Hehehe, I'm not gonna make any excuses or anything. The reason I didn't uploaded in a while wasn't because of any sort of convoluted reason or anything. I was just procrastinating fr. But anyways here's the next chapter, a short one at only 5K words but I'll start uploading more often again. In the Kenjussy we thrust Bruzzahs.
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Silence.
The only sound left was Issei's ragged breathing. His chest rose and fell in uneven, shuddering gasps, his entire body trembling from the strain of using Explosion. Every muscle burned, his limbs felt like lead, and his vision blurred at the edges.
But it was over.
The last enemy had fallen.
And this time—
They would stay down.
Akeno, Rias, and Tsubaki stumbled into the gymnasium, the weight of an unconscious, battered Sona pressing heavily against Tsubaki's arms. Their bodies ached, magic reserves scraped dry, minds teetering on the edge of collapse. They had fought through hell outside—waves upon waves of grotesque horrors, slashing, blasting, burning their way through the abominations that just wouldn't stop coming.
But nothing, nothing, could have prepared them for this.
Akeno's stomach lurched. Rias barely made it two steps before falling to her knees, vomiting violently. Tsubaki turned deathly pale, clutching Sona tighter, as if sheer horror might rip her away.
Because the gym…
The gym was unrecognizable.
The floors were slick with blood, torn and mangled bodies were strewn all around the floor. Guts, organs, and other viscera were smeared everywhere you could see. Other bodies were bubbling and slowly being dissolved by the small black pools of acidic bile. Everyone was dead—all of the people they had worked hard to save was now gone and all that was left of them were their unrecognizable remains.
And in the center of it all—
Stood their friends.
No one spoke.
No one could speak.
For the first time in what felt like hours, they could breathe. They could think. They could feel.
And that was the problem.
Because their thoughts raced, spiraling back to every battle, every lives that they had failed to save, every abomination they had slain—
And the thousands still out there.
They had barely survived this.
How the hell were they supposed to survive the rest?
Despair clawed at their minds, dragging them deeper into the abyss, crushing the fragile hope that had kept them standing—
Until—
Clap.
A slow, deliberate sound echoed through the blood-soaked gym.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
The sound sliced through the silence like a blade, mockingly, condescendingly, dripping with cruel amusement.
A voice—dripping with sadistic glee, malice and amusement.
"Well, well, well… look at you sad little shits. You actually survived."
Their bodies went rigid.
Their instincts screamed.
DANGER.
And then they saw him.
He strolled in like he owned the place, hands stuffed in his pockets, gait casual, relaxed—like this was just some party he had arrived at fashionably late. His grin was wide, playful even.
But his eyes—
His eyes were cold. Empty. Indifferent.
And beside him, lumbering forward like a grotesque shadow, was a hulking Curse Marine—his silent, obedient bodyguard.
No one moved.
No one even breathed.
Mahito's presence was suffocating. It pressed against their souls, an invisible vice tightening around their throats, squeezing, choking, drowning them in pure, primal dread.
They didn't know why—
But they felt it.
Deep in their bones, in the marrow of their very being.
This thing—this monster—wasn't just strong.
He was terrifying.
Then—without warning—
Mahito reached out. His fingers brushed against his Curse Marine's shoulder.
And in an instant—
The Marine convulsed. Violently.
His flesh warped, bubbled, melted like wax under an open flame. His bones snapped, realigning in grotesque new angles. Limbs stretched and twisted, his spine cracking as his entire body reshaped itself into something wrong.
He was no longer a warrior.
He was a throne.
A grotesque, living throne of flesh and bone, his conscious, screaming face now a twisted centerpiece. His twitching hands molded into armrests, his torso fused into the backrest of agony.
Mahito sat down. Casually.
Like he had just pulled up a chair at a cafe.
Then, with mock impatience, he snapped his fingers.
"What are you waiting for? Move it! HEAL YOURSELVES. NOW."
No one moved.
Mahito's eyes flicked to Issei. His grin stretched wider.
