For several seconds, a sepulchral silence fell over the place. The wind swept across the destroyed base, lifting dust, ashes, and a few black feathers that still remained scattered around Kokabiel's corpse.
Vali began to descend slowly. His feet touched the ground and the white armor shone with greater intensity as he extended his wings behind his back.
"My name is Vali," the white-haired man responded. He hesitated a few seconds before speaking again. "Vali Lucifer," he reiterated while a barely visible smile formed under his helmet. "And I didn't come for either of them. I'm here for you."
The area fell silent again as Damon processed the young man's words. He briefly lowered his gaze toward the white armor before fixing it on the helmet that concealed Vali's face.
"A Lucifer, huh? Why am I not surprised?" the redhead murmured, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Vali raised an eyebrow behind the helmet, surprised by Damon's tone and calm expression. For a moment, he began to wonder if the god actually intended to fight. The white-haired man relaxed his stance slightly and lowered his guard.
A mistake he would come to regret.
.....With a supersonic boom, the ground exploded beneath Damon's feet and the redhead vanished from Vali's sight in a matter of milliseconds. The burst of speed left an enormous crater where he'd been standing barely a fraction of a second before, hurling rock and earth in every direction.
Behind his armor's helmet, Vali's hazel eyes snapped wide open. His instincts reacted even before his mind did, but the gap between them was so vast that even if he'd tried to move his body, it wouldn't have done any good.
Damon was already in front of him.
The redhead's hand closed around the white helmet with force and, before Vali could put up any resistance, he felt his feet leave the ground. The air exploded around them as both tore through the sky at an absurd speed, ascending until they were engulfed by an enormous black cloud heavy with rain and thunder.
The rain struck Vali's armor hard while lightning briefly illuminated the darkness around them. None of those elements managed to damage him, but the sheer hostility of the environment made danger prickle the skin of his neck.
Regaining his composure quickly, Vali planted both hands on Damon's arm and used every ounce of physical strength the Scale Mail could offer. The muscles of his body tensed as he tried to break the grip before the situation worsened. However, the redhead's hand didn't budge a single centimeter.
Vali struggled again, this time propelling himself with his wings, but all he managed was to make the metal of the helmet begin to creak under Damon's fingers.
The white-haired man tried not to panic and forced his mind to stay cold. If Damon didn't want to let go, then he would suffer the consequences of touching him directly. The blue wings of Divine Dividing blazed with intensity behind his back.
"Divide!"
The White Dragon's energy coursed along Damon's arm, seeking to reduce his strength exactly as it had done against countless enemies over the years.
Yet the attempt simply didn't work.
Vali frowned behind the helmet, convinced he'd made some mistake in executing the technique. Without wasting an instant, he tried again, this time releasing far more power from the Scale Mail's wings.
"Divide!"
The response was exactly the same. Not the slightest change in the force that kept his head immobilized. "Vali..." Albion's deep voice resonated inside his mind. "It's not a failure of the Sacred Gear. His power is far beyond the limit we can divide. The difference between us and him is too great."
And so, barely at the start of the fight, Vali was already beginning to wonder whether coming to this place had been a good idea or complete stupidity.
Thunder boomed around them both while the rain fell with greater intensity. Damon looked directly into Vali's eyes through the helmet's openings and a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Are you done trying to use your little tricks?" The redhead's tone was mocking, but at the same time it sounded disappointed.
The words made Vali clench his teeth hard. All his life he'd been considered a prodigy. Azazel constantly filled his head with praise, talking about how powerful he was thanks to his Sacred Gear and assuring him that even gods would think twice before facing him.
Yet now that he was truly facing a god, what he had imagined as an entertaining fight was crushing his pride from the very first minute.
Noticing the Lucifer's conflicted emotions, Damon couldn't help but feel deeply amused.
Without further ado, with his free hand and still gripping Vali's head firmly, he drew his hand back just a few centimeters from the center of his abdomen. The white-haired man didn't even have time to react before Damon executed a one-inch punch directly against the armor.
The blow caused a boom that exploded between them, along with a shockwave. The plates covering Vali's abdomen cracked under the impact, but fortunately for the Lucifer the armor began repairing immediately.
But even so, the blow and the sheer energy involved in it were devastating enough to cause a mixture of saliva and blood to escape from the white-haired man's mouth as he went hurtling through the storm. Vali spun several times out of control, trying to stabilize himself, but before he could regain his balance, a rain of lightning descended upon him.
By instinct, he crossed both arms in front of his body.
"Divide!" /////// "Divide!" Upon making contact with the armor, the rain of lightning lost much of its force. And so, barely holding on, the Lucifer managed to prove why Divine Dividing was so feared.
Finally, he managed to stabilize and shot off at great speed. The only thing distinguishable among the clouds was a bluish flash constantly changing direction, dodging every possible lightning bolt while Damon directed them with simple movements of his fingers.
Determined to counterattack and prove what he could do, Vali gathered his courage and extended both arms. Dozens of magic circles appeared around his body and began to glow with intense demonic light. From them, numerous discharges of power shot out from every possible angle, surrounding Damon under a continuous rain of explosions.
The redhead cut through the first blasts, covering his face with one forearm. Vali took advantage of the cover and appeared in front of him, driving a punch toward his jaw. Damon tilted his head, letting the blow pass to the side, and responded with an attack aimed at the chest. The Lucifer crossed both arms to block it and was pushed several meters backward, though he managed to stabilize before receiving the next blow.
Both launched themselves at each other again. Their fists collided in the middle of the storm and a pressure wave opened an enormous gap between the clouds. Vali attacked with a succession of rapid blows, using his wings to change position after each movement, while Damon deflected every attack with his forearms and palms without ceasing his advance.
