Stella, her mind frantic with worry for Jake, fought to regain her composure. Despite the gnawing fear clawing at her insides, she pushed it aside and refocused on the mission that still loomed before her.
"Can you even defeat me on your own?" she challenged Nine, her voice betraying a blend of courage and bravado. The only card she could pull here.
Nine responded with a smirk. "Of course not," he replied confidently, his tone nonchalant. "That's why I have him."
Stella's eyes flashed with a mix of curiosity and unease. "Him?"
"Enough distractions," Stella snapped, unwilling to waste time on words. In an instant, she propelled herself toward Nine, aiming to strike. But her attack was intercepted before it even reached its mark, sending her hurtling through the forest and crashing into the base of a nearby mountain.
"Tis... but a scratch," Stella muttered under her breath, refusing to show any sign of weakness as she regained her footing.
Shiki appeared beside Nine with a sudden blur of speed, his gaze sweeping over the spot where Stella had just been flung.
"Hey Nine, where's the enemy?" Shiki asked, an air of obliviousness hanging over his words, as though he hadn't realized that the one attacking Jake was the very one they were fighting.
"That WAS the enemy," Nine replied matter-of-factly, a slight frown pulling at his lips.
"Oh... really?" Shiki asked, taking a few moments to process the information before offering a confused response. It seemed that his mind had to catch up with the situation.
"Yes," Nine affirmed, his eyes narrowing in mild irritation. "By the way, why did it take you so long to get here?"
"When you were on your way here, I already neutralized your combined previous attack. After that, I stopped by a café," Shiki answered casually, as if it was an entirely normal sequence of events.
Nine sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You... never mind," he muttered, realizing how much Shiki had grown in the last five years. "It makes more sense now that you're the 'strongest'."
Shiki nodded, unfazed by the compliment. "Okay, shouldn't we finish her off now?"
"I'm on it," Nine replied, his voice growing serious. "But why didn't you think of killing the light beare in the first place? Seems like the obvious choice."
"I had plans for the future," Shiki explained, his tone casual but with a hint of explanation. "but you insisted on killing her now."
As the two discussed their strategy, Stella, who had regained her composure after the brutal attack, stood from where she lay, seething with fury. "YOU BASTARDS!" she roared, snapping her fingers.
At her command, an ethereal spectacle erupted into the air.
"SOLAR RAIN: OUTBREAK!!" Stella cried, summoning an array of ethereal spears that rained down upon them. The spears varied in size from one to five meters long, each one holding the destructive power of a star, capable of obliterating celestial bodies.
Nine raised an eyebrow. "Well... what do we do now?" he asked, more out of curiosity than fear, though his calm demeanor was unmistakable.
"We do something, of course," Shiki responded with unshakable confidence.
Nine sighed in frustration. "You're not helping me at all. Just make sure there's no collateral damage."
Shiki gave a nonchalant nod, already preparing to manage the chaos, while Nine turned his focus back to the incoming spears. His expression shifted to one of determination.
"Now, for the real battle," Nine declared, unsheathing his katana with a fluid motion.
"MONOCHROMIC DISTORT: RHYTHMIC BLUE: SHIFT!!" Nine shouted with intense focus.
In an instant, the blade of his katana ignited with a burning blue glow as he swung it through the air, disassembling each of the spears that fell toward them with precise movements. His power controlled the flow of energy within the spears, rendering them useless, as if they were mere fragments of a forgotten dream.
Nine's focus never wavered, and he closed the distance between himself and Stella with rapid speed, his katana aimed to decapitate her.
"This world shall be at peace in your absence," he said grimly, his voice steady and resolute.
But just as his blade was about to make contact, there was a sudden flash of light.
"Surprise, you piece of shit!" Jake's voice rang out as he appeared before Nine, his physical strength radiating in an overwhelming surge. He intercepted Nine's attack with his bare hands, blocking the blade with ease, much to Nine's surprise. The speed with which Jake moved had surpassed anything Nine had anticipated.
"You survived Crescent Null... and you're using Mahō kyōka-jutsu?" Nine muttered, impressed by Jake's abilities, yet intrigued by the rapid development.
"How smart of you!" Jake taunted, clearly delighted by the turn of events. "Didn't think I'd be able to keep up, huh?"
Nine raised an eyebrow, recognizing Jake's strength. "At that level of mastery? Even with my katana, 'Latent Flux'... You truly are an interesting one."
Just as the conversation reached a brief lull, Stella seized the opportunity to grab Jake and enveloped them both in a blinding flash of light.
"We withdraw for now," she announced, her voice filled with cold determination, "but the next time we meet... we will end you both."
Nine didn't flinch. "I look forward to my victory," he responded calmly, unfazed by her threats.
As the light faded and they vanished, Nine and Shiki were left standing in the aftermath, their expressions unchanging. Shiki had done nothing to interfere during the retreat, fully aware of the damage Stella's power could cause and how it could easily be avoided.
"What a day," Nine said, his tone reflective as he looked at the space where the battle had just unfolded. "How many more times will this cycle repeat again?"
The calm returned swiftly after the storm, the sounds of nature flooding back into the silence. The wind rustled through the trees, and the day stretched on in its tranquil, almost eerie peace. The balance had shifted, but this was far from the end.