Chapter 31: Back to the Old Grind

Disclaimer: …Hm? Oh shi-*puts down ice cream in a hurry and clears throat*. Um, I don't own Highschool DxD but the OCs are mine so I have something to be proud of…Okay. *Picks back up ice cream* Ah Cookie Dough.

Speech – "Hey, I'm Pierce."

Inner Speech – 'Neat'

Thoughts – 'I'm dead.'

Spells – "Jumon"

She didn't get it. Everything was going alright, the puppets systematically shut down at once and the Light Elf she was fighting was on her last legs. Literally the last leg as the Shadow Yokai cut off one of them with Kamaitachiand, the Light Elf hobbled around using her magic to stay in the fight. Vargas slammed his shield into her shoulder and sent her flying to the ground, allowing Melissa to slash at her side. She was able to move out of the way of a fatal cut but was still nicked on the arm. Thanks to Kamaitachiunique feature, the Light Elf didn't feel it and aggravated the wound with her movement. At the rate her wounds were bleeding, the Light Elf didn't have long before she died of blood loss. They practically won this fight. Yet a sense of unease crept up her back and for the life of her, Melissa couldn't understand.

Then she felt "it" and shuddered. She wasn't a sensor type Yokai, the majority of her childhood training focusing on stealth and combat but she wasn't useless in the category. While she couldn't compare to the sheer range Pierce possessed, she could still sense her fair share of auras if she focused hard enough.

And what she felt made her heart stop. It was an ocean. That was the best Melissa could compare it to. A deep, massive ocean of Chi. It was just like the time when she used her sensing powers on the Gods and Goddesses of Olympus, the disparity in strength made the Shadow Yokai freeze in place. Then she felt in horror as the "ocean" gathered its Chi and aimed right in their direction. Melissa stretched out her shadows to cover everyone under their confused looks.

"Brace-" Then the cave walls came crashing down.

Her head hurt.

"…ssa…"

Her vision was blurry.

"…elissa…"

She tried to move but everything was sore. She could feel the pool of blood forming under her. Was she going to di-

"Melissa!" Samantha's voice brought her back to reality. Blinking away the white spots, the healer's worried face came into view. "Oh thank god, you weren't reacting. Stay still!" Samantha placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing the Yokai to lie down. Melissa saw the Healer take out her Sacred Gear and use her healing magic on the more important points. Feeling the soothing energies repairing her torn flesh, Melissa looked over to the yellow glowing Templar holding up the mountain of rubble. Vargas also summoned his White Stag that created a white barrier around the Dwarf children. Her shadow barrier gave them enough time to react to the cave in.

"Is she alright?" Vargas walked over and kneeled, looking worse for wear but still kicking. Samantha didn't respond and continued working on her injuries. "What happened? Did Talien get Sigurd?"

"No." Melissa said sitting up, her wounds not bleeding as much as before (not that Samantha approved of her moving just yet). "It's something worse…Far worse." They were both confused at her words but Melissa was too busy trying to keep track of that massive aura. Not like that was difficult. Kind of hard to miss a mountain when it was right next to you. The aura was walking over the rubble, making its way somewhere at a brisk pace. "We need to move."

"Where?" Vargas asked and Melissa stood up, looking at the kids.

"You guys need to take them out of here; they'll be in danger if they stay. I'll try to find the others, that attack must have destroyed the protection spells on this place because I can feel the shadows in here much easier now." Samantha and Vargas looked at each other before agreeing.

"We'll try to find Maven once we get outside, be careful in here." Samantha said to Melissa before walking over to the kids with Vargas. The White Stag's light pushed aside the rubble and created a path leading up. Giving one last nod to her friends, she sank into her shadow and slowly made her way to the aura.

She had lied to her teammates. The reason she wanted them to get the kids out was mainly so they could be far away here. She recognized the aura. It was a long time ago that she felt it but the memory was unforgettable. If it was really who she thought it was then they needed to leave. Immediately. Melissa slowly made her way to the aura but halted when it abruptly stopped. It looked in multiple directions, trying to find something and Melissa sweated bullets when it gazed in her direction before looking away. It continued its trek and Melissa followed it to a partly destroyed section of the former cave.

"…Well you look like Hell." The aura spoke, walking towards the bloody form of Talien resting against a boulder.

"You could have killed me." The Elf King said in spite but got a shrug in response.

"You're alive aren't you?" Talien went silent at that. Using the chance when the aura seemed to be focused on the Elf King, Melissa came close enough to get a clear view. It took everything Melissa had not to bolt in the opposite direction (that probably would have alerted them to her position anyway). It was him. One of the Three Great Yokai of Japan, the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven, the Oni.

'Shuten Douji…' Melissa remembered seeing him as a child. It was for a couple of seconds but that moment stayed with her for a long time. He hadn't changed. Even as a child, Melissa knew how powerful the Great Yokai was and other Yokai's that had the title "Great" were nothing next to the Oni.

It was time to go. They couldn't fight the Oni, not at their level. They wouldn't stand a chance. Melissa gingerly took a step back, trying to make her already soundless steps quieter and made to turn around. Just as she was half way turned and about to sink further into the shadows, a portal appeared in front of the two Generals. Melissa felt her throat go dry when she saw Pierce and Brynhildr walk out of the portal. Then her heart dropped when Shuten turned to look at them; they didn't realize because they were too shocked at the current destruction.

"Pierce!" Her fear of getting caught by the Oni being overcome from fear of her boyfriend's safety, Melissa tried to warn him of the current danger. He reacted, looking at her in confusion before turning around at Shuten's words. Then he moved and all Melissa saw was Pierce flying back, smashing through a large wall of rubble. "NO!" Melissa screamed when she saw the large amount of blood that came out his chest.

