Gaming Badly in DxD

-Zatren Fumigami-

‘’So let me get this straight, you.’’ I pointed at Serafall, using my other hand to hold onto a particular someone’s little leg, which was dangling from my neck. ‘’Beat a massive freaking lightning mammoth which made half the city collapse in the first place, and you.’’

This time, I pointed at Ayuka, hearing a little giggle from above at the sudden turn of my head. ‘’Limit-tested the fuck out of a Servant to learn Magus magic.’’

‘’Sure did, it was awesome!’’ ‘’Indeed, quite the experience.’’ The two women replied at the same time.

Serafall had the brightest smile I’ve seen from her, while Ayuka shrugged apologetically.

‘’And Mommy was carrying us around while looting the place!’’ Jack replied excitedly from her place on my shoulders. She wasn’t really that small, but she was having fun, and that’s all that mattered, really.

I have known little Jack for a grand total of an hour now, but if anything happened to her, I would kill everyone in the room and probably do some Gacha or Divine bullshit to bring her back to life.

Do not test me, I fucking will.

‘’Ah, could I ask just what kind of artifacts you’ve found?’’ Ayuka asked as she stepped closer. Her polite smile widened slightly as her eyes filled with a twinkle of interest.

I simply rolled my eyes and nodded. ‘’Yes, Ayuka, you can inspect the magical stones and… bones, I guess? I found some magical ash, too. But first, we should probably get back to our little hideout. We have taken care of three Servants now, but the two that remain are the most dangerous ones, no doubt.’’

And of course, instead of serious frowns, the three of us shared an excited grin, because more danger meant that we could fuck around a bit longer.

Unknown to me, Jack imitated our maniacal grins by pushing her cheeks up with her fingers.

‘’Excellent, then…’’ Ayuka turned around, taking in the destroyed, smoking city before pointing her finger downwards, making a magic circle with a matrix I could guess represented teleportation. ‘’Let’s get back, take a breather, and reorganize.’’

‘’Sure, sure~’’ Serafall hummed, before looking down on her torn and burnt magical girl dress. ‘’I need to get something else to wear, though… my cute clothes! The tragedy!’’

I was actually shocked by just how much damage Serafall had sustained in her battle. At least, physically, she looked like crap, but a quick look at her meters told me that she was well over seventy percent of HP, and had well over eighty-fucking-percent of magic left.

I knew she was a Satan, and as such, highly above the power to tear a city into smithereens, but it was still insane and humbling.

‘Ayuka and Sirzechs are even stronger…’ I reminded myself.

‘’Eh, I’m sure we can get you something else. There’s bound to be a clothing store nearby.’’ I offered, which made Serafall purse her lips and frown.

Only for little Jack to hop in, shaking side to side on my shoulders. ‘’We are good with a needle. So, ah… we could try to make… something for auntie?’’ Suddenly, the jovial and excited attitude she had with me changed to shy and reserved when speaking to Serafall.

I resisted the urge to gush, but the Satan certainly didn’t.

‘’Of course, cutie! I bet you make the prettiest little clothes~!’’ Serafall said, restraining her need to hug the little Assassin by clutching her magic staff. ‘’I’m going to find all the tools you’d need, just you wait… What am I saying, it’s I who can’t wait!’’

Ayuka shook her head in amusement at her friend’s antics before activating the circle at our feet. ‘’Very well. Let’s part, shall we?’’

With a bright green glow, we were torn away from the crater that was left of the Clocktower and back to our hideout.

-X-x-X-

-?-

It had not moved from its place in several days now.

Ever since the Grail had made its choice, it had not moved.

It was a gesture of respect for the one it had torn apart with its bare hands. The only one it would have wished its rage wouldn’t touch.

The giant of a man, wide as a wardrobe, and being at least thrice as heavy, with messy, long, and black locks of hair that waved through the air even without any wind, had remained on its knees in front of a rock without a name on it.

Its massive hand, grey in color as was the rest of its body, and capable of crushing skulls as easily as if they were rotten fruit, showed unknown gentleness as it made a small hole in front of the tomb.

On the other hand were white flowers, lilies, which it planted carefully before patting the earth down, making sure it would hold firm, but leaving enough room for the flower’s seeds to fall and spread on their own.

It stood, head low, and grunted, for it could not speak. Never could, even before the mud.

Its will, however… that was the only thing keeping it from rampaging through the city like a lowly beast. The mud, even in its easily corrupting nature, couldn’t get through the thickness of its barbaric rage.

But words and commands could. Specifically, the ones from the King.

‘’Berserker.’’ The voice echoed in its mind. Annoying the man. Its fists clenched with enough strength to crumble city-scrapers. ‘’I believe you’ve mourned for more than enough.’’

