SWNOVELXO Chapter 13: The Engagement Party
Game
Thoughts
"Talking"
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Congratulations, Youkai God-sama!"
"Yo, thanks."
"Congratulations, Kami-sama!"
"Yup, thanks."
"Congratulations, Youkai God-sama! You lucky bastard!"
"Thanks."
"Congratulations, Youkai God! Fuck, it should've been me! You handsome bastard!"
"...Thanks?" Naruto thanked what must've been the hundredth nameless devil of the day.
"You're quite popular, Naruto-chan!" Sirzechs chuckled from his side. Both men were standing casually in a giant hall. There were towering pillars around them, along with various fancy-looking tables.
"Congratulations, Youkai God-sama!" Another male devil called out, walking past the duo as he entered the room.
"Thanks…" Naruto trailed off, waiting for the man to walk away before he spoke again, "Do I really need to do this? This is so… not me."
"It's customary for the groom to greet the guests," Sirzechs hummed, clapping a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry, there's only another… 77,000 more until we're finished!"
Naruto slowly turned his head to the side, the sound of metal creaking against metal ringing out as he robotically looked at Sirzechs.
"...did you say 70 thousand?"
"Yup!" Sirzechs nodded happily, "Most engagement parties for noble heirs will have a couple of thousand guests, but since you're here there's a bit more than usual."
"A bit?" Naruto deadpanned. Then, he promptly turned around and started walking away.
"Where are you going?" Sirzechs called after him worriedly.
"Just to the bathroom. I'll be back in a minute," Naruto waved back lazily. He hurried over to one of the many long hallways in the giant mansion and flashed a hand sign. In front of him, a shadow clone wearing a bright orange tuxedo appeared.
"You're me, so you already know what to do, right?" Naruto asked. The shadow clone looked at him, a pleading look in his eyes.
"I know… but why me?!"
"Because if it wasn't you, then it'd be me, and I'm not standing there to greet the next 70 thousand people," Naruto answered, clapping a hand lightly on the shadow clone's shoulder.
"Kill me." The shadow clone replied bluntly.
"Nope. Good luck!"
"Come on! Pick someone else!" The clone whined, "I'll do the next one!"
"Nah. See ya," Naruto said, shoving the clone abruptly out the hallway.
I know he's me, but fuck you boss!
The shadow dragged his feet as he walked back to Sirzechs, not looking forward to the next few hours.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Naruto-chan!" Rias called out as Naruto entered the room. He'd quickly gotten away from the stuffy, massive, entrance hall that was housing thousands of guests. Instead, he'd chosen to go to one of the smaller rooms at the engagement party, which was for only young devils.
"Yo." Naruto replied, taking in the sight of the woman. Naruto would never admit it openly to the girl, as he was sure she would tease him about it for years to come, but she looked dropped-dead gorgeous. The redhaired devil was dressed in a long white wedding dress which cut off at her breasts.
It wouldn't have been the DxD world if her massive breasts weren't damn near hanging out.
Standing behind her was her peerage, along with another woman and her peerage.
"Oh, have you met Sona yet, Naruto-chan?" Rias asked, gesturing to the dark-haired woman.
"Sitri?" Naruto hummed, looking over at the woman, "Not yet, but I might as well have. Serafall never stops talking about you."
"Ugh," Sona bluish, puffing out her cheeks in annoyance, "Onee-chan can be so annoying sometimes. She's also told me all about you, Youkai God-san. It's nice to meet you."
She held out her hand, and Naruto shook it lightly.
"Naruto is fine."
[Multiple Beings] have been affected by your [LEGENDARY] [Confusion] debuff!
"Well, I'm glad to hear you're doing fine, Youkai God-san," Sona nodded,
"N-No, I mean, you can just call me Naruto!"
[Multiple Beings] have been affected by your [LEGENDARY] [Confusion] debuff!
"Hmph, that is very kind of you, Youkai God-san," Sona nodded, an appreciative look on her face, "I'll call you sometime."
"No, no, not literally call me. Like, you can say 'Naruto' instead of 'Youkai God' when you talk to me," Naruto tried to explain.
Persuasion Check
[Rolling…]
[God's Luck] has added [ERROR]
Your [LEGENDARY] Debuff - [Bad Timing] has deactivated your [God's Luck] Perk!
1!
Check failed!
"I would never be so casual with my best friend's fiance, Youkai God-san," Sona said, nodding at him, "You have no need to worry about me talking to you informally."
"...whatever," Naruto sighed, his eye twitching as he heard Akeno giggle from behind Sona.
Naruto blinked as Rias walked past him, cupping her hands and whispering something into Sona's ear. Sona turned beet red a second later.
"R-Right now?" She asked, and Rias whispered some more in her ear.
"F-Fine, if that's what you want…" She trailed off, looking up at Naruto, "Have you ever played chess, Youkai God-san?"
"Chess?" Naruto hummed, "Nah, I'm not good at stuff like that. It takes too much brain power."
