High School DxD: The Lucifer's Devil Trigger — Chapter 84

Chapter 84: The Sword in the Pool

That sword could not be easily destroyed—nor could it be easily moved. That was the absolute consensus Heaven had maintained for countless centuries.

The mere fact that Rizevim Livan Lucifer had managed to attach a spatial “interface” to the blade using his unique demonic powers was enough to leave Michael and the Seraphs deeply unsettled. As for shattering the blade itself? Such a scenario was entirely beyond their comprehension.

Serafall shared that exact sentiment.

Azazel, walking slightly behind the group, discreetly threaded a pulse of magic into Levi’s mind. ‘Don’t go getting any ideas about secretly destroying that sword… otherwise, even if the Beast Emperor doesn’t emerge, we’ll have a second Great War breaking out right here in Heaven.’

Levi caught the Governor General’s gaze and gave a faint, reassuring nod. “Trust me,” he murmured. “There won’t be a war. Since Rizevim was foolish enough to leave his interface here, I’m going to strip away his greatest trump card today. Once he loses his connection to the Beast Emperor, true peace between the three factions can finally take root.”

He adjusted his collar, his expression calm and calculating. “We’ve reached the final threshold. I’m not going to drop the ball now.”

Azazel watched Levi’s retreating back as the young devil followed Michael and Gabriel toward the Angel Birth Pool. For a moment, the Fallen Angel leader was lost in his own thoughts, only snapping back to reality when he realized he had fallen several paces behind. He let out a quiet, self-deprecating chuckle.

‘I really am getting more cowardly in my old age,’Azazel mused.’Thinking back to when I fell from grace all for the sake of a woman… well, it wasn’t exactly my most glorious hour, but I certainly had a lot more nerve back then.’

Just as Levi had noted earlier, holy light was no different from a lethal poison to devilkind. While high-class devils possessed the raw power to endure the burning sensation, it remained an inherently agonizing experience. Back in the main hall, even with Michael actively suppressing the ambient diffusion of God’s Glory, Serafall and Grayfia had still kept their brows tightly knit in discomfort.

But Levi was an anomaly.

They were now standing at the very edge of Heaven’s Angel Birth Pool. This sacred basin was the cradle from which all angels were originally born. However, ever since the holy sword left behind by the biblical God was thrust into its center, the waters had dried, and no new angels had emerged. To seal away something so vital to Heaven’s ecosystem, the blade was undeniably an artifact of supreme authority.

“This aura…” Serafall murmured, her playful demeanor vanishing. She narrowed her eyes, her voice laced with heavy vigilance. “Back in the hall, what I felt was merely God’s Glory. But here… this is God’s Majesty.”

The oppressive pressure in the air could no longer be ignored with a simple frown. Even with Michael using the Heaven’s system to throttle the holy light to its absolute minimum, stepping into this chamber felt like walking through invisible fire.

Serafall let out a strained sigh. “Honestly, I’m not surprised a maniac like Rizevim would target a place like this. With his twisted obsession, he probably noticed the light was densest here and just crawled right in. Even among our kind, that bastard is a notorious lunatic.”

Ignoring the heavy sighs of his companions, Levi stepped forward. He braved the overwhelming, suffocating weight of God’s Majesty without a single flinch, walking steadily toward the deepest section of the Angel Birth Pool.

The recessed basin was entirely barren, its golden waters having evaporated centuries ago. Thrust directly into the center of the dry stone floor was a single, unadorned cruciform sword.

Levi approached the blade and casually wrapped his hand around the hilt.

The instant his skin made contact with the holy metal, the dormant Majesty of God violently erupted, multiplying its intensity several times over in a blinding flash.

Michael watched Levi intently, his breath catching in his throat as he realized the young devil showed absolutely zero adverse reaction. The Archangel recalled the final, cryptic words left behind by God. Initially, he had brought Levi here with a desperate ‘try and see’ mindset, but now, a deep sense of anticipation swelled in his chest.

Gabriel mirrored her brother’s awe-struck expression. Azazel watched with wide eyes.

Only Serafall and Grayfia, gritting their teeth against the searing pressure, stared at Levi with undisguised worry. He was standing at the absolute epicenter of the holy light; they feared his demonic body would simply disintegrate.

