The Holy Man of The Church Creek

51

Duty and honour. Pride and principles.

It didn't matter what kind of motivations one had when compared to obligation. There was always a bottom line for everyone both good and evil. Everyone had their motivations, and similarly, everyone had their breaking points. The moment that one's tolerance was thoroughly tested and smeared through the dirt, was the moment of no return.
Even the kindest of beasts and individuals could become monsters in their rage, more so when they were already monsters to begin with.
They who stand upon the barren grounds of eternal torment and purgatory, Kings, Princes, Presidents, Rulers, Arch Demons of the levels of Hell. Just as there were the Heavens, so to were there the realms of the Underworld.
The Seven circles that govern the weight of one's sin.
The First Circle: Limbo.
The Second Circle: Lust.
The Third Circle: Gluttony.
The Fourth Circle: Greed.
The Fifth Circle: Wrath.
The Sixth Circle: Heresy.
The Seventh Circle: Violence.
They were the chronological order documented by human hands, Dante's Inferno, and overseeing all hells were the Guardian Pillars of the Underworld.
Seventy-Two Demons, united together, Heavens Equal in strength.
Ars Goetia.
The hair at the back of Rizevim's neck subconsciously raised in trepidation, cold chills travelling down his back. For the first time in his life, he felt small, as if the great powers granted within him from the strength of his pedigree were no more than pale imitations of true might.
Marbas? The power that he was feeling behind him attempting to suffocate him in its sheer density was not at all similar to the Demon Marbas's.
In fact, it wasn't Marbas to begin with.
"Kuro!" Serafall called out, causing Rizevim's eyes to dilate as the Marbas in question appeared by Serafall's side in front of both Grafyia and Euclid Lucifuge.
Serafall's expression brightened significantly at Marbas's arrival, but Rizevim did not waste a second on that idle observation. Instead, his attention was more focused on Euclid and Grayfia who were staring blankly at the figure that was undoubtably behind him. Grayfia looked stunned, her mouth nearly hanging open, but soon covered by a hand which chocked back a gasp. Euclid reacted differently, his face was flushed with awe and wonder. He was trembling, his hands balled into fists as if unable to quell his own excitement.
Rizevim knew Euclid. The man was a genuine loyalist and would never direct such an expression on someone that was not worthy of it.
Which meant to say that Rizevim's lingering hope that Marbas alone was the cause of the energy pressuring him withered away into dust blown in the wind.
"You, you are not Marbas?" he spoke apprehensively, unable to will his body to turn around. He swallowed audibly; expression stiff as he felt his own blood's natural impulse to submit.
Rizevim had only felt such a reaction before when he had witnessed the rise of the Demon Marbas in the Underworld Civil War. Now though, the pressure was different. It was magnified several folds as if daring to resist would be an affront to his own lineage.
The Authority of a Demon imposed over a Devil.
Marbas wasn't the last Demon?
It had to be another Demon of some sort.
"We are not."
The answer to his question came in a disembodied voice, shocking Rizevim to the point that he stiffened. The use of the word 'we' was important in this instance. When he considered the fact that perhaps the pressure that he was feeling was not the result of one individual but many combined, he couldn't help but recall the shadows that he had seen prior.
Seventy-Two.
That number was not without substantial meaning.
Where was he right now?
The Underworld.
What was he currently doing?
Invading and trying to destroy Hell itself.
What was the oath of Seventy-Two?
The Guardian protectors of the Underworld.
Right now, Rizevime could feel it. Including the aura of the Demon Marbas, seventy-one others were present in the vicinity, as if watching him.
There was just no way. It was impossible. They were all dead except for one!
Tentatively, he finally mustered the courage to face the adversary behind him, and quickly faltered under the presence of seventy-two magical crests floating within the air around a single figure. Said figure was not tall, nor did he appear as menacing as the monsters known throughout Greek Mythology, but there was this distinct pressure that no words could ever accurately describe.
