The Strongest of their Generation

Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of I'm Too Sober For This! As you've no doubt guessed we had a slight delay due to the holidays, Happy Thanksgiving by the way, but we made it just in time for the weekend. And I realized I haven't done this in a while so I'd like to give a shout out to my beta readers Thirdfang, Pyromania101, and Steeler Steelix! Also, if you've got a moment do check out my Pat reon and see about becoming a patron! Oh, and to answer some of Goteam's questions, there are multiple types of Twice Criticals like Siegfried's which gives him an extra arm, as for the nicknames I know we've at least been using Enabler 2.0 but I will admit to forgetting about it from time to time as it's more Thirdfang's thing, and at the moment it's unlikely we'll have other characters crossing over from GAIWP unless someone can think up a good plot thread or a funny scenario. Now then I believe that's everything, so on to the story!

The Rating Games Arena: Private Box

"I suppose you should be proud." The otherworld Issei commented as we watched the last of Seekvaira's Peerage retire along with their King, marking Sona and the rest of her Peerage as the winners. "That fight was over so quickly I didn't even have time for a bathroom break."

"I know I'm at least happy with the progress they've made." I replied. "It would've been embarrassing if they hadn't improved at least a little after all the training I put them through."

"You got Enabler 2.0 into a tracksuit, that's an achievement in and of itself." Issei shrugged. "Anyway, shouldn't you be getting ready? You're up in a few minutes against Sairaorg. In my world he was no pushover, and it doesn't look like much has changed here."

"Believe me, I noticed." I responded, my face turning serious. "Not many can knock down a whole castle from a distance with the force of a Touki-infused punch. I've been considering plans and strategies to use for a while now."

"Anything solid?" He inquired with mild curiosity.

"Pull out an earth-splitting weapon or two and go from there. It's been a pretty successful strategy so far."

"If you have the time to pull it off at least." Issei reminded. "Close-ranged fighters have a tendency of knowing when to blitz an opponent that's pulling off an ultimate. Pretend you're fighting a smaller Berserker that doesn't yell as much. Personally, I'd suggest tripping him up with Enkidu at some point to mix things up and buy some time if he's pressing you. Just remember not to use Unlimited Blade Works and cuck the audience out of a show. Thanks to that ancient prick Zekram Bael, people have to see you defeating strong opponents in order to prove your worth this time."

There was something laced in his tone when talking about the unofficial leader of the Bael family. Something that did not give me a pleasant feeling.

"It's unlikely I'll forget." I shrugged, taking his comment about Enkidu into consideration. "You, Sona, and everyone else has seen fit to remind me about it so far."

"Then I look forward to whatever crazy bullshit you're gonna think up for this fight." The otherworlder made a lazy wave as I exited the room and started down the hall. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was a little worried about my chances. In all honesty, he had a couple of good reasons to be concerned. Unlike the majority of participants in the Young Devil's Gathering, Sairaorg Bael was on another level.

It was ironic, in a way. Unlike most Devils, he had been born without his clan's inherited magical ability—or any magic at all, for that matter. The only thing he had going for him was his body, which he honed into a lethal instrument through years of intensive training. Now he stood as one of the most well-versed users of Touki in his generation, able to pummel entire Peerages into submission with his raw strength. In fact, I don't think I came across a single instant in his previous battles where he had to rely on any weapon other than his fists.

'Well, I guess we'll see if that changes today.' I mused to myself. Oddly, a small smile spread across my features as I remembered one important detail: this could be the moment, the moment when I announced to the Underworld my intentions.

"My lord." Xenovia's voice broke me from my thoughts. I had to look down because she was kneeling along with my four Pawns. "We are ready to engage in battle."

"Xenovia is, anyway." Asia noted. "I'm just here to play doctor if you actually get hurt this time."

"That is a possibility." I admitted. "Either way, I'll be bringing you all along this time. But, I'll have to ask that you stay back when I engage Sairaorg."

"We have no intention of interfering with your battle." Ramiel assured. "Simply trust us to ensure none of Sairaorg's Peerage attempts to do the same."

"I doubt they'd be dumb enough to get in our way." I commented. "But it is reassuring knowing you've all got my back."

"We are your sworn comrades to the very end!" Xenovia declared as she stood up and produced Clarent. "Now let us go forth! To Victory!" She strode forward confidently with the rest of us following behind.

Fortunately, I had confiscated the coconut shells Issei had given her earlier so she wouldn't simulate me riding on horseback in public. Again.

