4 Chapter 4: The Whisper

[Third Person's Point of View]

Four months have passed since Augustus replaced his DxD counterpart. And he has certainly been making the most of his time.

Once he got over the initial shock of realizing he had been transported into what could only be described as a pornographic Light novel, Augustus wasted no time in gathering as much information as possible about the current status of the underworld.

Augustus recalled from his memory that it was the third day of April 2016, exactly two years before the canon began.

How did he obtain that knowledge? Just days ago, Princess Gremory turned 16 and her extravagant birthday party was attended by all the prominent underworld families and their heirs. The event made headlines for weeks.

Augustus was certain that the cannon started when Rias turned 18 years old, giving him a two-year window to gain power.

Power was a key factor in deciding which events he would be able to take advantage of, and which to steer clear of, but Augustus didn't think he would be powerful enough to reap the rewards that came with knowing future knowledge.

The level of power one possessed was crucial when it came to choosing which opportunities to pursue and which ones to avoid. However, Augustus doubted that his own power would be great enough to reap the benefits of knowing things he knew would happen.

Yes, while Issei, DxD's very own Oppai Dragon was able to have a pretty exponential powerup, going from a weaker than Low-Class Devil, who was too weak to even use teleportation circles provided in Devil summoning parchments, to a heavyweight planet-buster, in less than two years, Augustus, unlike Issei, didn't own the two-pronged cheat of bullshit and plot armour.

And that fancy red gauntlet too.

'Doubling your power once every 10 seconds? That's gotta be the greatest bullshit ever.', Huffed Augustus as he thought about how unfair the Boosted Gear was.

According to him, the Boosted gear should be the strongest Longinus to have ever existed. He seriously doubted if Issei, or for that matter Ddraig for that matter understood his own power. That power in anyone's hand, except Issei, would make them invincible.

Ddraig being a Heavenly Dragon himself was plenty strong at his base. In simple gaming terms, if Issei was base of supposed 100, then after doubling his power for a minute, he gets a staggering multiplier of 64x. In one minute he bridged the gap between a Low-Class devil and an entry-level high-class devil. Not to mention the next multiplier would be 128x.

Now if Ddraig, a Heavenly Dragon at a base of a measly 100000, who has no limit on his boosing ability, boosted himself up just 7 times for a multiplier of 128x...

It was obvious to any supernatural being with even a modicum of intelligence that when wielded by someone above a certain level of strength, these objects would essentially make them essentially unstoppable.

Rizevim Livan Lucifer should have gone straight for the Boosted Gear instead of wasting time with his convoluted schemes to release Trihexa from its seal. If he had, he might have stood a chance at successfully destroying the world and fulfilling his twisted desires. Instead, he was left with nothing but failure and the bitter taste of defeat as his plans crumbled around him.

Boosted Gear was a power that Augustus couldn't have. Or rather he would turn it down if presented with the opportunity.

'No matter how powerful an external tool is, it is just that, a tool.' This has always been a key philosophy in his life.

Augustus craves a power that transcends the whims of heaven and the control of any overgrown red lizard. A power entirely his own, unbreakable and untouchable, immune to any denial from others, even if he must spill an ocean of blood to claim it.

He sometimes wondered if he truly had some kind of eighth-grader syndrome. But now that his reality is straight out of a real perverted Chuunibyou's mind, he reckoned that it didn't matter anymore. If anything, he has more of a 'gimme-more-power' syndrome.

These Four months gifted him ample time to sort out his memory and feelings, and Augustus decided that he would succeed where he failed in his last life.

He would become truly powerful. With or without a cheat.

In addition to the strange tome, Augustus' father's forbidden library held a variety of other magical items including books, swords, shields, armour, and one-time-use scrolls.

Aside from the books, there were only a few weapons that possessed magical properties. Out of all of them, Augustus found the Frost Dagger to be the most practical; it had the ability to cause frost damage upon impact.

