When Prime Minister Honest saw that Esdeath had taken an interest in this Teigu, his expression grew more serious.
"This Teigu has driven many heroes mad. I wouldn't recommend it."
Esdeath was powerful.
The Prime Minister knew exactly how terrifying this woman was, so he had never entertained any inappropriate thoughts about her.
Besides, although her appearance was flawless, her personality was awful.
As a man, he still had the right to choose.
With his status, he could have as many women with pretty faces and good figures as he wanted.
Why would he risk his life for one?
Women who were too strong were not his type.
And her hobbies were outrageous.
Torture and interrogation.
She was an extreme sadist.
But even this extreme sadist would probably be unable to withstand that brainwashing-like impact.
"Heh, don't worry, Prime Minister. I can say for certain that it won't turn out the way you imagine."
Esdeath tore off the steel chains with one hand, opened the lid of the pot containing the Danger Beast blood, and looked at the bright red liquid inside.
She said confidently, "Because I spent so long hunting Danger Beasts in harsh environments, I developed the ability to tell whether something is harmful to me. Things that can't be eaten, or poisonous things, I can identify them instantly. It's practically an instinctive skill now."
Eh?
The Prime Minister was dumbfounded.
Wasn't that a little too ridiculous?
Was that even an ability a human could train?
Even if it were possible, normally, one mistake meant death. There wouldn't even be a chance to improve proficiency.
This woman really was a monster!
His thoughts were similar to Noah's, though what Noah sighed inwardly was, 'This girl really is wild.'
At the same time, he also believed Esdeath would not be driven insane by the Teigu's will.
"Very well. If you're that confident, I'll have someone bring a cup."
The amount of blood stored in the pot was not small.
It was probably more than a thousand cubic centimeters.
In the past, those who had attempted it had gone mad after drinking even a single drop.
The amount ingested was naturally related to the impact on the body.
Generally speaking, pouring out one cup and drinking that should have been enough.
But Esdeath refused outright.
"There's no need."
She smiled confidently, lifted the pot, and began drinking straight from it.
Before long, she had drained all the Danger Beast blood inside.
She even licked the corner of her mouth with some lingering satisfaction.
"The taste is rather good…"
Seeing her eyes light up, even Noah could not help becoming curious.
Was it really that good?
She was making him want to try some.
After waiting quietly for a few seconds, Esdeath was just beginning to wonder why she had not felt anything.
She was about to ask whether it had expired.
Then, suddenly, a pulse rose from deep within her body, and countless thoughts inexplicably surged into her mind.
Without exception, all those thoughts were filled with violent concepts such as extinction, slaughter, destruction, and annihilation.
They tangled together like countless voices ringing out at once.
Even Esdeath staggered two steps under the assault of that madness.
She pressed one hand against her head and felt the will surging through her mind.
So that was it.
The failures before her had been driven mad by this. It was indeed a very intense will.
Heh.
But for her, it was still far too weak!
This level was completely within her control.
If it came down to cruelty, her own will was more than enough to crush the will contained in this blood.
No…
This was a rare chance.
Rather, what an unbelievably perfect opportunity!
That man was right here!
Esdeath lowered her head, releasing a pressure that made the heart tremble.
With her back to the Prime Minister and Noah, her shoulders shook as she laughed.
The Prime Minister listened to that eerie laughter, and his scalp tingled.
"Um… General Esdeath?"
Honest was panicking now.
Had this woman lost herself?
If so, then weren't he and Professor Noah in serious danger here?
Noah watched Esdeath's condition and knew she was completely fine.
No, compared to a minute ago, her strength had already undergone a dramatic transformation.
She had already been close to being called the strongest in the Empire. After obtaining the power of a Teigu, she had transformed once again.
Now, she was undoubtedly the Empire's strongest.
Wait.
This wild girl wouldn't be thinking something strange, would she?
After several moments of silence, Esdeath moved.
In an instant, she vanished from where she stood. When she appeared again, she was already in front of Noah, one leg bent and fully loaded with force.
Noah's pupils shrank.
