High School DxD Volume 21 Chapter 3

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Life.2 Team [DxD] Attacks!

Part 1

Standing in the patient room, I — Hyoudou Issei, am currently changing into the uniform of Kuoh Academy that I had always worn. After all, this school uniform could be considered to be my outfit. Although I have the outfit that was specially prepared for Team [DxD], if I was in a formation with my own group, I would prefer to wear this. My physical condition…isn't too bad. Aside from when planning to say that or thinking about that, my body will have severe pain, but everything else is as usual and without any change. Ddraig also said that the recoil from Dragon Deification still remains, but my Sacred Gear can function normally, enter Balance Breaker, and True [Queen] isn't a problem either. Using the wyverns and [Penetrate] are also okay. Even Longinus Smasher could be used. …In other words, only Dragon Deification — [Diabolos Dragon] [1] wasn't possible. Also, if I used that again, I might die again. Since I can even use Longinus Smasher, that should be more than enough. I can also fight. But, the doctor, my parents and my nakama all told me to rest and recuperate. At least until the aftereffects of Dragon Deification subside, and my symptoms ease, I don't need to fight. …That's what they said. But, the entire world is facing a crisis, even Rias and Asia have gone to fight, so how could I possibly stay behind and sleep? I was also filled with guilt at the fact that I couldn't join the defensive battle in the Norse World. At that time, the voices of children were heard from the television. It seems like the children who had been evacuated were being interviewed.

[Hey, you guys. What if monsters come to the Underworld, what will happen to us?]

Facing the onee-san's question, the children smiled as they replied without a trace of fear.

[There's no need to worry! Oppai Dragon will come to defeat them!]

[Lion-san too! They'll definitely beat those bad black dragons in a cool way!]

[At that time, Darkness Knight Fang will join forces with Oppai Dragon, and they'll definitely defeat all of those monsters!]

[Me too, I think those like the Switch-Princess can also help everyone. The beams are amazing.]

[Angel-oniisan is also very strong. Because he's Oppai Dragon's friend, he must be strong.]

[Butt Dragon is the strongest! The television also said that he's Oppai Dragon's rival, just watch, the red Oppai Dragon and white Butt Dragon will show up. With that, we're no longer afraid.]

…….

…The children didn't feel any fear at all. Seeing them, I couldn't help cheering up. Team [DxD] had already become well known throughout the Underworld, and the members of the group were already familiar to the children. Everyone also believed that we would join hands to fight against evil enemies together. Although the situation was currently like this, the children were convinced that we would always be victorious in the end. Regardless of whether it was that time during the [Demonic Beast Riot], the battle in the Vampires' country, Auros Academy, or the defensive battle in Heaven, they trusted that we would be able to defeat the bad guys. …We also had failures, no, it was full of failures. Although there were many victories, there were a lot of things that we couldn't protect. I could also hear the voices of condemnation against us. —Even so, as long as there was one person who trusted me, no, it would be fine even if no one believed in me. As long there was hope to save people, I would definitely lend a helping hand. Argh, just from hearing my own name, my body ached with pain…. But, this could be regarded as a fortune within misfortune, I could withstand it.

Anyway, the current situation was that one of the bodies of Trihexa which had divided itself was coming towards Japan. Just before this, I asked Rias and the others about the specific circumstances. Originally, in order to get me to rest, that information wouldn't have reached me here. However, since I was in the hospital, even if I didn't want to, I would have heard about the news that Trihexa was in the human world. Moreover, that news made headlines across all of the television stations and newspapers in the Underworld. The nurses and patients who were admitted also spoke about this news, so it was only a matter of time until I would have found out about it. Since that was the case, I could just hear it directly from my own group, so I let Rias tell me about the news regarding Trihexa's approach to Japan. After listening to and understanding the information, Rias tried to persuade me

"I hope you'll stay at ease and rest."

—Not only did Rias try to persuade me, even Asia wished for that…. But, since I had heard about this news of a crisis, I couldn't just stay silent and continue sleeping. Fortunately, my parents weren't in Japan, as they had been transported to this hospital. Ophis, who was resting at home, was also secretly transported to the basement of the Gremory Castle so that she could rest. Lilith and Kiba's comrade, Tosca, followed Azazel-sensei and were also transported to the Gremory Castle. Now, the entire household was in a safe place. However, Japan also has my sobo-chan[2] and my friends…Matsuda, Motohama, Kiryuu, my classmates, Kunou and the others that I met in Kyoto, as well as many other acquaintances and friends who live there. —I can't ignore them. I can't possibly do that! This is the country that I was born and raised in! I — am Japanese. Even if part of my body is that of a Devil or a Dragon, my heart is Japanese. My soul is Japanese! My homeland, I definitely want to protect it! That's why I need to go! There are a lot of things waiting for me to do in Japan. I will definitely graduate from Kuoh Academy. I'll join the community with Kuoh Academy as a starting point, together with Asia, Xenovia, Irina, Kiba, Saji, Matsuda, Motohama, Kiryuu, and everyone else! Rias, Akeno-san and Sona-zenkaichou will be graduating soon. I want it to be as it usually is, and go to school with everyone! I finished putting on my uniform, and then left the patient room. Some of my nakama should still be around in this hospital. I want to go together with them. I have to go! Just as I exited the patient room, I saw someone leaning against the wall waiting for me. —It was Vali. His unexpected presence surprised me a little…Vali laughed when he saw me.

"Fu, I wanted to take a look at your face before I was about to leave, it looks like you're already dressed. I'll wait for you over there. —You're also going, right?"

"Oh, of course."

After hearing my reply, Vali laughed fearlessly…but his gaze passed through me and went towards a place further along the corridor. I looked over — tou-san and kaa-san were standing there. Kaa-san was holding a basket of fruit, and tou-san had a manga magazine. They probably wanted to bring those to me. Upon seeing my appearance, their expressions of surprise were also mixed with anger and sorrow. I said to my parents

"Tou-san, kaa-san, I have a little work to do, so I need to go."

Kaa-san forced a smile as she said

"…You definitely need to return before dinner, okay?"

"……Of course!"

It was a bit of a poor response. I certainly plan on coming back, but I don't know if I'll be able to make it by dinnertime…. In the event that things don't go well, I might have to continue fighting for a few days…. From her bosom — kaa-san took out an old charm. She placed it into my hands.

"This is a protective charm. Kaa-san refuses to part with it, so you have to hold onto it well. No matter what happens, kaa-san will protect you from the hands of the bad guys."

"Ah, yes. Thank you."

Although I don't know whether or not it'll actually be effective, I'll be able to receive kaa-san's luck. All of a sudden, tou-san looked towards Vali.

"You are…Ise's friend, right? Haven't you come to play at our house before?"

Vali was rather surprised to hear these words. Indeed, Vali did sometimes come to the Hyoudou residence…so tou-san saw him and remembered.

"…It's really only been a few times, simply by seeing my face, you remember me…?"

After listening to Vali's reply, tou-san laughed lightly.

"That's natural. Since you're one of Ise's friends, I wouldn't forget. Thank you for taking care of my son."

"Yes. I also remember your silver hair quite well."

Kaa-san also followed from the side. Vali acted rather strange, as he didn't have any plans to introduce himself. From the looks of it, he was somewhat embarrassed.

"How should I say this, being his…rival might be a better way of putting it…"

Rival. Tou-san became even happier when he heard that.

"Rival…I see! Certainly, you're his friend!"

Kaa-san also recognised him as my friend and was quite happy.

"Well well! Such a handsome boy is actually my Ise's friend! Kiba-kun as well, unexpectedly, my Ise really makes such handsome male friends!"

Unexpectedly huh…. W-Well, I've had a long relationship with Matsuda and Motohama, so I only had those types of friends. In fact, I have a surprisingly large number of friends like that. However, Vali shook his head.

"It's not what you guys think. I seriously want to defeat him. To this end, I also angered him — I planned to kill you, so that he could become an avenger."

—What! …I was astonished by the sudden confession. T-Those kinds of things are best left unsaid right now, alright? That conversation was about the first time that Vali and I fought against each other. It was when the Three Factions planned to form a peace alliance. At that time, in order to incite my power to explode, Vali said such things. But when he said that right in front of me, I was really surprised!

"H-Hey. Vali, could you not say that right now?"

A lot of things originally happened between me and him, but that doesn't really matter right now… But does that guy really care about that stuff? It was really unexpected. Vali interrupted me, and asked my parents again

"'I'll kill your parents'. That is what I said to him. Can you treat someone who said that as your son's friend?"

