3 Time frame

Yami stepped away from the small mirror in his bathroom and looked at himself. It's been two weeks since his arrival in this world and since he started training. In that time, his body had changed. He didn't look like a bodybuilder, not even close, but his muscles were visible now. Hell, there was even an outliner to his abs. Given enough time, he might end up looking pretty badass.

The energy Yami kept absorbing from the monsters really helped him with his training. He found out that as long as he didn't overdo it like the first time, it will slowly disperse within his body while strengthening him at the same time. Finding out how to quicken that process was one of his short-term goals.

The only idea Yami currently had was meditation. However, he knew jack-shit about that. Thankfully, there was an internet cafe nearby that he visited, but he didn't find that much information even after spending a few hours googling meditation techniques. Although, Yami did find out that stretching was something he needed to do before and after working out. He decided to implement it in his daily routine since it would also help him with his flexibility.

After admiring his appearance for a bit, Yami left the bathroom and put on his clothes. They were starting to be a bit too tight for his liking, so he would need to buy new ones soon. Money was becoming an issue for him as he didn't have a way to earn it, and he didn't have that much. Thankfully, his little apartment had been paid for one year, so he at least didn't have to worry about that.

Yami left his current home, but not before forgetting to pocket his cards. He couldn't even describe how significant was Snatch Steal for his foreseeable future, while the two Basic Insects could be useful if something unexpected happened.

After Yami had cleared the Insect portal one more time, he had returned home since he didn't want to waste the energy from the monsters. Out of the 48 Basic Insects he had faced, he managed to absorb only half of them before his heart felt as if it was about to burst.

Though, Yami did end up finding another function of his Sacred Gear. Not only can he absorb energy, but he can also transfer it to others.

Yami had tried that ability on one of his Basic Insects and ended up increasing its strength in the process. Even after he returned it back into its card form, the monster kept its new power. Although it did cost him more magical energy to summon it now.

Despite Yami having the option of clearing the last part of the Insect Dungeon, he decided against it. He could've absorbed the Basic Insects and transferred the energy to his own monsters cards, but he wanted to use them for his own gain. His current monsters were just weak and didn't have any useful abilities for him to spend time on them. If he gained more useful monster cards, then he might change his mind.

After taking a short bus ride, Yami arrived at the local mall, the place he was meeting with Saji and soon Issei. The blonde was already there waiting for him in front of the large building.

"Yami!" Saji called out to him, and he was thankful for the blonde not using his family name or adding one of the honorific titles. Those are such a pain to get used to. Yami understood it's part of the country's culture since he was half-Japanese, but even his original body hadn't spent that much time in Japan.

"Hello, Saji," Yami greeted him back. He noticed the blonde was filling his clothes quite nicely and wondered if Saji would have the same problem he had encountered. If so, he would be happy since one variable would be removed without him even doing anything special.

The two entered the mall, and Saji shook his head with a frown on his face, "I still don't get why you would want to meet with them."

"I just think getting some more friends will be a good idea before school starts. Don't want to keep bothering you there when I feel lonely," Yami said, but his words didn't match his thoughts. He really didn't care about friends since he currently didn't have the luxury of thinking about them. His focus was only on getting stronger and nothing else. Well, maybe he could find a way or two to relax, but that could wait for a bit.

"Oh, I understand that..." Saji nodded, "but I think there are much better people than them."

"They can't be that bad, can they?" Yami asked, "Plus, boys have to stick for each other, right?"

"Honestly, they are the worst. There are so few boys in the school, and I've tried befriending them, but... ahhh," Saji let out a frustrated sigh. Yami stayed quiet as they walked and allowed him to continue.

"Look, I get it; we attend a school whose students are 99% girls. To top it off, the girls have to wear skirts that don't even reach their knees. Even I tend to stare more than I should, but they go above and beyond. Nothing seems too low for them."

"You don't know how many times they've been caught peeping while the girls in the various clubs were changing clothes. They even drill holes through the walls; that's how bad they are. It's not enough that they bring porn magazines to school, but they completely disregard the privacy of the girls there as well. When I become part of the Student Council, I plan on doing something about them."

Yami ignored almost his entire rant and focused only on the last part, "Do members of the Student Council have that much power?"

"They do! The Student Council has authority that's on par with the teachers. The members take on tasks that teachers do in regular schools, and they handle them professionally. Everyone respects them in Kuoh Academy, and they are a large part of the reason why it's such a high-end school!"

From what Yami remembered, the members of the Student Council should all be devils. He didn't really understand why they would go through the trouble of running the school. They could use their time so much better, for example, training and preparing for the future. Granted, they didn't know that troubled times awaited them, but still.

Yami didn't get to think about it too much, not that he cared, since they neared Issei and his two friends. Hearing something and seeing it was definitely not the same. He knew they were supposed to be perverts, but they were something special, alright.

Issei and his two friends were sitting on a bench in the middle of the mall, where people kept walking past them. And what were they doing? They were drooling over a porn magazine as if it was the most priceless object in the Universe.

"See what I mean," Saji said while rubbing his temples in exasperation.

