Issei and Kiba stood side by side. Issei had dropped into a combat stance without removing his blindfold; he would only take it off if he deemed Irina and Xenovia worthy.
"Are you going to fight blindfolded??" Irina asked.
"I don't need to remove my blindfold to defeat you two, whether you're separate or together," Issei replied.
Issei was smiling with confidence. Xenovia and Irina were irritated at being underestimated by the blindfolded man.
"Don't underestimate us!!" Xenovia shouted.
Xenovia lunged toward Kiba with her massive Excalibur. Irina rushed toward Issei with great speed, brandishing her sword in a rapid flurry of cuts.
"You're actually quite fast," Issei noted.
Issei seemed to be dancing as he dodged the numerous blows with immense dexterity. Irina's sword technique was excellent, but something was still missing.
"How could my childhood friend become a devil?? God must have ordained our meeting for your redemption," Irina said.
Irina continued her assault, but Issei kept dodging as if it were a game between them.
Xenovia and Kiba were clashing blades constantly, but Xenovia's Excalibur Destruction was stronger, shattering Kiba's weapons every time.
"Sword Birth... I heard that Sacred Gear was created in one of the church's heretical experiments," Xenovia remarked.
"Then you know why I'm seeking revenge!" Kiba snapped.
Kiba held a large sword in his hands—the strongest sword in terms of raw power he could generate. However, it was useless when Xenovia put all her strength into the clash between her weapon and his.
"Your anger blinds you!" Xenovia cried.
Xenovia shattered Kiba's sword instantly. She concentrated her aura to break more and more of the blonde's blades. His movements had become predictable due to his emotions. The exorcist predicted his next move and knocked Kiba out when he tried to attack in a fury once more.
"My opponent isn't you; you aren't worthy of it. My opponent is him," Xenovia stated as Kiba fell. The boy's hatred became even more glaring as he heard those words.
"I'm getting tired of dodging," Issei said.
"You're annoying!" Irina yelled.
Irina was exhausted from trying to hit Issei and failing every time. He was just playing with her during this exchange.
"Should we do that childhood friend cliché and get married??" Issei joked.
Issei thought of a fun idea as he finally moved his hands to make a play. Irina attacked again with even more speed, riled up by his teasing.
"You filthy devil!" Irina screamed.
Issei didn't waste time. He moved his left hand rapidly to strike Irina's wrist and disarm her. The exorcist was stunned, but the next move was even more surprising: Issei used his hands to scoop Irina up in a bridal carry.
"Now, let's head to the registry office," Issei said.
"What???" everyone exclaimed.
Xenovia attacked Issei from behind while the devil was trying to walk off with her friend. Rias and the others were also tempted to attack the playboy who was flirting mid-battle.
Issei jumped and landed on the flat of Xenovia's Excalibur blade, maintaining perfect balance while holding Irina in his arms.
"Do you want to marry me too?? Geez... I'm so popular!" Issei laughed.
Rias and the Gremory group felt a collective headache. He was creating unnecessary problems again.
"Perverted devil!!" Xenovia roared.
Issei stepped off Xenovia's sword with grace. Irina didn't try to get down, fearing she might accidentally get sliced by her furious partner. The boy kept dodging the attacks of the blushing, irate exorcist.
"Die!!" Xenovia swung again.
Issei kicked Xenovia's wrist and lunged forward toward the blue-haired girl once he saw her disarmed and defenseless.
"I win!" Issei declared.
Issei ended the fight with a kiss on the blue-haired exorcist's lips. He pulled away quickly and gave one to his childhood friend as well before gently setting her down and walking away.
"What??" Xenovia and Irina stammered.
"What!!!" everyone else shouted.
Issei approached the Gremory group and saw two women fuming with rage. He knew he had to manage his loved ones' situation immediately.
"Explain this! Now!" Rias demanded.
"Issei-san..." Asia whimpered.
