Night had long since fallen.
Far from the neon city, the forest outside Komou Town lay beneath boundless darkness.
Only a few streetlamps lined the road, shedding a feeble glow.
Through the gloom two girls raced, swift as night-winds.
To any observer they were mere blurs, tearing the air and leaving a wake of swirling Qi.
But in the dead of night no one witnessed it.
The pair were Xenovia and Irina Fujiwara.
Dispatched by the Church to recover the stolen Sacred Gears, they were known as Sacred Gear Users.
After weeks of investigation they had at last picked up the trail of the pilfered blades.
Yet each time they neared their quarry, the foe slipped away.
Their pursuit finally brought them to this unremarkable island nation town.
Early in their search they had been startled to learn the city was demon territory.
In days past, as Sacred Gear Users, they would have purged any devils they found.
But the Church had expressly forbidden conflict with anyone unconnected to the Sacred Gears.
Hence they sought out Rias to declare a truce: each side would keep to its own.
Following the faint traces, they arrived outside a derelict factory.
They halted about a kilometre away.
Irina's eyes narrowed at the silent plant. "Xenovia, doesn't this feel like a trap laid just for us?"
Xenovia gave a slight nod. "I know it's a trap, yet we must go. Those precious blades must not fall into the hands of the Fallen Angels!"
Her resolve shone fierce and unshakable.
"You're right, Xenovia. Forgive my hesitation. For the honour of the Lord I would give my life to succeed!"
Seeing Irina's fervour, Xenovia's momentary guilt hardened into matching steel.
But as she stepped forward, Xenovia added,
"Still, I'd rather live than die."
Xenovia said,
"Frankly, with just the two of us retrieving three lost Sacred Gears and battling the legendary Kokabiel, our odds of success and safe return are below thirty percent."
"But we are resolved."
Determination blazed in Irina's eyes.
"Yes. We are ready. Even should we die, our Souls will ascend to Heaven and stand before the Lord we serve."
Xenovia's gaze burned with fervour.
"Let's go!"
At that very moment,
a thunderous explosion erupted from the silent factory.
A tide of malice rolled toward them; the oppressive aura felt like solid gravity, searing the very air they breathed.
"What's happening?"
Bewilderment flashed between them.
Yet without hesitation they tightened their grips and dashed forward.
Whatever the cost, the lost Sacred Gears would be reclaimed!
One minute earlier.
"Where…?!"
The girls stared in shock at their new surroundings.
Rias remained calm; she was no stranger to Rosen's methods.
"We're on the outskirts of Komou Town. I can sense Fallen Angels nearby."
In an instant Rias shifted into battle mode.
This should be the hideout of the Fallen Angels and the Stray Exorcists.
Hearing that, Himejima Akeno and Koneko were even more shocked.
In the blink of an eye they'd been teleported from Kuoh Academy to the outskirts, and he'd accurately tracked the exorcists—truly a powerhouse rivaling a Devil King.
While the two girls were still studying the surroundings, a wave of malice suddenly descended from the sky.
At the same time, an abyss-like pressure bore down on Rias, Himejima Akeno, and Koneko.
The immense force left them struggling for breath.
In an instant they judged that the source of this hostility was almost certainly the legendary fallen-angel cadre Kokabiel.
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Yet after experiencing the pressure Rosen had released earlier, Himejima Akeno and Koneko now found this oppression almost laughably weak.
Not only could they move freely, the very presence of the foe was making their own demonic energy surge.
As for Rias—
she'd felt stifled for only a moment; within a few breaths she'd fully recovered.
After all, compared with Rosen, the being behind this pressure couldn't even match the Darkness Devil from Makima's world.
The Darkness Devil could dredge up the most primal terror in a person's heart.
Kokabiel's arrival, on the other hand, was merely an exertion of raw power.
Rosen, by contrast, looked as relaxed as ever, his face still wearing a carefree smile.
It was as if he'd come sightseeing rather than hunting Fallen Angels.
"How boring."
Just then, a deep voice rang out from above.
Against the yellowed moon, a figure with five pairs of thick black wings sat upon a floating stone throne.
Moonlight spilled down, revealing the figure in full.
He wore a black robe, his facial bones high and prominent, giving him a long, horse-like visage.
His features were regular, the nose bridge tall and straight.
By human standards he'd pass for a classic handsome lead in a Western film.
Those blood-red pupils added a touch of the uncanny.
"I hadn't expected Lucifer the Devil King's own little sister to find me first. The Church really is slow—no different from years past!"
Disdain for the Church was evident in his tone.
Immediately Himejima Akeno and Koneko felt the fallen angel's icy gaze sweep over them.
"Still, it saves me the trouble of hunting you down. Since you're so eager to die, I'll graciously oblige."
His tone was flat, as if discussing something trivial.
Yet as Kokabiel prepared to seize Rias, his eyes involuntarily flicked to the silent black-haired youth beside the three girls.
How did a mere human slip into a group of devils?