Chapter 46: Gains and Loses

"Alright, time for the final preparations."

I flexed my neck, scanning my sparring partners for the night in the underground training room beneath the school. Azazel cracked up the specs to the point it could take a good pounding from me and Miho.

Koneko and Issei tightened their fists, swords drawn by Yuuto and Xenovia, the Two Great Onee-samas channeling magic, while Gasper was keeping watch from the distance. All of them surrounded me with no intention of holding back, eliciting me to smirk. I breathed, keeping watch of their movements and ki.

Rias observed the scenario and on her mark, "Now!"

The Knights sped towards me, blades aiming at my vitals which resulted in a smokescreen from the collision. Once abated, the others saw a crimson gold rib cage completely protecting me from harm. They tried pushing their swords yet couldn't make a scratch, all the while without me needing to move. Jumping back, Xenovia threw a massive holy wave while Yuuto created a path of erupting holy demonic swords towards me. I took them all without trouble.

Ever since my ki was healed from the fight against the senjutsu users, I've been working on maintaining Susanoo for long fights. Judging by my energy and stamina, I can keep it up for about 25 minutes nonstop, definitely better than Spacetime Burst. In retrospect, perhaps my adoration for the Mangekyou Sharingan might have something to do with Supra Burst. Aside from improved base abilities, I got space on my right while time on my left, and a battle avatar as my third ability.

Approaching behind me was the nekoshou who tried to mask her presence but I could still pick up subtle shifts with my Tenkugan. An ethereal hand manifested and grabbed her fist before flinging her to a boulder, crushing her inside the rock until a green healing aura enveloped her.

Wincing, didn't mean to put that much power.

There was no more room for remorse as Gasper tried to freeze me. He missed by a large margin as I flashed out of range. The difference between my Susanoo and the Uchihas' was that I still retain my speed if not augmented, and I can also repair the damages anytime even if it saps my energy quicker. The construct was more akin to energy directing outside forces away from me. With the way I can enlarge my avatar, it's more similar to solid light than matter.

"Don't forget about me!" Issei jumped to where Rias predicted I would dodge and readied the Boosts. I was wondering why I couldn't sense any direct confrontation from him until I realized that the Queen's holy lightning was raining at me. The Pawn feinted, transferring the stored up power to the magical attack. The other arm manifested along with an ethereal version of Dream Sword, negating the damage with a small swing.

Then I picked up another energy signature. Rias was conducting Trace Annihilation on the ground to bypass my defenses from below, the Power of Destruction was snaking forward and eating the earth to nothingness, guess she's been really studying my powers. I was about to jump away until the Dhampir finally locked me in time.

However, I have time powers as well. Despite being frozen, I can still see and feel the flow of time normally. Adding a bit of Time Burst, I broke free and went airborne. My humanoid Susanoo was fully established with a similar outline to my body and a pair of devil wings. But now I'm suffering the backlash from using Time Burst, even though it was a small amount.

When we fought Kuroka and Bikou, Miho was there as support while I was suffering the recoil after saving Koneko with Time Burst, and Bikou was flung away while I was alone paralyzed in pain from using Space Burst. After a lot of experimenting, I've hardly gotten used to the side effects which is a total pain in the neck.

They all noticed Susanoo waning and capitalized their chance, charging at me with everything they got. Swords, fists, and energy all impacted me at once, and the result was that... I'm still perfectly fine.

Issei deadpanned, "We never stood a chance, did we?"

"Nope." I popped the 'p' sound and used Kaiten, going easy yet still strong enough to send them flying. They groaned in pain, prompting our healer to hurry.

I powered down and evaluated. My reserves took a dent though not too much, I'll have to adjust my magic control better to avoid any unnecessary wastage when using in conjecture with Susanoo. So far, Miho's the only one who can puncture through my defense but it'll tire her out much quicker from overheating while I can still last a little more.

My mate strolled towards us, "Good job Hanwei-sama, you have greatly improved since we began."

"Yeah, hopefully this will be enough for tomorrow."

"You still haven't told what the training is for Daisuke." The red head sat up, taking a short break with the others, "The only times when we need to train this hard was before impending doom. What is happening tomorrow?"

"Okay, I know I've been putting it off for a while but please stay calm. Diodora is a part of Khaos Brigade."

The Pawn raised a hand.

"Yes Issei, you can beat the shit out of him as much as you like tomorrow."

The arm went back down.

"So then, his sudden increase in power-"

"Is because he received one of Ophis' snakes which gave him a power up." I sat down cross legged and watched their expressions, "Tomorrow, he'll launch surprise attack by teleporting us to a different location where an army would try to kill us. But not before the fucker swooping in to kidnap Asia."

Xenovia and Issei hardened their features.

"Of course it goes without saying, we won't let that happen. At least one of us will have to keep an eye on Asia to make sure nothing happens. In canon, he flew from above before taunting you to carry on the Rating Game under his terms to rescue Asia. After accomplishing the rescue mission, Shalba Beelzebub, also powered up to original Satan-class, will arrive and try to kill Asia the moment you let your guard down."

"Oh ho." A nasty aura surrounded Rias, smirking with no small amount of anger, "So Diodora would not only disgrace our traditional Rating Game, but also have the stomach to kidnap one of my adorable servants?"

