After testing his own strength, Leo left the basement and returned straight to his room.
"Forbidden Hand... huh?"
Lying on the bed, Leo began to seriously contemplate the matter of Forbidden Hand.
The conditions for achieving Forbidden Hand had always been very clear; they were even documented in the books in Leo's study.
Since Sacred Gears are powered by intent, when the intent or wish of the Sacred Gear Holder undergoes a drastic transformation, becoming powerful enough to defy the world's pervasive flow, the Sacred Gear will attain the realm of Forbidden Hand.
Sacred Gear Holders who can fully utilize their Sacred Gear already possess the foundation for achieving Forbidden Hand. As long as their spirit undergoes a major change due to certain events, the various emotions generated by this drastic change —such as happiness, sorrow, joy, grief, and fear —will transform into power, causing the Sacred Gear to change into something else according to the user's consciousness, thereby unleashing even greater strength.
This is Forbidden Hand, a sealed power that disrupts the balance of the world, essentially the same concept as the Forbidden Hand in that popular manga next door.
"The conditions are quite clear, but how should I achieve it?"
An intent powerful enough to defy the world's pervasive flow?
How should he generate such an intent?
"Relying solely on training would likely be difficult. In the original work, few Sacred Gear Holders reached the realm of Forbidden Hand purely through diligent effort."
Because that is merely training; no matter how hard one tries, it is difficult to cause a drastic change in one's spirit. Instead, it is easier to achieve during desperate life-and-death battles, especially for those who possess unwavering obsession and wishes. The more they face a life-or-death crisis, the more powerful their will explodes, and at that moment, they might reach the realm of Forbidden Hand.
"Furthermore, even if I can achieve Forbidden Hand, I need to consider what kind of Forbidden Hand I should achieve."
Every Sacred Gear has a Forbidden Hand, just as every Zanpakutō can achieve Forbidden Hand; the only difference lies in whether the wielder can master it.
However, the Forbidden Hand of a Sacred Gear is not fixed; or rather, it can be altered. Therefore, besides the normal Forbidden Hand transformation, there is also a variant form of Forbidden Hand, known as Subspecies Forbidden Hand.
According to the original work, the Forbidden Hand transformation of a Sacred Gear can generally be divided into three types.
First, the Ascension Aspect, which enhances the Sacred Gear's original abilities.
Second, the Abyss Aspect, which manifests when one pursues the ideal form of oneself and the Sacred Gear to the point of madness, allowing the self and the Sacred Gear to merge.
Third, the Exception Aspect, which cannot be categorized into the first two, but is triggered by mutation due to special circumstances.
Most Forbidden Hand fall into the first category, the second is rarer, and the third is the least common.
The White Dragon Emperor in the original work achieved the second type of Forbidden Hand, while the Red Dragon Emperor leaned more towards the third type. It must be said that he truly is the protagonist of the original work; regardless of his strength, he is certainly the most unique one.
"Then what about the Forbidden Hand of 'Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison'?"
Leo began recalling the original plot.
In the original work, "Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison" was the Sacred Gear held by the Church's strongest Exorcist, Dulio Gesualdo. After he activated Forbidden Hand, he could release countless soap bubbles to envelop his opponents, and then release various natural forces within the bubbles, such as fierce fire whirlwinds, gale-force winds strong enough to tear flesh, freezing cold air that could stop everything, and powerful lightning akin to divine wrath. It was a formidable ability that could subject multiple targets to genuine divine punishment and even alter the weather of an entire country.
However, this was not the original Forbidden Hand of "Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison," but a Subspecies Forbidden Hand developed by Dulio Gesualdo, named [Flagello di Colori del Arcoble (The Holy Rainbow Messenger's Inevitable Punishment), Speranza di Briscola (The Star of the End)].
"The ability of this Forbidden Hand feels somewhat similar to Senior's Sacred Gear ability..."
Leo scratched his head.
Kasumigaoka Utaha's Sacred Gear was to deploy a Barrier capable of various attacks, which indeed resembled this Forbidden Hand ability of enveloping enemies in soap bubbles to receive divine punishment attacks.
Of course, the strength of the two was definitely not on the same level. Even if Kasumigaoka Utaha achieved Forbidden Hand, she might not be able to unleash divine-punishment-level powerful attacks within her Barrier, let alone change the weather of an entire country.
A god-slaying tool is a god-slaying tool after all; it has a clear gap compared to ordinary Sacred Gears, and its power far surpasses the latter. Moreover, "Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison" is the second-ranked High-Tier god-slaying tool, having a world of difference even compared to ordinary god-slaying tools, let alone when compared to a regular Sacred Gear.
However, it is not absolute. Sacred Gears are, after all, powers that continuously evolve. What if one day Kasumigaoka Utaha managed to evolve her Sacred Gear to the level of a god-slaying tool using her own abilities?
This is not an impossible feat.
It should be known that originally, there were not thirteen god-slaying tools.
Some god-slaying tools did not manifest initially and remained unknown, while others evolved later, thereby gaining the power to destroy Gods and Demon Lords.
