The morning air was thick with a tension that none of the students at the academy could yet name. Sam's voice, steady and etched with the weight of experience, echoed in Allya's mind.
"Never use magic just to show off, Ally," he had told her, his gaze intense. "But when you do use it, use it to save someone. Let the 'Us' take care of everything else".
She hadn't understood the gravity of those words until April 26th.
"What trash," a voice sneered, dripping with a malice that felt like ice against the skin.
The Devil—a creature of nightmare—stalked toward a boy cowering in the corner of the classroom. With a blurred movement, the creature's hand shot out, gripping the boy by the neck and hoisting him into the air like a ragdoll. The boy thrashed wildly, his heels drumming a frantic, useless rhythm against the lockers as his face turned a sickly, pale shade of blue.
Allya's heart hammered against her ribs. She couldn't just watch.
"Sea Dragon's Roar!" she screamed, pouring every ounce of her will into the incantation.
A torrent of pressurized water erupted from her palms, colliding directly with the monster. Mist filled the room, obscuring the view. Allya held her breath, hoping, praying—but as the vapor cleared, her heart sank. The Devil stood there, unmarked, without a single scratch on his hide.
However, the distraction worked. The creature dropped the gasping boy and slowly turned his head, his piercing, sharp eyes locking onto Allya. The sheer weight of his bloodlust was a physical force. Overwhelmed by a primal fear, Allya's legs gave out, and she collapsed to her knees.
"Why... why didn't my spell work?" she whispered, tears blurring her vision. The weight of her perceived uselessness crushed her spirit. "I'm just a burden... I can't do a single thing".
The Devil let out a cruel, mocking laugh that grated like grinding stones. "A woman with magic... what a wonderful combination," he sneered, closing the distance between them.
"I'm sorry... I am so sorry, brother," Allya sobbed, closing her eyes as the Devil raised a clawed hand to deliver the end.
"Time to die, kid".
"Sea Dragon's Roar!"
A voice like rolling thunder shattered the Devil's taunt. A massive, concentrated blast of water slammed into the creature with the force of a tidal wave, throwing him clear out of the building and through the exterior stone wall.
Kirito stepped into the room, his eyes burning with a quiet, icy rage. "I was wondering why there was such a dense, cold mana here," he said, his voice terrifyingly calm.
He walked over to the trembling Allya and gently placed a hand on her head. "Why are you crying? You look cute even when you cry," he murmured, his tone softening as he wiped away her tears. "Don't cry. Look, I'm here now. You did a wonderful job, and you should be proud of yourself".
Kirito stood, his warmth vanishing the moment he turned toward the hole in the wall. Without a word, he leapt down from the second floor to face the beast.
The Devil was already pushing himself up from the rubble. "Heh... you look strong," he remarked, a twisted grin on his face.
"That's interesting... you can actually talk," Kirito replied, his voice dropping to a sub-zero temperature. "However, I am still going to kill you".
The Devil hissed, "You should learn some manners!". He swung his arm, and a massive fireball erupted from the side. Kirito dove back, the heat singeing the air where he had stood a second before. When the smoke cleared, the Devil had vanished.
Kirito scanned the courtyard. "Where did he—".
A shadow expanded rapidly over him. "Above!" Kirito shouted, lunging forward just as the Devil descended like a meteor.
"You're wide open!" Kirito yelled, pivoting in the dirt. "Atomic Bullet!"
A streak of concentrated energy hissed through the air, striking the Devil square in the chest. The impact was devastating, blasting away layers of demonic armor and charred flesh until a glowing, pulsing blue core was exposed.
The creature screamed in agony, but Kirito gave him no quarter. In a fluid motion, he converted his slime into a shimmering sword and delivered a jagged slash across the beast's torso.
Howling in pain, the Devil retaliated with a desperate, rapid-fire barrage of fireballs. Kirito was forced back, the explosions creating a wall of heat between them. "Like this, I won't be able to reach his core," he muttered.
"Atomic Rail!".
Kirito became a blur of blinding speed, reappearing instantly behind the Devil. He swung his blade with every ounce of strength he possessed, aiming for the finishing blow—but the Devil's reflexes were unnatural. He caught the shimmering blade with his bare hand, the metal screeching against his hide.
With a roar of effort, the Devil swung Kirito like a hammer, slamming him into a parked vehicle. Before Kirito could even slide off the crumpled hood, another massive fireball was hurtling toward him.
"Atomic Rail!".
Kirito vanished again, the fireball vaporizing the car in a secondary explosion. He reappeared in mid-air, looking down at the monster.
"Prison—" Kirito began to command.
"Heh... I will play with you next time," the Devil laughed, a swirling portal tearing open behind him.
"Wait, you moron! Atomic Slash!".
Kirito struck with a violent arc of energy, but the blade passed through empty air as the portal snapped shut.
The sirens of the police and the arrival of the Dark Knights filled the silence. Rika came running toward Kirito, her face etched with panic as she began to ask about the creature.
Kirito tried to speak, but a sudden, searing pain shot through his arm. He looked down to see his skin turning a deep, bruised blue. The world tilted, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious before he hit the pavement.
"Kirito! Kirito, are you okay? Call an ambulance!" Rika's screams were the last thing he heard.
When Kirito finally woke in the hospital later that evening, he was met with a tearful Allya, who threw her arms around him in a desperate hug.
"Don't cry. Look, I'm totally fine," he said softly, stroking her hair until her sobs quieted.
Across town, the atmosphere was far less peaceful. Sam was on a call with Rika, his voice echoing with frustration.
"How does an A-Rank Devil just appear without our sensors picking up a single reading?" Sam snapped.
"I've already informed Yuki," Rika replied, her voice weary. "We'll find out more soon."
A week later, life attempted to return to normal. Kirito, now overly protective, insisted on walking Allya to the school gates himself. As they walked, Allya's friend Riya leaned in curiously.
"Allya, you used magic that day, didn't you?".
Allya forced a small, nervous laugh. "What are you talking about, Riya? I'm not a magician!".
But miles away, at the Dark Knight Academy's Survey Branch, the truth was being unraveled. Yuki stared at the CCTV footage and the mana readings with a darkening expression.
"Physically, its body was only D-Rank," the officer reported. "But it was surging with so much mana its physical form was falling apart. The core was blue... it was melting from the inside out".
Yuki's jaw tightened. "What in the world is going on? Check for any other reports of attacks like this. Now!".