"Hmph! Not bad, you brute of a woman."
"You're not bad yourself, you sneaky woman!"
After a long and tangled struggle, Alise and Kaguya finally separated.
But the fistfuls of hair clenched in their hands, along with the shredded fragments of special clothing scattered across the floor, were more than enough to testify to the tragic state of that earlier battle.
Without another word, the two of them picked up their sword and blade from the ground, preparing for the next stage of the fight.
"This can't go on forever. Let's decide it with one final strike."
Kaguya sheathed her iaito and looked at Alise with utter seriousness.
"If you win, I'll take back what I said before."
"Deal!" Alise assumed her stance as well.
"Haa..."
Kaguya let out a long breath, expelling every distracting thought from her heart.
What hating justice?
What taking revenge on justice?
Right now, she didn't want to deal with any of that nonsense. She only wanted to defeat the opponent before her.
After experiencing so many wretched things in the Far East, the old Kaguya should have already been on the verge of mental collapse. Just one final straw would have been enough to crush her completely.
But fortunately, today she had encountered the Astraea Familia.
She had met the goddess of justice, and she had met Alise.
Her originally unstable mind had gradually cleared during this flesh‑to‑flesh battle with Alise.
This could probably be called... venting?
Yes, venting!
At this moment, Kaguya was pouring every ounce of dissatisfaction, resentment, and pain in her heart into this battle with Alise.
Even though she had been beaten miserably in this fight, struck in the face over a hundred times and even had her clothes torn open—
It did not affect her good mood in the slightest.
Since the death of the one she loved, this was the first time Kaguya had felt her heart leap with joy.
No matter the past.
No matter what might come.
Only the present mattered!
Right now, Kaguya wanted to defeat Alise!
But the difference in their status values was painfully obvious. If she wanted to win, she would have to use her ultimate move.
Divine‑Speed Slash · Twin Leaves!
Though it was called divine speed, in truth it was merely an extremely fast strike. It certainly could not compare to high‑Level adventurers.
But within the scope of Level 1, Kaguya's speed was unquestionably among the very best.
"Burn fiercely, burn fiercely, burn fiercely..."
Alise was the first to move. She knew that if she didn't go all out, she would never be Kaguya's match.
So she used her strongest—and only—magic.
[Lubrude Bequia]
An enhancement spell.
Flames coiled around her limbs and sword, greatly increasing her speed and close‑quarters combat ability.
This was magic Alise had awakened at Level 1. Aside from using it during special training with Elise to improve her magic capacity, she had never once used it outside.
She hadn't expected its first real use to be against Kaguya.
"Full flame output!"
As Alise's chant concluded, blazing fire began to erupt from her body.
The flames quickly spread across her limbs. Though her torso was not engulfed, from the outside she still looked like a living inferno.
Especially the sword in her hand—the fire burning along its blade was several times more intense.
Even monsters in the Dungeon would probably flee at the sight of a "flame demon" like Alise.
Yet in the face of such a terrifying opponent, Kaguya calmly settled into her iaijutsu stance.
No chant.
No movement.
Only dense killing intent.
The two appeared locked in a stalemate, but Astraea, watching from afar, knew full well that this was merely the prelude to a storm.
Thud!
Alise made the first move. Just like before, she rushed toward Kaguya and unleashed a slash identical to her earlier one.
But this time, her blade burned with ferocious flames.
On the other side, Kaguya stared at the incoming Alise like a venomous serpent lying in wait, her killing intent concealed.
The instant Alise drew near, Kaguya's eyes narrowed slightly and a faint smile curved her lips.
Because she knew—the opportunity had come.
"Twin Leaves!"
The divine‑speed strike shot straight toward Alise's neck. If it were not blocked, Alise's fate would be either death or grievous injury.
Thanks to her skills, however, Alise reacted at the last possible moment and brought her sword up in front of herself, attempting to block the attack.
And that was exactly what Kaguya had been waiting for.
At this moment, the distance between them was extremely close. If one could slash at the other's neck, it was impossible for them to be more than a couple of steps apart.
Kaguya had drawn with one hand, while Alise gripped her sword with both.
That was the opportunity!
Kaguya slammed her kimono‑wrapped left hand hard against the blade near its tip.
Even though flames coiled around the sword's edge, they could not harm Kaguya in such a brief instant.
Next came...
The principle of leverage!
With the strength of a single hand, despite having inferior status values to Alise, Kaguya forced down the sword Alise was holding with both hands.
At that instant, Alise's guard was wide open!
The sudden turn of events left Alise momentarily stunned.
Seizing the chance, Kaguya swung her blade once more, the strike named Twin Leaves once again aimed at Alise's neck.
I've won!
A victorious smile had already appeared on Kaguya's face. Alise's stunned expression was proof enough that she had no means of defense left.
And that was only natural. No matter what, Alise had only become an adventurer three months ago. She had barely entered the Dungeon, spending most of her days being beaten around during training. Though her attributes were excellent, her practical combat experience was terrible.
How could she possibly defeat Kaguya, who had been trained in combat techniques since childhood by a family that specialized in assassination?
If one had to say it—
Kaguya had already won this battle.
Provided that...
Someone did not interfere!
Just as Kaguya's blade touched Alise's neck and a thin line of blood began to appear, an unexpected change occurred.
Star‑like motes of light manifested at Alise's throat, blocking the fatal strike.
If Alise had been stunned before, now it was Kaguya's turn.
She still had a defensive measure?
Thinking that, Kaguya looked at Alise's expression. It didn't seem fake.
"Uwaah—"
Before Kaguya could react, a tremendous impact struck her body directly, blasting her backward.
The girl named Kaguya was smashed into the wall by a mysterious force and embedded there, unconscious.
Alise, meanwhile, touched her neck with lingering fear.
She had nearly been killed just now!
"Lady Astraea..."
Looking at her approaching goddess, Alise did not know what to say.
"Bring her back to the Familia first, Alise."
"Elise has probably already learned about this. She's likely on her way back..."