Underworld, DxD Planet…
A figure in red dragon-like armour flew at sonic speed over the rocky wasteland of the Underworld. Beams of light chased him from multiple cross-shaped funnels, forcing him to dodge in desperate, hurried movements. Attacks came from every direction, leaving him with little room to breathe as he searched for even the smallest opening.
Then, in a split second, he saw one—just to his right.
[BOOST.]
Without hesitation, he swung his blazing right arm.
"Take this! Heavenly Dragon's Claw!"
The attack connected, blasting several of the funnels aside. But he also forgot that he was still under attack. The remaining funnels fired at once, hitting his exposed side.
"Gaah…!"
[Partner! Are you alright?!]
"Y-yeah… I got a little careless there," he said, forcing himself to regain his balance as he floats.
He turned just in time to see the remaining funnels rushing toward him again.
"Damn it…! Of course, it won't be easy," he muttered, before flying straight upward.
Once the figure reached the highest point he could manage, he called out to his partner.
"Draig, let's do this!"
[Hahaha!! That's more like it, partner!!]
In the next few seconds, 30 overlapping Boost activations rang out.
The figure bent backward, chest rising as he took in a deep breath. Then he leaned forward and shouted with everything he had.
"Heavenly Dragon's Roar!!"
A massive stream of flames erupted from him, engulfing the cross-shaped funnels that had been pursuing him. However, his attack didn't stop there; it went straight down toward the person controlling them.
Below, Hajime stood with his hands in his pockets, twelve additional funnels, identical to the ones attacking the dragon-armored figure, floating around him. He raised an eyebrow as the blazing breath came closer.
These funnels, now called Cross Bits, were upgraded versions of the first weapon he had constructed when he became the Herrscher of Reason and fought Gilgamesh. Without a word from him, they moved into position, deploying a dome-shaped barrier just in time, blocking the dragon's breath attack.
When the flames finally subsided, Hajime remained completely unharmed. Around him, however, it became unrecognizable. The very ground around him had melted into a sea of lava from the heat and force of the attack.
"Huh? Would you look at that—Hyoudou Issei is finally fighting like a true dragon," Hajime smirked as he observed the aftermath of Issei's breath attack.
"Kuh!! Seeing you still relaxed like that doesn't make me happy at all!!" Issei shouted from within his dragon-like armor, the Boosted Gear balance breaker, Scale Mail.
Hajime raised an eyebrow, then casually waved a hand. The Cross Bits in front of him move aside, giving him space.
"Since you asked for it," he said in his usual casual tone with hints of teasing, "I'll get a tinnnny bit serious."
He took out the Star of Eden from inside the Gate of Babylon.
The moment Issei saw the Divine Key, he quickly turned around without a second thought and bolted, pushing himself as hard as he could to put distance between them.
Hajime blinked once at the sudden retreat. Then he snapped his fingers.
The Cross Bits shot outward at impossible speeds, splitting in four directions before creating a cage-like barrier sealing both Hajime and Issei inside.
"W-what?!" Issei shouted, panic clear in his voice.
"That won't do, Issei," Hajime said with a grin. "Running now won't help you."
"Sorry, but I'm not crazy enough to face a black hole!" Issei shot back. "And I just realized something—shouldn't it be Palettia-san who trains me?! Why did it suddenly become you?!"
Hajime shrugged. "Anis is with Alice, helping Sona and her peerage with their training. Besides, Noah tasked me with training you from the very beginning."
"What?! How could that be?!" Issei screamed in despair.
"Alright," Hajime said flatly. "You've had enough time to rest. Get back to your training. We don't have much time left before the gathering of the young devils."
"NOOOOO!!! SAVE ME, BUCHOU!!!"
Of course, Rias wasn't there to save him, nor will she.
—--
Somewhere in the Sitri territory…
Anisphia raised her head and looked toward the distant horizon. For a moment, she thought she heard someone screaming. She blinked, puzzled, but there was no one anywhere near them. After a second, she simply shrugged it off, deciding it must have been her imagination.
