Ayaka ate her breakfast slowly, the spoon full of cereal pausing halfway to her mouth as her eyes stayed fixed firmly on the man she called her father. She was staring, like she was trying to burn her gaze through him, expecting to gaze into his very soul and find the answers hidden there.
She knew what she had seen yesterday. It hadn't been a dream, she was sure of that. She remembered it with chilling clarity, meeting Rias in the ORC clubroom, the shock of the Fallen Angel attack, the desperate run, the pure, searing pain of the energy attack, the dizzying exhaustion, and the horrifying sense of dying.
And then, the incredible appearance of her father.
He had descended from the dark, purple-hued sky like an avenging deity, turned those feathered bastards into a fine mist of blood, given her a strange vial to drink, and diced multiple high-ranking Fallen Angels before the darkness had finally taken her.
It was like she was watching an anime where the MC just made their appearance and then....
She had woken up this morning in her own bed, her body perfectly healed, like everything had been a dream, but the memory was undeniably true.
Some people would tell her she had dreamed it all, but Ayaka knew it was real. Her father was not just a boring, typical dad, worrying about them and telling those horrible dad jokes he now seemed fond of. No, he was a badass samurai-wizard, chopping up Fallen Angels with that awesome sword. And now she wanted, no, she needed to know.
She practically drilled holes in his head with her unblinking gaze as he pretended not to notice, continuing to eat his eggs with infuriating calm.
Aoi sat beside her, glancing awkwardly between her older sister's intense scrutiny and their father's tranquil face, wondering what drama she was missing. Ren, too young to comprehend, was just happily humming a rhyme.
Anastasia, watching the whole exchange from the kitchen island with a coffee mug, was initially tense, but now she was trying to hold back a genuine, bubbling laugh. Ayaka's face was just too funny, the girl's face practically screamed, 'Tell me what you're hiding, or I'll find out myself!'
Kenji, catching his wife's eye, subtly winked. A man has to have some fun.
Finally, Kenji turned to Ayaka as if he had just noticed her staring for the first time. "Yes, Ayaka, is there something you want to tell me?" he asked, adding a perfectly innocent tone to his voice.
She sputtered, face turning red, the spoon of cereal forgotten. "W-well… I… you…" She couldn't find the words. How did one come out and ask her father if he was a supernatural kickass? She tried to look for the right words, but they seemed to evade her.
As she struggled, her parents suddenly burst out laughing.
"Oh, your face just looks so cute like that!" Anastasia managed to gasp, clutching her stomach. "It's been so long since I've seen this side of you, my dear." The last time her daughter had been this overwhelmed was during the talk.
Her daughter had been so embarrassed that she didn't look her in the face for a whole week.
Ayaka's face flushed darker, and she slammed her hand on the table in frustration, startling Aoi and Ren. "I'm trying to have a serious talk here!" she insisted, her voice rising.
That sobered them up instantly. Kenji's smile faded, replaced by a solemn expression. Anastasia sighed, then turned to her husband and gave him a heavy nod.
"Well, now is as good a time as any," he said, letting out a long, quiet sigh. "First off, I need to know, why were you there last night?" he asked, his tone serious, wanting to confirm his suspicions.
She winced and looked away, shame and fear flickering across her face, but she offered no reply. He sighed again. He had an idea but he really didnt want to be correct.
"Okay, first off, I honestly didn't want to tell you kids this while you're all young," he said, holding up a hand to stop Ayaka from interrupting. "It's very dangerous getting involved, but it seems the danger is already heading toward us, and I'd prefer if you were prepared at the very least."
Ayaka and Aoi both sat up straight. Ayaka was excited, having some idea of what he wanted to say, but Aoi was still lost, wanting to know what this secret was that her parents and sister seemed to share.
"You already know, Ayaka, but I'll say it anyway. The supernatural is real," he said. "Monsters, magicians, angels, devils, Fallen Angels, dragons, and even gods. All of them are real."
Aoi's mind seemed to momentarily crash, her expression one of utter disbelief. Her face was doing a perfect impression of a Computer error. Ren, however, just looked on in wide-eyed awe. Ayaka, who knew it already, just nodded, waiting for the rest.
"Among the supernatural, there are humans who are born with gifts, items, artifacts from God that were made to help humanity against others. They are called Sacred Gears," he said.
Ayaka seized the opening. "Is that what you have? The sword you used yesterday?"
Aoi's head snapped toward her sister, then back to Kenji, her jaw slack. Was her sister saying their father had supernatural powers?
"No, no. My Sacred Gear is what I call Archon Core. Basically, I can manipulate my own potential to temporarily amplify my body, magic, or skills to grow stronger faster," he said, using the lie he'd crafted to protect the existence of his System. He'd give them an explanation without giving away his true abilities.
Ayaka nodded, absorbing the information. Rias had already told her the basics of Sacred Gears, but to think her father possessed one. "Is that how you were able to defeat all those Fallen Angels?"
He nodded. "It allows me to access and channel overwhelming power and helps me grow very quickly."
'That was amazing, ' she thought, looking at her hands and wishing she could be strong like him.
Aoi, still reeling from the revelation, crossed her arms skeptically. Her rational, academically focused mind was resisting the narrative. 'This is ridiculous. They've lost it.'
"Normally, I would not have told you kids this, but after what happened yesterday," he said, pausing and looking at Ayaka, "and after another incident a few weeks ago, your mother and I decided it would be better to train you just in case of future incidents." He stressed the word 'incidents,' the threat of things like Azazel's intrusion still heavy on his mind.
