Disclaimer: I do not own Highschool DxD or its characters. It belong to Ichiei Ishibumi

A.N. Because of the nature of this story, I'm going to use Issei's name as it is, instead of using any of his pseudonyms that he uses during his travels. Of course, when he gives a name, the people will use that to refer to him. But I will continue to refer to Issei in third person during the narrations.

Chapter 1: The Hunt. Ireland

Issei sighed happily as he sneaked out the boat, jumping from it's ledge, finally glad to be back on solid land. It wasn't that he hated sea travel. It's just, it felt kind of cramped to be in a ship and not have a cabin. Though considering he was a stowaway that entered the boat undetected, it was bound to be an uncomfortable experience.

He breathed in, taking in the sights of the town, doing his best to appear inconspicuous and not at all like he was a stowaway. Once he made sure that none of the authorities were going to catch him, he nodded and stepped into the town. He didn't really get too far when he saw something strange.

It was a woman, a beautiful one at that, sitting on the edge of the port, leg dangling into the cool, blue waters below.

She was also crying, her head in her hands and sobs that were unusually loud coming from her. Sure a girl crying was nothing unusual, but the fact that no one seems to notice her, some even going as far as circling around her was a little weird.

Issei began to choose. 'Help a magical crying girl in need or just ignore her?'

No brainer.

Issei walked over to the girl and gently tapped her on the shoulder. "Hello miss? Is something wrong?" He said that in the most gentle voice he can.

The girl looked up, eyes swollen from tears. "Yes. There is." She promptly turned back to her hands, weeping still audible.

"Is there something I can do to help?"

"No. I'm crying because someone is going to die."

Well fuck. That wasn't suspicious at all. Despite his apprehension, Issei still decided to go on.

"And who would that be?"

"You." The girl turned from a woman to a monster in a heartbeat, lunging at Issei, arms outstretched, claws extended, looking to rip apart his throat.

Issei simply let himself fall back, and with his back against the ground, used his feet to push against the monster's stomach.

The girl/monster/whatever-the-fuck-that-is soared through the air for several seconds, before crashing back against the ground. When it managed to right itself, she looked pissed.

With a wail that no one but Issei seemed to hear, the monster darted towards him on all fours, looking distinctly feral as it did so.

Issei grabbed her arms and spun around, switching their places easily.

"What are you?" Issei asked, curious. He was new to Ireland and he didn't exactly know a lot of folklore there, Cu Chulain aside. And he only knew of that particular legend because he had met his ancestor.

Instead of answering, the she-beast let out a roar of anger and threw herself at him, mouth bared in a snarl. How rude.

With an ease borne of experience, he ducked under the left arm that was aimed at his eyes, twisted around the right claw that aimed to disembowel him, and grabbed her by the closest appendage to him. With a smooth motion, Issei kicked her feet, knocking her off-balance and, while she was still in the air, put the arm he was still holding into a lock.

"Still not going to answer?" Okay, he was being cheeky and he knew it, but Issei felt a little justified in doing that. He had tried to help someone and all he got was a claw looking to rip his throat out. Whatever happened to 'love your neighbors' and all that?

"No? Well then, you leave me no choice." Issei's hands glowed red and in a flash, the monster below him turned into an ice sculpture.

"There." He nodded, satisfied at his handiwork. Now he only had one problem left.

"Where am I going to put you?"

[You're an idiot.]

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

After that fiasco, Issei was content to explore the country, going to places like Saint Patrick's Cathedral, the Cliffs of Moher and the Blarney Castle. He went to a hotel where he spent the money he had earned working on a room for one. It wasn't until one week after he had encountered the supernatural, now October 31st, that things truly turned even weirder.

"Where can I find good food that's also cheap?" Issei mused outloud, bringing out his wallet to see the only money available was the ones an old man had insisted on giving him after he helped him load his things into a moving truck.

