As the tongue lashed out toward the seemingly empty space, a short cry escaped Kuroka. Her figure was forcibly revealed as if shoved into view, while the versions of Kuroka and Ophis standing beside us vanished like mist clearing from the air.
Seeing this, Cao Cao wore an impressed expression.
"Well, well… an illusion. I didn't even notice. But unfortunately, Samael is God's malice made manifest against dragons—a form of divine punishment. Illusions alone won't let you escape it."
So once it's locked onto a dragon, it's got tracking and homing capabilities? Seriously, the God of the Bible is one petty guy!
The tongue extended toward the spot where Kuroka had just been. Its tip swelled into a round sphere and began absorbing something through it, making gulping noises as it pulsed. Damn it! We couldn't hide or escape with Ophis in time?
And was Kuroka shoved away because Ophis was trying to protect her?
"No way… Ophis is inside that black orb!? Yuuto, cut it now!"
Without hesitation, Yuuto responded to Rias's command and swung his Holy Demonic Sword at the tongue's thinner section.
"What the—?! The blade!?"
But the moment the sword touched the tendril, the blade portion vanished entirely. The severed tip clattered to the ground with a metallic ring.
"Then how about this!?"
"Let's give it a shot too, nya!"
Vali launched a barrage of magic and demonic energy blasts, while Kuroka released a wave of black flame infused with purifying power—yet none of it worked.
Vali's attack failing made sense given Samael's resistance, but even purifying flames had no effect? I couldn't tell whether to be impressed or horrified. Either way, this was seriously bad news.
"If it's a dragon, then maybe Ascalon can—!"
Issei summoned the dragon-slaying holy sword from the gauntlet on his armored left arm—but Azazel immediately held up a hand to stop him.
"Don't use Ascalon, Issei! Against the most dangerous dragon-slayer in existence, there's no telling what might happen! It might get absorbed, or Samael's divine poison could burst out and rain down on everyone—friend or foe! Besides, we don't even know if a dragon-slaying weapon can kill him. Think about it: Samael was drenched in divine poison meant to slay dragons. So how is he still alive?"
Issei hesitated. "Uh…"
Since he was struggling, I thought it through too.
"…Are you saying the God of the Bible granted Samael resistance to dragon-slaying weapons?"
Considering the existence of things like the Holy Grail, it wasn't impossible.
"That's probably it—though just barely, on the edge of constant suffering. Still, that's what makes the wrath of gods across all mythologies so terrifying. Anyway, we need to focus on saving Ophis. I don't know what they plan to do with her, but you can bet it's nothing good!"
Azazel's words lit a fire under everyone. They heightened their auras, ready to attack at a moment's notice.
"With opponents like you, I suppose I'll need to get serious. Hades only gave me permission to summon Samael once—and even then, he made me promise to cause as much trouble as possible for devils and fallen angels. Without that condition, we could've just snatched Ophis and summoned Samael to finish this quickly."
So that's why they brought us here even when they knew they wouldn't get a second chance—Hades demanded it. Of course, their own arrogance probably played a part too.
"…Sensei."
"What is it?"
"After this is over, can I go to the Underworld and erase Hades?"
If I had Azazel's permission, I'd gladly blow myself up to do it.
"I'd love to say yes—but no. Even that bastard disappearing would cause chaos for the world. I've explained this before. Still, if I could, I'd shove a True Longinus through his skull right now."
"Cao Cao, I'll be busy maintaining control over Samael. Don't expect backup."
"No problem. If I couldn't handle something like this, I'd have no right to wield this spear in the first place. Now, let's begin—Balance Break! Forbidden Form!"
Cao Cao uttered the words of power, and a divine halo appeared behind him. Around it floated seven orbs, each about the size of a bowling ball.
"This is my 'True Longinus, the True Longinus of Twilight' in its forbidden form: Polar Night Longinus Chakravartin."
"An alternate version!? I thought the standard Balance Breaker was 'Twilight Longinus: Götterdämmerung, the True Longinus of the Final Dusk'! What, are you trying to claim you're the Chakravartin King now? Dammit! I can't even begin to guess what those seven spheres can do!"
"I went with 'heavenly' instead of 'turning' for dramatic flair. Sounds cooler, doesn't it?"
If he really respected the concept of the Chakravartin—the ideal monarch who ruled through wisdom and justice—couldn't he act a little more peacefully?
It was supposed to be a title for a wise ruler who brought order through dialogue, not a name for a terrorist!
"Be careful. Those orbs floating around him—the Seven Treasures—each possess unique powers. I only know what three of them do."
"Seven!? Not two or three—seven!?"
Issei was stunned by Vali's warning. His Boosted Gear, another Longinus, had only two main abilities—Boost and Transfer.
"Yep. And if that wasn't bad enough, his spear also has an ultimate ability called Truth Idea. That's what makes True Longinus the strongest of all the Sacred Gears."
As Vali finished speaking, Cao Cao slowly raised his right hand, and one of the orbs drifted in front of him.
"One of the Seven Treasures—Chakkaratana, the Wheel Treasure."
CLANG!!BOOM!!
I'd already disabled my mental limiter to react in time to the incoming orb, but since it wasn't aimed at me directly, I couldn't intercept the first strike.
A moment later, everyone turned toward the source of the sound in shock.
"Ex-Durandal!?"
The Excalibur sheath around Xenovia's sword had been shattered, and Durandal itself was now cracked and fractured.
Right after Chakkaratana struck and broke Ex-Durandal, I managed to kick the orb away before it could pierce Xenovia's body.
"So you've got the best reaction speed, huh? As you saw, Chakkaratana's power is weapon destruction. Unless a weapon is wrapped in an incredibly dense aura, it'll be torn apart. Originally, I intended to morph the orb into a spear and impale the Durandal wielder… but no matter. A holy sword wielder without her blade poses no threat. One down."
You should've tried saying that to her predecessor, too.
"Well, we don't have time to take it slow either. Let's move on!"
"Not happening!"
"I'm in too!"
Issei and Yuuto charged forward, but Cao Cao calmly deflected them with his spear while commanding the orbs.
Then one of the next treasures flew above us and emitted a blinding light.
"Damn! That thing—!"
"I'll shoot it down!"
Rias and Akeno tried to unleash destructive magic and lightning… but nothing happened.
Confused, they tried again—and still, nothing.
"Itthiratana seals the abilities of women. Unless you're incredibly powerful, it's hard to resist. So now the Switch Princess, the Priestess of Thunder, Michael's ace, the healer nun, the Phenex heiress—and the Durandal wielder—are all effectively out of the fight. The nekomata sisters and Le Fay managed to put up quick barriers, but only Kuroka fully resisted. The other two are probably weakened."
"Guh!"
"Urgh!"
Issei and Yuuto were knocked back—not by a direct hit, but by the shockwaves of holy power from the spear.
"Issei! Yuuto! Fall back! As devils, you're at too much of a disadvantage in close combat! Vali—sync with me!"
"Tch, I'd rather work alone…"
Azazel donned Fafnir's golden armor, while Vali followed him in, despite grumbling.
They were clearly aiming to strike from the front and middle ranks.
"Oh no, if you're dragons, then there's only one counter—Georg!"
Cao Cao called out, and Georg responded with a simple, "Understood."
He released the restraint on one of Samael's arms. It reached toward Azazel and Vali—and the space around them suddenly erupted into a pitch-black orb.
When it dissipated, both of them had been forcefully de-armored.
Azazel, being a pure fallen angel only wearing dragon armor, dropped to one knee, visibly in pain.
Vali, however, collapsed entirely, coughing up blood.