Am I done for? She beat me up this badly without giving me a chance to blink…is my rib broken? It hurts so bad…

I lay there in pain but my body told me to move. At least, I wanted to but I was frozen again. She was putting out a crazy strong aura that almost forced me down to the ground. If I looked at her I could see the surging pink glare resonating around her.

I’m the prey here, she’s the apex predator. I can’t win. No chance.

I somehow managed to force out some words.

“Who…are you?”

She stayed silent but I could feel the aura around her building up even larger. She was angry.

Her foot reeled back and drove itself into my chest, my body was sent flying and before I could hit the wall she grabbed my chest plate and stopped me from escaping.

“Do humans not learn? This must be why your species has yet to touch the apex of this world.” She held me up in the air like I weighed nothing to her.

Her slender arms were all for show, realistically she had enough strength to throw me around like a pebble. I traced her arms back to her body. It was the first time I had gotten to see her, all of her, for more than a split second.

Her hair was long, nearly down to her ankles. It hung with wavy strands, too many to count and each ending with a light purple tint at the end. Her hair was mostly loose, except for the two strands above her forehead that ran down at a curve. It looked like a natural crown hanging down off the sides of her ivory hair.

It wasn’t just her hair but her clothes too, all of it was so elegant.

A long dress that exposed her thigh sat tightly around her body, emphasising her larger curves and slender waist. The intricate stitching of purple and white blended perfectly. She looked like a goddess, like a being crafted by the gods themselves. If only her personality could match.

She didn’t look like a monster, but neither did Alice at first. The only difference was that she had a tail and horns to tip us off. This woman had nothing, not so much as a single scale. I wondered if maybe she wasn’t human, but what human could have that strength?

I looked into her glimmering eyes. They looked like gems, sparkling a pink glare at me.

She held me by my chest plate, leaving me to hang only a few inches from the ground. Her thin brows were arched just over a livid expression. It was as if just the sight of me put her off and caused her to boil red with anger.

She didn’t though, besides the stare in her eyes, her body didn’t display any large features of anger. She looked composed, at least as she held me in the air like a toddler with one hand.

“Why are you after Alice, what do you want with her?”

“Alice?” The woman looked confused.

Her eyes drifted away from mine and crossed over to something behind me, then brought them back to me.

“I see. You named it.”

“It…how could you say that. She’s not some animal—”

“You humans are so annoying.”

She let me go. My body fell in what felt like slow motion, then suddenly I was hanging again. The grip around my throat cut off my breath and all the air in my lungs with it.

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She held me by the neck and kept me only a spec away from the floor, to dangle there as the air left my body.

I struggled and tried to break free but there was no point. Her grip was too strong! I couldn't so much as budge her fingers.

She isn't human? Of course she isn't, I knew it from the moment she spoke. She’s a monster, the worst I had ever encountered before.

“Leave…her…alone…”

“You care for her then, the brat? She’s a beast, her race has killed thousands of yours.”

She waited for my response but got nothing. Seeing that I wouldn’t answer, she sighed and tightened her grip. My eyes felt ready to burst from my head, the only thing left to leave me was my life.

Fwish Clang

Arga’s sword suddenly swung to the woman’s side but she blocked it with her free hand, she held off the sharp edge of Arga’s sword with only a finger.

“Pathetic.”

She flicked it away, and the sword along with Arga was pushed back a couple of meters. She clenched her teeth and with a frightened look Arga buried her feet into the ground and stopped the pushback. It looked like she had been hit by a horse but she managed to stay up.

She looked scared out of her mind but continued to move—to fight.

She came running back, holding her sword at her side for another attack. As she closed the distance she threw out a wide swing and the sword was caught.

The woman caught the blade with ease and cracked it with her grip. Arga winced back in response and tried to break away but couldn't budge. In a split-second decision, she put all her weight behind it and rushed forward—forcing the sword further into the ivory woman.

She didn’t move an inch and the sword only began to crack more, releasing more cracks and splints into the blade.

“Humans truly are weak in the end. Here I thought you would offer up a challenge for being able to break free from your stun.”

Arga let out a passionate scream as she leaned her head and shoulders forward.

“If you think we’ll just roll over and die—then you’re dumber than you look!”

Suddenly Arga’s body was surrounded by a rising light. The powerful glow of white light enveloped her as her sword began to shake in the woman’s hands.

Her slender fingers which had been containing it were no longer able to hold her back and shook violently. Arga’s burning flame spread throughout her body as she drove her sword forward and screamed,

“This is what humans can do!”

Arga’s skill had activated and the full effects of Flaring Spirit forced back the ivory-haired woman.

The corners of her mouth lowered and a furious scowl grew on her face.

“You pathetic brat—”

{User has activated Strike Kick}

Her grip was loosened and with what little energy I had remaining I pulled my body away.

“Shad..ow step.” I muttered.

My body fell into the void and tumbled out again on the floor. With some distance between us, I rolled over and grabbed my Chakram from my lower back.

With my free hand, I grabbed the vial on my waist and downed it without a second thought, healing my body with a large gulp. All that pain before didn’t leave any lasting injuries, it really was just pain in the end.

I wiped away the red liquid smudged on my lip. Feeling finally returned to my ribs and arms, I wasn’t completely healed but I was back to fighting condition. I could have sworn that she had broken my bones though…

The woman was buried behind Arga’s sword, nearly pushed back into the ground when suddenly a surge of pink light broke through and shot up like a pillar.

The fighting lights of white and pink were meshed together as both women held each other back. Arga was fighting for her life, using all her strength to bulldoze her enemy away, while the radiant pink lady held her back with a single hand.

She seemed to be losing though—then Arga attacked!

She pulled away and took her sword along with it, the black edge of her sword snapped out of her grasp and came rushing back with a swing.

She raised her guard and blocked Arga’s wide swing with her forearm alone, creating a large burst of wind upon impact.

“What the—so much force!”

The wind settled down and I couldn't believe what I had seen. My eyes widened at the large scratch left on her arm—Arga had left a mark.

I couldn't believe what I had seen and checked the HP bar above her head to make sure. Sure enough, a small chunk of her health had been chipped away. It may have been small but it was something—we weren't powerless.

“We can beat her.” I muttered with bewildered eyes.

The one most affected by this was the one with a scratch on her arm. Her glistening eyes remained wide, staring at the small mark left on her untainted skin. Her mouth dropped open slightly, then closed promptly with a small smirk to follow.

“So that’s the situation then. I knew I wouldn’t be at my best but to think I would have been cut, it’s unforgivable.”

Her smirk turned grim as her expression straightened out and her eyes burned ahead towards Arga and me. Arga instinctively took a few steps back, I could see her leg tremble as she slowly retreated away.

“Very well then, I’ll play along. After I break the two of you, I’ll finish off the brat.”

She raised an arm to us, signalling that she was ready to fight.

“Well then, come.”