Chapter 88: Hyoudo Issei

"Issei... have you finally calmed down?"

Sandra asked with a worried expression on her face as she hugged Issei's head between her breast, causing Issei's arms around her waist to tighten in response.

"... Just... let me stay like this for a while... Sandra-chan"

Issei answered in a low and quite tone while Rias looked at both of them in worry.

"... I'll leave first... I need to check the situation at Kuoh Academy and... I think it's better if I leave you two alone in the meantime"

Rias said as she glanced at Issei in worry before reculantly walking towards the direction of Lucias' mansion where most of the personells of the Forsake Faction are staying to take care of the survivors.

"... Please take care of him, Sandra-san"

Rias said as her figure slowly dissapeared from the scene, leaving only Issei who was buried in Sandra's arms as his entire body trembled.

"Sandra... can you... get me some glass of water... I'll stay here... I still want to be with my parents"

Issei weakly said causing Sandra to frown as she looked at him in suspicion.

"... I'm staying here, I feel like I would lose you the instance I let g-"

"Please... I... want to be alone, Sandra"

Issei said as he loosened his arms around her waist before kneeling in front of his parent's dead body.

"... Do you think I'll let you do something stupid?"

"... Please"

"... Issei... Look at me"

Sandra said as she placed both of her hand on his cheeks, causing her to feel his cold skin before giving him a soft kiss on his forehead.

"Issei... don't do anything that could kill you... You're not alone, I'm still here for you..."

"... Thank you..."

Issei muttered as he kept his head down, staring at the dismembered arm on the ground with a blank expression on his face.

"Issei... promise me..."

"..."

"If you died... Have you ever considered my feelings?"

Sandra suddenly said causing Issei to slowly look up at her, staring directly at her eyes with a dazed expression on his face.

"Sandra... I know how much you wanted to replace me... so stop acting like you actually care"

Issei cruelly said with a pained expression on his face like he was forcing himself to utter those words, causing Sandra to look at him in disbelief.

"W-What..."

"..."

"T-Take that back..."

"..."

"Issei... Do you think I'll believe that you actually meant-"

"It's the truth... How could I be sure that you haven't slept around before we even met"

Issei forcefully said as he tried to endure taking back his words, causing Sandra to frown before slapping his cheek with a pained expression on her face.

"... I never knew that my image in your head is that low, Issei..."

"..."

"Even if I hated your perverted nature... I chose to stay because I liked you... I wanted you to change since thats the best for you"

"..."

Issei bit his lips as piercing pain devoured his heart, but decided to stay quite with his head lowered to the ground.

"GO AND KILL YOURSELF!!!"

Sandra shouted as she slapped his other cheeks before teleportating away with tears visible in her eyes, causing Issei to clench his fist as he watched her dissapear from his sight.

[Partner...]

"Ddrag... It's for the better"

Issei muttered as he slowly stood up from the ground.

[Partner. I know what you're planning. You will only get yourself killed if you continue]

"... I already made her hate me... I already started it..."

[You could've asked for her help rather than making her hate you]

"... I don't want to drag her anymore in my problems... She... and Buchou are the only important people left in my life..."

[...]

"I don't want to lose my family again... so it's much better if I do this myself... Even if I dissapear, it will not affect them too much... Especially after I made her hate me..."

[... You heard them, huh?]

Ddraig asked, remembering the conversation that Sandra had together with a succubus before they ran towards Issei's home.

[I can't believe that my new holder is this suicidal]

"... Lend me your strength for one last time... Ddraig"

[Partner... Just don't die]

"[Balance Breaker]"

-with Lucias-

"Report the situation, Sephie"

Lucias ordered as a projection floated in front of him while the 'creator' used his lap as a pillow as thick white liquid flowed out of her womb.

[Lucias-sama? Did you already conquer the tomb?]

"No... I'm stuck for a few more hours. I don't want to waste my time in this place doing nothing, so send me the details of what happened in the faction"

Lucias said causing Sephie to glance at his bare chest with slightly flushed cheeks.

[Then... how to say this... A couple of cities around the world fell including Kuoh]

"What?"

Lucias asked with a large frown on his face as he stared at the screen with a serious expression.