My parents stood there stunned and speechless at what Vali said, though I wasn't sure if they understood him…. My parents looked at each other, and then they both laughed. Tou-san cheerfully said to Vali

"So you guys have fought before. What, everyone has had experiences in their youth when they don't understand anything and fight with their friends. For this reason, they may also say some horrible things. But isn't your current relationship quite good? See, you two are speaking about these things quite normally, right?"

"No, by no means is it such a good relationship…it should be said that we just have a united front right now…"

Neither I nor Vali knew how to respond or what to say, and could only reply like that. Vali was very puzzled by my parents' response, and asked again

"Do you forgive me?"

"What do you mean by forgive, you yourself feel sorry and you're specifically telling us now? Well, since you've reflected on it, isn't that fine? Right, kaa-san?"

Having been prompted by tou-san, kaa-san also smiled and nodded.

"Yes. It seems Ise isn't angry either, so it's fine if you two get along from now on."

Hearing my parents' reply — Vali was completely dumbfounded and didn't know what to say.

"………"

He definitely thought that my parents would get angry and then reject him. But, my parents readily forgave what was said during a fight between two children. Soon after that, Vali laughed. Like a young child, he laughed innocently. I also stared. So that guy was actually able to laugh like a person his age should.

"Haha, I don't know why. Hyoudou Issei, after all, I truly envy you."

After calming down somewhat, Vali said to my parents

"By the way, at that time, compared to when your son heard that I would kill you, he was actually more furious when I declared that I would halve the size of Rias Gremory's breasts."

In that moment, my parents instantly changed from being cheerful to angry!

"What!? Compared to us, oppai make you even angrier, you brat!?"

Tou-san grabbed my shoulders, and violently shook me! Huh!? I-Is that no good!?

"Well, um, how should I say it…ah. M-My head hurts again!"

Just when I wanted to say that word, the pain began to swell up again! Kaa-san also became angry and shook my body!

"You little Ise! Exactly what is going on, give me a good explanation!"

"Oh, it's like that, my head…ah! Vali, you said some unnecessary things!"

Seeing that parent-child interaction, that guy Vali—

"Fufu, wahahaha"

He laughed aloud heartily like a child—.

After saying goodbye to my parents, Vali and I walked through the hospital corridor, shoulder to shoulder. Vali's face appeared to be illuminated by radiant light.

"…It's the first time that I've head off to fight with this kind of a feeling."

Is that so? It's you who turned my goodbye into that! My parents said 'We'll lecture you well when you get back!' with anger until the very end! Just when I wanted to complain about a few things to him, Vali suddenly proceeded to say

"—Shouldn't you also think about forming your own team?"

—Hmm. …What was he saying out of nowhere? Whatever, we also talked about this in the past. I scratched my cheek as I replied

"I'm not going to decide on my peerage yet. I have the long life of a Devil. I want to decide slowly. I've also heard that if you decide on your peerage too early, you'll be bored for the rest of your life."

Hearing my reply, Vali shook his head.

"I didn't mean that. Peerage aside, wouldn't it be nice to form a different 'team'? My team is not my peerage. But as a high-class Devil, it's also possible to have private guards in addition to your peerage."

"…Not belonging in my peerage, but only belonging in my team…"

Also, it wasn't just limited to a Devil's peerage, it could be formed for a specific purpose just like [DxD] was. Indeed, aside from a peerage, it wouldn't be a bad idea to form a team. The question is, for what purpose…. In the case of private guards, do they need a reason to be hired? However, if they were to be hired, I don't know what they would do right now. To protect the safety of the Hyoudou household? Hmm, when suddenly faced with that, I can't think of anything. While I focused my thoughts on that, Vali continued

"If you asked me which side I wanted to fight with, compared to the team that Rias Gremory's leads, I would want to fight against the team that you formed even more. You could call it the selfish desire of a rival."

Well, when you say it like that. Reasons for Rias and Vali to fight…were very few. For Rias, Vali was just the rival of a peerage member. On the other hand, Vali thought that Rias was just the master of his rival. Using that as a reason to fight was just too…. In that case, I'll form my own team after I become independent, and then fight with Vali, there'll be no problems that way.

"…But, we need to cross over the bridge in front of us first."

—That conversation with Vali then came to a halt. Saying whatever he wanted, and then ending it whenever he wanted, he was truly a troublesome guy. But, I also nodded in agreement.

"Yes, we must get past this."

"Don't die, Hyoudou Issei."

"You as well, Vali."

The two of us encouraged each other, and at that time, we saw Azazel-sensei in front of us.

"Oh, so you two came."

Behind sensei, I could see the members of the Occult Research Club, the Vali Team, and Ikuse Tobio's Slash Dog Team; it was quite a grand assemble.

"Sensei and everyone!"

"Azazel huh."

When Vali and I arrived — the Occult Research Club members ran towards me.

"Ise! Does that mean you're going to fight!? Are you really alright!?"

"Hold on, are you serious, darling!?"

Xenovia and Irina felt around my body for confirmation. I said to everyone

"I will also fight! Trihexa has also headed towards Japan, so I can't possibly continue sleeping!"

Hearing my declaration, Rias appeared somewhat speechless, and helplessly sighed.

"…There's really nothing that'll stop you."

"That's right. If we're going, then we'll all go together. No matter what, we'll overcome it together."

Akeno-san also giggled softly. She swiftly agreed to my request to fight. But, the two of them pointed at me with their fingers, and sternly said to me

""But, you definitely can't be reckless!""

"I-I get it!"

—I replied to them! It'll be scary if I make those two angry, and I don't want to make them sad either. Asia nodded and added to that from the side

"Yes, it's impossible for Ise-san not to stop the crisis in Japan…. I'm also very worried, but I'll be there to assist Ise-san."

It was a change from the Asia of the past, who would have said 'Please don't go!' to stop me if I was still recuperating…but how would it be best to say it, Asia already understood my determination, and knew that I would say that so she decided to help me with treatment and recovery. Azazel-sensei also smiled wryly as he sighed, and casually pat my head.

"Well, I already knew that you wouldn't obediently stay in bed. —But, you definitely can't be reckless, alright?"

"Yes!"

As expected of sensei! He really knew me too well! Dragon Deification…I won't use it. At that time, Ravel took a step forward and handed a small bottle to me.

"This is Ise-sama's Phoenix Tear. …T-This is the product of my work, you know?"

Ooh, Ravel made it herself! Well, the effects must certainly be amazing!

"Thank you, Ravel."

After I thanked Ravel, it was Rossweisse-san's turn to give me an amulet. It was a Japanese-inspired amulet.

"I turned a Nordic talisman into a charm of Japanese style. Although it won't have any use on the effects of Dragon Deification, it's able to protect against other disasters or misfortune."

This was Rossweisse-san's handmade amulet! Ah! It was embroidered with affection! After watching my reaction, Rossweisse-san's bashful face turned as red as an apple! Thank you for the cute reaction! And then it was Koneko-chan. …Ah, it was only Koneko-chan's that I could clearly see…. She seemed to have noticed my gaze, so Koneko-chan poked my abdomen with dissatisfaction.

"…I'll become large during the battle. So that you don't get hurt, there's no need to look at me too much."

"O-Okay!"

"…If you don't recover quickly, you won't be able to see me when I grow up, so please don't be reckless."

—Hearing Koneko-chan's sincere words, I pat her head as I replied to her with

"Don't worry, I don't plan to die."

After that, Kiba give me a bottle of drink. It was milk.

"Ise-kun, this milk has a few drops of Phoenix tears mixed in it. It'll be quite effective if you drink it."

After listening to him, I gulped it all down. …Ahh, it feels like my body has become a lot lighter. Was this the effect of the Phoenix Tears, or was it the effect of the milk? After hearing that my body condition would improve after drinking milk, even I was stunned. I just thought that a glass of milk was rather delicious after taking a bath. …Really, what kind of existence are they trying to turn me into? I wanted to talk to Gya-kun next, so I turned my gaze towards him…while I was looking for him, I was startled to find a person that I didn't expect to see here beside him.

"Eh, Valerie!? Why are you here!?"

Indeed, the beautiful vampire Valerie was actually here in this hospital! I cried out in surprise! Valerie simply giggled

"Ufufu."

"Ufufu, it was the Fallen Angel oji-sama [3] who called me over. Right, Gasper?"

"Yes. Ise-senpai, it's like that. Not long ago, Valerie obtained the freedom to go out."

What was Gasper saying…. Called over, and allowed to go out…. Was it alright for Valerie to come here? She was able to move about in a designated area, but she shouldn't be able to move any further than that…. Sensei dispelled my doubts.

"In fact, this time, during the battle against Trihexa and the army of Evil Dragons, Valerie's assistance will be essential. With the help of the various factions, she was able to temporarily come out. But, there is a time limit. That's why it was arranged so that she would enter at the critical point during the battle."

