He was definitely joining the devils, with how helpful and kind they were. The boons he could receive were great - all which paled in comparison to spending his days surrounding by boobies bound by his side for the rest of eternity. That alone was enough to get him on board. The magic and all those other traits Rias and Sona had attentively explained was fuck-all in comparison.
The problem was that Ddraig had already informed him that it was probably impossible. The Flaming Sword had given him strength far beyond the devil leaders at his school, and that he would need an Ultimate-Class devil at minimum to integrate him within their faction. That was really unfortunate, as he'd rather be with either of them than anyone else.
Maybe he could come up with a way that would allow him to bypass those limitations?
He could already imagine the fun times he could get into with that many hot babes orbiting around.
Rias had the biggest knockers, so she was a shoo-in for his jocker. Koneko was also apart of her peerage, along with the sexy-eyed Akeno who always looks a single second from having her shirt pop open from the strain of her milk jugs. He wanted to feel to be extra sure, but his eye-scouter detected they were even bigger than Rias's!
But Sona had felt so good that time... She was finally being nice to him after all this time, and she too had a peerage full of babes. How could he possibly deny her if she was gonna put out like that?!
The two of them had their own agendas sure, but he could sell his soul to the devil for a pussy-party!
"What are you thinking about?" An unpleasant sigh followed soon after. "Never mind, I already know."
Issei shook his head, his expression serious once again. "Sorry, I was thinking about a plan... like joining up with the devils."
"Haven't I told you it's a no go? You're two powerful for any of those whelps in your school."
"I remember, but I still wanna try... somehow. Besides, they don't even know that, and until they do, both of them will keep trying to get me in their peerages. If I can't get in, then I can at least prove I can't, right?" Issei explains his perspective. If Rias and Sona knew he wasn't able to join them, then maybe they could work together to set him up with someone trustworthy who can.
"Shelf that idea for later. Right now, I have a plan of my own I want to try out."
"You do?" Issei asked with surprise.
"I've considered bringing it up ever since you've acquired it, but kept the idea to myself so that other avenues could be explored," the dragon explained. The mysterious Gamer ability had been incredibly fascinating to observe as it created new powers for the boy. Ddraig had been humbled by its seemingly boundless strength, and wanted to prove that he was still useful.
To himself, and to Issei.
"There is no time to wait. You wish to avoid having your fate in the hands of a superior foe, yes?"
"I do," the boy nodded down to his glowing hand. Spared this time didn't mean next time he wouldn't be seeing himself on the end of a surprise nuke faster than he could react. He'd like to be prepared for when this would happen again in the future.
"Then store The Flaming Sword within me," Ddraig promptly announced.
Issei seemed confused by the dragon's statement. "What do you mean store? You mean like Boost?"
"Not storing power," Ddraig denied. "Storing items, or weapons. The Boosted Gear has this extended function that allows it to integrate with and amplify whatever it stores."
"No way, you can do that?" The boy asked, becoming excited after hearing such a cool ability.
"I can. If the sword is stored within the gear, I will directly be linked to it. Through our connection and my superior senses, I will be able to react to any unforeseen danger and summon the blade instantaneously." Unlike Issei who was still vastly slow to react to such a situation, Ddraig was far more alert and experienced. "However, there is a problem."
"When is there not..." Issei deflated like an airbag.
"Don't complain - it isn't a big issue. The problem is that you haven't awakened the final form of the Boosted Gear's base stage. You need to undergo Second Liberation before properly utilizing this function."
"A final form? How many forms does it have?"
"Three. You are on the second."
Issei let out a small breath of relief. For a second, he thought there would be ten or so stages and he would have to bust his ass across for years trying to unlock them. "Three... right, then how do I go about awakening this last one?"
The ancient red dragon let out a propitious grunt through the green magical receiver. "You're in luck. I can sense that you are right on the cusp of breaking through that barrier and unleashing it."
The boy's excitement returned, hopping quietly in place and cheering his luck. His efforts were bearing more fruit than he knew what to do with. If it was always gonna be like this, he should've started trying years ago.
"Calm down. Before you give yourself a boner or do something else ridiculous... I must state that I am unsure as to what will happen if you go through with this..." Ddraig's tone had petered out, becoming uncharacteristically quiet.
There were a handful of times where Issei had heard the dragon lose his cool, or even get comically emotional. This time... it sounded somber in such a way that struck a chord within him. A dragon like Ddraig shouldn't ever sound like that. It was unnatural, like if the sky rained upward.
"Ddraig...?" Concern laced Issei's voice as he called out the beast's name. The fact Ddraig was proposing something he didn't know the outcome had also unsettled him.
"After you reach Second Liberation and unlock the remaining functions of the Boosted Gear's base state, you can store The Flaming Sword within... once you go through with it, the two of them will bind."
The words weighed on the boy as he tried processing the gravity of them. "You'll... be bound to The Flaming Sword? You you?"
"I don't know what will happen..." Ddraig confessed. "When an item is stored within, it does not bind permanently. It can be extracted out in its original state, hence the name storing. With a sword such as your own being from another universe that outclasses the rank of the Boosted Gear... I am unsure of what the result will be."
"Well if the process somehow risks your life in any way, I don't wanna do it," Issei immediately denied going through with it. Power boost or no power boost, if it meant saying goodbye to Ddraig, he didn't want to take the chance.
The dragon snorted, almost as if he'd chuckled. "Getting sentimental with me?"
"Don't try to be cute all of a sudden. I don't want you dying and leaving me all alone here." A heartfelt look crossed over Issei's face.
This time, the dragon really did chuckle. Short, quiet guttural sounds that would've sounded menacing to those unfamiliar with the beast. "You're right. I suspect not even a blind man would be as misguided as you in the event of such an impossibility transpiring."
"Hey!" Issei whispered sharply, his efforts to keep himself quiet finally cracking. "Wait, what do you mean impossibility?"
"I am the Welsh Dragon," Ddraig's fire had reigniting from within, sounding as ludicrous as Issei, he too also having to measure how loud he was speaking to avoid stirring the other house residents awake. "Whether the sword fuses to the Longinus, or to me directly, I will not die. I will persevere, just as you have."
Confidence resurged within the boy as his partner boasted about himself in his typical fashion. There were feelings unspoken between them about Issei's Gamer system and where Ddraig stood in comparison. It was all but certain that the great dragon couldn't offer him the same limitless powers that could be pulled in unending amounts, manifesting an emotion foreign to the creature within the gauntlet. Though they had both silently acknowledged this, that didn't make a difference anymore.
Words didn't need to be said. They both believed in each other because they were partners.
"I know you will," Issei smiled, feeling reassured. It was a peculiar friendship formed entirely by random happenstance. The two could not be more different, yet the teenage boy truly treasured their bond together.
He valued the dragon's opinion much more than his own. If Ddraig believed that storing The Flaming Sword within the Boosted Gear was the right decision, then Issei would trust him.
"What do you want me to do? How can I awaken the final evolution?" Issei asked, now fully committed to their decision.
"How close are you to leveling up?"
Pulling up his menu screens with his mental navigations, Issei peered over his experience points. "Not very far. Almost level 20."
Level 20. That was also the same level Koneko was. Over the time they had known and been contracted with each other, she had remained the same level. They had trained together, though that was mostly for his own personal benefit. Still, his ability to grow was far above anyone else's thanks to his Gamer status.
He had really caught up to the young devil-neko mix.