Having escaped the collapsing Ruined realm and distanced themselves from that terrifying hand of darkness, everyone personally witnessed the destruction of the realm they had entered, out on the Sea of Ruined realms. After such a frustrating battle, no one had any interest in exploring other realms anymore.
Arthur immediately changed course and returned to the real human world.
Late at night in Tokyo, a spatial rift suddenly opened tens of thousands of meters above the city's neon lights. The bubble barrier carrying everyone flew out and hovered silently in the sky.
Seeing the familiar scenery, everyone—having expended a great deal of strength—let out heavy breaths of relief. Bikou sat on the bubble without any concern for appearances, his face full of the expression of someone who had narrowly escaped death.
The danger of Ruined realms really wasn't exaggerated. Not only did one have to face the threats within them, but also the possibility of the realm suddenly collapsing.
If Vali's team hadn't brought precautionary items, the critically injured Arthur siblings, Bikou, and Kuroka would never have returned intact.
Arthur guided the bubble down slowly. Le Fay, who had regained consciousness after taking the Phoenix's Tears, thoughtfully cast a layer of cognitive interference magic on the bubble to prevent others from seeing it.
"Phew… This trip into the Ruined realm was packed with danger. In the end, only Raize really gained anything. The rest of us nearly lost our lives."
After the bubble landed at an unoccupied construction site and shattered, Kuroka wiped the sweat from her forehead. Glancing at Raize, whose pant leg was being hugged by Kanna, she spoke with a wry smile.
The Gatanothor that had looked nearly finished had suddenly erupted with an overwhelmingly terrifying power, completely catching them off guard.
Originally, both Vali and Raize thought that directly piercing its soul would work, but in the end, they were forced to flee in defeat.
"Opportunities also depend on luck. Being able to come back alive is already good enough. Besides, the power of light Raize obtained from the statue doesn't suit us anyway."
Arthur nodded toward Raize, his expression unchanged as he thanked him sincerely.
"Thanks to you just now. Otherwise, whether we could have safely escaped the Ruined realm would've been a complete unknown."
Being able to escape alive was already fortunate enough. There were countless Ruined realms within that dimensional range—one couldn't expect to encounter opportunities every time. More often than not, one would face deadly danger, just like today.
If Raize hadn't withdrawn everyone at terrifying speed and opened a stable spatial passage during the escape, it was uncertain whether any of them would have survived Gatanothor's assault, let alone escape the realm safely.
"No need to be so polite. I'm taking Kanna to find Tohru now. How should we stay in contact?"
Raize etched this defeat deeply into his memory. He firmly believed that Gatanothor had not been killed—he had a powerful premonition of that. The failure here was something he would have to overcome one day.
He glanced at the time on his phone. Three days had already passed since they left the human world.
Time flowed differently, something they had discussed before setting out, and he had contacted people prior to leaving.
Looking at Kanna, who was clinging to his pant leg and curiously observing everything around her, Raize patted her head and handed her a spirit peach.
The still-shaken Kanna's eyes lit up. She immediately accepted the large peach and began munching on it happily.
"Use this special magic card to contact us. It binds to spiritual power and can function as a beacon even within barriers or alternate spaces. Once recognized, you can change its appearance according to your will."
At that moment, Vali took out a small silver card engraved with mysterious patterns and handed it to Raize.
After Raize infused it with spiritual power, the patterns lit up. With a simple thought, the magic card in his hand began to change freely.
Stickers, earrings, necklaces, bracelets—any personal item imaginable. Extremely convenient.
"Vali, I enjoyed working with you."
Raize turned the magic card into a sticker, attached it to the back of his phone, and put it away.
"But I'm only a cooperative partner within your team. I'm not interested in the Khaos Brigade."
He reiterated their relationship clearly. While he got along well with Vali's team, he had no interest in the rest of the Khaos Brigade.
It was limited to Vali and his group. Raize didn't mind Vali's demonic bloodline—Vali didn't act like a devil at all.
Though battle-loving, he had a strong sense of humanity and cared deeply about his family. Rather than a devil, he was more like a half-devil with a very human personality.
"Relax. The Khaos Brigade isn't united anyway. I'm there purely to grow stronger and fight. My team members also have no interest in the brigade's actions."
