"Issei, answer me! Did you and Miu make a baby!?" Xenovia demanded.

"Just focus on the enemies!" I shouted.

More anti-monsters kept spawning, some firing beams. Even the Hero Faction looked stunned.

Sorry, guys!

Goaaa!

"Get out of my way!" I grabbed an anti-monster by the neck and hurled it. It crashed, the explosion taking out nearby monsters.

Dealing with Xenovia and the others was tougher than these beasts! They already figured it out!

Miu's face screamed, I messed up, but it's too late!

"You're more than the rumors say, Red Dragon Emperor," said a white-haired guy with multiple swords, approaching.

Perfect chance to escape this chaos. I cleared my throat. "You Hero Faction guys seem different from the Old Demon King faction. No overconfidence, no looking down on us. Honestly, you're tough to deal with."

The Old Demon King guys rushed in recklessly, but these ones let the anti-monsters lead while observing us—analyzing our moves.

"Haha, only top-tier gods or utter fools would underestimate you," he said. "Shalba and his ilk were the latter. We see you and your friends as threats. Vali, too."

Tch, they're cautious. No easy openings like with Shalba.

He stepped forward, drawing a sword. "I'm Siegfried, descendant of the hero Sigurd. Call me what you like."

Xenovia's eyes narrowed. "I thought you looked familiar."

Irina nodded. "Those demonic swords at his waist. It's him."

"You two know this white-haired Kiba wannabe?" I asked.

"White-haired… that's harsh, Issei-kun," Kiba muttered.

Just a figure of speech, Kiba.

Xenovia explained, "He's our former comrade—an exorcist. A top-tier warrior across Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches. Nicknamed 'Chaos Edge Siegfried' for wielding multiple demonic swords."

"Doesn't sound very church-like," I said. Demonic Emperor? Sounds more like a demon thing.

Siegfried gave a wry smile. "Can't argue there. It was awkward back in the church days."

Knew it.

"Sieg-san! You betrayed the church—Heaven!?" Irina yelled.

"I suppose so. I'm with the Chaos Brigade's Hero Faction now."

"Betraying the church and joining an evil group? You deserve death!" Irina snapped.

Xenovia scratched her cheek. "…That stings a bit." Yeah, she recklessly became a demon herself.

Siegfried chuckled softly at Irina's rage. "No big deal. The church still has him. He's more than enough to cover for me and Xenovia, the Durandal user. Now, shall we start?"

His sword radiated an eerie aura. Definitely a demonic sword. Best not to touch it.

"I'll handle this," Kiba said, charging Siegfried.

Clang!

Kiba's holy-demonic sword clashed with Siegfried's demonic sword, sparks flying.

"The Demonic Emperor Sword Gram—the strongest demonic sword. It can handle your holy-demonic sword," Siegfried said.

"Then I'll just cut you directly," Kiba replied.

They broke apart, launching into a fierce swordfight. Kiba mixed feints with high-speed slashes, but Siegfried parried and countered with minimal movement, keeping up with Kiba's speed.

Kiba dodged with ease, creating afterimages with his speed. They seemed evenly matched.

A Hero Faction member muttered, "In our group, Siegfried's 'Demonic Emperor Sword' and Arthur's 'Holy King Sword' are equally renowned. To think he can match Siegfried… their growth in such a short time is unreal."

They don't know about the otherworld. Kiba trained there under Maurice himself. Their intel on him is outdated.

Siegfried grinned. "Yuto Kiba, holy-demonic sword user! You're more fun than expected. How about this?"

He drew another sword with his free hand. "Balmung, a legendary Nordic demonic sword."

Kiba twisted to dodge, crafting another holy-demonic sword for dual-wielding. They clashed again.

Seven swords appeared around them, moving as if alive—Kiba's new power. They lunged at Siegfried.

Clang-clang-clang!

All seven were deflected. Siegfried wielded a third demonic sword… with a scaly, dragon-like arm sprouting from his back.

"My sacred gear, Twice Critical, Dragon's Hand. A common gear, but this one's a subspecies," he said.

Dragon's Hand? A lesser version of my gauntlet, right? Ddraig and Azazel mentioned it was a gauntlet-type, but a subspecies?

Siegfried fought three-sword style, while Kiba's expression hardened. "A fellow sacred gear user… not using your swords or gear to their fullest?"

"Nor my Balance Breaker. But you're holding back too, right?"

True, Kiba had more to give, but Siegfried was barely trying. If both got serious…

Flap!

Azazel landed before us, Cao Cao returning to his group. Their battleground was scorched, Azazel's armor and wings tattered. Cao Cao's uniform and hanfu were torn, but he'd held his own against Azazel's armor—impressive, even if neither went all out.

"Our old intel's useless," Cao Cao said, cracking his neck. "We trained, but your growth is surprising."

"Even terrorists train?" I asked.

"Of course. We're just frail humans."

Frail? After matching Azazel like that?

"What's your goal, Hero Faction?" Azazel asked.

Cao Cao's eyes narrowed. "Simple, Governor Azazel. We want to see how far humans can go. Challenge the supernatural—demons, fallen angels, dragons. It's always humans who defeat them. No—it must be humans."

"Playing hero? Oh, right, hero descendants," Azazel said.

"Just a humble human challenge under the heavens," Cao Cao replied.

Kiba and the others tensed. This guy's serious about taking on the supernatural—and has the power to back it up.

Still…

"That's pathetic," I said.

My voice echoed in the stunned silence, all eyes on me. Guess no one expected that in this tense moment.

"What?" Cao Cao frowned.

"You heard me. Humans beating the supernatural? Then challenge us head-on, not with terrorist crap like kidnapping and brainwashing. Your actions hurt innocent people. Who'd call you heroes?"

They're descendants, not heroes themselves. "Stop calling yourselves heroes."

"You talk like you've seen a real hero," Cao Cao said.

"Yeah, I have—a true hero, a brave warrior. That's why I can't stand you claiming the title."

The Hero Faction's killing intent spiked. Cao Cao, thoughtful, aimed his spear at me.

Anti-monsters kept spawning. Tension gripped both sides.

Then—

Flash!

A glowing magic circle appeared between us, unfamiliar to me.

Azazel seemed to recognize it. "This is…"

A young girl, maybe middle school age, in a magician's outfit appeared. Petite, she bowed deeply, smiling brightly.

"Hi! I'm Le Fay, Le Fay Pendragon, a mage with the Vali team. Nice to meet you!"

The Vali team!? This cute girl!?

There, huh? No, wait—why's she here?

Azazel asked, "Pendragon? Related to Arthur?"

"Yes, he's my brother. Thanks for looking after him!" she replied.

Arthur's sister!? I'd dote on her if I were him!

"Le Fay, huh? Named after Morgan le Fay, tied to Arthur Pendragon in legend?" Azazel mused.

Her eyes sparkled as she approached me. "You're Issei Hyoudou, right?"

"Uh, yeah?"

She thrust out her hand. "I'm a huge fan of 'Breast Dragon Emperor Oppai Dragon'! Please, a handshake! And an autograph!"

She pulled out a card and pen. Everyone—us and the Hero Faction—froze, dumbfounded.

She's… my fan?

"Cao Cao," I said.

"What?"

"Timeout."

"…Go ahead."

I took the pen and card, signing in demon script. Hope that's okay—she's human, right? I handed it back, shook her hand, and she squealed, "Yay!"

Glad she's happy, but… "Why are you here?"

Her smile was radiant. "To get your autograph—er, I mean, to deliver a message from Vali-sama!" She turned to Cao Cao. "'I told you not to interfere.' That's the message! This is punishment for sending spies to our team~"

BOOM!

The ground shook violently. Asia and Kunou fell on their butts. Something massive emerged, splitting the earth.

GROOOAR!

A colossal rock giant roared.

"Gogmagog!" Azazel shouted.

Le Fay nodded. "Yep, our team's power hitter, Gog-kun~"

Gog-kun!? That's not cute at all!

"You know it, Sensei?" I asked.

"Gogmagog, a golem-like weapon left in the dimensional gap. Ancient gods mass-produced them as war machines, but they were supposed to be defunct."

"It's moving!"

"First time I've seen one active! Thrilling!" Azazel's eyes gleamed.

Of course he's excited.

"Who else is on the Vali team?" I asked Le Fay.

"Vali-sama, Bikou-sama, my brother Arthur, Kuroka-san, Fenrir-chan, Gog-kun, and me—seven members."

Seven, huh? And Fenrir's one of them!? Vali's got a wild crew.

As we talked, Gogmagog swung a massive fist at the Hero Faction.

CRASH!

The blow obliterated Togetsukyo Bridge. Good thing this is a fake Arashiyama, or a landmark would be gone.

The strike wiped out tons of anti-monsters. The Hero Faction leaped to the opposite bank.

"Hahaha! Vali's pissed about our spies, huh?" Cao Cao laughed, aiming his spear at Gogmagog. "Extend!"

The spear stretched, piercing Gogmagog's shoulder like Bikou's staff.

THUD!

Gogmagog collapsed, shaking the ground. Asia and Kunou fell again. Maybe they should just stay seated.

As I turned to them—

"Ugh! So noisy with all the banging!" slurred a voice.

No way—Rossweisse!?

"Sensei, wasn't she in a barrier!?" I asked.

"Yeah… she must've broken it drunk," Azazel said.

She broke his barrier drunk? Does she get stronger when wasted!?

"Take this! Full Burst!" Rossweisse screamed.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

A barrage of fire, light, water, and lightning obliterated the town—houses, roads, everything gone!

Prez, you got a great recruit, but… good luck.

The mist in my vision thickened. Rossweisse's attack was blocked by the bespectacled guy's fog, sparing the Hero Faction.

"I need more booze!" she wailed.

Rossweisse, just sleep! You're too dangerous! And stop drinking!

The fog enveloped the Hero Faction. Cao Cao's voice rang out. "Too many interruptions, but a fine start to the festival, Azazel, Red Dragon Emperor!"

He declared gleefully, "Tonight, we'll use Kyoto and the Nine-Tails' leader for a grand experiment at Nijo Castle! Come stop us!"

The fog swallowed us.

When it cleared, we stood before a bustling Togetsukyo Bridge, tourists oblivious to what happened. We were back in the real world.

Le Fay and Gogmagog were gone, likely teleported away.

WHAM!

Azazel punched a pole. "A festival, huh? Damn them!"

"…Mother did nothing wrong… why…?" Kunou trembled, tears in her eyes.

I patted her head, resolve hardening.

I'll crush you. I'll save Yasaka.

You'll pay for making Kunou cry.

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