"Let's go!" - Regular Speech

'Oppai!' - Thoughts

[BOOST!] - Sacred Gear/Ddraig Speech

Chapter 1: Boosted Gear and Gaming Gear

Hyōdō Residence

Hyōdō Issei considered himself to be a fairly normal high school student, albeit somewhat more perverted. He viewed the female form to be perfection incarnate, especially their Oppai!

That minor (to him) quirk aside, he was average. Average height, average grades, average fitness. Below average in attractiveness to girls because he was a pervert, but Issei considered himself very honest, so it didn't bother him.

'How did I get into this situation?' Issei wondered as the knife wielding man in a balaclava stalked towards him menacingly, his terrified parents off to one side.

It had been an ordinary dinner for the Hyōdō family. His father grumbling about how expensive everything was, his mother constantly nagging him to stop being perverted and him putting up with it.

The next thing he knew, this whacko had stormed in and had forced them into the living room at knifepoint. That had been several hours ago and the man had become increasingly nervous, alternating between pacing around and shouting hysterically at his father and mother.

Not a minute ago, he had taken a call on his cell phone and gotten even more nervous, not to mention angry.

"You fuckers!" he had yelled, "Purifiers my ass! I'll fucking murder you! AFTER I slice up the family I'm with! Their deaths are on your head!"

He had thrown his phone against the wall, smashing it to pieces, before taking his knife -a bowie knife, Issei noted absently- and starting towards him with a mad grin on his face.

"N-Now there…easy…" Issei backed away from the maniac, "I haven't done anything to you!"

"You're here." the man replied hoarsely, "That's all that matters."

As Issei backed into the wall, the man lurched forwards, knife drawn back and ready to pierce him.

"Gaah!" the brown-haired boy yelped as he dodged to the side, the blade barely missing him and slamming into the wall. Landing in a sprawled heap, Issei scrambled to his feet and desperately wished that his neighbours would hear the commotion and call the police.

"Die, brat!" the man roared as he heaved his knife out of the wall and cut at Issei this time. Issei's desperate reaction to lean back saved his life again, but he was cut across his left cheek.

'He…he's seriously trying to kill me!' Issei thought in a panic as the pain hit him, 'I-I don't want to die yet!'

A voice sprung up in his mind then, female, powerful…and ancient.

[Then you shall not] she said, [Take my gift, young one…take the gift of Gaia, mother of earth, and live!]

My right arm shone with blue light as something materialised around it…a gauntlet. It looked anomalous for a moment before settling in as what looked like a western knight's gauntlet.

"Y-you…what the fuck are you?!" the man snarled as he started forwards, "You're one of those freaks aren't ya? A Sacred Gear user!"

Issei would have replied, had everything not frozen and turn blue.

"Now what?" he groaned. Then he jumped slightly as a window appeared in front of him.

[The Sacred Gear [Gamer's Gear] has now been activated!]

World Pause Activated!

[Running startup sequence…]

Loading Stats…done!

Loading Levels…done!

Loading Skills…done!

Loading Titles…done!

Do you wish to scan for other Sacred Gears?

Y/N

Issei stared at it for a moment in incomprehension. What the hell was a Sacred Gear? Why did he have one, let alone possibly two? Would they help him survive?

Mind awhirl with questions, Issei shakily pressed the 'Y' button.

[Searching…

Searching…

Searching…

...done!

Longinus Sacred Gear detected!

Left Arm: [Boosted Gear]

Sentient existence confirmed within Sacred Gear.

Established communications link?

Y/N

Again, Issei stared at the screen in disbelief. There was a sentient creature inside his left arm?! What the hell!? There were so many things wrong with that fact that it made his head swim, but he persevered and pressed the 'Y' key again.

[Establishing communications link…done!]

Sacred Gears unlocked!

[Gamer's Gear: Stage 1 Form]

[Boosted Gear: Twice Critical Form]

Skills unlocked!

[Gamer's Mind] (LV MAX)

[Gamer's Body] (LV MAX)

[Materialise Sacred Gear] (LV MAX)

[Boost!] (LV1)

[Lesser Draconic Charisma] (LV1)

Issei's eyes crossed at the information overload he was getting here. He forced himself to calm down. He could read all of this later. For the moment, all he needed to know was how he could use what he had to beat this guy -frozen in blue in front of him- and survive.

Reaching out, he looked for one that might be useful, deciding to see what the [Boosted Gear] was all about.

[Boosted Gear: Twice Critical Form]

The Gauntlet of the Red Dragon Emperor. The prison for Ddraig, the Welsh Dragon. The Boosted gear grants its wielder incredible power, but can be overused, destroying the user's body from power overload.

