Soma had gone slightly overboard with the creation of the item to draw the attention of Azazel, which was hard not to do as he had a source of fairy energy and the materials from the Ringa family had sent him to use.

The end result of the previous day’s work was a much more elegant gear for healing when compared to Twilight Healing. It needed more direct commands instead of just wanting to heal and see it happen, needing the user to have in-depth knowledge of the body to properly use, but this gear had a much greater healing capability to the point that it could recover even amputated limbs as if brand new and heal the body from diseases and poisons. It would also cost considerably less energy to use while being safer to use as it would not need physical contact like Twilight Healing to have any effect. ​​

Hell, if the user knew enough of the body he could even change the body of the one it was affecting to give it cancer or mess with it, being useful even as an offensive weapon if the user so desires.

Something like that should be able to draw the attention of Azazel, or at least Soma hoped it would be.

In all honesty, Soma did not think that the Twilight Healing was a great tool, but it would work as a bargaining chip for what he wanted so there was that. It took him about 4 hours to make this gear that was better gear than Twilight Healing in almost every way if the user was competent, the rest of the time was spent extracting the energy of the fairy that was stuck inside Twilight Healing as he could find several uses for such energy later on.

He knew a bit of fairy techniques for Blacksmithing, having visited Avalon once or twice with Merlin when the asshole wizard wanted a wingman to try and woo some fairies to his bed, and if he had fairy energy to use he could perhaps produce an item that was close to Divine Construct or something, nothing to sneeze at for sure.

By the time night arrived. Soma was finally satisfied with the amount of energy he extracted, having obtained enough energy to produce at least three or four more mystic codes that are by all rights superior to Twilight Healing or just one truly powerful item.

///—///

Meanwhile, in another part of town, Jeanne was on the phone with Cao Cao.

“Jeanne, how long until you bring in all the new recruits? We are planning a strike and we need as much firepower as possible for that.”

“I know, but it is taking longer than expected to find all users in town. I have had Deux scour the entire town for users and we have found a total of 11 users until now, I am still trying to formulate a plan to get them all to voluntarily come and-” Jeanne was saying when she was interrupted by Cao Cao.

“No, if you found 11 users then that is more than enough. We don’t have the time to go about your slow method, it is more thorough but it would take too long and we need your back as soon as possible. We have obtained intel that Azazel will be coming to Kuoh two nights to have a ‘secret’ meeting about the Peace Talks, and will be taking with him Vali and the Slash Dog team as guards. With the help of the spies of the Chaos Brigade inside the Grigory, this is the perfect chance for us to strike them to capture multiple Sacred Gear users of their school as well as obtain the information collected by the Grigory about all the different races and their respective weaknesses. With this information, Leonardo will be able to produce much better monsters to exterminate all that filth.”

What Cao Cao didn’t mention was that a part of the Sacred Gear users would have to be transferred over to Satanael for his experiments in creating Longinuses from ordinary gears, but that was of little concern. That fallen angel might be a crazy fucker but he only cared about his research and any failed product of his experiments would simply be transferred back to the Hero Faction anyway, even if they are failures in turning into Longinus, they would still be powerful and useful users who achieved Balance Breaker and had their minds damaged enough that, with just a bit of mind control, could be turned to perfect disposable attack dogs.

Everyone wins… well, not the ones captured since they would simply become drones to help push humanity to glory, but their sacrifices were for the greater good so they must feel honored for the chance of being part of something greater than they are by only paying the small price of becoming little more than attack zombies.

Meh, who cares? It is all for the Greater Good anyway.

“Fine then, but if you want me to do that then I will need more help. Just me and my team can’t take all 11 in a single day right under the noses of three devil peerages.” Jeanne said in irritation.

She could see how this attack could be useful for the Faction, but she was enjoying her little game dammit!

Jeanne had already approached 4 of the 11 users in town and was already on the cusp of fully turning them to her side thanks to patience, good thinking, clever manipulation, and plentiful use of one of her personal creations, the Holy Sword of Loyalty. That little beauty was a small dagger-like sword that could turn the loyalty and devotion of others around it towards the user of the blade, Jeanne made sure to always have it on her person secretly whenever she talked with those four and just a small push and they would be like the rest of her team, loyal servants who would do anything she tells them to without hesitation.

