The first "sighting" happened three days after I got the suit working.
I was doing a test run through the warehouse district at 2 AM—pushing my limits, seeing how fast I could go before the friction became unmanageable even with the suit's protection. The world was a blur of motion, golden lightning crackling in my wake, and I felt alive in a way that was almost addictive.
Then I saw him.
A man dragging a woman into an alley, one hand clamped over her mouth, the other holding something that glinted in the dim streetlight. A knife.
I didn't think. I just moved.
One moment I was half a mile away. The next, I was there—disarming him, my hand moving too fast for his brain to process. The knife clattered to the ground. I shoved him against the wall, not hard enough to seriously hurt him, but enough to stun.
The woman stumbled backward, eyes wide with shock.
I should have left immediately. Should have vanished before anyone got a good look. But I needed to make sure she was okay, that she could get away safely.
"Are you hurt?" I asked, my voice slightly distorted by the cowl—an effect I'd designed in specifically to disguise my identity.
She shook her head mutely, staring at me. At the red suit. At the lightning still crackling faintly across my shoulders.
"Go. Get somewhere safe. Call the police about this guy." I turned to the would-be attacker, who was slumped against the wall, dazed. "And you—maybe reconsider your life choices."
Then I ran.
By the time the woman pulled out her phone, I was already three miles away, my heart pounding not from exertion but from adrenaline. I'd just intervened in a crime. I'd just revealed myself—partially, at least—to witnesses.
I'd just become a vigilante.
The Rumors Begin
It started small. Background noise in the larger symphony of city life.
A post on a local community forum: "Did anyone else see something weird near the warehouse district last night? Like a red blur?"
Responses ranged from dismissive ("You were probably drunk") to curious ("I heard something similar from my cousin. Said his friend got mugged but someone stopped it. Described a guy in red moving super fast.")
I monitored these discussions from my room, using my enhanced speed to scan through forums and social media faster than any normal person could. Most dismissed it as urban legend. Some suggested elaborate pranks or optical illusions. A few proposed more creative explanations—experimental technology, performance art, viral marketing for some movie.
No one suggested anything supernatural. Because normal people in Kuoh—like normal people everywhere in this world—didn't know about the supernatural. The masquerade held. Devils, angels, and fallen angels kept their existence secret from the masses.
But I knew better.
The second incident happened a week later.
I was patrolling when I came across a convenience store robbery in progress. Two men with masks and guns, terrorizing the elderly clerk.
This time I was more deliberate. I disarmed them both in the span of a heartbeat, moving so fast they didn't even see me coming. I zip-tied their hands with restraints I'd started carrying, then called the police from a burner phone.
One of the robbers had seen me though. Caught a glimpse as I moved.
"What the hell was that?!" he shouted, struggling against his restraints. "Some kind of red lightning—it was so fast—"
I was already gone.
The City Takes Notice
By the end of the second week, the rumors had coalesced into something resembling a pattern among normal civilians.
Coffee shop conversations I overheard:
"My friend's sister said she was almost mugged near the train station, but someone saved her. She said it was like… a blur of red? Moving impossibly fast?"
"That's the third story I've heard like that this month. You think it's real?"
"Maybe it's some kind of vigilante? Like in those American movies?"
"In Kuoh? That's crazy. Probably just people seeing things."
The mundane explanations proliferated—elaborate costumes, parkour experts, mass hallucination, clever camera tricks. Normal people trying to rationalize something that defied their understanding of reality.
But that was only half the picture.
Accessing the Other Side
It happened by accident, two weeks into my career as the Flash.
I was in my room late at night, using my enhanced speed to research supernatural elements of the DxD world—trying to find any mention of Speed Force-like abilities, any precedent for what I'd become. I was moving through websites at superhuman velocity, my fingers blurring across the keyboard, my mind processing information faster than any normal human could.
Then I hit something… strange.
A website that shouldn't have loaded. The URL was normal enough, but when the page appeared, my screen flickered with symbols I recognized from my knowledge of this world—magical runes, demonic script, angelic sigils woven into the HTML code itself.
