issei fear manifest

chapter 7 first blood

"Issei is walking down the street. It's been about 2 hours since the events at the occult research club.

A/N- Reminder: Unless explicitly stated otherwise, Issei and Umbris converse telepathically.

Issei: "Well, that was something. I felt like a rabbit in a wolf's den."

Umbris: "Makes sense. You were surrounded by devils in their own base. Your instincts have gotten sharper since you awakened."

Issei: "That's for sure. Anyways, we've got all day ahead of us. Wanna go see a movie?"

Umbris: "A horror one?"

Issei: "What other kind of movie would I go see?"

Umbris: "True, but yes, sounds like a plan to me. I could go for a snack."

Issei: "Alright then, let's get going."

Issei and Umbris went and saw some random horror movie, then decided to go train. As they arrived at their hideout, they both felt as if something was off, chalking it up to paranoia. They got to training.

Issei: Summoning ruin crabs to increase his limit "Fuck yeah, I finally got 4 at once."

Umbris aloud: "Good job, but don't get too cocky now. Ruin crabs require very little mana to summon and maintain compared to some of the things you'll get later. They are children's toys and are useless in combat. We really should get you training with a weapon of some kind."

As Umbris finished his statement, Issei felt a spike of mana instinctually. He jumped to the side. Not a second later, a blast of magic hit right where he was standing. Looking up to its source, he saw a woman, or at least the top half of one. Her lower body was monstrous, and strangely, she was topless, and one of her breasts was smoking.

Issei: "Oh, what the fuck?"

As he said this, the woman thing jumped from the rafters, landing in front of Issei.

???- "Perfect. I was getting hungry, and you'll make a great meal, especially since you're unarmed."

Issei internally: Uh, Umbris, what the fuck is she?

Umbris: Most likely a stray devil based on her energy.

Issei: A stray?

Umbris: I'll explain later. All that matters now is that we can kill her without repercussion from the devil's faction.

Issei: Ok, how do we do that?

Umbris: We have enough energy to manifest my claws. You'll need to close the distance and deal a lethal blow. But be warned, we only have one shot at this. We can't maintain my claws for long.

Stray: "Ah, is the little boy too scared to move? Don't worry, I'm just gonna kill you." And with that, she lunges at Issei. Issei notices in time and dodges to the side. "Looks like you can move after all. No matter, the chase will just make you taste better." She lunges at Issei again. This time, he charges towards her as well, thinking he's defenseless. She's confused but doesn't suspect what happens next. In one swift motion, Issei's right hand transforms into a monstrous limb with razor-sharp claws. With one slash, he cuts straight through her neck, severing her head from her body. Blood begins showering from her neck like a fountain, covering Issei in the deep red liquid.

Issei: "I thought there would be more resistance."

Umbris: "Hmm, what was that?"

Issei: "I thought there would be more resistance, that I'd have to put a lot of effort in, but no, it went right through like a knife in butter." As Issei contemplates this, a black mist begins to emanate from the body. "Wait, what's that?"