With any luck, she would forget about the things soon enough… so long as Issei didn't give her another set behind everyone's backs. Again.

'At least one of us is enthusiastic about this match.' I mused while walking across the long stretch from the waiting room to the teleportation circle. As we did, I mentally sifted through my inventory for the best weapons to use against someone like Sairaorg.

I'd unfortunately been too busy during training to really study the capabilities of Touki save for one conversation I managed to have with Sun Wukong. In simple terms, Touki was basically a minor branch of the Senjutsu arts where one wielded their own life force to create a protective aura around their body which also greatly enhanced their physical abilities. Almost a pseudo self-reinforcement in functionality.

At least, in most circumstances.

In the case of my opponent, Sairaorg awakened his ability to use Touki not through Senjutsu, but years of highly intense physical training. The good news about that was he probably couldn't use any of the projectile-based attacks I'd seen Shirone or Kuroka use.

The bad news, his skin would be stupid tough to penetrate with anything less than a fine weapon that may or may not even include divine weapons depending on his mastery. The trick would be figuring out just how fine a weapon I'd need to use without throwing the audience into a potential frenzy and myself into another political shitstorm.

But before I could think any further on the matter, I was broken from my thoughts by a very excited voice.

"Yay Shirou!" Serafall cheered while standing right next to the door to the teleportation circle. "You can do it! Go carve up that overgrown bodybuilder!"

"Sera?" I squeaked, quickly noting she had changed into her magical girl outfit, with pom-poms in her hands. Well, at least she wasn't in full cheerleader regalia. "I… aren't you supposed to be in your private box right now?"

"And miss the chance to wish my Shi-chan good luck?" The magical girl Maou laughed. "Not a chance!"

"You really don't have to, though." I pointed out. "Sairaorg's tough, but I promise I'll be f—"

"You still need work on lying." Serafall critiqued while holding a finger up. "Most people can't tell, but I know you well enough to recognize when you're a little nervous. So I dropped by with a little incentive."

"I feel like I'd actually do better without whatever incen—" I paused when the short girl was suddenly in my personal space. Before I could get a word out, I felt her lips press lightly against my cheek.

"Fight well, my Shi-chan." She whispered in my ear before pulling away. "And good luck."

The Maou then skipped off happily before teleporting away.

I stared at the place where she had been for several seconds, my brain apparently still working to catch up with what just happened. I didn't realize just how long I'd been staring until Xenovia snapped me out of my daze.

"Your mistress is really quite something." My Knight complimented with a smile.

"Gah, Serafall's just being Serafall." I rubbed the back of my head, already knowing this would be an annoyance later.

The mini Serafall on my shoulder clearly disagreed with my statement if her flailing at my skull was any indication.

"Hey Shirou." Asia spoke up. "Do you know if Serafall punishes people in her Peerage for losing?"

"If she does it won't be anything terrible." I assured. "She'd probably just—" I stopped speaking as I realized how horribly wrong I probably was. Why hadn't I seen it sooner? If we lost, she'd probably dress us all up as magical girls! "You know what, don't even worry about it. Now let's get in there and win this thing!"

Xenovia and Asia cheered, thankfully oblivious to my sudden shift in mood as we entered the room and stepped inside the teleportation circle. In a single flash of light, we found ourselves standing in the chosen arena which was, perhaps, the most unique one yet.

I say unique because, unlike the others, it wasn't an earthen biome or a suburban area. It was a large field of mist overlooked by a dark, starry sky and what appeared to be an eclipsed sun hanging over it. As for what passed for our fortress, it was a short stone obelisk with a table and some chairs surrounded by a stone wall that stood only about waist high.

'Guess they figured a normal fortress would get blown up by one of us.' I mused at the lack of effort put into this particular setup. In their defense, the stage hands were probably right on that account.

"Xenovia." I began, and my Knight snapped to attention. "You and the others guard Asia. I'll take care of the rest."

"None shall pass this day." She declared while planting her sword in the ground.

"If you win, I'll get out the extra-special beer I've been hiding!" Asia promised.

I probably would have interrogated her about where and how she acquired a secret stash of beer, but I decided to worry about that later. For now, I had an opponent to face. With a final nod I stepped through the opening in the stone wall and proceeded forward at a regular walking pace.

It didn't take me long to spot the towering form of my opponent: Sairaorg Bael. He was counted among the young Devils but you wouldn't know it just by looking at him. His muscular body towered over most other competitors his age. Even I had to look slightly up at him as we stopped with just a few feet between us.

