Downwards slash, push in, thrust. Redge caught every attack with the side of his blade. Still, Yukihime continued to push him back. The two swords she had thrown had landed next to Redge’s feet and a step behind his current position. The one that she had aimed at him had been cleaved before it even reached him, while the other now pierced the exact point where she had wanted it to land.
It seemed that Redge’s ability to slash anything around him affected a specific radius when he emanated it, but when he was focused on fighting Yukihime, its effects disappeared. Of course, it seemed that Redge could also focus it on a certain direction, like he was doing now in order to block Yukihime’s attacks. That’s why the other sword that Yukihime had purposefully thrown away from Redge hadn’t been cleaved.
Redge’s sword technique made Elemia look like an amateur, but then again, Elemia had never seemed like a true sword fighter. Yukihime could tell that Redge was extremely well-trained when it came to swordsmanship – as if his strange ability wasn’t bad enough, his physical technique alone was enough to make him a monstrous opponent.
Yukihime picked up Snowbloom, grabbed another nearby ice sword, then ran back up to Redge. She crossed her blades as she approached, and he caught them head-on.
Now. Yukihime stomped her foot on the ground, and a thick icicle exploded out from the ice sword she had thrown behind Redge. It should have stabbed him right in the back – but she had no such luck, for Redge was no longer standing there. He had teleported once more.
Quickly, Yukihime threw Snowbloom into the sky again and pulled out two more ice swords. She could feel intense star power coming from behind, but she was ready.
“You lose,” Redge said, as he swung down his silver sword.
“Azure Wall.”
As Yukihime’s unbreakable wall blocked his attack, she muttered something else without turning around, and a different spell activated.
“You lose.”
Yukihime deactivated the ice walls and spun around. Both of her ice swords went zooming toward Redge’s neck and chest, but they were instantly diced into dozens of pieces. Then, something fell down from the sky.
Yukihime reached up and caught her beloved Snowbloom. “Absolute Azure: Slashdance – Flashdance.”
As soon as she said that, Snowbloom’s blade expanded, covered in ice as strong as any Azure Wall. It had now become a blade that no one could break, and Yukihime swung it in a flash.
The azure flash sailed toward Redge – and he caught it. Yukihime’s blade clashed with Redge’s sword, and they came to yet another stalemate.
Good. This is exactly what I was waiting for.
Casting several flashy spells in succession had averted Redge’s eyes from Yukihime’s true intentions, and now she had his blade locked behind the indestructible weapon she had created with Flashdance.
I used up a lot of star power in my battle with Elemia... I won’t be able to fight another long one here. I need to end this now!
“I thought you said I was going to lose,” Redge retorted.
“You are. Right now.”
Finally, it was time to unveil the other spell that Yukihime had activated back when she blocked Redge’s attack with her Azure Wall – and in his current condition, there was no way he could escape it.
“Azure Judgment.”
Yukihime had put so much work into fighting Redge at close range, in order to keep his eyes on what was in front of him, rather than what was above him. The reason she threw Snowbloom into the sky was not only so that she could use two ice swords, but so that Redge’s eyes would focus on that instead of the star circle in the sky. She had also made sure to make the circle itself smaller than when she used it on Elemia. The ice chunk she dropped was also smaller, which would decrease its range, but it had to be that size in order to keep Redge from noticing it right away. Additionally, by keeping Redge in one place with her sword attacks, Yukihime had been able to make up for the loss in coverage. In order to defeat an enemy like this, she needed to pull out the stops, and since she couldn’t drag out the battle, this was her best option.
And so, Azure Judgment descended from the heavens once more. The moment the ice chunk left the star circle, a deafening boom crackled through the sky. By the time Redge noticed the danger approaching from above, it was too late. The massive chunk of ice was plummeting down at a shocking speed.
Despite the fact that it seemed like he was seconds away from death, Redge showed Yukihime nothing but a wide grin, then began to speak in a delighted voice. “I suppose I owe you an apology, Yukihime. You are indeed a powerful warrior. It’s no wonder you were able to defeat Elemia. You definitely have what it takes to rule.”
Redge teleported ten steps away from Yukihime. It seemed like he had no intention of running away. If there are are no limits to that space-severing teleportation move of his, then my plan will end in total failure. Judging from the way he’s moved up until now, it seems like he can only move so far with each teleport...
Redge lowered his massive sword to his side, and it began to take on a silver glow. Yukihime could sense an unbelievable amount of star power within it, steadily rising to a level that she’d never seen before.
“There isn’t anything I can’t sever. Before my blade, all of creation is no more durable than a piece of paper.”
You’ve got to be kidding me... Yukihime paled. Don’t tell me he’s actually thinking about cleaving Azure Judgment... It’s impossible! Azure Judgment was composed of special ice produced by a star sorcery spell. It wasn’t as durable as an Azure Wall, but it was far stronger than normal ice. Even if he managed to shave off a few layers of the surface, it would mean nothing. Just let it hit you already...
Yukihime got ready to create an Azure Wall. She was even prepared to delay it from activating so that both of them would be trapped, just as long as it would keep Redge from escaping. Meanwhile, Redge swung his silver blade up toward the great chunk of ice in the sky.
A silver slash flew upwards. It slammed right into the center of the ice – and kept moving, expertly cleaving the chunk of ice in two. But the spectacle didn’t end there. Chopping the ice in half didn’t make it any less a threat, and so Redge kept swinging his sword, as if he meant to split the very sky itself.
Silver slashes flew up one after another, at lightning fast speeds. As she watched, Yukihime could barely believe what she was seeing. Each slash diced up the ice, until it was no more than a clump of hail.
If it had been a normal fight, this would have been the point where Yukihime fell to her knees and stiffened up like a corpse. She may have soiled herself. She may have cried like a baby. She may have screamed for mercy. She may have turned her back and run away. She may have even put her sword to her neck and quietly killed herself. That was how ridiculously insane this whole situation was.
But this was a special case, and Yukihime Yukigane would not turn her back on her pride or her duty, even if it meant dying at the hands of a god.
“No... I can’t lose here!” Yukihime exploded out towards Redge and violently swung her blade sideways. It was the most skillful slash she’d ever performed – but not even that was enough to reach him.
Redge’s great sword flashed, and Snowbloom was cleaved. Its blue blade went spinning into the air – this time without the rest of the sword.
“Im... possible...”