Caleb glanced at the Imp's corpse and let out a helpless sigh. Trying to achieve a breakthrough in a single battle was indeed unlikely, but it was also related to how weak this Imp was. Even using Berserk mode couldn't make Caleb feel a sense of crisis; it just increased the pressure slightly.
Caleb straightened his tattered uniform and looked up at the air. "Miss Amano, do you still not intend to show yourself?"
Yūma Amano stared at Caleb, slowly descending while flapping her black wings. "Uesugi-kun is indeed strange. You don't seem surprised at all to see me?"
Caleb observed the Fallen Angel beauty in front of him, who was wearing less than revealing clothing. Setting aside her wicked personality, she was indeed a very attractive girlfriend candidate. "There's nothing surprising about it. The moment I first saw you, I knew you were a Fallen Angel."
"Oh? Is my disguise that bad?" Raynare tilted her head, adopting a cute expression. "By the way, my name is Raynare. Since you've seen my true form, please don't call me by that name."
Caleb immediately refused. "No."
"Why?"
"Because I think Yūma Amano sounds better than Raynare."
"Huh?" Looking at Caleb's completely justified expression, the Fallen Angel girl was momentarily stunned. She explained seriously, "My real name is Raynare. Yūma Amano is just a fake name I randomly chose."
"I know, but I just want to call you Miss Amano... Oh, since it's a fake name, calling you Yūma-chan is fine too, right?"
Looking at the blood-stained Caleb, the Fallen Angel girl's gaze gradually turned dangerous. "It seems you're doing this on purpose..." Her long black hair billowed, and her leather clothing, which only covered the essential areas, was full of seduction under the moonlight. Raynare revealed a captivating smile. A long spear radiating a faint red light appeared in her hand. It was very similar to Caleb's Lightning Spear, purely condensed magic power, without a distinct shaft or head, only curved at the tip to barely resemble a spearhead.
"Yūma-chan, are we going to fight now?" Caleb continued to tease. "This isn't like the personality you displayed that day."
Raynare scoffed. "Do men really prefer that useless personality?"
Caleb stretched his limbs. He still had most of his magic power left. It should be fine. "Not necessarily. I also like the way you are now."
"Is that so? Then, would you mind standing still and letting me stab you once?" Raynare smirked, tempting him. "If you let me stab you now, I can let you stab me later~"
"I can't allow that." Caleb grinned. He wasn't afraid of anyone when it came to a terrible personality. "How about I just stab you directly, until you turn back into Yūma-chan!"
"Yūma-chan, Yūma-chan... you're annoying!" Raynare finally lost her patience. She fiercely kicked the ground with her black boot, raising a gust of wind, and ferociously rushed towards Caleb.
Caleb's eyes lit up. Sure enough, Yūma Amano's strength is very high, completely on par with mine. She was solidly B-rank Peak.
"Now that's more like it!" Caleb unleashed his full power again, clashing with Yūma Amano. Lightning Spear and Light Spear collided, generating streaks of dazzling light in the dark forest.
After only a few rounds of fighting, Caleb immediately felt the bottleneck starting to loosen. He grew more and more excited as he fought. Now, even if Yūma Amano wanted to leave, he wouldn't let her. In contrast, Raynare grew increasingly alarmed. She realized she might actually not be a match for Caleb. Caleb had just been through one major fight, and his strength was slightly depleted, but his skill completely compensated for that loss. Relying on [Mirror Reflect] and [Insight Eye], he even gradually gained the upper hand.
Magic power was being consumed, and stamina was dwindling, but Caleb's eyes grew increasingly excited. Almost there, almost there. Just one more push, one more push, and I can break through that membrane.
The Lightning Spear struck down hard. Yūma Amano raised her Light Spear horizontally to resist.
CLANG!
The two weapons, condensed from magic power, produced the sound of metal clashing. Yūma Amano's fair face was flushed red. Her straight, long legs were firmly braced against the ground, her sexy little black leather shoes leaving two deep trenches in the earth.
The Lightning Spear dissipated. Caleb gave Yūma Amano a perfectly sincere smile. "Thank you, Yūma-chan."
Yūma Amano panted heavily, sweat dripping down her alluring face. "You... broke through?"
"Yes. Thanks to Yūma-chan, this breakthrough was unusually smooth."
BOOM~
As he spoke, a pair of black, broad bat wings unfolded behind Caleb's back, and a thick, powerful black tail appeared behind his waist. After the breakthrough, he had felt an intense itch and swelling in his shoulder blades and tailbone. Only now did it feel comfortable.
Looking at Caleb's true Devil form, Yūma Amano was filled with surprise and uncertainty. Caleb's Devil wings were wide and heavy, unlike the long and slender ones she recalled. They were full of power. His tail was also thicker, and the spike at the end gleamed with cold light.
After staring for a long time, scattered memories slowly surfaced in Yūma Amano's mind. Ancient Devil... descendant....
It bore some resemblance, but aside from the wings and tail, the rest didn't match. "Are you truly a Gremory Peerage member?"
Caleb was currently flapping his wings curiously, wondering if he should practice a bit before attempting to fly. He was suddenly asked this question and instinctively showed the crest on the back of his left hand. "Do you think I am?"
The Fallen Angel girl's silence count increased by one. She didn't even know how many times she had been rendered speechless tonight.
"Were you holding back earlier?"
"No, I wasn't." Caleb continued to curiously observe his wings and tail, retracting them and letting them out, having fun with the novelty. After breaking through to A-rank, it felt as though the shackles within his body had been broken. His Devil bloodline was fully activated. With the appearance of his wings and tail, a closer look would also reveal that his black pupils were now tinged with hints of scarlet.
Yūma Amano didn't know why Caleb was retracting and extending his wings repeatedly, and she couldn't be bothered with the question. "If you weren't holding back, why didn't you use your Devil form earlier? Why show it now?" Yūma Amano delivered a soul attack. Not revealing the true form always meant a slight reduction in strength. Moreover, the wings and tail provided power and assisted in offense and defense. The strength of wings capable of lifting a person into the air was considerable, and under normal circumstances, they could carry one or two additional people without issue.
Caleb's face stiffened, and he said awkwardly, "I couldn't transform before..."
"Couldn't?" Yūma Amano was astonished. "Are you saying you can't fly?"
Caleb honestly nodded, saying with a genuine expression, "Actually, I still can't. I was just agonizing over how to fly just now."
Yūma Amano: ???
If I had known Caleb couldn't fly, I would have flown up and bombed him earlier. That way, even if she couldn't completely incapacitate Caleb, she would have at least been in an untouchable position.