Rias was devastated when she saw no body, only blood.
"What do I do now?" she asked in shock. "It's my responsibility to inform Hyoudou's family about his death."
She stood up, her eyes dull and filled with guilt.
Issei was in a place that looked like a stone desert. There wasn't a single tree there.
"Where am I?" Issei asked himself, confused, as he looked around.
(An interesting host you are.)
A voice caught his attention, and in front of him he saw a huge red dragon.
"Am I going to be tortured by a dragon in hell?" Issei trembled in fear. "I knew I should've been less perverted."
He whimpered, and the dragon roared.
(You are not dead,) the dragon declared angrily (but you changed race.)
"Am I a vampire now?" Issei asked irritably. "I knew that old man had done something."
(So you know, but not exactly.) The dragon sighed, tired. (You are different from any vampire I've ever seen, but you also have divinity.)
"That's because of us," another voice appeared.
"Exactly, boy," yet another voice called. "You caused us a problem."
(Great, they showed up.) The dragon sighed.
"Who are you?" Issei asked, confused.
"You already know who we are, boy," the long-haired man replied arrogantly.
Issei's eyes widened. He knew.
"You're the spirits in the card," Issei declared.
"Exactly," replied the blue-haired one.
(The Hound of Chulainn and Dracula.) The dragon spoke, impressed. (What are two beings as powerful as you doing in the boy's soul?)
"There's no time," Vlad replied, and Issei's vision began to blur. "The boy is waking up."
Issei woke up, and beside his bed, watching him, was none other than the troll vampire mage Zelretch.
"Zelretch," Issei growled as he sat up. "The cards were real."
"Of course they were. Did you think I would lie to a child?" Zelretch joked.
"No, I don't think so… but what about the cataclysm?" Issei asked, seeing that nothing had happened yet.
"Well, let's just say it'll take longer than expected," Zelretch joked, pulling out some cards. "The evil god didn't consider that there were Types in this world—and not just one."
"What the hell is a Type?" Issei asked irritably.
"They are extremely powerful celestial and cosmic beings," Zelretch replied with a sigh. "Enemies I'm not even sure I could defeat, even using everything I have."
"They're that strong?" Issei was stunned. He had no power scale beyond Zelretch, and to him, Zelretch was the most powerful being in existence.
"Much stronger than you imagine," Zelretch replied with a playful smile. "But don't worry, they're not the kind that go around picking fights."
"So it's not a big problem?" Issei asked, relieved.
"Well, one of them is leading a terrorist organization," Zelretch replied, laughing. "But you don't need to worry about that yet."
Zelretch pulled a book from his pocket and handed it to Issei.
"This book contains the basic history of your world." He turned away. "Now I have to take care of a few things."
"Wait," Issei tried to stop him, but the old man had already disappeared. "Damn it."
"Sona… I need to tell you something." Rias waited for Sona in front of the school gate.
Sona stopped in front of the gate. It was still early—far too early for someone as lazy as Rias to be at school. That made Sona serious.
"What happened, Rias?" Sona asked, curious and worried. "If it's about Hyoudou, you can just ask him."
Sona knew her friend had her eye on Hyoudou. She decided to give up trying to recruit him so Rias could try instead. After all, Sona valued her friendship with Rias greatly and knew Rias needed a Sacred Gear user in her peerage—and Issei reeked of dragons.
"About that…" Rias's lips trembled, fear making her heart pound.
"Ask me what?" Issei's voice caught Rias's attention. She widened her eyes in fear and surprise. "What is it, did you see a ghost or something? Hi, Kaichou, looking beautiful as always."
"Hyoudou? How are you alive?" Rias asked in shock, and Sona looked at her wide-eyed.
"What do you mean, Rias… you didn't—" Sona narrowed her eyes at Rias, but Issei cut in.
"Well, breathing normally?" Issei asked with fake confusion. "Isn't that how someone stays alive?"
"Not like this—you were dead. I saw it!" Rias shouted, taking a step back. "The fallen angel killed you."
"Rias, what are you talking about?" Fear began to creep into Sona's voice. She could already see where this was going.