"YOU. Get to boosting. ASAP."
Issei's breath hitched.
"W-what?"
Mahito's brows shot up.
"What? What the fuck do you mean 'what'? BOOST YOURSELF. NOW."
Issei's mind scrambled. Fear warring with confusion.
"Why?"
Mahito's grin froze.
Then—
He laughed.
A slow, dark chuckle that slithered through the bloodstained air, oozing with amusement.
Then he leaned back. Sprawling lazily on his silently screaming throne. Tapping his fingers against the bone of the armrest. Resting his head against his fist.
And spoke.
Low. Dark. Hungry.
"Why?"
A breath.
"Because I want you at your best."
His grin stretched, eyes gleaming with twisted delight.
"I want to tear you down when you think you're at your strongest."
His voice dripped with sadistic glee.
"I want to break you the moment you believe you have a chance."
His fingers drummed against the twisted bone of his throne.
"I want to crush the hope you're so desperately clinging to. I want to wrap my hands around your throat and watch—"
He licked his lips.
"—as the light in your eyes flickers out."
A slow, deliberate breath.
Then—
His smile turned vicious.
"I want you to struggle."
And as his laughter echoed through the broken, blood-drenched gym—
Mocking. Amused. Patient.
They realized something.
He doesn't even consider them to be a threat to him.
The way his gazed at them as he lazily sprawled on his throne
In his eyes
They were already his toys.
Something that he could play with and use them however he wishes to.
And Mahito doesn't play nice.
The group of devils hesitated, glancing at each other before cautiously following Mahito's suggestion. They shuffled together, forming a tight huddle a short distance away from him—far enough to feel somewhat safe, but not so far that they'd risk pissing him off.
Mahito, still sprawled across his grotesque, living throne, just watched them with that same sunny, almost childlike smile, his eyes practically twinkling with amusement.
Asia got to work immediately, hands glowing as she moved from one battered body to the next, pouring what little magic she had left into healing their wounds. The others sat down, their bodies desperate for rest, but none of them dared to fully relax.
Not with him here.
They kept their eyes on him at all times, never turning their backs, their muscles tense despite the exhaustion weighing them down.
And then—
Mahito started talking.
Just yapping away like they were old friends catching up after a long day.
Except—his stories weren't normal.
They were nightmares given voice.
He told them, in painstaking, excruciating detail, about the fates of his victims. His voice was light, cheerful, filled with an almost childish glee as he giggled his way through descriptions of torn limbs, melted faces, how he reshaped people by twisting their souls with his power to join him in his army, and people screaming for mercy that never came.
And the worst part?
He watched them.
His grin widened with every grimace, every flinch, every horrified glance they exchanged. He loved it.
And just like that—
Hours passed.
They rested. They healed. Mahito let them.
Because he had meant what he said.
He wanted them at their peak.
So he could crush them when they thought they had a chance.
And all the while, he just kept talking, spinning his horrifying tales, grinning as their stomachs churned and their nerves frayed.
Like this was all just so much fun.
Issei glanced around at his friends. One by one, they met his gaze and gave subtle nods. No words were needed—they'd quietly come up with a plan, and now, they were ready.
It was time.
Issei took a deep breath, then finally summoned his Boosted Gear.
[Boost]
The familiar sound of the Boosted Gear activating rang out, like a war drum echoing in the quiet tension of the blood-soaked gym.
Tsubaki, carrying the unconscious Sona in her arms, gave one last look at the team before slipping back with Asia in tow. The two of them weren't in any shape to fight, and Tsubaki was staying close to protect them if—no, when—things got worse.
As soon as the first boost triggered, Mahito's grin split wide with pure excitement. His eyes gleamed like a kid about to unwrap a present on Christmas morning. He sat up straight on his grotesque throne, his whole body tensing, muscles coiled like springs.
The seconds ticked by.
[Boost]
Again.
And again.
[Boost] [Boost] [Boost]
By the time the final, eighth boost echoed through the gym, the air was electric. Every inch of space was charged with tension, like the air before a lightning strike.
