Yukino Yukinoshita's Weakness

"You...?!"

As the biting wind was blocked and the cold around them began to ease, Haruno Yukinoshita immediately turned around to look behind her. Her expression changed.

Mrs. Yukinoshita recognized the newcomer, too.

After all, this was the Devil who had taken her youngest daughter as a servant, as Haruno had told her. How could Mrs. Yukinoshita not investigate him?

Haruno had already looked into Leo before her, even compiling the information she'd gathered into a file for her mother to read. It included a large photo of Leo.

"We meet again, senpai."

Leo greeted Haruno as if he'd just happened to be passing by, seemingly oblivious to the earth-shattering scene unfolding around them.

He greeted Mrs. Yukinoshita as well.

"You must be Yukino's mother. I've heard so much about you, ma'am."

Facing Mrs. Yukinoshita, whose presence was clearly more commanding—and who was an adult with a social standing far above that of a high school student—Leo didn't show the slightest hint of nervousness. If anything, he seemed utterly at ease.

If she'd met someone like him before, Mrs. Yukinoshita would have been at least a little surprised. But now that she knew his true identity, she no longer found it strange that he was so relaxed in her presence.

He might be a high school student, but that was only if he were an ordinary person.

The boy before her was a Devil. What kind of intimidation could an ordinary, powerless human like her possibly exert over him?

"...You're Mr. Leo Eligos, aren't you?"

Mrs. Yukinoshita took a deep breath, suppressing the jumble of emotions within her, then bowed solemnly to Leo.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. There's a great deal I'd like to say to you, but before that, please stop those two. They need to call it off."

Neither she nor Haruno could intervene in this fight. Only Leo—the nominal master of Yukino Yukinoshita and a Devil Noble the Church was keeping a close eye on—could stop them.

"Don't worry." Leo could see how anxious and worried Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno were, and smiled. "From the way things look, neither of them can get the better of the other for now. There's no harm in watching a little longer."

To be honest, he was rather interested.

He'd wanted to test Yukino's strength from the start. Unfortunately, the Stray Devil from last time had been too weak. It hadn't even managed to force Yukino's Sacred Gear out, so it had been no use at all for gauging her abilities.

Leo had even considered finding Yukino a stronger opponent, but hadn't had the chance to do so yet.

Now Sharon had shown up, and she was targeting one of his servants. Letting her test Yukino's abilities seemed like a fine idea.

Leo had been tangling with that woman for years, so he knew better than anyone that this beautiful exorcist—who looked nothing like a nun—was far stronger than an ordinary one. She was the perfect choice for testing Yukino's strength.

So Leo raised a Demonic Power Barrier and watched the fight with keen interest.

"Is Yukino really going to be okay?" Haruno wasn't as confident as Leo. Her usual sharpness seemed to have deserted her, and she was even more anxious than Mrs. Yukinoshita. "She's up against an exorcist from the Church."

Haruno didn't know the ranks of supernatural beings, much less how to tell who was stronger. But by ordinary logic, exorcists from the Church were specialists who hunted Devils. Could Yukino, a Devil, really stand a chance against someone trained to exorcise them?

"Relax." Leo waved dismissively at Haruno. "If Yukino were just an ordinary Devil, then yes, she'd be in real danger. But she isn't."

A Longinus held power capable of upsetting the balance of the world. Once its wielder mastered that power, challenging opponents of a higher rank was easy.

And judging by Yukino's performance right now, Leo could say with certainty that even a High-Class Devil wouldn't dare underestimate her. They'd have to avoid her sharpest attacks.

The sight of mountains of ice crashing down was truly astonishing. How could an ordinary Devil wield such strength and destructive power?

It was too soon to judge Yukino's overall strength, but her astonishing Freezing Breath could definitely threaten a High-Class Devil.

Faced with such power, Sharon could only avoid its edge. She seemed to be fighting for survival in the narrow gaps between attacks. Her slight figure looked utterly dwarfed by the mountains of ice crashing down, and she was moving at full speed, relying on her incredible quickness and agility to dodge them. Anyone watching couldn't help holding their breath for her.

But even in such peril, Sharon remained composed from beginning to end. Her expression was grave, but she never lost her cool.

