DW DXD Chapter 102 Karasuba’s First Date Part 3 (Patreon)

Northern Mountain Range, Titan Fall's Hidden Mountain Laboratory

The pair continued deeper into the vast artificial cavern, their echoing footsteps breaking the heavy silence of the labyrinthine laboratory carved into the heart of the mountain.

The further they ventured into the subterranean complex, the more deeply unsettling the atmosphere became.

Rows of shattered iron monster cages lined the stone walls, many of their thick bars bent violently outward as if whatever had once been imprisoned inside had fought with agonizing desperation to claw its way out. Other cages still contained the lifeless remains of hulking beasts, mutated wolves, scaled deep-sea reptiles, and strange magical chimeras that Issei had never seen. Their quiet bodies bore deep, surgical scars, glowing artificial runes, and the grotesque signs of countless brutal experiments.

The laboratory itself looked as though it had been abandoned in a panic-stricken rush.

Scattered reams of research parchment littered the dusty floorboards, covered in dense, frantic magical formulas, detailed anatomical sketches, and forbidden alchemical diagrams. Strange black runes glowed faintly across dismantled operating tables that were permanently stained with dried blood. Broken glass containment tubes, discarded syringes filled with glowing compounds, shattered Lacrimas, and twisted surgical instruments lay discarded everywhere amidst the rubble.

The heavy, metallic scent of blood and chemicals lingered thick in the frigid air.

Issei's expression steadily darkened, his jaw clenching tightly as his eyes swept across the horrifying scene. "...What the hell..." He muttered under his breath, his voice laced with growing anger.

He had gone into this expecting a typical Dark Guild hideout. He had expected illegal monster trafficking, maybe a rogue stash of stolen goods. But this... This place was a slaughterhouse masquerading as a research facility.

His fists tightened so hard his knuckles turned white. "...They were actively experimenting on all of these creatures... torturing them..."

Even Ddraig's normally boisterous, carefree voice carried an unusual, heavy seriousness within his mind. (Partner... whoever built this place wasn't interested in simply taming or raising monsters. They were probably manufacturing biological weapons.)

Beside him, Karasuba swept her sharp gaze over the ruined equipment before clicking her tongue in visible annoyance. "...Disgusting," she spat flatly.

Issei glanced over at her, mildly surprised to see a scowl on her face. "Wait... you actually care about all this?"

She shook her head, giving him a look as if he had asked a stupid question. "No." A cold, sharp smirk spread across her lips as her grey eyes flashed dangerously. "I'm disgusted because these cowards ran away before I could slice them to pieces."

Issei stared at her for a second before letting out a dry, helpless laugh. "...That's... very you, Karasuba."

She merely shrugged her shoulders casually, resting a hand on the pommel of her blade. "What? If you're going to go through the trouble of becoming villains, at least have the basic dignity to stay and die fighting."

Despite the horrifying, grim surroundings, Issei couldn't help letting out a soft sigh, shaking his head. ‘Yep... that's definitely Karasuba for you.’

—--------------------------

The deeper they advanced into the labyrinthine facility, the more intense the resistance became. Dark mages burst frantically from hidden side passageways. Mutated, frantic beasts leaped from rock formations. Stone gargoyles dropped like lead weights from the ceilings.

None of them lasted more than a few seconds.

A fire-coated punch from Issei shattered a charging ogre's jaw, sending the massive creature reeling backward before he followed up with a blazing spinning kick that launched it straight through a heavy laboratory wall.

Beside him, Karasuba became an uncatchable black blur. Her nodachi flashed multiple times in the dim torchlight. By the time she stopped moving, half a dozen dark mages collapsed simultaneously, fine crimson lines appearing across their bodies before they crashed heavily to the stone floor.

Neither of them even slowed their rapid pace. Within minutes... the final wave arrived.

A heavy squad of armored guards charged with coordinated battle cries, while several monstrous, scale-covered serpents slithered rapidly across the ceiling above.

Issei stopped, inhaling deeply as his chest expanded. "Fire Dragon's Roar!!" A roaring torrent of crimson Dragon Slayer flames erupted through the entire corridor. The white-hot blast consumed everything before him, incinerating stone, steel, and shadow alike.

When the blinding inferno finally faded... nothing remained standing. Only charred stone walls, glowing melted armor, and absolute silence.

Then, the sudden quiet felt... wrong.

The endless, chaotic sounds of battle disappeared instantly, as though someone had flipped a switch. No running footsteps. No shouting guards. No snarling monsters. Only burning debris, the occasional crackle of lingering dragon flames, and the slow, rhythmic drip-drop of water echoing somewhere deep within the cavern's recesses.

Issei slowly lowered his smoking fists, his expression grim. "..." He carefully scanned every dark tunnel branching away from the central corridor, but detected no incoming threats.

Karasuba frowned in profound disappointment. "That's it?" She let out a dramatic, long-suffering sigh, resting her long nodachi casually over her shoulder. "Tch. So many weaklings... I barely got warmed up."

