“Pfeil has started fighting Flames, and Jared is fighting Luzer. I’m concerned about those who haven’t shown themselves yet, but for now, let’s reduce the enemy numbers as much as possible.”
“Oh, but I won’t let you do that.”
“—You are my opponent, Suiren.”
As Rosa glanced at her with annoyance, a woman clad in an Eastern island nation’s kimono, holding a sword, stood before her. Her name was Suiren, a woman with well-maintained, lustrous black hair that reached her waist. Like Rosa, she was one of the heirs to Waalthe.
“I would say it’s been a while, but the words I have for you now are—farewell.”
In an instant, a *kinn* metal sound echoed, and Rosa’s sword clashed with Suiren’s katana, scattering sparks.
After striking each other two or three times, they stopped their movements, and Suiren smiled.
“As expected of Rosa. My rival.”
“Hmph, should I say I’m honored?”
“Hardly. Even if I unilaterally considered you my rival, you never paid me even the slightest attention, did you?”
“Not entirely. I acknowledged you as an annoying person who would pick a fight every time something happened.”
Suiren’s grip tightened on her sword at the obvious provocation.
“…Very well. I had intended to converse a little before killing you, but it seems that was a waste of time. Then, just one last word. I—I have always wanted to kill you.”
With her words, Suiren kicked off the ground. Suiren’s movements, which closed the distance smoothly like flowing water but with certainty, were due to Water Attribute Magic.
Even among Waalthe’s heirs, who sometimes engaged in technical exchanges, they did not reveal their trump cards. Therefore, Rosa did not know the full extent of Suiren’s power.
“That’s a pity. I didn’t dislike you. However, traitors only meet death.”
Rosa easily parried the sword swing as it came at her like a flowing stream. Suiren’s eyes widened as her attack, capable of felling many enemies, was so easily received.
Rosa certainly didn’t know what technique Suiren used to launch her attacks. However, having spent years on missions together, she understood her opponent’s habits and skills. More importantly, she had observed Suiren’s most specialized technique for years. She had plenty of countermeasures.
“I’ll ask you only once—why did you betray Waalthe, and Wahash?”
Rosa asked, grabbing Suiren by the collar at a distance close enough to hear her breath.
“Why? Are you asking seriously?”
“Yes. Seriously. Flames had been rebelling against Wahash for some time. They openly stated they wanted to use Magic freely, that Pfeil was an obstacle, and that they wanted to be the sole successor to Wahash. There’s no need to ask, but you are different.”
“Ah, ahahaha, you ask me that?”
“What?”
Another sword strike was received, but she was forced to create distance.
Slicing her sword and cutting down the troublesome soldiers, Rosa kicked off the ground to close the distance with Suiren. However, Suiren, who had been showing open hostility, created distance again.
Although Rosa couldn’t understand Suiren’s actions, it wasn’t a reason to stop. Once she cut her down, she would ask what she needed to ask and get her answers.
Rosa did not want to kill Suiren, a comrade she once fought alongside as a Waalthe heir. However, a traitor is a traitor. The organization cannot function without strict discipline. Therefore, she would kill even someone she fought with and sometimes saved.
“I have always envied you. Despite being the same woman, you were strong, noble, and proud, with outstanding abilities among the heirs. However, Rosa, you acted as if being Wahash’s daughter was a given. You always spoke of ‘my father, Wahash’… Ah, how infuriating!”
“What are you trying to say? Are you suggesting I used my father’s authority?”
“Isn’t that exactly what happened?”
Rosa, who had maintained a smile since the battle began, lost her expression.
“If you had been the sole successor, I could have overlooked that arrogant attitude of yours. However, that is not the case. I am also an heir, and Pfeil, who is more skilled than you, exists. Yet, your attitude was as if you were the best. Therefore, I thought: if Wahash were to step down, this organization would collapse.”
When Suiren swung her sword horizontally, multiple water blades were created by that action alone.
“I joined Dolf Ein not because I wanted to betray the organization. There is only one reason: I wanted to kill Rosa Roen. That is all.”
The moment she declared this, the water blades surged towards Rosa.
These blades, which easily sliced through Waalthe members and defectors in their path, were an undeniable attack. The water blades, a fusion of their formless nature and Suiren’s honed slashes, could cleave through Earth Attribute Monsters with steel bodies. For a human to receive them meant death.
“I see. I understand what you want to say.”
However, Suiren’s final attack did not reach Rosa.
“…Why.”
The moment the unleashed water blades approached Rosa, they evaporated and vanished.
Before the stunned Suiren stood Rosa, emanating heat haze from her entire body.
“So, that’s how it is, you—you were a Fire Attribute Magician!”
Even Suiren, who had known Rosa for years, was unaware of her Attribute Magic. However, it didn’t make sense. Suiren’s water blades could cut down monsters enveloped in high-density flames. Yet, they evaporated before reaching her.
“My father, Wahash, forbade me from using magic. One reason was so I wouldn’t rely on magic as a combatant of Waalthe. The other is—my magic is too strong.”
“I knew you could use some form of magic, but I never imagined it was Fire Attribute Magic—Flames would surely have a heart attack from shock if they heard this.”
“It would be for the best if their hearts stopped; it would save me the trouble of killing them. Moreover, by choosing to fight Pfeil, that person has no future.”
Flames enveloped the sword in Rosa’s hand.
To Suiren’s eyes, it appeared as if only a slight flame had appeared on the sword. However, she experienced firsthand the suffocating heat that assailed her. It felt as if her throat would burn just by breathing. No matter how much Magic Power she poured into creating water, it evaporated one after another.
What remained was close-combat swordplay, but at this heat intensity, getting close was impossible. She desperately thought about how to win, or rather, how to survive.
“And you, having fought me, will also die. Farewell, Suiren.”
Rosa raised her flame-engulfed sword high. However, Suiren still hadn’t conceived of a countermeasure. Reduced to a helpless weakling, trembling only in fear of the heat, Suiren was engulfed by the crimson, scorching body of flame unleashed by Rosa.
