Two days later, in the Dimensional Space—
In a desolate region, Leon was currently squaring off against Rem.
Boom!
Still clad in her somewhat provocative maid uniform, Rem erupted with a violent aura, her expression twisting into something feral. From her forehead, a single horn emitting a white light slowly grew, causing the air around her to grow increasingly savage.
Evidently, Rem was attempting her "Onification" once again.
"Hold on."
Leon remained fully exposed to Rem's vicious aura, as if standing unprotected in an invisible storm. Even as Rem's face became distorted with effort, he remained perfectly calm.
"Don't let the horn on your forehead lead you by the nose. Shift your focus away from the horn and elsewhere. Focus on the surging power within your body; guide it toward your limbs. Use it naturally, as if you were simply moving your hands and feet."
Leon provided a series of pointers, each one hitting the mark. Rem followed his instructions with a look of pained concentration, doing her best to control the rampaging power within her to prevent herself from losing her sense of self.
"Remember, go slow. You must never let the power of the Oni form swell to its peak too quickly, or you'll lose your mind in an instant."
"Control the speed at which the power surges. Suppress it to the maximum extent possible."
"While this might result in a smaller power boost after transformation, it will allow you to control that power much more easily."
By now, Leon had nearly grasped the essence of Rem's Onification. He had discovered a fundamental difference between Rem and ordinary Oni.
Ordinary Oni, including Ram, used their horns as limiters to stimulate their physical potential, converting that potential into tangible power to strengthen themselves.
Rem, however, was different. Her horn was not a limiter used to release physical potential; it was an amplifier used to absorb external power.
When Rem activated her horn and entered her Oni state, the horn would begin to continuously absorb ambient energy from the surroundings and funnel it into her body. This caused Rem to receive a boost ten or a hundred times greater than a normal Oni, resulting in a geometric explosion of power.
This strengthening far surpassed that of an ordinary Oni, but it was also incredibly difficult to control. A single lapse in concentration could lead to obsession and madness, eventually causing the user to lose their sanity and fall into a berserk state, becoming a true "Evil Oni."
Tiamat had been right; whether it was Ram or Rem, both could be considered "Transcendents" of the Oni race—beings who had surpassed the limitations of their species. Consequently, both had developed different types of mutations.
Ram had essentially "misallocated" her talent tree. As an Oni, she was not suited for physical combat, but was instead a once-in-a-century magical prodigy.
Rem's mutation lay in her Onification. The horn, the greatest symbol of the Oni race, had changed from a limiter to an amplifier, allowing her to undergo a transformation that jumped two power tiers. The scale of this enhancement was more ridiculous than even some Longinus.
After discovering this, Leon quickly formulated a training plan to have Rem consciously control her horn, the speed at which it absorbed external energy, and the flow of that energy once it entered her body. After this training, Rem's ability to control her Onification had improved at a visible rate.
"Ugh—Aaaaah!"
As time passed, Rem let out an uncontrollable low growl, her eyes gradually turning red.
"Alright, that's enough."
Seeing this, Leon suddenly flicked his body forward and arrived in front of Rem. He reached out and gave the single horn on her forehead a sharp flick.
Thump!
The impact, carrying a surge of magic, struck the glowing white horn. Rem felt a shock vibrate through her forehead; her head snapped back, and she collapsed toward the ground.
Leon caught the little maid, bracing her slender waist as he watched the horn on her forehead. After the impact, the horn quickly went dormant, no longer growing outward but instead receding back into her brow.
"Ugh—"
Only when the horn had completely vanished did Rem let out a pained groan and slowly open her eyes, which were no longer red.
"How are you? Feeling okay?"
Leon helped the limp girl stand straight and asked with a smile.
"Y-yes—" Rem shook her heavy head. Supporting her weakened body, she asked Leon, "H-how long did Rem last this time?"
"About forty-five minutes?" Leon glanced at the pocket watch in his hand and praised her. "Not bad. With that amount of time, it's already enough to handle high-end combat."
After all, unlike the Balance Breaker of a Sacred Gear, how long Rem's Onification lasted didn't depend on how much power the host had left to consume, but rather on whether Rem could hold the "reins" of the horn on her forehead.
Once a Sacred Gear's Balance Breaker was activated, even using its abilities incurred an additional cost. Therefore, not even Leon or Vali could claim they could last half an hour in a fight that required them to go all out.
Rem was different. As long as she didn't lose control of her horn, those forty-five minutes were solid and wouldn't decrease just because she fought with everything she had.
Of course—
"Considering the need to leave yourself an out, you should ideally control your Onification time to within thirty minutes," Leon said seriously. "If you exceed that, it might become dangerous."
Once Rem's Onification surpassed thirty minutes, the power in her body would surge to a point that was nearly impossible to control. Not only would the physical burden skyrocket, but the impact on her willpower would grow rapidly.
One could say that after thirty minutes of Onification, Rem was essentially dancing on a piano wire. Her body would become exhausted from the prolonged state, and her control over the power would falter, causing her to spiral toward loss of control at an alarming speed.
Just like now—even though Leon had stopped her from losing control, because she had maintained her maximum Oni state and endured the peak of the power surge, Rem was completely drained of strength and couldn't even stand steadily.
In this state, if she were on a battlefield, she would be unable to handle the next wave of danger. Any lingering enemy could swoop in and finish her off at any moment.
This was why Leon gave her such advice.
"Always leave yourself an out. If you only use thirty minutes of Onification, you'll still have enough strength to continue fighting after you deactivate it, or at the very least, you'll be able to find a way to escape. Never push yourself to the point where you have nothing left. If an accident happens then, you could lose your life."
