Chapter 36 - Culture.
The world of DxD split into multiple realms, which can include the variations in its mythologies. The most known and obvious realms are heaven, the human world, and the underworld since they include the most active races in the world. However, the three realms don\'t connect with each other frequently, especially heaven and the underworld.
But today, there has been a communication between three major leaders in those realms.
In the underworld where the sky is purple, but strangely, the flow of time was the same with the human world. However, this didn\'t change the fact of the great difference between the two realms.
Inside the Gremory Territory, there was an enormous castle in the middle of the territory, which is the head home of the Gremory family.
Within the castle, there was a man with long red hair. He was wearing an armor while looking at two magic circles in front of him. This man is Sizechs Lucifer, the leader of the Four Satans. However, he seems to be somehow confused and troubled by the two magic circles that showing two different scenes.
The first magic circle was showing Michael having a helpless look while the second one was revealing Azazel... Almost dying from laughter while banging on his desk.
"This might be weird to say, but..." Sirzechs took a moment before he said " Can you repeat what you just said?"
Michael sighed while giving Azazel a stare before he said " The Boosted Gear was..."
Michael sighed even more before spitting out the words " Kidnaped by the Annihilation Maker"
"HAHAHAHAHA!!!!" Azazel exploded with laugher again as he almost wasn\'t able to breathe from the news he got today.
"Yeah, I thought I heard that" Sirzechs nodded at Michael, which he couldn\'t comprehend until now. He is still having a hard time understanding how can a Longinus kidnap another Longinus.
"The Boosted Gear! The Welsh Dragon! The Red Dragon of Domination never less!!..." Azazel was banging on his desk harder as he said " Was Kidnapped by another Longinus...HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
{It kinda sound funny...} Sirzechs looked at Azazel having a breakdown from laughter before he said " When did you get this information?"
"Yesterday, the system put a small message about the Longinus was kidnapped and nothing more" Michael was feeling a headache from these recent events, and especially when he hears the Annihilation Maker name.
Sirzechs thought for a moment before he looked at Micheal and said " This seems bigger than it looks like"
"Do you remember when a whole mountain was demolished in a light show? The same guy caused this" Azazel finished his laugher as he answered Sirzechs before saying" I think you know why we called you"
"Kuoh town..." Sirzechs expression turned serious as he understood the meaning behind Azazel\'s words. His little sister is in Kuoh Town and this accident might reach her or even hurt her, and as a big brother, Sirzechs can\'t let this happen.
However, Sirzechs felt this accident contain more secrets that weren\'t exposed by the two guys in front of him, but from his understanding, it seems to be a thing about heaven which means he can\'t interfere.
"Do you have more information? Maybe his location?" Sirzech asked, but Michael shook his head and said " Nothing, except he was in Kuoh town, but we can\'t be sure because..."
Azazel finished Michael\'s words " He might look for other Longinus as we speak. Well, It was bad luck, don\'t you agree, Sirzechs?"
Sirzechs understood that Azazel was talking about the Boosted Gear been in Kuoh town and his sister or Sona might add it user to the devils, but everything was destroyed by Annihilation Maker, which is quite fitting with his title.
"There\'s nothing we can do about it" Sizechs smiled as he didn\'t care a lot about losing a Longinus that they didn\'t get in the first place.
"Ho? Well, I guess this is it" Azazel stood up from his chair before he said " I\'ll be going now. Tell me if something happened"
Michael and Sirzechs saw this and sighed before discussing the plan of keeping eyes on the other Longinus users and quitting the call.
Azazel hanged up the call and didn\'t care about Michael\'s plans because he has some of his own.
"Kuoh town, huh?" Azazel picked a paper on his desk about his recent research on the data he got from the last accident before he said "Keeping eyes on a small town is easier than looking for a bunch of Longinus users"
"And I have a feeling that he\'s still in that town, which I don\'t know why" Azazel put down the paper before moving to a more important business.
"I need to make this as a record of the craziest things a Longinus user ever did" With a thought in mind, Azazel proceeded to read the reports on his desk while thinking how he can find this madman.
