Ch. 29: Yumi Kiba, the Knight
Hilda and Ethel walked the streets after they had spent the last hour training at U.A.'s gym.
"Whew, another day of a good workout!" Hilda said as she chugged on a 1-liter soda bottle, downing it in one gulp. She then let out an unashamed belch before laughing in satisfaction. "Now it's time to stock up on some more fat!"
"Should we go to the cat café again?" Ethel suggested.
"Sounds good to me!" Hilda said as she patted her big belly, which was already growling with anticipation.
But as the girls walked, they noticed something bright shining behind them. "Huh?" When they turned around, they saw a bright beam of light coming from U.A.
"The heck? What's going on?!" Hilda exclaimed.
"It came from U.A.!" Ethel said. "We should get over there!"
"Izuku, I need you to be on support this time," Rias informed as the group made their way toward the sports field.
This made Izuku raise an eyebrow. "Support?"
"I want you to use your ability to transfer your power to the rest of us to increase our strength."
"But I want to help everyone with the fighting," Izuku protested.
"You will be helping. You're the only one who can do it. I'm counting on you," Rias reassured.
Ravel then asked Rias, "So does that mean the rest of us are going to be stalling until Izuku can transfer power to everyone?"
"That's right," she responded with a smile, looking at Akeno and Koneko. "I think we can keep them busy until then, don't you?"
"Yeah, I bet we can manage that," Akeno said.
"Absolutely," Koneko replied.
"Let's concentrate on the offensive for this battle. We have to prevent Kokabiel from releasing his power and destroying the school. This is a real battle, and our lives will be at risk. But believe me, I will not allow us to die today," Rias raised her fist into the air. "We will survive. We'll survive this fight so we can come back here and go to school once more!"
"Right!" Everyone nodded fiercely.
"Promotion to Queen!" Izuku closed his eyes and activated Promotion. Now the real fight will begin.
Once everyone arrived at the sports field, they saw Valper's work up close.
"What in the world is that?" Asia asked.
"It seems like the four Excaliburs are being made into one. That is just so Valper, you know?" The ORC and their allies looked up in the sky to see Kokabiel sitting on a grand throne.
"Kokabiel!" Rias shouted.
"So, is Big Brother on his way yet? Or is it Serafall or Ajuka instead? Or at the very least, All Might?" Kokabiel asked with an evil grin.
"Right now, we're the ones here ready to fight. That's all that matters," Rias answered.
Kokabiel snapped his fingers to form a big spear of light in his hand. He then sent it flying at the gymnasium behind the group, causing a big explosion that destroyed the entire building.
"The gym!" Izuku shouted.
"Ugh. This is so boring. I need a diversion," Kokabiel groaned.
"No way…" Izuku couldn't help but stare at the crater left in the wake of Kokabiel's attack, chills running up his spine.
[What's wrong, kid? You scared?] Ddraig asked.
"After seeing that, yeah," Izuku replied. "But I won't let that stop me!"
[I figured you wouldn't.] Ddraig chuckled. [But be careful, Izuku. We're talking about a man who survived fighting with God and the Devil Kings.]
"Since you came all the way to see me, I might as well let you play with my favorite pets!" Kokabiel declared as a bright light shot out from under his throne onto the ground, where a new magic circle appeared before a pillar of flames erupted from the spot.
A large, black-furred paw stepped out of the fire and was quickly followed by the rest of its body. It emerged from the flames to reveal itself as a 10-meter-tall, black-furred dog. It had four thick legs, each with a set of sharp claws, but the thing that concerned Izuku the most was the fact that the massive beast had three heads, each with a set of razor-sharp teeth.
The sudden appearance of the beast shocked everyone, especially Rias. "Cerberus!?" She exclaimed in shock as the three-headed dog roared loudly in their direction.
"Wait… Cerberus!?" Izuku asked, unable to take his eyes off the beast in question.
"Living at the gates of the Underworld, it's the Watchdog of Hades," Akeno said. But that wasn't the only one as another Cerberus emerged from the ground.
"There's more!" Ravel shouted.
"Bringing them to this world is forbidden. Let's send them back!" Rias declared.
"I got the one on the right!" Hisashi summoned his Dragon Veil armor and drew the Homurasaki before unfurling his wings and taking off into the air.
