-1297- The unleashed warhorse

"————!"

In the instant Rozen melded into space and vanished, Edelweiss's pupils suddenly contracted.

In her mind, a scene from two years ago resurfaced vividly.

It happened amidst a mountain range reduced to rubble.

Edelweiss lay in a pile of debris, reaching out her trembling hand towards the boy draped in a black, ornate coat ahead of her.

Before Edelweiss, the boy, covered in small slashes from countless cuts and seemingly bleeding all over, suddenly smiled and turned away.

"Don't go!"

At that time, Edelweiss could only manage to shout these words.

But the boy disappeared as if merging into the space, leaving only a phrase behind.

"Don't worry, we will meet again someday."

These words echoed in Edelweiss's ears, becoming the last thing the boy said.

Then, filled with unwillingness, Edelweiss lost consciousness and fell into darkness.

Recalling that moment, the sword energy around Edelweiss surged unprecedentedly.

"What...!?"

"You...!?"

Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene's faces changed drastically, immediately being engulfed by the fierce sword energy, raising their hands to shield themselves.

"Slash...!" "Slash...!" "Slash...!"

The sharp sword energy swept in all directions, the sound of ripping slashes echoing, causing cracks to appear on the ground around Edelweiss.

The world's strongest swordsman interfered with the physical world merely with her formless sword.

At this moment, Edelweiss finally unleashed her full power.

"I won't let you leave again!"

Her usually calm eyes filled with determination, Edelweiss dashed forward without hesitation, like a gust of wind, instantly arriving where Rozen had disappeared.

Then, Edelweiss swung her sword.

This strike resembled a white lightning bolt.

This strike was like a white meteor.

Edelweiss's extreme slash often left sword marks in space, creating vacuums.

But at this moment, Edelweiss's full-power slash transcended this level, achieving a new height.

"Slash————!"

With the sound of a cut, the space where Rozen had vanished was actually slashed open by this speeding strike.

Space was slashed open.

This was neither a phenomenon achieved through some ability nor the result of using some power. It was a miracle achieved purely through supreme technique, enough to ascend to godhood.

Like how science and magic, despite being diametrically opposed, can often achieve the same things but through different processes, at this moment, Edelweiss used her lifelong perfected swordsmanship to achieve a miracle akin to mystery.

This miracle was accomplished solely to retain one person.

Under such circumstances, within the slashed-open space, the figure in the black, ornate coat began to shimmer and appear like a mirage.

However...

"Boom————!"

Just as the figure was about to emerge, a terrifying magic power exploded from it, surging forth.

"————!"

In the next second, a loud neigh like a horse's cry echoed.

Behind the figure in the black coat, a massive, twin-horned warhorse appeared, shimmering like a mirage.

"Buzz————!"

Between the warhorse's twin horns, a formidable vibrational wave formed, oscillating back and forth, eventually becoming a violent shockwave, expanding like a storm.

A disaster appeared in that instant.

"Boom————!"

In the earth-shaking tremors, everything in the path of the devastating shockwave was destroyed.

The ground was blown away like paper.

Walls were crushed like wood.

Stairs, elevators, hallways, corridors, and the pillars supporting the entire building were all shattered, destroyed, and annihilated like fragile wood shavings under the terrifying shockwave.

In this fearsome shockwave, Edelweiss's figure was also blown away, rapidly increasing the distance between her and the black figure emerging from the slashed space.

"...!"

Edelweiss shouted something, but it was drowned out by the shockwave, inaudible, as she was swept into the storm.

Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene, despite being ready to unleash their powers, had no time to act, each being swept into the storming shockwave, disappearing.

"Boom————!"

The shopping center in the city center was blown apart like a paper toy, shattering completely with a loud bang.

The shockwave continued to expand outward, eventually forming a magnificent column of air rising into the sky.

"————!"

The twin-horned warhorse raised its head and neighed amidst the column of air, like a long-restrained beast finally released to wreak havoc, its voice filled with exhilaration and dissatisfaction.

Then, the twin-horned warhorse vanished like a mirage, shimmering and disappearing.

Simultaneously, the figure in the black, ornate coat also disappeared in the gradually restoring space.

Only the storming shockwave remained, continuing to ravage the surroundings.

...

It was unknown how much time had passed before everything returned to calm.

But at the original site of the shopping center, only ruins remained, nothing but rubble and debris.

Residents in the surrounding area, as if awakened by the commotion, gradually peeked out of windows from building to building, starting to chatter and clamor.

The sounds of vehicles approached from afar, continuously heading this way.

Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene emerged from the ruins, looking at the now-nonexistent shopping center in silence.

"...Have they left already? Those two?"

Shinguji Kurono muttered.

"Yes, they've left. Not just Tenkai, even Edelweiss's sword energy has disappeared. I can't feel her presence at all. She must have left after realizing Tenkai had gone. I don't know if they're still in the city or even in this country."

Saikyo Nene, covered in dust, smiled bitterly, sighing.

With Saikyo Nene in such a state, Shinguji Kurono's complex emotions were evident.

"Why did those two come here?"

"You should ask why Tenkai came here. Edelweiss only chased him here."

"Then why did Tenkai come here?"

"If you ask me, who should I ask?"

In the ruins, Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene exchanged idle chatter, their faces filled with helpless resignation.

"Hope those two don't show up again."

"Agreed."

The third-ranked Blazers in the league, in the end, could only pray like this.

As for the final outcome, only fate would know.