I could see glimmer in her eyes.

"But you don't know me, I mean you don't even know my past or things like that! How could you-"

"Does it matter?" I cut her off while letting out sigh. "When you befriend someone, do you start asking questions about their past? Of course not, you have your privacy and I have mine, I respect that." I stated with shrug and it was true, I didn't bother about her past, seeing I already had a rough image about it when I had heard her blabber out it. Even if I only knew the reason why she joined her previous group, it was already enough.

"You... You are going to accept...me? Just like that?" Mittelt asked in befuddlement and I only rolled my eyes. I knew she was filled with hope and maybe a little happiness, overshadowed by disbelief, but this was getting ridiculous.

"Yes, Mittelt. You can stay with me if you want." I said with a sigh.

"But the devils in this area-"

"I will handle them, as long you don't pick a fight with them it will be fine." I reassured her. I could talk with Sona about this and I was sure she wouldn't mind other than keeping a sharp eye on her. "Or maybe you could explain your situation to one of them by yourself later."

Mittelt seemed to brighten up at that, a cute smile adorning her childish face as she looked at me with very gentle and soft look "Thank you... Hyoudou-san..."

"Call me Issei... We going to be friends after all, so no need for formality..." I said with the same smile and she nodded happily. I really tried my best to not say it, I really did. But seeing her small figure and her chibi face... I was really curious how it would sound from her mouth. "Or you can call me Onii-chan if you want."

The response was instantaneous. Mittelt blinked few times before her face showed pure surprise. "W-What?! You want me to call you what?!"

"Yup. Seeing how you're quite young, why not?" I smirked a little and Mittelt blushed slightly.

"W-Well! I-If i-it makes you happy, then fine! I will try." She murmured shyly before she gave me very cute glance "O-Onii-chan..."

GAGH!

Mayday! Mayday! Consciousness just received a severe wound via cuteness overload from a tsundere loli attack! Mind on the verge of shut down! Requesting medic immediately!

"I-Issei?" Mittelt called me, she seemed to have noticed my strange expression.

"I-I'm fine!" I yelled instantly, making her blink with befuddlement.

"If you say so..." She said with a slightly unsure tone.

That was really dangerous... I'm still not accustomed to the tsundere type. One attack and I almost lost my consciousness!

"I take it back, just call me Issei..." I said to her with a firm look.

"Eh?! B-But-"

"Call me Issei."

"... ... I-If you say so..." She murmured, looking slightly disappointed and it only made her even more adorable! Tsk, as expected from a fallen angel, she might not have big assets due to her young age, but her charm was extraordinary! I needed to train myself before I could tell her to call me Onii-chan.

In the back of my mind I heard Ddraig mutter something about 'Siscon' and 'Magical Girl complex'. I totally ignored him, a blasphemer like him would never understand what I was thinking!

And I'm not a Siscon! I'm just an overprotective big brother!

--------------------------------------------

It happened after midnight.

I was thirsty and woke up at 3:14AM, so I decided to go to the kitchen, not to mention that I also felt the need to go to the toilet.

Zelretch's house was only a two-stories building, it was not tall but it was quite wide. It was better than my house if you asked me. The sleeping rooms were on the second floor, the first one was for guests. A dining room, kitchen, living room and also a room for training were also all present. The training room was built with different materials, when I read it using Structural Grasp I discovered that it was made from Grigori technology.

It was quite strong and solid, it could handle an attack from High-class magic. I found it fascinating actually how he could build it, seeing how the metal necessary was a rare one, even the Grigori didn't have that much. But how the hell he got his hands on it was a mystery, although I already had a guess.

Anyway, back on track. When I was taking a drink from the kitchen, I saw Asia in the backyard, just standing there and staring at the moon in the sky above.

What was she doing at this hour?

Curiosity built in my stomach and mind, so I decided to approach her. Just in case there was something wrong.

"Still awake too, huh?" I called to her and she turned to me with a surprised look.

Simply put, Asia was a beautiful girl. The long blonde hair that was waving due to the breeze, her emerald green eyes and the shape of her face, all of it made her beautiful. And she was unlike Rias. That girl might be beautiful but there was something that made her not really attractive in my eyes.

It was her aura. The aura she radiated was big, strong and by now I was aware that it also contained pride. However hidden beneath that good aura, there was something dark, something vile and definitely not good. That was why I was not that attracted to her, maybe because it was her trait as a devil.

