Before Enrico could take advantage of it, the ground exploded behind him. Merta returned, crashing through the debris, his body covered in pulsing veins and the extra arms moving aggressively. He advanced without hesitation, hitting Enrico with a double strike that sent him crashing into an already damaged column. The structure gave way, burying part of the area, and inside it Enrico scratched the back of his neck.
'Damn, fighting two is a bit difficult.'
[As you said, this is cowardice.]
'Well, when an opponent is stronger than you, that's the right decision to make, so I can agree with it, as long as they don't keep being arrogant—'
"Hahaha, you're too weak to keep up with us, human."
Meria appeared above him with an arrogant smile, striking his stomach with a kick. With a small vein popping on his neck, he grabbed her leg with a forced smile.
"That's it, I'm going to kill you."
'You can—?'
Enrico gripped her leg tightly and lifted her into the air without difficulty. Planting his feet, he threw Meria toward Merta, managing to hit him and sending both of them into a structure similar to his. Merta stood up and looked at his brother without any expression.
"Why do you provoke him?"
"I just want to have fun, brother, just like you."
"I'm not having fun."
Merta recovered among the debris with a smile, his body becoming darker red, pulsing with even more force than before.
'Let's see how far he can go.'
The extra arms moved chaotically, scratching the floor and walls as he returned to the center of the hall. His presence altered the environment, making the air heavier and the energy of disease spread irregularly. Enrico, as always, already knew that among the three brothers, Merta was the one who sustained the level that allowed them to defeat several powerful circle six opponents.
'I think this fight is going to become one-on-one.'
"Meria, leave him to me and help Sacri."
"Damn it, brother, again?"
Enrico swung his arm in a very restrained gesture of celebration at having to face a strong opponent again. Preparing himself with an excited smile, he assumed his fighting stance.
'You know, I like her.'
[No, you're simply crazy.]
'But before that, I think I can't have as much fun in this fight as before.'
Enrico became serious, looking at Aoi. Meria took a few steps back, moving out of Merta's path, and changed direction. Her gaze fixed on Sisaka, who had already finished erecting a spiritual structure around Aoi and herself. The construction took the form of translucent plates, floating in overlapping layers, reacting to attacks and adjusting as the pressure of Sacri's blows increased.
'Looks like my little brother is having trouble.'
Sacri advanced with more confidence upon sensing his sister's arrival. The disease condensed around his body, spreading in small distortions in the nearby air. Aoi stepped forward, blue fire once again taking the form of a five-tailed fox moving behind her. The flames were denser than before, reacting to a specific emotion of hers.
'With my dear here, losing would be shameful.'
'I think she's going to need help.'
Enrico stayed a few meters back, watching attentively. He occasionally dodged indirect attacks from Merta, responding only with controlled bursts of fire, keeping the creature occupied without going too deep into the confrontation. His focus was on Aoi.
[Looks like you're taking things seriously here.]
'Of course. One is literally my wife and the other is a disciple. Do you want me to have fun in this situation?'
[At least you're keeping your mind in the right place.]
The fire fox advanced along with her, attacking Sacri in rapid charges. The tails left blue trails in the air, burning the disease before it could spread completely. Even so, Sacri resisted, his body adapting to the pain and constant pressure, and her blows didn't seem to be enough.
"This won't hurt me, human girl, hahaha."
"Tsk, what an annoying Nartheis."
Enrico noticed the hesitation in Aoi's movements. The fire was strong, but unstable. He moved close enough for her to hear him, without taking his eyes off Merta.
"Aoi, adjust your posture a bit more. Your breathing is very irregular; also try to control it better."
Anyone would have been confused by him approaching like that, except her and Enrico's friends. Listening fully to his advice, Aoi focused completely. The fox behind her responded immediately to her actions, the flames condensing instead of spreading. The tails moved in sync, forming a more defined pattern.
Sacri tried to advance again, spreading the disease in a low wave. Aoi spun her body and had the fox intercept the attack, the blue flames consuming part of the energy before it reached Sisaka. Placing her hand on her cheek, she sighed with a trace of happiness.
'He's so cute worrying about me.'
At the same time, Meria attacked Sisaka head-on, her fists covered by the cursed blessing, smashing the spiritual plates one by one. Sisaka retreated, rebuilding the defenses in real time, adapting the structure as the impact increased.
'This is bad. That structure is adapting, but it won't last much longer.'
Enrico exchanged blows with Merta, his fists wrapped only in fire. A punch hit the creature's torso, opening a momentary fissure that quickly closed. Merta responded with a multiple strike, three arms attacking at the same time. Enrico partially dodged, using short explosions to alter the trajectory of the attacks.
"Aoi, focus more on your core now. If you do that, you'll evolve faster, because that's how circle six works when it reaches ninety-nine."
At least that was how he managed to break through the ninety-nine barrier, not like those two prodigies. With a dissatisfied expression, Merta seemed annoyed.
"Can you stop giving tips to my brother's opponent? It's already hard enough for him."
"No."
Once again, the two stared at each other without expression. Meanwhile, Aoi felt something change within herself. Her dear was right; she hadn't even realized she had reached the percentage to evolve. She focused, following his words while keeping her eyes on the enemy.
'So this is how he evolved to circle six?'
Her mana core began to expand, surpassing the limit she knew. An intense pain arose, but in a controlled way. The blue fire fox twisted, a new tail slowly forming, pulled directly from the central flame, forming six tails.
"This is your end, human."
The increase in power was immediate. The fire became heavier, more concentrated. Aoi advanced without hesitation, her firm steps reaching her enemy before he could strike her. Six fire-empowered blows pushed Sacri back, breaking through the layers of disease forming in the air before they could take hold. He tried to react, but the difference between them had shrunk considerably. With a certain excitement in testing her new level, she clenched her fist.
'This is the level I need to try what my mother talked about.'
Aoi felt the limit approaching as memories of her training with her mother surfaced—the training she had done over the past two years. She knew how to make this magic work, but she also knew she could only try when she reached circle six.
'As my mother said, I will…'
The blue fire retracted and then partially fused with her body. The ears appeared first, followed by luminous markings on her skin and a more defined fire tail behind her. The transformation was incomplete, but sufficient.
"Partial transformation."