Then—
They moved.
Everything exploded into action.
Rias stepped forward and hurled a mass of Power of Destruction, the crimson-black energy snarling like a living thing. Akeno raised her arm and unleashed a savage bolt of lightning, the air around her crackling as the spell ripped forward. Issei, charged and ready, roared and fired off a Dragon Shot, the blast of green energy howling through the air.
All of it—aimed directly at Mahito.
"Heh."
Mahito giggled, that smug little sound barely audible over the roar of their combined attacks.
And then he sprung up from his throne like a damn acrobat—flipping backwards with impossible grace, vanishing behind the massive hunk of twisted, screaming flesh and bone.
Their attacks slammed into the throne a split-second later.
BOOM.
A shockwave rattled the gym. Dust and debris exploded outward, kicking up a thick cloud that slightly obscured sight.
The team tensed, eyes scanning the dust, waiting. Watching.
Then—
Something massive moved.
A large, dark blur shot out from the smoke like a missile.
"MOVE!" Rias shouted.
The shape became clear mid-air.
It was the throne.
Damaged, cracked, falling apart—but still terrifying. Mahito had thrown it at them.
They scattered instinctively, jumping back out of the way as the grotesque thing crashed to the ground.
But then—
Snap.
A single sound, sharp and fast.
Mahito's fingers.
And the throne twitched.
Convulsed.
Then expanded.
A beat later—
It exploded.
Bone shrapnel and black, acidic bile erupted in every direction, turning the whole gym into a deathtrap.
"Shit!"
Akeno jumped forward without thinking, slamming her palms together as she summoned a magic barrier with her demonic power.
The shield flared to life just in time.
The explosion hit.
Shrapnel smashed against the barrier with a sickening crunch, the acid sizzling and hissing as it splattered across the magical field.
And when the smoke cleared—
Akeno was still standing.
Her barrier flickered and cracked, but it held.
Just enough.
If she hadn't reacted when she did, they would've been torn apart or melted alive—or both.
But Mahito didn't waste a second.
With a manic glint in his eye and that twisted grin still plastered across his face, he dashed forward—fast, way too fast—and closed the distance between him and Akeno in the blink of an eye.
Akeno barely had time to reinforce her barrier before—
CRACK!
Mahito's fist smashed through the weakened magic shield like it was glass, and his knuckles slammed straight into her gut.
The hit knocked the wind out of her.
She flew backward, body crumpling mid-air like a ragdoll.
But before she could slam into the wall—
"Gotcha!"
Issei caught her just in time, skidding back from the force, his arms wrapping around her to soften the blow. Akeno groaned, clearly shaken but alive.
Issei looked up—
Just in time to see Mahito charging again, eyes wild, teeth bared like a predator locked onto fresh prey.
Suddenly—
Out of nowhere, the petite devil blitzed forward and her fist collided with Mahito's abdomen mid-sprint.
BOOM!
The impact rocked the gym floor.
Mahito staggered back a few feet, surprise flashing across his face as he spat a thin line of blood from the corner of his mouth.
He wiped it off casually with the back of his hand, his grin only getting wider.
"Damn…" he muttered, eyes flicking to Koneko. "Didn't expect that from the little kitten. You've gotten stronger."
Koneko didn't respond. Her stance was firm, fists clenched, body radiating raw senjutsu.
Mahito just giggled.
"Then how about this!?"
His right arm morphed in an instant, flesh warping and twisting into a grotesque, stone-like hammer fist. Jagged edges jutted out from the forearm, thick and bulky like some kind of mutated rock gauntlet, pulsing with cursed energy.
He lunged at her and swung.
Koneko didn't back down—she met his punch head-on with her own.
Their fists collided with a deafening boom.
For a split-second, it looked even.
But then—
Koneko's eyes widened.
Her strength gave out.
The sheer weight behind Mahito's blow crushed her momentum, and she was instantly overwhelmed.
WHAM!
