[4] Hard Battle

Chapter 4: Hard Battle

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Kamijou's broadened eyes peered apallingly at the huge shaft of light burning the flesh around the boy's stomach. The skin around peeled and burned, his belly releasing the sounds of meat sizzling.

'That spear...'

Touma raised his hand to cover his mouth, feeling himself churn at the plain, disgusting sight of rotten meat. 'I should've kept my guard up...'

Guilt started to manifest inside himself, paired alongside staggering anger that threatened to consume him. All aimed at the woman who laughed comfortably. Leisurely, at the expense of their pain.

Crumble.

Touma was forced to shift his attention momentarily from the fallen to quickly catch Issei. The latter's knees buckling weakly as he slowly dropped to the floor. "Fuck's sake..."

Extreme pain covered the brown-haired youth's visage as he forced himself to take deep breaths, slightly calming down the overwhelming agony that enveloped him. After a few seconds of trying to regulate his breath, the boy began to speak.

"H-hey, Touma? I k-know this isn't the time...b-but could you make a p-promise with me?" Issei's voice started to crack, break while he spitted out his words with great difficulty. Trinkles of blood running out with each gasp of air.

Touma quickly layed down the youth with hurry, persuading him to shut his mouth for a few seconds. His mind torn, as to whether he should negate the spear, or leave it be.

Expectantly, the fallen angel watched both of her frail, fragile prey with forming arousal. Fascinated by the slow, cruel death awaiting Issei as he struggled to live, and the measly anger the boy with black-hair directed at her. 'I wonder~ should I wait for Issei to die, and then kill that sacred gear user? Or should I make Issei watch as I kill both of them~'

As Raynare depicted her nauseous fantasy with great delight, she began to descend to the ground and contemplate how long she should give them. 'After all, a human can't beat a fallen angel like me.'

Meanwhile, Touma panicked at the sight of the youth's blood pouring slowly from the wound, coughing loudly from time to time. "Shut up for a second, you can tell me what you want after we quickly get to the hospital and escape from here!" Listening to himself speak with anxiety, Touma realised how slim and stupid the chance really is from getting out of the place alive whilst carrying a dying Issei.

Heavily, the brown haired youth started shaking his head weakly and began to pat his chest lightly with a shaky grin. Exactly how he did earlier this morning. "D-don't worry...the promise might be hard to complete...but I think you can d-do it. I just want you to g-get out of here alive. Leave me here as b-bait, or throw me a-at her while running. Just m-make sure you survive..."

The hazel-eyed youth felt somewhat responsible for the situation they both found themselves in.

Thoughts like: how different would it have been if he had rejected the girl, who he never had met before? Would he have realised how shallow of a human he was previously. Would Kamijou not have put his own life at risk because of his idiocy?

Ironically, with reflecting thoughts that one could only comprehend after experiencing the consequences, the boy started to feel his vision blur, the once clear lines and colour turning dull.

"Hey! Wait, don't close your eyes yet...stay awake for a few more minutes!" Touma, starting to feel the leaving warmth of the boy's body, began to shout with indignance. Thoroughly understanding clearly that this was no dream; his classmate on the verge of death. 'Dammit...'

Rapidly calculating in his mind, he estimated that Issei had around 10-11 minutes left - judging from the rate of blood loss, before his life ends. Forever. No chance in coming back to life, unless he makes a deal with the devil.

'A few minutes...but how can I save him? Do I have to fight her and run? The hospital is only 2-3 minutes away since the park is close to the centre of town...'

He needed time, and that's something he didn't have.

Thoughts running rampant inside of his mind, Touma began enclosing his fists and got up from the ground. Turning to look at the woman sharply, his blue eyes focused on her movements while she watched the show in joy. "Done saying goodbye?'"

A pike of anger pounced inside Touma, causing him clench his right hand tighter. Tight to the point blood began to trickle lightly from his palm, as his nails dug painfully deep into his skin. "...Why?"

The woman clad in black looked at her opponent with confusion at the sudden question. Curiosity building up inside of her at the mixture to patience and anger. "What do you mean by why?"

Touma looked at the light spears forming as she talked, gritting his teeth at the indisguised threat. "Why did you target him on the first place. Why did you aim the spear at him, in front of me when I clearly was the bigger danger to you then him?!"

The boy spat out his thoughts venomously. Causing the woman to frown at the contempt without knowing that he was planning something. Touma knew he had to do something, adapt a mask he can use to tilt the battle in his favour.

Whilst he was in the midst of roughly calculating his chances, Raynare began to laugh. A slightly giggle, that transformed into full blown laughter. "Why? Why?! Fufu, why should I need a reason to kill an ant weaker than me? Wake up you foolish boy, this isn't the normal side anymore. It's the supernatural! The strong rule over the weak, since that idiot was 'predicted threat' I decided to kill him in advance!"

