"My... apologies..."
Celenova's lips moved involuntarily, the sound that came out was quite dissonant.
Without a doubt, things were developing in a direction she hadn't anticipated at all.
This was very wrong.
The Harmony's greatest trick was the manipulation of cognition.
Why was the legion she commanded so terrifying,
able to surpass the other Lord Ravagers in coordinated strength? It was because she walked the Path of The Harmony.
Hi, I'm Celenova, and my 'Tuning' ability is the secret weapon my legion is famous for. Don't tell anyone, okay? .jpg
"Bro..."
Celenova's lips twitched into a forced smile.
She frowned deeply, trying her best to regain control of her body and stop herself from speaking, but it was useless.
Until the word 'bro' came out, she had no idea how she could have uttered such a term.
On the Path of The Harmony, when it came to control, there were very few who could claim to have a definite advantage over her.
Even if this was just an avatar,
to truly suppress her, one would have to be an Emanator of The Harmony.
As beings of the same level, it was quite normal for Emanators of other Paths to have resistance to The Harmony.
Unless her true self was present, she never expected to completely control Leon.
But that was the strange part.
It's one thing for an Emanator of The Hunt to act normally under the influence of The Harmony, just with some added pressure.
That's perfectly normal.
But are you telling me that The Hunt can, in turn, alter the cognition of The Harmony?
That wasn't normal. It was downright astounding.
What business does The Hunt have meddling in this sort of craft?
You have to understand, The Hunt and The Destruction have always been known for their raw power. Even if they had special abilities, they were always related to offense.
For you to suddenly pull out such a dirty control tactic, do you think that's worthy of the grand name of The Hunt?
"I didn't notice you were here just now. How about I compensate you with a starship? Pick any of these next to me. I'll even throw in the crew along with the ship."
Celenova spoke words she would never normally say, completely against her will.
Even the tone of her voice wasn't her style.
She really couldn't figure it out.
What kind of ability did this 'Celestial General' possess,
to be able to so thoroughly control her actions,
and even make her lose all vigilance and hostility towards him, along with her will to enact The Destruction.
You're hacking, aren't you?
Unbelievable. A goddamn hacker has the nerve to call out a camper!
Believe it or not, I'm going to report you to The Equilibrium when I get out of here!
"Hey now, sis. You already called me bro."
As a true-blue Freljordian, Leon definitely had to show her what it meant to be a good sport.
"If you're gonna be such a good sport, what else can I say!"
Leon smiled, then released the nock of his arrow!
Whoosh!
A cyan arrow shot forth, instantly throwing the flowing winds into chaos as a turbulent maelstrom swept across the heavens and earth!
Caught completely off guard, the arrow struck Celenova right in the chest!
It mercilessly pierced through her heart!
The energy of The Hunt scrambled all the organs in her body,
before anyone could even react!
Cyan winds accompanied the arrow's impact,
its delayed power unleashing its full might, blanketing the sky and overturning the entire surrounding Antimatter Legion fleet!
The tangible winds transformed into sharp, azure blades,
with an offensive invisible to the naked eye, they continuously sliced through all the ships present and their fragile hulls!
In the blink of an eye, not a single trace was left!
Even the marauding Voidrangers on the ground couldn't escape their fate, killed by the aftershocks triggered by the arrow!
Though it had the air of a sucker punch, his arrows were as swift and decisive as his own personality.
Besides, he's a very kind-hearted person.
If this bunch from the Antimatter Legion could have reacted,
wouldn't they have been able to save their own worthless lives and crawl away?
It's not his fault they couldn't react.
If you're trash, practice more!
Sometimes you need to reflect on your own shortcomings instead of just marveling at how strong the enemy is, understand?
"You just destroyed one of my starskiffs, right? Ah, it's no big deal."
Leon chuckled as he put away his bow, the Vanquisher.
"Good thing you ran into me this time. If it were anyone else, wouldn't you have been blown to bits?"
"Alright, we Freljordians value friendship and honor above all when we're out and about. Just be more careful next time."
Be careful next time = Be careful in your next life.
"Bro... you're too much of a good sport..."
