"How long are you going to keep watching? You think you're hiding well? That fallen aura on you doesn't support that confidence."
Boredly gazing into the distance while continuously absorbing vast amounts of soul energy, Raize's eyes flickered with ferocious killing intent. He sensed a powerful soul carrying a fallen aura.
His desire for a strong soul caused indiscriminate hunger and murderous intent to sprout within him.
"Aiya, aiya, I thought my concealment skills were pretty good. Didn't expect you to notice me, little brother."
The killing intent in Raize's eyes was calm—eerily calm. He was not being driven by it.
He cast a detached glance to the side.
In the sky, a figure suddenly manifested out of thin air, appearing within Raize's line of sight.
Twelve black wings spread wide, symbolizing the other party's identity as a fallen angel.
Even without hostile intent, the aura he emitted was powerful and unpleasant to Raize.
The fallen angel appeared to be a flamboyant middle-aged man. His slightly weathered, mature face carried an unserious smile as he squinted cheerfully at Raize, who sat in the void.
There was no hostility in his eyes—only curiosity and a strong desire to investigate.
As well as deep wariness toward the chilling curse aura radiating from Raize, which made the back of his neck feel cold.
"Fallen Angel Governor Azazel. What business do you have here?"
"Don't be so cold~ You and my son Vali are good friends, right? If we round things up a bit, we're not exactly enemies. Could you maybe rein in that curse aura of yours?"
Azazel, whose purpose for suddenly appearing was unknown, behaved very familiarly. He retracted his twelve black wings and sat cross-legged in the void, smiling as he spoke to Raize.
He genuinely did not want to get even a hair closer to Raize. That curse aura was too terrifying—so terrifying that Azazel constantly felt like he might die at any moment.
Damn it, Vali, you little brat—are you messing with your old man? Didn't you say he possessed holy power far surpassing that of seraphs and the True Longinus, along with a bizarre copying ability?
Why didn't you tell me about this curse aura? Are you trying to get your loving dad killed?!
"…Vali, huh. With his personality, he wouldn't tell you about me, even if you're close to him."
Hearing Vali's name from Azazel, Raize instantly processed the information and drew conclusions.
At the same time, he slowly reined in his curse aura—after all, most of the souls within several kilometers had already been absorbed.
Given Vali's personality, he wouldn't casually tell Azazel about him. And with Vali's insight, he wouldn't fail to see that Raize had intentionally concealed himself back then.
That left only one possibility: Raize himself had likely entered the radar of certain major powers.
"Heh~ It's normal for a son to keep secrets from his dad. If I don't ask proactively, Vali really wouldn't say anything."
Seeing Raize restrain his curse aura, Azazel's eyes lit up. He immediately floated over familiarly and stopped directly in front of Raize, examining the human youth with a grin.
After receiving information about Raize from the devil side, Azazel—who had his own intelligence network—quickly obtained the same news. It was said that Raize was the host of the Sacred Gear [Divine Dividing].
That instantly piqued Azazel's interest. After all, the White Dragon Emperor was right by his side—so who was this extra White Dragon Emperor?
After chatting with Vali, Azazel expected him to show excitement or a battle-crazed expression. Instead, upon hearing the news, Vali's expression turned somewhat strange, not reacting as Azazel had anticipated.
As an old fossil, Azazel's instincts were sharp. Through conversation with Vali, he obtained quite a bit of information about Raize, saving him the trouble of further investigation.
An unverified Sacred Gear wielder, whose strength had surpassed Vali's within mere months without any guidance—and who had even copied Vali's power.
Everything pushed Azazel's curiosity about Raize to its peak.
Moreover, he fully approved of Vali befriending and teaming up with someone of such potential.
Azazel's purpose in coming to see Raize was simple: first, to satisfy his curiosity; second, to recruit the youth.
After all, he had received intelligence that Gabriel had already descended to the human world. If she were to notice such a special existence as Raize, things would surely develop in ways Azazel did not wish to see.
"Out of respect for you being Vali's adoptive father, I'm willing to speak with you calmly. State your purpose."
"I want to know the truth about the Sacred Gear on you. Would that be acceptable?"
