The ancient battlefield of the Eligos Territory was filled with all manner of bloodthirsty creatures. Because it was a place once used by the House of Eligos to train soldiers, the organisms here were not only ferocious but also exceptionally grotesque.
When night fell and the girls, having finished their respective specialized training and dinner, arrived here with weary spirits, the first thing they saw were countless pale figures drifting through the sky.
"Wha—What are those?"
At this moment, whether it was the habitually proud and cold Yukino Yukinoshita, the haughty Utaha Kasumigaoka, or even the gentle Asuna Yuuki and Mahiru Shiina, all of their expressions changed in unison.
"You mean those?"
Leon was naturally present, yawning with a look of someone who had just woken up. He remarked quite casually, "Those are the vengeful spirits of soldiers who died in battle."
The moment those words left his mouth, the delicate and beautiful faces of the girls—which hadn't paled once throughout a whole day of Spartan training—turned white as sheets.
"Those are ghosts?!"
Asuna Yuuki let out a cry and suddenly spun around, intending to bolt.
"Wait, what are you afraid of?" Leon grabbed her, saying exasperatedly, "They're just ghosts. This is the Underworld; it's literally the place where the souls of the dead come. Is it not perfectly normal for a bunch of unwanted ghosts to be wandering around a special place like this?"
"You call this normal?" Utaha Kasumigaoka's lips twitched as she looked at Leon as if he were a demon. "What sane person thinks encountering ghosts is normal? We aren't exorcists!"
"But you are devils. Why would a devil be afraid of ghosts?" Leon retorted to Utaha before glancing at the silent Yukino and Mahiru. His brows twitched. "Don't tell me you're all afraid of ghosts?"
Yukino and Mahiru's slender bodies shuddered simultaneously—a tremble even more violent than anything seen during the day.
"Oho—"
Seeing this, a playful smirk appeared on Leon's face. He remembered now; it seemed not a single one of the girls present was unafraid of ghosts.
Yukino Yukinoshita looked cool and composed, but in reality, she was terrified of even entering a haunted house, let alone encountering actual spirits.
Mahiru Shiina had perhaps been lonely for too long; she was actually very afraid of the dark. A simple power outage at night could leave her shivering, to say nothing of meeting ghosts.
In the death game, what Asuna Yuuki feared most were undead-type monsters. Known by others as the "Flash" and a "demon of the front lines," she was the only one who would flee on floors filled with undead. For her, encountering a ghost during the day was enough to scare her half to death, let alone at night.
As for Utaha Kasumigaoka, no matter how unrestrained or sharp-tongued this black-bellied woman acted normally, she was far from immune to the terror that ghosts inspired.
"Oh dear, what should we do then?" Leon said cheerfully. "I didn't plan to leave you in there all night, but I did intend for you to stay for two or three hours to experience combat to your heart's content."
"It's really troublesome that you're so afraid of ghosts."
"Yes, quite troublesome."
Leon's playful and teasing words filled the girls with a sense of foreboding. Sure enough, in the next second, they heard him say:
"It's decided. From now on, you'll stay in there for four hours every night. And I won't accompany you, lest I disturb your training."
The moment Leon finished speaking, the girls' faces turned deathly pale in an instant.
"No, no, no, no, no!"
Asuna Yuuki lost her composure in a rare display. She grabbed Leon's arm, clinging to him as if she intended to tie herself to his body permanently, and cried out, "Only this is truly impossible! Please! President! Let's train somewhere else!"
The others also voiced their opinions vehemently.
"I believe we could go to the Familiar Forest; we can do live combat there as well!" Yukino stated, feigning a calm demeanor.
"I'd rather go fight those terrorists from the Old Satan Faction again than stay here and fight a bunch of ghosts!" Utaha's stance was incredibly firm.
"—I'm not afraid; I just think fighting ghosts is far too absurd. It's simply unacceptable." Mahiru spoke stubbornly, her tone lacking its usual gentleness.
The three girls exchanged glances and then simultaneously spread their devil wings, preparing to fly away. Unfortunately, Leon grabbed them all back, one in each hand.
"What is with this fear? What is with this cowardice?" Leon's face was solemn, but his eyes were brimming with laughter. "You are devils. You aren't even afraid of Angels or Fallen Angels who possess the power of Light, so why fear mere ghosts?"
