Before we begin…

"Talking."

'Thinking.'

"Flashback quotes. Text from messages. Intercom."

{Sacred Gear announcement.}

{Sacred Gear spirit talking to host telepathically.}

{Sacred Gear spirit speaking from Sacred Gear.}

"Issei's Inner Hollow. Hollow dialogue."

"Issei's Inner Hollow talking to him telepathically."

When we last left off, the Devils have prepared for battle against the leader class Fallen Angel Kokabiel, who desires to spark the continuation of the war between the three Factions. Will the Gremory Devils be able to stop him while the Sitri Devils protect Kuoh Academy from damage with a barrier? Find out now.

The Gremory Devils have made it to the outdoor gym area of Kuoh Academy, where they expect the enemy to appear and try to cause damage to the school. With their magic and weapons ready, the team witnessed a yellow light shooting up in the sky nearby.

"What on earth is that?" Asia asked aloud.

Issei's eyes squinted at the light while he clutched his scale blade in his right hand.

"Whatever it is, it's brimming with Holy energy."

"It seems like the four Excaliburs have been made into one."

Everyone gasps when they hear a familiar voice from above them. Looking up, their eyes widen when they see Kokabiel in the sky sitting on what appears to be a floating throne.

"I had a feeling he would think of something like this."

"Kokabiel!" Rias exclaims with anger.

Kokabiel looks down at the Devils and grins.

"So tell me, who's coming for you all as reinforcements? Sirzechs, or Serafall?"

Keeping cool, Rias gives Kokabiel a smirk back.

"We're here in their place."

Chuckling at the response, Kokabiel snaps his fingers and a yellow orb of light appears to cloak it, prompting Rias' servants to guard her with Issei being the most ready.

Seconds later, the yellow orb forms itself into a large light spear. With his smile widening, he threw the spear towards the gymnasium, and as soon as it made contact, the building blew up with shrapnel and stone spewing from the spear's collision.

As the smoke subsided, everyone's jaws dropped when Kokabiel's spear was the only thing left. The gym was no more.

"How boring," Kokabiel says with a sigh while his light spear flickers from existence. "Ah well, a little diversion can't hurt."

"That bastard…" Issei grows with bared teeth and his left iris flashing gold-yellow twice.

{Remain calm, partner.}

Issei's eyes broadened before looking at his left hand when he heard Ddraig's voice speak from it.

"I've seen large-scale attacks similar to this before, but this is something. It's like it's from a different dimension."

{Of course it's from a different dimension. We're talking about a man who survived fighting with God and the Devil King.}

Issei frowns.

"Can we really beat a guy like that?"

{When it comes down to it, I'll make sure you defeat him even if I have to turn most of your body into a dragon.}

Issei chuckles with a bemused smirk.

"Most of my body, huh?" Issei looks back at Kokabiel, feeling more excited than scared. "So that's the level he's at?"

Kokabiel peers at the Gremory Devils and laughs.

"Since you came all this way, I suppose I'll have you play with my pet."

From the bottom tip of Kokabiel's throne, it fires a bright yellow light that crashes onto the ground. When the light fades, a yellow magic circle appears where the light shot before a massive hole is made from it, followed by large flames spewing from the hole. As the fire keeps going, the Devils take a step back when they see a silhouette of a three-headed monster emerge from inside them.

Eventually, the team saw the creature step out of the blaze, shocking Rias and Akeno the most because of how familiar they found it to be.

"Cerberus?!"

"Living at the gates of the underworld, it's the Watchdog of Hades," Akeno adds.

"The Watchdog… of Hades..?" Asia echos with fear in her voice and eyes.

Rias' expression changes from shock to outrage.

"To bring that thing to the human world…" The redhead's eyes squint. "Let's go, Akeno, Koneko!"

""Yes, Buchou!""

Sprouting her wings, Rias takes flight to get towards the Cerberus.

"Ise, use your Boosted Gear to enhance our power!"

"You got it, Buchou!"

Issei activates his Boosted Gear while Akeno swaps her outfit from her school uniform to her Miko attire. As she and Rias flew towards the beast, they and Issei saw another Cerberus emerge from the hole, prompting Issei to get in front of Asia.

"Asia, get back!"

"O-Okay, Ise-san!"

Issei could see that Asia was still afraid and put a hand on her shoulder in assurance.

"Don't worry. The Buchou and the others will soon take care of that overgrown puppy."

{Boost!}

Rias and Akeno were dodging the first Cerberus' fireball attacks while they waited for Issei to boost up enough power while Akeno used her ice magic to negate some of the flames.

Rias blasted some shots of her Power of Destruction at the beast and was able to knock it down while the second Cerberus charged forward. Koneko kept her sights on that one, running towards it and jumping in the air before slamming her heel on the middle head of the creature.

This kick proved to be very effective, as the creature was stunned with a shaky body.

"Get ready, Koneko-chan!"

Koneko nods before leaping out of the way so Akeno can zap it with a large lightning bolt. While it did get hurt, the beast didn't fall, and the second Cerberus glares up at the Priestess of Thunder with rage in its eyes.

The First Cerberus didn't show signs of going down either as they both were roaring while clawing at the air.

"Just how tough are those things?!"

{Boost!}

"Tch! Not enough! I've gotta build up more power to transfer to Buchou and Akeno-san!"

{Boost!}

Issei watched on at the battle while mentally cursing himself with gritted teeth.

{Boost!}

"Dammit! If only I were stronger, I could enhance everyone in an instant!"

"Then why don't you use my power?"

Suddenly, Issei's eyes go wide and he stops boosting when he hears a familiar voice in his head.

"Oh no…" Issei whispers in a tone that nobody heard.

"Come on! Unleash me! I can decapitate those mongrels in a matter of seconds!"

Issei's breath shutters as his left hand slowly lifts upwards to cover his face, his brows slowly furrowing.

'No… not now..! Not now!' With no one noticing, Issei's left iris turns gold-yellow. 'This is my fight! I don't want your power!'

"Oh~? Not even when your top healer is in danger~?"

Issei's eyes twitch because of how playful his Inner Hollow's tone is.

'Just what are you-'

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Issei was snapped out of his trance when he heard Asia scream. Turning around, his eyes widen when he sees one of the Cerberus charge towards her with the intent of devouring her.

Not wanting that to happen, Issei boosts himself again and uses his Shunpo to warp in front of her with his Scale Blade coated in his black and white aura. And then, out of instinct with his grip tight and his left iris still gold-yellow, Issei unleashes his attack on the beast.

"Getsuga Tenshou!"

As he unleashed the crescent-shaped attack, Issei saw that the white aura that outlined the black aura was much thicker than the latter. As it zoomed towards the Cerberus, it had little time to react as it made contact with all three of the beast's necks. And what happened next brought shock to everyone, including Issei himself.

Issei's Getsuga Tenshou was so powerful that the crescent-shaped aura was able to cut all three of its heads clean off, resulting in its blood spewing from the stumps and raining around Issei before the decapitated body fell to the ground.

Kokabiel cocked a brow at this feat while keeping a close eye on Issei.

'Such power… this boy could be troublesome…'

"Ise!"

"Ise-kun!"

Rias and Akeno look down at Issei with amused expressions, not expecting Issei's attack to be as strong as it was against the Cerberus. But they were also worried, as they could sense a bit of Issei's Hollow from the Getsuga.

As Issei stared at his dirty work, he could hear his Inner Hollow chuckle.

"Not bad, Your Highness, not bad at all~ Although, I did lend you a bit of my power in that attack, as is the duty of your noble steed. I guess I'll sit back for a bit longer and see how this plays out. Don't go dying on me, King~"

After one more round of titters from his Inner Hollow, Issei's iris turns back to brown, but Issei himself is still sweating for the sole reason that his Hollow started speaking up.

'That bastard… who does he think he is?!'

"Ise-san?"

Issei jumps when he feels someone touch his shoulder, but he calms down when he saw that it was Asia.

"… You okay?"

Asia nods.

"I'm alright. Thank you, Ise-san."

While Issei simply smiled at her with softened eyes, Asia couldn't help but notice that his voice was a little uneasy.

Looking down at his Boosted Gear, Issei frowns with narrowed eyes.

"I can't waste any time. Better make an upgrade now!"

{Dragon Booster, Second Liberation!}

As soon as that call was made, the Boosted Gear changed its appearance, now allowing Issei to boost more frequently than before.

{Boost!}

"I'll act as bait and draw its attention! You run to safety, Asia!"

"Ise-san, wait!"

Her words didn't reach him. Issei has already made his move in distracting the last remaining Cerberus while he continued to boost up more power from his Sacred Gear.

It was a pretty easy task for him. All he had to do was dodge all of its attacks from jumping to rolling and using Shunpo. And while there were some close calls where he nearly got scratched, he was still able to avoid it easily.

But then, while he continued to dodge claw swipe after claw swipe, Issei's eyes widened when the beast had one of his heads punched by a certain white-haired Rook.

"Koneko-chan!"

{Boost!}

"Please leave this to me, Issei-senpai."

"What?!" Issei got worried. "But you can't take him alone!"

"I can at least stall for time," Koneko replies while straddling the neck of the left head and grabbing onto its ears.

The beast tried to retort by biting at Koneko with the middle head, but with her Rook strength, she was able to move the neck she was grappling at the right angle to make it bite that neck, causing more pain to the monster.

Issei sees how well she's doing with that strategy so far, so he decides to accept her help and strongly nods at his kouhai.

{Boost!}

"All right, I'll leave you to it, Koneko-chan!"

Koneko continued to ride the Cerberus' left head like she would a bull, attempting to make it injure itself further by having the other heads bite other parts of the left head's neck. But with the left head's strong forward shake, it was able to get her off of it while the right head lunged forward and bites at Koneko, tearing the left side of her shirt apart while its teeth gave her shoulder two cuts.

Despite being in pain, Koneko wasn't done yet. While she was falling, she saw that the middle head was coming, but before she could do anything, the Cerberus' middle head charged and took her inside of its mouth.

However, because of her Rook's strength, Koneko was quick to force the middle head's mouth open. It was stronger than she thought, but the girl did not waver. As soon as she got it open wide enough, she kicked a tooth off of its mouth, forcing the creature to recoil its head with a howl.

Jumping back and landing on its right head, Koneko proceeded to punch the middle head's eye, forcing the monster to stumble and fall backward while she managed to land on the ground safely and watch the Cerberus crash onto the ground.

"Koneko-chan!"

Koneko looks behind her and sees Asia rushing towards her.

"I'll be okay."

Issei watches Asia begin to heal Koneko's wound before nodding at the two.

"Leave the rest to me!"

While he kept boosting himself with Boosted Gear, Issei ran towards the Cerberus' three heads and looked it right in its eyes. "Come on, you three-headed mongrels! I'm your only opponent here!"

The Cerberus growls at Issei before it quickly gets back on its feet, prompting Issei to quickly back away, making sure its full attention is on him.

'Now I just have to lure this thing over to Buchou and Akeno-san in time!'

{Boost!}

As he was running, Issei noticed that the Cerberus was getting faster and faster every three seconds, making him use his Shunpo as its attacks were the very same speed.

After using it another time to dodge a claw swipe, Issei's eyes widened when one of its heads was able to nick Issei's left cheek with some blood shooting from the cut.

'Shit! I still haven't boosted enough yet!'

{Boost!}

Issei watches the Cerberus heads spread apart, making it harder for Issei to tell where and even when to dodge.

"What's with this boring strategic play? Why not tear it apart like its pal? It worked out before."

Issei's body froze. His Inner Hollow was speaking to him again.

"That's not how a King should act towards his enemies, you know. Go wild. Show some spine, unless you want me to handle it from here~"

A cold sweat goes down Issei's neck as he hears the Hollow snicker. He found himself unable to move because of what his speaking in his mind could possibly mean.

"Ise!"

"What are you doing, Ise-kun?!"

Rias and Akeno tried to call out to him, but their words fell on deaf ears as he started to panic. And while he was having his internal conflict, the Cerberus was sprinting towards Issei, ready to tear him to pieces.

"Ise-san, watch out!"

Issei was snapped from his thoughts before looking up and seeing that the Cerberus was getting closer. As it leaped towards Issei, everyone was afraid that this would be the end for him.

But as the creature got closer and closer, everyone gasps when they notice that the Cerberus' right head was suddenly decapitated in a blink of an eye.

Looking to see who did it, everyone's eyes widen when they see a certain blue-haired Exorcist in the air, looking towards the Devils with a smirk.

"I've come to provide backup."

"Xenovia!" Issei exclaims with relief as the Exorcist herself lands with a roll.

Locking her eyes back on the Cerberus, Xenovia sprints towards its left head and leaps to dismember that too, prompting the Devils to smile at the Exorcist's achievement.

"As expected of a Holy Sword that can do countless damage to demonic beings," Akeno says.

Rias nods with her Queen.

"I wish we didn't need the help, but I'm glad you're here, Xenovia."

Issei kept his eyes on Xenovia, amused with how she decapitated two of the last remaining Cerberus' heads with such ease. Before he could give her his thanks, he noticed a green light to his left and saw that the gems of his Boosted Gear were glowing. And among the light of the gem on the top hand, Issei sees a darker green symbol that resembles the head of a dragon.

"This is…"

{That's the sign that it's reached an appropriate multiplier for fighting.}

Issei blinks twice at the phenomenon in the gem before chuckling.

"Seems convenient for something like that to be built in."

{The Sacred Gear matures with you every day. It just made what you desired into reality.}

Issei nods before sprinting towards Rias and Akeno, who are still dealing with the Cerberus who now has one head left.

"Buchou, Akeno-san, it's ready!"

Rias and Akeno look towards Issei with glee.

"Alright!"

"Let's do this!"

The two girls were quick to fly over to Issei. As soon as they were in range, he jumped high in the air close to them to lend them the Boosted Gear's power.

"Okay! Boosted Gear, Gift!"

{Transfer!}

As they flew past him, Issei saw the green aura radiating from Rias and Akeno, signaling to him that the power transference was a success.

But as he landed back on the ground, the moment he looked back up at them, Issei witnessed something that rather… puzzled him.

As the power of the Red Dragon Emperor coursed through them, Rias and Akeno let out a moan that was quite suggestive.

"Wait… what..?"

While Issei remained confused, Xenovia looked over to Issei after she had witnessed the phenomenon herself.

"Interesting. You can even do that, Issei Hyoudou?"

After Rias and Akeno calmed down from what they felt from the power, they regained their confident expressions and faced the one-headed Cerberus once more.

"We can beat him, Akeno."

"Yes. With Ise-kun's help, we shall slay this beast!"

Akeno got started first, raising her hand high.

"Ring out thunder!"

With a yellow magic circle appearing above Akeno's palm, multiple thick bolts of lighting are unleashed and land a brutal blow on the Cerberus' body. And as the bolts kept zapping all over it, the creature was forced to fall to the ground, all while the thunder continued to affect it.

Seeing this, Rias calls forth her Power of Destruction to deliver the final blow on the monster. But as she gathered the power in her hands, the Cerberus was back on its feet immediately. Rias didn't waver and continued to charge up her attack, but instead of the creature coming after her, it turned its last remaining head towards Asia, who gasped with a step back as it chose its next target and began to charge towards her.