I'd somehow breached a supernatural network.
My speed had let me bypass security measures designed to keep normal humans out—firewalls that required magical energy to pass, authentication systems that checked for supernatural signatures. But my Speed Force connection apparently registered as something, enough to slip through the cracks.
I spent the next three nights mapping this hidden internet.
It was like discovering a parallel world wide web. Forums where devils discussed territory management. Message boards where fallen angels traded information. Marketplaces for magical artifacts. News sites reporting on supernatural events that never made it to human media.
And buried in one of these forums—a site that seemed to cater to various supernatural beings operating in Japan—I found a thread that made my blood run cold:
[GREMORY TERRITORY - KUOH CITY]
Unknown entity operating in sector 7. Multiple confirmed sightings. Speed-based abilities. Humanoid form, red coloration. Not matching any known Sacred Gear profiles. Not registered with any faction.
Gremory heir has been notified. Investigation pending.
The replies were varied:
"Another stray? Should be handled quickly."
"Speed abilities are rare. Could be valuable if captured."
"The energy signature is strange. Not demonic, not holy, not youkai. Something else."
"I heard it's been stopping human criminals. Weird behavior for a supernatural entity."
"Maybe it's someone's experiment? Sacred Gear research?"
So the supernatural community had noticed. Of course they had. I was operating in Gremory territory—Rias's territory—and any significant supernatural activity would draw attention.
But they didn't know what I was. Couldn't classify me. That was both good and bad. Good because it kept me mysterious. Bad because mystery made people curious.
And curious supernatural beings were dangerous.
Koneko's Quiet Observation
At school, Koneko continued to be a constant presence. We'd settled into our routine—lunch on the roof, occasional study sessions, comfortable silences punctuated by brief conversations.
But I caught her watching me sometimes with those golden eyes, like she was trying to solve a puzzle.
"You look tired," she observed one day during lunch.
I did feel tired. Balancing schoolwork, training, nightly patrols, and now monitoring supernatural networks was exhausting even with enhanced metabolism. "Haven't been sleeping well. Lot on my mind."
"You should rest more." She offered me a piece of candy from her seemingly endless supply. "Your body needs recovery time."
"Thanks, mom," I said with a slight smile, accepting the candy.
She didn't smile back, just continued watching me. "You smell like ozone sometimes. Like after a thunderstorm."
My heart rate spiked, but I kept my expression neutral. "I work with a lot of electronics. For my projects. Probably picking up the smell from that."
"Mm." Non-committal. She went back to her lunch.
I wondered what she sensed. As a Nekomata—though I wasn't supposed to know that—she had enhanced senses far beyond human or even most supernatural beings. Could she detect the Speed Force energy that clung to me? Did she report her observations back to Rias?
The paranoia was starting to wear on me. Every interaction felt like a potential exposure. Every day at school was a tightrope walk between my civilian identity and my secret life.
But I couldn't stop. Those people I'd saved—they were real. Their lives mattered.
Even if it meant living in constant fear of discovery.
The City's Protector - Dual Perspectives
Over the following weeks, the legend grew on two separate tracks.
Among normal humans, the hashtag #KuohFlash started trending locally. News outlets picked up the story: "Mysterious Savior in Red: Hero or Hoax?" Security camera footage caught blurred shapes. Artists made interpretations based on witness descriptions.
The mundane world saw a vigilante. A hero. Someone protecting them from ordinary crime.
But on the supernatural networks I now monitored obsessively, the conversation was different:
[UNKNOWN ENTITY UPDATE]
Entity has been active for 23 days. No aggressive actions toward supernatural community. Seems focused on human criminals. Speed estimates place it at Mach 2+ minimum. No faction has claimed responsibility.
Gremory investigation ongoing. Recommendation: observe but do not engage until nature is determined.
The responses revealed the supernatural community's uncertainty:
"23 days and still no clear identification? Troubling."
