《Among Demons and Gods》


 The tortured boy

    The story starts off in a world that at a glance seems like our own, but is completely different from what we know. This is a world where science coexists with magic, a world where the populace believes that magic and demons are normal. However, what they do not know is that beings that claim to be gods are appearing at a quickly increasing rate.


    As the 2nd year high school student Isa Hironori made the trip from his school to his apartment he was walking abnormally fast, almost running. If one looked closely enough they would see sweat rolling down his forehead in sheets, even though it was only mid-spring. As soon as he walked into his apartment he collapsed at the doorway, and clutched his head in agony.


    ¡°nggg¡± Hironori was in so much pain that it was too difficult to even scream, and this low, muffled, groan was the best that he could muster.


    As he lay there paralyzed in pain, he thought to himself  ¡°What is happening to me, why must I go through such excruciating pain. Anything would feel better than this, whether it be getting stabbed with a dull knife repeatedly, or even bludgeoned to death with a bat. At least with these things I would know that the pain would end when I was killed.¡±


    Finally, after two hours the pain started to subside and Hironori could move again he immediately went to the bathroom to wash off some of the sweat. When he finished rinsing off his face in the sink he looked into the mirror. When he did he saw his own familiar face staring right back at him. His own black hair, his average face, and in his own opinion, his best feature his bright blue eyes that seemed to suck people in if one stared into them long enough.


    He was relieved to see himself, after experiencing that kind of pain so many times Hironori quickly began to fear that one of these times when he looks into the mirror he will not be himself anymore. After making a relieved sigh Hironori turned around to go make something to eat, since it was already nearly seven at night. As he turned he saw something that would haunt him for the rest of his life, something so disgusting that even thinking about it made him nearly vomit for the next week. It looked as if it were a large mound of rotting meat all pressed together firmly to form a body, at had no arms or legs, but it¡¯s face was it¡¯s most terrifying feature. This thing¡¯s face was constantly changing. At first it was a very fitting rotting pigs head, then it quickly changed to another rotting animal head, then another. Then its head was that of human, but it was gruesomely tortured. There was nearly no skin left, its eyeballs were taken out and its ears were cut off. Then it continued to change again and again each one¡¯s face more gruesome then the last, finally its face closely resembled that of his father, except this face was tortured to an extreme degree then it just shifted between that and a face that resembled his mother over and over again.


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    This made Hironori actually vomit repeatedly and his eyes started to water up. Hironori and his parents had an extremely close relationship, he did everything together with them, and he loved every minute of his life with them. However when he was seven his parent¡¯s died in a car accident on their way home from work one day. His parents left Hironori everything they had. His remaining relatives started fighting over who got custody because that meant they had a good chance of getting his inheritance. In the end he chose to stay with his aunt and uncle whom he got along with well, when his parents were alive. When he graduated from junior high Hironori decided that for high school he would live on his own in a small apartment. Shortly after he moved in he started hearing things moving and something shuffling around, but he chose to ignore it. It continued like this for a year and a half, then two months ago he was suddenly assaulted by pain at the same time every week. He went to the doctors, but they said he was perfectly healthy, and from then on he just suffered through the pain, but today is the first time anything like this had happened.


    It continued for ten minutes, then disappeared while laughing with a voice that was impossible to describe, as if it was everything that disgusted people mixed into one noise. While this ordeal was the worst kind of torture for Hironori, this was also a great hint towards what this thing was. After recovering from that traumatizing ordeal, Hironori said to himself ¡° Now that I have a good idea of what this thing is I have to confirm it, then destroy it!¡±


    After confirming the situation to himself he did not waste any time, and went to the nearest shrine to speak with a miko, to help him with this demon

 Chapter two- The unlikely solution

    Isa Hironori ran to the nearest shrine, which was twenty minutes away. After arriving he found a random groundskeeper and explained his situation by saying ¡° I believe I am possessed by a demon, and need a miko¡¯s assistance in getting rid of it.¡±


    The groundskeeper showed him the way with. They soon arrived at the closed door of a room. Hironori was asked to stay there for a minute while he explained the situation to the miko. After five minutes of waiting the door opened and he saw a very beautiful woman, who looked to be in her early twenties. She was slightly shorter then Hironori at about 5¡¯8¡±, she had light brown hair that flowed all the way down her back, and dark green eyes that looked as though she could see through anyone and anything.


    She said in a very pleasant voice ¡°You can call me Haruka. Come in quickly and let me see this demon that has been troubling you.¡±


    He walked quickly to the middle of the room and stood nervously right in front of her. Haruka then grabbed his hand and her eyes glowed faintly. Hironori was shocked by this display, but what he did not know is that this was actually one of the traits all mikos were required to possess. She suddenly jumped back while turning pale and said ¡°This demon is extremely powerful, it is most likely an A rank, and is deeply rooted in your soul, slowly devouring it.¡±


    Hironori then quickly asked ¡°What does that mean?¡± This sort of reaction was natural because while magic and demons existing were commons knowledge, most people did not know any specific details about these things. Only that there were academies specializing in magic and that only the extremely rich could get into and that it is rare for someone to be able to use magic and have contact with demons.


    After around a minute Haruka seemed to have, for the most part, regained her composure and answered Hironori¡¯s question ¡°There are many different types of demons, all with varying degrees of power, to help categorize them we have created a ranking system for their power. From the weakest to the strongest it goes F, E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, and SSS. This means that the demon inside of you is extremely powerful. Not only that but it has been around you for far too long, so it is now impossible for anyone to get rid of it externally without killing you in the process.¡±


    Hironori was originally very depressed at hearing such bleak news, but caught on to something that sounded odd at the end of her explanation ¡°Why did you stress that it what impossible externally, does that mean that there is some other way to get rid of it?¡±


    Haruka took a deep breath and said ¡°Yes, however the chances of success are not good, at best it is only around sixty percent, so I was debating on whether or not I should tell you. Do you still wish to know?¡±


    By nature Hironori was a fighter, even if they was only a thread of hope he would grasp onto it and never let go, so naturally his answer was ¡°Yes! Of course I want to know, I want to live and kill this demon.¡±


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    She signed then said, ¡° Then here is the only way to get rid of it. Since a very powerful demon has attached itself to you, it usually means that you have an extremely strong soul. Soul are a persons consciousness, what moves them, there feelings, and most important their memories. Demons feed on souls to help them grow stronger more quickly then just training and the stronger the soul, the better. So now I will introduce you to a summoner, who will help you complete a contract with a demon, who after completing the contract will fight against the current demon over your soul. While this may sound like a great solution, there are many risks and drawbacks. The first is that there is only one chance to summon a demon. Next is that it must be an extremely powerful one, being at least A rank to even have a chance of success. While this does not sound like must with just words, the chances of summoning a demon are as follows. F is close to zero as the strength of the soul decides the strength of the demon, same goes for E, D, and C. however at B rank there is around a seventy percent chance. At A rank there is about a twenty-eight percent chance, and the last two percent are for S rank. Also when forming contracts with demons you and the demon have to make a deal. Most of the time it will be the demon get the persons soul when they die, there is also the rare occurrence where a demon wants to take all the person¡¯s possessions, and there are even demons that require the person to find something for them. ¡±


    Hironori then thought of something and quickly asked ¡°What about contracting SS rank, and SSS rank demons?¡±


    Haruka burst out laughing ¡°Hahaha don¡¯t even dream of it in the entire world there are only eleven SSS rank contractors, and less then 50 SS rank contractors. There is no chance you will get one, every single one of those thirty one people are all freaks who could easily destroy countries.¡±


    Slightly depressed at how he was laughed at he continued ¡°Okay, when will the summoning take place?¡±


    Wiping the tears from her eyes Haruka said, ¡° It takes time to set up, so everything should be ready in three days, until then you can stay here. Within this shrine at least this demon will not be able to do as it pleases and you will be safe until the ceremony.¡±


    After three uneventful days of helping the groundskeepers with their work, Hironori made his way to where the summoning was about to take place nervously. Little did he know that this was the night that everything would change, not just for himself, but for the entire world.

 Chapter three- The contract

    As he stumbled his way in the dark towards the ominous dull purple light in the center of the field Hironori saw two figures, one of which he was familiar with, the other was a complete stranger. The one he knew was Haruka, and when she noticed him she smiled and said, ¡° Hurry over here and I will introduce you to the man that will help decide whether or not you will ever be free of this demon.¡±


    Hearing that, Hironori quickly ran over and saw the man in more detail. He looked to be in his thirties, and while not extremely muscular, gave off the feeling of being as sturdy as a mountain, he had extremely dark brown hair, and he was clean shaven and far better looking than Hironori could ever hope to be. He said nervously to the mysterious man ¡° my name is Isa Hironori pleased to meet you!¡±


    The man gave off an extremely pleasant to hear laugh and said, ¡°So you are the boy I¡¯ve been doing all this extra work for. My name is Endo Naoki, but most people call me Nao.¡±


    ¡°Well then Nao, I have a few questions before we start, the first being what exactly the difference between a contractor, and a summoner?¡±


    Nao quickly answered with ¡°Its simple, a contractor is anyone who has made a contract with a demon, while a summoner is just a contractor that has the required knowledge on how to construct circles like you see here.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, now the second question is, Haruka has already explained to me what I am supposed to do, but can we go over it one more to, just to be sure?¡± said Hironori nervously.