Its arms and legs appeared covered in golden-like scales while intertwining black patterned markings circled around its limbs. There was no face. Hardly any facial features were recognizable aside from the general shape of a head whose crown sprouted a bangle of leafed thorns resembling the antlers of a goat.
Goats were not just regular animals; they were the symbols of evil depicted in human culture representing Demons and the Lords of Hell.
At the figure's center, appeared what looked to be an eye. Vein-like blood vessels pulsed with raw magical energy, space itself distorting from its presence alone.
In Rizevim, Serafall, Grayfia, and Euclid's perspective, it was like they were in the presence of their most revered ancestors. The true progenitures of Devil Kind given shape and form representing the seven circles of the Underworld.
Goetia, The Demon God King of the Human Correction Order Ritual.
Beast I.
Goetia raised its arm and opened and closed its hand as if in momentary disbelief. Thereafter, its hand balled into a fist, its expression exceedingly neutral as the memories of a different world's Seventy-Two Demons filtered through its mind. Different from the Seventy-Two Pillars which existed in it's original world, the Seventy-Two Pillars in this new world were both different and familiar.
The Seventy-Two Pillars of Solomon were meant to be the failsafe to guard humanity at King Solomon's death, but here in this New World, the Seventy-Two had their own identities and beliefs. Still, one thing was true, they were the rulers of the Underworld.
Goetia stared at the perpetrator of the Underworld's attack, but momentarily did nothing, its mind focused on a distant memory.
The Time of Parting has Come, He is the One who Lets Go of The World
Ars Nova.
A return of God's gifts to the Heavens.
In all honesty, it should no longer be able to exist after the use of the King of Mages, Solomon's final Noble Phantasm.
Yet, it was the One God who 'returned' those gifts back to human hands.
A paradox was made between parallel worlds, and within paradox Goetia was born again.
The struggle for life.
The fear of death.
Even if it had only been for a moment, Goetia knew what it had felt like at the Grand Temple of Time, and that was why when he stared at the state of the Underworld using his magical energy, he could understand what the Devils, his subjects, were feeling under the enemy attack.
Desperation.
Despair.
Regrets.
Goetia could now understand them all. Coupled with the identities of the new world's Seventy-Two, Goetia channeled his demonic power from within him.
The time of judgment hath come.
Goetia stepped forward, and its shadow loomed over Rizevim like a heavy blanket.
"You who dared tarnish the sanctity of our realm, by the pact of Seventy-Two, have been deemed guilty."
The crests of the Seventy-Two Pillars floating around Goetia in a circle thrummed and echoed with the voices of the other pillars.
"The Demon Sitri calls for death." House Sitri's magical crest shone with a dull light, the aged voice of an old man echoing throughout. Upon hearing it, Serafall felt her blood begin to pulse with power. As a member of house Sitri, this was the voice and aura of her esteemed ancestor. Her patriarch.
"The Demon Paimon calls for immediate execution." Other voices began to follow in tandem, hollow, yet filled with presence.
"The Demon Barbatos calls for torture."
"Imprisonment."
"Banishment."
"Death."
"Death."
"Death."
"Death."
"Death."
The echoing of a single word caused Rizevim no end of panic as the eye at the center of Goetia's chest began to surge with a terrifying amount of Demonic energy. Tendrils of purple lightning singed the ground in writhing arcs as a strong wind picked up and formed a storm.
Run. He had to run.
It was the only thought in Rizevim's mind. Once death actually came knocking on his door, he finally realized a single truth about himself.
He feared death. He did not want to die.
The Demon Marbas was one thing, but facing off against the might of the Seventy-Two Demons was another. Even if he was a Super Devil, Goetia was on the level of power to match against the One God of Heaven at his prime. Rizevim could feel it. An overwhelming strength that seemed to suck out any thoughts of resistance.
Rizevim would be a fool not to run.
Forcing himself out of the pressure that was boring down on his body, he didn't even look back as he used every ounce of strength to get as far from the area as possible.
"A foolish attempt."
