NOVEL NEXT Chapter 7: The Meeting
Looking over the two beautiful female devils, and their equally beautiful Queens, Issei lets out a sigh. There was never any chance that he was going choose one over the other, not really. Shaking his head, he crosses his arms over his chest and gives each of them a stare down, looking Rias and then Sona dead in the eye until THEY’RE the ones who avert their gazes away from HIM, even if they perhaps don’t fully understand why they do.
“… You can all come in if you like. You’ll both be able to say your piece together… or not at all.”
With that ultimatum given, Issei steps back inside of his house, leaving the door open for Rias, Sona, and their Queens to step through. As they walk in, they remove their shoes as is proper, and Issei takes the chance to glance down the hall to where Asia is currently staying in the guest bedroom. She has her door shut now, so either she peeked out and saw his visitors through the open front door and decided to hide, or she’s taking a nap. Either way, Issei is fine with her staying out of this, truth be told. If Fallen Angels wanted to manipulate and use Asia to their own gains, what exactly what literal Devils try to do with her, right?
Leading the four beautiful women into his living room, Issei points at the couch.
“Sit.”
Rias sits down happily, while Sona looks like she wants to argue for a moment, before ultimately, she sits down as well. Both Akeno and Tsubaki end up sitting on the arms of the couch, taking up position next to either of their Mistresses and backing them up, or so it seemed. Once they were all seated, Issei stood in front of them and crossed his arms over his chest, looking between them for a moment before pointing at Sona.
“You seem to think you have an actual grievance with me, so you can go first. What’s up?”
Sona’s back is ramrod straight at his disrespect, and she does the glasses flash as she pushes them up her nose, sniffing somewhat disdainfully.
“Issei Hyoudou. There have been rumors of grave impropriety taking place between you and select members of the Girl’s Kendo Club. What do you have to say for yourself?”
Issei cocks his head to the side at that. So, one of the girls in the Kendo Club had blabbed? Or, more likely it had turned into gossip and fodder for the school’s rumor mill, until eventually the Student Council had caught wind of it. Issei honestly didn’t think that any of the Kendo Club would have personally told on him, truth be told. Given how they’d all acted, the fact that not a single one of them had left the room when he’d told them to… well, he suspected that they were all more eager than disgusted, more excited than scared.
Yes, it was much more likely that they’d all just been chatting about it, and someone not involved had overheard, either from the Student Council, or they had gone to the Student Council afterwards. Issei nods as he comes to this conclusion, and then he looks down at Sona.
“If you’re talking about me having sex with Murayama and Katase in front of the rest of the Girl’s Kendo Club, that did happen, yes.”
Even Rias and Akeno are visibly taken aback by the way Issei just comes out and says it. Sona goes stock still, while Tsubaki’s mouth just straight up drops open in sheer disbelief. For a moment, Issei’s living room is silent, before finally, Sona lets out a cough, trying to regain control of a situation that had derailed with just one sentence from Issei.
“R-Right. Well then. Now that you’ve admitted to your misdeeds, I suppose the only thing left to discuss would be punishment. You will-.”
Issei cuts Sona off with a wave of his hand and a shaking of his head.
“I don’t know what you mean, but I don’t think I did anything wrong. Why should I be punished? It was Murayama and Katase who came onto ME.”
Sona looks like she really doesn’t know how to deal with him, and in the back of his head, Ddraig is beginning to snicker. Issei though, isn’t the kind of guy who just lies down and takes it, not even from pretty girls. Hell, especially not from pretty girls. He’s not going to let Sona bully him just because she’s Student Council President.
“That is… not what I have been told, but it’s besides the point! You engaged in sexual activity on school grounds, Mr. Hyoudou! You must know that that is against the rules!”
Issei cocks his head to the side and thinks for a moment, before shrugging.
“Yeah, I suppose it probably would be, wouldn’t it? Alright, I won’t have sex with anyone on school grounds again, I guess.”
Now Issei, don’t make promises you can’t keep…
Sona is scowling now, even as Issei just kind of looks at her expectantly.
The thing is, Issei can see where she’s coming from, he really can. It wasn’t like he’d really cared at the time, and he still didn’t care now, but he was mature enough to understand Sona’s perspective, as well as see her view on the situation. But at the same time, he can see right through her, to the ulterior motives underneath. Rias had practically called her out for her true intentions at the door, after all, and Issei could tell what she really wanted from all of this, even though he could also tell that she was actually pretty serious about the rule breaking too.
