A few minutes earlier, Nylara Veil remained unnervingly calm as chaos unfolded around her. Unlike others who panicked after seeing Regalzeva's arm fall, she focused on the barrier trapping her. Even if I phase out, I still can't escape. The barrier allows light to pass, but not sound. How does it work? How does this barrier 'see'?
What Nylara couldn't have known was that the barrier wasn't rely a physical construct. It was part of an elaborate hidden base designed by a shopkeeper obsessed with secrecy, situated on another planet. The base constantly phased in and out of different dinsions, making it impossible to enter without matching its frequency—a frequency that Nylara's phasing ability couldn't manipulate, despite her best efforts. Unbeknownst to her, the base's dinsional shifts were enhanced by two powerful beings: the Infinite Dragon and the Illusion Dragon.
Nylara's misfortune began when Regalzeva fell. The boundaries of her "room" beca opaque, giving her a claustrophobic sensation. For soone who had always been able to slip through barriers at will, the realization that she was truly trapped rattled her for the first ti. What happened!?
Before she could investigate further, two figures entered her space—figures she never expected to see. "...You are... Stralit Luxeux and Gwenn Yarwood!? What are you two doing here!?"
It took only a mont for Nylara to realize that this situation reeked of betrayal. "Tsk!" Without hesitation, she turned to flee. She wasn't afraid of Stralit and Gwenn per se, but their presence here—now—confird her worst fears: this was an inside job. When did it start? When we began planning the attack? When the barrier fell? Or... could it have been when we first arrived in this world!?
Her thoughts raced, almost causing her to forget about the two won who, despite their youth, were clearly threats. But everything changed the mont Nylara touched the boundary of the "room" and Stralit appeared beside her, erging from her shadow.
Nylara barely had ti to react before Stralit swung her sword. The blade brushed against Nylara's skin, sending an unnatural shudder down her spine. "What!?"
It wasn't the sensation of a blade slicing her that unnerved her. It was... soft. But why can I feel it at all?
In an instant, Nylara phased through the boundary, arriving in another room. As she looked down, her legs were covered in an eerie black substance. Her left leg was completely drenched, and half of her right leg was marked as well. ...Her shadow? No... this is more like ink.
Instinctively, Nylara tried to phase through the ink, only to realize it was sohow fused with her body. "Huh!?"
Worse still, it was spreading.
.
.
.
Stralit watched as Nylara fled, casually observing the ink on her sword, Benihi, as it dripped. "Just as you said. So, your eyes can detect when she becos tangible again. But why?"
Gwenn hovered beside her and shrugged. "Who knows? But now we know she's not invulnerable during the mont of transfer." She smirked, eyes gleaming with revelation. "And this ink... anything it covers becos vulnerable."
Stralit raised an eyebrow. "You an she can't phase out with the ink on her?"
"Only the parts it touches. It's like they beco separate from her. What even is this ability?"
Stralit glanced down at her blade. "I'm still exploring it, but according to Benihi, anything covered by this ink has its na erased... Though I suspect it's sothing more."
Benihi, unusually quiet, kept her thoughts to herself. She didn't expect to take on the properties of a brush... If Gwenn's right, then Hyousube Ichibei's ability must have been absorbed into her [Shadow] and evolved beyond my control.
Concern weighed heavily on Benihi. The longer she stayed with Stralit, the more likely she was to be absorbed as well. I can resist it if I have to, but it's best not to push things that far. After this, I should return to him. She couldn't help feeling a pang of jealousy as only Stralit and Gwenn had been taking the spotlight recently.
Stralit studied Gwenn's face. "Are you sure you want to continue? If I cover her with this ink, you might be able to touch her."
Gwenn's expression darkened, a smoldering hatred brewing beneath her calm exterior. But after a long pause, she shook her head. "We can't risk anything now. Failure would have massive consequences, so I'll leave it to you. Besides, she's only one of them."
"I see... then I won't delay any longer."
.
.
.
Nylara's panic intensified as the ink spread further up her body. Stralit appeared again from within the ink itself, her expression as calm as ever.
"H-huh!?" Nylara's instincts kicked in, and she tried to phase out once more. She succeeded, but sothing felt... off. There was an incongruity she couldn't pinpoint.
She would learn the reason too late.
Stralit reached out, grabbed Nylara's ink-covered leg, and used the spine of Benihi to brutally bend the knee in the opposite direction.
Nylara's scream echoed through the chamber, her mind nearly shutting down from the intensity of the pain. Is this... pain? Her thoughts slowed as shock took over.
But survival instincts prevailed. She fled once more, phasing into another room, too terrified to think of fighting back.
Stralit followed closely behind, her expression unchanging. Benihi's voice echoed in her mind. [Can't you just paint her more?]
Stralit shook her head. "It won't work. After the initial hit, I can only wait for the ink to take her over." She paused, sensing the ink's progress on Nylara. "The more she tries to ignore it, the faster it spreads. Mother told she's never experienced true pain before... but I didn't think she'd break this easily."
Benihi sighed. Her upbringing... she'd fit right in with Kisuke's crowd.
From then on, Stralit relentlessly pursued Nylara. Every ti the ink advanced, she'd find her and break another limb, torturing her until she had no limbs left to break. Eventually, Stralit moved on to ticulously shattering every bone she could grasp.
It wasn't long before Nylara was entirely consud by the ink, her ability to phase in and out of reality stripped away.
Stralit found no reason to prolong the inevitable. As soon as the opportunity arose, she severed Nylara's head in one swift motion.
It was an anti-climactic end for soone who had once road battlefields unscathed, hailed as a hero by many.
Hmmm? Stralit turned her gaze towards the distance, noticing a figure engulfed by a pillar of lightning.
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