She looked back ahead, where the front-line members of the Sitri Peerage—Tsubaki Shinra, Genshirou Saji, Tomoe Meguri, Tsubasa Yura, and Ruruko Nimura—were lying across the ground, struggling just to sit upright as they tried to catch their breath after their intense match against her.
Turning to the side, Anisphia saw Euphyllia being assisted by Vilhaze and Ram as they helped lift the fainted Bishops, Momo Hanakai and Reya Kusaka, after their magical training under Euphyllia's guidance.
Seeing everyone completely worn out, Anisphia decided to call it for the day.
"Alright, everyone! That's enough for today's training," she announced. "Let's head back to the Sitri Mansion so you can all rest properly."
"Y-ye-yes…" came the weak, exhausted chorus from the Sitri Peerage.
Anisphia rubbed her head, glancing around when she realized that no one had moved from where they had collapsed. They all looked completely drained, too exhausted even to try standing up.
"...Looks like everyone pushed themselves a bit too hard," Euphyllia said as she came to Anisphia's side.
"Yeah," Anisphia replied with a helpless sigh. "They got a little too excited about using their Astral Gears."
"Mmm." Euphyllia nodded in agreement. "Even though Hajime-sama warned them not to overuse them while they're still being worked on… and yet."
Just as they said, Hajime had provided the Sitri Peerage with Astral Gears of their own. Unlike the ones used by the crew, a fully finished working prototype, the Sitri Peerage's Astral Gears were still under construction.
Anisphia shook her head in mild exasperation. "It was supposed to be a simple test to see how well the gears worked, but they got too confident after seeing how well it worked and went all out."
She let out another sigh. "Anyway, let's get them back to the mansion and let them rest. A warm bath and some good food should do wonders, right?"
With that decided, they gathered the exhausted Sitri Peerage and teleported back to the Sitri Mansion.
—------
Sitri Mansion, Underworld..
In the drawing room of the Sitri Mansion, Alice was preparing tea and a small set of snacks. Beside her sat Ophis, waiting patiently on her seat. Her legs swayed back and forth as she hummed softly, eyes fixed on Alice as she carefully checked the water temperature before pouring it over the tea leaves.
On the family couch, Sona was lying down with a towel placed gently over her eyes, helping her relax after her training session with Alice. Like the rest of her peerage, she had been preparing for the upcoming Rating Games against the devils of their generation, scheduled to take place after the Youth Devil Gathering in a few days.
As the crew's most knowledgeable and skilled mage, Alice was the most suitable person to assist Sona. She focused on refining Sona's Water magic, while also addressing the weaknesses in her approach as a leader.
Although Sona was an excellent commander and tactician, she often struggled to cope when unexpected situations disrupted her plans. To help correct that, Alice placed her in a high-pressure, fast-paced training environment where conditions change constantly, an approach that quickly caused Sona's meticulous strategies to fall apart.
Sona managed to endure the training until the very end, but she had clearly overexerted herself, leaving her dizzy and drained. That was why she was now resting on the sofa. Beside her, Ingvild stayed close, taking care of her and offering gentle comfort to help ease her condition.
"There, there. Sona-san, you pushed yourself a bit too hard today," Ingvild said gently as she changed the towel on Sona's head.
"Ahaha… ahaha… th-thank you, Ingvild-san," Sona muttered weakly. "I think I got a little carried away by everyone's enthusiasm…" She covered her mouth, forcing back the 'fireworks' to go down.
"Honestly," Ingvild sighed, half-worried, half-exasperated. "What good comes from everyone ending up like this?"
"Hehehe. Don't scold her too much, Ingvild," Alice said as she finished brewing the tea, pouring it into cups and placing Ophis's snacks neatly in front of her. "While I agree with you, I think Sona's condition is punishment enough already."
She turned to Ophis with a small smile. "Here, Ophis-chan. Eat slowly, okay? It's not going anywhere."
"Hmm." Ophis nodded, lifting her fork to take a bite, but stopped. She then looked up at Alice. "…Thank you."
Alice smiled and gently patted her head. "You're welcome."
She watched Ophis happily enjoy her sweets before taking her own cup.
