The battle in the arena suddenly came to a standstill.
Both women simultaneously shot a glare at the direction from which the voice had come.
There stood Eiji, about ten meters away from them, watching the two of them fight with wide eyes, an expression of eager expectation on his face.
He was shouting something like "Tear her clothes, pull her hair."
Maybe they should just kill him first!
At this moment, both sisters had the same thought.
"Beowulf..."
Touko's gaze moved past Eiji and landed on Beowulf, who was not far behind him. The golden wolf had reverted to its original form, curled up on the ground, hugging its limbs, its eyes lifeless as it muttered something under its breath. It looked completely broken.
There were no visible wounds on its body, but its spirit had been shattered.
It seemed that for at least some time, it would be in no condition to fight again. Touko had never expected to rely on Beowulf much anyway, since their contract was quite loose, and after this battle, they were supposed to part ways. She couldn't issue any overly forceful commands to Beowulf.
"It seems like he's been defeated by the general," Touko mused, her right hand hidden behind her back, her expression unchanged.
"Should I surrender now?" she asked.
"Hah, where did your courage go just now?" Aoko couldn't help but mock her.
It was obvious Aoko wasn't very perceptive when it came to these kinds of magical exchanges.
Swish!
Eiji suddenly produced a two-foot-long blade from somewhere and flung it forward. It shot through the air, piercing it, heading toward some unknown distant place.
"What are you doing?" Aoko was startled by his sudden movement.
"If you're going to surrender, why don't you come out first?" Eiji didn't look at Touko but instead focused on the direction where the blade had been thrown, a warm smile on his face.
"Heh, you're really sharp!" she said.
From the direction Eiji had thrown the blade, a transparent figure appeared, slowly becoming solid.
Dressed in a green gown, the figure wore a natural smile, unembarrassed at all, and was holding a stone between her fingers, taking a defensive stance.
It was none other than Touko.
The previous version of her that had been facing off with the two of them had dissipated like snow under the spring sun, leaving Aoko wide-eyed in a burst of anger.
She almost got away!
Despite the situation, she still hadn't chosen to surrender, continuing to struggle.
Eiji honestly didn't dislike such efforts.
"Aoko, close your eyes and turn around."
"What are you going to do?"
"I told you to turn around and close your eyes, just do it."
"Tch!"
Aoko muttered, then turned around and closed her eyes obediently.
Bang!
Without warning, Eiji surged forward, charging straight at Touko.
Touko shivered.
"That's fast!"
Although she had seen it before, it still felt too quick!
A distance of more than ten meters was covered in less than half a second!
Her eyes couldn't catch such a fast figure. Her magic eyes were useless, and she didn't even have time to carve a rune, only reflexively throwing the stone in her hand.
The stone had a defensive rune inscribed on it. If it activated successfully, it would provide a brief shield, giving her a chance to inscribe a new rune—
Her idea was good.
But she had underestimated Eiji's sensitivity to such things.
Crack!
In an instant, he judged that the stone was something to deal with. As he advanced, he slashed with his sword, cutting the rune stone in two.
Then, before she could react, he was right in front of Touko. In her suffocating gaze, he placed the blade at her neck without ceremony.
"Hah... I lost. Do whatever you want, kill or scrape, it's up to you."
Touko sighed in defeat, raising both hands, her face showing no interest.
"Isn't that too easy for you?"
Eiji's lips curled into a vicious smile.
If he killed her so easily, wouldn't he be letting her off too easily after all the times she had tricked him?
Furthermore, he clearly knew that Touko had Unlimited Virginity Works. Though he wasn't sure when she had learned it, killing her here wasn't the best choice.
"Look at me."
"Huh?"
Touko frowned slightly, instinctively looking away.
As a magus, when someone told her to look at them, she would instinctively avoid eye contact to prevent falling victim to some visual magecraft.
Seeing this, Eiji simply dropped his sword, grabbed her face with both hands, and held her head firmly.
"What do you want to do?"
Realizing she couldn't escape his immense strength, Touko stopped resisting.
He didn't want to do anything flashy, did he?
Although she found his appearance appealing, wasn't this a bit too rushed? And her sister was still nearby.
While muddling through such thoughts, she suddenly noticed—
"Is it glowing...?"
Yes.
Eiji's eyes were emitting a dazzling light.
It was sacred, imposing, and noble, so overwhelming that it made her heart tremble.
"Uh-oh—?!"
By the time she realized what was happening, it was too late.
In an instant, her mental defenses were completely shattered.
In a brief exchange of glances, a forceful will, seemingly beyond the span of her entire life, drilled into her mind. In the haze, she gave up all resistance, even willingly sinking into it.
Eiji let go of her face.
Touko's body, soft and boneless, collapsed to the ground, gasping heavily, as though all her strength had been drained away.
"Is it done?"
"Done."
After receiving a clear answer, Aoko turned around.
"Where's Touko?"
She looked around for a while but couldn't find Touko, feeling confused.
"She ran off."
Eiji replied casually.
At the same time, he put a small bottle back into his pocket.
"Ran off?"
Aoko stared in disbelief.
"With you around, she could escape?"
"What's so strange about it? I'm not a god."
Eiji rolled his eyes, then stretched lazily, looking very relaxed.
"Alright, mission accomplished, let's all go our separate ways!"
"Is this really solved?"
Aoko couldn't help but cover her forehead, a look of frustration on her face.
As long as Touko wasn't caught, she wouldn't have peace of mind. Who knew where she might pop up and stab her next?
"Are you alright? You look as lively as ever."
"I'm fine. The magic crest is healing me. With this kind of injury, it'll heal in an hour."
Aoko let go of her side, and indeed, the wound had already begun to show signs of healing.
"Crests can do that?"
"Of course. The larger the engraving, the better the effect."
Engraving was like a special organ for magi. Whether out of necessity or by design, this organ would help a magician survive as long as possible, ensuring they wouldn't easily die.
With everything done, Eiji was ready to head home.
But suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.
Not only him, but Aoko beside him also showed an expression of disbelief.
***
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