บท 16: Chapter 16: Harkoryoku

Azazel smiled as he examined the unfinished artificial Sacred Gear.

"Can we trust him?" Baraqiel asked.

"Yes, we can," Azazel replied.

"Why do you say that?" Baraqiel asked, wanting to understand Azazel's reasoning.

"His eyes are like my son's, searching for power, but it's even more than that. He must want servants or something else from me" Azazel said, already have understanding of Kiba's plans involving people with Sacred Gear.

---

Meanwhile, Kiba yawned in his Scale Mail armor as it announced "Boost" every ten seconds until it finally said, "Burst!"

"Transfer," Kiba commanded, and Boosted Gear echoed, "Transfer!"

The increased power transferred to Unlimited Sword Birth, accelerating the creation process. The percentages jumped rapidly:

[Replica Divine Dividing, Progress 50%]

[Natural Energy Generator, Progress 65%]

[Heart Sword, Progress 88%]

"It jumped up quite fast," Kiba remarked, seeing the progress. "I'm already at my limit for boosting. Tomorrow, after some rest, I can continue."

He got some sleep and woke up the next day, starting the same process.

He wanted to keep his feelings of boredom, laziness, and frustration, including lust, from interfering with his daily routine.

He was a bit worried about his beastly lust nearly getting out and harming an innocent woman, so he tried to keep minimal contact with women, knowing his inner beast could jump out.

As soon as it reached its limit, it announced, "Transfer!" The boost fully powered Unlimited Sword Birth, further speeding up the creation process.

When all the swords were complete, Kiba put the Demonic Generator back in the slot before the boost disappeared.

He discovered he could use the sword's abilities directly without summoning them. "Is this for real?"

Kiba was thrilled, realizing this was far safer and more practical than the original Pocket Dimension Sword.

'Which means this is far safer than the original,' Kiba thought with a grin. 'And more practical. Wait, wait, wait.' He opened the menu settings and pressed Fusion. He saw three options: Sword Fusion, Unlimited Sword Birth Fusion, and Body Fusion.

'Just like I thought. That means I can use it to strengthen my Sacred Gear by creating swords,' Kiba thought, his smile widening.

[What is it?] Ddraig asked, sensing Kiba's happiness.

"I can use my sword's ability without summoning it," Kiba replied.

[That is great,] Ddraig said. [Isn't this very good for you?]

"Yeah," Kiba said as he activated Heart Sword's ability to lock away laziness, boredom, procrastination, and lust. He finally felt energized and said, "Finally, I can start training again, but now I just have to wait for Demonic Generator to finish."

He decided to master the Natural Energy being generated from it. He opened a small flow just for him to control, knowing that if he let the full flow of Natural Energy, he might go insane or turn to stone.

He sat on the floor and began balancing it with Demonic Power, creating another pathway for Natural Energy similar to the Demonic Circuit. It was easier this time since there was already an example to follow.

But he had an idea. "I need time; there's no way I can master it in a short period."

Kiba began constructing a new sword named Timeless Sword.

He didn't care much about its appearance but gave it the ability to create an area where time slowed compared to the real world.

He created two of these, hoping to cheat his way by slowing the time on Unlimited Sword Birth to fast-track the progression.

He checked his progress tabs:

[Demonic Generator, Progress 30%]

[Timeless Sword, Progress 1%]

After that, he continued what he was doing. When the sun rose, Kiba got up and called Azazel.

"It's finished," Kiba said.

"Really, in one day? Get to the same location," Azazel sounded excited.

Kiba teleported to the location and saw Azazel, who seemed to have run there, looking sweaty.

"Here is your sword," Kiba said, throwing a small white dagger with a red button on its hilt. "Press the button."

Azazel did as Kiba instructed, pressing the button. A white, scale armor materialized around his body.

"It's not as strong as the original Divine Dividing because Albion isn't in it," Kiba explained.

"No, this is more than enough," Azazel said, very excited. The entire armor had the same distinct construct as his father's. "It's the same craftsmanship."

"Let me complete my end of the deal. Follow me," Azazel said as he detransformed and guided Kiba.

As Kiba followed, he encountered someone he preferred to avoid.

[Ddraig, hide your presence even more,] Kiba urged, spotting a potential troublemaker.

[I can't do that, I've already done my best,] Ddraig replied. [Wait, why is the White One here?]

[That's why I asked you to hide urgently,] Kiba said, trying to remain calm.

[You know I can't hide from my rival,] Ddraig said, realizing their cover was blown.

Standing before them was Azazel's adopted son, Vali Lucifer, with light silver hair, a black jacket, and a white shirt.

"Hey, Azazel, why is the Sekiryuutei here?" Vali asked.

Azazel, equally surprised, turned to Kiba. "Red Dragon Emperor?"

"Yes, I am the Sekiryuutei. You were supposed to keep it quiet, Hakuryoku," Kiba said, annoyed.

Vali's right hand glowed with a blue circle. "Why are you hiding your presence, Ddraig?" a voice asked, belonging to Albion, the other Heavenly Dragon.

"It's for my sake," Kiba answered as a green circle glowed behind his left palm.

"My host here says he's not strong enough. I'm respecting his choice," Ddraig said.

Azazel, intrigued, wondered, 'How does he possess Boosted Gear in the first place?'

"Not strong enough?" Albion was shocked and offended.

Albion sensed Kiba's concealed aura of a dragon, a beast, a demon king, and a sage—an outrageous combination. He had never seen Ddraig's host this powerful in term of aura.

"I know, but that's his decision," Ddraig said.

"What's your name?" Vali asked.

"Kiba Yuuto," Kiba replied, then asked, "Are you going to ask for a fight?"

"Yes, I never thought I would see the Sekiryuutei here. Will you fight me?" Vali asked.

"No, not yet," Kiba said, explaining, "I still have something to do. Maybe next year."

"I'll wait until next year," Vali said, then asked, "What kind of strength are you pursuing?"

"A power to kill Outer Gods," Kiba said honestly.

Azazel was surprised. "How did you know about them? No one should know about that."

"Secret," Kiba replied.

Azazel realized he had underestimated Kiba's knowledge. He understood that Kiba was planning something significant but had no idea what.

"Outer Gods?" Vali asked, unfamiliar with the term.

"A being beyond time, space, everything, residing in another dimensional plane," Kiba summarized.

"Azazel, did you know about this?" Vali asked.

"I know of one from the past, but why do you speak in plurals?" Azazel asked, fearing the implications.

"Secret," Kiba repeated, withholding details.

Vali laughed. "I never thought there could be beings stronger than Great Red and the Infinity Dragon. Beyond everything! This is exciting."

Azazel sighed, sensing a looming disaster.

-------

Thanks for the supporters that have been reading my story, your comment, and the interaction with story. Mostly the one that join my Pat-reon, thank you very much