Highschool DxD: Crawling x Chaos

~Yuta Yukimura~

I had failed to retrieve my underwear from Bobby.

Yes, despite being about as fast as Kiba thanks to Demon lord and Wind God's Ring I still had failed to catch Bobby. I am starting to get mildly, slightly suspicious that she might not be a normal cat.

Or it could be the fact that I keep feeding Pearl Jam.

Hey, I live in a world where every major religion is actual history, anything can be possible. A cat with superhuman stats is rather mild in comparison.

Speaking of Bobby, she has been looking weird lately, she has been less scarce lately and she makes sure to avoid Koneko at all times. I have never even seen them in the same room together.

Wait... Koneko acts like a cat a lot and kinda smells like a cat...

...And that cat smells like Koneko...

...Is Bobby Koneko?!

I don't know if Devil Magic can do that but I also can't deny it wouldn't be able to do something like that. Koneko may not be a magician explicitly but who is to say she doesn't know enough magic to turn into a cat just to fuck with me?

Now that I think about it, Bobby is also unusually smug for a cat too. And her smug face is just like Koneko's. They both steal my underwear.

There are too many dots connecting for me to simply ignore it.

But I'll ignore it anyway.

What? I don't have proof and it could just be that Koneko was eerily catlike. Unless I randomly get conclusive proof I have no reason to think about it. No reason to lose sleep over it.

Now then, I still had some free time to kill. I had already trained, getting my Devil Trigger to a more respectable timer and refining my control over my abilities.

But my training wasn't as fast now, I was probably approaching a natural plateau. My traits may give me a percentage buff but under that, I was still an average schmuck with a Devil body.

I had already given the man Venelana had picked for me, a middle-aged-looking devil with slicked-back black hair with white strands, the files for Yugioh for him to release and advertise. So I could just forget about all of that and let it be handled in my stead.

Asia and Kon were getting along, so was Koneko. But there was... something wrong.

Something just wasn't sitting right with me.

As I have stressed before, I have a very honed sense of impending doom. I was not clairvoyant or precognizant but I could feel the unease in the air.

It made me feel restless.

To take my mind off of the feeling of things feeling like they were going to burn down I decided to take a stroll around town while keeping an eye on the exorcist duo using the Observer's Mark I had on Xenovia.

They were currently split up. Xenovia going off alone, to search for the fallen angels who are totally in this town to retrieve the piece of Excalibur.

I had tried to confirm their words by using Shadow Observers to scout the entirety of Kuoh but found nobody. At this point, I wasn't even sure there were any here to begin with.

But man did Xenovia look rough, her face looked defeated and irritated like someone who got fired from their job as she looked overlooked Kuoh city from the corner of the park. Not too far away from me.

...Eh, I do feel bad for her at this point. Working for the church couldn't be that fun and I already trounced on her enough. It wouldn't hurt to extend a helping hand. I just had a thing for down-on-their-luck holy women it seemed.

Didn't take me long to walk over to her location and see her sitting on one of the benches. Probably hearing my footsteps her head jerked to the side, shooting me a sharp gaze.

"It's you, what are you doing here?"

I tilted my head and sat down next to her much to her chagrin, but not enough for her to get blatantly hostile with me.

"I could say the same to you, I just went out to clear my head. What about you?"

Xenovia sighed deeply as I shot her an inquisitive look.

"I am doing my job and looking for the fallen angels, wherever they may be."

My look conveyed my disbelief well enough that she turned her head away.

"Looking for them in the park? I mean, if I were a fallen angel I certainly wouldn't be taking a leisurely stroll around the park with the Excalibur's in my pockets. So, why are you actually here?"

Xenovia flushed, just a tad, out of shame.

"...I'm foraging for berries and fruits."

Grumble.

Her stomach instantly protested, wanting something more filling than whatever berry she could find in a public park as she covered her stomach with a fierce glare towards her own digestive system.

"Can't you guys ask for more assistance from the church? I know Irina blew it but if they are making you guys search for Excalibur the least they could do is give some more money to, you know, have living accommodations."

I saw Xenovia clench his fists tightly, did I strike a nerve?

"We do not have contact with the Vatican. So we cannot receive further support or assistance."

She would normally never share this with me but she seemed really exhausted and vulnerable right now.

"Really? They sent you to get the Excalibur with only a set amount of money and no way to contact them back? I'm just a devil and biasses or whatever but it sounds like they just threw you guys out and gave you a wild goose chase to keep you away, hoping you guys stay lost."

I expected Xenovia to snap back at me but she just glared ahead.

"You do not know."

There was no way for me to know whether she was talking about how I should not doubt the church without knowing their motives or how I do not know the half of it but her expression really made me feel some sympathy.

I put a hand on her shoulder and pulled out a meal from my shadow and gave it to her as she stared at me.

