It was a dark, windy night—the perfect night for murder.
As night fell, a shadowy figure slipped out from the trees.
Elise was already fully disguised. If she intended to kill an Elemental Lord, night was the best time.
Not only for camouflage, but also because by her side was none other than the Dark Elemental Lord herself!
In darkness, Ren could lend her immense aid.
"This is the Grand Temple where the Elemental Lords reside. If you want to see them, you must enter from here," Ren explained.
"There's one more thing. Deeper inside the temple lies a gateway to an endless corridor that connects to another dimension."
"Once you enter that corridor, remember—never step into a side path or turn back. Otherwise, you'll be trapped there forever."
Ren glanced at Elise. "Though for you, it may not matter. Still, it would be troublesome, wouldn't it?"
Sacred Speech…
"Invisibility!"
Though the Grand Temple had few people, that didn't mean it was unguarded. The Elemental Lords' attendants—the spirit maidens—could still be present.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, and to prevent a situation where she had to defeat underlings before the final boss like in a game, Elise decided to sneak in, ensuring she could face the Elemental Lord at her best.
She activated invisibility and walked straight into the temple.
"Hm? Did something just pass by?"
One of the spirit maidens nearby frowned. She thought she'd seen something flicker past, but sensed nothing.
"This is the Elemental Lord's Grand Hall. No one would be foolish enough to come here and cause trouble, right?"
Unfortunately, someone had indeed come to trouble the Elemental Lords—and she was anything but foolish.
Tap, tap.
Elise walked down the endless corridor, eyeing her surroundings with interest.
There were countless branching paths. According to Ren, stepping into one of those, or looking back, meant being trapped forever.
But Elise wielded spatial abilities. To her, such tricks were hardly threatening.
Still, it sparked an idea in her mind.
"A labyrinth radiating outward from the center? And every path is a dead end?"
"Hmm. Something I could try in the future…"
"Ahead lies the Elemental Lord's chamber. Are you ready? Though only one awaits, aside from the Sacred Queen and the already-unsealed Water Lord, there remain the Fire Lord, the Earth Lord, and the Wind Lord," Ren reminded her.
"Though they aren't as strong as the Sacred Queen, and the corruption from the otherworld has weakened them, you must still be careful."
"Even weakened, they are still Elemental Lords."
In the original story, the protagonist Kazehaya Kamito had defeated them early on by making wishes. But Elise had to rely on raw strength.
Suddenly, light bloomed before her. A massive staircase appeared, leading upward.
At the top sat a throne, wrapped in radiant light that prevented direct sight.
Yet within her senses, Elise found the being upon the throne unusually calm—as though asleep.
This too was expected. With the Blade Dance Festival yet to begin, the Elemental Lords had little amusement. And with the corruption gnawing at them, they resisted madness through slumber.
This was Elise's chance to strike!
"If Ren is right, only the Sacred Queen can sense and absorb faith power. That means the other Elemental Lords should be unable to perceive it."
"This must be a one-hit kill!"
"Est!"
"Yes. I am Sister's sword!"
The platinum Sacred Sword appeared in Elise's hands. She swung it twice, then held it before her chest.
"Back then, when facing the Sacred Queen, I was careless…"
"But this time will be different!"
Raising the Sacred Sword high, Elise gathered an immense torrent of faith power.
Beside her, the Dark Elemental Lord, Little Ren, could only sense that the atmosphere was unusual, though she didn't understand why.
"Good. At this rate, it will succeed!"
Meanwhile, Elise was already surrounded by faith power, gathering into a massive sphere of light around her.
Sacred Speech!
"Divine Incarnation!"
For a short time, this allowed her to take on the state of a deity, greatly enhancing both the absorption and usage of faith power.
Elise had used it once before, when facing Orphelia. But the sensation had been so overwhelming that she hadn't tried it again—until now.
"All abilities—enhance!"
Boosting every ability at her disposal.
"Strengthen!"
"Haa!" This time, Elise didn't spread her buffs across many skills. Instead, she poured more power into fewer enhancements, consuming greater amounts of faith power.
"Next—this one!"
"Add-on: Sure Kill!"
"Add-on Concept: Death!"
She imbued her coming strike with the concepts of inevitability and death.
The Sacred Queen could absorb faith power, rendering such techniques useless against her. But the other Elemental Lords were different.
If fighting the Sacred Queen was like running Elise's "normal dungeon," then facing the others would be like throwing them into her "abyss dungeon."
The power around Est, the Sacred Sword, surged to terrifying levels. The weapon now carried a force that threatened to shake space itself. Even the throne of the Elemental Lord ahead began to stir faintly.
"Once you unleash that strike, it will kill him for certain!" Ren urged at her side.
But Elise did not attack immediately. Instead, she chose to activate another of her abilities.
Strega ability: Purification!
"Full Moon Light Wave!"
A thin beam of light shot toward the Elemental Lord upon the throne. But when it struck, nothing happened.
Elise had hoped she might be able to save this Elemental Lord—if she could awaken him, that would be best.
But unfortunately, purification had no effect.
Though it was called "Otherworldly Darkness," in truth it wasn't eroding the Elemental Lords—it was assimilating them.
Which meant purification could not work.
"What a pity!"
If she could have turned the Elemental Lords against the Sacred Queen, her task would have been far easier.
But the reality left no such option.
"Into this strike, I will pour my will!"
"I will save you!"
The radiance around Elise grew ever more dazzling. On the throne, the Elemental Lord seemed to sense the threat to his life. His crimson eyes snapped open.
Madness consumed him once again!
As before, he descended into frenzy!
But what greeted him was a colossal blast of light—a beam forged from pure destructive force.
Elise had devised a new single-target sword technique, one greatly enhancing piercing and penetration.
Though she hadn't practiced it much, its power was undoubtedly top tier!
Polaris: Lightstream!