Rias was desperate and might have tried the savior tactic on Issei.
Sona didn't want to believe it—she didn't want to think her best friend and childhood friend had betrayed her trust. She also knew that, despite seeming like an idiot, Issei was very smart and would connect the dots, possibly becoming a stray devil by rebelling against Rias. Worse, he might end up hating Sona, thinking she had also taken part in Rias's stupid plan.
"I see, so you were watching," Issei replied with a serious look, then sighed. "You couldn't even help. Do you know what it's like to be stabbed in the heart? It's awful."
Issei used irony, and Sona's world collapsed. Rias really had used the savior tactic on Sona's only human friend.
"Issei… I—" Sona began, but Rias interrupted.
"You admit it—how are you alive?" Rias asked again, fear and guilt turning into anger. She now felt betrayed, even used for someone's amusement.
"Huh? Why are you angry?" Issei replied, confused. "I'm the one who got stabbed in the chest."
Rias came to her senses again and lowered her head. "Sorry."
"Apology accepted," Issei replied with a smile. "Only because you're really hot. If you were ugly, I'd hate you."
"I don't understand your criteria," Sona smacked her hand against her head. "But how are you alive if your chest was pierced?"
"Well, since I was five years old, I've had healing abilities," Issei said, pulling out a small pocketknife and cutting his wrist.
"Issei, what are you doing?" Sona shouted and tried to stop the bleeding—but froze. "The wound closed."
She was stunned. Not even devils healed that fast. Sure, there were phoenixes, but there was no fire on Issei's wound.
"When the angel attacked me, it didn't hit my heart," Issei replied with a solemn look. "So I played dead, waited for the angel to leave, and then I got out."
It was a lie, but they had to believe it. Issei couldn't say that the heroes in his soul had saved him.
"How is that possible? No human can heal like that," Rias replied in shock. "What are you, Hyoudou?"
Great, Issei thought. Time for a good lie mixed with half-truths.
"When I was little, I remember meeting an old vampire. He revealed himself to me, and after that I gained this power," Issei told a half-truth and looked at Sona. "You called me by my name—I'm so happy."
"You're saying a vampire gave you regeneration powers?" Rias asked, ignoring the fact that Sona was now red as a tomato. "They can't do that unless—"
Rias didn't finish when Issei opened his mouth, showing two elongated canines, and his eyes turned red.
"He turned me, but I don't know how. I grew up normally," Issei lied again. He grew up normally because his vampire side came from Vlad in the card, not from Zelretch.
"Maybe he delayed the transformation," Sona said, recovering from her embarrassment. "I don't know how that's possible, but he must have delayed it somehow."
"But why me?" Issei pretended not to know that Zelretch had chosen him for the cards because of the dragon inside him.
"You smell like a dragon, so you probably have a Sacred Gear," Rias said with a sigh, seeing what she might have lost. "I'll ask—do you want to join my peerage?"
"Rias?" Sona called her angrily.
(Don't even try, partner. It's impossible. You have divinity thanks to Chulainn. You can't be reincarnated.) Ddraig replied in Issei's mind, and he smiled mentally.
"Sure… if you join my harem," Issei replied with a smile.
"Issei…" Sona called out, disappointed. "Rias, don't do this."
"If you join my peerage, I'll join your harem," Rias replied desperately.
"Forget it," Issei replied with disgust. "You don't need to make promises."
"Changed your mind?" Sona asked, now a bit confused.
"No, but I'm not trash enough to take advantage of someone who's emotionally unstable. I don't know what's going on, but she's not mentally well enough to decide anything." Issei sighed. "And the first place in my harem will always be yours, Kaichou."
"Shut up, idiot," Sona punched Issei's shoulder, and he laughed.
Rias took out her evil pieces and placed a pawn on Issei's chest. The piece glowed—and then lost its light.
"What?" Rias asked in shock, seeing the piece fail to enter his chest. "How is that possible?"
"It didn't work… so bye," Issei waved at the two of them and let his lie become the truth.
(Good plan, partner. By fooling them, you give a false source for your power so no one tries to study you or trace your true nature.)