Chapter 62: Finale Part 2

"Haaa… huuu…"

Sound of his inhaling and exhaling greeted Ray when he finally woke up inside a futuristic medical pod and his mouth and nose were covered by a respirator.

"Quick! Inform Lord Azazel and Lady Gabriel! The patient is waking up!" Ray heard someone shout nearby but the glass wall that encased him, muffled the voice slightly so that he couldn't discern the gender of the voice owner.

Ray tried to lift his hand but it's stucked in place. Even his other body part to his neck is strapped down to the surface he is laying on. He didn't bother to force himself out and instead checked his condition from the system. From all that he could see, he is doing fine other than malnutrition and after seeing the date of today, Ray can guess the reason why.

He had been unconscious for more than two weeks since the incident in Greece. Ray then ignores his previous decision to stay put and struggles from his binding, trying to free himself but his body is still weakened after waking up from his coma. However, when he remembered Cheshire who is trapped in his lobby, alone without him by her side for two whole weeks, a sudden surge of rage filled his mind and his hand bulged with muscle and the skin darkened like his possessed form which snapped the binding to free one of his hands to access the system and forced Cheshire and her cat out from the lobby.

Although, his sudden transformation on the arm surprised the nearby medical workers to fled in terror. They all ran away, afraid Ray might rampage again.

When Cheshire fell on top of his chest, she immediately went to hug Ray and cried with tears.

"Papa! Papa alright? Cheshire saw papa beaten by those uncles and… and papa almost died." Cheshire spills out her worry for Ray which her cat also joined and licks Ray's face while meowing like she is also talking to Ray but in language Ray couldn't understand.

If Ray has to guess, Cheshire probably saw what happened to his physical body while he was fighting Hercules in his mind. Though, how she could watch what happened to him is a mystery to Ray.

"I'm alright aren't I? Your papa is too stubborn to die so don't worry. I will not die that easily and leave you behind." Ray coaxed Cheshire to stop crying by slowly rubbing her back which worked as her cry turned to sobs and soon turned to calm breathing as she fell asleep on his chest.

Without him realising, on the side are his lovers, Azazel and Gabriel, who rushed to see him when a nurse informed them Ray had awakened from his coma. They silently watch and patiently waited as Ray comforted Cheshire to sleep before they interrupt Ray.

Ray spent an hour catching up with everyone but to make it short, the Earth was Ravaged by evil dragons when Rizevim went mad and released hordes of evil dragon clones to attack anything and anything indiscriminately. Humanity is near extinction with 90% of them wiped out in just 24 hours, mainly by their own weapons while the remaining 10% are taken in by the other mythologies into their pocket worlds where their pantheons reside.

The dead humans and supernaturals are all used by Rizevim and turned into more evil dragons. Now, the evil dragons had encroached upon every mythologies with the Underworld being severely under siege because it was easily accessible unlike pocket worlds or Heavens that need specific entrances to access.

"Unfortunately Ray, we didn't have time for you to rest over here. We need you on the frontline immediately to lead your army. With us being severely understaffed, spending time talking right now is already a luxury when everyone is working around the clock and fighting without rest." Azazel informed Ray which gained a stern stare from Ray's lovers.

"I understand, Azazel. I will immediately get ready to be deployed but please give me a moment to take care of my daughter first." Ray nodded and replied before slowly raising up and exiting the medical pod after the binding was released.

Azazel nodded and left with Gabriel who completed a treatment to revitalise Ray's weakened body along with the use of Phenex tear made by Ravel. The trio also unfortunately have to leave immediately to rejoin the frontline but they are anticipating for Ray to take over the leadership from them since they are made into temporary leaders to replace Ray's absence.

Ray then asked Xenovia, Ravel and Roseweisse to accept his implant because he was afraid of being suddenly forced to leave the world and he couldn't bring them with him. None of the three argued with his decision after he explained his reasoning and even eagerly accepted it so they can be connected with him even closer than before.

After dealing with few of the loose ends, Ray requested Roseweisse to help him guard and take care of Cheshire since he is joining the war immediately but Roseweisse declined and expressed her desire to fight alongside him. Xenovia also has the same decision as Roseweisse which leaves Ravel being his only option. Ravel easily agreed to his request and promised to take care of Cheshire as she would on own biological daughter.

