The two swords instantly clashed, scattering countless ice crystals and sparks.
What followed was a continuous barrage of sword swings. The two moved so fast that others couldn't even see what was happening clearly.
Sword aura directly tore apart the ground beneath their feet. Claudia and Revy on either side were blown away by the storms generated from the two women's sword swings.
Revy didn't think much of it. Although she could handle the knights in this world, she was well aware of the gap between herself and Chifuyu, so she wasn't surprised.
But Claudia couldn't help but be stunned. Her strength was among the top in the entire Seven Shields Alliance yet she couldn't even get close to their battlefield!
Esdeath, continuously swinging her ice sword, finally found a woman with whom she could fully display her combat skills. A maniacal smirk appeared on her face. Her attacks became faster and her techniques increasingly unpredictable.
It could even be described as completely unreasonable and relentless assault!
Initially, Chifuyu wanted to end the battle quickly. But during the continuous battle with Esdeath, the hidden combat desire within her also rose accordingly. The sword in her hand became faster, more precise and more terrifying.
In her world, she and her brilliant friend had easily overturned the world, turning it into a female-dominated society.
Although most of the credit went to her friend, the woman who invented the IS unit that could only be used by females.
But as the first pilot of the IS unit to be released, Chifuyu, who piloted the suit named 'White Knight,' declared that the old world's weapons were useless against the IS, also had her own pride!
Not only did she later easily win the world championship in IS combat but she was also universally acknowledged as the strongest!
Undoubtedly, she was overwhelmingly powerful compared to others!
These achievements weren't solely due to her friend; they stemmed from her innate talent.
Chifuyu was a naturally talented person; she knew this from childhood. She was so exceptional that she could even defeat some pilots with insufficient skills while wielding IS weapons!
And the IS's power was such that it could bodily intercept intercontinental missiles and confront the military power of an entire nation on its own.
Simply put, given a Lightsaber, the woman named Chifuyu Orimura could dismantle a Gundam with her bare hands!
So, although she wore armor now, it was just as a precaution. Up to this point, she had been fighting Esdeath using her own strength, not relying on the IS's power.
But the more they fought, the more astonished Chifuyu became. The woman before her not only matched her in appearance and figure but her combat technique and seizing combat opportunities were equally formidable! To determine a winner, she felt she couldn't do it without using the IS's power!
But what she didn't know was that Esdeath felt the same.
This woman... I can't defeat her without using my abilities.
Esdeath wasn't the type to consider using tactics and tools as despicable. But because the strong individuals in this world were too weak, she had subconsciously refrained from using swordsmanship.
But, looking at Chifuyu, whose eyes were just as sharp as her own and who was gradually starting to enjoy the fight, Esdeath couldn't help but have a thought.
Directly defeating her with my abilities would be too boring!
She had just used her full swordsmanship prowess but hadn't defeated her opponent. So now, naturally, she needed to escalate the situation.
However, she didn't want to abandon this hard-found fun, so she made a decision.
Let's fight using the power I've just learned!
Something called 'magic' surged from Esdeath's body.
This was something she had observed on the battlefield, the thing those mages used for spellcasting. After observing it for a while, she discovered that this energy could comprehensively enhance the human body. While those so-called magic circles were merely amplifiers.
So, she took a moment to observe it and then learned this so-called magic.
Meanwhile, Chifuyu looked at Esdeath. Although she also wanted to fight Esdeath longer, she knew their current situation didn't allow it. So, she decided to directly subdue Esdeath!
The IS's energy has more important uses, so...
Magic power also emanated from Chifuyu. Like Esdeath, she had also discovered this thing called 'magic' was quite useful and after observing for a while, she learned how to use it.
Thus, during their next sword clash, an even stronger shockwave blasted away everything around them. The magic power within the two women continuously collided, powerful shockwaves erupted with them as the center. The historically long-standing building even began to show cracks!
Yes! The mere collision of these two women's magic power caused such results!
Esdeath glanced at Chifuyu with some surprise, not expecting her to be such a powerful person. Esdeath's smile became more bloodthirsty as she became more excited!
"Hahaha! You're this powerful?! That's fantastic! Then I won't hold back!"
Esdeath thought these people were idiots. But looking at Chifuyu's face, she decided not to play this gradual unlocking game anymore; such games weren't suited for her!
Against such an enemy, of course one should directly unleash their ultimate move!
Her previous time-freezing technique used against Ryuji had proven to be imperfect, so during this fight, Esdeath had been contemplating how to perfect that move.
After all, the concept behind Mahapadma was correct; it just didn't adequately account for individual differences.
In that case, I should slightly improve it. And by the way...
Looking at her subordinates who wanted to intervene in her fight and that woman named Claudia, an expression of impatience flashed across Esdeath's face.
She hated such meddlesome, self-righteous people the most. But unfortunately, there were too many such individuals in this world!
"Freeze!"
This was a variation of Mahapadma. Instead of lowering the temperature enough to stop time, it continuously reduced the surrounding temperature, constantly absorbing the energy around her!
This was a new ability she developed after discovering the thing called 'magic,' intended to weaken opponents during close combat.
She hadn't thought of a name for it yet, but she planned to use it to deal with Ryuji's vigorous sexual desire!
