"The entire Flügel!"
Couronne was stunned. What kind of concept was that?
She didn't know much about the Flügel as a race, but judging from the power Jibril and Azril had shown, the Flügel overwhelmed lower races with absolute superiority.
Schwi spoke as well. "The Ex-Machina can, too." Her voice was flat, as if stating a simple fact. "Analysis unit Üc207Pr4f57t9, codename Schwi, can attempt to interface with the 'Collective Thinking Body.' Proposal: cooperation."
Rei Ao smiled. "I think your proposals are good."
His gaze swept past Azril battling in the sky and out toward the horizon, as though he could see the War God's palace floating above the world.
He knew the Flügel were created by the War God Artosh. If he wanted to bring the entire race under his banner, he would, naturally, be pitting himself against Artosh. Artosh was without question the strongest being in this world—yet Rei Ao had not the slightest fear of his power.
The fight above had reached a boiling point. Azril's eyes were heavy; she realized she was being completely suppressed. The opponent's strength exceeded expectations—and stranger still, she couldn't find this Dragonia's "point" at all!
Without that weak point, she couldn't defeat a Dragonia. Dragonia did have such a flaw. Unfortunately for her, Kanna wasn't Dragonia at all—she was simply a dragon from another world.
"I can't let this drag on."
Realizing the stalemate was untenable, Azril grit her teeth and decided to use all her power. She raised both hands. The halo above her head spun to its limit, its shape a blur, leaving only a ring of light. Every feather on her wings poured out astonishing energy. Space around her began to warp; even the light wavered and went unstable.
"Heavenly Smite—maximum output!"
She cried out, focusing everything to a single point. This was the Flügel's ultimate attack: compress every drop of spirit energy in the body and release it at once—enough to shatter continental plates. Even for an apex being like Azril, deploying it came at a massive cost, and recovery would take a long time. But she had no choice.
Kanna felt the threat; her dragon pupils narrowed to slits. She stopped holding back. Her jaws opened. Layer upon layer of colossal magic circles unfurled; intricate sigils spun and meshed, drawing the thunder element from heaven and earth. This was no spirit-art—it was draconic language magic from another world, bearing power enough to unmake the sky and earth.
Sssk—!
Roooaaar—!
Their attacks launched in the same instant: one a beam of light compressed to the utmost; the other a thunderous breath imbued with alien laws.
KABOOM—!
The two forces crashed—then a soundless explosion swept the whole sky, a burst of light bright enough to blind. Shockwaves from the clash warped the very fabric of space. If Rei Ao hadn't reinforced the barrier beforehand, the entire region might have been reduced to dust by the aftershocks.
…
As the glare faded, the sight overhead stole everyone's breath.
"Hah…" Azril was panting. Her wings were a bit ragged, and her halo's brilliance had dimmed markedly. Kanna… was completely unscathed—and excitement still flickered in her dragon eyes.
"Impossible?!" For the first time, shock broke across Azril's face. Her maximum-power Heavenstrike hadn't so much as scratched Kanna.
Kanna was about to unleash another breath when—
"That's enough, Kanna."
Rei Ao's voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to the two combatants in the sky. Kanna glanced down, then obediently halted her attack.
"…"
Azril exhaled in relief; she had no confidence she could win if the battle continued.
The silver-white dragon wheeled once in the air, then her form shrank and shifted, returning to the white-haired little girl who alighted lightly beside Rei Ao.
"Had your fun?" Rei Ao ruffled her hair with a smile.
"Mhm, mhm! Kanna's strong, right?"
"You were great."
Kanna seemed delighted by the simple praise.
Azril descended as well, eyeing Rei Ao's group warily, her gaze lingering on Jibril. "Jibril-chan, you…" She trailed off, her expression complicated. "Do you understand what you're doing?"
There was worry and reproach in her tone. "You've betrayed Artosh-sama—and now you're consorting with this unknown being…"
"Azril-senpai, allow me to make introductions." Jibril stepped aside to present Rei Ao. "This is my new master, Rei Ao-sama."
Azril's golden eyes contracted sharply as she stared at Rei Ao in shock. "New master? Jibril, do you have any idea what that means? We were created by the War God—our loyalty belongs to him alone!"
"Times have changed, Azril-senpai," Jibril answered evenly. "And I have made my choice—to follow the stronger Rei Ao-sama."
Azril's shock hardened into anger. "You've been deceived! No one can compare to our creator. Artosh-sama is the most powerful being in the world!"
"Oh? Is that so?" Rei Ao finally spoke. He took a step forward and stood before Azril. He released no aura, used no power—he simply stood there, calm.
And yet, somehow, Azril felt an invisible pressure—sudden, crushing—stealing her breath in an instant.
She had felt this only from one person before: her creator, the War God Artosh.