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Valerie once again playfully dodged Ichika's hasty lunge. Unlike his new pawn, Valerie herself did not use her Longinus. It was not surprising, because the difference between the two Heavenly Dragons was still too great.
«Reinforcements!
A familiar growl erupted from the red gauntlet, signaling its activation. Once again today, however, the usual reinforcement had failed to bear fruit. Emeric was visibly puzzled, because in the previous sparring sessions, Ichika had been doing well, increasing her strength steadily, but for some reason today the famous ability was failing regularly.
Judging by the way Valerie clenched her teeth, he wasn't the only one who noticed the anomaly in Ichika's abilities today.
«What's going on with you, Red Fool?! - Valerie knocked the flying fist aside with her palm so that she could immediately push Ichika with momentum. Ichika, not expecting such a thing, rolled a few meters across the clearing. - Can't you at least use your mechanism properly?! What's so complicated?
Ichika stood up, breathing heavily, and wiped the drops of blood from the corner of her mouth.
«Shut up, Whitey!
Emeric's pawn once again rushed into action.
Emeric pensively considered what was happening. Actually, he couldn't quietly give his full attention to this battle. He was still reeling from the news of the Emperor's departure.
Dichauser Belial. The Absolute Champion, who has held the top spot in the overall rankings for more than a hundred years.
House Belial, prior to Dichauser's arrival, had never been the richest or most powerful house in Hell. Back during the War of the Three Factions, and later in the Civil War, this Pillar made many mistakes that cost them almost all of their wealth. They became impoverished and lost large amounts of territory. From the moment the New Lords took over, House Belial was on the verge of extinction until the then heir began to participate in the Ranking Games. He was so gifted and brilliant, not only in the use of his powers, but also tactically, that he instantly became a phenomenon that began to conquer the entire Underworld with his splendor. And the name of such a phenomenon who won many hearts with his play was Dichauser Belial.
Champion. Emperor. He's managed to be given many different nicknames, but the fact is, he's earned them all. As Emeric had mentioned once before, in this current Hell, Ranked Games were everything. Honor, glory, respect, to all of that the shortest path to all of that was winning. Victories over tough opponents and holding your place. Dichauser Belial had only lost his Ranking Games in his very distant youth, but not once in the last hundred years.
In the top ten, there are many demons who have made a name for themselves and have firmly established themselves there. And these demons were constantly fighting each other just to increase their place by one position. All in all, the first ten places were an incredibly hot place where furors large and small were constantly happening. Except for the first place, which constantly shortchanged those who tried to shove him off that spot.
He was a superstar who was constantly evolving and not standing still. His quotes were pieced together, his merch was instantly bought off store shelves, he was an icon in the Underworld. The Strongest King.
Was Dichauser Belial the strongest demon in all of Hell? Of course not! There were at least Lords who, along with their retinue, were forbidden to participate in the Ranking Games. Not to mention the many old demons, as old as civilization, who had nothing to prove.
The fact was, the Emperor had become the most famous and respected man in a type of "sport" that was valued throughout the supernatural world. He was the Michael Jordan of all Hell, the local Idol.
And two months ago, about the same time they had just begun their operations in this city, Dichauser Belial had abruptly ended his undefeated career and cut all ties, going off in an uncharted direction. His past retinue had repeatedly tried to find out where their king had gone, but they only shrugged their shoulders. The Emperor's departure was as much of a surprise to them as it was to the rest of the Underworld. Many people had been bombarding the news for weeks, and it was a wonder Emeric had only learned of it now.
The Emperor was as much an idol to Emeric as he was to every other demon that had been born in the last hundred years. His games had been nibbled at from all sides, tsked admiringly, and then begun to be parsed anew for all the wisdom and experience of the greatest member of the Ranked Games.
His departure felt like it left an unfilled hole. The Ranked Games had lost interest noticeably, though not for long. Emeric had no doubt that in the near future, when the news died down, the Ranking Games would regain their popularity. The question on most minds in Hell now was, who was going to come out on top?
«Reinforcements!
A familiar growl pulled him out of his musings. Emeric shook his head and turned his attention back to the current battle. There was no point in being sad about something you couldn't change.
«Valerie tapped her finger impatiently on her elbow. It was obvious that she was already bored with this kind of battle. - Are you going to attack?
Valerie liked fights, but with more or less equal opponents. She didn't want to teach anyone, especially this fool who was nothing of the sort. But the king said, so she does. In fact, there is no more perfect teacher in the world than her. Who can teach how to be a Heavenly Dragon? Another Heavenly Dragon, of course!
«S-bitch!... - Ichika could barely stand on her feet, but she still held on. At times like this, there was a pivot in her that kept Valerie from giving up. Emeric was right that you had to start somewhere, and the pervert's potential wasn't bad. - Remember when you threw me in that dump truck?!
«It was an accident.
