Chapter 8: The Vampire Awakens: Dante's Side
LinkOnScepter
The One who Strangles Concepts to death
- Location
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"So, this is where you ran off to?"
Vergil's chopsticks stopped halfway to his mouth. His already sour expression seemed to get worse as he let his hand drop. His lunch break had just started and he had chosen to leave the school to eat. The primary reason being the students. He was accosted on his way out of the library by numerous female students, who were all trying to ask him to go eat with them. When he turned away and left them behind, he was then met by numerous male students. Who were all trying to challenge him to a duel of some sort.
Another time, Vergil would've taken delight in showing them their place.
As it stood?
He simply wanted to eat in peace. But it seemed his brother had other plans.
His utensils gently hit the black plastic bowl that he had in his lap. Looking up at the familiar voice he had heard made him sigh in frustration, "Why are you here, Dante?"
Dante shrugged, "Didn't see you in the student's lunch room or the Teacher's Lounge. So, I went looking and found you sitting out here on a bench. Looking to all the world like a sad old man who's family doesn't visit anymore."
The younger Sparda brother chuckled while lifting the square cardboard box he held in his right hand up. He tossed it up a little, letting it land on his finger before pushing one of the edges. Like his brother, he had been accosted by numerous students on the way here. Unlike Vergil, though, his students were mostly young men. Who were all asking him for relationship advice, or how to be "cool" like he was. He did what he could to answer their questions, but needed to slip away to meet his brother for lunch.
The box began to spin on his finger while Dante stared down at Vergil. He looked at the bowl in his brother's lap then frowned, "The heck are you eating?"
"Some of the local cuisine. A bowl of ramen noodles with egg and chicken broth," he lifted some of the still hot noodles with his chopsticks for Dante to see, "It is supposed to be rather filling. And gives me an excuse to practice using chopsticks."
"Pfft, seriously?" Dante rolled his eyes. He sat down next to Vergil on an empty side of the bench and placed the box in his lap. He made a show of lifting the lid while staring Vergil in the eyes, "How about you put the sticks down and enjoy a little taste of home with your brother? Feast your eyes on this baby."
He popped open the box's lid. From within a large waft of steam flew into the air, along with the smell of Dante's favorite dish; A pizza from the human world with everything on it...except olives.
Dante took a deep whiff of the cheesy concoction. He let out a happy sigh as memories of home began to surface, "Oooohhh boy. Been too long since I had a slice of this good stuff."
He picked up a slice and immediately bit into it. Vergil watched his brother's sloppy eating with disgust on his face. He scoffed before going back to his own meal, "Must you put such horrid things inside your body? Our demon blood does much for us, but we must still take care of ourselves."
Dante, after licking what was left off his fingers, glanced at Vergil. He raised an eyebrow, "You sure about that? I've been eating this stuff since I was a teen. And my body hasn't slowed down on me yet."
"Yet," Vergil countered.
"Like you're one to talk. Based on what the kid told me, before you got your new bod, you were limping around like a 100 year old man," Dante leaned forward while placing a hand on his back. He spoke in a poor imitation of an older gentleman, "Oh, Nero. Ya mind helpin' out your old man for old times' sake? Aye just be needin' to borrow your arm for a second. Just need to take the Yam'a'to and split myself into two beings. Nothin' too crazy."
Vergil groaned at his brother's antics. He was thankful that no one was there to see them. The two fell into silence for a moment. The only sounds being either one eating their respective meals.
"So," Dante broke the silence. The pizza was already half gone when he started talking again, "what do you think Nero's doing right now?"
Vergil stopped eating for a moment. He slowly moved his chopsticks down while turning his head up towards the clouds. His expression became softer as he thought of his...son. He had since accepted the fact that Nero was his offspring. But...
"I...I believe he is doing fine," Vergil replied.
"Don't sound like it," Dante said, taking a slice of pizza out and offering it to Vergil. Vergil moved his head away from the offered food. Shrugging, Dante put the pizza back in the box and closed it. He leaned back against the bench while sighing, "Sounds more like you're still unsure about how you should feel about the kid being yours."
"I assure you that is not the case."
"Really? Then what's the first thing you're gonna do with your son when you get back?"
"...."
"That's what I thought."
Vergil huffed while glaring at his brother, "Then enlighten me, dear brother, what should I do with Nero we return to our world? Since you seem so knowledgeable about him. Certainly you know his likes and dislikes?"
Dante looked up at the clouds, "Hmm. Well, a good first step would be talk to the kid about his mother. Maybe explain why you hooked up with her."
"Is this your attempt at getting me to speak of that night?"
"So it happened at night did it?"
"Urgh," Vergil groaned and turned away from the grinning Dante. He shook his head as he replied, "As I stated, that was a long time ago. And I have no interest in talking about it with you."
"OK," Dante's expression hardened, "But I'm being serious about the kid. Never told me straight up what his life was like, but couldn't have been fun. You and I both know what it's like to grow up without parents."
Vergil flinched at Dante's words. He hung his head while steepling his hands together, "Yes. You are...correct. But at the time I...I didn't know how long I had left. Remaining in one place was...foolish."
"But you left the Yamato?"
"If I couldn't be there for my son in body, then perhaps I could be there in spirit. And it ensured that, should anything happen to one of us, Sparda's lineage would continue in some manner. Hopefully a better one than either of us have left behind."