Meanwhile, the madman that caused this commotion was on the rooftop holding a lunch box while looking at the scene in front of him with blank eyes. A white loli was staring at him with the same eyes and holding a bag of Japanese cookies.
This all happened after the lunchtime arrived. Leo picked his stuff before Saji appeared in front of him and said to wait for him on the rooftop to have lunch together, but when he arrived. He saw a white-haired loli sitting the same place he was in the last time and giving a blank stare.
{Is this how tables have turned? Or the turns have tables?} Leo stared at Koneko as he felt this day is getting better and better.
Koneko recognized Leo from the last time before she nodded and looked at the other bench on the rooftop, which\'s the place she sat on the last time.
Leo\'s eyebrow was twitching as he understood that this loli is telling him to sit down on the other bench.
"Oh, I\'m sorry. But I prefer to \'stand\'..." Leo smiled at Koneko while he focused on the word stand. But Koneko didn\'t understand what he\'s talking about, so she took a cookie and ignored him.
"Once again, I\'m disappointed by this world lack of culture" Leo gazed at Koneko eating a cookie before he sat down on the other bench.
He doesn\'t care anymore, as this scene reminded him of the sad fact that there\'s no quality culture in this world. It was like the anime industry in this world chooses to give up.
Leo decided to eat now as it was a way to ease his disappointment, but when he opened the lunch box, Koneko flinched.
The aroma was rushing from the lunch box as Koneko swallowed subconsciously. She stared at Leo as she couldn\'t understand how can this aroma be so tempting.
The lunch box is made by the Food War octopus in Leo\'s mansion that\'s currently in his shadow, which is a good solution to get food quickly, even if Leo doesn\'t need to eat regularly.
"Hm?" Leo looked at Koneko staring at his lunch box before moving it in different directions, but Koneko eyes didn\'t leave the box.
"I see..." Leo nodded at Koneko before he picked the chopsticks and ate normally, completely ignoring Koneko\'s desperate eyes.
Koneko was clenching the cookie bag as she was staring at Leo like an enemy that took something important from her.
{Good food and watching someone suffering is always welcomed} Leo didn\'t care about Koneko\'s death glare as he was eating peacefully.
"Where\'s that guy?" Leo that ate half of the lunch box frowned as he felt something wrong from this long absence of Saji, but before his thoughts gone deeper. He remembered Koneko that was staring at him.
Leo now is feeling that the stare and hatred are materializing as a dark aura was around Koneko, but in Leo\'s eyes and his Ki sense. He only saw an angry cat, which is quite funny.
After testing it a few times, Leo found that Koneko\'s eyes never left the box before he moved closer to her. Koneko dark expression eased, but it became dark again after Leo moved the box back.
Leo moved the box as he was testing how much can a lunch box change a person\'s expression.
"Yeah, I\'m quite satisfied now" Leo nodded after he watched Koneko expression change tens of times before he stood up from the bench and walked toward her.
"Here" Leo pushed his lunch box toward Koneko, but she tilted her head as she was suspicious from Leo which made him say" Oh? You don\'t want this th-..."
Leo didn\'t finish his words before Koneko snatched the lunch box from his hand as he was staring at the almost cat-like Koneko staring at the lunch box.
{You\'re lucky, you\'re so lucky that you remind of my cat} Leo sighed before ignoring Koneko and walking away. But he felt something holding his sleeve.
"Hm? What?" Leo saw Koneko holding his sleeve before reaching out and giving him a cookie.
"You know that the lunch box can\'t compare with this cookie, but thanks... I guess?" Leo stared to the cookie in his hand as he didn\'t understand why Koneko like these things before he said "However, just how many cookies have you eaten in your life"
"..." Koneko tilted her head in confusion before she said in a small voice "A lot"
"My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined" Leo sighed as he left the rooftop while Koneko was puzzled by his reaction before putting all her attention on the lunch box.
Leo was walking downstair as he was eating the cookie before he said " This cookie tastes like all the bread I ate in my life"
With that dedication to his joke, Leo walked in the school hallway before reaching his class.