Still…
“If you need to expel me to maintain status quo, then that’s alright. I understand. You run a tight ship at Kuoh Academy, President, and I’m a disruptive influence, aren’t I? So maybe it makes sense for me to just leave Kuoh altogether.”
All four girls go wide-eyed at that suggestion, though as has been the case so far for this meeting, Akeno and Tsubaki stay quiet. Rias though, can no longer hold her tongue, even as Sona tries to back track immediately.
“Now hold on a second, I do not think that we need to go that far for a first offense…”
“What?! You can’t leave Kuoh, Issei! We really want you in the Occult Research Club!”
Both Sona and Rias turn to each other and glare for a moment, before Rias turns back to Issei, quickly taking over and making it her turn. As she does so, she pushes her arms together and Issei can’t help but think she knows exactly what she’s doing, showing off just how much bustier she is compared to Sona. Rias Gremory really is a stellar young woman, with a gorgeous body. Unfortunately, Issei knows that it comes with strings attached. Hellish strings at that.
“Issei Hyoudou. As President of the Occult Research Club, I would like to formally invite you to join our ranks. What do you say?”
Sona opens her mouth to try and but in again, but Issei beats the female devil to the point with his simple, succinct response.
“No.”
That stops both of them dead in their tracks long enough for Issei to shift his gaze back over to Sona.
“And it’s not my first offense. Murayama, Katase and I have been involved in a three-way relationship of sorts for the last few months. Fucking them both in front of the entire Girl’s Kendo Club was just the first time we’d done anything in a public setting, basically. Also, on top of that, while I haven’t done anything with anyone else at Kuoh YET, I’ve seen how the majority of the female population looks at me. They want exactly what Murayama and Katase got, and if they ask for it, I’m not likely to say no. There’s a reason that the entire Girl’s Kendo Club stayed and watched, even though I gave them the option to leave.”
Issei shrugs his shoulders.
“Short of removing me from the school entirely, there’s no way for you to stop further incidents of ‘impropriety’ as you call it from happening, President.”
“Aha! That’s where you’re wrong! If you joined our club, I can guarantee to both you and Sona that your time would be filled up properly, with plenty of things to do! So, then you wouldn’t have the time to get up to anything naughty with the Kendo Club, because you would be busy with the Occult Research Club and your duties with us! Why don’t you want to join, Issei?”
Rias pouts mightily as she bats her eyelashes at him. She’s clearly a little bit spoiled, and not used to not getting what she wants. That’s okay though, from what he can guess of her circumstances, she probably comes from wealth in the devil world. She wouldn’t have a bunch of servants like she did if she didn’t, right? And Sona… it was likely the same way with her. The two of them were effectively the real power behind Kuoh Academy, even if Rias took more of a hands-off approach. And they both wanted him under their respective thumbs.
Sona coughs and pushes her glasses up her nose again, gritting her teeth as she looks between Issei and Rias, their back and forth clearly throwing her off her game immensely. But in the end, she manages to rally all the same.
“That is… no, I do not think expulsion is the right path. Nor do I think Hyoudou belongs in the Occult Research Club. I agree that finding a way to occupy his free time is the correct path forward, however. Obviously, the best place for Hyoudou is with us in the Student Council, where we can shape him up into a productive member of society.”
Issei lets out a sigh and holds up a hand, forestalling a response from Rias and silencing the room. He looks between the two girls, acknowledging that each is beautiful in their own right. Sure, Rias has a fatter chest and wider hips, but Sona has that bespectacled cutie nerd look going on, and you just know she’d be a complete blusher once you wore past her defenses and got her into a bedroom.
Still…
“Can we just cut to the chase, girls? There’s really no point in beating around the bush any longer, I don’t think. You both have ulterior motives, so let’s lay all of our cards on the table, shall we? Why should I join either of your peerages, truly?”
That shocks the four female devils into silence quite fast. They stare at him, wide-eyed for a moment, but in the end, Rias proves to be the most opportunistic, as she leans forward again, a far more salacious smile spreading across her features.
