"What's going on, you two? You know something about that handsome guy who's like a White Kiba?"
"White Kiba... That's going a bit far, Ise-kun."
Don't say it like that, Kiba. It's just an example. Xenovia responded to my query.
"That man is an Exorcist, a former colleague of Irina and mine. He was a top warrior in the Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Churches, 'Demonic Emperor Sieg'. He has the same white hair as Freed because they were trained by the same organization. It seems to be the side effect of some kind of experiment..."
—! Exorcist! Someone related to the Church! By the way, he's similar to Freed? Thinking of that guy makes me sick.
"Sieg-san! You betrayed the Church, betrayed Heaven!?"
Irina screamed. Siegfried's lips curled happily.
"I guess you could call it betrayal. I now belong to the Khaos Brigade, that's why."
Hearing those words, Irina became angry.
"...Why!? Betraying the Church and joining an evil organization leads to eternal damnation!"
"...This is making my ears hurt."
Siegfried laughed.
"What's wrong with that? Even in my absense, the Church still has the strongest warrior. As long as that someone stays, the loss of me and the Durandal user Xenovia can be covered. However, who could have expected that person to become the Joker candidate for the Brave Saints? Anyway, enough of the chitchat. Aren't you sword wielders very capable? Xenovia, the Durandal user, Shidou Irina, the Ace of Michael, the leader of the Angels, and Kiba Yuuto of the Holy Demonic Sword."
Challenging the swordsmen, no, the three who were related to the Church, Siegfried's sword in his hand began to gather demonic power. ...This sword gave off a very unpleasant pulse. Was it a Demonic Sword? It felt quite similar to Kiba's created swords. —! Suddenly, Kiba's Holy Demonic Sword slashed with god-like speed. Blocking the Holy Demonic Sword directly, there was no damage at all to the unpleasant demonic power gathered upon Siegfried's sword.
"Demonic Emperor Sword Gram. For the strongest Demonic Sword, a strike from the Holy Demonic Sword is nothing."
The two entered close-quartered combat... It has been quite a while since the last time I witnessed Kiba fighting so intensely with someone! The two swiftly retreated and readied their stance. Immediately, they began clashing violently, creating sparks everywhere.
"...A match for Kiba... No!"
Gradually, Kiba was being suppressed, and a rare serious expression could be seen on Kiba's face! God-speed Kiba's movements were—being captured! With movements and slashing attacks faster than the eye could follow, the opponent was still keeping up in a composed and matter-of-fact manner. Can he clearly see through that kind of speed...!? Even when he pretended to attack, none of Kiba's feints were successful in baiting Siegfried! On the other hand, he used the minimum necessary movement to evade Kiba's attacks. When he thrust the Demonic Sword in his hand, Kiba had to dodge with his full attention. There was no room for counter-attacking! ...Even Kiba in Balance Breaker was being dominated...! One of the Hero Faction members explained to the stupefied me.
"In our organisation, though they reside in separate factions, 'Holy Royal Sword' Arthur and 'Demonic Emperor Sword' Siegfried are equally renowned. Holy Demonic Sword Kiba is not their match."
He's equal to that Arthur!? That guy, who easily toyed with Fenrir's child!? T-Then Kiba now.... Though I was worried, someone appeared to join in their duel. It was Xenovia. Slashing without hesitation from the side, she began to assist Kiba.
"Xenovia!"
"Kiba! You cannot win alone! Even against your wishes, I have to participate!"
"...Uh, thanks!"
At this moment, Kiba set aside his pride as a swordsman and attacked simultaneously with Xenovia.
"I will join in too!"
From the outskirts, Irina also entered the battle, forming a three-on-one situation. Xenovia's dual wielding, Kiba's Holy Demonic Sword, Irina's sword of light, the three of them attacked at once! It was no longer possible to capture the speeding blade tips with my eyes as the four of them battled with intensity... But even against three opponents, Siegfried only used a single sword! Kiba's god-speed created afterimages as he repeatedly tried to disrupt Siegfried's attacks from blind angles. From above, Xenovia was slashing down with a massive holy aura! Furthermore, Irina was gliding through the air rapidly as she thrust her sword of light towards the back of Siegfrie''s hand! This simultaneous attack—! I was certain of victory. However, Siegfried flipped his hand and casually blocked Irina's attack without even turning his head back! At the same time, he drew another sword from his waist using his free hand. With a flash of silver—one of Xenovia's downward slashing swords was broken! That was the Holy Sword Kiba created! With a fantastic sound like that of glass shattering, it was destroyed! Siegfried calmly spoke.
