Maha knew better than anyone how absurdly strong Ney was. Trying to parry the first strike and counterattack like she usually did wouldn’t work here. Even the simplest of Ney’s many moves—an overhead swing—would be lethal. So instead, Maha seized the initiative for once, taking one of the vials from her hip and smashing it.
“That which embodies alchemy, the ultimate catalyst we seek. Bring change to my prey!” Inside the vial was a valuable reagent Maha had received from Diriyah, unofficially known as philosopher’s stone. “Gold!”
The philosopher’s stone shattered, and an energy invisible to the naked eye poured out. The wave of energy washed over Ney and enveloped her, slowly turning her into solid gold.
“It worked!” Ruri exclaimed.
“No, it’s not enough!”
Looking closely, one could see Ney’s fingers and feet were already reverting from gold back to flesh. It would only be a matter of time before she regained full movement. Maha followed up by reaching for two vials this time, breaking them both.
“That which tears and pierces, spears of stone and poison. Come forth and destroy my prey!” Maha simultaneously cast two alchemies of similar qualities. This was a difficult feat afforded to her by her high connectivity to the Akashic Record. “Spears of Crystal and Mercury!”
From the scattered contents of the vials formed about a dozen spears. Fast as lightning, they charged at Ney, who was still partly gold, and skewered her small body to pin it against the ground.
“I’m not done yet!” Maha closed the distance and thrust her dagger into Ney while reaching for another vial and scattering its contents. “That which burns away, raging otherworldly flames. Come forth and incinerate my prey!” For good measure, she used sulfur as a reagent to activate the same alchemy she used against Tao. “Chaining Blaze!”
Flames rose from the dagger she had thrust into her foe, spreading and engulfing her body whole.
“Haah… Haah… Not even you should be able to survive that…” Maha panted heavily, her shoulders heaving. It wasn’t so much the physical strain, but the mental strain that took a toll on her. This was the best chain of moves she could come up with for the situation. If this didn’t work…
“Hm. Not bad. I’ll give you ninety-five points out of a hundred.”
“What…?”
Despite being in the process of burning to ash, Ney’s voice could be heard, utterly calm.
“You can’t be serious…”
As though time were being rewound, the ashes gathered into the shape of a person, and the flames subsided like the ocean tide drawing back. The spears of crystal and mercury came out one by one. At last, the final traces of the golden transformation left Ney’s body. She stood up, completely unscathed. It was as though nothing had happened.
“I’ve been immortal ever since I first began channeling the Akashic Record. I cannot die no matter what I do. Not a soul—human, demon, or otherwise—can kill me.” Saying that, she gave a hearty laugh.
“Damn…!”
“How…how can we defeat someone so powerful?” Ruri asked.
“Hm. You two seem to be misunderstanding,” Ney said with a frown. “I can kill you two whenever I please. But I don’t, because my goal isn’t to kill you two, but to bring salvation to the world.”
“What you’re trying to do isn’t salvation, it’s madness!”
“I’ll say it again: justice without force is powerless. Prove your justice is right through your own strength. If life, the very thing you once denied yourself, is worth living for, then prove it to me!”
Maha sprung forward. The recklessness with which she moved made this look unplanned, as though she were rushing ahead by reflex alone. Was she unable to bear her painful past? Or was she trying to overcome it? Either way, she answered Ney’s call by swinging her dagger down with everything she had. Ney blocked the blow cleanly, but she did nothing more.
“…Why won’t you fight back?”
“My goal is near completion. All I need to do is wait for the Song of the End to complete and activate it, and I’ll have won. What need have I to strike at you?”
“…Hmph.”
“Of course, if you tried to kill Ruri, I would have no choice but to stop you. But you wouldn’t do that, would you?”
Ney spoke with total confidence. She was right, of course, leaving Maha with nothing to say or do but grit her teeth in frustration.
“Miss Maha,” Ruri began. “Perhaps I should—”
“No! Don’t even think about it.”
“Why?! The world will end if I don’t!”
“Even if the world is saved, there’s no meaning if you’re not in it!” The tension of the battle must have made Maha’s lips looser than usual. But what she said was how she genuinely felt.
“Miss Maha…”
“Believe in me, Ruri. I’ll save you and the world both. I promise.” Saying that, she turned to face Ney once more.
“You sure can talk. But what can you do? Is the difference in power between us not clear?”
Maha hadn’t beaten Ney even once in her life. Defeating someone all-powerful and immortal was impossible. At least, it would be under normal circumstances.
“I didn’t come here without a plan,” Maha said.
“Oh? What’s that plan then?”
“I don’t know yet. But I have full faith it’ll work.”
“…Do you hear yourself right now?”
“You’re strong, Ney. But you let your guard down. You were too eager to conclude there was nothing I could do to defeat you.”
“Is that not the case?”
“It is and it isn’t. You’re right about there being nothing I can do alone. But I’m not alone.”
Indeed. “Preparations are complete, Maha.”
“No… So that’s what you were after!” Ney hurriedly released a wave of energy, but I was a moment faster.
“Now severing the connection between the Akashic Record and Ney.”