The half-demon and the phoenix stood opposite each other. The tension between them was growing with each passing second, as was the temperature in the cave. If the room had initially felt like a desert, now the place was more like a volcanic inferno.
— I'm not talking about winning – that's impossible for you, — the phoenix said mockingly. — So you need to impress me and try not to die in the process.
With a flap of its wings, the mythical bird sent a whirlwind of fire towards Zankoku. The half—demon didn't dodge, letting the attack catch up with him. Just like the first time, the fire couldn't harm him.
When the flames died down, Kiyoshi saw his opponent hovering in the air. The blonde thought he saw a smile on the bird's face. Another flap of its wings and fiery feathers flew towards the half—demon. The blond took out his murasame, parrying most of the attack, but several of them still pierced the guy's shoulder and leg.
— What? — Suddenly feeling pain, the half-demon hesitated and a fiery spear pierced his stomach.
— Ah-ha-ha! What's wrong with you, chick? Did you really think that I didn't have the ability to harm my kind? — The phoenix didn't stop sending out its attacks while speaking. — Naturally, I have the ability to make my fire dangerous for you. And now, — he took a deep breath, concentrating his power in his lungs, — try to survive this!
A stream of hot flame was directed at the figure hidden in the sea of fire. The resulting explosion eclipsed all previous attacks, burying their consequences in dust.
— Show yourself already. I feel that you're still alive, — after the phoenix's words, a figure soared into the air from the dust cloud. Kiyoshi watched his opponent's actions with concentration, not losing his vigilance any longer. — How curious, — he examined the half-demon's purple wings, as well as the areas of his body covered in this fire, replacing the damaged parts. — This holy flame is one of the toys of the biblical God, right?
— Yes. One of the thirteen strongest, — the blond answered calmly, not taking his eyes off the phoenix. He had already made a mistake once, underestimating his opponent and overestimating his capabilities. If he had not released his mechanism, the last attack could have cost him his life.
— Curious. You are a demon, but the holy power in the flame does not harm you and even gradually heals your wounds, — the mythical bird flew closer, examining the unusual phenomenon. — Amazing! My attacks should have completely blocked the phoenix's regeneration, but you completely replaced our flame with the fire from this artifact. This is the first time I've seen something like this!
The phoenix was no longer in the mood to fight the descendant of his kin. His attention was completely taken by this situation. In his long life, he had never seen or heard of the possibility of replacing natural fire with something else. But after much thought, he realized the reason — the Sacred Gear. The artifact of God merges with the soul of the host from birth. It was for this reason that Kiyoshi was able to combine his bloodline with the power of the holy flame of the Hymn of Incineration.
— Good. You impressed me, chick. Not only with your unusual fire, but also with your character, — the phoenix stated majestically. — Half of your internal organs and most of your body were burned by me, and you continue to move calmly. I like your attitude.
— Yeah. Thank you. It would have been even better if you hadn't tried to kill me, — the half-demon said sarcastically. — My regeneration has slowed down greatly. Without my mechanism, I would not have survived.
— You came here yourself in search of strength. If you had not survived my attacks, then you were unworthy. Survival of the strongest. It's simple, isn't it?
Kiyoshi could only remain silent in response. He himself sought out a meeting with the phoenix to strengthen himself. And then he got such a wonderful opportunity, so it was a sin to complain, but... Did this feathered bastard really want to help him from the beginning? The blond clearly felt the intent to kill from the bird. All the attacks directed at him were fatal. Only after the manifestation of the Hymn of Incineration did the phoenix calm down, becoming more friendly.
— Okay, don't frown. It's better to start strengthening you. This will help you recover faster.
— So what are you going to do? — the friendly tone of the bird made Kiyoshi even more suspicious.
— Ha! — the phoenix grinned, as if reading the guy's thoughts. — I will repeat the feat of your ancestor, allowing you to swallow my soul.
— Just like that?
