DISCLAIMER

The following is a fan-based

FICTION

High School DxD, New, BorN, Hero and other products related to the DxD Series are all owned by Ichiei Ishibumi, Miyama-Zero, Fujimi Shobo and TNK.

Please support the official release.

Chapter 82: The Masks We Wear

"What was that."

While I was trying my best to appear unfazed by what I had just seen unfolding in that fight, I couldn't certainly let Vali go with the little stunt he pulled.

There was no doubt that what I've just seen, that Galick Gun, was a confirmation for some suspicions I had back when we decided to try out the fusion.

I could remember the odd memories that had appeared on my mind by the very moment we had defused, our connected mind splitting back in our individual ones and… a copy of our respective memories was given to the other.

I had been completely unaware of this detail, unsure if that was a unique exception to me or if it was actually something that was known of this technique.

Goku, Vegita, Trunks and Goten.

They had never expressed any comment about this very notion and yet, with that fight ending in such a flashy and familiar way, I was now sure it was something Vali had experienced too.

The silver-eyed young man seemed so smug, resuming his walk up the staircase after noticing my presence by the end of his path, almost eager to have the kind of discussion I had planned to have with him.

He stopped right in front of me, glancing up with right onto my face and giving a brief nod.

"Follow me," He half-ordered in a whispered manner, taking a quick turn away from the main line of sight of the other competitors, a visible majority already staring at this interaction with a certain fascination.

Enough to indulge me to comply, albeit begrudgingly, at the swift command and walk beside him until we were far away enough to begin a proper conversation.

"I know you have questions-"

"You saw my memories," I interrupted with a little scowl on my face. "Yet you decided that, instead of saying anything about it, that you had to 'show' me something with that flashy attack."

He snorted. "As if you haven't seen about my past," He pointed out snidely, glancing back with a narrowed-eyed look. "You are the one that hold the most secrets, some of those could easily destroy governments, mundane and supernatural ones. You can shatter people and… I wonder if I should consider myself manipulated or not."

"If you aren't angry, then I suppose you know that I didn't manipulate anyone-"

"Except earlier in your 'adventure', when you decided to withhold essential information that could have helped immensely Grigori's investigation over Kokabiel's true intentions and his connection with Qlippoth," The Lucifer intervened with a sigh, causing me for my irritated front to falter for just a moment. "There are some hefty punishments for keeping some of the knowledge you are aware of."

I blinked at this, feeling a little unnerved by what he was suggesting.

'He is awfully infuriating today.'

Only today? But I suppose you can say that he is much more pushy considering what he could gain from this discussion.

A lot. He could gain so much from just pressing the right buttons and he know that.

But not with blackmail of this kind.

And I bet he knows that too...

I was skeptical he would have gone along and told Azazel about this stuff, I knew him well enough now to know that he wouldn't just wait this much to confess such a massive revelation off to his surrogate father.

Yet his words brought up one of the sour aspects of the aftermath of the attack on Tokyo that I had been digesting alone and away from privy eyes and ears.

While I had been incredibly transparent over giving enough information over the organization of the former Khaos Brigade, I had kept to myself some of the lesser details over their doings.

Things I had long expected to have not been impacting the current situation as they didn't seem to have the advantages they had in Canon.

A feeble consideration, one that was easily demolished when the attack at the Tepes Castle began, the assault coming just after a self-destructive invasion issued by Rizevim, proving to me ultimately that the man didn't care to always have the 'upper hand' in his plans.

He had gone in, expecting to find some fierce resistance, but his efforts to try and resurrect the Evil Dragons had failed miserably… but that hadn't been a true defeat.

Not only that instance had brought up how dangerous the defeated group was even though cornered by the three factions of the Christian Pantheon, but this also showed how powerful Rizevim alone was compared to Azazel.

Despite his pact with Fafnir, the Governor-General had barely caused any issue to the son of Lucifer and he would have probably died if the crazy man had decided to take the fight seriously.

Yet the very thing that got me to understand the importance of proper information-giving was the full report I was allowed to look at once the invasion of the capital had concluded.

The leader of Grigori had offered me just a passing read of the paper, but I was caught off-guard by a detail I had missed during the attack itself.

The main force of assault had been created by monsters, Yokais that had been long yearning for violence and had been easy to recruit for such a big operation against humans, especially after what had happened with the Alucard debacle.

Yasaka had also mentioned about the tensions rising within her territories by the time this event happened, forcing her hand multiple times to suppress some act of aggression against pacifist figures within the Kyoto's society.