The force blasted her clean off her feet and sent her rocketing across the gym.
She crashed through the wall with an explosion of dust and shattered concrete—
BOOM!
—disappearing into the night air outside, debris raining down around the fresh, gaping hole in the gym wall.
Mahito stood there laughing like a maniac.
"HAHAHA! Oh man, that felt good!" he howled. "I love breakin' bones!"
And with that, the fight had truly begun.
Mahito let out another giddy laugh and then, without warning, his left arm began to twist and warp—
Bones cracked, muscles bulged, skin rippled and contorted until it matched the monstrous hammer-fist on his right.
Now he had two of them.
"Let's kick things up a notch!" he shouted, slamming the twin weapons together with a booming thud that echoed through the ruined gym.
Issei and Kiba didn't hesitate—they charged.
Kiba zipped in from the side, blade at the ready, while Issei came in head-on, boosted up and ready to brawl.
Mahito met them in the middle with a twisted smile.
He started swinging.
Wild, heavy, devastating arcs. His massive arms tore through the air like wrecking balls, each swing strong enough to pulp a truck.
The two devils ducked, weaved, and danced around every bone-crushing strike, barely keeping ahead of the chaos. The wind pressure alone from Mahito's swings sent cracks spiderwebbing across the floor and knocked debris into the air.
They couldn't afford to take even one hit.
Not after what happened to Koneko.
She was a Rook—their tank—and in her transformed Senjutsu-amped form, she was stronger than either of them right now. And still, Mahito had ragdolled her like she was nothing.
A single punch from those grotesque, mutated fists would end them.
So they kept dodging, feet moving like hell, adrenaline pumping, eyes locked on his every move.
Issei tried to land a hit—
A quick jab with his gauntlet. Glancing blow.
Kiba ducked low and slashed with one of his blades—a light cut, barely more than a scratch.
Nothing stuck.
Mahito's style was erratic—chaotic. He didn't fight like a martial artist or a warrior. He fought like a lunatic. Wild swings, unpredictable angles, spinning when he didn't need to, switching hands mid-swing just to keep them guessing.
It was like trying to fight a tornado made of boulders and madness.
"Man, you guys are slippery!" Mahito said mid-swing, still grinning like he was having the time of his life.
But then his grin faltered—just a little.
He was starting to feel it.
The drag in his movements. The weight in his swings.
He took a momentary glance down at his arms.
'Ohhh,' he thought to himself with a laugh 'Right. These bad boys are slowing me down.'
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"Guess it's time for a new trick…"
And just like that—
Mahito stopped playing.
Mahito suddenly raised both of his monstrous hammer-fist arms high above his head, his twisted grin stretching even wider.
"Let's shake things up!" he cackled—
And slammed them down with earth-shattering force.
BOOM!
The entire floor exploded beneath the impact.
Cracks ripped across the gym like lightning, a massive fissure splitting the ground from end to end. Chunks of concrete flew into the air, walls groaned under the strain, and the entire gymnasium shook like it was about to collapse right on top of them.
Issei and Kiba stumbled—hard. Their footing gone, they slipped, barely catching themselves as the ground buckled beneath them.
Mahito moved fast.
He spotted Kiba off-balance and sprinted straight at him, those massive arms dragging slightly behind as he picked up speed like a monster locomotive.
Kiba saw it coming. He gritted his teeth, steadied his stance, and twisted his body, ready to pivot—
But then—
Mahito's arm morphed again.
Mid-charge, the bulky hammer-flesh shifted, muscle and bone rearranging in a grotesque ripple until his fingers stretched and hardened into long, curved claws.
And just like that—he got faster.
Too fast.
Kiba's eyes went wide.
"Shit."
He knew he couldn't dodge that now.
Those claws were gonna tear right through him—
Until—
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning screamed across the battlefield and slammed into Mahito's side.
He jerked mid-step, body locking up from the surge of magic.
Akeno stood off to the side, her hand smoking with residual electricity, eyes sharp and furious.
"Don't touch him," she snapped.
That second of paralysis was all Kiba needed.
He vanished in a blur of movement, appearing right behind Mahito—
Shhhhk!
—and drove his blade straight through Mahito's back, right into his heart.
Then, without missing a beat—
Kiba twisted the sword and triggered the enchantment.
The blade exploded into a violent burst of electricity inside Mahito's chest, sparks shooting out in all directions. His body seized violently, smoke pouring from his wound as the energy cooked him from the inside out.
Then—
"EAT SHIT!"
Issei came in like a wrecking ball, gauntlet glowing red-hot with mysterious power.
He twisted his hips and slammed a left hook right into Mahito's face—
CRACK!!
The impact was sickening. Mahito's head caved in from the blow, his entire body launched off the ground like a missile.
He crashed to the floor hard several meters away, kicking up a trail of dust and rubble as he skidded across the gym floor and slammed into a pile of debris.
.
With Mahito still down from Issei's punch, Akeno didn't waste a second.
Her eyes narrowed, hand outstretched—boom, boom, boom!
She unleashed a volley of a dozen crackling orbs of electricity, each one whistling through the air before slamming into Mahito's crumpled form, exploding on impact with thunderous pops that lit the gym in blinding flashes.
Sparks burst in every direction as Akeno followed it up, conjuring a prison of lightning—bolts arcing down from above and stabbing into the ground, forming a cage of raw electricity that surrounded Mahito's twitching body, locking him in place.
She gave Issei and Kiba a sharp nod.
They nodded back. No words needed.
All three of them turned and bolted out of the gym, steps pounding against the ruined floor.
Outside, the warm glow of the sun air hit them as they burst through the broken gym doors.
Near the front gates of Kuoh Academy, they spotted the rest of the group—
Tsubaki stood off to the side, carrying an unconscious and still badly beaten Sona on her back, her posture tense but steady.
Asia stood close, keeping watch with worried eyes, having just finished healing Koneko's broken arm. While Koneko—bruised, scuffed, but still standing—was beside her, fists clenched and body coiled just in case something went wrong.
A bit closer to the gym, standing all by herself, was Rias.
Her red hair whipped in the wind, her gaze locked onto the building with cold focus. Floating in front of her, held between her outstretched arms, was a massive, swirling sphere of black and crimson destruction—
A condensed, humming mass of chaotic energy that pulsed with power. The sheer pressure rolling off it made the air buzz and distort around her.
When she saw her team escape safely, Rias let out a sharp breath. Relief washed over her face for a brief second—
Then it was gone.
Replaced with fire.
Her eyes hardened, jaw clenched, and her voice rang out, fierce and commanding.
"Crimson Hollow!"
And just like that—
She fired.
The orb screamed through the air, tearing toward the gym in a blazing trail of destruction.
And then—
BOOOOOM!!
The orb detonated the instant it hit the building.
A massive wave of black and crimson destruction exploded outward, engulfing the entire gymnasium and everything within it.
The ground shook beneath their feet, a shockwave roaring out as the power of destruction tore through stone and steel like paper.
The gym wasn't just destroyed.
It was erased.
Gone in an instant, swallowed by the swirling chaos of Rias's attack.
And in the silence that followed—
There was only dust. And the faint crackle of fading power.
For a moment—
Just one, fragile, fleeting moment—
Rias let herself believe it was over.
Her chest rose and fell as she stood there, eyes locked on the smoke-choked ruins of the gym, the faint flickers of crimson energy still dancing in the air around her hands.
Her heart pounded. Her legs trembled.
But she hoped. Satan, she hoped.
"That had to do it…" she thought, clinging to the possibility like a delusional woman wishing for equality.
He took the full brunt of it. No one could've walked away from that.
She begged—deep down in her heart, she begged—
Please let this nightmare be over.
Please let him be dead.
Then—
Laughter.
Quiet at first. Distant.
A soft, eerie giggle that slowly grew louder.
And louder.