"Hey now," Dante turned to regard Vergil fully, "I hope you're speaking for yourself there. I'm not the one who put the world at risk not once, but twice."
"And what have you been doing outside of living in a dingy, rundown building, barely able to keep paying for your electricity?" Vergil raised an eyebrow.
"Hey, I fight demons for a living. It just so happens we were in a dry spell before you showed up," was Dante's reply.
"That is not what that human Morrison told me," Vergil didn't smirk, but Dante could hear the smugness in his brother's tone of voice.
Dante waved his brother's words off. He chose to change the subject, "Speaking of home, any progress on finding us a way back?"
"It has been less than a day, Dante. Did you honestly believe I could make any significant progress within that amount of time?"
"I do have a pretty high bar set for you, older brother."
Vergil huffed and shook his head, "I must disappoint you then. I am making progress. But nothing concrete yet. Simply theories and basics on how the magic of this world works."
"Alright...oh, did the Student Council President come talk to you?"
"That depends. Do you speak of the part-human with an invisible shape-shifter as an ally?"
"Part-human, eh? Thought he smelled weird," Dante shook his head, "If I were a betting man, I'd put money on the two of them having some big evil plan in mind. And I'd wager the two of us are gonna be some mighty big wrenches in it."
"You can choose to be. I will not be getting involved. As, if they are as intelligent as they believe themselves to be, they will not bother me with their plans," Vergil stated without a hint of emotion.
Dante shook his head, "Should've seen that coming."
The two lapsed into silence.
"You know, I think this is the first time we've managed to talk without trying to kill each other afterward."
"If you do not consider our childhood...then you would correct."
"Huh...feels pretty good."
"...I agree".
More silence.
"So, about the kid's mother..."
"No."
Dante yawned as he walked towards the entrance to Yokai Academy. To his right, Vergil was walking with that same book from before in his hand. Yesterday had come and gone after lunch with little fanfare. The only other teacher that Dante ran into was a woman named Ririko. A woman with a taste in outfits that reminded him of Trish. That class wasn't nearly as eventful as Kitty Cat's. Though that might just be because it was math. He kind of blanked everything after his introduction out of his head.
When school finally let out, he and Vergil had to confront something they both forgot about: Where they would be sleeping. Bereft of any options, they decided to go to a few empty dorm rooms in the male dorms. Gramps said it was fine so they went with it.
The result?
"So, when are we getting our first paycheck?" Dante asked, rubbing one of his eyes to get the sleep out of it.
Vergil answered without looking up from his book, "The end of this week. So we have five more days before we receive any monetary compensation."
"Wait, five?" Dante looked at this brother in confusion, "Doesn't the weekend start in four days?"
"Japanese schools do not consider Saturday a weekend break day. Only Sunday," Vergil explained without looking up from his book.
Dante sighed while shaking his head, "Great. Guess we're gonna be sleeping in those crappy dorms for a bit longer...unless Gramps wouldn't mind us taking some trips to the human world to see about getting our own places."
"That's assuming we will be able to gain yen without performing illegal actions. Unless you're suggesting we look into stealing money from others," Vergil, in spite of his tone of voice, did not actually mind the idea of taking money from others for their own benefit. It wasn't like he hadn't done it before.
Vergil leaned away to avoid Dante's attempt to pat his shoulder. Dante spoke regardless, "Don't you worry about that, brother of mine. Even if this place doesn't have any demons or devils to hunt, it is still a world filled with supernaturals and humans. Which means that there are people out there who need help dealing with some bad supernatural creatures. And we happen to have sets of skills particularly suited to that."
Vergil hummed and glanced up from his book. He tilted his head forward and to their left, "A fair point. But if you plan to investigate such things, I suggest you handle your current 'project' first."
Dante looked in the direction Vergil indicated. There, walking along with his head down and focusing on something in his left hand, was Tsukune Aono. In his right he carried a bag that probably had all his school supplies in it. Even from afar Dante could tell the kid was troubled. He was dragging his feet and mumbling things into the wind.
"Good point, Vergil. But you did forget one thing; That kid is 'our' project. Come on now," Dante managed to get his arm around Vergil's shoulder. Vergil tried to escape but Dante held firm. He just about dragged Vergil over to where Tsukune was. Then he put his other arm around the human boy's shoulder.
Tsukune let out a yelp before turning and seeing Dante's smiling face. He stammered out, "D-D-Dante?"
"Morning Lover Boy," Dante said, ignoring how Vergil managed to escape his grasp. He focused his all on Tsukune, eyes falling on the paper in the kid's left hand. He pointed a finger at the paper, "What's that ya got there? A love letter from you know who?"
Tsukune blushed fiercely while shaking his head, "No, no, no, no! It's...it's a withdrawal notice. I wrote it up last night. I was...debating whether I should give it to the principal."
"If you wrote it, then you must intend to give it over, boy," Vergil said without looking up from his book. He scoffed, "I thought you would've decided to leave. This school is no place for one such as you."
Tsukune's mood soured but he still spoke up, "Um, well...that's the thing. I...I'm not sure if I want to leave. I mean, yeah, this place is scary. But...but Moka-san...she really likes me. And she seemed so lonely so-"
Dante held up a hand, "Say no more, Lover Boy. I gotcha. Don't necessarily agree with your thought process, but I'm not here to force you into anything. But I hope you understand that, while my brother could've said it better, choosing to stay will put your life in serious danger."
