With this thought, Mukuro suddenly realized she was still in the midst of battle and hurriedly looked toward her opponent.
Finding that the other side hadn't charged at her, Mukuro let out a slight sigh of relief, but soon felt something was off about her own state.
Hadn't she already sealed her emotions with Michael? Then shouldn't tension and pain have vanished as well?
"Shall we continue?"
Amber raised the Black Abyss White Flower once more.
"I have not lost yet."
Hoshimiya Mukuro's tone was calm.
The earlier situation had made her realize that engaging in close combat held little chance of victory, and moreover… the opponent's reaction speed and physical coordination were exceptionally good.
Even using her Lataib for a sneak attack would be dodged.
So… she needed to create a situation where her opponent was overwhelmed before striking, or wear down her stamina as much as possible.
Quickly settling on her next move, the light around Mukuro's key-shaped staff flared once more.
Whether shattered or adrift, the asteroids under her influence gathered again.
This time, she didn't form one excessively massive rock, but instead shaped them into individual asteroids one or two hundred meters across, raining down toward Amber like a meteor shower.
In Amber's eyes, such an attack couldn't even be considered a threat.
With a mere thought, Krishna stomped against the void.
Rider and steed needed no elaborate tactics—just charge, charge, and charge again.
The relentless, rain-like barrage of asteroids proved as harmless as actual raindrops.
Amber even proactively shattered those that hadn't fully formed. Collisions between spirit power and magical energy continuously erupted across the cosmos.
'Completely… useless…?'
Forget draining the opponent's energy or distracting her—her attacks didn't even require the other to defend.
Frowning, Mukuro opened a Gate and relocated to a position far from the battlefield.
Pointing her staff toward the golden-haired girl amidst the asteroids, she fired a violet beam from its tip.
How would this attack, coming completely outside her foe's field of vision, fare?
Yet, Amber—who had her back to Mukuro and was in the midst of swinging her lance to smash an asteroid—seemed to have eyes on the back of her head.
Without even turning her gaze, she casually blocked the strike from behind.
"??"
At this moment, Mukuro could only feel as though her opponent was an impenetrable rock.
No matter how she attacked, it was useless.
This feeling of having no way in frustrated her, but she soon shifted her approach. If quantity couldn't win, what about quality?
Never since becoming a Spirit had Mukuro used her spiritual power so exhaustively as now.
The 'field of view' that originally only extended around Earth instantly expanded several times over.
Dark violet Gates opened behind her, and countless asteroids of varying sizes poured forth from the other side, only to be 'closed' and fused together by her power.
"You can still surrender now."
Mukuro wasn't entirely sure about the human's limits either.
This was the first time she had condensed an asteroid of such scale. Though she hadn't measured precisely, she estimated this one to be… three or four kilometers across.
Faced with an asteroid this large, even that Durandal shouldn't be able to block it, right?
She couldn't possibly dodge it either, not with Earth right below… But if she was willing to concede, then there would be no need to drop this rock.
Even with all her emotions sealed, Mukura subconsciously didn't want this asteroid to hit the ground, though she didn't know what the consequences would be.
"She has to surrender now…"
--+--
Schicksal Floating Island.
In the command center, where they had been spectating the entire battle through the communicator Amber carried, the leader of the United States let out a breath, his face as pale as paper.
Too terrifying—everything that had just happened, and the current spectacle, were all too terrifying.
Durandal, who had moved through that meteor shower as if it were nothing, and now this cosmic Spirit capable of condensing an asteroid of such magnitude—both had given humanity far too many shocks.
But now, it seemed the Spirit held the upper hand.
The U.S. leader couldn't articulate his feelings.
He only knew that from now on, Schicksal had to be listed as the 'object of utmost vigilance.'
With Durandal's individual combat capability, there was no force or weapon on this planet that could pose a threat to her.
Nuclear bombs? A laughingstock.
Forget whether you could even hit her—what if you did?
Did they really think a core temperature of hundreds of millions of degrees was all that impressive?
Detonating a one-megaton nuclear warhead would, at most, generate that kind of heat within a space the size of an egg, lasting a mere 0.1 microseconds. And even then, that temperature would still be inside the bomb casing.
Expecting that heat to be the killing force was pure fantasy—it couldn't even vaporize steel about a hundred meters from the epicenter.
Such weapons were never designed for individual targets.
In short, if Durandal wished, the entire world would be powerless to restrain her.
And that Spirit was on another level entirely.
A four-kilometer-wide asteroid? That was nearly enough to shatter continental plates.
Wherever it landed would be finished. The asteroid that ended the Cretaceous period was only about ten to fifteen kilometers across.
These two beings had already exceeded Earth's comprehension.
Fortunately, it seemed this asteroid wouldn't fall.
That Spirit wasn't like Nightmare, the type that bore malice toward humanity… Otherwise, Schicksal would have dragged all of humankind down with them this time.
Though that's what he thought, what the U.S. leader said aloud was:
"This matter is not over. DEM must provide an explanation to the entire world for their actions. Until then, the United States will suspend all cooperation with DEM."
He said this without a hint of guilt.
Yes, everyone knew this incident likely had little to do with DEM and was mostly Schicksal's doing.
Logically, the whole world should be holding Schicksal accountable, but… now it seemed the moral high ground was in Schicksal's hands…
The U.S. leader wiped his sweat.
The others also breathed a slight sigh of relief. Thankfully, things hadn't reached the worst possible outcome. As long as they left that Spirit alone from now on, it would be fine.
Just as everyone relaxed, adjusting their clothing and shifting their postures, a voice from the screen made their hearts stop:
"No need to worry. Feel free to attack with all you have."
Durandal's voice was as steady and confident as ever.
Everyone fell silent except for Westcott, who smiled. Then came a tidal wave of protests.
'What does Schicksal mean by this!? Have they even considered the consequences!?'
'Bishop Mobius! Why aren't you ordering Durandal to stop provoking her immediately!?'
'Are you trying to destroy Earth!? To wipe out humanity!?'
Black Amber had long known they would react this way.
Her expression didn't even flicker as she continued watching the screen with boredom.
Her attitude brought their outbursts to an abrupt halt, and an unbelievable thought dawned on them.
Could it be… this was still within Mobius' calculations…?
Could Durandal… really handle even this?
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.