Recalling her responsibility, Sona hid her grimace. She remembered her previous engagement. Fortunately, she had escaped it.
Unlike Rias Gremory's fiancé, her fiancé was an ancient relic from a forgotten era. He was more of an idiot than Riser Phenex. To tell the truth, Riser was better in Sona's eyes; at least if Rias married Riser, she would be the main wife, unlike Sona, who would be a mere consort, and only her first child would carry the Sitri name!
Riser was arrogant and a womanizer, the latter being an open secret. However, as a member of the nobility fulfilling a marriage contract, Sona knew that Riser was still genuinely a virgin. It was the pride of the Phenex House that kept Riser from casual sex before his marriage to Rias. In fact, other families would do something similar to maintain face and prestige. Although Riser seemed like a loose character, he had never had sex before. So far, Riser had only kissed members of his peerage.
Sona let out another sigh, this one a tired sigh.
Being born as a noble wasn't as great as it seemed. One's freedom was eternally bound, shackled. There were many responsibilities to fulfill. One had to be ready to be a bird in a cage when born into a noble family.
Sona was aware of this, and she decided to be a serious person because she was responsible as the heiress of the House of Sitri. Although her life was full of responsibilities, she still tried to pursue her dream. It was exhausting, but Sona knew her limits. She never overestimated herself like her rival.
However, she looked forward. She could only hope that Rias wouldn't succeed in recruiting Gilgamesh, and she would swoop in and recruit him with everything at her disposal.
With Gilgamesh.
Currently, it was possible to see Gilgamesh and Mordred walking at night through the streets of Kuoh.
Although it was a bit late, it was still possible to see some movement on the streets, though it was relatively small.
Gilgamesh was wearing a white shirt with a black jacket over it, as well as black pants and sneakers. He had some jewelry with him, like a ruby necklace around his neck.
Mordred was wearing a short red shirt that showed her stomach, along with jeans and sneakers. She also had a hamburger and a milkshake in her hands.
Looking at her, Gilgamesh couldn't help but wonder where all that food went, since Servants didn't need to eat, but Mordred was basically a black hole.
"What's up?" Mordred asked at Gilgamesh's gaze.
"Nothing. Just thinking," Gilgamesh said, looking away.
The reason they were here now was that they were following Issei Hyoudou on his date.
Driven by the desire to take the [Boosted Gear], Gilgamesh followed Issei and Yuuma/Raynare on their date.
"Hey, Master, why don't we just kill the pervert and take his Sacred Gear?" Mordred asked.
To her, it was simple: they kill the perverted insect and take his Longinus.
Simple!
Gilgamesh laughed a bit at Mordred's haste.
He knew the Servant had a lot of hatred for Issei, especially after he tried to watch her while she was changing.
God, that was scary.
He could still remember Issei's screams of pain as he took a beating from Mordred.
He had to beg her to stop, or she would have killed Issei.
Since that day, the pervert never tried anything with Mordred again. Gilgamesh remembered that he had been in a coma for two days due to the beating.
"It's not that simple, Mordred. I can only steal Sacred Gears from people who attack me, not from those who don't show hostile intent," Gilgamesh explained.
It was true that with his [Plunder] he could steal Sacred Gears from those he killed. Gilgamesh had dozens of these Sacred Gears from people who fought him over time stored in the [Gate of Babylon].
However, [Plunder] only worked if Gilgamesh killed someone with hostile intent toward him; otherwise, it wouldn't work.
In Gilgamesh's eyes, Raynare and her group of riffraff were just a minor issue. It was so small and insignificant that it was basically negligible.
The reason he continued with this pathetic charade was because of his damned pride.
Pride was a destructive thing. Sometimes, it was magnificently useless for someone with cold logic. However, living without pride was like living without a soul. That sinful thing was always in a dormant state within the heart of every living being, waiting for the catalyst to awaken and take over calm and collected logic.
In the past, as Diogo, he had pride, but it wasn't as great as his current pride, as Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes.