"Aflæ Hræzla!" Brynhildr immediately reacted, sending a number of magic blasts at the Oni. He didn't bother dodging as the blasts hit him dead on and did absolutely nothing. The Chief Valkyrie, who was shocked as those blasts could have eroded steel, hurriedly put up a large magic circle that covered her body. Shuten's fist smashed through like it was tissue paper and connected with the right side of Brynhildr's face. She was sent flying to the side and the Oni moved in front of Melissa's path.

"I was wondering when you would come out, you Shadow cats are always hard to bring out." Shuten smiled down at the Shadow Yokai.

"Move!" Melissa yelled, wanting nothing more than to check on Pierce and in her rush attacked the Great Yokai with her daggers. The Oni for his part dodged her slashes with ease and caught her foot that was aimed at his head. "Aaaahhhh!" Shuten showed no mercy as he squeezed and crushed her leg, slamming his fist into her gut. Melissa spit out blood, and was sent flying to the ground and struggled to stay conscious. Her vision became increasingly blurry, only seeing the tall purple form of the Oni walking closer. A pair of magic chains wrapped around his chest from behind. He turned around to see Brynhildr was the caster, the side of her face quite bloody.

"Chains? Not the best choice." Shuten grabbed the chains and pulled Brynhildr towards him, his fist aiming for her face. The Chief Valkyrie let go of the chain however and flipped over Shuten, swinging her claymore at his neck. He caught the blade with one hand and Brynhildr let that go as well, stabbing a dagger into his gut. Her shock when the dagger barely pierced his flesh couldn't be put into words. "That's a nice knife you got there, quite sharp." Shuten idly praised the craftsmanship as it wasn't currently stabbing into his gut. He head butted the Chief Valkyrie, making her see stars and her back met the ground.

Shuten pulled out the dagger and observed it, his flesh wound healing within seconds. He pocketed the dagger and watched as Melissa shakily stood up. Despite her less than ideal state, the ferocity in her eyes didn't fade and Shuten smiled at that. He waited for her as she covered her daggers with shadows and rushed at him. The slash was weak, Shuten easily catching it but being a warrior; he respected the attempt and lifted his fist to give her a swift death.

'I'm sorry…' Melissa watched as the fist got closer to her face, closing her eyes as she felt the amount of Chi that was contained in it would easily kill her. She didn't really know what she felt sorry for. Maybe it was never telling her parents that she went on this mission? Maybe it was never getting to live to see her siblings again? Maybe…Melissa smiled when she thought of Pierce's goofy smile. She hoped that he's somehow alive and will find a way out of this. She really did (for this to be her last thoughts really put things into perspective). I guess it was true what people said; Love is mad.

Then a blur charged at Shuten from the side, a foot covered in a silver aura slamming right into the Oni's face.

Back to Pierce

My attack created a shockwave that pushed away the rubble and left numerous cracks on the ground. I landed next to Melissa who looked shocked and horrified at my arrival. I didn't blame her. I probably looked like, and I felt like, absolute crap. There was a bloody hole on my chest that made breathing hard, my already low Chi reserves dwindled from activating Touki at the last minute and my vision was blurring. I watched the Oni and how his head was leaning back from my kick, on his face was a look of mild shock while staring at me.

"You're still alive?" He said, sounding completely genuine. My attack didn't even seem to faze him. I didn't react and slashed at the arm holding Melissa with Tyrfing, forcing him to let go. I held on to her and Chi Burst back, placing her behind me.

"Are you okay?" I asked Melissa, my eyes never leaving the Oni. She didn't react and I glanced back, seeing the glazed over look on her face.

"I-I thought-I mean, your aura it…" Melissa couldn't get her words together but I knew what she meant. I blacked out at the Oni's attack, my dip in Chi making it seemed like it was snuffed out and I died. It must have been a bad scare for her. I felt her grab my ankle weakly when I stepped forward. "No, don't. You won't win, we need to leave. Please." Melissa pleaded.

'I don't think he's going to give us that chance…' I thought as the Oni got over his little moment of surprise, now slowly making his way towards us. I only saw one way we were getting out of this. "I'll distract him as long as I can, try to find the others in that time." Correction, only one way Melissa was getting out of this.

"What!? No! Sto-" I pulled my leg from her grip and charged at the Oni, slashing at him. He dodged every swing, sending a fist at my face and I barely leaned out of the way. My cheek was cut from the speed it grazed me.

"Oh!" The Oni exclaimed in surprise, not expecting me to dodge and I cut his leg. The Demon Sword met resistance and left a minor cut on the Oni's skin. I internally cursed when it was already in the process of healing. Every swing was parried by the Oni's Chi covered forearms from then on and he slapped Tyrfing out of my hand. I crossed my arms in time to stop the Oni's knee from hitting my chest. A loud bang rang out, my arms buckling under the attack and my back hitting rubble once more. I didn't need to look down to see my arms were bent out of their correct shape. The blur in my vision started to get worse.

"Solis Beckoning Scriptor!" Adrian's voice echoed out, multiple rays of sunlight hitting the Oni's back. He stumbled forward before catching himself and looked back with an amused smile. The Emissary, clad in his sunlight aura, flew at the Oni and tried to cut at his neck but he disappeared. "Wha-" The Oni appeared under Adrian and punched his stomach, making him puke blood. The Emissaries' armor cracked under the weight and the Oni grabbed him by the ankle, slamming him against the ground before kicking him away. Adrian struggled to stand, the Oni shaking his head at the effort and moved towards him.

Ignoring my immense pain, I used Chi to reset my arms and hugged the waist of the Oni. I held on to stop him from moving and yelled at Adrian.

"Go! Take her and run!" I gritted my teeth as the Oni took another step forward. Adrian looked at me in shock.