At that, the giant took a deep breath. That was true. If anything, the King had let it mourn.

It would hear, this time alone.

‘’Rider, Archer, and Assassin had already fallen. Gone, back to the Throne.’’ The King’s voice was strange. It held the annoyance that would be expected of such news, but also a lingering feeling of resignation. ‘’Three Servants, unknown to me, and even to the Counter Guardian, appeared, and in the span of the falling sun, they took down three of us.’’

‘’From what it appears to be, it's two Casters, and one Lancer, but I do not believe they could even fit the class, not even Ruler. They are far beyond that.’’

An annoyed, questioning huff was all the answer the King got from the beast, but its intent was clear.

‘What do you want me to do about it?’

If that, even.

‘’…To the point. Very well, then.’’ The King took a deep breath, and then, hot, boiling, mud-riddled fury seeped into the Berserker’s very mind.

‘’I command you to let the mud take hold. Destroy as much as your body allows until you fall apart at the seams. Rage until the candle of life is completely gone, and you return where you belong.’’

The giant roared, its bellow like that of a sleeping dragon coming awake with a fury that, with sheer presence alone, could scare even mythical creatures and make entire Kingdoms collapse. Even the King, were he in the presence of this echoing anger, would have his body shaken, and his hand tighten like a lifeline on the pommel of his blade.

‘’Awaken your full rage and show no weakness. That is the order of your ‘Master’, Heracles.’’ The King huffed, and then his presence completely exited the giant’s mine.

But the deed was done. Glowing red eyes opened wide, with hate so pure it would turn fire from blue to white. Its body bulged as its veins popped.

The newly identified Heracles got even taller as it stood on its full height. Then, it took a step forward to the city, and then another.

Each step was followed by a rumble of the earth. The Command Seals used on its form augmented its physical capabilities to the point that its muscles and veins tore apart and regenerated with each movement. So taut was its body that the moment it started to run, it was like a bomb had gone off.

It would reach the city in less than a minute. Maybe even less. And when it did…

The City of Fuyuki would be no more.

-X-x-X-

-Sona Sitri-

Inside a hidden room that was just on the edge of Olympian and Church territory, I stared into various magic circles that showed the raids on each base happening in real time. The room was barebones, but it didn’t need to be furnished, merely serving as command and communication.

‘’Tsubaki, situation?’’ I questioned.

The attack was going swimmingly, with every base being monitored from the outside thanks to Azazel’s help. The man, in my opinion, was way too relaxed for a Faction leader, but his resourcefulness was impressive.

‘’Every attack is going as planned, President. The barriers are being maintained by Squad B with minimal resistance, and a total of two magic circles have been placed by Squad C.’’ My vice-president reported quickly. The sound of a man’s scream, along with flesh being rendered, went through the communication as Tsubaki let out a breath. ‘’We are yet to re-count for enemy losses, but it’s at least in the dozens.’’

‘’Good work, keep me constantly updated.’’ With a sigh, I closed off my end. The equivalent of muting oneself in a call. ‘’Let’s see…’’

As informed, the hits on the enemy bases have all been equally successful in catching the enemy off guard. However, we had only placed magic circles for teleportation in two of them, meaning that there are at least two in which our intrusion was alerted early, or was actually expected.

As such, from one of the magic circles that served as vigilance, I saw a Fallen of four wings exit from a non-secured base. However, little time did he have before he was shot down by lightning falling from the sky, followed right after by a breathy, almost excited chuckle coming from Rias’ Queen, who, as always, decided to wear a… non-standard version of a Miko’s outfit.

‘’Good, Squad A is at attention.’’ I nodded.

The teams were divided as such. Squad C was the one in charge of infiltrating and setting up teleportation circles while taking down enemies in the sneakiest way possible.

As such, these tasks were left to one of Azazel’s associates; a Nekomata, I believed, along with both of my Bishops from my side, and Genshirou and Kiba from Rias's side.

Squad B was in charge of maintaining the barriers that surrounded each facility, making it impossible for the Fallen to escape without one of their generals stepping in or rounding up and shattering such containment with continuous group effort.

Then, Squad A came along, which consisted of most Heavy Hitters on every side. Any Fallen that went past Squad C’s clutches were swiftly taken down.

It was a flawless plan… mostly.

‘’There’s still no signings of any base leaders.’’ I frowned, biting my thumb. ‘’…Nor the rogue exorcist wielding the Excaliburs. Not to mention, Kokabiel is also not taking action.’’

It was incredibly worrying.

At best, they were waiting for their time to strike, and at worst, they had emptied the place before the attack took place, and were relocating or preparing to cause mayhem in another area—

‘’President!’’ I froze as the communication went through.

