*
No matter how one thought about it... Barius was strong. Way stronger than what Aubrey had ever encountered. Stopping time was an insane skill to have. It defied his balanced antimagic and high endurance build through sheer magic utility and combat mechanics.
She was an A grade, and it was enough for her to overcome his antimagic and well, sufficient to freeze him completely in place. She would say that even the current Kaori had a high chance of winning against him. She had expected a lot more from the abductor of Gerald... There was no way to verify if Gerald was dead or not, so all she could do now was to inflict as much pain as possible.
" [Absolute stride]" (Aubrey)
It reduces spatial resistance... At its height, it induces a phenomena where the concept of space no longer applied, in other words it was an imitation of Kanou's first skill. It was similarly confined by the number of steps he took. His silhouette vanished right after he spoke, when he rematerialised his claw was already approaching Barius' head. Using his skill once more, it was impossible to dodge, his claw crashed ripped right through her flesh and crashed into her skull.
The world ran out of light, it was devoid of colour. When time stopped, not even light was moving any longer. The 'Barius' that he had just killed disintegrated into an amorphous mass of water. It wiggled in the air like a slime, as if taunting her opponent, then it impaled his heart with a forceful strike and bisected his head from his chest cavity.
Similarly, his body fell apart as it melted into murky green water that stained the floor.
"... What the hell..." (Barius)
"Oh...? Not to keen to see someone with the same trick?" (Aubrey)
His voice resounded behind her ear, its deeper pitch caused her neck to convulse and disorientated her. It was right behind her back, the discomfort was overwhelming, inducing cold sweat to secrete behind her neck and drip down her nape into her back. Even though her large coat should be keeping her warm, she felt a little cold. Inevitably, a fist strike cleaved into the side of her neck. She reinforced it to be tougher than before. Her manipulation over water allows her to harden it by expending magical particles.
If she could survive undodgeable attacks like this, then isn't it just perfect? She froze time once more. Aubrey didn't have a movement skill that was activate at all times, he couldn't shift even a single inch. Once more, she placed her palm over the chest area of his elegant black suit. It was riddled with holes in the next moment as his bodily fluids were used to harden and become spikes.
"Another fake, living beings are composed of an extremely high amount of water... So I could fool someone that for example... Uses the composition of her surroundings to detect her opponents. But you... Are 99% fluid." (Barius)
Time had resumed and sure enough, he was standing right behind her. She had turned around to face him before time resumed. While it was extremely effective, it was also very costly. She was in the middle of demon territory, it wouldn't bode well to expend her magical particles willy-nilly. She could keep launching missiles of water magic to bombard the area until not a single trace of Aubrey was left, but that would greatly exhaust her well.
She needed to be cost effective for now, her well was big enough to sustain her for a long time if she kept at this pace. Things are fine. She reassured herself... While she was distracted with her own thoughts, Aubrey jumped in with his scaly face, slashing with his sharpened claws. Their edges thrust through the air, Serrating into her chest.
"[Enigma]" (Aubrey)
His scales hardened and his claws sharpened. It was a skill unique to his race, but when there was more than one of his species around... Monsters do not have unique skills. As such, even if he was a higher evolution than his peers with a stronger body and antimagic, it didn't matter. Barius was a prodigy, one that has been honed and pushed to the edge on the grinder every single day. She was an accumulation of talent and effort combined, multiplying the effect of each other. Her magic was both bountiful and close to its full potential on efficiency.
She overpowered his antimagic with sheer ability, antimagic disables magic, magic uses up antimagic, it was like how enzymes or catalyst can be fully occupied at any one time. All of its benefits are used up, she could then push on with more magic. A monstrous being close to an S grade with a skill that counters his own. He had no choice, if he couldn't beat her normally then he had to use his all.
[Enigma], it transformed his body which began swelling and bulging, before it expanded into a large superstructure akin to a fortress. A giant lizard, it was practically a gargantuan alligator, boasting a muscular tail that could easily dish out destruction. Adding to it, his weight boosted his strength. His speed was already covered by [Absolute stride], so his slower movements were of no concern.
Without any warning, his body spun vigorously, smashing everything inside the Oblivion Magia.
***
"There might be more random elite units like the one we just escaped. We've hit the 1 minute mark, commander level magical girls, prepare to dispatch!" (HuoLi)
*Squelch*
They were travelling at a speed beyond sound, yet some ominous had conveyed itself with a disturbing amount of clarity. They looked to the source of the sound... It was near the edge of their formation, one of the mentioned commanders... Her body was still following them at top speeds... While everything above the neck was gone.
They were greeted by a grotesque stump attached to some shoulders and a body, not long after it fell into the ground and disintegrated. There was no corpse left behind, at the speed they were travelling at, what was suppose to be the corpse was even distributed across the gravel. In the other direction, the front that they were facing... Was a massive army. A giant mass of black, a stark contrast created by the gleaming uniforms that the demon military wore.
They were travelling towards the fortification that the demons built, and the demons fired something... That something eliminated one of the commanders in an instant.
"... Kina... Leave it to me." (De Lan, North)
Kaede hadn't really interacted much with Kina, but De Lan's expression was all she needed to know how loved she was, how much De Lan valued her. De Lan sped past the formation, flying at maximum speed.
[That which rule will see], an odd transparent film wraps around her body like a translucent bubble, it slightly reflected the light making it hard to see her body clearly under the moonlight. The projectiles that the demons launched were all miraculously rushing towards her.
Final skill, [Serration of all that is], trajectory alteration. Everything they shot, powerful or not, rushed towards her and was promptly... Erased by that film protecting her. They mysteriously vanished into thin air, as if what she was seeing was a mere dream. After De Lan got close enough, she rushed higher into the air to gain altitude.
"I will teach you true despair. [The highest price is peace]." (De Lan)
One of the strongest ArcMaidens, the maiden of futility and despondence. She was also the one who had put an end to Barius' journey against the projenitor. Her second skill, [The highest price is peace] materialised as an enormous crimson red light that swallowed the sky and washed over the demon fortress. Regardless of strength, traits or identity... Demons began jumping off their fortification, they had seriously lost their will to live. That was the effect of her second skill.
"One last one, final skill, [Serration of all that is]." (De Lan)
The walls of their fortification began to cave in on itself, crushing those that couldn't jump off in time and those that idled by.
"... [One for all All for one] " (Miwa, NorthEast)
As if a rain was starting, trails of straight blue began to fall from the sky. These trails fall prey to gravity, travelling in a straight line until they reach their target, the rubble of the fortification and the knocked out demons. There was no way demons could die from height or from being crushed by rubble. Their magical military uniforms was reinforced enough to negate anything that could cause a natural or untimely death. They had high resistance to magic... When compared to A grades.
Miwa, the maiden of destruction cast her skill once. The blue lights soar downwards like distant ice comets, but they were navy blue like the ocean.
*BOOOOM!!*
One after another, at the points of collision they erupted. It was an indiscriminate bombardment that vaporised any and all matter in the surroundings. When she was done, there was only a deep ravine left in its wake. The formation members... Stopped to avoid risk of getting struck by the 2 ArcMaiden's attacks.
"...[Soothe the harrow of souls] " (Aernia, Northeastern commander)
Actual rain began to flow, the clouds blocking out the last of the sunlight. A lone flower grew on the ground next to Aernia. She was dressed in a light transparent lime green cloak that covered her fluttery white dress. Her soft fingers were covered in orange gloves as they touched the ground next to the flower. At the bottom ends of her dress were a row of rainforest green frills.
The solemn atmosphere was suffocating for Kaede who knew little of the deceased. Her mind was racing seeing that they were simply wasting time, her anxiety shot up as different priorities clashed across her confuzzled conscious. On one end was the race to save humanity by vanquishing the demon king... And on the other was the mourning of a well regarded warrior. Her fingers tightened inside her palms, knuckles whitening with pressure. If she had foreseen that attack, would she have been able to save that girl?
Or was she herself too weak to do anything about it? The ones who had solved this disastrous turn of events were the ArcMaidens who had overwhelming strength. They weren't able to see this outcome, it was an ambush that only revealed itself after someone died. They couldn't continue on like this, their numbers would just get shaved down. They had to proceed with more prudence, but what did that exactly entail? It was so easy to give vague solutions like 'being more careful', but how does one actually do that when fighting with magic?
In any case, the leader of the operation, Huoli had also stopped on the spot to give her silence in prayer. Obviously, she prayed to the Eye God, the one with the power to listen to every human's wishes... And ignore them. She was a god magical girl who resided over the domain of the eye, but she was able to freely grant wishes. At this turning point of human history, the existence of demons was revealed to the general population, yet she does not intervene and eliminate the Demon King for them.
This reliance was unhealthy, but was it not her duty to protect mankind? They are the true enigmas, gods in the shape of magical girls, their thoughts cannot be read and their ideas cannot be comprehended.
"Enough, she was just serving her mission. If you don't want to dishonor her will, then we must continue advancing." (Kaede)
"A mere..." (Rei, West)
Someone's thoughts leaked out a little, but it was a shared sentiment. Even Huoli stared at Kaede with a slight glare, sizing up the abominable ruffian who had defiled this sacred ritual.
"... What the hell were you guys doing while I was gone? I didn't ask for a sheet of rain or a grave. Let's go. Before I smack you." (De Lan, North)
An unexpected supporter had arrived. As if on cue, the rain promptly stopped right after. The flower was left alone, and with a few explosive bursts of air, there was nobody else left within the vicinity.
There were around 5000 soldiers from the general demon military stationed at that fortification. There were also plenty of mines that covered the vast plains surrounding them, which were conveniently avoided when the assault party leaped into the air over them. The ones that were nearer detonated due to Miwa's bombardment, but even the explosions from the mines were disintegrated away into the blue light.