Until it morphed into full-blown, maniacal cackling.
The smoke was still thick, swirling like a stormcloud around the obliterated remains of the gym—
Then, from the center of the crater…
He walked out.
Mahito.
Calm. Casual. Smiling.
No limping. No twitching. No signs of pain.
His body? Daddy. Not a scratch to be seen.
His fit? The drip is immaculate.
His patchwork face? Mogging. Untouched. Not a blemish on his skin.
Like none of it had happened.
Like he hadn't just been stabbed through the heart, fried from the inside out, pummeled into the ground, and hit with enough raw destructive energy to erase a city block.
He just strolled out of the ruins like he was leaving a spa treatment or something.
Hands in his pockets. That same sick grin stretched wide across his face.
He looked at Rias—
Then at all of them—
And laughed even harder.
Rias's breath caught in her throat.
The others froze, horror crawling across their faces like ice.
No one said anything.
Because there was nothing to say.
Their strongest attack hadn't done a damn thing.
And now they were staring at a monster who was still smiling.
But then Mahito let out a long, loud sigh, dragging a hand down his face like he was just so done with all of this.
"All that effort… and for what?" he groaned, arms flopping to his sides like a petulant child. "A whole lotta nothing."
Then he started laughing again, that same obnoxious, mocking cackle that made their skin crawl. He stretched out his arms wide like he was welcoming them to a church sermon, a twisted grin plastered across his face.
"Useless. Absolutely, spectacularly useless. Just like your pathetic little lives," he said, voice dipped in venom, eyes dancing with cruel glee. "I was nice, y'know? I was generous. I let you rest. I let you heal. I gave you a damn chance. And this—" he gestured to the wreckage around them, to the bruised and battered group still barely standing "—this is how you thank me?"
He clicked his tongue, shaking his head with exaggerated disappointment. "Is this really how you repay me? With that limp-ass, half-baked, laughably miserable performance? You're main characters of this world for fuck's sakes!"
His eyes flicked to Issei, and his tone dropped into something cold and cutting.
"And you. The 'protagonist.'"
He made finger quotes, then rolled his eyes."Sure, sure, I felt Kiba's little sword trick. And Issei? Your punch was… what, like a six outta ten? But come on. That's it? That's all you've got?"
He looked downright bored now, his lips twisting into a lazy sneer. "I've seen shonen filler fights with more punch. Now what should I do with you?"
Mahito contemplated to himself, not even paying attention to them.
"That binding vow I previously made gives me quite a nice boost whenever I make this bitch boy suffer. But for real it's not really that important to me because I'm also progressing my strength really well on my own. Do I even really need to keep him alive at all? Because he's starting to bore me."
Then Mahito exhaled, deep and slow, before flashing a wide, teeth-baring smile. One that didn't reach his eyes.
"Y'know what? Nah. I'm done. Game's over. If that's all you can give me, I'm not playin' anymore."
He tilted his head, shut his eyes, and with a voice so cheerful it was almost sing-songy, he announced—
"I'm just gonna kill all of you now."
His eyes snapped open, glowing with pure glee.
And then—
He vanished.
No build-up. No warning. Just—gone.
One second he was there, the next—He wasn't.
Faster than they could react, faster than they could move, faster than they could breathe, faster than anything he'd shown before.
"STARTING WITH THIS LITTLE KITTEN! HEHEHA!"
His voice snapped through the air like a whip, and in the blink of an eye—
He was in front of Koneko.
And no one saw it happen. Not even her.
She barely had time to blink.
She was just standing near the gate with the others, still reeling from getting her right arm almost get crushed to a pulp before Asia healed it—
The next moment, Mahito was just there.
Grinning like a devil.
His arms had already twisted mid-movement, morphing into long, grotesque claws—flesh stretching, bones snapping, fingers warping into jagged, unnatural talons.
His right claw was already poised.
Aimed dead at her face.
Just inches away from her wide, terror-stricken eyes—
About to skewer straight through her skull.
But before Mahito could end her life, he froze.
