High School DxD: Fox of Ill Omen

Issei

The elevator kept descending.

Buchou stood beside me with a calm look, but she had shifted out of the mindset of greeting other nobles and high-class Devils and into something more focused.

She still looked relaxed and confident, like the next head of the Gremory should. 

Under it, though, she was focused now.

That made me feel better.

If Buchou was with me, it would be much easier to find Koneko-chan and Yuki-san.

I exhaled through my nose and tried not to think too hard about the fact that Yuki-san had gone after Koneko-chan before I could.

She had just moved first.

She had always been observant and would often stay quiet as she watched our group.

She had realized that something was off with Koneko-chan when we were on our way to the Underworld before I did.

She was also the one to talk to Koneko-chan and get her to face the parts of herself she didn’t want to.

It made sense that Yuki-san had noticed right away that something was off with Koneko-chan before she ran out of the party.

I just wished I had acted sooner.

The elevator doors opened.

Buchou and I stepped out fast.

The lower floor was quieter than the party levels above, but still not empty.

Staff moved through the hall with trays and quiet efficiency, and a few guests lingered in conversation near the wider corridor leading toward one of the side exits.

Buchou didn’t waste time.

“Excuse me,” she said to the nearest servant, and somehow even in a hurry she still sounded like a noblewoman worth listening to. “Have you seen two girls pass this way? One petite, with white hair and cat ears. The other tall, silver-haired, with fox ears and tails?”

The servant blinked, startled by being addressed so directly, then nodded quickly.

“Yes, Rias-sama. They went that way.”

He pointed toward the side exit leading away from the hotel grounds.

My stomach dropped a little more.

Koneko-chan leaving quietly on her own was one thing.

Yuki-san following her without waiting for us was another.

That meant either Yuki-san had agreed to go with Koneko-chan, chasing after whatever she had seen, or she hadn’t been able to convince her to stop and decided to follow her.

And both of them ending up outside the main grounds was definitely not good.

Buchou thanked the servant and moved immediately.

I followed right beside her.

The hotel lights fell behind us quickly as we passed through one of the side paths.

The formal gardens here gave way to broader grounds and then the darker outer edge of the hotel property.

We stopped by a fountain near the edge of the hotel grounds.

“Koneko’s behavior is abnormal. And Yuki not stopping her or waiting for us is worrying as well.” Buchou said as she sent out her bat familiar to look for them.

“You’re right,” I agreed. “But what was Koneko-chan following, and where did they go?”

We stood by the fountain for a moment as Buchou contemplated what could have happened.

The only sound was the water falling in the fountain and the breeze rustling the leaves of the nearby trees.

Then I noticed something.

A tiny lilac flame hanging in the air at knee height by the tree line.

I leaned forward and squinted at it.

“What is it?” Buchou asked when she noticed me staring into the trees.

I pointed.

She looked towards the treeline and let out a small gasp.

“Foxfire,” she said before turning to me. “They've gone into the woods. Whatever Koneko is following is leading them away from the party. Yuki must have left us a trail to follow as she went after her.”

“Let’s go!” I said as I grabbed Buchou’s hand and took off towards the fading flame.

We reached it and further ahead I spotted another light up ahead.

And farther beyond that, one more.

Buchou was right.

Yuki-san had left us a trail of Foxfire to follow.

Not bright enough to draw attention from far away.

But enough to be seen if you were looking.

“She figured out something was wrong fast enough to leave us a trail?”

Buchou nodded once. “That sounds like her.”

I stared at the path of fading lilac flames.

For a second, despite everything, I felt a little better.

Because whatever we were walking into, Yuki-san had thought clearly enough to leave a trail behind her instead of just disappearing into trouble.

She had realized I would follow her and knew that she might need backup.

We followed the foxfire.

The flames grew more faint the further we went and the ones behind us began to flicker and die.

Some of them hovered low between the trees, others flickered briefly against bark or above roots and stones, just enough to keep us moving in the right direction.

They didn’t look like they’d last much longer.

As we walked I noticed that this forest felt different from the mountain I’d trained on with Tannin-ossan.

This forest seemed quieter.

But that might have been due to the fact that I had been binding chased by a massive fire breathing Dragon my whole time on that mountain.

I also realized that I was moving through it more easily than I would have before.

My steps were surer.

I noticed roots and uneven ground faster.

My balance adjusted automatically when the terrain shifted.

It looked like I got something out of Tannin-ossan’s training besides more muscles.

No time to feel proud about that, though.