"We'll take on the other one!" Rias said as she also rose into the air on her wings.
"Yes, ma'am!" Akeno, Koneko, Ravel, Momo, and Tomoe nodded as they followed after Rias.
Akeno changed into her Miko outfit, Tomoe drew her katana, and Chacha activated her Quirk and summoned her Beauty Serene Arrow.
"Izuku, Asia, you two stay with Itsuka, Eijiro, and Mina. Use your Boosted Gear to enhance our power!" Rias ordered.
Izuku bit his lip as he watched his friends fight the demonic beasts. 'If only I were stronger, I could enhance everyone in a split second!'
[Boost!]
Rias, Akeno, Chacha, Momo, Ravel, Tomoe, and Koneko attacked Cerberus with gusto. Cerberus breathed fire from all three of its mouths, but Ravel dealt with that easily. Momo cast an ice spell to freeze one of its mouths shut, and then Koneko proceeded to dropkick that head. Akeno zapped the beast with her lightning, giving Tomoe an opening to fly in and slash it repeatedly with her blade. Chacha fired several arrows, all of which exploded upon striking the hellhound. Rias fired her Power of Destruction at the downed beast.
Nearby, Hisashi had the Homurasaki blazing green as he faced his opposing Cerberus, who was already down a head. The two heads then proceeded to spew their fire breaths, but it was all absorbed into the Homurasaki before Hisashi proceeded to decapitate another head.
Even though it seemed that the others could hold their own against the Cerberus, Izuku couldn't help but wonder if there was any more way he could help. His mind then flashed back to All Might's offer. Could things be different right now if he had received One For All?
[Boost!]
A sudden roar and scream from behind him brought Izuku out of his thoughts. Suddenly, two more Cerberus lunged at the teens with their jaws wide open.
Acting fast, Asia managed to shoot out her hair vines to completely ensnare one Cerberus, who struggled to break free while its companion continued its charge.
"Dress Form: Taurus!" Itsuka donned an outfit consisting of a cow-print bikini top and sleeves and black pants with the right leg completely exposed. She also had black gloves, brown boots, a white belt, and a brown bag around her waist, and her hair was styled into a pair of buns at the side, with some side locks. Then, a black whip appeared in her hand.
Itsuka struck the ground in front of the second Cerberus with her whip, causing the earth to shake and rupture, throwing the demonic dog off-balance.
Mina proceeded to spray acid at the downed beast, causing it to howl in pain. Eijiro then hardened his body and proceeded to pummel one of the Cerberus's faces with his fists.
Just then, the Cerberus being held by Asia's vines started to break loose, but before it could attack again, its middle head was suddenly separated from its body before it disappeared in a plume of flames.
"Huh?" Looking up, Izuku saw none other than Xenovia soaring above the hellhound, her Excalibur Destruction in her hand.
"You need a little help here?"
"Xenovia!" Izuku shouted.
Xenovia then proceeded to bring down her Excalibur, bisecting the beast right through its midsection, causing the two halves to be engulfed in flames before disappearing.
"And that is exactly the damage you can expect a Holy Sword to have on evil," Akeno noted.
"I'd rather we didn't need the help, but I am glad you're here," Rias added.
"And don't forget me!" Irina said as she entered the scene, wielding a regal-looking longsword and flipping in mid-air before bringing her blade down on the other Cerberus, cutting it in half down the middle, its two halves vanishing right after. "Aw yeah!"
Meanwhile, Valper noticed the arrival of the Exorcists. However, what actually caught his eye was Irina's replacement sword. He recognized it as Hauteclere, a Holy Sword owned by Olivier, a legendary paladin who served under Charlemagne. He had to give her credit for bringing a spare in case she lost her Excalibur. But how was she able to even use it? Only those with a pure heart could even touch Hauteclere, let alone wield it. Plus his research only extended to the Excaliburs. It shouldn't be possible for her to use another Holy Sword unless…
And then, yet another Cerberus suddenly appeared to jump Irina from behind.
"Icchan, watch out!"
But before Irina could be crushed, she was suddenly lifted off her feet and carried away to safety.
"E-Eh?"
"Are you okay?"
