"Please go out with me."
A confession—from a girl.
Issei Hyoudou could hardly believe it. For a guy who'd never even held a girl's hand, it felt like something straight out of a dream. Amano Yuuma—that was her name. A stunning beauty with silky black hair and a slim figure that made his heart skip every time he looked at her. He fell for her instantly.
How could he not? What guy wouldn't say "yes" if a girl like her suddenly confessed, her voice sweet and eyes sparkling? It felt like a scene ripped straight out of some dating sim—one of those games where a lonely protagonist's boring life is suddenly upended by a beautiful girl.
Yet it had happened to him. To *Hyoudou Issei*. A miracle, as far as he was concerned.
He didn't believe it at first. Maybe it was a prank. Some elaborate penalty game with giggling classmates watching from the shadows. But no one jumped out laughing. And Yuuma kept smiling at him with that innocent, charming expression.
After that day, Issei's world changed. He had a girlfriend now. *A girlfriend!* The way he walked to school changed. The way he saw the world changed. Even Matsuda and Motohama—his two equally pervy best friends—looked like pitiable creatures in comparison to the man he had become.
Their first date was today. Issei had prepared like his life depended on it. He'd brushed his teeth a dozen times. Bought new underwear. Memorized all the steps he'd dreamed up for this day. He arrived at the meeting spot *three hours* early and spent the time nervously counting every girl in glasses who walked by. One hundred and two, to be exact.
At some point, a stranger handed him a strange flyer—some occult nonsense with a weird magic circle and a phrase: *"Your dream will be granted!"* He almost tossed it but ended up shoving it in his pocket.
Then Yuuma arrived, smiling sweetly. "Don't worry, I also just got here," Issei said coolly, despite having waited hours. Bullseye! He'd always wanted to say that.
They held hands as they walked. *Held hands!* His heart soared. The date was bliss: browsing clothing stores, looking at room decorations, eating at a family restaurant. Yuuma devoured a chocolate parfait like it was the most natural thing in the world.
And all the while, Issei thought, *So this is what youth feels like.*
He even thanked his parents in his mind. Maybe he *would* carry on the Hyoudou family line after all.
As the sun dipped toward the horizon, they ended up at a quiet park—empty, peaceful, the perfect romantic atmosphere.
Yuuma stood in front of the fountain, the sunset glowing behind her.
"It sure was fun today," she said, smiling.
Issei could barely keep his thoughts straight. *Was this it? The kiss? Or even more!?* His mind was in overdrive.
"Hey, Ise-kun," she said gently.
"Y-Yeah?" His voice cracked slightly.
"There's something I want to do to celebrate our first date. Can you listen to my wish?"
*It's happening! It's happening!* Issei's nerves went wild. Breath? Minty. Mental state? Full pervert mode. Prepared? Absolutely not.
"W-What is it?" he asked, trying not to sound like a desperate virgin.
Yuuma's smile didn't falter.
"Will you die for me?"
Issei froze.
"…Eh?" He laughed nervously. "Sorry, could you say that again? Thought I misheard you."
She didn't blink. "Will you die for me?"
Black wings erupted from her back.
Feathers floated gently through the air, falling at his feet.
Issei stared. His mind blanked.
*Angel? No… that can't be.*
Yuuma's eyes changed—once warm and kind, now cold and cruel.
"It was fun. Like playing house with a little kid," she said in a chilling voice, one far too mature and sinister.
Then it appeared. A spear of light buzzed ominously in her hand, casting a glow against the setting sun.
Before he could react, she hurled it.
A sharp gust of air—*hyu*—and then *don!* A shock slammed through his body. Pain followed slowly. Confusion came first.
He looked down. There was a hole.
She stabbed me?
The spear vanished, leaving only blood and emptiness behind.
He staggered, collapsing to the ground.
Yuuma's footsteps clicked as she approached, her voice now little more than a whisper.
"Sorry. You were a threat to us. We decided to get rid of you early. If you want to hate someone, hate the God who put the Sacred Gear inside you."
Sacred… what?
The words didn't make sense. He couldn't process them. His consciousness slipped.
But he didn't want to die.
Not yet! I haven't even touched a boob!
He thought of his friends, of school, of his parents. *No, not the stash under my bed!*
Blood soaked his hands. His vision blurred.
Then—*crimson*. A vivid, burning red entered his fading world.
A voice.
"So you were the one who called me."
A girl stood before him, her tone amused.
"Looks like you're dying. But oh my, this is interesting... So it's you. How fascinating."
She laughed softly, intrigued by something he didn't understand.
"If you're dying, then I'll take you. Your life, that is. From now on, you'll live for me."
And in his final moments of awareness, Issei saw nothing but crimson—hair like fire, eyes that burned—and felt like he is losing conscious.
~~~