"It's you...!"
After feeling the incoming cold wind being blocked and the surroundings no longer as cold, Yukinoshita Haruno immediately turned her head to look behind her, her expression changing.
Mrs. Yukinoshita also recognized the newcomer.
After all, how could Mrs. Yukinoshita not investigate the Demon who, according to Yukinoshita Haruno, took her youngest daughter as a Retainer?
And even before her, Yukinoshita Haruno had already investigated Leo, even compiling his information into a dossier and giving it to her mother to browse, which included a headshot of Leo.
"We meet again, Senior."
Leo, like someone who had just passed by, seemed oblivious to the earth-shattering events around him as he greeted Yukinoshita Haruno.
Not only Yukinoshita Haruno, but Mrs. Yukinoshita also received his greeting.
"You must be Yukino's mother, right? It's truly a pleasure to finally meet you, Madam."
Facing Mrs. Yukinoshita, whose aura was clearly stronger and who was an adult with a social status far exceeding that of a high school student, Leo showed no sign of nervousness, even acting extremely casually.
If it were before, encountering such a person, Mrs. Yukinoshita would have been somewhat surprised and taken aback, but knowing his true identity, she no longer found anything wrong with his casual demeanor in front of her.
Although he was indeed a young high school student, that premise only applied if he were an ordinary person.
The young man before her was a Demon; in front of him, she, a mere ordinary person, had no deterrent power whatsoever, right?
"...You must be Mr. Leo Erigid, then?"
Mrs. Yukinoshita took a deep breath, suppressing various complex emotions, then solemnly bowed to Leo.
"Nice to meet you. Although there's a lot I want to say to you, before that, please stop those two and make them stop quickly."
Neither she nor Yukinoshita Haruno could intervene in this dispute. Only Leo, Yukinoshita Yukino's nominal master and a Demon noble closely watched by the Church, had a way to stop them.
"Don't worry." Leo naturally saw the anxiety and worry in Mrs. Yukinoshita and Yukinoshita Haruno's hearts, and immediately smiled, saying, "Looking at the current situation, neither of them should be able to do anything to the other for now, so watching for a bit is fine."
To be honest, Leo was quite interested.
He had always wanted to test Yukinoshita Yukino's strength, but unfortunately, the previous Rogue Demon was too weak, unable to even force out Yukinoshita Yukino's god-slaying tool, thus failing to test her strength.
This made Leo consider finding a stronger opponent for Yukinoshita Yukino, but he hadn't had the chance to implement it yet.
Now, Sharon had decisively jumped out and targeted his Retainer. Having her test Yukinoshita Yukino's strength was not a bad choice.
Leo, who had been entangled with that woman for several years, knew better than anyone that this Exorcist, who was too beautiful to be a nun, possessed strength far beyond that of an ordinary Exorcist. Using her to test Yukinoshita Yukino's strength was the best possible choice.
So, Leo, while maintaining a Magic Circle, began to watch the battle with great interest.
"Is Yukino really okay?" Yukinoshita Haruno was not as confident as Leo. Her usual shrewdness seemed to have vanished at this moment, making her even more anxious than Mrs. Yukinoshita, saying, "The opponent is, after all, an Exorcist from the Church."
Yukinoshita Haruno did not know the hierarchy of supernatural powers, nor could she distinguish who was stronger or weaker. However, according to general principles, an Exorcist from the Church was a professional specifically for hunting Demons. Could Yukinoshita Yukino, as a Demon, really gain an advantage against such a professional Exorcist from the Church?
"Relax." Leo waved his hand at Yukinoshita Haruno, saying nonchalantly, "If Yukino were just an ordinary Demon, it would indeed be very dangerous, but she isn't."
A god-slaying tool is a power capable of disrupting balance. As long as one masters this power, challenging opponents across ranks is an easy feat.
Leaving aside other things, just based on Yukinoshita Yukino's performance at this very moment, Leo could confidently say that even a High-Class Devil would not dare to underestimate her and would have to avoid her sharp edge.
The sight of continuous icebergs crashing to the ground was truly awe-inspiring; how could an ordinary Demon possess such power, such destructive force?
Therefore, while Yukinoshita Yukino's overall strength is still hard to say, that astonishing freezing aura definitely possesses the power to threaten a High-Class Devil.
Under this astonishing power, Sharon could only temporarily avoid its sharpness, like surviving in a crevice. Her figure, which appeared too small compared to the continuously crashing icebergs, had completely erupted, constantly dodging the falling icebergs with astonishing speed and exceptional agility, making onlookers hold their breath in anticipation.
But even in such peril, Sharon's expression remained solemn from beginning to end, never losing her composure.
