Chapitre 76: A Saint?
"Hmm? Did they use the [Disperse Crowd] suggestion magic over there as well?" Sensing the desolation inside the building, apart from the life energy on the rooftop, Selene couldn't help but feel excited. "Then I won't hold back. I hope you won't disappoint me..."
With that, Selene crouched and leaped forward.
Boom!!!
Although she didn't use her supernatural abilities, this was the first time Selene fully unleashed her physical strength.
Using the reaction force, Selene propelled herself with immense power. In the roughly 500 meters of linear distance, she accelerated from a standstill to break the sound barrier, reaching a terrifying speed of several Mach.
Without a doubt, Kamijou Touma's dormitory was now truly reduced to ruins. From his perspective, Selene appeared to have collapsed the entire building with her leap.
Watching Selene vanish with a sonic boom and then looking at the crumbled dormitory, Kamijou Touma's mind went blank. Holding Index, he stood still, eyes wide with disbelief, staring at the direction Selene had disappeared. "Is this even human..."
At this moment, the power Selene carried with her was close to ten thousand tons. The rapid friction enveloped her in a high temperature, making her appear like a missile as she charged toward the building where Kanzaki Kaori stood.
Atop the building stood a woman at least 175 centimeters tall. Her long black hair was tied into a ponytail that reached her waist. She had a shapely figure and fair skin.
She wore a short-sleeved white T-shirt with excess fabric tied at the waist, exposing her navel. Her lower half was clad in worn jeans, one pant leg cut off at the root, revealing a whole pale thigh, and cowboy boots on her feet.
Along with the belt cinching her pants, she wore another thick belt slung across her waist, with a specially made Japanese sword over two meters long, paired with her black ponytail, resembling a swordsman from the end of the Edo period.
In short, her appearance was quite (striking), but she was one of less than twenty Saints in the world, Kanzaki Kaori.
Feeling the gaze of the white-haired, red-eyed girl, Kanzaki Kaori exhaled slowly, her expression serious as she drew the sheathed sword from her waist.
Kanzaki knew that this white-haired girl wouldn't let her go. From the moment Selene caught sight of her, Kanzaki understood that a fierce battle was inevitable.
Moreover, the sense of danger was intense!
But Kanzaki didn't evade. Her pride as a Saint on the magic side wouldn't allow her to back down from any challenge!
She gripped her long sword with both hands and braced herself, ready to withstand the oncoming impact.
Boom~!
The clash between sword and fist sent a tremendous shockwave, scattering equipment from the rooftop and shattering a third of the glass.
"So heavy!" Selene's fist, encased in a delicate gauntlet, pressed down on the sword, causing it to creak. Kanzaki's arms began to tremble. Was such strength even humanly possible?
Feeling Kanzaki's struggle, Selene grinned. Though outwardly nonchalant, a flash of seriousness crossed her eyes, and she was cautious at heart. It would be quite embarrassing to slip up here. "This is the power of a Saint?"
Sticking to her decision not to use abilities, Selene was making this her "Iron Fist" Selene's stage, not a spellcaster's. Still, Kanzaki was a Saint of the magic side, one of fewer than twenty Saints in the world, not to be underestimated.
If compared to the science side's Level 5, Kanzaki would rank among the top three. While the exact ranking of the top Saints was unknown, Kanzaki's position wasn't low.
Selene then engaged other muscle groups, channeling massive strength into the fist pressing down.
"What?!" The sudden increase in force caught Kanzaki off guard, and Selene quickly gained the upper hand.
Selene's punch drove the sheathed sword into Kanzaki's chest, sending her flying tens of meters into the air.
"Cough, cough..." Hit in the chest, even a Saint couldn't shake off the intense pain-induced paralysis.
Before Kanzaki could recover, Selene stomped with one foot, launching herself skyward again, rotating her body for a sweeping kick.
"No!" Seeing Selene close in again, Kanzaki broke free from the paralysis and crossed her arms to defend.
Boom!
Kanzaki was hit once more, this time plummeting downward, crashing to the ground like a meteor.
With the acceleration of gravity over several hundred meters, Kanzaki skidded back dozens of meters after impact, her body half-embedded in the asphalt.
Her arms, which bore the brunt of Selene's sweeping kick, suffered significant damage. Beyond the violent tremors in her hands, the muscles in her forearms had unavoidably bent to some degree.
