Yuki
Odin-sama was still fighting the Khaos Brigade members when we reached the temple.
The temple itself was massive and modeled after Greek temples, like the Parthenon or the Erechtheion.
Inside the shrine, I could see rows of white marble columns.
It didn’t seem like there was much more inside besides that.
We rushed inside as the barrier Odin-sama had cast disappeared fully.
It had protected us as we fled from the encirclement of enemy Devils.
A few had tried to attack or stop us, but with Odin-sama’s shield protecting us, they weren’t able to his us.
It allowed Rias, Akeno, and me to freely attack anyone who got in our way.
Rias slowed just inside the entrance to the temple.
Our group began to come to a stop, and I had to force myself not to continue urging everyone inside after Asia immediately.
I had already wanted to defeat Diodora and tear him down during our rating game, and now he was an enemy that we would likely end up fighting to the death or capturing to stand trial for his crimes.
But after hearing him taunt Issei about taking Asia and what he would do to her, I wanted to kill him myself.
Asia was a sweet, innocent girl, and one of the kindest people I had ever met.
If he tried to put a hand on her, Issei wouldn’t need to be the one he worried about.
The others already wanted to take him down, but after seeing his true face, I wanted to tear him apart.
But I couldn’t just rush forward blindly despite badly wanting to.
We needed to regroup and come up with a plan.
Or at least reach out to Azazel-sensei with the communicators that Odin-sama gave us.
Rias handed each of us an earpiece communicator as we gathered at the temple’s entrance.
We all put them on as Rias called out.
“Azazel-sensei! This is Rias! We’ve reached a safe place after Odin-sama found us.”
A response came through almost immediately.
[Rias? Are all of you alright? This is Azazel. I’m glad that herder Odin was able to find you.]
[Are you all alright? This is Azazel. Looks like you got those from that geezer Odin. I know that you probably have things you want to tell me, but let me explain some things first. Your Rating Game has been assaulted by the Old-Maou faction of the Khaos Brigade. The arena you are in and the VIP area have both been flooded with enemy Devils. We had anticipated that something like this might occur, so we were somewhat ready for this attack. Right now we are launching a counterattack to crush the Old-Maou faction.]
I frowned.
If the faction leaders and personnel in the observation area are being attacked as well, then we can’t expect reinforcements immediately.
Also, it seemed that the alliance leadership had predicted this attack and allowed us to go into it blind.
“How did you know this would happen?” I asked.
Azazel-sensei answered without hesitation.
[There have been multiple deaths of people related to the current Maou. The death of the previous heir to the Glasya-Labolas house was announced to be an accident, but he was murdered. The ones behind his death and the other deaths are the Old-Maou faction of the Khaos Brigade. The ones leading them are the descendants of the original Beelzebub and Asmodeus. Like Cattleya Leviathan, they have a deep hatred for the current Underworld government and believe that the old families should be the ones to lead. They want to use your game as a part of their attack to display the breath of those related to the current Maou. They wish to shake the belief in the current Maou’s abilities. This game was the perfect occasion for them to strike. We had expected something to happen since the match between Astaroth and Agares]
“So it’s true that Diodora’s demonic power increased so much because he is borrowing power from Ophis?” Rias asked.
[Yes. But the Old-Maou faction must not have expected him to use that power in his rating game against Seekvaira Agaraes. With him displaying abnormal strength and the death of the Glasya-Labolas heir, we anticipated that something would happen in this match. But even after Diodora exposed part of their plan, they didn’t change it. They are so dead set on removing the current Maou that they accepted the possibility that we could figure out their plans. But this is a massive opportunity for us. We have the cooperation of Idin, the Greek gods, and Sakra and some of the other gods of Mount Meru. They agreed to cooperate when the plan to deal a large blow to the Khaos Brigade was explained. We will take this opportunity to wipe out the Old-Maou faction in the Khaos Brigade. Right now, everyone is rampaging against the Old-Maou faction devils.]
So it wasn’t that they were just sending us in uninformed.
We were bait for an operation to trap and eliminate part of the Khaos Brigade.
After telling us that they didn’t want us fighting them or having to participate in the war against them, we had been dropped in the middle of it.
Azazel-sensei spoke again, his voice sounding apologetic.
[I am sorry, Rias. I told you that this war wasn’t something you would be involved with. But instead, we pushed you into it. The decision to place you in danger was made in order to defeat our enemies. We didn’t tell you because we wanted to ensure they acted before your game and didn’t suspect anything. But we successfully lured them out at the cost of placing you all in danger. This plan was originally my idea, and I had to convince Sirzechs to approve of it. I’m sorry, but I wanted to draw out the Old Maou faction no matter what.]
