Loki laughed fearlessly. At that unspoken signal, Sköll and Hati began to move…
"You goddamn… Let Vali go!!"
Bikou lunged with his Ruyi Bang, and Arthur with Collbrande, both attacking Fenrir.
"Guh! Uwaaah!!"
But Fenrir, with Vali still clamped in its maw, thrust its snout forward and slowly applied pressure right before their eyes.
"Ngh, this thing!"
"Well, this is quite troublesome..."
That cunning beast. The way it held Vali, neither Bikou nor Arthur could intervene! What could they do? What were they supposed to do!?
"Issei-kun..."
Vali's voice reached Issei as he gnashed his teeth. Struggling to breathe, she had retracted her mask, exposing her bare face.
'She is deathly pale. Is she going to be okay!?' Issei thought.
"I let my guard down... but I'll take responsibility for this disgrace... I'll personally bury this parent Fenrir...!!"
Her voice brimmed with resolve. What the hell was she planning to do in a state like that!?
"Fufufu, gahahahaha!! Even the White Dragon Emperor—what can you possibly do in such a state!? If you can, then show me!!"
To Loki's mocking laughter, Vali offered a ghastly, defiant smile.
"A mere god dares to mock the Heavenly Dragon, Vali Lucifer!!"
Responding to her roar, the jewels on her armor blazed with light, and her entire body was enveloped in silvery-white radiance.
"I, who awaken, am the Two Heavenly Dragons, robbed of all by the principle of supremacy—"
An incantation spilled from Vali's lips.
"Envy the infinite, yearn for the dream—"
In response, staggering magical power erupted from her body. 'What is this?' The overwhelming force sent a chill racing down Issei's spine. 'It can't be—!?'
"I, who have mastered the white dragon's supremacy, shall lead you to the utmost limit of innocence—!"
This was the forbidden technique that forcibly extracted the power sealed within a Sacred Gear—!?
"Juggernaut Drive!!!"
Issei's vision went white. Overwhelming power radiated from Vali, a force rivaling even Loki and Fenrir.
'So this is Vali's Juggernaut Drive!'
Azazel had warned Issei about this—the berserk state of dragon-type Sacred Gears. Activating it granted power that temporarily surpassed even gods, but the user would lose all reason and rampage uncontrollably, often resulting in death or a drastically shortened lifespan. Issei had been strictly ordered never to use it.
Vali supposedly avoided the rampage by burning vast amounts of magical power in lieu of lifespan, but with those injuries—was it truly safe!?
"Guuh!? Uuuuu..."
[Vali!? This is bad, suppress your magic!! At this rate—!]
Albion's desperate voice suddenly rang out.
"Uuu... Uwaaaaaaaaaahhh!!"
Vali's scream thundered across the battlefield. The shockwave sent Issei's body hurtling backward.
"Kyaaaaaaahh!!"
He could hear his comrades' shrieks, but the blinding white radiance swallowed everything! 'Dammit, what the hell is happening to Vali!?'
[Partner, watch closely. Vali Lucifer has succumbed to a berserk state.]
"What!?"
[Even if she's said to be the strongest in history, using Juggernaut Drive with those wounds was reckless. Stay sharp, partner. She'll rampage indiscriminately, friend or foe.]
The white light gradually converged to a single point in the sky. "Th-That's Vali...?" There she hovered, her armor warped into far sharper, more sinister angles, her entire presence radiating sheer menace.
"Gyaaaaaaaaaahhh!!"
With a bestial roar, Vali charged straight at Kazuki and the others.
"Everyone, scatter!!"
Baraqiel's shout came too late. Yumi, Xenovia, and Irina were struck down one after another by Vali's onslaught.
She even swatted aside Sköll and Hati, lashing out at Loki and Fenrir alike.
"Gyaun!!"
"Nuooh!? Hahaha, to think I'd witness the White Dragon Emperor's berserk state... though this is a bit beyond my calculations."
Even Loki was rattled. Rather than a reinforcement, she'd become nothing but a bigger threat.
"Do not panic, Fuwa Kazuki. You possess something granted to you for precisely such a moment, do you not?"
"Odin-sama...! That's right!!"
At some point, Odin had appeared beside him. Kazuki suddenly remembered—he had a means to stop the rampage. He'd completely forgotten about it, having never used it since receiving it.
'What a fool I'd been.'
"I shall lend my aid as well. Stopping the White Dragon Emperor's rampage takes precedence now."
"Yes!!"
As he shot toward Vali, Kazuki recited the holy verse.
"It is a sacred blade, the dragon-slaying sword that severs all creation— Come forth, Holy Sword Ascalon!!"
The void distorted, and a great sword materialized. It was Ascalon, the dragon-slaying holy blade entrusted to him by Michael long ago.
"Sorry for neglecting you all this time. It's finally your moment. Lend me your strength, Ascalon!"
Ascalon quivered once, as if in protest, then fell still. It seemed to have forgiven him.
"Alright, let's go!!"
He drew Ascalon from its sheath. Dazzling silver light flooded the area, and as if sensing its dragon-slaying aura, Vali froze mid-motion.
The greatsword Ascalon was perfectly sized for Guyver Gigantic. Kazuki surged forward, the blade in hand.
"Gyaaaaaah!!"
"Uooooooh!!"
They collided in midair. Vali swung a knife-hand strike, but Ascalon's edge sliced clean through it, sending a spray of blood into the air.
"Gyau!?"
Perceiving the threat, Vali attempted to retreat, propelling herself backward.
"You think I'm letting you go!?"
Kazuki gave chase, but her aerial maneuverability outclassed his. The gap gradually widened. When she had pulled far enough away and turned back toward him, Kazuki shuddered. A terrifying mass of magical power was gathering in Vali's palms, aimed straight at him.
'This is bad! Her breath attack is coming!!'
Even in her rational state, it had packed monstrous force. Now, in a berserk frenzy, just how devastating would it be?
"Gyaaaaaah!!"
Vali fired her breath. A Black Hole wouldn't deploy in time. In that case…
"Cut through, Ascalon!!"
Kazuki threw his barrier to full output, raised Ascalon high, and plunged headlong into the oncoming blast.
He cleaved through the breath, charging straight for Vali. A solid impact! Ascalon had pierced deep into her right shoulder.
"Gyaaaaaaahh!!"
"Now, Odin-sama!!"
'This is the opening…' Kazuki signaled the god.
"Leave it to me! O chains of binding, manifest—Gleipnir!!"
The magical chain Gleipnir—famed in Norse myth for capturing Fenrir itself—coiled around Vali and wrenched her down to the earth.
"Gyaah!?"
Vali crashed to the ground, her agonized howl muffled by the thick clouds of swirling dust.
"That's enough! Settle the fuck down!!"
Kazuki drove Ascalon into Vali, where she lay.
"Gyaaaaaaaaaahhh!!"
With a final, death-cry scream, Vali's movements ceased. Her armor reverted, Balance Breaker deactivating. She lay limp, but she was still breathing.
"Kazuki, are you alright!?"
Rias, Issei, Rossweisse, and Artoria—those who had escaped injury—rushed over.
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