The air was heavy, thick with the scent of rain and something far older.
Rias walked down a leaf-strewn path, each step echoing softly through the still forest. The faint smell of incense lingered in the wind. A shrine, she thought. And something—something dreadful—was happening there.
The sounds reached her before the wind carried them:
shouting, the clash of steel, the trembling of the earth beneath explosions.
Without hesitation, Rias shattered the ground and dashed forward, crimson hair streaming behind her like a comet.
---
At the Himejima Shrine, moments earlier.
A small girl with black hair and violet eyes sat on the lap of an older woman who looked almost identical to her.
Akeno.
And her mother—Shuri Himejima.
The day had been peaceful, drenched in golden afternoon light, yet a quiet unease had settled in Shuri's heart. Something in the air whispered of danger.
Then, the wind split with a sharp hiss.
Sming—
A sword sliced through the air, aimed straight for mother and child.
Shuri barely managed to raise a magical seal—steel met invisible force with a metallic clang.
"Who are you?! What do you want?!" she shouted, her voice trembling between fury and fear.
From behind the trees emerged armed men, and above them, black-winged angels descended—fallen angels whose wings shimmered darkly in the fading light.
"We've come to exterminate the half-breed born of the Himejima clan and a fallen angel," said a bald man with a cruel grin, sword gleaming in his hand.
The air turned heavy.
Magic gathered in Shuri's palms like fire.
"Akeno, run!" she cried, hurling her daughter inside the shrine.
The little girl fell, sobbing, as Shuri sealed the door with a desperate gesture.
"Mama!"
The explosion that followed shook the world.
---
Shuri fought with all she had.
Bolts of holy light rained down, cracking her barrier again and again.
With a final shattering crack, the shield gave way, and the blast hurled her across the floor of the shrine, surrounded by splintered wood and smoke.
"…I'm sorry, Akeno," she whispered through the blood on her lips. "I might not survive this. Dear… where are you?"
The enemy closed in.
Their shadows stretched across the burning walls.
And just as the killing blow was about to fall—
A sound echoed.
Kon.
A single, resonant strike—followed by a storm of power that tore through everything.
"A group of humans and high-class fallen angels?" a calm young voice said amid the chaos. "Can I eat them?"
From the darkness rose a colossal crimson fox, its fur made of writhing energy, countless eyes glowing like molten rubies.
It was Kon, the Fox of Chains and Shadows—devourer of the unworthy.
And standing before it was Rias Gremory.
"Go ahead," she commanded.
In an instant, the enemies were engulfed.
Silence followed—the kind that feels like the world itself is holding its breath.
Rias stepped forward, her outline framed by the dying sun.
Inside the ruined shrine, Shuri trembled. She could see the girl's arm—freshly torn moments ago—regenerating before her eyes, flawless and unscarred.
"You…" Shuri managed to whisper. "Who are you?"
"Rias Gremory," the crimson-haired girl replied softly. "A demon."
The name fell like a stone into still water.
Shuri tensed—she knew too well what demons were capable of, even ones who looked like children.
Akeno, still shaking, stared at her savior. The girl was her age… and yet she had summoned that monstrous fox to protect them.
Rias's eyes met hers. There was power there—but also calm.
"I'll be direct," she said. "I made a deal with your daughter. If I saved you, I could ask for something in return."
Her gaze sharpened. "My price is this—she will become my Queen."
"W-What…?" Akeno froze.
"Absolutely not!" Shuri shouted, stepping forward. "It's fine to demand payment, but I won't let you take my daughter!"
Rias sighed.
"It's too late. The pact is sealed. If she doesn't fulfill it, the magical backlash could be… unpredictable."
Shuri's eyes widened. "Such magic… exists?"
"Oh, it does," Rias said, her smile faint but dangerous. "But I'd rather you didn't test it. I wouldn't want to harm my future Queen."
"Then take me instead," Shuri pleaded. "I'll be your Queen."
Rias tilted her head, amused. "No, thank you. I'm not interested in those older than me. Besides—Baraqiel's daughter surely has potential. That's why I want her in my peerage."
Shuri's hands trembled. "Even knowing who her father is… you dare?"
"Baraqiel?" Rias scoffed lightly. "He's not much, is he? Throws a few lightning bolts. A bit stronger than the average fallen angel, perhaps."
A new voice cracked through the air like thunder.
"Is that so? Then come and prove it."
Lightning struck the ground.
From the clouds descended a man wreathed in stormlight—his wings dark as night, his eyes alive with divine fury.
"Darling…" Shuri gasped.
"Papa…" Akeno whispered.
Baraqiel's gaze burned with both wrath and sorrow.
"You dare try to enslave my daughter knowing I'm near? Such arrogance, child."
Rias met his eyes without flinching.
"If I'm arrogant," she said, her aura flaring scarlet, "it's because I know I can defeat you."
Baraqiel's lips curved into a faint, dangerous smile.
"Then show me."
The heavens roared.
The earth cracked.
And beneath the crimson sun, the daughter of Gremory faced the lord of thunder.
To be continued…
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