The ominous crimson-black cursed flames erupting from Persona Arsene's sharp claws radiated outwards, painting the entire sky in the deep, hellish hues of purgatory. Durandal, being closest to Arsene, bore the full brunt of the terrifyingly powerful Eigaon skill.
Ren initially thought the battle was over; surely Durandal couldn't possibly continue fighting after taking Arsene's Eigaon head-on. However, reality once again surprised him, making him raise an eyebrow.
Durandal's figure shot backwards at high speed like a straight arrow. Deep crimson flames, distinctly different from the cursed black-red ones, erupted around her, forming a clearly defined fiery cloak that served as a barrier, mitigating as much of Arsene's curse-flame assault as possible.
Even with the timely fiery cloak defense, Arsene's Eigaon still inflicted significant damage. Wisps of crimson-black flame, like tangible curses, clung burning to her black military uniform. Though Durandal quickly extinguished these cursed sparks, the holes in her uniform remained irreparable, and strange burn marks from the cursed flames marred her crystal-clear, snow-white skin.
Despite her battered appearance, Durandal's spirit showed no sign of weakening. She maintained her high morale, a satisfied and excited smile playing on her lips.
An eerie, blood-red glint flashed momentarily. Persona Arsene silently appeared behind the rapidly retreating Durandal. Its sharp claws, gleaming with a cold light, swung down towards Durandal's back with lightning speed.
Just as Arsene's claws were about to strike, Durandal reacted with incredible agility, twisting her body around and thrusting her flame-wreathed black lance sharply towards Arsene.
Initially, Durandal couldn't perfectly track Arsene's movements at godspeed, even falling behind and being forced to tank an Eigaon. Yet, in that brief moment of exchange, Durandal's astonishing adaptability allowed her to acclimate to Arsene's incredible speed. Not only could her eyes now follow Arsene's trajectory, but she could even launch counterattacks seamlessly.
Clang—!!!
Durandal's swift counter-thrust met Arsene's black claws head-on, the impact producing a crisp sound of metal striking metal. Using the momentum of her attack against Arsene, Durandal gracefully adjusted her posture mid-air, landing perfectly on the ground. Skidding across the ruined city floor, leaving a long trail behind her, Durandal completely nullified the immense force Arsene had directed at her.
Her raw power is slightly less than Siegfried's second form, but her combat technique completely makes up for it, Ren assessed silently. I retract my previous evaluation. Forget a few years; Durandal's current overall strength is already on par with Siegfried's.
Persona Arsene flapped its dark wings and flew back behind Ren, facing the regrouped Durandal from a distance. Durandal's growth rate undoubtedly exceeded Ren's expectations; she was proving to be just as troublesome as Siegfried, if not more so.
If Persona Siegfried's strength lay in his pure, unrestrained bestial violence, then this Shadow girl named Durandal relied on human intelligence and skill. Ren couldn't fathom why Kaslana ranked Durandal's Shadow below Siegfried's. Although her raw power might be slightly inferior, Durandal's overall combat capability surely placed her alongside Siegfried at the top tier within the Kaslana Palace.
"Joker, should we retreat for now? Maybe it's better to gather everyone's strength before tackling this Shadow?" Mei asked, a worried expression appearing on her face as she fully grasped the golden-haired girl's tenacity and power.
Only Ren and Mei had entered Mementos this time. While defeating this Shadow wasn't impossible for the two of them alone, the risks were undoubtedly high. Mei felt it best to withdraw for now and return the next day with Hare and Seele to challenge Durandal again.
"There's no need for that, Acheron. Leave the rest to me." Ren rejected Mei's suggestion without hesitation. He gently rubbed the Mighty Thunder Ring on his left middle finger. After a brief moment of thought, Ren decided against giving the ring to Mei, despite her higher compatibility. He would wield the powerful accessory himself.
Ren's constant battles in Mementos, exploring Palaces, and acquiring Treasures and Will Seeds hadn't been without effect. His strength grew daily, surpassing the previous day's level. Now, even without his teammates' help, Ren was confident he could defeat Durandal alone.
Under Ren's will, the Mighty Thunder Ring and the Jizo Mitama katana, previously like two separate sources of power, silently connected. Magic power flowed continuously from the ring into the katana Ren held. With Higokumaru's full cooperation from within, Jizo Mitama's form changed, transforming into its PRI-ARM state: Jizo Mitama: Etched Form Long Tachi.
"Oh? So you'll be my opponent now?" Durandal's eyes lit up slightly as she faced Ren, who now wielded Jizo Mitama: Etched Form, radiating a powerful, imposing aura. A look of eager anticipation spread across her face.
"You've had the first moves. Now, it's my turn!!" Durandal lowered her center of gravity slightly, aiming her black lance directly at Ren. In the next instant, her entire figure blurred into a streak of black light, thrusting fiercely towards Ren with unstoppable force.
I should soften her up with the gun first... Ren's eyes flickered. Durandal's charge was incredibly fast, but not so fast that Ren couldn't track her movements. Just as Ren reached into the pocket of his phantom attire for his Mosin-Nagant Sun Gun—
He suddenly felt a weight settle in his left hand, as if he had abruptly grasped something. The shape felt familiar. Ren quickly raised his left hand. What met his eyes was a handgun, deep violet overall, adorned with golden patterns along its edges, possessing the beauty of an art piece.
