Bam, bam
Belial was unable to break through Yuki's defense. Metatron was literally bombarding the demonic tree.
Even so, Metatron couldn't defeat the demonic tree either—only delay it. And that was enough...
"Grrr..."
The Beast roared, and in its hands a demonic flower condensed into particles that rapidly began to disperse throughout the Domain.
This was Athiel. Each particle represented instant death. When Yuki fought Mio Takamiya, he hadn't worried about this attack because Ain Soph Aur couldn't kill him due to their shared nature and belonging to the same Order. Even though this attack killed Kurumi Tokisaki from the First Timeline, Yuki never exposed his lovely fiancées to it again.
And once Mio understood this, she never used it again either—it was useless.
But now things were different. The Beast was chaos, and Athiel was tearing down Order itself. This attack was a nightmare...
It ignored energy defenses and attacks alike, bringing death to everything it touched. To stop such a Demon King, it would need to be sealed with Michael before release. Unfortunately, Yuki was unable to use Michael, nor could he use Haniel to transform. It was already too late. His only option was to use a materialized Angel as a shield.
Among the Angels he could use, only Gabriel and Zadkiel were large enough—but neither was durable enough and would be destroyed in seconds. He needed a physically stronger Angel, someone compatible with Chariot's weapon.
"Natsumi!"
"Got it!... Activating second level!"
[World of Colors!!]
The old Yuki would have fled without hesitation—but not now. The Domain changed, replaced by a rainbow-colored world filled with mountains of candy.
"It's time for artillery... Kerubiel!"
At that moment, a giant made its appearance...
An imposing black sphere appeared before Yuki and, at its summoner's command, spread its four enormous wings and faced the Athiel particles, serving as a shield for Yuki and Reine. At the same time, the phantom of Chariot's doll-mouthed spider took shape...
"That Angel..."
Reine was stunned. She knew Yuki was using the Spirits to temporarily increase his power, but she never imagined he could materialize Kerubiel...
"Surprised?..."
"..."
Yuki smiled smugly. With Kerubiel and the second level of the Dream World, the chances of withstanding Athiel increased dramatically. Reine, however, turned her head away coldly and continued using Kerubiel as a shield against the particles.
Truth be told, Yuki himself was also surprised by this Angel. In the First Timeline, such an Angel didn't exist.
Or rather, his other "self" didn't have the qualifications to make this Angel appear—because Kerubiel could be considered a Hidden Angel.
After all, just minutes earlier, when Yuki and his lovely Spirits finished synchronizing using one of the Crown's empty Thrones...
The final Throne lit up, and a woman materialized, stunning everyone.
She was a young, beautiful girl with long blonde hair and vivid pink eyes. Her hair was tied into a ponytail on the right side.
Her Astral Dress resembled a short black dress with an opening at the chest and stomach. She also wore black gloves and golden greaves on her legs.
On her back were angelic wings along with four large transparent wings. In addition, a smaller pair of wings extended from her ears.
This girl was a Spirit—an Order Spirit...
Yuki blinked. She felt familiar, as if he had seen her somewhere before.
(Ain Soph Aur... the statue...)
On Mio's Angel, within the rose of death particles that was Athiel, the statue at the center of the flower bore the image of this girl. Yuki was confused—he didn't know whether she belonged to Mio Takamiya.
But his suspicions were unfounded...
"Hn~..."
The girl opened her eyes, and the first thing she did was look at Yuki. A smile appeared on her face as she slowly descended from the Throne, standing before Yuki amid the girls' incredulous stares...
"At last, you can see me... Yuki."
"..."
Yuki didn't speak, but his Spirit Power scanned his entire spiritual world. He couldn't understand how this girl had appeared from the Throne. He found nothing—there was only one answer. She had been in his Crown from the very beginning.
"I see you're in serious trouble. Don't worry, I'll help you win. We can leave the explanations for later..."
She didn't mind that Yuki didn't respond. She was simply happy that her voice had finally reached him, that she could finally communicate. She had tried from the start, but all she could do was watch Yuki suffer...
(I can help him... this time, I won't let you suffer anymore...)
Especially First Timeline Yuki. She had cried and regretted everything back then. If only she had appeared sooner, things would have been different. But now she could act—and she didn't hesitate to help.
She clasped her hands together, and her vast Spirit Power erupted...
"Kerubiel..."
As she spoke, her Throne lit up, and the giant Kerubiel appeared in the spiritual world. Its power surpassed even the Spirits within the Crown. At first, Yuki materialized Zafkiel defensively, but sensing no malice—only affection—he calmed down and stared at the girl before him.
"Kerubiel will protect you, Yuki..."
Opening her eyes again, the girl took Yuki's hands and smiled warmly...
A strange sense of calm washed over him, dispelling any prejudice he had toward her.
"Who are you?..."
"Mayuri... My name is Mayuri..."
"Hoouuuu!!"
"What a powerful and resilient Angel!"
With Kerubiel's protection, Yuki and Reine were able to pass through the particles. Yuki admired its strength—Kerubiel was durable enough to withstand instant death.
He knew it was also thanks to the Domain's protection and Chariot's doll-spider phantom, but instant death was still lethal. Kerubiel's snow-white wing feathers perished in the process, and it suffered severe damage...
"Hoouuuu!!"
Even so, Kerubiel didn't give in. From its core, it concentrated beams strong enough to eliminate some of Athiel's particles...
Multiple crimson eyes appeared across Kerubiel's body, firing numerous lasers. At the same time, several golden wheels were launched as projectiles to stop the flower...
BOOMMMM
Unfortunately for Kerubiel, the flower wasn't the only threat. Belial didn't stop—it charged forward, lashing out with its branches.
Shiii
Yuki acted immediately with Halvanhelev. Still, he knew he couldn't cut all of Belial's branches—only those coming directly at him. Gradually, Kerubiel was overwhelmed by the branches. Yuki knew there was a limit to what Kerubiel could endure, just like Chariot's spider phantom.
Kerubiel was the strongest Angel on the Tree of Kabbalah aside from Ain Soph, yet now it was helpless against Belial's roots. Little by little, Kerubiel began to fall...
"Mayuri..."
[Don't worry, Yuki. I'm not out yet... Lahathelev.]
Mayuri didn't give up. She waved her hands from her Throne, and Kerubiel transformed into a massive drill. Its energy skyrocketed, slicing through several branches...
[Burst...]
A thunderous beam formed at the tip of the giant drill, and then a massive blast was fired at the demonic tree...
BOOMMMM
The explosion was so immense that it engulfed the entire demonic tree, creating a vast cloud of smoke...
(Incredible...)
That attack completely exceeded Yuki's expectations—it was powerful enough to split a star in half.
Mayuri was far stronger than he had imagined. Perhaps she could stop the Beast without relying on Reine.
Shiiiiiiiiiii
The joy and hope didn't last long. A piercing shriek rang out, followed by another explosion...
Kerubiel was blown away—or rather, annihilated—by an even stronger attack...
"Qemetiel... the Destroyer's ray..."