— Yes. I have no reason to delay this, — the phoenix figure instantly burst into flames. — Once my body burns, then absorb the soul. But I will warn you right away: it will take time. You are already an adult, not a newborn chick, so the reconstruction of your soul requires a significant amount of time, — most of the bird's body had already burned, only the torso and head remained intact. — Finally, I want to wish you good luck, phoenix of the holy flame.
As soon as the phoenix's body disappeared, Kiyoshi took a small flame of its soul. After a short hesitation, the half-demon gave a signal to the magic circle. The next moment, Ophis appeared from the black fog near him.
—The soul of the phoenix,— Ouroboros muttered, seeing Kiyoshi.
— I'm going to work on my strengthening. Can you wake me up a day before the meeting if I don't make it in time?
— Maybe I should help you? — a snake appeared on the girl's hand. — This will significantly speed up your transformation.
— No need, — the guy refused. — It's a tempting offer, but it's not necessary. I don't have enough time to learn how to hide your aura. Blasting the power of infinity at a meeting with demons is not the best idea. We need to provoke them, not scare them, — a sly smile appeared on Zankoku's face. — Besides, it won't be so easy to destroy me now. So losing my body won't be something fatal, right?
— You're going to... — Ophis's face became shocked when she guessed the half-demon's plan.
— It will be much more plausible, — the blond said with a grin. — The main thing is to warn those who need to and everything will be fine.
— Got it, — the brunette nodded. — Even though I don't like it, I will help you.
— Thank you, Phis, — Kiyoshi said with a kind smile and put the phoenix soul into his chest.
A bright orange sphere of fire formed around the figure of the young man. Ouroboros watched the process closely, ready to intervene in case of danger. At first, nothing unusual happened, but soon purple flashes began to appear among the flames. Gradually, the holy fire replaced the phoenix flame. When the color of the cocoon changed by more than half, the magical power began to grow in it.
***
At this moment, all the angels in heaven were terrified. Heaven — their home, created by God, was overtaken by a catastrophe. There was a failure in the heavenly system, as a result of which the space became unstable. A powerful earthquake and cracks on the borders of heaven grew stronger with each second, but after three minutes everything suddenly stopped.
Michael, who was trying to prevent the catastrophe all the time, stared at the system screen in disbelief. The Hymn of Incineration, which caused multiple errors, disappeared from the list of sacred mechanisms. Seraphim was terrified. One of the thirteen Longinus capable of killing God has escaped the control of the heavens.
It wasn't just the Biblical realm that was in turmoil — the entire magical world sensed a powerful source of sacred power, but a second later it disappeared. Many decided to investigate the phenomenon. The magical trail led them to Russia, but that was all. No one was able to find the source of the powerful energy. After several days of fruitless searching, everyone gave up.
— You're such a troublemaker, — Ophis said with a grin, erecting a barrier in the cave. — Now there will be annoying bugs everywhere. Although my presence should scare them away, — with these words the brunette released a small part of her aura.
***
Kiyoshi didn't know how much time had passed, but he found himself in the cave again.
— How much time had passed? — the half-demon asked slowly, still not fully awake.
— The day after tomorrow you'll go to Hell, — Ophis said cheerfully.
— I see, — the blond simply answered, not paying attention to his friend's jokes. — Not much, — he said after checking his soul. — Only a tenth of it was able to merge during this time.
— There's nothing surprising about that, — the girl shrugged. — A complete restructuring should take at least two months, which you don't have.
— Unfortunately, that's true, — Zankoku sadly admitted. — Now the hardest part is convincing the others to use my plan.
Kiyoshi was right in his statement. It took him almost a day to get his reckless plan accepted. Amaterasu and Yasaka were irritated by the half-demon's actions and told his wives about the blond's plan in retaliation. This forced Kiyoshi to spend the rest of the day listening to reproaches and threats from the nekoshou, as well as a long and heated reconciliation between the three of them.
