The storm howled, rubble and dust churning in the destructive shockwaves.
The semi-transparent barrier built jointly by Rias and Patchouli flickered with violet-red light, barely containing the battle's aftermath, preventing the town from being reduced to powder.
Inside the barrier, the air was warped by heat, reeking of scorched earth and burning metal.
Zeroy and the brute—the Red Dragon Emperor's host, a first-rank reincarnator—clashed fiercely in a fight to the death.
The brute stood clad in the Balance Breaker armor of the Red Dragon Emperor, crimson as blood, its plates gleaming coldly in the sunset, a green jewel in its chest pulsing like a heart, releasing waves of terrifying power.
His body was towering, like a steel tower, the ground beneath his feet caving from the strain of his strength. Dragon-clawed gauntlets wreathed in crimson flame lashed out, each punch unleashing a hurricane shockwave, each blow carrying the power to split mountains and rend the earth.
With a roar, he struck with both fists, compressing the air into visible rippling shockwaves. The ground exploded instantly, cracks spiderwebbing outward, ruins crumbling into dust under the gale of his strikes.
Though he was a top-tier first-rank reincarnator, bolstered by a Longinus, his strength enough to shatter mountains, under Zeroy's cold gaze a flicker of unease flashed in his eyes.
Why... why was it like this? She was supposed to be a rookie...
His plan had been simple: let his two underlings hold off the Magician of the Seven Luminaries, while he crushed this newcomer with overwhelming power, then regroup to finish the magician together.
He had already taken her seriously, deciding only he could finish her quickly.
But now... he was the one being pushed back!
Could it be this so-called Lord of Crows wasn't a rookie at all? That the lack of information and her total anonymity meant she was actually a deeply hidden veteran?!
"..."
Zeroy hovered in midair, golden hair streaming in the storm winds. Kagari's armor burned with fierce crimson flames, mirroring the battle intent beneath her icy exterior.
Her emerald eyes were frozen and merciless, her black-and-red Striker blade lowered, its tip radiating murderous intent.
With a sharp snort, her flames surged violently, her whole figure becoming a crimson flash of frostfire, slashing straight for his chest.
The blade cut through the air, trailing a blinding comet-tail of fire, brimming with killing intent.
This was the first time she had truly fought seriously. Ordinarily, she would have savored the clash, enjoying the insights gained from each exchange.
Nonetheless, not this time.
This time, her opponent was not only a pest—he had killed her crows.
She only wanted to cut him down.
"Boost!"
The Red Dragon Emperor's core intoned, and the brute seized the gap to double his strength once more. His right fist shot forward like a meteor to meet the blade.
Blade and fist collided, the deafening roar ripping the sky apart, shockwaves fracturing the barrier with a spiderweb of cracks.
Zeroy's stance wavered slightly as she felt an unprecedented force—his ever-multiplying strength had reached a terrifying degree, the impact leaving her arm faintly trembling.
Regardless, her gaze was utterly calm, cold as ice.
Kagari's wings of flame burst, propelling her into a sudden sidestep. Her Striker blade reversed in her grip and slashed precisely toward his neck.
The brute roared, unable to dodge in time, relying only on Longinus's protection and his own power to barely withstand the strike.
Sparks exploded, a scar etched into his armor, blood gushing forth like a high-pressure jet.
He spun with a furious roar, his left fist wrapped in dragon flame crashing toward Zeroy, its shockwave ripping the air with a sonic boom.
"Too slow."
Zeroy's voice held no emotion. Her form flickered like a phantom, easily slipping past the strike.
Her blade blurred into a crimson web of steel, its arcs enveloping him.
Each strike landed with deadly precision, targeting armor joints and weak points, carving deeper scars with every blow.
His raw power was monstrous, but the difference in speed and technique left him utterly suppressed.
Though both fought with attack-specialized styles, and Zeroy couldn't meet his Longinus-boosted strikes head-on, he in turn couldn't endure her dual-specialized onslaught.
Even with the armor of a Longinus, even with the strength of a veteran reincarnator—
He had already been expelled from humanity by Zeroy.
"Darn it!"
The gauntlet's voice echoed again and again: [Boost], [Boost], his power surging without pause.
That said, the Red Dragon Emperor's gauntlet wasn't meant to escalate mid-battle like this.
Its function was like inflating a balloon—you blow it up, then pinch the valve shut to hold it. In other words, you charge first, then stop, then use.
Charging while fighting destabilized it, risking a total collapse, losing all strength at once.
In any case, the brute no longer cared.
Unease, frustration, the wounds piling on his body, the widening gap—he wanted only to overturn it all.
A desperate gamble, throwing everything in with no thought of consequence.
He stomped down, shattering the ruins beneath him, launching skyward with the recoil, his fists raining down like a meteor storm upon Zeroy.
Each punch carried a storm of energy, seeking to crush her with sheer force.
But Zeroy wove through the storm like the wind itself, darting between blows, countering with strikes that always found gaps in the armor.
His strength was ultimately only artificially inflated by the Longinus.
If his ability were numbers, only his [Power] exceeded Zeroy's. In all other stats, he lagged behind completely.
His rage only drew out more openings.
"Dragon Shot—!"
The Red Dragon Emperor's core flared, spewing a blazing orb that erupted into a torrent of dragon fire, engulfing half the barrier's space.
The ground melted, the air twisted, the barrier shook violently as Patchouli and Rias poured mana into stabilizing it.
"Pointless struggle."
Zeroy's voice was cold as she widened the distance in an instant.
Even such wide-area devastation left her composed.
After all, she could fly, and she could layer multiple armors onto herself.
Even while fighting in Kagari, she could still call upon Hayate's specialized mobility.
No matter how wide the blast, it could not reach the heavens.
Unless he could restrict her movements, relying on wide-range attacks alone to guarantee a hit was useless.
As his energy blast faded, her form flickered—
And in the next instant, she was upon him, Striker blade wreathed in Hellfire, stabbing straight for the Red Dragon Emperor's core.
The brute frantically raised an arm to block. The armored limb was cleaved deep to the bone, blood spurting in torrents.
...
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