Chapter 558 - 548 While Sirzechs-san and Serafall-san were directly engaging them

Chapter 558: Chapter 548 While Sirzechs-san and Serafall-san were directly engaging them

While Sirzechs-san and Serafall-san were directly engaging them, they were having a hard time completely eliminating the threat.

Even with Trihexa’s power absorbed, to think he could create an army of this scale in an instant... Was this only made possible by combining Trihexa’s virtually infinite power with Asem’s knowledge and technology...?

As those thoughts raced through my mind while pressing forward—

"Issei-sama! Run!" Ravel shouted from a short distance away.

A shadow suddenly swept over the area just as a massive stream of fire erupted from a dragon-type familiar soaring overhead! This scale is—!

"Tch! Xenovia!"

"W-What?! Whoa!"

Grabbing Xenovia’s arm as she fought beside me, I hurled her with all my strength toward Ravel. The moment I confirmed she was caught in mid-air by Ravel—the torrent of flames swallowed me whole.

"AAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!"

The intense heat sliced right through the Qi barrier I had hastily erected! The sheer volume of thermal energy scorched my skin, threatening to burn away my very consciousness!

When the inferno finally subsided... I collapsed weakly to the ground.

"Gah... cough..."

Smoke rose from every inch of my body... Damn it, I can’t feel my hands or feet... My vision’s blurring, I can barely see ahead...

THUD!

The ground trembled violently. The dragon-type familiar that had scorched me had likely landed nearby. The heavy thumping of its footsteps grew louder, and a dark shadow cast over me.

It clearly knew I was still breathing. Was it coming to finish the job?

『Hang in there, partner!』 Ddraig’s panicked voice echoed in my head.

I wanted to pull myself up, but that single strike had dealt massive damage.

"Issei!"

"Issei-sama!"

I heard the frantic screams of Xenovia and Ravel. Sensing my crisis, Rias and the others began rushing over to my location.

"Get out of the... WAY!"

Judging by Rias’s voice, however, another wall of familiars was blocking their path. Miu and the others were fighting back frantically, but...

"Gah... tch!"

Commanding my numb body, I somehow managed to push myself up. Crimson blood dripped from my scorched skin as I stood. Unsteady on my feet, I glared at the dragon-type familiar towering before me. The beast glared back with its fiery red eyes—opening its massive jaws as a concentrated ball of fire took shape within its mouth.

"Issei! Get out of there!"

"Onii-chan! Get out of the way, damn it!"

Alice and Miu were blasting through the familiars, but they couldn’t breach the line fast enough. Are these things actually coordinating with each other...?

The energy radiating from the beast before me was undoubtedly Dragon King class. If these high-tier familiars were acting as commanders... that was bad news. They were monstrous enough individually, but if they were forming groups and executing tactical coordination...

Well, my current situation is pretty dire as it is. My limbs refused to move, and I couldn’t squeeze out enough power to attack. Even if I wanted to run, I couldn’t take a single step.

"Damn it all...!"

The moment the curse left my lips—

A massive pillar of fire erupted right beneath the dragon-type familiar, engulfing its entire body! The scorching heat melted the very ground, burning through the creature’s flesh!

What the... Who did that...? It definitely wasn’t Rias or the others, as they were still locked in fierce combat with other familiars. If not them, then who—

"Fuhahaha! That was a close one, Hyoudou Issei!"

A boisterous laugh rang out. It was the voice of a young man. Soaring down from above—flapping wings of pure fire—he landed right in front of me.

My eyes widened as I caught sight of his face.

"Riser?!"

That’s right—the one who had just saved my skin was Riser!

His sudden arrival sent Ravel into absolute shock as well, her voice echoing frantically from a distance. "Onii-sama?! No way?!"

Riser looked thoroughly displeased by our reactions. "What’s with those faces? Is it really that strange for me to be here? And what do you mean ’No way?!’, Ravel!"

I mean, come on, can you blame us?! Who could have predicted Riser showing up at a time like this?! Our reaction is totally justified! Even if you did just save my life!

I called out to him, "Riser... are you really okay?"

After disappearing during the Rating Game against the Emperor, Riser was supposed to have been delivered back to the Phenex estate thanks to Ajuka-san’s arrangements. I had heard from Ajuka-san that he was safe, but still...

Riser huffed, speaking in an exasperated tone. "You’re the one looking like a beaten-up mess right now. Besides, how long ago do you think that was? That was days ago. I received an explanation from Lord Beelzebub, and my father filled me in on what happened while I was unconscious... More importantly, look at the state of the world! As a man of the Phenex House, joining this battle is only natural, isn’t it?"

Hearing him talk like that... well, I suppose that’s just how Riser is now.

Turning to his noble infernal entourage, he commanded, "Yubelluna. You girls protect Hyoudou Issei. He’s in no condition to fight properly right now."

Yubelluna nodded before asking, "Understood. And what will you do, Lord Riser?"

"Hmph, isn’t it obvious?"

Riser stripped off his upper coat, shifting his gaze toward the dragon-type familiar with a fearless smirk.

"Hyoudou Issei. Even if I cannot reach you right now, I will defeat you one day. So don’t you dare die on me. Don’t go dying in a place like this. If you die, I lose my goal... Just leave this to me."

In an instant, a dense, concentrated aura radiated from Riser’s body. The intense heat emanating from his expanded Phenex wings surged to an even higher temperature.

Whoa, hold on... Just how much stronger did Riser get?! This is way beyond the power he showed when we sparred briefly before...!

"Now then, shall we? Feast your eyes on the hellfire of the Phenex!"

The resurrected phoenix was about to showcase his true power—

~ Bonus Afterword Mini-Story ~

Asia: "U-Um... Valkyrie-san, why do you like little girls so much?"

Valkyrie: "Please take a look at this, Asia-sama."

Asia: "This is... a photo album. Could the two little girls in these pictures be..."

Valkyrie: "Indeed. Those are Alice-sama and Nina-sama in their younger days. They were so utterly adorable back then... Recording their growth is my duty, my mission... and my hobby."

Issei: "Hold on a second. Tell me more about that. Give me all the details on Little Alice and Little Nina!"

Asia: "Issei-san?!"

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