Issei didn't answer immediately. His instincts were screaming at him. Something felt entirely off. "No..." He narrowed his brown eyes, gazing down the long, empty hall. "This was way too easy."

Karasuba glanced sideways at him, her grey eyes glinting. "What do you mean?"

"Look around. This laboratory is enormous." His gaze swept across the massive underground complex carved deep into the mountain bedrock. "There should've been hundreds of high-level personnel stationed here. They had enough space to house massive experimental beasts, full-scale research laboratories, barracks, storage vaults... even heavy workshops."

He frowned tightly, folding his arms across his chest. "We've barely fought a fraction of what a base this size requires, and none of them put up a real fight." He muttered quietly, "...If these people really managed to defeat or capture an S-Rank Mage like Aria..." He looked up. "...then where are the ones actually capable of doing it?"

The answer came directly from his wrist. Sherri's calm, precise voice echoed clearly from the interface of the Dimensional Watch. "Master. I believe I have reached a definitive conclusion."

"What is it, Sherri?" Issei asked, bringing the watch closer.

"My long-range sensory scans indicate that magical signatures throughout the inner mountain chambers have been rapidly decreasing over the past ten minutes." A brilliant holographic map materialized above the watch, displaying a 3D layout of the cavern network. Multiple glowing red dots blinked one after another before disappearing entirely from the mountain's deeper exits. "I believe the facility's core personnel are executing a full-scale evacuation."

Issei's expression hardened into pure steel. "They've been throwing disposable guards and monsters at us just to buy time for the leaders to pack up and run..."

Karasuba's sharp grin widened, her disappointment vanishing in an instant as her bloodlust flared to life once more. "So the real prey is running, is it?" She eagerly tightened her grip on her weapon's hilt. "Now that makes things interesting."

—-----------------------------

The pair broke into a run. Their footsteps thundered through the abandoned corridors as they pushed toward the heart of the mountain.

But then they stopped. The air suddenly became heavy. A massive crater covered the floor ahead. The stone wall had completely caved inward, fractured by an impact of unimaginable force.

At the center, someone was embedded within it. Or rather what remained of them.

Aria. The former leader of Phantom Lord's Element Four. His body had been crushed so violently against the wall that the surrounding rock had caved around him. Cracks spiderwebbed across the cavern, stained dark with dried blood. His clothes were ripped beyond recognition, and there wasn't a single sign that he had been given a chance to fight back after the final blow.

The devastation spoke for itself. Whatever had struck him hadn't merely defeated an S-Rank Mage. It had obliterated him.

Silence settled over the chamber.

Even Karasuba's usual grin faded slightly as she studied the sheer force behind the impact.

Issei slowly approached the fallen mage. He knelt beside the ruined remains, lowering his head. Despite Aria once being his enemy… No one deserved an end like this. He closed his eyes for a brief moment. "...May your soul find peace."

After a few silent seconds, Issei rose to his feet, his brow heavy with a grim, focused intensity.

Karasuba glanced at him before looking back down at the corpse at their feet. "I don't particularly care who he was," her grey eyes shifted toward the endless darkness stretching into the lower tunnels. "But..." A savage, predatory smile slowly spread across her sharp face once more. "...whatever did that... must be extraordinarily strong."

As if answering her challenge—

THOOM.

The entire mountain violently shuddered. Rocks, dust, and heavy stalactites rained down from the cavern ceiling. Another colossal, earth-shattering footstep echoed from somewhere deep beneath the foundation of the laboratory.

THOOM.

Issei's eyes narrowed, his posture dropping into a combat stance. "...It's coming."

BOOOOOOM!!

The massive, reinforced stone doors at the far end of the laboratory, along with the entire top half of the cavern archway, were completely shattered into a million flying fragments.

A blinding, unnatural green light flooded the vast underground cavern as the Earth Titan slowly strode out from the dust cloud. Standing a towering fifteen meters tall, a brilliant, pulsing emerald core burned furiously in the center of its massive chest. Its terrifying body was composed of jagged layers of mountain stone, compressed granite, and dark obsidian. It was a creature of pure, emotionless destruction; every heavy footstep sent violently localized tremors rippling through the rock, causing the entire mountain range to tremble.

"Well, well, well..."

A mocking, arrogant voice echoed over the roaring tremors, taunting them from above. "Once again, you persistent Fairy Tail pests have come to foil our grand design..."

Issei and Karasuba snapped their gazes upward, landing on a cloaked man standing proudly upon the left shoulder of the Earth Titan. He wore a heavy, dark tunic and a sinister, bone-white mask that obscured his features entirely.

“It’s you!” Issei’s eyes widened in instant recognition. Images of the Sunflower Quest flashed through his mind, the frantic swarm of monsters that had threatened to overrun the entire coastal town, and the mysterious eye projection that had declared themselves to be Titan Fall. 

Beside him, Karasuba remembered it clearly as well, her mind returning to the battle where she had carved through that colossal T-Rex.

The masked man's shoulders shook with dark amusement as he picked up on Issei's reaction. "Ah, so you remember me! Excellent! I am Commander Valt of Titan Fall! Last time, you managed to humiliate me and shatter my mission... but today, I possess the power to crush you into dust!"

