Chapter 21: I Am Right Here (Patreon)

"What's happening? What was that?!"

"The barrier's been destroyed!"

Like a depth charge detonating in a placid lake, the turbulent wave of mana unleashed by the shattering of the Holy Light barrier instantly plunged the church interior into chaos.

Just a moment before, the petite, blonde twin-tailed girl had been seated calmly on the high platform at the front. Jolted by the sudden, violent tremor, she lost her footing and tumbled off. Luckily, she managed to unfurl her wings mid-air, stabilizing herself just in time to spare her small face a direct collision with the stairs.

Below the platform, from behind the rows of Roman columns flanking the steps, two figures darted out. One moved left, the other right, positioning themselves to block the red carpet that stretched towards the main entrance. They adopted combat stances, the very picture of vigilance against a formidable foe.

Leading the defense was a tall man clad in a thick overcoat and a bowler hat. His attire might evoke images of a certain gun-wielding Vatican priest, but the black wings spreading behind him clearly marked him as a Fallen Angel.

"Damn it... That's impossible! How could this happen? This church is under the protection of God's Holy Light! Is the daughter of the Gremory house trying to provoke another Great War?!"

"Who knows? Even if it was the Gremory girl, what reason would they possibly have to declare war on us now?" Behind him, a fellow Fallen Angel—a mature, blue-haired woman with a striking figure—also looked on incredulously.

There was no doubt they, the Fallen Angels, had come here intending to seize territory. But... they hadn't actually done anything yet!

They had even devised a meticulous, long-term strategy for this very purpose. The first step involved relying on that combat-crazed priest, Freed, to eliminate all the ordinary humans in the surrounding area who had already pledged their faith to the devils under the Gremory family's influence. After that, they would begin propagating their own Fallen Angel faith, aiming to draw strength from the belief they gathered.

That was merely the first phase of their long-term plan, initiated just this afternoon.

And now, with the plan barely underway, the Gremory family had already launched a full-scale assault?

Are they the kind of lunatic who, playing chess in the park, splashes scalding water on their opponent and follows up with a slap the instant they sit down, before the board's even set up? Kalawana couldn't help muttering the complaint inwardly.

Just then, the Fallen Angel Dohnaseek seemed to grasp something. He whipped his head around, looking up at the young, blonde twin-tailed girl still hovering in mid-air.

"Mittelt! Where did Raynare go?!"

"Oh... I think Sister Raynare went to check on Freed's progress with his task." The young Fallen Angel, apparently still unaware of the gravity of the situation, tapped her chin with a finger, pouting slightly as she spoke.

"After all, you know what Freed's like," Mittelt continued, "Once he 'gets to work,' he tends to lose himself completely. And this time, he took our 'Saint' out with him. If he got careless and let her escape, that would be... problematic..."

Before her words faded, a familiar voice echoed from the sky outside the church, laced with sheer terror and panic.

"Kalawana! Dohnaseek! Get out there and intercept him! Mittelt, with me! We must perform the ritual at once!"

Huh?

The young, blonde Fallen Angel looked up curiously toward the sound. An instant later, the section of the church roof she was gazing at exploded inwards. A Fallen Angel woman with long, straight black hair, clad in a scant, fetishistic outfit that barely covered the essentials, dove in frantically through the new hole. She clutched the recovered Asia under one arm, making a rough, near-crash landing on the floor below.

"S-Sister Raynare? Are you alright?!"

Seeing her elder sister figure return in such a battered state, Mittelt finally felt a surge of panic.

She had always possessed absolute confidence in Raynare's abilities. In terms of pure combat prowess, Raynare undoubtedly ranked first among their group. Despite being a Fallen Angel stripped of God's grace, she could still conjure spears of light – projectiles capable of severely wounding even a mid-level devil in a single strike. Lower-level devils, she could slaughter effortlessly.

Under normal circumstances, Raynare was considered the strongest operative directly under the Fallen Angel cadres. Yet now, she had been reduced to this pathetic condition – a possibility Mittelt had never even considered.

"I'm alright." Raynare took a couple of deep, ragged breaths, wiped her face harshly, and gestured sharply towards Kalawana and Dohnaseek. "But he's right behind me! You two, get outside and hold him off! Don't be reckless – just stall him until the ritual is finished. Then, we'll annihilate him together!"

Recalling the young man she had encountered moments before at the residence's entrance, Raynare felt a chill of residual fear wash over her.

Terrifying... simply terrifying.

She had counted on the advantage of her wings – grab Asia and fly away. Once airborne, ground-bound humans lacking flight aids or natural wings would have no way to pursue her. But Raynare never imagined he would actually attack her while she was in the air – and with a single strike, obliterate the Holy Light barrier enveloping the church from afar.

She was lucky; her flight path had been rendered erratic by high-altitude air currents. Otherwise, had that attack connected, she would have been seriously wounded, if not killed outright.

Could a human really possess such terrifying power? Raynare found it difficult to accept, but the reality was undeniable.

The only option now was to perform the ritual immediately – transplant the Sacred Gear from Asia's body into her own. While this process would inevitably kill the Sacred Gear's current owner on the spot, that no longer mattered... No, in fact, it was preferable.

It merely meant sacrificing one 'Saint'. Once she obtained that Sacred Gear, capable of healing anything, then she would be the true Saint for the Fallen Angels!

"Understood."

"Got it!"

The acknowledgments rang out almost in unison. Deep purple mana flared around both Dohnaseek and Kalawana. Their pure black, crow-like wings spread wide as they tensed, ready to launch themselves skyward to engage the enemy.

However—

"No need to search. I'm right here."

The young man's calm voice echoed through the church without warning, abruptly halting the two Fallen Angels poised for flight.

An immense, unseen pressure suffused the entire space, paralyzing everyone present, rendering them unable to move.

Cold sweat beaded on Raynare's forehead. She could clearly perceive Hanakain Fubuki's presence.

Right here. Inside the church.

Right among them.

Directly... behind her.

Hearing the young man's voice, Asia, still pinned under Raynare's arm, managed to lift her head weakly. Her voice was barely a whisper.

"Mister Hanakain..."

Despite being encircled by four Fallen Angels, Hanakain Fubuki remained utterly unfazed.

The dazzling golden aura that had previously surrounded him had vanished, like a precious sword returned to its scabbard. Moonlight streamed through the hole in the roof, draping his shoulders like silver frost. The young man lowered his gaze slightly.

"You asked me to save you, Asia. So, I came."