Persuasion Check
[Rolling…]
[God's Luck] has added [ERROR]
Your [LEGENDARY] Debuff - [Bad Timing] has deactivated your [God's Luck] Perk!
1!
Check failed!
Sona's eyes widened, "I see, so you're quite good at chess?"
"N-No, I've never played. I'd probably be terrible." Naruto waved his hands in front of him, trying to dispel the misunderstanding.
Persuasion Check
[Rolling…]
[God's Luck] has added [ERROR]
Your [LEGENDARY] Debuff - [Bad Timing] has deactivated your [God's Luck] Perk!
1!
Check failed!
"Wow, I didn't know you were such a chess savant, Naruto-chan!" Rias said, her eyes beaming up at him.
"Y-Yes, that's surprising, Youkai God-san." Sona nodded, "Would you be able to play a game with me sometime?"
Alright, damn system, if you wanna play like this then we can do this!
"Yes, I'd love to play you in chess sometime," Naruto answered robotically, "I should warn you though, I'm really good. Like, the best in the world. The universe even. Theres a 0% chance you'd win."
Reverse that, damn system!
Persuasion Check
[Rolling…]
[God's Luck] has added +20 to your roll!
[Ladies's Man] has added +5 to your roll!
25!
Check success!
Now you wanna help me out?! I hate this damn game.
"Oh, wow," Sona stared at him, stars in her wide eyes, "I had no idea…"
"That's amazing, Naruto-chan!" Rias cheered, her breasts bouncing as she bounced on her heels, "Looks like you'll be joining me soon, Sona!"
"Y-Yes, I supposed so…" Sona trailed off. She glanced up, met Naruto's eyes, and then promptly looked down and blushed.
"What the hell is going on?" Naruto muttered.
"Rias! Sona!" A loud masculine voice yelled behind him, and Naruto looked over his shoulder to see a muscular black-haired man in a suit walking toward them.
Do I know him from somewhere?
"Sairaorg!" Rias greeted cheerfully, waving at him.
"Sairaorg Bael," Sona responded evenly.
The man walked up to Naruto and… walked past him.
Huh?
Naruto blinked in surprise as the man ignored him completely, standing next to him as he started chatting to Rias and Sona.
He's just not even gonna acknowledge me?
Usually, anyone who saw Naruto had to get a word in. Sometimes just a greeting, sometimes a ramble about how big of a fan they were, and other times a marriage contract proposal. This was the first time in a long time that someone completely ignored him.
…I like this guy.
It was strangely nice to not be hounded for once. Naruto might've wanted to be Hokage, but after being the 'Youkai God' for so long he was over the whole people going crazy over you thing.
"Is there not someone you're forgetting to greet, Sairaorg?!" Rias cut off Sairaorg abruptly, her eyes narrowing at him.
"Oh, right!" Sairaorg chuckled casually, "Kiba, Akeno! Nice to see you guys again!"
"Not them!" Rias shouted, glaring at him, "It's normal for high-class's to not greet reincarnated devils."
"Hm?" Sairaorg looked genuinely confused for a second, looking around the small room, "...your new peerage member? I heard they were promoted right away for some reason, so are they a high-class now?"
"Yes, she is! That's Asia!" Rias said, smiling smugly as Asia gave a small wave behind her. Then, her head snapped back down as she glared at him again, "But not her! Greet Naruto-chan!"
Sairaorg stared at her blankly, "...Naruto?"
Wait, I know where I've seen him before.
The situation finally made sense as it dawned on Naruto where he knew the man from.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Flashback - chapter 4.
Naruto's curiosity got the best of him, and he stealthily snuck his way over to a large devil sitting on a cardboard box. He was far too big for the box, and it was crumpled beneath him.
"Hey, why are you sitting on a cardboard box?" Naruto asked him.
"Oh, hey Youkai God. It's because all the devils had to leave the underworld so quickly, so the Astaroth family didn't have time to get any real furniture, but didn't want to delay the execution," The devil answered, turning his head back to look at the execution folding table. Then, his eyes widened, and he did a double take, "Wait, Youkai God?"
"No, that's not me," Naruto said, waiting for his system to kick in. It didn't.
"You're definitely the Youkai God. I read your manga, I know what you look like. How the hell are you here? I need to tell somebody!" The devil said, moving to stand up. Naruto's hand clamped on his shoulder, pushing him back down.
"No, no, definitely not me. There's no Youkai God here. In fact, the Youkai God isn't even real." Naruto said seriously, staring into the man's eyes. This time, the system decided to help him out.
Persuasion Check
[Rolling…]
[God's Luck] has added +20 to your roll!
20!
Check success!
The man slouched back onto the cardboard box, staring in boredom towards the Nekoshou sisters again as he completely forgot about Naruto's existence.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I think I told this guy I didn't exist?
"Yes, Naruto-chan!" Rias shouted, pointing her finger at Naruto. Then, her face softened as she clarified, "Or, I mean, Kami-sama! Maybe you didn't realize, but that's the Youkai God standing next to you!"