"I do not need any handouts from you devil."

Her drool said otherwise.

Not taking her words to heart I pressed on.

"It's not a handout, I just want you to eat with me. I want someone to talk to. Just take this as a payment eh?"

Obviously, it wasn't actually payment but I worded it in a way that would lessen her guilt and aversion to eating my food.

She pursed her lips before taking the lunch box in a tsundere manner.

"Hmph, in that case, I cannot refuse. Very well, I will keep you company, but only because you are willing to offer your assistance to us. Regardless of the fact you are a devil."

Towards her words, I simply waved my hand dismissively.

"Yeah yeah, sure buddy. At least unlike your friends back in the Holy Land, I'm lending a hand no?"

Xenovia ignored my words completely and started eating the lunch box I gave her, I had noticed that she was quite the thick-skinned sort unlike me. Being able to handily ignore whatever she didn't want to hear and go along with everything at her own pace.

We made some absent conversation, me prodding at her with questions like her childhood and her hobbies and etc. And it was just as depressing as I had imagined it to be.

She was taken in by the church as an orphan for her talent and groomed to be an Exorcist but by the tone of her voice, she didn't seem too dogmatic. And surprisingly, the green part of her hair wasn't anything magic, she just thought the green part looked neat and dyed it normally.

When I came here, I wasn't actually expecting her to open up to me. But the girl seemed like she really needed someone to talk to. As our conversation petered out and she finished her meal she turned to me with an unreadable expression.

"...You, I do not understand why you choose to try and help us despite us making it clear that we did not need or desire the help."

At her serious expression, I offered a shrug of my shoulders.

"Why? Are you sure you didn't need it?"

Xenovia's gaze got more stern.

"Answer me."

Alright, no dancing around with this one I guess.

"Well, I thought you guys looked sad is all. I can't stand to see pretty girls sad."

"That is all? Because you pitied us? Or are you after our bodies?"

I pursed my lips as Xenovia's voice got more combative.

"Yes, I pitied you two so I decided to help you. What about it? I may be a devil but when I see people down on their luck I feel like I just have to spare at least some charity."

Xenovia furrowed her brows.

"Do you think I would believe such heroic prose from a devil?"

I faced her with an offended look as she flinched back, my first time seeing her actually draw back for once.

"Why ask if you won't believe it? I have my reasons for helping people. The only reason I still live and breathe to this day is because I was helped, multiple times. I do not mind being pitied. If my life only exists because of the help of others, I feel like I should at least give someone a helping hand if I come across them."

I only made it so far in my original life because my parents were there for me. I got reincarnated because the Gacha decided to bless my poor soul and I only got to meet the wonderful people I had met because Rias decided to reincarnate me. I only beat Riser because Grayfia helped me.

Finishing my words I leaned back a little.

"So, after living a life or two life, I oughta have at least some charity. I may not be a hero but that doesn't mean I can't help people. Even if I am a devil."

Xenovia looked really contemplative after my words as she leaned back onto the seat and just stood silent for a moment.

"I... see. Does that make sense? I cannot believe a devil would think that way."

She didn't ask me, she asked herself.

We both leaned back onto the park bench, watching the sunset in silence, I did not know what epiphany Xenovia seemed to have and I wasn't going to ask her about it.

Xenovia seemed to hesitate for a few moments before speaking in a small voice.

"Thank you... for helping us."

An exorcist thanking the devil? Never thought I would see the day.

Still, I did not wish to ruin the moment.

"You're welcome."

But the moment was interrupted nonetheless by a telephonic message ringing in my head. I heard the distinct voice of Rias speaking in a stern tone.

'Yuta-kun, come over here now! Irina was attacked, we are at the riverbank near the schoolhouse, come quickly.'

I jumped up from my seat, surprising Xenovia next to me.

"What!?"

I turned to her. Since it was her buddy who was injured, she would have a better grasp of the situation.

"Your friend got injured, near the riverbank. Come with me?"

Xenoviva instantly. Nodded solemnly while putting a hand on her Excalibur strapped behind her back.

"Take me with you."

Not needing to hear anymore I grabbed her arm before turning on Void Travel and unfurling my wings before flying through the void at full speed towards the riverbank as Xenovia fluttered behind my wake like a piece of cloth.

Although I hate to say it...

I think I may have hit it on the head with that impending doom part.

Hopefully, hopefully, this isn't going to be too bad.

A/N: Yuta and Xenovia have a heart-to-heart. Because no other way to bond over than the feeling the getting royally screwed over. I thought I should give some development to their relationship because they really will need it.

Speaking of, Yuta is NOT going to have an easy time here. The timeline is already radically altered without a Freed and Penemue instead of Azazel. Unlike Issei, Yuta can't be bailed out by Ddraig converting his body. Look forward to it.

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