Chapter 46: Time Skip

The entire two weeks Ray spent almost entirely to do his best and train the girls along with the trio's help for 18 hours each day.

Ray turns them from common rock into rough gemstone while Baraqiel polish them into a proper shiny gemstone. Ray give them greater potential and raw power through the two week long spartan grinding session where they will focus only to level up then starting from the second week, Baraqiel will take four hours of each day to drill combat techniques into everyone of them to polish their power from a blunt nails into a sharp claw that is worthy in Baraqiel's own eyes. Baraqiel himself is famous to be a very tough instructor to please especially when related to combat.

Besides that, Ray finally brought up the issue of his weapons that needed upgrading, which no one more qualified than Azazel can help as the leading researchers in Sacred Gear. Azazel himself managed to create a false Sacred Gear, the Down Fall Dragon Spear which was based on Divine Dividing as reference with the help from Dragon King Fafnir.

The firearms Ray selected to be upgraded is Shotlite Hornet sniper rifle and Proposition gatling gun. Countless improvements are made especially on Hornet sniper rifles which look unrecognisable from its original state unlike Proposition which already have very great base material.

Both Azazel and Ray work rather closely during the two weeks because Azazel wanted Ray to be at the best state as he could during the Peace Conference that he no doubt will be attacked and is the perfect stage to showcase Ray and his unit.

"Hey Azazel… isn't that shit you force into the magazine dangerous?" Ray said as he saw Azazel concentrated greatly and shrink his max output Light Spear that was bigger than skyscraper into the size of the Proposition's bullet.

"This is for the sake of experimentation! Aren't you curious if that gun of yours can shoot a bullet equal in power to my all out attack?" Azazel cried in distress because Ray was about to stow away his Proposition.

"Yeah and then bust my gun again in the process." Ray replied with a deadpan face as this isn't the first time Azazel burst his gun after he tried to load a bullet size disposable false Sacred Gear arrow he developed on whim just to test his curiosity.

The results of the experiment Azazel did is the Proposition shoot the sacred gear which is an arrow that explodes with enough power to destroy the heavily enchanted weapon testing ground. It also busted the barrel that split open like a banana peel. Thank goodness Ray still has a few repair kits that can repair any damage once per kit regardless of how damaged.

Ray did gain compensation from Azazel for the damage done to his gun and the compensation is interesting to say the least. It was a Scaled Mail suit Azazel created when trying to create his Down Fall Dragon Spear. When compared to his Hardplate set, it has better protection to all except physical damage where Hardplate still is better because of the Adamantine.

"Don't worry, your Proposition is very heavily enchanted, blessed and upgraded. I have to pull strings with Michael, the Geezer Odin and some of his dwarves." Azazel smugly said as he was proud of the finished product. "Just think of this as a Stress Test for your firearm. If it cannot handle this much power then there is something wrong with it." Azazel added that Ray can agree because Proposition right now can even be compared to divine construct after being blessed by the strongest Seraph, inscribed with primordial runes of Odin and upgraded by the Dwarves blacksmiths.

The upgrades made to Proposition aren't to make it stronger, in fact it was the opposite as the upgrades are focused to make it durable to handle the specially designed bullets.

Few type of bullets are created and named appropriately like Anti-Supernatural which is his basic bullet effective against most supernatural creatures or Anti-Magic to counter magic users made with Orichalcum-Mithril alloy and even the prototype Anti-God bullet which is made with help from Odin through Azazel's request.

Those bullets are very strong like Anti-God bullets which contain Primordial Runes that are basically the language that can manipulate laws of the world and overwrite reality if used properly. The bullet is extremely strong but also causes proportional strain on Ray and the gun too. Only the upgraded Shotlite Hornet and Proposition can even withstand the firing of the bullet for a few times without breaking even after the upgrade was done on their durability.

In the end Ray just went along with Azazel and tested the bullet. The cost is astronomical indeed as Ray expected with each magazine costing 200 million SAS dollars.

"Ready?" Ray asked Azazel after donning his armors and holding the Proposition in firing position.

"Yeah, just make sure to shoot at that mountain over there and miss none or we are going to deal with an earful lecture from Penemue about blasting the headquarter. Again…"

"Aight then, in 3.. 2.. 1.. eh?"

Unlike what Ray is expecting, there is no loud firing noise or big recoils. Instead the bullet fly silently and the only indication is the yellow beam that shoots out of his barrels like a laser beam which is followed by 450 consecutive massive explosions that delete the artificial mountain in the distance and the noise was extremely loud that Ray hears nothing for a few slight before he hears the sound of explosion and falling rubbles.

"I THINK PENEMUE GONNA GET MAD AT US REGARDLESS IF WE MISSED OR NOT… IF SHE ASKED WHERE I WENT THEN TELL HER I GOT URGENT BUSINESS TO TAKE CARE OFF." Azazel basically screamed to Ray's ears for whatever reason. Probably because of the loud noises but his suit can perceive and deliver information directly to his implant then his brain. Ray didn't realize his helmet is blocking the eardrum shattered noise from the explosions.

Azazel immediately left using magic, leaving Ray alone to pack up his stuff into inventory and return home. Today is the last day for training and tomorrow is the Peace Conference. Time sure flies fast when we are too focused on achieving something.

…

"Thanks for taking care of Cheshire for me. Tomorrow is the last I hope." Ray said to Miki as she handed Cheshire back to Ray.

"Ah, no worries. I also enjoyed her company… The house is always empty when the kids are at school and Gorou is at work. Having Cheshire around makes the house feel less empty and lively." Miki added with a saddened face before bidding Cheshire a goodbye.

"Goodbye too, auntie Miki." Cheshire responded and made Miki lower her body to give her a kiss on the cheek.

"Good luck with your job, Ray." Miki said before Ray and Cheshire left the Hyoudou residence. "I will, thanks Miki-san."

Then Ray went to the hidden magic circle made by Azazel for Ray's convenience to travel between the headquarters and Kuoh Town. He appeared in front of the dorm which is also the barrack for his unit which is still empty and devoid of people since they are all in stages or lobby doing their best to raise their power.

Ray didn't go to his home and instead goes into the lobby to be greeted by Kalawarna only who stares at the wall that is filled with multiple screens showing the real time recording of each stage. The lobby looks more like a massive security room in movies.

"Did Raynare, Mittelt, Elrien and Evelyn go on another endless mode?"

"Mhn, they said they wanted to try breaking their old record again. Though they would never able to break yours." Kalawarna replied while sipping a cup of coffee as she checked on other live recordings, especially the group of twenty she is incharge of.

Ray just nodded as she talked while also sitting at the sofa with Cheshire and her kitten while watching the live recording that shows Raynare's group.

(Raynare's Group PoV)

"Five more Savage Necrosis incoming!" Raynare shouted when the said bosses exit the void in front of her.

"Ignore it for now! We must kill the Savage Devastator first or their berserk phase is going to get us killed." Evelyn, who is killing the Savage Devastator, replied with great distress in her voice.

The bosses she is fighting against looked like a very ripped titan from Attack on Titan and glowing red. She could only keep leading the bosses around and attacking it while flying in faster speed than the bosses to out pace them.

"Elrien Now!" Mittelt shouted from the sky before both of them shoot multiple condensed Light Spears that then impaling the boss's heads and finally bring down the annoying Savage Devastator that has damaged resistance which lower their damage dealt.

"Girls? Help please…" Raynare quickly reminds the other three before they can cheer for their success.

"On it!" Elrien and Evelyn replied before they went to assist Raynare.

"I take care of the small fries." Mittelt said before she used her great manipulation skill of her power to condensed Light bullets into needle size projectiles rapidly and attack the normal zombies.

This skill she trained after kept running out of mana since her reserve isn't as big as Raynare or Kalawarna. The method creates lower powered Light bullets that pack just enough punch to kill a zombie with lower mana and in turn waste very little mana in the process.

Mittelt isn't a Pure Angel turn Fallen like Raynare and Kalawarna. She lacks the capacity in magic like the two which made her to be more efficient and waste no moves when she can just to keep up.

While Mittelt is handling the normal zombies, Raynare and the twin sister are killing the Savage Necrosis. This particular boss isn't hard like a Devastator that turns berserk and gains some immunity. It's only danger is the AOE projectile's attack of all types of damage. They only needed to evade those attacks and nothing else to worry about.

After a few minutes, the bosses are killed and burst into three smaller spawn of red, green and purple which respectively deal fire, acid and physical attack. The smaller one are also nothing to worry about since they are way weaker than it's original and they are all killed in under two minutes.

"Wait, what stage is it now?" Raynare suddenly asked as she just remembered something she forgot in the heat of the fight.

