"Balance Breaker—Twilight Lamp Sanctuary."
Asia Argento's subspecies Balance Breaker, Twilight Lamp Sanctuary, the Garden of Immaculate Aurora.
In appearance, it was a small flame, small enough to fit in Asia's palm. Its effect could be described as "healing" or "optimization." The range was a circle where the flame's warmth could be felt, capable of affecting multiple targets at once. Bluntly put, it was the ability to "forcibly make living beings within the flame's warmth healthy."
"Guh, ughhh, nooo!"
"GYAEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
"W-Wait, me too!?"
The three under its effect this time were Hyoudou Issei, Vali Lucifer, and Trihexa.
"Stop, please… stop!"
Hyoudou Issei writhed in agony first. Despite breaking free from Vali and Trihexa's restraint, with the girl he needed to kill within reach, he could only fall to his knees, gazing skyward as if in prayer.
"I haven't… I haven't fulfilled anyone's wishes yet! I haven't answered anyone's feelings!"
The crimson armor, demonic in its splendor, peeled away like tarnished plating. Beneath it was a mass of mud, a human-shaped lump of resentment denying its end. The mud covering his body writhed like swarming insects.
"Even if everyone else forgets, I alone must remember! I must make the world remember! I—I haven't erased anyone's regrets! I haven't saved anyone from pain! I shouldn't perish yet…!!"
Gradually, the mud was wiped away. Hyoudou Issei's hands, feet, eyes, ears, mouth, and life were freed from the karma and darkness of human history. The mud peeling from his body vanished upon hitting the ground.
"Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… ugh, aghhh, nooo!"
"Not everyone 'expects' something from you. Please don't misunderstand. To begin with, burdening one person with all the world's despair is not the act of a sane mind. We do live with pain, yes. But there are things beyond pain, too. The world isn't only beautiful, but it's getting a little prettier, bit by bit. And that's not something to rush for today or tomorrow."
Along with the mud, foreign objects were expelled from his body: eight chess pieces and nine rings.
"Take it easy, and with sincerity—then we'll surely be fine. You can end here."
With the Beast's dying scream of gratitude, the mud was completely cleansed, and the rings shattered, their purpose fulfilled.
Simultaneously, Hyoudou Issei collapsed—only to be caught and supported by Asia.
"Good night. And good morning."
In his hazy consciousness, Issei distinctly heard her voice. The voice of a girl he'd spoken to for barely five minutes, half a year ago.
"Asia…?"
"Yes. It's been a while, hasn't it, Issei-san?"
The girl remembered the boy, too. That was his greatest salvation. He sensed his life's end. The harsh purging of the mud had worn down his vitality—not stamina or magical power, but his fundamental life force.
"Meeting you at the end… I'm glad…"
As Hyoudou Issei accepted death, Asia rejected the word "end." Not with words, but physically.
"Cardiopulmonary resuscitation!"
"Guh!"
Asia delivered a firm punch to Issei's abdomen.
"Don't die. I'll save you. Even if I have to kill you to do it!"
Utterly absurd.
"Is that how CPR works…?"
"Something feels off."
"No, it's all wrong."
"That's not CPR; it's just shock therapy."
"It wouldn't even count as treatment normally."
"Huff, huff…"
"Breathing confirmed!"
"But pulling off actual resuscitation? That's Asia."
Ignoring the Hero Faction's hushed chatter, Asia called out to the arriving aid from the Underworld—a half-vampire born with the Holy Grail.
"Now, Valerie-san, please take over."
"Got it!"
This was the proper way to use a cheat.
"Now, all injured, please line up. Treatment will begin."
"W-Wait, some are still fighting the Round Table in the Underworld, so we need to—"
"Huh?"
"N-Nothing, I'll behave, just please lower that fist, Nurse-sama!"
Asia nodded approvingly but let out a sharp tsk.
Unnoticed, Vali Lucifer and Archer had vanished. Both needed treatment.
Rizevim Livan Lucifer was also gone, but as neither a patient nor injured, he was outside Asia's concern from the start.
"Whoa, what's this? I feel amazing! Is this the detox I've heard about? My body's so light. Asia Argento-sama, you're an angel!"
Nearby, Trihexa, having purged the mud's remnants, was brimming with energy.
Let's start a lesson out of nowhere. Paper and pen!
Wait, I'll provide them. Use these. Can you do a test write?
…Yes, a red ballpoint pen disguised as black.
Why did you think it was black? Because its outer structure was black, and black fit the scene's context.
But only a keenly observant person would notice it's red until they write with it. There's a preconception that a pen's color is obvious by its appearance. You wouldn't know until you extend the nib.
And if you throw the pen into a fire before checking, it's nearly impossible to realize it was red, not black.
Now, recall this in light of that analogy.
