Bound by Infinity

Chapter 4

I sat on the couch watching Bleach while Rias leaned against me comfortably, eating a bowl of ice cream. A few days had passed since I started teaching her swordsmanship, and she was making impressive progress. She'd quickly grasped the basics and was moving smoothly through each technique.

"Hey, Kouki?"

"Yes, Rias?" I glanced down at her, noticing the thoughtful look on her face.

"How would you feel if I turned Issei into a devil?"

I raised a brow, then sighed, running my fingers through her hair gently. "That depends. Do you plan on asking him first? Because that's one of the two ways I'd be fine with you turning him."

"…The other way?"

"If Issei was dying, and you didn't have time to ask… What made you ask this?"

"..." Rias went quiet, avoiding my eyes.

I sighed, realization dawning. "You already turned Issei into a devil, didn't you?"

"…Yeah," she whispered.

"He was dying, wasn't he?"

She nodded.

I gave her a gentle smile, smoothing a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's fine. I trust you."

"Really?" Her gaze softened, searching mine as if looking for any sign of disappointment.

I chuckled. "Do you plan to mistreat him?"

"No!" she exclaimed, her expression earnest.

"Then I trust you."

She blinked, a bit taken aback. "But… why do you trust me so easily?"

"For one, we live together, so I'd know if you were hiding something. And second, if you were the type to do something like that, you would've turned me into a devil while I was asleep."

"Fair point," she admitted, a small smile tugging at her lips.

I grinned and glanced down at her bowl of ice cream, noticing it was melting. "Are you going to finish that?"

"Huh?" She looked down at the melting ice cream, then back up at me, her gaze shifting to that infamous puppy dog stare.

I resisted… for a whole three seconds. "Fine." I waved a hand, refreezing her ice cream.

"Thank you!" she beamed, happily digging back into it.

"Oh, by the way, Rias."

"Hmm?" she hummed, a spoonful of ice cream still in her mouth.

"When are you planning to tell him?"

"Tell who—oh, you mean Issei?" She swallowed her bite, nodding thoughtfully. "Tomorrow, why?"

"Can I be there when you do?"

She gave me a warm smile. "Of course. You're always welcome in the ORC clubroom."

"Good to know."

We drifted back into comfortable silence, watching the anime as it played. Tomorrow was definitely going to be… interesting.

The next afternoon, I walked into the ORC clubroom—the old school building, as most called it. The place was eerily quiet except for the faint sound of a shower running in the background.

"It's been a while since I last came here," I muttered, taking in the familiar surroundings.

To my left, Koneko was sitting on a couch, munching on a box of Pocky. She looked up as I approached.

"Hey, Koneko. How's it going?"

"…I'm doing well." She replied in her usual quiet tone.

"Glad to hear it." I took a seat beside her, reaching into my bag and pulling out two items: a box of Strawberry Pocky and a small chocolate shortcake. I handed them to her, watching as her eyes brightened slightly.

"Thanks," she said, taking the treats with a small, rare smile.

"No problem."

"Oh, what's this?" A familiar voice chimed in.

I looked up to see Akeno standing nearby, an amused smile on her face.

"Hey, Akeno."

"Hello, Kouki. How are you?"

"I'm doing fine. Rias is in the shower, right?"

"Yes, she just got in. Why?"

"Just checking. Although I'm pretty sure she heard my voice, can you let her know I'm here?"

"Of course." Akeno smiled, heading toward the shower room.

I took a breath, thinking to myself. I should expand on my abilities... but what should I make? Maybe a power to create and summon weapons. Something similar to Kiba's Sword Birth, but not restricted to just swords—and non-sentient weapons, of course. I thought for a moment, then settled on the name Weapon Heaven.

My eyes glowed faintly as I felt the new ability solidify within me. Satisfied, I noticed Koneko was watching me, her gaze curious.

"Yes, Koneko?"

"You did something?" she asked, her tone quiet but observant.

"Oh, you could tell?"

She nodded, still munching on her Pocky.

"Don't worry, just creating a new ability," I said with a reassuring smile.