Ah, in other words, there was nothing to worry about with Valerie being here right now, which is why they brought her to the Underworld. Vali seemed to think of something based on what sensei just said, so he asked him

"Did you find out about techniques on how to control the Holy Grail?"

"It's something more or less like that. We just happened to come across some hidden information about the Holy Grail in the Vampires' country. With this, we may be able to prevent them from using the Holy Grail to recover."

—What! There was actually something like that!? Hidden information…Valerie's aniki [4], Marius actually had a card left. But, it was discovered by sensei.

"The one who discovered this was someone who cooperated with us on the other side."

Sensei looked in a certain direction. I also looked over — and saw a person with a petite body wearing a hood. After removing the hood — it was actually the blonde bishoujo [5] Vampire Elmenhilde! Ooh, she also came to the Underworld! During the New Year, we, the Hyoudou family went to my sobo-chan's place and ended up bumping into her….

"Long time no see, Sekiryuutei Hyoudou Issei-sama."

She accepted the catastrophic damage to her homeland, and travelled back and forth around the world to collect the things which were necessary for its revival. Sometimes it was materials for reconstruction, and sometimes it was foreign aid for her country. She truly desired the restoration of her homeland, and her attitude had greatly softened compared to her previous overbearing attitude. At first, she continually rejected the assistance of other countries, and other factions, yet now, she was asking around in various places without restraint. It was really quite incredible. …It also showed just how severe a blow the destruction of homeland was. —While I was surprised by the appearance of Elmenhilde, Valerie took something out from her bosom. —It was a purple cross. Sensei said to me

"That is the slightly modified cross of the Longinus Incinerate Anthem [6] that was recently recovered. It was originally a holy relic of the cross — so I've let it synchronise with Valerie's Holy Grail."

—What!

That evil witch — the Longinus that Walburga had! I heard that the Three Factions recovered it, but I didn't expect that it was in the shape of a cross. Using that…to synchronise with Valerie's Sacred Gear? So that's why they needed Valerie's assistance in this battle. What kind of response would the Holy Grail, in addition to the Holy Cross produce…? Vali asked sensei

"Her Holy Grail was originally unstable, and I've also heard that the Sacred Gear of the Holy Cross is dangerous as it chooses its own master. You can't possibly know what will happen if you allow these two to synchronise. …But, it looks like the hidden information is a breakthrough for this problem, right?"

Sensei replied to Vali's question

"Valerie's ani — it was written about in the notes of Marius' research. It once entered an extremely dangerous state whilst research on the Holy Grail was being conducted, and at that time, the Tepes faction used a fragment of the Holy Nail, which they had hidden as a secret treasure, and were able to get through that crisis. I'm already able to explain the technique that was used at the time based on the information which was obtained."

The Holy Nail, that was also a holy relic? Even if it was just a fragment, the Vampires' country actually had such a thing…. Also, in such a closed-off country, there certainly must be many hidden treasures. Elmenhilde continued

"We Vampires have been investigating the Christian religion that we've been hostile with for a long time. Among all of that research, the Tepes faction was able to obtain a fragment of the Holy Nail through their own channels. I think only the royal family could have handed it down, but that wouldn't be recorded in history or literature anyway."

Anyway, that and the information was all recovered and handed over to the Three Factions…it was a secret among secrets. However, as long as that was used, Valerie's Holy Grail could be supressed. That's why information regarding that was kept. Sensei laughed

"The delivery of a fragment of the Holy Nail to the Vatican made them so delighted. Originally, during the war between the Three Factions and the war against the Christian Church, the holy relics disappeared amidst the many things that happened. Even if it was just a fragment, they really kept it. …Perhaps other factions are even holding on to some."

Sensei said so as he shrugged. I also understood that, and thrust my right fist against my left palm while saying

"By allowing the holy relics to synchronise, the Holy Grail will stop functioning. In that case, the Holy Grail that the Evil Dragons have also won't be able to function."

Sensei smirked, and then continued

"That's right. Moreover, the Holy Cross that Valerie is holding has already been adjusted. In this state, if Valerie's and the Holy Cross can synchronise well, then the Holy Grail that Apophis has will stop functioning. If that happens, the mass-produced Evil Dragons will also stop multiplying. That will also have an effect on the fake Sekiryuutei and Trihexa."

This entire incident could be said to have come about as a result of Valerie's Holy Grail being exploited. If we're able to stop the Holy Grail, then we have to take it back! We promised that we would get all of it back for Valerie. Sensei continued

"For this, Valerie herself will need to get close to Trihexa. We also don't know which of Trihexa's heads has the Holy Grail…but, there is a high probability that the Holy Grail is with the head that Aži Dahāka or Apophis is on."

In that case, it would be a highly dangerous mission for Valerie. —However, in order to stop them from continuing their destruction, her help was necessary…. Gasper had the look of a courageous man.

"I will have the task of taking Valerie to Trihexa. I will definitely retrieve Valerie's Holy Grail, and I'll put an end to everything!"

They were words filled with determination. That's the type of man that the Gremory peerage had! But, Valerie was holding the Holy Cross and was calm. She was fine because she was the owner of the Holy Grail. If it was me, or someone else who touched the Holy Cross, they would definitely suffer an unimaginable amount of damage…. Simply looking at it caused my whole body to shiver. Sensei spoke again.

"Ah yes, I forgot to say it before. Aside from Valerie, Devils, Vampires and youkai shouldn't touch this purple cross, okay? Even if it has been adjusted so that nothing dangerous will occur, anyone other than Valerie who touches it will die."

Don't say such horrifying things so casually! That cross truly is dangerous! Only pure humans and Angels would be unharmed by it…. Irina also held a cross in her hand as she prayed…. Azazel-sensei then began to explain the specific details of the operation.

"As of now, Trihexa has appeared in the mythological territories of the Greeks, Hindus, Celtics, and Egyptians, as well mountainous areas of Europe and off the coast of Japan in the human world; a total of six locations. It appears that it has split apart according to the number of its heads. In the case of the Hindu mythology, Indra is able to deal with it — that is to say, it'll be enough for those at Mount Meru to take it on. This might actually be good medicine for Indra. While I'm talking about this, the battle has already begun, and there have already been severe losses everywhere. Several god-class beings have already been temporarily eliminated. Although complete death has been avoided…a considerable amount of human faith is required to bring them back into this world again. This also shows that even after Trihexa split itself apart, its power remains above the level of a god-class being."

Even god-class beings have been defeated!? Damn it! Trihexa was truly a monster among monsters! A beast that was able to compete against the Dragon God Great Red equivalently was far beyond our imagination.

"…This is a video of the scene not long ago."

Sensei generated a small magic circle in his hands, and projected the recorded video out. Everyone was left speechless—. The Trihexa which appeared near the coastline of Japan spat out a massive fireball beyond one's imagination, and destroyed an entire island. The Trihexa which appeared in Europe also blew away the mountains, lakes and forests with its breath of fire—. …It was mass destruction on a level which would change the world map. As the video continued, the fighter jets, and warships of various countries were shown confronting Trihexa…but they were ruthlessly crashed or sunk by the armies of fake Sekiryuutei and Evil Dragons…. Those bastards, they really were starting to attack the human world…. Up until now, they ignored the human world, and simply went after us, but this time…they involved the entire human world in this. The scale of this was already far beyond what happened with the Old Maou faction, Hero faction, or the terrorist attacks aimed at supernatural existences. —The malice of Rizevim had spread to the human world in the end. Trihexa had seven heads when it attacked the Norse mythology, and now there was only one. It also had just one tail. But, the heads and tails of Trihexa which appeared in the territories of various mythologies were all different. They were probably differentiated by their heads. The Trihexa which appeared in the coastal waters of Japan, its head was a dragon's head…. Witnessing this scene, Asia began to cry and at the same time, became angry.

"How terrible…!"

Xenovia and Irina clasped Asia's hand, and agreed with her.

"Yeah, we have to do something."

"We definitely have to put an end to them!"

Rossweisse-san seemed to have thought of something after watching the video.

"…After the human world becomes aware of the fake Sekiryuutei, Ise-kun won't be able to transform easily from now on. This battle will create unnecessary misunderstandings."

I-I see! What Rossweisse-san said was certainly correct! If every country becomes aware of the fake Sekiryuutei, I'll get into seriously inexplicable misunderstandings as the original…uwah…I can't casually transform in the human world…. Ravel spoke with a grim expression

"This might also have been one of Rizevim Livan Lucifer's tricks. He was quite interested in Ise-sama…"

This was actually that bastard Rizevim's plan…? Indeed, if it was that bastard, then he certainly could have done such a thing…. In the human world, my future possibilities and activities…all of it was ruined! Sensei also wore a bitter expression, but he remained calm and continued to analyse the situation.

"—It's come out. It's possible that that either Aži Dahāka or Apophis possess the Holy Grail and may be with the Trihexa which has appeared in Europe or off the coast of Japan respectively. The one that's appeared in Japan is currently battling with the Japanese Youkai and the gods of the Japanese mythology. As for the one in Europe, Heaven's side, the warriors of the Church and the Vampires have joined the battle. …Although countries throughout the human world have dispatched their own troops, they definitely won't be able to stop the advance of Trihexa. If this continues, one of them will reach Japan, and the other will wreak serious destruction onto the cities of Europe."

The Japanese Youkai, Angels, warriors of the Church, and even the Vampires and humans were launching their attacks, but were still unable to stop the march of Trihexa. …Even though there were obviously god-class beings assisting in combat, and our combat strength was more than ten times what it was during the [Demonic Beast Riot], we were still unable to stop the enemy; clearly, the strength of the enemy far exceeded that time. Sensei raised two fingers.

"Generally speaking, in order to carry out the operation to stop the Holy Grail, Valerie needs to be together with [DxD]; so we should work in two separate groups, where one group goes to Japan, and the other to Europe."

Bikou of the Vali team asked sensei

"Do we still not know whether it's Aži Dahāka or Apophis who is holding on to the Holy Grail? If we can't figure that out, it's not a good idea to split our forces."

Indeed, it was as Bikou said, we would be much more efficient in battle if we knew that. If we didn't know which side it was and brought Valerie along with us, it would simply add to the danger of it. Ikuse Tobio-san said

"Former Governor Azazel has already discussed this with me, and my nakama are currently investigating. It's almost time for their report…"

As expected of sensei! He tasked the Slash Dog team with finding the Holy Grail since the beginning. Sensei continued

"Valerie and Gasper will be together, and it's possible that they move between both sides. As soon as they find out that one side doesn't have it, they'll immediately transport to the other side with a teleportation magic circle. In the worst situation, it would still be twice as dangerous."

Although Valerie tilted her head in confusion, Gasper maintained a calm expression. If Valerie wasn't here, Gasper might have been so afraid that he wouldn't be able to even move. Anyway, I personally…want to stop the Trihexa which is moving towards Japan! That place is where I was born and raised. That is also the place where people need my help! Whilst having the same thoughts, Rias looked into my eyes, and then laughed softly. Rias solemnly asked sensei

"I wonder if the [DxD] members responsible for the defence of Japan will be the Occult Research Club?"

Sensei laughed

"Well, I knew you would say that. Anyway, Gasper, Valerie, Rias, and the others will stay together first. After the subsequent reports afterwards, we'll have to decide which side to go to. First, we'll head out to battle with the members we have right now."

Well, which side is the Holy Grail on…. Rias then asked Vali

"Vali, which side are you guys going to?"

Vali replied

"I'm going to the Trihexa which has appeared in Europe."

Bikour, Kuroka, Arthur, Le Fay and Fenrir also agreed as they nodded.

"In that case, we'll go over to that side too."

Ikuse-san was going together with Vali and the others. …I looked over, and saw a blonde woman that I had never seen before…. It was an extraordinarily beautiful onee-san! Ah, she looked up, and smiled at me! —Ouch, uh, owww! My head hurts again! Damn it, I just thought about it instinctively, and my troubles have begun again! If this lasts forever, I may really be finished! I hope I get well soon! Kiba quietly told me

("That woman is a witch under Mephisto-kaichou, Lavinia Reni-san, the possessor of the Longinus [Absolute Demise] [7], and is also a member of the Slash Dog team. …By the way, she's an existence like Vali's onee-san.")

No way!? A Longinus possessor! Indeed, I had heard that Mehphisto-kaichou had such a person under him. I didn't expect that it was such a beautiful onee-san! And she's also like Vali's onee-san!? That bastard, he clearly said that he wasn't interested in women, yet he has such a beautiful onee-san!? Also, since he already has such a beautiful woman, he naturally wouldn't look at the bodies of the women on his side…. At that time, Ravel raised her hand, and inquired about the strategy.

"If it split itself according to its number of heads, shouldn't there be seven heads? But, only six of them have appeared right now…. So where is the remaining one?"

Trihexa had currently appeared in six different places. There was also one which we didn't know the whereabouts of…? Sensei replied

"It appeared in the Dimensional Gap. It should be looking into Great Red's condition, or perhaps seeking their long-awaited aspiration, the gate to another world. In any case, the level of danger hasn't changed, and each faction has deployed their forces to begin the battle."

The remaining one was in the Dimensional Gap…. It was quite lucky that it didn't show up in the Underworld where the Devils were…. Perhaps reading my thoughts, sensei continued

"If this goes on, Trihexa will also appear in the Underworld. For now, barriers which prohibit the use of teleportation magic have been activated at the places where Trihexa has shown up. I don't know how long that barrier will stay effective for, and if isn't able to stop it, Trihexa will definitely appear in the vicinity of the Underworld."

…It was just by chance that it didn't appear at the Devils' side this time. That's right, there were seven heads, so if those seven were transported again, one of them would definitely appear in the Underworld. We couldn't afford to be careless in the current situation. Rossweisse-san also added something to the briefing on the operation. Rossweisse-san was a major contributor to the research for sealing Trihexa.

"This is a strategy to stop the Holy Grail. All seven of the Trihexas which have appeared in the various territories and the Dimensional Gap will be bound by the special restraining barrier which Azazel-sensei and I have developed simultaneously. Although it has a time limit, it'll definitely be able to stop that monster. It was originally only for the two which were in the human world. But, it is unknown what the remaining five will do. In order to prevent them from making any moves, we've decided to stop all seven of them at the same time. …However…"

Seeing Rossweisse-san pause in her speech, sensei picked up from where she stopped

"At present, that barrier will only work once before it becomes useless. If it has to be used again, we'll need to rebuild a new barrier from scratch. It will also develop a resistance towards barriers. Also, the barrier is only effective against Trihexa, it doesn't have any effect against the army of mass-produced Evil Dragons or fake Sekiryuutei, which makes it very dangerous."

There was only going to be one battle. …There was no room for failure. Hearing that, I couldn't help becoming nervous…! Vali said

"The real battle starts once Trihexa is stopped, right?"

Azazel-sensei nodded.

"That's right, we'll stop Trihexa's movements first, disperse the Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei, and then stop the Holy Grail. Finally, we'll finish them off in one go."

Arthur of the Vali team raised his hand with a question.

"Then how will we deal with the Trihexa which has been restrained? It was said before that the barrier has a time limit…."

Just as Arthur said, Trihexa could be restrained momentarily, but according to the explanations of Rossweisse-san and sensei, there was a time limit. If Trihexa broke free again, then what would we do? Would we continue to fight? Our hopes were certainly riding on that…. Sensei laughed eloquently.

"…I, we have our own plan. It is an incredible strategy. It's also a plan that only VIPs know about…also, we will definitely allow it to succeed."

The way sensei said it was somewhat concerning, but every time sensei said something like that, things always ended with a good outcome. After I took a deep breath, I revitalised myself.

"Since sensei has sensei's reasons, it'll be fine as long as we follow along! Sensei always suggests some reckless plans, but they're also successful!"

"Oh— Ise, those are good words. It'll be fine with your words. Also, you're really not going to use Dragon Deification, right? Let alone taking Rias' virginity, you won't even be able to touch breasts before dying…"

Hearing sensei's joke, Rias face went bright red, and seemed taken aback for a while.

"…You, what are you saying at a time like this…"

Akeno-san also giggled like usual.

"But, that is also true…my relationship with Ise-kun hasn't become like that yet. I'll be troubled if it really is like that."

Asia also blushed as she agreed.

"T-The original, healthy Ise-san is the best!"

Then Xenovia and Irina also chimed in.

"Yeah, it can't do if we don't have children."

"I'd be annoyed that I can't play together with darling."

Kuroka and Koneko-chan also nodded in agreement.

"That's right. You haven't had children with Shirone and me yet!"

"I-I, that, nya nya…"

…What everyone said really made me so happy, but a severe stinging pain was attacking my whole body! This pain is going to kill a dragon! Everyone, even though everyone said such pleasant things to me, all I could do was stand here and suffer in pain!

"Wuah! …Sensei, everyone, you don't need to say such things in front of me…I'm starting to hurt again…"

Sensei laughed loudly.

"Sorry sorry. Ahahaha. The Oppai Dragon is actually suffering from oppai, really!"

"Guah! My head hurts! I said, you don't need to say it!"

I clutched my head in pain! Really, how did it come to that in such a serious situation!? …This, really, can it be cured…? If this continues, I could just politely decline the invitation…. Although it's a bit better than dying, my most important part will be done for! My ero-books at home, ero-DVDs, and my treasured original magazine collections have all turned into a fierce poison! Yeah! If we don't stop the Trihexa which is approaching Japan, the treasured ero-works which are kept in my house will be completely destroyed! Damn it! Trihexa definitely has to be stopped! To overcome this, we must accomplish the task over there! While I became determined in that way, Ikuse Tobio-san wore a serious expression and put on a headset to listen to the information that was just received. Then, held told us

"Information has come in. —The Holy Grail has appeared alongside the Trihexa which is near Japan."

—What! After hearing that report, everyone became even more tense. …It was in Japan! Perfect! This was truly a defensive battle now! Sensei's expression changed, and became serious as he looked at every one of us.

"[DxD] will split into two teams according to what was just confirmed. But, the combat force will basically be concentrated as much as possible to Japan. After I finish giving instructions to my subordinates, I will see which side is in a more critical state and go to support it. Before that, don't die. Well, everyone, go get ready!"

[Understood!]

All of us firmly replied!

—The battle was almost upon us!

Part 2

After watching their son Issei go, his parents were resting on the floor that he was just on. A figure appeared at that time. —It was the current head of the House of Gremory, Rias' chichi. The current head — after dealing with the counter-terrorism measures in his own territory, Zeoticus Gremory made some time to go to the hospital. To him, the eldest son of the Hyoudou family was his important son-in-law. He had also been in the care of his parents once, so he thought that at the very least he had to come out and see them once. He was finally able to do this. Upon seeing Zeoticus, Hyoudou Issei's parents greeted him and then anxiously asked

"U-Umm, my son said that he had something to do and left…. But, he said that he would come back before dinner…"

Even though they had bid farewell to their son, Issei's parents were still deeply worried about him. It was natural. He was their most important son. Even though they found out that he had reincarnated as a Devil, they didn't have a deep understanding of the situation yet, but they were also aware of just how dangerous the places were that their son went to. Issei's chichi cheered up a bit.

"I-If they're boys, it can't be helped that there'll always be a few fights! Moreover, this is a battle to protect us, and to protect others! I-Isn't that right?"

Ise's chichi asked Zeoticus. Ise's haha also waited for Zeoticus' reply.

—A pair of ordinary parents. They were found everywhere, very ordinary parents who were concerned about their children. Ordinary parents like these gave birth to the youth who was shouldering the weight of the Underworld's future. Indeed, precisely because they were parents like these, that boy had such an upbringing. That boy also had to rush over to an extremely dangerous place. Zeoticus held the hands of both of Issei's parents, and deeply, deeply bowed his head.

"…Hyoudou-san, your son, Ise-kun is — a true hero. Please be proud about this…the son that you have raised is a hero who fights to save the Underworld, and to protect us. Moreover, he will definitely return here. No matter what happens, he will come back to us, and return to your side."

Issei's parents tightened their hands over Zeoticus' hand in return, and smiled reassuringly.

"Let us prepare dinner together. When our children return, they will certainly be hungry."

Parents who didn't worry about their own children do not exist—. Regardless of whether it was Rias, or Sirzechs—. Zeoticus allowed Issei's parents to feel more at ease, while he also hoped in his heart for his own two children to be safe—.

Part 3

Setting out from the hospital in the capital of Lilith, I, Hyoudou Issei and my nakama were transported to the human world — the coastal waters of Japan, and began preparations to intercept Trihexa. The place we were at was a small, uninhabited island. At the edge of the beach, and in the middle of the night, everyone participating in the battle had gathered here. The members who would be participating in this operation against Trihexa included the Occult Research Club, Sitri peerage, Seekvaira Agares-san's peerage, and the [Brave Saints] of the [DxD] team. Sairaorg-san…because the Bael had been attacked, there were a lot of things that he needed to deal with, which was why he had to come a little later. Although the Great King house's misfortune continued, I had heard from Saji that the estrangement between Sairaorg and his own family had already improved a bit, which was something worthy of celebration. Of course, the ones who came here to help out didn't just include us; there were also the high-class Devils who managed territory in Japan and their peerages who came to join the battle. Japan's special ability users group — they had also appeared, with the Five Great Families supporting them. The majority of them were specialists dressed as Onmyouji [8]. These people were led by Akeno-sans' cousin, the current head of the Himejima clan, 'Suzaku'. We had just met her not long ago, and she was really quite a beauty… My head is starting to hurt again! It really is too embarrassing for Akeno-san's cousin to see me in such a worthless state…. Aside from them, there were also others who came—.

"We also came, Ise!"

It was a very familiar-sounding voice; it was the blonde-haired fox girl Kunou, as well as her okaa-san, Yasaka-san who had arrived!

"Kunou! Even Yasaka-san came!"

Yasaka-san bowed.

"Sekiryuutei-dono, and everyone, the youkai of my kind living in Japan are also here to fight. Because our homes have been destroyed, we've been quite troubled."

Following behind Yasaka-san was an endless legion of youkai which could even cover the entire surface of this small island. Even the elders of the youkai appeared among them. They had already fought against Trihexa once. Although they couldn't be seen from here, the major gods of Japanese mythology were also assisting in the rear. I'll leave protecting Japan to you guys. Since even our major gods said that, we could only go along with that. In order to face Japan's crisis, everyone had come out to stand on a united front. At such a critical juncture, I would feel a bit sad if we couldn't cooperate…I think everyone should work together during times such as these, that way, the future will be brighter!

After we briefly confirmed the details of our battle, we had our last period of rest before the battle began. While everyone went about spending that time in their own way, I climbed up a rock by myself, and looked towards the direction that Trihexa would approach from. …As soon as we arrived at this island, I could feel incredible cold chills in the air. An indescribable pressure was coming from Trihexa's direction. The sky was also clouded over. That was also due to the influence of Trihexa. …That beast was truly formidable. That was natural, after all, it was a beast that was able to easily change the terrain. It was a beast which was even able to defeat gods. Can I really beat it…. First was to stop the Holy Grail it had from functioning. Then…we'll be relying on the plan mentioned by Azazel-sensei that only the VIPs knew about. To be honest, I was really curious about it. Of course, we weren't just going to wait around foolishly for that plan. We have to do all that we can to resist, Japan…it'll definitely be protected! But if that was to be the case, then we had to fight against Trihexa…it was in a completely different class from us…damn it, in the end, what should I do? Sensei, I really hope that you'll be able to carry out that plan successfully!

"Ufufu, what is one person thinking while his head is in pain?"

A voice called out to me — it was Rias. She looked at me curiously.

"It's nothing, I was just wondering how we would defeat Trihexa."

Rias stood by my side, and looked up at the sky.

"…Indeed. It will be difficult. But, I don't want to give up. For me, the human world…Japan is my second home."

With eyes filled with determination, Rias said so. I said

"…It'll be time for graduation soon. I'm also going to become a third year."

"Yes. I want to graduate in that school. Me, Akeno, Sona, and Tsubaki are all looking forward to becoming university students, you know?"

"I also felt that. Where are you all planning to go for your graduation trip?"

"Sona is planning the trip. We haven't yet decided on Okinawa or Hokkaido. It might be better to go to both places while we can. It would be nice to eat our fill in Osaka as well."

"So you were planning to do that much! No, but, if you use transportation magic circles, then it'll be easy to achieve."

"We want to travel by plane. At the least, it needs to be like humans, right?"

Rias gave me a wink. Flying in a plane huh. In that case, the trip's schedule would become quite troublesome…but that wouldn't be too bad since they were going to be traveling together. …I held Rias' hand. Her hand…was shaking. It was probably trembling out of fear, but also out of excitement as a warrior. Rias had always remained calm, but she also had times when she acted like a girl her age. …Moreover, my hand was also trembling nervously. At this time, it could be said that we're a cute matching couple who share the same state of mind, right? Rias suddenly revealed what she really felt.

"…In truth, I don't want you to participate in this battle. Even if you didn't want to, I would want you to stay and rest in the Underworld together with ogifu-sama and ogibo-sama [9], that's what I truly think. Everyone in the Occult Research Club also thinks that way…. But, despite all that, you would still come here without fail. So it would be better if we simply faced it together. We didn't come here to die together, but with me, and everyone else together, we'll be able to increase our chances of survival. Just then, Akeno also said that we've crossed overcome many many difficulties together until now."

What Rias said was right. In this situation, even if I was positioned at the rear, I would forcibly charge out. Thinking about it that way, staying close together with the nakama that I've overcome struggles with from the outset would be a better option. That's right, as long as we all fought together, no matter what the battlefield was like, we would be able to survive. That was all we had to do! …I was just thinking about such complicated things, but we've all come back alive so far. So this time, we should also go for an all-out attack! While we tightly clasped each other's hands, I said

"Yes, everyone definitely has to come back alive!"

Rias laughed.

"…Ise, you really feel reliable, but on the contrary, I've realised something lately. No, it would be better to call it an expectation. You will rise up even further. That's why, I think you and I are another…. …Put your mind in order and get ready."

"W-What do you mean by that—"

I was very concerned about what Rias said and couldn't help asking.

"I want to tour the cities of every country. I really like cities. Even making models of them."

—Rias changed the topic again. She wanted to brush past the previous topic. Well, I get what she means.

"You're right, Rias and I, as well as everyone else haven't gone travelling before. Since I've been reincarnated as a Devil with an almost everlasting life, we have to travel around the world at least once."

"Yes, that's nice. We'll go abroad after this. Because—"

We looked at each other.

"It hasn't even been twenty years since you and I were born. The longer we live, the more things we'll enjoy."

"That's also what I was thinking. I want to be with Rias forever."

"Yes, together with everyone, we'll live peacefully for ten thousand more years."

After pouring our hearts out at each other, Rias and I pressed our lips together.

……Pain more intense than before was coursing through my body, but I had to endure this time, at the very least! …Well, then I'll fall into the dilemma of having to undergo Asia's treatment again! My body really has become so useless! This really needs to be cured. But, I had energy again. I gained the courage to fight from Rias. —Japan, let us protect you! After that, we got ready to engage with Trihexa!

The joint force against Trihexa quietly flew into the sky from the beach of the uninhabited island. The supernatural existences with wings flapped their wings and flew into the air. The human specialists rode on top of winged shikigami [10] or the backs of youkai. I took a quick glance at the joint force — it was truly spectacular. Devils, Angels, humans, all belonging to different territories, different races with different values and cultures had gathered together for a common purpose. The youkai had the greatest quantity, as they numbered more than ten thousand. —Protect Japan. Stop Trihexa. It was a simple and easily understandable purpose. Hey, Rizevim. You're a bastard who plunged the world into chaos. But, did you ever expect to see the scene of us working closely together? Did you ever think that we would end the confusion? I'm really sorry, we're not always going to be idiots that get played around with by you. We won't lose to an evil bastard like you! While I was thinking that, a wicked atmosphere drifted towards us from the sky. Narrowing my eyes to see — I saw an extremely dark cloud in the distance. No, it wasn't a cloud. Instead, it almost blocked out the sky, an army of Evil Dragons with black scales! We saw a countless number of Evil Dragons! —They were accompanied by the red armour of the fake Sekiryuutei, and the figure of the Imperial Beast of the Apocalypse emerged! …Fortunately, the Japanese Self-Defence force hadn't been mobilised. Heaven's side and the major gods of Japanese mythology had negotiated, and decided to leave it to us first. The Self-Defence Force remained on standby and in a state of alert along the coastline. If we failed, then they would enter the battle…. This Trihexa had appeared in Japan, of all the places in the world. After this, what would happen…. While I was still worrying about this, the battle had already started—. I don't know who roared amidst the crowd, but it became the signal for the beginning of the battle.

"Protect the country we live in ooooooooooooooouuuuu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Then, everyone—.

[Uuuuuuuuuuoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooohhhhh!!]

Roared out, and charged towards Trihexa! The first ones to take on the countless number of Evil Dragons were the youkai.

[Evil Dragons! Have a taste of my flames!]

Amidst the horde of youkai, Yasaka-san transformed into an enormous golden nine-tailed fox! The flames which she released from her mouth swept away a cluster of Evil Dragons all at once! We can't lose to them!

"Let's go!"

"Yeah!"

Xenovia and Irina were the first members of [DxD] to take action! They released waves from their holy swords, and struck the Evil Dragons down at once! The black Evil Dragons which were being struck down left, right and centre covered the sea in black. As soon as Xenovia went ahead, she didn't think about the consequences, and simply swung down the ultimate technique with Durandal and Excalibur crossed over each other — Cross Crisis. But thanks to her, the number of Evil Dragons was instantly reduced.

"You two, think carefully about your pace when fighting!"

Assisting the two of them was Xenovia's ane, Sister Griselda.

"I'm not going to fall behind either!"

Kiba held Gram in his hands, and called forth the Dragon Knights to defeat many of the Evil Dragons. With Kiba holding the destructive power of Gram as the vanguard, the Knights wielded demonic swords as they demonstrated extraordinary sword technique.

"I'll incinerate the Evil Dragons behind Yuuto-senpai's sword!"

Assisting Kiba beside him was Koneko-chan in her Shirone mode. She hurled several kasha at the Evil Dragons, and eliminated them.

"Ara, fire is one of my favourites!"

Ravel also joined the battle (she didn't listen to me this time, and followed us over), as she spread her wings of fire open and sent out fierce flamethrowers. Her collaboration with Koenko-chan could be described as perfect. Kiba was the vanguard, Koneko-chan was the rearguard, and Ravel also matched them brilliantly as support.

"Ise!"

"Understood!"

Hearing Rias' signal, I also summoned my wyverns. I began the preparations for [Crimson Extinct Dragonar] [11]. I allowed the wyverns to attach to Rias' body, as they gradually covered her in armour; and as soon as Rias' was fully clad in armour

[Boost!!]

—The sound of her strengthening echoed, which doubled her own power of destruction, and she immediately eradicated more than fifty Evil Dragons in one blow. Rias and I smashed through a countless number of Evil Dragons. If they were mass-produced Evil Dragons, then they could be defeated with one punch in True [Queen] mode! Rossweisse-san was making preparations to activate the barrier to restrain Trihexa which was discussed earlier. There were hundreds of magic circles in her hand, as she advanced into the preparations for the barrier activation. After the preparations were complete, Trihexa would stop moving. On the other side, Gasper transformed into a dark beast and carried Valerie, whilst the Evil Dragons which approached him were all defeated.

>

"Ufufu, Gasper, how handsome."

Ara, he really looked like a man! Even his tone was rougher…angering Gasper in his Balor state would be quite scary.

[Burn into nothing!]

Saji also used black flames to eliminate the Evil Dragons.

"Hah!"

Sona-zenkaichou was manipulating her proud water magic, as she whipped up powerful waves from the surface of the water, and freely manipulated the sea. The seawater became a giant snake which entangled the Evil Dragons, and then dragged them down into the depths of the sea. The Evil Dragons which headed towards Sona-zenkaichou were dealt with by Shinra-zenfukukaichou [12]. The remaining members of the Sitri peerage supported and cooperated with each other as a perfect team. The peerage of Seekvaira Agares-san that was nearby acted in a similar fashion. Next was Akeno-san. Akeno-san and her cousin Suzaku-san both flew into the air. Suzaku-san stood on top of her shikigami, on the back of a large, scarlet bird.

"Akeno!"

"Yes, Suzaku-anesama!"

Suzaku-san — she conjured a large fireball. It gradually took the shape of a fiery bird! It wasn't a phoenix. It was the Himejima clan's sacred beast [Suzaku]! It was the sacred beast which was handed down from generation to generation to the head of the clan, along with its name. Akeno-san summoned her Holy Lightning Dragons. The sacred beast [Suzaku] and the Holy Lightning Dragons which the two of them had respectively summoned charged into the army of Evil Dragons! The cousins displayed the full force of their power together. However, the enemy finally allowed the fake Sekiryuutei to join the battle. They released Dragon Shots which were the same as mine, and killed many youkai! The fake Sekiryuutei all grouped together, so that we would have to deal with multiples of them simultaneously. Damn it! How can we be pressured by you! Just when I charged ahead to engage them, a dazzling gold aura enveloped us. The aura transmitted to us was gentle. The next instant, the wounds of the injured youkai were gradually healed. And even those of us who were dealt blows from the enemy…were unharmed. Looking towards the origin of the aura, it was Asia, who was glowing with a brilliant golden light. The aura which was wrapped around her had become an armour. —[Twilight Saint Affection] [13], Asia's subspecies Balance Breaker. The power that she attained by being gentler than anyone else, it was filled with more love than any other Sacred Gear, it was a field of protection—. An aura resembling that of Fafnir's also radiated from behind Asia.

"There's no need to worry, everyone! I will heal everyone's wounds! So, please do your best to fight!"

Asia's voice was full of courage! I really wanted to let tou-san and kaa-san hear that! Your daughter is already able to show such courage! The battle was also improving, and at that time, a certain man flew out! —It was the leader of [DxD], Dulio Gesualdo! Dulio spread open his ten feathered wings, and instantly raised his holy energy!