"Stage 99 and just turn stage 100 after the last Necrosis was killed." Elrien replied with confused expression before it morphed into panic along with her twin and Raynare.

"Let's stop here. We managed to break through stage 94 already and fulfilled our goal." Raynare suggested while leaving the stage quickly without thinking twice.

"I second that." Evelyn said before vanishing from the stage as she quit. "Me too, let's leave before the boss starts spawning without limit." The other twin also joined her sister and left. They all left immediately before the bosses start spawning unrestrictedly which occur from stage 100.

Meanwhile Mittelt is wiping her sweat after killing the mobs. She tried to look around but found she was alone on the stage.

"Crap! Stage 100!"

Mittelt was looking around for her squad members when the stage just announced stage 100 is starting. She also left immediately without thinking twice after being abandoned for being too absorbed with slaughtering the mobs.

…

Ray was pampering Cheshire while watching the live recording of Raynare and the others when Raynare and the twin, Elrien and Evelyn left the stage and returned to the lobby.

"Oh… Ray, Cheshire. It's evening already." Raynare said immediately after she saw Ray and Cheshire. "It's hard to keep track of time when this place has no daylight cycle." Raynare added while she stretched her tensed body.

"Lord Ray." The twin greeted their leader immediately and saluted even when they wanted to immediately collapse on the soft couch and rest their mind.

Ray nodded to their greeting and asked them to rest while waiting for everyone to finish their stages. He wanted to stop the training early today since Azazel wanted everyone to have a peak performance tomorrow at the Peace Conference. Azazel said there is a high possibility for Khaos Brigade to strike the Peace Conference and ruin it before it can be formed.

"Welcome back Mitt-" Before Ray can greet the returned Mittelt. She already dived head first, next to Ray for cuddles.

Ray sighed from Mittelt's antics. Most of the time she acts like when he just meets her, very childlike and seeks his affection but after the day where she declared she wanted to be treated as his lover, she will occasionally act mature and befitting her actual age.

"Since the leaders are all present. I wanted to announce that today's training will end early today in preparation for our big day tomorrow at the long-awaited debut, the Peace Conference." Ray scans his eyes on the girls and he is satisfied because they all look relaxed instead of panicked or surprised like the new recruits when he told them they will fight many strong enemies in the future. Elrien and Evelyn included.

"Tomorrow huh… I didn't even realise the time passed since we spend almost three fifth of our waking time here fighting those undead." Raynare commented as she grabbed a chilled canned drink that Ray just took out.

She gulped down the whole can before releasing a satisfied sigh and plop next to Evelyn.

"Yeah, the two weeks feel like just a few days and I still couldn't believe that Elrien and I went from Low Class to High Class. Sometimes I feel like this is just a dream." The younger twin added.

"Me too. But the pain from fighting against the undead and combat training with Lord Baraqiel is very real to be a dream." The older twin Elrien cringed from the very memorable memory of pain around her body. The most unforgettable one is being squashed to a paste by a Devastator.

"Does Lord Ray feel the same too?" One of the twins asked and Ray replied with a nod since he felt the same too. "What does Lord Ray do when we are training? I remember that Lord Ray only trained half the time we did."

"Ah, the second half of the week…" Ray muttered as he tried to recall his memories. "I was spending time with Azazel to upgrade my gears mostly."

The twins look very impressed that Ray has a very close working relationship with Azazel to work side by side. The trio didn't look as impressed at all since this is nothing new to them.

"Anyway, when the rest returned. Tell them to stop training and rest while I prepare a feast for everyone to congratulate the end of our official training. I will prepare some of those 'special dishes' too just for the celebration." Ray informed them while also hinted that he will add the Shokugeki no Souma world dishes.

He decided to do this because the stages that the girls cleared also bring him rewards and he accumulated a lot of money and weapons etc from their rigorous training sessions that lasted the whole two weeks. He might as well use some of the hard earned money they earned with their sweat and blood for their celebration feast.

"Are you telling the truth, Lord Ray! You aren't joking right?" The twin sisters asked along with the trio but the latter group is less excited than the twins since they are able to taste those heavenly foods occasionally.

The twins however only tasted them once which became a blessing and a curse for them and the rest of their peers. The food is the tastiest food they ever ate but that also means the normal food they eat becomes less appetizing as their tastes are subpar or even lesser when compared to those dishes from Shokugeki no Souma world.

Those dishes are given as a reward to the best performing 10 people everyday during the dinner as a way to motivate them and encourage competitive spirits in the group. The evaluation is based on who has the best overall improvement at the end of each day.