That same voice rung within his ears, spurring him to retreat even faster, and yet no matter how far he travelled, it always felt like a hand was steadily grasping around his throat. Fear overpowered him enough to do the unthinkable.
He directly tore a whole into the dimensional gap where the Great Red resided, just barely escaping the thin line of demonic energy that was threatening to pierce through him.
Serafall and the others sucked in a breath.
Goetia didn't even look like he was trying. Instead, Goetia's attention had primarily been on Shirou who possessed ten rings over his finger.
"Pathetic bug. Sadly, we are not the ones to kill you." Goetia spoke dismissively before nodding towards, Shirou. "That role belongs to another."
Serafall looked between Shirou and Goetia before she pursed her lips, understanding what Goetia was implying. Serafall wanted to insist that she go along with Shirou to fight against Rizevim, but the look of warning that Grayfia was flashing her and the aura that Goetia was emitting while staring at Shirou forced her into silence.
She gritted her teeth and balled her hands into fists before startling as she felt Shirou kiss her on the forehead.
"Stay safe, Serafall," Shirou said quietly before shifting his attention to Goetia and speaking sternly. "Take care of her."
Serafall, Grayfia, and Euclid were momentarily appalled. Even if Shirou was the Demon Marbas, Goetia represented the might of the Seventy-Two pillars combined. Serafall feared that her Kuro may have had ended up offending such an existence for her sake after using such a commanding tone and it was terrifying. I-If Kuro was taken away from her again, she wouldn't know how she'd be able to cope even after giving birth to her child.
"H-Hurry and apologize, Kuro. You shouldn't speak in such a way," Serafall was entirely panicked, her heart beating rapidly within her chest as she dared not make eye contact with Goetia up in the air.
Grayfia looked like she also wanted to get a word in, but probably for the safety of her own family, she firmly shut her mouth and tossed Serafall to the sharks.
By this time, Serafall was trying to make Shirou lower his head in apology but faltered because she didn't seem to have enough strength to push him down. She ended up jabbing him with her elbow on the side, but he just turned and looked at her as if he didn't understand what she was trying to do for his sake.
Serafall's anxiety spiked. "Kuro, you can't do this to me right now! Stop being so dense!"
Goetia began to laugh darkly, causing the pallor of Serafall's complexion to pale drastically. "Kuro HURRY!"
Serfall felt despair when rather than apologizing, Shirou simply repeated himself. "Take care of her, okay."
Goetia scrutinized Shirou for a solid ten seconds in which Serafall and Grayfia began to greatly worry for Shirou's safety.
"How presumptuous." Goetia spoke off handedly. "In some ways you remind me of an irksome human Master that I used to know, but I don't suppose that it's all that bad. Very well. I will do as you ask, bearer of the ten rings."
Goetia's words were all that Shirou could have had ever asked for.
He didn't waste another second longer and instantly chased after Rizevim through the same tear that Rizevim had ripped leading to the Dimensional Gap. It had been moments away from closing, but when Shirou looked closely, he could see that the Demonic energy that Goetia had released was forcibly keeping the passage open. Rizevim would not get far.
Shirou soon disappeared into the Dimensional Gap.
Only Serafall, Grayfia, and Euclid were left behind under the gaze of Goetia. Serafall and Grayfia subconsciously shivered, not knowing how to feel since they could not ascertain what kind of personality Goetia possessed. The women moved closer together out of a subconscious instinct to rely on safety in numbers. Euclid on the other hand looked mesmerized if just little more so than Serafall and Grayfia. Apprehensive as they were, to them, Goetia was their ancestor of the Underworld.
"House Sitri and Lucifuge?" Goetia's voice broke Serafall and the rest from their reverie.
"I am Euclid Lucifuge," Euclid was the first to find his voice and step forward with a deep bow. "How may we address your excellence?"
Serafall and Grayfia looked up cautiously.
Goetia had still not answered.
Goetia released a breath and soon placed his arms out on either side of him to reveal numerous gems glinting with demonic energy. "We need not for any title. We are an existence whose sole purpose we alone will fulfill as decreed by the oaths sworn on Walpurgis night."
Goetia looked at Serafall, Grayfia, and Euclid before shifting its attention to the rest of the Underworld overrun by rampaging monsters born from a Sacred Gear. It was unacceptable. The lands which the monsters were ravaging were not just the lands of Devils, but the previous territory of the Demons of the Underworld.
The Demon Phenex had already gotten a head start after noticing the giant laying waste to its ancestral home and kin, but now it was the turn of the rest.
The Underworld was in a state of peril that needed to be remedied. This was why Goetia had left Rizevim alone for Shirou to handle. Right now, Goetia's duty as the representation of the Guardian Pillars of the Underworld was to protect its inhabitants.
Hell was large and massive, a world within itself that could rival the size of earth as a whole. Goetia could not deal with the situation by remaining as a single entity.
The Pillars were needed once more.
Goetia's form began to blur before becoming nothing more than a shadow whose single eye shone with an ominous red.
"Now then, the time has come." Goetia's attention turned to the rest of the Underworld. It already knew its duty from the moment that it had materialized. "One against many. Heaven and hell, good and evil. We of Seventy-Two are the equals of the Kingdom within the clouds. By oath we stand. By oath we perish."
It didn't matter how evil or malicious a Demon was, they all had their obligations to their homelands. This was ingrained in the memory that Goetia had assimilated from its Seventy-Two counterparts.
Deep within the furthest reaches of the Underworld upon the ancestral lands of the Demons, magic crests began to shine and shoot up towards the skies in pillars of crimson red.
Goetia's form vanished entirely, but Serafall and the rest could still hear Goetia's voice echoing within their ears.
"Dantalion, keeper of the Forbidden Library of Bibliotheca."
The air seemed to change, suffused by an ancient melody heralding the arrival of forbidden knowledge. The wind shifted from a calm breeze, to a turbulent storm.
"Release the seal."
Bands of energy swelled throughout the underworld before converging on a single point near the middle of the realm. Books were the windows of knowledge. From within them were words containing great wisdom and power. For when God spoke to Adam and Eve, the forbidden fruit within the Garden of Eden, was the fruit of Knowledge.
Knowledge itself was perhaps the greatest sin that contaminated the innocence of man.
Not for curiosity, nor lack of love, but because knowledge itself begets evil just as well as it could beget good.
It was a catalyst beyond compare, granting the gift of thought and awareness, and that was why the books contained within the magical library of Bibliotheca were sealed away even to Devil kind.
Dantalion, the gatekeeper of the Forbidden Library was the only Demon of the Seventy-Two that had access to the lesser key of the forbidden library.
Dantalion was only given a single task by releasing the seal.
Summon the Legions of the Underworld.
Sixty-Six Legions to Baal.
Two-Hundred to Paimon.
Twenty-Six to Zepar.
"By the decree of Dantalion, the Seventy-First Demon, let the gates of the elusive library be opened. Release the knowledge stored within. Ars Magna, I am the World."
Phantom images of the Underworld's past army began to flicker in and out as a staircase of purple light formed in the middle of the realm, leading to a domed building with brick arches and a gated fence.
Dantalion was never the strongest of Demons, but he was the Demon who was perhaps the closest with the Mage King Solomon. Dantalion was trusted with the gift of many truths and with his defeat in the Great War came the end of the Legions. The armour of the Legions, the designs were all stored and manufactured within the forbidden library.
Made of Devil Core, the armour and weapons of the Red Tide were the exclusive symbols of the Demons of the Underworld.
The Demons had returned, and through the knowledge of Dantalion, rather than use Devil Core to make up the armour, the armour of the Legions was now made up with the sheer energy of the Seventy-Two Demons and Goetia.
In the lands of Marbas, Adelina like many of the Ultimate-Class Devils fighting within the Underworld looked up to the phenomenon in the purple skies.
Magical energy glimmered over her clothing, shifting in and out of existence while she fought with the monsters prowling over the ground.
