章節 23: Tie Up Loose Ends

On the road outside of Kokabiel's base, Zeno lets out a triumphant roar before he jumps out of the crater as his bulk-up body shrinks down to his normal size and the demon face on his back also disappears. He has gained quite a lot after devouring the ten-wings fallen angel. He now became a bit stronger physically as well as being able to spurt black feather wings on his back. He also gained an ultimate-class level of holy power and the ability to speak with others even if they didn't speak the same language.

He is quite pleased that his sneak attack goes well. Kokabiel was forced into a disadvantageous position from the beginning to the end, barely able to resist before he made the mistake of empowering his enemy and ended up losing his life.

Zeno could feel three energies inside his body, they were separated from each other by the SS suit since they didn't mix well with one another. The demonic energy is the weakest and Touki is the strongest currently.

He then turned to the mansion as he could hear a commotion from inside.

"Are they still fighting?"

He said before he quickly moved toward the mansion at a speed faster than human eyes could perceive.

÷×÷×÷

At the time when a roaring could be heard outside the mansion after many booming sounds as Xenovia fought with Freed while protecting Irina who was now weaponless from him. Freed now with two Excalibur swords is slowly overwhelming her with sheer speed and dirty tricks he randomly dishes out to gain advantage.

"Hyahahaha! Eat this!"

"Nghhh...!"

Xenovia groaned as she blocked yet another quick slash from Freed, her wrists aching slightly with every strike she blocked. Xenovia could see the mockery in his eyes, and it only fueled her own will to fight back.

"Hghh...!"

With a grunt, she pushed him back and raised her sword to smash down on him. Freed quickly jumped away and rolled on the ground to avoid the attack. He stood up quickly and smirked, looking at Xenovia with pure malice.

"So, you still have some fight left in you, well, that's good, I like that!"

Freed said before he charged at Xenovia once more, his swords clashing against her. They lock swords as they push at each other, trying to overpower their opponent but Xenovia seems to pushing him back as she more stronger physically. Freed clicks his tongue in annoyance finding out that he is weaker than the girl in front of him.

Irina watched the intense battle between Xenovia and Freed, her heart racing with concern. She knew that she couldn't help Xenovia in her current state, but she refused to stand idly by and be a burden to her friend.

"That right...!"

Suddenly, she remembered something and looked around for the old man Valper. She quickly located him watching the fight with a nasty grin on his face at the far end of the hall. She wondered why he was still here and had not escaped yet but immediately disregarded it since it was convenient for her.

Irina then quickly made her way towards Valper as she enhanced her body with holy power. The sudden move of Irina caught the attention of everyone present as she approached Valper. Valper started to panic as he stumbled backward.

"Freed! Help me!"

The old man yells for Freed to protect him urgently, he is not a fighter after all. Freed looks over his shoulder at the pathetic Valper, a sneer forming on his face with a vain bulging on his temple. He was furious that he had to protect someone in the middle of the fight.

"You shitty old fart!"

He immediately disengages from Xenovia and runs at a fast speed towards Irina while Xenovia also follows him from behind but at a slower speed. She now fears for her friend's life as Freed charges at Irina.

"Die bitch!!"

Freed finally reached Irina in a few seconds and was about to stab her with the Excalibur Mimic but then something suddenly struck his side and sent him flying away from her as he crashed into the wall with such a force that created a dent in the wall.

"Huh?"

Xenovia stopped moving toward Irina, her eyes looking at Freed who somehow suddenly flew away and crashed into the wall in surprise and confusion.

"What happened?"

Amidst the confusion Valper who noticed the unfavorable situation quickly slipped away from the hall without knowing that there was a tiny magic circle stuck on his back as a beacon for a scary bounty hunter to track him down later.

The exorcist girls cautiously approach Freed who still struggling to stand up as he coughs violently, three of his rims are probably broken. They don't notice that there is Zeno who is currently invisible standing over Freed's body after he kicks him away from Irina.

Fortunately for Irina, Zeno back into the mansion and managed to save her just in time. He looks down at the prone form of Freed, considering if he should kill him or capture him alive.

"I think I'll let you live."

Zeno muttered after thinking for a moment, his deep and distorted voice startled the two girls as they recognized his voice. Zeno decided to let Freed live because someone needed to be a scapegoat of sorts and he couldn't tell anyone that he had killed Kokabiel since he didn't want the attention just yet. He will leave the aftermath to the devil and the exorcist girls to deal with after this.

Zeno then came out of his invisible state and stomped Freed in the leg causing it to break and him to scream in pain before stomping again on the other leg.

"Argggggh!! Fuck you...! Who the fuck...?!"

Before he could curse at the one who broke his legs, a foot stepped on his head and ground his head to the ground.

"It's you!"

The two exorcist girls exclaimed in unison when they saw Zeno suddenly appear out of thin air and stomp on Freed like a bug.

"You girls seem to be in over your head."

Zeno turned his head to face them and crossed his arms on his chest. Irina and Xenovia look away from him with conflicted thoughts. They felt a bit shameful somehow.

"We can take care of this."

Irina spoke up hesitantly. Xenovia the more flexible and pragmatic of the two rolls her eyes. She thought that was not something the one who lost her weapon and almost died should be saying.

"Yeah right, we totally got it."

Xenovia added sarcastically, earning a glare from Irina. Zeno shook his head, amused by their banter.

"Anyhow, Kokabiel and Valper already escaped, Freed has been captured, and only Excalibur Rapidly has been retrieved. You girls should pull back for now and call some reinforcement since you clearly can't take on a ten-wings fallen angel by just the two of you."

Zeno lied about Kokabiel's status and warned them to not be reckless. Irina and Xenovia look at each other, realizing that Zeno is right. They didn't stand a chance against Kokabiel, especially now that they fought against him and lost miserably.

"But what about him?"

Irina asked as she pointed at Freed, her voice lashing with anger. Zeno just shrunk his shoulders nonchalantly in response.

"I'm the town guard so I have to give him to the town governor. If you want to take him back to the church then you have to talk with the devil."

Zeno smirked, knowing that the idea of working with the devil would make the two exorcists reluctant.

"Well... We can't just take him with us all the way to the Vatican anyway, you know how troublesome it will be?"

Xenovia sighed, clearly giving up on taking in the custody of the stray exorcist. She is not even sure if she can keep him alive long enough with the injuries that Zeno gave him.

"I guess."

Irina nodded in reluctant agreement. She absolutely refused to carry this guy back to the Vatican.

"All right then, I'll be taking care of this guy now. You two should get going before any more trouble comes your way."

With that, he grabbed Freed by the scruff of his neck and lifted him off the ground while Zeno's black tendrils grew out and warped tightly around his neck. Zeno then handed Irina and Xenovia the two Excalibur swords. He felt the swords trying to burn his hand but it did not even manage to make him feel anything.

"Here, take them."

Irina and Xenovia took the swords with incredible looks, their eyes locked on Zeno's hand that held the swords without any damage. Zeno then went away with Freed in his hand.

"What is his name again...?"

Xenovia muttered with a thoughtful expression.

"It's Zavior from what the Sitri heiress calls him."

Irina told Xenovia with a rising eyebrow, curious why her friend seemed to be thinking seriously about something.

÷×÷×÷

At a dark alley somewhere in Kuoh Town, Valper is running while holding the two Excalibur swords warped in white clothes in his arms. He is cursing quietly as he doesn't know where Kokabiel went, maybe he was abandoned by Kokabiel to fend for himself.

"God damn you...!"

He will have to find another organization to take him in. With his expertise in the holy sword, it shouldn't be difficult to find a patron quickly.

Just as he was about to turn left on the corner a light spear suddenly pierced his throat and exploded which severed his head from his body. Valper's head flew away as his body fell on the ground still holding the swords.

"Two swords for my new maids..."

Zeno muttered as he flew down from the sky with ten black feather wings on his back and landed near the headless body of Valper. He immediately conjured a light sword in his hand and cut the arms that holding the Excalibur swords. He then takes the warped-up swords before he flaps his wings and flies up to the sky, leaving the dead body of Valper behind in the dark alley.

He still has to go pick up Freed from the top of a building he left him after storing the two Excalibur swords in his underground base.