"A pleasure to finally meet you, Shirou Emiya." He greeted, his violet eyes observant and calculating. "It's a shame we never got a chance to properly talk before all of this."

"Trust me, being a Maou's Queen keeps one busy." I responded. "I don't know if we'll even have time to speak after this."

"Yes, running a Peerage is a full-time job." Sairaorg looked like he would have laughed in any other situation. "So let's speak with something besides words, shall we?"

The air then grew heavy as a sudden wind kicked up in response to the fighter's immense Touki radiating from his body. At the same time, I reinforced my body to its maximum while summoning Bakuya and Kanshou to my hands.

In the next instant, a shockwave rang out as fist met blade in what I knew would be the first of many traded blows. Immediately, I could see that Issei's analogy comparing my opponent to Berserker held more weight than I had initially assumed.

Sparks flew, Sairaorg roared, and the air rang with the harmonic sound of my blades as I blocked and dodged around my larger opponent.

Naturally, I employed the strategy I often used when fighting with my favored twin blades by intentionally leaving an opening from time to time and waited for my enemy to try and exploit it. Whenever he did, I batted his fist away with one blade while striking with the other. It took him by surprise the first time as I managed to slash part of his shirt off on his left side.

The next few times weren't as successful. His blows became heavier and harder to deflect the ways I wanted. He just barely dodged the next counter I threw, then slammed his elbow down to disrupt the follow-up, and finally caught both my arms in mid-attack after that.

I was glad for the reinforcement on my body because I still felt it when he nailed me in the side with a powerful kick that sent me sliding back several feet.

I responded by throwing both of my blades, which he batted aside while charging at me. Thankfully, I'd planned for that and leapt forward with a new sword in hand.

The young Devil was taken by surprise by my newfound speed, losing a few hairs as he moved his head out of the way just in time. He managed to catch a glimpse of my current sword, Excalibur Rapidly, before I landed and sped around to another blind spot.

It admittedly still sickened me to my core to wield such a half-hearted splinter of the true Excalibur, let alone call it that. However, I could not deny its practical use, given my opponent.

Sairaorg was put on the defensive, doing everything he could to block or just barely evade each attack as I circled and struck at random intervals. At the same time, Bakuya and Kanshou came flying back in from either direction while I charged in once more, creating a three-pronged attack.

My respect for him went up a notch when I realized that he had not been caught unaware by my little trick.

"NOT YET!" Sairaorg announced loudly while slamming his fist against the ground.

It was similar to when he had toppled a fortress with one blow, except the shockwave was spreading out in all directions. The resulting force was more than enough to send my two blades and myself flying backwards into the air and momentarily halt my momentum.

My opponent didn't waste this opening and leapt after me with a powerful left jab.

Even though I moved to block it in time, the replica I was wielding shattered under the weight of the attack and his fist continued forward to hit home. It sent me flying downwards until I struck the ground and skipped across it like a stone across a body of water before I finally righted myself and skidded to a stop.

Knowing Sairaorg wouldn't let up, I summoned and fired several swords with explosive properties before I even stopped sliding back.

My opponent rushed into the onslaught, bobbing and weaving around the first several as they exploded where they impacted and skillfully batted aside the ones he couldn't dodge.

His Touki protected him from the brunt of the exploding weapons, and before long he was within striking distance once again. But instead of moving, I remained in a crouched position with my hands hidden in the mist coming up from the ground.

The reason why became obvious when a layer of liquid metal rose up to block his punch while also extending several spikes, which forced him to retreat in surprise. I then stood up to my full height, revealing the source of the substance: Excalibur Mimic, six of them to be exact, all held between my fingers. Three blades on each hand.

I would have been embarrassed about the comic book-style way I was holding them in public, but my time practicing with Black Keys killed that feeling a long time ago.

"You really can summon any type of blade." Sairaorg noted with a grin. "Little wonder that title fits you so well."

"Believe me," I replied while keeping most of the annoyance out of my voice, "If I was going to pick a title, Queen of Swords would not have been my first choice."

"Then this is your chance." The muscular Devil smirked while resuming his fighting stance. "Let's see if you've got what it takes to be a KING!"

He shot forward again, prompting me to reshape the combined metal on my right hand into a giant claw which Sairaorg dodged around before throwing a low kick which impacted against a spiked metal shield formed from my other three blades. Now it was Sairaorg's turn to use hit-and-run tactics, leaping in with a punch or a kick at a supposed blind spot while dodging around reshaping metal tendrils which continuously tried to injure or capture him.