"Asia!"

Issei started gathering up all his black and white aura into his Scale Blade to stop the Cerberus from hurting Asia. With enough power, Issei raises his sword and gets ready to his it as the creature leaps towards Asia.

But before either one could make a move, the one-headed Cerberus was impaled by blades that suddenly protruded from the ground it was standing.

Watching the blades lift the monster higher and higher, Issei's expression remained shocked for a few seconds before he broke out into a smile, knowing exactly who was responsible for this attack that saved Asia.

"Yuuto!"

Xenovia and the Devils gasp when they hear Issei shout that name. And as if on cue, Yuuto appeared before Asia with a sword in his hand.

"Kiba-san!"

Yuuto turned towards Asia and smiled before setting his attention on Issei.

"I hope I'm not too late."

Issei shakes his head.

"You made it just in the nick of time." Issei's expression then turns to curiosity. "Wait, but where's-" Before he could finish his question, Issei was taken aback when a certain black-haired girl zipped over to them, almost as if she teleported. "Rukia-san!"

Rukia giggles before winking at Issei.

"Kept you waiting, huh?"

As she watched the events unfold from below, Rias' smile widened and her eyes softened, happy that Yuuto returned. And with Rukia joining as well, it makes their odds just as better for their battle against Kokabiel.

With all of that in mind, Rias turns her head to her Queen.

"Akeno!"

"Way ahead of you, Buchou!"

With her hand making a finger gun, Akeno zaps her lightning towards the impaled Cerberus. With the right timing, Rias used a red magic circle for the bolt to go through, enhancing Akeno's magic with her own, resulting in a much larger bolt of lighting.

As the upgraded lightning bolt hit the one-headed Cerberus, the creature released a loud howl of pain as it kept being electrocuted before being completely vaporized by the attack.

With the last of the two Cerberus finally destroyed, the Devils, Xenovia, and Rukia sigh in relief, glad that they have one less problem to deal with.

"That wasn't too bad."

Rias' attention went to Kokabiel as he spoke. Not wanting to waste time, Rias fires her POD at the Fallen Angel, hoping to at the very least give him an injury.

But as the launched POD got closer, Kokabiel just grinned and lifted his hand towards it. As soon as it made contact, Rias was shocked to see that he reflected her power right back at her, forcing Rias to dodge. After she did so, she and the others watched the POD attack destroy more of the school.

And because it was enhanced by Issei's transferred power, the hole it created was as massive as what a missile would leave.

"I see…" Kokabiel mused aloud while he stood up from his seat. "This is how much stronger you are with the power of the Red Dragon Emperor. Very interesting indeed."

Before anyone could retort Kokabiel, Xenovia, Rukia, and the Devils heard Valper laugh and turn around to face him.

"At last… It's complete!"

In front of Valper, everyone sees the spiraling pattern filled with Holy power shine a bright light, forcing all except for Valper to cover their eyes. As soon as the light fades and the gang can see again, their eyes widen when they get a peek at a Holy sword before a yellow ray of Holy light cloaks it as it shoots up in the sky.

"Oh no!" Yuuto exclaims while Xenovia and Rukia's stares tighten on the Stray.

Valper releases another cackle in ecstasy.

From outside the barrier, the Sitri Devils' eyes widened as they saw the Holy Power go through it. Thanks to their efforts, the barrier didn't get destroyed, but the small hole the ray created was made known to them.

"Shit…" Genshiro curses under his breath. "This doesn't look good."

While everyone else did their best to keep the barrier up, Tsubaki sets her heterochromatic eyes towards the spot where she thinks the Gremory Devils are and softened.

'Issei-kun…'

Back inside the barrier, Kokabiel chuckles as he looks at the sword that was now visible to him, Valper, the Gremory Devils, and Xenovia and Rukia.

"I get the massive power that results from the combination of the swords. That's the trade-off."

Xenovia grits her teeth before setting her glare on Kokabiel.

"You used that power to make the ground collapse?!"

Issei ran closer to the newly formed Holy Sword to get a better look at it as it slowly landed on the ground. Because it was a hybrid of the other swords, it shared some key features from each respective blade Freed has stolen from other Exorcists.

"You're kidding me," Issei grunts. "Is our town seriously going to disappear because of the power of that sword?!"

Valper laughs before looking towards the Devils with a shit-eating grin.

"You should run away from here. This town will be destroyed in less than twenty minutes."

Everyone gets prepared while Rukia unsheathes her sword, looking just as ready as everyone else.

"If you want to protect it, you'll have to defeat me," Kokabiel states clearly while sprouting his ten wings. "What will you do, Rias Gremory?"

"What do you think?!" Rias shouts as Kokabiel's throne vanishes.

Using all of her strength, Rias fires a meteor-sized ball of her POD right at Kokabiel. As it approached him, Akeno flew in close and prepared her lightning, shooting it on the opposite side of where Rias' POD was going to hit him.

But Kokabiel was able to catch both attacks without them making contact with his skin. Morphing both of their powers into balls, he combines them to create an even larger ball of energy in both of his hands. While lacing it with his own power.

"You fools!" Kokabiel roars with a laugh while throwing the giant ball of energy towards Rias.

"Buchou!" Akeno was quick to get in front of her master and create a defensive shield to repel the attack.

Unfortunately, the attack was too strong and exploded as soon as it made contact with the magic shield, harming the two as well as destroying parts of their clothes.

Issei's eyes widen as he hears them scream in pain. And while Rias was able to keep flight, Akeno was not as she was falling towards the ground.

"Akeno-san!"

With the help of Shunpo, Issei darted right to Akeno and caught her in his arms before skidding on the ground.

"Nice catch!" Rukia compliments.

Akeno's eyes open and looks at his savior.

"Ise-kun!"

"Are you okay, Akeno-san?" Issei asks her with red cheeks, doing his best to avoid looking at her left breast since it was now exposed.

Akeno blinks at Issei twice before her eyes soften with a frown.

"I'm so sorry… Even after you-"

"Don't be," Issei assured her after setting her down, his glare tightly on Kokabiel while unsheathing his Scale Blade. "What matters is that you were hurt, and I won't forgive that bastard!"

Akeno watches Issei charge towards Kokabiel. And as she kept her eyes on him, her cheeks burned red while she placed a hand near her mouth.

"Fufufu~ And there he goes, like the brave warrior he is~"

Asia rushes over to Akeno to heal her injuries while Rias flies next to them.

"Buchou, I'm not sure if we'll be able to hold out until Sirzechs-sama arrives."

Rias' eyes twitch at the possibility Akeno pointed out before looking back at Kokabiel.

"We have to do something!"

Just as she was going to think out a plan, Rias noticed something from the corner of her eye and looked to see her Knight approaching Valper.

"Yuuto?"

Rias already figured out what Yuuto intended to do as he approached Valper given his circumstances, and from the expression on his face, this was something he waited to do for a long time.

Issei, Rukia, and Xenovia noticed too, with the former two worried about how Yuuto would carry out his vengeance.

"Valper Galilei…" Yuuto growls. "I'm a survivor of the Holy Sword Project. Or, more accurately, of those you killed!"

The Gremory Devils' hearts started to ache because of the tone of Yuuto's voice while Rukia and Xenovia just watched on with narrowed eyes.

"I've been able to live on by being reborn as a Devil," Yuuto continued. "I could not die. I needed to avenge the deaths of my comrades!"

With a cry of anger, Yuuto rushes for Valper, prepared to cut him down.

"Yuuto, no!"

Rias' plea fell on deaf ears as Yuuto kept charging.

Seeing an advantage, Kokabiel conjures a large lance and aims it near the blonde Knight and Valper, with the latter of whom grinning as if he isn't in danger.

"Shit!" Issei exclaims as he gets ready to use Shunpo to do something about the spear.

And he was able to do so at the exact moment Kokabiel threw his spear. Getting in between Yuuto and Valper, Issei coats his sword in his black and white aura and brings his weapon downwards to destroy the spear.

But Kokabiel's smirk widens as he watches the weapon get closer to making contact with the light spear. And while everyone watched on at his actions, Rukia was the only one who caught on to what the Fallen Angel was up to.

"Issei, no!"

But it was too late. As soon as Issei's aura-coated Scale Blade hits the spear, it sets off a large explosion that blows Issei and Yuuto back away from where Valper was.

This got everyone panicked as the explosion engulfed the surrounding area. But as the view remained blocked, the Devils, Xenovia, and Rukia saw Issei rolling towards them before crashing into a house.

"Ise!"

"Ise-kun!"

"Ise-san!"

"Issei-senpai!"

Rukia was the first to run over to him.

"Issei! Are you able to move?!"

Rukia offered him her hand, but much to her surprise, Issei got up in seconds. What surprised the girls even further was he didn't appear badly wounded by the explosion, especially since it was from a Fallen Angel's light.

"I'm fine. I'm more worried about Yuuto!"

Issei ran past them and called out Yuuto's name while looking for him in the smoke.

Rukia wanted to double-check and was about to approach him. But as soon as she took her first step, she heard a clattering sound and looked down to see what it was.

Following Rukia's gaze, the girls' eyes except for Xenovia's widen as they see a certain skull-shaped object below Rukia's foot.

"Is that… a mask?"

Rukia and the Gremory Devils' blood ran cold right after Xenovia questioned the object with simple curiosity. Lifting her foot, Rukia's teeth grit and the Devils gasp loudly when they see that the object in question is Issei's Hollow mask, somehow still keeping its shape despite the many cracks it's gained.

Seeing it here got them scared for Issei while Xenovia didn't understand where it came from. Even though the mask appeared to be responsible for protecting Issei from the holy light explosion, this could be a bad sign to the Gremory Devils and Rukia.

And from how Issei reacted the moment he got up and looked for Yuuto, he didn't seem to be aware that this had happened.

"Oh, shit! Yuuto!"

Everyone was snapped out of their thoughts and zipped their heads to where Issei was looking. With the smoke having been fully cleared up, They could all see Yuuto on the ground while he still held his sword tightly in one hand, putting more worry on the girls than they had now.

"You were able to avoid a direct attack?" Kokabiel quizzes before chuckling. "You're a quick little rat. Freed."

"Wassup, boss?"

Issei snarls with his sword pointed at Freed while Kokabiel watches the Stray Exorcist approach the Holy Sword.

"You finally came out, huh?!"

"This is the last piece of entertainment," Kokabiel says to Freed. "Use the Excalibur with the power of four swords to get rid of all these fools."

"With pleasure!" Freed gets close to the new weapon and grabs its hilt. "The cute Excalibur with the super wonderful specs? I did in fact receive one." After stroking its blade with excitement, the stray locks his eyes on the Devils with contracted irises. "Now, who should I dismember first?"

Issei's hands tighten on his weapon's hilt while his left iris flickers gold-yellow twice, a phenomenon that was noticed by Koneko since she was standing next to him.

Before she could speak to Issei since she had a feeling what was going on, Freed laughed maniacally while holding the new Excalibur like a baseball bat before looking towards Issei and Asia.

"Well, I'm just gonna chop up that shitty Devil and that scum bitch believer a little, sound good~?"

"Try me, bastard!" Issei exclaims, his left iris now flaring gold-yellow with two black bloodshot-like tendrils connecting to the iris.

Koneko gasped at what was happening to her senpai's eye while the latter looked ready to cut Freed to pieces.

"Go on then. Do it!"

Issei nearly stumbled when he heard his Inner Hollow talk in his mind again, making his face pale.

"Issei-senpai?"

Issei didn't hear Koneko, who was worrying for him even more when she saw more black tendrils appear from his sclera and make contact with his iris.

"You and I both know you want to tear him apart, so let him have it! With my power, he and his new toy won't stand a chance."

Issei breathes rapidly as he remains perfectly still, attempting to fight off his Inner Hollow.

'No… I won't be like you! I won't become a monster!'

Koneko could see in his face that Issei was trying to control himself and not allow the Hollow within to take over. But with the left side of his left eye's sclera continuing to blacken, it looked to her like it was a losing psychological battle for Issei.

Koneko approached him and was about to help Issei return his left eye to normal. And just as she was about to hold his arm, she and Issei looked upwards when they noticed someone jumping over them with her Holy Sword aiming for Freed.

"Xenovia!"

The blue-haired exorcist swung his sword at Freed's head, but the latter smirked at her. And when she landed and attacked, she noticed that Freed was no longer standing where he once was.

"Too bad~" Xenovia zips her head towards Freed, who was casually waving at her. "Have you met? This is the Chopper Rapidly!"

Xenovia jumped when Freed sped up right behind Xenovia, surprising Rukia and the Devils.

'This speed,' Issei thought. 'It's as fast as a Knight's.'

"This freshly made, piping hot, super amazing little Excalibur can make anything happen!"

Freed goes in for the attack, but Xenovia was quick enough to dodge with a flip and land on her hands, surprising the Stray Exorcist.

Still on her hands, Xenovia starts turning her body and kicks Freed in the head before jumping away and landing on her feet.

With his hand shaking, Freed rubbed the cheek that was kicked before growling at Xenovia.

"You bitch! You have a lot of nerve to kick my face like that! Now I'm really gonna fuck you up!" Taking a stance with his sword in both hands, the Excalibur glows brightly before the blade extends towards Xenovia. "I'm gonna make you slip 'n' slide!"

The blade was fast in its extension, but Xenovia was faster, dodging the weapon before it could even graze her cheek.

"It's not just mimicry!" Freed shouts before lifting his sword, allowing four thinner blades to emerge and go for Xenovia, forcing her to block them repeatedly from piercing her skin.

"Now, Nightmare!" With his call, Freed creates numerous copies of himself with Nightmare's power.

Xenovia's eyes widen, unsure which Freed is the real one as he charges toward her with his sword above his head.

"This is where you die! Ba-da, ba, ba da, dum! WHEEEEEEEEE~!"

"Tch! Damn illusions!" Xenovia hisses while watching Freed and the clones begin to circle her.

"And now, Transparency!" The blades of all Freeds' swords disappear following that call, making Xenovia's battle against the Stray much more difficult. Despite most being illusions, they hit as if they're all real.

"I see," Rukia thought out loud while getting next to Issei and Koneko. "Freed can use the abilities of all the swords that were combined."

"Seriously?!" Issei asks with a stunned expression. "And not even Xenovia could do anything?"

Freed cackles as the illusions of himself retreat to his real body.

"Now, please brace yourselves!"

Before he could make another move, Freed, along with everyone else, heard a loud audible sigh and turned to see Rukia, who was slowly approaching him with her sword ready.

"It can't be helped, if those Excaliburs combined as one are that big of a nuisance, then I'll have to intervene."

"Rukia-sama?"

Xenovia kept her stare on Rukia while Freed tilted his head at her.

"Hah? All you've done so far was play spectator. What can a little runt like you possibly do?"

ZIP!

Just as Freed blinked, Rukia was behind him with her sword held high. Before he could make any other movements, the crowd watched as Freed's left shoulder spurt a lot of blood, making him scream and jump around while trying to stop the bleeding.

While the bleeding did calm down for a while, Freed glares at Rukia with killing intent.

