"Look, Ray-Ray, I'm sorry about what happened," Cecilia began, her tone breezy as if apologizing for a minor inconvenience. "I'm sorry that when I video-called you, I rigged your phone to automatically pick up. I'm sorry I caught you in your sleepwear on your bed, hugging that pillow like it was a life raft, and blushing while muttering 'Arthur' over and over. And—I'm sorry—I recorded it."
"You recorded it?!" Rachel shrieked, throwing her hands up and covering her face in pure, unadulterated sha.
"Yeah, so what?" Cecilia replied with a shrug that seed to dismiss the scandal entirely. "You're a teenage girl, Ray-Ray. You can feel what you want, do what you want—it's your life. So tell , what do you really think of Arthur Nightingale?"
Rachel peeked through her fingers, her voice trembling. "Arthur is cool," she stamred. "I an, he's super smart, talented, hardworking, and strong… but he's also kind. I can see it in his eyes. There's sothing about him—he's kind, you know?"
Cecilia's eyes twinkled as she allowed a small, conspiratorial smile. "I know, right? It's odd how soone like him, a real crazy bastard who treats everyone like chess pieces, can also be so genuinely kind. It's a paradox that just pulls you in."
"Yeah, he's not like Lucifer at all—and that's what makes him so much better," Rachel added, her voice gaining strength even as her cheeks stayed stubbornly red.
"Okay, okay, we get it—you love him," Cecilia said, her voice light but insistent, like soone coaxing a cat out from under a sofa. "Now, tell what you want him to do to you."
Rachel's head snapped up, her face turning an impressive shade of red. "W-what?!" she stamred, looking sowhere between horrified and utterly mortified.
"Ray-Ray," Cecilia said, her tone sharp now, "that bitch of a succubus has locked down your powers because of your unresolved sexual fantasy. So, you need to say it. What is it?"
Rachel, who seed to be attempting to implode from sheer embarrassnt, refused to respond, choosing instead to glare at Cecilia as though she'd sprouted an extra head.
"Co on, he's hot, isn't he?" Cecilia began, the corners of her lips twitching with a grin. "Lean, muscular, handso. You probably hugged him before just to see if he felt—"
"NO, NO, STOP!" Rachel scread, her hands flying up as if that would sohow physically halt the words pouring out of Cecilia's mouth.
"No, Ray-Ray, we can't stop!" Cecilia snapped back, her crimson eyes blazing with an odd mix of determination and exasperation. "If we do, Arthur will die! Do you want that on your conscience? Because I sure don't."
Rachel gulped, her sapphire eyes darting toward the ground as if it could offer so kind of escape. She clenched her fists, her breathing unsteady. Then, after a mont that stretched far too long, she exhaled shakily, squaring her shoulders like soone preparing to walk into a battlefield.
"Yes, he's hot," Rachel admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. "I want him to… hug tightly and pat my head. Because he sees as I am."
Cecilia grinned, clapping her hands together as if Rachel had just solved a particularly tricky math problem. "Good girl! Now admit it—what do you really want from Arthur?"
Rachel's blush deepened, her lips trembling as she glanced anywhere but at Cecilia. Her voice ca out in a strained squeak. "I—uh— want him to gift—"
"Say it plainly!" Cecilia said, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "No weird poetic language or dodging around it. Just say it."
Rachel squeezed her eyes shut, her voice a high-pitched rush of words. "IwanttofeelspecialandIlovehimandIwant…" She paused, inhaled sharply, and then practically yelled, "I WANT HIM TO FUCK , OKAY?"
Cecilia glanced at Rachel, whose face had been frozen in an impressive display of indignation and embarrassnt. "Now, give him your power," Cecilia said, gesturing toward Arthur. Rachel, still red as a tomato, pressed her hands together, golden mana swirling between her palms.
The golden energy coalesced into a wing, one of Rachel's own, glowing with a radiance that seed almost alive. Slowly, she extended it toward Arthur. As soon as the energy made contact with him, it surged into his body, wrapping him in a luminous aura of golden light. Arthur stumbled slightly, his hand gripping his sword as he absorbed the overwhelming energy.
For a mont, he froze, standing still as his aura shifted. Rachel's golden mana lded with Cecilia's crimson energy, the two forces weaving into Arthur's own silver aura. It shouldn't have worked. Golden mana represented divine order, while crimson mana was chaos incarnate. They were opposites, incompatible by nature. And yet, Lucent Harmony made it possible, harmonizing the two opposing forces into sothing entirely new.
Cecilia's crimson eyes widened slightly as she watched the process unfold. "That… shouldn't work," she muttered. "I didn't even think I could transfer my power like that. His Lucent Harmony... it's harmonising chaos and order." Her lips twitched into a grin, though her tone still carried disbelief. "That's insane."
Rachel, still mortified, muttered under her breath, "It's Arthur. He's always insane."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Rachel suddenly blurted, her eyes narrowing suspiciously as she spotted sothing glinting in Cecilia's hands. "Where did you get that phone?"
Cecilia, who had been quietly fiddling with the device, glanced up with an expression of pure, unrepentant mischief. "Hehe," she giggled, holding it up just long enough for Rachel to see the screen. "I got the confession of a Saintess~"
There was a mont of silence. A mont where Rachel's mouth opened and closed, her blush deepening to a shade that could rival a sunset, and the air seed to hum with the promise of imminent murder.
Before Rachel could erupt, a deafening clash echoed through the clearing. Both girls snapped their attention back to the battle as Vespera and Arthur collided once more.
Arthur, enveloped in a swirling aura of silver, gold, and crimson, faced Vespera once more. The succubus—her miasma now unsettled and twitching with irritation—narrowed her eyes at him.
"You're full of surprises, aren't you?" she purred, though her tone lacked the earlier, mocking playfulness. Her claws flexed, eager for another attack. "But surprises don't make up for power you don't have."
Arthur said nothing. Instead, his breathing steadied as his silver aura flared anew, seamlessly rging with the golden radiance lent by Rachel's Saintess magic and the chaotic crimson energy Cecilia's Witchcraft had provided. The result was a rare, harmonious force—a living testant to his Lucent Harmony—where order and chaos danced together in unison.
He tightened his grip on his sword and advanced. The clash that followed was not rely a physical contest but a dazzling display of spellcraft. Vespera unleashed waves of miasma that sliced through the air like serrated blades. In response, Arthur's strikes—fueled by the combined might of three potent mana streams—saw his sword flash in rapid, precise arcs. Each swing of his blade carried not only the montum of his Tempest Dance Technique but also the refined control of Rachel's disciplined light magic and the wild, unpredictable force of Cecilia's chaotic spells.
For a mont, Vespera's defenses held. Her claws sliced through the incoming energy, deflecting his attacks with deadly accuracy. But as the battle wore on, it beca evident that her miasma was thinning—overwheld by the relentless onslaught and the perfect storm of elental power Arthur now commanded.
"Not bad," Vespera hissed as she parried another blow, though her footing wavered. Arthur pressed his advantage; with each successive strike, the ground trembled beneath the force of his assault. The very air around them seed to crackle as his combined aura overwheld her defenses, slicing through her miasma like a blade of pure light.
At last, seizing a mont when Vespera's counterattack faltered, Arthur stepped back, drawing deeply on the full reservoir of his newfound power. His eyes narrowed in focus as he summoned his signature technique—a God Flash, a five-circle spell that rged every lesson he'd learned from both Cecilia's wild Witchcraft and Rachel's honed Saintess magic.
In that heartbeat, the clearing was bathed in a blinding conflagration of light. Arthur's sword, now an extension of his will, beca a spear of pure radiance. The burst was sudden and overwhelming—an explosion of energy that shattered the dark miasma around Vespera. She staggered, her claws failing to et the furious onslaught. With one final, decisive strike, Arthur's God Flash struck true, forcing her back with such force that she skidded across the cracked earth.
For a long, suspended mont, silence reigned, broken only by the labored breath of the vanquished demon. Then, as if conceding defeat with a hint of admiration, Vespera laughed—a low, genuine sound that lacked malice. Her violet eyes, once fierce and predatory, softened as she regarded Arthur.
"You're impressive," she murmured, brushing a lock of hair from her face as she struggled to rise. "Handso, too. No wonder two princesses would fight over you—it makes sense."
Before either Rachel or Cecilia could speak, Vespera's miasma gathered once more, swirling around her like a final curtain call, and she vanished into the shadows.
The clearing fell quiet. Arthur's aura dimd gradually, the silver, golden, and crimson energies receding as he lowered his sword. He turned slowly to face Rachel and Cecilia, both of whom watched him with a mixture of awe and relief.
Rachel's cheeks remained flushed as she managed a soft, "Good job," while Cecilia's eyes sparkled with both mischief and genuine respect. Arthur nodded wearily, knowing that this battle was over.
Reviews
All reviews (0)