‘’Reya, report. What’s the situation?’’ Pacing around the room, I started preparing a Magic Circle to make the jump. We could not risk the plan falling apart at this point. ‘’Is it the Cadre? Did something get past our detection wards and barriers?’’

‘’No, not at all, but it may be more difficult than simply beating the problem up.’’ The girl paused; another voice I couldn’t quite catch whispered something to her. ‘’It’s the church. We have scouted a hazelnut-haired and a blue-haired woman with a signature of Holy Power belonging to Excalibur Fragments, and… his Angels. Two of them, and more than strong enough to tear apart our barriers!’’

I stilled, frowning. The Church was a factor we expected. After all, the current raid was taking place in their territory. However, the fact that the Angels of God had descended from the heavens to also intervene put our plans in a twist.

By his order, we could be entirely wiped out without a single chance to speak up.

And considering Rias is taking part in the raid itself, it fell to me to make peace with the two sides, as impossible as it sounded.

‘’Understood, I’ll be there shortly,’’ I called. ‘’Do not show open hostility to either Angel or Exorcist. Make sure that Gremory’s Knight isn’t able to make contact with the Excalibur Wielders either.’’

Because the least we needed was for the intent at peace to go up in flames because of the man’s focus on revenge.

‘’Laddie? I heard everything.’’ Now, it was the voice of Azazel that cut through the comms. He was, just like me, vigilant on the happenstance of the fight. However, his role was a lot more active, considering his intent to take down Kokabiel himself. ‘’Don’t go alone, I’m sending someone over. She should be enough unless Michael himself decides to come down to see.’’

‘’Please do not jinx us, Lord Azazel.’’ I huffed, getting amused laughter through the comms in return. ‘’I appreciate your help, however. I’m sending the coordinates to you right now.’’

Having already set the Sitri magic circle to make the jump. The coordinates were set, and a copy of them was sent directly into Azazel’s communication circle. It would take us to where the use of Holy Magic was last confirmed.

‘Now, to hope that even he feels pressured enough by the union of Devilkind and Fallenkind to follow along… Simple, right?’

An unexpected, yet bitter chuckle escaped past my lips.

-X-x-X-

-Sachi Genshirou-

‘’Do you guys ever run out of foot soldiers?! It’s ridiculous at this point!’’ I shouted, turning abruptly as another Fallen raised a sword made of light in my direction. Yet, before the slash struck true, my tail came in with a swing. ‘’Try to cut this, idiot!’’

The extra appendage slammed with all the strength of a semi-truck into the Fallen’s body, letting out a disgusting crack.

The padded armor they were wielding creaked and shattered along with the man’s bones as he was then thrown into a wall and became a smear of feathers and blood.

The gory sight would have my stomach turning on a good day, but with the intensity of the battle, I didn’t have any time to focus on that. Instead, my armored gauntlet pulled back. Five strings tied to each of my clawed fingers pulled back with the movement, and as such, five fallen suddenly collapsed as their magic and stamina became fuel to feed my Balance Breaker state.

‘’Remember, Sachi.’’ Rias had spoken hours before the attack took place, as she gazed into my gauntlet with a serious frown. ‘’I’m letting you use all four of the Pawns that make you up, but the energy you’ll need to sustain your Balance Breaker alone is much more than your body holds. If you run out of opponents to fight… it would start consuming your life energy instead.’’

‘’Sure thing, boss lady!’’ I called out excitedly at the moment, with the energy coursing through my body firing off every nerve. ‘’Don’t worry, Asia and I can take care of it!’’

I get it, President. I really do.

I was not nearly as strong magically as Akeno and the Boss lady was, nor could I hold a candle to Koneko’s physique with enhancement. Gasper, the timid Dhampir boy, was actually even better at restraining enemies than I was, and I wasn’t even going to mention just how versatile Kiba and Asia were with their respective Sacred Gears and quick thinking.

‘’However…!’’ I roared, pushing back another Fallen, a second one, then a third one, who tried to sneak up on me, was quickly pushed out of the way with a spinning kick that cut through the air like it was a blade. ‘’That doesn’t mean I’m weak at all! After all, mooks like you can’t do shit as long as you keep me well-fed!’’

From the original Vritra gauntlet, the mouth of the evil Hydra opened, not to shoot another string, but to tear a line into the panicking enemy.

A dozen fallen, maybe two dozen were still left. And that was without mentioning the ones who may be deeper still, like the leader of this base.

‘’All at once, you idiots! She cannot deal with us if we are in every direction!’’ One man, either brave or stupid, shouted while aiming a rifle that shot light bullets at lightning-fast speeds.