However, Asia was different. She was beautiful, not as beautiful as Rias perhaps, but the aura she radiated was different. It was... pure... I could sense it... It was pure, gentle and also warm... Her presence somehow brought up a calm and comfortable feeling in me.

Rather than seeing a simple girl, it almost felt like seeing an angel standing in the middle of a grassy field, pure white wings spread out beautifully, the wind touching her hair. If you asked me who was more beautiful, Asia Argento or Rias Gremory, the answer is obvious. Even if you compared her to Sona, my answer was still going to be Asia Argento.

"Hero-san..." Asia greeted me with surprise. "Did I somehow wake you up? I'm sorry if-"

"Don't be like that, I just woke up because I was thirsty." I cut her off while waving my hand slightly and began to approach her. "And you can call me Issei, I won't mind." I added.

"But didn't Hero-san say it would break a rule to call you by your name?" She asked innocently.

"I also said for beautiful girl like you it was okay to break that rule." I said with small smirk as she blushed slightly before she shook her head.

"I can't do that. It's not right for me to get special treatment." She replied softly and I held in the urge to sigh. This girl really was that innocent eh? She was almost like sponge. I was only kidding about those rules, but she really believed it was real!

"Then how about I allow you because you are my friend?" I asked and she blinked.

"Friend?"

Then her eyes become blank, along with her expression. It was if she didn't know the meaning of the word 'friend'. It was if that word had never existed in her life.

"Hero-san... wants to be... friends with me?" She asked and tilted her head to one side, her face still blank.

That face didn't suit her... That expression didn't suit her...

Not. At. All.

Girls like her... shouldn't have that expression! A girl with a pure aura and nature like her... That emotion shouldn't be in her heart!

"Yes, I will be your friend. Why? You don't want to?" I asked back with small scowl as I looked at her with a confused face.

Asia's blank look was gone, replaced by pure panic and a small amount of fear "No!" She denied and shook her head "It... It's just..." She lowered her face so I couldn't see her expression. "That someone like Hero-san... wants to befriend me is..."

"And what's wrong with befriending you?" I asked again. "You are a beautiful girl, kind hearted and also gentle. Who in their right mind wouldn't want to befriend you?"

Asia stared at me with shock. Her green eyes widened and I could see there were unshed tears beneath them before her expression was replaced by a bitter smile.

"I... Hero-san... Do you know my story?" She asked me softly.

"Mittelt told me the summary, I don't know the details other than that you were excommunicated due to healing... that devil." I told her and I notice her muscle tensed.

"It... It..."

"You don't need to tell me if you don't want to." I cut her off again and placed my hand on her shoulder, making her look up to me. Giving her a small smile I continued. "I want to be friends with you. I don't care about your past. It's because you are a kind girl that also seemed fun to talk with."

"But I don't have common sense, I never lived outside the Church before." Asia told me with teary eyes. It was if she was trying to reject me but at same time she also didn't want to.

"That's an easy thing to fix, you will learn it in time. I will help you."

"I can't even speak Japanese, Hero-san."

"We are speaking Japanese now, didn't you realize?" I asked with a smirk and her eyes widened.

"We are?" She asked back. "How?"

"Magic..." I answered simply and it was true. I had already learned a spell that allowed me to speak in any language, but speaking and reading was different. This magic allow us to speak other languages but if was about reading... Well that was a different thing.

Asia seems surprised at that before she slowly let out small chuckle. It sounded beautiful.

"However..." I spoke again and got her attention "To be friends with me won't be easy." I said "As you see, I'm a hero. And heroes will always have enemies. If you be friends with me my enemies may target you." I stated and her eyes widened. "You want to have a normal life, don't you? I can tell. But if you are friends with me then you will have none of that..."

I actually wanted to say more but I found my throat dry for a moment. All I had said before was true, but it was only the tip of an iceberg. It was not even deep enough to reach the core of my situation, but seeing her expression, seeing her eyes that were filled with the hope to live a normal life like all students and teenagers...

It hurt... It hurt so much that I found myself unable to speak further...

However, during my pause Asia surprisingly gave me another smile. It wasn't as radiant as before since it was filled with bitterness.

"I... I don't think I will ever have a normal life Hero-san... Not anymore..." She spoke bitterly. "You are ... like me, aren't you, Hero-san? You are gifted..."

Ah...

She understood... She understood what I was trying to say. She understood I was trying to make a sugarcoated version of what I had said before.

