The last thing I remembered was the screech of tires, the blinding glare of headlights, and the sickening crunch of metal and bone. A stupid, cliché end for a guy who spent most of his life immersed in anime and light novels.
Then, there was nothing. A void of silent, formless black.
And then… there was pain.
A different kind of pain. Not the sharp, shattering agony of a car impact, but a deep, burning, *piercing* pain in my chest. I gasped, but my lungs felt like they were filled with liquid fire.
My vision swam into focus. I was no longer on a street. I was sitting on a park bench under a starry sky. The air was cool, and the sounds of distant traffic were muted. A beautiful girl with silver hair was standing in front of me, her face heartbreakingly sad.
"I'm sorry, Issei-kun," she whispered. "But I need you to die."
*Issei-kun? Park? Silver-haired girl?*
My mind, fogged with a dying man's confusion and another's jumbled memories, finally made the impossible connection. The girl's name was Yuma Amano. *My* first date. And the warm, sticky feeling spreading across my chest was from the ornate, glowing spear of light she had just plunged into it.
*Raynare. This is High School DxD. I'm Issei Hyodo. And I'm dying.*
The realization was a bucket of ice water. I tried to speak, to curse, to beg, but only a wet, gurgling sound escaped my lips. My body slumped forward, falling from the bench onto the cool grass. The world began to dim, the stars above blurring into streaks of light.
*No… Not like this… I just got here… I want to live…*
The desire was a pure, white-hot ember in the center of my fading consciousness. It was a plea not just for breath, but for a *chance*. A chance to see this incredible, dangerous world I had only ever read about.
**[ Host's Soul Resonance detected. ]**
**[ Will to 'Continue' has been validated. ]**
**[ The Omni-Emporium System is now binding... ]**
A voice, neither male nor female, calm and utterly devoid of emotion, spoke directly into my soul. As my physical eyes saw nothing but the approaching void, my mind's eye was flooded with a brilliant, golden interface. It looked like an intricate, holographic catalog.
**[ Soul Integration with vessel 'Issei Hyodo'... Complete. ]**
**[ Vital signs critical. Life-threatening injury detected: Punctured Heart via Demonic Light Spear. ]**
**[ Emergency Protocol Engaged. ]**
The system worked with terrifying speed. Options flashed before me.
**> <｜place▁holder▁no▁283｜> Cell Regeneration (Low-Tier): 500 Points**
**> <｜place▁holder▁no▁281｜> Reconstruction (Mid-Tier): 1,500 Points**
**> <｜place▁holder▁no▁282｜> State Stasis (Basic): 100 Points**
Points? I had nothing. But at the bottom of the interface, a line glowed with promise.
**[ Newcomer's Credit Line: 1,000 Points granted. Repayment required within 30 Standard Days. ]**
It was a loan. A deal with the devil, or in this case, a cosmic system. I didn't care.
"Stasis! Now!" I screamed with the last shred of my will.
**[ Purchasing '<｜place▁holder▁no▁282｜> State Stasis (Basic)' for 100 Points. ]**
**[ Balance: 900 Points. ]**
**[ Administering... ]**
The world didn't snap back into clarity. Instead, it froze. The pain vanished, replaced by a numb, weightless sensation. I was aware, but my body was locked in the moment just after death, held together by the system's incredible power. I could see Raynare turning away from my "corpse," a look of cold satisfaction on her face.
"Such a pathetic creature," she muttered to the empty park. "To think he held a Sacred Gear. Well, not anymore."
She vanished into a shadow, leaving me alone on the grass.
For a timeless period, there was only silence and the golden interface. I was a ghost in a broken machine, waiting.
Then, I felt it. A presence. Immense, regal, and brimming with demonic power. The air grew heavy, and the ambient sounds of the night died completely. From between the trees, a figure emerged.
She was more stunning than any illustration or anime frame could ever capture. Long, flowing crimson hair that seemed to drink the moonlight, eyes the color of the deepest ocean, and an aura of absolute authority. Rias Gremory.
Her gaze fell upon my still form. A flicker of surprise crossed her perfect features. She knelt beside me, her fingers hovering over the wound in my chest.
"How curious," she murmured, her voice a melody that resonated in my frozen soul. "The body is cold, the heart is pierced... yet the soul still clings. Tenaciously."
She looked around, her eyes narrowing. "To be attacked by a Fallen in my territory... and to possess such a will to live. This is no coincidence."
A complex, blood-red magic circle materialized beneath me, its intricate lines pulsing with immense power. I recognized it instantly. The Evil Piece system.
"I am Rias Gremory," she said, as if declaring a fundamental truth of the universe. "And I offer you a choice. Continue to cling to this half-life until your will finally breaks, or become my servant. Become a Devil, and live."
The system interface glowed brightly in my vision.
**[ New Quest Issued: 'A Devil's Contract' ]**
**Objective:** Accept the offer of reincarnation from Rias Gremory.
**Success Reward:** 2,000 Points, 'Devil Physiology' trait unlocked for future upgrades, Official initiation of the Omni-Emporium System.
**Failure:** System energy depletion in 00:59... 00:58... Soul dissipation.
There was no choice. Not really. This was the only path forward.
With all the focus I could muster, I directed my will not at my body, but at the connection I could feel forming between my soul and hers. A single, clear thought.
*Yes.*
Rias's eyes widened slightly, sensing the affirmation from my lingering soul. A gentle, knowing smile graced her lips. "I see. Then let us begin anew."
The magic circle flared with blinding crimson light. The "<｜place▁holder▁no▁282｜> State Stasis" was overwritten by a torrent of raw, reshaping power. I felt my very being unraveled and rewoven, the lethal wound sealing shut as new, demonic energy flooded every cell. The sensation was beyond anything I had ever experienced—both agonizing and ecstatic, a true rebirth.
The system's message was the last thing I perceived before true consciousness returned.
**[ Quest Complete! ]**
**[ Rewards: 2,000 Points. 'Devil Physiology' trait added. ]**
**[ Repaying Newcomer's Credit Line: 100 Points. ]**
**[ Current Balance: 2,800 Points. ]**
**[ The Omni-Emporium System is now fully operational. Welcome, Host. Browse our wares. Your new life awaits. ]**
I took a deep, shuddering breath—my first as a Devil. The air was sweet. I was lying on the grass in the park, but the pain was gone. I was whole. I was alive.
I looked up at the beautiful, crimson-haired Devil who had saved me. The memories of Issei Hyodo—his dreams, his friendships, his perverted passions—were now intertwined with my own, a quieter, more observant soul from another world.
"My name is Rias Gremory," she said, her smile warm and genuine now. "You are my newest Pawn."
I sat up, feeling the new strength in my limbs. I had a body that wasn't entirely my own, a debt to a mysterious system, and a place in the household of the Heiress of the Gremory. The story of High School DxD was just beginning, but Issei Hyodo was now a fusion of two souls, armed with a secret that could change everything.
The Omni-Emporium was open for business.