At the same time, in the other rooms, the devils of the three peerages encountered the trials of their respective locations, facing various forms of assault.
Some faced swarms of magical beasts, some encountered difficult traps, and others were attacked by mysterious figures in black. Fierce battles erupted instantly, causing ripples of demonic power to spread throughout the rooms.
"Who are these people?!"
The moment the attackers appeared, Utaha Kasumigaoka deployed a barrier, protecting Koneko Toujou and Tsubasa Yura, who were "Rooks" like herself.
In their room, the attackers were enigmatic figures in black robes and hoods. Magic circles the size of a person unfolded before them, launching a variety of attacks—beams of light, lightning, flames, and violent winds—all slamming into the barrier. They exploded against the transparent wall of the barrier, triggering a series of thunderous roars.
"Are they magicians?"
Koneko Toujou wore her gauntlets, wanting to rush out and attack the enemy, but Tsubasa Yura held her back.
"The magic they are using is real. It's highly likely they are members of a stray magician organization. If we go out now, we'll just draw focused fire and get hurt for nothing."
Tsubasa Yura's expression was grim, even showing signs of lingering fear. They were currently in the center of the room, surrounded by the black-clad magicians who had them hemmed in, concentrating their firepower on them. If not for Utaha Kasumigaoka's barrier protecting them from all sides, they would have been exposed to the fierce magical bombardment and blasted to death by the concentrated fire.
Koneko Toujou recalled her duel with Utaha Kasumigaoka, where she had been targeted by lightning from all directions. She hadn't lasted long before falling. At that time, Utaha had intentionally held back, so her injuries were healed quickly. However, these black-clad magicians clearly wouldn't show mercy. If she were targeted by concentrated fire again, she might truly fall for good this time.
Consequently, Koneko didn't dare act recklessly, her youthful face clouded with shadow.
The situation was similar for Akeno Himejima and Tsubaki Shinra. These two "Queens" were also attacked by mysterious figures in black, though they weren't facing concentrated magic but rather an indiscriminate bombardment of demonic power.
The room was surrounded by black-clad figures who had sprouted devil wings, revealing their identities. They unhesitatingly unleashed bolts of demonic power toward Akeno and Tsubaki, pouring down a rain of energy that enveloped the two.
"Who exactly are you?!" "Stray devils? They don't look like it—"
Tsubaki Shinra and Akeno Himejima flew back-to-back in mid-air, jointly deploying defensive magic circles to withstand the demonic bolts coming from all directions, which exploded continuously against the barriers.
In the rooms occupied by Asuna Yuuki and Tomoe Meguri, as well as Yuuto Kiba and Ruruko Nimura, ferocious magical beasts appeared. The four were forced to counterattack but were quickly suppressed.
"Damn it! These beasts are so strong!"
The Japanese sword in Tomoe Meguri's hand was crushed by the fangs of a demonic hound. The creature then spat a burst of scorching flame directly at her face, forcing her to dodge clumsily.
"They're much stronger than the ghouls we encountered in the Familiar Forest last time!"
Asuna Yuuki, on the other hand, was very efficient, slaying a demonic wolf, a hound, a boar, and a bear with one strike each. The holy aura radiating from the Holy Sword in her hand made the surrounding beasts extremely wary; even if she didn't hit a vital spot, the monsters would be in agony and severely wounded on the spot.
"Asuna! Please, give me a Holy Sword you've created too!"
Having lost her weapon, Tomoe Meguri called out immediately upon seeing this. Asuna was stunned for a moment. "I... I can do that?"
Asuna really didn't know if the Holy Swords she created could be used by others, as she had never tried before.
However, she didn't hesitate for long. She quickly created a Holy Sword in the shape of a Japanese sword and tossed it to Tomoe. Tomoe was actually quite apprehensive; after all, she was a devil. Touching a Holy Sword casually might not just result in failure to use it—there was a high possibility her hand would be vaporized on the spot. But seeing Asuna, a fellow devil, using a Holy Sword normally, and having lost her own vital weapon, she decided to treat it as a last resort. Prepared for the pain, she grabbed the tossed Holy Sword.
The result was delightful. Perhaps because the creator was a devil like Asuna, or for some other reason, Tomoe wasn't harmed by the Holy Sword. Instead, after injecting her demonic power, it triggered a strong holy aura that repelled the attacking beasts.
"Great!"
