The two girls now stood facing each other just a few meters apart. Chloe gripped her electric whip as it lashed and crackled like an enraged serpent.
Opposite her, Luna held a low stance, her sharp eyes locked in like a predator sizing up its prey.
Luna was the first to change tactics. She realized that approaching a whip-wielding lightning user head-on was suicide.
Distance was Chloe's domain—she needed to change the rules. She had already tested Chloe's power. Now it was time to observe.
She took a step back, and a subtle shift occurred in her eyes.
Her pupils sharpened, focusing like a camera lens adjusting its clarity.
[[Manifestation: Aquila's Eye (Hawk Spirit)]]
Description: Grants extraordinarily sharp vision, allowing the user to track high-speed movements, notice minute details, and more accurately predict incoming attacks.
Her gaze became more than sight—it became analysis.
She could now see every contraction in Chloe's shoulder muscles, every tiny flick of her wrist controlling the whip—even the sparks at her fingertips looked like isolated stars.
She no longer saw Chloe as a whole, but as a pattern—searching for openings, hesitation, weakness.
She was hunting information.
Then she moved.
Not directly—but in a calculated circular motion. Without dropping her enhanced vision, she activated another trait.
[[Manifestation: Corvus Cloak (Crow Spirit)]]
Description: Grants silent movement and enhanced spatial awareness. Ideal for stealth and evasive maneuvers.
"Whoosh!"
Her footsteps became completely silent—even on scattered gravel.
She weaved fluidly between ruined walls and burned cars, using the environment like an extension of her body. She appeared for a split second behind cover, her sharp gaze locking onto Chloe—then vanished again before she could be tracked.
"Crack!"
"Boom!"
"Crack!"
"Bam!"
Chloe kept turning, striking every time she caught a glimpse of Luna—who vanished like a mirage each time.
"Oh? Are we playing hide-and-seek now?" Chloe said, irritation creeping into her voice. She was getting bored.
Patience wasn't her strength.
"If you won't come to me… I'll drag you out!"
She stopped swinging her whip—and instead unleashed her destructive power.
She raised her wrist, electricity flashing violently.
"Crack-crack-crack!!" Sparks filled the battlefield.
"Enjoy this."
"Tss! Tss! Tss!"
She fired three [Guided Lightning] bolts in completely random directions.
"BOOM—TSSSH!!!"
The first struck a stone wall Luna had been hiding behind, collapsing it into debris.
"BAAAM!!!"
The second hit a burned-out car, igniting its fuel tank in a violent burst of flame, forcing Luna to reposition instantly.
"FWOOSH—BAM!!"
The third obliterated a pile of rubble.
Chloe was clearing the battlefield—removing cover, turning it into an open arena where Luna would be forced into confrontation.
She was imposing her chaotic rhythm onto the fight.
Luna, forced into the open, found herself in a difficult position.
Yet she showed no panic. Her enhanced vision allowed her to predict the paths of destruction and move accordingly.
Still—she knew evasion wouldn't last forever. She had to strike.
Then… she saw it.
After Chloe fired the third bolt, there was a slight delay as she recovered her stance.
"Whoosh!!"
In that moment, Luna moved.
She didn't charge directly. Instead, she ran toward a collapsed wall to Chloe's left, leapt onto it, then bounced between surfaces—approaching from unpredictable angles.
"Ha! Slippery bitch!" Chloe laughed, tracking her with her whip and lashing out rapidly.
"Tsssh—BAM!!"
Each strike hit where Luna had been a fraction of a second earlier, leaving scorched marks on the concrete.
It became a game of cat and mouse.
Chloe—the hunter, striking everywhere.
Luna—the elusive prey, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.
"Tch!" Chloe clicked her tongue.
She realized chasing like this was wasting energy.
"Heh…" A sly smile spread across her face.
If the cat wouldn't come to her… she'd trap it.
She had noticed a pattern.
In her circular movement, Luna kept using the same large burned-out car frame—jumping off it, hiding behind it, using it as temporary cover.
Got you.
For a moment, Chloe deliberately looked elsewhere—losing sight of Luna.
"Crack—BOOOOM!!"
Then suddenly, she swung her electric whip in a wide arc.
As expected, Luna dodged—and took position behind the familiar car frame, preparing to counterattack.
While Luna remained behind cover, Chloe quietly placed her other hand on the ground.
No light. No sound.
A silent, deadly move.
Luna saw Chloe lower her guard—and took it as her chance.
"Whoosh!!"
She burst forward from behind the metal cover, pushing off it for extra speed.
"…Hmm."
But the moment she moved—every hair on her body stood on end.
When she saw Chloe's expression… she understood why.
"You walked right into it!" Chloe grinned, wide and vicious.