- Grants the skill [Boost!] when active.

- Passively grants the skill [Lesser Draconic Charisma] even when dematerialised.

- Twice Critical Form restricts the [Boost!] skill. See [Boost!] entry for further details.

- User is granted an armour value of 50 when the Boosted Gear is materialised.

- User is weak against Anti-Dragon magic and magic items.

Holy shit.

He quickly moved to check the [Boost!] skill.

[Boost!] (Active/Passive) [LV1, 00.00]

The special ability of the Twice Critical and Boosted Gear Sacred Gears. Although the first is seen as weak, it does not pay to underestimate its use.

- Doubles the STR, STA, DEX and MP of the user every ten seconds.

- Current Boost Limit: three times.

- Restriction: Cannot boost more than twice in [Twice Critical Form].

- Duration of Cumulative Boosting: 3 minutes.

"OK, this is all nice and everything, but how do I use the [Boosted Gear]?" I muttered. This cued another screen to pop up.

[Summon your fighting spirit, imagine calling forth a dragon and call out its name. That is only for the first time. Afterwards, you will be able to call it forth and dismiss it at will merely by calling its name.]

Well that's useful.

Issei concentrated and instinctively thrust forth his left arm. "[Boosted Gear]!"

In a flash of red light, a gauntlet materialised on his left arm. It was red, with a single emerald green gem mounted above where his hand was. Set slightly above it was a smaller orange fiery jewel. On either side was a golden prong.

[BOOST!]

[You have been affected by the Status Effect [Boost!]! Your power has been doubled!]

[World Pause is being undone. Please prepare for imminent mortal combat]

"Oh crap!" Issei muttered. He looked at the madman who had been trying to kill him. He was moving, albeit fractionally. The boy scowled.

"He who strikes first, wins!" Issei roared. He was seriously pissed at this guy for terrorising his family for the past several hours and for almost killing him just now.

As he drew his left arm back, he absently noticed something floating above the man's head.

Yoshimura Ryōtarō

LV 3

[Purifier Outcast]

Filing the titbit away for later, Issei drove his fist forwards as the World Pause (whatever that meant. It surely couldn't mean what it sounded like…could it?) ended, the armoured fingerless gauntlet slamming into the centre of the man's balaclava-clad face.

"GAAH!" the man screamed as he reeled back, dropping his knife as he clutched at the wreck of his nose.

"Otou-san!" Issei called.

"R-right!" the salaryman nodded. He joined his son in restraining the man as Issei's mother called the police. Issei quickly dismissed both of his Sacred Gears and hoped his parents wouldn't ask about them.

When the police came and arrested the man, that subject did in fact come up.

"I could have sworn that I saw something glowing around Issei's arms." his father said with a frown.

"A common reaction to being in stressful situations." the police officer said soothingly, "Your mind tricks you into seeing things that aren't there. Given that you were being held at knifepoint for several hours, it isn't surprising that it happened, sir."

The elder Hyōdō looked dubious, but nodded.

"Now, we'll need to take statements from you at some point." the officer said, "How would two days from now be?"

"I think my boss will let me off on that day." Issei's father replied, "Is it necessary for my wife and son t get involved? I'd really rather they not have to get involved in this affair more than they already have."

"I completely understand your sentiment sir, but I am afraid that your wife will have to give a statement at least." the policeman said firmly, "Your son does not as he is a minor. Speaking of whom, he should go to the hospital to have that cut seen to."

That cued Issei's mother to start fussing over him and scolding him for being so reckless. He put up with it as he could see how worried she was. The rest of the night passed in a blur of the hospital, stinging stuff on his cut and a drive home before he passed out on his bed, exhausted.

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The Next Day

Issei's Room

Issei lounged on his bed with a sigh. His parents had insisted that he take the next few days off school to recover from the attack and he was bored out of his mind. He had finished all of the eroge that his friends, Matsuda and Motohama, had lent him the previous day.

'Well…I guess I could work out how to use my other 'Sacred Gear' and see what makes it tick.' he thought as he looked at his right arm. Considering the way that the [Boosted Gear] had been activated…

He threw out his right arm and said, "Game on!"

As he thought it would, the [Gamer's Gear] appeared on his right arm. He took the time to look over it carefully and discovered an odd rectangle on the area where back of his hand was hidden. Gingerly, he pressed it, making a screen pop up.

[Greetings! This is a one-off tutorial on how to use [The Gamer's Gear]. To continue, please close this screen.]

Befuddled, Issei did so.

[Excellent. [The Gamer's Gear] is one of only two of its type in the world. One blue, one orange. One created by Gaia, the Titaness of Earth, the other created by Tartarus, the Primordial of Darkness. The wielders of these Sacred Gears are bound to fight each other, so prepare yourself for that.]

