__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jack wasn't about to take this lying down.
The moment he felt the Fallen Angel's murderous intent, his mind was already calculating how to kill her. His mouth did not hold back either.
His blunt words made Raynare's pupils snap wide, like a tigress roused to fury. She was terrifying.
"How dare a lowly subordinate demon insult me?" she spat. Anger boiled over. A barrier unfurled across the area. She raised a hand and summoned a spear of light, then hurled it at Jack.
This time Jack refused to be as passive as before.
He watched the spear's flight like it was traced in his pupils. Where it used to be impossible to dodge, now its path was clear to him. He drove off the ground with both legs and vaulted backward. In one clean motion he cleared more than ten meters and landed steady.
The light spear detonated, throwing out a powerful blast that shredded the plants along the sidewalk into ribbons.
Not so formidable after all.
She was stronger than the Fallen Angel he'd killed days earlier, sure, but Jack was no ordinary opponent now. He had a demon's body and the aid of an artifact. He could fight.
He made that basic assessment aloud: her attacks were still within his range. So he'd find a way to end her.
He remembered Rias's warning clear as a bell. "You're a demon now," she'd told him. "Human rules don't apply. Anyone who shows you killing intent, kill them. No hesitation. Our world is ruthless."
Rias had shown him care. That mattered.
Jack's gaze sharpened. A silver blade flashed into his hand.
Then the boy vanished from where he'd been. He moved with astonishing speed.
That was the power of the Knight class: blinding swiftness. Two Knight-class pieces had blessed him; his speed had only grown. Even as the lowest-ranked demon, he was now not to be underestimated.
Raynare flinched when he disappeared.
"What—?" She felt a cold, stinging pressure at her neck, an instinctive alarm that screamed danger.
She twisted instinctively, bending like a sinuous snake. For a heartbeat Jack's killing silhouette stood before her, the sword's tip skimming her throat.
She barely escaped. Sweat broke out over her skin.
She had underestimated him.
Fear and outrage churned together. Wings spread, Raynare reformed the spear of light in her hand. With the motion, the exposing glow along her body shimmered.
Jack kept pressing. In a flash he was there again, the King's Sword—his blade—trailing a bright silver afterimage as it cut for her neck.
Clang. Her spear blocked the blow. Raynare's face darkened. The two of them traded blows in rapid succession, metal and light sending sparks scattering.
After only a few exchanges, Raynare realized something was wrong. Her spear trembled. It was beginning to dissipate.
She could handle Jack's raw strength easily. But that sword… it was strange. It amplified even a lowly demon's strikes. Facing this lowest-rank demon, a former high-ranking angel like herself was struggling to keep up.
Was this sword some unknown artifact?
A few more clashes and Raynare found herself truly being pushed. Pride burned in her chest; she could not stand being on the defensive.
She forced out a final push, burning most of her divine power to shove Jack back a few steps. With a sweep of black wing she tore herself away and put distance between them.
"Light Thorns!" she snapped. From behind her, golden spines formed and shot toward Jacki.
Jack's pupils narrowed. A sharp, stinging pain crawled across his skin. A chill crept in. Those thorns packed serious hurt.
He exploded in speed again and dodged several of the projectiles. But the thorns came in a swarm, cutting off every retreat. One pierced his calf.
Pain lanced through him, making his whole body convulse. It was only a wound, but the agony dug in like it reached bone.
What the hell…?
Jack's heart sank. The thorns had an effect he hadn't expected.
Raynare laughed, cruel and free. "What's the matter? You were so fast. Why that stunned look? Don't you know light is poison to a lowly demon like you? Ha! Ha!"
To her it was over. Struck by light thorns, Jack should be unable to fight back.
He was affected. Badly. Pain yanked at him, threatening to tear him apart. But the artifact and his demonic body were working together to steady him. He held on by sheer will.
He also knew he couldn't keep this up long.
So he decided to end it fast.
All his mana poured into the King's Sword. The artifact revealed another edge of its power. A mighty aura surged out and pinned Raynare where she stood.
She watched Jack's eyes go cold. She hurled more thorns at him, but he paid them no heed.
Did he lose his mind? Was he trying to kill them both?
Raynare's gaze tilted toward madness. If this was going to be an all-or-nothing fight, fine.
She was still a higher-ranked angelic being. Would that not be enough?
"Let's see who dies first!" she cried.
"..."
______________________________________________________________________________________________________