"Damn it," Mammon said, slamming the barrier with multiple stones. They crumbled soon after.

"You're finished, Mammon!" Osamu yelled.

She laughed. "Y-you can't kill us."

"That's not our aim," I said as I held Hyoryu tightly. My vision became foggier than before.

Rosa poured some energy into me. It was the energy she had taken from Ifrit, but it was purified. Sadly, it wasn't much. She must've used most of it to heal herself earlier or she couldn't cleanse much of it.

King Osamu laughed. "Seems that absorbing their angelic halves really did backfire on them. We're lucky. Sadly, we don't have a way to seal them," he said, mumbling the last part.

Tetsuya rubbed his stomach. "Yeah. I might've been a goner if that wasn't the case." His eyes shifted to his shield. "That dark slash narrowly avoided my shield's core, but I don't think that was a mistake."

I raised an eyebrow at his stomach. Apart from a slight scar, it was fine. How was he able to heal this fast against a demonic wound. He said that he was late because he had to recover from being impaled in the gut by a demon. Wait, could it be he was becoming immune to demonic corruption? He had fought demon-Suzuki, Satoru, demon-Eiichi, Bylet, and Ifrit.

"You can't hold us for long!" Mammon growled.

"Why do you look like Piedad?" Rosa asked, getting closer. She glared at the demon.

Tetsuya grabbed the princess and pulled her away. "Don't get too close. Also, keep your composure around them."

Ifrit chuckled as he looked up at Tetsuya. "Funny to hear you say that. You've always been one to be driven by your emotions. Last we met, you got mad at me for diving into your past."

Tetsuya flinched at this remark. "You have Hanketsu's memories?"

Ifrit chuckled as he placed a hand over Conrad's exposed core. "I am Hanketsu. This is me as a fallen angel."

"Then, I'll free you," Tetsuya said with stern eyes.

Ifrit's eyes widened. "You..." He gripped his head and laughed. "What a funny man. How can you save me? There's no salvation for one like me."

Yuko gritted her teeth. "Yes there is. If you believe in the Sky Father and give up your evil ways, you'll be saved!"

Ifrit closed his eyes. "Father... He's the reason I'm in this state. If he hadn't intervened during the reunification, all of you would be dead by now."

Tetsuya grinned. "We really owe him one in that case."

Ifrit raised his head and scowled. "How can you smile like that? Are you stupid? You should've sunk into despair long ago!"

Tetsuya glanced at his shield. "I did, but a little bit. Thankfully, I had Yuko to pull me out of that."

Yuko blushed.

Ifrit gritted his teeth at Yuko. "The Child of Faith, huh? Once she's gone, you'll lose all of it. When you do, I'll be waiting for you."

Tetsuya shook his head. "I won't lose her, nor anyone else."

"Yeah!" Rosa said. "Plus, Tetsu has me too!"

Mammon chuckled. "The Child of Love was almost taken care of." She shifted her eyes toward me. "If not for that one, she would've died."

The king moved next to her. "Tetsuya, shake the barrier more. Make these sadists have some of their own medicine."

"On it," Tetsuya said, shaking the sphere a lot.

"Enough!" Mammon yelled. The barrier cracked. "I won't be humiliated like this by a much of half baked doves!"

"Sounds like you're struggling, aunt and uncle," a voice called out from the direction of the tower.

A blue haired woman dressed in a sapphire qipao flew over to us without the need for wings.

"Margaret!" Tetsuya snapped.

He activated Second Heaven and fired a dark sphere at her.

Margaret caught the sphere in her hand and crushed it, causing black lasers to fire off in multiple directions.

Tetsuya swatted the beams away and warped behind her.

Margaret looked over her back. "Are you really the one that Reginald plans to replace me with? The quality of his picks sure has fallen."

Tetsuya slashed her back with the tip of his dragon tail, causing her to wince.

"What?"

Ifrit laughed. "Nice job awakening his rage, Maggie."

Margaret slapped Tetsuya, sending him flying toward the tower.

"Tetsuya!" Rosa yelled, flying over to him. Much to my surprise, the two of them passed through as if they were ghosts.

Osamu glared at Mammon as she shattered the remnant of Tetsuya's barrier.

"Ifrit, be quiet next time or I'll do the same to you," Margaret said through clenched teeth.

Ifrit laughed. "Alright. Now stop scowling like that. It does nothing for your appearance."

"Mean lady sure has a temper," Yuko mumbled.

Margaret fired off a blast of blue energy from her index finger at her.

I grabbed Yuko and moved her away. Hyoryu roared as it took the hit for us. We quickly lost altitude.

"Hyoryu, try to land where Tetsuya and Rosa passed through!" I yelled.

"Alright!" Hyoryu said as it kept its eyes on the spot my fellow knights had passed through.

The king followed us.

"If you wish to see Conrad and Piedad, make it to the top, dears," Margaret said, smirking just before we passed through its walls.

Yuko and I went rolling through the floor as soon as we were inside.

Hyoryu's injury must've been more serious than it looked.

"Where are we?" the king asked, glancing around.

"Where is Master?" she asked, getting up. She winced as soon as she did. Her left foot was bleeding.

"Hold it," I said. I tore my left sleeve and wrapped the cloth around her foot. "There. That should slow down the bleeding."

Yuko beamed. "Thanks!"

I gasped as I saw Rosa's face in her. They really were doppelgangers.

"Hyo, Yuko, Dad!" Rosa yelled, waving at us.

Yuko gasped as she saw Tetsuya didn't accompany her. She gripped her pen-knife and ran off. Oddly, Conrad's angel was nowhere to be seen. Had she decided to retreat as Conrad was no longer around?

Osamu ran over to Rosalba. "Don't run off like that!" the king snapped as he embraced her.