Irina looked to see who had saved her and saw that it was Hilda. Meanwhile, Izuku, Asia, Itsuka, Eijiro, and Mina were shocked to see her there.
"Shirakabe?!" Izuku shouted.
Then, suddenly, the new Cerberus was struck with a few javelins, howling in pain.
"And Ethel," Hilda motioned to her companion, who was decked in full-body armor, holding up a javelin.
"What kind of monstrosity is this?" Ethel questioned. "It's not like any Quirk I've ever seen."
Then, the Cerberus was instantly dispatched by Xenovia like the others before it. "Friends of yours?"
"They're classmates of ours at U.A." Izuku answered before turning to Hilda. "How did you know to come here?"
"We saw that big beam of light coming from the school. It was hard to miss," Hilda said, then she turned over to where the other Devils were fighting their Cerberus. "Wait, isn't that Momo and Tomoe from our class? And Akaninjin from 1-B? And your other friends?! They're all flying on black wings?!"
"Yeah, hehehehe…" Mina giggled sheepishly. "It's a bit of a long story."
Then, Izuku looked down to see his Boosted Gear glowing. It was time. "Rias, Akeno! Heads up!" Izuku called out as he revealed his wings and flew toward them.
"Good boy!" Rias said.
"Ooh, fun!" Akeno said.
"Boosted Gear: Gift!"
[Transfer!]
Rias and Akeno both gasped softly as they felt the power boost coursing through their bodies.
"We're ready now!" Rias said as she and Akeno's bodies were enveloped in green auras.
"Oh yeah," Akeno added.
"Akeno?"
"Of course!" Akeno responded. "Now ring out… THUNDER!" Akeno formed a yellow magic circle from which she rained down a massive thunderbolt on Cerberus. Rias followed suit with her Destruction energy and fired it at the demonic beast.
The beast howled in pain as the attacks struck it dead-on, getting completely obliterated.
Meanwhile, Hisashi managed to slay the Cerberus he was fighting. "That's the last of them!" He said.
"That's good. Now we…" Tomoe said, but her words trailed off when she noticed Hilda and Ethel. "Uh, hi."
Hisashi, Rias, Akeno, Koneko, Ravel, Momo, and Chacha were also surprised to see the newcomers.
"You guys seem like you have a clue of what's happening. So mind telling us WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE?!" Hilda asked, raising her voice.
Izuku sighed. "L-Listen, I know things seem crazy, and…"
"Well, I certainly love a good plot twist," Kokabiel spoke, getting everyone's attention.
"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that guy's a Villain. Did I get it right?" Hilda asked.
"Yeah, more or less," Izuku confirmed. "But he's on a completely different level than the League of Villains."
"TAKE THIS!" Rias fired a massive blast of Destruction energy at Kokabiel.
Kokabiel, his smug grin not faltering, simply swiped his hand to deflect the blast, redirecting it toward the ground, where it left a big crater.
"Impressive," Kokabiel said, standing up. "Look how much stronger you've become now that you've had a little Red Dragon Emperor inside you. Sexy. And fascinating, as well!"
"It is complete!" Valper suddenly announced, getting everyone's attention. In a brilliant golden flash, the four Holy Swords were combined into one, causing a pillar of light to rise into the sky. Valper gazed at his creation with maniacal pride. "Finally, it is done!"
"Now I get to have the massive power that results from the combination of the swords. That's our trade-off. Sweet deal, huh?" Kokabiel said.
"So that power is what you used to make the ground collapse?" Rias questioned.
The sword slowly descended to the ground, its power drawing into the magic circle underneath Valper.
"So then, does that mean they're gonna use it to make the city disappear?!" Izuku asked.
"Wait, what did you say?!" Hilda asked, looks of horror evident on her and Ethel's faces.
"I suggest you leave quickly," Valper said as he turned to the group. "This whole area is going to be destroyed in less than twenty minutes."
"Twenty minutes?!" Irina exclaimed.
"That's not enough time for backup to arrive!" Hisashi said.
"If you want to save it, you'll have to defeat me. Oh no," Kokabiel said as he revealed his ten wings. "Freed?"
"You called? I'M HERE!" Freed loudly announced his presence.
