This was truly a scene of ice and fire.
First came a blizzard that turned the surrounding area into a frozen plain. Then came surging flames, sweeping out like a sea of fire, illuminating the entire residence of the Izanagi-style and incinerating the shikigami one after another.
The "Fire Realm Incantation" was originally a spell designed specifically for exorcising spiritual disasters, extremely effective against spiritual entities. Only the version known as the Fire Realm Incantation was the one that could truly burn away the Three Thousand Worlds with the divine flames of Fudo Myo-o. Therefore, exorcists placed great importance on the Fire Realm Incantation, with many treating it as their primary offensive technique—Rozen included.
Now, the one Rozen used was merely a normal Fire Realm Incantation, not the True version under Fudo Myo-o's Doctrine. Yet, since the enemies were shikigami formed from miasma, this spell's power was undoubtedly impressive—burning them to ash and even evaporating the miasma itself.
As a result, the ground transformed into a frozen plain remained completely unaffected—the snow and ice did not melt.
This was because the Fire Realm Incantation, specialized in targeting spiritual entities, had poor physical interference capabilities. Unless Rozen used an excessive amount of jutsuryoku, the ice and snow would not be melted.
And so, the place was transformed into a true realm of ice and fire.
Rozen merely walked forward slowly, while flames sprayed out in all directions—burning the shikigami and forcing the Izanagi clan onmyoji to retreat.
The Izanagi onmyoji immediately panicked.
"Stop him!"
"Don't let him reach the inner sanctum!"
"Who the hell is this guy?"
"A puppet user?"
"Then where's his doll?"
"What kind of magic is this fire!? It's way too deadly to the shikigami!"
"Damn it!"
A group of onmyoji kept summoning shikigami to attack Rozen, but they were blocked by the raging flames—like moths flying into the fire, they were incinerated one by one.
Even the high-ranking and elderly onmyoji couldn't sit still any longer.
"Deploy the barrier!"
A voice suddenly rang out.
It was a familiar face.
At least to Rozen—he had met the man before.
Back when the Akabane family came to visit, it was this man who received Rozen and the others at the gate.
This was Yuge, the head of the prestigious Yuge family of the Izanagi clan—second only to the Domon and Kamo clans. He was Mutsura's father.
Beside him stood a middle-aged man who seemed quite familiar with him.
That must be the head of the Kamo family, Subaru's father.
The Kamo and Yuge families were the right and left hands of the Domon.
Thus, these two men were also the left and right arms of Domon Kira within the Izanagi clan, with a status just below her.
"Activate the barrier! Stop his advance!" Kamo shouted.
The Izanagi onmyoji immediately seemed to regain their backbone, shifting positions, forming a formation, making hand seals, and throwing out talismans infused with magic power.
In the next second, a layer of barrier rose from the surroundings like an invisible wall.
Rozen was trapped within the barrier, and the expanding flames were also blocked by it.
The scene looked as if a sea of fire had been isolated, with Rozen standing at its center.
Rozen recognized the barrier.
"Is this the Severance Barrier?"
—Severance Barrier.
This was a high-level magic that could completely isolate the inside of the barrier from the outside. Although one could observe the interior from the outside, no magic, explosions, or even air could pass through. It functioned much like the Eight Trigram Barrier in certain forms of stealth magic.
Rozen's Fire Realm Incantation was thus stopped by this barrier, and he himself was trapped inside.
Rozen immediately halted his steps.
Not because of the barrier—but because a giant shadow descended from the sky to strike.
It was a shikigami resembling a terrifying oni, its entire body covered in bulging muscle, standing at three meters tall—twice the size of a human.
The miasma and magical power emanating from this shikigami were leagues above the previous ones—comparable even to the miasma of Golden Rose, Astrid.
Rozen recognized this shikigami too.
He had met it once before.
Back when he met Domon Kira here, she had been sitting cross-legged atop this very shikigami.
Its name—
"Shuten Dōji."
This was a giant shikigami modeled after Shuten Dōji, fundamentally different from ordinary shikigami.
The giant shikigami came crashing down from the sky, slamming a massive fist toward Rozen.
"Boom!"
Amidst a deafening roar, the heart of the flaming sea within the barrier seemed to be struck by a storm, sending shockwaves rippling outward.
The shikigami's punch was like thunder—scattering the sea of flames.
But the strike was blocked by the fluttering hem of Rozen's haori.
"——"
Rozen immediately chanted a seed syllable.
It was the seed syllable mantra of Kujaku Myōō, the deity that devours poison and magic.
"Boom!"
The power of the seed syllable struck the giant shikigami—blasting it away and violently stripping away its miasma. It was as though an invisible force had devoured a chunk of the shikigami—its abdomen caved in and its shoulder was missing an entire section.
Yet the giant shikigami barely maintained its form, gathering miasma to heal itself while retreating to the side of an old woman who had emerged from the inner sanctum.
"…So it's you. I was wondering who had the guts to invade the Izanagi clan like this."
Domon Kira walked onto the battlefield, staring at Rozen, her expression dangerously grim.
Behind her stood Subaru and Mutsura, supporting Hinowa, who had also taken the opportunity to rush over.
"Rozen!"
"Rozen!"
Seeing him trapped inside the barrier, Subaru and Mutsura shouted in shock.
"Rozen-sama…!?"
Hinowa gasped. She felt both moved and overwhelmed by finally seeing Rozen again, but also frightened by the fact that he had come alone.
Naturally, Rozen noticed Hinowa and the others.
Seeing Hinowa so frail and worn, he frowned, then relaxed, shifting his gaze to Domon Kira.
"It's been a while, Domon Clan Head."
Rozen spoke calmly.
That demeanor caused Domon Kira's eyes to narrow.
"It really has been many years," she said coldly. "I didn't expect that the prodigious boy from back then would grow into a magus even the world's superpowers have to fear—one who even defeated the strongest magus of the 19th century. I never imagined you'd come this far."
"But…"
Murderous intent surged from Kira's body.
"Now that your wings have grown, you think the Izanagi can be supressed, is that it?"
Her voice was filled with rage.
Clearly, Rozen's bold intrusion was a great insult to her.
But—
"Compared to what you did to the Akabane clan back then, this is just a light appetizer, don't you think?"
Rozen's words made Kira's pupils shrink.
Now she finally understood Rozen's true purpose.
He was here for revenge.
To avenge the massacre from years ago.