"Daisuke-kun, if what you said is true, it is very likely that he is also connected to the death of the previous heir of the Glasya-Labolas household. The descendants of the original Maous do harbor intense hatred towards the current Maous and their relatives."

"Yeah, which is why he's targeting Rias."

"Hanwei-san," The blonde hesitated, almost too scared to ask, "is Diodora-san acting now because of me?"

"Asia, two things. One, no one here is blaming you just because the piece of shit thinks he can do whatever he wants whenever he wants. This is our chance actually, we know when he's gonna strike and we'll make him grovel on the ground."

"That's right Asia, we are in this together and all of us will protect you." Issei cheered on, lifting her spirits a little.

I nodded at the Pawn's enthusiasm, "And two, I doubt him alone is enough to convince so many Khaos Brigade members solely for you. There's another original Maou descendant along with Shalba and at least one Longinus user indirectly helping him. No way he has that much influence, they're just using him until he has no more purpose."

"Daisuke, I appreciate you telling us though why now? Why not sooner so we have more time to prepare?"

"Because just like the Kokabiel incident, you're too stubborn to accept help and we will deal have to Diodora ourselves since he's coming at us first."

"Good point."

"That sounds like us."

"Can't deny that."

"Besides, Azazel has already caught wind of Khaos Brigade's siege and plan to use us as decoys. Since he hasn't told me anything about the surprise counter attack, he's most probably betting on me to get you guys to safety. If I had said anything earlier, I might mess up the timeline and interfere with his plans."

"The timeline has already diverged the moment you are here Hanwei-kun." Yuuto smiled wryly, "However, some still follow according to your memories. If this is what you believe to be the best course of action, we trust you."

"Thank you... but there's still something I want to discuss about. Diodora's peerage, they're actually victims who suffered similar treatment to Asia's past."

"Hold on Daisuke, what do you mean?"

"You'll find out tomorrow. Trust me, it'll be all the much sweeter once you pound him. Anyway, they're most probably brainwashed to the point of no return though if there is any chance they can still be saved, I wanna try."

Rias frowned, "Daisuke, I can understand your reason to help someone in need. However, I cannot allow any harm to my peerage. Should they follow Diodora's orders to the letter, we will have no choice to fight back."

"I know, I'm not asking you to hold back, just don't kill them if possible. I can reason with them afterwards, then we'll fight with intention to kill in case I fail."

Gasper stuttered out, "D-Daisuke-senpai, do you really think th-they're worth saving? You s-said it yourself, they could be e-evil now."

I closed my eyes, recalling the stuff I went through as a kid, "You're right, reality is harsh. No matter what you say, some people will never change no matter how much you try. Some people are simply born evil." Then I opened my eyes, locking gazes with everyone, "However, there are some people who suffered and became evil. He deceived his peerage into joining him, they threw away their lives for him only to suffer and were sent into despair."

"This time, now I'm here in a world where once thought as nothing but an anime. I've made it this far because I didn't want to see any of you get hurt. A once normal human who became a hybrid in a world where magic exists, has learned that there's a chance to achieve anything if I try. People like Forcuis and Raynare who were used, might have ended up like Diodora's servants if they let despair consume them."

"We're trying to reach for peace, so that's why, I wanna break that despair. Once Diodora is gone, they'll have no more reason to follow Khaos Brigade. I can't reach out to everyone in the world, but I can reach out to people around me. In an effort to strive towards a world of peace, where everyone can understand and extend their hand to one another, will you guys give me that one chance? To help those who've been wronged for what they thought they did was right?"

"I will Hanwei-sama." Miho replied, blushing red as she's completely enamoured by my pride, "I wish to see that world you envision, please accept my help."

"Hanwei-san is right." Asia spoke out louder that she ever had, "If I did not meet Issei-san, I would have lost all faith towards God and meaning in life. They have suffered like me right? So Hanwei-san, please help them."

"You've already done a lot of crazy stuff Daisuke, as if one more could hurt." A grin spread over Issei's face, "Yuuma-chan and Asia already had it bad, it would leave me in a bad mood if I don't pitch in to help people who have similar situations. When you put it that way, I'm in."

"Count me in." Koneko agreed, her ears pointing up with positive emotions, "Nee-sama has a similar situation, I don't want to see any more victims either. Please do your best senpai."

After seeing me declare my intention, Rias shook her head with a small smile, "Good grief, Daisuke. Very well, we'll try to help if possible. But we'll retaliate with full force should they overwhelm us."

"*^_^* Thanks guys. Okay, I got a plan."

"Everyone ready?" Daisuke made one last check on everyone. Asia was in her nun outfit while he, Miho and Xenovia donned their combat wear. The rest wore their Kuoh uniforms and were ready to battle at any moment.

The King replied, her face stern and nodded, "Issei and Xenovia, make sure to keep an eye on Asia and do not lose sight of her no matter what. The second Diodora attempts to come from the air, we secure him and retaliate until backup arrives. In case that fails, Daisuke will keep us safe inside his Susanoo while we attack from the distance. Do you all have your healing tags?"

