Two pairs of emerald eyes scan the room in search of prey. Suddenly, Alya's eyes landed on the black-coated man standing alongside Bai.
A mysterious smile then appeared on her luscious pink lip that was exquisite enough to make one gulp. Suddenly, her beautiful figure disappeared from everyone's sight.
"!!!"
Boom!!!!
The body of the black-coated man was sent flying across the room and crashed into a bunch of boxes that were lined up in the corner of the room.
Alya appeared before him and, before anyone had time to react, drove her leg into the black-coated man's solar plexus.
"Wha?"
Bai, along with everyone present, widened their eyes in shock. Alya, who was standing roughly twenty feet away, suddenly appeared like a ghost.
"Mm... that's all it took. Huh? In that case, this should be easy."
Alya said with a nonchalant expression. She then made eye contact with Nikita; Nikita nodded her head in understanding.
She got to her feet and ignored the cries of her wounded body. In her gaze was Bai, who had injured her from behind.
She licked her lips seductively as she moved forward. She kicked off the ground and raised her sword upwards before bringing it down.
Clang~
A loud sound of sword clashing against sword sounded as Bai managed to stop her sword with his own. However, due to the powerful force of Nikita's swing, his legs were forced back.
"Hah... for such a petite body, how can you have such strength!?"
Bai roared in frustration. He used his sword to support his weight as he sank to one knee. It was already embarrassing enough that he was forced back by a woman in a single strike. And now he was forced to his knees.
"Tch."
It was already common knowledge that those from the silver fox race possess superior physical strength. Bai was an extremely prideful person.
He couldn't accept that there might be someone physically stronger.
He clicked his tongue as he lunged towards Nikita. He swung his sword continuously, creating the false image of multiple swords coming towards her instantaneously.
Reading the flow of the trajectory, Nikita narrowed her crimson eyes and also swung her sword many times, creating the image of multiple swords.
The beautiful metallic sound of swords clashing resounded intermittingly. Meanwhile, a short distance away from where Nikita and Bai were locked in combat, a fierce battle was taking place between Alya and the green-haired man.
Alya stayed at a far enough distance and fired countless winds in the form of blades.
The green-haired man swung his sword, cutting down the wind blades coming his way. Alya had a huge advantage as she bombarded him with wind spirit art in the form of blades from a distance. The green-haired man's face became drenched with sweat from his vigorous movements.
As for the others who were present, Alya kept her vigilance and kept them at a fair enough distance where their attacks couldn't reach her.
"Hehe he.... Not bad, you're doing great, but... How about this?"
Alya stretched out her fist, and suddenly, a large twister surrounded the green-haired man's body in a vortex.
Blades made from wind surrounded him from all sides, giving him no possible chance of escape.
"Why don't you give up? Just so you know, it's impossible to escape unless I allow you, too. Of course, I have no intention of doing so. It's not like you have any noteworthy information anyway."
"You Bit*h!"
The green-haired man exclaimed. Alya then clenched her fist, and the twister closed in. His body was then ripped apart and shredded from all sides, his blood and flesh splattered against the ground.
Seeing that, Alya naturally lost interest as she observed her surroundings, searching for stronger opponents to face.
The battle between Nikita and Bai was still as fierce as ever; they both brandished their respective swords with perfect precision. Although Nikita had the advantage in terms of physical strength, Bai had more combat experience than Nikita.
The amount of fatigue and injuries that were slowly accumulating was not small.
Alya watches on with a pleasant smile as she watches Nikita's expression as she fights, and then abruptly raises her right hand as a shield to protect her head.
Bang!
"Guh."
A speeding kick suddenly came out from nowhere and aimed towards her neck; her face grimaced as her delicate hand trembled from the impact.
The black-coated man widened his eyes as his kick was stopped.
"Fufufu!! Not bad, aside from that demi-human woman and her abnormal sense, I didn't think there would be any humans who could sense my presence."
He said, voicing his honest praise.