"Yes... Like you, I also possess a gift from God. But unlike you, mine is not to heal but to destroy. To take life..." I replied with a calm tone, my face twisted into an impassive expression.

Asia chuckled. "It was really impossible to begin with to wish for normal life, wan't it?" She asked again with a voice of resignation.

"Yes... We are chosen people Asia... Unlike others, we are born with this gift and power. And like people say, power will always attract other power. It is impossible for us to live like normal people, if we did, then people around us would be in danger." I told her with a nod. "But you seem to know about that already. Is that the reason why you seemed reluctant to be my friend?" I asked.

"No..." She shook her head. "I knew deep down that I could be friends with you. But I... I just..."

"You're afraid to abandon your dream." I finished for her and her eyes widened "If you are my friend, you won't have normal life anymore. You still had the hope to live like normal people but that chance will be gone if you become friends with me." I stated. "However, at same time you also want it. You don't want to be alone anymore, right?" I asked softly and Asia lowered her head, sobs slowly coming from her mouth.

"I... Issei-san... I... It really is impossible isn't it?" She asked in a heartbroken tone. She also used my name, indicating she had finally accepted that her dream of a normal life was impossible. That made me almost shed tears for her, but I didn't. I held myself firm so I appeared strong, this girl needed me. I couldn't show any sign of weakness right now.

"It is..." I confirmed as I looked down at the girl who was at my side and staring at the ground as if there was something interesting there.

We fell silent. Seconds passed and turned into minutes. Soon it was 5 minutes later and she broke her gaze from the ground and lifted her head to look at me again.

"I don't have choice... do I?" She asked sadly.

"We always have a choice." I told her and closed my eyes. "No matter what, we will always have a choice. The question is, are we ready for the consequences of our choice? It may lead to our death, but sometimes death itself is better than the other option."

Asia stared at me with an impassive look. Then she tilted her head to one side before she smiled - this smile was a sincere one.

"Then I choose to accept your offer." She said softly "Maybe I can't have normal a life but... That doesn't mean I can't have friends."

"Good choice." I responded with a small smirk "Our adventures won't be easy, Asia..."

"I know... But I will stay with you..." Asia said with nod of understanding and I chuckled. A healer, huh... Well, I couldn't go around saving people all by myself. I would need comrades like Zelretch had said and a healer was a good one...

Should I...

...

...

...

No... It was too fast, I would observe the situation first before deciding. I only had seven cards after all... Not to mention I still didn't know how capable her healing power was and even if I knew, what class should she be?

"Issei-san..." Asia voice broke me out of my thoughts again and I turned to her "I... I can still pray to God, right?" She asked in a pleading tone and I blinked.

"Of course you can." I replied with small chuckle "Asia, we are friends, you can do whatever you want to, you don't have to ask my permission - except if it's connected to us." I told her softly and she beamed.

"Thank you, Issei-san." She said sincerely and I smiled back at her.

"You're welcome... Now let's go back to sleep."

"Hai..."

------------------------------

Few days later

"So... How is it?" I asked as I calmly put down my cup.

It had been a few days since my assault on the church. The day afterwards went almost like a normal day. Well, I wouldn't say completely normal, seeing I had training to do and something else added to my schedule. As I was now part of the supernatural world, I quit my job. It was nothing personal, but I'd rather to use that time to train instead of working.

Especially as I was going to become a hero, I couldn't waste my time to do mundane things. School was already enough, if I could I would also wish to stop going to school and focus on training in order to get control over my power faster. The reason I didn't do that was because of my parent, I didn't know what they were going to say if they saw me quit school.

Currently I was at school, sitting in the Student Council office and drinking the tea that Tsubaki had just given me like a boss and owning the office. In front of my desk was Sona Sitri, who was also drinking her tea calmly.

Surrounding me was her Peerage, all of them in the corners of the room. There was Tsubasa Yura, the blue haired girl with a bishounen face, and Tomoe Meguri, a girl with reddish brown hair, was standing right next to her.

Then there was Genshirou Saji to the left of Tomoe, and next to him was Reya Kusaka, a girl with long twin braided brown hair, who was sorting some files on the shelves to the left of the room. Only Tsubaki, who was standing next to Sona, stared at me with impassive face. She seemed very wary of me, but I didn't give any sign of being bothered.