Yami understood that this was supposed to be the world of an ecchi anime, but was this really supposed to be the main protagonist? Well, he won't be that important after today.

"Hyoudou-san, Motohama-san, Matsuda-san," Saji called out to them, and they looked up.

"This is Yami Atem. He will be attending Kuoh Academy this year as a third-year student," Saji pointed at him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Yami slightly bowed his head. He was used to handshakes from his past life, but this was not a common custom in Japan.

The perverted trio stared at Yami with narrowed eyes. The bald-headed one, Matsuda, pointed at him and said with a frown, "You didn't tell us he was going to be another pretty boy!"

"Oh, are you here to tell how much better you are than us?" The one with glasses and shoulder-length black hair, Motohama, asked.

"We are going to have a few words with you if you steal all the girls in school with your pretty looks!" Issei was the last one to speak.

Yami's lips twitched for just a second before he said with a smile, "Nothing like that; I just wanted to meet some more boys I could hang out with when school starts."

In his previous life, Yami had been studying in an Acting College. He wasn't that great of an actor, but it was enough to deal with the three in front of him. He just needed to keep his calm and play his role.

However, that did not mean Yami was happy with what they said. They would have a few words with him if he stole all the girls? Fuck them, he would grab all the pretty girls for himself only to spite them and see what they are going to do about it.

"Are you gay?" Matsuda asked him bluntly, but he continued playing his role.

"Oh, no. I appreciate a woman's body as much as you, but you seem to be way more open about it than me," Yami pointed at the porn magazine in their hands.

"Oppai are the best, and you don't have to be ashamed of admiring them, be it out in the open or in private!" Issei declared proudly, getting more than a few disgusted looks from the people passing by.

Seriously? This was the guy that's supposed to gain a massive harem of girls that all love him? Really? Was his Boosted Gear that special? Well, good thing he will be taking it for himself shortly.

"How about we go to a coffee shop to sit down and get to know each other," Yami quickly offered before Saji could say anything since the blonde looked ready to start yelling at them any moment now.

The perverted trio looked a bit uncomfortable at his suggestions, and Yami had an idea why, so he quickly added, "It will be my treat since I'm the one that wanted to meet you. Just don't order anything too expensive since I don't have too much money to spend."

"Hey, you might be a pretty boy, but you are a good guy!" Motohama said as the three stood up.

"I know a coffee shop here where the waitresses wear very revealing outfits," Matsuda took the lead with a lecherous grin on his face.

Saji walked next to him and whispered quietly, "Please don't tell me you like them. You are a good guy, Yami, and I will give you this advice. If you ever want to get a girlfriend from Kuoh Academy, you are better of not being their friend."

"It's better to have as many friends as possible, and hey, maybe I could help them change their ways," Yami replied, holding back a chuckle.

"You really are a good guy, Yami," Saji said with a shake of his head.

Good guy? Him? Yami really had a hard time not laughing at that. He was anything but a good guy, considering how he even stole Saji's Sacred Gear and planned on doing the same to Issei.

Yami didn't care about the perverted trio one bit. After today, he didn't plan on meeting them ever again. And if Saji asked why, well, he could always say he was too disgusted by the perverted trio after spending enough time with them.

As Matsuda had said, the waitresses at the coffee shop wore revealing outfits. Their dresses revealed a lot of cleavages and showed their white legs. The perverted trio spent almost their entire time leering with drool coming out of their mouths at the pretty waitresses.

They barely even registered when Yami asked them questions about themselves, nor did they ask him something back. Their focus was entirely on the waitresses and their revealing outfits. Saji looked as if he was about to jump and beat them right there and then, but the blonde managed to hold it down.

Yami had to spend a bit of his money on them, but it was all worth it. What he was getting in return was far more essential than some Yen. About an hour after they entered the coffee shop, he decided to make his move.

He first excused himself, saying he needed to go to the bathroom. When he returned, Yami had the Stanch Steal concealed in his hand, and he walked over behind Issei and tapped him on the back with it. The card disappeared, and he felt something flow into him.

"I had a lot of fun today, but I think something's wrong with my stomach, and I need to get back home. I'll see you around," Yami said with a hand over his stomach, acting the part.

The perverted trio dumbly nodded, barely paying attention to what he said. Saji, however, jumped at the chance of getting away from them.

"I have some work to do, so I'll be on my way as well."

A bit after leaving the coffee shop, Saji was about to say something, but Yami suddenly clutched his chest. There was a searing pain right in the middle of his body, and he felt his heart start beating wildly. Soon, his entire body started aching, and he began breathing heavily.

"Are you okay?" Saji asked him in concern.

Yami had to think fast and quickly came with some excuse, "I have a chronic illness, and I think I forgot to take my pills in the morning. I was too excited at the chance of making new friends."

"Friends," Saji spat out, "They didn't even pay attention when you tried asking them about themselves. They don't deserve to be called that."

The blonde seemed to be really angry at their behavior, but Yami didn't care about that at the moment. The pain in his chest was becoming more severe by the second, and he felt like something wished to emerge from within him. It was probably the Boosted Gear, but he couldn't allow it to materialize right now, so he gritted his teeth and held it in.

