Asuna didn't disappoint.
Barely an hour had passed before she seemed to have accepted her situation and stepped out of her room.
"Either way… thank you for saving me."
In the garden pavilion, wearing her own school uniform again, Asuna followed the maid familiar to where Leo and Yukino were having tea. She bowed deeply to them.
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be standing here right now. So… thank you. Truly."
She spoke with complete sincerity. As she bowed, her chestnut hair flowed softly, graceful and striking.
"Well, as long as you've accepted reality, that saves me the trouble of convincing you."
Leo raised his teacup and took an unhurried sip, smiling at her.
"Take a seat." Yukino gestured lightly. "We're all comrades. Technically he's our master, but he doesn't care about formalities. You don't need to be so stiff."
Leo shot her a sideways glance.
She really had changed—this girl once cold and untouchable was now saying considerate things. The sun must have risen in the west.
Not that he knew Yukino only felt this way because Asuna reminded her of herself back then. Sympathy softened her.
At Sobu High, she was still the same as always—distant, quiet, untouchable. In the eyes of others, she was the undisputed Winter Flower.
Only Leo, relying on his status as her master, could push her around at all. If he were just a handsome third-year, she probably wouldn't even look at him.
"You're also Leo-san's… servant?"
Asuna took the offered seat and hesitated before speaking to Yukino.
"I'd rather deny it, but it's the truth." Yukino's expression didn't change. "I'm Yukinoshita Yukino—this guy's… Leo Eligos's Bishop piece."
"Yukinoshita?" Asuna blinked. "That Yukinoshita?"
So Asuna knew of the Yukinoshita family.
"You know them?"
Yukino was surprised.
Her family might be prestigious, but only within Chiba Prefecture. Compared to the Yuuki family—giants of Tokyo—the gap was obvious.
Tokyo was the capital. Chiba was just the neighboring prefecture. Even if the Yukinoshita family wasn't weak, many Tokyo elites still saw them as provincial nobility.
From a practical standpoint, the Yukinoshita family had nothing that would make the Yuuki family pay special attention.
Asuna's father was the CEO of a nationwide electronics conglomerate. Yukino's father was the president of a construction company who also served as a prefectural assemblyman—better known politically than commercially, but still only a local official.
Asuna's mother was a university professor with wide connections. Yukino's mother was merely active in a local guardians' association. The difference in status was obvious.
So Yukino knew about the Yuuki family—but didn't expect Asuna to know hers.
She didn't expect Asuna to say something that instantly wiped the faint smile off her face.
"I've met your sister, Yukinoshita Haruno-san," Asuna explained. "My brother was invited to a banquet by a family here. When we arrived, a lot of local families came to greet us. Haruno-san was among them."
"She was beautiful and impressive—composed, confident. My brother really enjoyed talking to her. Later, he praised her a lot. He said she might be able to elevate the entire Yukinoshita family."
Asuna herself had been struck by Haruno's poise—how effortlessly she held her own among the representatives of so many major families. Asuna admired that kind of presence. To her, that was what a true lady should be like.
As for herself… she was just following her family's plan, being molded step by step into a decorative signboard for the household's reputation.
Thinking that, Asuna's gaze dimmed a little.
"Haruno…"
Yukino's expression grew complicated. She suddenly didn't feel like talking.
Her sister was still as dazzling as ever—admired even by elites from Tokyo.
Would she ever catch up?
Yukino fell silent, confused and a little lost.
The pavilion turned cold with that silence—two young ladies, each trapped in their own thoughts. Leo nearly laughed at the atmosphere.
Before he could speak, though, Asuna pulled herself together.
Compared to becoming a devil and discovering the supernatural world, her family issues weren't worth dwelling on.
"Yukinoshita-san is Leo-san's Bishop piece, right?" Asuna looked to Leo, hesitant. "Then what about me? Which piece did you use for my reincarnation?"
Leo had already explained the concept of Evil Pieces, so Asuna wasn't confused.
But the one who answered wasn't Leo—it was Yukino.
"You're a Knight piece."
Yukino had regained her composure and spoke directly.
"Same as me—you're worth three Pawn pieces."
She had been there when Leo reincarnated Asuna, so she knew exactly which piece had reacted.
"A Knight?" Asuna blinked. "I'm… a Knight?"
Her surprise made sense. According to Leo, a devil who was a Knight had the trait of speed—clearly a frontline fighter.
But she…?
She was a girl raised under elite education—knowledge, etiquette, arts. Not athletics.
A frontline combatant? Wasn't that just asking her to die?
"Don't be so surprised. The pieces choose on their own." Leo put down his teacup at last. "Three pieces reacted to you—Rook, Knight, and Pawn."
"The Knight piece reacted the strongest. Almost on par with the Bishop I used to reincarnate Yukino."
"That means you have excellent Knight potential. You just haven't awakened it yet."
Then he shifted into instruction mode.
"You, me… and Yukino—we all have a Sacred Gear inside us."
"It hadn't awakened before because you had no demonic power. Now that you're a devil, your body has changed. You should be able to awaken it on your own."
"Close your eyes. Imagine the strongest figure in your heart. Then reach toward them."
His guidance sounded simple, but his voice carried a strange resonance—something that stirred the soul. It made Asuna trust him instinctively.
She stood, closed her eyes, and pictured the strongest person she knew.
Her mother.
Her strict upbringing had been shaped entirely by her mother. Ever since childhood, Asuna had been disciplined under that stern gaze. Her mother's presence had always been intimidating—fearsome, commanding.
And recalling that presence now stirred up emotion.
Emotion stirred demonic power. Demonic power ignited her body.
And the power hidden inside her awakened.
Clang!
A sword rose from the ground beside her, ringing sharply.
Its aura was overwhelming—holy and fierce. Yukino flinched as if pricked by needles. Even Leo felt a sting on his skin, narrowing his eyes.
Clang!Clang!Clang!Clang!
More swords thrust out around Asuna. Each one had a different shape and length—some Western, some Eastern, some long, some short—but every single blade radiated a sacred aura.
Yukino scrambled back, pale.
"What kind of Sacred Gear is that?!"
She was horrified.
She could feel it—these swords carried far more danger than even an exorcist's Light Sword.
If light was poison to devils… then these swords were nuclear weapons that could erase their very souls.
Compared to these blades, even angels and fallen angels—wielders of light power—were nothing.
These swords were the true natural enemies of devils.
And indeed—
"These are Holy Swords," Leo said calmly. "Sacred weapons crafted by those who reached the realm of gods through magic or alchemy. The mortal enemy of all demonic beings."
"For devils and every creature of darkness—touching a Holy Sword burns the flesh. Being cut by one means instant annihilation. Even your soul can't be saved."
These weapons had appeared often throughout history, in myths and legends alike:
The Sword of Kings. Durandal. Kusanagi. Ascalon. Caliburn…
All legendary blades. True Holy Swords. Relics whose wielders appeared only once every few decades.
And Asuna's Sacred Gear… was related to them.
"Blade Blacksmith—the power to create Holy Swords of any attribute the user can imagine. With enough skill, its potential is terrifying."
This—was Asuna's Sacred Gear.