When I opened my eyes, I saw a doppelganger of myself smirking at me. There was only one difference between the two of us which was our eyes. That doppelganger had black scleras and red irises which was unnerving.

And from how he smirked at me, an eerie feeling appeared in my mind like I was staring at a deep and dark abyss while having a suspicion that something else was staring back.

“What do you want, Noir?” I asked.

“Just a private talk. This way, Anya can’t listen in”, Noir answered.

After raising his finger, two chairs and a table formed out from the darkness that came out of his body. He then sat down and I did the same.

“So… How’s it hanging?” Noir asked.

“Did you just bring me here for a small talk?” I asked back.

“I brought you here because I can and now we’re gonna have a small talk.”

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.”

“And why? Who’s gonna stop us?”

“Omegaɑ.”

“Puh-lease! They might’ve gotten stronger as they made one Primordial Being after another but that’s not enough!”

“They’re pretty unbeatable. Anya said that nothing can beat them.”

“And what are we?”

Noir smirked while I clenched my fist.

“What are you planning to do?” I asked.

“Nothing.”

Darkness came out of his palms and it formed into birds. They flew upwards before growing into several dragons.

“This world is pretty fun. Messing with people is fun!” he said.

“How come I can’t feel anything from your words then?”

From how he acted, it seemed like Noir was trying hard to have fun. Even though it meant earning the anger of others, as long as it was interesting, he would do it.

“I wonder why…” he sighed.

Noir stood up and looked at the empty white space above us. When he raised his arm, darkness consumed the sky.

“Mikage… When you were summoned into this world without your permission, what did you feel?” he asked.

“Confused because I thought a chuunibyou was seriously in character.”

I then heard him chuckling. Noir faced me and put on an expression that I didn’t expect him to make.

“Must be nice to have a fun first impression like that”, he said.

Once again, my heart became empty. No… There was an emotion inside it.

Sadness.

“Noir… Are you…”

“You can leave now. I’m not in the mood to talk anymore.”

“Really? I can still listen.”

“Do you want me to ask about Amelia Watson?”

“I’m leaving now.”

Everything was slowly fading away while Noir was waving his hand. He had a smile on his face but I knew very well that nothing was behind that expression.

###

“Mi…. Mi…kage…. Mikage…. Mikage!!!”

I felt someone shaking my body and when I opened my eyes, I saw Anya worriedly tugging my shoulders.

“Five… more minutes…” I groaned.

“I couldn’t feel you for a few minutes! What happened?!” she shook me even stronger.

“I had a deep dream?”

“That’s not how it works! Is Noir doing something?!”

You’re damn right for being suspicious about me, Noir chuckled.

“What did you do?” Anya growled.

Just some boys’ talk. Mikage ran away the moment I asked about Amelia.

Did you just throw me under the bus? I asked.

Amazing. You did a good job for your first attempt in starting a private conversation with me.

Anya didn’t look like she was satisfied but I patted her head.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine”, I assured her.

She was glaring at me and I could feel her connection with me becoming stronger. However, we were interrupted when someone knocked on the door.

“Come in”, I said.

The doors opened and Ayame entered the room.

“We’re about to eat breakfast but you weren’t coming down”, she told me.

“Oh. Give me a few minutes to prepare”, I said.

After changing my clothes, Anya turned into her sword form and I picked her up. I got out of the room and saw Ayame waiting for me.

When we got down, the inn was crowded. Rushia was taking down notes while Ollie was eating. There were other patrons too but they looked anxious because of the Dark Corruption.

Ayame walked ahead and I followed her. However, she went past our table and headed straight towards a small person wearing a hooded cloak. And without warning, she unsheathed her katana and pointed it at that person.

“What are you doing?” a woman’s voice came out of that cloak.

“I’m wondering why the president of the Celestial Academy’s student council is here in this town”, Ayame said.

That person took off her cloak and revealed her short silver hair. She wore a white outfit that looked like a school uniform along with a yellow armband on her left arm. There was a pair of small white wings on her back and a halo with four sharp points was floating above her head.

The other people in the inn looked concerned. I heard that angels and demons weren’t on friendly terms so I was worried that a fight might start.

Ayame laughed and the girl followed. They then gave each other a high five while having warm smiles.

“How have you been, Ayame?” the angel asked.

“Doing my best, Kanata. How about you?”

“Also trying to do my best.”

“Ummm… What’s going on?” I raised my hand.

“That girl is Kanata Amane, the student council president of the Celestial Academy”, Rushia answered.

###

“Heaven thinks that we’re going to become another Rivella?” Ayame asked.

“Yes. That’s why I was sent here to investigate. There are many reports about the strange energy here in the Demon Realm so they are preparing for the worst case scenario”, Kanata nodded.

“What’s Rivella?” Ollie raised her arm.

“A long time ago, the Demon Realm was a country called ‘Rivella.’ A certain demon united all of the demon tribes and ruled with an iron fist. If that wasn’t enough, he then declared war on Heaven and all of the world in hopes for world domination”, Ayame explained.

“He must be very strong”, I said.

“Of course. He wielded an exceptional sword and decimated armies using it.”

Wait… Exceptional sword.

“And with his menacing dog-like appearance, people feared him as a beast who destroys anyone who gets in his way”, Kanata added.

Oi, I called out the one person I was reminded of.

Everyone has a phase where they’ll go, ‘If I were the one running the world, I can fix it’, right? Deep Blizzard Miyuki’s voice told me.

And you just let him do it, Anya? I asked.

I knew he can do a good job and since Shiki chose him as the second master, I decided to trust him, Anya answered.

Now, now. That’s in the past. Let’s just move on, Shiki said.

“Many angels and creatures died from that bloody war and because of it, demons have a bad name attached to them. While I admire Miyuki for uniting the demon tribes, nobody.. nothing is perfect”, Ayame sighed.

Ain’t that great? I’m perfect! Noir laughed.

“In any case, can you tell me what’s going on?” Kanata asked.

Ayame looked at me and I shrugged. If she could trust Kanata, then I see no reason why I shouldn’t.

“This man is Mikage Kamishiro, the vessel of the Primordial Dark”, Ayame introduced me.

“And the Primordial Dark is an annoying prick too”, Rushia nodded.

“There’s a strange energy called the ‘Dark Corruption.’ Long story short, it degrades a creature into ‘nothing’ while giving them incredible strength.”

“I see. And if you’re moving like this, there must be a solution already, right?” Kanata sipped her tea.

“Yes. Mikage has detected the Dark Corruption gathering in the south. If we head there, we can get a clue about this and the organization behind everything”, Ayame answered.

“Organization?”

The doors of the inn opened as a pink-haired young man walked in. Everyone focused on him since he looked really scared and panicking.

“Anyone! Please! Get me someone who has authority over the Demon Realm! This is an emergency! If we do nothing, the Demon Realm will be destroyed!” he shouted.

Ayame stood up and headed towards him. He looked at her and looked relieved.

“And you are?” Ayame asked.

“My name is Rikka. I need your help because if we do nothing, the Demon Realm will be destroyed by sunrise!”

And now we have another problem… How nice.

This world is a pain.