Chapter 233: Sonia's Crimson Radiance
"Die," she whispered coldly, charging towards the next wave of enemies, her movements swift and decisive.
At that moment, a man emerged from the shadows, a "Gemini" symbol tattooed on the back of his hand, signifying his identity. He was dressed in ancient samurai attire, his hand resting on the hilt of his sheathed blade, exuding a deep and menacing killing intent. The Gemini had arrived. With a grip on his twin katanas, he launched an attack as fierce as a storm, aiming directly at Usagi. Each strike was deadly precise, forcing her to fully concentrate as she raised her twin blades to parry.
"Your swordsmanship is decent, but you're far from good enough!" Gemini sneered, shifting the angle of his blade, nearly slicing Usagi's throat.
Usagi let out a sharp breath, twisting her body to evade while counterattacking. However, Gemini's speed surpassed human limits. His katanas clashed against Usagi's blades, creating bursts of sparks with each collision. Their battle was a test of sheer precision, each movement calculated to the millimeter. Sweat formed on Usagi's brow, yet she refused to retreat.
As she focused on Gemini, Pisces struck from the shadows, lashing out a whip. Like a venomous snake, it coiled tightly around Usagi's body.
"Tch!" Usagi gritted her teeth, struggling to break free, but Pisces' whip carried an eerie power, constricting her movements entirely.
"Such a captivating sight," Pisces mocked, giving the whip a firm tug, pulling Usagi backwards. "I'd advise you to surrender, lest you suffer more pain."
Usagi's gaze turned ice-cold, the fury in her eyes blazing. "Who gave you that delusion?!"
Taking a deep breath, she lunged forward with all her strength. With a powerful twist, her twin blades ignited with a crimson flame, slicing through the whip, shattering its hold. Gemini and the surrounding assassins recoiled.
"Persistent, aren't you?" Leo scoffed, his eyes sharp as blades. "But this is just the beginning."
Usagi steadied her breath, feeling her stamina draining rapidly. Yet, her fighting spirit remained undiminished. She tightened her grip on her blades, preparing for the next onslaught.
"Come at me," she murmured, her gaze ablaze with unyielding determination. "If I must die today, I'll take you all with me!"
Suddenly—BOOM! A surge of violent energy descended upon her. A beam of purple and gold light crashed down like divine judgment, exploding at her feet. Usagi leaped back, crossing her blades to block, but the impact sent her flying!
She twisted in midair, spinning twice before stabilizing herself. Another energy beam followed closely, missing her by a hair's breadth. As she landed, the surrounding assassins howled, their bloodlust intensifying as they charged towards her by the hundreds.
A curved blade whizzed past her ear. Usagi jerked her head aside just in time, but the razor edge left a shallow cut on her cheek, blood seeping from the wound.
Before she could regain her footing, a massive gravitational strike slammed into her, sending her reeling. Her clothes tore apart from the force, revealing a faint pink hue beneath. Her breath turned ragged, chest heaving from exertion, yet her eyes still burned with unwavering resolve. However, her energy was nearly depleted, and she wasn't sure how much longer she could last.
Leo observed Usagi's condition and smirked. "The crimson weakness is finally showing, isn't it? You're entering anemia. You barely have any blood left to burn."
The next instant, Gemini vanished into blinding speed! Usagi's pupils shrank as she instinctively raised her blades to block, but then—
"Freeze in place!!!" Leo roared.
A force of restraint locked down on Usagi. Her movements halted instantly, even the eight small cannons floating behind her became still. Gemini's expression remained icy as he unsheathed his katana, the blade humming through the air with a deep, resonant whistle. He whispered:
"Dance, Gemini Blades."
The sword light moved like shooting stars, too fast for the naked eye to follow. In an instant, Gemini's attacks shredded through Usagi's defenses. A pained gasp escaped her lips—
"Nngh…!"
Blood scattered midair as her clothes were torn to ribbons, revealing her battle-worn body, her curves marred by fresh wounds. The sight was as striking as it was brutal, her form standing resilient amidst the carnage.
Then, a feral roar erupted from Usagi, shaking the entire battlefield. Crimson flames exploded from within her, erupting like a volcanic inferno in the dead of night. The sheer force distorted the air, instilling primal fear in those around her.
Her blood boiled like molten lava, each drop pulsing with immeasurable energy. Her heartbeat pounded like a war drum, each beat echoing like thunder through the battlefield. The sound alone sent shivers down the spines of Leo and the assassins, an unsettling rhythm of an unstoppable force.
"BOOM!" The battlefield trembled. The eight cannons roared back to life, sweeping destruction across the enemy ranks. Yet before she could catch her breath, Leo bellowed again—
"Stop once more!!!"
Usagi's body froze again, but this time, her rage ignited into something terrifying. Her crimson irises burned like molten embers, her very presence warping the air around her.
Her power surged to its peak, reality trembling under its weight. A suffocating aura spread, commanding absolute dominance over the battlefield.
Usagi glared at Leo, her teeth clenched so tightly that blood trickled from her lips. Her voice was low yet thunderous:
"Don't… underestimate Usagi…!!!!"
Her voice twisted into an eerie resonance, layering into a chorus of overlapping echoes. The crimson flames around her erupted violently, engulfing the battlefield in an all-consuming blaze. Gemini stumbled backward, his blades trembling, his eyes dilating in disbelief at the sheer magnitude of her unleashed fury.
Her very blood had become a raging inferno, turning her into a war deity risen from the abyss. Crimson light pulsed from within her skin, forming a hauntingly beautiful yet destructive glow.
The eight cannons withdrew behind her, and she levitated, her arms slowly parting as blood energy coiled around her palms. Her gaze swept across the battlefield of enemies. With a voice that resounded like the toll of death itself, she declared:
"Hi-Gan-Ka——!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
In that moment, the void behind her shattered, revealing an abyss where red and black intertwined. Ripples of energy spread outward, distorting space itself. From the rift, a blinding crimson glow surged forth, eerie and mesmerizing—a garden of Hell's flowers awakening.
With a deafening roar, the void unleashed an army of "Higanka"—each blossom pure red, its petals as sharp as blades, radiating destruction. They burst forward, transforming into beams of annihilation that rained down upon the enemy horde.
Wherever the flowers bloomed, life ceased. The battlefield became a crimson slaughterhouse, the enemy forces reduced to nothing but mist and echoes.
And at the heart of this storm stood Usagi, enshrined in flames, the embodiment of destruction and beauty intertwined—a war goddess descended upon the world.