Chapter 27: The Clash of "Kings"!
On the crowded streets, Salvatore Doni—with his bright blonde hair, sunglasses perched on his forehead, and a handsome face—wore an amiable and approachable smile. From the surface, he gave off the vibe of a gentle, handsome, blue-eyed Italian youth.
His clothing and height were both outstanding, making him stand out like a crane among a flock of chickens, drawing eyes wherever he went.
Salvatore Doni paid no mind to the gazes cast his way. Instead, he grinned and spoke with excitement.
"The moment I stepped into this city, I felt the presence of that seventh 'Godslayer.' It seems my trip here was worth it!"
Andre, following behind Salvatore Doni, requested somewhat helplessly:
"My only wish, King, is that you try your best not to harm the innocent during your battle..."
Regarding Salvatore Doni's will, Andre had completely given up after a few attempts at persuasion. At this moment, he only hoped the battle between these two Demon Kings wouldn't create too great a disaster.
However, everyone knew that whenever these self-centered Demon Kings fought, it was always a massive catastrophe for the city. Andre's heart filled with lamentation.
Suddenly, Salvatore Doni's eyes lit up.
"The seventh 'Godslayer'... he's right over there!!"
His inner desire for battle was surging. Salvatore Doni immediately accelerated, rushing toward the direction of the bay.
Even while employing his most sophisticated magic, Andre was completely unable to keep up with Salvatore Doni's pace. He could only follow clumsily from a great distance.
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.
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After leaving the villa, Shirou went directly to the Bay of Naples.
Upon arriving, the somewhat narrow field of vision within the city suddenly opened up. The azure sea stretched out infinitely as if it had no end. To the east lay Mount Vesuvius, boasting beautiful scenery and charming night views.
Shirou stood on the beach, gazing at the shimmering surface of the sea under the setting sun.
Erica and Liliana found the King's current behavior difficult to understand, their faces filled with confusion. But before they could attempt to ask their King, they suddenly detected a powerful surge of magical energy rapidly approaching the bay.
This intense fluctuation of magical energy was something even mages could easily feel.
Soon, Erica and Liliana saw the visitor.
Standing above the bay was a handsome blonde youth. He wore an open black short-sleeved shirt paired with grey jeans. His overall attire looked very casual, just like his personality.
If it weren't for the unique aura of a "Godslayer"—the overwhelming pressure that constantly radiated from him and crushed any mere mage—it would be hard to tell from his appearance alone that he was the sixth "Godslayer," the "King of Swords" whose name had resounded throughout Southern Europe in just a few short years.
"Strange... the 'King of Swords' was so far away earlier, how did he sense us...?" Liliana murmured in confusion as she watched Salvatore Doni arrive.
Standing beside her, Erica, who was also watching the scene, spoke:
"Since he is a Godslayer like our King, they should be able to sense each other's existence as long as they are within the same city."
In fact, Erica's deduction was correct. Godslayers could indeed sense each other's location within a certain range, unless one party deliberately hid their presence.
However, all "Godslayers" were chosen ones favored by great destiny. Each was arrogant and did not believe themselves inferior to other Demon Kings, so naturally, they would not do something as status-lowering as hiding their presence.
At this moment, Salvatore Doni, having reached a distance of only five meters from Shirou, broke into a smile.
"The seventh 'Godslayer'... I assume that's you?"
Hearing the blonde youth's words, Shirou stopped looking at the sea and turned to face him. He didn't answer Salvatore Doni's question but instead let out a light sigh and asked in return:
"I think that question no longer needs an answer, does it?"
Upon hearing this, an expression of extreme excitement flooded Salvatore Doni's face.
"Hahaha, you're right!"
His desire for battle surged to an unprecedented height. Salvatore Doni stared intently at the red-haired youth before him.
"I can feel your strength... you are stronger than any 'Heretic God' I have encountered before!"
In response, Shirou merely shrugged. Without any wasted words, he raised his right hand. Within his raised palm, a pale blue light flickered, and a pitch-black greatsword manifested in his grip.
This was the divine artifact stolen from Hephaestus—「Twilight」.
"Are you seeking a fight because I took all the magic associations in Italy under my wing?" Shirou asked with curiosity.
"Ahaha, I don't care about that kind of stuff at all~ I just think you're very powerful and wanted to challenge you!"
Salvatore Doni spoke brightly, his eyes scanning the black greatsword in Shirou's hand.
To Salvatore Doni, that sword was quite unique. On the rugged blade, deep blue magical energy swirled as if it were tangible, and most notably, a brilliant golden light shimmered faintly within it.
Just looking at that black greatsword, Salvatore Doni could feel an immense, heart-trembling power contained within it—just as thrilling as the first time he faced a "Heretic God."
However, the more this was the case, the more excited Salvatore Doni became. As a combat maniac, nothing gave him more pleasure than being able to fight to his heart's content.
"Your strength is indeed very formidable, but even so, I will not retreat in the slightest!"
Although Shirou didn't actually intend to fight this King of Swords, since the other party was challenging him, as a fellow "Godslayer," he seemingly had no reason to refuse. Because of this thought, Shirou directly materialized his strongest "usable" weapon to date: 「Twilight」.
This sword was originally a divine artifact forged by Hephaestus, but now, because Shirou had forcibly injected his "Godslayer" power into it, he had usurped control over it.