    Nao then responded with ¡° Hahaha of course! We can¡¯t have you messing up your only shot at getting your freedom back now can we?¡±


    Nao said with the same amiable smile on face ¡° First you just need to just stay a few feet away from the circle to make sure nothing get ruined, then when I finish tell you to you need to simply step into this area right here.¡± He pointed to a much smaller version of the circle of ruins a few feet away from where Hironori is currently standing.


    Continuing on ¡° Then we wait and when the demon comes you will just negotiate and create your contract with it.¡±


    ¡°Is it really this simple? Hironori¡¯s doubt was completely understandable because it truly did seem far too simple.


    Both Haruka and Nao burst out laughing. Since she was the first to calm down Haruka told him ¡° you only say that because you have yet to experience it. To give you a better idea of it is as if you are using your soul, your very being, as bait to attract the strongest demon you can. It is truly terrifying. Also it isn¡¯t that uncommon for people to pass out immediately afterwards.¡±


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    Nao shivered slightly then pumped himself up by saying to himself ¡° While it may be terrifying, what is it compared to the demon currently inside me, where if it was able to it would torture me both physically and mentally every moment of every day?¡±


    After seeing Hironori nod with resolution Nao said in an extremely domineering voice ¡°Heed my call demons of another world! Respond to my summons and be greatly rewarded!¡±


    After Nao spoke Hironori quickly entered the small circle and after both feet entered he felt something being pulled out of his body. He then felt as if his body and consciousness had completely separated and felt as if he had been thrown off the ledge of a thousand foot mountain, only to land into a sea and be surrounded by monster all with varying shapes and sizes. They could get up to a few inches then were repelled back. After being in this situation for ten minutes he had gotten used to it to some degree, but still flinched whenever they got close, then it happened, something came at him so fast that all he could see was a black blur coming from the distance. Hironori felt a sharp pain on his hand and when he looked down he was a large, bite mark and before he knew what happened Hironori was on his knees back at the field with Haruka and Nao.


    They were just silently waiting off to the side, and when Hironori looked down at his hand he was shocked to see that where the bite was in it¡¯s place was a large maroon circle. Then before his very eyes three think maroon lines slowly coined around his arm up to his shoulder.


    As he was about to ask what this meant large multicolored flames filled the entirety of the large circle. Then she appeared she looked to be the same age as Hironori, wearing a white tanktop and a very short frilly black miniskirt. With hair that matches the flames exactly, a beautiful mix of many different shades of purple and blue. Her bright pink eyes could easily entrance anyone who looked at her, she had a figure that anyone, man or woman, would rate as absolutely perfect and her devilish smile can make anyone feel as if it were natural to bow to her.


    She looked Hironori in the eyes and said while walking closer and said ¡°Hello human, you may call me Asmodeus!¡±


    <hr />


    For anyone who wants to get an idea of what i had in mind for Asmodeus here is an image close to her, but she is more mature, and there are slight differences in their appearances.  http://itsukatenmanokurousagi.wikia.com/wiki/Saitohimea</a>.

 Chapter Four- Terms and other surprises

    Hironori surprisingly calmly said ¡°And my name is Isa Hiron-¡° However he was cut short because Asmodeus suddenly glared at him and said ¡°Looks like we have a pest that actually dares to touch my property, looks as if it has a death wish!¡±


    As she said that Hironori felt as if his blood was suddenly burning, and oddly enough at most if could only be described as slightly uncomfortable, there was nothing painful about. Then he saw thick black smoke fly out of him as he simultaneously felt as if a great weight was taken off of him.


    The black smoke reformed into the monster he saw the other day, and it had it¡¯s pig head. Before anyone could react Asmodeus simply snapped her fingers and the flames that surrounded her went over to if and devoured it, leaving nothing left. As everyone present was shocked by her display just now she casually said, ¡°Shall we continue from where we left off?¡±


    Hironori snapped out of it, and more respectfully said ¡°As I was saying before my name is Isa Hironori, and if its okay with you may we start the contracting process?¡±


    She giggled mischievously and said ¡°Of course, first off I will be calling you Hiro, and here are my demands if I am going to contract with you. First, I plan on constantly staying in this form, as such I need you to take care of all my daily needs. Next, I want you to take me to explore this world. And lastly I want you to promise me that the time I spend with you will be fun.¡±


    She continues on confidently ¡°In exchange for these small demands of mine I will grant you enormous power and will protect you. So what do you think, pretty good deal right?¡±


    Hironori was confused and irritated by her attitude and thought to himself ¡°What is her deal, she sounds extremely cocky, her way of speaking makes it sound as if she is here on vacation¡± So he voiced a few of his concerns. ¡°Before I agree I have a few questions the first being exactly how powerful are you? Why are your demands so simple? Why do you not want my soul, and finally what is this mark that goes up my arm?¡±


    Asmodeus looked at him with obvious confusion on her face ¡°What do you mean how powerful are you, do you not know what the title of Asmodeus means?¡±


    When she saw him shake his head she looked amused and said ¡°Well for you first question, in the demon world the seventy two strongest demons get a title, it being a name of one of the original seventy-two pillars of Solomon. Also the only way to get the title is to kill the previous titleholder, so I guess according to your ranking system I would be in the highest tier of SSS."


    She seemed to enjoy the dumbstruck look of plain confusion on everyone¡¯s face, including Nao and Haruka, as she started to laugh and said ¡°Hahaha is it really that hard to believe after what I just did to the demon that was touching my possession. As for the next question it is simply because they are simple, I am still young and have never been to the human¡¯s world and thought that it would be fun to explore. Next, while you may have an abnormally strong soul, when a demon get as strong as I am there is no use for it, even if your soul were ten times stronger, the effect would still be negligible at best. Lastly that mark just shows that you are now my property, and is a mark of our contract that¡¯s it.¡±


    After answering his questions he thought for some reason that he absolutely couldn¡¯t pass up this opportunity! So


    following that feeling he said quickly ¡°Yes! Please allow me to contract with you!¡±


    Again acting like she was high and mighty said ¡°Yes that is more like it, know your place and appreciate how lucky you are to have found me. And with this the contract will be complete.¡± She confidently swaggered up to him and while he was mesmerized by everything about her she lightly kissed him on the lips and Hironori could not move a muscle, as if he were in a trance. When she separated from him she hopped back with both hands behind her back and gave a sexy, mature smile while saying ¡°That¡¯s cute Hiro, were you hoping that it would be longer?¡±


    At that time he realized what just happened and quickly jumped backwards while yelling ¡°As if, thanks to you my precious first kiss was taken away by a demon!¡±


    She obviously to be upset and said, ¡°What are you not satisfied about with me? Both my looks, and my personality are perfect, are they not?¡±


    He grumbled ¡°Your personality certainly leaves something to be desired.¡±


    Asmodeus quickly shut him up by responding ¡°You complained about my personality for some reason, but you did not complain about my body did you?¡± while slowly walking towards him shyly.


    ¡°Ahem! I am sorry to interrupt your newly found romance, but would mind if I asked a few questions?¡±


    She glared at him and said, ¡°Since you have already ruined the mood you might as well.¡± Hearing this Hironori gave a relieved sigh and Nao said, ¡°Then, is your rank as high as you say it is, and if it is what is your rank in the 72 pillars?¡±


    She said with rage obviously in her voice ¡° If you do not believe my words have your demon come and confirm my strength!¡±


    Nao nodded and said ¡°Come before me, defend against all in existence, Jotunn!¡± Hironori saw an extremely bright very pale blue light come out of him and a 15 feet tall giant that looked as if it were made of crystal clear ice standing before him.


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    The demon, not knowing why it was summoned quickly scanned its surroundings to identify the threat. And as soon as it saw those lingering purple and blue flames, and Asmodeus who was wearing a glare on her face. He almost immediately kneeled in front of her and begged in a deep, resonant voice ¡°my lord please do not punish this one for not noticing you and paying my respects sooner.¡±


    In a lofty tone that seemed to naturally suit her ¡°Its is of no concern you are now dismissed.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your mercy.¡± And it disappeared back into Nao¡¯s body. Nao and Haruka who witnessed this were shocked and they seemed to pale slightly. Asmodeus seemed to think that this was only natural, and Hironori, did not understand the severity of what just happened.


    While still pale Nao said, ¡°I am sorry for my earlier doubts.¡± The previous sight blew away all of Nao¡¯s earlier suspicions, he knew that normally the only one that demons listened to were their contractors, however there was only one exception, when the demon is not only deeply frightened by another¡¯s strength, but also respects the individual.