After a few moments of looking around, he found a humble cafe in the near the outskirts of town. It was small, and quaint yet had a homely feel to it. Issei ordered a simple meal of meat and soda and was in the middle of eating it when he heard something unusual.

Booooooooooooommmmm!

It was a deep rumbling sound, like those war horns from old.

'Ddraig, did you hear that?' Issei stood up, leaving the payment for his meal and, after thanking the staff, walked out into the streets. It was now nearly fully dark, the only light provided by the moon and the distant lights from the festival at the center of town. He investigated where the sound came from and determined that it came from the forests. Destination in mind, he set off.

[Yes I did partner.]

'Do you know what that was?' Issei was on the edge of the city, where the walls of the city kept out the trees in the forest.

Boooooooooommmmmmmmmmmm!

There it was again. This time though it was much louder, and instead of fading into silence, seemed to herald something else. The ground seemed to be shaking too, announcing that what was approaching was either large or in a group.

Then, there it was.

Bark Bark!

The barking of dogs, and from the sound of it, it wasn't just a single one. Whatever it was, it was approaching his location and fast.

Boooooooommmmmmmmmmmm

Issei thought. 'Hunters?'

Just as the thought popped into mind, something erupted from out of the treeline.

'It was a pig.' Was Issei's first thought, but to call it a pig wasn't really accurate.

It was huge, almost fifteen feet tall and it's fur was colored in a dark, rust-like cover. It's tusks were huge, bigger than Issei was tall and was dripping a pale liquid that Issei didn't want anywhere near him. It was also charging straight at him.

With a strangled cry, Issei jumped to the side, just barely dodging the huge length of the boar, avoiding those hooves that could probably flatten him like a pancake. Issei watched almost detachedly as the boar trampled the wall of the town, crushing it into rubble.

'What the hell is a pig doing here!?' Issei really wanted to know.

Issei just barely stood up, brushing the dust of his pants when the thundering of hooves announced something once again.

'Oh come on!' Issei found out that his thought was correct. They were hunters.

A pack of snow-white hounds with red ears charged past Issei, chasing the boar still visible in the distance. Behind those were horses. A lot of horses.

Some of them were carrying hunters in their backs, some of them only carrying weapons. The hunters themselves were as varied as their mounts, ranging from barely-clothed to looking like they were wearing armor from the middle ages. Some of them looked human enough, some... weren't. They ranged from having hairy snouts sprouting from their faces, some had horns on the top of their heads, and Issei wasn't sure, but it looked like one of them was a dolphin.

But Issei wasn't focused on them though. No, what caught his attention was what was obviously the leader of the hunt. He was tall, even seated on his horse, Issei could see it. Muscles that looked like they were carved from stone and a black iron spear held in his right arm. The man made eye-contact with Issei, and smiled. He brought up the hunting horn slung on his back and blew on it.

Join us, hunt, ride, come.

Before Issei knew it, his body had already responded. He swung his arm out and caught an oncoming horse on it's flank and threw himself on it, riding beside the Huntsman. Beside him, Issei felt his eyes approvingly observing him. Then the moment passed and the hunt began in earnest.

He took a spear from a riderless horse beside him and felt his blood sing, enjoying the thrill of the hunt.

They chased the boar through the town, passing through empty streets, causing destruction as they went. Then, the boar turned and they were at the heart of the festival.

The middle of town was beautiful, with the people all dressed up in elaborate costumes and enjoying the night.

Weirdly enough, instead of fear and panic at the sight of the massive boar running straight through the middle of town, they instead seemed to welcome it, cries of 'The Hunt!' became prevalent through the night. Issei thought for a moment on why they didn't run away and came to the came to the conclusion that they couldn't see them.

What he didn't know was that the force which usually hid the supernatural from mortal eyes were faded for the night.

They were nearing the outskirts when the boar changed direction, straight out the gates of the south side of the city and into the forest. The Hunt followed it, the dogs nipping at the heels of their prey.

