"Alright, that's enough for today, what do you think, Ddraig?" Muttered Issei, as he wiped the sweat off his forehead, wheezing.

[I'll give it to you for today, partner. A decent start, but not close to what I'd consider adequate.] Ddraig sighed in response, his voice echoing from the red gauntlet on the teenager's left hand.

"You don't give me a break, do you?" He chuckled, stretching his worn-out body, before heading back in, shivering. The grey tracksuit he wore during his physical training didn't come close to keeping him warm from the Japanese winters, but the Dragon insisted on this being better for him, in order to strengthen his conditioning.

[Why would I? Did we not make a promise for you to truly become strong enough to bear the title of Sekiryuutei?]

Issei shrugged, before running a hand over his head, far too exhausted to bother debating a grumpy Dragon, with centuries more experience in life than he did. Walking inside his home, his parents were already sat at the dinner table, waiting promptly for him and smiling. His father patted the chair next to him, ushering him over, while his Mother began to bring an assortment of dishes from the kitchen to the table, all piping hot.

"You took a while out there, Issei! Was beginning to worry the cold got you!" His father chuckled, laying back, still clad in a blue work shirt and dark slacks. Like most middle-aged Japanese men, Gorou Hyoudou was a salaryman, working late hours and even longer days, the fact he still had enough energy to maintain a good family life was a testament to his strength.

"Thanks Dad, I'm just trying to do my best." Issei replied, before taking a seat next to his father, sweat. He instantly grabbed a glass, filling it with water, before downing it in a single go, sighing in relief. His father chuckled in response, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"You're doing great, kid. You already look fitter and stronger than you did when you started, keep it up and I'll see if I can sign you up with a Gym nearby." Gorou smiled, pride in his eyes.

Nodding, Issei looked back at his father, as his mother finally finished setting the table, with the main dish in the middle - Katsu present, three portions, one per person. The three said the usual Japanese prayer, before beginning to eat, with Issei starting with Miso soup, before wolfing down the breaded chicken, rice and curry.

"Gorou, Look how fast he's eating! Issei, you need to calm down, the food isn't going to run away!" Mrs. Hyoudou was the typical Japanese housewife, and with a son like Issei, scolding her children could've been considered a talent with her.

Continuing to laugh at his wife's stern tone, he shook his head. "Your little boy isn't so little anymore, dear. He's getting big, soon enough he'll probably be the biggest kid in school. Let him eat what he wants, if Issei wants to get big and strong, I say let him!"

Issei, on the other hand, finally finished his food, with a loud belch, he patted his belly and slouched back into his chair, putting his bowl back on the table. "Thanks, Mom. That was good."

"I'm glad you liked it, dear. I'll be sure to make you something with more meat and vegetables tomorrow." His mother smiled ecstatically, her tone completely different.

"You seem happy." Issei said nonchalantly.

"Of course I would, my boy likes my cooking and is becoming big and strong! If you just fixed your grades, I'd never have to worry ever again!" She continued to smile, as his parents finished their meals, beginning to clear up together.

"Mom and Dad, thank you guys. I don't think I'd be able to do anything without you guys." He chuckled, finally clearing up the last plate. His parents smiled, as he began to walk toward the front entrance, grabbing an overcoat and beginning to put on his running shoes.

"Of course, Issei, you going somewhere?" His father called out for him, walking up to him, as Issei opened the door, spotting his grey bike, sitting against the outer wall of his home.

Shaking his head, Issei shrugged. "Not specifically, I'm just going to go around biking."

"Oh, if you're going to stop by the store, can you get us some milk?" His father asked, giving him a thumbs up, while the teenager was already out the door, jumping onto his bike. Nodding in response, Issei put his headphones on and began to pedal, letting his mind take him wherever.

Interlude.

An hour of intensive biking later, Issei leaned up against the wall of a local corner store, with a bottle of milk resting in the metal basket of his bike, as he fumbled in his coat pocket, before finally getting a grip for it, and pulling it out.

[Smoking again?] Muttered the old, grumpy Dragon, speaking to him telepathically.

"Always nice to end a day with one. What, are you gonna tell me off for it?" Scoffed Issei, speaking in his head to his partner.

[Boy, the White One and I used to raze Tobacco fields to end days, I'm hardly one to talk.] Ddraig said in response.