The Mighty Thunder Ring turned into a handgun... Did it sense its user's strong desire for a firearm? The ring already had the ability to change into a propeller-like form. In Mei's hands, the original source of its material, it could even become a majestic lightning katana. So, it wasn't entirely surprising that the ring held other forms, other surprises waiting to be discovered.
Though surprised by the transformation, Ren's actions didn't slow for a fraction of a second. The Thunder Handgun precisely targeted the rapidly charging Durandal. Deep purple lightning bullets, propelled by electromagnetic force, shot towards Durandal's position with the force of thunder, causing violent explosions upon impact.
The purple bullets rained incessantly towards Durandal. Some were left far behind her, others were deflected aside by her black lance. And some hit her directly. However, even when struck by the Thunder Handgun's bullets, Durandal managed to defend herself with Honkai energy in time, avoiding significant damage.
Her relentless charge remained unbroken. Durandal's figure only faltered slightly before continuing her unstoppable rush towards Ren, as if untouched.
The Thunder Handgun seemed to have no ammo limit; even as Ren frantically pulled the trigger, lightning bullets continued to fire endlessly. But despite the continuous barrage, Durandal closed the distance, thrusting her massive black lance directly at Ren's chest.
At the critical moment, Ren swung Jizo Mitama: Etched Form outwards, meeting Durandal's thrust head-on. A deafening clang echoed as the crimson-black long tachi met the black lance, sparks flying brilliantly at the point of impact.
An irresistible, terrifyingly immense force transmitted through the weapon from the other end. Like being hit by a death truck, the colossal impact made Ren's wrist go numb, his right arm holding Jizo Mitama: Etched Form trembling violently. With Ren's current strength, he could flip an actual death truck head-on. Yet, Durandal's strength was even more unreasonably brutal. Pouring power into her black lance, she physically pushed Ren backwards.
Fortunately, Ren wasn't fighting alone. Resting the Thunder Handgun on the hilt of Jizo Mitama: Etched Form, Ren rapidly fired a deep purple lightning bullet at Durandal's head from close range.
As Durandal tilted her head to dodge the bullet, Persona Arsene, floating behind Ren, suddenly attacked. Sharp black claws flashed through the air.
Caught between Ren's bullet and Arsene's powerful claw strike, even though Durandal dodged desperately, she couldn't avoid it completely this time. Arsene's claws struck her shoulder, tearing a long, bloody gash.
Despite her right shoulder, the one holding the lance, being injured, Durandal seemed unfazed, her strength unwavering. She swept the black lance horizontally, forcing Ren to nimbly flip backwards to evade.
After pushing Ren back, Durandal's lance became a blur of countless afterimages, striking rapidly at Persona Arsene. For a moment, the two were locked in a fierce, evenly matched struggle.
"Such terrifying adaptability... but it ends here!" Durandal's growth in battle was astonishing even to Ren. If she weren't potentially Kiana Kaslana's Shadow, Ren would genuinely consider recruiting Durandal as his own Persona.
It was time to end this fight. Ren tightened his grip on Jizo Mitama: Etched Form. An eerie, crimson radiance simultaneously enveloped both him and Persona Arsene. Empowered by Jizo Mitama: Etched Form, Durandal, who had just adapted to Arsene's fighting style and reached a stalemate, immediately fell behind again, her movements becoming desperate and fraught with peril.
Through the previous exchanges, Ren had come to understand Durandal's genius-level adaptability in combat. This time, Ren wouldn't give her the chance to adapt to his tactics again.
"Arsene, use Maha Eigaon!"
At Ren's command, Persona Arsene beat its black wings and retreated, creating distance from Durandal. Simultaneously, an overwhelming tide of crimson-black cursed flames instantly swept across the battlefield, engulfing the area in a fiery vortex of curses.
Durandal once again wrapped herself in a cloak of flames, protecting herself from the cursed onslaught. As she carefully scanned the vortex for Arsene's hidden figure, Ren's voice echoed again from outside the swirling curses.
"Persona—Norn!"
The raging storm of cursed flames began to subside. High above Durandal, the golden clock of the goddesses, shimmering with golden light, materialized in the sky. The moment Durandal looked up and saw Persona Norn, visible golden ripples spread outwards from the clock accompanied by a clear chime, reaching her position and locking her body in a state of temporary stiffness.
Durandal channeled her Honkai energy with maximum effort, breaking free from the time-binding skill, which felt like being trapped in mud, in just one second. However, in a high-intensity battle, a single second was more than enough to decide the outcome.
"Kosma!!"
A green-haired youth with twisted demonic horns silently appeared before Durandal. She barely had time to raise her black lance defensively before being sent flying like a baseball by Persona Kosma's punch.
"Seele!!"
The rattling sound of chains echoed from behind the airborne Durandal. A malicious, playful giggle sounded near her ear. Durandal barely managed to twist her body mid-air, only to be met by the menacing glint of deep crimson claws lunging towards her.
"And finally—Siegfried!!"