Just before my left fist struck him, I channeled my energy into Ascalon—the Holy Sword of the Dragon Slayer—stored in my gauntlet.
"Transfer!"
THUD!
A heavy sound echoed through the air as my fist collided with his iron-like body.
"Since we're up against an Evil Dragon, I won't be holding back."
Kiba closed the distance just as quickly as I did, gripping the Gram sword in hand. He slashed Grendel diagonally from shoulder to waist.
Kiba's Gram, like Ascalon, is a Dragon Slayer weapon. His strike tore through the dragon's hard scales, causing a spray of blue blood to burst forth.
"Both of you, fall back!" Rias commanded sharply.
We reacted instantly, retreating from Grendel's side. The rest of the team unleashed a barrage of ranged attacks, hammering him all at once.
...Whoa. The power behind that was insane. If I took that head-on, even in my boosted gear, I'd be toast.
But before the smoke could even clear, Grendel, showing impossible agility for someone who had just taken that hit, closed the gap and slammed his fist into me, sending me flying. On the other side, Kiba was likewise launched away by a swipe of Grendel's tail.
A bright healing aura from Asia enveloped both Kiba and me immediately.
I had Draconic armor buffering the hit, but it looks like Kiba will need a little more time to recover.
Still, for Grendel to be moving like that with such severe injuries all over... I didn't expect that, and it slowed my reaction.
"Gwahahahaha! It hurts! It hurts so good! And that's why... this is the most FUN I've ever had!—Vuh! VBOGEEEE! Gah... gahahaha!"
Despite coughing up a massive mouthful of blood mid-laugh, Grendel showed no signs of slowing down. A chill ran down my spine.
So this... this is what it means to face an Evil Dragon.
'Exactly, partner. But it's not just his tenacity that makes him evil. What defines an Evil Dragon is their unyielding, deranged will in battle. You cannot break their spirit. Just focus on physically obliterating them.'
If Ddraig is saying that much, then it's clear—this guy won't stop, even after death.
"Then it's my turn." Rias stepped forward. "Buy me some time, everyone. I've developed a new ultimate attack. If it lands, even that Evil Dragon will be finished in one blow."
As she spoke, Rias began forming a sphere of destructive power above her head, infusing it with more and more magical energy, compressing it down.
I'd seen her practicing from a distance, but this is the first time I've seen the completed version.
We had a plan now: everyone protect Rias while she prepares.
Azazel-sensei, who had a delicate job ahead—preventing the Sacred Gear from being extracted—could only offer ranged support.
I led the charge once again. Kiba, back in action, summoned a knightly order and armed each of them with demonic swords he acquired from Siegfried. He unleashed them, their powers fully activated.
Kiba's combat ability had skyrocketed now that he could wield multiple legendary swords at once.
Then, Shirone-chan joined the attack—and surprised everyone with her transformation.
"Ravel is getting stronger, too. I can't afford to fall behind any longer!"
Rather than taking her usual adult form, Shirone-chan remained in her normal state, raising her fighting spirit instead.
Her two tails split into three, and at that moment, her aura surged dramatically.
"I still can't combine this with my adult form, but this is my strongest state right now."
Apparently, her species—Nekoshou—reach adulthood when they have three tails. That means Shirone-chan has become a full-fledged warrior. She could probably go toe-to-toe with Sairaorg without Regulus's armor now. With her diverse techniques, she might even have the edge—though in a stamina match, she'd likely be at a disadvantage due to the form's strain.
Still, the triple assault of me, Kiba, and Shirone-chan pushed Grendel hard, allowing the rear guard to pile on more attacks.
Grendel's scales were incredibly tough and he had high resistances, but our strikes inflicted wounds across his body. Shirone-chan's mystic arts were gradually breaking down his resistances too, and the damage was stacking up.
But he got faster the more we hurt him. Even the vanguard team took solid hits. Without Asia, our line would have collapsed.
Spotting an opening created by Xenovia's charge cannon, Kiba drove numerous Holy Demonic Swords deep into Grendel's wounds.
"Stand back—Holy Lightning, now!"
A fierce shout from Akeno. As we withdrew, a dragon of thunder, shaped like an Eastern serpent, surged forward and coiled around Grendel's body like it had a will of its own.
From every Holy Demonic Sword lodged in him, lightning surged inward and fried him from the inside.
"This is my new ultimate technique—Holy Lightning. Perhaps influenced by Issei-kun poking my chest? When I shaped this, it gained a draconic aura and raw power. Maybe it's similar in nature to Yuuto-kun's ability."
Wait, seriously?! So Akeno's new power is a side effect of that chest poke?! That's the origin of her secret setting as Rias's backup Switch Princess!?
"What?! Really!? Then Issei, after this battle, poke my chest a hundred, no, a thousand times! I've been so frustrated losing ground to Kiba!" said Xenovia.