Only after that Ray prepared himself and dressed up in a form fitting bodysuit which covered his whole body until the neck. Then his exoskeleton suits next before the armor being the top layer of his loadout. He gives Ravel a farewell and a kiss on her request.

"Make sure you return in one piece or I will chase you down to the depth of hell to bring you back!" Ravel shouted as she waved at me, Roseweisse and Xenovia as we left the medical facility which is located in the New Devil capital, Lilith.

As Ray exits to the street, he can see the capital no longer vibrant and peaceful as when he visited previously. Soldiers running all over the place either carrying supplies or injured to the medical facility. Massive barrier covered the sky above as the whole Underworld is in martial law due to war time. Civilians can be seen helping the soldiers either carrying supplies, rushing the injured, giving basic first aid, etc.

"Let's go to the teleportation array. We need to reach Vassago clan territory where the current major battle is taking place and the teleportation magic is disabled by the barrier which means we can only teleport using the array." Roseweisse informed and Ray nodded while following her lead with Xenovia trailing him from behind.

The teleportation array isn't far as it was placed in the main square, close to where all important buildings and facilities are located.

When Ray reached the square, he saw someone he didn't expect to see and the Rias Gremory peerage along with Rias herself. Next to Rias and her peerage is the Vali team or more correctly, the Valina team with a certain dragon god disguised as harmless loli.

"Uncle! Are you alright?! You were in pieces when Azazel and Odin returned with your… body parts." Issei was about to say mangled corpse but instead said it with less morbid description. Azazel and Odin didn't have anything more options of safely subduing Ray other than amputating all his limbs and freezing him until he returned to normal. He can regenerate anyway, that's why the two didn't hold back from chopping his limbs.

There is no surprise why lil Cheshire was almost traumatized and worried about her papa when he got literally sent to hospital in pieces inside body bags.

"Alright as you can see." Ray opens his hand wide and allows Issei to inspect his body. Though his body was covered by layers of clothing and armor.

"How about your parents? Are they alright?" Ray asked with worry since he does think of them as family even if it was made up by his arrival to this world.

Issei gave Ray a thumbs up and cheerfully said. "Don't worry, Uncle. Buchou takes them into her home to stay out of danger." But Issei's expression became saddened immediately. "But Matsuda, Motohama, Aika Kiryu and the whole academy failed to survive. The dragons came out of nowhere and razed Kuoh Town and we only managed to save my family before retreating to the Underworld."

"It's not your fault, partner. So, stop being gloomy and tell your uncle about your request."

"Yeah you right, Ddraig." Issei sniffled a bit before looking at Ray and bowed. "Please allow me to join too, uncle. I want to participate in the defence of the Underworld."

Ray didn't answer immediately and looked at Rias first but she nodded when he looked at her and basically gave her permission. If Ray has to guess, Sirzech probably denied Issei's request to participate in the war since he felt Issei should be protecting Rias instead and they now turn to Ray since his rank is similar to the faction leaders especially during wartime like this and he can authorize Issei to participate.

"Sure" Ray replied before looking at Valina and her team that was hanging out on the side, waiting for him to finish talking with Issei.

Besides him who are conversing with Issei, Xenovia and Asia also talked with each other, catching up after not meeting for a long time. Kuroka is also pestering Koneko and seems to be on good terms at least. Probably Issei's handiwork.

Ray moves closer to Valina which causes her team to tense up a little and become wary of Ray's reaction since he was in a coma and didn't know that Valina jumped team to neutral after abandoning Khaos Brigade. Although it didn't look very convincing when the leader of the said organisation was with them, munching on bags of cookies without worry about the world. Ray is curious as to why they are looking for him since canonically, Vali will bring Ophis to Issei but now, Valina is bringing Ophis to meet him, Ray assumed because they didn't interact with Issei at all and seems to be waiting for him.

"What can I help you with?" Ray asked with a polite tone which surprised Valina a little since she expected some hostility.

Valina recovers from her surprise immediately before using her thumb to point at Ophis, who is still busy stuffing her cheek with cookies like chipmunk.

"She is the one needing you for something. I'm just her escort." Valina said and shrugged before returning to her relaxed pose, laying her back on a tree.