    While Nao was thinking about what just happened Asmodeus said boastfully ¡°While I maybe the youngest of the 72 pillars, in power alone I rank in the high twenties, maybe early thirties.¡±


    Hironori interrupted them and asked, ¡°What do you mean in power alone?¡±


    As Asmodeus was about to say something, Nao answered ¡°The ranking is in pure power alone because different elements subdue each other, for example, Asmodeus specializes in fire, so it naturally very difficult to fight a demon specializing in water, that has power comparable to her own.¡±


    He suddenly understood and went ¡°Okay, thank you. Since Nao seemed satisfied with the answers he got he walked towards Haruka and deeply bowed to her and said, ¡°Thank you, without you none of this would have been possible! Anytime you need anything please contact me.¡±


    Haruka seemed to have recovered from the shock of the things she had seen and smiled saying ¡°I was merely doing my job, please do not think anything of it.¡±


    He bowed once more to her and walked over to Nao and did the same thing, Nao smiled slightly and said ¡°don¡¯t regret your words later.¡±


    After that Hironori left with Asmodeus and they walked back to his house from the shrine. They were walking down a street in the middle of the city in the dead of night while Asmodeus was glued to his arm because with his measly strength he could not put up any resistance. Making conversation to help himself calm down he said ¡°Earlier you said that you inherited the title Asmodeus, what was you name before that?¡±


    She whispered into his ear to tease him ¡°Before that I was Rosalie.¡±


    While trying his best to sound calm and failing completely ¡°Then, since you arbitrarily gave me the nickname of Hiro, I will be calling you Rose.¡±


    She giggled and said do what you want and the rest of the walk was just small talk between the two.


    When they arrived at his home she ran inside and with an attitude similar to that of a puppy explored the entire house. While curious about all the technology, she did not seem all that surprised and when he asked her about it she simply answered, ¡°I have been wanting to explore this world for awhile so I talked to demons that had previously came here and learned as much about it as I could.¡±


    He said ¡°It is so late at night I plan on going straight to sleep, what about you?¡±


    She said, ¡°yes, that sounds great!¡±


    ¡°Well then, you can sleep in the bed while I will sleep in on the couch for tonight.¡± He said this while thinking that it would make him look good and her reply shocked him.


    ¡°No! I want something to hug while I sleep, so let¡¯s sleep together on the bed.¡±


    He got very embarrassed and while looking away and blushing said, ¡°No, that would be way too inappropriate.¡±


    She smiled while walking closer to him and said ¡°If you don¡¯t sleep in the bed with me I¡¯ll sleep on the couch with you.¡±


    He called her bluff and laid on the couch. He closed his eyes, and a few minutes passed, but then he felt a sudden weight on his lower waist. When he opened his eyes she was straddling him, and she was only wearing one of his old tee shirts, and could see black panties flashing whenever she moved too much.


    Being happy at seeing this yet extremely embarrassed at it actually happening to him, he yelled at that devilishly smiling face ¡°Fine lets go to the bed, but you can only use me as a pillow, nothing else!¡±


    She promptly got off and said ¡°Now wouldn¡¯t this have been easier if you had just agreed in the first place, lets go, Hiro.¡±


    The next morning Hiro was exhausted because he got virtually no sleep, and after making breakfast for the two of them while they were eating he heard a knock at the door. When he opened it there were two large, imposing men in black suits standing there. They said ¡°Good morning Mr. Isa Hironori, we are from the National Magic Institute of Japan and we have come here to deliver a letter from Endo Naoki. When you are done reading it please come back here.

 Chapter five welcome to the world of magic!

    The letter in Hironori¡¯s hand was short and concise, all it said was ¡°You promised me that you would do me a favor, so instead of living a normal, ordinary life, I wish for you to attend the National Magic Institute of Japan. Since your demon is so strong you need to learn to control it, and I am sorry to say but you also need to now be monitored.¡±


    His first reaction to this was shock, and momentary anger at Nao for pulling him away from his peaceful and fulfilling life. However, after thinking about from his perspective her could understand Nao¡¯s predicament, how could they leave something as strong as a triple SSS rank demon unmonitored, it is equivalent to having a ticking time bomb that could go off at any minute. He went back to the men and the first thing he asked was ¡°How am I expected to pay for the tuition, from what I have heard even if it has been reduced because the person has great talent, it is still at least seven million yen a year?¡±


    They were actually shocked that this was his first and foremost concern. But what they did not know was that Hironori was extremely adaptable, if he was not he would not have been able to be calm about being possessed by a demon, or would be able to put up with Rose¡¯s behavior. One of them replied calmly, ¡°This was all covered by Endo Naoki, not only will your tuition be waved, all your daily necessities will be covered by the academy.¡±


    Hironori thought that this situation was strange and asked skeptically ¡° Now why is that?¡±


    They simply answered that it would all be answered when they arrived at the academy and that they would be back tomorrow to pick him up.


    After going back to the kitchen, Rose was sitting there waiting for him, as she had finished eating, and asked, ¡°who was that?¡±


    He explained the situation to her and instead of getting angry like he had expected, she seemed ecstatic about the idea saying ¡°Does that mean I will be able to attend a so called school and get to wear the uniforms?¡±


    Still being extremely shocked at her reaction all he could do was say ¡°Yes.¡±


    She grabbed his hand and pulled him into his bedroom and said with a huge smile on her face ¡°Hurry up and pack your clothes and anything else you need.¡±


    At seeing such a pure smile on her face all he could do is agree and start packing. Hironori really was not one to enjoy shopping and was not all that interested in material possessions, so it only took an hour to pack all the belongings he planned on taking with him. As for Rose she watched him for about twenty minutes, then ran off somewhere because she got bored.


    Other than the visitors in the morning the day was rather uneventful and boring, Hironori just spent the rest of the day teaching Rose the common sense of the world, and how to use technologies such as the cellphone, and a remote. As she was an extremely quick learner she only needed to hear his explanations once, and she remembered everything.


    The only other things worth mentioning are that the entire time she was with Hironori she was attempting to flirt with him, such as whenever they took a break she would sneak up behind him and hug him while whispering sweetly ¡°Guess who it is Hiro.¡± And then laugh as Hironori blushed in embarrassment. Also Hironori found out what seems to be her one weakness. When it was six at night the two were hungry and Hironori was attempting to teach her how to cook, but it ended halfway as Rose actually set the food on fire and Hironori had to put it out.


    The next morning one woke up early, while the other was forced into being a hug pillow yet again and got very little sleep. After the two got dressed and ate there was a knock on the door and the two men were there as expected. They were shocked at seeing just how beautiful Rose was, but quickly recovered from it when Rose beautifully ignored them. They carried the luggage for them, and when they got outside the building Hironori was the only one shocked to see that there was a limousine waiting there for them, as Rose did not understand the significance of it.


    The drive was a little under five hours and before even the first hour had passed Rose had fallen asleep against his arm. He thought that this would be a good time to tell his aunt and uncle that he would be studying at the academy, but hide the details about his demon, and explain it as they said that he had good talent and waved his fees. As he was careful to take out his phone as to not wake up Rose, he called them and they were extremely excited for him and wished him good luck.


    When the limo finally stopped he gently tried to wake up Rose, but when she said ¡°ugh¡­ five more minutes¡±, he carefully pinched her nose and watched as she jumped awake, and looked at him with angry, teary eyes. Then the doors opened and he saw a dazzlingly large and grand complex of bright, white buildings. There looked to be at least five buildings, and each one was the size of any normal school. Matched with the perfectly clear blue sky, this scene looked as if it were taken directly from a painting.


    After thoroughly taking in the scenery he and Rose, who was just as amazed, followed the men into the building that was just beyond the entrance. They said ¡°Wait here and a receptionist will show you into the headmasters office, and he will explain everything.¡± Then they left.


    After both of them waiting for only a few minutes a man in a suit showed up and guided them to onto an elevator that led directly to the top floor, and showed them to a door and bowed saying ¡°This is the headmaster¡¯s room, please enter.¡± Then left.


    Hironori gulped and quickly walked forward to open the door, along with Rose who was not nervous at all. When they opened the door they saw a room filled with bookshelves, and a large wooden desk in the center. Sitting at the desk was a man that seemed to be in has early fifties, with a gray hair, making him seem older. He looked like a dandy old man. He had an air of confidence around him, as if he could take care of any problem that presented itself.


    The headmaster said in a voice that was neither to high nor low ¡°Welcome to the National Magic Institute of Japan, everyone just calls me headmaster. Now I imagine that you must have a few questions so you may sit down and ask anything you want.¡±


    Hironori said ¡°Yes, the first being how did Nao manage to allow me to have free tuition, and join in the middle of the year?¡±


    Headmaster chuckled slightly and answered ¡°By Nao do you happen to mean Endo-sensei?¡±


    ¡°Ehh that man is a teacher?¡± This genuinely surprised Hironori, no matter how he looked at it he could not see him as a teacher.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, even his students couldn¡¯t believe that man was a teacher when they had him for the first time. As for your question, Endo-sensei is the head teacher of runes and summoning magic. And we allowed you in no with tuition required because we currently desperately need all the power we can get.¡±


    Hironori got serious and asked, ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Currently what the majority of the public does not know is that there is an immensely powerful enemy encroaching this world.¡±


    Hearing this Rose who has been silently observing with relative interest until now suddenly interrupted ¡° You are talking about gods, are you not?¡±


    The headmaster nodded his head in agreement and Rose took over the position of explaining to Hironori "The beings that I just mentioned are things from another world that claim that they are the gods that rule over everything. They are the beings recorded in the various religions across this planet. They believe that they are superior to all other forms of life and are the mortal enemies of demons, this is another reason why we contract with humans, to be able to kill these gods.¡±


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    She finished, and the atmosphere was so heavy one could actually feel it pressing down, that is until, ¡°But don¡¯t worry my little Hiro, I am strong enough that if one of those pests come along I¡¯ll burn so them so that not even ashes remain!¡± Rose said this while hugging Hiro.