"Everyone, you're doing well. So as the captain, I also need to make a good show for you to see!"

His aura rose, and swelled; the holy light emitted from Dulio covered the entire sky!

"—Balance Break!"

With that shout, his aura violently inflated, and the sky was illuminated at the same time! Dulio's wings — he now had twelve wings similar to those of a Seraph, and they were also shining with a golden light. He also had four halos above his head. With open arms, Dulio moved forwards! All of the Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei in front of him were trapped within hundreds of bubbles. The bubbles then changed! Intensely swirling flames actually appeared within them, along with violent hurricanes, freezing cold air which froze everything, and lightning like God's wrath; a vast variety of natural phenomena occurred within the bubbles! Dulio continued to make more and more bubbles, until an entire section of the sky was filled with Dulio's bubbles. The Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei were all trapped inside, and faced an unparalleled attack. Initially, there were thousands of Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei which suffered from Dulio's attacks whilst trapped inside the bubbles! But the area of effect was still expanding! That was because the bubbles were being produced endlessly! Dulio stretched his neck, and boldly declared

"This is the Balance Breaker of Zenith Tempest [14] , [Flagello di Colori del Arcobaleno, Speranza di Briscola] [15]. These bubbles are the complete opposite of the bubbles which stop fighting. They're bubbles which will give a variety of divine punishment! I'm really sorry if the name is too long! I don't know how it became some plus αlpha [16] subspecies the more I used it!"

It was indeed an outrageously long-winded name! Was it Italian? But, it truly had an incredible effect! Dulio's top-tier Longinus, he could change a country's weather and climate as long as he wanted to…the Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei were butchered so easily, so it seems he really was telling the truth! That Balance Breaker, after adjusting its power, it had completely wiped clean all of the enemies in the vicinity, but, if it wasn't controlled, it could definitely produce enough bubbles to cover all of Japan, or perhaps even…. It was also a subspecies Balance Breaker which he acquired afterwards, it really suited Dulio! Ah, our leader is really capable! With the combat power of Dulio and all of the allies of different races, the mass-produced Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei which surrounded Trihexa had been cut down with a frightening speed! In order to stop the Holy Grail from functioning, we began advancing towards Trihexa. When we were almost there

>

—Standing on top of Trihexa's head was a brown-skinned youth who wore vestments, Apophis. The Holy Grail in his hands released a bright light, and illuminated the area around it. After the light faded, mass-produced Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei appeared around Trihexa again! The sky was obscured by darkness again. Everyone was flabbergasted.

"……How can this be?"

"…This has to be a lie, isn't this…all of the Evil Dragons…!"

…After having brought down so many Evil Dragons, they had produced reinforcements so easily, it was truly frustrating! Not only that, finally, finally! Trihexa also began to move—! It opened its mouth wide, and spat out an enormous fireball! The people who were directly in front of the fireball were swallowed up by the fireball without being able to do a thing. Nothing remained of them—. The enormous fireball flew towards the uninhabited island behind us—. Almost instantaneously, the sound of an explosion and the resulting shockwave was transmitted to us, and the whole island was destroyed. Just one fireball had completely destroyed a small island—. If that had hit us, all of us would have been fatally injured.

"Attack that monster!"

I don't know who gave that order, but everyone began attacking Trihexa. However, our attacks could only scratch the exterior of Trihexa, and didn't do any significant damage. Even if it was injured, it would immediately recover as if it never even happened. I also used Crimson Blaster and Solid Impact to attack…but the wounds that it caused on Trihexa immediately healed. …I see, no wonder all of those factions had so much difficulty in fighting Trihexa! It felt like it was impossible to defeat it! Even if I were to use Longinus Smasher to attack it…it would only result in temporary damage. It would certainly recover within the blink of an eye! With the situation as it was, we were troubled over what to do! It was also surrounded by a myriad of mass-produced Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei! As our combat power gradually weakened, it was unknown how much longer it would be until our defeat!

"Haaaaaaahhh!"

Xenovia released Cross Crisis again…but the cross-shaped wound on Trihexa's body immediately healed.

"Oryaah!"

Dulio also used his Balance Breaker to produce a bubble which was large enough to contain Trihexa…. But halfway through, it could be heard breaking.

"…This is the first time that it's been broken. Trihexa is strong to the extent that even my Balance Breaker can't defeat it."

Even Dulio couldn't help giving a wry smile. Trihexa continued to advance. Everyone still continued to fight.

"…If this goes on, Trihexa will reach Japan!"

Someone shouted that out desperately. At that time—. There was the sound of a loud 'boom' and roar. Trihexa, which was flying in the air, slowed down. An immense holy aura immediately approached, and soared like a pillar of light. The pillar of light flew towards Apophis. Apophis had already escaped from the place where he was originally standing…. All of us were surprised by the sudden occurrence. The person who released that pillar of light and momentarily stopped Trihexa appeared before our eyes.

"—What is it, you're only facing something of this degree, yet you're already saying such discouraging things?"

"Fufu, no way. The show starts now. Isn't that right, Hyoudou Issei?"

Flying in the sky was a man wearing a black coat — Crom Cruach and the wielder of the Holy Spear, Cao Cao!

"…Crom Cruach! Even you also came, Cao Cao!"

I didn't expect that these two people would show up right at this critical point in time! Crom Cruach cracked his knuckles loudly.

"I need to pay back the kindness Tannin showed me. And if you or Vali Lucifer were to fall in a situation like this, I would be quite troubled."

After saying that, Crom Cruach turned his right arm into a dragon's claw, and gathered an immense amount of aura in his hand. With a ferocious horizontal sweep, thousands of Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei were destroyed! Cao Cao also entered his Balance Breaker state, as a ring of light shone behind him, and he stood on top of an orb as he flew in mid-air. With just one swing of the Holy Spear, a large portion of the Evil Dragons were wiped out! Crom Cruach flew out after he glanced at me, and Cao Cao leaned the spear against his shoulder, after which the two of them said to me at the same time

"—I haven't finished watching you guys. So I also came to help."

"The one who'll defeat you in a duel is me. —So I'll be troubled if you die."

…… Damn it! I'm so moved by it that I can't even hold it back! The opponents who once caused us to suffer came to help us in a time of need! It really touched me! However, it wasn't just them who came to assist!

"Look over there!"

Someone cried that out, and when I looked over, a colossal oriental dragon was flying through the air. I recognised this elongated oriental dragon! —It was one of the Five Great Dragon Kings, Yu-Long [17]! On top of his back was the familiar figure of a small person as well!

"It isn't good to forget about the old people."

"First generation Sun Wukong jisan [18]!"

The old man hopped onto his Jīndǒu Yún with the Jingu Bang [19] in his hand, and flew in the air. He then lengthened the Jingu Bang, and quickly swept it at the Evil Dragons!

"I haven't gone up to the front lines until now. Well, I'll use this opportunity and do something good."

Along with the support of the jisan, other people also flew down from the back of Yu-Long!

"This is really too much. Really, I can't stand him even at this old age."

"Indeed indeed, that stupid guy Wukong, he actually dragged us over even though we retired long ago."

It was a fat old man with a pig's head and a bearded old monk with the necklace made of skulls around his neck. The two of them complained while they flew in the air. The pig-headed old man spat out a large fireball from his mouth, while the bearded old man used the seawater to make various beasts! A large pack of Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei were defeated by them! Seeing this, the first generation jisan smiled.

"Don't be like that, Wujing, Bajie. Tell me again? Who are old ones who normally complain that they can't lose to these youngsters?"

—What! I understood as soon as that first generation jisan said it! That pig-headed old man and that bearded old man are the first generation Zhu Bajie, Cleaner of the Altars and the first generation Sha Wujing, Golden-bodied Arhat. So it's them! A group of really incredible people came! I didn't expect to see the people from Journey to the West [20] here! The three of them synchronised their moves to act as a perfect team, as they defeated the Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei in an instant! They also began to attack Trihexa, they were really energetic! Following the actions of the three people, Yu-Long casually breathed out flames as he said

[So, not wanting to go on a rampage was in fact a lie!]

""You shut up, useless dragon!""

The combination of the casual young Dragon King, first generation Zhu Bajie and first generation Sha Wujing was really quite surprising.

"Hey, the prince even came this time. Yu-Long, you should definitely work harder, right?"

Looking in the direction of the first generation Sun Wukong's gaze — a boy with clothing reminiscent of a lotus flower was flying in the air. He was standing on a wheel which sprayed out flames, while he held a long blazing spear in his hand. The boy released a holy aura, as he calmly spoke to the three first generations and Yu-Long

"Wukong, Wujing, Bajie, Yu-Long, you need to know when enough banter is enough. The world is facing a crisis right now. Now is the time to show the merit that you've earned."