Are you sure!? If you say that, I will poke them! Your chest is big, firm, and totally wonderful!
"T-then me too! I want to be more useful to everyone!" cried Asia.
"If poking powers us up, then I'll offer my chest for the sake of my faith and my Lord!" declared Irina.
The Church Trio really are always on the same page, huh? It's like my chest pokes have become a canon upgrade mechanic for them. Not sure how I feel about that...
"You all need to get a grip… Or, I would say that, but my ultimate spell changed after Issei sucked—poked—my chest too. I'm ready. Everyone, get back."
Even Rias?! Her spell had morphed from that too?! Above her hovered a jet-black sphere of compressed Destruction Magic—clearly dangerous just by looking at it.
We all hurried behind her, making sure not to get caught in the blast.
"I originally refined my compression and targeting magic by watching how you focused your aura into a single finger, Issei. And now, this destruction spheres gnores defenses, resistances, and weaknesses—it simply hits directly."
That's terrifying. With that kind of property added to the Power of Destruction, even a god wouldn't survive a direct hit. But why doesn't this attack use dragon power like Kiba and Akeno's?
'An attack that bypasses all defenses? Don't tell me… No, it can't be my Permeation ability.'
Huh? Ddraig, do you know something?
"This is my gift to you—my ultimate spell: Extinguished Star. Now disappear!"
The sphere launched slowly—not fast at all. It looked like a joke. Grendel snorted dismissively.
But then the change happened.
"Huh? Ugh! What is this?! It's pulling me in! What kind of suction is this?!"
Apparently, the spell creates a vacuum by erasing space and atmosphere, pulling everything toward it to fill the void. Even Grendel realized too late—and the moment he touched the sphere, it erupted violently.
When the light faded, Grendel was gone—completely obliterated.
What a terrifying spell. That monstrous Grendel, reduced to nothing...
But just when we thought the battle was over, another Evil Dragon appeared.
"So, Grendel's been taken out."
The one who emerged was the strongest of the Evil Dragons—Crom Cruach. He glanced at where Grendel had fallen and picked something up… A fang?
"Are you planning to mourn him or something?"
"Hardly. I was told to buy time here. If Grendel was killed, I'm to retrieve any fragments. Apparently, with the Holy Grail's power, even a piece like this fang is enough to regenerate him."
You're kidding me. They can bring him back from just that?! I never want to fight Grendel again!
And things just got worse. We were all exhausted from fighting Grendel. Facing a dragon even stronger now? We won't last long.
And I... I can't take him on without my Cardinal Crimson Promotion.
Just then, I felt a familiar aura speeding toward us.
A second later, the doors of the hall exploded open—Vali, clad in armor, entered.
Vali fixed his gaze on the newcomer.
"You're Crom Cruach, aren't you?"
"That's right. And you're the current White Dragon Emperor."
"Vali! Took you long enough! What were you doing!?"
"I was ambushed—by Euclid Lucifuge, the stray magicians of Hexennacht, and the Relic-wielder from Longinus. Arthur and the others are currently trapped in another dimension, fighting."
"Damn it! So all the Longinus relic-users sided with terrorists?! And that dragon, 'Ladon'—he's supposed to be a dead legend, like Grendel! They revived him with the Holy Grail too?!"
Another legendary Evil Dragon... Just great. I grumbled alongside Sensei, but kept my focus—we needed to press on.
Even with Vali here, we couldn't win without my Cardinal Crimson Promotion. Everyone else was still drained. I turned to Vali.
"Vali… Will you fight with me?"
"Heh. Looks like we both have business ahead. I've already used up my Silver Armor in my fight against Euclid—I want to conserve strength. So let's go… like we did when we fought Loki. Time for a Two Heavenly Dragons team-up."
Right. He doesn't have that overpowered armor that crushed Pluto anymore—but no complaints. It's now or never.
I activated my Cardinal Crimson Promotion. Together, Vali and I launched our assault on Crom Cruach—but he parried every blow effortlessly.
We weren't making a dent. I had to change tactics. I asked Vali to draw his attention while I charged up a Crimson Blaster, infused with Ascalon's power.
I fired.
It struck—but only destroyed one of his wings.
And he stood there unfazed. That's Evil Dragon resilience for you.
Worse—he hasn't even shown his full strength yet.
If I fire that again and he buffs his aura any further, I won't even take a wing next time.
"Damn it! We don't have time to drag this out. Asia! Summon Fafnir!"
"Y-yes!"
Seeing the tides of battle, Azazel-sensei called for the trump card—Asia's dragon contract.
No way... We're summoning him now?! The dragon who always demands panties in return?!
Asia chanted the spell—and the golden dragon king appeared through the Dragon Gate.
"Panty time?"