The feeling of power over others, the intoxication of knowing that others would follow her to the ends of the earth with pure devotions, it was the best. She also enjoyed the process, not just mind-controlling others directly like was the preference of the rest of the higher-ups of the faction who couldn’t see the artistry of seducing others into willing slav… recruits for the faction that protects mankind from evil.

“… I believe we could send some stray devils as well as Connla, flame shaker, and the two Starling users. His shadow constructs should be able to create some chaos while the Starling users should possibly be able to snipe at least a few of the devils in town.” Cao Cao said, those three were not overly useful anyway and there were other users of Night Reflector while the Starling gears and flame shaker were nothing special but could be useful against devils.

As for the Strays, who gave a fuck about them? They were mindless weapons in Cao Cao’s eyes.

Trash whose only use was as a disposable weapon, that is what Strays are for Cao Cao.

“Fine, but send in Georg as well to help in transport.” Jeanne said to which Cao Cao promptly agreed. Of all the members of the Faction Georg was the most important for it functioning properly, but also the safest thanks to his gear making killing him near impossible. Unless he was completely and utterly overpowered there were few who could kill or even capture Georg.

After this Jeanne ended the call and began to plan what their attack should be like and look into information about the targets they must capture. She talked with her team and they arrived at a decision regarding where to strike and who to allocate to each target. Early next morning, mist flooded the place she was at, and from it Georg, Connla, the two Starling users, and the flame shaker user.

Besides Connla and Georg the other three were what the Hero Faction called ‘drones’, those whose minds broke while the Hero Faction tried to stimulate their gears to achieve Balance Break. They were only good at following orders and were unable to think much beyond the artificial intelligence implanted in them for combat, but that would be enough for something like this mission. If the Hero Faction could obtain 11 new users for the price of three broken low-end products then that was a bargain.

“So, what’s the plan?” Connla asked, trying to act important despite not being seen as anything relevant by the actual leaders of the faction, his only worth was that his mind didn’t break under the training to release Balance Breaker and especially that he was a descendant of a hero.

“Here are the targets.” Jeanne said, a list of documents including names, family, pictures, addresses, locations they usually go to, and more. “We will have to do a blitz tonight as we need to capture them all simultaneously to avoid the devils being able to react. We also need to cause some chaos away from where the targets will be, I will leave that to you guys for the most part while my team will move to capture the targets.

“The Flame Shaker will move with the Stray Devils to cause problems, the two Starling users will also move in secret to prepare in case sniping is needed and Connla should help as well in support to make sure the strays stay alive for longer by redirecting the devils’ magic at them when they try using it. When I give the signal everyone must move to me as fast as possible with the last one to come being Georg only after a second signal as we will only need your help at the moment of escape and the more we can ensure the devils are busy the better and you have very diverse magic and would be able to stall the devils for as long as needed without an issue.”

They all nodded with Georg showing a small smile. While Cao Cao was undoubtedly their best strategist Jeanne wasn’t any slouch and was amongst the top 5 best in the entire Faction, with her having time to set everything there was a little chance things would go wrong and even if they did the damage would be mitigated as much as possible. One of the reasons for him being sent was precisely to ensure that no greater damage would happen as Jeanne was an important asset to the faction that they could ill afford to lose.

Her name as Saint attracted Stray Exorcists very easily to the faction and her ability to produce Holy Swords, even if of low quality, was far too useful for any strike against the devils. No, Georg was here to ensure everything ran smoothly and to serve as a lifeline if things went to shit since this was a hastier plan than the one expected originally. As a magician and the user of the Longinus Dimension Lost, someone who could wipe out this entire town instantly if he so pleased, would make sure that everything went well no matter what.

///—///

That day Soma went to school like normal. Momo tried to invite him to the Student Council room to have lunch but he said no, he gave some lazy excuse to her but in truth he only did so for a simple reason.

He had to prepare equipment for Mittelt.

Since the little fallen had decided to follow him it was only natural that he would provide her items for protection. He used the hour of lunch today to enchant two rings and a necklace, it was basic by his standards but would have to suffice for the time being.