Things were under control, the war-hawk faction having never represented much of a threat to woman's rule, but it did raise some perplexing thoughts over my true capacity in preventing some of the more dangerous situations from ever happening.

There had been some victims in Tokyo despite the presence of so many defenders, but the light casualty count hadn't left me relieved.

This is why, despite my own doubts over handing over some crucial information to Azazel about Trihexa, I still went through with it even though I didn't offer any foundation whatsoever over said information.

The Fallen Angel had been confused himself at my sudden evidence over the delicate subject, but his trust over me, built over giving more than enough proof of my genuine interest in doing the right thing, surprisingly proved to be a good replacement to this.

I was unnerved by this because I knew that this just didn't make it a proper reason to adopt tighter security controls at the seals keeping Trihexa.

And despite the numerous assurances that the Beast of Apocalypse was never going to be freed with the renewed garrison stationed by the area by the three factions, I was still feeling the unpleasant sensation that something will still go wrong about it.

It's just paranoia at this point. Even if Azrael decided to go in himself, he would find his way interrupted by too many individuals at once.

To borrow enough time for some God-Tier ally to arrive and either repeal or kill him on sight.

'See? There is nothing to worry about, Hoitsu.'

…

"What do you want?" I finally demanded, my voice showing none of the turmoil lingering within my mind and…

Vali merely smiled. "I want two things."

I frowned at the dual request, but gave a slow nod for him to continue.

"First, I want to fight you without any restraints. I don't want you to hold back anything, I know you are always holding something even during serious fight," He explained with a calm tone. "I want you to show me the same full expression of your might, the one you used before we had reached this level, before this became this much important."

Drat, he wants you to really not hold back?

'What are you two talking about? I know that Hoitsu never held back when-'

He wants me to fight him as if I wanted to kill him.

'What?'

The instance he is referring about, is the time when I fought Diodora- or rather, I decided to show no mercy against that bastard.

He is so interested in having a 'proper fight' that he would deny himself the limits imposed by the tournament.

I wonder if the building would hold well about that.

Considering how much strong you two are? I think Zekram might be finding himself paying some hefty costs if that was to happen.

Without much of a choice left for me to pick, I merely nodded, prompting the young man to continue.

"The second thing I wish from you is..." Vali paused, drawing some more attention as I got curious over this hesitation. "I want your name."

…

"What?" I logically asked, taken completely off-guard by that request.

He sighed. "Everyone knows you either as Hekishoku or Hoitsu Sakakibara, but I want you to tell me your real name, the one you had before… you came in this dimension."

...Oh Gods.

'What is he talking about?'

That is a very funny topic-

'Then please, enlighten me over this comedic story behind such an odd statement.'

"You- You know about that-"

"Yes, I know everything about your past life," The young Devil interrupted with a sigh. "We could go in great lengths about your own past, but then again, I think it's the present that truly matters. I want to hear your real name and I want you to confirm that you wouldn't lie about this anymore."

"I can't tell them-"

"Oh? You can't?" Vali interjected with a mocking tone. "Well, too bad. You are going to tell those you care deeply about this after your match."

"But they-"

It was instantaneous, his right hand reached for my neck as the young man pushed me right onto the nearby wall of the corridor. He looked incredibly furious.

"You are the one that decided to focus on having a family, of having people to trust you," He said with quite the angry tone. "Don't give me the crap that you can't for some stupid reason, if you truly care for them, then do yourself a favor and be truthful about this."

He let go, I blinked blankly as I tried to recover from those words.

Before I could tell him anything as a response, he started to walk away, looking fairly neutral over this discussion and I couldn't help but grimace at the truth behind those words.

If I want to ever commit myself over keeping what I've gained after this much time, it was rightful for those close to me to at least know who really I am.

They had all accepted me as part of this strange family, they have entrusted me with their emotions and their loyalty and… I had given them little in return compared to what I was holding inside of me.

Was it selfishness? Was it fear or… was it just something I couldn't truly explain?

Why? Why was I afraid of any wrong reactions to this if… if I know they care for me?

I took a moment to sight, to glance at Vali and I cracked a tiny smirk at that little wakeup call.

To be someone that doesn't care about 'family', he sure does seem to have a soft spot to bring us back on track.

He is quite the oddball about that.

Sure and… by the way, what was he talking about when he said 'your match'?

…

Hold up!

"Wait, what do you mean 'my match'?!"

I started to run towards him, looking particularly confused, but then I noticed at the end of the corridor the large electronic billboard displaying my name and-

FUCK!

I had no idea that the crowd would have been so much… deafening from this part of the arena.

I didn't expect the acoustics to be this loud and incredibly distracting, something that had to have seriously hindered over the previous fights and was going to create some irritation in the next matches.

Descending quickly from the staircase, I was greeted with the strangest of sights, the further expression I could have ever seen on Rizevim's face.

Childish annoyance, if not anger at the situation before us.

"Why did you even decided to take part to the tournament?" I decided to ask out of confusion.

The man huffed. "Truth be told, I was expecting to make some winning spree and get some pocket money from the bets," He said before pointing his thumb back at the stands. "I have Euclid making some bets over my matches but, much to my immense displeasure, I've to fight you first and that isn't acceptable."

I frowned at that explanation, finding even more confusion from the fact Rizevim was 'distraught' from facing me… especially with how elated he had been in the previous times he had to fight me.

"You… don't think you can win?"

"Considering how much you have grown with that pest that is Vali?" He shrugged with a certain look of sarcasm. "You really want to draw some hopes for me to succeed against you?"

"I'm… not that strong-"

"Forgive me if I ask, but have you considered checking your limits after that week-long training trip?" He shot back with an exasperated voice. "I can tell you already, that I'm not even going to try to survive that possible onslaught."

My frowning deepened. "I can't keep it up for long-"

"But that miser amount of time is more than enough to get me massacred and no, thank you!"

So what? He is planning to yield defeat or-

He would have done that already instead of waiting so long.

'He plans to fight, just not by the rules of the tournament.'

What?

'He said that he couldn't win this situation, but he never said anything about a draw.'

I blinked at this suggestion and once again spoke.

"But you don't want to surrender without a fight," I pointed out, getting a fascinated look from him. "So you either you bet on losing or-"

"Losing? Me?" The crazy man snorted and shook his head before displaying a scandalized look. "While it would be a good way to get some easy money, it would shatter my reputation of grand fighter and billionaire!"

...Since when was he both of those?

"So drawing?"

Finally his maddening smile appeared on his face. "I mean, would you like to draw or surrender to me?"

I narrowed my eyes at this. "I hope you know that I will not back away from the fight-"

"But you are holding back until some proper challenges," He interrupted again with a mirthful tone. "Either Sairaorg or Vali. Maybe even your little Imoutos or even one of your grils taking part in this little competition."

He wasn't… too wrong about it. Both the Bael and the Lucifer were worth of my full capacity, but I certainly wouldn't go too far against anyone else.

"So how about we go for something of a compromise?" He offered. "You fight me normally, I fight you… lazily and we do lots of flashy moves while also prancing about JoJo or other animes."

"But if it's ending in a draw-"

Before I could finish the sentence I saw the man bolting towards me, fist cocked and ready to rush in the form of a punch.

I jumped backwards, putting some speed in this action I proceeded to match up with the sudden assault.

His fist connected with my elbow, the blow barely felt as it just left a little sting on its passing but soon the match truly began as I slowly realized that the countdown had concluded during our conversation.

"Anyway-" The Super-Devil resumed his part with a bored tone. "You hit me, I hit you, we make some flashy moves but we ultimately draw."

"But why it has to be a 'flashy match' when-"

"Money, brat!" He cackled eagerly as he delivered a kick onto my arms to create some distance between us. "The 'greater' this fight is, the more people will bet on us."

I huffed, using some Silver Linings to distract him while throwing at him some Light Bombs.

"Isn't that a scam?" I asked with an uneasy tone.

"Just like the tournament?" He said while parroting my tone in such a mocking manner. "Why, of course it is!"

"B-But why?"

"Pride and greed..." Rizevim replied with a shrug while mid-dodge. I tried to land a kick on his face, the Devil ducking just in time. "Okay, maybe just greed at this point but… I can buy you a little pony for you fox-eared sister."

"What?" I exclaimed in confusion at that strange comment.

"Ya know, the series about- You know what? Nevermind."

I blinked a few times at that quick dismissal, but at this point and insanity, I just decided to pressured him at this instance of flaw.

"Are you talking about-"

"No, I'm certainly not looking at some kids' cartoon during my free time while Euclid is preparing lunch!" He tensed up a little at the sudden blurting and then… he shrugged. "I mean, can't you just be 20 percent more cooler?"

This is just… what I'm listening too?!

Memes, minor and old ones at that.

"C-Can we change topic?"

"Sure thing, pops," He remarked with a snort. "By the way, what do you think of fishing?"

"Uh- It's a nice activity?"

"I know this nice place where I used to frequent for some little fishing, there were so many species there," Rizevim nodded while concluding this bit of his past. "Hopefully, my aggressive poking directed at Euclid about fishes and how he looked like a catfish didn't get him angry enough to vaporize the place while I was looking away."

I blinked at this, leaving some Light Mines while gaining some more distance away from him, forcing him to rush once more towards me. He tripped all of the explosive gifts I had left behind, looking hardly fazed by the traps.

"You sure sound like you enjoy your life… without world-destruction," I pointed out hesitantly. "Why would you go so far to create chaos… if it doesn't bring you happiness?"

"Who said that I can enjoy just one of the two paths? Why limit myself when I can dip my fingers in ketchup and milk?" The Super-Devil asked with a huff. "Can't I just be a free bean with hopes and dreams?"

That's a horrible combination.

"Do you even have dreams?"

The Lucifer looked offended by this comment. "Of course I do, but mine is complicated. Very silly and- Why not, I will tell you!"

What?-!

His punch bypassed my arms, reaching my belly but doing only just enough push to force me to back away even more, not a real inch of damage onto my body.

It was all flashy and nobody was getting hurt. The more I thought that this was a fake fight I was having with the ultimate jerk, the more I felt like the world was going madder by the second.

"You know my original plan, right? The one that got Ophis onboard of the whole Khaos Brigade gig?" He inquired with a curious tone, gaining my surprise at that while I delivered two punches, one on his left armpit and the other one on his right cheek.

"You wanted to kill or destroy Great Red by having Trihexa to fight it," I muttered quietly. "Why would you need to-"

"The Dimensional Gap that was once Ophis' home is also a corridor that leads to endless dimensions," The Super-Devil continued to explain, replying my half-question. "I wanted the answers to queries I've been asking myself for so long and… that even now I would like to know about."

From his palm he created a small magical seal and from it flames exploded right towards me, I managed to create a barrier from the shadow born from the torrent of fire, pushing it back to nothingness.

The blast echoing and creating some smoke enough to highlight the might of the contact while also giving some display of power to the still-cheering crowd.

But in that smoke our faces were hidden for a few moments, enough for him to see something odd about Rizevim, an expression I really hadn't expected to see him show to anyone.

There was no smile, there were no games.

There was a regretful scowl and a pair of red dull eyes to match up.

"Is there a version of me that is good?" He mused softly and with some sorrow in his voice. "Was there a point from where I could have avoided this downfall of myself?"

The smoke dissipated and he sighed at the breaking of the scene, his fake smile returning on his face as swiftly as our close-quarters resumed.

"Is it wrong for me to wonder?" He ultimately asked, my frown lessened to a dismayed expression.

Of all enemies that I had faced until now, Rizevim was proving to be the one I was having some trouble to deal with.

Not because of his power or for his quirky nature… no, my stress was conceived by something completely different and deeper.

It was clear he was disappointed in his dissatisfying life, that the shadow of his father… my monstrous self decided to loom over his own firstborn.

I couldn't help myself but see it as a personal failure, that maybe the reason why Rizevim became like this was because I decided to be a cold father compared to the other siblings of the Morningstar Family.

Did I do it out of fear or for a need to keep up with the canon nature of this tragic individual?

The question itself was bitter to even think about, to even consider that someone like me could even decide to merely do nothing about one of his own children and…

I blinked, the unnerving tone of this line of thoughts starting to get me incensed over Lucifer even more.

The more I heard of him, the more I tried to find part of myself in that mythological legend, the more I found a horrible person that didn't relate to me.

He failed to uphold the moral standard I was so entrenched with while also appearing like a kind but calculative soul.

Lilith's memories of the man… this sick and twisted man…

It just had me angry and murderous.

If or when the encounter was to happen with the massive bastard, I will raise some hell to make it clear that I refuse his legacy.

I refused to become his puppet and… the greatest sign of this genuine drive would be telling the truth to those that mattered.

To tie yourself in the heart of those that believe in you.

I felt a small smile finally appear as I glanced at the silver-haired with a new resolve. I wanted to fight now.

"Rizevim, I know this might sound odd after this much time has passed but..." I blinked at his interested look. "I want to win. I want to fight a little more seriously and… I want to hear more about your life."