"I had a talk with Mittelt-san and heard her story. I think it would be okay for her to stay here if she wants to, as long as she doesn't cause any ruckus." Sona told me with a nod and I nodded back in return. "Really, Hyoudou-kun, I didn't expect you to let a fallen angel live." She stated with a small amount of bewilderment.

"What can I say? It just happened." I replied with a shrug "So there won't be any problems with her staying with me, right? You already made sure of that?" I asked again to confirm it.

"Yes, Hyoudou-kun I already did. As long as she doesn't attack people in this city I don't have any problem with it. I also already informed Rias about this and she said it was fine." Sona confirmed and I hummed. "Really, we are not that evil to kick out someone who only wishes to live here." She said while adjusting her glasses "What do you think we are?"

"Devils." I said rudely and bluntly. Instead of being offended, Sona only gave me a small smirk.

"Good point." She responded slightly amused. "But you really donn't need to worry about that anymore. She is free as long she acts like a normal person."

"Well, that's good then. I didn't need to knock some sense into you after all." I chuckled and everyone but Sona in room tensed at my declaration.

"Hey! Don't talk to Kaichou like that!" Saji growled at me and I turned to him for moment before returning my gaze to Sona.

"Now I see why you came to me by yourself a few days ago." I said with amusement and Sona only sighed.

"Hey! Don't ignore me you-"

"Saji, it's fine." Sona cut Saji off and the boy gritted his teeth but pulled back after hearing that. He crossed his arms while clenching his fist and kept glaring at me - which I ignored. "Sorry for that, Hyoudou-kun. Saji coan be quite protective." She said to me in a monotone voice.

"No problem, Kaichou." I dismissed her apology nonchalantly. "Anyway, that's not the only reason why you called me here, right?" I asked since I knew full well that she could inform me about Mittelt through a magic circle or another communication device if she wanted to.

"Sharp as always, yes." Sona steepled her hands and placed both her arms on the table, covering the lower part of her face. "First you must know, Hyoudou-kun, what your place is in this world. You are a Longinus wielder, a person who has a weapon that is capable of slaying even Gods. Surely -"

"I know my place well enough, Sitri-san." I cut her off and my tone changed into what people called 'business mode'. True, I called her 'Kaichou', since it was her status when we were at school, however, if we were talking about business like this I wouldn't call her that. If I did it meant I admitted she had a higher position than me. "I know what kind of power I wield and the risk of it, you don't need to tell me. So I understand what you did was just trying to help your kin." I told her and she furrowed her eyebrows.

"You talk as if you already know what I did."

"Of course I am aware, it wasn't hard to guess." I took my tea and drank it calmly again. "You told your boss about me. And let me make another guess, they offered me to ally with them." I stated while putting down the cup.

I knew well it would end like this. There was no way they would let a Longinus wielder go that easily, not when the user still lived and was born in one of their territories. Longinus users could practically be said to be nuclear bombs in mundane terms.

To them, we, humans, were merely potential weapons or something like that. No matter how kind and generous the one who offered us their help was, that was the truth. That was how they saw us, no matter what. Few were wise enough know that humans could be very dangerous creatures and playing with them was the same as playing with dragons. However, one thing you should know, while dragons gave their loyalty if you treated them well, they would guard you like they guarded their precious gold.

Human might be the weakest creatures, but they had potential to be something that surpassed even Gods if they wished. Proof of that was that monsters that gods were unable to kill had been slain by humans – mythology was full of such stories after all.

It was kind of laughable how most supernatural beings treated humans considering that.

Sona's silence and stony expression was more than enough to confirm my guess. She let out small sigh and gave me small smile.

"You're right, that should be very obvious. But how can you be so sure we won't kill you?" She asked.

"Your leader won't risk facing a Heavenly Dragon's wrath. Especially of the one that couldn't be controlled." I said with a snort. "If you're going to send someone kill me it would probably be an Ultimate-class devil since there's no way they'd send High-class ones to deal with the host of a Heavenly Dragon, we are different from other Longinus users after all." I raised my tea cup and swirled it slightly, observing the liquid that flowing inside it. "We can unleash our full power whenever we want." I stated.

It was true, among all Longinus, Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing were different. They had something that made them very dangerous, more dangerous than the others. Even if they were only mid-tier Longinus if I recalled correctly, they had something others did not.

Juggernaut Drive.

A state where the user could unleash the full power of Albion and Ddraig from back in their prime - at the cost of a massive amount of magical power. And not to mention it was not that simple. Juggernaut Drive was fueled by the hatred of the previous Sekiryuutei and Ddraig himself.

The hatred of hundreds of humans, countless ones perhaps, and a Dragon Emperor that had been chained for over a thousand years... Sounded pretty good, eh? Please note I was being sarcastic here, I meant having a combined thousands of years of hatred from a dragon that was shackled and chained and countless humans with similar feelings shoved into your mind was clearly not good!

If they sent an Ultimate-class devil, I would fight and no doubt I could handle it for a moment, I had Balance Breaker after all. However, I was sure they wouldn't send one but a group. If that happened I would unleash Juggernaut Drive.

And seeing they just finished a civil war I didn't think they would wish to have a Heavenly Dragon bring fire and destruction to their place.

Sona, who was hearing my explanation, remained silent and stared at me with furrowed brows. Tsubaki on her side meanwhile showed a small amount of surprise and I could tell everyone else was too, though there a few who were confused.

"And what's the big deal about you?" Saji asked me with a scowl.

I turned to him with an impassive look before turning back to Sona who sighed "It seems I need to install fear into your peerage just like I did to Gremory-san's." I stated and Sona's eyes immediately snapped open at that. She stared at me with complete shock and a fear.

"No, no. Please don't." She said quickly while waving one hand in a 'no, no' manner "You don't need to do that kind of measure." She told me as if trying to calm me down. "I assure you Saji -" She threw a stern look to Saji who gulped "will be punished."

I stared at her, my eyebrow furrowed before I grunted and took my cup again to drink from it. "Sitri-san..." I called her with a monotone voice. "If someone asked me to choose between you and Gremory-san, I would pick you without a second thought. So far you have not shown any sign of aggression against me, in fact you showed me a little help and I must say sometimes I even enjoy our time together." I told her this and my tone softened at the last part. "However, please remember that only extends to you." I raised my hand and made a small gesture. "Only you, not your peerage. I won't attack them, but if they show any sign of aggression..." I trailed off and Sona nodded firmly.

"I understand what you mean, Hyoudou-san." She said formally and I grunted in response.

"Good then, well, let's talk about this alliance." I replied and she nodded again. "You know my answer already, don't you?"

"Yes." She said and closed her eyes while sighing.

"Tell your leader I will remain neutral. I take no side, I'm on my own. If you want to blabber about your territory, tell your leaders to come here personally and I will have a small talk with them." I replied to her.

"That's practically what I told them." She told me with a flat tone and I blinked before letting a small smirk adorn my face.

"You know me that well, eh? And they still tried to do this, knowing it would be rejected?"

"It's just for formality's sake." Sona told me with a shrug and I let out a small chuckle at that.

"Politics really are troublesome, huh Sitri-san?"

"You know the answer already, Hyoudou-san."

"Hahaha you're right. Ah, by the way." I tilted my head slightly "I'm sure actually it's not just Gremory-san who has problem with that political thing that she is currently suffering from, you must be also have such problems. So how did you take care of it? Did you get lucky and found a weak opponent?" I asked.

"Not really, my opponent is on the level of Rias's." Sona answered "However, unlike her, I have the strength to take care of my problem." She stated with a smug tone and I furrowed my eyebrow.

"And how did you do that?" I asked, really curious. As far I could tell Sona and Rias were probably on the same level. Sona didn't reply, she only gave me look as if expecting me to guess it, and I did. "Seeing how this actually related to a match it means you had an advantage in the battle?"

Sona didn't respond, she only stared at me with a stoic face but I could see the twinkle in her eyes.

"And that makes you better than Gremory-san." I continued. "You have brain... A strategic game between you and your opponent and you won using it." I finished my guess and crossed my arms, putting on a smug face.

Sona stared at me with a stoic face before slowly a smile started to appear on her face and she let out soft chuckle. "Ah, Hyoudou-san, though I must say the way you put it is quite rude, yes. You got that completely right, I did not match my enemy in a direct fight but in a board game. And I won." She admitted.

"I'm not surprised, seeing that you are quite smart and strategic. Even as young as you are, I have no doubt that you could be National Champion if you wished." I complimented her and she only shook her head.

"You flatter me." Sona replied "Ah, how about this? A game between you and me."

At that declaration I heard a gasp from Saji, but everyone else also showed shocked and surprised expressions. I wondered what politic problem she had faced, if their reaction were any indications it had been quite big.