    This display made the headmaster become shocked, then laugh until he was actually crying. ¡°Looks like the rumors are true, only the seventy two pillars are capable of just writing off gods as pests!¡±


    While saying that Hironori looked slightly touched and said ¡°thank you Rose.¡± And was thinking to himself ¡°I think that she just said something extremely terrifying like it is nothing.¡±


    ¡°Now that the heavy discussion is out of the way, lets discuss your schedule for school.¡± The headmaster said with a smile on his face.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Hironori was confused by what that meant.


    ¡°He means what magic and other courses you want to take!¡± said Rose excitedly.


    She took the packet of options away from Hironori and started circling options without caring about the stares from the other two. Soon after she handed it back to the headmaster and he raised his eyebrows in surprise. ¡°The class on fire magic I can understand because you are a demon that¡¯s specialty is fire, but why are almost all the others oriented on close combat?¡±


    Hironori quickly looked at the list and wanted to scream. The list had introduction to fire magic, single close combat practice, group battle practice, weapon practice, and the study of runes. Hironori was in decent shape, but all these classes would definitely make him die from overwork. However, she did not stop there, ¡°I also want a private tutor to teach him etiquette. Also, I wish to also get a uniform and go to the classes with him. And lastly, we are going to share a room.¡±


    While Hironori was practically crying from how difficult this was going to be, the headmaster asked ¡°While I also understand the etiquette class so he doesn¡¯t embarrass himself in front of the many nobles attending. Again, why must he be forced into so many combat classes, and why do you want to be with him.¡± The headmaster smartly just glided over the subject of them sharing a room.


    She calmly replied ¡°My personal magic specializes in armed close combat while also using magic so he naturally must excel in these areas. I want to enroll with him because being in a school sounds like fun!¡±


    ¡°Hahaha okay, I¡¯ll allow it. Sorry Hironori but since this will only benefit you in the future tough it out.¡± He said while smiling and giving thumbs up to the now crying Hironori.


    Then there was a knock on the door and a high pitched, respectful voice came from the other side ¡°Headmaster, I have come to guide the new student around the campus.¡±


    ¡°You may enter.¡± said the headmaster regaining his calm, steadfast atmosphere.


    Then a girl with bright red hair, bright red pupils to match, with a body that was perfect, and face that was so beautiful that one could not help but think that she belonged in a painting walked in and saw quite a strange sight.


    Hironori was crying with his hands on his face, and Rose sneaked up to his side while patting his back and whispering to him that this was all necessary and that he will thank her later. All the while the headmaster was just looking at the scene with a slight smile on his face, doing nothing.


    When the woman saw rose she was momentarily stunned by her, and then said while bowing ¡°I am sorry did I interrupt something.¡± Finally realizing that the woman was there he wiped his tears and quickly said, ¡°No it¡¯s nothing.¡±


    When he saw the woman, although he was not stunned, because he has been with Rose constantly for the past two days, he still thought that she was an absolutely perfect beauty.


    While thinking this the headmaster said to him ¡°This woman is named Kano Andrea, and she will be your tour guide around the school. If you ever have any questions just ask her.¡±


    Hironori bowed and said ¡°Nice to meet you, I am Isa Hironori, just call me Hironori¡± and Rose just plainly said with little interest ¡°My name is Asmodeus¡±


    While Andrea was surprised at Rose¡¯s name, she did not think anything of it, and replied ¡°As you have already heard, my name is Kano Andrea, just call me Andrea. Well let¡¯s begin the tour.¡±


    They had already been shown the martial arts building, the runes building, and the building that was for normal courses such as history, and mathematics, the last is the magic building as they were being shown around it Andrea said ,¡°By they way Asmodeus, your name is surprisingly fitting for a contractor, as you are named after the most powerful fire demon to ever exist.¡±


    After saying this she saw both Rose and Hironori chuckle to themselves and Hironori said ¡°She is not a human you know, she is the real Asmodeus.¡±


    Hearing this Andrea was in shock and in order for her to believe them Rose had take off his coat, showing off the circle on the back oh his hand with lines coiling up his arm, and when she touched it, it became so bright that Andrea was blinded. The only reason that Hironori was okay was because Rose covered his eyes with her hand.


    She instantly kneeled and paid her respects to Asmodeus. When Hironori saw this he asked her ¡° I know Rose I very powerful, but is she really worthy of you kneeling to her?¡±


    This made Rose frown, but then suddenly smiled when Andrea nearly yelled, ¡°Of course, to a contractor that practices fire magic she is an idol, she is at the very pinnacle of fire magic. It is said that she can control every type of flame in existence.¡±


    He looked skeptically at Rose, saying nothing. Seeing this Rose got angry and said with an obviously fake sulking face ¡°Why are you doubting my power so much.¡±


    After that he continued to tease her until they were shown to their room and when they were left alone she said seriously ¡°Hiro you should go after that woman.¡±


    Hironori was so shocked he actually jumped off of the couch they were sitting on and screamed ¡°WHAT!¡±


    She said ¡°What that woman earlier said about me, while not being the entire truth, is a portion of it. What my magic does is I get absorbed into your body and my magic forms a set of armor and a scythe for you to use. However, the biggest feature is that it allows you to form flames out of any attribute, there is however, one catch. You must learn the magic on your own from other people that have a contracted demon corresponding to that element. Also, you must learn the very essence of the magic you want to copy, the very core of the element. The only way to do this is to form a contract of sorts with the person, they have to swear to follow you forever, and live for you sake. In return you will never abandon them and will protect them to the best of your ability. While Andrea may also practice fire, she uses the complete opposite of the type that you can use. Yours will specialize in fine tuned control, while hers is absolute explosive strength."


    Hironori thought to himself ¡°What an entirely selfish one sided magic.¡± While in a state of shock from what he had just heard.

 Chapter six- The first day (part 1)

    The next two hours were Rose trying to convince Hironori to go after Andrea, however it just kept going in circles because he kept saying ¡°But I have no experience with women.¡± While Rose said ¡°That is what I am here for, while the title of Asmodeus is known mainly for mastery of fire magic it is also famous for being the demon lord governing lust.¡± Finally the two came to an agreement, he will get to know Andrea better, however, he will not try to progress too quickly. After that matter was settled they went to sleep and he finally got some sleep do to him finally having gotten used to sharing a bed with Rose.


    The next day the two got up and while getting everything that he needed Rose forcefully turned him around a said before twirling for him ¡°What do you think, I look great in this, don¡¯t I?¡± He was shocked the red short skirt, with the black blazer, look great with her long, blue-purple hair. They then went to the cafeteria that was located inside of the dorms. When they walked in there was what looked like a five star restaurant inside, complete with waiters waiting at every table and chefs to personally cook every meal. When everyone present saw Hironori and Rose they were shocked at her beauty and why a guy like him was with her. Hironori was startled and felt extremely out of place and quickly tried to leave. However, she actually forced him to link arms with her and dragged him to an empty table in a corner.


    She quickly ordered for the both of them, because she knew that Hironori was too far out of his element and too nervous about messing up slightly. After the waiter took the order to the chef she quickly gave him a crash course in proper table manners, since despite appearances she is one of the seventy two pillars and having mastery of etiquette was a must she was more then qualified to help him out.


    While they were waiting a group of clearly arrogant pretty boys strode to their table and their leader said, ¡°Hello miss my name is Hora Daichi. I have not seen your beautiful face around here before I was wondering if you were new, and if so would you like a tour of the academy?¡±


    Seeing Hironori be blatantly ignored and only hit on her she replied while looking at him as if she was looking at some thing even lower then trash ¡°No.¡±


    This gaze made all the boys unconsciously back away half a step the boy refusing to step down insisted  and continued to try to convince her.


    ¡°No, now leave as I am trying to have a peaceful breakfast with my Hiro!¡± and she kissed his cheek.


    As Hironori himself knew that he was being ignored completely was actually quite angry, so he decided that he would play along with Rose, and said nothing only giving a smile to her.


    Seeing this the majority of the group had given up, however the leader refused and after seeing that kiss got mad and said "What is so good about this piece of trash, in ever-¡°


    Hearing her possession get called trash by someone was the final straw and she shut him up by emitting a pressure so strong that the boy could not move an inch. This scared everyone in the cafeteria, and then the temperature in entire room was rising at an alarming rate.


    This was until Hironori who was shaking in rage gently pat Rose¡¯s head and said ¡°Don¡¯t waste your time on people like this, they aren¡¯t worth the effort.¡±


    Hironori¡¯s attitude was one that was generally very calm and polite. He could put up with a lot and still be fine, however being called trash, while being completely ignored was past the line.


    As Hironori continued to pat her she released the pressure and lowered the temperature. She glared at the boy who was still present and while grinding her teeth said, ¡° Why are you still here, leave!¡±


    The people present looked at the two in a completely new light, and made anyone who had thoughts of approaching the two forget about it completely.