Since Ray looked confused, Valina explained a little. She explained that when they ran away from the mad Rizevim, thd brought Ophis with them and met Azazel. Azazel brought her along to politely ask for her reason for making the Khaos Brigade because they couldn't literally interrogate a dragon god. Then Ophis said she wanted her silence, the Dimensional Gap back from Great Red. However, knowing Great Red importance as defender of the worlds, Azazel proposed an alternative for her problem. Then, from the information Azazel complied about Ray's lobby in an effort to study the unique space from asking those who entered the place, Azazel determined that the lobby is indeed a perfect alternative since it is an isolated space without any that can disturb the space. If no one is using that place, the lobby is perfectly silent and even more comfortable than Dimensional Gap for Ophis.

Thus Azazel begins his attempt to convince the gullible dragon god into choosing the lobby instead of Dimensional Gap. However the process is rather simple. Azazel only needed to say Ray can provide her any snacks she would ever want to eat and the dragon god immediately agreed with shining eyes filled with excitement. Azazel didn't even ask for Ray's consent before he yeeted him out, under the bus if he can stop the dragon god from trying to remove Great Red from Dimensional Gap.

(F for Ray's accumulated points. Billions ain't enough to fill that bottomless pit.)

Never since his arrival in this world, Ray felt like he wanted to strangle someone to death. He was literally turned into scapegoat by Azazel for the peace of the world since Khaos Brigade is the result of Ophis trying to regain the Dimensional Gap. Who could say Ophis wouldn't attempt it again in the future.

"Since my job is done, I'm leaving now, farewell." Valina said and brought her team away while Ray was deep in his thoughts. By the time he snapped out of it, Valina and her team had already vanished. Only Ophis is left behind, munching on cookies that just finished. She then looks at her new cookie dispenser and holds her palm out, demanding food from Ray.

"What?" Ray asked in a semi annoyed and semi acceptance voice.

"Cookies. Want more cookies."

Ray looks at Ophis and isn't oblivious to what Azazel is attempting. The damn fallen want him to trick Ophis into accepting Ray's implant since that's the only way for Ophis to access the lobby. Besides, in exchange for a gluttonous loli, Ray received a very strong dragon god whose strength is second highest in the world.

If Ray can tam- convince Ophis to assist him, the problem with the encroaching evil dragon clones can be resolved immediately. Ray could even keep track of how many birds Azazel is killing with one stone. Ray himself also personally benefited from this too as he basically got an ultimate boss of this world into the equivalent of pokemon that he only needed to satisfy with food and a place to stay for her to assist Ray. Thinking about the endless possibilities is enough to make his head dizzy.

Ophis was demanding food but her cookie dispenser was in a daze which she could understand until she remembered what the weird haired guy said to her. 'If he wouldn't give what you wanted, just call him papa or daddy then hug him and then ask again. He will definitely agree.' The weird haired guy said with a big convincing smile while his other friend was laughing for some reason.

Ophis didn't think much and hugged Ray on the neck by flying up and said. "Papa, I want cookies." Ophis said with her expressionless face while staring directly to his eyes.

Ray was immediately broken out from his thoughts and stuttered a little. While still befuddled by his previous thoughts, his brain tried to process both his previous thoughts and the sudden demand from Ophis.

"Huh? Um.. Uh… Oh, okay…" Ray pulled out of his thoughts to see Ophis staring into his eyes with expectations which made Ray fumbled a little before his hand went auto pilot and accessed the marketplace to buy some cookies. It became a habit of Ray whenever Cheshire asked for snacks and Azazel taught Ophis to mimic Cheshire's speech pattern to trigger Ray's automatic response.

When obtaining her cookies, Ophis is convinced that the weird haired guy is telling the truth which means her cookie dispenser can also give her a new home that is similar to Dimensional Gap.

"Will you accept to be… uh.. implanted? Yeah, implanted with an implant." Ray is about to say enslaved as usual but his brain manages to intercept the words from being uttered. He rather not find out how Ophis will react to that word.

"Can I get cookies and silence back?" Ophis asked with her usual expressionless face but the latter one seemed to trigger some of her emotions as she had an expectant look on her face when she said it.

"Yes, I will give plenty of cookies. As much as you like!" Ray immediately replied in a hurry while unloading a pack of cookies that formed a sizable pile in front of Ophis.

Ophis's eyes glimmered for a moment after seeing the piles of cookies.

