High School DxD: Return of the Crimson Dragon Emperor

Chapter 500: Chapter 490: The Ultimate Strike—

[Kiba Perspective]

『FUHAHAHAHA! How dare you insult me like that! You muscle-brained girl who’s recently been stressing over whether your chest is turning rock-hard from muscle, and you self-proclaimed childhood friend erotic angel who spends her nights indulged in sweet delusions and indecent acts alone in her room!』

Vals’s avatar radiated an ominous, unnatural pressure, his eyes glowing with a sinister red light. The sheer presence rolling off him made him feel like an entirely different person. Gone was the polite, gentlemanly composure he held prior to taking the mental assault—ahem, the bullying—from Xenovia and Irina.

”H-H-H-How do you even know about that... Wait, no! I didn’t! I-I haven’t done anything indecent, okay?!”

Irina was completely flustered by the avatar’s outburst, her eyes spinning in circles as her voice cracked hysterically.

...She couldn’t be easier to read if she tried.

”M-M-M-My chest is perfectly soft! It hasn’t turned hard at all! E-Even Issei said it was soft! S-Stop making up complete nonsense!”

Not you too, Xenovia... And honestly, I don’t think that’s something you should be screaming at the top of your lungs in public.

『FUHAHAHAHA! Such exquisite embarrassment—yes, delicious! As penance for insulting me, you shall pay with every ounce of your shame! FUHAHAHAHA!』

Vals’s avatar cackled maniacally. Looking at him right now, it was impossible to believe he was supposed to have a glass heart.

What on earth was this transformation?

Right on cue, as if answering my silent question, the original Vals currently trading blows with Mr. Maurice chimed in from afar:

”That would be my inner self, so to speak... When my mind is backed into an absolute corner, my inner persona awakens.”

”Does that mean you become stronger?” Mr. Maurice asked.

”My combat prowess doesn’t change. However, my mental fortitude increases... or rather, I gain the urge to peer into my opponents’ embarrassing secrets, expose them, and take revenge on whoever drove me into a corner. I begin to take immense pleasure in savoring their humiliation.”

”That’s a terrible power!”

What kind of power-up is that?! Exposing people’s deepest, most embarrassing secrets isn’t just getting even—it’s overkill!

While I was screaming internally, the awakened avatar continued his high-pitched cackling, initiating his revenge against the two girls who had pushed him to the edge.

Vals’s avatar formed ”L” shapes with the fingers on both hands, framing Irina like a camera lens.

『I see it... Oh yes, I see it clearly, little erotic angel! Hoo-hoo, it seems you’ve recently taken a liking to playing outdoors, haven’t you?』

”NOOOOOOOOOOO! Stop it, stop it, STOP IT!”

Irina clapped her hands over her ears, screaming at the top of her lungs! But the avatar showed no mercy.

『Sneaking into love hotels all by yourself to try out various things, I see...』

”What?!” Xenovia gasped. ”Irina, you were doing stuff like that?! As expected of an erotic angel!”

”Don’t listen to him, Xenovia! AAAAAHHHH!”

『Not to mention, from eating way too many sweets, your weight has—』

”NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO?!”

Irina’s screech was loud enough to shatter eardrums.

Smiling at her reaction, Vals’s avatar turned his focus toward Xenovia, pointing a finger.

『Now for the muscle-brained girl.』

”I am NOT muscle-brained! Besides, I have nothing to hide that could possibly embarrass me—”

『Just a few weeks ago, you picked up Issei Hyoudou’s clothes from the laundry basket in the bathroom and took a deep sniff, didn’t you? And immediately after, you went off to comfort yourself, didn’t you?』

”WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!”

”Xenovia, you did THAT?!” Irina shrieked.

『Why is it that taking a sniff of Issei Hyoudou’s sweat makes your body throb uncontrollably? Go ahead, answer me!』

”STOOOOOOOP IT!”

Xenovia crouched down, clutching her head in total defeat.

Honestly... What on earth are you two doing when nobody’s watching?!

『Muscle-brained girl, let me ask you another question.』 the avatar continued relentless. 『The simple white dress left in the laundry basket by a certain former sister—why did you quietly hold it up against your body, look at yourself in the mirror with a hopeful expression, and mutter, ”Yeah... no. For me... yeah, this isn’t going to work”? And why, despite saying it wouldn’t work, did you smile so sweetly at your reflection? Why did you blush, glance around nervously, and upon sensing a presence, panic, shove it back into the basket, and flee to your room?』

He can see details that specific?! What a terrifying ability!

”Seeker” Vals... or rather, Awakened Vals, was far too dangerous. The scale of this attack was on an entirely different level compared to the childish insults Xenovia and Irina had thrown at him. He was exposing their most guarded secrets right on the spot—using his full power to do so.