It happened in a single instant.
A single blink of her eyes.
The crest of Marbas shone over her head and all of the Devils throughout the land that she stood on. It was the same everywhere, but with different glowing crests.
'To Marbas, thirty-six Legions.'
Dantalion's voice echoed through Adelina's ears before crimson red armour donned itself over the entirety of her body down to her wings. It was familiar to many in the Lands of Marbas.
Once weak, many Low-Class Devils had once donned these armours as the Pride of the Underworld Civil War.
"L-Lord Marbas," Adelina whispered with bated breath, her lips quivering.
A crimson helmet manifested over her head, and in the next instant, she gripped tightly onto the edge of her longsword with renewed vigour.
"Charge! The protection of Lord Marbas is with us!"
Adelina directly ran straight towards her adversaries daring to besiege the lands of Marbas.
Meanwhile, the voice of Dantalion continued to echo throughout the Underworld.
'To Gremory, Twenty-Six Legions.'
Sirzechs, fighting three Jabberwocky-class monsters along with his peerage stiffened in stunned amazement as Crimson Armour donned itself over his form as well.
Each Legion denoted by the rank of the Demons of Seventy-Two had their unique appearances and crests. Marbas for example had the image of a roaring lion engraved on its back, and the image of the twin keys at its front.
Gremory was no different expect that the animal and magical crest were different in appearance.
Moreover, a figure appeared while riding on the back of a camel. The rider looked to be beautiful horned women wearing a duchess's crown. Her face itself greatly resembled the features of Sirzech's late Grandmother.
At the woman's appearance, Sirzechs suddenly felt his already large reserves of power begin to soar.
The woman stared at Sirzechs and curled her lips playfully upward as if in recognition.
In the next moment, the woman and the camel flattened a towering Jabberwocky like it was nothing. "The strength of Baal within you is strong, but as a descendant sharing the blood of Gremory, your fist should have had been enough." The woman lectured lightly. "I am the Demon Gremory."
Sirzechs could only blink in confusion before composing himself. For some reason, the smile of the woman in front of him was eerily similar to his mother's.
Dantalion's voice continued on unhindered.
'To Astaroth, Twenty-Seven Legions.'
The Demon Astaroth took to the battlefield.
'To Sitri, sixty legions.'
The Demon Sitri made his appearance.
The magical library suspended within the air shot off wave after wave of magical energy that shrouded all Devils in combat with the legion's armours while producing phantom figures of the Legions of Old led by their patriarchs.
Goetia supplied the power.
The Seventy-Two Pillars of the Underworld, fulfilled their obligations.
So long as the pillars stood, the Underworld would never fall.
However, Goetia stared up into the sky, feeling a budding energy emerging.
Recalling the information that Shirou had shared with it, it soon readied itself for battle at any moment.
'Come.'
Back in the Human World, the situation was only getting more and more chaotic. The chaos itself had already long since spread from the epicentre at Kyoto throughout the entirety of Japan.
Rias bit down on the nail of her thumb and grimaced while Sona sat directly in front of her.
The both of them felt as if they were in a bind with no method of escape.
"How did this happen?" Rias felt her stomach churn from within her as she whispered. Sona was no different.
The two were at an impossible impasse.
They were in the middle of their classes during Kuoh Academy when Evil Dragons suddenly descended down on the school. There were dozens of them, and at first, they did nothing but stare. No one had been able to react properly to their presence until the first student dumb enough to get close with a cellphone in hand was trampled on and eaten.
There was a heavy silence, one that stretched out from the entirety of the school overlooking the front window-side entrance.
"She's dead?" One idle observation by the teacher later, and everyone in Rias and Sona's class was scrambling to escape.
"Damn it, what should we do?" Rias quickly got out her desk followed by Sona.
They had the strength and power required to save a lot of people around them, but it was expressly forbidden in the Human World to reveal their magic.
"Is this really the time to consider rules?" Sona bit down on her lips and looked conflicted. "Look outside Rias. It's not just the school."