Another wisp of Foxfire flickered on a trunk ahead, then began fading almost as soon as we reached it.

“They’re disappearing,” I muttered.

“They only needed to last long enough,” Buchou replied quietly.

We continued on, but soon we reached the last flame Yuki-san had left for us.

We stopped for a moment before looking at each other and continuing in the same direction we had been.

Up ahead clearing in the trees came into view.

We slowed as the trees thinned.

Buchou’s hand caught my arm immediately, pulling me down before I could step fully into view.

I crouched beside her behind the cover of the trees and looked out.

Koneko-chan stood alone in the clearing.

She was near the center of the open space, small beneath the Underworld night, white hair and pale dress standing out against the dark ground and shadowed trees around her.

Her cat ears turned slightly as she looked around.

She was tense.

Like she knew something was here and didn’t know exactly when it would show itself.

Buchou’s grip on my arm loosened but didn’t fully leave.

I could feel how focused she’d become, every part of her attention narrowed to the clearing.

I held still too.

For a few long seconds, nothing happened.

Then a Koneko-chan seemed to notice something and turned towards it. 

A voice called out.

“It’s been quite a while. Hasn’t it, Shirone.”

A woman stepped out into the clearing from the opposite side.

She was beautiful.

She appeared from the trees without a single noise to announce her approach.

She wore a black kimono loosely on her shoulders.

I could see that it had red trim and she had a yellow obi tied around her waist.

I also noticed that it exposed a decent amount of her cleavage.

She had long dark hair and a voluptuous body and large breasts that rivaled Buchou and Akeno-san’s in size.

Despite the situation I couldn’t help but stare at her.

…I would have stared either way, but I felt more conflicted about it right now.

But the thing that stood out the most about her appearance were the black cat ears on her head, the two cat tails lazily moving behind her, and the cat-like pupils in her dull-golden colored eyes.

Her smile was lazy as she stood across from Koneko-chan.

Koneko-chan went rigid.

“...it’s you,” She said in a voice tight with anger.

“Ara, that’s no way to greet your Onee-chan, now is it?”

I turned to Buchou in surprise.

She was focused on Koneko-chan and the woman, but she shushed me to keep me from making any noise.

Koneko-chan had a sister?

And why was she calling her Shirone?

I would have to ask questions after this to figure out exactly what was going on.

“Kuroka-neesama…” Koneko-chan murmured.

“See, that’s much better, Shirone.” Kuroka said. 

Koneko-chan’s voice came out low and hard.

“Don’t call me that.”

Kuroka only laughed softly. “Still stubborn. That’s cute too.”

Buchou and I stayed hidden.

I could feel her holding herself in check, waiting for the right moment to step in instead of rushing out too early.

Kuroka walked a little farther into the clearing, entirely at ease.

She looked Koneko-chan over as she moved closer to her. 

“You’ve gotten bigger,” she said. “And prettier too, nyan.”

Koneko-chan’s face tightened.

“You have no right to say anything to me.”

“Ara? So cold~” Kuroka tilted her head. “Onee-chan came all this way to see you, and that’s what I get? You were the one to follow the black cat that snuck into that party, so why are you so unhappy?”

“…Nee-sama, what is this about?” Koneko-chan asked, more anger leaking into her voice now.

“Ara. There’s no reason to sound so upset. I was in the area on some business and heard that there would be a big, fancy party here, so I decided to check it out. I’m just here to have some fun~ Nyan!”

Kuroka winked at Koneko-chan cutely as she brought her hand up like a cat paw.

I felt Buchou shift slightly beside me.

Probably getting ready.

Then another voice called from the trees above.

“I recognize your sister as one of the members of the Gremory group, Kuroka.”

I jerked my head upward automatically.

A figure dropped down from a branch farther off with easy confidence and landed in a crouch.

A figure in ancient Chinese armor and carrying a staff stood in the clearing near Kuroka.

I recognized Biko immediately, and became concerned that there may be another attack from the Khaos Brigade on the Maou’s party.

Bikou looked around the clearing once, then toward the shadows where Buchou and I were hiding and grinned.

“Oh, come on. You still think you’re still hidden? With people like me and Kuroka, who know Senjutsu, trying to hide from us is rather difficult. Come out if you don’t want the girl to be hurt.”

Kuroka scowled at him for his comment, but didn’t say anything.

Damn it.

Buchou and I stepped out from the trees and into the clearing.

Koneko-chan seemed surprised that we had followed her.

“Issei-senpai, Buchou, what are you doing here?”

Before we could speak there was a flicker near the edge of the clearing slightly further away.