As human Exorcists, everyone, including Sharon, must understand one thing before battle.
That is, never compete with Demons in terms of strength.
Demons' physical abilities far exceed those of mortals, but this is not insurmountable. However, the demonic power that Demons possess is a formidable force that humans can hardly attain.
Lower-ranking Demons are relatively manageable, but generally, the magical attacks released by Mid-level Demons are already quite threatening, comparable to bombs or artillery shells. If it's a High-Class Devil, they can cause large-scale destruction with a mere flick of a hand, destroying a mountain peak is a very common occurrence, and if they go all out, instantly destroying an entire street in a large city is not impossible.
This is a power that humans absolutely cannot confront head-on, unless they possess god-slaying tools created by God or special supernatural abilities; otherwise, they must never go head-on against such power.
As an Exorcist capable of rivaling a High-Class Devil, Sharon had long mastered the skills of leveraging strengths while avoiding weaknesses, employing indirect tactics, and achieving victory with inferior forces.
So she was not anxious at all, maintaining her composure, constantly surviving in peril, and looking for opportunities to counterattack.
She was waiting, waiting for Yukinoshita Yukino to exhaust her strength.
A god-slaying tool is very powerful, but the stronger the power, the greater the consumption. Even if Yukinoshita Yukino possessed a decent amount of demonic power for a Mid-level Demon, how long could she maintain such unrestrained output at a High-Class Devil level?
If it were a battle-hardened Demon, they would absolutely not squander their power so unrestrainedly from the start. However, Yukinoshita Yukino was, after all, a newly reincarnated Demon who had just completed one month. Sharon had already seen her weakness of severe lack of combat experience, and thus had been waiting for the moment Yukinoshita Yukino would reveal a flaw.
"Boom!"
The heavens and earth still roared, and the power of ice raged across the ground, making everyone present feel as if they had been thrown into the polar regions.
Yukinoshita Yukino also noticed that Sharon was persistent and had not suffered any serious injuries, so she changed her strategy. Instead of condensing icebergs to smash down, she had the ice princess directly unleash a blizzard, sweeping across the icy landscape below, intending to give Sharon no escape.
Unfortunately, Sharon was not to be trifled with. She noticed Yukinoshita Yukino's intention and quickly changed her strategy as well, maintaining a distance from Yukinoshita Yukino while continuously shooting at her, using Light Bullets to force Yukinoshita Yukino to slow down her offensive, giving her a chance to dodge the area-of-effect attack.
The two thus reached a stalemate, entering a fierce war of attrition.
"Hah... Hah..."
After a long while, Yukinoshita Yukino finally began to gasp sharply for the first time, showing signs of exhaustion.
"Oh no!"
At this point, Yukinoshita Yukino also realized Sharon's strategy, revealing an expression of miscalculation.
She had forgotten that insufficient stamina had always been her weakness. Even when she was human and proficient in various sports, this weakness held her back, limiting her impressive sports achievements to short durations. Now that she had become a Demon, this weakness still persisted.
No, it should be said that, compared to the power of the god-slaying tool she possessed, her Mid-level Demon level demonic power naturally couldn't last long; insufficient stamina was a matter of course.
But it was precisely this obvious fact that gave Sharon an opportunity for a desperate counterattack.
"Now!"
As Yukinoshita Yukino's offensive could no longer be sustained, Sharon unhesitatingly flipped the Light Blades in her hands and plunged them into the ground.
"Buzz!"
On the ground, a Magic Circle formed of pure light suddenly appeared.
"What?!"
Yukinoshita Yukino's face changed.
The moment she saw that light Magic Circle, Yukinoshita Yukino understood. Sharon hadn't just been fleeing and doing nothing; quite the opposite, while fleeing, she had secretly set up a counterattack, carving an Exorcist spell into this icy landscape.
"God, Please Punish The Sinner—"
Sharon chanted the incantation to activate the Exorcist spell, causing dense light power to overflow from the Magic Circle.
"Boom!"
The next moment, a dazzling, brilliant light formed a colossal pillar of light, rising from the Magic Circle.
Yukinoshita Yukino flapped the wings on her back, wanting to avoid it, but the pillar of light had a wide coverage and spread very quickly; she simply didn't have time to escape.
Thus, the pillar of light shot towards the sky, and Yukinoshita Yukino's figure was swallowed by the dense power of light.
"...!"
Yukinoshita Yukino already felt the threat of death.
After a month, she finally experienced the feeling of death again.
Just as she instinctively wanted to close her eyes, a figure appeared in front of her.
"Boom!"
The roar of the pillar of light soaring into the sky still echoed, lingering endlessly.