Chapter 59 – The Heroes Sacrifice

The snow melted away as Ren took his first step forward. Yamato gleamed in his hand, its crimson sheath glowing under the moonlight. Lucifer watched with a twisted grin, spinning his rapier between his fingers.

“Do you really think a new sword will change your fate?” he laughed, his voice sharp and mocking. “No matter how many gods lend you their power… I am still superior!”

Ren raised the katana, tilting it with calm precision. The cannon built into the guard let out a low hum, like a beast straining to roar.

“It’s not the sword,” Ren said. “It’s the weight it carries.”

Before Lucifer could reply, Ren pulled the trigger.

“Trinity Dark Star!”

A surge of dark energy, wreathed in solar fire and biting frost, split through the night like a bolt of lightning. The blast slammed into Lucifer’s rapier, knocking it off balance and forcing him back several steps. Snow exploded beneath his feet, melting instantly under the force of the shockwave.

Lucifer stared in disbelief at the smoke curling from his arm. His skin, charred black, was regenerating—but far too slowly.

“…What is this?” he muttered, laughter breaking into his voice.

Ren aimed again, his eyes sharp, unwavering.

“This is the end, Lucifer.”

The demon king raised his rapier, madness and delight mingling in his gaze.

“Excellent! Show me how a mere human dares to kill a demon king!”

Ren’s katana shone. The final battle had begun.

Lucifer lunged like lightning, his thrust tearing through the very air. But this time, Ren blocked it with Yamato. For a fleeting instant, the demon felt the blade drawing in his demonic power.

“You’re faster than before, but—” He never finished. Ren countered immediately.

A horizontal slash carved open Lucifer’s chest, forcing him back with a growl of pain. Ren stood his ground, calm, analyzing every breath, every twitch, as if weighing the battlefield before his next strike.

“I suppose I should stop playing around… this is no longer a joke,” Lucifer said, his tone suddenly grave.

Ren lowered into the Aseina stance, his eyes glacial, the katana held as if it bore the weight of the entire world.

“Whenever you’re ready. I’m more than prepared.”

Lucifer burst out laughing, thrilled.

“Yes! That’s how it should be! A duel to the death—every swing of the sword staking our very lives!” He paused, smirking with irony. “Though it’s only a saying. Demons can’t truly die. I’ll just reincarnate again.”

Ren tilted his head, his voice sharp as steel.

“Are you so sure of that?”

Silence fell for a single second. Then the world exploded.

Lucifer charged in fury, his rapier tracing a crimson path that split the air like cracks in reality. Ren surged forward with Yamato, each clash sending out waves that shattered stone and ripped the snow apart. The heavens themselves seemed to fracture with every strike—light against darkness, sun against abyss—in an impossible waltz.

“Rose Waltz!” Lucifer roared, his thrust multiplying into hundreds of crimson reflections, all aimed to pierce Ren’s body.

“Aseina Style - Silent Winter!” Ren bellowed, unleashing a diagonal slash that burst into a torrent of ice, each shard forming a mirror that bent Lucifer’s thrusts aside.

Their attacks collided, detonating into a storm of fire and frost. Lucifer appeared above Ren like a flash of lightning, the tip of his rapier aimed straight at the executioner’s heart.

Ren pulled the trigger.

“Trinity Dark Star!”

A blinding shot erupted from Yamato, a fusion of darkness, solar fire, and howling blizzard. The blast struck Lucifer full in the face, smashing him into the ground and carving out a smoking crater, like a frozen volcano torn open.

The demon staggered back to his feet, half his face slowly regenerating, raw muscle still exposed.

“Impossible!” he spat, laughing through his frenzy. “Not even in my darkest ages… have I ever felt pain like this!”

Ren gave no answer. His footsteps crunched against the melting ice—closer, firmer with every stride.

Lucifer raised his head, eyes blazing with madness.

“Magnificent! Then give me everything! Make this eternity worth living, Phantom!”

Ren leveled Yamato, the flame in his chest blazing as though the Trinity itself held him upright.

“With pleasure,” he replied, launching forward at full speed.