A chorus of answers rang, "Yes Buchou."

The healing tag Daisuke designed was now improved to heal three times and also made re-useable to avoid the hassle of making more. The array was designed in a way to load Twilight Healing's prowess to a certain amount before triggering the cap to contain said prowess, three containers in one tag. Although he wanted to allow other healing spells to be infused, the array was made specifically to accept the blonde's gear only.

Additionally, Asia has a suppression seal to slap on Diodora in the worst case scenario. Her meek and innocent persona would definitely make her less dangerous and lower the Astaroth's guard for a surprise attack, which hopefully will not be needed.

"Remember, no one dares to harm my peerage and gets away with it. Do not worry about numbers, we have overcame worse odds and emerged victorious. Let's show Khaos Brigade why they should never mess with us again."

Pumped up, everyone entered the teleportation circle in the clubroom as the usual glow envelope them. They already had a bad impression on their opponent but now, they can vent all the pent up tension on him. As the light faded, the ORC found themselves in... a shrine of some sort?

"What?" Instead of an open space where an army of terrorists can kill, Rias witnessed what resembled more of a battle ring, "Everyone, stay vigi-" She turned around only to find Akeno and Miho, "What? Where is everyone else?"

In another area similar to Rias' group, Issei checked around and was puzzled by the area different from what Daisuke told him about. He tightened his hold on Asia enough to make sure she's next him, "Don't worry, I'll protect you no matter what. So stay close to me."

"I am flattered Issei-kun, but it would be more efficient if we fight together."

Stupefied, the pervert looked to find himself latching to the blonde Knight too close for his liking, jumping away in mortal disgust, "(ﾟДﾟ*)ﾉ Uwaaah! Kiba!? I didn't mean you! I meant Asia! Wait, where's Asia!?"

"What!? Asia's gone!?" Xenovia searched everywhere for the blonde with her only companions being Koneko and Gasper. The third group were already in battle positions, expecting for the worse.

Despite the alarming situation, the nekoshou couldn't help but deadpan, "Daisuke-senpai's bad luck is contagious."

"Wh-wh-where is everyone e-else?" Gasper shievered.

[Greetings, Rias Gremory.] Three projections appeared in front of the three groups, drawing their attentions, [As fools, I am sure you must be confused as to what is happening right now. You are now under attack by Khaos Brigade as I led them to you. However, it would be too easy and boring to simply crush you with overwhelming might.]

"You have quite the nerve to set us up Diodora." The red head retorted, masking her increasing rage with a professional tone, "You will be punished for your actions once we apprehend you."

[As this is only a unilateral projection, I have no fear of hurting my ears from your babbling.]

A vein popped onto the King's forehead.

[We will decide this as an impromptu Rating Game. My peerage is already on the way, and you have no method of communication between groups. Put on a good show for me will you. The rules are simple, progress until you reach where I am, and you may only heal twice with those premade magic circles.]

"Forget your bullshit! Where's Asia!?"

[As an incentive for you to play,] The projection was directed towards the Bishop held captive in some sort of bindings.

[Issei-san! Buchou-san! Everyone!]

Diodora placed a hand in front of her, putting her to sleep.

Issei unconsciously reached his hand towards her in panic. He clenched his teeth and clutched his fists, frustration ever so rising towards Diodora and himself, "Asia! No! I couldn't help her again."

"Calm down, we still have time Issei-kun. Hanwei-kun said we can save her as long as we reach her."

They've all been had. The forced teleportation separated everyone with no way of helping one another while Asia alone was sent to the Astaroth, rendering her helpless and as a hostage. The ORC had no choice but to follow his rules.

[One final announcement, the Aoi Arashi will not be participating the game with you. Khaos Brigade has a special event for him somewhere else. There should be no problem. After all, the Gremory heiress is famous for having more than one supposedly powerful servants.]

By the time the transmission terminated, they were affronted by the taunt. Mixed reactions made them hesitant, some wanted to go find Daisuke and help him though the thought banished in favor of rescuing Asia. They are aware just how strong the Aoi Arashi is, he can take care of himself for a while. Once they get Asia, they'll quickly track back to Daisuke.

"Wait wha- Woah!" I instinctively leaped into the air before a blast exploded where I previously stood, unfurling my wings and inspected from above. Hundreds of devils ranging from Mid-class to High-class were charging their magic at me. No one else was with me. Activating Balance Breaker, I sighed in exasperation, "At this point, I can't say that I'm surprised anymore."

"Give it up Arashi, you are coming with us!"

"You may be strong but your stamina can't last forever!"

"And this time we have anti-pervert magic equipped on us you groper!"

"FOR THE LAST TIME I ONLY WANTED- Wait I don't have time for this." Several dozens of magic were coming at me, varying from elemental to explosive magic. Exhaling, I saw them coming in slow motion and read their ki, dodging and slashing them to get away. Before I have a room to breathe, several more dozens came spearing at me.

Using Shunpo, I sped away and even using some as foothold, eventually reaching and sticking to the top of the barrier with the tree climbing technique. All Boost accelerated my thought process, giving me time to find out that I'm completely isolated from the rest, I can't even tell where is here or how far away I'm from the others. However, the barrier itself was beyond normal. Dimension Lost is classified as top-tier Longinus for a reason yet not indestructible.