Rias shifted her gaze towards the distant city buildings that she could see from Kuoh Academy's third floor where the senior students held their classes. It looked light a nightmare, plumes of smoke drifting into the sky while skyscrapers collapsed onto the ground and crushed everything beneath.
"We'll just have to go with it. Maybe our elder siblings already have a countermeasure? Sona?" Rias turned to look at Sona who was frozen in place while checking a magic circle that appeared over her wrist.
"The Underworld won't respond," Sona's mind worked quickly. Matters of the human world were of the utmost importance for all pantheons including the Underworld. Why was it that Sona couldn't receive a signal of any sort given the situation? "Rias, try calling your brother."
"Uhm, right," Rias dialed Sirzechs contact information through a magic circle, but the feed was coming up blank as well. "But he never misses my calls," Rias muttered in alarm.
Sona clicked her tongue, but the concern in her eyes was exceedingly apparent. She was already speculating that something had happened in the Underworld, and considering her elder sister's current condition, Sona was justifiably worried.
"This isn't the time for considerations, lets go," Sona adjusted her glasses and made her way through the crowd of running students. She placed her index and middle fingers together and raised her hand to her ear while activating a tiny magic circle. "Saji, Tsubaki, gather everyone together, now. We'll meet up at the courtyard." Sona ended her call.
Rias was quick to follow Sona's example and gathered her peerage together.
"Mrs. Gremory, Mrs, Shitori, it's dangerous there!" A teacher called out to them after looking in the direction that they were now running towards.
Rias smiled softly in response while Sona just shook her head. "Trust us, it's fine," They both spoke as magic circles formed beneath their feet.
The teacher and the other students hurriedly running away paused and stared at them in shock.
"Get out of here," Rias aimed her hand towards one of the enemies in the courtyard. They were wyverns, lesser dragons spawned by the Evil Dragons terrorizing the distant city. She calculated that she was capable enough to engage them safely. Besides, after her numerous encounters with powerful beings, like Sona, she'd become numb to weaker opponents. Nothing could compare to the strength that they felt from the Demon Marbas and the other Gods from the various pantheons.
"Go, now!" Rias yelled before she fired as the wyvern noticed her.
The teacher and other students stared at her in shock, their mouths opening and closing. Most unexpected of all was the sight that they saw after peering back down to the courtyard.
"I-Is that Issei Hyoudo?" Matsuda and Motohama, Issei's friends gawked as they saw Issei activate his Boosted Gear.
The other students were paying more attention to the others.
"Look! It's Kiba!"
"Saji? Koneko?"
"The Student Council Vice President!"
Many of the student were stunned into silence as Issei, Saji and the others from Rias and Sona's peerages took to the battlefield.
Rias inwardly sighed. There was no use trying to keep everything secret at this point after Issei and the others had already begun fighting.
Bat-like wings sprouted from Rias and Sona's backs before the two jumped out to join their peerages.
The teacher and everyone else could only look at each other before hardening their gazes and running away as Rias and Serafall had instructed. The scene of a student getting killed right before their eyes was enough of a shock to get them moving.
"Akeno, what's the situation like?" Rias called out as soon as she joined up with her peerage. She had been the last to arrive and meanwhile Akeno, Kiba, Issei, Koneko, and Asia were already in the midst of dealing with the weaker wyverns.
Akeno didn't respond right away. Instead, she was focusing up on the sky instead.
Rias and everyone else followed Akeno's gaze only to gasp when they saw the Kingdom of Heaven in the clouds and the Angels and Fallen Angels descending down on pinioned wings.
Michael was in the lead and the Angels and Fallen Angels seemed to disperse in all directions. Some to Italy, others to France, Britain, America, and several places in the world.
It was a shocking sight to see, more so when a single thought came to Rias's mind.
Was the situation already so bad that there was no longer a need to maintain secrecy of the supernatural?
Her question must have had been showing on her face, because someone ended up clarifying the situation to her.
"The world's in chaos," a deceptively neutral voice spoke out.
