Gaming Badly in DxD

-Zatren Fumigami-

‘’Strange activity in the underworld?’’ I asked, still a bit dazed.

Rias nodded with a frown. She was pacing around the room with heavy steps, while I sat on the bed, scratching my left arm from time to time.

She was angry, that was obvious. I would have been, too. After all, having some Fallen kill Sacred Gear wielders in her territory without anyone noticing must have been frustrating.

‘Good thing I was there, then.’ I patted myself on the back. ‘Even if I was a bit too late.’

‘’Yes, I don’t mind telling you, Zatren-kun. Especially considering what happened during that fight.’’ Rias gestured to my covered arm with worry in her tone. ‘’How is that healing, by the way? Do you feel any discomfort?’’

‘’Not really. Though the fact that it scarred over instead of healing is a bit weird.’’ I shrugged, side-glancing a purple screen I mentally manifested. ‘’I was more caught off guard by that Fallen trying to bite me, actually.’’

Zatren Fumigami

HP: [-----100%-----]

MP: [-----100%-----]

Status: Healthy.

It was really weird. The system told me that everything was fine, but the wound on my arm didn’t heal completely, even after multiple uses of Healing Touch and even sleeping in a bed, which supposedly tops up my HP.

‘’Putting Fallen with rabies aside.’’ I joked, seeing Rias' lips twitch upwards. ‘’What was that about this happening in the underworld?’’

The crimson heiress nodded solemnly and sat beside me on the king-sized bed. She was fidgeting and was clearly nervous. Even if it didn’t sit right with me, seeing the otherwise confident Rias in this state.

‘’A… few weeks back, one of the Noble Houses was attacked by devils that acted oddly similar to that girl who bit your arm,’’ Rias explained, piquing my curiosity. ‘’Vacant look, almost dead, even. Unresponsive and unable to speak properly. And, of course, incredibly erratic and aggressive. If I remember correctly… I think the heir of Astaroth was injured, too.’’

‘Heir of Astaroth… Diodora? Almost forgot about that bastard.’ I frowned. ‘’So, did something happen to him?’’

At that, Rias sighed and leaned her head against my shoulder. ‘’That’s the worst part. We don’t know anything. The matter was resolved, and the offending devils were taken in for questioning and imprisonment. But the Heir was taken by Ayuka Beelzebub, and there’s no news about it.’’

She looked tired, to the point I wanted to jokingly offer my lap for her to take a nap, but considering the mood, I decided against it.

Instead, I put Rias in a half-hug, making the girl let out a surprised little yelp that was incredibly adorable. I grinned, and she pouted, glaring at me with tired eyes.

‘’Well, what’s important is that we kicked those crows to the curb.’’ I reminded her. ‘’Besides, if one of the Satans is handling the issue already, then it's more likely than not that the matter is mostly resolved, don’t you think?’’

‘’…I guess so.’’ Rias hummed, unconvinced. Then, she gave me an impish grin, gaining a knowing glint in her azure eyes. ‘’You know, this is an awfully clingy way to hold your ‘Senpai’~’’

I returned the look. ‘’What can I say? Rias-senpai is just too beautiful not to want to put my hands on.’’

A small pause lingered between the two of us before we broke into giggles. Making the tension in the air dissipate.

Sure, whatever happened to Diodora—and me, actually—was weird, but I was fine, which meant that, sadly, he probably was too. Instead, I should probably worry more about my training. After all, that fight with that fake Juggernaut Drive was way too close for comfort.

…

At this moment, I wished I had acknowledged the signs.

Everything would have been much better if I had caught on early.

-X-x-X-

A week; seven days.

That’s how long it took for things to go from strange to bad.

That small attack in the underworld Rias told me about? It happened again. Multiple times, even. There’s been no answer from Ayuka Beelzebub about anything.

Through Sona, I could get in contact with the—admittedly very scary—Satan Leviathan. In fact, I didn’t even need to search for her or get Sona to call her. Instead, she personally came to my doorstep with a cheerful attitude that I knew was slightly forced.

Invited her into my humble apartment, gave her some refreshments, and chatted for a bit.