I grunted as the bullets ricocheted against my armor. After all, the bits and pieces that covered my body were not devil flesh, but dragon scales!

That didn’t mean the shooters didn’t get smarter, as I felt another shot going through my leg.

Smoke sizzled from the open wound as I bit down the pain caused by light poisoning. It gave enough time for the melee-fighters to get in close again, six of them at once this time.

However, it also gave time for Vritra to fully charge up.

‘’Now, Dragon Pulse!’’ The gauntlet glowed with a deep, purple light, and the fallen were too slow to dodge, as the beam of pure draconic destruction tore not only through their bodies but also the building itself. ‘’Whoa, whoa, wait a moment—!’’

I had miscalculated and needed to use my tail as an anchor so I wouldn’t ricochet back by the recoil. The hallway was a mess, and I pointed the beam high into the air before I made the building itself crumble.

The result was the roof being torn wide-open as the beam of power coursed through the open sky and stopped dead when it hit the surrounding barrier, even cracking it, before finally, all the energy died down, and the crack on the shield covering the base sealed shut once more.

‘’Damn…’’ I coughed, and the armor covering my body suddenly shattered. The time had run out, and I didn’t have any more close soldiers to turn into batteries. ‘’The ranged shooters…!’’

‘’Please be more careful, Sachi-chan.’’ A voice chastised gently.

With a sigh of relief, I turned around. I saw Asia putting an ice spike through a Fallen’s skull with a frown. ‘’It’s a good thing I was let in… Please don’t be so reckless next time!’’

How the blonde could change from the cold frown as she executed a Fallen, to a worried pout as she ran up to me was a mystery.

‘’Ah, sorry…’’ I scratched the back of my head. A nervous tic.

‘’Ha… seriously. Zatren-senpai is not here to fix our mistakes, you know?’’ Asia poked me in the cheek, her cute frowning face receding for a moment as she noticed the blood on my left thigh. ‘’See? You got shot! Let me take care of it, it’ll be only a moment!’’

‘’Yeah, thanks…’’ I sheepishly replied, only to frown, taking a sharp breath of air. ‘’You’re right that the boss isn’t here right now, but… That just means we have to give it our one-hundred and ten percent, then!’’

I winced as my shout made Asia flinch slightly before a glint of determination entered her eyes. ‘’That’s…’’

‘’You know what I mean, right? What if the boss showed up all of a sudden and saw that we need him to win every fight for us? I don’t know about you… But I would die of shame!’’ I couldn’t help but grimace; the words felt bitter in my mouth, damn it! ‘’You saw the Boss Lady expression when the raid started, right? Surely she thinks the same, that we are way too reliant on the Boss!’’

With my thigh now healed, I pointed deeper into the facility, a grin stretched on my face to the point it hurt. ‘’Come on, Asia! I’ll be the front line, and you support me from the back. The two of us can deal with this easily!’’

I may not be as inspiring as the boss; that’s not my thing. My thing was punching things and punching them hard!

Asia left out a chuckle. Suddenly, a staff made out of smooth stone appeared in her hand. It arched into a half-moon and had a crystal-blue gem in the middle. It was a construct she used to channel magic better, just like the boss used his spear, or Akeno-senpai used Ofudas from time to time.

‘’Then… what are we waiting for?!’’ I stepped back as the blonde, gentle-faced girl got all fired up. Her long locks of blonde hair rose into the air slightly as cackles of flames appeared all around her staff and hands. ‘’We need to clear this place out, Sachi-chan! Let’s show Zatren-senpai and President Rias what we can do!’’

‘’Yeah!’’ I pumped my fist up and immediately started running, taking a turn left with Asia hot on my trail. ‘However… I think Asia should spend less time with Akeno-senpai… she’s getting scary.’

A shudder went down my spine at the mental image of Asia becoming the same as senpai. Truly, a horrifying—if intriguing—but mostly horrifying image!

‘’An adorable plan, as any. Too bad you will never get to achieve it.’’ A voice suddenly echoed through the entire hall. I stopped dead and turned around. However, there was no one to see. ‘’Don’t bother searching for me. I’ll never step so low as to actually fight with your… disgusting kind.’’

‘’Oh yeah?!’’ I shouted back angrily. ‘’Sounds like cowards talk because you saw what I did to your little friends back there, you bastard!’’

‘’Sachi…’’ Asia called out, grabbing my shoulder, making me pause.

‘’Ah, such educated prose.’’ The male voice mocked, making my teeth grind together. ‘’Rabble that kills rabble is like comparing a trash container from a nicer neighborhood to the one that rests at the boonies. At the end of the day, it’s still trash.’’

While practically growling at the voice, I heard the distinguishing sound of a click, and my cursing got cut off as a massive magic circle, as long as the entire metal hallway, appeared below our feet.

