— — — — — —
Somewhere inside a hidden church within the Papal Territory—
"I just waved my wand like whoosh, froze the entire city, then stood up there with my chin raised, silently looking down on everyone. One by one, the people I looked at dropped to their knees. And then... they surrendered."
Holding her wand aloft, Serafall lifted her chin and put on an arrogant, commanding expression.
Three seconds later, the act collapsed completely. Grinning like an overexcited husky, she grabbed Ryo, who was sitting on the sofa, and vigorously tugged at his arm.
"Was it cool? Come on, tell me it was cool!"
Unable to escape her grip, Ryo offered a suggestion. "Make your eyes a little fiercer. I think it'd work better."
"Fiercer?" Serafall muttered to herself, then immediately started making faces. "Nope. Doesn't work. I just can't pull off scary. Besides, what magical girl is ever vicious?"
"Then keep a straight face. Aren't there cool, aloof magical girls?"
"Hey, you're right!"
Serafall instantly put on a blank expression and stared at him.
Putting everything else aside, expressionless Serafall actually looked surprisingly elegant and cold, like a beautiful ice queen.
Knock knock.
A knock sounded at the door. Turning his head, Ryo saw a young vampire girl enter the room. She wore a black frog-button coat, with blonde hair and crimson eyes.
"Who?"
Ryo sounded slightly surprised.
"Elmenhilde Karnstein. She's a little vampire I brought back. Cute, right?"
Without waiting for an answer, Serafall pulled the petite vampire over and hugged her tightly.
"Hey, let go of me..."
Elmenhilde tried to struggle free, but the moment she noticed Ryo looking at her, she instantly fell silent.
"Huh? That's strange." Serafall loosened her hold and walked over to Ryo, poking his cheek. "I froze an entire city and didn't scare her this much. Are you really that terrifying?"
"You insolent woman!" Seeing Serafall casually touching Ryo, Elmenhilde couldn't help snapping.
Ryo frowned.
The little vampire immediately dropped to her knees, trembling.
"Something's weird here." Serafall looked back and forth between them suspiciously. "Do you two have some secret I don't know about?"
"No. This is my first time meeting her." Ryo paused, then looked at Elmenhilde. "What am I in your eyes?"
"Your Majesty, our Progenitor." Her body shook as she answered with overwhelming reverence.
"I see."
Ryo suddenly understood that she sensed Leticia's and Avrora's power.
He had almost forgotten. Through his connection with Avrora's spirit rank, he technically qualified as a Progenitor himself. And considering Leticia's side of things, he could even be counted among the nobles of vampires.
His identity profile was turning into a complete mess. Who would believe he was just an ordinary human anymore?
Even if his spirit rank still read 100% human, that label felt more and more like a technicality than reality. People would have a hard time accepting it.
Shaking his head, he asked, "So, why did you come here?"
"The girl Lady Serafall assigned me to care for, Valerie Tepes, has awakened." Elmenhilde hurriedly answered.
After a brief pause, she added, "The holder of the Longinus, Sephiroth Graal."
"Ah!" Serafall slapped her forehead. "Right, I did bring you here specifically to look after the Graal girl."
Ryo stood up, "Let's go. Take me to see the Longinus holder."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Elmenhilde bowed obediently.
...
..
In an underground holding cell beneath the church. The magical lock on the door cracked apart under a layer of ice.
With a sharp crackling sound, Ryo pushed the door open and saw a girl curled up in the corner.
She had golden hair the color of desert sand, a slender figure, snow-white skin, and a gentle appearance.
Looking more closely, Ryo noticed that her legs seemed unusually long, even for a girl. Though she was crouching, she would probably stand over 175 centimeters tall.
"The light is too bright..."
The sunlight from outside appeared to bother Valerie. She blinked several times before finally adjusting to it and noticing Ryo.
"A new researcher?"
"Researcher?" Ryo turned toward Serafall.
"In the Tepes Kingdom, where male pureblood vampires dominate society, mixed-blood vampires aren't valued. Female half-bloods with fertility are especially looked down upon." The playfulness faded from Serafall's face. "They're expected to give birth to more half-bloods, so they're usually treated as servants for pureblood families."
She continued, "And those mixed with humans have it even worse. They're practically born into servitude. If one of them also happens to possess a Sacred Gear, rebellion is almost inevitable."
"This girl rebelled?" Ryo raised an eyebrow.
"Not really. She's still descended from the Tepes royal line. Even if her mother was a human servant, she was treated fairly well." Serafall shook her head. "Unfortunately, her Sacred Gear was far too powerful. Once King Tepes learned that it was the Sephiroth Graal capable of reversing life and death, he handed her over to his sons."
"His sons brought in Fallen Angel Sacred Gear researchers. They tried to help her control its power through relatively gentle methods."
"Gentle?" Ryo's tone turned amused.
"Basically, as long as her brain wasn't completely destroyed and she didn't die, it counted as gentle." Serafall delivered the horrifying statement with a cheerful smile. "Still, don't worry. She's untouched."
She added casually, "Research equipment has improved dramatically over the last few centuries. Most experiments are done through instruments now. Blood samples, tests, scans. Even psychological torture is much rarer than before."
"Well, that's certainly comforting," Ryo sighed. "God gave humanity weapons to resist oppression, and those same weapons ended up becoming the reason some people are persecuted. Nothing is ever perfect."
He stepped into the cell and approached Valerie. "Are you still conscious?"
"Why are they afraid...?" Valerie tilted her head. "The boy in front of me doesn't seem scary at all."
"Hallucinations?" A trace of sadness crossed Serafall's face. "Have the side effects damaged her brain already?"
Ryo narrowed his eyes.
Not physically, but with psychic perception.
