Shin flew out of the remnants of the broken barrier and slammed his fist into the enemy demon.
The hooded creature caught the attack on crossed forearms with the sound of something shattering like glass. The demon stepped back, and behind it, Ara Jun gasped in shared pain.
Shin pulled his fist back, about to attack again, but couldn't. With widened eyes he saw ice engulf his hand to the elbow in an instant, and Sarara's hand grip his.
This was a much thicker bind than the one Tetsu had escaped from earlier.
"You were just shit-talking, monster," the priestess said. She stood with more confidence again, but from her wide eyes, she was far from calm.
Her demon looked smug. From that distance, Shin caught a hint of a toothy grin under its hood.
"You thought that I'm only good at range?" it asked in a voice as quiet as a whisper and as cold as a drifting snow. "Big mistake. My ice freezes much faster when I'm close. I will freeze even your armor to your body."
The ice kept spreading over Shin's arm. More came from the ground, covering his feet. Soon, he felt its biting chill, even through the steel armor.
If he tried to take it off again, he will have to take a layer of his skin with it. But if Shin stayed in place, he would freeze over.
"And before you die, my prize," the ice demon said, raising his free hand toward Shin's chest. About to pluck out his heart.
"W-wait!" Ara Jun suddenly exclaimed. "Sarara, what are you doing?! You can't just—He's like me, even if he's… Stop!"
The demon's hand paused. Whether or not it was going to proceed with the attack, regardless of its Contractor's wishes, Shin wasn't about to check.
A dozen pieces of metal armor shot out from him, tearing his clothing as they moved away from his skin. They flew at the distracted demon, piercing its body and joints.
Sarara and Jun both screamed in pain. The priestess fell to her knees, but the demon stayed upright.
With a grunt, it tried to push more ice at Shin, but this time it was too slow. With his unfrozen hand, Shin punched it in the head, hard enough that a skull would've caved in.
The first blow sent Sarara reeling. The second one threw back its hood, showing a black mannequin-like face with only a mouth on it. By the third blow, Shin felt the grasp of ice on himself weakening.
He smashed it, breaking the thickest ice and freeing his limbs. They were still stiff and numb from the cold, but Shin's anger warmed him up so much that he barely felt it.
Sarara dropped to the ground. The demon was still alive, of course—they were sturdy creatures—but couldn't do much more than crawl around.
Just like that wretched Iashkawa. The memory angered Shin more.
"What a pathetic worm," he hissed. "Acting so smug about your power… Three Verses? That's nothing. Nothing! And that stupid woman you are bound with—how DARE she even try to interfere with our plans?"
Shin couldn't resist from landing a kick at Sarara's body. The satisfying crunch of something inside abated Shin's range, if only a little.
Two, three, four more kicks, and Shin felt much better. Well enough to realize that his anger came from the demonic part of himself and was counterproductive.
He had to focus on eating Ara Jun before accidentally killing her demon.
Shin let out a calming breath and waved his hand. The metal pieces inside Sarara's body twisted and turned, pinning the demon to the ground.
Then Shin turned his back to it and went towards Ara Jun. The priestess was unharmed, but the pain of her demon left her kneeling on the ground, sweating and pale, gasping for breath.
A clawed hand on Ara Jun's throat cut that off. Holding her by her neck, Shin raised the girl in the air.
She gasped, struggling and clawing at his arm. Her feet flailed in the air fruitlessly, even trying to kick Shin, but his armor absorbed all the damage.
Her beautiful face was contorted in pain and fear. It was almost like fate—in her original story the priestess ended in a very similar way.
"You had probably the most powerful demon of those offered by the Court to transmigrators, Ara Jun," Shin said. "You could've lived in this world relatively fine. For a while, at least. Instead, you stupidly attacked me, and even in that, you were pathetic. This is not a world where you can hesitate mid-fight, but you did just that. And what about? Tsk."
Shin didn't have to be merged with Tetsu to deal with Jun. But what if she had some tricks up her sleeve?
And he wanted to feel that ambrosia of a human soul on his tongue again—so much that it scared him. But a part of Shin told him it was all fine…
He raised his second hand, bringing it to Ara Jun's chest. It was supple and perfectly proportional—not too large or too small. It also hid a heart full of a soul under it.
Jun looked at it, and her face, already white as a sheet, paled even more. Her hands let go of Shin's wrist and hung limply at her sides.
"N-no… Not this," she choked out. Shiny tears ran down her cheeks. "P-please…"
Shin ignored her pleas. His claws slowly pressed on, tearing through the fabric and the first layer of skin. A part of him wanted the bitch to hurt some more—the punishment dealt to Sarara wasn't enough.
The girl sobbed desperately, rising her hands to her chest in a futile attempt to stop the attack.
"No! I won't… I won't let you eat me like that!"
Their eyes met, and amid desperation, Shin saw determination, too. The priestess raised her hand, and Shin saw a flash of metal. The golden pin that hung on her collar just before.
A last-chance weapon, one that Shin couldn't control.