"Oh!" Sairaorg said, bursting out into a loud belly laugh, "Of course!"
Sairaorg turned to the side and held out his hand. Unfortunately, he had turned to the wrong side, and now his back was to Naruto. He shook his hand up and down in the air as if he was doing a pretend handshake.
"Nice to see you again, Youkai God-san!" Sairaorg chuckled.
"S-Sairaorg?" Sona asked, looking at him strangely, "He's… he's on your other side."
"Oh, right!" Sairaorg burst out into laughter again and then turned around. He held his hand out to Naruto but started shaking his hand in the air before Naruto grabbed it.
"Though, I don't need to greet the Youkai God!" Sairaorg said loudly, turning back to the girls with a large grin, "After all, we've been friends for decades! Me and him grew up together, and our inseparable bond was formed through years of extreme training!"
Sairaorg gave a big toothy grind, flexing his biceps as he finished.
"...You guys did?" Sona asked doubtfully.
"You know him, Naruto-chan?" Rias asked, looking up at him.
"Nope," Naruto responded bluntly. The girls both turned back to Sairaorg and then an uncomfortable silence stretched out.
"Why're you guys looking at me like that?" Sairaorg asked eventually.
"...You're lying about being friends with Youkai God-san," Sona said bluntly, "It's weird."
"W-What?!" Sairaorg asked, "B-But, that's why we're all here! Was my story not believable enough?!"
"Story?" Rias tilted her head questioningly.
"If you can roleplay as the Youkai God's fiance, then I can be his best friend!" Sairaorg shot back, his eyes narrowed at Rias, "I get that you're a Gremory and all, but don't gatekeep the fandom like that!"
"...The fandom?" Sona asked incredulously.
Rias frowned at him, "I'm not pretending, Sairaorg. I am Naruto-chan's fiance. He beat Riser and won my contract!"
"Yeah, yeah," Sairaorg sighed, "And I'm his best friend. We all like roleplaying with the Youkai God Rias, so why are getting so upset over me doing it? I know I started a bit late compared to a lot of people, but I have a ton of experience! My queen makes me roleplay as him every night in be-"
"S-Sairaorg!" A blonde-haired woman came rushing over, grabbing his arm and dragging him back, "D-Don't say stuff like that!"
"What? It's true."
"Just… go get me a drink or something, please! I'll talk to them for a bit!" Kuisha shouted, pushing Sairaorg away.
"S-Sorry about him," Kuisha said, bowing at Naruto, and then again at Rias and Sona, "He had a traumatic experience a couple of years ago and hasn't been the same since."
"What happened?" Sona asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Ah, I'm not sure," Kuisha responded hesitantly, "Something involving Youkai God-sama."
She nodded at Naruto and continued, "He's completely blocked him out of his mind. He thinks Youkai God-sama isn't real, and that this is some type of roleplay party. He's roleplaying as your best friend…"
Oh, damn, I kinda screwed this guy up a bit. I should be more careful with my words. I'll try to use the system to help him out sometime.
"P-Please spare his life, Youkai God-sama!" Kuisha bowed down as she faced Naruto, "I'm deeply sorry he did not greet you! P-Please take my body, and spare him!"
"Don't worry about it," Naruto waved his hand dismissively, "It's fine. It was nice being ignored for a change."
"...So you don't want my body?" She asked, peeking up at him from her bowed position.
"Not at our engagement party, Kuisha!" Rias shouted, jokingly slapping a hand on her back, "I'll help you get in the harem later, but today is about us!"
"R-Right!" Kuisha nodded, looking over at Rias gratefully, then she looked back at Naruto, "I need to go make sure Sairaorg doesn't do anything stupid. Congratulations on your many engagements, Youkai God-sama!"
"Thanks," Naruto replied lazily, then blinked as she hurried away, "Wait, my many engagements?"
"I wish we could've had a party for just us, Naruto-chan, but they held seniority…" Rias sighed, looking slightly down, "We should get going to the rehearsal room anyway. See you later, Sona!"
Rias reached out, grabbing Naruto's hand and dragging him toward the hallway.
"W-Wait, who had seniority?" Naruto asked, confused.
"All of them," Rias huffed, not explaining further as she dragged him down the hallway. A moment later, she opened a door and led him into a large room. A large room full of familiar women.
Women, more specifically, in revealing wedding dresses.
…How did I get in this situation?
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naruto Uzumaki:
[Youkai God]
Lvl: 505
STR: 762
DEX: 725
CON: 540
INT: 215
WIS: 750
CHA: 999
LUK: 0
Skills: None
Perks: [Martial Arts], [You're a Wizard, Naruto], [Ladies Man], [God's Luck]
Debuffs: [Confusion], [Bad Timing]
Naruto Uzumaki is a Hero from another world, who has been reborn with the power of the Gamer system!
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AN: Thank you for reading! The next chapter will be out next week, or you can read the next 6 (up to chapter 19) right now at Patreon.com/Koyon !