Suddenly, the boy named Kamijou Touma felt himself becoming empty. Bleak. Pure, unfettered rage that had built up inside of him, vowing to destroy that woman, disappeared. Faded.

All left remaining inside of him was a void, forcing him into a state of intense calmness. Raynare, noticing the subtle change, looked warily at the black-haired youth speaking in a steady tone. Almost as if he hadn't witnessed all that had happened previously.

"You killed him because someone decided he was a potential threat? Torturing him, because of an opinion..?" Touma's voice started to rise unhurriedly. Akin to an approaching crescendo, "...is that your ideal?"

The woman grinned arrogantly. Amused by the useless calmness the human is displaying at the final moments of his life. In order to play around a little more, she decided to appease this little mouse and his question. "What if it is?"

The boy said nothing. He stood there quietly, not letting out an inch of sound as his body froze in complete stillness. The only motion inside the dome that broke this tense silence; were the drops of crimson blood dripping onto the ground. Slowly, steadily.

As the last drop of liquid hanging on the edge of his palm fell, the boy finally started to speak. The once rising crescendo!... - descended into a monotonous tone. Raynare felt cold. A chill, dancing on her nape in response to the advent of what the boy had promised."...if it is then I'll just have to shatter that fucked-up illusion of yours."

Facing this fallen angel, who beared the opposite of everything he had believed in, he was forced to make a choice. The answer he picked? To face it head-on, not letting his emotions cloud his judgement on getting needlessly killed.

With his decision made up, the boy bolted. In turn, the pointed shafts began to move - speeding in attempt to butcher the youth that seemed to be running to his death. With the exit of her spears, Raynare felt her strength drop even lower - finding it difficult to form even 3 more light spears.

'As I expected.' Touma thought while using his right hand to negate the first spear. Contrary to what the majority thought about him, Touma was in fact a very intelligent youth. He is easily able to calculate the trajectory of the beaming lights aimed at him while taking account every other miniscule detail with his subconscious. Devising a plan made by observing the enemies body language clearly, he had noticed that Raynare had gotten weaker with each spear she formed.

The boy sped up, forcing his legs to run faster as he moved his right hand to grasp the next spear. 'Left.' he thought.

Touma ducked. The third spear whizzed past the edge of his spiky hair - burning it - as he continued to run, taking down another spear, while finding himself a few feet away from the fallen angel looking at him with shock. "W-what?"

"You better clench your jaw..!" The blue-eyed boy gripped his fist and let out a grunt. Thrusting his right arm forward, the boy squarely hit the face of the beautiful woman. Dissipating the sudden light spear she was forming due to the rupture in concentration.

"Krgh!" The fallen angel flew to the ground as she felt her strength leaving. The overuse of magic made her mana run dry, causing the woman to use her physical body to take the brunt of the impact.

Unsurprisingly, Kamijou took in a deep breath of air as he watched the girl skid across the concrete floor. Her wings twisting as they rubbed firmly against the rocks, feathers falling apart.

Watching with slight satisfaction, Touma's knees buckled. A result of the overextertion of muscles, sure to cause a few cramps later on - although the boy didn't seem to care.

He imposed his fatigued body to make way to Issei. Not wanting to let the youth die, he tried to run before falling to the floor with a loud thud. Sensing extra weight on top of him.

The black-haired boy tried to move his head to see if his thoughts were true, but that burst when he felt a torrid object lodge its way on his legs. He didn't know if it was due to the adrenaline, or his receptors getting boiled, but he didn't feel any pain. 'So she hasn't fainted ye-'

"Y-you disgusting bag of flesh. How dare you put your filthy hands on my face?!" Kamijou's trail of thoughts were disrupted with the horrid scream of the woman in front of him. "I'll kill you! I swear I'll kill you the most painful way possible!"

Scrambling, the youth struggled to break free from the tight anchor she had on his body. Impelling him to turn his head, just in time to see a spear of light form in her hand as a crazed smile graced her bloodied lips. "S-such misfortune..."

Raynare disregarded Kamijou's complaints and forced open his mouth that he had tightly closed. The latter's body wriggling whilst she slowly tried to insert the light inside of his mouth. "Tell me how it tastes? Okay~ fufu..!"

Crazy laughter reverberated through the plains as she used her other hand to pin the youth's right hand. 'Scream for me.'

Pain. Overwhelming torment assaulted his senses as the tip of the spear gently touched the apex of his tongue, all senses screaming out at him. To the point his body was about to black out so Touma doesn't remember what happens after.

The boy tried to lift his right hand to graze the spear, but Raynare was preventing that from happening by using stomping on it. Keeping it down. "Bye, bye~"

Just as the shaft of the spear was about to make its way into Touma's mouth, it halted.