Valerie looked away when she felt a sharply intensified stare from Emeric, who was standing nearby. He should have expected that his queen would not hold back some of her impulses in his absence.
«Accidentally? - Ichika's chest blazed with dragon fire, so angry was she. - We've been waiting an hour for this stupid dump truck, you bitch! I asked you, "Why do we have to wait here for training?"
«Reinforcements!
Another ability boost rang out during her rant.
«I've been preparing this strike all this month! - Ichika got into a fighting stance, ready to charge forward at any moment. - You're going to pay for all your fucking humiliation!
The mood was so serious that even Valerie smiled. This pervert would make something out of this pervert! She had a lot of fighting spirit, even the Divine Divide's mistress had to admit it. In this situation, Valerie could only take off her hat as a sign of respect, something she was always ready to celebrate properly!
«Come on! - Valerie smiled excitedly and was ready to take the hit. This time she was even willing to give in a little, to give Ichika confidence.
With a battle cry, Ichika instantly leaped towards Valerie to strike with the full weight of her red glove from the turn.
This artifact felt as if it had hit a concrete wall, though only a fragile looking maiden's palm came out to meet it.
Despite the successful block on Valerie's part, Ichika smiled triumphantly. So much so that even Valerie felt a twinge for a second....
«Transmission!
Silence. There was only silence in the clearing, broken only by occasional tired exhalations from Ichika.
Emeric furrowed his brow as he realized that Valerie was somehow suspiciously quiet, only her rapidly pale face showing signs of life.
What was it that Ichika had "passed on" since Valerie just froze in place?
With trembling lips Valerie began to speak:
«You're sick...
«Ha-ha-ha," Ichika laughed in triumph. - Do you think I just 'amplified' myself every now and then?!
«You're crazy," Valerie could barely stand on her feet, judging by the sharp drop in her knees. - I can't believe you've "enhanced" this....
Emeric couldn't understand what had happened. Was it some kind of incredibly powerful technique?! That could incapacitate even a unit as powerful as Valerie?! What had his incredible pawn come up with?!
«You think that's it?! - Ichika jerked her hand away sharply and swung again. - Dryg!
«Yes, partner! - The glove replied. - Penetration!
Emeric watched in slow motion as the red gauntlet, blazing with red energy in all directions, raced toward Valerie's sharply reduced strength. It was approaching his queen's jaw to finally reach its destination.
Ichika was able to deliver a perfectly placed blow to an opponent who outnumbered her by a head. A move that was designed for this kind of situation. "Penetration" bypasses any defenses and allows its wearer to strike directly through passive magical aura and any armor. So, in theory, if this particular technique hits you, you miss the default strong strike.
Emeric's thoughts were confirmed when he saw Valerie's head snap back sharply. The demonic vision could even observe microscopic droplets of sweat, saliva and blood that "flew" away from the head.
The impact caused a small shockwave that scattered the nearby foliage.
«Oh-re-no... - It was the only thing he could utter as he looked at his queen, who was lying unconscious in front of his pawn.
For a second a pawn who has only been practicing for a month since his transformation.
Yes, the plan was sewn with white threads, and Valerie had never taken her opponent seriously, but that was her problem.
Ichiki had the courage and ingenuity to come up with an entirely new technique, to secretly explore the wider capabilities of his Sacred Mechanism and take Valerie by surprise.
Emeric could only applaud at the whole gambit. Such machinations were entirely to his taste.
«YES! I DID IT, PRESIDENT!
Ichika began to jump for joy and let out all of her accumulated resentment from her constant failures. It was obvious that Ichika was incredibly excited about her first success in the battlefield.
Emeric could only shake his head in surprise as he approached Valerie and checked her condition. A broken nose and broken jaw, and apparently a long period of unconsciousness. "Penetration" was no bullshit, and if you took it head-on, you could get a good kicking, as Valerie's lying body proved.
What a surprise, Ichika! That's just top-notch!
«You're doing great, Ichika! - He started sharing his demonic energy with Valerie to spur regeneration. - But still, what was in that "transmission"? What exactly did you "transmit" to Valerie? She just froze in place!
Ichika froze abruptly and began to turn toward him in a jagged motion, all the while giggling awkwardly.
«Well," Ichika didn't look into his eyes, it was obvious that she was extremely embarrassed. - You see, every woman has a "weakness..."
«Weakness? - He furrowed his eyebrows in bewilderment.
«You see, President," Ichika began to squirm in her seat. - Well, the "weakness" that every month "overcomes" any girl. I just "amplified" it to artificially "cause" this weakness, and then "amplified" it a few more times and "transferred" it to Valerie...
A weakness that every girl gets once a month?
This!
No way!
Ichika artificially induced her period, and afterward amplified it and gave it to Valerie!
«E-this... - Emeric felt such an overpowering terror that his eyes darkened sharply.
«President!...
It was the last thing he heard before he passed out.
Don't mess with Ichika Hyodo!
***
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