His body jerked, his claws just a hair away from Koneko's face. Then, suddenly, he stopped completely.
A silence fell over the group. The air was thick with tension, everyone frozen, unsure of what to do.
'What the hell was happening?' Was the thought that flew by all of their minds.
For a long moment, Mahito remained utterly still, his eyes wide, his expression locked in this strange, unblinking stare.
"What the FUCK?!"
He broke the silence with an angry, jagged scream, the sound so sharp it was almost painful to hear. His body twitched, shaking as if trying to break free from some invisible force.
"What is this?! What the hell is going on?!"
His voice was a mix of confusion and rage, like a child throwing a tantrum when things aren't going the way they wanted it to be.
But then—
His eyes snapped wide open, and something in them shifted.
A manic gleam flickered in his pupils, followed by this sickeningly twisted grin creeping across his face. His anger melted away in an instant. Like flipping a switch, his whole demeanor changed.
"Oh. OH!"
His laughter burst out of him in a fit of wild glee, as if he'd discovered the punchline to some sick joke.
"Hehehehe… AHHHH~! THIS!"
He leaned forward, eyes burning with frenzied excitement.
"THIS is why I keep you alive! Why I make you suffer! Why I drag this shit out! It's not about the power I gain! And definitely NOT because you could potentially pose a threat to me in the future!"
His voice twisted into something darker, more dangerous, as he looked over at Issei.
Then, suddenly, his body went still again.
It was like watching someone who had just made a discovery, and the thrill of it all took over.
"You just reminded me… REMINDED ME WHY I DO THIS FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME, ISSEI HYOUDO!"
His gaze locked onto Issei's with manic intensity, his eyes almost glowing with a psychotic hunger. His voice was low and dripping with madness, like someone who had been driven to the brink of insanity by their own twisted obsession.
Everyone around him felt it—the air thick with dread as Mahito's body twitched again, this time in wild, uncontrolled convulsions. Then, just as suddenly as it had all started, his limbs went slack. His arms dropped to his sides. His head tipped forward, like a puppet with its strings cut.
He looked as if he had just fallen asleep standing up, but there was a terrifying stillness in the way he did it. A dead calm that made their skin crawl.
No one dared to move.
'What the hell was going on? What was he doing?' Issei thought as he slowly and carefully walked towards Koneko and pulled her away and moved several dozens of steps backwards from Mahito.
All of a sudden, Mahito gasped.
Loud and sharp—like he'd just surfaced after drowning, like air had finally reached lungs that hadn't worked in years.
His body jolted slightly, and his head slowly rose.
And then everything changed.
His entire presence shifted.
The first thing they noticed—his face. It wasn't twisted into that usual manic, gleeful grin. That wild, predator smile? Gone. His eyes… no longer chaotic, mismatched, or gleaming with sadism. They were clear. Blue. Focused. Sane. The patchwork stitches, those jagged, unnatural seams running across his skin like some kind of sick art project? Gone too. Smooth skin, unbroken. The suffocating pressure in the air—the malevolent, oppressive, soul-crushing aura that had been bearing down on them since the second he walked in?
Gone.
He looked… human.
He looked like someone they used to know.
He looked like someone who didn't want to hurt them.
And then—he spoke.
His voice was calm, steady, but heavy. It had weight.
"Issei… everyone… I need your help."
That single sentence hit like a truck.
It was so jarringly out of place that no one said anything. No one could say anything. They just stared, stunned, minds struggling to catch up with what they were seeing.
Rias' jaw was slack. Akeno's brows were furrowed in utter confusion. Koneko blinked rapidly, her body still tensed as if ready to block an attack that never came.
But Issei—Issei felt something crack open in his chest.
His eyes widened, disbelief washing over his face as he took a step forward, barely able to find the words. His voice came out shaky, confused, and full of something dangerously close to hope.
"…Yuki?"
Mahito—no, Yuki—nodded once, slowly.
And for the first time that morning…
The nightmare didn't feel so endless.