"Why you little-"

Before he could finish that sentence, Freed paused when his left shoulder suddenly felt cold. Looking at where he was cut, his eyes widened when he saw frost radiate from the wound while the cut itself seemed to have developed frost.

Looking back at Rukia, Freed takes a step back when he notices something different about her. It wasn't just her sword, but her entire body was emitting a unique type of aura. Particularly…

"… Snow?"

Issei and the rest of the Devils wear surprised expressions when they see it too. From where Rukia stood, it looked like the area she was in had started to snow. And upon further inspection, everyone could see snowflakes appearing right off of Rukia's body and sword.

"It would be wise of you to not underestimate me, Freed Sellzen."

Issei's eyes remained glued onto Rukia, finding the power she possesses not only fascinating but very astounding as well.

'Rukia-san… when did you have these powers..?'

Freed remained shocked by the snow aura surrounding Rukia for another moment before shaking his head and frowning.

"Well, whoop-dee-doo! You got snow powers! Don't even think for a second that it will be enough to-"

Freed was disrupted when Rukia got in his face with great speed and nicked his chin and cheek in two slashes before retreating with that same speed. The Stray Exorcist screams again as those spots bleed for a few seconds before he suddenly feels them getting colder.

The Devils and Xenovia remain shocked at what Rukia has done. But for Rias, she noticed something else about her that she was more focused on the most.

'That movement of hers…' Rias thought before shifting her eyes from Rukia to Issei. 'It's just like…'

Back with Rukia, she smirks at Freed while pointing her sword at him.

"Then you have yet to know the full extent of my Spiritual Power as well as my Trick Weapon." Rukia's eyes slit at Freed. "I believe you'll be very enlightened."

Freed's eyes narrow towards Rukia with the latter not feeling intimidated at all. But before he could shout out another retort, he along with everyone else heard grunting and looked to see Yuuto trying to get up while glaring at Valper, who laughed at the sight of the blonde Devil's struggle.

"I'd heard that one of the subjects had gotten away," Valper states while walking over to Yuuto. "But for him to have become a lowly Devil…" His grin widens before he resumes. "I'm grateful to you guys. Thanks to you, I was able to complete the project."

"Complete?" Yuuto grunts.

"You subjects didn't have enough of the gene to use the Holy Swords," Valper explains further as his expression got more crazed with each passing second. "Knowing that, I was able to conclude that all I had to do was take out the gene from the subjects."

Yuuto's irises contract with more anger building up inside him.

Valper snickers before revealing to Yuuto and the rest of the Devils, Xenovia, and Rukia, a blue crystal in his hand.

"Then, we succeeded in crystallizing them. This contains the genes from that time in their crystallized form!"

Everyone's eyes go wide as they learn this new information with Yuuto being the most impacted.

"And as you can see in my hands, boy, this is the last one!"

Freed laughs along with Valper despite the freezing he felt from the cuts of Rukia's sword.

"All the guys other than me died halfway in because their bodies couldn't take all the genes. If you think about it that way, I'm the super duper special one, eh?!"

Issei and Rukia share enraged expressions towards Freed while Xenovia puts the pieces together in her head.

"So… when a Holy Sword user receives the blessing, something like that is put into their bodies… So that's to make up for the deficiency in genes?"

"Those hypocrites!" Valper snaps with a frown. "After excommunicating me as a pagan, they shamelessly use my research. Well, in any case, we're talking about Michael here. Even if he took genes out of the subjects, I'm sure he didn't kill them."

Finally getting on his feet, Yuuto clenches his fist with his eyes on Valper.

"There was… no need to kill us either… So why?!"

Valper sneers.

"You all were nothing more than materials used in a top-secret project. Once we were done, there was nothing left to do but to dispose of you."

Yuuto's rage continued to increase, his nails about to draw blood from his palms from how tight his fists were.

"… We believed it was for God and bore it the whole time… That was… We were… project materials… to be disposed of…"

Everyone was heartbroken, but none more so than Asia, who was one of many to be devout to God even as a Devil, shedding tears for Yuuto.

"That's terrible…"

With another giggle, Valper tosses the crystal at Yuuto and the object lands right in front of his feet.

"If you want it so badly, then take it. We've already gotten to the point where we can mass produce higher quality crystals."

Kneeling, Yuuto picks up the crystal. The moment he laid his eyes on the object was the moment he felt more pain in his heart as the dark memories of the project flashed before his eyes. Recalling how cruel the killing was while his friends shouted for him to run away, Yuuto holds the crystal close to his heart as more tears go down his face.

"Everyone… I'm so sorry…"

Hearing the sadness in his friend's voice increased Issei's anger as he glared at Valper.

"You old bastard…" he snarls with tears welling up in his eyes. "There's gonna be a dark pit in Hell waiting for you!"

"Valper Galilei…" Yuuto spoke up while rising. "How many lives did you toy with for the sake of your research and desires?"

As he asked this everyone saw that the crystal Yuuto was holding was starting to glow brightly in his hands, leaving many to wonder what was going on.

As it kept shining, they gasped when they saw the light branch to many other lights gathering around Yuuto.

"W-What's that?" Asia asked.

"People?" Koneko wondered, seeing that the lights were taking the shape of many human beings.

"Yeah," Issei concurs. "That's what it's looking like."

Xenovia and Rukia kept their eyes on Yuuto and the blue lights, and from shifting their eyes to see Valper gaining a surprised and worried expression, something was happening.

"Rukia-sama, what do you make of this? This is a phenomenon I'm not familiar with."

Rukia nods in understanding before speaking up to explain to everyone else.

"It's probably the different powers from the battlefield and the trembling of Kiba-kun's heart that have freed the souls from the crystal." Rukia's eyes lingered on the spirits. 'To think that they would somehow be sealed in there. It's a miracle none of these souls have turned into Hollows.'

As the images of the people became clearer, Yuuto clutched the crystal tightly as his eyes were hidden by his bangs.

"I kept thinking… about whether or not it was okay for me to be the only one still alive. There were kids who had more dreams than I did… kids who wanted to live more than I did…" Yuuto's expression became more and more frustrated as he spoke on. "I wondered if it was okay… for me to be the only one living a peaceful life. I… I..!"

Before he could rant any further, Yuuto suddenly felt a presence behind him. Turning behind him, his eyes widen when he sees the spirits of the people he knew all too well from his childhood. He was confused, but before he could even question it, he felt someone tug on his shirt.

Looking down to see who it was, he saw a little girl looking up towards him before giving Yuuto a kind smile, a gesture that pulled onto his heartstrings, as she was one of the many people he befriended before they were all butchered.

He wanted to say something to her, but before he could, all the people from that incident dispersed into particles, which would later surround Yuuto. And as this phenomenon continued, his eyes widened further as he began to hear their voices, as did everyone else.

"It's okay."

"Your survival was all that mattered to us."

"If everyone gathers together…"

"Take us in…"

"It's not scary, even if there is no God…"

"Even if God isn't watching over us…"

"Our hearts will always be…"

Yuuto gasped as he was the only one to hear their last words. With more tears rolling down his cheeks, Yuuto smiles as he repeats their last word…

"One."

Everyone watches the blue lights enter Yuuto's body. And after hearing what the spirits have told them, they were so touched that they all felt for their friend.

"It's heartwarming," Koneko states as a single tear goes down her cheek.

Asia and Issei shed more tears for Yuuto, with Asia continuing to sob while Issei fought the urge to do the same despite the many hiccups he was releasing.

"Dammit…" Issei curses while wiping away his tears. "I can't stop crying."

Looking towards everyone else, he could see Rias and Akeno crying for Yuuto as well. And when his sights were on Xenovia and Rukia, despite their expressions being stern, he could see that their tears had yet to leave their eyes.

{Looks like that Knight has Peaked.}

Issei looks down at his Boosted Gear when he hears Ddraig's voice speak from its gem.

"What..?"

{When the user's thoughts and wishes go against the natural course of things in the world, the Sacred Gear Peaks. And I think you know what that means.}

Issei's eyes widen, being able to put the pieces together on what Ddraig meant. Looking back up at his fellow Devil, he saw that Yuuto now had a resolved expression, his eyes narrowed while he stared down Valper, who felt intimidated by him.

From above, Kokabiel watches the scene with curiosity, grinning at what has just happened with Yuuto.

"My comrades didn't want me to wish for vengeance," Yuuto says to Valper while striding towards him. "They never wanted that. But I felt like I had to defeat the evil that was before me so that there would not be others like us created anymore."

Valper starts to back away from Yuuto with newly developed fear. Before he could take one more step back, he and everyone else witnessed Yuuto use his Sword Birth to create a new sword. After the light fades, the new weapon is revealed, having a black blade with a white hilt and a golden guard.

Yuuto grabs the hilt of his new sword and points it at the Valper, who is now more afraid than ever before.

"Freed! Help!"

"Coming!"

Freed jumps to get in front of Valper and faces Yuuto. But as he blinked once during his way, his eyes widened when Rukia quickly appeared before him and clashed her sword with his.

"Our fight is not over yet, Freed Sellzen!" Rukia says before kicking Freed away from Valper and zipping after him, allowing Yuuto to continue to do what he needs to do.

Valper shouts in fear before pointing at Yuuto with a snarl.

"You foolish little brat! You should've just allowed yourself to be disposed of!"

While Valper kept backing away like a coward with Yuuto following and Rukia held off Freed, Issei stared at the new sword with wide eyes.

'That sword… It feels demonic, but… I can sense some Holy power dwelling in it as well…' After feeling it out, Issei grins and starts to shout. "Yuuto!"

The blonde Knight looked over towards Issei when he heard him and saw him giving him a thumbs up.

"Issei…"

"Show that old man no mercy! Don't waste their feelings and their souls!"

The other Devils nod with Issei.

"Do it, Yuuto," Rias says. "You are part of my family, part of the House of Gremory. No Knight of mine would lose to something like an Excalibur."

"We believe in you, Yuuto-kun!" Akeno cheers.

"Fight on!" Koneko states bluntly.

"Kiba-san!" Asia says with her hands together, tears still going down her cheeks with sympathy.

Yuuto's eyes were glued onto his comrades, surprised by the motivation that they were giving to avenge his childhood friends' deaths. His gaze later softens, feeling more glad than before that they were his friends and that he still has their support.

"What's with this moving scene you're creating?"

Everyone looks and sees Freed having finally made it to Valper's side during his battle with Rukia, who has immediately caught up to him and snarled, disappointed in herself that she couldn't hold him long enough for Yuuto to finish his business with Valper, who was slowly escaping to a farther area.

"Just listening to that shit makes my skin crawl," he speaks cutely while mocking a moved expression before swapping to annoyance. "I can't take it anymore! I need to hurry up and cut you all to pieces so I can feel better!"

Yuuto's eyes left Valper and went over to Freed. After a moment of silence, he sighs with his eyes closed.

"I will become a sword. Comrades whose souls have merged with mine, let's overcome this together!" As he kept speaking, his new sword began to emit a blue aura that felt like Holy Power to Issei. "Our thoughts and wishes can now be accomplished." Suddenly, demonic energy and Holy energy began to radiate from the weapon and appear to combine as one. "I'll become a sword for the President and for my comrades. Sword Birth!"

The blue light surrounding Yuuto's sword shined brighter than before. This continued for six more seconds before its blade was revealed again, gaining red markings in the middle of each side of the blade.

"Sword of the Betrayer, a sword vested with both Holy and Devil powers. Stop it if you can!"

Rukia smiled at Yuuto as she stayed next to him while Issei chuckled at the sight of the sword.

"I thought so!"

"Ise?"

Rias wondered what her Pawn meant, and Issei went ahead and told her while watching Yuuto and Rukia walk side by side.

"Ddraig told me about it. He said that Yuuto had Peaked. That sword he's carrying, having both Demonic and Holy power, that's his Balance Breaker!"

Valper, overhearing what Issei said, gained an expression of disbelief.

"A Holy Devil sword? That's impossible! For two opposing elements to mix together like that…"

While his eyes slowly begin to widen further as he kept thinking about it, Yuuto and Rukia notice Xenovia joining them from the corner of their eyes.

"Rias Gremory's Knight, are we still on the same side?"

Yuuto looks over to Xenovia, his expression unchanged.

"That's what I'd like to think."

"And I think we are," Rukia chimes in with a wider smile. "We do have the same enemy, don't we?"

"Yes, you're right, Kuchiki-san," Yuuto agrees as all three of them lock their eyes on Freed.

"Then let us destroy that Excalibur together," Xenovia says. "At this point, even though it's a Holy sword, it isn't Holy any longer."

"Indeed, it is quite a strange sword," Rukia states with snowflakes emitting from her sword.

"In that case…" Xenovia impales her Excalibur Destruction on the ground and extends her right hand to her right side.

"Xenovia?" Rukia's eyes broadened a bit as she recognized that stance while Yuuto watched with wonder.

"Saint Peter, Basil the Great, Saint-Denis, and the Blessed Virgin Mary, please hear my call!" As she chanted her phrase, a yellow circle appeared in front of her palm. As the circle lit up, everyone saw a hilt emerge, revealing a large blue and gold sword bound by chains as her hand went for it. "In the names of the saints who reside within this blade, I will release it! Durandal!"

Pulling the weapon from its portal, the chains shatter into pieces as Xenovia brings it out for combat.

"This feeling," Yuuto states as he observes the sword. "It's a Holy Sword?"

"It is," Rukia confirms. "I've seen it myself, and holy hell is it destructive."

Xenovia nods with them.

"A sword on par with Excalibur. Said to cut everything in this world."

Valper places a hand over his mouth with sweat on his forehead.

"Impossible… My research didn't go into how to use Durandal."

Xenovia smirks at Valper.

"Unlike Kiba or Irina, I'm one of the few naturals."

"One who is perfectly suitable, also known as a true holy sword user?"

Xenovia points her weapon at Freed and Valper.

"This wild guy cuts to pieces anything he touches. He doesn't always listen to me, either. Besides that, he's infinitely dangerous if he's not sealed in another space."

Freed grits his teeth with annoyance.

"Is there even such a thing?" he asks while unleashing an attack from his Excalibur.

With her expression remaining serious, Xenovia effortlessly blocks his ranged attack with her Durandal with a simple swipe. Freed's sword's blades split to four in an attempt to pierce all her limbs, but she kept blocking while approaching Freed, forcing him to step back with his sword's speed enhancement.

"And here we have a super-dramatic plot twist!"

Xenovia jumps above Freed with her Durandal raised above.

"Yours is just a broken Holy sword. It's no match for my Durandal!"

"Screw you!" Freed evades Xenovia's attack while glaring at her from the air. "That kind of character trait is unnecessary!"

Yuuto appears behind Freed with his Knight trait and begins to trade blows with the Stray Exorcist. Everyone looks above to see how fast they both were in the sky during their battle, leaving Rukia impressed with how much Yuuto was able to keep up with Freed.

"That sword isn't enough to sever our hopes!"

With a roar and one mighty swing, Yuuto destroys Freed's Excalibur, freaking the latter out as he watches the material flutter to the ground.

Landing, Freed sees the hilt of his broken Excalibur clatter in front of him, making him angry towards Yuuto.

"Damn you… I was beaten by some lowly shitty Devil? There's no-GAH!"