Dante let the boy go. Tsukune started to rub the back of his neck with the back of his hand, "I...I know. But-"
"No, seriously, kid," Dante lowered his voice and narrowed his eyes at the human, "You could honestly die if you stay here. Be 100% certain before you make a decision. Alright?"
Tsukune yelped again when he saw Dante's face. He managed to shake it off before turning his head back to the withdrawal notice in his hand. He silently walked alongside the Sons Of Sparda for a few seconds. Then he started to speak up, "I...I want to-"
"Hey, wait up, Lover Boy."
Tsukune's body tensed up at the familiar voice. He stopped walking, Dante and Vergil following suit. They all turned to see Saizo leaning against the trunk of a broken tree to their right. The taller student stood up straight and started heading towards Tsukune. He did nothing to hide the threatening tone in his voice, "Looks like you had a lot of fun with Moka Akashiya yesterday. And you're gonna pay for it today!"
Tsukune backed up from the sight of the clearly angry student. But Saizo closed the distance between them quickly. He reached out for Tsukune's collar...only to be greeted by Dante's hand grabbing his wrist.
"This again, Blondey?" Dante chided the student while shaking his head, "Didn't I tell you to cut this out already? What made you think you could do it again just cause it was a new day?"
Saizo growled, pulling his arm away from Dante. Dante let him go while moving to stand in front of Tsukune. Saizo focused on the shorter boy, watching him cower behind Dante, "So, you're one of those kind of monsters huh? The weaklings who hide behind the coattails of others? You think you are worthy of a beauty such as Moka?!"
Tsukune made an attempt to reply, but all that came out was incoherent stammers. Dante spoke up while patting the human on the head, "Nothing wrong with asking for help from someone you trust. Especially since, you know, I'm a Teacher's Assistant? Students are supposed to come to me for stuff like this. Now, how about you run along to class Blondey? Do that and I won't bring this up with the Headmaster. Wouldn't want to see you expelled, now would we?"
Saizo laughed while flexing both of his hands, "You're rather naive teach. What makes you think I'd let you even get that far?"
Dante tilted his head, "Is that a threat, young man? You know you're not supposed to threaten faculty. It's against school rules."
Saizo laughed even harder, "Pfft, fuck school rules! It only matters if I get caught. And I won't get caught as long as I tear you apart!"
His body tensed as he prepared to charge at Dante. Tsukune made ready to yell a warning...when Dante disappeared.
Tsukune blinked.
Then Saizo blinked.
Then both turned to see Dante standing beside Saizo.
With the blonde monster's right hand in his own.
A smug smile was plastered on Dante's face. He shook Saizo's hand before speaking, "Seems like you need some serious punishment young man. In the form of TA Dante's Remedial Lessons."
"What the fuc-let go of me!" Saizo said, trying to pull away from Dante. This time Dante didn't let go.
Dante looked back at Vergil and Tsukune. He tilted his head towards the forest at the edge of school grounds, "Hey brother of mine? Mind taking over for me and watching over Lover Boy while I deal with this ruffian? Thanks. See ya!"
"I have agreed to no such thing," Vergil looked up from his book to yell after Dante. But his younger brother was already walking off, Saizo digging his heels into the ground as he tried to get away. Dante merely waved without looking back at Vergil. Then he and Saizo disappeared into the distance.
Tsukune and Vergil watched them go. Tsukune with confusion and awe on his face, Vergil with annoyance.
Then they both became aware of footsteps heading their way. They turned around to see Moka rushing their way.
Vergil felt his annoyance grow as the vampire girl threw her arms around Tsukune in a form of greeting.
He made a mental note to add this grievance to his list of things to get back at Dante for.
Saizo was a Monstrel. Also known as an Orc in some human mythologies.
He was a monster of mixed lineage, with his father and mother being two different types of monsters. His exact race is so muddied that calling him an Orc isn't entirely correct. Thus the title "Monstrel" among the monster races.
Despite this he is still a powerful monster. With immense strength that he has used to, by his own admission, molest other human women before coming to Yokai Academy. While not the strongest, this power is something that he takes pride in.
That pride was currently being shattered as Dante landed another punch that sent the kid flying into a tombstone.
And then through it.
And then the five other tombstones behind it.
"High score!" Dante cheered while pumping his fist in the air. He had dragged Saizo away from school ground and into a graveyard that no one seemed to be visiting. At least, he guessed no one had visited it. The plants overgrowing some of the grave markers were a bit of a giveaway. Point was that he doubted anybody would be coming by to check this place out any time soon. Which meant he was free to cause a bit of a ruckus.
Across from him, trying to get his feet under him, was Saizo in his true form. A massive monster with sickly brown skin, bone spikes sticking out of his shoulders, long messy blonde hair on his head, and a long tongue sticking out of a mouth full of fangs. His pants, miraculously, had remained intact despite his sudden growth spurt. Unlike his eyes that had turned into white voids with no pupils in them. He grunted in pain as he stood up, legs trembling beneath him.
Dante dusted his hands off while staring at the monster, "Your legs are shaking, Buck Teeth. What happened to all that bravado and confidence from earlier? Did it go out of with my first light jab?"