Unlike the time when he was defending against my attacks though, I didn't need to move.

Every time he came in with a punch or a kick, the metal from at least three of the six swords would form into a spiked or bladed barrier to intercept his blow. Even with Touki and his own enhanced Devil physiology, this had to be wearing on him.

At least that's what I hoped until said hopes were nearly dashed by Sairaorg's fastest and strongest punch yet. It broke through the liquid metal I put up and would've hit me in the face if I hadn't tilted my head at the last second.

Even then the blow grazed my cheek, no doubt leaving a mark, one which I ignored while tightening the metal around the hole Sairaorg had made, trapping his arm before he could pull it back out. Then, using the remaining metal, I flung him into the air and swung him around by his arm at high speeds before slamming him down on the ground several yards away.

The impact was enough to kick up a dust cloud, obscuring my vision as I reeled the metal back in and began condensing it into a spearpoint. As I did so, Sairaorg came walking out of the mist, looking a little rough for wear but otherwise just as determined as ever.

I didn't wait for him to attack this time and extended the metal spear I'd created towards my opponent. It wasn't quite as fast as Karasuba's sword extension, but it wasn't slow either. Still, I shouldn't have been as surprised by what happened next.

Sairaorg swung his right arm down in a chopping strike, which intercepted the tip of my weapon, before splitting it down the middle. And it didn't just split the spearhead, it split the entire shaft down the middle all the way back to me, the power of the blow so intense that the metal glowed orange.

I barely had time to discard the weapons and summon another one before my opponent threw a punch which hurled a massive amount of air pressure my way. It slammed into me like a wall, sending me sliding back several feet before I managed to dig my heels in and stop.

All this from just training his body.

I took a shaky breath before dismissing the flag of Jeanne-d'Arc, ignoring the titanic trench in the ground to either side of me that had been made from the attack that I didn't block.

That last punch had almost the same force as the one he used to destroy a fortress. It seemed he had decided to go all-out.

And while I didn't want to admit it, I needed to as well. I'd been putting on a show in my earlier match knowing full well I didn't need to conserve a lot of energy, which is why I'd opened with such a powerful weapon. I'd hoped to use it more sparingly here and wear down my opponent with weaker weapons instead, but I can see I was being a bit too naïve. That's why, when the smoke cleared, I stood ready with my bow and the familiar projectile, Caladbolg, knocked.

"I am… the bone of my sword." I chanted while pulling back on the bowstring, prompting the spiral-shaped projectile to lengthen and narrow.

Sairaorg's smile grew wide as he let out a roar and planted his feet.

"Caladbolg." I then loosed the arrow, feeling the space around it distort as it raced towards my target.

My opponent cocked back his right arm and threw an earth-shattering punch with his right fist, the air shaking around him as the shockwave met my projectile. For those watching the match on the monitors, they would see nothing but white for an instant as two forces clashed with a thunderous impact.

The artificial dimension itself shook from the blast as the space between the two of us was engulfed in flames before spreading out even further. Much like the time I had fought Karasuba, it felt like I was standing in an inferno, which in many ways, I was.

The reason I wasn't currently being incinerated was another skill I'd developed with Unlimited Blade Works: internalizing it. Currently, my body was made of mystical swords which aided in further reinforcing myself. It wasn't perfect, or even pleasant, as the sensation of tens of thousands of miniature layered blades pricked my insides with every tiny movement my body made, but the support and protection they granted me in exchange was well worth it.

Thankfully, I didn't need to maintain such a state for long as the smoke cleared between us. Expectedly, we both looked a little worse for wear with char all over my outfit while Sairaorg's shirt had gotten a bit shredded and the arm he used to counter my attack looked like it had taken a beating or twenty. It was still somehow intact and functional, but I did not envy the guy attached to it right now.

"You want to know something unbelievable?" My opponent half-laughed despite how heavily he was breathing. "I expected you to put up a good fight but even I didn't expect this."

"You're not so bad yourself." I complimented while breathing more heavily. "And you're sure you're not reinforcing your body with anything other than Touki? There was more than just raw power behind that last strike. By all rights, your arm should have been torn off at bare minimum."

Seriously. I could count on one hand at best the number of Servants that could tank Caladbolg head-on like that with so little damage. Granted, I didn't actually break the sword this time, as I didn't want to actually kill the guy, but my point still stood.