Freed shouts when his right shoulder starts to bleed from their last clash that destroyed the Stray's weapon.

'Did you see that?' Yuuto asks his fallen comrades. 'Our powers overcame Excalibur!'

"Well done, Kiba-kun."

Yuuto looks to his left to see Rukia approaching him with a soft smile, prompting him to smile back.

"It was thanks to them that I was able to keep fighting."

"Yes, I can tell. Their spirits still support you even now." Rukia's expression then turns serious. "Now, if you don't mind, you and Xenovia leave that Stray Exorcist to me."

Before Xenovia and Yuuto could ask why, Rukia raised her sword to her right, blocking an attack that went for her head, surprising Xenovia and Yuuto to see that Freed had two light swords out clashed against her blade.

"You think I'm gonna just take that cut to the shoulder like it's nothing?! Think again, fuckers!"

As she sets her eyes on Freed, she notices that the wounds she inflicted on him earlier are no longer frozen.

'Looks like I'll have to fix that,' She thought to herself as she kicked Freed away from Yuuto.

"Rukia-sama!" Xenovia rushed to her side, but Rukia raised a hand towards her.

"No, Xenovia. Save your strength and your Durandal's power for the stronger," Rukia advises, referring to Kokabiel, who was still watching from above with an intrigued stare and grin.

"Are you sure? If all three of us fight together, we can defeat Freed once and for all, especially since he's resorting to weaker weapons."

"No. I'll be the one to stop him. You stay back. And Kiba-kun, I believe you still have some unfinished business."

Yuuto blinks at Rukia as he watches her walk over to Freed, whose face twists into fury.

"You really wanna thrown down, you nightgown-wearing prat?! I know what you're capable of now with your snow powers! So why don't you stand still so I can-"

Freed was silent when Rukia moved out of sight again at high speed. And the moment she was behind her, the cuts on Freed's cheek and chin reopened into a bigger cut, followed by frost appearing on the wounds, making him feel cold.

"Let me guess: You'll slice me into ribbons."

Freed snarled and turned around to swing a vertical slash down onto Rukia, but she evaded again and gave his back a diagonal slash, applying frost in the process.

"You'll chop off my head and impale it on a stake." Rukia cuts Freed's left arm. "You'll make me your bitch." Rukia cuts his right leg. "Blah," Then his right side. "Blah," And now his chest as she got right in front of him. "Blah!"

Freed stumbles backward away from Rukia as his wounds bled for a short time before they were frozen. His body became so cold that his breath started to emit vapor. With his head shaking upwards with contracted irises, he saw Rukia glare at him with snow emitting from her body and weapon.

"Do you have any idea how many villains I've slain who say that kind of crap to me before meeting their fate? What you say next is so obvious that it's getting annoying!"

"F-F-Fuck you!" Freed exclaims while running forward.

But because of the frost spreading from his wounds, he was slower than before, allowing Rukia to not rely on her speed to evade and land another strike on Freed's other cheek.

"Why do you bother to keep fighting?" Rukia quizzes Freed. "Not only is your fighting style predictable to me, but you've lost to me the moment I've applied my frost in all of your wounds. I don't even think I'll need one of my strongest moves to take care of you and turn you over to the church for punishment."

The Gremory Devils were bewildered by Rukia's speed and power while Freed was more agitated.

"My trick weapon is an emitter type," Rukia explains. "This one, in particular, emits snow and frost, and combining it with my own snow powers, which is my natural Spiritual Power, my snow abilities are doubled than if I were to wield a different weapon."

While the Devils were intrigued by the information, Issei was the most fascinated, learning just what else types of trick weapons there could be in this world.

"D-D… Don't you mock me!"

Freed tries to cut Rukia down, but she simply steps aside to avoid the light sword, not bothering to attack this time because of how much progress the frost has made on slowing Freed's body.

"Your efforts are pointless, so it's time for me to end this now." positioning her sword upside down after getting some distance, Rukia stabs it into the ground with her eyes locked onto Freed. "Juhaku!"

After making that call, everyone gasped when they witnessed a trail of ice travel from where Rukia stabbed her sword toward the direction of Freed. Before he could jump out of the way, the ice caught him by his foot.

"Sh-shit!" Freed curses with a shivering breath before more ice appears, coating his leg in a freezing fashion.

Freed's eyes widen, feeling his body get colder and colder as the ice continues to travel up his leg before branching to the other and continuing to freeze him from the base up. He tried to free himself from the freezing process by stabbing his light swords into the ice, but they were too strong, and he was already losing most of his strength as the ice crept up his chest.

Everyone watched as the ice now encased his entire body, only leaving his head to freeze as he loudly shivered.

"Wh-Wh-What… are you..?!" Freed questions Rukia as she approaches him to watch her ice finish its job.

And as the ice began to make work on his head, Rukia answered.

"I am… A Spiritual Knight."

Rukia's ice swallows Freed's head, completely freezing him where he stood.

Yuuto, Asia, and Koneko had their eyes glued onto Freed's frozen prison with shock at just how strong Rukia is. Rias, Akeno, and Issei especially, paid attention to what Rukia identified herself as before she defeated the Stray Exorcist.

"A Spiritual Knight..?"

"Ara ara… To think we've been seeing one in person this whole time…"

While Rias and Akeno didn't think they would encounter one, Issei just stared at Rukia, remembering Kokabiel saying the exact two words before this battle began.

"Rukia-san…"

Rukia heard Issei call her name and approached him, understanding that he has many questions.

"I'll explain everything later, Issei. For now, we-"

"I still don't understand… How is this possible?" Everyone turns when they hear Valper speak with a frightened yet puzzled voice, having been staring at Yuuto's new sword this whole time. "In theory, the fusion of Holy and Demonic powers is-"

Valper is disrupted when Yuuto sets his sights on him, scaring him further.

"Prepare yourself, Valper Galilei."

Valper kept shaking, fearing the moment that Yuuto's blade would catch him by the neck. But as he kept puzzling and puzzling about the fusion of Demonic and Holy powers, he began to chuckle.

"That's right… I get it now! If the balance between Holy and Demon powers is disrupted, it could be possible. Which is to say, not only the Devil King, but God himself is also-"

STAB!

Everyone gasps in shock when they see a light spear get lodged through Valper's torso, making him spit blood as he falls to the ground face-first.

As his corpse lied there, the light spear starts to fade away, taking its victim with him, leaving behind a pool of blood.

"You really were very talented, Valper," Kokabiel says while looking at the blood. "Your aptitude must have helped you reach that conclusion."

"Kokabiel," Rias spoke up while keeping her eyes on him. "What are you trying to do?"

Kokabiel chuckles.

"I don't care if this guy is around or not. Now, I'm even bored of the diversions." Kokabiel shifts his eyes towards Issei. "Key, kid."

Issei glares at Kokabiel.

"What do you want?!"

"Raise the Red Dragon Emperor's power as much as you can and transfer it to someone."

"What?!" Issei gains a confused expression.

"Is this your way of giving us a chance?" Rias questions the Fallen Angel. "Don't be ridiculous!"

"Ha ha ha! You're the ones who are being ridiculous if you think you can defeat me."

Issei growls at Kokabiel as the latter looks down on him and his friends with a mocking grin.

"This is so boring. Let's just kill him already."

Issei's eyes widened, hearing that his Inner Hollow was back.

'Dammit..! Even if I wanted to, he's too strong. I can't defeat him in my current state!'

"Maybe you can't… But I definitely can~"

Issei's breath shutters as he hears his Inner Hollow giggle while his left iris starts to change colors again. He tried his best not to show it to everyone, but he could feel his left eye's vision slowly get blotted from its left side due to the Hollow's influence.

'No, I can't… I can't let him control me! I've got to fight it! I've got to-'

Suddenly, Issei's eyes widened further when he felt someone grab hold of his hand and give it a strong squeeze. Turning his head right, he gasps at who did it.

"B… Buchou..?"

"It's okay," Rias tells him, looking him right in his eyes while glancing at his Hollowfied left eye. "We will defeat him. And as long as I'm here beside you, I'll make sure he stays put."

Issei gasps at Rias' words. They were so comforting and assuring that Issei's worries about his Hollow went away and returned the hold of her hand.

"Thank you."

Rias nods, smiling as she sees Issei's left eye return to normal.

Looking forward, Issei and Rias walk together toward Kokabiel while the former begins to power up.

{Boost!}

Everyone watches the two continue forward, wishing them both good luck in their heads.

{Boost!}

Kokabiel's grin widens, looking forward to seeing what Issei and Rias hope to do against him.

"Let's see what you two got."

{Boost!}

Both have their glares on Kokabiel with a resolved expression.

{Boost!}

'Not yet,' Issei thinks to himself. 'It's not enough power.'

{Boost!}

As they kept going, Rias squeezed Issei's hand every few seconds to remind him that she's there to help him, knowing that he would do the same for her.

{Boost!}

Issei looks down at his gauntlet, feeling that he's charged up enough. After seeing the symbol in the gem, he shifts his eyes towards Rias.

"It's ready, Buchou."

"Okay, Ise," Rias replies before giving his hand one more squeeze. "Do it."

"Right. Boosted Gear, Gift!"

{Transfer!}

The Red Dragon's power begins to course through Rias' body, making her moan for a moment before her stern expression returns, ready to take down Kokabiel.

Using her gifted power, Rias' Demonic power increased tenfold as her eyes glowed red, surrounded by a red and green aura.

"Amazing!" Asia exclaims with her hands held together in prayer.

"Even from here, I can feel the waves of power," Yuuto says.

Kokabiel just cackles, not being intimidated by the power-up by one bit.

"Fantastic! It's the power of the highest order of Devils, Rias Gremory! You've been blessed with power that's as good as your brother's!"

Crossing her arms, Rias summons two large orbs of her Power of Destruction with one from each palm.

"Be gone!"

Rias fires her orbs at Kokabiel, which would later combine into one large wave of power shaped like a dragon.

As the attack got closer, Kokabiel held his hands out and caught the dragon-shaped POD, but there was some effort he had to do to keep balance.

"Very interesting, little sister of the Devil King, Sirzechs."

Aggravated that it wasn't enough, Rias unleashes more POD to pile on to her previous attack. But it didn't make him budge any further.

Rias kept pouring more and more power into the POD Kokabiel was blocking. But as she kept doing it, she felt her strength fail her as the power gifted to her by Issei drained out. Taking a toll on her stamina, Rias tilts backward and is about to fall.

"Buchou!"

Issei catches her and helps her steady.

Before he could ask how she was holding up, Issei and Rias looked up and gasped.

"Akeno!"

In mid-range proximity, Akeno points her finger up in the sky.

"Break out Thunder!"

With a bolt of thunder gathering in her finger, Akeno increases its voltage as high as she can and shoots it at Kokabiel.

But Kokabiel uses his wings to block the bolts without them electrocuting him while peeking through his wings and smirking at Akeno, who kept the lightning going from her finger.

"Are you trying to get in my way, you who possesses the power of Baraqiel?"

Akeno's irises contract as her fury increases.

"Don't you dare… lump me with that bastard!"

Issei's brows raised, having heard the name Kokabiel spoke.

"Baraqiel?"

"It's the name of one of the Fallen Angel leaders," Xenovia explains to Issei. "I've heard that he can use thunder and lightning, but…"

When Issei hears about what this Baraqiel character can use, his brows slowly raise.

Back with Akeno, she has now exhausted all of her power and rage, breathing heavy as she could barely stay in flight because of her magic reserves getting low.

Kokabiel laughs at the sight while opening his wings.

"You've fallen so low as to become a Devil now? What an amusing House you have, Rias Gremory. The Red Dragon Emperor, a ruined Holy Sword Project subject, and Baraqiel's daughter!"

Hearing the last part got Issei, Rukia, and Xenovia shocked.

"What did he say?!" Xenovia said.

"Did I just hear him right?!" Rukia wondered.

But Issei already figured it out from what Xenovia explained about Baraqiel's power.

"Akeno-san… is the daughter of a Fallen Angel!"

Akeno looks down towards the ground, feeling shame for being reminded of a fact that made her gain such a foul mood.

"Rias Gremory," Kokabiel resumes. "Like your brother, you seem to adore inferior products. How you think they can handle themselves is beyond me."

Rias becomes enraged as she manages to get back on her feet and glare at Kokabiel.

"I won't forgive your thoughtless remarks against my brother, our Devil King," Rias states as her POD flares up. "And for insulting my servants, you will pay with your life!"

Kokabiel lands on the ground, creating many cracks all over it while retracting his wings.

"You're more than welcome to try, little sister of the Devil King, possessor of the Welsh Dragon, Crimson-haired Princess of Ruin! You're confronting the archenemy of Devils, you know. If you don't take advantage of this chance, then this is as good as you'll get! But then again, you're too weak to lay even a bruise on me!"

Rias glared tightly at Kokabiel. But despite her expression, she knew that it would still be an uphill battle, a battle that she secretly believes will be near-impossible to fight.

'Dammit! If only I were stronger… If only I can-'

"Oi, scumbag!" Rias was snapped from her thoughts when she and everyone else heard Issei shouting at Kokabiel. Turning their heads, their eyes widen when they see him with an angered expression as he points his Scale Blade at the enemy. "Insult Buchou or Akeno-san any further and I will destroy you! I don't care what their origins are!"

Akeno gasps at Issei with a blush, taken off guard by his resolve and his choice of words.

Rukia was surprised too, but would later smile at him with proud eyes.

Kokabiel laughs at the boy while creating a sword of light.

"Are you really that stupid, boy?"

"Call me what you want! I still intend on settling this right here, right now! Boosted Gear, go!"

{Boost!}

"Ise, wait!"

Rukia, Yuuto, and Xenovia see what Issei intends to do. Looking towards each other and nodding, the trio sprints in front of Issei and straight for Kokabiel, surprising the wilder of the Boosted Gear.

"Just keep boosting, Issei Hyoudou!" Xenovia tells him. "We'll stall for time!"

"We'll keep him back for as long as it takes!" Yuuto adds.

Issei blinks at the three before narrowing his eyes and nodding.

"Got it! Thanks, you guys!"

{Boost!}

Xenovia approaches Kokabiel's right side, leaping high in the air with her Durandal above her head. Checking behind himself, the Fallen Angel sees Rukia coming at him from there, leaving Yuuto to take Kokabiel's left side.

Scoffing, Kokabiel takes his light sword and blocks Yuuto's attack first. He then creates another sword in his other hand to defend from Xenovia's vertical swing before avoiding Rukia's attack with a duck.

"Oh? Holy sword and Holy Devil sword attacks at the same time?" Kokabiel says while lifting his head with Rukia grunting. "How fascinating!"

With slit eyes, Rukia uses her speed to approach Kokabiel and aim for his head with her frost-coated sword. Since his light weapons clashed with Yuuto's and Xenovia's, he had no other method of blocking, and she made sure to speed up so she wouldn't miss again.

"Foolish Spiritual Knight," Kokabiel chortles. "Do you ever learn?"

Just as she got in close, Kokabiel sprouted his wings again, using them as weapons to knock back Rukia, Xenovia, and Yuuto away from him.

"You guys!" Issei exclaims in worry.