Dante mimed jabbing his right arm forward for emphasis. Saizo stared at the Teacher's Assistant, mind racing as he tried to make sense of what was going on. He spoke, voice barely steady as he asked, "What the hell are you? How...how can you be this strong...and not even be in your true form? Are...are you an SS Rank Monster?"
Dante shrugged, "Don't know nothing about no ranks. Just know that I'm a pretty strong fella. Been in my fair share scrapes and come out on top every time. So, how about you give up and come with me to the principals office? I'll tell them to go easy on ya."
"D-Don't mock me!" Saizo roared before stomping towards Dante. He uses one clawed hand to dig up dirt and toss it in Dante's direction. Then he sped through the debris while swiping towards his target's right.
Once more, he heard a loud "Ding" and saw a flash of red. Then he felt pain shoot through his abdomen as he was launched back yet again.
Dante stood in the cloud of dust, no worse for wear. He brushed the dirt off his clothes as he spoke, "Careful with the jacket, Buck Teeth. I've only got the one."
"This...this doesn't make any sense," Saizo panted out as he got to his feet, "You're...if you're this strong...why the hell are you protecting that fucking weakling Aono!?"
"Like I said. I'm a Teacher's Assistant. I'm just doing my job," Dante crossed his arms, "Besides, no one likes a bully. Specially not me. Now, this'll be your last chance, kid. Stand down."
"Fuck you!" Saizo roared before charging at Dante again. His muscles bulged obscenely as he prepared for one last attack. He shouted as he charged, "Try and survive this attack! If I put my all into one strike, I'm strong enough to crush steel! You're done!"
Dante stood his ground while rolling his eyes. He figured the kid wouldn't stop unless he was brought down. He looked down at his hands, flexing them as he checked the amount of energy he had built up from the exchange. It only been going on for about four minutes. With Saizo doing the same thing over and over again. Attacking Dante, being blocked by a Royal Guard parry, then Dante hitting him with an unpowered jab to the stomach. By his count, including the previous time he parried, he had blocked the kid about five times now. From that he could feel that he had stored up about...a fourth or third of his maximum Royal Release power?
Should be more than enough to knock big, mean, and ugly here.
His decision made, Dante waited for the kid to attack once again. He bent forward while making a "Bring it" gesture with one hand, "Come on! Show me what ya got!"
Saizo growled in frustration. He closed the distance and swiped at Dante with both of his claws. The massive hands were far wider than the Devil Hunter's body, and came at him from both sides. Anyone else would be panicking or looking for a way to dodge.
Dante simply grinned. He took up his stance, waited for the last second before the attack connected, and then he parried. As the red aura of Royal Guard encompassed his body, he curled his right hand into a fist and extended it towards Saizo's face. Then he released all the energy he had stored up.
Saizo didn't truly understand what happened next. All he knew was that, one moment, he had seen that strange red light again. But this time it seemed to grow brighter.
The next moment, a fist had connected with his jaw and sent him flying into the air. He fell unconscious before he even hit the ground with a thump. Dante, smile on his face, dusted his hands again. He placed them on his hips as he stood triumphantly looking down on Saizo's knocked out form, "And that's that. I'll leave ya to cool off a bit, Buck Teeth. Don't worry though. I'll tell Kitty Cat where I left ya. She'll come pick you up after that. I, in the meantime, need to get back to my bro-"
A large explosion of power came from behind Dante. He slowly turned around, head tilted in confusion as he beheld a large pillar of energy shooting into the sky. Bats flew around the pillar, chirping in delight as if they had found an all you can drink human buffet.
"...That's where Vergil is, isn't it?" Dante groaned out. He shrugged while walking back towards his brother, "Better go see what he's done this time."
As Dante head towards the Academy, two other figures made their way out of the forest. They headed towards the unconscious Saizo. One grabbed the Monstrel's legs and began to drag him away from the area.
"...Well, I didn't expect this."
Dante crossed his arms as he looked upon the sight before him. It turned out that Vergil had taken Tsukune away from school grounds as well. The pillar he had seen had disappeared after a few moments, but the source of the energy hadn't disappeared. Which is what allowed him to find the three of them.
Yeah, three.
Apparently, Fangs had decided to tag-a-long with the two of them. Likely to say hello to Lover Boy. But something seems to happened. Dante wasn't sure what that "something" was. But he could certainly see the result of the event.
That result being?
Tsukune sitting on the ground with his mouth gaped open in stunned silence.
Fangs, now with silver hair and looking far more aggressive than before, staring at his brother with the same expression that Tsukune has on her face.
And Vergil.
Who was staring at something in his right hand.
While his left arm was easily blocking what was clearly a kick from Fangs.
Fun Fact about Saizo for those who are Anime Only:
His parents? Complete creation of the Anime. They don't show up at all in the Manga. The guy actually tries to fight Tsukune and Moka again, this time teaming up with the (not yet known) ANTI-THESIS in an attempt to kill the (now a Ghoul/Vampire) Tsukune and molest Moka. He, of course, fails....and then gets killed by the leader of this branch of ANTI-THESIS for his failure.
Yeah.
Quite a change from having a fat ass mother and father.
Said father being a former harem protag who Kuramu and Mizore's mothers attempt to get with. Only for him to choose a third, completely unrelated girl.
But yeah.
