DID YOU KNOW? YOU CAN NOW READ THREE TO SIX CHAPTERS AHEAD. CHECK MY PROFILE FOR THE LINK.
----
"Whoa, things are really heating up." Rimuru's eyes were aglow with interest as the fight came to a brief stall, the intensity between the two combatants making it clear that neither of them had any intention of backing down.
"Indeed," Benimaru added, now standing behind Rimuru. "The strength they possess is immense, and their combat speed surpasses mine. Yet, what I find particularly interesting is that summon Hinata is using."
"Oh? What about it?" Rimuru asked, glancing back at him.
"It's remarkably powerful, and it appears capable of keeping pace with both Lady Hinata and Lady Hachi. From what I can tell, it isn't a conventional spirit, assuming it can even be called a spirit in the first place."
"An army of creatures like that would certainly spell trouble, even if there were only a handful of them. That's what you're thinking, isn't it?" Rimuru smiled knowingly at Benimaru.
Benimaru returned the smile. "As expected. You understand me well."
Kaede puffed her chest out proudly. "And that's precisely why Maple Tree is the elder sister to Tempest."
Back within the barrier, Hinata frowned as she noticed the strange bubbling that had begun around the wound on her chest. The gash was releasing thin green wisps, almost like smoke leaking from a crack, and the sight immediately put her on guard. Poison?
"She got past my Anti-Magic Physique and poisoned me?" Hinata wondered, stealing a glance toward Hachi.
Hachi, who had three of her swords crossed together to block the sharpened, steel-like feathers of the creature, simply grinned at Hinata. The black-feathered monster strained against the four moss-green blades before Hachi suddenly shifted her stance.
"Let's keep this going, shall we? Or are you beginning to tire?" She suddenly flung her fourth sword toward Hinata. Hinata was quick to dodge, but the blade curved in midair, changing its trajectory with unnatural precision as it angled back toward her.
Hinata saw the sword coming, but her attention was still partially drawn toward the strange green wisps flowing from her chest, so she opted to block rather than risk another direct hit. Before the blade could reach her, however, the creature suddenly vanished, appearing behind Hinata in an instant and deflecting the sword with its wings while positioning its body between her and Hachi's attack.
Hachi straightened herself and stared at the creature for a moment. "I see. So, even though it has been usurped, it still retains its knowledge and memories of past events. That must be how it recognized my plan and chose to protect you."
She bounced lightly on her feet, the four swords in her hands shifting into relaxed positions. "You've really managed to change the target of its loyalty, haven't you? I worked rather hard on them, and now you've taken everything I've given them and made it your own. I have to admit, that is rather vexing."
Hinata finally decided to disregard the wisps flowing from her chest and focus entirely on the battle. Whatever was happening to her wound, she would deal with it afterward; for now, allowing herself to become distracted by something she didn't understand was far more dangerous.
"That was the wrong choice, Hinata," Luminous growled.
"What? What's wrong?" Lenard asked, his expression becoming increasingly panicked. "It's that wound on her chest, isn't it? But what's wrong with it? Why is it smoking green? Could it be poison? If so, shouldn't Lady Hinata be immune to it?"
Luminous considered not answering, but from what she could see, the battle was already approaching a foregone conclusion. "It isn't poison. It is closer to an open wound in her spirit body. That green mist is actually Hinata's spiritrons leaking out, but the Antari has somehow cloaked them in her magicules, making them appear to be some foreign substance."
"So... Lady Hinata is weakening herself by trying to purge what she believes is poison, when in reality, she's attempting to get rid of her own magicules?" Lenard stared at the battle in horror. "What kind of power allows for such an extraordinary level of deception?"
"The Unique Skill [Eidolon]," Rimuru said in a low voice, his expression becoming strangely serious as he delivered the answer with an almost deliberate air of mystery.
Everyone immediately looked toward him in awe.
Well, everyone except Kaede.
"I'd like to ask how you know that, but I already know you won't tell me." Kaede sighed, sounding more amused than surprised. "But yes, Hachi's Unique Skill is [Eidolon], formerly known as the Unique Skill [Nectar]. [Nectar] allowed Hachi to cultivate magicules as though she were tending to a farm or rearing an animal. Through it, she could improve the quality of her own magicules, as well as those belonging to other things. Because of that, Hachi possesses an unparalleled understanding of magicules in general."
"When it evolved and became [Eidolon], she gained access to other forms of energy as well, including spiritrons. Manipulating and cultivating the magicules of another person isn't particularly difficult for her, especially when the alteration is something superficial, such as changing the colour of the energy or subtly altering how it feels."
Rimuru's expression slowly changed as he looked back toward the battle. "So, essentially, she didn't poison Hinata at all. She simply made Hinata's own spiritrons appear to be something they weren't."
Kaede nodded. "Exactly."
And inside the barrier, the green wisps continued to spill from Hinata's wound.
Hinata wiped away the small trickle of blood that had formed at the corner of her mouth. She could feel herself weakening, and it was happening far more quickly than she would have liked.
"I simply have to defeat you quickly, then, don't I?" Hinata said, taking her stance once again as she sharpened her focus and poured more of her remaining strength into her reinforcement.
Beside her, the creature spread its wings wide, casting a dark shadow over the surrounding area. The sheer span of them nearly blotted out the light above as it prepared itself for Hachi's next assault.
Hachi seemed to grow another foot taller as she appeared directly in front of them, her four swords raised before she brought them crashing down. The impact caused the ground to explode beneath her, sending chunks of earth and stone flying in every direction.