Leon patted Rem's smooth shoulder and added:
"As for those thirty minutes, you can fight however you want. During that window, you aren't inferior to your sister."
Upon hearing this, a look of relief and a small smile finally appeared on Rem's exhausted face.
"In that case, Rem finally has the right to stand by Sister's side and fight alongside her."
The blue-haired girl seemed genuinely happy for that reason alone. Her pure heart caused even Leon to look at her with admiration.
"No wonder the 'men of culture' in my past life were always shouting that if there's true love in this world, it must be blue. Rem really is top-tier waifu material."
Leon mused inwardly, his gaze toward Rem becoming a bit heated.
"Is something wrong, Lord Leon?"
Noticing Leon's gaze, Rem tilted her head in confusion.
"No, it's nothing."
Looking into those innocent eyes, Leon felt a twinge of guilt and averted his gaze. He felt that ever since he had "sampled the goods" with Yukino Yukinoshita and Asuna Yuuki, his self-control had been in a tailspin.
Over the past two days, whenever he saw the girls running around the manor with their pale, bare legs, his eyes would involuntarily wander. The stirrings in his heart were growing by the day, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to resist the urge to get intimate with his lovely peerage members again.
"I feel like my 'switch' has been flipped. I wonder how long I can hold out."
Leon felt a bit melancholy. If he kept going like this, would he turn into a second Issei Hyoudou?
"—Lord Leon should probably control his desires a bit, especially at a time like this."
Suddenly, a toneless voice cut in, causing both Leon and Rem to look toward the source.
"Sister."
Rem called out.
"You've worked hard, Rem."
Ram walked slowly from a distance. She first offered words of comfort to her sister before glaring at Leon.
"What are you doing here?"
Leon rubbed his nose, choosing to change the subject. He had been seen right through by this sharp-eyed maid.
"Ram is here to inform you." Ram continued to glare at Leon for a moment before finally looking away. "The time for the Summit has arrived."
Leon glanced at the sky and realized that it had turned dark without him noticing.
"It's time already?" Leon murmured, then asked, "What about the others?"
"Everyone is ready," Ram said. "We were only waiting for you and Rem."
"Is that so?" Leon nodded. "Then let's head out."
On this day, all domestic schools, including Kuoh Academy, were on holiday. Because it was a holiday, Kuoh Academy was empty throughout the day, but the three-way summit was scheduled to take place officially in the dead of night when the campus was even more deserted. The entire academy was shrouded in a heavy, silent stillness.
In a place invisible to ordinary people, a crystal-clear barrier was quietly unfurling, enveloping the entirety of Kuoh Academy.
This barrier was far stronger and more resilient than the one during Kokabiel's attack. Because it was jointly established by the guards of all three factions, it was naturally superior to the one set up by Sona Sitri's peerage.
The guards from each faction had arrived ahead of schedule. Every camp had dispatched a contingent of powerhouses. When these experts joined forces, they were naturally incomparable to Sona's unseasoned peerage. They turned Kuoh Academy into a true iron fortress; even if Kokabiel were to attack again, he wouldn't be able to break this barrier.
Under these circumstances, the armies of the Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels had surrounded the entire academy. The representatives for each camp were already waiting in the breakroom of the new school building. No one else could enter the meeting site, and those inside could not leave until the talks concluded.
The atmosphere on site was explosive. The feeling was that if anything went wrong during today's talks, or if any conflict or verbal spat occurred, it could very well escalate into an immediate war between the three factions.
Leon and his group arrived at Kuoh Academy via a magic circle jump a few minutes before the barrier was fully sealed. Under heavy security checks and surveillance, they walked into the new school building and headed toward the meeting room.
Though they didn't see many people along the way, both Leon and the girls of his peerage could clearly feel eyes watching them.
Consequently, the girls' faces were tense. Influenced by the atmosphere, they were almost afraid to breathe, while only Leon walked with his usual composed and natural demeanor, leading his peerage into the conference room.
The doors to the conference room opened silently, revealing the scene inside.
The first thing they saw was a specially prepared table, looking quite luxurious. Several individuals with extraordinary auras were already seated around it. Not a single person was speaking, allowing a serious, silent, and heavy atmosphere to dominate the room.
Around the conference room, standing in the corners, the Gremory peerage led by Rias and the Sitri peerage led by Sona were already present. They exchanged looks with Leon's group.
The moment Rias and Sona saw Leon appear, they nodded slightly in greeting.
At the conference table, Sirzechs and Serafall also looked toward Leon. One gave him a warm smile, while the other let out a soft huff with a pouting expression.
Grayfia was on the side of Sirzechs and Serafall, standing by a tea cart on standby, seemingly in charge of hospitality for the talks.
Opposite Sirzechs and Serafall sat a figure Leon had met once before.
"You've finally arrived, kid from the Eligos family."
Azazel ignored the serious atmosphere of the room. As flippant and casual as ever, he greeted Leon with a smile. Behind him, Vali leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. Since the moment Leon entered, Vali's gaze had not left him; his lips were slightly upturned, and his eyes were filled with familiar battle intent.
Seated beside Azazel was an incredibly radiant figure. It was a man wearing luxurious white robes with long golden hair. He was extremely handsome, with a golden halo floating above his head and six pairs of golden wings on his back.
He seemed to be glowing all over, wearing a gentle and compassionate smile that instantly captured the attention of most of the Eligos peerage.
Leon looked at him for a few moments, silently noting the name in his heart.
The Archangel, Michael.
The current leader of the Heavens—he had finally met him.
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