"—Balmung. This is the power of one strike from the Demonic Sword of Norse legends."
—! Another Demonic Sword! However, Kiba's dead angle attack still hasn't ended! There was an opening and it shouldn't be possible to evade, for both of Siegfried's arms were already wielding Demonic Swords! With a horizontal flash, Kiba sliced towards his abdomen. In that instant—
Clang...!
The sound of metal. Kiba's Holy Demonic Sword was just stopped by the Demonic Sword Siegfried drew out from its sheath!
"Nothung. This is also a legendary Demonic Sword."
The third Demonic Sword! No, what was even more surprising was that Siegfried's two arms were already wielding swords and couldn't possibly hold a third sword. His two arms were occupied. However, a third arm had grown from his back to draw that sword, blocking Kiba's attack! ...W-what was that arm!? An arm covered by things resembling silver scales. It was almost like my left arm when it became the arm of a Dragon's! This arm grew out from Siegfried's back! Siegfried laughed at our immense surprise.
"This dragon arm? It's Twice Critical, a very common Sacred Gear, but mine is a little different, since it's a subspecies. It grows something like a dragon's arm from my back."
—Twice Critical! I've heard of it! It's an inferior Sacred Gear ranking below my Boosted Gear. A Sacred Gear that should be in the shape of a gauntlet... A subspecies! Growing an arm out of one's back! Siegfried held two Demonic Swords in each hand, with the arm on his back holding a third. ...A three-sword stance! Witnessing this scene, Kiba's expression became even more serious.
"...We are both Sacred Gear users. However, even ignoring the attributes of his swords, am I unable to surpass him even in the use of the Sacred Gear...?"
"By the way, I haven't entered Balance Breaker yet."
—A harsh reminder! Constantly repeating their experiments, members of the Hero Faction could not possibly be unable to use their Balance Breakers. Dominating Kiba, Xenovia and Irina all at once in just his normal state! This guy is too strong! With a rustling thud, Sensei landed in front of us, who were caught in a crisis. At the same time, Cao Cao returned to the centre of the Hero Faction. As their attacks repeated, they circled back to their starting point? I took a glance downstream at where they had come from; the ground had turned into a smoking wasteland! Waaaaaaaah! From a while back, there had been loud crashing noises which made me suspect dramatic occurrences. Arashiyama's scenery has been entirely destroyed! Sensei knew this was an artificial space, so he mercilessly used his biggest spears of light... A few spots on Sensei's armour had shattered... The black wings were also in a messy state. Cao Cao's uniform and Han Chinese attire was also torn in many places... However I find it more amazing that a human did so well against the legendary Fallen Angel Governor! ...Was this the Hero Faction...? Heroes... True Longinus...
"Don't worry, Ise. Neither of us went all out. We were just testing each other out a bit."
Sensei's so-called little testing resulted in the complete destruction of the area downstream! Cao Cao cracked his neck audibly and said.
"What a great Devil servant team. I guess these are the servants of Rias Gremory, well known amongst the new generation of Devils. We intended to have a fight without exerting ourselves, but you guys turned out with a great performance. If my theories are correct, the one who gathered this unnaturally strong group is your power, Hyoudou Issei. Despite your lack of natural talent or demonic powers, I believe your ability to attract others by holding dragon powers is top-notch among all the past Sekiryuutei. Look, isn't the Dragon gathering power right now? It is truly conspicuous in both good and bad situations, as all kinds of legendary existences attack, and you encounter each of the Dragon Kings, and gather all these Chichiryuutei supporters. These are all evidence of that. Even in the absence of their King, you handled the situation and organised the servants with outstanding calmness. They were naive and flawed arrangements...but nonetheless, you may turn out to be a terrifying opponent if you train well in the future."