"This is our last piece of entertainment. Use the Excalibur with the power of four swords to get rid of all this debris," Kokabiel ordered.
"I would love to!" Freed responded before turning to the Devils and their allies. "You know that fancy Excalibur with those ridiculous specs? Surprise! I just got one as a gift!" Freed took the combined Excalibur into his hands. "Now, who wants the pointy end of this bad boy first!? Well, I'll just go ahead and chop up that Devil and bitch believer a little, then. That sound okay?!"
Then, Xenovia leaped into the air with her Excalibur Destruction raised high. She let out a battle cry as she got ready to slash Freed.
"Too slow!" Using the power of Excalibur Rapidly, Freed sped away in a blur before he could get cut down. "Have you met? Say hello to the Chopper Rapidly!" Freed reappeared behind Xenovia. "So fresh! Such an amazing Excalibur! This bad boy can make anything happen!"
But as he made a move to slash Xenovia, she performed a backflip to dodge. She then twisted herself while in a handstand to deliver a sharp kick to Freed's face.
"My face! You scum bitch! Who kicks a beautiful creation like this?! I'm gonna tear you apart for that! I'll turn you into a slip-n-slide, you hear me?! Prepare for your final reckoning!" Freed then made use of Excalibur Mimic's power to extend the glowing blade toward Xenovia, who dodged by leaping high.
"It's not just mimicry, you know! Yahoo!" Freed raised the blade high into the air, where it split into five separate blades that elongated to strike at Xenovia.
However, that was when Irina stepped up and deflected all the blades with Hauteclere.
"...It's a nightmare!" Freed then seemed to have split into several clones, each of them wielding the Excalibur blade. "This is the power of the Excalibur Nightmare! Ba-dum, dum-dum dum! How do you like that?!"
"The power to create illusions!" Xenovia noted.
"Now, Transparency!" With the power of Excalibur Transparency, Freed made the blade of his sword invisible.
"Get ready! We won't be able to see the blades!" Xenovia warned.
The squad of Freeds cackled in unison as they all swarmed around Xenovia and Irina, slashing around with bladeless hilts. Both Exorcists were forced to back away from the swordless slashes, unable to tell which one was real. Each time they struck a Freed copy, another one took its place.
"There must be a way to tell them apart," Izuku said, observing the Freed army.
"If you think you can figure it out, better do it fast!" Momo said.
Izuku watched each Freed carefully, looking for any hints that might reveal the real one among the illusions. It wasn't easy; all of them looked identical, and they even all cast shadows. But then, by chance, Izuku noticed one of them kicking up dirt, while the others didn't. That one had to be it.
"That one!" Izuku pointed at the specific Freed.
Momo and Tomoe nodded. Momo launched a fireball at the real Freed, catching him by surprise and forcing him to dodge, making all his illusionary copies disappear. Then, Tomoe sprinted forward and kicked him in the jaw.
"You little…" Freed growled as he held his hand over his pained jaw. "Well, congratulations, for that, you just won the honor of getting to be the first Devils to get sliced up by my new Excalibur!" He then charged forward, intending to cut them down.
Tomoe tried to block with her katana, but since hers was just an ordinary sword, Freed had no problem smashing her sword to pieces with his fused Excalibur.
Momo quickly got between them with a protective magic circle, but Freed, once again, broke through her shield with one swing, knocking both girls down.
"Say nighty-ni– huh?!" Freed was about to attack again when a wave of swords shot out from the ground and rushed towards him. Freed quickly jumped back, avoiding getting skewered. Looking up, he sneered in the direction it came from. "Ah. I was almost worried you'd be a no-show."
"Pardon my tardiness," Yumi said, slowly lifting her hand from the dirt as she stood from the ground. "I took a small detour on my way here. It was an old manor, which had plenty of incriminating evidence inside, so I had to confirm it."
"Yumi made it," Rias said in relief, happy that her servant was safe.
Yumi smiled before turning toward Valper. "Valper Galilei. I'm a survivor of the Holy Sword Project. Or more accurately, of those you tried to murder. I was able to live because I was reborn as a Devil. I refused to die because I knew one day I would avenge the death of my comrades!"
"Ah, little Abigail. I'd heard about you. They said one of the subjects had escaped. How tragic to survive only to live as a lowly Devil," Valper mocked as he walked toward Yumi. "I am grateful to you and the others. You taught me what I needed to know to complete the project."
"Complete it?" Yumi asked with wide eyes.
"The subjects we used didn't individually have enough of a particular gene required to use the Holy Swords. After I realized that fact, I came to a conclusion. So…" Valper's eyes turned malicious. "All I did was take out the gene from the kids who carried any of it!"
Yumi gasped in horror, feeling her palms shake and her skin crawl upon hearing that fact.
Valper then took out a blue crystal with a glowing light-blue center. "Then, I found a way to combine and crystallize their genes! This crystal contains the correct quantity of the gene. It's the last one made from those pathetic little brats."
Freed cackled proudly before adding, "The other guys they tested the crystals on died halfway in because they were too weak to take all the gene goodness! If you think about it that way, you're lucky to be fighting one of a kind!"
"Bastard! How could you?!" Izuku yelled.
Xenovia and Irina peered at the object in Valper's hand with recognition in their eyes.
"The crystal…" Xenovia said. "Holy Sword users receive a blessing. Something like that is put into their bodies. A gene deficiency. That must be what they've been using them for."
Irina had a look of horror on her face as she thought back to when she received a crystal like that to become a Holy Sword wielder. "So the blessing I received… Was actually the crystallized genes of those unfortunates…?" Irina took a step back. "No… that can't be… It's not true…"
"Those hypocrites! After excommunicating me as a pagan, they shamelessly use my research?! Typical church behavior," Valper scoffed before a small smirk, and eventually, a manic smile returned to his mouth. "Of course, we're talking about Michael. So even if he took genes from his subjects, I bet he didn't take the time to kill them. He's more human than I'll ever be, after all."
"There was no need to kill us either. How could you?" Yumi questioned.
"You were nothing more than materials used in a top-secret project. We had what we needed. What were we supposed to do?" Valper dismissed.
"We believed what we were doing was for God. We bore everything because of that faith. And then, you– You just threw us away like trash!"
Yumi's friends all looked at her with sympathy, some like Asia shedding tears for her. Hilda and Ethel, even with the lack of context, were able to make out how the old man was a remorseless murderer and Kiba was a past victim of his. They were disgusted by Valper's pride in his horrible deeds and felt sorrow that Kiba had to suffer because of him.
"Here, why don't you take this? I no longer need it, we've gotten to the point where we can mass-produce higher-quality crystals, no martyrs required," Valper casually dropped the crystal at Yumi's feet, showing an utter lack of empathy.
As Yumi picked up the crystal and held it close to her chest, she remembered all her friends who held back Valper's minions to give her the chance to escape. "How many?" She questioned the Genocide Archibishop. "How many lives did your 'blessed' research cost? How many deaths did it take?" The flask began to shine, several figures taking shape around her.
"What is that?" Asia asked.
"Look," Koneko said.
"It kinda seems like people," Izuku said.
"It's probably the different powers from the battlefield. And Yumi," Akeno hypothesized.
"Our powers on top of the trembling of her heart must have freed the souls from the crystal," Hisashi added.
"So they're the spirits of Yumi's deceased friends?" Itsuka asked.
The spirits then formed into youths of varying ages from children to young adolescents.
"I prayed. And wondered. Why was I the only one? Why me? It wasn't fair for me to have survived. There were kids who had bigger dreams than I did. Kids who wanted to live more than I did. It was a mistake. Someone better than me should have made it out of that nightmare!" Yumi started to tear up as she remembered everyone she lost that day.
But then, she felt a tug at her sleeve, causing her to freeze for a moment as she noticed the presence of the souls of her fellow church orphans. Looking down, she saw a little girl with brown hair, giving her a warm smile.
Then, the spirits all changed into shooting star-like rays as they circled around Yumi.
"It's okay…" a female soul reassured.
"Let's all gather together…" another girl spirit said.
"Take us in. It's time…" a boy spirit encouraged.
"You don't have to be scared, even if there is no God…" the little girl's soul said.
