There was no doubt—the Knights of the Sinful God were Rozen's enemies.
If not now, then certainly in the future.
Even at this moment, they had sent wyverns to obstruct Rozen in their pursuit of the Holy Annihilation legacy.
Thus, while the grudge might not be deep, it had already been formed.
Since that was the case, Rozen saw no need to hold back.
"Hand over the dragon, Knights of the Sinful God."
The moment these words left Rozen's lips, the three knights reacted instantly.
"Go!"
The lancer knight issued a terse command while swiftly retreating to distance himself from Rozen.
BANG!
Almost simultaneously, the gun knight raised his cannon and fired without hesitation, unleashing a devastating projectile toward Rozen.
The ammunition seemed specifically designed to counter Demons—its power was immense, something even a highly skilled Attack Mage couldn't ignore.
Yet Rozen ignored it anyway.
Because—
"Rosenkavalier Plus! Boot up!"
The one who shouted this incantation-like phrase was none other than Yuiri, standing beside Rozen.
In an instant, Yuiri—now gripping a massive silver greatsword—leapt forward and swung it through the air before her.
HUM!
The space where her blade passed distorted, forming a spatial barrier that blocked the incoming attack.
BOOM!
The devastating shell struck the spatial fault barrier, erupting in flames—yet it failed to penetrate, leaving no damage behind.
This was a shield that replicated the effect of severing space through jujutsu, rendering all physical attacks useless.
Indeed.
At this moment, Yuiri was employing the same ability as the sword form of Sayaka's Koukarin.
However, the weapon in her hands wasn't the Heavy Demon-Purging Bow Type Six—a Sacred Arms said to be wieldable only by Sayaka—but its mass-produced, improved variant.
Due to the Heavy Demon-Purging Bow Type Six's stringent usage conditions, the Lion King Agency had researched and developed a way to split its powers into two separate weapons for wider application.
These divided forms were:
The Improved Demon-Purging Sword Type Six, capable of simulating spatial faults.
The Improved Demon-Purging Bow Type Six, capable of large-scale jujutsu bombardment.
By separating the Heavy Demon-Purging Bow Type Six's dual forms, the Lion King Agency reduced their operational difficulty and usage requirements.
Thanks to this, Yuiri and Shio were each granted one of these weapons—Yuiri the sword, Shio the bow. Since the two were originally one, Yuiri and Shio were often deployed together, their combined prowess making them another "Kirasaka Sayaka" in effect.
Now, Yuiri wielded this weapon of absolute offense and defense.
"Yukina!"
After blocking the enemy's attack with the spatial fault, Yuiri called out urgently.
The moment her voice rang out, a figure dashed forward from Rozen's other side.
"Sekkaro!"
Yukina invoked the name of her silver spear, unleashing artificial divine energy.
Seeing this, the enemy's expressions changed again.
"That's the Mechanical Demon-Purging Assault Spear Mark Seven...?!"
The lancer knight shouted toward the gun knight.
"Evade! Don't use Foreign Erosion!"
However, his warning came too late.
Seeing the magic circle glow around Yukina's spear, the gun knight assumed she was activating a jujutsu or spell. With a sweep of his cloak, he released a wave of black auroras—Foreign Mana Erosion, capable of nullifying all magic.
Unfortunately, he didn't seem to realize that Sekkaro's power was similar—mutually canceling out Foreign Mana Erosion.
SHINK!
With a flash of silver light, the black auroras were cleanly split apart by Sekkaro's blade.
"Resound!"
The Sword Shaman closed the distance in an instant. Before the gun knight could react, her slender palm—charged with immense jutsuryoku—struck out like a cannon.
BOOM!
The impact sent the gun knight flying, his body pierced by the concentrated force.
This was the Eight Thunder Gods Technique—a specialized close-quarters combat jujutsu that converted amplified jutsuryoku into physical force, designed specifically to subdue Demons.
All Sword Shamans of the Lion King Agency trained in this art, and when combined with body-enhancing spells, even high-level Demons could be subdued barehanded.
The gun knight crashed into a tree, his head lolling to the side as he lost consciousness.
"Tch...!"
The lancer knight clicked his tongue, finally forced to act. He charged at Yukina, thrusting his lance with deadly precision.
Yukina adjusted her stance, meeting him without fear.
The two engaged in a fierce spear duel.
Watching this, Yuiri—still holding her Demon-Slaying Sword—couldn't help but feel a pang of admiration.
"As expected, Yukina is still amazing... no, she's even stronger than she was at school."
Though Endo Yukari had once praised Yuiri as a prodigy whose skills rivaled Yukina's, Yuiri herself knew there was still a gap between them.
Rozen might not have been aware, but Yuiri remembered Yukina from High God Forest—a girl who spoke little to anyone, always calm, even coldly aloof.
During mock battles, Yukina could calmly handle any opponent, achieving outstanding results. In contrast, Yuiri often faltered due to nerves and poor situational judgment, her actual combat performance falling short despite her technical skill.
If Sayaka was a monstrous genius among Shamanic War Dancers, then Yukina was the same among Sword Shamans.
Otherwise, the one sent to monitor Rozen wouldn't have been this junior who hadn't even entered high school yet.
And now, seeing Yukina again—still as exceptional as ever, yet no longer as detached—Yuiri couldn't help but marvel.
This was why both Yuiri and Shio had been so stunned to see Yukina bickering with Rozen earlier.
"Is it because of him...?"
Yuiri's gaze drifted toward Rozen.
But Rozen remained oblivious to her stare, his eyes calmly fixed on the battlefield, utterly composed.