‘So that’s how it works…’

The moment his fingers locked around the grip, Levi understood the true depth of the system reward he had received. The skill [Holy Sword Mastery] activated. A vast, tidal wave of martial knowledge and divine resonance flooded his mind, detailing every conceivable method of wielding this specific cruciform blade.

It was an incredibly surreal sensation. The holy sword felt less like a weapon and more like a natural extension of his own arm. It required no exertion, no struggle.

He simply tightened his grip and gave it a casual pull.

Shing!

A piercing ring of steel echoed through the chamber as a blinding white light swept across the room. Levi hoisted the holy sword effortlessly above his head.

From the fissure where the blade had rested, a geyser of radiant golden liquid suddenly erupted. The sacred waters of the pool surged upward, enveloping Levi in a shimmering halo as he slowly levitated into the air.

At that exact moment, the radiance of God’s Majesty detonated completely, washing over the room in a tidal wave of divine power.

Serafall and Grayfia instinctively raised their hands, desperately channeling their demonic aura to shield themselves from the lethal light.

But before they could even manifest their magic circles, Levi’s gaze swept downward. With a mere thought, the explosive radiance of God’s Majesty instantly receded, snapping back into the blade like a retreating tide.

Levi floated amidst the golden droplets, analyzing the weapon. The moment he had drawn it, he understood its true nature. God’s Majesty wasn’t just an aura; it was an inherent, active ability of the sword. It was devastating against devils, yes, but its true purpose operated on a much higher authority—it was designed to command the angelic host.

Beyond that, its functions mirrored standard holy swords, albeit magnified to an absurd degree. It dealt catastrophic damage to evil spirits, devils, rogue gods, and monsters. It was also impossibly sharp and fundamentally unbreakable.

‘Unbreakable, sure,’Levi mused dryly.’But if I ran into the Imagine Breaker, this thing would probably shatter into dust.’

If it were Touma Kamijou standing here, the moment his right hand brushed the hilt, all the divine miracles woven into the steel would be negated on the spot.

Fortunately, Levi’s own variation of the Imagine Breaker was vastly superior. His negation wasn’t restricted to a single hand. It was a fluid, adaptive energy that he could control at will. When dormant, it rested in his right hand, but in combat, he could channel that nullifying force through any part of his body without suffering any of the infamous bad luck associated with the original.

Below him, the golden waters had already flooded the Angel Birth Pool, restoring its ancient glory. Levi stood suspended above the shimmering surface, wrapped tightly in a chorus of ethereal hymns and soft light.

Witnessing this divine spectacle, Michael nearly dropped to his knees in sheer reverence.

He knew it with absolute certainty now. If Levi could draw this sword, it meant he was the entity God had prophesied in His final testament—the Third Dragon God, the one who would eventually arrive to guide them.

But before the Archangel could make any grand gestures of fealty, Levi suppressed the lingering glow of the holy sword and descended smoothly, landing right in front of the stunned group.

“The sword is secured,” Levi announced, his tone strictly business. “Next, I’m going to strip out the spatial coordinates Rizevim anchored to the blade. Get ready to cast a containment barrier. Once I extract the interface, we destroy it immediately.”

His pragmatic instructions finally snapped Gabriel, Azazel, and Serafall out of their dazed shock.

Grayfia didn’t waste a single breath on words, instantly raising her hands to prepare her highest-tier binding magic.

Michael blinked, finally processing the tactical situation. He quickly reconsidered his urge to kneel. If Lord Levi truly was the Third Dragon God—a fact that had never been publicly declared—he was clearly operating in secret. Exposing his true identity now through a careless display of worship could ruin his grand design.

Adjusting his strategy, Michael waited for the others to prep the magic circle, then offered Levi a warm, knowing smile. “Levi… ahem, Levi. Since you are capable of wielding this holy sword, it rightfully belongs to you., you have unsealed the Angel Birth Pool, securing the future of the Angel race. For that, I am truly, deeply grateful.”

Michael then gave Levi a very deliberate, exaggerated wink. “If there is ever anything the angels can do for you in the future, please, do not hesitate to ask!”

The Archangel felt his subtle hint was perfectly executed. Surely, Lord Levi understood his sworn allegiance.

Levi, however, silently took two large steps to the side.

His immediate thought was that Michael was suffering from some sort of facial spasm. But then a far more chilling realization crept into his mind.

‘Wait… is this guy into men?’

