The blue blade flickered above his palm. Unstable, trembling, like a candle on the verge of going out.
Yuta kept his gaze locked on it, jaw clenched.
"Thirty seconds… doesn't sound like much, but this thing barely lasts ten without trying to vanish."
His eyelids felt heavy, his forehead still damp with sweat.
He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the flow of cursed energy coursing through his muscles. It was like trying to keep a river calm during a storm—the power was there, but untamed, slippery.
He opened his eyes and stared at the blade again.
"Again…"
He inhaled slowly.
The energy condensed once more. The blade's glow grew slightly more solid. His mental timer started.
One second.
Two.
Five.
A tremor in his wrist intensified. The energy wavered.
"More!"
Ten seconds.
The blade flickered, blue cracks spiderwebbing through its ethereal structure.
Yuta let out a low growl, his arm aching from the strain.
Fifteen seconds.
The blade burst into tiny sparks, dissolving into the air.
He let his body collapse backward onto the thin mattress, staring at the ceiling once more.
"Halfway… better than before, but still far off."
His hands rested on his chest, feeling his rapid, uneven heartbeat.
'I need more energy… or more control.'
Yuta sat up again, his back sore from the hard floor.
"One last try for the night…"
He clenched his fists, the muscles in his arms already protesting the constant effort.
The cursed energy responded faster this time, as if it were beginning to accept the new will commanding it. The blade took shape above his palm, its glow unsteady but slightly denser.
Ten seconds passed.
Fifteen.
His teeth ground together from the tension. His numb fingers began to lose sensation.
Twenty seconds.
Sweat dripped from his chin, landing directly on the ethereal blade.
Twenty-five.
A faint crack echoed.
Thirty…
The blade dissolved a second before the mark.
"Damn it…"
The frustration hit harder than the exhaustion. But even in his irritation, a tired smile formed.
"I got better. Failed, but I got better…"
He stood slowly, legs heavy as lead.
The smell of sweat mixed with the damp wood made the room's air almost unbearable.
"I need a shower. No way I'm sleeping smelling like this."
He walked to the small bathroom. The cold floor under his bare feet sent shivers up his spine, but his body's heat was the bigger discomfort.
He turned the rusty shower knob. The water fell cold and uneven, splashing against the cracked tiles.
Without thinking too much, he stepped under the icy stream.
The shock cleared his mind instantly.
"Man… this'll wake anyone up."
The water ran down his face, washing away the sweat and some of the fatigue.
Yuta pressed his forehead against the cold wall, eyes closed.
'I'm here. I'm really here.'
Even exhausted, even weak, there was a feeling he couldn't ignore.
He was alive.
The cold water kept flowing, but Yuta no longer felt the thermal shock. His forehead still rested on the damp wall, eyes lost in thought.
"This world… it's way too weird."
Images came to mind with clarity now that the training adrenaline had faded.
In the school hallway, that girl with long black hair, golden eyes always fixed on some unseen void.
Miko Yotsuya.
The memory of her standing near the stairs, staring intently at a point no one else seemed to notice, brought an odd unease.
"She shouldn't even exist in this universe…"
And it wasn't just her. At the school's exit, among the trees near the parking lot, the girl with a vibrant smile and boundless energy.
Hana Yurikawa.
"She doesn't make sense either. This is all wrong…"
His hands clenched slowly, the water pounding harder against his closed fists.
"It's not just *Highschool DxD*. This place is… a mix?"
Memories kept aligning, filling gaps.
Rias Gremory, the commanding presence impossible to ignore, he'd expected. Akeno Himejima was there too, with her usual enigmatic smile.
But… the protagonist?
"Now that I think about it… I haven't seen Issei once."
The sense of unease grew stronger.
"If he's not here… or hasn't shown up yet, things might be very different from what I remember."
The cold droplets kept falling. The room felt chillier suddenly, or maybe it was just the realization that he had no idea what he was getting into.
"Better stay off the radar. For now, at least…"
His mind started spinning hypotheses. If Issei was absent, maybe the story would never unfold like in the anime… or it had already veered off course long ago.
Yuta turned off the shower with a sharp click. His body still shivered slightly from the cold water, but his mind was clearer than ever.
He grabbed the thin towel hanging on the door and ran it quickly over his body. He didn't have the energy for elaborate comforts.
He slipped into simple pajamas—a pair of light pants and a loose T-shirt. The clean scent of the clothes was almost comforting after the storm of thoughts.
He threw himself back onto the thin mattress.
His eyes closed the moment his head hit the small pillow.
Finally, rest.
…
His eyes snapped open, wide.
His body shot upright, nearly tearing the pillow from its place.
His mouth opened before his mind could stop it.
"I SAW RISER PHENEX AT SCHOOL!"
His breathing was still ragged as he sank back onto the bed.
"This makes no sense… Riser Phenex? At school?!"
He ran his hands over his face, trying to sort through the flood of thoughts.
'In my past life, that guy despised humans… no way he'd set foot in a place like that. Especially without Issei to stir things up.'
The images he'd seen were vivid. Riser was there, striding through the halls like just another student, but always with that excessive arrogance, exuding the posture of a superior noble.
"This is wrong… either this world follows no rules, or my memories are screwing me over big time."
He leaned back slowly, his muscles finally giving in to exhaustion.
"You know what? Screw what I remember or think I know. What matters is what's in front of me. Tomorrow, I'll figure out what I need to… and if Riser's really the problem I'm thinking he is."
He closed his eyes, breathing deeply.
"This time… I'll just live. One day at a time."
Sleep came quickly, heavy, pulling Yuta into a well-earned rest.
...
TRRIIIMMM!
The shrill blare of the alarm tore through the morning's silence, vibrating against the wooden bedside table.
Yuta opened his eyes slowly, his body heavy and sore from the previous night's training.
"This piece of junk still works, huh…"
He sat up with effort, rubbing his eyes. The floor was as cold as ever, a harsh reminder that this house offered no comfort.
He shuffled to the small kitchen. Breakfast was simple: two slices of stale bread and a glass of lukewarm milk.
He sat at the table and mentally summoned the System.
"System. Any missions today?"
The response came swiftly, cold as always.
[No new missions available at this time.]
He sighed, slumping back in the chair.
"Not even that to spice up the day…"
He finished breakfast in silence, grabbed the backpack slung near the door, and headed out.
The walk to school felt longer with his head full of uncertainties.
'Today… I'll pay attention to everything. I won't let wrong expectations trip me up.'
Kuoh Academy loomed on the horizon.
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