Without another word, the battle erupted.

The Earth Titan raised its colossal right arm, winding back and throwing a lightning-fast straight punch, a strike with speed that should have been physically impossible for a construct of its massive size. The air pressure alone whistled violently through the chamber.

Issei and Karasuba reacted on pure instinct, leaping in opposite directions as the giant fist pulverized the ground where they had stood a microsecond prior. Issei landed heavily on a rock ledge, sweating slightly; it was far too close, and he definitely didn't want to find out what would happen if he tried to stand his ground and block a direct blow like that.

Meanwhile, Karasuba's grin became absolutely psychotic. "Now THIS is what I wanted!!" she roared with pure delight.

In a flash of sheer speed, she completely vanished, reappearing directly on the Earth Titan's forearm. She swung her nodachi in a blinding blur of silver arcs, slashing the construct half a dozen times in a fraction of a second. But despite her immense blade force, her sharp steel skittered off the dense stone without leaving so much as a scratch.

The Earth Titan casually raised its massive left hand, sweeping it backward to swat her off like an annoying fly.

Seeing the massive stone hand sweeping directly toward her, Issei summoned the Boosted Gear to his left arm.

(BOOST!!)

"Fire Dragon’s Roar!!" With a single boost powering his lungs, Issei breathed a roaring, massive torrent of Dragon Slaying Fire directly at the Titan's face. The brilliant red inferno engulfed the giant's head; while the heat did no visible damage to the ancient stone, the sheer blinding force caught the Titan's attention, causing it to halt its strike and draw its gaze back to Issei, allowing Karasuba to leap clear of the backhand just in time.

At the exact same moment, Commander Valt retaliated from atop the shoulder. Waving his hands, he invoked his bone magic, manifesting jagged, lance-like bone shards and firing them down at the pair like a lethal volley of arrows.

(BOOST!)

Issei brought up his red gauntlet while Karasuba spun her blade in a whirlwind circle, effortlessly deflecting the razor-sharp bone projectiles, sending them shattering harmlessly against the cavern floor.

The battle then rapidly intensified. The Earth Titan began unleashing more of its power, stomping its feet to generate continuous, violent earthquakes. The bedrock groaned under the pressure, and the cavern roof finally gave way, the entire mountain began to cave in on top of them.

(BOOST!!) 

Now, the duo was forced to fight on two fronts: dodging the Earth Titan's pulverizing strikes and Commander Valt's bone magic from above, while simultaneously smashing apart massive, falling boulders raining down on their heads. Karasuba cleaved a falling ten-ton rock in half, while Issei shattered another with a fire-imbued upper-cut, rolling out of the way just as the Titan's foot stomped into the rubble.

Realizing they were going to be buried alive if this dragged on, Issei planted his boots into the shifting floor, focusing every ounce of his magic into the gauntlet on his arm.

(BOOST!)

The emerald jewel on his gauntlet flared with blinding, high-density magic.

"Karasuba, get ready!!" Issei roared, aiming his gauntlet straight up at the collapsing cavern ceiling. "DRAGON SHOT!!"

A massive, concentrated blast of red dragon energy shot upward like a beam of destruction. The beam tore through the thousands of tons of rock above, vaporizing the entire top half of the mountain in a magnificent, blinding explosion of red light and roaring heat.

(RESET!)

The dust cleared, revealing the clear, open blue sky above the mountain peak. The oppressive, suffocating ceiling was gone, along with the threat of being crushed beneath a cave-in.

Issei exhaled a long cloud of hot air, a confident smirk returning to his face as he rolled his shoulders under the open sunlight. "Much better. Now we have plenty of room to stretch our legs."

The pair then exchanged a single, silent glance, instantly reaching the exact same conclusion. This monster was no simple golem, it was a genuine threat. The carefree, relaxed expressions vanished from their faces, replaced by pure, focused intensity.

Issei slowly rolled his shoulders, taking a long, deep breath as his brow furrowed. Swirling red Dragon Slaying fire erupted around his body like a blazing inferno, the sheer intensity of the heat instantly evaporating the dust coating the shattered battlefield. At the same time, he channeled Reinforcement Magecraft through every muscle, strengthening his physical frame from the inside out while circulating his Ki rapidly throughout his limbs. Veins bulged slightly beneath his skin as his physical capabilities climbed to a superhuman apex.

(BOOST!!)

The familiar, deep voice echoed from the gauntlet as the emerald gem on his left arm blazed with light, sending a massive surge of power surging through his system.

Beside him, Karasuba’s aura shifted entirely. Dark, writhing black flames completely engulfed the long blade of her nodachi, crackling with sharp, suffocating intent. Her grey eyes burned with a razor-sharp focus, her sheer sword intent manifesting as a visible, distorted pressure around her body. It became so dense that spiderwebbing cracks materialized in the bedrock beneath her boots.

The sudden, sheer increase in their output wasn't lost on Commander Valt, whose bone mask tilted in alarm atop the Titan's shoulder.

