Location: Hijirigasaka Academy - Main Courtyard
Event: The School Cultural Festival
Time: 11:00 AM
The school was alive with noise. Students ran around carrying plywood, trays of food, and banners.
Raiden sat on a bench in the middle of the chaos, holding three trays of takoyaki, two crepes, and a stick of grilled squid.
"Overpriced," Raiden grumbled, chewing the squid stick - wood and all. "And the octopus ratio in these balls is pathetic. It's 90% batter."
Sakura (Head Maid Succubus) appeared from the shadows, wearing a school uniform as a disguise.
"Master! Shall I raid the Home Economics room and steal better ingredients?"
"No," Raiden sighed. "I promised Basara I wouldn't cause a diplomatic incident today. Apparently, stealing food constitutes a 'Villain Act'."
Across the courtyard, Basara was sweating nervously. He wasn't looking at the food. He was looking at a girl with silver-white hair standing near the gate.
Yuki Nonaka. The Hero from the Village. And Basara's childhood friend.
She walked through the crowd, her presence sharp and cold, like a blade sheathed in ice. She locked eyes with Basara, then shifted her gaze to Mio, who was handing out flyers for her class's Maid Café.
Yuki reached for the weapon case on her back.
Yuki moved. She was fast - using Haya-Gake (Rapid movement).
She bypassed the crowd, appearing behind Mio in a blur.
"Found you, Demon Lord's daughter."
Basara drew his sword. "Yuki! Stop!"
Yuki didn't stop. She drew Sakuya, her spirit sword. The blade hummed with high-frequency spiritual pressure.
"I'm sorry, Basara. But orders are absolute."
She swung the blade at Mio's neck.
CLANG.
The blade stopped.
It wasn't blocked by Basara.
It was caught between two fingers.
Raiden stood there, holding the spirit sword like it was a toy. He hadn't dropped his takoyaki tray in his other hand.
"You're disrupting the line," Raiden said, his mouth full of octopus.
Yuki's eyes widened. "What...? You caught Sakuya with your bare fingers? Without Spirit Armor?"
"Spirit Armor?" Raiden swallowed. "I have skin. That's enough."
He looked at the sword.
[Gluttony: Analysis]
[Target: Spirit Sword Sakuya]
[Composition: Spirit Metal, Wind Attribute, Sentient Soul]
[Flavor: Minty, sharp, metallic.]
Raiden leaned closer to the blade. He licked it.
Yuki flinched back, yanking her sword away. "Did... did you just lick my sword?!"
"Tastes like dry ice," Raiden critiqued. "Needs salt."
Yuki jumped back, putting distance between them. She looked at Basara.
"Who is this? A stray devil? His aura is... heavy."
"That's Raiden," Basara explained hurriedly. "He's... complicated. He's Mio's guardian."
"A guardian?" Yuki narrowed her eyes. "He feels like a Calamity Class monster."
Raiden took a step forward.
[Passive Skill: Charm of the Sovereign]
He didn't attack. He just looked at her.
Yuki felt her heart skip a beat. Her breathing hitched. The killing intent she had honed for years suddenly wavered.
Why did he look so... imposing? Why did she feel the urge to lower her weapon and apologize?
"Y-You..." Yuki stammered, her cheeks flushing slightly. "What kind of magic are you using?"
"It's not magic," Raiden smirked, the golden ring in his eyes pulsing. "It's biology. You're a Hero, but you're also a girl. And I'm the top of the food chain."
He walked past her, patting her head condescendingly.
"Go home, kid. Your sword is too dull to cut me. And you're too skinny to be a meal."
Yuki stood there, frozen, as Raiden walked away.
She touched the top of her head.
He... patted me? instead of killing me?
Location: Class 2-B - "The Moe-Moe Demon Café"
Mio and Maria were dressed in maid outfits. Mio was terrible at it.
"W-Welcome... master," Mio stuttered, almost dropping a glass of water.
Raiden sat at the VIP table.
"Mio," Raiden called out. "More water."
"I just gave you some!"
"I drank it," Raiden pointed to the empty pitcher. "Bring the hose."
Yuki Nonaka entered the café. She had sheathed her sword but was still on high alert. She sat at the table opposite Raiden.
"I'm watching you," Yuki declared. "I won't let you harm the Village or Basara."
"Do you want a parfait?" Raiden offered, pushing a menu toward her. "It's on Basara's tab."
"I don't want sweets!" Yuki slammed the table. "Tell me what you are! Are you a Fallen Angel? A Majin?"
"I'm a Dragon," Raiden said casually.
"A Dragon?" Yuki scoffed. "Dragons are extinct in this dimension. The last ones were hunted by the Gods."
"I'm an import," Raiden ate a spoon. "From a better dimension. One where Dragons have boobs and Gods get punched in the face."
Suddenly, the floor shook.
BOOM.
The windows of the classroom shattered.
Panic erupted. Students screamed as monstrous figures climbed through the windows.
