The once tense and oppressive atmosphere in the forest near the street had undergone a subtle transformation. An indescribable silence now permeated the area.
Everyone stood frozen in place, eyes widened in shock at the scene that had just unfolded before them. They remained speechless, unable to react for a long moment.
Even Rias, who had been struggling just moments ago, seemed to have lost all her strength. The force of her resistance gradually weakened until, at last, her entire body gave out, and she collapsed to the ground.
Kaiser, seeing this, released his grip without hesitation, letting Rias slump onto the ground.
Akeno and the others finally snapped back to reality, their voices ringing with concern as they rushed toward Rias.
"Ah, I got carried away."
Kaiser, completely unfazed, uttered this utterly inappropriate remark, as if he had just realized his own impulsiveness.
"You... you bastard...!"
The imposing and dignified expression Rias usually carried crumbled in an instant. Her face, now filled with a mix of emotions, showed hints of embarrassment, anger, and something else—her eyes even welled up with unshed tears.
"VANISH INTO OBLIVION!"
Her crimson hair swayed violently as she shouted in fury, and her demonic power surged higher than ever before.
A massive explosion of red light erupted, illuminating the entire forest.
The sheer force of the detonation was terrifying. In an instant, it spread outward like a tidal wave of destruction, swallowing everything in its path.
There was no dust, no scattering debris—nothing remained. The blast obliterated everything it touched, reducing all matter to light particles that dissipated into nothingness.
And it was still expanding.
Akeno’s voice carried a rare tone of alarm.
If this continued, the blast wouldn’t just consume the surrounding area—it would reach the nearby streets. If that happened, human casualties would be inevitable, and the consequences would be disastrous.
Kiba and Koneko, realizing the severity of the situation, both wore expressions of shock.
"Damn you, Rias Gremory!"
Meanwhile, Raynare wasn’t thinking about the devastation itself—she was worried about whether she would get caught up in it.
If she was swallowed by the infamous Power of Destruction, there would be no saving her. She would be completely erased from existence.
That thought alone made Raynare panic. She was already prepared to flee—
A deep hum resonated through the air, as a streak of black cut through the crimson explosion.
The hum grew louder, and the streak of black expanded, pushing outward from within the blast.
Upon closer inspection, the dark streak revealed itself to be a massive energy blade.
The oppressive heat condensed into pure energy, forming an enormous pitch-black sword that cleaved through the explosion of destruction.
The dark blade cut straight through the wave of devastation, slicing it in half.
The explosion, which had been surging outward, suddenly froze in place. Then, as if its source had been severed, it began to fade away piece by piece.
In mere moments, the massive burst of destructive energy vanished completely. Only a deep, bottomless crater remained, silently marking the intensity of what had just occurred.
Standing within that crater were two figures—Kaiser, wielding the rapidly shrinking Ser-Veresta, and Rias, who bit her lip in anger, glaring at him with undisguised fury.
Akeno, Kiba, and Koneko immediately leaped down into the crater, rushing to Rias’ side.
Raynare, on the other hand, remained at the crater’s edge, looking down at the scene below.
A sudden thought crossed her mind.
...Could I use this chance to escape?
The idea was tempting.
She had no reason to stick around any longer. If she ran now, she might just get away.
But just as Raynare started to take a cautious step back, a chilling sensation ran down her spine.
From within the crater, Kaiser’s gaze flicked toward her—just a brief, seemingly indifferent glance.
Raynare froze in place, a cold sweat running down her back.
She no longer dared to move.
Kaiser shifted his gaze away from her and back to Rias, who was still being supported by her peerage but continued to glare at him furiously.
He gave a small, amused smirk before dismissing Ser-Veresta.
"Go back and train properly," Kaiser said casually. "At the very least, try not to leave yourself so wide open next time."
With that, he vanished from the crater in a flash, reappearing beside Raynare at the edge.
Raynare flinched instinctively, her body shrinking back.
She suddenly felt relieved that she hadn’t attempted to flee.
With Kaiser’s speed, he could have caught her in an instant.
Rias called out, seemingly wanting to say something.
But Kaiser didn’t give her the chance.
He grabbed Raynare by the shoulder, leaped into the air, and disappeared into the forest, vanishing from sight.
If it weren’t for her noble upbringing, she would have already started cursing him out loud.