Her thanks were genuine, and I wasn’t rude enough to point out the tiredness in her eyes or tone. Instead, I asked for something else.

‘’I do have some remaining Evil Pieces, yes,’’ Serafall confirmed with a curious tone. ‘’However, I thought my dear So-tan wanted to reincarnate you herself? Or even Ri-tan. Won’t you prefer that, Za-kun?’’

I tried not to smile at the nickname.

While yes, the idea of joining Sona’s or Rias' peerage was tempting, especially considering my promise with the former… I feel like I needed some bigger patronage.

I saw one of those devils myself; they really looked like walking corpses, not in appearance, but in attitude.

A wave of them had invaded Kuoh a few days ago, and while they were easy to put down, especially with a Fallen Angel Halberd I had unlocked from one of those bastard's feathers…

Their ‘status’ was a glitchy mess. To the point, I had developed my barrier magic much further so as not to get any of my friends touched by those things.

‘’…I fear that they won’t be enough for the job. You see, I have an abnormal rate of growth.’’ I confessed, scratching the back of my head. ‘’I do not mind if you ‘trade’ me to them, but… Those devils are plain wrong, Serafall-sama. And I don’t want whatever happened to them to happen to those close to me.’’

Serafall hummed as she stared deeply into my eyes, as if she was searching for something, maybe lies? Yet, after a long minute, the tired smile on her face widened and she nodded.

‘’Very well! The all-benevolent magical girl Levi-tan will grant your wish!’’ Serafall got up, doing a small twirl. Though, considering she was in a formal, buttoned, business-lady-like suit instead of a magical girl outfit, it didn’t look as fancy. ‘’Now, what piece to you wish to be, Za-kun? I have a Knight, a Bishop, and a Pawn available!’’

‘Bishop may be my best bet… but I don’t want to over-invest in any of my stats. Balance is key.’ With my mind made up, I told her my choice. ‘’A Pawn, please.’’

After all, I needed a specific power boost, then my ‘King’—whoever that ended up being—could designate a zone as ‘enemy territory’ so I could promote.

Would being Serafall’s Pawn cut my time with my friends? With Koneko?

Most probably, but I could spend all the time I wanted after this issue was over. Once I knew they were safe from whatever this was.

‘A wise choice, Partner.’ Jinzui’s voice echoed in my head, approving.

‘’Very well~!’’ Serafall smiled, pulling out a red Pawn piece from… somewhere.

That day, I became a Devil.

…

If only such a meager thing were enough.

Maybe if I told them about it, about my System, I could have gotten much more done and much more help.

-X-x-X-

-One Week Ago-

-Ayuka Beelzebub-

‘’Most curious…’’ From the corner of my eye, a green magic circle spun slowly. Its matrix shone with a faint, glowing light. A recording spell. ‘’Subject Diodora Astaroth, do you feel any adverse effects? Any symptoms of any kind?’’

I stared ahead, past the glass that separated me from the form of the young heir. He was dressed in the exact same clothes he used during the attack: black clothing, a dress-up, long-sleeved shirt with golden lines, and a long white coat around his shoulders.

The magic circle transmitting my words into the containment unit flared to life as the man smiled and spoke calmly. ‘’Not at all, Lady Beelzebub. I feel most healthy, I assure you.’’

‘’Very well then.’’ With a hum, I cut off communication and turned to the next unit.

After the incident back at the Astaroth state, I quickly took action and captured anyone who was bitten, scratched, or even touched by the rampaging devils. Deep inside, I feared the cause for this behavior was something akin to a flu.

The best outcome would be that this, just like the Sleeping Disease, is something that can merely happen, and is non-viral, but with the large amount of cases…

‘’More observation is needed. Particularly, Heir Astaroth,’’ I concluded. ‘’He, along with another seven devils, was attacked during the ordeal. Also, the offenders were a total of ten devils who, in all cases, have shown erratic and aggressive behavior akin to beasts.’’

I kept walking, making sure the recording spell followed close behind me. And, as I did so, I passed through more than a dozen ‘containment units’. ‘’The ones injured besides Heir Astaroth were servants of the home, much lower in ranking, social status, and overall power.’’

