A Phantom Thief's attire must be flamboyant, their demeanor and words extravagant, and naturally, their swordsmanship must prioritize spectacle over pure efficiency.
But when wielding a blade as Luna, she could discard all such formalities.
Excessive flourishes? Unnecessary.
Find the precise angle, and strike.
A plain, unadorned yet lightning-fast and powerful slash brought forth a fleeting crimson blossom.
The scattered droplets of blood didn't stain her hair or gown. Her golden locks danced with the sway of her dress as the rising sword-light cleaved through flesh once more!
Every strike, whether in force or angle, was executed with exquisite precision.
Non-lethal, yet capable of draining an enemy's strength in a single breath.
Her rising kick struck squarely on the man's face, eliciting a muffled groan before two thugs were sent into a baby-like slumber.
"What?!"
Even knowing Luna was an elite member of the Adventurer's Guild, could an elite be this overwhelming?
Two fully armed, burly men had been downed with just two sword strikes and a single kick?
Damn it! Colter gritted his teeth and squeezed the trigger.
Bang! The gunshot briefly tore through the sound of rushing water, only to be extinguished by a flash of sword light that sent sparks flying before falling silent.
As if the bullet had been sliced in mid-air.
Colter was stunned. How can she even deflect bullets?
"Damn it..."
He tossed aside his pistol and drew two daggers.
"Attack!"
Before the other thugs could move, a dark blur darted toward them. Two flashes of crimson light, and they collapsed to the ground.
"Four."
Luna flicked the blood off her sword.
Colter retreated a step, fear creeping into his heart.
But how could he swallow this humiliation without killing Navia? With a guttural roar, he lunged at Luna, slashing with his daggers.
Yet even faster than his blades was that icy gleam.
Clang! Clang! The daggers were sent flying by an imperceptible sword shadow.
Before Colter could react, a sudden pressure slammed into his chest, sending him hurtling uncontrollably against the wall.
He opened his eyes, gasping for breath, only to see a sword blade piercing his coat and pinning him to the wall!
Nowhere to run?!
Colter frantically tried to tear his clothes open, but in the next instant—
Bang! Luna's kick landed squarely on his face! Colter sank into a deep, baby-like slumber.
"Good night, Monsieur Colter."
"From now on, neither Poisson nor the Spina di Rosula will ever welcome you again. Spending the rest of your life in the beautiful Fortress of Meropide might not be such a bad choice, after all."
She lifted her leg and casually brushed the dust off her boot.
Then Luna withdrew her sword, and the unconscious Colter slid to the ground.
"All done. Let's go, Nana. Nothing can stop us now."
Luna smiled faintly.
Silver's sunglasses fell to the ground.
How formidable!
Could their young miss really capture Miss Luna?
Navia chuckled. "So cool! Lulu used to seem like a princess, but now... perhaps she's actually..."
"A prince?"
"...a remarkably capable princess!"
Still a princess, then? Luna shook her head.
Navia's smile faded. "Silver, I'll leave the cleanup to you!"
"Ah, okay... Go get 'em, Young Miss!"
"Hmm? Yeah!"
She must be talking about disarming the bomb.
Navia gave a thumbs-up, flashing a radiant smile that could put anyone at ease, then dashed toward the Clementine Line with Luna.
"It's the Spina di Rosula! Attack!"
The Romeuf Gang guards stationed near the explosives charged at them the moment they appeared.
Navia narrowed her eyes. "Don't think you can stop us! Prepare to witness my new technique!"
New technique?
"Where did you get a new technique?"
Luna asked, puzzled.
"Why, that's obviously—"
Navia held an umbrella in one hand and an axe in the other.
She grinned confidently. "—something I just came up with on the spot!"
An umbrella concealing a pistol mechanism and a heavy axe. Though their weights were mismatched, in Navia's hands they moved as lightly as a pair of single-handed swords.
Swinging, then boom! bang! smash!
As an afterthought, she kicked them flying, transforming them into projectiles with sheer force, sending them crashing into the Romeuf Gang members' bodies.
"Aaaaargh!"
"What truly tragic screams," Luna remarked.
Navia chuckled. "Don't worry, they're not dead! I know my limits. But speaking of which..."
Her gaze fell on the explosives.
"How do we disarm this?"
"Leave it to me. 'Father' taught me how to defuse explosives," Luna said, crouching down and precisely disconnecting the detonator.