‘’And so easily tricked as well.’’ He spat out. ‘’At least, you will be useful test subjects for the grand Markus! Be honored, devil scum!’’

‘’Asia, watch out!’’ I shouted. However, I was too late; I couldn’t reach Asia in time to push her off, and the magic circle was way too big!

So, instead, I did the second-best thing I could. ‘’Absorption Line!’’

The threads of my Sacred Gear shot out in a volley of three. All of them logged deep into the circle below our feet. Then, the energy began draining from the massive circle and into my body.

‘Something’s wrong…’ I noticed immediately, and then I felt it.

Hot, burning, unmeasurable pain.

‘’Ah… ahhhhhh!’’ I screamed as I suddenly felt thousands of tiny needles piercing my body from the inside, and the hotness got ever worse. ‘’W-what is—ACK!’’

‘’Sachi!’’ I heard Asia shout as her face was covered in worry. Suddenly, the earth rumbled as her use of geomancy started affecting what remained of the magic circle. ‘’Don’t worry, I just need a second to—‘’

‘’Too late, scum. A foolish, stupid try that did nothing but buy your friend some time and cripple you from the very inside.’’ A bout of laughter echoed through the hallway. ‘’Really, how stupid can you be? To absorb unfiltered holy light directly into your body? It’s not the same as sucking out magic itself, you idiotic tool!’’

My vision started to get blurry, but just as I felt that my head would explode from the inside, and that my muscles would be torn at the seams, a bright light filled my vision.

…

And suddenly, I was in another place entirely.

‘’A… basement?’’ I rasped out. Sweat fell down my entire body, and it wasn’t even related to my use of Touki.

The walls were perfectly smooth and made out of a metal I didn’t recognize. However, I felt an incredible amount of holy light coming out of them. There was no door or window. How the heck was I even supposed to escape from here?!

‘’You didn’t die? Well, I guess trash can be resilient, too. Especially their odor.’’ Suddenly, a man appeared in the middle of the room.

He wore glasses and looked completely… unassuming. Brown eyes, brown short hair, but his smile wasn’t anything short of sadistic, and the glint in his eyes spoke of trouble no matter how you looked at it.

And… wait a minute…

‘’Where is Asia, you damn bastard?!’’ I shouted.

Because now that I could properly see, Asia was nowhere to be found. What did this Fallen do to her?!

‘’Oh? That girl? Don’t worry…’’ The man’s smirk got all the wider as a mad glint entered his eye. ‘’She's running herself ragged in a little project of mine! I’ll thank her for the assistance, but could you imagine a scientist who thanked every little lab rat that he experimented on? HA! Preposterous!

‘’Don’t you dare lay a finger on her!’’ I shook my fist in rage before aiming my gauntlet at him. ‘’If you think showing yourself now is a good idea, you’re even more of an idiot than I thought! Absorption Line!’’

The man stood still, laughing as the energy-draining lines went through his body, and for a moment, his form glitched out, only to reappear as the strings disappeared uselessly against the floor.

‘’What?!’’ I grimaced, incredulous.

‘’As I said, devil scum. I’ll never dirty my hands on creatures of your level.’’ The hologram of the man shrugged, shaking his head, as if chastising a child, which made my blood boil even further! ‘’Instead, be honored to be the first to experience my little… pets.’’

Why did I have the feeling he wasn’t speaking of dogs or cats…?

From the walls, a dozen magic circles appeared, and from them, massive beasts started spilling out.

There was a man completely covered in fur and standing at three meters tall, with massive horns the size of my arms, the head of a bull. The only skin showing was on his chest, which was bright red.

And it wasn’t the only creature.

There was a Sphinx, but with a Hippo’s head instead of a woman’s. Then, a large drake-like reptile, but it didn’t fly, as its ‘’wings’’ and basically every scale on its body was completely made from a dark metal that, once the creature hit the floor, made such a deafening sound that it shook the room.

In seconds, the entire room was flooded with very angry and very disgusting monsters.

‘’What is—?’’

‘’Because I don’t expect your pea-sized brain to understand it, I’ll say it myself.’’ The labcoat-wearing man chuckled with great mirth. ‘’The Sacred Gear stolen from an idiotic brat and given to me by Lord Kokabiel’s kindness lets me modify flesh in whatever way I want! Even those of other animals are not out of the question! Oh, and when you mix magic in? Simply marvelous!’’

I turned off most of the madman’s explanation, because honestly, he was starting to piss me off, but there was one sentence that made me clench my fists in fury.

‘’From an idiotic brat…?’’ I whispered, feeling the entire room fall quiet, even the man’s rambling. ‘’Did you… rip that Sacred Gear out of a child?’’