I can definitely break the whole thing with Space Burst, the only problem is that I'll be too drained once I need to fight Shalba, and I'll be wide open from the recoil. Magic won't cut it either, the whole place is interfering with lower level teleportation. I'm utterly boxed in.

Before a ball of magic could hit my face, I ducked and dived into the crowd, showering them with shurikens. Most sustained heavy damage from taking directly at the vital points, though none were dead... I hope. Do I really have the luxury to worry about my morals when I might die? No, no I don't. Nevertheless, victory will be sweeter if I can beat them while doing that.

Landing in a small open space, I judo threw a devil towards another. The hurling terrorist impacted her companions like a rocket. Someone tried to impale me with a stone spear before I punched through it along with the devil while slashing horizontally behind me. A few dozen more went down around me. Some tried to surround me but I hopped and kicked their faces. Don't let anyone say that I don't believe in true gender equality.

More magic came at me from the distance, which were blocked by Kaiten. The air vibrated as I created a 200-meter-radiues wind dome with Senpu, blowing them away before spitting out three fireballs the size of trucks. The exploding flames detonated, launching the ones in front of me into the air and leaving the ground sizzling. Anyone within range were either rolling on the ground or shooting water at each other to put themselves out of fire.

Seeing the annihilation made them falter, taking a few steps back with sweat dropping from the foreheads. They were beginning to have second thoughts about confronting me. However, one brave soul reluctantly pointed her staff at me, "Do not cower! Look, he is beginning to show exhaustion! Once he falls, we will be rewarded greatly."

That recovered their moral, grinning cruelly and one even tried to sneak attack me from behind. It all fell apart once I stared them down, "Genjutsu: Tenkugan."

The combination of illusion, x-ray, and telescopic vision put the attacker and anyone else 500 meters within my line of sight into an illusion. The terrorist flopped onto the ground next to me as if a puppet had its strings severed. The weaker minded devils were now brainwashed, attacking their own comrades without knowing a clue. Fear unnerved them from witnessing what they cannot comprehend.

Still, they had a point. Although I'm nowhere near as bad as they said, I can't keep this up forever. Right now I got three options. First, charge up Space Burst and wish that I'm heading in the direction where everyone else is fighting, which is unviable considering the shitty luck I'm having recently. Second, conjure shadow clones and take all of them down but again, unviable since I need the stamina to fight Shalba.

Which leaves three, make a clone and disguise myself as one of Khaos Brigade. There are still hundreds and I doubt they can locate me that fast. Once I get one of the hypnotized devils to tell me how to escape and hope that they don't have self-destruct seals on them, I'll slip out and meet the others.

"Oh, kiddy panties. That's quite ra- X﹏X"

Before anything else happened, the anti-pervert magic activated as a fist shaped magic honed in to Odin's balls. The old man squeaked in pain while covering his crotch, flopping onto the ground like a sack of potatoes.

... Or four, get help from the perverted Norse god who I barely sensed coming.

After the pain in his family jewels subsided, he turned his view to me indignantly, "What the fuck was that!?"

"Anti-pervert magic. I thought they were just bluffing about that."

"Youngsters these days, no respect for their elders at all." He grumbled before sizing me up, "So you're the wielder of the 14th Longinus I heard so much about. You don't look like much."

"And you look like a perverted old coot who gets off from sleeping girls with kid's underwear."

Odin stroked his beard, smiling in amusement, "The brat did say you got a lot of spunk, though I don't hate that in the younger generation."

"So will you help me or do I have to bring you more women?"

"Maybe three or four more would be-"

"Forget it, I'd rather take them on myself."

"It is the Chief God of the North! Our reputation will rise once we take his head!"

With a tap of his rod, a barrier was constructed, blocking every projectile thrown at us.

"They seriously underestimate God-class, don't they?"

"Hmph, youngsters nowadays overestimate themselves. By the way, the brat wanted me to give you this."

Odin handed me a communicator. Putting it on my ear, I heard the same obnoxious voice I hear too often, "Nice of you to join us Daisuke, I was expecting things to go differently."

"So did I, where's everyone else?"

"At the shrine about several dozen kilometers to your west. You just got ambushed and now you wanna go find more trouble? Leave it to the adults, I guarantee that we'll get everyone back. Just find shelter for now until the situation calms down."

"Khaos Brigade's gonna come after me regardless of where I go, might as well I go somewhere I can let loose. Besides, Asia and the others are in more trouble."

"The situation is more dangerous than we initially assumed, not only did they hijack the Rating Game and forcefully teleported directly into enemy territory, they're willing to go all out to make sure they achieve they're objectives. I already sent reinforcements to help the ORC."

"If they're this well prepared, that means they want to isolate the current Lucifer's little sister for whatever they're plotting. Running away won't get them to leave us alone, so I'm gonna go there and beat the ever living shit out of them. Besides, you need all the help you can get."

"Why do you always have to make sense?" I heard an explosion in the background blowing someone who tried to kill Azazel, "Alright fine, make sure to bring everyone back."

"You don't need to tell me that."

