Chapter 22
Following the fallen angel's feather location, Issei was able to track some movement coming from the forest. A strange wind blew past his face coming from behind him, turning around Issei decided to explore. He may have been foolish to do so, but he would make sure that he was somewhat further away from the source of the wind. Slowly, he rushed toward where the source was going. The rustling continued, and Issei ran faster and faster trying to catch up to whatever was making that sound. However, once running for a few minutes, he stumbled upon a small open area. Rather than walking into the area, he looked around to make sure that he wouldn't fall for a trap. Crouching down, he tried his best to sense anything around.
Issei's remained calm as he cautiously scanned the surroundings of the small open area. He knew better than to rush into unfamiliar territory without thoroughly assessing the situation. He crouched down, his senses on high alert, as he carefully examined the area for any signs of traps or hidden dangers. The open area was bathed in dappled sunlight filtering through the dense canopy of trees above. The grass under Issei's feet was slightly damp, indicating recent rainfall. His eyes darted from one tree to another, searching for any unusual signs or disturbances. The rustling sound that had led him here had ceased, adding to the eerie silence that enveloped the area.
Issei took a deep breath and focused his senses, attuning himself to the subtlest of details. He closed his eyes momentarily, relying on his instincts to guide him. When he reopened his eyes, he began to meticulously examine the ground for any anomalies. He noticed a few small pebbles scattered haphazardly on the forest floor, leading towards a particular spot. Issei's curiosity piqued, and he followed the trail of pebbles, his movements deliberate and cautious. As he approached the designated spot, he noticed a faint outline in the grass-an almost imperceptible indentation.
'Hmm... A hidden area...' Kneeling down, Issei gently brushed away the overgrown foliage to reveal a concealed trapdoor, partially hidden beneath the thick vegetation. The trapdoor appeared to be made of weathered wood, its hinges rusted with age. It was evident that the entrance had not been opened in quite some time.
'Humans couldn't be underneath this trapdoor. It wouldn't make sense... They wouldn't have been able to move faster than me running. Issei continued thinking, there was no way that he was going to enter this. He only had one more chance at life and he wasn't going to waste it with such a foolish risk. Backing away, Issei charged a small energy wave with his sword, moving away and hiding underneath the trees, placing himself within the bushes, Issei swung his sword and a small explosion occurred.
This explosion alerted someone as a few seconds after the explosion, a fallen angel began peeking out through the trap door. Looking around, the fallen angel moved from the trap door and began soaring through the sky. "Humans... Ignorant little vermin, they seem to think playing around with their gadgets is a good idea. Looks like I'll have to kill you vermin."
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Name: Fallen Angel
Title: None
Race: Fallen Angel
Level: 42
HP: 2600/2600
MP: 2400/2400
STR: 47
AGL: 51
END: 52
INT: 32
Bonus: +20% damage to devils
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Issei frowned upon hearing what the fallen angel had to say. Clenching his hand around his sword, Issei began thinking. 'Why does that expression always remind me of her?'
Ever since his fear of women slowly appearing, the lifeless, traumatizing face of the dead woman... the poor dead woman, at the church where he guessed Raynare hid around, Issei began losing control over himself. However, what Issei noticed was that... there was no other fallen angel that was coming out of the trap door. There was no way that a lone fallen angel was here, the fallen angel only had two wings, similar to Raynare. Issei watched as the fallen angel began forming light spears... Anger was building within Issei as he watched the fallen angel, it began reminding Issei of Raynare. That was when he finally decided to move, forming a small little ball at the tip of his sword, Issei swung it straight at the fallen angel's head and...
*BOOM*
Feathers were all that could be seen falling down onto the ground. Issei began walking toward the trap door, smiling while beginning to expand his power. They weren't going to come out, and Issei began feeling his anger beginning to increase. With his right hand, Issei formed a huge energy wave and swung it right into the trap door. In seconds, he could hear screams as a huge explosion surfaced on the ground. Leveling the trees around, Issei watched as a larger portion of black feathers began raining down onto the ground. He didn't know how many he killed, but he knew that it wouldn't end then.