It was another case of those above using the pieces they had available to them.
I had hoped that Azazel-sensei would be different than that, and I had been beginning to trust him despite everything.
But he had enacted a plan that treated us as disposable bait.
“What would you have done if we died in the process?” Issei asked far too casually.
Azazel-sensei answered in a grave tone.
[If anything were to happen to you, I would take responsibility for it. If that meant that I had to pay with my life, then I would.]
“If Odin-sama hadn’t been the one to come fr us, we’d be dead,” I said. “He mentioned that he was the only one able to enter the barrier. If he had chosen to fight somewhere else, we would have faced the Khaos Brigade alone.”
[Getting to you was always the plan. We didn’t—]
“And wasn’t Sirzechs-sama the one to say that it would be a tragedy to lose one of the ‘treasures of the Underworld’?” I asked, cutting him off. “That the older generation of Devils would fight so that the younger generation could grow?”
“…Senpai,” Koneko murmured as she took one of my hands in hers and squeezed it before letting go.
“Yuki-san, this isn’t the time. We can be upset and argue with Azazel-sensei later,” Yuuto added.
I paused before nodding.
“Yeah. We need to hurry and save Asia!” Issei said. “Sensei, she was taken by Diodora at the start of the attack!”
[I see! But you’ll have to leave Asia to us. We’ve put you at enough risk already. There is a hidden basement in the temple that I can guide you to. It was designed to be rather sturdy, so you will be able to hide there until the fighting is over. The Old-Maou faction is continuously teleporting more Devils in, but we will eliminate them all. The field you are all in was created by a Longinus user in the Khaos Bogarde. It is called [Dimension Lost]. It’s excellent at creating barriers and spaces like this. That’s why even the geezer Odin wasn’t able to break the barrier. And Yuki, I know it doesn’t help, but I am sorry for using you all in this plan.]
“You’re going to rescue Asia? Are you also inside the game field, Sensei?” Issei asked.
[Yes, the observation area was made as part of the field, so I’m also inside. Though I’m far from you right now, as this space is huge.]
“We will go and save Asia.”
I nodded.
Azazel-sensei sounded frustrated as he responded.
[Do you not understand how dangerous things are for you right now? You need to get somewhere safe, not rush into danger.]
Issei shook his head.
“I don’t understand exactly, but Asia is in danger! She is our friend! My family! I want to save her! I can’t lose her again! We can’t just wait here!”
Rias smiled darkly.
“Azazel-sensei. I’m sorry, but we will move deeper into the temple to rescue Asia. Even if you tell us to wait, I can’t sit back and allow Diodora to do as he pleases. I need to teach him how foolish he was to think that he could take one of my servants from me!”
“Azazel-sensei. We have the right to use our power against those who take action against the Three Great Power alliance, correct?” Akeno asked with a grin. “Well, Diodora has taken rebellious actions against our society and has aligned himself with terrorists. I think that justifies us using our powers against him, wouldn’t you agree?”
A sigh came over the communicator.
[You guys really are a bunch of stubborn brats…. Fine. If you’re going to fight, do so without any restrictions. Don’t hold any of your power back. Especially you, Ise. Show that traitorous brat, Diodora, the power of the Sekiryuutei!]
“Rias-Buchou,” I said.
She looked at me, and I could see that she was already thinking the same thing I was.
“We could release another seal,” I said.
Everyone’s attention turned to me.
“It’s been long enough since the last seal was released for my body to be ready for another,” I continued. “This is another emergency. As Azazel-sensei said, we need to fight without restriction.”
Azazel-sensei spoke before Rias could answer.
[Go ahead, Rias. I’m already going to catch plenty of flak for you not heading to the basement to hide in the basement like you were supposed to, so adding something else on top should be fine. I don’t think anyone could complain given the situation, so I’m authorizing it. If Sirzechs has an issue with it, it will be on me.]
“Thank you,” I said quietly.
Rias moved to me.
“Are you sure you’re ready?” She asked.
I nodded.
“Alright.”
She placed her hands on the sides of my throat.
I closed my eyes.
I felt her demonic power flare for a moment before something in me shifted.
Then suddenly I felt a sharp pain before a rush of strength filled me.
A weight lifted from me, and I could breathe more freely now.
Rias let go of me as I felt my demonic power flare around me and my tails shift behind me on their own.
I felt heat on my skin as the seal lifted
Then I could feel the remaining seals shifting over me.
But I had it back.
I could feel it again.
My fifth tail.
______
Akeno
Yuki-chan’s power settled after violently flaring.
The demonic power I could feel from her had greatly increased.
The last seal release felt smaller in scale than this.
As Rias removed another seal, red lines became visible on Yuki-chan’s skin for a moment.