The man frowned in disgust, as if I had asked if he was a worm in a human’s skin. ‘’A human spawn, yes? How is it any different than ripping flesh from a pig, I wonder? Don’t tell me you’re tied to such frivolities while being a devil of all disgusting species in the world, for shame!’’

I didn’t care about the rambling insults, and I didn’t particularly care that the bastard had jailed me with a bunch of modified murderous monsters.

But the fact that he got his kicks off by ripping out a child’s soul… A little kid with a bright future, just like my siblings?

I was pissed the fuck off.

‘’I’m going to kill you, you piece of shit!’’ I shouted, feeling red, angry fire escape from my body in the form of spiritual energy. Touki resonated deep with my will, and I felt light as a feather even after intoxicating myself by absorbing light magic into my body. ‘’How fucking dare you?!’’

The room shook, and as if my Touki wasn’t enough, the Vritra gauntlet roared. ‘’Balance Breaker: Half-State!’’

Once more, the armor and tail appeared, only that this time, the deep, angry purple of Vritra’s energy mixed with my own. After all, I wasn’t the only one who was pissed off here!

‘’Disgusting Fallen… To kill the hatchlings…’’ It hissed. Apparently, even the Evil Dragon Vritra didn’t go as far as to kill the young in its rampage. ‘’Let’s kill them all, and feast on their remains, Partner!’’

‘’Yeah!’’ I shouted, not even put off by Vritra’s last words as I jumped into the fray.

The hologram of the man shattered apart under the draconic pressure emanating from my body; not even the fake, heavily-armored drake in the room felt confident enough to step into the face of a true dragon.

‘’I’ll crush you all, and then I’m going to cave your master’s face in!’’

With that shout, I rose into the air with my wings, landing a devastating tail-snap into the drake’s heavy armor, making it crumble as if it were no better than wood.

‘’One down…’’ I called out, as one line seeped into the drake’s flesh, and its energy became my own. ‘’Dozens more to go.’’

It may be the influence from Vritra, but my stomach did not feel nearly as nauseous as I started tearing apart monster after monster like a madwoman.

I would not let a single one live! All of them will become energy for my Sacred Gear!

-X-x-X-

-Asia Argento-

The teleportation circle from that fallen didn’t leave me without trouble, but I haven’t heard his voice in a while now. And a quick scan of the hallway I was on told me that this place didn’t have vigilance.

At all.

‘’Rrrrr….’’ What it did have was another type of security.

From the walls, the metal transformed, from solid and cubical to a humanoid shape, without fingers and long arms, having a singular red eye on an otherwise completely round and smooth metallic head.

A quick magic circle revealed the creatures were filled to the brim with magic!

‘’Sorry, Mr Golem.’’ I pushed my staff forward, feeling the demonic power change into various elements at my disposal. ‘’But I need to get to my friend, so please make way!’’

Sadly, the construct either didn’t understand or wasn’t compliant with my request. Instead, just like one appeared, other parts of the wall started falling and turning into more of them. Quickly enough, there were a dozen, and the numbers didn’t seem to be dwindling at all.

‘’Then you leave me no choice…’’ I whispered, frowning. ‘’I have to help Sachi-chan, so… Inferno!’’

In a second, a magic circle appeared below the legs of each construct, and a torrent of fire and heat. The legs of the constructs started melting even as they advanced, leaving behind molten magical metal that, if left to cool, could probably create even more of them.

‘’Ah… I need to thank Lady Rias again for putting me into Kuoh…!’’ Smiling happily, I cut out the flames and immediately put into practice the most efficient method to destroy most things quickly. ‘’Glacial!’’

Instead of a magma-hot whirlwind, a tundra-cold storm filled the hall. It was a simple application of hot and cold. In things like metal or glass, changing the temperature so drastically would end up debilitating the material to the point it would…

CRACK—CRRRK!

Shatter into pieces.

And so did the Golems, not even the magic infused into them could make them recover the now useless pieces of metal that were their legs and torsos.

With a quick enhancement of wind magic on my legs and clothes, I started running past the frozen or melted arms of the constructs, which still tried to snatch me even in their broken state.

‘’Sorry! I didn’t mean to leave you conscious. I have to go, sorry, sorry!’’ I apologized sheepishly, feeling slightly bad for the golems. ‘It didn’t matter if they don’t really feel, it’s just a cruel thing to do to not give the mercy-kill!’

But finding Sachi and… killing that Fallen took priority.

-X-x-X-

Empty rooms, more golems. The place was like a maze. My magic… it was draining at an awfully quick rate, even if I tried to be as efficient as possible while creating magic circles.

It wasn’t working. I was bound to run out of demonic power eventually if I kept going like this!

