Alice kept a wary eye on Boros. Although Herta had claimed to have upgraded her, her actual combat effectiveness remained an unknown variable.
However, she did not reject Boros's invitation.
After all, her only worry was the potential inability to protect more people; she wasn't concerned for her own safety. No matter how powerful Boros might be, she was confident he couldn't truly do her in.
This inner conviction radiated from her, exuding a sense of self-assurance that did not go unnoticed by Boros, who only seemed more pleased by it.
"Before we start, state your name."
As if to etch this moment deep into his memory, Boros treated the ritual of battle with the utmost gravity. "I am the leader of the Dark Matter Thieves, and the dominator of the entire universe: Boros."
"Alice Tendou, professional hero, and the brave hero here to vanquish evil!" Alice replied.
"Vanquishing evil, is it?" Boros let out a laugh.
Across countless planets, he had always been viewed as the embodiment of evil, a label he had long since embraced. He was also intimately familiar with those who styled themselves as heroes.
"Very well. It seems we don't need any more meaningless chatter. I am evil, and you are justice. That is all there is to it, yes?"
Alice did not respond. The Sword of Light in her hands shifted back into its greatsword mode. Though its weight was staggering, it was at least less unwieldy than the cannon form, making it far easier to swing.
In this world of caped heroes, for anyone other than an esper, being lackluster in close-quarters combat was a fatal flaw.
The battle ignited in an instant.
Moving at speeds far beyond the sound barrier—in less time than it takes to blink—Alice was sent flying backward. A thunderous, heavy boom erupted behind her as a massive support pillar collapsed into rubble.
Yet, the girl showed no signs of distress. Having blocked the attack with the greatsword held before her, she had merely been caught off guard, preventing her from properly countering the force.
Under such momentum, the girl's physical weight—even combined with the Sword of Light—wasn't enough to stop her from being easily sent airborne.
"Blocked it, did you?" Boros was satisfied, naturally, but... that was all it was: satisfaction. It was still a far cry from actual fulfillment.
With a wide grin and his cape billowing, he appeared before Alice once more.
But this time, Alice would not let him have his way.
There is a qualitative difference between simply carrying hundreds of pounds and using those same hundreds of pounds to strike someone.
The heavy, momentum-filled greatsword collided with his indestructible fist.
As they made contact, the alloy floor beneath them buckled and cracked for dozens of meters, and the remaining support pillars behind the girl were shattered by the shockwave and blown into the distance.
Crack!
A fracturing sound echoed from Boros's gauntlet.
His muscles surged, swelling until the armor shattered into pieces. Meanwhile, his power and speed having increased significantly, he quickly retracted his fist, adjusted his stance, and swept out with a leg.
"It's not over yet!"
"Urgh!"
His leg, which had shifted from its original hue to a deep, dark blue, slammed heavily into the girl's flank.
The immense impact and the sudden surge of pain forced a muffled grunt from Alice, and she went flying sideways, her body folding like a bent straw.
The sound of collapsing structures confirmed the sheer power of that kick, yet Boros's assault did not stop there.
Clearly witnessing that the girl's body had not been pulverized into meat or twisted metal, nor did she appear to have suffered any broken bones, Boros pushed off like a spring, his legs coiling to pursue her once again.
His fist tore through the air with a piercing whistle, driving straight for Alice's face. Though she hadn't fully regained her footing, she twisted her torso with sheer force, bringing the greatsword up to block.
Clang!
It was a fist of flesh and blood, yet it rang out like metal striking metal.
The spine of the Sword of Light vibrated intensely. Alice felt a numbing jolt run through her hands, and the sheer force pushed her sliding backward once more.
Boros realized that this sword seemed to reflect a portion of the impact he dealt, but that did nothing to dampen his desire to continue the assault.
Defend more! Counter again! Give me more reason to be thrilled!
Following the relentless pursuit and desperate defense, the two had long since left the main hall.
The soles of the girl's boots plowed two deep furrows into the alloy floor. Along the way, she smashed through three support pipes, and scalding steam erupted from the ruptures, clouding half the battlefield.
Boros would not give his opponent a moment to catch her breath or adjust.
Especially not when she was a powerhouse capable of shattering his armor and still showing no signs of collapse despite his full-force assault.
It was obvious—even as she was forced to retreat, the force behind each of her blocks was growing stronger.
The girl was evolving at an astonishing rate! Knowing this alone made Boros determined to end the battle as quickly as possible.
A deep blue knee burst through the smoke, driving toward her chest like a siege engine.
Beneath the dark blue skin, muscles were coiled and knotted, each inch bulging with terrifying power capable of altering the very terrain.
"Ungh!"
Alice controlled her momentum, whipping the greatsword up in an arc to barely catch his knee. The moment the blade met his skin, faint blue sparks flew. She could clearly feel that the tremor coming from his leg was more intense than any attack before.
But... she was gradually getting used to this level of force. Or perhaps, fueled by her own determination, she was becoming stronger.
"That's it! Alice Tendou!" Boros's voice was filled with a near-fanatical excitement. He planted his left leg and suddenly exerted force with his right, pressing his knee down against the blade.
Alice's halo suddenly erupted in a blinding radiance. Gritting her teeth, she gripped the hilt with both hands and heaved upward, actually managing to force Boros's knee back by half an inch.
She then used that leverage to leap backward, creating a few meters of distance.
But Boros wouldn't let it end there. With lightning speed, he became a purple blur, his fingertips coalescing with a bright purple halo of energy as he lunged for the girl's head.
Alice gritted her teeth, drawing a circular arc with the Sword of Light; a silver-white flash of light stood before her like a shield.
The moment the energy halo collided with the sword's light, a surge of brilliant purple energy rippled outward like a tide, nearly pulverizing the entire corridor.
In that fleeting moment of stalemate, Boros suddenly shifted his strategy. His left hand darted out like lightning, bypassing the light to clamp firmly onto Alice's wrist.
An intense heat radiated from his palm; even with the protection of her halo, Alice could feel the warmth.
"Caught you!" Boros wore an excited grin. He put sudden, violent force into his arm, tossing the girl toward the ground as if she were a discarded toy, the vast difference in their physical stature laid bare.
Boom! The already beleaguered alloy floor instantly buckled into a crater dozens of meters wide. Debris and sparks flew in every direction, and the electrical conduits at the bottom of the pit burst, sending blue arcs crackling through the ruins.
Boros landed at the edge of the pit and peered down.
That last strike had landed true, and yet...
"Is your turn already over?"
The girl at the bottom of the pit, while looking disheveled from the dust, appeared entirely uninjured.
On the contrary, she was radiating an even greater amount of energy than before, as if she, too, possessed a second stage, just like him.
"Then, it is Alice's turn next!"
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T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL