"Everyone, fall back from those two! You'll be caught in the crossfire!" Rias ordered, calling back both the recovering Akeno and the Bael peerage fighting in the sky.
The collateral shockwaves were so intense they dragged flying Evil Dragons out of the sky, crashing them into the earth. Anyone remaining in the vicinity would have been obliterated.
"RAAAAAAAAHHH!"
"ROAAAAAAAR!"
Their roars echoed across the battlefield as the fight escalated. With every punch Sairaorg threw, his battle aura swelled further, showing no signs of stopping. He was unleashing power capable of crushing even High-Tier Devil Kings.
Yet, despite taking those devastating hits head-on, Razul showed no signs of falling. A fiery aura erupted from his body, matching Sairaorg's power step for step.
As Sairaorg pushed his battle aura higher, Razul amplified his own to match it.
Sairaorg managed to dodge Razul's lethal strikes by hairbreadths, but dodging by a millimeter was not dodging entirely. The sheer shockwaves from Razul's blows cracked the Breakdown armor, inflicting heavy wounds on Sairaorg's bare skin.
Still, Sairaorg refused to yield. He rained a barrage of relentless punches into Razul's face, arms, and torso. His sharp, concentrated battle aura sliced through Razul's dense hide, accumulating real damage.
"How about THIS?!"
Razul brought his massive arm down with terrifying force, smashing through the lion armor and slamming Sairaorg into the ground.
Sairaorg's armor was shattered, his body battered and bloody. Between the cumulative damage and the internal strain of Breakdown, he was near his absolute physical limit.
Yet, Sairaorg stood back up.
Forcing his trembling body forward through sheer willpower, he locked his glare onto his enemy.
On the other side, Razul had sustained heavy, deep wounds across his entire body from Sairaorg's empowered attacks. Yet, it was clear to any onlooker that Razul still held the upper hand.
Wiping blood from his nose, Razul asked, "If you keep going, you're going to die. What drives you this far? What are you throwing your life away for?"
Sairaorg spoke, his voice ragged and interrupted by heavy breaths:
"I... have things I wish to protect as well. My own dream... the peerage that chose to follow me... my mother who supported me... and the children of the Underworld who still dare to dream."
He coughed up a clot of blood. Several of his internal organs were ruptured, and multiple bones were fractured.
Yet, the light in his eyes never dimmed. They burned with an unquenchable, fierce determination.
"I will not lose! I cannot lose! I will strike you down here and protect the Underworld! No matter how strong you or your allies may be, I will surpass you all!"
From somewhere deep within his broken body, an astronomical surge of battle aura erupted. It was vastly more powerful and intense than anything he had displayed prior. Re-entering the Domain Zone, Sairaorg took his battle stance.
Razul opened his mouth, his tone now filled with genuine awe and respect.
"You really are incredible. To push me this far using nothing but your own body..."
Stepping forward, Razul assumed a stance of his own and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"My name is Razul! Granted the title of 'Destroyer' by my father, Asem! My worthy rival, Sairaorg Bael! We are both masters of destruction! Let us test whose destruction is absolute until our very lives burn out!"
"I would have it no other way!"
An ultra-close-range brawl erupted once more.
Planted firmly on the earth, they traded raw blows with their fists. No dodging. No backing down. They continued to strike each other relentlessly, waiting to see whose consciousness would fade first, whose flame would flicker out first.
Watching the clash, Akeno whispered softly, "Rias, this is..."
"Yes... A reenactment of that fight."
It mirrored the final battle of the Rating Game between Rias's Gremory team and Sairaorg's Bael team—the raw, manly clash between Issei and Sairaorg.
Back then, despite being at a severe disadvantage, Sairaorg had backed Issei into a corner. With nothing but his trained fists and unyielding willpower, he had brought the strongest Red Dragon Emperor in history to the absolute brink.
And now, he was doing it again.
"Gah...! Nggghaaaaaaa!"
Sairaorg's fist buried itself into Razul's torso, forcing a grimace of agony from the giant.
Sairaorg's life-risking blows were undeniably reaching Razul. With most of his armor destroyed, Sairaorg was clearly running on empty, yet his strikes continued to shatter Razul's body, dripping crimson blood onto the ground beneath them.
Shoulders heaving, Razul let out a strained laugh. "Hah... hah... hah... Damn it all, where are you pulling this kind of strength from...?"
"I told you, did I not? I am trading my very life force. Even if it costs me my life, I will bring about your destruction...!"
In that instant, a shift occurred in the aura surrounding Sairaorg. The battle aura coalesced into the shape of a massive lion, enveloping his frame.
(Was that... an optical illusion? But...)
It might have been a trick of the light, but for a fraction of a second, Rias thought she saw another hand resting gently over Sairaorg's as he readied his fist—a hand belonging to a familiar woman.
Sairaorg smiled softly.
"I am proud to have fought you. You are an enemy—a threat to this world and the Underworld. Yet, I am glad we were able to cross fists. Thanks to you, it seems I can push even further beyond."
A warm, golden aura gathered around Sairaorg's right arm. Gone was the violent, volatile pressure from before; in its place was an aura that felt almost gentle, filled with profound warmth.
From the remaining piece of lion armor on his chest, Regulus spoke, its voice overflowing with immense pride and joy:
"My Master, my King. You have surpassed your limits. Your noble soul ascends to even greater heights..."
"My alter ego, my Lion. Let us ascend together... and surpass this worthy opponent."
Sairaorg slowly drew back his glowing golden fist.
And then—
"—Let us end this."
Sairaorg's fist drove forward, shattering Razul's body once and for all.
[Third-Person POV End]
~ Afterword Story ~
Sairaorg: "Issei Hyoudou, there is something I need to consult you about."
Issei: "A consultation? That's rare coming from you. What's up?"
Sairaorg: "Indeed. The truth is... ever since that Rating Game, Coriana seems to have awakened to... something. Regarding that matter—"
Issei: "I'M SORRY! I'M SO SORRY! I'M TRULY, DEEPLY SORRYYYYYYYYY!"
~ End of Afterword Mini-Story ~
(Break the serious mood with Sairaorg-san!)
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