[Azazel's POV]
He's out cold. That Ittou Shura recoil really knocked him out. Man, this kid's got zero caution. I am the suspicious leader of the Fallen Angels, you know… then again, I passed out on that Gremory train too, so I guess I can't talk.
As I float him to his room using light magic, I think back on his powers.
All three of his abilities seem useless in a normal human, nothing worth fearing. But when combined with his absurd base stats, they become real threats.
Self-Destruct? In a normal high schooler, that's just a glorified grenade. But this guy? He's fighting Vali's Juggernaut Drive head-on. Outside of the other Longinus users in our ranks, I didn't think anyone could pull that off.
Speaking of which, yeah, Longinus. If he had one of those legendary Sacred Gears or divine items, this would make more sense. But no, he overpowered that unreasonable dragon by force alone.
He's fascinating. Just like the Gremory group. Watching him grow is going to be fun.
A world without gods, huh? Let's see what kind of future you kids carve out. I'm counting on you to make it a wild and interesting one.
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When I woke up, Azazel-sensei told me we'd be heading to the Gremory mansion for a strategy meeting before the Sitri match.
After teleporting, we arrived at what could only be called a palace. Honestly, this place could go toe-to-toe with the Einzbern Castle from Fate. Given that the Gremory territory is apparently the size of Honshu, this might be the smaller end of the scale.
As the Governor of the Fallen Angels was technically a guest of a noble house, the butlers and maids were all lined up to greet us. Azazel-sensei grumbled:
"Told them they didn't need to line up like this every damn time…"
Yeah, good luck with that.
Grayfia approached to greet us.
"Welcome, Lord Azazel, Master Ikki. The head of the house expressed a strong desire to meet you, but he is currently away. He'll return in time for lunch, would you be willing to join us then?"
Whoa, formal greeting from a noble. Though knowing the Gremory family, this is probably normal. And since I'm officially Kunou's fiancé, this much formality makes sense. Maybe I should study up on etiquette after all…
I nodded and followed her into a room where everyone had already gathered.
"Yo, we're here."
Azazel-sensei and I said it in unison. Called it.
"Azazel-sensei! And Ikki! I get the sensei part, but what are you doing here?!"
Issei looked shocked.
"I finished my business in Kyoto. Yesterday, I went to the Grigori to get my Sacred Gear and weird powers analyzed. Then I heard about your Rating Game, so I came to cheer you guys on. I'm not a peerage member, but we're all in the same Occult Research Club. Also, hello, President Rias."
"Welcome, Ikki. Though we're leaving the day after the match, so I won't be able to host you long…"
She looked a little disappointed, but from a commoner's perspective, two nights is plenty generous. Yep, definitely a noble.
The others were comparing their training results. Koneko had been working on combining Kuroka's magic, youjutsu, and senjutsu. She could now mix two at once, though all three still required complete focus, too risky for real combat.
Then Issei reported:
"Right now, it takes about 40 seconds to activate the Balance Breaker. I can stay in it for about two hours passively, less than an hour in full battle mode."
Whoa. I don't remember the exact numbers, but that sounds strong.
"Hmm. That makes it usable for short, high-intensity fights. Still, try to get under 10 seconds. With your original stats, there are plenty of enemies who'd take you down in that time. Anything else?"
"Yeah… I tried using the 'halving' ability from the White Dragon Emperor that I got from Vali. It activated… but the success rate's under 10%. And whether it works or not, it shortens my lifespan. Not exactly reliable."
"Figures. Mixing conflicting dragon powers like that is beyond reckless. Using it properly might be harder than mastering Juggernaut Drive."
Xenovia looked at him, concerned.
"Issei. If the success rate is that low, how many times have you tested it? That means you've been shaving off your lifespan every time..."
Rias, Akeno, and Asia all reacted at once. Even Yuuto and the others shot Issei with sharp looks. His face said, "Ah crap, I said too much."
"W-well, I had to test it! And maybe it's not that bad for my lifespan! I won't use it often, I swear I'm fine!"
No one bought that excuse.
"Issei! I won't let you die before me!"
"Oh dear. I can't allow use of such a dangerous ability without fully understanding its cost… No, I wouldn't allow it either way."
"Nooo! Issei-san can't dieeeee!"
"Even I can't ignore something that risky, Issei-kun."
"S-Seriously! We don't even know how much it's shortening your life! You could… you could be dead tomorrow!!"
"Issei! You haven't even given me a child yet! And even if you did, I'd want a second, third, so you have to live!"