A bright, scarlet light that threatened to overshadow the night that had fallen upon the terrain appeared. Causing Raynare to snap her head back, the spear retreating alongside the loss of consciousness from Kamijou Touma.

---

The same colour as his blood.

That's what Hyoudo Issei could discern from his fatigued, dying eyes.

Crimson - Scarlet hair which is brighter than the

most brilliant of rubies. A red so vivid, it made him feel at peace.

That long, graceful hair fluttered as the person that it belonged to made an entrance. Unknowingly, the boy - who was trying his best to stay awake to keep Touma's promise - suddenly found himself closing his eyes. Feeling safe, almost as it everything was going to be well for him after he gets a long rest.

Just as the boy was about to drift off to the land of dreams, he heard a feminine voice speak.

"Hey, Hyoudou-kun." The boy opened his blurred eyes once more, finding it painful to keep it unfolded as the outline of a face made itself apparent. "...Would you like to make a deal with the Devil? Exchange your status as human, for power? ...Survival?"

The boy suddenly felt his subconscious screaming at him to deny the request, persuading him to reject it. Hyoudou Issei knew that life would never be the same if he accepted, thus just when he was about to discard her offer - he paused.

The image of a boy fighting for his sake appeared in his mind. A friend that he could rely on, somewhat different from Motohama and Matsuda. Issei contemplated for a few moments before finding himself wanting to repay the boy for what he had done.

Weakly, Hyoudo moved his head into a nod - causing a smile, from what he can barely see, to form on her face.

The youth suddenly felt the pain inside of his body slowly. recede as seconds passed by. A current of warmth streaming through his veins.

'So comfortable...' The bloodied boy had thought while resting his head on the floor. Peaceful. Quiet. Begrudgingly, the boy decided to finally drift off to sleep. Glad at the prospect of getting some relaxation after everything that had happened.

As the boy nearly slept, he suddenly felt his stomach warm up in 8 different spots - alongside the voice of the woman that had spoken to him earlier on.

"In this life, you - Hyoudou Issei - will live for me."

---

"What do you think you are doing, Gremory!" The black-haired fallen angel growled at the new arrival. Her spear of light, distancing itself from - the now fainted - Touma.

The woman with crimson hair turned to look at Raynare, her eyes glowing dangerously as a torrent of magic power manifested itself around her.

"I'm just fulfilling the wish of a customer." Her elegant voice resounded from her lips as she glared at the fallen in front of her. "Now I ask of you, what do you think you are doing in MY territory, Crow..?"

The earth around the scarlet woman disintegrated as she walked towards the ravenheaded girl. Anger spiking at the audacity.

As if reacting to her emotional state, the power around her intensified, causing the woman to kneel down with the intense pressure.

"Are you trying to start another war, Crow? Should I ask your dear governor, if that's what he is trying to start with your actions?" Gremory descended to face the once arrogant woman with cold eyes, disgust evident at her tone.

Raynare had never felt this insulted. Kneeling in front of a bat, her power ran dry due to humans. Furiousness and humiliation formed inside the woman as she forced herself to look at Gremory scornfully.

The red-haired woman dismissed the poor attempt at intimidation, giving a little smile while speaking. "I'll let you off since I don't want to cause unnecessary trouble for my brother. However, I warn you. Cause one more trouble in my territory..." The woman's finger suddenly pointed at Raynare, potent crimson magic gathering on the tip of it as the wind around them started to spread. "...I'll kill you."

The fallen angel looked at her in vexation, hands gripped tightly into fists as she forced herself up. She gave a glance to Touma, which Gremory noticed immediately. "You better not touch him too."

Raynare turned to look at the redhead with fury, the light spear in her hand nearly moving to pierce the woman. 'The audacity of this bitch, trying to take my prey..?!'

The fallen angel took deep breaths to calm herself down, not wanting to cause trouble for her Azazel-sama by killing the heiress of Gremory. She said nothing as she walked away, her tattered wings spreading as the wind picked herself up.

The redhead watched the crow move with calmness, waiting as she left before turning to look at the black haired boy. A spear of light going through his leg as he sprawled out.

The woman moved herself in front of the boy as crimson power gathered inside of her hand. Floating for a few seconds, before it travelled and covered the ravenheaded youth.

However, contrary to her expectations, the moment her power came in contact with the boy - it vanished.

The woman furrowed her brows, attempting to heal the youth once more. What happened next was the exact same as the previous time.

A slow tug pulled the corner of her lips as she looked at the boy on the floor with growing curiosity. Her hand moving to hold the boy's cheek lightly as she spoke aloud with mischief.

"Now, now. Why on earth does a devil's power not work on you...Kamijou Touma?"