"Wha-No! No, I'm not-"

"Adrian! For the love of fucking everything, take her and get the hell out of here! Please!" Using my entire remaining Chi, I coated the Oni and me in a dense Touki. The Oni stopped moving for a second and I thought I had him.

Then a purple elbow came in my view. Taking the greatest hit I've ever received since reincarnating (and before), all feeling below my neck came to a halt and a hand reached out to grab it. I was lifted to the Oni's face and he smiled.

"How noble, few men can form the resolve to sacrifice themselves for their companions. I applaud you." The Oni's words barely registered, my hazy vision traveling over to where Adrian and Melissa were. I weakly smiled when they weren't there. "Your tenacity would have brought you far if you didn't meet me. Any last words?" I gave the Oni my blankest stare and said two, probably final, words.

"…Fuck…You."

The Oni smiled widely at that, funnily enough.

"Indeed." Then he started to squeeze. Just as I expected to meet eternal darkness, the back of my head met the ground and I was left gazing at the night sky.

'What?' I looked around; trying to see what was going on and saw the Oni looking up. I followed his gaze (struggling because of my position) and saw a rainbow colored portal had appeared in the air, two men walking out of it. They both wore a mix of robes and armor. One of the men had golden eyes and a full beard while the other amber eyes and a dignified face. My view was cut off by Brynhildr's face and she picked me up, hastily flying away. Her haste wasn't necessary however because the Oni never paid us any attention, focusing solely on the two new arrivals. She landed on a ledge overlooking the three, putting magic circles over my body with one hand and forming a spell under us with another. I recognized it as a teleportation spell.

"My, my you Norse sure know how to give a warm welcome. A God of Vengeance and a God of Kings for little old me? You're going to make me blush." The Oni smiled up at the Norse Gods in excitement and Freyr frowned.

"You will leave these lands now foul creature."

"Will I? Then how about you come down here and make me."

"Gladly." Vidar spoke as divine aura wrapped around his feet with Freyr doing the same for his sword. The Oni just smiled as the Gods charged at him and met both attacks with his Chi coated hands.

All I saw before teleporting away with Brynhildr was a massive explosion of energy and soon, I blacked out.

2 Hours Later, Top of Olympus

Within the majestic walls of the Greek God's domain, said deities were currently assembled in a room full of thrones. There was complete silence as Zeus, Aphrodite, Hera, Hestia, Hermes, and Ares waited for the others. They didn't wait for too long as the doors to the throne room opened and Athena walked in. Her hair was a little wet and she was dressed in a sleeping gown. The Goddess of War and Wisdom was planning to go to bed after taking a hot bath but certain news made her throw those plans out the window. Athena's beautiful face was ruined by her scowl.

"What happened?" It was two short words but the bite in them wasn't small. She looked in the direction of Hermes, his face pointed down for some reason. "Well?" Athena said after not getting a response.

"Everything will be explained when the others are around, sit down until then." Zeus said and Athena instantly responded.

"But-"

"Sit. Down." Zeus commanded, letting a bit of his divine aura seep into his voice. While Athena didn't flinch at the God King's tone, she did relent and took a seat on her throne. Aphrodite reached out and gave her sister a comforting squeeze on the arm. Apollon, Artemis, Poseidon, and Hephaestus eventually arrived, taking their respective seats. Seeing everyone was here, Zeus turned to look at Hermes. "Go ahead."

"My scouts reported that while the Emissaries were attacking the two Generals, the Dark Elf King Talien and the Werewolf Lord Ferox, two more Generals arrived to take them out. The Thunder Dragon King Druk and the Great Yokai Shuten Douji. While Poseidon's Emissary was able to escape before being attacked by the Dragon King, Apollon's Emissary wasn't as fortunate."

"…And can you explain why?" Athena asked when he didn't continue. The Goddess really wanted to know why the Homer team was alerted in time and escaped without a scratch while Adrian's team had to survive by the skin of their teeth.

"The scouts watching Druk were able to alert me in time that he opened a Dragon Gate to somewhere in the general vicinity of Poseidon's Emissary."

"And the scouts watching Shuten?"

"…They're dead." Athena widened her eyes at that. "It seems he got tired of being watched by my scouts so he dealt with them before leaving for your Emissary. I only became aware when they didn't check in an hour later."

"…Oh." Athena started to feel guilty. Every scout picked by Hermes were the ones he has personally trained and lived with, he cared a great deal about them. "I'm sorry." Hermes took the apology with a small nod and asked if he could be excused, Zeus granting the request. They watched the somber messenger of the Gods leave the throne room and Hera sighed.

"We should have known Zeth wouldn't have let this keep going, he was bound to have a plan for the Emissaries once his Generals returned. We got complacent."

"But what could we have done? They knew the risk when facing the Generals and it's not like we sent them after those two, they just arrived." Apollon reasoned while fiddling with his harp and got a round of agreements. Athena still felt they could have done something, even if there was really nothing to stop the two Generals from attacking the Emissaries. The Olympians knew the Emissaries weren't ready to face Zeth's top Generals which is why they tasked them with going after the relatively weaker ones' first. Rome wasn't built in a day like they say (and they of all beings should know). While Froid and Shiruku didn't seem like real threats to Olympus by themselves, there have been plenty of cases where a group of weaker beings banded together to defeat a far stronger opponent. The Olympians against the Monster King Typhon was such an example. Typhon could flatten any of the Olympians if they fought him alone but banding together, they were able to defeat the Monster King.

And with beings like Shuten and Druk behind him, Zeth was a very real threat to Olympus.

"But all things considered, I think this was quite the victory." Ares' words resounded across the room and got a round of frowns.

"And how is this a victory?" Artemis asked and Ares raised a brow at the question.