    When their meals arrived thanks to Rose¡¯s quick lesson at least he was not embarrassing himself, and Rose was elegantly eating. The two were not interrupted again after Rose¡¯s display, that is until a person with distinctive bright red hair causally approached the two, causing the rest that were present get ready to be able to leave immediately if necessary.


    When she walked up she said, ¡°May I sit with you Hiro, and Asmodeus-sama.¡±


    While Rose was enjoying someone respecting her, Hiro ruined it by saying ¡°Only if you stop calling her Asmodeus-sama and call her Rose like I do.¡±


    ¡°I could never do that, she is a legendary demon. What would I do if I upset her?¡± her said with clear worry in her voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, if anything it will help us out by making it feel less formal, isn¡¯t that right Rose?¡± he looked over to see rose looking slightly disappointed but said ¡°Do what you want.¡±


    Looking nervous she said ¡°Very well¡± and sat down across from the two and she pulled out a paper and handed to Hironori saying, ¡°Here is your schedule. Since we have multiple classes together, you can just follow me to the classrooms, all of the morning, and some of the afternoon.


    The schedule read as follows: study of fire magic 8:00 ¨C 9:30, study of runes 9:45 ¨C 11:15, lunch 11:15 ¨C 12:15, group battle practice 12:30 ¨C 2:00, single close combat 2:15 ¨C 3:45, and weapon practice 4:00 ¨C 5:30. This was his schedule for Monday through Friday, except Wednesday, which was a day off for the people who still wanted to learn normal curriculum, although it was not mandatory. On the paper it was also written that an etiquette teacher would teach him on Wednesdays from three to four.


    As Rose saw this she grew excited and asked Hironori ¡°Since tomorrow is Wednesday, can we go shopping. Please.¡±


    Hironori really is too soft because as soon as he saw her begging he said yes. After eating breakfast they left to the first class of the day, and as he was following Andrea he was nervous for two reasons, the first is that this was a new experience for him, he had never studied magic. The other reason was that he could not stop thinking about what Rose had said to him last night.


    Seeing that Hironori was nervous Rose smiled and said "Don¡¯t worry your soul was strong enough to make even me take interest, combine that with the fact that you contracted with me learning fire magic will be amazingly easy."


    Hironori was confused, and asked ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    "The more powerful the soul, the easier it is to learn magic, also when someone contracts with a demon, the element the demon controls is strengthened proportionately to how strong the demon is at it. So with me being the demon, learning fire magic will be so easy, you¡¯ll feel that it is simply unfair. Plus if there is something you don¡¯t understand you have me to ask.¡±


    Hearing this Andrea also gave her input ¡° All that she said is true, just so you know. I have an S rank fire demon and I have always been the best in the class when it comes to fire magic.¡±


    Hironori was shocked to hear that and asked ¡°You have a S rank demon? I thought that they were exceedingly rare.¡±


    Andrea answered ¡° No, that is only for SS and SSS rank demon, while S rank ones are still rare they pop up relatively often, with some luck.¡±


    While conversing with the two he felt far less nervous then before, and they made their way to the room and walked in.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.When he did he saw about thirty students similar to his age all stop talking when his group walked in, because they had never seen him before, and it was rare for someone to join midway through the year, also the saw rose and were speechless.


    Then a slender, middle aged man in glasses that was at his desk walked over to the group and said in a strong, reliable voice ¡°Hello you must be Isa Hironori, it is truly a pleasure to meet you, you can call me Higashi-sensei .¡± Then when he saw Rose he bowed, which caused all the students, except Andrea gasp, and he said in a quite voice that only the group could hear ¡° It is my pleasure to be able to meet you, Asmodeus-sama.¡±


    Then walked to the middle to the room and in a loud, booming voice so that everyone could clearly hear him ¡°This is a new student whose name is Isa Hironori, and this young lady next to him is actually his Contracted demon-¡± Just this caused many gasps because one needed to be at least S rank to be able to stay outside of the contractors body for an extended period of time. He then looked at the two he introduced ¡°Is it okay to say who she is Hiornori?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mind that much, what about you Rose?¡± ¡°it¡¯s fine I suppose.¡±


    ¡°After having gained their permission I will tell you his demons name, but remember to try to stay calm. Her name is Asmodeus!¡± After hearing this many of the originally surprised students, actually paled in shock, and then everyone tried to talked all at one, causing quite a ruckus.


    ¡°QUIET!¡± Higashi-sensei shouted and said ¡°That being said they are both students in this class, so don¡¯t treat them any differently then anyone else.¡±


    The two actually got a seat near Andrea, as she was the only one that he knew. For the sake of Hironori, and the other students that were lagging behind they held a review class. What Hironori learned from it was that magic is, basically explained, as organizing energy of elements into a desired formed. While this may sound easy, the truth is that it tends to be incredibly difficult because if ones soul was not strong enough the could not effectively control the energy. Also as the spells get stronger, not only do they get more complicated, they also require more energy, and this is dependent on one innate ability, and while the amount that can be stored, they can slowly build up the speed at which it is absorbed.


    Also, fire magic is the absolute strongest in power, while water is more of an all rounder element, it can heal minor injuries, is semi-durable, and has good offensive abilities. However, since it  is a jack of all trades, it is not particularly strong in any of the qualities. Earth, while having semi-powerful attacks, is focused on defense. Also, there is wind. Wind users are exceedingly fast, but their defenses tend to be as weak as paper, but their attacks while not being the strongest, are terrifying when coupled with such speed. There are also two exceedingly rare and powerful elements, metal and lightning. Metal can have power that comes close to rivaling fire, and has defense that is close to earth, while lightning has speed like wind and attacks slightly stronger then earths. There is also a type that is so rare that there is only one in the entire academy, that is a spirit type. Their demon allows them to temporarily summon other demons that will fight for them. The only drawback is that the demon¡¯s strength is proportionate to the strength of the summoner.


    Higashi-sensei  was quite nice as after he taught the simplest fire spells fireball, and fire bolt, he had Andrea take him to the practice field. When they arrived, and Hironori was confused on how he was supposed to control the elements Andrea said to just try imagining the classic image of a fireball and say ¡°fireball¡±. Rose added ¡°Don¡¯t think too hard about it and just follow your instinct.¡±


    Taking their advice he close his eyes and imagined a ball slightly larger than a basketball, and it was fiery, and red hot. Its goal was just pure destruction.


    Then he simply said ¡°fireball¡± while holding out his hand. Then it happened a ball just as he imagined came flying out of nowhere and when it hit the log that was to be used as a dummy there was a huge explosion, and, while not effected by the immense heat or light, he was actually temporarily deafened by the explosion.


    He turned around to ask why it was so strong even though it was the simplest fire spell and he saw that Rose was laughing her head off and Andrea was just standing there slack-jawed in shock. He decided that Andrea would not recover anytime soon, and asked Rose. When she finally stopped laughing she answered ¡° You have a soul that is strong enough to attract me, and you chanted a spell without any regard to the amount of energy that was put into it. You turned a rank D spell into about a mid rank B spell!¡±


    He glared at her ¡°Did you know that this would happen when you told me to just listen to my instincts?¡±


    Rose started to giggle ¡°While not certain, I had a good hunch, and you performed above my expectations.¡±


    He swiftly hit her head to teach her a lesson and went over to Andrea while Rose was rubbing her head. ¡°I am sorry, I did not realize that it would be so powerful, I did not break anything did I?¡±


    Hearing this she panicked and said quickly ¡°Its not your fault, I overlooked the fact  that your soul would be naturally powerful, that was close though, Endo-sensei set up this arena with the idea that only at most B ranked spells would be used, you nearly broke it.¡±


    After that incident they left to a higher ranked one that allows up to S rank spells. For the next half an hour Hironori practiced until he had a good idea on how to control the energy he put in.


    Then they had walked to the runes building, where Hironori felt far less nervous because he knew the teacher, and was quite excited for the subject of runes because they were so mysterious.


    When they walked in a  familiar scene appeared, a sea of faces all either curious, or shocked by Rose. the only change was that Nao was far more casual, and just said ¡°I¡¯m glad to see that you got my letter Hironori. By the way if you want to, you can still call me Nao in class.¡±


    He thought to himself ¡°Yep, still no way I can see this man as a teacher.¡± And said ¡°Thank you Nao. By the way, shouldn¡¯t you do something about you class.¡±


    Nao looked at them and actually sighed to himself, and muttered ¡°What a pain¡± after an introduction was made he was told that Hironori and Rose could sit where ever they like, so they chose a pair of desks in an inconspicuous back corner of the room.


    After the class Hironori learned that runes are strange, ancient symbols that were made by a long lost civilization, and they were simply words that were injected with energy.


    He also learned that runes can do a magnitude of things, such as the summoning ceremony, they can create barriers, and one could even create traps that would activate when the user set it off, or a condition is met.


    This class was very fun, but after lunch was the time that Hironori dreaded the most, it was filled with battle practice, and he doubted that he would survive. But before then was lunch with Rose, and Andrea.