"So you've decided to stop playing around," Valt sneered, a wide grin spreading beneath his mask despite his underlying tension. "Excellent!"

The Earth Titan answered with a deafening roar that shook the surrounding mountain peaks, the emerald core embedded within its stone chest pulsing with blinding light.

BOOOOOM!!

Its colossal fist came crashing down like a meteor, shattering the ground and detonating a massive crater into the mountain.

Both Fairy Tail mages vanished before the strike even made contact.

Karasuba appeared first. Like a black phantom, she sprinted straight up the Titan's massive forearm, her speed almost impossible for the human eye to track. "Too slow!!" Her nodachi flashed, a trailing streak of black fire following her swing. Unlike her earlier attempts... a deep, jagged slash burst across the Titan's granite forearm. Chunks of enchanted stone exploded outward, crashing onto the rubble below.

Commander Valt's smug expression faltered instantly. "...What?!"

Karasuba landed gracefully on the creature's opposing shoulder before launching herself into the air again, a whirlwind of dark steel. Each strike carved significantly deeper than the last. For the first time, the Earth Titan was effectively "bleeding" as glowing fragments of magical crystal and pulverized stone rained down in a heavy shower.

Meanwhile, Issei lunged forward, closing the distance in a fraction of a second. Dragon Slayer flames completely enveloped both of his fists as he leaped high into the mountain air, drawing back his right arm.

"Fire Dragon's—" He drove his fist straight into the Titan's knee joint with terrifying force. "IRON FIST!!"

CRACK!!

The brutal impact sent deep, spiderwebbing fractures racing across the enormous leg. The Titan staggered backward a heavy step, its balance broken.

Almost simultaneously, a flash of black fire cut across the construct's thigh. Karasuba glided past, her black-flame-enveloped blade slicing deep, gouging cuts straight through the creature's stone hide.

Commander Valt's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. "The Earth Titan is actually... being pushed back?!"

The Earth Titan retaliated instantly, its colossal left hand sweeping sideways like a localized landslide.

(BOOST!!)

Issei crossed his arms just in time as the massive stone palm slammed directly into him. He was blasted backward through several ruined laboratory walls, his boots plowing deep trenches into the earth before he finally ground to a halt.

"...Tch." Issei rubbed his forearms, grimacing as smoke rose from his skin. "That's got some serious power behind it..."

High above, Karasuba ducked effortlessly beneath another sweeping strike, her blade flashing as she cleanly severed several colossal stone fingers, causing fragments to explode into the air.

The Earth Titan roared, a sound like grinding tectonic plates and stomped its foot violently, triggering its earth magic. Towering stone pillars burst upward from the cracked ground, massive boulders were hurled through the air like cannonballs, and jagged stalactites ripped free from the canyon walls, raining down from every direction.

The battlefield instantly transformed into a deadly, chaotic obstacle course. Heavy stone projectiles slammed directly into them, hurling Issei into another stone ruin and sending Karasuba skidding across the rocky terrain, detonating clouds of dust.

Commander Valt threw his head back, laughing hysterically. "Hahaha! Crushed already?!"

(BOOST!)

The dust cloud suddenly erupted in a blinding flash of red dragon fire as Issei burst through a shattered boulder completely unharmed, alongside Karasuba. "Not even close!"

Issei propelled himself forward using explosive bursts of Dragon Slayer Fire from his soles, weaving effortlessly between flying rocks before punching straight through a five-ton stone pillar.

Nearby, Karasuba danced through the falling debris with sadistic grace. She spun elegantly beneath a falling stalactite, slicing it into dozens of harmless fragments before it hit the ground. "Hahaha!" Her wild laughter echoed through the valley. "This is actually getting fun!"

"Bone Magic—" Commander Valt summoned hundreds of razor-sharp bone spears behind his back, his eyes burning with frustration. "Lance Barrage!!"

He unleashed a lethal rain of hardened bone from above. Several jagged bone blades zipped past the pair, nearly impaling Issei’s shoulder and grazing Karasuba's cheek, but they wove through the high-density barrage without breaking stride.

"Cover me, Ashikabi!" Karasuba barked, leaping backward to perch upon a high ridge.

(BOOST!!)

"On it!" Issei shouted.

He drew the Titan's full rage by blasting continuous Dragon Fire straight into its face, unleashing a relentless barrage of fiery punches and kicks. Each strike forced the construct to focus entirely on him, while Issei casually deflected the waves of bone magic Commander Valt desperately hurled down to support it.

Standing on the high ledge, Karasuba drew her nodachi back, closing her eyes for a single split second as she concentrated every ounce of her overflowing sword intent into the dark steel. The dark flames condensed into a singular, razor-thin line of pure annihilation.

"Now!" Opening her eyes, she swung downward with terrifying force. “Heavy Fallen Slash!”

A colossal arc of black energy tore through the sky. The Earth Titan’s massive left arm was cleanly severed at the shoulder, crashing to the mountain floor and shattering into a pile of lifeless boulders.

