Malenia's previous mistake during the Liurnia campaign, where she inadvertently exposed her weakness, had nearly pushed her into a desperate situation.
Due to her physical condition, she suffered from a significant lack of strength.
If Radahn could seize that opening and launch a continuous assault, it would be enough to force her completely onto the defensive, perhaps even pinning her to the ground without any chance to retaliate.
For this reason, he once again enchanted the greatswords with the Rock Sling enhancement, further strengthening his power in order to suppress the Valkyrie more effectively.
However, the Valkyrie was not foolish. She immediately changed her combat strategy, completely abandoning direct confrontation and instead adopting a guerrilla fighting style, moving flexibly across the battlefield.
The Valkyrie wielded her prosthetic arm blade, combining the Blade Dance with Waterfowl Dance. Like a soaring eagle, she continuously attacked Radahn.
Her objective was simple: to wear down Radahn's life force and stamina through her exquisite swordsmanship and the law of Rot.
It is worth mentioning that the land of Caelid once belonged to the Goddess of Scarlet Rot, the true land of rot.
It had once been the fiefdom of the great prince Godwyn the Golden, guarded by pure gold.
After Godwyn's death, it became Radahn's fiefdom, where he continued to suppress Scarlet Rot through the Redmane Flame.
It could be said that Scarlet Rot itself was the master of Caelid.
In such an environment, the Valkyrie's power became even greater than it was within the Haligtree, granting her an almost endless supply of stamina.
Even merely delaying for time would gradually weaken Radahn's strength and ultimately lead to victory.
Although Radahn also sensed the Valkyrie's intentions, he had no solution. Even if he could land a single strike on the Valkyrie, it would be enough to crush her.
However, Malenia was simply too agile—so agile that even if he desperately swung his enhanced Starscourge Greatswords, he could not hit the Valkyrie even once.
If this continued, he would likely be worn down to death by the Valkyrie.
Radahn slammed his Starscourge Greatswords together sharply, abandoning the foolish idea of confronting Malenia with the Rock Sling enhancement.
"Roar~~~~"
He took a deep breath and released a deafening battle cry while simultaneously casting Gravity Magic: Starcaller Cry.
A massive wave of gravity spread out from Radahn in all directions like a tide.
The Valkyrie's body involuntarily accelerated toward Radahn, as if being pulled by an invisible force.
However, the Valkyrie was already familiar with this move and understood its power.
Even so, she had long since prepared for it. Not only did the Valkyrie not retreat, she instead advanced further, even intending to use the gravity to increase her own speed in preparation for delivering a devastating blow to Radahn.
Malenia spread her single arm and flew into the air, once again unleashing her ultimate technique, Waterfowl Dance.
However, at this exact moment, Radahn released another battle cry, and a terrifying repulsive force erupted like a volcanic explosion.
The repulsive force collided against the edge of the prosthetic arm blade, producing a sharp and piercing sound.
The Valkyrie's prosthetic arm blade was uncontrollably blown away by the force.
"Malenia~~"
The moment Radahn deflected her blade and disrupted her balance, Malenia's heart skipped a beat, and she inwardly cried out that things were bad.
Sure enough, in the very next second, Radahn's attack descended.
Lion's Claw.
The advanced form of Lion's Claw, a battle art used only by the bravest warriors among the Redmanes.
It allowed one to leap forward while spinning and striking with the weapon, and it could even be performed twice consecutively.
Malenia hurriedly raised her blade to block, barely fending off the strike. However, Radahn's body rolled and attacked again.
An even faster strike descended than before—Radahn's strongest single-target killing move.
The two consecutive strikes had already thrown Malenia into imbalance, leaving her wide open.
Radahn's greatsword was raised high once more, preparing to descend again.
Malenia executed a clumsy roll on the spot, barely dodging Radahn's cleaving attack.
Radahn would absolutely not let go of such a perfect opportunity and immediately pressed the assault.
His attacks became increasingly ferocious, every swing carrying endless power and making it difficult for Malenia to breathe.
Although Malenia struggled desperately to resist, her stamina gradually began to fail, and her movements started slowing down.
Radahn seized the moment and unleashed another heavy sword strike, the momentum of the blade fierce and irresistible.
Malenia had no time to dodge and could only barely block with her prosthetic arm blade.
But Radahn's strength was simply too great.
With a single blow, he shattered her golden prosthetic arm, and the prosthetic arm blade lost its support and fell alongside it.
However, Malenia did not give up.
She tightly gripped the prosthetic blade with her intact left hand. The sharp edge cut deeply into her palm, yet she seemed completely unable to feel pain as she continued charging toward Radahn.
Relying on her flexible body and agile movements, Malenia took advantage of the brief moment when Radahn could not quickly recover from his previous attack and leaped upward.
Her feet continuously stepped across the back of the Starscourge Greatsword's blade, climbing up Radahn's arm as lightly as a butterfly.
Then, she fiercely drove the prosthetic arm blade deep toward Radahn's neck.
However, the Haki defense surrounding Radahn's neck was even harder than the Valkyrie had imagined.
The enormous recoil not only prevented Malenia from piercing Radahn's neck, but also caused the prosthetic arm blade to stab backward into the Valkyrie's own body instead.
Radahn said nothing.
He merely stared coldly at Malenia with his golden eyes, his gaze filled with disdain, as though mocking her for overestimating herself.
Crimson blood slowly flowed down from the wound pierced by the sharp blade, dripping onto the ground and forming vivid blood blossoms.
Yet the Valkyrie showed no sign of panic.
Her eyes remained firm and resolute as she pushed the prosthetic arm blade even deeper into her own chest.
It turned out that hidden within the Valkyrie's body was a divine artifact known as the [Unalloyed Gold Needle].
It was a cursed implement used to repel the interference of Outer Gods and suppress the spread of Scarlet Rot.
This golden needle had been personally forged by Miquella to prevent Malenia from completely transforming into the Goddess of Scarlet Rot.
However, at this moment, in order to fulfill her promise to her brother, Malenia resolutely destroyed the golden needle within herself, allowing the power of Scarlet Rot to rage freely once again.
As the golden needle shattered, endless Scarlet Rot surged out from Malenia's body like a tide.
She whispered softly, her voice reaching Radahn's ears:
"Miquella is waiting... waiting for the Promised King to appear."
Immediately afterward, a gigantic Scarlet Aeonia flower bloomed above Radahn's head, as resplendent and dangerous as a crimson lotus.
The overwhelming Scarlet Rot instantly spread throughout Radahn's body, and endless Scarlet Rot pollen rapidly diffused across the entirety of the Caelid region.
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