"A-Are you alright, President?"
"...Do you need some water... to rinse your mouth?"
Kiba and Koneko cautiously voiced their concerns, their expressions somewhat uneasy.
"Ara ara, I didn’t expect things to turn out ."
Akeno, having recovered her usual demeanor, rested a hand on her cheek and chuckled. Whether it was amusement or mild schadenfreude, it was difficult to tell.
"What the hell is with that guy?! Who just starts kissing someone in the middle of a fight?!"
Rias, still furious, shouted in frustration.
Her outburst shattered her usual image, leaving even her peerage stunned into silence.
Akeno and the others exchanged glances, unsure of how to console Rias. In the end, they could only sigh and let her vent.
Meanwhile, away from the outskirts of town, Kaiser and Raynare were engaged in a conversation.
"...Do you like Rias Gremory?"
Raynare couldn’t suppress her curiosity and blurted out the question.
"She’s alright, I guess." Kaiser walked ahead of her, appearing as if nothing had happened. His demeanor remained as carefree as ever. "At the very least, I don’t dislike her."
"Aren’t you someone from the Church?" Raynare sneered. "Doesn’t the Church despise Devils the most? How come you ended up doing that to one?"
Kaiser didn’t respond immediately.
Instead, he found himself asking the same question in his mind.
Why had he done that?
It wasn’t as if he was some kind of saint, devoid of desire.
Like any normal man, he had urges. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have secretly found himself drawn to Toudou Kirin’s unfairly attractive figure before. He had lost count of how many times he had cursed himself internally for it.
If Kirin weren’t so young, he might have even made a mistake—succumbing to temptation with someone more than a decade younger than himself.
So no, he wasn’t some ascetic monk.
But he had always been someone with restraint.
Back when he was still a student...
While others in school were dating, experiencing youthful romance, he had also felt the stirrings of attraction and impulse—but he had always forced himself to hold back.
It wasn’t that he never had the chance to fall in love. He had liked girls before.
But he had been well aware that, given his circumstances, romance was a luxury he couldn’t afford.
Modern relationships were practical. Every romantic gesture cost money. Every date required money. Marriage? That was even more unattainable.
Because of his upbringing, Kaiser had matured early. He had always known these harsh realities, so he distanced himself from such trivial pursuits, focusing instead on securing his own future—on surviving in society independently.
But in the end, that was just resignation to reality.
It was a choice born of necessity, not desire.
If given the option, of course, he would have wanted to experience youthful love. He would have wanted to date. And yes, he certainly would have wanted to engage in all sorts of unspeakable activities with beautiful women.
And now, as these thoughts surfaced, he began to understand.
Perhaps... he was finally shedding the weight of his past self.
After all, he was no longer the person he used to be.
Ever since he became the Librarian of the Fantasy Library, his future had been set—he would no longer return to that world.
Supernatural strength, abilities that defied the mundane.
He no longer had to be bound by reality, nor did he need to restrain himself like before.
Ultimately, he was already living in a fantasy world.
There was no point in clinging to outdated notions of reality and responsibility.
The fact that he existed here at all was, in itself, the greatest defiance of reality.
With the shackles of his past broken, he was free to do as he pleased.
That was why, in the heat of battle, he had felt exhilarated.
That was why, when he realized Dirk had been plotting against him, he had abandoned his former law-abiding self without hesitation. He had stolen Gravisheath, launched a surprise attack under the cover of night, and taken his revenge.
Even though he had never taken a life before, he had punched a flesh-eating Stray Devil into oblivion without a second thought.
Against that deranged, white-haired exorcist, he had executed him without mercy.
These were all things his past self would never have done—things a normal person wouldn’t have been able to do without hesitation.
And yet, he had done them all.
It was proof that he was no longer the law-abiding, self-restrained individual he once was.
To put it nicely, he was simply becoming his true self.
To put it bluntly, he was losing control—gradually becoming more reckless, more unrestrained, more untamed.
Like just now—when Rias’ face had been so close, and she had looked so beautiful.
Anyone would have felt a surge of desire.
In the past, Kaiser would have simply indulged in a harmless fantasy and moved on.
Was that a good thing?
But there was one thing he was certain of.
He was enjoying himself.
Maybe that was enough.