At this point, Salvatore Doni stopped wasting time. He took down the long black case from his back, opened it, and drew a sword that, based on its appearance alone, looked quite broken and incomplete.
"Words can no longer express my current excitement, so let us express it through battle!"
Saying this, Salvatore Doni unsheathed the sword.
The sword was about eighty centimeters long, with a double-edged, thick, and sturdy construction. However, its material appeared extremely crude; it paled in comparison even to the swords owned by Erica and Liliana.
To Erica and Liliana, it was quite confusing that the dignified "King of Swords" would bring out such a weapon.
But Shirou did not see it that way. He knew that the first and primary Authority possessed by Salvatore Doni was called:
『Ripresa di un Braccio d'Argento (Silver-arm the Ripper)』!
This was Salvatore Doni's strongest Authority, the first Authority he usurped from the God-King Nuada of Celtic mythology.
This Authority allowed Salvatore Doni's right arm to transform into a "Silver Arm." Any object held by his "Silver Arm," even a mere tree branch, would be granted the power of a lethal magic sword capable of severing all matter in the world!
This specialized "severing" power was immense. It could cut through formless things like liquids, gases, spiritual bodies, and even magic. If he injected his magical energy with full force, he could even slice through divine tools like the "Grass-Cutting Sword" (Ama-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi).
Furthermore, the magic sword empowered by Salvatore Doni could change its shape according to the opponent, transforming into a "Sword of Light" exceeding one thousand meters in length to bisect distant armies.
When fighting massive Heretic Gods or divine beasts, the blade's length could reach nine meters, and its weight would exceed three hundred kilograms. In this state, it possessed the power to slay a divine beast with a body length of twenty meters in a single strike.
"Words cannot express my excitement right now, so let us understand each other in battle! Let us feel the surge of our hearts in combat!"
Salvatore Doni then raised the sword above his head and declared loudly:
"I hereby swear! I shall not allow anything to exist that I cannot cut! And this sword is the invincible blade capable of hacking and slicing through everything in this world!"
As Salvatore Doni chanted the Words of Power to activate his Authority 『Silver-arm the Ripper』, his exposed right arm beneath his short-sleeved shirt was covered in a silver substance. That substance began to spread continuously onto the greatsword he held.
Before long, that crude-looking, heavy greatsword transformed into a silver greatsword a full nine meters long. It was a shimmering silver-white, showing its unique edge under the dim twilight sun.
"Brother Orihara, aren't you going to use your own Authority yet?"
Salvatore Doni asked in confusion as he looked at Shirou, who faced him on the beach holding only the black greatsword.
"This sword alone is enough."
Saying this, Shirou slightly lifted the black greatsword 「Twilight」, which—after being injected with his magical energy and divine power—began to wrap itself in azure and brilliant golden aura.
"I see... it seems you are very confident in your strength, Brother Orihara."
Salvatore Doni wasn't angry at all; instead, he showed a smile full of anticipation.
The tension reached its peak at this moment. The two knight-princesses watching from the shore, along with Andre Rivera following the "King of Swords," were all extremely nervous.
Boom!
With a sonic boom, Salvatore Doni's figure suddenly vanished from the spot, and sand was instantly swept into the air.
Shirou's vision easily captured Salvatore Doni's movement, and he immediately swung his sword in a diagonal slash without hesitation!
The moment the air vibrated, sword met sword.
Clang!
A clear, ringing sound of clashing metal erupted, and the sand and waves swept up in reverse, turning into a tornado.
The melee battle between the two Kings grew increasingly fierce. The three knights on the shore could only see the continuous flashes of blue and silver light.
Slashes were released continuously, splitting the earth and parting the clouds. Various buildings in the surrounding area suffered catastrophic damage under the battle between the two "Godslayers."
"Fortunately, we evacuated the nearby civilians earlier. Otherwise, with the clash of these two Kings, there would surely be heavy casualties now!"
Erica patted her chest with some lingering fear. Her undulating curves were significantly larger than those of Liliana beside her, which made the silver-haired knight-princess gnash her teeth in jealousy.
Liliana looked down at her own "airfield" that she had despite her young age and couldn't help but clench her small fists. She secretly cheered herself on, vowing to make the King's gaze tilt more toward her.
The moment this thought arose, Liliana inexplicably remembered the content she had written in her novels. The story of a knight girl who harbored admiration for the King's city-saving heroism and her series of romantic encounters with him while secretly in love.
Just recalling those details made Liliana's cheeks burn hot, feeling ashamed that her mind-muddled self would write such things the night after she swore her loyalty.
Meanwhile, the battle on the beach continued.
Clang! Clang! Clang!!!
Amidst the surging sword aura, one Noble Phantasm after another was constructed in mid-air, plummeting toward Salvatore Doni below.
Salvatore Doni instinctively swung his sword to shatter the blades attacking him. However, this action was his undoing.
The moment those various Noble Phantasms were shattered by his silver greatsword, the internal magical energy within them surged out in an explosion, oscillating wildly and detonating abruptly!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
Salvatore Doni's body was sent flying backward in this continuous, airtight sequence of collapses. But this alone wasn't enough to defeat the "King of Swords." The blonde youth, emerging from the smoke of the explosions, forcibly twisted his body in mid-air and landed steadily on the ground.
At this moment, it was hard to find an uninjured spot on the "King of Swords." Wounds and scorch marks were everywhere, his clothes were tattered, and he had lost his initial poise, looking quite disheveled.
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