Rei and Aliza ran toward Nephthys together, with Rei arriving first. He slashed at her multiple times with his katana, each strike precise and devastating.
"Ahhhh!" Nephthys screamed in pain as the weapon Rei used was no ordinary mortal blade—it was an Opus weapon, capable of harming even a Primal Beast.
Fighting a Primal Beast, Rei didn't need to worry about holding back, as Primal Beasts could only be killed if he used attacks that ignored Immortality or if he destroyed their core. If he only attacked their body, they would be fine and could regenerate again.
He was using the Freeflutter Stance, a technique he had learned from Narmaya. Unlike the defensive Dawnfly Stance, this one emphasized relentless offense. With each slash of his katana, more and more purple butterflies materialized, fluttering around him and Nephthys like a storm of ethereal beauty.
Nephthys, desperate to counter, swung her Crook, aiming to stab Rei's soul from his blind spot. But Aliza was ready.
"Hyaaah!" Aliza's flaming kick struck Nephthys' arm, throwing off her aim. While her attacks couldn't deal significant damage, they were strong enough to disrupt Nephthys' movements.
With flames enveloping her legs, Aliza kept kicking Nephthys, her attacks perfectly coordinated with Rei's slashes.
From behind, Jessica provided support, firing her cannon whenever Rei and Aliza needed cover. Her shots were precise, forcing Nephthys to dodge or defend, giving Rei and Aliza openings to press their attack.
Together, they formed a seamless team: Rei as the pure offense, Aliza as the counter and secondary offense, Jessica as the support, and Lyria preparing to absorb Nephthys' power.
But just as they seemed to gain the upper hand, a surge of powerful wind erupted from Nephthys, disrupting their rhythm.
"Wha-!" Aliza, mid-air and preparing another kick, was caught off guard. The wind sent her flying toward the cave wall at terrifying speed.
"Kyaaaaa!" she screamed, but before she could crash, Rei appeared, catching her in a princess carry.
"I made it in time..." he said, relieved.
Meanwhile, Nephthys' power continued to surge, her aura intensifying as she entered a state akin to Overdrive. Green winds swirled around her, and the cave began to shake violently.
"AAAAHHHHHH!" Nephthys' scream echoed as her power reached its peak.
"Seems like she's really mad now," Rei said, his tone calm despite the chaos.
"Her pressure keeps increasing... Is this a Primal Beast's true power?" Aliza gulped, her voice trembling. She had never faced a Primal Beast this strong before.
Her eyes darted to the cave ceiling, worried it might collapse from the shaking.
"Don't worry. I already reinforced the entire cave with Yggdrasil's power. It won't collapse," Rei reassured her.
"I see... At least we don't have to worry about being buried alive," Aliza said with a nervous laugh. But as she looked up at Rei, she realized she was still in his arms.
Her face turned bright red. "Put me down!" she demanded, her voice flustered.
"Alright," Rei said, but before he could, Lyria's voice cut through the chaos.
"Rei! Nephthys' power keeps increasing! I can't absorb her if she's not weakened!"
"That wind is so strong! I don't think I can get closer with such strong wind!" Aliza said, covering her face as the powerful gusts whipped around her. Her dress, even though she had ripped the lower part, still flapped wildly, hindering her movements.
Rei stayed silent, his gaze fixed on the swirling wind around Nephthys. The wind itself wasn't the problem for him—it was what it carried.
"That wind isn't normal. It's filled with Nephthys' dominion over souls. If someone gets hit by it, she'll steal their abilities, or even something they cherish—like their personality, their ability to walk, or even their sight," Rei explained, his voice calm but urgent.
Suddenly, as if reacting to his words, the wind around Nephthys surged toward him at an incredible speed. For a normal person, it would have been impossible to react, but Rei wasn't normal. Still carrying Aliza, he dodged to the side with ease.
But Nephthys wasn't done. She kept attacking relentlessly, her wind whipping around them, and her Ankh and Crook pressing the assault.
Rei moved with precision—jumping to the side, running in circles, leaping high into the air, and even countering with his katana in one hand. He dodged and countered her attacks, his movements fluid and calculated.
"Rei!" Lyria screamed, her voice filled with worry as she watched Rei and Aliza being attacked over and over.
Jessica tried to help, firing her cannon at Nephthys, but the wind around the Primal Beast deflected every shot.
Attack after attack, Rei kept dodging and countering, but the relentless assault was starting to wear on him. He was trying his best not to harm Nephthys too much and to avoid collapsing the cave by using too much power.
But Rei was an Astral, and all Astrals, despite their differences, shared one common trait: a massive ego. They hated it when their plans were interrupted.
From his ruined date with Djeeta to this rescue mission being disrupted, Rei was growing increasingly annoyed.
Finally, his patience snapped. His katana disappeared from his hand.
"Axion."
*BOOOOOM!*
Three concentrated beams shot from Rei's fingers, detonating on impact with a nebulous explosion.
"Gaaahahhhhhh!" Nephthys' scream echoed through the entire cave as the attack struck her.
As the entire cave shook from the explosion, Rei landed beside Jessica and Lyria, gently setting Aliza down.
Aliza's eyes were wide open, her mind struggling to process what had just happened. One moment, Rei was deflecting Nephthys' attacks, and the next, he was pointing three fingers forward, unleashing three dense lasers that struck Nephthys and created a massive explosion.
"Rei, you hurt Nephthys really bad there... I can feel her emotions from here," Lyria said, her voice tinged with concern.
"She's too annoying. She didn't give us a chance to talk and immediately attacked us. Just be ready to absorb her after I'm done," Rei replied, his tone firm as he walked forward.
As he moved, three pairs of dark wings materialized on his back, their presence radiating power.
"Six wings? How many wings does he have??" Jessica exclaimed, her eyes wide with surprise.
"He has twelve wings," Lyria answered casually, her focus on preparing to absorb Nephthys' power.
"Twelve wings?? That's a lot of wings! Before, when he only used four, I could feel his aura change drastically. But now, with six wings, his aura is even more intense!" Aliza said, her voice filled with disbelief.
"Well, the more wings he uses, the stronger he becomes. But he's rarely used all twelve," Lyria added with a shrug.
Meanwhile, Rei continued walking closer to Nephthys. He could feel his wings empowering him, filling him with immense strength. As long as he didn't kill Nephthys, Lyria could absorb her, and she would be healed and calmed down.
With a focused expression, Rei summoned his Sword of Repudiation. Silver lightning crackled around his right hand, forming the blade before he grasped it firmly, holding the sword with confidence.
Looking at Nephthys, who was covered in wounds and still trying to regenerate, Rei pointed his sword upward.
His golden sword began to glow, enveloped in a dark aura from his wings. The pressure around him grew stronger and stronger, filling the air with an almost unbearable intensity.
"Yggdrasil, use all your power to reinforce the entire cave. If you need more, you can use my power to strengthen it even further," Rei murmured to Yggdrasil.
All he heard in response was a soft *'Ring~'* from Yggdrasil, signaling her agreement. Immediately, Rei felt his power flowing through her as she reinforced the entire cave, making it even more stable.
Now, with the cave secured, Rei no longer had to worry about the place collapsing, even if he unleashed more of his power.
"Now, time to calm down..." Rei muttered, channeling even more power into his sword. He waited until he sensed it had reached its peak, and then—
"Phosphorus."
With a single breath, he unleashed all the power he had gathered into the sword, striking forward. For a moment, it seemed as if the entire world had been sliced in half.
At first, there was silence—a deafening stillness as if nothing had happened. But then, a few moments later—
*BOOOOOOOM!*
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"I'm done absorbing Nephthys. Are you two okay? Is there any wound I need to heal?" Lyria asked Rei and Aliza, as both of them had been the ones fighting most of the time.
"I'm fine. What about you, Aliza?" Rei asked, turning to her.
But for some reason, Aliza didn't answer. She just kept staring at the spot where Rei's attack had landed, lost in thought.
"Aliza?" Rei gently shook her shoulder, snapping her out of her daze.
"Eh!? What is it again?"
"Did you get hit by the attack or not?"
"No, no, I'm fine. I don't have any wounds on me," Aliza replied quickly.
After making sure both of them were unharmed, they started walking out of the cave, finally able to take a breath of fresh air.
"Haaahhh... Finally, we're out of that place," Jessica said, stretching her arms.
"What are you going to do now, Jessica? We couldn't find your brother. Do you want to come with us?" Lyria suddenly asked.
"But... No, I wouldn't want to impose," Jessica said hesitantly.
"If you stay with us, you might find your brother along the way. We Skyfarers often travel to a lot of places. Right, Rei?" Lyria glanced toward him.
"Yeah, I agree with what Lyria said. We'd love to have someone strong and beautiful like you join us on our journey!" Rei added, clearly teasing her.
"Wha- m-me?? Beautiful?" Jessica's face turned bright red as she stammered, flustered by Rei's compliment.
Jessica wasn't particularly confident in her charm. Her chest was small, her body slim, and her hair and eyes were just plain black. She felt like her body was ordinary, with nothing particularly striking about it.
"Yeah, I mean, with your long, smooth, silky black hair, your long legs... Even though we've just met, listening to your conversations with Lyria earlier, I can tell you have a really fun personality. Especially when you laugh and smile—I think it's normal for me to call you beautiful," Rei said casually, nodding to himself.
Jessica fell silent, her face burning with embarrassment. She couldn't bring herself to say anything, fidgeting in place as Rei's praise made her more and more flustered.
"Hahaha, your face is so red, Jessica!" Lyria laughed, amused by Jessica's reaction.
Even Aliza felt embarrassed, even though she wasn't the one being praised. She always felt this way, especially whenever she saw her parents being lovey-dovey.
"Anyway, should we head back to Sierokarte?" Rei asked the three of them, offering his hand.
"Sure~" Lyria said happily, taking his hand without hesitation.
Rei then carrying all three of them and then flying back toward the town to submit their completed request.
"You're really strong, huh? Carrying three of us so casually like this," Aliza said, her eyes scanning the scenery below as they flew.
"Of course. I need to be strong to protect a lot of people~" Rei replied with a light chuckle.
"Hmmm," Aliza hummed in response, her mind wandering as she thought about something again.