"Bye-bye!"
My name is Hyoudou Issei, but everyone calls me Issei.
Today I was hanging out with friends and somehow it was already evening. Time to head home. So I said goodbye to my friends and started walking back.
"Hm, hm, hm~♪" I hummed while walking, thinking about what to make for dinner. Dad and Mom said they'd "come home early" today, so they're probably already there. Usually they're not home because of work, so I have to cook and eat alone. But today I get to eat with them after so long...
Come to think of it, whenever Mom tries my cooking, she gets all shocked and goes "I lost to my son again!" Dad just gives this wry smile when he sees her like that. Wonder why?
While I was thinking about this, I could see our house up ahead.
Tap tap tap!
I ran the rest of the way home and reached the front door.
"I'm home!" I called out and headed to the living room where I figured Dad and Mom would be.
"Huh?" But it wasn't my parents there. It was some woman with crow like wings sprouting from her back and two guys with bat-like wings.
"What's this? Just a kid."
"Doesn't matter. I get to kill someone again! Kekeke!"
"You're wrong, Van. We're here to find Sacred Gear users. When we find them, we either kidnap them or rip out their Sacred Gears."
The woman with crow wings named Van was laughing as she spoke.
"Come on, Sharly. Anyone who gets their Sacred Gear ripped out dies anyway. And if they don't have one, we kill them to keep them quiet!"
"Sigh Really..." The woman's words made the two men look exasperated, but I had no clue what these people were talking about. More importantly, where the hell were Mom and Dad?!
I looked around the living room and saw them. My parents were lying on the floor near the three strangers, covered in blood.
"Dad? Mom?" I stumbled over and shook their bodies, but they didn't respond.
"...Let me tell you something. The ones who killed your parents... that was us."
"W,,,ha...t?!" The man just said they were the ones who killed my parents. I stared in horror, completely stunned.
These bastards killed my parents?
"Alright then, Sharly."
"Hey, Shaga. This brat too?"
"Yeah, better safe than sorry."
"Fine, fine. What a pain..."
The guy with bat wings started walking toward me, but I didn't care anymore. These people who killed my parents... I hate them...
Suddenly, a pitch-black aura erupted from me. When the three saw this, they felt genuine fear.
"This kid's dangerous."
"Should we kill him?"
"...Sharly."
"Confirmed. He has Sacred Gears. Three of them."
"Wh-what?!"
The moment the two men gaped at Sharly's words, Issei's dark aura transformed into a brilliant pillar of light that shot through the clouds into the sky.
The next instant: Flash!
"Hah?!"
*BOOOOOOOOOM!*
A massive explosion erupted with Issei at the center. His house caught fire, and neighbors frantically called emergency services. Minutes later, firefighters arrived and spent hours putting out the blaze. When they searched the completely burned and collapsed house, they found Issei's parents' bodies. Strangely, without a single burn mark. But Issei was nowhere to be found. The police searched for him but eventually gave up, classifying it as a missing person case.
...
As for Issei:
"Mm...wh...where...am I...?"
He found himself in a strange space that looked like the inside of a kaleidoscope.