"Isn't it obvious? Zeth's now down three Generals and if the report from the Norse is to be believed, four in total. Technically." From what the Chief Valkyrie of the Norse said, Talien was a wreck by the time everything was done. His magic aura was pitiful and the constant usage of a Forbidden spell that allowed him to create undead warriors shot his life force, making it a fraction of what it originally was. He wasn't much of a threat anymore. "Not to mention that our Emissaries are still alive and kicking."

"Barely." Apollon added and Ares snorted.

"Whatever. Poseidon's team is still okay and your team will be returned shortly to continue their job."

"Why, I can feel the gratitude just oozing out of you Ares." Aphrodite made a snide at the God of War but he just shrugged.

"It's not like we aren't paying them their due rewards for their work."

"But at least show a little appreciation, they are fighting a group of Ultimate-Class beings to keep our home safe." Athena said in slight anger and Ares laughed.

"Appreciation? Is that what you're calling the time you spend with the little human? I wonder if you plan to show your appreciation for him in bed at this rate."

"Why you little shi-"

"Enough." Zeus spoke once more and the room was immediately filled with the faint sound of crackling lightning. Both War deities halted at that and the God King of Olympus turned to look at Ares. "The Emissaries are our swords and shields, they accepted fighting Zeth so that Olympus may continue. They've spilled blood and earned their place on this mountain; you will give them proper respect. Is that understood?"

"…Yes father." Ares bowed to Zeus and apologized for his words.

The whiplash sound effect done by Aphrodite got a round of chuckles and a glare from the God of War. The meeting soon finished, with plans to have the Emissaries rest up from the recent assault and find better ways to attack the Generals without worry of a far stronger opponent arriving. That last one was going to be difficult (even for the Goddess of Wisdom). Athena exited the throne room, making her way to her room with a heavy look on her face. Aphrodite caught up with the Goddess and tapped her shoulder.

"You okay? Ares usually doesn't get under your skin that easily." The Goddess of Beauty was worried at Athena's uncharacteristic response to Ares' words and she sighed.

"I'm not friendly with Pierce just because he's fighting the Generals…" Athena said in a low tone and Aphrodite quirked a brow.

"Athena, no one thinks you are and I'm damn sure he doesn't either. Ares was just being a dick."

"…Do you really think so?"

"I know he doesn't, so let's not worry about what Ares thinks and talk about something else." Aphrodite offered and her face turned serious. "How are they doing?"

"Intact, for the most part." Athena sighed and sat down on a bench. "Adrian reported back to me when he was patched up and said the rest of his team survived Shuten's attack. Apparently, most of them were far away from the Oni when he arrived."

"Most?" Aphrodite frowned at the word and Athena clenched her fist.

"Pierce faced the Oni and took the majority of the assault."

The news made the Goddess of Beauty's eyes widened. She wasn't a bookworm like Athena and didn't have in depth knowledge of every faction in the world. She knew the bare basics and everything was on things that she found interesting or essential but even she had heard of the Three Great Yokai of Japan. Immensely powerful Ultimate-Class beings that had rivaled Gods in the past and Shuten Douji was the most well known among the three. If Pierce faced him head on then…

Nothing that came to Aphrodite's mind was remotely encouraging. Seeing her imagination working against her, Aphrodite looked back at Athena and asked if he was still alive. She sighed in relief when the Goddess of Wisdom said "yes".

"Then all we can do is wait."

"…I know." But she was tired of waiting. She hated this situation, not being able to fight her own battles and face Zeth. Athena was never the passive type and often solved her problems herself, rarely relying on mortal warriors to fix her problem (contrary to how many said they did in the earlier years). Granted, while the Emissaries have proven to be an excellent decision, the odds they could truly bring down Zeth was slim. They've slowly gotten stronger as they faced more enemies but as it showed, one encounter with the Great Yokai and everything was nearly over.

'I just had to become friends with the help, didn't I?' Athena didn't honestly think of them as the "help" but the plan was always to keep a professional relationship with the Emissaries. They were hired soldiers and the chances of them dying were so high that the Olympians unanimously agreed that it was better not to get attached. It was cold but it was the reality of things. But then Pierce became her friend and pupil and suddenly that plan was nowhere to be seen. Athena stared out a window to the Greek World below, wondering how it would have been if she had just walked away when Pierce was complaining in that side garden that day.

To the thousand year old Goddess of Wisdom, nothing came to mind.

Back to Pierce

The moment I opened my eyes, I knew that it had been longer than a couple of hours since I fell unconscious. The sunlight coming from a window on the ceiling was more glaring than usual and the kinks in my body were deep. Sending Chi through my stiff body, I gave a groan of contentment as I stretched and loud popping sounds came from my joints.

'…How the hell am I still alive?' Not the most cheerful thing to think of when waking up but my surprise was warranted. I was happy to be alive no question, it's just having all feeling below your neck stop for a solid minute and nearly choked to death by an Oni makes you kind of melodramatic. 'At least I didn't reincarnate again, going through childhood twice is two times too many.' I thought idly and started to scan my environment. I was in a large room with white walls, cabinets full of vials, a desk, and multiple other beds. The bed frames had Nordic symbols on them with glowing runes. I looked down and saw my bed had the same runes, I felt they were feeding me energy, mostly to heal the wounds I had. A white blanket covered half of my body.

Oh yeah, I was also completely naked. I saw a pair of robes and my space ring lying on a table next to the bed. 'Thank Ichiei for small blessings.' I may have thanked him too soon however because a woman walked into the room just as I was about to pick up the robes. She was a beautiful middle aged woman with light blond hair, blue eyes and light green robes on. She had a rose headdress on and blinked at my figure reaching for the clothes.

"You're up? That's surprising; I didn't expect you to be awake until-" The woman was interrupted by a blur passing her and heading right for me. Melissa tackled me, nearly forcing me to fall back into the bed. Maven walked in right after, a small smile appearing on her face upon seeing me.

