The snow slowly dropped from the cloudy night sky, bothered by none.
This time, the moon was barely visible. As opposed to her.
Her hair as dark as the night brushed past her with the whoosh of the shivering wind, hiding her face from the sides. Her peach eyes sharply eyed the ground from a high and golden point, the ground bright but dimming as it inched closer to where she was.
"The view here is nice.." She sat atop a golden structure that etched the image of a magic circle, holding itself solely through the round golden roof that stuck out like a bump.
A dash of light zoomed by outside the city which she didn't fail to capture.
A smile grew in her face, followed by a giggle. "Oh, there she is~!" She carefully stood up with a delighted tone.
Extending her right hand, she exclaimed <Kage>;—the spell that bends shadows to her will. Her black ring glowed, a grey and burgundy antique pistol forming as she then uttered <Tan-zutsu>.
She aimed the muzzle at her heart as if planning to kill herself. "<Kakusu>".—Shadow engulfed her whole body as she called to disappear and move elsewhere.
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*
Her blood red eyes darted around, taking in the sight of the blend of triangular Stepan houses with chimneys upon entry and the boxier and olden cobblestone houses that greatly varied in design, some ran down with moss as she tread deeper.
From afar, beams of light shot through the sky and spotlighted one structure in particular.—A huge and white temple built with the minds of the most creative and the hands of the strongest. Its grand, round and golden roofs reflected the aimed light, the shininess a testimony to the legitimacy of the material and its significance.
That's right.—Ayuna was in the [Holy City]: [Attican City]. The city where Hepha opened the gates of the [Divine Prison] long ago.
It would be right to say it was a bustling city, all the lights from each household and the residents' presence were unmistakable.
She passed through flocks of civilians, ignoring their loud chatters as they went on with their businesses.
She wasn't here for sightseeing, no, she was here for a mission. But even so, her ears stung, prompting her right eye to twitch and her brows furrow as she muttered, "..They're all so loud, I wish I could crush their heads.."
Ayuna found her way closer to the grand temple surrounded by olden construction, human activity noticeably settling down as it became more quiet.
She observed the area. "I guess it makes sense, I'm inching closer to a holy site."
A minute later, it turned completely silent. She wore a small smile, a little bit of weight lifting off her chest.
Stretching up, she sighed in relief. "Ah, peace and quiet.. Now I won't have to cover my ears or anything.—"
She halted to a tug in her guts, her face of relief replaced by a meticulous expression.
Observing the area, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. There were only the cobblestone houses and some gaps in-between akin to alleyways, but she couldn't sense anything wrong within.
She instinctively extended her right arm to the sound of a piercing growl, catching a shadowy bullet that forced itself to go on. It resisted, eager to go on, but she was stronger.
Looking up, nobody was there.
A cold muzzle pressed against the back of her head, followed by the click of the cock. Her body tensed slightly as she assessed the situation.—There was a gun against her head.
Should she surrender? Obviously she couldn't. She could only expect the wielder to be slower than her, especially since she's a polymorph.
That's right, nobody could be faster than her unless they're the same kind.
With confidence in mind, she prepared to move.
"I suggest you don't move, [Saiko-san]," she giggled quietly, "I have quite the fast reaction~."
A string tugged at her heart and raced to the girl's words. A shiver didn't run down her spine, nor did her hands tremble. She didn't break a cold sweat, no.
Her smile grew in excitement.—That's right, she was being challenged: Ayuna can't refuse a challenge.
In the blink of an eye, the gun growled while she twisted and smacked the arm away, the shooter blending with the shadows and disappearing instantaneously.
Her eyes widened more in excitement. "Oh, you're fast!"
Ayuna tilted her head to the left as the gun growled from behind, another shadowy bullet passing by. She turned to the shooter;—a girl in a grey and burgundy dress like her antique pistol, her hair was as dark as the night, and her mask concealed her eyes.
She saw the gentle rise of the shooter's smile, seemingly feeling likewise. "I could say the same thing for you."
"Well then," Ayuna intertwined her fingers, stretching them until they cracked, "shall we have some fun?"
To her, the mission can wait for a little later. Standing right in front of her was a lone woman who dared to challenge her.
The image of Minerva and Sévir flashed in her mind as she engaged her body "I hope you don't run away like some people I know!"
Yasume cocked her gun, pressing the muzzle against her heart. "I'll have you know that I never run away. <Anatolia>!"
The gun growled three times under a second as she brought the past to the present. There now stood four Yasume's against one Ayuna.
Even so, Ayuna's heart raced faster to the enticing idea of four of the same challengers at once. "Bring it on,—give me more heads to crush!"
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*
Each movement was coordinated, fluid, and precise. The clones and the original body shared the same mind through and through.
They avoided Ayuna's speedy blows and retaliated with their guns.—It was a back and forth fight without a clear winner. Yasume held no advantage against her as far as she knew, and thought Ayuna held none as well.
But she couldn't be sure when this was her first encounter with such an unstoppable force who sent and took every blow with glee, seemingly driving deeper down the spiral of craziness with the spark of her eyes.
Yasume couldn't be bothered however, not when she knew someone even crazier, and the thought of that person agitated her heart and boiled her blood.
With a feint that prompted them to back off, Ayuna quickly caught the third clone and crushed her head with a death grip. The headless body dropped to the ground and faded away.
The lack of reaction from the Yasumes prompted Ayuna to raise a brow, yet continued to reach out and crush theirs.
Yasume was aware enough that this fight can't be prolonged, and so she thought of all her options.
In a matter of two seconds, she decided on one of five choices.
Sticking to the ground a distance away, she gestured to her clones as they disappeared in darkness, giving the impression to have been withdrawn.