Navia's expression was nuanced. "What exactly do you children from the House of the Hearth learn, anyway?"
"It's such a shame you're not joining the Special Task Force."
"It's not like we've never encountered enemies who wanted to blow us up," Luna remarked casually, successfully disarming the explosive.
"Your lives are so dangerous..." Navia remarked.
"It's not like this happens every time," Luna replied. "Besides, anyone who dares to try something like this is already a ghost under Arlecchino's command."
Luna scanned the surroundings, using her Thief's Vision to search for any remaining explosives.
"There might be more explosives. I'll go that way, you go this way. If you find anything, use this to signal me!" Navia handed Luna a signal flare gun.
"Got it."
Navia glanced up at the Clementine Line's waterway before sprinting off in the opposite direction.
Navia searched her assigned area for a while but found no other explosives.
Perhaps Romeuf and his gang had only prepared one bomb, but one with an exceptionally large payload. It certainly had the power to destroy the entire waterway's support pillars.
Just as this thought crossed her mind, Navia heard a deafening explosion.
Boom—!
It was an explosion.
Looking up, Navia saw countless boulders tumbling down the mountain, their trajectory aimed directly at Poisson.
She slammed on the brakes, reloaded her weapon, and positioned herself grimly between the town and the falling rocks.
Suddenly, her eyes widened.
Beyond the endless cascade of boulders, at the far end of her line of sight, she recognized a familiar figure.
"Sister Navia!"
"Adele?!"
Adele was Callas' informant, the daughter of Jacques, who had long since died.
Now, she was being held hostage by a man, a gun pressed against her temple.
That's the guy who was tailing us yesterday! Navia recognized him instantly.
Martinat chuckled softly, "Heh heh heh..."
Thanks to that brainless Colter causing chaos over there, they had seized the opportunity to capture Poisson's residents.
A child, no—better yet, just a child.
"Make one wrong move, and I'll kill her!" Martinat shouted.
Surely the President of the Spina di Rosula wouldn't abandon a child to die, would she?
Navia gritted her teeth, thinking, This is utterly despicable!
But if she didn't destroy these boulders, Poisson would be... and there might still be people who hadn't been evacuated...
But if the rocks were destroyed, Adele would be killed.
Without a doubt, this was a classic dilemma:
Choose the death of one to save many?
Or sacrifice many to save one?
She took a deep breath.
Fortunately, she had never faced such difficulties and dangers alone.
With the mask on, she was her opponent; with it off, she was her partner.
Despite their opposing stances, she had never truly harmed her, even proactively shielding her from potential threats.
Yet no one could bend her will; she acted entirely on her own terms. Still, she couldn't tear her gaze away—both burdened by sin and dazzlingly radiant, a habitual liar yet utterly pure.
Such a being stood right beside her.
"I'm counting on you!"
Click. The pocket watch's button sounded, and countless falling rocks slowed to a crawl.
Martinat watched the scene with apprehension and uncertainty.
Wait, this ability... could it be...?
Whatever! Martinat steeled his resolve and pulled the trigger.
But nothing happened. No matter how hard he pressed, the pistol refused to fire, despite him having loaded it with bullets himself.
Why aren't you shooting?!
A flash of crimson streaked through Martinat's peripheral vision.
His consciousness instantly fled, and he collapsed to the ground.
Adele slumped against the ground, staring blankly at the masked figure who had suddenly appeared before her.
"White Cat..." she murmured.
Luna smiled gently. "Though this isn't my usual forte, since my beloved Young Miss has requested it, allow me to show off a bit."
She drew her one-handed sword, its blade shimmering with rippling Hydro energy.
With a graceful leap, her sword's light transformed into countless Hydro Element sword slashes, splitting every falling rock in two.
This burst is really handy, Luna thought, thoroughly satisfied.
"Leave the rest to me—full firepower!"
Navia pointed her parasol tip, and the Rose Cannons erupted in a dazzling barrage, their brilliant projectiles engulfing the entire landscape!
Explosions, explosions, and more explosions... It was as if the falling rocks were being mercilessly pummeled by cannon fire.
Every last rock shattered into dust.
As the dust settled, Navia exhaled in relief.
She gazed up at Luna, standing atop the hillside, closed her eyes, and remained silent for a moment.
Finally, a gentle smile graced her lips.
"Thank you"
Luna simply returned with her own gentle smile and curtsying gracefully.