The dagger loses its usefulness on any enemy above Low-Class, as their magic resistance is high enough to shrug off such measly damage easily.

As a Devil's demonic power grows, so does its resistance to magic. In simpler terms, the stronger a devil is, the more capable it is of withstanding magical effects.

Despite Augustus' extensive knowledge of light novels, the reality of the Devil society was far more daunting. It was a strict hierarchy, with social status determined solely by one's strength. Ironically, for a Devil to obtain social rank corresponding to its power, needs a very high social connection to important Devils or officials. In reality, for someone like Augustus, without powerful connections or prestigious heritage, climbing beyond the Low-class seemed like an insurmountable task. The only viable option was to pledge himself in servitude to a High-Class Devil and join their 'Peerage', or worse yet, become a servant in one of the 72-Pillar Houses. The thought made his blood run cold, but he knew it was the harsh truth of this world.

In contrast, the Magic books were the most important asset a Devil in his position needed.

Augustus, an ex-citizen of a scientifically advanced world, had no understanding of the estoric energy known as Demonic Power, that was prevalent in the Devil society. He was used to following logical paths, unlike the magical beings he now found himself surrounded by.

Today, Augustus walked down the hallway to the backyard, just like he had done every day for the past two and a half months. It was time for his daily magic practice.

In only six weeks, Augustus had devoured all four volumes of magic books available in the library. However, he was far from impressed by their content. They merely skimmed the surface of Demonic Magic, only offering basic knowledge and techniques.

According to the anime and light novel, Demonic Magic is the manipulation of one's imagination to alter and shape reality. While this is somewhat accurate, it greatly oversimplifies the true intricacies and depth of Demonic Magic.

'Fireball'

Augustus concentrated, and still to his amazement, a glowing orb of fire appeared in the palm of his hand. It was about the size of a football and radiated a significant amount of heat.

On his first attempt at casting a fireball, Augustes could only muster a meagre spark of flame. Despite using up all of his limited Demonic energy, the result was nothing more than a feeble flicker of flame, no stronger than that of a cigarette lighter.

Turns out there is a lot more to Demonic Magic than imagine and Bam!

The crucial factor in preventing a Devil from manifesting their imagination into actuality was the strength of their willpower to manipulate reality, as well as having enough demonic energy to fuel this manipulation.

It was simple mathematics. The amount of demonic power required is directly proportional to the scale, scope, and intensity to which the user is trying to influence and bend reality.

That is to say that knowing the actual physics and chemistry behind the formation of a fireball is a lot more helpful and efficient than just willing it into existence.

At the start, Augustus had just the bare amount of demonic power to qualify as a Devil, but the repeated use of that demonic power, just like a muscle, resulted in a substantial growth in his reserve.

If it was just growth purely based on the daily usage of demonic power, his reserve wouldn't even grow a fraction of what it has grown in the past four months.

Instead, he drained his reserve every waking moment since he arrived. He would practice his magic until his supply of demonic power was completely depleted. And for a Devil, whose existence depends on having a sufficient amount of demonic power, being fully drained of it may not be life-threatening, but it certainly isn't pleasant.

Prolonged depletion of demonic power can cause headaches and nausea.

Augustus only had a brief moment of respite as his demonic powers slowly regained their strength. But he wasted no time and quickly used them all again until they were depleted once more. This cycle repeated itself throughout the day, until finally, at night, he could rest and allow his powers to recover once more, knowing that the next day would bring another round of torture for him

During the periods when his demonic abilities were regenerating, Augustus focused on intense physical training. He had always been a dedicated gym-goer in his previous life, although he didn't consider himself to be one of those "Sigma Male Grindset" guys on TikTok who obsessed over their gains. Still, Augustus took pride in his toned and muscular build, resembling that of a swimmer's physique. 

Augustus' natural frame was thin, a result of his sedentary lifestyle and love for reading. Despite his parents' efforts to feed him protein-filled meals, he remained scrawny.