{Boost!}

While Xenovia was on the ground and Yuuto was forced to one knee, Rukia was the only one to still be on her feet after barely being able to block Kokabiel's striking wings.

"Damn you," Rukia growls as Kokabiel continued to chuckle at his opponents.

While the battle raged on, the Sitri Devils outside of the barrier were now starting to feel at their limit, especially Genshiro, who looked like he was about to pass out any moment.

"Hyoudou… we're counting on you, man… I don't know how much magic I have left…"

"Saji! Don't lose focus!"

"Y-Yes, Fuku-Kaichou!"

Taking a look with a shift of her eyes, Tsubaki can see that Genshiro was not the only one struggling to keep the magic flowing.

'Everyone other than Kaichou and myself is running out of power.'

Looking back forward, Tsubaki continued to hope that the Gremory Devils would be as quick as they could to be victorious. However, the person she was worried about the most in there was Issei. Because of how powerful Kokabiel was, she wasn't sure how long Issei would last against him if he were the one to fight him alone.

And if things took a turn for the worse… Tsubaki didn't even want to think about what would happen to Issei if he were to pass out.

Back in the battle, Issei continued to boost himself while Rukia charged her sword up with snow using both her Spiritual Power and the power of her Trick Weapon.

While this was happening, Kokabiel pulled both of his light swords back and swung them both forward, unleashing two ranged attacks that looked nearly identical to Issei's Getsuga Tenshou.

Yuuto and Xenovia block the attacks so they can let Issei and Rukia continue to charge up, but they were eventually blasted back since they couldn't handle the pressure any longer.

Asia screams as parts of the attack are coming for her as well, but Issei uses Shunpo and quickly deflects it with his aura-coated Scale Blade while Rukia took care of the other one.

"We gotcha, Asia!"

Asia looks up at Issei and Rukia and nods.

"Th-Thank you. But Kiba-san and Xenovia-san!"

Issei and Rukia look at them and see them struggling to get up while panting.

"Not yet!" Yuuto grunts.

"You're still going?" Kokabiel questions before grinning. "That's fine, come then!"

With his eyes narrow, Yuuto stands up again and takes a deep breath.

"SWORD BIRTH!"

Bellowing that phrase, Kokabiel witnesses a large red magic circle appear below his feet. Looking back up, a brow rises when he sees ten Sword of Betrayers floating and aiming right for him.

Although they came at him fast, Kokabiel used all of his wings to block the swords with no problems.

"Is that all there is to it?"

Kokabiel destroyed the swords with his wings, but as he did, Yuuto appeared before him with his Knight speed and thrusts his blade for his neck, only for Kokabiel to catch the tip in his fingers effortlessly, his mocking grin not changing in the slightest.

Creating another Sword of Betrayer in his free hand, Yuuto swings that one for Kokabiel's right side, but he catches that blade too before laughing.

"You fool!"

"Not yet!"

Much to everyone's surprise, Yuuto creates another Sword of Betrayer with his mouth and carries the weapon in his teeth. With a left swing of his head, he was finally able to land a hit on Kokabiel's cheek, making him shout while Yuuto jumped away from him and landed on his back.

Holding his cheek, Kokabiel glares at Yuuto angrily.

"How dare you!"

Aiming his hand at Yuuto, Kokabiel creates a large orb of yellow light and fires it at the Knight at a fast speed.

Yuuto was still on the ground and was about to get hit, but Xenovia got in front of him in time to block the attack with her Durandal.

The attack was strong enough to push her back a bit, but with adrenaline, Xenovia roared and shoved back, allowing her to destroy the orb of light in one slash. Since the struggle took a lot of energy it forced Xenovia to her knees while she held her sword for support.

{Boost!}

"Damn!" Issei curses with his eyes constantly darting from his gauntlet to the fight numerous times. "Just a little more…"

Taking a glance at Rukia, Issei saw that she too was still charging up her power while her eyes were locked onto Kokabiel, who laughed at the current conditions of Yuuto and Xenovia.

"You poor fools sure are fighting hard for people who have lost their master."

Hearing this got Xenovia to glare at Kokabiel.

"Excuse me?"

"What are you talking about?" Rias demands, being just as puzzled as Xenovia and everyone else.

"Kokabiel," Xenovia spoke, managing to stand up again. "What do you mean by 'lost their master'?"

"Whoops. I let that one slip."

Issei and Rukia look at each other, wondering what Kokabiel meant by that.

"Answer me, Kokabiel!"

Seeing Xenovia get more and more agitated got Kokabiel to start to giggle. Those giggles would later turn into laughter before evolving into a psychotic cackle that got everyone on edge.

"You know what, why not?!" Kokabiel says. "I am trying to start a war, so there's no point in hiding it any longer." His grin slowly gets wider and wider. After a long moment of silence, Kokabiel looks at the group with the craziest look in his eyes and spills it. "In the previous three-way far, God has been killed along with the four Great Devil Kings!"

DON!

Everyone was stunned. Not a single word was spoken as Kokabiel dropped this revelation for all of them to hear, and the ones who were impacted by those words the most were Asia and Xenovia.

All was still quiet as they tried to process what Kokabiel just revealed. It felt like an eternity until one person finally broke the silence.

"There's… No way…" Xenovia utters as her hand struggles to get a grip on her sword's handle.

"God is dead?!" Rias questions, remaining shocked. "That's impossible! I haven't heard anything about that!"

"Of course you haven't," Kokabiel says. "During that war, the Devils lost all their kings and most of their high-level Devils, and the Angels and Fallen Angels lost almost everyone except their leaders. The Pure Angels couldn't increase their numbers, and purebred Devils are rare."

As Issei and Rukia listened to what Kokabiel was saying, they heard someone hyperventilating from behind them and turned to see Asia, who was holding one hand to her heart and another to her mouth while Koneko rushed by her side to give her comfort.

"No… That can't be!" Asia squeaks, making Issei and Koneko's heart pain for her.

Kokabiel's eyes narrow before continuing.

"All sides have been ruined to the point where they have to rely on humans to survive. Angels, Fallen Angels, Devils. The leaders of the three factions had to seal away this information so that the God-fearing humans would continue on."

Unable to take much more, Xenovia falls to her knees, barely keeping her breath to a steady rhythm.

"Lies… All lies…"

"Xenovia!" Rukia shouts for her ally, but she doesn't respond to her as she's still struggling to take the news of God's passing.

"Not like I care about any of that," Kokabiel stated as he started to frown. "What I can't stand is the fact that with God and the Devil kings dead, It was decided that continuing the war was pointless! Those cowards!" Kokabiel threw his fist to the side as his expression became more enraged. "They want me to lower my weapon after raising it?! If we had continued the slaughter, the Fallen Angels would have won! Even that bastard Azazel declared that there would not be another war! Come the fuck on!"

Everyone kept getting surprised by the blood lust Kokabiel had.

But Asia was still struggling to get a hold of herself despite Koneko doing the best she could to help calm her down. And despite all of that, the blonde managed to stand up and set her gaze on Kokabiel.

"So… God doesn't exist anymore?" Everyone looks to see the horrified look on the poor girl's face. "Then… who have we been praying to all this time..?"

Kokabiel smirks at Asia, intimidating her by staring right into her eyes.

"Michael is doing a good job, you know. He's keeping the Angels and humans together in God's place."

Xenovia gasps.

"Archangel Michael is acting as God's agent? Then… all of our prayers… went to him?"

"As long as the system works, prayers and exorcisms will operate to a certain extent. However, the number of believers in God has fallen drastically. Without anyone to manage the balance between good and evil, it's no wonder that something contradictory like the Holy Devil sword appeared. Otherwise, it would be unthinkable for good and evil to mix like that."

As Kokabiel explained it, Asia looked to be in her own world of horror. Her body shook so much because of the revelation of God, the being she believed in all of her life, has perished and ceased to be. She couldn't believe it. She didn't want to believe it.

Her mind kept spinning in circles until she could no longer take it. Losing balance, she was about to fall, but Koneko was able to catch her before her head could slam into the ground.

"Asia-senpai! Asia-senpai!"

Koneko tried to call out to her, but when she looked at her face, the Rook gasped when she and everyone else saw that Asia had fainted.

"A natural reaction," Xenovia breathed out, still struggling to breathe properly. "Although I feel the need to do the same as her, it's a miracle that I can still think at a time like this."

"From here on out, I will continue the war of the three factions!" Kokabiel declares with pride and sadism. "Even if I have to start by taking all of your heads!"

Akeno's eyes slit, still unable to believe what has really happened in the last three-way war. But no one was as shocked as Rias. When Akeno laid eyes on her master, saw that she was just as frustrated as Xenovia.

"Rias?"

"Again…" Rias shutters. "I let my pride get in the way again… It's my fault that…"

"So what?!"

Rias' eyes widen when she hears Issei shout at Kokabiel, bringing all eyes to him.

"God may be no more in this world, but his teachings will live on! And as long as people hold onto those teachings, then not only can there still exist good people without God's presence, but good Exorcists like Irina-chan and even Xenovia will still be strong!"

Xenovia's eyes widen. Despite not being a devout Christian before becoming a Devil, he was willing to speak so positively about God's teachings and how they can still be used despite his death.

"Hear me, Kokabiel… I'm not going to let you destroy this town or my friends because of your selfish reasons! This place is my home, and it'll be a cold day in Hell before I let you have your way!"

Everyone was astonished by Issei. Not only has he helped Xenovia, but he didn't waver a single bit and was ready to take Kokabiel down. And Rias and Rukia couldn't be any more proud of the boy.

Kokabiel was stunned by his resolve as well, but then laughed it off with a mocking grin.

"So, you imply that you're going to take me down all by yourself, Red Dragon Emperor?" Kokabiel places a hand on his chest. "Go ahead, but it will be futile. You've seen firsthand how your power went against me when you gifted it to your precious master. What makes you think you alone can change that? Face it, boy, if your Boosted Gear's power didn't help Rias, then it certainly won't help you!"

Issei snarls at Kokabiel with some aura fuming from his body. But before he could retort, Kokabiel interrupted him with a lift of a finger.

"Unless…" Kokabiel paused, his grin widening every second before he shouted with crazed eyes. "… You were to Hollowfy!"

Everyone gasps at what Kokabiel just said while Issei's eyes go as wide as saucers, his left iris flickering gold-yellow at the very mention of his Hollow.

"… What are you talking about..?"

"Ise…"

Rias and the rest of the Devils, including Rukia, could hear the panic in his whispered tone. Xenovia, however, was quite confused with what Kokabiel brought up.

'Hollowfy?'

"Come now, don't play dumb," Kokabiel says. "Word does spread fast in the supernatural about what happens in the human world. And while I do find your weaponized aura and your discovery of the Scale Blade to be very intriguing, nothing interests me more than your Hollowfication."

"… You shut up…" Issei growls, starting to breathe heavily as more of his black and white aura radiates from him. "That power you speak of… is not mine!"

That last sentence brought out a reaction from Akeno and Koneko for their own personal reasons. And while she was setting the unconscious Asia down somewhere safe, Koneko remembered the venom in his voice when he referred to his Hollow powers.

"Oh?" Kokabiel cocks a brow without his smirk fading. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it because of a part of your Hollow power that you were able to kill one of my two Cerberus with no problems? Come to think of it, why didn't you go all out with that very same amount of power on the next one, or in any case, me or Freed?"

"Don't listen to him, Issei!" Rukia shouts. "Kokabiel's trying to play you!"

Xenovia continued to be puzzled. From what she listened to, Kokabiel is implying that Issei carries the power of a Hollow; a creature that feeds on living beings endlessly.

Kokabiel snickers, seeing the stress and frustration on Issei's face while his friends watch on in worry.

"I think I figured it out: Once you unleash your Hollow powers, you'll go berserk, won't you? You don't have much control over it like the Masked Exorcists, don't you?"

"The Masked Exorcists?" Xenovia's eyes widen, recalling one time long ago where she heard of a rogue group called that before turning her head towards the hyperventilating Issei. 'So… that mask that was below Rukia-sama's foot after the Red Dragon Emperor survived that explosion unscathed… it was a Hollow mask? But when did the Red Dragon Emperor acquire Hollow powers? Was he..?'

"Ise!" Rias tries to reach him. "You don't have to face him alone! We'll all defeat him together! Ise!"

Issei wasn't listening as Kokabiel continued to laugh at the panicking boy.

"What a fascinating surprise! A Red Dragon Emperor afraid of going all out because of his Hollow powers! Is that why you've become so weak after you eventually learned that your soul was infected with Hollowfication? Do you reject your Hollow powers to such a degree that you're willing to get yourself killed instead of actually trying to win?!"

Kokabiel's face gets more sinister as he sees sweat all over Issei's face as he barely has a grip on his Scale Blade.

"What about those you hold dear?" Kokabiel continued, alarming everyone. "Are you willing to let them die just so you can keep your inner demon locked in its cage?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

After releasing an ear-piercing scream that got everyone's heart to nearly burst out of their chests, Issei's body explodes into copious amounts of black aura with the white aura outlining it. Everyone, including Kokabiel, takes a step back as they feel its intensity as the white aura violently branches off the black aura and scatters all over the place while Issei gives Kokabiel a deadly glare with his left iris glowing gold-yellow.

"That's..!"

"That aura!" Yuuto exclaims. "It's just like back in the Rating Game!"

"Guys!" Akeno calls out. "You don't think Ise-kun's gonna do it, do you?!"

Rias and Rukia look at the large aura explosion that surrounded Issei before looking at Issei himself, seeing how dead-set he was on killing Kokabiel as the white aura grew thicker.

"I DON'T NEED THAT CURSED POWER! I WILL DESTROY YOU WITH MY OWN!"

With a snarl, Issei vanished from everyone's sight with a boom followed by a static noise before appearing right in front of Kokabiel and slashing his Scale Blade down on him.

While he was able to dodge it, Issei did land a hit on Kokabiel, being able to cut his shoulder with five claw marks right on it.

While everyone was shocked with how fast Issei went and being able to actually cut him, Rukia looked at it differently.

'That fast movement…That wasn't the Flash Step he and I can use, nor was it the speed of his Queen Promotion… That was…'

Kokabiel looked at the injury on his shoulder before his eyes shifted to Issei, who looked to be out for blood as his sword was coated in his aura. With a shook expression, Kokabiel makes two swords of light to defend as Issei screams at the Fallen Angel before going in on more attacks.

From the sidelines, everyone watched as Issei went to town on Kokabiel. With more black and white aura emitting from his body, he was constantly swinging his Scale Blade down on him, repeatedly hitting his light swords and forcing Kokabiel to keep stepping backward, not giving him any chance to counter.

"Damn that Kokabiel," Rukia growls. "He has no idea how grave of a mistake he's going to make!"

The Gremory Devils understood what she meant. As they continued to see Issei going at Kokabiel like a berserker, they saw Issei's left iris finally turn gold-yellow followed by some black bloodshots developing on the eye's left side.

'Ise…' Rias held her hand to her heart as did Koneko, fearing for the worst if he continued to stress like this.

Kokabiel continued to guard himself from getting destroyed by the Scale Blade. But as he was, he noticed something.

