In the slums, inside Old Man Rom's stolen goods warehouse.
After Elsa decided to kill everyone here, she struck without hesitation, clashing evenly with Emilia, the spiritual arts user.
She even seized the opportunity to slice through the candlestick, creating a more suitable hunting environment. Her combat experience was clearly abundant.
To distract Emilia, she had even attempted a sneak attack on Shendu—but that idiot protagonist, Natsuki Subaru, had blocked it.
Looking at the heavily wounded, dying Natsuki Subaru, Shendu decisively knocked him unconscious with a chop to the neck. Not long after, a wisp of black aura began to emanate from his body, an extremely ominous presence growing denser by the second.
"Tch. The Witch's power? Don't even think about rewinding time!"
As the power of the Witch of Envy gradually surfaced, Shendu naturally guarded against it. She directly activated the magic of the Horse Talisman, causing the wound on his abdomen to heal at rapid speed.
After Natsuki Subaru's injury healed, the ominous black aura once again sank back into his body, becoming unusually docile.
Realizing that Emilia was particularly troublesome to deal with, Elsa swiftly evaded the half-elf girl's spiritual arts and instead dashed toward Felt.
"Damn you! You won't hurt my granddaughter!"
Seeing Elsa charge in their direction, Old Man Rom roared.
At this moment, he was truly enraged. He reached out, grabbed the spiked club beside the table, and smashed it fiercely toward Elsa.
"The strength of a giant tribe is impressive, but your mobility is far too poor. With just that, you can't hurt me."
Elsa smiled confidently, casting Old Man Rom a contemptuous glance. With a slight shift of her body, she easily avoided the fatal blow.
However, the floor tiles beneath her feet were shattered into pieces, sending countless fragments flying.
"Girl, don't get cocky. You dare cause trouble on my turf? You'll pay the price!"
Though his first strike failed, Old Man Rom was undeterred. He raised the spiked club again, gripping it with both hands, preparing to deliver a lethal blow.
But Elsa's movements were far too nimble. She evaded his attack once more. With a casual flick of her curved blade, it slashed across Old Man Rom's abdomen, causing him to grunt and collapse.
Thud!
Gravely injured, Old Man Rom fell powerlessly, unable to continue fighting.
"Grandpa!"
Seeing Elsa's attack, Felt rushed forward anxiously when she saw Old Man Rom's life-or-death condition and his severely wounded state, wanting to check on him.
"Don't worry. You are all my prey. I'll send you off one by one."
Having dealt with Old Man Rom, Elsa was in an exceptionally pleasant mood. Gripping her sharp curved blade, she hurled it toward Felt.
Unfortunately for her, this time it had no effect. Felt used the world's Divine Protection of Wind bestowed upon her to nimbly dodge Elsa's strike.
"Heh, interesting. One favored by the world? What a pity. No matter what you are, you're still my prey."
Though her attack failed, Elsa's gaze grew even colder. She knew she had to end this quickly. She could not drag this out any longer.
"Damn it! Your opponent is me!"
Facing Elsa's brutality, Emilia prepared to unleash her full strength and release her spiritual arts against her.
But the moment she raised her hand, she realized she could not mobilize even a trace of magic.
"Sorry, Lia. I've reached my limit. I probably can't keep fighting alongside you."
At the most critical moment of the battle, a small gray cat suddenly leaped onto Emilia's shoulder and spoke apologetically.
"But I still want to protect everyone..."
Upon hearing this, Emilia nearly burst into tears.
At the most dangerous moment, her contracted spirit, Puck, was about to fall into slumber. If that happened, the situation would likely reverse instantly.
"Don't worry. The woman in the back is very strong. With her protecting you, you'll be fine. And she doesn't have any ill intent."
Puck cast a deep glance at Shendu—who had been idly watching from the sidelines—yawned, and continued, "How much longer are you planning to hide? I'll leave this place to you."
After saying that, Puck disappeared. At the same time, Elsa moved.
...
"The battle is over. Time to hunt a spirit."
Elsa smiled coldly. Her speed surged to its peak, and the curved blade in her hand became a streak of silver light as it viciously stabbed toward Emilia's abdomen.
Faced with overwhelming killing intent, Emilia closed her eyes in despair, quietly waiting for death to arrive.
"Elsa, would you like to dance as well?"
At that instant, Shendu's figure suddenly vanished from the rear.
When she reappeared, she was already in front of Elsa. A slender hand caught the descending blade.
The razor-sharp curved blade left not the slightest mark on Shendu's hand. Instead, the blade itself was crushed and warped by her grip.
"How is this possible?"
Realizing that catching her blade barehanded meant trouble, Elsa's heart trembled. Just as she tried to react, Shendu kicked her away.
Bang!
This kick was infused with the power of the Ox Talisman. Even before it landed, the sound of air splitting rang beside Elsa's ears.
Caught off guard, Elsa spun like a top. Wherever she flew, stolen goods were scattered in all directions. Her body felt as if it had been struck by a heavy truck. A sweetness rose in her throat, and she spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Such monstrous strength... Is that woman a monster?"
In their first exchange, Elsa was completely overwhelmed. The imposing aura she had carried earlier vanished, replaced by wary vigilance as she stared at Shendu.
"Open your eyes. You're safe now."
After repelling Elsa, Shendu spoke softly beside Emilia's ear.
Hearing the voice, Emilia opened her eyes and saw the silver-haired, red-eyed girl smiling faintly at her.
"I'm not dead?"
Emilia said in surprise, her eyes filled with relief.
"Of course. Leave the rest of the fight to me."
Shendu rolled her eyes at her, gripping the curved blade as she slowly walked toward Elsa.
"Oh..."
Though she did not fully understand what had happened, Emilia realized she had been saved—by this beautiful girl.
Thinking of that, Emilia's gratitude deepened, and her favorability toward Shendu increased once more.
"May I ask who you are? I'm merely carrying out a mission. I have no other ill intent."
"Heh. When you tried to kill me earlier, you didn't say that."
Shendu let out a cold laugh. Her slender hands tightened slightly around the curved blade.
Crack!
The blade shattered in her grip, exploding into countless fragments that shot toward Elsa from all directions like shrapnel.
The fragments flew at incredible speed. Elsa could only barely protect her vital points, forcibly enduring most of the attack. Once it ended, she rushed to the door, kicked it open, and dashed outside at full speed.
Under the moonlight, Shendu could clearly see that Elsa was covered in wounds—her injuries were severe.
Before absolute strength, Shendu had hardly exerted herself, yet Elsa had been beaten miserably.
"Sister Shendu, she ran away. Should we chase her?"
Seeing Elsa escape, Emilia asked nervously, unconsciously calling Shendu "Sister Shendu."
Perhaps because of the sense of security—and the rising favorability—Emilia had begun to develop a subtle dependence on her.
"No need. I have another gift prepared for her."
Hearing Emilia's words, Shendu gently shook her head and stomped her foot once more.
In an instant, a purple magic circle appeared beneath her feet. The soil within it, infused with the combined power of the Monkey Talisman and the Rat Talisman, began to stir.
Within seconds, it transformed into more than a dozen starving wolves, which swiftly chased after the trail of blood Elsa had left behind.
Before such overwhelming strength, encountering an opponent like Shendu was nothing short of disastrous luck for Elsa.