"Though God may not be watching over us…"
"Our hearts will forever be one…"
Upon hearing their voices, Yumi's tears changed from those of sorrow to relief and joy. "Yes…" She smiled as the souls dissolved into her, her body glowing blue as she absorbed their spirits; her tears ceased as she was now at peace.
Rias, Akeno, and Itsuka smiled warmly at the sight.
"Aw, that's sweet," Koneko said as she smiled, close to tears.
Asia shed tears as she held her hands together. Irina and Xenovia did the same as they prayed for the souls.
Chacha, Momo, Tomoe, Hilda, Ethel, Izuku, Mina, and Eijiro watched in tears of happiness.
"They're free now. Those children can finally rest in peace," Hisashi smiled.
[The Knight has peaked.] Ddraig noted.
"Peaked?" Izuku asked.
[Remember what I said how Sacred Gears often respond to their wielder's emotions and their hearts? When the thoughts and wishes of the user oppose nature? When they go against the natural course of things in this world? That's when the Sacred Gear peaks, or in other words, the Balance Breaker.]
While Freed and Valper looked disgusted at the sight before them, Kokabiel watched the scene with interest as he sensed something within the Gremory Knight.
Yumi then turned toward Valper with a glare. "My comrades. They never wanted me to wish for revenge. They wanted me free. But I'm not. First, I need to destroy the evil in front of me. Then no one else will have to suffer." Yumi then forged a sword and pointed it at Valper. "No one but you!"
"Help me! Freed!" Valper pleaded.
"Gladly! All that sentimental shit was about to make me hurl anyway!" Freed came in front of Valper with his combined Excalibur glowing.
"You are such a little fool. You should have let yourself be killed with the rest of them," Valper taunted.
"YUMI!" Izuku called out. "Go on and take down that bastard along with those Excaliburs!"
"You can do it, Yumi," Rias encouraged. "Fight like a member of the House of Gremory, take them down. Besides, no true Knight of mine would ever lose to such a pathetic foe."
"Come on, Yumi! We all believe in you!" Akeno said.
"Make those assholes pay," Koneko said.
"Yumi," Asia said with a tearful smile.
"No point in wasting your friends' feelings now, or their souls!" Eijiro encouraged.
"You can do it!" Mina nodded.
"Fight on, Yumi!" Itsuka shouted.
"Teach them a lesson!" Ravel said.
"You got this!" Momo cheered.
"Take 'em down!" Tomoe encouraged.
"Go, Kiba!" Chacha shouted.
"I don't have the full story, but make those jerks regret hurting you!" Hilda encouraged.
"Let them know your pain," Ethel added.
"Thank you," Yumi responded with a smile.
"Gross. Another 'moving scene' from the House of Gag-Me-Gremory!" Freed interrupted the heartwarming moment. "Now my skin is starting to crawl and it's creeping me out!" He whined like an immature brat. "I can't take it! I need to hurry and kill you! Yes. That should make me feel much better!"
"Time for a new sword," Yumi said as she closed her eyes and focused. "Dear comrades whose souls have merged with mine. We shall overcome this together. All our dreams that were stifled can now come true. I'll create a sword for Rias and for all of my fallen friends! Sword Birth, go!"
In a flash of light and darkness, a new sword began forming in her hands. It gave off divine light from its blade and an ominous aura from the red inscriptions on the middle of the blade. This new weapon radiated both Holy and Demonic aura.
"It's the Sword of Betrayer, a sword vested with both Holy and Demonic powers. Try and stop it!" Yumi said as she began approaching Freed.
"Holy and Demonic powers fused together?" Rias questioned.
"Now it makes sense! I get what Ddraig was talking about!" Izuku said. "He said Yumi had peaked. So that sword must be her Balance Breaker!"
"A Holy Demonic Sword? It's impossible! Two opposing elements cannot mix together! Something like that is an aberration!" Valper said in disbelief.
"The only aberration here is you!" Xenovia said as she and Irina joined Yumi. "Talk to me, Knight of Rias Gremory. Are we still fighting on the same side?"
"I'd like to think we are," Yumi replied.
"I have a thought, then. Why don't we destroy that Excalibur together?" Xenovia suggested.
"Are you sure?"
"Technically we're looking at a Holy Sword, but there's nothing Holy about that," Irina said.
"Agreed," Yumi said.
