In the midst of the chain of exploding flames, Shion deployed a magic barrier. She deflected the surging heat wave and fell back.
Luari glanced toward the fleet and gave a light shrug.
"Hey Admiral, can you even see that border line?"
The ice line Shion had drawn had already vanished from the rain of fireballs earlier.
"I don't see anything like that. All ships, advance."
It was an immediate answer.
Shion narrowed her eyes and readied her staff.
"…Fine. Looks like I'll have to make you feel some pain."
The moment her quiet words ended, a voice brushed past her ear.
"—That's my line."
The instant Shion reflexively turned her head, Luari was already right in front of her.
She closed the distance at a speed almost impossible to see and unleashed a spinning kick.
Shion took a defensive stance on instinct, but the impact was far stronger than she expected.
Her body was sent flying, skipping across the sea surface multiple times.
But she did not sink. She soared back into the air.
The pain running through her body vanished instantly along with the damage. Time Regression had already rewound the injuries she had taken.
At the edge of her vision, the fleet began advancing again.
But her gaze stayed fixed.
The red-haired girl — Incinerator Luari — was looking down at her.
Shion stared at Luari and spoke.
"…You're definitely Incinerator, right?"
Luari's lips curved up into a delighted smile.
"And you're a descendant of the Witch?"
"…I was the one asking the question."
"Fufu. Some kind of throwback? That silver hair and those amber eyes… just looking at you reminds me of that pathetic woman…"
Luari did not seem interested in conversation. She was simply saying what she wanted to say. Her crimson eyes narrowed, burning with a flame-like glow.
Her voice carried a tone of contempt as it rode the wind. Yet Shion's expression did not waver.
"How much do you know about Witch Iris?"
To the provocative question, Shion shrugged and answered.
"Who knows. I only know that my ancestor was called the Witch and was a companion of the Hero from the fairy tales. And that after coming to this world, she contributed to the development of the Hitia Duchy. That's about it."
Her tone remained completely calm.
The reason Shion kept the conversation going was to buy time. The Federation fleet could be handled by Kyokuto's troops. But if this devil was left unchecked, the entire country could be burned to the ground.
Even alone, Shion could put up a good fight against Luari. But once Orun and the others returned, they would have the advantage. If she could stall Luari without too much effort, that was exactly what Shion wanted.
Luari let out a small chuckle and spread her arms wide.
"Yeah, that makes sense. No one would want to pass down such a pathetic past to their descendants. …In that case, kind me will teach you."
Her voice was sweet, yet carried the heat of molten iron beneath it.
"That woman's favorite phrase was 'I only look forward.' And yet the ability she awakened was Time Regression, the power to turn back time. Is this some prank of fate? No, it's nothing so pretty. She lost so much, gave up so much, and sacrificed everything. It was the result of desperately wishing from the bottom of her heart that time would go back."
Luari played with flames on her fingertips while giggling.
"Don't you think it's hilarious? The woman who was supposed to only look to the future ended up clinging to the past more than anyone. …I bet in her final moments she couldn't see even a shred of the future. She must have been crushed to death under a mountain of regret she couldn't bear."
Shion stayed silent, letting the wind blow through her hair.
That silence seemed to irritate Luari.
"Hey, you're the same, right? You're pathetically clinging to the past too. Show me your ugly side."
Even with the provocative words thrown at her, Shion did not move a single eyebrow.
After a moment, she let out a small breath.
"…Are you done talking?"
She sounded bored as she pierced Luari with her gaze alone.
"It was so boring I almost yawned. To summarize your story — my ancestor wished to return to the past and that awakened Time Regression?"
Before Luari could respond, Shion continued flatly.
"If so, my reaction is simple. 'I see.' …Everyone wants to go back to the past at least a little. That feeling isn't something others should laugh at."
Luari's smile twisted slightly. Shion's calm attitude was clearly getting on her nerves.
"…What? Are you saying my story is a lie?"
"Not at all."
Shion's voice was quiet but carried real weight.
"It's true that my ancestor may have been obsessed with the past. But I don't think that was all there was to Witch Iris."
Luari raised an eyebrow and asked in a low voice.
"…On what basis?"
Shion answered without hesitation.
"The basis is — me."
The wind stopped. The sea grew still.
Her silver hair swayed as Shion's amber eyes stared straight at Luari.
"You might not understand since you're a devil… but humans are beings who connect their feelings to the future. Even if we die, the proof that we lived is passed down from child to grandchild. The very fact that I stand here is proof that my ancestor never gave up on the future."
The flames flickered silently. The air grew taut.
"No matter how many words you pile on, this one fact will not change."
Shion's words rang out across the sea. Quiet, yet fiercely strong.
The mocking smile vanished from Luari's face.