"Could it be a new Longinus manifestation? Speed-based Sacred Gears are rare but not unprecedented."
"I heard the Grigori are interested. Speed abilities would be valuable for their research."
"Let's hope it's not hostile. Last thing we need is another faction war over territory disputes."
That last comment made me pause. Faction war. Over me. Because I was operating in Gremory territory without permission, without allegiance to any faction.
I was, technically, an unknown threat. Even if I was helping humans, the supernatural world operated on different rules. Territory, hierarchy, power—these things mattered more than intentions.
I needed to be more careful. But I also couldn't stop.
The Discovery
It happened on a Saturday night, four weeks into my career as the Flash.
I was patrolling my usual route when I felt something… off. A disturbance in the Speed Force connection, like ripples in water. Someone—or something—was moving fast. Very fast.
Not as fast as me, but close enough to register.
I changed direction, following the sensation toward the industrial district. The warehouses here were mostly abandoned, perfect for supernatural activities or—apparently—secret meetings between speedsters.
I found them in an empty lot surrounded by chain-link fence and forgotten machinery.
A figure stood in the center, waiting. The posture was deliberately casual, but everything about the scene screamed "trap."
The figure wore a suit similar to mine in design—aerodynamic, built for speed—but the colors were wrong. Where mine was crimson and gold, theirs was dark red verging on black, with crimson lightning crackling around them like blood in water.
"The Flash," the figure said, voice distorted by a modulator similar to mine but more aggressive, more mechanical. "I've been looking for you."
I stopped about fifty feet away, every muscle tensed. "Who are you?"
"Someone like you. Someone who knows what it means to move between the seconds, to see the world as it really is." They took a step forward. "You've been playing hero. Stopping muggers, saving people. Very… noble."
The way they said "noble" made it sound like an insult.
"And you?" I asked, letting my own lightning crackle visibly as a warning.
"I have different priorities." Another step forward. "This world is broken, Flash. Corrupt. The strong prey on the weak, and no one does anything about it. Not the police. Not the supernatural factions with their territory games and power politics. No one."
I didn't like where this was going. "So what, you're going to fix it?"
"I'm going to make the guilty suffer. The criminals, the corrupt, the ones who hurt others and face no consequences—I'll ensure they pay. Really pay." The red lightning intensified. "You're too soft, Flash. Too restrained. We have the power to do real justice."
Great. An evil speedster with a twisted sense of morality. Just what this world needed.
"Justice isn't the same as vengeance," I said, keeping my voice steady.
"Isn't it?" They laughed—harsh and bitter. "We're the fastest things alive. We can cross this city in seconds. We see everything, know everything, act before anyone can stop us. Who else is better qualified to decide who deserves punishment?"
"That's not your decision to make."
"Then whose? The devils who run this city from the shadows? The fallen angels who manipulate humans for their experiments? The church with their holy hypocrites?" The figure's voice dripped with contempt. "They're all corrupt. All guilty. And someone needs to make them pay."
Oh. Oh no. This wasn't just an evil speedster targeting criminals. This was someone who knew about the supernatural world and wanted to wage war against it.
"I won't let you hurt innocent people," I said firmly.
"Innocent?" The figure's laugh was genuinely amused. "In this city? With devils walking among humans, fallen angels running experiments, supernatural beings treating this place like their playground? There are no innocent people here, Flash. Everyone's guilty of something. Everyone's complicit in the masquerade."
"That's insane."
"That's truth." The red lightning exploded outward. "And since you won't join me in fixing this broken world, I'll just have to show you why I'm right."
Then they moved.
Fast. Impossibly fast. Red lightning tearing across the space between us.
I barely dodged, my Speed Force connection screaming warning as I accelerated to match their velocity. We became blurs of motion, red and gold lightning clashing in the empty lot like a thunderstorm contained in a bottle.
The figure fought with vicious efficiency—every movement calculated to harm, to disable, to hurt. They'd clearly trained for combat, thought about how to weaponize speed.
