"What are you doing here?"

"I was nearby and came here after seeing the sky turning dark red. Gosh, I didn't expect to see so many damn demons... that one must be a really strong one, huh?"

Selina stood beside him, still catching her breath from the run.

Her dark blue ponytail was slightly messy, and there were a few small cuts on her arms from the demons she had fought on the way here.

She stared up at the blazing golden figure clashing with the massive crimson demon, her blue eyes wide with disbelief.

"...L-Lyra is that strong?!" she exclaimed in pure shock.

"It's a temporary thing... unfortunately," Gray replied.

'...She can probably retain that form for five more minutes...' he added inwardly, taking the chance to look at her.

"Still! She looks like a literal goddess right now! Since when can she do that?!"

Gray didn't answer that question and focused on their battle.

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!

"Hahaha! Is this all you have?!" Mephistopheles was laughing.

It flapped all four wings at once, unleashing a sea of crimson flames that forced both women to retreat.

Gloria cut through the flames with a powerful sword wave, while Lyra destroyed them with bursts of golden lightning.

The demon didn't let up.

It suddenly charged forward with monstrous speed, extending its claws.

Gloria met it head-on.

CLAAAAAAAAANG!

Their weapons clashed violently, creating a shockwave that split the ground far below.

"You are strong, Gloria," the demon snarled, pushing Gloria back with raw power. "But you are still human. And humans are fragile creatures!"

It headbutted her with one of its forward horns, the impact sending Gloria flying.

She stabilized mid-air, blood trickling from her lip, but her golden eyes remained sharp and unyielding.

Lyra immediately moved in to cover her.

"Golden Chains of Binding!"

Dozens of thick golden chains shot out from portals, wrapping around the demon's torso and arms.

At the same time, she summoned a colossal golden greatsword above it and brought it crashing down.

The demon roared in fury and flexed its body. The chains shattered. It caught the falling greatsword with one hand and crushed it into golden sparks.

"Insolent child!"

It backhanded Lyra with terrifying force.

She crossed her arms to block, but the impact still sent her crashing into a distant mountain peak, carving a deep crater on impact.

"Lyra!" Gloria shouted, worry flashing across her usually cold face.

The demon laughed maniacally, clearly enjoying the fight.

"Yes! Struggle more! Your pain, your desperation... it just... tastes so sweeeeet~!"

At this moment, Gray looked at his rapier, looking at the blade that was still stained with demon blood.

His dull black eyes narrowed slightly.

[Don't you fucking dare.]

Jasmine warned sharply inside his head.

'…I don't think there's another solution.'

Jasmine's voice grew urgent.

[You said that Gloria had a Master… he'll appear if she's in danger, no?]

'I guess…'

Gray's eyes flicked back up to the sky.

Despite being beaten down multiple times, Lyra was already forcing herself back into the fight, golden lightning flaring around her battered form.

The sight made something tighten painfully in his chest.

'Jasmine.'

[…Yes?]

'I'm about to do something really stupid.'

[W-what is it?! Gray!]

Gray didn't wait for her to finish.

He turned his head toward Selina, who was still standing beside him, her eyes wide as she watched the sky battle in awe.

Without a word, he cracked his neck once, then snapped his fingers.

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAM!

A violent surge of mana exploded outward from Gray's body.

A massive silver-grey tornado of mana erupted around him and Selina, spinning wildly and pulling every nearby demon into its vortex.

The demons screamed as they were sucked in, their bodies shredded by the cutting winds.

The sudden, deafening sound drew Lyra's attention immediately. She turned her head mid-fight, golden eyes widening as she looked down at the tornado.

In the center of the swirling chaos, Gray had already grabbed Selina by the waist and pulled her flush against him.

Then... he kissed her.

"Mhm!!!"

Hard.

Selina's eyes flew open in complete, delighted shock.

Her body tensed for a split second before melting against him as Gray's lips claimed hers in a deep, fierce kiss.

His hand slid down and boldly squeezed one of her breasts through her clothes, his fingers digging in possessively.

"Umng~♡"

A surprised, pleasured moan escaped Selina's mouth, muffled against his lips.

Her cheeks flushed bright red, but she didn't push him away, if anything, she leaned into the kiss, her hands instinctively gripping his shirt.

Gray pulled back just enough to look at her dazed, flushed face.

"I'm sorry about this," he whispered.

"W-what… e-eh… w-why…?" Selina's brain had completely short-circuited, her voice a breathless stutter.

Gray didn't answer.

He simply raised his hand between them, extending three fingers.

He lowered one.

Then the second.

When the third finger closed…

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A colossal wave of golden energy erupted into the sky, so bright and powerful that it momentarily drowned out the blood-red demonic aura.

The entire battlefield trembled violently as the golden light exploded outward like a second sun, forcing even the possessed Dullmanak to shield its eyes for a split second.

And that energy... was coming from none other than Lyra.