Faced with Raize's blunt words, Azazel straightforwardly stated his intent. His middle-aged face showed unconcealed curiosity.
As a fallen angel with an unparalleled passion for researching Sacred Gears, his greatest hobby was precisely that. Unknown and unrecorded Sacred Gears were especially irresistible to him.
"..."
Raize stared expressionlessly at the fallen angel uncle, whose face was full of unserious smiles.
As for the so-called nonexistent Sacred Gear on him, he had no intention of explaining. Probing someone else's secrets like that was inherently rude.
However, Raize decided to go along with the misunderstanding.
"Experience it yourself."
Expressionless as he looked at the smiling Azazel, Raize released a pure white light around himself—a light that permitted no sin to exist, erasing it utterly.
The power of Primordial sacred radiance within Raize had already undergone transformation. Tainted by the exalted sanctity of the Sorrowful Heaven of the Morning Star, this power was nothing short of a natural enemy to beings burdened with deep "sin," such as Azazel.
"Guaaaaaahhh!!!"
A miserable howl erupted, like that of a devil falling into hell. The smile on Azazel's face instantly twisted into agony.
Black, fallen smoke poured from his body—entirely composed of sins being vaporized.
The white light appeared only for an instant. In that fleeting moment, Azazel felt as though both his flesh and soul were like a steak slapped onto a scorching iron plate, being seared alive.
This light caused beings heavy with sin—or fallen existences like Azazel—to have their rationality evaporated.
Pure white light. Dyeing everything with the whiteness of salt, permitting no other color to exist.
"How was it? Do you understand the nature of my power now?"
Raize asked indifferently as he looked at the utterly disheveled, dazed, and distorted Azazel.
He had never intended to kill Azazel. This was merely a small return for prying into his secrets.
Didn't you want to know my power? I've shown it to you now.
"…Holy exalted light targeting sin. Damn it—did the God of Bible really leave behind something this dangerous?! True Longinus is already enough of a headache!"
After recovering his senses, Azazel twitched at the corner of his eye as he stared at the expressionless youth before him, inwardly cursing his luck.
Though resentful of what Raize had just done, Azazel wasn't stupid. He knew Raize had held back and spared his life.
It was merely punishment for prying into another's secrets.
He immediately noticed that the lust and fallen aura on his body had diminished significantly—even the lewd thoughts in his heart had weakened.
For Azazel, who had fallen due to lust, this was painfully obvious.
Once he recovered, the well-informed Fallen Angel Governor quickly grasped part of the essence of that fleeting light.
If the True Longinus was a deadly poison to devils, then this human before him encompassed even fallen angels.
A natural enemy. An undisputed natural enemy.
That was Azazel's current assessment of Raize. For the sake of the fallen angel race, he absolutely could not afford to become hostile with this person.
"You've got some insight. Would you like me to show you more? I can even let you return to Heaven for free—just endure a little pain."
Raize looked at Azazel as though he were a toy and proactively offered to demonstrate further.
"No, no, no. My curiosity is fully satisfied. You've already evaporated most of my lust—this is basically robbing me of the meaning of my entire life."
Azazel instantly teleported backward, widening the distance between them while frantically shaking his head.
He glanced at his black wings—and to his horror, spotted faint traces of pure white among the black. The color was unbearably glaring to him.
Purifying his sins was equivalent to stripping away his lifelong faith.
He wanted to remain fallen. He absolutely did not want to return to Heaven.
"That's a pity. I've never seen an angel fall, but I'd quite like to see a fallen angel repent and return."
Raize stood up in the void and stretched lazily, openly voicing his malicious amusement before Azazel.
Azazel wore a constipated expression. Raize smiled faintly at him, left a final remark, and then turned to stroll away through the void.
"Your curiosity is satisfied. I have no interest in anything else. If you think I'm a hidden threat to the fallen angels, you're welcome to come make my life a little more colorful."
Raize's figure vanished into the shadows of the night.
Azazel scratched his head in frustration, his emotions tangled and complex.
By displaying such targeted power, Raize clearly possessed corresponding strength and confidence.
If Raize had been weak back then, Azazel would have used any means necessary to recruit him—and if that failed, eliminate the threat.
Cruel and despicable, yes—but that was reality.
But now, he had no intention of becoming an enemy. That human youth was no longer a cub that anyone could interfere with at will.
Fortunately, Vali had ties with him. That alone made Azazel quite happy.
"Sigh… the world is getting more and more colorful. Even an old fossil like me is starting to fall behind."
Thinking about how humanity seemed to produce powerful individuals one after another in recent years, Azazel increasingly understood why the God of Bible had once favored this weak race so deeply.
Vali's friend Ikuse Tobio, the strongest human candidate Kanzaki Mitsuya, and now yet another—Raize.
In the coming era, humanity would only shine brighter.
---
The Underworld, within the castle territory of the Gremory Clan.
"You really know how to cause me trouble, Rias."
Sirzechs wore a helpless, headache-inducing expression as he looked at the utterly dejected red-haired girl before him. Standing beside him like a guard, Grayfia watched the scene with an expressionless face.
In the study-like room, Sirzechs sat behind the desk, looking at his silent sister, unsure what to say.
Scold her? There was no need anymore. Rias had already suffered an unforgettable lesson.
Fortunately, nothing serious had happened this time. Aside from enduring a painful lesson and growing somewhat, she hadn't caused any major disasters.
At this moment, Rias lowered herself before her brother and spoke sincerely.
"Brother, I know my willfulness caused you trouble, but Koneko and Yuuto…"
"Your [Knight] has returned to being human. That can be resolved. But his Sacred Gear has already been stripped. As for Koneko…"
Sirzechs naturally knew what Rias wanted to ask of him, but unfortunately, there was nothing he could do.
Kiba losing his Sacred Gear meant losing his qualifications as a peerage member. Even if he were turned back into a reincarnated devil, given his current listless state, he would likely only drag Rias down.
As for Koneko, she had already been taken back by her sister. That matter involved an old internal scandal within the devil race and could not be handled forcefully.
"…I understand, brother."
Seeing her brother's expression, Rias knew there was no hope. She lowered her head, her eyes filled with self-blame.
Because of her willfulness, she had harmed Kiba and lost Koneko. She had already paid the price.
Sirzechs knew this as well and did not blame her further.
"Brother, I'll take my leave. Please inform me if there's anything."
After speaking, Rias withdrew. She needed time alone to calm herself.
Watching his sister's dispirited back as she left, Sirzechs sighed softly, his eyes unable to hide his fatigue.
"It seems Rias—"
"This is something she must experience. Immaturity requires tempering. Protecting her blindly would only harm her."
Before Sirzechs could finish, Grayfia interrupted him, cutting off his words.
As she said, this was a trial Rias had to go through. Suffering a lesson was good—it would at least help her grow.
Sirzechs understood his wife's meaning. A fleeting bitter smile crossed his handsome, mature face as he picked up the documents on the desk and spoke quietly.
"It seems the Chiba region of Japan has become the eye of the storm. One after another, they're all gathering there. Truly a turbulent time."
The feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl, the center of the world Hellscythe, the daughter of the Emperor of Demise—Tohru—and now a human powerhouse who had grown so rapidly that even Grayfia treated him with caution: Raize Yotsuki.
After annihilating the vampire ninja faction in the human world, Raize had already entered the sights of multiple powers.
Sirzechs's friend Ajuka had also informed him that someone from the Pandevilium had gone to the human world as well—accompanied by Gabriel of the Heavenly Realm.
When Rias first went to Chiba, she encountered an otherworldly invasion crisis, which was fortunately resolved. Currently, Heaven and the Underworld were in negotiations with the otherworldly forces.
Recent intelligence indicated clear personnel movements within the Khaos Brigade, with their destination also being Japan.
"This human named Raize—aside from his own strength, the network surrounding him is far too complex."
Sirzechs lowered his head and studied the intelligence on the desk, paying special attention to Raize's deep connections with the dragon race and that existence at the center of the world.
According to information from the Underworld's vampire ninja faction, Raize was also associated with that necromancer.