Out of nowhere, an invisible object sliced my neck and I quickly moved away to the other side of my platform. Still, the so-called invisible Aegis crystals were relentless. Even after my injury healed instantly, his Aegis crystals proceeded to pound me to the ground from above repeatedly. Determined to not let myself be pushed like that, golden Aegis crystals absorbed the invisible crystals. It popped out from my back and did its thing.
Against something my eyes couldn't see, I could only rely on my ability in this way. Being defensive in combat meant that you allowed yourself to be pushed around. I didn't want that of course. Begrudgingly, I manifested a large golden shield with a narrow cannon protruding in the center. The rest of my Aegis crystals returned into my body.
Namacui seemed unfazed. He raised his hand, which indicated that he wanted to unleash Alicia's Aegis again. I will not let him. The narrow cannon on my shield glowed in gold. After that, a beam of light burst forth from it, blinding my vision with only its color.
"Please get to him!" I said to myself.
He hadn't shown any signs of possessing Lily's Aegis, so there was no way he could block my plasma. I was sure of it. However, the beam slowly dissipated for some reason and eventually disappeared. I blinked.
"Good try, good try," said Namacui, "You just forgot one crucial thing. I am in possession of three different Aegis specialties. In other words, I could produce three different types of Aegis crystals however I want, no matter the quantity."
Yellow and golden Aegis crystals had formed a layered dome around him. I noticed a glint of what seemed to be Alicia's invisible Aegis crystals, randomly covering the surface of the dome. It wrapped different portions of the dome to form the outermost layer. Slowly, Namacui walked out of it and looked around.
"I know about your Aegis, Hope Domitius. This is the only offensive move you have."
I grimaced.
". . . Did Amathelia told you?"
"We observed the footages from when you invaded Moscow. Combining that with what we already know, there isn't much to figure out. You have shown nothing else aside from that plasma beam. I have your Aegis too, and so far, that is the extent of your Aegis."
I gritted my teeth. When it came to this, defeating him alone was almost impossible. Looking back at the massive dome behind him, I gulped. My Aegis could absorb that thing. If I was correct, the capacity of my storage would be near its peak afterward. Meaning, by hook or by crook, I had to reach for that dome in order to achieve the limit of my storage. Judging from his confident answer, he didn't seem to know about the hidden side of my Aegis.
That was my only hope. I could win this fight. By myself. And then, I would go to where Ava was at and save her no matter what. I looked at Caesar and Liu Yang. Caesar was using his animated Aegis blades to attack his opponent. Still, his opponent Liu Yang herself dodged and blocked it with ease.
Her crimson scythe and red blood greatsword sliced forward, hitting Caesar's blades no problem. I noticed Namacui gave her a sidelong glance, his eyes full of worry. He was doing the same thing when we were fighting before. Is he that worried about her?
I closed my eyes and came up with a plan to take down Namacui. In order to maximize the potential of my Aegis, I couldn't afford to dodge his attacks. Absorbing his Aegis crystals should be the top priority. I had to reach the maximum capacity of the absorbed Aegis crystals' storage by any means necessary.
"All right!" Golden Aegis crystals wrapped the torn part of my uniform. With eyes set on Namacui, I ran towards him full speed.
"Attacking me head-on?" Namacui's mouth curved into a grin.
He thrust his palm forward and I manifested a large shield as quickly. Invisible Aegis crystals struck my shield the next moment. The force pushed me back a bit, and I pushed back as hard as I could. After that, my shield glowed and absorbed the invisible Aegis crystals in seconds.
"Not enough . . . I need to get to that dome he made," I lowly muttered. My feet took off running again, my shield repeatedly absorbed the Aegis crystals Namacui sent my way. At one point, his yellow blades hovered to my rear, the ones made up using Caesar's Aegis crystals. I forced myself to ignore it when I realized Namacui was just ten meters away.
"You!" Namacui manifested golden Aegis crystals from his palms, but it was too late. Golden lance sprouted out from my arm and struck him right in the chest. His hovering yellow blades went after me at the same time.
"Arrgh!" The blades pierced me in the chest and I fell down on my knees. Fortunately, I managed to maintain the Aegis crystals allowing me to float on two feet on the surface of the water. Namacui stepped away after he pulled my blade out. But his blades were still poking out of my chest, and the pain was excruciating enough that it felt like I would lose consciousness any time soon. However, I didn't let my body gave up just yet. The image of a dark-haired girl in my mind reminded me of the promise with her. I hadn't fulfilled it yet, so I didn't intend to die before I fulfill such promise.
"I . . . Am not done yet! Not now!" Golden Aegis crystals covered the blades piercing my chest. In a few moments, it glowed and a gold light swallowed the blades— absorbing it into my body. "Only a bit more!"
Namacui formed more yellow blades to hover around him. After that, he raised his hand. My body reacted fast as golden Aegis crystals popped out from my back, forming a small dome protecting me from his attacks. A small portion of it disappeared and I took a peek at the dome behind Namacui. It would take ten to twenty steps for me to reach it. Of course, my own dome absorbed the Aegis crystals Namacui had thrown.
The moment my golden dome disintegrated into thin air, I ran towards the dome with everything I got. A white flame shot up towards the sky and I took a quick glance at Liu Yang.
