A magic circle glowed on the floor in the cleared-out area of the clubroom, with Issei standing at its center, wearing a mix of anticipation and nervousness on his face.
"Issei, you can relax, you know? Reincarnation only takes a moment. It doesn't hurt or anything," Rias-senpai said with a calm smile.
But Issei, on the other hand...
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
He was clearly tense. Well, I guess that's understandable.
"Alright then, Issei, hold out your hands."
"Y-Yes! Here!"
You're too tense, Issei. Still, Rias-senpai gently placed a single Pawn piece into his open palms. Then a second. A third. One by one, until the eighth and final piece. As she placed it, the Evil Piece began to emit a faint glow.
"As expected from a Sacred Gear classified as a Longinus. To think I'd have to use all eight Pawn pieces... I was worried for a second that the reincarnation might not go through."
Yeah, I was worried too. But why is that? I remember it being close in the original, but still... As I wondered about it, the ritual continued.
Issei remained standing at the center of the magic circle, while Rias-senpai stepped outside of it and began her chant from directly in front of him.
["In the name of Rias Gremory, I command you. Become my servant devil! Rejoice, Hyoudou Issei — your life as a Devil begins now!""]
The glowing Pawn pieces rose into the air and, one by one, flew into Issei's chest. Moments after the light faded,
Whoosh!
Whoa! Devil wings! Honestly, with how often he uses his Balance Breaker later, he barely ever brings these out.
"Whoa! Wings?!"
"Hehe, looks like the reincarnation was a success. Welcome aboard, Issei."
"Yes! Thank you, Rias-senpai!!"
Issei answered energetically, but then his expression suddenly twisted in pain.
"Ugh!? Wh-What is this!?"
Everyone was startled by the sudden change in Issei's demeanor.
"Issei! What's wrong!?"
"Rias-senpai, my whole body feels like it's grinding from the inside... It really hurts..."
Issei dropped to his knees. What the hell is going on!?
"Rias-senpai! Let me use Senjutsu to check his condition!"
I placed my hand on Issei's forehead and traced the flow of his energy. The cause revealed itself almost immediately. Ah, so that's what's going on...
"Rias-senpai! It looks like Issei's body can't handle the power of all eight pieces. Judging from this, I think sealing about four of them should stabilize him!"
"Got it. Everyone, back up a little!"
We stepped back, leaving Issei to Rias-senpai. She summoned a magic circle into her palm and pressed it gently against Issei's chest. A gust of wind briefly swept through the room before it died down.
"...That should do it. Issei, how are you feeling?"
Still red-faced from being so close to her, Issei patted his body, checking for any lingering discomfort.
"Y-Yeah, I'm okay now."
"I'm glad. Welcome back, Issei!"
With that, Rias-senpai pulled Issei into a hug, can't see his face from here, but I bet he's making the goofiest grin.
That said, in the original, Issei was sealed as well. Even with one Pawn, promotion to Queen should've been possible, but early on he could barely manage Rook.
He claimed it was because he was newly reincarnated and couldn't handle it yet, but that's probably a lie.
He had to undergo intensive training from morning till night just to unlock enough of his power to become a Queen before the Riser battle. That seal must've been seriously tight.
Still, for someone whose talent was said to be the weakest in history, it makes sense. Even if he's stronger than in the original, his base potential must still be low. Looks like he didn't quite reach the level to exceed the value of eight pieces... Which is a relief. It would've been tragic if the protagonist ended up stuck repaying debts as a human in the very first arc.
Meanwhile, Issei stood back up, showing everyone that he was fine. Rias-senpai gave him a warm smile before turning to look at me.
"Thank you, Ikki. This was all thanks to you."
"Yeah, seriously, thanks a ton, Ikki!"
"I'm sure you would've figured it out quickly anyway, Rias-senpai. Honestly, I might've just butted in unnecessarily."
"Not at all. What matters is your intention to help. Whether it was necessary or not is only something we can judge after the fact."
A matter of hindsight... I suppose that's true.
"Hey, Ikki, would you consider becoming one of my servants as well? With what you did just now, and your Senjutsu abilities, I'd love to have your strength on my team."
A recruitment offer... I figured this might come. I've thought before about joining either the Gremory or Sitri peerage. If this had happened right after I reincarnated, I'd probably have said yes without hesitation, but now the situation's different.
"I'm sorry, but I'll have to decline."
"I see... May I ask why?"
"I can't go into detail, but I'm currently involved in something that makes it more convenient for me to remain human. There are other reasons too, but that's the biggest one."
"...So being a devil wouldn't work for you?"
"I wouldn't go that far, but... I need every possible advantage I can get, even a small one."
She looked a bit disappointed, but didn't press.
"I understand. I wouldn't want to interfere with someone who has a clear goal in mind. But if things change, if that issue gets resolved and you're interested, don't hesitate to reach out, okay?"
"Is that a reservation? I'm honored to be held in such regard."
"Only if I still have a spot left in my peerage by then."
She gave me a wink, seriously, she's the first person I've seen who can actually pull that off. Then again, she is a devil.
"Alright! That's it for today. Let's wrap things up. Issei, bring this form with you after school tomorrow."
She handed Issei a piece of paper.
"This is... a club application?"
"Exactly. I want you to join the Occult Research Club, which I use as a base for devil activities. Since you're my servant now, this is mandatory. And Ikki, what about you? We've gotten to know each other a bit. Want to join our public-facing club activities?"
"What is it the Occult Research Club actually does?"
What was it again?
"We investigate things like cryptids and UFOs, then create exhibits about our findings. We've interviewed kappas, gone to Loch Ness to search for Nessie... That sort of thing. On quiet days, we just relax with tea and snacks."
"I'm in!"
No hesitation whatsoever!
"Then fill out one of these too, and bring it with Issei tomorrow."
I took the application form. And with that, we wrapped up for the day.
====================
Note: So in the end, he didn't become a devil. As for the lifespan issue... I'll deal with that later.