"Oi!" the brown-haired boy tsukkomi'd.

[Moving on, the [Gamer's Gear] grants you several powerful abilities, two of which are called 'Skills'. Skills are repeated actions that have been codified and turned into abilities for you to use. This can be something as mundane as washing dishes to breathing fire.

The first Skill is [Gamer's Mind]. This allows you to remain calm and in control at all times. Bluntly put, you cannot be affected by fear, terror or insanity. The instant you feel these things, the skill will activate and calm you down.

Next is the skill called [Gamer's Body]. This allows you to live your life like a video game. Unless a skill specifically lists it in its description, you cannot lose body parts. You have HP that represents your life, stat points that represent your physical and mental abilities and sleeping in your bed allows you to restore your HP.

The rest is fairly simple. From this point on, you can receive quests in order to gain 'EXP' or experience points, which will allow you to level up. Fighting monsters, clearing dungeons and completing quests will allow you to level up faster than completing basic tasks.

Your life is yours to live and, with this Sacred Gear, the sky is the limit. In order to view your status screen, merely say 'Status' aloud. The same applies for you to view your Skills.

Fare thee well.

-Han Jee-Han, the Original Gamer.]

The boy sat back with a sigh as he digested everything he had learned. On one hand, this was really, really cool. On the other, he was fated to fight some unknown person with a matching orange gauntlet on his arm. This did not fill him with glee.

"{Status}" he said with a sigh.

Name: Hyōdō Issei

Class: The Gamer

Level: 4| Next Level: 900 EXP

Title: Oppai Baka

HP: 200/200

MP: 25/25

STR: 12

STA: 10

DEX: 14

INT: 9

WIS: 9

LUK: ?

Attribute Points: 0

¥: 0

Special Status: Awakened Sekiryūtei (Passive) [+10 STR, STA, DEX per level, +50 HP and MP per Level], Nemesis: Hakuryūkō (Passive) [Your enemy is the White Dragon Emperor.], Nemesis: Orange Gamer [ Your enemy is the wielder of the orange [Gamer's Gear].

Perks: - Blessing of Gaia

- Presence of the Red Dragon Emperor

- Lesser Resilience

Flaws: - Open Desires: Lust

- Oppai Baka

"What the hell is with this shit?!" Issei roared.

Seriously? His title was Oppai Baka?! He had two nemeses?! What the hell was with his flaws?! Just…gaaah!

[Gamer's Mind] activated!

He instantly felt himself calming down. Hoo-boy. So his skill could also prevent him from losing his temper. Nice to know.

Now that he was calmer, he pressed his title, making a smaller screen pop up.

[Oppai Baka]: You are well known for your breast fetish and human girls who know of this will stay away from you because of it. You suffer a penalty of -50% to any relationship gains with human girls who know of your fetish and actions.

Impossible to un-equip until you lose the [Oppai Baka] Flaw.

"I hate myself!" Issei wailed as he punched his pillow. His mother had been right, dammit. Girls like gentlemen, like that bastard Kiba Yuuto. He immediately resolved to change so he would become popular with girls! And so he would become the Harem King!

He blinked as another couple of windows popped up.

[Quest Alert!]

Gentlemanly Etiquette, Part 1: You, the Oppai Baka, are determined to change your ways and lose the flaw that prevents you getting very far with girls. The first hurdle…no peeking! Do not go peeking at any female intentionally for a week once you return to school.

Quest Reward: +500 EXP, ¥2000, Reduction in the effect of [Oppai Baka] Title and Flaw.

Quest Failure: 250 EXP, Stuck with the Title and Flaw until the next time you want to try the quest.

Accept?

Y/N

Issei actually felt pain. To not be able to peek at girls changing again! The horror!

'No, no, no! For the sake of my dream, I must persevere!' he told himself firmly and pressed the 'Y' button before turning his attention to the next window.

[Quest Alert!]

King of the Harem!: You wish to be a harem king. Attract, woo, seduce and gather girls for your harem.

[Note: Long Term Quest]

Quest Rewards: A Harem, Title: Harem King

Quest Failure: Death

Accept?

Y/N

Death?! From his goal?! What the hell?! Issei didn't know what to make of this until he recall the old saying Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

As he couldn't -and wouldn't- press the 'N' button, he pressed 'Y' instead. Then he turned his attention back to his stats. The Special Statuses were all fairly straightforward. He had the [Boosted Gear], so he was the Sekiryūtei, simple as that, thus he had his enemy, the White Dragon Emperor. Just as obviously, as he had Gaia's [Gamer's Gear]; his enemy was the one who wielded Tartarus' [Gamer's Gear].