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New Major Quest: Survive
Objective: Kill all traces of Fallen Angels in area
Reward: Level Up x 10
+New title
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As Issei stood amidst the aftermath of the explosion, black feathers littering the ground, a sinister presence began to fill the air. The distant sound of beating wings grew louder and more frantic, accompanied by the anguished cries of fallen angels. Issei's display of power had attracted the attention of numerous fallen angels, and now they were descending upon him with fury in their eyes.
Hundreds of fallen angels materialized in the sky, their wings outstretched as they descended upon Issei like a swarm of vengeful creatures. All of them ranged in strength, from some of them being as strong as the fallen angel he killed to being nearly as strong as him. Issei's eyes narrowed, determination shining through as he prepared himself for the incoming battle. He knew he was about to face a formidable challenge, but he couldn't back down now.
The fallen angels attacked with a flurry of energy blasts, their collective power overwhelming. Issei swiftly dodged and weaved through the onslaught, his instincts and senses were guiding him through the overwhelming onslaught of attacks. However, the sheer number of opponents was a disadvantage he couldn't ignore. For every fallen angel he incapacitated, two more took its place. It didn't help that the white aura began trying to calm him down as his frustration began increasing, but the rate at which his frustration and anger was increasing was too much even for the white aura.
Issei fought valiantly, utilizing his abilities to counter their attacks. Using Iron Flesh to tank through hundreds to thousands of attacks and using his remaining bronze coins to keep his health afloat, Issei was determined. Leveling up several times, Issei was laughing hysterically as he clawed his way through the horde. Each clash reverberated through the forest, causing the trees to tremble and the ground to shake.
The battle raged on for what felt like an eternity, with Issei pushing his body and magical reserves to their limits. Despite his efforts, the fallen angels' numbers seemed endless, and his strength began to wane. Fatigue settled in, weighing down his limbs as he struggled to keep up with the relentless onslaught. 'Damn, it... I'm beginning to... Lose my ground.'
The fallen angels, sensing Issei's weakening state, grew bolder in their attacks. They began using even more light spears to try and pierce through Issei's body. However, Issei's body bore the brunt of their assault, bruises, and cuts forming with each spear striking him. Blood trickled down his face, his vision slightly blurred, but he refused to yield. Even with his immense damage reduction, he was still being pinned by the much more powerful 6 to 8-winged fallen angels.
With his back against a tree, Issei fought tooth and nail, channeling every ounce of his remaining strength. His sword and feet shield with ferocity, his attacks landing with precision and power. But for every fallen angel he incapacitated, several more pressed forward, overwhelming him with their sheer numbers. Issei's body screamed with pain, his muscles protesting each movement. His vision began to swim, and his breathing grew labored. The fallen angels sensed his vulnerability, seizing the opportunity to strike at his weakest moments.
"Push now! He must be taken down." One of them screamed which was followed by the entire crowd of fallen angels screaming and applying more pressure on their onslaught.
Seeing the many faces... Seeing the many expressions of disgust and hatred... Issei began getting reminded of his incident with Raynare and the incident with the poor woman whose face he could never forget... The lifeless eyes, the terrified soulless face, it all traumatized Issei. Rias was his only saving grace... the woman that showed him that she was a true friend... even if she didn't know him much... but just having someone that truly cares... it... it helps... Seeing the anger... seeing the rage... seeing the hatred... seeing the disgust... He just couldn't do it anymore... He wanted it all to end!
"Kill him now! He deserves no mercy nor love!"
Just those words... finally did it... Issei snapped...