I stopped, looking into a specific cell where a maid clutched her body tightly, as if she was trying to dig deep inside herself. She was shaking, and the food provided hours earlier hadn’t been touched.

Curiously, I backtracked a bit, and sure enough, the only one of the attacked devils that was currently eating was Diodora, who took small spoonfuls while distracting himself with a book.

The rest of the subjects, which included the attackers… did not take a single bite.

‘I see…’ I frowned. Silently, the magic circles around every containment unit were fed data. ‘’Note 004: Most subjects, with the sole exception of Diodora Astaroth, held seemingly no appetite. Not only that, but they show a state of constant tension even after their injuries were healed. End note.’’

Without any form of drink or food, I had no other option than to extract saliva samples manually. It wasn’t a bother, however. I’ll simply put it together with taking blood samples.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

I paused, slowly turning my head to one of the subjects.

He was one of the attackers, dressed in fine clothing and not even a hair out of place. Possibly, a member of a minor yet somewhat wealthy house. Yet, his attitude was anything but.

He didn’t groan, he didn’t whimper, yell, or anything of the like. Merely banging against the glass with a vacant look in his yellow eyes.

Eyes that, for a mere second, locked into mine with terrifying sharpness.

Bam…Bam…Bam…

And he went back to hitting the glass. As if he were doing a chore. As if his hand wasn’t bleeding due to trying to break past magically reinforced glass.

‘’…Note 05: Check for pain receptors on already aggressive subjects,’’ I noted down flatly. Then, putting two fingers near my ear, I opened a communication circle. ‘’Constant medical aid is to be brought to… particularly non-coherent subjects. Is that understood?’’

‘’Yes, Lady Beelzebub.’’ A secretary of mine stated from the other line. ‘’Anything else I could help you with?’’

I considered making someone else take the samples, considering my busy schedule, but running the risk of them getting put in the same state was simply not worth it in the end.

‘’Nothing else.’’ I ended the conversation.

‘’More experimentation required.’’ I sighed, yet a deep part of me was almost fascinated by this happenstance. ‘’If only it didn’t put our kind at risk...’’

-X-x-X-

So much could happen in a single week, yet so little was discovered.

The cases were not isolated to this group of people. In fact, the small group of seventeen subjects I had at the start of the last week had almost quadrupled in size. And these were the most stable ones.

The devils that, even with physical altercation, refused to go down… had to be put down.

It certainly infuriated me that part of our kind, of which I helped push through thick and thin, was reduced to such a state. Yet, I believed I was close to something.

‘’Hello, Diodora,’’ I spoke, yet nobody answered. ‘’…How are you feeling today?’’

The man had stopped eating recently and didn’t find enjoyment in menial tasks anymore. Today, he merely stood in his room, back turned to the glass, unmoving.

‘’Diodora, are you able to answer?’’ I asked once more through the magical circle.

Finally, did the man turn around, but whatever it was, I wasn’t expecting… that.

Like the rest of the subjects before him, Diodora had fallen into a completely tranquil state. No expressions, emotions, or even sounds. Yet, his face was oddly pale, and I could see some spark of recognition lingering in his eyes.

During the entire week, I had seen how the man slowly but surely showed the same symptoms as the other subjects: A lack of appetite or thirst, bouts of sudden aggressiveness when they caught sight of an uninfected devil, and most worrying of all…

A sudden spike in magical quantity and quality.

Diodora didn’t move from his place, merely opening his squinted eyes and locking them with mine. I frowned, because for a second, I even thought I heard a… hiss? But no, no signature or magic pulse detected any other living being inside his cell than himself.

After noticing that communication was useless, I merely shook my head and kept walking.

Dozens, if not hundreds, of eyes stared at me as I walked. Most subjects had at least become somewhat aware of their confinement, but without emotions or expressions, it was not confirmed if this angered the subjects or affected their mental state in any way.

‘’Note… 089: After a complete week of controlled confinement, subject Diodora Astaroth had fully ‘converted’. Making him no different than other subjects besides the fact that his magical spike was much higher than Low, or even Mid-class devils.’’ I frowned as I abandoned the depressing hallway and entered my laboratory instead, where tubes, samples, and all sorts of equipment lay in various states of use or disuse. ‘’…However, considering he is the only High-Class subject on record, it is believed that the stronger the subject is, the longer it takes to convert them. End note.’’