Issei didn't explain with words. Instead, he kissed each of them on the lips—a much longer kiss than the ones he gave the exorcists.
"You'll have to kiss us a lot more if you want forgiveness," Rias pouted.
"Yes, much more," Asia agreed.
"I'll do that at home while we watch something," Issei promised.
The girls were happy to hear that; he was essentially promising to spend romantic one-on-one time with them. Meanwhile, the two exorcists felt humiliated, watching the devil steal their purity and walk away as if nothing had happened.
"He's going to pay," Xenovia hissed.
"He's going to take responsibility!" Irina added.
The two left the area in a fury, feeling they had suffered enough humiliation for one day from the blindfolded boy.
"Senpai should stop doing that," Koneko muttered.
"I'm so jealous of those girls," Akeno whispered.
Kiba was being healed inside the Occult Research Club. He woke up with the same expression of hatred.
"I'm going after them," Kiba said.
"But the problem isn't them; it's the Fallen Angels," Rias reasoned.
"But they are Excalibur users. I need to destroy those swords, because that is my reason for living," Kiba proclaimed. His hatred flared as he remembered the suffering he endured.
"Could you explain your past to me??" Issei asked.
"It's none of your business," Kiba replied.
Issei stood directly in front of Kiba. The comment was disrespectful, but that wasn't why Issei blocked his path.
"Explain it from your own mouth, or you aren't leaving this room," Issei commanded.
Kiba forged a sword with his Sacred Gear and attacked. The blindfolded Issei dodged effortlessly and punched him in the stomach.
"Your anger blinds you. You aren't at your peak," Issei told him.
Issei wasn't intimidated by Kiba's current state. The Yuuto Kiba he knew was powerful enough to make him remove his blindfold, but the man in front of him now was not.
"Go home, everyone. I'll make Kiba vent and get him feeling better by tomorrow," Issei said.
"You don't understand anything!!" Kiba screamed.
Kiba kept attacking, and Issei kept pushing him back with a single punch. Issei wasn't using enough force to knock him out, just enough to throw him back.
"I trust you, Ise," Rias said.
"Take care of him, Issei-san," Asia added.
"Yuuto-senpai is in good hands," Koneko muttered.
"Take care of Kiba, Issei," Akeno finished.
The group left, leaving only Issei and Kiba. Rias's knight continued to attack with fury, and Issei continued to block him from the door.
"Let me go, or things will get ugly," Kiba threatened.
"There's no way things can get ugly with your current strength and that hatred," Issei countered.
Kiba lunged again with a blade forged from his malice—a demonic blade. It did nothing. Issei kicked him in the stomach to shove him back.
"Why are you doing this?? Why are you stopping my revenge??" Kiba cried.
"Because of our friendship," Issei replied.
Kiba was shocked. This man still considered him a friend even after he had attacked with intent to kill.
"I don't deserve that. I'm just a discarded item living for revenge as a devil," Kiba sobbed.
"It's incredible how such an amazing person can see himself so lowly," Issei said.
Kiba began to cry as he remembered his past. His fury evaporated, leaving only a fragile person. Issei sat beside him, ready to listen to everything the blonde had to say.
"We were a group of children taken in for a heretical church project. Our mission was to create an artificial wielder for Excalibur... we wanted to be useful to God, but we only received tests, experiments, and drugs... more and more of us died," Kiba shared.
Kiba's hatred resurfaced as he spoke of his dead friends. He couldn't stop the tears.
"They were discovered and killed almost all of us to eliminate the evidence. I was the only survivor."
Kiba hated remembering the moment he met Rias; though she was a blessing, it always brought him back to his past.
"I'm glad I stopped you," Issei said.
Kiba looked at his friend's smile, confused. Issei understood his reasons, but still wouldn't let him have his revenge?
"Kiba... you are dishonoring your fallen friends. I don't believe any of them told you to get revenge. They told you to live, didn't they??" Issei asked.
