In Regulus' private quarters, he sat on his throne, waiting for his enemies to appear before him. He was guarded by Ophelia and Selena, the Arcana of the Moon [XVIII].
"Why didn't you station Lumi here too? I'm sure she can do a better job than this emotionless maid."
Selena glanced over at Ophelia. The maid shot a scowl at the Tarot. The white-haired woman smiled.
Even when all of the Major Arcana were united, the Moon [XVIII] and the Sun [XIX] were the strongest of the Major Arcana. They were in direct contest with Faith and Ophelia for who was Regulus' primary servants.
"Luminous is a nutjob. Even as her creator, I have to at least say that much."
"Nutjob? She's just innocent. Saying that she's crazy is going too far."
Selena covered for her fellow Tarot. Luminous was like a little sister to her.
"It's because she's innocent that she's a nutjob. Luminous doesn't know the difference between right and wrong and she acts like a child, always wanting to make friends."
Ophelia silently stared at her master.
"You don't hate that, do you, Master?"
The Mortal Sin smiled.
"No. That just makes her the most suitable for killing those pests. I have absolute faith that Luminous will kill them."
·———·
"Kitty, shall we go in for the kill?"
Lin-Hua switched her Soul Form to a Crimson Panther. She possessed two cat-like gauntlets, which amplified her power. She donned a fiery panther head.
Kuroha's ears and tail grew and became darker. Shadows formed around her eyes. It was a pseudo-transformation into Nyx State, though, Kuroha was in control.
"Yeah, why not?"
She had given up on correcting Lin-Hua.
Luminous stared at them before backing away. A pillar of ice protruded from the ground from where she previously stood.
Qiang brought down Hephaestus like a guillotine, attempting to cut Luminous. She dodged each strike, as if dancing happily.
Birds of ice flew at the woman—they lightly grazed her body, freezing it from the point of impact.
"Ah, that's not good,"
Luminous stopped, inspecting her wounds.
"Haaaaaaaaa!"
The boy did not stop his assault.
"Meteor!"
With all his strength, he hacked down at Luminous, releasing flames from Hephaestus.
"I hate how cold it is."
Luminous caught the blade with her hand, looking at Qiang with hollow eyes. The next moment, her eyes lit up.
"Flames! Those will keep me warm!"
She smiled, almost casually absorbing the flames that Hephaestus emitted.
"Crazy!"
He muttered.
Like a shadow, Kuroha appeared from behind Luminous, priming her fist. Purple lightning sparked profoundly.
"Firebolt!"
Luminous let go of Hephaestus and grabbed Kuroha's wrist.
"You shouldn't play with lightning. It's dangerous."
The girl leapt off the ground and swung her leg down at Luminous using the same spell. The Arcana stepped to the side, avoiding it.
Kuroha landed. Propelling herself off of one leg, purple lightning cloaked her foot once more, striking Luminous' abdomen.
She stumbled back slightly.
"Well, wasn't that fun?"
A mischievous smile perked up the faces of both Kuroha and Luminous.
"Yeah. That was just the starter."
"Hm—"
She edged to the side, coming into contact with Lin-Hua's fist.
"You!"
For the first time, Luminous seemed flustered.
"Huh?"
Kuroha and Lin-Hua surrounded her from each side. The cat gave the first blow. The woman was able to shave it off with a barrier, although...
"Gah!"
Lin-Hua took turns delivering blows to the Arcana. Luminous took a few hits before countering Lin-Hua by sweeping her legs. She then turned to Kuroha but already had Qiang approaching her from behind.
"Lightscreen."
A light appeared near Luminous, blinding both Qiang and Kuroha. The Arcana had disappeared. Akane was the only one who could attack.
Observing the light, she got ready to attack the moment she saw something.
As soon as Akane saw movement, she launched an ice horn at it.
"Hm?"
It was Kuroha. She had barely dodged the attack.
"Watch it, Akane!"
At first, she believed it was an apology but she realised the girl's intentions. She was looking at something behind.
Creating a shield of ice, she turned around, blocking Luminous' attack.
"I stopped you."
She muttered.
"When?"
"Huh?"
"Gear Two."
Her power suddenly increased and she broke through Akane's ice shield, punching her backwards.
The Singularity that Luminous was bestowed with is Gear Clock. She cannot skip gears. She has six in total and, with each gear she goes up, the more power she has. It also increased the strain on her body.
"You guys are good, so let's play some more."
She said.
"What is she, a child?"
Kuroha complained.
"She knows Light Magic and has some sort of physical Singularity."
Lin-Hua analysed.
They were able to damage her slightly but now it was less likely that they would damage her easily due to her Singularity. Or, that's what they believed.
Lin-Hua thought that her Singularity increased her physicality, however, it was simply her power. Nobody had a way of knowing.
"I'll have to stop playing then."
The black-haired girl said.
"You shouldn't have been playing from the beginning."
Akane approached them, speaking in a hoarse voice.
"We're here to rescue Emika and bring this place down."
"I know, how long until your spell is over?"
"3 minutes."
"Get ready then, when I give you an opening, hit her with some ice attack, or something."
Kuroha advised Akane. She nodded.
"Gear Three."
The menacing aura around Luminous amplified with her Gear Clock. She stopped smiling and focused on her opponents.
·———·
"What are you talking about, Anastasia?"
Tatsuya asked.
The girl brandished her hand. The white gem in the ring shone profoundly, almost as if it had a mind of its own.
"I'm slightly interested. What do you have up your sleeve, girl? Is what you have enough to win against me? I'll give you a hint, I'm stronger than Eta."
"Anastasia? What are you doing?"
Yoko desperately asked her once her Singularity activated.
The mana that was being released from the ring was not anything ordinary. Instead of feeling menacing or demonic, it felt the opposite. It was comfortable to sense. It was angelic and warm.
White feathers descended from the sky and Anastasia closed her fist.
"Sacred Armoury: Azrael..."