Damn. Gasper just casually dropped a terrifying prediction.
But I might be able to estimate Issei's remaining lifespan now…
"Issei, I'll examine your body… your lifespan. Come here."
…Eh? I should go to him? Impossible. Because right now, Koneko is sitting on my lap, and Kuroka is clinging to my neck from behind.
I'm trapped in a catgirl sandwich.
Kuroka had said, "Nyaa~ Just refilling my Ikki energy~"
And before Koneko sat down, she muttered, "If Kuroka-nee is his girlfriend now, I need to be more proactive or I'll be left behind…"
They already heard the gist of Kyoto's events via Izuna, so maybe that spurred them on.
She was shy at first, but now she's completely leaning her body weight on me. Adorable. Though to be fair, she's leaning forward now, worried about Issei's lifespan too.
"DAMN YOUUU! I see you for the first time in ages and this is what you show me?! That's it, you're the enemy now! I refuse to accept help from the enemy!!"
I wasn't trying to show off, you know?! And honestly, this is super embarrassing!
I did try to resist at first, but Kuroka just purred, "Nope~"
And Koneko looked up at me with teary eyes saying, "Is it… not okay?"
You try saying no to that!
"Quit whining and get checked already! …Wait, Ikki, can you even check someone's lifespan?"
"I wasn't just fooling around in Kyoto, you know. A lot happened, and… well, my lifespan's increased to about 10,000 years. Thanks to that, I've become able to sense aspects related to the soul's lifespan based on differences in life force."
It's something only someone skilled in senjutsu like me, someone who's learned to fully grasp their own life energy, could sense. That said, I can only detect the maximum potential lifespan. I can't see if someone will die early due to illness, accidents, or just living like a slob. …Also, there was one more pleasant surprise, but that's irrelevant for now.
"Wait, Ikki-senpai, your lifespan increased!?"
Koneko-chan turned her head in surprise and leaned toward me with wide eyes.
"Hmm? Oh, yeah. But I'll explain that later. Right now, let's talk about Issei's lifespan."
With a grumble, Issei stepped up in front of me, ignoring the irony of being constantly surrounded by four beautiful girls, and placed a hand on his chest. I focused my senses not just on his life force, but down to the very core, his soul.
"Hmm… Yeah. Issei's lifespan has decreased in an unnatural way. Be honest, how many times have you tried using the White Dragon Emperor's power?"
"Thirteen times. It activated on the eleventh try, and I tried it twice more after that just to be sure, but it didn't work."
I see. So the whole "less than 10% success rate" thing has some actual basis… Still, the guy's got guts.
"Looks like you've lost around 4% of your lifespan. Rough estimate, but each activation is shaving off around 30 years."
That might not sound like much, but when your lifespan is 10,000 years, 4% is already 400 years gone. At this rate, using the White Dragon Emperor's power in actual battle will eat through 1,000 or 2,000 years in an instant.
Azazel-sensei frowned at that.
"Yeah, that risk is way too high. Especially with such a low success rate."
The others seemed to agree.
Issei, however, looked dissatisfied.
"But… I'm weak. Even Ddraig says I'm the least gifted host in history. If I'm going to fight strong opponents like Vali, I need that power, even if it comes with a cost!"
"Still…" Azazel turned to me. "Ikki, can't you heal it with your senjutsu?"
"…In theory, yes."
"For real!?"
Issei leaned in so close I could feel his breath, back up, damn it!
It is possible to restore lost lifespan using senjutsu by supplementing it with life energy. However, the kind of life energy senjutsu manipulates is far weaker than the core soul energy. With my current skill, I'd be lucky to restore one year with a full day of effort.
"Tch. Can't you make it faster or something?"
"Quit whining! I'll heal you a little, but if you keep recklessly burning your own life, I won't help you again!"
Suddenly, Kuroka, who had been hugging me from behind, butted into the conversation.
"Nyaa~ Well, I do know of a faster method."
"Seriously!? Miss Kuroka!?"
Huh? Is there another way?
"Not that I'm offering to do it, though. It's called bedchamber techniques, ever heard of it, nya?"
Oh right, Youjutsu… Wait, NOPE, absolutely not! Even Koneko-chan was blushing and looking down, while Akeno-senpai was smiling awkwardly and muttering "My, my…"
And then there's Issei, tilting his head in confusion. "Youjutsu?"
Why don't you, of all people, know this, you walking hormone!?
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