[The scene continues.]
["Awooo!!"]
[With Xia Dou's cheerful "awoo," the E3 Devourer under her control also opened its fang-filled maw and howled. Carrying Shan Da on its back, it charged straight into the Devourer swarm.]
[Standing atop the E3, Shan Da swung his battle axe wildly—like a tiger plunging into a flock of sheep—cutting down every Devourer that lunged at him with a single strike.]
[For a time, the heavy thudding of blunt impacts echoed nonstop.]
[It didn't take long before the surrounding Devourers were completely slaughtered. Seizing the moment, Xia Dou controlled E3 to leap high into the air—landing directly in front of Mark-Beast and driving away the Devourers that had been tearing into it.]
[Startled by the sudden descent of E3 and Shan Da, several Devourers instinctively retreated a few steps. But once they got a clear look—]
[They realized… takeout had just delivered itself.]
[Abandoning Mark-Beast, they turned and attacked Shan Da atop E3 instead.]
[Unfortunately for them…]
[They had chosen the wrong opponent.]
[The heavily armored Snake-Dog Knight Shan Da was leagues stronger than the half-conscious Mark-Beast.]
[No matter which direction the Devourers attacked from, Shan Da—shield and axe in hand—could perfectly evade and counter in the same motion.]
[At this moment, Shan Da was like a moving fortress—offense and defense perfectly balanced—bringing down a Devourer with nearly every swing.]
[Before long, the ground was littered with Devourer skeletons, while the melted remains of their flesh had already spread into a sea of black filth, nearly covering the entire battlefield.]
[One Devourer, unable to break through Shan Da's defenses, shifted its target to E3 instead. With a savage leap, it lunged forward—jaws wide open—aiming straight for E3's head.]
[Riding atop E3, Shan Da noticed its intent instantly and shouted:]
["Xia Dou! Watch out!"]
["Eh—!!! ∑(°Д°ノ)ノ"]
[Only then did Xia Dou realize the Devourer was about to pounce. Startled, she instinctively leaned to the side to dodge.]
[Even so, her hands never stopped moving. She continued operating the controls—forcing E3 to pull its head back.]
[The Devourer failed to bite off E3's head in one go, but it did manage to clamp down on its exposed neck.]
[To force E3 to extend its head again, the Devourer bit down hard and began violently shaking it back and forth.]
[As a result, Shan Da—still riding on its back—could no longer aim accurately at the Devourer's Spirit Core.]
["Hey! Stop shaking! I can't aim like this!"]
[At this moment, the camera shifted again—landing on the fallen Mark-Beast.]
[The black sludge left behind by the slain Devourers was now gathering beneath Mark-Beast—as if guided by some unseen will—and being absorbed into its body.]
[Above it, the eerie red Mana Bloom hovered silently—like a spectator watching the chaos unfold.]
[The scene returned to Shan Da. Finally finding his opening, he brought his axe crashing down onto the Devourer's head—sending it flying far into the distance.]
[Freed at last, E3 stretched its head out again and turned back toward Shan Da—giving him a grateful smile.]
["Hehehehehe!!!"]
[Unfortunately…]
[Snake-Dogs were just far too ugly.]
[Which made that smile… utterly horrifying.]
Across countless worlds, children watching the video burst into tears on the spot.
Some were so frightened they even wet themselves.
In short—
That smile would require a lifetime of healing.
Of course, there were also those who enjoyed the chaos.
For example, a certain enthusiastic citizen in Arkham Asylum—
The ever-cheerful Joker—
Declared with great interest:
"This smile… I'll protect it!"
[The scene continues.]
[The camera shifted back to Xutong, still flying on his hoverboard, and Suixing, the cool-headed archer.]
["Heads up! They're all waking up! They're heading straight for the target!"]
[From above, Xutong spotted a large number of Devourers guarding the vortex gradually awakening and rushing toward Mark-Beast. He immediately shouted a warning.]
[Then he cranked his cannon to maximum output—electrocuting the Devourers below one after another.]
[Suixing, arriving at just the right moment, leapt down from above once more. Midair, she drew three arrows at once—releasing them simultaneously. Three Devourers dropped instantly.]
[After landing, she dashed toward Mark-Beast.]
[Along the way, Devourers kept lunging at her—but each one was paralyzed by Xutong's support from above. All Suixing had to do was follow up with precise finishing shots.]
[However—just as she was about to reach the target—]
[One Devourer suddenly broke free from the electric current, staggering to its feet.]
[Spotting Suixing charging straight toward it, it didn't hesitate—opening its massive jaws and lunging at her.]
[But not only did Suixing not slow down—she sped up instead.]
[With a light press on the mechanism built into her bow, the string and limbs retracted instantly—transforming the longbow into a poleaxe.]
[At the very moment she reached the Devourer—]
[She swung upward with a reverse strike, launching the creature into the air.]
[Xutong, catching up from behind, immediately followed up with another electric blast—exposing the Devourer's Spirit Core.]
[And Suixing, in perfect sync, transformed the poleaxe back into a bow—drawing and firing in one smooth motion.]
[Before the Devourer could even hit the ground—]
[An arrow pierced straight through it.]
At Babyls Academy, Iruma Suzuki fell into deep thought as he watched Suixing seamlessly switch between bow and axe.
"…That's so cool…"
"I want to fight like that too… switching freely between close combat and ranged attacks…"
"But I wonder if Balam-sensei could teach me…"
"And… Opéra brought back ore and Breathing Techniques from the last Instance…"
"Maybe… I could forge a weapon that transforms too… like a bow that turns into a katana…"
"…I don't know if it's possible, but just imagining it already feels amazing…"
While Iruma was lost in thought, he didn't notice—
Asmodeus Alice and Clara Valac were both staring at him.
The two demons watched in confusion as the ahoge on Iruma's head—
Kept shifting between the shape of a bow…
And a sword…
They hesitated.
Should they tell Iruma-sama?
If they did…
This was pretty fun to watch. Hard to give it up.
If they didn't…
Well…
It did feel a little unfair to Iruma.