Instead, I stood still, stopped completely. Then, with a frown, I left a little mark in one of the walls with a small use of fire magic.

I sprinted down the hallway at full throttle, mentally thanking my senpais of the track club for letting me use the facilities even without being part of the club.

One or two golems appeared in my way, which I quickly dispatched. Fire and Ice was the way to go, but I had to be resourceful. Only targeting crucial points like the legs, shattering them apart, and then running away.

Then, I came to a stop, not because I found anything.

But because there, on the metal wall, it was the same mark I had left before.

‘It’s a loop…’ Clutching my hands together nervously, I looked around. ‘Think, Asia, think. What would Zatren-senpai do? He would… probably search for a magical formula causing all of this, right?’

‘That or… well, he would probably blow the entire thing up to make this quicker.’ I smiled sheepishly.

Then, I stopped. For some reason, this part of the hallway felt… stranger.

There were no golems either. Remembering correctly, they should appear if I walked a bit more, and they had done so again before I stepped into this part, which meant that in this ‘space’, Golems did not appear.

Closing my eyes, I focused on the magic that seeped through the air. It was heavily packed with light magic, of course.

Then, I started making a small gust of wind in the hallway. ‘’Moving’’ the magic around as if it were an odor.

‘’Like blowing away incense with a fan… If the nice aroma is getting blown in a single direction…’’ I stepped forward, and the only thing in front of me was a metal wall, exactly the same as the others. ‘’Then that means that the only place where you could smell the incense is right in front of you!’’

Placing my hand on the wall, I… I didn’t let out a happy squeal when a magic circle revealed itself right in front of me!

‘Focus, Asia!’ Shaking my head, I frowned and pressed down on the magic circle. It was packed with Fallen’s Light, and if I made one wrong move, it could blow up right in my face. ‘The matrix… this is an… illusion sigil?’

Akeno-senpai has been the one I interacted with the longest among our group, and through her, I learned a lot. I was really, really thankful to her and everyone.

But what she taught me the most about was magic. Akeno-senpai, being a Miko herself, had spent a long amount of her childhood near Ofudas, and different types of ritualistic magic, distinguishing magic circles among themselves, or so she told me.

And, when she became Lady Rias’s Queen, she went even further into magic comprehension, considering how thankful she was to our King.

That knowledge, she had slowly been passing to me with every teaching session.

‘And this sigil is feeding on my own Demonic Power to sustain an illusion. It’s horrible yet… genius.’ With a frown, I pushed the strange symbols around, carefully, precisely, like sewing a coat so perfectly you couldn’t even notice the stitch marks. ‘I don’t need to take away the illusion or turn it off. I just need to cut the source power!’

And so I did!

As if a curtain was lifted off my eyes, reality shattered, and instead of an infinite hallway, I was staring at the back of the labcoat-wearing man with brown hair as he frowned and angrily shouted while looking through a glass panel.

‘’That scum devil! Why won’t she die?!’’ He raged angrily, like a toddler, while hitting a machine filled with different and colorful buttons and lights. I didn’t even try to guess what they did. ‘’She has been burned, pierced, slashed. How is her body holding so much energy at once—?!’’

‘He’s talking about…’

An angry bellow, like that of a dragon, made the room rumble. Then, from my place behind the man, I saw an armored, roguish blonde with a torn school uniform and armor, grabbing a lizard-thing with crimson scales before tearing it apart with her bare hands.

It was Sachi.

The man had been throwing creatures at Sachi, who was already looking exhausted, and trying to make her die of exhaustion or worse.

The smooth stone staff in my hands cracked as I accidentally held it too strongly. Wind started picking up in the small control room, making the man turn around with a surprised and angry expression.

‘’Damn filth, you should have stayed put in that little simulation I—‘’

‘’Silence.’’

The words came out on their own, and the smile I gave him felt incredibly tight and forced. The Fallen’s head had a vein popping up. Eight wings, black as night, appeared on his back, along with a sword made of light.

However, his gritted teeth suddenly turned fearful as he took a step back.

Maybe he was regretting the actions he had committed? Maybe he would even apologize for putting my friend through such a situation?

Or maybe he was just scared because the magic circle I had created behind me was charging up every bit of demonic power I could put into it.

‘’Please die.’’ Extending my staff-wielding arm, I tilted my head with a smile that would probably make Sachi scared, but Akeno-senpai proud.

So, in the future, I’ll try to hide it better.

‘’Storm Crack.’’

The sound of a whip cracking in the air echoed through the room. A scream of pain accompanied by blood followed suit.

