'Transcendent Perception[1]' granted the man keen intuition and extraordinary five senses, and could also be called a death warning system. It allowed him to easily see through the entire situation during battle.
This feeling was like slowing down the movement of all things in the world to the extreme, keeping everything within his control.
However, today,
In his own "world," an unbelievable scene occurred.
Why are her movements so smooth… Oh no, I have to… No… Why is my body completely unable to move an inch…
The man's face still bore that ferocious, victory-assured expression, but his heart was already in utter turmoil.
At this moment, Cipher seemed to see through his thoughts, and a playful, teasing smile appeared at the corner of her lips.
"You're moving quite fast, aren't you? But it's not good for a man to be too fast, you know..."
The man: (ﾉ○ Д ○)ﾉ
The man's pupils suddenly constricted.
Because… this unbelievably beautiful Cat Girl… moved.
Cipher raised her long legs and slowly took one step, then a second, and a third. In the mid-air where she passed, a long trail of golden lightning remained, lingering in the frozen time for a long while.
Cipher (～￣▽￣)→))O∆O)o: "No way! Does this surprise you already?"
After saying that, Cipher poked the man's cheek provocatively.
"Eh, do you have more than one Supernatural Ability?"
Feeling the hard texture against her finger, Cipher was somewhat surprised. Understanding dawned on her—no wonder this guy could still survive after being buried alive by heavy objects.
But…
Cipher twitched her ears, a mysterious smile appearing on her face.
"Have you heard a certain saying? Or rather… have you ever been kicked at light speed?"
Whoosh—
Before the man could hear clearly, the Cat Girl before him had vanished like a phantom. Only long, thin golden trails remained in the air, spreading into the distance like swimming dragons before finally disappearing from sight.
In an instant, an extremely ominous premonition surged in the man's heart.
He felt that if he continued to stay where he was, what awaited him would definitely not be a good outcome.
The man wanted to flee, but the Supernatural Ability that had always worked perfectly seemed to have failed at this moment.
I can clearly see it, so why can't I move!!!
Whoosh—
No matter how hard the man tried, he could not change his fate.
In the next moment, a streak of golden lightning, like the break of dawn, magnified infinitely in the center of the man's vision. The previously clearly visible figure once again became elusive.
"Acceleration is power!"
After a several-kilometer dash, Cipher's high-heeled shoe slammed hard into the man's face with a dull thud.
So… it's not that I can't move… but… my body can't keep up… I see…
At the final moment, the man finally understood.
But it was already too late.
He could only slowly taste the tearing pain on his face in that incredibly stretched-out moment of time.
Yet this seemingly long experience was, in Liu Yunshuang's eyes, less than a single breath.
Only a series of sonic booms—"Boom!"—could be heard.
Liu Yunshuang didn't know what was happening. The moment she looked up, an afterimage shot out like lightning from thin air, snapping large trees in its path. It swept across several kilometers until it disappeared at the end of her vision, pointing directly toward a mountain peak in Viewing Tide Residence—where a deep crack must have been left.
Even at such a distance, the keen senses unique to a Grandmaster allowed her to perceive the slight tremors in the ground.
"Nice, the direction was right, not a single house was damaged!"
Cipher raised her hands high, stretching her agile body in a deliberately "tired" pose, her tail wagging happily like a flag. The corners of her mouth curled up, and the satisfaction on her face regarding her cleverness was completely evident.
Liu Yunshuang: (*ﾟﾛﾟ)!!
As far as the eye could see, the street was as dilapidated as a battlefield. Trees leaned in every direction, and broken branches and leaves were scattered everywhere.
Such a soul-stirring scene made Liu Yunshuang's jaw nearly drop to the floor. Her usually fluent tongue seemed tied in knots, unable to utter a single word.
"Hey… hello? Moshi moshi… You didn't just turn into an idiot, did you? That would make things very difficult for This Cat..."
It wasn't until she heard Cipher's teasing words and saw the small hand waving in front of her that she vaguely came back to her senses.
Immediately, she looked at Cipher with terror, her body instinctively assuming a defensive posture.
Liu Yunshuang (*ﾟﾛﾟ)!!: "You… you… what on earth do you want to do?"
Cipher (ᗜ_ᗜ): "Boss Liu, are you serious about that step back? It's really heartbreaking for a cat, meow... This Cat went through all the trouble to save you, yet you, Boss Liu, are acting like you're guarding against a villain? Do you think that's appropriate!"
Cipher crossed her arms over her chest and gave the other a speechless roll of her eyes.
Looking at the other's cautious appearance, she also gained a rough idea of her own strength level on Blue Star.
Are the Ability Users of Blue Star really all this weak?
Although Cipher was confident that no one could catch up to her, she also knew that her own strength was simply incomparable to the likes of Acheron and Sam. Moreover, her abilities weren't really suited for combat.
In the future, there was no guarantee that someone with "Protagonist Halo" or "Plot Armor" wouldn't appear on Blue Star—and she might just happen to be unable to beat them.
But seeing the shocked look on this Director's face, even if her strength wasn't "overpowered," it was probably at least T-0 level.
The "selves" actually didn't know much about the level of Blue Star's Ability Users, so it would be good to tell everyone later.
As for Liu Yunshuang, although she didn't know what the other was thinking at the moment, she didn't dare to complain either.
She could only grumble inwardly: 'You're already this strong, how can a little Grandmaster like me not be afraid?'
From the beginning, she never thought that this Cat Phantom Thief, who often engaged in petty theft, could resolve the situation with those two by herself.
It wasn't that she truly looked down on the other. After all, as First-Level Espers, those two might not be top-tier, but they were among the strongest in the Dragon Kingdom.
As a result, she had witnessed this seemingly weak Cat Girl casually causing one of the two First-Level Espers to die and the other to flee.
"By the way, because This Cat's service has always been very thorough, I specially left a survivor for you."
Seeing Liu Yunshuang staring silently in the direction where that person had flown off, Cipher thoughtfully added.
There was no helping it—when getting paid to do a job, a cat always prioritizes integrity.
"That guy isn't dead yet?!!"
"Yeah, after all, I held back a bit. Plus, that person's Supernatural Ability is special, so he's quite lucky to be alive. He probably shouldn't die anyway—at most he'll be in a vegetative state."
Cipher first pinched the air with her index finger and thumb, then answered in a somewhat uncertain tone.
Upon hearing this, Liu Yunshuang's expression fell silent.
Great. Two First-Level Espers—one fled and one is crippled—and she even held back while insta-killing them. The survivor was probably left intentionally because she thought he hadn't suffered enough.
So, since you're already this strong, why do you insist on being a thief? And why do you have to leave a note on purpose? Is it to let those seeking revenge come and die, so you can rightfully inherit their property?
[1] His Ability