Two weeks had passed, and Leonardo, once a lonely orphan, had begun to adjust to the unusual events of this strange place, especially with Arthur and co.
Heracles had made it his mission to show Leonardo to Regulus.
"No. Absolutely not."
The golden lion had said at first, flat on the training ground, ears twitching with clear irritation as Heracles tried to lift Leonardo onto his back.
"Come on, just once. The kid's light. He's like a feather with arms and legs."
Heracles laughed, already helping Leo climb aboard.
Leonardo had hesitated until Regulus let out an exaggerated sigh and muttered.
"Fine. But only because he's very behaved."
Leonardo ended up riding Regulus like a miniature knight atop a grumbling, annoyed lion.
And despite his verbal protests, Regulus didn't shake him off.
Georg, ever the intellectual, had taken the responsibility of educating Leonardo seriously.
Every morning, he'd sit with Leo at the long table in the library, notebooks stacked, chalkboard prepped.
"Today, we continue with the basics of common sense."
Georg would say, tapping the board.
"Repeat after me: Do not place metal in the microwave."
"Why not?"
Leonardo had asked.
"You just... don't. I don't want you ending up like that brute."
Cao Cao found himself spending the most time with Leo, perhaps because, like the boy, he too was orphaned and unwanted.
Cao Cao didn't speak much during their time together, but he'd silently hand Leo a book or sweets, and they'd sit side-by-side in silence.
Somehow, that said enough.
Lavinia had become Leo's 'big sis'.
She clothed him in warm clothes, combed his messy hair, fed him warm meals, and tucked him in with gentle goodnights.
Arthur, meanwhile, watched them from the sidelines, grumbling in mild jealousy.
(I know I'm being a dumbass. I know I should be better than this. But I can't help it, okay?)
He told himself, watching Lavinia spoon soup into Leo's mouth while humming softly.
Arthur had taken on the role of training Leo.
The idea was simple: to test if Leo's Longinus, Annihilation Maker, is in him.
That afternoon, the two stood on the training grounds.
Arthur faced Leonardo, arms crossed. Leonardo stood a few feet away.
"Alright, Leo. I want you to focus. Close your eyes, and think of the strongest thing you can think of. A shape, a feeling, a person. Just... something."
Arthur said, his tone calm.
Leo did as told. Eyes shut, body still. He focused. He searched within himself.
But...
"I... I can't feel anything."
He mumbled, voice tinged with disappointment.
Arthur's expression softened. He stepped forward, resting a hand on the boy's grey hair.
"It's alright. We'll try again when you're ready. Okay?"
Leo nodded silently, shoulders slightly slumped as he walked to the bench nearby and sipped from a bottle of water.
Arthur stood where he was, hands on his hips, exhaling slowly.
(It's been half a month and we're getting nowhere...)
(You seem troubled, Arthur.)
Ddraig called inside his mind.
Arthur narrowed his eyes slightly as he responded in thought.
(Just thinking, Ddraig.)
(About the boy?)
Ddraig asked knowingly.
Arthur looked over to where Leo was sitting, kicking his legs slightly.
(Yeah... I was trying to see if he had a Sacred Gear. Or maybe even a Longinus.)
(Hmm... Did he try focusing on something strong?)
Ddraig mused.
(He did. But nothing came out.)
Arthur fell into silence for a moment.
Then he frowned, gaze growing distant.
(When I awakened my Longinus... it was the night when...)
He stopped.
He didn't want to think about it.
But the thought lingered like a shadow.
Arthur clenched his jaw.
(It may be possible... but I don't want to put him through that crap.)
Ddraig's voice called out.
(Then what will you do?)
Arthur closed his eyes.
"... I got a dumb idea."
Arthur turned towards Leonardo.
"Leo! Come here!"
Leonardo looked up from the bench and obediently jogged over.
"Yes?"
Then the world suddenly shifted.
Leo blinked and suddenly found himself hundreds of feet in the sky, falling.
"Aaahhhhhh!"
He screamed, arms flailing as wind howled in his ears.
Arthur was beside him, free-falling calmly, hands in his pockets.
"Arthur! WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"
"We're falling! That's what's happening!"
Arthur shouted back casually, pointing downward.
Leo's eyes darted down.
The training grounds were rapidly approaching.
Death was seconds away.
"What do we do?! We're gonna die!"
Leo panicked.
Arthur turned to him, eyes serious.
"Focus!"
"What?!"
"Focus on not dying!"
Leo looked at him as if he were insane.
Arthur's voice was sharp now, demanding.
"Focus on surviving. Think of something, anything. Imagine it. Make it real. Do it, Leo! Or we both die!"
Leo clenched his eyes shut.
(Please... I don't wanna die... I don't wanna die!)
"You hear me, Leo?!"
Arthur called out again.
"Say it! Deep in your soul, say it!"
"...I wanna live..."
Leo whispered.
"Louder!"
"I WANNA LIVE!"
He screamed.
*BOOM!*
And then, a purple shockwave burst from Leo's body as a massive form erupted from the boy's shadow.
From his shadow, a towering teddy bear with glowing red eyes emerged, catching both Arthur and Leonardo in its pillowy belly.
They bounced once, twice, before settling gently atop the soft surface.
The bear stood tall, silent, cradling them in its oversized plush arms.
Leo blinked rapidly, staring in disbelief.
"...What... What was...?"
Arthur let out a long breath and sat up on the teddy's belly.
"Took ya long enough. For a second, I thought I had to save your life."
He said with a grin.
Leo sat up, still shaking slightly.
"Arthur... what did I do?"
Arthur looked at him.
"You awakened it."
Leo blinked.
"Awakened... what?"
"Your Longinus."
Arthur replied.
Leo's jaw dropped.
"My Longinus? Like the thing that you and the others have?"
Arthur nodded.
"Yeah. And yours is called the Annihilation Maker. It has the power to create any creature you imagine from your shadow. It could be anything: monsters, aliens, cryptids, phantasmal beasts, etc."
He gestured at the giant teddy beneath them.
"And apparently... your first summon was Mr. Teddy, but super-sized."
The bear blinked slowly, then raised one paw and gave them a friendly wave.
Leo stared up in wonder, then slowly lifted his hand and waved back.
"...Cool..."
He whispered.
Arthur smirked.
"Yeah, kid. Real cool."
Arthur and Leonardo gently slid down the plush belly of the towering Mr. Teddy, landing with a soft thud on the stone ground.
Just then, a series of teleportation circles emerged in the distance, and several figures appeared around the field.
Lavinia arrived first, her heels skidding across the earth as her eyes darted wildly.
Behind her came Heracles, Georg, and Cao Cao, each one already gripping their Longinus.
"Arthur! Leo! Are you alright?!"
Lavinia called, voice sharp with concern as she spotted the two figures on the field.
Georg's eyes narrowed behind his glasses.
"We felt a massive disturbance from here, a strong one. What happened?"
Heracles stared up at the massive figure now crouched on the field, Mr. Teddy, big and silent with glowing button eyes, calmly waving at the newcomers.
"…What the hell?"
Heracles muttered.
Arthur smirked as he rested a hand on Leonardo's messy hair.
"What happened is that Leo happened. Or more specifically… Leo's Longinus."
He echoed Georg's question.
Everyone went silent for a moment.
Georg adjusted his glasses.
"…I'm sorry, what?"
Cao Cao stared at Arthur, then at Leonardo, then at the enormous sentient stuffed animal towering over them all.
"…You're telling us that big teddy is a Longinus?"
Arthur folded his arms.
"Yup. Specifically, the Annihilation Maker. He awakened it when I dropped us both from the sky."
The group collectively turned to look at him with an expression of shock.
But in Lavinia's case...
"You did WHAT?!"
DxD
The scene cuts quickly to Arthur's room.
He sat in the corner, legs pulled up and arms wrapped around them like a scolded child.
He was mumbling to himself.
"…I had it under control. It was totally safe. I knew what I was doing…"
Lavinia stood in front of him, hands on her hips, eyes burning with fury.
"You dropped a child from the sky, Arthur! Are you out of your mind?!"
Arthur opened his mouth to speak.
"I wasn't going to let him fall to his-"
"That's not the point, mister!"
He tried again.
"It worked, didn't it? He awakened his Longinus."
"You risked his life for something so pointless! Do you even understand how dangerous that was?! What if he couldn't activate it in time?! What if he didn't have a Sacred Gear at all?!"
Lavinia declared, her cheeks red with frustration.
Arthur muttered.
"I had a backup plan…"
Lavinia threw her hands up.
"You're lucky he's unscathed, and you're even luckier I'm still trusting you despite your stupidity!"
Arthur winced.
"…So… we good now, Lav?"
She narrowed her eyes at him.
"Fine."
Lavinia said.
Arthur sighed in relief.
"Thanks, Lav. I thought I-"
"But no sex tonight."
Arthur froze.
His jaw dropped as if someone had just declared the end of the world.
"Wait-what? No. C-Come on, Lav, let's not get too-"
She turned around, arms crossed.
"Do you wanna make it a whole week?"
Arthur slumped in his corner, defeated.
Meanwhile, on Arthur's bed, Leonardo sat with his legs swinging, still in awe of what had happened.
He stared at his hands, then at the faint glow of his shadow cast on the floor.
Heracles leaned casually against the bedframe, grinning like a proud big brother.
"So, how about you try summoning something big? Like… I dunno. Godzilla or King Kong. C'mon, let's see how wild this Longinus of yours can get."
He said, nudging Leo with an elbow.
Leonardo blinked.
"What's a Godzilla?"
Heracles gasped dramatically.
"Okay. We're fixing that tonight. Movie marathon. All MonsterVerse."
Before he could explain further, Georg sat on the other side of the bed, arms crossed.
"One, Leonardo just awakened his Longinus. He's barely scratched the surface of what it can do. Pushing him to summon something on the scale of 'Godzilla' is reckless. Two, even if he could do it, which he cannot do it just yet, summoning something with the destructive capacity of a nuclear warhead is not 'fun'. It's foolish."
"You're such a killjoy, you know that?"
Heracles huffed.
"Yet, I am smarter than you/."
Georg retorted.
As the two began bickering, Cao Cao stepped in with a proud expression, walking over to Leonardo and kneeling slightly to meet the boy's gaze.
"Well done, Leo. You just became one of us now. Welcome to the club."
He said happily.
He placed a hand on Leo's head and gave it a gentle ruffle.
Leonardo's eyes widened, and he smiled sheepishly.
"Thanks…"
Then, from the corner of his eye, Leo saw movement outside the window.
Standing just outside the window, nearly shoulder-level with the upper floor, was the same massive Mr. Teddy.
The giant plush bear looked inside with glowing eyes and gave a small wave with its oversized arm.
Leonardo's mouth slowly curved into a smile, and he waved back.
Arthur peeked over from his corner, still sulking.
"Hey, can someone tell Mr. Teddy not to watch people from outside the windows. It's creepy."
"I think it's pretty cute."
Lavinia muttered, though her eyes hadn't entirely left Arthur.
"…Thanks for catching us, Mr. Teddy."
Leonardo whispered under his breath.
The bear didn't respond, but Leonardo saw it wave at him again.
DxD
Hello readers!
Here's your chapter, now where's my Power Stones?
Thank you everyone and see you later!