The instant Luna touched the metal—
"KRAAAAAK—TSSSSSS!!!"
The entire car frame lit up in blinding blue, a powerful electric current surging through Luna's body.
[[Overcharge]]
Description: Channeling electricity through a conductive surface (like ground or metal), turning it into a hidden electrical trap.
Chloe had already sent a faint current through the cracked ground—making the entire metal structure a trap.
"AAGH!!"
Luna screamed as her body convulsed midair before collapsing, smoke rising from her fingertips.
"Bam…"
Chloe stood over her, whip swaying lazily, a smug smile on her face.
"You should've been more careful."
It seemed over.
Luna lay on the ground, her body twitching faintly, smoke rising.
It's finished.
That was the logical conclusion.
But Luna Ferris didn't operate on logic.
She operated on instinct.
And the first instinct of a cornered animal…
…is to strike back with everything it has.
As Chloe prepared to deliver the final blow, Luna's eyes snapped open.
There was no pain in them. No defeat.
Only cold, primal rage.
"Ggh…"
With a suppressed groan, she rolled aside with shocking speed—barely dodging the finishing strike.
"BAM!!"
The whip struck the ground beside her head, leaving a blackened scar.
Then—still on the ground—she did something Chloe didn't expect.
She didn't stand. She didn't flee.
She punched the ground.
"BAAAAM!!!"
[[Manifestation: Ursa's Roar (Bear Spirit)]]
Description: Releases a sonic shockwave that disorients enemies while granting immense physical strength.
"GRAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"
It wasn't a roar.
It was a blast.
A wave of pure pressure erupted outward, distorting the air.
Chloe, standing too close, took the full force.
"H—!"
Dizziness hit instantly. A deafening ring filled her ears. Her focus shattered.
Her whip flickered and vanished.
Luna used that single second to rise.
Her body still ached—but she ignored it.
Pain became fuel.
Her caution had failed her.
Now—only brute force remained.
"Grrr…!"
She roared like a true beast.
Then she charged—
This time, not as one spirit…
But as three.
[[Triple Manifestation: Ursa's Roar + Lobo's Claw + Testudo Bastion]]
Description: Combines the bear's strength, the wolf's speed and claws, and the turtle's defense. Highly unstable and extremely taxing.
A faint hexagonal pattern spread across her skin.
At the same time, elongated claws extended from her fingers—longer, sharper than before.
She became a moving fortress armed with blades—charging forward with the force of a raging bear.
"What the—?!" Chloe muttered, still recovering.
No time to reform her whip. No time to think.
Electric sparks gathered at her fingertips.
In a split second, she fired a [Guided Lightning] straight at Luna.
"Crack—TSSSH!"
"BOOM!!"
The bolt struck her chest directly—
But [Testudo Bastion] absorbed most of the damage, leaving only a scorched mark.
It didn't stop her.
In the next instant—Luna was already in front of Chloe.
"—!" Chloe's eyes widened.
"Slash—BOOM! BOOM!!"
Luna unleashed a barrage of brutal strikes—punches and claw swipes alike. Each carried the weight of a bear and the speed of a wolf.
Chloe was forced into desperate defense, blocking and dodging as claws tore at her clothes and left deep scratches on her arms.
"BAM! BOOM! BOOM!!"
"Ghh!" she grunted.
She was faster—but Luna's raw force kept pushing her back step by step. The ground trembled beneath each blow.
"Hehehe!"
Suddenly—Chloe laughed.
"So this is your real form? I love it!"
Instead of retreating—she lunged forward.
A reckless move.
A crazy move.
She stopped defending entirely—charging straight into Luna's attack.
A claw struck her shoulder directly.
"Kh—!"
She suppressed the pain with a grin as blood spilled—
But in that instant, she grabbed Luna's attacking arm with both hands.
"Got you!!!"
Her eyes blazed with pure electricity.
Luna tried to pull away—but Chloe's grip was like steel, driven by adrenaline.
Then Chloe's body began to glow.
"FWOOSH!!"
"Let's see how your tough skin handles… THIS!"
No bolt. No whip.
She unleashed a continuous, high-voltage current through her entire body—funneling it into her grip.
Turning Luna into a living conductor.
"BOOOOOOOOOM—KRAAAAAACK!!!"
Luna's body convulsed violently.
"AAAGH!!"
Her claws began to fade. Her hardened skin started cracking under the overwhelming electrical surge coursing through her.
Chloe herself was suffering from the backlash—her muscles burning—but she didn't care.
She was enjoying every second of this brutal, direct clash.
This wasn't just a fight.
It was a collision of monsters.
And in that moment…
A single thought crossed Chloe's mind—
Which one of us will burn first?