Issei's hits were starting to get shallow with every strike. And from just looking at his eyes, Kokabiel was able to tell that he was still holding back.

"Foolish boy. What kind of warrior fears their own power?!"

Finding an opening because of Issei slowing down, Kokabiel kicks him in the stomach, knocking him back and causing the boy to roll on the ground with the Scale Blade landing beside him.

"Issei!"

"Ise-kun!"

"Issei-senpai!"

Panting endlessly, Issei slowly gets up off the ground, using his Scale Blade for support while clutching the left side of his face with his left hand.

"Is that all there is to offer, Red Dragon Emperor?! You're not even using your Boosted Gear anymore!"

"Shut up!" Issei shouts at Kokabiel with his bangs blocking the view of his eyes from everyone.

Kokabiel just grins at Issei.

"I'm curious, boy. If you were to overuse your Boosted Gear, would that leave you vulnerable to your Hollow powers? Is that why you're relying on your aura and speed alone?"

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

As Issei's head shot up at Kokabiel, everyone's eyes widened when they saw that his left sclera had now blackened.

"Oh no!" Yuuto mutters. "If that means what I think it means…"

Koneko, panicking the most, rushes to Rias and grabs her wrist.

"Buchou! We have to help him now! If this keeps up, he's going to get taken over!"

Rias blinks at Koneko, seeing the fear in her Rook's face before nodding strongly and looking towards her Queen.

"Akeno, let's go!"

"Yes, Buchou!"

"No!" Issei shouts, stopping the two girls. "You two aren't strong enough! Leave him to me!"

The girls and Yuuto were baffled.

"Ise! Do you not realize that you're in danger?! Not just from Kokabiel, but-"

"I won't let it happen! I'm not letting him get his way! Getsuga…" Issei moves his sword to his left side before swinging right. "Tenshou!"

Kokabiel's eyes broaden as Issei's attack comes rushing for him. But after he felt its level of power, he chuckled before destroying the crescent-shaped aura with a simple swing of his light sword.

"How disappointing."

Issei was stunned. He put in everything he had while trying to prevent his Inner Hollow from taking over.

'Damn you, Hollow!' Issei curses as his heterochromatic eyes are glued onto his sword. 'I rejected you and your power, and yet you still try to hinder me?!'

Issei continued to curse himself for not making his attack strong enough. But as he kept trying to fight off his Inner Hollow, Issei suddenly felt a sharp pain that forced him to snap out of his thoughts.

Slowly looking down, Issei gasps with some blood trickling from his lip as Kokabiel has stabbed one of his light swords right through his chest.

"ISSEI!"

Rukia screamed for her friend as she, Xenovia, and the Gremory Devils watched him cough up more blood in haunted shock.

Kokabiel observes Issei take two steps away from him before being forced to his knees because of the pain caused by the sword's light.

"Are you really the next Red Dragon Emperor?" Kokabiel questions Issei, appearing annoyed. "Are you the same boy who killed my loyal subordinate, Rika? Are you really the one who was able to slay countless amounts of Hollows with no problems and take down a Gillian-level Menos Grande?!"

Kokabiel quickly and harshly pulls his light sword out of Issei's chest, making him scream in agony as the area he's been stabbed through erupts in more blood and steam while his right eye started to flicker the same color his left eye was right now.

Everyone was horrified, with Rukia, Akeno, and Rias being the most affected and enraged by Kokabiel.

"Get away from my precious Ise, you monster!"

Rias blasts her Demonic power at Kokabiel while Rukia unleashes her frost and Akeno shoots her lightning, but Kokabiel blocks them all with his wings while taking the Scale Blade out of Issei's hands.

"Are you the very same warrior who was able to claim this rare Trick Weapon for himself?" He asks Issei before placing the tip of the weapon against Issei's neck, watching Issei's Boosted Gear deactivate. "I'm not seeing that right now. All I see is a coward who's afraid of his own power all because of his Hollowfication! How can you call yourself a fighter, boy?!"

Issei gives Kokabiel a defying stare, agitating the Fallen Angel even further before raising the Scale Blade above his head.

"And here I was hoping for a good fight after seeing what you've done to a Cerberus! Trash like you deserve to die!"

"NO! ISE!"

""ISSEI!""

"ISE-KUN!"

"ISSEI-SENPAI!"

Kokabiel throws the sword down. Everything appeared to have slowed down for everyone since this seemed to be the end for Issei.

As the sword kept coming down, Issei drew one last deep breath as he began to lose consciousness while the sword was getting inches closer to his neck.

BA-BUMP!

But suddenly, Issei's hand shot up and caught the blade of the sword without getting hurt by it, stunning all who have witnessed it with Kokabiel being the most shocked.

"My turn~"

"…What?"

Before Kokabiel could speak further, Issei slams a palm onto Kokabiel's chest, knocking him far away from himself while he still clutched onto his Scale Blade. Immediately getting up afterward, he chucked the sword in the air and caught it in his right hand while he started to grin.

Red flags were going up in the Gremory Devil's heads as was Rukia's while Xenovia was getting a bad feeling about where this was going.

Regaining balance from Issei's attack, Kokabiel shoots a glare at him while holding a hand onto his stomach.

"What is this?! How were you able to counter like that?!"

Kokabiel's expression went from anger to surprise as he and everyone else saw Issei's wounds heal themselves as good as new. As the boy was healing, everyone saw a white matter appearing from thin air and latching onto the left side of Issei's face.

"Oh no…" Koneko says while quaking in her shoes.

"Th… This is…"

"It's not polite to refer to something as this," Issei spoke with a different, but scarily familiar voice to the Gremory Devils before looking at Kokabiel with a crazed stare. "You filthy old crow! HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Everyone was taken aback when they saw the half-formed Hollow mask that covered the entire left half of Issei's face before he cocks his sword to the left and swings, causing a giant crater to form on his right side from the intense wind pressure.

"Issei… no!" Rukia knew that his soul was plagued by Hollowfication, but for it to be as dire as this…

"I thought so…" Xenovia says to herself with her eyes of shock on Issei. "It really is the same mask as before… but how did Issei Hyoudou gain such a deadly power like Hollowfication?"

"You… You're different," Kokabiel states with confusion. "Just who the hell are you?"

"Who am I?" The Hollowfied Issei gains an irritated expression. "What is it with people asking such stupid questions? I am who I am!"

Kokabiel blinks at the possessed Issei before chuckling.

"And here I was thinking that you feared your Hollow powers."

"Issei's the one that fears our powers. I'm stronger. I'm not soft or reliant on brain-powered strategies like he is."

"Oh? A split personality too? What a strange Hollowfication."

Hollow Issei chuckles while shaking his head.

"Don't be an idiot. We just share the same body. Issei's the King, and I am his Horse. And even if I prefer to be a separate being, it would be a bad time for me if he died." his grin widens before he points the Scale Blade at Kokabiel. "So I'll do what his majesty lacks the confidence to do and kill you myself!"

While Rukia, Xenovia, and the Gremory Devils are unable to move an inch because of how much this has escalated, Kokabiel gives the Hollowfied Issei a weird look before releasing another round of laughter.

"I still don't understand what's wrong with you, but you seem very confident that you can defeat me now that you've donned the mask! I'll have you know that I've slain dozens of Hollows stronger than you! You're just a little Visored!"

Issei's grin widens as he slowly tilts his head at Kokabiel.

"Wanna see what this little Visored can do~?"

"By all means!"

With a battle cry, Kokabiel conjures a large spear of light and coats it with two pink rings for additional strength. With a cackle, he throws it towards the Hollowfied Issei.

While everyone was afraid of Issei getting hurt, the Hollow possessing him showed no such fear. Instead, he simply smirks and swings the Scale Blade upwards the very moment in gets close to impaling his skull.

As everyone watched, it looked to them as if the spear had gone past his whole body. But as it travels five feet away from Issei's back, the spear gets split in two, followed by an explosion of light that destroys the spear in its entirety.

This left Kokabiel, the Devils, Rukia, and Xenovia shocked. The way Issei swung his sword was with little effort, and it was strong enough to destroy Kokabiel's spear.

"Is that all you got, old man?"

Kokabiel remained speechless. As he observed Issei further, he saw that there was no fear or hesitation in his Hollowfied eyes as his grin remained intact.

"Wh… Why you-"

Issei vanished without a trace from Kokabiel's sight before he could finish his sentence. Immediately after this, he felt pain building up from his back before it became excruciating to the point where it forced him to howl. Wondering what was going on, he turned around and gasped to notice a puddle of blood behind him.

And behind that splatter was the Hollowfied Issei, standing in front of him with a psychotic smile as he revealed to Kokabiel one of his wings caught in the Scale Blade's clutches with blood dripping from the blade.

"You bastard..!" Kokabiel snarls in rage and pain. "You ripped off one of my wings!"

Hollow Issei laughs before bringing the wing in front of himself.

"Oh, Issei, I bet you didn't know that the Scale Blade could also tear off certain appendages. But now, you do, thanks to your noble steed~!"

The Hollowfied Issei swings the sword to his right, tossing aside the severed wing and having it clatter towards the Devils, Rukia, and Xenovia, who stare at it in horror before they look back at the fight.

"Why you…" Kokabiel gets angry before creating two spears with one in each hand. "I'll kill you where you stand!"

Kokabiel thrusts one of his spears at Issei, but he effortlessly dodges it. The Fallen Angel got annoyed and then tries to slit his throat, but with a quick step back, the attack was avoided.

"Grrrrrrrrr! Damn you!"

Kokabiel continued his barrage of attacks. But because of how easy it was for Hollow Issei to dodge them all, he gave his opponent a mocking smirk as he crossed his arms in front of himself and continued what started to feel like a dance to him.

Rukia, Xenovia, and the Gremory Devils continued to watch Kokabiel constantly fail to land a hit on Issei. From how he was able to dodge them without even putting up a fighting position, as well as how he was looking at Kokabiel, they could tell that he was toying with him. It even got to the point where the Hollow possessing him pretended to yawn in his hand while keeping his eyes on the Fallen Angel.

"What's the matter, war fetishist? Didn't you just say that you've slain dozens of Hollows?" Issei's grin widens. "Or is this little Visored too quick for ya~?"

Kokabiel's eye twitches.

"You… Don't you mock me, you low-class-!"

Issei disappears from his sight again. Kokabiel circled to look for him, but from what the others saw, Issei just kept appearing behind him every time he turned. He kept this up for a few more of Kokabiel's maneuvers before Issei tore off another wing with the Scale Blade.

Kokabiel screams as more blood spurts from his back. He almost fell over before he started to regain balance. But as soon as he did, Hollow Issei speeds in front of him, dangling another one of his wings in front of him.

"You're too slow~ Wanna try again?"

Kokabiel's irises shrink. His hands even started shaking as he continued to watch Issei pluck some feathers off the wing before sprinkling them in front of his face.

'Wh… What is this..?' Kokabiel questions. 'Am I actually..?' Before he could finish that thought, he punched his own shoulder, making Hollow Issei cock a brow. 'No! I mustn't show fear! I am Kokabiel of the Cadre rank of Fallen Angels! I will not let this split personality Visored get the best of me! I will prove that my race is superior! I will prove that we are the strongest-' "ULP!"

Kokabiel was suddenly grabbed by the neck and lifted in the air by Hollow Issei. He tried to break himself free, but his grip was so tight, he could feel his windpipe about to get crushed.

"Sorry, old man," the Hollowfied Issei says while opening his left hand at Kokabiel. "I'd love to keep playing with you some more, but I'm not like the others where they tend to drag it out for as long as they please."

Everyone watches a red light appear in front of the palm of Issei's left hand before it slowly forms itself into a ball.

"A Cero!" Xenovia announces, much to everyone's horror as they could feel how powerful it was.

"Oh no!" Yuuto shouts. "If he shoots that attack, it won't matter if Kokabiel takes the brunt of it!"

"It'll very likely shatter the barrier!" Rukia finishes for him, causing everyone to panic.

"You know, it's kinda sad really," the Hollowfied Issei continued. "I actually expected a challenge, but in the end, you couldn't keep up. It's all bark and no bite." Issei's irises contract. "Looks like you've really overestimated yourself, didn't you?"

Kokabiel gasps as he sees the Cero get bigger. He tried to free himself, but the grip tightened with every attempt of a struggle.

"No… No! Damn you, Red Dragon Emperor!"

The Hollowfied Issei cackles at Kokabiel.

"You're not dealing with Issei anymore! That weakling doesn't even compare to me!"

With another round of laughter, Hollow Issei punches the Cero, launching the attack at Kokabiel point blank.

Everyone's jaws drop as the Cero engulfs Kokabiel, who screams in agony as it completely engulfs him while blasting him toward nearby trees. As the Fallen Angel and the attack come in contact with the first tree, it breaks apart into splinters while it collides with the rest of the trees, giving them the same fate.

Kokabiel and the launched Cero continued to go through those trees all the way toward the wall of the barrier. And as the others feared, the moment they collided with it, the barrier showed signs of wear as numerous cracks appeared on it.

Outside of the barrier, the Sitri Devils' eyes broadened as they felt the barrier get attacked. They used everything they could to keep the barrier stable, but the lack of magic from most of the Devils as well as whatever was causing the assault on the barrier was not making it easy.

The struggle to keep the barrier stable continued for what felt like hours, but they started to feel the attack on it finally settle down. Once it did, they were able to stabilize the barrier, but some of the Sitri Devils were nearly on the verge of passing out due to lack of magic power.

"What happened in there?!" Tsubaki asks, still bewildered by the powerful attack that was discharged.

"Whatever that was… you think they got him, or what?" Genshiro wondered, doing his best to stay awake.

Being as surprised as her servants, Sona also wanted to know just what happened in the area where it flared a bright red.

"Uh… Kaichou?" Sona and Tsubaki turn their heads towards Momo. "I don't know if it's just me, but… if I'm feeling this aura right, I think a Hollow somehow infiltrated the space inside the barrier!"

Everyone's eyes widen further when Momo dropped

"What?!" Tsubasa gave her a raised brow. "You sure?! How could one even get in here?!"

Reya chimed in next.

"You don't think the enemy somehow got a hold of one and set it loose on them, do you?!"

While the Sitri Devils continued to discuss and theorize the presence of a Hollow, Sona and Tsubaki remained silent, slowly turning their heads back to where the red blast was.

'No…' Out of the two, Tsubaki was the most paranoid. 'Please, don't let it be so…'

"Tsubaki..?" Sona looked over to her Queen, seeing how scared she was.

But before she could call to her again, Sona and Tsubaki heard faint maniacal laughter from across the area where the Gremory Devils were fighting the enemy, confirming their fears even further.

Back within the barrier, the Hollow possessing Issei continued to cackle with his head shot up at the moon while the black and white aura circled his entire body in violent waves.

Rukia, Xenovia, and the Gremory Devils watch on in horror, feeling how powerful Issei is getting because of his Hollow's control over his body. And while Rukia and Issei's friends want to help him break the mask off of him and bring him back to consciousness, Xenovia looked ready to combat the Hollowfied Issei, no matter how Rukia and his fellow Devils feel for him.

