"..."
At this moment, Kaiser's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
What the hell was up with this cat?
Releasing an aphrodisiac miasma in a place like this… was she out of her mind?
Sure, Nekomata were known to be quite lustful, but they weren't some kind of succubus that fed on male vitality—was this really necessary?
Kaiser almost drew his spear. (In more ways than one.)
"Meow-haha!"
Kuroka had been watching Kaiser closely, and when she saw his face change expressions as dramatically as a Beijing opera performer, she burst into laughter.
"Your reactions are so funny, nya! I thought the wielder of the True Longinus would be all serious and uptight."
After all, it was the highest-ranking holy relic, the strongest among divine weapons, revered as a treasure by the Church, and directly tied to God. In most people's minds, it should be in the hands of a saint or a great hero—someone recognized as truly worthy.
"My apologies for not being serious enough." Kaiser shot back without hesitation. "But you're hardly one to talk."
"I never claimed to be serious, nya." Kuroka responded shamelessly, flashing a playful grin. "After all, I'm a youkai~~"
As she said this, her body suddenly vanished into the miasma.
Kaiser reacted instantly, his holy spear striking out sharply to the side.
Shlck!
The deadly spear pierced through Kuroka's figure completely.
But in the next second, her body dissipated like an illusion.
"How heartless, nya~"
The real Kuroka appeared behind Kaiser, wrapping her soft arms around his neck. Her entire body pressed against him, her curves warm and fragrant, particularly her upper body, which was nestled firmly against his chest.
"Even though I just helped you, you didn't hesitate at all before trying to stab me with that spear."
"Even though I've already left my former faction, I was still a reincarnated devil once. A Nekomata and a devil. If that spear had actually hit me, I probably would have died, nya~"
"You didn't even hesitate—were you really trying to kill me?"
"You're such a cruel man, nya…"
Her lips brushed against Kaiser's ear, her breath carrying an intoxicating scent as she spoke in a teasingly seductive tone.
Kaiser didn't immediately respond. His gaze turned sharp.
Perhaps he had underestimated this Nekomata.
He had a rough idea of Kuroka's strength.
She was the most powerful and rarest type of Nekomata—a Nekoshou. A battle-oriented species, a naturally born high-class youkai.
In terms of talent, she was likely no weaker than Rias—perhaps even superior.
As a youkai, she possessed innate abilities that other species lacked.
As a reincarnated devil, she had also mastered powerful demonic magic.
At the same time, she was skilled in Senjutsu—the art of controlling ki.
Senjutsu, unlike Youjutsu or Magic, was an advanced technique that focused on the manipulation of ki, the fundamental essence of life.
Aura, the energy that overflowed from one's body, was commonly used as fuel for various abilities and Sacred Gears, but most people only used it in crude and inefficient ways.
Senjutsu, however, refined ki as a power source and even allowed for control over external energy in the environment.
Though ki itself had no direct offensive capabilities like demonic power or light power, everything in nature possessed ki—all living beings, plants, even certain objects that carried strong spiritual energy.
Senjutsu allowed its users to perceive the flow of ki, manipulate it, and even influence the ki of others.
Those who mastered Senjutsu could enhance their bodies from within, disrupt an opponent's flow of ki, and even seal off an enemy's energy, making it an extremely effective method of indirect combat.
In other words, Senjutsu was the art of controlling life's natural flow.
Practitioners of this technique could even—just like Kaiser—naturally convert aura into Touki, using it for battle.
Naturally, those who could control the flow of ki at will were also highly skilled at hiding their own presence. When combined with illusions and Youjutsu, their ability to deceive an enemy's perception and senses was unparalleled.
That was how Kuroka had remained hidden until now, watching Kaiser brutally execute Diodora without being detected.
It was also how she had tricked him just now, making him strike at a mere illusion.
Without a doubt—Kuroka was a genius.
She had mastered Youjutsu, Senjutsu, Demonic Power, and even spatial and illusion manipulation.
She was an existence comparable to an Ultimate-Class Devil in strength.
The fact that she had been able to kill her own master, escape the Underworld, and repeatedly fend off devil pursuers was proof that she hadn't survived on luck alone—her abilities were the real deal.
Kaiser had already known this.
But perhaps, he had been too careless.
An Ultimate-Class Devil… that's not exactly an opponent I haven't faced before.
With the True Longinus in hand, Kaiser was confident he could even challenge a Maou-class opponent.
So, when facing someone of Ultimate-Class Devil strength, he hadn't felt the need to take it too seriously.