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Energy Wave —> Chaotic Manipulation
Ņ̴̬̝̪̗̤͍̭̥͓̼͉̹̆̔̈͒̿͂̍͜e̶̢̢͕̤̮̻͉̝̠̹̗̘̺̳͇͂̊́͘͜͠w̴̢̢̛͚̫̼̳̬͇̟̤̆̆̆̎͒̈̏̿͐̂̓̈͒͒̈́̈̎̉̌͝ ̵̨̧̺̭͕̘̜̲̞̱̗͙͖̖͚͈̟͈̗͐̄͌̅͂̃̃̽͑̕̕͜͜ͅş̴̢̨̬̹͓̖͇̳̫̯̩̞͇̹͓̭͔̺̌͛̐͒̉́̐̃̀̉̓̋̄͋̋͝͝k̴̡̛̙͉͙̠͉͉͙͙͈̜̣̇́̍͆̂̿͑͗̃̈́̄̒̈́̀̈́̆̕͘͝͝͠͠į̷͓̬̯̜̱͎͈̰̘̰̞͈̰̀̔̓̓̎͐́̆͆̉͗̾̿̀͠l̸̜͚̤̮̝̯̥̱̘̭͎͉̬̞̪̹͓̱̊̾͋́̾̂̄ͅļ̷̡̧͇̰͎̦̙͙̤̜̲̙̥̤̜̳̪̘͖͆̓̎̎̄̓͜͜ ̸̟̓́͊̈́̆̿̎ǔ̶̻͕͔̲̓̄̇̄ņ̸̨̺̥̻̞̬̙̱͚͍̜̣̰̓͂̔̐͜ľ̸̙͉̲̺̳̦̻͉̪̆̽̄̎͜͝o̴̥͌͒̍č̷̨̛̤̝̳̖͐̓̊̃͆̍̈̈̈̎͛̓̀͂̽̕͘͜͠k̴̤̳̘̪̙̗͕̟͔̲͕̜̪̹̮̗̺̪̥̹̭̟̝͑̽̒͆̏̀̾ḙ̴̟̞̏̈̈́̉̚̚͝ḑ̸̳̺̪͈̫̱͙͎̮̞̀̽̓̈́̌́̍̏̋̓̈͜͠͠...̷̢̧̡͖͓͚̙̹͎̱͇͕̲̜̥̼͙͋̀̽̅̆̌̍̑́͜
̵̨͇̟͍̞̣̖̝̯͙͚̪̜͕̌̓͐͗̀͂́̑̚͝
̶̢̛̱͉̻͔͎͈̈́͛́͊Ņ̸̨̣̫̖̘̖̝̹̳͉͈̠͇͖̩̈́̌̿͌͂̂͑ù̷̫͚͖̲̮̦̦̦̯̬͎̥̘͇̍́̇̌͆̒̏́͊k̵̭̣̞̻̫̅̔͂͘͜͜ͅe̴̡̧̡̗͉̥̭̞͈̖̖͙̯͉̤̞̮͚̘̍͂̓͜...̸̫͉̯̮̩̞̹̲̯̜̜̼̙̥̪͔̞̹̭̋̇͜͜ͅͅ
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With his entire body glowing with a bright white light, the fallen angel horde could only watch as Issei began laughing hysterically. "I'LL KILL YOU ALL! I WILL KILL YOU ALL! I WILL KILL YOU ALL!"
In an instant, a gargantuan explosion occurred. Expanding at speeds faster than the fallen angels could react to, the fallen angels didn't have a chance to scream as they were disintegrated. They could only watch as each one... each one of their members began burning away. The sheer explosive power from Issei's explosion began erasing the very nature that surrounded them... the once beautiful, green forest was reduced to a crater filled with nothing but sand, glass, and a beaten, bruised, bloody Issei standing in the middle of the crater.
How many did he kill...
He lost count...
There were easily hundreds...
Yet he was still smiling...
"Raynare... I will kill you... no matter what it takes."
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New Major Quest Completed : Survive
Objective: Kill all traces of Fallen Angels in area
Reward: Level Up x 10
+New title
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New title unlocked: The Slayer
Affects: +25% Damage onto supernatural beings
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He ignored the title message and continued staring into the distance.
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Name: Issei Hyoudou
Title: Guardian of Kuoh
Race: Iron Golem
Level: 63
HP: 2000/9700
MP: 0/560
STR: 100.5 (+20)
AGL:74 (-2)
END: 76 (+21)
INT: 65 (+2)
Bonus: 63% Damage Reduction
Skills: Iron Flesh
Berserk Wrath
Chaotic Manipulation
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