The moment the fight ended, the Hellfire cloaking Ethan's body began to withdraw. Flames peeled away in slow, reluctant waves until only the twin points of fire remained in the hollow sockets of his skull. To anyone watching, it might have seemed like a deliberate choice—his power being banked now that there was no longer an enemy to fight.
Ethan knew better.
The second the tension left his body, a deep, grinding weakness rolled through him. It started somewhere in his chest and spread through his limbs until his legs felt heavy and his arms almost hollow. Even keeping himself upright suddenly required conscious effort.
Seriously?
He folded his arms across his chest, forcing himself into the posture of someone completely at ease rather than someone quietly fighting to remain standing. Zarathos had stabilised their bond and given him access to power far beyond anything he had previously commanded, but apparently that power came with a price. Whatever his body had borrowed during the fight, it had decided to collect the debt the moment the battle ended.
Couldn't you have waited until I was somewhere private?
He drew a careful breath and remained where he was. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice. Sirzechs and Grayfia were still recovering nearby, while Azazel stood between them and the ruined garden, looking far too relaxed for someone who had just watched a battle capable of killing a Demon King.
Ethan's burning gaze settled on him.
"If I remember correctly, somebody didn't want to get involved."
Azazel's mouth curved into a small, amused smile. "That was before things became quite this serious. I was perfectly willing to leave this mess to the people who created it, but watching Sirzechs get beaten into the ground changed the situation. I couldn't exactly stand around and let one of the few Demon Kings willing to share a drink with me get killed. Losing one of my drinking partners would make things considerably less entertaining."
Ethan gave a quiet snort.
"That's a very convenient excuse."
"I'll admit it is," Azazel said with a shrug. "It is also considerably more convenient than having to explain why I watched a Demon King die while I was standing close enough to do something about it."
Ethan stared at him for a moment.
At least the man was honest.
Azazel's eyes briefly dropped toward Ethan's stance. He noticed the rigid way he was holding himself and the slight care with which he distributed his weight between his legs. Whatever he realised, he had enough sense not to mention it.
Ethan shifted his weight anyway and regretted it at once.
I really need to sit down.
He kept his arms crossed and looked across the devastated garden, waiting for the weakness to settle enough that he could move without making it obvious.
Inside the hall, the magical projection still hung above the gathered nobility. The image showed the aftermath outside: Sirzechs standing beside Grayfia, Azazel speaking with Ethan, and the garden that had once surrounded the estate reduced to blackened earth and shattered stone.
The room had fallen almost completely silent.
Riser Phenex remained with his peerage, watching the projection without saying anything. His gaze moved across the battlefield until it settled on the member responsible for the confrontation. The man's confidence had vanished. He remained rigid in his place, knowing exactly what Riser was looking at.
Riser turned toward him.
"You're coming with us."
The devil's expression tightened. "Lord Riser, I can explain—"
"You can explain outside."
There was no anger in Riser's voice, which somehow made the order more serious. Yubelluna and two others moved to either side of the man and secured his arms. He offered no resistance this time.
Riser looked toward the doors.
"Let's go."
He led his peerage out of the hall.
When they reached the garden, Riser's attention went straight to Sirzechs and Grayfia. Both were still standing, though the battle had left clear marks on them. Sirzechs' clothes were torn and blackened across the chest, while several scorched marks remained on Grayfia's uniform. The injuries were not life-threatening, but Riser did not treat them lightly.
He reached inside his coat and withdrew two small bottles.
"Sirzechs-sama. Grayfia."
He held one toward each of them.
"Please accept these. They are Phoenix Tears. Considering what happened because of my peerage, I would rather not have you leave this place carrying injuries that my people caused."
Sirzechs looked at the bottle before accepting it. Grayfia quietly took the second.
Riser lowered his head slightly. "I did not know what they intended to do. Had I been informed, I would have stopped this before it ever reached you."
Sirzechs studied him for a moment before opening the bottle. The Phoenix Tear disappeared quickly, and warmth spread through his body at once. The remaining burns across his chest began to close, the pain fading with them. Grayfia drank hers as well, and the worst of her injuries disappeared just as quickly.
Some of the resentment in Sirzechs' expression finally eased.
"See that they understand what this cost," he said. "I have no wish to repeat it."
Riser nodded.
"You have my word."
Sirzechs let the matter rest and turned his attention to the garden instead.
Riser then faced the restrained member of his peerage.
"Bring him forward."
Yubelluna and the others escorted the man across the ruined garden until they stopped several metres from Ethan.
Riser looked toward the skull-faced figure.
"This is the one who caused the incident."
Ethan's gaze dropped to the devil, twin points of fire fixed on him without blinking.
For a long moment, he said nothing. The Hellfire inside his empty sockets burned with a steady light as the memory of the confrontation returned to him—the provocation, the first attack, the chaos that had followed, and the fight with Sirzechs that had nearly destroyed everything around them.
The devil finally raised his eyes.
The instant their gazes met, fear crossed his face.
Ethan took a single step forward. Hellfire stirred around his body, curling from his shoulders and trailing across the ground in thin, restless flames. The restrained devil instinctively tried to retreat, but Yubelluna held him firmly.
"So you're the reason I had to deal with all this."
The man opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Whatever explanation he might have prepared had disappeared beneath the weight of the burning stare fixed upon him.
Ethan's eye sockets brightened.
Hellfire erupted.
The flames swallowed the devil in a single consuming wave. His scream lasted only seconds before the fire consumed him completely. When the flames receded, nothing remained except a few dying embers that drifted upward before disappearing.
Ethan watched the last ember fade.
"Done."
Riser said nothing. He had brought the man before Ethan, knowing what judgment awaited him, and he did not interfere.
Sirzechs watched quietly as well. He had experienced Ethan's Hellfire during their battle, but seeing it used like this after the fight revealed a different side of the Ghost Rider. There had been no rage in the judgment, no unnecessary cruelty. Ethan had simply decided the matter was finished.
Grayfia's gaze remained on him, calm and attentive.
Azazel looked toward the empty space where the devil had stood.
"That certainly settled it quickly. I thought you might at least let him explain himself."
Ethan turned toward him.
"You think an explanation would have changed anything?"
Azazel considered it briefly. "Probably not."
"Then there was no point wasting more time."
Azazel gave a small nod. "Fair enough."
The conversation ended, and Ethan turned away. The moment he stopped forcing himself to remain focused on the others, the weakness returned in full. His legs felt heavier than before, and the strength in his body seemed to be draining by the second.
Riser glanced toward the ruined garden before looking back at the others.
"We should continue this discussion somewhere more appropriate. There is little reason to stand here among the ruins."
Ethan looked toward the estate.
"Fine."
Riser nodded, and the group began making their way back toward the estate. Ethan followed several steps behind, his arms folded across his chest as he maintained the appearance of calm despite the exhaustion weighing down every movement.
Azazel fell into step beside him, quiet for several moments before giving a low whistle.
"So, if I've understood this correctly, little Rias decided to go on a date with someone who wasn't her fiancé, and somehow that turned into a battle with a Demon King."
Riser's jaw tightened.
His Queen answered before the remark could grow into another provocation.
"Azazel-sama, you are leaving out the part that matters. Riser-sama had nothing to do with the decision. Some people acted on their own, believing they were protecting his interests, and confronted Ethan before anyone thought to check what had actually happened."
Azazel glanced toward Riser, then toward the ruined garden behind them.
"So your people decided what they thought you'd want and nearly started a war over it."
"That is exactly what happened," Riser said, the words clipped.
Azazel let the subject drop with a shrug. "I understand why you're angry."
Riser didn't answer. There was nothing left to say that hadn't already been said.
Ethan had listened in silence, and the distinction was finally clear. Riser hadn't sent anyone after him. His own subordinates had decided what they believed their master wanted and acted without asking him—the whole disaster built on an order that had never actually been given.
Ahead, the estate came into view, warm light spilling from its windows onto the ruined path. The faint Hellfire in Ethan's sockets burned on, steady despite the exhaustion dragging at him.
At least now he knew where the misunderstanding had actually started.
Authors note: I was writing tpm chapter and then I realise there is too much unnecessary details so I cut down and after that the chapter become 700 words realising this I gone back and check the previous chapter found the same problem there is too much nonsense so have to trim the chapter now the problem is I have no idea what I am even writing sense mind is little but confused under the sleepiness of the drugs.