"...Should you be angry enough to kill me?"
Upon hearing this, Aozaki Touko tilted her head slightly, then revealed a dashing smile: "If you truly feel angry, then how about we have a fight, betting on our respective ownership?!"
A very direct declaration of war.
This time, the Golden Wolf's gaze suddenly turned sharp. If her previous statements could have been ignored, such a direct provocation now could no longer be dismissed!
Although she possessed extremely high intellect, she still ultimately followed the law of the jungle as a beast.
The current situation was like a king of beasts whose status had been challenged; she would inevitably respond with claws and fangs to kill the challenger.
Only then could she assert her absolute authority.
"...Do you know what you're saying?"
The Golden Wolf's voice was cold and low, her gold-like fur bristling. She gave this woman one last chance to retract her statement.
This woman standing before her was not a sacrifice offered according to custom, nor was she one of the dull, boring Werewolf followers in the village. She was a woman who gave her a strange feeling.
Before figuring out this strange feeling, she temporarily did not want to kill her.
However, if this woman truly intended to challenge her.
She would kill her without mercy!!!
"...Are you planning to spare my life?"
Aozaki Touko smiled slightly, then her gaze suddenly became sharp: "But, I have no intention of retracting my statement. Let's fight, betting our lives!"
"If I win, you shall become my Familiar!"
Frank words, imbued with strong will.
This physically frail woman truly intended to subdue her.
Realizing this, the Golden Wolf retorted:
"What if you lose?"
"Then you may devour this body, as food to fill your belly!"
Aozaki Touko's tone was cold, as if it had nothing to do with her.
Her current body was merely a clone. Even if it were killed and completely devoured, it would only be a loss of some material costs, which for her, with the Einzbern Family's funding, was a completely trivial matter of no consequence.
"Is that so!"
"You truly are a strange human!"
The Golden Wolf turned and left the cave.
As a Phantasmal Beast, she also had her pride.
Since this woman had spoken such words.
Then there was no choice but to kill her!
"...Heh~"
Aozaki Touko smiled slightly at this, then followed with elegant steps.
To be honest, it was her first time engaging in a true life-or-death battle; she wasn't facing an opponent far weaker than herself, nor did she have any backing or protection.
She was confronting a miracle remaining from the Age of Gods alone.
Her heart began to beat faster, and a burning sensation flowed throughout her body.
Battle intent.
All negative emotions were discarded, and soaring battle intent filled her entire being.
The circulation of wind-attribute magic power within her body stirred the air.
—
Outside the forest
The Golden Wolf stopped, turning to look at the woman who had followed her, her eyes becoming completely cold. She didn't know if this woman had lost her mind, unable to gauge the disparity in strength between them.
However, since she had followed, there was no turning back!
"...Is this the place?"
Aozaki Touko stopped, surveying her surroundings. It was an open space about a dozen meters wide, surrounded by ancient trees several tens of meters tall, with the ground covered in thick fallen leaves.
"I won't eat you!"
The Golden Wolf's gaze was icy. She pressed her four limbs into the ground and shot through the air like a streak of light, appearing before Aozaki Touko in the blink of an eye, her sharp fangs poised to kiss that fair neck.
At that moment, Aozaki Touko moved abruptly.
As if she had predicted the Golden Wolf's movement, she casually shifted her body, and the wolf's mouth, which was about to kiss her, brushed past her, narrowly avoiding the attack.
"...You actually dodged it!"
The Golden Wolf landed on all fours, leaving four claw marks on the ground, and the fallen leaves were sent flying into the air. She turned her head to look at Aozaki Touko, appearing very surprised.
Logically speaking, with the frail physical constitution of humans...
It should have been absolutely impossible to dodge.
However, this was definitely not a lucky escape.
She saw clearly that the woman had been calm the entire time.
She had dodged her pounce as if it were a matter of course.
"Third Stage, Thought Simulation!"
As if to answer the Golden Wolf's confusion, Aozaki Touko raised her slender hand and pointed to her head, explaining, "It liberates the brain's computational power, using a simulated personality to predict your next move!"
"Thanks to your pure thoughts, it wasn't difficult to simulate!"
This was the result of her time with the Einzbern Family, strengthening her brain through special magic to greatly enhance its processing capabilities, enabling incredible things like thought partitioning, personality simulation, and future prediction.
The scene where she dodged as if predicting the future was actually based on the cognition built up during a brief conversation with the Golden Wolf.
Then, by simulating and perceiving the other party's psychological activity, she could predict the Golden Wolf's next action.