Amidst a chain reaction of explosions, Shion deployed a magic barrier, parrying the surging heatwaves as she retreated.
Luary glanced toward the fleet and shrugged. "Hey, Admiral, do you see a boundary line anywhere?"
The line of ice Shion had drawn had been completely obliterated by the fireballs that had rained down moments ago.
"I see no such thing," the Ludain Admiral replied instantly. "All ships, proceed."
Shion narrowed her eyes and readied her staff. "...I have no choice. I'll just have to give them a taste of what happens when they cross the line."
As her monologue ended, a voice brushed past her ear.
"—That's my line."
The instant Shion reflexively turned her head, Luary was already closing in. Closing the distance with imperceptible speed, the girl unleashed a roundhouse kick.
Shion managed to throw up a guard, but the impact was greater than she had imagined. Her body was sent reeling, skipping across the surface of the sea.
However, she didn't sink. She took flight, soaring back into the air. The pain coursing through her body vanished in an instant, taking the damage with it.
Thanks to [Time Rewind], the injuries she had sustained were immediately undone.
In the corner of her vision, the fleet resumed its advance. However, her gaze remained fixed. The red-haired girl—Funshaku, Luary—was looking down at her.
Shion kept her eyes on her opponent. "...You're definitely Funshaku, aren't you?"
Luary's lips curled into a faint, amused smile. "And you? Are you the descendant of the Witch?"
"...I was the one asking questions."
"Hehe. An Atavism, right? That silver hair, those amber-colored eyes... Looking at you makes me remember. That pathetic woman."
Luary clearly had no intention of holding a proper conversation. She simply said whatever she pleased. Her crimson eyes narrowed, harboring a light like flickering flames. Her voice, laced with contempt, reached Shion on the wind.
Yet, Shion's expression didn't waver.
"How much do you actually know about the Witch Iris?" Luary asked provocatively.
Shion merely shrugged. "Who knows? Only that my ancestor was a companion of the Hero of the fairy tales and was known as the Witch. Also, that after coming to this world, she contributed to the development of the Hitia Duchy—I don't know much more than that."
Her tone was entirely detached. Shion was continuing the dialogue to buy time. The Kyokutou soldiers could handle the Federation fleet's advance, but if this Demon were left unchecked, she could burn the entire country to the ground.
Shion might be able to hold her own against Luary alone, but once Orun and the others returned, the defenders would have a decisive advantage. If she could stall Luary without overexerting herself, that was exactly what she intended to do.
Luary chuckled and spread her arms wide. "I suppose that makes sense. I doubt anyone would want to pass down such a miserable past to their descendants. Well then, since I'm so kind, I'll tell you."
Her voice was sweet, yet beneath it lay a heat like molten iron.
"—That woman's favorite phrase was 'I'm always looking forward.' And yet, the ability that manifested in her was [Time Rewind], a power to turn back the clock. Is that a trick of fate? No, it’s not something so poetic. It was the result of losing, and losing, and losing everything. It was the result of wishing from the bottom of her heart that time would go back."
Luary giggled, toying with a flame at her fingertip.
"Don't you find it comical? A woman who claimed to only look toward the future was, in the end, more obsessed with the past than anyone else. In her final moments, she probably didn't see even a fragment of the future. She must have died crushed by a weight of regret she couldn't carry."
Shion remained silent, her hair fluttering in the wind. That silence seemed to grate on Luary's nerves.
"Hey, you're the same, aren't you? Pathetically clinging to the past? Go on—show me your ugly side, too."
Even at such blatant provocation, Shion didn't move a muscle. Eventually, she let out a small sigh.
"...Are you finished?" she asked with an air of boredom, her gaze piercing Luary. "That was so tedious I almost yawned. To summarize your story—my ancestor wished to go back to the past, and thus she manifested [Time Rewind]. Is that it?"
Before Luary could respond, Shion continued matter-of-factly.
"If so, I only have one thing to say: 'I see.' Everyone, to some extent, wishes they could go back to the past. That feeling isn't something for others to mock."
Luary's smile twisted. Shion's composure was clearly beginning to irritate her.
"............What? Are you saying I'm lying?"
"I'm not necessarily saying that," Shion replied quietly, her voice carrying a firm core. "It's possible my ancestor was obsessed with the past. I just don't believe that was the entirety of who the Witch Iris was."
Luary arched her brows. "...On what grounds?"
Shion answered without hesitation. "The grounds are—me."
The wind died down, and the sea grew still. Her silver hair swayed as Shion’s amber-colored eyes looked straight at Luary.
"A Demon like you might not understand, but humans are creatures that connect their feelings to the future. Even if they die, the proof that they lived is passed down through their children and grandchildren. The fact that I am standing here is proof that my ancestor never gave up on the future."
The flames flickered soundlessly as the air grew tense.
"No matter how many words you pile up, this one fact will not waver."
Shion's words echoed over the water. Her voice was quiet, yet it carried a piercing, cold strength. Hearing this, the mock smile vanished from Luary's face.
"And here I was expecting to see something interesting... What a disappointment."
Her voice was as cold as ice despite the heat it radiated. She lightly raised her hand and whispered emotionlessly.
"—I’m done."
Crimson mana erupted. In an instant, more than ten fireballs were generated and rained down. Shion swung her staff, deploying a curtain of ice. The blazing projectiles collided, and white smoke burst forth with a thunderous roar.
Steam obscured her vision—and in that split second, Luary struck.
"—!"
Shion thrust her staff backward, instantly firing a blade of ice. Luary evaded it easily and delivered a kick from point-blank range. Her flame-clad leg shattered the barrier, launching Shion into the air once more.
However, as she fell, Shion concentrated her mana.
"—[Frost Javelin]!"
Silver mana surged, and dozens of spears formed a spiral, surrounding Luary.
However, the flames laughed. Luary’s body was instantly enveloped in fire, swallowing the spears whole. The melted ice burst into steam, and the temperature rose sharply.
"Did you really think a cold toy like that would reach me?" Emerging from the flames, Luary casually flicked her finger. A scorching line of heat followed the movement, lunging at Shion like a serpent.
Shion tilted her body, sliding backward to evade. The blazing whip narrowly grazed her cheek, charring the tips of her hair. The heat stung her skin, but her expression remained stoic. She swung her staff, and countless hailstones appeared around her.
"—[Strafe]"
The ice bullets, fired at subsonic speeds, assaulted Luary. The Demon casually thrust her right hand forward. Her arm, previously hidden by the sleeve of her baggy coat, ignited and transformed into a massive flaming limb.
The barrage of ice bullets collided with the hand of flame, exploding in a chain reaction. Cold and heat clashed, and a white mist enveloped Luary.
Just as they lost sight of each other, silver-colored mana began to leak from Shion's right eye, and a geometric pattern emerged within her pupil. As she pointed her staff toward Luary, cracks appeared in the space around her. From the fissures, the frigid air of a frozen world rushed in. Multiple layers of magic circles deployed at the tip of her staff, drawing the cold in.
As the smoke hiding Luary cleared, her silhouette emerged.
"—[Silver Burial of Absolute Zero: Glaciel]"
Shion's voice echoed quietly. A bolt of silver light streaked from the tip of her staff—a torrent of destruction powered by compressed cold air. The light raced in a straight line, let out a roar as it tore through the air. The sea's surface froze instantly before being pulverized.
Luary reacted immediately, crossing her arms to create a wall of blazing fire.
In the next moment, silver and crimson collided, and a violent shockwave erupted. Ice and fire fought for dominance, bursting at the point of contact. Shattered fragments of ice rained down like a storm, only for the scorching wind to evaporate them into mist.
The steam swirled as the air thrummed.
"Heh... You might actually be fun." Luary's voice echoed from beyond the mist, carrying pure, unadulterated pleasure.
A torrent of flames blew the mist away. Pushing aside the air, Luary revealed herself. With a smile on her lips, she raised her burning right arm.
"—[Ignis]"
At her command, the world distorted. The flames erupting from Luary's palm transformed into a heat ray. The atmosphere was torn asunder, and the sea's surface evaporated into white smoke before the beam even touched it.
Shion instantly concentrated her mana, twisting her body to slide sideways. Chasing the crimson trajectory, the sea behind her expanded explosively. A heatwave surged toward her, and the scorching temperature felt as though it would char her skin.
(It’s equal to my [Silver Burial of Absolute Zero: Glaciel]—no, even more powerful. And she doesn't need to charge it like I do...)
Shion steadied her breathing and released her cold air. The ice Seirei expanded, and the temperature dropped precipitously. The scorched air froze over, and rime frost danced in the air.
But Luary did not stop. In the next moment, she had already closed the distance, lunging through the charred air. A scorching fist swung out, leaving a trail of fire like an afterimage.
Shion readied her staff and generated an ice shield. The moment the shield touched the fist, it evaporated with a roar. Even so, she remained unfazed, flipping her body in mid-air. The afterglow of the [Ignis] fired once again, scorching the sea and blowing the waves away.
"You're struggling just to dodge, aren't you?" Luary laughed. Her crimson eyes were dyed with madness, glowing within the intense heat.
Shion silently readied her staff once more and fired [Strafe]. The barrage of ice bullets clashed head-on with the crimson torrent. The blast from the expanding air pushed the two apart, widening the gap between them.
The air smelled of ozone and char, and steam rose endlessly from the sea.
(So this is a Demon... How incredible...)
Shion let out a short breath and readied her staff again. In the sunlight, both Luary's right hand and her hair were wreathed in flames, distorting the air around her. Her figure was truly that of a crimson demon descended upon the ocean.