I would have preferred to have more conclusive evidence about the last fact, but without having another High-Class subject at hand, it was quite impossible.

Actually, it was an oddity that he was affected in the first place. After all, the initial attackers were not above Low-class…

‘’More experimentation is required,’’ I repeated, tying my hair into a bun so as not to let it get in the way. ‘’Now… where did I leave those reports again?’’

-X-x-X-

‘’Note… 263—No, 264.’’ I paused, feeling the headache constantly poking my head suddenly spike for a moment, before receding into a constant, but permanent pulsing ache. ‘’…It’s been a month, I believe, since the first test subject was brought in.’’

I paused for a long moment. The countless vials and failed trials littered my working table. With an annoyed huff, I pushed them all aside. ‘’…I wonder if there’s a point to recording so many Notes. It’ll be a headache to organize at a later date.’’

‘’Nothing I tried has worked against the now confirmed disease. The name I gave after some consideration was Commutatio. Not the most original, but it’ll do.’’ Shrugging, I idly glanced at what samples I had left. ‘’Whatever this disease is, it doesn’t affect biologically, nor spiritually. There’s no antibiotic, no vaccine, and definitely no equation that could even properly analyze the disease.’’

I shook the tiredness off my tone and eyes. There was no time to sit still. News of the outside only got worse with time, and all three other Satans have their hands full.

Even that young man… Zatren: Leviathan’s newest Pawn. I had been informed of his quick rise in power and unique physiology. For a moment, I thought that maybe I could get an answer from his unique fountain of magic, but as fascinating as it was, how would I even know if adding that same blood wouldn’t bring adverse effects if I could not properly understand the disease itself?

‘Too many variables… You have to solve the unknown and… discard the rest.’ With my mind made up, I looked at the oscillating circle near me and made a syringe, which I knew had Diodora’s blood, float to my hand. ‘’I will go back to the basics. I believe my approach was wrong. I had cleared too many reasonable options, but whatever we are fighting, it doesn’t follow reason. End Note.’’

With little effort, I made a dozen, a hundred, maybe more magical circles.

Inside a petri-dish, I poured a few drops of Astaroth’s heir blood. Circle after circle, I searched for it.

It wasn’t in the molecules or any regular cell that made up blood. So, neither plasma, red globes, nor white globes. It had to be related to it, because every case of infection has been caused by physical injury—

I froze, one hand coming to hold my pulsing head. ‘’…Or did it?’’

‘’Note 265.’’ I started, hastily discarding the equipment. ‘’Until now, I believed that the disease had to be transmitted through blood, saliva, or at least physical contact. After all, any subject that was brought to me had one such injury; even when High-Class devils started to come around, they had open wounds.’’

The hallways blurred together. I passed completely empty units. Some had blood and even body parts in them. Subjects that got too rowdy, but I couldn’t focus on tidiness and cleaning now.

‘’But that was not the case with one test subject.’’ I cursed internally, bringing the details of his first analysis back to the forefront of my mind. ‘’Diodora Astaroth was ‘infected’ by Low-Class devils. Yet, considering their power, there was no way he couldn’t have fought them off without them even touching him.’’

‘’Diodora… sama…’’ All of a sudden, I heard a voice—Wait… a voice?

I was supposed to be alone with only the test subjects inside here!

As I rushed to his cell, I hastily spoke, just to make sure this was properly documented. ‘’There may be no relation between physical contact and the disease! Instead, it may be related to Demonic Power or magic in general!. Whatever this thing is, it could very well attach to anyone just by being in the same area where their magical presence reached! Meaning that—’’

Finally, when I arrived…

There was Diodora, freed from his cell, and with broken shards of glass covering his clothing and the entire floor.

Behind him, a blank-eyed woman stood ramrod still. By memory, I identified her as one of Diodora’s peerage members, but she shouldn’t be here. How did she even…?