Commander Valt's triumphant grin completely vanished. "...Impossible..."

Karasuba landed lightly beside Issei, a savage, bloodthirsty smirk on her face as she flicked her blade. "Heh. Looks like we win."

But then, the air grew heavy.

The severed arm dissolved into countless floating fragments as the entire mountain range began to violently tremble. Every nearby rock, every broken wall, and every chunk of shattered granite lifted off the ground, floating in mid-air.

The Earth Titan's emerald core pulsed violently as the floating stones rushed toward its missing shoulder. Within seconds, an entirely new, massive arm had reconstructed itself. Not only that, but every crack Issei had made and every cut Karasuba had carved completely vanished. Its damaged armor became noticeably thicker, dark obsidian plates emerging over previously exposed granite.

The Earth Titan slammed its newly regenerated fist against its chest, its emerald core pulsing with a brighter, far more aggressive hue. It then lunged toward them again, faster, harder, and visibly adapting to their combat patterns.

Issei snapped his head back as a stone fist nearly took his head off, the wind pressure alone cutting the air. "What the hell?! It just completely healed!"

Ddraig's deep voice boomed inside Issei's mind, urgent and severe. (Partner! It isn't just regenerating its body... it's evolving and improving! Every attack you land is teaching it how to densify its armor and counter your speed!)

Issei frowned tightly. "What?"

"Master!" Sherri’s voice chimed in instantly from the Dimensional Watch. "My diagnostic scans confirm Ddraig's analysis. The magical signature of this construct is operating on the exact same adaptive principles as the final creature you faced at the Tower of Heaven!"

The words struck Issei like a lightning bolt, his eyes widening in realization. ‘The giant Red Knight!’ He vividly remembered that absolute nightmare of a monster, a foe so absurdly durable and endlessly evolving that it took both him and Natsu unlocking new powers just to break it down.

Commander Valt burst into triumphant laughter from atop the monster's shoulder. "Hahaha! Now you understand! The Earth Titan was engineered using Titan Fall's absolute pinnacle resources! The longer you fight it, the stronger it becomes!"

The Titan roared again, its magical aura exploding outward. The bedrock beneath their boots cracked under the sheer pressure.

Issei stared directly at the brilliant emerald crystal embedded deep within its chest, narrowing his eyes. "...No." A memory from that brutal battle surfaced, the Red Etherion Lacrima Knight possessed one singular, critical flaw. "The core!"

Karasuba glanced sideways at him, her blade held low. "You figured something out?"

"The jewel!" Issei pointed directly toward the glowing emerald in the center of the Titan's chest. "That's its heart! If we don't obliterate that specific core before it adapts any further, we're gonna run out of stamina! It isn't as strong as the Red Knight yet, but it will be if we drag this out!"

Karasuba's wicked grin returned instantly, her grey eyes flashing with excitement. "So..." She slowly rolled her neck, producing a series of sharp cracks. "...we just have to cut straight through its chest."

"Exactly. Now I just need to get serious." Issei smirked, crossing his arms before his chest as he tapped directly into the deepest reservoir of his dragon soul.

[WELSH DRAGON: BALANCE BREAKER!!]

A blinding pillar of crimson magical energy erupted into the open sky. The emerald jewel of the Boosted Gear blazed brilliantly as sleek, gleaming red scaled armor materialized from the gauntlet, enveloping Issei from head to toe. Bright green jewels flared along his chest plate, boots, and gauntlets, and powerful dragon wings snapped open behind him with a thunderous flap, kicking up a gale-force wind.

Commander Valt instinctively took a terrified step backward atop the Titan's shoulder, his knees trembling under the sheer pressure. "...That armor?!"

Karasuba looked over at Issei's fully armored form, her smirk widening with genuine approval. "Heh." She rested her dark-flamed nodachi over her shoulder. "Just don't steal my prey, Ashikabi."

Issei laughed, fiery red thrusters igniting on his back as dragon fire roared from his armor's vents. "Only if you can keep up, Karasuba!"

Even through his bone mask, Commander Valt's voice carried unmistakable unease. "So that's the legendary armor that was able to fight on an equal footing against the Red Lacrima Etherion Knight..." He swallowed hard, nervously wondering if the Earth Titan could truly adapt fast enough to handle such monstrous power.

The Earth Titan, however, showed no hesitation. It roared, a sound like grinding tectonic plates, as its freshly evolved obsidian-and-granite arms swept together like massive, closing jaws to intercept them. But the pair was far too fast.

Issei ignited his thrusters, executing a sharp, angular mid-air turn that drew both giant hands toward him. Crossing his gauntlets, he channeled a massive surge of power.

[BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!!]

"FIRE DRAGON'S ROARING DIVE!!"

Wrapped in a colossal drill of red dragon flames, Issei slammed directly into the Titan's right palm. The explosive impact blew through the reinforced stone, blasting a gaping hole clean through the construct's hand and forcing its arm outward.

"Now, Karasuba!!" Issei yelled through his helmet's visor.