Even Xenovia, normally so stoic, was red to her ears and covering her face. That alone showed just how devastating this verbal onslaught was.

Tears brimming in her eyes, Xenovia began mumbling under her breath.

”Ugh... I-I know cute clothes like the ones Asia wears don’t suit me... But I wanted to try them on... I just happened to see it and wanted to test it... Uuugh... I’m sorry...”

Covering her bright red face with both hands, Xenovia apologized in a trembling voice.

I-I don’t think you need to apologize for that... It just proves you’re a normal girl deep down. Once this war is over, you should definitely ask Issei out to go clothes shopping.

『Muscle-brained girl! The very same muscle-brained girl who once mistook a bar of soap for cheese and ate it!』

”Stop calling me muscle-brained! A-And that was years ago!”

So you’re not denying you ate it! Just what kind of situation led to that?!

Though, isn’t he going a bit harder on Xenovia? I guess it’s because she was the main ringleader behind the mental attack...

Desperate to launch some kind of counterattack, Xenovia yelled through her tears:

”If you keep talking, I’ll keep insulting you, Jimmy!”

『FUHAHAHAHA! You think such simple words will work on me now?! Muscle-brained girl who’s started worrying because her abs are getting absurdly ripped! You subtly cover yourself with your hands whenever Issei Hyoudou sees you naked, don’t you?!』

”WH-WH-WH-WHAT?!”

Countered instantly!

Don’t worry about it, Xenovia! You’ve trained insanely hard—it’s only natural your abs would get defined!

『This shame... delicious! Absolutely delicious! FUHAHAHAHA!』

Yeah... Is it just my imagination, or is this guy completely unstoppable right now? I mean, sure, the opponent in front of us is just a construct created by magic... But that means the original would be like this too if he awakened. Talk about words coming back to bite you.

Either way, there’s no way I can defend the two of them here... The only thing I can do in this situation is play the straight man.

After laughing his fill, Vals’s avatar wore a thoroughly satisfied, refreshed expression.

He made eye contact with me as I stood watching from the sidelines. Then, returning to his usual calm tone, he spoke:

”Ahem... Now then, now that I’ve cleared my head a bit.”

”Ah, you’re back to normal.”

It seems he’s returned to his original personality. That’s definitely easier for me to deal with.

Vals’s avatar flashed a meaningful smile and continued:

”Speaking of which, there was one thing I forgot to mention. Regarding the plan hatched by the leaders of each faction to deal with the sealed Trihexa—I assume the members of ’D×D’ haven’t been informed of the details either?”

”...?! How do you know about that...?!”

How to defeat Trihexa once it was sealed—that was a major concern we had discussed on the way here. A top-secret plan known only to the heads of the factions, which even Ms. Rossweisse, who constructed the isolation barrier, wasn’t fully privy to.

I never expected the details of that plan to come from his mouth.

Seeing my shock, Vals’s avatar gave a small smirk.

”There’s no need to be so surprised, is there? My ability allows me to peer a moment into the future and read the hearts of others. Gathering information from the leaders is child’s play. In the first place, my power isn’t meant for direct combat compared to the other three. Its true value lies in intelligence gathering. Father Asem gave me the power of ’Seeker’ with that exact expectation.”

”I see... No matter how high-level the secret, your power makes it effortless to uncover.”

”Precisely. Which is why I know the leaders’ ultimate plan—the Isolated Barrier Realm.”

Isolated Barrier Realm...? That’s a term I’ve never heard before.

”It utilizes the technology from the Rating Games, the operational know-how of Lucifer’s system managed by Ajuka Beelzebub, the Sacred Gear system and divine ’System’ of Heaven, the logic of the Norse World Tree Yggdrasil, Grigori’s research, and the barrier spellcraft developed by that former Valkyrie. It is a world created by combining every domain of magic and tech in existence—a cage designed specifically for Trihexa. The faction leaders intend to defeat Trihexa inside that realm... by sacrificing themselves.”

”What...?!”

Before our stunned expressions, the avatar pressed on:

”’Sacrifice’ might be a bit of a misnomer. Death isn’t a absolute certainty. However, coming out unscathed is impossible. That monster is simply that much of an anomaly. The heads of each faction have chosen to enter the barrier realm and fight Trihexa for thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of years until it is destroyed. And among those entering are three Devil Kings—including the crimson-haired Sirzechs Lucifer—as well as former Fallen Angel Governor Azazel and Chief Angel Michael.”

”——!”

The information was staggering.

At the same time, everything clicked. The ”secret trump card” Sensei had mentioned was for the leaders themselves to be sealed away alongside Trihexa in an isolated dimension.

...Sirzechs-sama, Michael-sama, Azazel-sensei... All the people who mean so much to us...

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