High School DxD: Return of the Crimson Dragon Emperor

Chapter 557: Chapter 547: The Resurrected Phoenix

”Take that!”

”Hah!”

Scatterings of crimson aura and shimmering blue flames swept across the battlefield as Xenovia and I systematically brought down our foes one by one.

I deflected the incoming attacks, and Xenovia finished them off in a single strike. Our rhythm was completely synchronized, allowing us to press forward smoothly without losing momentum.

As I dismantled the stray familiars created by Asem, a stray thought crossed my mind regarding the woman fighting at my side. Wielding both Durandal and Excalibur, her swordplay was a display of refined grace, radiating a different kind of charm than before.

Even more impressive was how seamlessly Xenovia matched my rhythm. She was constantly reading my level of exhaustion, maneuvering to make my movements easier while still fighting to her heart’s content.

To think that Xenovia—the very girl once written off as a muscle-headed power idiot—could display such technical finesse... Sniff. Man, I’m genuinely touched! Well, I suppose that’s the result of enduring the Hellish Training under the Sword Saint.

Xenovia cast a thoroughly displeased look in my direction.

”Issei... are you thinking something extremely rude about me right now?”

”W-What?! No, not at all! I was just, you know... thinking how much of a lifesaver it is having you here!”

”Is that so? Well, fine then...”

Man, even her instincts have gotten sharper.

To be completely honest, letting Xenovia hog all the heavy lifting didn’t sit quite right with me. After all, wiping out the enemy with overwhelming firepower is what being the Welsh Dragon King is all about, isn’t it?

Ddraig chimed in.

『Indeed. We can’t let that white fellow steal all the spotlight.』

Gancing slightly off to the side, I spotted Vali in his Satan Heavenly Dragon Armor—a blend of shining silver and absolute black—blasting through the familiars with sheer, unadulterated force. He deployed multiple bits similar to the ones I used, each generating a Halving Field.

The familiars caught within those fields were compressed—halved once, halved again, and continuously crushed until they vanished without leaving behind a single speck of dust. Vali himself fired off vicious clusters of demonic power, obliterating entire waves at once. Among the familiars he had taken down were several that possessed strength rivaling a Dragon King.

Vali wasn’t the only one making waves. Sairaorg-san, having released his Outrage Form, was sending hundreds of familiars flying with a single swing of his fist. Dulio had also activated his Balance Breaker, trapping a massive swarm of airborne familiars inside giant bubbles. As expected, the enemies caught inside were completely disintegrated by every imaginable disaster raging within the spheres.

Seeing it again reminded me of just how insanely useful Dulio’s Balance Breaker was in a mass battle. Being able to wipe out large groups of enemies across a wide area without worrying about catching allies in the crossfire was a massive advantage. Cao Cao was likewise in his Balance Breaker state, smoothly neutralizing incoming attacks before piercing through the familiars with absolute precision.

Suddenly, the howl of a dog echoed through the field.

Curious, I turned my attention toward the sound and saw a humanoid black hound. Standing behind it was a pack of shadow dogs, waiting patiently like loyal subordinates. The humanoid hound gripped a scythe forged of pure darkness, darting silently through the battlefield to sever a familiar’s head in a single swing. The pack behind it pounced simultaneously, tearing through the remaining forces.

That’s... Ikuse-san’s Balance Breaker! That aura coming off him is utterly terrifying!

Longinus wielders really were in a league of their own. Well, I’m a Longinus wielder too, though!

『Boost!!』

The familiar voice echoed from my sacred gear. Unlike the other Longinus wielders, I wasn’t using my Balance Breaker—I was utilizing my Sacred Gear in its base form.

『My partner hasn’t recovered enough stamina to use the Balance Breaker yet,』 Ddraig noted. 『He is barely managing to use the basic abilities as it is.』

That was my current reality. In short, while I could use the Sacred Gear itself, I lacked the stamina required to don the armor. So, I fought in my raw physical state, boosting my power through the gauntlet while relying on martial arts powered by the Lotus Ring Qi technique.

『Boost!!』

While juggling all of that, I managed to stack enough power. Alright, time to move!

『Explosion!!』

Stopping the boost, I released the stored energy! Crimson aura surged outward as raw power flooded through my body.

”Hah!”

My open-palm strike slammed directly into the chest of a humanoid familiar, sending a shockwave bursting straight through its back. The familiar collapsed to its knees. As its head drooped forward, I leaped over it, twisted my body in mid-air, and unleashed a rotation-boosted roundhouse kick! The strike buried itself into the side of its head, shattering its skull.

”Oh, impressive work, Issei!” Xenovia praised, looking reliable as ever.

I shook my head. ”No, not yet! A blow like that isn’t enough to stop them!”

Just like with Rosweisse earlier, these familiars wouldn’t stop moving just because their heads were destroyed or a massive hole was punched through their torsos. To completely stop them, you either had to tear off their limbs or obliterate them entirely.

”Which is why I’m hitting it with this!”

I pulled back my right arm, gathering Qi into my fist. As I repeatedly compressed and circulated the energy, a sharp, high-pitched hum echoed through the air!

”Line of fire is clear, no allies nearby! Blow away!”

The moment I thrust my hand forward, a torrent of light erupted! The thick beam of crimson light swallowed not only the familiar in front of me, but everything lined up behind it—everything within the range of Agni!

『Reset』

As the voice resonated from the gauntlet, a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over me as power drained from my entire body. Did that Agni just consume all my boosted power...? Man, I’m way weaker right now than I thought.

Back-to-back with Xenovia, I surveyed our surroundings. The members of Team DxD and the Longinus wielders seemed to be holding their ground. The Gremory peerage had fought these types of battles many times before and knew how to handle them. Kiba was summoning his Crimson Dragon Knights, slashing through multiple enemies at once. Rias and Akeno were summoning dragons forged of destruction energy and lightning, swallowing the familiars whole just like before. The only difference now was their far more precise energy control and raw output. Watching those chaotic dragons tear through the enemy lines was a sight to behold.

While our primary members were fine, the warriors fighting with us for the first time were being pushed back by the sheer durability of the familiars.

”Gah?!”

A scream rang out nearby. I turned to see a Yokai backed into a corner by a spider-like familiar. The spider’s fangs lunged straight toward them!

”Xenovia!”

”I know! But we’re completely swamped over here too!”

Both Xenovia and I had our hands full dealing with the endless stream of enemies lunging at us. We couldn’t make it over in time!

Swish—

A sudden burst of golden light enveloped the Yokai. The light deflected the familiar’s attack, shielding the Yokai inside while instantly healing their wounds.

”Asia!”

Looking back, I saw Asia shrouded in a golden aura, with Fafnir standing loyally by her side. Is that Asia’s Balance Breaker?! Instead of expanding the aura outward from herself, she was projecting protective light directly to those in critical danger, minimizing her own stamina consumption in the process.

Any enemy attempting to get close to Asia was instantly incinerated by Fafnir’s flames. He might be a total pervert normally, but when push comes to shove, he really is a Dragon King!

As reliable as our allies were, the sheer terrifying scale of the enemy forces hung heavy over the battlefield. We could manage the lower-tier enemies, but the high-ranking ones—those possessing power equivalent to Dragon Kings, Gods, or Super Beings—were a completely different story.

Compared to the lower ranks, there were fewer than a hundred of these high-tier monsters. But what they lacked in numbers, they made up for in raw, terrifying strength. Their extraordinary power and speed could inflict massive casualties in a single hit, and their rock-solid bodies barely flinched against ordinary attacks. To make matters worse, they possessed regenerative abilities, instantly growing back severed limbs.

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