The bullets were loaded into the guns, and twelve guns pointed at Charlotte. On the other side of the street, the City Guard had already noticed the anomaly. Seeing the girl holding a massive sword, the commander of the guard deduced the source of the disturbance.

"Open fire!"

Without hesitation, the girl, though small, wielded a sword more deadly than any firearm. Moreover, anyone involved in this matter, no matter who they were, had to die.

Bang bang—

The giant sword cut through the air like a meteor, sparks flying like stars. Three bullets missed their target, but twelve remained.

It might have been a coincidence, or perhaps the marksmen knew how to deal with knights. The twelfth shot was fired a little later. Because of that delay, it didn't follow the same fate as the others, dodging the sword's path and heading straight for the unprotected Charlotte.

Clang—

In the crucial moment, Charlotte spun her giant sword, the hilt deflecting the bullet, causing more sparks to explode.

Blood covered the street, and Charlotte stepped into the pool of blood.

The scent of blood, the bodies, the death, stirred a deep and primal part of her being, something sacred.

Her eyes began to turn red.

The City Guard had no time to reload. Charlotte stomped the ground, leapt into the air, soared over a heavy motorcycle, and enveloped one guard member in the glow of her sword. Though it was just the back of the blade, its destructive power was more deadly than a bullet.

An even thicker shadow loomed over Charlotte. The strong wind blew her long hair, and in mid-air, she shifted her movement, raising the sword to block, but was knocked back by a single blow.

A huge shadow emerged from the steam.

A towering metal figure appeared from the fog. Its dark surface seemed to absorb all light, and the sound of machinery roared. The massive hammer it carried was almost as large as Charlotte, with golden light flowing through it.

Steam armor, one of the three pillars of alchemy, the ultimate creation of steam mechanisms.

The sword's tip touched the ground, sparking, but Charlotte held her ground.

Steam armor was something even experienced knights feared, but in that moment, Charlotte felt… joy.

She stepped into the blood, surrounded by corpses.

The enemies were deadly, but she felt an inexplicable joy. She herself couldn't understand it.

A voice rooted in the blood of the Eiberg family spoke to her: Yes, Joy.

The giant armor shoved the motorcycle aside, advancing like a mountain toward Charlotte. She took a step and began closing the distance between them.

The roar of machinery grew louder, the hammer was lifted, and in an instant, it came crashing down with full force. If that blow hit, Charlotte’s fate wouldn't be much better than anyone else's.

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But when the hammer reached its peak, Charlotte moved. She crouched, slipping under the hammer.

Her sword scraped against the armor's knees, sparking, but only leaving a white mark on the metal surface.

It was a special metal, perhaps mithril or iron-core.

No matter what it was, Charlotte's giant sword couldn't penetrate the armor's defense, and the enemy wouldn't give her time to use white alchemy.

"Knight?"

Under the heavy helmet, the pilot of the steam armor asked.

Before Charlotte could respond, the roar of machinery intensified again. Large amounts of steam began pouring out from the armor's joints, increasing its speed, making it move like a speeding train.

The hammer, which already seemed massive, descended with force, like a mountain collapsing onto Charlotte.

Charlotte moved like a leaf in the wind, dancing around the hammer, dodging easily. She was dancing, not on a battlefield, but on a dance floor, as if invited to a ball.

Yes, yes, exactly like that.

The voice in her blood laughed softly, and Charlotte also smiled. Her sword grew more precise, finding gaps in the hammer's movement, repeatedly sparking against the armor.

The pilot of the armor felt a growing chill. Why was that girl smiling? She couldn't hurt him, she only needed one blow to crush her, so why was she still smiling? Was she not afraid of death?

The hammer's attacks grew fiercer, but Charlotte's speed also increased. The hammer scattered stones and blood, but it couldn't touch the dancing girl, it merely added more color to her dance.

Yes, yes!

The voice continued.

Dance, enjoy the battle!

Charlotte was in ecstasy, her eyes glowing red. In this life-and-death moment, she closed her eyes, listened to the wind, and followed her instincts, relying on these two things to dodge the hammer.

Gunshots rang out behind her, but Charlotte didn't turn. Her steps were undisturbed, she easily dodged the bullets. The giant sword flew through the air like a comet, even redirecting one bullet back, hitting a guard member’s shoulder.

The scream of pain made her even more excited.

Now, her steps were more harmonious. The clash of her sword against the armor was no longer to decide the outcome of the fight, but to accompany her dance. Even the rhythm of the hammer falling followed her steps.

The pilot of the armor was terrified. Suddenly, he realized that, without even knowing how, he had been swept into Charlotte's dance.

Under the orange-yellow moonlight, the girl’s steps crushed the reflections in the blood, crushed the moonlight, and even crushed courage.

Yes, he was afraid.

The bizarre scene surpassed his understanding. This was not something a mere city guard knight could resolve. He had to flee.

But he couldn't!

When he tried to escape, he realized he had lost control of his body. He was following Charlotte’s steps, raising and lowering the hammer, his feet moving slowly. The blood flowing before his eyes began to separate, forming a shape, resembling rose petals.

The voice in his blood fell silent, and in its place, music began to play within the blood.

The city guard knight heard the music, descending from the heavens, drifting down with the moonlight. If he listened carefully, he would realize that the music was playing in his very blood.

"Ahhh!"

Fear finally took control, and the knight’s terrified scream drowned out the music. He finally regained control of his body. The hammer fell once more, this time breaking the rhythm and kicking up a large cloud of dust. The knight tried to use it as cover.

But when he tried to pull back the hammer, he found that he couldn't move.

The dust settled, and Charlotte, it seemed, had been crouching on the hammer all along. Her eyes were closed, and she smiled innocently, almost indignantly, as if asking the guard knight why he had decided to leave the ball so early.

In the knight’s eyes, Charlotte was a completely different figure. He was already fully consumed by fear, and fear had taken him out of the dance, now, fear kept him pinned in place.

In Charlotte’s closed eyes, a red light shone, her bloodlust reaching its peak. She jumped, her foot cracked the hammer, and, sliding along the handle, made the air escape the blade, letting out a mournful cry.

The knight instinctively raised his hand to block, but this time, the blade easily sliced through the steam armor, severing his arm, cutting through the neck guard, and exposing his fragile throat to the air.

Charlotte, with her eyes closed, heard the blood flowing.

More blood.

The voice said.

More death, more screams, more fear!

Release them, let them sing, let them dance! The ball is just beginning.

The tip of the sword hovered over the knight's throat, but he no longer feared. He smiled too.

"You can't kill!"

Charlotte was about to strike when a voice made her open her eyes.