"Hmph, you overestimate yourself. And I am far from being merely human, you know. My body is connected to the wind, so even if I can't perceive your existence physically. It's still impossible to truly escape my perception."
Alya snorted as she explained with a relaxed expression. Gifts were special blessings granted to different individuals by the world. They don't rely on mana to work, so the activation of one's gift is normally impossible to notice unless it has an effect that can be seen with the naked eye.
The black-coated man's gift, the 'Stealthy king' a gift that allows the user to hide their presence to the point of being completely unnoticeable.
Accompanied by the artefact that allows him to erase his scent, truly was a dangerous combination. However, Alya is the great wind spirit, a being completely connected to the wind.
Even though the 'Stealthy king' allowed the user to completely camouflage their presence, it doesn't change the fact that they are still physically present.
To truly hide from Alya's senses means that their ability has granted them some kind of obscuration from the wind. As long as your body is surrounded by wind, it's impossible to get away from Alya, the spirit of wind. And so, sensing his presence was easy for her.
"Mhm... It seems you're going to be a tricky opponent, even worse than that girl."
"I could say the same to you."
The two raised their vigilance towards the other. And in a split-second, Alya swung her hand, and a wave of wind went towards the black-coated man.
Sensing the danger of the attack, he promptly jumped high in the air, allowing the wind to pass beneath him. While still being in midair, he threw one of the daggers hidden inside his coat.
Though it was easily stopped by a wind barrier surrounding Alya from all sides. Seeing that he clicked his tongue before pulling out another pair of daggers. The battle between Nikita and Bai continues.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Bai swung his sword horizontally. However, Nikita avoided it by twisting her body backwards. As soon as she straightened her posture, she swung her sword vertically. As a result, both were pushed back.
Nikita continues to breathe heavily as she clutches her sword tightly. At this point, she had already accumulated numerous injuries on her body.
Several gash wounds could be seen on her dainty, smooth skin; it was clear that her opponent was better than her in terms of swordsmanship, even though she didn't want to admit it. Bai was strong. However, instead of feeling fear, she felt excited.
Nikita was a proud existence, probably one of the proudest; she wasn't arrogant enough to say she could beat anyone she faced. After facing him for some time, she was starting to notice it.
It was impossible to win only through the use of swordsmanship alone. The person before her was obviously well-trained in the use of a sword.
(If I can't win with the sword, then I have other ways)
She thought her cherry lips curved upwards into a lovely smile. Seeing that look on her face gave Bai a terrible feeling as his instinct sent danger signals to his brain.
"Tch, you guys! What are you doing, using magic and attacking her from a distance!"
Bai ordered his subordinates, who were still having trouble participating in such a serious battle.
"O-okay."
"Understood."
"Yes, sir."
"You!"
Nikita narrowed her eyes at the three men dressed in mage clothing. They were the ones who had fired that magic before and destroyed her dress. She still hasn't forgotten about that, seeing them brought back that feeling of rage she felt before she was rudely interrupted.
"I should definitely repay you guys for what you did back then."
She said before holding out her right hand towards them. Seeing that a bad premonition filled Bai's head as he tried to stop her.
"Sh*t!"
Bai exclaimed when he realised he wouldn't make it.
"Endless frost."
Nikita spoke the words that signal the activation of her attack. At that moment, white mist was released from her body and covered an area of twenty meters, filling the room.
Bai, who was running towards Nikita, hurriedly stopped in his tracks and leapt into the air, avoiding the mist.
As for everyone else, unfortunately, they didn't make it and were covered by the mist.
Soon, the mist subsided, and the view of the room became visible to the naked eye. What greeted their eyes were beautifully made ice sculptures of the men who were covered. Their figure sparkled faintly by the illumination of the silver moon, shining through the window.
"Be glad, your unworthy selves get to become my masterpiece."
Nikita brought her hand to her mouth and said to herself.
"Sigh, next time you're going to use such a dreadful long-range spell, please inform me beforehand."
Alya said while looking at the sculptures. The only reason she didn't end up like them was thanks to her wind barrier that protected her. Even the black-coated man was turned to ice just like everyone else.