[Kuoh was devastated by a Tier IV gastrea that controlled an army of 50,000 Gastreas. Only half of the entire population of Kuoh survived but our enemies also suffered some casualties since some of your servants stayed in your mansion at Kuoh. Only 2,340 out of the 50,000 Gastreas managed to survive and escape thanks to the efforts of both Gilgamesh and Enkidu who both just returned back at your Mansion]

"... Why would they suddenly ambush Kuoh?"

[We speculated that... they must've thought that you were inside the mansion, so they launched an ambush to hopefully injure or kill some of your elite soldiers...]

"... I see... Provide immediate support to the civilians and provide medical assistance to all of the injured... and revive any of the deceased that could withstand the resurrection process"

Lucias ordered causing Sephie to look at him with a difficult expression on her face.

[That is... A bit hard, Lucias-sama... They're souls were taken away by the surviving Gastreas during their escape. We don't know why they would do that but our strongest guess is that...]

"They're planning to use necromancy to create more soldiers for their army..."

[Correct, Lucias-sama]

Sephie said causing Lucias to frown as the ground beneath his hand shattered to pieces due to the extreme force that he placed in his hand. But the ground quickly recovered as a weak divine mana covered the spot.

"Those idiots want to add undead in their army? They must be crazy since both Yuu and Valerie are both on our side... how many were they able to bring back?"

Lucias asked causing Sephie to hesitate before honestly reporting the number of casualties on the human's side. 

"Approximately 2,000,000 humans souls were captured while a total of 3,400,000 people died from their attacks around the globe"

Sephie reported with a serious expression on her face.

"Gather all of the souls that they weren't able bring back and contain them all in the faction for the meantime until I come back"

Lucias ordered causing Sephie to salute in response before contacting Rimuru, who was currently looking at his 13 baby clones with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Hmm?"

He muttered as he felt his earpiece vibrate, before answering Sephie's call.

"You have a new mission, Rimuru"

"Oh? It's been a while since I was last dispatched. I'll make my way towards ruby palace. I'll be there in a few hours since I still need to gather my army"

"Then, I'll wait for your arrival in my office... and bring as many soldiers as you can since... the scale of the mission is extremely large"

Sephie said before cutting off the call with Rimuru.

"Anymore news?"

Lucias asked causing Sephie to skim through the documents by her side with a serious expression on her face.

[... We found something weird, Lucias-sama]

Sephie said as Lucias snapped his fingers causing his clothes to reappear on his body.

"Weird?"

[Yes... We found a piece of letter buried deep in Antarctica, and was found by the Ice Queens stationed at the continent... It was made from pure divine technology to perserve its quality so we brought it back to further study it's origins]

Sephie reported before taking out a photo of the item from her piles of documents. It was a transparent cylinder with the mark of a cross decorating the body of the cylinder. Inside was a single rolled paper with a thin golden barrier surrounding it.

"... This is..."

[We consulted Azazel-sama about its origin... and we found that it contained the last letter about the last words of the Original Angels...]

Sephie said causing Lucias to widen his eyes in surprise, since both him and Azazel assumed that they dissapeared from the face of the earth since no traces or any records about their existence was left. 

"Were you able to decode it?"

[Yes, thanks to Azazel-sama, we were able to remove the runic symbols around the artifacts and obtain the letter inside of the container... and Azazel-sama could still read the ancient language that was used to in the letter]

"What did it say?"

[... It's content only contain why they dissapeared, but not how, when, or where they dissapeared... We were only able to pinpoint the main cause of their dissapearance, other than that we found no other information about their location]

"... that's a shame..."

Lucias said in dissapointment, even though he held very little expectations to actually pinpoint where and how the Original Angels dissapeared. He still held hopes to find them since their aid and presence could make a significant difference in the war 3 months from now.

"... Tell me the contents of the letter"

Lucias said causing Sephie to take out another documents from her drawers to read its contents for Lucias.

[Hmm... ... ... To put it simply... The last event that happened before they dissapeared is about... hiding and escaping from... the Apocalyptic Beast, Trihexa]

Sephie said with a light frown on her face since this is the second time that she heard of Trihexa being the cause of the mass extinction of major species that existed in the past.

"Trihexa again?... This is the third time I heard that name..."

Lucias muttered as the 'creator' slowly sat up on the ground, staring at Lucias with a serious expression on her face.

"Do you know something 'creator'?"

Lucias asked causing the 'creator' to sigh as she suddenly sat down on her lap, surprising Sephie from the sudden appearance of a beautiful girl on the projection.

