Chapter 438: The World's Greatest Mana Capacity!
Fire.
Flames.
Endless crimson lotuses dyed the entire sky scarlet.
These were constructs Stella had created with mana.
Unlike the two previous attacks, which had relied purely on shockwaves, Stella was now using her actual ability.
Her original Blazer ability was the conceptual power of a "dragon."
Flame manipulation had merely been an incorrect application of it.
But understanding her true ability did not mean she could no longer use flames.
Quite the opposite.
Now infused with the concept of "dragon flames," her fire had become even more powerful, far surpassing the ordinary flames she once wielded.
As Stella continuously poured in mana, the raging inferno condensed into scorching fireballs.
There were hundreds—
No, thousands of them!
Like a commander swinging a baton, Stella pointed Laevateinn forward and shouted,
"Burn my enemy to ashes—Broken Arrow!"
Hundreds of blazing spheres responded as though obeying her command.
As if answering the chant, they transformed into arrows of light and surged toward Luke!
A literal carpet bombing!
Flames, light, heat, explosions, and thunderous impacts filled every corner in front of Stella.
The overwhelming difference in mana was both suffocating and terrifying.
Yet even after unleashing such a monstrous attack, Stella's mana showed no sign of weakening.
Instead, her output increased further!
The arrows of light did not come in a single volley.
They continued pouring down like a rain of fire.
Stella's offensive power had already far surpassed the limits of ordinary imagination.
Pure, overwhelming violence!
Yet the girl responsible for terrifying the entire audience did not seem satisfied.
Stella raised Laevateinn vertically before herself.
Once again, an enormous and terrifying torrent of mana erupted from her body.
"Haaaaaaaaah—!"
Alongside Stella's energizing shout, tremendous mana poured into Laevateinn.
The flames surrounding the sword rapidly expanded!
Their temperature and brightness climbed sharply.
"Devour my enemy—Dragon Fang!"
Fwoosh—!
Amid the roar of burning flames, one dragon emerged.
Then two.
Then three…
Seven enormous dragons formed entirely from fire flew out from Laevateinn!
The seven dragons attacked Luke simultaneously from different directions.
At the same time, the arrows of light raining from the sky showed no intention of stopping.
The scene before everyone resembled a crimson apocalypse.
Only now did everyone truly understand what it meant to possess the world's greatest mana capacity.
Staring at the world-destroying offensive, every spectator who had confidently predicted Luke's victory before the match fell silent.
Just as the audience nervously wondered whether Luke was about to lose—
A single point of blue starlight entered their vision.
Against the endless crimson flames, that tiny blue glow was incredibly conspicuous.
At first, it was only a single point.
Then, in the blink of an eye, fragments of blue starlight became countless stars filling the sky.
One blue star after another burst through the explosions and roaring flames.
They shattered the incoming arrows of light before surging toward the seven fire dragons!
An advanced technique derived from Star Sword Art: Myriad Stars—
Meteor Shower!
Boom—!
Boom, boom, boom, boom—!
One star after another destroyed the arrows of light before smashing into the fire dragons with thunderous explosions!
At the same time, Luke walked out from the smoke-covered edge of the battlefield and returned to the combat zone.
"I knew something at this level wouldn't be enough to deal with you."
Stella showed no surprise whatsoever when Luke returned completely unharmed.
She was not surprised.
Luke, however, was.
Because he saw something in Stella that she had always lacked in the past.
Absolute confidence!
From the beginning of this match until now, Stella had radiated unwavering confidence.
It was not that Stella had lacked self-confidence before.
She had always understood that she was powerful.
Even so, her confidence had never been equal to the magnitude of her talent.
She should have trusted her own gifts far more.
She could afford to be more arrogant.
More conceited.
Especially when facing Luke!
For as long as Luke had known her, Stella had always seemed to place herself one step below him.
Perhaps it was because of their mock battle when school began.
Perhaps it was because she gradually came to understand just how powerful Luke truly was.
Whatever the reason, Stella deeply believed that she could not defeat him.
There had once been nothing wrong with that belief.
Because it had been true.
Before awakening her dragon power, Stella's chances of defeating Luke had not even reached one in ten thousand.
But allowing the belief that she "could never win" to persist for nearly an entire year was a different matter.
Stella followed behind Luke, learning humbly and constantly working to improve herself.
Normally, that would have been a good thing.
Ikki was a perfect example.
His strength steadily improved, while his humble mindset gave him an increasingly solid foundation.
But what suited others did not necessarily suit Stella.
She needed to take pride in her own talent.
Stella possessed incomparable gifts, yet she never became lazy and always worked even harder.
She could even sincerely respect Blazers far weaker than herself as long as they continued striving forward.
That humility was a virtue.
A human virtue.
But Stella was a "dragon."
It was not that she should discard those virtues.
Rather, she should never compare herself to ordinary people.
Because "it" would not tolerate that.
The power of the dragon within her—The pride contained within that ability—Would not allow her to lower her head!
She could lose.
But she could never admit defeat!
As an absolute powerhouse, Stella had stood at the summit of the world from the moment she was born.
She had to take pride in that!
She had to be conceited.
She had to be arrogant.
She had to be greedy.
She had to believe with absolute certainty that no one in this world could possibly be stronger than her!
And once she did—Her talent would endlessly satisfy that conceit, arrogance, and greed!
As long as she possessed the unmatched pride of a mythical creature standing at the top of the food chain, she would continue growing stronger without end!
Yet whenever Stella faced Luke, forget arrogance—She had barely even dared to feel confident.
Surpass Luke?
Truthfully, for the Stella of the past, that might have been nothing more than a stubborn slogan born from frustration.
Deep inside, she probably understood better than anyone that she could never accomplish it.
That was why the dragon power had resisted Stella's attempts to fully control it.
Luke had considered stepping in to help her resolve that problem.
But now, it seemed completely unnecessary.
Nene had masterfully awakened the absolute confidence sleeping inside Stella.
Luke could feel it clearly in every attack she launched and every expression she showed.
The change was unmistakable.
It was nothing short of earth-shaking!
"Good."
"Very good."
"Excellent!"
Luke smiled.
It was no longer his usual mild smile.
It was a fierce grin burning with fighting spirit.
Starfall Sword was placed horizontally behind his waist.
Then, for the first time since the Seven Star Sword Art Festival began, Luke finally unsheathed Ser-Veresta.
He positioned it diagonally across his back, forming a crooked cross with Starfall Sword.
Gripping both sword hilts, Luke looked directly at Stella.
"Don't disappoint me!"
…
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