Far below them, several presences began to approach the destroyed base. Leading the formation was Shemazai, alongside Baraqiel and Penemue, followed by an enormous number of Fallen Angels. They had traveled from headquarters at full speed, but nothing they could have imagined would have prepared them for what they found upon arrival.
The base was practically in ruins; all that could be seen were several structures completely destroyed on all sides alongside enormous craters here and there covering the terrain. But what drew everyone's attention was Damon and Vali. From below, they could barely make out who was hitting whom due to the speed at which both moved among the clouds.
Many of the Fallen Angels recognized the redhead instantly, and that was no surprise. After all, the stories about his power had already reached Grigori, accompanied by enough details to provoke unease even among veteran soldiers. Seeing him now in person, in the middle of one of their destroyed bases, only heightened that feeling.
On the other hand, several of them didn't know how to react seeing the bearer of the White Dragon facing him directly. For many, the descendant of Lucifer had always been an uncomfortable presence. His power, his attitude, and the weight of his surname reminded them too much of Rizevim, causing several Fallen Angels to keep their distance out of fear that someday he'd end up following the same path.
However, seeing him fight against the man who had invaded their territory produced a different reaction. For the first time, some stopped seeing him solely as a threat Azazel had brought to Grigori and began to see him as someone fighting on their side.
Shemazai, on the other hand, had different thoughts. He couldn't help feeling a mix of worry and frustration. Of all Grigori's leaders, he had been one of the few who truly knew Vali and had always treated him without fear or distrust. Precisely because of that, he knew the boy wasn't fighting to protect the base.
Vali had simply found someone strong. "That idiot..." Shemazai murmured, watching him launch himself at Damon again.
Baraqiel pulled his attention away from the fight and swept his gaze across the base with narrowed eyes. His gaze settled among the remains of a wall where Kokabiel's corpse lay—or at least that's what it seemed... The body remained face-down, a pool of dark blood covering the ground. Several meters away lay his head.
The image left a bitter taste in Baraqiel's mouth. Though most of Grigori's leaders had distanced themselves from Kokabiel in recent years—his obsession with restarting the war and his contempt for Azazel's advances had caused constant arguments between them—he was still one of the original Cadres and, more importantly, still one of his brothers.
And for many young Fallen Angels, Kokabiel represented something more. He was one of the few leaders who openly spoke about recovering Grigori's former glory and expanding the faction's influence again. Some considered him a necessary figure to prevent the Fallen Angels from weakening further under Azazel's peace policies. It had reached the point where many of his followers had even begun repeating a rather ridiculous phrase whenever they commented on his ideas.
"Make Grigori great again."
Raynare was one of those fervent followers. The moment her eyes landed on the corpse among the rubble, they went wide as saucers. She remained completely immobile, as if her mind refused to accept what she was seeing. Ten seconds later, her expression twisted with rage.
"FOR LORD KOKABIEL!"
Raynare shot forward. A light spear appeared between her hands as she rose at full speed, without waiting for orders or checking whether anyone would follow her.
Shemazai's eyes widened. "No... No, no, no. What the hell is that idiot doing?"
Several Fallen Angels who shared her admiration for Kokabiel let out their own shouts and launched themselves after her. Others followed out of pure instinct seeing their comrades advance, causing the formation to begin breaking apart in a matter of seconds.
"Wait!" Shemazai shouted, watching his perfectly organized formation turn into a disaster in less than three seconds.
No one even heard what Shemazai said. The first line had already begun descending and the soldiers in the rear didn't understand what was happening. Most were already forming their magic circles, believing the attack order had already been given.
Shemazai clenched his teeth. "They had one damn job..."
Penemue spread her wings and tried to surge ahead to stop them, while Baraqiel raised a hand to force the rest of the formation to stay in place. But it was already too late. The confusion had spread too fast.
In the middle of the clouds, Damon instantly sensed the different presences approaching, and he didn't need to be a genius or even look to know it was thousands of Fallen Angels.
Feeling that things were about to get far more complicated than necessary, Damon cursed under his breath. Without wasting more time, he increased the atmospheric pressure around the Lucifer.
Vali felt an immense force crash down over his entire body, halting his attacking momentum. The white-haired man's eyes opened wide behind the helmet upon seeing Damon's shadow appear above his head in less than an instant.
Vali lifted his gaze just as the redhead pulled back a leg. He barely managed to make out the movement before the tip of the boot sank directly under the helmet's chin with a dry crack.
The white plate deformed around his jaw and several fragments went flying. Vali's head was snapped back with such force that the white-haired man would swear that, had it not been for the armor, it would already have been separated from the rest of his body.
Vali went hurtling toward the upper clouds as if he weighed nothing, leaving behind a trail of white pieces torn from the helmet while a mixture of blood and saliva escaped through the armor's opening. His wings shook violently behind him, unable to stabilize him before he disappeared from view, launched straight toward the highest layers of the atmosphere.
Damon didn't even follow his trajectory. He turned slowly in the air and directed his gaze toward the horde of Fallen Angels approaching his back. Raynare led the charge with her light spear ready, followed by dozens of soldiers still shouting Kokabiel's name.
Damon watched them all for a few seconds before letting out a tired sigh. "Perfect," he murmured. "Just what I needed."
Damon's blue eyes began to glow... But before he could move a single hand, a familiar feminine voice sounded behind him. "Looks like you need help, darling."
A warm golden light began spreading among the black clouds, parting the darkness and tinting the rain with brilliant reflections. The temperature rose rapidly as a feminine figure descended slowly from the sky.
Damon couldn't help but stand there, mouth agape, not expecting the goddess to actually come here. "Wtf, Amaterasu..."
The goddess smiled as the golden light intensified around her. "I hope I haven't arrived late."
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