No, I haven't officially returned yet, for now, I'm going to focus on stockpiling chapters on patreon, there are only four ahead there so far.
See you next time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Craaaaaack! Booooom!
The sky crackled with deafening sounds as if super-massive bombs or two deities were fighting each other.
Zhoooom! Booooom!
And considering the light show, the shockwaves capable of pulverizing titanium, or the gigantic explosions, it really could have been a battle between two divinities.
Boooooom!...
It was obvious even to a layman that if Grayfia hadn't pulled everyone into a kind of mirrored dimension, forget Kuoh City—she and several other neighboring cities would already have been wiped off the map in Japan.
In the sky, with several silvery magic circles revolving around her body, Grayfia raised her hand, launching yet another attack toward Basara.
With a buzzing sound, silvery energy beams fired from the magic circles, slicing through the air in what felt like an instant until they reached Basara.
But positioned in the sky, his figure covered by a white aura vanished in a blur, the energy beams striking only his afterimage.
The energy beams then continued traveling, going farther into the horizon until they hit something, where a massive explosion occurred, a flash of light appearing along with a shockwave that destroyed everything within a radius of more than sixty kilometers.
But paying no attention to that, Grayfia and Basara continued to fight in the air.
With her attack being dodged once again, Grayfia followed up with a close-range strike, her figure blurring through the air as she appeared in an instant right in front of Basara.
Raising a crossed guard, he defended himself once more, the force making his arms protected by Touki tremble, the bones beneath grinding, while he himself kept a serious expression, ignoring the pain.
It might have seemed that Grayfia's punches were useless, but the mere fact that the sleeves of his coat were destroyed along with the purple bruises that kept increasing proved that even with him protecting himself with Touki, she could still hurt him.
And he knew very well that if she kept hitting him like that, his forearms would soon break.
Not only that, they might have seemed to be on similar levels, but that was far from the truth. Grayfia was stronger; the only advantage he had was that he was physically more durable thanks to Touki, and with the support of Senjutsu, he was able to anticipate most attacks, thus increasing his survival rate.
But he also knew this was only temporary. It was literally just a matter of time until she adapted to his fighting style and finally managed to land a fatal blow on him.
And to his credit, he also wasn't using all his strength—such as magic. He preferred to keep a few cards up his sleeve, although even so he knew he wouldn't win.
Letting himself be pushed back by her punch, Basara cast a sidelong glance toward the ground, where the boy was surrounded by the others.
He was trying to create an opportunity to launch an attack that would finish the job, the reason why he continued fighting a battle he knew he would lose.
But that was becoming increasingly impossible.
Returning his gaze in the same instant to Grayfia, he counterattacked, his arm moving like a distorted shadow as he fired a concentrated Ki blast from his fist.
The white energy wave shot through the air like a projectile larger than a basketball, sonic explosions carrying it to Grayfia in an instant.
And with a placid look, she simply raised her hand and slapped the Ki attack as if it were something physical, sending it away as if it were nothing at all.
The Ki attack traveled through the air toward the distant ground, hitting a mirrored copy of a building.
And the result was a deafening explosion, everything within a radius of a little over forty kilometers being completely destroyed.
But once again, with neither of them paying attention to the cities below that were being completely wiped off the map as a result of their attacks, they continued fighting each other, trading increasingly devastating blows.
And while that was happening, on the ground, silent tears ran down Rias's cheeks as she saw Micael's condition, her hand gently touching his cheek.
Behind her, the others quickly approached, coming closer and being confronted with the deplorable state he was in.
"Shit..." Issei murmured softly at the sight, his fists and teeth clenching as he felt the frustration return for having been unable to do anything.
Kiba at his side shared the same reaction, his jaw tightening as his eyes stared at the scene.
Standing near him, Koneko reacted more quietly, biting her lip and clenching her fists as she also watched.
"Micael..." Akeno reacted much like Rias, kneeling on his other side, tears streaming down her face as she looked at him sadly.
And kneeling beside Rias, an equally tearful Asia looked with eyes full of tears and pain at the state he was in. "Sob..." she sobbed as she slowly grasped his hand.
But amid that gloomy atmosphere, Rias quickly composed herself, remembering that he was still alive and could be saved.
She immediately began healing him, using the only way she had, pulling his body close and embracing him while gently placing his head against her bosom, her other hand resting against his abdomen.
And since she knew he wouldn't like her showing herself even if it was to heal him from his current state, she didn't remove her clothes—but at least she wasn't alone in this.
"Akeno! Quick, help me here!" she ordered rapidly, with Akeno quickly understanding and joining her, gently embracing Micael, holding his arm against her breasts while her other hand rested against his chest.
"Asia! Start healing him!" Naturally, she also called the person with the proper power to heal there.
Snapping out of her tearful stupor, Asia composed herself, wiping away her tears and quickly activating her Sacred Gear.
She raised her hands toward his body, a green glow covering her palms that quickly moved to Micael, covering his entire body.
With the teamwork of the three, his wounds and fractures began to heal at a visible speed, mainly thanks to Asia.
Accompanied by soft crackles, his bones reconnected, his broken limbs and the depression in his torso undoing themselves.
"Hey, Micael, you're going to be fine, okay? Don't worry, everything will be alright." Rias said softly with a faint smile, her tone comforting to reassure him, though it also seemed like a way for her to reassure herself.
However, an abnormality was soon noticed.
"B-boss, his eyes..." Kiba murmured with a furrowed brow as he noticed it.
Following his words, Rias looked at Micael's eyes and saw that they were still bleeding, the blood staining his shirt, but not only that—they remained gray and dull, the veins still pulsing abnormally around them.
"No no no..." Already fearing the worst, Rias felt her despair increase at the sight. "Asia!"