She can't deny the excited look in Ayuna's face, and that she would definitely be thinking less and just acting on impulse.
"If that's the case.."
Ayuna locked gazes with a smirk. "Out of mana so soon?"
She returned the smirk. "Kamo (Maybe)."
Ayuna braced herself and dashed closer, her arms wide open,
The heavy killing intent radiating off of her was unmistakable. Yasume cocked the gun and aimed it at her heart. There was no time to dodge, but there was time to initiate a wordless spell.
She pulled the trigger right before Ayuna inched closest, bringing her fists together.—A loud crack and splatter emanated as she crushed the original Yasume's head.
A giggle filtered through what was meant to be a cold and silent air after her death. The headless body fell, only then did Ayuna realise a well-living Yasume stood before her.
"You.." Ayuna's eye twitched before she dashed again.
"<Kaisei>!" The clone's green ring glowed and a green bullet that seemed to form out of nothing zipped through the air and landed on the headless body.
The original Yasume's head took form with a green glow and regenerated perfectly as it faded away. At the same time, Ayuna punched through the clone, stabbing her heart with her fist.
"You nearly got me there, Saiko-san."
"Yeah." she turned around, her eyes derailed as if she was losing sanity.
Yasume narrowed her eyes in wariness. "You seem to be more insane than I thought."
"My, a compliment?" she braced herself, her smug smile stretching. "'Insane' is my middle name."
Yasume struck the same stance and shot herself, disappearing with the shadows as Ayuna charged again.
She retreated to the darker flanks where Ayuna hopefully wouldn't see her. She was convinced Ayuna was as insane as Demitrius described, if not more now that she witnessed her head-crushing habit first hand.
"I can't meddle too much with these types of people." she muttered to herself as she observed Ayuna from the dark. The urge to fall back was present but not strong, yet it had multiple reasons to stay.
The image of a kid who shared similar features in his traditional and straight-seemed yellow and bright garments flashed before her eyes. "Hoh-chan.."
..That's right, she was here for a reason.—to do her mission. To attain the knowledge she sought from a powerful man like Demeter and [cure] her little brother.
This was the only reason. That enough sent waves through her body as she felt a sudden jolt in purpose and energy.
A small smile tugged at her lips. "Ara, I always get energised just thinking of him."
Eitherway, she knew Ayuna would find her at any rate. She couldn't retreat either, so what could she do?
Several ideas popped up, but none resonated as much as what she chose within a second.
Yasume slowly cocked her gun and pressed the cold muzzle against her head. She exclaimed <Arktos>, prompting the white ring to etch "XII" in the gem. Her brain geared for what was to come as she pulled the trigger and nature surged the foreseeable future inside.
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*
The sandstone stadium, usually dark at this time of night, was lit up by a few floating shards that emitted enough brightness to light up the stadium.
A groan escaped the [Water Princess'] mouth as she faced the cold and hard ground of the snowy arena. On top of her back sat the [Light Princess],—Noelle Trysta, who gripped both her wrists tightly.
Minerva squirmed around and exerted all her energy into breaking her grip, but the sweat in her face gave away the exhaustion she hid for as long as possible.
"G–Give it up, Minerva." the shaky yet nonchalant voice of Noelle only stirred Minerva's heart, who now tried even harder to fight back with a suppressed growl. "..You're completely hopeless in actual hand to hand combat."
Minerva feverishly shook her head. "..You're just.."
"W–What?" she leaned closer to her left ear. "I'm just..?"
Their gazes met, one with pleasure and another in displeasure.
Minerva held back her words, refusing to admit Noelle was simply just better.
"..M–M–My, you're quite st–stubborn. Well, I've k–known that much for five years." she tightened her grip. From the tensing of MInerva's shoulders, it made it clear she winced in pain.
Both voices and bodies trembled to the freezing cold as they fought in their thin nightgowns,—their bedroom clothing. Noelle wore a simple and pink nightgown, whereas Minerva wore the same in cyan.
Much to the latter's confusion, Noelle let go and stood up.
She turned around to face the standing Noelle, who only stared at her with unreadable eyes.
"W–Why did you stop?
Noelle folded her arms. "Fight me again when you're no longer [weak]."
Despite the shakiness from the cold, those words pierced harder than the weather ever could through Minerva's skin and heart.
"When you're actually strong, that's when I'll accept a sudden midnight duel again." the Princess turned around and walked away, the crunches of snow distancing every second.
Minerva's brows furrowed, yet it couldn't show enough of everything her heart felt at that moment.
The burning anger.
The shivering disappointment.
The heavy sadness.
The thirsty nothingness.
All those accumulated to a fist slam against the ground. She gritted her teeth as well, yet the frustration didn't disappear.
She stared at Noelle's shrinking figure. The Princess was strong and essentially out of her league, and even more so when Minerva temporarily had no cutlass to conjure magic.
But.. She knew something about herself better than anyone else.
"PRINCESS——!!" her yell that echoed through the whole stadium forced Noelle to stop and turn around.
Minerva slowly rose. Her head lightened as if it pushed off weights that only slowed her down. Her veins burned as she uttered, <Bekumiecz>.
The Princess' eyes widened as a block erected and took the form of a blue and ice longsword purely out of Minerva's words.
At this moment, Minerva unlocked something neither of them could expect.
Minerva grabbed the sword and poised it forward with both hands. "..I'm not done with you!"
The astonished Princess could only flash a small smile. "So you've unlocked [Visionary Style]." her hands glowed yellow. "Okay. Promise you won't bore me?"
Minerva shot a determined smirk. "You know I never bore anyone."
With the following yell of <Udo Ribat> and the swing of her left arm, a hail of water emerged from the ground to snatch Noelle.
The battle has begun.
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*