Beginning to light his cigarette, Issei took a long huff from it, before shifting it away from his mouth and holding it in, and then finally puffing it out. With the way smoke came out of his mouth, he liked to pretend he too, was a Dragon, like Ddraig, instead of a boy pretending to be a Monster. The thought of it seemed to make him chuckle, while continuing to lean against the wall.

The Nicotine entering his system was more than welcome, relaxing his once rigid, stiff body. Issei felt himself easing up, and enjoying the cold breeze brushing against his red-tinted skin. He continued to ride the Nicotine buzz, before spotting a figure to his left, walking toward the grocery store entrance.

Raising an eyebrow, he let the hood of his jacket rest over his head, draping a shadow over his eyes, before analyzing the figure's features - Oversized green jacket, definitely female from the buxom figure, and thick, long red hair, judging by the strands coming out of her hood. But what truly caught his eye, along with the Crimson hair, were the girl's baby blue eyes, attempting to avoid eye contact with him. But Hyoudou Issei was a pervert, not an idiot, he knew exactly who this girl was, his school's number one idol - Rias Gremory.

Rias, was supposedly a very wealthy 'foreign' student, who's family came from some place in Scandinavia, at least that's what Motohama told him, before he stopped listening. Probably Norway, but even he admitted, as much as he'd attempted to keep his borderline-psychotic desires under check, that she was beautiful, quite literally out-of-this-world, even. Almost like she wasn't Human, which was why she baffled the young teenager.

[That's because she isn't.] Ddraig interrupted.

Almost jumping in surprise, Issei shook his head and regained his composure, still studying Rias, who walked closer to the entrance, obviously attempting to look away from him. Hell, from what he was doing, he probably looked like a shady delinquent, so he couldn't blame her.

"Give me a warning next time, partner. What do you mean?" Issei thought.

[I can sense it, Gremory over here, is a Devil. If my senses aren't enough, she's quite literally the definition of a Gremory - Big Devil noble family, their characteristic red hair, it's all there. Be careful, partner, I'd wager she knows you've got a Sacred Gear.] Ddraig continued.

Issei already happened to know the existence of the supernatural, what with having awakened his own Longinus a month ago, and harassing Ddraig to give him a basic knowledge on the topic, Devils weren't exactly a new topic, but having one so close to him, especially a 'noble', was worrying. He'd known they were notorious for reincarnating Humans, with their borderline feudal slavery system, which he wanted zero part of.

"Shit. You think she knows I'm the Sekiryuutei, then?" Shivered Issei.

[Doubt it, you're still not strong enough to give off that kind of aura. At least it was a Devil first. Sacred Gear users attract Sacred Gear users, just be glad we didn't accidentally walk into the White One, we would've been dead at your current state.]

"I know. If a Devil is this close, it means we've gotta up the training. Is there anything else I can do, besides exercise?"

[Hmph. Magic might work, although you don't seem to have much of an aptitude for it, but you wouldn't be the first Sekiryuutei to use it. Magic is a very complex field, with different specialities, you'd have to read into it first, and acquiring that knowledge will be difficult, considering you're still outside of the supernatural world.]

"Not helping." Issei groaned.

[Relax. Miss Devil isn't going to do anything to you, not here, at least. This is just a coincidence. Give me some time, and I'll figure out some other training methods for you.]

"Thanks, Ddraig. You're a great partner. Sorry I couldn't be better." Sighed the young teenager, chastising himself for his lack of talent.

[If anything… No, actually, I won't say it.]

"Say it, lizard." He growled back.

[Most of my other hosts hardly spoke to me, let alone acknowledged my presence. You're probably one of the first to do so, and treat me as an equal. That alone is enough for me to consider you one of my favourite partners. You are weak, yes, that does not mean you don't have potential to be strong, remember this. Even the greatest Dragons started out as hatchlings, you are no different.]

He could feel himself almost blushing with glee and pride at his Partner's words of encouragement, before nodding. "Yes! You're right, I'll make you proud, buddy."

Suddenly, he saw Rias trip on something, before falling over with a yelp. Instantly, he threw away his cigarette and rushed toward the fallen redhead, groaning in pain. Squatting down, Issei brought out a hand, before finally speaking.

"Are you alright?" He asked, compassion in his voice.