Tomoe was instantly overjoyed and began to show her prowess, quickly slaying several beasts just as Asuna had. Although she wasn't a Sacred Gear user like Asuna or Yuuto Kiba, she came from a family of exorcists. Her swordsmanship might not match Yuuto's, but it was stronger than Asuna's. With a Holy Sword that could counter magical beasts, her performance was in no way inferior to Asuna's. Since Asuna could cut through the beasts like wheat, she naturally could as well.
Compared to them, the situation for Yuuto Kiba and Ruruko Nimura was far more dangerous. The demonic swords Yuuto created didn't possess the same inherent counter-effect against magical beasts as Asuna's Holy Swords. He could only use demonic swords of different attributes to repel the attackers, making the battle exceptionally difficult.
"Ah!"
Ruruko Nimura cried out in pain as she was bitten by a beast. Her arm was bleeding profusely, and her face turned pale.
"Careful!"
Yuuto Kiba was anxious and wanted to go to her aid, but he was blocked by multiple beasts. He gritted his teeth and roared, "Sword Birth!"
Yuuto thrust his demonic sword into the ground, pouring out his demonic power frantically. Just as he had during his duel with Asuna, he instantly created a multitude of demonic swords that sprouted from the ground, skewering the beasts blocking his way. "Ki... Kiba-kun—"
Ruruko Nimura seemed to be in great pain, nearly collapsing on the floor, clutching her arm with teary eyes.
Yuuto Kiba shielded her behind him, his eyes fixed on the surrounding beasts, his breathing becoming ragged.
Clearly, that burst of power just now had consumed a significant portion of his demonic power, leaving him somewhat drained. "This is going to be troublesome—"
Kiba's heart was heavy, but he still raised his demonic sword to meet the incoming beasts.
In the room containing the three "Bishops"—Mahiru Shiina, Reiya Kusaka, and Momo Hanakai—no mysterious attackers or dangerous beasts appeared. Instead, there were traps.
The floor of the room had turned into quicksand, causing the three girls standing on it to sink continuously, sending them into a panic. "Fly up, quickly!"
"I can't! I'm caught!" Reiya Kusaka and Momo Hanakai struggled repeatedly, their devil wings flapping desperately, but they couldn't break free from the quicksand trapping their feet and were being swallowed up.
Mahiru Shiina was in no better state. Watching her body sink further into the sand, a sense of panic inevitably appeared in her caramel-colored eyes.
Only a week ago, she had been an ordinary high school girl. Since being reincarnated as a devil, she hadn't experienced any combat, having only learned some knowledge and techniques under Leon's guidance. Encountering such a situation, she naturally felt frantic.
Besides, how could an ordinary person ever expect to be trapped in quicksand?
For a young lady who wasn't exactly pampered but still lived a sheltered life, the fact that she didn't scream on the spot was a testament to her mental fortitude.
Seeing the quicksand still consuming her, Mahiru bit her lip. "I haven't even proven that I'm a child who is needed yet... how can I die here?!"
Her strong willpower turned into a driving force, activating the Sacred Gear within her body and causing her to erupt.
Boom! Accompanied by a deafening roar, surging purple flames erupted from Mahiru's body like an explosion, sweeping in all directions.
The purple flames instantly filled the entire room, blasting away the quicksand around Mahiru. The intense heat also scorched the sand, causing it to vitrify on the spot into crystals, stopping its flow.
"W-What kind of flames are these?!"
Reiya Kusaka and Momo Hanakai, who had been struggling, were stunned by the sight. As the purple flames spread toward them, they began to tremble. A primal instinct screamed at them to flee immediately.
If they were touched by these purple flames, the end would surely be far worse than being swallowed by quicksand—this was the instinctive feeling Reiya and Momo shared.
Fortunately, Mahiru seemed to remember their presence at the critical moment, hastily controlling the purple flames to bypass them. Otherwise, under the incredible holy and purifying power of the Holy Cross, Reiya and Momo would have been vaporized instantly, leaving not even a speck of dust behind.
Once the quicksand trap was completely burned into a crystalline pit, Mahiru retracted the purple flames.
Then—in a corner of their room, a passage opened silently, entering their field of vision. Thanks to Mahiru's outburst, the trial for the three "Bishops" turned out to be the first one completed.
Unfortunately, the challenges awaiting them were not yet over. At the end of the passage, in the next room, a new trial awaited.
Leon and his two companions were still unaware of all this.
However, the three of them were also facing a trial—one far more perilous than any other room...