But even if she knew what needed to be done, Xenovia's body still shook, feeling the raw intensity of Issei's Hollow powers that continued to grow stronger and stronger, especially when she felt waves of it nearly strike one of her arms. And the way the Hollow was laughing didn't help much for her.

And Issei's Hollow continued to laugh away, his tongue sticking out while more white matter slowly appeared to build on more to his mask.

But suddenly, the black and white aura ceased its radiation and Issei's body stiffens, alarming Yuuto and the girls. A few more seconds go by before his left hand shakes, slowly going upwards before it quickly latches itself onto the Hollow mask.

The Hollow snarls as Issei's left hand continues to forcibly tug onto the mask while everyone else watches, their eyes filling with hope while Xenovia and Rukia witness another surprise for them.

"You…" The Hollow grunts as Issei's right hand grabs onto his left arm. "You're really going to interfere now?! You can't! If you chase me out now in your current condition, we'll die for sure!"

While this was yet another new discovery for Rukia and Xenovia, the Gremory Devils kept watching, mentally cheering Issei on to fight his inner Hollow.

"Dammit, Issei! Don't do it! The stupid old man's not dead yet! At least let me finish him!"

Issei continued to pull and pry at the Hollow mask. As he kept going, everyone could hear Issei's real voice returning while the mask started gaining cracks and his eyes slowly reverting to their original colors.

With a roar of agonizing pain and determination, Issei finally tore the Hollow mask off of his face. As soon as he did, his face shot up, continuing to scream as the black and white aura shot up from his face and reached the sky.

The Gremory Devils cringe for their comrade, remembering this scene exactly how it played out back in the Rating Game, while Rukia and Xenovia watch on with wide eyes, with the former wanting to approach Issei to help him.

The aura finally stopped fuming from Issei's face. Once it was all gone, Issei slowly fell to his knees and his left hand dropped his Hollow mask.

Issei's stare remained towards the sky with bulging eyes. He kept breathing heavily with sweat all over his face. His breathing started to shake as well as his entire body, knowing full well what happened to him.

With his face still facing the sky, his eyes slowly shift towards the Hollow mask on the ground. With his breathing starting to shiver, his brows slowly furrow and his irises contract, realizing that his worst fears have been confirmed.

His fists clenching, Issei turns his body towards the mask. Breathing faster and faster, Issei finally snaps.

"BASTARD!"

Everyone gasps when Issei punches his Hollow mask, his fist making harsh contact with the concrete as the object snaps in two.

"You could've let me fight with my own power..!" Issei hits the mask with his other fist, which also hits the ground. "You couldn't just stay put!" Issei punches the mask again, not caring if he also punches the ground. "YOU JUST COULDN'T LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!"

With rage and agony, Issei continued to punch the Hollow mask until it was completely destroyed. But even when the mask is nothing but white splinters, Issei continued to punch the ground where those pieces were, his hits going faster while he shouted out profanity and curses.

The Gremory Devils started to get worried for Issei, as he was now punching nothing but the ground. It was getting so bad that his knuckles were starting to bleed and get scraped up with every strike. But no matter how bad they were getting, he just kept punching, not appearing to be aware of the damage he was doing to himself.

Rias, Akeno, and Koneko's hearts writhe for Issei as he kept screaming and punching, and Yuuto was about ready to stop Issei before his hands could get in any worse shape. But just as he started to run to him, he was brought to a halt when Rukia sped to Issei and grabbed his wrists.

"STOP IT, ISSEI!" Rukia shouts for her friend.

Issei struggled while still in fury, so Rukia had to tighten her hold on him while trying to keep him still.

"Issei, it's okay! Look at me! Look at me, Issei!"

Issei kept scuffling until he finally started hearing Rukia's voice. As soon as he looked at her, Rukia gasped when she and everyone else saw tears welling up in his eyes.

"R… Rukia…"

"I know what you're going to say next, so don't," Rukia says before releasing Issei's arms to hold his cheeks and give him a comforting expression. "What matters now is that you're back in control."

"I know… I know… but…" Issei's words were silent as he was trying to suppress a sob, resulting in his tears finally rolling down her cheeks, a scene that hit the Gremory Devils in their hearts.

"Oh, Ise…" Rias whispered with her softened eyes on him.

Rukia was quick to get rid of Issei's tears.

"We'll figure it out, Issei. It may seem bad now, but I will make sure something is done about that Hollow." Rukia brings Issei into her arms, hugging him tightly. "And I'm not the only one. You also have your master, Rias Gremory, as well as your other friends and comrades to help keep it at bay until we get it under control."

Issei blinks at Rukia before slowly lifting his head towards his fellow Devils. They were all on the same page Rukia, nodding at Issei while the girls started to approach him, wanting to hug him next after Rukia let him go.

Xenovia watched the scene in surprise, seeing how traumatized Issei was after he was able to rip off the Hollow mask and regain control.

'Wow… to think that someone other than the Masked Exorcists would have such an unfortunate circumstance like this…'

"Hey, brat!"

Everyone's eyes broaden when they hear a familiar voice booming from afar. Turning their heads towards the source, their irises contract when they see a heavily wounded Kokabiel limping towards them while holding onto his left arm.

"… You missed a spot!"

Everyone was quick to get in front of Issei and prepare for combat, agitating the Fallen Angel further.

"You worms… How many times do I have to tell you how weak you all are?!" He glances over to Issei. "I see your Hollowfication has been undone. How disappointing."

Issei snarls at Kokabiel while reaching for his Scale Blade only for his hand to be stopped by Akeno.

"No, Ise-kun. You've suffered enough tonight."

"Akeno-san…"

Issei was about to respond, but Rukia spoke up first.

"You'll find anything that doesn't involve destruction and chaos a disappointment!"

Kokabiel scoffs at Rukia.

"Please. You could barely capture me in your ice during our last battle. And after seeing what you other fools can do, I doubt all of you can defeat me together!" Despite his injured state, Kokabiel laughs at them all while sprouting his eight remaining wings. "If only you had kept the mask on, Red Dragon Emperor, then maybe you would have slain me! And it was getting exciting, too!"

Issei's glare remained on Kokabiel while his allies were ready to face the Fallen Angel.

But before they or Kokabiel could make a move, they heard laughter from above them.

"So, it's excitement you want, huh?"

Everyone looks up in the sky towards the source of the new voice.

"Who's there?!" Kokabiel demands, only for him and everyone else to see large cracks forming above them.

The cracks continued to grow until they exploded into a large hole, shocking the Devils and Rukia and Xenovia. As they checked their surroundings, they gasped to see that the rest of the barrier was disintegrating, revealing the night sky's true color.

Upon further inspection, everyone could see a bright blue light slowly descending. That light would later fade away, revealing a person in white armor with a matching colored tail, blue gems and wings, and yellow eyes and

"That… That armor…" Issei stutters as he shivered just from this newcomer's presence alone. "It looks like…"

"…The Vanishing Dragon…"

Issei shot his head at Kokabiel when he heard him identify the armored individual by that name. He looks back at the figure to get a closer look at the armor, and judging by the design of the armor and the helmet, his irises slowly shrink as there is no questioning who that person is.

"Damn you…" Kokabiel snarls. "Has the Red One drawn you here, White Dragon Emperor?!"

The figure in the white armor didn't respond. Before Kokabiel could speak further, Issei gaspsed when he saw how fast he was approaching the Fallen Angel. He could barely keep track of him, but he did manage to catch him going behind Kokabiel.

And the moment he blinked, he along with everyone else watch in stupor as the Vanishing Dragon rips off two of Kokabiel's wings, leaving him with six left.

The Fallen Angel shrieks as blood spurts from his back, making the Vanishing Dragon chuckle at the sight.

"He's quick!" Issei says.

"Not even I could keep up with him," Yuuto adds.

"These wings look like they belong to a filthy crow," The Vanishing Dragon speaks. "Azazel's wings are much darker, like an eternal void."

Kokabiel turns around to face the Vanishing Dragon.

"You brat… Just what are you after?!"

"There's no need for a man who has fallen below the ground to have wings," The warrior states in a matter-of-fact tone.

Kokabiel was enraged and immediately took flight to reach the Vanishing Dragon's level. He then creates the largest spear he can conjure up. But due to the injuries he sustained by Issei when he was Hollowfied, he could only make one the size of a tower.

"You will pay!"

Kokabiel throws the spear at the Vanishing Dragon, but the latter does not seem fazed as he simply lifts his hand toward the incoming weapon of light.

{Divide!}

This audible call was made from the warrior's wings as they flashed a lighter blue. As the spear got closer, it began to shrink in size, stunning Kokabiel and everyone else watching until it popped into nothing.

"The Dragon residing in my Sacred Gear is Albion," the warrior explains. "This Gear is called Divine Dividing. It halves the power of whoever I touch every ten seconds and gives that power to me."

Issei grits his teeth, making sure to keep this information locked in his head in case he were to come for him later.

"You'll be weaker than an ordinary human soon," the Vanishing Dragon continues. "And strangely enough, it won't quite be a full win for me, as the Red one did half of the work on you."

While Issei kept his stare on the Vanishing Dragon, Rias, Akeno, and Rukia looked between the two with shocked expressions.

"The Red Dragon Emperor doubles its host's power and gives it to someone," Rias starts.

"While the White Dragon Emperor halves its enemy's power and gives that half to its host," Akeno finishes with both her and her friend being astonished to witness this power in person.

"Well, looks like the legends are true," Rukia tells the two while still staying close to Issei.

Lowering his hand, the Vanishing Dragon gets ready to finish Kokabiel.

"How boring. Even in your state, I thought you'd put up a better fight because of how much you love war."

Flying towards Kokabiel, the Vanishing Dragon punches him right in the gut. The strike was so strong, it caused the Fallen Angel to spit up blood.

"You stepped too far out of your league. And so, Azazel asked me to bring you back at all costs."

With his fist still in his stomach, the Vanishing Dragon flies further and faster before zooming across the sky like a shooting star before going high up in the sky and going back down, sending him to the ground.

"No! NO!" Despite his struggles, Kokabiel was unable to escape the warrior's grasp as they got further and further to the ground. "DAMN YOU, AZAZEL!"

Kokabiel is slammed into the ground, creating a massive crater from the impact forcing the others to cover their faces as smoke was shooting from said crater.

While this was happening, the Sitri Devils who were just recovering from the barrier's destruction took notice of a yellow magic circle rising up to the sky, stunning them as they knew that it was part of the barrier. As soon as it nearly touched the clouds, the yellow circle faded away without a trace.

"The Magic Circle's power is diminishing!" Tsubaki says.

"Does that mean Rias and the others won?" Sona wondered.

While Sona's servants were wondering the same thing, Tsubaki brought her attention somewhere else in the area, remembering the feeling of a Hollow's presence and that terrifying laugh that followed. Just thinking about made her want to go down there and check on Issei right now.

'Issei-kun…'

It took a while for the smoke to die down, revealing the Vanishing Dragon standing on top of the knocked-out Kokabiel.

"I have some questions for that Stray Exorcist as well," He says before flying over to the frozen but unconscious Freed, getting in front of Issei in the process.

This causes Issei's shivering to increase with his left arm shaking the harshest. As he watched him take the Stray Exorcist out of the ice prison, he tried his best to remain calm.

{Are you ignoring my presence, White One?}

Issei jumps when he hears Ddraig's voice from his left hand, making him and the white-armored warrior look over to the source of the voice. When Issei had a look, his eyes widened when he saw that the green gem and the gem alone was what merged from the top of his left hand, and the gauntlet did not fully form.

{So you are awake, Red One.} The White Dragon's voice boomed with every shine of Divine Dividing's wings.

{This is quite a strange time for us to meet, is it not?}

{Indeed, but it's no problem. No matter the time, we're destined to face each other. Coincidences like this do tend to happen.}

While it is unknown how the White Dragon's host is feeling from inside the helmet, Issei remains stern while the Gremory Devils worry for him.

"Dammit, why now?" Rukia asks while gripping her sword tightly. "Prophecies like these really piss me off!"

{The strangest thing about this meeting is that I sense no hostility from you, Ddraig.}

{Nor do I sense any from you, Albion. Even my host has no interest in our duels. Whether that plays into it or not, I'm not so sure.}

While Albion hummed with intrigue, his host lightly tilted his head at Issei, getting the latter a little startled.

{Well, either way, let's meet again soon, Ddraig.}

{Yes, Albion. Let's.}

After hearing the two dragons no longer conversing for a few seconds, the warrior turns around to collect Kokabiel next.

"Hold it!"

The warrior pauses his movements and turns his head back towards Issei, whose green gem vanished from his left hand.

Issei takes two steps forward and clenches his fists, causing some blood to leak because of him punching the ground earlier.

"I… I don't know who you are, but…" Issei was silent for a moment before he finally found the words he was looking for. "Do you see me as an enemy solely because I carry Boosted Gear?!"

This question got everyone surprised. They knew the inevitable legend that the Red and White dragons would soon clash, but for Issei to ask such a question…

The warrior in the white armor was silent for what felt to Issei like a long time before he responded.

"You need power to understand the whole truth."

Issei raised a brow at the Vanishing Dragon before he got irritated.

"That doesn't answer my question!" he snaps before his eyes go towards the ground. "I just… I just don't want to fight a pointless battle over a rivalry that both of our dragons have no recollection of how it started and why they fought each other in the first place! Do we really have to fight to the death when there's something better we can do with our lives?!"

The warrior remained silent after Issei finished what he said. While he was, the others who listened were left amazed by Issei's questioning. They completely understood where he was coming from, and because Issei was someone they respect and come to care for, they too would like the idea of these two not being sworn enemies.

However, their thoughts were interrupted by the warrior's sudden round of chuckling, which annoyed Issei greatly.

"You and I are warriors, Red Dragon Emperor. No matter the situation, we'll have no choice but to fight. And you… you're a very interesting host for the Welsh Dragon."

Issei growls.

"Just what do you find so interesting about me?!"

"Is it not obvious? Not only can you weaponize your black and white aura and have acquired the Scale Blade for yourself, but you also carry the power of a Hollow; power that would've allowed you to defeat Kokabiel if you kept the mask on."

"Don't talk about my Hollow," Issei warns with a deadly glare. "That wasn't me! That was NOT ME!"

Vali chuckles again while the others can feel the pain and frustration in Issei's voice.

"Perhaps. But from what I've observed before intervening…"

"What are you getting at?!"

Issei's brows furrow as he watches the warrior pick up Kokabiel and lift him over his shoulder with the Exorcist over his other shoulder.

"As I've stated before, you need power to understand the whole truth." After he said that, A bright blue light emits off the Vanishing Dragon. "Until then, get stronger, for we are destined to face each other someday."

"Wait!" Issei shouts out. "Did you forget my questions?! Are you going to fight me solely because I'm the Red Dragon Emperor?!"

As Issei was running towards him, the Vanishing Dragon took off, flying away towards his next objective.

Issei watched the Vanishing Dragon fly away, slowly growing more agitated by the second.

"That's enough, Issei." Issei felt a hand gently grab his wrists. Turning his head, he saw that it was Rukia who approached him. "If you keep this up, the wounds on your knuckles will open."

Issei kept his stare on Rukia for a moment before slowly nodding and looking back up into the sky where the Vanishing Dragon took off.

