The E.G.O. suit [Fallen Cherry Blossoms] fell from Ye Lan's body as its name suggested, dissipating into nothingness in the breeze.
After deactivating the TETH-class E.G.O. set, a clear bloodstain was visible on his chest. The wound, caused by the sword wind from the Violet Tear's tachi, had torn through his black suit, leaving a gash on his chest.
Ye Lan clapped his hands and praised the Violet Tear. "As expected of the Violet Tear. It seems using TETH-class equipment against an expert like you was too arrogant of me."
Although, in Iori's eyes, this praise was no better than mockery.
"Then, out of respect for you, let's try this set... Sword of Flowing Tears!"
A rapier the color of the night sky appeared in Ye Lan's hand. A long, blue-gradient coat replaced the torn suit on his body. His short black hair grew under the influence of the E.G.O. suit, cascading to the ground, becoming a starry blue gradient just like the hem of his coat.
"Your thrusting stance is very impressive. But I wonder, whose rapier is mightier, yours or mine?" Ye Lan gave the rapier a light twirl in his hand, and his whole body naturally fell into a near-perfect fencing stance.
The next second, he moved like a blue phantom through the space between them, the tip of his rapier like a brilliant star in the night sky, instantly piercing the dim space of the alley and aiming for Iori's right shoulder blade.
"An attack with such an obvious target, and you think you can hit me?"
The Violet Tear didn't even raise the tachi she was now holding. She simply turned her body and blocked Ye Lan's attack with the blunt weapon on her back.
But Ye Lan's thrust was merely an opening move. His left foot drew a semi-circle behind him. After a brief charge, he burst forward, his sword hand striking out at Iori nine times with the speed of a tempest, the starlight-fast rapier leaving afterimages in the air.
"Not bad. A little interesting."
The Violet Tear's tachi must have been sheathed when she turned to block with the blunt weapon on her back. Now, she was also meeting Ye Lan head-on with her own rapier.
The two swords left countless afterimages between them, yet not a single crisp sound of weapons clashing was heard.
To gain the upper hand, the distance between them continuously shortened, and the angles of their thrusts became more and more difficult.
This waltz, with their lives as the prize, almost became a close-contact dance after several minutes of continuous attacks from both sides. Ye Lan and Iori's rapiers finally collided at this distance. The violent shockwave from their weapons' impact blew all the unsecured debris in the alley to the walls, even embedding some of it into the surrounding buildings.
"To be able to stop me this far, not bad at all."
At this extremely close range, the Violet Tear's face still wore a mocking smile. She didn't seem to be struggling with Ye Lan's attacks at all, and even seemed to be critiquing his technique with interest.
"But, what a pity."
As she spoke, her rapier suddenly exerted force, sweeping Ye Lan aside. Then, the tachi at her waist appeared in her hand like a phantom. An upward slash from Ye Lan's lower right to his left shoulder was executed in an instant, sending the already-unsteady Ye Lan flying again.
If not for the coat of the Sword of Flowing Tears suit automatically transforming into heavy armor to block the slash, Ye Lan would probably be gushing blood as he crashed into the alley's debris.
However, after that slash, Iori's attack was not over. The blunt weapon on her back had been swapped into her hand without anyone noticing. The weapon, made of a special alloy, swept across the alley like a man-eating python, aiming for Ye Lan and, behind him, Angelica and Luna.
"Have you no shame!?"
If this blow from the Violet Tear landed, Ye Lan himself could survive thanks to the WAW-class E.G.O. suit, but Luna and Angelica behind him would suffer severe injuries from the impact, and could even die on the spot.
But Ye Lan, still in mid-air, was helpless to do anything about it... no, rather, he was helpless.
"Queen of Hatred, give her a punch for me."
The next moment, the magical girl with the shining golden gauntlets appeared in a teleportation circle. The Shining Gold Rush, which was both the name of her E.G.O. set and her signature move, was activated.
Countless shining gold ribbons with checkered patterns formed circles of magic in front of the dark-skinned girl. She threw a punch that could decide the battle.
The gauntlet and the blunt weapon collided. A wave of shining gold and violet energy spread outwards, almost instantly demolishing the surrounding buildings and turning them into a pile of rubble.
Only then did Ye Lan finally land on the ground, using his rapier to regain his balance.
"Tch, is this a specialty of your L Corp?"
Iori looked displeased at the magical girl who was dissipating into points of light. This Abnormality that had suddenly appeared and disappeared had interrupted her [Phantom Dance], causing her to lose the opportunity to achieve her goal with this combo.
And facing such a Color Fixer who could attack the two he was protecting at any moment, Ye Lan had no intention of continuing to wear down his strength with a WAW-class E.G.O. suit.
The Sword of Flowing Tears fell from his body in black teardrops, dyeing the ground at his feet the color of night. Although he had deactivated the E.G.O. gear, the blessing of the sorrowful magical girl remained with him.
Then, a brilliant blue heart lit up on his chest. The voice of a new star flowed from the light emitted by this mesmerizing blue heart. The E.G.O. equipment known as Sound of a Star manifested on Ye Lan's body.
Three gem-like blue heart spheres orbited him, attacking Iori's upper, middle, and lower body according to his will.
"Heh, an ALEPH-class armament? I have no intention of experiencing the pinnacle of your company's Singularity technology here."
Just before the three Sound of a Star spheres hit Iori, the space around her suddenly blurred for a moment. The next instant, the Violet Tear's figure vanished from before Ye Lan's eyes.
This special technique, known as Dimension Step, allowed her to move freely between different floors even in the Library, let alone in a mere alley.
Then, before Ye Lan could even turn around, Angelica let out a cry of disbelief and pain.
The Violet Tear, who had hidden in the shadows using Dimension Step, had not only not left, but in those few seconds, had delivered two fatal stabs to Angelica's heart and abdomen.
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