"By the way, Ingvild," Alice added, "how's your own preparation? You were invited to the Gathering, too, right?"
"U-uh… I think I'm fine?" Ingvild replied, scratching her cheek. "Honestly, I still don't know why I was invited. Besides… It's just Vill-chan in my peerage."
"Ahahaha! I think she is good enough," Alice laughed, "I can already imagine her soloing the peerages of the proud young devils."
"…Yeah. I can actually picture that happening," Ingvild murmured, and even Sona silently agreed beside her.
Then the door opened as Anisphia and Euphyllia came in, followed by Villhaze and Rem.
"We're back!" Anisphia greeted cheerfully.
"We're back, everyone," Euphyllia added with a gentle smile.
"Oh, welcome back, you four," Alice replied. "Perfect timing—afternoon tea is just ready."
Ingvild stood and greeted them warmly. "Welcome back! Is everyone alright?"
"Well, I think the rest are fine," Anisphia said as she took a seat beside Alice and Ophis. "Itsy-bitsy might be too tired to talk, but yeah—they're good."
She glanced toward the couch and blinked. "Huh? What happened to Sona? Are you sick?"
"I-I'm f-fine, A-Anis-san… j-just a b-bit d-dizzy… ugh," Sona replied weakly.
Anisphia blinked as Villhaze smoothly placed a teacup in front of her. Rem did the same for Euphyllia.
Ingvild let out a small sigh as she sat back down with them. "Sona-san pushed herself too hard during her training with Alice-san. That's why she ended up like this."
Villhaze smoothly placed a cup in front of Ingvild. Ingvild smiled at her, thanked her softly, and took a careful sip.
Hearing the explanation, Anisphia glanced at Sona with a wry smile. "Looks like the entire Sitri Peerage got a little too energetic today, huh? They're all acting like people after the adrenaline finally wears off."
"Hmm?" Euphyllia asked, looking around the room. "How about Sagiri-san? Where is she?"
"As for Sagiri," Alice added calmly, "she's with Lavi-san and the rest of Team Slash/Dog. She went to assist them and to deliver a message from Amaterasu-sama to Serafall-san and the other leaders of the Three Factions."
"I see… hmm," Euphyllia murmured. "…And Hajime-sama still hasn't come back yet."
Alice shrugged lightly. "He should be back in a day or two. He's just finishing up Hyoudou-san's training."
"It's still surprising that Hajime volunteered to train Hyoudou-kun himself," Anisphia said with a small snort of amusement as she bit into her biscuit.
"Well, Captain did entrust Hyoudou-san to him," Alice replied casually.
"But will Hyoudou-san be alright?" Ingvild asked, concern clear in her voice. "Will he really be able to survive Hajime-kun's training program?"
"Ahahaha! No worries, no worries~" Anisphia waved it off with a sweet smile. "Trust our Hajime, Ingvild! He won't hurt—won't maim—he won't kill Hyoudou-kun!"
…The way she fumbled through that reassurance didn't exactly put anyone at ease.
—--
And just like that, the days passed quickly as training filled their routine. Just as Alice had said, Hajime returned after two days and was promptly buried in the embrace of his Queens.
Seeing the Sitri Peerage repeat the same cycle, pushing themselves too hard until they collapsed after every session, Hajime finally put his foot down and stopped it. This time, he didn't mince words, ordering everyone, including Sona, to halt what they were doing before it caused more harm than good.
"I get it," Hajime said calmly. "You're impatient. You want to prove yourselves. But if you keep going like this, you'll end up doing the opposite of what you want." He stopped for a bit and added softly, "Trust me. I've been there."
"I can vouch for that," Alice said, glancing at the group. "If Captain hadn't forced Hajime to slow down and rest, even with the power of reason and authority to repair his body, he would've still break him self."
"…You really didn't need to say that," Hajime muttered, shooting her an exasperated look.
Alice met his stare with a dry smile that left him no room to argue. "They need a real example to understand the consequences," she replied simply.
Knowing he couldn't refute that, Hajime chose the wisest option: he changed the topic.