‘Did… did Heir Astaroth manage to call one of his peerage members to him?! It’s unprecedented! No other subject has shown the capability to teleport other people or use magic inside these walls, even High-Class ones!’

I raised my hand, but before I could capture both of them, I had to suddenly stop a fiery inferno that shook the entire hallway. With a single push of my formula, all flames dissipated. Yet…

The woman wasn’t there anymore. Only Diodora was left. His eyes, cold and unexpressive, had changed, with their white sclera turning completely back.

I cursed under my breath as a hundred. No, a thousand circles filled the hallway.

‘’…Meaning that, anyone in the near vicinity of an infected person is already under the influence of the virus,’’ I stated, feeling the drain in energy and constant headaches now more than ever. ‘’End Note.’’

With a flash of green light, Diodora ceased to exist, and the entire laboratory went on complete lockdown.

…

Sadly, the damage was already done.

-X-x-X-

-Zatren Fumigami-

Sweat poured down my forehead. The message of the Dungeon Boss being slain was ignored in favor of putting most of the new materials in my spear.

‘’…Stat bonuses are stat bonuses, I guess.’’ With a shake of my head, the world disintegrated around me, and I was back in my room.

A room inside Serafall’s manor. I didn’t bother much with furniture since I could just save whatever I needed, like clothes, food, and the like, in my inventory. So, it ended up looking kind of plain.

‘The bed’s comfy, I guess.’ I hummed and face-planted in that same comfy bed.

‘’It’s been a month, right?’’ I frowned as a water bottle appeared out of thin air. I popped the cap open and took deep, reinvigorating gulps. ‘’What a fucking mess.’’

It wasn’t just this… zombie infection shit going on, but the fact that any knowledge I could have abused was thrown out the window. For example, the Rating Game with Riser never happened in favor of devilkind to be at a ‘war-like’ state.

Heirs and Heiresses were not ‘pompous little pricks’ or mere figureheads anymore, but had to start working their ass off, because the only thing that was known about the virus was that the stronger you were, the less chance for you to turn into one of them.

‘’Partner, I think you should take a break.’’ Jinzui’s voice, firm yet worried, practically whispered into my ear as my shoulders felt like they were tightly embraced. ‘’I’m not saying you should be reckless or stay complacent, but overworking yourself to the bone isn’t healthy either. You barely even interact with your ‘associates’, after all.’’

I snorted. ‘’Well, that’s just because they’re a bunch of weirdos.’’

Seriously, when I saw one massive, sun-kissed dude talking in cutesy manners, I thought he was pulling my leg by copying Serafall’s ‘magic girl’ shtick, but then I saw him punch through a High-Class devil who had been infected, and I kid you not, he vaporized him.

‘’Not my point.’’ Jinzui chided softly as I merely nuzzled into the imaginary warmth. ‘’…That girl, Koneko, was it? It’s been a while since you talked to her. Why don’t you pay her a visit? It's not like you have much to do today.’’

…She was kind of right. I have gone on patrol more than anyone this week. Yet, the terrifying feeling of cutting down those unexpressive infected never went away. Maybe it put me a bit too on edge, because my dungeon visits were awfully high, too.

‘’You’re right.’’ I conceded, getting up from the bed with a groan. ‘’I like Koneko, and we are in a bit of a situationship, leaving her hanging like that feels awful.’’

Was I getting a headache? Man, I really pushed myself too far.

‘’Alright, I’ll take a shower and—‘’

A deep sense of dread suddenly pooled inside my stomach.

‘What?’ It was like the entire room had gone cold, and I felt this awful, constricting feeling inside my chest. A feeling of anguish, unlike anything I experienced before, took hold of my mind. ‘’Status.’’

Without knowing why, I opened the strengthening method screen, like it was calling out to me.

Everything was normal… until I reached the bottom part, under the ‘Trust’ strengthening method.

‘’Why…’’ The words clung to my throat, and I felt dizzy, like I wanted to vomit. ‘’…Why is Rias' name not on the list?’’

Uncaring of my appearance or how grimy and dirty I felt after dungeon crawling, I opened a rift in space with the Hourglass Pike, concentrating on the only ‘teleport’ I had set in Kuoh.

…

If only I were less focused on training… I wouldn’t have been late.

-X-x-X-

The scene I found when I barged into the clubroom will never leave my memory and will haunt me forever.

The occult research club was mostly untouched, save for one specific detail.

Sitting on the floor, covered in blood, was Koneko. Her body trembled, and I could see a clear liquid dripping down her face. She didn’t whine or cry out, but it was obvious that something was wrong.

In less than a blink, I was kneeling in front of her, grabbing her shoulders in a comforting yet firm grip.

‘’Koneko? Koneko, what’s wrong?’’ I asked.

That damn choking feeling never went away as I checked the girl for injuries. Some minor scrapes here and there, and a broken arm I quickly put back together with mere seconds of my Healing Touch. ‘’Just breathe, okay? Deep breaths. One, two… three, four… One, two… three, four.’’

With a frown, I noticed that, besides the strangely clean room and the blood now clinging to my clothes, there was a lingering residue of magic beneath Koneko; it came from the magic circle, meaning that a ‘jump’ must have been used recently.

Another thing was, Koneko’s ears and tail were out, clinging to her body tightly as she silently cried into my shoulder. Yet, thanks to my constant reassurances, she started to follow the instructions.

One entire minute, I held her close, uncaring of the hands currently clawing my back like I was a lifeline.

‘’…They are gone,’’ Koneko whispered in a sobbing, devastated tone that broke my heart to pieces. ‘’Rias-bucho, she… s-she…’’

My hand went to the top of her head, and I started softly doing circles near her ears. Calming, soft motions that I hoped would bring the girl some peace.

‘’What happened to Rias, Koneko?’’ I asked, even if I really, really didn’t want to.

Yet, instead of an answer, Koneko audibly sobbed, mumbling incomprehensible apologies into my chest.

But before I could get another word in, I froze as I noticed one minute, terrifying detail.

Koneko’s hands, currently clutching my shirt to the point it started to creak… had strands of crimson hair in them.

The blood that was too much to belong to Koneko only, the sobbing apologies, the strands of hair, and Rias disappearing from my ‘trusted’ list…

I felt something hot and wet dripping down my face, too, and I did my best to shush Koneko softly. No more words were needed for what happened, but that didn’t mean that the knowledge of it didn’t hurt like getting my heart crushed and twisted.

‘This damn place… why did this even happen? Was it a joke? The world fucking with me by declaring I just wish to live my best life?’ I wondered, as Koneko’s grip slackened. The girl had passed out, crying on my chest, with her friend—Her family’s blood clinging to her form. ‘I hate it. Where did I go wrong with my approach? How was I even supposed to fix this?!’

My vision… it started to glitch. I scoffed while getting up, making sure Koneko was secured on my arms.

‘Of course it isn’t my fault… Don’t be a fucking dumbass…’ I scoffed. Yet, the spear on my back felt like a burning searing. ‘It’s the world’s fault. Not a mistake of my own.’

The glitching intensified to the point I almost couldn’t see as I readied to teleport back to the manor.

How would I even explain this to Serafall? What would happen with Sirzechs-fucking-Lucifer? When he was informed of his sister’s demise…

The requirements of the Cursed Series have been met.

Halberd of Pride has been unlocked.

‘’But I can fix it. I’m the only one who can—‘’ I paused, feeling the girl trembling in my hands.

I deadpanned, even my eye twitched as Koneko, the ‘bloodied’, ‘sobbing’, and ‘broken’ girl shook…

…With laughter.

‘’…Alright, cut the fucking scene.’’ I sighed in exasperation. ‘’Koneko is laughing again! Seriously, none of us went to drama school! How are we supposed to take this edgy crap seriously?!’’

‘’God-fucking dammit, Zatren!’’

-X-x-X-

Suddenly, the old school building vanished into nothing, and in its place, a comfortable, giant room that could hold at least a hundred people appeared.

The room itself didn’t have anything except a few things. A drinker, a small bed, a sipper water bottle that was mounted on the wall, and a hamster wheel.

Yes, a hamster wheel.