"No." Sairaorg confirmed. "I was born without the special trait of the Bael family or even the ability to use magic. All you see here is the result of training my body to its fullest. Which makes me ashamed to say that I'm at my limit against you."

"You say that, but I get the feeling surrendering is the last thing you plan on doing right now." I added.

"No, I hoped to win this battle by relying on my own strength, but it seems I'll need to take a page from your book and call upon a powerful weapon of my own. REGULUS!"

A bright pillar of yellow light rose in the distance in response to his call.

A moment after that, a massive feline shape came bounding into view. It was a shining gold lion whose form towered over the both of us as it landed next to its King.

"Allow me to introduce Regulus Nemea. My Pawn."

His what? Since when could Sacred Gears be Peerage members?

"You may be familiar with the legend of the Nemean Lion, but what you may not know is that long ago one was sealed within an ax, becoming one of the original Longinus weapons." He went on. "Unlike the other weapons, Regulus was able to manifest a body of his own."

Seriously, how broken was God's System to let something like that happen?

Wait, did that mean that the same thing could possibly happen with the Boosted Gear or Divine Dividing?

Damn it. Questions for later.

"So we're making this an ax match now?" I asked while gauging the power of the lion before me and trying to get my thoughts in order.

"Not exactly." My opponent corrected before giving a command to the lion.

It roared before glowing once again, forcing me to cover my eyes as its form shifted and changed again, seeming to fuse with his owner.

When the light faded, Sairaorg Bael was revealed to be covered in gold armor with a lion head on the chest and a lion-themed helmet on his head.

"Behold my Balance Breaker: Regulus Rey Leather Rex! The Iron Skin of the Lion King!"

At first glance, I couldn't help but think that Gilgamesh would laugh uncontrollably at the gaudy armor… right before killing Sairaorg for trying to poorly imitate his look. There were too many parallels between the two sets of armor to simply brush it off as just a coincidence.

This was going to be a problem. Even with just my basic mystic senses, I could tell this armor was in a league of its own. Had I not seen the otherworld Issei's Sacred Gear, I would call this one the strongest Sacred Gear I'd seen yet. The very air around him seemed to hum with energy. A part of me even wondered if the ground would shake just from him taking a step.

I dismissed my bow while running through my list of other weapons. Suffice it to say I had more than a couple which were made famous for having been used to slay a monster, but in this case, I decided something from a similar culture would be more fitting here. I held out my hand and produced a red blade which resembled a lightning bolt to a degree with black coloration on the inside. It was a blade wielded by a certain Roman emperor with an… obsession with the arts.

But the blade itself was no vain art project. It was said to be crafted from a meteor and had proven more than sufficient to deal with threats when its owner was summoned as a Servant in the Holy Grail Wars.

Aestus Estus: The Original Flame. A sword wielded by Emperor Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus.

"You should know," I began while we both took a stance and red energy started to radiate from my sword, "I don't have anything like a Balance Breaker, so I hope you'll forgive the lack of flair."

"This battle shall have plenty of that." Sairaorg grinned. "Simply come at me with all the determination you have!"

I nodded as we deepened our stances, the tension in the air mounting.

Then, as if an invisible signal was given, we both charged while roaring at the top of our lungs. What was about to occur would be the pivotal moment of the Young Devil's Gathering, but for a much different reason.

As we were about to meet, the eclipsed sun suddenly blew apart.

About the Same Time: The Human World

Karasuba yawned while walking down the sidewalk.

'Man am I BOOOOORED!' She groaned internally.

After having trained for several days in a row and getting exposed to the hectic environment that was her King's life, she quickly realized upon her return home just how quiet it was without everyone around.

What was more annoying was the fact that she was missing out on what was probably an awesome spectacle in the Rating Games.

'I know Illya promised to record everyone's fights for me, but it just won't be the same as actually being there.'

Now one might think it unwise for her to be walking around town and leaving her parents' home unprotected now that the Khaos Brigade was confirmed to be moving, but Shirou had that covered. He had given Serafall a ring and she had ordered some extra guards to cover that specific area of Kuoh along with very powerful protection spells that she put up herself. At the very least, they would delay anyone trying to harm her parents long enough for her to get there and stamp out whatever moron was dumb enough to try it.

Speaking of trying something…

The sword-wielding girl halted for a second as her familiar, Yume, suddenly came flying down to meet her.

"I told you to stretch your wings while we were out." Karasuba muttered while holding out her arm for the bird to land on. "Is something wrong?"