Meanwhile with Issei's group,

"Hey, guys… is it just me or uncle look like those shady perverted uncles trying to trick the little girl following them?" Issei shared his thoughts to his peerage members which in return gave weird looks.

"Oh, shush you Issei. How are you relating a defenceless girl to a literal dragon god that can wipe the floor again the whole Alliance combined?" Rias retorted her pawn that spouting nonsense.

Returning to Ray and Ophis,

Ophis instantly agreed to Ray receive the implant after being promised an endless supply of cookies and a home that she liked. The process went without problem as Ophis didn't even feel the existence of the implant and Ray himself wondered how much influence the implant has on being the level of Ophis. Then Ophis takes Ray's right arm with both hands and looks at Ray, to which Ray replies with a confused look to Ophis.

"Remove armor. Ray must live to get cookies and silence."

Ray didn't understand the reason but he at least understood her request and removed the gauntlet on his right arm which Ophis immediately took a mouthful bite that caused Ray to flinch until it drew blood before Ophis released his palm. Then something happened and a magic crest of Infinite Dragon Ouroboros which looked like two serpents biting each tails and formed a horizontal '8' symbol.

"Bring me to silence. Along with cookies…" Ophis demanded immediately after which Ray complied and brought her into the lobby. She looks around the place before taking a seat on one of the sofas before continuing devouring cookies. Ray bought more, enough to form a small mountain before leaving the lobby. Thankfully those cookies only cost him like 500 points a bag but looking at the speed Ophis is devouring the cookies, Ophis might devour a billion points worth of cookies in a month or less.

Without any more interruption, Ray along with Xenovia, Roseweisse and the new addition, Issei teleported to Vassago clan territory.

———

"Lord Ray! Glad to have you back on duty." A military officer under his leadership greeted him when he arrived. Ray only nodded and gave a light grunt of acknowledgement while his eyes focused on the mini map that displayed the allies and enemies which marked blue for allies and red for enemies.

"Gather all able soldiers, we are doing the usual. Round them up and blast those oversized lizards to oblivion. It's faster this way than killing them one by one." Ray ordered.

"How about those that can create barriers?" The officer asked with some doubt about the plan but didn't immediately disagree with their supreme commander.

Ray thought of using his Hold The Line skill first to break those barriers before blasting those oversized lizards to oblivion. That particular skill grants Ray extra piercing effect that is very effective in breaking barriers or any defence.

"Don't worry, I have countermeasures prepared already." Ray said before the Ouroboros Dragon magic crest suddenly glowed and was seen by the officer and nearby soldiers.

"This! Is that what I think it is?!" The officer asked in immense shock and admiration to Ray.

"Indeed. So, stop delaying and gather the soldiers! I still need to make it back to night to see my cute little daughter."

"Yes sir!" Then the officer left to carry out the order given to him by Ray.

Then Ray turned his body facing Xenovia and Issei.

"As you heard, we are going to gather up those dragons in one place and kill them in one go. Xenovia can go and join the vanguard unit or just stay next to me with Roseweisse. But for Issei, I need you to help power up people with your Boost Transfer later."

"I'll stay." Xenovia replied

"Sure, leave it to me, uncle." Issei replied with great enthusiasm while doing a fist pump.

Meanwhile Roseweisse simply nodded on the sideline which indicated she agreed with the plan given by Ray.

With a proper plan laid out, Ray moved directly to the battlefield and skipped the base since he basically had all he needed on him, a war room replaced by a mini map and the implant basically took care of communication. The officer previously was tasked to inform those without the implant because he already sent his plan to everyone with the implant.

—————

The battle I will skip because it's nothing important to write about except continuous extermination of evil dragon clones. Next chapter will be a time skip summary and Ray prepping for world jump after DxD world is in peace.

Also the effect of Ophis giving Ray a contract is similar to the contract Rory Mercury gave to Itami Youji but depends on the situation. It is basically for Ophis to make sure her food dispenser and home stay alive for her to enjoy those benefits. As for if Ophis is a love interest, maybe but I'm more inclined to put her in the same category as Cheshire. Besides, Ophis also is very cute but also very dangerous. Again, F for Ray's accumulated points. The bottomless stomach glutton will be even dangerous once she tasted the more 'gourmet' kind of food.