Seeing Leo Ash rushing towards her, Yuno's first reaction was, of course...
—Retreat, I must retreat!
In Yuno's mind, the impressions that 'Leo Ash is her life mentor' and 'Leo Ash is a powerful warrior' were still deeply ingrained in her heart.
Even though the girl was unconsciously emitting killing intent towards Leo Ash, her body, out of subconscious reverence and fear, instinctively took a step back.
Then, the girl was stunned.
Strange, why am I afraid of Senior?
He looks very angry, but... Senior would never hurt me.
No, that's not right. I shouldn't think like that.
I am strong now!
The God of Honkai may want to dominate my body and mind, but how could It do so easily!
On the contrary, thinking that I have already submitted to the Honkai, It has even started to support me—how ridiculous!
What am I afraid of?
I am no longer who I used to be, no longer...
—That weak and helpless me from before!
Now, I can surpass not only Senior, but also the Headmaster, Mr. Kaslana whom I saw in Jiuyou, and even Durandal who defeated me before!
As the confidence in her heart grew stronger, Yuno, who had just retreated a few steps, now had a noticeably stronger Honkai Energy fluctuation around her.
Leo Ash, having completed his dash, had already finished his initial charge-up during the process.
At this moment, just to be safe, he even used the Honkai Energy released by the [Holy Shield System] to wrap around the Grips of Taixu, forming a special gauntlet shield.
At this moment, Leo Ash could clearly feel that the surrounding Honkai Energy intensity was indeed continuously increasing.
But at the same time, after he took action, the oppressive feeling from Yuno, which had been constantly intensifying, had now temporarily stopped growing stronger.
Tsk, I was originally planning to stall for time to save my own skin, but now...
Although the end result is still me stalling for time to save my life, in the process, I have to face an opponent who is much stronger than me.
Fighting for my life to save my life... what kind of dark humor is this.
"Senior, it seems you have other ideas, don't you."
Facing the surprise attack from Leo Ash, the completely calmed-down Yuno raised her right hand, directly displaying the authority she officially possessed after transforming into the Herrscher of Deadly Poison.
For some Pseudo-Herrschers, they could indeed, like genuine Herrschers, either actively or passively form an Imaginary Barrier as a means of defense against enemy attacks.
But compared to the Imaginary Barrier of a genuine Herrscher, a Pseudo-Herrscher's was clearly just a cheap imitation.
However, at this moment, the Imaginary Barrier used by Yuno, who had completely become the Fourth Herrscher of the Current Era, was naturally far superior in strength to those imitations.
The moment she actively released the Imaginary Barrier, Leo Ash had already smashed his enlarged Honkai Energy gauntlet against Yuno's barrier.
"Galactica Phantom!"
With a roar, Yuno, who had been retreating, was indeed forced to take another step back due to the overwhelming impact.
But at the same time, Leo Ash looked at the gauntlet that had suddenly shattered before his eyes and couldn't help but also take a step back, warily creating some distance between himself and Yuno.
Something's not right.
Although this gauntlet was a temporary construct, there shouldn't be any major problems with the Honkai Energy construction formula calculated by Otto.
The gauntlet's strength is equivalent to the strength of this layer of Honkai Energy armor on my body. How could an 'equipment' of this strength shatter on the spot from the force of Galactica Phantom?
But in the next instant, Leo Ash watched the withering black mist that suddenly appeared on the shattered gauntlet and suddenly understood what had just happened.
Although all genuine Herrschers can summon an Imaginary Barrier, their barriers clearly have some minor differences.
For example, the Imaginary Barrier summoned by the Herrscher of Thunder is an electromagnetic barrier with electromagnetic force.
And the Herrscher of Death's authorities are [Rebirth] and [Death], so when Yuno summons her Imaginary Barrier, she will naturally, unconsciously, attach the lethal authority of [Death] to it.
Just now, I put a layer of Honkai Energy armor over the Divine Key to be safe.
And it was because of the power of the [Death] authority that the Honkai Energy gauntlet had actually started to disintegrate from the inside, which is why it shattered so easily on the spot.
Damn it, a Galactica Phantom-level output can only push back a shielded Yuno by a few steps.
To break her barrier, I'll clearly need continuous attacks... what the hell!
Looking at the barrier, which had lost some of its luster after being attacked, instantly shine with a white light and return to its original state as if repaired, Leo Ash felt like cursing.
This barrier not only has the authority of 'Death,' but also the authority of 'Rebirth.'
The [Death] authority is used for reflect damage, and the [Rebirth] authority is for rapid barrier repair. Just these two authorities forming an Imaginary Barrier was enough to make Leo Ash feel that this was troublesome.
And...
Noticing a faint sound from under his feet, Leo Ash immediately stomped heavily on the ground and dodged to the right.
He had only been standing there for less than half a second, but Yuno, whom he had just pushed back, had already summoned vines to try and bind his feet.
"As expected of Senior. I thought that attack would at least catch you."
Watching Leo Ash evade in time, Yuno said to him with a hint of regret.
"Indeed, Senior is very strong."
"Not just in strength, but your fighting spirit far exceeds that of our other colleagues in Schicksal."
"Whether facing Mei, Chiyou, or me..."
"—Every time you face an enemy you can barely defeat, you don't choose to retreat, but instead choose to charge to the front line."
"However, I won't praise you for this almost reckless courage. I'll only think..."
"—You're clearly an Avenger who wants to take revenge on the Honkai, so why do you always have to pretend to be a coward?"
Oh no, my not-so-adorable junior, you've really misunderstood me.
I'm really afraid of dying. The first two times I charged in, it was to land the finishing blow.