[Clara-sama?]

Sephie called out, as she recognized the facial features of the woman in the projection, the same woman that they haven't met for an entire month after one visit together with her daughter.

"You still remember me, Sephie?"

The 'creator' asked with a lazy expression on her face as Lucias wrapped his arms around her stomach.

[Of course, how I forget the mother of Lucias-sama's child? We've been searching for you for weeks but never found you so we thought that Lucias-sama was hiding you somewhere. I never expected to meet you again here...]

Sephie asked as her eyes slowly descended down the 'creator's exposed breast, causing a grin to form on her delicate face.

[How wild of you, Lucias-sama. To have sex with her when you're with 4 other women in one room]

"..."

"Indeed, he is very wild... He didn't hold back during our sexual intercourse a while ago even when he knows that I'm pregant with his child"

"???"

Lucias looked at her with a complicated expression on his face from the slander that he just recieved from the 'creator'.

"*cough* *cough*... so... about the Original Angels..."

Lucias said as he changed the topic, causing Sephie to sweetly smile at his actions while the 'creator' only stared at him with a neutral expression on her face.

"Then, let me first ask... Did you receive any quest regarding the Original Angels, Lucias?"

The 'creator' asked as Lucias closed the projection in front of them.

"No, I haven't received any quest about them"

"Good... With this I can provide you my aid in hopes of bringing them back"

"... Won't you be helping me in the war with this?"

"No... I can't help you directly, but I could provide my aid indirectly such as this"

The 'creator' answered as she leaned closer to Lucias.

"Now then... where was I... Ah, yes. The Original Angels didn't die millions years ago, but were only sealed inside of the void where both you and Trihexa both resided in the past"

The 'creator' said causing Lucias to look at her in shock as he never expected that he was sealed inside the very space where Trihexa resided.

"The biblical God couldn't find any other way to seal such a powerful beast, so he opened a rift towards the void using the every bit of his strength. The only way to break Trihexa free from the seal by mortal means is to use all of the holy relics together to generate enough power and slice through both space and time, thus opening the rift connecting to the void"

The 'creator' said as Lucias listened carefully to her words.

"So... If you wish to free the Original Angels then you must face Trihexa at the same time... Right now, you could easily deal with it with the combined efforts of both Rimuru Tempest and you, Lucias... But I recommend that you use the [Contract Dagger] to make it submit to your commands"

"... I don't think Azazel nor Lucy would agree in having Trihexa join the faction..."

Lucias said as he leaned against the wall behind him with a serious expression on his face.

"I'll still try your suggestion, but... I think it's much better if we could let Rimuru devour Trihexa to gain its power"

Timeskip

[Trial complete]

[The Rune of Chastity has been successfully obtained]

[Skill: Virtuous Vow (Chastity) has been obtained]

[Skill: Lust Immunity (Active) has been obtained]

[Skill: Lust Inducement has been obtained]

[The player has been given full Authority to the Domain of Chastity]

[Title: God of Fertility and Sex acquired]

[All status criteria are increased by 50%]

[Skill: Higher Fertility Manipulation has been obtained]

"Finally, I can get out of here"

Lucias said as he stretched his body, watching the entire tomb collapse in front of him.

"[Barrier]"

Lucias casted, causing a thin layer of mana to surround the 4 sleeping women by his side.

"Send reinforcements here and pick up this 4 devils in my location. Give them the best room we could offer in the headquarters and let them rest for the meantime"

Lucias ordered as he pressed the earpiece on his right ear, causing the person on the other side of the call to immediately execute his task.

"So... only 4 runes of virtues, and 4 runes of sins are left... I still have so many things to do in this 3 months"

Lucias said with a tired expression on his face, remembering that he, and a few gods of his faction still have to grant all 7 billion humans their respective professions before they enter the dungeon.

[Lucias-sama we have a problem]

Sephie's voice suddenly echoed in his ear causing him to sigh as another problem was added to his list of tasks.

[It's about Hyoudo Issei]

"Issei?"

Lucias asked as he watched his subordinates appear in his location, carrying the 4 unconscious women in their shoulders to bring them back at the headquarters.

"What happened to Issei?"

[... He's missing]

"What?"

Lucias asked in shock as all of his subordinates dissapeared from his location, leaving him alone in the middle of the ruined tomb.