"You're awake…" The mage slowly made her way over and hugged my head in her bosom, holding on quite tight. I frowned when I felt Melissa slightly shaking. I wrapped two arms around both of them and held them closer, trying to give them some sort of comfort. We stayed like that for a couple of minutes before a cough from the woman caught our attention.

"I don't want to ruin your reunion but I should finish my check up before you guys do anything else." The woman reasoned and they reluctantly agreed, separating from me (though Melissa chose to sit real close).

"Um, hi I'm Pierce."

"Nice to meet you Pierce, my name is Eir." We shook hands and she got out a small wand. She waved it over me, a couple types, multiple magic circles appearing over my body. "No fractures or torn ligaments. Your breathing is stable now and no permanent nerve damage. Try to stand up." I gawked at the command and at her inquisitive look, I made the problem clear.

"I'm naked." All she did was tilt her head.

"There's a robe right there, just put it on."

"…" I waited for them to turn around but they made no move to do so. Getting out of bed, I ignored the stares of the three beautiful women in the room and put on the robe. Eir and Melissa were unfazed but Maven's face was beet red. 'Now that's your fault.'

"Is there any problem in terms of mobility?" Eir asked and I ran to the opposite end of the room. I made it there in a second and appeared in my original spot in the same time. I formed a fist and punched the air, causing a small wind to pick up. I did this several times and stopped when Eir raised her hand. "Interesting, you recovered quite fast. Many of my Einherjars would need weeks to recover from the state you were in. A partly snapped neck is no joke, even with my skills."

My eyes widened at her words, my hand unconsciously reaching up to rub my neck. Eir said she needed to check on her other patients and exited the room, leaving the three of us alone. I walked up to Melissa and sighed at the small tear stains on her face. I rubbed my thumb over the stains and grabbed her hand, squeezing it slightly.

"Melissa." She lifted her head to look at me. "It's okay, I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere. It'll take a lot more than a purple demon reject to put me down so cheer up, okay? Because I got to be honest… if anything is going to kill me it's trying to keep up with your eating habits. Now that's a godly feat." Melissa gave me a blank stare before lightly kicking my shin.

"You're an ass…" She grumbled and I smirked.

"But it distracted you didn't it?" Her response was the same as before. After making sure she was feeling better, I picked up my space ring and took out my regular set of clothes (I sighed in relief once I saw both Dáinsleif and Tyrfing inside). I asked them how long I was out for and stopped midway putting on my green shirt when they said two days. 'I guess that explains why I'm hungry as hell.' I finished putting on my clothes and asked where everyone else was.

"They're in the main hall." Maven answered but I was confused on what that meant (Olympus had many halls). "You're going to like this." The mage smirked and walked to a side door, gesturing for me to open it. While I was a little lost, I did what she wanted and opened the door. I saw that the house was resting on an open prairie, a river flowing next to it and massive stone walls that were hundreds of meters in height on the other side. A tree that looked bigger than any skyscraper I remembered and reached the clouds rested far in the distance (the rainbow flying over it helped paint a very pretty picture). I admired the beautiful view before taking a wild guess.

"Is…is this Asgard?" My grin couldn't get wider when they nodded. "Okay, I've been to Hell and two different kinds of Heaven. That's got to be a record somewhere right!?" They chuckled at my words and I looked around, seeing many people working on the prairie. The majority of them looked like farmers but some had robes and staffs. "Who are they?"

"Those are the worshippers Frigg has allowed into Fensalir. They work the fields and learn her Seiðr arts." Maven answered and tilted her head at the stone walls. "Come on; let's go meet the others." We walked to a carriage resting next to the house, a man with brown hair and a beard was holding the reins. He gave a short nod of acknowledgment as we entered the carriage and commanded the horses to move. We crossed the prairie, coming close to the river and the regular looking horses started to glow in a rainbow aura. The carriage started to float up, flying over the river and reaching the top of the stone walls.

"Wow." A massive city rested within the stone walls. I could see many houses, ranging from stone towers to long wooden homes, and brick roads leading all over the city. People walked along the road and soldiers were positioned in groups around the towers, some patrolling on top of the walls. The carriage we were on made straight for a large hall in the middle of the city. We came to a gentle landing in front of the hall and Maven tossed a gold coin at the driver. We walked up the steps leading to the entrance and met two Einherjars standing guard. They must have known Maven and Melissa already because they didn't say anything and opened the gate. Giving quick thanks, they led me into the hall and I admired the beautiful architecture.

It wasn't like Olympus's architecture with their pearly white pillars, marble floors and nature engravings on the walls. No, there was mainly an odd assortment of swords, shields and animal pelts hanging on the wooden walls. The wood felt far denser than any natural bark and the magic runes hidden within were uncountable. We passed many statues that depicted either great battles or fallen warriors (the one that looked like Sigurd made me stop and stare for a long second). We eventually reached a pair of large double doors with golden runes and Maven waved her hand, a gust of wind opening them. A hall that was larger than a football field with golden pillars holding up the roof appeared in my vision. Countless numbers of Einherjar were partying inside; they were drinking, eating, dancing, and/or wrestling. It was an interesting sight.

"Hey Pierce!" Brynhildr walked out from among the crowd and walked up to us. She stopped in front of me before looking me up and down. "You're still among the living huh? From what Eir told me she didn't like the odds. Talk about not staying down."

"…It's nice to see you too Brynhildr." I deadpanned and she chuckled.

