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"Then there's nothing more to say," Kuroka said firmly. "As I told you before, I'm taking you with me."
"Hey now We'll treat you very well, little white kitten"
Bikou tried his best to put on a friendly expression.
Unfortunately, his expression control failed him completely. Instead of reassuring, he looked like a suspicious man attempting to lure a child with candy.
"I'm not going with you, Sister."
Shirone's voice was steady.
She was not frightened by Bikou.
She was simply resolute.
"You've grown a lot without me, haven't you?"
Kuroka narrowed her eyes.
She had always intended to take Shirone by force if necessary. Given everything happening recently, leaving her here felt far too dangerous.
A mysterious dimensional energy surge days ago.
The rampage of an evil dragon's lingering soul just yesterday.
Who knew what would happen next?
"There's nothing more to discuss."
Anos smiled faintly.
He had never believed Kuroka would back down because of words alone. In the end, the only convincing argument was strength.
Before, he would never have chosen to confront her directly.
But now…
With Ittō Shura active, it was worth attempting.
"Hm?"
Just as both sides finished exchanging their final warnings, Anos noticed something.
A green treasure chest slowly materialized above Kuroka.
[Ding.]
[Treasure Chest triggered, Grade: Green.]
[Unlock condition: Touch Kuroka's cat ears.]
"…."
Anos chose not to comment on that.
"You seem very confident in your strength," Kuroka said coldly.
In her eyes, the current situation was entirely this man's doing.
His intentions might have been for the sisters' sake But she still disliked his methods.
And she had figured it out.
Le Fay had only cooperated because she had been persuaded by him.
With her abilities, there was no way she would have been captured without a fight.
The pieces finally fit.
"Koneko, do you truly want to stay with us?"
Anos ignored Kuroka's words and crouched down, meeting Shirone at eye level.
Faced with his calm gaze, she hesitated.
Before, she had been decisive because it concerned her alone.
But now—
Her answer would affect him.
"You don't need to think about anything else," he said gently, resting a hand on her head. "Just tell me what your heart says."
Kuroka's stare sharpened instantly.
"Flirting with someone's little sister right in front of them, you've got nerve."
Her teeth clenched slightly, as if she were biting him instead.
In Anos' eyes, golden starlight flickered faintly.
And Shirone finally spoke.
"I want to stay with everyone."
Her voice was soft.
But unwavering.
"A junior's wish must be fulfilled by her senior."
Anos withdrew his hand.
[Loading… Dark Magician Girl.]
Golden sacred energy surged outward, condensing in his palm into the shape of a radiant holy blade.
"Oh?"
Though the magical output registered at merely Mid-Class Devil level, Kuroka felt a faint sense of unease.
"I'll only strike once."
Anos lowered his stance slightly. The blade's brilliance compressed inward, restrained to an extreme.
"What?"
Bikou removed the Ruyi Jingu Bang from his shoulder.
Was this man claiming he could defeat Kuroka in a single blow?
Or was he simply displaying everything he had?
"What can a Mid-Class Devil possibly accomplish?"
Kuroka sighed.
She did not understand how someone wielding sacred power had ended up beside Shirone.
But Mid-Class Devil level?
He was weaker than the Gremory heiress.
How could that reassure her?
Perhaps he simply knew how to charm girls.
That alone meant nothing to her.
"What can it accomplish?"
Anos shook his head lightly.
"You're about to find out."
Of course, he wanted greater strength.
But circumstances were limited.
He would simply optimize what he had.
"One strike is enough."
To Kuroka, it sounded arrogant.
But Anos never acted without certainty.
Before making this decision, he had already run the calculation.
One strike.
Enough.
His ability, Absolute Dichotomy, had confirmed it.
And its verdict was absolute.
[Ittō Shura.]
Spiritual energy erupted from his body.
Yet under his precise control, not a single fragment leaked outward.
In Anos' perception, the world slowed.
"This speed!"
Bikou, whose Fire Eyes and strongest physique granted him superior perception, reacted first.
"Somersault Cloud!"
A golden cloud burst beneath his feet.
He understood now.
If Anos possessed a single-blow amplification ability, his claim was entirely possible.
Bikou's reaction was fast.
But—
Too late.
Before the cloud had fully formed, Anos tapped the ground lightly.
The earth shattered beneath his step.
His figure blurred forward at near-teleportation speed, closing the distance to Kuroka in an instant.
"Extend! Ruyi Jingu Bang!"
Bikou realized he could not physically reach them in time. There was too much distance.
So he relied on the extending staff.
"The Ruyi Jingu Bang?"
Anos shifted his footing lightly.
If it were the original Sun Wukong, he would have been cautious.
He definitely would have been killed here.
But Bikou was not the original.
Not yet.
With a subtle adjustment, he slipped cleanly out of the staff's interception path.
"Impossible!"
As Anos vanished from her sight, that single thought flashed through Kuroka's mind.
Her body reacted instinctively, forming the fastest defensive spell she could manage.
But without even the time to fully utter an incantation—
How much defense could she truly construct?
"Assessment, is the weakest point of the defensive barrier at the midpoint?"
[No.]
"Assessment, is the weakest point of the defensive barrier at the midpoint?"
[Yes.]
Within a fraction of a second, Anos identified the exact structural flaw in her defensive formation.
He did not use magic to break it.
He shattered it with the most direct method possible.
Overwhelming physical force.
And his blade descended.
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~Support with 300 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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