"..."
I had never considered such things. Everything that has happened so far...was because of me?
Cao Cao's spear was pointed at me.
"That's why, we don't intend to make the same mistakes as the Old Maou Faction. We truly believe that, in the future, you will become the most dangerous Sekiryuutei. This applies to the other servants as well. If we eliminate you all now, perhaps we may even gather some useful data for analysis."
Is that how they saw my, no, our development? It was true that there was a fundamental difference in the way they treated us, unlike the Old Maou Faction, who saw us as a bunch of stupid kids. ...Frustrating! How do I handle opponents like these!? Up until now, I've only faced opponents who treated me as a fool, thus providing openings... Sensei questioned Cao Cao.
"One more question. What are the motives of your Hero Faction?"
Cao Cao narrowed his eyes and said.
"Governor of the Fallen Angels. You may find it surprising, but it is incredibly simple; we just want to know the limits of what it means to be 'human' and challenge them. Furthermore, humans will be the ones to defeat Devils, Dragons, Fallen Angels and other supernatural races. No, definitely, it is humans who will win."
"You want to be heroes? After all, you are the descendants of, cough, heroes."
Cao Cao raised an index finger and pointed to the sky above his head.
"—This is just a little challenge presented by frail humans. Under the heavens, how far can humans go? That is what we wish to try."
—Humans, eh. ...How far can they go as humans... Was this their objective? No, there must be other motives as well. Sensei sighed and said to me.
"...Ise, do not be too careless. This guy is an enemy worse than the Old Maou Faction and Shalba Beelzebub. All your opponents here are very strong, especially this guy, who is just as dangerous as Vali."
The same as Vali... Vali also gave off this feeling of having no bottom line. Possessing the ultimate Holy Spear was also quite a threat... As Sensei gathered our group, the Hero Faction also shifted their formation. All this time, they had been endlessly creating more antimonsters. It really seemed limitless. Also, the Hero Faction held back without attacking. However, our opponents seemed to be ready. It looks like the second wave will be the real battle. They have more Sacred Gear users, right? And there were also many who could enter Balance Breaker. I keep getting swept into these crises. Will that goddess show up to save me again? No, it's not right. I sure don't want to receive direct protection from the great God of Breasts... Just as I was thinking—
Clap.
Right in between us and the Hero Faction, a shining magic circle appeared... The crest on it had never been seen before.
"—This is."
Sensei seemed to know. Who? A Fallen Angel? As we watched with surprise at the light before us—an extremely cute foreign girl appeared, dressed like a mage. ...A-A girl? I was shocked. The girl wore a huge hat and a cape. It really was the attire of a mage... Her age looked like a middle schooler's. Her body was quite slim. The girl turned towards us, who had gathered around in a circle, and deeply bowed her head while smiling radiantly.
"Nice to meet you all for the first time. I am Le Fay, Le Fay Pendragon. I am the mage belonging to Vali's team. Please take good care of me."
—! Va-Va-Vali's team! W-Why would Vali's teammate come to this place!? Sensei asked the girl, Le Fay.
"...Pendragon? Who are you to Arthur?"
"Yes, Arthur is my elder brother. He always takes care of me."
She's that cool gentleman's younger sister! To think he had such a cute little sister! Sensei scratched his chin and said.
"So, Le Fay. Like that legendary Witch, Morgana Le Fay? It has been said that Morgana and the hero king, Arthur Pendragon, were blood-related..."
There were twinkling stars in Le Fay's eyes as she looked towards me.
"U-Ummm..."
She walked to me and held out her hand.
"I-I-I am a fan of the Chichiryuutei Oppai Dragon! I-If you're not too busy, can you shake hands with me!?"
...
Eh, this... I was completely taken by surprise and didn't know how to react. For something like that to be said in the middle of this tense battle... Still, I went 'thanks...' and shook her hand.
"Done!"
She seemed extremely happy... Hmm... What did this child want? Cao Cao's side was also shocked and puzzling over the matter, looking very much troubled... Finally, it was Cao Cao who scratched his head and asked.