"Kaichou!" Saji protested but Sona ignored him.

"A game huh..." I murmured before shrugging my shoulders and leaning back into my seat. Then I stared at the table in front of me and whispered "Trace On."

A bluish aura appeared around table that turned into flames that slowly took a square shape. After the shape was created it became solid and turned into a perfect chess board.

"Interesting trick." Sona commented as she stared at the board with analyzing eyes. "What kind of magic is that?" She asked me, her eyes never leaving the board.

"My own magic." I stated with a smug smirk "Save the Q & A moment for later, Sitri-san. Why don't we start this game now?" I asked as I took a black pawn and moved it forward.

"If you say so." Sona replied with small smirk as she also raised one of her white pawns and also moved it forward.

------------------------------

"..."

"Jiiiiiiii."

"..."

"..."

"Jiiiiiii."

"..."

"..."

"Jiiiiiii."

I couldn't help but sweatdrop as I felt Shizune grip my arm more tightly while sending a stare, glare or whatever that look was she used at Asia and Mittelt in front of me. The girl was practically holding my arm as if I was going to leave her at any moment while in the truth we had just met less than one minute ago!

This happened when I just got home from school. I immediately visited Asia and Mittelt. Ever since I had save Asia the girl had been staying at Zelretch's place with Mittelt. Well, if you wanted to know, they were not getting along that well at first and I couldn't force them to become friends instantly.

One of them had recently tried to kill the other (and me), which was quite an awkward way to start a relationship. However to my surprise it just took two days for them to become closer... They were not best friends but they were friends at least.

It seemed Asia's innocent and kind nature rubbed off on Mittelt. The fallen angel actually was not a completely bad person, true, she could be cruel but at least she wasn't some wicked girl that enjoyed people's suffering or was going to kill and torture others out of the blue.

She harbored hatred for humans, yes it was still there but it was not as strong as it was before. I didn't know what Asia had said during their talk but whatever it was it seemed to be working. That girl was really a priestess, huh?

So after that I decided to take Asia out and introduce her to a "normal" life. She said she was isolated during her life at the Church so I decided to take her out to see the city and introduce her to more common sights in general.

Of course as I did that Mittelt heard it and she wished to come too. She said she was bored staying in Zelretch's house and the old vampire had released her as soon as I had been done with the church. I wonder where he was now? That man always went and came like a ghost.

And when we were on our way to city, I saw Shizune who was buying some groceries alone. Alone! My dearly beloved Shizune-chan was buying groceries alone! Dear God! What the hell was Misaki thinking?! To send Shizune alone like that!

She was still so young and also quite small! What if some pervert tried to harass her?! I mean, look at her! She looked like young lamb that was send into the forest!

[She is 12 years old, she is capable of buying groceries by herself. And it's the middle of day with people everywhere.] Ddraig pointed out inside my mind, his tone flat.

That's not an excuse! She is still too young and her figure's also quite small! She could-

[The worst thing that could happen was a robbery, but I doubt that's going to happen seeing you destroyed another gang last week. There is nothing that could happen to her! You just wish to see her again.] Ddraig deadpanned. [The only pervert she should wary of is you... Siscon...]

Oh shut up you asshole...

Anyway! Back on track! So I decided to approach her and make sure she would arrive at her home safely. I hadn't met her these last few days so I kinda missed her too.

And after our usual greeting where she cutely squealed 'Onii-chan' and I was being an awesome big brother by opening my arms and accepting her lovely tackle/hug we talked to each other for moment before she finally realized that Asia and Mittelt were behind me.

"Jiiiiiiiiii."

And that was the origin of our... condition? Status? Position? Eh, whatever! She kept giving them a strange look for some reason...

"A-Ano I-Issei-san..." Asia gave me a strained smile as she seemed disturbed by Shizune's glare. "Who is she?"

"Yeah Issei... Who is she?" Mittelt repeated the question but her tone more firm, strangely.

"Ah, right! Asia, Mittelt. Meet my adorable surrogate little sister! Shizune Akamatsu!" I introduced Shizune proudly and tried to push her so she was standing in front of me, however, she still held firm and clung to me while sending that strange glare at them.

"Nice to meet you Shizune-san." Asia greeted gently "I'm Asia Argento."

"Mittelt..." Mittelt said simply and for some reason she also sent a strange look towards Shizune.

