NOVEL NEXT Ch15: The Sword Saint, P3
Chapter 15: The Sword Saint, P3
~15.3~
*****
Kye sighed and gave Luma an apologetic smile. “I can only tell you who I am. I cannot force you to believe it. The only thing that I insist on... I am not a god. Only Lady Eve can claim to be a god.” Kye sighed again. “Not me, not Alfia, not Azreal, and not Ezra.”
“You even speak of those names?” Luma grimaced and stood up, her hand on the hilt of her blade. “I...”
“Shall we go ahead and have that sparring match? Would the archbishop be okay with delaying this meeting until we are done?”
The archbishop, who had just entered as Kye insisted on not being a god, nodded. “That is fine. I will observe as well. Before that, I would like to formally introduce myself.”
Kye nodded and curtsied, introducing herself first. “I am Kye Akari of Nippon Sekai. It is a pleasure to meet you.”
The archbishop nodded and smiled. “Likewise, Lady Kye. I am Archbishop Carys Laevateinn of the Church of Elysium. I approve of a duel between you and Lady Luma.” He pounded his staff on the concrete floor and a reddish portal opened. “This will deliver us to an uninhabited region where the two of you can let properly let loose. Before we go, I would like to ask one question of you, Lady Kye, if you do not mind sharing personal information.”
Kye nodded. “Very well.”
“Lady Allison visited recently and informed me that Goddess Elysia had incarnated into Elysium just over two decades ago in Realm 4 on Nippon Sekai in New Tokyo. She said you would introduce yourself as ‘Kye Akari of Nippon Sekai.’ While I do believe Lady Allison, I asked her for private information that you would be able to answer yourself to prove you are her. She gave me several names of your past lives. If it is acceptable for you to answer and name five of them, it would ease my mind. Please understand that there is no obligation to answer, or if you would like to answer in private, I will gladly go through the portal with you before our companions to hear your answers privately.”
Kye shook her head. “I don’t mind answering that question right here and now. I’ll give you a few of the names that I’ve told her about. Shiori Sakaguchi, Catherine Lancet, Elise Arbelle, Chloe Archambault, Louise De La Fontaine, and Amelia Eckhart. That’s six.”
“Indeed.” Carys smiled and nodded. “I believe you are Lady Elysia. Lady Allison instructed me not to refer to you as ‘Goddess Elysia’ once your identity was confirmed. I am happy to have covered that, and you will have my full support.”
Kye smiled. “Thank you, Lord Carys.”
He nodded and gestured at the portal. “Despite this, I can see the hesitation on Lady Luma’s face. I believe she wants to believe you, but has her own doubts to work through. I think this duel will help clear things up. Shall we?”
Kye nodded and turned to Luma. “Even if you do not choose to believe me, I am still willing to work with you for the good of this realm. My identity ultimately does not matter, only the deeds we need to perform.”
Luma’s eyes widened. I see. That all but confirms it. She has to be Elysia. Her way of thinking is identical. She even stated the name I knew her by in a past life. I wonder if she suspects me. Elysia knows me as Heidi Lumen and Luma the Ninety-Ninth. She took a deep breath and readied herself; her face rid of doubt. “Yes. That is the truth. Let’s do this!” Her excitement quickly replaced all other emotions, the confidence on her face doing nothing to hide her desire to spar.
Kye grinned and stepped through the portal.
*****
They stood in a large, grassy expanse after stepping through the portal, and the portal closed behind them. Aisha and Carys stood to the side while Kye and Luma faced each other. The two grinned, excited for the match.
“Lady Kye, since this is our first match, would you mind starting us off? I’ll adjust my output to match whatever you’d like to go with.”
“Oh?” Kye chuckled and drew Hikarimaru. I don’t normally carry a weapon openly like this, but the standard is different here. The people here are not accustomed to the likes of a bracelet being transformed into a weapon suddenly. I would have simply kept my aethersteel weapon in katana form, but Kari insisted on carrying her in weapon form so as to keep her by my side but not draw undue attention from having a notable individual like her following me around. Though I don’t particularly care, since I already blurted out my identity as Elysia, she was adamant. “My apologies for the laugh. It’s just been a while since I’ve received that sort of offer. Very well. I shall start with the output I used to silence Saint Collbrande and gradually increase it until I reach maximum or you tell me to stop. Sound good?”
Luma nodded and Kye began channeling light aether and gradually increased her output. As she stopped, Luma asked, “Shall we begin, then?”
“Not yet. I stopped at 30B for a moment simply to state that this is quite a bit higher than what I needed to silence Saint Collbrande, and that this is also the officially measured output of my attendants.”
“Your attendants are capable of this? That’s certainly impressive, Lady Kye,” said the archbishop.
Kye nodded and increased her output to 45B. “Had neither of you responded so casually, I would have stopped here, but it’s evident this is not sufficient. My question is, will my maximum output be enough? I wonder now.”
Luma smirked. “We won’t know until you try it.”
Kye grinned and continued increasing her output, gradually going up until she reached 275B. “Still not enough? How vexing. You may well be on par with the older royals of the empire.”
“I take it that’s your maximum?” Luma asked as she drew her blade, ornate black and silver in design.
“No.”
“No?”
“May as well go all in.” In a sudden, explosive burst, she unleashed her power at maximum output.”
Luma’s eyes widened. “Just over 10T. Very impressive.”
May as well add on compression. I’ll start at ten times. In an enormous burst, Kye’s output increased.
Luma smirked. “Ha. Now that gets the blood going.” She released her own aether, enough to match Kye, which took her by surprise for a moment, but Kye grinned and stood ready. “Let’s see how well you wield that aether!”
Archbishop Carys raised a barrier around himself and Aisha. “We’ll be safe in here.” She nodded and smiled. Carys raised his voice, “Begin!”
*****
Revision: 2024-5-13