Answering her call, the blonde girl, who was already starting to cry again, approached and placed her hands directly over his eyes.
As tears streamed down her cheeks, she clenched her teeth, using every gram of strength in her Sacred Gear, making her palms shine intensely.
However, while the rest of his body healed, his eyes remained unchanged.
"Asia!" Rias shouted, the desperation already perceptible in her voice.
"I'm trying!" the girl cried out in response amid sobs.
But the seconds passed, and there was no sign whatsoever of his eyes showing even the slightest improvement.
And with that, a gloomy mood returned, the perception that it seemed to be a futile effort increasing everyone's despair and pain.
"No no no... You can't die..." In a completely desperate murmur, Rias pressed his head against her chest, her tears falling onto his face, his faint breathing not being perceived by her.
And her desperate cry only made the others' reactions equally heavy, an air of mourning slowly forming.
But amid all that lament, Rias had an idea.
If Asia wasn't managing to heal Micael, maybe it was because she wasn't strong enough.
And she had an easy solution for that.
So, without wasting time, she immediately summoned a bishop in her hand, the red chess piece glowing crimson.
She then pushed it toward Asia, almost forcing the piece onto the girl but stopping at the last moment to explain. "Listen, Asia, maybe you can't heal him because you lack strength, but if you fuse with this, that can be resolved. However, there's a catch—you'll stop being human." Since she didn't have time to explain in detail, she went straight to what was most important.
But catching her by surprise, Asia didn't hesitate to nod in understanding, simply taking the piece and pressing it against herself.
Seeing that, Rias didn't hesitate to activate it, making the object glow red as it was absorbed.
As she felt a warmth spread through her body and her senses continuously change, Asia spoke while pointing her hands back toward Micael. "Micael helped me and took care of me when I needed it and without gaining anything in return. It was thanks to him that I could experience what it was like to have a normal life, to have a family and friends."
As the red glow covering her body diminished, indicating the end of the change, the green glow in her palms only intensified. "If to repay him for everything he's done and to keep him from dying I have to set my humanity aside, I will. I can't let him die, not even if I go to hell for it." She finished with tears shining in her green eyes as she focused.
Seeing that, Rias, with a focused look, then said to the others. "Quick, transfer your demonic energy to Asia." Touching the blonde girl's shoulder, she began transferring all her demonic energy.
And the others, doing as she asked, approached Asia, placing their hands on her arms, shoulders, and back, transferring all the energy they had.
[Boost!]
Issei even activated his Sacred Gear, knowing he had little energy.
And with that, the veins beneath Asia's skin began to bulge all over her body, indicating the enormous amount of energy now coursing through her.
Clenching her teeth, enduring the pain, with veins bulging around her face, she focused to the utmost, concentrating on healing Micael's eyes.
There, in tense silence, they watched, waiting for some change in his eyes.
However, the seconds passed and nothing about his eyes changed.
As Rias bit her lip with growing anxiety, fervently hoping it would work, that's when she noticed it.
It was faint, slow, a minimal change, but since she was completely focused, she noticed it—the veins around his eyes had lost their dark purple tone, becoming slightly lighter.
And that was all the sign she needed.
"Keep going! It's working, the veins are deflating!" she exclaimed joyfully and in relief, informing the others.
And following her words, they too realized that it was indeed working.
With that, as time passed, the signs became clearer, and with that, relief was something they all shared.
...
[Pov: Micael]
Shit... what's going on?
I can barely feel anything, I don't even know how I'm still conscious right now.
But this cold against my back is the ground, so that bastard let me go.
And what are those noises in the background? I can barely hear anything.
Seems like using Amaterasu did more than blind me. I feel like forcing my eye beyond its limit did much more than just render my vision useless.
I can't see anything, my sense of touch barely works, my hearing barely registers, all I can smell is blood, and my mind is hanging by a thread as I drift aimlessly.
Yeah...
I think I'm dying...
Hm? This smell and this familiar voice... Rias...
She's saying something, this faint sensation on my cheek... must be her hand.
She must be desperate over my state, sigh.
Sorry, my redhead, but it was either me or you.
Now... I guess all that's left is to wait for the end.
Fuck, dying like this when there's still a ton of things for me to do...
Damn... Mari's going to be devastated... Not to mention Miyako and my dad...
There's Saji too... I can easily imagine that faggot crying ugly...
No... I can't die like this.
Come on, react.
React, damn it!
Come on, body! React!
Tsk... seems like my body is failing little by little... son of a bitch... React!
Uh?... Mom?
Suddenly, I feel as if my soul leaves my body when a strange light appears, like some kind of path, while I'm sure I can see the silhouette of my hand.
What's with all this strange light... what place is this?...
...Seriously? Is this that light at the end of the tunnel?
She smiled at me, a warm smile, but she didn't seem to be inviting me...
Yeah... it's not my time yet. Sorry, but I won't be joining you, Mom—not yet.
Her smile grew from what I can tell; I think she agrees with me.
Huh? What's happening now?
Suddenly, the path of light began to move away, but more importantly, I could feel my almost completely dulled senses slowly returning.
And with that, I understood—I was being revived.
Whatever Rias and the others were doing was working.
Casting one last look at the apparition of my mother, I exchange a nod with her, which she returns as she disappears, before my consciousness returns to my body.
Soon, my senses sharpened as I could finally process what was happening around me.
And most importantly, my vision began to return little by little.
Blurrily, I saw the hazy shapes of what I assumed were Rias and the others, while Asia's raised palms in front of me glowed intensely green.
And with all my wounds being continuously healed, I took a deep breath without feeling pain, my vision clearing to see Rias's face clearly.
And seeing her tear-filled face with a happy smile, I could only give one response.
"Yo, my redhead," I said with a weak smile.
And she hugged me.