Chapter 427: Fine, Just This Once

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"DIE!!!"

BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!

The dragons struck one after another, and the wolves followed before the flames could clear. Vladimir kept sending them toward the same spot, refusing to leave a gap between the explosions.

He waited for Riven to come out, ready to meet him with the blades if he tried. But nothing moved toward him.

For a moment, Vladimir thought he had finally forced him to stay down.

Then he noticed the light.

It wasn’t coming from his flames, and it wasn’t flickering with the blasts. It held steady inside the smoke, growing clearer even as another dragon crashed into the ground. Vladimir drew his arm back, watching it. Something was moving through his attacks.

Amid the explosions and smoke, a bright sword of pure light manifested, cutting through everything in a single second.

SLAAASH!

"...Huh?!"

Conceptual Sword of Memories + Divine Axe Art – Horizon Cleave.

Riven used his Sword of Memories in the Material World, combining it with Divine Axe Art to unleash Horizon Cleave. In a single second, he completely negated all of Vladimir’s magic and attacks.

Vladimir stared at the space where his dragons had been. He tried to drive another wave of fire forward, but the attack he had already built was gone. The wolves disappeared with it, leaving him aiming at ground he could suddenly see again.

"No...!"

He had covered that whole area. Riven shouldn’t have been able to erase it just by swinging a sword.

Vladimir lowered his arm enough to look past the blades. Riven was moving through the remaining smoke, and he wasn’t struggling to stand.

That irritated him more than the sword itself. After all those attacks, Riven was still coming toward him as if the fight had only just started.

"W-Wha...?!"

Riven emerged from the explosions and smoke with a wide smile, his entire body beginning to transform. Nine white tails, fox ears, and white fur appeared as his body grew larger, leaner, and more muscular. His beastly form resembled a werewolf’s, but with the features of a white nine-tailed kitsune instead.

Riven spread his arms and gathered the essence of his surroundings. Spiritual Energy glistened brightly as rainbow stars shone in the sky, forming a pillar that revealed his immense power.

Vladimir swallowed hard as he watched Riven take this fight seriously... for the first time.

He kept his arm raised, but his eyes followed the pillar upward. It was still growing. Vladimir had wanted Riven to stop holding back, and now that he was getting what he wanted, he couldn’t pretend it was just another attack.

He looked back at Riven, trying to judge how much power he was gathering. There was no clear point where it stopped.

For a moment, Vladimir considered moving before Riven finished. He could try to close the distance and interrupt him.

But he stayed where he was.

This was the fight he had asked for. Attacking before Riven was ready would only leave him wondering whether he could have faced that power directly. He wanted to know.

"Fine, just this once," Riven said with a smile, his eyes gleaming with rainbow spiritual light. He pointed a finger forward, gathering all the Spiritual Energy he could and compressing it at his fingertip. "Here."

"Heh... HEHAHAHAHAHAHAH!" Vladimir completely lost it. He pointed his mechanical arm forward, and it opened, transforming into a cannon. "A cannon?!" he muttered, staring at the opening. The change startled him for a second before his smile widened. He poured all his energies into it, compressing them with his Psionic Engine.

He hadn’t expected that, but he wasn’t about to complain. He aimed it at Riven and planted his feet, adjusting his stance until the arm stayed level.

The energy inside it kept building. Vladimir could feel the strain as he fed it more, yet the cannon held its shape. He glanced at Riven’s fingertip, then pushed more of his own power into the engine.

There was no reason to save any of it now.

He had no idea whether his attack would be enough. Looking at Riven, he doubted it. But that didn’t make him lower the cannon. He wanted Riven to meet everything he had, not just another attempt he could dismiss.

And for once, Vladimir didn’t insult him. He was finally beginning to regard Riven with more respect, even though Riven had done nothing but disrespect him. "Thank you."

Riven was surprised to hear Vladimir thank him, but he kept smiling. "You’re welcome!"

Vladimir gave a short laugh and tightened his grip on the power gathered inside his arm. He still wanted to beat Riven. Thanking him didn’t change that, and neither did admitting to himself how strong the bastard really was.

But Riven was finally giving him a chance to face that strength without holding back. For once, Vladimir didn’t have anything else to say.

He checked his aim and braced his legs. Across from him, Riven kept his finger pointed at the cannon, the compressed light shining between them.

Neither looked away.

Vladimir waited until he saw Riven begin to release his attack. Then he forced the energy out of his own arm, holding his stance as the cannon fired straight toward him.

And then, their attacks collided.

RUUUUMBLE!

Their attacks collided. Endless Spiritual Energy, compressed into a blooming lotus of every color of the rainbow, met a torrent of burning hellfire that threatened to consume all life.

Vladimir kept his cannon aimed at the point where the two attacks met. The rainbow light spread across his flames, but he forced more energy forward, refusing to let it reach him.

Across from him, Riven held his ground. Neither attack had broken through yet.

The lotus opened farther, its colors becoming harder to distinguish as the light intensified. Hellfire surged around it, pushing against the petals instead of passing through them.

Vladimir dug his feet into the ground and leaned into the recoil. He couldn’t tell which of them was gaining ground anymore. He only knew that if he stopped now, Riven’s attack would keep coming.

So he didn’t stop.

Until the colliding beams erupted in a massive explosion.

BOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!

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