The holy cross gleamed faintly under the moonlight—simple, small, unassuming. But the moment my skin touched it, agony surged up my arm like molten iron.
Ssssss—
Smoke rose instantly, curling in the air as my flesh sizzled. I grit my teeth, knuckles white. The scent of burning meat filled my nose. My vision darkened at the edges.
Riser flinched, eyes narrowing.
"What the hell are you doing…?" he muttered, more curious than concerned.
I didn't answer.
"Asia," I said through clenched teeth, not turning to look at her. "Keep healing me. No matter what. Don't stop. Don't come close."
I heard her gasp behind me, but her magic activated, pressing light gently against my back. It was a mockery of comfort against the pain chewing through my hand.
I walked forward.
Riser straightened, uncertain now.
"What is that?" he demanded, voice tight.
I smiled. Or at least, something that might've been a smile if not for the blood leaking down my lips. "Let's dance."
[Boost.]
The crimson aura pulsed again. And then, I focused.
Boost the cross.
For a moment, nothing happened—then the light of the holy symbol shimmered, brighter, heavier, its aura intensifying. My body jerked violently as divine energy surged through the cross, multiplying inside me.
My nerves screamed.
The hand holding the cross began to blacken, layers of skin flaking off. But I didn't stop.
I couldn't stop.
Because if I did, she would lose.
And if she loses, I lose. And I never lose.
Riser came at me fast. Wings aflame, his fist cocked back, heat radiating from his body in waves.
I let him come.
At the last second, I moved.
Pain sharpened my mind. Every movement was agony but also clarity.
I drove the glowing cross straight into his ribs.
HISSSSSS
A burst of divine light exploded from the impact. Riser screamed as his body was launched backward, flames sputtering violently. His flesh bubbled where the cross had touched.
"You—!"
He snarled and dashed in again.
But now he was cautious.
I twisted my fingers, chanting a spell under my breath. A basic flame bind. Weak. Pathetic. But I didn't need power.
I needed distraction.
He crashed through it with ease.
Another slice across his cheek. Another scream. Another wound that closed seconds later.
But every second, he was burning.
And I—
I was burning with him.
[Boost.]
[Boost.]
[Boost.]
Each call pushed the energy higher. The cross grew brighter, so blinding now that my eyes watered. My fingers were charcoal. My wrist was seared open to the bone.
I couldn't feel the pain anymore. Only pressure. A pressure that dug into my chest like a vise, pushing my sanity inch by inch toward the edge.
But I kept going.
Slash. Cut. Jab.
A cross to the side of his throat, a burn across his collarbone.
Riser was panting now, not from exertion but from fear.
"What kind of monster are you...?" he hissed, retreating a step.
My lips were cracked and bleeding. My jaw barely moved when I spoke. "The kind that doesn't die until you do."
I took another step. And another.
[Boost.]
Riser attacked in desperation, fire blooming from his palms. I took it head-on. My clothes caught fire. My skin blistered.
But I didn't stop.
I slammed the cross against his face, searing his cheek, his eye.
He shrieked.
He couldn't stop healing. That was his curse.
But every time he healed, I made him feel the pain all over again.
He couldn't breathe between the waves of suffering.
He couldn't focus between each flash of white-hot agony.
And me?
I was collapsing. My body was giving out. My heartbeat was a broken drumbeat now, out of rhythm, lost in the chaos.
The cross was fused to my palm.
I was screaming with every step—but no sound came out. My voice was gone. Only the gasps remained.
But my feet kept moving.
Until finally—
Riser staggered back, clutching his side.
He was trembling. Trembling like a child.
"You... You're insane," he muttered, eyes wide. "This isn't a fight. This is... this is suicide."
Issei didn't respond.
Because the man standing before him wasn't human anymore. He wasn't the devil.
He was a monster formed from blood and ash.
Riser took a step back. Another. His wings flickered.
And then—
He turned.
He ran.
Flapping his wings violently, he took to the air, blazing skyward like a meteor.
Just as I was about to follow him. My body turned to light, and an announcement followed after.
[Rias Gremory Pawn has been eliminated.]
Did I just lose? That was the question I asked before I lost my consciousness.
~~~
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