"You should know that in the devil work we usually do, we sometimes take the client's soul as payment. Are you afraid of that too?"
"This is not the mindset a proper devil should have. It must be corrected!"
With that, Leon led the group of girls toward the ancient battlefield.
"No! Don't go there!" Asuna was so scared her face turned blue. She hugged Leon tightly while shouting, "It won't work! My sword definitely can't cut those things!"
"Let—Let go of me! Senpai!" Mahiru struggled, attempting to escape Leon's grasp, her voice tinged with panic. "How can a human walk toward a ghost after seeing it? This is illogical!"
"That's why I'm saying, you are devils," Leon said, speechless. "Besides, the two of you are actually the ones who need to fear ghosts the least, okay?"
Whether it was Asuna's Holy Sword or Mahiru's Holy Cross, both were powers that extremely countered ghosts. If they just released a wave of holy energy, the ghosts covering the hills would be lucky if they could run away fast enough. Yet these two didn't even dare to get close?
You two are simply shaming the Holy Sword and Holy Cross!
"Don't get any closer!"
"What you're doing is illegal!"
Seeing the ancient battlefield getting closer and the spirits all over the hills starting to stir as if coming this way, Yukino and Utaha could no longer remain calm and screamed out loud.
To be honest, seeing the girls so terrified, Leon did feel his heart soften a little. Especially seeing the usually graceful Asuna and Mahiru so pale with fright, clinging to him and not even daring to open their eyes; for a moment, he considered giving up and just switching the training location.
However, he ultimately decided to harden his heart.
If they're afraid of even ghosts, what will happen if they encounter the Reapers of the Underworld in the future?
Leon thought about the events to come and steeled his resolve.
"While it's understandable for girls to be afraid of ghosts, for the sake of the future, you must overcome this weakness."
"So, don't blame me."
"When you leave the battlefield, I'll have a surprise waiting for you."
As he finished speaking, Leon grabbed the girls by the collars of their outfits and tossed them directly toward the ghost-infested hills.
A chorus of screams, shriller than any heard during the daytime Spartan training, rang out over the ancient battlefield. This caused the ghosts everywhere to go berserk, swarming toward the girls.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHH—!"
Shortly after, more screams erupted within the battlefield. Following that, snowstorms, countless blades, colorful barriers, and purple flames broke out one after another. In a violent state never seen before, they began desperately attacking or defending against the spirits coming from all directions.
"Hehhh—"
"Roar—"
Given such a massive disturbance, the other creatures in the battlefield were roused. Some watched from afar, while others charged directly toward the commotion, throwing the entire ancient battlefield into a state of upheaval.
Leon unfurled his eight devil wings and floated in mid-air. Watching this scene, he crossed his arms.
"—I hope they're okay."
He could only offer that prayer.
Four hours passed quickly. Leon, who had been watching from the edge of the battlefield, flew in the moment the time was up.
BOOM!
Enveloped in crackling lightning and thunder, Leon charged into the ancient battlefield with overwhelming force. He instantly released countless bolts of lightning toward his surroundings, repelling the ghosts and the creatures that had gathered in the area.
A moment later, Leon flew out with the four girls and returned to the campsite.
The girls' clothes were in tatters, with large patches of skin exposed to the air; even some rather scandalous areas were visible. However, they didn't have the slightest reaction, standing there in a dazed state.
"Hey—"
Leon cautiously waved his hand in front of the girls' faces, speaking in a hushed tone.
"Are... Are you guys okay?"
Leon's cautious inquiry was met with a unanimous silence. They remained in a trance-like state, looking despondent as if they had lost their souls in the battlefield. Their entire beings seemed to have turned grey and white, making Leon realize something was wrong.
Did I overdo it?
Leon was truly getting worried. Before he could take any further action, the girls raised their heads and looked at him.
Their eyes, their expressions—every single one was brimming with murderous intent.
"Uhh—I'll go get your surprise ready first!"
Leon instinctively took a step back, gave a sheepish smile, and scrambled to flee.
"DON'T YOU RUN!!!"
The girls' furious voices soon echoed under the night sky, adding a spark of life to the lonely night that shouldn't have been there.