I was faster—I could feel it, that slight edge in velocity that came from my deeper connection to the Speed Force. But they were more brutal, more willing to cross lines I wouldn't.
"You're holding back!" they snarled, landing a hit that sent me stumbling. "Fight me seriously!"
"I don't want to hurt you!"
"Then you've already lost!"
The red lightning intensified, and I felt something shift—they were drawing more power, pushing harder, tapping into something darker. The Speed Force around them felt… wrong. Corrupted. Like negative energy feeding on rage and hatred.
Then they were gone.
Just vanished in a blur of crimson lightning that left scorched pavement and the acrid smell of burning ozone.
I stood there alone, panting despite my enhanced stamina, staring at the scorch marks on the ground.
I had an evil counterpart. A Reverse Flash. Someone with similar powers but opposite morals, someone who wanted to use speed not to protect but to punish.
And they knew about the supernatural world. Which meant they were either from it, connected to it, or—like me—had knowledge they shouldn't possess.
The Supernatural Response
The fight didn't go unnoticed.
Two days later, monitoring the supernatural networks, I found a new thread:
[URGENT - KUOH TERRITORY ALERT]
Two speed-based entities confirmed. Engaged in combat in industrial sector 12. Energy signatures consistent with previous "Flash" sightings, but second entity shows corrupted readings. Possible Fallen Angel experiment? Stray Sacred Gear user?
Gremory heir escalating investigation to priority level. All supernatural residents advised to report any sightings immediately.
The responses were alarmed:
"TWO of them? This is getting out of hand."
"The second one's energy feels wrong. Corrupted. Could be dangerous."
"I heard they fought each other. Some kind of territorial dispute?"
"Or maybe the red one is hunting the gold one? Predator and prey?"
"Either way, Gremory-sama needs to handle this before it spirals."
I closed my laptop and pressed my palms against my eyes.
This was exactly what I'd feared. The Reverse Flash—I needed to call them something—had escalated everything. Now Rias would be actively investigating, and with Issei presumably joining the ORC soon (if he hadn't already), my brother would be dragged into this mess.
I needed to find the Reverse Flash before they hurt someone. Before they exposed the supernatural world or started a war between factions. Before Rias's investigation led back to me.
But I had no idea who they were, where they came from, or how to stop them.
All I knew was that somewhere in Kuoh, another speedster was planning something terrible.
And the clock was ticking.
Koneko's Concern
"You're distracted again," Koneko observed during lunch on Monday.
I realized I'd been staring at my untouched bento for several minutes, my mind churning through possibilities and plans. "Sorry. Just… a lot going on."
"School? Or something else?" Those golden eyes pinned me with uncomfortable accuracy.
"Both, I guess."
She was quiet for a moment, then: "If you're in trouble, you should tell someone. Keeping everything inside isn't healthy."
I'm the Flash, there's an evil version of me running around planning to hurt people, and I'm pretty sure your boss is about to start actively hunting for both of us, I thought.
"I'm fine," I said aloud. "Just need to work through some problems on my own."
Koneko looked like she wanted to argue, but instead she just pushed a piece of candy toward me. "Eat. You need energy for whatever you're dealing with."
I accepted the candy, grateful for her concern even if I couldn't explain why I needed it.
She didn't know I was the Flash. She didn't know about the Reverse Flash. She was just worried about her friend who seemed stressed and tired and increasingly distant.
Part of me wanted to tell her everything. To share the burden, the fear, the impossible situation I'd found myself in.
But I couldn't. Not yet. Not until I understood what I was dealing with and how to stop it.
The Reverse Flash was out there, planning something.
And I was the only one who could stop them.
Even if it meant pushing myself to the breaking point.
Even if it meant eventually facing exposure and all the consequences that would bring.
Because that's what heroes did.
And despite everything, despite my fear and isolation and the weight of secrets I carried, I was trying to be a hero.
In a world that didn't know it needed one.
Did. I bring In the reverse flash to early ?