Putting his hand in his pocket, Gilgamesh pulled out a small flyer with the Gremory family symbol on it.
This was a contract given to him by Rias Gremory's familiar.
Gilgamesh knew Rias would try to manipulate him, but even so, he couldn't help but feel irritated.
Rias was a proud and selfish woman. She wouldn't accept anything contrary to her desires. Prideful people with massive egos were the same everywhere. No one would accept being on the wrong side. They only accepted being on the winning and legitimate side. However, not everyone could be that way easily. It took power to support such a massive ego. Unfortunately for Rias, she was the weakest among them. The power difference was like a dragon soaring in the sky and a worm crawling in the mud. Yet, Rias was blind to the truth. She was still deluded into thinking she was superior because she thought Gilgamesh was nothing more than a mere human.
While traveling over the years, Gilgamesh had seen many things.
And what angered him the most was the way humans were treated by supernatural beings.
Gilgamesh hated how demons turned them into slaves and how Fallen Angels and the Church used them as experiments.
During his time in the Church, Gilgamesh stopped many of these experiments and killed all those who attempted them.
Gilgamesh could be seen as a defender of humans.
If he were on anyone's side, it would be the humans'.
However, unlike Cao Cao, who wanted to test the limits of humanity, Gilgamesh saw no point in something so foolish.
If Cao Cao continued with his plans, it would only put a bigger target on his back, and then he would be killed, leaving no one to protect humans.
Gilgamesh would protect them from the shadows.
Any being that tried to harm them would simply die.
So you must be wondering why he doesn't help Issei?
It's because Issei had no pride as a human.
Even if Gilgamesh saved him, the moment Rias offered to reincarnate him as a demon, he would accept immediately.
Gilgamesh hated that he would throw away his humanity for a simple pair of breasts.
Sighing, Gilgamesh turned his attention back to the flyer, and in an instant, it caught fire and disappeared.
"So, Mordred, shall we meet our guests?" Gilgamesh asked Mordred.
Mordred gave a big smile before stepping forward and shouting.
"Come out, cowards!" Mordred yelled.
In that instant, the sky turned purple, and all the nearby people disappeared.
"A barrier," Gilgamesh said.
From the sky, seven silhouettes appeared.
There were eight men and two women.
The men varied in appearance, seeming to be between twenty and forty years old, but their appearance was similar, with black hair and purple eyes.
One woman had black hair and blue eyes, along with a voluptuous body.
The other woman was a little girl with blue hair.
"Hoho, they're not so bad for humans," one man said.
"Yes, but even so, they're mere humans. Let's kill them quickly," said another.
"Yes, yes, let's kill them," said the little girl with a smile.
"Ah, it's a shame to have to kill such a handsome boy," said the blonde woman, looking at Gilgamesh with a lascivious face.
Mordred only stepped forward a bit more and raised her right hand.
In her right hand, a red lightning bolt fell, and when it dissipated, it revealed a sword.
It was a shining, ornate silver-white sword adorned with splendid decorations, acting as a symbol of royalty denoting the right to the throne's succession.
This sword was Clarent: the Radiant and Brilliant Royal Sword, the sword belonging to Mordred.
Originally kept by King Arthur in Camelot's arsenal, it was described as 'more dazzling than any silver.' It is a precious sword equal to, if not surpassing, Caliburn, amplifying the king's authority, the "royal aura of the king."
"Hoho, the flat girl knows how to do something," the woman said, making the others laugh.
A red aura began to radiate from Mordred.
Gilgamesh stepped back, knowing what was coming next.
"What did you call me, old hag?" Mordred said.
"Flat, brat," the woman said before starting to laugh.
But when they looked back at the woman, they noticed something.
She was headless, and Mordred was standing in front of them with Clarent raised.
"Hey, Master, let me handle this," Mordred said as she charged at the Fallen Angels, who were still stunned.
Gilgamesh turned his gaze to three Fallen Angels flying above him.