In the future, the world's major factions will observe five new god-slaying tools manifesting. At that time, the number of god-slaying tools will increase from thirteen to eighteen, and there will even be artificial god-slaying tools appearing, nearly destroying the balance among the various forces.
But that is a matter for the future, and not very relevant to Leo.
Even if more god-slaying tools and artificial god-slaying tools appear in the future, his "Blazing Heaven Thunder Prison" will still securely hold the position of the second strongest in the world, so he is not worried at all.
For now, figuring out how to reach Forbidden Hand is the more important task.
"This is truly difficult..."
Leo realized that reaching the realm of Forbidden Hand was genuinely not an easy thing for him.
Because he had neither a powerful obsession nor an ideal or wish he desperately wanted to achieve. Although he was constantly pursuing power in preparation for the chaos that would inevitably arrive in the future, he wasn't particularly fanatical. He even entertained the thought that if he lacked the ability to intervene in those major events later, he would simply settle down, live a comfortable and carefree life in Chiba, and be done with it.
This indifferent attitude was undoubtedly highly undesirable for the Forbidden Hand of a Sacred Gear, which requires a powerful spirit or intent as its driving force to be achieved.
Looking through the original work, not a single Sacred Gear Holder who reached the realm of Forbidden Hand was like this. Even those who seemed unreliable or frivolous definitely held some kind of obsession or wish in their hearts, which made it possible for them to reach the realm of Forbidden Hand.
In summary, reaching the realm of Forbidden Hand might turn out to be an unexpectedly difficult task for Leo.
"...I need to figure out a solution for myself."
...The next day, in the manor's dining room, everyone was gathered for breakfast.
Leo sat at the head of the long dining table, with a hearty breakfast placed before him. Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuuki Asuna sat on his left, while Kasumigaoka Utaha sat alone behind them.
Perhaps due to their upbringing, everyone generally adhered to the rule of silence while eating and sleeping. Including Leo, their table manners were quite elegant, fully demonstrating proper dining etiquette.
Only Kasumigaoka Utaha, sitting there, barely ate anything. Instead, she yawned repeatedly, looking extremely sleepy.
"Damn it, why am I so sleepy and weak?" Kasumigaoka Utaha flopped onto the table without any regard for her image, her shapely figure pressing against the surface, flattening slightly. She said weakly, "Last night, no matter how much I exerted myself, I didn't feel tired and was full of energy. Why did I turn into this as soon as morning came?"
This feeling was like night and day compared to last night, making Kasumigaoka Utaha very uncomfortable.
"Didn't I tell you? Demons are creatures that are active at night!" Leo glanced at Kasumigaoka Utaha, yawned himself, and said, "This isn't something you can't adapt to. Hang in there for a while, and it will get much better once you adjust."
"Here you go, Senior." Yuuki Asuna poured a cup of hot tea for Kasumigaoka Utaha and said, "Have some tea to wake up."
Kasumigaoka Utaha politely thanked her, picked up the black tea, and sipped it slowly, but she remained listless.
"Why do you also look like you haven't had enough sleep?" Yukinoshita Yukino noticed Leo's abnormality and asked with a frown, "I recall you didn't stay in the basement for too long last night, did you?"
"Yes, I didn't exert myself much last night and returned to my room early." Leo rubbed his eyes and said sluggishly, "But I was thinking about things too seriously, and ended up sleeping very late instead."
"You must remember to rest, Mr. Leo." Yuuki Asuna offered thoughtful advice while asking somewhat confusedly, "What were you thinking about that made you so focused?"
"How should I put it?" Leo pondered for a moment and replied, "I was thinking about how someone like me can cause a profound change in his state of mind."
Yukinoshita Yukino, Yuuki Asuna, and Kasumigaoka Utaha all paused in unison.
"What kind of question is that?" Yukinoshita Yukino said expressionlessly, "Are you conducting a life study?"
"Why do you need to cause a profound change in your state of mind?" Kasumigaoka Utaha tilted her head and asked, "Is the Demon Lord dissatisfied with his current situation?"
"Not exactly, I guess?" Seeing that they didn't understand, Leo decided not to explain too clearly and responded casually, "I just feel it's necessary to do so, you will understand later."
Since they are all Sacred Gear Holders, both Yukinoshita Yukino and Kasumigaoka Utaha will inevitably encounter this hurdle and have to overcome it in the future.
"Um... should we ask Miss Musashi for advice?"
Yuuki Asuna said, hesitating slightly.
Miyamoto Musashi was different from the others; she didn't have to attend school during the day, so she followed the lifestyle pattern of a Demon, which meant sleeping during the day and being active at night. She was currently still sound asleep in her room and likely wouldn't appear until evening.
"Asking for advice, huh..."
Leo didn't deny Yuuki Asuna's suggestion, tapping his finger on the tabletop.
"Perhaps, I really should try to find someone to ask for advice?"
Leo thought of a certain individual who had conducted extremely deep research on Sacred Gears.
Should he find a way to make contact with that person?
He had a feeling it might be a bit dangerous...