All three items had a similar effect, creating a force field of sorts to lower the damage she would take from attacks. For increasing offensive power he would later have to make her a weapon, and for proper armor, he would have to make her a proper uniform instead of that basic stuff she likes to wear, but until then these force fields would help in both lowering the damage and even increasing her physical capacity as the fields would be able to let her move things heavier than she normally would.

As the bell for the end of class rang Soma stood up to leave when he was intercepted.

“Hey, Soma-kun, I was going with Kiyoharu to search for a gift for Aya since she is coming back tomorrow. Want to come with us?” Ravel asked, hoping he would come as well. She wanted to try and flirt with him some more, having started to develop a crush on him for a little while now, that she realized after the other day when they used her pool (mostly due to his body).

“Sorry, I will be a bit busy tonight.” Soma said, he had lost an entire day having sex Monday, and Thursday he spent the whole day making items, so now he had a lot to make up for with his body reconstruction. He planned to see if he could at least finish the modifications to his hair to be able to use Zabaniya: Raving Shadow Flash. It would allow him to control the size of his hair as well as control each strand of it perfectly, with the strand being extremely sharp.

In the Throne, Soma could never reach the level of the Hassan who made that technique, a Hassan who could use each strand in a distance of up to 8 kilometers away, but being able to spread each individual strand of hair independently in a distance of two kilometers around him would certainly be nice. But hey, at least Soma had managed to reach the same level of modifications to his hair to make each strand of his hair like those of the original Hassan who made this technique, each strand being as fine as a spider’s thread.

Sure, his hair would hardly count as human since it would be modified to the point that each strand could cut through tempered steel as if it were paper even BEFORE he used reinforcement, but that was not really all that relevant for Soma. Compared to the changes he would be doing to his hands this was honestly tame.

“Oh, okay. Well, that is fine, I guess.” Ravel said feeling slightly dejected. “But, tomorrow we will be going to invite Aya to go out and play a bit. You will come, right?”

Soma thought for a moment before smiling.

“Sure, I would be honored.” He said, making Ravel smile brightly before bouncing off to Kiyoharu, who was waiting at the door of the classroom. Soma waved at them as they left, his thoughts flashing to Aya and instinctively he checked one of the items he had on hand.

It was the one connected to the gift Soma gave Aya previously, with that he could be sure she was safe and that was enough for now. If there was time tonight he would see if he could do something for Aya as well, perhaps bake something for her tomorrow? That should cheer her up.

///—///

On the streets of Kuoh’s shopping district both Ravel, and Kiyoharu were looking for a perfect gift for their friend Aya.

“What do you think of this one?” Ravel said, showing a pretty pair of sandals to Kiyoharu who shook her head.

“I don’t think this would look good on her. It wouldn’t match her well and we are not sure of her foot size anyway.” Kiyoharu said with Ravel nodding after a moment.

“Fine, if not shoes then how about some perfume or make-up?”

“That would be much better.” Kiyoharu said as they went back to check out different items, only for Kiyoharu to stop in front of some other sandal that caught her attention. It was a pretty little find being white and pink with flower designs all over. “Oh, this one is so cute. What if I buy this one for me?”

“That would look nice.” Ravel said. “I’ll buy it for you as a gift.”

“No need, I have the cash for it.” Kiyoharu replied, the sandals weren’t expensive and she could afford them.

“I insist.” Ravel said. “Trust me, I have more money than I know what to do with, so it should be alright.”

Kiyoharu looked a bit torn before saying.

“Fine, but when we stop for food I am paying for it.”

“Sure.” Ravel said, enjoying this a lot. It was quite different to have friends who she can just be herself around, especially someone like Kiyoharu that did not try to take advantage of her money like most devils usually did.

Well, Soma also didn’t but he is quite rich anyway so money for him is no big deal. As for Aya, she and Ravel haven’t gone out like this before but Ravel was quite confident that she wouldn’t make use of her for her money, Ravel sure of that.

The young Phenex was having the time of her life! Sure, she was serving in Rias’ Peerage but that was barely a concern seeing as the redhead king that she was supposed to serve didn’t make any question about including her in anything, as such Ravel was almost free from any care regarding her position. This let her just be Ravel instead of the little perfect lady she was forced to be in the Underworld.

She smiled brightly at that thought, of the freedom she had. It was ironic really, what her king wanted to obtain by coming to the human world was what Ravel got instead.

That is, until Kiyoharu noticed something.

“Hey, is it just me or does everyone else seem to be leaving all of a sudden?” Kiyoharu asked, cold sweat on her face as she noted the entire area clearing as all pedestrians started to disappear from sight.

Ravel’s face hardened, she was not used to actual combat whatsoever but she knew that this was a lot like the effects of a magic field to make any human with no active magic in them leave an area. It was one of the basic things everyone in the supernatural learned to ensure there was no exposure, and what was happening was a clear sign of that.

“Stay behind me, I will prote-”

BANG

Ravel couldn’t even finish her sentence before her head was blown off. Kiyoharu looked on in horror at this scene as her friend’s headless body.

“It seems like the immortality of the Phenex house is as troublesome as Onee-sama said it would be. Really, devils are such pests.”

Turning to the direction of the person who just spoke, Kiyoharu’s eyes widened at what she saw.

The person standing in front of her was a girl wearing a beige skirt with black tips, and a short-sleeved white shirt with puffs and arm warmers. In between her skirt and her top, she had a brown corset-like garment, a small brown hat with white fur coming out of it, gray and white striped leggings, and black and yellow knee-high boots.

Her hair was curly blond much like Ravel’s and her face was one that both Kiyoharu and Ravel knew well.

Ravel’s head quickly returned to place, her face a bit torn over the fact that her identity as a devil was exposed just like that, but she had more to worry about than her race being revealed.

Ravel turned surprised eyes at her attacker.

“Wait, you already knew that I was a devil? What is going on, Mami-san?”

“Shut up, filth. I did not give you permission to speak to me.” Mami, no, Trois said, with an expression as if she was looking at a disgusting piece of trash that marred her otherwise beautiful face. “Now, Kiyoharu, quickly get away from this dangerous monster. I will protect you, and help take you somewhere where you will be safe from evil creatures like her, there is a whole new life waiting for you.”

Ravel was looking nervous, she was not used to fighting and did not want to enter in any conflict if at all possible. Gulping, she tried one more time.

“Mami-san, this is not funny. How about we just sit down and ta-”

“MY NAME IS NOT MAMI! I left that name behind me for a long time now, I am no longer that person! I became, and AM, Trois, a proud member of the Hero Faction, and I am sick and tired of having to deal with your bullshit, you evil monster!’

BANG

Mami fired one of her guns, with the bullet traveling fast and exuding a powerful magic energy. Sensing this, Ravel desperately made a magic shield big enough to hold the strike that was aimed at her. But as the strike hit, Ravel felt like her shield was cracking, Ravel realized if she hadn’t made the magic shield the shot would most likely hit Kiyoharu as well considering the angle.

If not for Ravel’s shield, it was entirely possible that Kiyoharu would be dead by now.

“What are you doing?! You could have killed Kiyoharu as well with that shot!” Ravel was extremely angry at this, Kiyoharu was one of the first true friends of hers that only cared for her as Ravel, not as the princess of Phenex. Ravel by no means would let that happen.

“Well, I told him to come to me already and I wouldn’t kill him. But some damage in the crossfire isn’t all that weird so he can choose. Come to my side and be protected by a hero, or die with this filthy, disgusting, creature of sin that tries to look like a human who should have never existed and would do the world a favor by dying.”

“Sorry, but that is not happening.” Ravel said, fire in her eyes as she released her fire wings. She might not be good with fighting but she could see how unhinged Trois was acting and she would not let someone like that take Kiyoharu, as she is her real friend.

“Oh, you want to stop me?” Trois said in a challenging tone before snapping her fingers. With that simple gesture, 20 new guns appeared behind her, floating in mid-air and ready to fire in a manner reminiscent of a certain golden king in the Throne of Heroes. “Then, by all means, try and do so. The Faction have amazing healers so as long as Kiyoharu-kun is alive and mostly in one piece he can be healed. Besides, my orders were to take him with me alive and me wanting him whole was just because I like little Kio, but I have no orders of keeping you alive. Now, let’s get this over with.”

And with that over 20 magic guns fired at once, the streets of Kuoh turning into a battleground.