Xenovia planted her Excalibur Destruction down next to her and extended her right hand into the air. "Oh, Peter. Oh, Basil and Denis. And the Blessed Virgin Mary. I ask you to hear my prayers!" A golden magic circle appeared by Xenovia's hand, and a uniquely shaped broadsword with a blue blade and a golden edge appeared from it. The sword had a semi-circular guard on the left side of the handle that extended to the bottom just above the pommel, with a small extension on the right side of the handle. Standing from the tip of the blade, the sword was slightly taller than her, just by a few inches.
"In the name of the saint living within this blade… I hereby set you free! This is called Durandal!" She shouted, brandishing the sword before her.
Everyone but Irina gasped in shock at the sight of her blade. Even Kokabiel appeared surprised.
"Durandal?" Yumi whispered.
"Another Holy Sword?!" Izuku asked.
"A sword on par with Excalibur. Said to cut everything in this world," Akeno added.
"That's impossible! My research didn't go into how to use Durandal! I can buy someone wielding Hauteclere, but not that! No one should be able to wield that thing!" Valper exclaimed in disbelief.
"You're wrong. Unlike Kiba or Irina, I am one of the rarely-found naturals," Xenovia hoisted the large blade with ease, pointing it at Freed and smiling.
"One who is perfectly suitable, also known as a true Holy Sword user!" Valper realized with fear.
"This kiddo cuts anything he touches to pieces. He doesn't always listen to me, either. Besides that, he's infinitely dangerous if not stored in another dimension."
"I don't believe you!" Freed disagreed. He then extended his fused Excalibur's blade at Xenovia, but she easily deflected it with Durandal. Freed tried again, making the tip of the blade extend into several sharp metal tendrils that shot forward at Xenovia and the others to impale them.
Xenovia didn't even bat an eye as she swung Durandal to destroy all the tendrils in one strike. "What you have is simply a broken Holy Sword. It's no match for my Durandal!" She jumped into the air with Durandal raised high.
"Kiss my ass!" Freed cursed as he used the power of Excalibur Rapidly to speed away before reappearing above Xenovia. "Take this!"
"I don't think so!" Irina stepped in to intercept Freed with her Hauteclere. Xenovia then followed up with Durandal, forcing Freed to speed away again to avoid getting bisected.
"I've decided that I don't like you!" Freed shouted as he moved in to attack again.
"The feeling's mutual!" Yumi said as she appeared behind him.
Both sword users appeared as flying blurs as they clashed together in midair multiple times before they descended to the ground.
Freed then used the powers of Excaliburs Nightmare and Transparency again, summoning illusionary copies of him with invisible blades.
"Even if you can hide among fakes and make your blade invisible, there's something you can never hide. Your bloodlust!" Yumi rushed forward, ignoring all the illusions as she headed for one particular Freed among them. As soon as Freed attempted to swing his Excalibur, Yumi countered with her Sword of Betrayer, and an audible clashing of metal was heard, rendering the blade visible again and all the fake Freeds vanished as well, leaving the real one in shock.
Yumi then charged at Freed, ready to finish the fight. Freed, his shock turning back to rage, met her charge head-on. They fought ferociously for a few strained seconds before Yumi's Holy Demonic sword shattered Freed's Excalibur into pieces.
"My sword broke!" Freed yelled as he was knocked to the ground. "Are you fucking kidding me?! How could I be taken out by lame Devil scum?!" Freed took out his gun to shoot at Yumi.
But before he could aim, he was slashed from shoulder to torso by Irina, who smugly smiled at him, payback for her previous defeat at his hands. Then, Xenovia appeared in front of him and struck him in the face with Durandal's hilt, knocking the madman unconscious.
Yumi breathed deeply, still feeling a bit of adrenaline rush before victory sank in. She had finally fulfilled her lifelong goal. "Yes! Did you see? Our powers overcame Excalibur!"
"How is this possible?! In theory, the fusion of Holy and Demonic powers is–" Valper whispered in disbelief before Yumi turned to him with a glare.
"Prepare yourself, Valper Galilei!" Yumi pointed her sword at the man responsible for her tragic past.