She was clearly pressuring Caesar, sending flames after flames in his direction. Caesar dodged most of it, but the flame I saw just then took his right arm in its maw.
I wanted to help him, but I knew that he would be angry at me for letting the chance to turn the table slip away. I pulled my gaze away and my hand reached out for Namacui's dome. My golden shield slammed against its surface and started to absorb everything.
"Arrgh!" I dodged a yellow blade coming that went after my head, but another one found its target and struck my shoulder. I tried to not let the pain stop me. After all, I was there, absorbing the dome into my shield. My success in reaching the maximum capacity of my absorption was the only thing that matter. It was an all-or-nothing situation after all. I had to do it.
Namacui, of course, wouldn't let me do my thing. He sent a dozen yellow Aegis blades towards me. Just when my shield finished absorbing the dome, I dived into the water in the next instant—the blades sliced the air. I went back up and floated on the surface of the water; using the Aegis crystals under my feet.
A thin smile appeared on my face. My absorption capacity was at its peak after taking in Namacui's dome. This would allow me to use the hidden part of my Aegis, which can only activate under this condition.
"Hm!" Liu Yang avoided the blades that shot up from below. Twisting her body at a slight angle, the other blades went past her as well. Still, when she looked back at the spot where Caesar was supposed to be— there were three Caesar standing on the yellow platform. Her eyebrows drew together. She seemed confused by what she was seeing.
And that was enough for Caesar to take advantage of the situation. Liu Yang had unconsciously let her guard down in the midst of combat. Due to this, even when the real Caesar sneaked up to get behind her, she didn't realize it.
"Liu Yang!" shouted Namacui.
"Eh?"
Lui Fang's exposed back exploded into a pool of blood and she felt down into the ocean. It was, of course, Caesar that struck her using his Aegis blades. I doubted the woman actually died from it since Aegis Users were extremely hard to kill. I could attest to that.
Shifting my attention back to Namacui, I readied myself to activate the hidden side of my Aegis. He was the only enemy left for us to take down. So it would be appropriate if I finish him as quickly as possible. After all, his comrade, Liu Yang wasn't dead yet, and she could come back at any moment.
However, Namacui's glare sent chills down my spine. His bloodlust spiked in a mere instant and wrapped itself around my body. I couldn't move an inch because of it.
Namacui then looked at Caesar, yellow blades darted towards him. He raised his hand slightly and the blades veered back to Caesar. From the experience he had, Caesar avoided the blades with no difficulty. But . . .
"Caesar!" My legs exploded into an instant sprint towards Caesar, when Namacui thrust his palm forward. Not even a moment passed, and red blood burst out from Caesar's severed right arm and leg. His Aegis mask shattered into pieces, revealing a face that he had been trying to hide from everyone. Lush, messy dark hair covered his forehead, shadowing his blue eyes that looked up at the sky.
Blood spluttered out from his mouth and he, too, fell down into the ocean's depth. My feet slowly came to a halt, eyes gazed at the spot where he was standing moments before. Still, I immediately slip back into reality and fixated my eyes on Namacui. Caesar wouldn't be dead from that. He wouldn't.
There were a lot of people waiting for him to come back. A woman that depended on him so much that she refused to be separated from him— Lily was waiting for his return. The only reason why Lily even defected from the C.U was because of him. I knew he loved Lily and that Lily herself loved him as well, even though she didn't realize it. He once explained about Lily's peculiar behavior, of which it stemmed from her seclusion from the outside world. And then there was Maltyie, who probably had figured out his identity on her own. She was his sister after all.
I gritted my teeth. "He's not dead yet . . ."
"You're next, kid!" Namacui shot that deadly glare again at me, and my body tensed up. What came after was a relentless chain of attacks from him. Invisible Aegis crystals struck from every direction, but fortunately, my shield was large enough to block most of it. Deep gashes appeared on my shoulders and arms as Namacui sent more of his Aegis crystals.
"Ughh. I . . ." I had to activate it; the hidden side of my Aegis. And so, ignoring the beating my body was taking, I focused all my energy towards summoning it. Of course, the furious Namacui wouldn't let up with his attacks, as he increased the rate he produced his invisible Aegis crystals. Or Alicia's Aegis crystals, to be precise.
That was when my body was thrown far back and dived straight into the water. A few seconds after that, Namacui's hand pulled me back to the surface. One look at his face was enough to tell me that he wanted to tear me apart, limb to limb.
I smiled at him. "Your friend . . . She's not dead yet, you know."
His eyebrow rose up at my statement. "And Caesar is dead. You will follow him."
"Ha . . . Not really."
An invisible blade pierced my chest and Namacui looked at me sympathetically. "Ava is not fit to be with someone like you. Or rather, she deserves someone like Amathelia to care for her well-being."
Despite the pain, my mouth helplessly curved into a grin. His statement was that funny. "And you think . . . Ava wants to be with her?"
"Hm?!"
Golden Aegis crystals burst out and enveloped Namacui in an instant. Then, the surrounding area of water was covered in gold as the Aegis crystals poured out from my body incessantly. It clawed towards the sun, trying to reach the impossible, and towered over a few nearby warships. By the time the Aegis crystals stopped spreading, it had covered roughly twenty kilometers of the ocean.