Kamisato Ayaka quickly set off for Tenshukaku. Unlike others, as the [Egret Princess] of the Shuumatsuban, the warriors outside Tenshukaku naturally would not prevent Kamisato Ayaka from entering.
When Kamisato Ayaka arrived at the training ground, the scene she had envisioned of Durandal being struck down by the Raiden Shogun did not appear.
Inside the training ground, Durandal and the Raiden Shogun's bodies continuously collided. Sparks from Musou Isshin and Durandal's great scythe appeared everywhere in the training ground.
As a martial artist, the Raiden Shogun's combat ability was naturally at its peak. Most people could only last a few rounds against the Raiden Shogun.
But from the start of the Duel Before the Throne until now, Durandal and the Raiden Shogun had been fighting for an unknown duration, their fighting figures deeply captivating everyone present.
Durandal's posture while wielding the great scythe in battle was incredibly graceful, like a dance. Coupled with Durandal's face, it was as if she were performing a waltz of death.
Besides this style, she sometimes fluttered in the air like a butterfly, her unpredictable fighting style giving the Raiden Shogun no chance to find any openings.
This wasn't even the most important thing; the most crucial point was that Durandal had not used her element power since the battle began. She had been fighting the Raiden Shogun entirely with her own martial arts until now.
Strong! So strong! Absolutely too strong!
Where did such a person come from? Why is she so powerful? How did she train?
The martial artists watching began to doubt themselves. Some of them were slacking off, but there were also those who diligently kept up with their self-training.
They worked hard every day to improve themselves, but Durandal had reached a height they couldn't imagine. This... this truly made them question life.
"Is this... Miss Durandal's power?"
Kamisato Ayaka had thought that Durandal's greatest skill was her superb medical art, capable of curing any disease, but she hadn't expected her combat power to be so high.
She changed her earlier thought. Durandal wasn't trying to meet the Raiden Shogun through the Duel Before the Throne to discuss the drawbacks of the Vision Hunt Decree and persuade her to cancel it.
Instead, she intended to directly defeat the Raiden Shogun through battle, thereby telling the Raiden Shogun that her actions were wrong and incorrect.
Thinking this, Kamisato Ayaka's hands, placed before her chest, tightened slightly as she prayed in her heart.
"You must win, Miss Durandal. Defeat the Raiden Shogun and win back everyone's wishes."
Inside the training ground, Durandal remained as she was at the beginning, showing not even a hint of discomfort despite the long, high-intensity battle.
Only the Raiden Shogun was no longer as cold as she had been initially. Her expression was serious, clearly taking Durandal as an opponent who required serious effort to defeat.
"Is that all? Raiden Shogun. As the Electro God, your use of the Electro Element shouldn't be limited to this, should it? Or are you simply enjoying a battle with someone on your level?"
Enjoying the battle, this was not impossible. After all, no one in the entirety of Inazuma could spar with the Raiden Shogun in martial arts. Being invincible all the time was too lonely. Having finally found someone of similar or even superior skill, it was natural to prolong the battle a bit.
"You still have time to talk during a battle?"
"Of course, because the pressure you're putting on me is nowhere near enough to make me fully commit myself to the fight. Do you think this is my full power?"
Clang!
A violent collision sounded. This time, Durandal and the Raiden Shogun's struggle was no longer evenly matched as before. Instead, the Raiden Shogun was fiercely sent flying by Durandal, just like at the very beginning, retreating a long distance before stopping.
This time, Durandal did not stay in place to give the Raiden Shogun a chance to regain her balance. Her speed became even faster; in the blink of an eye, she was behind the Raiden Shogun, swinging her great scythe to attack.
The Raiden Shogun blocked this strike, and in the next moment, Durandal appeared on the other side of the Raiden Shogun, launching another attack.
Divine speed. The onlookers could barely make out Durandal's figure anymore. Her speed was so fast that it seemed as if several people were attacking the Raiden Shogun simultaneously.
Although unwilling to admit it, their invincible Raiden Shogun, who they held in their hearts, seemed to be at a disadvantage? Perhaps... perhaps even had a chance of losing.
That Raiden Shogun could actually lose? This thought appeared in their minds, startling them, but they had to acknowledge this possibility.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, an extremely terrifying lightning burst forth from the Raiden Shogun's body. This Electro Element power forced Durandal back a short distance.
The shock produced by the lightning pushed back the nearby guards who were watching. Some of those with insufficient strength were even sent flying by this impact, crashing hard against the wall.
That lightning reached the clouds, and the weather in Inazuma City began to change under this power. Dark clouds gathered, and lightning occasionally struck down from the sky, fiercely hitting a spot in the training ground.
The Raiden Shogun... she was serious. Compared to the previous battle, this time she was prepared to fight Durandal properly.
"You... are a God, aren't you?"
With her clearance activated, the Raiden Shogun's pupils glowed with an intimidating light.
During the previous battle, she had confirmed one thing: Durandal was very likely not human, but a God like her.
"Standing before you now is a human named Durandal. This human, disapproving of your actions, came here to teach you a lesson."
"Disapproving? What is there to disapprove of?"
"I am dissatisfied with your method of pursuing eternity. Is your so-called eternity merely being still like a lake? How laughable. As the Raiden who governs the nation, have you not seen the impact your pursuit of eternity has had on your people? Do you know what this nation has become?"
"...Are you trying to tell me what to do?"
"Hmph! It seems that until I completely defeat you, we won't be able to have a proper conversation."
Durandal dispersed the great scythe in her hand, fiercely swept her hair back, and an aura no less powerful than the Raiden Shogun's burst forth from her. At the same time, two giant claws appeared behind her.
"Let us enter the next round, Raiden Shogun."
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