Through the opening Issei created, Karasuba emerged like an apparition of death, descending straight down toward the Titan's chest. Her grey eyes were cold, her nodachi completely engulfed in dense, crackling black flames of pure sword intent.

"Don't ignore me, you overgrown pile of rocks!" Karasuba barked, her voice echoing with sadistic glee. "BLACK FEATHER SLICE!!"

She delivered a lightning-fast, vertical diagonal slash straight across the Earth Titan's torso. The black-flame arc carved a massive, smoldering trench deep into the heavy obsidian armor covering its chest, exposing the pulsing emerald core beneath.

"NO! PROTECT THE CORE!!" Valt shrieked, desperately summoning a dense wall of jagged bone spikes to impale Karasuba mid-air.

Karasuba didn't even flinch. "Annoying fly!" With a flick of her wrist, she spun her nodachi, completely pulverizing Valt's bone wall into harmless dust, though the momentary distraction prevented her from landing the killing blow on the gem itself as she had to move back.

The Earth Titan's core flared violently with a sickening green light. The surrounding rock began to warp, obsidian plates sliding together to seal the gap Karasuba had just carved open. The construct then immediately slammed both fists into the ground. Gigantic walls of rock erupted upward, surrounding Issei and Karasuba inside a rapidly forming stone prison. At the same time, dozens of enormous stone spikes burst toward them from every direction.

Commander Valt laughed hysterically. "Let's see you escape that!"

Issei simply smiled beneath his helmet. "You've got to be kidding me."

Even more Dragon Slayer fire exploded from the vents on his armor. Using the thrusters on his back, he shot upward like a red missile, smashing straight through the stone ceiling before it could fully close.

Karasuba didn't even bother dodging. She simply swung her nodachi, sending a crescent wave of black sword intent erupting from her blade. The entire stone prison split neatly into dozens of clean cubes before collapsing around her as she casually stepped through the falling debris.

Commander Valt gritted his teeth. "Earth Titan!"

The Earth Titan roared, its emerald core glowing brighter than ever. Suddenly, the ground surrounding Issei liquefied. A gigantic stone hand erupted beneath him, trying to grab him from below. Another emerged beside Karasuba. Then another, and another. Within seconds, dozens of colossal stone hands reached from beneath the earth, attempting to crush the pair like insects.

"They just keep coming!" Issei shouted.

Karasuba grinned wildly. "Good!"

She leaped gracefully from one hand to another, slicing wrists apart faster than they could regenerate. Every slash scattered chunks of enchanted rock across the battlefield.

[BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!!]

Meanwhile, Issei accelerated. His wings roared, flames bursting behind him as he zigzagged between grasping stone fingers before driving both fists into one giant palm. The entire arm exploded into rubble. Without losing momentum, he began charging straight through every fist in his path, obliterating all of them into fine dust.

It was then that the Earth Titan suddenly changed tactics as its emerald core blazed brilliantly. The Titan spread both arms wide, and every mountain surrounding the battlefield began to violently tremble.

"...What now?" Issei muttered, slowing his flight. Then, he realized.

Entire cliffsides began breaking apart, hundreds... no, thousands of boulders ripped themselves free from neighboring mountains, floating into the sky. An entire mountain range's worth of stone hovered above them like a massive, apocalypse-level meteor shower.

Commander Valt laughed maniacally from his high perch. "Guess we'll just bury you beneath the entire mountain range!"

With one sudden motion, the Titan thrust both hands downward. The floating mountain descended. The blue sky disappeared beneath a crushing avalanche of stone.

Karasuba looked upward, her nodachi resting on her shoulder. "...That's a lot of rock."

Issei laughed under his helmet. "Yeah. Let's punch a hole right through it."

[BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!!]

Both launched themselves skyward simultaneously.

"Black Crescent!!" Karasuba sent a thousand flying, black-flaming sword beams slicing through the sky, cleanly dicing thousands of incoming rocks into harmless pebbles.

Issei followed immediately after, concentrating every ounce of accumulated dragon energy into his gauntlet. "DRAGON SHOT!!"

A colossal beam of scarlet energy erupted from Issei's gauntlet, piercing the sky.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

The entire sky exploded red. Thousands upon thousands of massive boulders were vaporized or cleaved apart in a single instant. The resulting shockwave flattened the surrounding mountain ridge and blew away the clouds.

Back inside the cratered battlefield, Commander Valt shielded himself frantically from the hurricane-force winds. "...Impossible..."

Thick dust filled the sky, followed by an eerie, sudden silence.

Then, a red blur emerged from the smoke, Issei, flying straight toward the Earth Titan's chest like a comet.

"So fast—!" Valt shouted in sheer terror.

The Titan immediately crossed both colossal arms over its torso to defend its core.

"NOW!" Issei yelled.

Karasuba vanished. They had never intended to attack from the front. Appearing behind the Titan's neck, she sprinted across its stone shoulders, her blade glowing with dense black flames.

Commander Valt finally realized the trap. "They're trying to split our attention!" He immediately fired hundreds of razor-sharp bone spears toward Karasuba.

