Power X Progressive [DXD/CSM AU]

IMPORTANT:

Read this before you start reading!

MC is NOT a pet. He is pretending, and he has limits to what he will pretend to—he would never lick anyone's foot. He is playing the long game. If you expected him to be sigma and power up his way through everything without proper development, then I'm sorry to disappoint you—this is not for you.

Some of you are disappointed with the MC, and I understand—he is not perfect. But maybe you haven't read Chainsaw Man, then.

Arc 1 ends here. Anyway please enjoy this chapter.

***

(1st POV)

Crom Cruach's gaze wavered when his eyes fell on the divine sword, Arondight, clutched in my hand.

You could see it—even if it was just for a moment—a primal instinct taking over him.

The instinct imbued into all living beings by nature.

Fear.

No matter how powerful you are, when faced with something that targets your primary weakness, you start questioning your reality.

The feeling of invincibility vanishes…

…and death becomes real.

"I made a mistake underestimating you," he growled, his voice low and dangerous. "I will show you why I am called the strongest Evil Dragon."

He brought his palms together, forming a complex hand sign I didn't recognize.

"Dorcha." (Irish for "Darkness")

As if the environment itself bowed to his will, all light vanished in an instant—swallowed into a void deeper than space itself.

The concept of darkness was forcefully imposed onto everything around us.

And the concept of light simply stopped existing.

But I could still see perfectly.

Six Eyes cut through the darkness as if it didn't exist.

I grinned.

Arondight still clutched in my left hand, I stepped forward—so did he.

And then we clashed.

His claws pierced straight through my chest, aiming for my heart, as I swung, cleaving his left arm clean off in a single strike.

"Ugh…" I coughed blood. My vision blurred for a second. He'd torn his claws through my chest but he'd missed my heart by inches.

I staggered back. He stumbled too, wheezing in pain.

For a moment, we both stared each other down, blood dripping onto the floor.

Rage took over him. With a growl, he raised his remaining hand and chanted a spell. I was about to move, to prevent him from doing whatever he was doing…

…but I was too late. A giant magic circle formed above us, expanding like a dome, swallowing the whole battlefield.

Suddenly, my body felt impossibly heavy—like a heavy mountain had been slammed onto my shoulders. My knees nearly gave in.

It felt as if thousands of times Earth's gravity had pressed down on me. Every breath felt impossibly difficult.

And I could barely move.

Crom Cruach walked closer, each step measured and slow. His remaining hand clutched the stump of his other arm, but his eyes glowed with cold glint.

He stopped in front of me, towering over where I knelt under the crushing weight.

A cruel smile pulled at his lips as he wrapped his clawed hand around my throat and lifted me off the ground.

I couldn't breathe. My vision darkened around the edges. Another minute, and I'd pass out.

He watched me choke, savoring every moment of my misery.

"No matter what toys you get," he hissed, "humans will always remain weak."

"Did you really think you could kill someone who's slain gods just to test their power?"

His hand tightened, squeezing the last air from my lungs.

"You Public Safety insects never learn. First it was that group led by the human Kurose—Division Four's so-called prodigy. He came at me wielding Telos Karma, a Longinus. And yet…"

He looked at me, his breath cold as frost.

"…I killed him the same way I'll kill you."

He paused, studying my face.

"…So tell me."

His voice dropped to a whisper.

"…Why are you still breathing?"

I looked him dead in the eye, even as my consciousness felt like slipping away.

"Look…down…mother…fucker." I said while coughing blood on his face.

His draconic pupils shrank.

I smirked even in this state.

I had been feeding every last bit of my mana into Arondight, overloading it to its utmost limit. The blade glowed so bright it should have lit the world—

—but in this darkness, nothing escaped.

I raised my left arm with agonizing slowness, forcing it through the intense gravity.

His gaze dropped—

—and he saw half of the sword stabbed into his gut.

His eyes widened in horror.

"Arondight…"

I met his frightened gaze.

"…Overload."

The divine sword erupted with light blue light, tearing through him from the inside out.

Crom Cruach didn't even have time to scream before his body ruptured into oblivion, every atom of him erased as if he never existed.

When the light faded, nothing remained but ashes.

I collapsed to one knee, panting, blood soaking my chest.