 Chapter seven- the first day (part 2)

    When the trio went to the cafeteria to eat there were many people who had not seen Rose¡¯s display in the morning, and clearly just wanted to talk to her, while ignoring Hironori. However, the combination of both Rose and Andrea managed to scare them off quickly.


    After that they decided that it would be calmer if they were to eat outside. Then Andrea led them to a nice corner of the main courtyard. The scenery was great, flower beds everywhere, a large fountain, and to top it off was that sitting on either side of Hironori was a top class beauty.


    As they were peacefully eating, Andrea said, ¡°You seem do not seem to be that nervous anymore, Hironori.¡±


    He replied, ¡°Well, I have already gone through it twice so far so I think I am getting used to it.¡± And Rose also said ¡°Of course, if Hiro got nervous over something like this, he would not be my contractor.¡±


    Andrea just shook her head and continued ¡° Well, the next class is group battle practice, so you will not be participating for a while, since you can only use such basic magic.¡±


    Hironori sighed in relief ¡°That¡¯s good, it looks like today wont be so bad.¡± While Rose trying to stir up trouble said ¡°What are you talking about, even though you only know two spells, if you try they become quite powerful, I bet you could already be considered in the top one hundred of this year!¡±


    ¡°Shut up, there is no way that its that easy, I bet I am near the bottom of the list, aren¡¯t I Andrea?¡± Hironori couldn¡¯t believe that something like that was even possible, as he had only been thrust into the world of magic for a few days now.


    ¡°Umm, actually from what I have seen, you certainly do qualify to be in the top one hundred of the first years, and that is only using your current power, if you continue to practice, I am sure in a few months you will easily be in the top ten.¡± Andrea said something extremely shocking to Hironori and while Hironori was trying to accept that it was actually that easy to enter the top one hundred Rose asked with interest ¡°What do you mean top ten, shouldn¡¯t you say number one?¡±


    ¡°No, when I say top ten I am not underestimating Hironori, it is just that the top five this year are freaks.¡± This got Rose interested and asked what she meant by that and Andrea answered politely ¡° They are all SS rank. The first place is dominated by the twins Osaka Mei and Mao.¡±


    This got Hironori¡¯s interest and asked ¡°What do you mean twins, why are they both in first place?¡±


    She said ¡°That is what I mean by freaks, it is extremely rare, but when twins are born, occasionally they also have identical souls, because it was split between the two bodies in the womb, then grew back to their original size in each body. This caused them to be able to use both their souls at the same time to summon a demon, and managed to get a SS rank demon. Second place goes to Ito Saki with a SS rank lightning demon.¡± This raised Roses eyebrows and murmured in a voice only she could hear, ¡°To think that there were people with such ability, and they are even females, Hiro is truly lucky.¡±


    When Andrea asked what she said Rose waved her hand saying ¡°Nothing, nothing just continue.¡± Andrea shook her head and said ¡°Well then, third place is Yamada Rina, with a wind demon, and fourth is Kato Sana, with an earth demon. And finally in fifth place is the only male Abe Hideo with a fire.¡±


    While Rose was quietly making plans for the future, Hironori was curious and asked ¡°What rank are you, Andrea?¡±


    She answered proudly, ¡° I am currently at the eighth rank, and by this time next year, I expect that I will be able to defeat SS rank contractors, as long as I have some luck, and their element doesn¡¯t go against mine!¡±


    Hironori was curious and asked ¡°What do you mean, I thought that it would be impossible to defeat a higher ranked demon with a lower ranked one?¡±


    ¡°Well, that is generally the case, but fire has the absolute greatest power, and my demon is currently just a hair away from a SS rank in terms of power.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I get it now, so does that mean that a SS rank demon could defeat you and me Rose?¡±


    When he said Rose¡¯s name she came back to reality and realized what she was asked and replied ¡°No, it is impossible for me to be defeated by even the strongest SS rank water demons.¡± When Hironori was staring at her with eyes that openly showed that he did not believe her she said with teary eyes ¡°It really isn¡¯t just bragging you know, there is a qualitative difference between SSS rank demons, and all the others. That difference being an insurmountable difference in power, not to mention I am in the highest tier of SSS rank, one of the seventy two pillars.¡±


    When he looked to Andrea for confirmation she just nodded her head. After chatting for a while longer they heard the bell and while walking to group battle practice she looked like she remembered something and said to Hironori ¡°Now that I think about it you will actually be seeing the twins I mentioned earlier in group combat.¡± While Hironori was shocked, and Rose looked happy she continued ¡°While not exactly friends we talk to each other quite often, so if you would like I can introduce you to them, but just a warning their personalities can be a bit odd.¡±


    Before Hironori could even make a choice Rose said that sounds great. They made small talk while they walked to an


    arena for group battles. When they arrived there were about forty students there and female teacher that gave off a strict, but caring feeling. She was about average height, with long brown hair, other than that there were really no distinctive features. She introduced herself as Sasaki-sensei


    The routine was the same as the last two times when the students heard Rose¡¯s rank. And Hironori stood next to the teacher while various sized group battles were going on ranging from three VS three to ten VS ten, and the whole time Sasaki-sensei was explaining the various tactics the groups used to win, or the mistakes they made leading to them losing.


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    At the end of class a ten-minute break was given, at that time Andrea, wearing a tight fitting white tee shirt and extremely short shorts, ran over to him with a smile, and said ¡°Follow me and I will introduce you to Mei and Mao¡±


    When the two followed her they met up with two girls who were extremely small, only reaching up to the middle of Hironori¡¯s chest. They had golden, shining eyes with matching hair, and they were identical in almost every way, from their clothing to their expressions. The only difference being their hairstyles, the one on the right long flowing hair, reaching halfway down her back, while the other had a simple ponytail with a blue ribbon.


    Andrea introduced them saying ¡°The girl on the right is Mao, while the girl on the right was Mei.¡± They said in unison while curtsying ¡° Nice to meet you Onii-chan and Onee-chan, let us get along from now on.¡±


    He slightly blushed and bowed while saying My name is Hironori, please take care of me¡± Nervously. They laughed, and it was a s beautiful as chimes in the wind and said ¡°Onii-chan why don¡¯t you form a team with us next class¡± and when he smiled and said okay nervously they laughed and ran away.


    Andrea smiled and said ¡°They must like you, they actually already want to form a team with you, aren¡¯t you lucky.¡±


    She said goodbye and told him where to go for single close combat practice. When they arrived there was a group of people, almost none of which they recognized, and when he saw the teacher he saw a man with a larger build, and black hair. He was called Higa-sensei. While Hironori expected to just view again, he got an unfortunate surprise when Higa-sensei told him that the only way to learn was through experience. And called a random boy out of the crowd to teach him the basics, and to spar with him.


    He sparred nonstop with the boy, and all that happened was him getting used as a punching bag, and his only support was Rose from the side looking at his pitiful appearance, and yelling ¡°Do your best, I believe in you!¡±


    When the class finally ended he was bruised all over his body, and all his muscles were sore. While leaning on Rose, he walked over to the next class, which was weapon practice. The only thing that made Hironori happy was that there was no way he would have to spar in the next class, as he is a complete novice with weapons.


    When he arrived he talked with the teacher, Miyagi-sensei, about his non-existent experience with any sort of weapon, he said, ¡°First we have to decide which weapon you wish to use.¡± Rose answered for him ¡°He needs to be able to use the scythe, there is no need for any other weapons.¡± Since his demon was the one to answer, he did not bother to consult Hironori himself, and nodded his head. ¡°Then it is decided, while it is not the most conventional weapon, it can be quite domineering when mastered, that will be the weapon you will study. Since I have to watch over all the students I cant teach you the basics, but luckily there is a student here that has mastered practically every weapon there is, and she will teach you.¡±


    He then called out ¡°Ito Saki, come here for a moment.¡±


    A beautiful woman that looked to be the same age as Hironori walked towards them. She had beautiful silver hair, she exuded an extreme confidence, which made Hironori feel that if they fought he could not win no matter what, and she had eyes that shifted between orange and red depending on the light. She had nearly perfect proportions that in no way lost to Andrea. When she arrived she paid no attention to Hironori and directly asked the teacher ¡°What is it?¡±


    The teacher seemed used to this attitude of hers and paid it no mind as he said ¡° I need you to show this kid here the basics on how to use the scythe.¡±


    She looked at Hironori with eyes that were cold, but there was no ill will in them, it seemed like her natural expression.


    ¡°Okay, follow me.¡±


    They went found a scythe that was an almost perfect size for Hironori. They went to an empty corner of the field where she showed Hironori the way to properly hold the scythe, and some other basic movements, such as how to control it, and how to properly swing it to either stab, or slash an enemy.


    After she showed him the basics she made him try each stance a few times, and every time he messed up she would correct him. Only when she was satisfied did she leave to practice on her own after saying, ¡°Keep practicing until you are confident in your ability to control it. Then get me and I will teach you slightly more advanced maneuvers.¡± He nodded and said thank you Ito-san as she was walking away.


    After practicing for another half-hour, he began to feel that he was starting to be able to control the scythe accurately.


    When the bell rang Hironori went to the cafeteria to eat, and people seem to have, for the most part, learned to stay away from them. After an uneventful dinner the two went back to their room where Rose told him that his targets now include the top four people of the first year.