Next Chapter: Vergil goes off on Tsukune and Moka, Inner Moka gets humbled, and Vergil gets angry at the Headmaster.
Vergil's chopsticks stopped halfway to his mouth. His already sour expression seemed to get worse as he let his hand drop. His lunch break had just started and he had chosen to leave the school to eat. The primary reason being the students. He was accosted on his way out of the library by numerous female students, who were all trying to ask him to go eat with them. When he turned away and left them behind, he was then met by numerous male students. Who were all trying to challenge him to a duel of some sort.
Another time, Vergil would've taken delight in showing them their place.
As it stood?
He simply wanted to eat in peace. But it seemed his brother had other plans.
His utensils gently hit the black plastic bowl that he had in his lap. Looking up at the familiar voice he had heard made him sigh in frustration, "Why are you here, Dante?"
Dante shrugged, "Didn't see you in the student's lunch room or the Teacher's Lounge. So, I went looking and found you sitting out here on a bench. Looking to all the world like a sad old man who's family doesn't visit anymore."
The younger Sparda brother chuckled while lifting the square cardboard box he held in his right hand up. He tossed it up a little, letting it land on his finger before pushing one of the edges. Like his brother, he had been accosted by numerous students on the way here. Unlike Vergil, though, his students were mostly young men. Who were all asking him for relationship advice, or how to be "cool" like he was. He did what he could to answer their questions, but needed to slip away to meet his brother for lunch.
The box began to spin on his finger while Dante stared down at Vergil. He looked at the bowl in his brother's lap then frowned, "The heck are you eating?"
"Some of the local cuisine. A bowl of ramen noodles with egg and chicken broth," he lifted some of the still hot noodles with his chopsticks for Dante to see, "It is supposed to be rather filling. And gives me an excuse to practice using chopsticks."
"Pfft, seriously?" Dante rolled his eyes. He sat down next to Vergil on an empty side of the bench and placed the box in his lap. He made a show of lifting the lid while staring Vergil in the eyes, "How about you put the sticks down and enjoy a little taste of home with your brother? Feast your eyes on this baby."
He popped open the box's lid. From within a large waft of steam flew into the air, along with the smell of Dante's favorite dish; A pizza from the human world with everything on it...except olives.
Dante took a deep whiff of the cheesy concoction. He let out a happy sigh as memories of home began to surface, "Oooohhh boy. Been too long since I had a slice of this good stuff."
He picked up a slice and immediately bit into it. Vergil watched his brother's sloppy eating with disgust on his face. He scoffed before going back to his own meal, "Must you put such horrid things inside your body? Our demon blood does much for us, but we must still take care of ourselves."
Dante, after licking what was left off his fingers, glanced at Vergil. He raised an eyebrow, "You sure about that? I've been eating this stuff since I was a teen. And my body hasn't slowed down on me yet."
"Yet," Vergil countered.
"Like you're one to talk. Based on what the kid told me, before you got your new bod, you were limping around like a 100 year old man," Dante leaned forward while placing a hand on his back. He spoke in a poor imitation of an older gentleman, "Oh, Nero. Ya mind helpin' out your old man for old times' sake? Aye just be needin' to borrow your arm for a second. Just need to take the Yam'a'to and split myself into two beings. Nothin' too crazy."
Vergil groaned at his brother's antics. He was thankful that no one was there to see them. The two fell into silence for a moment. The only sounds being either one eating their respective meals.
"So," Dante broke the silence. The pizza was already half gone when he started talking again, "what do you think Nero's doing right now?"
Vergil stopped eating for a moment. He slowly moved his chopsticks down while turning his head up towards the clouds. His expression became softer as he thought of his...son. He had since accepted the fact that Nero was his offspring. But...
"I...I believe he is doing fine," Vergil replied.
"Don't sound like it," Dante said, taking a slice of pizza out and offering it to Vergil. Vergil moved his head away from the offered food. Shrugging, Dante put the pizza back in the box and closed it. He leaned back against the bench while sighing, "Sounds more like you're still unsure about how you should feel about the kid being yours."
"I assure you that is not the case."
"Really? Then what's the first thing you're gonna do with your son when you get back?"
"...."
"That's what I thought."
Vergil huffed while glaring at his brother, "Then enlighten me, dear brother, what should I do with Nero we return to our world? Since you seem so knowledgeable about him. Certainly you know his likes and dislikes?"
Dante looked up at the clouds, "Hmm. Well, a good first step would be talk to the kid about his mother. Maybe explain why you hooked up with her."
"Is this your attempt at getting me to speak of that night?"
"So it happened at night did it?"
"Urgh," Vergil groaned and turned away from the grinning Dante. He shook his head as he replied, "As I stated, that was a long time ago. And I have no interest in talking about it with you."
"OK," Dante's expression hardened, "But I'm being serious about the kid. Never told me straight up what his life was like, but couldn't have been fun. You and I both know what it's like to grow up without parents."
Vergil flinched at Dante's words. He hung his head while steepling his hands together, "Yes. You are...correct. But at the time I...I didn't know how long I had left. Remaining in one place was...foolish."
"But you left the Yamato?"
"If I couldn't be there for my son in body, then perhaps I could be there in spirit. And it ensured that, should anything happen to one of us, Sparda's lineage would continue in some manner. Hopefully a better one than either of us have left behind."
