1 The Irony Of Hindsight

Hindsight really is 20/20, especially when one finds themselves in a situation they could never have expected, from things ranging from random accidents to impossible scenarios. Yet here I am, living one right now as I watch my "parents" sell me to some slavers who, based on their vibe, were working for devils.

It was as if I could sense the corruptive thing they had on their souls, as being contracted to a devil is enough to corrupt someone. There was once a Catholic priest in town who talked about how the corruption of the devil's work starts slowly and then seeps into one's soul, making them more suggestive and more willing to fill out contracts. Eventually, if a person does not have strong enough willpower, they will run through their entire life in but a few years.

Other than the fact that he really shouldn't be telling that to impressionable children, the fact that he mentioned various titles like Sirzechs and Serafall clued me into what world I am stuck in. High School DXD is an anime that, while I did watch for the first three seasons and later the fourth, I never read the manga. After that, I learned a bit more after reading fanfiction, but only the basics.

Another friend of mine who completely read the story or is reading it as it hasn't finished said there were going to be alien gods that appeared, and that one shot the strongest being in this world. What's worse is that my friend told me the very line that was being said after one shot him, that being it was only a warm-up, that is, some Dragon Ball-type power creep right there.

Yet, as chains are placed upon me, I am ushered into the woods near the small farming village to what I assume is their teleportation circle. As we walked for a few minutes, I began to feel the presence of demonic magic in the air, and it was disgusting, to say the least. It felt as if my very being was being covered in muck and grime just by being in its presence.

It almost caused me to start to retch physically, and as I pushed forward, the man behind me yelled, "Get moving whelp! We're going to be rich after this. We know you have a gear, kid, and you will go for a pretty penny in the underworld."

I assumed the man was expecting me to quake in fear, but I simply kept walking in silence as I already assumed, as before I was taken, the reincarnation or transmigration occurred, and all that remained was my new name, Cao Cao. Yes, Cao Cao was the wielder of the True Longinus, even if, to me, the only real Longinus was the one from Shinzo Banzo. Regardless, as we got to a small field within the forest, I stopped feeling the presence of the spear within me as it called out to me.

Unlike the original Cao Cao, who met Sun Wukong before this happened, it seems that this version of Cao Cao never met him and thus never learned the truth about his scared gear.

So reaching for it, a small light forms in my hands, and the men, who numbered a small dozen, notice the man behind me saying, "He has it! Kill him, and we'll be rewarded!" the man then reaches for a knife and attempts to stab me in the back to which I dodge sloppily landing on my knees and after standing back up I use the spear looking similar to the spear Alexios used in Assassins Creed Odyssey yet complete and not just the spearhead.

I used the spear to cut through the chains, and after doing so, the men began to rush me, but listening to the small voices within the spear, I dodged, stabbed, and swiped with utter and complete desperation. The men, noticing this, began casting spells at me again, which I again dodged due to their slower nature. I considered myself quite lucky that none of them were devils themselves or reincarnated Devils, to say the least, as their spells would have come out much faster due to the devil's magic being of pure Imagination and not calculation.

To be honest, if I were Fate Merlin and saw this Merlin's magic system, I would want to kill myself in shame using the brief pauses in their backline spells. I dodged between two of the men and, looking at their five magic users, I rushed them. After stabbing one through the chest, another man with a small sword tried to slash at me, to which I dodged behind the man I stabbed, and the man's swipe landed only upon his compatriot.

The man whom I was hiding behind was left with a deep gash across his chest and soon fell due to the blood loss. I took advantage of the momentary confusion to stab the man through the neck at an angle where his body began to slide down my spear, Vlad the Impaler style. Soon enough, though, I faced the spear through his body and tossed it onto the ground.

"Two down, eight to go." I thought to myself mentally, and as the men retreated, seeing the amount of blood on me, one of them asked the others, "Who is this kid?! I thought we were just getting a regular sacred gear user!" The leader simply said, "I thought so, too. It seems like the person who sent us here didn't know either or sent us to our deaths."

This seemed to lower their morale, but then their boss placed his weapon in his sheath and said, "Look, kid, I won't apologize for trying to take you to our boss, but if you let us go, we won't come back for you." I scoffed mentally, feeling the lies this man had just spoken, and to that, I approached him and shook his hand only to stab him through the chest, to which he just said, "Clever boy."

He then fell to the ground dead I noticed the poison dagger he had just taken out of with his other hand and mentally thanked the spear and its guidance to which it seemed to blush. The fuck?! The others, noticing their dead leader, placed all their weapons on the ground, with one saying in a frantic tone, "Kid, we're sorry. Look, I'll even tell you who our boss is. Just please let us live!"

Looking at them, I simply said, "Speak then, and I will consider it." The more hopeful man said, "It was a member of the old satan faction. We didn't know who it was as they only sent a familiar, but the symbol was a dead giveaway. And hey, if you let us go, we can learn who sent the letter."

