The impact was strong enough to rattle even the barrier wrapped around the entire gym.
A violent tremor rippled outward from the gym at the center of Kuoh Academy. The range wasn't large, and the shaking weakened as it spread, but it was still enough to startle the handful of students who remained on campus during the holiday.
"What was that?"
"An earthquake?"
"I thought I heard a boom. Where did it come from?"
"Thunder?"
"It came from over there, right?"
People looked around in confusion, but none of them noticed that the source was the gym.
From the outside, the building went quiet after the tremor, showing no visible signs of damage. But anyone who stepped inside would've gasped on the spot.
The interior was devastated beyond recognition.
Cracks split across the walls, the ceiling was fractured, and scattered equipment littered the floor. The once-new gym looked like a war zone—more like a ruin abandoned for years.
The floor was in even worse shape. This wasn't just cracking anymore—deep, jagged fissures tore through the ground as if the earth itself had split open. It was unsettling to look at.
But the worst damage lay within the barrier.
Inside the barrier erected by the Sitri servants, the battlefield had been completely destroyed. The flooring had been blown away, leaving only churned-up soil beneath. Dust lingered thick in the air.
Broken stone, shattered debris, chunks of ice—everything was scattered everywhere. Stray arcs of lightning still snapped across the air.
"Cough... cough..."
"Haha..."
Yukino and Akeno fell out of the air almost at the same time. One was scorched black in several places and knelt on one knee, coughing. The other was covered in frost, exhaling hot breaths into the cold mist around her.
"Yukino!"
"Akeno!"
The Gremory servants and Eligos servants shouted in alarm. Leo and Rias rushed to their sides immediately.
"Is... is it over?"
"Who won?"
"No idea..."
The Sitri servants finally snapped out of their shock, glancing toward the center with pale faces.
Their barrier was trembling. One wrong hit and it looked like it might shatter.
A moment ago, they genuinely thought their barrier had failed—that they were about to be swallowed by the shockwave from Yukino and Akeno's final clash. Their hearts had nearly stopped.
Fortunately, the barrier held. It blocked most of the blast. Only a small portion seeped through the ground, causing minor effects. Considering what could've happened, this was the best outcome they could hope for.
"Is everyone alright?"
Sona Sitri stepped forward, checking their condition with a sharp, focused stare.
Leo and Rias had already examined the two fighters. Their expressions eased.
"They're fine. Just minor injuries."
"Same here. Nothing serious."
Their servants stayed close, tending to Yukino and Akeno as best they could.
Healing wasn't easy. Demonic power was nearly all-purpose, but using it for restoration required precise imagination and technique. Most of the people here simply weren't suited for it. Only simple first-aid was possible.
Powerful healing—especially regeneration—was extremely rare in the supernatural world. Only those with the right aptitude could use it, and even then, regenerating lost limbs required forbidden techniques or something similarly extreme.
Light healing, however, could be done by a few. Akeno was capable. Shinra Tsubaki could manage simple treatments. The rest couldn't.
Leo had looked into his own servants recently. Despite Yukino's remarkable talent with demonic power, she wasn't suited for healing. Asuna and Utaha were the same. Ironically, Mahiru—the angel chosen by the Holy Relics—seemed gifted in that field, and Leo planned to have her trained properly.
Right now, both Yukino and Akeno were in rough shape—not because of serious injuries, but because their final attack had pushed them past their limits. Their bodies were burning and freezing internally from demonic power backlash, making them feel awful. Fortunately, the damage was manageable. A period of rest would be enough.
"So... shall we call this match a draw?"
Sona thought for a moment, then spoke.
Leo and Rias exchanged glances. Both caught a hint of a smile in the other's eyes.
A draw?
A tie?
What did that mean?
It meant that the Eligos servants and Gremory servants now stood at one win and one loss each.
In other words, the next match would decide everything.
And the final match would be fought by the two Kings.
"I have no objections."
"Neither do I."
Leo answered calmly. Rias answered confidently.
Of course Leo was calm. He had no intention of losing to Rias.
Rias was strong—her Power of Destruction made her nearly unbeatable among High-Class Devils. Against the Leo from back when he had first become a High-Class Devil, she might have crushed him outright.
But now? He had already reached the level of an Ultimate-Class Devil. Even without using Zenith Tempest, he was sure he outclassed Rias.
If not for giving the Power of Destruction a healthy amount of respect, he wouldn't even consider the possibility of losing. He wouldn't even think the odds were "low." He'd think they were zero.
Rias, on her side, believed just as strongly that she wouldn't lose.
She knew Leo well—thanks to Sona, she had followed his progress. She knew how far he had climbed after awakening his mutated trait.
But she had always been stronger than him in the past. Even if he had grown stronger—stronger than her, even—the Power of Destruction could overturn that difference. She believed she had a path to victory.
This was a challenge. Rias never ran from challenges.
"Shall we start immediately?" Leo asked with a smile.
"No problem." Rias's eyes burned with fighting spirit.
"Then—"
But just as Sona raised her head to speak—
It was already too late.
"—?!"
Everyone in the gym felt it at the same time.
A massive magic circle unfolded beneath Kuoh Academy's underground. It rotated as it expanded, just like the teleportation circles devils used daily. Red light surged upward.
The light spread through the academy, bypassing ordinary humans and irrelevant buildings. It went straight for the devils gathered in the gym: the Eligos servants, the Gremory servants, and the Sitri servants.
"What...?!"
Rias's expression changed instantly.
"A forced spatial transfer!" Sona shouted.
"Everyone, stay alert!"
Leo understood immediately. He rushed toward his servants without hesitation.
"President!"
"Devil-kun!"
"Leo-san!"
"Senpai!"
Yukino, Utaha, Asuna, and Mahiru all reached toward him instinctively, trying to grab his outstretched hand.
The distance between them wasn't far. But in this moment, it felt unreachable.
The red light wrapped around everyone present, resonating with the demonic power in their bodies.
A sharp hum rang out.
And just like when devils used teleportation magic, their bodies dissolved into light—vanishing one after another.
Leo and his servants never managed to reach each other. Along with the Gremory and Sitri groups, they were all swallowed by the light and transported away.
Moments later, the glow faded. The magic circle beneath Kuoh Academy dimmed and gradually shrank until it disappeared completely.
Not a single person in the academy noticed. Life went on as usual.
Leo appeared in a strange, unknown space—still frozen in the pose of reaching out his hand.
But the familiar girls he had been reaching for were nowhere in sight.
He slowly lowered his arm, his expression calm, though a cold sharpness flickered in his eyes.
"Where... is this?"
"Where are we?"
Two voices reached his ears. Leo snapped back to focus and turned toward them.
Two figures had materialized elsewhere in the space.
"Sona. Rias."
Sona Sitri and Rias Gremory stood there beside him.
====
You can read up to chapter 140 on patreon.com/NiaXD.