"The barriers here allow you to enter yet exiting isn't that easy. Once you get everyone, hide and wait until it's safe or break out with Supra Burst in case of emergencies."

"Roger."

"Ho ho, going to save your friends?" Odin brought out a spear in his other hand, "I'll make a path for you then, it's been a while since I last stretched my legs."

"Quite reassuring to have the boss of the Norse to help out, what made you decide to join forces after so many millenniums?"

"Khaos Brigade has been getting too nosy lately for everyone, probably these old bones wanting to see something change for the better before I croak."

A simple swing of his spear levelled the battlefield. An intense energy exploded the ground as far as the eye can see, a colossal wave piercing the sky. Any defenses hastily erected were immediately torn through with ease. The thunderous boom wiped out hundreds of devils faster than anything I could do barring my strongest techniques. In place of where an army once stood, was a massive canyon and a much smaller yet terrified army.

Removing the monocle, in his eye socket was a crystal-like magic item with letters glowing in it, opening a hole in the barrier for me to go through.

"Thanks Odin"

Kicking off, I flew past the terrorists and left a gale in my trail. Outside had even more people fighting for victory and it wasn't only the Three Factions. I spotted some valkyries and warriors from different mythologies pitching in. Most were too distracted to notice me, letting me zoom past everyone while avoiding the crossfire.

Unfortunately, some enemies noticed and got in my way. I looped around their magic and even used some of them as springboards, none posed a threat to me but more and more terrorists were approaching. Another round of barrages was thrown. I was about to barrel my way through before someone else swooped in.

Forcuis held two pointed swords with blades which resembles lightsabers with edges from Star Wars, the metallic hilt lined with circuit-like patters. He charged in and sliced the magic spells apart, disintegrating them into harmlessness. His sharp sensory abilities traced when and where the spells are coming and swiftly destroyed them.

An arrow whizzed by me, striking at the devils before a flurry of them shot down Khaos Brigade. Raynare was in the air, sniping with her bow lined with similar patters. Shots were fired rapidly and hit dead center into her targets while backing up Forcuis. An arrow knocked a devil in the air and while stunned, another arrow was shot square in his crotch. She had an air of confidence, smiling at her prey from above.

Alterous Edge, an artificial Sacred Gear developed by the fallen angel inventor. It takes the shape of two swords, capable of ripping apart magic arrays and render magic ineffective. Another artificial Sacred Gear in the shape of a bow, Sagittario Gale, condenses the users energy and fires in the shape of highspeed arrows. Regardless of distance, it has the pinpoint accuracy of a sniper rifle as long as she has a clear image of the target. Both of these gears were powerful and designed for those two by Azazel to help combat Khaos Brigade. The fallens' holy energy were channeled to form blades and arrows respectively.

I had a few spars with them before and knew they definitely worked their butts off to learn their new powers since summer vacation. Their six wings proudly displayed and fending off troops of devils.

I rushed past Forcuis who cleared me a path, "Now, our debts are repaid."

"Go! Save Asia and the others!" Raynare shouted before shooting the devils in front of me.

Using an enemy's back as a trampoline, I launched and took to the skies. I know Asia's the one in the most danger, yet I can't shake the anxiety about Miho. While she's no doubt the strongest in the group, my affections for her are clouding my judgement, one of the reasons why I was hesitant about starting a relationship.

'Miho... Guys... Please be safe.'

"Aaaaahhhhhhh!"

"What is going on!?"

"We were never informed of another warrior this strong!"

Three bodies flew like pebbles from the explosions bigger than the arena they were fighting in, or what was left of the arena they were fighting in. The enemy Queen and two Bishops could nothing against the onslaught of fire and explosions obliterating every spell they could think of. Even the combination of the two Bishops empowering the Queen meant nothing to the salamander.

All the while Rias and Akeno standing at the sidelines, watching the fireworks as Miho effortlessly blow through their formation without the need Awakening. After psyching themselves up, they find themselves nothing to do as the pinkette did all the work. Quite amusing to the sadistic Queen at first, though she threw away those thoughts when she remembered her junior's predicament.

"Perhaps we should have went on ahead."

"Ara ara, it does seem we are not needed here."

Alicia plopped onto the ground roughly, her body and attire seared as she groaned in pain. Her heavy eyelids peeked open to see Miho before her, "So were this strong... I should've known Aoi Arashi kept you close for a reason."

"So it is you Alicia-san." Miho spoke solemnly. Unlike the last time she met, the Astaroth Queen had more silverish hair, now it was more blonde. Lying unconscious were the two Bishops so the pinkette relaxed a little, she still needs to conserve her strength for later.

"Miho, let's go." The King called out, proceeding to where the captive Bishop is located.

"Are you not going to finish us?"

The salamander stared at Alicia's eyes, they were empty and more hollow than when she last saw her. Back then, they withdrew themselves, almost afraid with little to no life. And then she remembered her master's words from last night, turning to Rias, "Please proceed ahead, I will join shortly."

They exchanged glances before the two nodded, thinking that maybe the pinkette has something in mind.

"Why do you have those eyes? Those eyes of loneliness and despair?"

"... Kill me."

"Why do you serve Diodora? You should be already aware of his true nature long ago."

