This entertainment facility hadn't been established for long, but due to a lack of follow-up funding, its completion date was continuously delayed, leaving the interior filled with various trash and debris, and even a foul odor permeating the air, making people want to keep their distance.
However, as they walked deeper, both Leo and Yukinoshita Yukino's expressions of disgust changed.
This was because the foul odor in the air gradually transformed into a pungent, bloody smell as the two ventured further.
The scent of a High-Class Devil told them it was the smell of blood, and a very strong one at that.
Yukinoshita Yukino's face had already turned pale, even slowly whitening.
She saw large patches of crimson bloodstains that had appeared on the ground at some point, a truly shocking sight.
Even more horrifying were the sections of bone and tattered clothes scattered atop these bloodstains.
Anyone who wasn't foolish could easily infer what this scene implied.
"It seems we were still too late."
Leo spoke these words indifferently, his tone very cold, indicating how terrible his mood was.
Just by looking at the vast bloodstains, bones, and clothes on the ground, it was clear that the Rogue Demon had feasted many times during this period.
"That monster deserves to die."
Yukinoshita Yukino's face was pale, yet she still gritted her teeth and uttered these words.
She felt that, compared to herself and Leo, that monster was the true devil, the evil and ugly being recognized by the general public.
"Judging by the tattered state of these clothes, those eaten by that scoundrel were likely homeless vagrants." Leo circled the area, surprisingly calmly, saying, "No wonder he wasn't discovered until now. If his victims hadn't been these vagrants, who disappear without anyone noticing or caring, then he would have been discovered by the Underworld long ago."
"Didn't he also say he captured a girl?" Yukinoshita Yukino remembered this, and quickly asked, "Where is that girl?"
Leo stopped, no longer moving forward.
Yukinoshita Yukino stopped with him, and then she saw the most heartbreaking scene.
In the deepest part of this hellish landscape, a young girl lay quietly.
The girl was very beautiful, with a graceful figure and waist-length chestnut hair. Indeed, as the Rogue Demon had said, her beauty was in no way inferior to Yukinoshita Yukino's.
Unfortunately, she was also lying in a pool of blood, and while most of her body was intact, her abdomen was severely mangled, as if gnawed by a wild beast.
Her breathing had ceased.
At such a young and vibrant age, she had quietly withered away in this neglected corner.
"Crack, crack, crack—"
Yukinoshita Yukino couldn't suppress her emotions; frozen air, like a blizzard, swirled around her, causing the ground beneath her feet to freeze.
In contrast, Leo's originally ice-cold face suddenly showed a hint of surprise, then became peculiar.
He suddenly extended his hand, and a Magic Circle unfolded in his palm.
From the Magic Circle, a crimson devil chess piece flew out, landing in Leo's palm.
"A devil chess piece?" Yukinoshita Yukino was drawn to the scene, first startled, then her eyes widened, and she reflexively said, "It's glowing!"
Yes.
The devil chess piece in Leo's palm was glowing, and the light was very intense.
As Leo's Retainer, Yukinoshita Yukino knew very well what this phenomenon represented.
"Although we arrived late, this girl seems destined not to die."
Leo murmured, then stepped forward, approached the girl, and knelt down.
Then, Leo placed the devil chess piece on the girl's chest, chanted a spell, causing the glowing piece to shatter and transform into dense light particles, which merged into the girl's body.
The next second, the power of the devil chess piece began to work, transforming the girl's body while making the blood beneath her flow back into her body, and the gruesome wounds on her abdomen healed at a visible speed.
The girl's breathing also resumed, her heartbeat restarting, perfectly synchronizing with Leo's suddenly strong and powerful heartbeat.
Just as a month ago when he took Yukinoshita Yukino as his Retainer, Leo's "Familiarization" ability was triggered.
"Ability · Familiarization, currently active…"
"Received basic feedback — Magic Power (medium amount)."
"Received advanced feedback — Sacred Gear (proficient)."
In an instant, the Magic Power within Leo surged again, just as it had a month prior.
Although the increase wasn't as significant as with Yukinoshita Yukino, who possessed a god-slaying tool, it wasn't far off. Leo's Magic Power, which was already nearing the upper echelons of High-Class Devil, suddenly climbed to one of the top spots within the same rank, almost touching the barrier of its limit.
At the same time, Leo also felt his spirit and even his soul being touched; his own will seemed to suddenly strengthen significantly, allowing him to clearly feel that his proficiency in using the Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison within him had greatly increased.
Sacred Gear feeds on the wielder's will and thoughts; as long as the will and thoughts grow stronger, the Sacred Gear will also grow stronger, and even become much easier to use.
Under the feedback of the "Familiarization" ability, Leo gained proficient Sacred Gear usage, and the way to achieve this effect was to strengthen the will of him, the Sacred Gear Holder.
In such a situation, if the previous Leo was merely a novice Sacred Gear Holder, his current proficiency and familiarity with Sacred Gear were equivalent to an old hand who had meticulously refined his skills for several, even ten or more, years.
"Another significant leap in strength."
Leo's mood, which had been somewhat poor upon arriving here, finally began to improve.
At the same time, this activation of the "Familiarization" ability also made him realize more things.
The feedback from the "Familiarization" ability is determined by the potential and strength of the Retainer Leo recruits. Combining the previous feedback and this current feedback, if there are no surprises, the intensity of the feedback can roughly be divided into three levels.
The first level is recruiting Retainers with low potential, such as those under Sona Sitri, who come from ordinary backgrounds and were originally normal humans. These Retainers would only provide Leo with the lowest level of feedback, likely only a single basic feedback, and if the feedback object is Magic Power, it might only be a small amount.
The second level is recruiting Retainers with medium potential, such as humans possessing Sacred Gear, or beings with special abilities or special bloodlines. These Retainers can already provide Leo with sufficiently satisfactory feedback, usually including both basic feedback and advanced feedback, and if the feedback object is Magic Power, it will be a medium amount.
The third level is recruiting Retainers with high potential, such as Yukinoshita Yukino, who possesses a god-slaying tool. Their potential and talent are enough to rank among the top in the entire world. These Retainers will bring a total of three types of feedback: basic feedback, advanced feedback, and extra feedback. If the feedback object is Magic Power, it will be a large amount, enough to significantly boost Leo's strength.
This girl in front of him should be a second-level Retainer; Leo could already sense the Sacred Gear fluctuations within her body.
Of course, this is just a distinction between broad levels; there should also be clear differences within the same level.
Just like this girl in front of him, although Leo only received two feedbacks after taking her as a Retainer, and the Magic Power feedback was only a medium amount, in Leo's perception, the Magic Power he gained this time was not too far off from Yukinoshita Yukino's, likely just a little short of reaching a large amount.
Coupled with the considerable advanced feedback, which elevated Leo's control over the Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison by several ranks, Leo felt that this Retainer should also be close to touching the edge of high potential. The only difference between her and Yukinoshita Yukino might just be in the Sacred Gear's grade.
Yukinoshita Yukino's Sacred Gear is a god-slaying tool; this girl's Sacred Gear should not be one.
But this is also normal; there are only thirteen god-slaying tools in total, and each one is unique, with no second one existing. Once one appears, that person will immediately be targeted by various major forces. Leo was already lucky enough to encounter one Yukinoshita Yukino; how could he possibly encounter a second one on a casual mission?
Leo had never expected all his Retainers to be as high-quality as Yukinoshita Yukino; that was completely unrealistic. So, seeing the devil chess piece's reaction being so strong, not much weaker than Yukinoshita Yukino's, he had no hesitation and decided to take in this girl.
"Is she… alright?"
Yukinoshita Yukino finally approached, asking softly.
"Of course." Leo looked up at Yukinoshita Yukino and smiled, "Congratulations, you're about to have another companion."
"Shouldn't it be congratulations to you?" Yukinoshita Yukino saw Leo smile, and her heavy mood lightened considerably. She crossed her arms and hummed lightly, "You've taken in another beautiful Retainer; you must be very proud, right?"
"A little bit." Leo grinned, unabashedly saying, "Who told you I'm a High-Class Devil loyal to my own desires."
With that, Leo picked up the girl.
"Let's go, take her back to the manor first."
Leo walked straight towards the outside.
Yukinoshita Yukino lifted her foot, about to follow, but then noticed a school bag lying where the girl had just been.
"Is that her stuff?"
Yukinoshita Yukino remembered the girl's attire; it seemed to be the uniform of a prestigious school.
She must have been attacked on her way home from school, right?
Thinking this, Yukinoshita Yukino picked up the girl's school bag and saw the name of her future companion on the nametag attached to it.
"Yuuki Asuna…"
Yukinoshita Yukino froze.
She seemed to have heard that name somewhere… "The Yuuki Family's young lady…"
Yukinoshita Yukino remembered something and frowned.
A moment later, she mumbled.
"Another young lady, that guy is really lucky…"
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