"…By the way, Sona," he said, turning to her, "I met someone while I was training Hyoudou."
Seeing his obvious attempt to change the subject, Alice rolled her eyes, while Anisphia let out an amused snort. The others, Ingvild, Sona, and the Sitri Peerage, all smiled wryly at him. Villhaze even gave him the biggest grin while Ram just smiled playfully.
Hajime, of course, ignored their reactions and continued, "He was a tall, black-haired, muscular guy."
Sona raised an eyebrow, searching her memory for anyone she knew who fit that description.
"Oh, right. He's also a weirdo who, despite being a devil, uses Ki instead," Hajime added.
That was enough.
"…I see," Sona said, finally placing the pieces together. "So he couldn't wait any longer and went looking for you himself."
She glanced at Hajime. "He tried to challenge you to a fight, didn't he?"
Hajime blinked and tilted his head. That was exactly what had happened. "How did you—? So you're familiar with him?"
"His name is Sairaorg Bael," Sona answered. "The strongest devil of our generation. He's also Rias's cousin. And… well, he has a habit of testing himself against strong opponents."
"Oh. Pandora…Akivili… Nous… why do I keep attracting people like this?" Hajime muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. "It's Vali two point zero."
"Were you alright, Hajime-kun?" Ingvild asked at once, worry clear in her voice. "Did anyone get hurt?"
"Ingvild! Don't ever change," Hajime said warmly, taking her hand, genuinely touched by her concern. "But no—we didn't fight. I actually worked really hard to make sure a fight didn't happen."
At first, Ingvild blushed at his sudden boldness, but when she caught the second half of his words, she—and the rest of the room—blinked in confusion.
"My, my! To think our darling king ran away from a challenge! Just what is happening in the universe?!" Anisphia joked.
"…Anis-sama," Euphyllia sighed in exasperation.
Hajime responded by pinching Anisphia's cheeks with both hands in petty revenge.
"Whaft are you dofing?! Shapt iht!!" she protested.
"Whoa, did your cheeks get fluffier, Anis?" Hajime ignored her struggles, continuing to pinch. "They're way softer than last time."
"DHON'T SHAY THAT!!!" Anisphia screamed.
Satisfied, Hajime finally let go. Anisphia immediately dove into Euphyllia's arms.
"Waaah! Euphy, Hajime is bullying me!"
"There, there, Anis-sama," Euphyllia said, gently patting her head. "But Hajime-sama isn't wrong. You do feel softer lately."
"WAAAAH!!! EVEN EUPHY IS BULLYING ME!!!" Anisphia wailed.
"Still, what Anis-sama said does have some truth to it," Euphyllia continued, smoothly ignoring Anisphia's antics. "Normally, you would either ignore such people or crush them to make them stop. Not go out of your way to avoid a fight."
Hajime shrugged. "What can I do? A fight between us would be like the 'light spar' between me and either Noah or Hachi."
His answer stunned everyone in Team Reason. Alice, Anisphia, Euphyllia, Sona, Villhaze, and Ram all stared at him in visible shock. Even Ophis paused eating her snacks as she stared at him. After all, they were the people who had actually seen what a so-called 'light spar' between those three looked like; they couldn't help the small shudder that ran through them.
They all knew how bad the collateral damage usually was.
Frankly, they were thankful Hajime was the Herrscher of Reason; otherwise, the Express's Training Car would've been gone a long time ago.
"…Hajime," Alice said slowly, "are you serious?"
"Yep. He's that strong," Hajime replied without hesitation. There was clear recognition in his voice. "And from what I saw, he earned that strength through pure hard work. No talent or bloodline reliance."
He stopped, then added, "He's also exactly the type Noah would absolutely want to recruit for the crew, no matter what."
"…Judging from your tone," Euphyllia said carefully, "does that mean even you acknowledge him?"
Hajime smiled, genuine and unguarded. "Yeah. He reminds me of who I used to be. Before I became who I am today. Weak. Useless. Someone who couldn't do anything."
His smile didn't change. "But because he has a goal. A reason to keep going. He didn't stop. He worked harder than anyone to become who he is now."