Shizune's only answer was silence, her glare, instead of being softened, only to deepened. Now it was making me worry, did she dislike them? That was strange, Shizune was never this rude to anyone. Did they meet somewhere before? No that was not possible, Asia and Mittelt would have recognized her if they had.

"You two." She said in a low tone, almost like in a threatening manner "What's your relationship with Onii-chan?"

When that question left from her mouth, my neck immediately snapped towards her direction and my jaw dropped. Was she... was she...

"Eh?" Asia seemed taken aback by the question as she showed a look of surprise. "Ah... Mmm... I'm Issei-san's friend." She stammered slightly due to her surprise.

Mittelt meanwhile was still not answering, she only stared at Shizune before a mischievous smirk appeared on her face. "I'm his new little sister!"

SNAP!

Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Did she just try to dislocate my wrist?! Little innocent and sweet Shizune just tried to break my arm! It wasn't that it hurt, but I was sure if I was a normal human I'd havel yelped in pain. Thankfully I was not.

There was no doubt... Shizune was clearly jealous!

[Well duh.] Ddraig commented in flat tone. [What gave it? Was it after she tried to dislocated your wrist?] He asked in sarcastic manner but I ignored him.

"New. Little. Sister." Shizune's tone was dark, I could even see a small malicious aura around her! What was this? Did she possess a Sacred Gear?! She then turned to me and the look she gave, oh God. I had never seen that look on her face before! I swear! "Onii-chan, did you just pick new sister without telling me?" She asked in low voice.

"Eh?" Was the only thing that came out of my mouth as I was clearly taken back by the way she spoke to me. "I-I was thinking you were going to like it. I mean you have new sister now! And Asia could be your Onee-chan!" I said as I pointed at Asia.

"I already have Aika-neechan!" Shizune defended.

"That girl is not a good influence on you." I deadpanned immediately. "She's trying to corrupt you, I won't have that pervert stay at your side!" I declared firmly and I was being honest. That girl was freaking me out with her eyes that were able to measure the size of male genitals just by looking!

[You're one to talk, you turned her into a Magical Girl.]

I did not! She already loved it in the first place! I just gave her my support! She was cute in that uniform too!

[You're the worst.]

I don't want to talk to blasphemers like you!

"But I like Aika-neechan!" Shizune pouted while huffing her cheeks and it took everything I had to not hug her and lift her up while swinging her around.

"She is a good girl I admit, but she's clearly not a proper model for raising a child." I stated with a scowl and Shizune only grumbled before she blinked.

"Wait! We didn't talk about this before!" She shouted as me with glare "You can't just pick another sister without my permission!" She stated, her face turned into a cute pout again.

"Err I'm sorry Shizune-chan." I said in an apologetic tone. "Please forgive me?"

Shizune huffed while letting out a 'Fuugghhn'. She glared at me before turning back to Asia, who smiled uneasily and Mittelt who had placed one hand on her hips and also looked at Shizune.

"Just so you know, Onii-chan is mine!" She declared suddenly with a strong tone and tugged my arm. "Only Aika-neechan and I can have him! We already agreed to share him!"

Wait, what?!

Once again I let my jaw drop as I stared at Shizune with a gawking face. Did my ears deceive me?! Aika said that?! Oh that girl! I was going to have a small chat with her later! She really was corrupting my beloved Shizu-tan!

While I was busy planning my vengeance against Aika, Mittelt meanwhile broke into a laugh as if she found Shizune's declaration hilarious. She then gave me a mocking look.

"Your sister really knows how to boast, eh Issei?" Mittelt said with smirk and Shizune narrowed her eyes at that. "Let me tell you, the decision that Issei is yours or not is not up to you. Surely you are aware that lately Issei has not been spending time with you, right?"

Shizune's eyes widened at that, her face morphing into an expression of shock and disbelief as if she had just heard bad news "No way!"

"Yes way!" Mittelt said with an evil grin. "Your Onii-chan was spending his time with me!" Then she threw her head backward and gave an evil 'Ohohohoho' laugh like female villain in a game or anime movie.

Shizune fell dramatically to the ground like she had just been grounded for a decade. Her groceries bag also fell and I was sure I heard the eggs she had bought inside it crack, it seemed she had to buy new ones.

"Nooooooooooooo!"

And then she completed it with a scream that was filled with despair.

...

...

...

...

As Mittelt kept letting out the evil woman laugh and Shizune fell to despair, I already moved to Asia and watched the scene from the side.