The forest was tricky to navigate, though thankfully, the boar was easy to follow considering the massive damage it caused. The edge of the forest was now visible, the trees thinning out and Issei could see the beautiful sight of a cliff overlooking the ocean where the reflection of the stars were twinkling when the boar changed direction, taking a sharp turn to the right.

It continued like that for nearly two hours. The boar running far in front of them, the dogs weakening it ant the riders looking for an opportunity to end the night. The moon was nearly hidden by the mountains of the horizon by then.

Issei was tired. This was the longest he had ever ridden on a horse. That was when he gained a flash of inspiration. His hands were covered with a flash of flames and his gloves formed on them. With a competitiveness he never knew he had, Issei let one of the Boosted Gears seals fade

[Transfer!]

He transferred his power to his ride and immediately, it ran faster, outstripping all others and leaving them in the dust except for one other. He was the one that caught Issei's attention, and the one that finally brought him to join the hunt.

He was smiling at Issei, enjoyment visible on his face.

Reeeeeeeet!

They both turned at the same time where they saw the boar finally stagger and then slow down. Immediately, the dogs pounced, weakening the boar before it threw them off it.

They were in a clearing by then. A circular area 40 meters wide where trees did not touch it.

Issei subconsciously dismounted from the horse, still carrying the spear he held for over three hours and taking another one strapped to it's saddle, and beside him, he could see his companion doing the same. They circled the boar, who was trying to keep the two in it's line of vision.

Thud Thud Thud Thud!

Issei saw that the hunters caught up to them, but instead of helping the two, they were merely sitting back in the treeline, watching them.

REEEEEEEEEETTTTTT!

Impatiently, the boar charged at what it could perceive to be the weaker target.

'Dammit.'

Issei rolled to the side coming up in a crouch, holding out the spear to graze the side of the enormous boar. The monster roared in rage, not willing to take anymore damage. Dimly, Issei could see that his riding companion was watching him, content to see just what he would do in this situation.

That was fine. Issei was more than used to doing difficult things by his lonesome.

The boar turned towards him now, eyes still angry but much more intelligent, wary now that it had been wounded by what he had labelled as a lesser threat. Still, for all it's intelligence, it was just still a boar, drunk with pain and rage.

It thundered towards Issei, the very ground rumbling as it did.

Issei, with no way to stop doing something as big as that, did the only thing he could.

He threw one of the spears he held at it.

The spear he held was a boar spear, heavy and designed to be braced against the ground, not to be thrown like a javelin.

Still, his aim was true, piercing it's right eye, the haft embedding half it's length in the boar's skull.

Still, the monster was hardier that expected and Issei was a half-second too slow to dodge, picking up a gash in his side for his trouble.

He turned around and saw that the boar had at some point turned to glare at him, both of them separated by half the length of the clearing.

In the silence, Issei had realized one thing.

Someone was going to die. By the end of the night, blood will have been spilled, whether it be the hunter or the prey, only they would know. And Issei was sure as hell not going to let himself be killed.

So when the boar roared, charging towards him, he had been ready.

He crouched down, bracing the spear against the ground, watching the huge monster approach quickly with determined eyes.

At the the last second, right when boar met steel, he made his move.

[Transfer!]

He reinforced the spear, making it so that it was far, far harder than it would have been otherwise.

Crack.

Even then, when the wood was hard as steel and the spearhead took on the consistency of diamond, it began to bend. The pressure the boar was bearing down on him was immense.

Crack!

Issei watched as the spear began to break, cracks spreading out from the spearhead to the base. He gritted his teeth. Like hell he was going to die!

With a roar, Issei thrust the spear with all the power his arms could give. The skin of the boar was ripped apart, teared apart by the sharp steel. It broke through the skull of the beast, cracked by the power of the blow. The spear sunk into the boar's head, the haft of the spear embedded into it until Issei's hands. Beside it, he could see the other spear he threw in it's a squelch, he pulled them out, a small amount of blood spraying out as he did so.

With a groan, he sunk to the ground, and he saw that the hunter's were all dismounted, approaching him with something akin to awe.

The leader of them approached.

"Good Hunt."

He was a large man, muscles evident in his form. His hair was black and reached his shoulders and his eyes were a startling blue. He was also the only one among them who looked completely human.

"Thanks. Could have appreciated some help though." Issei didn't care that what he was speaking to was probably a deity or something. Right now, what he wanted to do was rest.

Surprisingly, the man chuckled, looking entirely too amused by this. "You were holding your own against the Beast of Dean. Not many could have done that feat, especially a mortal such as yourself."

"Which reminds me." He held up the spears, one of which was nearly broken, and offered it to the man in front of him. "These belong to those horses there. Can you give it to their owners."

He smiled and shook his head. "No. You have used them with honor befitting a true Hunter. It is yours to keep now." He reached out and closed Issei's hands around the spears.

"Oh yeah. How come the mortals back then didn't freak out? I mean, I'm pretty sure huge boars are not the normal in the world."

"No they're not." The man agreed. "But then again, this is All Hallows Eve. Isn't this the night where the supernatural can interact with the normal world without consequences? This night, the Mist that shields us from mortal eyes are lowered, making them see us for what we are."

'The Mist?'

"What weapon are these anyway? I've never seen anything like it before." Issei said, holding up the weapon to inspect it critically. Now that he could see it clearly, the spear was pitch black, and radiated a sense of... divinity.

"Consecrated Steel. One of the only metals that can harm the supernatural." He looked up and Issei was startled to note that the sun was actually rising up. "Well then warrior, I hope that we meet again. Remember, you are always welcome to join the hunt." He mounted his horse, and began to ride. But Issei had one last question to ask.

"What is your name?"

He turned and smiled.

"Nodens. I am called Nodens." The Hunt began to leave, disappearing into the sunrise where they faded once they touched it's light.

Issei looked down at the two spears he held in his hand.

"Nodens... huh?

It wasn't until weeks later that Issei would realize that he just talked with the Celtic deity of healing, the sea, hunting and dogs.

[That was a pretty wild night, huh partner?]

"Yeah. Yeah it was."

Standing up, Issei looked around at the clearing.

"How the hell am I going to get back to town?"

A.N.

Hey.

This work of mine is a side story of my other work 'Pasts best forgotten'

Just to clear things up, this is what happened to Issei during his travels two years ago. To be perfectly honest, this was just a way for me to write a story without thinking of the upcoming chapter for the aforementioned work. Seriously, I'm already thinking of plotpoints involving Rivezim, Chaos Brigade, the Norse, and other shit, but I can't even think of the next chapter of Pasts best forgotten. Seriously.

This story was inspired by Mac Ceallach's story, Son of the Western Sea, who also made Hogyuko ex Machina. It's a good read, incorporating Percy Jackson elements into other legends as well.

TING!

Now that's an idea.

Hyoudou Issei and the Battle of the Labyrinth!

(No, that's not foreshadowing. Don't be silly.)

Now moving on to the more depressing topics.

Exams. Oh dear God.

It's quarterly exams week and I'm just sitting here, writing stories. Eh, I'll live. But I think that I may have no time to write this week or the next (*cough* Bullshit *cough) because this Sunday is also College Entrance Exams. Unfortunately, I'm going to study my ass off (HAHAHAHA!) to make sure that I have, you know, a good future.

Good future= Good Jobs

Good Jobs= Money

Money= Food and games and all that.

Food and games and all that= An early grave.

Keep your finger's crossed.

P.S.

Can any of you post about what you think about this side story thing? Like it, hate it, indifferent? Do you think that I should continue this?

P.P.S.

To those that say yes, where do you want Issei to go next? England, Italy, Spain, Cambodia, Philippines? Leave a comment for your thoughts.

To those that say no... I don't really know what to say.