"Does it matter at this point?"

"Why are you so sad?"

At this point Alicia didn't bother to answer, lying pitifully on the ground for her demise. Battered and exhausted, she has executed all of her master's orders, whatever happens beyond this point matters not to her.

"Whether it may be maids, familiars, or slaves, I understand the condescending gazes from their superiors. They are often misunderstood as replaceable subjects who should obey the words of their master. I have witnessed the devils who look down on familiars such as myself. Many of the lower ranks would do anything to rise in power to rid themselves of such mistreatment. However, not once have I wished to separate from Hanwei-sama."

"To devote myself in hopes to be useful to him, to watch as he unwaveringly achieve his goals, to be together with someone who desires me to stay by his side, is it not a wonderful feeling? Not only that, whenever I accidentally make a fool of myself, his jovial laugh would melt away my embarrassment. Whenever he smiles and looks at me with soften gaze, I feel happy to know I have a place in his heart."

"... Are you boasting about how much better your life as a servant than mine?"

The familiar shook her head, "No, I want you to know that serving a master who genuinely cares for you can bring so much meaning into your life. So why do you serve someone as vile as Diodora who threw all of you away as pawns?"

"We were once worshipped as famous nuns from churches, we tried our hardest for them to the best of our abilities all in the name of God. But that all changed because we were associated with a devil on one single occasion, and that was enough for us to be excommunicated."

Alicia's story closely resembles to Asia's. Miho has a bad feeling about this and she did not like where this is going.

"It was strange if we took the time to think, was it really a coincidence for everyone to originate from a church? Of course, we were too devastated back then and did not think much. We poured our hard work day and night for so many years and what did they do in return? They banished us as heretics and witches. Our anguish and hatred grew until we were offered to have our revenge by Diodora-sama. To you, he is a villain. But to us, he was our savior to satiate our intense hatred. Naturally, we accepted without a second thought."

"Until we found out he was simply using us for his own pleasure, we could not resist as he controlled us with power and our Evil Pieces. We were betrayed once and betrayed again by the one we gave our hearts to, worn to the point we become empty husks of our formal selves. At some point, we realized we could not go back to where we grew up, we only had Diodora-sama left who abuses us. If we leave, we have nothing else."

"The final straw was when he so readily offered to trade one of us for Rias Gremory's Bishop. He never cared about us, not even when I dyed my hair blonde for him to look like that Bishop. We don't care what happens anymore. Whether Diodora-sama wins or loses, we don't care anymore. Our souls no longer have any will to fight back."

Miho listened to her story, feeling more sorry for them by the second. Had she or Asia suffered the same fate, they probably would have thought the same. To sink so deep into the abyss to the point they could not see the light anymore. Or at least, not when they haven't seen the light Miho saw, "Is this truly what you yearn for? To surrender when freedom is near? Lucifer-sama can free you from this injustice and place you under his protection."

"Our sins will not disappear by a simple plea, we have committed too much. There is no place for us at the church, nor with the devils. We do not belong anywhere."

"Would you not start your life anew? To be with a master who can understand you? Do you not want to know that feeling?"

"Such fantasy does not happen to everyone. Your reason to serve is no more whimsical than ours, the only difference between us is that you were lucky and found a good master. After obtaining such power, for what reason do you still stay with him?"

The maid answered without a hint of hesitation, "You are right, perhaps I was hasty to become a familiar of a devil who I knew nothing about. However, after watching his incredible feats, his noble actions for his precious people, as well as his pride which helped me overcome my weakness, I do not need a reason anymore. I stay with Hanwei-sama because I want to."

A flicker of emotion appeared in her eyes, before she closed them and laid there motionlessly. No more words were exchanged, more like Alicia couldn't anymore...

Despite wanting to stay and convince her longer, Miho knew she had to get going, "Please do not lose hope until you meet Hanwei-sama. If you meet him, you might realize the worth to keep moving forward."

"Quite arrogant of you to think you can defeat us with only two Rooks and Knights." Xenovia unleashed a wave of destruction with Durandal, eradicating their formation with blinding holy energy.

One Rook held Koneko down with her body while the Knights were above them, swords unsheathed to impale them. Gasper saw his chance, freezing them in time and giving the nekoshou enough time to tail slap her opponent away. The opposing Rook went down after loading her with a senjutsu-enhanced punch. Fueled by raging emotions for her beloved friend, Xenovia quickly finished up with an immense amount of power, just enough to make sure they don't die from light poisoning.

Catching her breath, Xenovia announced, "Wait for me my friend, I vow to save you."

Meanwhile,

"Kiba! She she and she are just diversions, the ones behind them are gonna attack!"

Issei relayed instructions while dodging with Pailingual, whereas Kiba was engaging the eight Queen-promoted-Pawns by himself with Blades Blacksmith, both were conserving power for the later fight. Fortunately, they have good teamwork with one another since they team up as Daisuke's rivals to beat him during training. The blonde Knight utilized his superior speed and swordsmanship along with Issei's directions to chip away the enemy strength.