"Well then, I will leave Cheshire in your girl's care while I prepare the food." Ray said before leaving. He had to do this or Cheshire might start wolfing down food when he isn't looking.

…

Almost half an hour later, in the communal hall where they usually have a group meal together. Ray buys food in bulk and places it on the long table which is sorted by the base like rice, bread or noodles then the assortment of dishes ranging from cattle meat to seafoods and vegetables.

On the opposite side of the hall is a long table filled with desserts and non alcoholic drinks enough for everyone.

"Damn, the whole feast cost billions…" Ray muttered as he did the math of the final price for everything he bought for the feast.

"Well, the money is earned by the girls. Better let them enjoy their celebration for finishing the training." Ray said to himself with nods before he entered the lobby and exited with everyone who were eager to start feasting after Raynare and the others spread the news to them.

Like a broken dam, they ignored their usual formality and went to grab the prized food from Shokugeki no Souma world.

"Eager aren't they." Raynare commented that she, Mittelt and Kalawarna aren't as eager as the others to fight for the food. They have their image as leaders to uphold and they can have the food anytime they want.

"Eh, let them be. Tonight is supposed to be their celebration anyway." Ray replied.

Ray and the trio and Cheshire sit at their corner, away from the chaos that ensued. Cheshire has already prepared her special portion that consists of mostly seafood.

Mittelt, who was observing the chaos along with Kalawarna, noticed certain dishes located at the very edge of the table which looked very familiar.

"Uh… Ray."

"Yes?" Ray replied to Mittelt's call while ignoring the collective moans from the people that first time trying the aphrodisiac-like food.

"What do I see the grilled squid dressed in peanut butter over there?" Mittelt asked while looking at Ray with disgusted gaze.

She can still vividly recall the feeling she felt of being defiled by tentacles covered in sticky and thick peanut butter after tasting the dish. Just recalling it made her feel shiver down her spine as she couldn't figure out how these foods can make her feel all those sensations. Though she didn't have a complaint with actually delicious food since it felt extremely pleasant.

"Uh… *ding* Oh! Wait, I have a phone call." Ray pulled out his phone and felt his blood turn cold for a moment when he saw it's from Penemue. "Ahhaha… I have an urgent call from Penemue. Excuse me."

Ray sprinted away while quickly answering the call.

"Hello, Penemue! What can I help you with?" Ray replied with a slightly cheerful tone that he faked as he already knew why Penemue was calling him.

"So, the evaporated mountain… I checked the record of the testing range and found it was booked under your name. The purpose is to test weapons." The voice in the line stopped for a few awkward silences with the noise of flipped pages. " This is the fifth time this has happened this week. The first time we can write it off as an accident but five times in just one week and you are aware the cost of remaking that mountain isn't cheap right?"

"Wait! Don't dock my pay! It's Azazel who told me to do this. He is the one who insisted on doing the Stress Test and convinced me to do the test." Ray didn't hesitate to sell out Azazel because he already has two mountain restoration costs as debt on his shoulder that his salary is basically used to pay back the debt. He cannot have more on his shoulder, not when this is partially caused by Azazel.

"Azazel is hiding in his safehouse in Kuoh. You can find him there, he is the one responsible for the mountain because he is the one who authorized the experiment."

"Fine. He is indeed responsible if he is the one who authorized the experiment." Penemue said to Ray before she ended the call.

When he returned to the feast, he saw everyone finish selecting their foods and sat down to eat. Everyone is happily smiling, laughing and talking to each other.

Since the 100 girls are selected from the so called 'rejects' that even among the Fallen Angels are disdained for being weak and lack potential to grow stronger, they have no inherent arrogance of most supernatural races. In fact the group is like a large sibling to each other with Ray and the trio being the eldest among them.

They treated everyone equally when not acting as a military unit which is what they are. This helped with the group's unity greatly as everyone is helping each other and covering the others weaknesses. If they aren't talented with fighting, they focus on supporting magic. If they aren't talented in either combat or supporting magic, they focus on using actual weapons and master them to the best they could.

He sighed for no particular reason before joining everyone to celebrate tonight as tomorrow the real deal will start and he isn't delusional to think none of them could die in battle. However, he wished his damndest that everyone will definitely return in one piece.

—————

(Suddenly I got an unavoidable problem that kept me busy for a few days and didn't update. Sorry to keep you waiting:)