"Fufufu! Oh, does that mean without that shield you'd be at the mercy of my attack?"
Nikita said somewhat mockingly. Alya's eyebrow twitched at the thought of being at the mercy of Nikita.
"No way, me, the great wind spirit being at the mercy of a mere beast, don't say such a tasteless joke."
Alya retorted sharply. Nikita's eyes glowed dangerously as her silver hair stood upwards, her crimson eyes met with two pairs of emerald eyes, and for an instant, a spark flew between them.
Boom!!!
A loud banging noise was able to bring both girls back to their senses as they gazed in the direction of the sound.
"You! Will pay for this!"
Bai roared while gazing at them with bloodshot eyes. He then looked at his men who were completely encased with ice and tightly gripped his sword.
Alya looked at him with disinterested eyes. While Nikita was gazing at Bai with admiration. The fact that he was able to avoid her wide range attack 'Endless Frost' was worth praising.
At least from Nikita's perspective.
"This one is really persistent, isn't he?"
"I agree, shall I allow you to do the honours?"
Nikita asked, gesturing towards the angry Bai. Seeing that Alya stepped forward, Bai's muscles bulged as he swung his sword, but....
"Guh."
His sword slashes through empty air as Alya's body is dispersed into the wind and blended into the atmosphere.
Without him noticing, a long sword made out of spirit art materialised above him, hovering in midair, and soon a small and delicate hand grabbed hold of the hilt.
Alya, who was hovering soundlessly in the air with her long, silky green hair fluttering behind her, raised the sword upwards, wrapping it in a vortex of wind.
Meanwhile, Bai looked around in confusion, wondering where Alya had gone. However, he soon gave up on Alya and turned his sights on Nikita, who was standing a short distance away.
"It looks like your friend went ahead and left you behind. Huh."
"Hmm, who knows?"
Nikita answered without much enthusiasm. Seeing that he frowns.
"Hmph! Why don't you reconsider your earlier decision and become my woman? At least then I'd let you live. Now what do you say?"
Nikita says nothing and only stares at him with a look of pity before opening up her mouth.
"As I said before, I appreciate your kind offer, but I can't be your woman."
"Hmm... and why not?"
"Because you would have to be alive to do that."
She replied bluntly. However, Bai's face contorted into confusion as he tried to comprehend the meaning of her words. At the same time, Alya threw the long sword downwards towards the unguarded Bai.
A strong gale was released as the sword travelled at supersonic speed; the sound of heavy wind became audible.
Just when Bai was going to attack Nikita for messing with him, he heard the sound of cutting wind, and the feeling of danger looming over his head overwhelmed him.
He raised his head and saw a sword coming towards him before his vision grew dark. The sword penetrated through his head, stabbing his skull, causing his blood to flow out.
The sword then dug into the earth before dispersing into natural green spirit energy as his body fell to the ground.
"So heartless..."
Nikita said, looking at the bloodied sight before her. Wind gathered, and the figure of Alya was then formed as she covered her mouth with her hand and said in a mischievous tone.
"Ara, aren't you a psychopath who loves to rip your enemies to shreds?"
"You! How long were you watching me?"
Nikita asked while narrowing her eyes. Alya only giggled playfully while ignoring her stare before muttering in a serious tone.
"Unfortunately, killing the enemies is the only way to ensure they don't become future threats. I wanted Haruto to see the ugliness of the world firsthand, no, the ugliness of mankind if you're not strong enough, if you're not tough enough, and if you're not cruel enough, you'll eventually die by someone else's hand..."
She muttered listlessly in a tone too low to hear.
(He hasn't shown any development yet. I wanted him to eventually grow out of his naivety, there is not that much time left before....)
"Alya, is there something wrong?"
Nikita inquired while peering at her face closely. She started talking before her face suddenly became clouded.
"Hm... no, it's nothing anyway, we should go. Tomorrow we're going back to that guild, remember?"
"Yeah."
Nikita nodded her head, the two figures vanished from that place in an instant.