    Hironori sighed saying ¡°I figured as much, but I honestly doubt that I can do it.¡± She hugged him when he closed his eyes and whispered ¡°no rush, but more importantly don¡¯t forget the promise you made with me.¡±


    He answered with a tired voice ¡° I know, I know. We are going shopping tomorrow.¡± Rose smiled and answered ¡°Yep, tomorrow you are going on a date with me.¡± Had Hironori been awake to hear this he would have become flustered and tried to retort, but he fell asleep on the couch from exhaustion and Rose shrugged her shoulders and just laid down right beside him on the couch and slept with him.

 Chapter eight- Hironoris first date

    Chapter eight- Hiro¡¯s first date


    The next day Hironori woke up to a now familiar scene, Rose¡¯s absolutely beautiful face next to his own, while she was hugging him, using him in replacement of a pillow. The only change was that today they were closer then normal. That is when Hironori remembered that he had fallen asleep on the couch in the evening.


    While Hironori was trying to figure out some way to get up and get dressed without waking Rose, she opened her eyes, smiled sweetly and said ¡° Good morning Hiro, are you ready for our date?¡±


    He tried denying it ¡°Th, this doesn¡¯t count as a date, we are just shopping for clothes and what not.¡±


    She laughed ¡°if that is not a date then what is it?¡± Hironori quieted down trying to find a different name for it, but he couldn¡¯t think of anything. Then Rose said to just accept it and get ready.


    After they were done changing Rose was wearing the white tank top and black skirt that she was wearing when he had summoned her, while Hironori was wearing a causal blue tee shirt and jeans. They went to eat breakfast and they talked with Andrea for awhile when she showed up, and got directions on where to go for shopping in the town.


    Rose was getting impatient as she pulled Hironori along the entire way to the shopping district. Then they arrived to the first boutique. There, Rose grabbed about ten different full outfits to try on while asking Hironori¡¯s opinion on all of them.


    Every time Rose tried one on she came out, did a spin and asked him what he thought, at first Hironori was completely stunned and literally could not comment on it. Seeing this Rose got mad and said ¡°That is absolutely no good, you have to compliment a women when she shows you her clothing!¡±


    Hironori quickly said, ¡°It looks great on you Rose!¡± Hearing this Rose gave a satisfied smile and went back to the changing room. After the first time Hironori did not repeat the same mistake, and made sure to quickly compliment Rose on every outfit. In the end she chose her favorite and wore wanted to wear it out.


    After paying for the clothes using the card he found in his apartment with a note from the headmaster saying to use this for all his daily needs and telling them to deliver it to the academy Rose led him to a shop that seemed to be focused on men fashion. Hironori was confused and asked what they were doing at this place.


    Rose said with a mischievous smile of her face ¡°Well, of course it is to shop for casual clothing for you. While what you are wearing now is not necessarily bad, it is not the best.¡± Rose walked around slowly, looking for outfits that enhanced Hironori¡¯s natural qualities, and after a full twenty minutes she chose several outfits that she approved of she made him try them all out, and forced him to come out and show her, to make sure everything was okay.


    After Rose chose her favorite outfit that was a bright, white tee shirt under a button up black long sleeve shirt with black jeans and dark shoes. She demanded that he wear it out so naturally he agreed, since even he was surprised that the clothing made such a difference in his appearance. As it was about twelve thirty the couple decided to eat a light lunch at an open-air caf¨¦.


    Hironori ordered a chilled tea with a cold cut sandwich, while Rose got tea with a salad. As they were enjoying the atmosphere Rose suddenly asked ¡°So, you do realize what this school is right?¡± and Hironori replied ¡°Isn¡¯t this a school that teaches one how to control their demon and various magic?¡±


    She smiled and said, ¡°you get half credit! That is only a small portion of why this school exists the main reason is to fight the various gods around the world, and since you have me, I can promise you that you will be sent the front lines constantly when you have enough experience.¡± Hironori shook slightly and answered ¡° OH well, they are invading my world and I do have the responsibility to help since I have the power don¡¯t I?¡±


    She gave a smile that reminded him of a flower in full bloom and walked over to hug him and said ¡° I knew Hiro¡¯s answer would be along those lines, that is another reason why I chose you, you don¡¯t bask in the great power you obtained, or grow arrogant.¡±


    He shyly said ¡°Well it just doesn¡¯t feel real yet, and I can¡¯t even think of you as a demon, at most a very troublesome woman.¡±


    She hit him and said, ¡°who do you think you are calling troublesome!¡± after that incident they continued their date, and decided to watch a movie before they had to head back so Hironori could attend his etiquette class.


    Hironori had planned on letting Rose choose the movie to watch, but she immediately ran over to the one horror movie there, so he grabbed her and they chose a comedy. The entire time in the movies Rose would flirt with him, such as holding his hand, or gently blowing into his ears when he was not expecting it, causing him to get yelled at by the others present because he would jump up while yelling slightly.


    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    On the way back Rose smelled something good and forced them to make a detour.


    What they found turned out to be a hole in the wall bakery, when they walked in the place was nearly empty, yet everything on the menu looked great. They took a seat and when the waitress came to take their order ¡°Welcome how m-¡° and the three just stayed like that in awkward silence.


    The waitress was actually Andrea, and she was wearing an outfit that vaguely resembled a maid, except that it was less frilly, and the skirt was moderately shorter. Andrea¡¯s face was as red as her hair, and the first one to break the silence was actually Rose with her laughing. ¡°Hahaha¡­ you actually work as a waitress in your free time?¡±


    Andrea said with teary eyes, ¡°I, its not like I want to. The tuition at the school it extremely expensive, so it is actually common for a student to find ways of income. Mine happens to be working here because the work is relatively easy, and the pay is good. By the way Hironori your clothes really suite you. So what can I get you?¡±


    Hironori said ¡°I would like some green tea, and what ever you recommend.¡± Rose with teary eyes from laughing ¡° I will have the same as Hironori¡± while Hironori ordered calmly, he was inwardly shocked, ¡°The perfect, model student Andrea is actually working as a waitress, and on top of it the uniform completely doesn¡¯t seem like something she would ever consider wearing.¡±


    ¡°It will be right out.¡± Then she calmly walked away. Rose said ¡°Well, that was certainly the last thing I expected to see here.¡± Hironori nodded his head and as they were talking Andrea came back out ¡°Here you are, green tea and strawberry short cake.¡± When Hironori got the cake he saw an extremely delicate looking cake. Everything was perfectly balanced, and the presentation was absolutely amazing. When he took his first bite, he was delighted that the taste matched its appearance. The cream tasted fresh, the cake was moist and soft, while the strawberries tasted extremely fresh, and the combination of it all made for one probably the best cake that he had ever eaten.


    While not quite the same as Hironori, Rose was very happy with her cake as well. Seeing the smiles on their faces Andrea smiled and did a small bow while saying ¡°I am glad to see that everything is to your liking.¡± Since there was no one else to serve Andrea sat down with them and chatted for awhile.


    Hironori glanced at his watch and jumped up handing Andrea his card to pay ¡°Here use this to pay, I have to hurry back to my dorm if I am going to be on time for the tutor.¡± Andrea was shocked to see the card in his hand because she knew that the card meant that all of Hironori¡¯s future expenses would be one hundred percent covered by the academy. As she was walking away Hironori said ¡°Oh yeah, Andrea feel free to take out however big of a tip you want as well.¡± She nodded and walked away.


    Andrea only took out 2000 yen as her tip, but she was still happy and when she returned the card Hironori grabbed Roses hand and they ran away.


    When they got back to his dorm it was already 2:56, and while panting Hironori just sat on the couch, catching his breathe while waiting for the etiquette teacher to arrive.


    Only a few moments later there was a knock on his door and when he opened it he was shocked to see a girl about his age with long brown hair in twin tails. Se had large, dark brown eyes, and the word that best fit her was cute, yet an entirely different type from Mei and Mao, who he met yesterday. While the twins gave of a mischievous feeling, she made him want to instinctively protect her.


    She said, ¡°Nice to meet you, my name is Kato Sana.¡±


    ¡°Eh¡± while Hironori had not been to surprised meeting the first and second placeholders in class meeting one here, and for her to be his teacher this was completely unexpected. When she glared at him slightly he quickly said, ¡°I mean my name is Isa Hironori, nice to meet you.¡± While bowing.


    She nodded her head ¡°that was not to bad, but your general posture needs some works, and I am sure there are many other areas that also need quite a bit of work aren¡¯t there?¡±


    Hironori could only nod his head and since the curiosity overwhelmed him ¡° I don¡¯t mean to be rude, but why is the fourth ranked of all the first years my etiquette teacher.¡±


    She simply answered ¡° I am quite qualified to teach you, and the pay for being your tutor was astronomical, the academy really treasures you,¡± he just laughed awkwardly., She continued ¡° now it is my turn to ask a question ¡° Why are there the two of you here, but there is only one bed?¡±


    While Hironori was just blushing and saying nothing her glare was quickly getting increasingly severe, and before Hironori could explain Rose jumped on his back, hugging him ¡°of course it is because we sleep together!¡±


    She looked at him like she was looking at scum and then they started the lesson. By the end of it, it was already seven as Hironori was worse then she had expected, and was forced to stay there making sure he got the basics down.