Every human exorcist, Sharon included, had to understand one thing before going into battle:

Never try to match a Devil's strength.

Devils were naturally far stronger than ordinary humans, but that gap could be overcome. Their Demonic Power, however, was a force humans could hardly hope to match.

Low-Class Devils were manageable, but the Demonic Power attacks of a Middle-Class Devil could already be a serious threat, packing the force of a bomb or a shell. A High-Class Devil could wreak widespread destruction with a mere gesture. Destroying a mountain was nothing out of the ordinary for one, and if it unleashed its full power, it could even obliterate an entire city street in an instant.

Humans had no hope of resisting such power head-on. Unless they possessed a Sacred Gear created by God or some other supernatural ability, they absolutely had to avoid meeting it with force.

As an exorcist capable of matching a High-Class Devil, Sharon had long since mastered the art of playing to her strengths, avoiding her weaknesses, using hit-and-run tactics, and overcoming the strong despite being weaker.

So she wasn't in a hurry. She remained calm, fighting to survive the danger as she searched for an opening to counterattack.

She was waiting for Yukino to run out of strength.

A Longinus was powerful, but the stronger the power, the more exhausting it was to use. Even though Yukino's Demonic Power was impressive even among Middle-Class Devils, how long could she keep up this unrestrained High-Class Devil-level output?

A Devil hardened by countless battles would never waste their strength so recklessly from the outset. But Yukino had only been a reincarnated Devil for a month. Sharon had already spotted her serious lack of combat experience, and was waiting for the moment Yukino let her guard down.

"Boom!"

The earth continued to roar, and the power of ice ravaged the ground, making everyone present feel as if they'd been thrown into the polar regions.

Yukino noticed that Sharon was holding on without suffering any serious injuries, so she changed tactics. Instead of forming mountains of ice to hurl down, she had the Ice Princess unleash a blizzard, sweeping it across the Frozen Land below in an attempt to leave Sharon nowhere to dodge.

But Sharon was no pushover. She saw what Yukino was trying to do and quickly adjusted her tactics, keeping her distance while firing at Yukino. Her Light Bullets forced Yukino to slow her assault, giving Sharon a chance to escape the attack covering the entire area.

The two were locked in a stalemate, caught in a fierce battle of attrition.

"Hah... hah..."

After a long while, Yukino finally began to pant heavily for the first time. She was the first to show signs of exhaustion.

"Oh no!"

Yukino realized Sharon's strategy, and her expression fell as she recognized her mistake.

She'd forgotten that stamina had always been her weakness. Even when she was human and good at all kinds of sports, it had held her back, limiting her impressive athletic performances to short bursts. Now she was a Devil, yet the weakness remained.

No, given the power of her Longinus, it was only natural that her Middle-Class Devil-level reserves of Demonic Power couldn't sustain it for long. Of course she'd run short on stamina.

But that very predictable weakness had given Sharon a chance to turn the tables.

"Now!"

The moment Yukino could no longer maintain her assault, Sharon flipped the Light Blades in her hands without hesitation and drove them into the ground.

"Hum!"

A magic array made of pure light suddenly appeared on the ground.

"What?!"

Yukino's expression changed.

The instant she saw the glowing magic array, Yukino understood. Sharon hadn't merely been running away without doing anything. On the contrary, she'd been secretly preparing to counterattack as she fled, inscribing an Exorcism Spell Formula across the Frozen Land.

"God, Please Punish The Sinner—"

Sharon chanted the words that activated the Exorcism Spell Formula, and a rich Light Power poured out of the magic array.

"Boom!"

In the next instant, dazzling light formed a pillar that soared from the array, stretching from earth to sky.

Yukino beat her wings, trying to escape, but the pillar's reach was vast and it spread too quickly. She had no time to get clear.

The pillar surged skyward, and Yukino's figure was swallowed by the rich Light Power.

"...!"

Yukino could already feel death threatening her.

For the first time in a month, she felt what it was like to die again.

Just as she instinctively started to close her eyes, a figure appeared in front of her.

"Boom!"

The roar of the pillar shooting into the sky continued to reverberate, unending.