"As someone who knows Sairaorg personally," Sona said with a gentle smile, "he'd be thrilled to hear that from you, Hajime-san. And if Captain Noah ever does recruit him… I think Sairaorg would agree without hesitation."
"…Then maybe I'll introduce him to Noah once everything settles down," Hajime said sincerely.
—--
Days passed, and finally, the day of the gathering came. Hajime and the rest of Team Reason, along with the Sitri Peerage, arrived at the venue and soon met up with the Gremory Peerage, who arrived a bit later than they did.
"Oh! Nagumo-kun!" Rias called out the moment she spotted them, her expression lighting up. "Thank you for your time and effort in training Ise."
"Don't mind it," Hajime replied, waving it off. "I was just doing what our dear Captain asked of me."
"You all look lively enough," Rias said, giving everyone a once-over. "You're standing, at least."
"Only because I was threatened with enforced rest," Sona replied flatly.
Off to the side, Genshirou Saji greeted Issei with a grin and offered a fist bump. "Yo, Hyoudou! Glad to see you survived the rumored 'Demon King-sama's Training.'"
"Ugh… please don't remind me!" Issei groaned. "I lost count of how many times I thought I was going to die!"
Nearby, Ingvild stood a little stiff, but Rias noticed immediately.
"Ingvild-san, I'm glad we finally get to meet again," Rias said kindly. "The last time we saw each other was at the Astral Express party."
"Y-yes! It's nice to see you again as well," Ingvild replied, bowing slightly.
"Relax," Rias chuckled. "Tonight's supposed to be fun. No training. No pressure. We're just here to get everyone properly introduced to the rest of Devil Society."
"Rias-chan is right!"
As their conversation continued, a wild sis-con, Mahou Shoujo–loving Maou, suddenly appeared beside them.
"You all just need to stand there and look pretty!" Serafall declared brightly.
"Hello, Sera-san. It's been a while," Anisphia greeted her with a smile.
"Ah! An-chan really is a good kid! At least someone still cares about this poor little old me!" Serafall complained dramatically.
"So… why are you here exactly, Serafall-san?" Hajime asked.
"Muu… Hajime-chan really isn't cute at all!" Serafall pouted, crossing her arms. "I came personally to escort you to sit with the leaders of the Three Factions, you know. You're guests, not part of the young devils."
"I see. Thanks… I guess?" Hajime replied.
"Really, now?" Serafall deadpanned before letting out a sigh. "Haa… anyway, sorry, Rias-chan, So-tan, Ing-chan. I'll be borrowing them for a bit. You three should go join the rest of the young devils."
Sona and Rias nodded. Ingvild, however, was noticeably stiff and a little nervous.
"Don't worry, Ingvild. You'll do great," Hajime said gently when he noticed her stiffness. He took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Villhaze and Sona will be with you the whole time. Just go and enjoy yourself, alright?"
"Hajime-kun…" Ingvild said softly, then nodded. "Okay. I'll do my best."
"Please don't worry, Your Majesty. As long as I, Villhaze, am here, nothing will harm milady!" Villhaze declared proudly, puffing out her chest with a smug smile.
"Yes, Hajime-san," Sona added calmly. "Please leave Ingvild-san to us."
"Besides," Rias said with a light smile, "only a fool would dare target her, considering everyone knows Ingvild is connected to the Nameless."
Serafall nodded in agreement. "Ing-chan's appearance in the Young Devil Gathering and her peerage pieces are basically just a formality. A power play requested by the Old devils, to show the world that a True Descendant of the original Leviathan aligns with us despite knowing she's already known as a Nameless Trailblazer throughout the world, after all."
"U-uh… I just hope there won't be any embarrassing titles given to me," Ingvild said shyly.
Serafall smirked and gave her a wink as she left. "No promises!"
Ingvild let out a small groan. Hajime chuckled lightly and patted her head before turning to follow Serafall toward the rest of the leaders. Alice, Anisphia, Euphyllia, and even Ophis gave Ingvild an encouraging hug while Ram gave her bow to show her support before following after them.
======