Damn it, if I hadn't realized the God of Honkai was accelerating your absorption of Honkai Energy this time, I probably would have tried to retreat too.
Watching Leo Ash stare at her without a word, Yuno suddenly let out a helpless sigh.
"Senior, I really don't have any malicious intent. I just want you to help me test this power."
"Why, in your eyes, would I be consumed by the Honkai—you should know very well that the one before you is still the Schicksal Valkyrie Yuno, not the Herrscher of Death whose personality has taken over the body."
"Yuno, of course I believe you are still you."
Seeing Yuno take the initiative to stop her attack, Leo Ash watched the girl before him, choosing to analyze the battlefield situation while thinking of what to say.
Compared to the incredibly arrogant Herrscher of Thunder and the completely brainless Chiyou, Yuno had undergone a transformation after being led astray by Leo Ash.
Simply put, her mind is relatively normal now, and her tactical thinking in one-on-one situations won't be too weak.
Moreover, in order to gain the authority to view information related to Cocolia, Yuno has been working hard to explore her own powers, trying to get promoted to A-rank faster.
From this perspective, her desire to be a try-hard is no less than Leo Ash's. Under these circumstances, Leo Ash didn't think that this girl, who was already talented to begin with, would be the kind of fool who would wield her power recklessly without understanding it.
Alas, in other words, she, who is now being guided by the God of Honkai, probably still wants to kill me unconsciously.
So now—this little girl is trying to distract me.
Let me think. There's probably a solution, I just haven't figured it out yet.
Her openings are still too small, and the authority of [Rebirth] gives the already cautious Yuno an even higher margin for error.
Right now, I'm like facing a boss with no set patterns, who thinks, and also has a high-speed healing buff.
It's the Souls-like game template I hate the most, and I can't even reload a save.
Reality really is the worst game.
Let's see if this little girl falls for some verbal tactics. Even if I can just confuse her mentally, I can gain a sliver more of a chance to survive.
"But have you ever considered this—if you were the God of Honkai, would you lend your power to a traitor who intends to defy you?"
"Of course not, but Senior, you might be overestimating It."
Looking at Leo Ash, Yuno showed a disdainful smile.
"It does indeed possess great power, but It couldn't distinguish that my desire for destruction is directed only at Cocolia, not at humanity."
"I do want to kill a 'human,' but that human is only Cocolia, who is not here. And It—"
"Oh, cut the crap. The killing intent you're directing at me right now is still giving me the chills."
At this moment, having completed his secret preparations, Leo Ash retorted to Yuno impatiently.
"I believe you are Yuno, yes, but what about the Herrscher personality you originally held?"
"My Herrscher personality? Of course, it's suppressed by me..."
Halfway through her sentence, Yuno's expression turned incredibly ugly, as if she had suddenly realized something.
"See? I believe you're Yuno, and the smart Yuno has probably already discovered that the personality of the Herrscher of Poison, as well as the personality of the Herrscher of Death, have completely disappeared from your body."
"You usually have a hard time just suppressing the Pseudo-Herrscher personality. Now, whether the Fourth Herrscher's personality replaced the Herrscher of Poison's, or if both personalities exist in your body at the same time, your mental stress would only be greater, unless..."
At this moment, Leo Ash suddenly took a step back, placed his right hand on his forehead, and continued speaking to Yuno.
"—The Herrscher personality is already dormant within your own, and has perhaps even fused with it."
"This is the conclusion I've reached."
Glancing at the two soft vines that had appeared where he had just been standing, Leo Ash put away the expression on his face and calmly said to Yuno.
"These two vines that tried to sneak attack me are the best proof."
"You might not have noticed it yourself, but subconsciously, you never intended to have a duel with me. You were acting with the intent to kill me."
"Even while we were talking, you've already tried to sneak attack me twice, to trap me and then kill me—having said all this, do you still not realize the gravity of the situation?!"
"I, I, I... this is impossible!"
Looking at the two soft vines, Yuno, who was on the verge of a breakdown, suddenly looked at Leo Ash with a gaze that begged for affirmation, as if she had seen a lifeline.
"Senior, look, these two vines have no strength at all. I... maybe I was just subconsciously trying to play a joke on you."
"Sigh..."
After letting out a long sigh, Leo Ash said no more.
After discovering that Yuno still intended to kill him, Leo Ash, besides thinking of ways to talk her down, had also secretly made preparations.
After being sneak-attacked once by the vines that sprouted from the ground, Leo Ash had already thought of a way to counter this kind of move.
Yuno's vines, in the end, are still a product of her Herrscher authority combined with Honkai Energy.
In other words, once the Honkai Energy intensity of this thing drops, it becomes useless.
Moreover, in order to make the vines more stealthy, Yuno wouldn't make their Honkai Energy intensity too high.
Therefore, as long as Leo Ash set up a small Phantasmagoria at his feet to weaken the strength of the vines, Yuno's sneak attacks would naturally be ineffective.
And now, faced with Leo Ash's cold and somewhat helpless gaze, Yuno completely understood how feeble her excuses were.
And at this moment, she finally understood a truth she had been trying to avoid.
"I... have I really become a running dog for the Honkai? This..."
"No! I don't want this!"
The girl who had been trying to calm herself down just moments ago suddenly clutched her head and began to wail.
As expected, my thinking was correct.
Yuno, who originally wanted to fight against the Honkai, would indeed enter a state of mental confusion after realizing the truth.
I need to use that trump card to completely suppress her before her Herrscher personality's side gains the upper hand.
So, Yuno, I'm sorry.
As for an apology...
—I'll say it after I've beaten you awake!
.....