"It's you...?!"
Feeling that the incoming cold wind was blocked and the surroundings were no longer so cold, Haruno Yukinoshita immediately turned her head to look behind her, her expression changing instantly.
Mrs. Yukinoshita also recognized the newcomer.
After all, he was the Devil who, according to Haruno Yukinoshita, had taken her youngest daughter as a servant. How could Mrs. Yukinoshita not investigate him?
Before her, Haruno Yukinoshita had already investigated Leon and even compiled his information into a file, which she gave to her mother to read. Leon's portrait was attached to it.
"We meet again, senpai."
Leon greeted Haruno Yukinoshita as if he were just someone passing by, seemingly unaffected by the earth-shattering commotion.
He didn't just greet Haruno Yukinoshita; he also greeted Mrs. Yukinoshita.
"You must be Yukino's mother, right? It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Madam."
Facing Mrs. Yukinoshita, whose aura was clearly stronger and who was an adult with a much higher social standing than a high school student, Leon showed no nervousness, behaving extremely casually.
If it were before, encountering such a person, Mrs. Yukinoshita would have been somewhat surprised and taken aback. But now that she knew his true identity, she no longer found it strange that he was so casual in her presence.
Although the person in front of her was indeed a young high school student, that only mattered if he were an ordinary person.
The young man before her was a Devil. In his presence, she, a mere ordinary mortal, held no deterrent power whatsoever, did she?
"...You must be Leon Eligos-san?"
Mrs. Yukinoshita took a deep breath, suppressed the complex emotions in her heart, and formally bowed to Leon.
"It's an honor to meet you. Although I have many things I want to say to you, before that, I must ask you to stop those two and make them stop immediately."
Both she and Haruno Yukinoshita were incapable of intervening in the conflict. Only Leon, Yukino Yukinoshita's nominal master and the Devil noble highly focused on by the Church, had the means to stop them.
"Don't worry." Leon naturally saw the anxiety and concern in Mrs. Yukinoshita and Haruno Yukinoshita's hearts, and smiled, saying, "Judging by the current situation, neither of them can do much to the other for now, so there's no harm in watching first."
To be honest, Leon was quite interested.
He had originally intended to test Yukino Yukinoshita's strength, but the stray Devil last time was ultimately too weak, unable to even force out Yukino Yukinoshita's Sacred Gear, and thus couldn't serve to test her strength.
This made Leon consider finding a stronger opponent for Yukino Yukinoshita, but he hadn't had the chance to implement it yet.
Now, it was perfect. Sharon, that woman, decisively jumped out and targeted his Pawn. Letting her test Yukino Yukinoshita's strength was not a bad choice.
Leon, who had been entangled with that woman for several years, knew better than anyone that the strength of this beautiful Exorcist, who looked nothing like a nun, was far beyond that of an ordinary Exorcist. Using her to test Yukino Yukinoshita's strength was the best choice.
Thus, Leon set up a magic barrier and began to watch the battle with keen interest.
"Is Yukino really okay?" Haruno Yukinoshita was not as relaxed as Leon. Her usual shrewdness seemed to have completely vanished in this moment, making her more anxious than Mrs. Yukinoshita. She said, "The opponent is a Church Exorcist, after all."
Haruno Yukinoshita didn't know the different levels of supernatural power, nor could she distinguish who was stronger or weaker. But judging by general principles, Church Exorcists were professionals specifically dedicated to fighting Devils. Against such professional Devil-hunters, could Yukino Yukinoshita, who was a Devil, really gain the upper hand?
"Relax." Leon waved his hand at Haruno Yukinoshita, saying nonchalantly, "If Yukino were just an ordinary Devil, then yes, it would be very dangerous, but she isn't."
A Longinus was a power capable of disrupting the balance. As long as one mastered this power, challenging opponents above one's level was easy.
Putting aside everything else, based solely on Yukino Yukinoshita's performance at this moment, Leon could state with certainty that even a High-Class Devil wouldn't dare to underestimate her and would have to evade her fierce attacks.
The sight of continuous ice mountains crashing down was truly breathtaking. How could an ordinary Devil possess such power, such destructive capability?
Therefore, while Yukino Yukinoshita's overall strength was still hard to gauge, that astonishing Freezing Aura definitely had the power to threaten a High-Class Devil.
Under this incredible power, Sharon could only temporarily avoid the brunt of the attack, surviving by a thread. Her figure, which appeared minuscule compared to the relentlessly crashing ice mountains, had completely exploded with speed and relied on astonishing velocity and excellent agility to continuously dodge the ice mountains falling from the sky. It made onlookers hold their breath for her.