She would use this move to satisfy Ryuji in bed, so that he won't look for other women.
In an instant, the entire palace was frozen. Claudia and Revy, who wanted to mediate, were frozen in ice without any resistance. Chifuyu, due to her IS unit avoided this freezing!
However, Chifuyu wasn't happy about it because her energy shield was continuously consuming energy to resist the surrounding ultra-low temperatures and protected her from being harmed by it.
As a result, her energy was rapidly being depleted. If she didn't finish the fight quickly, her remaining energy would also be emptied!
Most importantly, Revy was also frozen.
"Don't worry, I don't intend to kill you. After all, you are all excellent women, most suitable as gifts I can offer to my master."
Esdeath chuckled and flicked her sword. The surrounding solid ice slowly moved Kaguya, Lulu, Claudia and Revy to the outer edge of the hall, avoiding them getting caught in their fight.
After all, she came from a poor background and wouldn't casually waste prey!
"Damn it..."
Seeing Revy being taken away by the ice, Chifuyu wanted to stop it. But as soon as she moved, Esdeath, with an excited smile, swiftly met her advance and their swords clashed once more.
But this time.
Esdeath was serious.
Because Chifuyu had demonstrated her strength as a capable opponent, Esdeath didn't hesitate to use her abilities, magic power and her own physical strength.
The swordsmanship combining all three instantly made Chifuyu somewhat unable to adapt. Without the IS's assistance, she became hard-pressed on all sides.
Because the moment Esdeath swung her sword, not only did countless ice spikes shoot from her surroundings, but even the ground and behind Chifuyu sprouted numerous ice spikes!
Chifuyu relied on her powerful reaction ability to dodge as many attacks as possible. But the IS's large frame became her weakness at this moment. Ice spikes directly struck the mechanical devices on Chifuyu's back, causing her IS's energy to drop sharply!
Seeing this, Chifuyu no longer hesitated. She directly adjusted the energy distribution of her shield, so the energy shield only needed to maintain the extreme temperature her body could withstand. Then, she transferred all remaining energy to her sword and thrusters!
Then, when Esdeath launched her next attack, Chifuyu slash towards Esdeath's neck and heart without hesitation!
And in that instant...
"What?"
Esdeath was stunned for a moment. Her sword instantly pierced Chifuyu's heart, exiting cleanly through her back. While Chifuyu's sword was instinctively dodged by Esdeath!
Realizing she had pierced the other's heart, she swiftly froze Chifuyu's body and looked at her frozen body in confusion.
When Chifuyu accelerated her attack earlier, Esdeath was also surprised. The speed of that slash was incredibly fast even to her.
However, Chifuyu's instinctive deviation of her sword from vital spots gave Esdeath the opening for victory.
It wasn't that Chifuyu held back; she was aiming for Esdeath's heart and neck. Since the fight had progressed to this point, she knew negotiations were already meaningless.
It was because of her will.
She wasn't someone who killed as often as Esdeath. Even after turning the world upside down with her companions, she didn't like killing.
And in her world, no one could push her to the limit; she had been invincible since childhood.
So, earlier, she could go toe-to-toe with Esdeath using her abilities. But in a true life-or-death battle, with her IS unit low on energy, at the critical moment between life and death, she was far inferior to Esdeath.
Because she wasn't like Esdeath, who had struggled on the brink of death since childhood! Brushing shoulders with death, fighting for her life was as common as eating and drinking for Esdeath! Chifuyu had been training students at school until recently!
Simply put, their states were not equivalent.
However, Esdeath didn't mind too much. She had seen plenty of people like this before, she just didn't expect to find such a woman in a world like this.
"This seems to be what they call academy-trained fighters, right? But this woman has a lot of killing intent; she shouldn't be the type to be soft-hearted. Why isn't she accustomed to killing?"
Esdeath looked at Chifuyu, unable to understand.
In her opinion, a master like Chifuyu must have been forged through human lives.
But the result was that the other party still had some resistance to killing and her experience in life-or-death battles was severely lacking!
This was usually a problem for those academic warriors who didn't frequently experience life-and-death battles. But she had never seen such a formidable academic type before.
"Speaking of which, I've only seen kind of quality in Ryuji and that guy named Walter in this world."
That aura of frequently brushing shoulders with death, being accustomed to near-death states, used to gambling with life and not considering whether one's life is secure during combat.
Esdeath rubbed her chin and then shook her head.
"It seems there's still no real challenge."
Esdeath sighed, glancing towards the distant Sixth and Seventh Fortresses. She suddenly remembered she was here to accept their surrender. But glancing at Claudia, the Knight she had frozen and the woman whose heart she had pierced. The only reason she was alive was because she had frozen her...
"What was her name again?"
Esdeath looked at Chifuyu's frozen face through the ice and suddenly realized...
She had no idea who this woman was.
"Whatever. They're all prey brought back by me anyway. Let Master Ryuji ask her name himself."
After saying that, she looked towards the distant Sixth and Seventh Fortresses and the already restless surrendered soldiers of the Fifth Fortress, scratching her head.
"Fine. Let's just conquer them."
~~~~~~~~~~
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