After Azazel and Sirzechs Lucifer defeated Solomon in Kyoto, they destroyed a ring. In their perception, it was one of Solomon's true rings. It's implausible that Cruzeley Asmodeus was pretending to be Solomon—Azazel was there. Someone who knew the true King of Magecraft wouldn't mistake the rumored "laughing while enraged" expression. Thus, Solomon met his second death there. I won't deny that fact.
Let's examine the rings.
Solomon revived through a ring, its effect allowing his sealed soul to hijack the user's body. So far, so good. But is that the ring's only effect?
For instance, what if—each time "Solomon" dies, the ring collects his soul? Once used, even removing the ring doesn't free the body from Solomon's control. Would a mage who executed such a perfect crime make the amateur mistake of requiring the ring to stay worn?
From this, my conclusion:
The ring Sirzechs Lucifer destroyed was fake.
How much the Three Factions knew then is uncertain, but Solomon's revival via the ring is undeniable. Destroying it was inevitable. Minimizing interference to avoid possession was natural. Not noticing a fake ring follows, especially since Solomon forged rings that fooled even gods. Except for his accomplice Belial, deceiving a Satan's eyes was child's play.
If only Sirzechs Lucifer was there, he might've examined the ring. Lacking direct acquaintance with Solomon, he'd check if the ring possessing Cruzeley Asmodeus was truly Solomon's, even considering possession risks.
But Azazel was there, someone who knew Solomon. If Azazel recognized it as genuine, then Cruzeley Asmodeus was possessed by Solomon, and the ring he wore was Solomon's. An easy mistake.
Additionally, Yasaka, Kyoto's youkai leader, was present. Knowing only Solomon's threat, not the man, heightened Sirzechs' caution. If others saw Solomon as dangerous, he had to be eliminated quickly.
Moreover, they'd just fought the Lion King and White Dragon Emperor—unknown threats surpassing the Two Heavenly Dragons. There were issues with Kingu, too, I hear. With such problems, haste was understandable.
At that moment, "Knights" were fighting Solomon's unknown assassins. A Satan with deep bonds would want to resolve the Solomon issue to ensure his peerage's safety.
Sirzechs and Azazel lacked the mental space to think deeply, and once they believed Solomon was defeated, they didn't reconsider. They concluded he was dead. Naturally, other factions, without reason to doubt, believed it. Hearing about Kingu now might make them think twice.
Regardless, assume the King of Magecraft awaits revival, laughing angrily in a ring—or perhaps he's already claimed a new body.
Deep in an Underworld research facility, Rizevim Livan Lucifer appeared.
"Hyahahaha! Man, that was something. A mighty hero born, and this Satan's son of an uncle is hyped!"
Saying what he didn't mean, Rizevim was greeted by Euclitt Lucifugus.
"Welcome back, Rizevim-sama."
Though meant to be confined in this Satan-controlled facility, he'd escaped. So had Rizevim. The Underworld's forces were focused on the summit, and Belial's ring made escape easy, even from a fortress, without a Satan present.
"I'm back, Euclitt-kun. Some surprises, but Solomon's contract is mostly done. Now we do what we want."
"As you wish."
A woman in a wheelchair appeared, exuding a demonic aura. Refined but haggard, as if recovering from illness.
"I'm home, Maman!"
Seeing her, Rizevim embraced her with a beaming smile. The woman returned a small smile.
Any being from Genesis recorded in the Bible would be shocked to see her alive.
She was Lilith, mother of Devils, wife of the original Lucifer, and mother to most Devils. Also, Adam's first wife.
The "original" Devils were born from Lilith. Excluding the Four Great Satans and extra Devils, most were her creations, with the original 72 Pillars being her finest.
Devils were born through a ritual by the original Lucifer and Lilith, but Rizevim Livan Lucifer was the only Devil born from their union.
The cost of birthing many Devils turned Lilith into a lump of flesh, guarded secretly by Rizevim.
Rizevim's two demands of Solomon were knowledge of the "mud" and Lilith's restoration.
Using Solomon's Holy Grail, fueled by Old Satan faction corpses, the primordial mother was revived. Only her form and abilities returned; her memories and personality were mostly lost, a testament to the strain the original Lucifer placed on her.
To Rizevim, that didn't matter. Even if she couldn't speak or barely remembered him, her living presence, seeing him, was enough.
Even if Solomon demanded Lilith birth new Devils, the burden would be less than Lucifer's ritual. Though, if the resulting entity was a transcendent being and Solomon's new body, it'd be a pity.
"Oh, how wonderful."
It was something in the form of a girl.
"Why?"
Using magecraft, the girl gazed at a scene—something truly beautiful.
"Why aren't we there…?"
She cried, pained, sad, lonely.
"What did we do wrong? But we have to finish this. Not for the Master, but to never let that one have their way."
Wiping her tears forcefully, a smile of rage emerged.
The King of Magecraft's threat was far from over.
***
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