But facing such a perilous situation, Sharon remained composed from beginning to end, her expression only solemn, never losing her cool.
As human Exorcists, everyone, including Sharon, must understand one thing before a fight.
That is, never try to compete with a Devil in terms of brute strength.
A Devil's physical abilities naturally far surpassed those of mortals, but this could be potentially overcome. However, the Devil's demonic power (Youki) was a formidable force that humans could hardly match.
Low-Class Devils were acceptable, but generally, the magical attacks unleashed by Middle-Class Devils were already quite threatening, comparable to bombs or artillery shells. As for High-Class Devils, they could cause large-scale destruction with a mere flick of the wrist. Destroying a mountain peak was common. If they exerted their full power, instantly devastating an entire city street was not impossible.
This was a power that humans could never face head-on. Unless one possessed a Sacred Gear created by God or special supernatural abilities, one absolutely could not clash directly with such power.
As an Exorcist capable of rivaling a High-Class Devil, Sharon had long mastered the skills of leveraging strengths while avoiding weaknesses, implementing flanking strategies, and achieving victory against stronger foes.
So she was not anxious at all. She maintained her composure, constantly seeking survival in peril, and looking for an opportunity to counterattack.
She was waiting—waiting for Yukino Yukinoshita to exhaust her strength.
A Longinus was very powerful, but the stronger the power, the greater the consumption when used. Even though Yukino Yukinoshita possessed demonic power considered decent among Middle-Class Devils, how long could she maintain such an unrestrained High-Class Devil level output?
If it were a battle-hardened Devil, they would absolutely not squander power so brazenly from the start. But Yukino Yukinoshita was ultimately a newly reincarnated Devil, barely a month old. Sharon had already discerned the weakness of her severe lack of combat experience and was waiting for the moment Yukino Yukinoshita would reveal a flaw.
"Boom!"
The heavens and earth continued to roar. The power of the ice raged on the ground, making everyone present feel as if they had been thrown to the poles.
Yukino Yukinoshita also noticed that Sharon was holding on, having not sustained any serious injuries, so she changed her strategy. Instead of condensing ice mountains to smash down, she ordered the Ice Princess to directly conjure a blizzard, sweeping across the icy landscape below, intending to leave Sharon nowhere to hide.
Unfortunately, Sharon was not easily dealt with. She noticed Yukino Yukinoshita's intention and quickly changed her own strategy, maintaining a distance from Yukino Yukinoshita while continuously firing at her. She used Light Bullets to force Yukino Yukinoshita to slow her offensive, giving Sharon the chance to avoid the full-area attack.
The two were locked in a stalemate, entering a heated war of attrition.
"Haa... Haa..."
After a long time, Yukino Yukinoshita finally began to gasp sharply for the first time, showing signs of exhaustion first.
"No good!"
At this moment, Yukino Yukinoshita also realized Sharon's strategy, showing a look of miscalculation.
She had forgotten that insufficient stamina had always been her weakness. Even when she was human and proficient in various sports, this weakness held her back, limiting her excellent athletic performance to short durations. Now that she had become a Devil, this weakness surprisingly persisted.
No, it should be said that relative to the power of the Longinus she possessed, her Middle-Class Devil level demonic power naturally couldn't last long; insufficient stamina was a matter of course.
But this very natural thing gave Sharon an opportunity for a decisive counterattack.
"Now!"
The moment Yukino Yukinoshita's offensive couldn't be maintained any longer, Sharon unhesitatingly flipped the light blades in her hands and plunged them into the ground.
"Buzz!"
A magic circle made of pure light suddenly appeared on the ground.
"What?!"
Yukino Yukinoshita's face changed.
The instant she saw that Light Magic Circle, Yukino Yukinoshita understood. Sharon hadn't just been running away; quite the opposite, while evading, she had secretly set up a counterattack method, inscribing Exorcism formulas in this icy environment.
"God, Please Punish The Sinner—"
Sharon chanted the incantation to activate the Exorcism ritual, causing intense light power to overflow from the magic circle.
"Boom!"
The next moment, brilliant, dazzling light formed a pillar that reached up to the heavens, rising from the magic circle.
Yukino Yukinoshita flapped the wings on her back, wanting to avoid it, but the light pillar's coverage was wide, and the speed of its overflow was fast. She simply didn't have time to escape.
Thus, the light pillar shot towards the sky, and Yukino Yukinoshita's figure was swallowed by the dense power of light.
"...!"
Yukino Yukinoshita felt the threat of death.
After a month, she finally experienced the sensation of death again.
Just as she subconsciously wanted to close her eyes, a figure appeared in front of her.
"Boom!"
The roaring sound of the light pillar shooting up into the sky continued, lasting endlessly.
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