"Yukino!"
As the massive pillar of light swallowed Yukino whole, both Yukinoshita Haruno and their mother trembled violently, nearly collapsing on the spot.
Yet Sharon—who had activated the exorcism spell—did not show a trace of joy.
Her expression darkened.
"—!"
Just before Yukino was consumed by the rising beam of light, Leo finally moved.
Three pairs of devil wings unfurled behind him. A surge of demonic power dozens of times stronger than Yukino's burst from his body as he flashed into position directly in front of her—reaching down toward the rising pillar of light with one hand.
A magic circle spun open like a blooming mandala, forming an unbreakable shield that intercepted the sky-piercing beam.
"BOOM!"
The torrent of light crashed into the rotating barrier like a flood slamming into a stone cliff—roaring, spraying arcs of light in every direction and illuminating the frozen wasteland.
Unable to pierce the barrier, the pillar of light split around it, rushing to both sides like water diverted by a boulder, never touching Leo or Yukino behind him.
Leo held out one hand to maintain the barrier and glanced down at Sharon.
Then he raised his other hand.
"Buzz—"
Demonic power gathered in his palm, forming a glittering sphere—small, but dense like a miniature neutron star.
"Go."
He flicked it forward like a marble.
The demonic power shot out as a streak of crimson light, slicing through space and striking the glowing magic circle below.
Bang!
There was no thunderous explosion this time—no grand spectacle. Like a bullet striking the weak point of a mechanism, the spell destabilized instantly. The magic circle shattered like a cracked mirror, breaking apart on the spot.
Only then did the beam of light begin to fade, dimming until it vanished entirely.
"—!"
Leo lowered his barrier hand, placed the other on Yukino's shoulder, and teleported her in a flash to the side of Haruno and their mother.
"Yukino!"
"You're okay?!"
Seeing her standing unharmed, both women teared up with relief.
"I…"
Yukino looked at the terror still lingering in their expressions. She opened her mouth but didn't know what to say.
"Alright. Save the talking for later."
Leo released her and nudged her toward her family. Then, in the next instant, he vanished again—reappearing before Sharon.
"Pretty ruthless of you."
He folded away his devil wings and landed on the ground, facing her calmly.
"Even I've never seen that move before. Didn't think you still had something like that hidden."
He sounded almost casual—yet his eyes were emotionless.
That alone made every alarm bell in Sharon's heart scream.
But outwardly, she smiled faintly.
"I was saving that for you. But the higher-ups forbade me from striking at a true pureblood devil. They don't want the fragile balance between factions collapsing."
Her words twisted Leo's relaxed smile into something sharper.
"So you used it on my servant instead?" he said lightly. "Since killing a servant wouldn't threaten the balance the three factions maintain—right?"
"You taught me that yourself." Sharon stared him down. "Just like how you can kill an unimportant Low-Class fallen angel without consequence—I can kill an unimportant Low-Class Devil. Isn't that fair?"
"It is." Leo nodded. Then: "So you must have prepared yourself for retaliation."
The moment those words left his mouth, Sharon sprang backward.
BOOM!
A devastating blast struck the exact spot she had stood one second before, shattering the ground.
The violent shockwave cracked the earth in every direction. Debris and ice shards flew as a ten-meter-wide crater formed—horrifying to behold.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Leo remained where he stood, expression calm, arm extended as he fired demonic power shots one after another. Sharon dodged frantically—each missed shot pulverizing the ground or blasting apart nearby ice formations, filling the air with dust and shattered frost.
Sharon drew her exorcist handgun, aiming at Leo—but before she could fire a Light Bullet, the demonic power shots suddenly curved.
As if guided by invisible hands.
Their paths twisted unpredictably, encircling her from all sides.
"Blow."
Leo clenched his outstretched hand into a fist.
"BOOM!!!"
The surrounding projectiles detonated at once, as if dozens of bombs were set off in a ring around her. The explosion was even more violent than before—flames bursting skyward, shockwaves crashing outward.
The blast winds swept all the way to the three Yukinoshita women, forcing cries from their throats.
The ground quaked. Smoke rose like black plumes from a battlefield.
Leo stood amidst the storm of dust, hair and clothes whipping wildly. After a moment, he lowered his hand.
"Ran off again?"
He murmured calmly.
With a flick of demonic power, he blew away the smoke—revealing a massive crater, its center stained with blood and a torn fragment of a nun's robe.
"Gulp…"
All three Yukinoshita women swallowed at once.
Even Yukino looked shaken.
Facing the man standing before the crater—so relaxed, so unfazed even as the world shattered around him—the three of them trembled in awe, unable to speak.
Leo gave the crater one last glance before turning away.
"Stop staring. That woman doesn't die that easily."
He approached them, snapping them out of their daze.
"Let's head back. No point staying here."
Without waiting for their reply, he walked toward the Yukinoshita residence.
The three women exchanged looks but found no words. Only silence.
"…Let's go." Yukinoshita's mother sighed as she looked from Leo's back to her quiet daughter. "We… need to have a proper talk."
Yukino nodded silently. Even Haruno looked conflicted.
The three of them followed Leo home.
Despite the catastrophic damage to the battlefield, no one came to investigate. The desolate scene simply remained—wordlessly telling the story of what had happened here.
...
"Kh—!"
In a deserted alley, a painful cough splattered blood across the ground and wall.
Sharon Holygrail staggered into view, her body shredded and soaked in blood. Supporting herself against the wall, she coughed more blood onto the pavement.
"…These injuries… not good."
She slid down the wall, sitting weakly. Pain racked every inch of her torn body; her face was ghastly pale.
Her vision blurred—stained red by blood dripping from her forehead. She couldn't see anything clearly anymore.
She tried to heal herself, but…
Escaping to this alley had consumed the last of her strength.
If she stayed like this, she would bleed out.
She would die.
"Am I… really going to die here…?"
Even with consciousness fading, there was no fear in her voice.
Only unwillingness.
Unwillingness to be defeated so easily.
"He's become even stronger than I imagined… damn him."
Why?
What had changed him so drastically?
Was she really going to die here—never able to surpass him?
"…ugh…!"
That flash of resentment reignited a sliver of consciousness. Gritting her bloodstained lips, she tried to push herself up.
At that moment, a voice reached her.
"I'd advise you not to move. Unless you want to lose even more blood."
It was a man's voice—light, teasing, strangely familiar.
"…Who?"
Sharon forced her vision to steady.
A figure had approached her without making a sound, now standing right in front of her.
She couldn't see his face—but she recognized the aura.
This feeling…
"One of the warriors who inherited the dragon-slayer's genetic factor?"
She identified him immediately.
Like her, he was a warrior of the Church.
Except…
"I'm not fighting for God right now. I'm fighting for myself."
He smiled lightly.
"I'm here to invite you, Sharon Holygrail."
"Will you join us?"