The moment Saji-senpai cried out, the black flames cloaking his body roared to life, gaining strength and stability.
Then, a voice echoed from within his Sacred Gear—Vritra had returned.
"Sorry for the delay, my other self. I've just returned from the deepest part of the Sacred Gear."
"Vritra!? Hah, you couldn't have picked a better time!"
"Heh… Looks like you've grown quite a bit since I last saw you. So, are you ready, my 'partner'?"
"Of course! Right now, I can reach it...!"
With a spirited shout, Saji-senpai began radiating a strange, overwhelming aura—just like when Yuuto-senpai, Issei-senpai, and Ikki-senpai had once reached the true depths of their Sacred Gears.
"That's it! Until now, you unconsciously held yourself back, believing you weren't as strong as the men around you. But I can tell—you've finally shaken off those chains! Now! Shout it! Shout the truth that lies deep in your heart with everything you've got! Let that be your cry as the next Dragon King is born!"
"Yeah! The dream I had ever since I was reborn as President's servant! My wish, right here, right now—!"
Saji-senpai's passion was so palpable, I could even hear President sobbing over the communicator. Even with the odds stacked against us, I found myself smiling.
"My... my dream is..."
"TO MARRY YOU AFTER WE ACCIDENTALLY GET PREGNANTTTTTT!!!"
In that moment, time itself stopped—for both friend and foe alike.
Well, not entirely. The black flames wrapped around Saji-senpai's body transformed into something resembling Issei-senpai's armor. He had no doubt achieved Forbidden Move: Balance Breaker, powered by the sheer force of his ridiculous declaration.
With Grendel's flames frozen mid-air, Saji-senpai was the first to move.
Deactivating his armored form, he looked to the heavens and spoke:
"Vritra! I'm ready now!"
"The children's smiles give me strength! My dream! My wish!"...
"I WILL BECOME A TEACHER WHO PROTECTS CHILDREN'S FUTURES!!! ——Forbidden Move: Balance Breaker!!"
And just like that, the dark armor returned, wrapping around Saji-senpai once again.
"[Malebolge Vritra Promotion]! Now taste the hellfire that rivals the flames of the underworld itself!"
"...My other self... There are some mistakes in life that can never be undone, you know?"
...Yeah. Today is definitely going down in Saji-senpai's eternal black history.
To be fair, if he had just shouted his dream of protecting children as a teacher, he probably would have awakened his Balance Breaker anyway. But no. He had to go full drama.
"W-w-w-what are you saying, Saji!?"
Predictably, Sona was in full panic, stammering over the communicator. I can't see her face, but I can definitely imagine it bright red right now.
"P-please, Sona! Can you just pretend you didn't hear that!?"
"I-it's too late! You saw me as a woman?! You're not Hyoudou-kun and Rias! A-and what about Momo and Ruruko, who both like you?!"
"Huh? Nimura and Hanakai... like me?"
"President!! Why are you spilling that!?"
Ruruko, who was here with us, and Hanakai-senpai, speaking from afar, shouted in unison.
I already knew those two were into Saji-senpai, but for her to let it slip like that… yeah, she's clearly flustered beyond reason. This was quite the bombshell confession. I do feel bad for the three girls involved... though not so much for Saji-senpai.
"Hyoudou! What do I do now!?"
Issei-senpai, gazing off into the distance, replied in a nostalgic tone.
"Saji. My grandpa's already dead, but back when I was a kid, he told me this: 'If you're a man, aim for a harem! If a cute girl confesses to you, don't hesitate—bag her! That's how you gather all kinds of boobs into your life!'"
...What the heck was his grandfather teaching him!?
Even President Rias once said Issei's parents were all-in on the idea of the girls showing up in naked aprons. Maybe this guy's extreme perviness is hereditary.
"Saji, Momo, Ruruko… we'll talk about this later. For now, focus. That would be best."
""U-understood.""
I'll need to grill Ruruko for every detail of that conversation later. But for now—what matters is that Saji-senpai's Balance Breaker gave us a real chance to fight back.
We're not out of the woods yet, but now that Vritra's returned, the other dragons should also be emerging from the depths of their Sacred Gears.
"I sense Fafnir's aura! I'm summoning him now!"
Asia-senpai moved to summon Fafnir.
One of the Five Great Dragon Kings, Fafnir is… a pervert obsessed with Asia-senpai's panties. But his power is absolutely the real deal. With him, the fight might finally reach even ground.
That is—until he used the panties he was given as a contract payment to cook a dish inspired by a cooking show.
Apparently, it was called "Diavola Asia-tan Fried Panty."
…I clearly underestimated how far this degenerate dragon would go.
Asia stumbled and had to be supported by Rossweisse. I'm honestly worried for her mental health.
Somehow, a few of the mass-produced Evil Dragons resonated with Fafnir's bizarre culinary expression. After tasting the fried panties and hearing his heartfelt line—"Be true to who you are"—they burst into tears and defected to our side.
Those dragons must be part of a flawed production batch or something.
Also… does Fafnir's "be yourself" mean he regrets frying them? Well, frying clothing was clearly a mistake from the start.
As a woman, I can say confidently that there's likely not a single man on Earth who would actually want to eat deep-fried panties cooked in olive oil with garlic and onions.
Finally, Issei-senpai's Sacred Gear stirred—the consciousness of Ddraig had returned.
Apparently, Fafnir managed to negotiate with the grudges of the former White Dragon Emperors. They came to a truce with the Red Dragon Emperor spirits… by bonding over a shared appreciation for butts and boobs.
They now regularly hold debate tournaments where each side tries to recruit the other's followers by arguing the supremacy of boobs vs. butts. There's no more hatred—just rivalry. Forever locked in perverted discussion within the depths of Issei-senpai's Sacred Gear.
...Please stay in there and never come out again.
But now, Issei-senpai can use the White Dragon Emperor's power freely. The tide has turned decisively in our favor.
It's time to take down the enemy, and save Ikki-senpai and Kuroka-san!
"Hmm? You've all gotten quite lively in the short time I was away."
A voice I shouldn't have heard pierced the air. I looked, and there he was.
Wearing ceremonial robes and dark skin, the Evil Dragon Apophis approached, dragging something behind him—and then held it up for us all to see.
It was… Ikki-senpai. Unmoving. Unconscious. No—he wasn't even breathing.
"Just as Prince Rizevim requested, I've stopped his heart."
…What?
"Human bodies are fragile. I believe revival is nearly impossible after ten minutes of cardiac arrest. It's been over fifteen minutes since I stopped his heart. I didn't bother finishing him off—striking the dead isn't my thing. But with this, my job is done. I was never interested in joining this battle anyway. Farewell."
With that, Apophis placed Ikki-senpai on the ground—and walked away.
Ikki-senpai… is dead? Then what about Sister Kuroka…?
I looked up—and noticed that Yggdrasil, the enemy we'd been facing, was suddenly above us. When had he flown? Wait… I'm on the ground. When did I fall?
I can't move. My neck won't turn. Ravel might be in the same state as me.
My thoughts are a mess. Nothing's making sense.
No… he promised he'd marry us. He said we'd have a family…
We didn't even get married. Didn't even have kids…
I understand. Even as strong as Ikki-senpai was to us… his opponent radiated the same pressure as the two Heavenly Dragons. Maybe even more.
Even if his power specialized in defeating stronger foes… this time, he was up against an unbeatable monster.
But still… even so…
"…Why?"
I couldn't stop those words from leaving my lips.