Kiba was stunned. He remembered the moments he fled, his friends smiling in their final moments, telling him to run.
"Excalibur is just a weapon; there is nothing inherently evil in them to be destroyed. The object of your revenge shouldn't be the swords; it should be those who use them for evil," Issei argued.
"Those who use them for evil??" Kiba whispered.
Kiba was perplexed. His hatred was evaporating as the memories of his friends became vivid in his mind.
"Live to honor your friends' sacrifice. Use the sword in your hand to punish those who use power for evil, just like they did to you," Issei encouraged.
"So I should live happily?? I should punish those who misuse the holy swords??"
"Exactly. By doing that, you won't be taking out your anger on a feelingless object. It's like hitting a pistol; the pistol isn't to blame for anything. The blame lies with the one who pulls the trigger," Issei explained.
Kiba realized how ridiculous he had been, blinded by hate. He had been attacking a "pistol" called Excalibur. He was hitting the wrong target.
"And if I need help??" Kiba asked.
"I'll be right here," Issei promised.
"Thank you..."
Kiba hugged Issei while shedding his final tears. They talked until dawn, with Kiba happily telling stories about how incredible his friends were, and Issei listening intently.
The Gremory group arrived at the room later to find the two sleeping together, looking exhausted.
"It seems Issei achieved what I couldn't," Rias whispered.
"I'm happy for that," Akeno added.
"Issei-san is incredible in the way he can pacify and get close to others," Asia said.
"Stupid Senpai seems to have done it," Koneko noted.
Issei and Kiba woke up a few hours later, looking quite cozy.
"Rias, can you call those exorcists and Sona's group??" Issei asked.
Rias saw the serious look in Issei's eyes and knew something big was coming. They needed to act fast.
"It seems something major is approaching," Rias said.
"It is, but let's end this quickly," Issei replied.
Everyone Issei requested was now in the room. Saji seemed happy to be near the blindfolded boy. The exorcists did not look pleased; they seemed very uncomfortable but stayed for the food offered. Sona and her group were calm, knowing Issei had something important to say.
"Let's begin. Kiba, tell us what you've seen these past few nights," Issei directed.
Kiba stepped forward. He no longer looked at Irina or Xenovia's Excaliburs with rage. He was indifferent to the weapons now.
"I saw that crazy priest named Freed with an Excalibur. I suspect Freed is linked to someone from the heretical project I was subjected to—someone high-level," Kiba reported.
Xenovia looked thoughtful. A heretical priest with an Excalibur and someone from the Holy Sword Project... things were adding up.
"Which Fallen Angel are you looking for??" Issei asked.
"The Cadre of Grigori, Kokabiel," Xenovia answered.
The group was shocked. Someone of that level being in Kuoh Town was bad news.
"Could you two separate and form small squads with parts of the Gremory and Sitri clans for a faster scout of the city??" Issei suggested.
Irina and Xenovia listened intently. Sona and Rias were evaluating which points to approve or deny.
"Aren't you going to act personally??" Sona asked.
"I am too powerful. I fear I would kill Freed too easily, and our goal now is to draw Kokabiel into a fight," Issei explained.
Everyone was stunned by Issei's claim that he could kill an Excalibur user so easily.
"How strong have you become??" Saji asked.
"I've reached Balance Breaker. I haven't mastered it yet, but I've reached it," Issei revealed.
The room went silent. The boy had reached Balance Breaker and was counting on it to defeat Kokabiel.
"We are going to lure Freed and his group into combat, but until Kokabiel shows himself, I can't come out. I don't want that man to have any idea of my true strength. Rias and Sona will work out the strategy for each squad; they are better at tactics than I am," Issei concluded.
"We'll force small skirmishes so Kokabiel thinks he can win with just his subordinates, then pull him out??" Sona asked.
"We'll strike him down as soon as he leaves his hole," Rias added.
"Exactly!" Issei agreed.