They weren't demons. They were Chimeras.
Twisted masses of flesh, metal, and magic. They had no eyes, only mouths filled with rotating saws.
Zolgia's Bio-Weapons.
"Hostiles!" Yuki drew Sakuya instantly. "Civilians, evacuate!"
A Chimera lunged at a group of students.
Basara intercepted it. "Banishing Shift!"
He slashed the monster, but the wound regenerated instantly. The flesh bubbled and re-knit.
"Regeneration?!" Basara gritted his teeth.
Another Chimera crashed through the ceiling, landing right on top of Raiden's table.
It crushed the parfait.
Raiden stared at the smashed dessert.
The strawberry sauce splattered onto his cheek.
The room went silent. Even the monsters seemed to pause.
"My parfait," Raiden whispered.
Mio, knowing exactly what was coming, grabbed Maria and ducked under a desk. "Everyone down!"
Raiden stood up. His eyes were no longer gold. They were deep, void purple.
"You wasted food."
He looked at the Chimera.
He tried to use [Lust].
...Nothing happened.
The Chimera had no mind. No gender. No soul. It was a meat puppet.
"I see," Raiden cracked his neck. "You can't be charmed. You have no desires."
Raiden's jaw unhinged. His human teeth sharpened into serrated fangs.
Darkness began to leak from his mouth like smoke.
"Then you are just groceries."
The Chimera roared and swung a blade-arm at Raiden.
Raiden didn't dodge. He opened his mouth.
[Heavenly Dragon Art: Vacuum Bite]
He bit the air.
Space twisted.
The Chimera's arm, the air around it, and the mana fueling it were sucked into Raiden's mouth.
CRUNCH.
Raiden swallowed.
"Tastes like rotten meat and alchemy chemicals. Disgusting."
He grabbed the Chimera by its remaining head.
"You owe me a parfait."
[Gluttony: Devour]
Darkness enveloped the monster. In one second, the massive bio-weapon was gone. Erased.
Raiden burped. A cloud of green smoke came out.
Yuki stared, her sword hanging limp in her hand.
"He... he ate it. He ate a Chimera."
Three more Chimeras charged.
Raiden looked at them.
"Mio. Maria. Basara. Take the students out."
He ripped his shirt off, revealing the Dual Tattoos. The Black Maw and the Golden Heart.
But right now, the Black Maw was pulsing.
"I'm going to have an all-you-can-eat buffet."
From the hole in the ceiling, a new figure descended.
It wasn't a Chimera. It was a massive, armored Golem wielding a glowing green sword.
The sword distorted the space around it.
Lars (Takigawa) watched from a nearby rooftop.
"That's the Dimension Eater Prototype. Its sword cuts through space itself. You can't eat a cut if it separates your stomach from your head."
The Golem swung the Dimension Sword.
A rift in reality slashed toward Raiden.
"Raiden!" Basara shouted. "Dodge! That creates a void! You can't block it!"
Raiden looked at the incoming spatial slash.
He smiled.
"A void?"
Raiden stepped into the slash.
"I AM the Void."
The green spatial tear hit Raiden's chest.
It didn't cut him.
It merged with him.
The purple aura of Gluttony grabbed the green energy of the rift and pulled it inside his body.
[System Alert]
[Consumed: Spatial Tear]
[Attribute Acquired: Dimension Cutter]
[Stomach Capacity: Expanded]
Raiden stood unharmed, dusting off his chest.
"Spicy. Like wasabi."
He looked up at the Golem.
He raised his hand. His fingers glowed with the green energy he just ate.
"Let me show you how to really cut space."
"Raiden Dimension Slash."
He swiped his hand.
The Golem - and the roof of the school building behind it - was sliced cleanly in half.
The battle was over in minutes. Zolgia's assault force was digested.
Raiden stood amidst the rubble, picking metal splinters out of his teeth.
Yuki Nonaka approached him slowly. She sheathed her sword.
She looked at Mio, who was safe. She looked at the dead monsters.
"You..." Yuki whispered. "You are a threat to the world."
"Probably," Raiden agreed. "Do you have any food? I'm still hungry."
Yuki reached into her pocket. She pulled out a small, wrapped red bean bun (anpan).
She held it out with trembling hands.
"Here."
Raiden blinked. He took the bun.
He took a bite.
"Sweet."
Yuki looked down, hiding her face.
"I... I will report that the target was protected by an Unknown Variable. I won't attack Mio today."
"Good choice," Raiden patted her head again. "Bring meat buns next time."
As Yuki walked away, her face was bright red.
He accepted my offering! Why does my chest hurt? Is this a curse?
[System Alert]
[Yuki Nonaka: Status - Confused / Intrigued]
[Lust Skill: Subtle Influence Rising]
Raiden finished the bun.
"Basara.
"Yeah?"
"Your friend is cute. But she needs to eat more protein."
Basara facepalmed. "Please don't add the Hero to your harem, Raiden. The political paperwork will kill me."