While he was doing so, Rias and Akeno were looking at that same spot. Now that the White Dragon Emperor as made his presence known, they knew it was a matter of time until he would want to face Issei again. And no matter what, they will make sure they stay by his side.

"Rias!" the redhead in question along with Akeno turns around and sees Sona walking over to her with her servants behind her.

"Sona!"

"I never thought the White Dragon Emperor would show up here," Sona says with her servants sharing a surprised expression.

"Well, he did save us, as well as the city," Rias resumes. "Whether it was intentional or not will remain a mystery."

"Indeed." Sona agrees before walking closer to Rias and leaning towards her ear. "Also, one of my servants sensed a Hollow's presence. Was it..?"

Rias' eyes broaden at her friend before they soften before she sighs.

"It was Ise. It took him over when Kokabiel was about to kill him."

It was now Sona's turn to be shocked. Tsubaki was also stunned as she listened in the moment she heard Issei's name.

"Well, it's a miracle he was able to stop it again. Your Pawn has a very strong will, Rias."

Rias nods with Sona, but from how he acted right after he got the mask off, she could tell that the takeover was affecting him greatly.

The four third-year girls took this moment to look over T Issei and they saw that he was still staring up into the sky with a mix of emotions while Rukia remained by his side.

Tsubaki could see the conflict within Issei's eyes, from both his Hollow's takeover and the Vanishing Dragon's appearance. But then, she noticed something on Issei's hands and gasped to see his bloody knuckles that would occasionally have a drop of blood fall from the wounds.

Tsubaki brings a hand over to her heart, feeling the pain he was possibly in because of what happened. So, with a serious expression, she began to walk over to him with the other third-years watching her.

As she got close, Tsubaki put a hand on Issei's shoulder. He jumped at first, but calmed down a bit when he saw who it was.

"Tsu-… Shinra-senpai..?"

"What are you thinking about right now?"

Issei was perplexed by that question as was Rukia. Issei looks back up at the sky for a bit before his head lowers.

"I… I don't know anymore…" He answers bluntly. "First I lose control of the Hollow, and now, I have to put up with someone who will likely hunt me because of this Heavenly Dragon Prophecy bullshit. I… I…" Issei starts to grumble, unable to find any other words to say. "Dammit! Why..? Why does it have to-"

Before he could start ranting, Issei was suddenly trapped in Tsubaki's arms, surprising Rukia, Rias, Akeno, Sona, and the Sitri Devils watching.

"Don't let it eat your mind up too much. After all, you're not alone in your struggles. I'm sure that's something your master and the others made clear the first time your Hollow emerged."

Issei's eyes glint at Tsubaki.

"I know, but…"

Tsubaki flicks Issei's forehead, catching him off guard.

"No buts. Focus on the future and stay strong. We're here for you. We always are."

Issei lightly gasps with some pink developing in his cheeks.

"Couldn't have said it better myself, miss." Tsubaki looked over to Rukia, who was smiling at her before setting her attention on Issei. "Stop overthinking stuff too much. If you're afraid to lose, then get stronger. If you want to protect those you love and care for, then do what you have to do to protect them. If the Hollow within you develops a strong will to consume your mind, then get strong enough to crush it and put it in its place."

Rukia pauses to push her fist against Issei's chest.

"And even if no one in the world believes in you… stick out your chest and scream in defiance! The Issei I know is that kind of man! A Man who will continue to press on no matter the odds!"

Issei's eyes slowly go wide at Rukia with Tsubaki being impressed by her.

The young man pondered her words. Although he still has concerns about his Hollow going rampant, he knows that he can't stay afraid forever. If it's a fight his Hollow wants, then it's a fight he will get.

Plus, he remembered Sirzechs telling him about a group of people that could help him control his Hollow. But how much longer it will take, he isn't sure. But he hopes it's before he'll have to put up with the White Dragon Emperor.

With all of this in mind, Issei closes his eyes and releases a soft round of laughter. He then gently removes Rukia's fist from him before opening one eye towards his childhood friend.

"… You still don't know when to shut up, do you, Rukia?"

Rukia grins with narrowed eyes, seeing that Issei was feeling a bit better.

Issei nods at Tsubaki in thanks before he picks up his sword and sheathes it. After that, he started to walk towards Rias, who was still amazed by Rukia's words as was everyone else.

"Buchou!" Breathing in through his nose and out of his mouth, he bows his head towards the redhead. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble earlier. From now, I'll get stronger, both physically, and especially mentally. And…" While still bowing, Issei lifts his head to make eye contact with Rias. "… I won't let anyone hurt you or anyone else!"

Rias' eyes remain widened at her Pawn. She could see that the fire returned into his eyes, full of determination and newfound resolve after that pep talk he had with Rukia.

She was glad Issei was like this, as was Akeno, Yuuto, and Koneko, all of whom were grateful to Rukia for having pushed him in the right direction.

"Thank you, Ise," Rias says before hugging him. "But it's us who need to do the same. We're here for you. Always."

"Thanks."

Sona smiles at the sight, glad that everything has worked out well in the end as she watches Rias release Issei.

"Right, Tsubaki," Sona starts while pushing up her glasses and seeing her Queen return. "Let's repair the school. We should be done by the morning."

Tsubaki nodded in affirmative while Rias walked to Sona.

"Please, allow us to help."

"That won't be necessary, Rias. The Student Council maintains the school."

While Sona gathered her servants to get started on repairs, Yuuto peered at his new sword with narrowed eyes.

"Is it all over?" He wondered aloud to himself. "It's likely that someone else has taken up that man's research."

"Yuuto!" The blonde knight turns his head to Issei as the latter walks up to him. "So, that's a Holy Demonic sword? Looks awesome!"

Yuuto blinks at Issei before his expression turns remorseful, recalling everything involving the Holy Swords and his grudge.

"Issei… I-"

"Let's forget the little things," Issei interrupted, knowing exactly what Yuuto was going to say. "Just take a break from the whole Holy Swords crap and use this moment to relax, okay." Laughing softly, Issei stretches his arms while yawning. "Damn, after everything that's happened lately, I think I'm ready to go home and crash."

Even though he said that, Issei still kept his Inner Hollow and the Vanishing Dragon in his head. With his eyes back on the ground, he knew what he had to be prepared for. But if he was going to face the White Dragon Emperor if he really had to fight him, then he needed to do something about that Hollow.

And until a way to control his Hollow powers is presented to him like Sirzechs promised him, he'll stay strong and continue to keep his Inner Hollow at bay until the opportunity to get rid of it arrives.

But then, Issei felt his hands grabbed by someone. Looking to see who it was, his eyes broadened to see Asia, healing his knuckles after she had recently woken up from her shock over the revelation of God's fate.

"Asia… How are you holding up?"

Asia strokes a thumb across the top of his hand.

"To be honest, Ise-san, I'm still heartbroken that God has passed away. And…. Well, it will definitely take some time to adjust to this revelation, but for now, there's something else I need to know that's also important." Breathing steadily to be calmer, Asia looks over to Yuuto. "Kiba-san, will you come back to the club?"

"A… Asia-san…"

Issei watched Yuuto get a little flustered by Asia before he gave Asia a reassuring smile, prompting Issei to smile as well as he watched Koneko join them in the conversation.

'Well, we did it,' Issei thought while putting his hands in his pockets. 'Everyone's okay, and the city is safe. That's all that matters to me right now.'

Issei then looks over to Rukia, who also sets her stare on him.

"So, what now?"

"Well, I'm heading back with Xenovia to the church. Something tells me what will happen next will be pretty crazy."

"Crazy how?"

Rukia sighs while pushing a bang of her hair.

"God's dead, Issei. And knowing this particular church Xenovia's involved in, this news won't be so pleasant. Hell, I doubt that church will believe it."

Issei understood where she was coming from and sighs with her.

"Well, whatever happens, I'll wish you the best."

"Thanks, but I'm more worried about what will happen to Xenovia since she too heard it straight from Kokabiel's mouth."

"What? Will she be painted as a Heretic and call her recollection blasphemous and a lie?"

"That's one of my guesses," Rukia replies before looking over to Xenovia, who seems to be in her own thoughts right now. "Anyway, I better go back to her. I'll try what I can to not have her deal with any unreasonable consequences."

As Rukia was moving, Issei was quick to call out to her.

"Wait, hold up!" Rukia stopped walking when she heard her friend. "What about after you're done? Will you..?"

Rukia looks at Issei for a moment before closing her eyes.

"Sorry, but it'll be a while before I see you again. I have more missions than to babysit Exorcists."

"But… but we just got to meet again! And…" Issei's eyes widen as he recalls something else. "The… The Spiritual Knights! Earlier, you called yourself a Spiritual Knight! What exactly are you?!"

Rukia's eyes broaden, just now remembering what she's spoken during her fight against Freed. She then looks up at the sky for a moment before deciding to tell him.

"I'm a human who can not only use magic, but can also use Spiritual Power to not only increase and enhance my natural power, but to sense the souls of other beings as well."

Issei was surprised by her explanation. It would make sense if it was just a nickname of sorts for a type of sorcerer, but when he heard what she said, it was pretty crazy to him.

Some of it even sounded familiar to him. From the term Spiritual Knight from a time his memory is scattered on to being able to sense other people with his own ability he named Soul Radar.

As Rukia's explanation kept playing in his head, he was left with more questions than answers. And Rukia could see that, so she got closer to him and placed a hand on his cheek.

"Hey, what did I tell you about overthinking things?"

"R… Rukia…"

With a small smile, Rukia rubbed Issei's cheek with her thumb while her own was turning a warm red.

"Don't worry. We'll meet again soon," she assures Issei before getting closer, bringing him into another hug. "For what it's worth, I'm glad that I got to see you again."

Issei gasps at his friend. He wished that she could stick around for a little longer, but he understood that she had her life and her missions.

"Yeah… me too."

Issei and Rukia remained embraced for a few more moments, making every second count since they were both unsure how long it would be until they meet again. Satisfied, they release each other, allowing Rukia to walk over to Xenovia while still looking at Issei, giving him a peace sign.

"See you later, okay, Issei?"

Issei nods at Rukia while waving a hand. But as she turns her head away from him, his smile drops to a frown.

Before he could sulk any further, Issei felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to see it was Rias.

As he got a look at her face, from her smile to her warm eyes, Issei could already get the message from her and his smile returned, only smaller than before.

After she nods at him, Rias has one more thing to take care of and looks towards a certain blonde Knight.

"Yuuto."

"Buchou?" The man in question turns over to Rias, giving her his full attention.

"Thank you for coming back," Rias says with gratefully. "You were even able to achieve Balance Breaker. I could never ask for more from my servant."

Yuuto was stunned by his master's words. Even after what he has done, Rias still sees him as her Knight with no problems.

With a stern and motivated expression, Yuuto kneels before Rias with his new sword still in his grip.

"Buchou… I turned my back on my fellow club members and you, my savior. An apology is surely not enough for what I have committed."

Rias' kind expression didn't waver.

"Nevertheless you came back. That's all I needed. All I ask of you now is to embrace your friendships, and trust your comrades."

Yuuto looks up at Rias, still silent because of how forgiving she was to him.

With tears on the verge of producing, Yuuto stays strong as he speaks up.

"Buchou, I will pledge here once again," he starts as the grip of his sword gets tighter. "I, Yuuto Kiba, will serve as Rias Gremory's kin and Knight, and protect you and your allies until the end of my life!"

Rias' smile grows as she walks over to Yuuto. She gently grabs his head before she hugs it onto her chest tenderly.

"Thank you, Yuuto."

Issei smiles at Yuuto while crossing his arms in front of his chest, satisfied with this outcome just as much as everyone else was.

'Welcome back, buddy.'

"Now then, Yuuto."

The Devils watch Rias lift a hand up before a giant magic circle appears above it. Everyone already knew what it was, Yuuto especially as he started to sweat.

"Uh… Buchou?"

"It's time for your punishment," Rias says with a bright smile. "One thousand spankings should be enough for atonement."

"Wh-Wh-What?!" Yuuto's face pales at his master as he subconsciously takes a step back.

He darts his head all around his surroundings until he finds his stare on Issei, who shrugs with the left side of his lips curled upwards.

"Hey, don't look at me. You're on your own, dude."

With some sweat dripping from his forehead, Yuuto looks back at Rias and sees that she's walking towards him. Swallowing a lump, the blonde Knight realized that there was no escape.

While this was all happening, Xenovia observed the scene and found it quite odd and surprising. From her church's teachings, she was told that all Devils were evil and had no mercy or sympathy. But from what she has watched, she saw what was quite the opposite, both from when she fought together with them against Kokabiel and when the Gremory Devils were interacting with each other.

These Devils acted friendly, caring, and compassionate with each other. They share sympathy as well as willing to aid those who aren't one of them like herself and Rukia. And as she continued to watch these Devils, it left Xenovia with a deep thought.

But as she was processing this further, she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned her head to see Rukia.

"Is it that surprising to you?"

Xenovia raises a brow.

"What do you mean."

Rukia snorts.

"I'm talking about those Devils not being as cruel or sinister as you expected them to be."

Xenovia blinks at Rukia before shifting her eyes towards the ground.

"Well… It definitely is something…"

Rukia shakes her head at her before patting the woman on the back.

"Come on. It's time to go."

Xenovia nods at Rukia and follows her back to the church.

On their way, Rukia speaks up again.

"So, how are you feeling right now?"

Xenovia turns her head to Rukia.

"About what exactly?"

"About God's demise."

Xenovia's hand twitches. A mix of emotions rang across her mind as she was finally able to process the prior events of the battle as well as that revelation.

"It… It's still very difficult to accept this truth. There's still a part of me that wants to think that he's lying, but…"

Xenovia's voice quaked for a bit, finding herself unable to finish her sentence.

Rukia puts her hand on her back again to calm her down.

"It's okay. I'll help you get through this."

Xenovia's eyes broaden towards Rukia. Despite all that's happened, and that Rukia technically wasn't on the church's side, she was still willing to support her.

"Thank you," Xenovia says, calming down a bit. "But it's not just that that I'm worried about."

"I know," Rukia nods. "And as soon as we get back, I'll vouch for you as much as I can so you can avoid a bad outcome."

Xenovia's smile widens. She was glad that she found herself acquainted with Rukia.

"Thank you, Rukia-sama."

"No problem," she replies before playfully punching her shoulder. "And for the last time, drop the Sama suffix."

Xenovia gasps a bit before she looks away with some embarrassment.

"Right. Sorry…"

Rukia giggles.

"It's okay, it's okay."

While the two girls continued their path to the church Xenovia is affiliated with, Rukia took one last glance back towards Issei, who was looking away from Yuuto and Rias as the latter was getting ready to spank her Knight, and softened her eyes towards him, hoping that one day, preferably sooner, that the two will meet again.

To be continued in the next Chapter: "A New Recruit and some R&R."

Issei's current harem (In no particular order): Tsubaki, Akeno, Yoruichi, Rukia, Rias, Asia, Koneko, Tsubasa, Ravel, Xenovia, Irina, Raynare, Kalawarner, Mittelt, Aika, Murayama, Kiyome.

Until next time, folks~!