"Hey now," Dante turned to regard Vergil fully, "I hope you're speaking for yourself there. I'm not the one who put the world at risk not once, but twice."
"And what have you been doing outside of living in a dingy, rundown building, barely able to keep paying for your electricity?" Vergil raised an eyebrow.
"Hey, I fight demons for a living. It just so happens we were in a dry spell before you showed up," was Dante's reply.
"That is not what that human Morrison told me," Vergil didn't smirk, but Dante could hear the smugness in his brother's tone of voice.
Dante waved his brother's words off. He chose to change the subject, "Speaking of home, any progress on finding us a way back?"
"It has been less than a day, Dante. Did you honestly believe I could make any significant progress within that amount of time?"
"I do have a pretty high bar set for you, older brother."
Vergil huffed and shook his head, "I must disappoint you then. I am making progress. But nothing concrete yet. Simply theories and basics on how the magic of this world works."
"Alright...oh, did the Student Council President come talk to you?"
"That depends. Do you speak of the part-human with an invisible shape-shifter as an ally?"
"Part-human, eh? Thought he smelled weird," Dante shook his head, "If I were a betting man, I'd put money on the two of them having some big evil plan in mind. And I'd wager the two of us are gonna be some mighty big wrenches in it."
"You can choose to be. I will not be getting involved. As, if they are as intelligent as they believe themselves to be, they will not bother me with their plans," Vergil stated without a hint of emotion.
Dante shook his head, "Should've seen that coming."
The two lapsed into silence.
"You know, I think this is the first time we've managed to talk without trying to kill each other afterward."
"If you do not consider our childhood...then you would correct."
"Huh...feels pretty good."
"...I agree".
More silence.
"So, about the kid's mother..."
"No."
Dante yawned as he walked towards the entrance to Yokai Academy. To his right, Vergil was walking with that same book from before in his hand. Yesterday had come and gone after lunch with little fanfare. The only other teacher that Dante ran into was a woman named Ririko. A woman with a taste in outfits that reminded him of Trish. That class wasn't nearly as eventful as Kitty Cat's. Though that might just be because it was math. He kind of blanked everything after his introduction out of his head.
When school finally let out, he and Vergil had to confront something they both forgot about: Where they would be sleeping. Bereft of any options, they decided to go to a few empty dorm rooms in the male dorms. Gramps said it was fine so they went with it.
The result?
"So, when are we getting our first paycheck?" Dante asked, rubbing one of his eyes to get the sleep out of it.
Vergil answered without looking up from his book, "The end of this week. So we have five more days before we receive any monetary compensation."
"Wait, five?" Dante looked at this brother in confusion, "Doesn't the weekend start in four days?"
"Japanese schools do not consider Saturday a weekend break day. Only Sunday," Vergil explained without looking up from his book.
Dante sighed while shaking his head, "Great. Guess we're gonna be sleeping in those crappy dorms for a bit longer...unless Gramps wouldn't mind us taking some trips to the human world to see about getting our own places."
"That's assuming we will be able to gain yen without performing illegal actions. Unless you're suggesting we look into stealing money from others," Vergil, in spite of his tone of voice, did not actually mind the idea of taking money from others for their own benefit. It wasn't like he hadn't done it before.
Vergil leaned away to avoid Dante's attempt to pat his shoulder. Dante spoke regardless, "Don't you worry about that, brother of mine. Even if this place doesn't have any demons or devils to hunt, it is still a world filled with supernaturals and humans. Which means that there are people out there who need help dealing with some bad supernatural creatures. And we happen to have sets of skills particularly suited to that."
Vergil hummed and glanced up from his book. He tilted his head forward and to their left, "A fair point. But if you plan to investigate such things, I suggest you handle your current 'project' first."
Dante looked in the direction Vergil indicated. There, walking along with his head down and focusing on something in his left hand, was Tsukune Aono. In his right he carried a bag that probably had all his school supplies in it. Even from afar Dante could tell the kid was troubled. He was dragging his feet and mumbling things into the wind.
"Good point, Vergil. But you did forget one thing; That kid is 'our' project. Come on now," Dante managed to get his arm around Vergil's shoulder. Vergil tried to escape but Dante held firm. He just about dragged Vergil over to where Tsukune was. Then he put his other arm around the human boy's shoulder.
Tsukune let out a yelp before turning and seeing Dante's smiling face. He stammered out, "D-D-Dante?"
"Morning Lover Boy," Dante said, ignoring how Vergil managed to escape his grasp. He focused his all on Tsukune, eyes falling on the paper in the kid's left hand. He pointed a finger at the paper, "What's that ya got there? A love letter from you know who?"
Tsukune blushed fiercely while shaking his head, "No, no, no, no! It's...it's a withdrawal notice. I wrote it up last night. I was...debating whether I should give it to the principal."
"If you wrote it, then you must intend to give it over, boy," Vergil said without looking up from his book. He scoffed, "I thought you would've decided to leave. This school is no place for one such as you."
Tsukune's mood soured but he still spoke up, "Um, well...that's the thing. I...I'm not sure if I want to leave. I mean, yeah, this place is scary. But...but Moka-san...she really likes me. And she seemed so lonely so-"
Dante held up a hand, "Say no more, Lover Boy. I gotcha. Don't necessarily agree with your thought process, but I'm not here to force you into anything. But I hope you understand that, while my brother could've said it better, choosing to stay will put your life in serious danger."