The air seemed to flicker, like a haze from heated air, then Yuki-san dropped from a tree.

She then stepped forward and appeared next to Buchou and me. 

Even knowing what it was now, seeing her movement ability still made my skin crawl in the weirdest way.

“Yuki-senpai! Why did you follow me?” Koneko-chan asked, concerned. “I told you that it would be dangerous and that you should stay behind!”

“I wasn’t going to let you go off on your own Koneko-chan. Especially once you told me there was danger.”

Bikou’s grin faltered.

“Tsk. This is why Kitsune are hard to deal with, I’m lucky your friends arrived and drew you out as well.”

Yuki-san calmly stared back at Biko.

“It looks like I revealed myself too early. I over estimated your ability to detect me.”

“Monkey boy missed you, but I didn’t fox-chan,” Kuroka said with a grin. “I noticed you watching Shirone as soon as she got to the clearing.”

Yuki-san looked at Kuroka.

Her expression was cold.

Kuroka, meanwhile, seemed much more entertained by Yuki-san than anything.

“So you’re the strange silver one,” she said. “The Gremory fox.”

Yuki-san’s tails shifted once behind her. “Koneko-chan has told me about you.”

“She has? That’s rather interesting.” Kuroka smiled at her in that same infuriatingly easy way. “I’ve heard some cute things about you too~”

I looked back and forth between the two of them as they watched each other.

Then leaned towards Buchou and asked a question that had been bothering me.

“Umm, Buchou, what exactly is Senjutsu?”

Buchou sighed.

“Senhutsu are abilities that some Youkai can use. It uses chakra, or one’s life force to empower the user. It isn’t expended, but instead flows through them and their spirit, giving them strength similar to demonic power or holy light, but not nearly as destructive. Instead it has much more utility and can be used for various things like observing others' spirits or auras.” Buchou explained.

“It can also be used inside the user's own body to control the flow of their own spirit. They can then strengthen their body or project it outwards, like with Touki,” Yuki-san continued, still watching Kuroka and Biko. “It can also be used on others to disrupt the flow of their spirit and cause debilitating wounds that are very difficult to heal, or to heal others by interacting with their spirit.”

That sounded extremely useful.

And annoying to deal with.

“Wait, couldn’t you use Senjutsu since you’re a Youkai like them, Yuki-san?” I asked.

“I know a limited amount. I need to, as my tail abilities work by manipulating my own spirit to create their effects, but I have always been more focused on my spell work. My knowledge of Senjutsu techniques is lacking as it was not something I pursued deeply.” She replied.

I blinked.

“Is it because you didn’t have someone to teach you, or is it because you're bad at it?” I asked

She sent me a small glare.

“I’m the same way with demonic energy, so I get it.”

“So why are you here if it's not for Koneko-chan?” She asked, ignoring my comment. “Is there going to be another attack by the Khaos Brigade?”

Biko smiled and waved his hand dismissively.

“No nothing like that,” He said. “We are off duty due to receiving a stand by order while we stay in the Underworld. Kuroka decided she wanted to come see this party and I decided to come along to ensure she didn’t get in too much trouble.”

Kuroka’s gaze slid to me.

“I know who the Gremory girl, and the fox are, but who is the boy Biko?”

“That's the Sekiryuutei.”

Her eyes widened before she looked at me with more interest. 

“Really-nyan? Hmmm… he looks younger than I expected. But you’ve met him before, Biko, so I’ll believe you. Now I can say I’ve met the breast loving Sekiryuutei~”

Was that how people knew me?

It wasn’t wrong exactly, but if that’s what people knew me as, then people would think I was someone strange.

Biko yawned, like this whole situation wasn’t rather tense.

“I’m bored. Let’s head back to Kuroka. We can’t enjoy the party without being caught, so staying here is a waste of time.”

“That’s fine. But I think that I’ll be taking Shirone with me-nyan. We have a lot to catch up on after all.” Kuroka said with a mean smile. 

“If you take her back without telling the other, Vali isn’t going to be happy with you.” Biko casually replied. 

“He’ll get over it once he realizes that she’s the same as me. If I tell him and Ophis that she is just as talented as I am with Senjutsu and Youjutsu, they’ll be convinced.”

Biko put a hand to his chin.

“Hmm… you might be right.”

Kuroka smiled widely as she stared down at Koneko-chan.

Koneko-chan started to shake under her gaze.

Then Yuki-san stepped forward and spoke with a steely voice.

“Koneko-chan isn’t leaving here with you.”

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