Responding, she looked up, before nodding, grabbing his hand and getting up. Issei blushed in response, it'd been a while since a girl had actually touched him, and the feeling of her soft, pale hand against his rougher, tanned hand, was strange… Almost pleasing.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you!" Rias said, smiling at him. Issei only blushed even more, he was lucky it was dark, otherwise his blush would be far too obvious for him.

"Glad to hear. I'd laugh, but it happens to the best of us." He replied, getting a better look at her. An awkward pause came between the both of them, before he let go of her hand, and apologized.

"Don't worry about it," She continued to smile at him, before taking a few seconds to study his features. "Don't I know you?"

Issei cursed mentally, with Ddraig's roaring laughter following from behind. "Yeah, we both go to Kuoh. You're Rias-Senpai, aren't you?" He remembered the honorifics they use in Japan, before nodding.

"Ah, you must be Hyoudou Issei." She nodded, continuing to talk with him. Her beauty only dawned upon him now, along with the realization that the school's most beautiful girl knew who he was, probably due to his infamous reputation as a pervert.

"Yeah, that's me. Let me guess, 'perverted trio', right?" He laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Mhm. You're more infamous than you give yourself credit for, the Kendo club never stops talking about you and your friends, constantly peeking on them. It makes one wonder how desperate you boys are." She giggled, poking fun at him.

Issei nodded, he'd been used to being called 'pervert and lecherous' more times than he could count, it wasn't anything new to him. "To be honest with you, I'm trying to tone that down, getting my ass beaten everyday isn't exactly fun, as you could guess." He laughed with her, too busy relishing the chance to talk to a cute girl, to actually bother thinking too much about his bad reputation.

"That's good to hear then, Sona always brings up how she has to tell you off. It'll be one less thing for her to worry about." The Student Council President's name brushed off warning signs in her head, even Issei was scared of that woman. He didn't know what it was about her, but just being near the girl set off his fight-or-flight instincts.

"It's a work-in-progress, Senpai. Anyway, what brings you here?" He asked.

"Groceries, like most would be." She said, placing her hands on her hips. "And yourself?"

"Ran out of milk, I happened to be passing, so I grabbed some." Issei said.

"And cigarettes? I knew you were a pervert, not a smoker." Rias cocked an eyebrow at him, looking at him sternly.

Shaking his head, Issei attempted to diffuse the situation - The legal age was twenty, if anyone heard about it, he'd be in big trouble. Japanese work culture had a habit of alerting everyone if you had any 'degenerate' habits. "Uh… Can't really say anything about it. I don't do it on campus, or anywhere near, if that helps."

Rolling her eyes, Rias shook her head, a disappointed expression on her face. "It's not good for your health, you know. Especially at our age!" She began to scold him, reminding him far too much of a mother.

"I'll quit eventually, just not now. Anyway, I shouldn't keep you any longer, it's getting late after all." Issei shook his head, before walking up to his bike, only to be stopped by the feeling of Rias's hand wrapped around his arm.

Pausing, Issei looked back, to see the redhead pouting, and to him, it was adorable. "H-hey! I didn't say you could go…" She muttered.

"Oh, you wanted something else?" He said, looking confused.

"I mean, I'd be willing to look over your addictions if you helped me do my shopping." She muttered.

Rolling his eyes, he shrugged and walked with the redhead inside, not bothering to say anything.

Twenty minutes later, the two emerged from the store, with Issei carrying a number of different plastic bags in his hands. To most, it'd be considered heavy, but with his consistent daily regiment, he'd gotten far stronger than he'd given himself credit for, and found it fairly easy to carry. The two had talked about different things, mostly related to school, as they finally walked out.

"It's dark right now, want me to walk you home?" Issei said, while unlocking his bike.

Nodding back, Rias gleed, as he walked alongside her, holding his bike steady with one hand, holding her bags in the other. "Thank you, Issei-kun."

"It's nothing, Senpai. Anyone would do it." He responded, before bringing out another cigarette from the packet. "Do you mind if I have one?" He asked.

"Go ahead, try not to blow it in my face." She responded, a small bit of annoyance in her eyes, but that didn't stop the teenager.

Lighting another one up, the two continued to talk, with Issei occasionally huffing away at his cigarette, mostly nodding and humming at whatever Rias said, too captured by her beauty to really speak much.