***
As a representative of Shinto, Zankoku was an important political figure. He could not appear in the Underworld on his own, so an escort came to Kyoto to pick him up. To the youth's surprise, the demons sent Grayfia Lucifuge. Although Sirzechs' "Queen" was a servant of the Gremory House, she was still the strongest woman in Hell.
— We have arrived, Zankoku-sama, — the silver-haired maid said, opening the door to the conference room, —The other Demon Lords are waiting for you.
— Thank you. But I already told you that you don't need to be so respectful, — the blond man reproached her, — with your strength there is no need for that.
— I cannot follow your words, — the demoness replied coldly. — As a maid, I must show respect to the delegate of the Shinto faction.
— If that is what you want,— the half-demon said helplessly and turned his attention to the people in the room. He already knew two of them, but there was one man present who was unknown to him. — Greetings to the Demon Lords, — Kiyoshi said with a smile. — I am glad that peace can be concluded between our factions. I hope the demons do not want to conflict with us anymore, otherwise after the incident with the Naberia clan, any spark could lead to irreparable consequences.
While making his provocation, Zankoku increased his perception with Senjutsu and observed the reactions of those around him. As expected of the leaders, no one's expression changed from his words, but everyone felt different emotions.
— Rest assured, Zankoku-san, — Sirzechs spoke with his usual smile, — that we also wish for peace between our factions. I hope that after watching the Rating Games, we will be able to establish friendly relations.
— That's right, Kyo-kun. Let's become allies, — Serafall blurted out, trying to hide her inner nervousness.
— There's no need to worry, Levia-chan, — the blond said kindly. — As soon as I appeared here, we can already be called allies.
— We haven't met before. My name is Ajuka Beelzebub, — the demon, who had been silent until then, spoke up. — Like the rest of my colleagues, I hope to establish peace between us.
— I am also glad to meet the genius creator of evil figures, — Kiyoshi carefully assessed the mad scientist of Hell. According to his information, Ajuka rarely pays attention to political affairs, leaving everything to Serafall and Sirzechs. The scientist was more interested in being in his laboratory, without being distracted by useless things.
— There are two hours left until the competition begins. What would you like to do during this time?
— If possible, I would like to wish good luck to my friend from your sister's retinue, Sirzechs-san.
— Then Grayfia will show you the way.
— Yes, Sirzechs-sama, — the maid bowed to her master and turned to Kiyoshi. — Please follow me, Zankoku-sama.
After walking through the long and winding corridors for ten minutes, Kiyoshi reached the Gremory heiress's room. After knocking, the two of them entered the room.
— Grayfia? — Rias exclaimed in surprise. — What happened? Why are you here and... — at that moment, she saw a familiar face behind the maid. — What do you want?
— Kiyoshi! — Noticing her lover, Akeno threw herself into his arms with a smile.
— Don't pay attention to me, Rias-san. I came to cheer up my friend, — no longer paying attention to the red-haired girl and Hyodo's stupid statements, the half-demon focused his attention on the brunette in his arms. — What's wrong with you? We haven't seen each other for a little less than a month, and you're clinging to me like it's been a year.
Akeno ignored the guy's teasing and simply enjoyed his warmth.
— It may have been a few weeks, but for me it's an eternity, — Akeno said pouting, feeling the familiar stroking of her hair.
— What will happen if we part for much longer?
— I don't know, but I'll miss you a lot, — Himejima said sadly, burying her face in the blond's chest. Suddenly, she felt a warm breath near her ear.
— I'm here to wish you good luck in battle, and also to tell you something, — Kiyoshi kept his voice low so that only Akeno could hear him. — If something happens, you can always count on help. And remember: I'm a phoenix. I'm not that easy to kill.
Before pulling away, the half-demon bit his friend's earlobe, causing her to cry out in surprise. Looking at the pouting and blushing girl, Kiyoshi only laughed. He had achieved his goal — to distract her from his words. Now, as long as nothing happens, she won't remember them.
— With that, I'll leave you. I wish you all good luck in this game. Try your best.