From the little I saw, it looked like magic symbols and runes packed together, forming chain-like structures over her.
Then the pressure coming off of her deepened, and I began to notice the physical changes.
They were much more subtle than the first and second unsealing.
The slight sickness that still clung to her faded.
Her skin regained some of its pallor.
The shadows under her eyes faded.
The slight strain that she always seemed to have faded away.
She finally looked healthy.
The fragile appearance that she had since I had first met her was gone.
And there was another tail behind her now.
A fifth tail sat at the center of the others.
She opened her eyes as she moved her tails in front of herself.
She ran her fingers through the fur of her new tail.
She looked at Rias.
“Thank you.”
Rias nodded.
“We need all the strength we can get. And I told you that we would remove all of your seals. I only wish it wouldn’t take so long.”
Koneko-chan had already moved to Yuki-chan’s side.
“…You look better, Yuki-senpai. I’m happy for you.”
“Thank you, Koneko-chan,” Yuki-chan replied before glancing at the group. “Now we need to go find Asia.”
Sadly, she was right.
If we had the time, I’m sure we would spend a while talking about her changes and asking questions.
I was curious to find out how many more tails she would be getting and if her appearance would be changing any further.
Rias nodded.
“You’re right, Yuki. We need to reduce Asia. But your new tail should give you access to another ability, right? What is it?”
Yuki-chan’s brow furrowed.
“The ability of my fifth tail is more complex. It’s something that I will still need to practice with before I can use it properly in a fight.”
“What does it do?” I asked despite knowing we shouldn’t be wasting more time.
“…It allows me to manipulate others who hear my voice.”
I blinked.
That sounded rather useful.
And potentially dangerous.
Azazel’s voice came over the communicator again.
[Alright. Now that Yuki’s seal has been released, listen up. This is important. The enemy started their attack despite knowing that we were catching on to their plans. That means that they believe that their plan won’t be affected even if we know about it.]
Rias frowned.
“So they have something that they believe would be enough to overcome the strength of the leaders of multiple factions?” She asked.
[Correct. But we don't know what it could be. You’ll need to be careful. This isn’t a Rating Game anymore. There’s no returning or surrendering. You guys will be on your own from here on out. Keep that in mind. And be careful.]
I frowned.
We needed to save Asia-chan, but it was worrying that our enemy was confident enough to continue this attack with the element of surprise being lost.
We would just need to get Asia-chan back and then retreat to safety.
We could wait out the rest of the battle after that.
But first I would need to inflict plenty of pain on the fool who thought he could mess with one of my kohai and get away with it.
Just imagining shocking him till he screamed in pain made me smile.
“Koneko, can you find Asia?” Rias asked, turning to Koneko-chan.
Koneko-chan closed her eyes for a moment.
Her ears shifted multiple times before she nodded and opened her eyes.
She pointed deeper into the temple.
“……I can sense Asia-senpai and Diodora Astaroth from that direction.”
“Alright everyone, let's go! But stay on guard,” Rias said as we began to move.
We ran forward through the columns, deeper into the temple.
Towards Diodora and Asia-chan.
As we moved, I realized that this temple was large, but rather empty.
It seemed like the building would just keep going, but there were only columns and occasional shrines.
But those shrines were each empty besides more columns inside them.
I glanced at the others as we ran.
Ise-kun looked determined and mad.
He had been the one most affected by Asia-chan’s capture.
I think the only reason he hadn’t panicked was that we had a clear path to get Asia-chan back.
Xenovia-chan looked ready to tear someone apart.
She and Yuki-chan had tried to rescue Asia-chan and failed.
I could tell it was eating at her.
Gasper-kun looked nervous and worried.
Rias looked angry and ready to beat Diodora into a pulp.
Yuuto-chan was watching our surroundings as we ran and would glance at Ise-kun occasionally.
She seemed to be checking on how he was holding up.
Koneko-chan was doing the same with Yuki-chan.
Koneko-chan looked focused on tracking Asia-chan, but she still glanced at Yuki-chan occasionally.
Yuki-chan looked calm and focused.
Her eyes scanned each shrine we passed before darting ahead again.
Her gaze was cold as she looked ahead while we ran.
She was probably imagining the worst.
I only hoped that we made it in time before her fears could become a reality.
We neared a much larger shrine.
“…I’m detecting multiple presences inside of that building,” Koneko-chan said, pointing at the large shrine.
We ran faster and arrived inside.
Waiting for us, blocking the doorway leading deeper into the shrine were ten robed figures.
I couldn’t make out any of their features, but they were all smaller in stature.
Then Diodora’s voice echoed through the shrine.
[Hello, Rias Gremory and servants. I’m surprised you survived this long.]
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