"So, it's Vali's side. What's the matter?"
Without any hesistation, Le Fay responded to Cao Cao in all smiles.
"Yes! I came to bring a message from Vali-sama! 'I thought I told you not to disturb me!', that's the message oh♪. You need to be punished for trying to put us under surveillance, oh~~."
Crash...!
Immediately following Le Fay's adorable announcement, the ground began to shake violently! What was this shaking!? An earthquake!? It was already hard to keep standing! Asia and Kunou were unable to maintain their balance and fell onto their bottoms.
Crack!
It was the sound of something sliced open! Looking towards there, the ground had swollen up, as if something huge was about to burst through! Tearing the ground apart and creating clouds of dust, what appeared was—!
"Guuuuuuuuuuutz!"
A massive giant-like thing was roaring!
W-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-What was that thing!? That huge...enormous thing like a giant!? Stone? Rock? It wasn't clear what kind of material it was, but it was definitely constructed out of inorganic material. Its arms and legs were also huge! Its height was at least ten metres! Sensei looked up to the giant and yelled!
"—It's Gogmagog!"
Le Fay answered Sensei lightly.
"Yes. This is one of the strong characters in our team, Gogmagog or Gogz-kun♪."
Gogz-kun♪!? There's such a cute nickname!?
"Sensei, that moving rock giant is...?"
Sensei explained to me. Sorry, Sensei, I keep needing clarifications from you today!
"Gogmagog. It's something like a golem that was placed in the Dimensional Gap and was floating there in a state of suspension. It seems to be a mass-produced weapon of destruction created by ancient Gods... They should all have been deactivated by now."
A golem! I see! So that's why it felt so inorganic!
"That kind of thing exists in the Dimensional Gap!? What deactivated, that guy is moving!"
"Ah, this is the first moving one I have encountered. I have too many questions. Though it was said that they were deactivated and placed in the Dimensional Gap... But to be moving! This makes me so interested...!"
Oh, no, it's here again. Sensei's eyes were shining like a child's... Sensei keeps getting delighted by things like divine creations, ancient weapons and such stuff. However, he immediatly recovered and started muttering to himself.
"I see. Last time, what Vali was checking out when hanging around the Dimensional Gap wasn't just Great Red..."
Le Fay answered Sensei's concerns.
"Yes, it was Vali-sama who detected Gogz-kun's existence. Ophis-sama once mentioned discovering this giant that could move in the Dimensional Gap, so we went there again to search for it."
"Hey, so what other fellows are in the team...?"
I asked Le Fay about the members other than Bikou, Fenrir, and this golem now. Knowing I will be fighting Vali one day...it really made me feel uneasy.
"Yes... Currently, there's Vali-sama, Bikou-sama, brother Arthur, Kuroka-san, Fenrir-chan, Gogz-kun, as well as me, seven in total."
I see. Only seven of them. That was all? But still, it's too much! That Vali, he keeps gathering all these criminals!
"But Sensei, if Great Red is there, why would the Dimensional Gap have that kind of giant...?"
"The Dimensional Gap is quite troublesome to handle, but there is actually quite a bit of leeway. All Great Red wants to do is swim around freely in the Dimensional Gap and does not pose any real threat. He is a special existence, so none of the factions place Great Red in their rankings and categories. All he cares is swimming freely unhindered in the Dimensional Gap..."
Just as Sensei spoke to this point, the golem raised its giant fists at the Hero Faction.
Roar!!!!!
Accompanied by an incomparably loud sound of smashing, the golem smashed Togetsukyou in one hit! Oh nooooooooooo! That is the famous sight at Arashiyama! Thankfully, this is just a dimension that replicates Arashiyama! The golem's attack slaughtered massive numbers of antimonsters while the members of the Hero Faction retreated, hiding on the other side of the river.
"Hahahaha! Vali's angry! It looks like our surveillance was discovered!"
Cao Cao laughed in a loud voice, and pointed his spear at the golem.
"Extend!"
Woosh!
