End... of all things.
Raiden Shogun's final words rang like the ultimate judgment.
She vanished into the void, the enormous thunder eye above the sky opened once more—grander, more majestic than before. From its center she loomed like a deity of destruction, the massive sword of musou isshin gathering every bolt of lightning in the entire space.
It was... a slash of absolute void.
A strike transcending speed and power, carrying the scent of universal annihilation, descending slowly. An unavoidable blow.
Come on!!!
Charlotte Linlin poured every last scrap of strength, will, even her Haoshoku into the three blades.
Crimson Haoshoku lightning roared, a blood-red dragon coiling along the edges.
Three Sword Style – Haoshoku!
She turned herself into a sword and shot upward to meet the godlike slash.
Boom!
A blinding flood of light devoured everything, a shock wave sweeping outward.
This time Haoshoku did not disappoint her; her desperate strike finally pushed the divine slash back. When the light faded, only crackling purple lightning remained in the consciousness space.
Charlotte Linlin—what was left of her—lay scorched and unrecognizable on the ground, chest barely rising.
Hah... hah... I did it... she rasped, every word tugging at raw nerves.
A hundred tries... a hundred! I finally beat this broken boss. Good thing it was only AI.
She staggered her feet, a plain table materializing.
Two items: sleek mechanical arms pulsing violet on the left, Raiden Shogun's pale-purple bodysuit on the right.
So these are the clear rewards?
Only one choice—no redos.
Last time she'd picked the sniper rifle over the Slingshot without hesitation; now the gap was murky.
She forced herself calm, replaying the battle:
It could wield musou isshin, attack and defend on its own—no blind spots. With it my Three Sword Style could branch further, a direct power spike.
I'll take the divine gear.
The instant her fingertip brushed the fabric, reality snapped back.
Divine gear, equip, she muttered.
A form-fitting violet bodysuit snapped into place like a second skin, twenty percent boost to all stats, forty percent to lightning element, indestructible, non-transferable.
She gaped, then grinned.
She strode to a tall mirror.
A Valkyrie beautiful, powerful, daunting.
Satisfied, she dismissed the armor with a thought.
She tapped a permanent needle on a old sea chart: Sabaody Archipelago.
I've grasped Haoshoku; Mia's crew can stand on their own.
Time to fetch the rest of my crew.
But she would ask Newgate to watch the hive while she left.