Vali himself didn't have many close connections within the Khaos Brigade. He was there only to fight powerful enemies and become stronger, with no interest in their goal of harming the world.
Arthur had originally been part of the Hero Faction, but later lost interest in its affairs and found Vali easier to work with than Cao Cao, so he joined Vali's team, which only sought combat with strong opponents. His sister Le Fay followed her brother.
Bikou was Vali's good friend and, at the very least, would never stand against him. As for Kuroka, her goal revolved around her younger sister. She had only joined Vali's team and had no interest in Khaos Brigade itself.
"If we get the chance, let's go back to that Ruined realm and have a proper adventure. I'll be leaving with Kanna now. Goodbye, everyone."
After casting a layer of cognitive interference magic on both himself and Kanna, Kanna climbed onto Raize's neck and sat securely. His figure shot straight into the sky and vanished beyond the horizon in the blink of an eye.
"Damn, Raize's speed is even faster than my Nimbus."
After sensing Raize instantly flying several kilometers away, Bikou couldn't help but marvel.
Even when watching Raize spar with Vali before, it had been difficult for him to track Raize's movements.
"He's also a very reliable teammate. Vali really found an excellent partner this time."
Arthur held Raize in high regard. Raize was human, yet already possessed the strength to defeat Vali.
Moreover, the ability he had to copy powers was especially dangerous. Now that he also possessed the abilities of both the Red Dragon Emperor and the White Dragon Emperor, Arthur felt that given time, Raize would only continue to grow stronger.
It was fortunate that someone with such limitless potential was an ally. If such a person were an enemy, they would be a nightmare to deal with.
"But during his spar with Vali, he clearly had the chance to copy Vali's demonic power as well—yet he didn't."
Kuroka brushed her hair aside and spoke with a smile.
"Looks like he really dislikes devils. Even a Lucifer's power was rejected without hesitation."
Kuroka herself hated devils. After all, the misery she had suffered since childhood was all because of them.
For someone like Raize—who possessed holy power and despised devils—to agree to become Vali's teammate was truly surprising.
As a human with immense potential and the strength to defeat Vali at such a young age, Kuroka held Raize in very high regard.
And now that he possessed the power of two Heavenly Dragons, as long as he survived and continued to grow, he was destined to become a top-tier powerhouse.
Since he had copying abilities, could he copy her nekomata powers as well?
If she became his partner, they would surely produce a powerful offspring. Kuroka had once confessed to Vali, hoping to bear strong children. Dragons symbolized power, which was why she wanted to give birth to dragon offspring.
In the original story, she had also set her sights on Issei for the sake of bearing dragon progeny. After witnessing Raize's power and potential, Kuroka had already set him as a potential mate.
"Four months ago, his family was attacked by ghouls. His parents and younger sister were all killed, leaving him as the sole survivor. It was likely then that his powers awakened."
"Some ghoul organizations are protected by devils. It's not strange for him to hate devils."
After investigating Raize's personal background, Vali understood why he disliked devils. If he had gone through the same experiences, he wouldn't have any fondness for devils either.
Just like the grandfather who abused him as a child—Vali had no affection for Lucifer, the source of his bloodline.
"So he's the only one left in his family…"
Concern appeared on Le Fay's face. She herself had joined Vali's team out of concern for her brother, and Vali had accepted her precisely because he understood her reason.
In terms of raw strength within the team, Le Fay was the weakest. The reason she could still join despite her insufficient power was purely due to Vali's kindness.
"…Even though I do feel sorry for his background, Vali, are you saying that four months ago he was just an ordinary human!?"
Arthur did sympathize with Raize's experience, but the moment he heard that Raize had been nothing more than a normal human four months ago, he was completely stunned.
In just four months, the other party had already reached the level where he could defeat Vali. Not only that, he had previously copied the White Dragon Emperor's power from Vali, and had also gained opportunities in the Dimensional Gap. It could be said that during this period, he had grown even stronger.
Damn it, this growth rate was absurd. Thinking about how he himself had endured brutal training within his family since childhood just to be able to wield caliburn and gain his current strength, comparing that to Raize was simply humiliating.
Bikou and Kuroka wore the same expression. The power Raize possessed was extremely comprehensive—astonishing healing abilities, swordsmanship at a master's level, ferocious close-quarters combat prowess, not to mention his other abilities.
To possess such overwhelming overall combat power after only four months?
"Heh, if he weren't special, why would I bother recruiting him?" Vali chuckled lightly and turned around to leave. When he had faced Raize head-on and recalled the intelligence about him afterward, he had been equally shocked.
Having a formidable enemy in the future also meant having a powerful teammate.
---
After landing in Tokyo, returning home wouldn't take Raize much time. Before that, however, he needed to send Kanna to Tohru's place. After all, he had promised Kanna.
Ding-dong~
Landing in front of Kobayashi and Tohru's apartment, Raize rang the doorbell. Kanna sniffed the air, her eyes filled with anticipation. The scent of Tohru was thick here.
Raize hadn't lied to her. As Kanna slid down from his neck, she had already sensed the familiar presence approaching the door.
"I'm coming—ah, Raize. You're back—"
"Tohru-sama!!"
The moment the door opened and revealed Tohru's friendly smile, before Raize could even speak, Kanna lunged forward toward Tohru.
Like a cute little accessory, she clung tightly to Tohru's waist. Tohru's expression shifted from surprise to pure shock and delight.
"Kanna? How did you get here?"
At that moment, Kobayashi also came over to the entryway. Seeing Raize standing outside, she smiled.
"So it's Raize. Good evening. Um… and this is?"
After greeting Raize, her gaze landed on the small girl hugging Tohru's waist. The conspicuous dragon horns on her head and the little tail swaying behind her made it obvious that she wasn't human.
"Let's go inside first."
Since he was about to leave Kanna with Kobayashi, the dragon tamer, Raize smiled a little awkwardly.
Once they sat down in the living room, Kanna first talked to Tohru about leaving together. Tohru refused her, largely because of Kobayashi.
Then, when Tohru asked why Kanna had been together with Raize, Kanna hesitated, clearly embarrassed.
Only then did Raize explain why one human and one dragon had arrived together at Kobayashi's home.
"Kanna, you were actually exiled because of a prank, got lost, and ran into the Dimensional Gap, where you nearly lost your life!?"
Tohru stared sternly at Kanna who was kneeling with her head lowered, too afraid to meet her gaze. This was not something she could be proud of.
Tohru wasn't mocking her exile at all. What truly alarmed her was that Kanna had wandered into that dangerous rift and nearly died.
If Raize hadn't happened to be there, wouldn't her friend have quietly perished without anyone knowing?
"I didn't mean to wander around… I just missed Tohru-sama too much, so…"
Kanna looked exactly like a child being scolded by a parent, completely cowed by Tohru's authority, lowering her head as much as possible.
Tohru couldn't be too harsh on her friend. After all, she herself bore some responsibility. Kanna had come looking for her. If she hadn't left her own world, Kanna wouldn't have gotten lost in such a dangerous place.
Still, Tohru cast a subtle glance at Kobayashi and Raize. She didn't regret leaving her world at all. Compared to the chaotic life she had before, she was far happier here.
"Well, from now on, you're not allowed to run around anymore."
Tohru gently patted Kanna's lowered head. Kanna's gloomy mood instantly improved. Tohru then turned to Raize and thanked him sincerely.
"Thank you so much, Raize."
By now, Kobayashi had pieced everything together. Raize had once again encountered an injured dragon in danger. Since Kanna had come looking for Tohru, he brought her here.
Thinking about it that way, Kobayashi gave Raize a subtle look.
"That really is a lot like how I met Tohru."
Wasn't it the same? Tohru had stayed because she was injured and helped by Kobayashi and Raize. Now Kanna's situation was similar. He really did have a strange affinity with dragons.
Tohru naturally understood what Kobayashi meant. Thinking about it, Kanna's situation really was similar to her own. With a silly, happy smile on her face, the dragon maid said:
"Kobayashi and Raize really do have a special connection with us dragons."
"…You're not wrong."
Raize thought about how many dragons he had encountered recently and found it hard to refute.
Tohru, the Red Dragon Emperor, the White Dragon Emperor, Kanna—and surely more dragons would appear in the future.