Becoming The Strongest Angel With A Saintess System-Chapter 34: The Celestial Banquet, Part Eight

Diana stood between Grace and Isolde, her golden sword locked against Isolde's black-red blade. The weapons sparked where they touched, sending little flashes of light across the balcony.

"Friend of yours?" Diana asked Grace without looking back.

"I-I'm literally new here! What do you even mean!?" Grace wheezed, clutching her still-healing chest wound.

Isolde snarled and jumped back, swinging her blade in a wide arc. Diana blocked it again, but Grace noticed something weird—Diana's hands were shaking. The powerful, confident warrior who terrorized Grace on a daily basis during training was shaking?

"Diana of the Bravery Sisters," Isolde sneered. "It might be better to just hand her over."

They circled each other slowly. Diana kept herself positioned in front of Grace, who was trying to stand up straight despite feeling like her insides had been scrambled.

"You okay back there, rookie?" Diana called, not taking her eyes off Isolde.

"Just peachy," Grace grunted. "Being stabbed through the heart isn't fun."

Diana glanced back.

"Ouch."

Isolde laughed.

"Your little pet project is harder to shut up than expected."

"No one's talking to you!"

Diana lunged forward, her blade slicing through the air. Isolde parried and countered, moving faster than Grace could track. The two angels clashed across the balcony in a flurry of strikes and blocks.

Grace tried to follow, but her legs were wobbly. The wounds were healing—golden light knitting her flesh back together—but the pain lingered, leaving her weak and unsteady.

[This is SO not how I pictured my first fancy party going.]

"I heard about your last mission," Isolde taunted as she blocked another of Diana's strikes. "How many angels died while you fled?"

Diana's rhythm faltered. Just for a second. But it was enough.

Isolde saw the opening and struck, her blade arcing toward Diana's exposed side.

[Wait, no!]

For a moment, Grace didn't think. She just moved.

She threw herself forward, summoning every bit of strength left in her still un-healed, battered body. Her Blade of Dawn came up just in time, deflecting Isolde's attack in a shower of golden sparks.

"Back off!" Grace shouted, nearly falling over from the effort.

Diana grabbed her arm, steadying her.

"What are you doing? You can barely stand!"

"Helping," Grace panted.

Isolde laughed, twirling her weapon.

"How touching. The coward and the newborn, standing together against—"

The balcony doors exploded inward with a crash so loud it made Grace's ears ring. Shards of crystal flew everywhere as a massive figure burst through.

"YAAAAAAHOOOOO!"

Seraph charged onto the balcony like a raging bull, a giant blazing axe in her hands and a manic grin on her face. Behind her poured a squad of golden-armored Bravery Sisters, all with weapons drawn.

Isolde's eyes widened. "Well, this got crowded fast."

"DROP YOUR WEAPON!" Seraph bellowed, pointing her axe at Isolde. "Or I'll PERSONALLY rip those gray wings off your back!"

Instead of looking scared, Isolde laughed.

"Fine, fine," she said, backing toward the edge of the balcony. "I guess I can cut this short... Besides, the real fun hasn't even started yet."

"What does that mean?" Grace demanded, still leaning against Diana.

Isolde grinned, the blue-purple aura around her flaring brighter.

"It means I'll see you again soon, demon killer. When the real fun begins."

Then she dove backward off the balcony, disappearing into the night sky below.

Seraph rushed to the edge, peering down into the darkness.

"She's gone! One of you—follow her!"

Two Bravery Sisters immediately jumped off the balcony, their wings extending as they dove after Isolde.

The balcony was suddenly flooded with even more angels pouring through the broken doors. Celestia appeared, her rainbow wings spread wide, followed by Sariel and her Veil representatives. Venus and Mara pushed through the crowd next, along with what looked like half the banquet guests.

Everyone was talking at once.

"What happened?"

"Was that Isolde?"

"The demon killer is injured!"

"The balcony is destroyed!"

Celestia raised her hand, and silence fell immediately.

"Diana," she said, her voice calm but carrying an edge. "Explain."

Diana straightened up, but kept one hand on Grace's arm.

"I followed Grace out here and found her being attacked by Isolde."

"Isolde is one of ours," Sariel cut in, stepping forward. Her dark eyes were cold. "A respected member of The Veil. What reason would she have to attack anyone?"

"Oh, I don't know," Diana shot back. "I would take a guess that she's become corrupted, though."

"Probably something to do with that aura..." Grace muttered.

Sariel's eyebrows rose.

"Aura? What aura?"

[Uh...]

"I saw it," Grace said, finding her voice. "My medallion showed me. She was surrounded by this bad energy. Like smoke."

The crowd murmured. Celestia and Sariel exchanged a look that Grace couldn't read.

"Are you suggesting," Sariel said slowly, narrowing her eyes at Grace, "that one of my people is... tainted?"

"I'm not suggesting anything," Diana snapped instead. "I'm telling you what happened. Isolde attacked Grace. Multiple times. With intent to harm. Aura stuff aside, she wasn't fighting Grace for fun. She wanted to hurt her."

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The tension in the air felt thick enough to cut. Sariel's gray-winged companions moved closer to her, their hands drifting toward weapons hidden in their robes. Seraph and her Bravery Sisters responded by tightening their formation.

[Oh great. Now we're going to have a full-on angel brawl.]

"Perhaps," a smooth voice interrupted, "we should focus on healing the injured before assigning blame."

Venus stepped forward, placing herself between the two factions. Her golden eyes flicked from Sariel to Celestia.

"Grace needs attention," she continued, her voice reasonable and calm. "And this discussion would be better held in private, wouldn't you agree?"

Grace was shocked. Venus, the flirty, boundary-pushing leader of the Love Sisters, was playing peacemaker?

Celestia nodded slowly.

"A wise suggestion. Sariel, we will discuss this matter in the Council Chamber. Privately."

Sariel's face remained perfectly composed.

"Very well. But I expect a full investigation." She turned to her companions. "We should find Isolde. Clearly she is... unwell."

With a final frigid glance at Grace, Sariel and her gray-winged entourage swept off the balcony, spreading their wings and diving into the night after Isolde.

The crowd began to disperse, guided by Seraph's booming commands. Mara hurried over to Grace, her huge chest bouncing as she moved.

"Let me see those wounds," she said, already reaching toward Grace's chest.

"I'm alright," Grace protested weakly. "They're healing."

"Far too slowly," Mara corrected, placing her hands over the worst injury. Cool, soothing energy flowed into Grace, speeding up the healing process. "They may not kill you, but divine weapons leave lasting damage. You'll need proper care."

As Mara worked, Grace realized Diana was still holding her arm, keeping her steady. Their eyes met, and for once, Diana didn't look away or scowl.

"You jumped in front of that attack," Diana said quietly. "That was stupid."

"You're welcome," Grace replied.

"I didn't thank you."

"You didn't need to."

Diana sighed.

"Don't make it a habit. Next time, just let me get stabbed."

Diana finally released her arm, rolling her eyes.

Celestia approached them, her expression grave.

"Grace, Diana, I need to speak with you both. Once you're healed," she added, nodding at Mara.

"What about the banquet?" Grace asked.

"I believe it's over for tonight," Celestia said, glancing at the shattered doors. "Seraph's interruption was rather... definitive."

As if on cue, Seraph bounded over, looking far too excited for someone who'd just interrupted an assassination attempt.

"DID YOU SEE MY ENTRANCE?!" she boomed. "I've been WAITING for a chance to use that door-smashing technique!"

Grace sighed, slumping against Diana's shoulder. It was going to be a long night.