"Likewise. Welcome to Valhalla." Brynhildr said and led us into the crowd. We met up with the rest of the team who were eating at a table and they congratulated me on a swift recovery (though I wouldn't call three days "swift"). Getting a bear hug from Vargas and a pat on the back from Adrian, I sat down to enjoy the feast. The food of Valhalla was incredible, having dishes from every corner of the world and there didn't seem to be a limit. Every plate I consumed was refilled by the time I picked up another one. Gunhild also came to join us in the party, bringing barrels of Asgardian ale. Vargas and Aindrea soon got into a drinking game, trying to see who can drink more before passing out. The Chief Valkyrie joined the game and beat both the Holy Sword user and Demigod with only a tipsy face to show for it.

"You want to give it a go?" I asked Melissa, who was staring at the victorious Valkyrie.

"H-Huh? N-No, no I'm not really into that sort of thing. I'm good." Melissa said in an unconvincing tone. I frowned.

"Melissa, if you want to have fun then I'm not going to stop you. Don't worry; I'll be right here when you get back." She looked at my sincere smile before giving a small smile back. She visibly relaxed before squeezing my hand and joining the drinking game. I stared at her as she grabbed a cup and filled it up to challenge the Chief Valkyrie, who seemed more than willing. I peeked over to see Maven eating some spaghetti while talking to Samantha. Now was as good a time as any. "Hey, Adrian can we talk?"

"Sure, what about?" The Emissary asked as he put down a half eaten chicken leg and became confused when I stood up. He followed me to a table just a little away from the others and I turned to Adrian with a serious face.

"Who was that?" I wasn't specific but Adrian understood all the same, his face turning serious as well. I didn't want to ask either of the girls because of how shaken up they were over my near death, especially Melissa. Not only because she had a front row seat of it happening, but because she seemed to know who that Oni was.

And I'm going to assume by her fear that it wasn't a pleasant memory. I waited for Adrian to gather his thoughts before speaking.

"That Oni's name is Shuten Douji. He's a Great Yokai and one of Zeth's strongest Generals, his right hand man in fact." Adrian started to explain what happened in the fight three days ago. After Shuten arrived and blew the cave to smithereens, the Valkyries helping Maven fight Thorbjǫrg immediately called in back up. They couldn't alert Brynhildr of this because she was still in the tomb so we were essentially caught with our pants down once we came out. Once Shuten was focused on me, Gunhild grabbed Adrian and Melissa before teleporting away. "Then Lord Freyr and Lord Vidar arrived to fight Shuten and…well you probably remember the rest."

"…and Shuten?"

"He's still alive." Adrian answered. "He fought off both Gods before escaping with Talien. He barely got injured." Freyr and Vidar also came out of the fight unscathed but that did little to comfort me. I knew monsters existed in this world and wasn't talking about the "regular monsters" that could scare average men. I meant absolute beasts that made no sense to the established norm and could do things that those of the same race couldn't. A mild case would be myself while the more extreme would be Devils like Sirzechs and Ajuka. I knew I would eventually meet an absolute beast that would give me a run for my money.

I just wish I could have at least made him sweat for his. We walked back to the table after talking about Shuten, Melissa still standing strong against Brynhildr. The rest of evening was spent eating, drinking and relaxing after waking up. By the end of it, I had to take an unconscious Melissa to our current lodgings and laid her down on a Norse style bed. The Shadow Yokai's face was a bright red, a lopsided smile on her beautiful face and I covered her with the sheets. I was going to go into Zen Mode before sleeping but Melissa's hand reached out and grabbed my arm.

"Pierce?" Melissa spoke to me but her eyes were half lidded, showing she wasn't all there. "Where are you going?"

"I was going to mediate for a bit-"

"No." She gripped my arm tighter and pulled me closer. "Don't. Don't leave me again." My eyes widened a bit at her words before they softened.

"Okay, I won't. I'm right here." I entered the sheets with Melissa and she rested her head on my chest. I could feel her breathing become softer until she fell asleep and I was left staring at the ceiling. In the silence of the room, my mind went back to fight against Shuten and I frowned.

I was upset but not at the reasons you'd expect. Shuten took me apart. My Chi, my Magic, my Demon Swords, all my experience I've gained from fighting the generals and from Athena's teachings meant jack to the Oni. I knew that even if I was at peak performance and threw everything I had at the Oni, the outcome would still be the same. It was frustrating and yet…I didn't care about that. There were plenty of beings stronger than me in this world, some so strong that I may never be able to match but I was fine with that. I didn't aspire to be the strongest in the world and was perfectly content becoming strong enough to live a full life (plenty of people have gained that without becoming the strongest). But what my mind went to was that even with all my strength, the best I could do was make time for my friends to escape.

And the thought that the Oni could kill me and still catch up to the others with his insane speed really upset me.

'I need to get stronger.' That single line echoed in my mind and I stared down at Melissa's sleeping form. I wouldn't let something like Shuten happen again and if it did...then I was going to make sure I took that Oni down with me. '…Oh good God, I just took a page out of being a Shonen Protagonist didn't I?' (Then again, a regular Shonen Protagonist doesn't think about dying with their opponent).

Choosing to not think about bad clichés, I closed my eyes and let sleep come over me.

1 Day Later, Throne Room

The morning after was relatively peaceful. Melissa and I woke up at the crack of dawn, the Shadow Yokai having a minor headache. The same could not be said for Vargas and Aindrea. They were fully hung over and had splitting migraines, Melissa apparently learned a Chi Art that allows her body to naturally expel alcohol far better than other beings (even the supernatural kind). Brynhildr came by and cast a spell over them to help with their hangovers before telling us we were summoned. We soon found ourselves following the Chief Valkyrie through the halls of Valhalla again and reached a large throne room. Four beings were waiting for us in said room.

One was a short, beautiful woman with golden blond hair done in long braids and yellow pupils. Another was a beautiful maid with brown hair standing next to her. My eyes widened slightly at the very recognizable old man sitting on the throne. He had long grey hair, a beard with a golden monocle on his eye and an expensive robe. Surprised to be meeting the oppai loving All Father himself, I moved my gaze from Odin to observe the last being in the room.

