The giant wolves let out several howls before charging forward.
Having witnessed Shinki’s earlier performance, Himejima Shuhuang had already retreated a considerable distance.
As the wolves rushed toward him, Shinki stepped forward and met them head-on.
Seeing this, Shuhuang sneered inwardly.
A human choosing to clash directly with a shikigami was sheer arrogance.
Even with spiritual power reinforcing the body, the impact would surely leave him gravely injured.
After all, combat-oriented shikigami far surpassed humans in physical abilities.
Against them, exorcists typically relied on Shinto Arts or their own shikigami.
The distance between them rapidly shrank to less than two meters.
The wolf’s fangs were about to tear through Shinki’s skull.
In any case, Shuhuang’s true targets were the Himejima mother and daughter.
Whether anyone else lived or died was irrelevant.
Yet just as the wolf closed to within a meter, Shinki suddenly launched himself off the ground.
He leaped high into the air, adjusted his posture mid-flight, spun several times, and drove his right leg downward toward the wolf’s head.
Shikigami possessed a degree of intelligence, but their flexibility still depended on their master’s reactions.
The wolf only saw the human before it suddenly disappear.
Then a fierce gust descended from above.
Its emerald eyes caught sight of a dark blur rapidly approaching.
Bang!
A dull impact echoed through the shrine grounds.
Shinki frowned.
It felt as though he had kicked a steel plate.
Pain shot through his leg.
But in the next instant, golden flames wrapped around his right leg.
Empowered by immense force, his kick slammed the wolf’s head straight into the ground.
The stone pavement of the shrine shattered and exploded outward.
Earth and debris flew everywhere.
Half of the wolf’s body was buried underground.
A burnt smell filled the air.
Using the recoil, Shinki flipped through the air before landing lightly on the ground.
He glanced at the motionless shikigami from the corner of his eye.
It wasn’t some powerful monster, but considering that he had once been an ordinary person, achieving this result in his first real battle was already impressive.
Seeing its companion defeated instantly, the remaining wolf threw back its head and howled.
Its gaze toward Shinki was filled with fury.
Green energy gathered within its mouth, compressing continuously.
Bzzzt— Crackling energy similar to lightning flickered around its jaws.
A brilliant emerald beam suddenly erupted forward.
After all, High School DxD was a fantasy world.
Whether it was a devil’s demonic power, an angel’s holy light, a yokai’s demonic energy, or a human’s spiritual power, all could be projected outward.
Trying to block such an attack physically was impossible.
Fortunately, after fusing with The Ra’s bloodline, Shinki possessed an abundance of magical power himself.
And as mentioned before— His greatest weakness was his physique.
His body limited how much of that power he could fully utilize.
Even so, stopping this attack wasn’t difficult.
The thought flashed through his mind in an instant.
The wolf’s attack arrived just as quickly.
Golden flames gathered around Shinki’s right hand.
Facing the incoming beam, he thrust his hand forward and released a burst of overflowing fire energy directly into its path.
Buzz!
The temperature of the night air suddenly rose dramatically.
It felt as though everyone had been thrown beside a blazing furnace.
Sweat immediately appeared on people’s faces.
Then the flames collided with the beam.
A violent explosion erupted directly in front of the wolf’s head.
The fire expanded ferociously in every direction.
A miserable howl rang out.
Moments later, the wolf disintegrated into ashes.
Within less than a minute, the Clan Head’s shikigami had been completely destroyed.
The overwhelmingly one-sided battle left Himejima Shuhuang’s face ashen.
Since when had the Himejima Clan produced such an unknown monster?
And more importantly— Fire was the essence of the Himejima Clan’s sacred beast, Suzaku.
It was also the foundation of the clan’s primary abilities.
So what exactly was that flame just now?
Shuhuang’s expression shifted.
“You aren’t human.
You’re some foreign heretic, aren’t you?” He had heard of such beings before.
Foreign pantheons possessed gods of fire and sun.
Even the Underworld’s devils included existences such as the Phenex Clan.
Why would a being like that protect this mother and daughter?
“Aren’t you afraid of starting a war with the Himejima Clan?” Shuhuang had clearly mistaken Shinki for a member of another supernatural faction.
Shinki couldn’t be bothered to explain.
He immediately turned around, grabbed both Shuri and Akeno, and ran.
The conflict was already unavoidable.
Staying any longer would only attract larger reinforcements.
As for taking Shuhuang hostage?
Please.
After watching so many crime movies in his previous life, he knew exactly how badly hostage situations usually ended.
Amid startled cries from the two females, the scenery rushed past on both sides.
“Shinki-kun, w-what is going on?” Although Shuri was currently being carried in a thoroughly undignified position, her mind was filled with far more important questions.
“No time to explain.” Shinki raced down the mountain.
Meanwhile, the jostling caused Shuri to accidentally bump against his back.
Unable to steady herself, she could only wrap her arms around his waist.
Smack!
Shinki’s expression stiffened.
The overly mature curves pressing against him made him blush slightly.
After all, he was still a virgin.
Annoyed, he lightly smacked a certain part of the woman’s body.
Shuri immediately fell silent.
“Detected: First wave of the Himejima Clan’s assault has been repelled.
Battle victory confirmed.
Evaluation in progress…
Final rewards will be calculated upon completion of the main quest.”