"Truly powerful. How long has it been since I've been pushed this far... Breaker of God!"
Entering her [Breaker of God] mode, Kanzaki's wounds began to heal visibly, with internal injuries swiftly recovering and strengthening.
Indeed, strengthening, [Breaker of God] granted Kanzaki abilities beyond mortal reach for a limited time. Her blood vessels, muscles, nerves, organs, and bones underwent geometric amplification under the influence of the spell.
"This is the Saint's physique? Truly impressive..." With a loud crash, Selene landed heavily and stepped out of the crater. Seeing Kanzaki getting serious, Selene became exhilarated. "So... are you ready to continue the fight?!"
"Seven Heaven Seven Swords!" Kanzaki didn't respond verbally, but the slight flash of her sword answered for her.
Seven dazzling blade lights flashed through the air, streaking toward Selene with a roar.
Casually swatting one of the "sword energies" aside and finding a gap, Selene dodged slightly, allowing the other six to brush past her ear.
Glancing back, she saw that the remaining six "sword energies" sliced through everything in their path before vanishing. Asphalt, streetlights, even a nearby wind turbine blade was cleanly cut by the stray "sword energies."
"Don't try to fool me with these little tricks. Your sword must be more than just decoration," Selene remarked indifferently, turning back to Kanzaki.
Hearing Selene's words, Kanzaki's expression remained unchanged, though her eyes grew more serious. The test had gone as expected. "Of course, those attacks wouldn't work on you."
She drew her long sword from the scabbard, somehow bringing the two-meter-long blade into her right hand after a momentary blur.
A sword's cry echoed in the air, followed by a thunderous boom. As the air was torn apart, the entire road was split open, shattered stones and dust flying. It was as if space itself was cleaved apart, the attack barreling unstoppably toward Selene!
"This is more like it." Selene crouched, launching herself like an arrow from a bow. The scarred ground suffered further as she whipped up a gale, her right hand forming a blade to strike the incoming sword light from the side.
With a snap, she shattered the attack, then charged at Kanzaki, mercilessly throwing a punch.
Facing Selene's renewed assault, Kanzaki's expression didn't change. Her right hand vanished momentarily, moving at an unimaginable speed to meet Selene's gauntleted fist, sparking on impact.
With a thunderous crash, the dust in the air jolted, pausing momentarily before the ground beneath their feet caved in, stones sent flying by the impact.
Selene squinted, then spun with her right foot for a 360-degree sweeping kick at Kanzaki, who was already moving as Selene turned.
With a bang, they were forced apart. The next moment, Selene charged back even faster, her punches and Kanzaki's slashes speeding up. Kanzaki noticed Selene's increased speed, raising her alertness, yet she too dove toward Selene, leading to a violent clash.
With the initiative, Selene could strike wherever she wanted, each blow carrying immense force. Yet Kanzaki consistently struck at Selene's points of force, unable to penetrate her defense but always gaining the greatest return for minimal effort.
Clang!
Boom!
Thud!
Their fists and sword clashed in a flash, the asphalt beneath them unable to withstand the force transmitted through their bodies, cracking and breaking apart.
Unconcerned, Selene continued her assault, knowing the damage could be repaired later. She was "resisting" the magic side now, and Aleister wouldn't punish her—he'd probably award her a medal.
Noticing Selene's distraction, anger flashed in Kanzaki's eyes. "Are you looking down on me?!"
Clang!!!
In her fury, Kanzaki brought down her sword. Instantly, the world fell silent, save for the blade's brilliant arc cutting the night sky in two!
Realizing her oversight, Selene crossed her arms just in time.
In the next moment, the sword light struck Selene, unleashing a powerful airflow that exploded from her arms.
Boom!!!
Debris and dust soared like a massive bomb had detonated. But it wasn't over; chunks of asphalt and earth continued flying until a near hundred-meter-long trench was carved out.
Though unharmed, Selene was in a less-than-ideal state, her body half-buried in the ground.
Yet in the next instant, with a thunderous roar, the earth around Selene erupted. Leaping from the crater, her eyes glowed ominously red, and she grinned at Kanzaki.
"Not respecting an opponent was my mistake, and I apologize... But are you ready for the second half?!"
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone