"Huh?"
In the dark night, Leo, who had just emerged from the unfinished entertainment facility, hadn't even left when he seemed to sense something and lifted his gaze.
"What's wrong?"
Yukinoshita Yukino, who was hurrying to catch up from behind with her schoolbag, immediately asked in confusion when she saw Leo stop.
"Nothing," Leo said, staring in one direction, like a predator eyeing its prey, and smiled, "Just some troublesome guys have arrived."
Troublesome guys?
Yukinoshita Yukino was full of questions, but before she could ask, several figures sprinted over at an extremely fast speed from the direction Leo was looking.
They were clearly not ordinary people; ordinary people don't have such speed, nor can they move like these individuals, who, like ghosts, silently approached by stepping on the tops of walls and streetlights, as if flying over eaves and walking on walls.
"That is..."
Yukinoshita Yukino saw the full appearance of those people, and her expression changed.
After becoming a Demon, Yukinoshita Yukino naturally gained night vision, so even from a distance, she could clearly see the newcomers' appearances.
They were a group of clergy, some dressed as priests, others as nuns.
"People from the Church?"
Yukinoshita Yukino easily understood the origin of this group, and her heart tightened.
Leo, unlike Yukinoshita Yukino, only looked at the person in the lead.
It was a nun dressed in a very traditional manner.
She had long, beautiful golden hair that even the veil couldn't completely obscure in the dark night, her features were those of a standard Western beauty, and her figure was so good that it couldn't be hidden by the nun's habit that covered all her skin. Her pair of emerald eyes glowed in the dark night, stern and imposing.
The nun led several priests in, and upon seeing Leo and Yukinoshita Yukino, they abruptly stopped.
"Demons!"
As soon as the priests saw Leo and Yukinoshita Yukino, they immediately assumed an attacking stance.
However, the leading nun raised her hand to stop them.
"Don't move, you are not his match."
The nun's voice had a sweetness completely unsuited for a clergy member, giving everyone who heard it a slight shiver down their spine.
Leo watched her stop her companions and suddenly smiled.
"It really is you."
Leo's tone of voice didn't sound like he was meeting an old adversary, but rather a familiar acquaintance with a complicated history.
"Oh my, I didn't expect to see you in a place like this."
The nun also smiled sweetly, her smile, voice, and appearance all as sweet. She greeted Leo like someone meeting a very familiar acquaintance, but her eyes held an indescribable chill.
"You know her?"
Yukinoshita Yukino felt a bit disgusted by the nun's sweet appearance and frowned as she asked Leo.
Leo nodded noncommittally and spoke to Yukinoshita Yukino.
"Her name is Sharon Holygreil. She is one of the strongest Exorcists in the local Chiba Prefecture church, known as the Pure Sharon. After being transferred here from the Church's headquarters three years ago, she's been pestering me. She's a demon killer who appears gentle on the surface but is actually ruthless and unscrupulous."
Leo's words surprised Yukinoshita Yukino.
"The strongest Exorcist... and she's been pestering you for three whole years?"
From this single sentence, it was clear how formidable a person the opponent was.
After all, an Exorcist capable of pestering a High-Class Devil for three years could not possibly be a common nobody.
"Three years ago, I wasn't a High-Class Devil yet," Leo naturally understood what Yukinoshita Yukino was thinking and immediately explained, "Of course, at that time, I wasn't far from being a High-Class Devil either, so this guy does have some strength. You need to be careful."
Upon hearing this, before Yukinoshita Yukino could speak, Sharon spoke first.
"It's quite ironic coming from you," Sharon said with an unchanging smile, "How can an Exorcist who couldn't do anything to you for three whole years be worthy of the title 'strongest'?"
Saying that, Sharon also glanced at Yukinoshita Yukino.
"That must be the Retainer you took in a month ago, right? I haven't congratulated you on your promotion to High-Class Devil yet!"
The last time Sharon met Leo, he was not yet a High-Class Devil.
Therefore, this was Leo's first reunion with Sharon since becoming a High-Class Devil, but Sharon had clearly been keeping an eye on him, having thoroughly investigated all the changes he had undergone and the things he had done during this period.
"Doesn't that sound more like an insult coming from you?" Leo said to Sharon with a half-smile, "What? Can't deal with me, so you're going to target my Retainer instead?"
Yukinoshita Yukino's expression instantly tensed.
"How could I?" Sharon said with a beaming smile, "If I were to lay a hand on the young mistress of a prominent Chiba Prefecture family, even with a valid reason, things would become very troublesome afterwards. So, even if I encountered the second young lady of the Yukinoshita Family outside, I would pretend not to see her."
