I looked at Asia's lifeless body, her golden hair matted against her pale skin, her expression too peaceful for someone stolen from life.
But I felt no grief. No rage. No helplessness.
I felt calm.
Disturbingly, terrifyingly calm.
Like everything I had screamed before—every threat, every emotional breakdown—had been some kind of stage act.
For this moment. I feel like a different person completely.
The realization sent a chill down my spine, not from fear of Raynare, but of myself.
"Was that really me?" I muttered. "Was it all just… Issei's emotions that I showed till now?"
But that couldn't be. I was Issei now. His soul might have been overwritten, replaced—whatever—but I'd been living this life, making these choices.
And yet...
I had seen this coming. From the moment I first met Asia, I knew where this path led. I could've tried harder to stop it. I had chances—on the date, during the Church stakeout.
But I didn't.
And now that she lay there, the fragile light gone from her body, I felt relief.
Now the plot wouldn't diverge. A voice behind my head said. It felt cold, emotionless, and calculative in a monotone.
I punched myself in the face so hard I stumbled back.
"No."
I wasn't that kind of monster. I refused to be.
Just then, her mocking voice returned like nails scraping my spine.
"What? You having a breakdown?" Raynare hovered above the broken altar, her wicked smile stretching wide. "Not that it matters. I've already won."
In her hand was a glowing green sphere, Asia's Sacred Gear, pulsing with stolen life.
Just seeing it in her grasp—
That made me angry.
Real anger. Righteous anger. Now that's an appropriate reaction to this situation. I thought to myself.
I stood up slowly, the Boosted Gear humming with low, resonant energy.
Boost!
Raynare rolled her eyes. "Still trying?"
"No," I said, stepping forward. "Now I'm serious."
She scoffed and flung a spear of light. I batted it aside with my gauntlet, the impact stinging my arm but leaving me standing.
Boost!
"You're persistent, I'll give you that," she muttered, forming three more spears. "Let's see how long you can last now that you've lost your little nun."
I dashed forward, weaving between the projectiles. One grazed my shoulder, but I kept moving. My fist connected with her side, forcing her to crash into the stone wall.
She recovered midair, looking more annoyed than hurt.
"Oh? Got some bite now?"
Boost!
The eighth time. The power burned in my blood now.
I launched myself off the floor like a missile, slamming into her before she could dodge. We crashed through the stained glass window, falling into the courtyard outside.
She kicked me off mid-fall and spun in the air, flinging more spears. I deflected what I could, the rest carving into the ground around me as I landed.
Raynare hovered above, panting slightly.
"This isn't possible," she spat. "You shouldn't be this strong—"
"Shut up."
My voice cut through the night like a blade.
"You talk too much."
Boost!
I blasted upward, my gauntlet igniting with energy as I punched her from below. She screamed, thrown higher into the air.
"Issei!!"
The shout came from below.
I glanced down just long enough to see red and black wings descending—Rias Gremory, with Akeno right behind her, lightning already crackling at her fingertips.
Kiba and Koneko emerged from the church doors, battered but alive.
Raynare hissed, blood trickling from her lip as she hovered above us all.
"Oh, so this is the real party, huh?"
She glared at Rias, then at me. "You've ruined everything! I could've—"
"You lost," I said, raising my gauntlet. "You just don't know it yet."
Boost!
I soared forward again, faster than before, landing a solid uppercut that sent her reeling backward.
Akeno followed up, chains of lightning lashing across the sky to bind her wings. Raynare screamed, trying to break free, but Koneko was already in the air, throwing a punch into her back that sent her crashing to the ground.
Raynare struggled to rise, her armor cracked, her breath labored. Her wings twitched erratically.
"You don't get to talk about love, about kindness, after what you did to her," I said, walking toward her. "You used her. And now you'll answer for it."
Rias stepped beside me, her eyes glowing with power. "Issei. End it."
I nodded.
Raynare raised a shaky hand. "Wait! I—I can still—"
BOOST!
The final surge.
I swung my gauntlet down with all the wrath I had held back—the pain of Asia's death, the betrayal, the lies. My fist collided with her chest, and the shockwave tore through the ground beneath us.
Raynare gasped, eyes wide. She collapsed to the ground, unconscious, the Sacred Gear rolling from her hand.
The night went still.
Akeno moved quickly, wrapping magical chains around her.
"She's not dead," I said, voice low.
Rias placed a hand on my shoulder. "We'll deal with her. You… should be with Asia."
~~~
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