"What are you doing here?!"
Climbing up from the ground, Riser shouted in shock the moment he saw Cid. He instinctively turned his head and scanned the surroundings. Only after confirming that Claire wasn't nearby did he finally let out a breath.
He hadn't forgotten that it was because he attacked this guy that the crazy woman, who had only been somewhat troublesome before, suddenly went berserk and forced him to experience death over a dozen times.
Right… why am I here?
Hearing the question, Cid fell into thought. Why had he come here?
"You're just a Human who isn't even a Low-class Devil. How dare you show yourself here?"
Now that he was sure Claire wasn't present, all the fear, panic, and anger Riser had built up exploded toward Cid, the person he saw as the root of everything.
Ignoring his shouting, Cid bent down, picked up a silver sword, and silently pointed it at Riser.
"Hey, hey, hey… don't tell me you think you can beat me just because I'm in this state, and you're planning to play the hero and save the beauty.
Let me tell you, even like this, taking you down would still only take one punch. So I suggest you move aside and stop getting in my way."
Why am I here?
Is it because this guy forced me to detonate Magical Power inside my body and give myself a fatal injury?
Then I really shouldn't be here. It's just a fatal injury. If I hadn't deliberately suppressed my body's recovery, it would already be healed. I'm not that petty.
Cid loosened his grip, and the silver sword fell from his hand, hitting the ground with a crisp sound.
"Hah, looks like you know your place. Not completely useless after all."
No, this guy isn't worth thinking about that much. Then why am I here?
It must be because of a teacher's trust in his student. I'm buying time for Cao Cao, waiting for him to make his move. That sounds reasonable.
Cid glanced at the white mist drifting around and nodded slightly, his hand tightening a little.
"Since you know your place, after I marry Rias, I'll train you properly. That crazy woman earlier said your name was Cid…"
No, that's not right. Cao Cao and I don't trust each other that much.
Besides, an Eminence in Shadow would never place his hopes on someone else. My backup plan has always been to become Shadow myself, throw the entire venue into chaos, and escape. That's the proper way.
So why am I here?
I've got it!
It must be because last time I only used the fifteenth form of the "Mob Secret Techniques: Forty-Eight Forms" that I worked so hard to develop, and I didn't get to use the remaining thirty-three. I felt regret, so I came here to complete that achievement.
And Riser's current state is perfect. He's weak enough that he can't knock me out in one hit. I might be able to complete the entire achievement here.
That's it. I'm here to complete the "Mob Knockdown Collection" achievement.
Not noticing anything unusual about Cid, Riser took a breath and strode toward the fallen Rias. As he passed by Cid, he instinctively tried to step aside, then immediately stopped, glanced around again, and straightened up, deciding to just push past him. Even as he reached Cid's side, he kept talking.
"Oh right, you still haven't answered..."
"Bam!"
Before he could finish, Cid suddenly turned, driving power from his waist into his arm, and slammed a heavy punch straight into Riser's face.
The silent strike sent Riser flying again. Even in midair, his face could be seen twisting from the impact.
"As expected… using my fists feels way better!"
The reason I'm here must be to buy time for Cao Cao while completing the achievement.
"How dare you…"
Riser struggled to his feet, furious and humiliated, about to attack again. But the moment he saw Cid's lowered gaze, he froze.
There's no way I came here because the 3.4 million zeni I earned this morning by acting like a dog in front of Alexia got completely melted by Riser's flames, and I got so angry I wanted to beat him up to vent.
The reason I'm here must be to complete the "Mob Knockdown Collection" achievement and buy time for Cao Cao.
Of course, during the process of using the "Mob Secret Techniques: Forty-Eight Forms," accidentally landing a few… thirty-five punches on Riser is perfectly reasonable.
Cid raised his head. His pupils trembled slightly, faintly tinged red even without any Magical Power infused into them.
Oh right, this guy just asked why I came here. I'll just make up a reason.
"I'm going to beat the hell out of you for daring to hurt my treasure. That's the only way I can vent my anger. Get ready."
Leaning forward with his injured body, Cid shot toward Riser at high speed.
"Aaaah…!"
Seeing that look in Cid's eyes, identical to Claire's, Riser screamed in fear and instinctively gathered Phoenix flames in his hand, throwing them at Cid.
The flames struck him and exploded, kicking up thick white mist.
Cid's figure collapsed inside the mist with a heavy thud.
"A weak Human like you… you really think I'd be afraid of… ugh!"
Seeing Cid fall, Riser finally remembered how much weaker he was compared to Claire and let out a breath of relief.
Just as he tried to say something to steady himself, a figure burst out of the mist and slammed a heavy punch into his face, sending him flying.
"How is this possible? How is this possible? Didn't you just go down?!"
Lying on the ground, Riser stared at the staggering figure ahead of him, wounds still pouring blood, and shouted in disbelief.
No one answered him. And he had no time to think about it.
Cid, whose body looked like it could collapse at any moment, rushed at him again.
Another flame flew out. It exploded on Cid, raising more mist, and Cid fell again.
"So what if you get back up? With the gap between us, I only need one hit to knock you down."
Ignoring Riser's voice, whether it came from fear or bluster, Cid simply suppressed his body's instinct to heal even further, increased his bleeding, then sprang back up and punched Riser square in the face again.
There are still thirty moves left in the Mob Secret Techniques.
Cid rushed forward again. Riser knocked him down with flames. Cid got back up, increased his bleeding, and punched Riser in the face.
After several rounds like this, Riser's Magical Power was completely drained. Watching Cid approach again, humiliation and anger finally pushed him over the edge. He stopped worrying about Claire and charged straight at Cid.
"I refuse to believe a Human like you can outlast me in recovery when I have the Phoenix bloodline!"
There are still twenty-five moves left in the Mob Secret Techniques.
Seeing Riser close in for a direct fight, Cid showed a faint smile and punched him in the face again.
It had to be said, Riser with the Phoenix bloodline was indeed strong. Even weakened to this extent, his physical ability alone still reached C+.
His fists slammed into Cid's face, stomach, and back, knocking him down again and again.
But it didn't matter. He couldn't break through Cid's defenses at all. Cid just needed to keep increasing the bleeding to maintain the act, then get back up and keep punching Riser in the face.
Watching Cid fall, get up, and punch him again and again, Riser finally broke.
"How can you still stand… ugh!"
Riser stopped resisting.
But Cid didn't care. He straddled him and kept swinging his fists, hitting Riser's face over and over with natural ease.
"Stop… stop hitting me, I surrender…"
Riser tried to surrender, but Cid's punch cut him off.
No way I'm letting you surrender. Not until my anger is vented… no, not until I finish all my Mob Secret Techniques. If you surrender, who am I supposed to vent on… no, how am I supposed to finish my techniques?
"Get up. Aren't you the Phoenix? I still have fifteen moves left…"
Riser tried to speak again, but another punch stopped him.
"Please… stop…"
Punch after punch.
"No… stop… let…"
Cid kept striking, his movements smooth and continuous.
At some point, Riser stopped moving.
Only when the entire separate space suddenly began to tremble did Cid come back to his senses. Grabbing the unconscious Riser by the collar, he looked around.
"Cao Cao… did he finally make his move?"