The reason was a massive whip made out of lightning that had flown through the air and sliced the man’s chest from shoulder to hip. Of course, the direction he was sent flying was right through the glass panel and into the arms of a surprised Sachi, who suddenly had a smile on her face I had never seen before.

‘Ah… like Zatren-senpai!’ I nodded happily, dismissing the bloodied whip and turning around.

‘’Wait, waitwaitwait! I’m sorry! I—AHHHHH!’’ Ignoring the sounds of pleading screams, followed closely by bones breaking and flesh tearing, I exited the room.

Taking a deep breath to calm down, I frowned at how I lost control there. It just felt so infuriating to have my friend be hurt like that… I felt somewhat the same when it happened to Kiba-kun, too. The day he was all bloody, and I couldn’t even heal him properly…

‘Is this what Zatren felt when he fought that noble?’ I wondered, leaning against the metal wall with a sigh. ‘’This… rage? It’s awful. I don’t like it at all…’’

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I made a small magic circle near my ear, and tried to put on a cheerful voice to not worry our King. ‘’Lady Rias? The Fallen General Markus has been taken care of.’’

Hearing a scream being cut by the sound of a crunch even through the wall, I added an afterthought. ‘’…Permanently.’’

‘’Good job, Asia.’’ Came the alleviated voice of the crimson-haired devil. ‘’Make sure to fall back and recover if necessary, and let us deal with the rest.’’

Nodding, I paused before answering bashfully. ‘’Ah… Yes, please be careful!’’

Cutting the communication off, I took a deep sigh. Having my magic drained and using that whip was exhausting. However, I was sure that this, at least, would get us the approval of Zatren-Senpai!

-X-x-X-

Bonus Scene: A Second, Lucky Chance.

-Yuuto Kiba-

Any Fallen I found, I cut down precisely. From the hip to the shoulder, beheading, or puncturing either the brain or heart.

It was quick, agile, and efficient. That is how I should have been fighting all the time. It was quite shameful, as a Knight of Gremory, that I had to be reminded that not only by a dear friend, but also by President Rias herself.

Two blades made of fiery darkness enveloped my hands. The pommels… didn’t really exist, as I made them protrude from my hands. This, of course, limited the movements I could do with them, but I could also never be disarmed lest the Fallen tried to cut my arms directly.

’Not like they could in the first place…’ I thought as I dashed. A maroon-haired woman with six wings turned around too late. ‘’Please, get out of the way.’’

Running ahead, I didn’t even bother to look back to see the woman’s head falling from her shoulders. Not even leaving a fountain of blood behind, as the neck-wound was cauterized almost instantly by the black flames covering my sword-arms.

And that’s when I found him.

Completely armored from neck to toe in a blueish-white mechanical armor. The alloy, I didn’t recognize, but one would have to be blind not to feel the sheer amount of holy power emanating from that armor.

A maniacal smile covered his face, and his silver hair fell down his back flawlessly. However, his madness-filled eyes were covered by a visor of the same color as the armor.

He didn’t speak, but his appearance, along with the two Holy Swords, Rapidly and Blessing, tied to his hip, was more than answer enough.

‘’And here I thought I wouldn’t be so lucky a second time…’’ I chuckled, feeling the sensation of euphoria and rage at seeing the accursed blades.

The exorcist didn’t answer, only stepping forward.

‘’Not talkative, I see. That’s good.’’ I smiled politely, making my sword arms disappear, and changing them for the real deal. In this battle, raw power would do nothing; I needed the full technique and capacity that swordsmanship brought. ‘’I could never tolerate your voice a second time.’’

Those damnable blades were right in front of me once more, but unlike last time, I didn’t let the rage of my fallen friends make me go on a rampage, no.

This rage felt focused, cold, calculating, better than any short-lived flame could ever be.

‘’Thank you, Freed Sellzen…’’ I said honestly.

Powerful leg muscles born out of harsh training and reinforced with magic covered the distance between the changed exorcist and me in less than a blink.

‘’Now let me destroy those blades once and for all!’’

-X-x-X-

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Author's Note:

It seems everything is under control on the outside- Oh shit, Kiba found the Excaliburs. It's fucking Joever.

Also, the church and heaven finally make presence. Let's see if Sona can manage on her own.

Yes, I purposely made Heracles POV refer to himself as ''it'', since I feel that would fit much better with his current state. Basically, a weapon you take the chain off when you want it to fuck shit up. (Sadly, bro's out-gunned by a lot)

What did you guys think about the Sachi and Asia focus in this chapter? I felt like it was nice how other characters act/face shit from time to time. Even if that something is an idiotic Fallen almost sending Sachi into an Outrage and making Asia stop being nice, kek.

I have 13 more chapters of this fic on my if you wish to support me.

Discord Link: .gg/92Yt5wxeWN