On cue, the door to the clubroom opened, and Kiba and Issei walked in.

"Afternoon, Kiba, Issei." I greeted.

"Afternoon, Kouki," Kiba replied warmly.

"Hey… Kouki," Issei stammered, his eyes shifting around the room nervously. "What are you doing here?"

"I was invited. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, just… curious," he said, looking a bit awkward.

Just then, the sound of the shower stopped, catching Issei's attention. A few moments later, Rias emerged from the shower room, followed by Akeno.

The introductions began, with Rias explaining to Issei about the Great War between Angels, Fallen Angels, and Devils. She went on to explain Sacred Gears and their significance, and I watched as Issei's shock shifted into growing understanding. Rias also informed him that Yuuma, the girl who tried to kill him, was a Fallen Angel sent to end his life. As she delved into the intricacies of Devil society, the shock on Issei's face was hard to miss.

Later that evening, Rias and I sat back on the couch, watching the first season of A Certain Magical Index.

"You know, I think kinetic powers are overly complicated," Rias commented.

"Maybe, but they're arguably better than a lot of types of magic," I countered.

"What?"

"Take Accelerator, for example. Vector manipulation might be complex, but it more than makes up for it. With just that ability, you can control fire, wind, lightning, plasma, gravity—the list goes on."

"But… how do you juggle so many abilities at once?" Rias asked, genuinely curious.

I chuckled. "One of the benefits of vector manipulation is an enhanced mind. You'd be able to think faster than supercomputers."

She blinked in surprise. "I had no idea you were this knowledgeable about kinetic powers."

"They're some of my favorite abilities, actually."

"Really? Which one's your favorite?"

"Astroremkinesis," I answered with a grin.

"Uh…?"

"Right, that's the scientific term. It's also known as Heavenly and Celestial Body Manipulation."

"Oh! That sounds really powerful."

"It is. Speaking of powers… Rias, could you show me your Power of Destruction?"

"Thinking of copying it?"

"Yeah."

With a nod, Rias raised her hand, forming an orb of Power of Destruction.

"The Power of Destruction is the bloodline ability of the Bael family, passed down to the Gremory family through my mother. It's pure, raw destructive power."

I listened as she explained its intricacies, then took a breath, concentrating. I felt a surge of energy similar to Rias's settle within me as my eyes glowed faintly.

"I think I've got it," I said, summoning a black-and-silver orb of Power of Destruction.

"You did! But… I've never seen it in a different color before. Ours is always red."

"Neat." I dispelled the orb.

"Well," she mused, "it seems I'll have to teach you how to use it properly."

"I don't mind… hmm, can you hold still for a moment?"

She looked confused but nodded.

I placed a hand on her head, channeling my energy to share two abilities with her: Astroremkinesis and Vector Manipulation. She gasped slightly, then clutched her head as the flood of new power hit her, followed by a sudden headache.

"What did you…?" she managed, grimacing slightly.

"I gave you Astroremkinesis and Vector manipulation and I am planning to give you your favorite Zanpakuto. Consider it a thank you."

"For what?"

"Well you allowed me to copy your family's bloodline ability so I believe you deserve something in return don't you agree."

"I'm one hundred percent sure even one of them would have been more than enough!"

"Well yeah but I felt like it." I said with a shrug.

"Take one of them back and keep Ryujin Jaka."

"What? No. Why?"

"Cause it's an unfair trade even for me."

"Well I don't care."

"Take it back!"

"No."

"Kouki Hyoudou!" she said annoyed 

"Yess Rias Gremory." I said feigning innocence 

"Take. It. Back."

"No and that's final."

"But."

I sighed. "Ok how about this Vector manipulation is the Thank you and Astroremkinesis and Ryujin Jaka are early Birthday and Christmas presents respectively. Is that okay with you?"

"You're not going to take these back are you?"

"nope."

She sighed in defeat. "Fine…"

"See, that wasn't so hard." I pulled her close, chuckling as she relaxed against my chest. "I'll make Ryujin Jaka tomorrow."

She huffed but smiled, a rare softness in her expression. "You better."

Chapter 4: End