Koneko nuzzled into my chest, but my mood suddenly fixed. I pointedly stared at the catgirl who just shrugged with a flat face, pressed a kiss to my cheek, and hopped out of my arms.

The blood in both of our outfits was suddenly cleaned, and, at the same time, other people started filling the room.

From Sona to Rias, to Ayuka, Serafall, and more people who haven’t even appeared yet, like Mittelt, Chrysalis.

‘’It wasn’t that bad, right?’’ A voice asked the entire room.

There, seated at a desk that may as well have been a block of wood that barely reached my knee, was… a furball. Specifically, a comically large hamster that could easily be the size of a volleyball.

The rodent had big square glasses that I wasn’t going to ask how they held up, considering his ears were on top of his head, and was currently typing on a typewriter.

Weird shit, I tell you.

‘’Yes, it was,’’ Koneko replied flatly, before munching on a chocolate bar she got from… somewhere. ‘’Too many deaths. Why are you writing like I can beat Rias-bucho?’’

‘’Don’t be so discouraged, Koneko-chan,’’ Rias commented with a smile. ‘’It would be a fair spar.’’

‘’It would if it were your current states, Rias.’’ Sona intervened, shaking her head with a pointed frown. ‘’For this current story, Koneko wouldn’t have gotten to be that strong at all.’’

‘’Scew power-balances, why am I not even in the story?!’’ Mittelt suddenly jumped the gun, pouting while stomping the ground, much to the amusement of Chrys, who followed close behind the Fallen. ‘’It was the Abandoned Church arc! Where am I?!

‘’I think you were supposed to be the Fallen that bit me.’’ I shrugged, but that only made her pout harder.

‘’That’s even worse! That means I just got killed off-screen!’’ Chrysalis tried to comfort the angry Fallen by petting her head, but got a hiss and a slap on the wrist instead. ‘’…Tsk. Whatever. I got my awesome moments, too.’’

The room almost seemed to shift. Everyone at once got a mental message from the furball as it kept typing on a comically small typewriter.

‘’If it’s a characterization issue… Then I can fix that, no problem.’’

‘’It’s not just that.’’ I interrupted, getting the attention of the typist. ‘’For example, Ayuka here could easily figure that stuff out, but not only does she take a month, but also one of that fucker’s pieces manages to get away? I call bullshit, dude.’’

‘’To put it more politely.’’ The aforementioned Ayuka stepped out with a polite smile, scratching her cheek. ‘’It took me around five minutes. It’s a magic disease, and while the proper equation would have taken me a bit more time. It was easily solvable. Apologies, Typer.’’

‘’See? Though I’ll say. Out of the ones who participated, she was the one who nailed her role as the horror crazy scientist.’’ I smiled proudly at my teacher.

Why did everyone suddenly turn away?

Why did Ayuka’s smile get tighter all of a sudden?

Shaking my head, I focused back on the matter at hand. ‘’…Besides, if that didn’t work, there’s always the nuclear option.’’

Sona scoffed, deadpanning. ‘’Please, let's not talk about bombarding the underworld…’’

‘’Relax, So-tan~!’’ Leviathan, always the affectionate sister, hugged the caught-off-guard Sona, burying her head on her breasts while shaking her around. ‘’I bet we can come up with something better! Oh, oh! How about a party, a party would be nice!’’

‘’Sister, I can’t breathe!’’ Sona’s complaints were muffled and went unheard.

‘’…I wanted it to be scary, you know. Horror stuff. Halloween stuff? Dia de los Muertos?’’ The hamster communicated, somewhat dejected.

With a shrug, I merely closed the distance and crouched down. Squinting my eyes at the paper with the current script. Even this whole interaction was being written as we spoke. It was kind of creepy but cool, actually.

‘’Maybe just try comedy next time?’’ I offered, patting the furball. ‘’Nothing bad with horror, especially during this season, but we have a kind of lightheartedness going on that doesn’t really mix well with it.’’

‘’Word.’’ Koneko nodded.

‘’I agree with Lady Serafall’s idea, actually.’’ Rias followed with a smile. ‘’I can already tell we can theme the entire school, with the occult research club as an attraction!’’

