The moment the teleportation finished, Ryuichi's nerves went taut.
An overwhelming sense of danger surged through him—
His Devil instincts screamed a warning!
Whoosh!
Black Devil wings flared open behind him. Almost entirely on instinct, Ryuichi stepped sharply to the side, his body sliding a full meter away in an instant.
Fwoosh!
Something sliced through the air where he'd just been standing.
"Huh?"
A soft sound of surprise came from the darkness.
The metallic tang of blood hit Ryuichi's heightened senses, making him frown.
Outside, the sky had already turned dark. The room's lights were off, but that hardly mattered—his vision as a Devil was perfectly clear even in the gloom.
He quickly scanned the direction the attack had come from, taking in the room's layout in one glance.
A sofa.A coffee table.A television.
It looked like a living room—except for one thing.
The floor was covered in blood. And not just blood—there were pieces of flesh scattered around, something that looked disturbingly like part of a liver.
Then his eyes fell upon the wall.
A corpse was nailed there—literally pinned upright, with its head severed and lying on the floor below.
A woman. A human.And beside her, the remnants of a summoning circle.
Judging from the traces, she had been the summoner.
Thick iron nails pierced through her feet, her hands, and the center of her torso. Her body was slashed open in countless places—ripped apart so brutally that organs spilled out through the wounds.
It was a sight that turned the stomach.
Whoever had done this hadn't just wanted her dead—they wanted her destroyed.
And scrawled across the wall in her own blood were large, uneven letters:
"Those who commit evil shall face divine punishment…"
Just reading it once made a sharp pain lance through Ryuichi's mind.
He gave a cold snort, expression unmoved. He recognized that line immediately—it was a Saint's verse, a holy chant meant to harm Devils.
"That's a Saint's quote, you know!!"
A loud, mocking voice echoed from the shadows.
A young man stepped out, his figure slowly emerging into the dim light.
He couldn't have been more than seventeen or eighteen—around Ryuichi's own age. His white hair gleamed faintly, and his face, if one ignored the wild grin, might even have been called handsome.
But the black clergy garb he wore said it all—he was a priest.
"Oh? Ohhh? Well, well… isn't this a little Devil boy?"
He laughed, loud and exaggerated. "Ahahaha, of course! You did crawl right out of that summoning circle, didn't you?"
Ryuichi's expression remained cold. But he could feel it—this man was dangerous.
Even as a human, his power wasn't ordinary.
And then, without warning, the priest broke into song.
"I'm a priest~? A handsome young priest~~♪Slaying Devils~? That's my job, oh yes indeed~♪Chop off their heads so I can get paid~♪"
The tone was lighthearted, but the madness behind it was unmistakable.
Ryuichi's voice was low and sharp. "Did you kill this woman?"
"Yup! Sure did! Who else would it be?" The man grinned wide, eyes glinting with mania. "She spent her days summoning Devils! Who else deserves death more than her?"
The expression on his face was pure insanity.
"I'm Freed Sellzen—low-ranking exorcist from a certain organization." His grin widened. "Ah, no need to tell me your name. I'm not gonna waste brain space remembering it. You're about to die anyway, right? You're gonna die, and I'll make sure of it."
Completely hopeless.
Ryuichi could already tell—there was no reasoning with this man.
Without a word, he activated the sigil on his palm, sending a signal to Rias and the others.
Freed noticed the motion and cackled. "Useless! Totally useless! This whole area's under a barrier! By the time your friends find you, you'll be a nice little corpse!"
"You talk big for a murderer." Ryuichi's voice stayed calm. "A priest who tortures humans… You disgust me. Dying might be the best thing for you."
"Ha—hah!? You're lecturing me? A filthy Devil's lecturing me!?"
Freed laughed maniacally.
"Don't make me laugh! You demons feed off human desire! You're parasites! Anyone who summons a Devil's already lost their soul!
She was already trash—killing her was mercy!
That's my job! My mission! I make my living by hunting scum like you!"
As he ranted, Freed pulled a sword hilt—missing its blade—from his coat, along with a pistol.
Bzzzt!
Light shimmered to life, forming a blade of pure holy energy.
"Oh, spare me the moral talk, you disgusting freak! Can I cut you now? I can, right? Great! Devils are filth! You make me sick!"
Still muttering, half to himself, Freed lunged forward, slashing with his holy blade.
Ryuichi instantly summoned the King's Sword, intercepting the light blade perfectly.
At the same time—
Whizz!
A glowing bullet streaked toward him, blazing gold with divine energy. But before it could reach him, it halted midair—shattered by an unseen barrier. The light flickered out harmlessly.
A consecrated anti-Devil bullet.
And Ryuichi hadn't even heard the gunfire.
A silver shield shimmered into existence around him, floating protectively at his side.
Just that first exchange had already forced out one of his Sacred Gears—the Shield of Divine Weeping.
If it hadn't reacted on its own, that bullet might have pierced him.
Freed was insane, but his skill was real.
If Ryuichi hadn't strengthened himself through his contract of faith, he might not have survived the first assault.
"Oh? You blocked my bullet too? Damn, I underestimated you!"
Freed roared, slashing again, his speed shockingly fast for a human.
But Ryuichi had two Knight-class blessings empowering him. When he burst into motion, he was even faster—striking after Freed but arriving first!
His blade flashed—aiming straight between Freed's eyes.
"Wha—!?"
Caught off guard by Ryuichi's speed, Freed barely twisted away, abandoning his counterattack.
Schkk!
The King's Sword still plunged into his shoulder.
"Gahh—!! That hurts! It hurts, damn you!! You stabbed me, you little punk! I'll kill you!!"
Snarling, Freed went berserk, swinging wildly with both blade and gun.
Steel and light clashed in a blur. The two of them moved through the room like lightning, crashing through furniture as sparks scattered from every impact.
Bam! Crash! Crack!
What had once been a tidy living room was reduced to splinters and debris.
Then—
Slash!
The corpse on the wall was accidentally severed mid-fight, limbs scattering. Freed grinned savagely and, without hesitation, kicked one mangled leg toward Ryuichi.
Ryuichi's motion shifted instantly—he caught the flying limb with his sword, flung it back toward the wall, then swung the Shield of Divine Weeping in a heavy arc.
BOOM!
The shield smashed into the wall, collapsing it completely and burying the remains beneath rubble.
Freed let out a barking laugh. "Hah! Don't tell me you're protecting that corpse, huh? What, got a thing for dead girls? Gross! So gross! You Devils really are trash!"
The manic sneer twisted his once-handsome face into something monstrous.
And Ryuichi, eyes cold as ice, raised his sword once more.
The battle was only beginning.