"You only caught her by surprise; don't get cocky, humans," one Fallen Angel said before creating, along with the others, dozens of light spears in the sky and launching them at Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh merely looked at it boredly.
"Light Magic: Arrows of Conviction," Gilgamesh said.
The space around Gilgamesh shifted as hundreds of light spears appeared, pointing at the Fallen Angels, who were in disbelief.
"This is what a light spear is," Gilgamesh said as his arrows advanced against those of the Fallen.
There was no comparison; the magical power and quality of Gilgamesh's spears were far superior to those of the Fallen Angels, destroying them and advancing to kill the Fallen instantly.
However, one light spear shot toward Gilgamesh, only to be destroyed by Clarent.
"You're rusty, Master," Mordred said with a smile as she placed Clarent on her shoulder.
"I saw it," Gilgamesh said, pouting.
When they looked to see who shot the light arrow, they saw the blue-haired little girl staring at them with a horrified look.
"Damn it, I came here thinking they were humans, not two monsters," the girl shouted as she flapped her wings to escape.
But before she could flee, a chain wrapped around her neck, throwing her to the ground again.
When she opened her eyes, she saw Gilgamesh in front of her.
The King of Heroes quickly kicked the girl's stomach, pinning her to the ground and preventing her from getting up.
"Who sent you here?" Gilgamesh asked.
"I can't say; he'll kill me," the girl said through tears.
"Are you afraid of whoever might kill you, or of me, who will kill you if you don't answer?" Gilgamesh asked as his power began to leak.
"They sent us after you and that red-eyed girl who lives with you," the girl said, trembling with fear.
At that moment, a great darkness began to emanate from Gilgamesh's body, making the entire barrier tremble; the pressure was simply suffocating.
When Mordred saw Gilgamesh's look, she couldn't help but feel a shiver run through her body.
It wasn't his usual look.
Not the playful or arrogant look he had when teasing others.
Not even the excited look he had when battling.
His look was one of pure, unadulterated rage.
It wasn't the fury of a madman, but that of someone who could plan their revenge for a long time.
The fury of a King.
And Mordred had seen this look in Gilgamesh before.
Mordred liked her master a lot; he was a cool guy, enjoyed a battle like she did, and also made delicious food.
But that day, when she saw this look for the first time, Mordred remembered that even an angel has its dark side.
A few years ago, Gilgamesh had fought a demon but spared him, and they had become friends.
However, they discovered that what this demon really wanted was to put Valerie in his peerage.
When Gilgamesh found him, he killed everyone.
That couldn't be called a battle, not even a massacre; it was pure carnage.
Gilgamesh had tortured the demons in so many ways that Mordred couldn't even imagine it was possible.
Electrocuted, poisoned, drowned, dismembered, burned, mutilated, and so many ways that even Mordred couldn't believe.
The demons suffered so much that they died due to the pain; their brains couldn't handle so much pain and shut down.
Valerie was fine; nothing had happened to her.
But after that day, Gilgamesh had become ruthless with his enemies and extremely protective of his friends.
Even with a life full of battles, Mordred could never forget that.
And now all that rage was directed at the little Fallen before him.
The girl was in a state of shock as she saw her death in the most varied forms in Gilgamesh's eyes.
"I'll only ask one more time."
"Who sent you?" Gilgamesh shouted, his voice turning demonic as various creatures emerged from the shadows, creatures you'd only find in the nightmares of the bravest warriors.
"Kokabiel," the girl said, trembling.
All the darkness and power suddenly vanished as Gilgamesh stared at the girl.
Gilgamesh knew Kokabiel might send someone after him, but he didn't imagine it would be so soon.
Gilgamesh stared at her, and a golden gate appeared beside him, from which a sword emerged.
It was a very simple sword, barely different from a common sword, with just a slightly curved, very sharp silver blade of considerable length, and a reddish hilt with silver details, which was probably the only thing that set it apart from others, after all, it was just a sword.