‘’I believe that would be enjoyable, yes.’’ Ayuka agreed.

‘’…Don’t care.’’ Mittelt crossed her arms and looked away.

‘’Aw, come on, little crow…’’ Chrysalis teased, using my nickname for the girl, which made her shiver and flush slightly. ‘’You’ll look stunning as a little witch, I assure you~’’

The petite Fallen almost growled at the woman before sighing in resignation. ‘’Fine, fine! Let’s do the stupid party!’’

‘’Woo! Did you hear, So-tan?’’ Serafall cheered, finally letting the glasses-wearing heiress come out for air. ‘’We get to dress up! I have so many ideas, so we can even match outfits!’’

‘’…Joy,’’ Sona answered with a deadpan.

‘’So?’’ I questioned the writer. ‘’What do you think?’’

The furball merely stopped. I couldn’t really decipher what was going on behind those round, marble-like eyes, until he took what script was written until now and… wrinkled it up into a small ball that he later threw in a far corner.

‘’As long as you stop breaking the script.’’ The rodent started typing again, and the room shifted with new ideas and a different scenario. ‘’…It will have to be next time, however. You already messed up my try with horror and turned it into a gag. The wordcount will be too high.’’

‘’Surely, there’s space for one more scene?’’ I shot finger-guns at the furball, making it scrunch up its tiny nose and whiskers.

‘’…Fine.’’

-X-x-X-

In a single second, not only was the entire clubroom transformed. Gone was the plain yet royal purple furniture. Replaced by pumpkins-shaped baskets and bats that adorned the corners of the room.

I was even in disguise, too.

Well, it kind of looked like my working outfit, so I looked like a bartender or a waiter, but I couldn’t complain about the short-notice disguise.

Unlike Koneko, who was actually dressed in a tiger-print leotard with paw-gloves. Even her ears were sort of ‘painted’ over, but a single check told me it was merely illusion magic to make it fit with the rest of the color scheme.

‘’…I regret my every decision. I want to go back to playing unconsciousness.’’ Koneko deadpanned while looking at her outfit, making me chuckle. ‘’Shut up, Schizo-senpai.’’

‘’I didn’t say anything, though?’’ I couldn’t hold back the snorts.

‘’Come on, you two!’’ Rias called out, poking her head from the hallway. She had some bandages around her hair and face, making me think she was trying to do a mummy disguise. ‘’Help with the decorations! We have to start early if we want to be ready for the next Halloween!’’

‘’…Thought we stopped the fourth-wall breaks.’’ Koneko tilted her head.

I shrugged, knowing very well that the plan kind of went out the window already.

…Eh, whatever, what’s just one more wall-break?

As Koneko went to help Rias, I looked at the roof—No, at the one currently reading these lines. Behind the screen of either a computer or a phone.

‘’And you! Happy Halloween to you, too!’’ I gave a two-finger salute. ‘’And see you next year—‘’

‘’Senpai. Stop talking to the roof and come help.’’ Koneko mocked.

‘’Who are you calling Schizo, shortstack?’’ I turned around with a raised eyebrow.

‘’…At least one of us is stacked.’’

‘’What’s that supposed to mean?’’ I frowned, confused. ‘’No, seriously, what does that mean? I am stacked.’’

‘’Bleh.’’

‘’Poking out your tongue and acting cute is not a valid argument!’’

‘’Bite me.’’

‘’Oh, I sure fucking will, you little—‘’

-X-x-X-

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Author's Note:

Hope your neck didn't break from the whiplash, ha!

Sure, there's probably a better way to do a Halloween special, but this? Kind of feels on board with what we know about our favorite Schizo and his friends, eh?

Originally, I planned this to be a full zombie apocalypse, with Zuzu having to not only deal with a zombified Ayuka, but maybe even Sirzechs, and at the very end, have HIM turn into a zombie as Koneko and anyone that survived that ordeal flee from the scene.

But, uh, you know... that sounded so fucking edgy the keys on my keyboard threatened to shank me. So that's that!

As always, you can have some extra (11) chapters of this fic on my .

And here you have my Discord Link: .gg/92Yt5wxeWN

With that said…

Happy Halloween!