The tip of the spear suddenly extended, piercing the shoulder of the golem! The giant golem lost balance and fell onto the ground! Wow, what an impact! That golem must have been heavy! Just by falling over, it created such a huge shockwave, and everything nearby was shaking! That spear knocked over the giant golem with just one hit! It can extend, and it can also produce an energy blade! It has so many functions! However, the bridge was wrecked. We can only fly across, right? As I considered the next step, a figure entered my view on the shore. In front of the Hero Faction, there was someone shaking and staggering, unable to walk properly. She was a silver-haired woman—Rossweisse-san!
"...Hey. Itsh sssooo noisshy people can't ssssleep (hic!) properly here!"
—She's still drunk!? And she's angry to boot! The arrival of the drunk made the members of the Hero Faction look at one another in puzzlement. However, they intended to attack whether she was affiliated with the Gremory servants or not! T-this is bad! In that drunken state, Rossweisse-san was in danger! I must go over to help! —As I thought that, we all rushed forward. However...
"Whatssh the matter? You want a fight? Sho! I'll ssshhhow y'all the power of old man Odin's former bodyguard Valkyrie!"
As Rossweisse-san yelled, an unbelievable number of magic circles appeared all around her. It wasn't just ten or twenty!
"Tassste my Norssssh magic which countersssss all attributessss, all fairiessss, and all divine exisssstencessss!"
From the terrifying number of magic circles, out spewed a frightening number of magical attacks which filled the sky, changed their trajectories, and finally fell upon the Hero Faction like a heavy rainstorm! W-Woah! This was unbelievable! Fire, light, water, thunder and magical attacks with all sorts of attributes swept everything aside and approached the Hero faction! Whether it was houses, shops, roads or electrical poles, everything turned into dust and disappeared without a trace! ...Though I already knew she was a master in magic, I never thought the great Valkyrie-san could blow away an entire town! Thinking about it, it should have been obvious from the way she took part in the battle against Loki. B-Buchou has really recruited someone powerful... If that's the case, she will really shine in the Rating Game. Suddenly, mist appeared into view. Though it felt like the magical attacks were about to hit the Hero Faction, a youth wearing a uniform with a feathered cape produced mist from his hand and deflected all the magic! —! That was the mist user! He can defend against that kind of magical attack!? Mist slowly spread from the mist user's hand, eventually covering the entire Hero Faction. Cao Cao spoke from within the mist.
"There are a bit too many interferences. However, it was a fun opening ceremony. Governor Azazel!"
As if enjoying things, that guy announced to us.
"Tonight, we will be using Kyoto's special leylines and the Kyuubi leader, and turn Nijou Castle[10] into a great massive experiment! In order to stop us, please come and participate!"
The mist thickened. The mist that started out beneath our feet spread to the chests and approached our faces. And then slowly, our entire view was blocked by the mist and everything disappeared.
"Hey, everyone has returned to the original reality! Put away your weapons!"
Sensei reminded us. We were finally back at the real Arashiyama! T-This was bad. I immediately released my armour—
...
In the blink of an eye, the mist disappeared—and we were back at the crowded streets next to Togetsukyou. Other than us, the tourists crossed the bridge as if nothing had happened. ...The bridge was intact. We were back to the original world.
"Hey, Ise, what's going on? You're making a super-scary face?"
Matsuda stared at my face. I-I see. We had just crossed Togetsukyou.
"...It's nothing. Nothing at all."
Having answered so, I exhaled deeply. All the other servants had serious expressions as well. The battle just now had been far too dangerous. It was impossible to revert our moods so easily. ...Le Fay was gone. It was the same with that giant thing. Did they disappear at the same time as the mist?
Crash!
Sensei angrily struck an electrical pole.
"...Speaking rubbish...! Experimenting on Kyoto...? Don't underestimate us, kids!"
Wow... Sensei was really mad! I haven't seen Sensei this angry for a long time.
"...Mother. Mother didn't do anything...but why...?"
Kunou's body trembled. I could only stroke her head, unable to do anything else. Cao Cao's sudden attack, and his announcement of the experiment at Nijou castle.
Buchou, it looks like our school trip has come to a totally unexpected climax.