Rosa laughed. "Dad, I'm fine. You worry too much."

"You nearly died earlier, didn't you?"

The princess pressed her head against his chest. "Yeah, but Hyo saved me." She glanced at me and smiled. "Thanks again, Hyo."

I rubbed my shoulder and walked on ahead. "It was nothing. Say, where is Tetsuya?"

"Found Master!" Yuko said, waving at us. She held the arm of the shield knight. Tetsuya moved his neck side to side.

"Are you okay?" Rosa asked.

Tetsuya sighed. "Yeah, but my neck hurts. My head nearly broke off from that slap."

The princess gasped.

"Poor Master," Yuko said. She huffed. "Yuko will be sure to get payback on that witch!"

"Please leave her to me. I can heal. If she were to hurt you, I'm afraid of what would happen," Tetsuya said, ruffling her hair.

Yuko's cheeks reddened. "O-okay. Yuko won't intervene unless she absolutely has to."

Rosa crossed her arms. "Tetsu."

Tetsuya quickly let go of Yuko and laughed.

I sighed. Seemed he didn't heed what I told him back at Huang's place at all.

"Let's get going. That woman said that Conrad and Piedad will be found at the top. Though, that's assuming she wasn't lying," I said, heading for the stairs.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," someone called out. A young man dressed in a nicely tailored suit descended the stone stairs leading to the second floor.

My eyes widen. "You. You're... Asil."

The young man ran a hand through his green-blue hair and chuckled. "Hyo. I didn't expect to see you here. What is a peasant like you doing, accompanying the princess?"

Tetsuya grumbled. "You got an issue with peasants, huh?" he snapped.

Osamu sighed. "And here I thought you had matured during your training."

Rosa glared at Asil. "Tetsu, let me handle this guy. What do you mean by peasant? If you're referring to his dad's side of the family, know that Sebastian is my maternal uncle!"

Asil rubbed his ear and sighed. "Yeah, I know. The royal family fell hard, engaging the king with a fallen noblewoman like your mother."

Rosa gritted her teeth. "Take that back this instant!"

My childhood friend chuckled. "Or what? Will you have my head removed? You're not the crown princess. You have no authority."

Rosa smirked. "You really think that?"

Tetsuya crossed his arms and chuckled. "Trust me. You don't want to mess with her."

Asil shrugged. "Even if you do, I won't go with you in the first place." He held out a black rapier. Back when we were kids, its blade was as clear as fresh ice crystals. Now, it was as black as coal.

"Asil, why are you here? Are you in league with the demons?" I asked, trying to avoid having my voice shake.

"Hyo," Rosa said, glancing at me. Did my unease slip out with my words?

He chuckled. "In league with them? No, I am simply using them to get what I want, power."

The king scoffed. "How foolish. You truly believe that you can control a demon's power?"

Asil snickered. "I'm not like you, Your Majesty. I have received Mammon's gift with open arms! Those who don't resist are free to do with her blessing as they wish."

"Blessing? The strange girl is a demon," Yuko said, furrowing her brow.

"Yeah, it's not a blessing, but a curse!" Osamu yelled, stepping forward.

Asil held his rapier in front of him. "Think what you may, peons. I will show you all, true power!"

Suddenly, shadows grabbed hold of the others.

"Rosa! Your Majesty!" I yelled, turning back.

Asil laughed as they vanished. "Don't worry. They live. They were simply sent to other floors. I wish to fight my dear old friend one on one. That said, I'm surprised to see you care for others. I remember you telling me that you had no need for friends."

I glared at him.

The air was knocked out of me, but Asil remained where he stood.

What was that? Had he moved without me noticing? Or was it his angel? No, the angel tool's been corrupted so much that it was no longer a guardian angel but a demon.

"What's wrong?" Asil asked, smirking. "Did you lose your will to fight already?"

I slashed the air. "Of course not. I'm not sure what you did, but it won't take me down."

Asil laughed. "Foolish Hyosetsu. That naivety you held as a kid still hasn't disappeared, I see."

I gritted my teeth.

He leered at me. "Falter, samurai!"

I coughed up blood as something slammed against my chest again. No, it wasn't a slam, but a stab. Oddly, there were no signs of any new wounds.

"Hyosetsu," Hyoryu spoke in my head.

"Hyoryu, why did you disappear?" I asked.

"This tower is preventing angelic techniques. The good news is that I am not a pure angel. While I cannot manifest, I can lend you my power. Use it wisely."

Asil yawned. "Are you seriously going to stand around all day? Do something."

I snickered. "Right back at you, As. You haven't moved from that spot."

Asil laughed. "Have I not?"

My legs gave in, sending me falling to the floor. It felt as if someone had slashed them clean off, yet they were still intact.

Asil stepped forward and pointed his sword at my head. "I should have known better than to expect anything of value from a peasant."

I glared at him and pushed myself up.

Asil stepped back as dragon scales appeared on my forearms.

"You are a dragon?"

"No, but my angel is!" I yelled, punching him in the chin. Or at least I would've, but an invisible wall kept my fist from making contact.

I clicked my tongue and jumped back, only for what felt like a sword to impale me from behind.

Yet, there was nothing. Could it have been an illusion? One involving touch rather than sight.

Asil smirked. "Pathetic. Perhaps the loudmouth peasant would've been a bigger challenge."

Rocks suddenly rained down on us.

"Who are you calling a loudmouth?" a familiar voice shouted.

Asil glanced up, but it was too late; Tetsuya tackled him to the floor by jumping down from the gaping hole in the ceiling.

"Tetsuya! What are you doing here?" I asked, flabbergasted. How had he found me in the first place?

"I'm saving you; that's what I'm doing!"

I wanted to say that there was no need for that, but that wasn't true. My body was running on fumes.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^^. Overall thoughts? Theories? Predictions?**