[Hyoudo Issei fought with Sandra after he found out about the death of his parents, so Sandra left him alone in his house... but after she went back when she calmed down, Hyoudo Issei has gone missing, and we found no traces of his movements]

"... Stop searching for him"

Lucias ordered, causing Sephie to pause in shock as she never expected for Lucias to take this sort of action.

[Are you sure about this, Lucias-sama]

"Yes, don't search for him... His parents died so give him enough space in the meantime until he calms down... I know where he is since I placed a trace of my own mana into his body"

Lucias said as he opened a portal connecting to the trace of divine mana on Issei's body, causing Sephie to sigh in response.

[... How about Sandra?]

"What about her?"

Lucias asked as he prepared to step inside the portal.

[She's been desperately searching for Issei around Kuoh... Should we relay your message to her?]

"Don't tell her that I know where Issei is... Just relay that his safe, and I'll bring him back to the faction after a few... hours"

Lucias said as he stepped inside the portal, causing him to appear in the middle of a desolate area filled with a horrible stench of blood and death.

"I'll call you back later, Sephie"

Lucias said as he cut off the call, staring at the scene in front of him with a slight frown on his face.

There in front of his eyes is a large pile of corpses of Gastreas that ranged from Tier I and Tier II. All died from being sliced or blown to pieces while their organs and bodies were scattered on the ground. With their blood painting the walls and ground of the surroundings.

"..."

Lucias slowly walked towards the piles of body in slow steps as he noticed a single half-dead body leaning against the small hill of corpses in front of him.

"Issei..."

Lucias called out as he stared at the body in front of him. 

Issei's right arm was missing while both of his legs were currently bent in a very unnatural way, enough to cause extreme discomfort to those who sees it.

His stomach was slightly open as a part of his intestines hanged from his open wound while his blood painted half of his entire body.

"Lu...cias...sa...ma"

Issei weakly called out with a light smile on his face, causing Lucias to frown as he crouched down next to his body.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed, Hyoudo Issei?"

Lucias said as he slowly spread his mana around his body to stop him from bleeding.

"I... couldn't... pro...tect them... Luci...as...sama..."

"..."

Lucias remained silent as he listened to his words while glancing at the piles of bodies next to him.

"I'm... so...weak..."

Issei muttered as he gritted his teeth while his right arm clenched in frustration.

"So you killed yourself for revenge?"

Lucias asked in a low tone, causing Issei to guiltily smile as he struggled to move his body.

"...wha... can I...do... when... I'm... this... weak"

"... Was it worth it?"

Lucias suddenly asked as he stared directly at his eyes, causing Issei to weakly smile in response.

"I... don't know..."

"... You're reckless, Hyoudo Issei"

Lucias said as he sat down next to his body, not minding the blood that stained his clothes.

"... well... I guess that much stimuli and trauma would definitely make you do something as reckless as this..."

Lucias said causing Issei to glance at his direction out of curiosity.

"Wou...ld you..."

"Of course, I know for sure that I'll act as reckless as you if ever anyone important to me dies... I'll hunt down who killed them without thinking much of the consequences of my action. Even though I'm powerful now... I was still once a human like you..."

Lucias said with a light grin on his face while Issei only stared at him with his bloodied eyes.

"... Issei... I want to ask you one thing..."

Lucias said as he stared at him with a serious expression on his face.

"... what would you do if I gave you a chance to live?"

Lucias asked causing Issei to close his eyes as he relaxed his body, leaning his heavily injured body on the cold corpses behind him.

"... Continue..."

"..."

Lucias remained silent as he sighed, closing his eyes as he placed his hand on top of Issei's head.

"I'll give you a chance... but this time... I'll give you a way to grow stronger... I made a promise after all... and I'm going to fulfill it now"

Lucias said causing Issei to look at him with his eyes as a sudden surge of mana entered his body.

"And... don't kill yourself again, you still have someone that cares for you in this world... find a new reason to live other than revenge Issei, you won't become happy like that"

"..."

Issei remained silent as a large magic circle surrounded both him and Lucias.

"I won't forgive you if you make my precious subordinates cry again, Hyoudo Issei..."

Lucias said as he started to activate his skill [Reincarnation] to give Issei a new body, transfering all of his current titles, skills, and sacred heart to his new body.

"I'll give you a new vessle that far exceeds your current body. But if you become half-dead like this again... I won't give you another chance to live, Hyoudo Issei"