"I was expecting to see something interesting… What a letdown."
Her voice was filled with heat yet cold as ice.
She lightly raised her hand and whispered without emotion.
"—Whatever."
Crimson magic power burst forth.
In an instant, more than ten fireballs formed and rained down on Shion.
Shion swept her staff sideways and deployed an ice curtain.
The burning projectiles collided, exploding into white smoke with a roar.
The moment steam covered her vision —
Luari attacked from behind.
"—!"
Shion thrust her staff backward and instantly released ice blades.
But Luari easily dodged them and kicked at point-blank range.
The flame-clad leg shattered the barrier and sent Shion flying into the sky once again.
Even as she fell, she focused her magic power.
"—Frost Javelin Barrage!"
Silver magic power surged as dozens of spears spiraled around Luari.
But the flames laughed.
Luari's body was instantly engulfed in fire and swallowed the spears.
Melted ice burst into steam as the surrounding temperature skyrocketed.
"You really thought cold toys like that could reach me?"
Luari emerged from the flames and lightly flicked her finger.
A scorching line traced through the air and snaked toward Shion like a serpent.
Shion tilted her body and slid backward.
The burning whip grazed her cheek, singeing the tips of her hair.
The heat stung her skin, but her expression did not change.
She swung her staff, and countless ice pellets appeared around her.
"—Hail Strafe."
The subsonic ice bullets assaulted Luari.
Luari casually extended her right hand.
The right hand hidden by her loose sleeve burst into flames and transformed into a massive fiery hand.
The barrage of ice bullets slammed into the flaming hand and exploded in midair one after another.
At the point of impact, cold and heat mixed, wrapping Luari in white mist.
The moment neither could see the other, silver magic power began leaking from Shion's right eye, and geometric patterns surfaced within it.
She pointed her staff at Luari. Cracks spread through the space around her. Freezing cold air from a frozen world poured in through the fissures. Multiple magic circles unfolded at the tip of her staff, drawing in the cold energy.
As the white smoke hiding Luari gradually cleared, her silhouette began to emerge.
"—Silver Burial of Absolute Zero, Glaciel."
Shion's voice echoed quietly.
Silver light shot from the tip of her staff.
A destructive torrent of compressed freezing air.
The silver light raced straight ahead, tearing through the air with a howl.
The sea surface on its path froze instantly, then shattered and exploded.
Luari reacted immediately.
She crossed both arms and raised a blazing wall of flames.
But the next instant — silver and deep crimson collided, unleashing a violent shockwave.
Ice and fire clashed, exploding at their boundary.
Shattered ice fragments rained down like a storm while scorching winds evaporated them into mist.
Steam swirled in her vision as the air trembled.
"Heh… You might actually be fun after all."
Luari's voice came from beyond the mist.
There was no pain or anger in it — only pure delight.
The flames blew the mist away.
A blazing torrent pushed through the air, revealing Luari once more.
With a smile on her lips, she lightly raised her burning right arm.
"—Ignis Scorch Flash."
The moment she spoke, the world distorted.
The flames erupting from her palm instantly turned into a heat ray and fired.
The atmosphere tore apart. The sea surface evaporated into white smoke before the ray even touched it.
Shion instantly concentrated her magic and twisted her body, sliding sideways.
The sea behind her exploded violently in the wake of the crimson trail.
The heat wave surged over her, the scorching heat enough to burn her skin licking across her whole body.
(My Silver Burial of Absolute Zero is on the same level, or maybe even weaker… And she doesn't even need to charge it…)
Shion steadied her breathing and released cold air.
Ice spirits expanded, causing the surrounding temperature to plummet.
The scorched air froze, and rime ice danced wildly in an instant.
But Luari did not stop.
In the next moment she had already closed the distance, charging smoothly through the burned air.
Her scorching fist swung, leaving afterimage-like lines of fire that sliced through the sky.
Shion readied her staff and created an ice shield.
The shield evaporated with a roar the moment it was touched.
Even so, she remained unfazed and twisted in midair.
The aftershock of the next Ignis Scorch Flash burned the sea and blew the waves away.
"You're working so hard just to dodge."
Luari laughed.
Her crimson eyes were dyed with madness, shining within the heat.
Shion silently readied her staff again and unleashed Hail Strafe.
The barrage of ice bullets collided head-on with the crimson torrent.
The expanding air from the clash pushed the two apart, opening the distance.
Even then, the air carried the smell of burning, and endless steam rose from the sea.
(This is a devil… Unbelievable…)
Shion let out a short breath and readied her staff once more.
In the sunlight, Luari's right hand and hair were wrapped in flames, warping the air around her.
She truly looked like a deep-crimson devil who had descended upon the sea.