"Yes. I understand now! If the balance between Holy and Demonic powers is disrupted, it could be possible! Which means, not only the Devil Kings, but also God–"
Valper never got the chance to finish that thought as he was immediately bisected at the waist by Yumi in a single slash. In his final seconds alive, Valper saw the look of satisfaction on Yumi's face as she looked down at him.
"At last… I can be free," Yumi, taking a deep breath, flicked her blade to the side, ridding it of the man's blood.
"Yumi, how are you feeling?" Izuku asked.
"I'm fine. Don't worry," Yumi reassured, looking up at Izuku and the others with a smile. It was her normal warm smile as before. "Not because I finally killed Valper, but because I was able to see my friends again. Thank you, Izuku. You and everyone else."
Izuku smiled and nodded.
"Kids, I really don't wanna spoil this heartwarming moment, but it's not over yet," Hisashi reminded, glaring at the sky.
"Oh Valper, you really were very talented. You even managed to figure that out, but it seems your usefulness has now come to an end," Kokabiel said as he descended to the ground.
"Okay, Kokabiel, what are you trying to do here?" Rias asked as she stepped forward.
"I'm destroying everything I find tedious. Now, I'm even more bored than before," Kokabiel replied before turning to Izuku. "Hey there, little boy!"
"Yeah, what do you want?" Izuku said.
"Raise the Dragon's power as much as you can and transfer it to one of them."
"Why would you want me to do that?" Izuku asked.
"So what? Are you offering to give us a chance? Don't bother, we don't need it!" Rias retorted.
Kokabiel laughed at Rias's bold statement. "You're being ridiculous. Rias, my dear. You're gonna need more than a little power-up."
Rias glared at Kokabiel. As much as she hated his arrogance, she couldn't afford to waste any more time. She grabbed hold of Izuku's right hand and squeezed it tight. Izuku blushed in reflex.
"Rias?"
"We're out of time. Let's go. We can do it."
Izuku nodded and held her hand back tight, charging up with his Boosted Gear again.
[Boost!]
[Boost!]
Everyone watched in anticipation and anxiety as the two walked toward Kokabiel.
[Boost!]
"Izuku…" Asia muttered, concerned.
[Boost!]
Izuku continued to Boost his power for a few minutes before he realized a flaw in this tactic. He couldn't possibly raise his power to its absolute limit. It would leave them with no time to beat Kokabiel in the few remaining minutes before Kokabiel carried out his plan to obliterate Musutafu from existence.
'It's not enough…' he thought reluctantly as his Gear Boosted yet again. They had no choice though; there wasn't time. 'But it's going to have to do.'
"I'm ready now. Are you?" He announced to Rias, who nodded in understanding. She must have reached the same conclusion as he had. She knew he could have kept Boosting his power further, but they didn't have time for that.
"Absolutely," she said firmly and tightened her grip on his fingers for luck. They'd be needing it.
"Boosted Gear: Gift!"
[Transfer!]
Green light illuminated Rias's body as all the power from Izuku's Boosted Gear transferred into Rias. She gasped softly as the energy surge coursed through her, increasing her power beyond her imagination.
Once she had absorbed all of the power into her body, her entire body radiated pure, demonic energy, covered by the green aura from the Boosted Gear, the very space around her began to shake from the enormous power she now wielded.
"Holy crap!" Izuku exclaimed.
"She's amazing!" Asia said in awe.
"I can feel the waves of her power, even from over here!" Yumi added.
"Such pressure! It's like back when All Might sent that Nomu flying!" Ethel said while shielding herself with her arms.
Kokabiel didn't seem fazed by Rias's sudden increase in power. In fact, he seemed to find it amusing. "Now things are getting interesting. Yes, what you've got there is a Devil's power to the highest degree! You've been blessed with strength on par with that of your big, bad brother, little girl! Show me what your combined might is capable of!" Kokabiel dared as he stretched out his arms to paint a target on himself.
And here we are, the showdown against the big boss Kokabiel is about to begin. I'm sure some people wish I kept going further, but since we've seen Yumi destroy Excalibur and kill Valper, I thought that we'd seen enough for this chapter.
And yeah. We got two newcomers in the fight in the form of Hilda and Ethel. Let's see how our heroes will fare.
See you next time. Go beyond! Plus Ultra!