A subtle shiver ran down Levi’s spine. Michael was the supreme leader of Heaven; offending him over a misunderstanding would be tedious. Levi maintained a polite, albeit incredibly forced, smile and took another step back. “Right. If I really need help, I’ll… let you know.”

Michael, satisfied that his ‘secret message’ had been received, fell into a respectful silence. Levi exhaled a quiet breath of relief.

Seeing Grayfia give him a sharp nod of readiness, Levi summoned Yamato. Holding the divine cruciform sword in his left hand and the dark, legendary katana in his right, he brought the two blades together.

As the metals touched, a violent spatial distortion rippled outward, and a pulsing red sphere of light was forcibly ejected from the holy sword.

The crimson sphere immediately jittered, attempting to dissipate and escape back into the dimensional void. But Grayfia, Serafall, Azazel, and Gabriel moved in perfect unison. A massive, multi-layered magic circle flared to life, locking the red sphere firmly in place.

Levi instantly dismissed both Yamato and the holy sword. Channeling the nullifying Power of Imagination into his palm, he reached forward and crushed the trapped sphere.

Crack—!

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the chamber. Rizevim’s spatial amulet was annihilated. The tether connecting the mad devil to the Beast Emperor was permanently severed.

A collective sigh of relief washed over the group. Regardless of their individual political schemes, the immediate threat of the apocalypse had been neutralized.

Far away, hidden deep within the swirling chaos of the Dimensional Gap, Rizevim Livan Lucifer’s smug expression violently twisted into a mask of pure horror.

He remembered the arrogant, mocking words he had just spoken to his subordinate. The sheer humiliation of the reversal hit him so hard that his demonic aura began leaking frantically, tearing at the dimensional fabric around him.

He had never expected this! He was supposed to be the puppet master! He was supposed to watch them wallow in despair, staring blankly at an unbreakable seal like a bunch of pathetic clowns!

But as the connection to the Beast Emperor snapped, a bitter, infuriating truth dawned on him.

The only clown in this play was himself.

Back in Heaven, with the holy sword claimed, an unspoken alliance with the angels established, and Rizevim’s trump card destroyed, Azazel turned his sharp gaze toward Levi. The Fallen Angel began to seriously calculate the young devil’s next move.

This wasn’t a game anymore.

“You saw Sirzechs’s attitude toward you,” Azazel said, his tone unusually grave. “If you really decide to make a move, the devils will likely back you with everything they have. You carry the Lucifer name, which means the Old Satan Faction won’t dare oppose you either.”

Azazel’s eyes drifted meaningfully toward the twintailed Maou. “I’ve also heard that Serafall Leviathan here is one of your fiancées. You might have brushed these political ties off before, but now, it’s time you seriously evaluate your position.”

Azazel rarely dropped his laid-back persona, but his face was entirely solemn now. “Whether it’s for the sake of our three factions or the balance of this entire world… Levi, without even realizing it, you’ve become a singularity. A figure who can dictate the very direction of this era. So, whatever you plan to do next, I hope you consider it thoroughly.”

At the mention of the word “fiancée,” Serafall’s face flushed a brilliant shade of crimson. Normally, the willful, energetic magical girl would have lunged at Azazel, summoning ice magic to freeze his mouth shut for such a bold claim.

But right now, she simply lowered her head, her cheeks burning hot, entirely uncharacteristically silent.

Levi noted Serafall’s bizarrely quiet reaction with mild concern. However, considering her brain operated on a completely different frequency from normal people anyway, he quickly shifted his focus back to the Governor General.

“As for my next steps…” Levi said, his voice calm and measured. “I already have a series of plans in motion. I’ll be leaving for a while to handle some personal matters. Originally, my intent was to cripple Rizevim’s operations first, then slowly dismantle him upon my return.”

His eyes narrowed, a cold, ruthless glint flashing in his pupils. “But now that his amulet is gone, hiding behind the title of the strongest extraordinary won’t save his life. I’m going to find a way to lure him out and execute him directly. Once that’s done, I’ll likely disappear from the grid for a few years.”

Azazel let out a long, weary sigh. “Well, it’s a shame. It looks like Vali’s dream of punching his grandfather in the face won’t be coming true after all.”

Levi gave Azazel a deep, lingering look, his lips curling into a dry smile as he spoke with heavy implication: