"Is that all it took to defeat him?"
Ryoji stared at the rubble scattered across the ground, a sense of disbelief washing over him.
While his current strength was undoubtedly far greater than before, the Puppet Warlock was no pushover. Could it really be over so easily?
"Aiya, truly magnificent!"
An admiring voice echoed from the forest, followed shortly by a familiar figure emerging from the distance.
"To bring down such a colossal giant so quickly, it's beyond imagination!"
With her short, brown hair, gym shorts, sun-kissed skin, and an ever-present sunny smile, Tomaru Renren bounced on the spot, her legs seemingly unable to stay still.
She clapped enthusiastically, showering Ryoji with praise.
"Oh, it's just Renren," Rich Lady Kanata sighed, her tense nerves finally relaxing as she recognized the familiar face. "Couldn't you have made a normal entrance? I thought another enemy was approaching."
As she spoke, she loosened her legs from around Ryoji's waist, intending to dismount.
The earlier scene could be explained as cooperation against the enemy, but continuing to be carried after the battle would be a bit much.
However, just as she released her legs, Ryoji's arm tightened around her, preventing her from getting down.
Kanata froze slightly.
'There are other people here, don't do this!'
"What kind of imagination did I surpass?" Ryoji asked, a cold smile spreading across his face.
"Eh?" Tomaru Renren looked completely caught off guard.
'I was just being polite, why are you taking this so seriously?'
"Eh... I thought you'd at least struggle a bit?"
"Struggle?" Ryoji tilted his head back, his tone casual. "Against opponents of this caliber? How could they possibly make me struggle?"
The old Ryoji would have fled without a second thought when facing such giants, but the current Ryoji could defeat them with ease.
After his battle with Hagure Kikyō, Ryoji's greatly enhanced physical abilities had been exposed, and the news had likely already spread online.
The nickname "Broken-Winged Angel" was becoming increasingly untenable. Rumor had it that his support group was brainstorming new titles, and the Student Council members were all aware of Ryoji's significant power boost.
Even someone as thick-skinned as Tomaru Renren shouldn't have thought he'd struggle against mere rock puppets.
She could easily defeat four or five of these crudely made puppets herself, regardless of their size.
"No, no, no! Facing an opponent like the Puppet Warlock, anyone would struggle, right?" Tomaru Renren waved her hands dismissively, her expression conveying, "What are you even talking about?"
"Where did you hear about the Puppet Warlock?" Ryoji's expression gradually turned icy.
"Eh... oh yeah, I wasn't supposed to know that!" Tomaru Renren scratched her head, suddenly realizing her mistake.
"You wouldn't be...?!"
Rich Lady Kanata's eyes widened slightly.
A moment later, her face twisted with murderous intent, and a blood-soaked aura, as vast as a crimson sea, erupted from her body, her killing intent completely unmasked.
"You actually dared to do this!"
"Hehe, so I'm exposed already?"
Tomaru Renren grinned widely, her lips stretched like a clown's painted smile on a stage.
The light in her eyes vanished instantly, her entire demeanor shifting abruptly, her aura turning malevolent.
"Aiya, I was planning to launch a surprise attack, but it's over before it even began. You're far too sensitive to this type of ability, aren't you?"
The voice remained Tomaru Renren's, and her appearance was unchanged, showing no outward signs of transformation.
Yet her tone and presence had become utterly foreign, as if she were a completely different person.
She was being controlled.
By the Puppet Warlock, who wasn't even present.
"I never said I only deployed one base station, did I?"
Tomaru Renren spread his hands, a gleeful smile spreading across his face.
"Not bad at all! I love seeing you all burning with righteous fury! Your loyalty and sense of justice truly warm my heart, precisely the kind of thing worth destroying!"
"You bastard!"
Kanata's eye socket felt like it was about to crack.
"Don't be rash," Ryoji said, wrapping his arms around Kanata's struggling legs and pinning her against his back.
If she stayed by his side, he could protect her. Charging in impulsively would likely lead her to follow in Tomaru Renren's footsteps.
"Ooh~! You're so calm, aren't you?" Tomaru Renren clapped again, his face radiating genuine admiration.
"I've controlled many people before, but their companions usually flew into a rage immediately and were easily subdued. After all, I'm the type who grows calmer the angrier I get."
Ryoji gripped the Vrring Blade again, his expression icy.
"Looking at my friendly face, who would guess I'm about to kill you with a single strike?"
"You're practically radiating murderous intent!" Tomaru Renren retorted.
Boom!
Without another word, Ryoji charged forward, his target locked on Tomaru Renren.
"Woah, that imposing aura is absolutely ruthless!" Tomaru Renren exclaimed with feigned surprise, then chuckled insincerely. "But can you even keep up with my speed?"
Rumble…!
In that instant, Tomaru Renren slammed her foot down.
With a deafening sonic boom, she shot forward at Divine Speed, far exceeding the speed of sound. Layers of afterimages trailed behind her, and a series of shockwaves erupted in her wake.
'So fast!'
'Incredibly fast!'
"Hehehe, after controlling this girl, I realized her ability is quite good! Simple, pure, and so easy to exploit!"
Laughter, its source indistinct, echoed from all directions.
As the laughter intensified, Tomaru Renren's speed not only failed to diminish but actually increased exponentially!
This was her Noble Art, Extreme Speed Desire!
It allowed her to continuously accumulate speed, completely defying the laws of physics, until she reached twice the speed of sound!
This was the power of Hagun Academy's third-ranked student.
Before the current batch of freshmen enrolled, Tomaru Renren's strength had been second only to Toudou Touka and Totokubara Kanata, the academy's only B-Rank Knights.
Her constant restlessness stemmed from her habitual use of her Blazer's special ability.
In this relentless acceleration, Tomaru Renren rapidly built up her speed to twice the speed of sound. Thanks to her special ability's unique properties, she completely ignored the side effects of such extreme velocity.
At this Divine Speed, even Ryoji couldn't catch her if she focused solely on escaping.
'I have to use Blazer's special ability,' Ryoji thought instantly.
But just as he was about to channel the Magic Power within his body, his movements faltered slightly.
Kanata was still on his back.
He could withstand twice the speed of sound, but Rich Lady Kanata couldn't. At her constitution, entering such speeds would instantly kill her beyond recovery.
"Haaaah!"
As the situation reached a stalemate, a vigorous shout erupted from the dense forest.
"Don't panic, you two! I'm here to help!"
A man with a buzz cut brandished a massive three-meter-long zhanmadao, spinning continuously as he approached the pair amidst his booming shout.
(End Of This Chapter)
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