"Welcome mighty warriors, I am glad you could join us today. We wish to thank you for protecting our lands from Zeth's Generals and helping keep our Valkyries safe." I stared at the severed head as it explained why we were her-

'…' Taking a minute to think that sentence over again, I rubbed my eyes and squinted at the head speaking on the podium. It was even weirder a second time. "You're a head." The head, who introduced himself as Mimir, stopped speaking at my words. He looked to Odin, who just shrugged in response.

"I am." He confirmed it like it was a trivial thing.

"…You're a severed head."

"Pierce…" Adrian groaned.

"What the hell do you mean "Pierce"!? A severed head is talking to us, I don't know about you but this is a first for me!" I exclaimed in rightful shock and Brynhildr scrunched her eyebrows.

"Don't you have talking Swords?"

'You got something you want to say?' Dáinsleif's voice came out from the space ring and I turned to Mimir.

"So what are you? An undead? Can you move on your own with Telekinesis or do you need someone to help you?...Do you still feel the urge to pee?" I started to fire off questions and Mimir narrowed his eyes at me.

"…No, I'm not an undead. I can move on my own and I don't have the need to relieve myself. I have no bladder."

"So if you have no bladder, then you have no lungs either. How do you talk?"

"Magic."

"…So if you fall in the water you won't drow-"

"Oh for the love of-" Adrian apparently had enough so he took out one of Sangan's sealing Talismans and slapped them over my mouth (I forgot he had these). "I am so incredibly sorry for this; he didn't mean anything by all those questions. He's just too curious for his own good." My muffled "hey" was ignored. Odin chuckled at our banter.

"It's quite alright my boy. He's not the first to be shocked by the eccentricity that is Mimir."

"My king!" Mimir had a betrayed look on his sole feature.

"But in all seriousness, we truly are grateful for your help in driving Talien from our lands and stopping him from disgracing Sigurd's Tomb. The Original Brynhildr deserved far more than she ever asked for in life and you've helped protect her last wish. So as a king and her friend, I thank you all." Odin stood up and bowed to us. While we were slightly shocked at the All Father's actions, we hurriedly bowed back. He said we could stay in Asgard for as long as we needed to but Adrian declined. They were just waiting for me to wake up before heading back to Olympus. "Very well, then I hope you have a safe journey back. Brynhildr can lead you all to Heimdall and he will open a gate."

"Thank you very much." Adrian bowed in thanks and we followed Brynhildr out of the throne room. The Chief Valkyrie led us to the tallest tower in Asgard and we walked up a spiral staircase to the top. A large room with a gate rested at the top, a short man with orange hair, a beard and brown eyes standing next to it.

"Greetings warriors of Olympus, Brynhildr. How may I be of service?" The man spoke and Brynhildr bowed.

"Hello Lord Heimdall, can you please open a gate to Olympus for them?"

"Very well." Heimdall touched the gate and it started to shine in every color. "I'll need permission from Olympus' side to open a gate there so this may take a minute." Everyone waited patiently as the Guardian God worked and I stared at him. A minute passed of this and he must have noticed because he turned to look at me. "Is there something wrong?"

"No nothing's wrong it's just…I pictured you differently." Heimdall frowned.

"How so?"

"You wouldn't happen to be a popular actor in Asgard, are you?" I asked but that just confused him more. "Do you make music or write books?"

"I-I don't."

"Okay, weird question but…are you half-British?"

"…Huh?" Heimdall was absolutely lost. Before I could continue, Adrian and Vargas pulled me back from the confused Guardian God.

"Don't make me pull out another Mute Talisman." The Emissary threatened and I crossed my arms in a huff.

"You guys are no fun…" My sulking got a couple of chuckles and a sigh from Adrian. Maven rubbed my head in comfort (it felt pretty nice) and the portal eventually opened. Heimdall said that we would appear in front of the Gate to Olympus and sat back down after that. We started to say our goodbyes to Brynhildr, Adrian shaking her hand and thanking her for the help.

"Same to you, It's been a pleasure to fight alongside all of you. That was the most fun I've had in a long while. I hope we meet again." Saying those final parting words, Brynhildr left to do her day job as the Chief Valkyrie (if her grumbling about paperwork was any indicator) and we stepped through the portal.

Same Time, A Certain Monster God's Dimension

In an artificial space the size of a state, an equally artificial sun hung low over the horizon. Many houses of different shapes and sizes littered this independent space. Some so small that a normal human would be bent out of shape if they tried to enter and some so large that a mortal castle would be best used to describe it. Yet within these houses, no humans could be seen. Creatures out of myths like Trolls, Giants, Harpies, Minotaurs, Lamias, and about every other being that have been labeled as "Monsters'' could be found in this realm. They walked and lived amongst each other, like how humans would in cities and towns. And within this Dimension of Monsters, a black castle housed what many called these Monster's "God".

Shuten Douji walked down the halls of this black castle, yawning before taking a swig of his gourd full of alcohol. He gave a small nod to the maids and soldiers walking along the halls, all bowing as he went by. The Oni eventually reached a large open door. Inside was a room that many would mistake for being a king's dwelling. High class furniture, marble floors, a high end chimney and an unreasonably large bed that Shuten noticed in amusement laid a number of naked, sleeping monster women. Shuten looked over to the open balcony and found the one he was looking for.

A man was leaning against the railing and staring out into the city. He was tall, had shoulder length brown hair, a handsome face and blue eyes. He didn't react as Shuten came to stand next to him and join him in staring out into the city. A moment of silence passed between the two before the Oni spoke.

"Don't you ever get tired of staring out at your Kingdom like this?" For as long as the Oni had known and joined the Monster God, he always seemed to be admiring his handiwork in silence. Every damn minute. To the Oni, it must have gotten stale at this point yet Zeth answered his question with his own.

"Do you ever get tired of basking in a victory?"

"...When the fight was boring as hell then yeah, a little." Shuten deadpanned.

"But you still relish it and this..." Zeth waved his hands at the city. "This is not a minor victory." The Oni blankly stared at Monster God before shrugging.

"Whatever you say, I just came to tell you that the Elf made it back to Svartalfheim."

"Well done. It's a shame he couldn't bring back Sigurd but there is work to do in Svartalfheim, he should be plenty busy there." Zeth praised the Oni's work and Shuten nodded before turning to leave, seeing his job was done. "Hey Shuten." He stopped and looked back at Zeth. "Those Emissaries you've faced...how were they?" The Oni thought on the question and gave his honest opinion.

"They were...interesting." Zeth quirked a brow at that but Shuten didn't continue and left the room, leaving the Monster God to think on the vague answer. Walking down the hallway to the main entrance of the castle, the Oni drank some more alcohol and his mind started to think back to the fight with the humans of Olympus. They were nothing special really, they had nothing that could draw the Oni's attention or warrant Zeth's worry. He thought of the look that one human gave him and memories of past battles went through the Oni's mind.

Of the fights against the monks in that temple, against the invaders, against that pointy eared fallen, or against that lightning wielding Emissary. "Mighty Warriors," the lot of them yet, whenever Shuten was done with them there was nothing but fear left in their eyes. He hated that look. Whenever he thought of them, a frown came on his face and he wanted to spit in their memory (though if he ever met that fallen again, he'd finish the job). Then a crooked smile appeared on the Oni's face. That boy, who's disjointed neck was in his hands, whose literal life was at this whim, didn't so much as flinch at his death. Instead, he glared at Oni and cursed his very existence without hesitation. Shuten's smile threatened to split his face.

'Very interesting indeed...' The Oni made his way out of the castle and opened a gate to his realm, wondering if he'll meet that human again before walking inside.

Olympus, The Elysian Fields

"So...what are we doing here?" I asked as I walked with Athena, Maven and Melissa through the fields of the Greek Afterlife. The two other members of the party looked to the Goddess, wondering the same thing.

"You'll find out in a second." Athena gave nothing away and we came to a large cabin on top of a hill. The others were waiting by the cabin when we got there and I idly noted that another one of Adrian's Patrons, the sun God Apollon, was also here. Apollon walked up the steps of the cabin and cleared his throat. "Since everyone's here, I think it's time to explain why you're all here."

"That'd be nice." I said and Apollon smiled.

"Well first things first, this will be your new lodgings." He pointed at the cabin behind us. "That's not to say you aren't allowed back on top of Olympus, your rooms up there are still yours and you can go back whenever you want but this cabin will be more practical for what we have planned."

"And what is this plan, Lord Apollon?" Adrian asked.

"For the next couple of months, you all will train in the Elysian Fields." Athena answered and stood next to Apollon. "The encounters with Zeth's Top General showed us something; you all are very impressive but it won't be enough against the strongest you'll eventually meet. Some of that stems from our own negligence. We've been...half assing it so to speak when it came to you all. We have plenty of ways to help you grow in strength but haven't been capitalizing on it because of how well you've been doing against the Generals. Let's change that." We looked at each other at the Goddess' words and Aindrea stepped forward.

"In what ways can you help us grow stronger?"

"For one, the Elysian Fields are full of past warriors that have made a name for themselves when they were alive. They have many techniques and methods to improve combat and will readily help you. You may also face some wild Familiars in Olympus's Familiar Forest, there are always some that go out of control and need to be put down, besides Demeter would appreciate the help. Other than that, we will also be personally training you. I can help you with manipulating your Sunlight powers and I've had past experience with Holy Swords." Apollon started to list all the ways we would be spending our time in the Elysian Fields and we were all pretty on board. After that shit show with Shuten, I was more than ready to get back into some old fashioned training (this is actually the first time I've trained for a long period of time since fighting the Tyrant). Apollon led everyone into the cabin to look around and I would have followed if Athena didn't stop me.

"What's up?" I asked the Goddess as she observed me with a critical eye. "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, it's just...are you okay?" I frowned at the worried tone she had.

"I'm fine."

"Really?"

"Really." I sighed at the skeptical look she gave me. "Is this about my injuries?"

"I mean, yeah. You almost died Pierce. Even Eir didn't like your chances and she's a Valkyrie known for her healing abilities. You're not affected at all?" Athena gave me another worried look and I rubbed the back of my neck.

"I don't know Athena. I didn't feel fear when I woke up if that's what you're asking but I'm frustrated." I knew it wasn't normal to shrug off a near death like it was nothing but that's how I felt. I've kind always been like that. Is it because I already died once? or maybe it was because I've accepted I may die at any point in this quest. The lack of care at my own well being was probably some mental problem but that's an issue for another day. "I couldn't do anything against Shuten. If he truly wanted to, he could have killed us and we wouldn't have been able to see it coming...That's not a fun thought."

"..." Athena said nothing as she wrapped her arms around me and pulled me in for a gentle hug. I blinked at the Goddess' show of compassion before returning the hug. I didn't need comforting but it'd be a dick move to refuse it when she genuinely cared. We stayed like that for a long minute before Athena let go and stared into my eyes. "Don't worry Pierce, once we're done with this plan, you won't have to feel like that again. I promise."

"...Then let's do it." I smiled and walked to the cabin, ready to start this training session. I didn't find out until much later that Apollon and Athena planned to stay in the cabin with us to make the training more proficient. I was going to be bunking with a super hot Goddess and my equally beautiful girlfriends for the next couple of months.

...Eat your heart out Issei Hyoudou and eat it well.