What really spooked the perverted Pawn was that he heard their hearts were stopped from their breasts. Their misconception was that they assumed his technique reads women's hearts, not breasts. Still, how can they keep fighting when their hearts aren't beating? Don't they at least worry about their lives a little? Either Diodora was really pissed about the Pawn standing up to him, or he's actually a worse bastard than he thought.

"Partner."

"Now!" That was the signal. Kiba leapt away from the tired group as Ddraig was done building up Boosts. Transferring holy energy to his stomach, Issei inhaled deeply and expelled enough to earn Tannin's approval, "Flame Blaze!"

A wave of dragon flames washed towards the Pawns, incinerating them to defeat. Unlike Dragon Shot, his new fire technique has a wider range to burn down more enemies. Despite his vastly inferior magic reserves which limits his number of usage, it was still comparable to Daisuke's fireballs which is saying something. Issei wiped his sweat, "Alright, now to get Asia."

The Knight was about to agree before he sensed bloodlust, swiftly reacting to block an incoming blade.

"Gyahahahaha! Remember me pretty boy!"

"I would much prefer that I did not, Freed."

Pushing back, they jumped back for space. Issei joined up and groaned, "Why did it have to be Freed? His mouth is dirtier than the stray devils we've seen."

"Hope I didn't interrupt your yaoi moment, mind if I join you for a threesome?"

"We don't have time for you Freed, let us go to Asia!"

"Awww, doesn't this remind you of our first encounter? WELL TOO BAD! I've been waiting a long time for payback!" Freed's physique underwent a grotesque transformation as Daisuke warned them, though watching it live was way creepier than they imagined, "Hope you like tentacle play because we're-"

Before he could finish, Kiba flashed behind him, sword flicked to get rid of traces of blood. Parts of the monster slipped off, revealing multiple clean slashes over his body.

"We do not have the time but I'm sure the Grim Reaper will entertain you in hell."

... If Issei was a girl, he'd become Kiba's fangirl right now.

Quickly dismissing the weird idea, they went back to finding Asia and spotted Rias and Akeno already present, soon followed by Xenovia's group. His eyes darted to Asia tied to a circular device on the wall.

"Asia!"

"Issei-san!"

Diodora was sitting on a throne, relaxing as if there was nothing to worry about, "Ah, welcome Sekiryuutei. I assume your welcoming party was to your liking."

Rias grabbed her Pawn before he could rage, narrowing her gaze towards the Astaroth, "Tell me Diodora, why are you so stubborn about acquiring Asia? Obviously you hold no love for her, nor does it appear that you are targeting us by using her as a hostage."

"Do you really want to know? Hu hu hu... hu hu hu... HAHAHAHAHA! Forgive my outburst, it is because I cannot resist that face of despair!" All composure and grace was gone, only madness and obsession, "That look when they lose all hope! That despair when everything they had taken away! It sends shivers of pleasure down my being!"

His smile twisted from toxic love, Diodora was now showing his true nature as a devil who has embraced his dark desires, "But the pleasure is the greatest when they fall harder! Famous nuns, glorified and graceful, have the best faces when they are betrayed and fell into the darkness of their hearts! I just can't get enough of it! Whispering sweet words and giving them salvation by joining my peerage, just so I can see them fall all over again by raping them over and over day and night!"

"And right now I have the best! When I saw Asia, I knew I had to take her! I injured myself on purpose and deliberately let the church see her righteous actions! Never in my life have I seen such a pure and gullible nun with such radiance! It was a shame that you found her first before me but meeting her again was truly fate! Once she sees you dead and bathed in your own blood, I will relish her sweet despair and take her virginity as she watches your corpses! She has so much hope and I will take my time to make her fall until she has nothing left!"

"... Hey Buchou, can I kill him?" The deathly calm voice betrayed Issei's visage. Anger and hatred was not enough to describe the feeling he's showing. His face morphed into one scary enough to make humans mistake him as the Demon King. Eyes constricted, teeth grinding, face red with bulging veins, toped them all off with his Boosted Gear glowing ominously.

The Sekiryuutei was radiating bloodlust, an aura in the shape of a red western dragon almost manifesting around him. That was not the usual innocent and playful atmosphere of a pervert, but a sleeping dragon awakened with no other thoughts than to slowly yet painfully kill his prey, "Daisuke was right, hearing this fucker talk really will help me punch him harder."

Every last one of the ORC was sicken to the core by the crazy devil, they all wanted to kill him in the most satisfying way possible. However, they have to get their priorities straight or everything will be for nothing. The King voiced her command to stop him-

"But, I'll do that once Asia's safe and far away from him as possible. 'Always think calmly so you can vent out as much as you want once your friends are safe', Daisuke made sure to pound that into me during training so I won't make the same mistake. That's why, can you distract him while I save Asia?"

"Of course!" The ORC geared up, it should be fine as long as they have enough energy for later.

Diodora responded in kind, the snake he received from Ophis amplified his demonic powers, "Please enjoy the spectacle my dear Asia, as they die by my hands."

The Astaroth sped towards Issei but got intercepted by the Knights and magical blasts from the wizard-types. The Pawn ignored him in favor of running towards Asia. Despite the overwhelming numbers, Diodora isn't bothered by them or the fact that Issei was reaching Asia, resuming the fight by throwing around his enhanced magic.