He doesn\'t want to do anything now, just thinking about the disappointment he\'s getting from this world is enough for him.
After that, boring hours of the school passed quickly or slowly, or how the one perceives them before the last lesson finished.
Now is the time for Leo to join his true club... The going home club.
"Finally... Hm?" After spending hours on the desk, Leo was finally liberated as he was walking towards the school building exit. But he spotted someone who was missing almost the whole day.
"Yo, Leo" Saji came with a smile that almost made Leo punch him in the face because that smile didn\'t give him any good feelings.
"Did anything happen today?" Saji stared at Leo expression as he didn\'t understand the reason behind it.
"... Nothing" Leo observed Saji for a moment before shaking his head and thought {Maybe I\'m thinking too much}
However, because he didn\'t activate his Esper powers, Leo didn\'t know that Saji was having a breakdown from the inside.
{What happened?! I need to know!!} Saji was in a conflict inside of him as he watched his plan fail.
The cookie box in Koneko\'s hands was from Saji as he gave to her in the place of Leo. He said to her that Leo is sorry about yesterday and hopes you take this as a gift, which is the reason why Koneko nodded at Leo in the beginning.
Saji didn\'t dare to stay in a radius of 50 meters from that place because if Leo knows about this then... He can\'t imagine what\'ll happen.
" Are you sure nothing happened?" Saji asked again as Leo sighed and said " I\'m just disappointed by this world and its lack of culture"
"Hah?" Saji imagined a lot of things, but not this. He knows the culture thing, but why should Leo feel disappointed?.
"I know it might not be a good season this year, but cheer up man" Saji said the obvious to Leo which made him say" You who doesn\'t know the true culture can\'t say this to me"
Saji face was stiff as he felt insulted by this statement before he said " Oh, yeah?! Then show me the true culture"
However, Saji felt he shouldn\'t say those words as the energy rushed back to Leo before saying " Follow me"
"I feel that I\'ll regret this..." Saji looked at Leo rushing towards the locker before he followed him.
Leo reached his locker before Saji and opened it. Reaching inside the locker, Leo activated his Longinus as a dark fog appeared, but no one saw it because he was blocking it with his body.
"So, what did you want to show me?" Saji arrived next to Leo as he was wondering and slightly curious about what\'ll happen.
"This..." Leo raised his hand as he was holding 8 manga books like cards while Saji read the title of the book " Jojo\'s Bizarre Adventure?"
"Yes, this is the true culture" Leo spoke with a voice of genuine belief while Saji was feeling this is a bad idea.
"Well, the art is... Interesting" Saji changed his words when he saw Leo scary eyes.
He didn\'t know where Leo brought this manga, but he doesn\'t mind checking it.
"Oh! this one looks interesting" Saji piked looked at part 3 in Leo\'s hands as he like the stand concept and the story, but before he picked it up. Leo put part 1 in his way.
"..." Saji stopped for a moment before reaching again, but Leo put part 1 in his way again.
"What are you doing?" After trying a few times and receiving the same result, Saji asked Leo.
"The story won\'t be complete if you don\'t read from the first part" Leo smiled kindly at Saji before he said " This can also show your appreciation to the work"
"But the parts don\'t seem connected a lot to read the story" Saji tried to talk this out, but Leo shook his head and said " If you do that, then you\'ll skip the protagonist reveal"
"The protagonist? Isn\'t it this guy on the cover?" Saji was confused, but Leo said " No, the protagonist is DIO because he appears in most parts"
"Ah, I see..." Saji nodded before he smiled and reached to part 1. Only to change his direction and snatch part 3 before running away.
"....." Leo stared at Saji, running away with a blank expression before he put some parts in his locker and kept parts one and two.
Leo took a deep breath while dual-wielding parts one and two before chasing after Saji. As a good friend, he needs to knock some sense into his brain.
The students that were leaving the school were surprised to see two guys running after each other while holding books, as one of them was running and the other one wanted to hit him with a book before leaving the school.