The words of that boy caused all of the first generation jisans to focus on dealing with the enemy, without raising a single complaint. Cao Cao used his Holy Spear to annihilate the Evil Dragons, while lamenting

"…Nezha Prince[21], even the original Xuanzang's[22] disciples came, so the main battle force of Mount Meru has actually come here, which means that Indra has also become serious."

He was…the legendary Nezha Prince! This was really a dreamlike line-up. I really couldn't believe it! I couldn't help feeling excited! But, even if they continued to eliminate the Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei, their numbers still continued to multiply!

"Kuh! They're still increasing!"

It was just as someone said, wave after wave surged forth. Even Evil Dragons highly similar to Grendel and Evil Dragons formed by trees like Ladon appeared in packs! I knew that Grendel had been mass-produced, but I didn't think that even Ladon had been mass-produced! However, the steady stream of reinforcements on our side was also increasing! The Evil Dragons like Grendel which appeared before us were rapidly smacked down into the sea by someone wearing the armour of a lion—.

"I finally caught up. Sorry for being late."

It was Sairaorg-san and his peerage.

"Sairaorg-san!"

Just when I rejoiced at the appearance of the next head of the Great King house, an incredibly and ridiculously strong swordsman also appeared; he effortlessly sliced apart the Evil Dragons like Ladon spread before us, along with the barriers that they formed. Looking closely — it was a man who floated in the air through the use of magic and could be described as an embodiment of muscles; he held a holy sword like Durandal in his hand as he slashed through the crowd of Evil Dragons. Even a simple kick of his was enough to send an Evil Dragon flying! My eyes met with that person's. His wrinkled face also had many firm muscles—.

"I was wondering who it was…if it isn't the Sekiryuutei brat."

That person was the one who triggered the rebellion of the Church's warriors some time ago, a big name of the Church who came to Japan together with the warriors, His Eminence Vasco Strada.

"Your Eminence Strada! Even you also came?"

I was extremely surprised! I was rather surprised when the first generation Journey to the West group appeared, but I never expected that even this jisan would come! His Eminence Strada happily laughed.

"Fufufu, the youngsters are laying down their lives at the front lines in the face of a world crisis, if I don't drag these old bones of mine to the frontlines for the sake of the world, then I won't be able to face my Lord. Even if I was once retired, let me return to the battlefield for a while in the advent of a world crisis."

After saying that, His Eminence Strada swung a replica of Durandal and split an Evil Dragon resembling Grendel into two. The Church warriors led by His Eminence also quickly flew into the air and engaged the Evil Dragons which were also flying in the air! Really! All of the reinforcements were people who surprised me! Even tears of joy were flowing out! At that time, Rossweisse-san, who was supposed to be preparing the restraining barrier revealed an anguished expression.

"…The preparations for the technique have already been completed, but we have to decrease the distance from Trihexa for it to work, so we need to think of a way…. I'm also quite concerned about Apophis' movements."

I see, that's what the situation was like! It was certain that Apophis, who stood on top of Trihexa's head would hinder the barrier's activation! But, she needed to get closer to Trihexa first for it to work. I flew to Rossweisse-san's side, and at that time, Cao Cao also came over.

"I'll clear the way. Count it as one of my special services."

After saying that, he rotated the Holy Spear, and recited the chant of power!

"O Spear, the true Holy Spear which pierces through God! Absorb the ambition of the King of Domination sleeping within me, and pierce through the gap of blessing and destruction! Thou, announce the will, and turn into light!"

The ring of light behind Cao Cao shone even brighter, and the aura which enveloped the Holy Spear also increased until its limit. For us Devils, just seeing this light and having that light shine upon us was enough to cause our skin to sting in pain as if it was being burnt. I could even feel it through my armour, so it was evidently quite a powerful holy aura. Cao Cao chanted the last part! [—Truth Idea!] [23]

As if the spear was being blessed, it released a dazzling radiance, and holy waves radiated out from it. The holy waves released by the spear spread across the entire sky. Instantly, the Evil Dragons seemed to be afraid of something invisible to them, and moved some distance away from Trihexa. Apophis, who was standing on Trihexa's head, was also affected; the Holy Grail fell from his hands, as he suddenly cried out in pain.

>

Apophis fled from Trihexa's body! Amazing! Although I didn't understand, was it a power which was able to repel evil things? I had also heard about the Holy Spear's Truth Idea. The effect was based on the will of the God of the Bible that dwelled within the Holy Spear…. This time, was it the power to push back a great number of Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei, and cause pain to Apohis…?

"…It looks like the will within this spear has responded to me this time. Well, it's your turn now."

Rias and Rossweisse-san shared a glance as they both nodded in confirmation. Rossweisse-san shortened her distance to Trihexa. She then created a gigantic magic circle which was wide enough to cover the surrounding area, and cried out!

"I'm stopping Trihexa!"

After Rossweisse-san touched the magic circle with her hand, the barrier activated. The next instant, an unknown energy field covered the entire area. Many barrier magic circles then appeared all over Trihexa's body, and completely covered the Imperial Beast of the Apocalypse. Trihexa issued a cry of pain, but the barrier magic circles unfolded one after the other, and Trihexa was trapped underneath several layers. At last—. All of us then confirmed that Trihexa was paralysed.

…….

…Trihexa didn't move!

[SUUCCCCCEEESSSSS!]

Everyone erupted! They loudly cheered about Trihexa's paralysation! However, the battle wasn't over yet! If we didn't stop the Holy Grail, the mass-produced Evil Dragons and fake Sekiryuutei would still be able to move. The barrier was only able to restrain Trihexa! Next was to remain vigilant of Trihexa's movements, exterminate all of the Evil Dragons, and give the Holy Grail to those two people. I said to Gasper and Valerie

"I'll leave the Holy Grail to you, Gasper and Valerie!"

>

"Ufufu, let's do our best then. Don't fall behind on your side either."

Gasper and Valerie flew towards the dragon's head of Trihexa to stop the Holy Grail which was left on top of it. The rest is up to them. —Well, I guess I'll fight on this side now. I saw that Apophis had moved away from Trihexa's head. He had landed on another uninhabited island that was nearby. The Evil Dragons which resembled Grendel and Ladon were still multiplying at a considerable rate. Compared to the usual mass-produced Evil Dragons, their abilities were superior, and they were incomparably strong. But, Apophis was far more dangerous than them! After readying the determination to fight against Apophis in a death match, I flew towards the island that he landed on—.

[1] Kanji was DxD.

[2] Sobo: Grandmother.

[3] Oji-sama: Respectful way of addressing an older or middle-aged man.

[4] Aniki: Brother (older).

[5] Bishoujo: A pretty young girl.

[6] Kanji was Chief Mourner's Crucified Stand of Purple Flame.

[7] Kanji was Eternal Ice Princess.

[8] Onmyouji: Traditional Japanese specialists of magic and divination.

[9] Ogifu-sama and ogibo-sama: Father-in-law and mother-in-law respectively.

[10] Shikigami: Supernatural beings from Japanese folklore which are summoned by Onmyouji. They are often represented as spirits which take the form of beasts or animals.

[11] Kanji was Crimson Extinct Dragon Princess.

[12] -zenfukukaichou: Former Vice-President.

[13] Kanji was Embrace of the Holy Dragon Princess' Garden of Love.

[14] Kanji was Prison of Bright Heavenly Thunder.

[15] Kanji was: Inevitable Punishment of the Holy Angel’s Rainbow, Shining Star of the End. The furigana is Italian, roughly meaning: Scourge of Rainbow Colours, Hope of Briscola/Trump. Briscola is an Italian card game, while trump (card) has the same name. Feel free to provide a better translation as that’s just what I could get from Google Translate.

[16] An Engrish term which could be interpreted as: extra or additional.

[17] Kanji was Jade Dragon.

[18] jisan: An old man.

[19] The Jīndǒu Yún is his magic cloud and Jingu Bang is his magical staff.

[20] Journey to the West is a 16th century Chinese novel loosely based on the account of the monk Xuanzang. It details the journey of a group of pilgrims (Xuanzang, Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujing), with a strong emphasis on Chinese folklore, mythology and Buddhism.

[21] The Nezha Prince is protection deity in Chinese folk religion. He also appeared in Journey to the West.

[22] Kanji was Tang Sanzang Tripitaka, which is another name for Xuanzang. This title refers to his mission to seek the Three Collections of Buddhist Scriptures.

[23] Kanji was Brightness of Supremacy.

(All 3 of 3 parts) (23/5)

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