Rias turned to address the new arrival, and the first thing that she saw was Sona putting up her guard in the distance. Next was a head of pale silver hair and a sharp yet strong gaze. It was one that Rias would not fail to recognize for it was the fated adversary of the Welsh Dragon.
"Vali Lucifer?" Rias mimicked Sona and raised her guard up.
Vali paid Rias's weariness no mind as he stepped out of the teleportation circle behind him. He seemed to be in the midst of contemplating. He clicked his tongue. "I'm not here to fight you right now," he explained.
"Then what are you here for? What are you allhere for?" Akeno voiced out her concern.
Vali wasn't the only one to appear from the teleportation circle.
Bikou, Kuroka, and two others that Rias had never seen before soon stood behind Vali's back.
Kuroka and Koneko were staring at each other silently, but each seemed too embarrassed to greet the other since neither of them had explained that they'd mended their relationship.
Vali considered Akeno's question. "I suppose that you just haven't sensed it yet? I was informed that a strong being would be passing through this area."
"So, you just want to fight then?" Sona quipped from the side disapprovingly. "Can you not see the current state of the world right now?"
Vali didn't answer. Oh, he could see the current state of the world, and that was why he was already restraining himself when he could feel the advances Issei had undergone with his Boosted Gear.
Vali was never one to shirk away from a fight, but this time was different.
Even he had someone that he wanted to protect who was living in the Human World.
The only human who actually mattered to him. His mother who could no longer even recall his name and appearance.
"My reasons are not yours to judge," Vali crossed his arms before narrowing his eyes. "Knowing your group, you always attract the strongest of opponents which was why Bikou suggested starting a meeting with you rather than mindlessly wandering."
Bikou smiled sheepishly when Rias and her peerage leveled a glare on him. Still, it wasn't like Bikou's reasoning was wrong.
Sona just shook her head before walking directly up to Vali and tiliting her head up to meet him in the eyes. "If you're not here to fight us, then help us evacuate. The situation in the human world should take precedence over past grudges."
Vali stared down in a glower, but didn't voice any objections.
Tension filled silence descended over the group, and before Bikou could break it, it was Kuroka who ended up doing it for him.
"Are those guys crazy?" Kuroka pointed with her finger towards a line of police men setting up their cars as barricades and shooting at the wyverns. "They're going to get themselves killed."
One look was all it took for Rias and the others to take action. Bikou just patted Vali on the back before moving on ahead on a yellow coloured cloud.
"Get away from it!" Kiba was the first to arrive on the scene, bewildering the police who stared at him in doubt.
"Kid, what are you doing!" The policemen shouted before their voices caught in their throats after Kiba killed a wyvern in a single swing. Moreover, his speed allowed him to kill another two in only a couple more seconds. "Don't bother trying to attack these things. Guns won't work," Kiba said seriously.
The policemen were flabbergasted.
From the moment that the police had received emergency calls regarding flying lizards wreaking havoc across the country, none of the police officers had believed it. Now though, they had no words to describe their bewilderment.
"Kid, just what are you?" One of the police officers spoke in disbelief.
None of their guns and weapons had been working since the beginning and now a high-school aged kid takes out the giant lizards in a handful of moves.
Kiba didn't have the time to answer, more wyverns were quickly coming.
"Hurry and just evacuate everyone!" He yelled.
The police officers looked across at each other before nodding their heads.
Many of the police officers had been ordered to hold the area and protect the civilians long enough for the army to intervene. Fighter planes and military tanks were already being requested for use by the country's special forces.
"Sorry kid, we'll lave the rest to you. The Army will be here in less than an hour!" The policemen began evacuating the nearby civilians staring at Kiba in shock.
Many civilians and police were already numb to the events occurring across the country, but the religious fanatics were euphoric at the sight of the Angels and Fallen Angels battling it out in the sky against the wyverns.
Still, people were constantly dying, and the injured only growing in numbers.
"President, we need a plan!" Kiba called out to Rias while grunting. Issei and Koneko were quick to aid Kiba while Asia focused on healing in the back.
