"Rael? What is he doing here?"
At once, her eyes flickered and her lips shivered, but in the next moment, it was replaced by a frown on her face, "What's the meaning of this, demon?"
"What does it look like, Angel of Light?" Beelzebub let out a scoff.
"Despicable. How dare you involve weaklings in our battle? Where is your sense of honor?" Her blue eyes filled with hatred and her angry voice filled the surroundings. "Leave the mortal, alone." As she stretched the broadsword and pointed at the demon, divine energy formed a layer over its blade.
Beelzebub shrugged his shoulders, "Sorry, can't do it. Our battle was disadvantageous to me. There is no question of honor, here. It is all about survival. Now, if you and your master don't back away, I shall kill this boy."
"Heed to my call, Number 9..."
As the woman responded with a short incantation, a divine pillar shot from the sky and trapped Azzy as well as Beelzebub inside like some sort of prison barrier, taking the demon by shock. "A single-digit pillar?" His voice quivered a bit. "It's impossible. Only an Archangel can control a single-digit pillar.
Who in the hell are you?" He shouted, banging on the insides of the barrier without doing any damage to it.
The woman let out a smile, "I'm not just the disciple of Adam, demon. I'm also the Angel of Light, daughter of Michael, and the future goddess of creation. The name's Claire Lefeuvre. Nice to meet you."
Yes, it was none other than Claire, Azzy's lover from the past whom he had been desperate to see for the past few years.
"Michael's daughter and the future host to 'his' soul?" Beelzebub furrowed his brows, thinking deeply.
Pointing the sword at him, Claire spoke, "From the start, I can capture you at any time. I merely want to test my battle prowess as such chances are hard to come by. There is so much you have yet to show, but unfortunately, you had to resort to threats against me. Hence, our battle is already over from the moment we met, Beelzebub. It is time for you to return with us."
"Not yet, lady," Beelzebub quickly caught Azzy's neck from the back and pressed it with his claws with a malicious grin on his face, "You made a big mistake by revealing your identity as the Angel of Light and the successor of the Creator's throne. That only means you are obligated to prioritize the mortal's safety over anything."
With the Adamantine crown appeared on Azzy's head as soon as he fell to the ground, an enormous amount of life force was flown into his body and healed him instantly. However, for some reason, he didn't regain his consciousness yet.
Claire dismissed her Arcana spirit and nodded as she took a glance at Azzy, "I know that mortal from the past, Master. He was a friend. That is why I dared to take the risk."
"But, he should have died," Adam's response remained cold. He continued to speak in a disapproving tone, "The Jewel of Life isn't invincible. If not for his sturdy physique and aided by the luck, your earlier attack would have killed him in the process."
"In that case..." Claire took out an emerald gem, which is as tiny as a finger, out of nowhere and showed it to her master, "I planned on taking responsibility by using this Jewel of Time's fragment on him and reverse his death."
"Ssss..." Adam couldn't help but hiss at her response, "Cosmic Jewel fragments aren't supposed to be used for such selfish reasons. They were gathered to protect worlds."
Claire didn't say anything for a while and looked down. Eventually, Adam's anger subsided and he let out a sigh, "Let's go."
"What to do with him?" Claire pointed her finger at the unconscious Azzy. To which, Adam responded by pushing his palm toward Azzy. In an instant, an oval-shaped barrier appears over the seventeen-year-old. "He will be fine unless a true god tries to kill him. After he wakes up, the barrier will dissolve on its own. Anything after that is not our responsibility.
Let's go."
Claire nodded in understanding.
Soon, a portal was opened by Adam and both of them walked into it while carrying their prisoner.
Once it disappeared, another portal opened and Leah walked out of it with Louis.
They hurriedly reached Azzy, who also seemed like he gained consciousness but wasn't moving from the spot. There was also a teardrop that was hanging at the edge of his right eye.
"Azrael, are you alright?" Leah shook his arms as she asked worriedly. Louis calmly watched from the side. He had questions but kept his mouth shut, as it was not the right time to ask.
Azzy slowly opened his mouth in a hushed tone, "Why? Why did she abandon me? Am I just an acquaintance for her that is of no significance?"