Author Note: Apparently there's some bug going on cause it showed uploaded on Inkstone but won't update on Webnovel for some reasons. Hopefully this fixed it(just a repost).
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Kousuke raised a brow when his hearing picked up Issei's voice from miles away. He tilted his head slightly while staring at the little girl in front of him. 'This little one is... the Dragon God? One of the few apex predators on this world?' He found it hard to believe, but something about her undeniably alarmed his instincts.
"Ophis... let's say someone disturbed your peace, what would you do in that situation?" he asked calmly, trying to paint a picture in her mind. He wanted to show her that he wasn't the one who initiated the conflict, he was only retaliating. He is actually a chill guy.
"...Kill them," she replied, with a faint hint of annoyance in her tone.
Kousuke didn't know that his question also mirrored her own circumstances. Ophis used to enjoy the quietness of the Dimensional Gap, which she considered her home, until Great Red arrived and turned that serenity into noise.
"So you understand. At the very least, I wanted to punish them," Kousuke said. He had been ruthless in the Otherworld, but he didn't want to be the same here on Earth, after all, he still had an image to uphold for his parents. To them, he was just a normal high school boy. He didn't want them to be involved in this side of the world.
Of course, that didn't mean he'd let the Hero Faction go that easily. He isn't that terribly naive.
With his power, he could do something so crazy yet lenient that even Morgan had been surprised before. Something akin to a curse, it wouldn't do much under normal circumstances, but the moment they even thought of harming someone he cared about, that's when it would shine.
It didn't matter if they kept their thoughts hidden or used a third party to execute their plan. Kousuke had long since upgraded his "curse" to prevent any loopholes. He hadn't started out strong, so he knew better than most how to exploit those gaps.
"Mm. I got it," Ophis nodded. She had come here purely out of curiosity. Someone had finally consumed her Snake, only to be defeated so quickly. She hadn't expected that person to be human, especially not one who carried a faint scent of that disgusting snake, Samael, though the person himself remained unaware of it.
"Then, do you want this?" she asked, as another orb similar to the one Heracles had consumed appeared above her palm. However, this one had a key difference: the Snake emblem inside pulsed with far more vitality.
"If you can help me, then I'll give this to you," she said offhandedly, yet despite her blank expression, there was a faint hint of expectation in her voice.
Kousuke raised an eyebrow at the sudden offer. It wasn't the first time something like this had happened. Even the Demon God in the Otherworld had once offered him power in exchange for changing sides but that deal had never gone through.
"If you want to rule the world or something, then I can't help you," he said, shaking his head. Ophis simply tilted her head at his words, as if she couldn't understand why he would even brings that up to her.
"What is there to rule… when I'm already standing at the top?" Her tone was casual, but it revealed everything. If she wanted to rule, nothing could stop her. Ophis then shook her head. "I'd like you to help me drive Great Red out of the Dimensional Gap. I want silence to return… as it was. That's all."
"Great Red?"
Kousuke had heard of the Red Dragon Emperor, but not Great Red. Ddraig held the former title. Judging by Ophis's words, this Great Red must be incredibly powerful—someone on the same level as her. Otherwise, she would've handled it herself.
"The big annoying dragon," she replied flatly.
"I'll consider it," Kousuke said, taking the Snake orb and placing it into his inventory. He wasn't the type to throw away something valuable if he could have it. A third of his inventory was already filled with dangerous items, mostly because he didn't want to dispose of them carelessly.
Now that her goal had been accomplished, Ophis nodded before rising into the sky and disappearing back into the rift she had come from, which quickly sealed itself behind her.
"Well then." Kousuke said before turning his attention back to the remaining members of the Hero Faction. He vanished from the spot and reappear elsewhere.
"!!!"
Cao Cao instinctively turned around when he heard Kousuke's voice behind him but he was just a tad too slow. Kousuke's fist connected with his side, sending him flying like a fish yanked violently from the water by a fisherman's hook.
Kousuke looked down at the True Longinus in his hand. He had taken it the moment Cao Cao let it go during the impact. He could feel something dwelling within the spear, but it was weak. He shrugged it off and stored it in his inventory. 'One God-killer Spear get!'
Then, he slowly walked toward the unconscious Jeanne. The corner of his mouth curled up as his right hand glowed with an ominous red light. Arthur felt a terrible sense of foreboding and rushed toward them. He didn't know what Kousuke was about to do but he didn't want it to happen.
Just as he came within arm's reach, Kousuke casually turned and smacked him across the cheek.
"Ouch—huh? That didn't hurt as much as I thought?" Arthur muttered, confused. But when he looked up and saw the dark, sinister look on Kousuke's face, he knew something was wrong.
Suddenly, Arthur clutched his cheek as a burning sensation spread across it.
"It burns! What did you do?!"
"Oh, nothing much really, just a little 'curse' I can activate anytime and anywhere," Kousuke said with a grin.
"Curse?!"
"Yes. You should give up any hope of dispelling it. It might act like a curse, but in reality, it's far from simple," he explained before smacking Jeanne across the face, waking her up just before Arthur could stop him.
"Y-You! I'm going to—Aaaargh! It hurts!" Jeanne had been about to attack the moment she regained consciousness, but she suddenly screamed in pain and collapsed to the ground.
"W-What just happened?" Arthur mumbled. He had just seen her about to throw a punch when she shrieked and fell on her butt.
"That's one of the conditions I embedded into the curse: 'Do not attack me or anyone I care about.' If you decide to go against it, well… your body will start to break down from the inside with your pain receptors increase by a hundredfold. Pretty neat, isn't it?" Kousuke said with a chilling smile. He had no plans of letting them off the hook. He had already learned a harsh lesson back in the Other World.
There wouldn't be a second chance in this world to anyone who aim their blade at him.
"...One of the conditions? You mean there's more?" Arthur's face turned pale at the realization. They had messed with the wrong guy, and this was only the beginning.