Suddenly, countless translucent figures appeared around her.
"souls..."
He immediately understood. "She can see nearby dead souls through the Graal."
"I see." Serafall walked over. "So the Sephiroth Graal that reverses life and death can directly perceive the dead souls."
Looking at Valerie, she sighed, "At this point, she's probably not far from awakening her Balance Breaker. But with her mental condition, using it even once might completely shatter her mind. Maybe it'd be kinder to remove the Sacred Gear and let her die peacefully."
Ryo glanced at her. Serafall stuck out her tongue and tapped her head playfully.
"I was thinking about her mental health!"
Ryo rolled his eyes. "Deciding someone should die without even asking them first? What kind of murderous magical girl are you?"
Then he turned back toward Valerie.
After studying her for a moment, he frowned, "The Graal inside her is incomplete."
"Huh?" Serafall's eyes widened. "No way! I had Uncle Azazel examine it personally!"
"...It was probably hidden somehow from a simple inspection." Ryo reached out and gently rubbed Valerie's head.
Valerie squinted happily.
A soft, infant-like sound escaped her lips.
"Her mind has regressed too. Looks like part of the Graal was removed a long time ago." As he spoke, the hand resting on her head slowly sank into her skull.
"Eek!"
Serafall jumped backward.
Only then did she realize Valerie seemed completely unaffected.
"Quiet. I'm tracking the missing fragment."
"You can track a stolen piece of the Graal?"
"Of course."
Ryo's hand probed deeper, searching for something.
Moments later, he withdrew it and wiped his hand with a handkerchief.
Then he reached toward the wall beside him.
His arm passed straight through it as though plunging into empty space.
A few seconds later, he pulled it back.
In his hand was something resembling the golden base of a chalice.
Calmly, he tossed it toward Valerie.
The moment it touched her, it merged back into her body.
Serafall blinked several times. Completely dumbfounded.
"Wait. Weren't you tracking it?"
"I was."
"You tracked the Graal and found out it was hidden inside the wall next door?" Her expression became increasingly strange.
"Of course not." Ryo shook his head. "I sensed the Graal's aura, locked onto the matching source, and warped space to pull it out directly."
Serafall stared, "...Does that count as tracking?"
"What else would it be?" Ryo asked.
The next second, Serafall grabbed his hand.
Looking at the sparkling excitement in her huge eyes, Ryo blinked. "What?"
"Teach me!"
She nearly bounced in place. "I want to learn that too!"
"Don't you think that's ridiculously cool? Just reach out and grab anything from anywhere! If I learn that, couldn't I just stretch out my hand and pull out Sona's underwear whenever I want?"
"You're a hopeless sis-con." Ryo pried her fingers loose. "Take care of Valerie first. Once that's settled, I'll see if I can teach you."
"Yes, sir!"
Serafall gave a playful salute.
Then she peeked past him toward Valerie, who had fallen asleep on the floor. "Though honestly, she's basically suffering from memory loss right now. Shouldn't we find someone close to her and try stimulating her memory?"
"Not necessary..."
"…Wait. Isn't the person closest to her one of Rias's peerage members? A Bishop, I think." He paused, frowning slightly as another thought surfaced. "Though I have no idea if he's part of the peerage right now."
The reincarnation of Balor, a future super-level figure with a time-space Sacred Gear.
"He should've been transferred to Kyoto for the talent development program by now. Since it's on the way, we might as well try."
"Roger that~"
With a wave of her wand, Valerie floated gently into the air. To preserve her dignity, Serafall even adjusted her posture and added a beam of holy light beneath her skirt.
"So, next stop Kyoto to see my adorable Sona?"
"Yes, Sister-in-law," Ryo answered casually.
The next second, Serafall dropped to the floor and wrapped herself around his leg. Tears pooled dramatically in her eyes.
"What now?" Ryo's eyelid twitched.
"Please don't steal Sona from me!" Serafall wailed. "I can't compete with you! Awoo..."
"..."
Ryo stared at her.
He tried shaking her off. But it didn't work.
Finally, he sighed, "What if I become Sona's brother-in-law instead?"
"Huh? You want me?"
Serafall froze.
Then she released his leg and flopped onto the ground, "Go ahead. Use your evil tentacles. A magical girl knows no fear."
"What tentacles?!"
Ryo rubbed his forehead.
Keeping up with Serafall's train of thought was becoming physically impossible.
...
..
At a border region of the Underworld—
"Scary, scary~"
A silver-haired middle-aged man with a beard and a perpetually frivolous air strolled into the base.
"Little Leviathan's girl is dead. Young Asmodeus got killed too. Even adorable Ophis was defeated. This Yagami guy is terrifying."
This man was Rizevim Livan Lucifer.
Though his words sounded fearful, his face carried only amusement.
"So what now? The Tepes family I invested in surrendered. Those Greek chief gods who enjoyed keeping things in the family were captured too."
"Come to think of it, they'll probably come after this poor lonely old man next." Rizevim's smile widened.
"Luckily, I took part of the Graal in advance. Otherwise my vampire investment would've been a complete loss. I poured a fortune into them."
Claiming to be heartbroken, he practically skipped toward the treasury.
Eventually he reached a chest hidden in the deepest chamber.
"But just as planned, the Sephiroth Graal ended up in my hands. With the latest technology, reviving those ancient Evil Dragons should be possible."
"Even Ryo Yagami and Ophis would be scrambling to deal with that. Hahaha, I'd love to see the look on their faces."
The chest opened.
Inside was a red velvet lining. A chalice-shaped indentation.
And absolutely nothing else.
Rizevim's smile froze.
The Sephiroth Graal was gone.
GONE?!!!
And just like that, Rizevim's composure shattered.
.
.
.