Nero ignored the guy's blabbering and dove for the broken blade floating in the center of the room.
Agnus let out a screech louder than when Nero had snapped her restraints. "Yamato!"
No more playing nice. He waved a hand, sending the two bladed wings behind him straight for Nero's back. In a flash of white light, he transformed into a massive, halo-crowned insect, buzzing wings propelling him toward her.
Nero smirked at his panic, her hand closing tight around the two shattered pieces of Yamato suspended in the glowing pillar.
She rolled to the side, dodging one of the winged blades, then swung the broken sword, cleaving the other in half. Without missing a beat, she sprinted for the lab's back door.
But luck wasn't on her side. Two armored knights, floating in midair, dropped from the ceiling, blocking the exit. One on the left, one on the right.
Silver Knights—more of Agnus's demonic creations, powered by human souls stuffed into enchanted armor.
Just her luck. Time to go all in.
Gripping Yamato tightly, Nero hoped it would spark the power buried inside her. She twisted, using her momentum to drive the broken blade into the nearest Silver Knight's chest.
Its spear and shield clattered to the floor.
"Gotcha!"
Nero exhaled, ready to use the downed knight as a battering ram to bust out. But before she could move, two cold, iron hands clamped down on her arms.
"What the—?!"
She jolted, trying to pull back, but it was too late.
The knight she'd stabbed had ditched its weapons to pin her in place. Meanwhile, the second knight circled behind, its spear raised. A low whoosh cut through the air, and a familiar, searing pain tore through her chest.
"Gah!"
Blood sprayed from her mouth, her limbs going limp. She didn't even know if it was her lungs or her throat that took the hit.
Another damn "family tradition," she thought, hanging there on the spear with a bitter smirk.
For a half-demon like her, this wasn't a death sentence—not yet. But that was assuming she could get the hell out of here.
The spear from behind had pierced straight through her and the knight holding her, pinning them both to the wall face-to-face.
"Damn that Credo!"
Agnus, now in his full demonic form, landed beside her, spitting curses through his stammer. "Tch-tch-tch-told me you were some obedient little b-b-brat!"
His stuttering was a dead giveaway—he was pissed. Raising a sword morphed from his demonic essence, he drove it into Nero's side with a snarl.
"Ugh!"
Nero let out a pained grunt, her head slumping forward.
Agnus took a deep breath, gesturing to the empty-handed Silver Knight to pick up the fallen Yamato. His voice dripped with barely contained rage. "What a fool. You could've lived, witnessed the glory of merging with the S-S-Savior."
So that's their plan?
Nero's mind stayed sharp despite the pain. Agnus, still not satisfied, twisted the sword in her side for good measure. "It's your fault. You r-r-ruined everything."
Another scream tore from her throat. Blood gushed from her wounds, soaking her white robes and pooling on the floor.
Agnus stepped back, savoring the sight of the bloodied girl before him. "Good thing Credo's such a gullible idiot. Don't worry, I'll put your body to good use—especially that pretty little heart. Can't wait to see what kind of demon we'll carve out of you…"
Nero turned her head, silently watching the Silver Knight pick up the blood-stained Yamato and carry it back to its pedestal. The blade, meant to answer to her, remained eerily quiet.
"Still… not waking up, huh…"
Her faint whisper went unheard. Agnus, regaining his composure, leaned in close, blocking her view.
"Got any last words?" He pulled out a pen and paper, playing the part of a considerate scientist. "If you've got notes on the demon you're about to birth, I'm all ears."
Nero's eyelids fluttered. She glanced at him, lips twitching faintly.
"What's that? Speak up." Agnus leaned in closer.
With a weak smirk, Nero spat a bloody glob right into his ugly, fly-like face.
"Gah!" Agnus stumbled back, wiping his face furiously.
"Who's gonna… birth your damn… demon?" Nero rasped, her voice barely holding together.
Agnus, once he'd cleaned his face, just shrugged, unfazed. "Not your call. I just hope they're as pretty as you."
He turned away, signaling the hovering bladed wings to reform into flying swords, all aimed at Nero.
Why?
Her gaze cut through Agnus, locking onto Yamato in the Silver Knight's hands.
Why won't you respond?
She screamed the question in her mind, ignoring the demon weapons poised to end her. Her focus was on Yamato.
In the stories, Yamato sensed the Sparda bloodline and repaired itself. So why was it still silent?
"What… makes me less than him?"
Her lips moved soundlessly, demanding answers from everything in her line of sight.
I'm Sparda's blood too. I've got people I want to protect. I've awakened my demonic power. So why—
Her burning frustration roared to life, erupting in a deafening cry:
"Answer me, Yamato!"
And then—light exploded.
The Silver Knight holding Yamato was obliterated by a shockwave, reduced to dust. Agnus was hurled back before he could scream, and the hovering bladed wings crashed into the ceiling. Nero, wide-eyed with shock and thrill, reached out as Yamato streaked toward her in a blaze of light.
The glow sliced through the weapons pinning her, shattering them to pieces. Her wounds began to heal, flesh knitting together at supernatural speed.
"Y-Y-You absorbed Yamato?!"
Agnus, barely back on his feet, gaped at the scene, his voice dripping with horror. "You little—!"
Nero felt power surging through her veins again. She shot Agnus a sidelong glance, itching to pound his face in. But Yamato had fused into her body, and she had no clue how to draw it out. Unarmed, she swallowed her urge to fight.
Time to bolt. Agnus would get his eventually.
Before anyone could react, Nero smashed through the nearby door and leaped into the night, vanishing into the shadows.
Moments later, a furious Agnus reverted to his human form and stormed out onto the lab's terrace. He scanned the empty platform, then let out a bellow of rage.
"Find her!"