Arlecchino's expression remained unchanged. "Is this your choice? Very well."
She raised her hand, and flames erupted from her palm. With a sudden clench of her fist—
Boom!
A massive burst of energy swept across the Duel Arena, knocking Filliol and the other children off their feet. A searing heat wave washed over Lyney and his companions, weighing heavily on their hearts and making it difficult to open their eyes.
Arlecchino rarely displayed her true power; there had never been any need.
Yet Luna stood firm at the front, her cloak billowing in the gale but her stance unwavering.
The familiar stance, the six moth-like, spider-like wings... Arlecchino had transformed.
Her power stemmed from three sources: her Vision, the Delusion granted by the Tsaritsa of Snezhnaya, and the cursed energy coursing through her veins.
Simply standing there, her aura alone was enough to paralyze her opponents.
"Let's skip the pointless probing. Formalities are unnecessary between us. Show me how you've grown, Luna."
Arlecchino wielded a pair of scythes, one large and one small, in either hand.
Luna tilted her crown slightly, a faint smile playing on her lips. "I'll give you your fill. Please, savor the taste of what I bring."
In the next instant, their figures vanished and reappeared in the blink of an eye. Their extreme speeds collided and crisscrossed in the void, erupting in sparks.
Freminet exclaimed in astonishment, "I can't see them..."
He couldn't track their movements at all!
Only Lynette, with her exceptional vision, could barely capture their speed and afterimages.
This made her even more astonished. When did Luna become so powerful?
She remembered the night they reunited with Luna. Back then, Luna's strength had been only slightly greater than hers and Lyney's.
Now, she was fighting Arlecchino to a standstill!
Arlecchino raised an eyebrow slightly. "This power... you've grown significantly stronger since last time."
"I evolve every day," Luna replied. "I'll never stop improving. Besides, I want to defeat you."
"Hmph... Then show me more."
Arlecchino wouldn't be won over by mere tricks or clever tactics.
Only by demonstrating strength that surpassed hers and unwavering resolve could one earn her attention.
"I will," Luna vowed.
An Anemo Element burst erupted! Luna's kick slammed into Arlecchino's scythe, unleashing a tempest that instantly swept away the Duel Arena's crumbling walls and debris, knocking Lyney and his companions off their feet.
Yet Arlecchino only slid back a short distance.
A faint numbness in her arm made her pause momentarily.
Perhaps this time, Luna could inflict deeper, more painful wounds. A flicker of satisfaction played on Arlecchino's lips.
Only by surpassing our father can our house prosper.
Just then, a volley of arrows streaked toward Arlecchino. Without a glance, she casually slashed them into fragments. This was Lyney's attack.
Gripping her weapon, she hurled her scythe! A crimson arc hurtled toward Lyney and Lynette.
Freminet gritted his teeth, raising his Claymore to meet the blow head-on. But in the blink of an eye, countless silken threads ensnared the spinning scythe, binding it in place, freezing it mid-air.
Luna landed gracefully atop the restrained scythe, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Lyney, you and the others retreat first."
"But..."
"Retreat."
Lyney, Lynette, and Freminet exchanged glances, each feeling a pang of frustration.
But it was undeniable: a battle of this divine scale was beyond their current abilities to influence.
"I'm sorry..." Lynette said, her voice tinged with resentment.
"You'll grow stronger. The fact that you stood up against 'Father' despite your limitations is already worthy of admiration. Strength can be improved, but willpower... that's different."
Otherwise, I wouldn't admire Chevreuse so much.
"Of course, I just don't want to see you get hurt."
"...Alright. You be careful too."
With those words, Lynette retreated with Lyney and Freminet to the back.
Arlecchino made no further comment.
Their presence before her had already proven their resolve. They simply lacked the strength, but they had ample room to grow.
Luna unwound the silk threads and kicked the scythe back to Arlecchino.
"'Father,' just like last time, let's settle this with a single strike."
Arlecchino caught the scythe effortlessly. "Agreed."
Further probing and skirmishing would be pointless. It was time to unleash her strongest strike and bring this execution-turned-duel to a swift conclusion.
Arlecchino slowly closed her eyes, and when she reopened them, a crimson-black moon had materialized behind her. Silken threads coiled around Luna's body.
But it was useless!
Clenching her fist, Luna flung it out, and the threads instantly snapped apart.
Raising her claymore high, she conjured a golden Duel Arena from the void—larger, grander, and more dazzling than ever before. Even the crimson moon seemed to have become part of the stage itself.
"The time for applause has arrived!"
And...
"Ignite!"
Flames erupted from the Greatsword of Passion, spiraling into the sky!
Filliol and the others could only stare in bewilderment. They couldn't see Arlecchino's crimson moon, but they could feel her oppressive aura rapidly intensifying, the ground cracking, the air freezing.
Meanwhile, the flames radiating from Luna's sword seared their skin.
Only then did they realize Luna had been holding back all along.
With a single strike of her blade, she could shatter any trap, no matter how elaborate.
This was the essence of absolute power. No trickery could withstand it.
Arlecchino gripped her scythe, its crimson blade seeming to cleave even space itself, igniting the air with burning energy. Facing this crimson light were the Twin Swords—a majestic fusion of flame and light!
Boom! The two forces collided head-on, unleashing terrifying shockwaves that surged skyward in relentless waves.
The already ravaged Duel Arena was consumed by the aftershocks, pulverized into dust with relentless force. As the clouds dispersed, the spectacle became visible even from afar, leaving onlookers trembling in awe.
Freminet startled, hastily positioning himself before the other children, conjuring an Ice Element shield with his Claymore. Lyney and Lynette moved to protect the children from the flanks.
The shockwaves battered the shield, leaving Freminet's arms aching and throbbing—if the aftershocks were this brutal, what must the direct impact have been like?
He couldn't see.
He couldn't see them at all.
"I can't hold out much longer..." Freminet strained to say.
Just then, a blinding white light erupted from the clash of powers, engulfing everyone's vision. A second surge followed, accompanied by a crack, and Freminet's protective shield shattered.
He was sent flying backward, barely caught by Lyney.
"Are you okay, Freminet?" Lyney asked anxiously.
"Mmm..." Freminet mumbled, dazed.
In their dazed state, Freminet and the other children stared at the Duel Arena after the white light faded. There, Luna and Arlecchino remained, both kneeling on the ground.
Drip... Blood trickled from their bodies, staining the floor. Both Luna and Arlecchino bore visible wounds, their breathing ragged.
"Is this... a draw?" Lyney murmured in bewilderment.
Had Luna actually fought "Father" to a draw?
Lynette was about to rush over to check their injuries when Luna and Arlecchino moved again.
Luna, leaning heavily on her sword, slowly rose to her feet.
Arlecchino also rose slowly, but with a crucial difference—she needed no external support.
The victor was now clear, though the margin was so infinitesimally small that it left all the children speechless.
Luna gasped, "I can still go on, you know."
"Is that so? Then—"
Arlecchino strode toward Luna, raising her hand.
"Don't!" Lynette shouted, rushing toward them.
Arlecchino simply rested her hand on Luna's head and stroked it gently.
"Let's call it a draw, then."
Lynette couldn't help but stop in her tracks.
Luna smiled faintly. "Is that really okay? If it's a draw, then my resistance on behalf of Lyney and the others counts as a success, right?"
Though she hadn't won outright, a draw meant she could stand as an equal to Arlecchino in terms of power. Her status within the House would naturally rise, making it unsurprising if she were now on par with "Father."
Arlecchino smiled faintly.
"You've earned this. However... I trust you understand how dangerous it is to let traitors leave the House with secrets."
Luna glanced at Filliol and the others, who stood in stunned silence.
Lyney and the others might be forgiven for their initial mistake, but the traitors still needed to be punished. Their hearts were no longer with the House; even if they submitted now, they would eventually become weaknesses within the House of the Hearth.
"Father, do you truly intend to kill them?"
"Yes. But I'll give them two choices: physical death, or..."
Arlecchino beckoned. "Heloir, bring me the Bottled Flame."
Bottled Flame?
A dazed child snapped out of their stupor and hurried forward, retrieving a vial of flame from their bag. Describing it that way felt abstract, but that was precisely what it was.
The flickering flame in the bottle deeply disturbed Luna.
"What is this?"
Arlecchino wiped the blood from Luna's face. "A product of a secret experiment. It's a flame stripped from my own being."
"Swallowing it will cause them unbearable pain, but once they endure that pain, all their memories of the past will vanish, erasing everything about their time in the House of the Hearth."
In other words, Arlecchino intended to kill "the part of them that was children of the House of the Hearth."
She turned away.
"Memory shapes one's perception. Since you find life in the House of the Hearth so painful, then discard those memories. From this day forward, you will have no connection to us."
"If you refuse to dwell in darkness, then seek the light."
Perhaps Arlecchino had decided this from the very beginning.
Nanteuil and Filliol wept openly. "Forgive us, Father..."
"Tears are meaningless. Wipe them away and leave. There's still plenty of Bottled Flame left. If any of you else wish to abandon this place, you may use it to depart."
Arlecchino turned her gaze to Luna.
"Luna, you too."
"..."
Luna offered no reply, only met her gaze in silence.
"It will precisely erase only the memories of your time in the House of the Hearth and before you entered it. You now know you were never abandoned."
Arlecchino strode away, her figure gradually receding into the distance.
"You could become Luna Hydrell again, embrace the love of your biological parents, and join the Special Task Force or another organization."
Luna smiled faintly. "I don't want to."
"If I had to choose between my memories and true death, I'd choose my memories. I've always been the one who takes others' treasures, and no one can ever take mine."
Arlecchino chuckled softly. "I thought as much."