"Oh-ho! You showed up, human!" Grendel roared. "You weren't around last time, and this time the damn Ladon stole Ddraig before I could have my fun! I figured if I wrecked that school, the rest of you would come running, so I was counting on that... but whatever. Let's finish what we started last time, you little human bastard!"
Before I could even reply, he launched a massive wave of fire at me.
"You really are all talk and no listening, huh?!"
"I'm heading for Ladon," Kuroka said calmly. "If the Red Dragon Emperor stays sealed, that's one thing but if he gets tossed into some dimensional void, we'll be in real trouble."
"Got it."
While dodging the fire, we split up, I'll handle Grendel, Kuroka going after Ladon. But just then, a crushing wave of pressure hit the battlefield.
Even Grendel and Ladon stopped, all of us instinctively turning toward the source of the aura.
There, standing with bronzed skin and clothed in Egyptian ceremonial robes, was a beautiful man.
He looked human, but the aura… it was definitely that of a dragon.
Only one being could emit pressure rivaling that of Cao Cao's dragon—this had to be Apophis, the Eclipse Dragon of ancient legend.
"You weren't supposed to be part of this fight, Lord Apophis," Ladon called out. "What brings you here?"
So this really was Apophis, the Primal Eclipse Dragon.
Between him and Azi Dahaka, that's two dragons on par with the Two Heavenly Dragons. That's overkill.
Still, both Apophis and Azi Dahaka were mainly targeting Agreas and the Academy's mages. They shouldn't engage us with full power… right?
"Hmph. That witch seemed to vanish far too quickly," Apophis replied. "I was asked to check, did she run, or was she eliminated?"
"Oh, you mean the purple hag? While Euclid was prepping our Dragon Gate, she ran off to burn the school and everyone in it," Grendel shrugged. "No clue if she's dead—didn't really care."
So he's just here to check on her?
Maybe if I tell him, he'll just leave.
"That witch? We beat her down hard enough that not even Phoenix Tears could bring her back. She might actually be dead."
I mean, we did minimal triage since we want the cursed cross as loot, but I wouldn't bet on her surviving.
What's that? She might've died because I forcibly removed her Sacred Gear?
C'mon, she's a terrorist. You know what that means.
Maybe if that cursed cross turned on her before we pulled it out, she'd have had a shot at surviving.
"You are Ikki Arima, yes? You're the one who defeated her?"
Ah, finally, a reaction.
"I helped, sure—but I didn't do it alone. It was a miracle born of trust and flawless teamwork among friends."
At that, my teammates gave me a long, silent stare.
"That's some poetic spin for a plan that was downright nasty," one of them muttered.
"I know, right? I almost felt bad for that witch. The moment she showed up, it was game over," said another.
"When Senpai comes up with a plan, it's usually like this," a third added with a sigh.
"We'll be teaming up with the Sitri group more often now that we're all part of D×D, so I think they'll get used to it—eventually," someone offered. "That said, we're still not used to it ourselves."
Man, I'm getting roasted nonstop here!
All I did was toss in a bit of flair!
"Hm. I don't know what exactly happened, but you seem to live up to the rumors," Apophis said, his expression unreadable.
...Rumors? Now I have to know. I can guess, but still!
"Oh, and by the way," Apophis continued casually, "Prince Rizevim asked that if I ran into you, I should fight you and confirm that your heart stops beating. Did you do something to upset him?"
...Seriously?
"That petty little bastard! All I did was ruin his big comeback scene after a thousand years!"
"One vote for 'petty bastard,'" Kuroka chimed in. "Or should I say spoiled brat-grandpa?"
Accurate. Brutally accurate.
But wait… I'm the one who has to fight Apophis? What the hell kind of bullying is this?
"Hey, Issei's fighting Grendel on Hard Mode, but I'm over here stuck on Lunatic Mode! Issei! Wanna switch?!"
"No chance! That thing's targeting you! Dammit—I'll finish this fast and come help, so DON'T YOU DARE DIE!"
Still trapped in Ladon's barrier, Issei began pounding at it harder than ever.
"Saji-senpai! Luluchi! Get serious! We can't even reach Senpai to back him up unless we deal with these two!"
"Tch! And now Apophis is cutting in?! This is why I hate working with outside groups!"
Looks like the Grendel fight's ramping up again.
Meanwhile, Apophis floated calmly down in his human form to face Kuroka and me.