 Chapter nine- Increasing in strength

    Sorry about the gap in between chapters, I was busy with real life, and I was going to write yesterday, but then I re-read some of my favorite chapters of Suzuka, and read Fuuka, but after reading chapter thirty seven I was in no mood to write. :(


    P.S how would you guys feel about me posting something random to read with each post?


    It was nearly three weeks later before Hironori was completely used to his schedule, and while still sore, all this exercise was starting to show some effect. It got rid of the little body fat that Hironori had, and he could now go through the entire day, including his afternoon, and still have energy left. In fact, since he was having a hard time adjusting to using the scythe, he began staying for another hour or two, depending on his mood, to get extra practice.


    Hironori could also now use up to B rank spells with ease, and could read basic runes. Then when arriving to group battle practice Sasaki-sensei said ¡°Well, since you know basic spells, you have learned about tactics from me, and you seem to now have decent strength and stamina why don¡¯t you participate today.¡±


    He nodded his head, while not exactly loving combat and fighting he was excited to see the results from the effort he has put in so far. While Hironori was standing there happily Sasaki-sensei yelled ¡°Whoever wants Hironori on their team come over here.¡±


    Hearing this nearly everyone on the field came running over as fast as they could because they knew having him on their team meant they have the power of a SSS rank demon on their team. It also gave them a chance to build a relationship with someone who was guaranteed to become a world-shaking powerhouse in the future.


    Seeing this Sasaki-sensei grinned and looked over to Hironori ¡°You may pick any group you want.¡± At that time a pair of familiar faces came walking toward him slowly while saying, ¡°Join us, Onii-chan.¡±


    At this Hironori smiled and said, ¡°I would like to team up with Mei and Mao.¡± At this Sasaki-sensei smiled and said to him ¡°As you wish.¡± while inwardly feeling sorry for any team that had to fight them.


    While Hironori started walking toward the two Rose stayed where she was. When Hironori noticed this he turned around saying ¡°What are you doing, we are going to be sparring?¡±


    Rose laughed saying ¡°You have me, a SSS rank demon, and your team mates are contracted to a SS rank lightning demon, if I helped you there would be no chance for you to learn anything from these practices.¡±


    Upon realizing what she was getting at he realized that it really would not be a good idea to involve Rose in this, if he wanted to learn anything about combat so he nodded his head and continued walking.


    When he got to the twins they smiled and said ¡°Thank you!¡± He thought that it was worth joining their team just for that. They then turned serious, and Mao took over talking, ¡° Since Asmodeus does not plan on participating, you will support us with magic from the back, while Mei and I fight hand to hand, taking advantage of our speed.¡±


    Hironori nodded and was happy because the strategy was simple, yet effective. He then asked the two ¡°Which group are we going to fight against?¡±


    They both simply pointed to a large group of seven and Mao smiled cutely while saying ¡°Since we have you on our team now, we need to go against more opponents at once, or it just won¡¯t be fair.¡±


    He inwardly agreed and the two teams found a suitable place to fight, and when the signal was given Mei and Mao simply stayed where they were and looked to Hironori and Mao whispered ¡°Use a magic to disperse them, so we can pick them off one by one.¡±


    Hearing this he nodded to them and used a fireball with considerable energy into it, since he did not want to injure the opposing team too much.


    Seeing a fireball coming at them the team thought that they could take it because it was the most basic of fire spells. However, they were wrong, when it hit near the feet of the group the force made them be blown in all different directions. The two said thank you before literally disappearing from his sight, that is just how fast they were. When thinking of those two being his opponent he shuddered. The match was quickly ended by temporarily paralyzing the entire team.


    The next few matches were not quite as easy, because they then moved to teams of ten, and since everyone had seem Hironori¡¯s power they were very careful. However seeing this Hironori just used a B rank spell called Flame throw. This allowed one to condense as many flames as they desired into their hands, then throw it and it explodes outward on impact. They teams were all quickly, and easily defeated by the combination of Mei, Mao, and Hironori.


    Seeing this pitiful display, Sasaki-sensei shook her head and walked toward the trio. When she got to them she said, ¡°Since with the addition of Hironori no one in this class is your match, tomorrow you will report to the second arena to spar with the second years. Hearing this the twins were happy that they would get to fight someone that was a match for them, while Hironori was nervous about just how strong the upperclassmen would be.


    After lunch Rose and Hironori reported to the study where it was just business as usual, Nao still was easy going, but overall a good teacher, and Hironori¡¯s understanding of rune¡¯s was quickly increasing.


    In the single close combat practice, the results of the past few weeks could clearly be seen, Hironori is now able to keep up with his partner for the entire class, and while mainly defending, he also will occasionally counter attack. While he has yet to win, he can now defend himself, and he has realized the truth behind what the Higa-sensei said on his first day of coming here. There really was no other way to learn close combat other than to do it, this is because it is not some martial arts class, this is a class to enhance one''s instincts, and reactions. when Hironori asked why nothing was actually being taught Higa-sensei answered "For first years this class is all about getting the basics down, and building a good foundation to prepare for learning actual techniques."


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    In single close combat at the more advanced levels, while techniques are taught, they do not focus on a single martial


    art, they are all the best things taken from all of them put into one. It seems that there are a lot of things that are not even from a martial art, but directly from the combat experience of others.


    When the two got to the arena used for weapon practice he grabbed his scythe that now seemed oddly familiar to him, and went to his usual spot. After warming up with it for about ten minutes, he went to find Ito Saki to get something new to practice.


    When he found her Hironori was amazed, while she was not moving very fast, the way she handled herself made her seem unstoppable, as if she could mow down anyone in her way. She was using a very ordinary European style broadsword, and even though he knew literally nothing about swordsmanship, he had the feeling that she was certainly nearing absolute mastery of it.


    She soon stopped, leaving him slightly disappointed. she walked over to him "What do you need?"


    While still somewhat sad he said "I believe I have gotten used to the basic movements, so I need something new."


    She nodded and responded "Okay, then I will test you. use the scythe and come at me."


    Hearing this Hironori was confused and as he was about to ask why she answered his question "Fighting like this is the best was to see how much you have improved." Hearing this he nodded and came at her.


    In the next moment he came at her with virtually no hesitation, he did this because there is a basic magic called metal skin. This magic can cause the users skin to be comparable to steel, and while it has no attribute, it is widely known that when a metal user casts it the effect will at least be doubled, if not more depending on the users power.


    When he got close to her she used the broadsword in her hand, and hit the scythe away with ease. She said again, and he came at her. This process was repeated for half an hour until she was satisfied. While Hironori was sad that his new found confidence with the scythe was destroyed Ito Saki said "Not bad, while not the quickest, you learning ability is still decent. rest for now, and after class we will go over the next set of maneuvers."


    Hearing this Hironori found some of his destroyed confidence and smiled while saying "Thank you for your praise" and him and Rose the left to get a drink.


    After finding a comfortable place to sit down and relax for the rest of the class Rose said in a happy voice "Do you want to know why that girl is so skilled in a myriad of weapons at such a young age?" Hironori answered "Isn''t it because she has worked hard, and is just naturally gifted." Rose replied "Well, to get to that point she certainly has had to put in countless hours of work, however did you know that there is a obvious disadvantage to having a contracted demon


    that¡¯s attribute is metal, lightning, or spirit?"


    Hironori was confused but she continued on. "The drawback is that there is no magic that the user can learn that has that specific attribute. However, the advantage is that they have unique abilities that make up for it. Lighting allows one to constantly improve their speed through practice, meaning there is no limit to how fast they can get. If one has a spirit attribute, they get a considerable increase in every element, because they can control any attributed demon. And as for metal demon contractors like Ito Saki, they are gifted the ability to be able to master any weapon they desire, they can also increase the force behind the weapon at will, the limit is proportional to their own energy."


    Hearing this Hironori thought about it and it made sense, those attributes are extremely sought after, and there must be something to make up for the lack of boost of understanding towards a certain element. Thinking about it some more he truly began to understand how powerful all these abilities could be, depending on how strong the user got. Imagine facing an enemy who was faster than the speed of sound, or one whose sword swings have the power to easily cause earthquakes, or even one who can easily use any magic in existence, with a very high level of power.


    She knew what he was thinking, and whispered to him "Do you understand just how absurd the power you control is now? You have the potential to move past the speed of sound, have the strength of meteors behind every swing, and control all attributes of magic with ease."


    hearing this made him realize just how much of a cheat this kind of magic has the potential to be and said "I do, however it is not easy for someone to get other magic now is it?" she smiled saying "It is if the person is you, and you have me as your teacher!"


    He smiled at Rose, and at that time Ito Saki showed up "Ah Ito-san, are you going to show me the new techniques now?" She nodded, but turned around and with the same deadpan expression "Just call me Saki."


    Hironori was happy and nodded excitedly. She then spent the next two hours carefully showing him a movement, and making him repeat what he just saw, only correcting him with as few words as possible.


    Seeing such a tranquil and peaceful scene made Rose smile and happy, yet worry about his future.