"You serious?"
Trish's eyes widened in surprise. "Look, you guys don't have to deal with this anymore. Dante's probably already grabbed his stuff and will be here any second. He'll handle it."
"I'm sure," Nero replied firmly. "No one can guarantee their rampage won't hit the town. Everything they wreck here will eventually belong to Credo. And…"
Hearing Nero's words, Credo opened his mouth to argue, but stopped. Thinking it over, with the Pope and Agnus clearly on their way out, the next in line to become Pope was… well, probably him.
Nero finished her thought. "I've got some scores to settle with those two."
"…Alright."
Trish crossed her arms, listening to Nero's resolve. She closed her eyes and gave resigned smirk. "Fine, I'll lend you a hand."
"Nero, you…" Credo started.
"Credo, take Kyrie back to town," Nero cut him off. "The town and the Order need you right now."
Sensing Credo's worry, Trish grinned and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Relax, big guy. Your sister's gonna be fine. Even if she bites off more than she can chew, Dante'll pull her out."
Nero gave him a nod. "Don't worry, I'll make good on your oath."
With both of them so certain, Credo had no choice but to agree. He gave a slight nod. "Be careful."
Then, he turned, holding Kyrie close, and left the Advent Chamber.
"Alright, let's get this party started."
Watching Credo go, Trish placed her hands on Nero's shoulders with a playful grin. "This might sting a bit, so brace yourself."
Sting?
The thought barely crossed Nero's mind before a surge of golden electricity poured from Trish's hands into her body.
Pain and numbness hit hard, but Nero felt her drained demonic energy roaring back, surging past even her peak condition.
Is this… a recharge?
Realization dawned as Trish transformed into a bolt of lightning, carrying Nero into the sky at breakneck speed, straight toward the Savior's head.
"That's the way in, right?" Trish asked.
"Should be."
The Savior was still trashing everything around it. In a flash, Trish hurled Nero toward the colossal statue. Nero drew her blade mid-air, slicing through the gem-encrusted wreckage atop the Savior's head and plunging inside.
"Rock it, kid."
Trish reverted from her lightning form, dodging a swipe from the Savior's fist and zipping away. Once she was far enough, she glanced back, arms crossed, smirking. "Let's see you make that lazy bum's jaw drop."
Inside the Savior, a nauseating scarlet chamber pulsed with demonic flesh. Agnus scrambled frantically, trying to regain control of the golem. On the other side, the Pope gripped the restless Sparda blade, embedded in a heart-like demonic construct, muttering endlessly about his grand ideals.
They hadn't lost yet. If they could just wrest back control of the Savior, with the Sparda blade in their hands, they still had a shot. All they needed was to take down either Dante or Nero and drag them into the Savior's core…
Suddenly, a slash of light tore through the fleshy chamber. Both men snapped their heads toward it.
Silver hair. Crimson eyes. Radiating raw demonic power.
It was Nero, in her Devil Trigger form.
The Pope's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected Nero to waltz right into the Savior's core and hand herself over. If they could subdue her here and restart the Savior, even Dante wouldn't be able to stop them.
"Agnus!" the Pope roared excitedly, yanking the Sparda blade free. His frail body looked absurd wielding the massive sword, but his blood-red, blackened eyes and the demonic runes crawling across his skin gave him an eerie, oppressive aura.
"Hey!"
Agnus reacted fast, summoning two blazing black hellhounds from the flesh beneath his feet, gripping them tightly.
Nero faced the two, ready for war, and flashed a mocking grin. She didn't bother with words. Like countless rehearsals for the Pope's grand stage, she gave a theatrical bow.
Agnus moved first. He unleashed his demons, firing two flaming skull-shaped missiles aimed at Nero's feet.
The Pope encased himself in a transparent spherical shield, launching a barrage of magical projectiles at Nero.
"O Sun! Our Savior, the being above all creation!"
This time, the words from Nero's lips weren't some improvised chant. They were the sacred anthem, meant for the Sword Festival, passed down through the Order of the Sword for generations.
She leaped back, dodging the explosion at her feet, and kicked off the fleshy wall behind her. Like a streak of light, she shot toward the airborne Pope. Her Yamato blade clashed against his shield, bouncing back.
The Pope swung the Sparda blade, unleashing two black-red energy blades in a cross pattern toward Nero. She vaulted into the air again, Yamato slicing upward. Blue demonic energy enveloped her red dress, blooming like a two-toned rose.
"You grant us sunlight and compassion, the fountain of humanity's hope!"
Amid her song, a cerulean blade of light cut through the energy blades, rising higher, hovering above the Pope.
Seeing Nero's clear target, Agnus hurriedly loaded his Hellhound Cannon from the corner, locking onto her mid-air.
Then, he fired again.
Nero summoned Echidna for the first time in her Devil Trigger state. Her whip-sword lashed out, detonating the two flaming missiles mid-air.
"All virtues of this world converge within your being!"
The blast's shockwave hit, and Nero danced through it like a petal in the wind. She drifted away from the Pope, carried by the gust.
Two UFO-like artifacts emerged from behind the Pope, firing twin lasers straight at Nero as she landed.
Nero lunged forward, spinning through the beams, and touched down at the Pope's feet. This time, she shot straight up, Yamato transforming into a chilling crescent moon rising from a demonic abyss.
"I beseech you! Lift my eyes to bask in your supreme radiance!"
Her blade struck the shield again, rebounding once more. The Pope, wielding the Sparda blade, seemed to have near-infinite demonic power, untouchable in this world.
But Nero didn't falter. As she landed, she prepared a Dimension Slash, ready to teleport her blade right to the Pope's face.
"O supreme light!"