"That's not important right now, however. You need to take your meds as soon as possible. I have enough money to get a taxi to your apartment. Come on," Saji helped him leave the mall and called a taxi for them. It arrived shortly, and they got on.

The ride back to his apartment felt like ages while it only lasted a dozen minutes. The pain in his chest was almost unbearable at that point, but he had to keep it in.

"Thank you, Saji, I will pay you back," Yami said through greeted teeth.

"Don't worry, I'm glad to help. After all, that's what friends are for," Saji said with a smile.

Yami nodded to him and rushed up the stairs towards his apartment. He fumbled his key a few times, but he managed to unlock the dreaded door before entering inside.

The moment he stepped inside his apartment, Yami dropped on his knees with sweat dripping from his forehead like water droplets. He stopped suppressing the Boosted Gear, and it emerged on its own. Unlike his other Sacred Gear, which he had to materialize himself, this one came out forcefully.

Yami felt as if something straight up came out of his chest like the monsters from Alien. A moment later, a large green crystal formed right in the middle of his chest.

"You took me from my rightful owner," a deep and terrifying growl came out of the crystal.

Fuck! Yami was aware that there was a dragon soul inside the Boosted Gear, but he never even considered how it would react to him taking it away from Issei.

"I did," Yami admitted. There was no point in trying to lie in this situation.

"And what gave you the right!?" The dragon didn't seem to be too happy, judging by how his body started feeling on fire.

"I will be a better owner than him!" Yami declared with conviction.

"Hmpf! I will be the judge of that!"

Then everything turned black. Shortly after, Yami found himself standing in front of a titanic being. The dragon had blood-red scales that looked like metal plates. Its green eyes shined brightly and promised destruction to all of its enemies. And its size... titanic was the only way to describe the dragon as Yami was no bigger than its teeth.

"I'm Ddraig, the Red Dragon of Domination, one of the Two Heavenly Dragons!" Ddraig roared and brought his maw closer to Yami, the dragon's shining eyes staring at his left one.

"So tell me, mortal, why do you feel you will be a better owner!" Ddraig didn't ask; he demanded an answer.

Yami was absolutely terrified of the monster that was Ddraig, but he refused to cower in front of the dragon.

"Because I don't plan on wasting my time watching porn all day. I plan on becoming the strongest being in EXISTANCE! With your help, or without it, I WILL achieve that one way or another!" Yami declared with conviction, staring right at Ddraig.

The two stared at each other, both refusing to back down before Ddraig bared his teeth at him.

"I already like you more than my previous owner, whelp," Ddraig said.

"I would like to see how far you will go if you survive, that is. You don't have that much time, after all," Ddraig said with what seemed to be a smirk, though it just made him look even scarier.

"What do you mean I don't have much time?" Yami quickly asked.

"Hahaha, a baseline human was never meant to be the owner of two Sacred Gears!" Ddraig laughed and pointed his clawed finger at Yami's arms. He looked down and noticed that his other Sacred Gear was already materialized on his hands.

"One of Vritra's. Absorption Line, if I'm not mistaken, and no doubt stolen from the blonde boy. Its smell still lingers on the boy."

That was bad. Yami really hoped others weren't able to smell Sacred Gears like Ddraig can. This could spell trouble for him.

"As long as you stay as a baseline human, you won't live more than two months and a half. So what will you do about it, whelp?" Ddraig asked, and he couldn't help but feel that this was some sort of a test.

"Then, I will just become something more than a baseline human!" Yami said confidently.

"Are you going to run to the devils in the city? Their scent is strong, so there are more than a few running around here." Again, this seemed like a test.

"Never!" Yami adamantly refused. "I will never serve anyone willingly! I refused to be a servant! I will find my own way to break through my limits!"

Ddraig snorted, and his claw pointed at his left eye, "Are you that confident because of your cursed object?"

"The Millenium Eye? I don't even how to fully use it, but I will utilize everything I can to survive; you can mark my words," Yami replied.

"You even know its name. Interesting," Ddraig sounded amused.

"Well then, whelp, I will make you a deal. I will allow you to use the basic functions of my Sacred Gear, Boost and Transfer. If you manage to find a way to live past your short life span without the aid of the devils, I will teach you how to utilize the Boosted Gear to its full capabilities."

Yami didn't get a say in it, as he was suddenly transported back to the real world. Less than three months to live? He couldn't say he wasn't worried, but he will try to find a way to break through his limits without the help of the devils. It's not like he had much of a choice.

Ddraig watched his new host with interest. Yami was definitely better than the porn-addicted pervert. This one at least actively sought out strength, something which he respected. Now it was only a matter of time to see if he would survive or not.

Yami also had the Millenium Eye. He hadn't seen one of those cursed objects in a long while. If he remembered correctly, the other six should be spread around the various faction leaders. However, there was a time all seven Millenium Items were wielded by humans. He had even fought with them once, and they had put up quite the fight. Come to think of it, Yami did look a lot like the leader of that group. Or maybe his mind was playing tricks on him again?

Either way, Ddraig wanted to see if Yami would succeed. If the whelp failed, then he will pass onto a different host. But if he succeeded? Well, wouldn't that be interesting then?