Dante let the boy go. Tsukune started to rub the back of his neck with the back of his hand, "I...I know. But-"
"No, seriously, kid," Dante lowered his voice and narrowed his eyes at the human, "You could honestly die if you stay here. Be 100% certain before you make a decision. Alright?"
Tsukune yelped again when he saw Dante's face. He managed to shake it off before turning his head back to the withdrawal notice in his hand. He silently walked alongside the Sons Of Sparda for a few seconds. Then he started to speak up, "I...I want to-"
"Hey, wait up, Lover Boy."
Tsukune's body tensed up at the familiar voice. He stopped walking, Dante and Vergil following suit. They all turned to see Saizo leaning against the trunk of a broken tree to their right. The taller student stood up straight and started heading towards Tsukune. He did nothing to hide the threatening tone in his voice, "Looks like you had a lot of fun with Moka Akashiya yesterday. And you're gonna pay for it today!"
Tsukune backed up from the sight of the clearly angry student. But Saizo closed the distance between them quickly. He reached out for Tsukune's collar...only to be greeted by Dante's hand grabbing his wrist.
"This again, Blondey?" Dante chided the student while shaking his head, "Didn't I tell you to cut this out already? What made you think you could do it again just cause it was a new day?"
Saizo growled, pulling his arm away from Dante. Dante let him go while moving to stand in front of Tsukune. Saizo focused on the shorter boy, watching him cower behind Dante, "So, you're one of those kind of monsters huh? The weaklings who hide behind the coattails of others? You think you are worthy of a beauty such as Moka?!"
Tsukune made an attempt to reply, but all that came out was incoherent stammers. Dante spoke up while patting the human on the head, "Nothing wrong with asking for help from someone you trust. Especially since, you know, I'm a Teacher's Assistant? Students are supposed to come to me for stuff like this. Now, how about you run along to class Blondey? Do that and I won't bring this up with the Headmaster. Wouldn't want to see you expelled, now would we?"
Saizo laughed while flexing both of his hands, "You're rather naive teach. What makes you think I'd let you even get that far?"
Dante tilted his head, "Is that a threat, young man? You know you're not supposed to threaten faculty. It's against school rules."
Saizo laughed even harder, "Pfft, fuck school rules! It only matters if I get caught. And I won't get caught as long as I tear you apart!"
His body tensed as he prepared to charge at Dante. Tsukune made ready to yell a warning...when Dante disappeared.
Tsukune blinked.
Then Saizo blinked.
Then both turned to see Dante standing beside Saizo.
With the blonde monster's right hand in his own.
A smug smile was plastered on Dante's face. He shook Saizo's hand before speaking, "Seems like you need some serious punishment young man. In the form of TA Dante's Remedial Lessons."
"What the fuc-let go of me!" Saizo said, trying to pull away from Dante. This time Dante didn't let go.
Dante looked back at Vergil and Tsukune. He tilted his head towards the forest at the edge of school grounds, "Hey brother of mine? Mind taking over for me and watching over Lover Boy while I deal with this ruffian? Thanks. See ya!"
"I have agreed to no such thing," Vergil looked up from his book to yell after Dante. But his younger brother was already walking off, Saizo digging his heels into the ground as he tried to get away. Dante merely waved without looking back at Vergil. Then he and Saizo disappeared into the distance.
Tsukune and Vergil watched them go. Tsukune with confusion and awe on his face, Vergil with annoyance.
Then they both became aware of footsteps heading their way. They turned around to see Moka rushing their way.
Vergil felt his annoyance grow as the vampire girl threw her arms around Tsukune in a form of greeting.
He made a mental note to add this grievance to his list of things to get back at Dante for.
Saizo was a Monstrel. Also known as an Orc in some human mythologies.
He was a monster of mixed lineage, with his father and mother being two different types of monsters. His exact race is so muddied that calling him an Orc isn't entirely correct. Thus the title "Monstrel" among the monster races.
Despite this he is still a powerful monster. With immense strength that he has used to, by his own admission, molest other human women before coming to Yokai Academy. While not the strongest, this power is something that he takes pride in.
That pride was currently being shattered as Dante landed another punch that sent the kid flying into a tombstone.
And then through it.
And then the five other tombstones behind it.
"High score!" Dante cheered while pumping his fist in the air. He had dragged Saizo away from school ground and into a graveyard that no one seemed to be visiting. At least, he guessed no one had visited it. The plants overgrowing some of the grave markers were a bit of a giveaway. Point was that he doubted anybody would be coming by to check this place out any time soon. Which meant he was free to cause a bit of a ruckus.
Across from him, trying to get his feet under him, was Saizo in his true form. A massive monster with sickly brown skin, bone spikes sticking out of his shoulders, long messy blonde hair on his head, and a long tongue sticking out of a mouth full of fangs. His pants, miraculously, had remained intact despite his sudden growth spurt. Unlike his eyes that had turned into white voids with no pupils in them. He grunted in pain as he stood up, legs trembling beneath him.
Dante dusted his hands off while staring at the monster, "Your legs are shaking, Buck Teeth. What happened to all that bravado and confidence from earlier? Did it go out of with my first light jab?"