But now, he realized—
He had been arrogant.
It was true that Kuroka wasn't quite as strong as him, but her skills were incredibly diverse.
Unlike other Ultimate-Class Devils who mainly relied on raw power, she was far more cunning, utilizing illusions, disruptions, and trickery—making her an opponent far more troublesome to deal with.
Kaiser was undoubtedly stronger than her.
But it seemed that he wasn't particularly adept at dealing with this kind of opponent.
Unlike Amagiri Ayato, who had mastered the realm of Shiki, allowing him to perceive external changes with extreme clarity, Kaiser had no such sensory abilities at present.
And this was the result—being toyed with by a Nekomata of Ultimate-Class Devil strength.
However, perhaps this was also because Kuroka bore no hostility, malice, or intent to kill.
If she had attacked him with genuine killing intent, he probably wouldn't have been caught off guard like this.
Then there was the miasma surrounding him. While Kuroka had claimed that it only had mild effects on humans, Kaiser felt that it was slowing down his movements.
This cat was as shady as they came. Who knew what kind of tricks she had pulled behind the scenes?
"Boom!"
A sudden surge of Touki erupted from Kaiser's body, forcefully pushing Kuroka away.
"Oh my, such powerful Touki."
Kuroka didn't seem to mind being thrown off. She simply widened the distance between them and looked at the Touki surging around Kaiser, showing not a hint of concern. Instead, her smile grew even more delighted.
"As expected, you may be human, but you're incredibly strong. You're not just some useless fool who relies solely on his Sacred Gear to fight."
"…What exactly are you trying to do?" Kaiser finally asked. "You appeared out of nowhere, helped me for no reason, then brought me here only to mess with me. Don't tell me it's all just for fun."
Kuroka didn't seem the least bit affected by his questioning. She simply kept smiling.
"Well, it is fun, nya~."
Her playful grin took on an almost mischievous allure.
"I'm just interested in you, that's all. I won't do anything to you."
Then, her smile darkened.
"At least… not yet."
In that instant, the once-lazy and carefree aura around Kuroka underwent a drastic transformation.
It became sinister.
It became eerie.
The Touki she emanated grew increasingly menacing, exuding an overwhelming sense of malice.
If anyone were to witness Kuroka in this state, they would undoubtedly regard her as an extremely evil and dangerous individual.
But Kaiser was no longer deceived.
"Cut the act."
His expression remained calm as he spoke.
"I already know that you've mastered Senjutsu, allowing you to control ki at will. Even if you deliberately release your ki and alter its nature to appear evil, I'm not going to let that make me overthink things."
Upon hearing this, Kuroka's aura momentarily faltered.
"…Tch. You're no fun at all, nya~."
Looking somewhat dissatisfied, she quickly dropped the facade, and the sinister aura around her faded.
"If you want someone to mess with, go find someone else. Like your sister."
With that, Kaiser stopped paying attention to her.
He crouched down, examining the unconscious women lying on the ground, noticing that their condition had worsened.
"Is it because of the miasma?"
He looked at the thick mist that still filled the area.
Kuroka had claimed that this miasma was meant to deter the devils pursuing her.
That was likely true. After all, the devils in Diodora's peerage had clearly been affected by it.
"Send us back to Kuoh Town," Kaiser commanded without even looking at her. "Somewhere secluded will do."
"Oh?"
Kuroka flicked her tail, then giggled.
"But what if I don't feel like helping you anymore, nya?"
Kaiser didn't say a word.
But the holy spear in his hand suddenly emitted a surge of divine energy.
Upon seeing this, Kuroka instantly knew that this time—he wasn't joking.
"Alright, alright, geez."
Raising both hands in mock surrender, she sighed.
"I may be a bad girl, but since I already went out of my way to help, I suppose I'll see it through to the end."
With a snap of her fingers, the space around them distorted once more.
In the blink of an eye, the dense, miasma-filled forest vanished—replaced by the outskirts of Kuoh Town.
Kaiser and the others had successfully left the forest.
After finishing the teleportation, Kuroka turned to him with amusement in her gaze.
"So, are you planning to take these women to see Rias Gremory now?"
Kaiser didn't answer.
Instead, he withdrew his True Longinus and summoned Gravisheath.
Manipulating gravity, he lifted the unconscious women into the air.
Then, without a word, he took flight—heading toward his next destination.
Watching him go, Kuroka chuckled silently to herself.
And then, she followed.