Rias pursed her lips. Honestly speaking, she didn't know what to do. She'd never expected to handle such a wide-scale attack, and nothing conventional was going to work. There was too much damage occurring all at once and worse, Rias suddenly felt small as an oppressive aura bored down on the area.
"I told you I was right!" Bikou's voice echoed from behind Rias's back, but she didn't have the energy or motivation to simply turn around and glare anymore.
A man was walking towards her down the street.
Green and white light shone from the gauntlets over Issei and Vali's arms. Albion and Ddraig were speaking in a harsh tone.
Dragon.
The man approaching was a Dragon in the guise of human flesh. He wore a dark black coat and had mixture of long dark and blond hair arranged in a pattern formation. His right eye was gold, his left black.
Crom Cruach, the Crescent Circle Dragon that should have had been accompanying Nidhogg in Kyoto.
Rias felt her legs about to give out on her, and turning back to look at Sona and the rest, they were fairing no better. Perhaps if she and her peerage had been given more time to grow stronger, then they may have had been able to put up a fight, but this was hopeless.
Vali and Bikou were the only ones standing fearlessly while sweat formed heavily over their brows.
Neither Rias nor Sona could understand what had driven the strongest Evil Dragon to come to Kuoh Academy. If Crom had just come in order to wreak chaos, there were far better locations across the country that he could have had attacked. Kuoh Academy specifically should not have enough importance human-wise to create a large-scale disaster.
However, Crom Cruach had still come to the point that he'd left behind a fellow Evil Dragon.
Presently, Crom wasn't even looking at Vali and Bikou's direction. Sure, the man had spared Vali and Bikou a glance, but the majority of Crom's attention rested not on Kuoh Academy itself, but on a certain portion of it.
Within the shadows of the eastern side of the school, a figure emerged out into the open.
It was a tiny child who looked like she belonged in an elementary school. She was wearing a dark purplish Goth-Lolita attire with short frills and tiny slip-on shoes. Her hair was tied into two short pigtails and there was an absent and disinterested look on her face.
The child stared at Crom impassively, like an innocent toddler contemplating how to get a cookie out of a cookie jar.
Still, the identity of this child was not to be underestimated.
Crom suddenly began to grin.
"Ophis."
The name that Crom called out caused not only Rias and Sona to freeze, but Vali and Bikou as well who had not expected the defacto leader of the Khaos Brigade to be around. She was more a symbol and puppet leader if anything, but not even Rizevim could order her around lightly.
It was the Dragon of Ouroboros. The Infinity Dragon, Ophis.
"I knew that I sensed someone familiar," The grin over Crom's face stretched into a battle-hungry smile.
In turn, Ophis blinked mildly at the other dragon's direction while tilting her head. "Are you making trouble?" She asked almost too innocently.
Crom seemed taken aback for a moment, but immediately began laughing. "I came after sensing you. I came to fight! Of course, I'm here to cause trouble!"
Ophis displayed an expression of realization before a terrifying amount of power welled up from within her and out into her surroundings. "I made promise. I will stop anyone from making trouble in the Human world."
Ophis recalled the message that Shirou had hastily sent to her via a magic circle and allowed her determination to swell. Her fist rose up in a 'I can do it,' sort of gesture and soon even more power swelled from within her.
If she dealt with the trouble on the surface, then Shirou had said that he'd earnestly help her deal with the Great Red who stole her home.
Looking at the bands of light thrumming endlessly in the sky, Ophis was already convinced that Shirou would be her best help against the Great Red when compared to everyone else that she'd met in the world.
At the very least, he was the only one who looked earnest and did not judge her for the absurdity of her wish. In fact, he had even tried to mistakenly save her once when they had first met.
Shirou was interesting in that way. His personality itself was one that Ophis had steadily grown curious about.
Unlike everyone else, Shirou told her that he would help her not just because he was asking her for a favour, but because he referred to her as 'friend.'
She'd never a had a friend before.
That alone was reason enough.
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