"Huff! Huff!"
On the outskirts of Kuoh Town, two figures chased each other, one after the other.
The figure in front was a petite girl with shoulder-length silver hair and a face as delicate as a doll.
She was one of Rias's servants, Toujou Koneko.
With every stride, Koneko easily cut through the air.
"Hey there, little Devil up ahead, you can't escape from Freed-sama."
Behind her, a man dressed in priest's robes with white hair wore a deeply twisted smile: "So can't you just die nicely?"
Glancing back at Freed, Koneko gritted her teeth slightly.
She had come here to clean up a large number of Cursed Spirits that had appeared nearby.
But right after finishing the fight, before she could recover her spent magic power, this lunatic had targeted her.
"You're a Church Exorcist, right? Attacking me like this... is the Church looking for a war?"
Koneko ran while speaking in her usual expressionless voice.
"So what if it is?"
A sickly smile appeared on Freed's face.
"Freed-sama is a Fallen Exorcist. When I see filthy Devils like you, of course I have to kill them all."
As he spoke, his speed increased even more, drawing closer to Koneko.
"..."
Koneko fell silent, struggling to control her legs which felt like lead.
She didn't have much magic power left.
At this rate, it was only a matter of time before he caught up.
Although she had tried to cast Teleportation Magic earlier...
This guy was very experienced in dealing with Devils and wouldn't give her the chance.
She tried to use her phone to call for help, but there was no signal out in this wilderness.
So she could only squeeze out every ounce of strength, hoping to reach the outskirts of town.
But just then, she stumbled. Her magic power was finally completely exhausted.
An unprecedented wave of weakness washed over her body, and her speed dropped drastically.
"Oh, my cute little Devil seems to be out of steam."
Freed sneered, pulling a hilt from his robe.
The next instant,
With a clang, a sharp blade extended from the hilt, and pure Holy Power covered the blade.
'Is this where I die?'
Feeling the sharp killing intent behind her, Koneko thought.
Whoosh!
But at that moment, lightning flashed before her eyes.
Thump!
A dull sound echoed as Koneko crashed into a warm embrace.
'This familiar smell?'
Koneko blinked and looked up.
A pair of crimson eyes came into view.
"A... Ayato, watch out, behind you is a Fallen Exorcist."
After speaking, as if losing all her strength, she leaned her body completely against Ayato.
"So that's it."
Ayato understood, using one arm to hold Koneko, preventing her from falling to the ground.
Koneko's face flushed slightly: "Put me down. Holding me isn't good for fighting."
"Don't worry, it's fine."
"..."
Koneko blinked, not quite processing this.
'Since when was Ayato this arrogant?'
"What do I see? That filthy aura... another Devil?"
Looking at Ayato, Freed's eyes widened, a flash of sickness crossing his face.
"This is wonderful, wonderful! The Lord's blessing, allowing me to rid the world of two evil beings in a single day."
The instant his words fell, Freed lunged forward.
Hum!
Holy Power rippled.
A chilling aura rushed towards them.
The terrifying wind pressure tore apart the ground around them.
The brilliant holy sword was already swinging down towards Ayato's head.
"Watch out!"
Koneko cried out, trying to block, but only felt waves of weakness.
She could only watch helplessly as the sword got closer and closer to Ayato.
But the expected scene of Ayato being split in two did not appear.
Ding!
The sound of a sharp impact rang out.
The holy sword covered in Holy Power was caught firmly in Ayato's hand.
Hum!
The sword vibrated rapidly, Holy Power pulsing, trying to cut through Ayato's palm, but it couldn't budge him in the slightest.
"What?"
Koneko's small mouth dropped open.
'This was Holy Power, power originating from angels.'
'By all logic, it should be a Devil's bane. Yet Ayato had just blocked it with his bare hand?'
"How is this possible?"
A flash of horror crossed Freed's twisted face.
"Indeed, this level of Holy Power can no longer threaten me."
Ignoring Freed, Ayato murmured to himself.
Although his body was still that of a Devil, the weakness to Holy Power had completely disappeared due to the transformation by Origin Magic.
From now on, so-called Holy Power was just another attribute of magic power to him.
"Damn it, what kind of monster are you?"
Tugging a few times but unable to pull out his sword, Freed made an immediate decision and leaped backward.
"Trying to run?"
Ayato's expression was indifferent as he slightly raised one hand.
Hum!
A magic circle immediately appeared in the sky, rolling thunder shaking the world.
The next moment,
A blue bolt of lightning descended from the heavens, carrying a grand, magnificent, and utterly destructive force as it crashed down.
This lightning seemed capable of piercing through the sky itself.
"What kind of magic is this?"
Freed's body stiffened, every cell in his body trembling.
He didn't even have time to make a move before his body was devoured by the lightning.
Crack! Crack!
The ground crumbled continuously, leaving devastation in all directions.
Amidst the thick smoke, only a large crater remained... and a charred corpse.
"Th... this..."
Koneko's usually expressionless face was completely stunned.
Her eyes widened slightly, filled with undisguised shock.
'This was Ayato?'
'How was he different from how I remembered?'
'The power of this Lightning Magic... seemed to have surpassed even Akeno-senpai's.'
'But how was that possible?'
'Akeno-senpai used Ultra-class Magic.'
'Magic said to be capable of power on par with a Satan!'
"Alright, stop overthinking."
Gently tapping Koneko's head, Ayato smiled kindly.
He could guess what she was thinking.
'But if she knew I had Origin Magic, which was countless times more powerful, she'd probably be even more shocked.'