"Issei-san."

"Hang on Asia, I'll get you free in no time." Summoning Ascalon, Issei sliced the bindings only to find them completely intact, "What the?"

"It's useless." Diodora struggled against the ORC even though they're fighting while conserving energy, yet seeing them powerless to free Asia remedied his irritation, "That device was created by a High-tier Longinus, your Mid-tier Boosted Gear cannot help. Also, by some miracle that I was defeated, that device is set to destroy everyone including the observers in the viewing room."

"So what? That doesn't mean we'll give up." Issei didn't bat an eye, Khaos Brigade may have a lot of powerful techniques, but they got a cheat code in the form of a dimensional traveler, "Ddraig, is it ready?"

"Yes, I have accumulated much power as you asked. How will you use it?"

"Simple, Daisuke said to trust my instincts. When I see a girl bounded with lots of layers, my first thought is this." The pervert placed a hand on the device restraining Asia, a magic circle appeared before he snapped his fingers, "Dress Break."

*RIP*

"Hyaah!" As Issei caught her in his arms, Asia blushed and hastily covered herself with her arms. Nevertheless, she greatly enjoyed the princess carry, accepting his blazer as temporary cover and smiling happily, "Thank you Issei-san, you saved me ヾ(≧ ▽ ≦)ゝ"

"Impossible!" Diodora scowled in disbelief and hatred, anger bubbling at the sight of a dragon ruining his fun, "Your Boosted Gear should not have be able to overcome Dimension Lost!"

Issei revelled at the sight of the sore loser, "Maybe not with Ddraig alone but by combining his awesome power with my otherworldly desires, we can take down anything! This is how the current Sekiryuutei fights!"

"... Why do I feel like I want to cry?"

Back to Daisuke, he was nearing where everyone else is located. However, he spotted Shalba aiming at Issei and Asia to send them to the Dimensional Gap with his telescopic vision, "No! I won't make it in time!"

None of his spells have the range to reach or stop the Maou descendant. His last resort was to accelerate with Time Burst, but that will leave him completely vulnerable, "Fuck it! I refuse to repeat the same mistake from Season 1!"

As Shalba fired his spell, Daisuke activated his New Longinus and sped towards his friends. Time slowed down as the light was moving closer and closer to Issei and Asia. He could feel his heart pumping, the technique wavering from using it so long but pushed through. Just as the spell was about to hit them by a hair's breadth, the Rook pushed them out of the way. He was about to exit the spell as well when his body neared its limit, Time Burst deactivated and everything resumed back to normal.

It was at that moment, Miho arrived at the scene. She along with everyone else, turned their heads to find Daisuke getting hit by something yet they were too slow to react. When the light dispersed, he was gone.

"Da-Daisuke?" Issei stuttered in shock.

"Tch." Shalba descended from above, "Sekiryuutei, you were too dangerous to be left alive if you could destroy a creation of Dimension Lost. But I suppose killing the Aoi Arashi was equally important."

"Yo-you're lying!" Issei trembled, and the rest were faring worse, "Th-that's right. Daisuke, this is one of your grand plans right!?"

"How unsightly." Shalba scoffed, "Do not worry, you will all soon be joining him."

"N-n-no... This can't be it. Daisuke's unstoppable, he wouldn't go down from this."

The Boosted Gear glowed.

"Come on out Daisuke! This isn't funny!"

'You mean the pretty girl with you at the park? Yup.'

"We're suppose to fight together remember!?"

'Don't worry buddy, I always got your back.'

"Seriously Daisuke! You still haven't told me the whole sequel of Dra-M Ball!"

'I am Issei Hyoudou's rival!'

"Daisuke... YOU CAN'T BE GONE!"

Diodora couldn't get Asia, but seeing this was a not a consolation prize. Smirking cruelly, "What a fool, letting himself die for a filthy dragon. How does-

"SHUT UP! HE'S NOT DEAD! HE'S TOO STRONG TO BE KILLED BY YOU! HE'S THE AOI ARASHI! HE'S MY RIVAL! HE'S... he's..."

'My best friend.'

"DAISUKEEEEE!"

Earth shattering emotions exploded as the Boosted Gear bathed the room in a blinding light.

[Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker: Calamity Mail]

"Holy fuck, that was way too close for comfort." I'm floating in the Dimensional Gap, Susanoo's ribcage with a bit of Spacetime Burst protecting me, "Okay, calm down. I'm rapidly running low on energy so I can't last long. Gotta condense whatever energy I have left and break out of here with Space Burst. I should be fine as long as I don't run into-"

A giant yellow orb with a needle in the center appeared next to me, moving up as a colossal figure stood tall. Oh wait, that wasn't an orb, it was an eyeball... Fuck.

Well, time to bullshit my way out, "Hey there Great Red, I got lost on the road known as life. Could you tell me where the exit is?"

A reverberating growl was my answer.

AN: Yes, I'm giving Issei a subspecies. Sorry about the late update. Let's just say that the pandemic in my country is... hellish. If this story is abandoned without any announcement someday, it means that I'm dead and no, I'm not joking. Hope you all like it. Please leave a review and tell me what you think.

Ja Ne