Her golden figure froze mid-air, her eyes locked onto the scene below... specifically onto Gray and Selina still standing close together in the center of the fading tornado.

Her face cracked.

The killing intent that erupted from her was so thick it made the air feel like it was suffocating.

Seeing this, the demon smirked lightly.

"Oh… interesting," the demon rumbled.

"Your power is rising again. Such a resilient little avatar. It makes me want to break you even more."

It raised one massive clawed hand, dark red flames gathering in its palm as it prepared to unleash another devastating attack.

But before it could move...

Crack.

Lyra slowly cracked her neck to the side.

The sound was soft, yet it echoed across the battlefield like a death knell. Her golden eyes locked onto the demon with an icy, terrifying intensity that made even the Low Noble flinch.

A visible shiver ran down its spine despite its overwhelming power.

"…Not now."

Her voice was cold and filled with such suffocating killing intent that the air itself seemed to freeze.

She raised her hand and simply waved it.

FWOOSH———————!

A colossal wave of golden energy erupted from her palm in an instant.

The wave slammed into the demon like the judgment of the heavens themselves.

KRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

The possessed Dullmanak's eyes widened in pure shock as the golden energy engulfed its entire body.

Its four wings were torn apart in a single instant, disintegrating into golden ash.

Its crimson skin cracked and shattered like glass under the overwhelming pressure. Its four horns snapped off one by one with loud, sickening cracks.

"W-What?! How is this possible?!" the demon roared in disbelief, his voice cracking with complete panic.

"This power…! You're just a mortal avatar! How can you?!"

It tried to resist, pouring every ounce of its demonic energy into a desperate shield of crimson flames.

But the golden wave simply devoured the flames like they were nothing.

Crack, crack, crackkk!!!

Its bones shattered, its muscles tore apart, and finally... its core, the very source of its power, fractured under the pressure.

"NO! THIS CAN'T BE! EVEN IF THIS IS A WEAK BODY, I AM MEPHISTOPHELES! A LOW NOBLE UNDER THE SIN OF WRATH!"

Its final scream was cut short.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The golden wave completely erased the demon in a single, overwhelming strike. Its massive body exploded into golden particles and black ash, scattering across the sky.

The blood-red aura that had dominated the heavens shattered instantly, the dark crimson color fading as the light burned it away.

The entire mountain range trembled violently from the aftershock. A massive crater formed where the demon had been floating, the ground below glowing with residual holy energy.

Gloria hovered nearby, her golden eyes wide with genuine shock. Her sword was still raised, golden mana still flowing around her, but she hadn't even needed to move.

"Lyra… that was…" she began, her voice filled with disbelief.

But before she could finish her sentence, Lyra vanished from her sight in a burst of golden light.

Fwoop!

She reappeared directly in front of Gray, mere meters away from where he and Selina stood.

The golden aura around her slowly dimmed as she stared at him with a dangerous mix of fury, hurt, and overwhelming possessiveness.

The air around her still crackled with residual divine power.

Gray met her gaze without flinching.

Lyra didn't say a single word.

Her golden eyes burned with a terrifying intensity as she reached out and grabbed Gray's wrist in an iron grip.

Before he could react, she spun and hurled him with monstrous strength.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

Gray was sent flying like a cannonball across the battlefield.

He smashed straight into a large stone building on the edge of the town.

The entire structure exploded on impact, walls crumbling into dust and debris as the roof collapsed inward.

A massive cloud of dust and rubble rose into the air.

Selina's face turned pale.

"U-uh…"

She took several shaky steps back, staring at the changed Lyra in front of her.

The aura radiating off the golden-haired girl was completely different from the usual kind and lovey-dovey Lyra.

It was dark, suffocating, and filled with such a strong killing intent that even the air around her seemed to tremble.

Lyra slowly turned her head toward Selina.

"…Did you kiss him, or did he kiss you?"

Selina swallowed hard, her usual confident demeanor completely shattered by the overwhelming pressure.

She took another step back and spoke with a trembling voice.

"…H-He kissed me?"

'…He still had that last kiss favor from before…' Selina thought frantically, not daring to say it out loud.

Lyra stared at her for a long, silent second.

"…I see."

Without another word, Lyra turned around and shot forward like a golden bullet, heading straight toward the collapsed building where Gray had been thrown.

She landed in the middle of the rubble with a heavy thud, golden energy still crackling faintly around her body.

Dust and broken stones littered the area.

The building had been reduced to a pile of shattered masonry and wooden beams.

In the center of the destruction, Gray slowly pushed himself up from the debris.

His clothes were torn in several places, blood trickling from cuts on his arms and forehead. A large bruise was already forming on his side from the impact.

"Haaah…"

He let out a long breath, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth.

Then he glanced up, just to see Lyra standing there, staring down at him.

[You fucked up hard.]

'Well... the demon died, didn't he?' Gray grinned inwardly.

Although...

The situation right now didn't seem too favorable to him right now.