After four months of intense workouts, his body was transformed. The skinny frame he had inherited was now a distant memory; in its place, a toned and muscular form that Augustus was proud to show off. His abs were starting to become defined, and he was getting closer to achieving his desired "swimmer's build." He couldn't help but admire the changes in his physical appearance, as they reflected the hard work and dedication he had put into achieving it.

Not too much jacked like Arnold, Sairaorg, and Baki, but just enough with dense muscle that looked super-aesthetic, like Henry Cavill's Superman or famous football athlete, Cristiano Ronaldo.

Today's practice continued a bit longer than usual because he was able to perfectly incorporate physics into the process of creation of a fireball.

Augustus was able to focus his imagination on the precise process of creation: the rise in kinetic energy, the friction between particles, and the separation of pure oxygen from the air to fuel the explosion.

The Law of Conservation of Energy, states that, 'Energy can neither be created nor be destroyed. It may be transformed from one form to another.' This includes Demonic Power, which falls under the category of 'Esoteric Energy'. Augustus used his vivid imagination and strong determination as a filter to convert the demonic energy and kinetic energy from the atmosphere into heat energy. Along with other intricate processes, this allowed him to shape his magic perfectly and create a flawless fireball.

Today, he practiced controlling a variety of elements such as water, lightning, and earth in order to expand his magical abilities and improve his skill in manipulating these forces. It was crucial for him to develop an innate understanding and quick reflexes when using his imagination and willpower, especially during a fight.

Tired from his gruelling training for the day, both mentally and physically, Augustus opted for a hot bath to relax his muscles.

'Sigh, Soaking in hot scented water after bone-breaking training is heavenly!' With a satisfied sigh, he lowered himself into the hot, scented water after an intense training session.

'To think that I underestimated the need for a magic circle to cast magic efficiently, what a miscalculation on my part' 

Pondered Augustus as he looked at his reflection on the surface of the water.

His complexion was a ghostly white, giving off an ethereal radiance. His dark hair was thick and fell to his shoulders like a cascade of ink. However, it was his eyes that captivated all who saw him - they were a striking shade of violet that gleamed like precious amethysts. He was well aware that this was his most alluring feature, one that had drawn many admirers. Even in his current form, he exuded undeniable charm.

As the day drew to a close, he prepared a simple meal of red meat and vegetables, stir-fried in a pan. He also enjoyed a glass of devi-juice, which he had purchased from Devilson store.

Sleep enveloped him as soon he hit the soft bed, and drifted away to the worlds of Morpheus.

As the clock ticked past midnight, Augustus's peaceful slumber turned into a chaotic frenzy. His brows furrowed in immense pain, his body contorted and thrashed on the bed as if battling against an unseen force. With each twist and turn, his face twisted with agony, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and his toes curled up in a desperate attempt to break free from whatever nightmarish entity held him captive in his own mind.

After a fitful episode of thrashing, he tumbled from his bed. As his violet eyes flickered open in a state of panic and confusion, he frantically surveyed his surroundings.

After his fruitless search, Augustus rose to his feet and was just about ready to collapse onto his bed. He would save the strange dream to ponder on at a later time; for now, he was exhausted and in desperate need of rest. However, before he could give in to sleep, a shiver crept down his spine and he glanced up with a feeling of unease.

'--stus' 

A chilling, low whisper echoed through the air, its sweet undertone laced with a haunting sense of love and something unidentifiable. It felt like a mother's call, beckoning with twisted affection that sent shivers down his spine.

'Augustus'

The insidious voice whispered again, a chilling sound that seemed to seep into his very bones and freeze them from within. His eyes glazed over as he stumbled out of his room and towards the stairs

'Augustus, wake up-'

Augustus' eyes, burning a vibrant shade of violet, bore into the ancient wooden door made of rich mahogany. His body snapped out of its trance, his heart pounding with terror as he stood before the very door that had caused all his troubles.

A sense of dread washed over him as he realized what was beckoning for him from within.

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Author-san here!!!

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