"Bakudō #63 — Chain Bind!"
Like living serpents, glowing chains slithered through the open space of the room, weaving through the air before shooting toward a figure in the middle of the battle.
This ti, however, the Chain Bind was not cast by Yasaka—
It was Ren Kuroda who had just broken free.
That's right. Under the overwhelming power of a certain pervert's imagination, despite the clear gap in strength, Issei had successfully used Dress Break to shatter Yasaka's restraints.
The mont he was freed, Ren didn't hesitate. He reached into the void with one hand and pulled out the Endless Sake Gourd, tipping it back and pouring its contents straight down his throat.
The rich, fragrant liquor burned pleasantly as it went down.
His skill—Drinker of Legends—roared to life at full force, and the magic within his body surged like parched earth finally blessed with rain.
With his energy recovering, Ren didn't even wait for Issei to free his remaining limbs. He flexed his strength and snapped the remaining chains binding his other arm and legs with ease.
Then, looking at Yasaka—who was still venting her fury on Rias and the others—his expression darkened.
He raised his hand.
And returned the favor.
Yasaka, who hadn't expected Ren to escape so quickly, was instantly caught off guard.
In the next mont, chains wrapped tightly around her body, binding her completely and hoisting her into the air.
Her curvaceous figure, now restrained, was forced into an undeniably compromising position.
With Ren's current level of recovered power, Yasaka was more than capable of breaking free.
But she didn't.
Because she could feel it—
Her "dear elder brother" was genuinely angry this ti.
If she had managed to "seal the deal" earlier, then even if Ren had been upset afterward, she would have considered it worth it.
But now?
Things were only halfway there. Ren was already angry. If she struggled further, it would only make things worse.
So Yasaka chose to give up resisting.
"…It's all that damn Rias's fault," she muttered inwardly, glaring down with blazing fury. "If she hadn't ruined everything, I wouldn't have ended up like this—losing everything for nothing!"
Dangling in midair in such an undignified posture, Yasaka shot Rias a venomous look, silently cursing her for ddling.
"Until I've completely cooled off," Ren said coldly, "you're staying right there and reflecting on your actions."
"…Understood, dear brother."
Yasaka accepted the punishnt without the slightest complaint. If anything, the mildness of it caught her off guard.
Ren was angry—but what could he really do? Kill her?
Back when the ga space had been on the verge of collapse, Yasaka and the nekomata had knowingly risked their lives to stay behind and search for him.
No matter the reason, that act had genuinely moved him.
Willing to risk one's life for another person… that wasn't sothing just anyone could do.
Even if Yasaka's intentions toward him were questionable, they had never been about harming him.
And because of that, Ren found himself… unable to deal with her properly.
"Thank you for today, Rias. And you too, Sona," Ren said after briefly explaining what had happened.
"If you hadn't shown up in ti, Yasaka really would've done sothing reckless."
Hearing his explanation, both Rias and Sona looked visibly surprised.
They had always assud Ren and Yasaka were truly siblings.
At the sa ti, Rias finally understood why Yasaka had always treated her with inexplicable hostility—
She had been seen as a potential threat all along.
As for Issei…
At this point, he didn't even know what to say anymore.
All he felt was envy.
Why was the gap between people so huge?
He couldn't even get close to girls no matter how hard he tried, while Ren had soone as stunning as Yasaka practically throwing herself at him—and he was rejecting her?!
"Sensei… your room's pretty much uninhabitable now," Rias said, glancing at the destruction around them. "Between the fight and Yasaka… well, it's not exactly livable anymore."
"Our Occult Research Club room is right next door. If you don't mind, you can stay there for a while."
She hesitated slightly before continuing.
"Also… about Riser… I wanted to apologize. I really didn't know my father and brother would make that kind of decision on their own."
At the ntion of Riser, Ren couldn't help but press a hand to his forehead.
At the end of the day, Yasaka's extre behavior had largely been triggered by this whole situation involving Rias and Riser.
Ren had originally intended to refuse Rias and explain everything directly to Sirzechs.
But the duel between him and Riser had already stirred up a storm across the Underworld. If he backed out now, it would undoubtedly affect Rias.
And if he withdrew, Riser would win by default—aning Rias would still end up engaged to him.
In other words, nothing would change.
Rias had just helped him escape Yasaka's clutches.
Was it really right for him to stand by and do nothing now?
"…About Riser," Ren said at last, "I'll do what I can to help you."
In the end, he chose to step in.
At worst, after defeating Riser, he could explain the situation to Rias's father and Sirzechs.
Given the strength he had demonstrated so far, he wasn't too worried about the Gremory family turning hostile outright—
Though damaging their relationship was probably inevitable.
A few days after the peace conference between the three Biblical factions concluded, Ren received notice from Rias—
His duel with Riser would take place in the Underworld.
During those days, Ren and Kuroka had been staying with Rias.
As for Yasaka… she was still hanging at ho, serving her punishnt.
For powerful yokai, going days—or even months—without food wasn't an issue. And since the duration of Ren's chains was limited, she would naturally be freed once the effect wore off.
Originally, the duel with Riser, third son of the Phenex family, had been scheduled for a later date.
However, through certain channels, the Phenex family learned that Ren had been injured.
So they requested the Gremory family to move the duel forward.
The details of Ren's clash with Ophis were known only to a handful of high-ranking figures in the Underworld.
All the Phenex family knew was that during the conference, Ren had fought against the strongest White Dragon Emperor—and had suffered injuries as a result.
Even though he knew it was sowhat underhanded, Riser still pulled strings to advance the match, hoping to improve his chances.
Truth be told, Riser had originally been quite intimidated by the fight.
According to his information, Ren was a being on par with a "Dragon King"—essentially equal to a Devil King, far beyond even ultimate-class devils.
But after learning that Ren was injured—and that his current magic power was less than ten percent of its peak—
Riser's confidence ca roaring back.
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