The Super-Devil blinked perplexed, his smile partly faltering. "You are joking-"

"Nope!" My smile widened. "C'mon, you told me about this fishing spot and I don't think this was the only thing you were so proud of your more peaceful life. Tell me more."

The Lucifer looked confused at first, but then curiosity broke through. "What- What if I didn't want to?"

"Then I will have to beat it out of you!" I mirthfully replied, adding more strength in my attacks as one of my punches finally got an annoyed reaction out of him. "Don't leave me hanging now."

He snorted, his smile faltering into a determined one. There was still some insanity, but it was diluted in genuine interest in the battle now.

"Oh? Are you trying to beat me, aren't you?" He asked flamboyantly and eagerly.

"But first I will have to approach you!" I answered with a chuckle.

From there the fight started to pick up the pace, with me using some of the levels of Kaioken while Rizevim tapped more on his usual power and… things got pretty intense.

Last time I fought the man was in Tokyo and I had been close to be beaten considering the great difference in our powers back then even with the Twilight Joker… but now even without that form, I was carefully matching up with the same level of might he had used in that fight.

I was using only the first five Kaioken levels and… I was matching up with his sixty percent.

Yet, despite the increasing of pace and momentum, I found his actions to be willingly delayed as to offer me some advantage over the matter and, just ten more minutes of conversation mixed with magical explosions, a beam clash and some true close combat, I ended up standing before his sitting and defeated form.

He looked a little winded and while he looked ready to continue, the Devil had decided to concede defeat in quite the joking manner as the referee approached and accepted the gesture of his surrender.

Helping him up, we both made our way to the staircase, ignoring the crowd letting out another round of deafening roaring at the proclamation of my victory.

"I hope you remember that you promised me to show me this fishing spot," I reminded him with a tiny smile. "Now I want to see if its as extensive as you described it to be."

"Of course it is!" He huffed in faux annoyance. "I can assure you that this place is incredibly cool to visit and maybe spend some holidays by."

"I will pester you once the tournament is over. I want to see it now!" I pressed more, causing the man to chuckle.

"Then I will be prepare some anti-pestering maneuvers to avoid your bratting around."

I nodded at him as we started to walk up to the staircase and, once he had gone to retreat away from the contenders and back to 'find where Euclid had set his peeping spot'.

Left alone and ready to return to my seat, I made my way back to where I was previously sitting and-

"Niichan, what was that?"

I almost jumped at the sudden question from Kunou, my head turning to look by my side only to see the blonde rush to hug me before I could reply to her query.

"Hello there, Imouto," I greeted happily as I patted her head much to her visible glee. "And I guess you are referring about my fight with Rizevim, right?"

She nodded, her golden eyes on my face.

"That and what you were talking with Vali. He seemed smug for some reason and-"

"Nothing much important… but I guess we could have a talk away about it."

Her fox ears tensed in attention. "Is anything important?" She inquired quickly, to which I gave a slow nod.

"Mostly yes… but it's nothing worrying. Just something I will have to also tell to the others with… proper timing."

I couldn't survive telling about this secret to the whole group. I just couldn't bear myself to do it.

So I was going to start with Kunou as I was perfectly sure that she would digest this revelation better and… maybe I could have gained some ally in explaining this when it was the time of the rest of the people.

With a last glance back to notice the billboard and the names appearing there, I decided to venture away from any unwanted witnesses as I prepared to deliver some truth bomb.

Still, I shivered when I realized whom was going to fight next, praying for both contenders.

Xenovia Quarta vs. Seekvaira Agares!

AN

It's been a long time since I've last updated. It wasn't anything intentional, just had a lot to do in the last two weeks, some RL stuff and something about some modding project for a game I'm following closely.

So… Rizevim is a broken little thing. Any surprises? I bet some, but I think it would be easy to pinpoint the sign of this fragmented state of mind.

He was painted a villain from his very birth and the worst part that the one that began this trend was his own father.

Does that absolve Rizevim from his crimes? No, but it does show that there is a reason behind his mindset, his chaotic sense of fun that defies morals and logic itself.

He is a villain for sure, but not one that was given the chance to be someone else.

Still, any thought about next fight? Xenovia is a swordswoman and Seekvaira is…

…

Wait, did I just put Artoria against a stronger, female version of Kiritsugu?

…

Like really, I hadn't noticed that one. :o

Future milestone 1: 1170 Followers and Favorite.

P a treon . com (slash) socialistbukharin

k o-fi . com (slash) justbukharin