Deus.Ex.Machina Chapter 6

Three days passed in a blur.

Between resting, eating like a man who had never seen luxury food before (seriously, who eats golden toast and eggs with caviar on a Tuesday morning?), and experinting with my power, I was starting to settle into the rhythm of this strange, ridiculous new life.

The house was quiet again, eerily so. Just , Hayama, and a team of polite maids who acted like I was made of glass and unicorn tears.

But the real focus? My ability. The Celestial Workshop.

After that first attempt, I'd been testing its limits like a kid with a new ga console—and what I found was both thrilling and terrifying.

Turns out, I could only have three items queued for manifestation at any given ti. And the ti it took? Not instant. Not even close.

Mundane items—simple tools, clothes, even basic weapons—those popped out almost imdiately. A dagger, a sleek phone, a lockpick set.

But anything advanced—anything that touched on future tech or magic—took ti. Real ti.

All created in a few seconds to a few minutes, ready to be summoned into my hand from the workshop. Right, the workshop also has an inbuilt inventory like those in the gas. Unfortunately I can only store items made by the workshop.

Here's what I had in my current queue:

An enchanted amulet for minor energy reinforcent. Small item, moderate effect. Estimated manifestation: 1 hour, 23 minutes. (almost done now).

Next,

The Kavacha and Kundala from Type-Moon Verse. A divine set of golden armor (Kavacha) and a golden earring (Kundala) given to Karna. The two co as a set. A powerful defensive armor that emits the radiance of the sun, integrating with your body. Because it's light itself taking shape, it is difficult to destroy, even for gods. Estimated ti: 30 days. (because why not? And it looks cool)

Lastly,

The Dragon's Elixir—It was needed to improve my physique and also grant the ability to use mana. Estimated ti: 12 days.

I don't want to purely rely on using physical items.

I based this on a CYOA I played in my past life.

And yes, I tried to add a fourth item. The workshop flat-out denied . I got a shimring red X over the fourth design, along with a text that appeared in glowing silver words:

"Manifestation queue limit reached. Please wait."

So that was the rule: three max in the pipeline. Once sothing manifested, I could summon it to my workshop inventory, and it would stay there until I dismissed or used it. But until then, I had to wait.

I leaned back in the armchair in the corner of my room, the city below was waking up, and here I was, building magical tech in my brain like I was so kind of ani Tony Stark with a crafting addiction.

Three soft knocks echoed against the door.

"Young master," Hayama's voice ca through with practiced calm, "it's ti."

Ti? Oh… right.

I adjusted my uniform jacket, pausing briefly to look at myself in the mirror. Crisp black blazer, white shirt, deep red undershirt, black slacks—tailored, sharp, expensive. I looked the part of a polished, high-class transfer student.

Today was the day. My first day at Kuoh Academy.

As a 1st year, which ans I still have a year before canon starts.

On the outside, Kuoh Academy was just a normal elite high school. Good grades, prestigious reputation, clean white buildings with ivy-covered walls and a massive front gate. But I knew better.

Only I knew who ran it.

Rias Gremory. Sona Sitri

Devil nobles. Sisters of the Maous. Two devils who ruled over this place in quiet authority, hidden in the day-to-day normalcy. Their peerages worked behind the scenes, managing supernatural affairs while posing as model students and student council leaders.

No one else had any idea. Not the staff, not the regular students. But I did. I knew exactly how deep this rabbit hole went.

—

The drive to school passed in silence, save for the low hum of the engine and the faint classical music Hayama always played. I didn't mind the quiet. It gave ti to think.

Kuoh Academy ca into view: red-bricked buildings, carefully maintained grounds, and a warm breeze cutting through the cherry blossom trees. On the surface, everything looked ordinary.

But behind that ordinary mask, I knew the truth.

Kuoh wasn't just a school. It was neutral ground—a balancing point in the chaos of devils, angels, and fallen.

And now, I was part of it.

Class 2-B.

The classroom fell into a hush the mont I stepped through the door.

"Please welco our new transfer student," the teacher announced, glancing at the sheet in her hand. "Leon Mishima. He'll be joining us from today."

I stepped forward, calm and composed. "It's a pleasure to et you."

That's when the reaction hit.

The girls erupted in hushed whispers, so outright squealing. One clutched her hands to her chest, while another imdiately leaned toward her friend and whispered sothing that made both of them giggle. I caught phrases like "cool hair," "movie star vibes," and—unfortunately—"prince-type."

anwhile, the guys... were not thrilled.

A couple of them narrowed their eyes. One leaned back in his chair with an audible sigh. Another quietly muttered sothing under his breath that sounded suspiciously like, "Just what we needed, another pretty boy." "Mishima?"

So yeah. First impressions? Mixed.

"Take the seat by the window," the teacher said, clearly used to the chaos. "Next to Hyoudou."

I nodded and walked over, ignoring the stares. The boy I was sitting next to—brown hair, average build—glanced at with a lazy half-interest before returning to doodling on his notebook.

Issei Hyoudou.

I knew that na. Knew what he was. But right now, he looked like any other teenage guy bored in horoom.

Class began, and the room slowly settled. I pulled out a notebook and started writing, keeping my focus casual. I heard a notification sound echoing in my mind, probably the amulet, I decided to check it later after class.

From the corner of my eye, I could already hear it.

Giggles. Whispers. The unmistakable sound of girls losing their minds.

"Did you see his eyes? He's like a prince—!"

"No, no, that hair! So perfect…"

"I think I just saw him smile—oh my god!"

I didn't even need to look. I could feel the heat of a dozen stares drilling into the side of my face. Apparently, existing was enough to start a fan club around here.

"…Hey," a voice grumbled beside . "You hearing that?"

I turned slightly.

The brown-haired guy beside had a pout on his face like soone just told him Christmas was canceled. His eyes flicked from to the classroom, then back to .

"You a model or sothing?" he asked, not even bothering to hide the frustration.

"Not even close," I replied.

"Tch." He slumped in his chair. "This school's cursed. I swear. First the kendo girls beat up for saying hi too loud, now so perfect transfer student walks in and turns the classroom into a shojo ani."

I glanced at him. "Hyoudou Issei, right?"

His eyes lit up with a grin. "So you do know !"

"Yeah," I said casually. "Porn stash in middle school, tried to climb the girls' changing room fence, nearly expelled twice. Kind of hard to forget."

He froze mid-grin. "Okay, wow. That… hurts, man."

I smirked just slightly. "Lucky guess."

He groaned and dropped his head on the desk. "And now you're funny too. Great. Just what I needed—another tall, mysterious dude to steal what little oxygen the girls used to send my way."

"Was there oxygen?" I asked, looking genuinely curious.

"There was! I got a chocolate once during Valentine's!" he snapped. "It was from a teacher, and she said it was out of pity, but still!"

From the front of the class, I heard more giggling. Soone whispered, "Did you see him smile just now? He's so mysterious!"

I sighed. "This is going to be exhausting."

Issei groaned again. "Tell about it. I've been exhausting myself trying to get noticed, and here you co, doing absolutely nothing but breathing and blinking like a damn legend."

Despite myself, I almost laughed. Almost.

Still, under all that whining and dramatics, Issei was harmless—at least for now. Just a walking hormone with zero filter.

Loud. Annoying. Kind of stupid. But I like it.