The shoebill chattered a little in response, her message clear only to her owner.

"In the forest, huh? Suppose there's nothing else to do other than to check it out."

She moved to a more discrete route and boosted her speed, remembering her training from Wukong on how to move both quickly and silently. It only took a few minutes for her to enter the woods and proceed to the location Yume told her about.

When she arrived, it became obvious why her familiar had been concerned.

Standing there in a clearing was Heracles, along with another kid with tan skin, short silver hair, and what appeared to be a mage's robe.

'Looks like a child version of that Archer guy Illya's mentioned once or twice.' Karasuba mused while shifting her attention to the other gathered individuals.

Monsters.

There were easily a dozen of them, all identical reptilian creatures with massive shoulders, purple skin, and lanky limbs.

"Good, you noticed us." The much larger of the two began. "I'm Heracles and this is Leonardo."

"I thought you smelled familiar." Karasuba gave him a sharp look as she dismissed Yume. "I think Shirou mentioned kicking your ass the last time you were running around."

"He just got me by surprise." The Hero Faction member huffed. "But I've been working out a bit since then and I brought appropriate backup."

"The monster-taming shrimp." She shot a glance at the silent boy who didn't seem all that invested in the current situation. "I don't think he's gonna be much help if you're hoping to get out of this fight alive. Or did you think I was the sort that would pitch a fit because you dragged a kid into this like someone that actually cares?"

"You should worry about yourself." Heracles warned. "The Khaos Brigade had actually wanted to recruit you, but you've already been reincarnated into a Peerage, haven't you?"

"It wouldn't have made a difference either way." Karasuba scoffed, her nodachi appearing in her hand. "This was always going to be my answer the moment you set foot on my territory."

Heracles grinned as he summoned his Sacred Gear and leapt at the grey-haired girl.

The Rating Games Arena

I didn't understand what was going on at first.

The eclipsed sun had shattered, starting a domino effect as the entire area around us began to warp. The next thing any of us knew, we were dropping down into the middle of the actual Rating Games arena, which looked like a much larger version of the Roman Coliseum.

"What happened?!" Asia cried as she and my entire Peerage looked around. We had somehow all wound up together on one side while Sairaorg and his Peerage were on the other. "Did we win?"

"That doesn't sound like a cheering crowd." Xenovia noted as we saw the spectators starting to panic and run.

We quickly knew why after looking up in the sky and witnessing several Devils teleporting in above the stadium wearing black armor, horned masks, and brandishing bat wing-shaped halberds. Even worse, it looked like a barrier was going up around the entire stadium.

"It's the Khaos Brigade." I realized while narrowing my eyes.

The next thing that happened was a magic circle glowing in the middle of the field, materializing multiple individuals.

"So you are two of the most promising young Devils at the gathering." The apparent leader of the group noted while brandishing a large blue spear. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Cao Cao, leader of the Hero Faction of the Khaos Brigade!"

Honestly, I only heard the last part of that sentence. I was more occupied with the rush of information I was getting from the Longinus in his hands. Not the "Sacred Gear classified as a Longinus", but the actual Longinus that happened to be a Sacred Gear. The spear that pierced Christ's chest itself. If there ever was a holy weapon that was the bane to Devil-kind, it was the stick that was being flourished in front of me at that very moment.

"The Hero Faction, as in the same group that Heracles, Jeanne and that Georg guy are a part of?" I asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"The same." The spearman answered succinctly. "All of us are reincarnates of heroes from the past."

"If that's the case, I don't have much to look forward to." I deadpanned. "The heroes of my world have proven far more frightening than the ones you've thrown at me so far."

"I'd be disappointed if you were frightened so easily." Cao Cao smirked. "But I'm not the only one you have to worry about."

He pointed upwards and that was when I felt my heart skip a beat…

… For floating down from the sky was the last person I wanted to see here.

Ophis.

And the first thing she did was fire a powerful blast of energy, destroying the private box Issei was in.

Bummer that Shirou and Sairaorg didn't get to finish their fight but they got much bigger problems to worry about now that the Khaos Brigade has decided to make its move. And for those wondering, no, Fahad never got around to writing the Shirou vs Sairaorg fight in his own story so what you just read is original content wrote up by yours truly and with some additions and edits from my beta readers. And speaking of content, you can check out my progress if you like simply by becoming a patron! And remember to stop in next time as the war with the Khaos Brigade begins! 'Til then.