She ignored every single one of them. Several jagged bone lances pierced her shoulder and leg, blood splattering into the air, but she didn't slow down for even a fraction of a second. She only smiled wider, her eyes gleaming with dark ecstasy.

"Pain means nothing!" She roared, launching herself into the air.

At the exact same moment, Issei struck the Titan's crossed arms with a devastating, rocket-fueled flying kick, stopping Valt from attacking Karasuba further.

BOOOOOOM!!

The Titan's guard opened just enough. Karasuba appeared directly above the exposed emerald core, raising her sword high with both hands. "...I've got you."

Suddenly, the Earth Titan's emerald eye sockets flashed violently. Its rapid evolution had triggered once again!

From its upper back and shoulders erupted dozens of writhing, dark obsidian tendrils—each one tipped with razor-sharp, crystalline blades. They shot toward Karasuba from every direction at point-blank range, too many to dodge, too close to block.

Issei's eyes widened in sheer panic beneath his helmet. "KARASUBA!!"

Activating his thrusters at maximum output, Issei shot across the gap like a flash of lightning. He reached out and snatched Karasuba straight out of the air a split second before the obsidian blades could impale her, wrapping his armored frame around her as his thrusters roared, rocketing them both back to safety on a high stone ledge.

Issei landed heavily on the stone ledge, his thrusters sputtering out as he carefully set Karasuba down.

"Karasuba! Are you okay?!" Issei asked frantically, his hands hovering over the bloody puncture wounds on her shoulder and leg where the bone spears had struck. "Hang on, I can—"

"Stop fussing, Issei," Karasuba snapped with a dismissive wave of her hand, though a slight grimace passed over her sharp features. She casually wiped a drop of blood from her lip. "The damage isn't even that deep. I'm fine."

Issei let out a stressed sigh at her stubbornness, his visor sweeping back toward the Earth Titan, which was already adjusting its stance as its obsidian tendrils writhed menacingly. "Man... how are we supposed to crack that core if it keeps sprouting instant-defense weapons whenever we get close?"

"I have an idea," Karasuba stated flatly.

"No," Issei shot back instantly. "You're hurt. We need a plan where you don't have to throw yourself into another trap."

"Will you listen to me for once?" Karasuba huffed, stepping closer to him. Her grey eyes locked onto his, and despite the gaping wounds on her body, a heavy, burning crimson blush suddenly flushed across her cheeks, her expression melting into something intensely heated and lustful. "I don't even need to move. I can kill that giant pile of rubble right from this very spot."

Issei blinked behind his helmet. "Wait, really? How?"

Karasuba leaned in close, her breath hot against his visor. "All I need from you... is your lips, Ashikabi-sama."

Issei’s eyes widened as the realization hit him like a bolt of lightning. ‘The Norito!’ It was a Sekirei’s ultimate secret weapon, the sacred union pledge that unleashed their full, unbridled potential. But his brow furrowed slightly as he hesitated. "Wait, Karasuba... will a Norito even be enough to completely erase that thing's core before it adapts again?"

Karasuba let out a soft, hungry smirk, resting a hand against his chest plate. "Then simply flood me with more of your power. Fill me up with everything you've got... because I want to obliterate this thing myself."

Issei stared at her for a split second before a loud, confident laugh burst from his chest. "Alright then! Let's do it!"

With a thought, the helmet of his Scale Mail retracted into the armor's collar, exposing his face to the cool mountain air. The couple turned to face each other directly, completely ignoring the towering fifteen-meter monstrosity looming over the battlefield.

Up on the Titan's shoulder, Commander Valt stared down at them in absolute, bewildered confusion. "What... what are they doing?! Why are they just standing there?!" His confusion instantly turned into a stunned, jaw-dropping shock as Issei reached out, pulled Karasuba by her waist, and brought his lips down onto hers.

In the absolute middle of a chaotic, life-or-death battle, the two shared a deep, passionate, and intense kiss, with their tongues entwining.

BOOOOOOOM—!!

The moment their lips sealed, an absolute tempest of pure, abyssal darkness erupted around them. A pair of colossal, shadow-like black wings violently exploded from Karasuba’s back, sweeping across the ledge. A suffocating, terrifying surge of raw power unleashed from her body, shattering the stone beneath their feet and warping the very air around them into a swirling hurricane of black energy.

When they finally separated, a thin, glistening trail of saliva stretched delicately between their lips. Karasuba’s eyes were wide, burning with a mix of dark ecstasy and overwhelming power as she threw her head back, her voice echoing across the entire mountain range like a divine judgment. "This is the pledge of my blade, exterminate the sworn enemy of my Ashikabi!!"

Commander Valt’s blood ran completely ice-cold. Every instinct in his body screamed that whatever was about to happen would result in total, instant death.

"CRUSH THEM!!" Valt shrieked, his voice cracking in sheer terror. "EARTH TITAN, KILL THOSE LECHEROUS FOOLS RIGHT NOW!!"

The Earth Titan roared, stomping forward with apocalyptic force as it charged straight toward the ledge, raising both colossal fists to flatten the entire cliff.

