The subspace Alice had prepared was an infinite expanse of white, a void where the ground stretched toward the horizon without end.
"Alice, how exactly did you create this place?"
"Hmm? I just made it. While creating a world might be another story entirely, manifesting a temporary space like this is easy enough for me."
"I guess you really are practically almighty in your own way..."
It seemed Alice had constructed the space herself. For a moment, I wondered if this didn't qualify as world creation, but from the way she spoke, the area was likely designed to vanish after a set period.
From my perspective, Alice was essentially a god-like being, but apparently, world creation operated on a completely different level. Perhaps, like teleportation magic, it was simply a matter of individual aptitude.
After all, the Great Evil God who had created the world Alice originally hailed from was said to have been weaker than Isis-san is now. It was possible that factors other than raw power played a significant role.
At any rate, Lilia and Alice stood facing each other within the subspace. I retreated a short distance, taking a seat inside a barrier Alice had constructed for me. I donned the magical glasses Shiro-san had given me and prepared to observe the battle.
Well, it wasn't so much a battle as it was a field test of Lilia’s Heart Tool.
"Very well, Lilia-san. Whenever you’re ready."
"R-Right. Awaken! Blade of my heart! Heavenly light, pour into my breast—flowing earth, into my arms—guiding path, into my feet! Reach! To the end of all possibilities! Manifest! Heavenly Sword—Hauteclere!"
As Lilia poured her spirit into the incantation, a silver greatsword adorned with exquisite engravings manifested in her hands. It had the elegant atmosphere of a ceremonial blade rather than a weapon of war, but the sheer magic power radiating from it left no doubt—this was Lilia’s Heart Tool.
"First, let’s try a single strike with your ability active. Don't hold back; I won't move an inch."
"...Yes! Here I come!"
In response to Alice’s prompt, Lilia closed the distance and swung the greatsword upward. Thanks to my glasses, I was actually able to track that much.
However, I lost sight of the blade entirely after that. In the blink of an eye, Lilia’s sword had already swung down, and Alice had caught it firmly with a single hand. A moment later, a thunderous roar followed as the barrier protecting me vibrated, absorbing the immense shockwave of the impact.
"...I see. This is quite the strike. Even against one of the Six Kings, this power would easily penetrate their defenses. It also seems the effect triggers the very moment you enter your attacking stance."
"Ah... um... you stopped it so effortlessly."
"Well, this was just a standard physical slash. It doesn't have causality destruction or any other special properties attached to it yet. To be blunt, any of the other Six Kings could probably catch this too if they were braced for it. At this stage, it’s just raw power... and since anyone at the peak of Count-class or higher is essentially immortal, they'll simply regenerate instantly unless you imbue the strike with a mountain of healing inhibition."
Despite praising the sheer force of the blow as being capable of wounding the Six Kings, Alice held the blade with one hand, her expression perfectly composed.
"...Wait, setting that aside, isn't Alice just terrifyingly strong?"
"Well, I've been doing some training lately. Honestly, I'm at the point where I can go toe-to-toe with Kuro-san. So, a strike like this isn't an issue. I said this was the peak strike Lilia-san can currently achieve, but there are people in this world who have transcended the limits of their natural talent. I'm a living example of that. If Lilia-san surpasses her own limits, her output will likely climb even higher. Though, of course, she has to train until she actually reaches those limits first."
"I feel like I'm being reminded all over again of just how incredible the Six Kings truly are."
If I recalled correctly, Alice had trained herself to the absolute limit, and her current growth beyond that was only possible through the effects of her Hecatoncheir Ultimate War-Form. Regardless, she was a being who had surpassed human boundaries and transcended the very concept of "talent."
"Since this is a verification session, let's test a variety of scenarios. Once you've mastered its use, you'll be able to utilize your Heart Tool's abilities far more effectively. If you reach that level, you'll be able to deal meaningful damage even to the Six Kings."
"I understand. I'm in your hands."
"Great. Well then, I'll use space-time magic to bypass the cooldowns while we run through a quick '750 patterns' of verification."
"………………Eh?"
"We'll change the conditions as we go, but for now, let's stick to the base patterns."
"A-Ah, wait, um... I certainly don't have enough magic power to endure time manipulation being used seven hundred and fifty times..."
"Don't worry, I brought plenty of Fruits of the World Tree to keep you topped off."
"............"
The sight of Lilia clutching her stomach with a distant look in her eyes was a poignant one. This looked like it was going to take a long time; maybe it would be okay if I just sat back and read a book?