But I was alive. I maybe injured but I was far from dead.

And the strongest Evil Dragon…

…was no more.

***

The world returned back to normal as I felt the warmth of light again.

Arondight faintly glowed in my hand.

Using a full-powered attack head-on was risky. He could have easily evaded it, especially with his superior physical stats.

What? Did you think I would brute-force my way through and pray to God he fell for my attack?

Arondight required time to be overloaded with mana to unleash its full potential. Naturally, that evil dragon wasn't going to give me enough time to do that. That kind of thing only happens in anime—reality was cruel.

Nor did I have the luxury of just waiting around to ambush him with a fully charged strike. He would have sensed me and flown away long before I got the chance.

So I had to find another solution.

I had to take a gamble—make myself vulnerable so I could get close enough to catch him by surprise.

And it paid off.

Lancelot's Protection of the Spirits was my main trump card.

At that moment, I felt it activate when his claws tore through my chest. My heart was saved by that single stroke of luck.

This blessing had once allowed Lancelot himself to survive—temporarily boosting his luck in the most dangerous situations.

Weird.

Why is the world spinning?

A sudden jolt of weakness washed over me.

Cough Cough

I coughed blood. The only thing holding me up was Toji's superhuman physique.

I guess I took more damage than I let myself believe.

My vision started to blur. My breath slowed.

I knew I wouldn't die from this…but passing out in the middle of nowhere wasn't exactly on my bucket list.

Just then, through the haze, I saw someone approaching me.

She had crimson hair. She looked beautiful…

Is that…Makima?

My legs finally gave in. I was about to collapse completely when I felt my face land on something…soft.

She smelled…good.

"Careful there… Are you okay? Can you stand up?"

I heard her voice—soft, almost like an angel.

Those were my last thoughts before everything went dark.

(3rd POV)

Makima held Aleks in her arms. Looking at him—unconscious and vulnerable in this state—made her heart flutter.

She smiled.

"I knew you were strong. You did great. Now rest well, my Aleks~" she whispered, taking him into her embrace.

She took out a vial from her pocket, brought it close to Aleks's lips, and slowly fed him the liquid inside.

As soon as all the liquid rushed into his body, his injuries healed at a visible rate. Within moments, there was no trace left of any wound.

She adjusted her hold on him. A magic circle breathed to life beneath them, humming softly, and before long they vanished from the ruined battlefield.

-Scene Change-

Aleks gently opened his eyes.

He felt like he'd had the best nap of his life.

And his pillow was surprisingly great too.

He paused, his memories returning one by one. After he'd defeated Crom Cruach, he'd passed out—and everything had gone blank.

He looked around, taking in the unfamiliar room. This wasn't Reze's apartment, nor did it look like any hospital.

So…where was he?

His Six Eyes flared, instantly catching a familiar presence approaching the room.

He went on guard, already invoking Gojo's template—Infinity up, he was ready to fight any moment.

The door opened.

His eyes widened.

It was Makima.

She wore a sexy apron, holding a tray with a cup on it. Her lips curved into a faint smile the moment she saw him awake.

"You're up? How are you feeling?" she asked, setting the tray down on the nightstand. She sat on the bed, facing him with that unreadable expression.

His bright blue eyes met her concentric golden ones.

"…Good. I think I feel even better seeing you," he replied with a straight face. But he was lying.

"I made some sobacha tea for you," she continued in her usual soft tone. "It will help you recover."

Aleks reached for the cup on the nightstand and took a sip.

After swallowing, he didn't waste any time. The question that had been gnawing at him couldn't wait.

"…Miss Makima, what were you doing there? Did Reze tell you about our…failure?" he asked, deliberately sounding hesitant.

"Yes. I was informed by Kobeni and Reze about your mission failure and…an unexpected ambush," she said.

"I had to come running to save you… but it looked like you had already taken care of the threat. I'm impressed~" she added, tilting her head slightly, sounding genuinely pleased.

Liar.

You intentionally came late so you could watch me fight that bastard. You could have intervened any time and prevented this.

Aleks thought.

He'd deliberately told Reze to inform Makima that he would take care of the dragon himself.

He wanted to show her he wasn't weak. Revealing a small portion of his power wouldn't hurt him much.