“Well, well… you’re full of surprises, Issei Hyoudou. I want you in my peerage, that much is true… and you should join me over Sona for one simple reason… I won’t try to hold you back or restrain you like she would. You’ll be free to be yourself with me as your King.”
Hearing her rival speak up finally gets Sona to speak up as well, though it’s obvious that the Student Council President realizes she’s on the back foot here.
“Perhaps Hyoudou does not want to be allowed to run rampant. If you join my peerage, not only can I assist you in unlocking the true depths of your power, but you will also find structure and discipline in good measure, both of which you clearly sorely lack.”
Issei cocks his head to the side, acknowledging Sona’s words. Truth be told, he respects her attempt. If this were under normal circumstances, he would obviously gravitate towards Rias more, because Sona was unwilling to compromise her principles, just to recruit him. But that was good, and honestly it spoke well of her. Of course, these weren’t normal circumstances.
Really, Issei. How long are you going to string these poor girls on for?
Right. Letting out another low sigh, Issei goes ahead and relaxes a bit. As he does so, as his tightly constrained power becomes slightly less so and floods the room, he looks between Sona and Rias, and raises a single eyebrow.
“I can assure you; I know full well the value of… restraint and discipline.”
The female devils are in no position to respond, nor are their Queens. All four of the lovely young ladies in his living room are frozen stiff, eyes wide as his draconic might washes over them. It’s been a long time since Issei let even this much of himself loose, to be honest. Training with Ddraig, learning about the Supernatural World… it’d required him to ultimately hide himself away early on, to keep from being discovered before he’d fully unlocked his might.
Even now, he’s using the room’s boundaries instead of his own body to still contain his power. No one outside of his home will feel him, Ddraig has assured him of that, and that’s good enough for Issei. As he stares down at the two female devils looking to recruit him, Issei quirks a corner of his mouth upwards and offers a shrug.
“And as you can see, I need no help in unlocking my power.”
Taking on a somewhat curious look, Issei taps his chin for a moment.
“I’ve heard a lot about your Evil Pieces system, you know. What piece do you think would fit me? Because if I’m being honest… I don’t think you could convert me to a devil at this point, even if you both used your entire sets.”
Well, that’s probably not true, but you would certainly consume more than a handful, that’s for sure.
It doesn’t need to be true though, Issei can see the effect his words combined with the display of his power are having on both Rias and Sona. They flinch back as if struck at the idea of trying to convert him, now that they’ve seen just a glimpse of what he really is. Letting out a sigh one last time and smiling at both of them, Issei shrugs.
“I’ll stop going to Kuoh, if that’s what you want from me. Also, I suppose if you need anything from me at any time, you can always petition me for help. We might be able to work something out.”
Reaching up, Issei scratches at his cheek nonchalantly, before finally, almost casually reining in his power once more, and wrapping it up tightly within the confines of his human body. As he does so, the female devils arrayed on his couch visibly relax, panting slightly for breath as they’re freed from the oppressive weight of his presence unleashed.
After a moment, Sona and Rias exchange a glance, before standing up in unison. To Issei’s surprise, they and their Queens bow to him. Sona is the one who speaks, still formal, but that doesn’t make her words any less shocking.
“We… apologize for intruding upon your home and making demands of you, Dragon. At this time, we have no desire to drive you from Kuoh Academy.”
Straightening up, Sona looks slightly pained as she makes one last request.
“Just… please try to keep your dalliances out of the public eye?”
Issei inclines his head in acknowledgment, though for him, that just means ‘I’ll think about it’, at the end of the day. With that though, the meeting is over, and both Sona and Rias hurry out of his house with their Queens at their heels. Though neither Rias nor Akeno can keep from glancing back at him more than once as he walks them out and closes the door behind them.
As Issei steps back into his living room, he blinks and then sniffs at the air, furrowing his brow slightly. In his head, Ddraig laughs.
What, you’re surprised that they liked your display of power? Why do you think there’s all those stories about dragons stealing maidens spread throughout human mythology? I’ll tell you this much, it isn’t because we stole shit… it’s because mortal men’s fragile egos couldn’t handle the fact that their women liked us better.
Issei can’t help but chuckle at that, even as he shakes his head. Well, that had certainly been something. He wasn’t sure if anything would come of it though. Only time would tell, he supposed…