Dante mimed jabbing his right arm forward for emphasis. Saizo stared at the Teacher's Assistant, mind racing as he tried to make sense of what was going on. He spoke, voice barely steady as he asked, "What the hell are you? How...how can you be this strong...and not even be in your true form? Are...are you an SS Rank Monster?"
Dante shrugged, "Don't know nothing about no ranks. Just know that I'm a pretty strong fella. Been in my fair share scrapes and come out on top every time. So, how about you give up and come with me to the principals office? I'll tell them to go easy on ya."
"D-Don't mock me!" Saizo roared before stomping towards Dante. He uses one clawed hand to dig up dirt and toss it in Dante's direction. Then he sped through the debris while swiping towards his target's right.
Once more, he heard a loud "Ding" and saw a flash of red. Then he felt pain shoot through his abdomen as he was launched back yet again.
Dante stood in the cloud of dust, no worse for wear. He brushed the dirt off his clothes as he spoke, "Careful with the jacket, Buck Teeth. I've only got the one."
"This...this doesn't make any sense," Saizo panted out as he got to his feet, "You're...if you're this strong...why the hell are you protecting that fucking weakling Aono!?"
"Like I said. I'm a Teacher's Assistant. I'm just doing my job," Dante crossed his arms, "Besides, no one likes a bully. Specially not me. Now, this'll be your last chance, kid. Stand down."
"Fuck you!" Saizo roared before charging at Dante again. His muscles bulged obscenely as he prepared for one last attack. He shouted as he charged, "Try and survive this attack! If I put my all into one strike, I'm strong enough to crush steel! You're done!"
Dante stood his ground while rolling his eyes. He figured the kid wouldn't stop unless he was brought down. He looked down at his hands, flexing them as he checked the amount of energy he had built up from the exchange. It only been going on for about four minutes. With Saizo doing the same thing over and over again. Attacking Dante, being blocked by a Royal Guard parry, then Dante hitting him with an unpowered jab to the stomach. By his count, including the previous time he parried, he had blocked the kid about five times now. From that he could feel that he had stored up about...a fourth or third of his maximum Royal Release power?
Should be more than enough to knock big, mean, and ugly here.
His decision made, Dante waited for the kid to attack once again. He bent forward while making a "Bring it" gesture with one hand, "Come on! Show me what ya got!"
Saizo growled in frustration. He closed the distance and swiped at Dante with both of his claws. The massive hands were far wider than the Devil Hunter's body, and came at him from both sides. Anyone else would be panicking or looking for a way to dodge.
Dante simply grinned. He took up his stance, waited for the last second before the attack connected, and then he parried. As the red aura of Royal Guard encompassed his body, he curled his right hand into a fist and extended it towards Saizo's face. Then he released all the energy he had stored up.
Saizo didn't truly understand what happened next. All he knew was that, one moment, he had seen that strange red light again. But this time it seemed to grow brighter.
The next moment, a fist had connected with his jaw and sent him flying into the air. He fell unconscious before he even hit the ground with a thump. Dante, smile on his face, dusted his hands again. He placed them on his hips as he stood triumphantly looking down on Saizo's knocked out form, "And that's that. I'll leave ya to cool off a bit, Buck Teeth. Don't worry though. I'll tell Kitty Cat where I left ya. She'll come pick you up after that. I, in the meantime, need to get back to my bro-"
A large explosion of power came from behind Dante. He slowly turned around, head tilted in confusion as he beheld a large pillar of energy shooting into the sky. Bats flew around the pillar, chirping in delight as if they had found an all you can drink human buffet.
"...That's where Vergil is, isn't it?" Dante groaned out. He shrugged while walking back towards his brother, "Better go see what he's done this time."
As Dante head towards the Academy, two other figures made their way out of the forest. They headed towards the unconscious Saizo. One grabbed the Monstrel's legs and began to drag him away from the area.
"...Well, I didn't expect this."
Dante crossed his arms as he looked upon the sight before him. It turned out that Vergil had taken Tsukune away from school grounds as well. The pillar he had seen had disappeared after a few moments, but the source of the energy hadn't disappeared. Which is what allowed him to find the three of them.
Yeah, three.
Apparently, Fangs had decided to tag-a-long with the two of them. Likely to say hello to Lover Boy. But something seems to happened. Dante wasn't sure what that "something" was. But he could certainly see the result of the event.
That result being?
Tsukune sitting on the ground with his mouth gaped open in stunned silence.
Fangs, now with silver hair and looking far more aggressive than before, staring at his brother with the same expression that Tsukune has on her face.
And Vergil.
Who was staring at something in his right hand.
While his left arm was easily blocking what was clearly a kick from Fangs.
Fun Fact about Saizo for those who are Anime Only:
His parents? Complete creation of the Anime. They don't show up at all in the Manga. The guy actually tries to fight Tsukune and Moka again, this time teaming up with the (not yet known) ANTI-THESIS in an attempt to kill the (now a Ghoul/Vampire) Tsukune and molest Moka. He, of course, fails....and then gets killed by the leader of this branch of ANTI-THESIS for his failure.
Yeah.
Quite a change from having a fat ass mother and father.
Said father being a former harem protag who Kuramu and Mizore's mothers attempt to get with. Only for him to choose a third, completely unrelated girl.
But yeah.
Next Chapter: Vergil goes off on Tsukune and Moka, Inner Moka gets humbled, and Vergil gets angry at the Headmaster.
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