His main goal was to make Makima genuinely fall for him—not this fake manipulation and affection that was going on between them.

But he was still unsure if Makima truly liked him. Even L Lawliet's lie detection instincts had failed to catch any deception in her words.

So had every other character template he'd secretly used. She always spoke the truth—or at least, it appeared that way.

And reading her mind… no Tier 1 character was capable of doing it.

He knew better, because he'd tried—and been faced with a conceptual block, as if something was actively preventing him from prying any deeper.

Maybe now was the time to ask her for his reward.

Even though he'd technically failed the mission…he had still dealt with a threat far beyond its scope.

"…Miss Makima?"

His voice was calm, measured, as he set the cup back on the nightstand.

"Was my performance worthy of your…reward?"

Makima didn't reply.

Instead, she slowly leaned forward, one hand pressing against his chest, guiding him down onto the mattress.

Her face hovered over his—so close he could feel her warm breath ghosting over his lips.

"Aleks-kun," she murmured, her tone soft but tinged with something possessive, "when it comes to sex… the better you understand your partner, the better it feels."

Her fingers trailed down the side of his face before sliding into his hand.

"You should start by holding their hand…"

She laced her fingers between his, squeezing gently.

"…And learn how their lips taste."

She closed the small gap between them, her lips pressing into his—slow and deliberate.

A kiss that was short…yet addictive in a way that made his thoughts flicker and blur.

"At least thats what I believe.." Makima finished as she looked at him.

"…We can…do it some other day." Aleks said while not making an eye contact with her.

He just recalled Reze, how he abandoned those innocent people and chose her life over them. How he confessed to her, and even kissed her.

He cared more about Reze right now…he would have loved to continue with Makima..but he didn't know if she really loved him.

He was almost certain she was manipulating him and he would rather not have sex when she might not even have feelings for him.

"I should…get going, Miss Makima." I said while trying to get up.

Makima pushed him down, her golden eyes with concentric red rings looked straight to his soul.

Her expression changed. She did not smile, just looked onto him.

"Stay."

"Thats an order." Makima commanded.

She used the contract he had made with her to command him since he willingly agreed to be hers.

Although the contract currently had zero effect on him, he knew Makima wanted it to take action on him, so he pretended to he controlled.

"…Why? I have to see..her."

"…I need to know how she is doing.."

Aleks replied with a fake broken tone.

He was internally shocked with his current situation. He had gone so far as to prove her that he might be worthy of being her equal.

He realized it…this was not enough.

"Because from now on, you won't be leaving without my permission."

"Reze is fine, I have sent people to look after her. But you…you and I have lots of things I want to talk to you about."

Her gaze lowered, cupping his cheeks

"After all, you are mine, remember?"

Then, without another word, she started unbuttoning his shirt.

Aleks knew their game was far from over. 

The Control Devil was proving to be a much bigger threat to his life than he'd ever imagined.

He wasn't the type to quit. No matter how hard it would be to tame her, he would find a way.

After all, Freedom and Control were meant to be opposites—and opposites always pulled toward each other, like magnets that would eventually connect.

***

Meanwhile, in the Underworld, in a faraway territory.

A silver-haired man lounged lazily on his throne, clearly bored out of his mind.

Manipulating Ophis into supporting him had turned out to be way easier than he'd expected.

While he was lost in thought, another silver-haired devil rushed into the room.

"My lord…Crom Cruach has been killed."

The devil on the throne blinked, stunned at his servant's casual revelation.

"…What?" he exclaimed, genuine shock crossing his features.

"Yes, my lord…and while we aren't sure who's behind it, my spies sensed her in that area."

"Her again? Ugh…" The man on the throne groaned.

To him, she was an obstacle—one he wanted either tamed by his side or removed permanently.

But Ophis simply refused to cooperate whenever it involved her.

"…Proceed with the plan. Get Samael from Hades as fast as possible. We can't let her exist any longer."

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Important Note:

I will say this once again, this is NOT a vanilla harem power fantasy you'd imagine. Things will take unexpected turns. Aleks is not a perfect MC nor is he an aura farming MC like Sung Jinwoo. I made sure to give him flaws to make this story engaging. I promise he will never become pathetic or beta. This story will remain entertaining, thats a gurantee.