"Issei-san..." Asia addressed me. "People are staring." She whispered as everyone was now staring at us.

"I know..." I said while holding back the urge to grind my face into my palm. Okay, maybe I had to admit that I kinda influenced her in bad way too if she was acting like this.

[Duh!]

Shut up! Not a word Ddraig!

"Onii-chan!" Shizune's yell broke me out of my conversation with Ddraig. She was already standing in front of me. "I forbid you to spend more time with that girl!" She declared as she poked my chest with her small finger.

"Eh?"

"Now, now you can't just command him like that." Mittelt said as she also appeared on my side while sending a smug look at Shizune. "Issei-niichan is free to talk with anyone he likes, and if he wants another sister who's better than you, he can get one freely." She stated with a smirk.

"You are not better than me!" Shizune shot back with a glare.

"How so?" Mittelt challenged.

Here Shizune's face morphed into a smirk and she puffed her chest up to Mittelt "I have bigger boobies than you!"

Of all thing she could have said. She just had to point that out, didn't she? Aika, you and I really were going to talk about this, oh Misaki would also be there. I didn't want to be blamed if she heard Shizune speak like this.

Mittelt blinked before she stared down at Shizune's chest and distaste started to adorn her face, jealousy and envy also clearly mixed in. "Even if you have bigger breasts, I'm still cuter than you!" She declared petulantly.

"Ha! You're wrong, evil girl!" Shizune grinned with a smug face. "I am still cuter than you! We all know that! Your comeback is weak! I win in this round!"

"You little!"

"You're the one who's little! Mine are bigger!"

I only stared blankly at the two girls who were arguing before letting out sigh. Now, it wasn't like I didn't like having two cute little sisters, but if they started to fight it was something else.

"Issei-san?"

"Yes Asia?"

"Should I call you Onii-chan too?"

GAGH! Another critical attack! "P-Please don't! I don't think my heart could take it if you called me that."

[A dreamer and a siscon with a fetish for Magical Girls. My host truly is interesting.] Ddraig snorted inside his own mind.

--------------------------------------

The first supernatural being I saved was a girl. An innocent, pure and soft hearted girl that had become a victim of the World. When I saved her it was also the first time I began to taint my hands with blood.

To be honest, killing was... Not as hard as I thought... Perhaps it was because of EMIYA's influence over me, his experiences and dreams had sharpened not just my body and skills but also my heart.

It troubled me... To think that I could kill as easily as that. However, when I recall Freed's history from his lightsword, I think it is a good thing I killed him. How many times had people thought he could still be saved only for them to be killed by him in the end...

Freed had massacre over a hundred of people and defiled dozens of innocent nuns. And he had been laughing while committing those wicked deeds, enjoying them like the sweetest thing in the world.

So no... I do not feel regret for killing him...

The beginning of the path I have chosen is already filled with blood. I might have killed maybe a dozen or more in that fight, but what was worse is that I knew those numbers wouldn't be comparable to lives I would take in the future.

But I'm okay... I'm fine... I assured myself like that... Because I knew it was the right thing.

To me, it was the right thing to do.

I won't falter on my path... It is necessary... To become what I dreamed of being ever since I was little...

A Hero...

------------------------------------

"So... How about it Red? Did you enjoy the show?"

"I admit,the opening was quite interesting. And here I was thinking that he was going to kill all of the fallen angels."

"Gahahaha what did you expect? That brat is still young! Had it been the real EMIYA, he would have killed them. That guy is not naïve so to leave future enemies alive!"

"Hmph. But that'swhat makesthis boy interesting,isn't it?"

"Yes, I agree with you there. You are quite knowledgeable about humans, aren't you?"

"Of course, who do you think I am? But still, theamount of power that boy has is still nothing compared to what he is going to face."

"Of course not! However, if there is one thing you must know, it's that he will grow strong fast, I assure you..."

"I'm aware of that, but only few humans could do that. It's been quite a long time since I saw a human that possessed such talent. Let's see how much raw talent of humanity this boy possesses."

"Yeah, yeah. We will see."

"By the way, that nun girl. What are you going to do with her?"

"Now, now I already have plans for her and I don't want to give you spoilers. You don't need to worry about her, unlike her counterpart she will be quite a badass here!"

"If you say so. Keep showingme interesting things, vampire, if you do,I will keep helping you. It's been become boring in this place lately after all."

"Gahahahaha! Trust me Red, I know well how that feels! You won't be disappointed!"