Hinata dashed backward just before the strike landed, then slid beneath the second swing, feeling the force of the blade tear through the air above her. The moment she cleared it, she accelerated, shooting around the Antari at high speed in an attempt to find an opening.
Meanwhile, the creature took to the sky, its enormous wings beating once before it released an absurd number of sharpened feathers toward Hachi. Each feather struck the ground with enough force to produce a small explosion, rapidly turning the battlefield into a field of craters.
"That's quite enough from you!" Hachi called out.
She blitzed out of the way as massive constructs of earth suddenly erupted from the ground through the use of [Earth Manipulation]. Towers of stone and packed earth rose toward the sky in different shapes and sizes, twisting upward like enormous pillars. Hachi used them both as cover from the barrage and as platforms, stepping from one to another with such speed that she seemed to disappear between them.
In an instant, she reached the creature.
The creature barely managed to react, raising one of its wings to block the incoming strike. Hachi's blade tore through the wing, but the resistance was enough to halt the attack before it could reach its body.
Hachi simply spun with the momentum, dragging the creature through the air before hurling it downward. The creature crashed into one of the stone platforms with enough force to shatter the structure and crater the earth beneath it.
However, a brilliant golden light suddenly flashed at the edge of Hachi's awareness.
Her attention immediately snapped back toward Hinata.
The Saint was standing several dozen metres away, her body overflowing with an insane amount of magicules. Moonlight was held firmly in her hands, the blade now searing with a blinding radiance that made the surrounding air seem to tremble.
"That power!" Hachi shouted, her voice filled with excitement rather than fear. "That's it, isn't it? Disintegration! I've been waiting for that."
"Is that so?" Hinata asked, leaning forward as she poured every remaining ounce of strength into her sword. "Then perhaps this will be your undoing. And, to repeat your own words back to you, don't bear me any ill will for what is about to happen."
"Nonsense. I have no hard feelings whatsoever." Hachi grinned as she lowered her stance. "We'll simply end this with the next strike, then."
Her armoured helmet suddenly vanished, revealing her grinning face beneath it. At the same time, she extended all four swords outward, each blade beginning to hum with concentrated energy.
Hinata flashed forward.
She moved at a speed even greater than before, accelerating until she reached and surpassed the speed of light. For an instant, the battlefield seemed to disappear around her as she unleashed her strongest attack.
"{Meltslash}!"
Her sword flashed forward, releasing all of its accumulated holy energy in a single overwhelming burst.
However, the full brunt of the attack was abruptly stunted when Hachi's armoured foot slammed into Hinata's gut at the exact moment she released the strike. The combined momentum of the two attacks folded Hinata around the impact, sending her flying backward just as quickly as she had flown forward.
As for the attack filled with holy wrath, it simply vanished before it could ever touch Hachi.
"What?" Hinata frowned as she continued flying backward, blood pouring freely from her mouth. "How?"
A second sun suddenly appeared in the sky.
Hinata's eyes widened as she looked upward, only to see the very attack she had unleashed moments ago descending toward her from above.
Boom!
The impact shook the entire battlefield.
Hinata was slammed into the ground by her own attack, the tremendous force digging a massive crater beneath her and sending cracks racing across the surrounding earth. Even the barrier trembled violently under the impact, its surface rippling as though it might fracture from the sheer force released within it.
When the smoke finally began to clear, Hinata lay motionless at the bottom of the crater.
Her body trembled from the pain as she struggled to move, but for the moment, she could do nothing more than lie there, her breathing ragged and blood staining her clothes.
"Lady Hinata!"
"No!"
"My Lady!"
The cries erupted from the spectators the moment Hinata disappeared beneath the smoke and dust. Several of the Saints instinctively moved forward, but Luminous raised one hand, stopping them in their tracks.
Rimuru was the first to break the silence.."So... does that mean..."
"I believe it is rather obvious," Luminous interrupted, stepping forward.
She looked toward the two combatants before raising her voice so everyone within the barrier could hear.
"The victor is Hachi." The declaration echoed across the battlefield.
Rimuru stared at the battlefield in disbelief. "She actually won..."
Beside him, Benimaru nodded solemnly. "Indeed."
Kaede, however, was already beaming. "Of course she won!"
Back inside the barrier, Hachi walked toward Hinata at a considerably slower pace than before. The excitement that had filled her voice during the battle had faded, replaced by a quiet satisfaction.
She stopped a short distance away from the fallen Saint. "You fought well."
Hinata lifted her head slightly. Despite her condition, her expression remained composed. "So did you."
Hachi crouched down slightly, resting one of her swords against her shoulder. "I suppose that means you don't regret accepting the wager?"
Hinata gave her a tired look. "I wouldn't say that."
"Fair enough." Hachi chuckled.
Hinata finally looked toward the sword lying several metres away. "I lost." There was no bitterness in her voice, only reluctant acceptance.
Hachi extended one hand toward Hinata.."Come on. Let's get you out of here, comrade."
Hinata stared at the offered hand for a moment before accepting it.
Hachi pulled her to her feet, though Hinata immediately staggered and had to steady herself.
"Careful."
"I can stand."
Outside the battlefield, the Saints watched in silence as Hachi helped Hinata out of the crater.
The outcome had been decided. And with it came another problem.
The wager.
Rimuru slowly glanced toward Luminous. "So..."
Luminous smiled, although it was a sad smile. "Yes." She turned toward Hinata. "Since Hachi has won, the terms of our wager must now be honoured."
Hinata closed her eyes. She already knew what was coming. "One year."
Luminous nodded. "One year."
Rimuru looked between them, then slowly smiled. "Well..." He glanced toward Kaede. "Looks like Maple Tree just gained another member."