“…”
Milis stared straight into Luo Xiya’s eyes, filled with fighting spirit, watching as her originally sea-blue eyes deepened into a vivid azure.
The gathering of fighting intent and the mobilization of mana from the other side were like a storm about to descend.
Yet, in contrast, Milis showed no reaction at all, her hands folded behind her back, eyes visible and exposed—calm and indifferent, her expression without joy or sorrow.
Facing Luo Xiya, her attitude was the same as when facing all her former opponents—completely dismissive, as if she didn’t see her at all.
In fact, she had already written the entire script for today’s ‘performance’ in her heart, and now her ‘actor’ had finally taken position before her.
As for whether Luo Xiya would follow the script or not, Milis didn’t care.
What she wanted was for Luo Xiya to perform as herself.
To play the pitiful and laughable clown as she truly was.
She would come to understand a truth today that would haunt her for a long time—the harder you struggle, the deeper the despair.
Milis’s lips curled in a faint, elusive smile, with no intention of preparation, quietly taunting and provoking Luo Xiya.
Luo Xiya, under the state of Mental Construction, remained extremely calm, silently gathering her momentum to its peak…
The oppressive silence of the standoff between Milis and Luo Xiya clearly affected those around them.
The once bustling and crowded square gradually quieted, everyone’s eyes locked unblinking on the two in the center, afraid to miss the instant when their clash erupted.
Standing atop the rooftop of the Papal Palace, Roman couldn’t help but tense up as he watched, his hands clasped at his chest, fingers twisted together in anxious knots.
Even though his heart leaned toward Luo Xiya, he had to admit—her chances against Milis were slim.
Outsiders watching for entertainment might think the two had both crushed their way here, making it a battle between equals.
But in reality, Luo Xiya was inferior to Milis in Sacred Seal quality, mana reserves, and Divine Relics or Sacred Weapons.
Both internally and externally, she was at a natural and massive disadvantage.
“Captain.”
He suddenly spoke.
“Hm? Your Highness, is something wrong?”
Rosetta turned her head in confusion.
Roman stared down at the two below, his voice low.
“In a match like this, if there’s an obvious gap in power, will anyone step in to stop it?”
“Unless someone surrenders willingly, the Holy Throne will intervene to save the one whose life hangs by a thread.”
Rosetta explained gently.
“I see.”
Roman looked at Luo Xiya with concern.
His connection with her wasn’t just understanding her body, but also a mutual understanding of each other’s hearts.
After all, the two points were connected—sometimes, a single look from Luo Xiya at night was enough for him to sense the change and shift his actions…
So he instinctively felt that this battle could easily turn into a fight to the death if it slipped out of control.
The gap in strength was one thing; the key was that Luo Xiya would never admit defeat, and the destructive power of Milis’s Sacred Seal was overwhelming.
If they fought to the end, things would spiral beyond control.
The Holy Throne might try to save lives, but whether they could protect them completely was another matter…
“If it were you, Captain.”
Roman whispered.
“Yes?”
“Could you forcibly stop the two of them?”
Hearing Roman’s question, Rosetta looked seriously at the two below.
“Both of them are outstanding, but with my abilities, I could stop them.”
“Then I’m relieved.”
As Roman’s anxious expression faded, replaced by a relieved smile because of her words, Rosetta’s mood unconsciously brightened.
Rosetta’s personality was like a knight’s sword—straightforward and open.
She answered directly without overthinking.
So she didn’t know what truly lay behind Roman’s smile.
“Mm.!”
At the very moment their conversation ended, Rosetta’s gaze sharpened—the duel below was finally about to erupt.
And from Luo Xiya’s perspective, a leaf blown from who knows where drifted down between them, swaying as it slowly fell.
While staring at Milis, Luo Xiya also noted the falling leaf.
Sword Dancer—train the eye first, then the sword.
For her, reaction, focus, and explosive power were far more useful than fancy sword techniques.
Frankly, without these three, even the best sword technique was just show—flashy on the outside, but breaking apart at a touch.
Finding the right moment and ending the fight at top speed was the proper way for a swordsman, not a drawn-out exchange of moves.
So, when the leaf fell between them, blocking Milis’s line of sight for just a moment, Luo Xiya moved to draw her sword.
Draw—dash—thrust.
Luo Xiya’s defeat of Lijie before had been accomplished with just these three steps.
From the crowd’s perspective, they only saw Luo Xiya still standing there.
Their eyes couldn’t even catch her speed, mistaking the afterimage she left behind as her real self.
But in Milis’s view, the moment the leaf came between their gazes, it was sliced in two by a flash of sword light.
In the next instant, Luo Xiya was in front of her, so close they were nearly touching.
In the blink of an eye, the blinding sword light reached Milis’s eyes.
“Ah.”
Rosetta, however, saw clearly.
Luo Xiya had acted decisively at the very instant the leaf hid her from view, nearly driving Milis to a dead end.
In close combat with a Sword Dancer, even with a difference in mana levels, the former’s chances of victory rose sharply.
Not to mention Milis still arrogantly kept her hands behind her back.
Yet, this was only an apparent crisis.
If a Saintess of the Holy See lost simply because she was approached, then such a supreme status would be too cheap.
“Ah!”
Only then did people realize Luo Xiya’s blade was right before Milis’s face—yet Milis still stood with her hands behind her back.
Was the legendary Saintess Highness about to fall so easily?
Shock, disappointment, excitement—people thought.
Luo Xiya had gained such an advantage with her first attack, but she showed no hint of joy.
Because she met Milis’s cold smile and saw, under her bangs swept by sword wind, a golden sacred eye with a cross-shaped pupil.
The path of her sword, which she’d envisioned, could go no further.
Because her Single-handed Sword was already caught out of thin air by Milis.
“So you think I’m just a mage who plays with fire?”
The Sacred Gold Flame wrapped around Milis’s hand, and before everyone’s shocked eyes, Luo Xiya’s blade melted and broke!
Reacting instantly, Luo Xiya let go of her Single-handed Sword.
Molten red metal dripped to the ground.
If she’d held on even a second longer, her arm—or her whole body—might have merged with the pool of metal at her feet.
In that life-and-death instant, sweat broke out on Luo Xiya’s forehead, her eyes wide with shock and confusion.
Her Mental Construction was useless against Milis?
“Heh.”
Melting Luo Xiya’s blade, Milis returned her hands behind her back, calmly watching Luo Xiya, with no desire to press the attack.
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