Ayaka was instantly brightened by the thought, bouncing on her seat.
Aoi, however, remained rooted in doubt. Kenji smiled, his expression softening slightly. He knew he needed to shatter her disbelief once and for all. He lifted his hand, and suddenly it appeared, the jet-black, beautifully terrifying katana, Yamato, instantly shimmered into existence in his grip.
Aoi gasped, the air rushing from her lungs. She shot out of her chair, backing away wide-eyed, her arms covering her face instinctively. The sword, with its ominous presence and flawless mirror-like blade, was beautiful.
Kenji smiled, seeing the pure awe on all his children's faces. He glanced at Anastasia, who was looking just as amazed as the kids.
He dismissed the sword back into his inventory, and it vanished without a trace. He clapped his hands, bringing them back to the conversation.
"I would have loved to allow you all to take a while to think about all I've told you, but with what happened yesterday, I think it would be better to start your training right now," he said, urgency heavy in his voice.
"Now, like right now now?" Ayaka said giddily, already doing a victory lap around the dining room.
"Yes, as much as I wish otherwise, we don't have the luxury of time," he confirmed.
"Yes!" Ayaka shouted, pumping her fist in the air.
Aoi, suppressing her excited nerves, asked, "So what are you going to teach us? Is it magic?"
Ayaka rushed back, clasping her hands together. "Please let it be magic! Please let it be magic!"
"Well, magic will be part of it, but it depends on your natural talents," he told them. "We start with the fundamentals: survival and awareness. We build the body first, then look at your talents, and then see about magic."
"So, where are we going to train?" Aoi asked, looking around the suburban dining room. She didn't think he'd use the garden.
Kenji just smiled mischievously.
"Oh, don't worry," he said, his tone far too cheerful. "I have a place for that."
Aoi felt a cold premonition run down her spine.
UNDERWORLD, LUCIFER 'S CASTLE
Grayfia Lucifuge stood silently behind her King, Sirzechs Lucifer, as he flipped through a stack of documents that had been brought for him a while ago. The atmosphere in the room was tense as he read them.
"Everything seems ordinary," Sirzechs murmured, his brow furrowed as he scanned the papers. "No record of supernatural contact, no ties to any factions." The lack of background information on the individual, no, not lack of information, more like lack of supernatural connections to Kenji Takahashi, was making things confusing.
Serafall Leviathan, sitting across from him, her playful Magical Girl persona entirely absent, pointed at a specific line on the sheet she was reading. "Wait, look at this," she said. "He had an accident a few months ago, a serious injury requiring hospitalization, and then people noted he suddenly changed. That has to be when his Sacred Gear awakened."
Because what else could it be if not a scared gear, that was the only thing that could make someone change like that overnight and become powerful, still.....
Sirzechs nodded thoughtfully. "That explains the sudden shift. But if it's a Sacred Gear, then it's not a minor one, it has to be one of the top Sacred Gears. Grayfia described him as… Ultimate-Class?"
Grayfia's silver eyes were focused and intense. "Yes, my lord. In terms of raw power and the sheer destructive force observed, he could rival or surpass a low-class Ultimate-Class Devil with ease."
Sirzechs leaned back in his chair, his expression darkening with the immense weight of leadership. "That's… troublesome. A human of that strength living right under Rias's nose, completely undetectable until he decided to kill a high-ranking Fallen Angel on our territory." He picked up a sealed document marked Kokabiel Incident Report. "The death of Kokabiel, while a long-term benefit, still creates a short-term political disaster."
Serafall adjusted her serious glasses. "Exactly. Heaven and Grigori have already reached out, expressing concern. They want to hold talks about Kokabiel's rebellion, it has given us a chance for those peace talks, kokabiel gave us the prefect opportunity, but now we have a new variable."
Sirzechs clasped his hands, the grim reality settling in. "The problem is not the man's raw strength, but the lack of information and control anyone has with him. He has demonstrated that he respects neither our authority nor our territories. An Ultimate-Class being operating without accountability is the definition of a threat to the supernatural stability."
"If it had been his wife, Anastasia, I would have understood," Serafall murmured, as she read the information they had gotten about the wife, "but the husband? It shouldn't be possible for him to reach this level of power this quickly."
Sirzechs rubbed his temples. "We cannot allow an unknown variable that powerful to operate autonomously without understanding his motives, a lot of people would not feel at ease. We need to tread carefully. He saved Rias and Sona, making him not an enemy, but his power is too great to ignore. We must establish communication at least ot understand what he wants."
He sighed, looking at the papers. "It seems peace is never easy."
Back at the Takahashi Home.
Her father was a sadist, she had not known this until today. Aoi was sure of this fact. She ran, dodging the thing that tried to grab her, she turned and watched as ayaka and her mother which screaming as they ran too.
She let out a snicker, she didn't know her mother could make a sound like that. She picked up a stone and threw it at the incoming being.
She watched as her father sat atop a building with Ren on his shoulder as he shouted 'encouraging words' to them. He had said he wanted to see how well they'd do before he started really training them. She understood, but this, this was not what she had been expecting.
Zombies. Freaking Zombies. How the hell.
———————————————————
If you want to read ahead and access 30 advanced chapters, check the patreon. $4 Dollars
Link:patreon/Phantomking785