"You two are here to protect that school, correct?" he asked. "If I fight here, the darkness I unleash may dissolve not only the mass-produced dragons, but Grendel and the others too. Shall we move the battlefield? And will the nekomata join?"
Wait—he's saying just the collateral damage of fighting him could kill even Grendel?!
I feel sick.
"...Yeah, there's no way I'd let Ikki fight you alone," Kuroka said with a growl. "And if you so much as lay a claw on my Ikki—I'll tear your throat out."
Apophis gave a slow nod, seemingly amused.
"I see. So, you are Ikki Arima's woman. Then of course, you cannot back down."
Right. Realistically, we don't stand a chance against a dragon of this level.
But we just need to hold out—at least until they complete the transfer of Agreas.
If he retreats after that, great. If not... then it's time to gamble everything on Ittou Rasetsu or Ittou Asura.
Will Kuroka and I last that long?
"President Sona," I called through the comms, "Kuroka and I will engage Apophis. To be honest, this'll likely drain us completely. Don't count on us for backup after this."
[...Understood. Then I have just one order: Don't die.]
Talk about a high-difficulty mission.
"Roger that. I'll come back alive—promise."
I said it as much for myself as for her.
Then Kuroka and I followed Apophis, moving to a spot just outside Auros's barrier far from the school.
==========
[Shirone's POV]
Ikki-senpai and Sister Kuroka moved away with Apophis.
Judging by what Grendel said, even the aftershocks of their battle could kill beings on the level of Dragon Kings.
And if that's true, not even Asia-senpai could approach them safely.
"Agh! I thought I'd finally get to fight that human again—and now Apophis is jumping in? He's as good as dead! Dammit! Everyone keeps getting in my way!" Grendel growled, eyes narrowing at us.
"At least let me toy with you first! Don't break too fast—then you can die!"
Grendel fired another massive breath attack. I countered it with my purifying white flames, while Saji-senpai responded with his cursed black flames to cancel it out.
"Heh! Don't underestimate Arima! That guy's human, but you can't kill him!"
"Seriously! At this point, I'm starting to think he's part of a new species—Category: Evil Human!"
"...Luluchi."
"What, Shirone-chan?"
"Meet me behind the gym after this."
Luluchi went pale instantly. Don't worry—it'll just be a minor joint-locking session.
"Hehe… don't get your hopes up too high," Ladon said with a dark chuckle. "Take a look in their direction."
Still sealing Issei in his barrier, Ladon glanced toward where Ikki-senpai and Kuroka had gone. We followed his gaze—and saw the shadows of the trees, the buildings, everything stretching and melting into darkness... like the sea swallowing the world.
"Apophis' darkness consumes all," Ladon said. "To stand against that would require a sun god from one of the myths. Will your friends be able to evade the inescapable tide of shadow? That will be something to watch."
...In mythology, sun gods are usually head honchos—or close to it.
Without divine-class help, even regular dragon slayers wouldn't stand a chance—especially with a bad elemental match-up.
"Then we'll just go help them and take Apophis down together!" Issei roared.
Issei's massive energy blast shattered the barrier around him, then continued on to strike Ladon's defensive field but the layered barriers dulled the impact, and Ladon took only superficial damage.
Since Dragon Blaster requires a solid stance to fire, Issei tried to retreat right after—but Ladon was a split-second faster and trapped him in another barrier.
"You hit me—impressive. But I'm a defensive specialist. My body may not match Grendel's, but with my barriers? I even surpass him in defense."
Ladon's wounds rapidly healed, but Issei didn't give up. He charged energy again.
"Then I'll just keep blasting you until your regeneration can't keep up!"
No—this is a bad move. He'll run out of stamina first.
This is a defense mission to protect the academy. We can't afford risks like this.
Before I could stop him, Issei fired again. Same result.
"I'm not just rushing in anymore! I do learn, you know! Dragon Blaster!!"
The second blast mirrored the first—but this time, Ladon rushed to trap him in a new barrier immediately.
"You're wasting your time. No matter how often you—huh?"
The smoke cleared... and Issei was gone.
"I'M UP HERE!!"
Ladon looked up—just in time to see Issei dive from above, fist first.
The punch was stopped by a barrier, but he was at point-blank range now.
With Ladon focused entirely on shielding himself, it wouldn't be long before Issei broke through.
"Gghhh! Impossible! How did you escape that barrier?!"