The final battle resumed, fiercer than any war ever recorded in history.

They clashed in a deadly dance, blades striking like thunder.

Every wound bleeding across Ren’s body was sealed only by a fragile flame, forcing his vitality to push beyond its limits.

Every slash tearing into Lucifer’s flesh closed with grotesque dark energy, his regeneration as unnatural as it was repulsive.

“You can’t hold out forever, boy!” the demon laughed, slamming into him. “No matter how many blessings you carry… in the end, you’re just a human!”

Ren staggered back, spitting blood that stained the snow crimson. His body was burning out too quickly—every breath a reminder that the Trinity devoured not just his strength, but his very soul.

And then, he laughed. A broken laugh, like joy and madness fused into one flame.

“How ironic… I wanted to enjoy this fight a little longer.”

Lucifer eyed him, amused and intrigued.

“You’ve been a worthy opponent, Phantom. I can’t remember the last time I was cornered like this… but it’s about time to end this farce.”

Ren lowered into the Aseina stance, eyes locked on the demon.

“You’re celebrating too early.”

“Still clinging to those same cuts… haven’t you learned anything?” Lucifer muttered, drawing his rapier with solemn weight. “Fine. I’ll grant you the final thrust.”

Ren gripped Yamato’s hilt and twisted the cannon. A black flame crawled along the sheath.

“—Trinity Burst!”

The black energy fused with searing sunlight and spears of frost, swirling around the blade. Ren clenched his teeth.

“I can’t lose… not again.”

Faces flashed through his mind like lightning: Yura holding Yukina, Ada, the members of Opera, the villagers of Yukihana. Each one a vow.

“I have people waiting for my victory. Their future rests in my hands.”

Lucifer burst into laughter, jagged and sharp. Darkness coiled around his rapier, twisting into a whip of shadow.

“Foolish idealist. You’ll die here once and for all.”

But Ren’s smile did not falter.

“Even if my body and soul are destroyed, my sacrifice won’t be in vain. That’s what it means to be a hero—to give everything for others.”

“Something a selfish demon like you could never understand.”

With a roar, Lucifer transformed. His figure stretched and warped, his crimson rapier drinking in the light until the night grew even darker.

“Keep dreaming, human! You are nothing!” he bellowed, raising his infernal blade.

“Inferno Gate—Apocalyptic Thrust!”

Like a blazing red meteor, the Demon King plummeted toward Ren, his ultimate technique set to cleave the world in two.

Ren didn’t move. His voice rang out, calm yet thunderous.

“I am… the storm that approaches.”

He held the Aseina stance, eyes closed, Yamato’s edge trembling as though it breathed. And in that instant, Lucifer saw them—whether he wished to or not. The silhouettes of Yura and Yukino stood behind Ren, their spirits united with his, preparing the strike together.

“Aseina Style…” Ren’s voice was unwavering.

“Dimensional Slash: Trinity Judgment!”

The collision erupted in pure cataclysm. Convictions clashed, tearing heaven and earth apart.

Lucifer screamed, his roar splitting the air as his apocalyptic thrust crashed against Ren’s absolute blade. Their powers warred, titanic, but slowly—inevitably—the demon began to yield. Ice spread from his feet upward, his crimson flames dying like spent embers.

“No… impossible! NO! Nooooooo!”

Ren roared, pouring out every last drop of strength, blood spilling from his lips, the flame of his life blazing at its peak.

“It’s over! Disappear forever!”

The Dimensional Slash carved across the world. A line of judgment stretched endlessly, cleaving everything in its path—even the sky itself.

Lucifer disintegrated, his body unraveling into fragments of shadow that scattered into dust… until nothing remained but a snowfall of ash drifting silently across the battlefield.

Ren sheathed his katana and raised it high, his hands trembling. His breathing was ragged, broken.

“Yura… Ada… I did it…” His voice cracked. “At last… we’re free…”

Then he collapsed onto the snow, a wide smile frozen on his face. Yamato shimmered, dissolving into golden particles that floated upward toward the blue moon—like the heavens themselves carrying away the final echo of his judgment.