Celenova was now sweating bullets 😅.
She gets stabbed and she still has to praise him for being a good sport?
She desperately wanted to rebuke the current situation or put up some resistance, but the moment the words left her mouth, they came out completely different.
It was just as he said: when you're out and about, you value friendship and honor.
Peace is paramount; taking a step back opens up a world of possibilities.
You mean to say...
She, a Lord Ravager, should prioritize peace while carrying out the will of The Destruction?
Haha, that's hilarious.
If she said something like that out loud, people would probably think she was an idiot.
...And yet, here she was, actually prioritizing peace.
Even though Leon had attacked and wounded her,
she felt not a shred of hostility in her heart. In fact, she even had the feeling that she was the one who was in the wrong.
This was really making it hard for Celenova to keep her composure.
She wanted to strike back but was completely under his control, able to do nothing but obediently watch the life fade from this avatar.
If not for The Harmony's high resistance to mentally corrosive attacks, she probably wouldn't even be able to maintain the clarity of mind to analyze the situation.
"If you're going to be like that, say no more. How about this: I'll owe you one for this."
Aside from her consciousness, Celenova had no control over her body or the words she spoke.
"Take this. Come find me with it another day, and I'll personally give you a starship. You can pick any one I have in my possession."
Celenova herself, a hundred times unwilling, took out a small, square puzzle piece stamped with a starry sky.
Then her entire being began to turn illusory, or rather, transparent.
This was one of the thousands of fragments of her true self, and also a key component for creating her avatars.
Normally, after an avatar is destroyed or falls, this piece should automatically return to the main body.
But today, an unthinkable turn of events had occurred.
An Emanator of The Hunt who popped out of nowhere,
using an ability that had nothing to do with his own Path, had actually made her involuntarily hand over her core.
And the cause of it all was nothing more than an insignificant starskiff.
Even though Celenova tried her best to control her hand, she ultimately couldn't resist the magic in his 'sis'.
With a toss, she threw the core puzzle piece in his direction.
This was truly a case of losing both the battle and the prize.
"Can you believe this nonsense?"
Leon caught it with an open hand, wearing a 'look at this mess' expression.
So, how about that?
With just a few words, he made a woman give up a life for him!
And afterwards, she even had to thank me without complaint and hand over a gift as compensation.
"Hey, sis!"
Before she finally faded away, Leon raised a hand and waved at her.
Carrying all the hardships of yesterday~
Celenova was speechless.
She clenched her jaw, her normally gentle eyes glaring at him with fury.
Despite her immense reluctance, her right hand still rose uncontrollably to wave goodbye to him.
She had performed the quintessential Freljordian act.
To trade for some happiness and bliss tomorrow!
An equally nonsensical instrumental, like something from a meme compilation, inevitably began to play at this moment.
——
PS: Recommending a book, a god-tier book
Legend says the Ten Gates of Destiny can grant any wish.
To find proof of his own existence, Natsume Kazenosuke pushes open the doors time and time again.
And so, the world is twisted by wishes, and everyday life gradually collapses.
It's a rainy night, a Maybach, burning Golden Eyes; it's a magical contract made by a pure white creature; it's the Human Instrumentality Project...
After countless futile struggles, Natsume Kazenosuke decides to give up his own life.
However...
Toyokawa Sakiko: If love cannot keep you alive, then hate. Hate me with all your heart, until the end of the world.
Wakaba Mutsumi: Kaze, the hand you should be holding is no longer mine.
Nagasaki Soyo: No matter how many times I have to repeat it, I will save you.
Yamada Ryo: A future without Kaze is not the future I want.
Gotoh Hitori: This time, I will absolutely, absolutely not let go!
Yukinoshita Yukino: Welcome back, my assistant. This is all the choice of the Ten Gates of Destiny.
——
After N playthroughs, in a basement no detector could ever find, Natsume Kazenosuke awakens from a nightmare.
"Gua, what heavy emotions. Good thing it was a dream, or it would've been embarrassing."
"Wait, why are you all here?"
[No reading barrier, all the anime mentioned above are included, and more will be added later.]
____
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