Issei stood right beside Karasuba, his gauntlets flaring with blinding green light as he channeled every ounce of stamina he had left.

(BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!! BOOST!!)

(TRANSFER!!)

"Take it all, Karasuba." Issei tenderly said, as his palm on her back sent a massive torrent of dragon energy straight into her body, amplifying her already terrifying power into something truly monstrous. 

They then separated and Karasuba raised her nodachi high into the sky with both hands. The dark steel didn't just catch fire, it was swallowed by an abyssal, light-eating black flame so dense that it seemed to absorb the very sunlight above them.

As the Earth Titan reached them, its massive fist hovering just meters away, Karasuba brought her blade down in a majestic, sweeping wide arc. "FLAMING BLADE ART: BLACK CRESCENT EXECUTION!!"

S-S-S-SLAAASH—!!!!!!

A monumental, sky-cleaving crescent of abyssal black fire erupted from her blade. It didn't just slash—it devoured.

The colossal wave of black fire completely enveloped the Earth Titan, Commander Valt, and the entire mountain range standing directly behind them. There was no struggle, no adaptation, and no regeneration. The sheer force of the sword intent combined with dragon-boosted magic shredded space itself, instantly vaporizing stone, metal, and bone.

The black arc tore straight through the horizon before fading into the upper atmosphere.

When the blinding flash subsided... silence returned to the now destroyed mountain.

The Earth Titan was gone. Commander Valt was gone. Even the massive mountain peak that had stood behind the laboratory had been neatly bisected and erased from existence, leaving behind only a smooth, smoking canyon stretching for miles into the distance. Nothing remained.

Issei blinked, his mouth slightly agape as he stared out over the hollowed-out landscape. Where a towering, jagged mountains’ peaks had stood only moments before, there was now a colossal, smoking trench that stretched straight toward the horizon, cleanly bisecting the terrain.

He slowly turned his head to look back at Karasuba, who casually lowered her nodachi with a long, contented, and thoroughly exhausted breath, the abyssal black wings on her back dissolving into fading embers.

Issei chuckled weakly, rubbing the back of his neck with an armored gauntlet. "...Okay, yeah. We might have gone a little overboard with that combo. I really hope the town doesn't try to blame us for terraforming their entire mountain range."

Karasuba let out an amused snort, sheathing her blade with a crisp clack. "If they complain about a missing mountain after we saved their miserable lives, I'll give them something real to cry about."

Before Issei could lecture her on manners, a sudden shifting sound echoed from a massive pile of shattered boulders nearby. The loose rubble began to tremble violently, stones tumbling down the slope.

Both Issei and Karasuba snapped into defensive stances, their eyes narrowing.

"Wait... is that stupid golem somehow still alive?!" Issei asked, his fists immediately igniting with sparks of red dragon flame.

With a loud crash, the top layer of boulders was tossed aside like pebbles, and a sleek, reptilian snout poked through the dust.

It wasn't a reconstructed monster at all, it was Kuromaru.

The large black wyvern shook the thick layer of pulverized rock from his scales, sneezing out a small puff of purple electricity and soot.

Issei and Karasuba blinked in surprise.

"Kuromaru?!" Issei blurted out, lowering his guard completely.

Only then did it fully dawn on them: during their chaotic sprint through the underground laboratory and the sheer madness of fighting the Earth Titan, they had completely lost track of the big guy after the front-gate skirmish.

Issei hurriedly jogged over to the wyvern, checking his wings and flanks for any major injuries. "Hey, buddy! Are you alright? Where in the world have you been this whole time?"

Kuromaru gave a low, rumbling whine, nudging his massive horned head against Issei's chest plate before letting out a series of rhythmic grunts, chuffs, and disgruntled growls.

Through the deep mental connection of their familiar bond, the whole story flooded into Issei’s mind. After wiping out the front guard, Kuromaru had tried to follow their scent deeper into the subterranean tunnels. But between Issei blowing off the cavern ceiling with a Dragon Shot, the Earth Titan's localized earthquakes, and Karasuba slicing down falling stalactites, the tunnels kept collapsing right in front of the poor wyvern's nose. Every time he found a new path, another cave-in blocked his way, leaving him wandering in circles until Karasuba's final strike blew open the entire side of the mountain and set him free.

Issei scratched his cheek sheepishly, offering his familiar a guilty, apologetic grin. "Ah... sorry about that, Kuromaru. We were kind of busy fighting for our lives and didn't even notice you got left behind in the maze."

Kuromaru snorted a cloud of hot air into Issei's face in mild protest, though he leaned comfortably into the scratch Issei gave him behind his eye ridges.

Karasuba walked over, crossing her arms as a rare, gentle smirk crossed her lips while looking at the loyal wyvern. "Well, at least the overgrown lizard knows how to survive a cave-in."

Issei smiled, giving Kuromaru's neck a firm, affectionate pat. In the end, bruised and exhausted from the battle, both he and Karasuba were just relieved that their partner had made it out completely unscathed.

Done. Tell me what you think and if I made any mistakes.