"Hey, Issei-Kun, are you in any clubs right now?" She asked him.

Shaking his head, Issei pondered to himself, remembering that he did plan to sign up to some wrestling club near school, but dropped it for a second, not wanting to disappoint the girl. "Not right now, why?"

A gleaming look in her eyes flashed him, before she made a toothy smile at him, making his heart flutter, but Issei steeled himself, Ddraig's voice reminding him that she was a Devil, with ulterior motives. But to Issei, a hormonal, lonely teenager, how could anyone expect him to resist the charms of such a girl?

"Have you considered joining the Occult Research Club, then? I'm the president, so you'd be more than welcome!" Rias spoke enthusiastically.

Pausing, Issei recalled the various comments from his classmates about the club - It was secretive, and hard to get into, with most, if not everyone's application getting denied. To be invited to such a thing was considered glamorous.

"Thanks, but I don't know that much about the Occult. I know about Demons, I guess, but that's it." He continued unenthusiastically.

"Oh? Are you religious, Issei-Kun?" She inquired.

"Nah. I believe in a higher power, but my family are all secular. Even my grandparents were like that, ever since the fifties." He replied.

A lot of Japan's culture had been 'neutered', with the American invasions, and the once proud Japanese peoples had been reduced to nothing but work-obsessed drones, in his opinion at least. Issei considered himself free-spirited, hardly worried about his future, but defiant on not becoming a salaryman like his father, if anything, all Issei wanted was a harem of beautiful women, not that he planned on telling the buxom redhead.

"I see. What do you think of Dev- I mean, Demons." Rias asked.

"Don't know that much about them, to be honest with you, Senpai." He shrugged.

"Well, why don't you think about it. Come around the old school building tomorrow after school, and I'd be more than happy to show you around!" She exclaimed.

Issei nodded in response, with a grunt, while the two continued to walk, till Rias finally stopped outside a large, luxurious apartment building, looking at him.

"Well, this is where I live… Would you like to come in?" She asked, an innocent look in her eyes.

But with Issei's history of perversion, porn and hentai, he had a completely different image in his mind and shook his head. Women mostly tended to cloud a warrior's mind, as many great men had stated over the years.

"Nah, it's late and we both need to sleep, Senpai. I appreciate the offer though, I'll see you tomorrow, then?" He replied.

Frowning, he handed the redhead her bags, before waving her goodbye, with her waving back.

"Good night, Issei-Kun, I'll see you tomorrow then!" She waved, with a wink.

"Mhm." He grunted back, before pedalling back home.

On the way home, Issei cursed in his mind, finally speaking to Ddraig.

"You think I fucked up? Should I have gone in?" He thought worriedly.

[Hardly. A devil invites you to her home? It might've been a trap, you made a good call, partner.]

"Yeah, you're right. All I have to do now before I sleep is boost a couple of times, and head to bed."

[Indeed. I still must tell you, the fact you discovered how to transfer so early, and especially with manipulating your own body, is borderline genius, partner. It makes me proud to know that even at your hatchling stage, you're capable of smart things. I look forward to the future!] The dragon spoke proudly.

"Thanks, Ddraig."

After finally reaching home, packing his bike away and taking a long, hot shower, Issei changed clothes and laid in his bed. With a quick mutter, he saw the red, spiked gauntlet materialize on his left hand, before he wished for it to activate properly. Hearing the sound of 'Boost!', he pushed his body as many times as possible, before feeling his stamina began to fade out, and then finally chanting "Transfer!", to shift the boost in his energy toward his body.

It'd begun when Issei began to test how much the Boosted Gear could do, initially by transferring his power to different objects and then his own body. With some research on how bodybuilding, strength and muscle-building worked, he managed to find a way to manipulate his own body to speed up recovery time and strength-building, to the point where the muscles development he'd made in a month's time were unbelievable, rivalling that of an amateur bodybuilder.

Glancing himself in the mirror, Issei momentarily tensed and flexed his body, admiring his muscular developments - While still quite lean, he was well-built, with strong pectoral muscles, and the beginnings of a four-pack abdominals, while not perfect, he was getting there, and it was only his first month. Soon enough, he could probably rival Schwarzenegger in his prime, if he kept going.

Finally, after enough admiring, he'd forced himself to bed, exhaustion finally taking over, and letting sweet sleep take over.