"Wow~!" Kaius whistled, watching the battle between Mira and Maria play out. "Those two are amazing!"
Standing next to him, Celaine nodded silently, her gaze blank. Kaius was transmitting what he saw directly to her mind, allowing her to watch such a spectacle.
"Didn't you say they were lovers? Why are they trying to kill each other?"
"Well..." Celaine lowered her head. How was she supposed to answer that?
"...Love is complicated, I guess."
"Damn right." Kaius nodded seriously. "Watching them makes me realize that my decision to stay single was the correct choice!"
"..."
"I already have enough people trying to kill me as is. I don't need to add another weakness for them to exploit."
Celaine strategically kept her mouth shut despite wanting to say otherwise. Mira and Maria were trying hard not to be a burden to each other... even if it might not look like it right now. They just needed to 'talk' things out.
She turned her attention back to the battle, her 'eyes' hardly able to keep up with the speed at which they both moved. If it weren't for Kaius's help, all she'd be able to see would be around a dozen dim lights moving at extreme speeds, followed by flashes of light.
"Who do you think will win?" Kaius suddenly asked with a grin.
Celaine frowned slightly. "...I don't think it's my place to-"
"My bet's on the blonde one." He interrupted, but Celaine kept quiet.
Not minding her, he continued, "She's putting her all into killing the fox. Every move is calculated, and she's even overworking her body just to win."
"So, you're saying Mira isn't?" Hearing his words, Celaine grew curious.
"Hmmm... I'm not sure. She's obviously trying to win, but at the same time, not? Honestly, I'm not quite sure. The techniques she's shown so far have been incredibly powerful, though a bit crude. She seems like the type of person only to have surekill moves. If she wanted to win, she might be forced to kill the blonde, but that's just my speculation."
"..." Celaine opened her mouth, surprised at how accurate Kaius was.
Although she didn't know as much about Mira's techniques as Maria, she knew that battles to the death against Mira almost never lasted this long. Spars might, since neither side was trying to kill one another, but this was a different story.
'Is Mira holding back? No, I doubt even she's stupid enough to do that. She has to know that doing so would be incredibly disrespectful.' She thought, shaking her head.
'Or maybe this is exactly what Maria wanted... Maybe she had already taken this into account before the battle started...' If that was the case, then it wasn't that Mira hadn't gone all out, but Maria had gone into it, knowing Mira's lack of variety despite her overwhelming power.
'Maria might actually eke out a win...!' Although she previously said that it wasn't her place, she was rooting for Maria.
That was the whole point of this trip, after all!
'However, I'm still not done!'
'[Blood Burst!'
'[Reverse Restoration]!'
Both of them exploded with power at the same time. Veins protruded all over Mira's body as copious amounts of power-filled blood pumped through them.
On the other side, Maria's body shriveled up everywhere except her legs and sword-wielding arm. She concentrated every ounce of vitality she had into those parts, continuously pumping more energy into them.
Mira's [Blood Burst] technique filled her with a ferocious, almost primal strength, her eyes glowing red with murderous intent as she faced off against Maria, who, despite her drained appearance, emanated a focused, almost serene power with her [Reverse Restoration].
Kaius, still sharing the vision with Celaine, couldn't contain his excitement. "They're pushing beyond their limits! This is what true combat looks like!"
On the battlefield, Mira became a blur of motion and launched herself at Maria. Her scythe cut through the air, aiming to rend not just flesh but the very fabric of Maria's being.
Maria met Mira's attack with a deft parry, her blade glowing with an intense light that seemed to pierce the gathering darkness.
The clash was monumental, sending waves of disrupted energy cascading across the battlefield, toppling the remaining ruins and uprooting centuries-old trees.
Mira summoned her clones back into the fray, each one copying her movements, creating a mass of destruction aimed at overwhelming Maria.
But Maria anticipated and countered each strike. Her movements were a blur of light, her sword slashing through the clones, dispersing them like shadows at dawn. Yet, with each clone she destroyed, the toll on her vitality became evident, her movements growing slightly more labored, her breaths more ragged.
Back on the battlefield, Mira, realizing the toll her clones were taking on Maria, intensified her assault, ripping pieces of flesh off with every strike.
Maria knew she had to end the fight soon or risk being overwhelmed.
With a burst of speed born from sheer willpower, Maria closed the distance between them, her sword aimed at a vital point.
Mira barely managed to deflect the strike, but the force of Maria's attack sent her staggering back.
Seizing the moment, Maria let out a battle cry and used every ounce of Qi left in her body to end this!
Schlick!
As if it had teleported there, a blade pierced its way through Mira's chest, with Maria standing right in front of her.
"Not yet!" Mira yelled and ordered the remaining clones to attack! They immediately burst out with power with their scythes raised and struck.
"Hahaha~! I've already considered that!" Maria shouted with a crazy smile. The wings on her back concentrated on a single point and pushed her forward, acting as thrusters that shot the two forward.
The two tumbled on the ground, with Mira's clones stabbing into them. They both felt pain all over their bodies, but when the dust cleared, Maria was seen sitting over someone, covered in blood and still holding onto the sword in Mira's chest.
"...I win." She muttered, a bloody smile crossing her face as she fainted.