Seeing Esdeath suddenly appear with terrifying speed, he immediately braced his arm, layering his left arm over it as well to guard.
Bang!
A terrifying impact erupted at the point where they collided.
Noah felt his feet leave the ground.
Everything in his vision blurred, and the scenery began retreating wildly.
He had no idea how many walls he crashed through.
By the time he regained his senses, he was looking up at the sun.
He had been kicked from the deepest part of the treasure hall all the way outside!
Feeling the pain in his forearm, Noah made a quiet judgment.
That force was even more terrifying than Esdeath's previous strength.
It seemed the blood's effect was not limited to granting supernatural power. It also strengthened the body to some degree.
'If I hadn't defended with magic, this wouldn't have ended with just a bit of numbness.'
Noah loosened his wrist and turned toward the treasure hall, his expression darkening.
From the hole he had smashed through, a figure like an ice empress walked out.
Wherever she stepped, cold air spread, freezing the ground beneath her into ice.
Judging from her expression, she also seemed a little surprised by the power of her own kick.
He had really flown far!
A slight smile appeared on that wickedly beautiful face. This time, Esdeath intended to test the Teigu's power.
Seeing her raise her hand toward him, Noah's gaze sharpened, and his concentration deepened.
He could feel that she had no intention of holding back.
Normally, he could use Imperial rules to avoid fighting this wild girl. Although she seemed lawless, she was actually a person with a strong sense of responsibility.
Since she was a general of the Empire, she properly followed what a general should and should not do.
Because Noah was not an enemy of the Empire, she had no reason to hunt him.
And Noah had no intention of pointlessly fighting a battle junkie to the death. There was no benefit in it for him.
But this time, she was clearly planning to use the Teigu's influence as an excuse.
Even though she had suppressed the will inside the Teigu in an instant, she had seized this chance and intended to go all out under that pretext.
If he did not fight back, she might actually kill him.
One ice spear after another condensed around Esdeath. Seeing them, Noah had originally planned to dodge.
But as though moved by a sudden impulse, Esdeath abruptly increased the number of ice spears by more than a thousandfold.
Looking at the densely packed ice spears, Noah's expression turned a little ugly.
This was not a number he could evade with ordinary movement.
He manipulated the wind element and directly used the same wind-attribute magic that had instantly killed Barbara.
'Compression Storm.'
"Go!"
Esdeath released her power.
Hundreds of ice spears shot out at once.
The sound of them tearing through the air merged into one continuous shriek, making even Noah tense.
Dense wind blades collided with a vast number of ice spears. Ice shards scattered across the sky, splashing in every direction.
Just hearing that she could control ice had not made it very easy to grasp.
But now, Noah could clearly feel how much power the ice-type Teigu could unleash in Esdeath's hands.
The speed at which the ice formed, its scale, its quality, and the power and velocity with which it fired—each one was terrifying.
In terms of ice manipulation alone, the current Weaver could not match her.
Or rather, it was not only the ice-type Teigu that was strong.
The person using it was Esdeath.
Their wavelengths were extremely compatible, allowing her to bring out the Teigu's power to its limit.
The two attacks collided evenly.
Seeing that, Esdeath grew even more excited.
She laughed wildly. "So you really were hiding a Teigu too! Is it the ability to control wind and air currents? Interesting!"
Esdeath had never forgotten.
The first time she met this man, she had been toyed with so easily.
She had thrown herself into it with one hundred and twenty percent effort, only for him to casually brush her aside.
Today, at last, the mystery behind that strange ability would be revealed.
Wind and ice.
Let's see which is stronger!
"I've waited a long time for this day!"
Esdeath shifted from quantity to quality.
This time, what she summoned was no longer a sky full of ice spears, but a massive iceberg.
As she poured power into it, the iceberg grew larger and larger.
In just a few breaths, it had condensed to more than ten meters in diameter, even blocking out the sunlight.
Standing beneath its shadow, Noah looked up at the enormous iceberg and felt a headache coming on.
This was not a situation he could handle with wind alone.
A ten-meter-diameter iceberg—how much mass was that?
"Take this!"
Esdeath grew more and more delighted.
The enormous iceberg fell like a meteor.
"You really went and made something this ridiculous."
'Fine.'
'Then i would show her something too.'
Noah's gaze sharpened, and he connected with Black Nightmare circling high in the sky.
"Blast it apart! Black Nightmare!"
At Noah's low shout, a black flash came from the edge of the sky, arriving in an instant and passing over the battlefield from above.
Before Esdeath could even investigate what that thing was, she saw the iceberg she had formed explode.
Boom!
The sound of the explosion seemed to arrive several seconds late.
The sonic boom and wind pressure swept across the battlefield.
The iceberg had been shattered by an unknown attack, and even Esdeath inevitably lost focus for a moment.
Noah, as the one responsible, was naturally not surprised to see Black Nightmare successfully destroy the iceberg with its onboard weapon.
He took the initiative and closed in on Esdeath. In the blink of an eye, he had already rushed in front of her.
Although she was startled by his sudden approach, Esdeath immediately became excited again.
"Are you finally motivated? Then come at me!"
Without a word, Noah threw a punch straight at the madwoman's face.
Esdeath caught it with her palm, then tightened her grip around Noah's hand.
Using her incredibly flexible body, she swung her high-heeled boot up toward his chin.
Noah tilted his head to dodge, hooked his arm around the thigh in front of him, and pressed forward.
At this moment, all of Esdeath's weight had been forced onto one foot.
She smiled coldly.
"Are you trying to push me down?"
Swish!
Frost bloomed.
Rows of ice-crystal blades suddenly grew from Esdeath's smooth thigh, forcing Noah to let go and dodge.
Even so, a layer of frost still covered his arm.
Noah did not panic.
He glanced at his arm, then manipulated heat to directly clear away the frost on the surface of his skin.
The ice fell from his arm like dust.
Esdeath's gaze sharpened, immediately noticing that strange sight.
'The ice… had melted?'
'Was that something wind could do?'
"You… that was?"
"What? Done playing mute?"
Seeing Noah's unhappy expression, Esdeath felt joy from the bottom of her heart.
How should she describe this feeling?
'Mmmmphh.'
'It was at least two or three times more enjoyable than torturing prisoners!'
She had not had enough yet.
Just as Esdeath was about to attack again, she suddenly sensed something and withdrew her leg in an instant.
Noah did the same as the two retreated at the same time.
Crack!
A bolt of lightning struck the empty ground between them as It signaled that man's arrival.
The man stepped out from the lightning and swept his scrutinizing gaze across the scene.
"General Budo."
"General Esdeath, would you care to explain? What exactly is going on here?" Budo's tone was stern and carried intense authority.
Noah was a little surprised.
He had not questioned Noah first.
Instead, he went straight to questioning Esdeath.
Even Esdeath, faced with the stubborn old man she found hardest to deal with, had no choice but to stop.
However, she had no intention of explaining.
Fortunately, at that moment, the Prime Minister crawled out from the treasure hall.
"Oh my, General Budo. I didn't expect we would even alarm you. How embarrassing."
"Honest…"
Budo looked at the Prime Minister in surprise, not expecting him to be here as well.
"General, by His Majesty's command, I prepared a Teigu for General Esdeath as a reward for her military achievements. As a result, a small accident occurred."
Oh?
Budo looked toward Esdeath.
Indeed, from her, he could clearly feel a threat unlike anything she had possessed before.
It seemed she had obtained a truly extraordinary Teigu.
But compared to Esdeath, what Budo cared about more right now was the other side.
"Professor Noah, it has been quite some time since we last met, hasn't it? Back then, you were not yet a professor. I never expected you to achieve so much in such a short time."
Budo looked at Noah, whose appearance had changed quite a bit.
Previously, he had only thought Noah was a somewhat interesting young man.
He had not expected him to possess this level of strength as well.
Although Budo had not seen the battle itself, the fact that Noah could face Esdeath after she caused such a commotion and remain unharmed was enough to prove that he was anything but ordinary.
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