Shadow Dragon King, Skiadrum

Human World, Japan, Kuoh.

An hour has passed since James finished helping Issei awaken his [Sacred Gear]. Currently, James, Rias, and her peerage were at her mansion in Kuoh. This being Issei's first visit, he was surprised to see that Rias was hiding two more cute girls. Namely, Koneko and Gasper. Even though everyone else knew that Gasper was a boy, they thought it would be funnier to let Issei find out on his own. Everyone except for Gasper that is.

"Umm... Issei, why are you looking at me like that?" Gasper asked nervously while hiding behind Koneko.

"Because you're, like, super cute and I was wondering if you'd like to join my future harem." Issei said with a perverted smile.

"Why would I want to join your harem?" Gasper asked in confusion.

"Because I, Hyoudou Issei, will be the greatest harem king in history." Issei declared with vigor.

"I think James-Nii has you beat." Koneko said blandly while munching on a cookie.

"Minor details." Issei said while waving his hand dismissively. "Besides, just because James-Senpai is popular at school doesn't mean he'll have a harem."

"Oh, poor child." Akeno said with a smile. "James already has a harem."

"What? How can this be?" Issei asked in disbelief. "They must all be human, right?"

"Nope." Akeno replied with a smile. "They are all supernatural, and I think you've met most, if not all of them."

Pausing for a moment, Akeno began to tap her right index finger against her chin while she thought about which of James' girlfriends Issei had met. After thinking for a moment, she concluded that Issei had met them all.

"Now that I think about it, you have met them all." Akeno said with a smile as she looked back at Issei to see his reaction.

"Really?" Issei asked as his expression morphed into one of shock. "Who? And how many?"

"Umm... Let's see... Five?" Akeno said, pretending to struggle with her memories.

"Fi... Five?" Issei said while stumbling backward and gripping his heart. "And... Who... are they?"

"Hmm..." Akeno paused again, then she raised her left hand which was balled into a fist. Then with her right index finger, she began to raise a finger on her left hand as she stated names. "Well... First is Flora, then Mizore, and then there's Moka... Vice-President Sona is one of them, too. And the last one is..."

With each name that Akeno rattled off, Issei felt like he was being stabbed. The damage he was taking almost felt physical. Ever since the day he had scoped out all the hottest girls with Matsuda and Motohama he had been fantasizing about getting those girls into his harem. Luckily, Akeno had not named any of his big boobed goddesses in that list of names. With that realization, Issei regained a bit of his spirit and was ready to hear the last name.

"The last one is...?" Issei asked with his eyes practically bulging out of their sockets.

"Fufufu." Akeno giggled in her signature way while covering her mouth with a hand. Then, she lowered her hand, pointed at herself, and spoke. "Me."

Hearing that, Issei felt like half of his world had been destroyed. He did, however, realize why James gave the impression that peeping on the girls' locker room in the MMA club would be worse than expulsion and police intervention. But, to think that Shitori Sona... No, Sona Sitri, that ice queen was one of his girlfriends as well. And then there was the news that one of his two big boobed goddesses was also already in his hands. Isssei felt his heart was about to break. Akeno, however, had no intention of stopping. Seeing Isse's expression had flipped her S switch completely.

"On top of that..." Akeno began to speak, pausing until she was sure she had Issei's attention again. "There's a chance that a blonde nine-tailed fox with boobs even bigger than mine will be his sixth."

"Boobs... even bigger... than Akeno-San's." Issei froze just imagining it.

Before Issei could fully process that information, Rias said something that made his mind almost melt down.

"If you're talking about future additions, why didn't you mention me, Akeno?" Rias asked with a pout.

After hearing Rias' question, Akeno's smile grew wider and the sadistic glint in her eyes brightened. As she looked at Issei, she could see the illusion of his body turning to stone. Then, as a breeze blew, his body crumbled to dust and was blown away.

"Nice job putting the nail in the coffin, Club President." Akeno said while raising a thumb to Rias' unintentional assist.

"Huh?" Rias was confused. In that confusion she asked. "Akeno, what do you mean?"

Sitting off to the side, James and Yuuto simultaneously took a sip of the tea Akeno had served not long ago and shook their heads. Koneko continued to eat her cookies while not paying any mind to the perverted idiot as she tended to call Issei ever since he joined Rias' peerage. And Gasper panicked at seeing the lifeless look in Issei's eyes. Eventually, Issei came to his senses and asked his next question with desperation.

"That devil..." Issei said while pointing at James.

"Half-devil." James corrected

"... hasn't laid his hands on Koneko-Chan and Gasper-Chan yet, right?" Ignoring James' interruption, Issei continued with his question.

"No." James said after taking another sip of his tea. "You're free to try your luck."

Hearing that, Issei's eyes lit up. Then, he turned his thirsty gaze on the younger devils.

"If you try..." Koneko said with a cold gaze. "I'll rip them off and cut it into mince-meat."

At Koneko's cold declaration, not only Issei, but James, Yuuto, and Gasper also pressed their thighs together and covered their crotches with their hands. Then, Issei noticed the actions Gasper took and asked with confusion.

"Gasper, why did what Koneko said scare you?" Issei asked while tilting his head in confusion.

"Why shouldn't it?" Gasper asked, also tilting his head in confusion. It was much cuter when he did it, though. "That would scare any boy, right?"

With that, Issei's eyes opened even wider in shock. Then, he raised a shaky hand and pointed a finger at Gasper.

"Are you telling me... you're a... a... a...a boy?" Issei asked, horror evident in his gaze.

"Yeah?" Gasper half stated and half asked, unsure of what the issue was.

At that moment, blood seeped from between Issei's lips. At the same time, the life in his eyes began to fade. Before Issei lost consciousness, a blue circle lit up on the back of his right hand and an angry voice came out from it.

"Hey you little shit!" Skiadrum roared in anger. "Get your shit together or I'll find a way to kill you myself."

That voice caught everyone's attention. Then, from a green glow on the back of James' left hand, Ddraig's voice could also be heard.

"Ha! To think I'd meet you again like this, Skiadrum." Ddraig said with excitement.

"Ddraig? I never thought I'd hear your voice again, either." Skiadrum said nonchalantly. "The pigeons, crows, and bats did quite the number on you and Albian, huh?"

"Ugh... don't remind me." Ddraig said tiredly. "Because of them, I have been plagued with two curses."

"What are you talking about." Skiadrum asked with curiosity.

"First, I was actually winning against Albian, thanks to the treasures I borrowed from Tiamat." Ddraig said with frustration. Before he could continue, however, he was interrupted.

"Grr!" Skiadrum growled angrily. "Tiamat! That damn bitch."

"What happened between you and Tiamat?" Ddraig asked curiously.

"That crazy bitch is the one that killed me." Skiadrum replied angrily.

"Why?" Ddraig asked, having forgotten the story he was telling, now completely invested in Skiadrum's.

Not only Ddraig, but everyone in the room was interested in the story that the former Shadow Dragon King had to tell. Even Issei had recovered from his heartbreak enough to focus on the story.

"Well, you remember how back in the day I used to raise children and teach them magic right?" Skiadrum asked, nostalgia evident in his tone.

"Yeah, I never understood that hobby of yours." Ddraig replied.

"Well, I don't know either." Skiadrum said. From his tone, everyone present could feel that he would be shrugging his shoulders if he had any. "Anyway, Around four hundred years ago, when I was training my favorite of all those I had raised, Rogue..."

All the young devils were surprised to hear that a dragon would remember the name of a human from that long ago. Ddraig on the other hand, knowing the Shadow Dragon King's personality, quickly interrupted.

"I know what you're about to do, Skiadrum." Ddraig said sternly. "And I implore you not to."

"What do you mean Ddraig?" James asked curiously while looking at the glowing green spot on the back of his left hand.

"Skiadrum gets lost in his nostalgia quite easily." Ddraig said exasperatedly. "Especially when he gets to talking about one of his so called 'children'."

All the devils nodded in understanding. At that moment, Skiadrum was giving off the vibe an old person has when they start to talk about the good ol' days.

"None of you appreciate the value of a good story." Skiadrum muttered in disappointment. "Ahem! Anyway, one day, about four hundred years after you and Albian were killed, Tiamat came by to brag about a new treasure she had found. She said something about replacing the ones you lost, Ddraig."

Just then, James felt Ddraig's soul shudder inside the [Boosted Gear].

"Anyway, while she was showing it off to me and the young Rogue, the boy sneezed..." Skiadrum said, his mood falling the further into the sentence he got.

"No, he didn't...?" Ddraig asked while holding in a breath.

"He did..." Skiadrum replied in a depressed tone.

"He did what?" Issei asked impatiently. "Stop stammering like you're trying to be mysterious."

The room fell silent at Issei's outburst. When he looked up, Issei noticed everyone looking at him like he was an idiot.

"Why are you all looking at me like that?" Issei asked while scratching his head.

"You know, I feel kinda sorry for the Shadow Dragon King." Koneko said with a look of pity.

"I guess being forced to study more won't make someone smarter, huh?" Rias asked Akeno.

"I guess not." Akeno replied.

"My condolences." Ddraig said to Skiadrum.

"*Sigh* I miss Rogue already." Skiadrum said, clearly dissatisfied with his host.

*Clap!*

Following James' clap, James spoke to get everything back on track.

"We can debate Issei's level of idiocy at another time."

"Hey!" Issei shouted.

"For now, let's finish Skiadrum's story." James said with a smile. "Also, I want to hear what Ddraig's second curse is."

Once again, Ddraig shuddered in his [Sacred Gear].

"Like I was saying, Rogue sneezed on Tiamat's new shiny treasure." Skiadrum said, agreeing that he needed to finish his story. "Anyone who knows Tiamat can guess what happened next. But, for those who do not, I will explain."

Everyone, except Ddraig, focused all their attention on Skiadrum's story.

"That crazy bitch lost her shit!" Skiadrum roared angrily. "Just because of a little snot that could be wiped off, she lost it, completely! During her rampage, I was able to teleport Rogue to safety, and I thought I would be safe if I hid in the shadows! But no, that crazy bitch bathed the area in her [Chaos Karma Flames], killing me in the process!"

After a few moments, Skiadrum was able to get his emotions under control again. Then, he continued his story.

"After that, I felt my soul was being pulled away from the cycle of reincarnation. then, everything went black." Skiadrum said with melancholy in his tone. "Then, the next time I regained consciousness, I was in this [Sacred Gear], the [Shadow Claws]."

"I've never heard of this [sacred Gear] before." Rias said while thinking to herself. "I wonder if there's any information about it in the library at home."

"That's not surprising, Red." Skiadrum said. "This is the first time I have ever awakened. Because I do not like interacting with others, I have never lent my power to any of my hosts before."

"So, does that mean I'm special?" Issei asked excitedly. "I mean, why else would you awaken for me?"

"Sorry, Kid, but no." Skiadrum said flatly. "I only awakened because I felt the aura of an old acquaintance from the guy who was beating you like you stole something."

"Oh, that would be me." James said with a wide smile on his face. "Anyway, now that we know Skiadrum's circumstances, it's time to get back to Ddraig's story."

"*Sigh* This will affect you too, partner." Ddraig said in a depressed tone. "Like Skiadrum said, I lost Tiamat's treasures when Albian and I were killed by the Three Biblical Factions, I lost the treasures Tiamat lent me. And because of that, Tiamat has made a habit of killing my hosts over the centuries."

The room fell silent for a few moments after Ddraig finished. Then, James spoke.

"So, basically, because of you, If I ever meet Tiamat, I'm fucked?" James asked with a deadpan.

"Yeah, pretty much."