Hearing Akira's permission to engage, Serafall Leviathan let out a sound of pure glee. Her magical power surged, and she immediately unfurled her wings, taking to the air with dazzling speed. She flew directly toward the dense ranks of the armored invaders, eager to unleash her devastating Ice Magic and "play" with the enemy force.
Sona Sitri, watching her chaotic sister gleefully charge into a death match, fixed Akira with a sharp, resentful gaze. Her look clearly communicated her disapproval of Akira's manipulation and his willingness to use her hyperactive sister as an immediate, high-powered weapon.
Despite her displeasure, Sona was a commander first. She quickly issued firm, rapid commands to her peerage assigning roles for perimeter support, healing, and information relay.
With the heavy-hitters engaged, the battle was now in full swing. The clash between the legendary might of the Heroic Spirits, the dazzling chaos of the Devil Kings, and the disciplined ranks of the armored invaders shook all of the foundations of the decaying city
The battle immediately devolved into a different kind of massacre. The sight was spectacular and terrifying: the air filled with the explosive discharges of various Noble Phantasms dropping like celestial bombs, creating a deafening, multi-colored display akin to a chaotic, high-powered fireworks show.
The entrance of the bubbly Devil King, Serafall Leviathan, instantly cranked the chaos . Her immense, city-freezing Ice Magic swept across the invaders, turning the field into a deadly, fragmented skating rink.
The immediate effect on Sona's peerage and Koneko was pronounced. Their bodies began shivering in fright—a mix of fear and sheer awe at the destructive power of a top-tier Devil King unleashed. Sona, the pragmatist, merely put a hand on her forehead and let out a helpless sigh, knowing any hope of a tactical, controlled engagement was now impossible.
The Goddess entities who had remained behind to observe Akira and his motives watched Serafall's rampage with intense interest.
One of the goddesses, captivated by the sheer, unbridled power, simply blurted: "What an anomaly." The others, their divine understanding stretched by the sight, could only nod in silent agreement.
,Shirayuki Mizore watched Serafall with absolute stars in her eyes. As a Yōkai whose very being was attuned to ice and cold, she recognized the difference between her own powerful but localized Ice Yōki and Serafall's planetary-level disaster magic. Mizore knew her own constitution as a cold-dwelling Yōkai couldn't yet produce that kind of widespread, overwhelming ice disaster. After seeing Serafallin action, Mizore's resolve to seek training from Serafall was solidified.
Akira realized the battle was quickly turning into a spectacle handled by the heavy hitters. His own job wasn't brute force; it was reconnaissance and elimination. He had a leadership crisis looming in his domain, but the immediate crisis was the enemy's command structure.
He addressed the observers—the remaining goddesses and the tactical leaders—before vanishing. "I'm going to engage," Akira announced, his voice just loud enough to carry. "Their main force is distracted. My role is to assassinate their command officer and collapse the invasion from the top."
He unsheathed his katana, Blue Haze, the blade a silent promise of swift death.
Akira then activated his specialized stealth combo: Shadow Step to cloak his physical presence, Veil of Silence to swallow his breathing and clothing rustle, and Silence Step to eliminate his footfalls. He melted seamlessly into the chaos of the periphery, moving like a ghost through the smoke and debris, completely undetected by the surging battle.
His objective was simple: utilize his Predator's Focus Sight to bypass the melee and pinpoint the enemy leader's signal, then use the element of surprise to deliver a swift, decisive strike with Blue Haze. The battle was a canvas of chaos, and Akira intended to be the invisible brushstroke that ended the resistance.
The moment Akira utilized his powerful stealth abilities, the effect on the observers was profound. His figure seemed to seamlessly merge with the darkness and debris of the environment, not merely fading but becoming a ghost.
The shock of seeing him vanish without a trace was instantaneous: the hair on the necks of every remaining Candidate and the military officer stood straight up.
The initial jealousy the other Candidates felt towards Akira—for bringing in a massive, powerful army of "wife material" from fantasy worlds—was wiped out in an instant. That vanity was replaced by stark terror and grudging respect for a man who commanded power far beyond their comprehension. They were witnessing a true, supernatural assassin.
The military officer, already grateful for the food contract, let out a silent sigh of immense relief. He mentally thanked the chain of command for the directive that told them to cooperate with Akira, and not to attempt any coercion or resistance. He realized that interfering with Akira would be national suicide.
The officer, now acutely aware of the existential threat Akira represented, made an immediate, internal vow: he would personally ensure the police department was warned about Akira. The more localized, lower-level authorities must never, under any circumstance, attempt to exploit or interfere with the man who was currently disappearing into the shadows to save their lives. Akira's cover was now not just military protection; it was the sheer, terrifying power of his demonstrated abilities.
Moving silently toward the enemy's projected command post, Akira dedicated half his focus to the life-or-death mission and the other half to the equally terrifying internal threat: the spontaneously awakened goddesses in his Domain.
Accessing his mental link to Yukari's Boundary, Akira initiated a rapid diagnostic scan across the entire population, filtering only for entities with a Tier-0 Divine Core or an equivalent, overwhelming aura that had broken through the initial summoning suppression.
Akira breathed a momentary sigh of relief: the two versions of Ishtar and the two versions of Freya he had already summoned are still on the island. The other version remained dormant, saving him from an immediate, five-way romantic and political cataclysm. Similarly, the chaotic but potentially devastating Aqua was also thankfully still asleep.
However, the scan results confirmed that several high-tier divine beings had indeed forced their way back to consciousness:
1. Hestia from Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (DanMachi)
2. Ristarte from Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious |
3. Eris from KonoSuba
4. Palutena from Kid Icarus
Akira quickly processed the roster. He wasn't facing immediate annihilation, but he was facing a catastrophic shift in his Domain's power balance, all demanding immediate explanation.
The most critical information was now secured: He knew who he was dealing with.
Now, as his target signal solidified ahead, Akira solidified his immediate strategy:
* Execute the Commander. Finish the combat objective and secure the Gate sector.
* Negotiate Tonight. Use the infinite food and boundless energy as bargaining chips to align these divine beings before they form their own faction or decide Akira's true motives are too dangerous to tolerate.
With the enemy commander just meters ahead, Akira pushed the divine headache aside and focused on the silent slice that would end the battle.
Akira's body tensed, Blue Haze raised. The fate of the Gate rested on the next silent second.