What was really intriguing him was the [Perks] and [Flaws] section.

[Gaia's Blessing] (Passive)

The Titan Goddess of the Earth, Gaia, favours you, granting you the [Gamer's Gear]. You also have a marked affinity for the earth, leading to a 15% power increase when using Earth Magic.

This Perk cannot be lost.

[Presence of the Red Dragon Emperor] (Passive)

As the host of Ddraig, the Welsh Dragon, you can occasionally call upon his presence, usually after you become stronger or the [Boosted Gear] evolves. Allows you to communicate with the Red Dragon Emperor in your dreams. Also grants you a 50% EXP boost to any [Draconic] Skill.

This Perk cannot be lost.

[Lesser Resilience] (Passive)

Having been beaten on a regular basis, you have developed a resistance to it. You reduce any damage from a physical impact made by a blunt weapon wielded with less than STR 30 by half.

This perk can be lost by not getting struck for seven days in a row.

Issei was duly impressed with the three, although he felt phantom aches when he read [Lesser Resilience]. Oh, those kendo girls could seriously swing some mean bokken.

The [Flaws] were…illuminating.

[Open Desires: Lust] (Passive)

Your lust is unrestricted and runs rampant. 60% chance of acting lewd around a female, regardless of whether they and you are in public or not.

This Flaw can be lost by gaining control over your carnal desires.

[Oppai Baka] (Passive)

You have a breast Fetish of massive proportions, well known to everyone who knows you. Saddles you with the title [Oppai Baka].

This Flaw can be lost by restraining your desires.

Yes, he was indeed a creature who acted on his desires. Hopefully, he could get rid of these flaws soon. Gathering a Harem required some sacrifices.

"Issei!" his mother called from the kitchen.

"Coming!" he called back. Dismissing the [Gamer's Gear], he padded down to the kitchen where his mother was working on lunch.

"Ah, Issei!" she said with a smile, "Do you think you could go to the store and pick up a few things for dinner?"

[Quest Alert!]

Gofer Shopping: Your mother has requested that you go and pick up some items at the local shop.

Quest Reward: +50 EXP, ¥1000, +100 Reputation with your mother.

Quest Failure: 10 XP

Accept?

Y/N

'This looks like a reasonably easy quest to perform.' Issei considered, 'Easy enough to 'get my feet wet' so to speak.'

He hit the 'Y' key as he replied, "OK, Kaa-san. Do you have a list?"

After being handed a list and some money for his wallet, he headed out to do some shopping.

As he walked, he ruefully rubbed the bandage over the cut on his cheek. He had been told rather apologetically that it would leave a slight scar, but he didn't mind. He thought that a scar would look pretty badass on his face anyway.

As he walked, he decided to have a look at his skills. He had looked at [Boost!] yesterday, and he already knew what [Gamer's Mind] and [Gamer's Body] did, so that just left [Lesser Draconic Charisma].

[Lesser Draconic Charisma] (Passive) [LV1, 00.00)

Dragons are massive creatures, able to do a great many things, one of them being transformation into other beings. But regardless of what form they take, all dragons have a natural air of charisma about them that draws people to them. As someone who bears a Dragon-type Sacred Gear, you have inherited a small portion of this charisma.

- Grants you the Charisma stat once this entry has been read.

- Automatically adds 5 Charisma each level.

- As one who bears the [Boosted Gear], you gain a 50% EXP boost with this skill as this is a [Draconic] skill.

Issei wasn't impressed with his Charisma stat…it was a 1. Seriously…how could someone have a CHA rating of one?! What was he, a caterpillar or something?!

Sighing, he went into the store and set about gathering everything his mother wanted. Urgh…miso soup is on the menu again…

After paying for the food, Issei headed back home, but was concerned when he saw a police car outside his house. Entering again, he was suddenly engulfed by his worried mother.

"Issei! Oh, thank Kami that you're OK?" she said.

"Err…okaaaaay…what's going on?" he asked in confusion.

"I am Inspector Fujiwara." a man in a trench coat said as he followed Issei's mother into the hallway and flashed his badge, "I am here to inform you that the man who assaulted you was found dead in his cell shortly after noon today. Murder is suspected."

"Well it wasn't me." Issei said shortly, calming his mother down after a moment.

"We know, Hyōdō-kun." the man said with a nod, "I am here to urge you to be careful, however. Whoever killed him removed his hands, feet, teeth and eyes. We are conducting a DNA test to determine who he is, but that might take sometime. You may be a target of whoever silenced him."

"Well, hell." was all Issei could say.

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Next Chapter: Questing for Answers

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