These words did not make Yukinoshita Yukino feel relieved; instead, she felt underestimated, and an annoyed expression appeared on her tense face.
"Do you think I'd believe your nonsense?" Leo scoffed, "I know how ruthless and unscrupulous you are when dealing with Demons. Cut the act, or you'll force me to send you to hell right here."
Sharon's smile instantly vanished.
The next moment, accompanied by a "boom" of an air blast, Sharon's figure suddenly disappeared, leaving a strong gust of wind in her wake.
"— — — — !"
Yukinoshita Yukino, standing beside Leo, suddenly looked up at the sky, her face drastically changing.
Sharon had, at some point, leaped high into the air, and raising her slender leg, she plummeted down from mid-air, striking with a kick.
"Bang!"
In an instant, as if a giant iron ball had smashed down from the sky, Sharon struck down with her heel, shattering the ground, sending flying debris and wild gusts of wind, creating an astonishing display of power.
Leo and Yukinoshita Yukino both leaped back the second before her strike, avoiding the heavy blow.
"You bastard...!"
Yukinoshita Yukino's temper immediately flared after she regained her footing. Just as she was about to explode, she found herself surrounded by a group of priests.
These priests all pulled out sword hilts without blades from their bodies, but soon, sharp Light Blades extended from these hilts, causing an alarm to blare in Yukinoshita Yukino's mind.
"Light is poison" — Yukinoshita Yukino's first thought was Leo's past warning.
These priests before her were undoubtedly Exorcists of the Church, blessed by God and using Light Weapons formed from the light power of angels to eliminate Demons.
At this moment, the priests held Light Swords used for exorcism.
The Demon's instinct told Yukinoshita Yukino that if she were touched by that, the damage would definitely be very high; perhaps the injury she sustained when the Fallen Angel Varden pierced her abdomen last time wouldn't even be more severe than this.
"...Move aside, I don't want to clash with you."
Yukinoshita Yukino said this tentatively.
However, the priests attacked without a word, swinging their Light Swords mercilessly at Yukinoshita Yukino.
"Tch...!"
Yukinoshita Yukino had no choice but to click her tongue while releasing her magic power, generating cold air to counterattack.
And while Yukinoshita Yukino was entangled with a group of priests, Leo was also entangled with Sharon.
The beautiful foreign nun wielded a dagger-sized Light Sword in each hand, her figure rushing towards Leo like a gust of wind, launching a continuous barrage of attacks at him.
"Swish—swish—swish—swish—swish—"
Accompanied by the continuous sound of air being cut, the Light Swords repeatedly sliced through the air, drawing long streaks of light and striking at Leo's body.
Those sharp slashes were far more sophisticated, faster, and more dangerous than the crude charges of the Rogue Demon earlier.
If it were Yukinoshita Yukino, she might not have been able to handle such an offensive in a panic and could have suffered a great loss.
But Leo had been dealing with Sharon for three years, so he naturally wouldn't be unable to handle her attacks.
"Still the same merciless attacks. One second she's smiling and talking to someone, the next she can silently take a life. Truly worthy of being a renowned demon killer."
Leo held an unconscious girl in his arms, yet his movements were not slow at all. He moved like a butterfly flitting through flowers, constantly flashing between the crisscrossing light trails, evading Sharon's attacks one by one.
"Didn't you say I was ruthless and unscrupulous? Then why should I be polite?"
Sharon didn't seem to expect to easily take down Leo. While responding, she suddenly threw the Light Swords in her hands, sending them flying towards Leo's face.
Leo had just turned his head to dodge the two oncoming light blades when he saw Sharon pull out a pistol from under her nun's habit and fire a burst at his chest.
Immediately, Light Bullets shot out from the muzzle, heading towards Leo.
The gun was also a type of Light Weapon; it wasn't loaded with ordinary bullets but with Light Bullets, so there was no gun sound, making it impossible to guard against.
As Leo made a dodging move, a large volley of Light Bullets came at him. The bullets were fast and rapid, leaving no time for a second dodge.
"Buzz!"
Immediately, Leo released his magic power, forming a barrier of magic power.
"Bang bang bang bang bang—"
The Light Bullets instantly struck the magic power barrier, creating sounds and causing light particles to scatter like sparks.
Seeing this, Sharon narrowed her eyes. Just as she was about to rush at Leo again, several Magic Circles suddenly appeared around her.
"Boom!"
Amazing shockwaves burst from within the Magic Circles, hitting Sharon's position and causing a roar.
You can visit my Patreon to read more chapters of the book.
patreon.com/02Fanworks