The first part was true, but the other was a lie, and after thanking the spear again and the weapon, I felt almost embarrassed and wondered if I had drunk anything funny last night. Soon enough, I approached them and said, "Well, you are all free then." The men then sighed in relief as I took my spear and, since they were all gathered in a straight line, swiped with my spear and decapitated all of them.

Suffer not your enemy's mercy, and you shall never be caught off guard. What they would have done if I had let them go was inform them of my sacred gear, and that is something I do not want to let others know of just yet. But the question then remains.

Do I follow Indra and become what Cao Cao would become, or do I follow my own path? Okay, who was I kidding? I'm going my own way, and as if the universe acknowledged my choice, three small vials landed in front of me, and recognizing them, I chugged them down. Thus, new feelings entered my soul, and it felt like utter and complete potential.

The first felt similar to limitless potential, the second formed what seemed like a small core within my being, and the third produced something interesting.

[+1,000 LP For First Victory, + 1,000 LP For Slaying Your First Enemies(+100 Each), + 2,000 LP For Unlocking Sacred Gear]

 As I saw the small screen, all I could do was smile and then proceeded to sit down in utter exhaustion as my strength left me and the spear began to flicker out of my hand, and before it did so, I said to it, "Thank you, I hope to be worthy of such a beautiful weapon." Before disappearing, I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, and it then disappeared.

Laying on the ground, I saw the LP count rise by the second, and what was once 4,000 LP is now rising rapidly. Wanting to test the basics, I used the skill to create a new ability, a basic massage skill at rank D, which costs 2,000 LP, and feeling the points leaving it is set off by new knowledge entering my mind on basic to somewhat advanced massage techniques.

It makes me wonder if I upgrade the skill, will I get the ridiculous massage skill that essentially becomes a type of cultivation? While the thought is funny, I used the massage on my own body, and as I felt the soreness slowly leaving my form, I began to relax and simply think.

Being left with around 2,100 LP, with the hundred being caused by rejuvenating LP that being one per every second I exist, it soon jumps up after another screen appears.

[ + 200 For A Relaxing Massage]

Wow, I could take advantage of this, but if my assumption is correct, such actions have diminishing returns, so that would need to be tested later. For now, I need to think of my next move. To be honest, I am stumped as the only good thing about the original story is that Indra protected the character I am now inhabiting, and the Hindu Pantheon is one that you do not mess with. Still, now deciding to go my own way, I need to think.

I would not consider myself a very in-depth planner as I lacked the vision to work on such long-reaching objectives. Maybe it was caused by a life of having to make such short-term decisions all the time, but now, with this ability and my spear, I could become immortal and could have all the time in the world. 

Some part of me is saying to myself that I'm thinking too small as I could become a true "hero." But I silence that voice as I know that true heroes don't exist as I am entirely selfish. I may make a "good" choice, but such is only for my benefit. Forming the hero faction should be a primary goal, as having all those Longinus users will be a boon in the future, especially Annihilation Maker and Dimension Lost, but how to get them on my side?

I have no qualms that I am a convincing man, yet I lack knowledge of both the future and the past. This may be some alternate timeline or doomed future, but that matter is sort of redundant at this point, so I decided to create another skill using 2,000 LP, that being Currency Creation. With that skill, I am left with around 500 LP.

The skill itself can create currency based on my stamina, so, at this point in time, I can generate a decent amount. With my funds somewhat secured, I started walking toward the nearest town with my spear acting as a conduit for a magic sense. As such, I am left alone with my thoughts, pondering a new future and how I should shape it or if I should do so at all.

A small goal of mine should be a focus for now, along with training. A lot of training for now, as even a normal low class devil, could end him even with the spear in his hands being a threat to Sirzechs and Rizevim. But for now, I need to plan another way.

(We are here to guide you always.) A small voice from the spear says, which surprises me. I ask, "Who are you really?" (That is an interesting question, but to answer your question with another question. Who are you really?)

"That is a good question and one I am going to need to find an answer for," I say mentally as it responds (But what if the answer is worse than the question?)

"That would not surprise me as power corrupts after all, as I would never have even thought to be so ruthless before. Even now, I'm trying to keep myself from throwing up. But I cannot feel such things until I know I am strong enough to feel vulnerable." The comment feels like a lie, and it was.

(That is unhealthy, and you know this.)

"Yes, but for now, it is one of the few things keeping me going." (You know, grieving for what is lost is not a weakness.) That phrase causes me to stop walking for but a moment, and soon enough, the spear goes quiet, but its presence remains as I continue walking, with the rain beginning to pour down.

The rain continues to fall as I consider my options. Remembering that I am in China, I wonder if my sacred gear awakening has caused any issues.

Essences Used: Blank, Archmage, Skill/Power Creation (Get Creative From The Dungeon Only I Can Enter)